Chapter 132
Chapter 132
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 132
Chapter Title: No Hyoman's Past
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Click.
I slipped the recorder, which had finished recording, back into my pocket. No Hyoman flashed a sly smile and said to me.
“You recorded that for nothing.”
“Huh?”
“You’re going to die here anyway.”
“……Yeah?”
Ares, who had risen to his feet before I knew it, spun his spear around and asked me.
“Is this the target?”
“……No, hold on.”
No Hyoman smiled at Ares.
“Kim Cheonjae, you think this guy stands a chance against me?”
“……”
“No way in hell. Do you have any idea how many of those ‘Openers’ I killed climbing up here?”
“……”
“At least a hundred. A. Hundred.”
A hundred.
Modified zombies grow stronger by devouring players. If he’d eaten over a hundred players—ones tough enough to make it to Daekyung City—his power must be immense.
Yet his aura was only that strong?
“……No Hyoman.”
“Speak.”
“I’ll ask this thinking it’s the last time. What do you think was the reason Dr. Oh tried human modification experiments?”
“The reason for the modifications?”
No Hyoman paused at my question. He rolled his eyes. It didn’t take long for an answer.
He spoke to me as if it were obvious.
“Because I wanted to be strong.”
“You’re saying the modification research was done to make you stronger?”
“……More precisely, it was research to modify soldiers and wipe out the monsters.”
Exactly.
They modified soldiers to give them the power to stand against the monsters.
Good intentions, but it went off the rails.
They created another monster to hunt monsters. Could No Hyoman, who devoured his fellow humans, really be called a hero saving humanity?
My answer to that would be ‘No’.
Human greed only grows. Who knows what that modified zombie might do in the future.
While I was lost in thought for a moment,
No Hyoman suddenly charged at me.
“Enough talk! Die, Kim Cheonjae.”
Thud thud thud thud!
Ares swung his spear, halting the bastard’s advance. Just as the spear tip was about to pierce his forehead, No Hyoman grabbed the spear, twisted it, and slammed Ares to the ground.
Boom!
Ares rolled across the dirt.
A Myth-class being subdued this easily. A completed modified zombie was no joke.
I didn’t know about his other abilities, but he’d completely dominated in raw strength.
Like those old martial arts movies where someone disarms an armed opponent barehanded.
The difference in power was overwhelming.
I shouted at the fallen Ares.
“Ares! Fight at full power.”
Ares wiped the blood from his split lip and replied.
“……Got it.”
The fight didn’t last long. After a few clashes, one of them lay on the ground. It wasn’t a devastating blow, but the outcome was clear.
“Kra ha ha ha! Kim Cheonjae, this guy’s no match for me. Why don’t you bring your friends like last time, all in a group?”
The winner: No Hyoman.
His speed and evasion were so superior he didn’t take a single hit while overpowering Ares.
Like a pro boxer dismantling an amateur.
He stomped down hard on Ares’s chest with a vile grin.
“Urk!”
Ares groaned. No Hyoman glanced at Ares’s health bar.
“Kim Cheonjae. Your buddy’s about to die soon.”
“……”
I watched them silently, no reply.
I was analyzing their fight from moments ago, devising a strategy.
‘……Ability absorption.’
He’d absorbed tons of players from the auction house. That let him use a mishmash of skills.
Fire, water, wind, earth.
He enchanted all types of mage spells onto his fists, had the assassin’s vital strike skill, and the warrior’s hardening ability.
A cheat of a body compiling the best skills from every class. No one could beat him one-on-one.
“No Hyoman, you really are a monster.”
“A monster…. Yeah, that’s what I am now. With power no one can touch.”
“……Right. But do you know what?”
“What?”
“I’m a monster hunter.”
I picked up a rock shard from the ground and chucked it at him. No Hyoman casually swatted it away.
Crack.
“What the—!”
The moment No Hyoman yelled at me, Ares’s spear pierced right through his chest.
Stab!
Ares grinned.
His health bar above his head was fully charged.
While we’d been talking, Ares’s passive skill ‘Endless Battle’ had activated, restoring his health completely.
No Hyoman gripped the spear lodged in his chest.
“H-How? Your health—”
“Idiot. Never let your guard down till the end.”
Ares smashed his fist into No Hyoman’s shin.
Thud!
The bastard’s balance crumbled, and he fell. Ares didn’t miss the opening, thrusting his spear wildly.
Ares’s stabbing speed, now that he had the momentum, was insane. There was only one whoosh, but my eyes caught over ten thrusts.
No Hyoman crossed his arms in an X to block. But blocking Ares’s spear, where every hit counted as a critical, was impossible.
In an instant, dozens of wounds riddled No Hyoman’s body.
“Gaaah!”
“What happened to all that bravado? Come on, you punk!”
Crack! Crack! Crack!
No Hyoman’s health bar chipped away bit by bit. As an NPC, not treated as a boss, it was just one thin red bar.
Tears streamed down No Hyoman’s pathetic face. Like a salaryman getting shaken down by thugs in an alley.
Whoosh!
Red aura seeped from one fist, igniting flames.
Crackle crackle.
Blue light swirled around the other, whipping up freezing winds.
He was trying to block Ares somehow with fire and ice, but what good would that do?
Fool.
No matter how many abilities you have, if you can’t use them right, this is what happens.
Ares turned No Hyoman into a bloody mess. His arms and legs were shredded beyond use.
Ares, leaving the final blow, asked me.
“Can I finish him?”
I nodded.
“End it.”
Once confirmed an enemy, no mercy.
