10 minutes before Suho's arrival.
Numerous drones were flying over the city where the disaster occurred.
– Suddenly appearing mutants are attacking the citizens!
Real-time news with shocking content hit the country.
– Currently, the police hunters of the Hunter Association are quickly suppressing the situation…!
No matter how hopeful the news was, the situation shown on the screen was not.
Citizens were screaming and running away everywhere.
Mutants were following them at breakneck speed and were attacking them.
Also…
"Kheuuaaah!"
The wounds of the citizens bitten by them rot away at a rapid rate, where they even turn into new mutants right at the scene.
– Despite the struggles of the Association Hunters, the number of mutants is increasing rapidly!
It was a so-called zombie apocalypse in the middle of the city.
– Currently, the Hunter Association is in the process of recruiting more troops to the field, but it will take some time for them to arrive!
In the end, the problem was time.
Overall, the place where the disaster occurred is in the middle of Seoul, where tens of thousands of citizens live.
If that large population turned into mutants, Korea would have no choice but to face an apocalypse.
Even at that moment, several guilds were sending additional support, but their number was lacking.
The hunters were always busy, and it would take quite a while to arrive unless the hunters were nearby.
Right then, something odd happened.
– Ah! This is the Reaper Guild!
A drone camera suddenly appeared and captured the members of the Reaper Guild shooting magical arrows at the mutants.
– Guild leader Lim Taegyu of the Reaper Guild has arrived at the scene with his guild members!
All the drones started taking close-ups of Lim Taegyu.
He took the lead and began to actively help the struggling Association Hunters by directing the members of the Reaper Guild.
– Meanwhile, the Hunter Association is arguing that the root cause is villain Lee Minseong, who was the Vice President of the Reaper Guild…!
At the same time, news began to appear on the Internet emphasizing that the cause of this incident was not the Reaper Guild, but solely Lee Minseong.
Numerous comments began to run under the articles.
– Does that make sense?
– They're probably still all connected somehow.
– Did they cut ties with him?
– It seems that the Vice President lost it in a fit of anger.
– What if our country goes down?
– I'm glad I live in the countryside.
Public opinion had long since antagonized the guild.
They were already seen in bad light due to rumors, so they were firmly stigmatized by the incident.
However, even the malicious commenters who cursed the guild had no choice but to admit one fact.
Lim Taegyu, an S-Class hunter.
The tremendous sight of the countless magic arrows he shoots at the mutants every moment was captured on the screen.
– Awesome.
– Lim Taegyu is amazing.
– S-Class are really different.
– If he had that skill, he should've quietly gone solo. Why bother creating a guild and receive swearing from the public?
– Information) His hunter skill and manager skills are different.
– Information) Lim Taegyu's weapon is the 'Reaper's Bow', but the price is…
Right then, the secretary standing behind Lim Taegyu made a strange move.
– Huh?
– Hey, wait!
– At his back! His back!
– Look behind you!
Lim Taegyu was concentrating on the battle. The viewers who were watching him through drones were the first to sense something.
However, Lim Taegyu was not able to see the comments and was totally unguarded.
Secretary Oh was standing behind him.
– That's crazy! What was that?
– Betrayal?
– Was he Lee Minseong's pawn?
– Why are you so helpless?
– Were S-Class hunters originally that weak?
– No way!
– Did he get poisoned?
Viewers watching the news were in shock.
Even S-Class hunters were not invincible.
Even if their attack power and defense power were incredibly high, as long as they were human, if they were injured, they would be sick, and if they were fatally wounded, they would inevitably die.
However, for those who did not know the details, it was hard to believe that the S-Class hunter was stabbed by a dagger and fell to his knees.
"Keugh!"
Surprised by the person he trusted, Lim Taegyu immediately pulled out the dagger stuck in his back.
The psychological shock was greater than the physical pain.
"Secretary Oh, why did you…?"
Secretary Oh only put on a puzzled expression.
"Boss, I am sorry. I have a great mission from the Queen."
"W-What queen are you-"
Suddenly, Taegyu Lim's legs staggered.
It was the poison.
Not an ordinary poison, but an extreme poison.
Secretary Oh bowed politely to Lim Taegyu.
"Don't strain yourself and accept it. The poison I used is the queen's royal jelly."
'Royal… jelly?'
