Chapter 375 – Chapter 375 Hero Academy (4-16)
It wasn’t just poison.
The interior of the building, which had been built in a future-oriented way until now, began to rust disgustingly, and the walls cracked, reminiscent of the interior of an abandoned building.
Yeriel put on a puzzled expression she hadn’t shown before, then opened her mouth.
“It’s a sleepover. But how is it here….”
As she was thinking about Yariel, she started to hear alarms blaring from inside the building.
〈 Those inside the building, please evacuate quickly to the outside! If it is impossible to evacuate to the outside, please ask for help from Evrica staff around you! This is the real situation!〉
The young Yeriel frowned as she listened to her announcement, and opened her mouth.
“Encroaching on the dungeon… There’s no way this could happen naturally in the middle of a city.”
“What should I do?”
“Once the whole building is taken over, you will still be able to connect with the staff inside the headquarters. Wait a minute.”
Yeriel hurriedly activated her smart watch and started trying to make a call.
Looking at Yeriel like that, I asked Seong Soo-ah.
“What is dungeon encroachment?”
Seong Soo-ah calmly began to explain my question.
“Do you know how dungeons originally came about?”
“Well… Doesn’t it come from nature?”
“Half right, half wrong.”
“… ?”
“It is activated around the core.”
“Are you core?”
Core.
Dungeons were not just naturally generated in caves.
As the core settled down, the small cave began to transform into a dungeon.
It is said that the shape could be a cave full of moss, or a ruined ancient civilization with buildings lined up.
And the miasma that came out of that core was creating monsters.
Now this phenomenon is….
“It seems that someone has taken the core and activated it here. I’ve never heard of a core suddenly appearing in the middle of a city.”
“Crazy….”
Involuntarily, swear words came out.
After experiencing miasma, I knew how deadly it was.
An existence that makes even hardened heroes tired.
That said, it could cause fatal damage to ordinary people inside the building.
After listening to Sung Soo-ah’s explanation, Yeriel looked at us and said urgently.
“Once, I spoke with a person from headquarters. And now the situation… Can you two guess what the situation is like?”
“Yes.”
I could sum up the current situation in one sentence.
-Someone artificially activated the core at Ebrica’s headquarters.-
Yeriel, who has a young appearance, spoke to us with a voice full of charisma, not the usual relaxed expression.
“You two, I know today is a holiday. And you came here with a light heart. I’m not in a position to ask you two, but I will. Inside the building now….”
“Yeriel.”
“… Yes?”
She said while staring at her, interrupting her with Yeriel.
“If you ask, it seems like we are forced to do it. Just say something. Instructor Sung Soo-ah and I… Both are ready.”
“….”
Yeriel gave a blank expression for a moment, then she immediately changed to a smile and opened her mouth.
“I said it for so long that it only made my mouth hurt. Great. I will go to the building on the left and rescue them. The two of you should search this building as much as possible to save lives.”
“”Yes!””
“Then… You two, watch out!”
When Yeriel heard Seongsuah’s answer from me, she immediately launched her body into the air, and she started to fly away.
Seong Soo-ah, who saw Yeri-el flying away like that, began to include her words with feelings of sorry for me.
“Instructor Seong Soo-ho… Sorry. I just wanted to come here….”
“Instructor Sung Soo-ah.”
“… Yes?”
Seong Soo-ah was watching as if she was worried about what would come out of my mouth.
I said to her with a smile on her face.
“I am happy enough just doing something with Instructor Seong Soo-ah. Rather, I am grateful.”
“Ah….”
Seong Soo-ah was relieved by my words and smiled. As I looked at her like that, she opened her mouth with her expression of regret.
“Ah! By the way, it’s not that I’m not happy with this situation. Let’s go quickly to rescue the others.”
“Yes.”
Seong Soo-ah smiled pleasantly and started running alongside me.
..
..
The building of Erica’s headquarters consisted of two large buildings.
The two buildings were designed to make bridges at regular intervals so that people could come and go between them.
Yeriel used her quick mobility to move to the building across the street, and Seongsuah and I decided to take charge of the building on the right.
