Chapter 111

〈 Chapter 111 〉 Part 1, Chapter 6 (17)

<4:47 PM, Blue Wind Sect Hideout.>

Since the dissolution not long ago, it was a bit awkward to reconvene, but given the situation, all section leaders wore grave expressions.

Shenyang, also known as Mukden, a major city in Manchuria and home to a branch of China’s Hero Association. It holds various geographical significances, but most importantly now, it’s the “biggest city closest to Pyongyang.”

“That Director Mo Taegyeong from the Monster Management Strategy Bureau is a warmonger. He’s practically China’s top dog, manipulating even Chairman Jucheok to his whims.”

At my explanation, everyone listens intently. High-level intel that normal people wouldn’t know—under the guise of “future knowledge”—kept spilling out like bamboo shoots after rain.

“Unjang and Xiao Lin are Mo Taegyeong’s illegitimate children. Originally, he didn’t plan to have her, but Xiao Lin’s birth mother secretly gave birth and attempted to sell her to political rivals. When Mo Taegyeong found out, he swiftly killed the mother and adopted Xiao Lin as his daughter. Publicly, he couldn’t hide that Xiao Lin was his child, but he kept her status as an exceptional special ability user under wraps to avoid Party interference.”

“So *that’s* Unjang.”

Whether it was paternal affection or greed for acquiring a good talent, I couldn’t tell. His ultimate fate, decided during a private meeting with Xiao Lin, was something even I as the player couldn’t know.

“His dream? To unify the world under Chinese rule. If born in ancient times, he’d likely have been a famous warlord in chaotic times.”

“Such a man has declared an attack on Pyongyang… planning to annex North Korea, huh.”

Sky Castle’s words drew agreement from me.

“The Association will tacitly approve. Whoever conquers Pyongyang will naturally become the ruler of the old North Korean territory. What justification could stop them? Too dangerous? With Unjang leading the charge?”

“But if Korea failed, why would they feel confident?”

“Inhuman tactics. They’re not short on heroes either.”

The number of heroes deployed to Shenyang alone is several times more than what’s currently registered in the Korean Hero Association. Seoul may have awakened a similar number of special ability users, but the heroes in Shenyang are elite veterans who’ve fought monsters time and again.

“It’ll succeed. 99%. The problem is, if that 1% chance happens, four thousand heroes—including Unjang—could be wiped out.”

Given their firsthand experience with the Pyongyang incident, everyone knows how terrifying Nuclearian can be.

Though it’s true the S-Rank heroes sent to Pyongyang died due to Light Blade Heo Yoon-hwan’s rampage, Kim Chul-soo, the strongest among them, was undoubtedly killed by Nuclearian.

Lighthouse raised his hand, worry etched on his face.

“If the Pyongyang monster wakes up, what then?”

“Considering it wakes every few years, it’ll likely search for food. Having eaten most available prey near Pyongyang, it’ll probably head south toward the nearest food source.”

“Damn. Seoul, huh.”

For a moment, everyone fell silent. Phantom asked me,

“Can’t you catch it alone?”

“I could, but I can’t guarantee how far the battle’s effects might spread. Just know it’ll definitely be worse than the Pyongyang incident.”

“So we just pray that the 1% chance doesn’t happen?”

No one dared to easily voice their opinion.

So I recited what I’d originally thought.

“How about I just bring out the main body and wipe out both monsters and heroes?”

All the section leaders flinched. Naturally, the reaction wasn’t good. But ignoring the aftermath, it would indeed be the fastest method.

“It’s already happened before when a monster was shot down over the Yellow Sea by China. Even if it floated downstream and appeared near Pyongyang, no one would find it strange. In case things go wrong, I can always claim I defeated the Pyongyang monster and took its place.”

“……”

Everyone remained speechless. Clearly, none of the heroes were keen on killing other heroes. I quickly added to my earlier suggestion,

“…This is just stating that such a last resort exists. I don’t want to use it either. This is truly the absolute bottom line. So please, come up with some better ideas.”

“Let’s first clarify the conditions.”

Sky Castle spoke first.

“Is the biggest concern of our leader really the awakening of the Pyongyang monster?”

“Yes.”

Sky Castle asks, and I answer. Lighthouse quickly summarizes, while Gongsung types up the points on the screen.

“Then second, do we absolutely need to kill the Chinese heroes?”

“Nope. Driving them off without killing would suffice.”

Though they’re from a different country, they’re not villains but genuine heroes stepping forward to eliminate threats and protect civilians. The real evil lies within China, embodied by Mo Taegyeong.

“But if they interfere, we’ll kill them. Anyone trying to awaken the monster will be eliminated immediately—even Unjang.”

