Chapter 60: Apostle (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 60: Apostle (2)
Time flew by, and two weeks passed.
Vanquisher was making its final preparations before embarking on the mission.
In a corner of the waiting room, Park Gwang-cheol let out a groan.
“Ugh, hey, stop! Stop!”
I looked at him and shook my head.
“Isn’t this a little too tight?”
“It has to be.”
“I’m serious, my blood’s not even circulating.”
“Perfect.”
Park Gwang-cheol grumbled but ultimately let me be. I silently continued to tighten his protective gear.
Seong Ara, on the other hand, stretched and yawned without a hint of nervousness.
“It’s not that dangerous~”
The atmosphere among the Vanquisher members was generally relaxed. While this mission was important, it wasn’t particularly difficult.
After all, it was a domestic operation.
I, too, was desperately hoping that assumption wouldn’t be shattered.
Just then, the Old Man entered the waiting room with calm footsteps.
His face was as stoic as ever, but it was obvious something was bothering him.
“Heard the Paladins, Maengju, and even the Cheongpung Sect are participating.”
He had just finished his final communication with the Association before stepping inside.
“Huh? The Maengju and the Paladins?”
“The Cheongpung Sect…”
Seong Ara questioned him, while Lee Do-hyun, who had been polishing his sword, muttered quietly.
The other members flinched, glancing at one another.
It was only natural to find it strange.
Even I had only heard about it from Cheon Yeo-wool the previous evening.
‘If an Apostle really appears… the Paladins won’t be enough. That’s why Maengju and the Cheongpung Sect decided to join in.’
In any case, it was good news.
“Don’t tell me it’s Glory,” Seong Ara asked.
The Old Man shook his head.
“No. Team 2, Maengho, I’m told.”
At his words, Park Gwang-cheol tilted his head.
“Wow… what in the world.”
“Something… feels off.”
Lee Do-hyun, who had been silently tending to his twin swords, murmured under his breath.
No one refuted his words.
Everyone here shared the same feeling.
Just then, Kim Jin-su, the Association staff member in charge of equipment, entered the waiting room.
“Preparations are complete. A vehicle will be arriving at the terminal shortly.”
Using a portal was out of the question.
There was a risk the enemy would notice.
So, we would take a portal as far as Pyongyang and travel by land from there.
We all naturally began a final check of the weapons and gear in our hands.
Personal combat equipment, potions, and other essentials.
“It’s okay.”
Someone spoke quietly beside me. It was Sion.
“It’ll be fine.”
“Thanks.”
She must have noticed the look on my face, as she offered her quiet comfort.
They were just a few words, but they were a definite reassurance.
I nodded.
“Briefing starts the moment we arrive at the base. The operation begins immediately after,” the Old Man said, his tone short and firm.
After finishing our final checks, we began to move out one by one.
“Let’s go.”
*
A rough wind brushed against my face.
The base point was located on the mountainside.
After getting out of the vehicle, we walked toward it in silence.
And only then did it start to feel real.
The scenery before me was all too familiar.
I stopped in my tracks. This was the place where I had died over and over. The memory washed over me, turning my mind blank.
I closed my eyes.
I consciously exhaled, calming myself.
“Hae-in.”
I felt a gentle hand grip my shoulder.
I reflexively reached for my spear but stopped myself.
Again, it was Sion.
“Are you okay?”
I took a short breath and answered.
“I’m fine.”
Just then, the Old Man’s voice rang out.
“The mission briefing begins now.”
I quickly collected myself and moved forward.
I was on a mission.
The Old Man’s explanation was simple.
Our objective was to subjugate the Mine Colony discovered a few months ago.
The Maengju, the Paladins, and the Cheongpung Sect were scheduled to join us from different base points.
In other words, the operation would proceed by surrounding the colony from all directions.
Finally, the Old Man added, addressing us.
“You two will stay here and wait for communications from the Association.”
Standby for support.
That was the reason he’d brought Sion and me.
“Moving out.”
The Vanquisher members finished gearing up one by one, and the operation finally began.
We watched them go from behind.
“…”
Of course, I had no intention of just waiting around.
I watched for the right moment, trying to gauge the best time to follow them.
Just then, my eyes met Sion’s.
We looked at each other and smiled.
She was thinking the same thing.
“Let’s go.”
“Okay.”
We quietly set out after them.
Secretly.
A ruined village came into view. From a distance, there wasn’t a single sign of life.
The ominous feeling I had was slowly becoming a reality.
On the left, the Paladins and the Cheongpung Sect, led by Cheon Yeo-wool and Yu Hana, were on the move. On the right, Maengju’s forces, headed by Kang A-rin, were also advancing toward the colony.
And just as we nearly reached it…
“Now.”
We quickly rejoined the main force.
“Hey! What are you two….”
Seong Ara stared at us, startled.
The other members, however, were unfazed.
“Figured as much,” Park Gwang-cheol said with a dry laugh.
“There’s no way you guys would stay behind.”
We just smiled without a word.
So they had a pretty good idea.
No wonder they’d had us sit in on all the mission briefings.
As we entered the village, Maengju’s forces entered from the opposite side, while the Paladins and the Cheongpung Sect came in from the left.
