Chapter 35
“A-A-Aah!”
Hye Ryeon, seeing a monster in person for the first time, screamed and stumbled backward.
“It’s ugly!”
…Seriously, in this situation?
Sehyun shook her head in disbelief.
‘Elasticity!’
Sehyun jumped up and raised the hammer she had been hiding behind her back.
‘Strength!’
Wham!
With enhanced strength, Sehyun struck the monster’s eye with several times her usual force.
Bang!
“Kieeek…”
The monster was knocked out in an instant. Everyone stared at Sehyun’s back with their mouths agape.
“Wow… Sehyun, you’re amazing.”
Hye Ryeon, who hadn’t even seen Sehyun move, exclaimed in admiration.
But Sehyun didn’t say a word and just stared beyond the broken window.
At the dozens of monsters with gleaming eyes.
“The Hole is about to open!”
“Combat ready!”
“Yes!”
Small sparks began to appear all over the black Hole, like a ripening fruit about to burst. It was a familiar sight, but one that they could never get used to. Everyone’s faces hardened.
Especially since it was a Variant Hole this time.
They didn’t know what kind of monsters would appear, how many, or where they would come from.
As everyone watched with tense expressions,
Crackle!
A powerful spark erupted, and the black Hole was ripped open in several places. Monsters started pouring out from the cracks.
The monsters swarmed out, forming a horde.
Jungwook jumped into the fray.
Landing in the middle of the battlefield, Jungwook swung the swords he held in both hands.
Monsters fell like leaves, sliced apart by his dance-like movements.
He eliminated the monsters brutally, his movements more ferocious than usual.
After some time, Jungwook looked around, catching his breath. It was the same in other areas. A massive number of monsters, far more than usual for a regular Hole, lay scattered on the ground.
At first glance, it seemed like they had just cleared a single Hole.
But Jungwook’s face hardened.
At the end of a Hole’s opening, a being called the “Gatekeeper of the Hole” would appear.
It was the boss, so to speak, and it hadn’t appeared yet.
Moreover, the Hole showed no signs of closing. But there were no more monsters in sight. They weren’t coming out anymore.
Jungwook knew what this meant.
There was something inside the Hole that was holding the monsters back.
There were survivors inside, holding back the monsters.
Jungwook gritted his teeth.
…People are alive, in there.
He clenched and unclenched the swords in his hands, his gaze fixed on the gaping maw of the Hole.
“Dohyun.”
“…”
Dohyun, who was approaching him, flinched and stopped.
“I’ll be back.”
“…No, you can’t!”
Dohyun shouted instinctively at the expected words. Jungwook picked up a monster’s arm from the ground and threw it at the Hole.
It went through without any resistance and landed with a thud. Jungwook looked at Dohyun indifferently, having shown him proof that he could enter the Hole safely.
“It’s open.”
“…”
“But if I don’t go in…”
“…”
“Can I even call myself a Guard?”
“…”
“What about the oath I took as a Guard? If I run away, what then? Do I have the right to instruct others? Do I have the right to tell them that being a Guard means upholding justice and saving lives?”
“But a Guard only has one life! What if the Hole closes while you’re inside? What if the Hole’s closing is just delayed!”
Dohyun shouted, his voice strained.
As if hoping his raised voice would change Jungwook’s mind.
Jungwook turned and looked at Dohyun.
“Then… should I run away again?”
“…”
“Should I hang my head in front of the bereaved families and beg for forgiveness for being the only survivor?”
He had escaped from the Hole, leaving his comrades behind.
While his comrades became shields and spears, he had chosen to survive.
At first, he had rationalized it, telling himself that everyone would do the same, that it was human nature, a survival instinct. But the moment he saw the tear-stained, wrinkled face of his comrade’s elderly mother at the funeral, he had broken down.
“Did our, our daughter… pass away peacefully?”
The grieving mother, standing before an empty coffin, had asked him that.
Jungwook couldn’t say anything.
Because he hadn’t seen it.
He hadn’t witnessed anyone’s death, he had only cared about his own safety. At that moment, Jungwook had asked himself for the first time.
Was he truly alive?
Wasn’t this more painful than death?
“I don’t want to… do that again, Dohyun.”
Jungwook finished speaking, gripped his swords tightly, and walked towards the Hole. The sound of his footsteps on the blood-soaked ground echoed loudly.
