Episode 108 [ Blessing and Disaster, Two Meteorites – 3 ]
———————————
This land, the Korean Peninsula, is cursed. .
Such a story was circulating on the Internet.
This was because after the worst event of the 4th wave was captured, disaster-like events beyond misfortune continued throughout the Korean Peninsula.
The demon Abaddon’s summoning ritual, the alchemy factory’s demon worship organization, the Black Orc Kingdom’s declaration of war… and the two meteorites just collided…
This land is clearly cursed. Otherwise, there is no explanation.
But on the other hand, there was also this saying:
“Yes, I was cursed! But a savior came down with me!”
The name of the savior who appeared with the curse was… Lee Hyun-wook. It was
only natural that he was considered that way since he was the one who solved the whole incident.
In this atmosphere, another disaster began in Jeju Island, and Lee Hyun-wook reflexively came to mind. It was probably natural.
“…Maybe Lee Hyun-wook won’t show up this time too?”
As if living up to the expectations, ‘Friedwen’ rose in the Seoul sky.
Woouuuu——
“That’s… Lee Hyun-wook’s airship, right?”
“…Are you talking about Friedwen? Huh? That’s right!”
But this time, that wasn’t the end.
“But… what are all those things?”
This is because 12 airships were lined up behind them.
Woowoowoo——
A body made of steel. The silver-white fuselage reflected the sunlight and shined elegantly. And the sight of it quickly traversing the Seoul sky with only a low vibration and no loud noise was like watching a pod of whales swimming.
Yes, it was definitely a scene that could be called a ‘fleet’.
“Wow… I’ve never seen anything like that before.”
“That’s natural. “There has never been anything like that before.”
Photos and videos of the strange and magnificent march of a total of 13 airship fleets leading Fridwen were spread all over the Internet.
– [Breaking News] An unknown airship fleet belonging to Jung-gu, Seoul appears (1 report)
– [Breaking News] The source of 13 airships that appeared in the sky of Seoul is Laputa?
Reporters scrambled to find out where the fleet belonged.
But I couldn’t get any information about it.
“Sir, I just contacted the Seoul AMT Air Defense Command, and they say it is a licensed aircraft. However, its affiliation is confidential…” “Are these bastards sane? They
flew something like that in the sky of Seoul and the people are still anxious. “Does it make sense to remain ignorant?”
Since they came from Laputa, they must have been related to the government, but even when I inquired with the relevant department, the answer was that there was nothing they could tell me yet. However, there was only one
piece of certain information for them.
“That’s it! Come to think of it, Freed was in that fleet.” “There’s a reason, right?”
“Oh? So this means that Lee Hyun-wook is definitely in that fleet?”
“That’s right, and you’re even leading the way, aren’t you? “This is awesome!”
In the end, the title of the article created based on speculation alone was….
– Estimated to be led by Lee Hyun-wook, an airship fleet of unknown affiliation (1st report)
“…Oh, as expected, the number of views is exploding?”
Just mentioning Lee Hyun-wook in the title of an article like this gives a stimulating taste.
“Okay, it would be nice to insert a more provocative keyword here.”
“yes? What keywords should I include?”
“So there’s just one word that will grab your attention.”
After the prediction that Lee Hyun-wook was a member of the fleet was made, reporters poured out all kinds of speculations, and some even started giving him nicknames.
– Is Lee Hyun-wook’s [Steel Fleet] heading for Jeju Island?
***
– Also known as ‘the one who escaped the metropolitan area’ The ‘Steel Fleet’ currently stopped moving at Gyeryongdae in Gyeryong-si, Chungcheongnam-do, and the flagship Pridwen landed…
The Pridwen’s internal radio news was broadcast.
“Wow, the Steel Fleet… Do you like it?”
Kim Se-hee asked with a grin.
“…That can’t be right.”
Starting with the steel company, it couldn’t be too one-dimensional naming.
Honestly, if you look at it objectively, it’s true that it’s a really bad naming.
‘Still, I endured being called the Steel Emperor…’
It seemed that the nickname given by the public was bound to be childish.
