Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: The Difference in Power (3)
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Kyaaak-! Kyaak-!
Su-ho frowned as he watched the catcher thrashing its body while letting out savage growls.
‘It really… was an illusion, huh.’
‘Disappointed it wasn’t a pure white cat?’
‘How…’
It had clearly been a small, cute cat. He should have suspected something just from that fact alone. There was no way something that adorable could exist in a Dead Zone.
The creature caught in the red chains and writhing in agony wasn’t a small, cute cat—it was bigger than a person and grotesquely deformed. No, up until someone called it a cat, it was impossible to even think of it as one.
It had no fur anywhere on its body, with only a remnant of a face left. Repulsive tumorous lumps clung to its back, dripping blood beneath them. It didn’t have two eyes. Four sunken sockets glowed with yellow light in place of eyeballs. Jagged teeth completed its utterly hideous form.
‘Why do all monsters look like this?’
‘Better this way, right? If it were actually cute, could you bring yourself to kill it?’
‘…No, I couldn’t.’
Kyaak-!
Su-ho opened his palm as he eyed the catcher’s fierce resistance. He could kill it with the flame chains alone, but he couldn’t just let this thing that had filled him with despair, even briefly, off the hook.
“You were truly revolting.”
Muttering under his breath, Su-ho conjured an energy orb and strode toward the catcher.
The four glowing lights glared at Su-ho with an eerie intensity.
“Go ahead and savor illusions like that yourself.”
The flame chains loosened smoothly, and at the same moment, the energy orb slammed precisely into the catcher’s abdomen.
Pajijijik-!
The swirling energy orb punched clean through the catcher’s gut with a pop—only for its body to explode into nothingness in an instant.
Su-ho wiped the splattered catcher blood from his face with his sleeve and turned around. The hunters and helpers sprawled on the ground were all groaning in pained expressions.
‘Hyung, how do we wake them up?’
‘Hit ‘em.’
‘Hit them?’
‘What, just gonna stand there and watch? They’ll stay trapped in those illusions.’
With no other choice, Su-ho headed toward Kwon Oh, the closest one lying there.
“Kwon Oh hyung, sorry…!”
Slap-! Kwon Oh’s eyes snapped open alongside his flushed-red cheek.
“Huk… huk…!”
Breathing raggedly, he glanced around wildly until he spotted Su-ho—then his eyes went wide.
“Hyung, everything you just saw was an illusion.”
“Ill… illusion?”
“Yeah. That cat monster—the catcher—must’ve cast illusions on everyone.”
“Ha…”
Kwon Oh let out a deep sigh of relief as he rubbed his chest.
“That illusion was way too horrifying…”
“They say it shows you whatever you fear the most.”
“Haha…”
Kwon Oh clutched his head with both hands, as if the memory was still too gruesome to bear.
“…I’ve got a little sister.”
“A little sister?”
“Yeah. She’s a civilian. So are my parents. I grew up at the Center, but my folks were pretty insistent—they kept bugging the Center Director for leave so I could visit home often.”
Tae-il had mentioned it once before: Kwon Oh was the only A-grade helper in Branch 1 who stayed in steady contact with his family.
Their family bond must run deep.
“But right in front of me… my family died. Monsters poured into the city, slaughtering people… and my parents were among the piled-up corpses.”
Kwon Oh’s voice trembled as he spoke.
“There was a monster right there… with my sister in its mouth. She was screaming for help…”
His face twisted in agony as he gripped his head tighter.
“I couldn’t save her…”
“…Hyung.”
“I know. It was an illusion. Thank God it was… Whew. Just too damn horrific.”
He shook his head vigorously, trying to shake off the lingering trauma.
“Hyung, it was all an illusion. The catcher shows whatever you fear most—that’s why it picked yours. Don’t let it shake you. It’s just some stupid illusion.”
“…Just some stupid illusion…”
“And besides, I won’t let anything like that happen.”
Su-ho curled the corner of his mouth upward.
“I’m SSS-grade, remember? No monster’s getting out of the Teleport Zone on my watch.”
That drew a small chuckle from Kwon Oh.
“Haha. That’s reassuring. Yeah, with you around.”
Seeming a bit calmer now, he scanned the surroundings.
“So, how do we wake the rest?”
“…Hyung, does your cheek hurt?”
“My cheek?”
Now that he mentioned it, one side burned. Kwon Oh touched it and frowned.
“Did I… get bit here or something?”
“No.”
Su-ho raised his hand apologetically.
“Sorry. Had no choice if I wanted to wake you.”
Kwon Oh let out a hollow laugh at the sight of Su-ho’s reddened palm.
“Ah, so that’s how it is. No helping it.”
As Kwon Oh moved to wake Clark lying beside him, he called out to Su-ho.
“Su-ho.”
“Yeah?”
“You can hit him… legally, right?”
“What do you…”
Kwon Oh pointed at Clark.
“Want me to do it instead?”
Su-ho glanced at Clark and grinned.
“Well, no reason to say no.”
Standing before Clark, Su-ho spread his palm wide and held it up. He’d wanted to smack the guy hard anyway—this was a golden opportunity.
‘A palm’s gonna cut it? Might as well zap him with the flame chains…’
‘Hyung. That’s murder.’
‘Tsk.’
