Chapter 108
Chapter 108
In Cheollihyang Village - 6
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The situation instantly descended into chaos.
The tranquil dinner time was engulfed in turmoil, and Han-na, collapsed on the floor and sobbing in Su-ah’s arms, had yet to escape from her fear.
Su-ah endlessly patted her back and used a small amount of mana to cast [Recovery].
“Sob…. I’m sorry, everyone…. Sob….”
Her tears gradually began to dry.
Han-na offered her apologies to Tae-jin’s companions, who were looking at her with pity.
If she hadn’t followed them, the situation wouldn’t have become like this, and her guards wouldn’t have died.
Furthermore, even if there was external pressure, she had played a significant role in Renia’s kidnapping.
This was the worst of all possible scenarios.
Not only had she taken the lives of her two guards, but she might also become involved in the life or death of Renia or Tae-jin, so Han-na shed endless, large tears.
“…Will he be okay?”
Hye-seo, who was looking down at her with a dazed expression, asked Na-yeon as she looked at the doorway Tae-jin had exited.
Na-yeon, who had hastily swallowed what was in her mouth, likewise stared at the doorway Tae-jin had just rushed out of.
Na-yeon couldn’t easily answer the question of whether he would be okay.
If it were the Tae-jin who had crushed the Azure Witch, Lexa, she wouldn’t be worried, but now, his hands were tied even before he could draw his sword.
She couldn’t easily make a judgment.
Fighting with a hostage was the same as charging at an armed opponent with both hands tied.
And Hye-seo, who had experienced that situation countless times as the team leader of the Villain Investigation Team at the Monster Management Bureau, couldn’t help but be anxious.
The end of a hostage situation was usually tragic.
It was just…
“…We have to believe he’ll be okay.”
There was nothing to do but have optimistic faith.
But just then.
“Y-Yu-ra-!?”
Mi-hwa’s urgent voice suddenly rang out, and at the end of their gazes, which followed the direction of her voice.
Fling!
They saw Yu-ra flinging the door open and running out.
“That girl, what is she really doing-!”
Mi-hwa tried to follow her, but Na-yeon went in her place.
“I’ll go after her.”
“Ah…”
Mi-hwa couldn’t readily answer.
She hesitated, feeling like her daughter was causing unnecessary trouble, but objectively, it would be more effective for Na-yeon to go than herself, so she had no choice but to agree.
Isn’t it common for girls that age to be more afraid of an older sister figure than their own mother?
“Then… I’ll leave it to you.”
“Yes. I’ll bring her back soon.”
“Ah, I’ll go with you. Just in case.”
“Thank you, everyone.”
Hye-seo followed behind the hastily departing Na-yeon.
To Hye-seo, who was in the habit of anticipating worst-case scenarios and assessing risk levels, Yu-ra, who had followed Tae-jin—seemed to be in greater danger than if she had stayed behind.
“Okay. Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
Soon.
Na-yeon and Hye-seo had to chase after Yu-ra and leave the restaurant.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“O-Oppa-!”
Tae-jin, who was about to leave the village entrance, stopped in his tracks at the voice from behind him and turned around.
And, he could see Yu-ra, running towards him, out of breath.
“Huh? Yu-ra…!?”
“Oppa-! Wait!”
“It’s dangerous if you follow! Stay with Mom!”
“Noo-! Wait, just a moment!”
Despite his warnings to go back, Yu-ra kept running.
So Tae-jin waited for a moment, and Yu-ra, who had arrived in front of him, hastily rummaged through her mana pocket.
And then.
“Th-this…!”
She took out a small device and handed it to Tae-jin.
A small, cylindrical rod-like device that fit in the palm of his hand.
It was a crude device, with nothing but a single red button.
“What’s this?”
“If they took Renia Unnie hostage, they must have used a mana suppression device.”
“They probably did, right? Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to hold her hostage.”
“This can temporarily disable that suppression device.”
“Ah, really? So we can use mana?”
“Yes! But the time isn’t long. A minute at most. It’s an illegal device, but… this isn’t the time to worry about that.”
The mana suppression device, also known as the ‘Mana Dispenser,’ was mainly used in awakened prisons, and naturally, the use and development of any device that could break it were prohibited for any reason.
