1255 - Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Some time had passed since the search began. They didn't split up the group to show how things should be done; they moved together instead. The number of monsters wasn't zero, and they appeared occasionally. Their strength, however, wasn't particularly threatening. ‘At most, they’re blue-ranked monsters.’ Even the supposedly stronger monsters were at blue level. Most were green. Other encountered creatures were the same. Red-ranked monsters were almost nowhere to be seen. In fact, they weren't seen at all. "Krraaah!" Thud! A wingless avian monster collapsed to the ground, vanquished by the Iron Dragon Deputy Leader’s sword. "…The territory of the Pisaraptor has expanded a little. Baek Yangcheon, record it." "Yes, understood." The fallen monster seemed to be a Pisaraptor, a creature I had never seen before. ‘The expansion of the territory means…’ It implies that the monster shouldn't have come this far, hinting at the existence of territorial boundaries among monsters. "We'll soon be out of this territory. Let’s move elsewhere. We'll head west." They had already visited four locations. All they had done so far was record conditions and hunt monsters. Nothing dangerous had been encountered. "…Include the Pisaraptor in the records. We'll need to return with another team tomorrow." "Do you want me to report it?" "No, I'll report it myself." "Yes." I listened carefully. The chatter they had been hearing was fading. The Iron Dragon Deputy Leader glanced at him and suddenly stopped speaking. ‘He switched to telepathy.’ Since I wasn’t looking directly at him, he probably didn't notice. The leader must have been trying to be cautious. ‘Hmm.’ I pressed my tongue against his teeth repeatedly. There wasn't anything peculiar or dangerous. ‘Something’s bothering me.’ There was a persistent sense of unease, especially… ‘The odd feeling surrounding Mi Hyoran.’ The sensation he had encountered before gnawed at him. It felt familiar like something he had experienced in the past. These thoughts remained as he walked a bit further. Some time later. "Krraaahhhh!" A screech rang out. The group, including the Iron Dragon Deputy Leader, turned their attention to the sound. In the distance, something was approaching. Precisely, a group of something was charging towards them. Boom, boom, boom!! The noise was enormous. The ground trembled with each step. Seeing this, the group tensed up. "Krraaahhhh!" "What the…!" "What is that?" The Poison Phoenix flinched. Warriors unsheathed their swords, letting their presence soar. It was a horde of monsters. Strangely, the types of monsters were not identical. Typically, one would expect the same kind clustering together, but this… ‘It’s a mix of various kinds?’ There was no limit to the types gathered, and their number was overwhelming. Even more puzzling. "How... how are they breaking through the territories?" “…Could there be a problem with the Wind Dragon Squad’s barrier?” "Deputy Leader, shouldn't we try to escape first? There are too many of them." "…Yes, we should withdraw for now…" "It's too late to run." "What?" I interrupted, cutting off the conversation. "They're not just in front of us. They're also coming from both sides, and there's a Blue Beast among the horde." "A Blue Beast?" The Iron Dragon Deputy Leader looked at me, puzzled. Did they lack information about Blue Beasts in this era? "They detect scents with their sense of vision and chase after them. They're relatively weak for a blue level, but they emit a call that attracts other monsters…" To escape them, they would need to move faster than the speed of sound, which none of them could achieve. ‘They might not be blue in appearance, but they are definitely Blue Beast.’ Having no color doesn't mean the features disappear. From my perspective, those leading the charge were indeed Blue Beasts. "We can’t escape in this condition." How many among them could achieve such speed? Perhaps only the Iron Dragon Deputy Leader. In other words, "We can't escape anyway." Running might expose their refuge. Even if the Wind Dragon Squad had set up a barrier, its effectiveness wasn’t guaranteed. "So, you suggest we fight." “For now, that seems the best option. Besides,” Despite the approaching number, I casually shrugged. "They don’t seem particularly difficult to manage." Surely they could handle that level of monsters. The assembled team seemed more than capable. Despite the horde, there seemed to be nothing too formidable among them. "……." The Iron Dragon Deputy Leader stared at me before turning away. "……Prepare for battle." Upon those words, everyone drew their weapons. "Slay the monsters." “Yes…!” And so, the battle began. --- Splatter, splatter. Blood stained the surroundings. The remains of defeated monsters covered the ground, their blood emanating a pungent odor. "…Hoo." Click. Standing amidst this was the Iron Dragon Deputy Leader. Hyeon Jeok sheathed his sword, squinting as he surveyed the vicinity. All encountered monsters had been dealt with. He felt weary but bore no significant wounds. Assessing this, he checked on the others. ‘No casualties.’ None of his companions had died. A few showed minor wounds, but none were seriously injured. Though they appeared exhausted, that was the extent of it. "……." Was it due to the monsters' weakness? He couldn’t deny it. The monsters were numerous but not particularly threatening. However, ‘…It was thanks to him.’ The reason no one perished and everyone survived intact. Hyeon Jeok couldn’t overlook the cause. ‘Baek Yangcheon.’ A young man who had been gaining notoriety in the central plains, yet had seemed to vanish for a year in this twisted world. Hyeon Jeok knew that the present situation was thanks to that young man. ‘His response is swift.’ Whenever the party faced threats and dangerous moments from the monsters, Baek Yangcheon stepped forward. He deflected the claws, broke the fangs, and sometimes pulled the members out of harm’s way. Moreover, ‘He’s exceptionally adept at hunting monsters.’ His skills in hunting were remarkable, cultivated from who knows where. It wasn’t simply overpowering them in one strike because he was strong. ‘He seems to target the weak points precisely.’ Weak points. He seemed to have identified all the weak points that each monster supposedly had, and targeted only those spots. Even he, Hyeon Jeok, the Deputy leader, wasn't aware of some of those vulnerabilities. What was it? ‘What has he been doing for this past year?’ A year when Baek Yangcheon hadn’t shown up. Had he survived amidst the monster dens in that period? Otherwise, it made no sense. If not, it meant he was exceptionally skilled from the start. ‘Is such a thing possible?’ Excellence in martial arts resides in the realm of talent. One can indeed excel there, which might be why the Martial Master tried to take this young man as his disciple. However. ‘This is a different realm.’ The methods and strategies for dealing with monsters were a completely separate area. It required mastery through experience. ‘Just what is it?’ Baek Yangcheon—what is he? Hyeon Jeok narrowed his eyes at him. ‘Not a drop of blood on him.’ Nothing stained his clothes. While others breathed heavily, he alone remained serene. Among the followed experts, the Poison Dragon was panting in exhaustion. Even the Poison Phoenix, who had been performing brilliantly here, was busy catching her breath. Yet Baek Yangcheon, he merely kept stroking his chin, as if pondering something. He was more composed than anyone. ‘…Just what.’ He was an enigma. As Hyeon Jeok mused over Baek Yangcheon’s mystery, "Excuse me." "…!" Baek Yangcheon suddenly called out to Hyeon Jeok. Startled, Hyeon Jeok paused. "W-What is it?" "Just wanted to ask something. What's in front of us there?" "In front?" Following Baek Yangcheon’s gesture, Hyeon Jeok turned his eyes. The direction mentioned was... ‘The western edge.’ The place they intended to go. Over there... "There's nothing notable there." Though it was marked as part of the territory, it wasn’t a known habitat for any specific monster or other significant feature. "Is that so?" "Why do you ask?" "It's just that something's bothering me." "…Bothering?" "Hmm." Baek Yangcheon nodded slightly and looked in that direction. The western edge. He furrowed his brow as he gazed there. ‘Something feels off.’ Looking at the defeated monsters, he found it mysterious. ‘What reasons exist for monsters to gather and rampage like this?’ Different species, not just the same kind. Even monsters likely of various ranks had rushed this way together. It seemed strange. Normally, such an event wouldn’t happen. Meaning… ‘There’s a reason for something that shouldn’t occur to be happening.’ Something had happened. Baek Yangcheon considered a few theories as to why such a reason would manifest. ‘There aren’t many reasons for different monsters to move collectively.’ The first scenario: ‘The presence of an incomprehensibly strong entity.’ Monsters, devoid of reason and driven only by hunger and aggression, would be terrified of something. This was a rare occurrence. While he had seen monsters cower in fear of Namgung Bi-ah’s Sword of the Heavenly King or the Heavenly Demon, he hadn’t seen it otherwise. Then, the second possibility: ‘The existence of a higher-ranked monster.’ This is a trait that appears with red-ranked monsters. It can command lower-ranked monsters to act collectively. However, ‘This applies only to the same species.’ Snake-formed monsters command other snake-formed monsters. Bird-formed monsters command other bird-formed monsters. Commands apply only within specific species. ‘This time, it’s a mix of species.’ It moves those not of the same species. That anomaly was his focal point. In the distance. It might be a monster, or it might not be. ‘Something is there.’ Something exists. Baek Yangcheon was certain of that fact. At the same time, Thump-. His heart raced erratically as if it were saying, ‘Go.’ To the west. As if something awaited there. His instincts seemed to be urging him to go and find out.