Chapter 21: Chapter 21

The appearance of a new type of monster completely turned the tide of the battle, which they had thought was over.

The relentless lightning strikes felt like a disaster for the hunters.

To escape this crisis, they needed to take down the new monster quickly, but at the moment, they couldn’t even identify the enemy, let alone decide on a countermeasure.

Due to the dark clouds, they could barely make out the shape of the new monster, only estimating its size.

“We’ve finished setting up the lightning rods!”

“Did you set them all up in the designated spots?”

“Yes! Certainly!”

Seo Sang-ho bit his lower lip as he stared at the unrelenting lightning.

He had thought that erecting the lightning rods would provide some level of defense.

However, since they were hastily constructed by those without specialized knowledge, they sadly had little effect.

“Damn it.”

Without wasting time, Seo Sang-ho quickly devised the next plan.

Connecting with the magicians, he immediately asked them, “Can you snipe the monster hiding in those clouds?”

The clouds reached an altitude of 34,200 ft.

The magicians replied that even if their skills managed to reach it, their power would greatly diminish.

In other words, taking it down with skills was impossible.

“Looks like we’ll have to get closer ourselves.”

Though risky, the only method available now was to use the helicopters that the government had promised to provide for support.

“I’m glad I requested them in advance.”

It was far too dangerous for the Guild Master to approach an unknown monster directly.

However, this was the only idea that came to mind.

Seo Sang-ho felt that it was time for him to take action, gathering his resolve despite the opposition of the executives.

“Over there! The helicopter is coming!”

Hearing a guild member’s shout, he looked up to see a helicopter approaching from far away.

He watched in disbelief as that helicopter was struck by a lightning bolt right before his eyes.

The dazzling flash accompanied by the lightning hit the helicopter directly, incinerating those inside.

“My god…”

The helicopter plummeted, creating a massive explosion upon impact with the ground.

Seo Sang-ho’s face was filled with despair at the sight.

“How could something that can’t even distinguish allies from enemies hit the helicopter with such precision?”

“It’s just unable to identify friend or foe; it seems to be capable of detecting the movements of targets.”

The one who answered Seo Sang-ho’s question was not a guild member but Kang Jin-hyuk.

His claim was quite credible, so Seo Sang-ho picked up the radio and issued new commands to the guild members.

“Send the drones we brought in for filming closer to those clouds one by one.”

Not long after the guild members began to carry out the order, several lightning bolts struck down from the sky.

The newly emerged monster precisely hit drones that were less than 30cm in size without missing a single shot.

Over ten expensive drones were destroyed, but there was still some gain.

By varying the approach distances of the drones, they were able to determine the detection range of the new monster.

“The detection range is over 1,000m. If we get any closer, it hits with 100% accuracy?”

Upon receiving the report from a guild member, Seo Sang-ho let out a bitter laugh.

At this rate, attempting to approach with a helicopter was nothing short of suicide.

“How in the world are we supposed to capture that thing…?”

While Seo Sang-ho felt dejected before the dilemma, Kang Jin-hyuk quietly stared at the clouds.

* * *

The members of Titan and most hunters took refuge in the basement of a nearby building.

Only a minimal number of personnel remained on the ground to prevent monsters from escaping outside their defenses.

The gathered hunters in the temporary refuge brainstormed ways to tackle the new monster.

Veteran hunters who had weathered various trials and tribulations all gathered but failed to come up with any realistic solutions.

Time flowed by with nothing but anxiety creeping in due to the lack of viable plans.

Eventually, an impatient executive from Titan turned to Seo Sang-ho and asked,

“Is it impossible for the Guild Master to take down that monster?”

“My skill’s range is only about 300m. Are you seriously asking that without knowing a single thing?”

“I asked because I’m aware of it.”

The intention behind the executive’s question was whether there was any approach to get within 300m.

In reality, there was a small possibility that existed.

It involved Seo Sang-ho jumping down from a higher altitude, where the new monster wouldn’t sense him, to reach within its range.

After hearing about this operation from the executive, Seo Sang-ho furrowed his brows.

“Are you suggesting I dive down?”

“If it’s from an S-rank hunter’s body, you’d likely survive.”

“You’re talking like it’s your own body.”

Even if an S-rank hunter possessed superior physical abilities compared to others, it didn’t mean they were invulnerable.

