Chapter 61
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: End, Declaration, Hero - 1
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The Great Condor soared above the clouds.
Lee Hyun-wook, riding on its back, closed his eyes.
‘There is no moving metal in this vicinity.’
Traveling through the clouds like this, there was no risk of being attacked by a swarm of Armored Poison Bugs.
However, at such a high altitude, the chill began to seep into his body, making his skin ache. He cast ‘Body Hardening’ over his entire form and added a ‘Mana Shield’, which blocked some of the cold.
Finally, he took a ‘Mana Recovery Potion’ from his belt and drank it.
- Mana recovery speed greatly increases for 10 minutes. (+200%)
With that, his preparations were complete.
“—Let’s go down!”
At his shout, the Great Condor began to dive vertically.
*Whoosh—*
As they passed through a layer of clouds, the ground—Cheongryong Mountain—came into view.
A gray shimmer and a black shimmer were rising from it. The gray shimmer was real smoke from smoldering embers, but the black shimmer… it was the collective dance of a disgusting swarm of insects.
‘I have to break through that to get down.’
Without a moment’s hesitation, Lee Hyun-wook leaped from the Great Condor’s back.
He straightened his body, aiming for Cheongryong Mountain, and went into a vertical freefall, closing his eyes.
*Whoo-ooh-ooh-ooh—*
As if sensing his arrival, a black stream of shimmer began to shoot toward him.
*Wheeeeeeeeee—!*
There were exactly 374 of them—Lee Hyun-wook ‘sensed’ each and every one of their movements.
Then, he extended his left hand.
‘—Shatter!’
*Pop-pop-pop-pop-bang—!*
Dozens of them exploded at once.
Following them, dozens more,
and then dozens more were blown to pieces.
As his left hand slowly traced an arc, every Armored Poison Bug caught in its path exploded.
*Pop-pop-pop-pop-bang—!*
The 374 Armored Poison Bugs were reduced to thousands of metal fragments and scattered.
However…
‘As I thought, using Shatter indiscriminately is too draining on my mana.’
The Metal Shatter skill was, without a doubt, a one-hit-kill attack against these things.
But the number of Armored Poison Bugs was staggering,
and even if he poured all his mana into it, he wouldn’t be able to reduce their numbers in any meaningful way.
‘But the only thing I absolutely have to destroy is the Corrosion Factor.’
Even if he couldn’t eliminate all of them, he could at least clear a path for now.
And…
*Swish-swish-swish-swish-swish—!*
The ‘metal fragments’ he had created began to follow him, rotating around his body.
Just then, another swarm of Armored Poison Bugs flew up.
This time, there were 1,188 of them.
It was an overwhelming number.
‘I’ll pierce through them, just break straight through!’
Lee Hyun-wook crossed his arms to cover his head and focused ‘Body Hardening’ on his forearms.
*Kzzzzzzzt—!*
He then pulled the ‘metal fragments’ floating around him to the front of his arms and used ‘Metal Morphing’ to entangle them around his forearms. A heavy shield of scrap metal—a kind of bumper—was formed.
“—Now! Give me a speed boost!”
At his words, Haneui, the ‘Spirit of the Wind’ perched on his shoulder, moved.
As it began to circle Lee Hyun-wook’s body, a whirlwind enveloped him.
*Whoooooosh—!*
‘Fast!’
Lee Hyun-wook’s descent accelerated.
Like a cannonball, clad in steel, he dove at an incredible speed—
and soon collided head-on with the 1,188 Armored Poison Bugs.
*Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud—!*
A single-point breakthrough.
He slammed directly into the swarm of Armored Poison Bugs, piercing through them in an instant.
They circled around to chase him, but they couldn’t match his diving speed.
Lee Hyun-wook closed his eyes again and began to scan all the metal on Cheongryong Mountain.
‘…I have to find it.’
The Corrosion Factor. It was impossible to spot its location with the naked eye.
This was the very problem that had worried Kim Kang-seok, Choi Jeong-cheol, and Kim Se-hee.
Even if he managed to reach Cheongryong Mountain while its defenses were thin,
thousands of the bugs still covered its surface, making the Corrosion Factor impossible to find easily.
In other words, eliminating the Corrosion Factor through a surprise attack was impossible.
To this, Lee Hyun-wook had replied.
‘…I can do it.’
Yes, it was something only Lee Hyun-wook could do.
‘Since their carapaces are metal, I can sense and analyze their movements.’
‘Through that method, I should be able to deduce the location of the Corrosion Factor.’
The swarm of Armored Poison Bugs surrounded the Corrosion Factor with their bodies, like bees protecting their hive.
