Maybe it was because I ran with everything I had.
Sweat came out of my head.
“Sweat.”
Maybe because of the violent movement, heat rose in my body.
I could feel the heat.
“Hot.”
Those cold souls.
Belsnickel lower the surrounding temperature just by existing.
And what brought out the cold that covered all of Gyeonggi Province—
were the souls that woke up from that seal.
‘The Twenty Grand Lords.’
The king couldn’t even wake up from that seal in the first place, not even as a soul, so
it wouldn’t have been able to affect Gyeonggi’s climate.
If that soul had been awake, then the moment I shoved it into my shadow, winter would have raged inside the shadow.
Those twenty boss monsters—
they were the ones who created Gyeonggi’s cold.
And.
Now that close to half of them had changed into ingredients under my blade,
the temperature around me
had changed back to something close to normal.
......That abnormal climate that covered all of Gyeonggi Province.
That nearly froze everyone to death.
“Hot!”
This was the moment it got resolved completely.
*****
After I somehow made it out of the Gate like that.
[Environmental Assimilation]
When I hid my body and returned to the battlefield,
I could see humans fighting up ahead.
“Fire support needed in Sector 3!”
“The tanks are moving in—hold on just a little longer!”
Shells rained down everywhere from the tanks,
a battlefield where Awakeners were screaming as they fought.
‘The buff from Cuisine is already gone.’
Since I couldn’t hear screams like KIIIEEEEK—,
the buff from the Cuisine I fed them must have ended a long time ago.
But.
The situation didn’t look that bad for the Expedition Force.
Puh-buh-buh-buh-BBOOM.......
Once they’d secured a certain amount of territory,
the firepower of the tanks that had dug in began to show in earnest, pushing the monsters back.
‘Normally...... it shouldn’t be able to look like this.’
Unless the buff from my Cuisine was still applied.
If that buff ended,
no matter how much firepower those tanks had,
it’d be hard to take the upper hand while being outnumbered so overwhelmingly.
Even so.
The reason the Expedition Force could fight with the advantage was simple.
“The monsters got weaker!”
“Keep pressing them!”
Just like they said.
-Grk.......
-Krrgh...... hhk.......
A massive number of monsters blocking the Expedition Force.
Their momentum had visibly weakened.
I could guess why.
‘The thing that took Jang Ji Han’s body said it. It said it thought it was going to die from the heat in early spring, right after winter ended.......’
Those guys have an ability that lowers their own energy,
but because of that, they’re extremely sensitive to the surrounding temperature.
When I cut down their “lords” and the temperature around here rose sharply,
they
couldn’t bring out their strength because of the sudden heat.
“Is everyone all right!”
“......You!”
“What, what the hell. It’s Shin Youngjun.”
“Shin Youngjun is back!”
The people fighting turned toward me and spoke in shock.
“I was wondering why these bastards suddenly got weaker.......”
“I knew it. I knew he did something.”
People in awe.
And among them, a few even said—
“So it was you.......”
“Me?”
“This sweat...... can you see it?”
Some of them even had tears welling up at the corners of their eyes.
People wiping the sweat off their foreheads, but not wiping their tears.
“I thought we were destined to freeze to death.”
“To think it got even a little warmer like this.”
Of course.
It was winter in terms of the season,
and it wasn’t ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) like their power disappeared completely.
‘The temperature is probably still below freezing.’
Like a normal winter day.
Something close to an extremely cold day.
But.......
‘It was the kind of cold that even Awakeners could barely endure.’
From that extreme cold where a normal person would have frozen to death the moment they stepped outside,
back to the level of a normal winter in the past—
“To think I’m sweating just from fighting this much......!”
A temperature where sweating if you do hard labor
is an obvious, natural thing.
We had succeeded in returning to that level.
“Thank you...... thank you.......”
“.......”
People who’d been pushed to their mental limit by this winter.
Did this mean that much to them?
