최초의 헌터

– STORY –

The world has changed and so have the people.

December 31st, 2016 – the day before New Year's. Kim Taehoon
was just casually shopping for groceries at the large store.
Monsters suddenly appeared out of thin air. With the highly
trained skills that he had gained from his previous occupation,
he starts to hunt the monsters down and manages to win,
saving countless people who were also at the mall.

But there are more and they don't stop coming.

Will he be able to survive until the end?
Will he be able to beat the countless monsters that only seem to
get stronger?
And will it just be monsters that he has to worry about?

The journey of Kim Taehoon, The First Hunter, begins.

On December 31, 2016, monsters appeared simultaneously all over the world.

On January 1, 2017, I am still alive.

1.

Kim Tae-hoon had experienced the death of many people in his profession. He had
killed a lot, and at the same time was threatened with death by many.

There were a couple of things he learned in such a terrible life: how to die easily, and
how to not die easily. Of course, he never thought that he would use what he had
learned in his daily life.

"Whew…”

He saw the green monster for the first time in his life in the car goods corner on the
first floor of the local supermarket; it suddenly attacked him. He killed the monster
that attacked him, using the methods he had learned in his profession.

'That's crazy!'

And that was how the story of the first hunter began.

2.

Kim Tae-hoon: this year, as of 2016, the 28-year-old man would be 29 years old in just
one day, and he visited a large supermarket next to Bucheon City Hall on December
31, to buy washer fluid.

'Washer fluid… '

The reason to drop by was really nothing, like most people at a large supermarket. No
one came to the mart to buy great things. Naturally, he was looking around in the auto
section.

But at some point, the horrible shrieks "Kieee! Kieee!", the screaming "Argh argh
argh!", and the crash sounds "Bump! Bump!" started to burst out in succession.
And when he responded to the sound, he turned his head.

'Dwarf?', he thought.

It was a green-skinned monster with a height of 140 centimeters. The skinny limbs
and the protruding belly reminded him of a third world child suffering from
malnutrition in hunger. But it did not bring out any sympathy.

The monster had teeth that looked fiercer than a dog, and the red eyes seemed to have
rotten blood. "Kieee!" It ran toward him, shrieking loudly.

He did not show any sympathy for such a monster. He kicked the body of the monster
that had charged toward him as he turned around. The green monster fell on the floor
screaming, and he opened the lid of the washer fluid he held and inserted the nozzle
into the monster's mouth. The washer fluid entered the monster's stomach and lungs,
and he stepped on its chest to prevent it from struggling.

"Whew!" 'That's crazy.'

And that was the beginning! By the time the light disappeared from the eyes of the
monster under his feet, he looked around.

Bam! Bam! Bam! Like dominoes, there was a deafening roar as the racks fell.

"Argh!" He heard the scream of a woman.

"Kieee! Kieee!" He also heard the shriek, probably from another green monster.

The scene was clearly visible to his eyes. 'Oh, my God.' It was a scene where dozens of
child-sized monsters suddenly appeared, hunting the visitors to the large supermarket.

"Argh, save me!"

"Monster! Monster!"

"Oh no, help me, please help me—"

In the face of this absurd sight, he was embarrassed. He had seen humans hunting
humans, but he had never seen monsters hunting humans.
"Shit!" What awakened his spirit was the sound of a young man wielding a bat at the
three green monsters which had surrounded him, wearing a Yankees baseball cap and
a baseball jumper in the sporting goods section.

"Get out! Get out of here, you bastards!" His voice was rough, but on the contrary, it
was a struggle that Kim was familiar with.

'It's not the time to be like this.'

"Whew!" Kim drew a short breath and immediately looked around.

'First of all… let's survive.'

Something came into his eyes, and he started to move immediately without hesitation.

At 4:11 pm on December 31, 2016, the last day of 2016 started like that.

3.

"God damn it!" Swish!

"God damn it!" Swish!

"Get out! Get out of here, you monsters!" Swish!

Bang Hyun-wook had a height of 183 centimeters and a weight of 90 kilograms. He

was a strong man, and he gave the loudest scream he could whenever he swung a
baseball bat.

"Ahhhh!" Swish!

His action was never wise. Making a sound while swinging a baseball bat with his
mouth open was one of his bad habits, and he was well aware of the fact. Due to the
habit, he was punished by his coach, a former professional baseball player, and then
recorded 77 home runs in the Korean Baseball League. As a result, his bad habits were
no longer punished by his coach.

"You fucking bastards, get out of here!" Swish!

Now it was here again.

"Ahhhh, shit!" He was so embarrassed.

"Where the fuck did these monsters come from? No, what the fuck is this? What is it?"

In his rambling, words that should be swallowed inside popped out of his mouth.

"Huck, Huck!" It was only his breathing that stopped more of the words from coming
out. It was a natural result because he continuously shouted while swinging the bat
with full power.

If he found another reason, it would be to lie about running ten laps of running
training on the playground after seven laps, and then smoking a cigarette that an
athlete did not have any business with it.

"Shit…” 'I should have not smoked and trained myself harder… '

Of course, at this moment, he started to feel regret for his lazy and insincere ways. And
he felt faint, even though he was still a young man.

'The regret he has now is the one people often have before they die.'

'Damn it, am I going to die here? I cannot survive against the monsters that are in sight
alone! As I saw a while ago, I would be like that man in his early thirties who was
screaming with his neck being bitten by a monster!'

"Get ahold of yourself!" It was not the weird cry of the monster that awakened him,
but the clear voice.

"Yes?" He was surprised by the voice and turned his head in its direction.

The green dwarfs did the same. "Kieee?" "Kieee?" "Kieee?"

Three monsters turned their heads in the direction of the voice. Only two of them
could see the owner of the voice.

The reason for the third one was simple: the bottom of the frying pan, which had not
even been torn out of its wrapping paper, was flying toward its face.

Clank! The frying pan hit its face.

Squeak! The monster lost his two front teeth without even saying anything and then
fell back with a few more teeth flying. Thump!

The sudden action of a man who appeared did not stop there. The man stretched his
left arm out toward one of the two monsters.

Chi-i-ik! The paint spray in the man's left hand turned the monster's red eyes and face
black at once.

"Kieee!" The monster waved its arms through the air, screaming at the mysterious
attack, before falling on the floor.

Two of the three monsters were on the floor, and naturally, the one left was nervous.

"Kieee!" The remaining one, which now had no numerical advantage, vented out at the
man who had suddenly appeared on, as loudly as it could, crying out with a ferocious
voice. This meant it was turning its back on Bang Hyun-wook, who it had been fighting.

"Attack!" Bang immediately moved when the man shouted. Once again, the bat held in
his hand divided the air.

Crack! And this time, he hit the monster's temple precisely. The batted monster did
not even scream, it just shook and hit the floor! After falling down, it only trembled a
little. Deep green blood flowed from its nostrils.

"Urgh!" An odd sound burst out of Bang's mouth. It was a mixture of joy when he killed
the monster which had tried to kill him, relief for the fact that he was alive, and all
kinds of resentment.

"I said I would kill you, you bastard! I said I would kill you!"

On the other hand, the man who had suddenly appeared, unlike Bang, calmly proceeded
to his next action.

"Kieee…” Out of the two monsters that fell, he sprayed the black paint spray in his left
hand into the face of the one which was waking up after the impact of the frying pan.
Spray paint was so thick that it drizzled as tears ran down the face of the monster.

"Kii, kieee!" The monster began to struggle, screaming at this unknown attack. But the
bony arms of the monster which could not see anything only flailed in the air and did
not pose any threat.

The man stomped on the monster's neck. The sound of a vertebra cracking followed.
He stomped on it hard several times. His feet stopped after the monster stopped
screaming.

"There." After that, the man called Bang and pointed to one of the remaining monsters
with his fingers.

"Yes?" Bang was embarrassed for a moment. Literally, for a moment.

"Oh, yes!" Bang realized the intention of the man and began to hit the last remaining
monster with a bat.

Crack! Being hammered so hard, the green monster screamed, twisted, and crouched
in front of a ruthless attack. The three monsters could not even struggle.

The conversation between the two began.

"What's your name?"

"Bang Hyun-wook, Bang Hyun-wook, my age is…”

"I'm Kim Tae-hoon. If you want to follow me, obey me unconditionally."

At this moment, Bang was worried for a while. 'Unconditionally? Obey?' Literally, for
a moment, his worries were never long.

"Thud! Aaaargh! help me!" All kinds of noise, the sound of confusion that he had never
experienced before, knocked on Bang's eardrums, and his worry disappeared like
melting snow.

"I'll follow you."

"Get the baseball bats, gloves, and bags, and follow me."

That was the end of their conversation.

"Kaaah!" The appearance of the monster with the horrible shriek, far more ferocious
than the cry of the dwarf monster that he had heard so far, did not allow them any
more time.
"Kaaahh!" It was a real monster.

The 190-centimeter height, a muscular body with a narrow waist, and a neck that was
thicker than the waist of an adult woman were entirely compatible with the word
'monster'.

The most monstrous part of all was its face. Its blackened fangs, longer than the fingers
of an adult man, and protruding through the thick lips of a very ugly face, were shining
with human blood and gore.

"Urgh!" Of course, the monster was not something that a normal adult male, now in
his forties, who had only exercised playing golf online, would normally face and be
willing to fight back. It was worth running from!

Nevertheless, the reason why the middle-aged man, Park Jae-woon, blocked the monster
with the hideous grayish-brown skin, was simple.

"Honey, honey!"

"Aahhh, Dad! Dad!"

He was standing in front of two women. His wife and daughter were now shedding
tears full of despair and fear behind him. So, he wouldn't run in front of them.

'Damn it, damn it, damn it…!' The moment he ran away, he would lose something more
precious than his life.

"Well, don't worry! I'll stop it! I'll stop it!"

That was why he made a resolution to stand against this monster by using the tennis
racket purchased today, as always, for the diet that he had decided to start on the first
of the year.
Everyone could understand why he could not back down.

"Kaaahh!" Of course, the resolution had no meaning to the monster in front of him and
his family. His resolution did not give any inspiration to the monster.

At this moment, in the monster's eyes, they were just a bit of food to satisfy its hunger.

"Krrr!" As soon as the imagination of the monster reached the point where it would
fill its mouth with fresh meat, the monster no longer cared. Then, the monster took a
step towards him.

Poof! Poof! He wielded a tennis racket that he had never swung in his life at the monster.

"Aahhhh!" His cry as he swung the tennis racket, was more like a scream than a cry.

His frantic attempts did not do the slightest damage to the body of the monster. But it
didn't mean anything. Thanks to his attempts to attract the attention of the monster,
Bang Hyun-wook was able to approach the monster without being seen.

Bam! He hit the monster's head with a bat. His attack was powerful.

"Argh!" He shouted out at the vibration that fed back into his hands.

His hit was strong enough that ordinary people would have fallen over, their skulls
broken.

"Kaaah!" However, the monster was not an ordinary person. Its thick neck did not
shake, and its hard skull was not cracked.

The strike just got it angry. So it turned around, opened its mouth wide to the attack,
and screamed.

"Kaaah!" Not just screaming, but the strongest threat it could pose!

'Huh!'

Fear, it was fear! The fear pinched his whole body at once.

'What, what…?' The feeling of an invisible chain tied all over him. He felt like an
invisible hand had grabbed his heart. The eerie feeling stopped him from moving, and
the monster did not hurry as it saw him freeze.

It studied at him with its red eyes, and it saw the characteristics of the animal that had
attacked it. It was the look of a predator looking at its prey.

'The heck!' He was scared and angry at the same time. 'You fucking monster!'

It was scary. But on the contrary, the fact that he would be eaten alive while being
treated like a prey made him angry beyond his fear. The anger stimulated the power
in his body.

The wriggling that started in his body rose like a fountain at once. It passed through
his chest, starting from his stomach, and shook off what was holding his heart and
immediately rose up his throat and burst out of his mouth.

"Ahhhhhhh!" Just like that, a scream came out of his mouth, a cry that sounded similar
to what the monster had just done a moment ago.

He could feel a weird power in his body, and a strange warmth, similar to that of
coming out of the sauna. His eyes also changed. They were now tingling, with an odd
haze around them.

"Kaaah?" It was at that moment that the monster stopped moving.

The expression of its eyes changed. They were not the eyes of a predator looking at its
prey, but the eyes of a beast looking at a beast. As a beast was in front of the beast, the
monster was wary now in front of Bang, and it focused all its attention on him.

It was at that moment that Kim Tae-hoon moved. He came in behind the monster who
was wary at the threat in front of it. His presence was so faint.

'Huh?' Even Park, who was able to watch Kim approaching the monster, did not notice
his appearance and existence until Kim wrapped its neck three times with the fishing
line, using both hands behind the monster's back. In addition, Kim's skill at wrapping
the monster's neck using fishing line was also very smooth.

It was by no means a lucky trick. It was a level of skill that could only be demonstrated
by those who had practiced hundreds or thousands of times, and who had experienced
at least a hundred real fights.
The fishing line went taut when Kim, who was wearing baseball gloves, heaved back.

"Ugh ugh ugh!" The monster began to scratch its neck reflexively, trying to cut away
the binding on its neck. But the fishing line that was digging in was not easily scratched
or cut off with its short nails.

Above all, Kim did not even give a little chance to the monster. He pulled the line, and
with his right foot hit the back of its right knee, and the back of the hamstring.

The tree-like monster was forced to kneel down after the attack on the hamstring, and
as soon as the monster put its knee on the floor, He pulled it back.

"Kuck!" The ceiling came into the eyes of the monster, which made a gagging sound.

"Do it!" Kim shouted, and the tingling with the haze around the eyes of Bang disappeared
like snow.

"Yes!" Bang carried out Kim's order. He took something out of the bag on his back. It
was engine oil! He opened the lid quickly and immediately put the snout of the engine
oil into the monster's mouth.

At that moment, Kim loosened the fishing line that he was yanking back.

The monster, which was struggling to suck in more air to live, inhaled at that moment.
"Kuck!" A mouthful of engine oil!

"Kuck! Kuck! Kuck!" The engine oil was immediately sucked into its stomach and lungs.

"Kuck!" At that moment it felt a burst of disgust, burning heart, and instinctive sense
of crisis. Of course, its instincts screamed at it to pull it out!

Kim's instincts also said, 'I'll never let you go.'

He pulled the line tight again so that the monster could not spit anything out. He was
naturally faithful to his instincts, and the line was tight again, and it began to tremble
as if its power to rebel had disappeared.

That's how time passed. One second piled up and became ten seconds, and when the
time reached a minute, the light vanished from the monster's eyes, and there was no
sign of any further movement.
"I think it's dead now." Bang's hand, which was guarding the monster with a baseball
bat, began to relax.

But even in his words, the tightness of the fishing line that was holding its neck was
not eased.

"Big brother? Big brother? I think it's dead now…” Bang narrowed the distance with
Kim as if he thought that Kim did not hear his words. Of course, the distance to the
monster also narrowed. Bang sat with his butt on the floor, and the distance from the
sagging monster was narrowed enough to touch one another when they reached out
their arms.

"Kaaah!" It reached out with its hand and grabbed his neck as it screamed out its last
word.

"Uhhhhh!" From his mouth, the sound similar to what the monster spit out a while ago
came out.

Fortunately, that was it. The power of its grip on Bang's neck quickly drained away,
and at some point, it was no longer able to threaten anything. Thirty seconds later, the
tautness of the line that had been wrapped around its neck eased.

Kim, who was now free, said to Bang as he removed the monster, "I judge whether it's
dead or alive, not you."

"Yes, yes!" Bang reflexively replied, rubbing his neck where it had grabbed him.

However, Kim's eyes were not directed toward Bang. He looked down at Park, who
was shaking while sitting on the floor.

"You're the cleaner now. From now on, your role is a cleaner, dealing with what falls
on the floor. If there's anything on the floor, it's your job to kill it until it dies." Kim
finished speaking and rose from his crouching.

Then he found an escalator heading to the second floor of the large supermarket…
5.

The food corner on the second floor of the large supermarket…

"Argh!" This place where visitors were greeted with various kinds of food, was now a
battlefield filled with screams, monsters, and blood.

"Surround that Goblin! Surround it!"

Clang Clang! Four men rushed toward the three Goblins, dwarf monsters with green
skin. The only common feature of the four men, who were all different in age, attire,
and shape, was that they each had a crude spear made of a knife, curtain rod, and
insulated tape. The four men used the long reach of the spears, to stab the Goblins'
bellies and eyes.

"Kieee!" the Goblins screamed, and one of them slipped to the floor and fell.

As soon as the Goblins fell, a baseball bat suddenly hit its head like an ax. The baseball
bat crushed the Goblin's head like clay, and the Goblin went limp on the floor, spilling
blood from its eyes, nose, and mouth.

"Uhhhh-cha!!!!" Bang Hyun-wook, the owner of the baseball bat, screamed out,
rushing straight towards the Goblin in front of him. The Goblin's face was cracked in
half. The bat had smashed it precisely between its nose and the brow, and of course,
the two red eyes of the Goblins near it were not safe either. The eyeballs had burst like
eggs. But the pain and despair never made it scream. Instant death!

All the Goblin could do was to shiver like a dead body.

'I am full of energy!' Bang was sure at this moment. 'If I'm in this condition, I could hit
a home run in the Major Leagues!'

The strange power that started from his stomach and flowed to the ends of his arms
was not an illusion. The conviction was charged with courage.

"Come on! Come on!" He cried out loudly as if he hoped all the monsters in the food
corner on the second floor of the basement would find him and come to him. But there
was no monster coming toward him.

Hammer! The last monster on the second basement floor, a monster called an Orc,
with gray-brown skin and nearly two meters tall, was just dead. The cause of its death
was a traffic accident. The fork of a forklift was pierced through its chest, and stuck in
a wall, leaving it hanging there.

Kim Tae-hoon, the perpetrator of the terrible accident, came down from the forklift,
and at the same time he pulled out the smartphone he had in his pocket.

At that moment, the lights that lit the second floor turned off at the same time with a
bizarre sound.

"What? What?"

"I can't see anything!"

During the confusion that followed, the light emitted by the smartphone revealed
Kim's face. His expression was not good.

'No communication.' No communication at all.

It was a factor that caused him to turn on another warning light in his head.

-----------

6.

The end of a battle was always bleak. There was no cheering. The sense of relief of
being alive took away the power of the whole body, the power to spit out gossip or
even complaints. At the same time, the fatigue that has not been recognized in the
extreme situation was doubled.

Pain also came with fatigue. There was no difference between the one hundred and
two survivors who lived through the death fight against the monsters on the second
floor of the large supermarket. Everyone just sat down on the floor.
Some of them sat back against the shelves, or simply fell asleep lying on the floor,
stunned. The emergency lights that began to come on as the emergency generator
started to operate prompted them to sleep even faster.

If there was no light at all, they would not fall asleep in fear, but this gentle light gave
them relief.

There was one more element of relief here. Fire shutters! The sense of relief from the
fire shutters that completely blocked all the entrances and exits on the second
basement floor was incredible.

Only one person did not relax. 'The monsters suddenly appeared.'

Kim was not relieved, even the battle was over. On the contrary, now he was much
more nervous than the moment he had first met the dwarf monster, which he called a
Goblin for his convenience.

Once the battle began, he did not put any elements other than fighting in his mind.
They could be considered after the battle.

In other words, after the battle was over, he began to consider the elements outside
the battle. Now he realized something.

'The monsters suddenly appeared.' The appearance of monsters, obviously, was an

event outside common sense. However, there were factors other than common sense
that were important.

'If they had come through the second floor or the first floor, at least I would have felt
them first.' The monsters appeared suddenly. There were two ways to enter this large
supermarket where he was. One way was to come through the ground floor, and the
other way was through the subway station connected to the second basement floor.

If the monsters came in from outside, those on the first basement floor in between
should have noticed the emergence of the monsters before encountering them. But no
one noticed them, and even he did not notice them.

'Even though I took a year off, I am on active duty.' If his senses were so dull that he
could not see the monsters coming to the first basement floor through the ground
floor or from the second basement floor, he would have been retired from active duty.
'It's obvious I didn't see anything… These monsters didn't come from the road. They
came out of nowhere. Monsters appeared without any restrictions on space.

'It is useless to build a wall, and it is useless to hide in a bunker.' The worst situations
that could be assumed in his mind began to pass by quickly.

'It could be worse than the worst.' He felt chills run down his spine as his imagination
took hold.

"Big brother." Bang stopped Kim's imagination. The appearance of Bang, who had taken
off his baseball jumper and baseball cap, was quite different from what Kim first saw.

First of all, his hair was very short and was close to being shaved. His appearance was
unexpectedly naive, and the big eyes reminded him of deer eyes. He was fairly big, as
he unzipped his jumper. It was a feeling of well-grown rather than simply overgrown.

"I brought the coffee you had asked for."

When Bang handed the canned coffee in his hands to Kim, Kim noticed that he did not
take off his bloody batting gloves. He put down the coffee that he had received on the
floor. He was going to take off his gloves and drink some coffee.

Bang sat down in front of Kim and said, "Big brother, do you know what's going on?"

Looking at Bang asking the most curious question, Kim said while taking off his left-
handed gloves, "If I'd known this would happen, I wouldn't have been here today."

"Haha, I see." Bang, who laughed awkwardly, gave a long sigh and said again, "A lot of
people died. A lot of -"

"There are a hundred and two survivors." Considering the number of customers who
visited this large supermarket at the end of the year, it was not a small number but a
terrible number. Not everyone died, of course; most of them ran away the moment the
incident broke out, through the subway station on the second basement floor, or
through countless exits on the ground floor.

But even considering that, the number of dead people was high. Right now, the
number of people who had been killed on the second floor was as high as that of the
survivors, with more than a hundred dead. It was a huge number. Even in a severe
accident, it was unusual for more than a hundred people to die.
"They died because they didn't fight." However, Kim did not have a big question about
this terrible fact. Regardless of the number of monsters that appeared, only a handful
of people fought back against monsters until he took part. Naturally, this was the
result. It was like that.

A hundred adult men, armed with a knife or a baseball bat, might be able to kill a lion
even if a few people died. But if they ran away, they would never kill a lion. Moreover,
Goblins and Orcs were not simple beasts.

'They were gathering in groups.' They formed packs and cooperate. They were like
wolves, hyenas, and humans. In addition, the efficiency of herd hunting was great, and
the history of none other than the humans who survived showed why.

Kim was the main factor why a hundred and two people survived. If it had not been
for him, they wouldn't have been able to kill Goblins or Orcs on the second basement
floor.

"Is that so?" Bang did not understand Kim's words directly, only vaguely. It was clear
that he survived because he fought without running away, and it was obvious that if
Kim had not been there, the damage would have been even greater.

"Anyway, what will happen in the future? Or should we stay here? This is a food
section, so if we're going to stay here, we can hold on. If the fire shutter had not kept
us on the ground floor… it would have been terrible."

At Bang's question, Kim took off the gloves in his right hand, instead of answering. At
that moment, he could see a black mark engraved on the back of his right hand, a mark
that reminded him of the sun, as if it were blazing.

'This?' He found the mark of an Awakener.

1.

The second floor of the large supermarket, where a storm of blood and fury had finally
passed, was quiet. The moment the tension was released, the fatigue came, and in the
end, sleep followed. Some people slept without even knowing it, and some were so
tired that they could not sleep, so they drank themselves unconscious.

By the time the large supermarket was filled with the sounds of sleeping people, Kim
Tae-hoon was enjoying his coffee and the farthest from sleep. Savoring his coffee was
really good. He breathed slowly through his nose after filling his mouth with
lukewarm coffee, and he was different from those who simply drank coffee for the
caffeine. It was his only hobby.

He always drank coffee before and after a fight. He prepared for the battle or organized
the battle drinking coffee. It was not different now.

'Eight people, including survivors and dead, had a mark similar to that on my hand.'
He immediately found those who had the same marks as himself after confirming the
mark on his hand. He checked the back of their hands with a glance.

Including him, there was a total of nine: five men and four women, not found on young
children, or on the elderly. Of course, there were not many things that could be sure,
as there were still few samples.

'Some of them, not all of them, and the marks of Bang Hyun-wook's and my own are
similar, but not the same.' This mark seemed to be as individual as fingerprints.

'If it's like a fingerprint, it's a mark that represents individual characteristics… But
why does it happen to only some people, not all of them? Or is it an ominous sign? Is
it an augmentation or a disease?'

It was Bang who solved the worries of Kim. Now, as if his body was cold, he wrapped
up in his baseball jumper again, approached Kim cautiously, tapping his right hand
with his left, and said, "Big brother, I've got a picture!"

"What?"

"This is the stats, our stats!" Bang showed Kim a picture taken with his smartphone
camera. The photo, which was taken with a screen-filled close-up of his hand, was
accompanied by translucent characters that he had not seen before.

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 16

- Health: 13

[Special Abilities]

- Energy: D Rank

- Defense: F Rank

[Achieved Abilities]

- None

When Kim saw this, he did not say anything.

Snap! He took a shot of his hand with the camera, and immediately checked the picture.

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 19

- Health: 21

[Special Abilities]

- Energy: F Rank

- Mana: F Rank
- Telekinesis: A Rank

- Defense: F Rank

- Mana Resistance: F Rank

[Achieved Abilities]

- None

Bang, who confirmed Kim's ability, looked surprised. "Big brother, are you a psychic?
The level of the rank is different. A rank is the best rank, right?"

However, Kim did not respond to such a reaction. He immediately started thinking
with his coffee in his mouth while savoring the fragrance.

'It's like a game system.' It was not hard to understand. It was a system of abilities that
anyone could see in the game. The meaning of Strength and Health was not worth
worrying about.

What he had to worry about was energy and Telekinesis, which were two kinds of
abilities classified as special abilities.

'Is Energy like the chi of martial arts novels?' Given the circumstances, Energy was
likely to be the same as the chi in martial arts novels.

Mana was not different. It would be the fuel needed to use Magic, or something like that.

Telekinesis was the easiest to understand. It was the most easily recognized psychic
ability of novels, movies, and comics to the public.

'Do I have this Telekinesis?'

The problem was that he now had such an ability showing on his hand. He was able to
make something clear.

'It can't be all true… ' He had no ability to use Telekinesis.

'I've never had Telekinesis at A rank. I can't even guess what it is, or how powerful it
is. Of course, it is a new ability.'
'The world has changed, and I have also changed.'

At the same time, as the world changed, monsters appeared, and humans sought to
change to fight against them.

To sum up, the mark on the back of his hand was a sign indicating those who succeeded
in changing to adapt to the monster era.

'An Awakener… ' It was a mark of an Awakener!

It was not wrong at this time to say such a thing would sound ridiculous, impossible.
But as soon as the monsters appeared, existing reason and providence were instantly
invalid. Therefore, he ruled out the old reality. He abandoned the values of being
'realistic'. What mattered was whether the ability was real or not.

And…

"Bang Hyun-wook, have you ever used Energy?"

If it was real, how could it be used?

"I… might have used it." And Bang already knew how to use this mysterious Energy.

"Wait a minute." After answering, Bang disappeared somewhere and soon brought
back two apples. One of them was thrown straight at Kim, and the other one was held
in both his hands.

Frack! Bang cut it in half! Not a bad grip, mused Kim. Bang, who showed off his
wonderful grip, looked at Kim after dropping the split apple on the floor. Kim threw
the apple he had just received. Bang grabbed the apple with his right hand in the air
like a baseball player and grabbed the apple as it was.

Smash! Bang's hand began to crush the apple like a paper ball.

The glitter of Kim's eyes changed.

"I thought it was an illusion at first, but I had a clear hand mark on the handle of my
baseball bat, and I felt it. It's not an illusion, it's like the ability of a real hero."

"What kind of power?"

"I mean, I feel something wriggling in my stomach."

Kim carefully focused on his stomach.

'There is something in my stomach… I'm sure.' He felt something existed as Bang said.

"It feels like an eel."

However, unlike Bang's explanation, the size of the power Kim felt in his stomach was
more like a loach than an eel.

'I guess it's the difference in the rank of ability… ' Bang's Energy rank was D, while Kim's
Energy rank was F. So, of course, there was a difference!

At that moment, Kim's eyes turned to a piece of apple that Bang had split in half a little
while ago.

Telekinesis.

Everyone might have had the experience during their young school days: the
experience of spending a lot of time thinking about moving something while looking
at it with the idea that he might have some kind of telekinesis.

But now, Kim did something embarrassing even at a young age. He looked at the apple
and thought about moving it. He tried to move the apple and wanted to crush it.

Smash! The apple began to crumble like tissue paper. The apple was crushed to the
size of a table tennis ball. His eyes grew wide. His expression was more surprised than
anything that had happened in the last ten years of his life.

"Huh!" It was amazing. It was so surprising. His heart was pounding at this nonsense.

'Just thinking, just by thought, I grabbed the apple with the intent to crush it, and I
mashed it down to the size of a ping pong ball. This power… this is dangerous.'

He was not drunk. He has learned through his life that when he was drunk, he couldn't
think straight.

He was annoyed to find a more important thing while ignoring his excitement and
soon found it. 'The important thing is… finding a way to raise the figures and rankings
of my abilities.'

What was the most important point now?

'It's like a game… ' Here, he interpreted all of this situation as a game.

What if this was a game?

Many hypotheses came to his mind. He came up with a way to test the hypotheses
right away. 'One of the biggest features of games is that when I fight a monster, I get
experience value and items.'

In his eyes, the dead bodies of the monsters came in. He got up from his seat.

"Bang Hyun-wook."

"Yes."

"Take the monster body and follow me."

"Yes?"

Bang blinked his big deer-like eyes at the unexpected command. 'You want me to
follow you with the monster body? Why do I have to handle that hard, annoying,
bloody thing?'

But his embarrassment was short. Since their first meeting, he did not have the will to
ask why Kim ordered things. At least here, he did not have any doubts about Kim's
orders.

"Well, isn't it heavy? How can I carry it?" There was only one thing to think about, but
he needed to know what the difficulties were when he tried to execute Kim's command.

"Put it in a shopping cart."

"Ah! Where do I need to carry it?"

Kim turned his head before answering and looked around. What he should do from
now on was not something that could be done in front of everyone. But it was
necessary to have specialized tools. Fortunately, there was something he needed on
the second floor of the large-scale mart. His eyes stopped right there.

"The meat section."

"Yes?"

"Bring it to the meat section."

"The monster body to the meat section… Huck!"

Bang realized Kim's intention, and his face turned pale.

2.

The monsters appeared at 4 p.m. and a fierce battle for survival began. The battle was
over at 5 p.m., and the survivors were sleeping due to the fatigue and pain they were
suffering.

At 10 p.m…

"Ugh…”

The survivors began to open their eyes, one by one. It was not, of course, that their
eyes were open in a good or restful mood.

For the first time in their life, they had fought a life-or-death battle. But the fatigue
caused by the battle could not be released by only three or four hours of sleeping all
curled up, consumed and struggling to survive in the gap between life and death.
Nevertheless, they woke up because they reached their limits.

"Has the rescue team not arrived yet?"

"Why the hell are our smartphones not working? Why are we like this? We pay the
monthly fee for communication!"

"How long should we stay here? What happened out there?"

The worries and concerns about their current situation interfered with sleeping
anymore, and as always, their disturbances woke up those still trying to sleep.

"What are you doing there?"

"What?"

"Why are you raising the fire shutter?"

The starting point of the disturbance was in front of the fire shutter that blocked the
escalator down to the first floor. There were four men in front of the fire shutter. Park
Jae-woon was frightened and shouted at the men, at a similar age. The four people
who seemed to be friends were alert to their surroundings and trying to lift the fire
shutter.

"What are you doing, you idiots? What if there is a monster there?"

Park's reaction was intense. To him, the first floor was hell. It was mere hours ago that
he had experienced a desperate thing that would be a trauma for the rest of his life. In
fact, he was worried and concerned while looking at the fire shutters blocking off the
first floor whenever he was awake. He was worried that monsters would appear
through the fire shutters, threaten his wife and daughter again, and whether he should
stop them again.

Now, four of them were trying to lift the fire shutters!

His cry to stop them was full of sincerity. Naturally, the cry caught the attention of the
crowd.

"What is it? What's going on?"

"Oh, is the rescue team here?"

"I don't think it's a rescue team."

One or two, who were still tired, walked to a place where they could see the fire
shutters. The disturbed atmosphere began to spread across the floor.

"Aw, fuck…” One of the four men, who caught the mood, hurled a curse.

"What are you looking at? What are you looking at?" The others showed a very nervous
and sharp reaction towards the gaze of the crowd.

It was not difficult to figure out why.

"Eh…?"

"Isn't that… a MacBook?"

"An iPad?"

There were a lot of unwrapped Apple products in plastic bags around the four of them.

Theft! During all this chaos, the four of them were going to run away with the most
expensive things here. They were caught stealing, and their reaction was not subtle.

"Shit, don't you turn your eyes!"

"Hey!"

Eventually, one of them, the biggest and most bulky man, strode toward Park. Without
any warning, he pushed both of his shoulders strongly.

"Ouch!" Park could not withstand the brute force and fell back.

"Honey!" His wife screamed at her husband falling down, and her daughter, who was
sleeping in her arms, began to rub her eyes with her small hands at the disturbance.

"What's wrong with-" Park, who fell, rose up straight to try conversation. But as soon
as he got up, the big man pushed Park once again. Harder than before. Harder than a
push, so hard that calling it a slap was more appropriate.

"Huck!" Park fell back to the floor with a breathless sound.

"Huh!"

"It's a fight."

The cluttered atmosphere quickly became fragmented with uncertainty, different from
the sense of silence before.

"What do we do? Should we stop them?"

"If we get involved and get hurt…”

The silence was full of fear.

The four men glared around in the harsh atmosphere. Their eyes glistened with
murderous spirit. They were not bluffing. They had seen blood, and not once or twice.
They had stabbed a living monster with a knife, chopped down a lump of flesh with an
ax, and swung a baseball bat to break a monster's skull. It was enough for a person to
learn the murderous spirit.

"Did you see it? Did you see it?"

"It's really fucked. Don't you take off your eyes from us?"

Of course, none of the people in the crowd who were overwhelmed by that look could
say "Stealing is wrong!" to them

"What the fuck are you talking about, man?" In front of the calmed crowd, the four's
murderous spirit and hostility naturally shot toward Park and his family.

Dozens of people nearby became docile bystanders.

"I'm sorry, sorry…”

"What are you sorry about? Huh? Huh?"

“…I'm sorry."

"What? Tell me loud what you did!"

As soon as the spectators became the audience, the four men began to burn like angry
fires. It was a hunch. They were predators here, on the second floor, a closed space.
What they saw around them was not something that could threaten them, but
something they could trample on.

"Hey, man. Get up. Get up."

There was no let-up.

Whack! When Park was about to get up, a man with a slim figure behind him kicked
him like a soccer ball.

"Argh!" Park tried to get up, but he fell back to the floor with a scream.

"Daddy!" His daughter, who had finally opened her eyes, gave the biggest scream that
she could from her young throat. "Daddy!"
One of the men saw Park's daughter and wife, smiled and headed toward the woman,
a knife flashing in his hand.

"Oh, no! No." Park, who fell on the floor, saw that and threw himself toward the man
approaching his wife and daughter. He threw himself forward and clung to the man's
left leg.

"Er? Er?" Suddenly, the man who saw Park clinging to his leg was scared. Park's actions
were the only desperate thing he could do, but the guy was different.

"Get off me! Get off me! Kill him!" It was more than a threat to himself. He had seen a
lot already, how easily a human died. Of course, the remaining three people, except the
man who was holding the leg, set out to take off Park.

"Let go of me! Let go of me, if you don't want to die!"

"Just kill him!" The men kicked and trampled Park.

"Huck, huck!" Every time they did that, a harsh breath came out of Park's mouth.

"What do we do?"

"Someone should come and stop them."

The crowd just watched the process with the frightened, disgusting expression.

"Dad! Dad!"

In such a situation, Park's wife covered her crying daughter's face with her body, in
order not to show something she did not want her daughter to see. Terrible things
started to fill the second floor and the horror was no different from when the monsters
around.

"Stop it, you bastards!"

Finally, a woman came out. A woman wearing a thick jumper, with impressive freckles
around her nose, shouted out with a loud voice.

"Oh, someone else?" One of the men looked at the woman with a grim expression.
The woman, without fear of him, shouted with malice in her eyes, "If you're going to
steal, be quiet and take off like a thief! Don't bother someone who isn't worth it!"

At the cry of the woman, one of the men, spitting on the floor, strode toward her.

The woman put her right hand on a knife, a hand engraved with a mark.

"Uh? Uh!" The man stopped walking. The other three also stopped.

"A knife, it's a knife!"

"She is a crazy bitch, kill her! Kill her!"

There was a strong reaction, but no violent action was taken. They'd already experienced
how threatening a knife was. There was plenty of evidence. The blood stains around
them, the pools of blood, all were evidence of the danger of a blade.

If there was a monster body, it would be more definite evidence. Unfortunately,

however, there was nobody that could clearly convey that emotion at the moment.

"Stop all of them," a man spat this out.

"The four of you, if you move, I will kill you." The man who appeared in a bloody plastic
apron took care of all the monsters.

Kim Tae-hoon returned.

3.

"If you move, I'll kill you." After the warning, Kim Tae-hoon slowly took off his plastic
apron. The green blood on the apron, dripping as it hit the floor, sounded creepier than
ever.

"Big brother!" Bang Hyun-wook showed up after Kim dropped the apron he had taken
off on the floor. When Bang appeared, the surrounding area of people, again grew
silent. But this silence was different from the time the previous time. There was a
sense of pressure incomparable to before.

As if they had made a promise, the four men swallowed together!

"'He is the monster…” The four men were not free from this pressure. They froze as
they saw Kim, and they remembered what he had done.

"What do we do?"

"If it hadn't been for that damned bastard, we'd have fled…”

Kim had appeared when they had been struggling and shouting against an Orc on the
second floor, and he had killed the Orc with the ax he was holding. Quickly he had
sprinkled something on the Orc's eyeballs after splitting its head with an ax, and then
had poured lighter oil on the head of the Orc, which was rubbing its dark eyes with a
shrill cry, and then had lit it.

The four were sure of one thing, things were going from bad to worse.

'What do we do?"

"Should we just ask for forgiveness?"

"Shit, should we have just fled?"

Three of them were waffling, unsure of what to do.

"Kill me? Kill me!? Kill me, you bastard!?" Unlike his colleagues, the big man revealed
his hostility to Kim. It was proof that he was quite a strong man, with fighting spirit
and courage.

However, Kim did not hesitate. He used his Telekinesis to grab the neck of the big man
and then lifted the man up. A scene that could not be understood by normal reason
unfolded.

"Huck!" "What, what? What!" "Go… , ghost?" The three remaining men, stunned, sat
down on the floor in horror, knowing their friend had become a victim.

Kim lifted the man up three meters high and then released his Telekinesis. There was
a gruesome sound, like a corpse falling to the floor.

The silence spread again, and now beyond the harshness and the pressure was horror.
Everyone looked at Kim with a deathbed face, and he looked at the remaining three
people before the eyes of the crowd.

"From now on, the four of you have no right to speak in anything. If you have a complaint,
spit it out, right here, right now."

Three of them shook their heads, their mouths tight.

Kim did not give them any more attention. Kim confirmed that Park Jae-woon was
with his family, and Kim turned to the watch on his left wrist.

After checking the time, he said quietly to everyone, "It's 22:33, but I'm going to start
reporting on the current situation from now on."

4.

"Our current location is on the second floor of a large mart; an emergency generator
is operating normally, and communication using smartphones and radios is
impossible. No attempted contact with rescue teams or external survivors has been
successful."

He took a sip of canned coffee. His tasting was not brief, but no one asked him or
complained about it. He resumed speaking after savoring coffee to the end calmly.
"Based on the circumstances, we are in a bad situation, and this area is not as safe as
we think."

Some of them immediately doubted his judgment. "Dangerous?" "Isn't it safe here?"

It had been about seven hours since the monster raid. The heat of the battle was now
sufficiently turned off, and instead, there were only the aftereffects of the battle.

Naturally, the survivors did not want to do anything anymore. They just wanted to wait
here until the rescue team or the army came to their safe place and rescued them. By
the common sense of these people, the second floor of the large mart was safer than
anywhere else.

This was mainly because of the fire shutters, making it impossible for outsiders to
come in without warning, and the food was very abundant, with enough food and
drinking water to last the survivors half a year.

The main problem was that there was limited space for washing their body or urinating,
but it was not reasonable to seriously worry about that problem in a world where
monsters were going crazy.

However, Kim said that the space which everyone judged safe… was dangerous! "Once
the incident occurred, not one outsider, including the rescue team, has come here,
even though it had been more than six hours."

The crowd still looked suspicious at this explanation.

"The first thing survivors do when social infrastructure collapses is to secure food. If
the route to this place had been secured to some extent, someone would have come
here, if not a rescue team, then for Ramen… or to loot an iPad."

At the end of his last words, three men who kept their mouths shut trembled.

He once again enjoyed his coffee. Again, a short time of savoring passed, and the crowd
began to get anxious during that time.

"He's right if it had been really safe… I'm sure someone would have come here."

"Yes, if it had been safe… I'd have come here already to get a drink."
At the end of the thought, the moment everyone realized that his words were not
wrong, everyone's face was white. The air grew tense. He confirmed the tension and
swallowed his coffee.

"And the situation is quite different from what we have seen or have assumed."

He showed the back of his right hand to everyone with his words. The crowd opened
their eyes wide at seeing the mark of the burning sun.

"With the appearance of the monster, some of you have a similar mark on your right
hand."

People reflexively checked the back of their hands. The minority was surprised.

One of them spoke up for the first time., "What is this?"

The woman with freckles on her face asked about it; she was the woman who came
out to save Park Jae-woon. She had a mark on the back of her hand.

"It's called the mark of an Awakener."

"An Awakener?"

"I couldn't think of any other expressions, so I'm saying it, and I'm sure the people
with these marks have a mysterious ability."

He did not show what his mysterious ability was. He didn't have to. It didn't have to
be. It was enough to explain, and he looked at the big man laying on the floor like a
dead man.

"For reference, the mark of an Awakener can be decoded by taking a picture; if you
take a picture with your smartphone, the mark will be printed out, and it is similar to
a game ability window," he continued on.

"There are three major types of abilities, and it's simple to raise your Stats. You just
cut out the heart of a monster, acquire a jewel in it, and then eat it as it is."

With that word, he held out his palm. As if waiting, Bang also quickly pulled out a
thumbnail-sized red jewel from his pocket and put it on Kim's palm. Kim put the jewel
in his mouth and swallowed it. Everyone stared at him.
"Now my Strength is up."

The crowd looked blank at his explanation. It was not a realistic story. However, Kim
continued his explanation without any concern.

"Note that the jewel obtained from a monster can also be valued by taking a
smartphone photo."

Kim pulled out his smartphone and showed the picture he had taken. The close-up of
the red jewel he had eaten a while ago showed clear characters that were not seen
before the jewel was taken a picture.

[Crystal of Orc]

- A small amount of Strength increase when ingested.

"This is all the information I have now." The information Kim prepared after butchering
the monster bodies in the meat department was not easy to get.

"This is all I have now, from dissecting of the monster's body after the battle with the
monster." It was not easy to butcher dozens of monster bodies! The public would not
be able to butcher a monster even if they were given a day. It was valuable information
that only Kim and Bang knew about. Kim told everyone what he had learned.

In fact, the crowd was grateful to him, but at the same time, some doubted his intention.
"Why are you telling us this?"

They gave him thanks, but Kim did not have the obligation to inform others about this.

Was Kim armed with a spirit of sacrifice and service?

There was not one person who had known Kim for more than a day, but everyone
could assert that he was not a human being full of sacrifice and service spirit. He was
never that kind of person. And it was true. He did not tell them to show off his kindness
and generous spirit.

"The world has changed, and monsters have emerged. If Awakeners are to fight the
monsters, it means it's not a one-time, single event." He had realized that before
anyone else.
"If you want to survive this unspecified change, you must be selfish, and wisely selfish."

From now on, mankind must fight the monsters. In such a situation, it was meaningless
and worthless to monopolize this basic information. The more survivors, the more
favorable it was for him.

Most of the adult Korean men who survived had experienced military service. It would
not be impressive giving them an ax or a knife, but if he could give them a gun, the
story would be different.

"The price has already been paid because we ate all the monster stones." Most of all,
he had already collected the information fee. He shared the monster stones from the
hearts of the monsters with Bang. They ate them all, so there would be no fee for the
information. It was a kind of give and take.

"Do you have any complaints?" All of the giving and receiving was done under the
unilateral leadership of Kim.

"I take it there is no complaint."

The crowd could guess what it meant to be wisely selfish.

"The last thing I know is that this is an unproven hypothesis, but the monsters
appeared without any space constraints as if they came out of nowhere. The reason
for this hypothesis is…”

He stopped talking, and his eyes changed. While everyone was opening their eyes wide
at the change in him, he threw back the coffee in his hand. He immediately shouted
after injecting caffeine into his stomach, not even tasting it, "Get away from those
doors!"

Bang! As soon as he cried out, the fire shutters, which were blocking between the
second and the first floors, exploded like bombs.

"Kaaaah!" Beyond the fire shutters that had been blown away, a fierce cry that could
not be compared with anything earlier burst out. Soon after, the owner of the fierce
cry appeared.

"Oh, my god…” It was an Orc, over two meters tall and black skin!
1.

Kim Tae-hoon obtained a lot of information from the monster's bodies, and he gave
the survivors the information he had obtained. But he didn't give them all the
information. There was something he hadn't told the other survivors. It was that he
had tested his own telekinetic ability against the monster bodies he had dissected!

The power of Telekinesis he wielded was not limited to the level of being able to lift a
big man up by the neck. If he had really wanted to kill the man, he could have twisted
his neck 180 degrees on the spot. Now he showed this as an act, not just words.

Bang! The Black Orc, which was moving to slaughter the survivors mercilessly, was
suddenly slammed back into the wall. The wall was cracked, and broken debris fell to
the floor.

"Ahhhh!" It was a tremendous power, and those who heard the bang sound screamed
out without thinking about it.

"Krrrrrr!" But the Black Orc, which became a victim of its power, was not very alarmed.
Rather, its orange eyes were staring at the one who had attacked it.

The rest of the countless survivors, at this moment, were trying to escape to the first
floor in a mob.

Kim grit his teeth. "The level is different."

In front of the Black Orc, he pictured a clearer image of pushing it firmly at the wall
with his palm, as if he were hitting a mosquito on the wall with his hand.

As soon as the image, the imagination, the scene of painting, his focus was lost, his
Telekinesis would disappear.

"Kaaaaaaah!" The Black Orc was screaming, even as it was struggling free of the wall.
The shriek spread quickly, making everyone around it freeze.

"Ahhhh!" A small number of survivors who tried to escape fell down as their legs
stiffened at the sound.

"Huck!" Some of the elderly fell to the floor, clutching their chests.

Even Kim was not safe in front of the fearsome warcry of the Black Orc.

'Shit.' Kim's head, stomach, and heart were paralyzed. His focus stopped in front of the
cold fear. And, of course, his mental image disappeared.

"Kaaaaaah!" The Black Orc did not miss the opportunity.

It rushed to charge immediately, after confirming Kim's position again. There was no
one to stop it. There was a crunch as the skull of a person who fell to the floor was
crushed like a watermelon. The display stands piled up with items were smashed
through. Its charge did not slow down but rather accelerated as it advanced. If it hit a
person's body, it would be a terrible sight!

However, Kim did not avoid its rush. "Hoo!" As the distance narrowed, he focused his
mind on the situation he was in, frozen in front of the Black Orc approaching like a
train on a railway.

