Chapter 147
Chapter 147
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 147
Chapter Title: There’s Something Special About Mages (5)
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“It’s a dragon!!!”
“No, you idiot!”
Someone with relatively good eyesight nearby screamed while looking at the sky. They seemed to have good vision but not much brains. In a situation where they should be calming people down and evacuating them, spreading false information like that.
‘This damn dragon phobia is real…!’
It wasn’t incomprehensible. Ever since the Dragon Slayer Project, dragons had become the most feared existence for the people of Cameron. Seeing a winged monster flying in the sky naturally brought dragons to mind.
But it wasn’t a dragon.
‘Wyvern!’
Suhyun muttered a low curse as he tried to assess the situation. As soon as the screams about a monster appearing rang out, the panicked bureaucrats started moving.
“Protect the minister! Protect the minister!”
“Minister, this way!”
“Wh-what is this…?”
“Why is a monster coming here?!”
Screams erupted in an instant. The only ones moving calmly were the security team. Properly trained, they followed protocol. Even so, bewilderment was evident in their eyes.
A monster entering human territory directly.
There was a reason people could live in peace in Cameron’s cities. Most monsters stayed within their own territories, and even if they got lost and tried to enter a city, they were usually repelled by the dense anti-monster defense network beforehand.
But there was always an exception. That was the air.
“H-how did this… happen…?”
“Don’t leave my side. Luiril, if it gets dangerous, teleport out first. Don’t try to hold on unnecessarily. There are too many people to protect, so I might not be able to cover you.”
“Got it!”
“Flying around from that far away is a problem…”
Suhyun’s telekinesis had a weakness too. Range. He couldn’t deal proper damage to targets far away. That was why he had tried to compensate with other long-range weapons, but it wasn’t perfect.
“Back then. In the past.”
A thick energy beam shot terrifyingly into the sky. It pierced straight through the wing of the wyvern that had tried to evade. The esper who had been evacuating bureaucrats nearby jumped in surprise at the sight.
‘Energy Shot?!’
No matter how powerfully it was used, Energy Shot couldn’t have that kind of range and power. Yet it was clearly Energy Shot. He couldn’t mistake it.
“What are you doing? Raise the shield first!”
“Y-yes!”
Suhyun snapped irritably, and the man nodded with a flustered voice. Strictly speaking, he had no reason to take Suhyun’s orders. The only one who could command him was the Japanese bureaucrat behind him.
And that bureaucrat held a different opinion from Suhyun.
“Shield? What nonsense! Get me out of here right now! Don’t stop!”
“This is a mess, and this idiot’s making it worse. Luiril!”
“Huh?!”
“Put him to sleep!”
“W-wait…”
The moment the esper tried to intervene, Luiril teleported behind the bureaucrat. With one strike, the bureaucrat passed out. The esper didn’t know what to do. Normally, he would punish anyone who attacked the person he was guarding, but standing before him was a mage. And wyverns circled in the air.
“Do I have to say it twice? Raise the shield, you bastard!”
“Y-yes!”
“Shield first! Don’t even think about running! If you run…”
Suhyun didn’t need to finish. One bureaucrat had panicked, dashed down the hill, and jumped into a vehicle, starting it up hastily. The wyvern circling in the air narrowed its pupils and spat saliva from its maw.
Splat!
With a loud noise, the vehicle spun. Then it crashed into a tree. The top of the car had melted almost completely, as if struck by strong acid.
Crunch!
After neutralizing its prey, the next step was feeding. The wyvern swooped down like an eagle, grabbed the prey with its talons, and tried to fly off.
“…That’s what happens.”
The wyvern’s skull shattered as it tried to soar into the sky. Suhyun looked down coldly at the falling wyvern. Traces of superpower lingered at his fingertips.
“I won’t say it twice. Listen to me from now on! Wyverns target isolated ones first. Everyone stick together! It spits acid, but the shield won’t break right away.”
After Suhyun instantly killed two, the wyverns showed signs of wariness. They circled in the air, searching for weaknesses. Seeing no one venturing out like before, they glared with ferocious eyes.
“Good instincts. Should I go higher?”
Suhyun glanced at Luiril. She had been staring tensely at the sky and misinterpreted his look.
“You’re not thinking of telling me to go up and catch them, right?!”
“…I’d never even consider such a crazy idea.”
Suhyun said in disbelief.
Even as Cameron was being developed, there were still untouched areas. The sky and the sea. Both were terribly disadvantageous for fighting monsters. That was why people stuck to land routes.
Humanity hadn’t invaded the skies, and likewise, sky monsters hadn’t attacked ground humanity. Until now.
But now they were swooping down and attacking out of nowhere, leaving people shocked.
“This is our chance. Pretend to help that researcher and steal the data.”
“…….”
“What? Why? Even after this is over, we need to know the reason!”
“You’re worse than a devil!”
Who would think of that while wyverns were diving from above? Luiril grumbled as she moved.
“Just one more… Okay!”
An unlucky wyvern misjudged the distance and dove in, only to have its throat pierced. The people gathered realized Suhyun’s side was safest. Starting with the security team, the bureaucrats flocked to him.
Even with evasion maneuvers, losing comrades made the wyverns hesitate to charge. They began ascending higher into the sky.
“Hey, Suhyun. Fighting monsters is fine, but shouldn’t we evacuate the people here first?”
