Chapter 1157

〈 Chapter 1157 〉 1157. The Academy’s Savior

“Big brother…?”

As I stood still, Seong Hali looked at me with a puzzled expression.

Sighing deeply, I straightened her disheveled clothes while explaining the situation.

“The bastards are coming this way. We’re gonna have to fight.”

“……!”

Realizing the situation, Seong Hali tensed her body and gripped her spear. Her relaxed demeanor vanished, replaced by a fierce gaze as she kept watch.

I used Makhina’s vision to confirm their positions—they were getting closer. They moved with excessive caution, carefully placing each step.

‘These guys only have a rough idea of where we are, but they don’t know the exact location.’

If they knew exactly where we were, they would’ve rushed in for a surprise attack instead of dragging it out.

What should we do?

After briefly pondering, I pulled out some C4 from my inventory and planted it around the trees.

“…Using bombs?”

“There’s nothing better than bombs for striking fear into them.”

Seong Hali eyed the bomb with distrust. At her level, unless completely off guard, explosives wouldn’t be very effective against her.

The approaching enemies are also heroes with abilities, so these bombs won’t help much. I know that too.

‘These guys are clearly operating covertly. Some kind of secret mission, huh?’

An easy way to piss them off? Do something they don’t want us to do.

‘Let’s coat the area with oil beforehand. When the bombs go off, it’ll ignite a fire. Maybe it’ll even spread to the forest. Heh heh. This will definitely draw unwanted attention… and cleanup is gonna be such a headache.’

Thinking about how annoyed they’d be made me feel slightly better after having my own plans disrupted.

Chuckling darkly, Seong Hali shook her head. The sticky atmosphere between us earlier had completely dissipated.

“Hali, let’s head over there. It’ll be much better for luring them in.”

“…Feels like things are about to get big… Is it just me?”

I shrugged. As always, Seong Hali’s instincts were sharp.

After a bit of time passed, the enemy arrived at the spot where I’d planted the bombs. Without hesitation, I pressed the detonator button. Oh, the satisfaction of pressing that red button—only those who’ve done it truly understand.

KABOOM! WHOOSH! KA-BOOM!

The explosions went off. Black smoke shot up into the sky, and the flames spread thanks to the oil I’d prepped. I watched the fiery spectacle with smug satisfaction.

That’s when it happened.

The air shifted.

WHOOSH! WHAM! WHOOSH!

More explosions rang out—a sound of the air itself being torn apart. The rising black smoke was blocked mid-air, swirling around aimlessly.

‘They’re using wind to cut off oxygen and suppress the fire. These guys aren’t amateurs.’

It also meant there were veterans among them.

I handed Seong Hali a spatial teleportation scroll.

“You planning to run?”

“If it seems like we can’t handle them, we retreat. Got it?”

“Got it.”

The enemies appeared.

There were around twenty of them, positioning themselves like they were facing a giant monster. Exchanging glances, Seong Hali and I prepared ourselves for battle.


Ah.

A middle-aged man approached through their ranks. Judging by the vibe, he seems to be the field supervisor.

“Annyeong, annyeong hashipneikka~”

His awkward Korean was laughable. So bad it almost defused the tense atmosphere.

“Jo Hi doesn’t want to fight.”

“……”

Is this some new trap?

I didn’t lower my guard while responding in fluent Chinese.

“What’s your purpose?”

“…Your Chinese is surprisingly good. Almost native level. Are you Chinese by any chance?”

I learned Chinese through a dating app for fun.

“There’s no rule saying only Chinese people can speak Chinese.”

“That’s true.”

“You clearly aren’t from the Main Gate Sect. Why did you ambush us?”

“We want your cooperation. More specifically… we need the help of the person next to you, Spirit of Ha.”

“Is this how China asks for help?”

“You’re criminals, aren’t you? Especially you – a terrorist. We can’t treat you like ordinary people.”

Time passed. Their numbers swelled from 20 to 30, but they didn’t attack yet. They really do seem to want our help.

“…Fine, I’ll hear you out once. What do you expect from us?”

“Are you promising cooperation?”

“I need to hear what it is first. And surely you’re not expecting free labor?”

“We promise fair compensation. But this place isn’t suitable for discussing details.”

“Talk here.”

The man squinted.

“…This is important information. Top secret level. Not something to be discussed just anywhere.”

“I repeat – talk here. The immediate threat comes from you people. We can’t trust you.”

“We don’t need you. We want to talk to Spirit of Ha.”

“Spirit of Ha doesn’t speak Chinese. And Spirit of Ha and I are comrades.”

“…”

The middle-aged man moved his lips silently. Though no sound came out, it was definitely a curse. He reported the situation via radio and received instructions.

“…Fine. Since we’re in a rush, we’ll back off a bit.”

“Hurried much, but still trying to save face.”

“You’re annoying me. Do you really intend to cooperate with us?”

“That depends on how you approach us.”

The middle-aged man sighed deeply.

He signaled to those surrounding us and issued orders.

“Stand down. Start perimeter control while withdrawing. If civilians ask, tell them a monster appeared.”

A wind swirled around him. It encircled me, Spirit of Ha, and the man.

