Chapter 178: Great Invasion (3)

Facing the gazes directed at me from all around, I simply stood there.

I had said everything I needed to say.

Now all that remained was to wait for the result.

The soldiers around me also looked unsure of what to do. They seemed to be urgently contacting someone somewhere.

Not long after, a car arrived nearby.

A soldier hurriedly got out, approached me, and saluted.

“Loyalty! I am Colonel Park Se-hyeok, commander of the 23rd Rapid Response Brigade in Gangneung!”

“...Hello.”

I held out my hand to him.

“I-It is truly an honor to meet you like this. Thank you, as always, for your dedication to humanity.”

He bowed deeply as he shook my hand with both of his, then cautiously asked me.

“If there is anything we can do to help, please tell us. Just a moment ago, an order was issued as an army-wide directive that nearby military units are to cooperate with Person123 to the best of their ability as soon as they arrive at the scene.”

It was more or less what I had expected, so I answered immediately.

“Please have the civilians move at least 100 meters away from the rift. All the soldiers too.”

More and more people were gathering around.

There was no way to know what the result of Battlefield 3’s vote would be, but if the rift opened, monsters could immediately come pouring out.

There was still plenty of time left, but I had the people move farther away in advance.

Except for the reporter who had lent me the microphone and the cameraman.

In the meantime, it seemed people from the Climber Administration had arrived this time.

Among the Climbers urgently approaching this way, I saw a familiar face. It was Section Chief Shin.

“I am Section Chief Shin Su-jin of the Climber Surveillance Division, Special Climber Agency.”

Section Chief Shin approached me and greeted me as though we were meeting for the first time.

Come to think of it, does this person never get promoted?

She has still been a section chief ever since the first time I saw her.

'Does she deliberately refuse promotions so she can stay in the field?'

Brushing aside the random, pointless thought that suddenly occurred to me, I exchanged greetings with Section Chief Shin.

“Is there anything the Climber Administration can help with? We will do everything we can...”

“It’s fine. Please just help control the civilians.”

Section Chief Shin looked at me with concern in her eyes.

As though asking whether I was really going to be all right.

I nodded once as if to say that I would be fine.

The people from the Climber Administration also moved away from me.

I raised the microphone again and spoke.

“I will say this one last time. Please trust me. I will stop them.”

I made one final appeal to the Climbers.

Hoping that they would trust me and make the choice that could save hundreds of millions of people.

I handed the microphone back to the reporter.

“Thank you. It will be dangerous now, so please move far away.”

“Y-Yes!”

The reporter also looked at the camera with a solemn expression and said.

“Right now, here before us, humanity’s savior stands alone facing the rift in order to save Europe from this crisis. As a fellow member of humanity, I too sincerely ask the hundreds of thousands of Climbers in Battlefield 3 to please follow his noble will...!”

I looked around and confirmed that everyone had moved far away.

I took an item out of Subspace.

[Item: Saint Shurian’s Necklace]

A necklace containing the blessing once used by Shurian, leader of the Holy Empire. The power of the necklace can be used to deploy the ‘Cradle of Light’. The Cradle of Light has a radius of 100 meters and blocks entry and exit between the inside and outside. The user and targets the user recognizes as allies gain a 10% increase in Physical Ability while inside the Cradle. Once the Cradle is deactivated or destroyed, it can be used again after 24 hours. Willpower can be consumed to restore the Cradle’s durability.

The reward I had obtained after clearing Floor 14.

FWAAAAASH!

When I deployed the Cradle of Light, a faint golden barrier spread widely over a radius of 100 meters.

With this, I would completely block off the rift without letting even a single monster escape.

Of course, that was only if the Climbers of Battlefield 3 chose Open...

Left alone, I looked at the rift before me.

As more time passed, helicopters began gathering too, and things outside the barrier became chaotic.

Good thing I deployed the Cradle in advance before things turned into an even bigger mess.

[Remaining time: 59 seconds]

The votes for Battlefield 1 and Battlefield 2 had both ended with Do Not Open.

And now Battlefield 3’s vote was just about to end.

The time ran out...

[Battlefield 3 voting has ended.]

[Vote Results]

Open: 130,759 votes

Do Not Open: 70,156 votes

[Voting has ended.]

...Looking at the message that appeared, I felt a deep sense of relief inside.

'It worked.'

We had made it past the biggest hurdle.

The Climbers of Battlefield 3 had made the choice for humanity.

Now all that remained was for me to stop them.

The ten million monsters that would pour out over 72 hours.

[Battlefield 3’s Dimensional Rift will open.]

