Igrit's elite soldier legion arrived in Tokyo first. Next came Kaisel's High Orc legion. Upon spotting the approaching High Orc legion, Igrit tilted his head in greeting. Kaisel, raising one corner of his mouth beneath his robe, likewise bowed his head. The Ice Bear unit, which had moved alongside the elite soldiers, and the High Orc legion gathered in one place. And a short while later. Thud. Thud. Thud. Uniform footsteps. Through the pale mist, a massive force of shadow soldiers was approaching. Having taken the longest route yet bagging the most giants, Beru's ant legion was the last to arrive in Tokyo. Beru parted the mist as he took the lead, revealing himself. Once again, Igrit sent his greeting first.
"..."
But Beru showed no reaction whatsoever, passing right by Igrit and stepping up behind Jin-Woo's back, where he knelt politely on one knee.
"Oh, everyone's here."
Only then did Jin-Woo pull his gaze away from the giant visible in the distance and turn around.
"Good work, everyone."
All of the shadow soldiers knelt just as Beru had, welcoming Jin-Woo with warmth. The Ice Bears, structurally unable to bend their knees, pressed their snouts to the ground and prostrated themselves. The elites, the bears, the ants, the High Orcs, and the nagas, along with other shadow soldiers gathered along the way. Nearly a thousand shadow soldiers, all assembled in one place.
"Everyone, rise."
When Jin-Woo made a gesture with his hand for them to stand, every soldier rose to their feet. Thud. It was a magnificent sight. Yoo Jin-Ho, overwhelmed by the atmosphere, stared at the shadow soldiers in a daze.
'If these were actual monsters instead of Hyung-nim's skill...'
The thought of this many monsters, of this caliber, moving all at once sent chills down his spine even though he knew it could never actually happen. Thank God they were allies. Was there anyone else to whom the phrase "like Hyung-nim" fit so well? But. An even more astonishing sight lay right behind them. gulp. Yoo Jin-Ho swallowed hard and turned around carefully. There stood the giant. A giant-type monster of an entirely different scale from any giant he had seen along the way. Gazing at the giant's head positioned at dizzying heights, it was impossible to tell whether it was a monster or a high-rise building.
"Waaah—"
An involuntary exclamation burst out. There was a world of difference between seeing it on video and seeing it in person. Jin-Woo laughed, placing his hand squarely on top of Yoo Jin-Ho's head, whose jaw hung open.
"You'll drop your jaw." "H-Hyung-nim."
Yoo Jin-Ho, snapping back to his senses, scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. Jin-Woo removed his hand from Yoo Jin-Ho's head and stared silently at the boss-level giant-type monster.
'How can something like that even exist?'
A creature of terrifying size. The vicious mana emanating from it made him want to flee this place as quickly as possible. It was unpleasant. There are two ways to deal with unpleasantness. Either run from its source and live forgetting it, or rip it out by the root entirely. Which method to choose had been decided back when he left Korea—no, from the moment Jin-Woo had awakened. Thump. Thump. Jin-Woo kept his eyes closed, quietly enjoying the beat of his own heart, then opened them.
"Stay back." "Yes, Hyung-nim."
Yoo Jin-Ho nodded solemnly, then quickly cut through the soldiers and withdrew from the area.
'Good.'
After waiting long enough for Yoo Jin-Ho to get far enough away, Jin-Woo summoned his new family members.
"Come forth."
Shadow soldiers with enormous bodies—though not as massive as the boss-level giant—rose from the ground. Numbers 1 through 13. Jin-Woo had named the giant shadow soldiers 1 through 13 in order of their extraction. Standing the biggest ones in the front row made the shadow legion look even more formidable, filling him with pride.
'That should do it.'
Thinking his preparations were complete, Jin-Woo raised his hand. The moment his hand shot up toward the sky, all of the shadow soldiers assumed attack formation. Snap!
"All units."
Soldiers clad in black armor and wreathed in steam. Jin-Woo surveyed each shadow soldier before turning back toward the giant. The giant stared down at Jin-Woo with indifference, as if it had no interest in anything that didn't enter its range.
'I don't like that.'
