novelraw Chapter 236 : Caligo (1)
Chapter 236 : Caligo (1)
The cadet who suffered the most damage from the gate that had appeared at the academy was undoubtedly Lim Eun-seo.
This was because her dedicated workshop had been attacked during the battle with the demonic beasts and was half-destroyed.
As a result, not only were the equipment she was in the middle of making lost, but one of her furnaces was also broken.
Lim Eun-seo, who had been secluding herself in anger and depression while cursing Nam Tae-hoon as a bastard, was now smiling brightly at the gift brought by Su-hyeon's group as if she had never been sad.
"Kehe! A Lindwurm of this size!"
Su-hyeon, Lee Yu-jin, and Hong In-hyeon had each transferred ownership of their allocated Lindwurm hide, skull, and other parts to her, commissioning the creation of items.
"Hehehe. Is this what they mean by a blessing in disguise?"
What Hong In-hyeon had commissioned was a tactical half-gauntlet.
What Lee Yu-jin had requested was to make a new handle and scabbard for her Willow Water Sword.
And Su-hyeon had commissioned combat boots that could protect his feet from both guns and knives.
"Are you that happy?"
Su-hyeon asked, looking around the workshop that was under repair.
"Of course! Do you think something like this is common?"
"It's certainly not common. It was really tough, wasn't it?"
"You bet. With combat boots made from this, you won't need Mana Shields or anything else!"
"Hmm."
Su-hyeon agreed, saying that might actually be possible.
"By the way, you must be busy too. Things are really chaotic these days, right?"
"Yeah, well."
Su-hyeon sighed.
"It's quite the mess."
"You've got it tough."
"You're working hard too, sunbae."
"I'm just doing what I want in a safe place, that's all."
Lim Eun-seo clicked her tongue.
"It's not like I'm fighting on the battlefield where your lives are at stake."
"In a war, there are actually more non-combat division soldiers handling supplies, administration, and medical duties than combat troops."
Su-hyeon said as if to ask what she was talking about.
"That doesn't mean we only respect the combat troops, right?"
"Well, that's true. I'm just feeling a bit down."
Lim Eun-seo sighed.
"There's nothing to be sorry about or blame yourself for. The role you're playing is much better than several of us in the combat division."
"You brat."
Lim Eun-seo laughed, finding him endearing.
"Look at you, comforting your noona when she's feeling down."
"If you insist, please make the equipment well."
"Hey, that's a given."
Lim Eun-seo grinned and asked.
"So Nam Tae-hoon escaped in the end?"
"Yes. Since neither his body nor identity has been found. We have to consider it a successful escape."
"Sigh."
Lim Eun-seo sighed.
"I understand the circumstances, and I have nothing to say. But it doesn't feel good."
"I feel the same way."
Su-hyeon said.
"Don't worry too much. We might meet him somewhere someday."
"Oh, is that a prophecy?"
"......I just hope that's the case."
Su-hyeon sighed, saying that now that his image as a prophet had been established, every word he spoke became tiresome.
'......Well, in this case, it is a prophecy if you call it that.'
"Anyway, just wait. I'll make them quickly."
"Ah, about that."
"Huh?"
"Is it possible to make them within three days?"
"What."
Lim Eun-seo frowned, saying this guy was asking for something unreasonable again.
"Do you think I'm Doraemon or something?"
"You are kind of similar."
"You little jerk."
Su-hyeon caught Lim Eun-seo's playful punch and said.
"There's going to be a big fight in 4 days, that's why."
"Is that also a prophecy?"
"No."
Su-hyeon shook his head.
"It's a planned operation."
❀⋆｡°✿☆❀✿°｡⋆❀
Chief of Staff Heo Sung-gyeom exhaled softly as he fiddled with the document envelope.
"Whew."
This was always a tense moment for him.
Knock knock.
The Chief of Staff knocked on the door with discipline and said.
"Heo Sung-gyeom here."
"Come in."
Kugugu.
The thick door opened by itself, revealing an antique and tidy office.
"You're here."
A handsome man with a robust physique who looked only in his mid-30s smiled gently.
A presence that did not seek to intimidate anyone, yet made it feel as if everything should naturally kneel and bow before him.
This was Ju Taeyang, the Commander of the Execution Force.
'He seems to have grown stronger.'
A physique that, despite being of similar age to the Sword God, was not aging but rather becoming more mature and robust.
A figure that exuded eternal vitality and dignity.
'His name really suits him well.'
He was literally a man like the sun.
"The Chief of Staff has been working hard."
"It's my duty."
Heo Sung-gyeom bowed respectfully.
Another name for Ju Taeyang was none other than 'Humanity's Strongest Force.'
He was the man called the strongest among all awakened ones in the world.
'In terms of rank, he's S+.'
Not only that, but he was the one boasting the greatest strength even among the S+ rank.
'Didn't that 2nd Unit member cutely report that even the Commander might not be able to defeat 'Asura' who pushed Captain Son Ji-gwang?'
The Chief of Staff inwardly mocked this memory.
'This man is a dragon. An Asura can't defeat a dragon.'
Commander Ju Taeyang's characteristic was 'Dragon Transformation.'
He could summon weather, throw lightning, and breathe fire.
In addition, he had the robustness of his physical body, the vastness of his mana, and intelligence and talent that surpassed human limits.
He was a born ruler.
'From the perspective of serving him, his only flaw is his nature, which is close to that of a reclusive eccentric.'
Indeed, he rarely moved unless it was the most critical moment.
But without his charisma.
Without his heroic achievements.
There would be neither the current Execution Force nor the current peace.
"Commander. The preparations are finally complete."
