Chapter 51
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: The Heart of Hell - 3
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While en route to meet with the Taesan Guild, Lee Hyun-wook used mana to communicate with Kim Kang-seok from the vehicle.
“...Battalion Commander, I'll be counting on you.”
He had urgently requested a few things from the battalion for the next battle.
- Right, we'll prepare as quickly as possible and fly over as soon as you give the word, so don't you worry.
"Thank you.”
- And… please be careful. As you know, every Wave so far has followed a pattern of growing exponentially stronger over time. Today, they'll be much stronger than yesterday.
"Yes, I understand.”
He was right.
There were countless reasons why the Wave was called the worst of all disasters.
But the biggest reason was that the ‘raid difficulty’ increased with time.
Simply put, the monsters that appeared during the Wave would gradually ‘evolve’ into forms that were harder to deal with.
For instance, the ‘Hell Rats’ they faced yesterday would see their ‘numbers’ increase exponentially.
From a hundred, to a thousand, to ten thousand, to hundreds of thousands, and eventually, to a million…
And once their population exceeded a certain threshold, they would ‘evolve’ and gain a sort of passive skill.
They would gain a ‘special attribute’ that allowed them to emit a ‘gas’ from their bodies, creating a trail of ‘poison fog.’
‘The swarms of Hell Rats that appeared with the green fog, devouring everything, were truly the worst.’
Yesterday, the Hell Rats had been devoured by the Steel Platoon, but by this afternoon, their numbers would have swelled to an unmanageable level—which was why Lee Hyun-wook had made them his first target.
If he hadn't, more than half the shelters in the Wave Zone would have fallen to the Hell Rat swarms.
‘The next most dangerous threat is the Multi-species Dark Magic Society.’
While the Hell Rat swarms had swept through Seoul and caused the most civilian casualties,
the Multi-species Dark Magic Society was responsible for the most Player deaths.
Just like now, those bastards would abduct humans and offer them as sacrifices to their dark god.
Through this, they would gradually obtain more powerful dark magic spells.
On the fourth day of the Wave, they would succeed in creating a dark magic creature called a ‘Chimera.’
‘…It was a top-tier beast, on par with a dragon hatchling.’
Countless Players were mobilized to eliminate it, but they failed time and again.
In the end, the number of Player casualties from that operation alone reached 1,855.
‘Today, I will destroy it before it can grow.’
Just then, the vehicle came to a stop.
"We've arrived. We are approximately 500 meters from the meeting point."
At the driver’s words, Lee Hyun-wook looked out the window.
It was an apartment complex in Apgujeong-dong.
"Good. We'll proceed on foot from here.”
At his command, 15 soldiers disembarked from one of the transport trucks.
The rest were on standby at the O Elementary School shelter.
"Stay alert and move slowly.”
He couldn't let his guard down; the Taesan Guild could have set a trap.
“…Hey! Are you the Steel Platoon?”
As they neared the rendezvous point, a voice called out.
"Over here, up here! Come on in!”
A man was waving from a third-floor window of a commercial building.
“Split into three teams and head up, keeping your distance.”
Lee Hyun-wook remained vigilant until the end, but fortunately, nothing happened.
Inside a spacious fitness club on the third floor, over twenty Players were gathered.
They were resting, looking exhausted as if they had just finished a battle.
From among them, a man with glasses approached Lee Hyun-wook.
"Ah! You're here!”
*Who's this?* Lee Hyun-wook scanned the man’s face. If he was a Villain, there was a high chance he would recognize him.
But since no one came to mind immediately, he probably wasn't a significant figure…
"Hello, I'm Choi Min-seong of the Taesan Guild.”
The name jogged his memory.
‘Choi Min-seong… That means Choo Kyo-yong, that bastard, is here too.’
Choi Min-seong himself wasn't a particularly important name.
‘Choo Kyo-yong is the important one.’
The Monster Tamer, Choo Kyo-yong. He was the leader of the assault team Choi Min-seong belonged to,
a Player with the unusual ability to control monsters.
Lee Hyun-wook shook Choi Min-seong’s hand and scanned his surroundings once more.
‘Just from a quick count, there are 24 of them. Far more than I expected.’
If they all attacked at once… honestly, it would be a difficult fight.
Dealing with well-trained elite Players was a different dimension from fighting monsters…
"Are all the people here… members of the Taesan Guild?"