He drew it again in his mind. 'If I can't stop it, I'll catch it!' He imagined four invisible
chains made of Telekinesis, pulling as hard as they could on the Black Orc's arms and
legs. As soon as he pictured it, its rush began to slow down. In the end, it stopped.

It wasn't just a stop. It was like it was straining against the force of the pulling, trying
to prevent its body from being pulled apart.

"Krrrrrrrr!" a cry for strength and endurance erupted out of its mouth, and its teeth
ground together savagely.

From Kim's mouth, a grunt of the will to hold such a monster somehow came out, and
the sound of gritting his teeth.

It was Bang Hyun-wook who moved in the situation. Bang, who was behind Kim,
regained his freedom faster than anyone else in the face of the Black Orc's fear. Energy!
It was due to the power wriggling in his stomach. Now he narrowed the distance with
it by using this full force to shatter its head.

"Yaaaaaaaap!" Accompanied by his strong, loud shout, the baseball bat he held in his
hand came down on the head of the Black Orc vertically.

Crack! However, the bat was broken into pieces.

'Huh?' The Black Orc was so strong! Its body was strong, and his power was also
strong. The problem was that he did not realize it. His attack was powerful enough to
get its anger and attention.

"Kaaaaaah!" At that moment, it threw up the fearsome warcry again with all its might,
but not toward Bang!

'Oh, my god!' It was aimed at Kim since it recognized that his power was interrupted
by its shout before.

"Get out!" As soon as his power weakened in front of its fear, Kim immediately warned
Bang.

Bam! However, by the time Kim's warning came to Bang's ear, its fist had already struck
Bang's chest.

"Huck!" Bang backed to Kim behind him, without even being able to breathe. The two
of them were tangled together and fell to the floor!

At that short moment, Kim thought regretfully, ‘…it's my mistake.'

He thought a monster could appear at any time. It was a hypothesis he set up that a
monster would appear without any restriction of space. He expected a stronger
monster to emerge. The Awakener's stats and rank systems were evidence. If the
ability of the Awakener who survived the monster would be stronger, the monster that
threatened the Awakener might be stronger, too.

'Damn it!' So he should have done it. Regardless of the others, he should have prepared
for a situation where stronger monsters could suddenly appear without warning,
without a sign.

"Kaaaaah!" The only good luck for him was that the Black Orc was now confident of
its victory and seemed to be relaxing. It shouted with joy at the fact that it had finished
off the man who had hurt it with its fists.

If he had been in the position of the Black Orc, it would surely have killed him. He did
not want to miss the chance. Also, he did not intend to repeat the same mistake.

"Kaaaaaah… huck!"

'Shut up.' First of all, he shut the mouth of the Black Orc. This time he drew a picture
that he tied its neck with a huge chain, and he pulled it back.

And its body lurched backward. It gasped, but it didn't fall back. It stopped itself from
being dragged back by giving strength to its legs, belly, waist, and neck. It endured and
stared at him with orange eyes. It tried to open its mouth. Its snout began to twitch
unceasingly.

At the same time, the sound of Kim gnashing his teeth began to grow. At this moment,
he wanted to shout, "Anybody, bring a forklift and stick into that monster's body!"

'Damn it.' But he could not open his mouth. He knew that as soon as he opened his
mouth, his power would be released, and the Black Orc would use the chance to finish
him completely this time. So, he expected only one thing.

Throbbing… throbbing…

It was Bang's heartbeat, which was still going strong.

2.

When the Black Orc's fist hit Bang Hyun-wook's chest, he did not feel pain, because
his heart stopped.

It was the Energy from his belly that moved his stopped heart. It thought of its owner
more than any other power, and without hesitation, it ran toward his stopped heart.
And it knocked on the heart. The Energy revived his stopped heart.

"Kuh-huck!" He was then able to feel the mysterious pain and fear. But the Energy did
not stop there. It knocked on his heart again and again to make his heart beat harder!
Under the repeated beat of such Energy, his heart began to pump blood like crazy.

Ow! It was like someone forced a hand into his heart and squeezed out blood, or like
someone had brought a hot stone into where his heart should be.

The hot blood quickly circulated around his body. Her head was going to burst, the
nails on his hands and feet were going to fly off like bullets, and his eyes were already
red.

"Ow…”

The bloody battle between Kim Tae-hoon and the Black Orc that welcomed Bang
Hyun-wook back. It was a sight that would make him numb all over.

The battle was quieter than any other bloody battle, and gentle. It was a battle of the
lasting against the lasting; it should be expressed like that. Kim and the Black Orc were
unable to move.

The sounds they were making were also trivial. The sound of hot breath came out of
the Black Orc's mouth instead of the scream, and only the sound of teeth cracking
came out of Kim's tight lips. Both sounds were buried in all kinds of noises from those
who ran away frantically.
If someone who did not know the situation had seen it, he would have thought of it as
a show. If a game addict had seen it, he would have thought the same thing: the screen
stopped during gameplay, or it was lagging.

But Bang, who experienced all of this situation more closely than anyone else, knew
that this was not a show or a game screen lagging.

"I can't hold on long," Kim thought himself.

Bang knew to some extent the ability of Kim's Telekinesis.

His Telekinesis was powerful, but there were also weaknesses. The biggest weakness
was that it could not affect the inside of a monster. Although he could exert Telekinesis
outside, he could not exert Telekinesis inside of a monster. If he had been able to do it,
he would have burst the heart or brain of the Black Orc without difficulty.

Moreover, Telekinesis was very difficult to handle. As soon as the image in his mind
blurred, the Telekinesis was released. He would then be defenseless. It was hard to
maintain his telekinetic power with only marginal concentration.

How long could Kim hold on to such a terrible Black Orc? Maybe three minutes?

'What do I do?' And for Bang, the three minutes were all the time he could think how
to live or die. Within three minutes, he had to get an answer.

'Do I have to run away? Do I have to fight for my life, or do I have to run away to save my
life?'

His survival instinct urged him to choose the latter. It said that the living person should
live.

'Mom, Dad… ' His survival instincts painted his parents' faces in his mind to convince
him to run away: the faces of the parents who had suffered all kinds of hardships with
the intention of making their child a baseball player.

'Damn it, but… ' Of course, if it had been for Kim, he would not have been worried
about it now. Bang did not make any choice or decision right away. No, he could not.

"Hold on!" At that time, a beautiful woman, Ahn Sun-mi, with freckles around her nose,
appeared. "We have to run away!"
Having regained her freedom from the fear of the Black Orc a while ago, she once again
demonstrated the courage she had shown when Park Jae-woon had been hit by four
thieves. As everyone tried to escape from the Black Orc as soon as possible, she came
to save Bang, and she started running after catching his left hand with her right hand
engraved with the mark of an Awakener. He was not able to resist and started running
with her hand.

"No, wait!" He rejected her hand in front of the fire shutter that the Black Orc had
broken. It was a boundary line. If he moved onto the escalator beyond the fire shutter,
he would be able to escape to the first level and then to the ground floor.

And if he ran away, he would not come back. The moment he stepped on the first floor,
he would not step on the second floor again. At the same time, he would not see Kim's
face again.

Bang looked back at the silent battle of the Black Orc and Kim.

Ahn Sun-mi, seeing his face, shouted, "We can't kill it! We have to run away!"

"Fuck!" Bang also shouted, not for her, but for himself.

"Fuck all this…”

'I want to live. I want to live and see my parents' faces, and I want to protect my parents
in a world where I do not know how to go back.'

Even if it was not, there were a lot of things he wanted to do alive. He played baseball,
dreaming of becoming a professional baseball player throughout his school days, and
now he would be going to college as a specialist. He wanted to go to a wonderful
college campus, become a professional baseball player, and drive an expensive sports
car.

However, it was true that Kim had saved his life before. His father told him, "At least,
don't live cowardly."

'What do I do?'

At this moment, he remembered the scene that Kim had come up and saved himself:
a paint spray to make the monster blind, the ability to kill it with fishing line, and the
ability to use engine oil to poison it.
'Ah!' Suddenly, Bang's mind flashed.

"Cooking oil, Cooking oil!"

"What?"

"Cooking oil!"

There was no longer any thought of escape in his eyes!

3.

"We have to run away!"

When Ahn Sun-mi grabbed Bang's wrist and ran to the escalator to the first floor, Kim
bit his teeth harder. He felt like the pillars that he could lean on in this desperate
situation had disappeared like a mirage. But he didn't blame them.

'Run away, if you want to run away, and get it right.'

Humans live to live. Bang's decision was a choice to live on, and at least Kim did not
have the right to blame him, because he has also made many terrible choices to live.

'If I only make an opportunity, if I can only make an opportunity for them to escape…
' Above all, he knew better than anyone else that resentment at this moment was not
helpful to himself.

'The opportunity to live is not going to come if I blame someone.'

But the situation was getting worse every moment.

'I have to find a way before I lose my power.' He clearly felt his power weakening.
Especially, his physical health, mental strength, and concentration were consumed
more than anything else.

'Or maybe my body will burst.' Telekinesis required much more physical health and
concentration than he had thought. If the water stream was too strong, the waterspout
would be destroyed. Like that, if he used the powerful Telekinesis, his body would be
destroyed since it was still only a human-level trained body.
The fatigue that he felt now was terrible. Because he had been trained as a soldier, he
could endure. He was a man who could struggle at the crossroads of life and death.

'I would drink a cup of coffee before I die… I can't ask the monster for that kind of
consideration.'

In his mind, the image of the death was drawn. And the moment he was weak…

"Keeeeee!" A low but clear cry began to leak from the Black Orc's mouth.

Thump! Its feet also began to move. It was as slow as walking on the moon, but it took
a step at last. 'Shit.'

It started to overcome his Telekinesis, and its orange eyes were shining. It spoke with
its eyes, 'Man, I'm going to chew your head off alive.'

He felt it in his own eyes.

'These… these monsters are smart.'

The first Goblins and Orcs he had encountered were just fierce. They were overwhelmed
by hunger because they were faithful to their instincts. That was why the small Goblins
showed their teeth without hesitation to people larger than them.

But the Black Orc was different now. It was not ignorant, and it knew how to hunt. It
did not just destroy and struggle instinctively. Of course, it wasn't the only one.

'Now this world would be full of these monsters… It is just the beginning. There will
be some monsters like it, some monsters that are much more powerful than the Black
Orc, with terrible abilities.' He was sure of this.

'We need a proper hunter to kill these monsters; not one, but a group of hunters… In
the era of monsters that start from now on, mankind does not need only weapons to
survive. We need hunters with knowledge, ability, and experience to fight monsters.
Of course, the worries about this part are the ones that must be done after surviving.'

He forced his thinking to turn. He looked at the present, not the future.

'If I pull it towards me instead of pulling it back, I might get a chance… ' He came up
with a way to live.
At that moment, an unsuitable sound broke out in the stillness of the blood. Clank!

'That's…?' The source of the sound was a huge can that hit the Black Orc's head.

'Cooking oil?' It was a big yellow can, an 18-liter can of cooking oil!

"Big brother!" After the jaunty sound of such a can of cooking oil knocking on the Black
Orc's head, Bang's voice was heard.

"Did you see the movie, Home Alone?"

Kim did not need any more explanation. He immediately changed the picture in front
of his eyes. He turned the chain around the Black Orc's neck, which had been pulling
it back, 180 degrees, in his own direction. At the same time, he tied his own body with
a chain of Telekinesis and pulled it to the right.

Thump, thump, thump! In a sudden change, the body of the Black Orc rushed toward
him at the explosive speed.

His body, flying to the right as if hit by a car, was able to avoid the rush in a breathtaking
move.

"Kaaaah!" The Black Orc, which had finally opened its mouth, screamed during its
unceasing sprint, and it stopped only after it had broken five shelves.

"Krrr!" The Black Orc, who took an instant posture, immediately followed Kim with its
eyes, and it was running toward Bang and Ahn. There was no hesitation.

"Kh-aang!" It began to rush again, screaming.

In the meantime, Kim shouted at Ahn and Bang, "Go up!"

"Watch out for the cooking oil!" Just as Kim was warned by Bang, he slipped on the
floor, which had become a sea of cooking oil. At the same time, he reached out his
hands for the ceiling.

Just like a spider-man, the hero from Marvel Comics, who fired a web with his wrist,
Kim used his Telekinesis to create an invisible line between the ceiling and his arm.

He stopped slipping using the line, and said to Bang and Ahn who looked at him in
surprise, "Go!"

"That's awesome!" Bang said admiringly.

"Go!" Kim shouted again to Bang.

"What? What about you, big brother?"

At the repeated question, Kim looked at the Black Orc, who had just run back near
them. He looked at it again and reached out his hands, painting a picture. It was a
picture connecting a big line to its two legs. He waited for the moment it put its huge
foot down on the cooking oil!

Thud!

As it stepped on the cooking oil, he began to slip backwards, grabbed its leg and pulled
it the other way. There were many bangs as it broke down the display stands, and it
past him out of sight.

"Keee? Keee? Keee?" In this unexplained situation that it had not experienced in its
life, it cried out in confusion instead of shrieking.

Kim started to run on the escalator, leaving behind the embarrassed cries coming from
the Black Orc. Bang and Ahn followed him. They quickly headed to the first floor. When
they started for the ground floor, Bang asked, "Big brother, are you going to run away?"

It was more of a plea than a question. 'Please let's run away like this.'

"Kaaaah!" The cry of the Black Orc shook the escalator to the first floor.

Bang shook his deer-like eyes more eagerly at the sound.

However, Kim's eyes were not on Bang, but on Ahn Sun-mi. "Do you have a driver's
license?"

"What?" It was a sudden question. "Yes, I do."

She managed to answer, and Kim said, "We are going to steal a car outside."
4.

December 31, 2016, 23:53.

The streets of the night in Bucheon City, just before 2017, were terribly quiet.

The wide ten-lane road, which crossed in front of Bucheon City Hall, was filled with
vehicles that had hit one another. It looked like dozens of centipedes made of cars
were on the huge road.

There were lots of dead bodies. The bodies in the deflated airbags were in better
shape. The scene of a dead body that had been crushed on the ground as it came out
through the glass of a car as it had collided was terrible. But even that was no match
for the dead bodies bitten by monsters that could not be identified. It was Hell.

13 degrees Celsius, thanks to the cold of the New Year, was preventing the dead bodies
from rotting.

But one thing was clear: December 31, 2016, would be recorded as the most horrible
day in Korean history!

"Krrr!" On that terrible day, the Black Orc came out of the large mart and onto the road
that had become a mess, looking all around wildly.

There was no light left on the street, and only the lights of the cars that were still on
sparsely were able to follow the Black Orc with its dark skin in the night. Nevertheless,
the Black Orc was so intense that even the blind could feel its presence. The fierce,
murderous will and hostility in its orange eyes were not something anyone could
ignore.

The Black Orc gave off such a presence and stared at Kim Tae-hoon, who stood in a
spacious area that luckily existed on the road. It only stared at him.
It was evidence of intelligence. It had not forgotten that he was not alone. It knew there
were other people around him.

Of course, for the Black Orc, those factors were not real threats, although they were
something to be wary of. The previous fight had already proved that.

Kim was the only one who tried something against the Black Orc in the first place, and
as a result, even he only caught the attention of the Black Orc but did not give it a fatal
blow. In other words, if it finished him, everything would be over!

Without him, the Black Orc could pick and choose to eat those who had not yet escaped
from the second floor, and those who have fled, but were still hiding in the first floor,
without any interruption.

At this moment the Black Orc imagined filling its stomach with hot blood, there in the
cold that made its strong flesh sting, and it was no longer hesitant after thinking all
that. It stepped again toward him.

Thump! There was another disturbance on the quiet road.

Thump! He once again used his Telekinesis against the Black Orc. He tried to lift its
moving body. But…

Thump! The Black Orc blew away his attempt to crush its body with a flexing of muscle.

There was no way to stop the Black Orc from increasing its power, as his Telekinesis
had weakened. His concentration, physical health, and mental strength had bottomed
out. Most importantly, he could not draw an image, a picture of his own Telekinesis
completely overpowering the Black Orc.

"Krrr, krrr!" The fact made the Black Orc laugh, and it was not just a laugh, but ridicule.
It was also a sound of conviction. It was confident that he could no longer stop itself,
and that all he could do was slow itself for a few seconds at best.

Therefore, the Black Orc once again enjoyed the experience when his Telekinesis
wrapped around it and stopped it from moving. Instead of trying to overcome the
Telekinesis, it looked at him with its ridiculing gaze.

He also looked back at it.

'The clever are usually mean.' He looked at it, and he knew that it would be careless,
with its eyes of a triumphant air in front of a troublemaker who was weakened.

"Krrr?" At that moment the Black Orc felt something strange in its eyes. On its left side,
the sound of something shattering in the darkness on the road was heard. With that
noise, a black car appeared.

The long black car was the Benz S class, worth over a hundred thousand dollars, and
it charged the Black Orc of similar size and color, with the force of two hundred and
fifty horses under the hood.

The Black Orc could not avoid the sudden rush of the car, as he had caught itself for a
few seconds. A gruesome crunch sounded as if two cars had slammed together.

The horrible shriek of the Black Orc once more covered the dark road. The scream was
not just a struggle for pain.

It was the sound of the Black Orc, withstanding the power of a big sedan which had
rushed at it, the power of the car with all that horsepower.

"Kaaaah!" The Black Orc took a stand and began to lift the sedan up as if it was going
to chew on the car. It was the power of a monster, literally. Two of the four wheels
spinning smoke on the asphalt road began to turn in the air.

His telekinesis no longer had any effect on the body of the Black Orc. However, he was
not embarrassed. Quite the opposite.

He was hunting. It was why he didn't run away when he could escape, and he waited
for the Black Orc in the cold weather, in an open space.

'Hunters never prepare only one trap when they catch a huge animal.'

At that moment, the sound of another car engine was audible behind the Black Orc,
who was still wrestling with the Benz.

"Krrr?" The Black Orc turned its head in horror.

Bang! A huge bus compressed the black lump, and they were tangled together.

"Whew!" Only then did he breathe out a sigh for the first time. The white breath rose
like a signal fire from his mouth.

'I got it'

On January 1, 2017, he survived like that.

5.

"It's not as cold as I thought it would be, is it?" Ahn Sun-mi frowned at Bang Hyun-
wook at his surprising remark.

"Are you kidding me?" A thorny reply popped out of her mouth. She thought that Bang
was playing a ridiculous pun against her, and it was natural to think so.

At 0 am, the weather of the New Year in Korea in 2017 was unbelievably cold. The cold
biting wind was relentless when walking down a vast dark road without a single
streetlight, and above all, the fact that there was no sign of living people anywhere was
making the harshness worse.

It was the coldest day that Ahn had felt during her life. If it were not for Kim Tae-hoon,
who was hacking open the Black Orc's chest with an ax to take out the jewel in its
heart, she would not have endured the cold wind with only a hot pack.

Bang was sincere, of course. "It's not cold…” He was not really cold. It was thanks to
the Energy inside him, which was now taking away the cold that he felt.

Ahn briefly threw words at his appearance. "It's the worst sign, not feeling cold in cold
weather."

"What?"

"When the body temperature goes down, the human body, first and foremost,
concentrates blood there to maintain the functions of the heart and brain. On the
contrary, arms and legs far away from the heart and brain are rapidly cooled as blood
flow is cut off. Then, when the limbs are freezing to death, the blood flow is
concentrated there to prevent the destruction of the bio-function, and the fever is so
great that you can take off your underwear."

Ahn turned her head with the words and looked at the naked and disheveled bodies
everywhere.
'The human body is stronger than most people think, but if the mind collapses, it
becomes infinitely weak.'

It would be virtually like a death sentence to be overwhelmed by the fear of monsters

in the cold weather where someone could die of hypothermia.

"The moment one takes off one's clothes, one's hypothermia gets worse, and then the
countdown starts."

"Are you a doctor?"

Ahn had a bitter smile at Bang's question.

"The doctor is a slave, just a slave." she thought. If she had been a really proper doctor,
she would not have come to a large mart for cigarettes, sweets, and caffeine drinks to
spend the night in the emergency room, rather than being on vacation at the end of
the year.

"A slave who runs a cigarette errand at the end of the year when everyone else is resting."

But now she was grateful. 'So I survived… '

If she was in the hospital, she would be dead now, or not much different. There were
many knives in the hospital, but no weapons or hunters could have killed that terrifying
Black Orc.

However, the situation was too serious to make it a comfort.

'Can I survive in the future?'

Even before half a day, the city had been full of vitality ahead of the end of the year, but
now it turned into Hell. And this was just the beginning.

'In order to survive in the future, I will have to overcome the same crisis and hardships
again.'

"But I am curious, how much is a doctor's salary?" Bang, who did not know her feeling,
asked a question that lacked any sense.

Fortunately, she did not have to answer the question. Kim's ax-chopping had finally
stopped. Of course, the conversation between Bang and Ahn also stopped, and the two
watched his actions.

Kim pulled out the heart of the Black Orc, and then ripped out an orange jewel attached
to the heart.

Monster Stone!

Kim walked over to Bang and Ahn, and ordered Bang, "Take a picture."

Bang fumbled to find the smartphone in his breast pocket and hurriedly pulled it out.

"Ah!" Bang, who took out his smartphone, sighed because the smartphone liquid
crystal had cracked like a spider web. The Black Orc's fist had not been kind. "I bought
it just last month!"

"Take a picture." Kim did not accept such a complaint from Bang.

"Oh, yes!" Bang swallowed a bitter smile and then activated the camera function.

He turned the camera to Kim's face and saw his face, a little angry over the broken LCD.

Ahn said to Bang on behalf of Kim, "Take a picture… of the jewel."

"Aha!" He quickly changed the direction of the camera to Kim's palm.

Snap! The flash went off and the picture was taken. In the picture, described in
translucent letters…

------

[The Crystal of a Black Orc]

- Strength and Health increase when ingested.

- The skill level of Energy increases when ingested.

- The skill level of Defense increases when ingested.

- The power of a Black Orc [Black Skin] can be acquired when ingested.]
------

"Wow, it must be a rare item." Bang was surprised.

However, as soon as Kim confirmed the contents, he immediately put the Crystal of
Black Orc in his mouth and swallowed it.

Then, before Bang and Ahn could even be surprised, he took the smartphone in Bang's
hand, photographed his hand, and checked the contents.

------

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 28

- Health: 23

[Special Abilities]

- Energy: F+ Rank

- Mana: F Rank

- Telekinesis: A Rank

- Defense: F+ Rank

- Mana Resistance: F Rank

[Achieved Abilities]

- Black Skin (Grade 6): The power of Black Orc consumes Energy to increase Defense.

------

Kim, who confirmed his ability of an Awakener, laughed bitterly. 'I have a rough idea
of what I'm going to do. Damn it.'

It was the moment the First Hunter was born.

1.

Kim Tae-hoon was shopping at the large mart. Chocolate, salt, almonds, jam, jerky… Of
course, it was not strange to buy such items at the food corner on the second floor of
the large mart.

It was getting closer to 2 AM., and most of the shelves had fallen like dominoes, so he
had to pick the goods up from the floor and put them in a bag, not a plastic shopping
cart.

But he had to add one more thing here, he wasn't going to pay for them at the counter.
In other words, he was now doing the most bizarre shopping in the world.

"What's your future plan?" Ahn Sun-mi was following him and started a proper
conversation with him while he was pondering between the five kinds of coffee beans
in front of him.

Instead of answering her question, he grabbed coffee beans that had been torn apart
and chewed them finely. After savoring the coffee beans, he replied, "I'm going to leave
here as soon as possible, and the remaining survivors should try to fend for
themselves."

"I can see that, just by looking at what you are doing."

"Well, you just need to know what you see."

"No, I'm curious about what you're planning in the future, where you're going if you
leave, how you're going to move, what's the purpose…”

He looked at her before she stopped talking. A cold eye dug into her gaze.

Her words stopped by themselves.

His eyes were just beyond the cold level, and there was something there that ordinary
people could not have.

There was something special, something so obvious that even Ahn, who had a job as a
doctor, that knew the boundaries between life and death better than anyone else,
could not fight.

"You love to wonder, but I have no reason to tell you about my plan."

After he replied, Ahn kept her mouth shut.

He continued, "What I need is a person who will obey my orders, not a parasite that
will cling to my body for safety."

Offended, Ahn's closed mouth opened reflexively. "A parasite?"

"If there is some give and take, it's like a crocodile bird, and of course there's no
crocodile bird in reality."

"You…”

At that moment, Kim held out his right-hand palm before Ahn spoke. Ahn had a blank
look on her face. He turned his hand over. His right-hand mark appeared. When he
turned his hand over again and showed his palm, she pulled out her smartphone and
unlocked it, showing him a picture.

------

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 11

- Health: 14

[Special Abilities]

- Mana: C+ Rank

- Mana Resistance: C+ Rank

- Defense: F Rank

[Achieved Abilities]

- None

------

Kim spoke after confirming her ability through the mark of an Awakener on her right
hand, "Be a survivor or a subordinate to me. Choose one of them clearly."

It was then that Ahn thought of something.

Kim was fighting a desperate battle with the Black Orc, but she ran away with his
subordinate, Bang Hyun-wook. That was the reason. His bias against Ahn Sun-mi was
due to the actions she showed at that time.

'Her Mana rank is C+ and she is in her third year of residency as a doctor. Once she
becomes a colleague, she will become a powerful member.'

He wasn't going to retaliate for what she had done. He could fully understand her
behavior of at that time. She was not his colleague or subordinate then, but a survivor,
and she showed the courage to escape at that moment.

It was embarrassing to have run away with Bang, but it was also clear that it was a
wake-up call for Bang. But to the extent of it, it's was understandable that she was a
survivor. If she did such a thing in the situation where she was his subordinate, he
would never forgive her.

'Troops running away from the battlefield where the battle is real were more dangerous
than the enemy.'

Anyway, Kim had now handed the choice to Ahn. Now the decision was hers. She could
become a survivor, and just break up with him and go her own way. Or, she could be
his subordinate and obey him and move along with him.

"What are the conditions I need to be your man?"

"Absolute obedience."
Ahn bit her lip slightly. "Okay. If you order me to take off my clothes, I'll be happy to
take them off."

"I don't want to see such a thing, but it's enough to understand that if you have my
back, you have to risk your life."

With her answer, Kim got up from his seat. Then he did not pick a coffee.

"Don't you need coffee?"

"I can't eat this, even in a hurry."

"Big brother!"

Kim heard Bang's voice. Bang had three bags on his back, front, and left hand. In his
right hand, he had a new baseball bat. He has collected the items ordered by Kim from
the first basement floor.

Kim moved to the escalator without hesitation. It was time to leave. Ahn took a bag
from Bang and followed after Kim with it.

"Big brother, can I ask you a question?"

"Do it."

“…what are you going to do with the survivors who are here?"

The question was due to the looks of the survivors below.

At the order of Kim, Bang was taking things from the first basement floor, and the
survivors who fled to the first floor of the basement just watched. They looked so
pitiful and pathetic. The eyes of those desperate enough did not know how they should
ask.

Bang could not ignore their eyes. So, Bang wanted Kim to become a hero.

"They have to fend for themselves."

"Yes?"
"If you want to protect the remaining survivors, do it, but don't ask for my help."

Kim did not intend to become a hero. No, if he really wanted to be a hero, he should
ignore the survivors here. A true hero would know how to renounce the small in order
to secure the great.

At the words of Kim, Bang was worried about them. On the other hand, however, he
did not worry about it for long. If he left Kim, his eyes would look the same way as the
survivors who were staring at him in a few days.

"I'll follow you."

Kim gave him a brief compliment. "It was wise to use the cooking oil."

"Yes? Ah!" In a sense, Bang laughed at the praise he had heard for the first time since
he had met Kim.

"Really? It was amazing I thought of it. If I had used this wisdom at the last Blue Dragon
league baseball game, I would have been nominated for the pros… No, if I'd been
nominated, I wouldn't have met you."

Ahn, who had guessed that Bang was about to ramble on, cut off Bang's words at once.
"What's the plan for the future?"

Ahn could not bear to listen to such chatter as she had not heard what he wanted.

Kim answered her question this time. "The primary purpose is to leave here first."

"Why are you leaving?"

"What do you want, a detailed or brief explanation?"

"A little more detail…”

"By the time the sun comes up, this place will be Hell."

Hell. Ahn and Bang's face hardened at the word.

“…You mean the monsters are coming again?"

"Even without the monsters, it will be Hell."

"What the hell does that mean…”

At that moment, a man approached them when they reached the ground floor.

"Well, um…”

It was not just anyone who appeared, but Park Jae-woon.

Surviving in the turmoil, he approached Kim carefully and asked him, "Well, what do
we do now?"

Behind Park, was his wife, holding their daughter, whose eyes were swollen from crying.

Kim gave quick advice to such a man. "After securing about five days of high-calorie,
easy-to-storage food like chocolate, secure them in the City Hall right next to you. Also,
be careful to keep your body warm."

"Don't move using vehicles, but it will be useful if you treat them like a tent. Finally, in
case of an emergency, you'd better have the tools to carry the child on your backs."

It was a surprisingly kind explanation. However, it was a harsh explanation from

Park's point of view. After all, it meant that they would have to survive by themselves.

"Ah…” Park's face turned pale.

The fact that monsters he had never seen before were overflowing, the infrastructure
of society had collapsed, and he had to survive with his wife and daughter, had made
his face so.

But Park bowed his head to Kim, even though his face was pale.

"Thank you. Thank you so much for your help." He never forgot the least courtesy and
reason. If it had not been for that, he would have long abandoned his family and run
away.

That was why Kim gave minimal advice to him. As Kim saw it, Park was qualified to
survive.
Bang and Ahn looked at Park, who was stepping back like that, with terrible expressions.

'Yeah, I guess the big brother is right. That's right.'

'The day comes when the emergency room feels peaceful and hopeful.'

Who could have imagined this scene here a day ago?

But what was even more frightening was that they couldn't even imagine what would
happen tomorrow.

On the other hand, Kim had a cold look, as he could imagine tomorrow right now and
the future more easily.

"The population of Bucheon City is about 800,000, and the number of people who died
immediately when the atomic bomb fell on Hiroshima, Japan, was about 70,000. In the
face of such a devastating disaster, the number of deaths could not exceed 100,000. Of
course, even if there is an unprecedented disaster, the number of survivors in Bucheon
should exceed 700,000."

Kim went on to explain after he had stopped for a while.

"In other words, at this hour, seven hundred thousand people in Bucheon City are
waiting for the sun to rise, scared by fear of monsters, without the help of any social
system such as electricity, communication, gas, police, or firefighting."

"Ah." At that, there was a sound like a soul escaping from Ahn's mouth.

A scene was painted, of what kind of sight would unfold in the city of Bucheon when
the sun rose.

"Most of the monsters that caused this confusion will still be walking or hiding
somewhere in the city, and at any moment a more powerful monster may appear."

Obviously, the present sight was Hell.

"First of all, it is unlikely that all this has happened only in Bucheon City. If it had been
limited to Bucheon City, help would have come in some way from Seoul or Incheon.
Maybe the whole world is like this."
The important thing was that this hellish sight was not the end, but the beginning!

"Anyway, what we need right now to survive in this situation is at least two of my own
criteria."

Kim had experienced many such places.

'How do humans act when they think that they are at the end of an era, and in a place
where there is no proper government?'

"Common sense, and violence to force that common sense."

'What is the most effective way to deal with them?'

"I'll tell you what I'm planning now. There's a police station nearby. We'll get something
to use as a weapon there. Then we'll move to Ojung-dong!"

"Why Ojung-dong…?"

"At the military base there, we will secure the right weapons!"
2.

No one stopped Kim Tae-hoon's party as they left the large mart. It was not that there
were no people who wanted to stick to him.

"What do we do when you go? What do we do?"

"Please save us…”

"Take us with you! We won't let you go if you don't take us!"

"Don't try to live alone, you fucking bastard! If you're a human, be a human!"

Some were desperately trying to become a parasite clinging to Kim's back, with some
threatening them. It was a natural reaction because it was a matter of their life.
However, he showed them no sympathy.

"I warn you, you'd better not follow me. I don't think it's going to make any difference
if I add a few more bodies in a place full of monsters."

Kim threatened them clearly, and there was no one who showed courage in the face of
his threats. And he did not just end up threatening them

"If there's anyone who is following us, get rid of them."

"Get rid of them?"

"At least, attack them enough to feel the threat of death, even if they don't die." He
made his will clearly known to Bang Hyun-wook and Ahn Sun-mi.

"Is there a reason to do that?"

"We shouldn't get caught up in the mess caused by a crazy survivor."

The reason was clear.

Earlier, Kim had caused a huge disturbance to kill the Black Orc, a huge disturbance
that would have looked terrible if an insurance company employee saw it.

He had touched the grass. If there was a snake in the grass, it would not be sleeping in
this disturbance. The snakes that were now hiding in the city were not just snakes, but
terrible monsters.

'If there's another Black Orc, then there's nothing to do but escape.' Kim, who had
already spent a lot of power killing the Black Orc, was in a situation where the fight
would be even more burdensome.

That's why he wanted to raid the police station. He needed a powerful weapon which
was more useful than a hand ax or a knife.

Of course, it took a long time to get to the police station. They had to move more quietly
on the street of the night and slowly without drawing attention.

It was a cold, frozen body that welcomed Kim and his party at the police station when
they arrived.

"That's pathetic." Bang briefly murmured what everyone felt.

Kim briefly clicked his tongue as soon as he heard Bang's words. 'It's as bad as I expected.'

The scene of the police station that he saw now was not much different from what he
had predicted.

“…there's no police officer."

What Sun-mi said was also what he had expected.

"It would be rather strange if people were screaming outside and a policeman stayed
still."

"The fuss would be bigger without the police."

"Yes."
It was never good. Kim's imagination meant the worst scenario he could imagine.

'If there was one survivor here at least… I'm sure I could use the network in some way.'
Kim did not hope the police station performed its duty. Instead, he wanted to have one
of the police officers left, to speak to the survivor.

'There are contacts in the army, but there are no contacts on the police side… '

In a situation where the communication network collapsed, people have to talk to each
other directly, and in order to contact the police network, the current police were
needed more than ever.

But this was a clear reality. There was nothing great about the armed forces of the
Korean police.

How good were the weapons of the police officers who had worked at the police
station, not anywhere else?

The armory of the police in Bucheon City would not be greater than that owned by
five or six ordinary people with a hobby of shooting in the United States. There was
no possibility of using them properly.

How many police officers had practiced shooting in preparation for this kind of
situation?

'If they'd known this day would come, all countries would have legalized carrying
guns, like the United States.' An unfunny idea passed through Kim's mind.

“…the army is different, isn't it?" Ahn Sun-mi asked Kim carefully.

The next destination would be the military.

"I don't know." But the situation of a military base was not likely better than here.

Obviously, the level of the armed forces of the military was different from the police.

The number of automatic rifles and ammunition was different, and it was impossible
to compare the power of a sidearm with a heavy weapon.

However, the Korean military had never trained to fight the sudden emergence of such
monsters.

'No, in fact, most of the Korean army has little experience in combat, because most of
them consider military life as slave life.'

'It might be faster to beat and kill monsters with shovels than to shoot guns, if they are
not at the forefront, and if they are stationed in the city.'

"It depends on who the commander is."

'The key is the commander's capacity. The greatest advantage of the army is a clear
command system that excludes mercy and powerful weapons. Therefore, if the
commander is excellent, it can produce results more efficiently than any other group.'

"The capacity of the commander? Oh, my God."

"Then it must have ended."

At the explanation of Kim, Bang and Ahn sighed with a look that seemed to have no
hope. Kim frowned slightly at the appearance of the two.

"You have no military experience?"

Bang had not even been given a warrant for enlistment, and Ahn was a person who
could get drafted because she was a woman. It would not be normal for them to
answer with confidence in the army.

"Big brother, will I know when I go there?"

"That's where so much corruption goes on."

He could not find a basis to refute these two explanations. One of the biggest symbols
of the malformed corruption, unfairness, and irrationality of the Korean army was Kim
Tae-hoon, in a sense.

They were right. If the Korean army had been rational and operated normally, Kim
would not have been here.

"Where did you learn all this, big brother? Did you learn this in the army?"
"I am a soldier, but I didn't learn from the army."

Kim found the location of the arsenal, and with a tangible answer, he gave a signal to
Ahn and Bang. It meant to shut up and execute the order given earlier.

Bang nodded and stood near the broken glass door of the police station, holding the
baseball bat tightly in his hands with his batting gloves, and concentrated all his senses
outside the police station.

Ahn began to search the dead bodies in the police station, checking the pockets of the
dead, and took out a smartphone, checked the presence of the lock screen and the
battery residue. She took what she could use, and if not usable, she took only the
batteries.

When Kim started to move to rob the arsenal, Ahn's actions suddenly stopped.

'What is it? 'Surely something… '

She was searching the dead body hard and felt something with her fingertips. It felt
like a tiny spider web touched the back of her hand on the way. It also felt like nothing.
Ordinary people would ignore the feeling, turning their heads sideways for a moment.
But she was different.

'There's something, I'm sure.'

She was a doctor whose hands were her most important tools, and with such important
tools, she worked the line between life and death for people.

'Doctors never let things go when they feel bad or strange. Sometimes the feeling can
decide the life and death of a person.'

Ahn was faithful to her feeling. She stopped what she was doing to find something that
disturbed her and started to look around. One of the old-fashioned bags caught her
eyes. Without hesitation, she opened the bag quickly.

'This is… '

There was a black plastic bag in the bag, and when she pulled it open, a bundle of
newspapers appeared. When she took out one of the wrapped bundles and took off
the newspaper, she found what was hidden inside.
It was not a normal bowl, but an antique bowl! 'An antique?' Not just a bowl, but a
bowl that looked like an antique. Some were full of cracks, and some were split in half.
She looked at the antique bowl with an incredulous expression.

'I'm crazy. I came because I felt strange, but it was not gold or money that showed up,
but an antique bowl.' She sighed briefly, and once more her fingertips felt strange.

'Ah!' This time it was a little more intense. It felt like something was connected to her
fingertips by a transparent thread.

Her expression changed again.

"I'll explain how to use a gun before we move." Kim, who had been robbing the arsenal,
appeared to teach Ahn and Bang, who had never used a revolver in their entire lives.

"Wait a minute." Ahn stopped him. "This is weird." She showed him a bundle of
newspapers in her hands.

Kim looked at Ahn inquiringly.

Bang had a similar expression to Kim.

"Ah, I mean…” Ahn hurriedly apart the newspaper and pulled out a white bowl and a
glass hidden within. It didn't seem particularly special either. It was literally an antique,
nothing more than a thing.

It didn't seem like a great antique, and more plainly, it seemed so small that no one
would buy it if a merchant asked them to buy it in Insadong. Ahn knew that well.

"This is weird, or I'm going to look very strange to say this, but…”

Kim took out a new smartphone from his pocket, instead of answering, and pointed
the camera at her. Before Ahn could react properly, he took a picture immediately.

Snap!

"Wait, wait a minute."

Kim, who checked the photo, gave her a hard look and handed the smartphone to her.
"I guess it's not just humans that have changed in this world."

The glass pictured on the smartphone had translucent letters!

------

[A Glass of Therapy]

- Relic Grade: Grade 7

- Relic Value: Normal

- Relic Effect: Water can be generated to heal wounds by consuming Mana.

--------

The world had changed. Everything, not just people, had changed!
3.

"Oh, it is filling up! It is filling up!"

Bang Hyun-wook admired the magically clear liquid filling the old-fashioned glass that
had nothing in it.

On the other hand, the expression of Ahn Sun-mi holding the glass was not good. 'I
can't move.'

Her body was just a conduit. Some unknown power was now pouring into the glass
after undergoing a process similar to a water purifier inside her. The problem was that
the moment she moved her body, the moment her concentration faltered, everything
stopped. The concentration required by this process was beyond imagination.

Ahn was a doctor, and if necessary, a doctor needed to perform surgery in an operating
room to keep a patient alive for ten hours straight. Her concentration could not be
lacking. If it had been lacking, she would not have gotten even close to perfect scores
on the entrance exam for university and entered a medical school. But she felt her
concentration being consumed so fast that she could not compare with surgery.
Eventually, she gave up.

"Huh, huh…” She was panting hard. It was not a trick, as the sweat on her forehead was
not from the cold weather.

"Are you alright, sister?"

"It's all right, hoo… okay."

Bang talked to the exhausted Ahn. Kim Tae-hoon silently looked at her and arranged
his thoughts.

'Magic… She is like a magician.' The appearance of Ahn reminded him of the existence
of magicians in games, movies, and novels. Magicians had to memorize spells for some
time to use magic, and they required a lot of concentration. When they move or were
interfered with while memorizing spells, the memorized spells became useless.

It was high risk compared to the Energy of Bang, and the telekinetic power of Kim. So
Kim had to know if there was any merit to taking this risk.

"Did you say the effect was wound recovery?" Kim rubbed the wound on the back of
his hand after taking some transparent liquid onto his finger. It half-filled the glass
that Ahn possessed, and it could only be considered water.

Then the wound started to bubble and it began to heal! The sight took Ahn's breath
away. She looked at Kim's hand with incredulous eyes and shouted, "Oh my God, this
is a miracle, a miracle!"

"Lower your voice." Kim gave an order to Ahn, not a warning. She shut her mouth
promptly.

The police station was quiet again. Kim, however, carefully moved his feet between the
bodies without feeling relieved, and he extended his senses out to the gate of the police
station. He examined the darkness around. There was no particular sign, but a sense
of silence.

After Kim made a gesture that seemed to open his mouth with his left hand, Bang and
Ahn exhaled softly.

Hoo… , the long wind drifted through the police station.

The conversation was a little bit later.

"That's great. It's kind of an item, isn't it?" Bang was the first to open his mouth, and
Kim gave an order instead of an answer.

"Take pictures of all of them."

"Yes?"

"Take pictures of all the antiques and check how many relics are there."

"Ah!" Only then did Bang wake up and take all the antiques out of the bag and start
taking pictures.

Meanwhile, Kim asked Ahn several questions. "How did you feel using Mana?"

"Mana?"

"I decided to call it in that for the sake of convenience, but if you want to add something
special, it's fine."

"Mana does work."

"So how do you feel?"

"My body feels like a water purifier. It feels like Energy goes through my heart and
then into this glass… But it's really hard. It's like walking on a tightrope."

Kim nodded. 'The risk is big, but the merit is great.'

The concept of relics and Mana had been put together.

'A relic is an item that helps us use Mana or any mysterious power. There exist relics
among the historical objects like antiques. If we consider in the concept of games,
things made by monsters can also be relics or items.'

'Mana requires many restrictions and conditions to use differently than Energy and
Telekinesis.

'If we get weapons, the next destination will be the museum. Of course, we must secure
as many of these relics as possible.'

In this world, there was no Sotheby auction, and even if an auction was held, Kim
would not be able to buy the goods at such an auction with just his lifetime savings.

"Big brother, there's nothing else," Bang reported, after finishing checking the relics,
shaking his head.

Instead of answering Bang, Kim handed over the revolver he had brought from the
arsenal. He also handed one to Ahn.

"The cylinder will open this way, put the bullet into it, and close it." He taught them
how to fill the cylinder of the pistol and how to shoot. "Check the target, aim, and
shoot. Hold it with both hands when shooting. Pull the trigger only once."

Bang and Ahn began to fill the cylinders with bullets clumsily.

Kim told them so. "Never point a gun at our people. Don't point a gun at me even when
filling the cylinder and practicing."

At his words, Bang, who was about to point a gun in Kim's direction after filling the
cylinder, instantly stopped.

Kim smiled bitterly at his actions. He had anticipated what Bang would do. It wasn't
hard to predict.

'It's one of the mistakes most people usually make when they first touch a gun. They
aim at the person in front of them when they hear the word 'aim.'

'These two are not bad either, but it would be better to have a career man if I wanted
to move along.'

It was something Kim would have to endure to go around with Bang and Ahn. The two
had never been soldiers.

'Even if I wanted something like a soldier right away, it doesn't mean they can't do the
job. I hope there's someone who will be helpful in the Ojung-dong military base.' It
would be convenient to find an Awakened soldier, and that was one of the reasons why
Kim was heading for the military base.

An Awakened soldier was needed. Of course, there was no guarantee that an Awakened
soldier would become a subordinate to him even if there was one there.

'I hope there is a man of sense… ' That's what Kim worried about.

"We`re moving now. Take sugar with the chocolate we prepared, and arm yourself,
then let's move on to the next point…”

With the first objective done, it was time to move toward the military base in Ojung-
dong.

Kuoooooo! A loud cry rang through the city of Bucheon.

4.

'The most fearful thing to those who survive in a city which had been ruined by
bombing is the sound of the fighter jets passing overhead. The sound not only
paralyzes the reason of the listener but sometimes even the heart. This is the case; on
the battlefield, the body is fine, but a dead man with his ears covered is seen from time
to time.

Even trained soldiers are not free from the fear. The moment a bomber bombs, death
is on the way. That kind of fear cannot be overcome. They just get used to it.'

-------

Kim's ability to go without losing his reason in front of the monstrous fear that
rampaged through his mind was also due to his familiarity with this kind of fear. He
could not overcome the fear. He was lying on the floor, just waiting for the fear to fade
away. Soon after Kim Tae-hoon's fear of everything exploding disappeared, he rose
from his seat.

The first thing he did was look at the condition of Bang and Ahn, who were similar to
the dead bodies scattered on the floor. He checked their pulses immediately. Their
pulses were running, but there was no focus in their eyes.

"Huck!" Bang woke up first, but his eyes were full of fear.

Kim forced the chocolate from his pocket into Bang's mouth after breaking it.

"Melt it down in your mouth; do not swallow, let it melt."

Kim then approached Ahn. Her condition was worse than Bang's. Her heart was
beating, but her eyes were not focused. She was truly in a state of unconsciousness.

Kim slapped her cheek. "Get ahold of yourself, Ahn Sun-mi. Get ahold of yourself."

The focus returned Ahn's eyes after her cheeks were red.

Kim put the pieces of chocolate in her mouth. "Melt it down on your tongue."

Kim then spoke to Bang, who was somewhat sober. "Stand here. If anything happens,
shout out to me."
Bang, who had been melting chocolate hard in his mouth, was surprised and asked,
after gulping down the chocolate. "Yes? What about you?"

"We need to figure out what monster passed over our heads. Boil water using the
portable pot we brought. It's dangerous to move in this condition right away. Let's
warm up and move."

With those words, Kim went out the broken door of the police station.

5.

Tap!

With a short sound, the police car's door unlocked itself. Kim stared slowly at the car's
window, and he opened the door right after blinking his eyes a couple of times. Soon
after, he pushed himself into the wide-open door.

"Hoo…” The cold police car was filled with his white breath. Kim's hand extended
through the cloud to the black box installed in the car. He opened the black box as it
was, playing the video that the black box had recorded a short time ago.

Under the night sky, the image of the dark world, without a street-light, was of course
dark. But it was not difficult to see its presence in the video. The video taken by the
black box was more than enough.

It was about three hundred meters long and large enough to cover a gymnasium with
the massive wings that could lift the giant body. It was a dragon. At least, among the
countless human words, the dragon was the only word that could describe the
monster.

The huge dragon was flying past Bucheon towards Incheon, where the sea was visible.

Kim grit his teeth tightly. 'Black Orcs… are at the level of wild dogs.'

There was already a crazy monster in the world. The chance of beating such a thing
could not even be calculated without the help of a powerful weapon.

'The world has changed well beyond my imagination.'

