Chapter 194
Chapter 194
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 194
Chapter Title: Protect the Earth (4)
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Suhyun pushed the sand monster hard every time it emerged. He had plenty of cards to play. With superpowered users from the American side numbering in the hundreds, he could just issue orders whenever he started to feel a bit worn out.
‘This is seriously convenient?’
Even Suhyun hadn’t anticipated that dominating the skies alone would make the hunt this easy. Amorphous monsters like the sand monster were tenacious, and their special abilities were a hassle, making them tricky opponents—but he’d never thought he couldn’t beat them....
The other superpowered users receiving Suhyun’s orders, however, wore expressions like they’d been possessed by ghosts. They couldn’t fathom how he located and pursued monsters that dove deep underground.
“Turn east... Hold on, why are there so many helicopters around here? What’s that one?”
Suhyun frowned at the helicopters, which had a clearly different appearance from the operational ones circling for the mission.
“Uh... They look like news station helicopters, sir.”
“News stations?”
The man seemed to tense up as Suhyun’s voice dropped a tone.
“They’re probably here to film the hunt....”
Ever since the Dimensional Gate had appeared in Pyongyang and humanity had set foot on Cameron Planet, Earth had taken a huge interest in it—not for any economic reasons in particular.
Cameron Planet was a brand-new frontier for Earth, and people were curious about what lay there and how those who went lived. The sight of mercenaries staking their lives in battle was perfect content in and of itself.
In fact, after Cameron Planet came into the picture, no more movies about planetary exploration got made. No matter how flashy or grand the films, they couldn’t hold a candle to reality.
The problem was that filming the situation on Cameron Planet was harder than it seemed.
Sure, safe cities could be captured on camera, but that was something countless people had done for over a century, and Earthlings already knew all about the areas around the Dimensional Gates without ever visiting.
That left tagging along with mercenaries to film monster hunts—but unlike Earth documentaries, on Cameron Planet, the risk of actual death was extremely high.
On top of that, mercenaries didn’t like it. It was a superstition thing: having a film crew around brought bad luck. It was ridiculous to believe that in the 22nd century, but no one could mock people who risked their lives.
Then monsters showed up on Earth. At first, everyone panicked and had no bandwidth for other thoughts, but once some time passed and the monsters got sorted out somehow, people started thinking differently.
-Wouldn’t filming monster takedowns make bank?
People had always loved heroes. The surge of interest in mercenaries and superpowered users after they defeated monsters was proof.
But there weren’t many bold enough to film it themselves.
“What? Filming? You nuts?”
“T-that’s not something you should be saying to me....”
The man looked like he was on the verge of tears. Suhyun let out a disbelieving chuckle as he eyed the news station helicopters marked with ‘NAC’ in the distance. This was unthinkable on Cameron Planet.
“Get in touch and tell them to scram.”
“Y-yes? We don’t have the authority for that, sir.”
“We do. If those bastards keep buzzing around being a nuisance, I’ll ditch the deals and head out. You figure out how to explain it to the U.S. government.”
It was a threat like no other. The U.S. government getting dragged in over a few news helicopters. The man nodded and immediately barked an order.
“Clear them out, you idiot! Unless you wanna take responsibility!”
He seemed to be taking out the scolding he’d gotten from Suhyun on his subordinates. Even so, the news helicopters didn’t budge.
Suhyun was sure he’d locked eyes with the pilot. The pilot grinned. That smirk rubbed Suhyun the wrong way.
“They’re telling you to clear the helicopters?”
“Tell ’em no way. Our ratings are topping the charts today! You know how much I’m paying per hour? Get the shot no matter what! Money’s pouring in every time that sand monster pops up!”
“I’m warning you....”
“Warning us? What’re you gonna do? Have them attack?”
There was nothing to be done against such brazenness. The man returned to Suhyun with a miserable look.
“Please don’t go! Stay, I beg you!”
“Ah, fine. Calm down. Just calm down.”
Suhyun snatched the communicator from the man’s hand and made contact himself.
“Clear out those helicopters while I’m asking nicely.”
“Who the hell are you to—”
Kwaaaaaaang!
A thick beam of energy streaked past the helicopter. The shockwave sent it spinning wildly. The pilot barely regained control.
“Won’t say it twice. Clear the helicopters. Or you’ll watch attacks meant for the sand monster veer your way.”
‘This crazy bastard!’
The people inside the helicopter were stunned. They hadn’t realized Kim Suhyun was the type to go off the rails like that. From testimonials of people who knew him, the image was something like ‘humanity’s guardian at Cameron Planet’s forefront, armed with humble integrity and ironclad responsibility’....
Of course, few people actually knew Suhyun. And most of them either feared him or admired him, so it wasn’t surprising that the glowing reviews came out that way.
“H-he won’t actually shoot, right?”
“Who knows... They’re Cameron Planet guys. You can’t predict what those people will do.”
In the end, their lives mattered more. Seeing the helicopters slowly peeling away, Suhyun muttered to himself.
“Flies. Sand monster incoming. Send superpowered users to B-4.”
* * *
Monsters had learning ability too. After getting pummeled every time it emerged, the sand monster stopped coming out. The officer in charge glanced at Suhyun with a troubled look.
“What do we do?”
“What?”
“It’s not coming out. Isn’t the plan going sideways?”
“Sideways? This was the plan all along.”
“??”
“Keep pressing relentlessly, and even a monster gets spooked and won’t come out. That’s when you toss in the bait. You prepped what I mentioned, right?”
A monster starved without food for so long had no choice but to charge even an obvious trap.
“Yes.”
“Drop it. Let’s see the bastard come out.”
