Chapter 58
Chapter 58
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Infiltration of the Demon Tribe's Underground Base in Cheonjung Village
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Kwa-gwang! Kwa-gwang! Kwa-gwang! Kwa-kwang!
Neuron Age's first strike against Cheonjung Village was a massive barrage of artillery fire.
"Looks like the EMPs are dropping."
Geon-woo muttered as he tossed the smartphone in his hand into his dimensional storage.
Right after the bombardment began, the smartphone had gone dead.
"They really mean business. The shelling range is insane."
Pang looked up at the ceiling as the vibrations rumbled overhead.
The walls and ceiling trembled faintly with each explosion.
But not a single speck of dirt fell in the underground space Geon-woo had created.
"It'd be nice if we could just head straight to the target like this."
Pang wore a wistful expression.
"That's why they set up the anti-ability field—to stop intrusions like that."
"But they can't use abilities either, right? Wouldn't that hurt them more? They've got numbers on their side."
"You really think that? With a guy like me here?"
"You're an irregular, Geon-woo."
"Exactly. They made the anti-ability field to block special cases like me. And that puts the side with more numbers at an advantage."
Geon-woo chuckled as he explained.
For some reason, the Demon Tribe had restricted the System's power within a certain radius centered on Cheonjung Village.
Inside that zone, most System-granted abilities were sealed.
It was just like entering an Easter egg area.
"Huh? Think the shelling stopped?"
The explosions and vibrations that had continued for a while suddenly cut off.
Pang stared at the ceiling with a tense expression.
But after some time passed, no more blasts or shakes came.
"Alright, let's move."
Geon-woo decided to stick to the plan and summoned his psychokinesis.
A tunnel began to open toward Cheonjung Village.
It was wide enough for two people to walk side by side without issue.
"Nice."
Pang sidled right up to Geon-woo and grabbed his arm.
"Get off. This is exhausting."
"Come on, it's just walking. What's exhausting about it?"
"We're inside the anti-ability field right now. Using psychokinesis takes ten times the normal effort."
"Still, our Geon-woo can push through no problem."
"It might look easy to you, but it's not. Can't you see the sweat on my forehead?"
"Huh, where? Whoa, it really is."
"Hands off!"
"Aw, let me wipe it for you. Just bend down a little. Please?"
"Are we here to play?!"
"Who could sneak past your senses underground? You'd notice anything weird right away. What's there to tense up about?"
"I'd rather die than deal with this. How did the mighty Pang end up like this?"
"Hohoho. Mighty Pang, my ass. The world's changing so fast, my values are shifting a bit too."
"Then why's it shifting toward clinging to me?!"
"'Cause our Geon-woo's the world's strongest merc."
"Ugh."
Geon-woo groaned at Pang's behavior, which grew harder to handle with each passing day.
At some point, she'd started openly showing her affection for him without restraint.
It stirred unfamiliar emotions in Geon-woo, making it tough to respond every time.
"Hm? Space ahead."
Just then, an opportunity arose to escape the awkward vibe.
Geon-woo strained his increasingly restricted psychokinesis and linked a passage to the space he sensed in front.
Kugugugugu!
"Whoa, you just blasting through like that? Is that okay?"
Pang tensed up and activated her Yultren armor.
A silver suit of armor immediately enveloped her body.
Unlike before, this version fully covered her face and obscured her figure, making it impossible to tell if the wearer was male or female.
"It's just an empty space, so relax. I still don't sense any Demon Tribe or their minions."
"Hey, you really pushing hard, huh?"
While Geon-woo scanned the surroundings with psychokinesis, Pang focused more on the sweat beading on his forehead than his words.
"Why would I lie to you? Can't use psychokinesis much from here on out. Hoo..."
Geon-woo took a deep breath and released his psychokinesis.
"Still impressive. I lost access to Hydra not long after entering the anti-ability field."
Pang gave Geon-woo a thumbs-up for using his ability far longer than she had.
"Guess this is their actual defensive stronghold from here. The magic circle they're guarding is underground, right?"
Geon-woo asked Pang.
Most of the intel on Cheonjung Village came from her.
