Chapter 109
The day he was to enlist in the Divine Power Unit had arrived.
Hyuk-min, who had been awake since dawn, went to see Chang-kyung as soon as he finished breakfast.
He bowed smoothly.
It was a gesture of respect toward his master.
Not many words were needed.
“Thank you for everything.”
“You’ve worked hard.”
Only one more thing was added.
“I’ll see you again soon.”
“Stay healthy. This place is no different from your own home, so you’re welcome to visit whenever you like.”
That was the end of it.
Chang-kyung said nothing more.
Hyuk-min rose and stepped outside.
Past the main hall of Great Buddha Temple, he crossed the wide courtyard that resembled a training ground.
There, he saw countless monks of Great Buddha Temple, along with Mantae and Gakyak, standing as if to see him off.
“You’ll come back, right?”
Hyuk-min answered Mantae’s question with a smile.
“I’ll come visit.”
Gakyak’s farewell was a little different.
Though he seemed blunt, his words suited the warmest person there.
This time as well, Hyuk-min answered with a smile before heading for the main gate of Great Buddha Temple.
“Everyone! Fist-and-palm salute!”
“Advance in Martial Arts!”
At the thunderous cry of the monks of Great Buddha Temple, Hyuk-min stopped just as he was about to leave and turned around.
Then he raised a hand and waved to them all.
As he stepped out through the massive gate of Great Buddha Temple, he saw Wi Gwakdu and No Death standing on the path leading to the bamboo grove.
“I heard you are the benefactor of Great Buddha Temple.”
At the gatekeeper monk’s words, he shook his head.
“That’s not true. I, too, received a great debt from Great Buddha Temple. Since we exchanged favors, there is no one who only received and no one who only gave.”
“May the Buddha’s grace be with you on your path.”
Hyuk-min answered with a fist-and-palm salute as well.
“Hurry up!”
From afar, No Death waved at him.
The gatekeeper monk’s words from a moment ago brought a bitter smile to Hyuk-min’s face.
It was unfortunate, but…
He could not keep the promise implied by those words.
The path Hyuk-min had to walk from now on was far from one blessed by the Buddha’s grace. It was closer to a road of carnage, steeped in the stench of blood.
“Let’s go.”
At Hyuk-min’s somewhat bitter tone, Wi Gwakdu and No Death walked beside him without another word.
= = =
They arrived safely at Incheon International Airport in South Korea.
He had thought his fame would have died down by now.
That had been Hyuk-min’s miscalculation.
“Wow! Is that the holder of the [Legendary Title]?”
“Awesome! He’s younger than I thought!”
Hyuk-min’s brow furrowed on its own at the sight of the huge crowd gathered in front of the exit gate.
– ‘Commander Wi Gwakdu?’
Wi Gwakdu flinched at the [Sound Transmission], a message sent to a specific person through Internal Energy.
– ‘Was this your doing, Commander?’
It was an ability only those who had learned martial arts and reached a certain level could use, but as Hyuk-min knew, Wi Gwakdu was also a former member of the Karma Unit who had learned martial arts.
– ‘It’d be a lie if I said no, wouldn’t it?’
Wi Gwakdu could also use [Sound Transmission].
– ‘Blame the fact that you’re the holder of a [Legendary Title]. I only told the higher-ups I was returning with you.’
– ‘Then this must be the work of the higher-ups.’
– ‘To be precise, it was probably someone among the top brass who wanted the media informed. You might not know this, but keep one thing in mind. The military loves publicity more than you’d think.’
He knew that all too well. In his past life, he had served his full two years and even completed his reserve duty.
Then again, he was the holder of the [Legendary Title] who had turned the whole world upside down.
There was no way the military would let a story like a holder of the [Legendary Title] enlisting go unused.
– ‘Damn it… the military brass really hasn’t changed.’
The moment he stepped out of Incheon Airport and saw the military bus waiting there, Hyuk-min scowled.
“Don’t tell me we have to ride that.”
The military bus was so excessively covered in promotional material that even No Death grimaced.
Wi Gwakdu, who also seemed to hate this sort of thing, covered his face with a look of disgust.
“Just get on already. We can’t leave until you do.”
“I’ll go separately.”
“You have to get on. The moment you don’t, it’ll be processed as desertion.”
“Is there really no other way?”
