Chapter 134
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 134
Chapter Title: 24. Mystery of the Red Zone (6)
Nicknamed the Kang San Rescue Team.
With Saito Shusuke's addition, the team was officially formed, and an uncountable number of people stepped forward, eager to join the effort. Jessica, Eileen, and Jo Han-byeol's group were among them, but as team leader, Saito Shusuke took a firm stance: for speed and coordination, the rescue would prioritize his fellow countrymen.
The rest were left behind.
They could only pray for good news.
But when the rescue team returned in utter defeat, Jessica bit her red lips hard as she watched.
"...Eileen. You can stay here by yourself, right?"
"I'm coming with you."
"You know what I'm planning to do?"
"You're going to save Kang San. Whether you go alone or we go together, I won't let you leave me behind."
Eileen wore a resolute expression.
Jessica felt a headache coming on.
Too late, she realized just how stubborn her one and only sister could be.
"An S-Rank hunter is dead. No individual's power can reliably save Kang San now. Hiding our presence and extracting him quickly is the only way. I'm specialized in stealth skills, so I can pull it off, but bringing you along guarantees we'll be spotted by monsters. Please, just stay here."
"No. If that worked, the survivors beyond the Red Zone would've been rescued ages ago. Sister, there's an 'evil spirit' lurking out there. Without mental healing skills, even you would fall like everyone else. Let's go together. I can't wait here hoping you come back alive—not like you can."
"Eileen!"
"Yelling won't change my mind."
They bickered back and forth.
Even as Jessica dug in her heels, Eileen refused to yield an inch, proving their sisterly bond.
"Haa... What a crazy bitch."
Her head throbbed.
The rescue team's crushing failure.
Kang San's disappearance.
She had no idea where to even start or how to respond.
For one person to handle, the mysteries unfolding beyond the Red Zone were utterly beyond common sense. People said S-Ranks entered disaster territory. Incomprehensible power, and an evil spirit that could even beguile an S-Rank—it was a monster no one could face.
Was Kang San even alive?
No matter how incredible he was, against a beast that killed Saito Shusuke, hadn't he already fallen?
It was hopeless.
As she stared blankly at the sky, a brilliant flash lit up.
"...Huh?"
It was unmistakable.
That was definitely a teleport light.
Jessica and Eileen locked eyes, then bolted toward the glow without a word.
Jessica and Eileen weren't the only ones who rushed over.
Jo Han-byeol's group had arrived too.
He urgently questioned the cluster of people emerging from the light.
"What the hell happened?!"
His voice was desperate.
It was a harsh demand to dazed survivors, who naturally looked stunned.
Soon enough,
they realized he was asking about Kang San's fate.
After a moment to compose themselves, one survivor spoke up.
"...I don't know if the evil spirit attacked him, but he saved us and looked exhausted afterward. He left a message for me to pass on."
"A message?"
"Yes."
It was the first time.
Kang San had left his thoughts with the people here.
"I don't know how many I've saved, but if I make it back, tell them this: If I somehow survive after losing everything, let them know a guy like me made this sacrifice. If no one acknowledges it, it'd feel a bit pathetic... but mostly heartbreaking."
He'd said it with his mentality in tatters,
forcing a smile all the while.
Then, staggering away, he'd left the survivors behind and ventured back into the fog.
"Ah..."
"What the..."
People interpreted his message differently.
Not as boasting achievements, but as a sign of how dire things were—that he had to say it aloud.
He was human, just like them.
In a situation so grueling he couldn't sacrifice without steeling himself, Kang San still pressed on with the rescues. No one dared speak rashly. They couldn't fathom his burdens, let alone judge them.
In the end,
there was nothing they could do.
An evil spirit lurked beyond the Red Zone, and Kang San delved deeper with every passing hour.
The rescue team barely made it to the entrance before shattering. Going after him now was suicide. Not even an S-Rank had survived. Overwhelmed by helplessness, everyone wore grim faces.
"...What the hell are we supposed to do?"
Jo Han-byeol and the others despaired.
Eileen stepped forward, watching them.
"Everyone, pray."
"Pardon?"
"What?"
It sounded absurd.
Pray?
As confused looks spread, Eileen spoke calmly.
"Kang San continuing rescues means—unbelievable as it is—that he has the reserves to withstand the evil spirit's assaults. I have a skill called Wish. It buffs a target based on fervent prayers, and the more people join in, the stronger it gets. So let's all pray. For Kang San to return safely. If he does, it won't be some rescue—it'll be his own will."
