Chapter 165
Chapter 165. Airport (2)
Gulp!
Nam Ho-yeol, who had been quietly watching Yoo Ji-han’s actions, swallowed the saliva pooling in his mouth.
The hero, who always showed kindness to him, was…
Displaying an infinitely cold attitude towards the enemy.
He couldn’t help but feel pity for those who had turned such a person into an opponent.
After a short while, IUPC members began to raise their hands one by one, shouting.
“I will speak!”
“What, what are you curious about? Just ask!”
People came forth with a rather cooperative attitude.
Some called them traitors and raged, but…
Crackle!
As they eliminated one uncooperative person at a time, only a trio that could reveal anything remained.
Interestingly, they all shared the common trait of having some of their hair dyed white.
“Over there.”
A man taking the lead hurriedly entered Yeosu Airport.
The heroes, including Yoo Ji-han, followed him.
“What are these weeds?”
Vines were growing long on the airport’s floor and walls.
It looked like something that would be found in a long-abandoned ruin.
“Well, we were also trying to turn plants into creatures here…”
“Just burn them all.”
Whoosh!
The mages conjured fire magic to incinerate the plants strewn throughout the airport.
Those that had already undergone monsterification retaliated fiercely, but the fire didn’t extinguish.
The heroes grimaced at the overwhelming smell of burning vegetation, while the IUPC members expressed their regret.
“Ah! Can’t you leave just a little? We put a lot of effort into this…”
“Stop with the nonsense and guide us to the next location.”
“But…”
“Do you want to burn too?”
“Eek!”
When Kim Si-hu thrust a fireball forward, the IUPC members flinched in fear.
Soon, after continuously following the man, they arrived at the airport’s runway.
“That is…”
“All monsters.”
The long runway was filled with flying-type monsters instead of airplanes.
Including the giant pigeon and crow in front of the airport, various large and small unnamed birds were there.
Moreover, numerous birds that had yet to transform into monsters were trapped in cages.
It was suspicious that all the birds that had been absent from the surroundings were captured here.
“We primarily handle the creation of flying-type creatures.”
“Were you the ones behind that airplane crash a while ago?”
“…That would probably be correct.”
“Probably?”
“That plan wasn’t led by us! We merely created the crows that were used in it…”
The man, sweating profusely, mentioned that within the IUPC members, roles were divided.
Some were tasked with producing new monsters.
Some trained the generated monsters with basic commands.
And some received those monsters to actually control them.
They had their own system in place.
“The ones I met didn’t seem specially trained.”
“It became common for them to get hurt when they just rushed out, which is why we’ve changed to the current method.”
“How many more places are there besides here for creating monsters?”
“At least six that we know of.”
“Mark them all on this map.”
The IUPC members marked the locations they knew on the map handed to Park Jae-kyung.
Meanwhile, Yoo Ji-han gazed at the birds waiting on the runway.
Their complete stillness was more reminiscent of inanimate dolls than living beings breathing.
Lost in thought, he spoke to one IUPC member.
“Can you control monsters too?”
“I can control up to three.”
“Do you see those crows over there?”
“Yes.”
“Command them to die.”
“……”
The woman, initially hesitant at Yoo Ji-han’s command, soon looked at the crows and gave the order.
“Die.”
“Caw!”
“Caw!”
Three commanded crows soared into the sky from their spots.
And all together, they dove headfirst towards the ground.
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
The sound of their skulls or necks breaking upon impact could be heard, as all three met their end at once.
“Oh my…….”
“……”
“……”
Monsters that followed even orders to commit suicide without any hesitation.
The heroes all fell silent.
Those monsters, obeying humans, were truly living weapons.
Even faced with the sight of their kin dying before them, the other monsters stood still, unyielding.
Min Yu-ri felt a chill as she watched the scene unfold.
‘Is this what coexistence is?’
The IUPC’s claim of coexisting with monsters seemed to mean creating puppets that obey their orders.
Yoo Ji-han began to question their ideology.
“Order all those transformed into monsters to die.”
“……Understood.”
As the surviving IUPC members took action, the monsters on the runway began to fly up and dive headfirst into the ground from the front row.
The sight of them repeatedly dying in that manner resembled a domino effect falling over.
Even though they were monsters to be exterminated, Min Yu-ri felt slightly uncomfortable and turned to look at the caged birds.
“Quack!”
“Caw!”
The once-normal birds seemed anxious, perhaps startled by the commotion around them.
Min Yu-ri felt a sense of relief watching the chaotic ones inside the cage.
This kind of behavior felt normal to her.
“Can I free the ones trapped inside?”
“Go ahead.”
Flap!
Flap!
When the locked cage was smashed, the birds trapped inside soared into the sky.
The number was more than expected, scattering countless feathers in the air.
Unlike the monsters that only obeyed orders, the newly freed birds flew away in different directions.
“Ugh!”
“Ugh….”
The IUPC members, who had been continuously issuing suicide commands, let out weak groans.
