Translator: Wan ED/PR: Personal Ghost
38. Youth training camp (6)
Sawol Seeum’s Gwangrim ‘The King Said’, which conveyed the voice of the king, was a very powerful and dangerous ability.
Naturally, in the era with developed transportation and communication technologies, there were numerous ways to convey a voice besides a messenger as a medium.
The biggest difference between such conventional methods and ‘The King Said’ was in conveying the order or command[1].
The content of Sawol Seeum’s Gwangrim’s message cannot be distorted, so there are no means or ways to obstruct it, and the voice will be delivered by various means until the target understands the command.
The command I gave was ‘Head to the central shelter’.
Until residents head towards the central shelter, they will remain under the influence of the ‘The King Said’.
‘It would be difficult for the person to follow if an unknown highschooler suddenly told them to flee, right? Rather than delivering the voice directly into someone’s head, they will be guided by other means to naturally understand that command.’
For example, in the eyes of the resident, who came outside to watch stars, it would seem like a meteor shower suddenly poured down from the north.
Or the resident, who was sleeping, would suddenly wake up because of a terrifying event in their dream.
Or they would recall that their lost wallet was in the central shelter.
Or the portrait of the deceased fell down, or the window shattered.
‘The King Said’ would guide residents to the central shelter by causing all kinds of occurrences.
Swishhh….
After a friendly and warm superpower wave spread out, with Sawol Seeum in its center, the lights started to turn on in the private houses on the coast one after another.
As I used the function of the Exclusive Menu’s ‘Open the map of surrounding’, I saw a great movement among numerous residents.
‘People started to move!’
Even though I was delighted by this, my head hurt.
Observing the whole island with the map to understand the movements of each individual required substantial amount of concentration power, but there was nothing I could do if I wanted to secure the Trajectory’s available time to the best of my abilities.
There were ways like using Cheon Dong-ha’s ‘Eyes embracing Heaven and Earth’, or Ju Su-hyeok’s skill ‘Clairvoyance’.
However, as I had to protect Sawol Seeum, who was in a defenseless state while using Gwangrim as it was impossible for him to move, I needed to spare power for a situation when we encounter an opponent.
‘If it goes like this, the evacuation will end safely. It’ll be fine if Sawol Seeum is safely protected until the end of the evacuation… uh?’
As I checked the location of our class children, teachers-nim and opponents, I felt my spine turn cold.
There were a few points that were showing movements deviating from the expected
I kept in my mind situations with a certain degree of uncertainty and made plans for them, but a being that should never move late caught my eye.
‘Hwang Jiho is late…!’
Hwang Jiho wasn’t in the place he should have been.
If it goes like this, there may be injured.
But I couldn’t move from here.
***
Maeng Hyodon and Kwon Lena ran towards the south with Kim Yuri as their leader.
Kim Yuri, who possessed Sprinter skill, and Maeng Hyodon, who had outstanding physical abilities, ran easily, but Kwon Lena, who was sprinting with all her might, barely could follow after the two.
‘Both of them are so fast!’
Because she couldn’t whine in such an emergency situation, Kwon Lena endured and ran.
In addition, it was because she also knew that the two could raise their speed even more, but ran at this speed out of consideration for her.
‘Is Yuri okay?’
Today Kim Yuri went to sleep early as if she was tired.
Before Maeng Hyodon came, Kwon Lena was having a video call with Min Geurin on the veranda, so as not to disturb Kim Yuri.
When the communication was suddenly cut off, and the device malfunctioned, through the window she saw Kim Yuri suddenly sit up and tremble, and soon afterwards, Maeng Hyodon arrived.
“Wait.”
Kim Yuri suddenly stopped and looked towards the road.
After Maeng Hyodon and Kwon Lena turned their eyes, following Kim Yuri, they saw residents moving using cars, air boards and bicycles, etc.
“Why are they moving like this at midnight?”
“Considering the direction, it seems they’re going to the Seongmo Island’s central shelter.”
“Ah, you said that Uisin and Seeum guided the evacuation, right? I guess the two of them are doing well!”
After confirming the scene of evacuating residents, the three continued to climb Haemyeong Mountain and moved south-west.
When at last they arrived at the place where the seashore was visible.
Paat!
Superpower waves burst around Kwon Lena and Kim Yuri for a second, and then as they disappeared, the two suddenly raised their heads and looked in one direction at the same time.
What activated at the same time as they entered a suitable range was Kwon Lena’s Enemy Detection skill and Kim Yuri’s Danger Detection skill.
“For the world…”
“….!”
He didn’t have a skill, but Maeng Hyodon could also see it.
On the surface of the calm and dark night sea, Enemies were surging forward like a wave.
It was a situation where from Maeeum-ri dock a span of 1km of the seashore, through the Minmeo-ru beach and Eoryujeonghang, was on a brink of being enshrouded by Enemies.
Even with eye calculations, their number seemed to be more than a thousand.
“Wh-what should we do? That, a-all of them have SR rank rarity or higher…!”
Kwon Lena, who read the information, spoke with a frightened voice.
All three of them had close combat skills, and they didn’t have a skill worthy to be used to attack multiple targets.
