Chapter : 11
Battle (3)
Even that alone was something. Suhyun brushed his hands off after falling from the black bear. It was a temporary measure, but he had to do everything he could.
The jungle at night was quiet. Aside from the distant chirping of insects, there was barely any sound. Suhyun spent his time staring blankly at his surroundings.
If he had paid just a little more attention to the teammates resting, he might have noticed that someone was watching him without sleeping.
Meeting the Calcutta Hornbill and the Hell Crocodile had been an exceptional case. If such encounters happened routinely, the cost of hiring mercenaries for these missions would have skyrocketed.
At dawn, the team had a simple meal and resumed moving. There was no time to hesitate if they wanted to verify the marked coordinates. On top of that, time had already been lost in yesterday’s battle.
Kim Chang-sik yawned and complained.
“Damn it. If we get here and find nothing, I’m going to be really pissed.”
“You already got an advance.”
“And what good is that? We didn’t come here just to take an advance.”
Before starting the task of verifying the coordinates, the team had been given a few million won each as an advance. It was literally the minimum. If usable resources were found at the coordinates, the reward would increase in proportion to the value of the resources. It was a question of whether it would end in the hundreds or reach the thousands, so everyone hoped valuable resources would be discovered.
“Do you have anything to spend money on?”
“It’s not that I don’t have anywhere to spend it; if there’s money, there’s plenty to spend it on. You?”
“As for me…”
Suhyun had no family and currently lived in the company dorm, so he didn’t need a place to live. The first thing that came to mind was weapons. Beyond the basic gear provided by the company, he wanted something more useful.
“Once I get some money, I need to check the black market first.”
Although Cameron Planet’s cities officially sold weapons, the more useful and dangerous ones were often on the black market—smuggled military gear or weapons decommissioned for various reasons that, if handled correctly, could be very effective.
Kim Chang-sik seemed to misinterpret Suhyun’s trailing off. He smirked and poked Suhyun’s side.
“You’re a girl, huh?”
“Eh? No, I’m not.”
“No need to be shy. Everyone’s like that when they’re young. I was the same when I was your age.”
Even denying it, Kim Chang-sik had already made up his mind. Suhyun gave up and asked again.
“So, what happened with you?”
“I got dumped. No money, and she wouldn’t even go out with me properly.”
“……”
“Why are you looking at me like that? Don’t tell me you wouldn’t do the same!”
“I didn’t say anything.”
Suhyun, brushing off Kim Chang-sik’s nonsense, suddenly noticed someone staring at him. Lifting his head, he saw Team Leader Lee So-hee riding ahead on the black bear. At first, he thought she was looking because he had been chatting with Kim Chang-sik. But the moment her eyes met Suhyun’s, she turned her head away.
“…?”
At first, Suhyun thought it was a coincidence, but after it happened a few more times, he felt bewildered.
‘What’s wrong with that person?’
Team Leader Lee So-hee wasn’t shy like Park Soo-yong, so it was hard to believe she would peek secretly and then look away if caught.
While pondering this, Suhyun heard one of the team members ahead exclaim. Looking up, he saw the dense jungle ending and a fairly wide green plain ahead. Red trees stood densely, and in the middle was a lake so clear it looked transparent. Without the surrounding wilderness, it could be mistaken for a resort.
“Wow…”
They had arrived at the designated coordinates.
Within a minute of marveling at the scenery, the team pulled out their scanners. It was beautiful, yes, but they had a job to do.
The principle of the scanner was simple: it scanned the surrounding terrain to detect whether there were resources with stored information. It was an essential device for such tasks.
“Cameron Redwood confirmed. At least we got our initial investment back.”
“Less than the Redwoods, but Cactus Flowers were also detected.”
Reports came in one after another. Seeing that this expedition wasn’t completely in vain, Lee So-hee nodded.
“We’ll go into the forest and verify it.”
“Move in pairs just in case.”
“I’ll go with a rookie.”
At Lee So-hee’s words, Kim Chang-sik grabbed Suhyun’s arm. Suhyun frowned at him; he had been lost in admiration of the scenery, and now Kim Chang-sik suddenly wanted him to come along.
“Why me?”
“You’re the only one who really knows this area. Just in case. The forest itself is probably fine, but you never know.”
Kim Chang-sik seemed so impressed with Suhyun’s performance that he wanted him along even for a short verification. Unknown places frightened everyone.
