Chapter 67
Chapter 67
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Soaring Flight
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While fierce battles raged across all of Ulleungdo...
In the nearby seas, a clash so daunting few could even face it was unfolding.
Crack!
Grrrraaah!!
Flashes of light shattered in every direction as lightning crashed down.
The savage monster's roar shook even the ocean depths.
It was a battle of mythic proportions, straight out of legend.
"Haat!"
Each swing of Valkyrie's spear parted the sea.
The water's surface where she stood evaporated briefly from the sheer heat.
She treated the utterly untreadable waves like solid ground.
Then came her flawless thrust, followed by a relentless barrage.
This was an Apocalypse-Class monster—one modern weaponry could scarcely scratch.
Yet in an instant, multiple gashes tore across its massive body.
Graaaah!!
With every movement of the beast, the world trembled and the heavens churned.
As if to say these mere wounds wouldn't stop it.
The monster's hand lunged toward Valkyrie with terrifying speed, aiming to snatch her.
It was enormous. But fast. Far from slow.
"Hup!"
She dodged by a hair's breadth, only for the beast to whip its tail around.
An iron tail. Even an S-Rank Hero would be crushed on impact.
Dodging outright was too late. Valkyrie clicked her tongue and activated her Ability.
Flash!
Her body shimmered gold for a split second before vanishing entirely.
The tail lashed wildly at empty air in fury.
In that moment, Valkyrie seized the opening behind the beast and targeted its nape.
Graaaah!!
As if expecting it, the monster spun around instantly.
Blue flames erupted from its gaping maw.
"Annoying!"
Heat intense enough to melt steel in a heartbeat.
Anything it touched would vaporize without a trace.
Kaboom!
But the flames slammed into a golden shield and cascaded into the sea.
A sinister hiss rose as massive steam billowed upward.
The ocean—the ultimate coolant that quenched any flame or heat—was struggling against the monster's blaze.
Yet Valkyrie casually lowered her shield.
Not a single mark or lingering heat scarred its surface.
"That all? My turn now!"
She assumed a javelin stance and hurled her spear with all her might.
Whoosh!
It tore through the air with a deafening shriek.
Aiming straight for the monster's heart... or so it seemed.
Flash!
The spear vanished without a trace right before the beast.
Then reappeared on the exact opposite side.
Groooar!
The monster thrashed violently, whipping up a colossal tidal wave.
It planned to use the crashing waves as a shield against the spear.
But by the time the tsunami hit, the spear had vanished once more.
Flash!
This time from above, plunging downward.
As the beast shifted to evade, the spear relocated again.
Flickering like lightning flashes across the sky.
Appearing and disappearing repeatedly, its speed accelerating.
Grraaah!!
The monster let out a low growl as it eyed the teleporting spear.
Toying with it. As if daring it to try and catch it.
Then its gaze shifted to Valkyrie, floating alone far off.
She still held her shield, but she seemed far more vulnerable now.
Striking her main body now would drop that pesky spear.
...Groooaaar!
The monster charged at Valkyrie... or rather, abruptly changed tactics.
Like a human clapping, it slammed its massive hands together.
Bang!!
A colossal shockwave rippled outward.
The sea receded momentarily, and storm clouds parted.
Valkyrie's form, which should have been before the beast, suddenly shattered into golden fragments.
At the same instant, the true Valkyrie revealed herself around the flickering spears.
"Sharp instincts!"
She shouted boldly, but inwardly, her mood soured a bit.
She'd figured it'd fall for the bait at least once, but it saw through it immediately.
That floating body was the decoy; this was the real one.
Proof it wasn't some fresh Apocalypse-Class beast.
Not some brute lost in mindless destruction.
'And it wields not just flames, but sonic attacks too.'
This made things worse: she had no idea how many Abilities it hid.
A clever one like this surely had at least one ace up its sleeve.
Normally, she'd bait it out with feints.
But time was short. Ulleungdo was still in the thick of battle.
She had to end it quick and reinforce them, or disaster would follow.
"Fine. Time to go all out, then."
Valkyrie fell back and thrust her spear skyward with full force.
Storm clouds gathered around her as rain poured, culminating in...
Crackle!!
A thunderous roar engulfed the area.
Furious bolts of lightning ravaged the world.
Then they hammered down onto her spear in succession.
Boom! Kaboom!
Smoke rose from Valkyrie's body simultaneously.
The temperature of the lightning defied imagination.
