Chapter 17 - The Practice (2)

The Practice (2)

The hall on the ground floor was quite spacious. It was open for 24 hours a day exclusively for them.

Ghost went into the open staff hallway, behind the desk, and picked up a square piece of cake, throwing it into his mouth.

“If you still can’t figure it out, it’s likely to be a new monster. Be careful and take care of the newcomers.”

“Of course.”

He said to Lee Soo-yeon before they got off the elevator on the 5th floor.

The party was divided into the 5th and 17th floors.

After arriving on the 17th floor, Il-Hyun and Ghost opened the door and went out into the hallway.

“There it is.”

The gate was in the middle of the hallway, incomparable to the gate Il-Hyun had seen before.

Ghost dragged two chairs into the room and sat down in front of the gate.

Waiting for the monster to come out from the ominous gate’s entrance, Il-Hyun was quite tense.

While he sat on the chair and waited, he heard stories from the industry’s high ranker. It was about how Aegis worked hard, and how other companies operated.

No matter how interested he was in the past, there was quite a lot of information that the general public could not understand. And it was genuine since the story came from an experienced veteran who ran the field.

Ghost lifted the mouth of the mask and bit a cigarette.

The mask was quite uncomfortable for him.

“Do you smoke?”

“Yes, but I gave it up.”

“You’re an Awakened. Just do whatever you want.”

Awakened people smoked freely, and didn’t care about how many cigarettes smoked. The Awakened also consumed very large quantities of alcohol. However, it wasn’t just concern for his health that made Il-Hyun quit.

“I just hate being tied to something.”

“Aha.”

Ghost, nodding his head lit a cigarette.

The smoke puffed with a shimmering sound.

“Honestly, I didn’t even smoke until I started this job. You might think the same way when you look outside.”

“Outside?”

“It’s a foreign story. Maybe it’s better to see it for yourself.”

Ghost spat out the smoke.

He has heard that if one side was foreign, the gate’s damage would be greater than that of Korea.

Korea had an unusually large number of awakened people, and it was inevitable that the institution was well prepared.

However, as the number of internationally active companies and awakened people increased, it was said that the damage caused by the deaths of many people abroad significantly reduced.

Il-Hyun was wondering what Ghost was talking about, but he knew Ghost wasn’t likely to tell him in this situation.

“But won’t you tell me your real name?”

“I don’t know the team leaders. I can’t tell anyone who came in yesterday.”

“You don’t know the team leader? Is that possible?”

Il-Hyun asked in amazement.

As far as he knew, it has been several years since Ghost entered Team A.

It was hard to believe that after all this time, he didn’t know his real name or his true identity.

“Hahaha! I don’t care about what you do in your private life.”

Even after seeing him smile, Il-Hyun still had a hard time believing him.

Then Ghost smiled and said,

“Everything here is thoroughly business. It’s a place where the best human beings come together. The people who support the signboards at large companies are also the youngest members of the team here, so they don’t touch each other’s egos as much as possible. There is less hierarchy. Some distance.”

Ghost shook his head once and spoke.

“I honestly don’t like that, but Team A is satisfied. The atmosphere is good, and the people are not bad, either. I like how the team leader manages things, and Tae-Sik, who was on vacation a while ago, is also well suited for the task.”

He was surprised as he quietly listened because all of the names he called were the ones he’d heard of at least once.

“Don’t go to Team E even if you’re going to move teams later. It’s really not the right atmosphere. At least that’s how I feel.”

Then, the gate shook with a bizarre noise.

The two Awakens reflexively rose from their chairs and drew their swords.

A monster with horns on its forehead ran out on all fours.

It had rough eyes, sharp teeth, and a nasty appearance that seemed to be a rough blend of humans and monsters.

However, the problem was that monsters of other species also appeared at the gate.

“There! I think the analysis team was wrong!”

“What? What is it?”

Ghost put his left hand across his ear and mouthed through a transceiver.

Unlike the other monsters, two appeared with blue skin and several tentacles on their backs.

Two B-rank Ace Monsters appeared there, contrary to the predictions.

The monsters cried fiercely, and the tentacles approaching at a tremendous speed pierced Ghost’s neck.

Il-Hyun was so startled, but he sighed with relief after he watched him turn his head.

The attack had passed through the invisible ghost painting.

“Damn it! I’ll take care of these two, so take care of the gate.”

Ghost escaped from the attack’s trajectory, smashed the floor with a sword, and fell to the third floor with two B-rank monsters.

On the 17th floor, there were only open floors, gates, and Il-Hyun.

There was the sound of fighting downstairs.

“Whose turn?”

Il-Hyun raised his sword with many monsters standing in front of him, staring at him.

