Chapter 67 Annihilation of the USFK Base?
“Ugh…!”
“Captain! Are you alright?!”
“Is that you, Captain Paul…? First, lift up this debris.”
“Yes, sir! Understood.”
The USFK base was no different than usual.
However, suddenly, with a massive roar, the ground shook, and when Talisman came to his senses, he was buried under the commander’s office where he had been sitting moments before, on the brink of death.
He was barely saved by a competent subordinate.
“Cough, cough!”
Talisman emerged from the rubble, supported, and exited the building.
He barely had time to feel relieved.
“…Unbelievable.”
His base, armed with the latest equipment, had turned into ruins and completely collapsed.
“Was it an earthquake…?”
“No. If it were, it wouldn’t have collapsed to this extent.”
“Right, there’s no way a US military base would collapse just from an earthquake…”
The base was meticulously built to withstand earthquakes and prepared against North Korean attacks.
It was designed so thoroughly that it could deploy tanks without being destroyed even within the strike range of surface-to-air missile units.
But such a base was annihilated in an instant?
There was only one possibility.
“It’s him…!”
A monster that single-handedly annihilated six divisions of the world’s strongest military forces in the United States.
Originally, he was supposed to annihilate this USFK base in a staged attack four days later, a monster that should never have been resurrected.
“The Nightmare of California… ‘Alien Bess’ has awakened on its own…!”
“Alien Bess? Isn’t that the national disaster-level monster in America from long ago? I heard about it from my parents when I was young.”
“Yes, that monster has revived. And it’s rampaging in this small land of Korea, which is only about a quarter the size of California!”
At that time, the monster had devastated a tenth of California to the point where it was uninhabitable.
It took nearly 20 years to restore the damage, and now it’s wreaking havoc in Korea, which is weaker than the US and smaller than a single American state?
The entire nation could be paralyzed for more than a century.
The advanced country of Korea could revert back to a backward nation from 60 years ago when the Korean War ended.
“Gather all the available forces and stop that monster!”
“Yes, sir!”
“First, pinpoint its location. And don’t engage recklessly! I will request support from the Hunter Association and military units in Korea immediately. And…”
And.
The main culprit of this incident.
Mike Dunn, a member of the US House of Representatives.
He planned to request support from him, one of the seven national power-level hunters in the US.
If he refused, he would threaten to release the entire recording of their conversation to the media, even if it meant dishonorable discharge.
Having served in this small Asian country for over 20 years, Talisman was ready to die to protect his second homeland outside of the US.
“Captain. Currently, five tanks, 200 infantry, and 10 special infantry units are ready to move.”
“Good. Then, relay this to them. The monster that appeared in the base is really! Extremely! Dangerous, so avoid conflict and observe from a distance.”
“Well, about that, Captain.”
“…?”
Captain Paul, who was writing down his orders, continued.
“The special infantry units have already surrounded the monster…”
“W-what?!”
Upon hearing this, Talisman’s already pale face turned even whiter.
***
US Special Infantry.
Special infantry referred to a unique military position that existed only within the <Hunter’s Blood> universe.
Special infantry were soldiers with special abilities superior to others.
If the strength of a regular infantry soldier was considered 1, special infantry could exert at least a power level of 100, representing ‘superhumans.’
And although the criteria varied slightly by country, US special infantry required a minimum hunter career, and the rank had to be at least B-grade or higher.
“Leader. Isn’t that it?”
“Hmm, yes. It seems so.”
Each of them was on par with the Asian prodigy, Sophia.
Whether they were on par with or exceeded the capabilities of the USFK’s ten special infantry soldiers, the culprit of this incident, hiding beneath the wreckage, had just emerged to the surface.
Facing the horrifying figure of a cyborg, a fusion of machine and monster, they were not frightened.
“We’ll handle this.”
Instead, they salivated as they literally prepared for the ‘hunt.’
“Who wants to take the first strike?”
“Private Michael. May I take the lead?”
