Part 1 Chapter 2 (7)

“Are you crazy?”

I muttered something strange and nudged the unconscious woman’s hand with my foot. The hand that had been clutching her skirt fell away, and she collapsed onto the floor.

“She doesn’t seem like a vagrant.”

For a vagrant hiding in Seoul-no, S University-she was subtly clean. Her attire also gave off the impression of a modest university student, like a freshman who had just come up from the provinces.

“Tsk.”

I didn’t know why, or who she was, but for some reason, I felt uneasy just leaving her.

“I can just make another veil anyway.”

I sprayed the lingering scent of my mana onto the veil wrapped around my neck. Since my presence was thoroughly imprinted on it, any monster would notice it and absolutely not approach the veil.

Rustle.

I casually tossed the veil over the woman.

‘Getting involved unnecessarily on my way.’

It had been a long time since I’d burned away the monsters that were attacking fleeing people on my way up. Some of the monsters that directly cross over from Terra are influenced by the Otherworld God and gain a ‘Chaos attribute,’ and the destructive will and intelligence that result from this are used solely to toy with and ‘slaughter’ humans.

A crushed van caught my eye in a corner of the parking lot. There was nothing I could do for those who were already dead.

“Alright, then now……. “

Just as I was about to spread my wings, fiddling with my now empty neck, the woman at the edge of my vision subtly bothered me.

A wide parking lot. A fallen woman. A veil carelessly tossed over her.

“…Ugh.”

I lifted the woman and laid her on a nearby bench in the parking lot. Surrounded by the warm heat emanating from the veil, the woman was breathing peacefully like a baby bird in a cradle.

I wrapped the long, trailing veil around the woman’s neck and let it hang down over her body to its full length. I stepped back from the woman and examined her face.

“Hey, but she really looks like Cheon Gaeul? Wow.”

I chuckled and tidied the woman’s disheveled hair. If you just removed the venom and hatred for the world from Cheon Gaeul, she would look exactly like this. A few more wrinkles too. And a bit more mature charm.

The possibility of it being her? None. Cheon Gaeul isn’t this youthful. Compared to her, she’s at least 10 years older.

“…Nah. No way.”

I slapped my cheeks with both hands, clearing away the random thoughts.

Masquerade. One of the heroines with the alias ‘Masquerade Ball’.

That witch, who thought nothing of killing people, couldn’t possibly be such a gentle soul. I erased the absurd assumption that had popped into my head and quickly leaped up between the buildings.

…turned his steps back. Fortunately, no monsters appeared in the mere 10 seconds that passed.

‘Let’s hide her somewhere first.’

If she’s really Cheon Gaeul, then a dimensional gate isn’t important anymore.

I picked up Cheon Gaeul (presumed) who was lying in the middle of the parking lot and ran into the relatively intact lecture hall building.

* * *

April 4, 2020, 6:35 PM, Hero Association Republic of Korea – New Seoul Headquarters.

“How many Heroes responded to the summons?!”

“Seven from Gwangmyeong! Five from Anyang! Still no response from Seongnam!”

“Call them immediately, whether it’s on their cell phones or whatever! We need to establish a defensive line to prevent them from coming down, don’t we?!”

Kang Soyeon nervously bit her thumbnail. The third dimensional gate to appear in the Republic of Korea had, of all places, opened right in the middle of Seoul, making it the most difficult to deal with.

“Damn it…!”

Soyeon, reconfirming the dimensional gate’s location on the screen, couldn’t hide her indignation. Not only was it a dimensional gate, but that location was, of all places, where they were scheduled to film today.

“Team Leader-nim! The inquiry calls are constant right now!”

“Don’t answer! Just ignore them!”

The phones at the association’s external reception were already ringing non-stop. Call records showed a barrage of inquiries from countless individuals, including the media, private citizens, and even agency representatives.

Soyeon, with trembling hands, turned on her smartphone and checked the portal’s home screen. Already, search rankings and breaking news were filled with stories about the dimensional gate.

[Breaking News] Dimensional Gate Appears in Gwanaksan (3rd Report)

[Breaking News] Last Love Film Crew Loses Contact on Gwanaksan Line

[Breaking News] Association Promises to Destroy Dimensional Gate by Mobilizing All Nearby Heroes

[Related News] Drama Filming in Seoul, Lack of Crisis Awareness Persists

“Aaaargh!!”