That was how they had managed to protect it even when Choi Jeong-cheol’s ‘Semi-Armageddon’ had struck.
In short, the spot where an unusually large number of Armored Poison Bugs were gathered was the Corrosion Factor.
But…
‘Damn, there are so many of them…’
So many metal movements were detected on the surface of Cheongryong Mountain that his head was starting to spin.
He could feel his nerves overloading as he tried to sense thousands of movements at once.
*Whoooooosh—!*
All the while, his altitude was rapidly decreasing.
‘I have to find it before I reach the ground. If I can’t deal with it in one shot, I’m dead.’
Just then, he found an area that felt different.
A spot where an unusually large number of Armored Poison Bugs were gathered, forming a thick layer.
And for some reason, their movements there were somewhat slow and cautious,
like a swarm of worker ants embracing and protecting their queen.
‘Yes, it’s somewhere around there.’
Lee Hyun-wook turned his body toward that spot.
Just before hitting the ground, he imbued his body with Metal Control.
His body floated up against the direction of gravity and landed on the scorched black earth.
*Thud—*
Immediately after he landed, the thousands of metal fragments that had fallen with him rained down like steel.
*Clang-clang-clang-clang-clang—!*
The Armored Poison Bugs sitting around his landing spot were swept away by the fragments, and the whirlwind from Haneui that had been enveloping Lee Hyun-wook burst outward, pushing back the bugs in the vicinity.
But that was like scooping a handful of sand from a beach.
*Wheeeeeeeeee—!*
Thousands of Armored Poison Bugs flew toward Lee Hyun-wook all at once.
It was as if a black wave was about to crash over him.
But Lee Hyun-wook could control that wave.
He raised both hands and opened his palms.
‘Rotate.’
Lee Hyun-wook pulled in the countless metal fragments, causing them to spin at high speed around his body. Haneui then created a whirlwind on the same trajectory, drastically increasing the fragments’ rotational speed.
*Rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble—!*
Thus, a vortex of steel rose up, surrounding Lee Hyun-wook’s body.
Metal Control and the Spirit of the Wind.
It was a powerful inertial barrier that would have been impossible without either one.
*Clang—! Clang—! Clang—! Clang—!*
The creatures tried to break through the steel vortex, but they just crashed into it, got swept up, and were flung away.
However, this was only a temporary measure.
‘It probably won’t last long.’
Soon, they would gather together and force their way through the steel vortex…
Lee Hyun-wook felt like he was standing between the teeth of a monster.
If he delayed any longer, he would be torn to shreds and devoured.
‘The Corrosion Factor. It’s near here. But I need to find its exact location.’
He closed his eyes once more.
The moment the intruder named Lee Hyun-wook appeared, the Armored Poison Bugs showed two types of movement.
The majority rushed toward Lee Hyun-wook, but a significant number headed in a completely different direction.
‘…That’s the procession to protect the Corrosion Factor.’
Lee Hyun-wook read their movements.
And finally…
“Yes, there you are.”
He pinpointed a single spot, an exact coordinate.
Lee Hyun-wook led the steel vortex and walked toward that point.
Just then, something enormous shot up from the ground.
- The boss monster ‘Armored Behemoth’ has appeared.
*Kiiiiieeeeeeeehk—!*
It was a beetle-shaped monster, easily 7 to 8 meters in size.
Its front legs were shaped like scissors, and a spear-like horn protruded from its head.
A tube for spewing acidic fluid was attached to its mouth.
‘I’ve finally reached the last gate.’
The appearance of a boss monster meant he was on the right track.
‘The Armored Behemoth. This thing is a kind of cover, protecting the Corrosion Factor with its body.’
Like the Hell Rat Mutant, it was a ‘guardian’ type boss monster that protected the gate.
It must have been covering the Corrosion Factor with its hard body to block external attacks.
But as Lee Hyun-wook approached, it had no choice but to rise up itself.
The creature approached Lee Hyun-wook.
‘Good, come out a little more… so the Corrosion Factor is completely exposed…’
The creature kicked off the ground, lowered its horn toward Lee Hyun-wook, and charged like a rhinoceros.
*Thump—thump—thump—thump—!*
If that thing hit you, it would pierce a hole even in an armored vehicle.
The creature broke through the steel vortex as if it were nothing and rammed into Lee Hyun-wook.
*Klaaaang—!*
But its spear-like horn was blocked by something.
*Woooong—*
A golden shield was enveloping Lee Hyun-wook.
“Seo Eun-ha… you really are my first line of defense.”
A bracelet on his wrist was glowing.
