Chapter 173 – Vanish (Part One)

After the all-out battle that no one had anticipated, massive repercussions swept across the world.

The colossal fight that had erupted in the country was witnessed by countless civilians, and an announcement was made explaining what had happened and revealing the existence of Eclipse, the organization behind the criminal syndicates.

They couldn’t reveal everything, considering the shock people would feel upon learning that the heroes who once saved humanity now stood on opposing sides, and the risk that past government actions might be further exposed. However, to appease the enraged public for the time being, the information was released in a way that was as favorable to the government as possible.

Eclipse’s media manipulation was still ongoing, and since the governments had already deceived the public by controlling the press, making people believe them outright this time wasn’t easy.

But one thing was certain: the situation was different from before.

Now that their existence was known to the public, their plans had undoubtedly been thrown into disarray.

Unless Hwayeon’s mind-control ability could affect the entire world’s population, there was no stopping the news that had already spread like wildfire.

Furthermore, with Min Ji-hoon’s presence, Eclipse was forced into a lull, unable to make any significant moves.

Of course, this didn’t mean the situation was optimistic in the slightest.

Even though they had failed to achieve their goal in this battle and retreated, their forces remained formidable.

Aegis was the one that had suffered damage, and considering they still had to handle the high-ranking Gates appearing all over the world, they were stretched to their breaking point.

It seemed they had weathered the immediate crisis after Il-hyeon cleared two S-rank Gates and other teams blocked the flood of new ones, but Gates of similar quantity and quality continued to spawn with no sign of abating.

In a situation where they were already short-handed just dealing with Gates, they now had criminal organizations running rampant on one side and had been embroiled in a massive battle. It was an incredibly taxing state of affairs.

And above all, the one person everyone had hoped would break through this grim situation had vanished.

The leader of the Alpha Team, Kang Il-hyeon, had disappeared.

***

Screeeech!

Inside the dark tunnel, the piercing shriek of a monster echoed loudly.

The tunnel, where an A-rank monster had appeared due to a surprise Gate, was completely sealed off, and Awakened who were passing through the airspace nearby were hastily deployed.

They belonged neither to Aegis nor the Response Team, and weren’t even part of a professional Awakened corporation.

They were Korea’s private Awakened team, Beta.

Normally, it would be absurd to throw a team with no proper affiliation into an A-rank Gate situation, no matter how urgent it was.

Deploying such meager forces while standing idly by would only serve to increase the damage exponentially.

But a look at the actual scene revealed a remarkably low number of casualties for a Gate of this rank and its short activation time.

In fact, the tunnel was already littered with the corpses of other monsters, and not a single one had managed to escape past the barricades.

“That’s the one, right?”

Seo Jeong-hwa, her long red hair flowing, said as she pointed at the monster she had spotted.

Dressed in a black coat, she had taken charge of the site and advanced from the entrance deep into the tunnel.

Having broken through swarms of monsters to get here, her sword was now stained with their dark red blood.

“Yeah, that’s it. Looks exactly like the picture.”

Another member of Team Beta, Lee Dong-won, nodded.

The four-legged monster before them perfectly matched the information urgently relayed by the local government.

It had skin that was black, rotting, and dripping, and eyes that had atrophied into nothing. Its long torso and equally long tail were reminiscent of a lizard.

Although, of course, no such hideous reptile existed on Earth.

Grrrrr!

It was the A-rank monster Gullash, which had first appeared in Syria eighteen years ago.

Upon spotting the group, the creature let out a low, threatening growl.

Known for its considerable notoriety even among A-rank monsters, it was on the list of fiends that had killed the most people.

It was a good thing it hadn’t escaped the tunnel before they arrived; if it had managed to break out, the nightmare of the past would have been reenacted.

But now it faced Seo Jeong-hwa and Lee Dong-won, and it radiated a menacing hostility toward them.

Crack!

With a powerful kick of its two legs, the Gullash used the left wall as a springboard, its erratic movements closing the distance in an instant.

Seo Jeong-hwa and Lee Dong-won dodged to either side, evading the attack as the creature’s massive claws shattered the ground.

Sssss!

Seo Jeong-hwa’s red hair turned white as a frigid chill began to envelop the area.

In a flash, the tunnel became a cave filled with frost, and the effect on the Gullash was even more severe.

Engulfed by the cold, its body and legs froze solid, making it difficult to even take a single step.

Seizing the moment, Seo Jeong-hwa immediately moved in and swung her sword.

Her arm, now glowing red from her physical enhancement ability, allowed her to put far more power into her downward strike.

Schwing!

The Gullash’s head was sliced off in one clean motion, and the monster let out a horrifying scream.

The sight of it thrashing about, spraying fountains of blood everywhere, was so grotesque it made one instinctively grimace.

But an A-rank monster wouldn’t go down that easily.

Sizzzle!

A boiling sound came from the thrashing Gullash’s body, and cells began to multiply from the surface severed by the sword.

