Chapter 277: Count +1.
Chapter 277: Count +1.
I sank into thought, feeling the distinct, trembling vibration of the airplane.
‘I knew this was a bad idea.’
I think this every time I board a plane, but I’m starting to feel like a fool for ever believing that this time would be different.
And can you really blame me?
If the plane crashed or some disaster happened every single time I flew, I’d just give up on flying altogether.
But the fact that it doesn’t happen every time is what creates this torturous glimmer of hope.
For instance, like that time I went to Europe to take down the Fake Thunder God.
Nothing special happened then. If I had to call something an "incident," it was just the flight attendant accidentally serving me some weird food.
So, I boarded this flight thinking it would be fine this time.
That expectation was betrayed, and as a result, the interior of the plane was currently nothing short of chaotic.
“Passengers, please! It’s alright! It’s just a minor mechanical trouble, so your safety is not in any great—”
Mr. Flight Attendant. Your voice is so thick with terror that it’s impossible to feel safe. Even a passenger who thought it was no big deal would probably lose their mind hearing you.
Not that I don’t understand.
Even for a flight attendant, how many times in a lifetime would they actually experience an engine failure?
No matter how much training you’ve had, anyone is bound to panic when faced with a life-threatening situation.
“They say the probability of being in a plane crash in your lifetime is one in a million to one in ten million, but here we are. Master!”
Of course, the genius fool sitting next to me was the exception.
“So it seems.”
Naturally, having experienced situations like this countless times, I was equally indifferent.
“I-It’s okay! Senior! Si-hyun! E-Eh, they said only one engine went out! It’s not like both of them failed!”
Um, A-bin, I think you’re the one who needs to calm down.
Out of the four of us, you’re the only one panicking.
“Huh? Engine trouble again? It’s noisy, so wake me up when it’s all over.”
Un-ho had said that quite a while ago before crawling deep into the luggage to cover his ears and fall asleep.
There was a time he almost burned up along with the luggage, but with that idiot Un-ho’s durability, even that would just result in a few singed hairs, so it didn't really matter.
I just thought of this now, but I should have asked The Queen about this too.
Why the hell does this happen every single time?
I realize now that the restriction The Queen placed—only answering questions—was more influential than I thought.
The fact that I keep having these "I should have asked" regrets is proof of that.
Regardless of my past regrets concerning The Queen, the plane was actually quite peaceful, aside from the general commotion.
Even though fire and smoke were currently spewing from the left wing.
There was a reason for this calm.
“Ho ho ho. It is quite alright. To judge based on appearances alone would be a disgrace to the name of a Martial Artist. In fact, the other engine is still perfectly fine, is it not?”
“Indeed. We aren't far from headquarters now. Even if a bigger crisis occurs, the martial artists at headquarters will handle it.”
“Everyone, please rest easy. I have reached the third stage of enlightenment. Even if this plane were to disintegrate in mid-air, I could protect you all…”
Well, as you can see.
It was thanks to the fact that the plane was packed with the kind of people who, even in this day and age, look like they’d grab you on the street to ask, “Do you know the Way?”
Who else would use such a bottom-tier airline?
The majority were martial artists.
The rest were their families, Management Bureau staff, tourists, or people on business.
And a very tiny minority were "flower-brained" civilians heading off to learn martial arts.
In short, the vast majority were people whose heads weren't screwed on quite right.
Besides, aren't martial artists notoriously full of bravado?
I don't know what it is about those wuxia novels that they’ve survived this long, embedding distorted knowledge about immortals and nirvana into people's heads.
The same goes for fantasy novels. The world is in this state, yet people still chase after illusions.
And my biggest grievance among them all?
Robots, sports stories, and sci-fi all survived.
But for some reason, the Magical Girl genre just up and died.
Sure, you occasionally see "Real Fighting" Magical Girls or a Magical Girl character appearing here and there.
But a Magical Girl who sings of dreams, hope, and frills? To be blunt, I haven't seen one in ages.
