Sunhee sat on the stairs and let out a sigh. It was a sigh that kept coming even if she stayed still. Her breath spread into the air in front of the runway.
She and the members of Team Crazy were gathered here at the aircraft maintenance hangar of Incheon International Airport.
She and her teammates had come here due to a sudden request from the government. The reason was the large-scale dimensional movement of monsters occurring on Yeongjong Island.
The government had been steadily dealing with the monsters appearing on Yeongjong Island to maintain Incheon International Airport. But yesterday, a large-scale dimensional movement suddenly occurred on Yeongjong Island.
If this large-scale dimensional movement had been caused by a Singularity, it would be a state of emergency. Korea’s gateway would be completely blocked.
Even before, every time monsters appeared, the airport would be frequently shut down, leading to many opinions suggesting that a Safe Zone should be established on Yeongjong Island. If a Singularity occurred, they would have to prioritize establishing a Safe Zone there over other cities.
Anyway, Team Crazy had also come to Yeongjong Island to hunt, responding to the government’s urgent request along with other teams of Awakened.
While team leader Han was meeting with other team leaders and government officials for discussions, the team members waited on the stairs in front of the hangar.
“I bet Sunhee noona sighed over a hundred times today.”
Dohyeon, who had been marveling at the airplane inside the hangar, now bored, floated his phone in the air as he spoke. His phone kept switching screens, displaying internet articles.
“It hasn’t even been a week since the captain went on vacation.”
Jimin, sitting next to Sunhee, grumbled to her.
At her words, Kangwoo, who was sitting behind them, lifted his glasses and chuckled. By now, everyone on the team knew that Sunhee liked Yonghoon.
“You don’t need to worry. Who knows? The captain’s rich, right? Maybe he’s secretly vacationing at a luxury resort surrounded by beautiful women. Ouch!”
Dohyeon, trying to comfort Sunhee, got a flick on the forehead from Jimin sitting behind him.
“That’s even worse!”
At Jimin’s words, Dohyeon clutched the back of his head with a sheepish look.
“Oops, sorry.”
Sunhee shook her head at Dohyeon’s words. Honestly, if that were the case, it would be fine.
However, the way he looked when he left on vacation was far from that. There was a sense of expectation, but it was definitely something dangerous.
Sunhee sighed again and looked far toward the north.
Team leader Han was approaching the team members. It was time for the hunt.
Yonghoon frowned as he saw the rifles pointed at him. After passing through the iron gate, he had barely walked a few steps before being surrounded by armed men.
To make matters worse, the iron gate a few dozen meters behind them slammed shut with a loud noise.
Soon, a man approached Yonghoon and Hyangseol, who were surrounded. It was the sharp-eyed middle-aged man who had spoken to them from atop the wall earlier.
Just a moment ago, Hyangseol had interpreted the conversation she had with that man at the gate for Yonghoon. Judging by her story and the man’s expression, it didn’t seem like things would go smoothly.
Yonghoon asked Hyangseol to interpret simultaneously as much as possible.
“Why are you pointing guns at us? And where are the Awakened who were originally guarding the area?”
In response to Hyangseol’s question, the man pointed at Yonghoon with his chin and spoke.
“Yesterday, many of our city’s Awakened were killed by outsiders. How can we trust outsiders in this situation?”
Even to Hyangseol, his words made sense.
But still, treating Yonghoon like this was not right.
Hyangseol conveyed the man’s words to Yonghoon.
“He says it’s because you’re an outsider. It seems everyone was really shocked by what happened yesterday. But he doesn’t believe my words either.”
Yonghoon chuckled at Hyangseol’s words. She was still just a child.
“Then tell him I’ll wait outside. After all, you’re the one who has business inside.”
Hyangseol looked a little surprised at Yonghoon’s words.
“You’re not just going to leave, are you?”
“Of course not. And even if you say that, they won’t let me go.”
At Yonghoon’s words, Hyangseol looked bewildered.
Anyway, she conveyed Yonghoon’s words to the security officer, who immediately shook his head.
“What? He’s my oppa’s guest. And he said he’d wait outside the wall!”
“We can’t let a dangerous individual roam outside. We have to detain him until we can verify his identity. And since you brought a suspicious person, you’ll be detained too.”
Only then did Hyangseol realize the situation. Clearly, something had gone wrong inside the city.
Hyangseol conveyed the man’s words to Yonghoon, then shared her own thoughts with him.
“With your ability, you could escape. It seems like things inside are chaotic. If you get caught like this, it could be really bad.”
Yonghoon looked at her.
“If you want, you can come with me.”
At his words, Hyangseol’s face brightened for a moment, then darkened again.
“I have to meet the Awakened uncles. They’re like family. I need to find out what happened to them. Anyway, they were the ones who fought together to stop the monsters. It’ll get better after a little time.”
Yonghoon looked at her with a bit of pity. No matter how he thought about it, he didn’t expect a good outcome.
But it was her decision. He patted her shoulder.
Yonghoon looked around.
About ten soldiers were surrounding him and Hyangseol with guns. And several more soldiers on the wall were aiming at him.
However, Yonghoon’s expression as he surveyed his surroundings was calm.
It seemed they believed they could suppress Awakened with guns.
But they were only half right. If the Awakened was about E-Rank, a group of people with guns could indeed subdue them.
But from D-Rank and above, the story changed. In battles with soldiers, D-Rank Awakened were considered equivalent to special forces platoons.