Kim did not even dare to dream that such a monster would appear in the world. Instead,
he was able to imagine what would happen when such a monster appeared.

'If this monster gets settled in Incheon City… I must be determined to return Incheon
City to September of 1950 to kill it.'

How much firepower would be needed to simply kill this monster with human weapons?

How much property and geographical damage would be taken, and how many lives
would be lost?

Some of the survivors were people who were willing to take the damage and still
survive the ruthless violence.

‘…I need to hurry.'

1.

It was about five kilometers from the large mart to the Ojung-dong military base.
Therefore, Kim Tae-hoon aimed to reach the military base of Ojung-dong by least four
AM after leaving the large mart for the first time. In addition, he was planning to
mobilize all means and methods to achieve the goal.

He knew better than anyone else the importance of carrying out the goal and planning
thoroughly in a war situation. But now he was in the police station even though the
time was well past three AM. He even had the time to drink coffee, using a coffee
dripper in the boiled water from a portable pot.

"Big brother, is it okay to take time to relax?"

At that sight of Kim, Bang Hyun-wook was suspicious.

Kim, who enjoyed his coffee, as usual, said to Bang in a low voice, "It's too dangerous
for us to move with our minds and bodies clouded with fear, and the first thing we
need to do is ease our bodies and minds. Hmm… This coffee has a good taste. I've never
drunk this product before."

Of course, Kim was never able to take a break. However, right now, the three of them
were not in normal physical condition. A huge monster that could not be explained by
anything had scattered fear in Bucheon City, and the fear was now rooted in every
corner of the minds and bodies of his party.

Moving in a situation where it was not extracted properly was like moving in poison.

"Right now, the situation is different from when the dragon appeared. The condition
has changed."

More importantly, this fact did not apply only to Kim and his party. The unidentified
dragon had scattered the fear of his presence in Bucheon like a shower. All the things
that had settled in Bucheon were exposed to the fear.

After the monsters' attack, which had started around four PM on December 31, the
situation came to a lull temporarily and now was out of control.

Like a ship, their boat, which had been drifting quietly, was swept over by huge waves.

Ahn Sun-mi added her opinion to Kim Tae-hoon's. "The shriek… Most people must
have passed out or died because of the fear. Because of the temperature right now…
falling into a state of unconsciousness when they can't expect the right help around is
virtually the same as freezing to death."

Of the three, the dragon fear hit her the hardest, and at the same time, her words as a
doctor were certainly convincing.

Kim Tae-hoon supplemented her opinion by pouring coffee into her empty cup.

"I wished all of them would be fine, but it's a bigger problem that all of them will not be."

"What do you mean?"

"It's more likely that there will be something going crazy then fainting."

Dragon fear was strong. But not everything had fainted to the dragon fear.

Just now, Bang Hyun-wook and Kim Tae-hoon were stunned but did not faint. There
must be Awakeners among the survivors, and a high-rank Energy user among them
would surely survive.

"It would be people or monsters."

"The monsters aren't gone yet."

All the monsters have not disappeared from Bucheon.

As evidence, there were few bodies of the monsters, which made Bucheon City a ghost
city.

So where did the monsters go? Did they leave Bucheon, and go to Seoul or Incheon?
It was much more plausible that monsters who had already attacked humans and
filled their stomach had hidden in the forests of buildings, taking shelter to avoid the
cold winter weather late at night.

Was it not a shelter that humans loved to use, in places like a subway station?

"And if I were a monster, I would rather come out and fill my stomach than stay still at
this moment."

In such a situation, a monster who felt a sense of crisis due to the emergence of an
absolute upper predator would try to hide in a more secret place, deep, after filling its
stomach before it went crazy or felt hungry again.

In other words, for the time being, monsters would come out and work.

"The ones who are moving now are strong enough to carry out their purpose, not
fainting in the face of the fear."

At least the monsters that were active at this moment were stronger than Goblins or Orcs.

He had to keep the Black Orc in mind, at the very least.

Kim Tae-hoon was waiting for them to quickly fill their stomachs and then hide deep
again.

In front of such an explanation, Bang Hyun-wook and Ahn Sun-mi no longer asked
additional questions.

Kim Tae-hoon's boiled coffee thawed their cold bodies in the cold weather, and their
frightened brains were thawed by chocolate.

In the silence, Kim Tae-hoon looked at his right hand carefully. His right hand gradually
began to turn black by the ability Black Skin acquired after killing the Black Orc!

Currently, Kim Tae-hoon's force rank could only turn his skin black up to his wrist. The
Black Skin gave him the feeling of wearing an iron glove. It was actually pretty tough.
It was not cut by a crude knife, and even hitting the wall as hard as possible, it only
stung a little.

'If I kill a monster, I get paid!' This was clear evidence.

'Evidence that I can get something if I kill a monster!

'I wonder what it would be like to kill that monster… '

The evidence reminded Kim Tae-hoon of how he could kill the monster in his mind,
while weighed down by the fear of the dragon.

Kim Tae-hoon sipped coffee with a slight smile in his imagination.

2.

There was a stretch of darkened road, along a row of one-story storehouses, full of
stopped cars that had lost their owners, and frozen corpses.

Two Goblins were eating there. Clinging to a frozen corpse, they were tearing and
swallowing the flesh of the body, using their dog-like teeth.

It was a pretty nasty thing to see.

Goblins had the power and sharp teeth to bite the flesh out of a person, but that was
based on the flesh of a living human being.

Bodies of frozen people were different, and there was no shortage of cold. It didn't
even taste good, and their cries complained about it. It was hard to swallow the flesh
that had been ripped off, because there was nothing good about chewing, swallowing,
or filling their stomach. It was a meal to live.

The Goblins, who had been struggling to survive, suddenly grabbed their necks. "Keck,
keck!" The Goblins who gasped began to struggle to live.

"Hoooo!" At that moment, a young man appeared, took a short breath and hit the head
of the Goblin with a baseball bat.

Pak! A single eyeball shot out of the Goblin's head halfway after the attack. The man
used his momentum and hit the other one's head vertically.

Keck! Its open mouth was slammed closed. It bit off its own tongue, and its teeth were
shattered. The Goblin dropped to the ground and spewed out blood like a fountain
from its mouth.
Bang Hyun-wook made a circle with his hand.

Ahn Sun-mi appeared. She had a sharpened knife, turned the body of the fallen Goblin
over to face the sky, and put a sharp knife into the pit of the Goblin's stomach. After
that, she put her hand into the deep incision she had made. When she drew her arm
out, gory to the elbow, a red jewel was caught at the end of her finger.

She did the same thing with the other Goblin, cutting into the softest part of the
Goblin's body in its gut, and plunged her arm in up to the heart, taking a jewel out.

It was then that Kim Tae-hoon appeared. His right hand was holding a plastic lamp
bottle, and he sprinkled kerosene on the Goblin body.

"I'm still wondering why you're spraying kerosene?"

"The only one who'll eat this body is a monster. I hope they eat them and get sick," Kim
Tae-hoon explained briefly.

In the meantime, Ahn Sun-mi wiped the blood off her hand with a towel and held out
her palm to Kim Tae-hoon.

"Here."

Kim Tae-hoon handed one of them to Bang Hyun-wook after he picked them up.

"Eat it."

The two swallowed the monster stones, still warm with the blood of Goblins, without
a word. They swallowed against the strong taste of blood that made them want to
vomit.

Soon Bang Hyun-wook stroked the area near the pit of the stomach and said, "I'm nearly
full now."

When Kim Tae-hoon started moving, the scenery that was unfolded in front of his
party was the same as he had predicted.

The monsters were eating the frozen bodies as if they were possessed by something.

Kim Tae-hoon did not pass up such monsters. He hunted. And he put Bang Hyun-wook
and Ahn Sun-mi on the front line.

"Bang Hyun-wook, watch out for the bat when you swing it. Never let go of the tension
at the moment of attack."

"Yes."

"And Ahn Sun-mi."

"Order me."

"Stab these two dead eyes with that knife."

At the words of Kim Tae-hoon, Ahn Sun-mi stabbed the red eye of the Goblin with the
end-point of the knife without hesitation.

With the eerie sound of the eye being destroyed, red liquid flowed out of Goblin's eyes.
It was like the tears of unjustly dead souls.

Bang Hyun-wook watched the scene and took a short breath. It was a sight that he
could not easily get used to. That was why Kim Tae-hoon ordered it.

'I am glad they got used to it so quickly. Ahn Sun-mi is a doctor, so she is adapting
quickly.'

Unlike Kim Tae-hoon, Bang Hyun-wook and Ahn Sun-mi were ordinary people until
less than a day ago.

'The public basically has a rejection of killing, and many people are unable to arrange
chicken that has already been slaughtered, and they cannot even defeather a chicken.'

They could not boldly stab a monster who was seeking their life. The momentary
hesitation that happened then eventually cost them their lives.

Kim Tae-hoon wanted to give Bang Hyun-wook and Ahn Sun-mi the experience of
slaughter. It was an experience that human beings would normally never need to build
up, but now they could not help it. From now on, they would have to kill something to
live.

"And that's your destination, isn't it?"

In addition, there were not only monsters to worry about.

"We'll take a nap for a while and move on."

"What? We'll arrive at the military base if we move just a little bit more."

"No guard welcomes anyone who appears at night. If I had command of that army right
now, and if any men approached at night, I would order them to fire if there was no
answer two seconds after the warning."

There was no guarantee that the soldiers of the military base, their destination, would
welcome survivors. If the military base was operating normally now, it would set up
on guard. The guards would be extremely nervous, because the price of a mistake was
no longer running around the training ground with a military bag, nor canceled out by
a day's vacation or long vacation.

"Take a break."

Above all, Kim Tae-hoon and his party were quite tired, and they needed a break. It
took some energy to run away or fight.

"When the sun starts to rise, we approach the military base."

Kim Tae-hoon found a place to take a nap for a while, but there was no suitable
building to sleep. In the end, Kim Tae-hoon made an SUV vehicle into a lodging shelter.
After opening the locked door with Telekinesis, the three entered the vehicle.

The car was cold, but it was warmer than any other place nearby, as they had been
hunting a long distance through the bitterly cold wind. It was the first break that they
had taken, but the rest was not long.

Blam! By the time dawn was barely up, the gunfire that rang out instead of a rooster's
cry woke them with the sun.
3.

Tutututu! The gunfire came down like a heavy rain under the blue sky, as the night had
just begun to retreat.

Tututu! The gunfire was so powerful that it affected those who were far away.

"Wow, that's not a joke. It's different from the movies. Damn it, it's totally different
from the movies!"

As the distance to the gunfire narrowed, Bang Hyun-wook spoke more and more.

"Hoo, hoo, hoo, hoo…” Ahn Sun-mi continuously took in deep breaths and exhaled.

That was the power of real gunfire.

It was not what someone saw in the movies. The first time hearing it, legs would stiffen
up and minds would freeze. Even if Ahn Sun-mi and Bang Hyun-wook lived in the land
of Korea, they never heard real gunfire.

It was evidence of their courage and the basis of obedience that they closed the
distance to the gunfire at Kim Tae-hoon's order.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon was not surprised by the gunfire.

'The gunfire doesn't stop.' Rather, he found meaning in the continuous shooting, that
seemed to have no meaning, and drew a mental image based on it.

'And it's definitely moving, too.' The problem was that the picture that was drawn was
not a good picture. 'I'm not going to see anything good this time.'

'Guns are very powerful weapons. The power of handguns as well as rifles simply
ignores the expectations of the public. Once someone is shot, they can tell how
ridiculous it is to see an actor struggling even after being shot several times in a movie.
Of course, it was not something good to learn.'

It was clear that the guns were powerful for monsters such as Orc and Goblin, which
Kim Tae-hoon and his party had encountered earlier. There was no reason to have
such indiscriminate fire against one monster.

"The fact that they've survived so far means that at least they have stood up against
the monsters they've encountered."

The soldiers in the military base were now aware of things. If they were not aware,
this battle would be the first time, but that did not make any sense. But now the
gunshots were ringing out again and again.

There would be two main cases. The number of monsters the soldiers were now
dealing with was at least 100 units, or there was a scary monster that couldn't be dealt
with using one or two gunshots.

There was nothing good about either circumstance. Of course, the worst scenario was
if the two were one. There was a powerful monster like a Black Orc, and it was the
leader of a horde.

'Maybe a gun doesn't work on it.' Maybe it was a type of monster that guns did not
work on.

It did not make sense, but conventional common sense did not apply to the world
already. The presence of the dragon gave an important lesson to Kim Tae-hoon.

"Arrrrrrrgh!"

They heard a scream. The first screaming sound came over the green soundproof wall
that Kim Tae-hoon and his party were looking at. Kim Tae-hoon stopped in front of the
wall. Bang Hyun-wook and Ahn Sun-mi also stopped walking. Kim Tae-hoon turned
his head to confirm the attitudes of the two. Of course, their faces were not good.

'Hoo, Bang Hyun-wook, let's calm down. You survived there, relax. You're with big
brother and just stay calm. Energy, yes you have Energy. This bat will crush the shitty
monster's skull.'

'Don't think anything, Ahn Sun-mi, all you have to do is follow orders. Don't think
about things that are messy. You have to survive. You come here to survive.'

As soon as they crossed the wall, they would see the monster's screams and gunfire
with their own eyes, and the scene could not be compared with horror or gore movies.
The faces of those in front of them should be wary.

Kim told the two of them, "We need a car."

"Yes?"

At Kim Tae-hoon's sudden remark, Bang Hyun-wook and Ahn Sun-mi both posted a
question mark on their face.

"Car."

"Oh, like a bus?" Ahn Sun-mi recalled Kim Tae-hoon using the bus to kill the Black Orc.

"A bus is not bad, but I wish I had a truck, like a dump truck."

"Yes?"

"If it were fifteen tons…”

At that moment, Kim Tae-hoon's eyes were filled with what he wanted.

“…good."

4.

'The landscape of a military base is always desolate. No matter how many trees are
planted or if there is a lot of green grass, the desolation does not disappear. It is like a
warning. A warning of the fact that a military base is not a beautiful, rich tableau, but
a stage designed to kill something.'

Tutu! Tutu! Tutututu! And now the warning had become a reality. A group of twenty-
four soldiers, in a semicircular formation, were pulling the triggers of the rifles on
their shoulders sequentially, as if the gears were interlocking.

"Kieeeeeee!" 150 centimeter screaming Goblins with brown skin were attacking them.
The number of brown Goblins that was attacking was significant. Just the visible ones
were easily over fifty.

"Aaaaaargh!"

"Save, save Sergeant Park, save…”

There were a lot of people being eaten alive on the ground by Goblins. The number of
brown Goblins eating them was close to a hundred. It was an enormous number. But
it wasn't the number that bothered the soldiers now.

"Damn it! Die! Die!" Tutututu!

However, the brown Goblins did not stop running in front of the gunshots, which were
starting to hurt the shoulders of the gunmen.

Pukpuk, pukpuk! Whenever they were shot full of holes, the red eyes of brown Goblins
burned even redder.

It was like a candle flaring before it went out.

The brown Goblins, which had been driven beyond their lives and were filled with
madness, were faster than before, and their jumping power was greater. They were
now even more frightening to the soldiers.

"Aaaaaaargh!" Against all logic, a brown Goblin, flying forward like a frog, struck a soldier.
The moment he fell, it was over.

"Kieeeee! kieeeee!"

The Goblin who had attacked the soldier had lost its life, but the Goblin's colleagues
rushed over as if they had been waiting, and with their sharp teeth bit through both
uniform and flesh.

"Aaaaaaaaaargh!"

"Corporal Kang, Damn it! Kang Il-hyun!"

The sight of someone being eaten alive was a terrible for the victim and for the
viewers. What was worse was that they couldn't point the gun at the brown Goblins
that were swarming their colleague.
There was no companionship in a gun. The gunshot might end up in his colleague,
instead of a Goblin. Even if it was to relieve their pain, it could never be done easily.
No, it's was more difficult. Pulling the trigger to free a dying colleague from pain was
a tough task compared to pulling the trigger toward an enemy, a monster.

Only those who had a cool judgment and a true sense of friendship toward the fallen
could pull it. Tututu! "Kuck!"

Among the twenty-four survivors, now twenty-three, the only one who knew how to
do it was the commander, Second Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji, who led the group.

"Everyone, stay with me! Don't panic! The number of enemies is decreasing! If we act
calmly, we can clean up!"

Second Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji…

The cool appearance of a beautiful woman, but bushy eyebrows, strong eyes, and a
nimble nose, which was rarely seen on a woman, gave the impression that she was not
just a beauty, but a fierce beast!

She also had a strong physique. She was a tall woman, at least six feet tall, so easily
found among the soldiers who had gathered, and her military uniform was better
fitted than anyone else.

Tutu! Above all, her gunshots were the only ones with temperance. Even as she
retreated from the front line, the muzzle of her gun was almost unshaken even when
she pulled the trigger. She was killing her targets with as few shots as possible.

"Retreat to the church!" There was no shaking in her voice. Her order was the only
light that illuminated this unrealistic nightmare.

The soldiers grit their teeth tightly. Tututu! Then they pulled the triggers again. They
pulled the triggers without stopping back towards the dozens of Goblins which were
attacking unceasingly.

"To the church!"

"Yes, let's go to the church, let's just go to the church."

The purpose became clear. It was to reach the church about two hundred meters away.
It seemed impossible to do that. The confidence that they could do it naturally began
to sprout in their minds.

"Kaaaaaang!" But this cry made the soldiers' minds darken, and their sprouting hopes
shrivel.

"Ahhhh!"

"The bastard monster…”

In their darkest moment, the soldiers were forced to think; the monsters suddenly
attacked the military base ahead of the New Year, when it was a normal time for people
to be discharged.

Among them, there was a huge monster that took hold of a person's body in the midst
of a hail of gunfire and then ripped off his head. It leisurely ate the heads after catching
people, even while being shot. No matter how much the body was filled with holes by
the bullets, the monster recovered like a white sandy beach where the waves had
passed.

"Kaaaaaaah!" The monster that all the soldiers thought of became reality and
appeared in front of them. It was a huge monster. The giant, four meters tall, was huge
and unspeakable. It looked like a giant that was extremely obese. Its face was like a
dough that had been crushed, the way its nose and cheeks were bulging out. Finally,
its skin looked like mud. Its skin looked like it should be sloughing off it.

"Heck…”

"Huck…”

The turbid cry of such a monster became an invisible shackle and tied the soldiers'
feet. The soldiers, tied to their feet, looked at the monster with a bewildered
expression. The ceaseless gunfire that had been raining incessantly stopped for the
first time.

"Kieeeee!" The area of the ceased gunfire was occupied by brown Goblins.

"Kieeeee!" The brown Goblins began to move again.

"Retreat!" In it, only Kim Soo-ji could shout.

"Tututu! Tututu!" With that cry, she pointed the gun at the head of a brown Goblin, not
the giant monster that appeared, and pulled the trigger.

"Retreat at full speed!" Her order followed the sound of the shot with a voice that was
already hoarse.

"We will rebuild the line at the church. Retreat!"

At that moment, her rifle, which had been shooting out ceaselessly so far, sounded as
if it had died. Tick, tick!

Her expression hardened. 'Ah!'

It was the worst moment, the only light that shone in the darkness was disappearing.
The focus was lost again in the eyes of the soldiers.

Kim Soo-ji, who had been calm so far, was trembling at this moment.

Honk! It was the honking of a huge dump truck coming toward them fast that woke
them up. Honk!

"What, what?"

"It, it's a truck!"

The sound of the honking horn repeatedly woke up the soldiers who were frozen. Honk!

The dump truck that appeared did not stop. Without a moment's hesitation, the truck
threw itself at the giant monster. When two giants collided, the enormous sound that
reminded them of the thunder filled their ears. Honk!

The eyes of the mad brown Goblins changed in front of the unspeakable impact.

Ki? Kie! For the first time, the brown Goblin's eyes were filled with fear, as if they had
come out of a trance.

"Stop shooting! We're here to help!" A man's voice was heard in the stillness of the
dump truck.

Kim Soo-ji turned her head and looked at the speaker. She saw the road the dump truck
created, a man walking down a bloody road of crushed and burst brown Goblins, and
a younger man following behind him.

Kim Soo-ji asked him, "Who are you?"

"Kim Tae-hoon," he answered briefly.

Bang Hyun-wook, who was excited by the battle after Kim Tae-hoon, added, "Hunters!
We are hunters hunting monsters!"

"Hunters?" Kim Soo-ji asked with a suspicious expression, at the words of Bang Hyun-
wook.

Kim Tae-hoon frowned briefly and answered, "Yes, we are hunters."

That was all they had time to say.

"Kaaaaah!" The scream of the Mud Troll monster hit by a dump truck and its amazing
recovery ability did not allow them any more time for gossip.
1.

"We are hunters."

The moment Kim Tae-hoon replied, the painful cry of the Mud Troll instantly shook
the battlefield.

Not only the soldiers but Kim Tae-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook who followed him turned
their heads and looked at the body of the Mud Troll trampled by the dump truck.

Obviously, it was a corpse.

The dump truck turned the Mud Troll into a burst balloon, and not just that, but had
crushed it with six giant wheels the height of a man.

There was no other explanation than that it was just a crushed dead body.

Now, however, the body that had to be a corpse was moving slowly, reforming its crushed
head and snout, and spitting out a weak but clear cry through its over-long nose.

It was a nightmare.

"Aaaargh! Aaaargh!"

"We're going to die, and it will eat our heads!"

The survivors now were those who had experienced nightmares in front of them
several times, not just once or twice.

Second lieutenant Kim Soo-ji, was the same.

'What do we do now?'
Everything was a nightmare from the beginning.

At the end of the year, there was no manual for a military force to respond to the sudden
monster raids in the military base located in the metropolitan area, not the border.

The damage was severe from the very beginning of the attack.

The brown Goblins began to hunt unarmed soldiers in a group.

The worst was that the Mud Troll appeared in the drinking party of the executive
officers ahead of the New Year.

Most of the commanding officers who had to give orders were slain by the Mud Troll.

If she had been a less flexible soldier, she would have entered the Mud Troll's stomach
early in the drinking party.

Anyway, after that, Kim Soo-ji had to pay the price of being a survivor.

She fought to survive with the remaining soldiers. To survive, she had to experience
nightmares again and again.

This Mud Troll, in particular, gave her despair beyond the nightmare.

'Weapons don't work against the Mud Troll.'

She had used all kinds of weapons against it, but the Mud Troll had never even made
a pained sound in front of the powerful firearms.

The only one thing that could stop such a Mud Troll was a sense of satiety!

Of course, at this moment, Kim Soo-ji could not think of a way to deal with the Mud
Troll. The inside of her head turned blank.

"State your official rank and name!" Kim Tae-hoon scolded her.

"Yes?"

"Your name."
"I, I am Kim Soo-ji."

"Rank!"

"Second lieutenant… Second lieutenant Kim Soo-ji, I'm leading the remaining survivors
of the 1121st unit."

The glitter in Kim Soo-ji's eyes changed. She had a gut feeling.

'He is a soldier!'

The man in front of her, Kim Tae-hoon, was a soldier or a similar kind of military who
had been through severe encounters several times.

Furthermore, she felt something.

'He's a soldier, I'm sure!'

It felt like she had seen a man named Kim Tae-hoon somewhere…

Anyway, Kim Tae-hoon's voice was like a lifeline to her, who was a soldier to the bone.

"I need information about that muddy monster now."

Soldiers don't have to worry about orders.

"It has the power to rip a man's body apart with its bare hands, its about four meters
in height, and it has the ability to recover quickly, even if it is wounded by a bullet."

"What about the firearm you used against it?"

"Claymores didn't work, and an 81-millimeter trench gun worked a little bit, but it not
much."

Kaaaaah!

While Kim Tae-hoon and Kim Soo-ji talked, the screaming Mud Troll began to
regenerate its upper body after its head. The sound of its screams grew louder and
clearer.
Of course, the fear that it emitted grew bigger and clearer!

The general soldiers trembled, and now they were so scared that they couldn't even
scream.

"Wow, that's not a fucking joke." On the contrary, Bang Hyun-wook spit out his feelings
in front of the screaming Mud Troll.

Kim Tae-hoon shouted at Bang Hyun-wook. "Bang Hyun-wook!"

"Yes, big brother!"

"Clean around."

"Yes!"

At that order, Bang Hyun-wook grabbed his bat without hesitation. His bat began to
take in the Energy that flowed through his body.

'Okay.'

Bang Hyun-wook knew now. To survive, he needed the power to deal with the monsters
he faced more clearly.

So he tried to survive and to find ways to use his power more efficiently and more
powerfully.

In the process, Bang Hyun-wook was able to realize some of the ways to wield his Energy.

'I know now how to use the power in my gut!'

It was not only Energy that strengthened his body, but with a little difficulty, it could
also wrap around an object in hand.

The power of that was enormous.

Pak!

His swing crushed a brown Goblin's head like a rotten pumpkin. Bang Hyun-wook
shouted between the scattered flesh, blood, and brain fluid, "Bucheon High School, No.
5 batter, Bang Hyun-wook is here! Come on, you bastards!"

The aura of Bang Hyun-wook changed as he spoke. If Bang Hyun-wook's reason

learned to deal with his Energy, his instincts learned to take advantage of the fight.

To deal with monsters, he had to be a monster!

"Second lieutenant Kim Soo-ji, stop shooting and get ready for the alert." Kim Tae-
hoon ordered Kim Soo-ji, leaving Bang to do his thing.

'Stop shooting? Alert?' It was a difficult order to understand. 'At this desperate
moment, the Mud Troll is recovering and still has twenty brown Goblins left, how can
we stop shooting and get ready for an alert?'

"Stop shooting! Set the line and turn to alert!" Kim Soo-ji's orders were immediately
followed like a soldier, excluding any doubts.

Of course, there were not many soldiers who quickly fulfilled her orders. Still unable
to overcome their fear of the Mud Troll, the soldiers in a state of fear were told not to
shoot.

"Put the gun down."

"Put it down."

Only the most important part, the warnings that had been received hundreds of times,
had instinctively been implemented.

The soldiers lowered their muzzles to the floor.

'But none of the survivors are mad.'

Kim Tae-hoon was forced to give up on the soldiers' help. There was nothing more
dangerous than a mad soldier.

At the same time, Kim Tae-hoon was confident that he could handle the brown Goblins
even if he did not have the soldiers' help.

Kim Tae-hoon's gaze left the soldiers and headed for the battlefield.
'The muddy monster is still recovering. It will take about forty seconds to recover.'

He checked the Mud Troll's condition.

The number of Goblins with brown skin surviving was twenty-one, but more than half
of them were seriously injured. It was bigger and more aggressive than the green
Goblins he dealt with at the large mart, but the combat risk was actually lower than it
was then.

He measured the number, condition, and location of the brown Goblins.

"Yiyaaaaaaab!"

He also confirmed the ability of Bang Hyun-wook, who was doling out ruthless violence
toward a brown Goblin.

'Ahn Sun-mi… is coming.' He noted the presence of an SUV approaching him.

At the end of his assessments, Kim Tae-hoon pulled a revolver from his waistband.

At the same time, Kim Tae-hoon looked at the brown Goblin nearby running at him.
The brown Goblin stiffened as their eyes met.

Kim Tae-hoon used his chain of telekinesis and wrapped it around the neck of the
brown Goblin.

Kuck!

As soon as the brown Goblin grabbed its neck with both hands as it strangled, Kim
Tae-hoon pointed the gun at it.

Bang!

A bullet mark was made in the brown Goblin's brow.

Precise fire! It was a shot that had to be accurate.

Kim Tae-hoon could now put bullets into the head of a crazy, raving beast. It was
boring, in a sense, to shoot a target whose movement was limited by his own
telekinesis, and it was the reason for his confidence.
Kim Tae-hoon's shots were so efficient that the brown Goblins seemed rather pitiful.

One shot, one kill!

Kim Tae-hoon had consumed only one bullet against each brown Goblin, which had
been bleeding from dozens of bullets so far, and which had been burning away the
murderous spirit rather than letting it build.

Six bullets used, six bodies fell down with blood spilling from their heads.

Kim Tae-hoon immediately filled the ammunition after he dropped the spent shells
from the cylinder of the revolver.

In the meantime, Bang Hyun-wook, seemingly competing with Kim Tae-hoon, had
smashed the heads of two brown Goblins with a single swing.

"Oh, a two-run home run!"

He was like a lawnmower, cutting down the grass mercilessly.

Kim Tae-hoon, who had filled all the cylinders during Bang Hyun-wook's performance,
started shooting again quickly.

This time it was a little faster. He pulled the trigger without a break.

The revolver's cylinder was emptied in a flash as if it were a fast draw game testing
accuracy in the shortest amount of time.

Of course, the five shots that had passed in a flash were not wasted. They penetrated
exactly five brown Goblins' foreheads.

So Kim Tae-hoon put down eleven Goblins.

"I got seven!" Bang Hyun-wook yelled after killing the seventh Goblin. Three of them
were left. "I'll take two!"

Two of the Goblins rushed toward Bang Hyun-wook, screaming, and the remaining
one rushed toward Kim Tae-hoon.

Kim Tae-hoon did not use a shot for the Goblin. Even though there was still one bullet
left, he holstered the revolver.

Then he grabbed his empty right hand and injected his telekinesis into it.

Kim Tae-hoon's fist turned black.

He put his fist, which was covered with the black armor and which would be not hurt
easily, into the forehead and above the nose of the brown Goblin.

Krak!

One fist broke the brown Goblin's nose, its eyeballs were crushed, and even its face
crumpled. It was the result of a 33 Strength stat and the Black Skin acquired from the
Black Orc.

"Big brother, I'm done!" The battle had taken thirty seconds, and the brown Goblins
were cleaned up.

The soldiers, including Kim Soo-ji, saw this scene and regained their courage.

'What is this?'

'What is this? Are we dreaming?'

It was not because of fear, but because it was so ridiculous.

'Well, that easy?'

It seemed like a dream to be able to so easily kill monsters that have been so deadly to
them.

Obviously, it was not a nightmare, nor a dream.

Blood began to return to the faces of the soldiers.

But what really mattered was still right there!

The Mud Troll, calling out loudly and angrily.

After the restoration of its upper body, the monster started to regenerate its lower
body and look around with orange eyes, smacking its lips again.

It was ready to show off its picky, disgusting habit of eating only the head.

Kim Tae-hoon said to Ahn Sun-mi, who was driving the SUV, "Ahn Sun-mi, open the
trunk!"

"I opened it!"

He tore open the back doors and pulled out a plastic container. He turned its blue lid,
and the strong smell of gasoline came out.

Kim Tae-hoon threw the gas jug toward the Mud Troll some distance away.

It was crazy, it did not make common sense. It was not easy to lift the weight of a five-
gallon container. But throw it?

It couldn't be done. The sight of it flying was hard to believe. However, the plastic jug
that Kim Tae-hoon threw flew away lightly, spilling gasoline.

"Did it stop?"

What was more surprising was that the plastic container flying in a perfect parabola
stopped directly on top of the head of the Mud Troll, and it began to vomit gasoline
like a waterfall.

The Mud Troll made a confused sounding, not knowing why the gasoline was running
over its whole body.

At that moment, Kim Tae-hoon drew his revolver again and pulled the trigger.

The last bullet the pistol fired went through the plastic container. Flames erupted,
instantly covering the Mud Troll's head, washing down its body like clothes.

At that moment, the Mud Troll began to cry for the first time, not to cause fear, but in
pain. At the same time, its body began to harden like clay.

The soldiers, including second lieutenant Kim Soo-ji, looked at the scene silently and
soullessly.
And Kim Tae-hoon…

Snap!

…took a shot of the scene on his smartphone and checked the picture.

---

[Mud Troll's Flesh]

- Mud Troll's flesh has excellent wound healing ability. Rubbing on a wound will treat
the wound, and eating it will temporarily increase the ability to recover.

---

It was the first time that the human race understood the value of a Mud Troll!
2.

The flames on the Mud Troll's body did not burn very long.

Beneath the flames that had burned themselves out, there was only a hardened lump
of mud.

It was a sight beyond belief.

No one knew that the weakness of the monster, which turned nearly a hundred soldiers,
including officers and other soldiers, into headless corpses, was the flames produced
by the gasoline.

It was also the fear of ignorance.

If they did not know, they would die. The Mud Troll was one of the symbols that told
them that such an era had come.

"Ahn Sun-mi, try to treat the wounded with the flesh of the Mud Troll."

Kim Tae-hoon was an early adapter in this era. Of course, Kim Tae-hoon was making
strong attempts to get rid of his ignorance.

"If there's any gas left, there might be a problem with the toxicity of gasoline."

"Most of the gasoline will have been burned away with the flames."

"But if there's a problem-"

"It's better to use the troll's flesh to test it than to let a man who's been bitten by a
monster with excessive bleeding or infection die without proper treatment."

The Mud Troll's flesh had information that it helped treat wounds and improve
recovery. Now was the time to get a better grip on this information.

As he said, ignorance is now death. It was time to learn things properly! His instruction
was reasonable enough in that sense.

Because it was so reasonable, Ahn Sun-mi could not even raise a question toward Kim
Tae-hoon's order.

"I see."

"Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji." Kim Tae-hoon called out to Kim Soo-ji, who was standing
upright when Ahn Sun-mi replied.

"Yes!" She walked forward as if waiting for an order.

"We're going to start treating the wounded. I want three soldiers to help Ahn Sun-mi."

"I understand." She immediately called over three healthy soldiers and gave them
orders.

Three soldiers, of course, did not have any doubts about treating the wounded…

"What?"

"I need that monster's body over there."

…until Ahn Sun-mi asked them to bring the flesh of the crumpled Mud Troll, now solid
like a piece of pottery.

"Is she crazy? Why do we have to bring over the flesh of that monster? Why?"

"Isn't that alive? If we touched it, and it could come to life."

“…do as you are told. There must be something."

As Ahn Sun-mi and three soldiers moved to treat the wounded, Kim Soo-ji spoke up,
"Can I ask you a question?"

"I'll hear and answer you."

"Did you see me at the Army headquarters five years ago?"

It was an unexpected question, but Kim Tae-hoon could come up with the answer.

"The granddaughter of Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong?"

"You must have been the one with Major General Chang Young-sung at that time."

At that moment, Kim Tae-hoon's expression hardened, for two reasons.

"You have a good memory."

One was because of the name of Major General Chang Young-sung. The other one was
because of the history of Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong.

Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong was the commander of the 60th division, the head of
the capital defense command. The commander of the 60th Division under the Capital
Defense Command was not a normal position.

At least, it was a position of power that could dispatch troops to save the granddaughter
in Bucheon, not far from Seoul.

Of course, Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong had retired three years ago, but the
influence of those stars did not disappear easily after retirement.

'The granddaughter of a real power.'

Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong was not in the wrong lineage. Command of the 60th
Division was not a place where a man of the wrong lineage could sit.

Now, however, Kim Soo-ji had survived by her own efforts without such a background.

'Seoul is also in trouble.'

It meant that Seoul has not been properly defended under the existence of the Capital
Defense Command.

'The worst imagination is a reality.' He had expected it.

When he saw the dragon flying from the direction of Seoul and heading for Incheon
across Bucheon, he did not expect Seoul to play a further role as a capital.

But it was a different story to make an expectation, and to meet the basis for making
such an expectation a reality.

"Does the army know about this situation?" Kim Soo-ji, who did not know the mind of
Kim Tae-hoon, asked first.

"If I had known, I wouldn't have come here, and if the military had known, your
grandfather would have called you home, Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji."

Kim Soo-ji closed her mouth tight. She had guessed that, too. Her grandfather's
background was not something she could run away from.

"Then…”

"The emergence of monsters has been made nationwide, and according to expectations,
the cities of Bucheon, as well as Seoul and Incheon, have been virtually paralyzed.
Perhaps all the cities in the country are in a similar state, and the military is probably
non-functional."

"Oh, my God," Kim Soo-ji blurted out.

For her, whose survival was the top priority, and who had barely completed the goal,
the reality and truth facing her were terrible.

Kim Tae-hoon closed his eyes. 'Actually, the army now is not what I know.'

But there was hope. Hope that the military might play a minimal role in this situation
through its own lack of communication.

'But now that expectation is meaningless. In this situation, there would be virtually no
help from the military. 'In order to survive, we have to survive by ourselves and by our
own hands.'

While Kim Tae-hoon was thinking about it, he looked at his right hand and the mark
of an Awakener. And he remembered the dragon, the crazy monster.

'What we need now is not the army, but a monster that can hunt the monsters. We
must become monsters before the monsters eat us.'
At that moment, Kim Tae-hoon's complicated thoughts cleared up.

"Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji!"

"Yes!"

"Take the bodies around, collect them in one place, and bring all the survivors,
including the wounded, together."

3.

[The Crystal of a Mud Troll]

- Strength increases when ingested.

- Defense skill increases when ingested.

- You can acquire the power of Mud Troll at the time of ingestion [the Vitality of Troll].]

------

Kim Tae-hoon looked at the orange jewel on his smartphone, a picture of the monster
stone of the Mud Troll, and he looked at the orange jewel on his palm.

"All gathered." Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji said, keeping her posture straight as always.

As she spoke, the twenty-three survivors of the 1121 unit gathered together.

Looking at them, Kim Tae-hoon started talking with an orange jewel in his hand.

He started talking about the incident at the supermarket, of the mark of an Awakener,
and of the monster stone, and the dragon.

"This is the reality we're in," he finished. Everyone who heard the story kept their
mouths shut and remained silent.

'Is this really real? Is it possible? Am I dreaming?'

'Will Mom and Dad be okay?'

'Shit, I've got a month before I was discharged from the military! A month! Why would
this ever happen to me?'

The present situation did not even give them room to be embarrassed, and Kim Tae-
hoon did not give them time to think.

"I'm done with all the information, and I'll start with my personal story."

"I will take all the monster stones from the monsters that you hunted here."

The one-sided notice gave everyone a blank look. 'What is he talking about?'

"If it's a monster stone, it's an item that raises the stats of Awakeners!"

Kim Tae-hoon clearly told them the importance of the monster stones.

After dissecting one of the collected Goblin bodies, he removed the monster stone
from its heart and took a picture of it on his smartphone and showed it to them.

He even said that monster stones would replace gunpowder in the future war.

He also said he would monopolize all the monster stones, which could be obtained
from the dead monsters.

It was like telling them that a jewel was valuable, and he would take them all.

"Wait, wait a minute…”

"You just said that the monster stones were valuable."

"If it's a monopoly, you are going to eat all of them, aren't you? Clearly, the monster
bodies in the military base were caught by us!"

Instinctive questions popped out all over.

"What is your life worth?" Kim Tae-hoon stopped their questions with a short word.

The soldiers went quiet. Kim Tae-hoon continued his speech, staring at them.

"This is the price of the information. If you raise your hand, I will give you the right to
speak."

No one raised their hand, of course.

The value of their lives and this information was not cheap at all, and it was also clear
that they owed Kim Tae-hoon their lives. It was not a time to be cheap.

"Do you need more time to raise your hands?"

But more importantly, it was the fact that the lives of those who remained now depended
on Kim Tae-hoon.

Kim Tae-hoon was an umbrella.

If someone dropped out from under the umbrella because of antagonism, then they
had to face the monsters on their own. If they faced a monster like a Mud Troll after
leaving Kim Tae-hoon, it meant that the life he barely saved would become a wasteful
lump of manure!

"I suppose there's no objection to my opinion."

Above all, only two of the soldiers who had survived, one of whom was Lieutenant Kim
Soo-ji, had the Mark of an Awakener.

For the remaining twenty-one, monster stones were like a pearl necklace on a pig's
neck.

A pearl necklace on a pig's neck means that a thief who coveted the necklace may catch
and kill him at any time.

"Then there is no debt going forward."

Kim Tae-hoon gave final notice to the silent ones, and at the same time, he swallowed
the orange jewel from the Mud Troll that he held in his hand.

"Ah…”

"Monster Stone…”

It was a gesture that announced the deal was over.

With this, Kim Tae-hoon was now the owner of hundreds of monster stones that had
been killed all over the 1121 unit. Whether he ate the monster stones or sells them, it
is now at his discretion.

The survivors, in return, no longer need to owe Kim Tae-hoon a debt of life.

"What I am doing now is a new proposal."

Of course, the fact that they needed an umbrella of Kim Tae-hoon had not changed.

"From now on, I will be creating a clan, and I will be taking applicants who will serve
as my clan members, not as soldiers."

Everyone was surprised at this proposal.

'What?'

'Clan?'

The same was true of Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji.

'What, what the hell!'

She thought that Kim Tae-hoon would act as their commander in the name of the army.
But this way, did he want to start a private organization?

At that moment, Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji could only recall…

Five years ago, she passed the entrance exam to the military academy, visited the army
headquarters and talked with her grandfather.

"That is Major General Chang Young-sung, who greeted me a little while ago. If you
graduate from the military academy and become a soldier, avoid meeting him
personally and publicly. There is nothing good with being tied up with him in any way."

It was the first warning that her grandfather, Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong ever
gave her.

"I ask you, what does the word clan mean?" she spoke out.
"It will be a private organization that moves with my orders and instructions, not the
military's instructions or orders."

"And you mean… you intend to use the military's weapons for your own benefit?"

"If it's in your private interest to work hard to survive, you can judge it that way."

At the word 'to survive', Kim Soo-ji had to keep her mouth shut. As soon as she was
silent, no one else could speak. With their mouths shut, they fell into the agony of
choice.

'Leave the army and join a private organization? A private organization using military
weapons? What crime will be applied? Desertion? Rebellion?'

'I can't die like this. If I want to live anyway, I'd better take out a gun or a grenade.'

'But if I get caught… '

Accepting Kim Tae-hoon's proposal was actually a criminal act. It is a criminal act so
great that they could not easily measure the sentence. They had no choice but to suffer
over the choice.

However, Kim Tae-hoon did not even give them the opportunity to agonize over their
choices anymore.

"Those who do not like my offer will be survivors, and they survive on their own."

At his words, no one was worried about the choice anymore.

The first Clan in Korea, consisting of 26 people, including Kim Tae-hoon, was created
that way.
4.

Kim put a red gem in his mouth and swallowed it. His breath, after he swallowed it
and breathed out, smelled of blood.

Through the bloody smell, Kim Tae-hoon put in another red gem.

"Whew…” Behind him, Bang Hyun-wook's long sigh came out. "I can't eat anymore… I
can't eat."

Following the sigh came a short speech. He was not really talking to himself.

They were words spoken to let Kim Tae-hoon know.

Kim Tae-hoon swallowed another red jewel, instead of answering. He was like a machine.

Bang Hyun-wook, watching him, stuck his tongue out.

'You're a great brother. I've hardly eaten thirty, and you've almost finished with more
than eighty.'

Bang Hyun-wook recollected what had just happened.

After finishing the Mud Troll hunting, Kim Tae-hoon declared the creation of the clan
on the spot and received applicants.

Of course, the applicants were forced.

There was not a single person who wanted to be thrown into a world full of monsters.

After that, Kim Tae-hoon took the nearby church as a base camp and started collecting
monster stones.
The monster corpses were everywhere. It was hard to collect all the monster corpses
in a short time.

Also, the number of monsters still surviving on the base was not small in number, so
only the monster corpses were collected.

Nevertheless, the number of monster stones collected exceeded a hundred.

Kim Tae-hoon ate most of the monster stones collected.

It was a monopoly.

No matter who looked at it, Kim Tae-hoon's greed was beyond excessive, and they
could not help but think that it was too much.

Kim Tae-hoon knew that well.

Gulp!

A strong smell of blood rose from his gut. There was always some left on the stone
after digging it out of the corpse of a Goblin. They hadn't really bothered to clean them
properly after collecting them.

Kim Tae-hoon closed his mouth to endure his rising disgust. He looked around with
his mouth clamped shut.

Soldiers resting in the church… He felt the gaze of those who had become his subordinates
now.

When Kim Tae-hoon tried to meet their eyes, they hurriedly avoided his gaze.

It was only a moment later when they exchanged glances. But it was not hard to read
their gazes.

'They see me as a greedy monster.'

He was sure that his men did not see him as a great leader who they could trust, follow,
and respect.

That was why he could be confident.

Their new leader, in their eyes, was skilled, but a greedy dictator. It was normal to see
it that way.

So far, Kim Tae-hoon's actions had been self-righteous, and right now Kim Tae-hoon
was right to be greedy.

'This will be a risk someday, but… '

The reason why Kim Tae-hoon was greedy, even though he knows it was disturbing,
was because he was assessing the situation more realistically than anyone else.

Gulp!

'I can't help it, for now.'

Kim Tae-hoon took the last jewel into his hand, and snapshot his hand with a
smartphone camera.

------

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 60

- Health: 42

[Special Abilities]

- Energy: E Rank

- Mana: E Rank

- Telekinesis: A Rank

- Defense: E Rank

- Mana Resistance: E Rank

[Achieved abilities]
- Black Skin (Grade 6)

- The vitality of Troll (Grade 6): The power of the Mud Troll consumes Energy to increase
recovery speed.

------

He saw his Strength had exceeded 60 points and the ability, [Vitality of Troll] he had
newly acquired.

Kim Tae-hoon clenched his fist after confirming the data.

'This is great.'

He knew, even without breaking anything, that his power was already beyond human.

At least now, Kim Tae-hoon would be able to show enough power that he will not lose
even if he fought the beasts with his body.

This was the result of a monopoly!

If Kim Tae-hoon had shared the monster stones according to a fair or very reasonable
calculation like someone else, there would not have been such a result.

Of course, it was not bad to distribute monster stones fairly and rationally. No one
hates rationality. Most things must be treated reasonably, because what is not rational
is eventually distorted, and one day it will collapse.

The problem is that the situation in which he was in now was a state of insane reason.

'But it's still a long way short.'

Humanity now faced a new enemy called monsters, and Awakeners had appeared to
deal with such monsters.

Simply put, it meant that when the Awakeners hunted monsters, mankind could survive.

Of course, the Awakeners must get rid of them.

'The Dragon… This much power to deal with… '

The dragon. A monster that scared all living creatures just by being present.

If Kim Tae-hoon had not experienced the appearance of the dragon, he would have
planned to build a balanced power rather than a monopoly.

By collecting Awakeners and then improving the overall power, he would have created
an efficient monster hunter group.

The monster stones that were secured immediately would have been distributed
under the concept of the right man in the right place.

But now, if he ran such an efficient group, it might take more than ten years to build
the power and capacity to kill the dragon.

In the meanwhile, there is no guarantee that the dragon would remain silent.

‘…at this level, it is not just not enough, but far from enough.'

And there was no guarantee that there would be only one dragon, and there was no
guarantee that there would not be a monster more terrible than the dragon.

Therefore, what was needed in this situation was not an efficient solution.

Something extreme was needed!

Not hundreds or thousands of well-made arrows, but an extremely sharp spear was
needed. It was necessary!

The clan, founded by Kim Tae-hoon, was a tool for making such an extreme sharp spear.

'This amount is not enough.'

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon would take most of the monster stones the clan acquired!

Naturally, if the army functioned properly, Kim Tae-hoon did not have to worry about
this, nor would he have to do this.

'We can't expect the help of the nation right now.'

Kim Tae-hoon had completely abandoned any expectations from the military.
'If the Capital Defense Command has collapsed, most of the rear units will have
collapsed, and only the front line will have survived the battle with the monsters, but
it will be isolated. It will be hard to hold on for a month if they don't get supplies.'

We must abandon expectations and assume the worst. If the front line collapses in
that situation… It is the worst of all.

‘…if the monsters that destroyed North Korea come down, and the moment the front
line collapses, it will be actually on the edge of a cliff.'