It was the bracelet Seo Eun-ha had given him just before the Steel Company departed.
Lee Hyun-wook dodged to the side and thrust his Unsa-amsu into a gap in the creature’s shell.
‘—Electric Discharge!’
*Bzzzzzzzt—!*
The electricity erupting from the tip of his blade coursed through every corner of the creature’s body.
Its massive body trembled and was momentarily paralyzed.
In other words, it was a perfect opening.
“Now!”
At his shout, Haneui shot the steel vortex forward, blowing away everything in the area.
And then, finally…
‘There it is!’
A red jewel embedded in the ground, the World Stone (Corrosion Factor), was clearly revealed.
Target identified, aim zeroed.
*Shweeeeee—!*
Something, a massive object, was falling from above it.
It was, of course, ‘Moglei’.
The monsters had lost the physical defense to block that blow.
*Kra-koooom—!*
An explosion—a monstrous force that nothing caught beneath could possibly survive intact.
And…
- You have destroyed the ‘World Stone (Wave)’!
A system message appeared, signaling that it was all over.
The assault operation, one that only Lee Hyun-wook could have accomplished, had successfully concluded.
“Hah…”
Lee Hyun-wook let out a hot breath and looked up at the sky.
The gate would close now, but thousands of Armored Poison Bugs still filled the sky.
However, they seemed to have lost their purpose, scattering in all directions.
“Command structure collapsed… It’s all over.”
Command collapse. It was a phenomenon where monsters, moving not of their own will but by some spell, lose their objective and wander aimlessly when the ‘source of the spell’ disappears.
In short, the creatures would lose their aggression for the time being.
Of course, their very existence was a threat, so an extermination operation would have to be carried out for a while, but that was for later.
And, about 20 meters away, the gate was collapsing.
Lee Hyun-wook approached it.
As expected, an item appeared where the gate was collapsing.
- You have acquired the Ring of Gyges (Hero).
[Item Information]
- Name: Ring of Gyges (Hero)
- Effect: Becomes invisible for 30 seconds when mana is infused. (Cooldown: 30 minutes)
‘Quite a few heroes vanished in vain because of this item…’
In a way, he had saved their lives as well.
And that wasn’t all.
- Congratulations! You have successfully completed the event quest <Disaster Expedition>!
* You have achieved the best results and will receive the ‘1st Place’ reward.
“Ah, the quest…”
Come to think of it, the entire Steel Company had been given a quest after conquering the first Corrosion Factor.
He hadn’t paid it any mind until now, but naturally, Lee Hyun-wook, who had played the most active role, had taken first place.
Two points of light appeared before Lee Hyun-wook’s eyes.
He reached out and snatched them.
- You have acquired Trait Bloom (Special).
* This item is bound upon acquisition.
‘To get this again…’
And the other one was…
‘What’s this?’
- You have acquired the ‘Master Key’ of an Ancient Legacy.
* This item is bound upon acquisition.
It was an item completely unknown even to Lee Hyun-wook.
***
“—They’re scattering!”
In the school’s first-floor lobby, a Player shouted.
Just as he said, the black shimmer that had covered the sky was dispersing.
The Armored Poison Bugs that had forced their way into the school also flew out the windows.
It was an unbelievably sudden end to the situation.
“What… what just happened?”
The Players, who had been facing death in a life-or-death struggle, were dumbfounded.
They cautiously walked out of the school and looked up at the sky.
The swarm of insects was truly gone, and the purple hue that had colored the sky was fading.
“…It’s over.”
All these phenomena meant that the wave had ended.
In other words, someone had conquered the Corrosion Factor.
“Who on earth took down the Corrosion Factor?”
“Ah! Wasn’t it the Anyang Duo?”
“Huh? I heard they haven’t arrived yet…”
Just then, someone mentioned another name.
“I heard earlier that the commander of the Steel Company went in alone from behind.”
“What? Alone… Is that even possible?”
“That… I’m not sure.”
And if that was true, it was a truly historic event.
“Doesn’t this mean the Steel Company basically devoured this entire wave?”
“Wow, you’re right… I’m really curious who they are.”
It was an undeniable fact that the name ‘Steel Company’ had dominated this entire wave.
Meanwhile, Choi Jeong-cheol and Kim Kang-seok had also gone up to the building’s rooftop to survey the area.
“…Brigade Commander, Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook actually did it.”
Kim Kang-seok said, as if he couldn’t believe it.
“Yes, he’s accomplished the impossible.”
“Haha… Indeed.”
“Did you, by any chance, also think he would have a hard time succeeding?”
The plan Lee Hyun-wook had brought forward was, frankly, not persuasive at all.
