Chapter 255
Chapter 255
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 255
Chapter Title: 104. Beyond the Fog (5)
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The distance between the monster and me was within 30 meters.
A range where the reflective field lost all meaning.
But not all monsters had the same minimum range for their reflective fields.
Even a Level 5 Awakener could deploy theirs from 5 meters away.
If we trusted the hypothesis that there was no real difference between Awakeners and monsters, then the minimum reflective field range could vary from individual to individual.
But before that, observation was key.
Monster behavior was nothing like humans.
There were some exceptions, but monsters didn't attack just because a human was right next to them.
Monsters stood on the boundary between living and non-living, acting like machines following programmed algorithms.
And purely my own theory: monsters read killing intent.
They sensed the minds of humans who intended to kill them and attacked those people first.
This was an opinion even I, who loved writing reports, hadn't submitted.
It was too subjective, even for me, and like most monster theories, nearly impossible to prove.
But veteran hunters who'd faced countless monsters on the battlefield shared similar thoughts.
Take that cult leader Ma Won-gap—he saw monsters pass right by without attacking and didn't descend into his psychotic delusions for no reason.
Ma Won-gap back then was probably in such a panic he couldn't even protect himself, let alone harbor any killing intent toward the monster.
Monsters ignored humans like that.
They primarily counterattacked anything that struck them first and only rarely preemptively targeted those harboring killing intent.
Entrusting my fate to this unproven theory, I stared indifferently at the grayish-white figure visible beyond the observation post.
Height around 3.5 meters.
Its overall shape was more human-like than the Necromancer type that mimicked humans.
Unlike the Necromancer's carelessly elongated diamond-shaped head, this one had a more human head.
It lacked sensory organs like eyes, nose, mouth, or ears, but the sunken cheeks and egg-shaped form were eerie enough to suggest the otherworldly rifts were maliciously parodying human appearance.
Yet its statue-like stillness, rooted somewhere on the line between living and non-living, wasn't much different from the monsters I knew.
What concerned me more was the armored vehicle's engine noise.
The vehicle that had approached right up and shone its searchlight was now retreating.
Makes sense—they'd avoid a monster too tough for them to handle.
Rumble!
Another thunderbolt struck.
This one was close.
Lightning hit an unnamed tree, blooming red light along the ridgeline.
Then, from a fair distance, a megaphone's voice cut through the wind and rain.
"Looks like the rumors were true."
No way to reply.
I could shout at the top of my lungs, but I saw no need to communicate that desperately.
"The old-school hunters in China killed more Chinese than monsters, or so they say."
Well, I wouldn't deny it.
There were far more humans than monsters, and they attacked in groups.
The farther back you went, the worse it got.
"Real human butchers, huh? That's why you're so good at slaughtering the kids who'll carry our future. Impressive. Truly. We even had Pyongyang's own butchers up there, but none butchered our cadets quite like you. Kudos, Professor. As a human butcher, not a monster hunter."
Listening silently, I was a bit surprised.
Lucky low-level Awakeners—the ones puppeteering the Jeju government—harbored this much inferiority toward us old-school hunters?
The guy in Gyeonggi was the same, and now Park Seung-su. Why did they envy us so?
We'd done nothing to them.
Was it the inferiority complex of those stuck between old-school hunters and high-level Awakeners, neither fitting in?
Or the false camaraderie those unqualified ones built among themselves?
I couldn't say.
Their hatred for us—especially me—seemed as deep-rooted as my own for monsters.
Of course, my uniqueness played a part.
Like it or not, I, Park Gyu, represented the old era's hunters.
"I considered unleashing a Dancer type, but sadly, no stable capsules had one. So I brought something a step stronger. Never thought I'd actually use it."
Park Seung-su's voice echoed on.
"Our Professor, holder of that Golden Fleece. Heard you were great against monsters. Let's see it firsthand. How long will a powerless fool without a shred of divine authority last against an Executioner type?"
Executioner type?
Executioner, as in hangman?
A new type I didn't know. Meaning, a divine breed.
And more dangerous than Dancer type.
A hollow laugh escaped me.
Boom!
Lightning flashed.
No one on the ridgeline.
Just a single phone on a tripod filming from afar.
They were using phones for observation too.
They probably had better gear, but Jeju wasn't that prosperous.
I shoved aside unnecessary thoughts, stepped out of the post, and stared intently at the monster frozen beyond it.
Especially, the phone camera firmly fixed over my heart had the perfect angle on it.
The light was insufficient.
Rumble!
Nature provided.
Did the monster react to the light?
The thing that seemed eternally still slowly moved.
It turned its human-like head toward me.
No eyes, but facing me front-on and looking down sent chills—it mimicked human behavior too well.
"......"
A past hypothesis flashed through my mind.
Maybe monsters were imitating us humans, ultimately aiming to replace us.
The monster moved.
Thud!
Pathological curiosity stirred over fear.
What abilities did this one use to exterminate humanity?
Unlike the Necromancer with branch-like limbs floating ethereally, this one moved on two human-like legs.
But its movements stayed true to monster norms.
Slow and rigid.
Watching it approach from behind the post, Park Seung-su's voice came again.
"If an Executioner type had appeared in your era, you'd have been helpless. This one's the death sentence for old-school hunters strutting with childish puns beyond Dancer types. You're just a lucky punk who rode the times, Professor."
Pot calling the kettle black.
The real lucky ones who rode the times were their vaunted first- and second-gen Awakeners.
Anyway, the monster had reached the post.
Its actions suggested it recognized me and was searching.
Slower than Dancer type, so probably not melee specialized.
