Steel-Eating Player - Chapter 68

Episode 68. [ Seoul, Devil, Saint -2 ]

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The helicopter landed on a large lawn that seemed to have been leveled halfway up Bukaksan Mountain.

It was Woo Seong-moon and his aides who got off there.

Soon, agents wearing sunglasses ran out to greet them.

“Has this team leader saint arrived?”

Lee Kyo-jun, the bespectacled man called Team Leader Lee, nodded.

“Yes, but… I’m still drunk.”

“Damn, that’s right….” She

has to fly all the way to a remote area to save the world’s largest city, but she’s drunk…” “

And the behavior of the Holy Knights who came with her is said to be a bit… troublesome.”

It was already famous that the Holy Woman’s personal knights, the [Wight Tree Guard], were extremely arrogant.

‘Ever since the death of the first leader, Nicholas Steele, the entire organization has rapidly become pathetic.’

Woo Seong-moon clicked his tongue as he remembered Nicholas, who had more honor than anyone else.

‘He was one of the few people I could truly trust…’

Until he was around, the Wight Tree Guard had been recognized by everyone.

However, as his vacant place was filled by pathetic humans, the whole organization lost its honor.

Woo Seong-moon was worried that this country would become like that someday.

“It’s an era where people are the greatest power, but it’s also an era where people can’t be trusted.”

He had been nurturing talent for a long time, so he was keenly aware of this problem.

Today, personality and effort are not proportional to ability. Awakening that

just happens by chance and characteristics that are given randomly…

‘If you’re just lucky, you can become the best.’ It’s also an unreasonable era…’

While Woo Seong-moon was feeling the absurdity, a face came to mind.

‘Lee Hyun-wook…’

Until recently, he was the lowest grade F player. However, the enormous restrictions placed on him were… Instead of giving in, he created opportunities for himself and is now heading towards the top.

‘Yes, he is a real talent.’

Woo Seong-moon had no intention of losing sight of Lee Hyun-wook.

***

– ………Seoul’s sky turned red this time. The government’s ‘abnormal phenomenon analysis’ is presumed to be caused by an unexplained mana wave in the Dobongsan area of Dobong-gu. The team set out to determine the cause.

Lee Hyun-wook was listening to the radio with one ear while inspecting the ‘air drop device’ in the truck’s luggage compartment. ‘Hmm, I

think it would be good to use it in many ways if I put a metal bead in it, right?’

Most of the inside of the large rectangular box was occupied by the ‘sub-space creation device’, but there was a multi-purpose storage space at the bottom. Lee Hyun-wook poured a lot of iron beads into it. Two

airdrop

devices, 55 each. A total of 110 units were available.

– Next, there is news that the Steel Company, the heroes who ended the 4th wave, and their commander, Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, will also be deployed in this operation. Details are confidential, so we cannot provide them… .

“…Oh! Our story comes again.”

At that point, the steel company members waiting outside the truck reacted and flirted,

“Aren’t you tired of seeing what’s on the news?”

“No matter what, doesn’t your heart pound every time it comes out?”

“Anyway, it’s all about Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, so what…” Not

only the Steel Company but all the troops of the 1st Battalion were lined up on an eight-lane road.

But in fact, there was little the Steel Company could do in this situation. They were simply setting up a ‘blockade’ on the south side of Bukhansan Mountain, which connects to Dobongsan Mountain, in preparation for an emergency.

However, interest in the heroes of the 4th wave had not yet died out, so they unnecessarylessly decorated part of the news like this. Lee Hyun-wook couldn’t help but be bothered by that point.

‘Why is it on the news that the Steel Company is moving? Anyway, fame is not good in many ways.’

Lee Hyun-wook got out of the truck’s bed and looked up at the northern sky.

About 40 minutes ago, a red energy pillar erupted somewhere in Seoul.

Immediately after it touched the sky, a red cloud was formed, which had

now changed into a huge ring shape and was shaking as if it would engulf Seoul.

Go—oh—oh—oh—oh——

It even makes an unpleasant sound.

