BXBX NOVEL Chapter 308: Ark (1)
An empty office. The moment he wondered where Lee Su-yeon and Ashton went.
Boooooooooom-!
He heard an explosion. Yoon-seok rushed to the window, looked out, and froze.
“What the…”
The current time was 2 PM, but the shining blue sky was dark. It wasn’t cloudy due to gloomy weather but covered in darkness. Also…
“Kearghhhhhhhhhh!”
Invaders were raining down. Almost all of them were large monsters classified as special risk groups by Earth’s standards. Yoon-seok recalled what the first admin said.
“Damn it…”
Is it not that urgent? So, he wanted him to relax? It probably wasn’t a lie. However, he didn’t include anything except for the Tower’s safety.
“S-Stop it! We have to buy some time…!”
The doomsday Lee Su-yeon mentioned had begun. But this wasn’t just about Earth. An innocent bystander might get hurt in this fight. Yoon-seok would have to worry about that later.
First, it was time to take care of the things before him.
Whoosh-!
Yoon-seok jumped down from the window and landed in the plaza, always crowded with challengers.
“It’s the Savior!”
“He’s here!”
Without being able to make proper preparations due to the sudden confusion, the challengers trying to react to this unfavorable situation turned to Yoon-seok. Although he wasn’t used to this attention…
“One Change Thousand Changes.”
In some ways, he was grateful. This means that the loser, who had been drenched in despair every day, had grown to become someone else’s light of hope.
Swaaaaaaaaaaaaaa-!
Thousands of petals, triggered by a single change, swept through the darkened plaza. But this wasn’t enough. Even if the invaders occupying the plaza were destroyed, they were only a small fraction of the whole. Invaders were still pouring down from the sky.
“Lynn, I’ll leave these people to you.”
Yoon-seok summoned Lynn using his newly acquired Unique Skill, b Origin} and had all the challengers in the plaza board.
“Give a ride to all of them while killing the invaders.”
—Ryokai.
Even now, there was no time to take a breather because people were dying. Afterward, Yoon-seok gathered information from the survivors and continued.
“The director is directing the general public to evacuate safely to the ark!”
“Ark as in the underground bunker?”
“Yes!”
Were they inspired by the fact that people on Earth hid underground in the future? The ark was a large-scale project that began half a year ago to prepare for the future, as Lee Su-yeon warned. It was designed to accommodate 1/5 of the world’s population.
’…But I don’t think the construction is done?’
There wasn’t enough time.
“He can handle it on his own.”
Yoon-seok believed in Ashton. He would have made the best decision in this situation, so he should also do this best right now.
’Let’s find Su-yeon first.’
He realized it once again in Spacetime World. Lee Su-yeon’s wider perspective made her great at coming to rational decisions. If he was the best soldier, Lee Su-yeon was the best commander. She could advise him.
’But why isn’t she picking up the phone?’
Perhaps she was busy, but the line connected after a long pause.
—Oppa!
“Where are you?”
—I’m in Korea right now.
“…Korea?”
— I asked a teleportation expert to take me here as soon as it happened.
“Why?”
Although he was curious about why…
-Isn’t it obvious! Your parents are here!
“Ah…”
He was convinced. Why didn’t he think of this right away? As Yoon-seok felt ashamed of himself, he also felt grateful for Lee Su-yeon.
—I’ll check if they have entered the Ark, so don’t worry.
“…Thank you.”
—What do you mean thank you? Anyway, since you’re calling, that means you’re at the federation?”
“Yeah. I’m killing the invaders, I can see, but I want your opinion. What’s the best thing to do now?”
The line went empty as she organized her thoughts. Would she tell him to go to a certain area and save people or kill a certain invader?
—Find Peter Remus. Join him.
“Peter Remus the Planet Guardian?”
—Yes, that’s right.
At first, he thought she asked him to protect him because he was important. But…
—Go to Seheranbad with him.
“…Go to Seheranbad?”
—This fight isn’t a short one.
That’s true. Those invaders would keep appearing until the war between the Tower and the Queen ended.
“But what does that have to do with going to Seheranbad?”
—It’s probably the same for that place. We need to work together.
“Work together, how?”
At that moment, Yoon-seok realized.
“Ah, Planet Guardian!”
Peter Remus. His Unique Skills didn’t only prevent challengers from coming over from another dimension. He had the Unique Power Last Ark, and at that time, he brought him to Earth and negotiated with Ragna to use that power to help Levant Neutral migrate to Earth.
—Although we haven’t heard from them, they won’t refuse. If they have more on their side, it’ll be even worse.
Not only Levant Neutral. In Saintrion, God issued an oracle that encouraged his believers to move. In addition, in the territory of the now-disappeared Demon Kingdom Geronian, the Bloodseeker Sect (?) formed an organization equivalent to an autonomous state. The Sword Country Bernille, where the King of Steel ruled, could be persuaded.
“I understand what you mean.”
It would only be beneficial for them to migrate. Earth, which lacked manpower, could be reinforced, and they could gain a systematic defense system established across the globe.
In case of a crisis, could they get support within an hour through a simple phone call? It was unimaginable in Seheranbad. Not only did the Seheranbad Alliance collapse as the last meeting ended in catastrophe, but under the current circumstances, all those countries would be isolated.
—Please explain those parts well if they hesitate, and what benefits they will gain if they come to our side.
“Okay. Ah, and if you received a Purification Potion from the Tower, never drink it.”
