Chapter 855

EP.855 [Light Novel Side Story] The Death Dinus of the Sky 1, Chapter 002

Shiver. Xian vigorously shook his coat. Sharp glass shards from the shattered window rained down on the people, but those flying towards Yuna were blocked by Xian’s coat and fell harmlessly to the ground.

Gulp. Yuinah swallowed hard as she looked at the scattered glass shards. If this man hadn’t reacted first to the monster’s attack and pulled Yuna out of the way, she might have been impaled with glass all over her body.

“Uh…”

“Quiet.”

Before Yuna could say anything, Xian pressed down on her shoulder, forcing her to crouch lower. Without realizing it, Yuna followed Xian’s lead and ducked, catching sight of the monstrous bird flying around the terminal ceiling while holding her breath.

“Argentavis…!”

Yuna immediately identified the true identity of the monstrous bird.

With wings spanning 10 meters, this B-Rank monster <Argentavis> has the habit of tracking moving prey first before hunting. In reality, the entire terminal was now within range of the monstrous bird’s attacks; any sudden movement could result in an immediate assault from the monstrous bird.

How did this man know that? The moment Yuna raised her head, she gasped upon seeing the blood flowing from a wound on the man’s neck.

“S-scratch?!”

“…It’ll heal with a potion. Stay quiet for now.”

Yuna wanted to reach out and treat the wound immediately, but she couldn’t risk triggering her magic power and drawing the monstrous bird’s attention. Judging by the minor injury caused by the glass shard, the man appeared to be an ordinary human without special abilities.

KREEEEEEEEK!!

The Argentavis screamed shrilly as it circled the ceiling in a circular motion. Everyone inside the terminal was panic-stricken. Some ran around aimlessly, others hid under chairs, and only a few stood still after realizing the monstrous bird’s nature.

No matter what action was taken, as long as the monstrous bird itself wasn’t eliminated, every human in this terminal would become its prey.

Despite trembling all over, Yuna tried to calm Xian down.

“H-Heroes will be here soon. There are always security teams and heroes stationed at Gimhae Airport…”

“That monster doesn’t seem like it’s planning to wait.”

Xian clicked his tongue and pulled Yuna up. When she tried to shake off his grip on her wrist, she froze upon hearing his next words.

“There’s a dagger stuck in its wing joint. It’ll lose strength and fall soon.”

Dagger? Yuna looked up sharply at the monstrous bird.

Using her magic-enhanced vision, she observed that the Argentavis’ flapping was uneven, with a large dagger for monster hunting lodged in its tilted right wing joint.

‘Hmm, come to think of it, there was a raid nearby…!’

Only then did Yuna realize why this monstrous bird had attacked the airport. During the hunt, it had escaped unnoticed and flown straight to the airport, despite the presence of much stronger heroes who were keeping watch there.

“So now this monster is…”

“In ‘Rampage’ mode. Let’s go.”

KREEEEEEEEEK!!

The monstrous bird crashed into the ceiling before falling to the floor.

* * *

<5 minutes ago>

“B-Rank Monster <Argentavis> nearby?! What nonsense is this?!”

“I don’t know… It’s coming this way!”

In the CCTV footage, a huge monstrous bird broke through the glass wall and attacked the terminal. Members of the airport security team with special abilities hurriedly grabbed their equipment and rushed to the scene.

“Hey, Longarm! Don’t freeze up and follow me immediately!”

“Yes, yes!”

A tall woman in a security uniform adjusted her cap and followed her seniors while carrying heavy spear-like equipment. Though her hands trembled involuntarily, she gritted her teeth and ran toward the terminal.

“KYAAAAAAK?!”

“Help us!”

The passage leading to the terminal was utter chaos. Airport staff shouted loudly to evacuate people while security members weaved through the crowd to finally reach the terminal.

KREEEEEEEEEEEK!!

The monstrous bird was screaming as it circled the ceiling. It seemed to have lost its sense of direction, occasionally colliding with walls and flapping its wings wildly in search of an escape route. The woman instinctively assessed the state of the monstrous bird when she noticed something odd about its wing movements.

“What is…?”

She realized there was a small dagger embedded in the monstrous bird’s wing joint – clearly one of those monster-hunting devices that emits electric current until its battery runs out. She quickly reported her findings.

“There’s a dagger stuck in the right wing tip! It’s one of those things used by hunters!”

