Chapter 45 A Historic Advertisement Shoot (3)

 

Seo Yu-jin’s explosive actions were thrilling to the point of being provocative.

 

The public didn’t hold back their praise for him, but…

 

There were those who felt unbearable disgust.

 

An irregular occurrence among the awakened.

 

Pure evil that found murder as sweet as a drug.

 

Villains.

 

To the villains, Yu-jin was a thorn in their side.

 

Wasn’t it already hard enough for villains to survive in Korea?

 

With CCTV everywhere and abilities inferior compared to officially graduated awakened ones.

 

What happens if they commit murder even once?

 

The police and the Awakened Association would coordinate to track and capture the villain.

 

For villains, living in Korea was tough.

 

And now, a new S-class was emerging?

 

Moreover, what he did was so repulsive, it made them want to die? He was the complete opposite of them?

 

“Winterer-nim~ Can’t we kill that kid Yu-jin? I heard he’s filming some ad. It’s a golden opportunity.”

 

It was natural that the plan to kill Yu-jin would be a topic of conversation among the villains.

 

However, the villain leader Winterer did not allow it.

 

“I said Seol Ha-yeon comes first. We can kill him later.”

 

“Don’t be like that. If you kill him, it will feel really great. There’s something special about killing a handsome guy… How about you join us, Winterer-nim?”

 

“Sigh.”

 

-Whoosh.

 

“Don’t mess around if you don’t want to die by my hands. Once we finish setting these up, we’ll go kill that bitch Seol Ha-yeon. Can’t you wait? Are you in heat?”

 

“Don’t be like that. Winterer-nim is now an adult, so let me teach you something that feels good….”

 

“There are only a few days left. Just hold on a bit, you dumb bitch.”

 

Despite the murderous intent in the eyes of the pleasure killers…

 

Winterer, with her unique, crazed charisma, refused outright.

 

Thus, the plan to kill Yu-jin seemed to fall through.

 

-Whisper, whisper.

 

“How about coming with me to kill that rookie? I’ll prepare an escape route for you.”

 

“Aren’t you following the Ice Kid’s orders?”

 

“I haven’t tasted blood for a year, so I’m frustrated.”

 

…The plan to kill Yu-jin was resurrected in just three minutes.

 

It was typical of villains to betray as soon as they turned around.

 

“More than anything, thinking about killing that handsome bastard makes my body hot. I can’t wait.”

 

“You perverted bitch. So you are in heat.”

 

“Won’t you join?”

 

“Of course I will. It’s been a while, so I’d rather kill a handsome guy.”

 

“That bastard Yu-jin is mine.”

 

“Just one leg.”

 

“Deal.”

 

Additionally, even villains were very interested in Yu-jin’s appearance.

 

It didn’t take long for a special villain task force to form, dedicated to cutting Yu-jin into pieces like chicken.

 

Their preparations were perfect.

 

“What about his hypnosis? Even though there’s a limit of 100 per week….”

 

“We’ll hold civilian meat shields and run. So he can’t see us.”

 

“Just in case, let’s block our ears too. It might be voice-triggered.”

 

“Okay.”

 

Securing an escape route was basic.

 

They even thoroughly analyzed the video to devise countermeasures against hypnosis.

 

It clearly showed why awakened ones should keep their abilities secret.

 

Anyway. As time passed, Thursday arrived.

 

The day to execute the plan to kill Yu-jin.

 

‘Just a little longer. Approach as if you’re an insider….’

 

-Ching!!

 

“Wait!! Everyone, run away!!!”

 

Yu-jin, who suddenly drew his sword while trying to film.

 

He had merely sensed the peculiar mana wave of an impending A-grade gate…

 

But the low-level villains couldn’t possibly notice that.

 

Five of them stood up abruptly, having been pricked unnecessarily.

 

“We’ve been found out!!”

 

-Flash.

 

“…Kyaaah!!!!?”

 

“Let’s go!!!”

 

They lifted an innocent civilian high into the air and sprinted, using them as a shield.

 

Heading towards the target, Yu-jin, who was farther away than expected.

 

Of course, a B-grade awakened sent as a bodyguard by the Cheonhwa Clan tried to intervene…

 

‘A villain!? I must subdue them immediately….’