“Team Leader Kim, let’s see what a great nickname he will get when he becomes famous later.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t have the confidence to become that famous.”
At that time, I saw people approaching from afar. Among them were Woo Seong-moon, head of the department, and Kang Seo-yoon, CEO. They were to join this fleet.
However, Kang Seo-yoon, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, had a frown on his face.
And instead of greeting Lee Hyun-wook, he suddenly asked a question.
“No, how on earth did this happen?”
“yes? What…”
“What is all this! “Where did this fleet suddenly come from?”
She glanced at Lee Hyeon-wook and Woo Sung-moon and looked around.
“Yes, just the two of us paired up, right? But I also did the same in the 4th wave, huh? Still, I thought we strengthened our friendship as a team in our own way. And Lee Hyun-wook, you’re our guild sub, right?”
“Haha… Confidentiality is difficult to maintain loyalty to.”
Lee Hyun-wook smiled shyly.
‘Kang Seo-yoon is a trustworthy person… but she is a guardian.’
She was a Guardian after all, and the current Guardian was not safe. Anything that entered her eyes and ears was highly likely to fall into the hands of a villain. ‘…It’s
dangerous until that guy, Gordon Price, is eliminated.’
It was a time when he was trusted more than anyone else within the Guardian.
This was because he was supporting the Guardian’s mission with an abundance of money.
“So you’ve been secretly making something like this in Laputa all this time?”
“Haha—yeah…”
“Well, anyway… it’s a good thing. It’s really great.”
She mumbled and looked around at the fleet, including Friedwen.
“But the airship pilots were properly trained in such a short period of time, right? Flying that wouldn’t be similar to an airplane or helicopter.”
“Well… it’s all the result of hard research. “You don’t have to worry.”
It was premature to reveal the existence of ‘Grey Dwarves’ here.
That’s why the entrance to each airship’s cockpit was tightly blocked.
“Hmm, anyway, thanks to these secret weapons, the bloodstream of the operation has been opened up, but wouldn’t it be better to also borrow the [Blue Tree] airship?”
Despite her recommendation, Woo Seong-moon responded lukewarmly:
“…for now, we will try to do the initial operation on our own.”
“Why are you so conservative? I will help you there.”
“It’s not good to seek out more power than necessary from abroad.”
After hearing from Lee Hyun-wook that the meteorite impact point was caused by a certain ‘guiding item’, Woo Seong-moon decided that this incident was also highly likely to be a ‘terrorist attack’ and was on sharp alert for outside approaches. If it had not been for that, he would have been Gordon Price too
. He would have received the favor of Gordon
Price. That’s how strong his global reputation was.
‘That’s why I can’t just casually reveal that he’s a villain.’
Gordon Price’s biggest weapon was that false image.
“Then we will depart for Haenam, where the base camp is.”
Yeo Sang-min, who was in charge of controlling Friedwen, said.
At first glance, you would think that the airship would not be very fast due to its heavy appearance, but it was clear that it was an aerodynamically inefficient structure.
However, not only was the output of the dwarven mana engine powerful, but the mana shield was formed in a streamlined shape to minimize air resistance.
Woowoowoo——
So the fleet headed south, maintaining a speed of 600 km/h.
***
An AMT gathering point was formed in a large field in Haenam, Jeollanam-do.
That place was the base camp for conquering Jeju Island.
“—Move quickly! “There is news that the Iron Fleet has passed!”
Currently, AMT soldiers were working to level the airship landing site.
A moment later the Steel Fleet arrived there.
“Wow…”
The troops of the AMT 7th Port Horse Brigade looked up blankly at that figure.
13 magic aircraft approaching from the northern sky…
“Doesn’t that feel at all different from a helicopter squadron?”
“Yes, definitely. For some reason, it is much grander.”
To define that feeling, it was ‘mystery’. A strange feeling that is a mixture of repulsion and curiosity when encountering an unfamiliar being…
“Hey! Stop staring and finish the work quickly!”
