Chapter 13

13. A Bold Proposal and a Vacation – 1

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Lee Hyun-wook once again checked the item that had burst out from the Kobold's body.

– You have obtained the ‘Devil’s Medal (Inferno).’

It had the appearance of a small gem.

‘Unbelievable. This thing actually came out here...’

Devil’s Medal (Daemon Medal)

As the name suggests, it was an item imbued with the power of the demon race, ‘Demon.’

‘Among the upper-race medal series, Inferno is one of the most useful.’

Inferno (Inferno) commonly referred to ‘hellfire.’

‘At first, the savior of Busan, Inferno, had this...’

Even at the current point in time, Inferno is an incredibly strong player, but by obtaining this item that perfectly matches his nickname, he can wield even more powerful fire authority.

The sight of him raising magma like ocean waves, sweeping everything away... Lee Hyun-wook involuntarily swallowed dry at the thought of that crimson disaster.

However, even such an Inferno could not stand against a ‘Necromancer.’

The savior of Busan, who had single-handedly blocked the undead army that covered the sea in front of Busan, ultimately...

‘...ended up becoming one of the undead.’

After that, the medal also fell into the hands of the Necromancer.

‘It’s said that he used it to create a sulfur fire golem, that terrifying biological weapon.’

In Haeundae, Busan, the skyscrapers were destroyed by a several-meter-tall corpse golem... the concrete forest was ravaged by green flames...

Lee Hyun-wook vividly recalled the scene and involuntarily clicked his tongue.

The Necromancer was truly the worst adversary.

“...With this, I’m one step, no, two steps ahead of that guy.”

*gulp*

He quickly swallowed the item, worried that someone might see it.

Even though it was stained with the Kobold’s blood, he had no time to worry about such things.

– Caution! You are already absorbing ‘metal.’ Absorption delay will occur.

“...Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, is it over now?”

An Min-tae approached and asked.

“Don’t let your guard down yet.”

At Lee Hyun-wook’s words, the entire squad began to secure the area.

However, there were no more living Kobolds.

In Lee Hyun-wook’s senses, there was no moving metal other than the squad members.

“Platoon leader, it seems to be over.”

“Ah...”

Choi Sun-ah nodded, her expression dazed.

Lee Hyun-wook looked around at the squad members. They all had similar expressions to Choi Sun-ah.

‘I need to help them sort out their mixed emotions.’

Lee Hyun-wook thought it was a moment that required praise for the future. He would have to lead them into battle a few more times, so he needed to instill confidence in them for his own sake.

“Everyone did well.”

At his words, all eyes turned to Lee Hyun-wook.

“You all responded well without making any mistakes, just as I instructed yesterday.”

Only then did they realize that his advice—how neglecting training could cost them their lives—had come true like a prophecy.

Lee Hyun-wook then met Park Jun-mo’s eyes.

“Especially Park Jun-mo. You played a crucial role in eliminating the stragglers.”

“...Ah! T-thank you!”

Park Jun-mo nodded, startled.

When the gate appeared in the camp and they faced the goblins, he had shown a foolish appearance and was reprimanded, which left him disheartened.

But this time, he received tremendous praise. The fact that it was a decisive role made his eyes well up with tears, and he bowed his head.

“An Min-tae, you were solid as a sergeant, as expected.”

“That’s just, you know, obvious. Haha...”

Though he said that, the boy couldn’t hide his grin.

“And Platoon Leader.”

“Hm?”

“I know it’s a bit presumptuous of me to say, but your final suppression fire order was very timely. If we had hesitated for a moment, we might have let a few escape. It’s really fortunate.”

“...Ah!”

In fact, when she gave the order, the squad members hesitated and looked at Lee Hyun-wook. Only when he raised his gun did they follow the command.

Anyway,

Choi Sun-ah finally regained her composure and smiled.

“Thank you! I’m glad no one was hurt, really...”

Then, tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.

It was due to the sudden release of tension.

Indeed... seeing this, she still seemed to have the air of a high school student.

At that moment,

Boom!

A heavy vibration sounded from somewhere. Everyone lowered their stances and raised their guns.

Behind them, something landed on the brown brick wall.

“Oh, that person is...”

It was a knight in black ‘full plate armor.’

‘Seo Eun-ha.’

Thud!

She lightly threw herself to the ground, landing heavily.

‘Tsk, I thought she was in the middle of making a grand entrance, but this is serious.’

Lee Hyun-wook couldn’t help but look at her disapprovingly.

No matter how heavy a knight’s armor is, she should be more careful, he had told her repeatedly in the distant future.