"Yeah. Like all those shady bastards, they've built most of their key facilities underground. The dimension-linked magic circle—the top priority target—is down there too."
It was info Pang had squeezed out of the Demon Tribe's human minions.
Those minions were pure humans, so they often betrayed the demons for personal gain.
Like bats, always trying to profit from both sides. Pang mainly got her Demon Tribe intel from them.
"So somewhere in this underground base, there's a magic circle?"
Geon-woo regretted not having full use of his psychokinesis.
If he could wield it freely, he could scan the base like a sonar.
Right now, it barely reached ten meters, and that was just probing through the ground. Moving the earth itself was tough even a few steps ahead.
He shook his head after a brief test.
Then he turned to Pang.
"Alright, time to call them in?"
"Yeah. Promised we would. But you sure spatial transfer works inside the anti-ability field?"
"If it works, I said to do it."
Geon-woo focused his mind on his left hand as he replied.
A tattoo appeared on the back of his hand, opening a dimensional rift in front of him.
He pulled out several thin metal plates, laid them on the ground, and fitted them together like puzzle pieces.
Finally, he infused them with mana to activate.
Wooong! Wooong!
Ung! Ung! Ung! Ung! Ung!
The completed plate was about four meters in diameter—plenty wide—and hummed rhythmically once powered by mana.
The sound sped up until—
Shwaaak!
Light and air burst out as five people materialized on the plate.
"Woo! We made it!"
"Success."
"Man, I'm gonna die. Never doing that again."
"Good work. Jumper."
"Yeah, Jumper did the heavy lifting. Director over there pitched in too."
The five arrivals were all men in their twenties to thirties.
The one who'd led the transfer was a pale-faced white guy in his late twenties with brown hair.
The one they called Director appeared to be the oldest, in his late thirties.
"Guardians?"
Geon-woo asked.
"Yes, Director. Guardian Special Team."
"You're the team leader?"
"Affirmative. Codename: Commander."
"That's Jumper, and the other three?"
"Attacker."
"Shooter."
"Guard."
The remaining three stated their codenames in response.
"Nice, straightforward codenames. Anyway, I'm Pang."
Pang jumped in with her intro.
"Pleasure. Honored to meet the legend of Onboard's 1st Expedition Team. Nice to meet you too, Pang."
Commander greeted them on behalf of the group.
Meanwhile, the rest formed up around him.
Geon-woo frowned slightly at the sight and glared at one man.
"Guard!"
"Yes? Director."
"What the hell are you doing?"
"Pardon?"
"Why are you facing our side? You think me and Pang are your enemies?"
"N-No, sir."
"Then why are you, Shooter, and Attacker all pointed at us?"
"S-Sorry. I assessed this as pre-op briefing, before mission start."
"This is enemy territory."
Geon-woo warned coldly at Guard's excuse.
The formation shifted instantly around Commander.
Now it covered Commander, Jumper, Pang, and Geon-woo in its protection.
Even though it was just three—Guard, Shooter, Attacker—in a triangle enclosing more people, Geon-woo approved.
"Don't worry about protecting me or Pang. But ditch any subconscious hostility toward us. If that mistake happens again, we won't move together."
Geon-woo warned Commander.
He was holding the special team leader accountable for everything.
"My apologies."
Commander admitted fault plainly, without excuses.
"I get how Neuron Age's Guardians see me and Pang, but treat us as teammates during ops. If not, you won't last long as mercs."
Though aimed at Commander, it was advice for the whole special team.
"What can you do? They're still green. Not used to our style yet. Let's drop it and start the op."
Pang, who'd been watching, brushed off the special team and urged to begin.
Geon-woo had no interest in dragging it out, so he nodded and pointed one way.
"Let's move. As you know, abilities are mostly sealed here. Avatar base functions aren't restricted, so watch your own backs."
"No worries, Director. We won't be a liability."
As the team headed the way Geon-woo indicated, Commander replied with a stiff expression.
"Hope so. This joint op only happened because Director Baylor pulled strings."
Geon-woo emphasized it wasn't his idea, then stepped deeper into the Demon Tribe's underground base.