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[Chapter 127]
[Your Heart is Heard (4)]
Arriving in Seogwipo isn't everything. The boat heading to Mara Island departs from near Songaksan, quite far from Seogwipo.
The students who broke through the Hallasan area over four days all heard that story and were greatly angered.
"...I'll kill them. I'll kill them! I'll kill those bastards and just die myself too!"
"Bae Su-bin! Calm down. I fully understand how you feel, but you still shouldn't harm the instructors."
"I've been fooled over and over! But what!? Since we broke through Hallasan, going to Songaksan will be easy? Even if it's not my business, how can people say such rude things?"
To this, Bae Su-bin exploded.
She who gained many realizations in Hallasan where yellow and red dungeons are distributed achieved noticeable growth.
She quickly cast magic threatening the instructors that even players couldn't read.
The instructors only noticed her magic when blades were drawn before their eyes.
"Good! Bae Su-bin well done! Just hit them once!"
Amidst the instructors flinching.
Students including Jin Pa-rang enthusiastically welcomed her threat.
That's how crazy the students were.
Jin Pa-rang was originally crazy.
If Jin Pa-rang seems quiet, Bae Su-bin won't stay still...
This is how it is without No Eun-ha.
Mok Min-ho who could somewhat organize this situation inwardly lamented his absence.
Thanks to that, he was having his body and mind torn apart managing the two's stress throughout the comprehensive evaluation.
"Think carefully, Su-bin. If you do such a thing to the instructors, your grades..."
"I don't need grades! Do I, huh? Look like someone who lives and dies by grades? If you think that, it's a big mistake!"
You do care about grades though.
Nevertheless, Mok Min-ho barely held back what he wanted to say.
Instead, he presented a proposal that Bae Su-bin might turn her attention to in order to soothe her.
"Okay, fine. Do as you like. But how to treat the instructors isn't now."
"...What do you mean?"
"Let's go to Songaksan pier once. If they try to pull the same trick there with missions or whatever, then you do as you please. I won't stop you then."
"Hmm..."
"It's too early to kill. You need to finish the comprehensive evaluation first anyway. Then it won't be too late to think after eating jajangmyeon."
"...Okay, fine. I got it."
Bae Su-bin enticed by Mok Min-ho's words.
He who succeeded in persuading her swept his chest in relief.
At the same time, he could protest to the instructors using Bae Su-bin's threat.
Don't mess with people's food.
Whether his silent protest worked, or there were no missions to begin with, students were able to smoothly arrive at Mara Island.
"─Finally! We arrived! At Mara Island!"
"Jin Pa-rang! Stop there!"
"Yahoo!"
Just before the boat completely docked.
Jin Pa-rang ignored Mok Min-ho's shout and suddenly jumped off the boat as soon as he saw Mara Island.
He who arrived at Mara Island first while striding on the water surface showed off a vulgar dance.
Students at the bow of the boat made expressions like their insides were churning.
Mok Min-ho was the same.
So he had no choice but to order Bae Su-bin.
"Bae Su-bin."
"Yes."
"You can kill that idiot as you please."
"I guess I should start by dropping him in the sea first."
Jin Pa-rang fell into the sea.
Students showed no interest in him who fell into the sea with a splash and landed on Mara Island.
Min-ho looked around.
There's a jajangmyeon restaurant in a place like this?
Mara Island, southernmost point of Korea.
It was an island surrounded by sea with only nature.
And monsters that seemed to inhabit various parts of the island too.
It didn't seem like there could possibly be a restaurant where they could eat jajangmyeon.
Just then, the instructor who got off the boat last spoke to students looking around.
"The fact that Mara Island is famous for jajangmyeon is now a distant past! Now it's become an unremarkable island just bearing the name of our country's southernmost point!"
""""...""""
"Haha! I hope you don't look at us like you're going to kill us."
So is there jajangmyeon or not.
Students who heard the instructor's explanation soon hardened their faces.
Bae Su-bin was grinding her teeth, and Mok Min-ho also couldn't endure anymore and placed his hand on his scabbard.
