Chapter 57
The battlefield where Gigant Pep had collapsed.
Shin Chaeyoung arrived swiftly and began all-around healing for the awakened who were moaning everywhere.
She had tried to capture the strange culprit who was torturing an unspecified number of awakened, but the piercing screams spreading in all directions had driven her here instead.
“What did I just see?”
Shin Chaeyoung, pouring out healing factors, recalled the moments just passed with a vacant expression.
Bang!
Suddenly, above Gigant Pep’s head, which was overwhelming the crowd of awakened, a red cloud seemed to shoot out.
Boom!
With a deafening blast, Gigant Pep’s head exploded as if it had been blown apart.
Thud… thud… thud…
From the shattered head of Gigant Pep, black blood poured down like rain. And the blood contained a deadly poison that damaged the lungs.
“Uaaah!”
Simultaneously, agonized screams echoed from all directions.
Awakened drenched in Pep’s blood screamed and rolled on the ground.
“There are… too many injured.”
Shin Chaeyoung injected healing factors with strong detox effects into the injured awakened. A metallic taste of blood lingered on her lips.
Because the number of injured was so high and detoxification is the most time-consuming among healing skills,
healing about twenty awakened poisoned by Pep’s blood at once caused her to feel as if her skin were melting.
“It feels like my bones are burning!”
“I can’t breathe!”
“Somebody save me!”
As the treatment slowed, the moans of the injured grew louder.
Some had already turned pale at the lips; if left like that, they would surely die.
Chaeyoung… Manjae and Eunho are on their way. It will take about 20 minutes for the association healers to arrive.
She called Chohong in the command room, but what came through the receiver was of little help.
I have to make a choice.
Even if she gave her all in injecting the healing factor, only about ten could achieve full detoxification. If she administered it half-heartedly, all twenty poisoned awakened might die.
“I’ll help!”
At that moment, a clear voice tinged with a mechanical tone was heard.
It was the woman wearing the rabbit mask… no, the once-a-day-does-a-good-deed heroine, Ilseon.
“Are they poisoned?”
“Didn’t they run away?”
“I asked if they’re poisoned!”
Shin Chaeyoung nodded at Ilseon’s urgent questions.
“It’s Gigant Pep’s blood poison.”
“Got it. Just buy me a little time. I’ll make an antidote… no, a detox medicine immediately.”
Ilseon hurriedly opened her bag. Inside were bedding sets and various colored bottles.
“Bear with it, even if it hurts a little.”
Ilseon took a syringe from the bedding set and drew blood from nearby poisoned awakened.
Plop.
The blood touched by the poison coagulated like jelly the moment it was drawn.
Ilseon took a large bowl, placed the coagulated blood in it, and began mixing it with the liquids in the bottles.
Shiiiii.
Finally, when the liquids from three bottles were mixed, the coagulated blood turned runny again with a white mist.
“It’s ready!”
Shin Chaeyoung’s pupils widened as she saw this.
“Wait… there’s smoke.”
“The blood’s clear now.”
“Eh? But… still…”
“It’s fine.”
Waving her hand, Ilseon filled a syringe with the combined liquids from the three bottles.
“I’ll start the treatment.”
Before Shin Chaeyoung could respond, Ilseon moved with lightning speed to inject the collapsed awakened.
“Ugh, ughk!”
White smoke began rising from the ears and noses of those injected.
Watching this, Shin Chaeyoung’s eyes twitched slightly.
“Something seems wrong.”
“I told you. This isn’t an antidote—it’s a detox medicine.”
“Uwaaaaah!”
Shin Chaeyoung’s concern became reality.
The injected awakened emitted white steam from their bodies, screaming and rolling on the floor in agony.
“Hrrrgh…”
One, unable to bear the pain, drew the sword at their waist to their neck.
“No!”
Ilseon swiftly snatched the sword.
“Hang on a little! The detox I made will definitely work.”