‘You cannot approach the devil’s domain unless you are covered with a decent divine defense shield.’

The summoning place of the Dobong Mountain devil was now being transformed into the ‘Devil’s Territory’. The information released by the government was that if you get close to it, your vitality will be eaten away by powerful ‘hell magic’.

Of course, if you were determined and prepared to attack, you would be able to enter somehow… Rather than worrying about such a method, the saint’s ‘Holy Field’ was the most reasonable choice.

In the end, it was impossible to stop the saint from coming to this land.

“Oh, by the way, didn’t Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook say that he will be deployed to another operation soon?”

In response to Choi Taeyong’s question, Lee Hyunwook nodded,

“Okay, so I guess I’ll have to go soon.”

“By the way, why did you call me from where?”

As Choi Taeyong cautiously asked, Ahn Mintae, who was next to him, let out a sigh:

“Man, you’re not telling me because it’s confidential!”

“Ah, well… But I thought you would share it with us…”

“What kind of bastard is trying to match Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook?”

“Oh really! That’s not what you mean…”

Of course, the fact that Lee Hyun-wook was in charge of the saint’s protection operation was confidential.

The saintess who had already arrived on this land said that she was secretly moving somewhere.

It was probably one of the ‘sanctuaries’ that were the safest places for her to cast ‘Holy Field’, and the

safest sanctuary in Seoul was, of course, ‘Bukaksan Mountain Great Sanctuary’.

The place overlooking the Blue House was actually connected to the Blue House underground bunker.

Lee Hyun-wook was to be called only after the saintess arrived there and cleaned up the surroundings.

‘No matter how much you need me, I’m still an outside worker…’ I

couldn’t reveal everything about security to Lee Hyun-wook.

‘And… there’s something I need to take care of before they call me.’

Lee Hyun-wook took something out of his arms.

It was a golden card.

[Item Information]

– Name: Attribute Bloom Stage 2 (Special)

– Effect: Randomly blooms a new skill or strengthens an already possessed skill.

This was an upgrade to ‘2nd stage’ by fusing two ‘characteristic flowering’ items.

‘Now it’s a question of what skill to use with this…’

Since this incident occurred entirely as a ‘variable’, Lee Hyun-wook made his judgment more carefully than ever.

‘As expected, this time… I’m investing in strengthening my body.’

To be honest, I wondered several times whether it would be better to strengthen the ‘Breath Room’ first. If the level of the breath room increased, the body’s furnace would expand and the growth rate would accelerate, which was beneficial in the long run.

‘But if you look too far into the future, you may get caught in a rock.’

In his previous life, his greatest weakness was his defense, and that was still a problem at the last moment. The moment he fell into the groggy, unable to withstand the sniping that came from somewhere, everything ended…

Of course, this life was different from the very beginning. It was already beyond the defense of the previous life.

But…

‘Okita Kaito will definitely show up. It’s still not enough to withstand his blow.’

Lee Hyun-wook was able to predict that the Sword Saint Assassin would play the role of ‘killer’ for the saintess’ assassination.

‘In his past life, he also drove a sword into the heart of a saint…’

That’s why Lee Hyun-wook boldly invested the ‘characteristic blooming stage 2’ into strengthening his body.

– congratulations! The ‘Rigid Body’ skill is greatly enhanced by using Attribute Flowering (Step 2)!

[Skill Information]

– Name: Indomitable Strong Body

– Grade: B

– Effect: Temporarily ‘strengthens’ part of the body by consuming mana (20).

1 [Manashield (double structure)]

2 [Secret Engraving (2)]

3 [Unknown]

* If you swallow a certain amount of ‘high hardness magic metal’, your skill grade will improve.

From D grade, he rose two levels at once to become B grade.

The maximum skill that could be raised through normal methods was Grade A,

meaning that the level of strength had now reached a significant level.

Hyunwook Lee slowly felt a change in his senses after applying ‘Strong Body’ to his left hand.

