Part 1 Chapter 4 (4)

11:20 AM, Siheung Intersection.

Thwack!

A monster, hit on the head by Unsa’s spear shaft, tumbled onto the asphalt road.

Twenty-three monsters had already fallen to Unsa’s spear alone. If they combined the kill count of the entire A-team, it would now exceed a hundred.

“No more, right? Still, don’t let your guard down!”

Tempest Lady gave instructions to the perimeter team, then pulled out a Core from the monster’s corpse and held it in her hand.

Crunch, crackle!

Tempest Lady crushed the Core as if squeezing an apple with her bare hand, then let the remnants fall to the ground. Mana flowed out from the shattered Core’s debris and dispersed into the air.

It was a wise measure to prevent the unfortunate incident of attracting more monsters by pointlessly collecting Cores.

“Cleanup complete. Phew.”

Other Heroes were also destroying Cores from monster corpses. Tempest Lady approached Unsa, who was lost in thought alone.

“Team Leader-nim? What are you thinking so deeply about?”

Her ash-gray bob swayed. Unsa tapped the ground with the tip of her spear and replied.

“I thought it was too easy. Until now.”

They had walked nearly 10km of road by feel. Battles with monsters occurred frequently along the way, but considering they had officially entered Seoul, the monsters lacked any substance in terms of quantity or quality.

Tempest Lady looked around and replied.

“Perhaps the Villains were hunting them?”

“I don’t agree. For monsters that should appear at this point, they are too weak.”

At least B-rank monsters should have appeared. But those that attacked the group were mostly C-rank riff-raff.

“I judge that someone, someone we don’t know, has cleared out all B-rank and above monsters.”

“…Is there a possibility that monsters ate each other due to the dimensional gate appearing?”

Unsa shook her head. The road was not significantly damaged except for where they had fought.

“If that were the case, this road would be overflowing with corpses. Monsters that rampaged to claim Cores, and higher-tier monsters that devoured them, should have greeted us long ago. And…”

Unsa spun her spear in the center of the intersection. The other Heroes also raised their weapons.

Kyaaaak!!

Dozens of monsters rushed towards the group from the opposite main road. The perimeter team quickly formed a line to prepare for the monster attack.

Suddenly, Unsa dashed forward and stepped on a Hero’s shoulder.

“Team Leader-nim?!”

With agile movements, Unsa stepped off the Hero and leaped high into the air, raising her spear skyward. White mana billowed like smoke around the entire spear.

“Haap!”

With a short shout, mana gathered at the spear tip. Unsa then spun the spear shaft and slammed it down onto the road.

Kwaaang!!

Asphalt fragments scattered, covering the monsters. Unsa, who had halted the charge of the monsters that were rushing with bared teeth, lightly landed and thrust her spear.

“Fire!”

Following Unsa’s command, the shooters fired mana bullets. The monsters, whose charge had been stopped by the shockwave Unsa unleashed, were riddled with holes by the mana bullets fired from a distance.

Kiiiiiik….

Seeing all the monsters fall, Unsa tapped her watch.

“This is Unsa, requesting death confirmation.”

– Headquarters. There are no life signs from nearby monsters.

“Confirmed.”

Unsa gathered mana at the tip of her spear. A billowing cloud, rising from the spear tip, enveloped the monster corpses.

Kwajik! Kwajijik!

The monster corpses were torn apart as they touched the cloud. Unsa’s billowing cloud devoured the monster remnants and Cores like a ravenous ghoul.

“Phew.”

The cloud, having devoured all the monsters without a trace, returned to the spear tip. As soon as the mana flowing through the spear shaft was stored within her body, the cloud dispersed like mist. Where the cloud had passed, there was not a single drop of monster blood, only the traces of the destroyed road.

Tempest Lady created a breeze to clear the pungent smell of blood. The gentle wind carried the foul monster blood smell far away.

“It’s always terrifying to see, Team Leader-nim’s Gluttonous Cloud.”

