Chapter 191: Lord of Ice (3)

Seoul Station.

Fortunately, this place hadn't been cleared by anyone yet, so Kahng-woojin was able appear at this location.

"Huh. Is it fine to leave this place like this?"

After the Dungeon Shock, this region had gone through a lot of change, but now it had gone through another change.

The old Alandal guild offices were in ruins, and the training ground was razed to the ground. For the past five years, humans had experienced going through the Dungeon Breaks, so they had developed numerous techniques using heavy equipments to bring about rapid repairs. However, the area around the Seoul Station looked desolate.

If the monster attacks was still ongoing, it would have been understandable. However, he could see the roads being cleared, and heavy equipments fixing the other buildings. He could guess at what was happening.

"So they are saying they won't fix anything that aren't on their lands?"

The region near the Seoul Station was the territory of Alandal.

This region was the only place where the recovery efforts weren't occurring.

Woojn walked towards the fallen buildings.

He headed towards where he could hear the sounds of human activities.

He arrived at a clearing where an excavator was clearing away debris. In the middle of this clearing, a temporary tent was erected, and he saw a familiar face beneath this tent.

"He is leading a charmed life."

The world was going to hell, yet Woo-soonghoon was lazily sleeping beneath the tent as he listened to the radio.

「Chee-jeek. This is our next story. It was sent in by grandmother Oh-misoon from Gyeongju....」

"Hey. Wake up."

"Uh? Uh uh? P...pres... No, my king."

At Woojin's appearance, Woo-soonghoon turned his head, and he quickly scrambled to his feet in surprise. The workers, who had been working, looked to see what the fuss was about. When they saw Woojin's face, they came running towards him.

"Why are you rebuilding this place?"

"What? Well, we have salvage whatever we can. Also, shouldn't we have a base camp near the Dungeon?"

"It's all right. All of us are going back to the flying fortress, so I want you to gather everyone."

"Excuse me? I have to stay behind here to work on our diplomatic relationship with the Korean government...."

"From what I saw, you don't look like you have much to do here."

"No way. Just my mere presence here...."

When Soonghoon talked back to him, Woojin's eyebrows arched. Soonghoon quickly simplified his explanation, so Woojin could understand his intention.

"At the very least, shouldn't there be a hostage present here? It isn't as if Alandal has fully renounced Korea yet."

"Hostage? You are one?"

"......yes. At the very least, the king's chief secretary should stay behind. Well, I'm the least useful one, so I should do this."

Woo-soonghoon wasn't a Roused.

If one excluded Jung-minchan and Kim-haemin, he was the next highest ranked officer amongst the founding members. However, what he brought to the table was miniscule compared to how high his position was at Alandal.

Since he always tried to find a role for himself, he did the miscellaneous works. No one ordered him to do so, yet he always volunteered himself for these tasks. It was admirable.

"It's all right. Go gather all of our luggages."

He didn't care about leaving the diplomatic channels open or not. It'll be more convenient for him to gather everyone at the flying fortress. His mind would be at ease as he worked.

At his command, the remaining employees of Alandal present in the Seoul Station were all gathered. There were 25 of them, and none of them were Roused.

The regular employees were hired by Jung-minchan's discretion, and Woojin decided to take over the recruitment of Roused. However, he hadn't hired any new Roused, since he hired the members of the Phantom Unit.

There were other Roused employed on the flying fortress, but they weren't of the human race. To be precise, they were Dimensional refugees. They weren't from earth.

"So how are we going to get there?"

"We are going to get there by...."

Woojin spoke as if it wasn't a problem, yet he let out a sigh when he looked at them. They weren't Roused, so they wouldn't be able to pass through the Portal. Woojin had no choice, but to use a physical method to transport them.

"We'll fly there."

"What? Most of the flights were cancelled...."

When the number of flying monsters increased, it was too dangerous to fly in airplanes. This was why most airlines indefinitely suspended their flights.

Few companies dared to fly their airplanes, and there was no guarantee one of these airplanes were present at the Incheon Airport.

"Yong Yong."

At Woojin's summon, a black smoke coalesced to form atop the fallen remains of a building.

[What is your wish?]

Accompanying a heart attack inducing sound, a large Bone Dragon was summoned.

It was like the fossils one could see in a museum. It was made out of bones, and there was no way it'll be able to fly.