Moreover, someone like Yonghoon, a C-Rank Awakened with ten years of combat experience, could only sigh at the situation.
He could annihilate everyone here if he wanted, but killing people would only make things harder for Hyangseol left behind.
Yonghoon circulated Dimensional Power throughout his body to activate his physical functions. Then he started timing himself internally.
‘One, two, three, three, two, one, now!’
Bang!
It was as if the air had burst. Yonghoon disappeared from before their eyes.
“Over there!”
The security officer, quick-eyed, pointed twenty meters behind where Yonghoon had been.
The people surrounding Yonghoon turned to look in the direction he pointed, and there was Yonghoon, running toward the wall.
Yonghoon looked like a leopard sprinting across a field. No, even his speed was like that.
In an instant, Yonghoon surpassed the maximum speed achievable by humans. By the time others regained their senses and aimed their guns, he had already reached the base of the wall.
Without slowing down, Yonghoon kicked off the ground. His body shot upward vertically in front of the wall. While airborne, he stepped on protruding parts of the wall and leapt over it.
The soldiers aiming at him from atop the wall had no time to pull the trigger. They hurriedly searched outside the wall, but Yonghoon was already gone.
It seemed Yonghoon had vanished among the buildings outside the wall.
They signaled to the people inside that they had lost Yonghoon, their faces blank.
Shen Huang, the former head of security, glared at the now-alone Hyangseol.
“What did you say to that guy?”
“He just said he was leaving.”
Hyangseol looked sadly in the direction where Yonghoon had disappeared.
But Shen Huang was still in shock at the vanished Awakened.
If Yonghoon had attacked him, he would have been dead without a chance.
Until now, he hadn’t believed that the Joseon guy had killed others, but seeing that move, he changed his mind.
It seemed he couldn’t just kill the girl right away. He would have to discuss it with the mayor.
He issued orders to the others, and the gunmen dragged Hyangseol deeper into the city.
Out of sight from the wall, Yonghoon used the alleys to escape the city and ran toward the collapsed cave.
He had to change his plan. It seemed the people in power had changed. The new rulers of Jian City seemed quite old-fashioned. This meant anything could happen.
Yonghoon decided to first check on the Awakened trapped in the collapsed cave. It was sooner than he expected, but he couldn’t predict how the city’s situation would change.
If by any chance they pursued him and released the creature in the cave, all his efforts would have been for nothing.
It took Yonghoon longer than expected to reach the cave through the forest. The number of monsters in the forest had increased.
Without the daily hunts in Jian City and with battles between Yonghoon and other Awakened, it seemed monsters were gathering.
Yonghoon worried a bit about Jian City’s future but soon brushed it off. It wasn’t his concern.
Arriving at the cave, Yonghoon looked at the collapsed entrance.
It had been well over half a day since the cave collapsed. It wasn’t a very large cave. The Awakened inside was probably dead from lack of oxygen.
But he couldn’t just assume that and rush in. It was better to confirm carefully.
Yonghoon prepared thoroughly and gathered Dimensional Power into the air before him. As he developed his innate ability, his Spatial Ability had grown. Now he could observe blocked areas invisible to the eye.
As Yonghoon drew in Dimensional Power, the air in front of him began to distort. Soon, the image of the cave interior appeared in the air.
The inside of the cave was a dark, lightless space, but by focusing Dimensional Power into his eyes, he could see it in black and white.
Fortunately, opening a small dimensional tunnel didn’t consume much Dimensional Power. Yonghoon thought he could use this secondary effect for other purposes.
Yonghoon moved Dimensional Power to scan the inside of the cave. The image floating in the air kept changing. At some point, the image showed an Awakened collapsed on one side.
Devil Dog, sensing unfamiliar Dimensional Power spreading through the cave, almost moved its body.
The Dimensional Power moved briefly inside the cave and then disappeared. Devil Dog gripped the spear in his hand tighter. The enemy had appeared. It was clear he had been observing through a dimensional passage.
After the opponent left yesterday, Devil Dog had done his best to escape from the cave.
He had tried all night, but in the end, failed to find a way out. Moreover, the more he moved around, the faster the oxygen inside the cave was consumed.
Devil Dog had no choice but to make a decision. He resolved to strike back at the enemy, even if it meant dying.
Devil Dog lay flat on the ground, suppressing all his bodily functions as much as possible. It was to minimize oxygen consumption.
And he planned to pretend to be dead, then counterattack the moment the enemy appeared to confirm his death.
If the enemy saw him lying there, he would surely go for a finishing blow. Devil Dog was certain because he would have done the same.
That would be the final opportunity.
The chances of the enemy crossing over through the tunnel were slim.
He would probably use a spatial sword to confirm the kill.
Devil Dog planned to stab his spear into the hole where the sword would emerge the moment it appeared from the air. Although the chances were high that he would die or suffer a fatal wound from the sword, the enemy would also surely suffer heavy damage from his attack.
He decided to endure by lying flat on the ground until the very last moment when the oxygen ran out.
Time passed as he lay on the ground. He could feel the oxygen gradually depleting. It was disappearing faster than he had expected.
As he despaired at the thinning oxygen, he unexpectedly sensed Dimensional Power from a space tunnel.
‘Come on, make another hole. That will be the end for both you and me.’
He gathered the Dimensional Power that had sunk down. Most of his Dimensional Power had already been consumed by the power he had scattered around. But he scraped together every last drop. One strike would be enough.