Sung Joon quickly entered the mansion. The guards patrolling the vicinity greeted him as well.
Sung Joon roughly nodded his head as a reply and gathered Zelos, Jung Chul, Shin Chul, and Jang Hoon together.
Fortunately, they hadnât been attacked when Sung Joon called them.
They had noticed the defensive spells that Zeloâs had placed all over the mansion and were adjusting their plan accordingly.
âIs Russia gunning for you again, Sung Joon?â Jang Hoon asked. Like always, he skipped the pleasantries and asked straightforwardly. Sung Joon liked that about him.
âNo⌠they are different this time.â
âIf theyâre not from Russia, then where are they from? How dare they attack youâŚâ
Jang Hoon was infuriated, as though they were attacking him. Sung Joon didnât reply immediately; instead, he gazed at Zelos. Jang Hoon didnât notice, but Zelos,who felt Sung Joonâs gaze upon him, lowered his head and his lips slightly budged.
âI apologize, Sir Kang Sung Joon.â
It was message magic. Because Sung Joon was incapable of using such magic, he didnât reply. Instead, he drew his sword and turned his attention to Shin Chul.
Shin Chul, feeling his gaze upon him, raised his radio and spoke.
âIâll tell the guard team.â
âTheyâll probably know, but try to keep it discreet.â
If Zelo was correct, then there was a high possibility that the Empire sent either the Pan-Dimensional Task Force or its special forces.
And because these forces specialized in ambushing their opponents, once they saw the guardsâ movements change, they would know that theyâve been discovered.
âIâll give them the order.â
Shin Chul brought the radio to his lips. Eventually, the guards began to discreetly set up defensive formations. However, just as Sung Joon had expected, this was their enemiesâ forte.
They were still stealthed, but because they had already taken every possible situation into account, they didnât even make any signals and moved with perfect order into their ranks. It seemed like they had set the time for the attack, as they didnât make the first move.
Rishubalt reported this fact to Sung Joon.
âTheyâre moving. Get ready to fight.â
Sung Joon commanded everyone. There were guards on every rooftop and guard tower with machine guns at the ready.
The guards sported uneasy expressions and struggled against their fear. Then, Sung Joon moved his eyes busily and surveyed his surroundings.
âAround fifty of themâŚ? Thereâre more than I expectedâŚâ
They werenât just pursuers. They mightâve gotten reinforcements, as their numbers were quite high. Considering the fact that he sensed a significant amount of mana, there were several powerful foes mixed in within the group.
âIâll go scout out,â Rishubalt said, and Sung Joon slightly nodded his head. Rishubalt returned within three minutes of scouting.
âI was able to see around ten who werenât stealthed. They are a mixed force that consist of the Pan-Dimensional Task Force and the Empireâs special forces. And it seems like the special forceâs Ghost Squad and Executive Squad have come as well.â
The special forceâs Executive Squad was responsible for handling the Empireâs internal affairs. It seemed like the matter of Zelos was still considered an internal affair.
âThe Executive Squad came over here tooâŚ? Thereâs no way theyâve come just for ZelosâŚâ
Whilst organizing his thoughts, Sung Joon furrowed his brow. It wasnât easy to cross over through a warp gate. Though Zelos was a talented Mage, there was no way that they would send the Executive Squad just for him.
âMagic response! There are several stealthed forces approaching,â Shin Chul reported. He noticed them due to Zeloâs detection magic circle that heâd installed near the mansion.
âIâll active the defensive magic circles now.â
As soon as Sung Joon nodded his head, Zelos drew his mana. The magic circles all around the mansion activated by the mana and unleashed elemental magic spells.
âUgh!â
âAH!â
The enemies were swept away by the fire, and their hearts were pierced by ice spears. Those struck by the magic screamed in agony and fell.
The others moved hastily to evade the magic, but because of that, their stealth was released.
The guards poured a barrage of bullets onto them with their machine guns, but most of them were able to dodge the gunfire much too easily.
âConcentrate fire!â
One of them lost their lives due to concentrated fire, but the others got over the wall and entered the garden. The Ghost Squad took the vanguard, as they specialized in ambushes and infiltration.
They were discovered because Sung Joonâs presence detection was abnormal, but they usually wouldnât be discovered this easily.
Swish! Swish!
âUgh!â
âAH!â
The Ghost Squad at the forefront threw their weapons at the guards, burrowing deep into their bodies. With one simultaneous throw, five guards, including two D-rank Hunters, were weakly fell to the floor. It was a superb throwing technique, so it wasnât easy to dodge.
âHealing Spray!â
Because not all of them had died, Sung Joon used his âHealing Sprayâ on the collapsed guards.
He saw two of the guardsâ bodies rise and fall once the white sphere that came from his left hand reached them.
However, the Executive Squad that had followed behind pierced their necks with daggers and finished them off.
Sung Joon was astonished by their cruelty. They ensured oneâs death in the midst of battle when a Healer was present.
âItâs alright if the garden gets damaged a little, right?â
âIt doesnât matter, as long as you kill our unwanted guests.â
As soon as Shin Chul heard Sung Joonâs response, he finished casting a large-scale spell. Dozens of ice shards poured from the sky, right on top of the assassinsâ heads.
