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 [Chapter 201]

[Great Escape(3)]

The result of mana overload was one of two things.

Either the body and mind couldn't withstand the overload and suddenly turned into a monster.

Or overcome the overload and be reborn as a new being.

Hehehehehe

<Florist > Bang Yeon-ji.

In her case, she was in a state that didn't belong to either.

It could be called a stalemate.

Bang Yeon-ji caused mana overload in the process of stopping Goeshini.

In that situation, the possibility of her overcoming the overload and being reborn as a new being could be said to be zero.

Originally, cases of overcoming mana overload were few and far between, and there were no known cases of humans overcoming overload except for animals.

Therefore, at that time, Bang Yeon-ji instinctively chose the option of suppressing the overload as much as possible rather than overcoming it.

'Yeon-ji, Yeon-ji....'

She had to stop Goeshini.

Also, she didn't want to transform into a monster herself and attack the recapture team.

So she used her gift to guide the overload to turn her body into a plant that couldn't even move.

As a result, she had been suppressing the overload until now, becoming a tree that was neither monster nor human nor ma.

But─.

─Clan..., Lord?

She, who had been sleeping as a tree, heard a voice calling her.

Yeon-ji, Bang Yeon-ji.

Bang Yeon-ji, whose sense of self was gradually fading, momentarily awakened her consciousness at the sound of her name being called.

Originally, her consciousness had been gradually awakening as players set foot in Uijeongbu.

So thirsty.

So very thirsty.

It was almost instinct.

It was the manifestation of the instinct of the self that had been slowly disappearing over more than 10 years not wanting to disappear.

At this, she used the mana prevalent in Uijeongbu as nutrients to awaken her sleeping consciousness.

Still, it wasn't enough.

There wasn't enough mana from beings who remembered her in detail.

She didn't know when she was asleep, but once she realized the deficiency, she was going crazy.

So she stabbed Do Wan-jun ahead of her emotions.

─Squelch, squelch, squelch, squelch....

A being that remembers her.

To crave that being's mana.

She frantically extended branches and stabbed him.

"─Clan Lord!!"

""""...!!""""

She detached from the tree trunk and hugged Do Wan-jun tightly as if not to let him go.

At that moment, Dark King Clan members came up.

They, who had returned after sensing a strange energy, shouted in surprise.

Bang Yeon-ji ignored them.

She concentrated her consciousness to absorb everything that constituted her existence from the man she embraced.

"Ah.... This is...."

Eventually, when she established her sense of self.

Only then could she escape the thirst and calmly look around.

"Y-Yeon-ji...."

"...Eun-sil?"

Soon Bang Yeon-ji gave her attention to a clan member rushing towards her.

That person recognized her.

She tilted her head.

It was a familiar woman.

It didn't take long to recall the memory.

It was <Gatekeeper > Ko Eun-sil.

"Is it really Eun-sil? You look a bit older than I remember...."

""""...."""

"Ah, come to think of it, what happened to Goeshini? I definitely stopped Goeshini... Ugh...."

But she looked a bit different from the Ko Eun-sil she knew.

She looked like she had aged.

It was strange.

Bang Yeon-ji, whose memories stopped at the 1st Uijeongbu Recapture War, soon frowned at the memories flooding her mind.

They were all unfamiliar memories.

Memories contained in the mana she absorbed while transformed as a tree.

She tried to drive out the unfamiliar memories from her mind.

At that moment─.

─Rattle

The Dark King Clan members moved.

Led by Ko Eun-sil, all the clan members aimed devices at her.

"...Eun-sil? What is this...."

It was bewildering for Bang Yeon-ji.

Bang Yeon-ji spoke to Ko Eun-sil who was approaching to kill her.

This must be a dream.

She wanted to believe that.

Then, Ko Eun-sil said.

"─If you still have a sense of self left, don't resist and die like this."

"Eun-sil, did I do something wrong? Perhaps... did I cause harm to the clan by not properly stopping Goeshini...."

"Look at your current state."

"What?"

"Look at what you've just done."

"..."

It was incomprehensible.

Bang Yeon-ji, who had been looking up until then, finally looked down.

She was holding something.

As if all the moisture had been drained.

There was a withered old tree.

The old tree looked just like a human, and even wore clothes.

"What is this...."

""""...."""

What is this.

Bang Yeon-ji, who was about to ask that, flinched seeing the ring on the old tree's left hand.

It was the matching ring she and Do Wan-jun had.

"No way, no way...."

It can't be, it can't be.

Her body trembled.

And she noticed that her body was somehow different.

Some wings had sprouted on her back.

Vines were wrapped around her hair.

Her ears were pointed.

"Ah, ah, ah.... Clan Lord, Clan Lord! W-Wan-jun oppa...."

Everything, she remembered.

She killed Do Wan-jun.

Bang Yeon-ji hugged him and cried.

After crying and crying─.

"─Don't lie. Where did you hide Wan-jun oppa?"

""""...!!""""

She denied reality.

