Chapter 163. Blast! (3)
…….Krrrrng!
The noise continued.
A loud ruckus, as if something was frantically bustling around.
Thunk, thunk, bang, bang, whoa there, watch it—boom.
…….Grrrng.
Sounds and vibrations continuously echoed from above.
A disturbance that awakened deeply slumbered senses.
Sensing it, the ancient demonic beast, Kratum, opened one eye slightly. And he felt a deep and thick fury from the inter-floor noise.
‘How dare they.’
What are the ones waking him up right now?
Could it be humans?
No.
They were merely a primitive race ruled by the dragons, incapable even of uniting.
Perhaps the giants, who were driven out during the Jewel War?
No.
Those fools, with a single eye between them, wouldn’t even be able to find their way here.
‘.........’
Well, it doesn’t matter.
They will all pay the price for daring to disturb his long slumber. He would devour them all, then savor that fleeting amusement again as he drifted back to sleep, and wait.
For the Jewel of Truth.
The day he would claim it with his own hands.
He would wait and gather strength.
‘.........’
It’s a fine plan.
Which means now, it's time to rise.
……… Krrrrng! Krng!
With that decision, thirty of Kratum’s tentacles stirred. From the massive, snail-like shell encasing his body, 180 eyes gleamed with a chilling glow.
The moment had come — the ancient demonic beast who had waited here since the Jewel War, hidden and dormant, opened his furious eyes.
***
"Fire! Blast!"
"Blastttt!!"
Pak pak! Pak pak pak!
The shovels danced.
The pickaxes tapped out a rhythm like tap dance.
The forearms of the Combat Engineering Corps holding the handles gleamed with sweat. Their faces were full of joy and cheer.
The combat engineers were thrilled.
And who could blame them?
‘My god. I never thought I’d actually get to detonate explosives during my service!’
‘Is this… is this for real? Seriously?’
‘I can’t say no to a big boom!’
Most of the soldiers thought the same thing.
This was the chance of a lifetime.
“… So, you’re saying everyone got tricked into enlisting?”
“That’s right.”
Kim Jangcheol, watching the soldiers’ work from a distance, asked. The Combat Engineering Corps commander nodded with a face full of regret.
“The recruitment ads for the Kingdom Army’s Combat Engineering Corps always made it look like that. Explosions lighting up the sky, grand and powerful blasts, cool engineers standing in the aftermath. Just like that.”
“Huh? That’s fraud, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
Another nod from the commander!
A bitter smile formed at the corner of his mouth.
“I was just like them. Got totally mesmerized by those flashy ads and images. I fell for it. Thought if I joined the engineers, I’d get to do that stuff. Blow up mountains and hills that stood in the way of the Kingdom’s advance, clear paths with dynamite, overcome every obstacle like a true soldier.”
“Hmm, but the reality was…?”
“Just endless digging.”
“…… I see.”
“That’s right. And not only that.”
The commander’s smile grew even more bitter.
“It wasn’t until after I enlisted that I learned the truth. The Combat Engineering Corps… is the most avoided posting in the entire Kingdom Army.”
“…Wow…”
“But by the time I realized that, it was already too late. I had not only enlisted but had even been commissioned as a junior officer in the engineers. There was no turning back.”
“And still, you stuck with it? For 17 years?”
“… I thought, maybe, someday, I’d get a chance. Just once, to blow something up.”
“But…”
“There never was such a chance. That’s why it felt unfair, and that’s why I became obsessed, clung to it.”
“And if you discharged without ever getting to do it, it’d feel like a total loss.”
“Exactly. And today… finally, we’re getting our reward.”
Tears welled up in the commander’s eyes as he looked over the worksite.
Watching that side profile, a bitter smile tugged at Kim Jangcheol’s lips.
“I see.”
What can one say?
It was… pitiful, in a way.
The commander’s words, full of regret(?), and the overjoyed soldiers swinging their tools — it was all somehow touching.
‘This... isn’t unfamiliar. It honestly feels just like the South Korean army.’
If you're a Korean man!
If you're a South Korean reservist!
Even if you're an extreme T-type personality, you have to relate to the corruption and nonsense of military life!
But feelings are feelings, and work is work.
“……….”
Snapping out of his brief sentimentality, Kim Jangcheol turned his eyes. He looked at the site where the explosive setup was wrapping up and calculated.
‘It’s about time for the beast to wake up.’
The instinct of a seasoned player who had cleared this 19 times!
Even more—a rotten sense honed by combing through every edge of the map ten times each playthrough!
He could feel it.
Swamp of Decay.
Deep underground in this place slept a neutral-type challenge boss.
The ancient demonic beast, Kratum.
It was time for him to wake.
“............”
He had died to that thing a lot in the beginning.
Especially because of its grotesque form, like a cross between a snail and an octopus—it made things much harder.
A horrifying 30-tentacle combo attack pattern! Its stats were off the charts! And if you got hit even once by a tentacle, you'd be hit with poison, confusion, and fear all at once like a set meal.
And now, if that thing were to awaken in a freshly cultivated rice field? If it raised its body?
‘The farm’s finished.’
The fields would be destroyed.
So it had to be taken down before that happened.
That’s why, of all places in the vast Swamp of Decay, this location was chosen as the first development zone — because this is where Kratum slumbered. Today’s explosive operation was for that reason.
If development was happening anyway...
Might as well eliminate a future threat in advance.
"Then, it looks like it’s time to start pulling the troops back."
"Got it."
The engineering commander, already briefed on the plan, gave the order to his adjutant. The adjutant signaled the Combat Engineering Corps. At the signal, the engineers began to withdraw like the tide going out.
