Chapter: 131. The Well of Chaos (3)
Faster.
Faster.
I moved my feet.
The ground, receiving unmanageable power,
had large cracks etched into it.
As a result, a concrete chunk that could probably kill a person
flew backwards.
It was an act I should have refrained from, considering I couldn’t control my power,
but I disregarded it and picked up speed.
After all, there couldn’t possibly be civilians around.
The place I was rushing to was the top floor of Nanjido. There was no way ordinary civilians would be here.
And another reason is…
Time was severely lacking.
No matter how I calculated, there simply wasn’t enough time to get everything done.
If that’s the case, I had no choice but to cut down time somehow.
With that thought in mind, I continued to accelerate, and unusual figures caught my field of vision.
One man, shouldering a massive minigun while smoking a cigarette.
Another man, wearing a sword at his waist, leaned against a wall, listening to music through his earphones—
At a glance, they looked like the predators living in Nanjido.
But the smell was different.
There was no tension, characteristic of Nanjido residents who were always on alert, scanning the area for any unexpected occurrences.
They lacked something that showed they were part of a group.
Just looking at those two, one was in a black suit, the other was dressed in a Japanese kimono, so there was absolutely no unity.
It was as if completely unrelated people had gathered.
One thing was sure: they were not civilians from Nanjido, nor were they part of a group like Old Man Ri, or affiliated with the Association.
So the conclusion was clear.
They were villains recruited by Taejoon Kim.
Since they were likely villains, I could just zip past them, but…
…those guys are stronger than I expected.
I only caught a glimpse, but a pretty formidable power was sensed.
They seemed to be at the mid-level beneath A-Rank.
There were two of them stronger than Sihyeon Baek.
No problem.
Since they’re not my students, I can unleash all my power.
To finish this as quickly as possible, I accelerated even more.
…”They’re enemies.”
“Don’t butt in, I already knew.”
“I thought you were sleeping with your earphones still in.”
As I drew near, the two villains began to hash it out and assumed a battle stance.
The martial artist lowered his stance, attempting some foot techniques, while the gunman started to spin his gun and unleashed a barrage of bullets.
So they really are a villain group.
Despite their numerical advantage, they didn’t seem to think about collaborating in any way with their bizarre combat style.
Even with a close-range fighter charging in, the ranged weapon user poured minigun fire my way, completely ignoring the presence of his ally.
Not only the ranged attacks but the close-range assault was problematic. With a partner wielding heavy weapons, logically, the close-range combatant should focus on protecting their partner.
The close-range guy rushed in while the ranged guy disregarded protecting himself and sprayed bullets at me.
I briefly turned my gaze to check the bullet trajectory, just in case.
Nothing unusual happened like bullets being guided or flying through the martial artist in front of me.
They simply flew toward me, ducking between the martial artist’s arms and legs to avoid hitting their ally.
Maybe he just has confidence in his aiming skills. Then again, it’s not like Prohibition, and there’s no way normal bullets would cause such strange phenomena.
But still, it’s a bit clumsy.
CLANG.
With a metallic sound, a bullet hit the gauntlet on my left hand raised in front of my face.
Maintaining my rapidly moving legs, I lifted my upper body and took a bizarre stance to shield my eyes with my left hand.
The distorted expression on the man’s face showed he couldn’t understand what I was doing.
Even with that, he didn’t seem to have the thought of letting any emotions interfere with the battle. He restrained his movements and placed his hand on the sword grip.
Foot techniques, perhaps?
He better not think too lightly of this.
As I thought that, I moved my left hand positioned in front of my head.
Head, right shoulder joint, left knee, and my right foot were the spots I’d next step to.
Aside from those important areas, countless bullets showered down, but they were secondary.
With my current senses, I could only track where bullets would hit close by, so I rotated my mana to expand my senses.
In that fast, elongated time, I was able to grasp the minute movements of the bullets.
Slowly, I moved my left hand.
The bullets ricocheted off the gauntlet and aimed perfectly towards the enemy before me.
I made sure that they couldn’t hit me at all with precise calculations.
Using the gauntlet instead of the hammer was for this purpose.
My sharply accelerated cognitive abilities made it possible.
The first bullet hit the gauntlet, making a ping sound, and an unimaginable pressure pressed against the gauntlet.
A-Rank is indeed A-Rank.
To pack this much power into just a regular bullet, it was impressive.
Still, with the limiter already deactivated, I wouldn’t be pushed back in terms of power.
Sensing the lead deform on my palm, I snapped my wrist and deflected the bullet.
Then, I shifted to the next bullet.
I did that about ten times.
Only then did the enemy in front of me seem to understand what I was doing, his face twisting with realization as he continued his actions.
He subtly lifted the grip of the sword, changing the expected trajectory upwards.
Then, he swung his arm.
A silver flash.
It was fast.
Now that my cognitive acceleration had faded, it was only barely noticeable.
Still, it had no real effect on me.
His sword merely deflected the bullets without touching a single strand of my hair.
He was too greedy; trying to cut both the bullet and me at the same time was a foolish move. He should’ve been prepared to cut me even if it meant getting hit by a bullet.
After slightly slowing my step, I gathered strength in my legs.
The attack’s failed gaze shifted down towards me, but it was already too late.
The ground I stood on exploded.
The distance closed rapidly, and I swung my right arm.
