Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: You Should Know Who You're Dealing With
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There are moments like this.
When both sides know where the other is, yet neither dares to make the first move.
It happens often, even on the battlefield.
It happens when you know you’re facing armed opponents, when the fear of death takes hold.
And when a situation like this arises, one side always moves first.
The one who has overcome the fear of death.
The one who is certain of their superiority.
Only such a person earns the right to move first.
*Thud!*
Kanghyeok rounded the corner, rifle leading the way, and immediately pulled the trigger.
*Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!*
Blood sprayed from the bodies of the men right in front of him. As he eliminated them, Kanghyeok’s gaze shifted to the far end of the corridor.
He could sense more movement in the darkness.
*Click, clack!*
Pressing the trigger as he swapped magazines, Kanghyeok immediately unleashed a hail of bullets toward their likely positions.
*Rat-tat-tat-tat! Rat-tat-tat-tat! Rat-tat-tat-tat!*
Gunshots echoed back from the darkness.
So did wretched screams.
The sound of fading breaths and death-rattle shrieks.
*Click, clack! Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!*
Kanghyeok kept his rifle aimed at every potential hiding spot, pulling the trigger again and again.
Just as his bullets tore through the darkness.
*Bang! Clang! Thwip! Whizz!*
Concrete fragments chipped away around Kanghyeok as the chilling sound of incoming bullets filled the air.
They weren’t coming from the front.
They were coming from behind.
Their accuracy was poor.
It felt like the men from the third floor had come down and were just blindly firing toward the sound of gunshots.
*Not yet.*
The gunshots and the sound of their footsteps grew closer.
It felt as if a demon, scuttling up from hell with a great scythe, was drawing near.
Even so, Kanghyeok pushed forward, intent on eliminating the men hiding on the second floor first.
*Click! Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!*
With every pull of the trigger, he could feel a life being extinguished.
“Aaargh!”
And the screams erupting from the darkness proved their numbers were dwindling.
*Rat-tat-tat-tat!*
After spraying bullets in the direction of the scream, Kanghyeok finally knew the time had come.
Time to deal with the men approaching from behind.
Kanghyeok spun around, lowering his rifle and drawing his pistol. With his other hand, he ejected the rifle’s magazine.
*Clang!*
Firing threateningly at the men, Kanghyeok dropped to one knee, lowering his posture.
*Bang! Bang!*
With one hand, he fired at his enemies; with the other, he reloaded the rifle resting on his knee.
*Click.*
A soft sound, and then a fluorescent light flickered on from where the men were.
A glow stick.
A classic piece of tactical gear used to illuminate one’s surroundings in darkness like this.
The glow sticks they threw landed around Kanghyeok, completely exposing his position.
“Target acquired!”
*Click.*
The men raised their guns.
Holstering his pistol, Kanghyeok also raised his reloaded rifle.
*Rat-tat-tat-tat!*
With a thunderous roar, he unleashed a terrifying volley of bullets. Just as the men who were about to shoot him collapsed, groaning and spilling blood, Kanghyeok rose to his feet.
He stood in the middle of the corridor, bathed in the faint green light of the glow sticks at his feet.
As if determined not to give them a single chance to counterattack, Kanghyeok took down the men whose fingers were already on their triggers first.
All the while, he advanced toward them.
*Rat-tat-tat! Rat-tat-tat! Rat-tat-tat!*
The distance between him and his enemies shrank with every step he took, counting his rounds.
*There are too many of them.*
He had the momentum.
But if it shifted to them for even a moment, it would be over.
Unfortunately, his bullet count was dwindling with every pull of the trigger, and their numbers exceeded his remaining ammo.
What were his options in a situation like this?
The best, most textbook answer was to retreat.
But he had no intention of doing that.
That left only the most dangerous, yet most certain, method.
*Clack.*
The rifle spat out its last round. Kanghyeok unslung the rifle and simultaneously moved his hand to the stock.
The distance between them was now exactly the length of one rifle.
*Crack!*
The man who took the rifle to his head spun and collapsed.
Kanghyeok threw the rifle at the men with all his might and pulled a pistol from his coat.
Then, closing the distance as if lunging at them, he pulled the trigger.
*Bang! Bang!*
Just as red blood splattered in the green light of the glow sticks.
The gang members, who had been aiming their rifles at Kanghyeok, twisted their faces in frustration and lowered their weapons.
Kanghyeok was entangled with their comrades, making it impossible to get a clean shot.
“Son of a bitch.”
The voice, laced with anger and bewilderment, was immediately drowned out by a gunshot.
*Bang!*
Kanghyeok yanked the man he’d shot in the chest toward him.