Everyone moved in perfect coordination.
Meanwhile, hearts pounding with excitement.
They wore expressions clutching their stirred-up chests.
"Are we really gonna blow it up now? Is it really happening?"
"Seems like it is, sir?"
"Then this is the first time we’ll actually feel the worth of becoming Combat Engineering Corps soldiers, right? That’s it, right?"
"Ah, how many times do I have to say this. You’re not the only one who got suckered by the recruitment ads, squad leader. Me, and even our platoon leader here, we’re the same. Stop overreacting, sir."
"Says the guy who’s crying?"
"Ah, that’s just mud in my eyes, sir."
"Mud, my ass?"
"You’re crying too, squad leader, sir."
"Tsssk? This isn’t tears."
"Then what is it, sir?"
"The soul broth I've squeezed out after three years in the Combat Engineering Corps!"
"..........Sir, please. You could’ve at least called it sweat, would’ve sounded a bit more refined, sir."
"Whatever! Just hurry up and grab your gear."
And so, the Combat Engineering Corps members who had just finished laying the explosives clutched their excited chests and retreated in orderly fashion.
Then, moments later.
……..Krrrrrrrrrgh!
The legendary ancient beast began to emerge, cracking open the rice field’s surface.
***
‘I’ll kill... all of them!’
The ancient demonic beast, Kratum, was enraged.
He was a being that should not have awakened yet. He had been storing his power, waiting for the day a great war over the Jewel would erupt again, so that he could become its ultimate victor.
But today, he had been disturbed by an unexpected noise. He had awakened at the wrong time.
‘How dare they.’
He would quickly resolve the situation and go back to sleep. He would gather his power for the glorious day that was sure to come.
With that resolve, Kratum’s massive body broke through the floor of the swamp.
Thwup!
A towering, 40-meter-tall triangular shell revealed its majestic form.
The body of a colossal snail!
Dozens of octopus-like tentacles!
From within, hundreds of Kratum’s eyes scanned the surroundings at terrifying speed.
And then he saw them.
Surrounding the very spot where he had risen, nearly 500 humans, all watching him.
"Whoaaa!"
"It’s here!"
"It really came out, for real!"
‘..........’
What is this?
Why are they all… cheering?
I have appeared. I, who was feared and guarded against by all during the Jewel War era, have awakened.
And instead of fear… they cheer?
Even worse… while chomping down on giant popcorn, each kernel the size of a fist, roasted and puffed like golden corn?
‘..........’
Kratum was confused.
Maybe it had been too long since he last awoke.
Or maybe he hadn’t fully shaken off his deep slumber.
Perhaps this was all just an illusion.
But then it happened.
Suddenly, right nearby, a calm voice rang out.
"Yeah. Looks exactly like in-game. Just like it."
‘.......’
Hundreds of Kratum’s eyes turned toward the source of the voice. And he saw it.
A lone demon race man, arms crossed, standing and looking up at him.
It was Kim Jangcheol.
"Alright, if you’re awake, let’s do what you normally do!"
Clap clap!
Kim Jangcheol clapped his hands, urging Kratum.
Because of that, Kratum felt his muscular body tense up inside his shell.
‘Is this creature… trying to die?’
He was dumbfounded.
And as much as he was bewildered, he was also enraged.
‘How dare they?’
Looking up at me.
Smiling at me.
Not fearing me?
‘How DARE they!’
Even among the many foes of the Jewel War era, there had never been one like this. After all, he had always been a being who instilled caution and fear in all living things.
And that should still be true today.
‘Then from this moment on… I’ll carve that fear into the very core of your soul!’
Thwack!
Kratum had no intention of speaking with a mere insect.
He was a being who ruled, destroyed, and dominated.
And today would be no different.
He resolved to crush that impudent creature dancing around before his eyes in one strike. And then, he would annihilate all those humans sitting around munching popcorn like it was a show.
Then, he charged.
At Kim Jangcheol.
THOOM—!
Dozens of tentacles slammed into the ground.
Kratum, with his massive shell and colossal body over 40 meters long, flew at an unbelievable speed.
He cut across space.
He lunged straight at Kim Jangcheol.
But by then, Kim Jangcheol was no longer standing there.
Because this ancient beast, Kratum—
The neutral-type challenge boss of the 2nd Star zone in the game Paladin of Blood—
Had already been slain 19 times by this veteran player, who had thoroughly memorized Kratum’s opening attack pattern.
THWOMP!
Kratum’s massive body crushed part of the swamp.
And he grew furious.
‘How DARE he!’
Dodging my attack?
Then next…!
As he began to swing his dozens of tentacles to lash out in all directions—
……. Fwoooosh?!
A sudden, ominous, unfamiliar sound came from beneath Kratum, from the very ground under the swamp where he had landed.
‘......?’
It was like something inhaling deeply. Or perhaps crouching down in preparation for something grand.
The kind of sound that stirred an unexplainable, instinctive dread.
‘What is that?’
Kratum wondered—
Just as Kim Jangcheol, who had already withdrawn far away, let his lips curl into a subtle smirk.
KABOOM!
‘......!’
From beneath Kratum’s body.
From below the surface.
A massive stockpile of mana-based explosives, meticulously laid by the Combat Engineering Corps, detonated all at once. And with that, Kratum’s shell—was blasted apart like a shattered pot lid.
This one is so exciting! I'm waiting for further interaction between Aged Kimchi and Kim Jangcheol!
I really enjoy reading this, and I adore the loyalty Credos' people held to him!