Chapter 271: SECOND APOCALYPSE?
KI GAYOON was shocked when he returned to the room where Noh Yuno was supposed to be and didn’t find his lover there.
Moon Noa was the only person in the room.
But...
"Who are you?" Haru asked cautiously. "You’re not Noa-san."
Right?
"Don’t worry. Moon Noa is just ’asleep.’"
The voice belonged to Moon Noa, but not the manner of speaking.
Especially not the ’aura.’
"Are you the System?" Ki Gayoon asked. It was what his gut feeling was telling him. "You look like a walking Core."
In short, that ’person’ was like a huge lump of Mana.
And only the source of Cores could have that amount of Mana in them.
"Yes, I am the System," ’Moon Noa’ confirmed. "I’m just borrowing Moon Noa’s body until I recover—"
"Where is Noh Yuno?" Ki Gayoon asked, cutting off the System because he wasn’t interested in whatever it was saying. "I don’t sense his presence anywhere in the dungeon."
"I sent Noh Yuno to Esper 17."
"Why the fuck would you send Noh Yuno to that bastard?"
"Noh Yuno’s service as an E-Class Guide is needed by the world’s current #1 Esper."
Tsk.
"I got a call from 17 asking for back-up," Noh Yuno said. "Send me there. You shouldn’t have sent Noh Yuno to that bastard alone."
"There’s someone who might need your help, and that’s the reason why I didn’t send you with Noh Yuno," ’Moon Noa’ said. "I’m currently keeping an eye on all natural S-Class Espers with their personal Status Window activated. And it seems like Esper Lee Sarang is in trouble."
Oh.
Whether Ki Gayoon would like to admit it or not, he had a soft spot for Lee Sarang.
She’s the little sister I never had.
Hence, it was natural for him to worry about Lee Sarang.
However...
"Did the kid ask for my help?"
"Huh?"
"I’m asking if Lee Sarang wants my help," Ki Gayoon said calmly. "Our personal Status Window has a call function, right? 17 was able to call me, after all. But Lee Sarang hasn’t reached out to me."
’Moon Noa’ blinked as if he were surprised and confused. "You’re... correct."
"You said Lee Sarang is in trouble."
"The followers of the Virus have found her. I believe those people are after the new vessel of Matthew’s half-Core."
Ah, so the enemies were after Kwon Hojun.
That kid is pretty important to Noh Yuno.
"Don’t underestimate Lee Sarang— she’s the disputed #2 Esper of this country for a reason," Ki Gayoon said. "Let me contact her first."
***
"N-NOONA, there are scary people outside..."
Lee Sarang smiled at Kwon Hojun and Kim Jaeha, who both looked scared at the moment, to assure the kids that everything would be fine.
Yes, there were two strange ’Espers’ who trespassed in the penthouse that their group was using at the moment. She wasn’t sure if those people were Espers because their Mana ’read’ more like Mana that belonged to Guides.
However...
These people are strong.
The young man (well, younger than her) had a cold aura like Lee Sarang.
I can tell that we’re both ice users.
Lee Sarang couldn’t figure out what the young woman’s ability was yet.
However, she could tell that the two intruders were competent— especially if they were brave enough to come at her directly.
They know who I am, and yet they’re not afraid.
Come to think of it, the intruders looked familiar to Lee Sarang.
I’ve definitely seen them before.
"Inwoo-ya, Inkyu-ya, protect Kwon Hojun and Kim Jaeha," Lee Sarang said to the Gu Twins while standing in front of her group protectively. "I will deal with these kids."
The intruders frowned after being addressed as ’kids.’
Lee Sarang said that on purpose to look down on them.
No, I’m not underestimating the enemies— I’m just provoking them purposely.
It was a ’trick’ that she learned from her mentor.
Are you proud of me, Gayoon Oppa?
"Sarang-ssi, be careful," Gu Inkyu said. "I’ll bring the kids to a safe place and try to request back-up."
"If you can’t handle them, please don’t hesitate to call us back," Gu Inwoo said. "Fighting, Sarang-ssi."
Lee Sarang just smiled and waved her hand.
The Gu Twins then quickly escorted Kwon Hojun and Kim Jaeha out of the room.
Fortunately, the enemies didn’t follow the group.
"Esper Lee Sarang-nim, we’re not here to fight," the young woman said calmly. "If you hand over Kwon Hojun to us, we’ll leave quietly."
Lee Sarang smiled, and then she waved her hand.
Just like that, hundreds of ice spears appeared out of nowhere— targeting the two intruders.
It was an ambush attack, but the enemies quickly reacted.
The young man created an ice wall to protect himself and his female companion.
Lee Sarang was satisfied with the result of her ambush.
Yep, confirmed— that boy has the same ability as me.
Yes, that was the reason she attacked first.
I wanted to know if my hunch was right.
Lee Sarang then summoned more ice spears to continue attacking the ice wall.
She knew those ice spears weren’t enough, so she was about to move and directly attack the enemies when her Status Window suddenly appeared before her.
It was a call from Ki Gayoon.
Lee Sarang stopped and answered the call cheerfully. "Oppa."
["Lee Sarang, do you need my help?"]
It was funny how the Status Window worked like a phone.
But...
Gayoon Oppa knows I’m being attacked?
"I don’t need your help, Gayoon Oppa," Lee Sarang said, opening her hand and grabbing the beautiful crystal scythe that materialized out of thin air. She didn’t have time to ask how Ki Gayoon knew about the attack. That could wait. "I can handle this."
["Are you sure?"]
"Oppa, I’m no longer a child. I can fight on my own."
["Remember— make the enemies’ explode first for an instant kill."]
Lee Sarang laughed at Ki Gayoon’s gruesome ’advice.’ "I’ll keep that in mind, Oppa."
***
"CAN YOU put me down now, sir?" Yuno asked politely. "I’d like to assess the situation first."
17, the world’s current #1 Esper, blinked rapidly as if he had just snapped out of his trance.
But the Esper didn’t put him down immediately.
"Just to be sure, you’re Noh Yuno. Right? Ki Gayoon’s exclusive Guide?"
"Yes, sir."
"Oh, he wasn’t lying— you are really pretty. I never really paid attention to your pictures or videos before. But now that I’m looking at you, you’re indeed pretty."
Yuno just raised an eyebrow.
Why does it feel like an insult when a person 10x more good-looking than you compliments you?
Was it just his inferiority complex talking?
Oh, well.
That wasn’t what was important at the moment.
"Sir, let’s save the pleasantries for later," Yuno said, gesturing to the ’humans’ below them. He had to put air quotations because those ’humans’ weren’t acting normal. They were more like... "I want to know if a zombie apocalypse has broken out or something."
"Zombie apocalypse?" 17 asked, confused. And then he suddenly burst out laughing. "Oh, well. I suppose those humanoid monsters look like zombies, indeed."
Humanoid monsters?
Oh, boy.
Yuno could only shake his head.
Yep— the second apocalypse is coming.
***
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