Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: Operation (3)
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Now that most of the creatures have been eliminated...
How do I get back?
I stood motionless for a moment, staring at the distant ravine and the cliff beyond it.
The creatures whose names I knew would be falling smoothly. But the one that was stage 7 or 8—I had no idea which—was probably still rampaging.
It wouldn't help much if I went back, though.
Is Ami okay? I pondered, gripping my sword.
With all the seniors having joined up, it should be fine. The noon sun beat down from above. I stood still, straining to pick up sounds from beyond the ravine.
The sounds I'd been trying to catch soon drew closer.
"Whoa!"
Footsteps halted, and Ami and Tvein appeared.
The two seniors stood on the opposite cliff.
Ami, slung over Tvein's back like a sack, brightened when she saw me.
"Hilde, you did it!"
"Ami!"
Her name slipped out reflexively.
Fortunately, she looked fine outwardly.
I let out a sigh of relief. Then I examined Ami's condition more closely.
Her face was paler than before—she didn't look good. If she were truly fine, she wouldn't be dangling from Tvein's back like that.
But at least her limbs were intact, and she was conscious.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine!"
Ami craned her neck and shouted.
"Good to see you're unharmed too."
"Thanks to you... You two came first?"
"This kid's such a pain in the ass."
Tvein furrowed his brow and glanced sidelong at Ami hanging off his back.
"She was worried if you'd fallen down there."
"Jason, weren't you worried?"
The senior with round eyes on the other side of the ravine shot back.
"Dropping those healthy legs ain't easy."
Tvein rolled his eyes.
But he didn't argue. Instead, he leaned forward slightly as if to check the leg I'd dropped. A few strands of his bright blond hair fell downward.
"What the hell."
An explosion sounded from a short distance away, followed by the seniors' shouts and the creature's electric crackle.
I took in the scene unfolding behind Tvein as he craned his neck. A creature was leaping toward us, cloaked in blue electricity like a ghost.
The seniors pursued it on motorcycles, encircling it.
They'd be here in a minute.
Tvein kept peering over the cliff regardless.
"What'd you drop it with?"
"Yeah. No blast marks or anything."
"Ah. I sliced it off with my sword and dropped it."
I answered straightforwardly.
Gazes poured in. The man and woman who'd been looking down simultaneously raised their heads and stared at me. Tvein's bright blue eyes, Ami's black eyes pierced me clearly.
Their reactions were polar opposites.
"What bullshit."
"Whoa!"
Tvein scoffed as if it were nonsense, while Ami cheered from behind his back.
"Hilde, you really know how to use a sword!"
Zzzzt, boom!
Blue electricity streaked across the ground.
A deafening explosion hammered my eardrums. The bolt struck exactly where Tvein had been standing. But before I could shout a warning, he twisted his body nimbly and dodged.
The blond senior furrowed his brow and flashed a twisted smile.
"That persistent bastard."
Tvein spat the words while eyeing the creature closing in rapidly.
"Looking like some half-formed thing..."
Huge eye.
An eye brimming with resentment and hatred. Gray strands blanketing its elongated face. It closed the distance in an instant. Straight toward me, eyes locked on target. Aki and Lee Ho's bullets rained from behind, black blood spraying like ink from the impact sites.
But it didn't stop.
Didn't even turn around. Even as Green and Walker swung pistols like toys and fired cannon rounds, it didn't roll an eye. Its eerie, bloodshot reverse gaze slammed into me.
Its obsession was almost pitiful. It really hates me, huh.
What did I do so wrong to you?
I don't remember a thing.
If only you could speak. Like that stage 10 creature Ye-hyeon stabbed to death. Then I could fill in my blank memories, and you could air your grievances.
But reality wasn't that easy.
Now it was right upon us. Without the ravine, it would've charged straight into me.
Green, riding his motorcycle in pursuit, shouted.
"Push it!"
Lee Ho, Aki, and Walker chased alongside Green.
"Drop it into the ravine!"
Zzzt, zzzzt.
Boom! Another electric explosion followed. The attack radiating from its gray body scattered beautifully in all directions.
It had the power to send a motorcycle flying if it hit. Getting up afterward would be tough.
Fortunately, the seniors tilted their bikes and evaded. The creature's speed had dulled compared to before.
Ah. Its left arm's gone.
The ravine was right ahead now.
"Here."
Tvein, who'd been watching from the side, leaped out then.
He'd already set Ami down, flashing a nasty smile with even teeth.
"Time to get lost!"
A kick. Paired with well-timed bullets.
That's when I finally witnessed the textbook way to handle a massive creature.
My master says Jason Tvein is a "lowly moron filled with pointless inferiority toward Ye-hyeon," but he's "alive only because his skills are decent."
In simple terms, he's skilled.
The creature's stance crumbled. It collapsed in an instant. If its left arm were still attached, it wouldn't have toppled so completely.
It pitched forward headfirst.
It's over...
...Huh?
The creature I'd thought was tumbling curled into a ball. Even as it fell, it hadn't stopped glaring at me—now that reverse gaze vanished before my eyes. It coiled to minimize wind resistance.