"Ah, not all of them. These are Players who were gathered at the elementary school shelter. We joined forces to save the civilians. They're from different guilds, like Cheonghwa, Goryeo, and so on.”
“…I see.”
“Well, we're the core of the group, but there are only six of us.”
Six… Lee Hyun-wook didn't take his word for it.
They must have hidden people in the shelter to confirm the Steel Platoon's arrival.
Some of them could be in this very room, hiding their identities and pretending to be third parties.
But there was one strange thing.
‘Choi Min-seong is here, but the team leader, Choo Kyo-yong, is not.’
He might be hiding somewhere, but there was no reason for him to do so.
‘…Right, they split the team.’
Ki Baek-jun had prepared a total of three ‘Player cards’ for the 4th Wave.
The Five Butchers / The Apostate, Gong Hyeon-jun / Choo Kyo-yong's Assault Team.
‘And I’ve already burned two of those cards.’
With one of the Corruption Factors eliminated, they must be getting desperate.
Their last remaining card, ‘Choo Kyo-yong's Assault Team,’ had no choice but to split up and move.
The leader, Choo Kyo-yong, was likely at the location of another Corruption Factor.
‘This means their forces are divided. That’s good.’
Hiding his thoughts, Lee Hyun-wook looked at Choi Min-seong.
"Have you identified the location where the people are being held?”
"Yes, we can see it from here. It's right over there.”
Choi Min-seong walked to the window and pointed.
Amidst the numerous apartment complexes stood a department store.
But… its appearance was extremely strange.
"The ‘Corruption’ has already progressed quite a bit.”
"Yes, it looks like a demon's castle, doesn't it…."
The massive department store building was covered in what looked like the roots of a centuries-old tree.
On the rooftop garden, huge trees resembling baobabs had sprouted,
and black birds, definitely not crows, were circling above them.
Yes, it had transformed into something like a legendary demon king's castle, and the transformation was still ongoing.
By this afternoon, the entire area would be covered in that landscape.
“…I heard you attempted an attack to rescue the civilians. Did it fail?”
At the question, Choi Min-seong wore a bitter expression.
"That's right. We tried to attack once… ha, those bastards… As we approached, they started throwing civilians off the roof to their deaths. It was as if they knew exactly what we wanted.”
Listening to Choi Min-seong, Lee Hyun-wook felt a wave of nausea.
That expression, those words—it was all an act, full of deceit.
He was the one orchestrating the killing of civilians, yet here he was, pretending to be sad…
"In the end, to stop the senseless sacrifice, we had no choice but to retreat without any results. Plus, there's a ‘barrier’ around the entire department store, so sniping from the apartment rooftops is impossible.”
A barrier… Looking at the place again, he could see a shimmering purple hue covering it.
It was a device that could block incoming magic from the outside.
“Well, I have a method.”
At Lee Hyun-wook’s words, Choi Min-seong’s eyebrows twitched.
“…A method?”
"Yes. I'll explain, so please gather everyone.”
Choi Min-seong soon gathered the Players.
"Alright! The commander of the Steel Platoon here says he has a plan! Let's hear him out.”
Lee Hyun-wook looked over the Players before speaking.
"The pattern these enemies have shown so far is singular. They use an unidentified black smoke to knock people unconscious, then abduct them to their base without killing them. They don't discriminate between civilians and Players.”
The Players nodded.
"In that case, the easiest way to get inside is… to get captured.”
Captured? At his words, nearly every face in the room contorted.
"......What?"
"What do you mean? Are you saying you're going to deliberately inhale that smoke and get captured?”
"That's right.”
“Ha— Hey, first, take a look at those guys over there.”
Someone snorted and pointed somewhere.
Two men were lying on the floor.
"Those two inhaled that black smoke. See? It doesn't just knock you out; it ‘deactivates’ all your skills for a full eight hours. In other words, you're no different from a normal person.”
In short, getting captured meant your combat power would drop to zero.
"Yes, I'm aware. But we'll be fine. We have a resistance to it.”
Everyone wore a puzzled expression at his words.
Resistance. That wasn't something one could acquire easily.
Lee Hyun-wook added an explanation.
“We were lucky enough to receive an <Event Buff>, so our entire force is under a curse immunity buff. In other words, we can pretend to be unconscious and enter that place with our abilities intact.”
