Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Raid (2)
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Park Kang-hyuk clicked his tongue softly at the various restrictions as he headed down to Chungbuk.
He had to minimize damage to buildings and facilities.
If he unleashed sword strikes recklessly, enormous property damage would ensue.
They might even try to pin the blame on him later.
"When taking down the Cyclops, it won't matter if a few buildings collapse."
Taking it down without any damage at all was far too greedy.
The government and Association knew that full well.
Kang-hyuk kept monitoring the situation on-site via his smartphone.
Hunters were luring the Cyclops to keep it from entering the town.
[Quaaang-!]
The cameraman filming from the news helicopter jolted violently.
A massive explosion rang out as countless hunters were crushed flat.
The panicked hunters scrambled into vehicles and fled,
but
[Kuuuwaaaah!]
the Cyclops bellowed thunderously and trampled through the fields in pursuit.
It scooped up a container shed from the ground and hurled it at the vehicles.
The container shed collided with the cars, triggering a massive explosion.
[Quaaang!]
It felt just like watching a kaiju movie.
"Master, we're almost at the destination."
The bus couldn't go all the way to the site.
Instead, they'd have to switch to military vehicles deployed in Eumseong County.
With the soldiers' help, the GH Guild bus arrived near Eumseong County Hall in just one hour and twenty minutes.
"The GH Guild members have arrived!"
A military officer in uniform rushed up to Kang-hyuk.
"First, let me brief you on the situation."
The gate explosion had occurred near Bogwang Mountain, between Jeongpyeong, Eumseong, and Goesan Counties.
Hunters were focused on blocking the magic beasts' paths or diverting them elsewhere.
"Park Kang-hyuk Hunter, please head to the Goesan County side and take down the Cyclops. The rest of your guild members should prioritize eliminating the large magic beast horde heading up to Eumseong County."
"What about Jeongpyeong County..."
"Teynen, Goguryeo, and other major guilds have been deployed there. Of course, hunters are also being sent to Eumseong and Goesan Counties."
The military was deploying alongside the hunters.
Young soldiers in their early twenties gripped their rifles with tense faces.
What kind of mess was this for kids who should be out enjoying their youth...
"We'll head out right away."
The officer nodded at Kang-hyuk's response.
Military vehicles soon pulled up.
The GH Guild members were sent to a defensive line just ten minutes away, while Kang-hyuk headed toward a national highway seventeen minutes out.
"Association hunters are currently luring the Cyclops. All nearby residents have been evacuated. Since it's surrounded by mountains, property damage won't be too severe even if some occurs."
"So, it's fine to go all out... right?"
"Yes, exactly."
Kang-hyuk nodded.
"Got it."
The vehicle came to a stop in the middle of the two-lane road.
"Here's my contact. Call me after you've taken down the Cyclops, and I'll come pick you up right away."
Kang-hyuk took the contact info and drew his sword from its sheath at his waist.
"If you'd prefer to keep your face hidden, at least use one of our masks..."
"No need. I can't hide my face forever anyway."
"Understood. Good luck, then..."
As the vehicle U-turned and pulled away, a massive rumble echoed from the south.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
A Cyclops lumbered over the hilly road.
Its upper body slowly came into view.
The calamity-grade magic beast that destroyed everything was approaching.
Yet Kang-hyuk's face showed no trace of tension.
"Pretty big, but..."
Compared to the Dragon King he'd faced in his past life, it felt somewhat lacking.
The aura and destructive power it exuded weren't even on par with an ordinary dragon.
Expecting fear from a beast like that was unreasonable.
More importantly...
"Better if I go to it."
Kang-hyuk started jogging slowly toward the Cyclops.
Hundreds of meters ahead, he spotted the hunters' vehicles.
The hunters stared at him in bewilderment.
"Wh-what the...!"
Flash!
Kang-hyuk lightly kicked off the ground and leaped over their vehicle.
The news helicopter's camera caught the scene.
"Huh...?"
The cameraman let out a small exclamation.