“Just… kill me…”
“Don’t say that carelessly.”
Ilseon, opening the bedding set from her bag, held a long acupuncture needle bundle in her hand.
“Bear with it until detox works.”
She pierced the backs of the necks of the writhing awakened with the needles.
The struggling awakened froze, like mannequins.
“Krrrgh…”
Feeling intense burning pain, they couldn’t even move a hand.
“Just kill me!”
Shin Chaeyoung finally understood why awakened resisted treatment.
It was a torture-like method that made them experience a lifetime of pain at once in order to save a life—or pushed them to the brink of death again.
“Hmph.”
Watching this from the ruined building, Cheonma shook his head.
“That god… still enjoys torture.”
[Cheonma-nim, what’s going on?]
“What’s there to talk about?”
Mumyeong stared at Cheonma’s hands, still surrounded by flame-like energy.
[Last time you handled Gigant Pep, your destructive power wasn’t this much.]
“Was it?”
[Please control your power from now on. If Ilseon hadn’t been in the dungeon, all the awakened below would have been exposed to Pep’s poison and perished.]
“Hmph.”
Cheonma, adjusting the fox mask on his face, narrowed his eyes.
He had merely used about thirty percent of his power to release the Heavenly Hand technique, but its effect was as if he had gone full power, completely blowing off Pep’s head.
“I’ll be careful.”
After a moment, Cheonma moved toward the ruined building with the secret passage.
Han Manjae and Yoo Eunho arrived.
It would take about an hour for the association healers to arrive.
In the meantime, all the awakened poisoned by Gigant Pep survived.
Not thanks to Shin Chaeyoung or the association healers, but thanks to the detox medicine made by Ilseon.
However, some were mentally drained, some had patchy hair loss, and some were sobbing, saying they would quit being awakened.
“What happened?”
Han Manjae approached Shin Chaeyoung, leaning against the wall with a vacant expression.
“Did the awakened deal with Gigant Pep?”
“No. A red cloud-like thing fell from the sky, and his head just exploded.”
“His head exploded on its own?”
Han Manjae shook his head in disbelief and asked again.
“What about the poisoned patients?”
“They’re all treated.”
“You did that?”
“No. It was the one wearing the rabbit mask.”
“Rabbit mask?”
Han Manjae blinked as Shin Chaeyoung muttered:
“Previously, someone in a teapot mask spread strange medicine to the awakened. Today, they came in a rabbit mask.”
“That person was here?”
Shin Chaeyoung nodded.
“Yes.”
“Where are they now?”
“They left, a while ago.”
Han Manjae looked at her hollow eyes and spoke gravely:
“You just let them go? After causing such a major incident?”
“It wasn’t really an incident.”
“What?”
“She said it was medicine to restore blood and enhance strength, not knowing it amplified aggression as a side effect…”
“Chaeyoung, what do you mean?”
Han Manjae said sternly.
“Regardless of intent, making medicine or treating people arbitrarily is medical law violation. It can put people at risk.”
Shin Chaeyoung, staring vacantly, said helplessly:
“Anyway, lives were saved. No one died.”
“Chaeyoung!”
“I don’t know anymore what’s right.”
Han Manjae softened his expression seeing her empty gaze.
“What really happened?”
“When I was about to leave the rest area…”
She took a deep breath and explained everything to them.
“…In the end, that person saved the poisoned and disappeared again. This time too, they helped people.”
“Chaeyoung.”
Han Manjae looked directly at her confused eyes.
“You’re right, of course. But if more people arbitrarily treat or make medicine, the injured suffer the consequences.”
“Why?”
“Because they don’t take responsibility if things go wrong.”
“Then what about the one living in the rooftop room?”
“What?”
Shin Chaeyoung looked between Han Manjae and Yoo Eunho.
“They’re also a lawbreaker, but they’re tolerated just because they do some good… isn’t it the same?”
