Steel-Eating Player - Chapter 45

Episode 45. [ Seoul, the city of the 4th wave – 3 ]

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7:15 PM Steel Company Arrived in front of Dongdaemun Station Line 1.

Although it was not that far from the point where the previous battle took place, it was bound to take some time because we had to lead as many as 814 citizens who were stranded at the Jangchung-dong community center.

But what was really fortunate was that no monsters appeared on the way here.

When I touched the siren zombie, a whole bunch of zombies came rushing in, and I was able to kill them all.

– Chik – Civilians line up in the center of this road and block the entrance to the alley with vehicles. Above—

all alleys were blocked to protect civilians from possible attacks as a top priority.

The surrounding area was surrounded by AMT troops and Lee Jeong-jun’s group, protecting it as thoroughly as possible.

Meanwhile, Lee Hyun-wook was looking at the entrance of Dongdaemun Station Shelter. As shelters are usually built inside subways, on the outside they were just subway entrances.

“Mr. Lee Jeong-jun, is that the exit right there?”

“Yes, if you go down there, it leads directly to the entrance to the shelter.”

The shelter at Dongdaemun Station was large enough to accommodate 8,000 citizens for 3 days, and if all entrances to the underground station were blocked and the entire station was used, it could accommodate up to 12,000 people for 2 days.

When Jeongjun Lee and his group came out, they said there were about 2,000 people there, so there were still plenty of seats.

“Take Ahn Min-tae and the two kids and check the exit over there.”

“Yes, I understand. … Did you hear everything? Let’s go!”

All entrances and exits of Dongdaemun Station were blocked by mana shields.

If there was a person willing to open the door, there would have been someone there.

Soon, a radio call came from Ahn Min-tae, who said that as expected, no one was there.

‘It means they have no intention of opening the door.’

At that time, two wizard players—communication soldiers—approached Lee Hyun-wook.

They prepared to activate the ‘Mana Messenger.’

“Then, we will begin mana communication.”

Through Mana, it was possible to send a voice message to a nearby Mana Messenger.

And the Dongdaemun Shelter should have been equipped with multiple Mana messengers.

Chic—

“Ah, we are AMT. We are currently protecting a number of civilians and hope to enter the shelter. There are no threats nearby. Please respond immediately to the Dongdaemun Station Shelter. That’s it—” The signalman sent a message like that, but

… ….There was no response.

“Try again.”

But no matter how many times I tried, no answer came back.

‘Are you saying he doesn’t even want to talk… Like Lee Jeong-jun said, he’s very stubborn.’

Then Lee Jung-jun sighed and wiped his face.

“…I’m sure it’s inside. They probably see us coming and are ignoring them on purpose.”

Lee Jung-jun showed strong distrust of those people.

It was worth it.

He and his colleagues risked their lives to save others, but what was inside him drove others to death to protect their own lives.

It’s bound to be utterly disgusting….

“Give me Mana Messenger, a signal soldier.”

“Yes it is here!”

Lee Hyun-wook decided to send a message in a slightly different tone.

“Ah, this is the AMT operation commander. If you don’t respond, we will enter after forcibly breaking through the magic shield to ensure the safety of civilians. The forcible breakthrough will begin in 5 minutes and 5 minutes. This is—” The feeling is clearly different from the message sent by the signalman

. It was different. He

even showed off his informal language

, so there was clearly a threat inside him.

Lee Jeong-jun looked at him uneasily.

This man, Lee Hyun-wook… was the type of person who would never bend.

And he also did not bend under any circumstances.

‘There will always be conflict. ..

It couldn’t have been an imminent situation.

5 minutes passed quickly.

Even then, there was no response.

“… 5 minutes have passed. Take out the living armor and prepare the ether drill.

At Lee Hyun-wook’s words, the four living armors activated their bodies. And

then three privates took something out of the truck.

An ether drill. It was a very expensive magical engineering item specialized for piercing magic shields.

There was only one in the battalion, but the Steel Company brought it in for this operation.

“…Oh really . “Will you pierce it?”

Sergeant Kim Se-hee, the 1st platoon leader, asked,

“Yes, we will penetrate. Please lead the tankers from the rear and wait for entry.”

“But…do you really have to do that? “If you go a little further along this road from here, there’s another shelter. I know they’re stubbornly holding on, but I’m not sure if it’s a good idea to spend time here.”

She gave her opinion as a platoon leader, and it certainly made sense.

The time spent creating conflict here was a waste.

