Chapter 149 – Hero Raid (4)

France’s Rank 1.

He had dealt with the gates and dungeons that appeared in France more than just once or twice.

Everyone revered him.

At some point, he became an object of respect, his name synonymous with the strongest.

“What? He took that down by himself?”

Jean watched as Henri, a member of his raid team, defeated a boss monster alone.

A boss monster of 4-stars or higher.

It was a beast that even Jean would have struggled to defeat by himself. Yet that country bumpkin, Henri, had beaten the boss monster single-handedly.

‘What is this guy?’

He couldn’t imitate something like this.

To take down a powerful boss monster with pure physical strength, without any items or equipment.

David Henri. He was a friend worth watching.

Jean brought him onto his team.

He was an incredibly diligent friend, and contrary to his simple appearance, he possessed an extremely powerful talent.

That talent was overwhelmingly greater than his own, Jean, the hero who had saved France.

‘This bastard.’

Jean could only watch as Henri grew stronger and stronger.

Before long, Henri became an S-Rank, and his reckless, in-fighting style became a huge topic of conversation, earning him the nickname “Chicken Man.”

The national bird of France, the rooster.

He was literally becoming a symbol of the country.

Jean felt his position being threatened.

During the first generation of the Gate Wars, survival was the top priority.

They needed every capable ally they could get.

But now, things had stabilized to some extent. What was necessary in times like these was to protect the title of the strongest.

In the midst of this, a call came from the Union Hunters.

The world was now being threatened by an unknown life form.

To fight against this unknown enemy, they needed superheroes from all over the world.

Jean-Pierre naturally accepted.

Of course, he wasn’t the only one who received the offer. The same went for David Henri, who was, for all intents and purposes, recognized as the strongest in France.

His activities in the Union were, in a word, fantastic.

His leveling, which had grown dull, progressed rapidly.

He was able to farm various powers that couldn’t be obtained in the modern world.

Jean grew stronger.

To the point where he could now truly proclaim himself the strongest.

But David Henri was different.

He was a defective product.

“What?”

Jean was flabbergasted by what Henri said.

“You can’t attack people?”

A bitter laugh escaped Jean’s lips at Henri’s words.

Henri had certainly performed remarkably well. But he had a fatal flaw.

“Friend, a terrible villain stands before you. If you catch him, you can prevent countless victims from falling to that villain. You still can’t kill him?”

“That’s…”

Henri, despite his rugged face, had long eyelashes that didn’t suit him at all.

Like a deer.

That innocent gaze was irritating, disgusting.

Why did a guy like this possess such talent and power?

He didn’t want to admit it, but David Henri was truly the strongest in France.

“Back when I was a professional athlete, after an opponent died…”

David Henri used to be a Taekwondo athlete.

When asked why Taekwondo of all things, the reason was just as ridiculous.

“The master gave me meals…”

He had been terribly poor.

Henri, who had a Korean mother, was so poor he couldn’t even eat properly.

Then, he happened to see a dojang run by a Korean. He was so envious of the children who trained and ate there.

Of course, he had no money to join the dojang.

The Korean master, being a meddlesome sort, brought Henri to the dojang and taught him to eat and train.

He was also the first man to recognize Henri’s talent.

“A Taekwondo dojang is truly fantastic. They give you meals there. Not only that, they teach you etiquette, the values of a martial artist, and even help with school homework.”

He had no intention of trying to understand Henri, who sometimes made eccentric remarks.

It was beneath him.

But, Henri was strong. Truly.

He was an insanely detestable guy, but he didn’t entirely hate him for not holding animosity toward people.

Jean sought to become even stronger.

He participated in numerous Union subjugation missions, while Henri, on the other hand, couldn’t properly participate.

In the end, he couldn’t overcome his own trauma.

‘God is fair.’

If he, if David Henri, didn’t have that trauma, he would have lost his ranking to him.

*Crack!*

Jean-Pierre couldn’t believe his eyes.

David Henri was unleashing a barrage of attacks on the Korea Monster.

‘Crazy.’

His movements were unbelievable.

So fast that even his own eyes couldn’t properly follow them.

Henri and the Korea Monster were on a different level.

*Thak, pwok!*

After a one-two punch, Henri’s follow-up wing kick struck the Korea Monster’s side.

‘He’s pushing him back…?’

For the first time, Jean saw the Korea Monster being attacked.

No matter how much he had struggled, he hadn’t even been able to graze his opponent.

Jean looked down at his own arms. The severed stumps, still dripping with blood, were visible.

His severed hands could be reattached with a treatment kit developed by the Union.

But how was he to restore his shattered pride?