CRRRRRAAAACK-

The rift was dozens of meters wide and tall.

The crack hanging in midair began to split open with a grotesque sound.

Beyond the space being torn apart like paper.

All that could be seen on the other side was pitch-black darkness.

I summoned Plli.

I deployed Scorching Zone and Frost Mist at the entrance of the rift, then activated Life Devour as well.

And in both hands, I gripped the Sword of Heaven’s Gatekeeper and the Sword of Light.

I finished preparing to meet the enemies.

'They’re coming.'

Along with an overwhelming number of presences.

Monsters poured out of the entrance of the rift as though surging backward through it.

I cast Elemental Arrow Barrage to welcome them.

BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM-!

Dozens of volleys of arrows imbued with the fire element caused chain explosions.

The instant the monsters that had crawled out first were vaporized, dozens more monsters immediately poured out.

After following up with Flame Strike, I launched myself forward too.

The Sword of Heaven’s Gatekeeper wrapped in Heavenly Aura Blade, and the Sword of Light.

With the two swords in both hands, I began indiscriminately crushing the monsters.

Crushing was literally what it was.

The level difference made it impossible for me to take damage anyway, so I only kept Skin Hardening active and did not bother defending or evading.

Ogres, giant spiders, minotaurs, swarms of wasps, horned kangaroos, werewolves, ice golems, cyclopes, cerberuses, lightning spirits, mechanical lobsters, and so on...

The monsters came in all kinds of varieties.

The trash among the trash mobs in the lower level ranges were filtered out first by the Scorching Zone and Frost Mist at the entrance of the rift.

The monsters that broke through those were swept away as I fired magic and danced through them with my swords.

The Cradle of Light’s 10% Physical Ability increase buff, the effect of Life Devour, and on top of that, Enhancement activated all the way to its maximum.

Just colliding with my body caused monsters to burst like water balloons. That was how great the level difference was.

The bodies of the monsters that had been ground apart and burst open scattered like smoke after some time, and new monsters immediately filled their places again.

GRRRRRRRR-

In the middle of it all, enormous hands suddenly emerged on either side of the split rift.

An enormous lava giant tried to force its body through the rift, as though the opening that was dozens of meters wide was too narrow. It seemed to be a Level 100 monster.

I leaped high into the air and dropped the newly obtained Plasma Bomb skill onto it.

FLASH-!

With a flash, an enormous mass of lightning exploded.

Not only the lava giant, but every monster that had emerged was vaporized in an instant.

I stepped on Air Walk, descended, and swept away the monsters pouring out again.

I had ordered Plli to take care of any monsters I missed...

But there was no need. Not a single one had managed to get away from the area around the rift.

At most, only dozens of monsters per second were coming out of the rift.

My firepower was far more overwhelming than that.

Even if a monster somehow got past me, it would not be able to break through the Cradle of Light.

Once used, it remained active permanently unless it was destroyed or deactivated, and I could continuously restore its durability with my Willpower.

Now all I had to do was keep fighting like this for 72 hours.

Stamina?

Not a problem.

Life Devour was endlessly absorbing the life force of the dead monsters. There was no chance my stamina would run out.

Sleep was not a problem either.

I could simply endure 72 hours.

Even back when I was below Level 100, I had stayed awake for several nights before, and even then, all I had felt was a little tired.

Now that I was close to Level 200, three days was nothing. It was no problem at all.

BOOOOM!

I unleashed Decisive Strike and ground the monsters apart all at once.

I killed monsters over and over again with an empty mind.

Had I killed around ten thousand by now?

The long battle had only just begun.

***

“...We have to support Person123! Immediately!”

After Person123 personally appeared at the rift in Gangneung, the South Korean government was in chaos.

Every available military force hurriedly moved to the scene, and the United States Forces Korea also mobilized.

Calls regarding military support flooded in through hotlines from China, Japan, Russia, and North Korea as well.

In any case, there was only one objective. They had to help Person123 somehow.

Person123 had declared that he would deal with all ten million monsters by himself, but that did not mean they could actually just stand by and do nothing.

If Battlefield 3’s rift really opened, everyone included in Battlefield 3 would have to do everything in their power to stop them.

The scene at the rift in Gangneung was nothing short of chaos.

“We can’t approach because of the barrier!”

“...Person123! Please listen to us!”

Politicians and military commanders who had arrived a step late, Climbers who had voluntarily come forward to help Person123, and even believers of the Church of Person123.

All of them were blocked by the enormous barrier and could not even approach Person123.