It was the creature’s greatest feature and weapon: Division.

The Gullash revived by splitting into multiple bodies whenever its life was in danger, and this time was no exception.

After their numbers doubled to two, the creatures let out a roar and charged at Seo Jeong-hwa without a second thought.

“Kik-kik!”

But just then, the weasel perched on Seo Jeong-hwa’s shoulder unleashed its power.

Crackle!

The weasel tensed its body and fired a powerful electric shock, zapping both monsters at once.

However, the two corpses once again squirmed and multiplied into four.

“Hmm… It seems this one has the same ability.”

Seo Jeong-hwa scratched her head, looking troubled.

According to past database records, it was documented to multiply like this up to ten times. Facing these creatures without any specific information or solution was a true nightmare.

No matter how strong an Awakened was, facing nearly a thousand multiplying monsters was a number that would inevitably lead to stamina issues.

Just then, Lee Dong-won, who had closed in from behind in an instant, slammed his fist into the side of one of the newly divided Gullashes.

Boom!

The Gullash was sent flying with a loud crash.

It tumbled across the ground, sweeping away abandoned vehicles in the tunnel, while black blood and entrails spilled from its caved-in side.

But once again, the creature began to split at its waist, dividing into two and rising to its feet.

At this rate, their numbers would just keep increasing.

But right then, something strange happened.

“Kieeeek!”

The bodies of the two Gullashes that had just multiplied began to break apart.

As if turning to sand and crumbling away, their bodies scattered and collapsed. Sensing their lives were in danger again, the Gullashes tried to divide further, but even the newly split creatures disintegrated, their bodies turning to fragments.

No matter how many times they tried to multiply and divide, they were all being pulverized by Lee Dong-won’s ability.

Once the ones his fist had struck had completely vanished, Lee Dong-won grinned, smacked his fist, and turned his head.

Only three remained.

This would be simple.

***

It didn’t take long at all to pulverize the remaining three Gullashes, and the situation was quickly resolved.

They confirmed that the Gate that had formed was completely closed, and all the monsters that had appeared in the tunnel had been annihilated.

“Are we going to make it in time…”

Lee Dong-won, sitting among the monster corpses, muttered as he checked his watch.

Their next assignment was back in the country, but this surprise Gate had caused a delay.

Normally, they could have just passed it off to Aegis or the Response Team, but with the current severe manpower shortage, they didn’t have that luxury.

Just then, Seo Jeong-hwa, who was on a call with someone, gave him an okay sign. Seeing it, Lee Dong-won quickly ran over.

He then placed his hand on the head of the weasel sitting on Seo Jeong-hwa’s palm.

Shhhk!

Space distorted, and their figures, which had been deep inside the tunnel, vanished without a trace, leaping across to the other side.

When Lee Dong-won looked around, he saw a familiar helicopter landing pad with Korean writing on it.

They had just been thousands of kilometers away, but now they were back in Korea.

“This ability is convenient no matter how many times I see it…”

“We were about to be late. Thanks, you saved us.”

“Don’t mention it. I was waiting for a transport plane myself.”

Hyeon-seo, who had brought them here, shrugged.

“I called for two, so they should be arriving soon.”

Team Beta, which Seo Jeong-hwa and Lee Dong-won belonged to, was not part of Aegis but merely an external force.

However, in a situation with such a personnel shortage, it was no time to be picky. They were sharing a few transport planes with Aegis’s permission.

As newly minted A-rank Awakened, their strength was not to be taken lightly anywhere.

“By the way, still no contact with Kang Il-hyeon?”

Seo Jeong-hwa asked with a worried expression.

Hyeon-seo silently nodded.

It had already been a week since the battle with Eclipse at Aegis headquarters.

For reasons they couldn’t fathom, all contact with Il-hyeon had been completely cut off.

The situation was already urgent due to the number of Gates and the reduced manpower. On top of that, Min Ji-hoon, who had overexerted himself in the last battle, was hospitalized with serious health issues, and they had no idea when the enemy might attack again.

For him to disappear without a word in such a situation was hard to comprehend.

“No matter how you look at it, it’s strange… You don’t think those bastards captured him, do you?”

“No, that’s absolutely not it.”

Though Seo Jeong-hwa raised the question, Hyeon-seo answered firmly.

She, who usually had the closest mental connection to Il-hyeon, knew for certain.

There had been a few times when her connection with Il-hyeon had been severed, but this time was distinctly different.

It wasn’t blocked by someone else’s ability; Il-hyeon had severed the link of his own will.

She was certain he was still alive and breathing, and if he had been kidnapped or taken by force, he would never have cut off all communication with his team members himself.

Most importantly, Il-hyeon had been with Hyeon-seo during the battle. After using the Peacemaker to see the future, he had left on his own accord.

Leaving behind only a single request: to wait.

“Then what in the world is he doing right now…?”