“What?! How do you know that, ah! Watch out?!”

The monstrous bird collided with the ceiling and fell to the ground. The building shook as if an earthquake had struck, and the monstrous bird rose again, screaming fiercely.

KREEEEEEEEEK?!

On the floor rolled the damaged dagger that had driven the monstrous bird mad. Having removed the dagger by crashing into walls repeatedly, the monstrous bird scanned its surroundings with bloodshot eyes searching for a target to vent its anger on.

…

Not far away, a man in a beige coat caught its eye. Though the man possessed negligible magic power, the girl hiding beneath his coat emitted a delicious and pure scent of magic power.

KREEEEEEEEEEK!!

The prey was escaping. Without thought for flight, the monstrous bird raced across the terminal floor, its beak wide open.

“Danger…?!”

The woman tried to rush forward with her spear, but her feet wouldn’t move despite her willpower. Most of the security team members were D-Rank ability users – charging at a B-Rank monster would be suicidal.

They weren’t enough. Someone stronger was needed.

And as always, the hero appears in such crises.

WHOOSH–!

Green wind howled violently through the broken windows. A man clad in an emerald combat suit with a red cape swirling behind him hovered mid-air, surrounded by magical winds.

“Rest assured! This <Wind Demon> has arrived-”

“KREEEEEEEEEEK!!”

A woman’s scream pierced the air. The monstrous bird was already within ten meters of the man in the coat, with a fallen short-haired woman lying beside him.

“Damn!”

The Wind Demon clicked his tongue and gathered his magic power. Even if he flew over now, it would be too late to stop the attack. He needed a way to take down the monstrous bird from this distance, fortunately, he had just the technique.

“HAAA!”

With a shout, a vortex of wind gathered in his right fist. Pulling his arm back, he swung it forcefully outward.

KUUUOOOONG! A fierce whirlwind shot out from the Wind Demon’s fist like a rising dragon. Cutting through the air in an arc, it headed straight for the monstrous bird.

KREEEEEEEEEEK!

Unfazed by the potentially lethal attack from behind, the monstrous bird charged forward single-mindedly, determined to devour the tempting prey. Its gaping beak was wide enough to swallow a person whole.

“No…!”

The security woman tried desperately to summon her magic power and push herself forward, but her legs still refused to move. Biting her lip, she struggled to take a step when suddenly…

BOOOOOM–!!

A deafening explosion filled the air, accompanied by a blinding green light. Everything went white as if a flashbang had detonated, and her ears rang incessantly.

Thud. Something landed in front of the security woman’s boots. As her vision slowly returned, she gasped upon seeing what had fallen in front of her police shoes.

The exploded corpse of the monstrous bird.

* * *

“Ahhh.”

Yuinah, who had tripped and sprained her ankle, froze in terror.

Though she saw the gale sent by the Wind Demon chasing after the monstrous bird, it was clear the bird was faster. This is it, I’m going to be eaten. Yuina had a premonition of her own death but could do nothing about it.

Rustle. Her view was blocked, revealing the lining of the coat.

The man – Xian – who had been dragging her by the wrist didn’t run alone but instead rushed back to the fallen Yuna, using his coat to shield her. Yuna felt her heart sink.

“Why aren’t you running-”

Click. The sound of a hammer being cocked echoed, and a massive silver object emerged from beneath the coat.

A gun? No, too large to be called a pistol, the enormous silver barrel pointed directly at the monstrous bird. Yuna’s gaze shifted back to Xian, who gave a slight smile and whispered softly.

“Cover your ears and keep this secret.”

KREEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!

Just as the monstrous bird’s beak was about to engulf the coat, Xian pulled the trigger. Following the textbook procedure, Yuna covered her ears and filled her ear canals with magic power.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!!

An ear-splitting roar erupted as the muzzle emitted a green light.

The thick barrel spewed forth a green projectile different from the six bullets Yuna had seen in Xian’s suitcase. Piercing through the coat, the bullet entered the monstrous bird’s mouth and exploded upon reaching its throat.

KAAAAAAAAAANG!!!

Through the holes in the coat, Yuna watched the monstrous bird explode.

Dizzily watching the monstrous bird’s corpse being shredded by the subsequent gale from the arriving Wind Demon, Yuna felt her world go dark. The last thing she saw was a pair of blue eyes looking down at her.

