Chapter 88
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Alchemy Factory, Blood Magic, Plague - 3
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“...I’m here to negotiate for the hostages.”
In the lobby of the research institute’s Building B, a man in an A.M.T. combat suit spoke.
His calm voice, echoing through the otherwise silent hostage scene, was utterly out of place.
"......."
Not only the eighteen terrorists scattered throughout the area,
but also the hundreds of hostages huddled in a corner turned to look at him.
Every single pair of eyes in the building was fixed on one spot.
‘...What the hell? How did he get in?’
The terrorists’ leader, Section Chief Lee, couldn't help but wonder. After a moment's thought, he concluded it had to be stealth.
‘To think they’d force their way in like this after we made it crystal clear we’d kill the hostages if anyone approached…’
Section Chief Lee scoffed in disbelief, aiming his rifle at the man.
His subordinates followed suit, raising their weapons.
Click— Clack—
“Tsk, tsk—you stupid bastards. We told you what would happen, and you still sneak in?”
The 20-round, 7.62mm magazine had about ten enchanted bullets.
A spray of these could deal significant damage even to a Player.
“Hey, you don’t think this is just a normal gun, do you? It’s not just the hostages who’ll die; you’re going down too!”
“I feel like I heard that not too long ago…”
“Huh? What’s this bastard talking about?”
The man, Lee Hyun-wook, simply shrugged and walked toward them, unfazed.
Screams erupted from among the hostages.
“N-No, don’t!”
To them, his actions seemed reckless, no, completely insane.
“W-We have bombs strapped to us!”
“Please, stop!”
One wrong move and the hundreds of people here could be wiped out.
But Lee Hyun-wook continued forward without a hint of hesitation.
Thud— Thud—
“Shit, shoot! Just kill them all!” Section Chief Lee finally yelled, unable to take it anymore. A fresh wave of screams filled the air.
But when the screaming died down a moment later,
strangely… nothing had happened.
“The, the guns…”
Click—click— Click—click—
Faint metallic sounds echoed here and there, but not a single gunshot rang out.
Snap—
Next came the sound of a finger snapping. The rifles in their hands shattered into pieces and scattered. They saw the parts morph into sharp awls, but they couldn't react in time.
Thwip—thwip—thwip—thwip—!
The awls simultaneously pierced the terrorists’ necks.
In the blink of an eye, seventeen bodies collapsed, their lives snuffed out in an instant.
“What the—!”
But Section Chief Lee was a mage Player of sorts.
He had layered a ‘Mana Shield’ over his head, which deflected the incoming metal awl.
Clang!
“You son of a bitch! I don’t know what trick you pulled, but you really don’t care if the hostages live or die, do you!”
He reached a hand toward the hostages. It was an empty hand, but the hostages screamed in terror.
Vwoom—
He sent his mana toward the bomb vests strapped to the hostages.
The mana circuit would activate, pressing the ‘detonation switch.’
This was the same threat he had used on the hostages several times already.
“Uh, uhh—”
“—Gah!”
The hostages clung to each other, squeezing their eyes shut.
But once again… nothing happened.
“Hey, are you just going to keep pretending to do things?”
Lee Hyun-wook said with a smirk.
“Huh? Wh-What the…”
“So, is there a plan C?”
“Then… negotiations are over.”
The parts from the eighteen rifles reshaped themselves into a metal chain.
It shot out like a snake, wrapped around Section Chief Lee’s neck, and hoisted him into the air.
“Guh, gack—!”
He dangled and struggled, like a man on the gallows.
Ten steel orbs flew from Lee Hyun-wook’s waist.
CRACK—!
The first strike hit his side—the orb sank nearly halfway in before bouncing off.
The impact seemed to have shattered his ribs. The man choked out a horrifying scream.
“Aaargh—s-save me!”
“Unfortunately, I don’t take hostages.”
The ten steel orbs began to circle him, relentlessly pummelling his body.
WHAM—BAM—BAM—BAM—BAM—!
Dozens of strikes landed in just a few seconds—most of the bones in his body were pulverized.
Soon, the light faded from his eyes.
Thump—
And with that, all eighteen terrorists were neutralized in under a minute.
"......."
