Worship, or Jealousy (2)

"Grrrrrrr!"

"KuoOOOOOH!"

The only real problem was that the monsters we were facing were so overwhelmingly powerful you could scream "broken" and nobody would argue!

Several Large Wyverns had the survivors who were trying to band together completely surrounded. Without closing in carelessly, they circled and threatened them as if they meant to slowly wear them down and kill them.

Damn... for that group of survivors, this is a moment of pure despair...!

"For me, though, it means the perfect opponents just showed up!"

Muttering to the empty air, I sprinted toward the people trapped inside the wyverns' encirclement.

Eight Large Wyverns in total, as far as I could see. Not that many — but they were so massive that eight was more than enough to wrap around and pin down a group of several dozen survivors.

"Sora! Mina!"

I shouted both their names at the top of my lungs, then stretched out my hand.

"Seed of Confusion...!"

Ping, ping, ping!

Before I had even finished the incantation, several arrows streaked in from behind me.

Shunk!

A massive ice spike came right along with them.

Thud! Crack!

"Kiiiii!"

"Kruk?!"

Two of the wyverns took the arrows and the ice spike full-on, completely unguarded. They staggered from the damage — but that was all. Of course they weren't going to drop that easily. Their levels were pretty high, after all!

Against enemies like these, mental magic was a huge help. Especially Confusion — a spell that had never once let me down back in Dragon Gate RPG.

"...Take root in the enemy before my eyes, and scramble its senses!"

The finished spell slammed straight into one of the wyverns that had been hit by the arrows.

"Kiiiiiieeek?!"

Crunch!

The instant the magic hit, the thing let out a bizarre shriek and sank its teeth into the neck of the wyvern right beside it.

"Grrrrr?!"

"Kieeeh?"

The pack that had been focused solely on the survivors — seconds away from slaughtering them — finally fractured. Some of their own had been attacked, and now one of them was turning on its kin under the influence of magic. The crack had opened.

That was my opening to cast a new spell.

Thanks to the experience rewards from clearing the dungeon today, my Mage level had hit 12 — and with it, a brand-new spell.

Chain Lightning!

"Lightning, leap among my enemies... and deliver them agony!"

The moment the words left my mouth, my right hand instinctively pointed at the wyverns.

One, two, three, four, five. My instincts locked onto five of them.

Bzzzzzt!

Lightning burst from my fingertips and struck the first wyvern dead-on.

"Kieeeeeeek?!"

Bzzzzzt!

The bolt that hit it jumped like a contagion to the second wyvern I'd pointed at, right beside it.

"Kiriririririri!"

The wyvern's shriek warped and shuddered through the air as the electricity wracked its body.

Then the Chain Lightning hit the third, the fourth, and finally the fifth.

BZZZZZZZT!!!

"Kurururururung!"

"Kieeeeeek...!"

Five wyverns in a row convulsed and screamed as the current tore through them.

Seven in total. Seven of them had been hit by my ambush and the Han Sora–Yun Mina combo, and their momentum had been crushed. Some of them were already dead.

And behind the one that still hadn't taken any damage — the one thrashing around in confusion at the bizarre spectacle unfolding among its pack — I was already standing.

Slash!

"Kiiiii?!"

I severed both legs the wyvern had planted on the ground. In an instant it lost its balance and toppled. Which way was it falling?

Ah — toward me. Toward its own rear, where I was standing!

I raised my pistol and aimed at the lurching wyvern's head.

BANG! BANG!

Two mana-charged rounds punched straight through its skull.

One slash and two gunshots. That was all it took to send a wyvern to the other side. Of course, I didn't get drunk on the result — I kept swinging my sword hard.

They weren't all dead yet. I had to make absolutely sure their lives were snuffed out. And just in case any of them tried to resurrect, I needed to blow their heads clean off!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Slash, slash!

The pistol spat fire, and the silver longsword, catching the moonlight, tore through monster flesh.

The wyverns already badly wounded by Chain Lightning and the Han Sora–Yun Mina sniper combo couldn't withstand my pistol and the edge of my silver longsword. Every last one of them was cut down.

...

...

...

