The Operation Begins
Grante had a persistent side that once she latched onto something, she never let go.
Once she started suspecting something, she clung to it until the very end.
Elysia had been venting to Maril about everything that had happened.
"...It all turned out that way."
Grante listened quietly to Elysia's words.
Her ears perked up, and her tail began wagging.
"Then! What about me? When will I get summoned, nyang?"
"I don't know that either."
No one knew the exact process by which a hero summons their companions in this world.
So the question of whether Grante could be summoned someday remained unanswered.
"Why nyang nyang nyang!! I'm not being summoned, nyang!"
"I don't know the precise mechanism either."
"T-Then! Why me, nyang!"
"Because... I'm the one closest to Master, after all."
"Hehe."
As expected, Elysia spoke with complete confidence that she was the closest to her Master.
Grante couldn't bring herself to deny it.
She was the last to join the hero's party, while Elysia had been the first disciple.
"That's unfair, nyang."
"I think it's best if more companions are summoned for Master's safety, but... I don't have a method yet."
Grante narrowed her eyes thoughtfully, her tail still curled.
Then she suddenly grinned, revealing her fangs.
A good idea had occurred to her.
"I should ask that guy, nyang."
Elysia asked who he meant, but Grante leaped out the window before she could finish.
Paaak-!
In an instant, Grante vanished from sight.
Elysia sighed softly while watching her retreating figure.
'No need to spread rumors everywhere.'
She tidied up the office that had been disturbed by the uninvited guest, her expression full of worry.
Then she promised herself she would purify her body and mind until Master summoned her.
***
The day the Songdo operation began.
I woke up early, finished my preparations, and summoned Elysia.
Hwaat-!
Elysia appeared with her familiar light.
In her hand was the familiar sword.
"Master, I hope you have been well."
"I'm fine."
Elysia glanced at Cha Seo-rin beside her and continued.
"I was worried she might have caused trouble while I was away."
Elysia delivered her subtle provocation.
However, Seo-rin accepted it lightly.
"I don't know what trouble, but... I've had a proper date with oppa for a while now."
Elysia frowned deeply at Seo-rin's unnecessary comment.
But I quickly changed the subject.
"Uh... uh, is the sword in your hand mine?"
"Yes, it's yours. Among the swords Master personally used, I brought the one that fits your body best right now."
The sword in Seo-rin's hand was one from the early days of the hero's era.
It wasn't a legendary sword, but the top-grade one personally gifted by the king at the time.
"It's been a while."
"Take a swing."
Elysia offered the sword, and I took it.
The familiar feel was there.
Because my body here was much smaller, the sword felt a bit large, but it shouldn't be a problem.
"Memories."
I was lost in a brief nostalgia.
The first three years as a hero were filled with hardships adapting to the other world and training my skills.
And this sword had come with the explosive power surge back then.
"Oh... so this is an artifact from the other world?"
Seo-rin stared with wide eyes beside me.
Awakened in this world called equipped weapons artifacts.
Monster cores and collected magic stones were used across every field in the present world, but the most common use was for artifact creation.
Because ordinary modern weapons weren't very effective against monsters.
"It seems to contain quite a high purity of mana?"
"Of course. I forged it myself in the other world."
Seo-rin looked at it with amazement.
I answered with a bit of swagger in front of her.
'Well, I should give it a good swing for old times' sake.'
I gripped the sword lightly and took a stance.
As expected, the weight felt heavy because of the weak body here.
But that was fine once I got used to it.
Uwoong--
More importantly, I carefully contacted the mana inside the sword with the mana I originally possessed.
Shuwaa--!
The sword emitted a faint light and vibration.
The mana in the sword was that of Hero Terda.
If it clashed with the mana I had gained after awakening as Kang Si-ho, it would be problematic.
'Good thing it mixed smoothly.'
The mana inside flowed naturally into my body.
And my mana melted into the sword little by little.
It wasn't an easy sword to control, so I had worried about how much practice it would take.
But the sword gave me the mana path much more easily than I expected.
"It seems the sword also recognizes its owner."
"That makes sense. It's fortunate."
With this, I could exert a good amount of power.
I moved my feet accordingly.
The destination for Elysia, Seo-rin, and me was near the Songdo waterfront.
The pre-operation waiting area.
Even though we arrived early, most guilds had already gathered and finished preparing.
They looked full of fighting spirit, as if the weight of this operation was heavy on their minds.
While we were also preparing, the guild headquarters director called the guild leaders together.
"Now, let's begin without delay. The monsters are expected to emerge onto land in three hours. Everyone, fight with all your strength at your assigned positions."
The director spoke briefly and firmly, his expression resolute.
The guild leaders, including me, headed to their respective regions.
"Terda Guild, waiting at E Point."
I reported the situation over the walkie-talkie provided by the guild headquarters to the guild leaders.
"Mir Guild, waiting at A Point, combat ready."
"We are at C Point..."
The other guilds seemed to have moved without issues.
From what I saw, each guild had at least several dozen Awakened gathered in neat lines with swords.
