Chapter 9

〈Chapter 9〉 Part 1 Chapter 1 (8)

Incheon International Airport.

Once the largest airport in Korea, it has now become a large-scale dungeon overrun by monsters.

After the Pyongyang incident, the military and the Hero Association tried their best to stop the monsters coming down from the north.

But as wave after wave of monsters surged like an unstoppable tide, people grew weary. Eventually, the capital itself was moved, and the islands on the outskirts of Incheon along with the northern parts of Gyeonggi Province were effectively abandoned.

The old airport, untouched by human hands, is now the domain of monsters. An ominous realm where even S-Rank heroes tread carefully.

And right now, this place is being ravaged by a single predator.

Kyaooooo!

A monster resembling a vulture lunges forward, its talons gleaming. Its outstretched claws grasp for the head of its prey…

Kaang!

But they’re deflected by a green veil. The girl, Phoenix, swings the veil, binding the monster’s talons. Unable to break free, the vulture-like creature finds itself tripped up by the girl’s seemingly innocent movements.

Kwaang!

“Kyaah?!”

Thrown violently onto the ground, the vulture-monster loses consciousness from the impact that dented the asphalt.

Swoosh.

That was the last thing the vulture-monster would ever experience. With a sharp nail, Phoenix decapitates the beast effortlessly.

“…Hmph.”

Violet blood splatters on her face. Phoenix casually wipes it off with her veil, which absorbs the blood like a sponge without losing its color.

Puuuk!

Phoenix plunges her nails into the vulture’s corpse. Blue flames erupt from her fingertips, quickly incinerating the carcass until only a baseball-sized core remains.

“Twelfth one.”

She drops the core into a sports crossbody bag lying on the ground. It joins several others of similar size already inside.

‘Not enough yet?’

Adjusting her crossbody bag, Phoenix steps into the building, crushing broken glass underfoot.

One of Korea’s seven great dungeons, centered around this international airport, was already considered the toughest dungeon in Incheon in the original story.

“Western Sea Weapon was supposed to take over Yeongjong Island…”

Phoenix cracks her knuckles. Responding to the faint magical aura she emits, monsters start appearing within the building.

“It’s fine to do a bit of farming on my way, right?”

‘What can they do when I’m their master?’

Suppressing any unnecessary words, Phoenix claps her hands together.

Woooom-

Blue flames envelop her fists, forming gauntlets of fire.

Kiaaaaak!

Sensing the formidable magical power, the nearest monster leaps toward her.

“Huff!”

Just before the tiger-like monster swings its massive paw, Phoenix ducks underneath and launches herself upward with a punch.

Dodging the claw narrowly, her fist connects with the monster’s chest, piercing through its tough hide and reaching its internal organs.

Gurrrrrgh?!

Overwhelmed by the tremendous impact, the monster flails in mid-air as Phoenix plucks the core from between its ribs with a flick of her fingers.

“Thirteenth.”

Gripping the core tightly, Phoenix delivers a straight punch with her other fist, sending the monster flying into a window and plummeting outside.

“Tch. Messy.”

Monster blood splatters on her clothes. Wiping it off with her veil, the fabric greedily soaks up the violet liquid.

“I got this as a gift, so I shouldn’t dirty it…”

Though she swallowed her pride to wear it, Phoenix plans to buy new clothes as soon as she gets to Seoul. Until then, she’ll have to make do with this single outfit.

“So, shall we fight like gentlemen?”

Despite Phoenix’s cheerful smile, the monsters continue to show hostility. This only makes her grin wider.

‘This level of power output is just right.’

Too much and it would cause global panic; too little and Western Sea Weapon might devour her.

So she carefully adjusts her magical output to an appropriate level.

B-Rank monster Phoenix. Since yokai don’t exist in this world, she’ll be known as B-Rank villain Phoenix instead. Not that she deserves the hero title anyway, considering what she plans to do next.

‘Besides, I am technically one of the evil organization’s executives.’

Without waiting for a response, the monsters charge at her, baring teeth and claws. Phoenix clenches her fists.

“I’m feeling a bit down today…”

Removing her veil, which she had worn like a scarf, she shouts:

“So I’d like to relieve some stress!”

Honestly, she hadn’t been able to gauge her strength properly against the tutorial boss. She needs to figure out how to control her power appropriately while living in this world.

Phoenix releases her surging magical energy.

“To you measuring devices! I’ll strip your flesh and blood to build a monument bearing my name in Seoul!”

The monsters charge en masse.

Koooom!

A massive pillar of blue flame erupts in Incheon Airport.

* * *

Even though Incheon has been occupied by monsters, its infrastructure still functions.

The long front line stretching from Wolmi Island to Gimpo Airport. What used to be the DMZ as the frontline against North Korea has now become the frontline against monsters in northern Incheon.

As a result, most residents of Incheon and the metropolitan area packed their bags and evacuated to safer southern regions. The final nail in the coffin was the relocation of the capital to New Seoul.

Now, those remaining in Incheon are either people who couldn’t evacuate or hunters who come to hunt the monsters appearing there.

“Auntie! Get off!”

“Look, I can’t go without this!”

“Then get off! Other people are waiting!”

An argument between terminal staff and passengers is in full swing. Only two buses run per day to New Seoul.

Despite its small capacity of 28 seats, people are going crazy trying to get tickets, even offering extra money.