Ignoring Jin Seong-hyeok’s disappointed click of the tongue, Su-ho raised his palm again. He had to make the most of this chance.
The high-raised palm swung precisely toward Clark’s cheek.
Thwack-!!!
“Agh!!”
Clark’s eyes flew open as he shot up, snarling.
“Which bastard! Who the hell hit my face…!”
He froze upon seeing Su-ho standing there.
“What’s going on here?”
“You got caught in an illusion. Remember that cat? It’s a monster called a catcher—looks like it hit everyone with one.”
Clark glanced around. Taking in the hunters and helpers all lying there with tortured expressions, he let out a sigh of realization.
“Ha, just great. The worst.”
“Apparently, a catcher’s illusions show you whatever you fear most.”
“Yeah. It was the worst.”
Clark continued gruffly.
“So how do we snap ‘em out of it?”
“Well…”
As Su-ho hesitated, Kwon Oh spoke up.
“Huh? Su-ho.”
“Yeah?”
Ji-young was sitting up, brow furrowed.
“I just… shook her a bit on the off chance, and she woke up?”
Su-ho paused and turned to Clark, who was rubbing his face and muttering.
“That damn catcher must’ve bitten my cheek. I won’t let it slide.”
He spat onto the ground—blood mixed in with the saliva.
“Hahaha…”
Kwon Oh burst into laughter at Su-ho’s awkward chuckle.
With that, they smoothly woke the rest of the hunters and helpers. Clark didn’t put up any more resistance after that. Everyone looked utterly drained—the illusions had taken a toll.
Without a word, they all headed for the Teleport Zone. Even after arriving at Branch 5, the aftereffects lingered; they dispersed quickly with weary expressions. Even Ji-young, looking pale, gave Su-ho a greeting before vanishing.
Kwon Oh was the least affected, but Ronnie and Larry had dragged him off, insisting fatigue was best beaten with exercise.
Left all alone, Su-ho pondered his next move. Head to the hunter training room for mental training? Or hit the fitness center…
Wait.
‘Hyung, didn’t you say you’d teach me that new technique?!’
‘You sure?’
‘Of course.’
‘Alright then, let’s do it. It’s essential if you’re heading into the Last Zone—including Deadlock.’
A technique even needed in the Last Zone. Su-ho’s heart began to race.
‘Where do we go?’
He asked, already thinking of opening a gate—only for Jin Seong-hyeok to reply lightly.
‘Nowhere. No need.’
‘Huh?’
‘One glass will do.’
‘…One glass?’
‘Well, for practice, more the better.’
What kind of training could be done with just a single glass?
‘Somewhere spacious would be ideal. How about the arena? It’s empty anyway—if you tell the examiner you’re using it, they’ll let you right in.’
First things first—he’d follow Jin Seong-hyeok’s instructions.
‘Got it.’
It was no hassle. He simply told a passing examiner he wanted the arena, and permission was granted on the spot. He asked his secretary Gi-uk to bring the glasses, and moments later, Gi-uk arrived with security personnel, stacking dozens of boxes filled with glasses in the arena’s corner.
“Haha… I don’t need that many.”
“Just in case, sir. You said you’re practicing a new technique—mind if I stick around?”
“Ah, that’s fine. Just… it might not come right away.”
“Then pretend I’m not here. I’m only around in case you get too focused and skip meals or something happens.”
“Understood.”
It felt a bit burdensome to have someone watching, but knowing it was out of care for him—rather than the technique—Su-ho accepted immediately.
‘So, what now?’
‘Grab one glass.’
Su-ho pulled a single glass from a box at Jin Seong-hyeok’s words.
‘And?’
‘Set it on the floor.’
Su-ho placed the glass he held down on the ground.
‘Done.’
‘Step back about five meters.’
‘From the glass?’
‘Yeah.’
Su-ho positioned himself roughly five meters away by eye and waited as Jin Seong-hyeok continued.
‘Every living thing and every material has its own unique vibration.’
Unique vibration. He’d heard the term somewhere before.
‘You know resonance? Sometimes called consonance.’
Resonance? Consonance?
Jin Seong-hyeok pressed on, as if expecting he wouldn’t know.
‘Ever heard of someone breaking a glass with their voice?’
‘Oh, like opera singers shattering glasses by belting out notes? Don’t tell me…’
Su-ho stared at the glass.
‘You want me to yell and break it…?’
‘As if.’
‘No?’
Jin Seong-hyeok clicked his tongue.
‘A glass shatters when the sound’s frequency—or vibration—matches the glass’s own, causing resonance.’
‘So the vibration from the yell matched the glass’s, and that’s what broke it?’
‘Not hopeless after all.’
‘I can grasp that much.’
‘Right. When resonance reaches its peak, the object destroys itself.’
Jin Seong-hyeok chuckled softly before going on.
‘I said every living thing and material has a unique vibration, didn’t I?’
‘Yes.’
‘That means if you match its unique frequency and apply force, you can destroy any material.’
Wait. So if he just matched the frequency… he could destroy a monster?
‘Exactly.’
‘Then the technique I’m learning…’
‘Yep. Matching a monster’s unique vibration, applying force, and shattering it.’
Jin Seong-hyeok let out a low laugh.
‘It’s also the new technique you’re about to master.’