Solo Leveling: Ragnarok Chapter 23

“Captain!” There was an urgent call for the captain from the front. “We’ve found a body!”

 

“A body?”

 

The raid captain, who was talking with Sooho, hurriedly returned to the Hunters. And when he found the body, his eyes widened.

 

“Is it a real body?”

 

“But this…doesn’t seem like an ordinary body.”

 

The Hunters’ expressions became serious.

 

The condition of the body was definitely strange. It had burned black like charcoal all over. It was bound to be an unnatural corpse here at Seoul Station.

 

“I’ve never heard of a monster that uses fire in Seoul Station…”

 

“That’s what I‘m saying.”

 

Just then, Sooho and the collectors came to see the body’s condition.

 

‘Hmm?’

 

A suspicion came to Sooho’s mind. The state of the body was very familiar to him. Then, he turned his head to look at Assistant Professor Im, and Assistant Professor Im also had the same thought and a serious expression.

 

“Sooho, this body… Could it be?”

 

“Yes. It seems to be Mistburn.” Sooho nodded confidently.

 

As if his words were heard, the Hunters turned their gaze to Sooho at the same time.

 

“Mistburn?”

 

“That blue fiery magic beast?”

 

“Are you sure?”

 

Not all Hunters knew the types of monsters unless they were a large guild.

 

“I’m sure.”

 

After experiencing the Korea University incident, Sooho had looked up information on Mistburn on the Internet. And he had discovered one surprising fact.

 

Mistburn…was not a typical magic beast. No, it wasn’t even a magic beast, to begin with.

 

Sooho calmly recited the information he had read then, “Mistburn. A phenomenon in which the body self-ignites when a non-awakened person inhales a certain amount of blue mist.”

 

“Wh-what!?”

 

“Mistburn was originally human?”

 

Among the inexperienced Hunters, some didn’t know that fact. This was because even the Hunter Association had only recently revealed the truth about Mistburn.

 

It was well known that Mistburn attacked humans to increase their clones, but there was no way to confirm how the first Mistburn was created.

 

Suddenly, one Hunter realized something and muttered, “Wait a minute. If Mistburn really comes into existence like that, how did the rumor that you can awaken by drinking the blue mist come about?”

 

“It’s obviously a false rumor. Or the information about Mistburn was distorted.”

 

 

– You can awaken by inhaling the blue mist.

 

 

This rumor had been circulating on the internet like an urban legend for over a year, but no one had yet come forward to uncover the truth behind that rumor.

 

‘… Everyone who inhaled it as an experiment would have burned to death.’

 

Anyway, that wasn’t the important thing right now.

 

“What about this corpse… How did it get down here in the first place?”

 

That was what the Hunters were curious about.

 

They were currently on the fourth basement level of Seoul Station. It didn’t make sense that a single non-awakened being had managed to make its way through the lizards to get down here.

 

But it was also strange to think that someone had turned into Mistburn on the first floor and walked all the way down here. If they had gone outside to burn the living people, they would have had no reason to come down to this place where only monsters were lurking.

 

“Captain! We’ve found another one over here!”

 

Then a new body was discovered not far away.

 

The condition of the body was the same as the first one. It was a remnant of charred Mistburn.

 

“There’s one over here too!”

 

Afterward, the Hunters were able to discover several more corpses. The expression on the captain’s face became increasingly serious as more bodies were found.

 

‘… Something’s not right.’

 

As someone responsible for the Hunters’ safety, it was difficult to ignore such a strange phenomenon. But it was also too risky to stop the hunt just because of this. They had only discovered a few bodies so far. And with this many people gathered together, they could easily handle dozens of Mistburn if they appeared.

 

“For now…let’s keep hunting.”

 

And so the hunt resumed.

 

“Sooho.” Assistant Im approached Sooho with an uneasy expression. “I’m going to tell you something beforehand this time.”

 

“What is it?”

 

“Let’s run away first if it seems dangerous.”

 

“…?”

 

[Huh, what kind of honest cowardice is this?]

 

With an expression of disbelief, Sooho and Beru both looked at Assistant Im.

 

But Assistant Im was truly sincere.

 

“You know I have running skills, right? If anything happens, you use your summons to run away. I will run away on my own.” Even while speaking, Assistant Im kept looking around anxiously..

 

Sooho asked him, looking at his face, “Assistant Im… are you certain that something is going to happen?”

 

“I mean, of course it would be better if nothing happens, but…” Finally, with a deep sigh, Assistant Im revealed his true feelings. “The truth is…my mother was killed by Mistburn.”

 

“…”

 

“And she herself became a Mistburn and tried to kill me.”

 

“…”

 

“That’s why I’m terrified of them. I feel like my mother is trying to kill me again.”

 

Sooho couldn’t say anything in response to his rambling.

 

***

 

Around that time…

 

“Aaaahh-!”

 

A gruesome scream burst out from deep inside Seoul Station.

 

“It’s hot… hot…!”

 

“Aaaahh! Uaaahh! Uaaahhh!”

 

Swish!

 

People were writhing in agony while being bound by chains. Their bodies were wrapped in blue flames.

 

“Please save me! Please, I’ll say I didn’t see anything! I really didn’t see anything…!”

 

Behind them, there were still people who had not yet been burned, sobbing and begging for their lives.

 

Pure terror. Madness.

 

It was impossible to understand. Why did this have to happen to them? Why did they have to suffer like this!? 