At least with the monster right in front, no gunfire risk.
With it blocking their line of fire, Park Seung-su's soldiers wouldn't dare shoot foolishly.
"......"
Rifle in one hand, axe in the other, I stepped out before it.
The monster stared blankly with its faceless head, then raised one arm.
What now?
An incomprehensible pattern.
But one thing to remember against monsters: manifestations of algorithms, not true lifeforms—nothing they did was meaningless.
Especially in combat.
My eyes locked intensely on the grayish-white arm extended toward me.
"?!"
Instinctively, I ducked behind the wall.
The next instant.
Boom!
A blast unlike gunfire erupted right in front, and then.
Plink! Plink-plink!
Grayish-white fragments mercilessly embedded in the floor unprotected by the wall.
"......"
If my guess was right, that was a shotgun.
Matched shotgun fire perfectly.
Which meant.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Confirmed.
This monster was mimicking us old-school hunters blasting shotguns at their kin.
Thud!
I felt it round the corner.
I dashed back inside.
Thud!
The wall shook.
It was pounding the wall.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Slow but solid impacts.
The whole post quaked like an earthquake.
"Look! The Professor scurrying like a rat!"
Bang!
I climbed to the roof and fired.
Missed—distance, wind, shaking.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Fifth shot destroyed the filming phone.
No more filthy mouth from him.
Unless he dared come here.
From the roof, I sensed the monster circling back.
"......"
What now?
It knew me and wanted me dead.
No doubt.
To survive, I had to kill it.
Click—
Grabbed the scavenged shotgun.
Shotgun for shotgun.
Military shotguns outpunched rifles in raw power.
Down to the second floor, I kicked out the cracked, bullet-riddled bulletproof glass hanging like rags.
Glass shards stretched like taffy below as I leaned out and aimed.
Part of its body visible.
3 meters.
Reflective field range—no hitting it.
Fired with certainty.
Bang!
Deafening roar as shot flew toward it.
Then, right before impact, an ominous ripple shimmered before its body.
"!?"
Reflective field?
I thought I was dead.
A split-second later, I realized I was alive.
Not reflective.
Staring wide-eyed at the monster's rippling surface.
Shot stopped by an invisible barrier.
"Defensive field?"
Defensive field.
Unlike reflective, it blocked kinetic attacks with intangible force.
Reported in some large types, but unproven—the observing Indian government fell.
Now it happened before my eyes.
"......"
Thud!
Monster noticed me, turning.
Hid immediately.
Thud!
It stood right before the post.
Felt its faceless gaze.
"......"
This was Executioner?
Impervious to bullets, firing its own.
How do you even handle this?
Truly the executioner for us old-school hunters?
Feeling the pouring rain I'd briefly forgotten, I sensed the phone warming my chest.
Right, still recording.
Live! Apocalypse! broadcasting Skeleton's exploits in full.
What comments were rolling in?
What face was Melon Mask making?
Would they enjoy it?
I knew what they wanted.
Happy ending.
Most people craved happy endings.
Even those hating them wanted one for themselves.
I wanted to end this fight hopefully too.
But how?
"......"
Right.
Fight my way.
Clunk.
Ditched the gun, grabbed two axes.
Ultra-close range.
Park Gyu's favorite style.
So what if it shot pseudo-guns?
None survived my dance of death.
Rumble!
Thunder boomed.
I leaped through the remaining glass shards straight at it.
Swing axes.
Ripple visible.
Ignored it, slamming both axes with full body momentum.
No impact—axes halted.
Blocked by the intangible barrier.
Falling, retracted blades to wrists, landed.
Between its legs.
Hunched like a hunchback, it moved its foot.
As if to crush me, I swiftly struck.
Barrier blocked again.
Won't give up.
Ignored, targeted the other leg's inner thigh—human equivalent.
Squelch!
"?!"
It connected.
A shallow scratch, barely a wound, but my attack marked its body.
That meant one thing.
If I could wound it, I could kill it.
Feeling suppressed fury and hatred ignite, I entered a trance.
On this unwelcoming Jeju soil, amid thunder and lightning, I danced the dance of death.
Plenty of audience.
The whole world watching.
"Hah!"
Only impact sounds and my controlled breaths.
Within, the monster slowly crumbled.
Crack!
Its leg buckled.
Simultaneously, its body began disintegrating into light particles, like burning.
"......"
Perfect dance.
Fulfillment filled my chest as I steadied my breath.
Megaphone blared from the ridgeline.
"Damn it."
Shadows on the ridgeline.
Finally here.
Didn't matter.
Today, I'd danced my best.
Axes in hand, I eyed the ridgeline conquerors, flashing a weary smile.
"......"
They raised guns.
Some hesitated—petty satisfaction.
Amid Park Seung-su's irritated shouts, I closed my eyes.
Not a bad life.
Failed to be last human, but such a cool end? Decent enough.
So thinking, awaiting death.
Thud!
Shockwave hit.
No ordinary one.
A pulse that seemed to halt the world shook everything around me.
I knew this pulse.
Eyes open, looked back.
A familiar figure approached.
A woman bearing light that banished darkness.
Her name: Na Hyein.
"Park Gyu."
She called me.
Instantly recalling her nickname, a bitter smile crept up unbidden.
Right, the Savior.
Rain stopped.
Clouds raced away, dawn's dim light illuminating unbeknownst.
In that twilight, I saw.
The fog endlessly shrouding below had silently lifted.
Beyond: vast, beautiful fields, plains, rippling with worldly rifts.
Yes.
That was our fate.
Looking away or hiding wouldn't erase it.
Simple truth.