Episode 88 [ Those Following the Trace (3) ]
Smoke was rising from a point about 1km further from the barricade.
There was a large hole where smoke was rising. That wasn’t the only hole.
There were dozens of holes in the road. It was like cheese eaten by a mouse.
“The gas pipe buried under the road was a mess with holes like that. “The gas pipe was shut off, but for some reason smoke is still rising.”
Michael said, looking at the hole.
The holes were bigger than I thought.
-It is a hole made by a drill mall monster. It seems like a lot of time has passed. The number of holes is significant.
I was planning on going in anyway. Kyung-hoon nodded at Eve’s words.
After parting ways with the chairman, Kyung-hoon, Michael, and the National Guard troops that came with Kyung-hoon crossed the barricade and headed to the scene of the incident where smoke was rising.
Among the people who departed together was a woman who came from Moscow. Katerina was also there.
She soon changed into her military uniform and headed to the scene together, equipped with equipment no different from other troops.
No one said anything about her joining.
The Russians thought of course, and Kyung-hoon did not object.
The awakened ones were better than the regular soldiers anyway. Kyung-hoon, who knew that she was an awakened person, had no way of objecting.
Michael showed interest in Kyung-hoon’s sword.
“You use the same type of sword. “I thought an executioner would use something different.”
Michael showed his sword after seeing the sword that Kyung-hoon had brought openly from Turkey.
As he said, Kyung-hoon’s sword was Omar’s sword with the same simple lines as Michael’s sword.
There was no way I could take out something from the other world while other people were watching.
While they were talking, the soldiers approached the smoke-free outer pit.
There were mountaineering bolt hangers stuck around the hole. It was a hanger made by the team that came first. The soldiers hung ropes on the stuck hangers.
When preparations were complete, Kyunghoon and Michael approached the hole.
A cut gas pipe was visible in the wall of the hole.
Until recently, this gas pipe was the lifeline that supplied gas to all of Europe.
Due to the gas pipeline being blocked, not only Russia but also Europe was in great trouble.
There were clear blood stains around the gas pipe.
“It seems that the management company was trying to repair the gas pipe when there was only a hole and no monsters in sight. Well, as you can see, everyone died. Thanks to this, even the group head rushed to the scene.”
Even as he hung the rope on the rappelling equipment, Michael did not stop talking. Thanks to this, I had no choice but to listen again to the story I heard at the barricade.
“We must hurry. “If you encounter one while descending, there is no answer.”
After Michael finished speaking, the group disappeared into the pit one by one.
*
Same time. The field command post at the barricades became bustling.
“All entry teams have entered the cave.”
The lieutenant colonel who received the report gave instructions.
“Phase 2 operation begins.”
After a while, new cars came behind the barricade. They were military vehicles with antennas on their roofs.
Then the introduction of civilians began.
“The operation has begun. “Please evacuate all civilians to Torzok City.”
Employees of the gas pipeline management company and headquarters employees left the barricade in their cars.
“Chairman, please move too.”
An officer approached Chairman Bykov and said:
The chairman looked at the end of the road where smoke was flowing.
It was not easy to understand what EV was doing.
If I had known it was a trap, I would have avoided it, but I jumped into it. I couldn’t tell if I was reckless or confident.
But what if that reckless confidence becomes reality?
‘If EV wins here, the company will have to change its policy.’
Just as the gas pipe was cut, his company was also suffering a huge blow. If things continued like this, it would have gone bankrupt within a few years.
If EV could survive the Russian government’s trap, it was worth betting on him.
The chairman got into the car.
He took out his notebook and looked at a photo of his daughter smiling brightly.
For both his daughter’s sake and the company’s sake, he wanted EV to win.
Boom.
After the chairman’s car, all civilians withdrew from the barricades and nearby areas.
The lieutenant colonel standing in the center of the barracks made the final check.
“Final confirmation?”
“It’s progress.”
A radio operator immediately received confirmation from Moscow.
The lieutenant colonel gave the order.
“Reconnaissance party departs.”
“Order each battery to standby for battle.”
“And all subsequent contact uses conventional methods.”
The radio operator’s hands moved faster at his instructions.
Dozens of agile soldiers with weapons dispersed to and around the scene, and the artillery deployed in the city of Torzhok began preparing for battle. The radio operators all turned off their radios and looked at the lieutenant colonel.
“Start jamming. “Operation begins.”
Buzzing.
Cars with antennas on their roofs started to start.
The jammer inside the car started operating.
“Radio jamming has begun. “The transmission has been blocked.”
Jammer vehicles arranged in a triangular shape around the scene all began jamming radio waves.
EV’s eyes were blocked.
The lieutenant colonel closed his eyes at the last report. Now all that remains is to wait.
He just hoped things would work out.
He really didn’t want to rain shells on his soldiers’ heads.
*
– Connection to the outside world is blocked.
“Isn’t it because it went down too deep?”
-Even satellite phones were blocked. It’s radio interference.
Kyunghoon looked up. A blue sky was visible above the hole.
“Has it started?”
-Do you want to continue?
“Anyway, we have to catch the guy in here. “You can’t let Chairman Bykov go bankrupt.”
– Well, there is no way the owner would just leave it alone.
Since he had received help, there was no way in Kyung-hoon’s personality that he would just leave it behind.
