Yi Ji-Hyuk continued to pummel the Cyclops in its eye.
âDie!! Diiiieee!!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Both Seo Ah-Young and Jeong Hae-Min spat out helpless sighs while bearing witness to that spectacle.
How could this scene be so⌠uncool? It was like they were looking at a mosquito buzzing around a person right now.
Yi Ji-Hyuk buzzing around in the air sure looked uncool, but the Cyclops unable to do anything to the annoying thing and constantly going âWuu-uh, Wuu-uhâ was just as uncool, as well.
At least, the Giant from the last time looked scary, but thisâŚ!
âDiiiieee!!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Even the voice entering the ladiesâ ears didnât sound all that nice, either.
âWhy is he so uncool like this?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Jeong Hae-Min uttered out, prompting Seo Ah-Young to nod her head along unconsciously.
Before Yi Ji-Hyukâs appearance, when the American ability users were still enjoying their fame â those guys came across so cool and wonderful in their combat videos, but this wasâŚ
It wasnât the fault of the camerawork. Indeed, those Americans looked great even when viewed from a far in a wide-angle shot.
So, how come this guy looked so lame?
âIs it because of his face?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âCan you even see it right now?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âNope.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âEven then, he looks so uncool, right? If you do take his face into consideration⌠Mm, well, getting closer will make it even worse, wonât it.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âItâs a sad situation.â (Seo Ah-Young)
If only he had a nice face to look at â that would have covered up the lacklustre action, but alas.
âStill, didnât he look better when the black stuff came out from him? It kinda had that Dark Force charm to it, no?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âBut, it was also revolting, too.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âThatâs true, I guess.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Indeed, one should ooze black stuff in moderation. He always flung away tentacles every freaking time. Who would look at that and think thatâs cool?
Meanwhile, Yi Ji-Hyuk cocked his shoulder back before firing a straight punch forward. The attack caused the huge body of the Cyclops to fly back as it became airborne.
âHul.â (Seo Ah-Young)
Seo Ah-Youngâs eyes opened up wider.
Would this be how one feels after seeing a person get blown away by a mosquito? The scene laid out before their eyes were so strange thatâŚ.
ââŚ.This feels so wrong.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âM-mm.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Just how should any of them go about describing this situation?
âIn any case, it should end pretty soon.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âOne shouldnât be too relaxed, though.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âNo waysâŚ. Weâre talking about that Yi Ji-Hyuk, arenât we?â (Seo Ah-Young)
Seo Ah-Youngâs assertion prompted Jeong Hae-Min to narrow her eyes to a slit.
The leader of the NDF might outwardly look like someone who always complained, rebelled, and plotted on how to cause Yi Ji-Hyuk more grief, but truth be told, she trusted him implicitly when it came to resolving dangerous situations.
âSheâs a weird kid herself, alright.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Jeong Hae-Min could only sigh in resignation at Seo Ah-Young and her unconcerned face observing Yi Ji-Hyukâs antics. She knew that no agent affiliated with the NDF was considered normal in the head, butâŚ.
âHow do I look in other peopleâs eyes, I wonder?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Jeong Hae-Min grew fearful for some inexplicable reason.
âH-hey, Ah-Young-ah?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âNg, unni?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âDo I come across, you know, strange to you?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âWhat do you mean?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âLike, my personality, orâŚ. Well, things like that.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Seo Ah-Young replied with a bright smile.
âWhy do you care about such a thing, anyway? We just have to live the way we look, donât you think so? Donât sweat over stuff like that.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âM-mmâŚ.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Jeong Hae-Minâs saddened face shifted over in Yi Ji-Hyukâs direction.
It was too late to go back now; if she looked strange even to Seo Ah-Youngâs eyes, then wouldnât regular people see her as a utter loon already?
âI gotta get out of this place real soon.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Seriously now, Iâm an idol, no, a former idol no less, so how can I accept being labelled as insane?!(Jeong Hae-Minâs inner monologue)
âIs it because I hung around Ji-Hyuk for too long?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âNo, unni. You are originally like that.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âI envy you.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âNg?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âBecause, you donât think about anything.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
ââŚ.What do you mean?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âItâs nothing.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Jeong Hae-Min shook her head and shifted her gaze back to Yi Ji-Hyuk, still busying pounding away on the Cyclopsâs head over yonder.
Yup, it was obvious that her personality would get warped when being surrounded by such people.
Her sighs were heavier than the usual today.
*
âUrah-cha!!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
BOOM!
Every time Yi Ji-Hyuk took a swing, the thudding sound of something enormous smashing into the ground resounded out.
âUrah-cha!!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
BOOOOOM!!
Completely engrossed now, he continued his beatdown on the Cyclops.
At first, it was difficult to control his strength and the temptation to use Mana continued to lure him, but once he got going, this whole thing became quite entertaining.