Kim Tae-hoon, who had assumed the worst of all, once again looked at the mark on his
right hand, the Mark of an Awakener.

'The only way to survive on that cliff… is to climb the cliff.'

There was something Kim Tae-hoon had realized as he came and went on a myriad of
battlefields.

There was nothing as meaningless as praying for something to reach out and save you.

If someone wanted a hero of legend to appear and save the world, it was just like
expecting a lottery win when not buying a ticket.

'If I want to live, I have to make a way to live!'

So Kim Tae-hoon got up.

"Attention."

At the words of Kim Tae-hoon, the attention of those who had avoided his eyes focused
on him.

"We'll clean up the monsters in the base in two hours. Our first destination is an
arsenal. After securing the arsenal, we'll finish supplying. The second is to sweep the
rest of the monsters in the base. After eliminating the monsters, we will secure the
monster stones from the monster corpses we have killed. Then we will take a rest."

After completing the one-sided notice, Kim Tae-hoon looked at Ahn Sun-mi.

"Ahn Sun-mi, how are the conditions of the injured?"

Ahn Sun-mi, who was checking the wounds of the injured, replied with some disbelief,
"There's no problem moving them."

Even while speaking, Ahn Sun-mi could not believe what she had seen.

The fact was that men who had their flesh torn off, been hurt with injuries they'd have
for the rest of their lives, and those who would be out of action for months… had been
treated neatly by the monster's flesh, making the medical arts she had learned by
dedicating most of her life a minor skill.

Of course, her thoughts were not considered by Kim Tae-hoon.

"Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji, what about the key to the arsenal?"

"I have it."

"Are there any questions?" Kim Tae-hoon gave them the right to ask questions for the
first time.

No one raised their hand. They were soldiers.

There are no questions for soldiers. There are only two things: orders, and action!

If someone raised his hand and asked questions in this situation, he was not a soldier.

"I have a question: what about our plans after we secure the arsenal, clean up the rest
of the unit, and rest?"

"There is nothing decided yet."

"Why don't we go to Bucheon Stadium?"

"Why?"

"There's a museum there, and if there's anything like the boss has said… I can call you
boss, right? Anyway, isn't it very likely that the relics that the boss mentioned are
there? For your information, there is also a bow museum!"

Kim Tae-hoon studied the person who had asked the question.
A small figure, a mouse-like appearance, the face of a man in his early or mid-twenties
with a look to be wary of, rather than a favorable impression.

"What's your name?"

"I'm Jang Sung-hoon, and I'm twenty-two now that the New Year has passed."

His name was Jang Sung-hoon.

"What did you do in society?"

"Ah, I did a little this and that… but I did not have only one exact job…”

"Tell me three things you did in society."

"I have forged art, stolen goods, and smuggled them."

His job was being a criminal!

1.

"How about that? Is it worth it?"

"Yes, this is enough for driving."

"Okay."

At the words of the driver of the dump truck, a soldier in the passenger's seat pulled
his head over the window and shouted. "No problem for driving!"

There was Kim Su-ji, who the words were meant for. She immediately told the soldiers
waiting,

"Clean the cargo bed of the dump truck!"

At her order, the soldiers climbed up the loading dock of the dump truck.

---

In the meantime, in the other place, Ahn Sun-mi checked the condition of the wounded.

"The reaction of the pupil of your eye is normal. Do you feel dizziness or vomiting?"

"I'm fine."

"What about the wound?"

"It is itching a little."

"Itchy… is it hard to bear?"

"No, not that much."

"He should have been crippled for life, even if he had the right surgery quickly. But his
condition was treated in just one hour and the aftereffect is just itching… If this
recovery effect is also effective in the internal organs… Wait a minute, if the effect of
the Mud Troll and the treatment from a Glass of Therapy are overlapped, wouldn't it
be possible to expect an even higher recovery? I'll have to study this, as soon as the
conditions are met."

The injured were in excellent condition. The flesh effect of the Mud Troll was so
effective that it left her speechless.

---

Bang Hyun-wook was shoveling against the body of the Mud Troll, which was only
seen as a heap of mud.

It was not an easy task. The Mud Troll's flesh was much heavier than ordinary soil,
and it was thick enough to remind him of a mudflat. It was not easy to put the shovel
in the mud without using great force, and it was also not easy to dig out. Already the
average soldiers shoveling were injured from a slight twist of the wrist.

So it became Bang Hyun-wook's job. After Kim Tae-hoon, Bang Hyun-wook was the
one with the highest level of Strength.

"Oh, God, look at that shoveling."

"It's amazing."

"If a quartermaster saw that shoveling, he would be startled. He could dig the whole
mountain out."

Such shovel work from Bang Hyun-wook was technically excellent, apart from his
power. Even the soldiers who were veterans at shoveling looked at him with surprise.

'I didn't know I would be shoveling here to make the mound.'

However, Bang Hyun-wook's feeling at his shoveling was not so good.

He was not unaware of the importance of shoveling; the Mud Troll's flesh was literally
life in situations where there was no right medical service at the moment.
But it was a completely different story when things were important and were
worthwhile to do.

So Bang Hyun-wook shoveled.

Vitality began to bloom in the military base, where there was thought to be only death,
despair, and nightmares.

----------

Kim Tae-hoon was savoring the coffee he had used with the coffee dripper. In front of
him was Jang Sung-hoon, sipping coffee in a paper cup.

"Oh, it smells good. Is it from Colombia?"

At the words of Jang Sung-hoon, Kim Tae-hoon looked at him gently as he savored his
coffee.

"Or Ethiopia? You have a good talent for coffee. You look like a barista."

Kim Tae-hoon still had coffee in his mouth. Jang Sung-hoon swallowed what he was
about to say.

Kim Tae-hoon swallowed the coffee that he had been drinking, before asking, "What
do you want?"

There was an awkward smile on Jang Sung-hoon's lips.

"Haha… you're not a normal person either."

At those words, Kim Tae-hoon drank coffee instead of answering again.

It was a signal.

As he savored the coffee, he would keep his mouth shut, signaling that the other
should say what he wanted to say.

A signal to imagine what will happen if he says something wrong. Jang Sung-hoon did
not make any more ass-kissing noises about Kim Tae-hoon.
"First, the reason why I talked about my criminal record is that what I have to say is
related to it."

Jang Sung-hoon had told him that there was a museum in the nearby Bucheon Stadium.

So far, there was no problem. Anyone could have told him that. The information that
there was a museum there was not strictly confidential.

However, after that, Jang Sung-hoon revealed that he was a criminal and had a criminal
career.

That was a problem.

Even if society had broken down, it is not good to confess to a crime. Moreover, Jang
Sung-hoon's was likely not to have confessed sins already punished.

He was twenty-two years old.

If he had done all the art forging, stolen goods, and smuggling, and been punished for
it, he would have been in and out of prison once or twice. If he had spent a long time
in prison, he wouldn't be in the army.

His colleagues didn't know he was a criminal!

When Jang Sung-hoon confessed, the reactions of his colleagues could be inferred
easily.

In other words, he had made his first confession!

So why did he do it? Why did he reveal at this moment that he was a criminal had not
been caught?

"I think a lot of people know the location of the museum. Frankly, that isn't very
helpful. But you know what? I know a few rich people who know where and how to
smuggle, donate counterfeit goods and keep their genuine works, or keep their art for
investing and bribery."

The reason was simple. If a criminal spits it out, he has information that is reliable!

"There are two things I want. One is life. If you think I'm useful, the boss will protect
me before anyone else. For your protection, I have a lot of good information."

Instead of answering, Kim Tae-hoon exhaled. The aroma of strong coffee came out.

"The second reason is that I want to take a share."

While savoring the scent, he watched Jang Sung-hoon's eyes as the man continued to
speak.

A fierce beast's eyes, which did not match the appearance of the mouse, showed the
glitter of the eyes of an eagle.

"I won't hide it. Now that society has become a mess, it will eventually create a new
society. After the Korean War, the world improved in the end. Instead, a new order will
be established. You said 'hunter'? Perhaps the hunter will be the power of the new
order."

While speaking, Jang Sung-hoon tapped on his right hand with his left index finger.

"But unfortunately, I can't be a hunter. And I don't think I can be a great hunter like the
boss, if possible. So I have to stick to you. I can be a fox… if I am stuck on the back of a
tiger."

He could hear Kim Tae-hoon swallowing.

"My first priority is survival. It is my first priority to eat monster stones and build up
my strength and to increase the power of the army that can not do the job I do. I do
not intend to take my share right away."

At his words, Jung Sung-hoon swallowed.

'Shit, is he really doing this to save the world? Is he going to be a warrior of justice?'

He thought that he had uselessly exposed his personal greed and touched the other
person's wrath.

Kim Tae-hoon was thinking about whether humans really wanted to become heroes
of justice, who acted out of the desire to save the world.

"So if you want to get your share, take it yourself. Don't think I'll take care of it," Kim
Tae-hoon answered shortly.

"Hooooooo…” Jang Sung-hoon gave a long sigh instead of an answer.

Kim Su-ji came in. "We've completed the remodeling of the dump truck!"

"We'll start the operation in half an hour!"

With that word, Kim Tae-hoon took something out of the bag next to him, which
contained coffee, a portable pot, and coffee drawer.

"Before then, we'll take a rest. Divide and smoke."

It was nothing other than a carton of cigarettes.

2.

The 1121 unit was a monster den, and there were so many monsters that it was not
an exaggeration to say that.

Most of them were brown Goblins.

Those were so strong that they couldn't be compared with Goblins with green skin.
They had aggressiveness and the will to fight, and it was more difficult to deal with
them than ordinary Goblins.

Unless the heart and head were destroyed, soldiers had to consume dozens of shots
to kill the monsters which were rushing into their bullets.

Kim Tae-hoon knew the fact well, so he brought it along.

A dump truck, a giant monster!

Of course, it was not simply to break the Mud Troll that he brought the dump truck.

Making the dump truck's back end into a mobile shooting board was the decisive
reason why Kim Tae-hoon brought a dump truck.

The presence of the dump truck was really absolute.

The brown Goblins' aggressive behavior towards the running dump truck had not
diminished at all, but the battle was totally different from when there were no dump
trucks.

The clinging brown Goblins fell so helplessly that the madness of the past was erased.

Also, there was a completely different sense of stability for a soldier who pulled the
trigger from the back end made of steel on the dump truck.

"Take your time and shoot it right! Save your ammunition!"

"Yes!"

The overwhelming tactical advantage made it possible. The psychological stability of

that advantage had increased the accuracy of the soldiers to an unmatched level.

The soldiers who pulled the trigger decisively, now Kim Tae-hoon's soldiers, were full
of wrath to vent.

"I'll kill you, you bastards!"

"Let's dry the seeds!"

The body of the brown Goblins piled up on the roads the dump truck ran past, victims
of righteous anger.

However, there was no Kim Tae-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook in the scene.

3.

Tututu!

Kim Tae-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook were moving far away from the place where the
shooting sounded faintly. They were alert and careful

They could see the brown Goblins running toward the dump truck and the commotion
it was causing.

"They're not just moving randomly, as big brother said," Bang murmured to himself.
It was clear that there was a purpose in the actions of those who moved toward the
dump truck, exactly as if they were ordered. It was a completely different movement
from the monsters that had focused on visible targets so far.

It was why Kim Tae-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook moved separately.

'There's something behind them, as big brother said. It's great. How does he know
this?'

Kim Tae-hoon immediately had a hunch when he saw a system in the fight with the
brown Goblins.

That there is a leader.

If there was a system in the fighting, it meant that there was something to give orders
and command.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon was looking for the leader, tracking back the brown Goblins
running towards the dump truck.

"Stop."

He found the Goblin pack outside the base.

"About 400 meters ahead."

“…yeah, I see it."

The view was dim, but there was no shortage of weirdness at the sight.

Carcia Shausnia!

A tall, six-foot-tall, horned brown Goblin with orange eyes, was exhaling like a magic
spell. Red breath flowed out of the Goblin's mouth in serpentine streams, and it was
sucked into the mouths of the Goblins around it.

The eyes of the brown Goblin who had inhaled the red breath went wild, and they
immediately began to run in the direction of the dump truck.

'Now I've seen all kinds of things, damn it… '

Bang Hyun-wook, who looked at the scene, swallowed without knowing it.

"Even big brother can't kill it."

Strange as it was, it seemed impossible to say that even Kim Tae-hoon would be able
to deal with such a large group with only the two of them.

Even with a gun, it seemed impossible to hit an enemy more than four hundred meters
away with an automatic rifle, not a sniper rifle. Even if it were hit, it would just be a
warning informing it of the location of the two of them.

It seemed wise to come back with those who he was in charge of, after retreating safely.

However, Kim Tae-hoon's choice was different.

Bang!

A sudden shot.

"Uhhh!"

Kim Tae-hoon said to Bang Hyun-wook, who was startled by the gunshot, "Let's go back."

In the eyes of Bang Hyun-wook, there was no more sign of a Goblin with horns doing
strange things. He could only see a pack of Goblins who seemed to be confused…
4.

Kim Tae-hoon was looking at the pictures on his smartphone.

------

[Hobgoblin's Crystal]

- The skill of Mana increases when ingested.

- The skill of Mana Resistance increases when ingested.

- The power of a Hobgoblin [Hobgoblin's Sense] can be acquired when ingested.

------

Kim Tae-hoon's fingers flicked through the picture.

------

[Hobgoblin's Horn]

- The horn of Hobgoblin has a mysterious power. Some of the effects of that power are
exercised when ingested.

------

He flipped the picture again.

------

[Basic Abilities]
- Strength: 69

- Health: 45

[Special Abilities]

- Energy: E rank

- Mana: E+ Rank

- Telekinesis: A Rank

- Defense: E Rank

- Mana Resistance: E+ rank

[Achieved abilities]

- Black Skin (Grade 6)

- The vitality of Troll (Grade 6)

- Hobgoblin's Sense (Grade 6): You can sense and understand the presence of a stronger
enemy than yourself earlier and more accurately.]

------

Kim Tae-hoon took his eyes off his smartphone when he got to the picture with the
mark of his right hand.

Kim Tae-hoon looked up.

He saw a fairly wide training ground, the bodies of the monsters all over the ground,
soldiers atop the corpses and practicing the dissection of corpses to get the hearts out,
and soldiers who had already come out of the area and smoking with bloody hands.

He listened to them talking.

"Huh, I didn't know I'd dissect monsters in my life. My hands are still shaking."
"So are mine."

"Shit, but this damn hard work makes the cigarette taste excellent, excellent."

The faces of the soldiers spitting out cigarette smoke were fatigued.

"It has been a really long damn day."

"Has it been a day?"

"I think the clock is wrong."

"I can't believe it's January 1st. It seems that it's been about ten years."

It was a day of eternity.

---

The traces were also on Kim Tae-hoon's face.

'A day has passed.'

Kim Tae-hoon could not easily believe that the year he looked up and was prepared to
fall was the New Year, 2017.

A long sigh came from his mouth. White breath steamed in front of him.

Memories of the past began to grow dim after hard work and proper rest for more than
24 hours.

The faces of many people came to his mind. Now the faces could only be seen in
memory. At the same time, his expression hardened.

A woman approached Kim Tae-hoon.

"We've divided and loaded the weapons into the dump truck, two military trucks, and
four SUVs."

It was Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji.

"Well done." He was sitting on a crudely-made wooden bench and gave a short answer
to Kim Soo-ji's words. He did not turn his gaze to her.

Kim Soo-ji looked down at him silently without turning around. Kim Tae-hoon finally
spoke up.

"If you have something to say, say it."

"May I know what your rank is?"

"It's Major."

"Ah."

Kim Soo-ji nodded, unsurprised at his words.

Major… She didn't know his age.

However, Kim Tae-hoon did not look very old, around the early thirties, so she was
surprised.

The rank of major in the Korean army is that of a soldier who takes an elite course
within the shortest period of time possible.

Moreover, it is the best elite course ever, where he has been promoted without a single
stop. If someone took such an elite course, his name would be known early in the
military.

She bet if Kim Tae-hoon did normal activities as an officer, he would never have become
a major.

In other words, all the activities Kim Tae-hoon had done so far are not normal.

"Excuse me, can you tell me who you served under?"

"I served under Major General Chang Young-sung, and it's meaningless to ask further."

"What do you mean, it's meaningless?"

"There will be no official documents to find and read. No matter what I say, there is no
evidence to prove I exist."

"I don't care about the evidence."

When Kim Soo-ji kept pressing, Kim Tae-hoon raised his head and looked at her. He
could see her eyes were determined.

'I do not think that Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong would tell a good story about
Major General Jang Young-sung.'

Her grandfather, Brigadier General Kim Jae-ryong, would know full well the role of
Major General Chang Young-sung.

That's why he must have warned his granddaughter, "Don't get involved with major
general Chang Young-sung in any way."

Nevertheless, she asked the questions. It meant that she was fully prepared.

Kim Soo-ji was a model of a woman soldier who thought it was a sin to ask questions
to her boss.

Therefore, Kim Tae-hoon told her about his affiliation. "A secret unit created to
assassinate or destroy the factors or groups that threaten the nation. The unit that
doesn't even have a name is my affiliation."

And that brief explanation was enough to guess what Kim Tae-hoon has been doing as
a soldier.

At the same time, she could fully guess that Kim Tae-hoon was a member of such a
secret special unit and had a rank that did not fit his age. It was evidence of his
outstanding activities beyond active duty.

In addition, Kim Soo-ji could understand the meaning of the warning that her grandfather
gave.

"Thank you for telling me."

He closed his eyes without answering.

When he closed his eyes, he remembered the faces that had just come up with, the
faces he could only remember now. They spoke to him.

'You must survive, at least you must survive, the boss should survive, and at least you
will survive… '

Kim Tae-hoon swallowed a bitter smile at the words.

'I didn't become a soldier to survive, but from a certain moment surviving became my
sole purpose.'

Kim Tae-hoon talked, swallowing a bitter smile.

"Is that the end of the questions?"

Kim Soo-ji seemed to think this was an opportunity, and immediately asked another
question. "Why did you organize a private organization called a clan? You could act in
the name of the army."

"If I work in the name of the army, I cannot go hunting monsters without ignoring the
people and the nation. Of course, if I look at what the ROK military has done in the
meantime, it will not be a big flaw if I go kill monsters in the name of the military."

Kim Tae-hoon did not add that as he violated the spirit of the military to live, he could
call it a real desire to keep living. Even if he did not add that, the meaning would be
enough.

"Boss." An uninvited guest appeared.

Jang Sung-hoon appeared, and Kim Soo-ji looked at him with a sullen expression.

The sudden appearance of an uninvited guest, and the title Jang Sung-hoon used for
Kim Tae-hoon, seemed to be unsatisfactory to her.

"Can I make a suggestion?" Jang Sung-hoon asked directly, without paying much
attention to Kim Soo-ji.

"Can I use the monster skin to make a guard?"

Kim Tae-hoon managed to look surprised.

"I didn't think of it. I was just talking to the other soldiers. The world has changed like
a game, and I have been told that we can make items from monsters.

"In the game, we make items with monsters, so we wondered if it would work in
reality. We want to try making a protector with monster skin."

It was a ridiculous idea.

"No, what is it…” Kim Soo-ji tried to spit out a denial reflexively because it was so
ridiculous.

But Kim Tae-hoon's thoughts were different.

'The Black Orc's skin was very tough and strong.'

The strength of monsters was not the same as the strength of the beasts that humanity
had already met. Their skin was strong enough to hold stop bullets.

That was why it was meaningful.

Even if we look at human history, it was a serious idea. Humanity was weak, and its
weakness had been reinforced by the strong parts of other animals.

With the poison of poisonous creatures, the skin of beasts with tough hides, and the
ivory of fierce beasts with sharp teeth, they made tools and weapons, and they
eventually survived.

It was not strange that the source was changed to a monster, but it is natural that
mankind must choose to survive.

"What tools do you need?"

"To be honest, we can't make even a pair of clumsy shoes with the tools we have now."

"So…”

"But there's an Ojung-dong industrial complex right in front of the base, and if we have
the materials, we could build a nuclear bomb. We can get there on foot in about twenty
minutes from the base."
The tools were enough.

"What about a craftsman?" All that remained were the craftsmen.

"Is there anyone with gold spoons in the army who don't have oil on their hands and
who only spend all their money? The army is for the people who come to work hard
and have oil on their hands. It would be strange if there were no craftsmen from the
factory, and if not, there would be survivors in the industrial complex, and they will be
able to help us."

Kim Tae-hoon stood up, nodding his head.

'I guess it's not yet time for bed… '

5.

Making clothes using animal skin was not something they could do overnight.

The skinning process required highly skilled techniques and sophisticated tools, and
a considerable amount of time, as well as the equivalent of technology and medicine,
to dry the skin even after it was peeled off.

Of course, it was impossible to make a protector with the monster skin in a short time.

Kim Tae-hoon also did not intend to leave the base immediately.

It was necessary to move together, and above all, the armor made with Goblin skin
was not proven to be urgently needed.

They need to assess the utility value of Goblin skin.

---

Pook! Pook!

"How about that?"

"Where there are about three layers, a knife doesn't get through."

"Three overlapping sheets would be fairly thick, and I don't think that's going to get a
Goblin tooth on it."

"But if we overlap three sheets, we can't move because it's too heavy."

"Our main weapon is a gun, isn't it? Wouldn't it be all right if we could aim?"

"Honestly, this is better than a bulletproof suit. Anyway, the monsters won't shoot."

Kim Tae-hoon tested those things with his soldiers: how tough the crudely peeled
Goblin skin was, and how much unprocessed Goblin skin was needed for armor.

In the meantime, it was none other than Ahn Sun-mi who made a valid item.

"It's a medicine pill that combines the horn of the Hobgoblin, the flesh of the Mud Troll,
and therapy water made by a Glass of Therapy."

Ahn Sun-mi showed off a pill of bottle cap size and took a picture of it with a smartphone
camera.

[Effect]

- Resistance to fear increases slightly.

- Recovery ability is slightly increased.

- Concentration is slightly improved during battle.

- Pain decreases slightly.

- Health is consumed quickly.

Ahn Sun-mi made an item using the materials from monsters Kim Tae-hoon's clan had
acquired so far.

What a useful item!

'It's better than I thought.'

When dealing with monsters, guns were a very powerful weapon.

With a well-armed single platoon, they could handle a hundred monsters, if they were
trained and commanded well.

The problem is that when monsters such as Black Orc and Mud Troll appeared, they
caused fear when they screamed.

Even Awakeners stiffened up as soon as they were exposed to the fear.

This fear was not something which could be mentally resisted. The energy rank was
important. If the energy rank was high, the fear could be ignored, endured, or
recovered from quickly.

Therefore, no matter how large an army was organized, if the average person had a
low energy rank, or did not have such a thing, they'd be taken out instantly. It was one
of the biggest reasons why Kim Tae-hoon was wary of the monsters.

In such a situation, the pills made by Ahn Sun-mi were light and salt!

What if this pill gave Awakeners and the average person tolerance, resistance, and
recovery against the fear?

'It depends on the effectiveness, but the tactics and firepower available would be
greatly increased if the average soldiers or the low-ranking Awakeners could resist
the fear.'

Of course, for a more powerful medicinal effect, a more powerful monster had to be
caught, and clinical trials required confirming the effect according to the dose, and
whether there were any side effects.

It is clear that Ahn Sun-mi had done a great deal of work.

"You've made a new medicine, you name it."

"Yes?"

"We'll have to make a lot of similar things in the future, and we'll need names to sort
them out."

"I know, well… but I'm a doctor."

The answer to such a proposal came from the mouth of another person. "I'd call it Sun-
mi Dan after your name, and it's intuitive and good, isn't it?"

"Do you want to die?" Ahn Sun-mi looked at Bang Hyun-wook, who was talking bullshit.

Bang Hyun-wook turned his attention to Kim Tae-hoon to avoid her eerie gaze.

"Big brother, wouldn't it be better for us to name our clan than the name of this
medicine now? Or do you have a name already?"

At the question, Kim Tae-hoon rubbed his chin.

He didn't think about that part. What Kim Tae-hoon needed was not the name of the
clan, but rather the clothes he should wear, instead of an army uniform.

But as Bang Hyun-wook said, he could not just say "clan" without a name.

A name was very important for any force!

"I have a good name because I learned some Chinese characters, and the light illuminates
the road, Road Light, how about it?"

"It's a bit weird." Ahn Sun-mi shot it down immediately.

"So, sister, do you have a good name?"

"Just naming a cigarette would be better than that crap."

"Marlboro Clan?"

Ahn Sun-mi turned her head as if she did not even want to deal with Bang Hyun-wook
anymore. The two were apparently quarreling brothers and sisters.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon also ignored Bang Hyun-wook's words. At least, it was clear
that Bang Hyun-wook's suggestions would never help name the clan.

In the end, Kim Tae-hoon asked for help from someone with the most literary and
archaeological knowledge in the clan.

"Clan's name? I've forged someone else's name, but it's the first time I named a clan.
Wouldn't it be bad luck for a human who has forged art to make a name for a clan?"
Jang Sung-hoon laughed at Kim Tae-hoon's request. "So, what do you want?"

"Which one is better?"

"Normally, these battle groups are named after a mythical animal. Three-legged Crow,
Hatch, Mac, and even the Four Mythical Animals are childish but surprisingly fine. I
like the Vermillion Bird, the Vermillion Bird!"

"What are its characteristics?"

"When you're naming, it's best to remember and say it easily, because it's all about
meaning."

At his words, Kim Tae-hoon picked a word that didn't worry him. "Mac."

The word he chose was Mac.

"What is the characteristics of Mac, a mythical animal?"

"It's different from country to country, but it's usually known as a mythical animal
which eats nightmares. Mac clan, that's not bad. So where is the next destination of
our Mac clan? Are we going to the industrial complex, or…?"

"We're going to Bucheon Stadium tomorrow morning."

The next destination of the Mac clan was Bucheon Stadium, where the bow museum
was located!
1.

A car that had been blocking the road fell into the ditch by the road with a crash of
metal. Its nose crumpled loudly. If the owner had seen it, he would have been mortified.

"I can't believe that there are so many cars in the small country. Oh, God!" The person
doing this was angry rather than reflective.

What was more surprising was that the cars he had not knocked down the side of the
road were not one or two.

Hundreds of cars were being sent into the ditches, some cars slamming into one
another quite loudly.

Bang Hyun-wook turned his head, looked at what he had done and wiped the sweat
off his forehead.

Jang Sung-hoon, who had just sent a car into the ditch, said to him, "You're very strong."

"It thanks to jewels of Strength and Energy. If I made my professional debut right now,
I would hit a hundred home runs."

"Yes, I really hope you make your professional debut. If the car owners here later see
you in the black boxes and claim damages, you'll either file for bankruptcy or go to the
Major League and hit the jackpot."

"Please, I hope that a world like that will come back."

"I agree." Jang Sung-hoon once again looked at the crowd of cars on the road with his
words. 'I've done all sorts of bad things to get one of these… and now they are like
garbage.', he mused to himself

Among them, there was one expensive enough to whistle at the moment Jang Sung-
hoon saw it.

"Uh? Boss? Boss!" Jang Sung-hoon shouted at Kim Tae-hoon, who was marking a car
to push off onto the side of the road ahead of them.

"Boss, that's a Cayenne! A Porsche Cayenne!"

He saw Kim Tae-hoon trying to mark an X-shape with a red oil pen on the back glass
of Cayenne, an SUV made by Porsche.

"It's worth at least a hundred thousand dollars!"

For reference, the price of a new Porsche Cayenne was a hundred thousand dollars
without any option. Adding options, it could be worth up to twice that.

At least it was a too much valuable car to put in the ditch, and at the same time, Porsche
was a car-maker that could make the man's heartburn.

Of course, that was Jang Sung-hoon.

Kim Tae-hoon did not even look up at the cry, and immediately pushed the back of the
car lightly. Confirming it was in neutral, he immediately looked at the back of the car.

He painted it in his mind. A picture of a huge intangible wall pushing the car away. A
picture of a car moving slowly toward the ditch.

The image in his mind became a reality. The car moved on its own and started to go
down the ditch.

The expensive car went down into the ditch and slammed into the back of another car
already there.

Bang!

Watching the car like he was losing a lover, Jang Sung-hoon spat out a sigh. "If I could
just drive that thing once…”

"Tae-hoon brother is the one who beat an Orc with a Mercedes when he caught it, so
it's nothing."
"There's a difference between Mercedes and Porsche!"

"Different? Aren't their prices similar?"

"It's not the price, but the romance! The romance!"

Kim Tae-hoon shot a look at the two of them.

'Huck!'

'Oh, my God… '

Jang Sung-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook became dumb. The meaning was clear - Shut
Up and Get Back To Work.

After seeing they had shut up, the gaze moved past them.

He saw the road they had come up was like a graveyard of cars, the dump truck that
was slowly moving up the road, and the cars that followed it were like ducklings
chasing the mother duck.

He could also see the soldiers filling the scene.

"Hey, watch out, watch out!"

"I'm sorry."

"Move the dead body carefully, and even if you can't do a funeral, you have to use at
least a little courtesy."

"I understand."

"It's a happy thing to deal with the dead, it's proof that you lived."

Some of the soldiers were working on moving the dead bodies to the side of the road
and covering their faces with jumpers.

"Monster stone collection is finished."

"Ten quotas is finished. Can I have a cigarette?"

"Yes, I've filled ten. Let's smoke together."

The other soldiers were working on finding the monster bodies and then grabbing the
monster stones by cracking their chests open.

There was a puff of smoke between the jobs.

Kim Tae-hoon sighed briefly as he watched the scene.

"I'm glad there's less noise than I thought…”

------

January 2nd.

At the end of the day, which was like an eternity, Kim Tae-hoon and his newly-minted
men if the Mac Clan, left the 1121 unit at the moment the sun rose and began marching
toward the Bucheon Stadium.

The march was not so long.

The distance was about five kilometers, and even if you walked, it was only an hour to
reach it.

However, the Mac Clan, who had left the unit at 7 AM, arrived at the Bucheon Stadium
Station near Bucheon Stadium at 2 PM, just past the middle of the day.

They had to arrange the roads so that the vehicles carrying the weapons could move,
including the dump trucks carrying the weapons.

There were few monster raids. It was a task that took a lot of time.

Getting rid of the cars which had lost their owners filling the streets by shoving them
to the side also a took a lot of time, and it was not an easy job to deal with cars that
were tangled up by traffic accidents if they didn't have Kim Tae-hoon and Bang Hyun-
wook.

But it was a task that had to be done.

'Anyway, we have secured a road that links the Stadium Station with the military base.'
Now the dump truck wasn't just a truck, but an arsenal with a lot of weapons, and a
powerful weapon that allowed them to gain the height advantage in the battle with
monsters.

Securing a road for such a dump truck to move was now the most important thing for
the Mac Clan.

Moreover, the road was supposed to be used as a way out at an emergency moment,
so organizing the road stupidly was just like dealing with their lives stupidly.

'Living in an apartment or a building is dangerous. If we decide where to live, we'd

better go to a military base or Bucheon Stadium… '

It was also important to dispose of the bodies of the dead. The place where a body
sleeps becomes a tomb, but the place where it is scattered becomes hell.

The difference was huge.

Organized bodies would be a sign of order still remaining in a world that seemed to
be nearing the end.

'Uh? There, there!'

"What is it? What happened? Ah!"

"The smoke is thick over there. It looks like there's a fire?"

"Isn't that a general fire, with that much smoke? It's an apartment complex over there,
isn't it?"

Everyone's eyes turned to the smoke of the distant apartment complex. Kim Tae-hoon's
eyes also turned.

'Now this is the beginning.'

That performance that everyone is looking at is why we need a trace of order.

The cause of the smoke was obvious.

Smoke would not be generated without fire in the chimney, so there is no smoke without
fire, isn't there?

It was a fire.

The cause of the fire was obvious.

"What happened to the fire?"

Currently, the temperature was minus ten degrees Celsius, but the wind was blowing,
rather than the temperature is rising.

In this cold winter, no electricity or gas was being supplied.

In the end, we will have to use the old-fashioned methods that mankind used to
endure in the cold.

"I'm sure they set a fire to melt themselves, and if there were no fire in this weather,
they'd freeze to death."

Of course, they would have set a fire.

Naturally, if they had had common sense, they would have come out of the building
and brought out something like a drum, or a large-scale cooking oil, and put some
firewood into the fire.

But some of them, without common sense, would have been burning in their house
using portable gas burners and portable butane heaters, and this was not a world that
rewarded a lack of common sense.

The problem is that there were no firefighters to dispatch even if they called 911.

"Maybe we just have to wait until the fire goes out unless it rains. But it won't rain in
this weather. If it rains, it would be even more astonishing."

"What happens when the apartment complex is on fire and spreads around?"

"Well…”

The world that people had built was as easy to burn as matchboxes.
"I don't know what will happen, but I'm sure there's no way to do anything."

"It's creepy."

In fact, this applied not to just monster attacks, but also disasters such as earthquakes.

Experts say that when a disaster like a major earthquake occurs, there would often be
more deaths from secondary disasters such as fires in the infrastructure that had
collapsed, than the deaths caused by the disaster.

'The real trouble is now beginning.'

It would be monsters, not people, who would be most excited in such confusion.

'Hmm… ' At that moment, Kim Tae-hoon's head went back.

To his eyes, this was a desolate road filled with vehicles.

But his other senses said that the desolation was false. The Sense of the Hobgoblin
told Kim Tae-hoon that there was a strong being near him.

"Prepare for battle!" Kim Tae-hoon shouted.

Ohwwww!

After Kim Tae-hoon's cry, an eerie howling that made their legs tremble echoed around
them!
2.

A-wooooooo!

A Werewolf, with gray hair, a huge physique over two meters tall, howled at the sky.

It sounded like a typhoon.

It was not a simple sound. At the same time, it was not the sound of a wolf being lonely.

Howling was also an order, a wolf's cry for his pack.

Awww! Aooo!

Of course, the howling of wolves followed the call of the Werewolf. They saw them
coming; they were wolves running on four feet, unlike the Werewolf.

Of course, it was nothing like a wild wolf.

Excluding the tail, they were two meters long, gray-furred… but they had huge heads,
red eyes, and a pair of massive fangs, like a sabretooth tiger!

A Sabretooth Wolf!

As soon as the Werewolf's howl exploded out, about twenty sabretooth wolves, who
had been quietly approaching their prey, began to race down the road full of cars.

At the end of the rush, there was a dump truck.

Of course, the dump truck was not the target.

The purpose of the rushing wolves was the soldiers of Mac Clan, who lifted their heads
with guns in the back of the dump truck.
The soldiers' purpose was also the sabretooth wolves.

"Start firing!"

The battle began with the order of Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji to start firing.

The first attack was from the gunmen; they naturally had range. The shots rampaged
through the bodies of the charging wolves.

A painful cry came from the mouths of the wolves hit by the gunshots.

But that was all. The shooting did not stop them at all.

It was not a lack of gun power.

"Goddamn it, damn it, damn it!"

'My hands, stop trembling, please stop!'

The reason was that the hands of the soldiers pulling the triggers were shaking like
people with palsy.

The reason for the tremor was, of course, the howling of the Werewolf.

The typhoon-like cry was strength and wings for the sabretooth wolves, and a handcuff
and shackle for enemies facing the fear.

If it was not for the pills made by Ahn Sun-mi, it would not have been easy to pull the
trigger if they had not taken the pill in advance.

Ting ting ting!

Ting ting ting!

"The fucking cars!"

"What the fuck!"

The cars, which filled the road here, also earned curses from the soldiers. Even Kim
Tae-hoon could not hit the moving wolves with his trembling hands as they ran
between the cars.

Four sabretooth wolves approached the dump truck and were not going to stop. They
were going to jump on it and throw themselves into the back of it.

Kim Soo-ji's order prevented their expectations.

"Explode! Explode!" Two short words.

At her shout, the hundreds of beads from the installed claymore blew out.

In front of the inhumane weapon, the sabretooth wolves had no choice but to whimper.

Even that was the last sound, for the sabretooth wolves with holes all over them didn't
even have time to breathe again before they died.

Awwww!

The Werewolf, who had seen the sight, once again started howling.

The howling was stronger, more intense, and angrier than before.

AOOO!

At the howling, the sabretooth wolves also lifted their muzzles and began to howl, too!

A bizarre force began to swirl around the battlefield. It was not a vague feeling.

It was like casting a spell!

Just like a memorized spell becomes magic!

That bizarre power was in the eyes of the sabretooth wolves, and they began to inflate
their power and fury.

At that moment the Werewolf's howling suddenly stopped.

…Ooooop!

Oop! Oop!
The Werewolf tried to continue the howling, but its mouth did not open. It was just
like someone had chained the Werewolf's mouth shut.

Oop! Oop!

The situation had to be very confusing from the point of view of the Werewolf.

A water balloon flew toward the Werewolf, a precise parabola, and hit the eyeballs of
the Werewolf exactly. It exploded without mercy and doused it with black liquid.

Ooop!

After the liquid hit, the Werewolf closed its eyes tightly and began to struggle painfully.

It was a natural response.

It would have been strange if it didn't try to escape or struggle from the pain. The
liquid, which was mixed with poisons such as gasoline, pesticides, and agricultural
chemicals, various kinds of perfumes to give a bad smell, and plenty of red pepper
powder, had gotten into its eyes and nose.

"Yes!" Bang Hyun-wook, who had thrown the water bomb so precisely, shouted with
his fist clenched at the fact.

"That is the pitching of Bang Hyun-wook, the third starter of Bucheon High School! I'm
a pitcher who won a complete game in the Phoenix League! The complete game in the
Phoenix League! Eleven strikeouts! Kershaw of Bucheon High School!"

At his cry, the Werewolf turned toward him, rubbing its eyes.

At that moment, the force pressing on the Werewolf's mouth disappeared. Its mouth
opened as if it were ripping apart.

Through its mouth, all the anger it had seeped out.

Kuhuhuhng!

Kim Tae-hoon appeared at that moment, while Bang Hyun-wook grabbed the iron
stick in his hand like a baseball bat at the Werewolf's cry.
Kim Tae-hoon had moved behind the Werewolf while it was looking at Bang Hyun-
wook, and now shot calmly.

Bullets drove into its backside

One hundred percent accuracy. Of the seven shots, not a single bullet missed its body.

However, the Werewolf did not fall. Even though it was shot in the head, it didn't fall
to its knees or even make a noise.

'It's tough.' It was evidence of tough skin, strong and thick bones, and crazy vitality.
'The Werewolf's skin will be useful.'

Of course, it was not a special consideration for Kim Tae-hoon.

The scary thing about the gun is that the countdown started as soon as it was hit.

When the bleeding begins, and the joints and muscles are damaged, they do not move
properly.

Moreover, the senses of the Werewolf were not normal now.

The chemical weapons made by Kim Tae-hoon were more effective than the use of
trivial materials.

So Kim Tae-hoon was more relaxed and shot a bullet more accurately into the body of
the Werewolf. His telekinesis also interfered with its movements.

In the eyes of Kim Tae-hoon, the Werewolf, seen beyond the barber of a gun attached
to the body, was no different from a scarecrow whose arms and legs were tied to a
huge chain.

'Ah.' At that moment, Kim Tae-hoon's Sense issued a warning.

Feeling the tingle, Kim Tae-hoon turned his gaze to the left and saw a Sabretooth Wolf
flying at him like it had springs, with its huge jaws open and oversize fangs spread
wide.

It seemed impossible for Kim Tae-hoon to avoid the attack of the Wolf, which had almost
reached him.
He did not avoid it. Rather, he thrust his right fist at the mouth of the Wolf, the fist
covered by iron Black Skin.

There was a crack as his fist broke the sabretooth of the Wolf. After punching through
the roof of its mouth, his fist drove into its brain in a messy spray.

"Big brother, be careful!" Bang Hyun-wook's surprise warning reached him after Kim
Tae-hoon's fist alone had killed a Sabretooth Wolf.

"You don't have to…” Bang Hyun-wook's surprised cry ended with a low murmur.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon did not listen to the cry.

Kim Tae-hoon was alert while lifting his rifle again, and immediately after confirming
that there was no sign of another Sabretooth Wolf, he planted all the bullets left in the
magazine into the Werewolf's body.

At the end of the last shot, Kim Tae-hoon exchanged magazine and shouted.

"Start fighting! Exterminate the enemy!"

Kim Tae-hoon's energetic cry became a typhoon and shook the battlefield.

3.

[Werewolf's Crystal]

- Strength rank will increase when ingested.

- Health rank will increase when ingested.

- Defense rank skill will increase when ingested.

- Energy rank skill will increase when ingested.

- Werewolf's power [Howling] can be acquired when ingested.]

------

"Howling… are you going to shout 'Howl!' before you fight?" Bang Hyun-wook, who was
checking the contents of the spoils obtained by killing the Werewolf through a
smartphone photo, imagined Kim Tae-hoon howling out, and laughed.

But it was only he who was laughing about it.

The soldiers of the Mac Clan, who were gathered around the campfire near the dump
truck, could not afford to laugh at the trembling that had not yet stopped for everyone,
even Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji.

The Werewolf's fear was much more intense then they thought. When the cold weather
was added to it, the effect was doubled.

"Are you all right?" Bang Hyun-wook threw a worried question to Jang Sung-hoon, who
was sitting near him.

He shook his trembling head. "No, are you all right?"

"I'm hot."

"Hot?"

"The Energy is like chi, but once it's heated, it doesn't cool easily, and it still wriggles
in my gut. I feel my guts wriggling, damn it."

The two saw Kim Tae-hoon walking toward them. He had come back after searching
for monsters around the bow museum.

All those who were around the fire rose from their seats at the appearance of Kim Tae-
hoon.

"Jang Sung-hoon and Ahn Sun-mi." Kim Tae-hoon called out to two of them who had
stood up. The two named nodded.

There was no reason to question about it because it had already been agreed upon.

Whether it was a relic or not, it could be seen by taking a picture with a smartphone,
but he had no skill to find hidden relics.

So it was natural to bring along Jang Sung-hoon, who had the ability, and Ahn Sun-mi,
who had already found the first relic.
"Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji commands the Clan. Bang Hyun-wook, when I'm not here,
you're the captain of the assault team."

Instead of answering, Bang Hyun-wook made a clumsy salute.

Kim Tae-hoon looked at Bang Hyun-wook shortly and then headed back to the
museum with Ahn Sun-mi and Jang Sung-hoon in tow.

4.

Bucheon Bow Museum…

Located next to Bucheon Stadium, there were various kinds of bows, arrows and
quivers, and bow-related items displayed in full view. There was no light, so it was
rather hard to see.

Cameras flashed all over the museum, a scene that would normally only scare a museum
official. There was something really frightening about it now.

"Okay!"

A man in the dark broke the glass that stored the goods with a hammer. The sound of
glass breaking was pretty loud.

"Just like the thieves said, the sound is really great. It's addictive."

With those words, a hand appeared suddenly through the broken glass. It picked up
one of the arrows on display.

"What did you find?"

"What is it?"

As one of them pulled out the goods, the two, a man and a woman, gathered beside the
man.

Jang Sung-hoon showed them a smartphone instead of answering them.

---------
[Sun-sin's Arrow]

- Relic Grade: Grade 4

- Relic Value: Rare

- Relic Effect: The arrow has the power of a Great Admiral. The penetrating force of
the arrow increases with Energy rank.]

---------

Grade 4, Rare… they saw more amazing words than they expected.

However, it was not about the grade, value, or effect of the relic that Kim Tae-hoon and
Ahn Sun-mi saw.

"Sun-sin's Arrow?"

"Wait a minute, if it's Sun-sin…”

Sun-sin! There was only one Great Admiral with this name in the history of the Republic
of Korea.

"Does it mean Admiral Yi Sun-sin?"

Kim Tae-hoon did not answer Ahn Sun-mi's question. He couldn't. At this point, the
answer was beyond his capacity.

'Yi Sun-sin… '

"Is it possible that such a valuable relic is in this museum?" The answer came, of course,
from Jang Sung-hoon.

Jang Sung-hoon looked at the arrow in his hand and said, "It's probably true. Only such
an arrow that Admiral Yi Sun-sin shot would be in the museum."

Jang Sung-hoon continued to look at the arrow and arrowhead in the light of the
smartphone.

"It's just common sense, asking who would take the arrow shot by an admiral of the
Joseon Dynasty? As a great man like Admiral Yi Sun-sin would shoot, someone would
pick it up and keep it as a family treasure or amulet, so that it will remain in shape
after centuries."

"No, I mean, such a treasure is in a little museum like this…”

Jang Sung-hoon gave a laugh at the word 'treasure'.

"This arrow cannot be a treasure, and if it is not an arrow made symbolically, it will be
a consumable. There must be more than ten thousand arrows shot by Admiral Yi Sun-
sin during his lifetime. The arrows are recyclable. However, there's no name tag and
it's not a treasure. The value of a treasure in this world depends on who pays for it.
The truth doesn't matter, but the story is different now."

Jang Sung-hoon laughed.

"Look at this, the arrowhead that is flashing like it was made just now. The arrowhead
during the Japanese Invasions of Imjin did not have any rust on it. This must be a clue
that it turned into a relic. It's not just its ability that has changed, but its appearance.
Otherwise, it's not going to be that good unless it was made of gold…”

At that moment, Jang Sung-hoon stopped talking. The smile on his lips was gone, too.

Kim Tae-hoon and Ahn Sun-mi cocked their heads at his appearance. At the same time,
they waited patiently for Jang Sung-hoon to start talking.

"Wait." It didn't take him long to recover. "There is a place to go now. We have to go
there, there!"

"I want you to sort out what you want to say, exactly where we are going, and why we
should go."

"There's a European Pottery Museum. Inside Bucheon Stadium, there's a European

Pottery Museum… it is in there."

"What is there?" Ahn Sun-mi urged him.

"A glass of champagne."

"A glass of champagne?" Ahn Sun-mi repeated, and Kim Tae-hoon frowned.
In response to such a reaction, Jang Sung-hoon swallowed, and spoke the words
echoing in his mind, "A golden glass of champagne used by Emperor Napoleon!"

He swallowed again in the silence following his words.

5.

The Bucheon European Pottery Museum…

Uninvited guests were swinging cameras around at pricey European art on display
and taking pictures without permission.

"Oh, it's Meissen."

At that moment, words of admiration came from Jang Sung-hoon, the most dangerous
uninvited guest.

As Ahn Sun-mi could not bear the boredom of silence, she immediately asked, "Meissen?
What is that?"

"It's the best of the European luxury potteries. Should I say Benz by car?"

"Is it expensive?"

"It's expensive, and I would have to pay five thousand dollars for that set right now."

"That little tea set costs over five thousand dollars?"

"It's cheap, I suppose. One of the Meissen vases is over eight thousand euros."

At such a ridiculous price, Ahn Sun-mi opened her mouth without saying anything for
a moment.

“…that's ridiculously expensive."

"Well, and so there's a thief."

"But I'm curious, can you tell where the product is from looking at that pottery?"
Jang Sung-hoon laughed lightly at her question.

"I can do it, so I could become a criminal at this age… but I'm not a criminal, because I
haven't been caught yet."

Jang Sung-hoon was young.

He was not only a young man but also a young boy who had not yet received a diploma
from a university.

It is because he had a discerning eye and ability that did not fit his age, of course, that
he was able to commit crimes such as forgery, stealing goods, and art smuggling.

Was it possible for a blind person to forge artworks, a blind person to fake the
authenticity of the goods in the stolen goods trade, or to smuggle?

"But is there really Napoleon's champagne glass in this place?"

