254 – Nymphs and Escapees from Hell # 2
Brrrrring-.
As Lee Jin-A’s truck sped towards Seoul, I logged into the Awakened SNS to monitor the situation in real time.
“They say the guards have formed a defensive position on the underground 42nd floor and are trying to suppress the riot?”
Namsan underground prison.
A facility that extended fifty floors underground.
Among them, forty floors were traps and defensive positions designed to prevent anything from escaping to the outside.
Forty floors of traps?
The Awakened community had often criticized the government for excessive spending, but now that choice seemed to have become a wise decision.
“What the hell is going on? Criminals are escaping prison and starting a riot. This is nonsense.”
Just yesterday, when I visited Namsan, everything seemed fine, didn’t it?
What if my visit had been today instead of yesterday?
Imagining the chaos that might have erupted during that time made cold sweat trickle down my spine.
Lee Jin-A, who was gripping the steering wheel and flooring the gas, spoke up.
“Haildo, did you do something wrong yesterday? Ever since you went to prison, this incident happened. Did you mess up?”
“Me?”
I hadn’t done anything.
If anything, I had merely had a thorough conversation with Kang Cheol-Min and literally crushed him in that exchange.
“What if…”
What if Kang Cheol-Min, who had lost the debate against me, was so furious that he escaped using ‘some means’ and instigated a riot in the prison!?
Then undoubtedly, the ‘Haildo Responsibility Theory’ would circulate across the internet!
If that happened, it would be no surprise if my long-built reputation plummeted to the depths of the underground floor fifty!
“We must do whatever it takes to stop those inmates from escaping to the surface world!”
I burned with enthusiasm.
To protect my honor.
And to prevent the chaos that would ensue in society once these heinous criminals managed to escape and infiltrate it.
The nymphs in the truck’s cargo area also showed their enthusiasm.
“The premier nymph Inoi is feeling the itch to throw his premier fist…! It is our nymphs’ destiny to beat up the villains…! Let’s all lend our strength to suppress the riot…!”
“Of course…! No villain can resist the nymph punches from our Nymph Sisters…! Let’s make those villains powerless superconductors…!”
“I may not understand the situation, but it feels like there’s a honey ant clinging to my back…! Perhaps I really do want to punch the villains…!”
—Zzzi…
Very reliable!
However, Lee Jin-A sighed softly as she glanced at the nymphs in the car’s rearview mirror.
“Is it really okay to take the nymphs? It’s an Awakened prison after all. I hope we don’t run into danger just by bringing them along.”
“No, the nymphs are strong against villains, so it should be no problem.”
I trusted the nymphs.
At my faith, Lee Jin-A murmured with a sound of disbelief.
“Haildo, you trust the nymphs unconditionally.”
That was true.
I did trust the nymphs unconditionally.
I had never faced a bad situation by listening to them until now!
What worried me was the little kid, Lee Ji-Hoo, whom I had left alone at the well house.
He should be alright since I had left the most dependable Kalilnoi as a guard with him…
With that feeling in mind, we arrived at the Namsan facility.
Around the enormous tower, police forces were armed, controlling the situation.
There seemed to be quite a few Awakened individuals as well.
I approached a police officer in charge, who looked to be leading the scene, to introduce myself.
“I am A Rank Awakened, Haildo. This is A Rank Ranker, Lee Jin-A. And these are the nymphs. I want to hear the details of the current situation. What exactly happened?”
“Oh, an A Rank has come to help!”
The special unit director of the anti-terrorism defense strike team, Kim Kyung-Do, welcomed me, Lee Jin-A, and the nymphs warmly.
It was a good thing to have more hands on deck in an unprecedented crisis.
# # #
“This incident was caused by an inexplicable riot on the 50th floor. What could have been the issue? Was there a problem with the system?”
I asked about the cause of the riot.
I wondered if it was Kang Cheol-Min’s fault.
However, it seemed like the police were still trying to figure out the details.
Kim Kyung-Do said.
“The situation is not good. We’ve been breached all the way to the 35th floor. We might have to consider the worst-case scenario. It’s possible that level 0 inmates are involved in this mass escape incident.”
There were three inmates at level 0.
One of them was my former peer, Kang Cheol-Min.
If Kang Cheol-Min was involved in this riot, I thought it would be easy for him to bypass the traps on the 50th floor and escape to the outside world.
Despite being an A Rank Ranker, the Kang Cheol-Min I knew had a deceitful and clever nature that contrasted with his brutish appearance.
The other two level 0 inmates were individuals I didn’t know well.
They were probably as tricky as Kang Cheol-Min.
“Excuse me, do you know when Seo Ye-Rim or Cha Yura will arrive?”
Kim Kyung-Do asked me.
I thought the government folks, being police, ought to know better about S Rankers’ whereabouts.
In response to this question, Illinois answered.
“It will take about two hours for Core Ye-Rim to arrive…! They are currently exterminating a T-grade rift…!”
Seo Ye-Rim was suppressing a T-grade rift today.
Cha Yura was incommunicado.
Soon, Lee Jin-A asked.
“Police officer, have you tried contacting Gumihee? She’s also an S Ranker.”
“That’s the thing; we haven’t been able to reach Gumihee either….”
The three most powerful S Rankers couldn’t respond immediately?
Given the situation, I had no choice but to step in.
I gently patted the back of Ahn Ahn, the honey ant sitting on my shoulder.
—Zzzi…!
Then, Ahn Ahn shouted loudly.
