Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Crawler Horde
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Same investigation team members Lee Ji-su and her group had turned out to be the assassins gunning for him, so the suspicion was warranted.
"I can't say for sure, but you don't need to worry. He's just a low 3-star."
To Shin Yu-hyun's eyes, Lee Sang-hyuk—with his gentle, puppy-like impression—seemed like a decent young man.
He didn't come across as dangerous.
"Then we're good."
Nam Yeon-ah's expression eased with relief.
Shin Yu-hyun's words from moments ago hadn't exactly been an endorsement of trusting Lee Sang-hyuk. They'd meant that even if trouble arose, it wouldn't be an issue.
Someone of Lee Sang-hyuk's skill level could be subdued without much hassle if he caused problems.
"Yeah. If anything, the ones I'm actually worried about are Yu-chan and Woo-sung."
"Fair point."
Lee Sang-hyuk was merely a low 3-star superhuman.
But Kang Yu-chan and Kim Woo-sung were mid 4-star superhumans.
If either of them stirred up trouble, it wouldn't even be comparable to Lee Sang-hyuk.
"I really hope there are no more real problems."
Nam Yeon-ah shook her head with a weary, fed-up look.
"I hope so too. Let's start by finding Sang-hyuk."
Shin Yu-hyun turned away from Nam Yeon-ah as he spoke.
And he couldn't bring himself to tell her. That one of those two—Kang Yu-chan or Kim Woo-sung—might be the joker who could wipe out the entire investigation team.
With that, Shin Yu-hyun finished preparing to move out with Nam Yeon-ah.
Just as he was about to head off in search of Lee Sang-hyuk.
KROOOAAARRR!
A colossal roar echoed through the city packed with skyscrapers.
Startled by the sudden bellow, Shin Yu-hyun and Nam Yeon-ah tensed up and scanned their surroundings.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! KABOOM!
In an instant, a massive explosion erupted from a nearby building.
Chunks of the structure rained down, some hurtling straight toward Shin Yu-hyun and Nam Yeon-ah.
"Tch!"
Shin Yu-hyun dropped into a low stance to dodge the debris, then looked up at the adjacent building.
And there they were.
Dozens of grotesque magic beasts clinging densely to the building's facade like they'd appeared out of nowhere.
"These things..."
Dozens of human-sized crawlers plastered to the building's wall.
'Here they come.'
Shin Yu-hyun glared sharply up at the crawlers.
"W-what the hell are those things?"
Nam Yeon-ah stared at the crawlers, her face a mix of shock and revulsion.
Tough-looking white skin.
A humanoid upper body with no lower half.
And that egg-white face—utterly blank.
No hair, no eyes, no nose, no mouth.
She'd never seen magic beasts this freakish before.
CRACK.
Suddenly, a cross-shaped fissure split across a crawler's face.
KIIEEEEEEK!
The face cracked open into four sections, revealing a nightmare of an interior.
Rows of shark-like serrated teeth packed tight, leading to a bright red throat.
Its entire head was the mouth.
What's more, its exposed guts dangled from the torso's underside, while white tentacles writhed grotesquely along its back.
Over twenty of these abominations lurked in the building's shadows, clinging to the walls.
Cosmic horror incarnate.
GROOOARRR!
Then the horde of crawlers poured down from the walls toward Shin Yu-hyun and Nam Yeon-ah.
Shin Yu-hyun spoke calmly.
"Get ready."
"Huh? You wanna fight them?"
"Yes."
He nodded at Nam Yeon-ah's startled question.
The crawlers looked exactly as he'd heard from his previous life.
Which meant their abilities and traits would match too.
What made crawlers a pain was their blistering movement speed.
Escaping them was no easy feat.
And besides.
'I need the soul points.'
Shin Yu-hyun eyed the crawlers.
THUD!
As expected, the falling crawlers slammed both arms into the ground and charged at tremendous speed.
KIIEEEEEEK!
In the blink of an eye, one lunged with its maw wide. Shin Yu-hyun stepped forward and drew Ignis.
Heaven-Splitting Swordsmanship
Zero Form: Draw Sword, Nameless Slash!
FWASH!
A crimson blade glow erupted from Ignis alongside black flames, streaking toward the incoming crawler.
CLANG!
Ignis, infused with black flame, clashed against the crawler's arm, ringing out like striking steel.
'Tough bastard.'
Shin Yu-hyun furrowed his brow slightly.
Crawlers ranked high among standard 3-star magic beasts.
They wielded thick, sturdy arms with nimble movement, their surfaces flowing with a mana barrier.
That's how it withstood a strike from the magic sword Ignis.
But.
CLANG! CLANG!
Shin Yu-hyun slashed in a V, striking both arms up and down.
The crawler's torso briefly exposed itself.
He didn't miss the opening, swinging Ignis at its gut.
Heaven-Splitting Swordsmanship
Third Form: Annihilation Strike!
KABOOOM!
Annihilation Strike slammed into the crawler's exposed guts, unleashing a shockwave.
GRRAAAAHH!
The crawler shrieked—a death rattle—as the blast hurled it back, splattering white blood across the pavement.
