“I’ll kill them all… I’ll kill them… No, it’ll be more painful to let them die than to save them first…”
Eventually, what he could do was tear apart those damn bugs with overwhelming power. And to wipe out the detestable species known as humans that densely filled this world.
The First Escalon finally had a goal.
“………”
After finishing his thoughts, the First Escalon spoke.
“Fifth Brother. It’s cruel to ask for calm right now. Can’t you hear Mother’s screams?”
(………)
“I want to know. What is it that those damn humans fear the most?”
The First Escalon wanted to give back the pain he endured a hundredfold to the humans.
The Fifth Escalon, receiving the question, fiddled with its crimson-tinted lips.
At first glance, the figure seemed like a very beautiful woman, but the oddly unbalanced eyes and mouth, along with the disharmony of the body, clearly revealed that it was a monster.
After a moment of contemplation, it answered.
(The death of weak kin… and witnessing it helplessly. That is probably what those humans fear the most. They came from below. It is a known fact that filthy humans are gathered there in droves. It was also the place that became our next target.)
“Good. Immediately grant freedom to all remaining Escalons. We now declare that we do not share a common goal.”
(Are you suggesting to sever connections? Just wait a bit longer; all Escalons would gather and tear those humans to shreds.)
“Even alone, those pests are more than enough for me. Their blood and flesh are solely mine.”
(……….)
At that moment, the Fifth Escalon felt an unknown sense of foreboding.
Humans who had been preparing many things to kill us.
The fear of whether this was all they had prepared.
The Fifth began to think that it might be best to flee with the First and promise for another time.
Unlike us, humans find it hard to unite toward a common goal; if they evade just this once, they might never be cornered again.
It quietly stared at the First.
‘……… The First won’t accept retreat. And… it’s an unnecessary worry. No one can overcome the First.’
Nodding, the Fifth Escalon replied.
(Indeed… I understand. I will send signals downwards.)
It soon closed its eyes gently and spread its immaterial aura in all directions.
The land that Mother had painstakingly cultivated into a hospitable environment for our kin.
The arrangement of Escalons and Creeper Guards above it, along with occasional spatial movements, was the ability of the Fifth Escalon.
Having given all possibilities to the First, the Fifth’s combat ability wasn’t that high. However, it resulted in a greater likeness to humans, giving rise to special abilities and being the entity that best understood human thoughts.
It had been the Fifth’s idea to condense the solid shell of the Creeper Guard onto the Main Body of the Devouring Creeper, layering it hundreds of times.
If it weren’t for that, the transcendent beings who had joined with great difficulty wouldn’t have wasted time breaking the shell; perhaps the greatest culprit responsible for this situation was the Fifth Escalon, a variant of Escalon.
(It has gone as desired. Now the brothers will live freely.)
Hearing the Fifth Escalon’s words, the First Escalon nodded vigorously.
Even while feeling the gazes of humans peering at their backs, it didn’t bother to look back.
Now was the time to melt this boiling anger inside its body and reserve strength.
It could slowly sweep them away.
“No…”
“Are you planning to kill the powerless?!”
Just from hearing the First’s muttering, the hunters figured out what he was attempting to do.
But they had no choice but to watch, tapping their feet anxiously.
“That… that’s what we were most worried about, isn’t it?”
“Because of the barrier, we can’t do anything!”
“Thanks to the barrier, we are still alive. So, let’s speak clearly.”
The magic of the Barrier Mages was rapidly depleting, and the monstrous figure in front was visibly recovering from low stamina.
“It’s all because of those damn Chinese and Russian bastards! If I make it back alive, I won’t let those bastards off!”
The Russian Union was initially an unhelpfully weak force, failing to send supremely powerful beings, adding only burdens to the healer forces led by Gu Sang-min.
And then the Chinese.
They had sufficient strength and had completed all preparations for a combined attack.
But after the near-suicidal ambush by the Second and Third, which killed the Captain, they unceremoniously retreated.
They were probably watching this situation keenly from somewhere nearby.
“For now… we need to hold out until those two prepare their skills. They are our only hope. We must seize this opportunity somehow.”
Kang Yeon-su and Hyeon Il-hwan.
Though they were still rated below the transcendent beings, the reality showed that they had truly risen to a dominating level among the hunters gathered here.
So, the other hunters, who had been hailed as the best in the country, were now at a point where they needed to figure out how to support them.
“The Main Body of the Great Beast Devouring Creeper hasn’t died yet? If the Main Body dies, it’ll surely affect the Escalons as well.”
“It seems it’ll take a bit longer. After all, it’s an enormous creature…”
The hunters firmly believed that if the known Main Body controlling and managing all Escalons died, there would surely be an impact.
The problem was timing.
But right now, time wasn’t favoring the hunters.
“Damn it… A considerable number of Escalons that were approaching have changed direction to the south! As soon as the Main Body’s control vanished, they’re just going their own way…”
The hunter using [Heaven’s Gaze] reported, having scanned a 5 km radius in real time.
“Wait, when you say considerable, does that mean that there are still ones coming here too?”
Out of the Escalons present here, there were only about ten.
Considering that about six had gone towards Team 3, it meant that roughly half were still remaining.
“Why didn’t they concentrate here from the beginning and why were they scattered like that?”
“I don’t know. I don’t want to know. The thoughts of monsters.”
The decision to deploy Escalons beyond crucial battlefields was to keep the highest awakened beings of North Korea, who were spread out in various places, in check.
