Chapter 29 – Joint Operation (Part Two)

Aboard Aegis Team A’s dedicated transport, Kang Il-hyeon, Ghost, and Jeong Jin-seong were seated.

Lee Soo-yeon stood before them, looking down at the documents in her hand.

The only thing out of the ordinary was that Sera from Team B was sitting where Seok Pil-joon usually would.

“The monster appearing in the B0-grade zone is the Creep. We’ve dealt with them plenty of times, right? Just watch out for their long arms.”

Lee Soo-yeon said.

A massive, bipedal monster, the Creep.

It was a common monster, having appeared hundreds of times in B-Rank Gates over the past twenty years.

“The ace monster is a Craiger. It’s pitch-black and looks almost identical to a Creep. If you take a direct hit from the toxic gas it releases from its back, your coat’s purification system probably won’t hold. Don’t let your guard down just because you have the new Defensive Coats.”

“Haha, we’ll keep that in mind.”

Lee Soo-yeon said, glancing pointedly at Ghost and Il-hyeon. Ghost chuckled in response.

Her teasing gaze prompted an awkward smile from Il-hyeon as well.

“Monsters are appearing all over the city, but the evacuation was handled properly, so there are no casualties yet. The buildings will need a complete overhaul, but all things considered, we got off easy.”

Unlike last time, the evacuation and the establishment of a safe perimeter had been executed flawlessly, giving them some breathing room despite the unexpected crisis.

The location on the monitor showed they had reached their destination, and Lee Soo-yeon pressed a button.

With a loud clank, the transport’s door opened.

Il-hyeon got up from his seat and looked outside.

“Is… all of that a wide-area Gate?”

“That’s right.”

Il-hyeon’s jaw dropped as he pointed down, and Lee Soo-yeon nodded.

Over more than half the city, the entire ground shimmered with a violet aura.

Most Gates had a distinct form, a rift from which monsters emerged. But down below, a violet fog was coalescing, spontaneously forming monsters by the dozen.

“At this altitude, we’re well within a Craiger’s range, so the transport can’t land. You’ll each jump to your designated drop points based on the monster locations.”

With a light gesture from Lee Soo-yeon, holograms projected from the watches of everyone on board.

Each of their drop points was marked on a holographic map.

“Aha, so that’s why I’m on this one.”

Sera, sitting opposite, said as if she finally understood.

She didn’t possess an ability that would let her survive a fall from this height.

She had switched transports to get help descending from one of our team members.

Conversely, Seok Pil-joon, whose leaping ability allowed him to change direction mid-air, was on the other transport, ready to drop with a member of Team B.

“Exactly. You and Il-hyeon will go down first and head straight for the secondary point. Confirmed your location? Get ready to jump.”

As Lee Soo-yeon spoke, Sera shot up and headed for the entrance.

The transport was rapidly approaching Il-hyeon and Sera’s drop point.

However, Il-hyeon, who was already standing by the door, still hadn’t properly grasped the situation.

The other team members, who had been in this situation countless times, knew exactly what was going on.

But Il-hyeon, who wasn’t privy to the plan, couldn’t quite grasp the meaning behind her brief instructions.

He understood they were to land at the same spot, but why Sera was on this transport was still a mystery.

Of course, there was no time to ask about it now.

It was time to jump.

“Wait, where are the parachutes?”

“What are you talking about? The transport can’t get any lower. We don’t have the luxury of floating down with parachutes.”

“What?”

“It’s the drop point! Let’s go!”

“Ah!”

While he hesitated, the GPS showed the transport was already passing their drop point.

The moment Il-hyeon realized this and tried to create a summon, Sera wrapped her arms around him and leaped out of the transport.

“Aaaah!”

The wind whipped mercilessly against his face. Experiencing freefall for the first time in his life, Il-hyeon felt his soul about to leave his body.

Amid the chaos, he managed to regain his balance and focus his mind.

He captured the air rushing past at immense speed, seizing and reshaping it.

Il-hyeon barely managed to summon a hawk right beneath him.

Landing on the hawk’s back with Sera still clinging to him, Il-hyeon breathed a sigh of relief.

“You should have said something before jumping!”

“But we were about to miss the drop point.”

The hawk banked, gradually losing altitude.

Il-hyeon sighed.

I can’t believe they’d just jump out.

Of course, he himself could manage it, but he never imagined the other Awakened would also jump without any equipment.

‘How are the team leaders planning to get down?’

It was a fair question. Neither Lee Soo-yeon nor Jeong Jin-seong possessed an ability that could help with the fall.

