I Entered an Academy in a Ruined Game

Chapter 299 : The Natural Enemy of Demons (5)

After Su-hyeon killed the third Great Overlord Crosell.

The entire situation changed dramatically.

Now the only demons remaining in the Korean peninsula were remnants who had lost their Great Overlord.

Of course, among them were several powerful individuals who reached S-rank.

But they could only flee and be exterminated, unable to face the newly regenerated Execution Force head-on.

"Kyaaaak! That I should be defeated by mere humans!"

Crack! Crunch!

A demon whose limbs were twisted by Seo Jun-seong's telekinesis died after being stabbed in vital points by Nam Tae-hoon's dagger.

"Extermination complete."

[We're finished too.]

[Us as well!]

Reports came in that Team B, with Hwang Ji-su and Min Hae-na, and Team C, with Lee Yu-jin and Kim A-yun working together, had also successfully completed their missions.

[This one was around S- rank, but its special ability was a bit annoying, so Senior Hae-na got slightly injured.]

"Injured? How badly?"

[Just a scratch on my arm. If I show it to Yu-ha, it'll be a 10-second fix?]

Min Hae-na laughed nonchalantly.

[I should show it to Su-hyeon and exaggerate a bit.]

"......"

[On our side, it was S-rank. Fortunately, it was weak against A-yun's electrical attacks, so we handled it without injuries.]

Lee Yu-jin broke the awkward silence.

"Just one minor injury while exterminating three S-rank demons."

An impressive achievement, but Seo Jun-seong nodded as if it wasn't particularly surprising.

'Everyone's skills have improved again compared to before Su-hyeon came.'

Seo Jun-seong thought.

The battle between Su-hyeon and Crosell.

It was truly a battle between transcendents, a battle between god-like beings.

Faced with such a distant collision of powers that they couldn't even join in.

Seo Jun-seong and the other Special Operations members received a great shock and inspiration.

They trained while reflecting on that realm, trying to emulate it.

And just by contemplating what tactics to use against such beings, their understanding of their own abilities improved.

'But even so, I'll never be as strong as that guy.'

Talent, aptitude, training, trials, miracles...

'Transcendence' wasn't something that happened just by those things piling up.

It was because Su-hyeon had pondered hundreds of times, repeating the same life, trying to defeat the same enemy.

It was because special opportunities had come to Su-hyeon.

Among hundreds of lifetimes, only once had he achieved such transcendence.

'Nevertheless.'

As Su-hyeon had said, there were still roles they could fulfill.

[How are Captain Seol Ji-yun and Captain Jo Sujin doing?]

"Ah."

Seo Jun-seong snapped out of his thoughts at Hwang Ji-su's question.

"They also reported mission completion 20 minutes ago. They said it was the first time they felt sorry for a demon."

[Must have roasted and chopped it whole.]

[That makes it sound like food.]

"Anyway, today's operation ends here."

Seo Jun-seong said.

"Let's return. Everyone gather up."

[Yes!]

[Please drive safely.]

"......"

Seo Jun-seong.

And Hong In-hyeon, who had been dispatched to the west coast area to support Seol Ji-yun's team.

The two were the Execution Force's best fighting power and best means of transportation.

[I find In-hyeon more comfortable. His wind control has improved lately. The ride is smooth.]

Min Hae-na snickered.

[I still think Jun-seong is the best.]

It was Lee Yu-jin speaking, who secretly had feelings for him, but the content was depressingly sad.

[They feel different. If In-hyeon is a sports car, Jun-seong is a luxury sedan?]

Hwang Ji-su interjected.

[Both cars you wouldn't have a chance to ride in the current world.]

Nam Tae-hoon muttered.

"......"

Seo Jun-seong, quietly listening to the conversation, somehow felt like sighing.

'How should I put it.'

It was truly a peculiar treatment.

❀⋆｡°✿☆❀✿°｡⋆❀

"It's already been over a month since Great Overlord Crosell died."