“Gack, gurgle.”
Using the blood-spewing gang member as a shield, he fired his pistol wildly at the others, who clenched their teeth and returned fire.
*Rat-tat-tat-tat!*
The life of the man he was using as a shield was definitively snuffed out.
*Bang! Bang!*
And so was the life of the man who had aimed at Kanghyeok.
*Thump!*
Kicking the now-useless body at the gang members, Kanghyeok swiftly reloaded his magazine and blew away the men who were trying to regain their footing.
*Bang, bang, bang! Tat-tat-tat.*
Amid the gunshots, he heard another presence, the sound of footsteps hastily descending the stairs.
*Grind!*
Kanghyeok gritted his teeth and turned his gun on the men emerging from the doorway.
*Bang!*
*Why don’t they get it?*
That coming here means death.
Is death what they wish for?
Then I’ll grant it.
I’ll kill every last one of them!
*Click, clack!*
Just as Kanghyeok slapped in another magazine.
“Move! Everybody move! Now!”
The men parted, and one man stepped forward.
Kanghyeok instinctively aimed at him, but his finger froze on the trigger.
The deep darkness remained.
But his eyes had already adjusted, and with the faint glow of the sticks, he could make out the men’s skin color and clothing.
And the bomb taped to the chest of the man at the front.
“Dammit.”
Kanghyeok muttered under his breath and aimed for the man’s head.
*Bang!*
The bullet pierced the man’s head, and another man caught the bomb-laden corpse.
He then brought his pistol close to the bomb strapped to the dead man’s chest.
Kanghyeok unconsciously shielded his head with his arm.
*Bang!*
The pistol spat out a bullet,
*BOOOOOOM!*
and a massive explosion followed.
A shockwave that tore the air apart.
*Rumble!*
The building shook, and thick smoke billowed out.
And dust.
The only sounds were the crumbling of the blast-cracked walls and ceiling, and the sound of the rain.
No gunshots, no enraged shouts, no screams.
Those caught in the blast lay motionless, while those who weren't stared with venomous eyes into the dark, dust-filled corridor.
(*Kanghyeok!*)
The communication device in Kanghyeok’s ear crackled with Leila’s static-laced voice.
(*Kanghyeok! Are you alright? Say something!*)
Her voice was urgent.
But Kanghyeok couldn’t answer.
The bomb had detonated at very close range.
It wasn’t a fragmentation grenade that scattered shrapnel in all directions, but a pure explosive. His body wasn’t pierced, and his limbs weren’t torn off.
But it was powerful enough to obliterate the corpse that had been carrying it without a trace.
An explosion like that had gone off right before his eyes.
The barrel of his rifle was bent, and he’d taken enough damage to make it difficult to even twitch a finger.
(*Answer me! Kanghyeok!*)
Kanghyeok barely managed to exhale through his lips.
He heard Leila gasp, and he let out a slightly louder breath.
(*I’m requesting mission abort. A rescue team is on its way. Just a little, just wait a little longer!*)
Twitching his split lips, Kanghyeok forced out a pained voice.
“N… o…”
His voice was a thread so thin it seemed it could snap at any moment, and Leila was unable to say anything.
(*Kanghyeok…*)
“Don’t… need it.”
He spoke more clearly this time.
Slowly, his body was beginning to move.
Feeling was starting to return, and breathing was gradually becoming easier.
“Ah, ugh. Hck.”
His body had recovered enough to feel the intense pain.
Through his blurring vision, Kanghyeok saw the thinning dust and the men moving beyond it.
They would be searching for him like hyenas, guns in hand.
And the moment they found him, they would put a bullet in his head to make sure he was finished.
“Haa, haa, haah.”
Kanghyeok gasped for breath and struggled to his feet.
(*I’m coming up now.*)
“Don’t.”
His eyes fixed on the men, Kanghyeok continued in a low voice.
“Stand by.”
He then gripped his pistol and the kukri he drew from his coat, leaning his shoulder against the wall.
His arms, legs, and lips were trembling uncontrollably.
The very bones inside his body felt heavy.
He wished he had more time, but damn it all, the dust that had served as a curtain, obscuring their vision, was beginning to settle.
Kanghyeok squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again.
Things don’t always go your way.
He knew he wasn’t a competitive athlete who could only fight under optimal conditions.
His fingers could move, the will to fight was in his heart, and his eyes could see his enemies.
This was more than enough.
More than enough to deal with them.
*Click!*
The pistol’s slide snapped back with a sharp, metallic sound.
Kanghyeok didn’t know.
“Haa! Haa! Huuu!”
