Chapter 35 (2/2)
I could see the agency people making a hasty call urgently.
Hunters who arrived first had no choice but to wait for the three late people even if they were ready.
“Here they are!”
I heard a commotion—the tumult of many people moving at once.
The reporters burst and flashed instantly.
“It’s McKid! Kevin McKid!”
A large number of people were approaching, crossing the police line. There were three hunters, and the rest were all just ordinary people.
They were all employed by one Hunter at the center – a tall black man, wearing a white shirt and leather pants, looking well over two meters tall.
Kevin McKid.
An SS-rank hunter that was non-existent officially in Korea at this time.
“Wow, there’s a superstar.”
A hunter, who was waiting with me, mocked him.
“Is he out of his mind? How dare he wear those clothes when he well knows we’re waiting for them?”
If one was a member of the expedition, they should wear combat uniforms. McKid seemed to be planning to change his clothes here, even though he was late.
I laughed and spoke up, “But now that we’re all here, we’ll be on our way.”
However, that didn’t happen.
There seemed to be a serious discussion between McKid’s party and the agency. I could also hear McKid screaming, which was full of irritation.
I listened attentively.
“No, you mean, out of 15 people, only me and two people who I brought are the ones above S-rank? The other 12 are all A-rank? Why did it change suddenly?”
“McKid, honey. Please help me. It’s because of a sudden vacancy today. And I paid a lot of attention to the A-level dungeon clear at this level.”
“No, that’ll slow down our clear! Didn’t my secretary tell you that I’m going on vacation to Nice’s villa next week? If it’s delayed, you’ll mess up the schedule! I’m in a situation where I’m going to babysit twelve A-ranks. Do you think I’ll be able to finish on time?”
As he said that, McKid gave us an irritated glare, which had been waiting in advance. As hunters who could hear all the sounds of words come and go, their expressions turned fierce.
“It’s sickening to hear that.”
There were murmurs everywhere.
However, no one directly spoke against McKid.
If an A-rank Hunter had said such things openly to B-rank or C-rank Hunter, their life could be in danger in the dungeon. Either way, they were still colleagues who would protect each other in a life-and-death situation of a battle; doing so was an act of making an enemy.
However, it was different for SS-rank hunters. There was a large wall between the A and S-ranks, and there was a larger wall between the S and SS-ranks.
Now, McKid knew he could be that arrogant, so that’s what he was doing.
“Please understand me!”
The middle-aged agency-man seemed to have managed to persuade McKid. However, the problem continued.
“Oh, damn it! Why are we just on standby and not going in?”
One hunter spat out profanity. The man who kept listening answered his question.
“This time, McKid is persistent that he won’t carry his own luggage.”
“That crazy bastard!”
Originally, there were no porters at the dungeon expedition. The gate always held a limited number of people, normally one person, including belongings, and depended on volume and weight. All hunters must enter the gate with similarly distributed public loads attached to their bodies.
If the dungeon required a lot of packing, equal loads were carried, regardless of whether it was SSS-ranked or F-ranked.
McKid was rejecting that now.
“No, Lloyd! Come here. How did you review the contract?”
A man who appeared to be his personal lawyer came next to him and explained the situation in embarrassment.
“Because of the internal environment of the dungeon, we inevitably need a lot of luggage…”
“Oh, shit. Nothing’s going my way!”
McKid, who was sure to coordinate everything else at will, cursed continuously. He eventually changed his clothes reluctantly and put on his combat backpack.
Taking over as the expedition team leader, as if it was natural, he stood in front of the waiting hunters.
“Briefings are replaced by materials distributed. Let’s go.”
There was no apology or expression of regret for why everyone had to wait for him. Hunters threw themselves into the gate in turn with expressions of disapproval.
*
“Isn’t it creepy?”
As soon as we entered the dungeon, a hunter began to mumble.
It was a dark and cold environment, like a cloudy day. The expedition team walked through the forest, where there was no sign of life. After an hour of following the map made through a preliminary survey, it finally came out.
“Oh, is there a boss monster in there?”
In front of us was an oddly shaped giant castle that did not resemble the Earth’s architectural style.
The surface of the castle wall, which could not be known what it was made up of, was covered with lumps that looked like a mix of dough with guts and soil. More than 80% of the exterior surface of the castle had been eroded by it.
“You mean that attacks when people approach it, right?”
The reason why each hunter’s bag became heavy was to deal with that.
“Start to assemble!”
Following McKid’s instructions, everyone took out metal parts and small missiles from their battle bags. It was a missile equipped with materials similar to the Mana core bomb in the warhead.
Fifteen launchers were assembled in time. While the hunters were moving, McKid sat still while watching us.
“It’s one of the terms of the contract was that he wouldn’t do any chores.”
Indeed, he was a superstar with a high nose.
After a while, all the preparations were complete. Fifteen temporary launchers aimed the missile at the giant castle ahead.
“Everyone, back up.”
When the hunters stepped down, McKid manipulated the terminal.
“Fire.”
Pew!
Fifteen missiles flew with sparks on their tails. Flying along a smooth orbit, they struck the surface of a strange mass covering the castle!
Bang!
Swish!
Koo-Koo, koo, koo, koo!
It was a blast that could rip the ears.
White flash took place in the distance, and a blue flame covered the place where the explosion had swept away. The ground shook, and that it was necessary to re-establish our balance.
After a while, the shaking stopped, and the dust and smoke that covered the castle completely disappeared. The castle was then revealed.
“Wow.”
The expeditors exclaimed in amazement. Even amid the explosion, the black castle walls showed no signs of collapsing or breaking.
On the other hand, much of the wiggling lumps that covered the outer surface disappeared.
If it was about 80% before the attack, it was now about 20% covered.
McKid muttered, “It means that we have to beat the rest with our hands to get in. That’s troublesome. Come on, march!”
At his instruction, the expedition team began to move again.
I began to think while looking at the back of that McKid.
‘In my past life, that man, McKid, eventually took over the sword.’
It was more than half a year that he managed to wield the sword in his hand. After getting the sword, he lived just about that much longer.
Kevin McKid’s end was never a beautiful sight. He held the sword firmly in his right hand, cut himself little by little from the end of his limbs, and died after leaving a total of 386 pieces.
His body was reportedly shocking enough to cause even experienced rescue workers to retire in shock.
An autopsy also revealed that Kevin McKid must have been alive for about a day since he first put the blade into his body. It was not confirmed whether he was in a state of pain when the sword had completely possessed him.
‘Once he’s slain after he gets his hand on the sword, the only way to change the owner is to kill him.’
In other words, I had to intercept McKid before he could get the sword in his hands.
It would be less complicated than to fight and kill an SS-Hunter that way.
Six months later, I could wait for McKid to die on his own and retrieve it, but if he went the same way as in his previous life, I would have to shake off the federal government when he had gotten detained at home, which was formidable. It was best to take it away from here now.
I quietly followed in McKid’s footsteps while organizing the plans in my head.