There were only four days left for them, so there was no time to stay like this.

“That’s true, but there’s another zombie troll nearby. If he shows up, things will get worse. Now he’s got civilians with him, too.”

“Hmm… I see…”

Lee Hyun-wook’s explanation was plausible, but his real intention was still different.

‘Right down there… there is the first erosion factor.’

Erosion, a phenomenon that changes the earth’s land into an otherworldly terrain, and the point where erosion begins are called ‘erosion factors’, and one of the four was sprouting right under this land. ‘In the next few days, this land will completely change, and Dongdaemun

Station It turns into the entrance to a labyrinth.’

It is a ‘large-scale dungeon’ often found in labyrinth erosion areas.

In other words, it is a dungeon created in reality, not inside the gate, and monsters are constantly created.

They spread through Seoul’s complex subway lines and ravage every corner of Seoul.

That was the future of Seoul that was about to unfold.

‘Until the Holy Knights of the Army attacked, there were over a million monsters that had arisen here, and the number of casualties is estimated to be hundreds of thousands.’

Lee Hyun-wook planned to bring an early end to the coming disaster by leading his troops down into the dark underground today and burning away the seeds of hell. ‘And… what we will find

here is not only erosion factors.’

Naturally, by removing the erosion factor, special items could be obtained.

And Lee Hyun-wook remembered the list of items that could be obtained in the 4th wave.

‘The second weapon I used is sleeping right here.’

At this time, it fell into the hands of the villain, but later Lee Hyun-wook defeated the villain and obtained it.

And in Lee Hyun-wook’s opinion, it was the weapon that maximized his abilities the most.

Sir Tristan’s ‘Pale Note’ was used as a ‘portable’ for auxiliary use. If it was a ‘weapon’, then the ‘sword’ sleeping down there was an incredibly large ‘main weapon’… no, it was something more than that. It had to be secured. ‘If we get it first, we can counter the remaining erosion

factors

. It will become much easier.’

It was then.

-Chick—Someone is coming out of Exit 5!

It was Ahn Min-tae’s radio.

Lee Hyun-wook’s radio must have been working, so he responded.

“…Okay, I’m leaving now.”

Lee Hyun-wook approached the exit with Kim Se-hee and Lee Jeong-jun.

By now, several people had come out of the shelter.

But a large man was yelling at Ahn Min-tae.

“No! “They suddenly come rushing in and ask me what I’m doing now!”

“Oh, you shouldn’t talk to me like this, but the commander will come soon…”

“Tell me who that commander is! No! It could be someone I know?”

The man was armed with a shield and a great sword. He was a player.

However, seeing as he was wearing plain clothes and not a uniform, it seemed like he was not a member of the shelter security force.

Lee Jeong-jun told me who they were.

“That person is our guild’s pants master and he. This is Gong Gong-tae, head of the National Assembly’s security office. Ah, I was fired a few hours ago, so I guess he’s not my master anymore… Write—”

That man, Gong Gong-tae, turned his head this way and frowned as if he had spotted Lee Jeong-jun and his group.

His eyes were full of poison. It was revealed at face level that he was a man of one nature.

“Lee Jung-jun is behind you. It doesn’t look like a good sound will come out even if we face each other.”

“Yes, this is a guy who will do whatever it takes to do the damn thing. Unlucky guy…”

As Lee Hyun-wook got closer, Gong Gong-tae crossed his arms and looked at him.

“I am the AMT operation commander. I would like to meet the person in charge of shelter security.”

Instead of answering, Gong Gong-tae looked Lee Hyun-wook up and down.

Then, he chuckled and opened his mouth.

“Hey, what is your rank?”

Huh? What is this arrogant attitude…

Lee Hyun-wook looked at him silently, hiding his displeasure.

Then Gong Gong-tae laughed again.

“Don’t put too much weight on it. I’m asking because I was once an AMT officer too. I was discharged with the rank of captain three years ago, so I guess I’m a long way from your senior. Why are you saying let’s just make a statement and do some business? Upset?”

The moment Lee Hyeon-wook started talking like an idiot like this, I felt that there was no need to talk for a long time.

“I want to meet with the shelter representative right away.”

Lee Hyun-wook looked down the stairs of the underground subway entrance they came up from.

There, two large men were guarding the entrance to the subway station.

“Hey, buddy, I just asked. What is your rank? Maybe a lieutenant? However, it seems like you are dragging too many troops for a lieutenant. Are all the senior commanders dead?”