The metal skin has a tighter density and the mana shield is tougher with a ‘double structure’…

‘This is the same as wearing armor made of adamant and topping it with a high-level magic shield.

To put it somewhat exaggeratedly, it was like a walking armored vehicle.

And the number of the second skill, ‘Secret Imprint’, increased to two.

“That’s right, now that I think about it, I need to test that too.”

Lee Hyun-wook got on the truck bed again and placed his right hand on the ‘air drop device.’

Sigh——

And then the huge piece of machinery melted and turned into smoke… –

It was engraved.

Since huge objects are ultimately items, they were applied without exception.

As a result, a rather large square tattoo was engraved on Lee Hyun-wook’s right wrist.

‘It works. If it does this, it will be great…’

The reason why this is encouraging is that there are 30 items in this airdrop device. This was because two weapons were stored.

Lee Hyun-wook took out the ‘Spear of Achilles’ from the left hand of the opposite hand and engraved the remaining one airdrop device. Thus, a

total of 60 weapons—and a total of 100 iron beads in the lower storage space. As

many as hundreds of different weapons were stored on both of his wrists.

‘Okay, I have an inventory of sorts.’

As a result, it had the defense power of an armored vehicle and the firepower of a fighter-bomber in a single body.

‘As expected, the choice to increase the rigidity was not a bad choice.’

At that time, a shout was heard from outside the truck:

“Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook! “Lieutenant Seo Eun-ha is looking for you.”

Meanwhile, Seo Eun-ha also participated in this operation.

The reason was that since she was a high-level paladin, she could exert a synergy effect with the saint, but that was only a superficial reason.

In fact, it was because she had built up a considerable friendship with the saintess—Emilia Müller—while spending the two years following her awakening as a paladin trainee at St. Dom.

In other words, calling Seo Eun-ha had a greater diplomatic purpose.

Lee Hyeon-wook went to the end of the ranks of vehicles of the 1st battalion that were lined up on the road and met Seo Eun-ha.

Sitting in the truck’s luggage compartment, she looked up at Lee Hyun-wook, wearing gray armor.

“Lee Hyun-wook sent a car from there. Get ready to leave quickly.”

A black SUV was seen in the opposite lane. It was the vehicle sent by Woo Seong-moon.

“I’m already ready.”

“Oh really? Then just wait a little bit. Wearing armor is a bit difficult…”

When Seo Eun-ha finished preparing, the two reported to Kim Kang-seok and approached the SUV.

Then she suddenly asked me a question.

“Lee Hyun-wook, you’ve never seen a saint in person… of course you haven’t, right?”

“Yes that’s right.”

It was true. Lee Hyun-wook had never seen the saint in person even in his past life.

This is because the saint was assassinated while he was still unable to shake off the stigma of being classified as F.

However, I could not help but get tired of hearing the story about the saint.

“I’m telling you in advance… this person is not normal. “It can be a bit of a pain in many ways.”

Lee Hyun-wook also heard of the saint’s notoriety.

When you think of a saint, you usually think of an image of nobility, purity, and righteousness, but that’s just a stereotype associated with religion, especially in fantasy.

Emilia Müller, an S-class priest, was nicknamed a saint because of her divine abilities, regardless of her religion or personality.

‘In the first place, the saint was just a nickname, and in reality, she was closer to an inquisitor…’

Even the way she developed her abilities was extremely bizarre.

‘I heard that it is something that causes pain to dark-type beings…’

In a way, it was ability growth that was no different from a curse.

That was why the Republic of Chad was particularly merciless towards players who had mastered dark skills, and the saintess even personally tortured and punished them.

‘So, it’s impossible for a person to have a good personality in all aspects…’

But even if she was such a vicious woman, she was one of the essential weapons for humanity.

***

The location of the Great Holy Place in Korea was a state secret.

It was only known to be somewhere in Seoul, but few people knew its exact location. The reason was that the Great Sanctuary served as both a kind of ‘safe house’ and a ‘secret ward’.