For us, since we were only three, it wasn't really a formation.
We simply waited on the rooftop of a high building overlooking the beach, hoping the monsters would appear.
"We can't lose to the other guilds. This time, show them our strength and make everyone pay attention!"
"It's a shame we were assigned the smallest scale."
Seo-rin and Elysia burned with fighting spirit.
"It's our first mission, so it's still worth it. Just being allowed to participate is a blessing."
I didn't intend to get full just from the first drink.
I would take it slow.
"Everyone, don't get hurt and don't overdo it."
"Of course."
"Please take care, Master."
I wasn't particularly worried.
Rather, the point I was watching was the other guilds.
'How well will the other guilds fight?'
This operation involved many famous guilds from South Korea.
Since it was a large-scale battle, it was a chance to see how experienced they were against monsters.
Observing their power would also be a good experience.
Especially interesting was the artifacts created here using modern science and magic stones.
How effective would the artifacts made with magic stones using today's technology be against monsters?
It would probably be confirmed in this battle.
While organizing those thoughts in my head.
"Master, I see them."
Elysia spoke in a heavy voice.
"Where? I don't see anything."
"I see them. They should emerge onto land in fifteen minutes."
I couldn't see them either, but if Elysia said so, they would come soon.
"Then let's get ready."
I descended from the building and loosened my body.
Holding my breath, I focused on the senses of mana.
'Even if it's the minimum... that's quite a number.'
Over a hundred heads were sensed.
And soon after.
The monsters stepped out of the water onto land.
"Grrrraaa--"
"Kshaaat--!"
The monsters saw us welcoming them and charged forward with vigor.
"Master, please hold your position. I'll move."
Elysia gripped her twin swords and kicked off the ground, leaping out.
"I'll go too! Oppa, stay right here. Don't move carelessly and get hurt."
Seo-rin flew after them.
Elysia's elegant sword dance sent the deep-sea monsters tumbling down one after another.
Swoosh-
Swoosh-!
Swoosh-!!
"Grrrraaa--!"
"Kshaaak!"
Seo-rin, matching the rhythm, floated in the air and rained down countless fire arrows from the sky.
Boom!
Kwaquang-!
Kwaquakwong-!!
"Kiaaaak--!"
"Krrruu--"
The smell of fish and burnt flesh filled the air with vibrations.
It wasn't even a proper battle; it was one-sided slaughter.
I felt embarrassed holding the sword.
'There's no tension.'
I had nothing to do.
Since I felt like I should do something, I crossed my arms and pondered when a thought struck.
I should record this scene.
"Grrraaa--!!"
"Kkururuuk--"
Amid the ominous screams, I pulled out my phone from my pocket.
I fixed the screen toward Elysia and Seo-rin and began recording.
"Ah, hello. This is Kang Si-ho, guild leader of Terda Guild."
Recording felt so long since the last time, it was awkward.
For now, I decided to speak whatever came to mind.
"This is Songdo. We are currently on location to exterminate the monsters in the Songdo area."
Using a tone I had heard somewhere, I angled the camera toward Elysia.
Chwa chwa chwaat--!
The camera moved at a speed too fast for it to follow as Elysia danced with her swords.
While filming that scene, I added some lines.
"She is Elysia, our close-range combat specialist. She fights by attacking and defending simultaneously with her twin swords."
Doing this made me feel decent.
As my mouth started loosening, all sorts of stories spilled out.
"Her swordsmanship is superb; I taught it to her myself. The monsters are falling down without any mercy."
I angled the camera toward Seo-rin next.
Seo-rin, being slower in movement, made filming easy.
"This is Cha Seo-rin, our long-range specialist. She's a mage."
After a few lines, it naturally turned into a review-style comment.
"Seo-rin's fire magic is terrifying. It's extremely fierce flames. Seo-rin used to be all cute when she was little... but now she's become a manifestation of hellfire."
I was speaking almost on autopilot.
Fortunately, my voice didn't reach Seo-rin.
Elysia and Seo-rin fought side by side, each watching the monsters.
"It was the first time they fought together, so I was worried, but they seem to have good synergy."
Seo-rin handled long-range attacks, Elysia close-range, so their paths never overlapped.
It was a perfect coordinated attack for beginners.
After a short time, nearly all the monsters heading to E Point had been dealt with.
"Hah, swinging a sword after so long feels refreshing."
"Haha... me too... I haven't used magic like this in a while... haaah."
Elysia looked like she had just loosened up, but Seo-rin seemed exhausted.
Elysia noticed and subtly provoked.
"It's a shame at this level. How about you go to the next point, Seo-rin?"
"Haa... really? The other guilds are doing fine."
"Having support is always better than not having it."
Elysia threw a dig at what Seo-rin had done to her last time.
"Or are you already tired?"
"Hut."
Seo-rin looked stung, but she didn't show it.
"Tired? I'm still full of energy!"
"Then let's head to the nearest D Point. Is that okay, Master?"
"Sure."
We hadn't filmed enough of their fighting.
So while moving to D Point to create more realistic footage, we decided to hunt the monsters.