Chapter 129
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 129
Chapter Title: The Black Orc Legion Lands on the West Coast - 4
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Lee Hyun-wook stood on the railing of Laputa, gazing at the distant horizon.
“……Sir, wh-what is going on?”
"Huh? Why are you here? Weren't you supposed to be on Ganghwa Island?”
Lee Jeong-jun, Kim Se-hee, and Park Jun-mo rushed up behind him, but Hyun-wook didn't answer.
"......."
At some point, Hugin had appeared in the sky between Laputa and the skyscrapers, circling leisurely.
His consciousness was now synchronized with Hugin, looking down upon the city of Seoul below Laputa.
Whoooosh—!
Whipping up a bizarre gale, the 802-ton giant was plummeting like a massive meteor.
Even for Hyun-wook, moving the entire massive metal chunk was currently impossible.
However, he could adjust its trajectory by slightly moving its edges while it was airborne.
‘About 1.7 kilometers to the ground… It will slam down right on top of that monster's head.’
And in that brief moment, he identified the giant boss monster he had to face.
- Hydra's First Head (LV. 98)
- Hydra's Second Head (LV. 109)
- Hydra's Third Head (LV. 110)
- Hydra's Fourth Head ★ (LV. 113)
.
.
.
A total of nine heads, each with a level between 98 and 113. The fourth head seemed to be the 'core'.
Their levels weren't as high as expected, but with nine of them combined, it was a different story.
‘And the Hydra's heads constantly regenerate.’
The Hydra, one of the twelve labors of Hercules in Greek mythology.
Just like in the myth, this beast also possessed incredible regenerative abilities and a potent venom.
Therefore, if he couldn't finish it in one blow, the battle would only grow more difficult.
‘I have to quickly remove all the heads and then sear the stumps with fire to prevent regeneration.’
Just then, as if sensing the shadow looming above, the beast lifted several of its heads.
Kreeeee—!
A wary roar. Three heads opened their maws wide and sprayed a thick, green liquid.
Pshhhh—!
The infamous venom sprayed out in a fan shape, melting the outer walls of the buildings on either side like whipped cream. Soon, the Ancient Iron Golem entered its range, and its surface oxidized, sizzling and boiling.
But that was all. The colossal body continued its descent nonchalantly, drawing closer to the ground.
‘Anticipating this, I coated the surface with a thin layer of Orichalcum and Adamant during the fusion process.’
Thanks to these two metals, which had far greater magic resistance than ordinary ones, it withstood the venom and acid.
‘And that saved it.’
Finally, the body of the Ancient Iron Golem slammed down squarely on top of the Hydra's heads.
Kra-a-a-ang—!
…It was crushed. There was no other way to describe it.
Simultaneously, he plunged the 20-meter Adamant spear held in its right hand into one of the heads.
Kugugugu......
As the fallout settled, the already distorted buildings in the area swayed precariously.
It looked like the Jung-gu district would need a major overhaul after this battle was over.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
Like downtown Dubai in a sandstorm, the skyscrapers, dozens of stories high, were submerged in dust.
Amidst it all, the 21-meter metal giant and a beast twice its length grappled in a fight to the death.
‘Good, two heads are down.’
One was pierced by the Adamant spear, and the other was crushed under its weight.
But if he let his guard down for even a moment, he would soon be facing newly regenerated heads.
‘I can't give it time to recover.’
Hyun-wook looked up.
Three Mogeuleys had been summoned in advance, hovering in a row in the air.
At Hyun-wook's gesture, they plummeted, gaining gravitational acceleration.
Sheeeeee—!
Thud— Thud— As if being mounted for display, two heads were impaled by the Mogeuleys and slammed into the ground.
But this falling attack was merely a 'loading' phase. Hyun-wook pulled the trigger.
‘Flare Whip—’
In that instant, six red whips blossomed from each, a total of twelve, and began to shred the area. The Ancient Iron Golem was also within range, and its body was sliced to pieces along with everything else.
Clang—! Clang—!
But as long as its 'core' remained intact, the golem would continue to pull in surrounding metal and reassemble itself.
The Hydra was also regenerating quickly, but it was mangled, and its movements had slowed considerably.
Hyun-wook extended his left hand toward the ground.
And he chanted two spells.