Next, eight regional magic control officers from AMT gathered together and began preparing to deploy a ‘two-way portal.’ Players from all over the country were expected to flock in soon. “Have you received the ‘
link pattern’ from Group 2, Gyeongsang Province?”
“Yes, I got it!”
“Only 12 people will show up there, so don’t make it too big.”
“Yes I will!”
Soon, multiple two-way portals were deployed simultaneously.
Meanwhile, Lee Hyun-wook was sitting on the lamp door of Friedwen.
‘We must check each and every person being mobilized for this operation.’
I had roughly heard the list of participants in this attack, but I needed to check to see if an unexpected person, or villain, was involved.
Soon the first two-way portal opened.
“—The two-way portal from Anyang has been deployed!”
There, 14 players walked out.
“…No, really, you didn’t apply a defense buff back then?”
The woman holding the kite shield in front was so annoyed.
Then, the man wearing glasses laughed as if he was dumbfounded.
“Hey, I’m not an amateur… Wonjun said you saw it right.”
“I got that ogre hammer and I know best!”
“Huh? What did you get? Didn’t it get hit and bounce like a golf ball?”
“하 이 개새끼가 진짜… 넌 앞으로 전담 엄호 없을 줄 알아!”
The man and woman were the so-called ‘Anyang Duo’, ranked 18th and 19th in the player rankings.
During the 4th wave, they were the only ones other than the Steel Company to eliminate the erosion factor, and they were unable to meet in the end because they joined late in the final battle.
’19th place Lee Hye-min and 18th place Kang Jun-seong are both wizard players.’
However, strangely, Lee Hye-min is in the tank position and Kang Jun-seong is in the gunner position, so they are both wearing extreme ‘variation weapons’ and are working together as a duo.
The reason this was possible was because they were both buff and enchantment masters.
‘Each weapon is equipped with defensive and offensive options to achieve efficiency.’
His specialty was magic, but he realized early on that his natural talents were close combat and shooting, and developed his abilities in those areas.
Next, a two-way portal from Gyeongsang Province was opened.
A total of 21 players walked out of it.
‘A [Cheonsu] guild called the Witches of the Nakdong River?’
Do Hee-seon was ranked 22nd and was a player who specialized in water attribute magic.
And the remaining 11 of her students were also magicians specializing in water.
Since the boss monster of this operation, ‘Phaeton the Flame Giant’, has fire as his attribute, it seems that a large number of wizards who control the opposite attribute, water, have been summoned.
Subsequently, Paladins and Priests were convened from all over the country.
“There are 21 Paladins and 31 Priests mobilized so far!”
Phaethon looked outwardly from the fire attribute, but its root was ‘undead’. If you rush into a strategy without knowing this, you will end up in trouble.
But fortunately, Kang Seo-yoon seemed to have figured out that fact early on.
A total of 149 players responded to the government’s call-up request.
It was a significant number as they had summoned players of B rank or higher in the first place.
In addition, two brigades of AMT troops are mobilized for combat support.
“Chief Park! Did everyone come?”
Kang Seo-yoon’s voice rings out from afar.
She was in charge of the ‘Jeju operation field commander’ in this operation.
“One person from Seoul has not arrived yet.”
“Ang? “The gate departing from Seoul was closed earlier.”
“Yes, but he said he was a little late.”
“I beg your pardon? Who… Oh, it’s Hantaesan, right?”
In response to her question, the man called Team Leader Park nodded.
At that time, the gates departing from Seoul began to open again.
“…No, that bastard is real!”
From there, a large man leisurely walked out.
It was Han Taesan, a man called King Gwon (奉王) or Taho (情虎).
He had long hair in a braid and was wearing a green sweatshirt.
And, as usual, he had a duffel bag slung over his right shoulder.
“-hey!”
Kang Seo-yoon quacked and screamed at him.
“huh?”
“Right now, how much mana do I have to eat just because of you? Do you know how much the mana and labor costs used to open the two-way portal cost?”
Han Tae-san, who checked her face, showed an annoyed expression.
“Ha… why does the lady scream the first time we see her for the first time in a long time?”
