A certain thought came to my mind first.
I returned to Korea after entrusting Kim Cheong-Soo with all the work related to the transportation of gold and the IMF.
Upon receiving the report of an abnormal phenomenon, I initially assumed that the ritual had begun. However, the picture taken of the abnormalities was quite unusual. The entrance of the association headquarters was now blocked with a blue barrier, which was similar to how dungeons worked.
When Jamie and I arrived at the location by helicopter, we noticed that the press had gathered outside the area controlled by the military and police. Both Korean and foreign journalists were present, indicating their interest in the association.
Since the association had requested for an embargo[1], there was no breaking news broadcasted on television immediately. However, news of the phenomenon had spread out through social media.
At a glance, it looked like the headquarters had become a dungeon. It was like how the whole area was blocked by the power of the Old One when the Awakened entered the dungeon of the Seven Demon Kings in the Stage of Advent, except this time, the situation was reversed.
Apparently an external attack was in progress, and it was likely being carried out by a species originating from a dimension known as Star Dragorin. That was the most likely scenario. I had assumed this would happen when I made a deal with Doom Kaos, but I still thought it was acceptable.
Considering the mechanism, by which the Old One created dungeons on the mainland of the Seven Demon Kings, I identified shared conditions. It applied to the dungeons of the Baclans as well. Baclan dungeons were strategically placed in military bases, arenas, and the king’s palace, rather than in residential areas. This led me to believe that I could easily clear them. However, I was to be dropped directly onto their mainland, as in the Challenger quest.
Therefore, my task was simply to establish a defensive system in the designated military areas of the human legion, specifically the current association headquarters where the majority of the Korean Awakened would congregate.
Moreover, the species that the Old One chose as soldiers had to confront the Seven Demon Kings’ corps sooner or later. Their firepower was bound to be dispersed, and they couldn’t exert their power properly in the land where Doom Man resided, unlike when they were in the mainland of the other Dooms.
Therefore, rather than exposing our mainland to the entire Seven Demon Kings Corps, humanity’s safety would be more guaranteed when we were working under Doom Kaos. That was why I accepted Doom Kaos’s deal, so this wasn’t something to be bewildered about.
In addition, Orca and Yeon-Hee’s pet were in the association’s headquarters. The creatures were of such strength and power that they were deemed ‘monarchs.’ Uncertain of the level of difficulty that the monsters attempting to impede the ritual would pose, even if they managed to get past Orca and Yeon-Hee’s pet and reach the altar, their efforts would only serve to delay the ritual’s completion, as they would be swiftly annihilated.
Since the priests of the human corps were all gathered there, the association’s headquarters was technically an SSS-class dungeon.
[* Storage box]
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[Zeus’s Thunder Spear has been removed.]
I told Jamie, “Expand the restricted area as wide as possible.”
***
The association’s boundaries remained fixed using the same reasoning that created Odin’s Absolute Warzone. Nonetheless, during my conflict with Doom Dejire, a minor blemish had appeared on the Absolute Warzone, suggesting that a forceful impact being exerted over several days could potentially create a small crack.
Zing-!
Stalks of lightning remained for a long time after the thunderstorms passed. Therefore, those who were shocked were the few people who were able to witness the scene inside the boundaries instead of only looking from the outside.
Jamie was one of those lucky people. Although she had seen the Valkyrie during the club conference, it was her first time directly witnessing a destructive force. Since she was a club member, there were many ways for her to access the superhuman abilities of the Awakened.
There were multiple cases where the Awakened causing problems had been captured on video. However, countries made every effort to conceal these incidents by categorizing them as confidential. Things hadn’t gotten out of control as each country spent around two hundred thousand dollars per person to shut their mouths
Anyway, Jamie was definitely more fascinated by the thunderstorms than by any of the videos she had ever watched before. As I drew closer to her, the expression on her face, which was steeped in fantasy, became more distinct. In her eyes, there was a scene of charred earth and jagged bolts of lightning raining down from the sky.
Jamie couldn’t take her eyes off the vast expanse ahead of her.
“It will be dangerous if I get closer, right?” she asked.
There was no need to warn her.
I simply responded, “You will become a pile of ashes as soon as you touch something.”
Jamie looked like she was in her dream.
***
A campsite was built right in front of the boundary blocking the association’s headquarters. If this were the Stage of Advent, the tents would have been made of monster leather and woodblocks, but Jamie’s campsite here was great. We had a spacious camping vehicle and the ability to regulate the level of illumination using mobile LED lights, whether it was daytime or nighttime. LED lights were used as a threat to prevent reporters from approaching.
A day had passed since I had started handling the construction in China in the camping car. After the embargo was lifted, the media began to report on abnormalities at the association’s headquarters. There was an abundance of articles and news pieces about this that surpassed the coverage of China’s IMF bailout, with reported content that included photos taken of lightning bolts from a distance.