“Right now, more than a thousand civilians are exposed to danger. Please talk about that later and take steps to allow civilians to escape by opening the entrance to the shelter as prescribed.”

“Ha… rules, yes, rules… I’m going crazy…”

The man scratched his head and laughed heartily.

“Hey young guy, do you know it’s a wave? You know, the truly terrifying disaster that wiped out California, USA overnight. huh? know? Ah—you’re so young you don’t know?”

“That’s what’s going on right now, regulations? What on earth are they pushing for? That’s a threat full of profanity, but Lee Hyun-wook didn’t even blink.

“Monopolizing public shelters is a serious crime. I will first warn you. “Open the shelter door.”

Warning At those words, cracks began to spread over Gong Gong-tae’s fake smile.

“…warning? “Hey, do you know who you’re spouting those words to and are you making a fuss?”

He spoke threateningly, but Lee Hyun-wook paid no heed and took a step closer.

As the gap narrowed, tension arose between the two groups.

An Min-tae held his shield tightly, and Gong Gong-tae’s subordinates also slightly raised their weapons.

It was poised to collide at any moment.

“…….”

After a moment of silence, Lee Hyun-wook opened his mouth.

“I’m warning you a second time. Get out of the way immediately.”

Gong Gong-tae’s face distorted grimly.

“Hey… what are you going to do if you can’t get out of the way? What the fuck are you doing with Mana Messenger? Are you going to break in? “They openly threatened me, so I came out to find out what kind of insignificant things were holding their weight.”

“…….”

“I am still a person who was an AMT company commander, but I don’t know your level? Do you think you can break through the shelter even if you swarm in and beat it all day long? “I know better than you!”

The hearts of those here beat faster as the harsh words poured out without hesitation.

Players on both sides lined up facing each other glare at each other.

It was as if each person was deciding who to take charge of…

But at that time, Lee Hyun-wook smiled, not fitting for this harsh atmosphere.

“Okay, both warnings are over.”

“…what?”

“Do you know that according to the rules, you can kill from now on?”

“What the heck!”

The next moment, Lee Hyun-wook’s right arm grabbed Gong Gong-tae’s neck,

lifted

him up, flipped him over in the air, and threw him on the floor.

It was an instant.

No one noticed, but Lee Hyun-wook’s arms were in a ‘hard body’ state.

“.. .Holy shit!”

The five players standing behind Gong Gong-tae drew their weapons.

At that moment, a gust of wind blew and someone was standing behind them. A

total of four daggers were placed on the necks of the two archer players.

Kim Se-hee and the wind spirits she commanded. It was manipulating the dagger.

“Be careful. I sharpened it hard this morning, so with just a light pressure, I can pull out the esophagus and trachea like pulling out the intestines of a shrimp. If you don’t believe me, I can demonstrate with one person first—”

Just like that, Pop was able to overpower Gong Gong-tae’s gang in an instant, and

Lee Hyun-wook pressed down on Gong Gong-tae’s thighs with his foot, preventing him from moving.

“Ouch—”

With the steel boots on his feet and the metal control placed on them, pressure exceeding Lee Hyun-wook’s body weight was applied.

“In a gate occurrence situation, there are two types of summary measures that the controlling authority can take when the legitimate instructions of the ‘controlling authority’ are violated. Arrest or kill—”

“That’s up to me, but what you say next will depend a lot on it.”

Lee Hyun-wook has always been calm, but he really disliked this type of person.

This was because I had seen countless lives disappear every time these guys were active.

‘It is unnecessary in every way.’

The last scene I witnessed in my past life was the tragic collapse of Seoul.

The city that had barely recovered from the 4th wave ended up being destroyed.

That had to stop happening now.

“Ugh hey! You… do you know who I serve? Will you be able to handle this later?”

Lee Hyun-wook chuckled at that low-level scare.

“As you just said, it’s a wave now. “It’s no wonder who dies where.”

“Bff…”

“And you know that wasn’t a very good answer just now, right?”

At those words, Gong Gong-tae’s complexion turned pale.

As he said, in the Wave Zone, humanity’s surveillance system and public security were virtually at a standstill.

Even if a murder occurred, he would be treated as dead by the monster in this chaos.

No, they probably won’t even find the body….

Creep, crunch,

and before we knew it, huge armors were walking behind Lee Hyun-wook’s back.

Four Living Armors stood tall behind him, each holding a 3m long spear.

They looked at Gong Gong-tae lying on the floor as if he were an executioner.