Michael approached Kyunghoon.
“Why do you talk to yourself like that? Is it all because you talk to yourself that you don’t talk much? Haha…” It
wasn’t a funny joke at all. He must have noticed too, so he quickly stopped laughing and changed his mind.
“You have to be careful from now on. “The team that entered first was kicked out before they got far.”
He raised his sword and grinned.
“Would you like to come with me? If you use explosives, the cave will collapse and bullets will not work well, so we Awakened people have to take the lead.
-This is a truly childish provocation.
“I will.”
Kyunghoon stood next to Michael.
Katerina followed behind the two with a gun, followed a little distance away by dozens of soldiers.
The group entered the largest cave among the vertical caves.
Even though the cave was large, it was not big enough for dozens of people to go out in a row.
The soldiers entered the cave in two rows while remaining on guard.
– Guns don’t work well and shells can’t be used, but a lot of soldiers came in.
Eve grumbled at the sound of the soldiers’ footsteps.
She was right. They were useless soldiers when dealing with monsters in caves like this.
They were soldiers to deal with Gyeonghoon.
And there was another reason. It’s quite
noisy
because there are so many people.
Naturally, it was intended to attract the monster’s attention.
The Russian government planned the operation very carefully.
-Unfortunately, I just didn’t know the master’s abilities.
Along with Eve’s words, a sound came from inside the cave.
Drurr.
Something was coming.
Neither Michael nor the others had noticed yet.
“It’s the enemy.”
“yes?”
When Kyunghoon opened his mouth, Michael looked at him with a surprised expression.
“What… I can’t hear anything.”
Michael had a look of disbelief.
Kyung-hoon looked puzzled because he looked more surprised than expected.
Drurr.
Michael seemed to hear it too.
He looked back and forth between the inside of the cave and at Kyung-hoon with a serious face.
I don’t know why it did that, but I had to prepare first.
Kyung-hoon shouted towards the back.
“Enemies ahead!”
The soldiers did not react to Gyeonghoon’s words.
Michael then waved his hand, and only then did the officer give instructions to the soldiers.
-They are well trained. I heard it was a paramilitary organization. It’s like an elite soldier.
Russia’s National Guard was the president’s personal guard unit. If the military discipline was stronger than that of the general army, there was no way it was stronger or weaker.
But it didn’t really matter to Kyung-hoon.
He stopped paying attention to the soldiers behind him and focused on the approaching monster.
Soon the monster revealed itself.
It was a huge mole rat. A black mole rat that looks bigger than an ox.
It had long, sharp claws on both hands, and a tentacle-shaped sucker on its head instead of a mouth.
-This is a drill mall. Please be careful of the tentacles on the face. The suction power is strong so it is not easy to escape.
“I know.”
While Kyung-hoon was taking his stance, Michael surprisingly stepped forward.
He glanced at Kyung-hoon and gritted his teeth.
He couldn’t understand. You hear sounds before you do. This couldn’t have happened if it weren’t for his ability to listen.
He ran towards the monster.
Chwiik!
The tentacles on the monster’s head lengthened and shot at him.
Gradually, slowly.
He cut down the approaching tentacles with his sword.
He continued cutting the tentacles and blocked the monster’s claws with his sword.
Kang! Kang! Kang!
It was quite a skill.
He blocked the swinging claws and inflicted more wounds on the monster’s body.
-This is great skill. It seems like he fights better than when he first saw his master.
Kyung-hoon’s appetite whetted at Eve’s words. But Kyung-hoon had no choice but to admit it.
Awakened Michael was stronger than Gyeonghoon in D-class.
-I understand why the Russian government showed confidence. Russia has figured out how to grow the Awakened.
Unfortunately, there was no time to let Michael hold his cell phone.
It was only now that I discovered his secret.
Kyunghoon glanced back. Katerina was watching the battle in silence.
Unlike Michael, I stayed with Katerina for a long time. There was plenty of time to grab the phone.
-It seems that the D-class physical awakener and mental awakener are the weapons prepared by Russia.
“And the fully armed soldiers of the 3rd platoon.”
It was too much power to deal with just one awakened person. Moreover, since communication was blocked, it was impossible to know what preparations were being made from above. But neither Kyunghoon nor Eve were worried at all.
Puhak!
In the end, Michael’s sword pierced Drillmol’s neck.
Blood splattered everywhere. Michael didn’t avoid the blood and covered it all up.
He stood there and savored the energy.
I didn’t feel as ecstatic as I did when I climbed over the wall, but after killing the monster, the feeling of elation was like being in the arms of God.
All anxiety disappeared.
He was the chosen one.
After enjoying the afterglow for a while, Michael looked at Kyunghoon.
His blood-covered appearance was completely different from the brazen Russians I had seen so far.
Michael opened his mouth.
“Could you please show me what EV’s skills are?”
The way he spoke and showed his teeth was like a growling animal.
-You seem quite excited. Why are you doing that? This behavior is difficult to understand.
But Kyung-hoon seemed to understand.
“It’s a stupid thing to do, but there are times when you want to do it.”
Kyung-hoon pulled out his sword.
Drurr. Drurr.
The sounds of monsters were heard from inside the cave. Kyung-hoon walked forward.
Ugh.
Michael’s expression changed.
Light began to flow from Gyeonghoon’s sword.