She gave herself over to emotions just like that.

Her body, which had been leaning towards a ma state, completely transformed into a monster at that point.

The wisteria went berserk along with her.

─Rumble!!!

☆

A reply arrived from the Fairy.

The content was that she would come up to Uijeongbu to install Cocoon.

She said she was immediately heading to Uijeongbu after receiving contact from Special Bureau Director Min Ji-a.

Considering the distance, she would arrive in Uijeongbu today or tomorrow.

She'll probably come up to Mangwolsa Station as early as today. Coming to Uijeongbu will probably be tomorrow....

At this, players put more effort into managing Uijeongbu to welcome the Fairy's visit.

Moreover, since there was talk of managing northern Gyeonggi after activating Cocoon.

Players positioned in northern Gyeonggi were also gathering at the Arts Center.

But suddenly─.

─Rumble!!!

While players were resting.

Suddenly the ground shook.

Players who thought it was a light earthquake at first noticed the anomaly as the intensity gradually increased.

Crack

Soon the ground split.

Players were startled by the sudden situation.

And what surprised them more was what happened immediately after.

"─W-What is this!? Where did these vines come from!?"

"Clan Lord...! Outside is strange! The surrounding area is being covered in plants!"

"Damn it...!! Plants are coming into the building too! What is this?"

From under the split ground.

Suddenly plant stems shot up.

Plant stems as thick as a person wriggled and began to cover Uijeongbu.

Players couldn't hide their bewilderment at the sudden situation.

Whoosh!

The Arts Center was instantly covered in plants too.

Eun-ha quickly set fire to the plants trying to block the door.

Then he grabbed Winter Blooming Coldly and cut the stems.

"Seo-na, tell all platoon members. At this rate we might get trapped inside the Arts Center, so we need to get out and assess the situation."

"Got it! I'll do that!"

Eun-ha clicked his tongue.

Eun-ha, who gave instructions to clan members, was annoyed at the unexpected situation.

What's going on?

There shouldn't be any monsters with this much power in Uijeongbu now?

Even if a corps commander suddenly appeared, we should have felt some signs....

Eun-ha tried to grasp the situation.

However, protecting patients and bringing them outside was the top priority.

Eun-ha burned plant stems with flames to create a path for players to escape outside.

Fortunately, many players had recovered their strength in the past few days.

They came out on their own without needing to be carried on stretchers.

There weren't many critical patients.

Eun-ha checked on patients while burning the endlessly growing stems.

Eventually, when he brought all the patients outside─.

"─Why is that tree like that?"

"I don't know.... People say it's been like that since the earthquake started."

""""...."""

Eun-ha was dumbfounded seeing the tree standing tall at Uijeongbu Station.

The tree was moving its branches wildly as if it were alive.

Not just the branches.

The roots that had been buried underground could be seen coming out and rampaging.

"Over there.... Dark King Clan people should be there, is there no information sent from there?"

"I just sent telepathy but it seems they're assessing the situation now too."

"How on earth did this happen...."

Eun-ha asked Jung Ha-yang.

Jung Ha-yang shook her head.

"Eun-ha, for now we need to evacuate to somewhere without many buildings. If we're not careful, buildings might collapse because of the plants."

It was an untimely mess.

There were no monsters.

The surroundings were all plants.

They kept growing no matter how much they were killed.

At this, Jung Ha-yang suggested evacuating elsewhere to deal with it.

Then that means we have to abandon the Arts Center and go....

Eun-ha looked back at the Arts Center.

The building used as a supply base contained many equipment and food.

There were many things they couldn't properly pack since they left in a hurry.

And the bodies of players who died in the recapture war were laid in the basement of the building.

The coffins in the basement should be safe even if the building collapses. They're being thoroughly managed with protection magic, so it should be somewhat okay.

Eun-ha finished calculating.

Looking at the unfolding situation, the culprit was undoubtedly the doing of the tree now swinging its branches like whips and destroying buildings.

Eun-ha cut down a stem suddenly falling towards him and concluded.

"For now, it seems like the situation will calm down if we just cut down that tree...."

"I think so too. Ah, wait a moment. A message just arrived from Dark King Clan."

Is that tree a monster or not.

Eun-ha fell into thought while looking at the tree that now seemed to be trying to move.

At that moment, Jung Ha-yang received telepathy from Dark King Clan near the tree.

"Eun-ha...."

"What. What's wrong?"

Jung Ha-yang's complexion wasn't good.

Her face was hardened.

It seemed something bad had happened.

Eun-ha asked her.

To this, she said─.

"─A telepathy arrived saying the Dark King Clan Lord died."

"...What? What do you mean?"

"It seems the Dark King Clan people are very flustered too.... <Gatekeeper > just confirmed the Clan Lord's death."

"Who killed him?"

"Well...."

""""...."""

The sudden death of Twelve Seats <Phantasm Poem>.

Eun-ha doubted his ears at the news Jung Ha-yang delivered.

Others were the same.