The place where Seong Soo-ah and I were was almost on the top floor, as it was the place where the prototype was located, and thanks to that, we were able to meet the staff at Evrica headquarters right away.
Contrary to our expectations, however, there were some real talent among the staff, but it was also true that there were quite a few ordinary people.
And seeing the appearance of ordinary people, I was able to realize the seriousness of the incident.
“Turn it off….”
“Wow….”
Most of them were unable to breathe properly, and were unconscious as they vomited and retched.
A competent security officer was at least able to communicate with us.
“Sorry. Right now, the upper floors contain a lot of clerical and technical staff, so we can’t move easily.”
“Yes, I understand. Please stay in a safe place for as long as possible.”
It was impossible to take them down to the entrance when the elevator was unavailable.
“Go downstairs and you’ll find a security guard.”
Seong Soo-ah and I used the stairs to search every floor and search for people.
It was Seong Soo-ah who was relieved while looking for someone like that.
“The upper floors are mostly staff.”
“Yes, I think we can go downstairs while skimming quickly.”
It wasn’t that the employees weren’t important, but since this incident was highly likely to have occurred artificially, there was a high possibility that the general public suffered damage.
But things didn’t turn out the way we wanted.
The interior, which had been in the form of an abandoned building until now, began to change into a much more bizarre appearance.
The walls of the building, which had been cracked and rusted, gradually turned into slime, and the inside of the building began to change like the internal organs of a gigantic monster.
Seong Soo-ah, who saw this, shouted with a surprised expression.
“It’s a big deal! I think it’s about to expand!”
“An extension?”
“After the core has finished encroaching on its area, it is gradually trying to expand the space itself.”
If encroachment is to establish the foundation of one’s own site, expansion is to forcibly transform the encroached space.
Originally, it would take several hours of walking to reach the end of the cave, but it would take several days to dig through.
It’s a physically impossible concept, but the core makes it possible.
And that was the existence of the current dungeon.
“How is that possible?”
“Nothing has been revealed yet.”
Some scholars explained that the compressed space inside the core is expanded, and some scholars explained that the core is a medium that connects other spaces.
However, none of them have been fully established as a theory.
“The reality is that we don’t know where the core came from or how it came about.”
But one thing was discovered.
“The core that is turning this building into a dungeon right now is not at the normal level.”
It is said that even encroaching on a dungeon usually takes more than a few days, and in many cases it takes more than a few months.
However, in less than a few hours, the encroachment ends, leading to expansion?
“At this rate, a real dungeon may appear in the middle of the city.”
“… It’s a big deal.”
I wondered what kind of madman could have done something like this.
And two groups came to my mind.
One of them….
‘A group of monsters?’
[I’m not sure about that. First of all, I arbitrarily contacted Zodiac.]
‘Well done.’
Contact will not come right away.
And there was one more place that came to mind.
‘If it’s not the Zodiac, then it’s the only place there is?’
[It’s unconditionally confirmed, but… If it is not a group of monsters, the possibility is very high.]
‘Platform….’
It was the church Go Chung-sin belonged to that invaded the consulate.
If you’ve done that, you’ll surely be able to do this….
‘For now, let’s wait for Zodiac’s contact. Think about what to do after that….’
[All right.]
It was at a time when I was making rough plans for the future and diligently exploring with Sung Soo-ah.
“Kyaaaaah!”
“Quaaaaagh!”
The screams of many, not one, pierced my eardrums as if they were piercing my eardrums.
I heard the sound and looked at Seong Soo-ah, and Seong Soo-ah showed the same reaction as me and ran towards it.
And in the place where they ran, several people were surrounded by assailants.
“Everyone, who are you!”
“Sah, save me….”
“Mom…. Ugh….”
Ordinary people who seem to have no power…. And the monsters who see them….
“There are ordinary people who can resist miasma.”
“There is a rarity.”
They were the ones wearing the cloaks of deterrence.
‘Do you think the culprit will be decided again?’
[The Cognition Impairment Cloak is often used by groups of monsters, so it is difficult to confirm.]
As Armonia said, there were still too many unknowns to make a decision.
