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The Player Who Eats Steel - Episode 201

201fury. 

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Now, the world's attention was focused on the battle between the Demon King and the Hero, or 'World Quest'..

In other words, as the shadow of the apocalypse loomed over one's head, one could not help but feel intense anxiety, and social safety nets were collapsing and intense chaos was continuing all over the world..

If things continue like this, the human community is slowly being paralyzed as riots and looting occur every day, to the point where it can be considered that we are approaching the end on our own..

- Will we choose the path of self-destruction in the face of global ‘demonic shock’? … Damage continues from daily riots

However, even in such chaos, there were people who still did their best in their work and maintained their positions... … Soldiers were also one of those types..

And now, late at night, near the Military Demarcation Line, the northern border of South Korea........

Ta-da-da-da——!

Gunshots rang out one after another along the ridge..

Ta-da-da-da——!

Gunshots ringing out there were, and still are, bound to be a serious problem..

Amid all the sounds of explosions and gunfire, a group of AMT soldiers were running up the steel stairs..

"You'll get caught at this rate.!”

In the distance, the light of the guard post, their destination, could be seen..

"gasp— gasp—”

But just ten meters behind them…….

Kueheh— Kueheh—

What kind of monsters with blank eyes dressed in straw... … Hundreds of ‘inhabitants of death’ were chasing after them..

Kueheh— Kueheh—

They were climbing the steep iron stairs, bending their limbs in bizarre ways, as if they were jointed dolls, and they were so fast that they seemed ready to engulf the AMT soldiers at any moment..

“Hahahahaha don't give up, you'll be out soon.!”

The person who shouted that was the middle-ranking post commander running at the very front..

"There are about a hundred meters left now.!”

But at that moment—

“—evil!”

The last soldier was eventually caught by the hands of the resident of death, lost his balance and fell backwards..

"Buy, save—”

He was captured by the hair and disappeared into the horde of the inhabitants of the dead..

But there was no time to worry about his safety..

“Wow—”

The wave of death seemed to not have been able to satisfy its hunger even after swallowing one person, so it rushed in without even hesitating, and then another person was dragged in..

At this rate, they would just be eaten one after another..

"Holy shit!”

In the end, a few people in the back row gave up on running away and raised their weapons..

“—2Joe, prepare to fire back.!”

It was a deputy chief of staff with the rank of sergeant who said that..

Then the head of the first post turned his head in surprise, and the second post pulled the trigger and shouted at him..

"—Commander Su, go quickly! We will stop this place!”

Bullets enchanted with divine power spewed out from the muzzle of his gun, pushing away the inhabitants of death to some extent..

“Ugh— Assistant Chief, no way.!”

But it was only a temporary effect.

"You must listen to me! If those horrible things move south, countless civilians will die! Go ahead and call for support, sooner than later.—”

The sentry members, who had been together through hardships for over a year, began an act that was tantamount to suicide. As their commander, the commander-in-chief felt his heart sink..

But what Deputy Chief Superintendent said was right one hundred times..

Countless numbers of undead monsters... … They appeared without any warning.

Just five minutes ago, a report came in that an unidentified vibration had sounded from the ground nearby and a large hole had been created, and the guard immediately went out on patrol..

From there, the undead poured out like a pack of dogs..

It was a completely unexpected attack..

No matter how many surveillance cameras were installed, it was impossible to see into the ground..

In other words, the Republic of Korea's defense network itself would not be prepared for this situation right now, so we had to make time by responding as much as possible here..

further…….

‘If you bomb the entrance to the cave where they come from now and then deploy the sacred troops, you can minimize the damage.!’

Therefore, he who knew the location had to report it accurately to higher-level troops. It could be said that it was the most perfect first response..

“……Everyone, I won't forget!”

He eventually ran to the guard post, barely ignoring the screams of his subordinates behind him, and the guard opened the guard post door..

"The small, small chief, deputy chief and deputy chief and the guards……."

"Close the door right now and activate the magic shield.!”

The guards hesitated at his words and closed the iron gate..

Tongue—

Go called a signal officer and instructed him to communicate with higher-level units..

And as soon as it was connected, I shouted in a hoarse voice..

"—This is A44 AMT guard post, and an unbearable undead monster is climbing over the propulsion barbed wire! Chic—Z, request assistance immediately! In addition, it was confirmed that sacred bombs were useless.!”

