novelraw Chapter 130 : Relic Fiesta (1)
Chapter 130 : Relic Fiesta (1)
Relic Fiesta (1)
Relic Fiesta.
A massive event where artifacts made with the latest magic engineering technology were demonstrated, or where special materials and equipment were sold at auction.
For awakeners, it was one of the biggest festivals, and only awakened individuals were allowed to participate in the event.
If by chance there was a dispute and civilians were injured, it would become a huge problem.
"Manager Park, this way!"
The venue for Relic Fiesta was a huge artificial island floating in the middle of the Han River.
Because magic engineering technology was applied, there was no problem even with many people standing on the island, and since it was in the middle of the Han River, it was also a difficult place to infiltrate secretly.
"The government sure put their heads together for this."
"They sure did."
Since the event had yet to start, most of the people present appeared to be event staff or hunters dispatched for security.
Some people frowned when they saw me, and I was certain they were hunters from one of the Big 3 managements or from Grand Nova.
"Manager, should I go and have a word with them?"
Lee Soo-ah must have noticed it too; her eyes turned fiercely cold in an instant.
It seemed like she was ready to "have a word" with a sword, not with words.
"Huh? No, it's fine. There's no point reacting to that sort of thing."
"...... Okay."
Lee Soo-ah's reaction reminded me of something Baek Hojun had said recently.
That she was overly dependent.
I hadn't paid much attention before, but seeing her like this, it did seem like that tendency was strong.
"Alencia, is your energy... fully recharged?"
"Yeah, I put in a lot of effort, but it doesn't charge up as much as before."
"Even so, this is definitely more than during the Challengers."
Currently, the amount of magic power Alencia could recharge with electricity was just barely at the threshold among S-rank awakener.
It was certainly more than before, but considering that the depleted magic power could not be continually restored, in reality, she should be considered A-rank.
'With this, it'll be hard for Alencia to use her Conceptualization Technique.'
Come to think of it, maybe that was actually better for Alencia.
If she, who couldn't even control herself properly, lost her temper and used her Conceptualization Technique, she might blow a hole in the island.
On top of that, it was above the Han River, so there was a good chance that people who fell into the water would all get electrocuted.
"...... Wait, I feel like you just had a very rude thought."
"It's a misunderstanding. Anyway, just in case, please keep your electromagnetic field deployed at all times."
"Okay, got it. If there's any intrusion from outside, I should let you know, right?"
"Yes. If you notice anything strange, don't go alone—be sure to go with Lee Soo-ah-ssi."
"Of course! I'm too scared to go alone anyway."
Alencia declared this quite confidently, then clung closely to Lee Soo-ah.
Lee Soo-ah, on the other hand, gave an awkward smile at Alencia's informal behavior.
'Even when she gets hit, she doesn't get hurt—so why is she so timid?'
Saintesses generally do not take physical damage.
Had she gotten hurt by something like that, she couldn't have moved at lightning-like speed in the first place.
When she clashed with the Titan, she would've turned to dust.
'I'll just have to take Alencia along whenever there's a fight.'
Maybe then, that subtle timidity would be improved a lot.
"Anyway, all the items to be moved to the exhibition hall have been transferred, and there seems to be no problem with the objects going up for auction. That's a relief."
Shim Hyuk-soo reported the current situation while receiving updates from the police waiting elsewhere.
"Would it be best for Alencia and Soo-ah to stay near the auction house?"
"Yes, considering the previous incidents at Relic Fiesta, that would probably be the best place. Most incidents happened there."
The materials or items up for auction were certainly more attractive than the prototype artifacts in the exhibition hall. In fact, the part where the most awakened participated in Relic Fiesta was that very auction.
"Then, I'll have to ask the two of you to take care of that area. Manager Park, let's go to the waiting room together, just in case things get dangerous."
"Yes, understood. Oh, but when the event starts, would it be okay for me to look around a bit?"
At my words, Shim Hyuk-soo's eyes widened in surprise.
"I don't mind, but it could be dangerous. Since there are so many awakened here, a lot of fights break out. It'd be dangerous for a civilian to get caught up in something..."
"I'll be as careful as possible."
"If you say so, well..."
Shim Hyuk-soo looked like he wanted to dissuade me, but resigned himself since I declined.
To be honest, I had no desire to wander around and take in a crowded event like this.
'My face is going to get recognized, for sure.'
That is, if it weren't for all the stares watching me from somewhere.
***
"Hello! Today I'm at Relic Fiesta! Look at this crowd!"
Alencia held up the camera, filming the people around her while making a V sign with her fingers.
Instantly, a flood of comments streamed up the chat.
'This is moving. Seriously.'
The current viewer count was a whopping 100,000.
Compared to before, it was several times higher—it couldn't even be calculated.
And even this was a bit less than when she first did a broadcast in Korea.
How many were there back then?
Was it 200,000?
Anyway, it was a gigantic number.
It wasn't just that Alencia's skills as a streamer had improved.
What was important was that she was an S-rank awakener with special abilities totally unlike ordinary awakeners.
Of course, she had improved her broadcasting skills quite a lot compared to before, so she was able to keep up the viewer count pretty well.
"This here is my colleague, Soo-ah unni. What do you think?"
【Oh, that's Lee Soo-ah, right? Korea's S-rank hunter】
【She's beautiful. Unlike you, she looks smart.】
"Shut up. Oh, unni, wave to the camera, please."