Soyeon messed up her hair, throwing a tantrum. Everyone at the headquarters sympathized with Soyeon’s hysteria but avoided her gaze.

“I told you this was absolutely impossible! Why do you always have to do what you’re told not to, causing all this chaos?!”

The drama Last Love, currently enjoying the highest popularity in Korea. The PD requested cooperation, insisting on filming the main characters’ first date scene at S University. Soyeon vehemently opposed it, passionately arguing against filming in Seoul until she was practically bleeding from her nose.

– Is filming in Seoul… that difficult?

The association official, summoned by the government, testified that the President, an S University alumnus, expressed regret that the first date scene was not filmed at S University.

Nevertheless, Soyeon firmly declared it impossible. The one who vehemently argued for its possibility against her opinion and pushed through with the Seoul filming was none other than the person involved in the filming, Lee Seung-hyung.

“When he comes back, I’m going to kick his damn knees, that bastard.”

Soyeon calmed her seething insides by gulping down cold water.

“Team Leader-nim! It’s BH!”

“…Ugh.”

Soyeon, taking the phone from the staff member, straightened her posture and answered the call.

“Yes! This is Kang Soyeon, from the Hero Association New Seoul Headquarters!”

[Nice to meet you, Agent Kang Soyeon.]

Startled. Soyeon gritted her teeth at the voice she heard.

“…Yes, Minister-nim.”

[Well… the VIP specifically requested. To ensure that no problems arise from this filming incident….]

Soyeon gritted her teeth. A dimensional gate has appeared, and they’re talking about filming now?

“Yes, Minister-nim. The Heroes have already responded to the emergency summons. New Seoul will also dispatch Heroes soon-“

[That’s for you to handle. We just hope to see our Agent Lee Seung-hyung safely back in New Seoul, without any injuries. That’s possible, right? Haha.]

“Minis-“

Someone suddenly snatched the phone Soyeon was holding. A middle-aged man with deep dark circles under his eyes took over the call.

“This is an emergency situation due to the dimensional gate’s appearance. Unnecessary external communication will be cut off for efficient operations.”

[What? Hey! Who are you?!]

“If you have business, send an official document. Goodbye then.”

Click. The man, who had hung up the phone, completely turned off the smartphone and handed it to a staff member.

“Don’t answer useless calls during work.”

“How can I not answer a Minister’s call?”

“Are you a public servant who lives off the nation’s taxes? If you have a complaint, tell them to come here themselves. Or get deported. We’re busy enough as it is….”

The man irritably popped open a can of coffee and drank it. On the chest badge of his rumpled white gown, the words ‘Hero Association Tactical Planning Department Team Leader Yoo Young-ho’ were inscribed.

“Kang Soyeon. Mike.”

“Yes, yes!”

Yoo Young-ho took the microphone Kang Soyeon offered, put it in his ear, and brought up a holographic map in front of him.

He was a Hero with overwhelming power, and at the same time, he possessed the talent of a ‘commander’ who could lead those Heroes.

“This much is enough for below the mountain.”

He moved the signals of nearby Heroes to encircle Gwanaksan widely. Movement orders via the map were quickly relayed by the operators, and Heroes from various locations moved to their designated positions according to the commands.

“Ah. Praetor transmits. Closing the dimensional gate. Everyone act according to orders. Absolutely do not die. Over.”

Contrary to Young-ho’s seemingly indifferent words and expression, his hands moved so fast that his fingers were a blur, selecting the placement of each Hero and relaying commands.

Crackle, crackle.

In the center of the map, on the mountainside, a green Hero’s signal was detected. It was the signal of an A-rank Hero registered with the association.

“What? A-rank? Who’s that?”

A massive wave of mana, spreading from the center of the dimensional gate, interfered with the signal.

Seeing Young-ho tapping the screen like a woodpecker because the Hero’s information wasn’t appearing, Kang Soyeon quickly brought up the Hero’s data and replied.

“Hero Bulgom was here! His signal isn’t being picked up right now, so we can’t contact him, but he must have gone to block the dimensional gate.”

“Bulgom? …Lee Seung-hyung?”

Yoo Young-ho clicked his tongue and checked his watch.

Approximately 15 minutes had passed since the dimensional gate appeared. Based on Lee Seung-hyung’s last known location and his abilities, Yoo Young-ho ran a simulation in his head.

“And it’s still not closed?”

