Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 023
Chapter Title: Savior of Seoul
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Among the first players to appear in Seoul, South Korea, was none other than Bae Jin-cheol.
"I'm back...!"
The reason he was the first to show up in Seoul was that he'd chosen Stage 1 in the final trial.
...No matter how much I think about it, Alice was right. Better to pick something certain instead of gambling on the unknown. If I half-assed it and failed... it'd be worse than doing nothing at all.
In truth, he had no other choice. Having selected the Rank 3 constellation Demon God—which wasn't strong but wasn't weak either—he needed to claim whatever rewards he could from the final trial.
Let's go.
So he'd picked the stage even a dullard could clear, broken through first, and returned to Seoul.
"This is Myeongdong."
In the hand of Bae Jin-cheol, who had passed Stage 1, was a weapon he hadn't possessed before: a staff embedded with a blue gem. It had to be the reward Alice mentioned—an artifact.
Kieeeek!!
Uwaaaak!!
"Roars and screams! A stage fit for me."
Bae Jin-cheol quickly grasped the situation. And he knew exactly what he needed to do.
"Everyone, get back!!"
True to his class as an Archmage, he descended upon the battlefield.
Kwaaaang!!
At that moment, the eyes of the soldiers battling the monsters focused on Bae Jin-cheol. The surviving civilians blinked in astonishment at the sudden arrival.
Hmph.
Bae Jin-cheol smirked, raising his right hand before clenching it with all his might.
Kwaduduk!!
The air seemed to tear apart like shredded cloth.
The powerful shockwave instantly turned over a hundred goblins into pulp.
It took less than a second. In the blink of an eye, they were gone—vanished into nothing.
"Huhu!"
The people who witnessed monsters that no weapon could kill simply disappear couldn't hold back their shock.
"Ah..."
The soldiers who had staked their lives in the fight were especially stunned, unable to tell if it was a dream or reality.
The officers leading the young troops stared blankly at Bae Jin-cheol.
They look shocked!
Wriggle wriggle!
Bae Jin-cheol savored the atmosphere. He could feel awe in the eyes of these 'ordinary humans'.
Of course they are. To them, magic is a power that never existed before.
Bae Jin-cheol basked in his sense of superiority for a while. The kind only the chosen could possess.
Ah, this isn't the time.
Of course, he hadn't forgotten his purpose. He suppressed his superiority and sought out the officer in charge here.
"Do you know where else the monsters are attacking?"
The military officer stammered like a man at a loss for words.
"Uh? Uh, w-well..."
It was because Bae Jin-cheol didn't feel like the same kind of 'human' at all. Honestly, he seemed like a monster wearing human skin.
But he pulled himself together and answered.
"Euljiro Entrance Station area, from the reports..."
"Euljiro Entrance Station... Got it. I'll clean that up right away."
The officer wasn't foolish enough to misunderstand 'clean up'. But he had to ask anyway.
"Cl-clean up means...?"
"Exterminating the monsters. Won't take long. This is Myeongdong Street... about two minutes, I'd say."
To the soldiers tormented by immortals, it sounded like a tale from another world.
Yet no one imagined Bae Jin-cheol would fail. All they envisioned was overwhelming victory.
"Wait here. I'll be right back."
To the end, Bae Jin-cheol acted every bit the Archmage.
Starting with Bae Jin-cheol, the players who chose Stage 1 in the final trial returned to Earth.
"Finally...!"
"Back on Earth!"
"Uahaha!!"
"This nostalgic smell...!"
No player failed Stage 1 of the final trial. True to its design for even the slowest, every player passed and claimed their artifact reward.
"Huh?"
"What's that?"
"Already under attack?"
"No time to stand around!"
"Everyone, fall back!!"
"I'll handle them now!!"
Like Bae Jin-cheol, they threw themselves into the fray.
Kieek?!!
With the players' intervention, the battle—which had tilted completely toward the monsters—flipped in an instant. The players crushed the monsters with overwhelming force.
"Pathetic weaklings!!"
"You're no match for me!!"
Seokeuk!!
The artifacts displayed power unimaginable for mere Stage 1 rewards.
Pajik! Pajijijik!!
Kwaduduk!!
Dozens, hundreds of monsters fell without meaningful resistance.
"M-My God..."
"Who the hell is that guy...?"
"Human...? Superman...?"
"Hero...?"
"Ah, aaa...!"
The survivors couldn't close their mouths at the sight. They were genuinely awestruck, feeling something swell deep in their chests.
Thump thump!!
It was the profound emotion only those saved from despair's abyss could feel.
The joy only those who witnessed radiant hope like sunlight could know.
"Heroes!"
"Real heroes have come...!"
Waaaaaah!!
The cheers pierced the darkness like a beam of light, dazzling to behold. The survivors hailed the return of the chosen ones as one.
"Our heroes!!"
In that moment, the era of humanity ended.
Where the unkillable monsters had fallen stood heroes. And they were the missing people who had vanished just a week prior.
"S-Su-hyuk...?"
"Is that you, Hee-jin...?"
"Yu-min, right?"
"My God! It's Min-hyuk!!"
"Y-You, you, youuu!! You're alive!!"
"A-rang!!"
The survivors felt immense relief realizing these heroes were the same 'humans' as them.
