Chapter 115

"Chief Jin-nim, Chief Han-nim."

After a knock, the door opened. It was another team leader whose face had turned pale with tension.

"Branch Director-nim is calling for you."

"Let's go."

Soram walked out with heavy steps, not even glancing at Tae-un who was left behind. Footsteps silently followed him from behind. That made him even more upset.

Now that it had come to this, the only thing he could do was go to the branch director and tell him to send Han Tae-un as far back as possible. There were many excuses he could make. The headquarters might issue a repatriation order, he hasn't even been in service for a year yet, etc. If a flight hunter was needed, he himself could go forward and face the dungeon.

In the conference room, there were four team leaders including the branch director, and four deputy chiefs. The branch director told him, who had opened the door and entered, to come closer.

"First of all, we're assigning teams and combat positions, and Chief Jin, you,"

"Please put me and Han Tae-un in different teams."

"Did you two get into a fight in the midst of this chaos?"

The deputy leader of Team 1 asked in a dumbfounded tone. The branch director alternately looked at Soram and Tae-un's faces.

"I was going to put you two alone in the last Team 10 though."

"Why just the two of us?"

"It's the team assignment made after deciding to do as you said."

Soram's eyes widened slightly. He was sure he would have to persuade him again and was prepared for a conflict, but…

"However, I have no intention of just watching as they push into the living area. We will respond the moment they cross the sandy beach."

"Then... you mean you'll be right behind the breakwater?"

"You have a reckless look on your face, but I don't think I can accept giving up the houses where citizens lived without even trying. Don't worry. People who think like me will stand at the front, and the young ones will be sent to the back."

"Oh, Branch Director-nim, you finally realized that the old-fashioned tactics aren't popular among young hunters."

"I should have shut that mouth before the dungeon opened."

Anyway, it meant that at least everyone would fight with their feet on the ground, and if necessary, they could take shelter on top of the buildings. The branch director had made many concessions to this extent. But…

"Why are you pairing me and Han Tae-un?"

"There has been ongoing training for ground combat at the branch. Chief Jin, you've never properly participated in joint training, and Chief Han is new here, so how can we mix the teams? You two deal with the enemies that have pushed in that far from the rear."

...The team composition was understandable, but in a situation where lava had overflowed, they were putting both 1st-grade hunters, who could freely fly, in the rear?

"Since it happened in Busan, I should take the lead."

Soram was momentarily at a loss for words. Taking the frontline literally meant stepping into the place closest to death. Yet there was no hesitation. Even in Soram's memory, Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon had never survived the 3rd Great Rift. ...No, most of them didn't make it past the first day. This time too, if Soram hadn't confronted him, he might have thrown himself into the epicenter alone.

"I won't specifically designate a position for Team 10. It would be better for you two to move freely rather than holding a single point. Any more words about the team composition?"

"No, sir."

The answer came not from Soram but from Tae-un behind him. Just as Soram was about to turn around with dissatisfied eyes, the door to the conference room opened.

"Branch Director-nim, after handing over to hunter Ahn Mi-hee from Daegu City Hall, she said she's coming down alone, and the Jeolla Branch is organizing dispatched personnel, and the headquarters said Team 2 under Chief Shin Chan has departed."

It was fortunate news that two 1st-grade hunters, Ahn Mi-hee and Shin Chan, and Team 2, consisting of experienced personnel, were coming. It was a much faster response than in the previous life when the relationship with the headquarters had been cold due to the refusal of the support request for the 1st-grade dungeon at Bukhansan.

"However, currently, dust has spread in the air, so it's impossible to move to the site by helicopter, and all the roads around Busan are paralyzed, so it will take at least three hours even at the fastest..."

The roads to and from Busan were packed with people who had come to pick up their relatives and those who wanted to escape from Busan. By now, Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon must be under considerable pressure to calm the citizens by appearing on TV or doing whatever it takes.

And in three hours, they wouldn't be able to arrive before the lava reached the ground.

"I, I will go and move together with them. So that they can come quickly...!"

"Calm down."

The first person to urge Min-ki, putting his hand on his shoulder, was Soram.

"What you need to do is not now."

Because of the expectations placed on him since he was eighteen and his introverted personality that anyone could see, Min-ki was regarded more as a young and good youngest son rather than a hero who took the lead at the front like Soram and Ga-eul. As such, his favorability and support were much higher than criticism, and the burden was piled on his shoulders.

