It took less than five minutes.
That was the time it took for the woman, who had turned into a monster, to take down the Crimson Tiger.
She had suppressed a B-rank monster, a Crimson Tiger, in that short amount of time.
“Tsk, I told you to just go, but you wouldn’t listen. Anyway…”
The woman who defeated the Crimson Tiger slowly turned around and looked at the people trembling in fear.
“Aaahhh!”
“D-Don’t come any closer!”
The people recoiled in horror at her monstrous appearance.
She could have been offended by their reaction, but she maintained an indifferent expression.
However, the words that followed made the people’s blood run cold.
“Hmm, what should I do? Should I kill you all now that you’ve seen me like this?”
The people felt an even greater sense of dread at her gaze, which looked like a predator eyeing its prey, as she licked her lips that were torn all the way to her ears.
“P-Please spare us.”
“We didn’t see anything. Please, just our lives…”
The woman stared at the trembling people in silence for a while before raising her arm and pointing at someone.
“You.”
The woman she pointed at jumped in surprise and backed away.
“Gasp! W-Why me? P-Please, spare me. Please…!”
The monster-woman spoke to the pale woman who was backing away.
“Do you have clothes in that bag? You look like you have a similar build to me. If you give me some underwear and an outfit, I’ll let you live.”
She was asking if there were clothes in the backpack the woman was holding.
“Clothes? Yes! I have some! I’ll give them to you!”
The woman hurriedly opened her backpack and took out the clothes.
In her hands was a set of underwear and a single-piece dress.
“Oh! That dress is exactly my style. I like it. Put it over there.”
The woman rushed over to where she pointed, left the underwear and dress, and then scrambled back to her spot.
As the transformed woman walked toward the clothes, she said, “Stay right there until I’m fully dressed. If any of you move even a single step, I’ll leave the rest to your imagination.”
The woman’s threat worked.
The people stood as if frozen, not moving a muscle.
After glancing at them, the woman slowly walked toward the pile of clothes.
*Creeeak! Crack! Craaaack!*
As she walked, her body slowly returned to its original form.
However, because her physical size had increased during the transformation, her underwear and everything else had been shredded.
She was now completely naked.
Once she fully returned to her human form, the woman slowly began to dress herself.
After putting on the underwear and then the dress, she scanned her reflection with a satisfied expression.
“I really like this dress. It’s totally my style.”
After checking herself out with a bright expression, she walked toward the group of people.
They looked at her with fear-filled eyes.
“Don’t worry. You gave me a nice dress, so I won’t kill you. But keep this in mind. Just forget what you saw here today. Not that anyone would believe you if you told them anyway. Well, I’m off.”
Waving her hand lightly, the woman walked toward the destroyed entrance.
At that moment…
“W-Wait a minute!”
Someone hurriedly called out to stop her.
The woman stopped and turned her head to look at the person who had called her.
“What is it?”
“T-That… could you maybe just stay here?”
The woman looked at the person as if the request were absurd.
“Huh? You want me to stay? Why? Aren’t you afraid of me? You saw what I looked like earlier.”
She had expected them to be relieved that she was leaving, so she was puzzled when they asked her to stay.
“Of course, we’re afraid and terrified. But… at least we can communicate with you. So, please. Please stay here.”
One could not talk to monsters, but they could talk to her.
Monsters saw humans as prey, but she did not.
Even though she was terrifying, one thing was certain: if she stayed here, they wouldn’t have to worry about being killed by monsters.
“So you’re saying you want me to protect you from the monsters? But that’s just your opinion. I don’t think the others feel the same way. Look. Everyone’s faces have turned pale.”
As soon as she finished speaking, people hurriedly chimed in.
“N-No! Just like he said, p-please stay here!”
“We were very rude earlier. Even though you saved us…”
“H-Here, I have a few more clothes! Underwear too! I’ll give you more if you need them!”
They had also realized it.
Even though she was frightening, she was far better than the monsters.
And just by being with her, they would be safe from the threat of monsters.
“Sigh, if you really want me to, I guess I have no choice. Fine. I’ll stay here and protect you from the monsters. But I don’t have much money left right now. I think I’ll have a lot to spend it on once I leave here. Do you have any money? Think of it as a protection fee and take out as much as your conscience dictates. Oh! By the way, I don’t have an account, so I don’t take transfers. Only cash.”