A black-haired young man who vaulted over the vehicle.
He vanished from the screen.
"...?!"
Splash splash splash-!
When the youth reappeared in the camera's view, blood was gushing from the Cyclops's limbs.
Spuuurt-!
-Kuuu...
The Cyclops stared blankly ahead, seemingly unaware of what had happened.
Kang-hyuk unleashed a barrage of sword strikes on the toppled beast, carving deep wounds across its body.
Slaaash! Slash!
-Kuuu... Quoooaaah!
As it thrashed in agony, Kang-hyuk swung his sword and severed the tendons in its neck.
Slash-!
-Kr... Kruu...
Kang-hyuk climbed onto the Cyclops's back and summoned a skeleton.
He then carved a massive gash toward its heart.
Slaaash-!
-Kruuugh...!
The Cyclops writhed in pain.
"Here."
Ignoring its reactions, Kang-hyuk handed his sword to the skeleton.
The skeleton gripped the blade and slowly approached the wound.
Then it diligently stabbed down toward the gash.
Pok.
"Harder! Keep stabbing!"
Too weak.
Way too weak.
It was no surprise it couldn't pierce the hide.
But struggling just to stab an open wound...
"...Should I just have it hunt A- to B-rank beasts?"
Kang-hyuk erupted his mana to pin down the Cyclops's movements.
Meanwhile, the skeleton carved deep into its back with thousands of slashes.
Kang-hyuk's strikes had already brought it close to the heart.
"This isn't mining or anything..."
Kang-hyuk shook his head as the skeleton finally pierced the dying Cyclops's heart with the sword.
Puuk-!
"Now slice it open while it's stabbed!"
The skeleton slowly sliced through the heart, finally ending the Cyclops.
"You too... well, good work."
The skeleton proudly wiped the blood from its face.
'...Does this thing have intelligence?'
No, impossible.
Low-rank undead had no intelligence.
Anyway, thanks to the skeleton's efforts, the skill level shot up to 7 in one go.
The homunculus and undead summon skills differed slightly in initial summon counts, but from Lv. 5 onward, they were identical.
At Lv. 7, he could summon up to 3,000 skeletons.
That would be a huge help even as porters.
Or he could deploy them for village and city reconstruction to boost GH Guild's image.
Meanwhile, the news helicopter erupted in shock the moment the Cyclops's limbs were severed.
The reporter sensed something off.
Wouldn't it be better to just decapitate it?
Were the limbs first due to the height?
As they tilted their heads, massive wounds appeared across the Cyclops's body.
When Kang-hyuk climbed its back and summoned a skeleton, the reporter's eyes went wide.
"No way..."
The skeleton was stabbing at the Cyclops's heart like it was mining ore.
"Uh... It seems Park Kang-hyuk Hunter is using the skeleton to level up his skill by having it finish off the Cyclops. Come to think of it, he's had an undead summon skill since his E-rank Hunter days. Word is, even at high levels, it can't summon advanced undead. Maybe it evolved through reawakening..."
As the reporter speculated, the camera kept capturing Kang-hyuk and the skeleton.
Viewers watching the Cyclops takedown flooded the live comments with excitement.
But when Park Kang-hyuk left the scene and summoned masses of skeletons, the comments heated up again.
Viewers reacted with confusion to Park Kang-hyuk's actions.
Meanwhile, hunters and soldiers focused on taking down the magic beasts advancing on Eumseong County.
The skeletons stepped in to replace the sacrifices of soldiers and hunters.
Tatang! Tang!
Mana-coated bullets began embedding into the magic beasts.
In Kang-hyuk's case, after summoning the skeletons, he headed straight for Bogwang Mountain where the gate was.
Tens of thousands of magic beasts had gathered nearby.
If they moved, it'd cause utter chaos.
"Over here! Fire!"
Numerous soldiers and hunters formed encirclement nets around Bogwang Mountain, wiping out small packs of magic beasts.
"Haaah!"
The GH Guild members' battles were also broadcast to the public via the news helicopter.