Chapter 175 – Vanish (Part Three)

“Urgh…!”

The man in the white coat collapsed.

The Awakened from Eclipse who had rushed over from behind after hearing the explosion were all taken care of in an instant, including the one who had informed Astrid of their location.

When the Awakened he had trusted were easily subdued, Wilkins’ face turned to one of utter despair.

“Shall we start again?”

Astrid lowered the gasping Wilkins to the ground.

“Why are you conducting research in a place like this?”

“I was abducted by thugs and dragged here by force… at first, that is.”

“You say that as if it’s not the case anymore.”

“Things changed after I spoke with him. How could I refuse such a noble study to save humanity?”

Wilkins said with an ecstatic expression.

But Astrid’s reaction was indifferent.

“Looking at what you people are doing, it seems far from salvation.”

“I regret that part as well… but it wasn’t something I ordered. It’s not like I can interfere, either. Small sacrifices must be made.”

“Small sacrifices? Right now, you’re killing more people than the monsters are.”

“You foolish woman! The number of people dying now is just a drop in the bucket! The monsters appearing from the Gates will only continue to increase. The capacity to cross dimensions is constantly growing. As the cycles pass, more and more monsters will pour out, and humanity’s Awakened forces won’t be able to handle them. In the end, there’s only destruction! Do you think human lives will have any meaning then?!”

An intensely agitated Wilkins screamed at the top of his lungs.

“It doesn’t matter how many Awakened there are or how strong they get. Nothing will change unless we block the source itself.”

“So you’re saying you’ve found a way?”

“Yes, we’ve perfected a method to permanently block the occurrence of Gates. There’s no possibility of failure.”

Hearing his confident tone, Astrid turned her gaze to Marco.

Just as she could pinpoint the location of anyone she had seen once, Marco’s blue eyes could distinguish whether someone was lying.

Marco nodded.

Wilkins’ words were the absolute truth, without a hint of falsehood.

“Alright, then tell me what that method is. What’s the principle behind it?”

“…Why do you ask? Are you planning to interfere?”

“I can’t just take a terrorist’s word for it. I’m trying to find out if you’re up to some dirty tricks…”

“Do you even know what you’re doing? You people are the enemies of humanity!”

Wilkins, having arbitrarily decided her intentions, thrashed about wildly.

As the white-haired old man flailed his arms and charged like a madman, Astrid frowned and grabbed him.

“Stop struggling and stay still…!”

“Do you know what Baek-il-ho told me? He knew all the theories and hypotheses that I couldn’t even imagine. He… he is the savior who will deliver our humanity!”

Wilkins shouted frantically.

His expression showed he believed his own words without a shadow of a doubt.

He looked as if he had been thoroughly brainwashed.

Astrid clicked her tongue and looked at Wilkins with pity, but it was only for a moment.

Wilkins’ head swelled up grotesquely, and his scream, filled with agony, heralded an explosion.

*KABOOOM!*

A tremendous roar accompanied an explosion that swept through the area.

With a phenomenal power that a small bomb couldn’t even dream of, the entire underground research facility vanished without a trace.

“Ugh…”

Astrid and Marco tumbled violently, slamming their heads onto the floor.

Thanks to instantly spreading their black wings and retreating, they barely managed to escape the underground, but they were caught in the explosion on the way out and took considerable impact.

If it weren’t for the Defensive Coats they were wearing, it wouldn’t have been strange if one of their limbs had been blown off.

Still, it was thanks to their flight ability, which allowed for swift reactions in any situation, that they weren’t completely engulfed. Any other Awakened would have been dead on the spot, with no chance to react.

“This is that ability, right?”

“Probably…”

Barely lifting their heads, they looked down at the widespread traces of the explosion.

There was only one Awakened who could use this kind of ability with this much power.

Eclipse’s Baek-il-ho.

Besides immediately releasing the powers he absorbed, he could also store them temporarily inside his body or even implant them externally.

They couldn’t even guess how many he could implant, but while they had heard they needed to be careful, they never dreamed they would experience it firsthand.

“Damn it, did they give up on the doctor?”

Seeing how they discarded Wilkins, the top authority in this field, like a worn-out shoe, it seemed their claim of completion was no bluff.

*Rumble, rumble, rumble!*

Just then, the floor, which had already collapsed once, began to rumble violently again.

Just as they were wondering if the ground was about to give way completely from the recent explosion, something shot up from within.

*KRAAAASH!*

A long, silver monster burst through the caved-in floor.

The creature’s massive body, already immense from what was visible, continued to rise from the ground, its end nowhere in sight.

