Chapter 146 – Hero Raid (1)

The Floating Island, the Lania Estate, was transforming into a brutal battlefield.

There was a time when the Lania Estate had nearly been annihilated by the allied forces of the Seven Kingdoms.

A past where we couldn’t stop the advancing enemy forces and had to keep retreating.

For that kid Katrinne, the Lania Estate was a place she had to protect, even if it meant risking her everything.

An estate she could protect thanks to her parents’ unwavering will. She inherited that heavy, immense responsibility just as it was.

When the people of the estate were happy, Katrinne was happy too.

When they faced hardship, Katrinne suffered with them.

To her, the estate was as good as her everything.

Of course, the estate is a special place for me too.

It was the place that gave me a reason to get back up from despair.

“Hey.”

“Yeah, what is it?”

I said to Katrinne.

“If you need anything, make sure you tell me.”

“Need anything?”

“Yeah.”

This foolish kid didn’t call for me.

She tried to defend the estate with her own power and it was utterly devastated.

By the time I realized it, it was too late.

The scorched Floating Island I saw in my premonition.

It was overrun with countless monsters and the Chimera Team, also known as the 100 Mages.

The very culprits who had wrecked the other world I was in.

I have no idea how they managed to get to the Floating Island.

But according to the information I got from Lee Han-seong, the Chimera Team can’t open Gates.

Instead, they can track and observe where Gates appear.

They literally find the entrance to a dimension and use it as their own passage.

The Union called it a “Dive.”

‘Jean-Pierre.’

The hero and revolutionary who saved France.

His power is known worldwide to be among the 12 Strongest.

‘This should be fun.’

I remember Jean-Pierre looking at me with a victor’s smile.

I heard he was visiting Korea. Could he be coming because of the Floating Island?

In any case, if I go to the Floating Island, I can meet Jean-Pierre, the so-called strongest in the world. And I can fight him.

I have no intention of letting him live.

As long as he’s alive, countless people will die.

I didn’t experience it myself, but the memory is seared into my mind, more horrifying than if I had seen it with my own eyes.

“Ajeossi!”

Just then, Katrinne called out to me urgently.

She’s looking at me with desperate eyes, wanting my help.

Has the future changed a little?

“What is it?”

“Ajeossi. I’m trying to eat some toast, but the strawberry jam won’t open!”

“…”

“Ajeossi, I told you to close the lid gently, didn’t I? You got too much strength to spare?”

Yeah, I do.

By the way, has she not sensed the estate’s crisis yet?

Katrinne took the toast, slathered thickly with jam, and went into her room, not moving from there.

How much time had passed?

I knocked. When there was no answer, I just opened the door.

The jam-covered toast Katrinne had made was sitting neglected in a corner of her desk, its purpose unfulfilled.

Katrinne was focused on something.

She was staring intently at a dome-shaped projection she had opened.

Unaware that I had even entered.

The kid was breaking out in a cold sweat.

It was obvious she was using various barriers and skills to protect her estate.

She was so focused that she couldn’t pay attention to anything else.

What kind of premonition did she see that made her unable to tell me?

No, she’s always been like this.

Ever since she was a little kid, she’d acted spitefully, as if she didn’t need my help.

But as time went on, she started leaning on me without even realizing it.

To be honest, I was a little happy back then.

It felt like a puppy that had always avoided me was finally starting to follow me.

I know exactly why she’s not asking for my help now.

She doesn’t want me to get hurt.

I’d shown her my injured self far too often.

Having been together for so long, the concept of family might now exist between us.

No, that must be it.

Because I felt the same way.

That must be why she forced her way along when I was trying to return to the modern world alone.

She insisted that she had only meant to send me, but something went wrong and they all came along by mistake.

A bitter smile escaped me.

Her concern for me… of course I don’t dislike it.

Who else would worry about me like this?

I stroked the head of the focused Katrinne.

“Oh, ah. Ajeossi.”

Only then did Katrinne register my presence and turn around.

“You don’t have to overdo it.”

“Huh? What?”

“Dimensional Shop, open.”

The Divine Power shop, visible only to me, opened.

-Dimensional Warp Stone (20C): Allows travel to a dimension I remember.

I spent 20 Divine Power to purchase the Dimensional Warp Stone.

Katrinne, not knowing what I was about to do, just blinked her eyes.

I still hadn’t explained to her that I’d obtained the power of a Ruler.

She didn’t tell me she was a goddess candidate either, so we’re even.

If you won’t speak up to protect me, then I’ll move on my own to protect what I want to protect.

“Warp.”

I clenched the Dimensional Warp Stone in my hand.

The dimensional stone flashed with a blue light, instantly filling the room with brilliance.

“Ajeossi?”

With Katrinne’s surprised face as the last thing I saw, my vision inverted.

*Thud!*

An ominous energy swirled in the pitch-black sky.