Maeng Hyodon wore a protective gear with a stiff face, and Kwon Lena also held a whip weapon.
They judged that it was already too late to escape.
The face of Kim Yuri, who looked at the two, turned pure-white.
She fell into panic at the thought that her class friends were in danger because of her.
‘Because of me, Lena and Hyodon…!’
If she quietly fled north as the higher beings in the dream told her, they might have been able to endure until support came.
She should have trusted Uisin and Seeum, who were in charge of evacuation and go look for teacher Ham Geunhyeong-nim!
Kim Yuri was about to blame herself like this, but…
“Yuri, take out your weapon! The first line of Enemies will reach the ground in 3 minutes! … Hey, are you okay?”
“…Are you hurt?”
Even so, the two of them didn’t have any resentment towards her and comforted Kim Yuri.
At that moment.
Kim Yuri heard a voice in her head.
[Do You still have courage left?]
As Kim Yuri raised her head, she saw a small butterfly embodied with a superpower wave circling around her.
Kim Yuri recalled the butterfly Jin who bestowed her a blessing.
The words that Jin left for Kim Yuri were ‘When all your courage disappears, I’ll help you’.
‘Was it a courageous action to come here? I think what I just did should be called recklessness or bravado.’
As it was the worst kind of courage that draws friends into danger.
Kim Yuri hesitated what she should reply to the Jin.
“If we fight together, other kids and teachers-nim will come to us, right…?”
“Yeah. I think that the vice class president, that fucker, noticed that something is about to explode here right now, considering that he evacuated people from here.”
Unlike hesitating Kim Yuri, the two had a firm trust, even while they prepared to fight a battle without a chance of winning.
Kim Yuri took out an item card and materialized a lightsaber.
She didn’t know how it would be if there were no friends beside her, but as long as they’re here, it seemed that she would be able to build her courage.
So Kim Yuri still couldn’t borrow this Jin’s power.
After Kim Yuri held a weapon and prepared to fight, she heard the voice of the butterfly again.
[How regretful, it didn’t turn out as I thought… I expected I would be able to use it at least two times.]
Didn’t turn out as she thought?
Use it at least two times?
What sound was that Jin making?
At the moment Kim Yuri realized that something was wrong.
The Jin wearing a mesh cloak with a butterfly wings pattern appeared in her head like a
dreamy illusion.
Kim Yuri’s mind connected with Nabiryeong, who was linked through blessing.
In Nabiryeong’s hands was a frame with a white butterfly pinned by thumbtacks on a magnolia background.
[Goodbye, young lady Magnolia]
The moment after, she bid farewell.
The pure white butterfly turned into powder together with the frame and began to scatter.
Crack!
At the same time as the silhouette of Nabiryeong completely disappeared from her head, Kim Yuri’s blessing was cut off.
And.
Enormous superpower pressure descended on Kim Yuri.
Kwaaaaaa!
“Aaaack!”
She had a feeling as if every cell in her body exploded and blood veins snapped.
The superpower wave, which lost its way, searched for an exit, destroying Kim Yuri’s body.
Even though she bore a connection with over two digits of higher beings, Kim Yuri not even once felt that superpower pressure.
She suppressed the power of higher beings with the Gwangrim Sealing and Nabiryeong’s blessing.
The harmful effects of it appeared now.
She suddenly recalled the words Hwang Jiho said on the day when the Gwangrim Sealing disappeared.
— If you continue to reject higher beings, your body may be damaged by the superpower pressure.
‘I should have listened to those words!’
Because Kim Yuri ignored that, of all the times now, in the worst situation, her Gwangrim was about to go wild.
Even while screaming, Kim Yuri tried to suppress that power.
“Uh? What is happening, class president?! Hey!”
“Yuri!”
She heard the distant voices of her friends, and the superpower power’s pressure turned even worse.
And all this while, the Enemies were gradually approaching the sea shore and heading towards them.
***
Song Daeseok fell into a state of panic.
Suddenly, a superpower wave surged outside the window, and then all of the windows ended up breaking.
No matter how he thought, it was difficult to consider that as a natural superpower wave emission phenomenon.
In other words, it meant that the poison-bearing Enemies were close enough to use physical attacks.
Song Daeseok, who concluded that, shouted urgently.
“Ah, really! Hey, wake up a bit! I said wake up!”
Because he was covered in glass shards just a moment ago, blood soaked Song Daeseok’s t-shirt.
The arm exposed under the t-shirt was safe thanks to Partial Reinforcement skill, but it was impossible to block the glass shards with the market t-shirt which didn’t have defense capabilities or things like that.
‘… I have to make a choice.’
Song Daeseok still had strength left.
He could piggyback or hold at least two, or three people if he was lucky, and flee.
He had to choose people to save among twenty students.
‘Crazy, how the fuck you do this at a time like this?!’
One of the key Player’s duties was rescuing civilians.
But a Player’s abilities were limited, and it was impossible to save everyone.
On the lesson from the common subject ‘Player and ethics’, he learned what choice to make for all kinds of situations when they someday come, and that it would be beyond cruel, the texts said.
He believed that when that time came, he would be able to coldly choose, but faced with the reality in front of his eyes, it was impossible for him to move like he learned.
