You Know (8)

-That man is making holes in the gate!

-Block him. The queen demands it!

The space, which had been eroded by the gate, was much larger than the fourteenth floor of the HQ had originally been. There was a gate at the center, where a boss monster of immeasurable rank had appeared to confront Shin Eunah and the other top-rankers. The other SSS-class monsters were quick to surround them, making it hard to see them from the outside. The sounds of a fierce battle could be heard, however, resonating through the gate with the screaming of monsters.

-Troublesome humans!

-They keep shooting strange things!

“These dirty things!” The humans were contending with the irregular summoning of monsters, like what happened in the SS-class gate Kang Shin-hyuk had fought before, but Shin Eunah was here to organize them. The boss monster had appeared while they were fighting, and the top-rankers had gone to fight it with Shin Eunah, whereas the rest gathered up to try and endure. Kang Shin-hyuk appeared at that point when Claire had been separated from Shin Eunah. He had to begrudgingly admit that Juno Valentine was a help, protecting her before he showed up.

“Even though I strengthened you, you’re still weak. Are you really in thirteenth place?”

“That’s it!” Juno Valentine shouted back at Kang Shin-hyuk, but he couldn’t help but admire his ability. A golden flash had crossed Shin-hyuk’s eyes, and the next moment, his pistols were filled with golden energy. It was thanks to his buff that Juno was able to fight against several SSS-class monsters at all.

‘It’s a tremendous ability. If it’s something that can be given to others and not just me alone… besides that, he can make it possible to escape the gate. Who is this kid? Wait… he’s not dating my Claire, right?’ Juno Valentine had all sorts of thoughts running through his mind as his hands franticly moved to fire in all directions. Kang Shin-hyuk moved swiftly along the path he made, firing off threads in all directions. The webs imbued with soul poison intersected around the confined space to create a sturdy barrier that blocked the monsters. The lightning web was mixed into it, further strengthening it with electricity.

-Wow?!

-Pierce through… kh!

It was a sight to behold, seeing the SSS-class monsters blocked by the web barrier. While Juno followed behind him to keep an eye on the monsters, he secured the civilians and tossed them through the floor.

“Follow the Alchemist once you make it out.”

“Are you Shin Eun-hyuk? Who the hell are you?” Of course, each one of them held an important position, but that wasn’t important at the moment to Kang Shin-hyuk. He just created the holes in the gate and pushed them in.

“Help me.”

“The ability to forcibly enter and exit a gate means that Korea will be upsetting things in the future.”

“Hey, get the civilians out quickly so we can fight!” Unlike the thirteenth floor, the high rankers on the fourteenth floor were all in the top fifty, with only a few exceptions like Claire. They joined Kang Shin-hyuk to deal with the monsters and help him move about easier.

“Is Bomber girl the only traitor?”

“Watch each other’s backs. Move with two other people.” The betrayal by the top-rankers had created an atmosphere where a civil war could break out at any point, but the appearance of Kang Shin-hyuk had given them a chance to unite once more. Bomber Girl was annoyed that she wasn’t able to deal with Kang Shin-hyuk when he appeared. She tried to kill more civilians before he could rescue them, but he had already grasped the root of her power when he blocked her attacks and cut through them with soul poison.

“All of you, move! Move! Kill him first!” Bomber Girl was on the ground, throwing a tantrum like a child. She was afraid of Kang Shin-hyuk, and after the first collision, she was hiding between the monsters. But at her words, the monsters responded as if it were only natural.

-The enemy is unexpectedly strong. Especially that one, blocking our movement.

-Humans are incompetent, after all. It would be nice if it were left all to us and they disappeared.

Each monster had a unique appearance, but each was at least three meters in size. One had a red and black outer shell that looked like a mix of dragon scales and an insect carapace. It had an unusually long tongue and arms that were slim and sharp. It was fast enough that it was hard to follow even with the keen eyes of a superhuman. Fortunately, most of the monsters didn’t have magical abilities. But being caught by one meant death, even for the high-rankers here. They were trying to push them away so they couldn’t approach.

“This is the last one.”

“Thank you, pride of Korea…”

“Get out quickly.” Finally, he threw Shinyoung’s principal, Shin Yoon-hak, out of the gate and turned to face the monsters around them.

“I don’t think we’ll get through this.”

“If one more gate like this opens, then it’s over.”

“Hey, Excalibur! How long will you take?!” They had succeeded in getting all of the civilians out, and Claire was with them so that they would be safe. But what would they do from now on? Could they run away too? But then the gate would continue to erode away at the area around it, releasing these terrible monsters into the world. They could try to kill the boss monster, causing the gate to collapse and these normal monsters to disappear. But… how? They couldn’t kill an SSS-class monster. The high-rankers’ sense of doom was slowly spreading to Kang Shin-hyuk.

