episode_0056

10 days ago

A monster cloud appeared in Incheon, Gyeonggi-do.

An ordinary attack that had nothing to do with Jetman.

“Citizens, please evacuate to air-raid shelters or underground as soon as possible!”

A guild patrolling around here leads people while holding a loudspeaker.

“It’s a red cloud, so it’s dangerous to fight alone! It just takes time and holds on until another guild comes.”

Due to the instinct of monsters, they give priority to attacking those who attack them.

Knowing that, they plan to ensure the safety of the people by only attracting attention until other guilds arrive.

“Put down a shield! Bind your feet with restraint techniques!”

Solar Guild leader Taeyang Park, currently in command, wore a black suit and tried to follow the manual.

Another awakened person intentionally grows tree trunks in front of the shield, attempting to hinder the monsters’ path.

But something different from their wishes suddenly happened.

Aren’t the monsters targeting ordinary people who are evacuating, not them?

“Stop it!”

In response to Park Tae-yang’s urgent words, a restraint made of ether traps the monster.

“Phew. You were surprised!”

But soon something surprising happened. Isn’t it because another monster destroyed the ground and neutralized the monster blocked in the restraint circle?

“Does that make sense?”

Surprised, Park Tae-yang throws the spear made of flame at the monster.

The spear pierced the monster, but that was all it took.

Monsters begin to scatter in all directions.

“Why aren’t you coming this way?”

I couldn’t understand. Although monsters dislike humans, they usually try to eliminate nearby threats first.

However, the monster that came out of this red cloud was something different.

“It’s strange. Usually cunning in battle. That… . Aren’t these movements as if they were trained from the beginning?”

In situations that are difficult to understand, past experience does not apply.

‘After establishing a defensive line, you are waiting for reinforcements while inducing the enemy to attrition! But if that happens… .’

We must give up this line of defense and protect our citizens.

The danger level is rising, but aren’t monsters spreading in all directions anyway?

“Everyone give up your defenses and chase the monster! Divide into left and right and meet in the center!”

That was when they divided the group into two and started spreading left and right.

Aren’t the monsters suddenly concentrated in one direction?

“You’re ignoring us, right?”

Park Tae-yang was greatly embarrassed when he saw the monster ignoring him and running in the opposite direction.

It goes without saying that the durability of monsters is higher than that of humans.

Ignore the attack and run. And that too to surround his guild on the other side.

‘Strange. Has the monster lured us now? It’s different from the cleverness that monsters show in battle! It’s a strategic and tactical area!’

The monsters form a formation and attack them. Something happened that I couldn’t understand.

Naturally, the Solar Guild members on the other side were astonished by the monsters’ quick response. Faced with the threat of being surrounded from front and back, my judgment began to become clouded.

“You bastards!”

The spear of flame from both Park Tae-yang’s hands instantly pierces the monster with its back facing him.

“Attack! You’re defenseless anyway!”

Due to his quick judgment, several monsters trying to establish a siege are defeated.

However, it cannot be completely prevented.

In an instant, a guild member is eaten by a monster.

“No!”

Park Tae-yang began to charge once again with an excited look on his face. At this time, his body was full of fireballs, and the moment the monster touched it, a series of explosions occurred.

Reckless.

It is impossible to catch all of the more than 10 remaining monsters by yourself.

But Park Taeyang had to do that.

To protect his guild members.

In that way, he body-butted the monster with the fireball itself, turning one of them into charcoal black again.

A foul, burnt smell fills the air, and Park Tae-yang looks at the pieces of his dead comrade’s body.

“ Damn it… .”

[You are useless… . all.]

But that was then. Suddenly a strange sound reached his ears.

“Who gives me telepathy?”

When he was startled and became wary of his surroundings, a monster he had never seen before appeared.

Simply put, it was mud. An amorphous monster made up of a stinking lump of mud full of filth.

‘Is it a new species? It’s not even slime.’