It was confirmed that they were not ordinary undead monsters and that they were not easily killed by 'nova bullets', and even came back to life..

‘What that means is that there is a group of priests of death here, and they cannot be stopped with weak divine power..’

As his specialty is 'raid analysis', he understood the severity of this situation..

‘This is at the level of any big event..’

At that time, a loud noise sounded nearby..

The guard post's lantern turned around..

"her……."

About 500 meters in front of here, countless undead were clinging to the watchtower along the ridge like a swarm of ants.…....

A-A-A-A-River——!

Unable to withstand the load, the steel bars broke and the watchtower was slowly tilting..

And around it, black shimmers appeared, like waves on the night sea. There were hundreds and thousands of red eyes in that shimmer..

in other words—

“Me, that's all……."

The number of undead monsters in this area alone is tens of thousands... … No, if you take into account things that are not in sight, it could be in the hundreds of thousands..

and even.......

Thump—thud—

"Crazy, that's oh, ogre?”

There was even an ogre skeleton mixed in..

Then, finally, a reply came from the higher-up units..

- Chic - wait there as long as you can, reinforcements will arrive soon..

It was an answer no one expected..

So the chieftain immediately asked a question..

“……Duty commander, this is not normal! We need to thoroughly check the situation here immediately, using all available methods! This is a national crisis.!”

however.......

- Chic - We'll take action soon, so just wait.!

"Holy shit……."

He felt as if his heart was going to explode. On the other hand, he began to feel anxious that the higher-ups might be responding complacently..

Long ago, when the Korean War broke out, didn't the seemingly beautiful initial measures cause an even bigger fire??

‘I don't care if I die here, but we can minimize civilian casualties only if we know the exact location of the portal..’

He put the Mana Messenger to his mouth again..

"We are requesting bombing and dispatch of sacred special forces immediately! I know a way to end this early.!”

However, this time a completely different voice appeared..

- Chik—Chief So, I am Lee Gyo-jun, team leader of the National Gate Response Strategy Office..

A fairly high-ranking person, especially one with a reputation, suddenly appeared..

Director So had heard somewhere that he was providing general support for projects related to Steele Rain..

- Chick—I know what happens there is not normal. but.......

His voice was somehow steady..

- Chic— We also sent something out of the ordinary, so just hold on a little longer and it will be resolved quickly. So, lead your troops well and hold on as long as possible.—

So Chojang was wondering what to say, but then realized that there was no point in arguing any longer and threw the Mana Messenger on the floor..

“……How on earth are we going to resolve this situation quickly??”

It was a command that he could not understand even a single word of..

He looked around with a cynicism. Then, the sound of the guard post's magic shield being attacked was heard..

Thong— Thong— Thong— Thong—

Soon even this guard post would be engulfed by waves of undead..

Even if something great comes to support them, even if the reinforcements block the waves of undead, they won't be able to save them... … The guard felt an indescribable sense of helplessness..

He looked back at the remaining guards and opened his mouth..

“……Everyone, I'm sorry. I was incompetent..”

But then—

Hung——!

A gust of wind blew and struck the guard post..

"Pfft!”

"evil."

No, it shook this entire mountain ridge..

Then something huge flew over my head..

Hung— Hung—

"uh?”

"Well, that is……."

There was no need to worry about what it was.

"Um, that… … Isn't it a dragon??”

Who could not know that the strongest monster that had shaken this world time and time again was hovering right above their head? However, the scene was unrealistic enough to be thought of as an illusion..

“……Is this really a big event where a dragon appears??”

It was clear that this was a situation that could be misunderstood..

In the first place, who would consider a dragon an ally??

But the misunderstanding was quickly resolved..

Ki-i-i-ing——

Rays and flames burst out from the entire body of that huge and majestic being, leading to the ground, and white explosions erupted one after another, creating huge holes all over the mountain..

Qua—and—and—gwang——!

Then, a shock wave that seemed to uproot a mountain hit the guard post, destroying the building in half..

With just a few shots, tens of thousands of undead that had covered the guard post disappeared like melting snow. And only a holy white haze remained in that place..

“ah—"

Only then did Sochojang sigh briefly as if he knew what that was..

"……That's right, he came forward..”

"yes?”