-The Bartender sent a gift. Would you like to accept?

Kang Shin-hyuk smiled bitterly at the message. He remembered something like this had happened before. In fact, he had been hoping she would help him like this again. He was able to enter the gate without hesitation because he believed in her.

-You received the Alchemist’s Special Transcendence Potion (SS).

Of course, he didn’t think it would be possible to overcome the situation with just her potion but just holding it reassured him.

-What’s it like outside?

-Bartender’s whisper: Everyone’s okay. No one seems to be suspicious, but Paris has gone mad. Shin-hyuk, are you okay?

-Now, all we have to do is catch the boss.

-Bartender’s whisper: No matter how good the potion works, don’t overdo it. Focus on saving Eunah and yourself… ah.

-What?

-Bartender’s whisper: The building is collapsing.

With that, her message cut off. He was at least reassured she wasn’t dead thanks to the Hero Universe system, but he couldn’t help but worry.

“There’s no choice but to finish this quickly and go out…” He downed the potion.

-All wounds that aren’t fatal have been healed. The effect has been amplified by the spiritual power contained in the potion. All wounds and abnormalities will be healed, and the remaining healing power will remain to protect you for a while.

-For ten minutes, all stats have increased by two steps. The effect has been amplified by the spiritual power contained within the potion. For twenty minutes, all stats will increase by three steps. Spiritual power has increased by another level.

-With your own spiritual power, you have succeeded in drawing out the limit of the spiritual power contained in the potion. The rareness and proficiency of all skills have increased by one step while the potion’s effect is maintained, and the power of your trait has been increased.

Kang Shin-hyuk raised his head. At that instant, all of the humans around him were filled with golden energy.

“What?!”

“What is this…surely.”

“I’m stronger…?” Excluding Kang Shin-hyuk, there were twenty-two people. All of them were in the top fifty, except for one man who was a mercenary with skills comparable to a high-ranker.

“I don’t know if it will last for long. First, I will create a path straight to the boss.”

“No way… are you…?”

“I heard it’s a reinforcement ability…but how many people is this? No, now’s not the time.”

“Run! Break them down!” It was a dramatic reversal from how things had been when Kang Shin-hyuk first arrived. He didn’t know how long his buff would last, and they still couldn’t easily cut down the SSS-class monsters just because of the buff, but they were clearly stronger. It was enough to renew their hope.

“Wait!”

“Bomber Girl! I’ll tear her down myself!”

“What is this?!”

-That energy…

-Kill all those in our way!

A full-scale clash began. Superhumans let out all their skills at once against the monsters, pushing them back.

-Finish them quickly!

-I’m going as hard as I can!

The monsters kept talking, but no one was listening to them.-Eunah’s whisper: Junior, please come to me.

Eunah’s message flew in during the fierce battle. To her? In the midst of all those SSS-class monsters? But she wouldn’t call him for no reason. He fired a spider web in a straight line, believing in his spiritual power, which had been amplified by four times and reinforced with an SSS-rank skill. He had been using his soul poison to deflect their attacks or hinder their movement, but now it was possible to pierce through them with it.

-Ahhhhhhh!

-My soul is being destroyed!

-Spiritual…! This is spiritual power!

To be able to grasp the nature of the poison and put it into words, the SSS-class monsters were different. Kang Shin-hyuk flew in the direction his attack had gone without a second thought, trusting the high-rankers’ formation to protect the side.

“What is he doing?”

“Is he trying to fight the boss?! No, he’s strong though!”

“Potion! I saw him drink a potion!

“If he has something like that, I want some, damn it!” Kang Shin-hyuk’s leap forward was truly spectacular. He blocked the incoming attacks with his webs, piercing through the path he had set to land near Shin Eunah instantly.

“I’m here.”

“…You really came.” Shin Eunah hurriedly pulled him towards herself with an odd smile, as if relieved. Next to her were the six most famous superhumans in the world, starting with Oh Joo-young, the current number one called the New Sword. The rest of them were all also a part of Vanguard, led by Oh Joo-young.

“What a ridiculous rookie.”

“Isn’t he already surpassing our ranking?”

Only

“Junior.” Shin Eunah’s body was emanating powerful magic, just as she did in Gromas. The enemy confronting her was a small humanoid with black crustacean-like armor. Kang Shin-hyuk felt familiar energy from him.

-To think we would meet this soon.

His voice was smooth.

-Nice to meet you, Anvil.

Kang Shin-hyuk’s face stiffened at the armor he wore. It was more familiar than the spiritual power he exuded.

-Should I call you father?

The moment the man said so…

The New Sword, Oh Joo-young, stabbed Kang Shin-hyuk.