The Mana Dispenser was the only device that could restrain awakened criminals.
Also, unlike its straightforward effect of mana suppression, the Mana Dispenser had a complex circuit that most magic scholars couldn’t even touch.
But Yu-ra had figured out the principle of the Mana Dispenser on her own and developed a function to shut down its circuit.
And she had blindly chased after her brother to give it to him.
Tae-jin, who received it, looked at Yu-ra.
Honestly, he had felt helpless.
As Yu-ra said, they must have used a device to hold Renia, which is why they took her hostage.
He had rushed out blindly, but he had no clever plan or special move to turn the disadvantageous hostage situation around.
It was just a vague determination to reach her within the time limit and save her, but thanks to Yu-ra, that vague determination had transformed into firm confidence.
“Thank you, Yu-ra.”
“You have to save Unnie and… come back.”
Tae-jin smiled faintly.
Then, looking at her with proud eyes, he ruffled her hair.
“Aah…!”
Yu-ra quickly retracted her neck like a turtle and protected her hair.
But it was already a mess.
Of course, a shy smile was on her face.
The fact that she had helped her brother, that alone was enough for Yu-ra.
“Of course. I’ll bring Renia back, so you wait here.”
“O-okay…! I will…!”
“Don’t worry too much. Tell Mom, too. No, tell everyone. That I’ll use this device to save Renia and come back safely.”
“Okay! Go, Oppa!”
At Yu-ra’s cheerful cheering, as if he were going to a tournament, Tae-jin let out a small laugh and blew away a handful of tension.
Right, excessive tension only makes the situation rigid.
Tae-jin, who had filled his empty heart with Yu-ra’s cheering, finally began to charge towards where Renia was.
Following that.
“Yu-ra-!”
At the call from behind her, Yu-ra turned around.
It was Na-yeon and Hye-seo.
“O-Unnies…”
“Hey. What are you thinking, running out like that without a word? We were worried.”
Hye-seo scanned the surroundings, and Na-yeon immediately began to scold Yu-ra.
Yu-ra lowered her head and mumbled.
“I-I had something to give to Oppa…. I thought he would definitely need it…”
“So. Did you give it to him?”
“Yes. He just left again.”
“Really? Where to?”
Yu-ra turned her head, and Na-yeon and Hye-seo also looked in that direction.
Tae-jin was already out of sight.
“He went that way. He’ll come back safely, right?”
At Yu-ra’s sorrowful question, Na-yeon nodded without a hint of hesitation.
Even if it was a disadvantageous situation, she didn’t doubt that ‘Elroden,’ who had silently overcome any adversity and hardship without yielding, would surely save Renia.
Because Elroden was that kind of man.
Because Elroden was the man who had braved a storm of arrows to save her—the very same woman who had once been the hero Raphia in another world.
And because he had saved her under any disadvantageous condition, in any absurd situation.
That’s why Na-yeon expressed firm belief and support instead of doubt and worry.
As if to prove it, Na-yeon’s expression was calm.
“Of course. I believe. If it’s Tae-jin, he’ll definitely do well.”
“He will, right?”
“Yes. Let’s go now. Mom is worried.”
“Ah, yes.”
Na-yeon led Yu-ra and was about to return to the restaurant.
What she could do now was to take good care of Yu-ra and her mother so that Tae-jin wouldn’t have to worry.
But just then.
“Wait.”
Hye-seo began to scan the surroundings with an ominous gaze.
Looking at the empty air, then at the ground, Hye-seo looked around aimlessly.
Her appearance was as unusual as an animal that had sensed a disaster, so Na-yeon asked worriedly.
“…Why?”
Through their weeks of traveling together, Na-yeon knew.
What kind of person Kim Hye-seo was as an investigator.
A person who was flawless when on watch, who could instantly grasp the surrounding risk factors, and who had an excellent ability to analyze those factors and prepare for them.
And
A person whose ability to sense crisis was more outstanding than anyone else’s.
That ability bordered on a superhuman sense, and thanks to it, they had gotten through many crises with little difficulty more than once.
That’s why Na-yeon couldn’t help but be tense.
Because she knew well that the crisis Hye-seo sensed was by no means a mistake or an illusion.
