〈Chapter 311〉 Part 1, Chapter 14, Section 2
Seongju used his underlings to massacre the residents of Tera and began occupying it by gradually brainwashing the troublesome spirits one by one.
First, Jeolpung fell. Jeolpung transformed into Penril and bared his fangs at the spirits.
Next, Maamryong, Ji Ryun, and Gaechonkwang fell too. They became the monsters Ajidahaka, Hydra, and Karna, respectively.
The resisting Whanyong eventually got captured by Seongju. Though its spirit managed to escape, its body became the monster known as Chaos.
The remaining spirits were Seoyea and Chang-yeom.
Overwhelmed by the combined attacks of the five officers, Seoyea was subdued, leaving Chang-yeom to rally all the remaining people of Tera in her temple for a final battle.
The situation was extremely dire. Despite endless battles every day and hour, Chang-yeom held out against Seongju and his six officers until she finally fell.
Seongju poured immense effort into turning the indomitable Chang-yeom and her army—who couldn’t be overwhelmed even with overwhelming power—into vanguards for conquering other dimensions.
That’s why Fire-Attribute monsters are stronger compared to others. The surviving Fire-Attribute monsters from Tera’s final battle were elite forces that lasted until the very end, and as they crossed over to Earth one by one, they naturally ended up more powerful on average.
In Korea, thanks to Seok Harang, water energy is dominant, making Fire-Attribute ability users extremely rare. But globally, the reason there are fewer Fire-Attribute users also stems from this.
Seongju feared the Fire Attribute. He grew wary of the Fire monsters who, despite not being able to secure victory against his army and brainwashed six officers, still showed incredible tenacity.
Thus, Fire monsters are scarce. For their magic power to accumulate in humans, monsters must die and release their magic power across the land. However, Seongju hesitates to expend these high-quality Fire monsters, considering each one precious.
As a result, there aren’t many Fire-Attribute ability users either. Even when a monster crosses over through an open Dimensional Gate, the high quality of its magic power doesn’t spread widely among many people.
This is why the Fire Attribute has become what’s known as the “Noble Bloodline.”
The reason I know all this backstory isn’t because of anything else—it’s due to a special mission only available in the Phoenix route.
Under the premise that I am Chang-yeom, I indirectly experienced commanding monsters while leading a doomed fight where my goal was to take down as many monsters as possible.
With very few usable monsters led by Chang-yeom herself, we faced off against Seongju’s near-infinite army. To clear the mission, I had to defeat over three thousand B-Rank or higher monsters, including various S-Rank monsters and the SS-Rank six officers.
It was harder and more painful than any other battle, but after a grueling fight lasting over nine hours, I successfully completed the mission’s objective. Although it ended with Seongju firing a Brainwashing Beam, which left me feeling grossed out, I managed to clear the last condition for the personal route of Blazing Phoenix.
And Garura was one of the active S-Rank monsters from that battlefield.
* * *
After my long explanation in the style of Blazing Phoenix, Deokbae looked utterly speechless.
“Why? Are you surprised that the final boss is such a terrifying enemy?”
“No. You’re scarier for holding out like a dog against those six officers.”
“You can really say anything, huh?”
I swung Deokbae around in the air. His bald head gleamed in the sunlight, startling passing birds.
“Should we just sit and let ‘Waaah, Lord Seongju is so scary!’ happen? That makes no sense.”
“But you still lost in the end, didn’t you?”
“I didn’t just sit there and lose. Thanks to Blazing Phoenix’s stubborn resistance, humanity survived. If not for that, Seongju would’ve reached Earth at least twenty years earlier.”
If Chang-yeom hadn’t gritted her teeth and held out, the Round Table First Generation might never have grown enough to strike Seongju down before he swept through Earth.
“So be grateful, Earthling. Thanks to me, Earth was saved again.”
“And whatever problems arose during that process were necessary, right?”
“Sacrifice of the small for the greater good. Puheh.”
The twenty years—or about twenty-five if you include the original story—that Seongju was delayed provided the perfect time for the heroes who would overthrow him to grow.
“Are those heroes your ex-wives that you messed around with?”
“That’s a weird way to put it. Still, it’s not wrong, so it pisses me off more. Anyway, thanks to them, I won easily. It’s just that there are many things to consider since we’re aiming to completely topple the interdimensional deity behind Seongju.”
