The fallen giant rolled violently across the ground and bounced back to its feet. It had spring-like agility that belied its massive frame.
"Grrrr."
Before it stood a Nagas giant, crouched low on the ground with its teeth bared rather than rushing into a reckless counterattack. This was Jima, a boss-level monster of the Naga species — newly inducted into the Shadow Army. Jima extended its right arm straight to the side. From the shadows on the ground, a black spear rose silently upward. Gripping the spear tightly and leveling it forward, Jima radiated an unmistakable resolve: no one would get past this point.
"Huh…? Huh…?"
The JMSDF young man couldn't tell whether what he was seeing before his eyes was a dream or reality. A monster was protecting him from another monster. Convinced he'd been about to end up inside the giant's mouth, the young man stared at the broad, valiant back of the other monster and felt a swell of emotions rising inside him.
"What is this…?"
Could he survive? Could he survive the giants — he, the elderly couple, and the patients? Once that thought reached him, his strength suddenly drained away and tears pricked his eyes.
"Here."
Someone held out a colorful handkerchief. The young man slowly turned to look beside him. A young man who appeared even younger than himself gestured toward the handkerchief with his chin and nodded. It wasn't Japanese, so he couldn't understand the words, but the meaning wasn't hard to grasp.
'Korean?'
The young man wiped his running tears with the handkerchief and asked.
"Who are you?"
The Korean shook his head silently, then thrust his thumb straight up.
"Good." "Huh?" "Good." "Th-thank you."
While the young man was instinctively bowing in thanks, another man who appeared to be the Korean's companion showed up. Drenched in blood from head to toe, even to a young man who knew nothing about Hunters, he radiated the unmistakable aura of a far more powerful being.
"This is dangerous."
After surveying the hospital interior, Jin-Woo pointed behind him to Yoo Jin-Ho.
"We should move. This spot's too close."
Having already watched the fights against the giants several times, Yoo Jin-Ho immediately understood what Jin-Woo meant.
"I'll stay here and wait, Hyung-nim." "Right."
Jin-Woo passed by the young man and gave his shoulder a light pat. It meant "well done." Standing alone with nothing but a single gun against a giant was no ordinary feat. Having ground his way through Dungeons as an E-rank, Jin-Woo understood just how much courage the young man had shown.
"Ah…"
Watching Jin-Woo walk past him, the young man let out a low exclamation. The warmth and weight of the hand that had briefly brushed his shoulder — that single touch seemed to wash away the very terror that had made him ready to face death. A deep sense of relief surged up from within his chest. In that moment, the young man recalled a story he'd heard about two Koreans dragging giants around by force. The name of the Hunter who had single-handedly beaten down S-rank monsters back in Korea.
'Hunter Sung Jin-Woo…'
It was unmistakable. That man was him. The young man hurriedly turned to the Korean youth still standing beside him.
"Is that him? Korea's S-rank Hunter?"
Yoo Jin-Ho nodded once again and answered.
"Good."
Jin-Woo advanced toward the two entangled monsters. His brow furrowed.
"KIAAAAAAH—!"
Inside Jima's hold, the giant was tearing at Jima's shoulder with its teeth. Jima was a monster that had once ruled an A-rank Dungeon — a shadow soldier of immense strength, incomparable to the common grunts, even if its attention was split between fighting and protecting the humans behind it. Yet here was an ordinary monster — not even a boss-class — overpowering Jima. It drove home just how strong the giant-type monsters really were. And. Jin-Woo was a master who despised seeing his soldiers getting hurt. His face hardening, Jin-Woo crouched. Power surged into his thighs and calves. Crack, crack — the asphalt supporting his feet began to fracture. Boom! Launching off the ground like a kick, Jin-Woo's figure shot toward the giant's face in an instant. In that brief moment, the giant spotted the incoming Jin-Woo. A flash of interest lit Jin-Woo's eyes.
'They really aren't ordinary ones.'
Wham! Jin-Woo's fist smashed into the giant's brow. But the damage wasn't as great as he'd expected. The creature had pulled its head back just before impact, absorbing as much of the blow as it could. Enormous size and nimble movement alike — for Hunters facing them, it would be downright demoralizing. But that only applied to ordinary Hunters. Jin-Woo summoned 'Demonic Dagger' in midair. Then.
'Ruler's Authority!'
His free hand — the one not holding the dagger — shot toward the giant's face. The invisible hand pulled the giant's face with a powerful gravitational force. The gap between Jin-Woo and the giant closed rapidly.
"Grrk?"
Not expecting the airborne opponent to launch another attack so quickly, the giant panicked and thrashed, but it was futile. Having flown right up to the giant's face, Jin-Woo activated a skill.