Then the instructor who noticed their atmosphere quickly continued speaking.
"Now! Chefs who arrived before you are making jajangmyeon for you who worked hard. They're operating temporary restaurants around the island, so you can choose the jajangmyeon you like!"
""""Waaaah─!!""""
"But! Keep in mind that each temporary restaurant has a limited capacity!"
Students who were letting out shrill screams soon closed their mouths hearing the instructor's final words.
From then on, the age of competition began. Students rushed out competing with each other.
☆
There's no talent as capable as a ranger for finding paths.
And there's no talent as capable as a navigator for the role of synthesizing information and suggesting the path for the party to take.
But Mok Min-ho had no one now.
All he had was a crazy caster who feels joy in killing and a stupid hunter who thinks with his body, not his head.
If only Jin Seo-na were here...
Monsters that appeared as if waiting for students to land on Mara Island.
Mok Min-ho greatly regretted the absence of telepath Jin Seo-na who would arrive on Mara Island tomorrow while giving instructions to the two.
Dealer, hunter, caster.
They couldn't find a proper path with departments specialized in taking down monsters.
"It's here! There's a delicious smell coming from here!"
"Can we really trust you!?"
"You don't trust oppa!?"
"Of course not!"
"...Let's go for now."
So Min-ho decided to use Pa-rang's sense of smell as a last resort.
Jin Pa-rang shouted very loudly saying to just trust him.
"Oppa will let you eat the most delicious jajangmyeon on Mara Island!"
"Ugh."
"Bullshit is in season."
The most delicious jajangmyeon, huh.
Isn't jajangmyeon all the same?
Min-ho and Su-bin's honest feelings were that they just wanted to eat jajangmyeon at the closest restaurant and rest.
But the stupid wolf just had to be stubborn.
Thus the three were in the middle of continuously climbing the island to the point where students following behind couldn't be seen.
"Just... where are you planning to go!"
"We're almost there! Not much left!"
"It's my fault for trusting that idiot, why did I tell that idiot to find the way..."
"I'm telling you we're really almost there!?"
They climb the hill path, and climb again.
At this rate, it seems we'll reach the highest point on Mara Island.
Meanwhile, the three had to fight continuous battles with monsters coming down from above.
Their stamina hit rock bottom, and internal mana was almost gone now too.
But Jin Pa-rang was stubbornly insistent.
I thought we'd see something if we came up this far...
Monsters appeared again.
Min-ho who ended up recklessly climbing the island somehow now swung his sword at monsters familiarly.
Rambo
The step taking one foot forward became lighter than before, and the distance he could advance in one step increased too.
Above all, the motion of canceling Rambo midway and preparing the next magic became quite natural.
Mana Crasher
Min-ho who turned clockwise in front of the monster instantly appeared behind and fired a mana-loaded slash.
But it's shallow.
The monster that flinched tried to crush him falling nearby.
Just then─.
"─Where are you ignoring me?"
Blood Claw
Meanwhile, Jin Pa-rang who approached right up to the monster flashed red eyes.
Pa-rang swung his glowing red Blue Claw crossing and dropped the monster's arm.
And the finishing blow was Mok Min-ho who planted his feet on the ground piercing its neck.
"Be careful. More are coming."
But that wasn't the end.
Mok Min-ho and Jin Pa-rang looked up beyond again at Bae Su-bin's words standing in the rear.
A new monster was rolling down the slope.
There was no way they could stop that much mass rolling down.
"...One big shot coming. Get ready."
"Okay."
"Okay!"
Nevertheless, they weren't scared.
Bae Su-bin started casting.
The other two waited for an opportunity believing she would change the course of the monster rolling down the slope.
When she threw the fireball she raised above her head─.
"""─Huh?"""
The three doubted their eyes.
The ground directly hit by the fireball exploded for a moment and seemed about to change the monster's course.
When the dust blocking the view disappeared, the monster's body was divided in two and disappearing.
A person was standing there.
"─Your skills aren't too bad."
"""..."""
A middle-aged woman wearing white robes.
The woman with long hair tied in one braid opened her mouth while putting her sword in its scabbard.