The fact that a mere monster was looking down at him from high above didn't sit well with Jin-Woo at all. A fierce smile spread across Jin-Woo's face. And then. His hand, which had been aimed at the sky, lowered toward the giant.
"Charge!"
Beru raised his head and roared.
"KIEEEEEEK!"
The ants, the bears, the giants—no, every single shadow soldier present—charged at the giant monster all at once. BOOOM! The earth groaned under the shadow legion's ferocious charge. The ground shook. Dust billowed. Finally, Jin-Woo's soldiers entered the giant's territory. The moment they did, the surrounding air shifted.
"What?!"
A scream-like shout erupted from Jin-Woo's mouth. By the time the giant, which had vanished in an instant, came to a stop, half the shadow soldiers had already been annihilated.
'A slide?'
The giant's posture—its straightened leg sweeping through the shadow soldiers like they were nothing—could be described with no word other than sliding. Terrifying destructive power. That single attack split the massive shadow legion in two. But the soldiers weren't simply taking it lying down. Before the dust at the giant's feet had even settled, Kaisel, having completed his transformation to giant size, stood before the giant's face. Haaah—! Kaisel drew a deep breath, his chest swelling enormously. In the next instant, a colossal pillar of fire erupted from Kaisel's mouth. KWAAAAAAH! An attack so devastating it could melt even a monster resistant to fire-type damage with a single breath—yet the inferno was blocked by the giant's palm. Jin-Woo could feel Kaisel's shock. Still crouched low, the giant reached out and snatched the ankle of a giant shadow soldier nearby. Even a giant soldier roughly the size of an ordinary building looked like a child in the boss-level giant's grip. The giant hurled the giant soldier at Kaisel. Kaisel, who had been inhaling again to prepare another attack, collided with the incoming giant soldier and shattered.
'...'
Jin-Woo's gaze sharpened as he watched Kaisel dissolve into black smoke and disperse. That was when it began. One thousand to one. The full-scale battle between the giant and the shadow soldiers started in earnest. No—it was too one-sided to be called a battle. It was sheer, lopsided violence.
"KIEEK!" "GRRRAAAHK!"
The shadow soldiers were ground to pieces without rest under the giant's assault. By fist, by palm, by elbow, by knee, by the top of the foot, by the sole—with every movement the giant made, dozens of soldiers were swept away. Boom! Boom! Boom! The giant's dazzling movements exceeded the speed of the very top tier of combat-type Hunters.
"Kiek."
Watching the ant legion being trampled, Beru tried to rush forward, but Jin-Woo raised his arm to stop him.
"Not yet."
Beru took a step back. Jin-Woo could see that both Beru and Igrit, flanking him on either side and waiting for orders, were itching to fight.
'But it's still not time.'
Jin-Woo pressed his lips into a tight line. The soldiers were burning through mana at a rapid rate, caught in the cycle of destruction and regeneration. The consumption was so extreme that even the vast mana reserves created by the 'Black Heart' couldn't sustain it. But Jin-Woo held his ground and didn't move. He calmly watched the giant. Using his immortal army as bait, he studied its weaknesses. That was the strategy for this raid. BOOM! The giant crushed shadow soldiers by stomping its knee into the ground, then smashed its fist into the earth. BOOM! The ground shook as if an earthquake had struck, and dozens of soldiers dissolved into smoke. It was a nightmare of a battle, born from perfect defense and horrific attacks. But there were gains. In the desolate wasteland that Tokyo's center had become, Jin-Woo's eyes gleamed with terrifying focus.
'Just as I thought...'
As expected, the giant's skin—armored in mana like an ironclad plate—took no damage from any attack. Aware of its own durability, the giant paid no attention to defense and attacked and attacked again. But there was exactly one moment. One moment when the giant chose defense over offense. Earlier, when Kaisel had unleashed the 'Dragon Breath' at its face. That was when it had spread its palm to shield its face. If that wasn't simply a coincidence...
"Kaisel!"
Jin-Woo summoned the wyvern. Kaisel burst forth from the shadows, spreading his massive wings wide. SHRAAK!
"KIIAAAAK!"
Jin-Woo mounted Kaisel's back.
"Beru, Igrit!"