Thus, in the previous life, when Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon died, Min-ki, who had fallen into a panic, instantly moved to the headquarters and brought an unreasonable number of hunters.

Now, there was no need for that.

"Yeah, if it's a battle of endurance anyway, it doesn't matter if they come early or late. Now, let's do what we have to do."

Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon also comforted Min-ki.

However, before waiting for their arrival, screams and sighs were heard from the situation room.

***

After the police and military were mobilized and the people who had stubbornly held out were finally evacuated, the streets lost their vitality and became desolate. The citizens who had left their living space were moved to temporary shelters set up far from the epicenter, the coast of Seo-gu.

And outside the empty city, tall barricades were erected. Right outside the barricades stood the personnel belonging to the Reconnaissance Bureau of the Busan Branch. They were also hunters and had a duty to fight if the mutants crossed over this wall. A short distance behind them, emergency medical staff took their positions.

Finally, the hunters from the Field Operations Bureau entered inside the barricades.

The black mountain had swelled in size and approached the land even closer. Under the thick black clouds that didn't even allow the sunset to shine through, the sea was dyed a dark red color. Above it, crimson foam bubbled up like the fires of hell. It was a scene that made despair rise even before the battle began.

"...The lava mutants have reached the ground."

The monitor installed at the very rear projected the CCTV footage received from the coast.

The black and white CCTV attached to a rental shop on the beach was zoomed in. A viscous liquid invaded the sandy beach where waves had peacefully come and gone. That liquid slowly covered more and more of the sandy beach, wriggling like sewage spewed from a drain.

Upon reaching a place that wasn't water, the wriggling lava stretched its height as if extending its neck, then fell back into the lava with a splash, and repeated the process again, crawling forward. The speed of invading the land accelerated further, and soon the lava approached right in front of them, and the CCTV screen turned black.

Then, the other screens showing the coast flickered out one by one.

"..."

No one watching the monitor made a sound, but fear was conveyed everywhere.

"Switch to another camera that's still on."

"Yes."

A higher-quality video was turned on. The sight of the lava covering the sandy beach and swaying back and forth looked like a bizarre dance. The lava that had risen to human height seemed to show the shape of a head and body, then fell forward with a splash and merged back with the lava on the ground. There were dozens, hundreds of such undulations. Among them, some were as clear as zombies that had risen in thick blood, with the positions of both eyes and mouth holes. They extended their legs as if taking steps and stretched out their arms forward.

"Hiiieek..."

"Ugh...!"

Seeing that scene, screams inevitably burst out from those around.

Busan was also a city that ranked in the top five nationwide in terms of the number of rift occurrences, and quite a few of them had experienced 1st-grade dungeons. However, 1st-grade dungeons and Great Rift dungeons were on a completely different level.

If a 1st-grade dungeon was considered a 'very, very difficult challenge with a high possibility of failure,' the Great Rift couldn't even be regarded as something to overcome. It was no different from standing bare-bodied in front of a natural disaster.

Clang―

"Uh..."

"Branch Director-nim...?"

At that moment, the branch director did something that made everyone go, "Huh?" and open their mouths. He drew the long sword at his waist and slashed the screen in half. At the same time, the sight of the wriggling monsters on the screen disappeared.

Thud, thud. The screen, split into two pieces, each fell to the floor.

"If you're going to be scared in advance, don't watch. You'll get sick of seeing the real thing up close soon enough."

He spoke in a heavy voice, tightly gripping the sword. The resolve to take responsibility for those who were risking their lives was evident on his face. Some hunters of similar age to him seemed to feel touched, but, well…

Min-ki, who noticed the awkwardness of not knowing how to react among his peers, took care of it first.

"...That was a good speech, well said..."

For Min-ki, Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon was like Director Park Jae-seon to Soram. He had a meaning beyond just a senior hunter or a mentor, but a spiritual pillar. So he only went as far as trailing off his words, but... The other cheeky bastard here frowned.

"Uhh, it's not fun, not educational, and not effective."

"You little...!"

"Eek, Branch Director-nim is team-killing!"

As the branch director, who was still holding the sword, chased after him, Soram ran away. Seeing that commotion, stiff smiles at least spread among the faces frozen with tension.

"Let's protect it with our own hands. Let's go."

"Yes!"

The shouts spread vigorously. The sea and land dyed in a dark red color, as if mocking their determination, made an even louder rumbling sound, as if saying, "Woong―."