Chapter 314
Amid the crackling static, screams intermingled, and Honeybee's complexion changed. Uijae sprung up from his seat. The chair he had been sitting in toppled over, but no one cared. He approached the door and grabbed Honeybee's arm.
"We're going there now. Take me with you!"
"What...?"
Honeybee's eyes widened in surprise, but that only lasted a moment. She nodded decisively and pulled Uijae close by wrapping her arm around his neck.
"Did everyone hear that? I'm taking this guy with me."
"What? But he's still detained...!"
"People are dying, and you think that matters? He's fine. I'll take responsibility! Let's go! Are you not moving? Want to get hit with a radio?"
"Attacking a public servant is an obstruction of justice!"
"So I'm keeping my distance! If the director asks, just say I threatened you!"
Honeybee threatened the blocking hunters with the radio and made way. Uijae, unsure if he was being embraced or locked in a headlock, was meekly dragged along. Although he was the one detained, he somehow felt like a hostage in a hostage situation.
"Ooof!"
"Be careful!"
As he was being dragged, Uijae thought, This person...
'Does she have a history of extortion?'
Honeybee skillfully maneuvered through the corridor crowded with hunters and headed towards the emergency stairs. From her threatening demeanor to her pathfinding to the nearest exit, it was clear this wasn’t her first rodeo. Uijae quietly marveled.
'I'll have to ask her about this later.'
And learn from it. Thud, the emergency stair door slammed shut behind them. She leaned against the swinging door, releasing her hold on Uijae's neck. Suspicious eyes scanned him up and down.
"Funny asking this after dragging you all the way here... But are you really in your right mind?"
"I am."
Uijae rubbed his sore neck.
"I know about Jeong Bin dying in the Memorial Dungeon. That’s why you’re hurrying, isn't it?"
Honeybee's mouth opened slightly in surprise.
"How do you know that? You weren’t there when it happened."
"I got the information from Mr. Nam Woo-jin’s notebook in the Memorial Dungeon... Ah, explaining now would take too long. Let's go up!"
Jeong Bin must have expended a lot of energy trying to hold off Uijae. He didn’t know how many monsters there were or how strong they might be, but he couldn’t let Jeong Bin face them alone. Uijae muttered anxiously.
"I asked Gyugyu to help, but..."
"You asked Gyugyu?"
Tap, tap, tap, Honeybee intensified her pace up the stairs, taking two at a time and then asked seriously.
"Did you make a deposit?"
"A deposit? No, just a verbal agreement."
"Ah, just a verbal promise?"
Honeybee silently sped up. She was now taking three steps at a time. Uijae also picked up his pace and asked.
"Is there a problem?"
"I was just thinking. There are too many problems to be problems."
Honeybee responded irritably.
"That guy’s attitude changes before and after getting paid. He’s obsessed with money, you know?"
Is that so? He seemed pretty cooperative to me. But with Honeybee visibly shaking in frustration, it seemed awkward to ask more. Uijae glanced at the emergency light flickering green above, the floor number reading 14F. Beyond the emergency door, a deep growl sounded. Uijae and Honeybee exchanged glances. Then,
They simultaneously kicked the door open.
Boom—!!
The emergency door, bent out of shape from their kicks, flew off. For a moment, everything seemed to slow down. The bent metal door, the white monster hit by the flying door, the wobbling monster then crashed into the wall. Thud! The spot where the monster hit indented deeply.
“Hmm~ what’s this property damage? Quite brave.”
A sly voice sounded. The owner of the voice, Gyugyu, was casually standing in the middle of the corridor with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his parka. He shrugged his shoulders towards the two.
"A declaration of war against the Awakened Management Bureau? Something like that?"
"What? Where's Jeong Bin, and why are you alone?"
"Where is he? Resting behind me."
Gyugyu turned to show his back. Jeong Bin was behind a transparent wall, tapping on it and mouthing words as if he were miming. Honeybee frowned.
"Hey, you’ve got him locked up! Who else’s ability did you steal now?"
"Steal? Borrow is a much nicer word~"
Gyugyu flicked an imaginary dice in the air and grinned.
"Come on~ I can’t send someone who’s just been beaten to fight, can I? His cheek was swollen like someone who’s had a wisdom tooth removed."
"......"
Though he hadn’t intended it, Uijae, the actual perpetrator of Jeong Bin’s swollen cheek, averted his gaze quietly. Gyugyu scratched his cheek and gestured.
"Come over here. We’ve got to deal with that guy first."
Honeybee and Uijae cautiously moved behind Gyugyu. Honeybee peered out and asked.
