Chapter 14
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[Take it]
Shit.
Can we find more appropriate words to express the situation in front of us than these two letters?
A gate opened about 10 meters above the ground.
Snails pouring out of there.
Annoyed screams coming from all directions.
“shit! “What is this sticky thing?”
“Don’t jump at me!”
“Please do something about the fucking smell!”
There were already barricades erected around the gate.
Riot police were waiting outside the barricade, and
inside, superhumans from other guilds who arrived before us were fighting.
…correction.
Rather than a battle, it would be more accurate to say that they were holding their noses and randomly hitting a giant snail.
Pow! Bubble bubbling!
Every time the superhumans’ fists, swords, and clubs were swung, the snails exploded like firecrackers, spraying sticky liquid everywhere.
Even the nimblest superhumans couldn’t avoid it all.
“Damn it! “I buried it again!”
“Ouch! It exploded in front of my face!”
“Wow! “Wooweeeek!”
It might be the first time other people had seen this monster, but I knew about that snail.
-Great Snail-
It has a very pretty blue-green shell and a translucent jelly-like body.
Sizes vary from 30 cm to several meters long.
The most notable feature is the tremendous stench emitted when the body explodes.
When it comes to monster questionnaires that superhumans avoid, he is always in the top five.
It was so bad that even the riot police outside the barricade were covering their noses with their hands.
“Whoop whoop!”
Some people were unable to control their nausea and were sleeping on their stomachs.
I summarized this situation clearly and conveyed it to Younghee Baek.
-This is really shit.
“Yes? And those guys look weak and useless. Even if we don’t come forward…”
My opinion was actively ignored.
-No matter how weak you are, you definitely need a sample of the new monster. Please secure at least 3 while maintaining their original form as much as possible.
“…yes yes. All right.”
I sighed and took out the gunny sack from the car.
As we approached the barricade, a police official who was covering his nose with a handkerchief approached us.
“Are you a superhuman?”
I showed him the shoulder straps of the protective clothing I had changed into in the vehicle.
The white protective clothing provided as standard by the guild had the guild’s initials [WH] engraved on it.
“I belong to the White House Guild.”
There was no cumbersome verification process.
Unless you’re crazy, no one would pretend to be a superhuman to get into that disgusting place.
“…good luck.”
We went inside the barricade, leaving the police saying something as if they were wishing us peace.
“Ugh, the smell…”
Next to me, Lily covered her nose with both hands.
I grinned and teased the little boy.
“I can block my sense of smell with mana. Shall I teach you how to do it?”
Of course, it was not a skill that could be learned by teaching it in just a few words.
Blocking the five senses using mana requires precise control, communication skills, and above all, multiple trials and errors…
“Huh? Is this really happening? “It doesn’t stink anymore!”
…Damn talent.
There is a degree of ignoring effort.
Are you going to learn that before the explanation is finished?
Somehow we were able to approach the gate without being bothered by the smell anymore.
I unfolded the gunny sack and walked towards the nearest snail.
“What are they?”
“White House?”
“who is this? “It’s my first time seeing this face…”
The superhumans from other guilds who had come before glanced at us.
There seemed to be a few familiar faces among them, but I ignored them and focused on the mission.
“Let’s catch one first.”
Giant snail.
These guys’ jelly-like skin is very viscous and sticky, and the smaller they are, the more sensitive they are to mana.
Therefore, when mana is used in an attack, the body explodes like a firecracker with even the slightest stimulation.
The irony is that attacks without mana rarely work.
So how do you capture it?
“Let’s do it like this.”
I waved my arm as if lightly stroking a snail that was attacking me with its teeth exposed.
Whirling.
Following the gentle techniques of Tai Chi, the snail flipped over and rose into the air.
The snail, which hovered about 10cm above my palm, swayed back and forth like a fallen leaf caught in a gust of wind, and soon hung its head.
I put the suffocated snail in a gunny sack.
“Phew.”
In fact, I was nervous that I might make a mistake and explode along the way.
It’s been quite a while since I’ve used Tai Chi.
“wow!”
When I turned to the side, I saw Lily looking at me with bright eyes.
“How did you just do that? let me know!”
This kid? Are you trying to rob me of all my money?
I said with a stern expression.
“If you want to learn, pay. 10 billion.”
“How cruel!”
The kid who didn’t have any money in his pocket was constantly pinching my thighs.
Soon the remaining two were captured and placed in a gunny sack. I hung the bulging gunny sack over my shoulder and spoke into the ear microphone.
“Control room. “Samples have been secured.”
-yes? Already?
“We captured exactly three. “When the collection team comes, can I hand this over and leave work?”
Soon Baek Young-hee’s bewildered voice was heard.
-Are you just thinking about getting off work from your first mission? Isn’t it normal to be more nervous and ask questions?
If you have any questions, please ask.
I’ve been rolling on this floor for 20 years.
“well. “It looks like everything on site is being sorted out anyway.”
It wasn’t an excuse to get off work, it was the truth.
Snails were no longer pouring out of the gate, and
the few remaining snails were being hunted at an alarming speed by superhumans sent from other guilds.
Baek Young-hee sighed and said through the earphones.
-Then, please secure a few more specimens. And please wait a little longer at the scene.
I checked the time and said:
“Do you know that if you go past 6 o’clock, you get paid extra?”