'Just as I thought.'
As expected, the crawler's weak point was its exposed belly.
Hit there, it crumpled helplessly.
"Aim for the belly!"
Having dispatched one crawler swiftly, Shin Yu-hyun shouted to Nam Yeon-ah.
While he'd tangled with that one, she'd already engaged too.
"Got it!"
Dodging attacks with her mana boots artifact, Nam Yeon-ah replied and cast Fire Arrow.
WHOOSH!
Two fire arrows materialized above her head as she darted side to side.
She launched them at the crawler.
WHOOSH!
Trailing long tails of red flame, the arrows buried into the crawler's underside.
SPLAT! ROAR!
GROOOARRR!
The arrows incinerated its guts. The crawler screamed and collapsed.
"Got one!"
Nam Yeon-ah yelled triumphantly.
Shin Yu-hyun gave her a slight nod before refocusing ahead.
Two more crawlers barreled toward him.
Thus began their skirmish with the crawler horde.
The crawler horde seemed endless.
It started with about twenty, but more kept swarming during the fight until they numbered over fifty.
Shin Yu-hyun and Nam Yeon-ah shifted positions as they battled, racking up soul points over the long slog.
'But there are too many.'
About twenty left.
"Hah... hah..."
The problem was Nam Yeon-ah.
She panted heavily.
Exhausted from the prolonged combat.
'Gotta wrap this up quick.'
The silver lining: no more reinforcements.
Shin Yu-hyun gripped Ignis tight and lowered his stance.
Three crawlers charged him.
That instant.
KABOOOM!
Black shadows crashed down between Shin Yu-hyun and the crawlers.
Asphalt shattered, forming small craters as dust billowed up.
FLASH! SWOOSH!
Blade gleams flashed through the dust cloud, accompanied by whistling winds.
'Well, talk about convenient timing.'
Shin Yu-hyun cracked a wry smile.
He knew who was handling those three crawlers in the dust.
Mid 4-star superhumans.
Kang Yu-chan and Kim Woo-sung had joined the fray.
Moments later, as the dust settled, they emerged just as expected.
"You held up well."
"Leave the rest to us."
They eyed the remaining crawlers.
"Shin Yu-hyun!"
Turning at the call, he saw Lee Sang-hyuk running up from behind. All surviving investigation team members had gathered.
As expected, the 4-star superhumans' prowess was formidable.
The remaining crawlers fell swiftly after their arrival.
"Are you two hurt anywhere?"
Once the fight ended, Kang Yu-chan asked Shin Yu-hyun and Nam Yeon-ah with genuine concern.
"No, we're fine."
Shin Yu-hyun nodded and recounted everything that had happened.
Kang Yu-chan and Kim Woo-sung were especially shocked to learn Lee Ji-su's group were hired killers.
"What? Really?"
"Assassins among the team members..."
"Hard to believe."
Lee Sang-hyuk shook his head too.
No one had suspected assassins in their midst.
"Still, glad you're both safe."
Kang Yu-chan looked relieved as he regarded Shin Yu-hyun and Nam Yeon-ah.
He seemed truly worried.
"But do you have proof?"
Kim Woo-sung, on the other hand, demanded evidence, skeptical of their claims. Shin Yu-hyun replied calmly.
"Yes. We have proof."
Evidence that Lee Ji-su's group were assassins abounded.
Even Lee Sang-hyuk had witnessed Nam Yeon-ah under attack by them on the rooftop.
"I'll vouch for it on the Namdu Group's name. And here's the recording."
Nam Yeon-ah had a recording of her conversation with Lee Ji-su.
She'd hit record on her smartphone during the talk.
"Any other encounters with the assassins?"
Even after Nam Yeon-ah's guarantee and the audio file, Kim Woo-sung pressed on.
"That's all of it. They bolted when the crawlers showed. Probably figured we'd get killed by them. We nearly did."
Shin Yu-hyun answered Kim Woo-sung's suspicious glare without flinching.
"Hm."
Kim Woo-sung pondered, brow furrowed.
As Shin Yu-hyun said, without him and Kang Yu-chan's help, the outcome wasn't guaranteed.
'No need to spill everything.'
Shin Yu-hyun watched Kim Woo-sung think.
He omitted interrogating and disposing of Lee Ji-su's group. And that their client was Nam Min-hyuk.
No mention of Getia or its worshippers either.
'Telling them won't help, and more than that, I can't trust them yet.'
Aside from Nam Yeon-ah, the other team members were suspect.
One of Kang Yu-chan or Kim Woo-sung right there was the joker.
So he'd simply said Lee Ji-su's group had fled.
Easier that way—no extra chatter.
'They won't find the bodies anyway.'
Lee Ji-su and her crew had burned to ash in the black flames.
Probably ruled as missing.
Hunters vanishing in dungeons was commonplace.
"Understood."
Kim Woo-sung looked unconvinced but backed off.
No inconsistencies in Shin Yu-hyun's account.
"So, what about you two, Kim Woo-sung and Kang Yu-chan? How'd you meet up with Sang-hyuk?"