All they could do was endlessly watch from beyond the barrier.

“...It seems he really intends to fight all ten million by himself.”

The Climbers of the Climber Surveillance Division, including Shin Su-jin, were also watching the situation from one side.

One of the agents spoke with a face full of anxiety.

“W-Will he really be okay? Even if it’s Person123, is this really possible?”

Setting the monsters’ levels aside, according to the rule, did that not mean he would have to fight for 72 hours without even resting?

No matter how superhuman Person123 was, it was hard to believe such a thing was truly possible.

Shin Su-jin also wore a rigid expression like the other agents.

Of course, she firmly believed in Person123.

He had already performed miracles countless times, and he was someone whose limits she could not even begin to fathom.

But if, by even the slightest chance, something went wrong... when that happened, she would protect him no matter what, even if she had to throw away her own life. Shin Su-jin could only steel herself with that resolve.

All the time passed.

[Battlefield 3’s Dimensional Rift will open.]

In the end, as a result of the vote, Battlefield 3’s rift opened.

“T-The rift is tearing open right now...!”

The broadcasting station cameras zoomed in past the barrier and transmitted the scene.

The tearing rift, and Person123 standing alone before it, using some kind of skills, summoning an enormous monster beside himself, and holding swords in both hands.

And in the very next moment, monsters poured out of the rift.

Person123’s battle began.

“...!”

Slaughter.

That was the word everyone thought of once the battle began.

Enormous explosions erupted one after another, flames surged up, and electricity crackled.

Amid it all, Person123 moved at a speed impossible to follow with the naked eye, grinding the monsters apart like a blender with his twin swords.

Even the agents of the Climber Administration watching could not close their mouths.

This was... literally a one-sided slaughter.

An overwhelming number of monsters poured out of the rift, but Person123 was killing them far faster than they could emerge.

It looked as though every monster was dying before it could get even 10 meters away from the rift.

The sight was being broadcast live across the entire world.

Until now, only an extremely small number of Climbers had ever personally seen Person123 fight.

People were deeply shocked.

[MonkeyKing: Holy shit... Is this Person123’s power?]

[Tiv: He’s just bombarding them with Magic skills while fighting? How is that possible?]

[Positive: That isn’t even his full power. You guys just didn’t see the Joint Battle]

[DecisiveStrike: Didn’t they say the monsters could be as high as Level 100...? They’re just getting wiped out the moment they come out?]

[All: Kyahahahahaha the monsters are all exploding! Go Person123!]

[Scissors: So this is humanity’s strongest Climber... I can only worship]

As the entire world watched in shock.

Monsters continued pouring endlessly out of the rift, and Person123 continued killing them endlessly.

- It has now been one hour since the rift opened. Person123 is still fighting and appears to be in perfect condition...!

People trembled at the overwhelming power displayed by humanity’s savior.

But as time passed, they gradually began to worry.

Would he not get exhausted? Could he really keep fighting like that without resting?

But two hours passed, then three.

More than half a day passed, night fell, and the sun rose again.

Person123 was still fighting exactly as he had at the beginning.

Without resting for even a single second.

[Honey: Jesus... Is Person123 really no longer human?]

[Thomas: It’s been 24 hours now. And Person123 still looks perfectly fine.]

[MilitaryMerit: Does he not get tired? Does he have some kind of skill that gives him infinite stamina?]

[Sandrigos: Person123, he is a god! He is a god! He is a god! He is a god! He is a god! He is a god! He is a god!]

[Fondue: At this rate, he really is going to kill all ten million by himself... Huh...]

[Yuruka: I told you. I told you not to doubt Person123]

[BangBang: Wow, is this actually possible? There are still another 48 hours left though]

[Equation: You’ve seen this much and you still doubt him? Hahaha. Just keep doubting him for the rest of your li~fe. Person123 is a god!]

[GreatPerson123: Worship Person123. Revere Person123. He transcended humanity and became a god long ago]

Person123 had already performed countless miracles until now.

But this moment could not help but strike people differently, because everyone was watching the site of that miracle directly with their own two eyes.

There had not been even the slightest exaggeration or lie in Person123’s words.

He truly was trying to kill ten million monsters by himself. Without a single human casualty.

“Ahhh, savior of humanity! God of our humanity...!”

Believers of the Church of Person123 were praying before the barrier Person123 had deployed.

As time passed, more and more people joined them.

Even civilians who had not originally been believers knelt down as though entranced and began joining in the prayers for their savior.

Amid the support and awe of all humanity, Person123 did not stop and continued killing the monsters pouring out of the rift.