-…I hate you.
When I put a few more snails into the gunny bag, there were no more live snails at the site.
Cheezy.
Although I was a little concerned about the state of that gate.
“I think there’s still something left…”
Unfortunately, these premonitions have rarely been wrong in the past.
It was then.
“Hey.”
When I turned my head in the direction I heard the voice, I saw superhumans drenched in snail slime walking in this direction.
There were a total of three guilds that arrived here before us.
Those wearing thick special forces uniforms with the sword and shield logo emblazoned on their backs are the Warriors Guild.
These people, wearing thin suit-style protective clothing with sleeves decorated with gold thread, are members of the Royal Family Guild.
And the superhumans wearing gray protective clothing with black hounds drawn on their backs are the Black Hound Guild.
Especially black hounds.
I found some familiar faces among them and sighed and muttered.
“I see this disgusting relationship here again.”
Team 3 leader of the Black Haunt Guild.
Jang Seok-hyeon, my former boss, looked at the protective clothing I was wearing and said,
“Are you from the White House?”
“yes. By the way.”
“It’s my first time seeing you… Are you a newbie?”
As soon as I nodded, an arrogant look appeared on his face.
The tone of speech suddenly changed to informal speech.
“I heard that Baek Hospital took in a good rookie not long ago. “Are you her?”
‘Baek Hospital’ was a name used by other guilds to disparage the Whitehouse Guild.
The other guild’s superhumans also chuckled at those words.
The number of adepts in other guilds is at least 3 to 5.
On the other hand, there were only me and Lily here, and we were both young, so it was natural that they looked easygoing.
But that doesn’t mean I’m really easy.
“Mr….”
The moment a curse was about to come out of my mouth, Baek Young-hee desperately stopped me.
-manager! Please calm down! I will officially complain to that guild later!
“Huh…”
I took a deep breath, engraving the thought ‘to endure’ in my mind.
okay. Let’s just bear with it for once.
I said, looking around at Jang Seok-hyeon, the few familiar faces behind him, and the other guild’s elites.
“What do you want to say when you come rushing in like this?”
I felt a few people flinch at my words.
I tried to take the lead with numbers, but when I couldn’t get my way, they looked a little embarrassed.
Jang Seok-hyeon cleared his throat and said.
“I heard you used an interesting technique earlier. “Is that your personality?”
It seems to be referring to Tai Chi.
If you count those things as personality, my personality probably exceeds 20.
I nodded half-heartedly.
“however?”
Jang Seok-hyeon’s eyebrows twitched at my informal language, but instead of getting angry right away, he said this.
“…Anything that touches that damn snail explodes. “I barely got a proper specimen…”
Babies. Now that I see it, I came here to express my regrets.
Did you blurt out informal language on that topic?
I said with a grin.
“so?”
Jang Seok-hyun’s eyebrow waves became even more severe.
“Are you short-speaking?”
“You too.”
“This bastard…”
The moment Jang Seok-hyeon rolled his eyes and tried to grab my collar, the team leaders of the other two guilds stopped him.
“Hyung Jang. “Let’s not get excited and just have a conversation.”
“Don’t be too harsh, little friend.”
The Warriors Guild team leader is fat.
Let’s call the Royal Family Guild team leader Holjjuk.
Fat and Slim left Jang Seok-hyeon, who was grinning, behind and started talking.
“As you can see, we fought hard, but everything we touched exploded, so we couldn’t get a sample.”
“It looks like White House has obtained a lot of specimens… I would be very grateful if you could share just one of them.”
“In times like these, isn’t it a tradition and generosity in this industry for people in the same industry to help each other?”
“haha. “Please do me a favor.”
Hitting the bamboo with ease is not a skill that has been done once or twice.
Did these people put iron plates on their faces?
what? This floor tradition? Inseam?
-never!
I knew it even if Baek Young-hee didn’t say it.
The value of new monster specimens cannot be put in monetary terms.
Regardless of whether the monster is weak or strong, if you take it and investigate it, you may discover some uses for it.
So, these people who try to get it by beating it up with a few words are thieves.
I said, adjusting the gunny sack over my shoulder.
“Nope.”
At my words, the expressions of the fat man and the thin man hardened.
“Are you really going to do this? “I’m asking you this.”
“Young friend. “This floor is narrower than I thought.”
Since your request doesn’t work, you come out with conciliation and threats.
Susssseu.
I could feel some superhumans secretly raising their mana.
You probably don’t mean to hurt me.
If that happens, it could lead to a war between guilds.
“Don’t regret it later…”
What they’re after is my gunny sack.
If they don’t get a sample, they’ll probably start a fight with me and explode all the snails in the gunny bag.
If I can’t have it, I won’t let you have it either.
I knew it well because I had experienced it many times in the past before I returned.
But what is different from then
is that the person I am now is not the person I was then.
Tuk.
I said, putting down the gunny sack next to me.
“take it.”
The fat one and the thin one smiled brightly.
Behind them, Jang Seok-hyeon quietly laughed at me.
They seem pretty good.
But what can I do?
I’m not finished talking yet.
Tuk.
I sat down with my butt on the gunny sack.
“If I can take it.”
Their expressions were distorted.
[Take it] End
ⓒ Ganjjajang