At her words, people hurriedly pulled out their wallets.
“I have 200,000 won!”
“I have 300,000 won.”
“Do you take checks?”
“Ah! What should I do? I only use cards, so I don’t have cash. Is there an ATM nearby?”
It felt like a shakedown, but it was strangely different.
It was only natural; if they could be safe from monsters, they didn’t care about a little bit of money.
And so, people took money out of their wallets one by one, and the woman collected the cash with a satisfied expression.
—
Jeju Airport.
Changcheon and Genesis traveled on their own private jets, while Seong-jun traveled with the Holy Emperor Guild on theirs.
“Wow, this is on a completely different level from a regular passenger plane. I should buy a private jet like this once I earn a lot of money later. How much does something like this cost?”
At Seong-jun’s question, Karl replied with a smile.
“As far as I know, this costs about 100 million dollars.”
Seong-jun gasped at the price.
“Gasp! 100 million dollars? That’s well over 100 billion won. Whoa, that’s insane.”
“You don’t necessarily have to buy one this expensive. You can probably buy a decent, usable private jet for about 30 million dollars.”
Even at 30 million dollars, it was over 40 billion won at the current exchange rate.
However, considering Seong-jun’s bank balance, it wasn’t something he couldn’t afford.
It was just that he didn’t need it right now, so he planned to think about it later when he had more spare time.
“I’ll think about it later when I have so much money I don’t know what to do with it.”
As they got off the Holy Emperor’s private jet and entered the airport, they saw the members of the Changcheon and Genesis guilds who had arrived first.
They also saw guilds from various regions that had come to defend Jeju Airport.
They had been in a gloomy, funeral-like mood due to the news of the boss mob moving north, but they looked relieved when not only Changcheon and Genesis but also Seong-jun and the Holy Emperor Guild arrived in Jeju.
“Oh! Welcome! We’ve been waiting for you! Haha, I am Ji Tae-hak of the Iron Man Guild. I’m not sure if you remember me, but we met once during the Taean Dungeon Break incident.”
The Iron Man Guild was based in Daejeon and was quite influential there.
Furthermore, during the Taean Dungeon Break, they had benefited greatly from Seong-jun’s help when they were stationed at the Main Defense Line.
When Ji Tae-hak of the Iron Man Guild offered a greeting, Seong-jun shook his hand with a smile.
“Ah, yes. Nice to meet you. So you were there during the Taean incident. In a way, I suppose this is fate. I look forward to working with you this time as well, just like in Taean. And these are the members of the Holy Emperor Guild.”
As Seong-jun introduced the members of the Holy Emperor Guild, Ji Tae-hak hurriedly bowed his head.
“It’s truly an honor to meet the world-famous Holy Emperor members in person! Wow!”
No matter how influential the Iron Man Guild was in Daejeon, it was ultimately a guild ranked outside the top thirty.
While larger than most small-to-medium guilds, it was insufficient to be called a giant guild.
To them, even super-giant guilds like the Top 10 Domestic Guilds were intimidating, so what more could be said about the Holy Emperor Guild, considered one of the strongest in the world?
“Nice to meet you. I am William Kreft of Holy Emperor. By the way, what is the current situation? Is it very bad?”
When William asked about the current situation, Ji Tae-hak answered immediately.
“As expected, the boss mob that destroyed Moseulpo Port headed north, devastated Hallim Outer Port, and is currently reported to be moving toward Aewol Port. For your information, the size of the boss mob is currently over 700 and reaching nearly 800. We expect it to exceed 1,000 by the time it reaches here after destroying Aewol Port.”
The movement path of the boss mob did not deviate much from what they had anticipated.
However, because it was bypassing nearby small docks and marching straight for Aewol Port, it seemed it would arrive at Jeju Airport a bit faster than expected.
At Ji Tae-hak’s words, Seong-jun stepped forward and asked, “What is the number of civilians taking refuge at Aewol Port?”
“I understand it’s around 6,000 people. It seems they are preparing to move in a hurry after hearing that the boss mob is heading toward Aewol Port, but the Hunters guarding that area only number about thirty. It will be practically impossible for them to escort 6,000 civilians and move them safely.”
