Episode 62. [ End of the wave, shocking declaration -2 ]
————————————=
Lee Hyun-wook and Park Jun-mo People were standing facing each other on the roof of Barracks No. 1.
However, Park Jun-mo was taking a breath with a nervous expression, wondering what he was going to do.
“Who—I’m ready!”
When Park Jun-mo said that, Lee Hyun-wook raised his left arm.
Blah blah blah——
His grip was rigid and some kind of blue energy started leaking out.
Grasping——
It was an electric current.
“Wow… Is that possible now? “
“So actually, this is my first time using it too.”
This was a new skill he acquired after swallowing a ring made of ‘Cheongcheol’ named ‘Little Flash’.
It was possible to produce and emit electric current from the rigid part, and
although it was not very powerful, it seemed like it could be used as a kind of electric shock device.
“Then now, you are
telling me that for the first time…” The moment Park Jun-mo asked that with a somewhat anxious expression, Lee Hyun-wook grabbed his forearm.
Dismissed—!
“Eugya–!”
Park Jun-mo collapsed on the floor with a scream.
“Hey, how about you stop being harsh?”
Park Jun-mo was probably ‘immune to electric shock’, so there was no way he could have been damaged.
He shook off his pants with a sheepish expression and stood up.
“Well, it doesn’t hurt, but the feeling of electricity passing through it is still a bit bad.”
“Nothing like that, did you see any system messages?”
“…ah! I will check right now!”
Park Jun-mo had a dazed expression as if he was checking the system message floating in front of him.
“Well, it’s definitely charged. But… the total amount is still the same.”
Hyunwook Lee nodded and lowered his hand.
Although it was expected, this level of current is only sufficient for ‘charging’.
‘Is the answer, after all, lightning?…’
Park Jun-mo said that when he was struck by lightning, his ‘ability level’ immediately increased four-fold. Looking at this
, it seems that it is
not a mechanism that grows steadily little by little like Lee Hyun-wook, but a characteristic that increases significantly in one shot, but the growth conditions are quite difficult.
“But is it really true that I have now become S-rank?”
In response to Park Jun-mo’s cautious question, Lee Hyun-wook nodded,
“Yes, but this fact is a secret for the time being, so you must not tell anyone.”
“Yes, I will keep that in mind.”
When he met Kang Seo-yoon and Woo Seong-moon three days ago, Lee Hyun-wook made a shocking declaration.
As a result of his tremendous performance in capturing the first wave in history, he was able to achieve an ‘achievement’ and thus not only himself, but also Park Jun-mo was awakened to S rank.
‘For some reason, it seems like the number of lies is increasing every day…’
Immediately after that, those present agreed to keep the emergence of a new S class a secret for the time being.
‘Well, it was an obvious choice.’
Revealing that a new S class was created in Korea was like a power leak.
This was because we did not know what tactics the forces controlling the growth of this country would do.
They could even try to eliminate the new S-rank players before they become top rankers.
In other words, the secret would be maintained for a while to protect the two people, and
it was necessary to maximize Park Jun-mo’s growth until then.
‘Well, I guess I’ll have to find a lightning magician strong enough to use lightning magic…’
Then, something suddenly occurred to me.
“Ah, Raijin’s Mace…”
Yes, Raijin’s Mace, that was it.
“Huh? Didn’t you hear me clearly?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
Lee Hyun-wook smiled, and Park Jun-mo felt uneasy for some reason.
“Um… but it’s getting dark. Shouldn’t we go down slowly?”
At Park Jun-mo’s words, Lee Hyeon-wook turned his head and looked at the sky.
Then, his eyes were caught by a huge object floating in the western sky.
‘Laputa…’
It had already been three days since it appeared, but it was still an awkward and grandiose scene. .Dozens of skyscrapers built on top of the hemispherical lower
part, about half the size of Yeouido…. The
scene where it was floating 1.5km above Seoul was an indescribable mystery.
At that time, the sun set to the west and was covered by its shadow. …
“Wow…”
In an instant, darkness came as if a solar eclipse had occurred, and
at the same time, various lights emitted from the surface of Laputa, illuminating the entire area.
That was the new night view of Seoul, which embraces the city of magic engineering.
“Wow… wouldn’t that, like the World Tree, bring great blessings to Seoul?”
Park Jun-mo once again clicked his tongue and said that.
The ‘Republic of Chad’, which was nothing more than a wasteland, developed spectacularly with the advent of the ‘World Tree.’
However, since Seoul was one of the best cities from the beginning, further growth was expected and only 3 Although several days had passed, a huge investment craze was blowing towards Seoul. To
put it simply, a huge amount of money was flowing into Seoul.
‘Yes, it is quite different from the Laputa I remember… but it will be beneficial.’
