Chapter 143

Chapter 143

“Tsk, that sly bastard.”

Seok Jun-yeop, Chief of Staff of the Punitive Expeditionary Force, vented his fury in the room left to him alone.

To cool his boiling rage, he pulled several pieces of sleep-fighting gum from the container and stuffed them into his mouth.

Crunch crunch.

Seok Jun-yeop headed for the sofa where Jeong In-gon had been sitting and leaned his back against it.

The spot where he had sat, chattering for over an hour, still held a lingering warmth.

‘How much did we invest to reproduce that, and now you want to take it all?’

It had been barely three days since the final test of the mana accelerator concluded.

As always, they had poured their hearts into ensuring no results leaked out, conducting the final experiment under strict surveillance.

The result was successful.

They claimed to have created an injection that minimized side effects and reduced physical strain, provided it wasn’t abused.

But Jeong In-gon brought up the matter at just the right moment—however he’d learned of it.

‘Bold bastard. I didn’t expect him to ask for it so bluntly. I knew the Association wasn’t in the best situation either, but I didn’t expect him to speak so boldly.’

Mana accelerator research was classified information within the expeditionary force.

Only a handful of people, including himself, knew about the mana accelerator.

Jung In-gon must have been well aware of that, yet he brought it up as if it were no big deal, making Seok Jun-yeop the one who ended up flustered.

His meaning was clear: it was essentially mocking Jung In-gon’s confidence in knowing all the secrets and Seok Jun-yeop’s incompetence in keeping them.

‘I managed to cover it up somehow…’

He had at least said it would take time before practical application.

Of course, Seok Jun-yeop, having seen it with his own eyes, confirmed the mana accelerator’s effects were truly remarkable.

So much so that if sufficient funding were secured, he’d want to distribute it to the entire expeditionary force immediately.

If that happened, it could completely reverse the current standing between the expeditionary force and the association.

But if we provided this to the Association, it was clear we couldn’t narrow that gap.

‘Even if we make a hundred concessions and reach a reasonable agreement, we’re willing to provide it… but if any problems arise, we’re likely to be the ones left holding the bag.’

Seok Jun-yeop isn’t that narrow-minded.

For the greater good, he was willing to consider providing the mana accelerator to the Association.

Of course, there would need to be mutual agreement within reasonable limits, but if it could help unravel the situation South Korea is currently facing, he was willing to discuss it.

However, if the hunters, who are harder to control than the extermination forces, caused problems using the mana accelerator, it would undoubtedly be blamed on the extermination forces.

At least, that’s how Jeong In-gon would see it.

Perhaps mindful of that, Jeong In-gon brought up the mana accelerator no more, instead continuing with trivial chatter before leaving.

‘What should I do…’

Pfft.

Seok Jun-yeop spat out the gum he’d been chewing, carefully wrapped it in gum paper, and flicked it into the empty teacup before rising from his seat.

“Come in here for a moment!”

Squeak-.

“Did you call me?”

“Yeah, call the Chief of Intelligence Operations. Tell him to come right now.”

“Yes, sir!”

Seok Jun-yeop had his aide summon Intelligence Operations Chief Kim Hwan-soo.

He thought it best to discuss this matter with Kim Hwan-soo, who was quick on his feet.

***

Whoosh-.

Kaboom!

Thud-!

“Is this it?”

“I don’t know! I’m going to help the kids!”

While Young-jin blocked the monster’s attacks, Ji-yoon left her position.

They entered the dungeon with Ji-yoon as the leader, thinking it was only D-rank.

But Yeong-jin, who had followed along out of unease, saw the monsters appearing in the dungeon and thought he’d made the right decision to come.

Because monsters that should only appear in C-rank or B-rank dungeons were showing up in this D-rank dungeon.

“Taeseong! Kyungmin!”

Ji-yoon charged at incredible speed and thrust in the ‘Judgment Spear’.

The monsters clung tightly like skewered chicken, pushed back and away from Ha Taeseong and Park Kyungmin.

Thud-.

Pssshh-.

“You okay?”

Ji-yoon kicked the Level 7 monsters, the Nols, with her foot, pulling out the Judgment’s Horn as she asked.

After she took care of four Nols, Ha Tae-seong and Park Kyung-min, now with more breathing room, hunted down the remaining Nols and answered.

“Thanks, sis!”

“We’re still fine. More importantly, So-eun’s side…”

Ji-yoon turned her head at Ha Tae-seong’s words and looked at Gong So-eun.

Gong So-eun was struggling to hold her own against a single Hoiin.

Ji-yoon swiftly lunged forward, plunging her sword into the hwein.

“So-eun! Your stomach…!”

“Ugh… unnie…”

Ji-yoon pulled the sword out of the hwein, dispatched it, then rushed to Gong So-eun, who had collapsed to her knees.

Swish-.

She then peeled off Gong So-eun’s leather armor, lifted her clothes, and checked the wound on her abdomen.

“Thank goodness. It missed her internal organs. So-eun, you retreat immediately. Joo-young! Apply some simple pressure here first!”

Ji-yoon called out to guild member Jeon Ju-young, who was busily casting recovery magic in the rear.

Joo-young, who had been busily running between guild members, immediately rushed over at Ji-yoon’s call and placed her hand on Gong So-eun’s abdomen.

Wwooong.

Simultaneously, she pulled a potion from her backpack and poured it over Gong So-eun’s wound.

“Juyoung, I’m counting on you!”

Leaving Gong So-eun in Jeon Ju-young’s care, Ji-yoon dashed back toward where Young-jin was.

Especially where the Hoi-in were clustered.

There, Guardian Guild members, monsters, and the Hoi-in were all mixed together, engaged in a fierce battle for survival.

“Everyone, stay back!”