 

“Haha! Get lost, tasteless bitch!!”

 

-Whoosh! Shooook.

 

“Kyaaahhh!!!”

 

“……Crazy bitches!!”

 

The villains fired civilians like human cannonballs.

 

Civilians who had been watching were thrown towards her indiscriminately.

 

At a speed that would definitely harm them if left alone.

 

Startled, she caught them, using all her abilities as an awakened to prevent injury.

 

It gave the villains enough time to approach Yu-jin.

 

-Tatatat.

 

‘According to plan! Now, just tear that bastard apart….’

 

Thanks to the surrounding civilians fleeing in terror, the distance to Yu-jin was only 30 meters.

 

It was clear it would take less than 3 seconds to tear Yu-jin apart.

 

Therefore, they…

 

———Put down the hostages they had been using as shields.

 

‘We’ve used them all up, so let’s put them down.’

 

‘To tear them apart by hand, we need to put them down. Right.’

 

‘It’s a bit of a waste to just let them go. But let’s not fill up on these kinds of women when we have the most delicious one right in front of us.’

 

-Thud.

 

“Kyaah… Ah?”

 

Civilians, who had been screaming at the top of their lungs, were bewildered when they suddenly found themselves free.

 

Ignoring the civilians, the villains rushed at Yu-jin.

 

In an orderly fashion. In a single file.

 

Completely oblivious to the discord in the plan.

 

* * *

 

Not only did a gate appear, but villains also attacked!

 

Blocking their ears with earphones, and even holding civilian hostages in front!

 

For awakened ones, it was an incredibly difficult situation.

 

In this situation, as a second-round hypnotic breeding guy, I…

 

‘What are they doing? Are they trying to block my hypnosis?’

 

I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity.

 

They thought they were being clever, but did they really think that would work? My hypnosis was EX rank.

 

As long as they were within my mana range, they would fall with just a ‘click’.

 

Of course, even with training alongside the Dragon King’s blood…

 

My magic power was still in the mid-4 range.

 

For an ordinary freshman, the range would be about 1 meter…

 

『Top-level Magic Manipulation Lv.Max』

 

‘I’m quite skilled. It’s unfortunate for them.’

 

I was a former S-class rank 1.

 

30 meters was well within range.

 

I immediately cast hypnosis.

 

‘Your target is me, right? Then you need to put down the hostages.’

 

[Mental Barrier Check: Partial Success. The target is under ‘weak’ hypnosis….]

 

‘It feels best to tear them apart with your hands, doesn’t it? To do that, your hands need to be free, right?’

 

[……Confirming alignment with the target’s intention. The target is under ‘strong’ hypnosis!]

 

I first made them put down the hostages.

 

‘Now, let’s take turns tasting. If you all rush in, it will end too quickly. Oh, and you know not to use your abilities, right?’

 

# -Tadadak.

 

“Hyaaaah!!!”

 

They lined up in a row, making it easy to handle.

 

It was amusing to see them charging at me without realizing their eyes were already losing focus.

 

It took less than ten seconds to subdue them.

 

“You’re gonna die!!!”

 

“Dream on.”

 

-Thud!!

 

“…Urk, hng.”

 

I swung the katana sheathed at their exposed necks.

 

I repeated it five times.

 

Five of them fell, suffering from concussions.

 

Their legs spread wide, revealing their underwear. It was an ugly sight.

 

-Thud.

 

‘I’m in a hurry, and these small fries are causing a commotion.’

 

The sudden villain attack was neatly resolved with this.

 

People who had been watching halfway through their escape belatedly burst into applause.

 

Their reaction was like that of children who had just witnessed a hero show.

 

Normally, I would have waved my hand in response…

 

But now wasn’t the time for that.

 

“Yu-jin, you’re amazing! This alone could be edited into an ad….”

 

“———That’s not important, run away quickly!!”

 

“…Huh?”

 

“A gate will open here soon!! An A-rank one!!”

 

These villains were just like mosquitoes, but the real problem was the gate.

 

Do you want to get caught in a gate?

 

Grab your equipment and run now.

 

‘Well, you won’t get hurt even if you get caught.’

 

Of course, despite my words, it wasn’t that serious of a situation.

 

Even if civilians got caught, there was zero chance of death.

