The Wave That Spared Korea
BOOM!
"……."
"……."
The footage Han Jeong-soo played on his tablet captured the state of the world as it stood. Explosions thundered from every direction. Screams tore through the air. Hunters, overwhelmed by the surging monsters, were dying one after another.
"What you're looking at is Russia," he said. "But the situation is more or less the same in every other country……."
"What about Korea? Where did the Wave hit in Korea?"
"There's been no word from Korea yet."
"Excuse me?"
Selenia tilted her head at Han Jeong-soo's answer.
Korea was fine?
Why?
Not that she was complaining — a Wave that never came was a blessing — but something about it felt wrong. A Wave that had erupted across the entire planet at the same time, and somehow Korea alone had been spared.
"It isn't just Korea," Han Jeong-soo continued. "The United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Brazil are all still quiet."
"But those countries have Gates too……."
"Hmm."
Emilton fell into thought at the report. In a world where Waves were erupting everywhere, what did the still-quiet nations have in common?
"What if it's the countries where the cults were never present — or already destroyed — that are still standing?"
"Huh?"
"Do-ha told us before, remember? The countries where the cults had been wiped out. He said the British branch had already fallen."
"Now that you mention it……."
Selenia nodded. She had seen the article herself — New Age destroying a cult branch in Canada. They had broadcast the bishop's beheading live, without a single mosaic, and the footage had caused an enormous uproar.
"Just as Lady Emilton says, the Australian branch was destroyed as well," Han Jeong-soo confirmed. "New Age streamed that one in real time too."
"Which means that outside the quiet countries, the cult had cells hidden everywhere."
Emilton's brow furrowed. New Age had been hunting the cult down, but they had never found every last nest.
"Does the Association President know about this?"
"Yes. He's already issued a directive to every guild in Korea, ordering them to inspect the Gates under their control. The Association is also dispatching additional personnel to each Gate and receiving live reports. The moment anything looks off, we'll hear about it immediately."
"Haa…… at least we can breathe for a moment."
Not that anyone could truly call it a relief. People were still dying all over the world even as they spoke.
"Have other countries requested support?"
"A few nations with fewer Awakened have asked for help. Kang Ji-hwan and Han Se-ah both volunteered to go, but the Association President put it on hold."
"He wants to wait and see what happens to Korea first. Makes sense."
Han Jeong-soo nodded at Emilton's assessment. And as it turned out, the President's judgment was exactly right.
They were monitoring every Gate across the country — but there was one region everyone had overlooked.
The north.
North Korea, sharing a border with China, had Gates of its own. The nation had collapsed long ago, however, and no one remained to watch them.
Fortunately, someone was already there.
"Damn it, where the hell am I?"
Back on Earth, Canteas looked around with open irritation. Maybe teleporting straight from the Northern Continent had been a mistake. The coordinates felt slightly off.
"Nothing but empty wasteland as far as the eye can see."
Cheon Seol-gyeong stood beside him, his tone flat. Collapsed building wreckage was visible here and there, but enough time had passed that the ruins had all but merged with the wilderness.
"Huh? There's a sign over there. Oh — it's written in Hangul. The Great Leader…… what is that supposed to mean?"
Canteas squinted as he read. The rest of the inscription had worn away; whatever came after was impossible to make out.
"Did we land in the countryside?"
"Too desolate for that."
Cheon Seol-gyeong surveyed the surroundings. Having already traveled the world with Baek Do-ha and Canteas, he knew what a rural landscape looked like. This place was nothing like any countryside he had seen. It was bleak, and a deathly aura hung over everything.
Thud-thud-thud.
"Huh? What did you say?"
"I didn't say anything."
"Really?"
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud.
"What is that? Vibrations……."
The tremors rolling in from the distance made Canteas turn his head. At first he thought Cheon Seol-gyeong had spoken — but listening carefully, he caught something more like a roar.
"A dust cloud…… Hiiik?!"
Squinting into the distance, Canteas nearly jumped out of his bones. What he had taken for a dust storm was a horde of monsters — hundreds of them, surging forward.
Zwaaaang.
Kugung-gugung.
Canteas summoned his undead in a flash. His own realm had risen alongside Do-ha's, and he could now call forth a far greater variety of the dead.
"Cheon Seol-gyeong, hold the front. Skeleton archers, fall back. Knight skeletons, push into their ranks and break the formation. And……."
Saaaaaah.
As Canteas cast the spell, a black wraith materialized, gripping an enormous scythe — a figure that looked for all the world like the reaper of death itself.
"Wraiths, circle around and take out the higher-grade monsters."
"There are strong ones on the flanks as well."
"I know."
Canteas smiled at Cheon Seol-gyeong's warning and swept his staff through the air.
Kugung-gugung.
"Come forth, my knights."
The undead Canteas had kept hidden all this time finally stepped into the open.
Clack-clack.
"Ho — Knight Dullahan……."
Arms crossed, Cheon Seol-gyeong allowed himself a flicker of admiration as massive Dullahan astride skeleton horses took form. Not one or two — more than twenty. Undead at least ten times stronger than ordinary Dullahan.
"Curious, though. You shouldn't have the realm to summon Knight Dullahan yet."