Young-jin shouted at the guild members.

Hearing his shout, the guild members scattered in different directions.

Ping-grrrr-.

Clang!

As Young-jin spun, chains shot out from his fingertips, sweeping through a radius of about 30 meters.

“Clank…”

“Gwaaah….”

The monsters struck by the chain were flung away.

However, Young-jin’s attacks were somewhat disappointing in terms of lethality. Since he was attacking with a blunt chain rather than a blade, he could only inflict damage like bruises or fractures. Against monsters with exceptional vitality, such attacks proved largely ineffective.

Of course, among the scattered lower-tier monsters, some weren’t just bruised—parts of their bodies were deeply gouged out, or their heads were crushed flat.

“Clang! Clang!”

Among them, the one who blocked Youngjin’s chain shouted something.

He aimed his sword at Young-jin while slowly backing away.

Then the other Hoi-ins slowly gathered in one spot.

“Pagak Tuktuk Tatkak!”

Had the Hoi-in all gathered together, blocking the monsters’ attacks?

Then, an old warrior at the center of the group shouts.

Gugugung-.

Dark clouds began gathering in the sky above the field-type dungeon.

Dozens of lightning bolts poured down onto the ground.

Kwagwagwag-!

“Everyone, take cover!”

“Director Young-jin!”

“Director!”

“Director Shim!”

Young-jin leaped into the lightning bolt.

With his body tightly wrapped in chainmail golem armor, Young-jin was nothing short of a human lightning rod.

Crackle-.

Crackle-!

The furious barrage of lightning bolts relentlessly struck down, scorching Young-jin and the surrounding monsters black.

Five minutes passed in the blink of an eye.

The area where the lightning storm had passed resembled a living hell.

Only a few large monsters, possessing sturdy exteriors and tenacious vitality, twitched and gasped for breath, barely clinging to life. Not a single small monster remained alive.

“Chief!”

“Don’t come here!”

Ha Tae-seong was the first to rush toward Young-jin.

But Young-jin blocked him, preventing him from approaching.

“If you get too close, you’ll get electrocuted. Wait until all the electricity dissipates!”

Young-jin remained still, the chain driven deep into the ground.

Had he not driven the iron chain into the ground, Young-jin might have been charred black like the surrounding monsters.

But as Youngjin intended, most of the electricity flowed underground and was absorbed. Only a small amount penetrated his armor, directly electrocuting him and leaving him unable to move.

“Kuuuuu…”

Meanwhile, one of the large monsters that had recovered first rose to its feet.

It began to shuffle slowly.

But its direction wasn’t toward the others—it was toward Youngjin.

Being closest, Youngjin became its prey.

Shh-!

“I told you not to come!”

“It’s fine!”

Despite Yeongjin’s protests, Ha Taeseong stepped into the area where lightning was striking.

Ha Tae-seong remained unfettered even on the electrified ground, for he alone wore armor equipped with electrical resistance.

Furthermore, his hand was a silicon prosthetic, so even if he gripped a sword, the electricity wouldn’t conduct through it.

Squeak-.

Swoosh-.

Ha Tae-seong stabbed and sliced the monster that had approached near Young-jin with Saraka’s fangs, bringing it down.

Normally, Ha Tae-seong wouldn’t have had the skill to do that, but it was possible because the monsters, their insides charred black by lightning, were no longer in their normal state.

“Are you all right, Chief?”

“Thanks. I think I’m feeling a bit better now.”

Young-jin slowly moved his body.

His joints and muscles still tingled, but he could move.

No, he had to move.

The thugs were starting to close in.

“Huh… After hearing what you said, I kinda feel reluctant to fight.”

“I agree. But what choice do we have? It’s a dungeon.”

Young-jin aimed his iron chain, and Ha Tae-seong aimed Suraka’s fangs and the dagger he’d always carried at the Hoi-in.

Through Dojae’s story, they knew the Hoiin were no different from humans, but inside the dungeon, they had no choice but to fight.

After all, in a dungeon, whether it’s the monsters or the humans, one side has to be defeated before anyone can leave.

Whether that meant the dungeon’s annihilation or a dungeon break—one of the two.

Clang!

Young-jin pulled the iron chain from the ground and let it hang long.

He hadn’t possessed this ability for long, but after blood-nose-inducing effort and real combat that left his entire body bruised, he had become skilled at wielding the chains.

It was as if every chain was an extension of his fingers and toes.

“Wah!”

Young-jin flung the chains toward the approaching Hoi-ins.

Clang-clang-.

Clang!

Indeed, a Grade 5 monster, the Hoiin.

Several of them knocked away Young-jin’s chains, making his attacks difficult to land.

Yet Yeongjin did not stop, scattering chains relentlessly.

It resembled dozens of snakes baring sharp fangs, rushing to bite and tear.

“Chief! Please stop for a moment!”

Ha Tae-seong suddenly tried to stop Yeongjin.

As the chain storm ceased, the Hoi-in members halted their movements and stepped aside.

Soon, an old warrior—the one who had conjured the thunderstorm—stepped out through the parting crowd, creating a path wide enough for one to pass.

“Tak-kuk-ta-pak sal-sak-pu…”

He uttered incomprehensible words.

Moreover, he was looking at Ha Tae-seong, not Young-jin.

Particularly at the dagger in Ha Tae-seong’s hand.

Srakka’s Fang.

He continued walking slowly toward the two of them.

“What is it? Does he want to talk or something?”

“I don’t know…”

As the old Hoi-in kept walking while speaking, Young-jin and Ha Tae-seong grew tense.

The atmosphere among the other Hoi-in members also intensified.

Finally, the old Hoi-in stepped forward and spoke.

“Tukakat Purik Salkata… Tahul!”