Epilogue Chapter 65 - Excursion (3)

“Kyaaahhh!”

“Eek! What the hell are those?!”

“H-Help me—!”

Screams filled the park as countless flies swarmed the park from above like ash raining from a volcano eruption.

“This is...”

Oh Kang-Hyun looked up tremblingly at the swarm of flies. His legs shook as the events at the resort flashed across his mind like a panorama.

‘No, it’s worse than back then.’

There were over ten times more flies than the attack at the resort, and that was just what he could see; there might be even more considering how large the World Cup Park was.

“A-Aaaahh. F-F-Flies...”

“S-Si-Ah!”

Kang-Hyun noticed Kim Si-Ah trembling in pallor. He hurriedly grabbed her shoulders and shook her.

“Get a hold of yourself, Si-Ah!”

“Urgh... K-Kang-Hyun?”

“Grab my hand!”

He yanked Si-Ah by her hand and ran away from the swarm.

‘They were after Si-Ah before.’

Although Kang-Hyun later learned from his father that they had been after Uncle Si-Hun and not Si-Ah, that didn’t mean the same couldn’t happen again.

‘I have to take Si-Ah and run away.’

That would guarantee the safety of the other children spread throughout the park.

‘The flies didn’t attack anyone else back at the resort—’

“KYAAAAHHH! S-SAVE ME!”

Just then, Kang-Hyun saw a girl being attacked by a fly far larger than her; it was one of the two girls who asked Si-Ah to play with them.

“What the...”

‘I thought they had no interest in other people!’

“KYAAAAAAAAAHHH!”

“Dammit!”

Kang-Hyun had no time to think. He dashed toward the fly charging at the girl.

‘Authority of Blades.’

Slash!

A black blade protruded from the back of his hand and split the fly in two. Putrid fluids spewed from the fly as its corpse rolled across the ground.

“Are you okay?” Kang-Hyun asked.

“A-Aaaahh.

Sniff. Waaaaaaahhh!

”

The girl fell to her knees and burst into tears.

“You don’t have the time to be crying here. Get up.”

“

Sniff... Waaaaahh!

”

Kang-Hyun offered to help her up, but it was pointless. He noticed that the cute pink skirt she had likely excitedly worn for the excursion was getting wet.

“Dammit...”

It was only natural for a child who wasn’t even ten years old to be terrified of a fly more than twice her size attacking her. Although Kang-Hyun was perfectly fine, he understood how she felt since they were the same age.

‘But we don’t have time to waste here.’

Since the flies were now attacking the bystanders, he needed to inform the adults immediately.

‘The signal is... blocked.’

Kang-Hyun tried to call and text his father and Uncle Si-Hun but it was not getting through. The one known as the Celestial seemed to have blocked all forms of communication. It was only natural he would, considering how Uncle Si-Hun had wiped out the swarm of flies in almost an instant.

‘But I can’t believe he even made the magic tools obsolete.’

The emergency communication orb Mother Seol-Ah had given him was not working either.

“Ngh.”

There was no other choice but to leave the Celestial’s area of effect first to call for help. Hence, they couldn’t stay here and waste time.

“

Sniff, sni—

huh?”

“Hold on tight,” Kang-Hyun said as he lifted the crying girl.

“Oh Kang-Hyun, you...”

The panicking Si-Ah’s eyes suddenly grew sharp but bit her lip after realizing the current situation and turned away from the fly corpse.

“Let’s regroup with the teachers first,” said Kang-Hyun.

“Got it.”

Elementary school teachers couldn’t do much in such a crisis but they could at least act as a place where the terrified children could gather. After all, even the most unruly children looked for the teachers first when something bad happened.

“This way, Kang-Hyun!”

Si-Ah took the lead as if she had never been afraid. Kang-Hyun could see her legs trembling intensely but did not mention it.

“K-Kids! O-Over here! This way!”

They arrived at the park entrance and saw the teachers running around to gather the children. Thankfully, the swarm of flies had not come this far.

“Teacher!”

“Huh? K-Kang-Hyun?”

Kang-Hyun entrusted the girl she was holding to the teacher and shouted, “I’ll bring more students who haven’t evacuated yet, so please take care of her!”

“I-It’s too dangerous! I’ll bring them, so you evacuate with the other children!”

The young female teacher, only in her second year of teaching, thought of the children’s safety first. She had not forgotten her duty even in such a crisis, which was worthy of praise. However—

“The other kids will only panic if you’re not here to watch over them,” Kang-HJyun mentioned.

“Th-That’s...”