Exclamations of admiration erupted from here and there.
"Oh— There's something like that?”
"No wonder they were able to destroy a Corruption Factor…”
Just then, Choi Min-seong raised his hand.
“Hmm… Actually, myself and these three friends also possess ‘curse resistance.’”
…*What, all of a sudden?*
Lee Hyun-wook wondered what he was up to.
“Oh…”
"Wow— Taesan really lives up to its name.”
"Well, it's nothing special. We built it up while raiding undead-related gates for a while.”
Amidst the cheers, Choi Min-seong nodded with a serious expression and continued.
“Anyway, we did consider a similar plan. But with that alone… it's a suicide mission. Yes, the moment we're captured, they'll take all our weapons and bind our hands and feet.”
Lee Hyun-wook immediately countered.
"That's where my ability comes in.”
Choi Min-seong tilted his head.
Meanwhile, an unreadable light flickered in his eyes.
“…May I ask what that ability is?”
The source of that light was his sordid desire to uncover Lee Hyun-wook’s abilities.
Lee Hyun-wook took out a steel ball and levitated it in the air.
“—There, it's like this.”
"Oh, psychokinesis?”
"No, it's a control-type.”
As it was an uncommon ability, it was impossible to grasp its full extent from a single demonstration.
And that rarity was one of the key weapons of a ‘Beyond-Level Growth’ trait.
The lack of information made analysis difficult, which meant opponents couldn't prepare countermeasures.
For that reason, those with ‘Beyond-Level Growth’ were extremely reluctant to reveal the details of their abilities.
However…
"Hmm, could you explain a bit more? If we're going with your plan, it seems we'll have to go in with you. Shouldn't we get to know each other's capabilities well beforehand?”
Despite the blatant demand for information, Lee Hyun-wook, for some reason, readily nodded.
“I control metal. And I can alter its shape to some extent.”
“In that case, you'd have plenty of things to use as weapons even if yours were taken.”
"Yes, that's right. And…”
Lee Hyun-wook used ‘Metal Transformation’ on the steel ball, flattening it.
"If I hide a small piece of metal like this in my mouth and change its shape, it can be used as a key or a knife. In other words, I can open restraints or locked doors. It will be very useful inside.”
"Hmm… It's risky, but it certainly seems like the method with the highest chance of success.”
"Yes. As you know, control-types are particularly physically weak, so if you prioritize protecting me, this mission will succeed.”
At Lee Hyun-wook's words, Choi Min-seong smiled faintly and stood up.
"Alright! Let's do this. We'll infiltrate with the Steel Platoon and rescue the civilians. Then, we'll fire magic out the window as a signal. At that point, the rest of you will launch an all-out attack to draw their attention, and we'll move again to destroy the object generating that barrier.”
“Oh…”
"Once the barrier is down, we'll be able to snipe the department store from the surrounding apartment rooftops, which will give us a tactical advantage.”
Most of them nodded.
“So, what do you say? Does everyone agree?”
Everyone agreed. In the current situation, it was undeniably the most rational plan.
Choi Min-seong looked at Lee Hyun-wook and smiled faintly.
Something was hidden behind that smile.
And Lee Hyun-wook, too, wore the exact same smile.
***
Choi Min-seong called for a short break to prepare and gathered his subordinates.
"That Steel Platoon commander seems to have a good head on his shoulders. Thinking of infiltrating by using his resistance… and that strange ability of his seems quite versatile. But…”
“…He took the wrong bait!”
A woman shouted, giggling.
"That's right. To think he'd willingly offer his own neck, not knowing we're after his life. This is almost too easy, isn't it?”
Infiltrating by getting captured was, frankly, a clever idea. But in this situation, where the Villains were targeting the Steel Platoon, they thought it was no different from him walking right into a trap.
"Heh, seriously, this is why I can't quit being a Villain!”
The woman stomped her feet in excitement.
Her eyes were wide and unfocused.
“Pfft! The thrill of playing with secrets others would die never knowing—!”
"Park Ji-hyun, it's not a success yet. Don't get cocky, and watch your mouth.”
“Ah, yes, yes… Hehe…”
Though Choi Min-seong reprimanded her, Park Ji-hyun still couldn't hide her excitement.