As Dohyun was about to approach Jungwook,
“I’ll go with you.”
Jungwook and Dohyun’s heads turned at the sudden voice. A man with light-colored hair was standing there.
“Didn’t you hear the announcement that Guard trainees are not allowed to approach this area?”
Dohyun retorted sharply.
“Yes.”
“…”
“But no one stopped me.”
…What?
Dohyun looked around. The others were also staring at Haejoon with surprised expressions, as if wondering when he had gotten there.
Jungwook’s eyes narrowed.
It meant one of two things. Either everyone was too distracted by the situation to notice him, or Haejoon was skilled enough to avoid everyone’s notice.
But the latter was unlikely.
“You’re all dazed!”
Everyone lowered their heads at Jungwook’s sharp rebuke. Jungwook’s gaze returned to Haejoon.
“Entering a Hole is a life-or-death situation. You could get lost.”
“That’s why I’m volunteering. I think I can be of help.”
Haejoon raised his hand. A red thread appeared in his hand.
“Pathfinder.”
“…”
“It’s one of my skills. If I designate this place, an invisible thread will connect from here to wherever I go inside. It’s invisible and doesn’t break easily. Because it’s not a physical thread, it’s a thread connected by my mind.”
“…”
“Wouldn’t this be helpful?”
“Why are you volunteering?”
Dohyun asked.
“To uphold justice.”
Haejoon said, smiling. His bright smile seemed inappropriate for the situation.
“…Is that enough?”
Jungwook shook his head at Haejoon’s words.
“Denied. Guard trainees are not official Guards, so they cannot be deployed in real combat situations.”
Jungwook replied quickly and coldly turned around, as if there was nothing more to discuss. He stepped into the Hole. Dohyun’s eyes widened. Jungwook’s feet, legs, body, and finally, the back of his head disappeared into the black Hole in an instant.
“…Ah.”
A soft groan escaped someone’s lips.
Dohyun slowly lowered his gaze.
No… No…
Dohyun, consumed by shock and despair, didn’t notice.
That Haejoon, who had been standing beside him, was gone.
Her prediction was somewhat correct.
The unintelligent monsters chose to try and force their way through the windows rather than attempting to destroy the building.
Thanks to that, they were able to deal with them one or two at a time, and there were no casualties. The building was acting as a giant shield.
Their teamwork improved as the battle continued.
Whenever there was a mishap, Mi Young provided support.
And Jieun healed those who were exhausted.
‘But…’
Despite the smooth progress, Sehyun’s expression darkened. The rescue team was nowhere in sight, even after hours.
People were getting tired as time went on.
Some had nosebleeds, some were retching, and others were screaming in despair.
Fortunately, they had Jieun to heal them, but even her condition wasn’t good. She was healing them while swallowing her own blood, but she was reaching her limit.
If Jieun couldn’t heal them anymore, they didn’t know where they would collapse first.
They had to hold on…
But was there even any point in holding on?
The fact that the rescue team hadn’t arrived yet meant that they had been abandoned. Or maybe it was impossible to enter this place.
Sehyun’s face crumpled at the thought.
Boom!
To make matters worse, the sound of something striking the building’s walls continued endlessly. It had been going on for hours. An ordinary building would have already collapsed. The building was holding up because it was made of Hole byproducts.
But even this…
“Shout if you see cracks in the walls! We’re running away immediately!”
“U-Ugh, those Guard bastards! They’re not even coming!”
“When are they coming, damn it!”
The Guards screamed in despair.
“We can do it! Cheer up! They can’t keep this up forever!”
Dongwoo shouted encouragingly, but it wasn’t much comfort.
Boom!
Boom!
Their hearts pounded with each impact, like a blacksmith hammering metal.
And then,
Bang!
“Aah!”
“Aah!”
Debris rained down on them. Hye Ryeon stretched out her hand, scattering flower petals to slow down the falling debris, and someone in the corner used wind to push the debris away, but they couldn’t completely deflect it.
The monsters took advantage of the opening and pushed their way through the windows.
“Aah!”
One spot was breached. Mi Young, noticing it belatedly, tried to use her skill, but it was too late.
The building, once breached, lost its sturdiness.
Bang!
Half of the roof disappeared with a deafening sound.
Bang! Bang!
The roof completely disappeared with the next two impacts, like a bombardment. Instead of the sky, only a vast darkness filled the space above them.