The number of civilians who had fled to Aewol Port was nearly 6,000.
On the other hand, the Hunters guarding them were only about thirty.
At best, they could somehow manage to defend against small groups that attacked occasionally, but the number of Hunters was woefully insufficient to take 6,000 civilians and move to another location.
Seong-jun nodded at Ji Tae-hak’s words.
“I see. Then it’s simple. We will go to Aewol Port.”
To quickly conclude the Jeju incident, they eventually had to clear out the boss mob, and didn’t they already know exactly where that mob was moving?
If so, there was no need to sit around at Jeju Airport and wait for the boss mob to come to them.
“Pardon? What do you mean by that? You’re going to Aewol Port?”
“Once we wipe out the boss mob, cleaning up the remaining stragglers will be easy. So instead of waiting here, we’re going to Aewol Port to finish things quickly. That’s why I’m asking, William. Could you please come with me to Aewol Port?”
Unlike in Seoul, this was a situation where it didn’t matter if he cast Dark Attribute Infusion in Wide Area Mode.
Therefore, even if only Seong-jun’s group went, they would be able to clear out a significant number of monsters.
The problem was that he had already cast Sanctuary in Ahyeon-dong, so he couldn’t use Sanctuary here.
No matter how much stronger he had become, it was difficult to annihilate monsters with God’s Wrath alone without Sanctuary.
Of course, there were area-of-effect skills like Seong-jun’s Sword of Light or Yuseon’s Wind Spirit’s Bombardment, but the range was much narrower compared to God’s Wrath, so it was impossible to clear nearly 1,000 monsters in one go.
That’s why Seong-jun asked the Holy Emperor Guild for help.
If Holy Emperor joined them, their chances of winning would be much higher.
At Seong-jun’s request for help, William asked with a very serious expression, “Instead of building a defense line, you’re going to Aewol Port to face the boss mob?
Is there a need to take such a risk here?”
Currently, Jeju Airport was where the strongest Hunter forces in Jeju were concentrated.
So, if they built a defense line here and waited for the boss mob, he judged that they could defeat it without much difficulty.
But since Seong-jun wanted to throw away this advantage and go to Aewol Port for a disadvantageous fight, it was only natural that William couldn’t understand.
“In the end, how quickly we catch the boss is key to minimizing damage. Even as we stand here like this, countless people are probably being killed by monsters. Isn’t the reason we can’t actively engage in monster subjugation precisely because of the boss mob? We just need to catch the boss mob. Then the situation will improve rapidly.”
If they weren’t going to come to Jeju in the first place, that would be one thing, but since they were already here, they might as well do it properly.
While they sat at Jeju Airport waiting for the boss mob, the screams of people would continue to echo all over Jeju.
Therefore, Seong-jun intended to go to Aewol Port, quickly clear the boss mob, and end the Jeju incident as fast as possible.
“That is true, but the problem is that the risk is too great. Besides, there’s no guarantee we’ll arrive at Aewol Port before the boss mob, is there? If we’re not careful, we might fail to protect Aewol Port and be forced to fight the boss mob without having built a proper defense line.”
“That’s why we have to hurry. Since the boss mob is one step ahead of us, we’ll have to hurry as much as possible to make up for it. So, what will you do? It’s fine if you stay here, so you don’t need to feel pressured.”
Saying it was okay to stay here meant that Seong-jun himself was going to Aewol Port regardless.
William let out a sigh at those words.
“Sigh, I have no choice. If something happens to Kim Seong-jun, it will affect Karl’s treatment as well.”
In the end, William decided to go to Aewol Port with Seong-jun.
The reason Holy Emperor had come all the way to Jeju was because of Seong-jun.
They had followed him to Jeju specifically because they were worried something might happen to him, so they couldn’t just let Seong-jun’s group go alone now.
Well, putting that aside, he also had the confidence that as long as he had Seong-jun’s buffs, he could sufficiently handle B-rank monsters.
“Thank you. I will surely repay the help you’ve given me this time.”
He knew very well that the reason Holy Emperor was getting so involved in another country’s problems, which wasn’t even their own, was ultimately because of him.