Even with the mix of Korean and English filling the chaotic chat, Alencia fluently switched between both languages. In response, all Lee Soo-ah could do was smile awkwardly.
'She really is impossible to pin down.'
Come to think of it, all the S-rank hunters affiliated with Unique had weird personalities.
Shin Ah-yeon went without saying, and lately, Alencia was catching up rapidly.
Even the prickly, ill-tempered Ji Yeon-hwa seemed normal in comparison.
'I'm the most normal one here.'
Shin Ah-yeon would certainly have denied that if she had heard, but Shin Ah-yeon was not here.
"Ah! There they are! It really is Alencia and Lee Soo-ah!"
While she was thinking that and wandering near the auction house with Alencia, the journalists and film crews covering Relic Fiesta eagerly captured the two on camera.
It was already the umpteenth time it had happened today.
'It's a hassle, but work is work.'
Since she had come to Relic Fiesta for this very purpose, Lee Soo-ah didn't bother avoiding the cameras and gave a polite greeting.
But then—
"Unni, I need to get on the camera too—"
Alencia, who was about to say something to Soo-ah, had a sudden change of expression.
Blue current flashed in her eyes, and her figure vanished.
BZZZT!!
With the crackle of electricity, the nearby filming crew were all pushed back at once.
Alencia had rushed over and shoved them away with force.
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!!
The explosion occurred at the exact same time.
"U-aaarrgh!!"
People, reacting belatedly, screamed in terror.
If Alencia hadn't pushed them away, the camera crew who were filming Soo-ah would have undoubtedly been caught in the blast.
"What, what's going on?!"
"A terrorist attack? Or are they targeting something in the auction house...?"
The frightened people started raising their voices, but that was only the beginning.
Explosions began erupting one after another from somewhere.
"Alencia, focus on evacuating the people! I'll head toward where the noise came from."
"Huh? Oh, okay!"
Evacuating people was something Alencia, who could move quickly, was well-suited for.
Also, with the amount of charge she currently had, direct combat had to be avoided unless it was a short-term fight, so Soo-ah decided to go alone toward the source of the sound.
'Exhibition hall direction!'
Of all places, it was also where Park Jung-woo had said he wanted to go sightseeing today.
***
Kang Gi-hun's life had always been a smooth ride.
From childhood, he had exceptional talent as an awakened and, when he joined Javelin—the best hunter guild at the time—he believed he would walk a bright path forever.
'Grand Nova.'
The first obstacle in his way was Grand Nova's Jin Su-hyuk.
Someone who started out as a mere manager and went on to build the industry's leading hunter management agency.
Thanks to Grand Nova, "hunter management" as a field had thrived, and guilds that used to focus solely on dungeon raids had relatively declined.
Javelin was no exception.
Ever since Kang Gi-hun became guildmaster, he dreamed of regaining Javelin's former glory.
But he never felt confident he could beat Grand Nova.
Then, along came the demon, Damian.
"Don't even think of running, Park Jung-woo."
Originally, he had not planned to target him at Relic Fiesta.
But there was no time left.
The demons had already started leaving Javelin, and if he did nothing, he would be completely abandoned.
"How stupid, to come all alone to a deserted spot."
Park Jung-woo walked alone to a relatively empty area on the outskirts of a building.
He had intended to go to the exhibition hall, but there were just too many people.
"I didn't think Javelin Guild was so lacking in talent. I never thought the chairman himself would show up."
"Shut up!!"
At Park Jung-woo's words, Kang Gi-hun glared at him with bloodshot eyes.
He hadn't wanted to dirty his own hands like this, either.
'Don't fall for his taunts. Be careful.'
There was information that Park Jung-woo was a returnee.
Considering how they had been rendered helpless before, it was probably true.
So this time, Kang Gi-hun had brought enough force to ensure he could kill him for sure.
Such a reckless deal.
'Blood Dagger.'
Though not quite on the level of UnderStellar, they were contract killers, moving as one.
All of them were A-rank or higher awakened, and their teamwork was enough to kill an S-rank hunter.
In fact, blood Dagger had experience killing two S-rank awakener in the past.
'No matter if he's a returnee, he can't be S-rank.'
If he was, there's no way that fact would have gone unknown.
The benefits S-rank awakener could reap were beyond imagination.
"Even if the S-rank hunters with you show up, you won't get out alive. In other words, no matter what you do, you're dying here, right now."
Saying that, Kang Gi-hun motioned to Blood Dagger, positioned nearby.
If it hadn't been for them, he wouldn't have risked such an extreme attack at Relic Fiesta.
'Crazy bastards, coveting the artifacts of Relic Fiesta.'
They were targeting something in the auction, which was why they'd accepted Kang Gi-hun's cooperation.
If not for that, those guys would have just snorted at his proposal and rejected him.
Javelin wasn't a small guild, but it only had power within Korea.
"Well then, prepare to—"
Just as Kang Gi-hun gave the order for Blood Dagger to attack—
BOOM!!
Suddenly, the building wall exploded and collapsed.
Park Jung-woo, inwardly, was impressed that Kang Gi-hun was willing to go this far.
Though incidents broke out frequently at Relic Fiesta, things rarely escalated to this degree.
"......"
Seeing the figures walking through the rubble, Park Jung-woo's eyes widened.
Three men dressed in neat suits—and astonishingly, they were demons.
As they slowly stepped over the broken debris, looking coolly back and forth between Park Jung-woo and Kang Gi-hun, one of them spoke.
"...... Huh?"
As if they had encountered someone they never expected.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Demons?
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】