I forgot about that part and started to figure things out again.
The number of monsters was higher than expected.
I whispered carefully to Seong Soo-ah, who was hiding with me.
“First of all, there are a lot of numbers.”
“Yes, even ordinary people are united there.”
As Sung Soo-ah said, it was a situation where even ordinary people could be harmed if they went out recklessly.
There was only one thing I could do here.
‘Armonia, check their temperament first.’
[All right.]
If you confirm your identity, you may not know it now, but it will help you later….
While I was looking at the temperament windows that were being launched one by one, Seong Su-ah began to recite quietly.
“Once there seems to be little chance of breaking through right away, if there is a gap then….”
While Sung Soo-ah was talking like that, a mysterious man suddenly took something out of his arms and opened his mouth.
“Let’s start slowly.”
It was a harsh and husky voice, but I could confirm that it was a woman from the lines.
‘Is it a woman?’
[My name is Juah Moon… It seems that the woman is right.]
The thing that such a woman assailant took out of her arms….
‘… What? Is it a needle?’
[Supposed to be a black needle.]
She twisted her face, invisible because of her cloak, and she began to pull someone out of the crowd.
And whoever was taken out of the group….
“Kyaaaaa Uh, mom!!”
At first glance, she was the youngest-looking girl among ordinary people.
From her appearance, she was a child who looked to be in the upper grades of elementary school.
When her child was suddenly dragged away, the man and woman who appeared to be her child’s parents rushed in and started to riot at her.
“Oh, no! Sumin! Kyaaaaagh!”
“Get your hands off my daughter! Wow!”
The two parents, who went on a rampage to retrieve their stolen daughter, were quickly overpowered by the perpetrators around them and collapsed with great wounds.
The thug began to sneer, grabbing the hair of her struggling child.
“Huh… It’s very sad.”
“Mom… Dad… Aaaaang!”
“Shut up?”
“Hike! It hurts!”
The female assailant held the nape of the child who appeared to be her daughter’s neck with her large one hand and began to laugh meanly as she held the needle she was holding in her remaining hand.
“Look Carefully. Where else would you see a daughter becoming a monster? In honor of her, I will order her to kill you first. Look closely….”
It was the moment when the gunman’s needle was about to be driven into the nape of her child’s neck.
Taaang! Faaaaang!
“Kuaaaaa!!”
An arrow was stuck in the arm of the woman assailant, and her body was flying away as if bouncing away.
When she saw her appearance, she started screaming in confusion, not only to ordinary people, but also to the gangsters.
“What, what! Who, who are you!!”
She responded with arrows rather than courtesy toward the assailants who were shouting at Seongsuah and me.
Paaang!
“Keah!”
“Kill! There are only two cubs against me!”
And in such a situation that became a mess, there was only one choice for ordinary people.
“Eh, run away!”
“Catch the runaway bastards! Aww!”
One of the assailants who was trying to harm the general public suddenly started to struggle as his body was burned.
“Quaaaaa! Buy, save me!! Buy, save me~!!!!!”
“That bitch wizard! Kill that bitch!”
At the same time as a man shouted, the assailants did not think of dealing with ordinary people and immediately began to attack Seong Soo-ah.
Close range, range, magic.
Everything started to focus on Seong Soo-ah.
“Die!!”
“It would be difficult to use magic without aiming for an opportunity like that!”
“Joe, watch out!”
Rather, the fireballs flying towards Seongsu-ah were blown away by the strong wind she used and flew towards the other assailants.
Quaang!
“Hey! Aaaaah!”
“Somehow, from that year on!”
I was able to experience with my own eyes how great Sung Soo-ah’s existence was.
She was able to subdue the gangsters around her in an instant, unleashing the skills she had shown earlier in her VR device.
And all the eyes of the assailants were focused on Sung Soo-ah.
That was their crucial mistake.
‘It would have been easier if they had attacked me first.’
Actually, I thought so, but it was a reasonable way of fighting from the point of view of the assailants.
Both the archer and the wizard were long-distance abilities, but the status people thought was different.