"I...It really can fly?"

Woojin smirked as he looked at Yong Yong, who was preening in an arrogant manner.

"There's always a way."

When Woojin was approaching Yong Yong, it suddenly raised its head into the air.

[Koo-roo-roo.]

It was gazing into the sky. Everyone followed its gaze, but nothing was there. Unlike the world that had gone to hell, the sky was clear, and there was only a single cloud in the sky.

"Ho-oh?"

Woojin couldn't see it with his eyes, but he could clearly feel the energy. It was a grave situation.

[It's Ibrit.]

"Is that so?"

When Yong Yong confirmed it, Woojin's expression slightly hardened as if this development wasn't welcomed.

"A really troublesome bastard has arrived."

He was the king of the Knife-beak Crows.

Undying Crow Ibrit.

Kee-ahhhhh!

Accompanying a screech, a large body appeared. It was covered with black feathers that rippled like water.

"As soon as I returned to earth, I come across the 70th throne....."

He was an existence that was worshipped as a god in 70 Dimensions.

When Ibrit appeared, he took out all his equipments from his Inventory, and he put it on.

Jeju's Manjang Cave.

"It is time."

After a long wait, he had took on a tangible form on earth, and he was close to the time of his triumph. This was why his time hiding in the Manjang Cave felt slow. It felt like an eternity.

The day when everything will culminate was here.

Ddee-ring, ddee-ring.

After he earnestly looked at his handphone, Lee-sahngho gave his report.

"A black mysterious bird appeared above Seoul."

"Bring it to me.."

The hand phone was handed over to Iello, and he smiled when he saw the picture.

"It is Ibrit."

Ibrit was of the 70th Throne, and it was a very troublesome opponent.

Amongst the great lords with Thrones, one wasn't ranked based on power or battle capability. The ranking measured, who had the better management skill. It was merely a number.

A strong opponent could have a low number, and a weak one could have a high number.

If one looked only at the pure battle capability, Ibrit was within the top five amongst the great lords.

Iello was the 25th Throne, but he was also one of the top great lords in terms of battle capability.

Iello exited the Manjang cave with a confident expression on his face.

"I'll start hunting at my leisure."

Even amongst the planets, earth was a special.

Since the Synchronization was finished, several hundred lords will converge in an attempt to gain the Master code.

If he wanted to come out on top, he would need to make allies of the native people. He would used them as his allied army.

He'll defeat the villain, and he'll become the savior.

"Enough. This will be adequate."

Ibrit was a being that was absolutely wedded to the role of a villain.

Would earth's existing military force be able to withstand the assault of this being?

Their best efforts would only be able to drain the health of Ibrit. When the time comes, he'll defeat Ibrit, and he'll become the hero of earth.

He'll present himself as a vassal of earth. Lee-sahngho had already finished the preparations under the table.

Kee-ahk!

Ibrit had not' descended alone. A flock of several thousand crows appeared with him, and they swept across Seoul. The black birds occupied the sky, and they dove between the buildings to pluck out and eat the hearts of humans. They also caused explosions by attacking the vehicles and gas pipeline.

Puh-uhng! Kwahng!

Several crows were swept up by the explosions, but only few died.

The crows were like a black storm, and they nested at an islet located at the Hahn river.

Koo-ooh-oohng!

The Undying Crow's size rivalled a Dragon.

Ibrit's landing broke apart the bridge that ran over the islet.

Koo-koo-koohng!

Ibrit made the island float above the river, and it immediately planted a Thorn Tree.

Ryuu-ahhhhhk!

An enormous tree kept growing as if it was trying to defy the sky . After the Synchronization ended, there were no restrictions placed on the Symbols.

The trunk of the tree kept getting thicker, and it was thick enough to occupy half the island. The branches were so long that they reached the banks of the Hahn river.

Ibrit landed atop the bizarre thorn tree, which held no leaves.

It was impossible to think that this enormous tree belonged on earth, yet it had grown to full height in 10 minutes.

Kee-ahhhhh.

From the top of the tree, it could see the entirety of Seoul at a glance.

There were several hundred Dungeon entrances nearby.

It could tell by the energies that there were millions of people clustered together in various locations....

Ibrit let out a cry.