Just another target to eliminate.
Ares raised his spear high overhead.
Whoosh—
The tip gleamed.
No Hyoman squeezed his eyes shut.
“No! Don’t!”
[System Message]
[New story discovered]
[You have encountered the death of a key NPC driving the story.]
[Activating fragments from ‘Operation Officer No Hyoman’s’ memories to replay the hidden story video.]
* * * * *
A white fog curtain draped before my eyes.
I crossed my arms and quietly waited for the story screen.
I had zero interest in this bastard’s story I never wanted to see.
‘Sigh.’
I reached into my pocket for a smoke, but nothing was there.
‘Even in a dream, can’t I have just one…?’
Swish—.
The fog curtain parted to the sides.
It was obviously a parade ground.
Everyone gathered in formation wearing their lieutenant bars—it looked like commissioning day, assignment to units.
A very young-looking No Hyoman was laughing brightly, chatting with what seemed like fellow grads.
“Hey, No Hyoman! Where’re you headed?”
“Me? Luckily, the rear lines. My original spot was full of civilians, so they reassigned me.”
“The rear? Where?”
“Haven’t heard the unit name yet. They said I get my own vehicle assignment.”
“You get your own ride?! You got connections or what?”
“Connections? You know I’ve been working part-time since middle school ‘cause we’re poor.”
From the talk, it was about unit assignments.
So No Hyoman didn’t know he was headed to the Goblin Unit? I thought special forces required volunteering.
A commissioned officer assigned like that, not even a NCO.
‘……Maybe like one of those ‘priority’ soldiers?’
No Hyoman gave his classmate a meaningful smile.
“I asked around personnel, sounds like a super cushy unit. Rear lines, small unit size too.”
“Nice. Must be easy to manage. Rear means minimal ops training. First year after commissioning is infantry anyway, nothing special.”
“Yeah! Life’s good.”
I hadn’t known that.
‘Army academy grads go to infantry first year post-commissioning.’
Back then, No Hyoman thought he was off to suck honey.
No clue he was heading to the brutal airborne special forces.
His classmates shot him envious looks.
I smirked at them.
Soon, buses lined up into the parade ground.
Classmates started leaving one by one. After about two hours, all the lined-up soldiers were gone.
Only No Hyoman remained alone on the vast ground.
When would they pick him up?
The wait dragged on forever.
He squatted down with a dazed expression.
I zoomed in and kicked his damn head.
Whoosh—
My foot passed right through. Not real, but it felt good.
No Hyoman hung his head, eyes closed. The guy who always acted tough in front of others—who knew he’d show this side.
Unexpected.
“Loser punk. Hey, you crying? Cry for me.”
No way he’d hear, but I had to say it. Nah, tease him.
Rumble— rumble— rumble!
‘Hm?’
Suddenly, a vehicle sped toward the parade ground from afar. The kind battalion commanders rode around in—a Raptona.
Rumble!
No Hyoman’s eyes went wide, and he jumped up. Face full of joy.
“Whoa! Finally here!”
The Raptona stopped right in the center, not betraying his hopes.
Kim Juncheol poked his head out.
“You No Hyoman?”
“Second Lieutenant No! Hyo! Man!”
“Get in, sorry I’m late.”
No Hyoman ran toward the vehicle as the fog curtain fell again.
No idea what the system wanted to show me. While waiting for the next scene, I closed my eyes and meditated.
This was the only time to rest. I took a deep breath in, exhaled slowly, and the next scene began.
“No Hyoman!”
Kim Juncheol bellowed.
I opened my eyes to his office. No Hyoman’s shoulders bore first lieutenant bars.
“S-Sorry, sir.”
No Hyoman bowed his head, gauging Kim Juncheol’s mood. Looked like a supply depot—guess he worked logistics as a first lieutenant.
“No Hyoman, why do you keep disappointing me?”
“……Sorry, sir.”
“How long will you just apologize? What if supplies go missing during an op—sorry then too?”
“……”
“Last chance. Please, don’t disappoint me again!”
Bang!
Kim Juncheol slammed the door and left. No Hyoman, alone in the empty warehouse, let out a heavy sigh.
“Fuck…. All this over selling some hand sanitizer on the secondhand market….”
Huh?
Sold military supplies on the secondhand market. Real ‘priority soldier’ officer vibes.
Doing that in special forces—Kim Juncheol overlooking it was impressive.
No Hyoman dialed someone on his phone.
Ring ring ring.
Click.
-Who’s this?
“U-Uncle. It’s Hyoman.”
-Oh, Hyoman! Long time. How’ve you been?
“Yeah. Uh, sorry to call out of the blue, but could you do me one favor?”
-……Shoot.
No Hyoman’s lips curled up slowly. Like a villain from a superhero movie.
“There’s a problem at my unit. Could you ask your friend to help me out just this once?”
-……What’s the issue?
“I’m being framed as a thief, so I’d like the MPs to raid the unit once.”
A long sigh from the other end. Like it wasn’t the first time, he spoke in a subdued tone.
-Hyoman.
“Yes.”
-This is the last time. No more trouble at that unit.
“……Got it. Thanks, Uncle!”
The call ended after that.
No Hyoman chuckled vilely. No clue what scheme he was cooking, but
His villainy surely started here.
[Would you like to continue viewing NPC ‘No Hyoman’s’ past?]
[YES / NO]
No, I didn’t want to see more.
As I reached for the right hologram button, another system screen appeared.
[Viewing ‘No Hyoman’s’ past will reveal why the Land of Ruin began.]
[Please choose carefully.]
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