 

Since it was a dungeon-type gate, as long as you didn’t enter and just waited at the entrance, you would be fine.

 

If you just waited for rescue without doing anything foolish, you wouldn’t get hurt.

 

I chose the shooting location because it was where the gate was going to open.

 

-Tadak.

 

“Yu-jin, is that true!?”

 

“Yes. I sensed the premonition. It’ll probably open in about five minutes.”

 

Moreover, I had immediately noticed the premonition.

 

Thanks to that, there was at least five minutes before the gate would open.

 

Even if it was an A-rank gate, the radius would be about 500 meters.

 

No one runs less than 100 meters in a minute, so there was plenty of time to escape.

 

“So everyone….”

 

“Wait a moment, Yu-jin!”

 

As I explained this, an awakened one came running in a hurry.

 

A B-rank awakened sent from Cheonhwa. My bodyguard.

 

“Only Seol Ha-yeon can notice a gate premonition in Korea, how did you…?”

 

“I’m EX rank. Unique grade.”

 

“Oh.”

 

“Anyway, please hand these villains over to the association. They’ll wake up in five minutes, so restrain them so they can’t cause any trouble.”

 

Feeling it was a good opportunity, I left the handling of those low-lives to her.

 

Understanding her role, the bodyguard ran without a word.

 

She stacked the villains and carried them in a hurry.

 

“I have restraints in my car, so I’ll tie them up and come back. Meanwhile, you should also evacuate, Yu-jin!”

 

-Zing.

 

‘Did she decide it was more dangerous if they came to their senses and rampaged? Good judgment. As expected of a Cheonhwa member.’

 

Her figure quickly receded.

 

Thanks to that, only Alice and I were left here as awakened ones.

 

But it was fine. Even if we started evacuating now, it wasn’t too late.

 

I quickly shouted to evacuate the crowd.

 

“Citizens!! Get out of Seoul Park!! This is a real situation….”

 

“———Kyaaah!!!!”

 

“That’s hypnosis, right? You knocked them out with hypnosis, right!?”

 

“Is this part of the shoot?”

 

“Seo Yu-jin is truly the king of Korea!!!!!”

 

“……”

 

Instead of evacuating, they sneakily pushed into the filming site.

 

Well. I couldn’t say I didn’t understand.

 

The premonition of a gate opening was a specific mana wave that only the chairman and I could distinguish in Korea.

 

Even most awakened ones couldn’t feel it, so regular people definitely couldn’t sense anything.

 

So they must have come running without knowing a gate was about to open.

 

Trying to see the face of the great awakened one up close, maybe even shake hands.

 

A lack of safety awareness.

 

The lack of safety awareness in the strongest awakened country made me sigh.

 

‘It’s already been about 40 seconds… Should I use a bit of force?’

 

I slowly drew up my mana.

 

Exuding mana to intimidate the citizens.

 

To forcibly evacuate them.

 

Using power on civilians would hurt my reputation…

 

But it was better than letting them get caught up in this.

 

“I’m not joking. Evacuate immediately….”

 

———However.

 

-Ding!

 

[An A-rank gate reacts to the target’s ‘???’!]

 

[The gate expands to engulf ‘???’.]

 

“……Huh.”

 

I was momentarily speechless at the notification window that appeared before my eyes.

 

-Whoosh!!

 

‘This, this is…?’

 

In that instant, black darkness spread before my eyes.

 

A semi-transparent, blood-red veil descended, isolating this area from reality.

 

Finally…

 

The unique, icy mana of the gate spread, engulfing everything in this space.

 

‘This never happened in the game or in the first round….’

 

-Ding!

 

[The estimated danger level of the gate evolves from A-rank to A+ rank!]

 

[The monsters inside are being enhanced.]

 

“……!!!! Alice, stick close to me!!!”

 

-Squeeze.

 

“Ugh, huh!?”

 

Instinctively, I pulled Alice into a tight embrace.

 

Sensing the gravity of the situation, I knew I had to protect Alice if something happened.

 

With everything I had.

 

And then.

 

[The A+ rank gate engulfs everything within its domain.]

 

[Transitioning.]

 

-Whoosh.

 

After a brief flicker of vision.

 

We were inside the gate.