"Of course, I wouldn't have asked you to come here without confidence, and a guy I
knew once gave me a quote to steal it…”

Jang Sung-hoon would not have remembered Napoleon's champagne glass if he was
not a criminal.

“…if you search the online, you can find a related article. Ah, the smartphones don't work
now."

"Why would such a great thing be in this place…?"

"It's not that great, because people are not really interested in Napoleon's champagne
glass."

Jang Sung-hoon glanced at her after she went silent.

He saw the expression of Ahn Sun-mi, who had a serious look in her eyes. She must have
felt something.

"This way."

Jang Sung-hoon and Kim Tae-hoon moved along with her, and soon they saw it; a glass
of champagne that gave off a delicate golden light in a glass case.

“…worth coming." The champagne glass, made of crystal and decorated with gold,
seemed expensive in itself, but it did not look so special.

But the letter "N," a symbol of the person who was prominent in the history of
mankind, made the value of the champagne glass special.

Napoleon, there was a trace of a legendary existence that changed the flow of human
history.

"It is a good thing we are here."

It glowed on its own. Beyond simple traces, it was a relic that could not be valued.

"This is because of me, don't forget!"

At Jang Sung-hoon's words, Kim Tae-hoon turned on his smartphone instead of

answering, activated the camera function, and immediately touched the liquid crystal.

As soon as the sound of the photo faded, Kim Tae-hoon's gaze turned to the smartphone.
Ahn Sun-mi and Jang Sung-hoon stuck to his left and right, crowding in to look.

------

[The Golden Glass of Napoleon No.3]

- Relic Grade: Grade 3

- Relic Value: Special

- Relic effect: One of the six golden glasses Napoleon used. When a crisis comes, it
creates a champagne that makes you dream of a solution.]

------

A great tactician! The secret of Emperor Napoleon, who could read the right way in an
unpredictable era of war!

6.
Wharuru!

Mac Clan's soldiers were gathering in front of the burning fire, warming themselves.

It was because the fear of the Werewolf in their body had not gone away. And even if
not, the cold weather did not allow them to leave the fire easily.

Of course, there was only one person who would leave such a fire.

Bang Hyun-wook, was swinging like taking batting practice with a steel stick cut like
a baseball bat in his hand, was free from the fear and cold, knowing how to handle his
Energy properly.

In addition, the sound of his swing, which was channeling Energy, was eerie.

'That's great.' Bang Hyun-wook was surprised by his own power.

"If I had had this bat speed before the draft, I could have gotten a blank check from the
Major League scouts"

Of course, Bang Hyun-wook imagined all this.

If he had had this power in high school, what kind of interest and attention would he
have received?

But the end of the dream was more bitter than anything else, rather than sweet. After
he stopped daydreaming, a long misty breath poured out of his mouth.

"Fuck." The long sigh was a bitter sound that ended his happy thoughts.

His worries and concerns were catching up with him.

His parents' faces came to his mind first, then his friends' faces. He remembered the
face of his classmate who he had been in love with all during high school, and the black
smoke rose from a distance from a burning apartment.

That's why Bang Hyun-wook practiced swinging in this cold weather.

There were not many ways to spend time in a world where there was nothing to eat
up time, like a TV or smartphone game.
For him, a time of silence was a time of agony. So he moved and somehow tried to talk
about another topic.

"Ah, Lieutenant! Can I ask you a question?"

Kim Soo-ji, who was on the other side of the fire from Bang Hyun-wook, was a prey to
catch somehow.

Now that she had stopped shaking, she nodded her head at Bang Hyun-wook's question.

"You are an acquaintance with big brother, aren't you?" Kim Soo-ji nodded silently
again.

Bang Hyun-wook quickly said with a little finger swinging, "So you two are…?"

Kim Soo-ji looked at Bang Hyun-wook's little finger, seemingly not understanding the
meaning straight away.

For her, Bang Hyun-wook was willing to give a kind explanation. "Are you and big brother
lovers?"

"What nonsense!" Kim Soo-ji was frightened, her face paled, and she refuted it quickly.
"In the old days, I met him just once!"

"In the old days, in the army?"

"I saw him at the Army Headquarters for a moment. That's all I've ever had to do with
him."

"He's a soldier, too, right? Good. I thought he was some kind of hitman. Killer's better,
but a soldier is better than a killer. He is from the special forces, isn't he?"

"That's…” Kim Soo-ji was silent at his questions, which came without a break.

'It's not something I can tell you.' She did not have the right to answer Bang Hyun-
wook's question.

Kim Tae-hoon was the only person who could reveal that he belongs to a secret special
unit that was not officially recorded in the history of the Republic of Korea.
Of course, Bang Hyun-wook was not really curious about such things, and he did not
say that to make Kim Su-ji embarrassed. He just needed to spend time ignoring his
own worries.

Therefore, Bang Hyun-wook did not stop talking, and nobody seemed to be able to
stop him.

"Where can you get a tank or a rocket gun or something?"

---

At some point, Bang Hyun-wook stopped talking.

He looked at the road with a hard expression, the road that he and the Mac Clan had
worked hard on for a long time… and a group of people now walking down the road.

Kim Soo-ji looked at them, too.

"Alert!" she shouted as loud as she could.

"Alert!" she yelled again. "Alert! Alert!"

The soldiers leaped up at her cry and began to move in a flurry with the guns they had
kept at hand

The driver got into the driver's seat quickly and started the engine.

"Get on!"

"Come up quickly!"

The soldiers climbed into the dump truck and got ready, with only eyes and muzzles
visible in the back.

Kim Soo-ji also climbed up onto the back at once.

Bang Hyun-wook was the only one who stayed on the ground and didn't get on the
loading dock. After all, the captain of the assault squad could not just rush up there.

"Hoo!"
'Don't hesitate, Bang Hyun-wook. You should not hesitate just because they are
human. If it's dangerous, you have to deal with it. You have to do it.'

They were not a monster who he did not need to feel remorse about, even if he smashed
its head at once.

"Hoo!" Therefore, Bang Hyun-wook, who was preparing for the battle, was pouring
out a white breath like a steam locomotive.

It was evidence of tension.

As time went by, the distance between them became closer, and soon they confirmed
each other's identities.

'Civilians, I'm sure they are survivors.'

'What the hell do we do?'

The soldiers bit their lips, confirming that they were survivors, not monsters.

"Soldiers, soldiers!"

"Soldiers?"

"They are soldiers!"

The moment they saw that the men in the dump truck were soldiers, the faces of the
crowd approaching the dump truck seemed to bend enough to express joy.

"We are saved! We are saved!"

"Ung-ung!"

"We're saved! A rescue team is here!"

The screams that could not control the joy, the crying that could not bear the joy.

They made all kinds of noises and did not stop walking toward the dump truck, as if
they were possessed by something, like zombies in movies.
The soldiers were embarrassed.

'What? Why are they coming? Why are they coming?'

'Do we have to shoot them? Damn it, do we have to shoot or not?'

If they were monsters, they would aim and fire at everyone approaching before the
shooting order was issued.

But they were human beings, civilians who were not armed.

Just by imagining that they were aiming guns at humans, their hearts were starting to
pound.

"No access!" It was the same for Kim Soo-ji.

She would easily give a firing order to a monster, but it was not easy to take action in
a cool manner, even if she had assumed this situation to the civilians.

"No access! We will fire if you approach any closer!" she shouted again, warning them.

But the people who were converging on the dump truck did not think to stop.

"We are saved! We are saved!"

"Help us! Seoul is now…”

"Uh-ung, uh-ung!"

There was no room for Kim Soo-ji's voice in the midst of the endless praise for saving
them, desperation, and crying that burst out endlessly.

Kim Soo-ji's expression hardened. 'What should I do?'

Her mind was hardened, too. 'They are defenseless civilians.'

There was only one thing that soldiers learned about civilians during military training:
Don't even sneeze against civilians!

It was impossible for Kim Soo-ji and the soldiers to have any experience in dealing
with this situation.

Bang Hyun-wook, who was not a soldier, was also embarrassed.

'Oh, my God, Joo Ha-yeon?'

There was a girl with a familiar face among the crowd, a girl's face he could not forget.

'Why is she here?'

While everyone was so embarrassed that they could not do anything, the distance
between civilians and the dump truck narrowed.

It was not a good picture. A picture that was not good even if something big happened.

Awwwoooo!

The painting was painted with a new color called howling, a dark color…

It was not a simple sound. It had a clear power and hostility.

"Huck!"

The people who approached the dump truck stopped when they heard the howling.
The shots that followed the howling made the civilians' stopped legs shake.

"I warned you." The shots were a warning.

"From now on, those who approach will be killed instantly without warning. I say
again, whoever approaches the dump truck without permission, I will fire without
warning. Everybody, sit down or lie down."

So everyone stopped acting and looked at the issuer of the warning, Kim Tae-hoon!
1.

They were survivors.

"I'm from Guro District."

"We're from Yangcheon District…”

Survivors from Seoul.

Of course, Guro District and Yangcheon District were located far from the center of
Seoul, but it was clear that they were closer to Seoul than Kim Tae-hoon's party.

He was able to see the bigger picture more clearly now.

"Seoul is hell now, and the great monsters are going crazy…”

"A huge winged dragon, you can't believe it, but when the dragon spat out the fire, the
building collapsed, the trees burned all over, and the people just melted down…”

"I heard that the fighters fired missiles at Mapo bridge and Yanghwa bridge, and they
destroyed them."

The capital city of the Republic of Korea was not the most populous place in Korea,
but the place with the most damage and the largest casualties in Korea.

Everyone who heard the story was white, their faces like plaster.

Kim Tae-hoon's face was also stiff.

'The fact that the fighters were moving means that more than one of the air bases
played a role… Considering the distance and situation, they made a sortie from
Seongnam AFB. But they destroyed the bridge… to stop the monsters from going into
Gyeonggi Province? Or to prevent the monsters from entering Seoul?'

The analysis of new information and the establishment of hundreds of hypotheses

based on the information did not give him any room to think about anything else.

Kim Soo-ji came over to Kim Tae-hoon and said.

"What are you going to do, major?" As she asked the question, she thought that Kim
Tae-hoon's answer would come after a longer period of thought. She also expected
that the answer would be very reasonable.

However, Kim Tae-hoon answered easily. "Before we move to our next destination,
we'll be briefed and ready to spend the day here."

"Then the survivors…”

"I have no plan to work with the survivors."

In addition, Kim Tae-hoon's answer was completely opposite to Kim's Soo-ji's rational
decision.

"Major Kim Tae-hoon?"

"I say again, we don't move with the survivors."

"So are you going to leave them like this?"

"I didn't pick them up, but if I had, I would have left them."

"Major! They are civilian survivors!"

Whether you are a soldier or not, if you have any compassion, you should help survivors.

Isn't that a reasonable idea for anyone?

Kim Tae-hoon did not respond to Kim Soo-ji's opposition. Instead, he approached the
survivors sitting on the floor and warming themselves by the fire.

Twenty-two.
The survivors did not have anything in common, such as age, gender, or occupation;
their only commonality was that they had no life in their eyes.

Kim Tae-hoon told them, "We can't afford to escort you to a safe place right now, as we
don't know where it is safe in this situation either. You will have to move on your own."

The words were blunt, but they came out gently. But there was not one person who
felt favorable to the gentle words.

In the case of Ahn Sun-mi and Bang Hyun-wook, they froze upon hearing them.

They knew Kim Tae-hoon well. At the large mart, Kim Tae-hoon spoke in front of the
survivors in such a way, and then he abandoned them.

For his own purposes, he did not do anything to interfere and was not swept away by
compassion for what he could not do.

So they knew that Kim Tae-hoon's words were not merely threats or warnings, but
genuine.

One of them, Bang Hyun-wook, came out immediately. "Big brother! We are on the
move, and we can go with them, can't we? I thought we'd sleep here today! Why don't
we go with them?"

Kim Tae-hoon, who watched him talking, was able to roughly gauge his heart. There
was nothing to think about. He saw Bang Hyun-wook talking to a young woman of his
age among the survivors.

So Kim Tae-hoon spat out his prepared words. "I don't want to stop you if you're going
to be a hero, but you're the only one going to be."

"What? What do you mean…”

"If monsters appear in a situation where survivors follow us, I will pull the trigger,
regardless of the survivors. At least, it will not be heroic."

"Wait, wait a minute."

"And to be honest, it's dangerous for a survivor to be an obstacle in that way, and I'm
not going to take any more risks here without any merit."
Bang Hyun-wook stopped talking. It was meaningless to talk about who was right and
wrong.

Kim Tae-hoon was right in the matter of surviving.

"If you want to leave Mac Clan to be a hero, I can let you go, but don't think you'll come
back free the moment you leave."

Working with survivors was a burden in many ways.

There were many things that needed to be done as the number of mouths increased.
Movement slows down, and more food is consumed.

But the biggest problem is that there were more to protect.

It was hard to keep yourself alive right now in this world, and there was no room for
someone else in this world. If there was, it was just a delusion or a bluff.

The conversation between the two was clearly heard by the survivors. None of the
survivors could understand the meaning of the conversation.

'He is abandoning us?'

'What is he talking about? A soldier should protect us.'

The eyes of the survivors, the dark-dead eyes, began to shake. One of them jumped up.

"You! You're going to abandon us now? You're going to…”

"Yes." Kim Tae-hoon answered immediately.

"No way!"

"What the fuck is that?"

Survivors were scared, and everyone got up from their seats sequentially and started
to look at Kim Tae-hoon.

Their eyes were full of fear, and their faces were full of anger. They could not
understand. How could they understand that the lifeline they had barely caught onto
was clawing their palms and getting out?

"You're soldiers, aren't you? You must protect us!"

"Shit, if you have received our tax money, you should protect us!"

"You son of a bitch, are you a human being like that? Are you going to live alone?"

The angry survivors began to get angry.

Kim Tae-hoon briefly told them, "Shut up."

The short command was filled with a murderous spirit. The murderous spirit was not
visible, but there was enough power to crush them.

He was not a normal human being.

Kim Tae-hoon had already eaten the power of several monsters, and the power that
he ate became his own bones and flesh.

Kim Tae-hoon was an Awakener with A rank telekinesis and could physically exercise
his thoughts.

His murderous spirit was like a cold wind in the cold winter. There was no shortage of
cutting flesh and making wounds.

The anger that the survivors spat out before the murderous spirit cooled down instantly.

"I'm telling you clearly, we're not soldiers. Mac Clan, a group organized for monster
hunting. Our purpose is to hunt monsters, not to save survivors."

Kim Tae-hoon continued to speak in an atmosphere so cold that nobody could even
swallow.

"In addition, we hunt monsters to survive. To interfere with us is a threat to our

survival, and there is no reason for us to risk our lives to save you."

There was no cross-questioning.

"I ask you the opposite, how many men did you save, how many men did you help, and
how many monsters did you hunt when you came here?"

There was no breathing heard.

"You've survived and come all the way here because you've turned away a lot of
survivors, but do you think we're the only ones who can not turn away from survivors?"

There was only one-sided violence in this existence.

"I warn you, if you interfere with our activities, I'll do something about it in some way,
and you can then call the police or hire a lawyer."

After he stopped speaking, the sound of breathing and swallowing finally came. At the
same time, everyone knew.

'It's real… '

'He's a man who could shoot and kill us if we got in his way.'

Kim Tae-hoon was not just talking a bluff or nonsense, but really thinking about it.

Therefore, none of the survivors showed any further signs of blaming Kim Tae-hoon.

Kim Tae-hoon no longer paid attention to them. He ordered his men to look at him.

"Today, we will spend a day here at Bucheon Stadium. Obtain gas from nearby cars,
charge smartphone batteries with car batteries, and get food from nearby marts and
vending machines."

That was all.

Kim Tae-hoon did not warn the survivors that he would consider them hostile if they
entered the area of Mac Clan.

Even if he did not, the survivors already knew it very well.

So the day ended, and night came again.

2.
Kim Tae-hoon taught many things to his subordinates after he founded the Mac Clan.

He taught survival knowledge, such as how to charge a smartphone battery using a

car battery, and how to dismantle monsters.

The education was done every day.

"The Sabretooth Wolf has the thinnest skin between these ribs. The heart is caught
when the hand is this deep, to the midpoint of the wrist and elbow after stabbing the
hole with a knife."

Even today, Kim Tae-hoon taught the soldiers how to take the monster stones out of
the body of a Sabretooth Wolf by demonstrating to them.

Of course, this education was not to make an excellent soldier, but a competent hunter.

"Big brother, I need to talk to you…” Bang Hyun-wook talked to Kim Tae-hoon after the
body of a Sabretooth Wolf was all broken down to bones and flesh.

Kim Tae-hoon wiped his bloody hands with a towel and received a proposal from Bang
Hyun-wook. "What do you want to say?"

"Can you accept even one of the survivors?"

"No."

"Just one person, please… I'll keep her safe. I won't interrupt you. I'll give her my food."
Bang Hyun-wook was serious and nervous.

On the other hand, Kim Tae-hoon was as calm as he always was. "Why should I give
you that special favor?"

"Well…” Because of the calm, Bang Hyun-wook lost his pace. In the end, he spat out
what he was holding back, withholding nothing.

"I've helped you, and I've got the highest Energy rank in our clan, and you will be in
trouble without me."

A strong statement.
"Honestly, you have eaten a lot of monster stones from the monsters which I have
killed so far."

Strong to the extent he surprised himself!

"Umm… I mean… not that you were wrong, that's not that I was dissatisfied, but that
I've worked so hard for you…”

In the end, he failed to keep up his words.

Kim Tae-hoon asked Bang Hyun-wook, "I'll ask you one question, what's your relationship
with her?"

"I went to the same middle school."

"Friend?"

"No, it's not… I had a secret crush on her…” Even though he got the words out, Bang
Hyun-wook was ashamed and blurred his words.

It was foolish and ridiculous to see himself speaking so high up against Kim Tae-hoon,
not just for the sake of a friend or lover, but for someone who he was in unrequited
love with.

However, Kim Tae-hoon did not look at Bang Hyun-wook as funny.

"I understand, but I can't comply with your request. I'm sorry." It was not worth
discussing who is right, humanly and morally.

Kim Tae-hoon was right only in one thing: that his method was much more likely to
survive.

Bang Hyun-wook's face also crumpled because he knew it.

Kim Tae-hoon could not be persuaded at all, the young Bang Hyun-wook couldn't
readily accept the fact that he should give up something.

It was Jang Sung-hoon who finished the conversation between the two. "Boss!"

Jang Sung-hoon, who appeared with a serious face, was carrying a bag. Kim Tae-hoon's
eyes changed when he checked the bag. He knew what was in that bag.

Jang Sung-hoon pulled out what Kim Tae-hoon knew was in the bag.

"Look at this." The Golden Glass of Napoleon, which glowed with a gentle golden light,
appeared. "The cup was filled with red liquid. And…” Jang Sung-hoon turned the
golden cup upside down.

Of course, under common sense, if the laws of the world did not collapse, the liquid in
the golden cup would fall to the floor.

But the red liquid inside only splashed a bit, and not a single drop fell out.

Like magic.

"What, what, what is this?" Bang Hyun-wook, who saw the golden cup itself for the
first time, was shocked.

Kim Tae-hoon's face was hardened by concern. 'Does it mean that the champagne that
makes me dream of a solution is this red liquid? What makes me qualifies as a crisis?
Can I predict a solution through dreams? But why was the champagne created now?
Is there a condition?'

"Boss, this is getting smaller and smaller, and if you don't drink it, it'll disappear."

But Kim Tae-hoon did not have time to worry.

He reached out, grabbed the Golden Glass of Napoleon in his hand, and drank the red
champagne in it at once.

The unbearable alcohol instantly engulfed Kim Tae-hoon's whole body.

The last thing Kim Tae-hoon heard was "Boss!" "Big brother!" and the two voices coming
towards him…
3.

Kim had several habits. One of them was to check his left wrist as soon as he opened
his eyes.

It was still true.

'Ah.'

Kim Tae-hoon first checked his left-hand wrist rather than the fact that he was in the
passenger seat of a car when he opened his eyes.

Of course, his eyes always came in with a watch on his wrist, and when he saw the
watch, Kim Tae-hoon was surprised.

'Why?'

He saw a smartwatch.

'Why?'

Kim Tae-hoon did not use a smartwatch.

The features of a smartwatch, with its GPS function, could not go three days without
charging, had the poor waterproof function, had weak durability, and even had the
possibility of being hacked, were cuffs for Kim Tae-hoon.

But now the smartwatch was around Kim Tae-hoon's wrist.

It was hard to understand.

But what was really hard to understand was that Kim Tae-hoon's body did not listen
to him.
'My body… '

He tried to move his arms and hands to touch the smartwatch, but his body did not
listen to him.

Rather, his body moved of its own. Instead of moving his arms, he was looking at the
man approaching him through the car window that went down.

"Boss." The man who approached him handed a paper cup to him, and he got in the
car. "It's coffee."

There was lukewarm coffee in the paper cup.

"The only thing left was mix coffee, and of course, I took out the sugar."

Instead of the bright black hue, the mixed coffee had a murky brown light.

It was also a coffee that Kim Tae-hoon really hated. Coffee was his only hobby, so mixed
coffee was an insult to his hobby.

However, the mixed coffee did not come into Kim Tae-hoon's eyes. The face of the man
who handed him the coffee did.

He was a man with a wounded face. The three slits across his face, in particular, were
obviously done by the claws of a terrible monster.

It was fortunate that his face was not torn right off. On the contrary, Kim Tae-hoon was
still able to recognize the owner of the face.

'Jang Sung-hoon?'

Jang Sung-hoon was the man in front of him. Jang Sung-hoon, who was older than Kim
Tae-hoon knew.

'Jang Sung-hoon!'

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon tried to call his name, but he was not allowed to either.

'Ah.'
At this moment, Kim Tae-hoon had to look at everything he did as an observer.

"You've made your wish known to have a cup of coffee before you die. Isn't mixed
coffee, coffee too?" Jang Sung-hoon spit out and smiled lightly.

At that moment, a huge wind, an intense force that shook the world, passed through
Kim Tae-hoon's car and Jang Song-hoon.

Jang Sung-hoon turned his head around with a frightened look. "Damn it, it's already
here."

'What's come?'

At that moment, he talked. "Jang Sung Hoon. You've had a hard time."

"Boss."

"You go alone to Gyeongju."

"Boss!"

"I want you to meet with Commander-in-Chief Lim Hyun-joon there and deliver my
message."

The door of the car he was riding in opened up.

In the meantime, Kim Tae-hoon, looking at himself as an observer, organized what he

saw and heard carefully.

'Gyeongju? Alone? Commander-in-Chief Lim Hyun-joon?'

When the door opened, Jang Sung-hoon took a step back, and Kim Tae-hoon got out of
the car.

At the same time, the trunk was opened by itself. Various weapons came out of the
open trunk like birds, and they began to hover around Kim Tae-hoon.

Spear, knife, arrow, headstone…

Kim Tae-hoon looked at each of the weapons and finally said to Jang Sung-hoon, "If I
fail this hunt, abandon Korea."

"Shit, this is ridiculous! Boss, you don't have to die! You have no reason to die! You
always told me! You fought to survive! Because of those damn bastards…”

OOOO!

At that moment, he heard an eerie cry that could not be compared to any animal in the
world.

"Kuck!" The cry took the focus from Jang Sung-hoon's eyes at once. He fell down like a
broken doll. Kim Tae-hoon brought him up and sat him in the driver's seat after
supporting him.

When the car door was closed, the car started to run on its own.

At the same time, a huge shadow fell over Kim Tae-hoon's head.

A wind strong enough to pull out the roots of a giant tree whipped around Kim Tae-
hoon. Turning into the gale, he looked up at the owner of the shadow with his eyes
widening.

Kim Tae-hoon, who was watching himself, also looked at the monster.

It was the dragon who had passed by that night.

A huge dragon, with glowing blue eyes filled with anger!

4.

Clatter!

Ahn Sun-mi confirmed Kim Tae-hoon's pupil condition, and she got up from her seat
by turning off the small flash she held in her hand.

Behind her were Bang Hyun-wook, Jang Sung-hoon, and Kim Soo-ji, waiting anxiously
for Ahn Sun-mi to talk.

Ahn Sun-mi said with a firm expression, "He is sleeping."

The three of them cocked their heads, rather than be surprised by the answer that
came out.

"Yes?"

"As I said, Kim Tae-hoon is sleeping, and he is sleeping very deeply."

"So he is… sleeping now?" Bang Hyun-wook made a ridiculous expression even though
he said the words himself. It was not a situation to spit out cute, sweet words.

"I'm glad, though, I thought he was going to die." However, at the word 'sleep', Bang
Hyun-wook briefly sighed relief.

It was not a strange reaction. Sleep was not a negative word for the public.

On the other hand, Ahn Sun-mi's expression remained firm. "It's not lucky to fall
asleep suddenly, and we don't know when this sleep will end," she said to the other
two after clicking her tongue briefly at Bang Hyun-wook's words.

"It looks like he's asleep, but I can't make any judgments more than this, because I
can't take MRIs or CTs. He is not sleeping because of fatigue, but he ate something
strange, so we don't know how long this sleep will last."

It was a very serious situation to a doctor; someone eating an unidentified liquid and
falling into a sudden sleep.

"Excuse me." Jang Sung-hoon changed the subject. "I am suddenly curious, but when
there is no boss, who's in charge? Is it Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji?"

"Well…” As soon as Kim Soo-ji tried to answer the question, she looked at Bang Hyun-
wook.

The general soldiers would follow Kim Su-ji's words, but Bang Hyun-wook's case was
a little different. Bang Hyun-wook was not a soldier, and he had no military experience.

In addition, the absence of Kim Tae-hoon was a situation where all preconditions were
different.

Except for Kim Tae-hoon, Bang Hyun-wook was the only one who could fight properly
against monsters that could use fear.
So should Kim Soo-ji give such an order to Bang Hyun-wook, or should Bang Hyun-
wook move independently?

Of course, they had never agreed on this part.

That's why Jang Sung-hoon brought up his words. If they had not agreed, it was time
to make the agreement.

'If there is no big brother, then… ' Bang Hyun-wook also fully understood the situation.

Without Kim Tae-hoon, Bang Hyun-wook was now the most important player. In a
sense, he was in the same position as Kim Tae-hoon.

'Am I replacing big brother?' At that moment, Bang Hyun-wook turned his head
slightly. At the end of his gaze, he saw a flame rising far away.

It was the flame of the survivors who were outside of the Mac Clan area.

They were afraid of Kim Tae-hoon's warning, but it was impossible for them to
completely abandon the lingering attachment.

Even if Kim Tae-hoon was scary, it could not be denied that the Mac Clan was the only
lamp of hope in the present situation.

How could they abandon their hope? When they turned their back on the lamp, only
the darkness and despair would be left.

'I'm his substitute.'

In the mind of Bang Hyun-wook, even as he looked at the survivor group, the
conversation that he shared with Kim Tae-hoon came up once again.

In the conversation, he added the assumption that if he replaced Kim Tae-hoon.

"Wait a minute." Ahn Sun-mi caught the wrist of Bang Hyun-wook, who had started to
worry about the survivors.

"I'll talk to him." Pulling his wrist, Ahn Sun-mi led Bang Hyun-wook away.

Ahn Sun-mi stopped at a place where the other two would not hear their conversation.
"What are you going to tell me, sister?"

Ahn Sun-mi said to Bang Hyun-wook, with a stiff face full of freckles, "Recover your
senses."

"What?"

"I'm telling you because the situation is important. Bang Hyun-wook, wake up. Are you
going to take the survivors?"

"Of course…”

"I'm the opposite." At the word of 'the opposite', Bang Hyun-wook closed his mouth.

On the other hand, Ahn Sun-mi did not stop talking.

"I don't think you have understood the situation yet, but who do you think was most
relieved when the boss told the survivors not to come?"

Things had changed.

If Kim Tae-hoon did not wake up like this, the life and death of Mac Clan will be in the
hands of Bang Hyun-wook.

Bang Hyun-wook was so strong. He consumed the most monster stones next to Kim
Tae-hoon, and his Energy rank, which could be said to be the most efficient in battle
with monsters, was higher than Kim Tae-hoon.

The only problem was that…

"The soldiers, our soldiers were the most relieved."

Bang Hyun-wook could only fight well, but he did not know how to control the people
around him.

"Will you accept the survivors? Then who will be in the most danger? Who will be harder
to protect? To be frank, you and the boss aren't going to get tough, because fighting is the
same."

It was the evidence that Bang Hyun-wook had lingering doubts about the survivors
just now.

"After all, the soldiers will be in charge of the minutiae. The risk is the same. The boss
and you, who always deal with strong monsters, are in great danger. But the risk won't
be greater for the survivors, because you won't mind the survivors when you have to
kill something like a Black Orc."

Kim Tae-hoon had relentlessly rejected the survivors. Even using the threat of his
murderous spirit, he did not give any sympathy to the survivors.

"But ordinary people are different. The soldiers will fight to protect survivors from a
number of monsters. What if soldiers die? Will you regret it then? Or are you sure you
won't even regret it?"

What Kim Tae-hoon did was not just for himself, but to increase the possibility of the
entire Mac Clan's survival, as well as himself. Therefore, the distinction between good
and evil was not important in Kim Tae-hoon's actions.

The important thing was that Kim Tae-hoon's actions were the best for Mac Clan, and
if he was a member of the Mac Clan, he should follow the best course of action.

If you do not like it, you can leave the Mac Clan, as Kim Tae-hoon said.

Bang Hyun-wook could not respond to any of these words from Ahn Sun-mi. Of course,
it did not change his mind immediately or make him agree with Ahn Sun-mi's words.

'Damn it… '

However, Bang Hyun-wook was more a grown child, than a young man.

Ahn Sun-mi understood Bang Hyun-wook. He was not even twenty years old yet, a
freshman in a society with not even a year of social experience.

So Ahn Sun-mi gave him advice as a senior in life.

"We don't need survivors to just open their hands and take something from us.
Remember, we don't need just survivors to protect."

Just then, Jang Sung-hoon shouted out, "Boss!" At his cry, Ahn Sun-mi and Bang Hyun-
wook turned their heads at the same time.
'Ah!'

Kim Tae-hoon, was now standing.

"Big brother!" The two hurriedly approached Kim Tae-hoon.

"Major, are you all right?"

"Boss, are you okay?"

Kim Soo-ji and Jang Sung-hoon, who were nearby, asked his condition first.

However, instead of answering, Kim Tae-hoon gave a long sigh after checking his left-
hand wrist, a G-Shock watch still there.

'It was a dream.' The white mist from his mouth brushed through the darkened sky.
But the breath was not long.

'No, it wasn't a dream. Crisis… it's a crisis I'll be in someday.'

He couldn't afford to breathe another sigh.

'That's what it meant to make me dream of a crisis, which meant that I was dreaming
of the day I would die.'

"Boss! Boss! Wake up, do I need to I slap you?" Jang Sung-hoon spoke to Kim Tae-hoon
again.

As soon as he saw Sung-hoon's face, Kim Tae-hoon's feelings began to get complicated.
It was the sensation of feeling for someone else instead of himself filling his heart.

But when he thought of the dragon, they disappeared like a mirage. All emotions
disappeared, and only feeling of fear and despair began to take their place.

At this moment, Kim Tae-hoon was more desperate than ever.

"I'll ask you one thing; I'd like anyone to get me a cup of coffee, whatever it is."

A cup of coffee…
1.

Kim Tae-hoon drank his coffee and kept his mouth shut.

The coffee was quite hot, so he wanted to spit it out or swallow it. But he put up with
the heat until it melted his frozen mind.

The smell of coffee released Kim Tae-hoon's frozen mind. Only then did Kim Tae-hoon
start thinking.

'It is a type of foresight. What I dreamt of is a foresight of my death.'

He knew one thing clear at this moment. What he saw was not a mistake or fantasy,
but a crisis that would come to a man named Kim Tae-hoon someday.

After his mind cleared, Kim Tae-hoon began to analyze the things he saw in his dream.

'I looked at Jang Sung-hoon's face, and it is not in the very distant future.'

The most important thing was time.

The only clue to gauge the timing was Jang Sung-hoon's age, which he could guess
through his face.

The Jang Sung-hoon in his dreams seemed to be in his mid-twenties.

Jang Sung-hoon was now in his early twenties, so this was not to far away. But it was
not in the immediate future.

'Three to five years.'

It would be as early as three years, or as late as five years.

The next important clue was the name, Lim Hyun-joon.

'Commander-in-Chief Lim Hyun-joon. That means Colonel Lim Hyun-joon now.'

Colonel Lim Hyun-joon.

Kim Tae-hoon knew that he was a tactician and an ambitious person.

He was also a man on the elite course in the Defense Ministry. Not only did he produce
good results as an officer, but he also had good political sense, and he was an influential
person in the next generation of the military.

He was an influential person of the next generation, but it was impossible for him to
become the Commander-in-Chief, the peak of the army, a general, even if he was given
ten years to advance.

'He's the Commander-in-Chief… '

Of course, the world was already beyond the ordinary. Moreover, he had learned what
the consequences would be.

What he needed to do now is to guess the processes that ended up with the results he
had seen.

'In the future, the military seems to be operating normally.'

One, having a Commander-in-Chief meant that the military system was operating. It
meant that society was not in complete anarchy.

'The fact that Lim Hyun-joon became the top leader of the army, and it is so organized…
means that he survived and made a remarkable contribution.'

Two, the fact that the Commander-in-Chief of such an army was Colonel Lim Hyun-
joon meant that he had played a decisive role in reforming the military.

It would not have been something simple. It would have been at the level of saving the
country, in fact, a level of achievement that had created a new military.

'Right now he is in the 8th Division.'

Colonel Lim Hyun-joon's current affiliation was the 8th Mechanized Infantry Division.

It was called the "Roly Poly" unit, and it had powerful weapons, excellent means of
transportation, and tanks, unlike the general infantry divisions.

'He considered the emergence of monsters as an opportunity, not a crisis.'

Colonel Lim had the ability to set up such remarkable achievements by commanding
the firepower and troops under his influence.

'I think the 8th Division is the best place to be in, in the present situation.'

The 8th Division was located in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province.

The front line was close, but they were not facing the North Korean army directly. That
was why it was advantageous.

Even if the front line encountered monsters, they could not lead their troops to the
rear immediately, because they did not know what the North Korean army would do.
At the same time, it is not easy to get resupplied.

Compared to them, the 8th Division could go up to the front line, or it can head down
to the rear.

'I have to go to Pocheon, too.'

In other words, Pocheon, where the 8th Division was located, was not safe at present,
but it was highly likely that the military was playing a role there, at the very minimum.

He should go to Pocheon and contact Colonel Lim Hyun-joon. Since he had learned the
man would become such an important figure, he could not treat him as a chicken or a
cow.

His thinking on Colonel Lim Hyun-joon got to that point. But there was more important
information.

'Weapons.'

In his dream, that Kim Tae-hoon had prepared various kinds of weapons ahead of the
battle with the dragon.
They couldn't possibly be normal weapons. They would be items made from monsters
and high-grade relics.

Of course, he had to reconstruct the appearance of those weapons, because their

appearance would play a crucial role in guessing their identity.

'I also handled the weapons freely with my telekinesis.'

The sense of handling the weapon with the telekinesis was important!

Right now, his skill at using his telekinesis was not so good. That's why he didn't do
much with his A-rank telekinesis right now.

Telekinesis was a force. Some are very easy, some are very difficult.

It wasn't that everything was done just by imagining it.

Even if you think of a picture in your mind, you need natural talent and skill to draw a
picture from your mind on paper.

The Kim Tae-hoon in his dream was very skilled at his telekinesis. He made various
kinds of weapons hover around him like they were alive.

'If I had looked closely at my stats, I would have been clearer on what to do.'

Anyway, he had to achieve the skill of using weapons with telekinesis he had seen in
his dreams. That was the minimum condition for survival until then.

Nevertheless, that Kim Tae-hoon failed to survive.

'There are fucking bastards.'

The Jang Sung-hoon in his dream said that there was no reason for Kim Tae-hoon to
die. Nevertheless, because of the bastards, he faced death.

'There is a group, and they will try to get rid of me.'

He did not know its name, identity, or number, but it meant that he was up against an
organization that wanted his death in the future.
'The reason they are trying to get rid of me is that I'm interfering with their interests.'

They wanted him dead because his actions interfered with their interests. What those
interests were was simple.

What Kim Tae-hoon wanted in the future is to survive, he would remain a hunter for
survival.

But someone did not want that. It meant that they either wanted the monsters to
remain, or they did not want him to kill them.

Kim Tae-hoon did not have much doubt about this part. Even if the world was about
to end, there would be someone who would look for their own benefits in it.

Those who were capable of such things would come out.

No, rather, those who wanted to build a new order in a world where the order has
collapsed due to the emergence of monsters would be overflowing in number.

In addition, the new order they wanted to build would be entirely favorable to them.

'It would be rather strange not to have such people, so I will have to keep that in mind.'

More importantly, that Kim Tae-hoon was predicted to die, and he was surprised.

'He was willing to face death to save Jang Sung-hoon… and only Jang Sung-hoon
remained with him.'

It was a fact that Kim Tae-hoon, who had no purpose other than to survive, died for
others!

When Kim Tae-hoon reached that point in his thinking, he finally swallowed his coffee.

The sound changed the gaze of the crowd looking at Kim Tae-hoon. They waited for
him to speak.

As they expected, he did indeed speak.

"I don't know who got it, but that was the worst coffee ever."
2.

Kim Tae-hoon told them what he had dreamed about, everything he remembered.

He told them his opinion that Pocheon was now expected to be a safe area, and that
he should find some way to contact it.

He told them without hesitation that he would be killed by a dragon a few years from
now.

When the story was over, everyone's expression was harder than when Kim Tae-hoon
fell asleep.

With a firm expression, Bang Hyun-wook carefully asked the question, "So, am I also
dead in the future?"

It was a ridiculous question, but a serious one.

How could it not be serious asking someone who had gained knowledge of the future
about his destiny, since he had no promise he would see the morning?

"I can't say you died, because you didn't show up in my dream. Maybe you were
working somewhere else, maybe you broke up with me for a reason, or you could have
betrayed me."

"Betrayal, I don't think about it ever…” Bang Hyun-wook shook his head, even as the
words Ahn Sun-mi gave passed through his mind at that moment.

What would Kim Tae-hoon think of his thoughts, while he dreamed of his crisis?

Would he consider it a childish idea, would he accept it as a young man's heroism, or

would he think that it was the spirit of insubordination of a rebel who repeatedly
disobeys?

'Big brother will not let me off just because it is me.'

Obviously, no matter what kind of thing Kim Tae-hoon looked at, he would not change
his mind. As Ahn Sun-mi said, Kim Tae-hoon did not need survivors who just wanted
his help.
He would not change his mind. To be changed, those who were not Kim Tae-hoon must
change!

"You stopped talking, were you really going to betray me?"

"No, I don't mean… it's not betrayal, but I thought something like that. If you didn't
wake up like this, I'd have to take your place, and then the survivors…” Bang Hyun-
wook drew a long breath, to gather some strength to speak.

"Big brother, can we accept an application for the Clan?"

At the words of Bang Hyun-wook, Kim Tae-hoon, who had just taken a sip, looked at
him softly.

Bang Hyun-wook just swallowed silently.

"Are you asking if we will accept applicants from the survivors?" Kim Tae-hoon asked
at last.

"Yes."

"Why does the Mac Clan need to accept additional applicants?"

"Then we can kill more monsters, can't we? We can get them more stable. And we don't
need just need combat agents. I need someone to cook, someone to move things…”

"Can you give us a solid reason for our Clan to recruit applicants?"

"That's…” Bang Hyun-wook shut his mouth.

He suggested it because he thought it was a compromise solution, but Kim Tae-hoon

seemed to have no intention of doing so.

However, Kim Tae-hoon was actually seriously considering Bang Hyun-wook's proposal.
If it had not been really worth considering, he would not have asked Bang Hyun-wook
the question itself.

He would have given final notice either to leave the Clan quietly, or said nothing, or to
choose between them.
'He didn't think of it alone, and someone gave him a clue about what I want.'

He had already been thinking of something similar. It was not an option, but a necessity
to increase the numbers of the Mac Clan.

In a world where social infrastructure had collapsed, human resources were the most
valuable ones.

Fighting alone was not enough to do anything.

Just looking at what the Mac Clan should do right now, there were a lot of things to do,
such as monster slaughter, monster-based item production, etc., all starting with monster
hunting.

The same was true of battle.

When battles are repeated, victims pile up. If you don't replace them, it will be fatal.

Above all, Kim Tae-hoon had a chance, thanks to the Golden Glass of Napoleon.

'If I go this way unchanging, the end is my death. If I want to live, I had a very valuable
opportunity to know that I need to change.'

"We need gunmen," he said.

"Most of the surviving adult men will have military experience, and if they are from
the artillery or tanker corps, that would be very helpful. We also need drivers,"
Lieutenant Kim spoke up, supporting Bang Hyun-wook's opinion.

'We cannot ignore the survivors like this.' It was also why she agreed with Bang Hyun-
wook's idea. 'We can't move with this force alone.'

At the same time, for the commander's sake, she felt that they were at their limit with
the current troops.

Kim Tae-hoon got up in the opinion of the two.

"Jang Sung-hoon, find three cars with the keys and bring them here."

"What kind of cars do you want?"

"Two SUV's and a truck."

Jang Sung-hoon nodded and immediately moved out to search for the cars.

"Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji, gather ten undissected Sabretooth Wolves and a knife for
slaughtering them, after collecting the monster stones."

"I understand." Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji saluted and called for soldiers immediately.

Kim Tae-hoon's eyes naturally turned to Bang. "Bang Hyun-wook."

"Yes, big brother?"

"You have to set your answers in your mind, including your priorities, ahead of time,"
he advised. "There's no time for this conversation in a really desperate moment."

Bang Hyun-wook nodded silently.

"Then, Bang Hyun-wook, go to your unrequited love and tell them that we will start
testing for applicants who want to join the Mac Clan."
3.

"Major, we're all here."

It was late, and the sun had already fallen and disappeared. Cold breath filled the place,
and the group was gathered under the thick darkness where even their cold breath
was not visible.

'There is no exception.'

The identity of the mess was the survivors.

Bang Hyun-wook approached the survivors immediately as soon as Kim Tae-hoon's

permission was given… approaching and talking to his unrequited love, Joo Ha-yeon.

The Mac Clan was accepting applicants. If you passed the Mac Clan tests, you could
move with it.

At his word, the twenty-two survivors announced their intention to join the Mac Clan
without a single exception. It was natural for survivors who thought that there might
be a chance of life, even if was the worst case!

-----

"I'll tell you a few things." Kim Tae-hoon said to those who had gathered.

"One, our Clan's name is Mac, the Mac Clan, and two, the monster stones that the Clan
has acquired from the monster hunt, and all the monster parts, are all mine. Three,
you must obey orders unconditionally."

Kim Tae-hoon paused there for a moment. He didn't add a warning, such as, "Don't say
anything later,"
This was not a training room for new employees in a company, and if they said
something else later, he would just deal with it without warning. Those who had such
schemes were not worthy of consideration.

Kim Tae-hoon stopped and looked over the crowd, the expressions in their eyes.

Most of the survivors had dead eyes. They had seen many deaths, to be exact.

Of course, not everyone looked that way. Even in this situation, there were those who
looked at Kim Tae-hoon clearly.

The woman, who made Bang Hyun-wook take action, was one of those who looked at
Kim Tae-hoon clearly.

'Her eyes are not dead.'

The cute and pretty appearance, the hairstyle that was cut short with a cat-like face,
was obviously popular from appearance alone.

Bang Hyun-wook had said, "She was an aspiring entertainer." Although she had not
made her debut yet, she was still a trainee at an entertainment agency of fair size.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon did not really think much of the fact.

"Then we'll start classification." His role was to pick out the good and bad from these
applicants.

"Who had a career in a professional like manufacturing and agriculture?"

At his question, four people looked around and carefully raised their hands.

Three men, one woman. The woman looked to be in her twenties, the men in their thirties.

"What's your field?"

"I worked at a factory, not very professional, but I did a lot of things."

"Well, I worked on the construction site. My career was pretty good. I'm good at tools,
though I don't have a license."
"I'm a nurse, and I'm very good at it, though I've only got a few years of experience.
Please…”

There was no power in the voices of those who answered sequentially. They lacked
confidence.

They were suspicious that they could be saved by saying these things.

One of the four was different.

"I'm a lawyer." He introduced his job with a pretty confident expression as if he were
waiting for the question. "For reference, I'm with the Haesung Law Firm."

He also had confidence that he had not showed before, adding his own affiliation.

It was pretty good. The Haesung Law Firm was not the best in Korea, but it was in the
top ten of Korean law firms.

The combined income of the three people who had introduced their professions
earlier would not equal the income of the man who said he was a lawyer.

Of course, he deserved to be confident. And the attitude would be worth if it was a week
ago.

But not now. "The three, except for the lawyer, are accepted."

"No, wait! Are you saying I'm out? Those three are passing?"

Kim Tae-hoon answered the lawyer's question as if he was hard to understand. "I don't
know why you're so proud of yourself."

"No, I'm with Haesung Law Firm…”

"Just tell me one reason why I need to hire a lawyer against the monsters."

The lawyer was about to say something more, but then he stopped. His mouth closed,
and the glitter in his eyes died quickly.

Kim Tae-hoon ignored the lawyer and continued speaking. "Who was an artilleryman
or a tanker during his military service?"
"I was in the artillery unit." "I was also in the artillery unit!" Two men raised their
hands quickly.

They looked to be in their mid-twenties, and at this moment they seemed to have
noticed who Kim Tae-hoon wanted.

"Who has the first-class license?"

"I have it, I know how to handle forklifts and cranes."

The number of people raising their hands began to decrease as the questions were
repeated, and later on, there was no one left to raise their hand.

"Prepare for the test." Kim Tae-hoon gave a signal.

The soldiers moved immediately. They lined up the dead bodies of the Sabretooth
Wolves.

It was not just a dead body.

The heart was pulled out to get to the monster stone, the body that was chopped all
over for slaughter practice, and it was in a terrible state.

'Oh, my God.'

Of course, the survivors had pale faces as soon as they saw the body of the Sabretooth
Wolf.

Some with weak stomachs began to vomit immediately.

"The test method is simple." Ignoring them, Kim Tae-hoon continued speaking.

"Cut off the legs of the Sabretooth Wolf. It does not matter what the condition is.
Whether it is front or rear, right or left, bring it to me after cutting it. The time limit is
one hour. Tools…”

Kim Tae-hoon grabbed a knife and threw it at the body of the Sabretooth Wolf next to
him.

Pook! The knife went deep into the Wolf's belly, only the handle showing.
"One knife, then, and we'll start testing."

4.

"Oh, shit!" a man working on the sawing off the Sabretooth Wolf's skin and flesh with
a knife shouted loudly.

"Damn it, argh! Goddamn it!" Harsh words filled with emotions flowed out of his mouth.

Those who were doing the same thing reacted to the man's feelings. Some chewed on
their lips, some shed tears, and some cried out.

They were all watched by the Mac Clan's soldiers.

Some of them thought to themselves, 'Does this test mean anything? 'What is he testing
with this?'

It was a terrible, miserable sight.

However, the test to cut off the legs of the Wolves, compared to their desperation, did
not seem to have much meaning.

Kim Tae-hoon did not intend to deny the fact.

It would be useful to practice stabbing the insides of meat and bones, cutting off the
dead monster's legs was not meaningful.

But his reason for doing this was simple.

"There is no reason to accept them unless they are prepared to eat a monster's corpse."