Its meaning was probably something like, “Gather the Knights!”
With the powerful cry of the Emperor Ant, the honey ants started to fly in from different directions, flapping their wings, forming a congregation.
All of them were knight-class ants with silver shells sparkling like armor.
There were twenty of them.
And their numbers were steadily increasing.
Upon seeing this, the police shouted.
“Honey ants!”
“The knight ants have arrived!”
“The knight ants are so cool!”
It seemed they cheered even more than when Lee Jin-A and I arrived.
I pointed to the gathered ant brigade and said.
“We will advance!”
“But the entry order hasn’t been issued yet, has it?”
Is that so?
I showed the police officials the hibiscus-shaped brooch Cha Yura had given me yesterday.
This was the symbol of an honorary agent.
It also symbolized a status that rivaled S Ranker Cha Yura.
Upon showing the brooch, the police’s expressions grew serious.
I spoke to everyone around me.
“Then, from now on, I, the A Rank Awakened Haildo, will be in charge of this scene. Honey ant knights, march underground!”
—Zzzi…!!!
—Go…!!!
—Jump…!!!
—Dash…!!!
—Charge…!!!
—March…!!!
—Advance…!!!
—Move…!!!
—…….
—Charge…!!!
Clash, clash, clash-.
The silver ants marched towards the underground in formation.
These guys were known as the “GANADA Knights,” elite veterans among honey ant knights.
In other words, they could be called the royal knights.
I also followed behind that magnificent procession.
# # #
“Ugh! What is this! Ants…! Ants!!!”
“Yikes! The ants are too strong…!!!”
“Run back, escape to the 50th floor!!!”
The honey ant knights were powerful.
Each of them matched the strength of a B Rank demon, and when they banded together, their firepower was comparable to that of an adequate A or S Rank demon.
“This is easy. Well, the most are D or F Rank Awakened prisoners, so it’s no surprise they can’t compete with honey ants.”
I was able to break through the inmates’ defenses formed on the 30th floor and regained control of that area. A Ranker, Oh Deok-Soo, who had been defending the stronghold on the 29th floor, was amazed.
“Haildo, your genre really is different from the rest of us. We’re playing a defense game, but you’re playing an RTS game by yourself.”
That was indeed correct.
Honestly, I also wondered while directing the honey ants, ‘Is this really okay…?’
It felt too easy.
But the ones playing the most different genre were indeed those guys.
“Let’s beat them up…!”
“I, Coris, also love beating up villains…!”
“Let’s do it…!”
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud-.
The ultimate triple punch that surpassed the nymphs’ twin punches.
No prisoner could withstand it.
“Ahhh~”
“My heart is getting clearer…!”
“How could I cause a riot? What have I done…!”
The nymphs were making the prisoners who participated in the riot repent in real-time with their punches. No villain could resist the nymphs’ fairy punches.
That was the rule of the world, and no one could dispute it.
A Ranker, Goblin Do Jun-Hwan, crossed his arms and clicked his tongue while watching the scene.
“Wow, to think it’s that effective. Perhaps we should consider regularly placing nymphs into the Awakened correction program with the guards.”
Thinking about it, that sounded reasonable.
If nymphs were employed as guards in the prison, the world might become a much better place.
Regardless.
I continued marching my ant brigade, which had increased to a hundred, all the way to the 50th floor.
“Honey Ant Knights! Zzi Beat ‘em up!”
—Zzzi…!
At Ahn Ahn’s call, the honey ants attacked the prisoners with their uniquely shaped horns, pincers, and sharp front legs.
“Zzi Beat ‘em up.”
That was the signature move of honey ant knights, and the effect was truly to ‘beat ‘em up.’
Swish, swish, swish-!
“Guaaaah!!!”
“Just kill me!”
“There… even criminals deserve human rights!!!”
“You worthless scoundrels! You should have never even tried to escape! From the moment you incited a riot, you abandoned your humanity! You’re not even animals. You’re less than animals.”
“You bastard! Even though I look like this, I was an A Rank Ranker! Ever heard of ‘The Robber – Kang Do-Hee’…!? If I think about being stuck here because of you, Haildo…!!!”
A woman with her hair cut short, like an inmate, was shouting.
Robber Kang Do-Hee.
Wasn’t she an A Ranker who was known to be with A Rank Demon Lord Jun while in Hell?
Grrr…
At that moment, Kkungkkungi, who was sitting on my shoulder, puffed up his fur and leaped at Kang Do-Hee.
Kang Do-Hee was struck by Kkungkkungi’s full body charge, screeching “Gek!” before collapsing.
“Too weak.”
I realized while looking at the fallen Kang Do-Hee.
The Awakened who had been trapped here for a long time appeared to have weakened in combat power compared to their heyday.
That was why the ant knights had effectively subdued the enemy.
“In the blink of an eye, we’ve reached the 50th floor.”
Lee Jin-A marveled while looking around.
50th floor.
This place was a complete hellish mess, and there was nothing intact from the floor to the walls, to the ceiling.
I noticed a large hole punched into the floor.
Sniff-sniff-.
As I sniffed, it seemed as though the floor was pierced by something extremely acidic.
Jolt-.
At that moment, I felt a sting at the nape of my neck.
This was a warning from my “Wild Sense.”
It warned me not to go down to the 51st floor!
But I had the honey ants with me along with Kkungkkungi, Bang Bang, Lee Jin-A, and the nymphs.
Swoosh-.
I set up a rope and slowly descended towards the 51st floor.