“Melt— Transform—”
At his command, the body of the Ancient Iron Golem glowed red-hot and began to melt. Its chest transformed into dozens of iron chains that started to bind the Hydra's nine heads.
Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank!
The moment the chains interlocked, they 'fused' again, tangling together as if they had been welded.
It was nothing short of an 802-ton steel straitjacket.
Geeeeh—!
The Hydra thrashed as if having a seizure, but it wouldn't be able to break free easily.
"Park Jun-mo, can I have that belt back?"
"Huh? The belt... Ah, right! Yes!”
Before heading to Ganghwa Island, Hyun-wook had lent two items to Park Jun-mo.
They were 'Mjölnir' and the 'Belt of the Northern Strongman' obtained from the Chennai auction.
"But, this thing... it suddenly underwent something called a Potential Release..."
Hyun-wook nodded as if he already knew.
"Ah, so you knew when you gave it to me?"
The true identity of this 'Belt of the Northern Strongman' was Thor's belt, 'Megingjörð'.
But its potential had not yet been released, so it wasn't functioning properly.
‘As far as I know, its potential is only released when worn by someone with a certain level of immunity to electric currents.
And Park Jun-mo's resistance to electricity was practically an immunity... no, the current actually acted as a buff for him.’
And so—
[Item Information]
- Name: Megingjörð (Legendary)
- Effects
1) Belt of Strength: Physical strength and muscle power increase by 2x. (+100%)
2) Trace of the Thunder God: Greatly increases resistance to electric currents. (+50%)
The moment he put it on, his entire body grew hot, and vitality began to course through him.
Then, the moment he was handed 'Mjölnir'—
- <Thor's Armament Set (2/3)> effect has been activated!
* All melee attacks are imbued with a powerful 'electric' attribute.
Hyun-wook threw himself over the railing. But his body did not fall. As if walking on an invisible bridge, he strode forward and stopped directly above the Hydra.
"A direct assault on Laputa will begin shortly."
At his words, tension spread across the faces of the three people waiting on Laputa.
"By the way... should I tell those guests to keep waiting?" asked Lee Jeong-jun, who had recently taken on the role of Laputa's guard captain.
"Yes, tell them to wait for my signal."
With those words, Hyun-wook dropped vertically, as if sinking into water.
Fwoooosh—
Conversely, something was rising vertically from the ground.
It was a single Mogeuley.
At the intersection of the two straight lines, Hyun-wook snatched the hilt of the Mogeuley.
Due to the Savior of Seoul trait, all his stats were doubled. Meaning, his strength was also doubled.
And upon activating this while his strength was doubled, it doubled yet again.
Krrrrk—
With Rigidify added on top, an explosive, monstrous power began to swirl around Hyun-wook.
In that state, he plummeted. And into the tip of the 2-ton greatsword, he poured all of his metal control.
Hwoong—
In his vision, the buildings and the two beasts grew rapidly larger. Soon, Hyun-wook was between the buildings.
He swept past the chain-bound Hydra, swinging the Mogeuley with all his might.
Ka-ang—!
He severed it completely, along with the chain wrapped around its neck.
With that single strike, the sixth and seventh heads were cut off simultaneously.
Thwump—
Then, with a gesture, the two Mogeuleys embedded in the ground rose into the air. And they began to glow red. Helios Heat Ray. The greatswords were heated to thousands of degrees.
Hyun-wook moved them and pressed them against the Hydra's severed necks.
Tsssss—!
‘Searing it like this with a branding iron will stop the regeneration.’
It was the exact same method Hercules used to defeat the Hydra in Greek mythology.
Just then, a shout came from behind him.
"Hyun-wook, keep going! We'll cover you!”
It seemed to be Kang Seo-yoon. She deflected some kind of black orb flying toward Hyun-wook with an arrow.
“Six o'clock! Three shamans are prepping something!”
"Okay, fall back and get in position! I'll block it!”
The voices of the Anyang Duo followed.
Trusting them, Hyun-wook focused on finishing off the Hydra.
Tsssss—!
‘That takes care of four heads.’
Even as he dealt with the Hydra, Hyun-wook used Hugin to quickly scan the surrounding area.
A massive pit had formed at the Seoul Station intersection... and he could see several figures standing within it.
'…Stonox isn't here.’