Can you do it, or not? It did not mean to see it.

In the first place, Kim Tae-hoon did not expect much from the survivors. His expectations
were just vague expectations.

So, what Kim Tae-hoon wanted to see was their will to do it, or not.

If they do not have enough fighting spirit to cut apart a dead monster body and the
will to survive, they are just living dead men, eating and making poo.
He didn't want to have such a survivor.

Fortunately, the survivors had strong wills to live. Strong enough that they were able
to meet Kim Tae-hoon and the Mac Clan alive!

The way the survivors came here was hell.

"The time limit is up."

Eventually, all twenty-two survivors crossed the line proposed by Kim Tae-hoon.

"Passed."

After the short words of Kim Tae-hoon, the faces of the survivors who had wrestled
with the hide, muscles, flesh, and bones of the Sabretooth Wolf for an hour, were filled
with cheers and deep fatigue.

"Clean the body."

Kim Tae-hoon did not give any congratulations or shake hands with them.

The night was late enough, and the test was over. Now was the time to take the rest that
had been originally planned.

The Mac Clan must move again tomorrow when the sun rose.

They had to hunt monsters, get food, make roads, and secure relics.

And they had to repeat it again and again. They had to be ready for tomorrow, which
would be more hopeless than today.

'It's over now.'

Most of all, death was predicted for Kim Tae-hoon. Within three to five years, he would
be dead.

It was a time-limited life. He did not have time to celebrate something and to comfort.

'I have to find a way.'

Kim Tae-hoon did not intend to meet the fate of the dream Kim Tae-hoon.

That was how the night began.

5.

At 5 AM, Jang Sung-hoon was not able to fall asleep easily.

The cold weather was the reason, but the fact that his mind was full of the shining
Golden Glass was the biggest reason he could not sleep.

'It lets us see our crisis in our dreams.'

The Golden Glass of Napoleon.

It was a shock to Jang Sung-hoon in many ways.

'It's a tool that can change the future.'

Knowing a crisis meant avoiding it. It was like changing the future.

It would change the world. It was a shock that such a relic existed in the world.

'Such relics are overflowing in the world.'

But there was something even more shocking.

'The world will be crazy… Those greedy people will not leave them be.'

Jang Sung-hoon was a chick in society at his age, he was still childish> His age was not
much different from Bang Hyun-wook, who had a young personality, behavior, and
attitude.

However, Jang Sung-hoon's social experience was darker than other people. The world
he belonged to was filled with the word greed.

Jang Sung-hoon saw a lot in such a world.

How much greed could human beings have for art which is essentially useless?
How terrible is the greed of human beings who can do things that ignore human dignity
to get that desired artwork?

The greed of such people would seem rather crude compared to the three desires of
human beings.

In addition, the art that had an artistic value was now much more than that.

'I feel like they have a missile launch button in their hands.'

What was even eerier was that most of the art was already in the hands of greedy people.

'Even if I look at the situation right now, it is so.'

World-class artworks, historical relics, were not in the hands of ordinary people, but
in the hands of those who knew the ability and methods of filling their greed.

Would they make efforts for the good of the world with those relics, the indispensable
weapons which had amazing value now, when dealing with monsters?

Jang Sung-hoon, at least, did not want to leave his fate to such people.

'This fucking world.' Jang finally gave up sleeping.

If he slept, he'd have to get up sooner or later. Instead, he'd better get up early and
organize his thoughts.

Jang Sung-hoon opened the car door and climbed out. The cold dawn wind hit his body.

Naturally, Jang Sung-hoon's gaze was on the blazing fire, and he headed for the man
who was in front of the fire.

'Boss?'

Kim Tae-hoon was in front of the fire.

He was flying an arrow around himself, a featherless arrow which had only an
arrowhead and shaft, while sipping coffee from a mug in his right hand.

Jang Sung-hoon walked toward Kim Tae-hoon. "Boss."

The conversation between the two of them began again.
6.

"You got up early." While Jang Sung-hoon talked to Kim Tae-hoon, the arrow that
hovered around his Boss like a satellite stopped in front of his eyes.

"I couldn't sleep."

“…Because of your dream?"

The arrow fell to the ground. His concentration was shaken.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I said useless words…” Jang Sung-hoon apologized, understanding Kim
Tae-hoon's feelings. "Boss is also human, I suppose."

He had learned of his death in his dream. He was actually sentenced to life on a deadline.

He couldn't be calm.

Kim Tae-hoon sipped coffee from his mug instead of answering Jang Sung-hoon's
apology, and he looked at the fallen arrow.

The arrow slowly began to rise again. It circled around Kim Tae-hoon like a satellite.

The movement of the arrow was not smooth, and it orbit was slightly distorted every
time it escaped his view.

"Don't worry too much, you know the future, and all you have to do is to avoid it," Jang
Sung-hoon said to him.

Kim Tae-hoon swallowed his coffee, and he grabbed the arrow that was circling
around him. "The problem is that I don't know what to avoid."

"Well…”
Kim Tae-hoon's voice was serious. Facing it, Jang Sung-hoon swallowed the joke he
was going to use to change the atmosphere. He sat down near Kim Tae-hoon with a
serious expression.

Jang Sung-hoon watched the twisted branches burning, and he spoke carefully.

"Was there really only me? Was there no Hyun-wook or Lieutenant Soo-ji or sister
Sun-mi by your side?"

"I don't want to hide such things. Do you think I'm lying?"

"No, I just didn't think I was going to be so loyal to the boss like that."

Kim Tae-hoon also nodded.

Jang Sung-hoon was not a man who could give loyalty to someone. He was quick to
figure things out and faithful to his own interests.

It was why he was attached to Kim Tae-hoon.

It was not appropriate for him to stick to Kim Tae-hoon, trapped in a corner, when he
was forced to die at the will of other people.

"Well, this is for sure."

Of course, it was a future story, and there must have been a process.

"The future we both suffered so much hardship that we had to be so sticky. I am sure
something extraordinary happened. If I were to become such a person, it wouldn't
happen with a minor accident."

Kim Tae-hoon laughed softly and took a sip of coffee.

"Oh, and this is really my personal imagination."

When Kim Tae-hoon was enjoying coffee, he didn't speak.

"In my own terms, the future Boss is a hunting dog. No, I don't mean you are a real dog,
but your character is wild, like a dog," Jang Sung-hoon said as if he had been waiting.
"Why would they let you die, even if it was so? Sometimes they could kill a hunting
dog. They can kill after the hunting is over. But you said that you fought the dragon at
the end, right? It means there's still a monster left."

Kim Tae-hoon's eyes turned to Jang Sung-hoon.

"If I tell you my story, there are a lot of real geniuses in this field. There are a lot of
people who make counterfeit goods better then the original. But do you know why
they're active in the shadows? They're either weird, or they're in trouble. No matter
how smart they are, if they have no side, and if you have enemies, they will eventually
be abandoned."

Kim Tae-hoon swallowed and said quietly, "To sum up your words, the most fundamental
reason I died was that my personality was a frivolous one, wasn't it?"

"Well… if the personality of the Boss had been good at this, at least the death scene
would have changed." With a bashful smile, Jang Sung-hoon rubbed both his hands in
front of the fire.

Kim Tae-hoon was able to make one thing clear at this moment.

'Now I know why he was around me until the last time.'

Why Jang Sung-hoon stayed with him, why he allowed him to be with him, and eventually
he died to save him.

It was worth it for Jang Sung-hoon.

He had an extraordinary view, an ability to express his opinion properly, and a different
perspective. He was smart and competent.

Kim Tae-hoon was able to see one fact clearly.

"If I move according to my character, I will die in the end." With his personality, it was
easy to make enemies, but it was not easy to make allies.

This personality, of course, had been good so far.

Kim Tae-hoon had been working in a place called the army, where he did not need to
make allies or a faction.
But not now. He had already stepped out of the military.

'I almost didn't know that.'

What was even more frightening, was that he was not aware of it.

So Kim Tae-hoon asked a question here. "Jang Sung-hoon, what would you do if you were
me?"

"If I had the combat power and charisma like Boss, I would be a king in Bucheon right
now," Jang Sung-hoon grinned and replied.

"Of course it's a joke, I didn't mean it." He laughed playfully.

"But honestly, if I had had the power to be like Boss, I wouldn't have thought much about
it. I'd bring some people together, make a group, get a gun, capture the monsters, and
people will take you as their king. There's no reason to refuse it. Most of them will be
happy to do so."

But it wasn't just a playful laugh.

"I'm sure there are people like Boss elsewhere, even if not like you. You said the level
of the Awakeners is different when they are Awakened, right? Add if a relic is added…”

Human beings were the incarnation of greed.

If they have power and supernatural ability, and if there is a stage to exert their power,
not everyone would do what they normally do.

"I'm sure those who have obtained the power must have created a group, and they are
controlling and operating a territory. Some wisely, some as a tyrant."

Moreover, the situation was that the communication and traffic were paralyzed, and
the Republic of Korea had already been divided.

They risked their lives going to Sejong City from Seoul.

At his words, Kim Tae-hoon recalled Colonel Lim Hyun-joon.

Kim Tae-hoon's purpose now was to move to Pocheon, where Colonel Lim Hyun-joon
was, to make contact with him.

But could Colonel Lim Hyun-joon be just a soldier now?

'Colonel Lim Hyun-joon is an ambitious man.'

He was ambitious.

He would not be a faithful soldier in this situation, and he would have been very
ambitious if he had gained the position of Commander-in-Chief in a short time.

'If I met him now, he would use me as a hunting dog.'

Kim Tae-hoon put the mug on the ground. "Do you like coffee?"

"Is there anyone in Korea who hates coffee?"

Kim Tae-hoon started to make more coffee.

7.

The start of the new morning of the Mac Clan began with a battle with the monsters.

"A world where even pigs became monsters."

"It's a real crazy world, damn it."

The monster appeared to be like a wild boar, but it was so large that it could not be
compared with a wild boar. It had a horn that reminded them of a rhinoceros.

A Horned Pig!

Three dreadful Pigs were charging the Mac Clan vehicles on the move.

The moment the Horned Pigs appeared, the Mac Clan moved with great speed.

First, two SUVs became ramparts that blocked the advance of the Horned Pig.

"Get out of!"

"Wait!"

The drivers who were driving the SUV's facing the Horned Pig got out of the slow-
moving vehicle.

"The driver is here!"

"Even the left driver came out!"

As soon as the fact was delivered to Kim Tae-hoon, who was riding in the back of a dump
truck, he stared at two cars driving along.

Two cars revved up and began to accelerate toward the Horned Pigs.

The result was obvious.

Three Horned Pigs, unwilling to stop, collided with two SUV's on a narrow road, and
after screaming a bit, were entangled and crushed.

The sound of the Horned Pigs clearly told the gruesomeness of the situation.

Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji saw this and quickly ordered the soldiers in the back of the
dump truck, "Aim!"

The soldiers distracted by the intense shock created by the traffic accident in front of
them came to their senses.

In their gun sights, they saw one or two Horned Pigs stumbling around in shock.

"Start firing!" There was a flurry of gunfire.

During the rain of gunfire, Kim Tae-hoon threw an arrow high into the sky.

The arrow without feathers rose up continuously. Kim Tae-hoon raised his arrow high
enough that he couldn't see it anymore

When the arrow disappeared from Kim Tae-hoon's senses, it no longer received the
help of his telekinesis. It began to fall

Shiii!
The sound of the falling arrow was eerie. It sounded like a hawk diving on prey, trying
to cut off the target's life at once.

The arrow, which fell like that, began to change its path at some point, and it hit precisely
in the middle of the forehead of a Horned Pig struggling in front of the gunfire.

Pok!

The arrow disappeared into the body of the horned Pig like magic, without a trace.

Quik!

The Horned Pig gave a short cry, fell to the ground and began to twitch.

"What the heck?"

"It suddenly fell down, didn't it?"

The soldiers, who did not see the arrow, cocked their heads at the sudden fall of the
Horned Pig that had stood up against their bullets.

On the other hand, Kim Tae-hoon frowned.

'This is not enough.'

Kim Tae-hoon focused on pulling out the arrow embedded in the Horned Pig.

But it did not come out. He could not draw the arrow in the body of the Horned Pig
properly and clearly.

This was a characteristic of telekinesis. It was not all done just by mere imagination.

Just like a top artist who had the skill to visualize a perfect object with his eyes.

Just like a doctor with experience, training, and ability, who could image the state of a
body without opening up a patient's body.

Telekinesis did not respond to vagueness. Only when he imagined a clear fact could it
show true power.
'That's not enough.'

It meant that Kim Tae-hoon was still limited and lacking in ability with his telekinesis.

Kim Tae-hoon clicked his tongue and looked over at Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji.

Kim Soo-ji nodded. "Stop shooting!"

At her shout, the rainy gunfire stopped at once.

If they had been just dazed and pulling the trigger, they would not have stopped shooting.

Soldiers not shooting was evidence that self-control and discipline now existed, and it
was evident that they were now blooded.

It was evident that they were no longer cowards who were too scared to judge how
many empty cartridges they had thrown up, that they had become hunters who had
repeatedly fought with monsters, not survivors struggling to live through being
slaughtered by repeated monsters.

Of course, they did not stop shooting just to confirm that…

Kim Tae-hoon hopped down lightly from the back of the dump truck. Bang Hyun-wook
came to his side, holding his steel pipe.

"Big brother, which one do you want?"

"You pick first."

"Me first?"

"I'll give you a chance to look good in front of your favorite girl."

"I think the right one is livelier, so I'll kill it."

After finishing the words, Bang Hyun-wook pulled out the Energy in his gut and sent
it through his whole body. His whole being heated up in one breath.

"Uh-cha!"
The sound of him circulating his Energy caught the attention of the Horned Pig, which
was still full of Energy and the Strength to fight, and a mite ornery after being shot all
over.

A Horned Pig stared at Bang Hyun-wook, while the other one was already rushing
toward him.

Looking at this, Kim Tae-hoon also boosted his telekinesis in his gut. At the same time,
he held up his fist. His right hand went black.

That was how the battle began, a battle of the Awakeners!

1.

It was Jang Sung-hoon's idea.

"The new recruits know well what kind of personality the Boss is. It's not possible not
to know. It takes a long time to see if you're good, but it takes less than ten seconds to
figure out if your personality is dirty."

He told Kim Tae-hoon needed to show his power to the new faces who had joined the
Mac Clan.

"But the new recruits don't know what kind of person the Boss is, and even if you're an
Awakener, that's just vague, and the word 'the Awakener' was made by the Boss, right?

"Now is time to fight against monsters, but survive.

"You need to show them what an Awakener is, and what it means to fight a monster
with your naked body.

"You have to show them how great you are."

It was necessary to show them how terrible Kim Tae-hoon the Awakener was now.

"If they see the image of the Boss, they will calculate at that moment, and act as if they
have a dirty monster as a boss. At least they not going to put a blood pool around their
neck."

Kim Tae-hoon accepted the idea of Jang Sung-hoon, and he stood in front of the monster
with only his bare body, holding only a knife.

And he showed them what the fight between a monster and a monster is, how great a
monster he was.
2.

As soon as Kim Tae-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook approached the monsters, the early
members of the Mac Clan watched expectantly.

A colleague, a comrade, and a leader who was willing to exercise monster-like violence
against monsters!

However, the eyes of the new recruits greeting their first day as members of the Mac
Clan were full of fear.

'What the hell is that?' 'These monsters are still alive! Why?'

Kim Tae-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook seemed to be committing suicide to the new
recruits who had seen countless humans eaten by the monsters.

In the eyes of Bang Hyun-wook and Kim Tae-hoon, the Horned Pigs were only petty
animals.

"I am going to show off all of a sudden."

It had been riddled with dozens of bullets after colliding with the running vehicle.

Because it was a monster, it still had a fighting spirit and was standing on its legs even
with a fatal injury.

The Pigs were no different from corpses that were certain to die in time.

Compared to monsters that were so fierce that they could even go crazy, they were just
petty.

Above all, Kim Tae-hoon's abilities were already overwhelming.

------

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 76

- Health: 51
[Special Abilities]

- Energy: E+ Rank

- Mana: E+ Rank

- Telekinesis: A Rank

- Defense: E Rank

- Mana Resistance: E+ Rank

------

His strength had reached 76 through the monopoly of the monster stones.

He was far beyond a human being.

He had surpassed an Olympic medalist, and or even a level at which an Olympic medalist
might reach through drugs.

He was superhuman.

In addition, Kim Tae-hoon already had four monster abilities, starting with [Black
Skin] and [Howling].

It was already decided who the predator was.

Cue-e-e-e-ek!

Therefore, Kim Tae-hoon did not take much time to deal with the Horned Pig that was
squealing loudly.

The moment it screamed and rushed ahead with its horns, he also rushed towards it.

The distance between the Horned Pig and Kim Tae-hoon narrowed quickly, and he
immediately caught the horn of the Pig and climbed atop it as if riding a rodeo.

At the same time, he stabbed the knife in his right hand into its neck.
The knife went through the thick hide of the Horned Pig, which had resisted bullets,
and all the fat beneath.

The knife was not a great sword, and it was not a relic.

The secret was, of course, Energy.

Kim Tae-hoon was also fully aware of how to use his Energy, as Bang Hyun-wook had
realized.

Not only did he activate his body's potential with Energy, but he also knew how to
cover his weapon with Energy.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon's knife, which did not have a high Energy rank behind it, only
went in as deep as his little finger.

Cuik, cu-i-i!

There was no doubt it hurt, but it was not enough to cause a fatal injury to it. So Kim
Tae-hoon went on to his next move.

He concentrated the power of the Black Orc in his right hand.

Now his right hand turned black, and the area was growing. It used to be a little off his
wrist, but now it was reaching up close to his elbows.

Kim Tae-hoon hit the knife's handle with his black fist, like a hammer hitting a nail.

Every time he hit it, the knife went in deeper.

Cuek!!

The cries of the Horned Pig grew more frantic. Naturally, its struggles had intensified.
Its body was shaking like a rodeo bull, not a pig.

However, its struggles didn't do much to Kim Tae-hoon, who already has his seat and
even held its horns like a handle. Whenever it struggled, he smashed down with his
fist.

Pook!
The knife went in deeper and deeper.

Pook!

The blade disappeared.

Pook!

Then the handle began to go in.

Cu-i-i-ik!

A mournful squeal came from the jaws of the Horned Pig, which seemed to feel death
coming.

But Kim Tae-hoon did not stop.

Now the knife had entered the mass of flesh and was not visible, but he punched down
into that bloody hole.

Pook!

The knife went deeper.

Thump!

The frantic Horned Pig fell to the ground like a broken doll.

"Huck!" "Wow!"

The sight caught the breath of those watching the scene.

"Uh-cha! What's the taste of the iron bat of the Barry Bonds of Bucheon High School?
This is the iron bat which hit two home runs consecutively in the weekend league of
High School!"

Bang Hyun-wook, who was just ignorant and fierce enough to hit the Horned Pig's
body with a lump of iron, was not really noticed.

Only Kim's figure was seen.

As they watched, Kim Tae-hoon drew a knife from the neck of the Horned Pig, which
was still convulsing.

Hot blood sprang up like a fountain. White steam came up, too.

Ignoring the gruesome sight, Kim brought his ears down to the body of the dying
Horned Pig.

As soon as he found the sound of the Pig's heart, he stabbed into it. He cut away the skin
and flesh at once, and he shoved his hand into the gash.

Soon after, Kim Tae-hoon pulled out his hand, holding a coveted red jewel… and
swallowed it immediately.

Everyone else swallowed as they watched the scene.

3.

Bucheon Municipal Wonmi Library…

"Move carefully, be careful! It's a grenade!"

"I understand."

"Where do we move the drinking water?"

"Second floor! Drinking water to the second floor!"

Located between Wonmi Mountain and Bucheon Stadium, the library, where quiet is
life, was now experiencing its most tumultuous day since its establishment.

"Everything is moved."

"Let's go and smoke."

"Yes."

There were as many as fifty people involved in the disturbance. They were constantly
moving things into the library from the trucks and vehicles parked in front of the
library.
Under the circumstance, Kim Soo-ji asked Kim Tae-hoon, who was taking a coffee
break. "Major, do you really want to make this a base?"

At the question, Kim Soo-ji answered immediately. "Is there a problem making this a
base?"

"No."

Kim Su-ji had no doubts about making the Bucheon Municipal Wonmi Library a base.
No, the library was the best place to live in under the current circumstances.

The area was surrounded by hills and was quite distant from where people lived. In
many ways, the structure was advantageous to defense. Although not as common as
the Ojung-dong Industrial District, in nearby Wonmi-dong there were several
factories where they could find useful tools. It would not be hard to get things for item
making.

The library itself had many advantages.

The books and bookshelves filling the library could be great firewood during winter,
and since the Internet, the final edition of modern civilization knowledge, had become
meaningless, the library was a collection of human wisdom for their situation.

If human civilization was rebuilt from the bottom, knowledge was more important
than a sword or a gun.

Ahn Sun-mi and Jang Sung-hoon were already moving around the library collecting
books that would help their activities and survival in the future.

There was no reason for Kim Soo-ji to oppose such a place as a base. She was just
suspicious.

'Why did he suddenly get a base? I'm sure he didn't intend to do that until yesterday.'

Until last night, Kim Tae-hoon had no intention of making a base.

If he had thought about it, he would have made the library a base earlier, rather than
waiting under Bucheon Stadium.

'We don't train in cold weather, and we didn't need to spend the night shivering in the
cold outside using our cars as a tent.'

Naturally, Kim Soo-ji thought Kim Tae-hoon would move to another place after securing
the relics he wanted in the Bow Museum as well.

As Kim Tae-hoon suddenly said that he was going to build a base in such a situation, it
was natural for her to ask questions.

However, she had not raised any new questions. She was a soldier to her bones.

Kim Tae-hoon gave her a new order. "Lieutenant Kim Su-ji, bring people together when
it's done. Place the Awakeners in the front row."

"I understand."

Kim Tae-hoon drank coffee while watching Kim Su-ji, who was moving to carry out the
order right away.

The strong aroma of coffee filled his mouth.

But Kim Tae-hoon was not able to savor his coffee at this moment. It was due to the
conversation he'd had with Jang Sung-hoon in the early morning.

Jang Sung-hoon gave his opinion to Kim Tae-hoon without any qualms.

"Boss, if you monopolize the monster stones, the Boss becomes strong, but the Mac
Clan cannot be strong. I don't care if that's the goal… to play big, you have to ignore
the small things."

Kim Tae-hoon's actions might make him stronger, but it wouldn't make the Mac Clan
stronger.

"And it doesn't matter if the group is small, but if the group grows big, a rank is needed,
right? You know that better because the Boss is a soldier. Of course, we don't need to
use military ranks. In this world, the mark on the back of the Boss will be the rank."

In order to make the group big, they needed a ranking system.

To sum it up, Kim Tae-hoon needed to set up a framework early in order to have a
bigger military force and a bigger military clique.
In fact, Kim Tae-hoon knew that part better than anyone else.

He served as a soldier in a secret society in a third world where a group of warlords

prevailed, where civil war, rebellion, and war were constant.

He knew better than any terrorist how warlords are organized and how they are run
efficiently.

Nevertheless, the reason why Kim had been active like that was simple.

He didn't want to make a military faction. That's why he used the term, Clan.

If he had intended to create a military faction, he would have used a phrase meaning
bigger.

The word 'Clan' is not used in the military, or to express forces of big scale.

'Not my way, but… '

In addition, it was never Kim's style to lead a force like a military faction. Until now,
Kim's target had been such military leaders.

The higher they went, the more they became a target.

But things had changed now.

'Now I know the result of doing things my own way, and I have to throw it away.'

He found out that his style did not work.

He found out that if he lived as a hunting dog, he would die.

There is only one way left!

'When the situation is settled after constructing a base here… '

Being not a hunting dog, but a hunter!

'I need to go out into the city and gather the Awakeners who will be my hunting dogs.'
Kim Tae-hoon saw Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji return. He swallowed the rest of his coffee
and got up.

The monster stones inside his pocket of Kim Tae-hoon touched his chest.

Meanwhile, Kim Soo-ji stood at attention before him and said, "Major, everyone is here."

Kim Tae-hoon nodded in reply and double-checked the monster stones around his
chest.

'It's best to train a hunting dog with game meat.' There was no further worry or
hesitation in Kim Tae-hoon's eyes after confirming this.

There was only the glitter in the eye of a hunter who will do anything and everything
for his new purpose!
4.

January 10, 2017.

At 4 PM, when the sun began to set in, the city of Bucheon used to still be crowded
with people and vehicles.

Since yesterday, the snow had been falling all the time, and any traces of the living on
the white open snowfield was only here and there, and faint.

There was no sense of life anywhere.

A city of the dead.

"Boss… it's too quiet," Jang Sung-hoon said, unable to stay quiet. "I hope not everyone
in Bucheon is dead."

Kim Tae-hoon put his gloved index finger on his mouth instead of replying to Jang Sung-
hoon's repeated concerns.

Jang Sung-hoon shut up.

Looking at the world that was calm again, Kim Tae-hoon tutted quietly.

'What the hell happened here during this time?'

At the same time, Kim Tae-hoon recalled the events of the recent days.

After setting up the library as a base, Kim Tae-hoon had to spend busy days in the radical
reform of the Mac Clan.

He had to present carrots and whips to the Awakeners who would be his hunting dogs,
and he had to work to fortify the library that had become the base area.
He could not afford to go out to Bucheon City and do something.

It was the snow since yesterday that made him move.

Monsters were more like animals. Animals don't move easily on snowy days.

In other words, the snowy day was a good day to contact the survivors and avoid the
threat of the monsters. When the snow came, Kim Tae-hoon prepared to come down
to the city.

Their purpose was to contact the survivors, look at the situation, and get the necessary
supplies.

Jang Sung-hoon accompanied him, saying he knew of the secret mansion of a damn
rich man who played with art.

'It's so quiet, as Jang Sung-hoon says.'

He had enough concern about what would happen before he came to the city.

'This was not expected.'

But the situation was outside his expectations.

"If everything had been done by common sense, there must be a group of survivors
here."

Kim Tae-hoon thought that the downtown might be organized to some extent.

The scary thing about human beings was that they quickly adapted to the world through
trial and error.

Even in a world full of monsters, even if the social infrastructure collapsed, he thought
that someone would adapt.

Moreover, there was no huge disturbance that surprised Kim Tae-hoon.

For example, if a dragon had once again passed through the air, there would have been
a great deal of confusion, but it did not happen. There was no sign of a monster that
was so enormous that it could be heard even in the distance.
Moreover, Kim Tae-hoon and Jang Sung-hoon were gradually narrowing the distance
to the New Jungdong Station.

The New Jungdong Station of Bucheon was a large commercial area, with department
stores, large marts, and the Bucheon Wonmi Police Station, which was fairly large.

By common sense, there were few more suitable environments in Bucheon than New
Jungdong Station area for survivors seeking to survive.

Kim Tae-hoon's footsteps stopped. At the same time, his hands went up. Jang Sung-
hoon's footsteps also stopped at the signal.

Whi-ing!

In the cold wind blowing past them, Kim Tae-hoon's gaze turned to the snow piles that
decorated the roads they wanted to travel.

There was nothing special to look at. It was snowy, piled up with fertilizer bags.

However, Kim Tae-hoon was sure that it was not a fertilizer bag under the snow.

He looked at the snow pile, his eyes sharp. He painted a picture, a picture of a big hand
shaking a snow pile.

The things under the snow were revealed.

It was a dead body that had been frozen blue. It was not just a body… but a decapitated
body.

"Ugh!" As soon as he checked the body, Jang Sung-hoon barely swallowed the vomit
coming up in disgust. "There must be a monster, damn it…”

At that moment, the image of a Mud Troll came up in the mind of Jang Sung-hoon.

A monster, which could not be killed with bullets, that pulled off the heads of people
and ate them.

Jang Sung-hoon shivered in the trauma that he will carry for the rest of his life, and the
snow piling up on the Werewolf leather he wore fell to the snow softly.
On the other hand, Kim Tae-hoon's expression was different. He did not recall the Mud
Troll, who had only taken out the human head.

"It's not a monster," Kim Tae-hoon said clearly. "That was killed by a man."

That body was not one which a monster made.

"Yes?"

Ignoring the surprised Jang Sung-hoon, Kim Tae-hoon looked around with great caution.

'Murder can happen.'

It is ridiculous to hope that murders would not happen in this situation. Murder would
happen as much as possible.

'But cutting off the head is another story.'

But cutting the head off a corpse was another story because accidental murder to live
did not make a neckless body…

"Aaaaaaargh!"

The scream was close by. Kim Tae-hoon rose from his crouch.

"Jang Sung-hoon."

"Yes."

"From now on, our enemy is human."

At the words, Jang Sung-hoon made a determined expression, rather than a surprised
one.

In recent days, Kim Tae-hoon had taught Mac Clan's men that the most important thing
is the determination to kill not a monster, but a man that threatened their own life.

5.

"Please save me. Just save me."

The snowy field.

A woman was naked and seeking forgiveness on the harsh snowfield, which seemed
to shake the body just by looking.

"Please, please."

Her appearance, rubbing her hands again and again, was so pathetic that even the
viewer could get shivers.

There were three men around her.

They were wearing thick vests, holding curtain rods and a spear made from a kitchen
knife, and wearing construction helmets.

Despite their crude appearance, they were clearly armed. It meant that they were not
ordinary people.

The three of them gave a spear-sword instead of mercy to the woman who sought
mercy in the snow.

"Please, please save me. There are no others except for me."

A man talked at the repeated sad tone of the woman. "Shall we have some fun before
we kill her? Eh?"

It was a phrase that made the woman's face turn black.

The other two wet their lips with their tongues instead of answering the man's filthy
words.

"Why don't we just take off our pants since she's taken it all off? Don't you think?" the
man repeated to his two colleagues.

A nasty suggestion.

However, the remaining two seemed to have no intention of easily agreeing with the
filthiness.

"Shit, let's have some fun!"

"Please, please save me. I'll do anything. Anything…”

Soon after, she spat out her words as if she had resigned herself to her fate.

"Look! She says she'll do anything. Anyway, she is the food for the monster. What's the
wrong of doing this? Don't you think?"

The man spoke somewhat angrily now. The other two looked at one another.

Pook!

An arrow flew into the eyeball of one of the two men who looked at one another.

All of a sudden, without sound and without a hint of warning, the arrowhead of an
Arrow flew through his eye and brain, and it came out through the back of his head.

"Uh?"

"What?"

Everyone, and even the woman who begged for her life, rubbing her hands hard,
looked surprised at the sight. Their thinking stopped at that moment.

Something white began to come toward one of the remaining two men.

Like a leopard leaping for its prey, a man's black fist, appearing with a speed that could
not be considered human, shattered the skull of a man with a vacant look on his face.

He broke into pieces with his helmet. Fragments of broken skulls were scattered all
over.

The only man left now was the man who vomited out his zest for rape at a woman
seeking mercy.

However, the man still had a vacant look on his face.

'Uh? Uh?'

The fist of the man who had suddenly appeared sped toward the man with such a
foolish expression, and broke his helmet and face at the same time.
The man who had been hit by the fist screamed and spit out his teeth. But he did not
scream for long.

"Kuck, kuck!"

As he was about to scream, the fist that had crushed his nose was holding the man's
neck tightly.

The strangled man tried to wrench at the grip, but it was not a human arm.

In the meantime, the arrow that had already eaten one person's life began to move on
its own.

Wii…

The Arrow, which made a snake-like sound, soon came near the eyes of the man who
was caught by his throat, and it lit up hazily.

The man shivered and pissed his pants with a choked gurgle.

Kim Tae-hoon spoke calmly. "If you play a trick, you will die. If you hesitate to answer,
you will die. If you have a loud voice, you will die. Nod your head, if you understand."

Even in a choking situation, the man nodded.

Kim Tae-hoon released the power holding the man's neck.

"Khuck!"

There was a choked gasp.

"Huh-uck, huh-uck…”

Around that time, Jang Sung-hoon came up to the naked woman and covered her with
the hide of the Werewolf he was wearing.

The leather jacket of Werewolf was rugged and smelled bad, but it was incredibly
warm.

"Hush. Be quiet."
However, Jang Sung-hoon gave a cruel warning to the woman instead of being kind.

This place was now the area of the enemy, in a sense. A disturbance would never be
advantageous to Kim Tae-hoon and Jang Sung-hoon.

The woman said, "I know what he knows. I'll tell you everything if you let me live. I
was with him."

A sudden remark.

At the words of the woman, the man who was gasping shouted in horror, "That bitch
betrays…”

Betrayal!

As soon as Kim Tae-hoon heard the word, his Arrow, which was in front of the man's
eyes, drove in like a striking serpent.

The man fell to the ground. Kim Tae-hoon pulled the Arrow from the man's eye, and
he said, aiming at the woman covered by the leather of the Werewolf with the Arrow
in his hand, "If you play a trick, you will die. If you hesitate to answer, you will die. Even
if you have a loud voice, you will die. Nod your head, if you understand."

The woman nodded…

6.

When the heavy snow fell, the terrible world began to turn white in earnest.

Kim Tae-hoon and Jang Sung-hoon, who properly concealed the dead, went into a
sushi restaurant with Baek Ji-yeon, the woman survivor.

The fish that protruded from the water tanks broken by the monster raids were all
frozen, and the inside of the restaurant remained a bit fishy-smelling.

"I'll stand guard."

Jang Sung-hoon took out the rifle he had brought there and stood guard. Kim Tae-hoon
went into the kitchen with Baek Ji-yeon, who was shaking in the cold with her lips
blue. She was wearing only the pants and jumper of a dead man.

In the kitchen, Kim Tae-hoon threw two hot packs to Baek Ji-yeon.

Baek Ji-yeon blinked, took the hot packs, and began to rub her whole body with them.

Because she covered her body with only a jumper, when she rubbed her body with hot
packs, her naked body was revealed. But could not afford to worry about her breasts
being exposed.

She was full of the desire to melt her whole body and to live.

Kim Tae-hoon put her in front of him and said, "What happened on January 1?"

"Yes?"

Instead of answering, Kim Tae-hoon glared at her with cold eyes. Then she remembered
the three conditions that Kim Tae-hoon had demanded earlier.
"I don't know about the first day of January, but when I woke up it was already late at
night."

She would die if she hesitated to answer. The warning alone kept her talking.

"Everyone was the same. Few of the survivors were sane on January 1st. Awakeners!
Yes, only a few of the Awakeners were active on January 1st, but it was not exact…”

Of course, in this situation, she talked about everything at the same time. Cold and
fear, these two were very effective factors paralyzing human reason.

So, it was more meaningful for Kim.

The words she spoke now were ones that had not been manipulated, without any
processing in her mind.

'The dragon's influence was enormous.'

Once in Bucheon City, it became clear that January 1st was a lost day.

The cause was obvious.

The dragon!

The horrifying monster passed by, killing monsters and humans from fear alone, or
stunning them.

Even if there were monsters or humans that could move, those who were exposed to
the fear would not be able to act normally.

The next important word was the word 'Awakener.'

The expression of 'Awakener' itself was not a word that only Kim Tae-hoon could use
after applying for a patent. However, if the expression of 'Awakener' was used in
Bucheon City, there was a trace of Kim Tae-hoon.

"Who used the word 'Awakener'?"

"The survivors of the large mart by the City Hall spread out, and a rumor that eating
monster stones would give Awakeners superhuman strength began there, as well as a
rumor that the first hunter had killed a Black Orc…”

As expected, it was the survivors who had survived in the large mart that spread the
term 'Awakener.'

"So what happened on January 2nd? Tell me about the important parts."

"The survivors who survived in the large mart gathered at the City Hall. They started
making a group, saying, 'If we gather around the Awakeners, we will be able to fight
monsters, and if we have a lot of monster stones, we can kill monsters.' The survivors
began to gather there one by one."

"When did you join them?"

"Well, I didn't join them. I was working at a department store by the New Jungdong
Station. I did not join, but they came."

"They?"

"Messiah."

"Is Messiah the name of the group?"

"Yes? Yes, it's the name of the organization. It's not… the group which was made in the
City Hall. No, it started there, but it was, so…”

At that moment she began to stammer. She was trying to throw out something in her
head at once, but she was overloaded.

Kim Tae-hoon looked at her grimly. Baek Ji-yeon met his eyes and shook herself.

"Well, I'll tell you soon, please, save me."

"Just answer my question. Who made the Messiah group?"

"He's a guy named Lee Jin-sung."

"What are his external features?"

"I've never seen him… I don't even know where he is."

Kim Tae-hoon started glaring at Baek Ji-yeon at the words.

"Well, well, it's a rumor, I'm not sure, it's said he's using a sword… a sword that's so
special that it can cut a monster in half. It's a rumor. I've never seen it."

"What was the date the Messiah group came to your department store?"

"It's… the sixth day! I'm sure it was the sixth day."

"What did they come for?"

"To get a sacrifice…”

"A sacrifice?"

"It's a sacrifice to calm down the yellow devil on the subway."

"The yellow demon on the subway?"

"It's a giant snake, whose whole body is covered with black scales. The shining snake
with yellow eyes… so it's called the yellow devil."

"What does a sacrifice mean?"

"We need ten people every day to fill the yellow devil's belly. We throw ten people into
the New Jungdong Station every day. Ten people every day… after cutting off the Achilles
tendon to keep them from running…”

Her whole body began to shake after she said that, and the reason began to disappear
from her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I'll answer you immediately, I'll answer…”

Kim Tae-hoon, who thought that further questions were meaningless, took out a
chocolate bar and a can of premade coffee from his chest and threw them to her.

A chocolate bar and a canned coffee were not a good combination, but she accepted it
with wide eyes.

"Take a break, get things straight in your mind."

"Thank you, thank you." She began to unwrap the chocolate bar with her frozen hands
and broken nails. After she managed to unwrap it, she began to eat the hard-frozen
chocolate bar.

In the meantime, Kim Tae-hoon came out of the kitchen and approached Jang Sung-
hoon, still standing guard.

"Boss, do you get anything good?"

"If the sad news is good, then yes."

"The sad news? Is that a bad story?"

"The Awakeners of the survivors made a group, and now they are expanding the area
of the city. The name of the force is Messiah."

"Messiah, that's a very attractive name. I think we should have chosen an English name
for our Clan. To be honest, now that I'm talking about Mac, foreigners will think of
McDonald's or Apple, but will not think of a mythical animal which eats dreams. There
was a McDonald's near the department store, and I want a hamburger now."

"The Messiah group is dealing with monsters in a way that gives a human offering to
them."

"There is such a thing?" Jang Sung-hoon's face hardened as he nodded. "What? A

human offering? Wait, I didn't hear you wrong, did I? Did they give someone to a
monster? To a monster?"

"There's a snake called the Yellow Devil in the subway station, and they are offering
ten adults every day to calm it down."

"Ten people every day? Isn't that crazy? It's crazy. Crazy bastards, offering a human
being as a sacrifice?" He looked confused even as he swore.

Kim Tae-hoon, on the other hand, did not lose his coolness. "It's more cruel than crazy."

It is clear that he faced an unexpected reality, but Kim Tae-hoon could not deny that
the behavior of the Messiah organization was reasonable and efficient enough.

"If they can't kill a monster anyway, it's reasonable for them to make as many sacrifices
as the monster wants."

"But that's not right."

"If you were in a Messiah group, that would not have come out easily."

"Well…”

"To sacrifice the few for the many might be democracy in this world."

Jang Sung-hoon shut up. Kim Tae-hoon continued on.

"Moreover, the current group of survivors has a form in which general people are
attached to the Awakeners, and it would be hard for the common people who would
be sacrificed to oppose it if the Awakeners need sacrifices. In other words, the system
of sacrifice is a way of survival for Awakeners, and a means of maintaining power."

Jang Sung-hoon looked at the snow falling down with a pale face. Kim Tae-hoon did
not speak anymore.

It was his turn to chew on his anguish.

'Messiah and Lee Jin-sung.'

For now, he had two clues. The Messiah group and the leader of the group, Lee Jin-sung.

'A human offering… '

Messiah, the meaning of the name didn't matter. The important thing was their behavior.

'Smart, cruel, and powerful in action.'

It is understandable that the Awakeners would gather together, and it was natural for
a force of survivors to be set up around them.

But offering a living person to sacrifice was something that is not common. It was not
easy to come up with such an idea.

At this point, monsters were just things to run away from and avoid.
When a powerful monster appeared, it would scare people into running away, and
they wouldn't think to feed it and keep it calm.

In that situation, who would think monsters had their own territories and wouldn't
wander if they were full?

Just because they watched National Geographic often does not mean they would think
of it.

'Lee Jin-sung.'

Lee Jin-sung, who came up with such an idea and put it into practice, could not be an
ordinary person.

'A person who uses a sword and is able to cut down monsters with a single stroke.'

It was only a story, but it was something even Kim Tae-hoon could not do.

'Energy rank is high, or he has a high Mana rank and a relic that uses his Mana effectively.'

The rank of natural ability would have to be high.

'The scary part is that he created Messiah on purpose.'

He didn't use his power recklessly.

According to the story, the starting point for Messiah was the group of survivors from
the City Hall.

In that group, Lee Jin-sung was active step by step.

At first, he would have become a hero by fighting a monster without cost, and as soon
as the organization gathered around him, he would have taken off his mask, after
winning the Awakeners to his side who would become his own limbs.

"The offering of human beings is not the purpose itself."

Moreover, it was not likely that the Messiah was dedicated to religious rituals. Keeping
the monsters quiet was the process.
"The purpose is to develop power, hunting the small fries."

In terms of games, they are leveling up while killing the small fries, leaving the
powerful monsters alone.

At the same time, their scope of the activity would be expanded, and the evidence was
that they attacked and brought the survivors of other areas under their control to
secure sacrifices.

In the process, they also created a sense of fear by cutting the heads off the bodies.

"If they expand this way and secure the material of the 17th Division beyond Songnae
Station…”

As soon as this organization gained firepower, he would become a powerful warlord.

The foundation was already established. The foundation itself was much bigger than
the Mac Clan.

So at this moment, Kim Tae-hoon had to choose whether to hold their hands or remove
them.

He could not leave Messiah like this. He had to decide now to hold their hands or remove
them.

He did not worry about this part long.

'I can't hold their hands.'

The choice of holding hands with Messiah was not right for Kim Tae-hoon.

It was not because of the sense of disgust with the Messiah and Lee Jin-sung, or a sense
of justice that he should stop their evil behavior.

'It's not a sword I can keep below me.'

His capacity was just insufficient. In fact, Kim Tae-hoon had never compromised with
the men of power of the lawless world or used their way.

He had only removed the men of power of the lawless world.

Therefore, if his past was measured calmly, he would never be able to deal with the
bloody awl, like Lee Jin-sung.

Moreover, Lee Jin-sung was a human being who cut the heads of bodies for symbolism.

That sort of person never quits his ambition, he knew. A sharp sword that cannot be
handled is only a weapon that hurts the body.

That left only one answer.

Kim Tae-hoon looked out the broken window of the sushi restaurant and saw the
scenery. The snow was getting stronger.

'Good weather… '

"Jang Sung-hoon, we're going back to headquarters."

"Okay, then what about her…”

Kim Tae-hoon turned his back before the words were out, and headed back to Baek Ji-
yeon, who was holding a hot pack in the kitchen.

Then he looked at her and said, "The choice is either to be a survivor and go alone or
to be a prisoner and follow orders. I'm telling you clearly that you're not worthy of
being a hostage. Don't expect to be treated like one."

Baek Ji-yeon's answer was obvious before he finished.

"I'll be a prisoner, and I'll do anything."

7.

The library headquarters of Mac Clan did not look much different from the past, but
there were booby traps and other preparations for intruders. If monsters or people
came in there, they would have to pay a huge price.

In a sense, it was the safest place in Bucheon City.

Kim was preparing to leave there.

"I'm going alone without any companions," he told them directly.

"Major, can you do it alone?" Lieutenant Kim had already heard the story and his plan,
too.

Kim Tae-hoon was planning to deal with the Messiah solo.

Of course, nobody doubted that he would remove the Messiah, including Kim Soo-ji,
Ahn Sun-mi, Jang Sung-hoon, and Bang Hyun-wook.

It was necessary to be punished in some way for buying their lives through human
offerings.

In addition, the Messiah was the closest obstacle to the Mac Clan's expansion. It was
natural to break down the Messiah group, both morally and computationally.

"If the Messiah doesn't have a firearm, it would be easy to take the soldiers along to
finish them."

The important thing was the method. Unless Messiah had guns, they could not be Mac
Clan's opponent. Never!

If there were three or four people who were shot and killed, the rest would be scared
and would surrender.

Even an Awakener would be not different because there was no Awakener who could
relax in front of bullets at this point.

But Kim Tae-hoon excluded that method.

"Messiah is not dealing with monsters, but they are managed by sacrifice. Their realms
are virtually monster dens, and moving there is too risky. If I fire a gun or something
blindly, monsters would come in flocks."

It weighed on his mind that the place where the Messiah was located was not a safe
place, but a symbiotic area with monsters around.

Even the monster called the Yellow Devil was like that.

According to Baek Ji-yeon's words, only the sword of the leader of the Messiah, Lee
Jin-sung, could hurt it.

If such a creature was only a little bit hurt by a hunter's sword, which could cut a
monster into two pieces with a single stroke, then bullets would not work properly.

It meant that he needed firepower beyond guns, including claymores and grenades if
he wanted to kill it.

There is a possibility that it won't work, too. At that time, Mac Clan must be prepared
to be wiped out.

"And there's nothing good about a war of attrition."

Most of all, a war of attrition was a loss to Mac Clan, too.

They always were.

The price to pay when fighting a war in earnest was enormous, both to the attacking
side and to the defending side.

So, groups of really large size and firepower always run over less well-equipped groups.

"First of all, this is my specialty."

That was why such an incredibly efficient existence, Kim Tae-hoon, was born.

There are times when it was more certain for a specially trained monster to pull the
trigger than running expensive fighters, battleships and tanks, and spending tens of
thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars an hour on war costs and expending
firepower.

In addition, it is not an exaggeration to say that Kim Tae-hoon is the best in the world
in removing a man of power from the lawless city.

"Currently, it is January 10th, 19:22. If I don't return by 05:00 on January 11th, you
will be on full alert, and all command will be left to Lieutenant Kim Soo-ji."

At this moment, none of the gathered people, including Kim Soo-ji, worried about Kim
Tae-hoon.
"I wish you the best of luck."

"Big brother, be safe."

"Boss, when you come back, bring some Melona ice cream!"

"Oh, then I want Worldcon!"

"I hope you come back alive because I don't want to leave my life to these two madmen."

"You're talking too much."

"Yes, sister Sun-mi, if you have such a bad mouth, you won't marry."

They just sent some heartfelt words after him as he left to deal with Messiah.
1.

A large-scale mall located in front of the New Jungdong Station…

It was a quiet fortress now, crowded with people all the time.

All the windows were covered with newspapers, and the entrance, which enthusiastically
welcomed the guests, was now walled with tangled shopping carts.

Three men approached the entrance, with thick jumpers, safety helmets and crudely
made spears.

They stood in front of the automatic door, which was covered with newspapers, and
one of them carefully pulled out a business card from inside and swiped it through the
door.

Swish!

The business card disappeared as if it were a snake's tongue, and soon the door opened.

Beyond the door, three men stood tensely, aiming a spear at the door. They relaxed
only after confirming the other party.

"What did you find?"

"I can't see anything. The weather looks crazy."

"What about group B?"

"I couldn't find them."

"You didn't find them?"

"There were no bodies."

It was not a pleasant conversation.

