Chapter 177 – Vanish (Part Five)

“Kuhk…”

An Awakened from Eclipse fell to his knees.

His Defensive Coat, equipped with a dual-core system, had long been down, and blood was streaming from the sword wound in his chest.

*Thud!*

The man collapsed, and Jo Nam-seok retracted his sword.

The two Awakened who had attacked him were both dead.

“Hoo…”

Jo Nam-seok let out a sigh of relief.

Although blood was flowing quite heavily from his head, the sheer fact that he had faced and defeated these two was enough to make him forget the pain.

It had been a tough fight, but his ability to copy the powers of the Awakened he faced was potent, no matter who or how many he fought.

Moreover, the combination of two abilities, Instantaneous Acceleration and Lightning, worked perfectly together, giving him an edge over opponents who only possessed one ability each.

“They were good abilities. What a shame.”

Jo Nam-seok muttered regretfully.

He could mimic his opponents’ abilities, but he couldn’t keep them permanently.

He could only borrow the abilities of Awakened in his vicinity; if the target moved beyond a certain distance or died, the copied ability would also disappear.

As the situation concluded, Gwen, who had been staying back, hurried over to him.

“A-Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Let’s get moving.”

“What? We should treat your wounds first…”

“No, there’s somewhere we need to go right away.”

***

“So… are all those the locations currently under attack?”

“That’s correct.”

The man standing with his hands clasped nodded.

A large holographic screen was displayed at the front of the long conference room, showing a map overflowing with red markers.

“They’re pulling this shit everywhere.”

The 4th Team Leader of the Response Team ground his teeth.

The other team leaders sitting in a row beside him began to murmur among themselves.

They were already recalling agents from Gate clearings, but the scale of the attack was so overwhelming they couldn’t see a way to manage it, even if they abandoned citizens near Gates in other countries.

The man standing at the front pressed a button on the small remote he was holding, and white dots appeared all over the map.

These were different from the black dots indicating the locations of B-rank or higher Gates and the red markers showing where terrorist attacks were taking place.

“These are the locations where Eclipse’s Awakened have appeared. Considering they are mostly targeting and destroying government facilities rather than attacking civilians, it seems they have no intention of hiding their objective.”

“Then we need to deal with that trash first.”

“What about the criminal organizations terrorizing the cities?”

“We don’t have the luxury to worry about such small fry. Until the situation is somewhat under control, we’ll have to rely on other corporations to hold them off. Hey, send us the locations.”

As the 4th Team Leader gestured with a nod, the man quickly manipulated the screen.

The location data for Eclipse’s appearances was instantly transmitted to their watches.

One of the team leaders, looking at the location data, spoke up.

“But isn’t the scale smaller than expected? The number of high-ranking Awakened who’ve shown up is lower than the estimates.”

“They must still be hiding somewhere.”

*KABOOM!*

Before the conversation could even finish, explosions erupted from all directions.

The impact was strong enough to shake the ground, far too powerful to be a simple accident. It wasn’t hard to realize that the Response Team’s headquarters was under attack.

“These goddamn bastards!”

The team leaders shot up from their seats and looked out the window.

Just as they suspected, Awakened from Eclipse, clad in white coats, had appeared and were launching an assault.

The team leaders leaped outside, drawing their weapons.

Joined by the regular team members emerging from the building, the Response Team’s Awakened hastily mounted a counterattack.

But the situation was far from easy.

Their opponents were so numerous that they were continuously pushed back as time went on.

Compared to the government Response Team, whose forces were depleted from being dispatched to various locations, Eclipse had launched their attack after thoroughly assessing their enemy’s strength.

“You psychotic sons of bitches…!”

“That’s not something we need to hear from you lackeys.”

*KRRRRK!*

The 4th Team Leader thrust his sword with all his might, but the man in the black mask didn’t budge.

Jo Yoon and Seong In-ha.

He was a master swordsman who couldn’t be taken down even when two of Aegis’s team leaders had come at him together, so it was only natural that this team leader couldn’t handle him alone.

*Shunk!* A long sword pierced the 4th Team Leader’s stomach, and before he could even struggle in pain, his neck was snapped by the man’s other arm.

As the 4th Team Leader collapsed, spewing blood, the man in the black mask immediately turned and cut down another Response Team Awakened fighting nearby.

It wasn’t just him; all the Eclipse members present were cutting down lives without hesitation, making no distinction between civilians and Awakened.

A stark contrast to their assault on Aegis headquarters.

They cut people down with a ferocity that suggested they intended to wipe out anyone even remotely involved.

But just then, someone appeared and blocked their path.