Memories flashed through Lim Taegyu's mind.
– Boss, it's your birthday, right? Here's a gift.
– Hey! A gift? What is it?
– It's a high-quality liquor that I had a hard time getting through an acquaintance. Would you like to try it?
– Nice! The name is Royal Jelly, right?
– It's good for your body.
Secretary Oh gave Lim Taegyu a western liquor called 'Royal Jelly' as a gift whenever he had a chance.
Why does the name of the drink with a strangely sweet scent come to his mind at a moment like that?
Cheers!
"…!"
Lim Taegyu felt a tremendous headache.
At the same time, a powerful message resonates in his head.
– Be loyal to the Queen!
– Be loyal to the Queen!
"Ack!"
Lim Taegyu threw away even the bow of the Reaper Guild and rolled on the floor holding his head with both hands.
It was impossible for Royal Jelly, which had failed to control even Lee Minseong, to get through a higher-level hunter.
"G-Get out of my head!"
Grumble!
Lim Taegyu screamed out loud as a huge aura swirled through his body.
Secretary Oh hurriedly left from the sudden attack.
However, Lim Taegyu had no time to care about him and fought against the voice who tried to devour his mind.
"President!"
A healer from the Reaper Guild, who noticed what was happening, approached Lim Taegyu and hurriedly healed him.
However, it was not an ordinary poison that was consuming Lim Taegyu's body.
It was impossible to decipher with normal skills.
"President! The 'heal' doesn't work! I think you have to drive out the poison with your own mana power!"
"Mana…"
His mana was already doing that.
Lim Taegyu focused all his mana and fought against the energy of royal jelly.
It seemed that if that process was broken even for a moment, his mind would be corrupted.
"Ack! Don't mind me, go see the other guild members! And catch that secretary who ran away! It seems like he was working under Lee Minseong!"
"Yes, Sir!"
After giving orders to his subordinates, Lim Taegyu sat down with his back leaning as he was out of breath.
Fighting or anything, he couldn't use any skills because he was suppressing the poison with his mana. It seemed that his mind would be subdued as soon as he used any skill.
'I have to counter it with mana power.'
But even that wasn't easy.
The ambush he just suffered was just a trigger. The high-quality liquor called royal jelly he had received from Secretary Oh had been accumulated in his body.
Swoosh!
Suho and Baek Miho arrived at the scene just in time.
'… Baek Miho?'
Lim Taegyu, who was fighting the poison, immediately recognized her.
Baek Miho, the Vice President of the Baekho Guild, came!
However…
'Who was she carrying on her back?'
What kind of person would the great Baek Miho carry?
If he was such a talented person, Lim Taegyu would have recognized him.
The face of the young man Baek Miho brought down from her back was a face he had never seen before.
Just then, the young man's head lifted as he looked around at the situation.
From a while ago, he found a suspicious beehive that was on the upper floors of the surrounding buildings.
"Let's fly right away."
Those words suddenly came out of his mouth.
As much as he couldn't use any skill, Lim Taegyu, who was paying attention to the surrounding situation, felt puzzled when he heard Suho.
'Fly?'
Swook!
A black shadow rose from under the young man's feet, wrapping around both him and Baek Miho.
"… Woah!"
The situation was so sudden that even Baek Miho was startled.
Lim Taegyu, who was watching from afar, opened his eyes wide as if they were going to pop out.
Two pairs of wings with black steam were on their backs!
'What are those?!'
* * *
As soon as Suho saw the contaminated ghouls, he quickly grasped the situation.
The purpose of Lee Minseong was to create his own legion by killing citizens.
As a result, he chose a structure where there were countless lives as Arsha intended, and more number of 'sacrifices'.
All the casualties were a sacrifice to the Queen of Insects, Plague Monarch, Querehsha.
'We don't have time.'
If things go on just like that, it would only be a matter of time before the ritual would eventually be completed as Arsha planned.
Speed was the answer.
'I'll leave these ones to the hunters and I'll catch the captain.'
He had no intention of going up the stairs of that high building step by step.
'I must fly.'
Suho had shadow soldiers with wings.
"Two of you, come out."
[Krrrk!]
At Suho's command, shadows swayed beneath his feet.
Suddenly, Suho had a good idea.
'These guys are shadows anyway.'
Shadows can exist anywhere.
Even if it's not under Suho's feet.