“No way. The higher-ups are completely serious about this. Just for a moment… just for a little while, let’s be their puppets.”
Irritation surged within him.
For a moment, his time as a soldier in his past life flashed through his mind, and the emotions from back then seemed to rise again.
But what could he do?
If they told him to jump, he had to jump.
Remembering that Wi Gwakdu was the most pitiful one in this whole situation, Hyuk-min got on the bus like he was swallowing bitter medicine.
= = =
On the way to the Divine Power Unit base in Guri City.
Since this ride was the only chance he had to speak with No Death, Hyuk-min called him over right away.
“No Death.”
“Yeah, what do you need me to do?”
“Go to Ulleungdo right now and clear every Dungeon there.”
“E-Every Dungeon? Do you even know how many there are?”
“No matter how many there are, you have to clear them all. All of them within three months.”
To be honest, it was an impossible task.
The best method would be to evacuate everyone living on Ulleungdo, but that too was impossible.
Especially now, when the signs had already begun to show.
“So that’s why you kept saying you needed Hyun-jung that badly, huh?”
He nodded.
“Honestly, even for you right now, it won’t be easy. I wouldn’t have been able to send Hyun-jung in immediately either.”
“What exactly are we fighting?”
“An insect-type monster. It doesn’t have a name yet, but its official name is Body Eater, also known as the All-Devouring Insect.”
“Body Eater?”
“It’s a blue insect-type monster. It enters the body of a person, animal, or monster, seizes control of the vital organs, and moves the body as it pleases.”
“F-Fucking hell…”
A curse slipped from No Death’s lips.
“That’s why we couldn’t make the first move. If one of us got taken over by a Body Eater, there’d be nothing worse.”
“So that’s why you said we should move once the signs appear?”
“With our current strength, that’s our only option. That’s also why I’m telling you to clear as many Dungeons as possible. We have to get rid of them anyway, and you need to completely master the awakening you gained through the ordeal before you can fight the Body Eaters.”
“W-Wait, then how do we tell who’s been taken over by a Body Eater?”
Hyuk-min shook his head.
“There is no way to tell.”
That was what made them the worst.
That was why so many people died, and why it was recorded as the worst war in the history of the world.
There was no way to distinguish them, and no way to stop the spread of the Body Eaters.
The infection spread from one host to the next, and once infected, there was no turning back.
“Then how…”
However, South Korea ultimately achieved victory, and the rest of the world studied South Korea’s case and announced the countermeasure against the Body Eaters.
The countermeasure was simple, yet anything but simple.
The moment a Body Eater was discovered, the entire region, or even the entire country, had to be locked down. Then a large number of ranker-level powerhouses who could not be taken over by Body Eaters would be sent in to kill them all.
There was a reason this measure was even possible.
“The number of Body Eaters is fixed.”
Whenever they appeared, the total number of Body Eaters was fixed at exactly 500.
In other words, the number of people, monsters, or animals they could control was limited to 500. They could not multiply, and if the infected host died, the Body Eater inside it could not escape and would die along with it.
“Kill all 500, and it’s over.”
“Wait a minute.”
Wi Gwakdu, who had quietly listened to the entire conversation, approached them.
“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to leave the Dungeons alone and evacuate the people first? That would minimize human infection, and the monsters would have to be killed anyway, so it’d kill two birds with one stone, wouldn’t it?”
“That would be ideal. But it won’t work that way.”
“Why not?”
“Body Eaters prefer hosts with high intelligence.”
“Huh?”
“Between monsters, animals, and people, who do you think is the most intelligent?”
“Ah!”
“Their number one target is people.”
Wi Gwakdu tilted his head.
“Are they stupid? Wouldn’t it be better to infect strong monsters instead of ordinary humans? Why go after people, who are weaker than monsters?”
“High intelligence means high affinity for Mana, and Body Eaters… know how to gather and use Mana.”
“You mean they can evolve like Hunters?”
Hyuk-min nodded.
Then he naturally turned his gaze to Wi Gwakdu, who had joined the conversation.
“Do you happen to know any way to evacuate all the residents of Ulleungdo?”
Both No Death and Hyuk-min stared only at Wi Gwakdu.
This was not just anyone. This was the commander of the Divine Power Unit, a unit recognized by the Republic of Korea.