The image of Laputa that Lee Hyun-wook remembers is that it was a ‘Devil’s Fortress’ floating in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and
was used as a research facility by the villain mad scientist group [Black Door].
Lee Hyun-wook had infiltrated Laputa at the time, so he had a glimpse of its interior. I remembered.
The upper part was like a really developed city, so it was a kind of ‘residential area.’ It was
assumed that the really important facilities were inside the lower part of that hemisphere, that is, underground…
‘At that time, I didn’t have permission to go in, so I couldn’t go in.’ ‘I couldn’t do it.’
And the [National Gate Response Strategy Office] officially announced the results of the Laputa investigation yesterday,
saying that it is still impossible to enter Laputa as it was then.
‘…I think I understand to some extent why I cannot enter.’
He grabbed a key from his chest.
[Item Information]
– Name: Master Key of Ancient Heritage
– Effect: Unknown
It was clear from the context that this key was related to that place.
‘I didn’t know it at the time, but it was probably a villain. They probably received it as a reward for their success in the Seoul Erosion Quest.’
And this time, it was not Seoul, but Lee Hyun-wook who won.
***
Lee Hyun-wook constantly thought about his future plans.
‘Now that we have successfully prevented the 4th wave, we must prepare for the next one.’
What I was most concerned about was, of course, the actions of the ‘villain’.
When they interfered with the Seoul Station unlock, their movements were quite different.
However, as they blocked the 4th wave… a huge number of variables would arise.
‘As usual. If the erosion had progressed, their next target would be to assassinate a saint.’
It was a nickname for Emilia Müller, an S-class priestess.
She tended to stay at the world’s largest sanctuary, ‘Saint Dome’ in the Republic of Chad, but was
assassinated after entering Korea with the SS to ‘purify’ the erosion of Seoul. .
That was one of the greatest achievements of the villains whose main strength was the dark power, and
it was safe to say that the invasion of Seoul was actually done to kill her.
But now that the saint had no reason to leave the Saint Dome, assassination would have been impossible.
‘Then they… will be quiet for a while.’
The villains’ greatest weapon was ‘secrecy.’
The secret destructive power that comes from the fact that no one knows their true identity…
They don’t want to lose that, and in that respect, they are anxious that their identity will be revealed due to this failure. And for a while, I’ll focus on watching the world and taking care of things…
but ‘that’s only for a little while. I need to grow up as quickly as possible before they make a real move.’
I had to form a force and gather items for the next confrontation.
And to prepare for it, I was planning to go out tomorrow.
‘As expected, I can’t do anything if I’m in the unit.’
In the current situation, it would be natural for sleepovers and vacations to be restricted, but
Lee Hyun-wook is the savior of Seoul and is now an S-rank player, so permission was easily granted.
That afternoon, Lee Hyun-wook stopped by PX with the intention of cashing in his reward points. .
As usual, when he bought a few ‘Orbs’ and was about to pay, someone came up next to him.
“Why are you buying so many?”
It was Kim Se-hee.
“Ah, Sergeant Kim, it’s been 3 days?”
“Iknow, right. “This is the first time I’ve seen you clean and not covered in blood and sweat, right?”
“Even if you clean it up, it’s still a combat uniform.”
“I’ve heard people say that if you put on lotion well, your combat uniform will look good on you.”
Lee Hyun-wook chuckled, perhaps because she was a woman who knew how to say she was pretty.
“Oh, do you know that? If I did, it wouldn’t be a good idea…”
“I’m just kidding. Hmm, but I have something to tell you. Would you like to sit down for a moment?”
As the two sat face to face, the attention of those around them was focused.
If it had been a while ago, Kim Se-hee, known as the goddess
of the 2nd Company, would have been the center of attention, but now the aura of Lee Hyun-wook, the commander of the Steel Company, was much bigger. All
the officers and soldiers glanced sideways at Lee Hyun-wook and whispered.
Even in this small unit, it would be very tiring if he went out into society with his face known.
“Uh, um…”
But for some reason, Kim Se-hee scratched his cheek and paused.
“I will soon be discharged.”
Come to think of it, Kim Se-hee was a sergeant in his later years.
“You still have a month or two left until you are discharged, right? So there’s one thing I’d like to ask.”
It was Kim Se-hee, who was quietly pausing as to what she wanted to ask.
“So… are you going to stay at AMT or go to some guild?”
Lee Hyun-wook received numerous love calls, but he had not yet made a clear decision.
“Well, why are you asking such a sensitive thing? By any chance… didn’t someone tell you to dig it up?”
“No! I’m just trying to hold on to this and that.”
Lee Hyun-wook understood what he meant.
‘Kim Se-hee, are you thinking about where to work?’
Originally, after the end of the 4th wave, he had to be selected by the Black Tiger Unit and become a non-commissioned officer.