That with every ragged breath he took, Leila’s shoulders flinched, and far away, Yohan’s desperate prayers grew stronger.
Kanghyeok raised his pistol and aimed it at a man whose face was contorted in shock.
*Bang!*
A gunshot erupted, and a head exploded.
The harsh report of the gun rattled his ears and body, and the recoil brutally slammed into his wounds.
*Grind!*
Kanghyeok clenched his jaw, swallowing the pain, and pulled the trigger.
*Bang! Bang!*
The muzzle flashes painted the dark corridor.
The men didn’t just take it.
Just as desperately as Kanghyeok needed to kill Nobody, they were just as desperate to kill Kanghyeok.
“Uwaaaaaah!”
“Die!”
The men charged all at once.
*Bang! Bang!*
Even as their comrades fell to Kanghyeok’s bullets, they didn’t stop, pushing forward and surrounding him.
*Squish!*
A knife point stabbed into Kanghyeok’s back.
*Thud!*
A bullet lodged in his chest.
*Smack!*
A rifle stock came down on his shoulder.
“Grh!”
Dropping to one knee, Kanghyeok grabbed the rifle stock with a trembling hand.
The man holding the gun stared at him in disbelief. Kanghyeok’s lips quivered as he shot the man a sharp glare.
At the same time, he aimed his pistol at him.
*Bang!*
The man’s head snapped back.
Kanghyeok forced himself to his feet, as if shrugging off everything that surrounded him.
Immediately after.
*Swoosh!*
His kukri sliced sharply through the air.
*Thwack!*
As blood dripped from the kukri that had just severed an opponent’s throat, Kanghyeok aimed his pistol at the man who had swung a knife at him.
*Bang!*
Kanghyeok pulled the trigger on the other men as well.
*Bang! Bang! Bang!*
The thick smell of gunpowder spread as their blood and flesh scattered into the darkness.
A heavy air that made it hard to breathe permeated the entire building.
“Kill him! Kill that son of a bitch!”
Nobody’s men shouted boldly, but the moment their eyes met Kanghyeok’s, they instinctively flinched.
Their opponent was a wreck.
Kanghyeok’s condition looked so severe, it was a wonder he was still standing.
And yet, his eyes burned with an intense light.
Not a man, but a wounded beast.
A beast that had suffered a fatal wound and was now radiating killing intent and venom. A chill ran down their spines.
“Huu, huu.”
Letting out ragged breaths from his torn throat, Kanghyeok glared at them.
A thick silence and unbearable tension settled between Kanghyeok and the men who dared not attack, making it difficult to breathe.
In the midst of it, Kanghyeok’s gaze and his face, twisted with rage, sent them a clear message.
You should know who you’re dealing with.
I am a man who cannot die even if you kill me, a man who can kill all of you even if you come at me in numbers hundreds, thousands of times greater than this.
So come, if you have the nerve.
Come and die by my hand!
*Scrape.*
As Kanghyeok dragged his shoulder along the wall and stepped toward them, the men faltered and backed away.
Kanghyeok continued to advance on them, his kukri gleaming menacingly.
“Come.”
*Scrape.*
“And I’ll grant you a painless death.”
*Scrape.*
“Come here!”
His voice, thick with the smell of blood, cut through the noise of the downpour and echoed loudly throughout the building.
“Hoo, hoo, hook.”
“Sh-shit.”
Overwhelmed by Kanghyeok, Nobody’s men could neither attack nor flee. Just then, one of them bravely dashed forward.
All eyes were on him.
As if he had been waiting for that exact moment, the man at the very back turned and sprinted toward the stairs, and the others bolted after him.
Only the man who had shown a moment of bravado was left in front of Kanghyeok.
“Uh…”
The moment the bewildered man turned his gaze forward again.
*Tat-tat-tat!*
Kanghyeok rushed him, swinging his kukri back over his shoulder.
*Crunch!*
As he drove the kukri into the man’s neck, Kanghyeok fell with him, letting out a groan as he pulled the blade free.
He then raised the kukri in a reverse grip.
But he couldn’t swing it.
*Clatter.*
The kukri fell from his weakened grasp, and Kanghyeok collapsed on top of the man who was gurgling and spitting up blood.
“Heok! Heok! Heok!”
Gasping for breath, Kanghyeok scanned his surroundings.
A silence fell, as if he were the only one left in the building.
There was no sign of anyone else.
The men he had just faced were the last of them.
Kanghyeok’s gaze shifted to the stairs leading up.
There was no one left to get in his way.
That left only one man.
The leader of the men he’d just fought, and the cause of all this.
Only Nobody.
Kanghyeok staggered to his feet.