It seemed that it was not an easy task after all.
Park Jae-kyung halted them and took it upon herself to organize the monsters.
However, just when they had dealt with about 90% of the monsters on the runway…
“Something’s coming over there!”
As several unusually large birds appeared in the sky, something dropped down from above.
Thud!
Moments later, a woman with yellow hair landed steadily on the runway.
While the heroes distanced themselves and remained on guard against her sudden appearance…
The IUPC members, upon recognizing her, were taken aback.
“Gasp!”
“Jerry?!”
An unscathed human who fell from the sky without a single injury.
A person to whom the people from another world were respectful.
Yoo Ji-han realized that she was an otherworlder due to her strange aura, similar to Paras.
“What is going on, what is this all about?”
Jerry frowned, wearing a smile as she witnessed the ordinary birds that hadn’t yet become monsters fleeing.
Especially since most monsters were already dead on the runway!
Considering that flying-type monsters were used as transportation, this meant a considerable loss for them.
“You did this, didn’t you?”
“If so?”
“Ooh!”
Upon spotting Park Jae-kyung among the heroes, Jerry’s eyes sparkled sharply.
“I think I know you! Park Jae-kyung! It’s you, right?”
“……?”
“The only standout in Yoon Do-ha’s party, who lacks individuality!”
The members of Yoon Do-ha flinched.
Excluding the Rank 1 hero Yoon Do-ha and the Vice Guild Master Park Jae-kyung, it was true that there were no exceptionally remarkable individuals.
However, it was shocking that someone would openly say such a thing in front of them.
“Wow! Your face hardly appears in the news. I want to get your autograph!”
Jerry exclaimed like a fan meeting her favorite celebrity, causing Park Jae-kyung to grimace.
It didn’t seem like she was speaking sincerely at all.
“They all look like people I’ve seen at least once… Indeed, it was good to come up.”
Talking to herself, Jerry scrutinized the heroes surrounding her one by one.
Then suddenly…
“Huh?”
Her gaze landed on Chilla, who was holding a shield.
Her face looked as if she had discovered something interesting.
“What a cute little animal. Where have I seen that before?”
“Chirp chirp….”
“Your cries are adorable too! Don’t you want to be my friend?”
Jerry reached out towards Chilla.
Min Yu-ri, however, spoke sharply.
“Go away.”
“Eh heh heh! I don’t want to!”
Jerry stuck her red tongue out, mocking her.
But since Min Yu-ri didn’t particularly react, she made a face of displeasure.
“In any case, I’m glad to meet the leader of the expedition. The ones I ran into earlier were pretty lacking.”
“What?”
“I’ll return this since I don’t need it.”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
As soon as Jerry finished talking, heavy objects fell from the sky onto the runway.
Park Jae-kyung, on guard against the dropping objects, widened her eyes upon recognizing the bloody items.
They were none other than the equipment of guild members marked with the Dice Guild logo.
“……Where did you get that?”
“From the ones I just killed.”
As Jerry smiled sweetly, everyone’s expressions turned cold.
Bang!
Furious, Park Jae-kyung rushed forward in an instant and swung her sword.
However, the dagger that appeared in Jerry’s hand blocked her strike.
‘She blocked this? And with an aura too…’
Upon having her serious attack halted, Park Jae-kyung’s eye twitched.
Despite her light demeanor, she was not an easy opponent.
The ranged dealers standing behind Park Jae-kyung launched their attacks at Jerry.
“Whew!”
Jerry stumbled back, making a loud sound.
She clapped her hands and said, “I have friends too, you know?”
“Fuyooo!”
“Fuyooooo—!”
The birds in the sky landed beside Jerry.
Eleven enormous Goliath Eagles, which had transformed into monsters, and their minions.
Some of those were assumed to be the ones that had been in the zoo the expedition party passed through.
“Play with them for a bit over there.”
The Goliath Eagles charged at Park Jae-kyung.
“Vice Guild Master!”
The heroes of the Dice Guild all rushed to help Park Jae-kyung.
Meanwhile, Yoo Ji-han’s party remained in place, keeping a wary eye on Jerry.
Because she was looking at Chilla with greed-filled eyes.
“Hey, you with the bobbed hair! I really want that! Can you just give it to me?”
Min Yu-ri tightened her grip on her bow at Jerry’s treating of Chilla like an object.
“Chilla is not something to be given away.”
“How stingy! I guess there’s no choice… I’ll just have to take it.”
Bam!
Jerry kicked off the ground and darted forward.
Her speed was one that was hard for an average person to even react to.
Bang!
But just as she reached near Chilla, Yoo Ji-han stepped in front of her to block her approach.
Jerry skillfully evaded his counterattack and retreated.
“You’re quite bold, huh? I don’t like such men.”
“You’re talking too much, ma’am.”
“……Ma’am?”
A crack formed in Jerry’s once carefree expression upon hearing that term for the first time since arriving in Korea.