At those words, Ju Taeyang closed his eyes.
"You mean Caligo."
'Caligo.'
This was the name of a mobile phone that applied the recently most popular encryption communication program among Ma-in and underworld organizations.
And it was a mobile phone created under none other than Heo Sung-gyeom's command.
"When I first heard about this operation, I couldn't help but be amazed. It was truly an exquisite stratagem worthy of the Chief of Staff."
Ju Taeyang smiled with satisfaction.
"Creating their platform for them without the need to wiretap or struggle with decoding. It's not an idea that would come from an ordinary mind."
"You flatter me."
It was as he said.
Caligo, a program and device created by the collaborative efforts of the Execution Force and government research labs.
It was a blessing-like equipment that allowed criminals and Ma-in to communicate with perfect security encryption, while simultaneously being a Trojan horse that transmitted those messages to servers managed by the Execution Force.
To spread this widely, he used subordinate organizations disguised as underworld organizations and spies to use and promote Caligo.
An intuitive interface that even low-level Ma-in with inferior intelligence could easily use.
A secrecy that couldn't be caught even by the Execution Force's interception systems.
Excellent encryption performance that was difficult even for them to break.
And outstanding cost-effectiveness.
Caligo was a product like a dinosaur that broke the industry's balance, and in a short time, it became a hit product dominating the market.
And finally.
"We've confirmed that executives of the Sword of Belphegor have been using Caligo."
"Excellent."
Preparation period: 1 year.
It had been officially released on the market for half a year.
Caligo had caught its big fish.
"In 4 days, we have confirmed that the executives of the Sword of Belphegor will be contacting three Ma-in organizations."
Moreover, they had succeeded in identifying the headquarters of numerous Ma-in organizations.
"This is a map marking their hideouts."
Ju Taeyang twisted his lips as he looked at the red dots densely marked on the map.
"These fungi-like creatures. So many have sprouted."
"Just as you say."
Heo Sung-gyeom smiled with a face mixing anger and joy in equal parts.
"In 4 days, we will eradicate them all at once."
"What forces can we mobilize?"
"Excluding the personnel necessary to maintain minimal public security, we will deploy 60% of the Execution Force's strength."
"And?"
"We have arranged to receive cooperation from the Hunter Association, PMC organizations, academies, and some retired reserve members. We also plan to mobilize armed police and special forces in collaboration with the government."
"It will truly be an all-out war drawing on everything we have."
If it failed, the resulting chaos would be unspeakable.
But if it succeeded, it could reverse the tide in one fell swoop.
"You've been so patient. And you've prepared so well."
Commander Ju Taeyang smiled kindly at his Chief of Staff.
"Heo Chief of Staff. I'm relying heavily on you."
"......Your words are too generous."
Heo Sung-gyeom, who couldn't respect his superior enough, smiled.
"None of this would have been possible without the Commander's power as a premise."
"Haha. This puts a heavy burden on an old man's shoulders."
"With that appearance, saying such things doesn't make me feel good."
"Hahaha! That's why I've been telling you to apply sunscreen properly for the past 30 years!"
The Commander laughed heartily.
And cold sweat was streaming down his back despite it not being hot weather.
❀⋆｡°✿☆❀✿°｡⋆❀
'Four days from now.'
Operation Caligo.
That operation, which would become a massive trigger, was approaching.
'Ju Taeyang will personally attack the Sword of Belphegor.'
I knew.
Ju Taeyang is undoubtedly the strongest being among all awakened ones and Ma-in on Earth at present.
The Vampire Queen, Asura, or the Sword God.
No matter who comes, they cannot defeat Ju Taeyang.
However.
'His lifespan is not long.'
This fact is unknown even to Chief of Staff Heo Sung-gyeom, and even to Hwang Won-jae.
'Only he himself and I know this fact.'
It was 10 years ago from now that he suffered a severe injury.
At that time, there was a major offensive by the Ma-in to open Nastrond.
In that massive battle where the Execution Force, hunters, and foreign awakened ones gathered together, Ju Taeyang was directly hit in the heart by an enemy attack.
'The Dragon Heart.'
Because he showed no signs of weakening afterward, no one knew how severe his injury was.
But the reason Ju Taeyang has been exhibiting behavior close to seclusion since nearly 6 years ago is because he knows that if he doesn't, his lifespan will decrease even faster.
'Dragon Spear' Ju Taeyang.
The enemy that Hwang Won-jae fears most, and a name that symbolizes the strongest in itself.
He was merely buying as much time as possible because he knew the chaos that would come after the value of his name disappeared.
But.
'It's already been 10 years.'
Even though he maintained his usual appearance for 3-4 years to avoid suspicion.
'Hwang Won-jae suspects that Ju Taeyang has weakened.'
All of his operations are meant to create social chaos and open the door to Nastrond.
At the same time, they aim to draw out Ju Taeyang, who would be his greatest adversary, to gauge his current abilities.
'So the fact that I've been rampaging to prevent Ju Taeyang from having to come out during all this has turned out well.'
However, the time Ju Taeyang can maintain his current dignity and power is not as much as one might think.
That man, with the power and wisdom of a dragon.
Is probably waiting for the battlefield where he will die.
'Damn it.'
In a way, should I say this is fortunate?
If events had proceeded along the same timeline as before, by the time Nastrond opened, Ju Taeyang's power would have already been greatly weakened.
'If the current Ju Taeyang fights prepared to die, even I don't know how strong he would be.'
What kind of variable would that create?
The outcome of the soon-to-begin Operation Caligo and the massive snowball it would trigger was still an unknown territory even to me.......