No ordinary human—or even most Heroes—could endure it.
Even the monster hesitated to close in.
And Valkyrie? She took it bare-handed.
Casually. With a smile playing on her lips, no less.
Crackle! Zap!
Finally, as the lightning storm ended, she lowered her spear.
Blue electricity danced across her from head to toe.
The Lightning God. That single phrase summed her up.
"Brace yourself."
Perfectly controlling the surging currents as her own.
Enveloped in golden radiance and a blue aura.
Valkyrie smiled, spear and shield in hand.
"Might sting a little."
Kabooooom!!
Lightning rent the East Sea asunder.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Thud!
"Hah! Hak!"
A metallic tang of blood filled her throat.
Her chest burned like it was being torn apart. Her breaths came ragged.
Her muscles, pushed to their limit, felt like they were melting.
She forced her unresponsive body to move.
Kang Yuna first tended to Seo Ha-eun, collapsed nearby.
"Ha-eun. Ha-eun?"
"Ughhh...."
Seo Ha-eun's condition was, at best, on the brink of disaster.
Her rampaging Ability skyrocketed her physical prowess.
But when time ran out, her nervous system forcibly shut down.
Forcing rest before her body collapsed.
Yet Seo Ha-eun had pushed past even that, dragging herself back into the fight.
She'd won against the monsters, ultimately.
But the price was a backlash as agonizing as death itself.
"Kuhhh...!"
Blood trickled from her clenched lips.
Her twisting muscles locked her limbs rigid.
There was nothing Kang Yuna could do.
This wasn't something medicine or some support could fix.
Exceed your limits, and you bear the consequences.
"Ughhh...."
"Don't move! Cadet Jin Seo-ah! You're not just injured!"
Jung Ye-bin panicked, holding Jin Seo-ah back.
But Jin Seo-ah insisted she was fine, forcing herself up to scan the surroundings.
"We need to get out of here, fast. We can't fight anymore."
"Agreed. Mana, stamina—everything's tapped out."
Louise shouldered something between a gun and a club, supporting Seo Ha-eun as she stood beside Jin Seo-ah.
"The civilians."
"I sent them ahead. The landed monsters focused on the harbor Heroes and us. Risky, but staying here seemed worse."
"Good call. Staying would have been disastrous."
She glanced toward the harbor, engulfed in flames and smoke.
The once-beautiful port was gone. This was hell.
Many must be injured. Many more fallen.
"More importantly... think she'll be okay? That thing earlier."
The Apocalypse-Class monster's roar.
They'd all been caught in its reach.
Lucky the fight had just ended.
Otherwise, they'd have been slaughtered helpless.
"Don't worry. We all saw it, right? The golden meteor from the sky."
Jin Seo-ah knew exactly what it was.
"It's Valkyrie. An S-Rank Hero... ugh! Has arrived!"
Just one Hero's arrival shifted the mood entirely.
Enough to overturn a desperate, hopeless battlefield in an instant.
No wonder nations vied for a single S-Rank.
"But why her before land support?"
"Probably clearing the East Sea coastal cities first. And arranging transport."
Jin Seo-ah, with a splint from Jung Ye-bin on her arm, signaled to move.
They couldn't fight anymore. Couldn't wait for reinforcements.
One task now: retreat without getting dragged in further.
She wanted to fight on. Because retreating felt humiliating.
But having good judgment was a Hero's duty.
Assess yourself: help or become a hindrance?
To Jin Seo-ah, none here could reinforce anymore.
"Hurry! More monsters might follow!"
No monster auras yet, but better be safe.
Louise supported Seo Ha-eun. Jung Ye-bin watched Jin Seo-ah.
Kang Yuna took rear guard, checking for signs.
As they hurried after the evacuated civilians...
...Grrr!
Monsters that had lurked hidden emerged.
Like a mix of wild dogs and hyenas.
Heroes called them 'Scavengers.'
Not strong head-on, but ambush experts.
Especially adept at tracking blood from the wounded.
Many who'd thought they'd shaken the pursuit fell to them.
Veteran Heroes never dropped their guard accounting for them.
But cadets were cadets, they were inevitably short on experience.
Grrr!
Kirrrk!
As the cadets vanished, the pack leader commanded pursuit.
Just as the Scavengers spilled onto the road...
Rustle—
Something fluttered on the wind.
...Splatter!
Thud!
Moments later, the Scavenger pack lay as mangled corpses.