Could it be that, contrary to expectations, the king of the Black Orc kingdom hadn't come to this land?
Instead…
- Black Orc Warchief Sumakt (LV. 142)
‘In this phase, that bastard is the real boss monster.’
Sumakt, the Warchief, one of the three great Black Orcs… a level 142 boss monster.
In other words, this summoned beast, the Hydra, was nothing more than a 'mid-boss'.
The creature, shouldering a massive axe, led dozens of royal guards out of the pit.
But behind him, another boss monster caught his eye.
- Black Orc Head Shaman Diebl-Puppet (LV. 139)
It was Diebl, also one of the three great Black Orcs.
'That one... I definitely killed him.'
Hadn't Hyun-wook dropped a low-altitude Mogeuley on him at the Shanghai staging ground, crushing him? Even for a boss monster, a shaman with weak defenses couldn't have survived that kind of damage.
‘Wait, a puppet… Ah, is Stonox controlling it?’
It seemed Stonox had used something like necromancy to raise the corpse and was now possessing it.
Shamans associated with ancient gods had often demonstrated such bizarre methods.
Meanwhile, the creature seemed to be preparing some kind of spell.
Gwo-o-o-o......
Black energy was billowing up from the bodies of fallen Black Orcs scattered around—likely sacrifices—and being absorbed into a black crystal orb held in the puppet's hand.
‘That crystal orb contains a Pocket Space.’
A Pocket Space. In some ways, it's similar to a subspace, but it's a much higher-dimensional space in that it constitutes a material universe where living beings can also reside, making it that much more difficult to create.
In other words, its maintenance cost is exorbitant... Hundreds of lives must have been sacrificed to form it.
‘And they hid an army in there to teleport here.’
Soon, the spell the creature was preparing was complete.
Kwa-a-a-a-a—!
A black light erupted from the crystal orb, unleashing a fierce gale.
The compressed space contained within began to flow out.
Which meant... the army contained within was about to emerge.
Hyun-wook severed the Hydra's last head and took cover behind the Ancient Iron Golem.
“—Dammit, what's happening?! Everyone, get behind me!”
Lee Hye-min, the tanker of the Anyang Duo, slammed her shield into the ground.
A translucent shield the size of a house materialized, blocking the gale.
Kwa-a-a-a-a—!
A roadside tree that had luckily survived the chaotic battle was uprooted and sent flying high into the sky.
"......."
A moment later, when the gale subsided, dark shadows had fallen over them.
Everyone looked up to see what had blotted out the sun.
Thrum—thrum—thrum—thrum—
Thirty-six crude airships were scattered messily across the Seoul sky.
‘The Ragged Fleet…'
Their power source wasn't mana, but the core of a 'Demon Beast' that generated power by devouring life force. What looked like its roots protruded from the outside, writhing distractingly.
Meanwhile, mixed in among them was Hyun-wook's quest objective, the 'Add-on: Colossus Research Lab'. It stood out, exceptionally large and radiating a refined light amidst the Ragged Fleet.
Thrum—thrum—thrum—thrum—
Soon, the Ragged Fleet began to increase its altitude. Its destination was undoubtedly 'Laputa'.
Hatches on the roofs of the first few ships opened, and Black Orcs poked their heads out, launching fireballs.
Boom— Boom— Boom— Boom—
In response, Laputa began to return fire.
Kra-ang—!
A large cannon built by the Gray Dwarves roared to life, and one of the leading ragged airships was half-destroyed.
And of course, a considerable number of guards were on standby inside Laputa.
‘Plus, Talos is there in its Bronze Sentinel state…’
It probably wouldn't be conquered easily.
But that didn't mean he was going to stand by and watch them push their way in.
Hyun-wook took an item from his inventory.
It was a circular blade, a chakram, Sudarshana.
He hurled the legendary-grade weapon toward the sky with all his might.
Shweek—!
Sudarshana soared at super-speed, leaving a curved, red afterimage.
It then grazed the underside of a ragged airship, cutting vertically across it like a rolling wheel.
Kagagaga—
Flames belatedly erupted from the gash as the ship began to slowly fall.
Boom—!
‘As expected, the Ragged Fleet has virtually no defense.’
Immediately after, as Sudarshana reached the center of the Ragged Fleet—
‘Chakra Explosion—!’
