Chapter 40: Interlude - Han A-bin’s Battle
Chapter 40: Interlude - Han A-bin’s Battle
I gathered my mana and opened my hand.
I didn't need anything special.
I simply opened my hand, and the arrow was there.
After my mana had suddenly amplified, I felt as disoriented as if I were wearing clothes that didn't fit, but I quickly grew accustomed to it once I saw actual combat.
I slowly nocked an arrow to the bow in my hand. It had originally been a plain brown bow, but after a dream I couldn't quite remember, it had taken on a faint red glow.
The tension on the string had become several times heavier, but the current me was more than capable of pulling it back.
I drew the bowstring to its limit, aimed for a gap in the carapace, and released.
The arrow flew toward The Enemy, trailing pink mana dust in its wake.
I summoned the next arrow while tracking the one that had just left my hand.
It wasn't an efficient way to act, but I did it to quell my anxiety.
It wasn't that I was worried about missing.
Even back when I lacked power, the times I had missed a shot could be counted on one hand.
My concerns lay elsewhere.
Thwack.
The arrow lodged itself between the cracked plates of the carapace, and The Enemy’s movements slowed.
I was disappointed I couldn't finish it off, but I shook off the feeling and nocked the next arrow.
I knew. I knew my strength was still lacking. But at least I was now capable of dealing damage.
These Otherworldly entities were ranked C to B. Enemies whose defenses I wouldn't have even been able to scratch with my original strength. Now, I could pierce them.
The inferiority complex I had harbored for so long vanished, and the void it left was filled with pride and joy.
The countless insults I had endured while active as a Hero. The gossip questioning how I was any different from a civilian. I poured all of that into my arrows and fired.
Clang.
How many arrows had I fired like that? One of them finally bounced off The Enemy’s gray shell.
It wasn't that my strength was lacking.
It was simply that an enemy had appeared through a window breached in the barrier.
In the unexpected situation, my arrow lost its purpose, and The Enemy, having found a target to attack, swung its pincer down at me.
It was fine. There was no need to panic.
Calmly, I generated the next arrow and nocked it.
The pincer loomed over my head.
Even in the face of death, information unrelated to the danger flowed through my mind.
The positions of nearby Heroes.
The last view I saw out the window.
the next enemy I needed to target.
My remaining mana and the time until the next shift.
The casualty rate of the troops within my reach.
"Uryah!"
A white cloth fluttered before my eyes, and a silver flash streaked past.
Crack.
Along with the sound of something hard shattering, The Enemy turned into fragments and scattered before me.
It didn't feel particularly real.
There was no spray of red flesh or blood, no spilling of guts.
It was an unrealistic sight, as if gray petals were obscuring my vision.
With that thought, I released the bowstring.
The woman swinging The Hammer was blocking the window, but it wasn't a major issue. I already knew where the enemies were.
The fluttering white cloth settled to the floor, providing a clear view.
My pink arrow struck The Enemy exactly where I predicted, and I prepared the next one.
"Si-hyun. The next enemy is coming from the right. One person just went down, so please provide healing."
"Leave it to me!"
The bright-faced woman smiled and ran toward the right corridor I had indicated.
My friend, who never lost her smile even in the heat of battle, her white cloak billowing behind her.
I was grateful to her.
After meeting her, my life had changed rapidly. I had gained the power I desired and was now able to save people.
The inferiority complex I had bottled up, the peers who had mocked me—I realized they were all nothing in the face of her bright smile.
That girl, Baek Si-hyun, had spent the beginning of the battle throwing her weapon out the window out of boredom because she had nothing to do, but now she was running diligently through the hallways, showing off her skills just as I directed.
It was the 14th hour since the battle began.
The defensive line had suddenly started to crumble from the moment the second shift began.
The barrier itself was still sturdy, but unlike the creatures from the first shift, these ones didn't fall under the pouring fire and reached The Wall.