—I didn’t get it, but why?
“I’ll explain later. Tell our other colleagues who have been to the Spacetime World.
“Alright.”
Yoon-seok, who quickly delivered the news, ended the call and contacted Ashton. Even though he was busy, the line didn’t beep more than three times.
—Ah, Yoon-seok! I heard that you’re here.
Wow, the news sure traveled fast.
“How are things on your side? I heard you were in the middle of evacuation?”
—Yes. Fortunately, thanks to a few evacuation training sessions, it’s proceeding smoothly.
“That’s a relief.”
Yoon-seok then told Ashton about Lee Su-yeon’s plan.
—As expected of Su-yeon! That’s a great idea! I’ll send Remus to Levant Neutral right now. I think you can join us from there.
“Yes. I’ll tell Lynn, so please use her while I’m away.”
—I will.
There was no need to speak long with Ashton. He immediately replied that he would send Planet Guardian, and their brief preparations were over.
From now on, time was of the essence.
「Returning to Seheranbad.」
He saw the half-destroyed royal palace roof as soon as he tore the return ticket.
’As expected, it’s the same here.’
The black sky exposed over the broken roof was endless, and invaders were constantly bursting out.
’I guess he’s not here.’
Yoon-seok, who scanned the empty throne room, smiled. In a King of Steel fashion, he couldn’t stay still.
“Hyahahahahaha! This is fun!”
However, the minute Yoon-seok went above the palace; a giant man caught his eye. Even as the world burned and collapsed, he laughed and smashed the invaders’ heads with his loyal subjects by his side.
“King! I can’t see the end!”
“That’s why it’s more fun!”
“Yeah! That’s true!”
Even faced with this incoming doom, they didn’t lose their smiles.
’…Guess I don’t have to worry about this place for now.’
Bernille was on the migration list, but the important guest Peter Remus was nowhere. If he had already torn up his ticket, he would be in Levant Neutral by now.
’I’ll come back here once I join him….’
Yoon-seok moved before the King of Steel noticed him. And as he was flying toward Levant Neutral for some time, he felt it again. No chaos could match this.
“Ki-aeckkkkkkkkk!”
Regardless of land or sea, invaders fell from the sky like heavy rain. Although they couldn’t hinder Yoon-seok…
’If Earth is like this, it’ll be bad.’
No matter how many they evacuated, the causalities would be tremendous. No matter how much force an individual had, this couldn’t be completely prevented. In that sense, he felt a little guilty. If, as planned, Levant Neutral, Bloodseeker Sect, Sword Nation Bernille, and Holy Land Saintrion moved to Earth, the rest would have to fight much harder alone.
’…Let’s not think about these things.’
He only focused on running as his destination soon came into view. But was it because it was isolated in the middle of the sea, or that they didn’t have high rankers like the King of Steel?” It was likely both, but the situation was so bad that Levant Neutral couldn’t come to compare to Bernille.
“Arghhhh!”
“Save me! My arm…!”
To be honest, looking at this, it seemed that bringing them to Earth was closer to protecting them than bringing in a strong ally. But they made a deal already, so he had to honor it.
Whoooooosh-!
Yoon-seok cut down the invaders as he marched toward the center of Levant Neutral.
He encountered the person he was looking for inside Count Hambledon’s closet.
“W-Why did you come so late?”
That wasn’t something to say to someone who crossed the sea in ten minutes…
Well, it must have felt that long.
“But it’s a relief that you’re not injured. You know the situation, right?
“…I heard it roughly from the director.”
“Then we can skip to the point. Can you use the power you mentioned at the time?”
“I’ve never tried, but I think so.”
“Okay, let’s go together.”
At Yoon-seok’s words, Peter lifted his arm while complaining.
“Haa… it’s time to watch the drama rerun; what the hell is this…?”
“I heard you had fun and ate well. We have to get to business now.”
“That’s true… it’s been a while since I came out of my room, so I’m not used to it.”
He had thoroughly become a hikikomori since he moved to Earth.
“Where are we going now?”
“We have to go see Ragna Hambledon.”
“And you know where she is?”
“That’s what we’re going to find out. Wherever she is, she will be on this island.”
Was Yoon-seok’s answer ridiculous? Peter smirked. He shouldn’t be laughing at this.
Whoosh-!
Yoon-seok closed his eyes and focused on his magic. Lowering the density of magic, covering the surroundings as thin and wide as possible like a shield, he could sense everything moving inside. Of course, even with that, he couldn’t tell the difference between a person’s features; it was more like looking through a thermal camera.
But he could at least identify unique magic.
“She’s closer than I thought.”
“…You’ve become a complete monster.”
Peter, who realized Yoon-seok placed the entire island under his radar, exclaimed. But it was only new to him. A monster? Remus had to catch up. The first time he heard that was on the 6th-floor plaza, and somehow Yoon-seok lived with that word ever since.
“Anyway, let’s go.”
Ignoring Peter’s vague praise, Yoon-seok moved quickly. He had to greet his first guest as soon as possible. The Bloodseeker Sect, Bernille, and Saintrion. Even go further to Moorim’s sects if possible.
Ragna wasn’t the only one requesting a full moving service. Although he was worried if this many foreigners would be able to adapt well to Earth…
“…By the way, I didn’t get the attendance reward today. Can I use your smartphone while on the way? Ah, the data isn’t working here, right? Damned Seheranbad!”
Well, maybe that was unnecessary.