Chapter 157

Lee Doosik is the Deputy Unit Leader of the Jeokhwadan and a 1st-Rank Exorcist.

Truth be told, if judged solely by skill, he wasn’t entirely without a sense of being overshadowed by Yoo Jinho, but even so, he was not at a level to fall behind any ordinary 1st-Rank.

‘According to the materials transferred from Headquarters, the opponents are one 1st-Rank and one 2nd-Rank.’

Therefore, he believed that if he handled the 1st-Rank and Han Kangyoon handled the 2nd-Rank, they could be sufficiently subdued.

Rustle.

Having finished his judgment and waiting, two men with disheveled appearances revealed themselves.

One of them clicked his tongue and immediately fired an Offensive Art, and Lee Doosik deployed the high-level Defensive Art he had prepared.

Whoosh.

Screech!

Zzzzzzzz—!

“I’ll handle this big guy, you break through over there!”

“…Very well.”

The opponent was also quick to make a judgment.

Despite it being an Intermediate-Rank Art, it was a heavy blow; the one who fired the attack was clearly a 1st-Rank Exorcist. In response, Lee Doosik ignored the middle-aged man who had disappeared into the forest with Han Kangyoon’s group and focused on the opponent before him.

Whoosh.

Zzzzzzzz!

Just as they were exchanging a few moves to gauge each other’s level, the man before him suddenly let out a sinister chuckle.

“What’s so funny?”

“Are you sure that’s okay?”

“What?”

The man’s words were incomprehensible, yet Lee Doosik felt an inexplicable unease from them.

And that unease soon proved to be true.

“Are those brats over there trainees? If so, they’ll have a hard time handling it.”

“Hmph, they are excellent talents who can sufficiently handle a 2nd-Rank. There’s no reason for you to worry.”

“Kekekeke, hey, what on earth are you talking about?”

The man, as if finding it absurd, shot a pitiful glance and continued.

“He’s stronger than me. Judging from your words, the match is probably decided by now.”

“…What?”

Headquarters had clearly relayed information about one 1st-Rank and one 2nd-Rank. And the man before him was definitely a 1st-Rank.

Then, could it be that the information was wrong?

‘This is bad!’

Lee Doosik felt an intense sense of crisis piercing through his body.

No matter how good their grades were in the Academy or qualification exams, actual combat where Exorcists risk their lives is different.

Moreover, the opponent was a 1st-Rank Exorcist who had experienced all sorts of battles and even committed crimes, having killed people over ten times already.

It meant the difference in experience was overwhelming.

‘I have to help.’

Lee Doosik emitted a fierce aura and drew out even more Spiritual Power.

The opponent before him was strong, but not at a level he couldn’t defeat.

Just as he was pushing the opponent back and gaining the upper hand, he began to sense someone’s presence from the direction of the thicket.

The number was one.

Confirming this, Lee Doosik swallowed a groan and gritted his teeth tightly.

‘Damn it, I should have made them retreat earlier…’

But there was no time to dwell in regret.

Moreover, Han Kangyoon and Arietta were not ones to be easily defeated either. Perhaps, realizing the difference in level, they might have quickly withdrawn.

If so, what he had to do now was hold out against the two until other unit members arrived.

Rustle,

What entered Lee Doosik’s determined field of vision was a familiar-faced man with gray hair.

It was Han Kangyoon.

“Uh, huh? How did you…?”

“I have finished restraining the other one. Since someone needed to guard the spot, I came alone. I will provide support.”

“What?”

That meant Han Kangyoon and Arietta had subdued the other one.

For a moment, Lee Doosik wondered if the opponent had bluffed and quickly turned his head.

But upon reconsideration, it seemed difficult to display such wit in such a tense moment, and the opponent also had a genuinely panicked look in his eyes.

At the very least, his demeanor suggested he wasn’t lying.

“This can’t be, it’s impossible! That guy was definitely a step ahead of me, I tell you!”

The man vented his frustration, but that couldn’t change the result before his eyes.

Thus, under the coordinated attack of Lee Doosik and Han Kangyoon, the man collapsed, and just in time, other unit members began arriving at the scene one by one.

It was the moment the situation was concluded.

Thud!

“Ugh.”

“Hey, I told you not to let them fight. Doesn’t the Unit Leader’s word mean anything? Ugh.”

“……”

Normally, he would have retorted with cheeky remarks, but this time, since he had made a mistake himself, he had nothing particular to say.

Lee Doosik rubbed his throbbing forehead and asked Shin Noeul.

“By the way, what happened? If you didn’t know, you should have said so, but giving wrong information is…”

“From what I hear, it seems they deliberately caused confusion during their escape. It’s hard to say it’s the fault of the folks at Headquarters.”

“Tsk. We almost had a major disaster. If the kids had gotten hurt because of me… Ugh, just thinking about it is horrifying.”

Even as he shuddered, Lee Doosik recalled the words the middle-aged man had spat out during the escort.

[…Are those guys really human? Headquarters was raising some strange monsters too.]

The man defeated by Han Kangyoon and Arietta had asked that question, seemingly trembling.

Just as he was pondering what that could possibly mean, Shin Noeul, who was beside him, spoke up again.

“So, what do you think? Seems like we can just keep letting them participate in combat from now on?”

“…Thinking about our rookies, it might be a bit fast, but well, I guess it doesn’t really matter, right? If the two of them can catch a 1st-Rank, that says it all.”