It might be different for Ghost or Seok Pil-joon, but for those two to jump without parachutes seemed like nothing short of a suicide mission.

“Wow, this is amazing.”

Sera, clinging tightly to Il-hyeon’s back, was stroking the hawk’s back with her free hand.

Hastily formed, its translucent body offered a faint view of the ground below.

“I get how Ghost can do it, but how are the team leaders getting down? They don’t have any abilities suited for mid-air…”

“Huh? Haha, they don’t need abilities.”

Don’t need them?

While Il-hyeon stared in confusion, two figures leaped from the transport far ahead of them.

It was Lee Soo-yeon and Jeong Jin-seong.

Il-hyeon was startled, his eyes widening as he watched them.

Even though the transport had descended to the lowest possible altitude without drawing enemy fire, it was still far too high for a normal person to survive the landing.

At least in his view.

CRASH!

With a deafening crash, the road buckled and shattered, sending debris flying in all directions.

Unlike the shattered road, Lee Soo-yeon and Jeong Jin-seong stood up unharmed and drew their swords.

“Monsters…”

He muttered with a hollow laugh.

At this point, it was hard to tell who the real monsters were.

As Il-hyeon stared down in awe, a stream of poison suddenly shot up from the side.

It was a thick cloud of poison, spewing high into the sky from a Craiger.

“Dodge it!”

“Damn!”

The hawk quickly changed direction, but one of its wings was engulfed in the toxic gas and completely melted away.

Il-hyeon dismissed the form and then summoned the hawk again.

This time, the skillfully summoned hawk instantly lowered its altitude and reached the ground.

Il-hyeon dismissed the summon, and the two landed softly on the road between the buildings.

Near the marked drop point was their first target, a group of several dozen monsters.

The surrounding buildings were completely demolished. The monsters swarmed, surrounding Il-hyeon and Sera from both sides.

The Creeps were grotesque, ash-gray monsters covered in patches of hideous flesh.

Their bodies were pockmarked with holes, and their arms were unnaturally long.

Il-hyeon and Sera stood back-to-back and calmly drew their swords.

“Since I got a ride on your bird, I’ll take care of things here.”

Sera said, glancing back slightly.

Then she immediately drew a pistol with her left hand.

‘A pistol?’

When she suddenly pulled a pistol from her coat, Il-hyeon looked at her strangely.

For a moment, he couldn’t understand why an Awakened would carry a firearm.

Sera aimed the muzzle at the monster and pulled the trigger.

Bang! The bullets lodged in the monsters’ bodies.

The pistol’s anti-monster rounds succeeded in piercing the Creeps’ tough hide.

But naturally, a wound that small had no effect on the creatures.

The Creeps, seemingly unaware they were even injured, continued to close the distance at an unabated pace.

Bang! Bang! She paid no mind and, dividing them to her left and right, emptied an entire magazine into the monsters’ hides.

And then,

Snap!

She snapped her fingers.

A series of massive explosions erupted on both sides, the deafening blasts engulfing the monsters.

Kreeeegh!

The monsters’ screams and acrid smoke filled the street.

‘What the hell?’

Her B-rank ability, [Explosion].

Sera was one of the few firearm users among the high-ranking Awakened.

Il-hyeon, who only vaguely knew her face and name, couldn’t help but be shocked.

The smoke from the explosions cleared, revealing streets piled high with the mangled corpses of the Creeps.

He thought they had all died in the powerful explosion, but one was still standing.

The Craiger, mixed in with the other monsters.

Unlike the other Creeps, it was larger and had a pitch-black body.

Sera, who had also spotted the Craiger like Il-hyeon, threw the sword she was holding in her right hand.

The sword, flying at a speed that was hard to react to, lodged deep in the creature’s chest.

The Craiger flinched in pain, but compared to its bulk, it was a small wound, and it charged towards them, seemingly even more enraged.

“Bang!”

BOOM!

Sera’s hand, mimicking a pistol, recoiled.

An explosion occurred once more, exactly where the sword was embedded.

The Craiger’s chest area was completely blown away, leaving a gaping hole, and it lost its strength mid-charge and staggered.

At the same time, Sera quickly dashed forward and raised her right hand.

Smack! The sword, spinning through the air, landed perfectly in her hand.

The incredibly durable sword returned to her, not even scorched by the explosion.

Slice!

Twisting her waist and leaping up, Sera’s sword sent the Craiger’s head flying.

The headless body of the Craiger lost its strength and collapsed.