Of course, that was also the arrangement of the Fifth Escalon.
Though the leaders who had led the nation had fled, there were still a few awakened individuals remaining, striving to protect the unfortunate citizens suffering under the monsters.
Indeed, the deployment of the Fifth Escalon proved effective by preventing any unwanted guests from outside Korea from participating.
“Four are coming this way, and the rest have shifted directions toward Korea. We can’t know the numbers of those coming toward us.”
“The earlier numbers are coming. The latter ones are mentally incomplete!”
The situation was growing more dire, and the hunters were sweating bullets.
However, against this backdrop, a hunter who was among the senior members of Team 1 voiced his dissatisfaction.
“If we had Ma Gwang-jin and Yoo Min-jeong, this would have been much easier… Wasn’t it everyone who ignored my opinion about concentrating here, leading us to this situation?”
“Then should we let the Team 3 hunters who rushed to save their comrades die?!”
“The loss of five S-rank hunters isn’t something we should be weighing against!”
“W-What kind of nonsensical thought is that?! Is there any hierarchy in human life?!”
“Everyone, enough! Do we really need to bring up past events in a situation like this?!”
“Hmph!”
For a brief moment, the hunter who had expressed discontent seemed to realize the futility of his remarks, corrected his posture, and began gathering his magic power.
“Damn, analyzing the barrier set by the Devouring Creeper makes it seem to follow the typical characteristics of conventional barriers.”
“It’s difficult to go outside from within the barrier, but it’s possible to come in from the outside.”
“Exactly.”
“Then the four Escalons coming towards us will enter without resistance… At that moment, we must strike and kill them all together. We can’t use the major technique twice.”
“Of course, if that’s possible!”
“Judging by their current speed, it seems the moment our barrier lifts will almost coincide.”
The two transcendent beings had left the area long ago, and the only ones remaining within the barrier were around thirty S-rank hunters and ten A-rank hunters.
And the vivid contrast to their urgent discussions was unfolding right next to them.
Two individuals calmly engrossed in their concentration.
“………”
“………”
Kang Yeon-su had already reached the final form of [Divine Transformation], amassing immense magic power in his fist.
Hyeon Il-hwan had completed preparations to unleash his ultimate sword technique.
The plan was for Kang Yeon-su to deliver a powerful strike, followed by Hyeon Il-hwan slicing it to pieces.
Since it was an attack they had wholeheartedly prepared for, it would undoubtedly elevate their techniques above what they had exhibited during the past hour of battle.
And among those who quietly watched Hyeon Il-hwan was Hyeon Woo-seok, who had a deep-seated grudge against Yeon-hee’s group.
Hyeon Woo-seok was already soaked, completely unaware that he had wet himself.
“Please… please… I don’t want to be eaten by that monster here! Just do something, please!”
Since the incident at the guild headquarters, Hyeon Woo-seok had spent time hunting monsters alongside Hyeon Il-hwan.
The shocking reality occurring around the world.
Countless monsters crawling out through the gaps.
An experience that was horrifying and spine-chilling to eradicate them, yet he felt proud that his clan was engaging in such righteous activities unseen.
Though he believed he had grown both his physical strength and mental resilience due to his time with Hyeon Il-hwan, now facing this terrifying situation made him question the value of that growth.
Overwhelmed by the suffocating monster, he was ashamed of himself for falling into a state of [Chaos], and he felt disgraceful for finding relief in not being dead.
“I don’t want to be eaten… I don’t want to be eaten…”
While being brutally beaten by Escalon 10, an entire S-rank hunter got swallowed whole by that insane monster while trying to save him.
Witnessing that right before his eyes, his mental state was in utter turmoil.
The sound of the S-rank hunter’s skull being crushed still echoed hauntingly in his ears.
Not wanting to see his pitiful self anymore, he yearned to return quickly to the warm headquarters where he truly belonged.
Observing Hyeon Woo-seok curled up on the floor, cradling his head and trembling, one hunter clicked his tongue.
“They said it would be alright. How much damage has that bastard caused? I will hold Hyeon Il-hwan accountable for bringing in that thing to Team 1!!”
“Only if you survive, right?! They’re already here. Four Escalons!”
“The First will be handled by those two; ignore it! We’ll take care of the Fifth and the other four!”
Four Escalons with ominous energies approached rapidly, invading their line of sight.
Just in time, the system recognized and informed them of the numbers.
– Engaging ‘Eleventh Child’ of the Great Beast Devouring Creeper…
– Engaging ‘Twelfth Child’ of the Great Beast Devouring Creeper…
– Engaging ‘Fourteenth Child’ of the Great Beast Devouring Creeper…
– Engaging ‘Sixteenth Child’ of the Great Beast Devouring Creeper…
The newly joined four had, as expected, numbers that placed them at the forefront.
Their faces were distorted with rage like evil spirits, but their movements as they ran showed no frivolity. It was evident that communication among the Escalons had concluded; they were brimming with enormous magic.
Among them, 11 and 12 looked eerily identical like twins, and the flow of the magic they were preparing was likewise synchronized.
“Damn it… What the hell are those bastards?!”
The mysteries of mana are profound, making it nearly impossible to create identical structures of magic. But the 11th and 12th were effortlessly accomplishing the impossible, making the hunters even more anxious.
Without hesitation, they entered the combat barrier, and at the same time, the First Escalon turned around, its chilling gaze fixated on the hunters.
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