"...Does it work on targets far away?"
"Yes."
"I'll do it."
It was Yeon Woo-bin.
He voiced his support readily.
"How do we do it?"
"Me too."
"Count me in..."
The crowd gathered.
Thus, led by Eileen, people began praying one by one.
Inside a building overlooking the plaza.
Shh.
Assemblyman Shimizu Hiroshi peered down at the plaza with a cold face through the curtains.
"...What a spectacle."
Praying, of all things.
Ridiculous.
But as a politician, he couldn't ignore it.
His aide spoke.
"Public opinion is turning ugly. It started with backlash against Ito Kentaro, but now that Kang San's pushing rescues despite the evil spirit, people are starting to revere his very existence. They're calling him a hero born in chaotic times."
"Nonsense. Hero? He's just lucky the evil spirit hasn't targeted him yet."
Flick.
He lit a cigarette.
A habit he hid as a politician, but now he needed something to soothe his boiling rage.
Smoke billowed thickly.
Among the pray-ers,
he spotted Ito Kentaro.
Hypocrite, as expected.
He knew exactly what the masses loved: kneeling in prayer, hands clasped. That's why Shimizu despised Ito Kentaro. The man would do anything for popularity, but Shimizu believed true politics required some distance from the mob.
"Why can't people see the truth?"
In the end,
the harsh reality they had to accept was that the evil spirit was unsolvable.
The past three years.
Did the Japanese government just sit idle?
They'd begged superpowers for help against the evil spirit, only to get shrugs—this incident stumped even them. The Red Zone mystery. The evil spirit was a different breed from prior S-Ranks. Those caused massive casualties on appearance, but mentally dominating fragile human minds? Even superpowers treaded carefully.
Other countries, after all.
No nation would risk itself for Japan.
So it engulfed the south.
Just as others ignored Japan, they minimized the incident to let other regions ignore the south.
'Italy's priest. After years of cultivating him, I planned to solve the south's woes with his help and ascend to prime minister in glory. But that Kang San bastard ruined everything.'
An S-Rank priest.
The priest was the only solution to the evil spirit.
Now the situation had changed.
If Kang San returned on his own, Shimizu Hiroshi stood to gain little politically.
Ito Kentaro, kneeling before the crowd, would snag even more of those fickle votes. Showmanship mattered in politics. Sincere or not, the public would see Ito's act as heartfelt. And knowing that, Shimizu could never stoop to it.
So,
'Better to wait for total failure.'
Kang San's death.
A hopeless, devastating defeat.
When that came, people would face reality and crave pragmatic leaders.
Until then.
"Fucking idiots."
Shh.
He drew the curtains.
Assemblyman Shimizu Hiroshi decided to look away from reality for a while.
It was a bizarre experience.
Having escaped the nightmare, Kang San pressed on with rescues without pause.
But the evil spirit's attacks didn't stop.
Without warning, something surged to seize his mind.
Spin.
The world shifted.
This time, right before his eyes.
A figure like a black shadow loomed.
It mocked Kang San, butchering his parents with a gleaming blade.
Stab.
Stab, stab!
A chilling sound rang out.
Killing intent boiled, urging him to stop the shadow now—but unlike his churning emotions, Kang San's eyes remained calm. By now, it was clear. Madness debuffs, qi deviation. Repeated mental assaults had forged his mind beyond mortal limits. Facing the horrific scene, he recognized it as a provocation illusion and stayed unshaken.
'In the end, it's just an illusion.'
And with that,
Flash.
He broke free of the nightmare.
The way out wasn't force, but realization.
Beyond the fog,
he sensed the unknown entity's frustration.
A murky voice echoed.
No lifeforms nearby, yet it whispered directly into his ear.
"..."
He didn't respond.
He'd tried talking at first.
But the entity kept repeating itself, so he knew it was a waste of time.
'Ten hours left.'
Time was short.
Solving the trial came first.
The pattern changed.
Its one-sided ramblings shifted to new dialogue.
But then,
Flash.
'Killing intent?'
Kang San reacted instantly.
To the sudden surge of malice, he raised his shield.
Boom!
Rumble rumble rumble.
"Urk."
He was pushed back.
The massive impact flipped his insides, even through the block.
He confirmed the foe ahead.
Through the rising dust cloud, a humanoid something thudded toward him.
Shing.
A spear dragged along the ground.
Kang San knew instinctively.
His opponent was immensely powerful.
Saito Shusuke.
"...I'll kill you."
Trapped in a nightmare, he glared at Kang San with blood-red eyes.