Chapter 102

〈 Chapter 102 〉 Part 1, Chapter 6 (8)

<4:18 PM, Seoul - Blue Wind Sect Headquarters>

The senior members gathered in Phoenix’s penthouse. It was an emergency assembly with no time to even head down to the first-floor lounge.

“What’s going on all of a sudden?”

“A monster has made landfall on the coast in Japan. S-Rank.”

Ji Hwa projected a screen. Since his千里eye vision still only reached within Seoul, they had to rely on satellite images from the association or government for confirmation like this.

As information appeared on the screen, the officers grasped the situation. Ryu Cheonseong was the first to speak up.

“S-Rank Monster Moby Dick. The whale monster that appeared at the Naha Gate in 2011, sank Okinawa, and then disappeared into the deep sea. I didn’t know it had a second water dragon form though.”

“Ah, I remember. Wasn’t that the pre-Pyongyang East Asia strongest monster?”

Ryu Cheonseong explained while James responded. Cheon Gaeul nervously bit her nails and asked,

“The sudden activation of an S-Rank is worrying enough, but why did it hide and then appear near Tsushima? There must be a reason, right?”

“Reason? There is one.”

All eyes naturally turned to Phoenix. The phoenix sitting on the sofa propped her chin up and clicked her tongue.

“Tch. Didn’t expect it to come to this.”

“Don’t keep it to yourself, tell us already.”

“…”

Phoenix took a deep breath. The officers braced themselves for a long explanation as her tightly shut lips finally parted.

“Moby Dick is coming to kill Seok Harang.”

“…?”

“That’s it?”

“…Do you need more explanation?”

The officers frowned. Phoenix looked exasperated as she continued,

“Why? I summarized it pretty well…”

“It’s too short.”

Deokbae’s comment was met with nods from everyone. Phoenix hung her head, her face turning tomato red.

“I worked hard to shorten it so much…”

“Director.”

Ji Hwa raised his hand to call out to Phoenix.

“I don’t understand. Why would a monster from Okinawa come all the way to kill Princess Seolhwa?”

“Ah, great question!”

Phoenix perked up and looked around. The officers subtly gave Ji Hwa a thumbs-up without her noticing. Phoenix soon cleared her throat.

“To explain properly, we’d have to talk about Terra and the relationship between spirits and magical beasts…”

Phoenix glanced at the officers who were quietly showing signs of reluctance. Still smiling, Gaeul nodded encouragingly.

“It’s fine. Just go ahead. I’ll make sure to appropriately summarize it.”

“…Should I thank you for that?”

Phoenix took a sip of water to moisten her dry lips.

“The primary target of monsters crossing through dimensional gates are humans. But before that, their top priority used to be spirits—specifically, those from this world, Terra, not Earth.”

“That’s what we heard last time. Boss’ original world, Terra, is now full of monsters, right? So, do these monsters come over from there?”

James’ question made Phoenix tilt her head awkwardly with a wry smile.

“…Something like that? When the dimensional gate opens and monsters burst out…”

Phoenix sneakily glanced around and cleared her throat again.

“Monsters without cores but emitting purple light are classified as ‘magical beasts.’ These are the ones that aim to destroy both spirits and humanity.”

Phoenix hesitated briefly before continuing,

“In short, Moby Dick woke up sensing the presence of a spirit. It sensed Seok Harang’s magical power.”

“Ah. Was the fire dragon at the Gwanak dimensional gate similar?”

Yu Ishin snapped his fingers. All eyes sharply focused on Phoenix. She rolled her eyes and tried to defend herself.

“No, no. That was something I couldn’t predict either… At that time, her magical power wasn’t well concealed yet… Besides, dimensional gates just suddenly appear, you know! I had no idea!”

“So can Boss open another dimensional gate by using a little power? Like the one where that fire dragon came out?”

James’ question left Deokbae pale-faced.

“Hey, you fake. You’re a senior member, aren’t you?”

“What?”

“Pennil or whatever that senior officer was. The fire dragon in Gwanak was about that level, right?”

“You remember that?”

Phoenix looked baffled, but the other officers found it even more ridiculous. Ji Hwa reacted dramatically.

“That fire dragon killed by Hwakwon was supposedly the same level as Director Phoenix? That doesn’t add up.”

“Right after transforming into its second form, it was killed instantly by Hwakwon. Is there something special about fire attributes? Hmm. I’m not quite understanding this.”

Ryu Cheonseong requested an explanation from Phoenix. Phoenix pointed at Gaeul.

