Chapter 235

Chapter 235

Between the South District and the Central District stood a large warehouse.

The massive five-story warehouse was NSSC’s headquarters.

From the outside, it looked like a shabby warehouse, but inside, it was fully equipped with all kinds of training facilities, support equipment, vehicles, weapons, and more.

Naturally, outsiders were strictly forbidden from entering.

Anyone without permission would be shot dead the moment they intruded. It was a terrifying place.

Because of that, even the people living nearby did not go anywhere near it.

Naturally, its security level was also the highest.

All kinds of magical barriers surrounded the warehouse, and they would react the instant an intruder entered.

The Captain of NSSC was Kevin.

He was an Awakened who had devoted his entire life to NSSC. Because of that, his pride in NSSC was also immense.

That was not all.

Every Awakened in NSSC shared a tight bond.

If someone touched even a single NSSC member, every last one of them had to rush in and punish the offender.

That was the kind of NSSC they were, so every member was enraged by Team 2’s annihilation.

They firmly believed that Zeon and Mandy, who were locked in the underground prison, had annihilated Team 2.

That was because they had seen it with their own eyes.

Only Zeon and Mandy had been at the scene.

Therefore, they had to be the culprits.

After throwing Zeon and Mandy into the prison, they had tried to torture them. They intended to ease the resentment of the dead through torture and uncover the truth as well.

But for some reason, the Numbers intervened.

Elder Go and the twin sisters told them never to touch Zeon and Mandy until the truth was revealed.

No matter how much of an NSSC they were, they could not ignore the Numbers’ warning. Because of that, they had only locked the two in the prison and were watching them.

BANG!

At that moment, someone roughly opened the door to Kevin’s office and entered.

The man with a stern impression, wearing a tactical vest and carrying all kinds of weapons, was Yu Sang-cheon, Team 3 Leader.

Yu Sang-cheon slammed his hand on the desk and raised his voice.

“Captain! Are you really going to just leave those bastards alone?”

“Those above told us not to touch them.”

“Fuck! Since when did the Numbers help us? Who the hell are those bastards to order NSSC around?”

“Sang-cheon!”

“I’m disappointed, Captain! We should at least settle Team 2’s grudge.”

“Hey! Do you think I’m doing this because I like it?”

“Are you afraid of that Sandmancer bastard?”

“You’re going too far.”

“Captain! Then I’ll take responsibility.”

“Sang-cheon!”

“Just turn a blind eye this once. I’ll take responsibility for everything.”

“......”

“Then I’ll take that as permission.”

BANG!

Yu Sang-cheon closed the door and left.

Kevin’s voice did not follow.

That alone was enough.

The Team 3 Awakened waiting for him in the hallway asked,

“What happened?”

“Did he give permission?”

Yu Sang-cheon nodded and said,

“Let’s go!”

“Fuck! Good.”

“Those bastards are dead.”

A sinister aura appeared on the faces of the Team 3 Awakened.

They radiated killing intent as they went down into the basement.

After descending several dozen meters, the prison appeared.

The entire prison was covered in special metal and magic, so the inflow of mana was blocked from the source.

Because of that, the air inside the prison felt especially heavy.

They could use abilities in the corridor, but once they entered the cell, their abilities would be sealed as well. Still, that did not matter. They were all martial-type Awakened.

Even if their Skills were sealed, martial-type Awakened retained their powerful physical abilities.

Yu Sang-cheon stopped before the cell at the deepest point. At that instant, every Team 3 Awakened took out a short baton.

It was a baton made of special metal.

Its destructive power was tremendous, and even one strike from it could break bones and tear muscles.

Yu Sang-cheon unlocked the cell and looked at his subordinates. The Awakened tapped their batons and nodded.

CLICK!

At last, Yu Sang-cheon opened the cell door. Then the Awakened rushed inside.

Their targets were Zeon and Mandy, who were imprisoned in the cell.

“Die!”

“You fucking bastards!”

“Haaah!”

They roared and swung their batons at Zeon and Mandy.

The two could not move their mana.

No matter how outstanding their abilities were, they could not use them in here. The only thing they could use was pure physical strength.

Beating people like that was nothing.

Only by doing this did they feel their rage might be satisfied.

SHAAAK!

A baton cut through the air as it flew toward Zeon.

The Awakened naturally thought Zeon would be unable to resist in any way. But as if mocking his expectations, his baton only cut through empty air.

Zeon had moved to the side before he could notice.

The Awakened who had attacked him was shocked.

“What the hell? This bastard can’t move mana, can he?”

“It doesn’t matter. Smash him!”

The Awakened charged at Zeon and Mandy like a pack of dogs.

“So it really turned out this way.”

Zeon clicked his tongue.

The NSSC Awakened needed a target to vent their anger on.

To them, the truth was not especially important.

They already believed Zeon was the culprit who had killed their comrades, so they did not hesitate to use violence.

Zeon understood their feelings too.

If he had been in the same situation, he might have done the same. But that did not mean he intended to take their attacks quietly.

Even without using mana, he was strong.

His body, trained by Deioden and the desert, surpassed that of most martial-type Awakened.

CRACK!

The baton shattered against his fist.

Zeon’s fist struck the face of the stunned Awakened.

“Kraaaak!”

The Awakened screamed and collapsed.

“Those fucking bastards! I knew this would happen.”

Mandy became Eloy and went wild.

Both Zeon and Eloy fought NSSC Team 3’s Awakened with pure physical ability alone.

Their abilities exceeded what the Team 3 Awakened had vaguely imagined.

