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Chapter 32 – Messiah (2)
6.
Fitting in the narrow s.p.a.ce behind the counter, Kim Tae Hoon began to a.n.a.lyze the situation.
He was not focused on the fireball.
Kim Tae Hoon was thinking of the moment when he pulled the trigger.
"It hit."
His aim was accurate.
He had hit the flame user awakened.
"But the user didn’t collapse."
However, he didn’t see the person who had been hit by the bullets fall.
"Perhaps a bulletproof vest?"
Only with a bulletproof vest could you remain standing after being shot.
"No, they wouldn’t be wearing one in this situation."
But he disregarded the notion almost immediately.
A bulletproof vest was like an extra life when facing up against firearms, but not against monsters.
Though certainly it’s better to wear one than not, it would definitely be better to wear a more solid armor that would provide more defense against monsters than a bulletproof vest.
Maybe an armor made from the hid of some hideous monster.
"Black Orc Leather."
Kim Tae Hoon recalled something.
The monster that he had killed.
A fierce monster with black skin.
The monster that he had left behind.
The Black Orc!
The monster whose body he had left behind after taking its heart.
"Tssk."
If Lee Jin Sung and Messiah were not idiots, they would have tried any means necessary to try and make use of the body.
Furthermore, it had already been ten days since he had killed the Black Orc. Ten days was enough time to turn a black orc into a mink coat.
His conjecture was correct.
"A gun, are you a survivor from the military? Are you perhaps from the 17th Division? I’m sorry, but a gun won’t work on me. There’s quite a good thing here."
Even Lee Jin Sung confirmed that Kim Tae Hoon’s speculation was right.
Of course Lee Jin Sung wasn’t trying to be friendly by doing so.
Even if the armor could block the shot, the strength behind the bullet was a different story altogether.
Even with a bullet proof vest, it would still be hard to withstand a bullet.
That’s why when facing someone with a gun, you have to try and mess with their head.
Sure there’s enough power behind a bullet when you shoot a bulletproof vest, but if you know that the other party is wearing one, you can just shoot them in the legs or the arms where the bulletproof vest wouldn’t reach.
"For now, how about we just have a conversation? I’m not someone who just talk to anyone you know."
It was as though he were simply trying to grab Kim Tae Hoon’s attention.
While Lee Jin Sung was trying blabbing on and on like a madman, the person that Kim Tae Hoon had shot was slowly making progress towards where Kim Tae Hoon was hiding behind the counter.
"Hey look at me!"
Lee Jin Sung’s voice had naturally loudened.
It was to hide the other person’s footsteps.
To keep Kim Tae Hoon’s attention.
But in the end, they were simple children’s tricks to Kim Tae Hoon. Kim Tae Hoon pulled something out of his pocket, and hwik! He threw in the direction of Lee Jin Sung’s voice.
"d.a.m.n it, dodge it!"
Hearing the urgency in Lee Jin Sung’s voice, the man who was approaching Kim Tae Hoon dropped to the floor in panic.
Kim Tae Hoon calmly rose up, pulled out his gun, and pointed it at the head of the man that had approached him.
Tutututu!
Immediately shots were fired.
That was the only sound that could be heard. There were no explosions.
Kim Tae Hoon had thrown an object that looked similar to a grenade.
"Ahhhh!"
The man who had been shot was screaming at the top of his lungs.
"f.u.c.k!"
It was Lee Jin Sung’s voice.
Kim Tae Hoon threw an arrow in the direction of the voice.
Straight, fast.
"Eub!"
The arrow deeply embedded itself into the skin and bones woman that had blocked in front of Lee Jin Sung.
"f.u.c.k, you were a telepath!"
With an unsightly expression on his face, Lee Jin Sung ran into the dark areas of the large mall. It wasn’t long before Lee Jin Sung disappeared into the gloom inside the mall that had no electricity.
All you could hear were the sounds.