Normally, I would only arrive here after everything had already gone to worst-case scenario.

*Kkwoooooh!*

A colossal monster roared from beyond the dimensional rift.

It seemed desperate to come out and slaughter humans, but was frustrated by its inability to do so.

[Katrinne: Ajeossi???]

Katrinne’s message came through.

[Katrinne: Ajeossi, what are you doing. No, how did you get to the estate. Ajeossi, you have to get out of there right now….]

I gave a short reply to Katrinne’s terrified words.

I think I know what she’s worried about.

The magical power of the monster visible beyond that rift is truly an absurd amount.

If I were at my full synchronization rate, it might be different, but for me, who hasn’t fully recovered his strength, it’s a daunting opponent.

Now that I was on the scene, I understood even better why Katrinne couldn’t ask for my help.

-You have encountered the Dimensional Devourer, Quasar.

From beyond the rift, its massive, crescent-moon-like eye and mountain-high body sensed my presence.

Just as I sensed it.

As long as it hasn’t emerged from the rift yet, I think I can manage.

The problem is that outside the castle, it’s teeming with shadow monsters that look like they’re all mouth.

Tens of thousands at a glance.

They dare not approach in the face of Katrinne’s holy power for now, but once that monster emerges from the rift, it will be too late for everything.

“Hey.”

“What, the boss is here too?”

The three foreign brothers, back in their hometown after a long time to protect the Floating Island.

Jeon-guk, No-rae, and Ja-rang greeted me.

No wonder I hadn’t seen them today.

“You’ve grasped the situation, right?”

“Well, it’s gonna be a tough fight, but now that the boss is here, we’ll manage somehow, won’t we?”

The three foreign brothers said as they looked at me.

As if, despite disliking me normally, they trusted me most in moments like this.

A little. Just a tiny bit, I’m starting to feel annoyed.

The people around me were noticing and recognizing my presence, one by one.

I saw a little kid who didn’t belong in the coming war.

It’s been a while. You’ve grown a lot, haven’t you?

-Enya’s Status: Fear, Calm, Hope.

-Enya’s Emotion: Maybe everyone can live.

Ha, look at this kid.

At the age of an elementary schooler, she’s thinking of sacrificing herself to save people.

Normally, I should praise her for being admirable and brave.

But I didn’t feel a single shred of desire to praise her.

I placed my hand on her head.

I could feel her flinch in surprise.

“This kid is still so pessimistic.”

“Ah…”

The kid’s large eyes, upon seeing me, gradually filled with tears that began to stream down her soft-looking cheeks.

“*Sob…*”

Is she crying because she’s happy to see me? No, in this situation, it’s more likely she’s scared.

This child has had such a harsh life.

Doomed to live as a manastone human with a short lifespan, yet she faces a crisis everywhere she goes.

As an adult, I feel a bit of responsibility.

“It’s changed…”

“Hm?”

“Thank you, thank you. Mister Bear…”

“???”

The kid suddenly said that to me and threw herself into my arms.

I’m not used to this sudden melodrama.

Why are you crying?

“It’s the Hero!”

“The Hero has come!”

“The Hero is hereeee!”

Separate from Katrinne’s Bless buff, the people who saw me were shouting, raising their arms, and cheering.

The battle hasn’t even started, and these people are already celebrating like they’ve escaped the crisis.

Startled by the sudden cheers, the townspeople began to stick their heads out of their windows to look at me.

The excited faces of the people.

Is it because I appeared at just the right time?

“It’s been a while, everyone.”

“Have you been well, Hero.”

The captain of the Lania Knights, still on active duty. Despite reaching middle age, he hadn’t put down his sword.

“There’s no time, so I’ll make this quick. Everyone, gather ’round.”

“Command us at any time.”

He spoke as if he’d jump into a pit of fire at my command.

“Good. We’re opening the castle gates now.”

“Opening them?”

What’s so surprising? You know that once that giant monster comes out, the castle walls won’t mean a thing anyway.

“The elite troops will lead the way, clearing a path with spearmen.”

“Are you planning a cavalry charge?”

Why? I thought you were ready to jump into a pit of fire.

“You catch on quick. We’re breaking through with a cavalry charge.”

“I understand. You intend to deal with that colossal beast before it emerges from the rift.”

The knight captain nodded, his face resolute.

Behind him, the Lania Knights also wore tense expressions, facing a great battle.

“No, we’re going in the opposite direction.”

“What?”

The knight captain asked back as if he’d been struck from behind.

“Boss, you have no sense of direction?”

No sense of direction? Now that this guy Lee Ja-rang is back in his hometown, is his common sense starting to abandon him again?

“That’s right. We’re breaking through in the opposite direction.”

The real battle hasn’t even begun yet.

In other words, moving now is the best possible course of action.

