Episode 404 「Huh」
dark night.
Upon returning, the young man threw off his equipment and sat down on his seat. A middle-aged man approached him who was out of breath and handed him a drink.
“You look tough.”
The two men, who had one thing in common, being hunters recruited from Shaanxi Province, had managed to build a close friendship on the way.
After checking the familiar face and the canned beverage in his hand, the young man muttered in a trembling voice.
“Did you come out as a supply? It’s like a drink I’ve never seen before.”
“It came as an overseas relief item. It’s not our Lina.”
“Um, do you have any soda?”
“If you don’t like it, don’t.”
snap.
The young man who grabbed the hand of the middle-aged man who slipped behind him said with a serious face.
“mister. Did I mention that my favorite thing in the world is a soft drink?”
“no.”
“Then you’ll find out now.”
“Okay, that’s the way it is.”
“I will eat well.”
click.
After opening a can and taking a sip, the young man’s expression subtly changed. But before he had time to say anything, the middle-aged man asked the question.
“Is it on the way back after the search for District 3?”
“… … Big, yes.”
“It must have been difficult.”
The young man responded with a shrug. His undressed upper body was wet with cold sweat that hadn’t dried yet, and green blood splattered on his cheeks.
“Monster fatigue. Was there even a battle?」
“no. I was passing a building when a goddamn gargoyle corpse fell. It must have been over the roof.”
“There must have been a commotion.”
“You mean that? As soon as the first and second year old chicks were covered in blood, they vomited and even urinated.”
“Are you?”
「Even if I look like this, I am not a 7th year hunter. I didn’t even blink an eye.”
The middle-aged man’s gaze slid down toward a specific part of the young man. He stared blankly at the slightly stained part of his ultramarine blue pants and nodded.
“hmm. Right.”
“… … It’s sweat.”
“I didn’t say anything. But looking at you, I feel like my eyes are sweating for some reason.”
“… … Actually, I’m a little tired. Can I see it?」
“huh.”
“Shit.”
The middle-aged man, who was silently watching the young man spit out profanity and tipped the can, asked abruptly.
“Did you find any survivors?”
“… … !”
“It was the same on your side.”
Seeing the young man’s expression harden as soon as he finished speaking, he let out a sigh.
He also participated in the search once. It was truly a nightmare experience.
Everywhere I looked, there were corpses torn to pieces by monsters, and it felt as if my head was being torn apart by the terrible stench.
Perhaps the two of them will never forget the scene they saw today.
“… … I can’t even imagine how fierce the battle must have been.”
“You don’t have to imagine that, because whatever you think, it must have been more than that.”
The 4,000 hunters who came here following Defense Minister Wei Penghu were divided according to their organization and searched small towns. And all the search equipment they used gave only one result over and over again.
No survivors.
All but the 3,000 People’s Liberation Army soldiers who fled in fear at the beginning of the battle lay in the cold. It is not yet known how many of the cowardly fugitives survived.
“At this rate, I can’t even use the word casualty counting. death toll is more accurate
“Be careful with your words. Because you don’t know yet.”
“Um, sorry. I made a mistake.”
“It’s fine if you know. and… … . J
The man who cut off the careless young man’s remarks, I continued.
“The casualty tally is correct. Because there are survivors.”
“… … ah.”
The young man remembered something he had forgotten for a while
lied The existence of the three people who survived this miserable hell.
“Did you say you were the regimental commander of the Ministry of Public Security and Armed Forces? That little friend.”
“that’s right. Even the young teacher from Korea survived.”
“which… … . J
It is true that the two men mentioned above made a heroic move, but compared to the last one, they are mere fireflies in front of the sun.
In place of the young man who swallowed dry saliva, a middle-aged man continued.
“Yes, that person. No, he too
Shiji.」
There was an unconcealable reverence in his voice. The reason why he does not feel any objection even though he refers to a young man who is younger than himself is because he knows how great his accomplishments are.
“Do you believe me? That one hunter can be that strong.”
He is also a veteran hunter with thick bones. That’s why I was able to vaguely predict how monstrous the S-class hunters were.
However, the performance shown by Jin Tae-kyung
really… … Hunter, no, it was unbelievable that it was human power.
“It’s an army of monsters that can reach ten thousand. Among the two Death Knights, there was also a Death Knight Lord that was said to be as strong as or stronger than an S-class Hunter.”
The middle-aged man spoke quickly in an excited voice.
「Compared to that, what about the number of ally hunters? There were only a thousand people. There was a People’s Liberation Army, but even that… … . J
“When the front line collapsed, nearly half of them fled. The rest fought bravely, but were slaughtered by monsters. I heard it too.”
「How many hunters do you think were left when Jin Tae-kyung arrived? a thousand people? No, I’ll bet my life that there won’t even be half of that left!”
If he had personally witnessed the situation at the time Jin Tae-gyeong arrived, he might have had a cardiac arrest in surprise.
Even he, who was so deeply in awe, never thought that Jin Tae-gyeong would face the monster army alone.
“He led hundreds of tired and injured hunters and annihilated an army of monsters that numbered well over 10 times! Do you think this makes sense?”
And the young man who was looking at such a man had a very confused expression.
“I don’t think so.”
“Yes, but he did it!”
「Oh, uncle. I’m sorry for pouring cold water on you, but haven’t the facts been revealed yet?」
“what?”
“I think Jin Tae-kyung… … .”
“It’s not Jin Tae-kyung, it’s Jin!”
The young man, startled by the sight of a middle-aged man yelling with his ringed eyes open, coughed.
