Chapter 52 - Someone's Here
If the name Albus rings a bell, it's because Jin knows it well.
Albus was a man from the resistance group who helped Jin with his illegal entry into Mute Town some time ago.
Their connection didn't end there, though.
During the ten days Jin spent recovering from his injuries at the resistance's base, he had built a fairly solid friendship with Albus.
So, Jin dismissed the status window with a quick swipe.
He didn't need to see this.
He was already set on going.
"Hm. Do I just input these coordinates into the navigation like this?"
"Jin?"
Jin was copying the coordinates when Po looked at him with an incredulous expression.
"It's better to check the situation first. We should figure out who sent the coordinates before—"
"This... if I paste them here... there, done."
By the time Jin entered the destination into the navigation, he stood up from the sofa and spoke.
"Oh, this is from someone I know."
"...?"
Po was momentarily stunned by Jin's confident tone.
Meanwhile, Jin bent down, grabbed a cookie from the plate, and turned to wave.
"I'm heading out."
With that light farewell, Jin walked out of the shop.
In the unexpected situation, Po remained in place, and as he did, the briefing room door opened with a click.
"Jin, I found some requests that might be good for you... Where'd he go?"
Khalifa's voice came from behind a stack of files, peeking out.
Po kept his gaze fixed straight ahead and spoke.
"...He went to Mute Town."
***
Vroom!
The Manticore roared down the road.
Jin leaned his upper body to one side, resisting the air resistance that slammed into his body.
As the vehicle entered the highway, it accelerated without hesitation, the speedometer needle spinning clockwise.
At some point, Jin's gaze, fixed ahead, caught sight of the right corner of his helmet visor.
[Khalifa]
With a soft vibration, the familiar name appeared.
The helmet had wireless call functionality, and the incoming call was displayed on the device.
"Yeah, what's up?"
As soon as he answered, Khalifa's voice filled the tight space inside the helmet.
"Jin? Where are you right now?"
"I didn't get to say goodbye. I'm on the highway, heading to Mute Town."
"Why are you going there?"
"I think a friend I owe a favor to is in danger."
There was a brief pause.
When the line seemed to cut off, Jin glanced back up at the visor, which still displayed [...Kalifa...].
"Khalifa?" Jin called.
"You know what the situation in Mute Town is like, right?"
"Yeah. I heard the civil war got worse."
"It's not just worse. It's beyond that. Finding a safe place is getting almost impossible."
"Is it really that bad?"
"TB is now hunting down the resistance. They're being extreme. If they find someone hiding among the civilians, they don't just extract them— they drop bombs on the area."
"Is that a metaphor? Or is it for real?"
"I wish it were a metaphor. The civilians have stopped helping the resistance. They can't afford to risk their own lives like that."
Another short silence followed, and Khalifa sighed faintly.
"You're still going, though, right?"
"Of course."
"I knew you would."
There was a slight smile in Khalifa's tone.
Jin chuckled softly.
"You called just to say that?"
"Be careful of Taha. No matter what anyone says, that guy is the real deal."
Taha.
The leader of TB.
A lion-man, towering above everyone.
Jin nodded.
"I'll be careful."
"Alright, then. Good luck."
Click.
The phone call ended, and the sound of wind rushed into Jin's ears.
He accelerated, pushing the Manticore to go faster.
Once again, Jin found himself unable to enter Mute Town through the usual means.
By all standards, he should have passed through the gate, but he was certain TB's forces had already set up a tight blockade there.
He had learned about it through the news.
The warlord factions had completely sealed off the district with military power.
A gang, once nothing more than a small-time menace, declaring martial law?
It was laughable.
But what could be done?
TB had amassed that kind of strength.
Thus, Jin turned to a back alley.
Relying on his memory, he walked down the narrow path, unsure how far he had come.
The smell grew stronger, and soon he could see an old sewer system.
He had found it.
This place, where he had first met Albus, was now etched into his memory as the site of their first encounter.
Jin parked his bike nearby.
