NOVEL NEXT Chapter 75
Chapter 75. School (4)
“Two bugs like heroes…!”
“It’s three.”
Crash!
A Goene by the entrance was struck by something and fell over. It was a Wind Arrow infused with a strong magical power.
Then Kim Si-hu appeared from behind Yoo Ji-han.
So now there were a total of three heroes in this place.
The man protected by the Goene looked quite annoyed.
Min Yu-ri quickly approached Yoo Ji-han.
“When did you arrive, Ji-han?”
“We were on the upper floor.”
“I see. The traces I saw on the stairs were from you guys.”
After a brief exchange with her, Yoo Ji-han turned his gaze back to the opposing man.
Several Goene were swirling around him like armor, wrapping around his arms, legs, and torso, leaving only his face exposed.
‘He looks a lot like that woman I saw before.’
The man in front of him resembled a woman Yoo Ji-han had seen at the Gye-yang Mountain Goemi Cave.
Yoo Ji-han said casually to him, “I saw a woman just like you at Gye-yang Mountain.”
“……!”
“It looked like you were controlling the Goemi.”
Mentioning the events at Gye-yang Mountain made the man flinch.
“You! What did you do to that woman?!”
“Curious?”
“Answer me!”
“What else? She wouldn’t listen at all, so I just punched her in the jaw.”
“You bastard…!”
The man grimaced, even though it had nothing to do with him.
Seeing that reaction, Yoo Ji-han intentionally smiled with one corner of his mouth lifted.
“So, it looks like you know her.”
“……”
“Are you part of the IUPC too? What exactly do you guys do?”
“I won’t tell anything to someone about to die!”
“You’re the only one dying here.”
So much blood had already spilled in this school.
Even if they wouldn’t listen to words, he had to give them a warning.
Yoo Ji-han had no intention of letting the man who caused the deaths of students and teachers walk away from here alive.
The man grinned wickedly.
“It seems that heroes are hard to communicate with.”
“Who’s saying that…?”
“Just die!”
Swoosh—!
A horde of Goene charged towards Yoo Ji-han’s party.
The sight of Goene crawling on the floor, walls, and ceiling was…
Only creepy, unless one had a peculiar preference.
As he watched the approaching monsters, Yoo Ji-han said to Min Yu-ri.
“I’ll handle the man inside.”
“By yourself?”
“You and Si-hu need to block the entrance and support me.”
“Got it.”
Min Yu-ri showed no signs of discontent with his orders.
In just a few short words, the positions of the three were rapidly organized.
The Goene closed in on Yoo Ji-han.
Swish!
Yoo Ji-han sliced through the approaching Goene one by one, scanning the interior of the dining hall.
How could he take out the enemies with minimal damage?
‘About 36 regular Goene, and 11 Tangerine Goene… Wonder if there are more inside the kitchen.’
He assessed the number of ordinary Goene and Tangerine Goene present inside and distinguished their locations based on type.
Assuming that Kim Si-hu and Min Yu-ri at the back successfully blocked the entrance.
He utilized sampling.
<—My probability of facing 4 Goene without problems>
<71%>
Yoo Ji-han considered anything above 70% as stable.
Based on that, he reckoned he could handle four Goene at once.
However, since there were Tangerine Goene mixed in, he estimated he could manage about three Goene.
If more than that charged at him, he would focus on defense and evasion rather than attacking.
That was the strategy he chose.
‘Hitting the Tangerine Goene from behind won’t be easy.’
Tangerine Goene were tricky to deal with unless they were struck where their weaknesses lay or overwhelmed with powerful firepower, as it was difficult to handle them with a single ranged attack.
Though he could trust Kim Si-hu’s magical control, it was better for him to concentrate on the ones coming through the entrance right now.
Having completed some evaluations, Yoo Ji-han shouted.
“Don’t touch the Tangerine Goene inside!”
“That’s…!”
“Just understand!”
There was no time for heated debates in an urgent situation.
Ignoring the objections from behind, Yoo Ji-han moved forward.
Thud!
He jabbed the end of his sword into the segments of a Goene crawling between the chairs in the dining hall.
Then he reached up and split the head of another Goene dropping down from the ceiling in half.
Bending his knees and deeply lowering his waist, he dodged an attack from a Tangerine Goene springing from the dining table.
Swish!
As he stood back up from a low stance, he cut the fifth segment of the Tangerine Goene.
And yet another Goene jumped down from the ceiling toward Yoo Ji-han.
Thud!
He swung his sword at another monster while kicking off the ground to grab a dining chair.
Wham!
The long chair leg lodged between the jaws of the falling Goene.
The metal chair leg jabbed right through the mouth of the Goene, just as Yoo Ji-han had intended.