There was even a theory that if the Blue House was attacked, people would take refuge here rather than in the underground bunker of the Blue House, and if important national figures or ranked players were seriously injured, they would be moved here.

‘I’ve been carried there a few times…’

The recovery spell that received the best ‘Sanctuary buff’ in Korea saves even people who were dying.

Woowoowoo——

The SUV went up along the military road of Mt. Bukak.

For a while, it was an unremarkable landscape with only a dense forest of trees visible.

However, the moment I passed a certain point—

I passed the [Wide Area Mirage Barrier].

That system message instantly changed the scene before my eyes.

In an instant, a wide area spread out before my eyes, and a huge white building appeared in the center.

‘It’s been a while since we visited Bukaksan Mountain’s main sanctuary.’

The exterior was really nothing special, just a square block of white concrete.

Since it was a hidden place from the beginning, it was designed for efficiency itself without placing importance on appearance.

In addition, countless ‘black agents’ were hiding in the trees that covered that building, and

dozens of ‘mana drones’ were flying in the sky—monitoring all areas of the area.

And the Paladins wearing white armor that could be seen here and there were the ‘Wight Tree Guard’.

When they arrived at the entrance of the building, a short man wearing glasses greeted Lee Hyun-wook and Seo Eun-ha.

“…Welcome. My name is Team Leader Kyojun Lee.”

Since he introduced himself but did not reveal his affiliation, it seemed like he was an agent of a secret department.

“As you both know, you are not allowed to have any communication equipment from here on out.”

As Lee Hyun-wook and Seo Eun-ha were not complete insiders, they had to undergo a formal body search.

“And you two cannot approach within 50 meters of Saint Emilia Müller. Please keep in mind that if you approach incorrectly, you may be subdued or, depending on the situation, killed without warning.”

The mission of these two is to defend the building itself in preparation for any possible attack.

Emilia Müller’s surroundings are guarded by her personal guard, the Wight Tree Guard—among them, 12 high-ranking paladins.

No one else is allowed to approach her. That wasn’t allowed.

At that time, another agent standing next to Lee Kyo-jun put his hand on the ‘ear microphone’ and turned his head this way.

“That team leader… I’m telling you to take Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook to the VIP room on the 3rd basement floor.”

At those words, Lee Gyo-jun’s eyebrows twitched.

“What? It’s a VIP room. Who on earth gave the order?”

“That… is what the saint herself requested.”

“Why on earth is the saint…”

Lee Kyo-jun couldn’t hide his bewildered expression.

And the same was true for Lee Hyun-wook.

‘Why is the saint me… why?’

Even Seo Eun-ha looked like she couldn’t understand.

“Why is Saint Lee Hyun-wook calling you?”

“I do not know.”

Seo Eun-ha thought deeply and raised her head.

“Watch out for whatever happens to Lee Hyun-wook. As I said before, he is not in his right mind…”

After Seo Eun-ha’s harsh advice, Lee Hyun-wook was led by three agents and headed to the VIP room on the 4th basement floor, passing through a

long hallway with heavy security and multiple shields. At the end, we faced a huge iron gate.

“Here it is. No weapons are allowed to be brought in, so please take them all out.”

As soon as Lee Hyun-wook took out his weapon, the thick protective door opened. With

a bang

, a sofa was placed in the middle of a fairly large room.

Woo Seong-moon was sitting there, and for some reason his face was full of shadows.

And across from him, a blonde-haired man was sitting there. A short woman was sitting.

‘That woman is Saint Emilia Müller.’

She was discovered by Lee Hyun-wook… and started waving happily.

“Hey—hello—!”

…It was a somewhat absurd first impression.

On the other hand, Woo Seong-moon had a tired expression.

I just knew why.

They spent a huge amount of money to invite a saint, but her condition seemed to be worse than expected. It was like receiving a defective product.

There was even a strong smell of alcohol coming from her.

“Sergeant Lee Hyun-wook, the president of St. Dom, earnestly asked me to call him a hero of Seoul.”

“Yes, yes, that’s right, I called you.”