“Please take everyone out of the park and call the number I’ll be telling you! As soon as possible!”

Kang-Hyun took his teacher’s smartphone and quickly typed his father and Uncle Si-Hun’s numbers.

“K-Kang-Hyun! Kang-Hyun! Whose numbers are th—”

“I’ll be counting on you!”

Kang-Hyun did not have time to hear his teacher’s answer. He sprinted back into the park in search of students who had yet to evacuate. To be more exact, to the first graders’ cleaning zone.

‘I have to find Lia and Kang-Hee first.’

Rescuing children who had not evacuated yet was important but finding his little sisters was of higher priority in his mind. He knew that in terms of strength, they were stronger than him.

‘But they have zero practical experience.’

Si-Ah was terrified of the fly monsters so it wouldn’t be strange for Lia and Kang-Hee to be as well.

“Wait for me, Kang-Hyun!”

Kang-Hyun heard Si-Ah’s voice as he was sprinting to the first graders’ cleaning zone. He looked back at her worryingly.

“Are you sure you’ll be alright?” he asked.

“Hmph. I should be asking you that question.”

“But you’re scared of bugs...”

“Forget it. I’ll deal with that myself, so let’s go save the others.”

“Okay...”

And so, Kang-Hyun and Si-Ah headed to the first graders’ cleaning zone.

“

Skreee!

”

“

Krrrk, krrrk!

”

More fly monsters attacked them as they headed deeper into the park.

“Kurgh!”

“Kyaaaahh! G-Go away!!!”

Kang-Hyun and Si-Ah subjugated them as they continued to charge.

“

Waaaaahh!

M-Mommy! Mommy—!”

They heard the wails of a first grader who had yet to evacuate. Kang-Hyun and Si-Ah ran to the source of the wails.

“Hup!”

Slash!

Just then, they saw a Player wearing a Guardians uniform cutting down the fly charging at the child, with ease.

“Huh...?”

“G-Guardians?”

‘Why is a Guardians member here? There’s no way they were contacted already.’

Even if Uncle Si-Hun had been contacted already, Guardians couldn’t have been dispatched so quickly.

‘Could it be... they were already here?’

It looked as if they had expected such an event to occur.

‘Oh Kang-Hyun! We have no time to waste!”

“O-Okay!”

The presence of Guardians was not important right now. Kang-Hyun turned back from the Guardians Player taking the child to safety and ran deeper into the park. The number of flies grew exponentially as they headed deeper inside and so did the number of Guardians Players protecting the public from the flies and taking them to safety.

Kang-Hyun also found Lia in a portion of the park surrounded by her classmates.

“Brother!”

“Lia!”

There were fly corpses around her, seemingly defeated by her.

“Are you okay?” Kang-Hyun asked.

“I’m fine! But...!”

“But what?”

“K-Kang-Hee... I can’t find Kang-Hee anywhere!”

“What...?”

Kang-Hyun expected Lia and Kang-Hee to be together.

“You two are in the same class! She has to be around here somewh—”

“Kang-Hee went to the Nanji Stream in search of you earlier!”

“...” Kang-Hyun’s expression hardened. “Dammit...!”

He turned to the direction of Nanji Stream and ran.

“Let me join you, Brother!”

“No! Take your classmates out of the park! I’ll bring Kang-Hee!”

“B-But...!”

“Now!”

Since Lia was protecting the children who had yet to escape, he couldn’t take her with him.

𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

“Haaa, haaa!”

Kang-Hyun sprinted to the Nanji Stream with Si-Ah. Most people around the stream seemed to have evacuated since there was no one there.

“Kang-Hee! Oh Kang-Hee! Where are you?!”

“Kang-Hyun!” Si-Ah quickly covered Kang-Hyun’s mouth. “The fly monsters will swarm here if you’re that loud!”

“Sorry...”

Kang-Hyun quelled his unsettled heart and looked around the stream but couldn’t sense anyone’s presence.

“Maybe she already evacuated?” Si-Ah wondered.

“No. If it’s Kang-Hee, she would be searching for me.”

There was no way Kang-Hee would have evacuated without him.

“You... have a point,” Si-Ah remarked as she clicked her tongue and nodded.

“Let’s look around a little more—”

Crack, crack—!

A Rift formed in front of them and a boy leisurely walked out.

“Jeon... Yeong-Woong?”

“What are you guys searching for so frantically?” Yeong-Woong smiled nastily and reached into the Rift to take something out. “Is it perhaps... this?”

He had taken out an unconscious Kang-Hee.