“What? Ah, ma’am…”
“No, honestly, if you want to mobilize as much as I do, you can use that much mana, right?”
As expected, it was an idiotic statement from the very beginning.
“Honestly, do you know how much it costs to hire an S-rank player like me as a mercenary? “If mercenaries run in Chad at a time like this, I’ll buy an airship!”
“You son of a bitch, you should know that it’s thanks to this country that you grew up like that!”
“No, I gained this ability through my own luck, so what does the country have to do with it?”
On the outside, he seemed like the type of person who would give people headaches, but as the best force in the country, he tended to step up when needed.
‘…The only problem is that he complains to the point of being annoying.’
Lee Hyun-wook also once teamed up with Han Tae-san in a duo concept.
Before Seo Eun-ha, Han Tae-san was Lee Hyun-wook’s dedicated tank.
But… Lee Hyeon-wook died before he could grow up properly.
“Oh, is that the steel fleet? Hey…”
At that time, Han Taesan approached the airships as if he was interested.
“Hmm, what is it? If you look at it up close, it looks like it will shatter if you hit it?”
That… may have been true to some extent based on Hantaesan.
“Oh… this one looks fine, just a little loose?”
It was Prydwen who received such an evaluation. He hit the torso of Prydwen with his palm and whistled. Then, he spotted Lee Hyun-wook. “Hmm, it’s embarrassing to look at the
owner because he’s sitting like a fool.”
“…Han Tae-san, it’s been a while.”
He smiled and strode closer.
“Lee Hyun-wook, the handsome guy from Seoul… We’ve seen each other before, right?”
“Yes, it happened a long time ago during the Seoul Station Unlucky event.”
“I didn’t know at the time, but I found out later. Vicky had ignored my words so many times that I almost hit the savior of Seoul.”
He swore and held out his hand.
‘It’s only once that such a rude bastard asks for a handshake.’
Lee Hyun-wook concentrated all of his strength on his gloved hand, and Han Tae-san’s clumsy hand grabbed his hand like a crocodile’s mouth.
Jaw-snap-
snapping in a handshake…
“Oh, your strength. “Is it better than you thought?”
Lee Hyun-wook’s eyebrows twitched as if his grip was stronger than expected. However, if Han Tae-san had applied his strength properly, Lee Hyun-wook’s hand might have been crushed. This monster was at least the best in strength in the world.
‘But picking on this guy was my specialty.’
Lee Hyun-wook grinned and exercised his control over the metal.
Then……
“—Ugh!”
Taesan Han groaned and grabbed his head.
“…Why are you doing that?”
“Oh, why does my head suddenly hurt so bad?”
He shook his head curiously.
‘Hantaesan’s bones are metal, so I can hold them and shake them.’
Also known as ‘Steel Skeleton’, it was one of Han Tae-san’s passive skills.
Of course, since it was a unique body containing energy, it could not be broken or deformed like ordinary metal, and at best the body could be lifted into the air.
‘That seems to be allowed for the sum of players.’
However, even that could have been easily restricted if Han Tae-san himself had noticed and tried to reject it… but this guy didn’t even notice in his past life.
Considering that, it was a style that was surprisingly dull.
“Anyway… you stole my first prize last time, right?”
This was the story of the Seoul Station Unlucky Event.
At that time, Lee Hyun-wook obtained the ‘Mananan Mak Rir’s Secret Armor.’
“When I went home and thought about it, I remembered how you stuck a needle or something into the heart of that boss monster like a rat. ”
“Haha—you noticed that too?”
“But don’t even dream about it this time. Even if you pile up your contribution by pouring thousands of steel rain or whatever, a single blow from my fist will overtake you.”
He gave such a childlike threat with a triumphant expression, and
Lee Hyun-wook nodded and slowly exerted control over the metal.
“Ah! Ah! Why are you feeling like this today?”
He was about to say something else, but as if he had forgotten, he scratched his cheek and turned away.
“…Ugh!”
***
And as soon as dawn broke the next day, preparations for the sortie began. Hundreds of players were moving in unison. We boarded 13 airships.