"Is that the mutant?"
"Yeah. Team Leader Jeong’s team member, turned into a mutant suddenly without any warning."
Just then,
Crunch... Broken wall fragments fell to the floor, raising dust. The monster embedded in the wall wriggled and started to rise. Sturdy legs, arms equipped with sharp blades, a hefty torso, and...
A mouth full of spiky teeth and a head covered in white fur. Between the tufts of hair, white eyes moved restlessly. Finally, those eyes fixed directly on Uijae.
Eyes met eyes.
Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain!
“…Kugh!”
A searing sensation struck through his entire body. Pain. That single feeling and word filled his mind completely. His vision spun, and a splitting headache hit him like a hammer. Uijae clutched his head, a strained groan escaping through his clenched teeth. His swaying body was steadied by a firm hand.
“Are you okay? What’s wrong all of a sudden? Are you hurt?”
“Oh yeah, right. Hornet, didn’t you say you barely managed to take down J, even though there were three of you against him?”
“Shut up!”
“I was just asking out of concern~…. Is J in his right mind now? He doesn’t look too good.”
“I made sure he was before I brought him here.”
“I really hope so. I don’t feel like fighting today. I already rolled my dice for the day….”
Their voices sounded muffled and distant. Uijae bit down on his tongue as hard as he could, but it was useless. Instead of human voices becoming clearer, the voices of monsters grew sharper.
Pain. Pain. Pain. Pain.
Where is the team leader?
Pain. Pain. Pain. Pain.
I need to report in.
Pain…
In truth, the monster’s voice wasn’t all that different from a human’s. Even with its transformed body, it was searching for its team leader—Jeong Bin. The monster staggered as it tried to rise, its gaze darting around. And then, it spotted Jeong Bin standing behind Gyugyu.
Found him. Found him.
Found the team leader.
Must report. Must report.
“Ugh…!”
Screeeech— The monster dragged its arm, now ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) blade-like, across the floor as it advanced. Uijae clutched his head and shouted.
“Gyugyu! Don’t let the monster get to Jeong Bin!”
“Oh~ that’s easy.”
Gyugyu flicked his index and middle fingers upward with a casual motion. Instantly, a transparent wall shot up, blocking the monster’s path.
Thud! The monster slammed its head into the wall.
And then—
Thud! Thud! Thud!
It kept ramming its head against the barrier. Each impact made the entire corridor tremble. The fluorescent lights above flickered ominously. Honeybee, who was supporting Uijae, asked urgently.
“How sturdy is that wall? Can we just leave it like this?”
“Hm~…. To be honest?”
Boom!
Cracks began to spread across the transparent barrier. Gyugyu grinned.
“I have no idea~!”
Crash! The wall shattered into countless pieces.
“You idiot!” Honeybee screamed in genuine frustration.
Gyugyu took a small step back and flicked his fingers again. Another barrier shot up in an instant. But having already broken through once, the monster didn’t hesitate this time.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
It slammed its head against the barrier even harder than before. Gyugyu muttered irritably.
“Come on~ It’s my first time actually using this. It never activated before, so I never got a chance to test it.”
Uijae, still holding his throbbing head, forced himself to ask.
“What the hell… is your ability anyway? Are you screwing with us?”
“Come on, I wouldn’t joke around in a life-or-death situation.”
Honeybee let out a long sigh.
“Gyugyu… This guy can steal other people’s abilities. Multiple ones.”
“Call it borrowing~”
“Anyway!”
Uijae frowned. From what he’d heard so far…
“…Isn’t that an amazing ability? Sounds ridiculously overpowered.”
“You’re right. But the problem is….”
Something small rolled out of the pocket of Gyugyu’s field jacket. Honeybee sighed and picked it up. It was a tiny ceramic die.
“The ability he gets is determined by rolling a die. And he can only use the one that comes up.”
“……”
“There’s no guarantee he’ll get the ability he actually needs. It’s completely random.”
What kind of cheap trickster ability is this? Uijae momentarily forgot his pain as he stared at the die in Honeybee’s hand, then at Gyugyu’s back.
In the meantime, the second barrier had already shattered into pieces. The three of them took another step back. As Gyugyu quickly raised a third wall, he muttered playfully.
“Man~ I forgot to pray today, and now I ended up with an ability I’ve never seen before.”
“So, what? Are you just going to keep retreating? At this rate, we’re going to get trapped between the walls.”
“Hm? Of course not. We’re gonna kill it~”
Gyugyu turned around and winked.
“But not me—you two will!”