Using the corpses of their kin as stepping stones, the enemies began to scale the barrier and invade. And so, the melee began.
To prevent the barrier from being taken, melee-type Heroes stepped to the front to block the entry points, while the soldiers guarding those points retreated to form a formation to protect the heavy weaponry.
The Heroes had panicked at the unprecedented situation, but they soon regained their composure. It was likely because of the Senior.
In the brief moment it took to nock an arrow, I turned my gaze in that direction.
A small circle had formed in the middle of the gray sea. In the center of it was Senior Lee Ha-ram, his silver hair fluttering as he swung his hammer.
"Hold your positions! Their attack power is nothing! Melee Type S block the front, and magic Type S with armor-piercing capabilities provide support!"
A young woman's voice, which didn't quite match the gravity of her words, echoed in my ears.
The Senior was at the very front, encouraging everyone.
Senior Lee Ha-ram was acting as the primary bulwark, holding back as many enemies as possible.
Even though he was at the very front, he raised his voice loud enough to reach the rear.
That voice, filled with hope, and his martial prowess were what maintained this front line.
Of course, morale alone couldn't have held the sector.
The soldiers also seemed to have an excellent commander, as they maintained the line with appropriate orders.
—1st Floor, Sector 3. One Hero injured. Medics dispatched. Requesting relief Hero.
—2nd Floor, Sector 4. Hero exhausted. Deploying squad. Maintain the line until relief arrives.
Voices crackled from the radio hooked to my belt.
Normally, it would have been enough to just receive the orders sent to me, but I had changed the settings to receive all nearby transmissions.
At first, I didn't keep the radio on constantly either. But as I kept listening, I felt like I was starting to understand something.
The situation of the entire barrier formed in my mind, and the overall structure was drawn by the transmissions I heard.
Where it was weak, and where it was strong.
Where we needed to plug the gaps to make this sector safe.
That was why I spoke to Si-hyun. I asked her if she could follow my lead.
Even up until the moment I said it, I couldn't believe in myself. What was I thinking, saying something like that?
What was an inferior Hero like me thinking?
Our orders were to secure this sector and hold out during our shift. There was no reason to support other sectors.
Furthermore, I doubted whether Baek Si-hyun, a Hero several times stronger than me, would even follow my orders.
We were friends, but she might have disliked taking orders from a weaker Hero.
However, all my worries vanished with a single sentence from Baek Si-hyun.
"Sure. Since you can see further than I can, A-bin!"
She sprinted across the entire battlefield following my words. When one task was finished, she returned to me for the next order, then set out again.
"How did you know? It really was collapsing there..."
"A hunch...?"
Actually, I wasn't sure myself. Why did I think that spot would collapse?
I had seen the flow of the enemies moving outside the window. A very subtle flow.
The fact that the radio had announced a shift change was coming soon in that sector might have been another reason.
From the information accumulated in my head, an intuitive prediction arose—that the sector would soon break.
Just like when Baek Si-hyun and I fought monsters in sync.
Just like when a monster swung its forepaw, aiming for an opening in Baek Si-hyun’s defense.
I predicted that in this war, the massive monster known as the Gray Host would swing its forepaw at that specific point.
And so, the battle continued.
How much time had passed?
Tap.
The sensation of someone tapping my back broke my concentration.
"Shift change!"
I turned my head to see Si-hyun, drenched in sweat.
"Already?"
"Yeah. The orders came down. The soldiers will be here soon."
Seven hours already?
The moment I realized that, the strength suddenly left my hands.
How long had I been concentrating? To think I didn't even realize I had used up all my strength.
"A-bin, your hands are bleeding!"
"Blood?"
I lifted my hands with a hazy mind and saw my fingers stained red.
It seemed my skin had torn while I was drawing the bowstring.
"It's fine. This much is..."
"Treat it quickly. It'll get infected."
"I'm out of mana..."
I had a little left, but if I used any more, I felt like I would truly collapse from exhaustion.
I didn't want to waste my precious rest time sleeping.