‘That worked well.’
The chair leg was stuck deep inside, through the Goene’s esophagus into its insides.
Before the Goene could destroy the chair with its jaws, Yoo Ji-han threw it violently against the wall.
Boom!
One Goene that had been caught off guard exploded along with the one that was lodged in the chair.
Next, he kicked the dining table in front of him with his foot.
Screech—!
Crash!
The table scraped across the floor and was stopped by a Tangerine Goene protecting the man.
Despite the strong collision, the table didn’t break.
‘Pretty sturdy?’
The school seemed to have a decent budget, using pretty solid products instead of cheap desks and chairs.
Yoo Ji-han picked up chairs from where the table had been and threw them one by one at the man.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Every time a chair flew, the Goene twitched or threw their bodies toward the direction the chairs were coming from.
They prioritized protecting the man over counter-attacking.
Finding amusement in their reactions, Yoo Ji-han kept tossing chairs until all nearby chairs were gone.
Whap! Whap!
Min Yu-ri, shooting arrows toward the entrance, occasionally glanced back to monitor Yoo Ji-han’s situation.
‘What in the world…’
Unlike the chaotic scene in the apartment, this was the first time she had a direct view of his fighting up close.
However, against her expectations of danger, she was shocked to see him exuding confidence.
His combat sense was remarkable, and his demeanor suggested he was enjoying it.
His actions resembled those of a seasoned warrior with extensive battlefield experience, rather than a mere rookie.
Swish!
One step, then another, and another.
Every time Yoo Ji-han approached the man, a Goene fell or suffered serious injury.
‘My creatures!’
The white-haired man panicked.
Goene were clearly creatures that could easily chew through humans.
Why couldn’t they even counter a single hero?
‘I can’t let this happen.’
The looming threat of death!
Feeling anxious, the man pulled out a syringe hidden in his pocket.
Then he injected the black liquid from the syringe into the Tangerine Goene coiled around his left arm.
Grrrr—
The body of the Goene wrapped around his arm gradually became limp.
Soon, it fell to the ground, frothing at the mouth.
‘So he had a plan.’
Yoo Ji-han observed what was happening to the fallen Goene.
But…
Sssss—
Suddenly, the Goene’s head started to grow larger.
Not only that, but the segments of its body also gradually increased in number.
“What the…?”
Its head had grown larger than a human torso, with its overall length significantly increased.
Not only Yoo Ji-han but even Kim Si-hu and Min Yu-ri, who were behind him, stared wide-eyed at the now huge creature.
‘A mutation!’
Yoo Ji-han instantly recognized that the creature’s identity had transformed into a Goene mutation.
All discovered variants of Goene had been larger in size.
But for an ordinary monster to suddenly mutate…!
“Hyung!”
“Ji-han! Move away!”
“Graaaaar—!”
Now capable of vocalizing, the creature charged at Yoo Ji-han with great speed.
The ground it crawled on was shredded, and the vibrations shook the entire dining hall.
Boom!
Yoo Ji-han summoned the Sylph he had been saving.
He wasn’t sure how long it would last since he had already used its power once from upstairs, but there was no other option at the moment.
[Wind Bomb]
Whoosh—!
Using Wind Bomb at his side, Yoo Ji-han swiftly dodged to the right.
The Goene that was rushing forward couldn’t change its trajectory and crashed into the spot he had just vacated.
Crash—!
The impact from the collision of the mutation shattered the tables and chairs in the dining hall.
Not to mention, it tore through the body of its accompanying Goene as it charged ahead.
“Stop! Stop right now!!”
The white-haired man panicked when he saw the mutation killing its own kind.
However, the mutation did not obey his wishes.
It merely charged toward Yoo Ji-han, whom it considered the biggest obstacle.
[Arrow Rain]
Swoosh—!
Min Yu-ri tirelessly shot magic arrows toward the ceiling.
Arrows poured down onto the path the Goene was taking.
“Ahh—!”
It felt like the arrows were truly raining down upon them.
She poured her magic without holding back.
[Wind Lance]
Kim Si-hu also unleashed the magic he was best at, keeping pace with her.
Meanwhile, Chilla, despite sustaining injuries, continued to block the monsters coming from the entrance alone.
While the two at the back focused on how to take down the creature while Yoo Ji-han weathered the mutation’s attacks.
‘This is insane…!’
The mutation continued to crawl stubbornly through all kinds of attacks!
Despite its increased size, the weakening gaps were even closer together, making it difficult to land a blow.
Yoo Ji-han moved constantly, ensuring that no damage would reach the back.
But the Sylph was growing weary, and avoiding all of its attacks was becoming increasingly meticulous.
