Chapter 657

〈 Chapter 657 〉 Part 2, Chapter 3, Section 22

<1:13 AM, Seoul NSC.>

The entirety of Seoul was dyed red with ominous dots. Centering around Jongno, an overwhelming amount of red spots spread out, leaving the bureaucrats rubbing their eyes in disbelief.

“…Is this an error?”

Sun Icheol couldn’t steady his trembling voice. The red dots clustered densely in one area, and the number panel indicating the count began to skyrocket uncontrollably.

1428, 5889, 6974, 8905.

In less than two minutes, the count approached ten thousand, then surged into five digits without stopping. As the exponential increase of red dots continued, everyone gathered at the NSC fell silent.

“What in the world is happening in Seoul…?”

“Is there any relay through Magical Gear?”

“It’s no good. It’s completely down. The flow of Magic Power is too unstable.”

Though they were desperate to know what was happening in Seoul, they had no choice but to rely on radar. A staggering seventy percent of Sun Icheol’s underlings, the Patriotic Youth Corps, had been either killed by monsters or captured by villains. Their only hope was that the remaining thirty percent might capture the situation using Magical Gear.

‘What the hell is going on?’

Even Sun Icheol himself had no intention of reclaiming Seoul. All he needed was to secure “that thing” buried beneath Seoul, and the job would be done. He hadn’t anticipated a surge of over twenty thousand monsters flooding the city.

“Ah, Sir! We’ve connected! The enemy’s identity is…”

KYYYYAAAH!!

A high-pitched roar so sharp it made everyone in the control room cover their ears echoed through the speakers. On the screen, the view from a patriotic youth’s rooftop showed the Han River in the distance.

[Shit, what the hell is that?!]

Though crude, those words perfectly summed up the collective sentiment of everyone in the control room. The sight before them was almost too surreal to believe.

“Namsan Tower…?”

On the partially destroyed Seoul Namsan Tower, a colossal monster coiled around it, its massive jaws wide open. Considering just the portion wrapped around the tower, the body twisting along the mountain trails below easily stretched over a kilometer.

“Crazy, how can it be so long?!”

“<Snake of City Hall>!”

The S+ Rank Monster that had nested in the basement of the old Seoul City Hall now stood atop Namsan Tower, glaring across the Han River toward the south—toward New Seoul. This snake-like monster appeared to be hungrily eyeing the heroes stationed to the south of Seoul.

“Hmm…!”

The reason for the mobilization of S-Rank Hero Seok Harang in the Seoul Recovery Operation became clear. After lying dormant for years, the monster finally stirred its massive frame from its nest. With the appearance of Korea’s sole S-Rank Monster, an unprecedented tension swept through the NSC.

“This is our chance…!”

Sun Icheol clenched his fist tightly. Everyone was shocked by his words, but his eyes burned with determination.

“If we eliminate that thing, we can retake Seoul and reclaim City Hall! Contact the Association! Mobilize all heroes to take it down!”

“G, Sir?!”

“If we just kill that thing—”

It will fall into my hands. Swallowing the rest of his sentence, Sun Icheol bit his lip hard enough to draw blood.

“…We can retake Seoul!”

Though anyone could see he was changing the subject, no one thought to call him out on it. They simply remained silent, caught up in the illusion that the long-awaited dream of reclaiming Seoul might finally come true.

“B-but, Sir. Even with Princess Snowflower and the heroes, will it really be safe?”

“What?!”

“…Confirm the number of other monsters besides the Snake of City Hall.”

The red dots on the radar refused to disappear. Though they initially thought it was due to the emergence of the Snake of City Hall, the radar still showed an enormous number of red dots moving southward centered around Jongno.

“The Snake of City Hall isn’t moving, yet the red dots keep advancing—it must be—”

[Yaaaaaah?!]

A scream erupted from the screen. Amidst the shaky footage, something began wriggling on the shattered Gangbyeonbuk-ro highway.

WAAAAANGH!!

With a grotesque sound, a creature emerged, flipping the road upside down. Its head resembled a monk’s hat, and its body stretched well over two meters in length.

“…Middendorf’s sea cucumber?”

“…Giant leech?”

Though phrased differently, everyone shared the same thought. Trembling, Sun Icheol raised his teacup to his lips, taking a sip before muttering under his breath.

“It looks like a dick.”

An unmistakably blunt observation that no one could argue against. The timing of the event occurring at dawn felt like a blessing, as the scene unfolding was far too obscene for minors.

And the biggest problem was that the entire Gangbyeonbuk-ro was being overturned, quickly filling with these creatures.

TUNK-TUNK.