"What about footprints? You could see footprints, couldn't you?"

"Have you seen this weather? Our footprints are already gone!"

"So, you just came back?"

"What the hell was I supposed to do? Get out of my way! I am cold enough to die!"

Eventually, the conversation became intense at some point, and those who were
guarding the door stepped to the side.

Three men, their shoulders and heads covered with snow, strode into the mall.

The three men who entered the mall immediately took off their helmets, and a man
with a chubby face spoke up, "He's not a damn Awakener, but he handles us like slaves.
A---hole! He can't do anything in front of a monster."

The words that were spoken out of anger were so low that they were close to speaking
to himself, contrary to the fierce expression.

The two remaining men turned away from the subject as if they did not want to continue
the conversation with such a man.

"It will be colder tonight."

"I'd sleep with a girl in that case. How about that? Do you want to take one?"

But the younger man replied to the fat man's words with an awkward smile, "It's okay."

"The only good thing we have in this damn world is that we can do it for free."

“…what happened to Group B?" Another man in his mid-20s wanted to turn the subject
around.

"I'm sure there was an accident somewhere, trying to enjoy a girl named Baek Ji-yeon."
The fat man changed the subject of conversation to an unpleasant one.
"There was a guy named Ahn Tae-seok who was crazy about women, and there's no
way he's not going to be excited there with a naked woman lying in front of him in the
snow."

The younger man gave up on continuing the conversation. 'You damn pig, is that the
only thing that comes to your mind in this situation?'

Fortunately, the filthy stories of the fat man did not last long. "Damn it, I'm going to
take a shot today…”

"Speak such stories alone." A woman walked out of the darkness, a skinny as a skeleton,
as if she were about to fall apart right away.

The appearance of the woman caused a gruesome distorted expression on the fat man.
But as soon as he saw the mark on the back of her right hand, his distorted face turned
blue.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"Get out of here, you are disgusting."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, just spare my life, please spare my life…”

"Get out of here."

The three men nodded vigorously and disappeared as they ran into the escalator and
fled to the second floor.

The woman headed for what was originally a pharmacy, located in the corner of the
first floor.

There were two men in it.

One stood up as straight, acting as a bodyguard, and the other sat on the couch, tapping
his smooth hair, holding a sword with the sheath in his right hand, like something out
of a historical drama.

The woman said to the man on the sofa, "There must be a disturbance."

"Disturbance?" At the woman's words, the man stopped tapping his head. "What's the
matter?"

"The group that went out to execute a woman as an example is missing."

"Missing?"

"Yes."

"Did a monster eat them, or did they run away?"

"The team tried to investigate, but it failed."

"Failed? Why?"

"Because of the snow and wind…”

At those words, the man let out a suddenly uncontrollable laugh and tapped his head
again with the handle of the sword.

"You should have given the organization by a different name, not Messiah. Everyone
looks at us like an angel who was sent from heaven for some paradise. I'll have to send
the men who went out as a search team to the New Jungdong Station in the morning
when the sun rises, with their Achilles tendon nipped, and hope the yellow-eyed devil
likes it." The swordsman smiled faintly.

3.

The blizzard showed no sign of stopping, even in the dark night.

Kim Tae-hoon was looking down at the large mall from a building located across the
street. The blizzard blocked his vision, but there was no problem drawing pictures in
his mind.

'The gates are strictly guarded, but their armed state is crude, and no one stands guard
on the roof.'

Kim Tae-hoon scanned the area through the blowing blizzard and thick darkness.

"Baek Ji-yeon said there were about sixty candidates for sacrifice inside, and there
were about thirty people watching them and guarding the large mall. In addition, the
sacrifices were kept on the second and third floor."

Darkness and a blizzard.

What all animals did in front of these two things was the same: they just crouched as
much as they could in the dark where they could avoid the wind, and they waited for
the cold and long night to pass.

Humans have escaped such behavior by using tools, but the humans in the large mall
were no different from animals.

Kim Tae-hoon turned around.

The hunt began.

4.

Kwa-kwa-kwang!

It only took a moment

A huge truck rushed toward the entrance of the large mall, and after smashing through
the automatic glass doors, entered the entrance of the large mall.

"Aaaaaaargh!"

The three people, who were guarding the door in this sudden situation, were hit by
the car, and they were smashed away helplessly.

"What's going on?"

"Is it an earthquake?"

People, who were forced to sleep in the cold all over the large mall, were scared and woke
up.

"A truck crashed through the entrance!"

The disturbance reached the third floor after passing the second floor.
The watchers, who had originally been in the hair salon and the laundry, now used as
prisons for locking up the sacrifices, looked at each other as soon as they heard the
disturbance.

"What the hell happened on the first floor?"

"A monster?"

During the turmoil, the iron door of the emergency passage to the third and fourth
floors of the parking garage was carefully opened.

Someone moved swiftly through the open door, and the man who opened it so secretly
closed the door so hard that it was obvious secrecy was not his goal.

Bang!

It was a really solid door.

Their eardrums thundered. It was enough for everyone on the third floor to hear.

"Argh! What is this sound?"

"Well, it sounds like a door closed."

"Door? Where is the door here? It's connected to the parking lot by a moving walk,
isn't it?"

"Emergency exit, there is an emergency exit, but the emergency exit was locked…”

People began to swallow hard, tense and nervous about what was going to happen.

Those who were waiting to be sacrificed with their hands and feet tied up also trembled.

"Go."

"What?"

"Go, it could be a monster."

"Fuck."
Eventually, one of them put his helmet on, grabbed his crude spear in his hand, and
headed for the emergency exit.

'Damn it, why is this happening?' His footsteps were full of regret and irritation, and
his anxiety and fear made them heavy.

What if it's a monster?

What if something happens?

Will I die here?

Am I going to be food for a monster?

In such a situation, the man investigating the emergency door approached it carefully.
He glanced around, looking for signs.

'Nothing?'

There were no traces in his eyes. There was only a faint hint of the trail of a man, and
the door closed, but not a very noticeable sign.

No, the man was hoping that this was nothing, and so it seemed to the man that this
was nothing.

"Whew!" At that moment the man sighed with relief.

With that sigh, the man who decided nothing was going to happen returned the way
he had come with a lighter step.

Then he said, "Nothing! Nothing…”

When the man returned to his original place, the first thing he saw was someone with
a hole in his head, and a co-worker on the floor with his neck turned 180 degrees.

"Hmm?"

And that was the last thing that he saw, as the man approaching from behind broke
his neck at once.
krak… When the man fell limply, one of the women slated for sacrifice screamed.

Ignoring the scream, the man acted calmly. He didn't bother to stop her. Rather, he let
her scream and took the jumper and helmet one of the fallen guys was wearing.

Then, he shouted down at those who heard the scream coming up to the second floor
via the escalator.

"We have a problem on the third floor! Come on!"

"Problem?"

"Come on! Quickly!"

"Oh, okay."

The man, who replied immediately, headed for the escalator, and behind him came a
featherless Arrow.

5.

"Goddamn it, there's no one in the truck!" a man shouted, checking the driver's seat of
the truck that had broken through the entrance.

The ten men gathered around the entrance showed a similar look at his words. Their
heads were cocked, and they knitted their brows.

"Did the truck move by itself?"

"Does it make sense?"

"What the hell is going on? This truck isn't a monster, is it?"

The disturbance added a new stir.

"Something happened on the third floor!" A man came down through an escalator
connecting the first and second floors.

He was not any different from the others in jumper and helmets. No one stopped the
men from running down the escalator to the first floor.
Rather, those on the first floor looked at the person coming down in surprise. One of
them asked, "The third floor? What happened?"

"What? What's wrong with the first floor? Why is a truck stuck in the entrance?"

"We don't know, damn it, suddenly the truck just ran into the entrance!"

"So? Is that why you're here? What about the guards? Are they watching the sacrifices?"

"Shit, that's not the point! Tell the men up there to come down now. What can a sacrifice
do?"

"So you're almost all here, then." The voice of the man changed in a flash.

"Hmm? Wait, wait, who are you-"

The man acted very quickly.

Pak!

He punched the face of the person who noticed that he was not a colleague, smashing
in his face as if he had been hit by a huge hammer. His skull crumpled like tofu.

At the same time, the man pulled the safety pin from the grenade he took from his
jumper's pocket and threw it at the crowd gathered around the truck.

No one responded in time.

Of course, everyone was caught in the killing blast of the grenade, without any resistance
or preparation.

It was not even the end.

"Aaaaaaargh!"

The moment a scream burst out from the mouth of a lucky survivor, a short gunshot
rang out.

A confirmation shot.
The confirmation shots finished off everyone gathered around the truck in the time it
took to draw a long breath.

No survivors.

Kim Tae-hoon's gaze immediately turned towards the corner of the grocery on the first
floor of the large mall, which was visible from the entryway.

At that moment, his Hobgoblin's Sense warned him of danger.

As soon as he turned his head to the left, two crackling baseball-sized fireballs flew
towards him.

The fireball touched Kim Tae-hoon's jumper, and moved over it like a living creature,
setting it aflame.

Kim Tae-hoon immediately threw off the jumper, pointed his gun in the direction it
came from, pulled the trigger, and immediately dove between two counters.

At that moment, he heard someone say, "I didn't know I am going to fight a real Awakener
so quickly, but this is fun."

It was the first time he heard it, but Kim Tae-hoon was convinced at this moment.

'Lee Jin-sung.'

Who was the owner of the voice? The chief of the Messiah was here!
6.

The first thing Kim Tae-hoon did, after jumping into the narrow space between two
counters, was to analyze the situation.

He didn't think about the flame. He recalled the moment he pulled the trigger.

'I hit him.'

His shooting was accurate. Two bullets hit the Awakener with the mysterious power
of flame.

'But he didn't fall.'

There was no indication the man had been hit or stopped.

'Is it a bulletproof vest?'

He couldn't stand up to a bullet unless he wore a bulletproof vest.

'No, he wouldn't wear a bulletproof vest in the present situation.'

Kim Tae-hoon excluded the idea of wearing a bulletproof vest.

The bulletproof vest was like an extra life against a gun, but it was different against a
monster.

It would be better than not wearing it, but if you fought against monsters, you will use
better armor that was comprehensive than a bulletproof vest specialized in stopping
bullets.

An armor made of tough monsters' skin.

'It's the skin of the Black Orc.'

Only then did Kim Tae-hoon remember the monster he had killed.

The horrifying monster with the black skin, the Black Orc, had he left behind!

Kim Tae-hoon left its body as it was, taking only its heart.

'Tut.'

If Messiah and Lee Jin-sung were not fools, they would have used all their methods to
use the body of the Black Orc.

Moreover, ten days had passed since Kim Tae-hoon killed the Black Orc. Ten days was
more than enough time for the Black Orc to be changed into a protective coat.

His prediction was right.

"If it is a gun, are you a survivor of the military? Are you from the seventeenth division?
I'm sorry, but the gun won't work against me. I have great protection here."

Lee Jin-sung directly told him that his expectations were right. Of course, Lee Jin-sung
did not really give him a friendly explanation.

Even if there was defensive armor against a gun, the power of the gun itself was another
story. Guns were a hard weapon to deal with, even if you wore a bulletproof vest.

So when dealing with a man with a gun, you have to make the man who has the gun
uncertain.

To shoot at the bulletproof vest is powerful enough, but if you know that the other
person is wearing a bulletproof vest, you usually aim for a part without protection,
like the limbs.

"Why don't we have a talk? I won't refuse to talk with you."

He was also trying to get Kim Tae-hoon's attention.

While Lee Jin-sung was talking to Kim Tae-hoon like a madman, the man who was shot
by Kim Tae-hoon was approaching carefully in the direction of the counter where Kim
Tae-hoon was hiding.

"Hey, guy!"

The voice of Lee Jin-sung grew louder, trying to hide the footsteps in that loud voice
and distract Kim Tae-hoon.

Of course, these were children's tactics for Kim Tae-hoon. Kim Tae-hoon took something
out of his pocket and threw it to where he could hear Lee Jin-sung's voice.

"Get out of there!" Lee Jin-sung's shouted urgently, and the man approaching Kim Tae-
hoon fell down on the floor in horror.

Kim Tae-hoon rose from his seat, facing the man approaching nearby.

Tutututu!

His gun went off immediately.

That was all. There was no explosion. He had thrown a lump of metal, which looked
similar to a grenade.

A scream burst from the lips of the man who had been shot.

"God damn it!" Lee Jin-sung swore.

Kim Tae-hoon threw an Arrow straight and fast at the voice.

"Eup!"

The Arrow deeply penetrated the chest of a woman who was nothing but skin and
bones, blocking for the man like a shield.

'He has telekinesis!'

Lee Jin-sung began to race into the darkness of the mall. It didn't take long for him to
disappear, save for the sound of his footsteps.

Kim Tae-hoon followed the footsteps of Lee Jin-sung with his ears and approached the
man he had shot. He put his foot on the man's neck.
"Spare me, spare me…”

He crushed down. Vertebrae snapped, and the man's body sagged to the ground.

At that moment, white powder began filling the darkness inside of the large mall.

Kim Tae-hoon reflected his steps back from the white powder.

'Fire extinguisher.'

The powder was a chemical used in fire extinguishers.

It was impossible to see and breathe in the powder that clouded the surroundings. It
was a trick to limit his telekinesis.

'Let's retreat.' Kim Tae-hoon prepared to retreat.

He had already made plans in case there were other Messiah Awakeners besides Lee
Jin-sung.

According to his plan, the battle against Lee Jin-sung was dangerous. It's unlikely that
he was alone, and if he was injured, the guard that was waiting somewhere else would
move.

At that time, the powder of the fire extinguisher split apart like the Red Sea, and Lee
Jin-sung appeared in the cleared space.

His move was surprisingly quick and sleek.

When Kim Tae-hoon saw him, the sword that Lee Jin-sung was wielding was already
touching the muzzle of his gun.

Shiyik! The muzzle was cut off straight through, and it wasn't the end

It wasn't the end there.

Lee Jin-sung, whose cheeks were swelled up like a balloon, sprayed out something in
his mouth.

Foo-hoo-hoo-hoo!
A huge fire swept around Kim Tae-hoon at once. He was surrounded by flames, and he
rolled on the floor without stopping.

Lee Jin-sung followed Kim Tae-hoon, who was rolling like that, with his sword.

Taang, taang!

Kim Tae-hoon pulled his revolver from its holster at his waist, shooting twice.

The bullets both hit the swordsman, and his body jerked as if he had been pushed by
something.

That was all. He did not collapse or bleed from the power of the bullets.

Kim Tae-hoon, who had put out the fire on his body, stood up and looked at him, his
gun pointing at Lee Jin-sung.

With Kim Tae-hoon in front of him, Lee Jin-sung raised his arms and guarded his face
with his sword, like a boxer.

It was evident that he knew that the bullets wouldn't kill him right away, except if they
hit his face.

Kim Tae-hoon did not make any special moves in front of him. He just watched Lee Jin-
sung.

Lee Jin-sung did not move too quickly, either. His opponent was, after all, also an
Awakener.

First of all, his whole body was not covered with the Black Orc's skin. His face was
bare. No, even if his face was covered, if he got shot there it was highly likely that he
would suffer from fatal injuries, such as a concussion and or eyeball rupture.

There was nothing to be done if was injured like that.

'The car rushed into the entrance, and it was pretty late, so the men he had placed
nearby must approach.'

What Lee Jin-sung expected was that his men would realize there was a disturbance
and come to help him. He was not a fool, and he would not walk around with only two
people. He arranged his men in several places.

Of course, the reason for the split arrangement was to monitor the monsters and
sacrifices. He'd had no choice but to deploy Awakeners to instill fear among the
watchmen who monitored and managed the sacrifices.

That is, time was on the side of Lee Jin-sung.

"Are you the first hunter?" Lee Jin-sung asked again, stalling for time. "It seems the
first hunter had powerful telekinesis. What was his name… Kim Tae-hoon. Yes, it was
Kim Tae-hoon. But he had a colleague. Did you come here alone?"

Kim Tae-hoon did not reply to such a statement. He stood as if he were a mannequin.

"I've heard a lot about you. Thanks to you, Bucheon somehow became a city of men.
By the way, there are few places in the world that are safe now. I fled from the
Cheongna district and thought I was the only one who survived until I came to
Bucheon."

Lee Jin-sung kept talking.

"I recently found out that Bucheon was very lucky geographically. It was between the
realms of the dreadful monsters."

Those words were tempting to the ear.

"It became an unarmed area. There are huge monsters in Incheon, Siheung,
Gwangmyeong, and Gimpo. The owners of this land are not human."

It was valuable information, all that was necessary for the Awakeners to survive in this
world, regardless of the truth.

It was Lee Jin-sung's objective. There was no reason to listen if he just talked about
personal affairs.

When he spit out valuable information, he would wait for a reply. A smile was on his
lips.

'One minute.'
One minute, or less.

After that time, at least ten Awakeners would arrive.

They were not ordinary people. They were elites.

They had the power to make the inhumane acts of the organization Messiah natural.

"Rather, why are you attacking us all of a sudden? You don't like the way we do things,
do you? From what I heard, you're far from a hero of justice."

To use up the time, Lee Jin-sung kept talking.

"Why don't you join hands with us? It looks like you've got a gun from a nearby military
base. Let's move together. First, we're building a monster hunting organization based
in Bucheon. We're lucky. We have made the starting point Bucheon. Let's have a
conversation, putting down our weapons. Huh?

At his words, Kim Tae-hoon lifted his revolver away.

Lee Jin-sung's eyes glowed. 'You idiot!'

Lee Jin-sung intended to cut Kim Tae-hoon in half after narrowing the distance between
them.

Cut him in two with one stroke of the sword.

There was no doubt he could do it. The sword in his hand was a great weapon that
could be called a miracle from God, and could cut monsters with orange or yellow eyes,
too!

'I knew one day you'd be a big hindrance!'

There was no hesitation. He heard about Kim Tae-hoon, and of course, thought he
would be the biggest obstacle.

Lee Jin-sung didn't want to be under anyone. As soon as you get under someone, you
are expendable. The world was like that now.

To live, you must be a consumer, not a consumable!

So Lee Jin-sung wanted to move without a moment's hesitation and steely determination.

He was… trying to move.

"Uhhh?"

But his body did not move.

An invisible chain was pulling on his whole body.

If he hid in the fire extinguisher powder, or if he was far away, or if he moved quickly
in the dark mall, it would not be possible to catch him easily. However, he is in front of
Kim Tae-hoon, why couldn't he finish him?

Most importantly, Kim Tae-hoon's telekinesis rank was A rank. It was a power that
held the Black Orc with the terrible physical strength.

It was only a matter of seconds to tie up the limbs of Lee Jin-sung, although he did not
know how much Strength and Energy he had.

And Lee Jin-sung had given him the time.

"The bastard…” Kim Tae-hoon came up to cursing Lee Jin-sung who was clearly stunned,
and pulled the sword out of the hand of the paralyzed swordsman. "Aaaaargh, damn
it!"

Then he held the sword and pointed it at Lee Jin-sung.

Lee Jin-sung's face, spitting out angry curses, hardened.

"Wait, wait… let's make a deal, a deal! I'll give you everything I have-"

That was all he was allowed to say.

"I don't need it."

7.

Lee Jin-sung was a cruel man who had the innate ability to make cruelty more brutal
and powerful.

'Something's happened to Master.'

'We'll die if we're late.'

The power of Lee Jin-sung was something that could not be dealt by the Awakeners
who did not even know that they were Awakened, or who were awakened but did not
even have E rank of some special ability.

At the same time, Lee Jin-sung was their hope.

'Damn it, we hope that there is no problem with the master's safety… '

'Without the master, we'll be finished, too.'

Lee Jin-sung was their most powerful force against monsters.

And now, he was the only possibility of killing the yellow-eyed devil, a scary monster
that ruled the subway now and could only be quieted by a human offering.

In a world that now belonged to monsters, including the yellow-eyed devil, Lee Jin-
sung was an absolute necessity to survive.

That was why Lee Jin-sung named the group "Messiah," and his subordinates stepped
into the large mall without any help and or hesitation. They headed for the threat,
through the heavy snowstorm, to help someone who dominated them through fear.

"We're here!"
"Light the flash! Flash!

Soon after, eleven Awakeners arrived and entered the large mall with flashlights in
their hands.

The first thing they saw with the flashlights inside the dark mall was a corpse.

"Ugh!"

"What the hell is this…”

There was the body of a general member who was killed in the grenade blast.

More bodies, which had a different kind of gruesomeness than those killed by the
monsters, were also shocking to the Messiah Awakeners who had seen so much of
such things.

'Did they get shot?'

'Did a bomb explode? But where was the bomb from?'

The Awakeners stiffened.

In that state, some courageous people walked through the bodies, flashing lights, and
splashing through the rich blood.

"Huck!"

It was the head that ate their courage.

The head of Lee Jin-sung had been cut off, and the body was missing.

The hairless shiny head reflected the glare of the flashlights.

'Oh, my God, that's horrible.'

Their words fell silent and nobody spoke.

Then a voice came from the darkness, "Put the flashlights on the floor and kneel down
with your hands on your head."
"Who, who is it?"

"Where did that voice come?"

No one was on their knees at once, and everyone was too busy turning their heads
around to find the voice's main character.

Taang! The gunshot woke them up.

"Aaaaaaargh!" A man who was swinging a light around fell to the floor and screamed,
"My, my leg, my leg…”

"Every time I speak, one more person," the unaffected voice again came through the
pained cries.

'Crazy… '

'When I hold up a light, I'll be the target!'

The quickest ones, with a keen sense of survival, quickly dropped their flashlights on
the floor, and immediately knelt down with their hands on their heads.

Like dominoes falling down in succession, eleven Awakeners entered the mall lowered
their heads.

Kim Tae-hoon appeared in front of them.

He was still hiding in the dark, of course, wearing a black jumper. So now, even though
his light was shining on the floor, so they could not see him.

It was even more creepy. What they could not see, they could only imagine. It was not
a good thing to think about right now.

Kim Tae-hoon slowly spoke while the Awakeners imagined Kim Tae-hoon's existence
as a devil.

"There are two options: turn your back on this and leave here, or become a hunting
dog under me."

Everyone shuddered at his words.

'A hunting dog?'

It was clear, at least, that he was not here for goodwill and justice!

"I know enough of what kind of group Messiah is, and you'd better get rid of the idea
of being treated like a human being."

Everyone trembled again at his words.

He knew what kind of group Messiah was, and that they silenced the monster with
sacrifices.

Everyone here knew what it meant to offer sacrifices.

Even if they could not help it, they should be prepared to be treated the same way the
instant they treated a person as food, not a fellow human being.

His power had overshadowed their determination, and now they were the weak!

'Damn it.'

The fact made them swallow and despair. 'It will be over if we go this way.'

Someone put his brain to work. "Is it really okay if I leave?"

A man said, "If you don't want to come under me, you will be fine. "Kim Tae-hoon
answered immediately.

"Well, I'll… go out. I'll stay quiet." At the answer, the person who asked the question
rose from his crouch.

The name of the man who rose was Jang Yeon-seok.

'I must get out of here. If I stay under him, I will end up a consumable against a monster.'

He was the leader of a group that monitored and managed the people who would be
sacrificed at a department store across the street.

In short, he was an executive.

Of course, he knew the Messiah organization better than any of these people.

'I'll go to the City Hall, join the others, and make a plan. That's the first thing to do now.
If not, I will be good for nothing.'

Messiah was currently expanding its scope, spreading spider webs around Bucheon
City Hall.

They were engaged in activities; securing food by occupying large malls, capturing
survivors who came to the central City Hall building, and going out and capturing
them. At the same time they identified the areas of powerful monsters that could not
be killed, and then offered sacrifices to them to manage their movements.

'Once I go to the City Hall, twenty Awakeners are waiting there.'

Of course, there were a number of Awakeners gathered by Messiah. Many of them

were waiting at the City Hall since the most sacrifices were there.

In addition, many of them were not awakened but ready to fight for the Messiah. If
they didn't want to be a sacrifice, they had to be on the same side.

Joining them was far safer than becoming a hunting dog under a man whose identity
was unknown!

Steeling his intentions, Jang Yeon-seok once again asked Kim Tae-hoon, "Really, is it
really okay to leave?"

"If you don't want to come under me." Kim Tae-hoon gave another definite answer.

"Thank, thank you."

Only then did Jang Yeon-seok turn his back when he rose. After that, he didn't move
right away and waited for a hint.

'Is he really going to send me off this way?'

He was suspicious, but there was no particular clue. Only then did Jang Yeon-seok turn
his back and start heading back the way he had come.

Taang!
A gunshot struck his back.

"Khuck!" With the short word, Jang Yeon-seok began to tremble after he fell to the
floor. Hot blood flowed out from under his body, and began to pool on the floor.

The rest could not see it.

'Is team leader Jang dead?'

'Crazy, isn't he just letting us go?'

They felt that a colleague, a superior, was dying behind them.

"Wasn't it Messiah's way to cut off the head after killing an enemy or a traitor?" Kim
Tae-hoon asked them again.

There was no answer, there was no question.

"Then the remaining nine of you are my hunting dogs now."

The situation was settled.

8.

[The Sword of the Imperator]

- Relic Grade: Grade 2

- Relic Value: Special

- Relic Effect: It grows with the blood of killed monsters. The owner of the Sword is
unknown yet.

-----------

[Flame Liquor Gourd Bottle]

- Relic Grade: Grade 5

- Relic Value: Rare

- Relic Effect: It changes Mana into flame liquor; if the owner breathes in the flame
liquor and blows it out, the flame comes out. The more liquor the owner makes, the
stronger the power of the fire is.]

------------

Kim Tae-hoon, checked the stats of the relic through his smartphone, and immediately
looked at the Sword of the Imperator in his hand.

He didn't know who it belonged to.

However, it didn't matter to Kim Tae-hoon. He did not care about historical records,
and he didn't have any knowledge about it.

'It's like the Sword I saw in my dream, only the sheath is different.'

The important thing was that the Sword was different in color, but the shape was the
same as the Sword in his dream.

That dream, of course, was the dream of the Golden Glass of Napoleon.

In that dream, Kim Tae-hoon took out various weapons to fight against the dragon.

One of them was similar to what Kim Tae-hoon saw now.

The sheath of the Sword right now was red, and the sheath of the sword he saw in his
dream was blue, but the feel of the Sword was the same as the one he saw in his dream.

If it was the Sword that he saw in his dream, it was an amazing achievement. He had a
powerful weapon to use against the dragon.

But Kim Tae-hoon could not be happy with the fact. No one knew whether this was the
same one or not.

What Kim Tae-hoon saw was only a fragmentary result, and he did not know the process.

And even if there was another process, there was no guarantee that the results would
be different.

Lee Jin-sung had given him some meaningful information before he died. He might just
have been trying to buy time, but the information he had given out was valuable and
strange.

'He said Bucheon is lucky, and the surroundings had become a powerful monster's
territory.'

He said that Incheon City, Gimpo City, and Siheung City, which surrounded Bucheon
City, were the lands that monsters now owned.

He also said that as powerful monsters settled down and claimed their territory,
Bucheon, where the areas overlapped, was rather peaceful.

'It's possible.'

The truth was unknown, but the possibility was sufficient.

Monsters did not just destroy thoughtlessly. It was their survival instincts that moved
them.

It's just that in order for monsters to survive; they had no choice but to eat humans
and destroy their cities.

'It's the worst.'

However, if Lee Jin-sung was right, the situation was likely beyond Kim Tae-hoon's
imagination.

'A million dead.'

The death toll might exceed ten million units, with over one million dead in Seoul alone!

'No, if something unexpected happened in winter, it could be close to ten million

dead.''

The current season was winter, a harsh season for mankind to endure without the
technology of civilization.

'China must be worse. The casualties would be hundreds of millions.'

Even so, such damage had occurred in South Korea, and it might not be possible to
estimate the number of victims in areas where the population exceeded one billion,
such as China and India.

At this moment, even Kim Tae-hoon felt skeptical.

It was skepticism about a reality more miserable than he thought, and skepticism
about the fact that the human race that had survived in such a miserable reality would
be struggling with each other for their own benefit, and would be supposed to just go
extinct.

One of Messiah's Awakeners approached Kim Tae-hoon and spoke to him in a

frightened voice. "Sir, as you've ordered, we've put them all together. We've brought all
the general survivors, too."

Kim Tae-hoon rose from his seat at the man's words.

The glitter in his skeptical eyes went cold.

It was good to hope for the future.

No, you have to hope for a better future. It was important from now on to hope for a
better future.

Messiah was not yet in Kim Tae-hoon's grasp. Furthermore, the remaining parties would
not welcome him.

The survivors were also the same: not everyone who survived was treated as a
sacrifice; those who were treated as sacrifices, and those who watched and managed
them, would be different in their calculations.

Of course, if he left them alone, they would act for themselves.

Therefore, he had to make them fear so that they could not think of anything else. In
this situation, clumsy love and care were meaningless and useless, and Kim Tae-hoon
did not know what love and care were. He didn't want to know.

At the same time, he needed to show them hope, what line they must hold to survive,
what must be valued as much as their lives by those who survived in the land of
Bucheon at this moment.
Lee Jin-sung, the former leader of the Messiah, knew that well.

His actions were obviously not human, but now the world was no longer a world
where human beings were common.

'Messiah has made things easier.'

In addition, Kim Tae-hoon knew that fact much better than Lee Jin-sung.

He was not a monster, but he had fought in a world where humanity was ignored
enough to compare with monsters.

And he survived in such a world.

9.

"It feels like an eel in the stomach is woven like mayonnaise. Try it that way."

At Bang Hyun-wook's words, three people, including Kim Soo-ji, began to focus and
squeeze the Energy out of their guts.

"It feels like you're squeezing it out and sending it to your fingertips and tiptoes. Go
on! How's it going? It's easy, isn't it?"

In the middle of the training, under the guidance of Bang Hyun-wook, the Awakeners
were training to deal with Energy, In the corner, Ahn Sun-mi was holding the Cup of
Therapy with her eyes closed.

The empty Cup of Therapy began to fill up gradually. Jang Sung-hoon spoke when the
Cup was filled to overflowing.

"Okay, that's it! Sister, it is all full."

Ahn Sun-mi opened her eyes and put it in a thermos bottle that had been prepared for
the Water of Therapy from the Cup.

"You're suffering."

"Yes, I'm the only one who's suffering."

"I'd like to suffer, but unfortunately you're the only one who can use the Mana on our
side. Can I sing for you?"

At the words of Jang Sung-hoon, Ahn Sun-mi closed her eyes instead of answering, and
again focused on injecting Mana into the Cup of Therapy.

It was preparation.

Among the Awakeners, those who were able to use Energy trained to handle it more
skillfully, and in the case of Ahn Sun-mi, she wanted to secure as much Water of
Therapy as possible when she had time to relax.

No one gave up on hard work, because it was a matter of life or death.

"Lieutenant!" Someone came in. He was a soldier. A soldier guarding outside was still
covered with snow on his shoulder and head.

The training stopped.

"The Major sent a man." Everyone looked nervous at his words.

"This is a letter from the Major." The envelope was delivered to Kim Soo-ji.

Kim Soo-j took out the letter, quickly skimmed its contents, and spoke to everyone
around.

"Does anyone have any experience working in a sushi restaurant or filleting raw fish?"

"Yes?" Everyone looked a little strange.

"Did he get a tuna? Why does he suddenly need a filleter?" Jang Sung-hoon asked the
question as if he represented everyone.

At his question, Kim Soo-ji said with a steely expression, "From now on, the Mac Clan
is ready to hunt the devil with yellow eyes!"
1.

The third floor of the building, which had been used as the office of a company until a
few days ago, was now the home of monsters.

The monsters were monkeys, but naturally not normal monkeys.

Their saw-like teeth and protruding snouts were closer to the appearance of a dog,
not a monkey.

It was like a dog's head on a monkey's body.

Moreover, the red eyes on the horrifying face exuded a terrible energy.

The four grotesque monsters were eating now.

The menu was a human.

A man in his mid-twenties, who had just died, his blood still warm, and four monsters
were holding his limbs in their hands and eating them with grueling intensity.

There were four skeletons scattered around them, and the rolling skeletons were clean
and even shiny.

In this cold winter, the flesh could not have rotted off.

It was a clear evidence and a gruesome sign that these monsters had licked the bones
until there was not a piece of flesh left.

A man entered the office of about a hundred square meters, interfering with the
terrible meal of the monsters.

The monsters who were interrupted immediately threw out ferocious shrieks toward
the person disturbing them.

But it was not a monster, but a man who took the initiative.

Shiyik!

A featherless Arrow started to move as the man appeared, and pierced the head of a
monkey.

It fell with a hole in its head, flat on the floor.

Another monster also fell to the ground like a broken doll. Blood sprang out from the
corner of its temple.

Kung? Kung!

The two remaining monsters, which were ready to jump at him in rage, burst out with
frightened cries.

The cries did not last long.

Shiyik!

The two monsters also fell to the ground with holes in their heads, after the Arrow
painted a sleek line between them.

The Arrow that had destroyed four monsters in one rush returned to a revolver holder
mounted on the man's waist, as gently as a butterfly.

The man, Kim Tae-hoon, looked around again. His expression was not very good,
betraying no satisfaction with what he had done.

Behind him came Bang Hyun-wook's voice. "Big brother, the first, second and third
floors are cleaned. This place is cleaned… wow!"

Soon after Bang Hyun-wook saw what Kim Tae-hoon had done from behind his back,
he whistled briefly.

"I feel it every time I see it, but it's still really scary. I'm glad you're not my enemy."
At the admiration of Bang Hyun-wook, Kim Tae-hoon gave an order instead of an
answer. "Take the monster stones and hang the flag outside the window."

"Yes!" Bang Hyun-wook's answer was followed by a rookie salute. He was trying to
lighten the atmosphere, but Kim Tae-hoon's expression was not loosened.

It couldn't be loosened.

'This is not enough.'

What made Kim Tae-hoon's look solid right now was nothing but his weakness. Lack
of power made his mood mixed.

No one would believe it if he said his mind since Kim Tae-hoon was already too strong.

The pattern on the back of Kim Tae-hoon's right hand was evidence.

======

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 92

- Health: 77

[Special abilities]

- Energy: E+ Rank

- Mana: E+ Rank

- Telekinesis: A Rank

- Mana Resistance: E+ Rank

- Defense: E+ Rank

======

Basic and special abilities were already high enough to be incomparable with the
other Awakeners. There was a clear difference between him and Bang Hyun-wook,
who boasted the highest level of Strength after Kim Tae-hoon.

For the weak monsters, he did not have to use Telekinesis, but simply could kill them
alone, without having to use the powerful relics in his hand.

In addition, the abilities he had acquired after eating monster stones were also great.

But was he weak?

It was unbelievable, and not funny.

On the contrary, if Kim Tae-hoon was in front of a monster he should face from now
on, the story would be different.

'Doing this, I can't even make time for the devil snake.'

A devil snake.

It refers to a huge yellow-eyed snake that currently used a subway station as its own
nesting place, and actually reigned as the ruler of downtown Bucheon.

And now it was the target they were hunting.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon didn't want to fight the devil snake.

In addition, if Kim Tae-hoon had any common sense as an individual, he should not
fight the devil snake and avoid the encounter itself.

But now, Kim Tae-hoon was not an individual…

------

Outside the building, Kim Tae-hoon turned and looked at the building he had just been
in.

A window broke, and a white flag appeared.

Kim Tae-hoon turned and looked at the building next to him.

Not a few visible buildings had white flags flapping outside their windows.

As Kim Tae-hoon looked at the flags, the day after the snowstorm ended, the day the
sun rose, came again.

2.

"It's forty percent."

At the words of Jang Sung-hoon, five people, consisting of three men and two women
standing close, stared at him with cold eyes.

It was a fierce look.

It was not a vague expression. There was an invisible but apparent force from their eyes.
This was the force of an Awakener, only available to those who had the opportunity to
acquire the superhuman power to fight against the monsters in the age of the monsters.

But Jang Sung-hoon was not daunted by their spirit. Behind him was a boss who the
crowd of five Awakeners and leaders of Messiah rushed into and fell before.

"Don't stare at me like that. Did you think you were going to become our own favored
community?"

"Not one of us ever said we would go down there, yet we belong to the Messiah," a
middle-aged man answered immediately.

He was a very muscular man and was wearing only a thin, long-sleeved T-shirt, even
in the cold weather and without heating. His muscular body was exposed to the cold.

It was a blatant expression of power, in fact. His Strength and the Energy to endure
this cold was showing his power.

Of course, his snarling voice was also powerful. He was showing that he was not
willing to back down.

"So you're going to risk your life with my boss? That sounds like it to me. Would you
like me to make a plate for you? Would you like to play a game of character removal?"

"That's…” the muscular middle-aged man turned off his mighty spirit at the gaze of
Kim Tae-hoon, who watched him indifferently behind Jang Sung-hoon.

Jang Sung-hoon looked at him like that and said, "Do you think this is like we're getting
a baseball player, and I'm here to sign a contract with you? I think you haven't thought
this through, yet."

With his words, Jang Sung-hoon grabbed his shirt and flapped it lightly. "Or does this
look like a suit for office workers?"

At the words, the five Awakeners glanced at the soldiers with guns, who were looking
at them from behind Kim Tae-hoon.

The expressions in the eyes of the soldiers were not just those of those drafted into
the army. It was the glitter in the eyes of those who had survived monster attacks, and
not for a short time.

If necessary, they were totally ready to pull the trigger now against people.

"Well, I'll tell you again. The story is simple. You Awakeners are now hunting dogs in
the Mac Clan's name. If you don't like the term 'a hunting dog', you can change it to 'a
hunter'. You can name yourself as you wish. There is only one important thing: you
have to pay the Mac Clan forty percent of the monster stones you get from being a
hunting dog of the Mac Clan."

Jang Sung-hoon had summarized his words so far, with his back to his allies.

The five Awakeners avoided the answer to Jang Sung-hoon's words. They looked at
Kim Tae-hoon sideways.

'By chance… '

Everything went on rather abruptly.

When the night of the blizzard passed, and the new white world unfolded, the news
was delivered to the Messiah executives waiting in Bucheon City Hall.

Their leader, Lee Jin-sung, was dead, and Kim Tae-hoon, the leader of the Mac Clan,
wants to negotiate with the remaining Messiah executives.

The negotiation table itself was easily set up.

There were virtually no people who devoted their enthusiastic loyalty to the dead Lee
Jin-sung in the first place.

In addition, there were no people who wanted to sacrifice themselves for the war
against Mac Clan, without knowing who had taken Lee Jin-sung. On the contrary, the
remaining executives of Messiah welcomed the negotiation itself.

Proposing to negotiate would mean that the other side did not want a war against the
Messiah.

'This is not a negotiation, but a threat!'

But the table was not the same as the messiah executives thought.

Jang Sung-hoon, who came out as the representative of Mac Clan, demanded two things
of the Messiah.

One, the Awakeners of the Messiah would be hunting dogs of the Mac Clan.

Two, the hunting dogs would devote forty percent of the monster stones gained
through monster hunting to the Mac Clan.

That was the scenario prepared by Jang Sung-hoon.

'Bucheon is not a rural town. It was once a metropolis with a population of over
800,000, and it needs a system to rule a place with hundreds of thousands of survivors.'

When Kim Tae-hoon accepted his opinion and said that he would make Bucheon a
base area, Jang Sung-hoon thought that Kim Tae-hoon's way of operating the Mac Clan
could not work.

The established Mac Clan was a group that existed only for Kim Tae-hoon.

No matter what Kim Tae-hoon did, they could not refuse.

They were a group that could perform Kim Tae-hoon's command perfectly, a group
that could be controlled close to perfection.

It was possible because the size of the Mac Clan was at most fifty or so.
However, if the group took Bucheon City as a base area and kept survivors under them,
the story would be different.

It was impossible to completely control thousands or tens of thousands of humans. It

was something no one had ever done, and no one could do it.

'It's impossible for the boss to monopolize the whole thing from now on.'

In particular, a system was needed to control a new variable, Awakeners.

Kim Tae-hoon has been able to take all the monster stones he got through hunting.

"You don't understand because you don't have an answer, but you'll only have to pay
your forty percent of the monster stone you've acquired, and we won't mind what you
do with the monster bodies you've killed. Every time you kill a special monster, we'll
negotiate. You can eat it. You can give us a notification after you eat it. If you did not
notify us, and later there is something strange about an ability you have learned, when
I take a look at your Awakener Mark, it will cause trouble."

So Jang Sung-hoon tried to tie up Kim Tae-hoon and the surviving Awakeners with a
very simple relationship.

"In easy terms, it's give-and-take."

Give and take. It was a simple concept that a child could understand.

Based on the concept, Jang Sung-hoon wanted to receive forty percent of the monster
stone that they would acquire, from the Awakeners still surviving.

"Forty percent… what do we get by paying that forty percent?" Of course, from the
listening point of view, it sounds like they were only being deprived.

That was why the five executives were not able to answer easily.

Jang Sung-hoon explained it to them. "We'll give you your life once. You don't want to
die, do you?"

"What the hell is that…”

"It's a joke. A joke. If we really want to kill you, why do we have a negotiation table
here for you? When we find a man with a mark on his back, shooting him is easy to
do."

“…is that a threat?"

Threat. Kim Tae-hoon, who had been keeping silent with Jang Sung-hoon in front of
him, came forward.

Everyone was nervous about it.

To the five Awakeners facing Kim Tae-hoon, as well as Jang Sung-hoon,, the air was
naturally tightened.

In the tight atmosphere, Kim Tae-hoon said in a low voice, "Forty percent is the street
tax, and it's the street tax for hunting monsters in my territory."

Someone said with great courage, "This isn't your land, is it? It's not like you're asking
for forty percent of our income in that situation…”

Kim Tae-hoon did not get angry at the courage. Instead, he asked back calmly, "Then,
whose territory is this?"

"Well…” the Awakeners thought.

Whose land is Bucheon now?

The answer was obvious.

In the world of the law of the jungle, the weak were the prey of the strong. A strong
man becomes the master of everything, and now the top predator in Bucheon was the
yellow-eyed devil that used the subway station as its home.

It was good to say that the master of the area within a radius of a dozen kilometers
around Bucheon City Hall was the devil of yellow eyes.

But no one could easily say that.

To say that is to admit that the land belongs to not a human being but a monster now.

If they did, it was like they were confessing that they were hanging on the edge of the
cliff and putting despair at their feet.

However, only Kim Tae-hoon spit out the fact without hesitation. "Of course, if someone
kills it, he'll be the master in the territory."

He also told them what he wanted to give to the survivors.

It was hope.

What Kim Tae-hoon wanted to give to the survivors was hope to escape from the fear
of predators, now struggling to survive at the bottom of the food chain.

"It's forty percent. If you're sure you won't get caught, it's all right whether you cheat
or skip it. If you don't get caught."

There was no further objection.

Kim Tae-hoon stepped back, and Jang Sung-hoon said with a smile to the five frozen
people,

"We don't have a contract. This is a commitment based on mutual trust and faith. I'll
trust your will. You don't want to die by sacrificing a living human being to live on, and
you don't want to die later, do you?"
3.

'Thanks to Jang Sung-hoon, your head won't hurt.'

Kim Tae-hoon, who finished reminiscing, settled the situation in his mind.

Now, Messiah's Awakeners had become Kim Tae-hoon's hunting dogs. From now on,
the Awakeners must dedicate forty percent of their gains to him.

Of course, in return, Kim Tae-hoon should provide them with a safe hunting stage.

'He's a smart guy.'

This did not simply stop there. If Messiah's Awakeners became Kim's hunting dogs,
ordinary survivors would also be forced to follow him.

The only way for ordinary people to fight against the Awakeners and the monster was
with weapons like guns, which were owned by Kim Tae-hoon and the Mac Clan.

Of course, it was not perfect.

'It's not just him who's smart!'

Not everyone was happy with this system, and there was no way that the system could
control everyone completely.

At this moment there had to be a group of people preparing for a scheme, and a few of
them would be smart.

Surely there would be problems. There would also be some pretty serious problems,
to the extent that people died, and the person who caused trouble in return would also
die.
Jang Sung-hoon was also well aware of the facts. That's why he said, "It's necessary."

'All I have to do is kill the devil.'

A devil snake.

Its body would be the strongest symbol and shield.

Everyone who survived if Kim Tae-hoon captured the devil snake would be indebted
to him, and they would have a sense of duty to protect his existence in order to survive
in the future.

'All I have to do is kill it.'

That was why Kim Tae-hoon's thoughts were not so complicated. There was nothing
complicated to think about. It was obvious what to do!

"Boss, boss! I finally made a video! I took a photo of him!"

It just wouldn't be easy…

4===========

The world was white from the blizzard, and that was all they could see. The horrible
traces of the disaster that struck the world for several days were not hidden in the
snow.

In other words, the places where there was no snow were still covered with terrible
marks.

It was the history of the New Jungdong Station.

The station, which had impressive walls, floors, and ceilings, was nowhere to be found
as if a mad herd of bulls had passed by.

Ssss…

The sound came from a huge monster passing by.

It was a snake.
It had black scales, darker then the lightless station.

But it was too big to call a snake. It couldn't be compared to the term 'a big snake'.

At the same time, it was incredibly powerful. When its body brushed the wall lightly,
the bricks collapsed like a waterfall.

The snake that seemed impossible to stop, stopped in front of a mound of dead bodies.

It fluttered its tongue in front of the stack of dead bodies but did not start eating at
once. Instead, it tasted the bodies with the long-forked tongue.

Sssss!

Its action of pulling its body back was the same as a little boy who was very picky about
food.

In the end, it ignored the pile of corpses and moved out of the station right away,
hunting living things with hot blood instead of cold bodies.

As it did, the sun fell on the snake as it left the stairs.

Its inverted triangle-shaped head appeared, and its yellow eyes appeared.

Its eyes were beautiful enough to be called gold rather than yellow, but they could not
be thought of as beautiful by anyone who looked at them right now.

In front of those eyes, no matter how fierce the beast was, it would be a rat in front of
the snake.

The wound on its solid black body was also apparent in the sunlight.

Initially, it had no intention of stopping. Its body gradually began to emerge from the
dark.

Then a cold wind blew past.

At the touch of the wind, the snake paused. It soon turned away as the wind picked up.

Soon after, it began to swallow the pile of corpses.

The dirty pile disappeared, and when it the snake was gone, only the cameras were
working quietly behind it.

5.=======

At the end of the video, everyone who watched it was frozen.

Even though the image, and even the picture quality, was not clear, and there was only
a vague shape of the being in the dark, its existence o overwhelmed everyone who saw
it.

They were at a loss about what to do.

'Oh, God, we need to kill this? No way. This monster is entirely different than those
we've hunted before! No matter how hard we try…! It's a monster that is no match for
a Black Orc!'

"We can't kill this. We can't kill it." Bang Hyun-wook was the first person to speak out.

Shaking his head, Bang Hyun-wook's eyes trembled like they had when he first faced
monsters.

His voice brought Jang Sung-hoon to his senses. His sober expression soon hardened.

'It's my misjudgment. I did not think it was that strong… I was sure it was a powerful
monster, but if we used the grenades and claymore we have, and if we added the
Telekinesis of the boss, it would be enough to win… '

It was Jang Sung-hoon, not just anyone who claimed to be able to hunt the devil snake.

No, all plans made by Jang Sung-hoon were based on the fact that Kim Tae-hoon hunted
the devil snake.

Of course, he thought the chance of winning was good, as it was Kim Tae-hoon, and he
had the power of Telekinesis.

Telekinesis was a very good combination with weapons, such as guns and bombs.