Even Beru would hide in the small shadows that existed in every corner of Suho's body and then pop out.
It was possible for only his face to stick out, while his body remained in the shadows.
That means…
'It would be possible for the others to do it too.'
Suho ordered the shadow lancers hiding in his shadow.
"Ride on our backs and just take out your wings."
[Krrrk!]
They soon followed Suho's order.
Swoosh!
A shadow lancer pulled the pairs of wings from his back.
Another black shadow covered Suho's shoulders and back, creating a strange shape.
[Eh?]
Seeing that, Beru smiled at Suho with a strange expression.
[This is a really interesting strategy. You're only halfway through summoning soldiers. It's definitely a new era. Such idea is novel… ]
"Boomer."
[Eh?!]
Beru reacted defensively.
[The King of Beasts, Fang Monarch, raises a question, asking if he imitated the blessing skill.]
"What are you talking about? You can see for yourself."
Suho smiled and flew away.
Baek Miho, who floated beside him, couldn't help but be astonished.
'Oh my god. I heard he was a C-Class summoning hunter.'
What kind of skill was that?!
Summoned Wings?
Was there a skill that allowed one to attach wings to the body of a comrade like that?
Most of all…!
"If you had skills like this, why did you ask me to carry you on my back!"
Baek Miho stared at Suho, implying that it was unfair.
Suho responded shamelessly.
"When I get tired, my mana decreases. Anyway, let's go up to the beehive like this."
Right then…
"Wait a minute! Take me too!"
Suddenly they heard someone screaming urgently.
Baek Miho confirmed his identity and exclaimed in surprise.
"President Lim Taegyu?!"
"Who is that person?"
Reaper Guild, one of the representative guilds in Korea.
The name of Lim Taegyu, the guild leader there, was familiar to Suho.
He didn't look very good, but an S-Class Hunter would definitely be of help.
"Go with that one guy over there."
[Krrrk!]
Swoosh!
At those words, a black shadow flew and clung to Lim Taegyu's body.
"Follow me with your own will."
Suho left only those words and started preparing to fly again.
"What the hell is this…"
Suddenly, Lim Taegyu felt a strange sensation as something clung to his body.
Regardless, he meekly accepted the shadow.
'I might be able to reject it if I push it away with mana.'
He felt a sense of rejection for a moment, but he endured it.
In the first place, he couldn't use his mana separately because he was countering the effect of royal jelly.
Swish!
Soon after, the shadow wings that sprouted from Lim Taegyu's back began to flap.
Then, at a tremendous speed, he flew up after Suho and Baek Miho.
The target was the beehive.
Wiiiing-!
As they got closer and closer to the beehive, a huge rain of arrows suddenly came from inside the beehive.
Each of them was an arrow surrounded by an aura.
"Oh my…!"
Baek Miho and Lim Taegyu were surprised.
No one knew how it would be if they were on the ground, but there was no way to dodge that many arrows while floating in the air.
It was a situation where they had to shield themselves or become shields helplessly!
Baek Miho hurriedly shouted.
"President Lim Taegyu! Hunter Sung Suho! Hide behind me!"
If there was no way to avoid it, it was best for one person to act as a shield.
Among the three of them, it was the most effective for a fighter to become a shield.
[Whew. You're a pretty noble fox.]
"…!"
Beru went on Miho Baek's hair and stroked it.
[But, don't worry.]
Beru smiled faintly and looked at the back of Suho.
[Our Young Master will solve it.]
Suho's eyes flashed.
"Don't back down, keep flying!"
[Krrk!]
The Shadow Lancers attached to their backs flapped their wings even harder.
That moment.
[Use 'Skill: Blade Storm'.]
Swish!
The wind created a raging-like typhoon.
Before they knew it, the twin swords held in both hands of Suho began to brutally slaughter the entire space into the barrage of arrows.
Suho, Baek Miho, and Lim Taegyu fly straight through the center of the typhoon.
In particular, the shock felt by Baek Miho, who knew Suho as a summoning hunter, was indescribable.
'… Oh my God. What is this?'
Wasn't he just a C-Class summoning hunter?
Following the summoned wings, he also has such a tremendous attack skill?
'Did he hide his power? Why?'
It made no sense at first.
What kind of hunter in the world would lower his class and value by suppressing his skills!