*CLANG!*

The sword swung by the man in the black mask was brought to a dead stop by another blade that had intervened.

It was Seong-won of Alpha Team, a man wearing a coat bearing the Aegis insignia.

“You…”

“We just finished our business.”

*Shunk!*

As Seong-won pulled his sword back, the masked man’s downward strike plunged into the nape of his neck.

But despite the grievous wound, Seong-won didn’t even blink and immediately thrust his sword forward again.

Caught off guard by the swift, unexpectedly timed attack, the man in the black mask barely managed to parry it.

But in that instant, Hyeon-seo appeared on the opposite side and swung her sword. Even he couldn’t react to the simultaneous attacks that came as if perfectly choreographed.

*BOOM!*

The masked man’s protective barrier activated, sending him flying back into a building.

And it didn’t end there.

Astrid, hovering in the sky with her wings spread, rained powerful lightning down on the Eclipse Awakened, while Marco used his telekinesis to drop large chunks of building debris on them all at once.

*CRASH! BOOM!*

The barrage of attacks turned the area below into a chaotic mess, and Alpha Team charged into the pandemonium, swinging their swords at the Eclipse Awakened.

Their strength was unbelievable for a newly formed team composed entirely of rookies who had only recently debuted.

But one thing.

That alone was not enough.

Four A-rank Awakened were not enough to turn the tide of the battle; there were too many enemies, and none of them were pushovers.

Facing so many high-ranking Awakened, each with their own unique abilities, they were inevitably at a disadvantage.

*Zzzzzzt!*

“Keuk!”

An electric shock flew at Hyeon-seo as she swung her sword. Her core having gone down during the fight, she momentarily staggered and placed a hand on the ground.

She had been fighting two other Awakened simultaneously, so she couldn’t react to an attack coming from behind.

And in that dangerous moment, her opponent’s sword, not missing the opening, flew towards her.

*BANG!*

A bullet fired from somewhere far away lodged itself in the man’s chest.

“Guh…”

The man coughed up a spurt of blood and pitched forward.

His comrade standing beside him froze in shock.

Even though his coat’s protective function was on the verge of failing from fighting Hyeon-seo, it was absurd that a high-ranking Awakened could be killed by a mere bullet.

As the member stood there dumbfounded, another Awakened suddenly rushed in and swung a longsword with all their might.

*CLANG!*

“Who the hell are you…!”

The member gritted his teeth, stunned by the sheer weight behind the blow.

A woman with orange hair tied up in a ponytail, wearing a black coat.

They had all been briefed on the possibility of Aegis’s Alpha Team intervening.

But they had received no information about an Awakened like this, and no one even recognized her face.

With no insignia from any corporation or group on her coat, her identity was even more of a mystery.

*CLANG! CLANG!*

She wielded the longsword freely with one hand, and the man struggled to block her repeated attacks.

But an opening appeared where he least expected it, and the woman, seizing the chance, shot her leg up in a high kick.

*WHACK!*

“Keoheok…!”

Her leg, raised to a near 180-degree angle, struck the man’s jaw, knocking him out in a single blow.

The powerful kicking technique displayed by the unidentified woman was so impressive that even Hyeon-seo, watching from right in front of her, let out an involuntary gasp.

*THUD!*

This time, from a completely different direction.

A man who appeared to be a bare-handed martial artist threw a punch, and with a heavy thud, another member was sent flying.

He too was an unknown powerhouse, wearing a black coat with no identifying features.

*BANG!*

The sniper’s gunshot rang out again from a distant position, and elsewhere, the ground twisted and swallowed up several Awakened.

“Nice shot!”

Seemingly excited by her successful attack, a small child jumped on the spot and shouted.

She was a short, cute-looking girl, making it hard to believe she was in the middle of such a brutal battle.

But a sharp-featured man with dark black hair reprimanded her.

“It’s far from over. Don’t get excited. Focus.”

“Ah… okay.”

The child, looking dejected, drew upon her ability, and the earth rumbled once more.

“What’s going on…?”

Unidentified Awakened who had suddenly appeared and joined the fight.

They wore black coats with no insignias, and judging by the direction of their blades, they were definitely not affiliated with Eclipse.

Just then, the orange-haired woman glanced back, gave Hyeon-seo a playful smile, and snapped into a salute.

“Greetings, seniors!”

“W-Who are you?”

A bewildered Hyeon-seo asked, looking up at her.

But the woman, smiling brightly, delayed her answer and exchanged a look with another unidentified man.

They simultaneously brought a hand to the communicators in their ears and spoke.

“This is Team Gamma. We’ve linked up with Alpha.”

“Team Delta, commencing operation.”