– …Steel Fleet is taking off!
A sortie signal was issued from the base camp command center. As there was no ‘call sign’, the nickname was adopted as the call sign. That’s how
13 aircraft were launched. The airships soared toward the South Sea.
As the altitude gradually increased, the archipelago of the South Sea spread out beneath their feet.
“Ah, here is the commander of Operation Friedwen informing the entire fleet.”
Seo-yoon Kang, sitting next to Hyun-wook Lee, grabbed the Mana messenger.
“As briefed yesterday, our operational goal is not yet an attack. First, after landing at Jeju International Airport, we will make the area sacred and block the approach of evil spirit monsters to create a ‘base’ connected to the mainland. ”
The biggest problem with this attack was that the target area was an island.
Therefore, it was difficult to infiltrate, supply, and escape.
And, above all, even the way for the islanders to escape was blocked.
“…So the islanders evacuated inland . “The primary goal is to secure a way to transport troops and supplies in the future.”
The number of civilians stranded on Jeju Island alone was 700,000.
If they established a base at Jeju International Airport and sanctified the area,
they would be able to block the approach of the troublesome evil spirit, the ‘Red Wisp’.
If only this were done, sea routes and air routes could be prevented. The furnace regains its function.
After some time, gray smoke began to appear in the distance.
“Hmm… you should be able to see Jeju Island from here.”
However, the sky over Jeju Island was now surrounded by gray smoke, so even satellites could not confirm what was happening there.
But a red light began to spread from within.
That is….
“A large group of red wisps are approaching about 10km ahead!”
“after! “It’s finally starting… sound the air raid alarm for the entire fleet.”
Kang Seo-yoon gritted her teeth and grabbed the bow wrapped around her.
whiz-! whiz-! whiz-! whiz-!
Red Wisps: They fly in groups, and when they find a moving object, they cling to it and emit ultra-high heat. Just yesterday alone, there were dozens of downed planes and sunken ships.
They were running furiously now.
Soon, red lights filled the entire area.
“—Crash!”
They made a loud noise as they rushed through the magic shield.
Gulp.
Everyone looked out the window with nervous expressions. There was red light everywhere
,
as if they had jumped into a fire.
But… that was the end.
“Huh?”
“Wow… I guess airships are really amazing, aren’t they?”
The players could not help but be amazed as they looked at the scene. Thousands of red wisps swept past, but there was no damage whatsoever. “And
that too, why is this airship filled with so much divine power?”
One priest player who can feel divine power added:
It was true.
Lee Hyun-wook took great care in advance and had the fuselage repaired with metal enchanted with divine power. Those demons would never pursue the Iron Fleet again.
But I heard Han Tae-san’s snort from inside.
“Ha, what’s so scary about a cigarette like that?”
Then he sat back in his chair and started to doze off.
‘…I still hate him when I see him again.’
When the proud Han Tae-san took over the role of Lee Hyun-wook’s ‘dedicated tanker’, Lee Hyun-wook was just emerging as the best dealer. ‘I had a hard time with
that guy’s dirty temper back then…’
Anyway, that’s how he started Red Wisp. When we dug through, we reached the sea off Jeju.
We would soon reach the coast of Jeju.
…It was then.
-Chik—
“Huh? “It seems like a mana communication is coming from somewhere.”
– Chijiji——
A harsh noise flowed from the mana messenger mounted on the Pridwen.
– This is the Jeju International Airport shelter! Steel Fleet Can you hear me?
A radio message came from their destination… It was a very urgent voice.
“What’s going on here with the Steel Fleet?”
– Change your direction right now!
“…Please explain clearly what that means.”
– You must never come this way— Chijiji— Here suddenly— Tremendous— Chijiji— … You must not try to land here! The
radio cut out here and there was a clear warning message.
“…Huh? Retransmission. request!”
– Chijiji——
“Please retransmit from Jeju International Airport! Answer from Jeju International Airport!”
After that, I tried to communicate several times, but the connection never worked.
And it was already at this point that Jeju International Airport began to come into view.