When I faced those blue eyes, my body began to tremble like an aspen tree.

Gulp—

that was it.

“…Wait a minute!”

Someone shouted like that and came hurriedly up the stairs of the basement entrance. His

neatly slicked-back hair, well-pressed suit, and gold badge made him look like he was a high-ranking man.

He waved both hands and blocked Lee Hyun-wook.

“Oh, I don’t know what’s going on, but you need to do this. I don’t think it will last that long! “In this dangerous situation, wouldn’t it be enough for the people to join forces?”

“…….”

“Now, I am Park Gil-sang, a member of the National Assembly.”

Yes, according to Lee Jeong-jun, this man was the actual leader of this group.

Therefore, all of this commotion must have been done under the direction of this man.

‘I watched from the inside and decided that it wasn’t working, so I changed the route.’

He approached Lee Hyun-wook without hesitation and smiled kindly.

“Commander, this guy is my subordinate. How can I stop helping him up?”

Lee Hyun-wook removed the foot that was pressing down on Gong Gong-tae.

Then Park Gil-sang brought Gong Gong-tae to his feet and began to press him.

“This is my friend! I told you to go out and have a good talk. What does this mean?”

“yes? Representative of….”

“Tsk tsk, I knew there was a stupid part of it, but I didn’t know it would be like this! Oh my…”

Gong Gong-tae was dumbfounded.

Park Gil-sang looked at Lee Hyun-wook and smiled kindly again.

“Go to sleep, night will come soon. “Shouldn’t we hurry and evacuate citizens into shelters?”

It was as if he had naturally intended to do so.

***

The inside of the Dongdaemun Station shelter was like an ordinary subway station. However, if you follow the evacuation signs when a gate occurs, you will come across an overwhelmingly large iron gate.

‘A 15cm thick protective door made of various magic alloys.’

That place was ‘Shelter’.

It was a magical space created 8 years ago through a large-scale public-private collaboration ‘shelter construction project’. It

was an air-raid shelter that could withstand attacks from most monsters as long as it had a sufficient supply of mana.

“Well, there are still plenty of seats inside the shelter. “Just stand in line and enter slowly.”

Park Gil-sang said such nonsense while leading the civilians.

No matter how you look at it, he was trying to appeal to his image as a good person.

Meanwhile, Lee Hyun-wook had a conversation with the ‘station security guard’ who was wearing a blue uniform like a police officer.

These were the people who guarded the station in peacetime and managed the shelter when a gate occurred.

“Let me check a few things. Are all entrances and exits, including vents, well sealed?”

“Yes, we cannot deploy troops separately, but the magic shield is working well.”

“Just in case, can we check again?”

“Oh yes, of course. We can only be thankful. Um, and…”

The guard commander looked at Park Gil-sang’s notice and whispered in a low voice,

“…It was never our idea not to open the shelter door. We’re sorry.”

“Yes I know what you mean.”

It was an obvious picture even without looking at it. He would not have been able to overcome the pressure of the golden badge.

Lee Hyun-wook instructed Kim Se-hee and Ahn Min-tae to look around the station.

While doing so, he glanced at the people scattered around the shelter.

Because……

‘There is a villain in here.’

Apostate

‘He grows tremendously right here.’

If all goes as planned, the civilians who took refuge in this shelter will be wiped out.

This is because the apostate villain used it as prey for the erosion factors sprouting underground.

In this way, the villains were mixed throughout the wave zone and were causing the erosion of Seoul.

As Lee Hyun-wook was looking at each person like that…

Ugh,

I suddenly felt a vibration.

It was an inside pocket.

‘what?’

There were two items in his inner pocket.

During the Seoul Station Unlucky event, it was the ‘Key to the Akashic Arsenal No. 2’ obtained by interfering with the villain quest, and the ‘Secret Key (event)’ obtained by catching a zombie troll.

Among them, the vibrating one was a slightly larger ‘secret key (event)’.

The meaning of this vibration is…

‘Yes, it is a hint.’

It was clear that there was a ‘treasure chest’ nearby that could be opened with this key.

It seemed like I could get one more thing besides the ‘main weapon’ here.

Lee Hyun-wook moved little by little to find the point where the vibration became stronger.

And not far away, we found a point where the vibration pattern changed strangely.

‘It’s here.’

It was a storage locker.

And when he placed his hand on the secret keys in front of him, one of them appeared to be golden.

– You have found a treasure chest (event)!

‘I found luck in hell.’

That was no small amount of luck.