‘The person who took the least amount of damage, the person who has a high chance of surviving if they receive treatment after rescue, if all of them are in a similar state, the person who seems the easiest to rescue. In other words, start with people with small builds or light weight.’
He tried to recall the content of the class he learned in the meantime, but his hands were only shaking and didn’t move.
Clang!
At that moment, the door opened and someone appeared.
“Teacher-nim!”
The one to appear in the gap of the opened door was the 1st year class 2’s homeroom teacher, No Yeongmi.
Song Daeseok shouted with joy as he thought that finally someone had come.
However, that happiness ended instantly.
“… Class 0’s student Song Daeseok?”
No Yeongmi was injured.
It seemed to be an internal wound as the blood dripped from the corner of her lips, and from her equipment, the superpower wave, which was coated around the sword that was emitting a coldness, was weaker than a student’s.
‘Was she poisoned?! Besides, behind…!’
Kwiiiiiii!
Krrrr…..!
It seemed there were several Enemies behind her.
No Yeongmi quickly closed the door, but it didn’t seem that the door, which was already damaged, would be able to hold on for long.
No Yeongmi looked at her class female students, who fainted and couldn’t move, and made an expression of despair, then she tightly closed her eyes.
And spoke towards Song Daeseok.
“I’ll block them here. You break a window and get out, please!”
Hearing those words from No Yeongmi, Song Daeseok suddenly came back to his senses.
He recalled how a supporting character, who said a similar line to this in the action movie he was watching with the 1st year class 0’s children, died.
Song Daeseok gritted his teeth and spoke as he put on protective gear.
“I’ll also- fight!”
“… Student Song Daeseok!”
No Yeongmi stared at Song Daeseok with eyes full of criticism for the thoughtless choice he was making, but he clenched his fists and stood before the door.
“It’s not too late! Please flee! Quickly…!”
“I hate it!”
Clang! Clang clang!
Kwiii!
All this while, Enemies, which were aiming at their prey, were attempting attacks to break the door.
A stroke of fortune in this misfortune was that they didn’t have the intelligence to aim for the window which was far away, but those Enemies had enough physical strength to cover for that.
For a split-second he saw Enemies in the gap between the door and wall that reached their limits and broke.
“Teacher-nim, You stay at the front, so the pincer attack… teacher-nim?”
Slam.
As No Yeongmi already reached her limits, she leaned against the wall and collapsed.
“Teacher-nim! Hang on there!”
He jumped to No Yeongmi’s side and tried to shake her, but there was no answer.
She was still breathing, but No Yeongmi’s face was bloodless, and her skin was cold.
‘It’s the end.’
Song Daeseok concluded coldly.
His body was certainly being corroded by poison.
His battle power was cut in half and Enemies’ status was unknown.
Even so, he thought that he could buy time until someone came if he fought together with the Eungwang School’s teacher, but No Yeongmi ended up incapable to fight.
If he ran immediately, he and the few students he dragged with him might have survived, but now he was going mad as he thought that it ended up like this because of his indecisiveness and idiotic actions.
‘I should do something in case Geurin blames herself, right?
When on the brink of death, the first person he recalled was Min Geurin.
Min Geurin forcibly sent Song Daeseok to the youth training camp, so he would get closer with the children.
If Song Daeseok ended up dying here, Min Geurin would think he died because of her.
‘But the youth training camp was fun. Rather, I’m very thankful you sent me here, even if by force.’
Song Daeseok turned on a device voice recorder function.
Before the door completely broke down, he wanted to leave a word for Min Geurin.
“Geurin.”
However, after he called her name, he completely couldn’t recall what words he was supposed to say after that.
In the end, he only recorded that one word and pressed the pause record button.
At that moment.
He felt a superpower wave full of fierce energy surge beyond the door.
Paat!
The superpower wave flashed between the broken door crevices.
‘Wha-what is that?!’
The traces of Enemies’ presence completely disappeared.
Through the gap not even one Enemy was could be seen.
Even without Presence Detection skill, he was able to realize that the Enemies were put in the state completely incapable of combat in an instant.
Knock, knock.
He heard the sound of a light knocking at the door.
Through the door gap, he could see a person of similar build to him standing there.
While Song Daeseok was worrying if he should open the door or not, the door ended up opening on their own from the outside.
Creak.
In front of Song Daeseok, who instinctively grabbed a weapon.
Appeared a face he recognized.
“Are you okay? I’m a bit late because I was dealing with the matter my benefactor requested.”
The 1st year class 0’s best lunatic, Hwang Jiho.
*~*~*
[1] order or command — I believe that author is using synonyms here, but I cannot be sure. The two words used here are ‘전령 jeon-ryeong’ and ‘명령 myeong-ryeong’. They both mean order/command, but 전령 (jeon-ryeong) could also mean messenger, while 명령 (myeong-ryeong) has a stronger meaning of command. In the following sentences, 명령 (myeong-ryeong) is used.
Translator’s note: … Hwang-ho, I think I understand why are you knocking, but why the hell are you knocking? You found a moment to be polite, really…
Did you see a mistake? 🐞
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