They were crying without even complaining about fatigue from battle.
‘......So the suffering wasn’t meaningless.’
Just as my heart started to loosen a little—
Stagger.
The moment my heart loosened,
my body started to sway.
“Y-you! You look exhausted.”
“Huh? Ah. Yes.”
“For someone like you to be exhausted...... what in the world happened in there.”
As I barely caught my balance and endured,
Jo Beomseok walked up to me and spoke.
“It wasn’t much.”
I dragged in rough breaths
and pointed toward the place I’d come from.
“Over there, you see it?”
“Hm. You mean that Black Curtain.”
“I...... cut down a few of the guys inside.”
“......What?”
People who didn’t even know the concept of a [Gate].
They looked shocked that I’d gone in and come back out of that Black Curtain, but—
“The important part is from now.”
“......!”
Unfortunately.
I didn’t have the time to kindly explain things one by one.
“Fine. What do we have to do.”
I opened my mouth toward them like that,
and everyone’s attention snapped to me in an instant.
“If there’s anything we have to do, say it. Their numbers are overwhelming, but...... they’ve weakened a bit. If we do it right, we can deal them serious damage.”
“We secured a road just now. If we drive the tanks in there, our main force might be able to enter that curtain too!”
Ah.......
That really is impressive, but—
I looked over the battlefield and said,
“First, I’ll ask. Does it look like we can wipe them out?”
“Wipe them out.......”
The enemies got weaker,
and our tanks’ firepower properly dug in.
If you only looked at that,
it was definitely a favorable condition for the Expedition Force, but—
“That...... is impossible.”
“.......”
“There are too many. Right now, our momentum is higher, so it looks like we’re taking the initiative. But in reality, the number we’ve killed is going to be insignificant compared to their total forces.”
Just like he said.
‘There are so damn many.......’
Monsters filling an entire city.
No matter how strong the Expedition Force was,
no matter how much the people who ate my Cuisine were reborn as warriors worth a hundred,
closing a numerical gap that exceeded a hundredfold was hard.
“Then that’s fine.”
“Fine?”
“It’d be great if we could quickly wipe them out...... but if that’s impossible, we go to Plan B.”
“......Plan B?”
“Well, it’s simple.”
I looked at them and said with a light smile,
“From the start...... we’ve achieved every objective, so there’s no need to keep fighting here.”
“......?”
“Think about why we came here.”
“Well.......”
The reason we came here was
to identify and resolve the cause of the cold,
and at the same time find out what happened to the missing Awakeners.
‘Originally, within a month, the cold would’ve gotten so bad that everyone in Gyeonggi Province would freeze to death.’
Especially if those twenty bosses started moving in earnest.
Even Awakeners would have frozen to death quickly.
But.
“You can all feel the temperature that rose, right?”
“......!”
“It’s already risen this much. From now on, it’ll be impossible for them to lower Gyeonggi’s temperature enough to freeze us all to death. Which means.......”
At that.
People muttered in shock.
“We won’t.......”
“Freeze to death!”
“Yes.”
The Expedition Force’s first objective.
The cause of the cold—and its resolution—was complete.
“And.......”
I showed them the shape I’d kept in my shadow,
the one I’d secretly taken out on the way here and carried on my back.
“......!”
“Th-this is......!”
People shouted in shock at what they saw.
“Isn’t that Jin-hye......!”
“You know her?”
“Of course I do. She was the Association’s therapist......!”
“She was trapped inside that curtain. The monsters tried to steal her body, but it looks like they failed.”
People stared at Seong Jinhye with eyes full of awe.
“Jin-hye...... I knew she was a person with deep faith.”
“But to think she endured the monsters’ mental attacks.......”
“It’s not just her. I brought out everyone who was trapped in there.”
“My god......!”
The suspicious cold that covered Gyeonggi Province.
The cause was identified—and the resolution was completed.
