The Returner - Chapter 374

That spectacle was like something you’d only see inside a living hell.

 

A thundercloud? No, it was different from that.

 

The darkness emanating from it was different compared to regular stormy clouds. That dark colour, that blackness, made one feel unsettled just from looking at it. It was depressing, gloomy, and the longer you stared at it, the tighter your chest would become.

 

The black smoke oozing out from a man’s body rose up in the air and began creating a mass of black clouds.

 

“Hey, Ji-Woong.” (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

“Ng?” (Jo Ji-Woong)

 

“He’s still on our side, right?” (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

“….I think so?” (Jo Ji-Woong)

 

Choi Chang-Hyuk continued to speak in a trembling voice while looking at Yi Ji-Hyuk’s figure.

 

“But why do I get the feeling that I should be more wary of him than the other side?” (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

Jo Ji-Woong gritted his teeth without saying anything. Because, he too was getting the same vibe. For sure, Yi Ji-Hyuk was fighting for humanity here, but despite everyone obviously knowing that, they just couldn’t help but feel this ominous foreboding when looking at him.

 

‘To make matters worse, I’m also an ability user like him, too.’ (Jo Ji-Woong)

 

One of the things that got proven after the monsters and ability users appeared on Earth was the unrealistic expectation of superhero tropes.

 

How the world and most of its denizens would react when superheroes really did appear had always been a hot topic of discussion. Some said that everyone would welcome their advent with open arms, while others said that the heroes would be ostracised.

 

Too bad for everyone, though, the truth was revealed with a whimper.

 

Humanity found out that it enjoyed being jealous and envious of those with abilities rather than idolised or worshipped them. Especially so when a person with innate abilities – the generally-accepted theory was that the jealousy would run even deeper, but….

 

‘But, that’s not the whole story, was it?’ (Jo Ji-Woong)

 

Jo Ji-Woong could acutely feel it.

 

He too could proclaim to be an ability user, yet to feel this kind of emotion, it…. The cause of that ostracism of the ability user might not be as simple as jealousy or envy.

 

Fear.

 

The most basic, instinctive fear felt towards an existence that you could never deal with.

 

This feeling of hopelessness at being unable to do anything besides just watching as a wild tiger loitered around the street.

 

‘People probably felt like this towards regular ability users.’

 

If so, what would those normal people feel when looking at Yi Ji-Hyuk right now?

 

Could it be similar to looking at a devil that one would never be able to see in real life?

 

Jo Ji-Woong possessed special abilities and theoretically could fight back to an extent yet was still feeling this way. So, it didn’t take a genius to figure out what it’d be like with normal, powerless civilians who couldn’t even offer that minimal amount of resistance when looking at the current Yi Ji-Hyuk.

 

‘Like this guy over here.’ (Jo Ji-Woong)

 

Choi Chang-Hyuk was staring at Yi Ji-Hyuk with a completely pale-white complexion. The emotions that had been ruling him up until just now, like jealousy, were nowhere to be seen on that expression.

 

“He, he’s not human.” (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

“Excuse me, please don’t say something so inconsiderate like that.” (Jeong Hae-Min)

 

Jeong Hae-Min immediately raised an issue with what Choi Chang-Hyuk muttered out.

 

“….Ah, sorry.” (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

“Ji-Hyuk might look that way, but he’s very much a human like us.” (Jeong Hae-Min)

 

“Really?” (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

“Very much so. He’s totally obsessed with food, and he… likes wasting time, playing games, and his mother torments with constant nagging…” (Jeong Hae-Min)

 

Now that I hear you, yeah, that’s very human.

 

So human, in fact, it’s like listening to my own life story. (Choi Chang-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

 

The thing about enjoying video games, wasting time and getting tormented by his mother’s nagging all so perfectly fit Choi Chang-Hyuk’s own life story that he could even write a dang diary about them.

 

“So, judging him with those eyes is a complete no-no. And that’s something Ji-Hyuk is most sensitive about, too.” (Jeong Hae-Min)

 

“…Really?” (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

Choi Chang-Hyuk’s tilted this way and that out of confusion.

 

The ‘Yi Ji-Hyuk’ he knew definitely didn’t not have the word ‘sensitive’ in his vocabulary. Indeed, Yi Ji-Hyuk’s character more suited the type that just let things slide while saying, that’ll do.

 

“Of course, it’s all guesswork, but still.” (Jeong Hae-Min)

 

Jeong Hae-Min then sneakily backed out a bit just then, prompting Choi Chang-Hyuk to stare at her with a pair of less than impressed eyes. However, he quickly shook his head.