The hostages stared at the scene in disbelief before their gazes shifted to Lee Hyun-wook.
“Uh…”
“It’s him, right? Lee Hyun-wook… the Savior of Seoul!”
“Gasp! It is! He came to save us!”
They recognized him and showered him with fervent attention, but he showed no reaction. He simply scanned the interior of the building and pulled a mana messenger from his belt.
Kshh—
“…Negotiations are over.”
As he sent the transmission, his gaze was fixed on an open elevator shaft deeper inside the building.
He was sensing the grotesque screams coming from the empty darkness below.
Skreeeeeeee—
He could feel a strange movement growing more violent down there.
‘It’s about to start.’
And then…
- Warning! You have entered ‘The Devil’s Test Bed.’
* An unknown disaster is brewing in this area.
A system message appeared, heralding the beginning.
***
Captain Lee Gil-hyeon, squad leader of the 999th Special Mission Battalion’s elite ‘Cobra Squad,’ had scoffed when he saw Lee Hyun-wook infiltrate Building B using a stealth skill.
“Dammit, that lucky bastard… Let’s see how good you really are. If even one hostage dies, I’ll go on every news channel and tell them how you insisted on doing this alone!”
Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook. There wasn’t a soul who didn’t know his name today.
But very few had ever witnessed his feats firsthand.
There wasn't even a single video or photo of him in action.
All electronic equipment had failed in the 4th Wave zone where he had been active.
“I mean, even the best make mistakes. Why wouldn’t he seek advice from experts?”
He didn’t doubt the man’s skills, as he was a nationally recognized hero, but… for this guy to show up out of nowhere and try to steal their thunder, it was impossible not to feel resentful.
“Captain Lee, watch your mouth. What if he reports you unfavorably to the higher-ups?”
Operations Team Leader Oh Seong-hoon warned him gently.
“He’s got connections to the Cheongwadae, part of Director Woo Seong-mun’s circle, right? You don’t want to get on that old tiger’s bad side.”
“…Still, does it make sense for him to treat us like mere extras?”
“I’m not happy about it either, but you know you’re the one who started picking a fight when he was speaking calmly, right?”
“For now, let’s focus on the operation. Since that man went in, things are about to get chaotic. And no matter how much of a pain he is, you’re still hoping he handles this well, aren’t you?”
Just then, the first radio call came in, much sooner than expected.
- Kshh— Negotiations are over.
The two men could only stare at each other blankly.
“—What?”
“Wh-What’s over?”
That was definitely Lee Hyun-wook’s voice.
“N-No way, not this quickly…”
It had only been about a minute since he’d gone in.
Finding it hard to believe, they lowered the altitude of a magic drone to check inside the building.
And there it was—the terrorists were all down.
Judging by the pools of blood around them, they had been dealt with mercilessly.
“Hah… Assault team, move in!”
At Team Leader Oh Seong-hoon’s command, the assault teams that had been on standby rushed forward.
“Prioritize the safety of the hostages above all else!”
Oh Seong-hoon followed the assault team into the building.
But the moment he stepped into the lobby…
- Warning! You have entered ‘The Devil’s Test Bed.’
* An unknown disaster is brewing in this area.
A red system message appeared before his eyes.
“Uh… Team Leader, are you seeing this? I-I think something is happening.”
Oh Seong-hoon slowly nodded, a prickling sensation crawling up the back of his neck.
He had a bad feeling about this… a veteran’s intuition.
“Yeah, I saw it. Where is Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook?”
“Over there, in front of the elevator entrance.”
For some reason, Lee Hyun-wook was examining the open elevator—a freight elevator leading to the underground facility, large enough to carry a heavy truck.
He turned his head and met Oh Seong-hoon’s eyes.
“Team Leader Oh, the hostage situation wasn’t all there was to it.”
“Yes, I saw the system message. Dammit, what the hell were they doing here…”
Just then, two members of the assault team brought over a man who looked like one of the hostages.
“S-Sir, this man says he has something to tell us about the current situation.”
He was wearing a white lab coat, seemingly a researcher.
“I am Ahn Yong-woon, the lead researcher of this institute’s Mana Control Research Department.”