“When I saved Gaeul, it was while heading off to close a dimensional gate. At that point, a dimensional gate was problematic for me too… Though I didn’t expect my shadow to appear.”

“Huh? So could you have been killed with a single punch by Seung Hyung? That’s not true, right?”

Gaeul challenged. Phoenix held up both hands, pushing one against the other as she replied,

“That fire dragon known as Shadow Phoenix—I had already whittled down about 90% of its stamina. I broke its wing joints so it couldn’t fly.”

“…Damn.”

Dukbae sighed under his breath, recalling painful memories, but no one heard him. Phoenix sheepishly pointed at Gaeul.

“That day, when the dimensional gate opened and I immediately rushed to close it, I saved Gaeul and then headed straight to the location. The Shadow Phoenix charged at me, so I instantly broke its wings with a swift strike.”

“…Indeed, reviewing the battle data from Anyang, the regrown wings were asymmetrical.”

“Exactly. I also attached Chang-yeom to prevent it from regenerating its wings. Even if heroes hadn’t intervened, leaving it for about ten minutes would’ve been enough for it to die on its own due to damage.”

“Then…”

Ryu Cheonseong stroked his beard and questioned,

“What about Seung Hyung with Hwakwon? Did he awaken in Gwanak… Could it be?”

“Yes. I helped him awaken. He was trying to pass the buck to someone else and escape to Yeouido.”

“Director. Right now, bring me my elemental spirit. Show some sincerity.”

“Another tangent. Let’s stay focused.”

Ji Hwa quickly raised his hand again.

“Director. Am I correct? The fire dragon in Gwanak—Shadow Phoenix attacked you similarly to how the water dragon in Okinawa—Moby Dick—is targeting Water Spirit Seok Harang?”

“…Perfect.”

Phoenix nodded in surprise at Ji Hwa, who seemed embarrassed. Gaeul poked Ji Hwa’s side with a tentacle.

“You cut in at just the right moment?”

“Hehe. During my deputy days, I never imagined interrupting meetings that were heading off-topic. There’s always someone who makes important discussions veer off.”

Ji Hwa glared at Dukbae, who snorted.

“No, I’m aggrieved too. Do you know what that guy used to attack me? He grabbed me and swung me around!”

“…? What nonsense is that?”

“…It’s called <Monster Weaponization>. For example—”

Phoenix suddenly moved her body, grabbing Yu Ishin from behind and tapping his back.

“You’ll feel a bit ticklish.”

“Kyaa?!”

As Yu Ishin screamed, his core emitted light. His body rapidly scattered into green light, with magic power starting to move centered around the core.

“What, what is this?!”

“Ishin?!?”

Soon, an emerald-bodied recurve bow adorned with blue flame patterns appeared in Phoenix’s hands. Near the central riser grip was Yu Ishin’s green core.

Phoenix twirled the bow like a stick and placed it on the table.

“Ta-da! This is what’s called Monster Weaponization! Yu Ishin transformed from a monster into a core weapon!”

“…Never say anything about making me a monster again.”

Ryu Cheonseong wiped cold sweat. James curiously extended his hand to touch the bow.

“Wow, this is interesting.”

Unfortunately, his thumb accidentally touched Yu Ishin’s core.

[YAAAAHHH!!!]

James recoiled as the core lit up, causing Yu Ishin to scream in pain. An eerie silence fell over the room, and James reluctantly put the bow down.

“Revert.”

“Understood.”

Phoenix quickly grabbed the bow, infused it with magic power, and it dissipated into light. Yu Ishin returned to his physical form, panting heavily.

“Haa, haa, haa.”

Watching Yu Ishin catch his breath, Dukbae pointed at him incredulously.

“Hey, you got turned into such a cool thing, so why was I swung around like a bat?”

“Ah, that?”

Phoenix answered as if it were the most obvious thing.

“Higher-ranked weapons usually feel good, right? Back then, weren’t you D-Rank or C-Rank? Low-level weapons are typically texture-less, you know?”

“Hey, you □□ □□□ □□□!!”

“Director…?”

“Hey. You’re wandering off topic again.”

Ji Hwa chuckled softly as he called out to Phoenix, with Gaeul chiming in. Phoenix sheepishly shrugged and smiled.

“Well…it’s not that urgent, right? After all, it’s just an S-Rank monster. Besides, Seok Harang is in Busan, so we don’t need to worry about it.”

“Can Princess Seolhwa handle it alone?”

At Ryu Cheonseong’s question, Phoenix vigorously nodded.

“She’s already surpassed 95% compatibility. Once this awakens, it’ll hit 96%, reaching SS-Rank.”