D-ranked monsters were not at a level that could be prevented by Special Forces around the barricades.

They had to be stopped from leaving.

In practice, unpredictable situations often broke out.

“After work, I have to eat the core or heart.”

* * *

In front of the gate, D-rank monsters continued to appear.

Il-Hyun rolled his feet first, filling the floor.

The window at the end of the corridor also deformed the walls on either side, closed.

If the monster decided to concentrate, he can pierce as much as possible as long as he was in a hurry.

As he was still analyzing these thoughts, a monster hit him.

He jumped with tremendous leg strength with his mouth wide open.

Il-Hyun, who was disgusted by the upcoming expressionless face, shook his sword vigorously and gently cut his hair.

This created a temporary crack in the monster and he took a different dimension.

“Wow! This equipment is very good! Now it feels like I am fighting!”

The sword was better than the time he was dealing with E-rank monsters,.

It was worth it.

But at that moment, the monsters that reacted to the smell of their fellow monster’s blood rushed in like crazy.

There were twenty of them who already filled the hallway, and even the monsters appearing there, all headed towards Il-Hyun.

“Damn!”

Il-Hyun became impatient and used his ability.

A huge deformed foot came down and stepped on them.

Thud! A few crushed bodies died violently and instantly, but the monsters behind them smashed their feet in front of them and struck him.

Like bugs, they walked on the walls and ceilings, approaching like a horde of crazy zombies.

Quickly, Il-Hyun transformed the floor and the walls on both sides into a stiff Golem that was almost the size of a full hallway.

Il-Hyun filled the Summoning Ability there.

At that moment, the Golem, which had an ego, instinctively protected Il-Hyun from the kneeling monsters that were running towards them.

Bang!

The Golems and monsters collided and made a loud noise.

The Golems that had attacked face-to-face were broken in several places but did not collapse.

Instead, he wielded his fist and crushed a monster’s head.

Although it was made using the walls of a building, Il-Hyun’s ability allowed him to further strengthen the Golem using the same materials to an incomparable extent.

If he summoned it, he could strengthen a level further.

Il-Hyun, who had earned some time, hurriedly transformed the wall on the right to create a new wolf shaped monster.

It wasn’t as big as a Golem, but it still was taller than Il-Hyun.

Unlike the monster he had summoned while experimenting, there was no horn.

Instead of sharing several powers, he chose to focus on one or two summons.

“Great…”

The lowly wolf lowered its body, as it made an aggressive sound. It jumped abruptly.

The wolf climbed the ceiling, crossing the Golem. Attacking the monster, the wolf was tearing it with its sharp teeth, as they both landed on the floor.

Il-Hyun was not watching.

He was dealing with the monsters that were coming from the walls, one by one.

He had a little trouble with the monsters’ level because they were stronger than before.

But he too had a lot of power compared to before.

Il-Hyun was struggling with the two monsters at the same time.

Then the monsters lost balance and fell to the floor.

“Ugh!”

Il-Hyun felt something strange and looked down.

The poison was coming out of the wound of the dead body.

A viciously, powerful poison spread through the air.

It was a poison that could melt his skin if it came in contact.

Il-Hyun quickly activated the purification function of the defense coat.

Even if the body was not immediately affected by the poison, it would be dangerous if accumulated.

A small white circle appeared on the left side of the coat, an indication of purifying the surrounding air.

“How was it? Was it ok?”

“It was manageable.”

In his left ear was his transceiver. From it, messages came in continuously asking about the situation.

It was Lee Soo-Yeon, who was dealing with multiple Ace Monsters and one gate by herself. She didn’t even have time to breathe.

“What about Ghost?”

“I’m doing fine as well!”

“No, I’m asking how the situation is over there. Are you planning to leave the gate to the newcomer?”

“Ughh, I only have one left. Heading there soon.”

Bang! A loud noise reverberated from the bottom.

It was probably the sound of Ghost and B-rank monsters fighting.

However, Il-Hyun had no time to be thinking about what was going on there.

Pow!

During the battle, Il-Hyun was hit on the abdomen. He had slipped up.

He smashed a wall and was thrown to the floor.

“Damn it.”

Because of the protective function of the coat, he didn’t receive any direct impact.

His stomach was throbbing, but it didn’t pose a threat to his performance in battle.

The only problem was that the monsters’ counterattack was substantial, and the wolf’s side had been broken during the battle.

In some instances, they were the ones who played the role of the Ace Monster. Thus, they weren’t easy opponents.

With his eyes closed, Il-Hyun focused on his breath for a moment. He then stood up.

It was only for a moment, but the number of monsters that passed the Golem had multiplied.

If things continued this way, monsters could escape the scene.