“Yes, is what you have to say related to some ‘event’ happening in the basement here?”
“Yes, it is. We had no idea things would spiral this far out of control…”
He swallowed hard before speaking.
“Down there, horrifying monsters that devour humans are lurking. And their numbers are constantly growing. So… there are probably no survivors.”
“Hmm… Monsters, you say. Don’t tell me a Gate opened?”
The researcher shook his head at Oh Seong-hoon’s question.
“I don’t know the details, but it’s not a Gate. That monster… was created in a lab.”
“What? They created a monster…? What kind of nonsense is that…?”
It was a startling revelation to hear for the first time.
The research had initially started with the theme of eternal life, but it gradually veered in a completely different direction under the devil’s temptation. The goal became to offer humans to a devil to gain ‘power.’
‘Of all the ways to achieve eternal life, they chose the easiest: borrowing a devil’s power.’
And so, at the devil’s behest, they began cultivating the eggs of the ‘Agwi’ in their laboratory.
A staggering three thousand eight hundred of them.
Now, those things had hatched and were embarking on their first hunt.
“Dammit, I don’t know what those things are, but we definitely need to block them from getting out…”
Oh Seong-hoon couldn't fully grasp the situation from the researcher's explanation alone, but the system message’s warning told him this was no ordinary event.
"...There are a lot of apartments within a five-kilometer radius. This is a serious problem."
He muttered to himself and pressed the button on the mana messenger on his shoulder.
“This is the operations team leader. All units, maintain combat readiness. Surround this building immediately.”
However, the researcher shook his head as if refuting his judgment and pleaded.
“W-We need to prepare to stop them. We’ll need a significant number of priests and paladins… no, more than that, we need to bring in a lot of ‘holy relics’ and set up ‘sanctuaries’ around here like bunkers.”
“…Holy relics? Why would we need something like that?”
“When you kill those monsters, a black smoke bursts out. Anyone who touches it gets cursed.”
He went on to explain that the security team here had been exposed to some kind of ‘smoke’ after killing an Agwi. A short while later, they fell gravely ill and soon transformed into ‘Denizens of Hell.’
And when you kill a Denizen of Hell, more black smoke is released, causing a large-scale infection.
That was the true nature of the ‘plague’ that had swept through the eastern part of the capital region.
“That black smoke couldn’t be blocked by gas masks or hazmat suits.”
It wasn’t a biological infection but a magical curse. To put it simply, it was a phenomenon that corrupted not the body, but the soul itself, meaning standard MOPP gear was useless.
As he listened to the explanation, Oh Seong-hoon’s face grew increasingly grim.
“Hah… Just what kind of horrifying thing did they create here?”
What was happening here was beyond the capabilities of even the most elite special forces unit.
No matter how he looked at it, this wasn't something that could be resolved with a counter-terrorism operation.
“This isn’t terrorism, it’s a catastrophe…”
It wasn’t a localized terror attack, but a national disaster.
“Team Leader Oh, you need to evacuate the civilians in this area immediately and lock down the zone.”
At Lee Hyun-wook’s words, he snapped back to reality and nodded.
“Yes, that should be the first step. We’ll start with what we can do.”
It was then.
RUMBLE—
The entire building began to shake, and an unidentifiable monstrous roar echoed through the air.
SKREEEEE—
Something was stirring deep within the freight elevator shaft.
“N-No! Th-They… they’ve run out of food in the basement and are trying to come to the surface!”
With those words, the researcher backed away and bolted out of the building.
SKREEEEE—!
Lee Hyun-wook and Oh Seong-hoon also slowly backed away from the elevator shaft.
They sensed that the moment of confrontation with the owners of those screams was imminent.
“Team Leader Oh, leave this to me. You go and command the containment operation.”
Oh Seong-hoon’s eyes widened at his words.
“Wait, are you saying you’re going to try and stop them by yourself again?”
“Yes, I am. I’m immune to curses, so I can fight without worrying about that.”
In truth, he had procured and already ingested the ‘Archangel’s Herb,’ which could block demonic influence.
- ‘Archangel’s Purification’ is in effect. (00:14:53)
“Even so, judging by those screams, their numbers are massive. You’ll need significant firepower.”