"Time flies."

Gong I-an, Heo Sung-gyeom, and Jeong Su-hyeon.

Three heavyweights with the weighty positions of Commander, Chief of Staff, and Special Operations Captain were surveying the surrounding landscape from the rooftop of a high-rise building in the fortress, which had recovered nearly 80 percent.

"Further recovery is difficult, isn't it?"

"Yes. We lack resources, and the infrastructure is destroyed. This is probably the best we can do."

Heo Sung-gyeom answered Gong I-an's question.

"That's enough. Now the issue is providing infrastructure support to the satellite villages outside the fortress."

"That's right."

Special Operations Captain Jeong Su-hyeon, who had eliminated both Andromalius and Crosell.

Now Su-hyeon was not just a hero to humanity but had reached the point of receiving a kind of religious devotion.

Moreover, with the Korean peninsula becoming human territory again after two Great Overlords disappeared.

The very few survivors who remained rushed to join the [Human Fortress].

Their number reached thousands.

But it was impossible to accommodate all of them.

Furthermore, since it was obvious that there would be almost no direct attacks on the fortress as long as Su-hyeon was present, Heo Sung-gyeom proposed a new idea.

"Develop villages around the fortress."

Gong I-an said.

"That was a truly good idea."

"It's like becoming a central city with satellite cities. If we keep expanding like this, we might actually rebuild a city."

The conditions were sufficient.

Construction-type awakened ones, natural environment good for obtaining clean water and food.

Spacious grounds.

And most importantly, public safety achieved through overwhelming military power.

Now people were rediscovering various desires hidden within the proposition of survival.

'That's a healthy desire.'

Su-hyeon thought.

'Necessity creates supply, after all.'

"In some ways, it's like a medieval city."

Gong I-an said.

The inner castle where the lord, vassals, and knights resided.

And the medieval city made up of fief residents living outside the castle.

"...Have we regressed a thousand years?"

Gong I-an's expression was bitter as he muttered this.

"Sometimes I think that legends like Atlantis and such, might actually be stories created by humanity, who, after being destroyed like this and rising again, reminisced about the previous era."

"It's a terrible thought, but perhaps it could be so."

Gong I-an sighed.

"Either way, this place has essentially become the capital of both South Korea and humanity."

'The phenomenon of concentration in the capital area is a long-standing tradition of the Korean people.'

Su-hyeon thought quietly.

"I hear survivors from abroad are trying to come to Korea somehow."

"That's understandable."

Heo Sung-gyeom nodded.

The United States, China, Russia, India, the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia...

Since the countries that maintained powerful military forces even during the Gate Era were all annihilated by the Great Overlords.

Korea was virtually the only region where civilization remained, and that was no exaggeration.

"It's good if our numbers increase, but..."

Gong I-an sighed.

"The problem is that this place is essentially an island."

It was problematic that three sides were surrounded by sea, but even trying to come by land wasn't an answer.

Even talking about the Korean peninsula, it only meant South Korea below the 38th parallel.

Since the collapse of the North Korean regime at the beginning of the Gate Era, with demonic beasts settling in the uniquely rugged mountainous terrain, it had long since become a land of death.

Moreover, even if one tried to pass through North Korea, the Manchurian region of China above it was also devastated by warlord conflicts.

So even awakened ones with A-rank or higher power couldn't easily come to Korea.

"If there are people who break through all those adverse conditions to arrive here, eight or nine out of ten would be enemies, not guests."

"That's right."

"Special Operations Captain."

Gong I-an turned to Su-hyeon and asked.

"Why aren't the remaining Great Overlords attacking this place?"

"...Now that they've confirmed my power through these series of events."

Su-hyeon answered.

"They probably think they shouldn't face me alone."

"Hmm."

"I think the Great Overlords are also a kind of aristocratic warlords who serve Belphegor as their king. If so, the story is simple. They're probably making complicated calculations among themselves."