"I'll heal you."
"Don't... You're going to try that weird healing again..."
It had been a true shock when Teacher Oxymoron ended up with two right hands.
To the point where my common sense had simply evaporated.
And from then on, her healing efficiency had increased rapidly... Seeing such a shocking sight made me feel like I could truly do anything...
"I found that when healing other people's skin, it works out somehow!"
I suppose copying the surrounding skin exactly wouldn't be a big problem.
She had mentioned halfway through that she could use healing too, and it seemed she had become capable of at least that kind of emergency treatment.
Red mana enveloped my fingers, and rapidly growing skin covered them, stopping the bleeding.
"Good work! It's time for the shift change!"
The soldiers appeared at that exact moment.
The soldiers who would hold this sector until the next Heroes arrived began firing their rifles through the windows.
"We're counting on you..."
"Don't worry, please get some good rest."
The soldier bowed his head to see me off, and I bowed deeply in return.
"Let's go, Si-hyun."
"Okay!"
Unlike me, who was on the verge of collapsing, Si-hyun still seemed to have strength left.
Changing shifts was likely an act of consideration for me.
Given her usual temperament, she would have been out there swinging her hammer just like the Senior.
* * *
The bustling cafeteria.
Countless people were cramming tasteless food into their mouths, trying to fill their stomachs during their break.
Distorted fish.
Half-fried crab meat.
Some unknown red sauce.
My appetite vanished instantly.
I didn't know who planned the menu, but they must have a personality as twisted as this fish.
Did they really think I could eat this after seeing creatures that looked like crabs or lobsters being pulverized right in front of me?
Though Baek Si-hyun, sitting across from me, was shoveling it in as if she could eat iron plates.
I took small bites of the relatively decent rice and seaweed soup as I spoke to her.
"The Senior is amazing, isn't he?"
It had been 21 hours since the battle began.
The Senior had been swinging his hammer on the front lines without resting even once.
An immortal Hero who never stopped encouraging his allies and never took a moment's rest.
"Yeah. I've seen videos of him fighting a few times, but seeing it in person was even more intense!"
Videos, huh.
For some reason, almost no information could be found regarding the Senior.
Despite being such an incredible Hero, it was as if the information was being blocked somewhere.
The most one could find was his name, Hero name, and a few combat records.
Most of the combat footage on video sites was low quality.
Even then, most of them had been removed for violating terms of service, cited as containing "cruel scenes."
It was so bad that some links even led to terrorist sites that collected footage of people dying.
There was even a disaster where Black Marauder’s combat footage was uploaded under the Senior's name instead.
"This battle... it would have collapsed long ago if the Senior wasn't here, right?"
I thought about it for a moment. A situation where the Senior wasn't there, blocking the enemies with his hammer.
If the kick of that massive monster called the Gray Host had struck the barrier directly... it would have been a far more horrific situation than this.
"Probably, right? But my Master would have done that anyway. That's just his personality!"
Just her personality, huh.
I thought to myself that fans are truly scary.
To think she delved so deep into a Hero with almost no proper information out of pure fandom.
"How did you become such a fan of the Senior anyway?"
"I saw him fighting in person once."
A combat scene. Looking at the Senior now, it must have been something traumatic involving blood and flesh flying everywhere, yet she still managed to become a fan.
"Why? Are you interested too? Then start with this. It's a photo I took secretly..."
"Ah, no thanks. I already know well enough how amazing he is."
If I let Si-hyun start talking about the Senior, I might have to listen to her for the entire seven-hour break.
I cut the conversation off at an appropriate point and went back to shoveling white rice into my mouth.
"Aren't you going to eat the fried food?"
"Eat it if you want. I don't have an appetite."
Swish. Chomp.
Baek Si-hyun quickly extended her chopsticks and popped the fried food from my tray into her mouth.
Honestly... she really is a carefree one.
I enjoyed my rest while eating the terribly tasteless seaweed soup.