Chapter 154
Chapter 154
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 154
Chapter Title: Sisters' Desperate Stand
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"Why is a 5-star boss...?"
Lee Ji-young glared at the skeleton dragon with an expression of utter disbelief.
She had led the survivors far away from Chilseong Mountain, where the invasion gate had appeared.
Thanks to that, the magic beasts pursuing them weren't too numerous.
But who could have imagined a 5-star boss showing up in a place like this?
Crack!
Just then, Lee Ji-young caught sight of the skeleton dragon opening its jaws.
Kieeeeng!
Soon after, red mana began to converge in front of the skeleton dragon's mouth.
"Everyone, get down!"
Shouting with a desperate look on her face, Lee Ji-young wrapped her arms around two nearby survivors and hurled herself toward the alley wall.
Right then, a beam of red light swept across the alley floor.
Shooooaaaak!
Kaboom!
The spot where the skeleton dragon's red breath had passed exploded.
Lee Ji-young and the other survivors were caught in the blast's aftermath and flung away.
The alley the skeleton dragon's breath had ravaged was completely devastated.
"Ngh..."
Pushing aside the rubble from the alley's house walls, Lee Ji-young emerged. A short distance away, Lee Ji-hyun shoved aside a pile of stones and appeared as well.
Amazingly, they had survived unscathed amid an explosion that had all but leveled the alley.
It was thanks to the barrier coats they wore—not the standard-issue ones, but higher-performance models befitting the granddaughters of the Fist King.
"Unni..."
Then a small voice came from within Lee Ji-young's arms.
It was the young girl she had saved by throwing herself aside moments ago.
The child looked up at Lee Ji-young with eyes filled with worry and fear.
Lee Ji-young spoke to her in a gentle voice.
"It's okay. I'll protect you."
The girl replied with a face on the verge of tears.
"Then who's protecting you, Unni? You're hurt..."
"Ah..."
Only then did Lee Ji-young realize blood was trickling down from beside her head.
But she quickly forced a reassuring expression.
"Don't worry. This is nothing."
Lee Ji-young gave the girl a kind smile before standing up.
The moment she did, pain shot through her entire body.
But she clenched her teeth to hide it from the child.
Zzzzing!
At that moment, red magic bullets began forming beside the skeleton dragon, some distance away.
Shoo-shook!
The head-sized red magic bullets were fired next.
"Everyone, take cover!"
Lee Ji-young raised her cartridge-style silver gauntlet, Aegis.
Clank-clank!
The device on the back of Aegis's hand moved back and forth, loading specially crafted magic bullets.
Aegis's magic bullets were crystals that condensed pure mana using magic stones.
Thanks to that, using Aegis's cartridges allowed for far more powerful attacks than usual.
Of course, they could also be used defensively.
Bam! Bam!
Aegis clashed against the red magic bullets.
Lee Ji-young swung Aegis, batting away the incoming red magic bullets.
Moreover, thanks to the cartridge system, shockwaves burst from Aegis, deflecting the red magic bullets.
Kaboom! Kaboomb!
The deflected red magic bullets embedded into the ground or nearby buildings and exploded.
But Lee Ji-young gritted her teeth and blocked every single red magic bullet raining down on her group.
In the meantime, Lee Ji-hyun led the survivors behind the wall of a relatively intact nearby building.
Moments later, the skeleton dragon's attack ended.
Thud.
Lee Ji-young dropped to one knee, gasping for breath.
"Unni!"
Seeing this, Lee Ji-hyun cried out with a worried face.
Lee Ji-young glanced back slightly at her sister.
Fortunately, all the survivors were unharmed, but the situation was dire.
At this rate, they'd be wiped out by the 5-star boss skeleton dragon.
Lee Ji-hyun, in her late teens, was a freshly minted 3-star superhuman, and while Lee Ji-young was a low-tier 5-star expert, she couldn't handle a 5-star boss alone.
Expecting help from other hunters or superhumans was unrealistic too.
Everyone was busy fending off the magic beasts spreading in all directions.
"Ji-hyun, take everyone and go. I'll buy you some time."
"What? But Unni..."
"I'll be fine. I'll catch up soon."
Lee Ji-young smiled at Lee Ji-hyun before advancing toward the skeleton dragon.
Standing before the massive skeleton dragon, Lee Ji-young looked utterly tiny.
How long could she hold out against a 5-star boss skeleton dragon?
Even so, Lee Ji-young had to endure.
For her little sister's sake.
Roarrr.
Meanwhile, the skeleton dragon was forming a massive fireball above its head for its next attack.
A Crimson Fireball at least 3 meters in diameter.
Before it, Lee Ji-young lowered both arms.
Whoosh! Clang.
Aegis's rear panel opened, and the spent cartridge belt dropped to the ground.
A new cartridge belt loaded with magic bullets clicked into place.
Clank-clank!
The device on the back of Aegis's hand noisily moved back and forth, chambering the magic bullets.
Right then,
Fwhoosh!
The enormous Crimson Fireball, over 3 meters wide, came flying straight at Lee Ji-young.
"Unni! No!"
Lee Ji-hyun's heart sank at the sight.
No matter how strong Lee Ji-young was, a direct hit from that massive fireball would be dangerous.