Three hundred party experience per kill? That means fifteen hundred each! And eighty gold on top of that!

Experience and gold rolled in, but I didn't hold back on the finishing blows either. Any wyvern corpse that so much as looked like it might try to get back up got carved into pieces without a second thought.

"W-what just happened?"

"What the hell? Those wyverns just now... they're all dead?!"

"I-I think that guy did all of it..."

"Who even is he?!"

Ah. Looks like the people were finally coming back to their senses.

The survivors who had been huddled together staring down those giant flying monsters had finally registered my presence. From their perspective, none of this would feel real. Monsters that had been one breath away from eating them alive barely a minute or two ago had suddenly been deep-fried ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠by electricity or sliced apart like sashimi. If that felt real right away, that would be the strange part.

...Hm? Wait.

"Who... exactly are you?"

The woman speaking to me now — a blonde, blue-eyed beauty who looked remarkably composed and gutsy even among this group of survivors...!

A foreigner...? No, her Korean was too good for that. But why did she look so familiar? Had I run into her somewhere before?

"If you people want to live, then right now—"

I turned my gaze and pointed at the biggest of the buildings I'd marked earlier. A warehouse. A pretty large-scale one, at that. Probably part of a logistics center.

"—you'd do well to take cover in there. If you'd rather die, staying put is fine too. The choice is yours..."

Before waiting for an answer, I moved. I raised my pistol and took aim.

BANG!

"Kueeeeek!"

An Undead Flying Eagle diving at someone nearby took a mana round from my muzzle and screamed.

Thud!

"...That's your cue."

The familiar beauty in front of me stared blankly, her eyes saying she couldn't quite believe I'd just casually blown another flying monster out of the sky.

After about five seconds of dazed staring, she nodded and raised her voice.

"...Everyone, move. That building — the warehouse!"

There was a slight tremor of exhaustion in it, but the firm will underneath was unmistakable. My gut feeling that she was the leader hadn't been wrong. Roughly twenty survivors scrambled to their feet at her words and started making for the warehouse.

But seriously... who was this woman? Even in filthy clothes and a gaunt frame, she was this beautiful.

Where the hell is this sense of déjà vu coming from? Did I pass her on the street sometime? Why can't I remember? A woman this gorgeous even in conditions this rough?

Ah... wait. Could it be...?

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"Kieeeeee!"

Even while piecing together the identity of the woman leading the survivors, I kept my pistol aimed at the sky for cover fire.

Leaning against the outer wall of the warehouse, I trained my muzzle on the Undead Large Eagles diving at us. Mana rounds stitched the sky, several of them scoring clean hits.

At the same time, I watched the people filing past me into the warehouse out of the corner of my eye. Whoa. Looking at them properly now... this survivor group's looks are ridiculous. Over ten women alone, and every single one of them is celebrity-tier!

Ah, wait a second... not celebrity-tier. They actually are...

I kept pouring mana-charged rounds into the sky until the last of the survivors was inside. For an ordinary pistol, it would have been an impossible waste of ammunition. Even without me shooting, Han Sora's arrows from deep inside the Sanctuary's boundary line were keeping the approaching flying monsters properly suppressed.

Thwack!

"Keeeeeeek!!"

I watched one of Han Sora's arrows finish off a descending Large Eagle, then ducked into the warehouse myself.

Creeeak, boom!

I shoved the massive warehouse door shut with one hand.

Then I turned — and took in the scene.

"Th-they won't cross inside this boundary line."

"This building sits right on the Seoul–Incheon border, I think. That's probably why he told us to run here..."

"Is that guy someone who came from inside Seoul?"

"I think so. The sword and pistol he's carrying are nothing like anything we've seen... maybe that's his..."

Inside, the survivors were whispering among themselves. Stuck on the wrong side of the Seoul–Incheon boundary line, their voices echoed off the warehouse walls whether they wanted them to or not.

And I strode forward ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to confirm their suspicions. Without the slightest hesitation, I stepped across the Sanctuary's boundary line.

Whoosh.

"S-see?! He really is from inside the Sanctuary!"

"A Seoul person... I'm so jealous. We can't cross..."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

A few voices rose in awe. And in particular—

"Ah, so you... came from inside the Sanctuary. Thank you for saving us."