“So… what are you trying to say, Governor? There’s no time, so do it quickly.”

Woo Seong-moon asked that in words that were almost a sigh.

But Emilia didn’t even listen to what he said. She rested her chin and looked at Lee Hyun-wook, and only belatedly opened her mouth. “…Don’t worry,

Mr. Woo. Hehe—I won’t eat you carelessly. “No.”

There was silence for a moment.

“Mr. Wu, I have something I want to talk about with this person… It has nothing to do with this matter. “I thought it would be a bit personal—well, a secret story.”

Woo Seong-moon shook his head at her words, which seemed to be gibberish.

“No matter what, Mr. President, I can’t do that.”

All kinds of thoughts were going through Woo Seong-moon’s mind.

Just now, while talking about the security operation, Lee Hyun-wook was briefly mentioned.

But at that moment, the saintess’s eyes changed.

She thought that Lee Hyun-wook had saved Seoul twice and would be able to operate ‘Hugin’. He seemed to be very interested in the explanation that he could do it, so he tried to get me to call him in.

And now he said he would talk alone… I was a bit worried that they might have sensed that I had awakened to S rank and tried to take me away to the Republic of Chad.

“Oh really… Hiccup! I’m starting to feel bad, so should I just go home…”

A threat that is no different from a child’s whining… Woo Seong-moon eventually stood up from his seat. A

glimpse of anger flashed across his face. He stood behind Emilia. I looked at the article there.

“Peter, we don’t have time. Please take care of me.”

At those words, the knight named Peter nodded.

But Emilia shook her head.

“No, Peter Hiccup—you’re leaving for a moment, too.”

Peter was startled.

“Huh? That’s absolutely not possible! How can I leave your side, Governor!”

“Hiccup—please stop annoying me.”

In an instant, a snowball fight between the two began.

“…….”

The winner was Emilia.

Peter frowned and turned around as if he had no choice.

So everyone left.

She was silent for a moment and then slowly opened her mouth.

“Silence…”

Something bloomed in her grasp and spread out in all directions.

It was a magic that blocked sound.

“Hiccup—Hiccup—”

“…….”

“Your name is Lee Hyun-wook, right? The savior of Seoul… and you saved him twice?”

Lee Hyun-wook smiled sheepishly.

But inwardly, he tried to analyze the situation.

‘…The atmosphere suddenly changed.’

This woman seemed to be missing something just a moment ago, but now she felt completely fine.

In particular, the movement of her eyes seemed to be the same, and it became clear in an instant.

‘Are you really pretending to be a fool? Why on earth…’

Lee Hyun-wook faced a history he didn’t know about. “And I heard

that you can obtain Hugin, a legendary grade extra-sensory item.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“If you’re Hugin, your senses will explode so you can perceive almost everything around you, right?”

“…Not everything, but I can see much better than usual.”

She gulped down the water on the table as if she was thirsty.

“The person I trusted the most said that Mr. Wu has the best eye for people. But while he was just explaining the security operation, he emphasized that you are a capable person. And above all, if I could save Seoul twice… I don’t feel like I’m in the same company as people I hate… “People I

trusted, people I didn’t like… Those were difficult words, as if I was still sober.

” …I would like to ask you one favor. “I hope you don’t refuse.”

Lee Hyun-wook looked at her without saying anything.

“If I use ‘Holy Field’, which purifies all of Seoul, I will be defenseless for 30 minutes.”

“Yes, I know.”

“If someone is trying to assassinate me, that’s when they will do it. At that time, you…”

Emilia craned her head and said in a whisper,

“…I want you to keep an intensive watch on our Wight Guard.”

Lee Hyun-wook’s eyes turned bright red.

“Do you mean…there is a traitor inside?”

She nodded slowly.

How did he know that? Lee Hyun-wook made eye contact with Emilia with a calm expression.

But Lee Hyun-wook couldn’t help but flinch at what she said next.

“…Have you ever heard of a villain?”

As far as Lee Hyun-wook knew, this woman was not a guardian.