The man, showing his A-Rank status, quickly reacted.
To block the heavy hammer hurtling towards him, he gave up recovering his sword and raised the sheathed sword in his left hand.
Using the sheath instead of the sword.
It was a suitable judgment.
However…
The person he faced was rather unsuitable.
In front of me, wooden fragments scattered.
The sheath crumbled to pieces without being able to withstand the might of the hammer.
And the enemy who held it had his waist twisted and broken.
A peculiar sensation passed through my right hand.
If I felt that, he must have completely twisted his spine.
Lower body paralysis.
That’s a decent judgment.
Controlling my strength so he doesn’t die must be a bit challenging.
With his back twisted and combat ability lost, I shoved him with my left hand and shifted my gaze to the next enemy.
Even after his partner had fallen, the insane guy continued firing bullets without a hint of panic.
“Can’t even play the role of a meat shield properly, you dumbass. This is why…”
KRAKOW BOOM.
A second bout of sensation hit me.
This time, hitting metal must have caused the heavy recoil.
“You must be the dumb one.”
Seeing the close-combat guy suffer, but not thinking of retreating, he had the audacity to keep firing.
I opened my mouth to the villain fused grotesquely with the destroyed minigun and his ruined right hand.
Did he not understand what was happening?
The pain must be enormous, yet he seemed incapable of feeling it, muttering some drivel.
Feeling sympathy, maybe I should show him some mercy.
I reached my hand out and grabbed the head of the man whose tears were beginning to well up.
“Time to say goodbye.”
I slammed his head into the wall.
He wriggled more than I expected, but he was sturdy enough.
After briefly pulling him off the wall, I slammed him down once more, and he went limp.
Confirming that the man I had shown mercy had fainted, I turned to the man whose spine had been broken.
What lay before me was the pitiful sight of a villain crawling on the ground.
To stop him, I placed my foot on his waist.
“Stay down. If you keep that up, you’ll live like that forever.”
“GAAAHHHH.”
So noisy.
I was a bit irked and pushed down harder.
“GRRGH.”
I put pressure into it.
“I don’t want to end up a wheelchair-bound loser, do you? So shut your mouth.”
Saying that, I slightly shifted my balance forward.
KRAK.
I felt something crunch beneath my boot, likely a piece of his spine.
Those trivial matters aside, the man grit his teeth and stifled a scream.
“I think you’re finally ready to talk. Now, can you answer my question?”
If you can nod your head, do so; if you can’t, shake it.
Did he not understand my command? With a questioning look, he raised his head.
“Who gave you permission to talk back?”
I lifted my foot.
PAK.
I stomped down again.
Through my boots, I felt another vertebrae fly off.
“UGH.”
Did he notice my intentions? Even in the hellish pain, he clenched his teeth and nodded weakly.
“Good, good. You just need to answer my questions.”
I released my hold on his waist and instead yanked on his hair.
“Now, here’s one question. Are you a villain group associated with Taejoon Kim?”
THUD THUD THUD.
The man shook his head so hard it looked like he might smash into the ground.
“Dumb mute? Why can’t you talk?”
I slammed his head into the ground again.
He let out a pained groan, clearly unprepared for the attack, but I kept talking.
“Now, let me ask again. Are you a villain group that has Taejoon Kim?”
“Y-yes…”
A strained voice mixed with a groan.
“Alright, good job. If you keep doing that, it’ll hurt less, you got that?”
This is what it is. Torture is about instilling the perception that the opponent is a madman who cannot negotiate, which suffices for effective results.
Of course, in exchange, the opponent might not produce logical and accurate information, but I didn’t need that.
“How many of you are there? Oh, an accurate number isn’t necessary.”
“About… 20… or so.”
Maybe around 30.
“What about the A-Ranks? Are you in the upper ranks?”
“Six… in the lower… ranks.”
Ah, now that’s an accurate number.
So they operate based on power hierarchy.
If they know the number of higher-ups, they don’t know the number of the underlings.
“What’s the reason you banded together?”
“Not talking, huh?”
As soon as I threw that question,
I kicked the man’s belly.
His face contorted in immense pain, but he didn’t let out a scream.
Seeing him desperately holding back the scream—even though his fear of me wasn’t gone—I pressed on.
“What’s the reason you banded together? What value does Taejoon Kim hold?”
In that way, I asked more detailed questions.
And once again, silence returned.
No choice then.
Considering how urgent it was, I couldn’t waste any more time.
I had already obtained most of the necessary information.
“Thanks. Sleep well.”
With that, I slammed his head against the floor.
Fortunately, the man fainted in one blow and escaped the pain.
Afterwards, I slowly began to move my feet, needing to sort out my thoughts for a moment.
Though time was pressing, I needed a moment to gather the information I had acquired.
There were six A-Ranks stronger than the ones I faced earlier, and about thirty in the lower ranks.
I wasn’t sure how strong the strongest one was, but at best, they might reach the mid-upper A-Rank.
Even if those A-Ranks weren’t as powerful as Meteor, six of them charging at once wouldn’t still pose much threat to me…
But time might be tight.
I thought there would only be one or two A-Ranks in the villain group, but the expected headcount was six.
What on earth made Taejoon Kim attract so many self-proclaimed tough villains?
There was no point in overthinking it, as that guy didn’t spill the beans. I thought it was regrettable and assumed my stance once more, heading forward.
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