The Corrupted Beast
The ones walking atop the ash instinctively realized it. This creature was the high-level magical beast of the volcanic region. Everyone froze in an instant. Alice clutched her mask with both hands, cold sweat trickling down her face. I narrowed my eyes and stared at it. The gas fog obscured most of its form, revealing only a vague silhouette, but I committed every detail to memory.
"......"
It was massive. The beast moved on four legs, its mouth lined with razor-sharp fangs. Most striking of all was the purple substance covering its back and head. It pulsed faintly, like living slime.
...Purple slime?
"......!"
A memory flashed through my mind. I had seen that purple slime before. Even if I wanted to forget it, I never could.
'The Helm Mountain dungeon...!'
There was only one meaning behind it.
'A monster that has undergone demonic corruption.'
The corrupted monsters that had emerged from the Helm Mountain dungeon—creatures coated in that unidentified purple slime. That was the true identity of the high-level magical beast of Kargas Volcano.
I had once tried searching the internet and the academy library for information on demonic corruption and the purple slime, but found nothing. After that, I had mostly forgotten about it—until now.
I glanced around.
"......"
"......"
"......"
Beowulf, Ricardo, Ju Won, Ryan, and Chiron—all of them were holding their breath, hidden and on guard. They had all realized this was the high-level magical beast we had been hunting.
—Thud! Thud!
The beast's footsteps echoed loudly right in front of us. It hadn't noticed us and was simply passing by.
'...What now?'
The visor showed less than 10% oxygen remaining. We needed to escape the gas zone before it ran out. Otherwise, I might survive, but my companions would be in serious danger.
Yet the high-level magical beast we had spent so long searching for was right in front of us. We couldn't just let it go.
My mind raced. Should we all attack now before more oxygen was wasted? Send the others away and fight it alone? Or request backup from the administration bureau?
Countless options flashed through my head, but none felt right.
Charging in together was the simplest solution. It would mean completing the Inferno Operation's objective immediately. The problem was that this thing was incredibly strong. Even ignoring its demonic energy, the sheer pressure it radiated was overwhelming. Even if all of us attacked at once, we wouldn't be able to take it down before the oxygen ran out. My companions would collapse one by one, and I'd have to protect them while fighting. The result would be total annihilation.
Sending them away and fighting alone wasn't viable either. Even if I used every ability I had and activated Transcendent Demonification, I had no confidence I could win.
'...This is the only way.'
I made my decision. Once my mind was set, action followed quickly.
-Tap.
I carefully peeled the tracking device from my protective suit and tossed it onto the beast's hind leg.
'Got it.'
The tracker attached itself to the creature's body. From now on, it would reveal the high-level magical beast's location.
The team members who had been watching me strangely understood the meaning of my actions.
-Thud, thud, thud.
The footsteps gradually faded. When they could no longer be heard—
"Phew! I thought I was going to suffocate to death..."
"Let's get out of here right now. We're really at our oxygen limit."
We moved quickly, leaving the gas zone behind.
***
The moment we crossed the boundary of the gas zone, we tore off our masks as if on cue.
"Hah, hah! I feel alive again!"
"That really was hell. I thought my lungs were burning."
"...Water... someone give me water."
Ryan and Ju Won collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. Alice, whose face had turned pale, finally let out a trembling sigh and tried to steady herself. Chiron looked like a dried fish left out in the volcanic heat—almost comical.
I removed my own mask and inhaled the fresh air.
"Hm? What's wrong?"
A question formed in my mind. The air wasn't cool at all—it was hot and stuffy. The air outside the gas zone should have been fine, especially since the jungle wasn't far away.
Sensing something off, I looked up at the sky.
"......?"
If we had left the gas zone, we should have seen a clear sky or, considering the time, a sunset. Instead, a gloomy sky and gray clouds loomed overhead.
Was it volcanic gas? But three hours ago, when we entered the gas zone, the sky had been clear.
"Strange. Has the sun already set? Even if we were delayed, it shouldn't be this dark."
Beowulf frowned and checked his watch. It still showed early evening.
"O-over there! Look over there! At the volcano..."
"The volcano? What's at the volcano—"
I turned at Alice's urgent voice and doubted my eyes.
-Rumble rumble rumble
"...What is that?"
Ricardo was stunned. The others who followed our gaze stood with their mouths agape.
In the distance, black smoke billowed from the crater of Kargas Volcano. The endless plume darkened the surrounding sky. That smoke was what now covered the heavens.
"...What? It was fine when we went in."
"This doesn't look good. It's ominous."
At that moment, the previously dead communicator crackled to life with static.
<...Can you hear me? Inferno... members! If you can hear this, respond immediately!>
"This is Ricardo! We've established communication! What's going on?"
