The cabin door opened and a flight attendant rushed in.
“Is there a hunter on board?!”
It was the classic airplane emergency scene you see in movies.
The only difference was that they were looking for a hunter instead of a doctor.
The flight attendant’s eyes were filled with fear and despair.
Investigator Bae Minji immediately stood up from her seat.
“Investigator Bae Minji of the Korean Hunter Surveillance Bureau. I’m an A-rank hunter.”
“C-could you please help us for a moment?”
“……Lead the way.”
Investigator Bae Minji glanced at Professor Park Ahjeong.
“I’ll check what’s happening and come right back.”
“If you need help, just say the word. I’ll come running. Don’t try to handle it alone!”
“Got it.”
Bae Minji and the flight attendant hurried out of the cabin.
Kim Yerim muttered anxiously.
“W-what’s going on? Could it be a terrorist attack or something……”
Her clasped hands trembled as if she were praying.
Professor Park Ahjeong gently patted Kim Yerim’s shoulder.
“It’s okay, Yerim student. Korea’s airspace is constantly protected by Mrs. Luddite’s defense system. Support aircraft should already be on their way here by now.”
“I see……”
“And one more thing!”
“Hm?”
Professor Park Ahjeong clenched her fist with a determined expression.
“I will protect my students no matter what! I may not look it, but I’m actually pretty strong. And my friend who just left is the absolute best.”
“Pfft!”
Kim Yerim turned her head away.
Professor Park Ahjeong’s folksy way of speaking seemed to ease the tension.
At that moment, Professor Park Ahjeong’s eyes met mine.
Her gaze was unusually serious.
It was the same look she had given me back in Maslow’s Tower—asking for cooperation if things got dangerous.
I nodded.
Then.
Boom! ……Boom!
Rumble!
Powerful impact sounds rang out in rapid succession.
The fuselage shook violently from side to side.
“Kyaaaaah—!”
Kim Yerim’s scream echoed through the cabin.
At the same time, yellow oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling.
Red warning lights flashed on and off.
‘……Just what the hell is happening?’
I looked out the window.
At that moment, a black shape flew in and slammed into the airplane wing.
Shwaaaaack! Screeeeeech!
Sparks flew everywhere along with the sound of scraping metal.
A moment later, more black shapes appeared around the wing.
Glinting eyes, sharp beaks, fully spread wings, and razor claws.
Every part of them was made of steel.
‘……They really are iron birds?’
Not migratory birds—literally iron birds.
Also known as Iron Birds.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A flock of over a hundred Iron Birds slammed into the fuselage.
Every time one struck the wings or body and sent sparks flying, passengers screamed.
‘Wait a second. Those are……’
Camera lenses were embedded where the birds’ eyes should have been.
The artificial dungeon I had cleared recently immediately came to mind.
‘……Are these also artificial monsters created by Mrs. Luddite?’
Professor Park Ahjeong shot to her feet.
“Luddite…… I warned her so many times and she still……!”
Mrs. Luddite and Professor Park Ahjeong were both deeply involved in artificial dungeon and artificial monster research.
At that moment.
[『—Attention—』]
A short chime sounded, followed by the in-flight announcement.
[—Dear passengers, we have an urgent update! Our aircraft is currently under attack by monsters and experiencing severe turbulence! Please remain in your seats with seatbelts fastened, put on your oxygen masks, and do not move around the cabin!]
[—We repeat! The situation has been reported to air traffic control, the Hunter Association, and Mrs. Luddite’s team. Support aircraft are expected to arrive in approximately ten minutes! We promise to ensure your safety and……]
Ten minutes.
Depending on the situation, it could feel either very short or endlessly long.
Boom!
Another Iron Bird slammed into the fuselage.
The plane tilted sharply.
Could they really hold out against the monsters until the rescue team arrived?
Kim Yerim spoke with tears in her eyes.
“P-Professor…… What are we going to do……”
She suddenly gasped for breath and clutched her chest.
Professor Park Ahjeong rubbed her back soothingly.
“It’s okay. No matter what happens, I will protect you, Yerim student. So just breathe slowly. Inhale slowly…… exhale slowly. The oxygen supply in the cabin is limited. Nice and slow. There you go, good job.”
“……Okay.”
Kim Yerim clasped her hands and trembled.
Then Professor Park Ahjeong turned around and said,
“Hasang student, you too—huh? Hasang student? Where did he go?”
At that moment.
“P-Professor! Look over there!”
“!?”
Kim Yerim pointed out the window.
Above the airplane wing, where smoke was beginning to rise.
Dozens of Iron Birds were swarming around, and a lone figure stood on the wing.
“That’s……”
A woman with short black hair wearing a black suit.
A long, dark blue whip lashed out, striking down the Iron Birds one after another.