If they failed to take it down from 34,000ft and fell, not even an S-rank hunter would be able to find a trace of their body.

“Shut your mouth if you’re not coming with me. I have no intention of risking my life for an uncertain chance.”

“…I apologize.”

The executive stepped back, receiving glances of scorn from other colleagues.

Despite the situation being grave, to demand a sacrifice from the Guild Master was crossing the line.

As Seo Sang-ho’s cold expression sank the atmosphere, another executive stepped forward to speak.

“Then it seems we’ll have to wait for another S-rank hunter.”

“That’s right. For instance, maybe the Guild Master from Getia…”

“Getia? You think they’re going to help us?”

They were a guild that consisted of some of the top-ranked hunters who had transitioned to magicians.

All of them held a rank of A or above, and their guild master was also an S-rank.

Their skill level alone was guaranteed, but they lacked integrity.

Their sole purpose for participating was to conduct research and analysis on monsters.

Even if someone were to die right next to them, they wouldn’t step in if it fell outside their objectives.

Seo Sang-ho recalled the arrogance displayed by the Getia guild members and scowled.

“Better to pray while pouring cold water than hope that those guys will help us.”

“Well, this time might be different?”

“What makes you think so?”

“The monster appearing in the sky is a ‘new type’ of monster that hasn’t been documented.”

One of Titan’s executives argued that Getia would cooperate actively to acquire new information about the monster.

Despite that being a fairly convincing statement, Seo Sang-ho shook his head in disagreement.

“That’s the problem. If they go out of their way to preserve the monster’s remains, what will we do?”

“What’s the issue with that? We just need to kill it.”

“That’s not that simple.”

Seeing the executive looking perplexed, Seo Sang-ho continued with his explanation.

“How are we supposed to prevent the corpse of a 500m big monster from dropping over 30,000ft?”

“Ah…”

Only at that moment did the executive realize the issue he had overlooked.

The new monster’s emergence wasn’t just about how to hunt it down.

Given it appeared in the middle of the city, they also had to come up with a way to minimize the damage.

“Can we lure it to a river or the sea?”

“How would we do that?”

At Seo Sang-ho’s question, the hunter who proposed the idea fell silent and stepped back.

Though everyone had their theories, they couldn’t come up with a concrete plan to put into action.

Such half-hearted plans were never going to solve the current problem.

1. They needed to tackle a monster that could snipe from a distance of 1km at an altitude of 35,000ft.

2. They had to prevent a 500m body from crashing into the city.

Only by solving these two simultaneous puzzles could they fully resolve the situation.

“This is maddening.”

Even as they struggled with their thoughts, the attacks from the monster in the clouds continued unabated.

As if mocking the inadequate lightning rods, the frequency of the lightning strikes kept increasing.

There were already 43 serious injuries and 12 fatalities.

Despite the rising casualties, Seo Sang-ho couldn’t tell them to evacuate.

With monsters that hadn’t been dealt with left on the ground, they had to keep at least a certain number of personnel in defense.

Seo Sang-ho was forcing sacrifices onto the hunters using his position.

He was aware of how cruel that was.

“Damn it…”

As the tension kept rising alongside the passage of time, Seo Sang-ho suddenly received an emergency call.

One of the reports he didn’t want to hear finally arrived.

While he had anticipated that this would happen someday, he didn’t expect it to come so soon.

“I thought there was enough manpower on that side?”

Hearing the report, Seo Sang-ho let out a deep sigh.

Being in a position where he was just using his brain in a safe location, he couldn’t blame those running away to save themselves.

“I understand. I’ll send in support from this side, so hold on for just five more minutes.”

After ending the call, Seo Sang-ho surveyed the gathered hunters in the refuge.

He noticed that every Titan executive was present, which made him chuckle to himself.

‘So they want to stay alive too, huh?’

Not wanting to be regarded like those people, Seo Sang-ho wanted nothing more than to charge out as a rescue team immediately.

However, since he was the linchpin of Titan, abandoning the meeting and rushing to the battlefield would only lead to a more severe situation.

After mulling it over while biting his lip, Seo Sang-ho spoke to the gathered hunters.

“I need personnel to support the right flank. Is there anyone willing to volunteer?”

Given that he was requesting they head out into a battleground where lightning struck and monsters rampaged, there weren’t many eager to answer right away.

Nevertheless, thanks to those who felt a sense of responsibility, about ten responded simply.