“Wow, what a mess. Really.”

“People are just trying to survive. What can you say?”

Ticket booth staff sip their vending machine coffee bitterly. A woman stubbornly clinging to her bundle is finally forcibly removed by security personnel.

“No! My daughter’s waiting! We planned to meet today!”

“Draw another number! Next! Is 1925 here?”

“Here!”

As his number is called, a haggard-looking man rushes toward the bus with his ticket. The woman, who had managed to overpower the security guard with superhuman strength, grabs onto the man’s pants.

“Please! I’ll leave my luggage! Just let me on!”

“Let go! Overloading isn’t allowed! You had the slowest number, so you should’ve left your luggage and boarded!”

The man kicks the woman’s hand away as he boards the bus, his face turning red as he tries to avoid other people’s gazes.

“No! No!”

As the woman scrambles to gather her scattered luggage, the bus doors close. Her attempt to chase after the bus is blocked by security, and she collapses helplessly as the bus drives away.

“Uhahaha, uhahahahaha.”

Crying pitifully, the woman is left behind as the people gathered on the terminal platform gradually disperse. Nobody offers her comfort.

It’s far too dangerous a world to talk about morality anymore. The ticket booth staff grimaces at the bitter sweetness of his sugary coffee.

“How is the world going to turn out now…”

“We have to believe in the heroes. Thanks to them, this area is still safe, right?”

“Yeongjong Island is completely gone though.”

Though the military has retreated, the Hero Association continues to hold the front lines.

In the case of Incheon, they long ago abandoned Gimpo and Yeongjong Island, cutting off the Yeongjong Bridge and Incheon Bridge to establish a solid defensive line.

“Who would’ve thought the Han River would become the border between humans and monsters?”

Though using “border” to describe the boundary with monsters seems absurd, South Korea is indeed waging “war” against the monsters coming down from the north.

“Anyway, it’s all because of those North Koreans. If they hadn’t stupidly detonated their nukes…”

“Do you really believe the official statement?”

The junior staff member lowers his voice.

“They mishandled nuclear materials in North Korea, causing an explosion, and the monsters fled south to escape radiation poisoning… Come on, haven’t you heard anything else?”

“Hey. Watch your mouth. I’m letting it slide because it’s me, but if the ‘Pine Tree Unit’ hears you, you could disappear without a trace.”

“I don’t own a car. And I don’t eat ramen.”

As the junior employee zips his lips playfully, the senior staff member sighs.

“Hey, honestly, do you expect me to believe that story about heroes sent to assassinate North Korean leadership, only for Kim Jong-un to preemptively detonate a nuke to save himself?”

“Yeah. Do you support the assassination theory? I think they were trying to cultivate monsters in North Korea, and when special forces were sent in, the monsters went berserk.”

“One or the other.”

Officially, the government attributes the Pyongyang incident to “North Korea’s self-destruction due to failed nuclear management,” but various rumors abound about the true cause.

“Anyway, stop spreading nonsense and get back to work. Don’t get transferred for spreading rumors – you need to evacuate Incheon too, right?”

“Hehe. That’s true.”

The two employees stop talking as a customer approaches the counter.

“…”

A girl with blue hair and a translucent green veil wrapped around her neck stands silently, arms crossed, staring at the bus schedule.

“Uh, student? Do you need something?”

At the senior staff member’s question, the girl quietly turns her gaze and sighs.

If the junior employee’s memory serves correctly, the uniform the girl is wearing belongs to a high school on the outskirts of Incheon.

“I want to go to Seoul.”

Upon hearing this, the employees gesture toward a corner of the terminal with expressions that say “here we go again.”

“To go to New Seoul, you need to draw a number there.”

The direction they point to shows the middle-aged woman who caused a commotion earlier, now walking dejectedly to collect her number – 4930.

“You know, even students should be aware that only six buses run to New Seoul per day, right? That’s why the government ordered tickets to be sold by lottery.”

Considering that only about 200 people can leave Incheon for New Seoul each day, the waiting list is absurdly long, but there’s nothing to be done about it.

Each person can carry a maximum of 15kg of luggage. If you don’t board 30 minutes before your scheduled departure time, your turn goes to the next person… There are a few more rules, but you can check them at the number drawing machine.”

It’s too troublesome to explain all the regulations individually now. The employee points to the number machine and bows his head again.

“…Senior, Senior!”

When the junior employee calls out softly, the senior employee looks up with an irritated expression.

“…”

The blue-haired girl tilts her head curiously. The senior employee immediately pulls out the second standard response from his repertoire of five possible approaches.

“If you’re looking for buses to nearby regional cities, there aren’t any. Both intercity and express buses have been destroyed, and only a few buses are running now under hero escort…”

“No.”

The girl shakes her head, cutting him off.

“Seoul.”

“Wha- So you want to go to… huh?”

The employee responds with a dumbfounded expression. The girl taps an old map in front of the counter.

“I want to go to Seoul.”

The employee is momentarily speechless. Where does she plan to go? Seoul, where monsters appear more frequently than homeless people – a place even worse than Incheon?

As the senior employee is at a loss for words, the junior employee steps in with a troubled smile.

“Customer, I’m sorry but…”

He shakes his head.

“There are no buses to Seoul. It’s too dangerous.”