One of the infected stepped forward. It was the same person who had used the shotgun power to shoot down helicopters from one kilometer away.
Junhyuk stood in front of Charles. He had made up his mind to attack the infected with any sudden movement. Junhyuk didnât know if the infected were completely overtaken by the poring, or if it was possible to reason with them.
âMy name is Denver.â The man introduced himself without attacking. He pointed toward Junhyuk and said, âWe all volunteered for the P-Project. For our country and for money.â
Denver looked at Charles and continued, âWhile the project was active, many died, but many survived as well. We worked harder to activate even more powers, but our positions havenât changed. The way they treat us hasnât changed.â
âWHY?! WHY MUST WE BE CAGED HERE?!â Denver shouted.
Junhyuk stared at the man and asked, âIs that why you kidnapped Charles Rockefeller? What do you want?â
âWe just want our freedom back. We want to fight for our country. We have that right.â
Junhyuk shook his head and said, âNo. Unless you are in complete control of yourself, you canât join Guardians.â
âIs that why you took our rights away?â
âNo, but there is a reason for why you canât fight with Guardians.â
The dimensional managers might be monitoring the infected, and so, they could inadvertently act as spies for the managers.
âThen, must we stay here?â
Junhyuk turned to Charles and saw that Charles seemed relaxed.
âYou attacked me and killed my bodyguards. There is no way I can make a deal with you people now.â
Junhyuk sighed after hearing what Charles said and turned to Denver. The infected had been in containment, and their lives must have been very hard that way. However, Guardians couldnât do anything about it.â
Staring at Denver, he asked, âDid you kill people?â
Denver nodded and said, âI had no choice.â
âWith your powers, you probably did.â
âI can fight other powered people without killing them, but normal peopleâ¦â
Junhyuk sighed. The infected werenât wrong to want their freedom, but they had already killed innocent people.
âYou may not have your freedom yet.â
âDark Knight!â Charles exclaimed, but Junhyuk was entirely focused on Denver.
âYouâve committed murder. After you are judged in a court of law and do your time, you may join Guardians.â
Denverâs brow twitched, but Junhyuk kept going, âIâll give you what you want then: money and the right to fight for your country.â
Denver gritted his teeth and said, âWe had no choice! They had kept us locked here and they tried to kill us!â
Junhyuk scoffed at his response and asked, âYou acknowledge no wrongdoing?â
âOf course!â
âThere is nothing I can do,â Junhyuk said somberly. âYou seem to have control of your faculties, but the fact that you use your powers to achieve your goals makes you worse than those under control of the poring.â
After saying that, Junhyuk raised his sword and added, âI canât let you be.â
Staring at him, Denver said, âDark Knight, there are only two of you. Do you think you can deal with us all?â
Junhyuk shrugged and said, âItâll be difficult if Iâm to let you live, but itâll be easy if I just kill you.â
âDo your worst!â
Denver extended his hand forward, and the green energy bullets shot from his fingertips. Junhyuk decided to block for those standing behind him and spun Akshaâs Longsword. The sword shield blocked all of the green projectiles.
On Earth, he was able to use his mana to defend with Akshaâs Longsword, so without worrying, he ran forward.
âHelen, protect Charles!â
Helen brandished the Wolf Warlordâs Claw Sword with her left hand and extended her right. Junhyuk trusted her to do the job.
Junhyuk extended Akshaâs Longsword, and Copper extended both hands forward. His hands were surrounded by green energy, and he used them to block.
Clang!
Junhyukâs attacks were deflected by the green energy. Junhyuk was accelerating, but the infected could still see his movements. Not only that, they could also respond to his movements, which was unexpected.
They were slower than him, but they could react to him. He started thinking he might kill them if they continued fighting that way, so he removed one of the Pure Golden Knight set items. If he triggered a shockwave, he would end up killing them all.
Denver used his shotgun shot, and Junhyuk raised his force field to look at the flying bullets. He closed in even faster with the force field, swinging Akshaâs Longsword repeatedly.
Cooper tried to defend the infected, but his leg got slashed off.
âArgh!â he screamed.
Then, Junhyuk swung Dentraâs Magic Sword. He couldnât wield Dentraâs Magic Sword like Akshaâs Longsword yet, but he thought he would be able to disable his enemies. Wind Blades flew everywhere, but the infected kept attacking him.
