The Returner

Chapter 118: Your heart might stop beating, you see (3)

“Ah....”

Seo Ah-Young let out a resigned gasp after seeing the pillar of light flying rapidly in her general direction. That was the icy Breath the Dragon showed off back in Tokyo. The ray of chilling energy that managed to freeze a city in one go was currently headed straight towards her.

‘Resist it?’

But, how?

Block that accursed ray of pure coldness with her measly little flames?

That was utterly impossible.

In that case, evade?

Knowing the range of the Breath, that too would be quite difficult.

Meaning, all she could do here was to wait quietly for death to arrive.

Gathering these ability users here after going through all that hard work turned out to be in vain. All for nothing.

‘Is this how....’

Would the nation of Korea be able to....

No, could humanity even defend against this monster?

Seo Ah-Young began smiling weakly.

What meaning was there for her to worry about that now? She was going to die soon anyways.

However, she was unwilling to just close her eyes and wait for her death. No, even until the last moment, she would keep her eyes open and take everything in!

Funnily enough, though – what her wide open eyes took in wasn’t her death, but the back of a familiar person’s head.

Yi Ji-Hyuk?!

“Argh!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk arrived in front of her by using ‘Blink’ spell and began waving his hands around like a crazy person.

From the other’s perspective, he must’ve looked like he was having a seizure, but right now, Yi Ji-Hyuk was urgently calculating a magic formula.

“OPEN UP!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

As soon as Yi Ji-Hyuk opened his arms wider, a gigantic black hole opened up right in front of him. And at the same time, another black hole with the exact same size opened up just above that one.

“Eat this!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

The icy Breath got sucked into the black Gate on the bottom and came out from the one on top. Just like that, the icy Breath was sent back to the Zombie Dragon.

Keureuk?

As a payment for not figuring out the situation quickly enough, the Zombie Dragon was struck by its own Breath.

*SFX for the Dragon’s roar*

A thunderous roar exploded out as the Dragon and the ocean around it completely froze up.

The scene of the frozen ocean, and the Dragon standing on it while looking like an iceberg, was a strangely moving sight.

“How’s that for a counter, you son of a b*tch?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk yelled out in elation.

He had perfectly calculated the angles for both the ‘entry’ Gate and the ‘exit’ Gate and successfully reflected the Breath.

This was something only he could do even back in Berafe.

Affeldrichae’s body shuddered after she witnessed the spectacle.

If pulling this feat off was as easy as it looked, then Gates would’ve become the greatest defensive magic spell in Berafe.

But, the matter of instantly calculating the volume of the attack and creating suitably-sized Gates to deal with it right away was an impossible feat even for the Dragons, the creatures often referred to as the originators of all forms of magic.

She found the human species to be surprisingly unfathomable.

At a glance, they seemed to be weak, pathetic, and useless, but....

Every now and then, a human like him would appear out of the blue. An existence capable of making Dragons that live for thousands, tens of thousands of years feel inadequate and low-rent in comparison.

Humans only lived for a short time and therefore burned and flickered even brighter than anyone.

However, not only was this Yi Ji-Hyuk born with a superlative talent in wielding magic, he could also live for a really, really long time for some reason as well.

As a result, his talent far surpassed the realm of excellence and straight into ridiculous over-abundance, instead.

And thanks to that, even Dragons feared and stood in awe of his prowess in magic.

He was an existence that had climbed to the peak where no other creature, never mind another human being, could ever reach.

That was precisely the Bringer of Apocalypse.

His name was Yi Ji-Hyuk.

‘If only he had the supply of necessary Mana....’ (Affeldrichae)

He wouldn’t even need the undying body at all.

If he could get himself another source of endless Mana as before, then Yi Ji-Hyuk would be able to climb back up to the level of being a god once more.

And no sentient creature alive would be able to stop him. The entirety of Berafe tried and eventually failed to do so.

Unfortunately for him, there was no Mana on Earth and therefore, he couldn’t find such an everlasting source even if he tried.