Ranging from one meter to three meters in length, these various-sized monsters mostly carried C-Rank Magic Power. As they shook their bodies to shed dirt, their numbers reached an astonishing 22,222.

“…!! We’ve received a message from the Association!”

“Oh, great! What is it?!”

<Dickfish>.

“Erm… Since it resembles a penis, they called it ‘jock,’ and since the S-Rank monster, the Snake of City Hall, resembles an imugi and was discovered in Korea, they added ‘bari’ to create a uniquely Korean name…”

“That kind of consideration isn’t necessary right now!!”

<Tamamo-no-Mae Sand Bar Fish>.

The 22,222 Jock Bari monsters simultaneously extended their necks toward the Han River upon hearing the shriek of the Snake of City Hall.

KYAAAAAAAAAA!!

As the Snake of City Hall roared, the 22,222 Jock Bari monsters leaped into the Han River.

* * *

<At that moment, Line 2 railway tracks.>

CHUG-CHUG-CHUG!!

Through the ruined rail tracks covered in gravel, a massive trailer raced forward. What was once meant for subway trains had become a route for monsters and now served as an escape route for trucks fleeing the northern waves of monsters.

“Uwaaaah!”

The tracks were filled with heroes desperately running for their lives. Those who left their trailers at the base camp or had them destroyed by monsters had no choice but to flee Seoul on foot.

Escape route: Gangnam.

There was no telling when or where A-Rank monsters might appear in this chaotic landscape. To survive, they had to reach the strong. The direction indicated by the Magical Gear pointed toward Gangnam, where S-Rank Hero <Princess Snowflower> held her ground.

KEEEEEEEK!!

Monsters chased after the heroes fleeing along the tracks. Terrified, the monsters pursued both their own escape from the northern monster wave and the opportunity to devour the heroes.

“Uwaaaah!”

The battle against monsters continued, leaving less time to escape. The satellite map of Seoul, indicated by Magical Gear, showed that the red dots had already crossed halfway over the Han River.

Time was running out. Heroes reaching the entrance of S University had to make a decision.

Either continue fleeing to Gangnam or climb Gwanaksan Mountain and head south. Reaching Gangnam in time seemed nearly impossible, and breaking through Gwanaksan risked encountering monsters lurking at its base.

“Aaaah….”

Just as despair settled over the heroes’ faces,

BONG-BONG!

A harsh horn blast sounded from behind. Turning around, the heroes broke into relieved smiles.

“Get on!!”

A truck, clearly built with top-tier materials, sped down the tracks. At the wheel sat a woman with golden eyes, while beside her, a blonde foreigner signaled with a flashing light.

– Leave the path and head toward the trailer.

“Yaaaaah!”

Let it be. The heroes scattered off the path as something flew past, lifting them onto the trailer.

“Water…?”

Massive hands of water extending from both sides of the trailer scooped up people from the tracks and placed them aboard. Though the steel plate offered no seats, the heroes clung tightly to the trailer, squeezing out every last bit of their remaining magic power.

“Move to the back!”

“Jump off!”

“We’ll catch you!”

Voices from inside rang out. The heroes crawled to the rear of the trailer, one by one leaping down and sliding through the side door into the interior.

“Are you alright?!”

A brown-haired woman with short hair extended her hands toward the injured, casting healing magic. Observing the huddled figures inside the trailer, the heroes swallowed hard.

“Ark of the Goddess…?”

Why did the image of Noah saving countless animals during the Great Flood come to mind? Smiling in relief, the hero gazed at the woman who seemed adorned with divine wings.

“We’re saved…”

The large truck passing through the entrance of Seoul National University had already rescued over thirty heroes and was speeding toward Gangnam.

* * *

<At that moment, inside the driver's seat.>

“You’re ruthless, customer.”

“What about it?”

Yun Yuhwa cut off communication to avoid distractions, pressing the accelerator harder. Beside her, I watched the map and plotted the route.

“Swerve diagonally to the left.”

“That’s what makes you ruthless!”

Following my command, Yuhwa turned the steering wheel left. Detaching from the track, we sped across a gravel field just as a monster leapt onto the rail we intended to follow.

“Ah, nooo—!!”

Those on the right reached out helplessly toward us. But we couldn’t—and wouldn’t—save them. Not intentionally.

“Jeolpung Mark. They’re Sun Icheol’s Patriotic Youth Corps. That guy has a record of massacring civilians.”

“I get the gist without you explaining everything.”

Yuhwa, ever the quick thinker, understood all my directives.

“You’re picking and choosing people right now!”

“Correct.”