When dealing with small-fries, just a simple kick or punch would send them flying, so he didnât get to enjoy that feeling of impact to satisfy him. But now, it felt oh-so-good as he pummelled the living daylights out of the one-eyed monster!
âNow this is what Iâm talking about.â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Now where would be find a sandbag this wonderful?
Sure, it was a living sandbag that did put up some resistance every now and then, and that made things a bit cumbersome, but still, this sensation of landing hits should be not replicable anywhere else.
Just as the Cyclops tried to resist, Yi Ji-Hyuk cocked his waist back and threw a mean hook on the monsterâs cheek.
Kuh-wuuuung!!
The humanâs fist and the monsterâs facial flesh collided to produce a massive explosion of sound.
âIt, itâs falling!!â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
Along with Choi Jung-Hoonâs scream, the huge monster slowly began tilting towards the ground.
âUwaaaah!!â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
If such a huge thing fell, then itâd be no different from a real disaster.
âMister Yi Ji-Hyuk!! The building behind it!! The buildinggggg!!â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
His desperate cries prompted Yi Ji-Hyuk to fling himself forward, irritation writ large on his face.
âArgh, why are you falling that way?!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
If he were to make sure that it fell without hitting buildings, thenâŚ
Letâs see, at this angle, with this much power!
Kuuoong-!!!
Yi Ji-Hyukâs roundhouse kick precisely landed on the Cyclopsâs waist area.
That humongous body looked as if it was sliding away and by a hairâs breadth, missed crashing into the high-rise before toppling on the ground.
Splash-!!
The slime spectacularly split up like a rising fountain and spread away like real water thanks to the incredible pressure from the falling monsterâs body.
BOOOOM!!!
âNice landing!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Yi Ji-Hyuk spun around in the air and pointed at Choi Jung-Hoon.
âMisterrr Choi Jung-Hoon!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
ââŚ.Yes?â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
âCount to ten!!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Did this guy really lose his dang mind?!
âOne! Two!â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
Seo Ah-Young shot a murderous glare and asked.
âWhat are you doing??â (Seo Ah-Young)
ââŚ.No, hang on, he said I shouldâŚ.â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
âAnd you really went along with that?? Are you crazy?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âI was justâŚ.â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
âMister Choi Jung-Hoon!! Please, get your act together! Donât you think youâve been too negatively influenced by that man lately?!â (Seo Ah-Young)
âThatâs too harsh, maâam.â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
Seo Ah-Young shifted her attention away from the despondent Choi Jung-Hoon and shouted at Yi Ji-Hyuk.
âStop messing around and finish it quickly! Donât you know that restoration efforts after the incident takes a long time?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âWhat do you mean, messing around?! You think itâs easy dealing with a monster of that size? It doesnât even look that hurt after I pummelled it that much, so what do you want from me then, ah?!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
âWhy donât you use magic or whatever to mop up quickly, then?!â (Seo Ah-Young)
âHah, I told you! I must conserve Mana right now.â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Yi Ji-Hyuk shook his head. It was completely no use talking to that woman.
âBesides, it is kinda getting old, this thingâŚ.â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
As he began his descent, he gathered Ether in his fist. It was now time to end this.
Wuuooooh!!
Unfortunately, the Cyclops didnât seem to agree with him. The monster finally regained its wits and raised its upper torso with the kind of agility that belied its massive frame.
âEhh?â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
And then, the creature swung its huge hand at the falling Yi Ji-Hyuk who was still in mid-air and couldnât do much to evade the attack.
âEhhhh??â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
H-hey, I donât think I can dodge this??
Uh?? (Yi Ji-Hyukâs inner monologue)
Powwww~!
Accompanied by the sound of a mosquito being smacked to death in the air, Yi Ji-Hyukâs figure soared high up into the sky.
âUwaaaahhk!!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
His scream spread out like a loud echo and along with his figure, soon disappeared from the range of human hearing.
âHul, just how far is he going to fly away?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âIsnât he going to escape the Earthâs atmosphere at that rate?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Jeong Hae-Min and Seo Ah-Young marvelled at the spectacle.
Yi Ji-Hyukâs figure progressively got smaller and smaller, until eventually, disappeared from their view altogether.
ââŚ.Where do you think heâll land?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âWell, he shouldâve flew past Japan, at least.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
Judging from the impact force alone, he might even circle around the planet once and come back from the other direction.
âWell, if itâs him, Iâm sure heâll come back somehow.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âYeah, I mean, he came back from another world and all.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
That was why these two ladies werenât worried at all about Yi Ji-Hyukâs welfare. Because, it was impossible for that man to die unless they were facing the impending destruction of all mankind.
No, hang on a minute â he was completely capable of simply crossing over to the other world and live out the rest of his days there if things came down to that.
