Mine (4)
Taeju headed up to the slum alleys of Chilheuk-dong to hunt the mine.
At that moment, Lee Jeonghak was reviewing reports in his office.
Kim Taeju, the chairman, had told him to stop the pointless power struggles and focus on Gurye City's security. Honestly, it was embarrassing.
There was no excuse.
Even now, violent crimes like assaults, murders, kidnappings, and rapes were breaking out all over Gurye.
And that wasn't all.
The number of missing persons each month was staggeringly high.
That was just the reported cases. The ones who vanished without a trace couldn't even be tracked.
Whew, the vigilante squad is way too understaffed.
To maintain security, they needed at least double the current numbers.
But Cheonwang Group's Chairman Min Dongyeol and the imperial government envoy Ji Gwangin were blocking them. They absolutely didn't want the vigilante squad gaining power.
Cheonwang Group was a homegrown company that rose in Gurye.
Chairman Min Dongyeol secretly maintained his own armed force.
He couldn't form a guild due to regulations, but he hired awakeners and mana compatibles as bodyguards.
Ji Gwangin, who was supposed to monitor that, turned a blind eye because he was in bed with Min Dongyeol.
I need to come up with some kind of plan.
Suddenly.
Bang!
Vice Guild Master Park Jeongtae burst in without knocking.
"Guild master! Big trouble!"
"Haa, what now... another murder?"
"No, sir. Look at this. It's a message that just came in on the 113 emergency line."
"What?"
The 113 emergency line...
"A mine? A mine report?"
Lee Jeonghak shot to his feet in shock.
"Yes, a mine report."
"Who's the reporter?"
"Well..."
"Who?"
"It's Kim Taeju, the chairman. He sent a photo of the mine from the Chilheuk-dong slums in Gurye, along with a message."
"..."
I'm gonna lose my mind.
Where the hell does this guy find these mines?
Vice Guild Master Park Jeongtae opened his tablet and showed the photo of the mine.
It was real.
No doubt about it.
A human turned monster.
A bona fide mine.
"That fucking bastard!"
A mine had been hiding in Gurye?
Shock gave way to rage.
Mines raised their ranks by eating the hearts and organs of mana compatibles and awakeners. They were wanted criminals worldwide.
"Mobilize the entire vigilante squad now!"
"Deployment ready, sir."
"Move out!"
Lee Jeonghak led the vigilante squad and rushed toward the Gurye slums.
But others had arrived first.
"About time you showed up."
"Too late. Tsk tsk, what if the mine escapes?"
Cheonwang Group's Min Dongyeol and envoy Ji Gwangin, with their hordes of bodyguards.
Whew, those damn pests.
113 reports weren't sent only to the vigilante squad.
They went automatically to the autonomous committee, nearby private guilds, police stations, or military units.
Lee Jeonghak needed time to assemble his squad, but Min Dongyeol and Ji Gwangin just had to show up personally.
They want to get their names on the report to the emperor?
Mine extermination had to be reported in detail to the imperial government.
Their names had to be on the report the emperor would read.
"Let's go."
"We'll follow from the rear. The vigilante squad should take point."
"..."
He wanted to curse them out, but now wasn't the time.
Then!
Thud thud thud thud thud...
Three large twin-rotor transport helicopters approaching the entrance to Gurye slums from the sky.
...Fuck.
They bore the clear mark of the Jirisan Monster Defense Legion.
The transports descended low, as if to land.
Soldiers leaped out without ropes.
Thud thud, thud thud thud!
"1st Platoon, all clear!"
"2nd Platoon, all clear!"
"3rd Platoon..."
The Jirisan Monster Defense Legion's elite anti-monster special forces.
And, as always, Major General Oh Jinhyeong.
"Jeonghak, sent you again?"
"...Yes, sir."
"Where's the mine?"
"Scouted to the top of Chilheuk-dong slums over there."
"Got it."
This time, he couldn't claim free city jurisdiction.
Mine hunts were equivalent to monster waves.
Free cities or provincial territories—anyone could intervene anytime a mine appeared.
"Oh, right! Where's Chairman Kim Taeju?"
"Haven't seen him yet. Probably fighting the mine..."
"I see."
Oh Jinhyeong stared piercingly at Lee Jeonghak.