But the three couldn't say anything due to her sudden appearance.
Regardless of how they were, the woman continued speaking.
"Glasses, your form using magic is quite rough, but you should remember that sometimes you need to know how to use magic softly."
"What?"
Bae Su-bin widened her round eyes at the sudden criticism.
The woman didn't answer her question and turned her gaze to Jin Pa-rang.
"Wolf, you're too simple and crude. Instead of getting caught up in the opponent's pace, you should sometimes be able to make the opponent get caught up in your pace."
"...Pace...?"
"Fortunately, it seems you're not a complete idiot."
A strange light dwells in Jin Pa-rang's eyes.
The woman who discovered that giggled and lastly speaks to Mok Min-ho.
"─You don't seem to need my advice. I shouldn't meddle and ruin the sword nearing completion... You seem to have learned swordsmanship for quite a long time, you're doing well. Keep striving like that."
"..."
"But if this old woman were to advise, sometimes you should know how to move relying on intuition. Sometimes you should know how to swing the sword with your heart, not your head. Hoho."
The woman laughs heartily.
Like an old person.
Min-ho fell into thought recalling the words she gave.
The woman turns her back on him falling into thought.
She climbs the hill path fluttering her pure white robes.
"─Why are you just standing there. Didn't you come to eat jajangmyeon? I prepared it specially since you're coming, so come and have a bowl each."
However, the three didn't know the woman's identity.
☆
The Japanese government has no authority to order Korea's academy.
Even if monsters invaded the city, Korea's academy was merely an observer in this incident.
"There are people over there!"
"No, why are they in a place like that?"
"I don't know! Let's save them first!"
However, even in such a situation, people are dying before their eyes.
Though they weren't their country's citizens, instructors and students couldn't pretend not to see people dying before their eyes.
Therefore, led by
To this, Yokohama City's Mana Management Agency formally requested cooperation from Korea's academy.
[Jung Ha-yang reports!! People estimated to be trapped inside the warehouse total 31! The entrance seems to have collapsed, and they're assessed to be isolated by monsters that invaded by breaking through the outer wall! The monsters currently in the warehouse are....]
Monsters that appeared from the sea were currently rampaging centered on the city adjacent to the coast.
That stretched long like a crescent moon from Yokohama Station to Yokohama Academy in Naka Ward.
Naturally, it was a form where forces had to be dispersed.
"...12 rescued, 3 subjugated."
Yokohama Akarenga Warehouse.
While Japanese players dealt with monsters appearing on the outskirts of the warehouse, Eun-ha rescued people trapped inside the collapsed warehouse.
Meanwhile, friends seemed to have found people hiding somewhere in the warehouse too.
"Kaede."
31 people.
Eun-ha who confirmed all people were rescued called Kaede.
Soon she fired a signal flare towards the collapsed ceiling.
She signaled to Jung Ha-yang and others that the mission was completed.
[Jung Ha-yang reports!! Rescue signal detected from Marina Shopping Mall in 11 o'clock direction from current position! Move quickly and assess the situation!]
A new telepathy was heard.
Eun-ha briefly clicked his tongue.
Recalling the map he saw earlier, Marina Shopping Mall was adjacent to the sea.
In other words, it would be swarming with monsters.
The damage would be even greater than this.
...Many died.
Even just this warehouse had blood pooled on the floor.
There were more dead people than survivors.
They failed in initial response since it was a warehouse adjacent to the sea.
Surely the shopping mall we'll head to next will be even more cruel.
Eun-ha was about to say something to friends making not entirely bright expressions even after saving people but turned his back.
He had nothing to say.
It's something we have to go through anyway.
It's something they have to overcome themselves.
Disaster is always nearby.
The fact that monsters exist means there are people dying to monsters somewhere.
For someone trying to become a player, it was better to accept this as soon as possible.
Otherwise, you break.
Without even realizing.
Moreover, the disaster we'll face in a few years isn't even comparable to this.
"Cha Eun-woo. Just treat critical people, and hand over rescued people to other students. They'll send them to a safe place."
"Okay, wait a moment. Let me treat this person first."