Claiming that because he had metal-sensing abilities, he could infiltrate from high altitude, deduce the Corrosion Factor’s location from the bugs’ movements, and destroy it by dropping the greatsword Moglei from the sky…
‘Yes, honestly, I thought it was no different from a suicide attempt.’
But it was none other than Lee Hyun-wook who had confidently asserted it, and at the time, there was no other option, so he had approved the plan… but until the very last moment, he had regretted not being able to stop him.
“Yes, that’s right. I believed in Lee Hyun-wook’s skills… but I’m not one to believe in miracles.”
Choi Jeong-cheol chuckled at that.
“And yet, a miracle happened.”
“Yes, it truly… feels like we’ve been saved.”
“Haha, well then, people will be arriving from the outside soon, so we should…”
But Choi Jeong-cheol’s next words were unheard.
*Gwooooong—!*
A familiar roar echoed from somewhere.
A heavy rumble that shook the sky, it was the bell that signaled a global announcement.
But unlike the somewhat eerie bells of the past, this sound was rather clear.
And the letters appearing in the sky were green, not red.
- Congratulations! You have succeeded in conquering a ‘Wave’ for the first time in history!
* A very special reward will be given to Seoul.
At the same time, everyone cheered.
“Woooah—!”
“It’s real! Seoul is safe!”
“We won!”
They had already suspected it, but seeing the official confirmation made it finally feel real.
They had saved Seoul, which they thought was lost forever, without any damage.
But their cheers quickly died down.
“Huh—?”
Because that ‘very special reward’ began to appear in the sky.
“Gasp! W-what is that!”
To the west, above the Seoul Station area, a massive gate opened.
And from it, something was descending.
It was so enormous that its shadow engulfed the upper part of Seoul.
“…”
People could only stand there with their mouths agape, watching the spectacle.
“A-a planet…”
Yes, it was a scene that made one think a planet—or a moon-like satellite—was falling to Earth.
“No, no… it’s floating in the sky. And the top part looks strange.”
On top of the hemispherical lower part, buildings that looked like skyscrapers were erected haphazardly.
Everyone could see it clearly.
It was a floating city.
- ‘Laputa’ will appear in the Seoul area!
* Proficiency gain for all ‘Crafting Skills’ will be greatly increased.
* The ‘Success Rate of Item Crafting’ for all items will be greatly increased.
* The ‘Progress of all Magitech Research’ will be greatly increased.
* A ‘Mana Ecosystem’ will be established in the area.
.
.
.
An incredibly long message appeared before the eyes of every Player in this place.
It was the moment Seoul escaped from hell and leaped to become the world’s greatest city.
***
Meanwhile, Choo Kyo-yong and the other Taesan Guild members were found dead in a classroom.
The reason was officially announced as unknown, but Lee Hyun-wook guessed the cause.
‘Game over for failing the Villain Quest.’
Villain Quests were often merciless in their outcomes.
It seemed that while they were plotting something else, Lee Hyun-wook had destroyed the Corrosion Factor.
And so, 8,000 A.M.T. troops were deployed throughout Seoul.
Each guild also dispatched 6,900 Players for safety assurance and restoration work.
Under the command of General Seo Baek-jin, the Commander of the A.M.T. Holy Knights, the Seoul Subjugation and Restoration Operation began.
A significant number of undead monsters were still roaming parts of Seoul, so a subjugation operation was necessary.
‘…What should have been a recapture operation in the original history has turned into a subjugation operation.’
And the order given to the Steel Company was to rest.
‘Right, I really need to get some sleep now…’
Lee Hyun-wook arrived at the barracks, took a shower, and immediately fell asleep.
***
How much time had passed? His eyes opened on their own.
- Metal Absorption complete. Small Flash (Rare)
- Congratulations! You have met a special condition and will be given a new ‘Skill’.
- Metal Absorption complete. (Mana Heart)
- Metal Absorption complete. (Mana Heart)
- Metal Absorption complete. (Mana Heart)
A number of messages had appeared before his eyes.
It was the ‘Heavenly Iron’ ring he had eaten and the ‘Mana Generators’ obtained from Choo Kyo-yong’s ‘Black Orcs’.
“Hmm…”
But the ‘Dwarf-made Great Mountain Engine’ was still not fully absorbed.
The time for that was still ‘Unknown’, so there was no telling how many more days it would take.
Just then, the barracks door opened and someone came in.
“Uh— Salute!”
Park Jun-mo, who was awake, stiffened and saluted.
It was the battalion commander, Kim Kang-seok, who had come to the barracks.
“At ease, everyone continue resting.”
