Chapter 27

Chapter 27

[The sparrow in the lighthouse is watching. The cuckoo is coming into the nest. The cuckoo is coming into the nest]

“OK.”

A report comes in from the ear-piece.

The current time, as seen through the smart lens, is 12:30. It was what you might call full dawn.

The area they’ve decided to enter is Pier 2 of Incheon Port.

I hid behind a nearby container and waited with bated breath for the boat to come in.

The sound of the waves was the only thing that could be heard, but then the slightest sound began to intrude as a boat pulled into the dock quietly, with no lights on and the engine muffled as much as possible to avoid detection.

Eventually, the sound of the engine dies down completely.

The dock is lowered from the ship and dozens of people walk onto the dock to enter the harbor.

The sounds of conversation and laughter are all that can be heard, as if they’re tired from the long voyage.

“Buona sera amico. (Good evening, friends.)”

“You crazy──”

I give them a light greeting and pull the trigger on the Chicago Typewriter, and the black figures of the men in the fog begin to dance.

It was a maneuver executed with the understanding that the people on the boat are at their most relaxed, their most defenseless, just before they hit the ground.

Thankfully, the men on the dock realized the situation and began to throw themselves into the water one by one.

“If we go in the water, we’ll break formation! Spread out the defenses!”

An urgent voice was heard, but it was not to be. The reason is none other than the Chicago Typewriter, one of Al Capone’s Tommy’s side effects.

[2. Chicago Typewriter: This weapon fires bullets at a terrifyingly high rate of speed. It grants the ‘Fear’ status effect to opponents who hear it]

It’s hard to imagine how easy it would be to control a bunch of panicked guys with the effects of a [Artifact] class item, let alone another item.

While I was still safely firing at them from above.

“Get up there now!”

An energized voice called out from the shielded area. The owner of that voice must be the leader of this group.

I opened my shield and fired a hail of bullets at him as he rescued the drowning men one by one, but his shield still seemed to be holding.

“I wonder if this is the limit of its abilities.”

Firearms are for mopping up weaklings without having to use my fists anyway.

After blowing on the smoke rising from the barrel of the gun, I stowed it away in the cube and pulled the [Midas Gloves] I was wearing tightly into place.

“The raven has spoken. The hunt begins now. Maintain a perimeter to prevent the prey from leaving the hunting grounds.”

[Sparrow. Acknowledged]

[Eagle. Acknowledged]

[Cormorant. Copy that]

I took a deep breath after hearing the responses from my spread out group and turned to look at the enemies in front of me.

Gathering those still alive or able to move, they formed up behind the shield. Little by little, I could see them struggling to get out of the dock and up the harbor.

“Guns can’t penetrate the shields anyway, so don’t be scared, stay together!”

He’s worried about that when it’s been a while since I’ve holstered my gun.......

I clench my fists until they crackle, and as my left hand grabs his right wrist to immobilize him, I hear their voices from inside the shield.

“What are you doing?”

“Isn’t he coming this way?”

I slowly accelerate toward the front of the shield, twisting my waist and body backward.

“A word of advice, don’t even think about running away.”

We look at each other through the thin fog, searching for an opening.

For the time being, they are not easily distinguished from the rest of the group.

The silence was like time stood still, until the distant sound of sailing boats echoed through the air.

“Overrun!”

“Kill!”

They charge at me, wielding their weapons, some of them hideous.

Normally, I wouldn’t have realized it, but after fighting against a group at the academy today, I naturally began to visualize their path and the actions I needed to take.

The first thing I do is channel my magic into my feet and move around, creating large waves around me to disrupt their formation.

Surrounded on all sides, I’d have no choice but to charge toward a single point, and once I got them all tangled up, my movements would be restricted.

“Get out of the way!”

“Stupid asshole, get away from me!”

“Let me help you.”

I punch the guy in the head with all the force I can muster, and with a whoosh, his body spins in midair and crashes to the ground.

Stiffening at the unrealistic sight, I shove another one back with as much force as I can muster, pushing the tangled mass back onto the dock.

“What the hell are you doing, get him now!”

My reason for being so bold was simple. They had to “capture” me, not kill me, after all. Their movements were therefore constrained and cautious.

I would take advantage of that to draw them into a battlefield that was as favorable to me as possible.

“Don’t huddle together, surround him!”

“How can we surround him when we’ll fall into the ocean if we go any further sideways?”

The leader glares at me with killing intent as they are crammed into a confined space. It finally dawns on him that I’m intentionally putting them in a tight spot.

“...... I’ll stall for time, you guys split up and wait to be contacted.”

I push my way through them, and an officer approaches me, knife in hand.

“I’ll make you regret coming here alone.”

At the same time, he lunges at me, swinging his machete. It’s a very neat and clean move, unlike the chaos of the previous moments.

As I’m slowly pushed backwards by the onslaught of attacks, the other guys start to get off the dock and run for cover.

“Thanks, boss, I’ll see you alive, bob────.”

With a grunt, he collapses as a shot echoes through the harbor.

“It’s a sniper!”

As they scramble for cover, they quickly duck down and huddle against the nearby stacks of luggage and containers.

The officer who was momentarily separated from me by the sudden gunshot glares at me with red eyes.

“You weren’t alone!”

Did they realize they’d been fooled all this time?

I shrug at him, who was even more enraged than before.

“I told you, I’m the heir to Corleone but importantly.......”

I glance over at the man who’s been shot and has fallen to the ground.

Crimson blood drenches the ground beneath his prone body.

“I should have warned you, you’d better not think about running away.”

Why didn’t they realize I was speaking for them, not me?