*KIEEEEEEEK!*

The creature, covered in thick scales, rose into the sky and looked down at them.

The giant Gate in the basement.

The research equipment that had been holding it in place was blown away by the explosion, and the suppressing force vanished along with it.

As a result, the Gate opened, and the monster appeared much later than scheduled.

*KRA-KOOM!*

Its tail shot up from below, aiming for them.

Barely throwing their heavy bodies aside to dodge the attack, Astrid and Marco rolled through the snow.

*Fwoosh!*

The black wings spread once more, and they raised their still-held swords, targeting the monster that had appeared.

Naturally, the monster didn’t just watch; it interfered with its tail, aiming for them. But they, able to move freely in the air, instantly executed evasive maneuvers, closed in, and swung their swords at the monster’s neck.

*CLANG!*

But there was only a glancing sound; the swords didn’t pierce through.

To think that even after accelerating and thrusting with an Ether Sword—a blade meant for slaying monsters—they couldn’t even pierce its scales, let alone deliver a fatal blow.

It wasn’t simply a matter of their condition.

The silver monster spun its long body once in mid-air and simultaneously spewed immense flames from its mouth and skin.

*FWOOOOSH!*

An intense heat enveloped the surroundings, making the surrounding blizzard seem insignificant.

The flames surged forward, melting snow, ice, and even structures, forcing them to retreat in horror.

At this level, it was certainly an S-rank monster, even higher than an A-rank.

It was basic knowledge that to obtain a large amount of data, one needed to investigate larger, higher-ranked Gates, but to think they were researching an S-rank Gate.

With their coats down, it wasn’t an opponent the two of them could handle.

*KIEEEEEEEK!*

The creature roared fiercely and pursued them relentlessly.

Even without swinging its tail, the flames spewing from the monster’s entire body threatened to incinerate them just by getting close.

“Damn it!”

Without a second thought, Astrid and Marco turned and fled.

But despite its enormous size, the monster’s speed was nearly equal to theirs with their wings spread.

Even fleeing at full speed, all they could do was maintain the distance, and even that was precarious.

At this rate, they couldn’t shake it off, and they couldn’t just ask Hyeon-seo for help to escape the scene with her spatial jump ability.

*FWOOOM!*

The beast spat fire from its mouth, which passed right over the fleeing Marco’s head.

If he hadn’t sensed the attack in advance and changed direction instantly, he would have been burned to a crisp.

Just in case, Astrid tried striking it with lightning a couple of times, but the creature didn’t even flinch, as if it specialized in defense.

“Wait, there are no civilians around here anyway.”

Astrid muttered as she fled.

After the Gates appeared, for safety reasons, there was no longer any personnel stationed in Antarctica.

Besides, their location was near the center, far from any other continent, so there was no worry of innocent people getting caught up in a battle or the creature’s rampage.

An idea popping into her head, Astrid’s lips curled into a grin.

“Marco!”

“What? Did you get a good idea?”

“Yeah. Let’s send those damn bastards a little gift.”

***

The death of Min Ji-hoon.

For him, whose body was broken beyond repair, it was an inevitable outcome.

His recent death was classified as top secret to prevent any leaks, but naturally, that alone wasn’t enough to keep it from reaching the ears of Eclipse.

Inside a massive underground facility located in the very center of Antarctica, members of Eclipse moved about busily.

“Min Ji-hoon is dead.”

Kim Yu-jin, approaching with steady steps in a white coat, said with a blank expression.

He showed no outward sign of distress at the death of his most trusted former colleague.

Hearing this, Hwa-yeon, who was standing there, nodded as if she already knew.

“Let’s move. The time has come.”

Although Il-hyeon’s unexpected, impulsive actions had somewhat derailed their plans, nothing had fundamentally changed.

The movements of their true enemies were all within a predictable range, and preparations to execute the operation were complete.

Her ability, which had been neutralized by Il-hyeon’s special bullet, had long since fully recovered, and she was ready for action.

But at that moment, a sudden lightning bolt struck, shattering the ceiling.

*KRAAASH!*

“What is this…!”

Kim Yu-jin muttered, bewildered by the falling debris.

Considering the sky was clear and this facility was located deep underground, it was an impossible event.

But soon, a man and a woman with black wings spread wide appeared.

“Hello, everyone.”

Astrid waved with a mischievous smile.

“You are…”

Hwa-yeon, recognizing them, showed a look of bewilderment.

Il-hyeon’s core team members. She had never imagined that just the two of them would dare to invade this place so openly.

However, contrary to her thoughts, they were not the only uninvited guests.

*KIEEEEEEEK!*

A massive, S-rank monster revealed itself before them.