“Got it. I don’t want to hear more; my head feels like it’ll explode. Tell me about Kinna-ra instead.”
“What’s there to tell? You’ll see soon enough.”
I folded my wings and hovered in mid-air. Due to inertia, Deokbae dangled precariously, swinging like a pendulum, still clutching my hood.
“This guy?”
“Yeah. We’ve arrived.”
I pointed below. While chatting and rambling, we’d reached Mohenjo-daro, where Kinna-ra lay dormant.
“All we need to do now is lure Kinna-ra.”
“We need to wake them up first, right?”
“Exactly. With some tasty bait, they’ll come running with fire in their eyes.”
I gave Deokbae a thumbs-up, making his eyes widen.
“Apparently, showing up empty-handed wouldn’t work, so I brought food too. Puheh.”
“□□□ㅁㅁㅁㅁ!!!”
Deokbae apparently swore violently, but I couldn’t make out what he said. Before I could react, Deokbae plummeted toward the ground at breakneck speed.
“Hmph, if only you hadn’t sworn, I might’ve caught you.”
I inspected the thumb I’d raised toward Deokbae.
Actually, it was the hand gripping his hood.
“Sorry. Since Kinna-ra values Durability, they’re quite picky about taste.”
Fortunately, Deokbae possesses Durability.
Though it probably won’t taste good.
I chased after the free-falling Deokbae in a vertical dive, moving faster than him. Just as he was about to hit the ground, I caught his hood.
“H-Haaa! Hahaha!”
This time, he didn’t die of a heart attack. Instead, Deokbae laughed maniacally and gestured wildly at me.
“I thought you’d die like in China! This time you won’t-”
Crunch.
So I killed him.
The experience points vaporized from Deokbae…
“Whatever.”
Even catching hundreds of thousands of Locust-class monsters wouldn’t amount to much in reality—not even close to defeating a single B-Rank monster. I grabbed Deokbae’s Core and scattered magic power into the ground.
“Since I came here empty-handed, I brought a gift.”
I knocked on the dirt floor. Though quiet now, the only entity nearby with Durability magic power is Deokbae, so they’ll likely emerge soon—
“Oh, I almost forgot this.”
I pulled out the Core of Earth Dragon. Taking out the unused S-Rank Durability Core I had been meaning to use, Deokbae looked rather pitiful in comparison. Removing the seal around the Core, I released the scent of Earth Dragon.
Just as Yu I-shin went wild upon sensing the peak magic power of an S-Rank Core, monsters go absolutely berserk when they catch the scent of an S-Rank Core—
Guruguruguru—
An earthquake shook the area. The sky remained bright.
I couldn’t stop my lips from curling upward.
“Thank you for coming out so promptly!”
Kuuuuuuuuh!!!
Kinna-ra.
A horse-headed creature wrapped in rags burst forth from the ground. Its grotesquely bent arms served as forelegs, walking like a beast in a manner disgustingly similar to Yasha from the East.
“Alright, Kinna-ra, let’s take a stroll toward New Delhi to the east!”
Kuaaaaaa!!
Kinna-ra lunged toward me with its mouth wide open, but I dashed eastward faster than it could reach me.
“The sun is shining brightly today—perfect weather for a walk!”
The sunlight was dazzling.
Thanks to that, I could hide within its brilliance while running.
The exhilarating game of tag between Kinna-ra and me began. Our destination: crossing Pakistan’s border and reaching India.
* * *
<10 Minutes Earlier, Baegnaroh Briefing Room>.
“Really, it’s exactly the same. Or is it different?”
The heroes gathered around Cheongnyeon, scrutinizing them closely. Unlike the sharp spirit scolding everyone earlier in the briefing room, the calm figure sitting quietly radiated nothing but warmth.
“Is this really identical to the real person?”
“I don’t know. I’d have to have touched the real one.”
Gaeul teased Cheongnyeon’s face. Hearing Gaeul’s cynical voice from Cheongnyeon’s mouth felt strange, but physically, they were identical.
“…? Phantom, didn’t you often carry that Phoenix around?”
Yu I-shin recalled how Phantom would cling to Gaeul like a mascot toy during meetings. Surely, they must’ve touched it multiple times back then.