Hyun-wook activated Sudarshana's skill.
In that instant, Sudarshana stopped dead in its tracks.
Then, it began to spin madly, like a windmill.
Whir—whir—whir—whir—!
Along its violent rotational path, an intense red light spread out like watercolor paint.
As its concentration deepened, it created the illusion that a second sun had risen in the sky.
Soon, its rotational speed became uncontrollably fast, and just as it felt like it would fly off—
Kwa-ga-ga-ga-ga—!
The red light that had spread out erupted, shooting out in all directions.
The next scene was invisible.
No, they couldn't see.
"Ugh—"
The light was so intense that everyone was forced to turn their heads away.
Kugugugu…….
When their vision returned, 23 of the 36 ships in the Ragged Fleet were half-destroyed and raining down from the sky.
Groooaaar—!
At the shocking sight, the Orc army that had appeared in the pit at Seoul Station intersection began to howl.
Groooaaar—!
It was understandable; this was the third time they had suffered near-annihilation at Hyun-wook's hands.
A resentful roar, as if to say, 'You again?!', sorrowfully blanketed Seoul Station.
Just then, another shout came from behind.
“—Unit, prepare for battle!”
The soldiers of the 3rd Anti-Magic Brigade's 1st Battalion, who had been staying clear of the monster fight, began to move.
- Hyun-wook, we were thinking of helping out. Would that be alright?
The voice belonged to Colonel Kim Kang-seok. He was here, too.
But Hyun-wook shook his head.
"Not yet. Please wait a little longer."
- …Don't tell me you still have more to show us?
"Actually… this is just the beginning."
As he spoke, he levitated into the air.
His body rose smoothly, as if on an invisible elevator.
When he reached a height level with the multi-story skyscrapers,
he slowly raised both hands.
Woong—
In that moment, the large fragments of the falling ragged airships began to stop, one by one.
Everyone stared blankly at the sight, as if the pieces were caught in an invisible net, suspended in the sky.
Immediately after, the metal fragments underwent 'Metal Transmutation,' becoming large, flat 'plates'.
Krrrrk—
“……Why do you think I left Laputa here instead of moving it?”
Laputa. It was a clear target that would inevitably be attacked.
As a result, Jung-gu, this important city center, was bound to suffer damage.
There was no way Hyun-wook didn't know that.
But the reason he deliberately chose this place as the battlefield was very simple.
"This place, Seoul, gives me strength."
The achievement, Savior of Seoul. If Seoul is the battlefield, Hyun-wook's power is exactly doubled.
And so......
- Current Controllable Metal Weight: 11,246kg
Right now, he could control 11 tons of metal at once.
"And in this massive city… there's an insane amount of metal…."
He raised his hands even higher.
The steel H-beams from within the debris of the horribly collapsed buildings began to rise, one by one.
Besides that, streetlights, traffic signals, and even manhole covers lining the streets took to the air.
And they, too, underwent Metal Transmutation, becoming wide 'plates'.
The metal falling from the sky, the metal rising from the ground—all of it moved in perfect sync. Like a train, they formed lines following Hyun-wook's gestures, creating something.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—!
Just then, massive steel plates plummeted, slamming into the asphalt of Sejong-ro.
It was... a long wall.
And just like that, Sejong-ro was blocked by an iron wall 7 to 8 meters high.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—!
Next, Toegye-ro and Tongil-ro were completely blocked off at the same time.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—!
Finally, Hangang-daero... The entire intersection was now surrounded by a steel barrier.
In other words, the Black Orc legion that had emerged from the Pocket Space was now completely boxed in.
Hyun-wook looked down on them and took something out.
It was Mjölnir.
But this time, he wasn't planning to unleash lightning.
[Item Information]
- Name: Mjölnir (Legendary)
- Effects
1) Steel Thunderbolt: Greatly increases destructive power when thrown.
2) Returning: Returns to the owner upon command.
3) Wrath of the Thunder God: Emits a powerful electric current.
4) Flame Tempest: Emits overwhelming heat.
A while ago, he had succeeded in applying the legendary-grade orb, 'Fragment of the Sun,' to Mjölnir.
Thus, the fourth skill, Flame Tempest, was created.
This time, he planned to test it out.
Hyun-wook slowly raised Mjölnir and spoke.
"......Welcome to Seoul."