Standing next to Baek Do-ha and his absurd growth rate made it easy to overlook, but Canteas had been steadily building his own power. Mere months ago he had been Fourth Circle; now he was Fifth. Even so, Knight Dullahan required Sixth Circle at minimum.
"I shouldn't have the realm? You die once and suddenly forget what I used to be."
Thud!
Shimmer-shimmer-shimmer.
Canteas drove his staff into the ground. A golden crown formed above his head, and a black coat heavy with gold ornamentation began to settle over his frame.
"You…… don't tell me you've recovered your original power?!"
Cheon Seol-gyeong's eyes went wide.
The Eighth-Circle Lich known as the King of the Underworld. Canteas's true form had returned.
"Only for a little while. I can't hold it long."
Swoosh.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud.
Canteas raised his staff, and the undead charged as one. Infinite power surged through him — but as he had said, the form was temporary. Reaching Fifth Circle had somehow balanced the scales enough to synchronize with his true body. He could maintain the original form for only a single hour. After that, it would unravel.
"An hour is enough."
Flick.
Caw!
Canteas waved a hand, and a crow took shape on his shoulder.
"Relay a support request to these coordinates. I can hold for an hour, but tell them to get here as fast as possible."
Caw!
Flutter!
The crow nodded and shot into the sky, vanishing at tremendous speed.
"If that bastard Do-ha were here, this would be a lot easier."
Canteas thought of him. He wanted the damn guy back already. When Do-ha was around, Canteas couldn't stand the sight of him — but with him gone, the loneliness was real.
BOOOOM!
Undead and monsters collided, and a deafening roar filled the air.
Whoosh.
Thud!
Corpse Explosion
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!
Canteas swept his staff, and corpses detonated across the battlefield. The monsters had been kind enough to die in bulk — excellent raw material.
Damn it. The power's fading…….
Summoning more undead, Canteas forced out a labored breath. Time was draining the strength he was drawing from his true body. Synchronization would break any moment now.
It's been so long since I linked with the main body that I threw magic around without thinking.
A mistake he never would have made in his original form. Caught up in the thrill, he had spammed high-cost spells. If Do-ha had been standing next to him, he would have spent hours listening to the lecture.
Grrrrrrr!
THUD!
"Hey, Canteas. The connection's unstable."
Sent flying by a minotaur, Cheon Seol-gyeong scowled back at him. His body was forged of Orichalcum — no wounds — but why had the control gone so sluggish? He was being hit by a mere minotaur. The piloting was pathetic.
"Ugh, this is exhausting!"
"Tsk. I saw it coming the moment you started spamming magic."
Cheon Seol-gyeong shook his head at the wheezing lich. That idiot. He had gotten so carried away casting that even the concentration needed to pilot his own servant was fraying.
"This isn't working. Cheon Seol-gyeong."
"?"
"You're on your own."
In the end, Canteas abandoned control. Cheon Seol-gyeong could now move of his own free will.
Clench.
THUD!
"Hahahaha — this freedom…… it feels good!"
Able to move on his own at last, Cheon Seol-gyeong burst into laughter. Bound by Canteas's power for so long, he had always felt stifled.
"Ah, hell. Not sure that was the right call."
Watching Cheon Seol-gyeong casually slaughter monsters, Canteas scratched his head. Once control was handed over, reclaiming it took more than two days. For the next two days, he would not be able to reverse-summon Cheon Seol-gyeong at all.
Heavenly Demon Divine Art — Fifth Form: Heavenly Demon Blood Wind
WHOOOOOOSH!
As Cheon Seol-gyeong unleashed the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, a colossal storm of blood tore through the monster ranks.
Grip.
Heavenly Demon Sword Art — First Absolute: Blood Origin Demon Severance
Shhk-shhk-shhk-shhk!
His blade flashed in a wild flurry, and dozens of monsters lost their heads at once.
Heavenly Demon Divine Art — Sixth Form: Heavenly Demon Sovereign Step
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
A smile on his lips, Cheon Seol-gyeong advanced step by step, crushing monsters underfoot. And in the same breath—
Heavenly Demon Divine Art — First Form: Iron Demon Hand
CRAAAAASH!
He thrust out his palm, and a colossal hand of force erupted outward, blasting monsters aside — a shape that looked uncannily like the Yeoraesingjang, the Tathagata Palm.
"Hahahaha — this is exhilarating."
Then—
Thwip-thwip-thwip!
THUD!
Dozens of arrows streaked past Cheon Seol-gyeong's head.
"Cheon Seol-gyeong. Don't get too carried away."
It was Selenia — the one known as the Goddess of the Bow. She had received the crow's message and come running at once.
"Pointy-eared wench. That power of yours hasn't dulled a bit."
Watching the arrows detonate monster skulls, Cheon Seol-gyeong wore a thin, crooked smile. He remembered how many times she had forced him to retreat in the past. They were on the same side now, of course — but still.
Shhhhk.
She stepped up beside him and drew her bowstring. Specks of yellow light gathered along the empty bow, coalescing into form. And then—
THWANG!
She released the string. Hundreds of arrows forged from pure light tore through the monster horde.