"Hey, Jeonghak!"
"Yes?"
"You finally snapped out of it?"
"...Snapped out of what?"
"Relying on your rank and acting tough, nearly dying made you realize how scary the world is, huh?"
Lee Jeonghak couldn't respond.
Not a word was wrong.
"Let's do better from now on?"
"..."
Min Dongyeol and Ji Gwangin approached Oh Jinhyeong from the rear.
"Hello, sir."
"Long time no see. Remember me, Major General? Ji Gwangin, imperial envoy..."
But Oh Jinhyeong didn't even acknowledge the greeting.
"Advance! Target: mine extermination! Exterminate!"
"Exterminate!"
"Exterminate!"
※ ※ ※
Wang Anpyeong was deeply satisfied with the scene visible through his gas mask.
The young punk in the gray coat staggering from the enhanced sarin gas poisoning.
Did he think he'd fight just on monsterization alone?
Enhanced sarin gas was his trump card.
He could survive with an antidote, but who carried that around normally?
Of course, he did.
He kept it in his bag just in case.
"How's it feel, punk? Thrilling, right? Enhanced sarin gas. Rare stuff. Didn't expect to use it here."
No response, obviously.
His nerves were paralyzed; he couldn't even breathe.
Back when China still had a government, they'd made it to counter monster waves—a weapon of mass destruction.
He'd smuggled it over when the Samhan Empire took over.
It wasn't very effective against monsters, though.
But against awakeners and mana compatibles? Perfect.
"Why so quiet? Wag that tongue like before."
Suddenly, the gray coat dropped to his knees.
Head bowed, not even twitching.
"Huh? ...Dead already?"
Too quick and boring.
Still, Wang Anpyeong didn't move.
Might be playing dead.
Meanwhile, Taeju finally learned the name of the gas he was absorbing.
Aha! Enhanced sarin gas, huh.
A chemical poison gas.
Truly rare.
A new poison even Absolute Poison Demon Dang Gunak had never encountered.
No such thing existed in the martial world.
Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong activated naturally without thought.
The enhanced sarin was absorbed into his poison core, imprinting its properties.
Taeju kept inhaling deeply.
Sip, ha! Sip, ha!
Couldn't waste a bit.
Why only two gas canisters?
Even the trace amounts escaping the cave entrance were precious.
At 5th stage Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong, most poisons were like food.
He absorbed and adapted instantly.
Of course, the absolute strongest were still too much.
Legends like humanoid trees, poison dragons, millennium imugi, formless earth poisons, or Earth's radiation-based toxins... anything short of that, he devoured.
Absorbed through bronchi and lungs, routed via meridians to his dantian, strengthening his organs further.
Right then!
Ziiiiing!
...Huh?
His poison core began vibrating.
No way.
He hadn't expected this.
The poison core was growing.
Devouring the enhanced sarin chemical poison, it was breaking through from 5th to 6th stage.
6th stage? For real?
Zing! Ziiing! Ziiiing!
The vibrations peaked.
A new vista unfolded.
At 6th stage, poison dragon arts unlocked, myriad hidden techniques available.
All flashed through his mind like a panorama.
6th stage.
Just one step from 7th.
Tsss, tss!
Even after sucking so much, delicious poison gas still bubbled out.
But at 6th stage, it wasn't special anymore.
He'd absorbed it all; the poison core quieted.
Thinking about it, he felt a bit guilty.
Ilbaek was here too; hogging it all wasn't polite.
Good things should be shared.
"Kekeke, pathetic worm. You were so cocky earlier..."
The mine approached.
Reached to grab his hair—
Snap!
"Gasp!"
Taeju seized the mine's hand.
And yanked off its gas mask.
"Hot in there? Let me help."
"Y-You bastard?"
Wang Anpyeong freaked out.
Tried to pull free and retreat, but—
Rip!
The mask came off.
"Hah!"
He squinted and held his breath.
"It's fine, breathe. Breathe!"
"...!"
Incomprehensible.
What? Why isn't it affecting him?
Fake sarin?
Had to be—
Slap!
His head snapped around.
Absurd.
A slap in this situation.
"Breathe, you punk! That's the one way you can contribute to the world."
Slap! Slap!
