56
There was a reason I had assembled this team of elite operatives, and that reason extended beyond the fact that many would panic if they knew bombs were planted in the school. Only these five could efficiently defuse the bombs.
Elaine, Amelia, and the Phoenix Blue were for bomb detection.
Cheon Woojin, Han Seyun, and Eungaye were for clean bomb disposal.
Of course, the six of us splitting up to search the vast Eternity Academy and defuse all the bombs within the time limit was impossible.
This bomb was planted not only in a location but also in people. Planted so discreetly that even the victims themselves wouldn’t know.
Because the terrorists had planted the bombs randomly before the incoming logistics were divided within the school, everyone who received them was an innocent citizen.
“A signal came from the northern entrance. It’s a person.”
“Amelia, you go with me.”
“Got it.”
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Amelia, activating an app similar to smartphone navigation, headed towards the northern entrance with Evelyn.
“It seems like there are many near the square.”
“Let’s check it out.”
Elaine and Cheon Woo-jin formed a team and also moved towards the student square.
Though we were only six, there were 34 students from Class 1 who would support us in finding the bombs.
Of course, the students were unaware in their dreams that they were helping to find the bombs, instead spreading joy and enjoying the festival.
The magical devices attached to their class name tags only revealed the range of the bombs.
It was a “Magic Detector” borrowed from the Star’s Seat through Amelia.
The Magic Detector, when activated to detect specific magic, would naturally locate similar magic in the vicinity and transmit the location via a smartphone app.
However, it only provided a rough range, so those like Amelia and Elaine who could sense magic had to physically search for the bombs.
Even then, it seemed difficult to remove the bombs if they were attached to a person…
“No need to worry.”
I licked my lips as I gazed out the window at the student square.
– It’s that person!
– Excuse me.
– Ack! What, what!?
As Elaine pointed at someone, Cheon Woo-jin moved without hesitation.
A citizen who was buying takoyaki at a stall panicked at the sudden situation, but Cheon Woo-jin acted decisively.
He conducted a forced body search, found items suspected of being bombs, and cut them with a sword.
In any case, he was a man of decisive action. I spoke up with my head slightly tilted.
“Let’s go too.”
“Yeah.”
Han Seyeon, who was playing catch with a ball, took out her smartphone.
***
Our bomb disposal method was simple. When the smartphone app identified the bomb’s radius, we would send in Parang to that area. Han Seyeon would then remove the bomb found by Parang. With the power of Morudo, bomb disposal was a piece of cake. Using a brief moment of magic was easy, as Morudo’s magic operation was so discreet that there was no fear of being exposed. To notice this, a sharp mind extremely sensitive to magic like Han Seyeon had to focus solely on her throughout the festival to barely detect any signs.
“The target isn’t moving. It seems to be installed on an object.”
“Send in Parang.”
Pointing to the crowded correctional facility, Han Seyeon hesitated with Parang perched on her shoulder.
It was her first time seeing such a large crowd, and trying to navigate through it seemed intimidating.
“Uh, should I?”
At that moment, Han Seyeon casually picked up the hesitating Parang.
Surprised, Parang, whose voice usually stood out, was lifted by Han Seyeon, who smiled and said, “Take care.”
And with a flick of her hand, the creature perched on her palm suddenly flew into the air, flapping its wings as it soared into the crowd.
“······.”
It’s cute. Whenever you pet it, it’s there, merciless when needed.
The street market went wild with the sudden appearance of Parangi.
“Whoa! A parrot!”
“Look at that, a blue bird!”
“Caw! Caw!”
The little one, jumping around, stepping on people’s shoulders and heads as they tried to catch it, feed it, or take pictures, ruthlessly tore apart the rabbit doll hanging as a prize at the virtual shooting range.
“Hey, you! Don’t tear it! Stop tearing it!”
The attendant at the shooting range, startled, rushed over, and Parangi moved away on its own.
“That looks like a bomb.”
Following Parangi into the virtual shooting range, I read the sign hanging beneath the rabbit doll.
[Dancing Rabbit Doll!]
[Given upon clearing ‘Shooting ＜Hell Mode＞.’]
Han Seyeon, who had suddenly approached me, sparkled her eyes.
“Hmm, looks fun.”
“Want to do it?”
“Yeah, we need to defuse the bomb, right?”
“Exactly.”
I glanced at the shooting difficulty chart.
＜Blocking the Maasu＞
[Easy]
[Normal]
[Difficult]
[Very Difficult]
[Black Night]
[Hell]
Blocking the Maasu was a virtual shooting game where you had to hunt down every Maasu coming at you, with the difficulty increasing as the targets got smaller and the Maasus faster, gaining a reputation for being challenging.
Even for regular people, breaking through Normal was tough, and even hardcore players found Very Difficult challenging. In Eternity, Black Night was an achievement for seasoned players.
Hell, as the name suggests, required one to become ‘rotten water’ even among Eternity players to clear it.
So when Han Seyeon mentioned challenging ‘Hell,’ the 2nd-year attendant managing the shooting range looked bewildered.
“Why not start with ‘Easy’? It’s not Black Night or Hell; even I can’t clear that.”
“I appreciate it, but I’ll still do it.”
“I won’t notice even if you faint from being startled by the Maasu.”
Despite the dismissive tone, Han Seyeon calmly responded, prompting the attendant to activate Hell Mode.
As Han Seyeon entered the virtual room, I bought chicken skewers from a nearby street vendor.
“Caw caw!”
“If you eat that, it’s a massacre, dude.”