Because if beings wielding transcendent power weren't human... things could turn far worse than before.
"Yeah, I'm back alive."
"You waited a long time, huh?"
"Sorry I'm late."
"Long time no see."
"Glad you're safe. You have no idea how worried we were. Any injuries?"
The heroes enjoyed reunions with those they knew. Some burst into tears; others embraced, saying how glad they were to see each other unharmed.
"Soo-jin!!"
"Mommm...!!"
"My son...!!"
"Where the hell have you been?! Mom and Dad were so worried!! Y-You, you unemployed bum!!"
At face value, it was just missing people returning and joyfully reuniting with family and friends.
But an unwitting sense of superiority lurked in the heroes' eyes.
Because these ordinary humans couldn't even beat mere goblins—things the heroes could fell with a casual swing.
So, pity? Like looking at animals in peril with sympathetic eyes, the heroes pitied ordinary humans.
Of course, they still saw them as fellow 'humans' for now, so it didn't show. But someday, it would surface.
"Stay back. I'll take care of them all."
"Dangerous? Nah, goblins are no problem."
"I'm a Fire Mage, you know."
"I'll protect you from now on."
"Don't worry. I'm not the old me."
"Watch."
Sooner or later.
Humanity, which had lost 10% of its population in less than a day to the monster assaults, escaped apocalypse thanks to the players.
But many areas remained beyond the players' reach, so the war wasn't over.
Krwaaa!!
Kiek! Kieeeek!!
The towers ceaselessly spawned monsters, and ordinary humans were swept away without decent resistance.
"R-Run...!"
"Damn it...!"
"Hurry up and run!!"
"Move now!! We'll all die at this rate!!"
"N-Noooo! Don't go...!!"
Ordinary humans struggled to survive.
But as if mocking their efforts, a horrific death sentence descended.
No one was foolish enough not to grasp what a Monster Wave meant.
Everyone realized: a terrifying wave beyond comparison to before was coming.
"Mon...ster Wave...?"
"W-We’re screwed...?!"
"R-Run...!!"
"Uwa... aaa...!!"
"Help! Somebody save us!!"
The Stage 1 clearers furrowed their brows.
Monster Wave, huh...
This isn't the end?
...Knew it’d be like this.
Figures. It was too easy.
Sure enough... we were just stepping stones. To make the top players shine.
...Won't let it happen.
They couldn't hide their displeasure at the war's continuation—and the chance they might be mere stepping stones.
So they resolved to end it themselves.
...I can handle it alone.
Time to prove it for real.
Regrettably, the Stage 1 clearers alone couldn't stop the Monster Wave.
"Damn it!!"
Bae Jin-cheol fell back against the endless goblin horde. He had no choice.
The numbers were simply too vast.
"To think I'd retreat against mere goblins...!!"
Wriggles wriggles!!
What could one man do against tens of thousands of goblins? Especially burdened by civilians like shackles?
Even at his best, he'd take down thousands at most.
So Bae Jin-cheol ground his teeth and chose retreat.
"A-Are we okay...?"
"We won't all get eaten, right...?"
"Don't say that crap...!"
"Please... just shut up...!"
"Uwaak! Th-They're coming...!"
The survivors' anxiety was greater than ever. They'd already tasted bone-deep despair and unknown terror.
Murmur murmur!!
With despair returning... no sane mind could endure it. They broke into sobs.
The cozy relief from moments ago burst like a bubble.
He can't do it alone...!
W-We’re all gonna die...!
I don't wanna die. Not like this!
Gotta run... even if alone...!
Though they knew victory was impossible, they desperately hoped Bae Jin-cheol would fell the horrors. The fear was that intense.
Damn Monster Wave!!
For Bae Jin-cheol, who had become people's hero, the situation grated. It felt like the system was playing dirty, fueling his rage.
But options were few. All he could do was delay the goblins' advance.
Peng! Peopeobeobang!!
Even that looked heroic to ordinary humans...
But compared to comic, novel, or movie 'heroes', it fell short.
Kieeeeeek!!
"It's over..."
"We're all dead..."
"Uuuu..."
"Don't wanna die..."
"Somebody help...!"
"Save us... anybody...!"
The briefly quelled despair spread among survivors like a vicious plague.
No one held hope. Only despair filled them, rendering Bae Jin-cheol's desperate efforts futile.
Damn it! DAMN IIIIT!!
But in that moment—
Light descended from the sky.
Weeeeng!!
Far more intense than when the Stage 1 clearers had descended.
Pat!!
The light's source: players who had stepped into the realms of 'prodigy' or 'genius'.
True protagonists transcending the dull!
They had just returned to Earth.
"Wh-What?!!"
All Stage 1 players, Bae Jin-cheol included, widened their eyes. They felt it through their entire bodies.
An incomparably vast aura. Overwhelming presence.
"Rank 2...?"
"They broke their limits...?"
Incredibly, they had surpassed their limits, ascending higher than before.
"Seriously? I was worried about some Monster Wave... but it's just goblins."
"Made it in time."
"You guys... worked hard."
"Good job. Leave the rest to me."
To them, tens of thousands of goblins weren't 'enemies'. Merely annoying obstacles.
"Well then..."
"Shall we clean up?"
And among them were players who had transcended even prodigy and genius, stepping into 'prophet' territory.
"I'm back."