Moreover, if not only Wi Gwakdu but also his superior, the Minister of National Defense, got involved, maybe they could arrange something.
But…
It was too sudden.
Wi Gwakdu was the same as everyone else had been up to now.
He was not the kind of person who would blindly believe a future so absurd it did not yet exist in reality.
In the end, Wi Gwakdu burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.
“Pwahahaha, what a ridiculous story, pwahahaha.”
“I’m telling you, it’s real!”
No Death shouted at Wi Gwakdu’s dismissive reaction, but Wi Gwakdu’s response did not change.
No, he was a little different from the others. He was at least speaking on the premise of ‘what if it really happened?’
‘How considerate of him.’
“How would that be possible? Even if something like that really were happening, we still couldn’t bring them to the mainland.”
“What do you mean…”
“You said there’s no way to tell whether someone is infected. That means they could come to the mainland carrying those Body Eater things inside them. Wouldn’t that be even more dangerous?”
“That’s why, for now…”
“No, No Death. Stop.”
Hyuk-min cut No Death off.
In his past life, shortly after the war broke out, there had been a report that there were still survivors on Ulleungdo.
Even then, just like now, two opinions had clashed.
One side said they should be brought over, while the other said they should be quarantined on the island.
People had argued like that even after the war had already begun. So what chance was there that such an opinion would be accepted now, before the war had even started?
“Pwahahaha.”
Leaving Wi Gwakdu, with whom there was no longer any point in talking, Hyuk-min spoke quietly to No Death.
“This is why I said only we can do this.”
“Ha! This is so damn frustrating. How did you live through all that and put up with it?”
Even if he knew the future, people could not easily believe it.
But he could not blame them.
If it had been the Hyuk-min of his past life, he would have reacted the same way.
“For now, do as I said. As you are now, you won’t be able to keep up with how fast the Body Eaters spread. You have to completely make the awakening you gained through the ordeal your own.”
“Alright. I’ll do it.”
“If you run into danger or find anything important along the way, contact me. I’ll come find you.”
He was on his way to enlist as a soldier.
When No Death gave him a look that clearly said, ‘How is that even possible?’, Hyuk-min responded by showing him the [Dark Ring] on his wrist.
“I’ll be able to receive calls.”
“Right, how are they supposed to inspect your [Inventory]?”
As they continued talking, the base began to appear in the distance.
Only then did it truly hit No Death that Hyuk-min was really enlisting, and a question popped into his mind.
“Wait, why are you enlisting in the first place? There were plenty of other ways.”
“For a man of the Republic of Korea, enlistment is mandatory.”
“Oh, come on. You? At a time like this?”
Hyuk-min let out a smirk.
“I don’t want that becoming a shackle later. And besides, I have business with the Divine Power Unit anyway.”
“Right. You must have a reason. That’s just how Bang Hyuk-min is.”
“I’m counting on you. Do as I say. The priority is clearing the Dungeons. It’s better if the Body Eaters latch onto animals rather than Dungeon monsters.”
“Got it. I’ll head there right away.”
“When you get there, I’ll send you a message through Black Label Guild. It will tell you the order in which you need to clear the Dungeons. Please, I’m counting on you.”
“Alright. Contact me.”
When they arrived in front of the base, the bus door opened.
Since No Death was not military personnel, he had to get off there.
As No Death stepped off the bus, Wi Gwakdu looked at Hyuk-min with an amused expression.
“By the way… was everything you said for real?”
Hyuk-min thought he was being mocked.
But…
“That friend of yours, No Death, isn’t the type to act like that, but he believed you awfully easily.”
Those words made Hyuk-min think, ‘Could it be?’
“Tell me. Is it real?”
“If I tell you it is, will you believe me, Commander?”
But as expected, it was not to be.
“Commander? Commander~? What kind of damn soldier says ‘Commander’ without using proper formal speech?”
Wi Gwakdu simply wanted to tease Hyuk-min after everything he had suffered because of him.
Because…
“Haa.”
The moment Hyuk-min stepped into the base, his status would change from the holder of a [Legendary Title] to a trainee. A private.
“I’m back here again. Fucking hell…”
It felt like it had been a very long time since he had cursed like that.
It was true that he had come here with a purpose, but his eyes still drifted absentmindedly to the [Dark Ring] on his wrist.
‘Should I just desert?’