âUgh!â
âAH!â
A few of them fell, but the others got over the barricade and charged.
The Hunter guards charged, but the high tier A-rank second class assassins led at the vanguard. There werenât any first class assassins, but most of the Hunters guards were between E-rank to C-rank, so they were no match for them.
âLetâs go.â
Even the automatic turrets that had come out and fired were destroyed in an instant. Sung Joon gave Jang Hoon an order and charged out first. He was originally going to focus on defending the main building, but their defense lines were falling way too quickly.
âDonât worry too much! There are still a lot of defensive spells left!â
Zelos used his mana to activate the defensive spells.
Kwang!
With a boom that could shake both heaven and earth, there were explosions everywhere. In an instant, the second-class assassins that made up the infiltration team were completely annihilated.
âThough itâs kind of loud,â Zelos added. Before the resulting dust from the explosions could subside, the infiltration team got in. There was even a first class assassin mixed in.
âIâll take care of that bastard!â
Jang Hoon charged like a ferocious tiger. He had sensed the presence of a powerful foe: the first class assassin. He closed the distance instantaneously with high-speed movement and raised his aura-clad greatsword.
âI can block it,â the first class assassin thought and raised his dagger. His dagger was likewise clad in aura and he thought he could defend against his strike, but Jang Hoon had struck much quicker than he had anticipated.
âN-No! Ugh!â
He had succeeded in defending himself, but he couldnât protect himself against the tremendous force behind the greatsword and was flung far away. Then, flames rained from above his head.
âAH!â
Because he was sent flying, all his bones were completely shattered and he was unable to avoid the magic.
He was hit by the fire shower and was swept away by the flames. He was burnt to death.
âThe Team Leader was killed in one hit?â
âEveryone be careful! They have a powerhouse over there!â
They had probably checked the mana responses before they attacked, but the assassins were still flustered, likely because Jang Hoon and Shin Chulâs abilities and senses were far greater than they had anticipated.
They looked to be reorganizing their ranks, but Sung Joon seized that opportunity and attacked first.
âUgh!â
He decapitated the closest assassin. The other assassins turned their gaze towards where they heard the scream, but by then, Sung Joon wasnât there anymore.
Sung Joon continuously used his high-speed movement. He didnât need to use all his strength. Whenever he swung his sword, an assassinâs head would roll onto the floor.
âS-Shit!â
The dust hadnât even subsided. The second team didnât know what was going on inside and continued to push on through.
They soon lost their lives to both Sung Joon and Jang Hoonâs blades. The second team consisted of mostly those who were weaker than the first team.
âYouâve taken care of them all. No one escaped,â Rishubalt reported.
ââTheyâll die in battleâ, huhâŚ? The Emperorâs teaching is still the same.â
Sung Joon shook his head and muttered in a low enough voice such that only Rishubalt could hear him. It was in line with the Empireâs philosophy, which treated its soldiers as expendables.
He suddenly thought that perhaps this ideology of not retreating, even in an extremely unfavorable position was what made the Empire strong.
âAbsorb.â
âThereâs no change in your synchronization rate.â
âAbsorptionâ was the most important step following a battle, so he never forgot to use it. As soon as he absorbed the assassinsâ mana, Rishubalt immediately reported on his synchronization rate. Unfortunately, the enemiesâ levels werenât high enough, so his synchronization rate didnât change.
âThe army has arrived.â
The Guard Team Leader, Kyung Min, approached him and reported. The army squadron and the Armed Policemen had arrived too late, but because they had taken care of the ambushers so quickly, there was nothing for them to do. Whatâs worse, the clean up was taken care of by men in black suits that Jung Chul had called.
âIâll take care of the bodies.â
âI believe itâll be faster if we identify them though,â an agent from the national intelligence agency refuted. However, Jung Chul spoke with a firm expression.
âThis is what Mr. Kang Sung Joon wants. Weâll quickly take care of it ourselves.â
âIf thatâs truly what you want⌠then I understand.â
South Korea knew that the U.S. was helping Sung Joon. Therefore, they probably thought that the U.S. was helping him with this.
It grated on the national intelligence agencyâs pride, but there was no helping it. After all, it was true that the Central Hunter Bureau was much more competent than them.
Sung Joon looked around pissed off. Money wasnât the problem, but it would take some time to restore the garden. And Zelos came to his side.
âWhenever Sir Roukel experienced something like, he would always seek revenge. What about you, Sir Kang Sung Joon?â Zelos asked. Sung Joon smirked.
âIâll obviously get my revenge. Since itâs about time I open an Awakening Dungeon,â Sung Joon replied, and Zelos smiled. Sung Joon had already explained the Awakening Dungeon to him.
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He hadnât told him about his synchronization rate, but he did tell him that the Awakening Dungeon would open whenever he reached a certain level.
âIt will be a bloodbath.â
He couldnât hold back his joy. Though he had crossed over to Earth, it had been a hard life, running away from the Empireâs special forces whilst studying warp gates.
âIâll kill them all.â
Sung Joonâs eyes were overflowing with killing intent. He hoped that the Awakening Dungeon would open in a place where he could inflict severe damage onto the Empire.