Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Beautiful Time Continues
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Normally, this power would be too much for a criminal's body to handle, but thanks to the all-stats +75 boost, I could manage it.
It truly lived up to the name of a divine weapon.
The ability I was about to use was called Wrath of the Sun.
I'd heard it projected intense solar heat forward temporarily, but I had no idea just how powerful it would be.
"Team leader! If you're planning something with that mystery shield, you need to hurry!"
The Giant Worm had advanced almost right up to us.
We couldn't hold out for even ten more seconds. Hell, our ammo might run out before that.
Wuuuuuung.
The shield kept vibrating.
Just a little longer, just a little longer.
"Team leader!"
"We've gotta run or something! We're all dead if we stay like this!"
The team members screamed.
"You bastards! Didn't you say you wanted to go out in style?"
I yelled back, and curses flew from all directions.
"Fuck! We were just talking big! Do something about it, you bastard team leader!"
"Yeah, you shitty bastard!"
I couldn't help but burst out laughing. What a bunch of pathetic assholes.
In a life-or-death crisis like this, I wished they'd just trust me less and run.
That's when the shield's charge completed.
"Shut up and everyone take off your night-vision goggles!"
Kurrrrrrung!
The moment the Giant Worm lunged at us with a roar that shook the underground, a blinding white light erupted.
Even in pitch darkness, you couldn't see; the same went for overwhelming light.
My vision vanished completely in the perfectly all-encompassing brilliance. No, it wasn't just my vision—every sense felt paralyzed.
Time stretched on endlessly, making it seem like this would never end, until darkness returned. But this time, it wasn't the complete blackness from before.
A sea of fire lay before us.
It wasn't fiercely raging but spread wide, crackling steadily.
The flames clinging to the unrecognizable black lump—what had once been something—wouldn't last long.
Toxic smoke filled the air, and the concrete walls flickered with shadows.
"Put on your gas masks. Quickly."
The underground air was foul. Inhaling it for a few more dozen seconds could cause serious problems.
Luckily, we were used to gas masks.
Everyone donned them swiftly and gathered near the flames.
-Is that blackened thing over there supposed to be the worm?
-Incredible.
The team members' voices came through clearly thanks to the comms built into the gas masks.
-Team leader, what the hell did you do with that shield?
What should I say?
-It's complicated to explain. Let's get out of here first and talk later.
They must all be dumbfounded.
A hyena pulling off a feat that only high-rank hunters could manage—how surreal was that? And what about this shield, practically a divine relic?
-Still, we should recover the core first.
The deputy leader offered a practical suggestion amid the chaos, and the team members pulled out poles from their subspatial pockets to rummage through the charred remains.
Fortunately, a massive magic stone soon emerged from the head area.
If it took too long, I was planning to pull the team out for safety regardless of the core or anything, but this was a relief.
"My God, team leader. This magic stone measures at 13 billion."
Gasps of admiration erupted around us.
13 billion—that meant this dead Giant Worm was at least a Rank 3 monster.
"How much is that! Jackpot!"
"Not bad for a near-death reward."
The others seemed distracted by the huge sum, but I was thrilled for a different reason. A single strike taking out a Rank 3 monster, classified as a danger beast.
A Rank 3 could level a small city on its own. Yet it was incinerated in one go. I got chills all over again thinking about the power of this SS-rank magic item.
The downside was that using this power again would take quite some time. The shield felt drained of energy, slowly recharging on its own. Without user assistance, this was the best it could do.
"Deputy leader, secure the magic stone and clean up the area fast. Let's get out of this damn underground already."
Everyone nodded in agreement. When I mentioned there might be another one lurking, they moved so fast their hands were a blur.
***
Six hours had passed since arriving in Noryangjin.
We'd holed up in a fine building that used to be an academy. It was an 18-story structure, and the faded floor directory suggested the whole thing had been academies.
It really drove home Noryangjin's past glory.
Now such cram school districts were in Ansan. Civil service exam fever was the same before or after Seoul fell. If anything, it was worse these days.
"Why, wanna sleep more?"
I asked the deputy leader, who was on night watch but had woken up earlier than planned. He looked exhausted.
"What the hell happened? Is there something about this expedition we don't know?"
His blunt question pricked my conscience a bit.
But I couldn't tell him the truth. Sorry, deputy leader.
"This expedition is the same as always. I judged it risky but doable, and that's why we're here. I haven't lied to you guys."
"But you've hidden things. What is that shield? I didn't get to ask properly in the chaos, but the more I think about it, the less sense it makes."
"I'm sorry about the shield. But hiding it wasn't betraying the team—it was just unnecessary info. Seeing it, you'd guess something extraordinary happened to me. But I'll handle that after I leave the team."
I explained it was just a big opportunity that came up.
"If not for that incident, the shield never would've appeared. Things would've gone according to plan."
