Chapter 32: Heat
An unnatural heat burned him from the inside out—not like fever, but like a cursed inferno trying to consume his soul. His control wavered, dark energy crackling violently from his fingertips. The undead paused mid-motion, sensing the imbalance. Cheon Areum gritted his teeth, trying to stabilize himself—but the world around him tilted, spinning like a vortex.
No... it can’t be...
"Omega pheromones?"
Seungkwan muttered, covering his nose with his hand.
"Such dense pheromones... You’re in heat?!"
Minjun immediately blocked his nose with his arm as he uttered in shock. With the sudden loss of control, the number of monsters surged, erupting from the ground at a terrifying pace. The tremors of Cheon Areum’s energy—flaring out of balance—sent shockwaves through the others standing near him. The disruption didn’t just rattle the earth; it fractured the very hold they had over the undead.
The traps—once firm, racing with their energy—faltered. The grass binding their feet wilted prematurely, and Minjun’s glowing rope flickered as if doused by invisible winds. The momentary waver was all it took.
The undead broke free.
With distorted cries and jerking movements, the creatures lunged forward, their numbers now overwhelming. The ones at the front—Cheon Areum, Seungkwan, and Minjun—were affected by the heat the most. Cheon Areum’s fists clenched as he tried to stop his pheromones from leaking, but it was beyond what he knew. He knew nothing about repressing pheromones—could he even stop them in heat?
"Will you keep it steady? I can’t focus!"
Eunhyuk shouted, holding Minjun’s rope with a death grip. The blue fire that burned the ones inside the graveyard moved to the front, trying to keep them from spilling out onto them. Kim Ryung’s shots also became more frontier-focused, but the numbers were too extraordinary. There was no way they alone could hold on. All of them were A-Class, trying to handle a horde of S-Class monsters.