“Suhyun? Are we close? First time hearing that friendly tone. Are you sure you’re a Japanese minister and not Korean? Why act chummy?”
“Ah, Mr. Kim Suhyun. What I mean is…”
“Wait. Against wyverns, it’s better to wait than move rashly.”
Suhyun said as he fell into thought. The phenomenon unfolding now couldn’t be brushed off lightly.
That earlier wave, and the unease. It felt familiar.
‘Right, the monster luring device the Chinese military used…!’
This one was on a whole different level from back then. If it was meant to create a dimensional gate, the output must have been enormously powerful too…
As Suhyun pondered, something flashed through his mind.
‘No, wait.’
Wyverns didn’t play at low altitudes. So if it was drawn here by that wave?
The range had to be unimaginably vast.
‘The ground is relatively fine. Troops are stationed around the base, and most will regain their senses on the way. They’ll be smashed before reaching the city.’
The problem was the air. Air defenses were inadequate, and if monsters targeted this device and flew over other cities?
It would be a catastrophe.
“Contact them right now. Tell them to issue an evacuation order for the city!”
“Huh?”
“Not just here—the city could be attacked by monsters too!”
“N-no way that would…”
“Does this sound like a joke to you?”
Suhyun’s polite tone suddenly turned cold. In sudden crises, the most obstructive were unhelpful allies.
“But if we issue an evacuation order without cause…”
“Then it’s good if it’s nothing!”
“Who takes responsibility?”
“You son of a bitch… What’s your name? Worrying about your position in this situation?”
“Th-that’s not…”
“I’ll take responsibility. Issue the evacuation order now!”
Cameron’s cities had shelters prepared from the start. Built back when humanity wasn’t certain about monsters, for if such a situation arose.
No one would have expected them to be used like this. Anyway, the bureaucrat contacted immediately upon Suhyun’s words. Who was he to object when Suhyun took responsibility?
Soon another flock of wyverns arrived, and Suhyun shot them down one by one. It was a display of power unseen in other espers, but only the esper security team admired it. The rest trembled, fearing when they could escape.
‘Fortunately, only wyverns. The others must be blocked by them.’
Only after a few hours could Suhyun catch his breath. Turning around, he saw middle-aged men looking at him pitifully.
“Please, to the shelter…”
“Can’t we move now?”
“Fine. Let’s move. Stop whining already.”
* * *
Pyongyang was in chaos. People who should have been going about their daily routines rushed underground with urgent expressions.
Fortunately, the government hadn’t ignored Suhyun’s warning. Following protocol, they contacted other nations and issued evacuation orders immediately.
But some didn’t evacuate despite the orders.
The mercenaries.
“What bullshit is this? Monsters attacking Pyongyang?”
“They wouldn’t issue an evacuation lightly! Move!”
Mercenary companies received official requests to fight the monsters if possible. Hearing it, Jo Seung-hyun muttered in disbelief.
“They’re begging, and who’d do it?”
Of course, he planned to. Crisis meant opportunity. Uncle Jo Company was already close to the government thanks to Suhyun. This was a perfect time to shine.
‘Gotta step up now.’
“Bring out all usable artifacts. Confirmed wyverns so far, but don’t let your guard down—others might come.”
Even without Suhyun, Lee So-hee responded calmly.
“Power armor to the upper levels. Use anti-air guns on approach.”
“Team Leader, you okay? He’s out there alone.”
“That guy’s not dying anywhere. Worry about us. How do we catch flying ones?”
“Ask Team Leader… Oh, right, he’s not here.”
“You planning to live depending on him forever? Use your heads!”
As they climbed to the facility rooftops, the team members conversed busily.
“First, when they appear, Kang In-gyu should curse them. Wyverns are tricky with their mobility.”
“Oh, you’ve fought them?”
“No. Just rumors… A hunter who unluckily met one high up. Not sure how effective, but we’ll poison all weapons.”
Seo Kang-seok explained what he knew to reassure the team. His veteran demeanor calmed them.
“Wyverns can spit acidic saliva from afar. Hard to hit distant ones with superpowers, so artifacts for defense only.”
“Good. Let’s move!”
An anti-air fortress formed in moments. Waiting for unarrived monsters, they began speculating.
“Someone must’ve poked a monster wrong.”
“Wrong enough to evacuate the whole city?”
“One is enough for evacuation…”
“But what monster poke brings a horde?”
“Uh… A female wyvern like a queen ant?”
“…Just don’t talk. Anyway, is the rest of Pyongyang prepared? Good against monsters, but anti-air?”
“Don’t worry. All available forces are mobilizing.”
“Really?”
Jo Seung-hyun said, squatting in a corner.
“Only dangerous if ambushed. With all the espers in this city, prepared, even monsters aren’t that threatening.”
“Then come up here?”
“No way, kid. Never drop the barrier!”
“Such a scaredy-cat.”
“You’re the mercenaries, not me?”
“Wyvern!”
Kang In-gyu focused on a distant wyvern flapping its wings. A ticklish sensation rose, and the curse hit.
“By the way, full control on that curse?”
“No. About half.”
“What curse then?”
“Uh, confusion curse…”
“?”
The wyvern flipped in the air once, then dove madly.
“Berserk hit.”
“…Hey.”