Moreover, since it was the most serious expression she had ever seen, Na-yeon immediately raised her mana.
“…Mana is gathering. The flow is unusual.”
Hye-seo said, looking at the ground.
Na-yeon also agreed with her opinion.
“I feel it too. Something… something is coming.”
A moment later, the small pebbles on the dirt ground began to vibrate.
It wasn't a precursor to an earthquake or a storm.
It was a vibration caused by a rapid flow of mana, and also a precursor to a mana explosion.
A mana explosion implied that something huge was about to happen.
The vibration gradually grew stronger.
Pebbles and dust flew up, creating an ominous wind.
Swish-Whoosh—!
The wind showed an irregular, artificial movement, dying down and then blowing again repeatedly.
Whoosh!
Whoooosh…!
Wheeeik-!
And, when a strong mana wind finally began to claw at the entire village.
Hye-seo and Na-yeon had to shout at Yu-ra.
“Run to the restaurant-!”
Zing, sizzle!
Sizzzle!
About 100M from the village entrance.
In that desolate and barren clearing, sparks like a thunderstorm began to fly, and the gathered mana wind began to form a vortex.
Na-yeon grabbed Yu-ra’s arm and ran towards the restaurant, looking back.
“What the hell is that-! Have you ever seen anything like that-!?”
Hye-seo nodded her head as if she had some idea.
“It looks like a portal from Illusion.”
“But! Portals don’t come with this kind of mana wind when they form, do they?!”
“….”
Hye-seo fell silent.
She was right.
It didn’t make sense for such a mana wind to blow for just a portal.
But
“Depending on what comes out of the portal… it could happen.”
“What?!”
Just then, Hye-seo stopped walking.
It was because the flow of the magnificent mana wind she felt behind her had changed.
“Hye-seo-! Hurry!”
Na-yeon stopped behind her and called for Hye-seo.
But Hye-seo stared at the place where the mana wind was condensing as if possessed.
“…Don’t tell me.”
She muttered in a daze.
The raging mana wind swallowed the sparks and transformed into an oval sphere.
Its size was an absurdly huge portal, unlike anything ever seen or reported before.
Its width was wide enough for a battleship to pass through, and its height was so tall that the battleship would have to be stood vertically for its tip to reach the top.
“Wh-what the hell is that…”
“That’s… a portal?”
Na-yeon, who had been calling for Hye-seo, and Yu-ra, who was being led by Na-yeon’s hand.
They couldn’t even think of moving their feet, which felt rooted to the ground, and had to open their mouths at the appearance of the magnificent portal.
“Kyaak-! What is that-!”
“Run-!!”
“Eli, Nasia!! Where are you-!!”
The earth vibrated, and screams and shouts filled the village.
It felt as if an alien planet had appeared.
Following that, when a super-giant monster slowly revealed itself through the portal.
The shouts and screams were swallowed by a magnificent fear.
“…Fuck.”
A single curse word burst through the all-consuming fear.
It was Hye-seo’s voice.
“Don’t tell me, the Chimera Project was a success…? No way…!”
Content recorded in the Monster Management Bureau’s secret intelligence.
The so-called [Chimera Project].
A top-secret project of Illusion to cultivate a super-giant monster by combining parts of S-class giant monsters, this was also intelligence obtained through the sacrifice of Han Chang-ho.
And the successfully cultivated super-giant monster was said to be trapped in a place called a cage and raised to adulthood.
However, since nothing was revealed about the structure or principle of the cage, or its true nature, and because renowned magic scholars and biophysicists all agreed it was impossible.
The Chimera Project was considered to be in the realm of absurd fantasy or an unknown experimental plan.
But now.
Hye-seo had to witness with her own two eyes how foolish that judgment was.
The body of the iron-clad beetle Arstel had the wings of the flying giant monster Radon spread out, the head of a basilisk and the head of a red hydra were grotesquely intertwined, and the huge scorpion tail of the scorpion monster Antares was spewing a murderous poison, the super-giant monster, Chimera.
It had a dignity that could be passed down to later generations as a disaster and the beginning of the end.
Kwoong-!!
《Kieeeeeek-!!》
Soon the portal closed, and the eardrum-shattering cry of the Chimera announced the beginning of the disaster and the start of an all-out war with Illusion.