“I get the resolve. Then lastly, if the entire Blue Wind Sect needs to fight, can we relocate everyone north of Pyongyang right now?”

“The entire sect? That’s a bit tricky. Just the section leaders? Or all regular members too?”

Sky Castle turned his gaze to Lighthouse. The ball was in Lighthouse’s court.

“We’ll limit it to the section leaders. Including Blue Feather.”

“About twenty people, then. Yes, it’s possible. We have two methods.”

As soon as I finished speaking, the section leaders exchanged glances and nodded. Somehow, bonds had formed without me noticing, leaving me momentarily feeling left out.

Phantom pointed at the map, indicating north of Pyongyang.

“What if we make this the battlefield? They’ll be coming down via land from Shenyang anyway. Why fight in Pyongyang when we can engage them further north?”

“Even with four thousand, if they run full speed, they should all arrive within an hour at least. Let’s say two hours max.”

Architect gestured across the map’s distance. Just like how New Seoul heroes head down to Busan, the Chinese heroes from Shenyang will rapidly march southward, aiming to settle the matter before Modibb causes more chaos in Korea.

Lighthouse lowered his hand from his chin and drew the movement path of the Chinese heroes.

“They’ll follow the road. No need to unnecessarily cross mountains when there’s a clear route.”

“Then where exactly?”

“Sinuiju. Likely there,”

The past location of a bridge connecting China and North Korea, where the Yalu River flows along the northwest tip of the Korean Peninsula. Sky Castle indicated the spot.

“Setting up camp here and waiting should work. Leader, how long would it take to reach here?”

“At full strength, five minutes round trip… Hold on, hold on.”

I clapped my hands to gather everyone’s attention. The section leaders, who had been exchanging glances, now focused on me.

“Isn’t something major being skipped here? Why are we operating under the assumption that we’re all fighting together? It’s hypothetical, isn’t it?”

“Since we’re inevitably going to fight anyway, shouldn’t we fight too?”

Deokbae bluntly replied. The other section leaders subtly agreed as well. Only Yu I-shin blinked awkwardly. Deokbae crossed his arms and continued,

“To prevent those four thousand from being massacred because of that 1% risk, shouldn’t we step in? You really think you can handle the aftermath alone again? I can’t bear that future.”

Once Deokbae finished, Lighthouse quickly followed up.

“While Blue Wind Sect may lack manpower, we do have monsters, don’t we? Using Cube monsters rescued by the Leader from Daejeon, I’ll command them. Luckily, apart from Unjang, China lacks any S-Rank heroes.”

“…Ah, right?”

That was news to me. Preoccupied with only Korean affairs, I hadn’t paid much attention to overseas developments, nor could I fully grasp events not covered in the original story.

Having resurrected Gaeul as a monster and killed Light Blade, I resolved to mostly ignore the original narrative moving forward. However, this piece of information deviating from the original caused a small hiccup.

Deciding to understand foreign matters later, I needed to clarify the parts I didn’t know immediately.

“…By any chance, do we have a rough estimate of the current strength of the Chinese heroes?”

“Not precisely. But assuming these four thousand are all registered heroes in the Shenyang branch…”

“A-Rank 20, B-Rank 120. The rest are all C or D-Rank.”

“Are these crazy bastards serious? They’re attempting to conquer Pyongyang with just that?”

Oops. Words slipped. I cleared my throat.

“……”

“…Didn’t expect the Leader to swear.”

“I swear sometimes too, you know?”

Just maintaining decorum as Leader and Phoenix. Clearing my throat again to regain focus,

“Alright. With that level of strength, it won’t be too hard. I can handle it alone in no time-”

“Leader.”

Phantom shook his head. It was quite unusual for Phantom and Gaeul to call me “Leader.”

“We can fight too. Why are you trying to do everything alone again?”

“You’re right. Isn’t this the day we’ve prepared for by hunting the remaining monsters in Seoul? Our strength has already been proven by defeating the snake at City Hall.”

“…Ignore Unjang for a moment. Imagine if I fight him one-on-one. Then you guys, numbering less than twenty, would have to face four thousand.”

“But we can die and revive.”

Sky Castle casually shrugged, pointing at the monsters.

“People like me or Architect can’t, but if the Leader revives us monsters, isn’t that all there is to it?”

“Yeah. As long as the Core is protected, you can revive us, right? And consider our forces carefully. Phantom is S-Rank equivalent, right? The rest are A or B. Except for that rock guy who’s C.”

Architect waved his finger while smirking. Deokbae extended his hand uncomfortably towards me.

“Give me a Spirit Stone. I’ll turn into a Flame Giant and wreak havoc as an A-Rank.”