Seo Sang-ho bowed his head in gratitude to those willing to provide support.

“I promise you’ll receive triple the previously agreed payment.”

“Will you really pay us even if we die?”

One hunter remarked jokingly, causing Seo Sang-ho to show a complicated expression.

There were no words he could use to express his gratitude to those who were willingly stepping up despite not being part of the same guild.

The hunters patted Seo Sang-ho’s shoulder once each before heading out into the refuge.

Observing this scene, Kang Jin-hyuk walked toward the table.

“Can I ask you a quick question?”

As the executives were about to speak up at the sudden arrival of the C-rank hunter, Seo Sang-ho raised his hand to stop them.

“What do you want to know?”

“How much do we need to destroy that monster in the clouds for you to deal with the remains?”

“Even just a third of its mass would be the limit.”

Considering the height and weight involved, anything beyond that would be beyond Seo Sang-ho’s control.

“Then, when I call, you should be ready to help.”

Kang Jin-hyuk’s words left the faces of Seo Sang-ho and the Titan executives in shock.

“Are you saying you can take down that monster?”

“I’m not sure, but I’ll try it.”

“You’ll try?”

While Seo Sang-ho was speechless in disbelief, the nearby Titan executive, Han Young-seok, stepped forward.

“Are you kidding? Who do you think you are to step up in this situation?”

“I’m just testing something that piques my interest.”

Ignoring Kang Jin-hyuk, Young-seok scoffed in disdain.

He was aware of how Kang Jin-hyuk had knocked down Ahn Do-yoon with a baseball bat, having investigated him in search of revenge due to the embarrassment inflicted on the guild.

“You’re just a C-rank hunter. What are you capable of?”

“I’ll do something more useful than just sitting around.”

Young-seok’s face flushed red with anger at that moment.

Kang Jin-hyuk’s remark felt like a direct jab at the waste of space they had become.

“If that’s the case, fine. If you manage to take down that monster, I’ll give you a separate reward. However, if you fail, you’ll lose all the rewards from this battle.”

Promising rewards for capturing a new monster that even S-rank hunters struggled with felt hardly reasonable.

Young-seok’s remarks were essentially meaningless.

However, Kang Jin-hyuk remained unfazed by the absurd suggestion.

“I don’t care for your rewards. Just don’t whine for the monster’s remains afterward.”

“What did you say?!”

Young-seok couldn’t hold back his irritation at being confronted by a mere C-rank hunter.

Before he could say anything further, Seo Sang-ho reached out and restrained him.

As Seo Sang-ho halted Young-seok, Kang Jin-hyuk wore a knowing smile before heading out of the refuge.

“Why did you stop me?”

As Young-seok fumed, Seo Sang-ho looked at him with a gaze of disappointment.

He then turned away and started discussing strategies with the other hunters.

Gritting his teeth, Young-seok seethed in frustration.

* * *

Over thirty minutes passed since Kang Jin-hyuk had left the temporary refuge.

Initially, as news spread of him having gone out beyond the defenses, he had held some hope that he might bring a positive change.

However, the absence of any updates led to a growing sense of doubt now.

‘Was he just attempting to run away all along?’

Even Seo Sang-ho, who had been optimistic about Kang Jin-hyuk, couldn’t help but feel suspicious this time.

He recognized Kang Jin-hyuk’s talent, but in this situation, even an S-rank hunter like him was having trouble finding a solution.

This wasn’t an issue to be resolved with merely skill and a baseball bat.

‘If he wasn’t trying to escape, he was likely boasting or bluffing. Either way, one of the two.’

As he reached out to contact other S-rank hunters to find a way to break this deadlock, he had momentarily forgotten about Kang Jin-hyuk and what he had said.

Then, at a time he least expected, his smartphone resting on the table rang with Kang Jin-hyuk’s name.

The call was abruptly cut off, leaving Seo Sang-ho stunned.

He couldn’t help but think how absurd that message was.

He felt a blend of disbelief and suspicion—believing not a word of it.

‘Prepare? Could he really be…?’

At that moment, Seo Sang-ho saw a streak of light flying across the sky, piercing through the thunderous sounds.

“Wha—what’s that?!”

He immediately bolted outside, looking up at the sky.

In his line of sight was a brilliant beam slicing through the clouds, marking its path.

And next…

He heard the woeful scream of the new type of monster that had tormented the hunters until now.