The Korea Monster tilted his head. He caressed his side and slowly opened his mouth.

“The rankings of you two.”

He didn’t want to hear it.

“Are they accurate?”

Thanks to being inside the system, the Korean language, which he normally wouldn’t have understood, was heard perfectly in French.

He didn’t want to admit it, but he had no choice.

He could not surpass Henri. No matter how flawed he was.

No, it seemed even that flaw had now been overcome.

“You crazy monster!”

But even that Henri couldn’t surpass the monster standing before him.

Only now did he understand.

Henri had once mentioned in passing that the dragon raid video was probably not fake.

His words had been proven true.

He didn’t know the reason, but Lee was stronger than any hunter he had ever met.

Perhaps even more so than Big Man, the strongest man on earth, from America.

‘I have to run.’

Jean-Pierre thought this was his only chance to survive.

The natives who came with Lee were absurdly strong. Especially the one using that black sword, who was cutting down allies like a ghost.

If it was Henri, he could at least tie up that monster’s feet.

Jean-Pierre decided to flee from this place for the sake of the future.

He watched as Henri and Lee squared off, getting into their stances and starting to step.

Just like that, Jean turned without a backward glance and ran toward the transfer device that allowed for a reverse dive.

‘I’ll get my revenge later, Henri.’

First, he had to save himself.

He would escape this damned dungeon and inform the Union that Lee of Korea was a terrifying murderer.

Then, he would form an expedition to hunt him down.

The powerless Korean government agencies wouldn’t want it to become an international issue, so they would stand by and watch.

The perfect picture was painted.

Jean-Pierre stood on the magic circle where the transfer device was embedded. When he released his mana there, a message from the Chaser System soon appeared.

-User Jean-Pierre confirmed.

“Dive!”

-Transmitting packet signal. The receiving end is checking the data…

Just then, Jean felt a terrifying magical energy from behind him.

He didn’t want to know what was happening. But his body had already turned around on its own.

*Fwoooosh-!*

Intertwined electrical energies, like a railgun blast, came flying toward him.

It was already too late to dodge.

“Damn it…!”

Jean-Pierre prayed that his HP shield would hold.

But the HP that entered his vision plummeted instantly, hitting 0.

*KWWAAAAAA!*

A magical energy that shook the very earth swept through the spot where Jean-Pierre had been. Nothing existed there anymore.

Only a long, gouged-out scar remained.

“Ah, there you were. I’ve been looking all over.”

Hyunbin smiled after using his Thunderbolt skill.

Henri, watching the scene, was at a loss for words.

Even while fighting him, he had been holding back. No, the skill he had just used was an absurd amount of power.

If something like that had been aimed at him.

Henri swallowed without realizing it. His crumbling heart was stealing his courage.

Even if he got on his knees and begged, his opponent wouldn’t even flinch.

*Even if a tiger is about to eat you, you can survive if you keep your wits about you.*

It was something his mother often said.

Though it seemed that advice didn’t apply to her.

“Hoo.”

Henri took a deep breath to summon his courage once more.

The opponent was strong.

No opponent had ever given him such a sense of despair.

The boss monsters from dungeons were cute by comparison.

“Scared? I won’t use it on you, so don’t worry.”

Hyunbin said with a smile.

Henri momentarily confirmed that Hyunbin had consumed a considerable amount of mana.

His face was composed, and he still looked intimidating. Yet, there was no basis for this judgment.

It was just a ‘hunch’.

Henri raised both hands into a fighting stance.

The transfer device was broken. There was no way out of here now.

Without the transfer system, there wasn’t even a way to contact the outside.

Henri slowly began to step.

His opponent didn’t even take a proper stance, simply watching with his arms hanging loosely at his sides.

‘A wall.’

A huge wall stood before him. Standing in front of it, he felt like an ant.

The faint courage that had welled up crumbled again like dust.

It’s impossible.

The opponent was still holding back. No, it was doubtful if he had even used half of his strength.

“Hoo, hoo.”

Henri took another deep breath.

He thought of his wife, dying from Mana Sickness.

She, who had given birth to their child while suffering from a rare disease, was dying.

An astronomical amount of money was being drained from his bank account, always leaving it in the negative.

He had a reason to live.

Henri took a step forward.

His opponent stood in a natural posture.

Closing the distance in an instant, Henri threw a one-two jab.

His opponent still dodged it lightly.

He wouldn’t be disappointed.

He could feel his opponent’s counter punch flying toward him.

Henri bounced back half a step. He had been waiting for this moment.

The opponent knew he was far superior. So he was bound to be a little careless.

*Power Charge.*

Without letting his opponent notice, he connected the mana circuit to his right foot.