“It’s a truly excellent ability for recovering expended mana. Even when I was dispatched to the Amazon, this ability allowed me to survive alone for a month. Though I still have much to improve.”

“Still, you’re A-rank. Everyone expects Unsa to be the next S-rank.”

“That’s an undeserved compliment.”

Tempest Lady scanned Unsa’s body from head to toe.

The combat suit, developed by Yuseong Tech specifically for Heroes, was almost like a full-body leotard, revealing every line of her body. Yet, Unsa wore the garment, which clearly showed her curves, without hesitation, simply because it was practical.

Her smooth, flowing lines were enough to make another woman jealous.

Even after devouring so many monsters with her ability, Unsa’s body remained perfectly balanced, without a single stretch mark.

“……Team Leader-nim, you don’t diet separately, do you?”

“Please save the chitchat for after the operation, Agent Yang Seon-woo. More importantly, don’t you find it strange?”

Unsa pointed to the roads on either side.

“If we made this much noise, shouldn’t monsters around here be waking up? Since when was Seoul quieter than the outskirts of New Seoul?”

“…That’s true.”

Tempest Lady agreed with Unsa’s point. The reason Unsa had intentionally blown up the ground to create a commotion was to deliberately awaken nearby monsters.

Yet, no monsters appeared. Not in buildings, not by the roadside, not in alleyways. No monster showed itself anywhere.

Except for the northern direction of the main road they were advancing on.

“It’s strange. It’s as if someone is telling us to follow the path where the monsters are.”

“Oh, isn’t that thinking too much?”

“What do you think, ?”

At Unsa’s question, the man with red-dyed hair turned his gaze. A pine tree emblem was tattooed on the man’s neck.

“Why would the noble Unsa na-euri be interested in a former criminal like me? Did you fall for me?”

“Do you think this phenomenon is normal? I understand you’re from Seoul. Has Seoul not changed much compared to the past? Or rather, if monsters increased due to the dimensional gate, that would be understandable.”

Jeok Song shrugged, as if bored by Unsa’s complete lack of reaction to his provocation.

“Right. You were caught by that old man Pungbaek, one of your Three Sages.”

“I’m not interested in your past. I understand you were arrested just a year ago, but was Seoul also this devoid of monsters back then?”

“You’re really going your own way. There should be some give and take in a conversation between people-”

“Please answer the question.”

At Unsa’s firm words, Jeok Song was momentarily stunned before answering.

“No. …No way. It was a place where attacks were so frequent you’d encounter a monster just by walking for 5 minutes on the road. Geumcheon-gu was no different. All the Villains in this neighborhood used to hide in the apartments. This area was a hunting ground frequently used by hunters because monsters appeared often.”

“Understood. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Unsa tapped her smartwatch. Shin Jingwang, the commander of Headquarters, was called.

“This is Unsa. I have an urgent matter to report.”

– What is it?

Shin Jingwang on the screen seemed quite pleased. His face seemed unable to stop smiling at the constantly incoming monster subjugation reports.

“The frequency of monster appearances is remarkably low. I believe it would be appropriate to thoroughly search each area by dividing the teams and spreading out, even if it takes time.”

– Don’t question my orders. Just move as commanded! We have to rendezvous in Yeouido by 1 PM at the latest! The entire nation is watching this operation!

“Understood. I will proceed as commanded.”

Shin Jingwang on the other side of the screen angrily ended the call. Unsa, with an impassive face, manipulated her screen to display the movement route to her team’s Heroes again.

“Following the commander’s orders, we will proceed north along the original route. Everyone, please be careful of monster attacks while moving.”

“Are you okay? You heard that, and you’re not pissed off?”

Jeok Song was almost more annoyed by Unsa’s composed attitude. But Unsa walked on with a calm expression.

“There’s no reason to be angry. The commander’s orders are absolute. Heroes must follow those orders during an operation.”