However, all they could do was make ridiculous assumptions. Around sunset, the boundary disappeared, and the Korean Awakened had gathered after watching the news.
As I walked through the gate alongside them, the scent of blood wafted toward me. It had been a while since I had last smelled that scent. On one side, Yeon-Hee’s pet was gnawing on something, and I could see marks indicating that a body had been dragged toward the building where Orca resided.
I could hear the voices of the survivors, as well as the association’s security personnel, coming from the same direction. I dispatched a group of Awakened to that side while I made my way toward Yeon-hee’s pet.
Crunch. Crunch.
A huge mouth was chewing off several corpses at the same time, and the parts of the body that were cut and dropped on the ground looked just like human limbs. I could tell that they were not the security mercenaries because they were not wearing their uniforms.
At that time, Yeon-Hee’s pet cast a menacing gaze in my direction, its eyes brimming with bloody murderous intent. The excitement of the battle had not yet been drained from the Kciphos as there were multiple wounds on it. It appeared as though destroying the bodies of its enemies, those who had caused it harm, was not enough to satiate its agitation.
Kraaaaaak-!
Yeon-Hee’s pet started to scream. Since it hadn’t consumed the entirety of the body, fragments of limbs protruded from its mouth, revealing that it was definitely not a human body. Even though the Kciphos’ body fluids and blood were mixed within, pointed ears were visible.
Judging by the length of the dead creature’s skull and limbs, it was not significantly different from us humans. However, its skin wasn’t blue like the Moong. The Old One must have chosen a species that resembled humans.
I wanted to see the more intact bodies and find the entrance to the dungeon where they came in, but I couldn’t feel the twisted flow of time and space. I wondered if the entrance to the dungeon had closed with their annihilation. It was a possibility.
This had been the situation during the Stage of Advent when Doom Kaos had focused his malevolence on me, which held significant implications. However, for the time being, there seemed to be no issues with the building where the ritual was taking place because I heard the sound of Yeon-Hee’s regular breathing as I raised my Sense.
The regions that were formerly used as the entrance and garden for the resort were now concentrated with signs of battle and wriggling tentacles belonging to Orca.
During this time, Kim Ji-Hoon, who had been persistently pursuing Ji-Ae noona during the Stage of Advent, emerged with two lifeless bodies slung over his shoulders. He lowered his head silently and put the bodies on the floor.
First, I looked at a body where Orca’s tentacle had penetrated its abdomen. That one didn’t have pointed ears. By anyone’s eyes, he was the same species as humans as he had the same DNA as ours.
It was an elderly man with a lengthy white beard that extended down to his chest, and his eyes were frozen wide in fear as his body had gone into rigor mortis[2]. He still had a short cane clutched tightly in his hand. His robe was originally white, but it was now soaked in blood.
The second one was a body whose lower body was cut off. The tattoos engraved all over the body stood out, but this body could be regarded as a female human.
The two bodies shared a common trait in that the same sentence was inscribed on the elderly man’s robe and tattooed onto the woman’s chest. The sentence ran vertically through all seven archetypes, and it was undoubtedly an indication of their respective groups.
It didn’t take long before I found what it was. The weapons of the intruders, which were brought in by the Awakened under Kim ji-Hoon’s guidance, shared a common name.
[Lacryma Priest Organization’s Big Shield]
[Lacryma Priest Organization's Combat Cane]
[Lacryma Priest Organization’s Sacred Sword]
Lacryma Priest Organization… One of the residents in the Savior’s city expressed his opinion of the group.
“The invaders weren’t monsters. There must have been another Stage of Advent.”
That might have been the case for those who didn’t know the truth.
After kicking a severed head in their direction, the Awakened noticed the pointed ears on the head.
I stated calmly, “They are not humans. They are enemies we have to confront in the future.”
Then, I turned to the tentacle castle where Orca stayed. The Lacryma Priest Organization probably had the goal of destroying the altar of Doom Man.
However, they might have misunderstood that the altar was at Orca’s place since the traces of the battle were concentrated there. It was natural because the ominous aura emanating from Orca’s castle had captured their attention.
I walked to where Orca was. Although the size of the invading force was relatively small, consisting of only two attack squads, it appeared that they possessed enough core skills to break through Orca’s realm and hurt it.
Orca greeted me with five bodies spread out as if it was appreciating its masterpiece.
“Lacryma.”
The term mentioned earlier also came out of the darkness in Orca’s hood. I nodded and then replied, “That name might refer to the Old One. What do you think?”
1. An agreement between a source and journalists not to publish or report on a story until a specified date and time. ☜
2. The stiffening of the body’s muscles after death due to the depletion of ATP, which causes the inability of the muscles to relax. ☜