 

‘How dare I do something so disrespectful towards our dear goddess?’ (Choi Chang-Hyuk)

 

Sure, the current situation was crazy and wacky, but how could he even dare to narrow his eyes at the one and only Jeong Hae-Min? Such sacrilege couldn’t be tolerated.

 

“….What is he planning to do now?” (Jo Ji-Woong)

 

It was then – after hearing Jo Ji-Woong’s voice, Choi Chang-Hyuk hurriedly shifted his gaze back over to where Yi Ji-Hyuk was.

 

*

 

“…If you wait a bit longer, the support division of the defence command should arrive on location. How about holding yourself back a little until…” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“Why?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk asked back in a nonchalant-sounding voice.

 

“….For one, we need to get rid of all those monster corpses, yes?” (Jeong In-Su)

 

Jeong In-Su didn’t think that Yi Ji-Hyuk wouldn’t be able to handle a monster horde of this scale without the presence of the defence command.

 

However, there was still a chance that some civilians hiding nearby mistakenly believed that the situation had been resolved and emerged from their spots. So, if the defence command didn’t secure the perimeter, some problems might crop up in regards to guaranteeing the safety of all civilians.

 

“You don’t have to worry about that.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“Pardon?” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“I’ll make sure that this place is spotless.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk smirked and began rising up in the air gradually.

 

Jeong In-Su watched this spectacle unfold with a pair of slightly dazed eyes. However, him not being shocked by a flying man came across as far more bizarre to him.

 

‘But, this is Mister Yi Ji-Hyuk, after all.’ (Jeong In-Su)

 

Indeed, Jeong In-Su wouldn’t be shocked to hear if that guy was capable of turning rocks into gold bullions at this stage.

 

Right then, a storm-like barrage of demonic aura gushed out from Yi Ji-Hyuk’s airborne figure.

 

Just like that, Jeong In-Su took back everything he thought up of a second ago. Seeing that demonic aura completely envelop Yi Ji-Hyuk caused another round of fresh shock to his system. And soon afterwards, the instinctive fear that completely overwhelmed that shock began to dig deep into his heart.

 

Clack, clack, clack….

 

Jeong In-Su’s lower jaw trembled all on its own and his teeth began clattering.

 

Every single monster stopped moving the moment Yi Ji-Hyuk started spilling the demonic aura outside. The allied creatures hurriedly lowered their heads and pathetically whimpered, while the enemy monsters began trembling in fear while dazedly stared at him.

 

It was at this point that he extended his hand to the front. At the same time, the demonic aura coagulating in the air like black clouds spread out to all sides.

 

“N-ng??” (Jeong In-Su)

 

Jeong In-Su observed the demonic aura with puzzled eyes. He had seen Yi Ji-Hyuk call forth high-ranking magic spells several times before, but he couldn’t quite recall seeing anything similar to this one.

 

For one, the way that black stuff moved slowly came across rather foreign to him.

 

The demonic aura slowly spreading out soon began settling down over the monsters.

 

“Kneel.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s eyes emitted a crimson glow. At the same time, the demonic aura began permeating into the monsters’ bodies.

 

“Uh??” (Jeong In-Su)

 

Jeong In-Su’s eyes grew wider as he observed the monsters’ reactions.

 

They began writhing around in pain right after that black energy entered their bodies. Yi Ji-Hyuk’s monsters, meanwhile, became utterly frightened and hurriedly backed away, and then backed away some more.

 

Kah-aaaaaah!!

 

The screams capable of wringing the hearts of all listeners resounded out. All sorts of different monsters screamed out in their unique voices to create a truly monstrous and bizarre combination of noises that couldn’t be described in mere words.

 

“Since you all had your fill and then surrendered to me… This should work a treat.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk smirked deeply.

 

It might have been tough to make monsters submit to him when they were still full of rebellious spirit, but once they tasted fear, it would become so much easier.

 

Kkiiii-eeeehk!!

 

Screams of pain and despair.

 

Monsters writhed and rolled around where they stood in sheer maddened frenzy. The whole world seemed to rumble as if an end-time earthquake had begun after a massive horde of monsters rolled around on the ground.

 

“Uwaaaah-!!” (Jeong In-Su)

 

Jeong In-Su also hurriedly crouched and hugged himself. The world was shaking so much that standing upright was no longer possible.

 

‘Won’t buildings collapse at this rate?!’ (Jeong In-Su)

 

There was no way that ‘Hell Joseon’-era buildings were constructed with earthquake-resistance properties in mind. It wouldn’t be strange to see high-rises collapse with this much shaking. Thankfully, though, no such event occurred, and the shaking eventually died down.

 

Kkiii-eeeiii…

 

Monsters issued soft, defeated whimpers and began rising up one by one. Then, they suddenly attacked other monsters in their vicinity.