Then, a sudden thought struck him, and he moved towards the kitchen.
“Graaaaar—!”
The angry mutation charged, sweeping through the kitchen in its fury.
[Wind Bomb]
And in that moment when Yoo Ji-han shifted position.
“Huh?”
In the direction the mutation was heading, the white-haired man stood there.
Yoo Ji-han hurled a chair at him, flustered by the thought of him moving.
As a result, the Goene surrounding him jolted, obstructing his movements.
“No!!”
Crash—!
With its momentum now reversed, the mutation swept the white-haired man along with it.
The mutation collided with the wall, sending kitchen utensils crashing to the floor behind him.
Shuuuu…
That was when the monsters suddenly stopped moving.
Yoo Ji-han, having caught that small change, seized the opportunity and charged at the pinned mutation against the wall.
And as he swung his sword between the narrow gaps of the Goene.
Shaa—!
A shining green aura enveloped his sword.
Whump!
The aura-coated blade smoothly penetrated the mutation’s body.
Though the aura had a short duration, the sword had already found its mark.
As the deeply embedded sword was shaken left and right, the mutation’s legs twitched before it slumped lifelessly to the floor.
“……”
The white-haired man, pinned to the wall, was left with a gaping wound in his abdomen from colliding with the Goene.
It was a perfect instant kill.
Retrieving his weapon, Yoo Ji-han looked down coldly at the man’s lifeless body.
He then scanned the surrounding Goene.
‘What’s going on?’
For some reason, the surviving Goene no longer displayed aggression.
Instead, they exhibited confused, disoriented behavior.
But he couldn’t just leave them be…
The three who remained at the scene started dealing with the leftover monsters one by one.
*
The situation in the underground dining hall had come to an end.
The reinforcements who had arrived at Seoum Middle School began tidying up the scene little by little.
Yoo Ji-han’s party, having exited the school, reported the incident involving the white-haired man that took place underground to the Hero Department.
“Is that really true?”
“Yes.”
The officials from the Hero Department looked skeptical about their statements.
But soon, they appeared to believe Yoo Ji-han’s party, who had saved many lives at the scene.
“We will take care of this.”
An official from the Hero Department carefully took the syringe and the blood-stained body of the white-haired man.
His corpse would also undergo separate investigation at the research institute.
‘He seemed to control the monsters.’
Just like the man Yoo Ji-han had seen at Gye-yang Mountain, manipulating creatures.
And there was something that forced mutations upon the monsters.
‘Was this incident instigated by the IUPC?’
Min Yu-ri recalled how the man used the word “creature.”
“Creature” was a term mainly used by the IUPC to refer to monsters.
Yoo Ji-han felt a growing necessity to be wary of that mysterious group.
“Hyung.”
“Yes?”
Kim Si-hu called out to Yoo Ji-han, who was deep in thought.
He pointed towards Min Yu-ri, who was waiting beside Chilla.
Snapped back to reality, Yoo Ji-han walked over to her.
“Yu-ri! You really went through a lot.”
“Ji-han, you too.”
Min Yu-ri smiled softly but hesitated for a moment.
She seemed to have something she wanted to say next.
So Yoo Ji-han prompted her, “Are you going out to catch the Giant Cat Monster again?”
“……I guess so?”
“Working hard is good, but be careful not to overexert yourself.”
Yoo Ji-han knew why she was hesitating right now.
She was probably pondering her response to his recruitment offer.
Yet, as before, he didn’t have the urge to rush her for an answer.
Only when she brought it up herself…
“Ji-han.”
“Yes.”
“About that offer you gave me before…”
“……!”
Yoo Ji-han’s eyes widened.
Was the moment he had been waiting for finally here?
“First, I’m sorry.”
Min Yu-ri slightly bowed her head.
That must have meant rejection.
Yoo Ji-han smiled bitterly and nodded.
“I understand what that means.”
“I’m sorry for taking so long to respond.”
“……Yes?”
“I’ll join Sweet Fun.”
Min Yu-ri said she would join Sweet Fun.
Yoo Ji-han asked, wondering if he had misheard.
“You mean you’ll join?”
“Yes. I really thought about it and made my decision.”
Yoo Ji-han turned to look at Kim Si-hu.
He too appeared shocked, glancing back at Yoo Ji-han.
Naturally, neither of them exhibited displeasure about Min Yu-ri’s joining.
“Ahem.”
Clearing his throat, Yoo Ji-han said.
“Sweet Fun welcomes Min Yu-ri.”
Yoo Ji-han extended his right hand forward.
Min Yu-ri also reached out her right hand to shake his.
“Thank you.”
Min Yu-ri beamed a bright smile.
At long last, they had finally formed a proper party.