However, this time, a big variable called Lee Hyun-wook came into play, and he seemed to want to follow the same path as Lee Hyun-wook due to what he felt in the process.
So, it was somewhat like this . They’re asking blatantly…
‘This is a bit surprising.’
This is because I thought Kim Se-hee’s personality was not the type to seize ‘opportunities’.
However, in some ways, Lee Hyun-wook’s performance was so outside of common sense that it was natural for people to follow him.
The soldiers of the Steel Company also hoped that the Steel Company would continue. He used to show his wishes.
‘Anyway, it’s a good thing. There’s no need to leave such a talented person in the military…’
Lee Hyun-wook chuckled and replied,
“Then, Sergeant Kim, will you continue to work with me?”
When she asked that question, the corners of Kim Se-hee’s mouth neither went up nor down.
But it was probably the answer I was looking for.
Because of her pride, she may not have been able to directly say that she wanted to be next to Lee Hyun-wook…
“Oh? Yes! Well! That’s good! We got along well when we were in the Steel Company, right?”
“Actually, I think I got along better with Hani…”
Kim Se-hee’s expression crumpled.
“Haha— calm down. “It would be nice to work with someone like Sergeant Kim.”
“Ahaha… That’s an honor.”
“Okay, that’s good. I have a guild to introduce you to.”
Kim Se-hee looked slightly surprised.
“Yes? Guild? I honestly thought you would stay at AMT…”
It seemed like she asked this hastily with the intention of staying if Lee Hyun-wook stayed at AMT.
“First of all, it’s not right to talk about the details here…”
Lee Hyun-wook stood up.
” Restrictions on movement in downtown Seoul have been lifted starting today, so let’s go out together tomorrow.”
“…Yes?”
“If I tell you, the battalion commander will approve. “I have already given permission.”
Kim Se-hee looked dizzy as something seemed to be happening too quickly.
“Oh no, but if we said we were going out together, wouldn’t that picture be a bit… strange?”
Lee Hyun-wook tilted his head at that question.
“Huh? No, it’s not just the two of us going out.”
“Ah…”
***
The next day, the three of them, Lee Hyun-wook, Kim Se-hee, and Park Jun-mo, were ordered to have a special sleepover.
So, I chartered a bus and got off at Singil Station, not Seoul Station.
Restricted traffic was allowed from yesterday, but the streets were empty because they were not quiet.
The government announced that almost all monsters in the city had been eradicated, but it was still dangerous.
“Um… where is this?”
In front of the Hope Guild, Kim Se-hee and Park Jun-mo looked a bit dazed.
“We have a few places to stop by today, but this is our first destination.”
Fortunately, Park Cheol-soo’s residence was not in Seoul, so he was able to avoid the disaster called the Wave.
And luckily, the office of the Hope Guild did not suffer any damage either.
Let’s go inside….
“Yes, you can sign here and here….”
“If you have completed signing the contract, you can bring it to me!”
“Now—could the next person please come this way?”
For some reason, the situation was much busier than when I came before.
Park Cheol-soo and his staff were responding to dozens of players.
And…
“Oh, Mr. Hyunwook!”
This voice was Lee Jeong-jun, whom we had established in the 4th wave. When
he called Lee Hyun-wook, everyone in the office turned their heads.
“Huh!” hello!”
“Wow! I get to see the heroes of Steel Company Seoul again!”
Each person said a word of greeting,
and as they had been fighting together for four days, they couldn’t help but be happy faces.
Lee Jeong-jun came up to me in a huff and held out his hand, and Lee Hyun-wook took it.
“Thank you so much. Thanks to Hyun-wook, I was able to avoid being unemployed.”
On the first day of the wave, Lee Jeong-jun and his colleagues ignored the guild master’s orders and went to rescue the citizens of the Jangchung-dong community center, and were fired from the guild.
Lee Hyun-wook introduced this Hope Guild to them just in case, and they decided to join together, believing only in the name of Lee Hyun-wook.
“No. It’s a small guild, but I’m just grateful that you gladly joined it.”
“Haha—who is looking after you? Why should you judge based on appearance alone?”
With this, the Hope Guild was experiencing an unprecedented boom in history.
“Hey, Hyun-wook…”
So Park Cheol-soo was in a half-fazed state.
“What on earth is going on? “I’m not dreaming, am I?”
As soon as they heard on TV this morning the absurd fact that the main character of the 4th wave hero Steel Company was Lee Hyeon-wook, as many as 18 players showed up chanting his name and asking to join.
They were also qualitatively superior to those of the existing Hope Guild members.
“Hyun-wook, you really lifted me up from the abyss to heaven…”
Park Cheol-soo was so moved that he even had tears in his eyes.
“See, I told you to just trust me.”