“I don’t think any resources will disappear just because we go there…”
“Still, we should check thoroughly while we’re here!”
It wasn’t much trouble to go together. Suhyun nodded and fell into step with Kim Chang-sik. The forest ahead was densely packed with red trees. Suhyun lightly tapped one.
Thunk-
‘This is valuable.’
Redwood trees of Cameron. One of the most sought-after woods on Earth. Considering the forest as a whole, its value was unimaginable.
“Are there no monsters wandering in this forest?”
“Judging by the structure, large ones would have difficulty moving. At most, minor ones. And in the Redwood Forest, no venomous snakes or insects have been found…”
“Really? That’s good.”
Inside the forest, they ran the scanner a few times but found no new resources. Kim Chang-sik licked his lips as he looked at the trees. Disappointing, but even these towering trees were worth a lot.
“?”
Looking up, Kim Chang-sik saw something strange: a tree shooting up toward the sky.
“Hey.”
“What?”
“What’s going on with that tree?”
“What nonsense…”
Suhyun turned away, thinking Kim Chang-sik was talking nonsense. But hearing a crashing sound and seeing trees shoot into the sky, Suhyun’s face went pale.
“C-Calcutta Gorilla!”
Even Suhyun, usually unflappable, was shocked. This monster didn’t normally appear in the area. It usually only appeared much deeper inside, and in such small numbers that it was hard to see even if one wanted to.
Suhyun’s shock wasn’t just because it appeared. It was because of its strength. The creature’s nickname was “King of Calcutta,” at the top of the Calcutta food chain pyramid. One alone could devastate its surroundings.
Solid defense, agile mobility, monstrous strength, and ferocity. It had all the traits of a top-tier monster.
Meeting it now was nothing short of a disaster. The only effective weapon available was the black bear. Personal firearms wouldn’t do much damage.
“Run!”
“W-What?!”
Panicked, Kim Chang-sik followed Suhyun. The team near the lake, checking resources, noticed their sprint and immediately sensed something was wrong.
“What’s happening?!”
“Monster! We need to get out of here immediately!”
“Get out? Fight?”
“Impossible!”
At least two or three power armors would be needed to fight it. To hunt with one power armor, a pilot like Suhyun would have to ride it. No matter how skilled Lee So-hee was, she wasn’t on Suhyun’s level, and the black bear wasn’t high-end armor.
Sensing the urgency, Lee So-hee didn’t question Suhyun further. His words carried weight; no one dismissed his advice as a rookie’s.
“Move, now!”
The Calcutta Gorilla was notorious for its rampage. Once enraged, it seemed determined to destroy everything in its path. Uprooting and throwing trees was just one example.
The team scrambled to prepare to move. But the gorilla’s agility exceeded all expectations. With a few leaps, it landed in the open space. The team hadn’t even fully reached the jungle.
Instinctively, they realized the gorilla had spotted them.
“W-What do we do?”
“Open fire! Don’t aim at it, shoot into the air! Make as much noise as possible! Remove the suppressors!”
“What?!”
“Shoot into the air! Don’t aim at the gorilla!”
Unexpectedly, Park Soo-yong was the first to follow Suhyun’s order. Gritting his teeth, he removed the suppressor and fired into the air. The sharp gunfire rang out.
“Damn…!”
No one knew why they were doing this crazy act, but hesitantly, they followed Suhyun’s command. Whether they admitted it or not, Suhyun had a strong influence over them.
Firing warning shots instead of aiming at the gorilla was a desperate measure. The creature was brutal but not stupid. It would first assess the strength of unfamiliar prey.
The team had to appear as loud and threatening as possible to delay the gorilla’s attack. But hitting it directly would provoke an immediate counterattack.
They needed to maintain this standoff and gain distance before entering the jungle, preventing the gorilla from following. Suhyun focused intensely, using psychokinesis. A rock floated into the air behind the gorilla. Even if it didn’t hurt when thrown, it would divert the gorilla’s attention.
Given the distance, Suhyun had to put all his power into it. The psychokinetic force was weak, so even maximum effort felt insufficient.
“Go!”
Thunk!
Instead of a light thunk, a solid thwack rang out. The rock pierced the gorilla’s back. Having never felt real pain, it screamed in agony for the first time.
“?!”
Before Suhyun could even process what happened, he realized the situation had worsened. The gorilla’s eyes began to glow red after taking the first strike.
“…Shit.”