And the members of the Assault Team who went to investigate that cold—
I’d succeeded in reclaiming them all.
“Then the Expedition Force’s objectives...... have all been achieved......!”
“Huu...... yes.”
General Jo Beomseok cried out with an expression full of euphoria.
Then,
he looked at my face, and that expression stiffened.
“You......?”
“Haa...... haa...... so now, there’s only one thing we have to do.......”
Clinging to my mind like it was about to go out,
I forced out the last words.
“We have to run.”
“......What?”
******
I raised a finger
and pointed at that [Gate].
“Huu...... I cut down as many giants as I could...... but there are still more than half left. And those monsters too...... their numbers are practically endless.”
Inside the Gate, there are still twelve monsters with blue magic power left.
They’ll start moving soon.
‘How the hell...... do you beat that.’
And those monsters swarming around here, too.
The Expedition Force was pushing them back because our momentum was too strong,
but in absolute numbers, we were still overwhelmingly outnumbered.
‘In the end...... humanity’s numbers are just too small.’
So.
There’s only one answer.
“Huu...... send people out and gather everyone spread across all of Gyeonggi Province.......”
“Youngjun?”
“You...... are you all right?”
Ah.
Damn it.
It was great that we achieved the objective, but
I’d pushed myself too hard in the process.
[Rampage], the ability that hands out severe aftereffects to the body.
At a point when the aftereffects from the last use hadn’t even recovered yet, I used that ability again against the Chair.
And with those aftereffects still there, I entered that [Gate],
and used Cuisine again.
Dragging out every ounce of strength I had left, I cut down as many giants as possible.
The experience that came in then would help me in the long run, but
the massive experience that flooded in all at once put a heavy burden on my body.
It was good that I stole the king from those guys at the end, but
the pain from that put far too much strain on my brain.
‘Up until now...... I endured it through [Blade of Sacrifice, Victimia] somehow.’
But.
That power only prevents “fainting” and “death.”
It isn’t a power that reduces the burden placed on my body.
The pain from the aftereffects covering my entire body,
and
the remnants of the pain I felt when I touched that soul still remained, tormenting my head.
In other words.......
How should I put it.
“To the Northern Branch...... run.......”
“You......!”
“I wanted to fight with you...... but I don’t think I can.......”
I tried to endure without passing out no matter what,
but I can’t.
“I’m sorry...... but from here on...... I’ll leave it to you.”
If my mental strength was stronger, I would’ve held on, but
this was my limit.
Thud.
Grinding my teeth, I threw [Blade of Sacrifice, Victimia], which I’d been holding tight, into my shadow.
And then—
“Hold out...... as long.......”
Thump.
“......My god!”
“Bring the therapists!”
A time when I couldn’t faint even if I wanted to.
The pain that felt like it would last forever ended,
and my vision rapidly blacked out.
‘Let me rest.......’
At last.
I could escape the pain and find refuge in fainting.
******
“Youngjun......!”
“Therapists, hurry!”
A man who appeared out of nowhere and began exerting tremendous influence over the Association.
When Shin Youngjun suddenly collapsed,
Jo Beomseok, the Expedition Force’s commander, urgently called for the therapists.
“My god...... this is.”
“What’s his condition!”
“You said he collapsed just now?”
“That’s right.”
“That’s impossible! This man is.......”
And.
“He’s like a living corpse.......”
“......What are you talking about?”
“His body’s life force has dropped to a critical level.”
At what the therapists said,
the people in the rear couldn’t help but let out low groans.
“......Is it serious?”
“Yes. For some reason his recovery is unbelievably strong, so it doesn’t look like he’ll die, but.......”
“......My god.”
“No matter how strong an Awakeners is, in this state, he should’ve lost consciousness a long time ago. But he was walking around like nothing was wrong.”
Gulp.
The therapists swallowed dryly.
“Unless his willpower is absurdly strong.......”
“.......”
At that.
Silence settled among the people.