I drew a line: my personal matters had nothing to do with the team.
"Can't you tell us?"
"Later. When the time comes, I will."
"Understood."
The deputy leader looked like he had more to say but didn't press.
What a good guy.
No matter the outcome, I felt a twinge of regret that I couldn't keep working with someone like him.
"Really, everything will be fine for you all."
It was a promise to myself as much as to them.
***
The Lord-class monster's corpse was in front of Dongjak District Office, just 100 meters on foot from Noryangjin Station on Line 9. The area around the office was eerily quiet when we arrived. Even the vigilant deputy leader lowered his gun.
It seemed true that no monsters approached a Lord-class monster's corpse. Thanks to that, we found safety right where the most dangerous monster had died.
We couldn't trust it blindly, but the radar showed nothing nearby for now.
The former district office building was half-collapsed, looking desolate at a glance. In front was a wide parking lot cluttered with wrecked and overturned cars—like a junkyard's crumpled vehicles scattered everywhere.
It felt like a maze somehow. We skirted the wall-like piles of cars and soon spotted our target.
"Ahh...."
Quiet exclamations rose around us.
A massive monster corpse lay before our eyes.
No one needed to explain it was a Lord-class monster's remains. The overwhelming pressure made it hard to breathe just looking at it.
Even dead, it was like this—what must it have been like alive?
Fear crept up from deep inside. It felt like the monster would rise any second and devour us.
A glance around showed everyone hesitating, unable to approach the corpse.
The dead Lord-class monster resembled a gigantic gorilla. Its body had a tail covered in scales, and two pairs of bat-like wings protruded from its back.
Its face was like a horned demon.
If hell had a general, it'd look like this. One team member muttered, echoing my thoughts.
"A demon. The angels must be fighting demons, as expected."
We knew the angels weren't literal angels. But they'd become as good as real ones in our minds. And with a Lord-class monster looking this demonic, that notion would only spread.
Clap. Clap.
I clapped lightly to draw attention.
The team seemed to feel awe toward this dead Lord-class monster. I understood that sentiment.
Even in death, it exuded such dignity. But ultimately, it was just a hunk of meat. It couldn't be allowed to instill fear in us.
I stepped forward in full view of everyone.
Their faces said, What are you doing? I pulled an electric saw with a diamond blade from my subspatial space. It was industrial-grade, mainly for cutting concrete.
It was extremely useful for butchering tough monster corpses too.
Ziiiiing!
I pressed the blade against the Lord-class monster's corpse. The skin slowly ground away. What insane durability. I yelled at the team members staring blankly from behind.
"It's just a corpse. Doesn't matter how badass it was alive. What hyena wags its tail at a carcass? Get your electric saws out. The longer we drag this, the more we'll attract nearby monsters."
Noise was already echoing.
Monsters wouldn't easily approach a Lord-class corpse, but eventually curiosity would draw them. No point delaying.
With the leader taking the initiative, the team started moving.
"Yeah, just cut this part and we're done."
"Let's do it right."
The deputy leader pulled some members aside for watch.
"You and you, go that way and keep checking for anything unusual."
"Got it, deputy leader."
Soon, the noisy work began with clanging sounds. This was the most dangerous, vulnerable moment for hyenas.
I reminded everyone of our goal.
"We can't fully dismantle this big monster. Prioritize valuables like hide, teeth, claws, heart. And most importantly, the core. One core and we're golden, so find where it's located first."
The Lord-class monster's body was over 10 meters long. Its toughness was giving even diamond cutters trouble. To save time, I prioritized the core search.
"Three hours max. After that, we stop no matter what and leave with what we've got."
Noryangjin was a danger zone near the Han River. Three hours might even be pushing it. If anything felt off during disassembly, we'd bolt, so we stayed on high alert.
Viiiiing!
As the electric saws grew louder, my anxiety mounted.
Why?
Why this unease?
Monsters wouldn't easily approach due to the Lord-class pressure.
The noise wasn't even as loud as gunfire. Yet anxiety slithered up my throat.
But after over two hours of smooth work, the tension eased. It seemed we'd finish without issue.
"Yeah, it'll be fine."
I muttered to myself, like self-hypnosis.
Muttering like this to build conviction was my personal mental management trick.
I covered my face with both hands and whispered just loud enough for myself.
"It's fine. I'll get my whole team back safe. This is the end of ten years. Fine, it's over."
To outsiders, I'd look insane, but no one on my team thought so.
They understood why and pitied me for the constant pressure.
"Whoa! Oooo!"
Then exclamations burst from the hyenas atop the corpse.
"The core! Team leader, we found the core!"
The core. A Lord-class monster's core!
I'd hoped one remained, but to actually find it.
My heart pounded fiercely.
Even top hunter teams couldn't claim a Lord-class core.
What faces would the world make if a mere hyena team walked off with one?