“Thank you so much. Oh, and just like you said, those stocks are also going up a lot, haha…” The stocks that Lee Hyun-wook pointed out
, such as Seongsu Manufacturing, Holy Weapon Workshop, and Magic Engineering,
were hitting record highs every day.
These were all stocks that benefited from the 4th wave.
However, Kim Se-hee and Park Jun-mo were still left dumbfounded.
“Hey, what the hell is this place…”
Kim Se-hee followed Lee Hyun-wook when he said he would introduce the guild.
But the Hope Guild…
It was a place I had never heard of, and it looked quite small and unattractive.
I couldn’t help but feel a bit absurd.
“Sergeant Kim, you want to work with me, right?”
In response to Lee Hyun-wook’s quite serious question, Kim Se-hee nodded,
“Hmm, that’s right.”
“This is the guild I am raising.”
“…yes?”
While he was active like that, I was curious as to when he had been growing a guild.
“It’s still small, but soon a lot of money will be invested and a lot of good jobs will be created.”
I didn’t even have to hear where that big money would come from.
Lee Hyun-wook would receive a huge reward as the biggest contributor to the wave.
“So… Sergeant Kim, can you lead the start of this guild?”
“What can I do to lead it?…”
“What should I do? Just yell like you used to in the military.”
As expected, it was a style that made it impossible to hide the emotions on Kim Se-hee’s crumpled face.
“Anyway, you don’t take jokes very well. You came here trusting me, so I also trust Sergeant Kim and will entrust you with this guild’s strategy from now on.”
Kim Se-hee hesitated for a moment and nodded.
That’s right, she had trusted Lee Hyun-wook from the beginning and followed him.
‘This person is different.’
As I watched him over the past few days, I could feel,
‘He’s a different person in every way.’
She wasn’t the type to get attached to someone like this. But ever since the Steel Company mission was over, she felt anxious that she shouldn’t get away from this person named Lee Hyun-wook. “I understand. Instead… make sure no one dies like you promised last time
. yo. this.”
Kim Se-hee had bad memories of her colleague’s death,
so she insisted on emphasizing the words:
“I will try my best, but now Sergeant Kim must work hard too.”
“Yes, that’s right…”
Kim Se-hee eventually promised to join the Hope Guild after being discharged from the military.
But at the same time, he couldn’t hide his curiosity.
“No, but you must have received huge offers, right? Did you just throw them all away?”
She didn’t know the details, but it was a self-evident fact. It
was already well-known that officer commissioning was being recommended at the AMT level.
Even, three days ago, Kang Seo-yoon from [Zumunnarae] visited the unit.
That means Hyun-wook Lee also there. It meant that he was asking for something.
To throw away all those things and establish a guild… That was truly amazing.
But Lee Hyun-wook shook his head.
“No. “We will go in the direction of accepting all of their conditions.”
“Huh? Is that… possible?”
“It’s still a secret, but let me tell you one thing first…”
Kim Se-hee pricked up her ears.
“The Hope Guild here will be a sub of the Zumunnarae Guild.”
Sub In other words, it meant becoming a subsidiary of Zmunnarae.
“Huh? Is that really me?”
“Yes, I’ve been talking to CEO Kang Seo-yoon for three days now.”
“Oh no… wasn’t the iron law of Zmunnarae a small elite group?”
“Well, the Steel Company felt like a small elite group, right?”
“No matter what, it doesn’t make sense…”
Kim Se-hee somehow felt like she was hanging on a very thick rope.
The Jeumunnarae Guild was in fact the best guild in Korea, or even the world.
However, not everyone could enter, and it was an elite event made up of only A grade or higher players.
But in fact, it was not a very difficult transaction for Lee Hyun-wook.
He would give up anything, no matter how small, to get two S-rank players.
“Now, we have to move quickly. I still have more places to stop by. I’m busy today.”
“Where are you going this time? “Can you tell me in advance so I don’t get embarrassed?”
A few days ago, he was a cool-headed commander, but today he seemed like a young businessman.
“I’ve set up a guild to work in after the war, so I should go pick up some items to commemorate the war.”
But at that moment,
“Pfft—”
Lee Hyun-wook’s face suddenly hardened for some reason.
It was because a single line of system message appeared in front of his eyes.
– Metal absorption completed. : Dwarven Great Mountain Engine (Legendary)
* Controllable The metal weight increased: 2544g.
Finally, the ‘Dwarven Great Mountain Engine (Legendary)’ was absorbed. It was
certainly a welcome event, but…
– An ‘Infinity Engine’ is forming in the heart. (1% )
* May be accompanied by extreme pain!
‘…Heart?’
This time, following the stomach and central nervous system, a new organ began to form in the heart.
“Huh? What’s wrong?”
“it’s nothing.”
“It’s not the facial expression, is it?”
It was a much more intense pain than the previous two.
As always, the excruciating pain would become steep growing pains.
