Episode 21
The appearance of a new monster drastically changed the course of a fight that was thought to be over.
The lightning that poured down unilaterally with no way to stop it was no different from a disaster for the hunters.
In order to overcome this crisis, we had to quickly subdue the new monster, but at the moment, we didn’t even know how to deal with it, let alone properly identify the enemy.
Because of the dark clouds, we couldn’t even see its true appearance, so all we could guess was the approximate size of the new monster.
“The lightning rod installation is complete!”
“Did you put them all in the places I told you to?”
“Yes! That’s right!”
Seo Sang-ho bit his lower lip as he looked at the lightning that had not subsided at all.
I thought that setting up a lightning rod would provide some protection.
Unfortunately, it didn’t have much of an effect, perhaps because it was something hastily put together by people without professional knowledge.
“shit.”
Seo Sang-ho came up with the next plan without delay.
Seo Sang-ho, who had connected with the magicians, immediately asked them.
“Can you snipe that monster hiding in the clouds?”
The cloud reached an altitude of 34,200 feet.
The magicians answered that even if their skills did reach them, their power would be greatly reduced.
In short, it was impossible to shoot it down with skills.
“I guess I have no choice but to go there myself.”
Although it was very risky, the only way to try it now was to use the helicopter that the government had agreed to support.
“It’s a good thing I asked in advance.”
It was too risky for the guild leader to approach a monster he didn’t know anything about.
But this was the only method that came to mind right away.
Seo Sang-ho thought that this was the time for him to step forward, so he made up his mind despite the opposition of his executives.
“There’s a helicopter coming!”
After hearing the guild member’s words, I looked up at the sky and saw a helicopter approaching from far away.
Seo Sang-ho witnessed the helicopter being struck by lightning falling from the sky right before his eyes.
The lightning struck with a flash of lightning and struck the helicopter with precision, burning the people inside to a crisp.
“oh my god…….”
The helicopter crashed with smoke, causing a huge explosion the moment it hit the ground.
Seo Sang-ho’s expression as he looked at it was filled with nothing but emptiness.
“How did someone who can’t even tell friend from foe hit the helicopter so accurately…?”
“It may not be able to identify the target, but it seems to be able to detect the target’s movements.”
The person who answered Seo Sang-ho’s question was not a guild member, but Kang Jin-hyeok.
Since it was a fairly credible claim, Seo Sang-ho picked up the walkie-talkie and gave new instructions to the guild members.
“Let’s have the drones we brought for filming approach those clouds one by one.”
Not long after the guild members began to follow the order, lightning struck the sky repeatedly.
The new monster shot down a drone that was less than 30cm long and wide with perfect accuracy.
We burned more than 10 expensive drones, but there were some results.
By testing different approach distances for each drone, we were able to determine the detection range of the new monster.
“The detection range is over a 1,000m radius. If you get closer than that, you’ll be struck by lightning with 100% accuracy?”
Seo Sang-ho, who received the guild member’s report, smiled in vain.
In this way, approaching by helicopter was nothing but a suicidal act.
“How on earth am I supposed to catch that… … .”
Next to Seo Sang-ho, who was depressed in the face of adversity, Kang Jin-hyeok quietly glared at the clouds.
* * *
The Titan guild members and most of the Hunters took temporary shelter in the basement of a nearby building.
On the ground, only a minimal number of people remained to prevent the monsters from leaving the defensive line.
The hunters gathered at the temporary shelter all thought about how to defeat the new monster.
Veteran hunters who had been through all sorts of hardships gathered together and put their heads together, but no viable solution was found.
Time just passed meaninglessly. Everyone became anxious as no solution came to mind.
Finally, a Titan executive who could no longer bear it any longer asked Seo Sang-ho a question.
“Is it really impossible for the guild leader to defeat that monster?”
“My skill’s range is only about 300m. How can a guy who is a so-called executive not know that?”
“I asked even though I knew.”
If you somehow get close to 300m towards the cloud, you can deal with it using Seo Sang-ho’s skill.
The executive’s question was intended to ask whether that approach was non-existent at all.
Actually, there was one small possibility.
That was the method by which Seo Sang-ho jumped alone from a higher altitude than the new monster could detect and reached its firing range.
Seo Sang-ho furrowed his brows after hearing about the operation from his executives.
“Are you telling me to dive?”
“If you have the body of an S-class hunter, you can endure it.”
“You’re talking nonsense, saying it’s not your body.”
Just because S-class Hunters have superior physical abilities compared to others doesn’t mean they are invincible.