Park Tae-yang held out both hands towards the mud monster. The intention was to dry the mud monster by generating such powerful heat.

In reality, the mud monster was pushed backwards in a hurry by the force.

Only, telepathic words came into his head again.

[strong… . What I said… . field… . uh]

When Park Taeyang’s body was slow to react to the sound he heard for the second time, the mud monster grabbed Park Taeyang in an instant.

“Ugh!”

From this point on, the energy from Park Tae-yang’s body began to gradually drain away.

And the ringing in my head became stronger.

[Move. Attack. hurry!]

Park Taeyang’s vision begins to change. It’s not a monster, it’s a person, and they are shocked to see themselves.

His arms begin to move forcefully.

It releases flames towards its companions who have shared life, death and ups and downs with it.

“Stop fucking doing it!”

However, Park Tae-yang burst into flames and sprayed fireworks towards himself. The body of this monster that was trying to control him falls away, and his blurred mind returns.

“Is it manipulation? This means don’t underestimate the human spirit! I’ve never even heard of a monster controlling humans!”

While Park Taeyang hurriedly stood up, his colleagues rescued him.

Movement magic was created under my feet and it moved at high speed in the direction of my colleagues.

The situation takes a turn again when another guild comes to the rescue.

It ended in their victory.

However, Park Tae-yang was uneasy about the mud monster’s unusual movements and the way it spoke in human language.

So he asked the employees who came to clean up the place to check for the mud monster.

But he heard surprising news.

“There was no one that looked like a mud monster, right? I heard there was leather thrown away that looked like a bunch of monsters.”

“What? ”

Park Taeyang tilted his head at the story. Only meaningless by-products flutter around, as if something has escaped from the inside of the leather.

***

Shin Je-ul was planning to make a clear deal with Ray since he came to school on Sunday.

‘We failed due to April’s interference, but this time it’s different!’

In fact, Ray’s decision last time was a far cry from Shin Jeul’s expectations.

Of course, I’m not close to Ray. To be honest, among the awakened people, the only people Shin Je-ul would talk to openly and pretend to be close to are April and Lee Sang-hyun.

Fortunately, Lee Sang-hyun is like that to everyone, and since we meet April often, it’s easy for him to talk to everyone in his own way.

Lasia can have a little conversation, but it is difficult to be friendly with her.

In short, everyone except those two is embarrassed and I am reluctant to talk to them carelessly.

It’s difficult to even pretend to be close friends. Ray was especially special.

A woman with a ponytail and sharp eyes who always has a serious and cautious attitude.

In Shin Je-ul’s eyes, the woman’s firm thighs visible from the skirt of her uniform were particularly attractive. However, as I said before, even though I was a foreigner and could converse in Korean, it was difficult to say that I was fluent.

It was natural for him to look at me strangely when the support department suddenly suggested that he study with me.

I went in under the assumption that Shin Jeul would also be rejected.

But Ray gave permission.

‘why?’

A very strange decision, even if it is not on the level of the Seven Wonders.

So this time, I lunged at Ray without any pressure.

Anyway, if you search the school’s CCTV, you can quickly figure out Ray’s location.

As I saw before, they often go to the library, so I was waiting nearby.

Soon, Ray, wearing a uniform with a neatly ironed ponytail, passes by.

Shin Jeul stood up towards her.

“It’s hard to meet you because I don’t have any contact information.”

“It’s a holiday, but did you go to school?”

“To finish the story I told last time. Then, since we have practice next week, how about we study together after school on Friday first?”

Shin Jeul was nervous again. Some women even have a good one night stand and then change their minds the next day and pretend it wasn’t the case.

‘Given Ray’s personality, he wouldn’t do that.’

I usually trust Ray’s behavior and go.

A moment of silence passed and, as he expected, Ray easily nodded.

“Yes. This Friday. So what kind of study are you going to do? Sometimes I forget or can’t hear fast words.”