"Is she high again? Hah… Anyway, we'll clear out anything that could be used as a weapon from the cell, but just in case, think of a way to stop him from wielding a weapon if he gets his hands on one. As he said himself, he's a control-type, so he's useless without something to control.”
At those words, a bald man in a leather jacket raised his hand.
"Yes, my skill should do the trick. In an emergency, I can create a ‘ring’ and trap him.”
"Oh… that's perfect. It's a skill you rarely use, but it looks like it'll finally come in handy, huh?”
“Hahaha— It certainly seems so.”
Just then, as if remembering something, Choi Min-seong raised his index finger.
“…Ah, and remember this. We're not to kill them right away.”
"We need to capture and torture them to find out how they destroyed the Corruption Factor, right?”
"Exactly. So don't be hasty. Wait for my signal.”
The Villains stood up, and Choi Min-seong threw out one last remark.
"They say the Steel Platoon is some kind of hope out there. We're going to crush that hope right here."
***
An hour later, the so-called ‘Voluntary Capture Operation’ began.
There were six of them in total: Lee Hyun-wook, Park Jun-mo, Choi Min-seong, and his three subordinates.
They entered an alley, and at that very moment—
*Pshhhhhh—!*
A manhole cover suddenly burst open, and black smoke spewed out from within.
“—Gack!”
They inhaled the smoke and collapsed.
No, they pretended to collapse.
About ten minutes later, a group of monsters appeared at the mouth of the alley.
*Krrrr—*
Strangely, they were wearing black robes, making it impossible to identify them.
However, judging from their growls, it was a motley crew of orcs, goblins, kobolds, and gnolls.
They turned over the fallen party, stripped them of all their weapons, and tied their arms with ropes.
Then, a monster that looked like an orc slung one person over each shoulder.
‘The stench is unbearable…’
The foul odor emanating from them was so nauseating that it was incredibly difficult to keep up the act of being unconscious.
Fortunately, they reached the department store in less than five minutes.
He couldn't see clearly, but it was transforming into a bizarre shape due to the Corruption.
They were dragged down to the third basement level, into the dim parking garage.
‘When did they set up these iron bars?’
This place was an underground prison. There were even iron-barred cells on one side, just like a real prison.
Whether these things were created by the Corruption or handmade by the monsters,
it was puzzling in many ways, but there was no way to confirm.
They were thrown into one of the cells.
*Thud—*
"Ugh…”
Park Jun-mo groaned as he was thrown onto the floor.
He hadn't expected to be tossed around like an object.
When he came to his senses and looked around, he saw a dozen or so civilians locked up in the fairly spacious area.
“…Are you okay?”
A little boy squatting right next to Park Jun-mo asked.
"Ah, yeah, I'm okay.”
“…But, you won't be okay for long.”
The kid’s face was stained with tears.
"…Huh?"
"They take us, one by one… *sob*… those monsters…”
"Ah…”
"They… they eat us.”
Park Jun-mo placed a hand on the boy’s head.
"No, it's going to be okay.”
“…”
The boy’s expression was full of disbelief.
"Haha— What's your name?”
"Ah, I'm Shin Ji-ho.”
"Really? Wow! What a coincidence meeting you here. You're Hee-mang's friend, right?”
"Huh? H-How did you know?”
Shin Ji-ho looked completely surprised.
Park Jun-mo had asked the little girl named Hee-mang for the names of her friends.
“Well, Hee-mang asked me to save you, Ji-ho, so that's why I'm here.”
"Huh? You came to… save me? You weren't captured?”
*Grrr—*
Outside, two orc guards were shuffling about.
Park Jun-mo whispered very quietly.
"Yeah, I really came to save you. Don't worry.”
But just then…
“Pfft—!”
A snicker erupted from somewhere.
It was the woman from the Taesan Guild, Park Ji-hyun.
She was curled up on the floor, her body shaking.
It seemed she was trying to suppress a burst of laughter that was escaping her for some reason…
“Puhahaha—! Sorry, Vice-Leader! It's just too funny!”
In the end, she burst out laughing.
"Hey! Pfft! What do you mean you came to save him, you idiot! You were captured! Puhahaha—!”
At the sight, Choi Min-seong sighed heavily and stood up.
"Hah… you, really…”
Strangely enough, the ropes that had been binding their arms were now gone.