If the shootdown fails at an altitude of 34,000 feet and the plane crashes, even an S-class hunter will not be able to find a single piece of the body.
“If you’re not going to come with me, then shut your mouth. I’m not going to risk my life on uncertain odds.”
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“… … Excuse me.”
The executive who stepped down received glares from his colleagues.
No matter how bad the situation was, asking the guild leader to make a sacrifice was crossing the line.
As the atmosphere became increasingly tense with Seo Sang-ho’s cold expression, another executive stepped forward and spoke.
“Then it seems like we have no choice but to wait for another S-class hunter.”
“That’s right. For example, the guild leader of Goetia… … .”
“Getia? Do you think they’ll help us?”
They were a guild that gathered only the best of the hunters who had turned into magicians.
Not only did they all have ranks above A, but the guild leader’s rank was S-rank, just like a Titan.
Although their skills were guaranteed, they lacked humanity.
The sole purpose of their activities was to investigate and analyze monsters.
Even if someone died right next to me, I would never try to help if it was out of line with my purpose.
Seo Sang-ho frowned as he recalled the arrogance displayed by the members of Goetia’s guild.
“It would be better to pray with cold water on your head than to expect those guys to help you.”
“Well, maybe this time it’ll be a little different?”
“On what basis?”
“That monster that appeared in the sky is a ‘new’ monster that has never been sighted before.”
Titan’s executives insisted that Goetia would actively cooperate in obtaining information about the new monster.
Although it was a fairly plausible story, Seo Sang-ho shook his head.
“That’s why it’s more problematic. What if they try to preserve the monster’s body as much as possible?”
“What’s the problem? Isn’t it just a matter of killing them?”
“It’s not that simple, is it?”
Seo Sang-ho continued his explanation to the bewildered executive.
“Who would stop a 500 meter long monster from falling from over 30,000 feet?”
“ah…….”
Only then did the executive realize the problem he had forgotten.
The new monsters that have appeared this time cannot be solved by just thinking about how to hunt them.
Since it appeared in the middle of the city, we also had to think of ways to minimize damage.
“Can’t we lure him into the river or the sea?”
“By what means?”
The hunter who had made the suggestion in response to Seo Sang-ho’s question kept his mouth shut and stepped back.
Everyone had plans to do something like that, but no one had any concrete plans to put it into action.
It was impossible to solve this problem with such a half-baked and clumsy plan.
1. Hunt a monster at an altitude of 35,000 ft that shoots lightning within a 1 km radius.
2. Prevent a 500m body from crashing into the city.
Only by solving these two challenges simultaneously could this situation be completely resolved.
“This is driving me crazy.”
Even as time passed while I was worrying, the monsters in the clouds continued to attack.
The number of lightning strikes increased as if mocking the poor lightning rod.
There are already 43 seriously injured people and 12 dead.
Even as the number of victims increased, Seo Sang-ho could not tell them to evacuate.
Because there are still monsters on the ground that haven’t been completely dealt with yet, we need to leave some personnel behind for the defense line.
Seo Sang-ho was using his position to force sacrifices on the hunters.
I was aware of how cruel it was.
“Shit…….”
As the anxiety grew with the passage of time, an emergency line was connected to Seo Sang-ho.
One of the reports I didn’t want to hear finally came to me.
I had expected that this situation would come someday.
But that time came much sooner than I thought.
“I remember there being plenty of personnel there, but it already collapsed?”
After hearing the report, Seo Sang-ho let out a deep sigh on the table.
Since he was in a position where he was just thinking about it from a safe place, he couldn’t be blamed for running away to survive.
“Okay. I’ll send support from here, so just hold on for five minutes.”
Seo Sang-ho ended the call and looked around at the hunters gathered in the shelter.
Seo Sang-ho couldn’t help but laugh when he saw all of the Titan executives gathered together.
‘I want to save my life at the end of my rope.’
Seo Sang-ho did not want to be treated like those people, so he wanted to step forward as a member of the rescue force right away.
But as the center of the Titans, his abandoning the meeting and going to the battlefield only led to a more serious situation.
Seo Sang-ho, who had been biting his lips for a moment and lost in thought, asked the hunters a favor.
“We need someone to support the right-hand defense line. Is there anyone who would volunteer to go?”
Since it was a request to go out into the battlefield where lightning strikes and monsters run rampant, not many people responded right away.
Still, thanks to those who took responsibility and stepped forward, we were able to fill about 10 positions.
Seo Sang-ho bowed his head to those who volunteered to support him.
“I will definitely pay you three times the amount promised.”
“Can I get that even if I die?”
Seo Sang-ho showed a complicated expression at the joke told by one of the hunters.