It’s in earnest. Usually, we meet on a day to study together and reach an agreement, but do you present the content to study in advance?

‘I’m serious.’

Shin Je-ul was also a little taken aback by his unexpectedly proactive appearance.

“I hadn’t thought about that until now, but thank you for telling me first. Not being able to hear fast speech means that your ears are not open. Usually, when Koreans speak quickly, they can roughly understand the sentences before and after them even if they miss a word in the middle.”

“I see.”

“But you don’t have to worry about that. Because even among ourselves, there are times when we don’t hear well. In that case, just be brave and ask. I see that people who like to solve problems on their own don’t often say this. how is it? Ray, do you often ask others for help?”

Ray’s pupils widen at Shin Jeul’s words.

“I see. I tried to solve it on my own. I realized something new. Thank you.”

Ray bows down and Shin Jeul is embarrassed.

“What are we saying to each other? Just keep your promises to each other. Because I can’t waste too much time. Simply listen and speak to each other within 1 hour. And let’s start by checking the words you don’t know. Because I’m not a beginner. Always write down words you miss in a notebook and learn how to use them. This is the basics.”

“Life… . Newbie?”

“That’s what you’re asking. If you connect the sentences before and after, it means that you are not ignorant of Korean at all. A beginner is a beginner. The word life has many meanings.”

Shin Je-ul benefited greatly from the fact that he received tutoring while attending college.

This is because they remember the learning style taught by their tutor at that time.

“I see. He definitely answers well. I understand why April keeps her by her side.”

“Thank you for acknowledging me. Then we exchange contact information… .”

Shin Je-ul decided that Ray’s sub-scenario was essentially over here.

Since it is the final exam, he has plenty of time, and he has good Korean language scores, so there is no way he would have difficulty studying Korean.

There was just one thing I was curious about.

“By the way, Ray. I want to ask you one thing.”

“What is it?”

“Me. I think it was a bit shameless and sudden, but it was well received. Didn’t you think it was too burdensome?”

“Daijobuda.”

At this time, Ray said something full of confidence and then lowered his head.

“I’m sorry. It pops out sometimes.”

“No. no. It’s like that when you live abroad. Rather, that is its charm.”

“…I see.”

Ray then looked Shin Jeul up and down.

“I heard it. You are very interested in women.”

“…I must be mistaken.”

“But it’s okay. Because April is taking you with her. If April is like that, she can be trusted.”

The reason why Ray accepted Shin Je-ul in the first place was simpler than expected.

April, who is very picky, is the only man who takes her around and practices with her.

Because he is in the support department, he is not very strong, so it is difficult for him to commit adultery(?), and he is a trustworthy man.

Ray saw that and granted Shin Je-ul’s request.

“Anyway, you’re saying you trust me, right?”

“Yes. But tell me in advance. I have to graduate from here with good grades. There is no time to focus on anything else.”

“A misunderstanding?”

Although Shin Je-ul was wronged, this notoriety(?) did not go away for quite a long time.

***

Lim Heon-su. As a member of the support department, he has been under a lot of stress lately.

“I keep hearing ghost sounds.”

He has been hearing ghostly noises in his house for nearly two weeks. Sometimes, when I’m home alone, I periodically hear ghostly noises.

The sound of ghosts making all kinds of strange noises. But something has been strange about the past week.

[receive… . ah… . field… . female… . la.]

I even had auditory hallucinations.

“Have I gone crazy? Am I going crazy?”

After hearing auditory hallucinations for the past week, Lim Heon-su thought about going to the hospital instead of the sports day on Monday.

[Move… . I… . you… .]

Plus, my back keeps tingling these days.

It’s truly a situation that makes matters worse. I couldn’t sleep and was stressed out, so I tried to get angry at my parents, but the situation didn’t change.

Meanwhile, the auditory hallucinations become more and more intense.

As he was suffering, an irregularly shaped object began to approach him little by little.