“No, but acting all cool in front of a kid, saying you came to save him, it's just hilarious! Ah— I'm tearing up!”
Choi Min-seong gestured, and two of his subordinates approached Lee Hyun-wook. They forced his mouth open and retrieved the piece of metal he had hidden under his tongue for escape. Then they put it into some kind of leather pouch.
"There. Now there's no steel for you to control.”
Only then did Park Jun-mo realize that things were going very, very wrong.
“Wh-what the… Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, what is this…”
To make matters worse, the two orc guards opened the cell and came inside, standing staunchly behind them as if they were all on the same side.
‘…They're terrorists!’
They had been completely duped.
That was what Park Jun-mo thought.
But he didn't despair so easily.
‘No, I can't give up yet.’
He glanced at Lee Hyun-wook out of the corner of his eye, preparing to counterattack.
His arms were tied, so aiming properly would be difficult, but he could still use his ability.
*Crackle—*
The moment an electric current began to flow from his bound hands—
“Stay still, Park Jun-mo—”
Lee Hyun-wook stopped him.
"Yes, very smart of you. Just stay put like that, and let's have a nice, deep chat."
Two men forced Lee Hyun-wook and Park Jun-mo to their knees, and Choi Min-seong approached them.
"Mr. Lee Hyun-wook, I have a lot of questions for you. First, the Corruption Factor… how did you eliminate it?”
Lee Hyun-wook didn't answer.
“I looked into it, and you're not a Guardian… Hmm, was it just a coincidence, then?”
“…”
“Tsk— exercising your right to remain silent here isn't very smart.”
"However…”
"Ah, yes. Finally decided to open your mouth?”
Lee Hyun-wook lifted his head and looked up at Choi Min-seong.
"Choi Min-seong, I have a few questions for you, too.”
“…What?”
“That's why I set the stage here like this.”
At those strange words, Choi Min-seong tilted his head.
"Set the stage… What? Who did?”
But at that moment, Lee Hyun-wook smiled.
"This is a pretty good place for a private conversation, isn't it?”
“…”
“Just wait. The monsters who might interrupt will all be gone soon.”
“…The hell are you talking about?”
"Because a spectacle is about to rain down from the sky, and they'll all be drawn to it…”
Unable to make any sense of his words, Choi Min-seong scowled.
But at that very moment…
*KWA—ANG—!*
An explosion rocked the building.
"…Wh-what was that?”
"Vice-Leader, I think something's exploding?”
*KWA—ANG—!*
Another explosion. Yes, something powerful was definitely detonating above them.
*KWA—ANG—!*
Lee Hyun-wook nodded.
"A bombardment. It won't break through the barrier, but it will cause enough of a commotion to draw every monster's attention elsewhere."
“…What?”
“…Simply put, it means that down here in this basement, we can talk amongst ourselves.”
What Lee Hyun-wook had requested from Kim Kang-seok earlier…
It was an aerial bombardment.
“…What are you?”
The composure vanished from Choi Min-seong’s face.
"Choi Min-seong, you know the location of the ‘barrier-generating object,’ right? You're going to have to explain where that is."
*C-c-crack—*
A strange sound was coming from somewhere. It was from behind Lee Hyun-wook.
“…Then I'll show you firsthand how I eliminated the Corruption Factor—!”
*SH-RAK!*
In that instant, the ropes binding Lee Hyun-wook’s arms tore apart.
Lee Hyun-wook’s left hand shot out towards Choi Min-seong.
A single spear erupted from his wrist.
“—Kuh!”
In that moment, Choi Min-seong’s body vanished from mid-air and reappeared in a corner of the cell.
The Spear of Achilles seemed destined to cut through empty air—but it swerved,
piercing through the two orc guards that were charging at Lee Hyun-wook.
In that time, Lee Hyun-wook had risen to his feet.
And from all over his body, that strange sound began to ring out again.
*C-c-c-crackle—*
“Huh?”
Just then, Park Jun-mo saw it.
All over Lee Hyun-wook’s body, black crystals were sprouting from his skin.
At the same time, a sharp, bluish aura began to envelop him…
"Park Jun-mo—”
Park Jun-mo looked up at Lee Hyun-wook.
“…We really are here to rescue them, so tell everyone to get ready to go home.”
From his fingertips, claws as sharp as a leopard's began to sprout.