I couldn’t express my gratitude enough to those who willingly volunteered despite not being hunters in the same guild.
The hunters tapped Seo Sang-ho on the shoulder and went out of the shelter.
Kang Jin-hyeok, who had been quietly watching the scene, walked towards the table.
“I have a quick question to ask you.”
When the executives tried to say something about the appearance of a C-class hunter whose face they didn’t even know, Seo Sang-ho raised his hand to stop them.
“What are you curious about?”
“How many of those cloud monsters do I have to kill to clear the remaining debris?”
“Even if we assume it is simply the weight of a piece of meat, the limit is one-third.”
Considering the height and weight of the fall, Seo Sang-ho’s body could not have withstood it any longer.
“Then please come out and be ready when I call you.”
Seo Sang-ho and the Titan executives looked dumbfounded at Kang Jin-hyeok’s words.
“Does that mean you can catch that monster?”
“I’m not sure, but I’ll give it a try.”
“I’ll give it a try… … .”
While Seo Sang-ho was speechless and unable to continue speaking, Han Yeong-seok, a Titan executive who was nearby, stepped forward.
“Are you kidding me? Who the hell are you to come out of this situation?”
“There’s something I want to try out myself.”
Han Yeong-seok laughed out loud as if ignoring Kang Jin-hyeok.
He knew well the face of Kang Jin-hyeok, who had knocked Ando Yoon down with a baseball bat.
It was thanks to the investigation that I was able to get revenge on the person who tarnished the guild’s reputation.
“At best, you’re a C-class hunter. What can you do?”
“I’d rather do something useful than just sit here.”
At that moment, Han Yeong-seok blushed with emotion.
Kang Jin-hyeok’s words made them angry because they seemed to be mocking them for doing useless things.
“If you say so, then fine. If you catch that monster, I’ll give you an extra reward. However, if you fail, I’ll count all the rewards you received for this battle as nothing.”
They said they would only give me the promised reward if I caught a new type of monster that even S-class hunters couldn’t handle.
Han Yeong-seok’s words were nothing but nonsense.
But Kang Jin-hyeok didn’t pay any attention to that unreasonable claim.
“Compensation and all. Don’t whine later about handing over the monster’s corpse.”
“What, what did you say?!”
Han Yeong-seok couldn’t stand Kang Jin-hyeok, a mere C-rank hunter, talking back to him, an executive of a large guild.
But before Han Yeong-seok could go any further, Seo Sang-ho stretched out his arm to stop him.
While Seo Sang-ho was stopping Han Yeong-seok, Kang Jin-hyeok smiled meaningfully and left the shelter.
“Why did you stop me!”
When Han Yeong-seok asked angrily, Seo Sang-ho looked at him with a pitiful look.
Then, without even responding, he turned around and began discussing countermeasures with the other hunters.
Han Yeong-seok gritted his teeth when he saw Seo Sang-ho’s attitude.
* * *
More than 30 minutes have already passed since Kang Jin-hyeok left the temporary shelter.
At first, I had some hope when I heard that he had passed the defense line and gone outside, wondering if there really was a way.
Since I hadn’t heard any news since then, I was just feeling suspicious.
‘Is that just a remark made to escape?’
Even Seo Sang-ho, who had been viewing Kang Jin-hyeok positively, couldn’t help but be suspicious this time.
That would be the case, as he knew that Kang Jin-hyeok’s abilities were outstanding, but in this case, even he, an S-class hunter, was at a loss.
It wasn’t a problem that could be solved by swinging a baseball bat a little better.
‘Either he was trying to run away or it was just a bluff. Either way, it’s one of the two.’
While contacting other S-class Hunters and finding a way to overcome the current situation, Seo Sang-ho forgot about Kang Jin-hyeok and stopped caring about what he said.
Then, at a completely unexpected time, a call came from Kang Jin-hyeok’s name on the smartphone that was on the table.
The call ended with just one short word.
Seo Sang-ho wondered what kind of nonsense this was.
It was a statement that was beyond half-belief and not trustworthy at all.
‘Get ready? No way?’
What could possibly make a C-class hunter say something like that?
That moment when I was about to ignore it, thinking it would be a waste of time.
A loud noise was heard beyond the walls of the shelter, impenetrable even to the sound of thunder.
“What, what?!”
Seo Sang-ho heard a sound that seemed to shake the heavens and earth, and immediately jumped up and ran outside.
As he looked up at the sky, he saw a ray of light just crossing the sky.
And then.
The sad scream of a new type of monster that has been causing trouble to hunters up until now has been heard.