“Even if it’s a command that sends Heroes to their doom?”

Jeok Song sneered, but Unsa nodded firmly.

“There is no commander in this world who would drive their subordinate Heroes to their deaths. If the commander’s command is wrong…”

Unsa raised her spear again. More monsters began to charge from the front.

“…Then I just need to kill them all and make it a proper command.”

* * *

“Haa, haa, haa!”

Deokbae arrived at the designated destination, breathing heavily. From Seoksu Station to Digital Complex, Deokbae had run almost every road, rounding up monsters.

“Run, run, like a dog, it says.”

The blue bird perched on his shoulder whispered in an annoying voice. Deokbae tried to grab the Mini Phoenix attached to him and crush it, but their eyes met.

– Rock lump. It says it’s weaker than me.

“…Kuh!”

The Mini Phoenix specially provided for Deokbae was much stronger than him. It was a strange form of consideration from Phoenix, in case Deokbae was caught by a Hero and needed rescue.

“I’ve run enough! I could’ve finished a full marathon!”

“Yes. So now you can rest.”

Phoenix’s voice was conveyed through the Mini Phoenix.

“What?”

“What’s Subordinate No. 2’s next mission?”

Deokbae held the Spirit Stone tucked into his Rock Skin. The Spirit Stone contained more mana than when he had transformed into a Flame Giant at Doksan Station.

“…You’re really telling me to do that? Not a joke?”

“It’s in the plan because it’s possible. It’s fine. I’ve filled the Spirit Stone with mana, so it’ll be stronger than last time.”

Deokbae gulped and tucked the Spirit Stone back into his Rock Skin. The warmth, like holding a hot pack, made him feel at ease.

“Then I’m really hiding, okay? I’ll rest inside until you call me, okay? I’ll even fall asleep?”

“Do as you please. When the time comes, the Mini Phoenix will wake you up. Even if it has to smash your skull.”

“…….”

Deokbae disappeared between the buildings without a word.

* * *

Deokbae infiltrated the designated building. I scanned the movement path of the western Heroes through the Beacon.

‘It’s not deviating much from the prediction.’

The enemy commander had the western team advance north via the shortest route. Although preparations had been made for the railway and highway directions, they were fortunately advancing along the general roads.

“They’re coming up quite safely, aren’t they?”

‘They’re thinking about the future. Railways and highways require relatively more attention for restoration.’

I respect the decision to have the battle on general roads if it’s going to happen anyway. Once Seoul is reclaimed and the monsters are driven out, Seoul will regain its functions. I was secretly relieved that the enemy commander was paying that much attention to reclaiming Seoul.

‘That’s why they won’t expect it even more.’

“Beacon. What about the east now?”

– They are not deviating significantly from the predicted route. They seem to be advancing north through Gwacheon to Dongjak.

“That’s problematic. Shall we start then?”

I relayed orders to some of the Mini Phoenixes linked to the Beacon. The members of the Azure Syndicate, who had been waiting at pre-designated locations, began to move busily.

“Guro 4 and Guro 7 teams, commence operation at your positions. Unleash the ‘hunting dogs’ to lure the Heroes into a trap.”

“Gangnam 1 team. Likewise, unleash them. Block the mountain path with monsters to force them to detour.”

The operatives waiting at their designated locations moved according to command as soon as the orders were given.

Grrr.

Grrr.

All the operatives were holding the leashes of hunting dogs much larger than humans.

A four-legged monster with a Doberman-like appearance and crimson flames burning like a scarf around its neck, a B-rank Fire-attribute .

I had incorporated not only humans but also monsters into my forces. Not just the monsters that had already established themselves in Seoul, but also fire-attribute monsters that I could directly command and that could efficiently carry out those commands.

And, trump cards that shouldn’t have existed here in the first place.

“We should use all available resources, shouldn’t we?”

The Otherworld God’s Cube in my hand glinted in the sunlight.