“Michael, are you confident?”
“Yes, sir. Absolutely.”
With a rough idea of the enemy’s position, the special infantry squad regrouped and selected the member who would first engage the monster.
Private Michael Dillain, an African-American with a Japanese sword at his waist, raised his hand enthusiastically.
“I’ve been wanting to test this equipment I bought for $20,000 in Japan.”
“You were an A-rank hunter when you served at the Association headquarters, right?”
“Yes, sir. I even made it to the candidate stage for national power-level hunters but missed out, so I enlisted.”
He came seeking new opportunities.
Sergeant Michela, the squad leader, found this promising and said, as if granting permission.
“Alright. Then go ahead and show off your skills.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“We’ll save you if it looks like you’re going to die.”
They sent the eager recruit towards the cyborg monster, which had been standing still since a moment ago.
With a $20,000 Japanese sword in hand, Michael Dillain confidently approached the enemy, who had now noticed him.
“Whew…”
His hunter job was Saber Hunter, a type specialized solely in slashing and cutting.
“I’m going in.”
When a Saber Hunter, who could gut a fish with a blunt rock, wielded a real sword, the sharpness was beyond imagination.
With a swift draw of his blade, Private Michael Dillain, who had reached the rank of A-rank hunter at the American headquarters, aimed for the cyborg monster’s abdomen like a black meteor…
“…?!”
He should have cut it precisely.
“…Clang?”
Private Michael Dillain was surprised.
However, it wasn’t because his attack had no effect.
This was a monster deemed capable of annihilating the entire USFK base.
He had volunteered as cannon fodder to gauge its strength.
He had somewhat anticipated that his attack might be blocked.
But the noise that erupted the moment his steel blade touched the creature’s skin.
Instead of the sound of flesh tearing or organs being pierced, it was the clamor of metal against metal.
“What’s going on…”
Feeling an unsettling dissonance, Michael Dillain retreated instantly.
Splat!
The next moment, he coughed up blood and collapsed without even having the chance to ponder the mysterious phenomenon further.
“…Huh?”
He urgently looked down at his chest, where a large wound, as if slashed by a very sharp blade, had formed.
But the monster before him had made no movements, nor did it have sharp claws.
Then what could have caused this wound?
“What kind of ability is this…? Even in a direct confrontation, I can’t understand it…”
He needed to convey some information to his comrades.
Facing a monster type he’d never encountered before, Michael’s consciousness began to fade with the stream of blood.
And as if to finish him off.
“Michael!!”
“You monster! Get your filthy hands off my subordinate immediately!”
The cyborg monster grabbed Michael’s limp head and lifted him to its eye level.
Michael, with his feet off the ground, was barely conscious.
Seeing this, the special infantry squad, unable to bear it, took up combat stances, ready to attack the monster from all sides at Sergeant Michela’s signal.
…That was their plan, at least.
“M, A, N…”
“?!”
“The monster…”
“Is talking?”
A monster capable of human speech.
They had only read about or heard of such creatures in books or legends.
Faced with a type of monster that appeared in ancient history, the special infantry squad momentarily paused in shock.
During that moment, the cyborg monster spoke again.
“M, A, N, I, S, G, E, N, T. K, I, L, L, I, N, G, I, S, A, W, A, S, T, E.”
“…What?”
“What is it saying?”
Schwick.
“…! Michael!”
“Private Michael!”
The next moment, the monster released Michael’s head, letting him fall to the ground.
“Where…is this? Who…am I?”
Grabbing its head in apparent agony, it seemed to struggle for a moment.
“…! I feel it. The hateful, presences.”
Suddenly, it turned its head.
The direction it was looking at was the bustling downtown area of Seoul, shining brightly even in the evening.
“Kill. All. Trash.”
With a tremendous roar, the cyborg monster shook the ground once more and then…
“No, stop!”
Ignoring the nearby soldiers, it leapt towards the bustling area of Hongdae in Seoul, driven purely by instinct.