He approached Lee Hyun-wook.
Lee Hyun-wook got up from his bed and saluted.
“Well, Lee Hyun-wook, did you rest well?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. You should rest more, but there are… several people looking for you.”
He couldn’t guess who would be looking for him that the battalion commander himself would come.
Lee Hyun-wook quickly got ready and followed him to the commander’s office.
Besides General Choi Jeong-cheol, two other people were sitting there…
‘Some truly impressive people have paid a visit.’
He knew both of their faces.
Kang Seo-yoon, the Master of the Zmeun-narae Guild, and Woo Seong-mun, the Director of the National Gate Response Strategy Office.
Even without their titles, they were big shots, ranked 3rd and 9th in South Korea, respectively.
“Everyone, let me introduce you. This is Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, the man most responsible for the success of this operation.”
Lee Hyun-wook bowed his head and sat before them.
They were some of the strongest people in South Korea, but Lee Hyun-wook didn’t feel particularly nervous.
He had met them countless times in his past life.
‘And they are both trustworthy people.’
Kang Seo-yoon was the first to offer her business card.
“Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, you finished off the three Corrosion Factors with your own hands, correct?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“And have you heard about the rewards for that?”
Lee Hyun-wook nodded.
“I came here today to give you that.”
Fifty million dollars and a Hero-grade item per Corrosion Factor, and for the Player with the best performance, the legendary weapon ‘Gáe Bulg’, whose value was simply inestimable, would be given.
“But the reason I came so suddenly… well, I have my reasons, but I don’t know why Director Woo is here. You weren’t planning on coming, but then you followed me when you heard I was going. What’s that about?”
Kang Seo-yoon said, glaring at Woo Seong-mun.
“Haha, when someone of your stature, Guild Master Kang, tries to poach our national talent, who else but me would stop you?”
Lee Hyun-wook couldn’t help but look blankly between the two.
It seemed he was about to be courted by giants right after waking up.
“Oh, really? Mr. Lee Hyun-wook, I’ll equip you from head to toe with Hero-grade gear.”
“…Excuse me?”
“So, once you’re discharged, come to our <Zmeun-narae>.”
At those words, Kim Kang-seok’s face couldn’t help but harden.
The elite raid guild <Zmeun-narae> was the face of South Korea.
While <Cheonghwa> was overwhelmingly larger in scale and had the image of the number one guild,
Zmeun-narae, which housed many of South Korea’s top rankers, was the de facto strongest guild.
Above all, South Korea’s rank 1 ‘Gravity Mage’, Lee Seong-yoon, was a member of Zmeun-narae.
Next, Woo Seong-mun’s business card came into view.
“Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, I am Woo Seong-mun, Director of the National Gate Response Strategy Office. We spoke once before via Mana Messenger, right? I was the one who gave you access to Government Armory No. 2.”
He seemed to have used informal language then, but now he was being strangely polite.
“Ah, yes. That was a great help at the time.”
“A great help is what you’ve been to all of us, Sergeant. And… if you say you’ll work for the country, the nation is prepared to provide support that is by no means lacking. And the Steel Company… we are considering creating a special forces unit for you.”
It wasn’t just a commission as an officer, but the creation of an entire unit with him as its commander.
Indeed, a person of Woo Seong-mun’s stature could make such an unprecedented exception.
“Hmm…”
Listening to the story, Lee Hyun-wook rubbed his eyes.
The flood of offers immediately after waking up was a bit overwhelming.
He looked down at the two business cards.
“Well, for now…”
All eyes were on his lips.
He paused for a moment, then slowly raised his head.
He met each of their eyes in turn and opened his mouth.
“…My price tag, I believe, will be higher than you anticipate.”
Everyone looked puzzled.
They hadn’t expected such an arrogant remark.
“Ah, I know you did something amazing. I’m saying we’ll treat you accordingly.”
“Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook,”
Kang Seo-yoon and Woo Seong-mun each added a word.
But Lee Hyun-wook shook his head.
Until now, he had hidden his abilities as much as possible.
It had been advantageous to grow quietly, without attracting attention.
‘But I’ve reached my limit.’
The main reason for hiding his abilities was to operate freely, away from countless prying eyes.
But now that he had achieved such a great feat, that was no longer possible, so he planned to change his strategy.
“I… have awakened as an S-rank through this achievement.”
At his declaration, silence fell.
“…”
No one showed any reaction.
That was how shocking it was.
“So, no matter what either of you offer, it won’t be an adequate price.”
There were currently known to be 33 S-rank Players, and only 3 in the country.
From now on, he planned to wear a distinct aura and blatantly pursue his own interests.