Then it kicked off the cliff edge like a springboard.
The creature leaped into the air.
"What?"
"This is insane."
"Hilde!"
Ami, who'd been slumped, shot to her feet.
"Dodge!"
Slash.
I swung diagonally.
I unleashed the strike before the airborne thing hit the ground.
Slicing something leaping through the air was surprisingly easy. Dodging midair isn't simple.
Ah. But since the target's huge, the swing has to be big.
A wide half-moon arc. The creature's body reeled back, black blood spraying in a crescent shape.
Kieeeek!
A truly inhuman screech echoed.
This time, it plummeted for real. Its gray body rapidly shrank. I confirmed it falling into the ravine below, then indifferently lowered my sword tip to the ground.
I waited calmly for the blade's heat to cool before sheathing it.
The scorching sunlight beating down, neutralized by the cool wind.
A brief silence descended. The area, filled with the sounds of flesh splattering, electric blasts, and gunfire, fell quiet in an instant. Only the wind whispering through the dry city tickled my ears.
Breaking that silence was Aki.
"Did you see that?"
She pointed at me and turned to Lee Ho.
"Lee Ho. Did you see? See it?"
"I saw. No..."
Hah. Lee Ho exhaled in a daze from across the ravine.
I looked at the seniors opposite, a bit bewildered.
Gathered at the ravine's edge, they stared at me with wide eyes. A familiar sight. But different from last time. Their eyes held no hostility or betrayal. This was astonishment.
Astonishment at the unexpected.
No. Did you all doubt my sword skills that much...?
"As Yoon said, give him a sword and he's useful."
Green's gruff voice carried on the wind.
"Good work. We'll talk about who you really are later."
"Ah. Thank you."
"Head back to the safe point for now."
The man crossed his arms and shot me a sharp gaze.
"Come over here."
"...How do I cross?"
"I'll fly over and get you."
"No. Ami's boots are half wrecked. Who knows when they'll give out."
"Didn't you learn wire crossing?"
Aki grabbed Ami's arm as she tried to wobble forward.
Richard Green asked from beside the pouting Ami. Looks like I'd disappoint them again. I might need to learn wire crossing.
I nodded from across the ravine.
"Yes."
"Lee Ho. Bring him."
"Yes, sir."
Lee Ho stepped forward.
I watched him yank the wire dangling from his motorcycle's side. A sharp spear tip was attached to the end. He gripped the middle and spun the tip in the air.
He flung it my way.
I stomped the tip that landed precisely at my feet.
"Should I bury it in the ground?"
"Y-yeah. Bury and step on it."
I did as told.
Lee Ho crossed over to me in no time. Like Tarzan, he gripped the wire and leaped into the ravine. Then he stuck to this side's cliff wall effortlessly.
I craned my neck and watched the senior busily climbing the wire. Primitive method. Well, sometimes primitive is best.
Once atop the cliff beside me, Lee Ho pulled the anchor from the ground.
Then he patted my shoulder.
"Good work."
"No, you all had it rough."
"Now let's cross. It's a bit crude, but we're strong, so it works fine."
The sense of betrayal he'd felt toward me seemed to have thawed; the senior spoke casually again.
He handed me the wire with the spear anchor.
"Here, I'll show you, so watch closely. This is yours..."
Traitor.
A voice echoed.
Probably in my head. Or from below the ravine.
Seemed like only I heard it. Whether only I could hear it or just did.
What was certain: all my senses sharpened at that voice. And instinctively, I felt it drawing terrifyingly close.
It was climbing the cliff.
It would snatch me and Lee Ho, dragging us down together.
It wouldn't let go. It'd smash Lee Ho against the cliff to kill him. For me, no easy death—it'd stuff me in its mouth and crush me.
The intuition flashed through my mind in an instant.
A long black hand rose above the ravine.
The seniors' sharp cries. Gunfire.
Hesitate, and it'd be too late.
I shoved Lee Ho—who'd been facing away from the ravine—to the side, then charged toward the massive hand surging into view.
Leaping into the air, I thrust my sword down.
Stab.
From above to below. A heavy blow.
Long fingers wrapped around me in agony.
Feeling the honed blade pierce its target precisely, I plummeted alongside the creature climbing the cliff.
***
I came to because of a desperate voice.
[...Hey. Hilde!]
A familiar voice.
[Hilde! Where the hell are you?!]
Ska Owen.
Why was Ska Owen's voice in my ear?
I blinked dazedly, pondering. Heavy body. Foggy mind. Limbs unresponsive. My hazy awareness couldn't grasp the situation.
I lay there blankly, placing my barely movable right hand on my forehead.
I didn't respond to Ska's continued calls.
Maybe I could just sleep like this? Hearing Ska's voice means I'm probably in the core.
If it's the infirmary, I should sleep a bit more and answer when I wake...
My drifting mind snapped awake at Ska's next shout.
His words cut sharply through reality.
[Hilde! Why are you in A Zone?!]
Fuck.