Whether it's for kids or not.
Well, enough of that lamentation.
Anyway, let’s be thankful for the many creative works that did survive.
Thanks to them, the interior was at least quieter than usual.
Unless more problems cropped up, a burning engine wasn't a huge deal yet.
Having been through so many crashes, I’d looked it up and learned a few things.
As some Martial Artist—and a trembling A-bin—had said, losing one engine is fine.
Even before the world went to hell, planes were designed to be fine even if one of their two engines exploded.
Nowadays, they stick four engines on them, so one blowing up is no problem.
In other words, we were still in the safety zone.
So, I calmly took out my thermos, took a sip of my drink, and was about to lean back comfortably when—
Bang.
An ominous sound erupted from the right side.
“....”
No, seriously, what the hell?
I wanted to find out what happened, but I didn't even need to check for myself.
“What’s going on?!”
“The right engine is on fire too...!”
The passengers in the right-hand seats provided a real-time broadcast of the incident on the right wing, and the news spread through the cabin instantly.
Sigh.
Maybe I really should stop flying.
At this point, even though it’s clearly not my fault, I’m starting to feel like I’ve done something wrong.
Maybe I should get the Management Bureau’s support to just keep flying for a month to see what specific conditions trigger this crap.
Since it doesn't happen 100% of the time, there must be some sort of condition.
Of course, that’s a conversation for after this mess is over.
Still, it was okay.
I didn't know how many engines on the right had failed, or how many engines this plane even had.
But even if two or three had blown, we should still be okay.
As I thought that and closed my eyes—
“S-Senior, you’re remarkably calm.”
I heard a voice trying its best to stay composed, so I opened my eyes again.
Ah, my disciples didn't know about my "constitution," did they?
“I’ve been through this many times. Don't worry; no matter how things go, I can protect most of the people here. In the worst-case scenario, I can just grab the fuselage and absorb all the impact myself instead of the landing gear.”
And, though I’d never tried it, I could probably use my hammer to replace the engines.
“I-I see. Then I can rest easy...”
“It would be a bit of a problem if a monster showed up to cause trouble in mid-air right now, but I doubt that’ll happen.”
Aerial combat isn't my specialty, and controlling the plane alone would be hard enough. If an enemy showed up and started getting on my nerves, it would be a pain.
Last time I had the Librarian, but he wasn't here now.
Looking at the current state, it seemed like only the engines had blown, so it should be fine.
“Hearing you say that makes me feel better. Since it’s coming from you, Senior, even if it were a lie, I’d strangely believe it...”
It’s not a lie. I really have made an emergency landing while holding a plane's fuselage before.
It’s not exactly a heroic feat I’m proud of, so I won't bring it up.
“Yeah, so just think of it as a common commotion and relax.”
Like being on a roller coaster.
Just as I said that and was about to gather my strength for what was to come—
“Um. Master?”
Suddenly, Disciple 2, who had been quiet until now, woke up and called me.
“What now?”
“I was wondering if I’m the only one seeing something weird out the window.”
Something weird?
With that thought, I turned my head toward the window Baek Si-hyun was pointing at.
There was definitely something strange.
It was partially hidden among the clouds, but I could make out the shape of a torso, wings, and a neck.
Feathers of mixed white and black.
A bird’s torso made of elegant, flowing curves that almost looked graceful at a glance.
I briefly thought, ‘Is it a crane?’
But I quickly changed my mind.
There was no way a bird would be at this altitude.
And my suspicion was correct.
A giant crane lifted its head from between the clouds.
And on its head was something that shouldn't have been there.
A skinless human face.
It lacked eyelids and lips.
Its bloodshot eyes were fixed on the plane.
And its torn mouth was filled not with teeth, but with countless needles.
I’d seen something like that before.
Was it an Inmyeonjo?
Wow, just because we’re getting close to the martial arts headquarters, they even gave us a wuxia-themed monster.
No, seriously, what the fuck?
Even at a glance, it was at least a B-Rank Monster.