Kim Tae Hoon chased after the sound of Lee Jin Sung’s footsteps, and found the man who was struggling against the pain of the impact of the bullets. He swiftly caught up to him, knocked him down, and placed his foot on his neck.
"Sp, spare······."
He promptly smashed down on the begging man’s neck.
Bba-deuk!
Accompanied by an uncanny sound, they man’s body fell limp.
Chwiiiiii!
At that time, white powder began to fill the inside of the dim market.
Kim Tae Hoon reflexively stepped away from the powder.
"Fire extinguisher."
It was the fire r.e.t.a.r.dant powder that came out of fire extinguishers.
In one stroke, the interior was filled with clouds of powder, making it impossible to see or smell.
It was a perfect counter to telekinesis.
"Retreat."
Kim Tae Hoon decided to retreat.
Lee Jin Sung and Messiah had already made contingency plans to deal with other awakened.
It would be dangerous to fight against Lee Jin Sung and Messiah like this. It was likely that he wasn’t alone, and if Kim Tae Hoon wasn’t careful, another guard who was waiting elsewhere might sneak up on him.
The clouds of powder split as though Moses were splitting the Red Sea, revealing Lee Jin Sung at the other end.
His movements were surprisingly fast and agile.
By the time Kim Tae Hoon noticed him, Lee Jin Sung’s knife had already just about reached Kim Tae Hoon’s rifle.
Swik!
The gun was sliced just like that.
It didn’t end there.
Something swelled up from inside his mouth, with Lee Jin Sung eventually spitting it out towards Kim Tae Hoon.
Puhuhuhu!
A huge flame engulfed Kim Tae Hoon. Covered in flames, Kim Tae Hoon rolled around on the floor.
Lee Jin Sung, with knife in hand, followed after Kim Tae Hoon who was rolling on the ground.
Tang, Tang!
Kim Tae Hoon pulled out his revolver from his waist holster, and shot at Lee Jin Sung.
The bullet successfully struck Lee Jin Sung, and his body wobbled like a blade of wheat.
But that was it.
Lee Jin Sung did not fall because of the bullet and neither was blood spilt.
After putting out the flames, Kim Tae Hoon got up from his spot and looked at Lee Jin Sung with a gun in his hand.
In front of Kim Tae Hoon stood Lee Jin Sung holding onto a sword with his arms covering his face. Like a boxer.
As long as it wasn’t his face, he could still survive a gunshot.
Kim Tae Hoon did not use any fancy moves in front of him. Instead, he eyed Lee Jin Sung.
Lee Jin Sung didn’t make any moves either.
His opponent was also an awakened.
Furthermore, his entire body wasn’t covered in the Black Orc Leather. His face was an exposed weakness. Not only that, but even if a bullet failed to penetrate his head, he would still very likely suffer from a fatal injury like a concussion or an eye rupture.
In the face of such an injury there was no point in him being impulsive.
‘It’s been awhile since the truck smashed into the entrance, it shouldn’t be long before the men stationed in the vicinity arrive.’
Lee Jin Sung was expecting his men who had heard the disturbance to come.
Lee Jin Sung wasn’t a fool, and he wouldn’t be accompanied by only two people.
He had placed people in various places.
Of course, the reason why he had spread them out was to monitor the area for monsters and to keep watch over the offerings.
He had to station awakened to watch over the wardens so as to instill fear.
In other words, time was on Lee Jin Sung’s side.
"Are you perhaps the first hunter?"
Therefore, Lee Jin Sung opened his mouth again.
"Seeing such strong Telekinesis, you resemble the first hunter, I think his name was······ Kim Tae Hoon. Yes, it was Kim Tae Hoon. But I heard that you had teammates, so why did you come here alone?"
Kim Tae Hoon didn’t bother to answer him. He stood there like a mannequin.
"I’ve heard many stories. Because of you, Bucheon’s citizens were able to continue their lives. Let’s be honest, there aren’t many places in the world that would be as good as here. I had escaped from Cheongna District, and it wasn’t until I reached Bucheon that I realized that I wasn’t the only survivor."