“Since this is top secret info, we need to prevent leaks. You’re not complaining about this too, right?”

I instructed Makina to monitor the situation in case of trouble. Fortunately, they weren’t playing any tricks. They really do seem to want our cooperation.

“It’s unpleasant… but we’ll accept this much.”

“Very considerate of you.”

The man cleared his throat, organized his thoughts, then spoke.

“About a week ago, a dungeon erupted in Hainan.”

“Where’s Hainan?”

“So ignorant. Hainan is the southernmost island of our China. People call it China’s Hawaii.”

China’s Hawaii?

Though I’ve never heard of it, I nodded as if it made sense.

“If a dungeon erupted there, shouldn’t the Chinese Hero Association handle it?”

“The Dungeon Break turned part of Hainan into another dimension.”

“…Another dimension?”

My face stiffened.

Dungeon Break refers to when an uncleared dungeon erupts, causing monsters to pour out. Normally, handling the monsters would suffice, but sometimes it affects the environment like contaminated zones. Turning into another dimension represents the worst-case scenario of Dungeon Break situations.

“That’s right. Thanks to that, we’re facing quite a predicament.”

I eyed him suspiciously.

“I haven’t heard any such information.”

“We’re controlling the information so the citizens won’t panic.”

What a load of crap.


Since when did China start thinking of its people like that?

There’s probably something fishy going on here.

“Probably just some experiment in a dungeon gone wrong, right?”

Seong Ha-ri poked my cheek with her index finger.

“This looks pretty serious. What’s going on?”

I gave her a quick rundown of the current situation. After hearing the explanation, Seong Ha-ri didn’t react at all.

“You figure it out, big bro. I trust you.”

“Yeah, let’s continue what we were doing earlier later.”

“…”

Seong Ha-ri, her face turning red, smacked my shoulder with the palm of her hand. The sting was sharp enough to make me flinch as I turned to look at the middle-aged man.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t heard your name yet. What is it?”

“I’m Yang Tao, team leader of squad 4 at the Chinese Hero Association headquarters.”

“Is that so? I’m Sung Yoojin.”

“Are you willing to cooperate? Rest assured, you’ll be compensated properly—200 million yuan in cash. Or if you prefer, we can offer an A-rank item as compensation.”

“We haven’t agreed to do it yet. There’s not enough information about your request.”

“…A request? Is that how you see this? Not bad. What do you want to know?”

“Tell me more about the other realm.”

“…The spirit realm appeared in Hainan province. We attempted suppression three times but failed because the spirits went absolutely berserk.”

Spirit Realm.

As soon as I heard that, the situation became clear.

“You guys know about Seong Ha-ri’s trait, huh.”

Spirit Devourer.

Seong Ha-ri possesses a trait that gives her an almost absolute advantage against spirits.

“How did you find out about Seong Ha-ri’s trait?”

“Our country has a large population, and thus, many talented individuals.”

Yang Tao spoke vaguely.

Judging from this, someone with information-based abilities must have uncovered Seong Ha-ri’s trait—maybe they foresaw the future or have a special ability to analyze others’ powers.

‘If he’s managed by the state, he won’t give detailed answers even if I ask.’

Seong Ha-ri said she trusts me, but this matter depends on her opinion. I explained everything I’d learned to her.

“The Chinese Hero Association wants you to get rid of the spirits.”

Her mood immediately darkened. Even though she has the Spirit Devourer trait, she doesn’t dislike spirits; rather, she likes them. Dealing with them wouldn’t be pleasant for her.

“…So you’re using the Spirit Devourer, huh?”

“That’s right. But have you ever used the Spirit Devourer trait before?”

“Once… when I was little… I tried it.”

“What do you want to do? If you don’t want to do it, you can run away. You’ve got your resignation letter, after all.”

“But the spirits are causing chaos, right? How bad is the damage?”

“Let me check.”

Yang Tao answered my question with a serious tone.

“The confirmed death toll already reaches 4,000. People were struck by lightning, suffocated, burned alive, buried under the ground… The spirits killed the residents in every possible way.”

I quickly translated this to Seong Ha-ri.

“Ha-ri, they said 4,000 people died.”

“…”

The corners of Seong Ha-ri’s eyes trembled slightly.

She’s different from me. Whether it’s 4,000 deaths or 400 million, I don’t care. But Seong Ha-ri is fundamentally righteous. She can’t turn a blind eye to injustice. The Seong Ha-ri I know is a hero.

“If I don’t step in here… will even more people die?”

“Probably. But you’ll have to deal with the spirits. Can you handle it?”

She tightly shut her eyes, then opened them again. Determination had settled into her gaze.

“If humans make mistakes, humans should fix them. If spirits make mistakes, spirits should be corrected.”

“Alright, but what if it wasn’t the spirits who made the mistake but the humans?”

“…Didn’t I already answer that? What about you, big bro?”

“I’ll help you.”

I was curious.

This incident isn’t part of the future I know. In other words, China successfully covered it up.

‘There’s a good chance Seong Ha-ri stepped in and resolved this in the original timeline too.’

Perhaps the information I’m looking for is hidden within this event.