Chapter 272
The range of the newly created area was clear, and no one inside could escape from there. In the past, Mason had seen a bluish membrane that separated the rat hole from the ground when he followed Ethan and Mary as a part of the support team, and it was similar to that. It was a supernatural phenomenon that could only be seen at the entrance of the rat hole where the stairs and slopes were. What he had experienced in the spire of Act One, Stage Two was similar.
However, the scale was different now. The membrane that used to only block the entrance or door was now around the entire area. Therefore, the sky looked blue even in waning twilight hours due to the membrane.
Mason looked around and had a hunch that the whole area was trapped under Ethan’s skill.
No one can leave..?
But then, Ethan jumped down the outer wall.
“Ethaaaaaaan-!” Mason shouted to the point where his throat was torn and he tasted blood in his mouth. He knew what Ethan was thinking when he jumped, but it was too dangerous. Although it was Ethan, it was reckless to rush into the entire Frank army alone.
Mason ordered Dorothy to prepare the Mason Attack Squad. The team was named after himself, and it was the best offensive force in the corps in operation. On Earth, a special strike force like this would have all been equipped with a bulletproof suit made with Kevlar fibers[1] and ceramic, an M4 rifle loaded with thirty magazines, grenades, and extra bullets in the eight pockets of their vests.
However, it was different here. People held their main skill sets instead of M4 rifles, and defensive barriers instead of bulletproof vests. Also, the high-level Awakened who held onto the maximum number of insignias were able to use various strategies more outstanding than powerful firepower.
But to be honest, it was painful to send the mercenaries to rescue Ethan. He had put his heart and soul into their training for a long time. All of these men carried loaded Glock pistols on their legs. The moment they used the pistol instead of their main skills meant that they were in a precarious state, and the current situation was similar. The best attack squad in the guild had no choice but to take their pistols out due to Ethan’s unexpected action.
If I can save him, I would sacrifice everything…
Then, Seong-Il spoke to Mason, “Yo, man. Can you understand Korean?”
“Yes.”
Seong-Il advised, “Stop being a nervous wreck and stay still.”
“...?”
“Don’t go out and be a burden.”
Seong-Il continued, pointing at where Ethan was with his chin.
“You will figure out soon why Odin is so famous.”
Mason couldn’t understand Seong-Il, who was laid back and had crossed his arms casually. Then, a pillar of fire soared up.
***
This had happened when Mason was still a mercenary of the military company Whitewater and hadn’t been sent to work for the agency. At that time, there were constant rumors that bin Laden, the main culprit of the 8.11 attacks, was traveling back and forth between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Thus, a secret joint operation was undertaken by the Delta Force[2] and the British SAS team[3].
Mason worked around Shahikot Valley[4] and the Arma Mountains. There were a lot of mud fortresses. Their priority was to capture bin Laden alive, but the mission changed after obtaining solid information that he had vacated his hideout. His new mission was to hide in a mud fortress and destroy the terrorist group that was carrying out guerrilla operations. Most media outlets didn’t know about this, but countless bombings had occurred then. Fighter jets flew over the sky, and the explosions shook heaven and earth. Fire pillars soared into the sky, and the mud fortresses collapsed with mountains. The impregnable forts were intact no matter how many times bin Laden’s troops fired guns, but they were destroyed as soon as they were under attack from the sky.
However, this was worse than that.
Thud!
Huge fire columns rose vertically to the sky around the edges of the Frank Guild’s army. They seemed to be just for show as they didn’t soar up to the center of the formation, but they were enormous. With the sound of an explosion, the vibration was transmitted to the floor of the outer wall. No one could hear it because of the loud explosion, but people who were swept away by the fire would have been crying. No one would be able to stand in that fire hell.
Mason became speechless.
Is this… something that a human can do?
There was a time when people claimed that Awakened might be the next step in human evolution. They couldn’t say it was the terminal stage of mankind because Awakened were selected by the System, but Mason also agreed that it was the birth of a new human being.
Their physical defense and capabilities improved when they increased Health, and their strength and speed transcended the previous limit when they increased Strength and Agility. When they increased Sense, their vision, hearing, taste, smell and touch were enhanced at a rapid speed to the point that it became ridiculous to compare the before and after. In fact, Awakened had to be classified as a different species from existing humans just because of their Sense alone. Moreover, their various skills enabled what was commonly called a miracle.
Naturally, he had some concerns. What if the old human race ostracized the new mankind after the earth was free from the threat of monsters? What if Awakened were treated like monsters and had conflicts with modern military forces? Mason was looking very far into the future at a possibility that should never happen in an ideal world.