"Rapid."
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud! The rapid-fire strikes, fast enough to leave afterimages, turned the giant's face into a sieve.
"GRAAAAH!"
The giant that had been rolling on the ground clutched its face. Blinded by the attack, it writhed in violent agony.
'That's it.'
Jin-Woo landed lightly and approached with a grin. Sensing his approach, the giant flinched, then fled without even looking back.
'It can sense killing intent?'
The more he fought them, the more fascinating they were. How to put it — they were like enormous living weapons of war? The giant quickly put distance between them. Not that Jin-Woo intended to let it get away.
'Speed.'
Jin-Woo's figure blurred like lightning. Even with the giant sprinting on all fours at full speed, not only was the gap not widening — it was rapidly shrinking. The giant felt fear. A chill crept up its back. Realizing too late that it couldn't outrun its pursuer no matter how hard it tried, the giant braked and whirled around to counterattack, but.
'…?'
The human presence that had been terrifyingly close moments ago had vanished. The vanished presence reappeared behind it. Even though its eyes were blind, the giant reflexively spun around. Which made the cut easy. Jin-Woo, who had jumped straight up from where he stood, brought 'Demonic Dagger' down in a vertical slash. The blade, charged with a hefty dose of mana from the 'Black Heart,' cleaved the giant's face cleanly in two.
"Gk…"
Unable to even scream, the giant toppled backward like a tree felled by an axe. Thud! That made three.
"Hah—"
Jin-Woo let out a light sigh of victory.
"Hyung-nim—!"
From a distance, Yoo Jin-Ho had been waiting for the fight to end and came sprinting over, thrusting out the lid of a thermos filled with chilled tea. Jin-Woo accepted it with a bright smile.
"Thanks."
The tea in the lid sloshed loudly as it went down Jin-Woo's throat.
'Hm?'
Sensing something, he turned to see Jima approaching with its shoulders slumped — the loser of their one-on-one bout.
'Good fight. Well done.'
Jin-Woo gave Jima a word of encouragement, then released the summoning. Just as when it had first appeared, Jima dissolved into shadow and was absorbed into the ground at Jin-Woo's feet. Watching this, Yoo Jin-Ho spoke.
"Hyung-nim."
Jin-Woo handed back the empty thermos lid and answered.
"Hm?" "You send out all the other summoned beasts separately, but you always stick with the Nagas. Is there a reason for that?"
That was what had been bugging Yoo Jin-Ho. Just now, the Hyung-nim had handled the giant all by himself. Without the Nagas, there didn't seem to be any hindrance in defeating the giant at all. Yet the Hyung-nim always sent the Nagas out first before every fight. Yoo Jin-Ho was curious about his intentions. The reason was simple.
'I just want to get the Naga kids some Level Ups.'
Unlike the other shadow soldiers who had fought alongside Jin-Woo and leveled up quickly, the recently incorporated Nagas were comparatively low-level. So he wanted to use this opportunity to raise their levels through hunting. But he couldn't exactly say that out loud so bluntly. Jin-Woo answered with a grin.
"I feel like the Naga kids and I haven't quite bonded yet. I figured if we hung out together, we'd get closer." "Ah."
Yoo Jin-Ho nodded. He really was the gullible type. After pondering something for a moment, Yoo Jin-Ho's eyes lit up.
"You don't let your guard down with even a single summoned beast — that's so like you, Hyung-nim!" '…'
And he was also the type who felt bad about deceiving.
"Um…"
Jin-Woo turned his head to the side. The soldier who had bravely stood against the giant was approaching, glancing at the giant's carcass. Over his shoulder, Jin-Woo could see the elderly couple who had been guarding the hospital. They hadn't exchanged words yet, but just from their expressions he could tell what they wanted to say. That was enough. Right now, he didn't have time to accept every single word of gratitude. Other giants were still running rampant somewhere out there at this very moment. Jin-Woo's gaze fell on the giant's corpse. The biggest reason he had come to Japan was lying right there.
"Stop! Stop!"
Yoo Jin-Ho stepped in front of the Japanese and held them back. He'd been noticing it lately, but Yoo Jin-Ho's situational awareness had become remarkably sharp since they'd first met. It made the Shadow Extraction process much easier. Jin-Woo shot Yoo Jin-Ho a wry smile, then turned his attention back to the corpse. He extended his hand and quietly murmured.
"Arise."
* * *
"Viewers… can you believe what I'm seeing right now?"
Da-da-da-da-da-da! A reporter aboard a helicopter gasped in disbelief, one exclamation after another. The camera quickly panned down. Hundreds of ant-like monsters were marching in orderly formation toward somewhere. At their vanguard flew a winged monstrous ant. The sole General-grade shadow soldier — 'Beru.'