He removed his helmet, and the now-darkened sky seemed to weigh on him.
The stench grew worse, stinging his nose.
What's that?
Jin frowned.
Dead bodies were floating on the stagnant wastewater, their bloated forms drifting with the current.
The nauseating odor didn't just come from the sewage; something else lingered, more grotesque than he expected.
As he moved closer to examine the bodies, it became even more horrific.
The once-living faces?
Of course, there were none.
Most people wouldn't understand, nor would they want to, the horrifying appearance of a drowned body.
The swollen, ruptured skin made it impossible to feel any respect for the deceased.
Even if it were family, instinctively, you would hold your breath and turn away.
It was a mixture of self-loathing and disgust.
This was precisely why bodies of the drowned were never shown to their families.
But Jin didn't look away.
It wasn't because he had a strong stomach; it was because the tactical vests on the bodies were strangely familiar.
He instantly recognized the brown tactical gear—they were worn by the resistance.
Without much thought, Jin made the connection: these were resistance fighters.
Had they been swept away by the polluted water in the sewer, or had TB discarded them here?
It didn't matter either way.
"..."
Without a word, Jin turned his gaze away and looked at the Manticore.
From here on out, the wheeled beast couldn't pass through.
Leaving it behind was unsettling, but what choice did he have?
There was no safe place to park in the city anyway.
But since this sewer was on the outskirts of the city, it was a relatively quiet spot, so he had to trust it would be unnoticed.
And so, Jin proceeded into the sewer.
He pulled his helmet tightly down again.
It wasn't a gas mask, so it wouldn't offer much protection, but it was better than exposing his face.
He walked along the foul-smelling path, and after a while, found a ladder leading up to the surface.
Without hesitation, he climbed it.
Thump!Creeeak!
The sound of metal scraping echoed as the manhole cover was pushed aside.
Jin only stuck his head out and quickly scanned the area.
After confirming that no one was around, he pulled himself out, replaced the manhole cover, and stood in the quiet alley.
His eyes turned to the device in his hand.
The navigation system displayed the estimated time, 3 hours and 23 minutes.
Walking would take too long.
It had already been over seven hours since he received the message.
He couldn't afford to waste more time, so he naturally lengthened his stride.
His footsteps grew faster, and before long, he was sprinting through the night streets.
Thud-thud-thud!
His human limits were far surpassed as his speed increased beyond normal human ability.
The scenery around him changed in an instant.
He quickly passed through a shadowy alley, broke through a factory responsible for the sewage, and raced down a street lit by scattered streetlights.
As he ran, the remaining time on his navigation system began to drop exponentially.
[3 hours 23 minutes][2 hours 55 minutes][2 hours 11 minutes].........
***
A round light moved, scanning every direction.
Up, down, left, right.
The light, slowly probing the darkness, stopped in front of a crumbling, broken exterior wall.
It shifted again, scanning up and down.
A soldier, noticing a tall, abandoned building, clenched his fist with his opposite hand.
His comrades, trailing behind him, naturally came to a halt.
Click.
As the light turned off, the soldiers lowered their night vision goggles attached to their helmets.
In the center of their helmets was the same mark.
Three diagonal scratches, as though torn by a beast's claws.
The Beast.
Step by step.
The soldiers from TB slowly entered the abandoned building.
At the very rear of their group stood a man, his glowing eyes scanning the building without the aid of night vision, as the fluorescent light reflected in his gaze.
***
"…They've arrived."
A quiet mutter.
The woman, peering through the broken window, quickly lowered her head.
At the same time, those scattered around the small room, lying or leaning against various surfaces, turned their attention to her.
One of them asked,
"How many?"
"A squad, maybe. The problem is that there are high-ranking officers mixed in. I think they saw me… Shit, I don't know."
The high-ranking officers of TB were, of course, beastmen.
Human weapons born from serum injections, they were the founding members who shaped the current TB.
Naturally, the expression on everyone's face darkened.
And that included Albus, who was absentmindedly fiddling with his deactivated terminal.
The woman spoke to him.