 

… But there was no one to answer their questions.

 

Of course, there was no reason for this to happen in the first place. They were just unlucky. And for that reason alone, they were being burned alive.

 

“Is it that hot?”

 

There were people calmly watching their screams.

 

“Hmm. It should be hotter. The firepower is not enough.”

 

It was a group of people wearing black robes. Their faces were covered with crow masks, like something out of a medieval movie.

 

“Hey, how can we increase the firepower?”

 

“We’re running low on fuel.”

 

“Tsk. Fuel is always the problem. Why can’t we get it?”

 

“Since all the hyenas were caught this time…”

 

“Huh. Why does this always happen?”

 

The crow-masked people grumbled carefreely.

 

Meanwhile, the screams that seemed to go on forever suddenly stopped. And in its place, something was bound…

 

[Guaaaa!]

 

Mistburn.

 

The blue smoke magic beasts were roaring ferociously, burning with the black corpse as its wick.

 

[Gyaaah!]

 

“Oh, yeah. Nice to see you too?”

 

The crow-masked people casually waved their hands and skillfully put on thick gloves on both hands.

 

“Well, let’s get started then. Before the firewood goes out.”

 

“What should we do with everything we’ve used?” the crow-masked person in the corner raised a hand and asked. Next to them lay the remains of several Mistburn that had cooled off.

 

“Oh, right. We will be doing the work ourselves, so dispose of it far away and come back here.”

 

“Yes, understood.”

 

“You know not to dispose of it nearby, right?”

 

“Of course. Don’t worry.”

 

The crow-masked person packed the remains of Mistburn one by one into a cart. And while pulling the cart, they grumbled, “Ugh. So annoying. Where should I dispose of it this time? I’d like to just pile it up near the factory if I could.”

 

“It’ll be a problem if someone finds our location. Dispose of it as far away as possible!”

 

“Got it.” The crow-masked person shrugged once and disappeared into the darkness with the cart.

 

Other crow-masked people who had been watching their back clicked their tongues, seeming to disapprove.

 

“He’s always pulling shit like that.”

 

“He may talk like that, but he’s good at his job. Come on, let’s start.”

 

“Yes. We’ll begin the 13th Stardust operation.”

 

At that moment, the eyes of the crow-masked people became more cautious than ever. And behind them, the eyes of the people bound in chains were full of desperation.

 

‘Please, please save us.’

 

‘Anyone…please…save us…’

 

They begged and begged.

 

But their voices did not reach the sky.

 

***

 

[Kiek?]

 

Beru’s antennae pricked up. Then he turned to stare into the darkness of the dark subway tunnel.

 

[Little King.]

 

“I felt it too.”

 

Sooho was also looking in the direction Beru was looking with narrowed eyes.

 

‘Is it because my Sense stat has increased?’

 

 

[Information]

 

Sense: Increases sensory perception. Increases crisis detection ability.

 

 

The darkness extended along the subway tracks. A faint, ominous energy could be felt somewhere in that deep tunnel.

 

‘It gives me goosebumps.’

 

He could tell without looking. There was undoubtedly something powerful lurking at that end.

 

The first thing that came to mind was the existence of a boss. However, the Seoul Station Field was a dungeon that had already been around for a year. That meant the lucrative magic beasts, like boss mobs, had already been taken by other Hunters. As a result, the only magic beasts left here were lizards with high numbers and excellent fertility.

 

‘If it’s not the boss, what could this energy be?’

 

Sooho looked at the raid Hunters who were hunting the lizards.

 

‘Is it possible that no one except me has noticed this blatant malice?’

 

And that malice was glaring at them from the darkness like…an eagle watching its prey from high in the sky. Its target was the raid Hunters who were making noise in the area.

 

Then…

 

“The fuel came to me on its own.”

 

Suddenly, a voice muttered in the dark.

 

Hwaak!

 

“…!”

 

At that moment, Sooho and Beru opened their eyes and shouted simultaneously, “Take cover!” [Enemies!]

 

Bang-!

 

“…!”

 

At that moment, an explosion occurred, and something in a black robe appeared there.

 

It was an unidentified man wearing a crow mask, but no one thought of him as a human because the abnormally swollen arm of a monster protruded from the black robe.

 

“It’s a humanoid magic beast!”

 

At the cry of the captain, the Hunters quickly reorganized their formation.

 

“Oh. You dodged that?” The crow-masked man slowly rose and pulled out the fist stuck in the tunnel floor. “Not bad.”

 

Whack. Cement fragments shattered from his bizarre-looking hand.

 

And, swish! In an instant, the man’s figure disappeared from everyone’s sight.

 

“…!”

 

The stunned Hunters frantically searched for him, but it was too late.

 

‘Starting with the troublesome healer.’

 

Splat!

 

The man’s massive fist suddenly appeared behind and aimed at the captain’s unprotected back. The captain, who realized it a step too late, widened his eyes in shock.

 

And… Flash-!

 

“…!”

 

In an instant, the eyes behind the crow mask widened in surprise as someone suddenly jumped before him and blocked the attack.

 

Whoosh! Black blood gushed out like a fountain.

 

“Huh.”

 

Sooho, who had blocked the attack with ‘Vulcan’s Horn’, was glaring at him from under the fountain of blood.

 

“Oh, look at this.” 

 

The corner of the crow-masked man’s mouth twisted into a wicked grin.