The three forces, having taken different routes, finally met in the central plaza.
However, there wasn't a trace of a Mine, let alone any sign of people.
Only ruined buildings and dry dust scattered in the wind.
A member of the Maengju Guild muttered, “There’s nothing here.”
When Kang A-rin looked at him silently, he flinched and immediately lowered his head.
Just then.
—BOOM!!
A massive explosion erupted from the center of the plaza.
In the blink of an eye, flames shot up, and a shockwave spread in all directions.
Park Gwang-cheol and Yukal immediately deployed a barrier.
They trapped the explosion, forcibly containing it before launching its energy into the air.
—KRA-KOOOOM!
A flash and a roar that seemed to split the sky.
The flames that erupted in the air dyed the earth red.
“……”
Park Gwang-cheol dusted off his hands, his expression cold.
A momentary silence fell. But everyone must have felt it. That last attack was… different.
“Hmmmm… Blag, didn’t you say one shot of this would kill them all?”
A seductive voice tickled the ear.
A nasal-toned mockery spread throughout the village.
And then.
“Doesn’t look like it’ll be nearly enough, does it?”
A cackling laugh scraped at my ears.
The lips of one of the Paladins twitched and hardened.
A low whisper, like a groan, escaped his lips.
“An… an Apostle.”
Mary, the Crimson Spider.
The being who had single-handedly shaken Shanghai.
But that wasn’t what shocked me.
“Five…”
From within the shadows of the massive ruins.
Five silhouettes, revealing themselves one by one.
I had already considered the possibility of an Apostle appearing. But there weren’t three of them.
“My, there seem to be quite a few people here.”
A white man with no eyes, nose, or mouth.
Wavelengths rippled from where his mouth should be, and sound emerged.
“I heard it was just one team, but there are so many of them. Barcus, you think you’ll be okay while we’re gone?”
“Shut your mouth.”
When Mary provoked the white-eyed Apostle, Barcus, he shot back a coarse reply.
“Take it easy on them~ We’ll be back after we finish up.”
Mary giggled, mocking them.
Her eyes were filled with ecstasy.
The forces were shrouded in silence.
Apostles.
A name that only existed in stories. Few had ever actually faced one.
But now.
They were right in front of us.
An overwhelming presence that dominated the area. An aura that couldn’t be described as simply ‘strong.’
Everyone here realized it.
That sometimes, rumors are a pale shadow of the truth.
“Prepare for battle.”
The Old Man gave the signal with a firm voice.
Every member immediately took a stance. But their bodies were trembling instinctively.
“You two, stay back.”
Park Gwang-cheol stepped forward, blocking our path.
It was then.
“Just a moment.”
It was Blag, the one who had been emitting a grating wavelength. His voice was low.
“Before we proceed with the execution, I wish to convey the will of The Great One. We, too, find unnecessary conflict tiresome.”
—Ahem.
He brought a fist to where his face should have been and gave a dry cough. Then, he changed his voice.
“Eliminate the humans.”
The moment those words fell…
The air grew heavy.
“For that purpose, I shall bestow upon you an Authority.”
In that instant.
The Apostle Mary, who had been smirking before us, gave a little wave of her hand.
And then.
—Swish.
She was gone.
“Saintess!!”
Immediately after, a scream erupted from the Paladin ranks.
I turned my head.
Cheon Yeo-wool?
Red chains bloomed out of thin air around Cheon Yeo-wool.
Wriggling, squirming. Like living creatures, they began to wrap around her wrists and ankles.
“Stop them!!!”
One of the Paladins screamed in desperation.
But before his cry could reach her, space itself distorted.
—Ching!
The crimson chains pulled taut for an instant, and her form vanished as if sucked into the void.
And then.
—Swish.
—Swish.
The forms of the two Apostles who had been standing next to Blag also vanished like dust.
“My lady!”
“Vice-Representative!!”
Yu Hana’s body disappeared as if scattering into the silent wind.
Kang A-rin was swallowed by a black shadow, given no time to even react.
The Apostles.
Their target wasn’t Vanquisher.
“Well then, we’ll be seeing you later.”
Even the Apostle Blag, who had been explaining with a sneer on his face…
—Swish.
…disappeared.
Who was next?
Me? The Old Man? Or…
Just then.
The sound vanished.
All sound around me.
The wind, the sound of breathing, even my own heartbeat.
I reflexively glanced to my side.
“Sion!”
A transparent ripple spread out from beneath her feet.
The air shimmered like a disturbed surface of water.
Her form wavered gently.
I instinctively reached out. The Old Man, beside me, extended his hand at the same time.
But she sank into a transparent space, as if being separated from reality itself.
I clutched at the empty air, as if trying to grab the void.
“SION!!!!”
The Old Man lunged forward.
He reached with both hands, but there was no trace of Sion left.
The Old Man’s face twisted in anguish.
Just then.
—Rumble-rumble-rumble.
The earth began to shake.
There was no time to grieve or hesitate.
“The fact that I am the one who remains will be your despair.”
The last remaining Apostle, the one with white eyes.
Barcus.
Filled with rage.
Began to draw out his power.