“It looks the same externally. But that guy always has a thin magical protective barrier around their body. Isn’t it funny? They constantly touch others but hate being touched themselves.”
“Hmm… Is that so?”
Bak Ra-on looked uncertain, tilting his head, while Yu I-shin awkwardly turned away, avoiding further questions.
“Hmph. Anyway, we don’t know if this is really them.”
“Phantom.”
Baek Hee-a narrowed her sharp gaze and scanned Phantom’s upper body. Despite the distinctive priest robes, an overwhelming presence lingered, causing her fists to clench.
“Is this part really the real person?”
“Cough!”
Cheon Hyun-taek coughed uncomfortably, but Gaeul paid no mind, freely fondling the chest—Cheongnyeon’s chest.
“Judging by size alone, it seems to be D-cup or larger. Want to feel it?”
“Would that be alright?”
“Not my body, so who cares? It’s fine. Somehow, I feel the real person would overlook you touching these breasts.”
Gaeul’s prediction was almost spot-on. Even if Phantom impersonated Cheongnyeon and let someone fondle their chest, the real person would likely be flabbergasted but wouldn’t stop them.
“Executioners aren’t the only ones prone to such behavior…”
Yu I-shin glanced at Bak Ra-on, who had previously grabbed her own chest. Gaeul was confident the real person wouldn’t get upset if Bak Ra-on touched them.
“What are you talking about?”
“Mr., what are you saying…?”
Unable to rise from his seat, Lee Seung-hyeong squirmed uncomfortably. With the male-to-female ratio leaning 3:5, discussing such overtly sexual topics was torment for the men.
“Executioner. May I smoke a cigarette?”
“Not allowed. You stay in the briefing room until the real signal comes.”
“…Then let’s change the topic.”
Gang Ha-baek found the conversation increasingly drifting toward Cheongnyeon’s chest unsettling. The Phantom disguised as Cheongnyeon seemed to lack restraint regarding sexual innuendos.
“Why? Don’t men like this kind of talk?”
“It’s because you’re doing this using someone else’s body.”
“If I did it with my own body, you’d probably faint, right? Huh, Hwa-kwon?”
“That’s true, but…”
Phantom’s blatant sexual innuendo drew everyone’s attention to Lee Seung-hyeong. Flustered, he frantically waved his hands.
“Oh, oh, misunderstanding! I once defeated Phantom in Kwannak and saw their true form. That’s how I know!”
“Hwa-kwon, is it bigger than this?”
Cheon Hyun-taek’s jaw dropped in disbelief. Considering that Cheongnyeon, already tall, possessed quite large breasts, it was hard to imagine them being even larger.
“No, that…”
Lee Seung-hyeong struggled to respond. Knowing that Gaeul usually wore a mask and acted openly as themselves, he worried about accidentally revealing too much.
“Interesting. Can transformations like this occur too?”
Snap! Clapping her hands, Gaeul transformed. As gray light enveloped Cheongnyeon’s body, Gaeul emerged as the imposing Heuksa-gal.
“How about it? Pretty big, huh?”
Gaeul proudly lifted and displayed her now 120cm bust. Lee Seung-hyeong resented being teased so openly.
“Phantom… Are you deliberately doing this?”
“Yeah. Come to think of it, you did something naughty to this body, didn’t you? Sliding down from the upper chest… ”
“Enough. We’ve received contact from Mahatma.”
Adjusting her blue beret and straightening her posture, Baek Hee-a addressed the group. Gaeul reverted from Heuksa-gal back to Cheongnyeon, and the heroes stiffened their expressions.
Beep.
As the Executioner responded, Mahatma’s face appeared on the screen. The kind-faced elder bowed deeply to greet them.
[Welcome back to New Delhi, Heroes.]
“Was the Yasha corpse properly disposed of?”
[Yes. As instructed, we gathered them in one place and burned them. The Core is currently under heavy guard on our side.]
“Still, don’t let your guard down. Monsters could appear anytime, anywhere.”
[Hahaha. Executioner, you worry too much. Unless monsters start falling from the sky—]
Ki-e-e-e-e-eck!
Something erupted from the ground.
Baegnaroh sped westward beyond New Delhi at full throttle.