“Mister Yi Ji-Hyuk!!” (Seo Ah-Young)

Seo Ah-Young shouted out with a voice that contained the feelings of how happy she was to see him, how thankful she was of him, and then, even irritation of seeing him!

“Why are you so la....” (Seo Ah-Young)

“Shush.”

Yi Ji-Hyuk covered Seo Ah-Young’s mouth.

“It’s not over yet.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Of course, this wouldn’t be end. No, it was merely the beginning.

The ice encasing the Dragon suddenly began cracking up loudly, and not too long afterwards, a thunderous roar containing the monster’s pure rage resounded out to the world.

*SFX for a loud Dragon roar*

Blocks of ice flew away from the explosion as the Dragon raised its head up high and roared out yet another bout of ‘Fear’.

“Kyyyyaaaahck!” (Seo Ah-Young)

Even Seo Ah-Young screamed and fell as she desperately covered her ears. Several people even dropped dead from this single shot of Fear, too.

“Hah.....”

Yi Ji-Hyuk also felt an immense force slam into him that nearly caused him to vomit blood out of his mouth.

“Wowsers. That was no joke, wasn’t it?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

He hadn’t realised this until now, but after his no-longer-immortal body got struck by that shot of Fear, he definitely could appreciate the immense power of that attack.

The more he saw, and the more he experienced it, the existence called Dragons continued to prove themselves to be a bunch of horrifying creatures. That helped him to realise something else as well.

“....Huh, I used to be someone pretty awesome back then, no?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

I used to play around with real, still-alive Dragons, not some measly undead one, after all.

Ahhh, my dear past.

But, there’s nothing I can do about that now. (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

It was Yi Ji-Hyuk himself who voluntarily threw that away and returned to Earth.

Did he throw that life away because he thought that he’d not need such a power this side? If he knew this sort of events were happening on Earth, could he have willingly throw away that life?

....No.

The end result would have been the same, either way.

He wouldn’t have been able to live like an undying stuffed animal on that side, after all.

Rather than staying frozen as the Bringer of Apocalypse possessing immense power that even his current self found impressive, he’d choose to live on as a human who struggled to barely deal with a single Dragon, instead.

And the consequences of that decision was his to bear, no one else’s.

Yi Ji-Hyuk signaled with his eyes, and the large black hawk carrying Choi Jung-Hoon and the others quickly descended and landed next to him.

“Get ready!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

He shouted at Seo Ah-Young, who was still lying on the ground. She wiped the blood off her lips and resolutely nodded her head.

The Dragon’s icy Breath had utterly frozen the ocean.

Although fighting on top of the slippery, icy surface wasn’t ideal, it was still way better than fighting on top of water!

“Rip it to pieces!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

At Yi Ji-Hyuk’s loud shout, both the Dae-Mang and the Hydra pounced on the Zombie Dragon.

*SFX for the Dae-Mang’s and the Hydra’s roars*

After confirming the beginning of melee, he grabbed the back of Oh-Sik’s neck as the mini-Ogre remained prostate on the ground.

Whimper?

Oh-Sik’s two eyes grew extra large.

“Time to earn your keep! Work for your food, Oh-Sik-ah! Don’t you agree?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Keureureuk?!

Yi Ji-Hyuk began pumping Mana into Oh-Sik’s body as he powerfully chucked the Ogre towards the Zombie Dragon.

Pah-aaahng!

Like a bullet fired from a gun, Oh-Sik flew towards the Dragon.

“Earn your....” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Before he could finish his sentence, the Dragon snapped its head around and confirmed Oh-Sik flying in. Oh-Sik was gradually growing larger and he was in the midst of regaining his original appearance.

....And, the Dragon simply opened its mouth and swallowed that Oh-Sik up.

Eh?

“...............”

Yi Ji-Hyuk stared at that sight with a dazed expression.

“....I wasn’t talking about that kinda food, though.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Not caring whether Yi Ji-Hyuk stood there totally stupefied or not, the Zombie Dragon had truly swallowed up Oh-Sik in one go and was now in the middle of licking its lips.