She fully grasped the implications—deliberately hitting people with the truck when unavoidable, Gaon selecting individuals with water hands, and those clinging to the trailer falling off due to speed—all carefully chosen eliminations by me.

“You’ll understand later. We specifically left the Patriotic Youth Corps behind.”

“Do you realize how few heroes there are already? Why are you reducing their numbers?”

“Yuhwa, what if letting those guys get eaten turns C-Rank monsters into B-Rank ones? Isn’t raising and consuming them more beneficial to society? Besides, most of them would eventually become monstrous terrorists anyway.”

“Isn’t it ‘terrorists’?”

“Sorry. Terrorcitizens, perhaps? Hohoho.”

Every word dripping with meaning, Yuhwa interpreted them all. Watching Yun Yuhwa bite her lip in deep thought to uncover hidden truths was undeniably sexy. Her delighted smile upon discovery was equally adorable.

“In any case, we’re eliminating potential enemies during this opportunity.”

“You’re not as benevolent as I thought. I assumed you were a sucker.”

“Suckers only for you and our teammates. For others, I’m ruthlessly efficient.”

“Unless we’re rolling around in bed together, you cut everyone else down coldly. Got it.”

Indeed, Yuhwa was clever. Just then, a villain interfering with my romantic pursuits appeared before us.

“Yuhwa, full throttle. Just run over that guy.”

“Huh? There aren’t any monsters nearby.”

“The road is wide enough…just floor it.”

Smirking despite herself, Yuhha didn’t swerve the wheel. The magical engine roared as the truck accelerated beyond 200 km/h. The ability user standing ahead with arms spread wide distorted his expression mid-sentence.

“Stop! Take us—”

KYAAAAH!!

Suddenly, a monster burst from the ground, snatching him away. I braced for impact while Yuhwa trusted the water shield forming at the front.

CHUG-CHUG!

The monster emerged from the ground, grabbing the ability user in its mouth and rolling backward. The bouncing monster dislodged a few people clinging to the trailer.

“Guess what? Divine punishment, huh? Only the rapists fell off.”

“Damn.”

Yuhwa muttered a curse under her breath.

“How did the dicks get here already?!”

“What?”

“Isn’t Seok Harang slacking off right now?!”

“Nope. She’s working hard.”

I tracked Harang’s location via Magical Gear. Above Yeouido, she hovered with white butterfly wings, following my instructions to remain stationary in the air.

“She’s staying put because the Snake of City Hall can’t leave, right? So it let loose its offspring—the dicks.”

“Why doesn’t she just wipe them all out?!”

“Well, if she uses a wide-area attack, the Snake of City Hall will immediately leap toward her from Namsan Mountain. An S-Rank Hero is all it takes for this thing to ascend to SS-Rank.”

The moment Seok Harang unleashes her abilities, the Snake of City Hall will pounce on her with gaping jaws. This monster, capable of ascending to SS-Rank, had been patiently waiting for its chance to devour Seok Harang.

“It’s better if we handle all 22,222 ourselves before it ascends to SS-Rank.”

“Got a plan?!”

“Why not?”

I unfurled the map.

“Know why the Snake of City Hall brought such a large number of monsters but can’t leave Seoul?”

“Why…?”

“Simple. It can’t leave.”

Our truck was now just steps away from exiting Seoul’s administrative boundaries.

“All these are Seoul’s spirits transformed into monsters. Once they leave Seoul…”

KYAAAAH!

A Dickfish lunged in front of us. Startled by its hideous form, Yuhwa flinched, but I pointed ahead after checking the map.

“Just run it over. Because…”

KYAAAAH!!

“…Once it crosses over, it dissipates.”

Suddenly, the Dickfish’s body began to twist. The wriggling creature emitted purple smoke and crumbled into ash. A hand of water extended from the front of the truck, retrieving the core and pushing it through the passenger window.

“Ta-da! Scored a B-Rank Core?”

“…No way.”

“I set it up so the Snake of City Hall dies automatically if it leaves Seoul. That’s how it spawned them.”

All 20,000-plus Dickfish are offspring created by the Snake of City Hall. I bounced the core in my hand, aiming it toward Seoul.

“Based on administrative boundaries. Monsters have their own residents, after all.”

“That means…”

“The Snake of City Hall used to be human.”

An SS-Rank Monster could rival New Seoul. Known as <Great Dragon Lying in Wait>, it could have become president with overwhelming public support had it not been for Sun Icheol and the retreat from Seoul.

“Someone’s father.”

Baek Hee-a.

“…Such a tragic fate.”

In other words, Baek Cheonghwa’s biological father.