Operation Inferno Begins
Seongjin narrowed his eyes at the giant who had introduced himself as Beowulf, clenching and unclenching his fist once. His Variable Bio-Armor let out a grinding creak.
...He's no ordinary guy? The strongest one here.
The agility to snatch his full-force punch mid-swing, the grip strength to hold it, and the guts to step right into the line of attack. This man called Beowulf exuded an aura that was anything but ordinary.
Retracting his bio-armor slowly, Seongjin jerked his chin toward the merman.
"You're the commander? Perfect. Then pull that merman bastard off the team right now."
"...What did you say?"
The merman, who had been getting up from the floor, twisted his face in anger. Seongjin continued without a care.
"Teamwork only works with a bare minimum of common sense and manners, right? I can't run with some asshole who grabs my student's wrist out of nowhere on first sight. Send him to another team or kick him out before he causes trouble."
"Professor..."
Behind him, Alice gazed at Seongjin with moved eyes. Only Professor would do this, she thought, wiping away imaginary tears inside.
Touch my girl and die.
Of course, Seongjin was thinking a bit differently.
The two men glared at each other. Then Beowulf burst into boisterous laughter, scratching his head vigorously.
"Hahaha! What a straightforward personality! But sorry, team assignments come from upstairs—out of my hands. Everyone here was gathered for 'special circumstances,' so no swaps."
Beowulf sighed and patted the merman's shoulder.
"Hey, fish friend. This is totally on you. I get the spirits are fascinating, but you were rude on first meeting. Apologize quick and wrap it up."
"...Why should I apologize to a human?"
The merman shot back coldly. Seongjin's eyebrow twitched.
"See? Can't even talk sense to him. Wouldn't it be faster to kill one right here and reform the team?"
Black tentacles slithered up from behind Seongjin, raising their heads.
"......"
"......"
The air in the cafeteria froze in an instant. Everyone instinctively knew things could turn serious if this kept up.
"Han Seongjin, calm down. The merman was wrong, yes, but you're too heated now."
"Indeed. If you're already at odds, it'll be trouble going forward. You'll see each other constantly."
Even Juwon and Ryan dropped their smiles this time, holding Seongjin back. Beowulf hurriedly wedged himself between Seongjin and the merman, yanking the merman by the collar and shoving him forward.
"Listen, merman—if you don't wanna get dumped in a volcano pit tomorrow, apologize. That's an order from your commander. And you, Han Seongjin? I get you're pissed, but ease up. If the team breaks, we're all screwed."
"...Tch."
The merman trembled with rage, his pride clearly screaming no. But under Beowulf's overwhelming pressure, he bit his lip and glanced at Alice before mumbling in a mosquito-like voice.
"...Sorry."
"What? Can't hear you."
Seongjin dug in his ear and asked again. A vein bulged on the merman's forehead.
"I said sorry! For being rude!"
The merman bellowed, then stormed off to a corner seat, huffing. Only then did Seongjin retract his tentacles, nodding in satisfaction.
"There, was that so hard? Apology accepted—I'll let it slide this time."
"Phew, we're saved..."
Alice finally exhaled the breath she'd held and slumped into her chair. The apology was done, but the team's future still looked pitch black.
"By the way, we haven't gotten your name yet. What's yours?"
Ryan asked the merman.
"...Kairon."
The merman answered curtly. Silence fell.
Beowulf scanned the wrecked cafeteria with an awkward grin.
"Alright, alright! Names exchanged, apology done—now let's actually enjoy the feast! Tomorrow we dive into hell rolling with demon beasts!"
No sooner had he spoken than Ryan raised his fork again.
"Hell? It'll be a holy site purified by the Goddess's firepower!"
"Heh, Juwon. Enough with the firepower talk. My ears are bleeding."
In the forcibly mended peace, Z-Team's first meal resumed. Seongjin popped a piece of steak into his mouth, still eyeing Kairon coldly.
Still, forcing an apology feels good.
A strange smile tugged at Seongjin's lips. Beside him, Alice forced down her food while praying tomorrow wouldn't come.
The next day. Camp near the Kargas Volcano zone.
The place buzzed with countless voices and noises. The day Operation Inferno finally began.
Everyone assembled in the auditorium yesterday stood ready with determined faces. Heroes, hunters, superhumans, and Piros defense forces—all fully armed.
At the camp's center, the command HQ doubled as a temporary plaza. The final briefing began there.
"Attention, everyone!"
Alex Bankcroft, the regional director atop the platform, shouted into the mic.
"Operation Inferno starts today! All teams, move immediately to your assigned sectors and execute the briefed plans!"
—Waaaaaaaaah!!!!!
A massive roar erupted from the plaza as Alex finished. Dozens of superhumans and hundreds of soldiers shook the ground with their cheers.
Teams then dispersed to their positions one by one. Z-Team, with Seongjin, moved out under Beowulf's lead.
The plan: Exterminate all demon beasts in the Kargas Volcano zone and eliminate the rift source causing the surge.
Operation name: Inferno.
The Kargas Volcano zone backed onto the sea. Centered on the central volcano, the city-side half was intact, but the sea-side half had been scorched barren 10 years ago for some reason.
The city-side had been relatively safe until recently, but rift increases had spiked demon beast numbers, spilling over and making even that side unsafe.