'Of course, they're in a position where they must obey if Belphegor orders them.'

"It's good news that we've gained time, but having to face an allied force is the worst."

Heo Sung-gyeom sighed.

"If two, or even three or more Great Overlords attack, our situation becomes very difficult. One hand cannot handle multiple hands."

"That's not necessarily true."

Su-hyeon shook his head.

"I'm continuing to train my friends so they can hold their own against Great Overlord-level enemies even without me."

"...That's true."

Gong I-an crossed his arms with a serious face.

"If it's alright, could you train me, Captain Seol Ji-yun, and Captain Jo Sujin next time?"

"Commander!"

"The young Captains are working hard, so we should help somehow too."

"...Understood."

Su-hyeon bowed his head.

"However, I'd like you to understand that when we train, it's difficult to consider each other's ranks and positions."

"Of course."

Gong I-an answered with a solemn face.

"...But I'm asking just in case."

"What is it?"

"You're not saying you'll use informal speech, are you?"

"...I'm not that disrespectful."

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The Great Overlords, scattered around the world cleaning up the remnants of humanity, felt deep interest and vigilance about a human who had recently appeared like a comet.

"This is no ordinary matter."

A large-bodied demon sitting on a throne said.

"Indeed it is."

"Malek was a fool, and Andromalius was a sneaky rat."

He was a warrior with such high pride that he even disregarded lower-ranked demons among the same Great Overlords.

"But Crosell was strong."

The 4th-ranked Great Overlord.

But in terms of martial arts mastery, easily the second most accomplished.

"You're saying that Crosell was toyed with in martial arts, felt despair, and committed suicide?"

The man was a warrior with noble pride, but he also had the experience to know what was more important than that pride.

"...Honestly speaking, this isn't an opponent I can defeat alone."

"......"

His confidant standing beside him couldn't find words and closed his mouth.

"But still, for a mere human to..."

"It doesn't matter whether it was a human or a demon."

The Great Overlord dismissed it.

"If he is truly a transcendent, we will only confirm with our hands whether he can be a match for Him or not."

We.

The confidant's eyes widened as he realized the meaning of that word.

"Send word to that person."

"By 'that person,' you mean..."

"The one wreaking havoc in America."

Now.

An alliance of Great Overlords was about to form to deal with Su-hyeon.

The ruler of Nastrond.

The master of ten thousand demons.

A demon that transcended demons.

All these names referred to Belphegor.

This transcendent being, whose mere crossing from Nastrond had brought countless disasters to the entire Earth, was now observing the world from a floating castle drifting in the stratosphere above the clouds, taking the activities of his subordinates as amusement.

"Interesting."

He was a man yet a woman, an old person yet a child, a warrior yet a scholar, and something else as well.

But now he sat on a throne formed of gathered darkness in the form of a man draped in dignity like a cloak.

"Jeong Su-hyeon. That one has slain three of my faithful servants."

Malek, Andromalius, and Crosell.

They were the 8th, 7th, and 4th ranked Great Overlords respectively.

"With this, seven remain out of the ten Great Overlords."

The 1st-ranked Great Overlord standing beside him said.

"Behold, Eligoss."

Belphegor smiled.

"Beyond hundreds of deaths, finally, a mere weak human has become strong enough to kill your Great Overlords and aim for my, Belphegor's, neck."

"...It's an achievement that seems impossible for a mere mortal to accomplish."

Eligoss, who acted as Belphegor's knight and was the most loyal among his faithful servants, knew the secret history between Su-hyeon and Belphegor.

"I will personally go."

Eligoss was a quasi-transcendent and the demon closest to transcendence.

Although Su-hyeon had transcended, his time as a transcendent was still overwhelmingly short.

It was unknown whether he could defeat Eligoss in a direct confrontation.

At least, Eligoss had the skills to be confident of this.

"No..."

Belphegor shook his head.

"There's no need for that yet."