But Lee Ji-hyun knew.
Her sister had no intention of dodging.
If she did, Lee Ji-hyun and the survivors would be in peril.
So Lee Ji-young would block the skeleton dragon's Crimson Fireball head-on.
Indeed, facing the incoming fireball, Lee Ji-young exhaled deeply and assumed the basic stance of Spiral Fist.
With precise form, she thrust her palm forward.
Spiral Fist.
Form Four: Spiral Explosion Wave!
Kaaaabooom!
The Crimson Fireball engulfed Lee Ji-young, unleashing a tremendous explosion.
The erupting red flames reached all the way to where Lee Ji-hyun and the survivors hid.
"N-No!"
Lee Ji-hyun cried out in a daze. If only she had the power, she could have protected her sister.
"Unni! Unni!!!"
"Don't go."
As Lee Ji-hyun tried to rush to where Lee Ji-young had been, a few elderly men held her back.
"Ah."
Only then did Lee Ji-hyun snap out of it, staring blankly at the elders stopping her.
The elders and children gazed at her with fear-stricken faces.
Her sister was gone now.
She was the only one left to protect them.
'I... I have to protect them.'
The people her sister had entrusted to her with her life.
They had to survive this.
Or her sister's sacrifice would be in vain.
But,
Grrrrowl.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The ground rumbled faintly as the nearly 8-meter-long skeleton dragon approached.
At the sound, the elders' and children's faces darkened.
The skeleton dragon had pinpointed their location.
'Not yet!'
But Lee Ji-young gritted her teeth and refused to give up.
Fortunately, the aftermath of the previous attack had filled the air with thick dust.
The skeleton dragon was on the other side, its vision obscured.
It probably didn't know their exact position yet.
There was hope in that.
"It's not too late."
Lee Ji-hyun whispered quietly as she stealthily led the elders and children backward.
Kaboom!
Rawr!
Until the skeleton dragon crashed down right next to them onto a building.
"Ah..."
Lee Ji-hyun and the survivors looked up at the skeleton dragon in stunned despair.
The skeleton dragon perched atop a two-story house roof.
Shhht!
Atop its wing of bare bones, spread wide, crimson mana spears—Crimson Javelins—manifested.
Grrrowl.
The skeleton dragon's red eyes curved as if mocking them.
Fwhoosh!
Countless 2-meter Crimson Javelins hovering in the air launched toward Lee Ji-hyun, the elders, and the children.
"N-No!"
To Lee Ji-hyun, the incoming barrage of Crimson Javelins seemed to move in slow motion.
She glanced around.
The children and elders wore expressions of despair and fear.
Their eyes met Lee Ji-hyun's.
They mouthed a single phrase, shaking off their terror.
'Thank you for coming to save us.'
Without the Lee sisters, the elders and children would have been brutally killed by magic beasts long ago.
'Ah...'
Seeing them like that, Lee Ji-hyun clenched her teeth.
If only she had the power.
"Raaaaah!"
Facing the shower of red spears, Lee Ji-hyun let out a primal scream.
In that instant, a massive green shield materialized before her.
Clang! Clang-clang-clang!
The Crimson Javelins collided with Lee Ji-hyun's activated green shield.
"Th-This is..."
"Whoa, it's pretty."
The elders looked shocked, the children amazed.
Outside the green shield, the Crimson Javelins burst like red flowers on impact.
"Ah..."
Lee Ji-hyun stared in shock at the system message floating before her eyes.
To awaken a unique trait at a time like this.
"Haha..."
It was absurd.
Tears welled up in Lee Ji-hyun's eyes unbidden.
If only she had awakened it a little sooner, she might have saved her sister.
And,
Kieeeeng.
With the Crimson Javelins ineffective, the skeleton dragon prepared its breath again.
Even with an S-grade unique trait awakened, Lee Ji-hyun was still just a 3-star superhuman.
Blocking the Crimson Javelins earlier had been a miracle.
Stopping the skeleton dragon's red breath was impossible.
But,
"Multiple Shield Mode!"
Zzzzing!
Lee Ji-hyun poured every ounce of her mana, pushing beyond her limits.
As a result, she deployed a total of three Guardian's Shields.
Right then,
Shooooaaaak!
The skeleton dragon fired its glowing red Crimson Breath.
Bam!
Crack!
The first Guardian's Shield shattered.
At the sight, Lee Ji-hyun gritted her teeth and poured in even more mana.
Bam!
The second Guardian's Shield held a bit longer against the Crimson Breath.
Crack! Crack!
But it soon shattered as well.
Only one remained.
No way the last Guardian's Shield could block the Crimson Breath.
Crack.
'Sorry, Unni.'
As cracks spread across the final Guardian's Shield, Lee Ji-hyun closed her eyes.
In that moment,
A man's voice echoed in Lee Ji-hyun's mind.
Startled, Lee Ji-hyun's eyes snapped open.
'Telepathy? Who...?'
Telepathy was a technique usable only by at least 4-stars.
That meant a 4-star superhuman was nearby.
Crack!
'N-No!'
As the last Guardian's Shield was about to shatter completely, Lee Ji-hyun's face filled with despair.
In that instant,
BOOM!
A massive 5-meter something crashed down right in front of Lee Ji-hyun.