Episode 24 [Left Behind (1)]
［The awakened contact network has been converted to an emergency contact network. Information update has stopped. If you are an awakened person who received this message, please visit the location below.]
[18 Neung-dong, Gwangjin-gu – Central Region Mana Core Network Control Center]
It was a message that did not smell human. It looked similar to the warning message that sounds when a typhoon or heat wave approaches.
Moreover, I did not understand the content of the message. It didn’t suit the current situation at all.
“Is it like automatic sending?”
Kyunghoon glared at his phone. It was difficult to get my bearings as this message came out of nowhere.
Are there any survivors there, or is there equipment that is automatically dispatched?
Or maybe it’s a monster’s trap…
No, the last thought was blown out of my head. It went too far.
The problem was what to do with this message. Should I ignore it and move on as originally planned, or should I go to the place mentioned in the text?
Kyung-hoon scratched his head while looking at his phone.
If you think about it, honestly, it wasn’t something worth worrying about.
Anyway, the [Awakened Training Center] that I decided to go to this time was just decided in the following order considering the distance and direction.
If it was far, go later, and if it was close or on the route, stop by first.
Well, if they were going in opposite directions, we would have to worry about it, but fortunately, the directions weren’t that different.
Kyung-hoon checked the exact location using the navigation.
“Children’s Grand Park?”
In the other world, Seoul Children’s Grand Park was located there.
“What happened to destroy the grand park and build something like this?”
As a result of traveling and observing this city, Gyeong-hoon learned to some extent the difference between the Seoul of the original world and the destroyed city. The
old buildings in the two cities were different in appearance and location, but at one point, the appearance of this city began to change. I lost. The buildings in this city have changed since the moment when the mutant, or rather the monster, appeared.
Of course, they have all returned to ruins now….
‘It’s too close…’
Kyung-hoon looked at the navigation with suspicious eyes. I glared at him. But that didn’t change anything.
In the end, he decided to change direction.
Instead of going down Jungnangcheon toward the Han River, he decided to cross Jungnangcheon and head toward the Grand Park. It seemed like it
had been raining continuously since the last time it rained. Reeds Jungnangcheon, full of rivers, was flowing with violent torrents.
“It’s getting more and more mountainous.”
Arriving at the banks of Jungnangcheon, Gyeonghoon looked around with a perplexed expression.
None of the bridges crossing Jungnangcheon were in good condition.
Where Seongdong Bridge should have been, only two pillars remained, and there was no trace of the bridge where the Line 2 train passed. I brought a rubber boat because I was afraid I might have to cross the Han River, but it was impossible in those rapids.
“If only I could have brought the motorboat engine…”
I hadn’t even thought about it since it didn’t fit inside the backpack, but seeing the current made me think about it again.
As it was, it was necessary to move along the Jungnang Stream, either upstream or downstream. Moreover, there was no guarantee that he would find a good leg even if he moved.
At that time, a bridge made of stone appeared as if frozen through the current.
“Is it a leg?”
It may have been a mistake due to the current, but now was the time to grasp at straws.
Gyeong-hoon ran toward the stone bridge.
Fortunately, the bridge hit.
[Salgoji Bridge]
The stone bridge made during the Joseon Dynasty was left alone in Jungnangcheon.
Kwaaaa.
Now, the rest . The problem was the current of Jungnang Stream. The swollen water of Jungnang Stream was continuously washing away the stone bridge.
The current looked as if it would sweep away cars, let alone people. If public officials had seen it, they would have clearly put up a large no-traffic sign. Still,
Kyung-hoon said he was Even
after just awakening, his body surpassed that of an ordinary person. Now that his level has risen twice, he can now perform the wire action he saw in movies with his bare body. “Whew.
”
Gyeonghoon took a deep breath in front of the stone bridge that appeared and then disappeared.
He thought he was confident enough, but facing the strong torrent in front of him, he couldn’t help but feel nervous.
‘I can do it. I can do it.’
After reciting the mantra several times,
“Pot!”
When the bridge appeared, Kyung-hoon launched himself.
Ta, ta, ta.
Kyung-hoon ran across the bridge. He was poised to break the 100m world record in the blink of an eye. .
But soon the current hit the bridge again.
Poo Hak!
Staggering, Gyeong-hoon was pushed back hard by the current.
“Oh no!”
It didn’t work out as expected. Kyung-hoon’s body became much stronger than before, but his body weight was not that much heavier than before.
Resisting the current required physical strength and a heavy body weight.
Kyung-hoon’s body was pushed off the bridge.
At that moment, Kyung-hoon pulled out the dagger from his waist and plunged it into the stone bridge.
A dagger with an engraved pattern was driven into the leg as if stabbing the head.
It was a destruction of cultural property, but Gyeonghoon had no time to think about such things.
“Ugh.”
Kyung-hoon hung on to the dagger and resisted the current. The current of water passed by hitting Kyung-hoon.
After a while, when the current subsided a little, Gyeong-hoon quickly opened his backpack and took out the large sword.
Contrary to expectations, it was impossible to run across the bridge barefoot. And, the only way was to hang on. I brought this great sword because I had nowhere else to put it, and it was perfect for use here.
Sigh!
Gyeong-Hoon plunged his great sword into the stone bridge. The large sword that reached up to Gyeonghun’s neck stood tall on the stone bridge.
Gyeong-hoon leaned on the bayonet and withstood the current.
After a moment, he pulled out his greatsword and plunged it into the front.