There were powers flying from all directions, and they were moving incredibly fast.
It wasnât possible to keep up with him since he was accelerating. The infected lacked enough speed to fight him continuously, but they were as fast as a Wolf Warlord.
Could humans move that fast?
Junhyuk was curious about their condition, but he had to keep fighting. Without hesitation, he used the Wind Blades again. A few blocked his attacks, but a few got hit and fell.
The enemies wounds were closing quickly, and they kept regaining health. Junhyuk frowned when he saw Cooper reattaching his sliced leg.
At that point, he realized he had to kill them, so he used his Wind Blades again.
Boom, boom, boom!
The infected were blown away. Junhyuk looked at them and gathered his breath.
âTheir powers arenât the problem. Whatâs going on?â
âTheyâve been injected with R-Potions, but even that canât explain their speed.â
Junhyuk knew that something more than the R-Potions was at work. They couldnât have gotten that strong with just the R-Potions.
Looking at them, Junhyuk saw that they were ready to attack him again. They werenât heroes, but their strength went well beyond human limitations.
They had the powers of experts and champions, but their health pool went well beyond their level. Charles Rockefellerâs powered bodyguard had died trying to protect him.
Junhyuk started to worry. He knew it wouldnât be easy, so he lowered his swords and asked, âAre you working on an antidote to disperse the influence of the infection on the infected?â
âOf course!â
Junhyuk looked at the infected and said, âYou have a choice to make right now. Accept your wrongdoings and give yourselves up to the authorities. Once the treatment is complete, Iâll make sure you all get treated.â
Charles Rockefeller frowned, but he did not say anything to dispute Junhyukâs claim.
âWeâve done no wrong!â Denver said coldly.
âYou are too forgiving of yourself. You have murdered,â Junhyuk said. âI canât let you live this way. What is your choice?â
Denver prepared another energy shot on his fingertips and said, âI canât agree to your conditions.â
Junhyuk used his Spatial Slash. To him, the infected had given up their humanity. Right as his slash was released toward Denver, something else happened. Denver disappeared. Time seemed to have stopped.
Junhyuk scowled. That could only mean one thing.
Eltor appeared in front of him, taking the Spatial Slash in place of Denver. It did nothing against the manager.
Eltor smiled and asked, âHow have you been?â
âWhy are you here?â
He looked back at the infected and said, âThese people are valuable to us. They have activated their powers solely by their will. We canât let them die.â
Junhyuk laughed. Eltor had had something to do with the infected.
âI have a question for you,â he said as he pointed his sword at the manager. âWhen those heroes crossed over, you made that dimensional tear, right?â
Eltor didnât seem to know what he was referring to and simply shrugged.
âYouâve got it all wrong. We need time to set up large dimensional tears. Without that time delay, weâd have already sent a lot more monsters to Earth.â
âThen, you are telling me those heroes knew when youâd trigger the tears?â
âProbably.â
âHow did they know when to cross over?â
Eltor really didnât know.
âCoincidence?â
âNow, youâre just trying make me mad!â
Junhyuk was furious, but he didnât do anything. He had to master the Dimensional Slash before he could attack Eltor. Relaxed, Eltor smiled at him. He seemed to be enjoying making Junhyuk angry, and Junhyuk didnât want to show him that he could.
Junhyuk stepped back and asked, âWhat are you going to do with them?â
âYou earthlings have shut down your research on them, but weâll continue where you stopped.â
âAre you taking them with you?â
âItâs too bad for them, but I am.â
âI canât let you do that.â
âYou were just trying to kill them. That seems funny to me.â
âDeath would be better. They donât want to be lab rats.â
The infected had risked their lives for their freedom. Junhyuk couldnât contain their powers, so he had to kill them.
Eltor stared at him and smiled.
âThis decision has nothing to do with you.â
The manager snapped his fingers, and all of the infected disappeared, gone into a dimensional tear.
Junhyuk knew Eltor was powerful.
âIâm sorry to take them, but I will give you a present in return. Until you go to the Dimensional Battlefield again, no more waves will trigger on Earth.â
Junhyuk gripped his sword tightly. He had to do what Eltor was telling him, at least for now. He was extremely disappointed with himself.