Before the enemy can move, we strike first.

A surefire way to win, timeless and universal.

***

“What is that?”

“The castle is glowing.”

The man watching the battle through binoculars muttered in fascination.

The castle shone with a brilliant, pure white light. The shadow monsters dared not approach, retreating further and further back.

“I think this is the first time we’ve seen them do that.”

“Looks like the natives of this dimension have some kind of special skill.”

“By the way, doesn’t it seem like the virus is getting stronger?”

“Do we really need to use the virus? We could just wipe them out ourselves.”

The people far from the battlefield were relaxed, as if watching a fire from across a river.

No, one person was even eating popcorn.

They were wearing modern Hunter power suits and carrying their own custom-modified firearms.

“Has the party not started yet?”

“You’ve arrived, sir!”

The members of the Chimera Team stood up and saluted as their superior arrived.

Their superior, Jean-Pierre, a member of the Union, had just stepped through the dimensional gate.

“Magnificent, isn’t it? Henri, look at that.”

Jean-Pierre cackled as he looked at the giant monster trapped within the rift.

Henri’s expression was somewhat grim as he watched it.

The powerful virus they had cultivated had fed on so much despair to grow that large.

The Union’s Chimera Team.

They were gathering immense power to fight an unknown enemy.

They didn’t care about the means, as long as they achieved their goal.

Slaughtering the inhabitants of other worlds yielded large amounts of experience points.

Just like hunting monsters.

Furthermore, the goods they possessed were valuable back in the modern world.

Just as gold has been a symbol of wealth and prosperity throughout history.

Leveling up, and furthermore, acquiring advanced power by retrieving artifacts from other dimensions to prevent ruin, was their ultimate goal here.

To that end, the Union had even accessed, analyzed, and utilized the enigmatic entity known as the System.

“Jean. Wouldn’t it be better to stop this kind of work now?”

At Henri’s words, Jean’s face contorted.

He was already in a foul mood after getting his ass handed to him by that blond Korean. With Henri constantly raining on his parade, his irritation became uncontrollable.

“This kind of work? Why? What’s the problem? We get tons of experience for wiping out these otherworld bugs, and we’re treated like heroes when we recover artifacts. What’s the problem?”

“No, it’s not that…”

“My soft-hearted bald friend. Think about it. It was filthy monsters that devastated the streets of Paris, made you lose your friends, and separated you from your lover. Just because these monsters look a bit like us, don’t you dare feel some cheap pity for them.”

“Right…”

“It’s because of those damn bugs that your wife got manastone disease and you’re struggling for money, isn’t it?”

“…”

“For your family, for your country, you’ve got to make a big score. Right?”

After the Gate crisis, the lives of people all over the world changed drastically.

Countless people had lost loved ones to the monsters that appeared suddenly without warning.

“Uh, are they doing some kind of medieval cavalry charge?”

Just then, the Chimera agents watched the castle gates open with amusement.

They had been bored to death by the standoff with no fighting.

“They should be holed up with the gates shut, but here they are, rushing out like they’ve got a death wish.”

“Maybe that barrier-like light doesn’t last long. Could be why they’re doing that.”

The agents, chatting idly, saw something strange.

“Hey, they’re coming this way.”

The cavalry, enveloped in a white aura, miraculously tore through the shadow monsters and were heading straight for the Chimera Team’s position.

“What, how did they know we were here?”

“Everyone, prepare for battle! The natives are coming this way!”

The agents raised their custom AK-74s, looking lovingly at the bundles of experience points. But then, the group of knights suddenly wheeled around and headed back the way they came.

Seeing this, the agents who had been preparing for battle felt a bit let down.

-Information for the Lania Stage has been updated.

-Rank: Difficulty changed from S-Rank to EX-Rank.

-Name: Lania Estate Dungeon

-Boss: Changed from Lania’s Lord to Lania’s Hero.

-Reward List

-Legendary: Holy Sword Laevatein, Close Quarters Combat, Mago’s Eye, Knight Order, Hero of Salvation, Phase Control, Rephilia Ressoth….

-Unique: Increased Leadership, Status Resistance, Anti-Magic Shield….

The boss had suddenly changed.

A boss change was not a common occurrence. It was a rare case, maybe one in a hundred.

However.

“What, there are that many Legendary rewards?”

“EX-Rank? What the hell is EX-Rank???”

People were initially flustered by the sudden boss change to the Hero and the spike in difficulty, but upon seeing the incredible list of Legendary rewards, their eyes immediately turned greedy.

Selling just one Legendary item or skill could set you up as a rich person for life.

After all, the Legendary rank was what could turn an ordinary Awakened into an A-Rank or S-Rank.

And then, an unexpected presence began to catch their eyes.

“Who the hell is that guy?”

The knights had turned back, but a man holding a glowing sword was walking toward them, alone.