The confirmation results showed that the middle-aged man the two had faced was indeed a 1st-Rank level Exorcist.

Frankly, it was nothing short of astonishing.

“Kids these days are really amazing. Can they do that without any decent real combat experience?”

“Must be innate talent. Maybe for them, sparring and real combat don’t feel much different.”

Shin Noeul and Lee Doosik quietly recalled their own school days.

But the more they did, the deeper their doubts became.

“I couldn’t do that even at twenty.”

“If we go by that, I was still a 2nd-Rank until just before thirty.”

At this point, it’s enough to just laugh out of sheer absurdity. But conversely, if they could attract such talents to the Jeokhwadan, it would be an utterly insane achievement.

“Let’s just assign them roles alongside the rookies. They should be able to handle that level of danger.”

“Yes. I think that’s the right approach too.”

In the end, Han Kangyoon and Arietta, having joined the Jeokhwadan as reserve unit members less than a week ago, came to be treated the same as other first and second-year rookies.

Although not a long time had passed since its founding, it was a moment that overturned the traditions and history of the Jeokhwadan.

‘Fortunately, things are working out well.’

Not to mention, it’s truly going smoothly. Roughly judging the atmosphere, it seemed that through this mission, they had firmly established themselves as definite assets of the Jeokhwadan.

“…Was I okay?”

“Yes. All the newly learned Arts are passing grades by my standards.”

To be honest, the opponent they faced this time was quite strong. Frankly, if I had faced him alone, I couldn’t have guaranteed victory.

‘But…’

Even if I didn’t know from the start, Arietta is already a bona fide 1st-Rank Exorcist level.

Combined with my shadow arts and Arietta’s special Arts derived from her True Noble Blood Trait, the opponent was repeatedly flustered and constantly forced on the defensive.

“…Junior. How’s the situation?”

“There likely isn’t much time left before the situation we’re concerned about occurs.”

Now that we’ve been assigned a plausible role, we must solve missions, coordinate with the unit members, and gain even more trust.

Only then can we become of one mind and one purpose at the decisive moment to battle the Cat-Head Serpent.

‘……’

Thus, a week passed.

“Hey! Han Kangyoon! The Unit Leader says to prepare for training.”

“Yes. I’ll head over there shortly.”

Kim Seungsoo, a second-year unit member of the Jeokhwadan, not much older than me.

At first, he often showed subtle checks and pressure towards me, but after a few sparring matches, he realized the difference in level and became someone who speaks frankly without reserve.

Thanks to that, I also got to interact with the other two rookie unit members, so for me, he was rather a grateful presence.

‘Certainly, living together has allowed me to understand their capabilities in more detail.’

The Jeokhwadan is a fairly well-organized team.

Even in a major battle, there are roles assigned down to the lowest 3rd-Rank Exorcists.

Certainly, if I can assimilate into this team and furthermore, create synergy with them, somehow capturing the Cat-Head Serpent might not be such a far-fetched idea.

Just as I was heading to the training ground after finishing preparations, suddenly, an emergency siren blared throughout the entire building.

An emergency signal, meaning a situation had occurred that required at least rapid support deployment.

“…Junior.”

“Let’s go check it out quickly.”

We quickly ran to where the other unit members were and soon understood the situation through Shin Noeul’s explanation.

“Simultaneous appearance of high-level Specters in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi-do, and Ansan. We are deploying to support the Ansan side.”

A simultaneous appearance of high-level Specters, no less. Moreover, the Specter on the Ansan side we are heading towards is already estimated to be A+-Rank.

‘Simultaneous appearance…’

It doesn’t feel good. Clearly, in the original work, when the Cat-Head Serpent incident occurred, there was such a description.

I truly felt that the decisive moment had approached right to the doorstep.

Perhaps today might be that very day.

Suppressing my trembling heart, I followed the unit members to Ansan and, coordinating with the Exorcists there, subdued the A+-Rank Specter, the Ox-Camphor Eel State.

On the way back to our quarters after completing the mission, the incident occurred.

“Ugh, I’m completely drained.”

“How was it for you, Deputy Unit Leader? We were in the back, so we couldn’t appreciate it accurately.”

“It was a ridiculously strong bastard. I haven’t seen a monster like this more than a few times in my over thirty years.”

Amid the unit members celebrating today’s overcome crisis and boosting each other’s spirits, Shin Noeul made a terrifying expression and immediately deployed a Detection Spell.

And he shouted to the unit members.

“Everyone, take cover—!”

At that moment. A typhoon struck.

Kwaaaang!

Kugwagwagwang—!

The surrounding buildings, trees, and even the ground.

All of them lost their forms as if completely blown apart, and the unit members were instantly scattered and flung away.

If Shin Noeul hadn’t given the warning, there would have already been serious injuries from this attack.

“Wha, wha, what…!”

“Gasp, huff!”

Subsequently, under the immense Spectral Energy pressing down from all directions, the first and second-year unit members beside me fell into panic, breathing heavily.

“This is unbelievable, how can such, such a terrifying aura exist…!”

“We, we have to run! What about the Unit Leader and Deputy Unit Leader?”

Where had the resolve they had trained so hard for all this time gone? They looked around fearfully like little children.

Although not to their extent, frankly, my own startled heart wasn’t much different.

‘…To this degree?’

An S-Rank Specter.

In the game, it was merely a numerical stat, but in reality, it was not.

S-Rank.

What that word signified was literally a calamity.