"He's trying to save everyone again this time.”

Everyone knew who he was referring to without having to say anything..

Today, there is definitely one person in the world who best fits the description of salvation..

Hung—

Then, while hitting the mechanical dragon fan and spraying the jet engine, it headed north..

After that, a dozen airships and dozens of military helicopters followed in a row..

***

About an hour later, breaking news broke all over the world..

「I gave you guys plenty of chances.」

That was another message from the Devil. This time, they used humanity's broadcasts to scare humanity..

「I have reached out my hand to tame and guide you who do not know the truth of this world. But you have bared your teeth at me like an untamable beast... … I want to punish you for being barbaric..」

At that moment, the TV screen showed the 'Flower of Death' floating over Manhattan..

「The first punishment will fall on one city... … This city will disappear from history as of today.」

Then the news anchor’s voice came in: “Oh my God—”.

A few days ago, the Demon King, who had taken Manhattan hostage, threatened to rain poisonous gas and poison on the entire city if the escape procession was seen..

So, a huge number of civilians were still stranded in Manhattan, and the U.S. government announced several times that they were in contact with the devil, but there was no progress..

And just now, the Demon King announced the execution ceremony..

America's LIVE was reporting this news in a more gloomy mood than ever..

- ……The number of citizens currently stranded in Manhattan, New York City, is estimated to be 640,000. Although the U.S. central government is preparing a response, there are still no answers as to how to prevent this terrible disaster, amid growing concerns that this will only add fuel to the fire..

And after a while…….

- ah! The news is that black smoke began spraying from the Flower of Death about 30 seconds ago.!

- oh… … God bless everyone there.

CNN's two anchors sighed one after another..

Soon, the lower part of the 'Flower of Death' on the screen opened, and from there, black smoke began to flow down like a curtain and drift towards Manhattan..

If that thing reached the ground and spread, no one would survive, so it was practically a human pesticide..

Soon it reached Manhattan's tallest skyscraper, and its surface began to bubble and melt..

Kkudduddud——

Now, no matter what I did, there was no turning back..

- Ah—God, please save us.…….

But at that moment—

yes——

The black smoke stopped in the air... … On the contrary, isn't it starting to flow towards the sky? It was as if someone was rolling up the curtains..

- ah? uh…….

- now…….

The two anchors were also perplexed because no information had yet arrived..

- Uh, what happened??

- ……It hasn't been confirmed yet, but it seems to me that gravity has reversed. Oh, of course, we would like to inform our viewers that this is not certain information..

- uh… … If gravity is reversed…….

- If you look over there, you can see debris from the building rising into the air, as if it were moving in free fall..

Soon his guess turned out to be true..

- ah! There is news that gravity wizard Lee Seong-yoon and World Tree manager Donald Harris are now on the scene! They stopped the devil's attack on Manhattan.!

Soon the screen changed, and about a dozen figures were seen standing on the roof of a building..

They were activating all kinds of skills while looking at the flower of death, and the black smoke was being controlled like that..

- So, did the saint also come to Manhattan? In order to remove that black smoke, it's not enough to just fly it into the sky; I think you'll need a very strong divine power.!

At that time, before I could finish speaking, a hole opened in the sky. The so-called Wight Hall, an ultra-wide teleport using the power of Yggdrasil, was opened..

- Ah, it looks like the saint has arrived just as I can tell.!

However, contrary to their expectations, the saint did not appear..

Instead, a completely unexpected being appeared.…….

- Uh, that is…….

- oh my god…….

The two anchors sighed at the same time..

It was the magic engineering city ‘Laputa’..

But it was somehow different from what they knew..

- But something seems to have changed…….

- ah! I am a tree! If you look closely, you can see a tree towering over the center of Laputa! But it's not just a tree... it's the sacred tree of Ganghwa Island, Shindansu.!

- Ah, no, it’s a crossover between a transcendental object and a transcendental object… … Is that possible??

- ……I don't understand either, but has Steele Rain acted within our common sense so far? He always came out with more than you could imagine.!

- But if it's a sacred tree, wouldn't it be more than enough to offset the power of death??

Dark power was often compared to fire, and divine power was compared to water..

In general, divine power was superior, but depending on the degree, the darkness could overpower divine power, just as a very strong fire evaporates water..