“That’s fine too. My firepower… is more than enough, just as the rumors say.”
Those words reminded Oh Seong-hoon of a famous story.
“Ah, don’t tell me, the Steel Rain…”
Lee Hyun-wook nodded.
“But from what I understand, that requires the wide-area magic ‘Bidirectional Portal,’ doesn’t it?”
A method that connected an armory to the sky above a battlefield, raining down steel weapons.
That was the mechanism of ‘Steel Rain,’ the ultimate collaborative technique he had heard about ad nauseam through the media.
But there was no mage here now to cast ‘wide-area magic.’
“I’ve diversified its applications over time. You don’t need to worry.”
The more Oh Seong-hoon talked to this man, the more his head spun.
From the moment he appeared until now, he kept insisting he would handle everything himself.
And he claimed to have everything prepared.
‘How can he be so prepared on every front?’
Yet, somewhere along the line, he found himself wanting to believe this man’s words.
‘In a situation with no clear path forward, he provides direction without hesitation.’
Perhaps it was human instinct to want to trust and follow such a person.
“Yes, understood. Then I’ll—”
But before he could finish his sentence, another upheaval occurred.
BOOM—! BOOM—! BOOM—! BOOM—!
The sounds of floor after floor collapsing from below—the building was starting to give way.
“Dammit, the building’s collapsing!”
“—Everyone, get out!”
Lee Hyun-wook enveloped his body in Hardening, and Oh Seong-hoon activated his Mana Shield.
CRUNCH—
The floor near the elevator caved in, and cracks began to spiderweb across the walls.
Soon, one side of the building crumbled like a sandcastle.
‘The Agwi tore through the support pillars, huh?’
They were creating an exit to the outside world in a rather aggressive fashion.
***
Oh Seong-hoon escaped the shaking building.
“Dammit, evacuate all civilians out of the area, now!”
RUMBLE—RUMBLE—RUMBLE—
Immediately after, Building B of the research institute half-collapsed, exposing the first-floor lobby.
A giant sinkhole had opened up in the floor.
In that pitch-black darkness, red eyes began to appear like a galaxy of stars.
As their shapes grew clearer and larger, the nauseating screams intensified.
SKREEEEE—
A single man stood before that hole, which looked like an entrance to hell.
A news camera perched on a nearby building captured his back.
"......."
Watching the scene, Oh Seong-hoon still couldn’t figure out how he planned to summon ‘Steel Rain.’
Right now, the man was just holding a shield.
SKREEEEE—!
The screams, vibrations, and stench grew closer… Oh Seong-hoon’s palms began to sweat. He had unknowingly decided to trust the man, but he was prepared to give the order to attack if it looked like he was being pushed back even slightly.
‘If he fails, those monsters will pour into the city.’
It was then.
Lee Hyun-wook raised his shield and hurled it toward the sky with all his might.
“Huh?”
In that instant—
WHOOOOSH—!
A massive object suddenly appeared, kicking up a gust of wind across the area.
“Wh-What is that!”
Every soldier, reporter, and civilian on site looked up, their jaws dropping.
Where there had been empty sky a moment ago,
a white airship had appeared with a flash, as if by magic or teleportation.
Lee Hyun-wook heard the gasps of astonishment erupting from all around him.
‘Right, there’s no need to hide it anymore.’
Forcibly concealing the power he possessed also came with its own set of disadvantages.
So now, he planned to reveal it and seize the benefits that came with it.
Standing under the shadow of the Prydwen, he slowly raised both hands.
Clank—!
The Prydwen’s ramp door opened, and the Aerial Drop devices—AD-1s—loaded in the cargo bay launched one by one.
WHIRRRRR—
Twelve engineered cubes floated smoothly through the air, aligning themselves behind their master.
Lee Hyun-wook opened their ‘subspace’ and pulled the shotgun—the Black Rhino—from behind his back.
Click-clack—
He slowly closed his eyes and felt the cold metal.
He was ready to let them flow like water.
Lee Hyun-wook, the Savior of Seoul.
His legendary feats, including the Steel Rain.
Everything that had only been a rumor until now, impossible to verify,
was finally about to be revealed to the world.