“O, Ohhhhh-Siiiiik-ahhhh!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s eyes trembled as if an earthquake was erupting underneath his feet.

“Aigoo!! Oh-Sik-ah!! Oh-Sik-ahhhh!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

How could this be..... How is this even possible?!

I went through so much trouble to acquire that pet of mine, yet it’s taken away from me like this?!

You rotten b*stard!! Gimme back my Oh-Sik!!!! (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

“Oh-Sik-ah!! Wait for me! This hyung will rescue you right now!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Rumble!!

Right away, the jet-black Mana began to whip violently around Yi Ji-Hyuk’s body.

“Don’t use magic so recklessly!” (Affeldrichae)

Affeldrichae’s sharp voice dug into his ears; Yi Ji-Hyuk’s expression crumpled as he replied.

“Didn’t you see my Oh-Sik getting eaten by that thing?!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“And have you ever seen an undead digest something before?” (Affeldrichae)

“Eh?”

Now that he heard her, that sort of made sense. What would happen if a walking corpse swallowed down intact ‘food’?

Yi Ji-Hyuk tilted his head.

Wait, so, does that mean it’ll be okay?

No, hang on a minute. Who knows what might happen?! It’s too risky, you know!! (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

“I’ll figure it out after I beat the living sh*t out of it first!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Hearing Yi Ji-Hyuk’s rather straightforward declaration, all Affeldrichae could do was to slowly shake her head.

It seemed that his broken common sense refused to be repaired, even now.

Mana oozing out from his right hand created a huge black magic circle in the air.

“Even if it’s an undead....” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

....It was still a Dragon.

So, he should respond in kind, too.

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s eyes gleamed in icy coldness.

The current condition was ideal, too.

“Go.”

The black magic circle Yi Ji-Hyuk created rose up high in the air, before flying straight towards the Zombie Dragon.

Wuuuooongg!!

The magic circle stopped just short of the Dragon and vibrated harshly, then it began sucking in the surrounding ice.

Seo Ah-Young kept her eyes wide open and stared at that spectacle. Things this guy did always surprised her. That was why she came to a realisation that all she had to do here was to simply observe. That was all.

In the meantime, the magic circle continued to suck in the surroundings ice.

*SFX for ice breaking apart*

Ice blocks cracked apart and broke into pieces as they got sucked into the magic circle, and soon enough, a rough shape began forming there.

“A Golem.” (Affeldrichae)

Affeldrichae frowned slightly.

The metal giants that stood at the forefront of Yi Ji-Hyuk’s advancing army in the past. His nightmarish army and its soldiers that possessed overwhelming physical strength, yet also able to almost completely resist against all magic types.

Just how many nations and Dragons fell helplessly in front of these metal giants in the past?

Those were some unpleasant memories to recall, indeed.

Eventually, an ice giant revealed itself to the world.

*SFX for grinding noise*

Its joints began rubbing against each other and issued loud screeching noises. An ice giant as tall as 30 metres high punched the side of the Zombie Dragon’s head, hard.

SLAM!!

The undead Dragon with a size rivalling a mountain momentarily became airborne and flew away from the impact.

“Keuh!”

Yi Ji-Hyuk began trembling in excitement.

Yeah, that’s right! This is how it’s supposed to be!

Woah, I feel so refreshed after that! (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

“Trample on that thing!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

The ice giant jumped in the air, then landed straight down on the Dragon and began trampling on it.

*SFX for things and bones breaking*

The chest area of the Dragon caved in and black blood exploded out from its mouth like a broken fountain.

“There you go!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

It was here that Choi Jung-Hoon sidled up closer and spoke to Yi Ji-Hyuk.

“By the way......” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

“Yeah?”

“If you step on that thing like that, what happens to Oh-Sik trapped inside?” (Choi Jung-Hoon)

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s eyes began trembling once more.

“A, aigooooo!! Oh-Sik-ahhhh!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Choi Jung-Hoon could only click his tongue in disbelief.

Was this d*mn guy trying to save the Ogre, or trying to kill it? It wasn’t as if he was going for “Now that things have come down to this, I’ll be the one to finish you off” either.