Han Manjae and Yoo Eunho exchanged glances and shook their heads.
She was right. Normally, the special response team doesn’t forgive lawbreakers. But as promised, the unregistered awakened in the rooftop room was an exception—because they were extremely strong and did good deeds.
“Sorry, Chaeyoung. You’re right.”
Han Manjae gave a bitter smile and lowered his head.
“We caused you confusion.”
Turning, he said to Yoo Eunho:
“Eunho, I’ll finish here, you go back with Chaeyoung.”
“Yes.”
Han Manjae watched Shin Chaeyoung walk away wearily, guided by Eunho. Suddenly, his temple throbbed.
“Chaeyoung is right.”
Shin Chaeyoung was so cynical she could be called a pessimist. If confused like this, she would leave the team soon.
“There’s only one way, then.”
Han Manjae looked at the distant sky.
The only way to resolve distrust is to verify the reality of the object of distrust directly.
“I’ll have to trust that person at least once.”
Thinking of the towering man with red eyes, he pressed his lips together.
Next day. Special Response Team Villa, 5th floor meeting room.
“Cheonma, the unregistered awakened. Chaeyoung, you decide whether to make an exception.”
This was the conclusion of the special response team’s meeting in the command room.
“You’ll need to see and judge for yourself, of course.”
There was a condition: they had to investigate Cheonma directly, not rely on others’ reports.
Chohong handed Shin Chaeyoung a nano chip recording the appearance of the Ice Golem.
“If you’re not convinced, no need to consult. Report to the association immediately.”
Shin Chaeyoung stared at the chip.
This small nano chip represented the respect and trust her teammates had in her. If she wasn’t convinced, the rooftop awakened wouldn’t be made an exception.
That would cause another problem.
Narrowing her eyes, Shin Chaeyoung, always calm and fearless, finally made up her mind and took the nano chip.
Late Sunday afternoon.
Cheonma, opening the rooftop door, had a strange expression. No one had ever spoken to him like this before.
“Buy me a meal.”
Cheonma’s thought process stopped.
‘Is she crazy?’
But her eyes were clear, and he recognized her. She lived in the building opposite.
“Hmph.”
Searching for a harsh refusal, he came up empty.
Swallowing dry saliva, he spoke again:
“I’m poorly paid.”
He had only thought of saying ‘I have no money.’ Swallowing the foolish words, he continued:
“Go.”
Thud.
But the woman quickly stepped into the closing door.
“Should I report you to the association?”
“What?”
“I saw everything. You sneaking into the dungeon.”
The young woman, Shin Chaeyoung, placed a hologram player in her palm.
Blue light poured into the air, and with a bang, a video of Cheonma destroying the Ice Golem played.
“If I report this, you’ll get fired or deported again.”
Cheonma silently stared at her.
Seeing her eyes, like a blizzard over a winter lake, he sighed.
“Can’t be helped.”
With hands behind his back, he murmured regretfully:
“From ancient times, the way to keep secrets is kill…”
[Cheonma-nim! Stop!]
Mumyeong, watching from behind, ran desperately.
They noticed red flames, Mahwa Heat Extreme, on Cheonma’s fingers.
Kill to seal the mouth. Cheonma intended to protect secrets in the easiest way.
[Let’s go eat!]
Mumyeong jumped and clung to Cheonma’s face.
[Let’s eat something delicious, expensive and tasty.]
“What are you saying?”
[Ha ha ha. You’re the neighbor from the building opposite. Please. Don’t worry about money.]
Mumyeong pressed her round face close to Cheonma’s eyes and whispered:
[Don’t say anything, just buy us a meal, Cheonma-nim.]
Cheonma imagined a waterfall of sweat pouring down Mumyeong’s round face.
[Cheonma-nim. We’ll talk later. Please. Okay?]
Hearing Mumyeong’s desperate whisper, Cheonma nodded in understanding.
“Alright.”