Its size alone was at least as big as the plane.
How did the radar miss that?
With that thought, I looked toward the Hero stationed on the plane.
But he hadn't even noticed the monster yet and was just quietly composing himself.
God dammit.
That Hero guy looks like a B-Rank himself; if things go wrong, the plane’s going to blow.
Nothing for it, then.
“Si-hyun, A-bin.”
“Yes!”
“...What is it?”
Baek Si-hyun answered with a vigorous voice.
But Han A-bin, perhaps sensing the annoyance in my tone, replied with a strangely ominous feeling.
“That monster looks like an A or B-Rank. If we leave it alone, the plane might blow, so let’s go catch it. Think of it as special aerial combat training today.”
Aerial combat isn't my specialty either, so I don't have much to teach.
But Si-hyun can create weapons, and A-bin’s main strength is her bow, so they’ll manage somehow.
Thinking that, I manifested my hammer and slung it over my shoulder.
“Ah, excuse me. Coming through.”
I pushed through the narrow seats and headed forward.
“Wait, what’s that?”
“Is that... a monster?”
Only then did the passengers notice the monster flying toward the plane with its massive wings spread, and the cabin began to fill with chaos.
“Sir? Please return to your seat...”
Even in the midst of this, there were flight attendants displaying their professionalism by clinging to me.
“Move.”
I didn't have time to explain, so I ignored the flight attendant and stepped toward the door.
But just as I was about to force the lock and open the door as usual—
“There’s a person!”
I heard a strange shout.
A person?
I immediately turned my head toward the sound, and I really did see a person.
A person standing on the wing.
With a long ponytail and a purple martial uniform fluttering in the wind.
A long hwando strapped to his waist.
A single Martial Artist.
Seeing him, I quietly retracted my hammer.
“Let’s go back.”
“Huh?”
“What? Senior? Why all of a sudden...?”
Ignoring my two bewildered disciples, I passed through the still-chaotic narrow seats, returned to my spot, and sat down.
I quietly watched the wing where the man was standing.
As time passed, the monster’s size and the screams inside the plane grew louder.
But he did nothing, simply standing quietly on the wing.
And just as the monster opened its massive maw, revealing the needles filling its mouth to us—
Clang.
Along with a metallic sound that shouldn't have been audible, he drew his sword and held it in his right hand.
The moment his right arm gave a slight flick—
Flashes of light erupted.
Roughly eleven flashes.
‘He’s gotten faster.’
That was my only impression upon seeing it.
I already knew he would handle that Inmyeonjo without any collateral damage.
My Senior might be an empty-headed fool, but he wasn't the kind of idiot who would disregard human life or lose an enemy just to look cool.
Even during the Gray Eater incident, the only problem was the technique he used. He had still done his job, hadn't he?
And as if to prove it, where the flashes had passed—
Only the monster remained, cleanly sliced into pieces and falling away while spraying blood.
And the fool, standing tall on the wing, sheathing his bloodless hwando.
‘Handled well.’
Now, I just had to figure out what to do about the plane.
Since that fool was here, the Management Bureau would likely send a cleanup crew.
Just as I was about to gather my strength in case of an emergency—
Suddenly, the plane’s vibration stopped.
The flames and black smoke that had filled both sides also subsided.
This meant that someone was controlling the entire plane.
There was only one being I could think of.
I looked at him again.
His eyes were sharp, and he was waving his hands.
Gracefully, slowly.
As if he were dancing.
He wasn't such a fool that he’d suddenly start dancing for no reason.
The movement of those hands must be moving the plane.
Like telekinesis.
Uh... what was that called? I read it somewhere, but since martial arts isn't my specialty...
Ah, right, I remember. Is it called Telekinesis?
Seriously, why is he so full of these parlor tricks?
We clearly learned from the same master and trained with the same methods.
Well, he did a good job this time, at least.
So.
Leaving behind the cheers echoing through the plane, I closed my eyes to get even a little bit of rest.