Chapter 14

Chapter 14

[Changing Futures (3)]

The International Mana Management Agency decides to categorize all monsters according to the degree to which they pose a threat to human peace as follows.

Ninth Class: Monsters that pollute the environment or cause diseases.

Eighth Class: Monsters that cause physical harm in daily life.

Seventh Class: Monsters that commit major crimes such as robbery, murder, and rape.

Sixth Class: Monsters that paralyze urban administration on an individual or cluster level, or threaten human influence.

Fifth Class: Monsters that paralyze city administration on an individual or cluster level, or pose a similar level of threat.

Fourth Class: Monsters that manage monster clusters, or turn humans into livestock, or pose a threat to human prosperity.

Third Class: Monsters that cause damage equivalent to natural disasters and emergencies and paralyze national administration as an individual entity.

Second Class: Monsters that cause damage equivalent to catastrophes and paralyze national administration as an individual entity.

First Class: Monsters that pose a threat to human survival as an individual entity.

-Excerpt from the International Mana Management Organization Declaration (2000)

Run away!

Gahhhhhh-!!!

Mom! Mom! Uhhhhhh.

Sa, help me!

The panic was instantly contagious.

Everyone was running around the driveway in panic.

The family members who hadnt gotten out of the car yet were completely frozen. There was a tense atmosphere in the car, as if they had forgotten to breathe.

Get out of the way, asshole!

Im not pulling out!

Do you want to see me rummage through everything?

What the fuck are you players doing!

You assholes, what if you run away too!

Youre the only one who wants to live! Just move on already!

Mom! Where are you!

Uhhhhhh Hmph, hmph, hmph, hmph, hmph!

Witnessing what was happening in front of him, Eunha had to admit that his uneasy premonition was correct.

It was all futile.

He tried to stall by forcing them to go in different directions and claiming to go to the bathroom in the middle. I even punctured a wheel.

But nothing changed the future.

No matter how much time passed, the radio was only broadcasting the traffic jam on Seongsan Bridge (1). There was no news of the Krakens appearance. (E/N: picture below!)

So Eunha was optimistic that something he didnt know would change the future, and that the Kraken would never appear.

But as if to mock his efforts, fate was replaying the exact same scene as the day he lost his family.

The turn of events only came suddenly when the family was halfway across the bridge.

As if fate cannot be changed.

A hideous-looking monster that seemed to embody human despair.

The Kraken, a third class disaster monster.

There was no foreshadowing.

It lifted its huge body out of the water without warning.

It appeared without warning, without the players guarding the road even noticing its third-class mana.

The Krakens camouflage was perfect. Even I, who had been detecting mana since entering the Seongsan Bridge, didnt realize it until it rose from the river.

None of the players were good enough to deal with the Kraken.

Eunha bit his lip as he watched the players flee in disbelief.

Most of the players working on the Seongsan Bridge were in E or D class. The player leading the party was a C rank, but his strength was ridiculously insufficient to deal with a third-class monster.

Later, when he graduated from the Academy, the Kraken would be relegated to the fourth class due to the quality of players, but that didnt change the fact that it was a monster with the power to at least paralyze city administration and threaten the prosperity of humanity.

The players gathered on the field could only hope to defeat a fifth-class monster at best. They had far too little power to deal with the fourth class.

and even worst against a third-class monster.

Even those who knew what they were capable of were prioritizing the evacuation of people or dealing with the monsters on the bridge.

It was the veteran players who were able to keep their cool. More than half of the players were too busy panicking and trying to get their heads out of their asses.

Heal! Doesnt anyone have a healing spell?

What the hell are these guys!

It was a crucible of chaos.

Mana fluctuates greatly depending on emotions. Mana spilled by panicked people spreads without dispersing, and monsters are attracted to the mana. Divers who jumped out of the river began to occupy the exit that players had made difficult.

People who were running away in a daze lost their lives. Some were so frightened that their necks trembled and they stumbled, some were ruthlessly eaten, and some were dragged under the railing. Finally, some fell into the water and struggled, turning the river red.

Hey guys! Do you believe in Dad?! Dad will always protect you no matter what happens! Keep running forward without looking back!

Its not long, just a little more running, well be able to get off the bridge, lets just hold on until then. Euna and Eunha can do it, right?

The father and mother run, weaving through cars, vehicles, and people.

Holding onto his mothers hand as he ran, Eunha scanned his surroundings for a safe path. Then he sensed the mana of a monster in the car ahead.

Watch out Dad!

Almost at the same time as Eunha shouted, his father quickly lifted his leg.

If he had been any slower, he might have gotten his ankle chewed off by the monster that crawled out from under the car.

Life and death could have come and gone in an instant.

He had to keep his wits about him.

Especially since he was carrying Euna.

Dont go that way, go that way! Keep running!

As he shouted, Eunha, pulling her mother, pointed to an exit that had been cleared by the players.

He took the lead again and started running, and she followed, gasping for breath.

They ran and ran and ran, ignoring the incessant screams.

Then,

Oh, my God, its crazy!!!

Aahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

The asphalt pavement shook.

Just once. Only once.

The moment the Kraken made its decision and struck, the pillars supporting the bridge collapsed and the road tilted.

People lost their balance and fell, and those running near the railing fell straight off the bridge.

Cfoot.

Someone barely managed to get a word out in the midst of all that had happened.

Bodies rolled from the front as if swept by a wave.

The sight of a small object in the distance expanding in volume like a snowball could not help but stun.

Run-!!!

Eunha screamed.

But only a handful of people managed to recover their senses from the looming horror of death that had become a high tide.

Guardian-!!!

Someone shouted afterward, and the players straightened up.

The shield-bearing Guardians deployed their shields in unison, as if in unison with each other.

Boom!

They couldnt take it all.

The shields shook violently as each wave passed over them, and then over them again.

Cracks began to appear where the impacts were concentrated, and the monsters that were being born even now were rushing in without giving them a moments respite.

Just a little longer, just a little longer!

Flames burning the entire bridge.

A series of explosions.

The bridge beginning to collapse.

Father who raised his head in hell comforted his family.

Although the father was relieved to confirm that his family was safe, it was not enough to be relieved.

Despair still lingered around.

The guardians had consumed all their mana to withstand hell, and monsters filled the road.



Notes!

(1) Seongsan Bridge