“…What if you mess up and damage the Core? What then?”

“Hey, don’t misunderstand.”

Phantom shot me a glare. There was a slight hint of irritation visible through the mask.

“No matter how much stronger you are than us, if you die, we all die. Not just the monsters, but Sky Castle and Architect too.”

“If Phantom dies, Cheongsong will resurrect, but six million Seoul citizens will be doomed.”

“Therefore, the person who needs the most protection here is the Leader. Not us.”

I wanted to argue but couldn’t. Faced with the resolute determination of the monsters, I could only give a hollow laugh.

“Do your bodies itch that badly?”

“Mother. Don’t delude yourself. Are we heading to fight because we want to?”

“…We’re going to save the lives of those four thousand Chinese heroes.”

“And let me remind you, this isn’t anything new.”

Deokbae wagged his index finger side to side.

“Just like how we interfered with the Seoul restoration operation, we can do the same thing here, right?”

Speechless, I threw my hands up and tilted my head back.

“…Lighthouse.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll mark Unjang, so you plan the battlefield and strategy.”

I ignited flames in front of Lighthouse. The flames transformed into letters, which combined to form a concise summary table. Lighthouse pushed up his sunglasses and asked,

“Leader, what’s this?”

“This is a quick summary of the current combat strength of the Blue Wind Sect section leaders gathered here. Everything else aside, I judged purely based on individual combat power. The quasi-S or quasi-A ranks you mentioned have a ‘+’ next to them, keep that in mind.”

The section leaders gathered around Lighthouse to check the list. I double-checked to ensure nothing was miscalculated.

<Blue Wind Sect>

Phoenix – Human Form: S+

Phoenix – Monster Form: SS+

Jo Deokbae: C (Flame Giant A)

Lighthouse Kim Ji-hwa: B

Phantom Cheon Gaeul: A+

Sky Castle Ryu Cheonseong: A+

Architect James Lee: A

Gongsung Yu I-shin: A

“…Light Blade went to Busan with Eun Yuhwa, so he’s excluded. The rest of the shortfall can be filled with Hellhounds or Blue Feathers.”

The section leaders were momentarily silent. Lighthouse pulled out a pen and began rapidly organizing notes.

“Um…”

Yu I-shin cautiously raised her hand. I nodded for her to speak.

“Blue Feathers also have former A-Rank Iron Arrow. Above all, even the Leader-”

“Hold on.”

Phantom raised a hand to stop Yu I-shin.

“Surely you’re not suggesting we call that man? Shouldn’t someone stay to guard Mapo Bridge?”

“…No, bring him along. His strength has already been proven, hasn’t it?”

Sky Castle opposed Phantom’s view, and Architect chimed in agreement.

“Yeah! All the Blue Feathers members are going, so how would the Leader feel staying behind alone in Seoul?”

“…Seems like the human section leaders want the Leader to leave Seoul, hmm?”

Yu I-shin’s comment made the human section leaders cough nervously. I immediately picked up on the awkward atmosphere and chuckled.

“Yu I-shin.”

“N-Neh?! Yes?!”

“Go to Mapo Bridge immediately and fetch that man.”

“…Yes!”

Yu I-shin exited looking dazed. I stood up, pointing at the clock.

“Current time is 4:57 PM. Everyone meet on the rooftop at exactly 5:05 PM to depart.”

All the section leaders stood up.

“Well then, everyone prepare. Let’s see if we can block this together and prevent that 1% possibility.”

* * *

<5:01 PM, Mapo Bridge.>

“Leader!”

Yu I-shin arrived breathlessly, stopping in the middle of the bridge.

“What’s going on?”

A man dressed entirely in black looked back with melancholy eyes. He was precariously perched on the railing marked with anti-suicide messages. Swallowing nervously, Yu I-shin managed to blurt out her message.

“God calls for you.”

“…!”

The man’s eyes lit up with renewed vigor. Jumping down from the railing onto the road, he grabbed Yu I-shin by the shoulders and shook her, his vertically slit eyes glowing.

“What does God need me for?”

“…To halt the southbound Chinese heroes beyond Pyongyang. All the monsters—”

“They’re not monsters. Remember, we are apostles of God.”

“…Yes.”

This is the problem with this man. Normally, he acts like himself, but whenever he interacts with Phoenix worshipped as a deity, he tends to lose control.

He removed his black glove from his left hand, revealing a white bandage underneath.

“Has the time come to break the seal on this left hand?”

“…Please, don’t push it that far. Even I think that’s excessive.”

“…? When God’s power is right here, how can I not?”

The man genuinely seemed unable to comprehend. Yu I-shin felt dizzy.

Guo Yongwoo, the Black Flame Dragon. A.