Resistance Army

"Nothing much."

After beating the People's Army into submission, Chun Jin-soo slapped the helmet of the cowering People's Army.

"Ack, that's enough, you crazy old man!"

Kang Jin-sung stopped Chun Jin-soo from beating the guards.

"That's enough. What if they hear the screaming inside?"

"They probably won't be able to hear us from inside anyway. We'll have to suppress them with force."

-Hey! Freeze!

It was then. The Resistance commandos who had stormed the base with the Korean Hunters were pointing their guns at something.

"No, what about them?"

At the end of their muzzles was a familiar TTG Temple gear, and Chun Jin-soo quickly recognized his face.

"You're that Koo Dae-sung fellow from the Ten Thousand Gods Temple?"

"Ah, do you know me?"

Koo Dae-sung looked puzzled, as if he hadn't expected to be recognized.

"You're the young man that Brother Leon praised. He said you're not like the others these days."

"------"

The words sent a chill down Koo Dae-sung's spine.

He didn't need the king's approval for his challenge, he said, and set out on his own path. But deep down, he was grateful for his support and permission.

It was as if he believed in him, and he wanted to repay that faith even more, however hearing it from someone else made him emotional.

"Hmph---! We came here because we heard that innocent people were brought here---what about you? And you acted together with the North Korean army?"

Kang Jin-sung interrupted Koo Dae-sung's question.

"This is a long story. We're running out of time, so let's keep it short."

With that, the three of them entered the North Korean army's camp, heading deeper into the base.

* * * * *

The interior of the base was connected to a deep cave like a whole mountain.

No, it was a little too deep for a cave. A secret base scaled for history, dug for years to resist something for a long time.

"The commies have dug a lot of caves here."

Koo Dae-sung asked cautiously when Chun Jin-soo complained.

"Have you been to other places---?"

"This is the fourth."

They said they had been raiding North Korean secret bases since contact with the South was cut off.

Those who assisted them were apparently "resistance fighters" inside North Korea.

"I see."

He'll have to wait until they're done here to hear more.

Koo Dae-sung signaled for his colleagues to follow him and stood next to Chun Jin-soo and Kang Jin-sung.

'Look at this guy?'

Chun Jin-soo stared in surprise at the Hunter leading the way alongside them.

Judging from the aura he emitted, he was at most a top C-class Hunter. Even considering the strength of his equipment, he was a lower B-class.

He was the weakest Hunter here, except for the Man at Arms. Even the North Korean Special Forces have only the most elite Hunters.

'And he's standing right alongside us? No, he's about half a step ahead of us.'

Is he bent on death? Or is he--?

He must have gotten into bad habits after being the leader of a bunch of thugs.

Kang Jin-sung read Chen Jin-soo's eyes and muttered softly and Chun Jin-soo nodded his head in affirmation.

'I often act as a raid leader, so I often know my subject matter, but------'

The two old men knew from experience. Usually, the reckless ones who took the most risks were the first to be scavenged---or the last to survive and make it big.

"That young knight fellow. Where did you leave your horse?"

"Well, I left it at the entrance, as it's hard to ride in a cave."

"What do knights do when they don't ride?"

"Uhm--I've ridden it at the dungeon-type gate, but it's not easy to get out after a charge."

It was true.

In a dungeon-type gate, horses' maneuverability is difficult to utilize in a confined space.

Even a veteran like the Burning Sword Knights would know that, but Koo Dae-sung horsemanship wasn't that good.

"Oh, so you're a sturdy tank then. Then hurry up and pick up your shield."

Koo Dae-sung picked up his shield first at Chun Jin-soo's words. It was a conditioned reflex.

-Kang!

It was then. Koo Dae-sung had just raised his shield when a projectile from nowhere struck his shield.

"Poison?"

Koo Dae-sung realized that the projectile that struck his shield was a poison dart, and he tried to alert his allies about the projectile, but──

-Two-da-da-da-da!

A storm of bullets rained down on the Hunters as Koo Dae-sung shouted.

"Shields!"

The Man-At-Arms raised their shields in unison as ordered. They formed a formal shield formation, shielding the North Korean commandos from the rain of bullets.

"Thank you."

"Here you go."

Some of the North Korean commandos are Hunters, but more than half of them are regular soldiers. They may be trained, but they can't stop a shell from flying in such a small space.

"------"

With that, the baptism of fire stopped. Of course, with the Hunter's physical strength and stardust armor, they're impervious to bullets.

"Stupid."

Kang Jin-sung raised his sword with a gesture. This sword technique is the exclusive patent of Infinite Sword Kang Jin-sung. As he points beyond the darkness with his finger, the sword showing off his magical power rushes at incredible speed.

-Crack!

-KEEEEK!

-Bang! -Bang!

Screams and gunfire echoes from beyond. They must have realized that their attacks were not doing much damage, and that they were getting hit one-sidedly.

-Kiyaaaaah!

-Charge!

The horde rushed forward with thunderous voices and Koo Dae-sung frowned.

"Monsters and humans together------"

"Monsters and demons."

Chun Jin-soo raised his sword, his blade growing in size until he could barely wield it in the cave.

The next moment, his blast sliced through the leading group in a single, swift motion.

"They've given up on being human. Throw away your compassion and kill them."

The battle began.

One hundred and thirty special forces, including Chun Jin-soo, Kang Jin-sun, and fifty Men at Arms were up against more than a thousand monsters.

The monsters' shrill screams and the sight of the people's army charging with their swords were grotesque, but the clash of iron against iron and the splattering of blood and gore was the beginning of the battle.