From the S University grounds to the summit of Gwanaksan, it wouldn’t take a Hero more than 10 minutes. For Lee Seung-hyung, a physical enhancement type Hero, it was a distance he could cover within 5 minutes.

Yet, the fact that the dimensional gate hadn’t closed still meant two things.

Either he was tied down by a powerful monster that emerged from the dimensional gate, or he was going around rescuing people unable to evacuate due to the dimensional gate.

“But why is Lee Seung-hyung in Seoul right now? I heard he was busy filming a drama. Did he go out on a monster subjugation request?”

“Uh, that, that is….”

Soyeon stammered, fudging her answer. She didn’t want to deal with the fallout when the man in front of her learned the truth.

“Ah, I don’t need you to say it. Never mind.”

Young-ho quickly caught on and took a breath. Although he had personally scouted him based solely on his enthusiasm, he was a Hero who was quite a headache, both in terms of ability and background.

“Lee Seung-hyung… *Hoo*.”

Yoo Young-ho recalled the lecture from the day he first saw him. A spirited young man who boldly declared in front of his peers that he would go block the dimensional gate.

And judging by the intuition of a Praetor who had trained and commanded countless Heroes, people like Seung-hyung often acted differently from what they publicly declared in real situations.

The ‘goody-two-shoes’ types tend to cause big trouble when they do. That was Young-ho’s theory.

‘We have to close it quickly. Korea can’t afford to let dimensional gates grow and then harvest the monsters.’

In Hero powerhouses like the United States, they intentionally let dimensional gates grow to gather monster cores to their limit, but realistically, Korea lacked Heroes with enough deterrent power to pull off such a feat.

Therefore, the strategy was set under the assumption of closing the dimensional gate quickly and decisively.

“…Should I trust him?”

Young-ho fell into thought.

Option 1. Deploy all Heroes to block the dimensional gate.

While the dimensional gate could be destroyed quickly, they would have to endure monster attacks leaking through the Heroes’ gaps.

Option 2. Deploy a massive monster defense network, assuming Seung-hyung will close the dimensional gate.

With the power of an A-rank Hero, the dimensional gate would close quickly, and casualties would be close to zero thanks to the Heroes who established the defensive line.

In his mind, Option 2 seemed the most efficient and appropriate, but that damn intuition was screaming a hint of ‘distrust’ towards Lee Seung-hyung.

“……I have to trust him.”

Please, let my intuition be wrong. Young-ho instantly spread out the Heroes’ placements in a regional defense formation and anxiously waited for a signal.

Bzzzzzzzt—

“What kind of signal is that?!”

It wasn’t a signal that the dimensional gate had closed. An operator, pale with fright, shouted.

“Monster detected near Deoksan Station! It’s A-rank!”

At Yoo Young-ho’s command, holographic images showing Deoksan Station simultaneously appeared on the screen. A pillar of blue flame soared high into the sky.

Goooooooh—-

The pillar of flame, easily appearing 40m tall, gradually took on a human form as it blazed.

“What the sudden?!”

Kang Soyeon screamed. An A-rank monster had appeared literally out of the blue, like a bolt of lightning from a clear sky. Even if an S-rank monster had appeared in the middle of New Seoul, it wouldn’t have been this surprising.

“Team Leader-nim! The hunters have changed direction towards the monster!”

“Which monster?!”

“The A-rank at Deoksan Station!”

Small, glittering marks on the map all moved towards Deoksan Station. Though allies, the hunters always moved towards where the money was.

“Change of orders!”

Yoo Young-ho shouted, infusing mana into his microphone.

“Assume there’s no support from the hunters! As always, we’ll establish a defensive line ourselves! The Anyang team will split into A and B teams! Team A will intercept the A-rank at Deoksan Station, Team B will maintain the defensive line! We’ll cover the gaps left by Team A from here!”

Yoo Young-ho’s fingers moved busily.

“Hold out until Bulgom blocks the dimensional gate! Over!”

A dimensional gate that opened without any warning.

A 40m tall giant-type monster that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Was it a coincidence? Yoo Young-ho couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling.

‘I need insurance.’

If Bulgom were to fail in closing the dimensional gate, or if an unprecedented situation like an A-rank giant-type monster were to occur, Seoul would be engulfed in flames.

“Kang Soyeon.”

“Yes!”

“Tell that person about the situation.”

“That person?”

Yoo Young-ho shouted in a desperate voice.

“Gwanggeom!”