And continued to repeat the actions from before.
Deep. Deep. Deep.
Crossing the river while leaning on a single bayonet looked as dangerous as rock climbing with only a climbing pickel. However, with one support, Kyung-hoon was able to move forward quickly even in the current.
I had barely breathed a sigh of relief after passing about two-thirds of the way through the river.
Boom.
A heavy sound was heard from downstream of the river.
“What is that again?”
It was like adding insult to injury. Downstream, a huge black figure was coming up through the water.
A huge fin on its back and a tail that cuts through the water. It was a monster that lived in the water.
The river was so large that even the swollen water could not completely cover his body. It was clear that he had come up from the Han River.
‘Is the Han River full of people like that again?’
Kyung-hoon was worried about how to cross the Han River again, but right now was not the time to worry about that.
Considering its size, it didn’t seem easy to fight, but here, it was easy to just run away, let alone fight.
Kyung-hoon moved forward, frantically striking with his sword.
Buuuuung.
But that black monster approaching through the water seemed much faster than that.
It was just as you saw. A moment later, when a huge fish monster came right in front of him, Kyung-hoon still had about 10 meters left to reach the riverside.
A horizontal solid line appeared on the monster’s shiny black head.
And the solid lines widened widely from top to bottom.
Kuaaaaak.
Countless jagged teeth protruded from the gaping hole. The solid line a moment ago was the monster’s mouth.
“Eh, I don’t know.”
Gyeong-hoon pulled out the great sword that was stuck in the stone and
swung it with all his might.
Suddenly! The stone bridge was cut off. Gyeong-hoon continued to run forward and continued to cut the stone bridge.
Grumble.
The cut stones began to sway and float down.
Plop.
Kyung-hoon fell into the water before he could go a few meters, but the stone bridge, which had been cut off on one side, was pushed by the current and began to collapse.
Crumbling.
The entire stone bridge was broken and pushed into the huge monster with the stronger current. Kuok?
Monster ?
Was it a mistake to feel that there was a hint of puzzlement mixed in with the roar?
The monster fluttered around frantically at the unexpected barrage of stones.
Water surged, reeds flew in all directions,
and Gyeong-hoon appeared next to the rampaging monster.
He carefully climbed to the riverside, and as soon as he got out of the water, he ran out of Jungnangcheon without even looking back.
Buuuuu!
The roar of the monster continued to be heard behind him.
Only after running to a place where he could not see the river was Gyeonghoon able to stop.
Kyung-hoon leaned against the collapsed wall and caught his breath. Although it was only a short period of time, it felt like he had run a triathlon. “
Huh, huh, huh, really, do we have to postpone the start until dimensional travel becomes possible?”
Originally, I was planning on arriving at my destination and timing my dimensional travel. But if even moving was this dangerous, I had to think again.
However, if you focus on safety like that, you might not be able to do anything. Moreover, if I spent the wrong time, I could have had to spend the night here.
I thought about it for a while, but couldn’t come to a conclusion.
“No, let’s stick to the original plan first and then go back and think about it again.”
I was worried that if I changed my plan midway, I might mess up the job.
As soon as Kyung-hoon’s breath calmed down, he started moving again.
On the way to his destination, he saw several sights. He saw a pack of
wild dog-like monsters running in droves, hiding on the rooftop of an apartment complex. He also took a detour when he saw that the entire housing complex was filled with huge holes.
While looking at the various sights, Kyung-hoon no longer felt unfamiliar with this abandoned city and monsters.
From the beginning, this city was intended for monsters, not humans, to live in. It almost looked as if it had been created.
“It must have looked that way because it was a city where monsters lived for more than 10 years.”
Gyeonghoon shook off the idle thoughts that suddenly came to his mind and quickened his pace.
Perhaps thanks to his hardships in Jungnangcheon, Gyeonghoon was able to evade the monsters until he reached his destination.
In the end, when we arrived at the destination after the dimensional travel time, there was almost nothing left of Children’s Grand Park.
Only the half-ruined tiled main gate and the fountain behind it still retained the appearance of the Children’s Grand Park.
However, behind the dust-filled fountain, low laboratory buildings were lined up.
And in the center of the buildings, a huge transmission and reception tower stood with its back bent.
[Mana Core Network Control Center]
Next to the main gate, where the ticket booth was, there was a nameplate with a very long name.
When we arrived, Kyung-hoon didn’t have the courage to go inside.
Rather, it was a case of having to stay far away and hide.
These buildings, which looked quite normal, were already taken over by monsters.
Monsters resembling the wild dogs I saw on my way here were appearing all over the building.
As far as I could see, there were dozens of them, and it seemed like those monsters had probably made these buildings their home.
“What should I do now?”
No matter how you look at it, it was impossible to search the buildings through those monsters.
Kyung-hoon took out his phone again with an embarrassed look on his face and put his face on the phone screen with a surprised expression.
A new message and button were added below the message seen earlier.
［Welcome to visit. Please press the button.]
[Visit Report]
The ‘Visit Report’ button was blinking.
Gyeonghoon blinked and placed his hand on the button. The button was pressed. A
twinkling
light appeared in the sky where the setting sun had begun to fall.
Light came into the bent transmitting and receiving tower.
And pale light began to seep through the dark buildings. Electricity came into the buildings.
Oooooh!
The startled wild dog monsters screamed to the sky.
Purr.
And then a call came on the cell phone that Kyung-hoon was holding.