For a moment, a fleeting instant.

Henri spun around and launched a back kick at his opponent.

ITF Taekwondo.

He used various martial arts, but the Taekwondo he learned from his master as a child formed the base of his fighting style.

In this moment, the technique he had practiced the most, the one he was most confident in, was aimed at his opponent.

At the sudden change of pace, even his opponent couldn’t dodge this time and hastily raised a guard to his face.

‘Yes.’

That’s what he was aiming for.

Henri instantly opened the mana circuit gathered in his right foot.

*Wooooong-!*

All his mana gathered at a single point in an instant.

*PAAANG!*

The sound of the air exploding echoed.

He gathered his mana into one point to unleash the ultimate kick.

It earned the nickname Missile Kick because any monster hit by it was completely obliterated without a trace.

“…!”

“Look at this.”

The Korea Monster blocked Henri’s kick.

“Taekwondo?”

Not only was his kick blocked, but his ankle was caught.

Henri lifted his left foot off the ground.

“…!”

Instead of trying to pull his captured leg free, he followed up with a swift spinning kick in mid-air.

*KWAANG!*

It landed clean. This time, his opponent had no time to guard.

It was, perhaps, the best attack of his life.

That monster, the Korea Monster, had fallen.

“Hoo…”

Just then, Henri couldn’t believe his ears.

The fallen Korea Monster shot back up and wiped at the corner of his lips.

“Ouch.”

A split lip was all the damage he’d done.

It was the attack of a lifetime, one he might never be able to replicate.

An all-out attack had ended in vain.

“My turn now, right?”

The Korea Monster, who turned his head to spit out bloody saliva, came rushing at him with heavy steps. He no longer had the strength to fight anyway.

*PAANG!*

He saw the fist, and then suddenly, he didn’t.

***

“What are all these things?”

Zeke, who had wiped out the enemies, walked over to me, wiping the blood from Balmung.

“They’re trash that wander through dimensions.”

No matter which dimension you go to, no matter where you go, there are always those who sacrifice others for their own greed.

“That’s a relief. That that monster couldn’t get out of the rift.”

Zeke said, looking at the spot where the giant monster had been roaring.

The members of the Chimera Team had called that black, horned monster a virus.

According to the information extracted from its corpse, the Union possesses a virus that devours other dimensions.

The virus certainly wasn’t that big at first. It was only the size of a car, but it had steadily devoured the dimension and grown to that ridiculous size.

“Crazy bastards.”

The Union Hunters.

These madmen, worse than villains, are shitting all over the place for their own greed.

The shadow-form virus monsters were now gone, and the Rania territory became peaceful, as if the battle just moments ago had been a lie.

“But…”

Zeke asked, his eyes wide.

“Did you get hit?”

“Yeah.”

Zeke couldn’t believe it when he saw my split lip.

“Did a dragon legion come or something?”

“No.”

What dragons?

“This bastard did it.”

I pointed to the bald man lying sprawled on the ground.

“What is that?”

His eyes seemed to ask why I hadn’t killed him when I had ordered everyone else here to be killed.

This guy was a bit different from the others.

There was no need to kill him. In fact, after extracting his memories, I found he had never killed a single person.

“An overseas version of Kim Tae-yang.”

If that Tae-yang kid were to upgrade, he’d probably grow to about this level, right?

Since returning to the modern era, he was the first person to land a punch on my jaw. Person or monster.

Ah, let’s make an exception for the Earth Dragon.

This guy’s goal and my goal aligned.

“Ughhh…”

The bald man, groaning in pain, wants to destroy the Union Hunters.

He was worth keeping alive.

“Waaah! It’s the teddy bear mister!”

“Waaaaaah!”

As I put the overseas version of Kim Tae-yang into my inventory and headed back to the castle, the children who had come out to greet me ran toward me, waving their hands.

They still remembered me, even though they’d only seen me once before.

The way they threw themselves into my arms, it seemed they had put on some weight.

Wow, looks like they’ve been eating and living well here.

Seeing everyone laughing and talking, it felt peaceful.

Was it because the battle, which could have been very serious, ended rather anticlimactically?

It ended easily. That’s how it seems. But I don’t think so.

The monster with giant horns had spoken to me before it disappeared.

-Grrrr.

The massive monster, burning like a black flame, pointed a finger at me.

-Next time, you will not be able to change the future.

Quasar.

The virus-infested monster had disappeared into the closing rift, its mouth open as if in a mad laugh.

There is nothing now where the monster used to be.

Only the sight of laughing and chattering villagers.

‘I need to raise my synchronization rate quickly.’

It seems I need to reclaim my power, completely.