CRUNCH!

BOOM!

Every time an explosion erupted, Team 3 Awakened screamed and collapsed.

“You son of a bitch......”

“Don’t you know your crime doubles if you resist?”

The Awakened shouted viciously and swung their batons.

Among them were those wounded by Zeon’s fists. But consumed by malice, they ignored pain and rushed in like demons.

It was not as if Zeon could avoid every one of their attacks.

Too many people had entered the cramped space.

There was not enough room to dodge.

THUD! THUD!

Because of that, Zeon had to take attacks with his bare body.

Fortunately, his bones did not break, nor did his muscles tear. The robe made from Leviathan’s hide neutralized most of the impact.

If he was hit once, he returned it twice.

If he was struck in the face, he smashed his opponent’s face in return.

Even fighting barehanded, Zeon was strong.

The sight of Zeon rampaging despite being outnumbered was reminiscent of a demon.

Eloy also went mad.

“Ohoho! Come at me, all of you. Is this all you’ve got? You idiots!”

Like the half-elf she was, she moved swiftly and trampled over the Team 3 Awakened.

“Get yourselves together! There are only two enemies. Don’t get pushed back, you idiots!”

Yu Sang-cheon shouted at the top of his lungs, urging his subordinates on.

This was not the picture he had drawn.

Far from thoroughly crushing Zeon and Eloy, only his Awakened were falling.

The prison’s magic circle, which sealed Zeon and Eloy’s abilities, also prevented the Team 3 Awakened from using theirs.

Even if they could use Skills, unleashing them inside this room would be impossible.

One wrong move could injure not only Zeon or Eloy, but their own comrades as well.

Whether they lived or died, they had to subdue the two with physical ability.

THUD! BOOM! CRACK!

But the situation was turning into the worst possible outcome.

The ones whose bones broke and whose muscles tore as they fell were all his subordinates.

They groaned on the floor.

“Grrrgh!”

“Ugh!”

At the wretched sight of his subordinates, Yu Sang-cheon’s eyes rolled back.

“You son of a bitch!”

SWISH!

His baton aimed for the top of Zeon’s head.

Its speed and destructive power were on a different level from his subordinates’.

Yu Sang-cheon had no doubt that the baton would smash Zeon’s head. But it was stopped halfway.

Zeon had grabbed the middle of the baton with his hand.

“Grrgh!”

Yu Sang-cheon’s face twisted.

He strained to pull the baton from Zeon’s hand, but it was useless. As if caught in a press, the baton would not move at all.

Strength, reaction speed, destructive power; in every aspect, Zeon was superior to Yu Sang-cheon. But Yu Sang-cheon could not accept it.

“Die!”

CRACK!

He let go of the baton and struck Zeon’s face with his fist.

The impact seemed considerable, as Zeon’s body shook.

Yu Sang-cheon thought that single blow had given him the advantage. But he realized in less than a second that it was a mistake.

CRUNCH!

Zeon’s fist struck his side.

It felt as if every rib had broken at once.

The extreme pain made his mind go faint, but he gritted his teeth and endured.

“You son of a bitch! Why did you do it? What the hell is a Mana Stone worth that you killed all my comrades?”

He roared and counterattacked.

Yu Sang-cheon’s fist struck Zeon’s abdomen. But Zeon spoke coldly, his expression showing not the slightest sign of shock.

“I did not do it.”

BANG!

His fist struck Yu Sang-cheon’s opposite side.

With a sound like a bomb exploding, Yu Sang-cheon’s body bent like a shrimp.

“Kweck!”

The impact piercing through his abdomen made him vomit the food he had eaten that morning.

Zeon showed no mercy.

He understood Yu Sang-cheon and Team 3’s feelings.

He could not even imagine how great their anger and grief must be after losing their comrades, and he thought their anger was justified.

But the target of their anger was wrong.

He had no reason to take misplaced rage in someone else’s place.

Zeon grabbed Yu Sang-cheon by the collar as he failed to straighten his back and forced him upright.

Their gazes met.

His emotions, a mixture of anger and fear, came through clearly.

He must feel wronged.

He must feel furious.

He must want to overturn the situation somehow.

But he had chosen the wrong opponent.

They too had to learn what happened in this harsh world when they touched the wrong person.

BANG!

Zeon’s fist struck Yu Sang-cheon’s face.

He felt bones break.

That single blow blew away Yu Sang-cheon’s consciousness.

Zeon let go of Yu Sang-cheon and threw himself at another Awakened.

CRACK!

The body of the Awakened struck by his knee collapsed like a sandcastle.

Every Awakened who had filled the cell collapsed.

“Grrrgh!”

“Ugh!”

The cell was filled with the groans of Awakened.

Eloy placed both hands on her hips and mocked the Awakened.

“Is this all you’ve got? Cut off your balls. Your size is wasted on you, idiots!”

The Awakened glared at Eloy with resentful expressions. But no matter how fierce the eyes of losers were, they could not frighten Eloy.

Eloy looked at Zeon.

“What are we going to do?”

“About what?”

“The door is open, isn’t it?”

The door had opened when Yu Sang-cheon and the Awakened stormed in.

There was no one stopping them, so they could leave through that door.

Zeon smiled faintly and sat on the chair.

“Why go out and make things bothersome?”

“You really aren’t leaving?”

“I went to the trouble of casting a net. Shouldn’t we catch a big fish, not little minnows like these?”

“Do you really think they’ll enter the net?”

“They will. Without fail.”

Zeon put particular emphasis on the words “without fail.”