Ch. 229 - I Have A Bad Feeling About This.

Powell felt overwhelmed. Running through dark, narrow passages while fending off relentless monsters required more mental endurance than physical strength. The maze-like cave, with no visible exit, was beginning to induce a claustrophobia he had never experienced before.

No matter how many monsters he cut killed, they kept coming back. If he had been alone, he could have shaken off the pursuing monsters and escaped by now. But with his fellow comrades in tow, he had no choice but to guard the rear the entire time.

Even for an A+ rank hunter, the stress of being responsible for others' lives was unimaginable. However, as the vice guild leader of LA's major guild Ithaca, Powell carried that weight with pride.

'I have no choice but to keep my mouth shut. I have to get them out safely.'

Of course, it wasn't purely responsibility that made him endure. In a guild, maintaining one's position depended on the power of the faction backing them. A leader who disregarded his subordinates' lives wouldn't be respected. If he wanted influence, he had to protect them---no matter the cost. That didn't mean he wouldn't abandon them if necessary, in case of a threat to his life. But for now, he could still hold on.

"Damn it! The path ahead is blocked!"

When they reached a small hollow and could no longer proceed, the hunter in the lead screamed in panic. Powell, still fending off the monsters at the entrance of the hollow, looked for his confidant.

"Grant!"

"Yes!"

"The wall is thin! Break through it!"

"On it!"

Grant placed his palm against the wall, sending out a pulse of mana. It was a skill that created mana like a sonar, helpful for mapping the structure beyond the wall in the maze.

The front, left, and right walls were too thick. The path downward wasn't an option. That left them with only one way---up.

"Doherty! Lift me up!"

Doherty immediately clasped his hands together, providing a foothold. Grant stepped onto his hands, then his shoulders, and launched himself upward. As his fingertips touched the ceiling, waves of mana pulsed upward.

"It's hollow above! I'll break through!"

With a terrifying swing of his sword, Grant unleashed an attack and mana rippled as he fired up his skill. The ceiling shattered, debris cascading down. Luckily, the entire passage didn't collapse---thanks to the hardened monster fluids reinforcing the walls.

"Ones in the lead, get up there first!"

One by one, the hunters leapt through the hole. Powell was the last to ascend. As his feet touched the upper floor, he stomped down hard, burying the pursuing monsters beneath the rubble.

"It won't hold them for long. They'll dig their way out soon.''

"Where do we go from here? I wish we had someone with detection skills. This maze is impossible to navigate. Even if we find the exit, we'll be surrounded the moment we step outside."

"This is LA. Once we're out, there will be plenty of other prey for them. Sure, there will be casualties, but if other hunters join in, the situation will resolve itself."

Powell said it calmly, but it was actually a terrible statement. He intended to use people as bait and escape. The others understood what he meant. No one objected or suggested another way. Not only were they not in a situation to be righteous since survival came first.

Yet, a brief hesitation held them back. Powell couldn't afford second thoughts. He snapped his men back to focus.

"Grant, use your skill! Find the loudest area! These things are drawn to sound! Everyone, pay attention! Just think about getting out!"

Soon after, Grant sensed a loud tremor reverberating through the underground and led his party in that direction.

***

Go Eul-ji intuitively knew something was terribly wrong.

Screams replaced the excited cheers among the 70,000 BTA lovers. Normally, she wouldn't have noticed right away, but the adrenaline rush from excitement was affecting her abilities. She could feel the space around her vividly---even without trying.

'Huh? Something is wrong!'

For a brief moment, time slowed. The cheering stretched and elongated. She noticed beads of sweat trailing down her friend's face as she jumped beside her. The rhythm of thousands of heartbeats pounded in unison, their breathing steady yet frantic.

"Wo~wah~ah~ah~ah~!"

"Beeeee~Teeee~Aeeee~!"

"Gyaa~ah~ah~ah!"

And then, a scream. One that didn't belong in the concert environment.

'That's it!'

As Go Eul-ji turned her head, time snapped back to normal. A suspicious entity soared into the air as she was looking. A large shadow rose from the audience covered with darkness, light and dry ice.

One. Two. Three...As each shadow appeared, the screams grew louder and louder.

People screamed and collapsed like dominoes. People were being crushed to death beneath the weight of others. Suddenly, the music cut off. Security guards rushed onto the stage and took the BTA members away. Only then did the audience register that something was off and those who say the chaos spread through the stadium like a wave screamed and tried to escape.

Bzzzzz!

"It's a monster!"

"Kyaaaaa!"

"Run!"

The concert hall, which was packed to the brim with no room to stand, quickly became a scene of chaos. The sea of people surged toward the exits, shoving through the narrow passageway---another fatal disaster in the making.

The monsters, who showed up out of nowhere, used the chance, lunging at them. The dry ice smoke from the stage during the performance was replaced with sprays of blood. Heads flew where fireworks should have burst. The light they gave off was red---dark, bloody red.

Glow sticks rolled across the floor with hands attached. People who lost their legs were covered in blood and turned into an unrecognizable pulp beneath the feet of the crowd. Soon the horror spilled to where Go Eulji's seat was. She gritted her teeth, trying to shield Kim Nari from the crushing mass of people behind her.

"Nari!"

Kim Nari reached for her outstretched hand---but she was a second too late and missed it. The tide of bodies in the crowd swept her away. Without hesitation, Go Eul-ji used her powers. She locked onto Kim Nari's presence in the crowd, lifting her into the air and out of danger. Physically she didn't seem hurt. Just as she let out a sigh of relief after checking if her friend was safe, the mastermind behind this chaos flew in, lunging at Kim Nari.