People nearby pricked up their ears trying to grasp the situation.

"─It seems former Twelve Seats <Florist > Bang Yeon-ji player, who had transformed into a wisteria, regained consciousness."

""""...!!""""

"And she killed the Dark King Clan Lord, couldn't withstand the shock, and transformed into a monster through mana overload...."

Incomprehensible words.

No, a situation that didn't exist before the regression.

Eun-ha turned his head towards the tree upon hearing those words.

What is that?

Soon he could discover a form he hadn't seen just before.

Something was floating in the sky.

Eun-ha focused his eyes.

A being with wings sprouting.

It was taking the form of a person.

He could see that being drawing magic circles in the air and firing indiscriminately around.

"Currently Dark King Clan is treating Bang Yeon-ji player who turned into a monster as a 3rd rank or higher monster. They're hoping for support from the Arts Center...."

""""...."""

At Jung Ha-yang's addition.

People were at a loss for words.

They couldn't understand the situation.

It was then.

──!!

In the sky towards Hoeryong Station.

Something flying quickly was caught in the players' eyes.

It was soon falling nearby in a parabolic trajectory.

A supporter hurriedly spread magic to try to block the falling object.

It was useless.

─Boom!!

Probably a shell fired by a tank.

The shell mixed with mana alloy not only completely shattered the barrier but caused a huge explosion.

The ground shook again.

Even the air vibrated.

"W-Why did a shell come flying!?"

"Are these guys crazy!?"

Starting with that shell.

Shells fell all over Uijeongbu.

Players cried out with pale faces.

☆

At that time, Mangwolsa Station.

The military, which had been eating and sleeping without any anomalies so far, was moving busily.

The Fairy is coming around 6 PM today.

The soldiers were doing all sorts of meaningless things to welcome the Fairy's visit.

Meanwhile, the military was also planning to escort the Fairy up to Uijeongbu the next day.

They spent time maintaining the tanks to see if there were any problems.

In that situation─.

"─Ugh... Uuugh..."

The commander was met with an intruder's invasion.

There was no time to respond.

Suddenly space split behind him, and a hand that sprang out from the split space captured him.

"─What shall we do?"

A man with piercings.

The man with striking handsome features completely covered the commander's mouth.

Then an old man who walked out of the split space leaned on a cane and cackled.

"What to do. Brainwash that fellow according to plan."

"Yes, understood."

"Ugh, urp...!!"

The man, Mastema, didn't hesitate to brainwash the commander.

The commander who saw Mastema's eyes soon became a doll that couldn't resist at all.

"Ah, ah, uh...."

Soon the fallen commander stood up.

The commander approached the desk with a strange gait.

He picks up the radio.

Communication connects.

Then the commander suddenly raised his head and began to speak the injected lines.

"Ah, it's me. Actually, just now an order came down from the Fairy. They say they confirmed information in Seoul that an incredibly strong monster appeared in Uijeongbu."

[...Is that true!? What rank does it say?]

"Do we need to know that? We're just soldiers who follow orders as given."

[...No. I'm sorry.]

"They say it's an extremely strong monster. So, the Fairy decided to move the military to defeat it."

[...!!]

"Issue orders to the entire army right now to send all tanks to Hoeryong Station. And when deployed at Hoeryong Station, instruct them to bombard Uijeongbu."

[...What about the players in Uijeongbu?]

"They say to carry out the operation quickly so that thing doesn't notice. They probably received advance notice on that side too. The players would have taken measures, so they'll avoid it on their own."

[Yes....]

The soldier who received the radio transmission showed signs of disbelief.

Nevertheless, the soldier couldn't disobey a superior's orders.

Moreover

Moreover, it was the Fairy's order.

If anything goes wrong, the Fairy will take responsibility.

Or the commander will.

The soldier who received the transmission just had to move according to instructions.

[...I will instruct the entire army.]

Thinking was also bothersome.

Just do the job as ordered.

The soldier responded.

The commander ended the transmission only after hearing the soldier's answer.

And─.

"─Ah.... Aah..."

The commander returned to being a doll again.

The commander who sat down in his seat drooling soon laughed hehe.

The old man looked down at the commander and made a kkeul kkeul laughing sound.

Eventually, two more people revealed themselves from the split space.

"Samael, you work with Mastema to make sure the military can't think normally. Lilith, you do it too."

"We just need to cause chaos, right? I'm really looking forward to that. I wonder what kind of monsters will appear when we cause a large-scale spatial distortion in Uijeongbu..."

"Oh my, the soldiers will be so pitiful. They'll go crazy with lust but have nowhere to relieve it, they might go completely mad. Not that it has anything to do with me."

One was a man with spiky hair.

The man exuding a frivolous atmosphere soon stuck out his tongue and licked his lips.

On the contrary, the woman with horns sprouting and who might as well have been wearing no clothes twisted her body.

"─Go ahead and run wild to your heart's content. I'm very curious how this will affect the Fairy's position. Kkeul kkeul."