Two more slaps fueled Wang Anpyeong's rage!
Crunch crunch crunch!
Monsterization.
Wang Anpyeong roared with bloodshot eyes.
"You bastard!!! I'll kill y— mph!"
Mouth opened, enhanced sarin rushed into his lungs.
"Fuc— cough, you, you... hack. Gah!"
The gas was real.
Just one breath, but devastating.
Vision blackened.
Nausea surged.
Breath choked off, convulsions hit.
Why's that guy fine...?
No time for antidote.
Only thought: escape.
Vroom!
He hastily summoned mana.
Crunch!
Monsterized body stronger, he tried to flee the cave, but—
"Where you going!"
Taeju grabbed his hair.
"Urk! L-Let go— cough."
"I'll make breathing easier."
"Wha—"
Bam!
Blood Seal Poison Palm to the gut.
"Gahack!"
Taeju decided.
Beat this one to death.
Monsterization bulked him up—plenty to hit.
"W-Wait! Urgh!"
Crack! Thud!
Taeju pummeled the mine pinned to the cave wall like a sandbag.
Uppercut to the bending torso, straightening it—
Bam! Thud thud thud thud!
He spoke while striking.
"Know why you're getting hit?"
"Ghk? Gack..."
"Revenge for the young man who died without even seeing flowers bloom."
"Kuh! You son of a—"
"No cursing! Scream! Die in agony!"
Thud thud thud!
Taeju's fist sank into Wang Anpyeong's skull.
Crack! Crunch!
"Gaaaaah!!! Hack!"
Poison gas death or fists?
Pointless question.
※ ※ ※
Oh Jinhyeong led the anti-monster special forces, surrounding and ascending Chilheuk-dong slums.
Behind: Lee Jeonghak's vigilante squad, Min Dongyeol, Ji Gwangin.
The slums were dead silent.
With the military involved, no one would step outside.
They reached the top without incident.
"Ah!"
"Holy..."
"This!"
"Whew."
The spacious yard before the top house.
A gruesome scene too horrific to witness.
"Major General, sir! Here..."
Oh Jinhyeong went where his subordinate called.
A mine dead on the ground, ass up, fully monsterized.
"Projectile went through the anus and embedded in that wall."
"Good enema job."
Horrific to behold, but satisfying.
"Here too."
Another mine.
Two of them?
This corpse was gruesome too.
Limbs twisted backward at joints.
One ankle half-severed by a sharp blade.
Black blood oozing from the abdomen.
"Handle the bodies carefully. No bare hands."
"Yes, sir."
Everyone but Oh Jinhyeong shuddered, faces pale.
Min Dongyeol and Ji Gwangin retched in the corner.
Someone whispered.
"S-So brutal..."
Oh Jinhyeong replied coldly.
"No sympathy. They deserve it."
Then,
"You two, dig up the yard with entrenching tools."
"Where, sir?"
"Anywhere! You'll see."
Two special forces dug vigorously with shovels.
Not even deep.
Clunk!
A human skull caught on the shovel.
"Gasp!"
"Aaaah..."
"Those fucking mine bastards!"
This was a mine.
The vigilantes and soldiers witnessed it clearly.
Where was Chairman Kim Taeju, anyway?
Inside the house?
Then.
"M-Major General!"
A special forces officer pointed down the mountain.
A man in a gray coat visible.
"Uh..."
Not alone.
Dragging a monsterized mine corpse by the ankle, trudging up.
Mines that grew strong eating awakeners and mana compatibles with monsterized bodies.
And he'd taken down three alone?
Taeju reached the top and greeted Oh Jinhyeong casually.
"Faster than I thought."
"...No, we're late. What are we supposed to do if you handle it all?"
Whoosh!
Thud!
Taeju tossed the mine corpse to the yard's edge.
"Major General."
"...What? S-Speak."
"This wasn't me."
Oh Jinhyeong rolled his eyes as if to say what nonsense—
"Huh? ...Oh, r-right. Wasn't you."
Taeju looked at Lee Jeonghak.
"Say it was a joint vigilante-military op."
Lee Jeonghak nodded.
A man who'd solo-killed three mines at once.
Could he do it?
No chance.
The mine slayer was telling him to shut up.
So he did.