Chapter 462

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 462: High-Growth Stock (6)

—What…?

When Maon heard the statement that he was going to show how Earthlings had survived until now, his eyes widened.

And then—

Boom, boooom…!

With a massive roar, monsters began pouring down from the sky.

Shhhhhhkk!

Accompanied by a fierce whooshing sound.

—What!?

—T-They're falling from the sky…!

The ones most shocked by this were undoubtedly the family heads seated in the audience.

Their households had existed for at least several thousand years.

In other words, they hailed from stabilized planets that had long since completed trials like "Reset."

So, naturally, they had never experienced anything like a Reset in their lifetimes, and their panic was understandable.

—W-What’s falling?

—That’s a lot of them…

—All knights, prepare for battle!

As each head ordered their guards to ready themselves, Maon observed the dots in the sky grow larger and begin to scatter.

More precisely, the massive mass in the sky had been rapidly approaching from the beginning.

—Impressive, this place.

Having lived for so long that few things could impress him, Maon wore a curious smile.

Meanwhile, the other family heads clenched their jaws upon seeing the countless beings appear overhead.

To them, the "sky" meant "space."

So, it felt like these monsters were falling from outer space.

On the other hand, Yeongwoo, knowing that these monsters weren’t actually that strong, calmly scanned the arena.

‘No matter how high-ranking they are, they become amateurs in the face of something unfamiliar.’

The only ones not flustered in the moment were Maon of Tisef and Emel, the minor head of Shirach.

Which meant they were likely the most powerful here.

—Th-They're coming!

—Ugh…!

Finally, with tense shouts from the family heads, hundreds of monsters descended upon Gwangjin-gu.

Crash, CRASH!

With heavy thuds, the ones that landed were none other than trolls.

Standing nearly 5 meters tall, their sheer presence darkened the arena.

—…!

—Hah.

Each one also wielded a club around 3 meters long, adding to their overwhelming presence.

A truly violent visual.

Bioto, who stood closest to Yeongwoo, asked from beneath his dented helmet:

—What the hell are those things...? Is that how you guys survive?

“Yeah. We’ve been fighting things like that since day one of the Reset. And back then, we didn’t even have proper gear.”

And finally—

KRRAAAGH!

One of the trolls in Gwangjin-gu swung its club at one of Zeana’s guards.

WHOOOOOM!

The sound of it tearing through the air was massive, but it shouldn’t have even scratched their bodies.

However, what actually happened was entirely different.

SMACK!

With a nasty cracking sound, the guard was sent flying like a bowling pin.

“…Huh?”

Yeongwoo’s mouth dropped open, realizing something was very wrong.

And then the elite forces of the five families clashed with the ninth-day monsters in Gwangjin-gu.

‘No, I don’t care if it’s day nine—there’s no way those monsters should be this strong!’

But what Yeongwoo saw was unmistakable.

The family heads could obliterate trolls with a flick of the wrist, but their guards were struggling hard.

Even if they couldn’t compare to the heads, the guards of cosmic-scale families should still be formidable.

‘Wait, in that case…’

Alarmed by the unbelievable situation, Yeongwoo quickly turned around.

“Mother!”

—What is it?

“Go to Gangnam. Something’s off today.”

—Gangnam?

“If nothing’s going on there, check other areas too. Help with monsters and mutators. You’re the Guardian Dragon of Seoul, aren’t you?”

Only then did Jiseon realize—

The monsters were putting up more of a fight than expected.

—Got it.

With that, Jiseon leapt into the air, transforming into a dragon.

Almost simultaneously, a red beam of light came rushing from the distance.

‘…A mutator marker.’

Separate from the dragon that had marked Emel as a challenger, today’s Gwangjin-gu had also been assigned a mutator.

And the identity of that mutator—

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!

[Seoul Mayor – Yang Suwon]

‘The mayor?’

The Seoul mayor, Yang Suwon.

He was a rare white troll charging toward them with the red beam.

Standing 8 meters tall, even from a distance, his massive size was apparent.

‘Something’s really wrong today. Hey, Earth! Do you know what’s going on?’

Yeongwoo called out in his mind, and Earth actually responded.

○ What the hell is this chaos? You should’ve sent the family heads back right away.

Just as Earth had mentioned during the last planetary conference, Yeongwoo now had an official communication channel with the planetary consciousness.

‘Is that really the problem right now? Why are the monsters so strong? If this keeps up, the other districts are basically doomed!’

If monsters were pushing even elite guards to the brink, how strong would the mutators be?

‘Is there some special ninth-day buff or something? Why did they suddenly get this powerful?’

To that, Earth gave an answer:

○ It’s because it’s Gwangjin-gu.

‘…What?’

○ Right now in Gwangjin-gu, the first mutant of this country is in midair.

‘The first? As in, the very first person to become a mutant? But why does that matter…?’

Yeongwoo immediately looked up at the sky.

Above, where the monsters and mutants had fallen on Day 9, a massive shadow still lingered.