"KIEEEEK—!"
The reporter hurriedly covered his ears. At Beru's roar, the ants froze in place all at once. Ahead stood three giants. In size, the difference between them was as vast as between an elephant and a mouse. But. Beru, its nails extended long and sharp as blades, charged forward without a trace of fear.
"KIEEEEK!"
Behind it, the swarms of ants blotted out the ground in black.
"Oh my God! Oh my God!"
After a fierce battle, the ants brought the giants down and began tearing into their carcasses. Crack! Crunch! Of course, under Beru's direction, they were careful to leave enough of a carcass behind to create more shadow soldiers. Any ants that got greedy were unceremoniously sent flying by Beru's kick.
"The giants are being eaten! The giants are being devoured by insects!"
The reporter's voice rang with excitement. For the Japanese, watching the giants — the very monsters that had been eating people and spreading terror — get devoured by the ant swarm was oddly satisfying. Perhaps that was why, aside from Jin-Woo who had refused to be filmed, the ant legion was drawing the most attention. The only problem was.
"Hup!"
A reporter and cameraman flinched and leaned back as Beru suddenly flew up right beside the helicopter. Without hesitation, Beru smashed the camera pointed at it. Crack.
"Ghk!"
The reporter and cameraman clung to each other and shivered.
"…"
Beru, who had been eyeing the two of them up and down with a hungry gaze, quietly turned back downward.
"Phew." "Hah… hah…"
The two let out sighs of relief. The reason they kept chasing after a monster ant that destroyed cameras worth tens of millions of won every time was precisely because the viewers were so passionate about it. The cameraman pulled out a backup camera he'd had ready, and the reporter, seemingly accustomed to it by now, smoothly delivered her closing remark.
"…This was Kitamura, reporting the news."
* * *
"Aaaah!"
She looked like she had just graduated elementary school. A young girl with a tear-streaked face was screaming and running for her life.
"Ah, aaah!"
Behind her, a giant followed with a repulsive smile on its face. With those tiny legs, how far could she possibly get? The gap closed in no time. The giant grinned, baring its teeth. Then it reached out with a hand that looked a full one and a half times longer than the other giants'. And just as that massive hand was about to seize the frail girl's body — a streak of light slashed past the giant's wrist. Almost simultaneously, a brief bolt of lightning seared the wound. Fizz!
"GAAAAAAH!"
The giant lurched upright, clutching its severed wrist, and let out a scream. Igrit, his face pale and trembling, scooped up the girl and retreated. The giant glared downward. The creature that had cleanly severed its wrist was running off with its prey. Its eyes reddened with fury. A tremendous surge of mana churned inside the giant. A sight so terrifying it made one's knees go weak just watching. But before that monster stood a knight. Iron, whose armor had grown even heavier after his promotion as an Elite Knight. Iron drove his shield into the ground with a thud and threw his chest wide open. An enormous battle cry erupted from his helm.
"UWOOOOOOOOOO—!"
[Iron activates 'Skill: Provoke Roar'.] [The enemy has entered a Provoked state.]
The giant, who had been targeting Igrit, shifted its gaze to Iron. As if to say "come at me." Iron pounded his chest with his fist, then hoisted a shield nearly as massive as himself.
"GROAAH!"
The giant's fist struck Iron mercilessly. Boom! But Iron didn't budge. The effects of his promotion had elevated him to an entirely different level. Boom! Boom! Boom! After withstanding dozens of blows, Iron roared.
"WOOOOAH!"
From both flanks, the shadow soldiers who had served Jin-Woo the longest and the Ice Bear legion charged in together. Tank, leading the Ice Bear legion, seemed fired up for battle — shaking its head from side to side and letting out a fierce roar.
"GWOOOOOO!"
It was a roar so violent it could be felt as tremors even from far away. A reporter watching them shouted into the camera.
"Are you seeing this, everyone?! The summoned beasts — the summoned beasts are raiding the giants!"
Was this really happening? The reporter hadn't believed Olga Orloff, and naturally he hadn't expected much from Sung Jin-Woo either. But now, not just Sung Jin-Woo himself, but the summoned beasts he had scattered across the battlefield — they were systematically taking down the giants one after another. The thought that, perhaps, just perhaps, he really could save this country all on his own made something swell in the reporter's chest.
"H-hold on!"
The cameraman urgently pointed toward the giant. The reporter, who had momentarily forgotten his duty, turned his now-glistening gaze back to the giant.
"How…!"
The reporter gasped. Countless bolts of lightning rained down on the giant's head as its posture began to crumble. It was a sight so breathtaking that it left all who watched it at a loss for words.