Phoenix tapped her temple with her index finger. Ryu Cheonseong momentarily looked envious before clearing his throat and changing the subject.

“So, then Busan? Even Princess Seolhwa might miss something while dealing with Moby Dick.”

“Heroes are rushing to Busan as we speak. It’ll be fine.”

Phoenix smiled while picking up her cup. Gaeul, looking somewhat concerned, spoke up.

“Yun Yuhwa also went down to Busan, didn’t he?”

Phoenix’s expression stiffened.

“Let me take a short walk.”

Before she could leap out the window with her wings spread, Gaeul quickly added,

“With Guangjian.”

“Oh, then it’s fine.”

Phoenix’s wings vanished in an instant. James sighed deeply, looking ten years older.

“Let’s leave Busan to the heroes and focus on Seoul instead. Any more questions? If not, let’s dismiss.”

“Is it really okay? Shouldn’t we help?”

Gaeul asked worriedly. Phoenix fiddled with her white butterfly badge and replied confidently,

“Yes. She can handle it alone.”

“…Sigh.”

Ji Hwa sighed heavily with a troubled expression. Yu Ishin patted Ji Hwa’s knee comfortingly.

“Hang in there. I fully understand your difficulties.”

“It’s always like this… No tension whatsoever.”

“What’s there to be tense about?”

With a serious look, Ji Hwa’s shoulder was tapped by Phoenix, who grinned widely.

“It’s not something worth my concern, so phew!”

* * *

<4:24 PM, Tokyo, Japan>

“We must dispatch heroes immediately! If that’s not possible, at least send naval defense forces!”

The Foreign Minister passionately argued his case, raising his voice during the hastily convened NSC—National Security Council meeting at dawn.

[Minister Okamoto, please calm down.]

Through the screen, Chief Cabinet Secretary Sagami urged Minister Okamoto to settle down. Given the gravity of the situation and the urgency of the hour, they entered the conference remotely without gathering at the Prime Minister’s residence.

[Fortunately, our esteemed Round Table, Gale Guest, is returning from America, along with Sir Gawein.]

“It will take hours. What if Tsushima suffers damage in the meantime?”

[There are heroes. They can surely prevent any harm. And according to <Oracle>‘s Twitter…]

The Chief Cabinet Secretary brought up a small screen.

[Moby Dick merely grazed past Tsushima and changed course towards Busan. It seems to be heading to Korea.]

“Uh… Is that so? Hahaha.”

The Foreign Minister managed to laugh inconspicuously. He was grateful the part below the screen remained hidden. The Chief Cabinet Secretary narrowed his sharp gaze and questioned,

[Are you implying something, Minister Okamoto…?]

“Ah, nothing at all. I’m just worried about the people of Tsushima, especially since there are passenger ships too.”

[Those who chose to travel to Korea despite warnings not to do so. Even if their families protest later, we can handle it as usual.]

“But… Passenger ships should arrive on schedule to avoid diplomatic issues with Korea.”

The Chief Cabinet Secretary smirked.

[You seem to insist the ship must arrive. Well, alright then. From your standpoint as Foreign Minister, it makes sense. However, rest assured. With Guangjian dead, what power does Korea have left? A toothless tiger at best.]

“Haha. That’s right.”

The Foreign Minister shifted his lower body on the bed. As the bed rose back up, the black-haired maiden lying comfortably revealed a slight movement.

“Gr… I shall move shortly. See you at the Prime Minister’s residence.”

[Understood. Keep your smartwatch on for immediate connection. We’ll meet in 30 minutes.]

The screen turned off. The Foreign Minister sighed as he pulled up his pants slowly.

“Just when I was enjoying myself…”

Regretfully, the Foreign Minister pressed the girl’s chest area. Her eyelids lifted to reveal mechanical red eyes that scanned his face before speaking in a robotic tone.

[Entering hibernation mode as per Mr. Okamoto’s command. Thank you for enjoying the Xroid provided by U-Sung today.]

The machine in the shape of a girl powered down. The Foreign Minister dressed himself, casting a longing glance at the Xroid now in hibernation.

“U-Sung really knows how to make these well.”

The Foreign Minister chuckled. He gently traced the girl’s face with his fingers, noting how much she resembled someone.

“Just getting a few goods transported and receiving something like this in return…”

The Foreign Minister left the room with anticipation for next time.

After the Foreign Minister departed, the chilly room remained silent. The mechanical doll carelessly thrown onto the bed was secretly transmitting its data somewhere, unbeknownst to anyone.