"Kaede. I'll leave guiding the way to you."
"Got it."
Fortunately, they're friends who have faced and overcome death many times.
There's no way they'll collapse easily.
Eun-ha confirmed his friends' condition was okay and was about to head to Marina Shopping Mall.
Just then─.
"─ガハッ...!!"
─Gahak...!!
Something fell from the sky.
The place where it fell with a thud was dented.
A man was collapsed there.
As if it wasn't a fall that could be handled with falling techniques.
The man covered in blood trembles from the impact and coughs up blood.
""""...""""
Students froze in place.
Not because of the man.
Because of the presence of the monster rapidly approaching, which surely dropped the man.
...High rank.
Eun-ha looked up at the sky.
Wings that looked like a crow's sprouted on the back of the monster with the sun behind it.
Faintly visible beyond the sunlight, the monster seemed to be wearing a mask with a long nose.
Jingle jingle
A sound that seems to extinguish fighting spirit.
Eun-ha evaluated the sound of it shaking a monk's staff like that.
It seems to make the mind more confused the more you hear it.
So what?
But that was only for a moment.
The gift
He who felt the sense the gift told drew out the black thorn.
Only then did students who came to their senses also draw out weapons towards it gradually lowering altitude.
"Don't touch it. I'll handle this one."
Though the mana composing its existence was in an unstable state, the monster seemed to correspond to a high rank.
Moreover, it even uses magic to enchant people.
It was a tricky opponent.
Generally, in the case of high-rank monsters, it was recommended to face them in party units of at least one.
But it had the power to use magic fatal
The more people fighting, the more disadvantageous it is.
Nevertheless, Eun-ha pushed the students back without hesitation.
"Run away...! That guy is 4th rank. It's not an opponent you can face! I'll deal with him!"
"What's he saying?"
Just then, the man who staggered out of the crater shouted something.
Hoshimiya Kaede responded to the man's words with a serious face.
"...'Run away. That guy is 4th rank. He's not an opponent you can face. I'll deal with him,' he says..."
"Oh, really?"
"No way... Koreans!?"
A monster belonging to the 4th rank.
If it broke through the Cocoon and came over, it could be considered a monster downgraded by at least one rank.
That's probably why the mana composing it is in an unstable state.
"No Eun-ha... That's not a monster we can face. Let's quickly run away from here..."
"I said leave it to me."
Hoshimiya Kaede tries to stop him.
Nevertheless, Eun-ha wasn't having it.
He loads mana into the black thorn.
Once is enough.
Once is enough.
The guy is already dying.
Surely the man behind must have drained the monster's health.
It might not be just the man alone, others may have joined in subjugating the monster too.
Anyway─.
"─It's just a matter of landing the finishing blow."
Horizontal Freak
Blue mana gathered around the black thorn forming the shape of a spear.
Eun-ha who jumped into the sky threw the sword with all his might.
──!!
That was the end.
The spear that flew at high speed pierced the monster's core, the mana stone that was the essence of its existence.
""""...""""
The students were at a loss for words.
They could only gape blankly watching the mana stone fall as powder.
Meanwhile, the man who saw the scene unfold in an instant stammered.
"H-how..."
He had a dazed expression.
Then the man who suddenly came to his senses points at Eun-ha saying something.
Judging by his expression, he seemed angry.
"What's he keep saying? Kaede."
"...He's saying what are you doing turning a 4th rank monster's mana stone to powder. And why did you arbitrarily land the finishing blow when he was going to subjugate it..."
"What does it matter who kills it. To be seeking glory in this situation... His way of thinking is childish."
Eun-ha laughed in disbelief.
Now that he looks, the man seems about his own age.
While newly impressed by the man's skills, he doesn't like how he's talking as if not knowing the favor of being saved.
So Eun-ha spat out Japanese he recently learned towards the man speaking heatedly.
"─Yeah, shut up."
"...!!"
His skills seem impressive but...
That sword looks really good.
Regardless of the man's ranting.
Soon Eun-ha handed over the blood-covered man to Japanese players who belatedly appeared on the scene.