Indeed, their problem lay elsewhere.
âIn that case, what should we do about that thing now?â (Seo Ah-Young)
Wuuuuuuoohh!!
Perhaps stimulated by the act of blowing Yi Ji-Hyuk away, the Cyclops began roaring out as if to demonstrate its powers, causing Seo Ah-Young to spit out a lengthy groan.
It was only because Yi Ji-Hyuk was here that she could nag him, telling him to finish it up quickly and stuff like that. But, without him around, that Cyclops would have to be treated as a boss-raid mob, instead.
The entirety of the NDF would have to mobilise to deal with a monster of that calibre. She couldnât even begin to imagine the extent of potential collateral damage to the city and the roads during their struggle.
They didnât hold back and attacked the Giant monster in the past as freely as they wanted to because they were in the plains near the border area. But if they did that here, forget about being called the NDF, they would be called the National Butcher Force, instead!
âWhat should we do?â (Seo Ah-Young)
The best scenario would be to lead it outside the city limits, but even that process would result in massive losses.
âThatâs why I told him to finish this quickly, but heâŚ.!!â (Seo Ah-Young)
Seo Ah-Young gnashed her teeth, but she could only do so much venting at the dude who wasnât even here.
âHow did things devolve like thisâŚ.?â (Seo Ah-Young)
Just as she was about to go on another tirade of complaints, a black Gate suddenly materialised in the air just above the Cyclopsâs head.
âNg??â (Seo Ah-Young)
That thing kinda looked familiar.
Isnât that Yi Ji-Hyukâs personal Gate?
âMister Yi Ji-Hyuk!!â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
Choi Jung-Hoon cried out in relief.
As expected of him; even though he got smacked away to god knows where, he opened a Gate to return to the battlefield right away.
Once the black portal opened his mouth wide, everyoneâs gaze was locked onto it. But then, the Cyclops decided to respond in the most unexpected way, as well.
Kuwaaah!
The monster opened its mouth wide and placed itself right below the Gate.
âHulâŚ.â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
âT-that, what should we do now?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âIs it thinking of swallowing him up??â (Seo Ah-Young)
Jeong Hae-Minâs eyelids trembled in worry.
âD-do something! Wouldnât Ji-Hyuk get eaten the moment he emerges from the Gate??â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âWell, I guess thatâll happen nextâŚ.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âWhy do you sound so disinterested?! You know thatâs no good!â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âM-mmâŚâ (Seo Ah-Young)
Itâs no good?
But, wouldnât Yi Ji-Hyuk come outside no problem by ripping open the monsterâs stomach?
If it were me, I wouldnât even try to eat junk food like that, though. (Seo Ah-Young)
As Seo Ah-Young fell into a dilemma wondering whether to worry about the soon-to-be-eaten Yi Ji-Hyuk or the Cyclops about to eat him, a certain black shadow could be seen within the Gate.
That shadow gradually increased its size, before finally âfallingâ outside the portal.
âM-mm?!â
âW-what the heck?â
âHulâŚ.â
The reactions of everyone after seeing what came out were unsurprisingly similar in nature. Their eyes all grew wide and some even chuckled out wryly, their laughter filled with dumbfoundedness and disbelief.
What the hell is that?!
That, that, that big black thing!! (Choi Jung-Hoonâs inner monologue)
Choi Jung-Hoon quietly muttered to himself as he watched that spectacle.
âAnd I told him that whaling is illegalâŚ.â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
He still hasnât woken up after getting arrest once before!
Really man, that guy is just tooâŚ.! (Choi Jung-Hoonâs inner monologue)
A huge whale that fell out from the Gate was now firmly blocking the Cyclopsâs open mouth.
Kuh-uuuhh!!
Swallowing a whale at one go was going to be the mission impossible no matter how huge the monsterâs body and its mouth was. Besides, the size of the whale itself was no joke, either.
âIsnât that a sperm whale?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
ââŚ.He caught something pretty nonsensical in such a short time, didnât he?â (Seo Ah-Young)
âReport him to the UNESCO!!â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âItâs not UNESCO, unni. Itâs the Greenpeace.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âArenât you a clever oneâŚ.â (Jeong Hae-Min)
The Cyclops couldnât win against the powerful impact force of a whale slamming into its mouth and its entire body tilted unsteadily, before it crashed down on its back.
Kwa-aaaahng!!
Massive dust cloud rose up next.
âDid it die?â (Jeong Hae-Min)
âProbably.â (Seo Ah-Young)
âDying is the moral thing to do, after all.â (Choi Jung-Hoon)
Just as everyone began focusing on the final fate of the Cyclops, Yi Ji-Hyuk jumped out of the Gate and loudly yelled out.
âWhere is my whaaaale?!â (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Choi Jung-Hoon quietly wiped the dew streaming out of the corners of his eyes.