If he controlled something like a grenade with his Telekinesis, he would never miss
the target. The Mac Clan now had better firepower than a rifle, such as grenades,
machine-guns, and claymores.

He had thought, 'We can't kill a dragon or something, but isn't it enough firepower to
kill a big snake?'

But it wasn't that much when he saw it. 'I'm wrong. This is not a guy we can hunt right
now.'

Major Kim hunting it was like a good-looking mouse that hunting a cat.

If he was lucky, he'd bite it, but eventually, he would be a prey.

"Boss, let's give it up for a while. Once you look at its patterns of behavior, it doesn't like
the cold. Therefore, if we keep throwing dead bodies…” Jang Sung-hoon quickly modified
his plan.

Kim Tae-hoon did not respond to Jang Sung-hoon's urgent remarks. Instead of
answering, he played the video again in his mind.

When it was exposed to sunlight while coming out, its image was taken by a camera
he had installed. He recalled the look of its body.

'Its level of protection is beyond that of a Black Orc's.'

It was not a vague guess.

The abandoned subway station was very dangerous. Walking around the station with
bare skin was like going naked on a thorny path as a human being.

Even if it didn't get hurt deeply, it would get scratched.

The devil snake, however, had lived for several days in the ruins of the station, and still
boasted its beautiful body, just as clean as a glass, not showing a speck of damage.

But there was a scar on its body.

'The Sword works.'

The Sword of the Imperator, which coveted blood and with an unknown master, had
proved that it had hurt the snake.
'The conditions themselves are much better than those against the Black Orc.'

Furthermore, Kim Tae-hoon had various weapons to use against the devil snake.

The power of the Sword of the Imperator and Sun-sin's Arrow need not be questioned,
and mundane firepower was also sufficient.

Above all, Kim Tae-hoon himself could set the battle stage this time.

It was not a sudden battle, and it meant that he could fight where he wanted to after
practicing and preparing.

Yes, the conditions themselves were incomparably better than those fighting the Black
Orc.

There's only one thing left.

'If I can handle my Telekinesis properly.'

Kim Tae-hoon's ability to take advantage of this situation was the only thing he can do.
If he was capable enough, there would be no reason to fail when hunting the devil
snake.

"Jang Sung-hoon, how much time do we have?"

"Yes?" Jang Sung-hoon was frightened. "Are you going to hunt the snake?"

The time Kim Tae-hoon referred to was the time the Awakeners who came under him
could afford to wait without implementing their agenda.

"Boss, we can't fight that! We can't!" Jang Sung-hoon tried to stop his plans again.

"How many days are left?"

"It's… ," Kim asked repeatedly, Jang Sung-hoon answered, "I'm not a psychology major,
but as you know… we're getting the monster stones once a week from now on. For
them, they'll pay you without any doubt. No, they'll pay you for now, as they don't want
to be suspected. But if you don't do anything by the second payment, they will start to
doubt."
The world was still unstable now.

Under such circumstances, if their trust and hope in Kim Tae-hoon were gone, some
minority would act out of desperation.

It would be a catalyst for collapse.

"First payment in three days, and another week from there, so ten more days from now."

"That's a limit. No, it's not a limit. There may be a stir, but if you explain…”

Even though he is saying it was not a limit, there were only dark things to see in Jang
Sung-hoon's mind after ten days.

'It hates the cold, but if the cold breaks, it won't look at the dead bodies. At that time,
we have no choice but to sacrifice someone… and then, we will be finished.'

Above all, the only way to control the devil snake was to sacrifice a living being. In
order to earn time, they would have to do the same thing as Lee Jin-sung did, which
was the worst.

And Kim Tae-hoon knew the fact better than Jang Sung-hoon.

"What they want is not an explanation."

Patience didn't really matter to the hunting dogs.

"We will begin training for the hunting of the devil snake."

6.==========

"Stability is the most important thing for the time being. Don't be too hard."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you for saving me."

Ahn Sun-mi laughed bitterly at the appearance of a man bowing repeatedly toward
her.

'Stability? That's funny. Who can be stable in the world now?'

A woman came up beside her. "Doctor, we have an urgent patient. He's been bitten by
a monster. He's an Awakener."

She was the woman who introduced herself as a nurse a few days ago among the
survivors of the Mac Clan.

Now she was serving patients with Ahn Sun-mi, and she called Ahn Sun-mi 'doctor'.

It wasn't just her. Ahn Sun-mi was working as a doctor.

"Where is he?"

For once, she wanted to see him, because it was the only talent she had that would save
her life.

It was also a very important part of the Mac Clan.

There was virtually no proper medical service in the world. Since there was no
medicine on hand, they might have to risk their lives to get medicine. There were many
people dying due to lack of fever reducers and antibiotics.

In such a world, it was a tremendous thing to have a medical service and a place to visit
when they were sick.

"Arrrrgh… please, please save me."

"What kind of monster were you bitten by?"

"A dog… no, a monkey dog bit me."

"Is your arm the only place you were bitten?"

Moreover, it is no exaggeration to say that the value of their life was everything for the
humans who had a supreme task to survive.

Insurance and health care were no longer meaningful. It was time to give everything
they had for their life. Even more so for Awakeners!

"Yes? Yes, only my arm was bitten." Ahn Sun-mi's gaze turned to the right arm of the
patient lying on the cot.
The wound was serious, and it would normally be better to just cut off his arm in a
place like this without proper medical equipment.

"Prepare the tools."

"Yes."

However, as Ahn Sun-mi confirmed the wound, she immediately went to treatment
without hesitation.

"A brush and a knife."

She even took out a brush and knife instead of a scalpel and scissors. It was a mysterious
thing to do.

But she wet the wound with the Water of Therapy she had created, and also applied
the flesh of the Mud Troll with a knife.

The serious wound began to be healed itself at a remarkable rate.

"The price is eight monster stones." The treatment was over in a flash, and the settlement
was required immediately.

"Oh, yes, here…” The Awakener's colleague immediately paid eight red monster stones
for treatment.

When the treatment was over in such a short time, the people waiting for treatment
looked surprised at those who left with clean scars instead of serious injuries.

Jang Sung-hoon appeared in the stillness.

"How was your business today, sister?"

Ahn Sun-mi looked sullen at his words.

To her, Jang Sung-hoon was like a younger brother who had entered college and had
no money. There was no sister who would show a happy expression at the appearance
of such a younger brother.

"What brings you here?"

"We found a Mud Troll or more like a Mud Troll nest. Three were identified this time.
They made a five hundred-unit apartment complex a grave of dead bodies. It will take
some time for the Goblins and the Orcs to eat all the bodies."

"Are you here to let me know that?"

"No. I'm here to listen. So what happened?" Ahn Sun-mi said with a firm expression to
the question.

"Nothing, nothing special about the body."

It was a story about dissection. The dissection of an Awakener.

By eating monster stones, an Awakener becomes stronger. If the Awakener died, was
there a stone in the heart of the Awakener?

Everyone doubted it, but there was no chance to answer the question. They had never
got the body of an Awakener who had been steadily eating monster stones.

So, the body of Lee Jin-sung and his aide were clues to solve the question.

Naturally, they dissected both men.

But there was no result. Monsters died and left a stone, but an Awakener died and left
nothing.

"Humans only know how to use something, but they don't know how to leave
something behind, even now that the world has changed."

Ahn Sun-mi threw a sling bag with filled monster stones toward Jang Sung-hoon, who
was speaking more nonsense.

"Why, why is this?"

"Give it to the boss."

"You earned it, didn't you?"

"It would not be useful if I ate it."

"Boss suddenly became a pimp. The Lieutenant and you, both of you, bring in their
own hard-earned gains… in this world, a strong man is the best, I suppose. But this is
not the usual competition… no, he doesn't need to insist on monogamy, so who's his
real wife? Is there a problem?"

Ahn Sun-mi immediately asked a question to prevent Jang Sung-hoon from speaking
more nonsense, "So, what's the situation of the boss? Can he really kill that monster?"

Jang Sung-hoon smiled lightly at the question. "We're so lucky. Really."

7.

Under a pedestrian overpass…

Originally, a place where cars should be running was now a bloody battleground.

Three Orcs and nine humans were going at it.

"God damn it, what kind of power…”

"Spear! Give me another spear!"

A simple and brutal war was taking place against monsters, using crude spears made
of sharp cut-offs of iron pipe ends, and a crude shield made of car doors.

It was a desperate battleground.

"Spray! Spray!"

Those who were fighting the Orcs were doing everything they could desperately.

The man with the car-door shield was tanking an Orc like a football lineman, and the
men in motorcycle helmets were blackening or yellowing Orc's eyes and mouths with
the spray paint in their hands.

"Aaaaaaah!" The man with the steel pipe spear drove a spear into Orc's body with all
his might.

In such a mortal battle, the victory was rapidly passing to the humans.

"Kuh! Kuhuh!"

The blood-stained Orcs screamed, looking like hedgehogs with the spears stuck in
them, were in great pain and struggling for life.

"They are almost done!" The faces of the human group gradually began to smile, and
the conviction of victory began to spread.

"K-hung!"

Until an Orc which is bigger than ordinary Orc appeared on the pedestrian overpass.

"On the overpass, on the overpass!" The appearance of the big Orc, which had to be
the captain of the Orcs they were fighting, changed the atmosphere at once.

The Orc now inflated its chest as much as possible and bellowed when it was done.

KAAAAAH!

Its ferocity swept over them.

"Uh…” Immediately, some of their legs limp.

"Kuhuh!"

At the same time, the blood-stained Orcs flared like candles just before they were
extinguished.

The situation had changed.

"Get ahold of yourself!"

"Just hold on! They're all dying!"

The humans yelled out, but the captain Orc on the pedestrian overpass moved to the
railing as if to laugh at their efforts. He was going to throw his huge body into the
battlefield immediately.

"Hey!" At that moment, on the left side of the captain Orc, something approached at a
tremendous pace and gave a short cry.

"Kuh?" When the captain Orc turned its head, what he saw was the head of a huge
hammer used in the steel factory.
Krak! The hammer smashed the head of the captain Orc, crushed its face, and even
broke its skull.

The head of the captain Orc spewed out something red, like a burst watermelon.

Bang Hyun-wook, the man who finished it in one hit, immediately shouted down below,
"I'll eat this one!"

At the words, those below burned with fighting spirit instead of anger.

"Oooh!"

"Get them! All we have to do is kill these Orcs that are left!"

The fighting spirit began to fade in the eyes of the Orcs that had lost their captain.

The battle was one-sided thereafter. The three Orcs died, and those who survived the
battle spat out long breaths.

For some of them it was not enough, and after taking a cigarette from their pockets,
they began to smoke carefully.

Bang Hyun-wook, watching the scene from up on the overpass, turned his head
slightly. He saw Jang Sung-hoon looking around the building with a map.

"Brother."

"What?"

"The buildings around here are not cleaned up yet, are they not dangerous?"

At the words, Bang Hyun-wook looked around the area. No white flags were visible
anywhere in the buildings around them.

"That's why I brought you here."

"No, not that… If you have any problems, I can just run away with you, but what about
those below…”

At his words, Jang Sung-hoon folded the map and immediately looked at those who
were working on monster stone collection under the overpass.

"To live, they have to risk it."

"What if they die?"

"It's better than just dying doing nothing. At least they're not trying to die, are they?"
Jang Sung-hoon sighed briefly, looking at them doing their best to survive.

'The parties are growing.'

Parties. They were groups for monster hunting in the area of Mac Clan now.

'I could have wished that.'

After Kim Tae-hoon demanded a price of forty percent, some of the survivors began
to hunt more aggressively than when Lee Jin-sung was the leader of Messiah.

There were many reasons.

'Since we have given them a lot of things, at least they have to show what they're trying
to do.'

Kim Tae-hoon had shown them tricks needed to hunt monsters through the Mac Clan.

He did not hide the reason for spraying, how to make poison balloons with perfume,
oil, pesticides, and exploit the weaknesses of monsters.

In addition, the Mac Clan is removing monsters with orange eyes that were stronger
than red-eyed monsters, and monsters that moved in large groups from time to time.

There were only traces of the Mac Clan passing by; a fugitive monster who could not
build a pack near a building with a white flag; a fugitive who ran away from other
powerful monsters; and a vagrant monster. For the hunting dogs, safe hunting was
possible.

Of course, the biggest reason was the street tax of forty percent.

'Is what they are wearing the Orc leather armor? Nice work. I heard a rumor that an
old man who was a shoemaker would make a leather set for a monster stone… I'll have
to meet him once.'

The rest was for the hunting dogs after paying their forty percent tax. With their monster
stones as well as their monster corpses, whatever they did was up to them.

But they couldn't just use them stupidly. If they had intended to do that, they wouldn't
have hunted monsters in the first place.

There was something they wanted to get through hunting, so they were hunting.

In other words, hunting monsters was not just consumption, but hunting to fuel
productive activities.

'We built an ecosystem, so they're trying to survive.'

Of course, all sorts of ways were being tested out, trying to use monster bodies more
efficiently.

The old man who made leather shoes, and the technician who repaired the leather
shoes, now making armor with monster hides; the worker from a construction site
who made a spear with construction materials; and someone who worked at the car
factory, converted a car into a tank to break the monsters.

'It's more like a place where people live now.'

It was also the way mankind has survived so far.

The development of technology created to achieve something better had made humans
the top predator.

The same was true of the age of monsters. In order for humans to survive in this age,
they had to use this way to survive.

'If Boss kills the devil snake, the number of parties will explode at that moment, and a
group that has a lot of power in it, and that has a smart person, will try to establish a
Clan like us.'

Of course, if Kim Tae-hoon could not kill the devil snake, everything they had prepared
so far would collapse like a mirage.
"Do you have anything you're looking for when you keep looking at the map?"

"We have to check the monsters' territory, because there's a high probability that
there's a strong monster in the apartment or housing complexes."

"That's great. Honestly, I'm just thinking about whether big brother can kill that snake."

If Kim Tae-hoon failed to hunt the devil snake and was killed, there would be only
despair in Bucheon.

There would be scenes of desperate humans hunting each other in front of monsters.

Literally, the humans who survived in Bucheon would self-destruct.

But at this moment, Jang Sung-hoon did not think he would fail in the hunt, which is
why he came here.

"We cannot get an answer even if we think about it. What we're going to worry about
is after the boss kills the monster."

'I'm sure it's here. There must be a secret warehouse of Baek Sung-taek, where he kept
the artwork he has stolen.

'I can't see through the map, so there's no way to know. Isn't there a map relic, like a map
nucleus?'

8.======

Gulp!

Kim Tae-hoon took a photo of his right hand with a smartphone after eating a monster
stone.

=[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 100

- Health: 89]==

At last, his Strength level exceeded 100 points. It was amazing.

'It's as fast as when I took all the monster stones.'

But what was even more surprising was that Kim Tae-hoon had not been monster
hunting recently. Nevertheless, the speed at which his stats rose was as fast as when
hunting monsters on the front line.

'Jang Sung-hoon was right!'

It was all thanks to Jang Sung-hoon. His system made survivors hunters.

Hunters hunted monsters, and Kim Tae-hoon's share increased as did the number of
monsters they hunted.

Of course, it wasn't all for free.

Kim Tae-hoon raised his head.

The Sword of the Imperator, the eerie Sword, was hovering like a satellite near him.

The movement was very smooth. It was like the Sword was moving on its own.

It was the result of hard training.

'I am now at a satisfactory level.'

The potential and effectiveness of Telekinesis were infinite. Infinite did not mean that
a user with that kind of Telekinesis could use everything, just like F1 racing cars mean
nothing to the public.

Just because a child is given a surgical scalpel and scissors that a noted doctor has
used, does not make the child a noted doctor.

The same went for Kim Tae-hoon. The value of his Telekinesis was infinite, but his
ability to deal with it was not.

Of course, through training, real fighting and practice, the endless possibilities would
gradually become his potential.

However, Kim Tae-hoon could not afford to learn something new as the time was limited
to him. Instead, he tried to do well what he could.
Faster, stronger, more precise!

He practiced moving and controlling the Sword more quickly and more precisely with
his Telekinesis.

'Cut.'

At the thought of Kim Tae-hoon, the Sword of the Imperator shot out like an arrow. It
flew toward the tire located behind him and passed through the top of it.

Shi-yik!

A piece of the tire that had been cut off in passing fell to the ground.

Near the piece of tire that had fallen off were more pieces of broken tires.

The ones on the bottom were thicker than fingers, and the later ones gradually getting
thinner.

On the top of the pile of tire pieces was a thin slice of paper.

Kim Tae-hoon blew out a long breath like a steamboat about to start off…

9.

The devil snake had not been in a good mood lately.

Only cold corpses were served as meals, and eating cold in the cold weather was a
hardship and humiliation.

The devil snake didn't want to go somewhere colder, so it endured.

Ss! Ss!

But the devil snake no longer wanted to bear the hardship. Today it intended to fill its
stomach with living beings, and it would not even look at the pile of dead bodies.

Of course, just in case, it headed to its dinner table, as usual.

And as always, there was food again. But there was only one corpse this time.
Churr!

The devil snake was angry at it. It was going to satisfy itself with only one sacrifice!

Moreover, the body smelled disgusting.

Shaa!

The devil snake could quickly see that the body was not a sacrifice, but a poisoned
bait. It was even angrier, and it did not intend to endure its anger.

It was going to show its dignity once again, and that this was its territory. It began to
climb the stairs without hesitation.

The cold air that descended the stairs did not stop the angry devil snake. It appeared
at once in the subway entrance.

The snake that greeted the sunshine after a long time revealed its great splendor under
the sunshine.

Boo-aang!

At that time, a huge bus rushed at the devil snake with all its speed, as if to welcome it.

Kwa-kwa-kwang!

The bus hit the devil snake, and the vehicle crumpled like it was made of tofu.

On the other hand, the body of the devil snake was only shaken, not falling, and kept
its place without falling.

The yellow eyes of the devil snake lit up with an awful murderous spirit. It swiped its
tail toward the bus that had smashed into it.

Kwang! The bus broke in two like tofu broken in half by chopsticks.

As if it was not enough, the pavement of the road was also crushed by the tail of the
devil snake, leaving a broad scar on the ground.

The blow left the world quiet. A terrible silence filled the surroundings of the devil
snake.

"AWWWOOOO!"

Howling broke the silence. It shook the devil snake's body, and its eyes narrowed to
slits, evidence of a terrible rage.

It was ridiculous that a smelly Werewolf in its own realm was Howling. The devil snake
had no intention of accepting it.

"AWWWOOOO!"

The devil snake began to race toward the Howling.

The place it arrived was an empty lot for building construction.

A human standing alone in the vacant lot greeted it.

10.

It was a vacant lot meant for a building.

At the center of the vacant lot stood Kim Tae-hoon, surrounded by Mac Clan's soldiers
and a number of other Awakeners who were assigned their missions, waiting for the
time to perform their duties.

'All I have to do is pull the trigger.'

'Let's just act on orders. It's not that difficult.'

While waiting, they had recounted their duties hundreds of times.

But all of them were stiffened when the devil snake appeared following the Howling
of Kim Tae-hoon; it was a huge monster over twenty meters long, and it was big
enough to swallow a car in a gulp.

Ah!

The devil snake had not yet shown the power of its fear. Everyone, who looked at it,
could imagine their own death so easily, and they were paralyzed.

Awww! It was Howling of Kim Tae-hoon that shook their stiffened minds and bodies
once again.

At the Howling, all the attention of the devil snake was focused on Kim Tae-hoon, and
those who came to their senses moved without missing the moment.

"Water!"

"Pour water!"
The main character of the first move was a fire truck.

Quaquaqua!

Two fire trucks, already deployed, rose high into the sky and began spraying out water
columns over the snake.

Under the streams of water, the devil snake turned its attention to the fire trucks that
were spewing water nervously.

The streams wet its body. It didn't like the cold, so the water was much more annoying
and nasty than the bus that ran into it a while ago.

The devil snake intended to hit the fire trucks spraying the water streams if the Sword
had not left a finger-deep scar on its scales.

Sseuk!

The devil snake's eyes locked on the Sword which had hurt it.

The devil snake saw the Sword flying in the air. The Sword rejected the laws of physics
and could not be compared to any flying animal.

Even the devil snake could not easily deal with the movement of the Sword that
flashed to attack it.

The devil snake stood upright and pursued the Sword, but it dodged the devil snake's
attack and began to slice through the body of the devil snake, producing wounds.

There were no deep wounds. Most of the wounds were only about the length of a little
finger.

Considering the huge body, its thick skin, and flesh of the devil snake, they were just
scratches with a tiny bit of blood, definitely not deep enough to stop it.

'This is as expected.'

A hard stab would make the wound deep, but it would end there.

So he had been practiced cutting thinly, just enough to draw blood.

Of course, it is impossible to kill it with only thin wounds.

"Spraying water is completed!"

"Get out! The fire truck, get out!"

So he prepared a fire truck!

The reason he prepared the fire truck was to spray water to irritate the devil snake,
and that was not all.

"But will the pesticides work?"

"It consisted of half pesticide and half water, and it will work if it gets inside."

He had put plenty of poisons in the water the engines sprayed out. If they were
absorbed through the wounds, it would surely affect the devil snake in some way.
Pesticides were a medicine made for killing!

That was why he chose the ground where the soil was tramped. The soil was loaded
with pesticides and became mud. The soil was sticking to the body of the devil snake,
and the pesticides would be delivered to its body repeatedly. If the devil snake ate the
soil, then it could affect its internal organs. And this was just the beginning!

'It was distracted by the blade.'

Kim Tae-hoon, who saw the devil snake chasing the Sword, immediately pulled an
Arrow of Sun-sin from his waist.

The arrow, without a tail and feathers, was different from usual. It was coated with ice.

The ice, of course, was not ordinary ice. It was poisoned ice!

Moreover, the poison was a tetrodotoxin.

The poison of a blowfish!

Kim Tae-hoon, when he heard the story of the devil snake, first thought of how to hunt
using poison, instead of thinking that he could kill it with physical force.
At the same time, the place where he heard the story, the place called a sushi
restaurant, inspired Kim Tae-hoon. It was the inspiration for using blowfish toxin.

After that, Kim Tae-hoon immediately collected the poison from the dead blowfish at
a blowfish specialty store in Bucheon City.

He also checked its effect.

In the case of the farmed blowfish, there was no toxicity, or only really weak, but some
of the blowfish collected by Kim Tae-hoon were caught at sea, and the effect of the
venom was confirmed against pigeons and monsters which had survived in the cold
land.

Of course, he knew that the poison from only a few blowfish was not toxic enough to
kill the devil snake.

Because of that, he was not expecting a lot.

Twisting, stumbling, or losing consciousness for a few seconds was all he wanted.

The arrow flew toward the devil snake, which was focused on the Sword, as expected
by Kim Tae-hoon.

Pok! Then, like a syringe, it drove its little needle into the giant body of the devil snake
through one of the small wounds.

'That's it.' The feeling of the arrow piercing the body of the devil snake was transmitted
to Kim Tae-hoon through his Telekinesis.

At the same time, the presence of the arrow disappeared from Kim Tae-hoon's senses.

'It's beginning.' This was the prologue.

This was not a mere fight, but a fight against the presiding ruler, the predator who
dominated the center of Bucheon City, where prey became a challenger to take the
land back.

It was a fight for all or nothing.

'The first step is the mortar fire.'

It is natural to prepare for all-out war, and it was mortar fire that would be the beginning
of the all-out war.

Mortars were different from rifles, but they were difficult to use easily, and they had
never been used properly in battle with monsters they had met so far.

There was not enough distance, and people could not afford to aim.

In other words, if a target was at the target point, there is no more effective weapon
than a mortar against the target, even the target was bigger than a tram. It was a big
monster, and they could not miss it.

What was even better is that it was not difficult to get one or two artillery soldiers if a
hundred Korean men were gathered.

Kim Tae-hoon looked up and saw the Sword against the devil snake.

The movement of the Sword was playing with the devil snake, and as soon as it found
a gap in the snake's quick movement, it made a wound, racing along the body of the
devil snake.

Only the Sword was in the yellow eyes of the devil snake. It was focused on nothing
but the Sword.

Kim Tae-hoon began to lure the devil snake. He manipulated the Sword with his
Telekinesis and led the devil snake closer to the center of the vacant lot.

'The right time.'

The only thing left was to give a signal.

As soon as he gave the signal, the mortar will fire out their shells continuously.

At that moment, the glitter of the eyes of the devil snake changed.

Its eyes, which had been chasing only the Sword, began to shine with a golden light
that was not mere light.

'Ah.'
Aura!

Something that had to be called like that passed through the senses of everyone
concentrating on the vacant lot.

Those who were exposed to it stiffened at the moment.

He felt that the devil snake was now scouring all of them, like dissecting them.

Soon the eyes of the devil snake began to move along the force controlling the Sword,
not the Sword itself, along with the Telekinesis that could now be seen.

Of course, there was Kim Tae-hoon at the end of the power.

The devil snake saw Kim Tae-hoon, its tongue fluttering.

11.

'I was discovered.'

At the moment the devil snake's eyes shone, Kim Tae-hoon could feel intuitively that
it saw the power to handle the Sword, not the Sword.

Soon after, Kim Tae-hoon was sure, as the devil snake's eyes turned on him.

'I'm dead.'

Today, a man named Kim Tae-hoon would be killed by the devil snake.

It was not a vague conjecture or feeling.

He'd already experienced death. Through the Golden Glass of Napoleon, Kim Tae-hoon
clearly learned how that death felt.

However, there was no passing light like a revolving lantern in front of Kim Tae-hoon's
eyes.

'I will be killed by the devil snake.' He had never wanted to die, He had tried to live. He
had learned what he needed to survive in the ocean of death.
He had a clinging obsession with the struggle for survival.

'I have to kill it before I die.'

At that moment, his half-paralyzed body began to move.

His Energy supported its master's will to live. His Energy revived his body, which had
frozen under the glitter of the eyes of the devil snake.

But the devil snake had already become a black shadow on Kim Tae-hoon's head as its
jaws gaped open.

'Run away? No, I can't run away.'

His body told him, "Do not hope you will have a chance to run away with your body
already half-paralyzed."

Therefore, Kim Tae-hoon did not avoid it.

Rather adversely, Kim Tae-hoon threw himself into the huge mouth of the devil snake
that opened toward him.

Kim Tae-hoon's body was sucked into the mouth of the devil snake.

Keck!

There came a strange sound from the devil snake's throat. It was going to eat its prey,
but its target threw itself into its throat; therefore, it was not a natural sound.

But the devil snake did not mind it.

Kim Tae-hoon, in the eyes of the devil snake, was an animal without poison.

No, it didn't matter if the prey had poison. It was visible in the glowing eyes of the devil
snake.

The only animal that could show its teeth to it was Kim Tae-hoon, and when it ate him,
the rest of the animals were just its own game.

That's why it swallowed Kim Tae-hoon.

Soon afterward, the devil snake's body began to crush Kim Tae-hoon.

A body was forced to compress, and in the process, the flesh ruptured. Bones were
dislocated, and eventually, there was the sound of breaking.

The sound also reached Kim Tae-hoon. It was simply the sound of death.

The screaming of the bones in his body knocked from the inside, not outside, was a
sound that no one could see and hear, only those who faced death.

But Kim Tae-hoon did not listen to the sound.

'Let's listen.'

It was the snake's sound, not his own sound.

…throbbing!

The heartbeat of the devil snake was slow, like a snake.

Throbbing!

As soon as he heard the slow heartbeat of the slow snake, as he waited for the next
beat to happen, Kim Tae-hoon ordered the Sword connected to his will-

STAB THAT SOUND!

1.

When Kim Tae-hoon said he would go on hunting for the devil snake, the survivors
had two reactions.

Some wanted to participate in the hunting for the devil snake themselves, and others
prayed eagerly for the success of the hunt.

There was not a single person who wanted the devil snake hunting to fail.

At the same time, none of them imagined Kim Tae-hoon's failure to hunt the devil snake.

It was not due to a lack of imagination. Just imagining the failure made their whole
body tremble and their faces turn blue.

Just imagining it made them feel hopeless. That was why they couldn't even imagine
it.

But right now, Kim Tae-hoon was eaten.

'Ah!'

As was said, the devil snake attacked Kim Tae-hoon with a mouth open wide enough
to swallow a car.

Moreover, no one could move properly at that moment. The majesty of the devil snake
was as firm as the head of Medusa.

Eventually, the huge mouth swallowed their only hope, and the devil snake did not
stop there.

In order to swallow Kim Tae-hoon more easily, it straightened its huge body like a
tower, in order to push the man who was hovering around his throat into its stomach
at once.

Everyone watched the scene. To turn away from it was not allowed. Their paralyzed
bodies could not even turn their heads or close their eyes.

It was torture. Everyone watched the process as their hope fell into a dark despair.

The torture ended as a Sword shot fiercely into the devil snake, despite the loss of its
master.

The Sword quickly punched into the neck of the devil snake, and its body began to lean
like the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

But unlike the Leaning Tower of Pisa, its body continued to fall.

In the end, its body smashed to the earth.

Qua-reung!

The ground bounced as if an earthquake had occurred, and those who could not to
escape, who stared at the scene in blank amazement, fell to the ground.

That was all. The fallen were lying on the floor like mannequins, and the ones who did
not fall… were not.

There was still despair, and no one could escape from it by their own power.

There was only one person who could answer this despair.

Kim Tae-hoon appeared, saying the fallen devil snake had fallen.

2.

Kim Tae-hoon's head was tilted back with his thermos in his mouth, and his throat
was tingling.

Ahn Sun-mi handed him a small glass of wine after he drank the contents of a thermos
bottle.

Kim Tae-hoon, who had received a bottle full of a Water of Therapy, drank it all at once.
"How are you?"

Finally, after putting a lot of pills made of Mud Troll flesh by Ahn Sun-mi in his mouth,
Kim Tae-hoon swallowed, and replied, his mouth tasting like dirt, "I'd like a cup of
coffee."

"Oh, really?" After her curt reply, Ahn Sun-mi drew a really long sigh.

It was a sigh of relief. When Kim Tae-hoon said that, it meant that his condition wasn't
really the worst he could think of.

"Please take care of it yourself." Ahn Sun-mi rose from her seat after the blunt remark.

Kim Tae-hoon didn't give her any attention. Instead, he closed his eyes on the spot and
started to think again.

'It was the worst.' All the way from one to ten.

'It was all the worst.' Worst, there was no other word to describe and organize the
hunting.

'From preparation to action.' He thought he was fully prepared, but when he actually
started hunting, he fell into crisis as soon as the prologue ended.

Eventually, he was eaten by the devil snake. He heard the sound of his whole-body
crumbling.

It was a life-or-death experience that had nothing to do with being a trauma, a memory
that had to be ignored and forgotten.

'I almost died before I even saw the dragon.'

However, Kim Tae-hoon tried to remember the moment more clearly, rather than
turning away from it. He concentrated on not forgetting the feeling at that time.

'That is the real prize.' At the moment his whole body was being crushed, Kim Tae-
hoon definitely did it.

'The Sword reacted to my Telekinesis!' At that moment, his longing reached the Sword.
The Sword of the Imperator stabbed the sound of the heart.

It was the first time.

'The only thing I could see was darkness.'

So far, Kim Tae-hoon has relied on vision when using his Telekinesis. No, the vision
was an absolute requirement for the use of Telekinesis.

Kim Tae-hoon had no talent to move the unseen. He didn't even think it was possible.

Of course, the moment Kim Tae-hoon entered the devil snake's throat, the Sword
disappeared from his sight and sense.

No, honestly, at that moment, Kim Tae-hoon even forgot the idea of manipulating the
Sword with his Telekinesis.

He just wanted the Sword of the Imperator to reach the sound of the heartbeat of the
devil snake he heard.

It was to feel that time more clearly that he was recalling the moment now.

'Tut.'

Of course, the feeling did not come to mind easily.

It was a miracle created by the persistent obsession of life… no, made by his
determination to live.

It couldn't be a miracle if he could easily experience it.

'I can't help it.' Of course, it wouldn't be easy to experience this feeling again.

'I can only be content with the possibility.' But this made it clear: the possibility of
Telekinesis was endless.

In addition, at this moment, Kim Tae-hoon had another power that was immediately
available.

Kim Tae-hoon rose from his seat and saw the dead body of a huge snake occupying the
vacant lot.

It was time to take the right of the winner.

3.

The devil snake, which had fallen in the vacant lot, still had a bloody presence.

No one dared approach the vacant lot.

The same was true of the Mac Clan's soldiers, armed and guarding the devil snake and
controlling access to it.

There was no expression on their faces, standing with their backs to the carcass. The
only difference between mannequins was the fact that they were breathing white mist.

A man approached the land filled with fear.

Those who were afraid of the devil snake far away but could not take their eyes off it
saw Kim Tae-hoon.

No one immediately noticed that he was Kim Tae-hoon.

Kim Tae-hoon's name had already spread, but there were not many people who had
seen Kim Tae-hoon directly.

Even if they knew Kim Tae-hoon's face, there were few people who had good enough
eyesight to confirm his face from that far away.

However, it was not necessary for someone to explain that the man was Kim Tae-hoon.

There was only one man who could make the monster, which gave fear, nightmares,
and despair to the survivors of Bucheon City, a carcass, and take the right of the winner
from the dead body.

'Is that him?' 'It is him!'

As Kim Tae-hoon drew closer to the dead body of the devil snake, everyone realized
his identity.
When Kim Tae-hoon approached the vicinity of the devil snake in the end, someone
saw him and screamed.

"Hooray!"

A shout.

It was a triumphant shout, and at the same time, it was the first shout.

"Hooray!"

The war that had begun with the sudden appearance of the monster on December 31
took away the shouts of survivors.

Everyone had lived in a breathless state to survive. There was no proper victory. They
just survived and pretended to be dead to live.

There was no room to shout, or to be eligible for victory.

Now, now was the first time.

For the first time, the survivors who had been deprived and only run away had won
their first real victory, and in return, they were entitled to shout as much as they
wanted to at this moment.

"Hooray!"

The shouting spread out. The enthusiasm of the shouting began to melt the frozen world.

Furthermore, the shouting urged the heart. Everyone's hearts began to beat wildly in
the rush of the shouts.

At the center of the shouts, Kim Tae-hoon looked at his own Sword deeply embedded
in the neck of the fallen devil snake.

The Sword was sticking out its handle as if waiting for its master to come.

Kim caught the hilt and pulled it out, like the legend of a king who drawing a sword
from a rock.
Shiyik!

Without any trouble, the Sword again cut through the body of the devil snake and
revealed its silver blade.

The silver blade now scattered silver light around, reflecting the sunlight passing
through the sky.

"Hooray!"

Those who saw the scattered silver blade began to shout with all their might.

During the shouts, Kim Tae-hoon immediately set out to work.

He cut the skin like digging a burrow, slicing away the flesh, and revealed the black
heart of the devil snake sleeping beyond it. He raised his smartphone over the yellow
jewel embedded in the heart.

======

[The Crystal of the Black Snake]

- Strength and Health greatly increase when ingested.

- The skill level of Energy greatly increases when ingested.

- The skill level of Mana greatly increases when ingested.

- The skill level of Defense greatly increases when ingested.

- The Power of the Black Snake [The Eyes of Black Snake] can be acquired when
ingested.]

=====

Kim Tae-hoon tore the yellow jewel off and put it in his mouth.

There was no hesitation. He ate it in a gulp and swallowed it in a gulp.

Kim Tae-hoon's body also took the crystal of the Black Snake at once, and it made the
Power of the Black Snake his own.

'Hmm.'

First of all, the Energy inside his guts began to change. The loach went mad and grew
hugely. It became a snake.

The huge snake with such great Energy gave power to his body. It seemed that the
power he could not control would burst out of him.

At that moment, the power of Energy focused on Kim Tae-hoon's eyes. The whites
disappeared from his eyes and only black ones remained.

At the same time, the Energy that filled Kim Tae-hoon's guts began to dissipate rapidly.

'Is this the Eyes of Black Snake?'

In exchange for consuming such Energy, the world he looked at had changed. He could
see more clearly, and he could count the feathers of a flying bird.

And the invisible was now visible.

Kim Tae-hoon looked at the back of his right hand.

======

[Basic Abilities]

- Strength: 135

- Health: 122

[Special Abilities]

- Energy: D Rank

- Mana: D Rank

- Telekinesis: A Rank
- Defense: D Rank

- Mana Resistance: D Rank

======

Kim Tae-hoon got the Eyes.

4.======

Jang Sung-hoon did not participate in the hunt. He was not qualified to take part in the
hunt against the scary monster.

He received a report after everything was over: Kim Tae-hoon was eaten by the devil
snake, and miraculously stabbed its heart, survived, and ate its crystal.

When he heard the report, Jang Sung-hoon felt dizzy.

'He almost died.'

The only thing that was done as planned was luring the devil snake. Everything after
that was beyond his expectations.

Even if Kim Tae-hoon died, it was no wonder. Ordinarily, he should have died.

But in the end, he won!

So now it was time to collect the spoils of the war!

Jang Sung-hoon got up from his seat.

'They said the old man who worked at the leather shoe factory was Park Kap-soo.'
5.

It was night time before the enthusiasm of the survivors, which seemed not to go out,
cooled down.

The night was dark and cold, and the survivors moved to find a warm place to survive
again.

Kim Tae-hoon was also prepared to spend the night.

Kim Tae-hoon's bed was a car, and he sat in the driver's seat of a car that was too
expensive to use as a tent instead of the Mercedes S500, put down the window, and
turned his head.

He saw the dead body of the Black Snake.

Kim Tae-hoon looked at the dead body and picked up a mug. A partner with a steaming
heart told him that it had no intention of spending the night sleeping.

"Boss."

"Big brother!"

Jang Sung-hoon and Bang Hyun-wook appeared at that time.

"Would you like a beer? It's very cool because it has been in the snow. I brought you a
snack, too."

Before his answer came out, Jang Sung-hoon got in the passenger seat and Bang Hyun-
wook also got in the back seat.

Jang Sung-hoon, who was in the passenger seat, put his hand in a black plastic bag.
"Do you have any brands you like?"

"I don't need it."

"Brother, I'll have Miller, Miller."

Jang Sung-hoon handed a Miller beer can to Bang Hyun-wook.

"You're a young man who just graduated from high school, but you are choosing a brad
beer? Huh?"

"Haha, that's the way it is," Bang Hyun-wook smiled awkwardly and received the beer
can.

Kim Tae-hoon took a sip of coffee at the sight of the two. He began to enjoy the silence.

Jang Sung-hoon started to talk in the meanwhile. "You've been through it."

"Now let's get to the point, then. Now, we're creating a Clan."

The story did not have a head and tail.

"Clan? Brother, we are a Clan, what Clan are we making again?"

"It means we will allow the creation of new Clans within our territory, and we will be
the leader of groups of Clans. For example, Mac Clan becomes Mac Guild and has
multiple Clans under its command, and the Clans run several parties internally."

It was a concept that anyone who had played an MMORPG game could easily understand.

Bang Hyun-wook immediately expressed his doubts. "Then it's dangerous, right? If we
ever get betrayed…”

"After killing the boss and taking the seat, all they have to do is to fight such monsters
as are outside the window. Do you want to do that?"

Bang Hyun-wook, who immediately grasped the situation, took a drink of beer instead
of answering.

Jang Sung-hoon's eyes turned to Kim Tae-hoon.

"Actually, they are not just Clans, but there are some parties that have a lot of power.
We just need a system, because they're getting bigger. I think it's important to keep in
mind to give the Clans a gun if necessary. War is decided by the number of people. Of
course, this is not an urgent problem. The immediate problem is the common people.
They need a representative."

Jang Sung-hoon drank a sip of soda and kept talking. "The bomb that might really
explode at any time is the common people like me. Right now the Awakeners are at
the center of a group of survivors. It's not a good situation for the public. Two or three
out of ten female patients visiting sister Sun-mi are victims of sexual assault. There
are such victims among men, too. Of course, none of them confess the damage."

Jang Sung-hoon's expression gradually hardened.

This was the reality.

"You want to elect a representative for the public, right?" They needed someone to
speak for the voices of these people. That way, when the balance was there, the order
could be established right there.

"We can't elect people, because we can't run the election in this situation, and we don't
have to, because it's not hard to pick a representative. The boss can pick one right
away. The question is, who do you pick? In that meaning, can I have that snake?"

At the words he threw out, Kim Tae-hoon drank some coffee again.

"I have an old man named Park Kap-soo, who has been working on leather shoes for
over forty years, and he has good skill. I'm going to let him make items with that snake.
And at the same time, I am taking this opportunity to recruit technicians who have
been hiding or were unable to reveal their skills. I will make a workshop. And that's
what we need to do to make a complementary relationship between the Awakeners
and the public."

It was meaningless to have politicians who simply represented the voices of the public.

They had to complement one another.

They needed the public with skills, groundwork, and labor to support Awakeners who
hunted the monsters at the risk of their lives.
At the same time, a symbol was needed, which could be used as a reference point when
someone would record this work later.

The dead body of the Black Snake would be the most perfect symbol.

"We'll make some items of that leather, and then we'll give them to the newly created
Clan."

At the words of Jang Sung-hoon, Kim Tae-hoon looked over at the dead body of the
Black Snake silently.

Of course, Kim Tae-hoon had no intention of opposing Jang Sung-hoon's words. The
silence was a positive expression.

"Of course I'm not going to do that for free." Jang Sung-hoon also knew that, so he took
out a folding map with a smile that softened the serious atmosphere.

It was a map of Bucheon City.

"I'll give you my game, instead of taking the boss's game." Jang Sung-hoon said, tapping
his finger at one place of the map filled with his own writing.

"There is a possibility that there is a warehouse of Baek Sung-taek here."

"Who is he?" Bang asked, scratching his head.

"He is a whale, a whale."

"A whale?"

"A whale."

After swallowing his coffee, Kim Tae-hoon intervened in the funny conversation of the
two. "Who is he?"

"He's someone who focuses on dealing with stolen goods and the theft of cultural
properties. He deals and takes in everything, so he is called a whale. Of course, he could
not keep the stolen goods in his house, so he had the warehouse built separately, and
the warehouse is right in Bucheon."
"At this star sign?"

"It's one of the candidates."

"You don't know exactly where it is, right?"

"If I had known exactly where it was, I would have deserted from my regiment and
robbed it."

"How do you know?"

"He's a man very sensitive to the theory of divination based on topography, and he
wouldn't have made the warehouse just anywhere. The problem is…”

Jang Sung-hoon tapped his fingers around the star-shaped area. There were many
apartment complexes in the area he pointed out.

Bang Hyun-wook, looking at it with his head sticking out from the back seat, frowned
slightly.

"Huh, there are so many apartment complexes?"

In normal time, an apartment complex would be no place special, but now that it had
become a monster land; an apartment complex was the most hellish place in the
world.

The reason for hell was simple.

"It must be a complete monster den, and it's a den of powerful monsters."

It had the richest food.

The population density of the apartment complexes was higher than anywhere else,
and it was December 31st when the monster appeared. It was the time when most
people were preparing for the end of the year at home.

Of course, there were many predators who filled their stomachs with the food where
it was most abundant.

Because of that, so far, Kim Tae-hoon and the Messiah had not easily accessed the
apartment complexes… The place where Jang Sung-hoon pointed out now existed in
the middle of such apartment complexes.

"Are you going to get in there with just a few people? I don't think so if it is possible."

If it was a normal case, they would not approach there. Even if they approached there,
they would approach with all the Mac Clan's power and full preparation.

"We'll be on the move tomorrow morning." But the situation was now changed.

"Boss, wouldn't it be hard to move straight tomorrow? You should first clean up the
surroundings."

"I'm enough alone."

Kim Tae-hoon now was quite different from yesterday.

And tomorrow he would be totally different from now.

6.==========

"Krrr!" The growl of the Black Werewolf passed over the desolate road where the
sound of the wind could not be even heard.

Seueuk! Behind that cry was the sound of Werewolf's feet stepping quietly on the
snowy ground.

Seuk, seuk! It was not one sound, but six sounds were heard!

Two meters tall, with a huge physique, the Werewolves had quiet footsteps that did
not fit their size. Their red eyes glistened with their footsteps.

There were many things in their glistening eyes. There was hostility to the prey in
their territory, and there was a thirst for the hot blood filling the body of their prey.

Their prey walked along the road, whether he knew it or not.

He didn't want to hide his footsteps, and he moved, unwilling to hide his footprints,
revealing his presence.
Thump!

Then six Werewolves appeared before their prey.

The Werewolves, who appeared in formation as they surrounded him, immediately

threw their heads back, raised their protruding snouts to the sky, and cried.

"AWWOOO!"

The horrifying, eerie howling, which someone would be surprised if he heard just one,
began to surge in from all sides.

Even the howling was short.

The Black Werewolves began to run toward their prey after a short howling, as if they
could not afford to wait for the prey to have time to get afraid.

Three ran on two legs, and the remaining three ran on four legs.

Peobeok, peobeok! Their speed was terrifying, no matter how they ran, and the rush
that seemed to crush the earth, as if they were not satisfied with kicking hard the
earth, was enough to stop his breath.

AWWOOO! In the meantime, two of them had cried howling, as if they were doing a
ceremony early, mocking their prey.

At that moment, the eyes of the prey in the center of the Black Werewolves began to
blacken.

It was just a moment.

Whine! From the mouth of the first Black Werewolf, which had met with the Eyes,
came out a pathetic sound that a puppy would not even spit out.

The man rolled his darkened Eyes, but nobody could know the fact, just because when
the black thing moved on the blackened drawing paper, nothing could be seen.

And now there was nothing to notice the fact.

It was just a moment.

Whizz! A featherless arrow left the man's waist, leaving only a faint sound behind,
moved around the man largely like a lightning bolt.

Ppittul ppittul! If someone saw the crooked line from above, it would be seen like a
lightning bolt and it followed the irregular line.

But there was one thing in common in the movement.

Thud! The brains of the Black Werewolves were the targets of the movement.

Thud! Thud! Black Werewolves, who seemed ready to start a mad feast after biting the
man's body right away, fell on the ground and began to roll.

The Black Werewolves who felled like that were not able to get up.

The man, Kim Tae-hoon, looked at the bodies of those Black Werewolves. The world
seen by the blackened Eyes, [the Eyes of Black Snake], was not too different from the
world he usually saw.

Merely it was all clear.

It was the same before.

The Black Werewolves, who ran wildly toward himself at the same time, were so slow
that they seemed to have stopped in Kim Tae-hoon's Eyes. In such a world, he was able
to draw the picture he wanted more perfectly than ever.

However, Kim Tae-hoon did not feel any special satisfaction. Rather, it was the opposite.

"This is not enough." In the clear, distinct world, Kim Tae-hoon's lacking and inexperience
seemed clear.

Keueoeoeong! At that moment, a huge Black Wolf appeared on his left side with a huge
cry.

The orange-eyed Wolf was huge enough to eat a bear. And it was in a rage, facing an
enemy who had turned its own race into meat at once.

Kim Tae-hoon turned his head toward the rage.

The orange eyes of the Black Wolf and the Eyes of the Black Snake of Kim Tae-hoon
crossed.

Keureureu, Kuck! As soon as they crossed, a choking sound came out of the mouth of
the Black Wolf, and its body stiffened.

It was trying to hold on to the enormous power of its limbs being pulled in five directions.

Cheureung! Under that circumstance, the Sword was pulled out of the sheath by itself,
which was on the back of Kim Tae-hoon.

Swish! It flew itself and cut off the head of the Black Wolf in a stroke without a hint of
hesitation.

Kim Tae-hoon, who watched it all happen, was able to see it clearly.

'It's not this feeling.'

He only felt his own shortcomings.