“Euhahhhhh! You d*mn rotting Dragon b*stard!! I shall avenge Oh-Sik’s sacrifice!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

It was you who did that, you crazy f*ck!! (Choi Jung-Hoon)

*SFX for the Dragon’s roar*

Another shot of icy Breath left the Dragon’s maws and enveloped the ice giant.

“You think covering something made up of ice with ice will work.... Eh? Huh?! Eeeeeh?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

....Ice can be frozen, too?

Hul....

What kinda situation is this? (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

The extreme coldness of the Breath caused the ice giant’s body to freeze solid and it began cracking apart.

“Seriously, man. These things called Dragons, really now....” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

This was why these things were able to hinder Yi Ji-Hyuk for a thousand years.

Yi Ji-Hyuk raised both of his hands and began constructing one more magic circle. In order to kill that Dragon, he needed something even bigger!

“Keuk!”

However, his arms fell and he crumpled down to his knees.

“Mister Yi Ji-Hyuk!” (Affeldrichae)

“Cough!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Dark-red blood began spilling out endlessly from his nose and mouth.

‘Not enough!’

He didn’t have enough Mana.

He ate up that many Drakes, yet he simply did not have enough Mana. It was simply not enough!

Yi Ji-Hyuk’s trembling eyes shifted towards the Zombie Dragon.

He was on the brink.

He knew that a moment like this one would come sooner or later, but to think, that moment would be today.

Without Mana, Yi Ji-Hyuk proved to be just a normal human being.

Come on. Think.

How do I overturn this situation..... (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)

“...The Gate?” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Suddenly, Yi Ji-Hyuk’s eyes began gleaming dangerously.

“Affeldrichae!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Yes?” (Affeldrichae)

“What were the things you need to open a Gate like that? You know, the one that keeps getting larger.” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Mana crystals or artifacts.” (Affeldrichae)

“That’s right! That’s it!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Whichever it was, they would be made up Mana! Yi Ji-Hyuk turned his head around and called for Seo Ah-Young.

“Seo Ah-Young!!”

“Yes?”

“Delay that thing for a while!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Hul.”

What did this mad fool say just now?!

You telling me to fight that thing?

That monster? (Seo Ah-Young’s inner monologue)

Seo Ah-Young began laughing in sheer bitterness.

Here she was, thinking that she made the right choice not to recklessly charge in, but now, was he telling her to do exactly that and kill herself while she was at it?

“Impossible.” (Seo Ah-Young)

“Just for a little while! I won’t take long!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“But, that little while is....” (Seo Ah-Young)

Hah. I shouldn’t even bother.

Telling Yi Ji-Hyuk to do everything all by himself is just as crazy, isn’t it. (Seo Ah-Young’s inner monologue)

Seo Ah-Young clapped her eyes on the spectacle of the ice giant trying its best to squash down on the Zombie Dragon as its body continued to crack apart, as well as the Dae-Mang tightly wrapping around the undead’s torso, and finally, the Hydra desperately chomping down on the rotting flesh.

“Shorty!!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

Jeong Hae-Min hurriedly jogged towards Yi Ji-Hyuk from afar. He didn’t even wait for her to offer her hand and simply rushed to her in order to scoop the girl up.

“Let’s go!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“T, to where?!” (Jeong Hae-Min)

“To Tokyo! Where the Gate was!” (Yi Ji-Hyuk)

“Okay!” (Jeong Hae-Min)

Jeong Hae-Min and Yi Ji-Hyuk both went poof from the spot.

Seo Ah-Young quietly stared at the now-empty spot for a little while, before shifting her gaze away.

....Towards the other NDF agents and their dazed expressions.

“....Can we do this? Delay the monster?” (Seo Ah-Young)

“..........”

“We can, right?” (Seo Ah-Young)

“...........”

“We can, surely. Probably....” (Seo Ah-Young)

What a rotten b*stard.

Seo Ah-Young shook her head in resignation.

< 118. Your heart might stop beating, you see -3 > Fin.