Therefore, once this incident was concluded, he planned to repay the help he received in some way.
When Seong-jun and Holy Emperor said they were going to Aewol Port, Choi Gang-hyeok of Changcheon stepped forward and spoke.
“Dealing with the boss at Aewol Port? That’s certainly not a bad idea. Building a defense line here would be safe, but a significant loss of life would occur in the meantime. We, Changcheon, will also go to Aewol Port.”
Following Choi Gang-hyeok, Ju So-jeong also decided to join them.
“In that case, Genesis can’t be left out. Genesis will join as well.”
When Changcheon and Genesis said they would join following Holy Emperor, Seong-jun said with a smile, “If Changcheon and Genesis join us, we should be able to clear them out without much trouble, no matter how large the boss mob is. Let’s head out immediately.”
Didn’t they have a record of clearing a boss mob of about 700 without any damage in Ahyeon-dong?
Since all the main players from that time were going to Aewol Port, he judged that they could clear the boss mob as easily as they did in Ahyeon-dong.
***
Around the time the boss mob that devastated Hallim Outer Port was passing Geumseong Port, Seong-jun’s group left Jeju Airport and headed for Aewol Port.
Since they were far behind the boss mob, they sped as fast as they could in their vehicles.
As a result, they were able to arrive at Aewol Port slightly ahead of the boss mob.
However, because Aewol Port, where nearly 10,000 people were taking refuge, was a bit too burdensome to use as a battleground, they took up positions in the urban area slightly away from Aewol Port.
“Kuoooooo!”
Since they had arrived just a hair’s breadth before the boss mob, the mob began to appear in the distance just as they were taking their positions in the city.
“I expected the boss mob to cross the urban area based on its movement path, and my guess was correct. Let’s hurry and build a defense line.”
Before they knew it, Seong-jun was naturally leading them.
And these people also showed no particular dissatisfaction with Seong-jun’s lead.
Considering that they were Holy Emperor, one of the world’s strongest guilds, and Changcheon and Genesis, which vied for first and second place domestically, this was a very unusual situation.
“By the way, it looks like their numbers have increased even more. It looks like there are about 1,000 of them? Will it be possible with just us?”
Since the size at the time they devastated Hallim Outer Port was said to be about 700, about 300 more had joined them on their way here.
Therefore, Choi Gang-hyeok was doubtful if they could block them with only the personnel present here.
After all, the situation was different from Ahyeon-dong.
“Don’t worry. The number of those we’ll actually have to face won’t be that many anyway. That’s why I’m asking each guild to select one person with the strongest AoE skill and send them to my party.”
Choi Gang-hyeok smirked at Seong-jun’s words.
“Are you planning to turn those guys into the Dark Attribute?”
Putting those with powerful AoE skills into his own party meant he would give them the Enchant buff.
And the Enchant buff shines when the target has the Dark Attribute.
During the Seoul incident, he didn’t cast Dark Attribute Infusion for fear of harming the Hunters who had built the 2nd Defense Line, but in Jeju, there was no defense line or anything to worry about.
Therefore, he could use Dark Attribute Infusion to his heart’s content.
“Yes. Once we sweep them with a powerful AoE skill, there won’t be many left. Even if there are more than I expect, we can just use Holy Barrier to disperse the monsters like we did in Ahyeon-dong.”
His Holy Barrier’s cooldown had ended while they were moving here after arriving in Jeju.
Therefore, if necessary, they could split the enemies with Holy Barrier.
“Then even if there are around 1,000, they’ll be worth fighting. All right. I’ll send someone over right now.”
After saying that, Choi Gang-hyeok headed toward his guild members.
On the other hand, Ju So-jeong remained in her spot without going to her guild members.
“Since I am the one with the most powerful AoE skill in Genesis, there’s no need to pick anyone else.”
Ju So-jeong was an S-rank Mage.
Furthermore, she specialized in the Fire Attribute, which boasted the most powerful damage among all elements.
“Since Guild Master Ju So-jeong is here, we won’t have to worry about the small fry. For now, please join my party.”
Seong-jun immediately sent a party request to Ju So-jeong.
And so, they prepared for the upcoming battle with the boss mob.