"Save the thanks for later."

I accepted the leader woman's polite gratitude with a short nod and turned my attention elsewhere. Right now, there was something more important than chatting with these people.

Yun Mina and Han Sora would have seen me enter this building. They'd been providing long-range sniper support right up to the end. The entrance to this warehouse I'd marked was on the far side of the boundary — the Incheon side. I hadn't told the two of them to cross the line, so they probably wouldn't.

The problem was that the warehouse's exit was also outside the boundary. Getting from this warehouse into Seoul was impossible without going through a window — and for people from outside Seoul, even that wasn't an option.

But we needed support from the Seoul side, and this building sat right on the Incheon–Seoul border... so I decided to use a slightly crude method to open a path for the Seoul people to come through.

Screeeech...!

I dragged my silver longsword across the wall, carving a line. The dissonant scrape of silver on concrete filled the warehouse. A few people winced, but after what they'd just watched me do, nobody complained. They stayed silent.

Once I'd scored a fairly large semicircle into the wall like cutting a groove—

"Um, excuse me, what are you—"

"Hah!"

I clenched my free left hand into a fist — the pistol was tucked away for the moment — and drove it into the wall with everything I had.

BOOM!

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Crack!

A huge fracture spiderwebbed across the wall. But it wasn't enough.

"One... more...!"

Again!

BOOM!

CRAAASH!

With a rumbling roar, a section of the warehouse wall collapsed along the line I'd carved.

Whew. Fine-tuning the force was a little tricky, but... I managed it. The Seoul side came into full view. I stuck my head out through the opening and scanned the surroundings.

Ah. There they were. Phone flashlights on.

"Over here! This way!"

"Yes...!"

"Orabeoni! Just a second, wait just one second! Unnieee!"

Vroooom!

Aha. Seyeon brought people with her. That makes things easier.

I flashed a grin and turned back around. To the survivors staring at me from outside the boundary like they'd just witnessed a superhuman, I said:

"My people will be bringing relief supplies shortly. Just hold on a little longer."

"Th-thank you...!"

"Whoa, relief supplies...!"

A little color returned to some of the survivors' stiff faces. The woman who seemed to be their leader, in particular, let out a long breath of relief and allowed a smile to touch her lips.

Even those small gestures overflowed with charm. It was the kind of aura that didn't come from ordinary people.

Yeah. My hunch is probably right. This woman and the group she leads — there's a very high chance they're an idol group.

If only someone who could recognize them would show up...

"Orabeoni, Seyeon unnie brought Jung Yun unnie and Guild Leader Jung Miju too!"

"O-oppa. Are you okay?"

Two women poked their heads through the makeshift exit and stepped into the warehouse.

"Whoa, who are they?"

"People I've never seen before... wow, they're gorgeous."

"Are all the people inside Seoul like that?"

The warehouse stirred at Sora and Mina's entrance. Fair enough. Two armed and equipped beauties suddenly appearing would startle anyone.

"Jeong Hoon-ssi, I brought Guild Leader Jung Yun and Guild Leader Jung Miju. Yeji and Seonhye came to help as well."

"Mm. Thanks, Seyeon."

After the two of them, Kim Seyeon stepped into the warehouse. And in a line behind her, four more women filed in carrying backpacks and shopping bags stuffed full in both hands.

Among them, Jung Yun was the first to speak.

"Hello, Jeong Hoon-ssi! Oh, so these are the people you rescu— WAAAAAAAH!"

She screamed right along with the greeting.

"Th-th-th-these people... no, these ladies! It can't beee!"

Shopping bags hit the floor as Jung Yun pointed at the survivor group, her face contorted in pure shock. The rescued survivors flinched at the sudden outburst — but more than that, my attention locked hard onto Jung Yun's voice.

"Th-those people... that's RedPink, and Girlfriend, and... MyBerry! Three of JM Entertainment's flagship girl groups!! And on top of that... KYAAAAAA! That blonde with the blue eyes...! Juni! That's Juni! Real-life Juni is standing right in front of me!"

The perfect person to scratch the itch I couldn't reach had just arrived as reinforcements.