“Hmph.”

Yuna passed out. Xian swiftly holstered his weapon back into the coat pocket and supported Yuna.

“What, what is this?”

“What happened?”

People were baffled by the monster’s sudden demise. The Wind Demon was also surprised that the Argentavis had died from his attack but quickly gathered his magic power in his throat and shouted loudly.

“Citizens! Rest assured! I have defeated the monster!!!”

WAAAAAAHHHHH!!! People cheered and applauded the Wind Demon. The airport security helped the injured and cleared away the monster’s remains.

“Are you alright?!”

Descending to the ground, the Wind Demon checked on those who had been closest to the monster. A blonde foreigner was anxiously supporting a brown-haired woman. Xian bowed deeply upon meeting the Wind Demon’s puzzled gaze.

“Thank you for saving us!!!”

* * *

Two hours later.

After sending Yuna to the infirmary, Xian briefly explained what happened in front of the airport security.

“When the monster attacked, I only thought about saving that young lady. I myself don’t know exactly what happened.”

“How could someone who isn’t an ability user perform such a brave act?”

Xian stroked the bandage around his neck. The reporter sitting across from him sounded genuinely moved.

“When I came to my senses, my body was already rushing to save the academy candidate. Ahh, truly grateful. So, did you happen to see how the monster died?”

“Hey! I killed it! Don’t you know my ‘Wind Fist’ blew the monster apart?!”

Beside him, <Wind Demon> Kim Kyu-min pounded his chest proudly boasting of his achievement.

Certainly, as an A-Rank hero defeating a B-Rank monstrous bird with one blow was impressive, but the reporter’s gaze wasn’t entirely approving. To his knowledge, the Wind Demon didn’t possess the power to “blow up” an Argentavis in one strike.

The reporter smiled and nodded.

“Yes. Thanks to Wind Demon-sama, the monster was defeated. Did you happen to see how the Argentavis died?”

The green light that exploded from the monstrous bird forced everyone to close their eyes. The video equipment was also blinded by the flash, leaving only the shattered remains of the monster scattered on the floor.

The only one who could have seen the scene was the Wind Demon bragging about his accomplishments, making Xian – who was closest to the scene – the only other person likely to know the truth. Yuna was still unconscious.

Xian awkwardly pushed away the reporter’s microphone and stood up, bowing to the Wind Demon.

“Thank you. Thanks to Hero-sama, we survived safely. I sincerely thank you once again.”

“Hmph! Remember this! Relying on luck like this won’t always work! Charging in without power is arrogance and recklessness!”

“Of course. I’ll remember it well. That young lady who’s unconscious will surely thank you sincerely too.”

Xian sincerely thanked the Wind Demon and managed to slip away from the reporters. Attention quickly shifted back to the Wind Demon, leaving few interested in Xian.

“Yes, I’ve come for tourism. I like bulgogi, kimchi is delicious. A friend taught me Korean.”

Answering the reporter’s questions like an immigration interview with model answers, Xian soon found himself ignored by everyone.

Xian quickly slipped away through the crowd.

Security personnel and guards were gathering the scattered remains of the monster. Amidst the commotion, Xian retrieved his suitcase that had rolled against the wall and discreetly took out something hidden in his coat.

Click. Whirr. The mechanical sounds coming from the suitcase were impossible to ignore, causing Xian to nervously shield it with his body. Was anyone watching? Xian cautiously reached into his coat pocket.

“Excuse me, wait a moment!”

A woman cleaning up the remains hurried over and called out to Xian. Xian withdrew his hand, closed the suitcase, quickly changed the password, and altered his expression.

“Is there another procedure I need to complete? I thought my identity check was already finished.”

“I have a question for you.”

Xian raised an eyebrow.

“What do you mean…?”

Following Xian’s gaze toward the nameplate on his chest, the woman quickly straightened up and introduced herself.

“I’m Park Ra-on, a D-Rank agent with the Gimhae Airport Security Team 3. I’ll need your cooperation briefly.”

“What kind of cooperation? I’ve already testified about the Argentavis incident in front of other security members, and the mix-up with the suitcase was due to the student’s mistake-”

“No, it’s regarding that suitcase.”

Xian stopped speaking. Ra-on’s eyes gleamed.

“To be blunt, did you smuggle anything in that suitcase?”

Xian inwardly cursed.