"You rascal, How dare you?!"

Go Eul-ji shot upward, fist colliding with the monster's chest from below. The monster fell down with half of its body missing. But even as its lower half was gone, the monster didn't die immediately and used what he had left of his body to attack people.

The sight of it gnawing through the man's torso with its powerful jaws as if oblivious to its own missing limbs was grotesque, so much so it was beyond ruthless. Go Eulji clutched Kim Nari tightly, keeping her friend safe, then turned her gaze to the monster fallen down.

'That thing!'

A dark brown body with yellow stripes with long, translucent wings, and a second pair of smaller wings beneath them. Hair-covered antennae. A stinger at the end of its tail. It looked like a bee.

"That's a Flesh-eating wasp!!"

She had never encountered one in her life---but its appearance, habits and hunting methods were all engraved deeply in her mind.

'Who would've known I'd see the rascals I've only ever seen in beginner hunter curriculums over here?'

The flesh-eating wasps had last appeared nearly 15 years ago in Korea. Back then, they left scars so deep that their species became a mandatory part of beginner hunter training. Goeulji then recalled information about flesh-eating wasps.

In Korea, the hives were detected early and this led to their swift eradication. But in other countries, these monsters were discovered late and were considered one of the worst species that wiped out hundreds of thousands of lives every time.

'If I don't deal with them now, things will only get worse.'

Go Eul-ji's mind raced about what to do as she saw the flesh-eating wasps who kept growing in number.

"Ugh, Eulji..."

Then, the shivering Kim Nari came into her view. She thought about how she should get her to safety first. And then another thought struck her---the BTA members.

'Oh no. My oppas!'

The thought that she had to save them immediately struck her. Just as she was about to turn in the air, she heard someone shouting.

"H-Hunter! Please save me!"

She noticed a girl reaching out her hand towards her as she fell through the sky, as well as a wasp swooping down on her. With a single wave of Go Eulji's hand, the monster was torn apart instantly. But it wasn't safe yet. Dozens more wasps filled the space the first one left behind. And then... Time slowed again. Every detail all over the concert hall was seared into her brain.

"Tch!"

She gave up on saving her idols. She couldn't even get her friend to safety either. She pulled a knife-shaped hairpin from her bosom.

"Sorry, oppas. Sorry, Nari."

Kim Nari realized what Go Eul-ji was about to do.

"It's okay. You're a hunter."

Go Eul-ji gave a faint smile. Wrapping a strand of her hair around the hairpin, which started glowing, she cast her gaze downward, her eyes now ice-cold.

'Whew. Alright. I already did this in Sinuiju, remember? There are just a few more people this time. I can do it.'

Turning the entire stadium into her space---packed with 70,000 people---Go Eul-ji extended her power, distinguishing humans from monsters. Her mind was on fire as she sorted through dozens, then hundreds, then thousands of entities. She noticed a few hunters among them, but this wasn't the time to worry about them.

'Tch! As if not fighting wasn't enough, they're fucking trying to run away? A party of high-ranking hunters at that?! Jeez!'

It was annoying, but there was no time to dwell on it. She continued using her skill.

All her training---identifying landmines buried underground due to flooding in North Pocheon, isolating Chinese hunters in Sinuiju by picking them out, rising in rank after battling monsters in the Tumen River basin, and even defeating Garuda---had led to this moment. And now, it was all paying off.

【Defying Heavens】

Boom!

A deep, thundering sound---like a drum beaten against the ears---resonated in the air making all living beings in the concert hall come to a stop. With her right hand pressed against the ground, she forced people downward. Simultaneously, her outstretched left hand sent hundreds of flesh-eating wasps soaring into the sky.

The wasps, sensing imminent danger, flailed desperately, their wings fluttering furiously.

But they went nowhere, with wings beating the air, but not making any overall movement at all. Humans and monsters were separated into heaven and earth.

The moment was brief, but to Go Eulji, it felt like an eternity. Blood trickled from her nose. The blood vessels in her right eye burst, staining half her vision red. Her ears rang, and her lips were cracked and dry. Her breath came in short gasps, and her heart pounded violently in her chest. When her trembling body finally stopped convulsing.

【Divine Punishment】

A colossal hammer of gravity slammed down from above, meeting an equal force rising from below.

Boooom!

***

After concluding negotiations with Hamilton, Kang Mu-hyuk met with No Songrin inside a special facility, accompanied by an agent from the Hunter Criminal Force.

"You got here fast. So fast as though you never abandoned me so easily."

"I would never do that. I trusted you, Hunter No Songrin. You're the reason I was able to handle the situation without being held back."

"Spare me the smooth talk. It's been a while since I was in prison--- it brought back some bad memories."

"Don't worry. You'll be released as soon as we complete the formalities."

"Let's start with these, then."

No Songrin raised both of his handcuffed hands. The cuffs were especially designed for hunters---unbreakable by brute force. Infused with magic, they weighed him down, restricting movement.

"Should we?"

Kang Mu-hyuk walked to the entrance and picked up the intercom, intending to call the person outside to remove the cuffs. For some reason, there was no response.

'What happened now?'

He pressed the intercom button several times over. Nothing. He turned to knock on the door.

Just then---

Booom!

A faint vibration, then darkness. The power had gone out. After a few seconds, the emergency lights flickered on. But Kang Mu-hyuk's expression hardened.

"I have a bad feeling about this."

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