"Shields forward!"

Koo Dae-sung did what he had been taught and trained to do.

He erected a wall of shields to block the charge and thrust his sword and spear through the gaps.

The terrain was not conducive to the cavalry charge, a knight's strong point, but rather the power of a dense formation.

There was no room to maneuver around, and a frontal blow would not penetrate the shield wall. Besides------

'Weak!'

The North Korean army only had a military bayonet attached to their guns, but even the monsters were this weak?

"Hey, hey, Mr. Koo. This------"

"Yeah, my hands feel weird."

They had stabbed monsters in the flesh countless times, accustoming themselves to the sensation of living meat. But now this sensation felt like something------

"It's like I poked a little hard jelly──"

-Crunch!

The ground beneath their feet is damp. When he noticed it, 'they' appeared from Koo Dae-sung's side.

-Kie──!

"Captain Kim!"

Koo Dae-sung was furious and stabbed his sword at the monster that appeared next to Kim Dohan. The Star Iron Sword pierced through the creature in an instant, and its body collapsed. At the same time--- he felt a presence behind his back.

-Kwajik!

"Kwack---!"

"Gucc!"

It bit the nape of his neck and he quickly swung his shield to strike the creature, but was met with an unpleasant blow.

"What the hell, you bastards!"

"The dead---!"

The monsters and North Korean soldiers that had been resurrected among the Hunters attacked. They hadn't even had time to organize their formation before they were attacked.

It took some time to subdue them all.

* * * * *

"Hoo------"

"Are you okay, Mr. Koo?"

"It's a raw wound. It's just a little stinging."

"Why didn't you grab the guy next to you but helped me first?"

"Haha------"

Who had time to think about such things?

Just as Koo Dae-sung was checking to make sure the monsters he'd dealt with hadn't respawned, Chun Jin-soo and Kang Jin-sung arrived.

"Come on, seniors------"

"Eh, sit down, the wounded are not so fast."

The two old men were unharmed despite the surprise. In fact, the unexpected surprise ended with a few dead North Korean Special Forces soldiers, thanks to their quick thinking.

"Did you notice?"

Kang Jin-sung asked.

"What? What part of it-----Ah!"

Koo Dae-sung looked at the monsters' corpses and realized something.

If monsters could be resurrected, why couldn't they be resurrected now?

"The Star Iron Sword."

"A weapon of divine power. The only ones among us who had them were me and this brat, who paid a lot of money for them. But not you."

The standard equipment of the TTG Temple are the Star Iron weapons. Even the lowest ranked soldiers are given at least one set of enchanted star iron armor and weapons.

"Those who have been struck by the star iron weapon cannot be resurrected."

"The TTG Temple is the natural enemy of the demons. Everything in their hands works against demons."

Kang Jin-sung trampled on the monster's corpse that was no longer standing, it was the monster that Koo Dae-sung had stabbed.

"Speaking of which, if you have any armaments to spare, why don't you share them with our men and the North Korean army? Of course, we'll give them back when we're done."

At this rate, the troops would be useless so Kang Jin-sung's proposal was a no-brainer.

"Of course. We're carrying two main and two secondary weapons."

The chivalrous Man-At-Arms commonly carry a spear and a sword, and a secondary weapon of some sort, such as an axe, mace, or dagger.

Given their usefulness in hand-to-hand combat, they'd be happy to share their extra weapons.

Thus, the hunters under Chun Jin-soo and Kang Jin-sung were given swords or spears from the Man-At-Arms, and those armed with guns were given daggers.

It was a ridiculous amount of money, given that they were all inferior weapons, but with Yappy guaranteeing their productivity in the first place, they weren't all that valuable in the TTG Temple.

"Alright, let's go."

They wasted no time in moving further into the cave.

They didn't see the monsters and North Korean soldiers dissolving into black ink where they had left them.

* * * * *

After traveling for some time, they came to a large hollow.

"--This is not what I expected."

"That's right. Aren't there usually tanks and armored vehicles in places like this?"

Chun Jin-soo looked disappointed as he stared into the darkness of the hollow, unable to see an inch.

During his anti-communist education, he had imagined that there was a secret Tiger Army base hidden in the mountains, or something like that.

"Hey, commie, turn on the lights, it's dark even with the lights on!"

"--this is the maximum brightness!"

"Huh?"

Maximum brightness?

Shouldn't I be able to see something in front of my eyes then? Why is all I can see is 'darkness'?

-Snarl------

"Comrades from the South--- Didn't something move just now?"

"Something moved──"

-Kwajik!

""------!!!""

Everyone's eyes are drawn to the direction of the loud sound. Where the North Korean soldier had just discovered something, there was a 'shadowy thing'.

On the floor of the seemingly crushed body was a streak of red blood that contrasted sharply with the black---it took a second to realize it wasn't just the darkness.

"Enemy---!"

"Flares!"

Without knowing what it was, he made an evasive move and it took 3 seconds for a North Korean hunter to pull out a flare from his pocket and fire it.

-Kwajik!

-Kwajik!

After a few more victims, the flare flies up to a certain height, catching a glimpse of the enemy's shape.

"Ah------"

It was huge.

Something so terrifyingly huge that it overwhelmed them.

No eyes to look at, no brain to think with, no torso to gut--just tentacles.

[Chaos Great Old One Merguiola has detected a new tribute.]

The ancient Archdemon called the Old One began to extend his hundreds of giant tentacles.