"...Rescue is impossible, right?"
"Of course. The base is destroyed. They won't be able to focus on us."
"Shit. This fucking hell."
The woman cursed, clutching her hair in frustration.
"If only Oren hadn't been killed by Taha. How did it…?"
"It's already over."
Albers answered in a deliberately calm tone, though he too felt a gnawing emptiness inside.
Oren Palmer.
The core force of the resistance, a Level 5 solo psychic.
He was defeated by Taha.
The fragile balance that had barely been maintained collapsed, and now, with everyone scattered, it was uncertain how many would survive.
Overwhelmed by the hopeless situation, Albus nervously bit his bottom lip when—
"Albus."
At the sound of his name, Albus turned, catching something that flew towards him.
Slowly, he spoke.
"...The firing device? Why are you giving this to me?"
The man with the beard, who had extended his hand, smirked.
"Well, you're the one most injured. If we all die, press it. We need to take out the officers."
Albus hesitated, staring at the device in his hand.
When they had first taken refuge in the building, they had installed a bomb, just in case the worst came to pass.
If things got out of control, they had agreed to activate it and go out together.
At the time, they hadn't expected to actually use it.
Shit.
With a bitter smile, he nodded.
"Alright."
"Then, let's move."
At that, someone spoke, and the people in the room rose, responding by moving toward their prearranged positions.
A short while later, Albus, now alone, placed his hand on the bandaged wound on his stomach.
Then, a series of gunshots rang out from beyond the corridor.
"Stop them! Kill them!"
Albers remained calm.
He had already resigned himself to death.
His only role now was to be the last.
Thus, he cleared his mind, feeling strangely at peace.
Should he press it as soon as they came into the room?
Or delay with conversation first?
Which of the officers should he target?
Just then, his terminal blinked, and he recalled hastily connecting to the solo intranet just before it powered down.
He had sent coordinates to the two remaining contacts, but now, thinking about it, he felt it might have been pointless.
For a moment, he shook off the doubt and gripped the device tightly.
The gunfire, which had been intense, slowly began to subside.
Just then, his thumb slowly hovered over the button.
Bang—!!
The deafening sound of a gun echoed through the building.
"...Huh!"
Albus, startled, almost applied pressure to the thumb that was hovering over the button.
He turned his head quickly, and once again, the sound of the gunshot rang out.
Bang—!!
The noise outside the door grew louder.
Moments later, the door crashed open, and two figures entered the room: a woman and a bearded man.
Both of them were gasping for breath, opening their mouths as they spoke.
"What's happening?"
"Someone's here!"
Albus, his mind briefly going blank, pulled his thumb away from the button and asked, "What do you mean?"
"Exactly what I said. Someone's here, but we're not sure if they're on our side. The problem is, they're wearing helmets, so we can't make them out—"
Before the woman could finish her sentence, a deafening gunshot rang out.
"Shit!"
Reflexively, both the woman and the bearded man aimed their guns at the now-open door.
Albus blinked in confusion.
A helmet?
Who could it be?
The only person who should be here now is...
As the thoughts raced, the sound of gunfire grew nearer.
Soon, the screams that had echoed down the corridor faded, replaced by the sound of something crashing violently.
The terrifying noise of walls breaking, shattering, and crumbling filled the air, and the expressions of the three resistance members gradually stiffened.
"What... what the hell is going on?"
The bearded man, tense and swallowing dryly, braced himself when—
Bang!
With a loud thud, the wall shook violently.
The force of the shock was so strong that dust rained down from the ceiling.
But that wasn't the end.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
With each successive shock, the wall cracked and shattered—Albus, eyes wide, placed his hand on the firing device when—
Boom—!!!!
With a deafening roar, the wall exploded into pieces.
In the split second, the world seemed to slow as a figure, cloaked in violet sparks, slammed a hyena-like head into the floor.
Like a giant hammer falling, a deep crater formed where the figure landed.
Amidst the bloodstains and shredded flesh at the center of the destruction, the figure slowly began to rise.