From their point of view, it was only natural to target the most threatening mage.
However, that meant that I was wise when the premise was that I couldn’t use magic.
Shuwook! Grasp!
“Kuuk….”
I didn’t pay attention and immediately fired arrows at the heads of the guys presumed to be wizards and put them right in the center.
‘Sung Soo-ah is truly amazing.’
Ordinary people had already fled, and the number of assailants had already been reduced by more than half.
Dead or injured, they were lying on the floor, bleeding.
It was the moment when there were signs that the situation was being sorted out.
“These fuck cubs… I will kill you….”
The woman whose hand had been pierced by my arrow earlier, and whose body was plummeted by Seongsuah’s magic, muttered her swear words and grabbed one of her comrades by the neck and began to lift her up.
‘What? Are you trying to heal?’
[Looking at the behavior, it seems that there is a distance from treatment.]
There’s no way she’d grab her colleague by the neck to heal her and listen.
The man who was grabbed by the nape of his neck let out a groan as he vomited so much pain that it felt like a dark cloak.
“Hey, recovery… Hurry….”
“Shut up! Useless bastard!”
Pak!
I stuck the unknown black needle I was holding earlier into the dying comrade’s chest.
“Ah! That, that’s it! Sir, what the fuck are you doing! Subtract! Take it out quickly!!”
“If you’re going to die anyway, wouldn’t it be nice to be of some help?”
“Lord, kill… Throw away… Turn off….”
The woman poured all the liquid into the man and threw him to the floor.
The man who had been thrown away like that fell helplessly at first, but he picked himself up with a limp body as if he had quickly recovered.
At the same time, a woman’s cry was heard.
“Go and kill me!”
“–__—!!”
At the same time as she shouted, the man who had been stuck in the needle began to rush towards Seongsu-ah like mad.
At that moment, I felt a sense of danger when I saw the assailant rushing at Sung Soo-ah, so I fired an arrow to pierce his head.
But my arrow….
Crisp!
“–_!”
“Crazy!”
The arrow hit him in the head, but all it did was stiffen it for a moment.
It would be nice if you could look at me, but….
“_—__!”
He didn’t even look at me and started running towards Sung Soo-ah.
“Instructor Sung Soo-ah!”
“!?”
Seong Soo-ah, who was fighting the offensive around her, heard her cry and finally found the man running towards her.
Sung Soo-ah instantly fused the magic of fire and wind and blew the monster away with a direct hit.
Originally, it was normal to be hit properly and fly away, but….
Paaa….
“No way!”
As soon as her magic touched the goon, she was unable to stop her charge, with only her cloak burning on the outside.
Seong Soo-ah was embarrassed by the charge of her monstrous creature and did not see her surroundings, so she began to show an opening to the assailants who were rushing around.
“Quit!”
“Now! Kill! If you kill this year… ! Aww!”
“Fuck! Wizards! Kill the bowman first!!”
I started running madly at Seong Soo-ah while shooting the first-level arrow.
But the situation got progressively worse.
“-=__-!”
“_—!”
Two more were running towards me.
‘Driving me crazy!’
[Suho-sama, let Lena sortie for now!]
‘Nope! More!’
If Lena comes along, she will be able to get out of this situation somehow.
But what next?
What if Lena’s scene accidentally caught Cho Kang-hyun’s eyes?
How should I explain Lena to Sung Soo-ah?
I ran to her with the cover of her holy beast, ignoring the monsters charging at her.
“-__—!”
‘Cut one for now!’
Although the effect was insignificant, a mysterious creature that had been showered with Seongsuah’s magic and my arrows was collapsing.
But the problem is….
“_—_!”
“—_!”
As I watched the monstrous creature rushing at me, an idea came to my mind.
‘Okay! Let’s use that!’
As soon as I thought about it, I targeted the strange creature and activated the trap magic circle I had learned before.
However, the magic circle used….
‘What? Why on the ground… !’
It was used on a floor that was huge enough to cover not only me and the monster, but also the stranger and Seongsuah who were far away.
And that magic circle….
Aww!!
It was activated while emitting a brown light while lying huge on the floor.