Lee Jin Sung kept talking to Kim Tae Hoon.
"I recently came to realize that Bucheon was really lucky in regards to geography. Monsters can’t roam freely since they get trapped or lost amongst the buildings."
Tempting words.
"It’s like a demilitarized zone. There are giant monsters in Incheon, Siheung, Gw.a.n.gmyeong, and Gimpo. Humans have long since deposed as the rulers of this Earth.”
Valuable information.
Those who wanted to know the truth and gain information had no choice but to lend their ears to what he was saying.
It was what Lee Jin Sung was aiming for.
But why would your opponent listen and let you take the advantage?
But in the end, he was giving valuable information so he could only listen.
There was a smile on Lee Jin Sung’s face.
"Only 1 minute."
One minute.
Or less.
After 1 minute has pa.s.sed, at least ten more awakened will converge on the scene.
They weren’t average either.
They were elites.
Messiah had the power to justify their inhuman acts, it was a powerful organization.
"So why are you so suddenly attacking us? Do you not like the way we handle things? From what I’ve heard, you’re not exactly the embodiment of justice either."
To stall for more time, Lee Jin Sung kept talking.
"Why don’t we cooperate? It looks like you were able to procure weapons from a nearby military unit. Why don’t you just form a monster hunting group here in Bucheon. We are very fortunate. We were able to base ourselves in Bucheon. Why don’t we at least talk it out. How about we let down our weapons. Hmm?"
With Lee Jin Sung’s speech ending, Kim Tae Hoon lowered the barrel of his gun.
There was a gleam in Lee Jin Sung’s eyes.
"r.e.t.a.r.d!"
At that moment, Lee Jin Sung rushed towards Kim Tae Hoon, and cut him down.
Halved in one blow.
There was no doubt.
The sword in Lee Jin Sung’s hand was such a great weapon that it was like a miracle from G.o.d.
Monsters with orange eyes and monsters with yellow eyes, he could the both of them down with ease!
"I thought that you would be a great obstacle!"
There was no hesitation.
Having heard the stories and rumors regarding Kim Tae Hoon, Lee Jin Sung was sure that Kim Tae Hoon would be a huge obstacle.
He refused to serve under another.
A subordinate was always expendable. That’s what the world had turned into.
If you wanted to survive, you needed to be the one to consume.
Like that Lee Jin Sung moved.
Without any hesitation and with calm judgement.
Of course he would want to move.
"Euhk?"
However, his body wouldn’t move.
AN invisible chain had stolen his freedom.
An obvious outcome.
If you move around swiftly in this fire extinguisher powder inside the dark market, would you be able to clearly make out your opponent? Couldn’t your opponent hide and strike back after seeing the disturbance you make in the cloud? Plus, the sword was able to cut down monsters with a higher bodily strength than that of a human, so what kind of tactile feedback would you get by slas.h.i.+ng at a human? Isn’t it obvious who would lose?
But most of all, Kim Tae Hoon’s Telekinesis was A rank.
It was powerful enough to even hold back the Black Orc’s tremendous strength.
He didn’t know how much strength Lee Jin Sung had, but it was only a matter of seconds before his limbs were frozen.
Plus, Lee Jin Sung had provided those seconds himself.
"Th, this b.a.s.t.a.r.d······."
Kim Tae Hoon calmly walked towards Lee Jin Sung, whose face was outraged, and pulled out the sword from Lee Jin Sung’s hand.
"Ahhhk, f.u.c.k!"
Then, he pointed the sword at Lee Jin Sung.
Unable to tolerate the fact that he was to die under his own sword, Lee Jin Sung spoke out.
"Wa, wait······ a trade, let’s trade! I’ll give you everything! I’ll give you everthi······."
Lee Jin Sung could only speak until there.
“I have no need.”
[TN: MIC DROOOOOP]