[I declare this place to be the territory of Ibrit-nim!]

His domineering words weren't spoken in any languages spoken on earth. The cry rang out as it moved to the far reaches of Seoul.

Only one person understood its words.

"You're talking shit."

Woojin jumped off the Phantom Steed to land on top of the Thorn Tree. The thorns were the size of a full grown man, so there were a lot of places where he couldn't stand.

[Necromancer....]

Ibrit's red eyes blinked.

Its domineering gaze shot towards Woojin.

[Are you going to submit to me? Or do you want to be hunted down by me?]

"I'll choose the hunt."

[I'll repay your bravery.]

Ibrit opened its wings wide. Its wings were enormous, and the feathers on its wings stood on end. The feathers became as sharp as knives. Even if one was brushed by its feathers, one would become cut into tatters.

Since it was such a threatening sight, Woojin sharpened his senses as the tension within him increased.

"This is exciting."

This was his first time facing Ibrit. He just heard stories about Ibrit from Jaenis and Yong Yong. Now that he was in front of it, its overpowering nature was no joke.

He was fighting it for the first time, but Woojin was confident in himself.

He wasn't alone.

Shwahk, kwah-jeek!

Its speed was unbecoming of such a large body. Ibrit dashed forward at an incredible speed, and one wing was sweeping towards Woojin.

Woojin jumped to avoid the attack, and since he didn't have wings, he started falling to the ground. However, Phantom Steed Shing Shing appeared, and it stopped Woojin's fall.

Kee-ahhhhh!

The knife-like feathers were as sharp as Ibrit's screech, but Woojin's Soul Armor was able to block all the projectiles.

When it saw Woojin heading below the island, Ibrit rotated its body as if it was about to free fall towards the ground.

Shoo-shoo-shoo-shoohk!

The feathers were seeped with incredibly strong energy, and the feathers fell towards Woojin like rain. This time his Spirit Armor couldn't stop all of them.

Choo-choo-choot!

Several blades brushed by Woojin, and he suffered multiple wounds. His stored souls immediately absorbed into him to heal the damage.

It had been a long time, since he had faced an opponent of this caliber.

It was the first after he reached the pinnacle as a Necromancer.

"Now."

While he kept descending towards the ground, Jaenis and the Skeleton Magicians focused their magic on Ibrit.

Hwah-roo-roohk!

The Hell Fire charred the black feathers, but it couldn't be set on fire. Several Death Knights were also summoned. They appeared from very locations to latch themselves onto the body of Ibrit.

[Small fry.]

Ibrit shook its body, and it let out a loud screech.

Kee-ahhhhh!

The Fear's influence didn't take hold on the Undead, but this sound wasn't meant for them in the first place.

Kee-ahhhhk!

Several thousand Knife-beak Crows flew into the air. They blotted out one's vision as they attacked the Undead army.

"So you want to do this with me?"

He would never lose in terms of numbers. Woojin immediately summoned his Undead army on the Island. The Skeleton Warriors and the black crows fought each other, and it created a chaotic scene.

Moreover, when Ibrit was nearly to the floor, the enormous Bone Dragon pounced. It opened its jaw, and it bit Ibrit's neck.

Kooooohng!

The two enormous beings rolled across the ground, and as the trees nearby was uprooted, the rim of island started to sink into the ground. When Yong Yong refused to let go of Ibrit's neck, Wooojin yelled out to him.

"All right. Just keep hit immobilized like that."

[Goo-oh-oh-oh!]

Ibrit's head was being held to the ground. A being that looked like a Steel Puppet ran across a broken branch of a Thorn Tree. After he jumped high into the sky, he brought his fist down on the crown of Ibrit's head.

Ggoo-ahhhng!

The shockwave was big enough to cause waves on the Hahn river. However, the blow wasn't strong enough to chase Ibrit back to its Dimension.

[How dare you!]

The crow used powerful strokes of its wings to shoot into the air.

Koo-ahng, koohng!

The Crow and the Dragon impacted on various parts of the Thorn Tree as they flew into the air, and Yong Yong was eventually dislodged. Yong Yong fell to the ground..

Kee-ahhhhhhh!

Ibrit flew at a higher elevation than the Thorn Tree and it let out a cry.

Amongst the continuously resetting Dungeons, several subway stations reacted to the cry.