In this crisis, Piros Autonomous Region's administration aimed to wipe out all demon beasts, remove the rift source, and restore the ruined sea-side zone as a bonus.
That was Inferno.
The method was simple.
[Kraaak!]
"Kill every one of those demon beast bastards! Fire!"
—Rat-a-tat-tat! Bang!
"These are all low-rank! No danger!"
"I'll comfort our families' souls with your blood!"
"Die, you fucking shits!"
First, five combat teams swept inward from the volcano perimeter, culling demon beasts primary-style.
"Deploy purification teams!"
"Priests, this way!"
Then Philia theocracy's goddess-priests purified the cleared land. Priests pulled massive cross-shaped stakes from crates and drove them into the ground at intervals. A high priest then performed the linking ritual.
"This keeps rifts from spawning here?"
"Yeah. Turns it into a sanctuary of sorts."
"Super easy. Why not do it sooner?"
"Expensive."
"Ah."
All holy stakes were artifacts blessed directly by the Philia pope—priceless relics worth their weight in gold. Plus, periodic priest maintenance added huge costs.
Not to mention, if monsters damaged them or quakes broke the links, the effect radius shrank. Preventing that took more money and manpower.
A money pit, through and through.
Flip side: the administration's dead serious about this op.
Seongjin pierced a demon beast's head with a tentacle and scanned around. Three hours into the op.
Z-Team's sector: rugged rocky zone at the volcano foothills. Thick sulfur stench hung heavy.
"Hahaha! You evil things! Be saved by the Goddess's flames!"
—KABOOM!
A white mana shell blasted from Ryan's massive holy book. Three or four demon beasts vaporized without a scream. He cackled maniacally, spamming mana shells.
"Juwon! Watch your back!"
The monk Juwon sliced through the air, appearing from nowhere. His kick cleaved a charging demon beast in half.
"Ambushing from the blind spot? Even demon beasts need manners! This monk will teach you!"
Fists and feet whipped at invisible speeds, spraying demon beast chunks everywhere. A human shredder in action.
His body would've gotten filthy, but a blue water membrane blocked all gore and filth.
"Miss Alice, this water barrier is truly comfortable!"
"...Th-thank youuu..."
Amid the slaughterhouse, Alice sweated bullets maintaining the water wall. A blue manta ray floated beside her—water spirit Eldra.
It guzzled more mana than Blue for summoning, but its power was legit. And with Z-Team all melee experts except Ryan, it shone.
—Shwoosh!
Water trails lashed out with every swing of Kairon's trident. He skewered demon beasts in a flash.
His eyes met Seongjin's.
"......"
He scoffed and conjured a massive water stream, sweeping away a pack showily.
...Is he provoking me?
Seongjin chuckled in disbelief. The team was undeniably skilled. Personality flaws aside, they were admin-picked elites.
But the most overwhelming? The 2.5m giant, Beowulf.
His greatsword swung wide, bisecting two hefty demon beasts at once.
"Ha! Come at me, you half-assed freaks!"
His blade bulldozed like a tank, pulverizing foes.
Uses cold weapons, huh.
Seongjin eyed him closely. No Crossfield-style mana infusion. Pure physical prowess. That speed alone could kill small fry with wind pressure.
[Graaak!]
Two demon beasts lunged from behind.
—Pshk! Pfft!
Seongjin's tentacles stretched long, piercing vitals for instant kills.
Achieve Demonic Body lv.10.
Demonic Body lv.3 Progress: ■■■□□□□□□□ (30.2%)
Reward: ???
Failure Penalty: ???
Time Remaining: 2 years, 341 days, 17 hours, 10 minutes, 22 seconds
XP copying works, it copies.
Numbers were high, but individuals gave little XP—still, progress flew. Might hit lv.5 easy?
Seongjin's mouth split in a grin. He charged ahead into more demon beasts.
"Be saved!"
"Attacking from behind? Cowardly! Atone with your life!"
"Gimme that XP!! Hahaha!!!"
"Everyone's pumped! Can't fall behind!"
"......"
Sandwiched among the rampaging dudes, Alice's head spun. Even her reliable professor massacred with mad laughter.
What's with him? Scary. Thought he was more composed.
Her mind reeled, but she decided to drop it. Yeah. They're having fun. Fighting's enjoyable, I guess. Don't get it, but... okay.
Somehow, that eased her mind.
As Z-Team danced in demon blood...
—Rumble rumble.
The ground vibrated faintly.
"......"
Seongjin focused on his soles. Something rose from deep underground.
"All stop!"
Beowulf's booming voice echoed across the battlefield. He slammed his greatsword into the ground, scanning warily.
"Here it comes. A big one!"
No sooner said than the rocky ground under Z-Team exploded upward.
—KABOOOOOM!
"Kyaaak!"
Alice, briefly zen, screamed and tumbled back. A massive shadow emerged from the dust cloud.
A giant centipede-like demon beast clad in obsidian shell. Needle-sharp demonic energy prickled Seongjin's skin viciously.
His demonic energy meter read 2. Mid-rank demon beast.
XP jackpot.
Seongjin rocketed forward at eye-blurring speed. Kairon chased right after, unwilling to yield the kill.
Z-Team's first real battle burned hotter than Kargas Volcano itself.