「Kuhm. So, I also admit that Mr. Jin is a very strong person, but somehow he wasn’t exaggerating a bit. That’s what I was thinking.”
“exaggeration? Even looking at the traces left on the battlefield, can you say that? If not Jin-sensei, who… … .”
「Okay, don’t be too zealous and look a little more calmly. If everything you said is true, isn’t it that Sensei Jin is stronger than Pi Chen or Wu Heixing?”
“I don’t want to put them in order, but Jin-sensei is the number one major in this monster wave. so?”
“Pai Chen is of Hong Kong origin, so he is a hero who made numerous majors in cataclysms, and Wu Heixing is a true genius born in China even if he has many accidents. Jin Tae-kyung is ahead of those two? This is over the line.”
The middle-aged man stared at the young man with eyes full of dejection and emptiness.
“You’re the one who crossed the line.”
“yes?”
“Is that all you want to say? Crying for China’s Top 10 Day, winning a great victory and degrading the hero who saved the people?”
The young man’s face contorted.
“Speaking of which, Jin Tae-gyeong saved two people today. No, the other one is only you, a Korean. He was said to be in good shape with not even a single wound. I fought to protect only the people of my country. Could it be that you used even the highest quality potion?」
“I don’t want to talk. I can’t praise it, but it’s such a bad treatment. What will Jin-sensei say when he sees it… … . J It was at that moment when the middle-aged man shook his head and stood up.
“Well, I think he said he was a dog bee who didn’t need any help.”
“… … !”
“… … !”
The two of them turned their heads in surprise at the voice of someone approaching without a sign.
What they faced was a familiar face through IV and mass media.
“… … Hiccup.”
The young man who looked up at the taller man started to hiccup.
“Gee, ge, ge, ge, Jijijin!!”
The middle-aged man couldn’t speak like a person who had buffering.
Looking at the two, Jin Tae-kyung opened his mouth with a kind smile.
“Young man over there, stop hiccuping if you don’t want to be a good Chinese. Uncle, please stop the earthquake. Unless you plan on defeating the Arch Lich with a major earthquake.”
“Daughter, huh.”
“I-I-Is that really you?”
Jin Tae-gyeong nodded slightly.
“I was just going to pass by, but I heard a very annoying sound.”
“… … that, that… … . J
When the person who made the annoying noise stopped hiccuping and started to tremble like an aspen tree, Jin Tae-gyeong asked.
“how old?”
“Su-twenty-nine.”
“You are older than me. I’ll talk nonsense.”
“… … yes?”
“what.”
“Ah, no.”
There is nothing to say even if it is not half-talking but double-swearing.
Thinking that Jin Tae-gyeong, whom he had witnessed from afar or just passing by, had heard all of his words, the young man felt his hands and feet go numb and his eyes turned white.
“I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to apologize for. Talking behind your back is what it is. I understand.”
「Go, thank you.」
It was at that time when Jin Tae-gyeong’s gentle smile was about to melt his heart.
“There is nothing to be thankful for. Talking behind your back is good when it’s started, but it’s f*cked up when you’re caught.”
“… … ! j
There will be a person behind my back right now. see?”
The young man slowly, very slowly, rolled his eyes.
Indeed, from a distance of ten meters, a man with the face of a devil was raising a terrifying force toward him.
“Sir Rae, a Class A Hunter belonging to the Central Military Commission. He seems to have listened to your story with great interest.
“Yeah old!”
The young man who answered like a scream ran quickly and let out a real scream at the mana-loaded joint.
I was about to leave with a smile on my face
Jin Tae-gyeong suddenly stopped.
“Oh, there is one fact that you misunderstood.”
“I-you mean that?”
The middle-aged man, who had been half lost, suddenly came to his senses.
“I’m sorry, but what is that… … .”
“I didn’t do it alone.”
“yes?”
“Everyone fought to the death. By the time I came, it was almost over. Please let others know as well.”
“Is that really true?”
“Sure. Oh, do you have a family?”
「Yes. Three daughters and five sons… … . J
“You are a patriot. In a few years, maybe we can make a soccer team.”
Jin Tae-kyung, who was pondering something, suddenly asked.
“You’re not part of a combat unit, are you?”
“… … You know right away.”
The middle-aged man lowered his head as if embarrassed.
“As you can see, it’s an E-class Hunter, so in battle
are excluded. It will probably be put into the casualty count.”
“Then can I ask you one thing?”
“I-it’s an honor. Mr. Jin.”
“Then, please include one person on the list of dead. Since the body will never be found, I request a special favor.”
“His name is… … ? J
“Ray Fei, this is Lei Fei.”
Those were the last words.
The middle-aged man, who stood still and watched Jin Tae-kyung’s back for a long time, let out a breath he had been holding back.
The expression of Jin Tae-gyeong, the last time I saw it, was probably stuck in my mind for a long time.
what eyes… …
A determination to make it happen.
The middle-aged man, who was vomiting admiration at Jin Tae-kyung, drank down the canned drink the young man had left behind and quenched his thirst. And frowned at his indescribable taste.
，，Tweet! ，，
Birdian?
It’s like a Korean drink, but it’s filthy and tasteless.
was
* * *
“Come here, Jin-sensei.”
Weifeng Hu wasn’t the only one waiting for me.
Five monitors placed in a conference room. And the five S-class hunters sitting on the screen, I started talking in a calm voice.
“Let’s go to end the war.”
Now, it was time to deal with the culprit behind all this.