It wasn’t like she was doing a ‘superhero landing’ or anything; there was no need to land so dramatically.

‘This is probably one of the things she complained about while drunk, feeling sorry for herself.’

For a moment, Lee Hyun-wook wondered if he had unconsciously picked on her like 2nd Platoon Leader Lee Hee-min.

But no matter how he thought about it, his advice had been solid and helpful.

‘Of course, it’s natural.’

Clank!

At that moment, Seo Eun-ha’s faceplate, the ‘visor,’ lifted.

Her thoroughly flustered expression was revealed.

“...”

“Good work. An unexpected situation occurred, but it was successfully suppressed.”

Lee Hyun-wook saluted her.

However, her eyes were filled with an inexplicable hostility.

In the next moment, she raised her greatsword and pointed it at Lee Hyun-wook.

“...Hey, you.”

“Yes, what is it?”

“...Who are you, really?”

A similar incident had occurred not long ago.

A sudden accident, she had rushed to the scene, but it was already over, and there he was, standing unharmed in the middle of it all...

Seo Eun-ha’s eyebrow twitched. A flush spread across her pale skin, even without makeup, due to the intense curiosity.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Just like last time, how did you do it?”

“...I still don’t understand what you mean.”

At that moment,

“...Everyone!”

A loud noise began to come from the alley.

“Prepare for combat!”

It was 2nd Platoon Leader Lee Hee-min’s voice.

He had returned hastily with 3rd and 4th Platoons, but like Seo Eun-ha, he was a step too late.

“...Eh, eh?”

He looked around with a bewildered expression and then looked at Seo Eun-ha.

“Seo Eun-ha! What’s going on? Why are you here... Could it be that you handled everything?”

Seo Eun-ha shook her head without answering.

“What? No? Then, what, what, what happened?”

Lee Hee-min’s face was even more flustered than Seo Eun-ha’s, drenched in cold sweat.

It couldn’t be helped.

He was the one responsible for the intermediate base, and with a serious problem occurring, he couldn’t avoid being reprimanded.

His confusion turned into frustration, which naturally directed itself at the platoon leader, Choi Sun-ah.

“Y-You! Choi Sun-ah! What happened? Damn it, I told you to manage things properly so no problems would occur!”

“Ah, Platoon Leader, th-that...”

He approached Choi Sun-ah, ready to strike, and she involuntarily took a step back.

From the way she instinctively hunched her shoulders, it was clear how much she had suffered in the past.

At that moment, Lee Hyun-wook stepped in front of him.

“Platoon Leader, I will report.”

“What? Who are you to do that? I, damn it, told you to know your place!”

Lee Hee-min, unable to control his anger, bumped his helmet against Lee Hyun-wook’s helmet like an angry ram.

“...I understand. Then I will report directly to the battalion commander.”

“What? How dare an F-rank like you mention the battalion commander!”

However, Lee Hyun-wook was looking at something else.

“Huh? This guy, what is he looking at...”

Then, a scene that made Lee Hee-min’s heart sink even more dramatically unfolded.

Vroom!

The sound of an engine came from behind.

It was the lead vehicle.

The battalion commander’s car had stopped in front of the intermediate base.

Click!

The passenger door opened, and the druid of Namsan, Battalion Commander Kim Gang-seok, stood tall.

Looking up at his massive frame, Lee Hee-min took a deep breath.

“S-Sir! A situation of unknown origin occurred, but it has been resolved. However, I don’t have accurate information yet! I will report after further investigation!”

His right hand, raised in a salute, trembled like a leaf.

A thick hand was placed on his shoulder.

“2nd Platoon Leader.”

“...H-Huh! 2nd Platoon Leader, Lee Hee-min!”

“2nd Platoon Leader, step aside.”

“E-Eh?”

“Why are you trying to give a report when you just arrived from outside the intermediate base? Don’t waste time. You know I don’t like formalities.”

“...I-I’m sorry!”

Kim Gang-seok passed by Lee Hee-min without a word.

Lee Hee-min, trembling, rolled his eyes to look at the battalion commander’s back. He stopped in front of Lee Hyun-wook.

“5th Platoon Leader.”

“Corporal, Lee Hyun-wook!”

“You will give the report.”

Unlike the trembling Lee Hee-min, Lee Hyun-wook nodded calmly, and Lee Hee-min couldn’t help but look like he had eaten something foul.

“Yes, I will report. During the installation and security operation of the intermediate base, a wide-area status-altering magic of the black magic category was detected from the sewer, and we responded at MOPP level 3. Subsequently, a group