 

“Ng??” (Jeong In-Su)

 

Monsters that challenged Yi Ji-Hyuk’s army only until a minute ago were now fighting among themselves. The divide wasn’t equal in number, though. And owing to the fact that the skirmish took place between one big side and one not-so-big side, the situation got sorted out in the proverbial blink.

 

The remaining monsters all stopped moving and stood still.

 

“The end.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk slowly floated back down and waved his hand around.

 

A black Gate was generated in the middle of the monster horde, and then, the surrounding monsters all hurriedly rushed inside the portal.

 

“Mm….” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk nodded his head in satisfaction.

 

The monster horde that easily numbered tens of thousands were all orderly entering the Gate.

 

“W-what did you do exactly?” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“I swallowed them all up.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“Eh?” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“They are all on our side now.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Or more specifically, they were now Yi Ji-Hyuk’s slaves.

 

In the past, there was no specific restriction on slapping the Seal of Obedience on the monsters far weaker than he was. But the current him was nowhere near his past peak, so he had to jump through a few hoops to break them mentally which would then make the job much smoother.

 

Although, it was cumbersome and all.

 

“….I-is that so?” (Jeong In-Su)

 

Jeong In-Su watched the monsters gradually disappearing inside the Gate and could only sigh hollowly.

 

‘I always feel this whenever I see him at work, but well, this is a bit too much.’ (Jeong In-Su)

 

This monster horde broke through the defensive line despite the best efforts of both the defence command and the KSF.

 

So, it was indeed a relief that Yi Ji-Hyuk happened to be around the location and things got resolved very easily. But there was nothing Jeong In-Su could do about feeling hollow after things got taken care of far too easily like this.

 

“Besides all that. You arrived a lot sooner than I expected.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“….I was in my office when the news came through. I got here as fast as I could, actually. But if I knew you were here, then maybe I shouldn’t have.” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“Hmm, but the KSF isn’t here yet?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“That’s mostly because the KSF branches all have their strictly defined jurisdictions, that’s why. It makes providing timely support rather tricky. The HQ do exercise the overall command, but normally in situations like this, rather than seeking extra support from other branches, the KSF agents will instead request NDF for help. But well, you know that the NDF isn’t in a position to come today.” (Jeong In-Su)

 

Seeing how Jeong In-Su was sticking up for the KSF, Yi Ji-Hyuk couldn’t help chuckle hollowly. Especially after remembering that this guy used to rake both Choi Jeong-Hoon and Seo Ah-Young over the coals in the past.

 

“You know, you don’t need to protect them to this extent….” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“Well, it’s an aggrieving situation for everyone, after all. It’s true that the KSF has lost their edge lately, but today’s situation was basically an amalgamation of irresistible factors.” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“If the defence command only managed to arrive now, will that narrative change?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“Mm. My tone of voice might have, but the overall story would still remain largely the same.” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“In that case, I’ll accept it.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk shrugged his shoulders.

 

He was not a fan of arguing unnecessarily, anyway. Except that, he did think it might be a problem if no one was capable enough to control the KSF if that organization continued to display such ‘lackadaisical’ attitude.

 

“Actually, there’s something I’m kinda curious about.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“Yes?” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“Objectively speaking, what will happen if the defence command and the KSF start fighting? Can the defence command deal with them?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Jeong In-Su pondered this for a while before asking back.

 

“What about you, Mister Yi Ji-Hyuk? Do I need to include you in the hypothetical?” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“No, without me.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“In that case, the forces of the defence command should be about on the same level, and if all the combat personnel in the South Korean army are mobilised, then it’s a crushing victory.” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“It’s that much?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Jeong In-Su replied as if it was obvious.

 

“The reason why the military requires ability users is because we don’t see firearms as an effective countermeasure against the majority of monsters. After guns were developed enough to perfectly destroy human bodies, the subsequent development no longer was focused on the amplification of the weapon’s destructive power but mostly on the accuracy and rapid, sustained fire, instead.” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“I see.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

“With the ability users, excluding a few handful special cases, they can’t defend themselves from a hail of bullets hitting their bodies. We don’t even need snipers, just the regular fire net alone will make it impossible for them to raise their heads.” (Jeong In-Su)

 

“Mm….” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

Yi Ji-Hyuk nodded his head.

 

That certainly made some sense.

 

“In that case, that’s a relief.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

‘….Relief?’ (Jeong In-Su)

 

Just before Jeong In-Su could express his confusion, Yi Ji-Hyuk asked one other thing.

 

“Did the NDF leave already?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

 

< 374. That’s also not a bad idea -4 > Fin.