Professor Park Ahjeong shouted in a trembling voice.
“Th-th-that……! That crazy bitch! I told her not to go alone!”
It was Investigator Bae Minji.
***
On the wing of an airplane flying hundreds of kilometers per hour.
Anyone who wasn’t an awakener would have been blown off long ago by the wind pressure.
Then.
Shwaaaaack— Crunch!
The thick whip struck two Iron Birds at once.
The birds crumpled like crushed cans and plummeted.
Investigator Bae Minji swung her whip without pause.
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!
The number of Iron Birds visibly decreased at a rapid pace.
Bae Minji’s base stats alone placed her near the top of A-rank hunters in the Association.
At that moment.
Ping—
Something shot toward Bae Minji from behind.
However.
Swish—
She quickly twisted her head and dodged it.
At the same time.
“Too bad.”
A voice like scraping metal rang out.
A form made of gathered black mist.
A torn black robe.
A mask that completely covered the face.
Bae Minji frowned and said,
“I don’t recall seeing an A+ rank hunter on the passenger list. Heading to China for a trip? Where were you hiding? You unilaterally announced your withdrawal from the Association…… Death Stalker.”
A+ rank 11th of the Korean Hunter Association, Death Stalker.
The awakener who had suddenly declared his withdrawal from the Association a few days ago and vanished.
“You recognized me at a glance. As expected, you’re sharp.”
“This level of stealth and assassination technique can only belong to Death Stalker. And that curved blade is your signature ‘Scorpion,’ isn’t it? By the way……”
Bae Minji adjusted her whip and continued.
“You’re admitting your identity way too easily. How do you plan to handle the consequences of messing with me?”
“Why would there be any consequences? Every single person on this plane is going to become a corpse today.”
At the same time.
Flutter—
Death Stalker opened his robe wide.
Countless bombs and weapons were hanging inside.
He threw a pure white bomb.
Psssh— Fwoooooosh!
White smoke spread everywhere as sparks ignited.
Bae Minji quickly rolled to dodge.
“You crazy bastard. You’re using white phosphorus bombs?!”
The chemical ‘white phosphorus’ was used to burn entire areas or cover them in smoke.
Once it stuck to skin, it could not be extinguished by ordinary means.
It was a weapon banned under the Geneva Convention.
“You have no regard for the law. If you use something like that so recklessly, even you won’t walk away unscathed.”
“I have no need to worry about safety. Not mine, not yours, not the people inside. In the face of death, all are equal.”
At that moment.
Shwaaaack— Thud!
Bae Minji’s whip wrapped around Death Stalker.
“It’s over, you son of a bitch.”
Bae Minji’s whip was a specially crafted artifact.
It was made by mixing part of her own skin tissue and hair, so any target it touched experienced the same effect as if she had made direct physical contact.
Then Death Stalker spoke.
“Bae Minji, your ability is known as ‘Imitation’ or ‘Copy,’ correct?”
“What about it?”
“In reality, it’s not copying—it’s ‘absorption.’”
“……!?”
Bae Minji’s eyes shook.
Death Stalker continued.
“I am your natural enemy.”
“!?”
Bae Minji suddenly collapsed to the ground.
Strength left her legs.
Her fingertips trembled.
Power was draining from her entire body.
“You…… my power……”
Death Stalker was stealing Bae Minji’s own ability.
“Just who the hell…… are you……”
“Even if I told you, you wouldn’t be able to understand what I am.”
Death Stalker drew something from his waist.
Shing—
A curved blade with a hooked tip.
Dark blue liquid dripped from the bluish edge.
“The venom on Scorpion’s blade can kill an ogre in a single strike.”
Death Stalker advanced toward Investigator Bae Minji.
“Investigator Bae Minji. A paradoxical being who looks up at the sky chasing justice and ideals, yet whose body can only move like a puppet following orders from those above.”
“I shall grant you, pitiful one, a peaceful rest.”
Death Stalker had already reached her.
The sharp blade began to descend.
The movement of the blade looked strangely slow.
Perhaps it was the effect of adrenaline released in extreme crisis.
Bae Minji thought.
‘This…… I can’t dodge it.’
Her whole body felt numb, as if electrocuted.
She couldn’t move even a single finger.
Professor Park Ahjeong’s face suddenly flashed before her eyes.
‘Sorry…… I went ahead alone again.’
The blade was already at her throat.
Investigator Bae Minji quietly closed her eyes.
At that moment.
Boom—!
A sound like someone kicking a steel plate rang out.
Bae Minji opened her eyes and looked around.
Someone was standing tall between her and Death Stalker.
“You are……”
B-rank 102nd hunter of the Korean Hunter Association.
It was Cha Hasang.