Ricardo responded urgently.
<Hah, finally connected. Are the personnel who entered the gas zone safe?>
"Yes. Everyone is safe. More importantly, we've located the high-level magical beast. I'll explain the details after we return."
A frantic voice burst from the communicator in response to Ricardo's words.
<Return to base immediately! The Inferno Operation is temporarily suspended!>
"What? Suspended? Please explain the situation clearly."
<Kargas Volcano is about to erupt! Evacuation is underway near the volcanic region! We'll explain everything after you return!>
"““...!!””"
Everyone's eyes widened at those words.
***
"Evacuate quickly! The volcano's going to blow!"
"Minimize your belongings and board the trucks!"
Beowulf and Ryan's voices filled Agni Village's square. The once-peaceful village had turned into chaos. The sky was already covered in black clouds mixed with ash, blending with the night to create deep darkness. The acrid smell of sulfur hung in the air. Intermittent tremors beneath our feet signaled that Kargas Volcano had reached its critical point.
"We can't leave the village! The Back-Hump God will protect us!"
"What Back-Hump? Get moving and save yourselves first!"
Beowulf dragged an elderly man who had been barricaded inside his house out into the open. The old man clutched a statue of a four-legged monster with spikes on its back.
"Grandma, hold my hand! Be careful!"
Alice had summoned her spirits to assist with the evacuation. The dejected look she had worn in the gas zone was gone.
"Puri! Ruri! Go help the people trapped under that collapsed wall over there!"
At Alice's command, the water spirits in the shape of goldfish moved. They lowered the temperature around the hot volcanic ash to protect people, clearing light debris and paving paths.
What they were doing now was aiding the evacuation. Since the eruption of Kargas Volcano was imminent, Seongjin and Ricardo had gone to negotiate with the administration bureau, leaving the rest of us to handle the field. Chiron and Ju Won were helping with evacuation elsewhere.
Looking into the distance, Kargas Volcano continued spewing thick smoke as if it intended to dye the entire sky. The words of the administration bureau's geologist echoed in her mind.
-You all felt the earthquake a few hours ago. It's the most likely reason Kargas Volcano has broken its cycle and begun preparing to erupt. It seems someone detonated something powerful underground, stimulating the magma chamber. The earthquake was the aftermath. An artificial adjustment of the volcanic eruption cycle. Who could have done such a thing?
She recalled her professor, Han Seongjin, muttering something about this being Plan B after hearing those words. Her thoughts grew heavy, but she shook her head. There would be time to think later. Right now, she had to do what she could.
Even if she lacked the strength to directly defeat the magical beast, her spirit arts shone brighter than any superhuman ability when it came to protecting and rescuing civilians in this situation.
—Rumble!
Another powerful tremor shook the village. The roof of an old house collapsed. The screams of the people grew louder.
"Alice! Have you finished checking the western district?"
"Yes! The spirits just guided the last group to the trucks!"
"We've completed identity checks here too! No stragglers!"
"Good! Then let's get out of the volcanic region quickly!"
Beowulf climbed into the driver's seat and stepped on the accelerator. Two large trucks cut through the dense jungle at high speed.
Inside one of them, in the back seat away from the driver's seat, Alice sat catching her breath. The air near her rippled, and Alpherion's eagle head quietly materialized.
His demeanor was different from usual. His eyes seemed filled with deep concern.
[Contractor.]
"...Alpherion."
Alice answered in a very small voice so Beowulf in the driver's seat wouldn't hear. Thanks to the truck's rattling and engine noise, their conversation remained private.
[I saw 'that' in the dark red fog and have been thinking ever since. I have something I wish to say in my own way.]
"...Please speak."
Alpherion gazed at the rapidly passing scenery outside the window and spoke in a low voice.
[We spirits are sensitive to each other's auras. The more powerful the spirit, the more complex its aura becomes. I am the Wind Spirit King. Though my memories are not yet complete, even from hundreds of years ago, I clearly remember the auras of my friends.]
[From that so-called high-level magical beast, I sensed a very faint trace of a Spirit King's aura. And though I searched most of the volcanic region, 'her' whereabouts remain unclear.]
Alpherion paused for a moment, then looked directly at Alice.
[Do you understand what I am saying?]
"......Yes."
[Of course, it may not be true. My prediction could be wrong. But... steel your resolve.]
Though he didn't speak the name directly, Alice understood the meaning of Alpherion's words. The Fire Spirit King had become the high-level magical beast. It was the possibility she had unconsciously considered all along.
[Also... remember this. What matters most is the heart.]
With those final words, Alpherion slowly faded away. The flow of air returned to normal.
"......"
Inside the rattling truck, Alice clenched her hands resting on her knees.