At Jin-Woo's call, Beru raised his wings. Igrit took his position behind Jin-Woo. Soon Kaisel, carrying Jin-Woo and Igrit, beat his wings. KRAK! The ground fell away rapidly.
'Let's go!'
The four, soaring high, charged in a straight line toward the boss-level giant's head. Just then. Flick. The giant's pupils shifted sideways. Even in the midst of battling nearly a thousand shadow soldiers, it had detected Kaisel and Beru approaching at high speed. Jin-Woo nodded. That confirmed it. The giant could surely manipulate its combat time the way he himself used his Agility stat. That was what gave it speed far surpassing even the other giants. The giant twisted its body. Its enormous shoulder came into Jin-Woo's field of vision.
'Dodge!'
Jin-Woo and Igrit kicked off from Kaisel's back. The giant's fist came crashing down on Kaisel. BOOM! Watching Kaisel burst apart, Jin-Woo's brow twitched. Watching his soldiers be destroyed was never a pleasant thing. One small consolation—the object of his revenge was right in front of him. Igrit struck first. Leaping high into the air, Igrit brought the 'Demon King's Longsword' crashing down. CRACK! Blue lightning generated from the sword's tip shot toward the giant's brow. The giant jerked its head back, letting the lightning slide past.
'Again!'
Once more, it had dodged only the attack aimed at its face. Convinced he had found the weakness, Jin-Woo used the 'Ruler's Authority' to close the distance to the giant's face. Beru followed close behind.
'Demon King's Daggers.'
Jin-Woo gripped the two daggers that appeared in his hands. Beru, too, had already extended his claws to full length. High in the sky, Jin-Woo and Beru's coordinated assault unfolded. Below, the fully regenerated shadow soldiers swarmed the giant's ankles. BAM! BOOM! Flames launched from the mages' fingertips collided with the giant's body and exploded. Lightning struck, pillars of fire rained down, and the giants bit and tore. Yoo Jin-Ho watched this unbelievable battle from start to finish without missing a single moment.
"..."
His words failed him. This was no longer a battle between Hunters and monsters. It was monsters versus monsters. A monster the size of a high-rise building and a man commanding a thousand summoned creatures. If someone asked which of them was the greater monster, he didn't think he could answer easily.
'Really...'
He felt it was almost a waste that only he was witnessing this battle. Yoo Jin-Ho struggled to calm his pounding heart, unable to tear his eyes away from Jin-Woo. That was when it happened. Jin-Woo's daggers plunged into the giant's eye. THUNK! The giant shook its head violently from side to side, thrashing in desperation. But Jin-Woo didn't let go.
'Got him.'
Gripping the hilt buried deep in the giant's eye, Jin-Woo cast a skill with his other hand.
'Blade Dance!'
THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD! The giant's eyeball was torn to shreds. The giant twisted its upper body in resistance, but Jin-Woo refused to be shaken off. Hanging from the giant's eye, Jin-Woo turned to look behind him.
'Beru!' 'As you command!'
Understanding the Monarch's will, Beru flew at tremendous speed and entered through the hole torn in the giant's eye. Jin-Woo on the outside, Beru on the inside. The two began ripping apart the giant's colossal face from both ends. The giant opened its mouth wide and let out a silent scream. Taking advantage of the giant's feet coming to a standstill, the ants that had been relentlessly targeting its ankles finally scored a hit. Snap. With one of its ankle tendons severed, the giant sank helplessly to one knee. BOOM! The ground buckled violently under the immense weight. Even so, Jin-Woo and Beru's combined assault continued.
"Blade Dance!"
THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD! Blade Dance! THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD! Blade Dance! THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD! The giant thrashed wildly, but the harder it struggled, the more relentless Jin-Woo's attacks on its face became. At some point, the giant stopped resisting. Its body began to slowly tilt to the side. And finally— KOOOOM! The giant's colossal body collided with the ground. In that moment, a familiar mechanical sound rang out. Ding.
[You have slain the enemy!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!]
Jin-Woo's clenched fist tightened.
'Done!'
Jin-Woo landed lightly on the ground, about to let out a sigh of relief, when he stopped. Something was off.
'Uh...?'