* * *
Herds of plump cattle began trudging along slowly. Suhyun yawned as he peered down below. The monster’s aura was steadily rising.
“5, 4, 3, 2, 1....”
The superpowered users clenched their fists tensely at the sound of Suhyun’s voice over the communicator.
Before the operation kicked off, Suhyun had told them:
-This time it comes up, it won’t dive back down easily. Wait for that moment and unload everything. Hold nothing back.
What made the sand monster tricky was how it burrowed underground at the slightest hint of danger. Before Suhyun arrived, countless superpowered users had tried stopping it. The Americans had superpowered users in spades.
But blocking its movements was impossible. Even if earth-affinity users solidified the footing, or liquid manipulators doused it with water to slow it down, it still plunged underground.
“It’s out!”
The pitiful cattle herds got devoured by the sand monster. The instant that happened, the superpowered users unleashed every ability in unison, as if on cue. A dazzling barrage of superpowers rained down over the wasteland. Any news station would’ve wept at missing the scene.
Flames roared and lightning crackled, sending the sand monster staggering in apparent panic. It tried to dive straight down. Suhyun didn’t hesitate—he targeted it with the crusher.
-!
The sand monster seemed genuinely shocked. It pathetically pounded the ground, sending sand flying. But its body didn’t disperse.
If it couldn’t disperse or burrow underground, it was nothing but a sandbag. The sand monster endured a pummeling so pitiful it was almost sad. The American superpowered users, who’d suffered endlessly because of it, gritted their teeth and went all in.
The rustling sound of sand scattering came. It didn’t scream or anything at death. The superpowered users, who’d been hammering away for a good while, stopped in bewilderment.
* * *
“Good work, everyone.”
“No other monsters?”
“Even if there were, would we send Kim Suhyun after them?”
It meant they couldn’t burden the hardworking Suhyun with more, but considering his rates, it carried weight. Suhyun smirked and waved them off. Time to go.
“Let us go! Las Vegas!”
“We head back tomorrow. Fire’s out, so I need to be in Korea now. Would suck if problems cropped up while we’re gone.”
“But it’s not even our fault....”
“Doesn’t matter if people think it is—that’s the problem.”
“Yeah, when you’re playing the hero, you gotta see it through.”
“Even so, spending New Year’s in a base like this instead of Vegas....”
“We got champagne. Champagne.”
“Don’t need it, you punk!”
Suhyun stared off at the distant horizon, lost in thought. He’d be turning thirty soon. Was he really on the right track?
Barring a few minor slip-ups, he figured he was. But the Dimensional Gate fiasco had changed his mind.
The future had definitely shifted.
Meeting the dragon, gaining international recognition as a mage, the sudden gates opening....
It was no longer the timeline he knew. Suhyun closed his eyes. He wasn’t the old him anymore. He’d grown incomparably stronger, but....
An unknown future was always unnerving. No matter how strong he got, it never felt like enough. There were no enemies among humans, but Cameron Planet was full of monsters that defied common sense. And even with no human enemies, Suhyun wasn’t free—society had the power to kill even the strongest superpowered user.
Suddenly, he wanted to go back to Cameron Planet. He had no desire to keep working as a monster contractor here.
“Kim Suhyun, you have visitors.”
“Who?”
“Folks from Blue Bear and Eclipse....”
They must’ve been famous even in America—the base commander clearly couldn’t handle them roughly. From his flustered, troubled expression, Suhyun could tell they were raising hell outside.
Neither Jack nor Jennifer were the patient type, so it made sense.
“Let them in.”
Bam!
“Heard the news! You took down that sand monster? What a shame! If it wasn’t Chicago, I’d have gone and bagged it myself!”
Jennifer shrugged at the words. Seeing that, Jack growled.
“Got a problem?”
“Who knows? Talking like you could’ve caught something you didn’t... Kinda boastful?”
“Wanna fight? Take it outside.”
The two clamped their mouths shut at Suhyun’s words. Jack plopped onto the sofa and spoke up.
“Damn it. Got yanked here right when things were good back on Cameron Planet... You were having a good time too, right? That kingdom?”
Suhyun glanced at Jennifer. She waved her hands desperately.
“I didn’t say anything! That guy snooped around on his own and snagged the report!”
“We’re from the same country. Gotta share.”
“Like hell.”
Jack chugged straight from the whiskey bottle he’d brought and said:
“We gotta get back soon. I’m bored to death here. Every time I wanna smash a building, I get an earful.”
“Seemed to suit you fine. I saw you signing autographs last time.”
“T-that was just ’cause the kid asked!”
Superpowered users battling monsters were basically modern-day heroes. Of course they’d be popular.
“More importantly, you threatened the news stations?”
“Not a threat—just said they might catch a stray if they kept hovering.”
“Those guys flipped out. I’m no saint myself, but tone it down.”
“Let ’em flip. If they wanna come at me, fine by me. I’m not backing down an inch.”
“Doubt it’ll come to that. They’re pissed, but so are a bunch of other people.”
“?”
“Y’know... Chairman Charles, or the big shots who called you in... Folks like that. They were furious and leaned on the news stations. Chairman threatened to pull all ads unless they buried it, and the big shots... Well, you get it.”
“Pass on my thanks.”
“Can I join you in that underground kingdom once we’re back?”
“Let’s talk after we return.”
“Might be sooner than you think.”
“?”
Suhyun eyed Jack.
“You haven’t heard?”
“The Dimensional Gates shrinking? I thought that wasn’t confirmed yet.”
“Nah, just got word—they’re shrinking noticeably. Should stabilize completely in a month.”