However, history has shown that humans would always act like that. Once the crisis was resolved, the world would treat Awakened as another problem and try to create something like Israel’s Gaza Strip and control them. Of course, the Awakened would never accept that! A war was highly likely to break out between the old human race and the new mankind. Then, would the Awakened be able to defeat the old human race?
Mason had been skeptical about the odds of the Awakened’s victory, but he changed his mind when he saw the fire columns that soared up and warped the world.
If he could use that skill permanently instead of just once…
Then, Ethan was like a living nuclear bomb. He was already the hero of the entire human race, and he could become the hero of the new mankind.
“Ethan…”
Mason trembled.
***
The silence after a huge explosion lasted only a few seconds. Seong-Il began to frown and gritted his teeth.
“I guess the conversation didn’t go well. It’s so annoying how they are looking for Indra, that bastard,” Seong-Il said.
Things were happening beyond Mason’s range of sight, but Seong-Il could see everything. Whenever the stem of lightning wrapped around the bodies that lost their necks, they fell backward and scattered into ashes as soon as they hit the ground.
All Mason could see were bolts of lightning sparking from the distance. It looked like blue demons had taken people’s souls. It wasn’t long before the Frank Guild lost their fighting spirit. There was no such thing as order as people ran away in all directions from the thunderbolts that penetrated their protective barriers and tore their flesh apart. It was like when someone touched the bottom layer of a Jenga tower, overturning it.
Even then, there was no cheering at the outer wall of the Cat Food Warehouse. They were equally immersed in the fear that their enemies were feeling. They felt extreme terror, especially when they saw their enemies floundering at the edge of the area under Ethan’s control.
[Warning: You cannot leave the area.]
Mason calmed down and tried to figure out the vibe around him. It was time to tell his subordinates the truth. An approval from the guild leader, Idema, was not necessary because Mason had confirmed that the leader had felt the same way a long time ago.
Mason checked with Seong-Il again before shouting at everyone. He had heard that Ethan had used the name ‘Odin’ throughout the Stage of Advent, and he remembered that Mary used to call him that way as well. He proclaimed that Odin would join their side from this stage, but Mason’s cry fell on deaf ears. Everyone was distracted by the sight in front of them, so Mason’s announcement was just noise to them.
Then, Odin came back. He was so fast that his shadows still remained along his path.
Swoosh-
His shadows disappeared at once as if they had been sucked into him. Then, a fierce wind blew. The Frank Guild’s lightning-patterned flag, which was spinning in the wind, ripped apart and flew away to the distance.
The members of Cat Food Warehouse held their breath while flaring their nostrils in silence as if they thought they would be executed immediately if they made a noise. The dread inside Mason, who was facing Odin, had reached its peak. The remaining fire was reflected in Odin’s eyes, then they slowly died down. The bolts of lightning that had bounced from his body were also disappearing one by one.
Mason started walking toward Odin with all his troops, and he realized that the remains of the lightning stems were still in the area.
“Please don’t get me wrong… To be honest… I don’t know if this is a good thing for us.”
There was tension in Dorothy’s voice, and her lips were still blue from the shock.
“He’s a different creature from us. What if he harms us…”
Dorothy couldn’t finish her sentence because Mason, who never raised his voice, was yelling at her to the point where his face became red.
“Stop talking nonsense!”
“...”
Mason snapped, “You don’t know anything about him, so shut the fuck up! Thanks to him, you didn’t have to shed a single drop of blood.”
“I’m sorry,” she apologized.
Mason sighed. Because of the overwhelming difference in power, his subordinates looked at him with suspicion even though they knew Ethan was on their side. Things were like this already, so the situation would only get worse in the future. Ordinary people would look at them, the Awakened, in the same way.
As its name suggested, the Stage of Advent was just the beginning. There was a lot to get through. He had to survive until the end, save the planet from the threats of the monster corps, and resolve the conflicts amicably with the old human race. Under the name of the World Awakened Association! Under Ethan, Odin…whatever name he used, under everyone’s hero!
Mason suppressed his anger and said soothingly. “You know nothing about what kind of sacrifices he had to make to come this far. You won’t be able to imagine what kind of power he holds outside. You would never believe me even if I told you.”
Mason then spoke toward the direction where the explosion occurred.
“Dorothy.”
“Yes.”
“Just wait. Eventually, I will tell you everything one day. There will be a day when all mankind will realize how grateful we are that he exists…”
1. A strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber. ☜
2. The first Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta is the most highly trained elite force in the US military. ☜
3. The Special Air Services is a special force unit of the British Army. ☜
4. Located in Afghanistan’s Paktika province, southeast of the town of Zormat. ☜