According to that analogy, the saint's power could be the most powerful fire hose or, depending on the time, heavy rain..

So, what can the sacred tree be likened to??

The powerful sacred power, vitality, and mana it gave off was enough to fill the entire area and create an 'ecosystem'. According to the analogy of fire and water, the sacred tree was like a lake or an ocean..

And no matter how powerful the fire was, it was bound to lose its power when facing a lake or the sea..

Go—oh—oh—oh——

Soon, Laputa, equipped with the divine tree, began to rapidly approach the flower of death, emitting a powerful white aura..

It was a slow but heavy movement, like a battleship approaching a battleship..

Tsutsutsutsu——

Then, the black smoke rising into the air due to the reversal of gravity quickly disintegrated and disappeared, as if being eaten by the white aura..

Additionally, on the parapet of Laputa, a number of giant soldiers, including Talos, stood tall, holding spears tens of meters long..

「Now, get ready.—」

At the command of Talos, the largest Titan Soldier, the 17 Titan Soldiers took a step forward. And took a javelin throwing stance..

[—shoot!]

Hung— Hung— Hung— Hung—

The javelins fired by the giant soldiers, each measuring 20 to 30 meters in length, were not actually javelins but closer to rocket launchers..

A total of 17 spears shot out in an almost straight line, breaking through the Death Flower's half-melted magic shield—and landing all over its petals..

Sigh- Sigh- Sigh- Sigh—

It was a spear made by carving a branch of the world tree..

In other words, it was the same as driving a silver stake into the vampire's heart, and the flower of death withered so quickly that it was visible..

kuddddud——

Next, many giants and players attacked the flower of death, and some even jumped over it and engaged in close combat..

However, the resistance of the undead army guarding the flower of death seemed weaker than expected..

That's because the Demon King and the Necromancer didn't pay much attention to New York in the first place..

It was a moment where it was proven that this place was nothing more than a ‘fake’..

But apart from that, it was just a truly touching scene for the world to see..

- Oh—God… … It's an unbelievable scene..

- This time, in the end, Stillane did it.!

- Yes, he is here! He came here to save New York and, by extension, the world! I sincerely hope for his victory.!

But Lee Hyun-wook was not there..

***

That place has been called various names since the game began..

But the most famous name was California.

The first territory that humanity lost many years ago... … It was now an eroded land covered in volcanic fields and red wilderness..

How much blood and sweat has humanity poured into reclaiming this land from the Ancient Red Drake??

However, all that remained was defeat and sacrifice, and it was predicted that it would be difficult to regain the land within this century.…….

Now, 19 airships have appeared in the sky there..

It was called the ‘Steel Fleet’..

And Lee Hyun-wook was on board the flagship ‘Friedwen’..

"I received a call from Seongyoon Lee saying that he would soon finish reorganizing the New York area and join me. And the Dark Elf Legion is also preparing to open the Wight Hall.."

The person who said that was Director Woo Seong-moon..

He also accompanied this operation..

"Additionally, additional reinforcements from each country are scheduled to arrive one after another as soon as the 'expedition camp' is established..”

Lee Hyun-wook nodded while looking at the red mountain range visible outside the window..

A very powerful force of death was rising at that point, which was displayed graphically on one monitor..

Over there, there is the devil.

'He tried to shake me up somehow by distributing his power to North and New York, but... … Blocked both places.’

And in the meantime, Lee Hyun-wook reached the heart of the thing..

Is the Demon King feeling a human-like sense of impatience right now? That was normal, but maybe it wasn't, so he thought he'd give it another shot..

“……Since I came so loudly and the owner didn't come out, I think I should knock a little louder..”

Lee Hyun-wook lifted Hugin and Munin into the sky..

Then, with a transcendental sense, I scanned the sky and sensed three huge chunks of metal floating further away..

'……War box, I feel it.’

A total of three war boxes were stationed in low-Earth orbit..

And following Lee Hyun-wook's senses, the lower part was opened..

Four moghlays fell from there..

Soon, four lines were drawn from the sky to the ground, and the great mountain range bounced up like a sand castle..

It was a moment when the map changed in an instant..

Ku—gu—gu—gu——I

In an explosion that seemed to shake the whole world, Lee Hyun-wook lifted up the Mana Messenger..

“……Now, the hunt for the demon lord begins..”