It was the shadow of a dragon—the very one Yeongwoo had argued with not long ago.

‘Does having that guy around make the monsters stronger or something?’

If that were true, it wouldn’t be all that surprising.

Being the first-ever mutant, it wouldn’t be strange if he had some kind of special ability.

And then, Earth responded.

○ Something like that.

‘What?’

○ Oh, he's moving now.

With that final statement, Earth's presence vanished from Yeongwoo’s consciousness.

At the same time, the air around them began to take on a reddish hue, and a system message appeared.

「An [Abnormal Climate]—the First Calamity—has appeared in Gwangjin-gu.」

The First Calamity.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

The moment Yeongwoo saw that message, he understood.

That abnormal climate was what had made the trolls so absurdly strong.

‘Isn’t this actually a good thing? Now the Houses will think monsters like that fall from the sky here every day.’

Considering it was a planet owned by a bandit clan, wouldn’t it be better if the monsters appearing here looked terrifyingly strong?

So Yeongwoo hoped that this so-called first mutant was insanely powerful.

Because—

‘Hehe, the Mark of the Adversary isn’t on me, it’s on him.’

The target that the dragon would prioritize for elimination this time would be Emel.

Kwa-jot!

That very Emel—scion of the Shirach family—was currently slicing trolls to pieces with twin blades.

‘Let’s see what you’re made of, bastard.’

As Yeongwoo watched Emel with a wicked grin, firestorms suddenly began swirling across the already red-stained sky.

Kururung!

And then, the red-tinted air above Gwangjin-gu started to spiral upward into the sky.

Fwoosh!

Emel’s white hair, which had been trailing downward, began to rise up—a clear sign of what was coming.

—……?

Just then, Emel—who had just embedded his blade into a troll’s skull—looked up at the sky.

He had sensed it too.

As if on cue, a thunderous voice boomed across the sky.

「Behold, I, Heaven’s Wrath, have arrived!」

And then, the entire sky sank downward.

Fwaaah!

“Huh?”

The presence was far greater than expected.

Yeongwoo took an involuntary step back.

The other House leaders were just as stunned.

That was because the creature breaking through the red sky was a monster over 400 meters long.

‘Is this guy insane? He’s way bigger than my mom!’

And then, the mutant finally declared his identity.

「I am Kang Hongtae! I have returned to judge this world’s sins!」

Kang Hongtae.

At the very least, Yeongwoo recognized the name.

He’d seen it on Day 1 of the reset—right after his roommate Im Bonghee had their flesh fall off.

―[Chaebol Chairman - Kang Hongtae] stands at the crossroads.

―He is furious.

― selected.

―A new monster type, 『Dragon』, has been added to this world.

―[Chaebol Chairman - Kang Hongtae] has become a Fire Dragon and will now menace the world.

The first mutant in the country: Kang Hongtae, the Fire Dragon.

‘Wait, seriously? The first mutant’s already out? That means they’ve already gone through all the early ones?’

As Yeongwoo pondered this, Kang Hongtae suddenly streaked through the air and landed in Gwangjin-gu.

Kwaaaaang!

Crushing Seoul Mayor Yang Suwon underfoot—right as the man was coming into view.

「Huh, what’s this?」

It seemed Kang Hongtae hadn’t done it intentionally.

He lifted his front foot and looked down at the figure embedded in the ground.

「Yang Suwon…?」

And then, the barely-alive mayor opened his eyes.

「Kang Hongtae…?」

Of course the chaebol and the mayor would recognize each other.

They were acquaintances, after all—though not on good terms.

「This bastard… Kang Hongtae doesn’t even speak politely.」

Seeing the name above Yang Suwon’s head, Kang Hongtae’s brow furrowed.

Then—

Smash!

He raised his massive front claw and brought it down hard.

Kwaaaang!

The ground shook violently, and a presence vanished completely.

―Gasp.

―Wait… did someone just die?

The mayor of Seoul, Yang Suwon, was annihilated before he could do a thing as a mutant.

Kang Hongtae then lifted his foot to confirm that Yang Suwon had been crushed, and licked the blood from his claw with a long, red tongue.

「Next.」

Then he turned his bright yellow eyes on the cluster of House leaders below.

「Which one of you is Emel?」

The leaders all stepped back from Emel, leaving a clear ring of space around him.

「Ah, there you are.」

Kang Hongtae—perhaps the first, or even the strongest, mutant—grinned wickedly as he looked down at Emel.

Then he tilted his head, narrowing one eye, as if something didn’t make sense.

「But what’s up with your name? Why’s it so weird?」

Emel flicked troll blood off his sword and stared up at the massive dragon.

—I am Emel, Scion of the Shirach family. Do you even know who you’re daring to challenge?

Emel's eyes glowed as he made his high-handed declaration.

Kang Hongtae tilted his head again, then suddenly opened his mouth wide and let out a massive breath attack.

「Do I look like I give a damn, bastard?!」

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]