As Parangi hopped around, asking for the skewers, I pushed it away with my elbow and sat down, but the crowd gathered for the untimely Hell Mode.
Shooting Hell Mode. And to top it off, a demure female attendant who seemed to have never held a gun in her life. It was an intriguing combination that couldn’t go unnoticed.
Of course, the point was not to take it seriously but to enjoy the amusing spectacle, as everyone chuckled at the unexpected entertainment.
“Did you find it hard to distinguish between heaven and hell, miss?”
“Oh~ I really want to teach you. I’m confident in my teaching skills.”
“Still, you are the avatar of Eternity, so you must be better than me, right?”
And so, Hell Mode began amidst light banter.
Bang! Bang!
“Oh, is my aim accuracy okay? No, is it good?”
“It seems like the speed is quite fast too.”
Those who were half-heartedly watching were taken aback as the shooting turned out to be surprisingly precise. As Hell Mode progressed, their eyes gradually widened in astonishment, eventually turning into sheer disbelief.
“What, what? Taking down even the Hydras?”
“Wow, the hordes are being wiped out entirely.”
The onlookers were astonished as they witnessed the monsters being exterminated one by one.
Maintaining composure even when a monster thrust its mouth right in front of her face, calmly inserting a bullet into its throat.
Judging that she couldn’t keep up with the speed of the incoming monsters with just one handgun, Han Seyeon extended her empty hand without even turning her head.
“Could you give me just one more bullet?”
“Huh? Uh… Oh, I see.”
The attendant, who was absentmindedly watching, hurriedly went to fetch the Beretta 92 hanging on the wall and placed it in Han Seyeon’s hand. The subsequent dual pistol firing.
Tatadadadadang!
─Grrreat······
─Kiie······
The two Berettas in Han Seyeon’s hands spewed fire, causing the monsters to melt away.
The spectators, who had been watching in awe, were left speechless, staring as if entranced.
I munched on a skewered chicken while offering a succinct comment.
“Amazing.”
“Kkaak kkaak.”
Parang bobbed his head as if in agreement.
Sitting on the chair, watching with Parang, before we knew it, Han Seyeon, who had effortlessly cleared the Hell Mode, returned with a bunny doll in hand.
“Eat this.”
I handed Han Seyeon her portion of skewered chicken that I had set aside and got up from my seat.
“You’re treating me?”
“Yeah, consider it my thanks.”
“Mm.”
I glanced at Han Seyeon with a grin as she accepted the skewered chicken and then left the shooting range, pulling out my smartphone.
Amelia: I’ve defused 5 bombs. 2 from people, 3 from objects. (Emoji showing a bunny happily skipping rope)
Cheon Woojin: I got rid of 6. 3 pedestrians, 3 locations.
“Looks like they’re all defused.”
As far as I knew, there were a total of 16 bombs in the game.
Combining the 5 bombs Han Seyeon and I defused, it added up to 6, indicating we had cleared them all. However, there could be discrepancies from the game, so we spent about another hour searching before it was time for lunch, gathering in the dining hall to eat and chat.
“It seems like all the bombs have been defused, right?”
“We’ve checked everywhere we could, but none are showing up now. They’re not appearing on the app either.”
“We haven’t discovered any more bombs on our end either.”
Amelia, Eunga, and Cheon Woo-jin nodded in turn at what was said. Just like in a game, the bombs numbered 16 were the end.
“Let’s conclude the search here then. And Elaine, finish your meal and come with me. I have something to do.”
“What’s the matter?”
“We need to lay down a curse ritual on the ground.”
Leaving Elaine, who still seemed to not fully understand, behind, I ate curry. Indeed, Infinity. The restaurant food was much tastier than street food.
***
The Student Plaza is surrounded by the main building in the front, the second library on the side, the clock tower, and the park.
The main character of this terrorist incident appears on the roof of the clock tower overlooking the Student Plaza. Some guy named Skaal or Scott, but honestly, I didn’t know either. I didn’t even spare him a glance as soon as he showed up.
Well, I didn’t possess that level of power back then, so I should have prepared at least to some extent.
“Is it okay if I do it here?”
“Yeah, just paint the entire roof.”
I nodded in response to Elaine’s question. We were currently on the roof of the clock tower. Climbing up the spiral staircase to the rooftop made me a bit nervous, but at times like this, my energy was overwhelming.
I threw my energy onto the rod that rose like a window in the center of the roof and climbed up quickly.
Elaine, who couldn’t climb up from below, was swiftly pulled up by my energy.
“But why do we need to lay down a curse ritual here?”
“If the ones who planted the bombs show up, they’ll probably appear where the plaza is clearly visible. The second library and the main building are off-limits to outsiders besides the students, making it hard for outsiders to enter. The height of the clock tower is just right, so this place is perfect.”
“I see. You’re really smart.”
Elaine looked at me with eyes full of admiration.
Honestly, I said it like that, but I only thought of preparing like this because I saw them appearing here in the game. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come up with this idea at all.
Anyway, Elaine was diligently carving the curse ritual on the ground, but I couldn’t see at all what she was carving.
“Can you distinguish it even though it’s invisible?”
“Yeah, I can see it with my eyes.”
“Okay.”
Helping Elaine carve the ritual, I gazed at the ‘First Spirit,’ a bear doll, wandering around the roof. Sitting on the sloped tiles, I found it fascinating.
At that moment, a performance from another class was in full swing at the plaza. The echoing music, flying lasers, moving giant robot. It was a perfect spot to watch the festival.
It would be a hellish scene for the terrorist who would appear shortly.
······After lunchtime had passed, it was 1 p.m.
Dang-! Dang-!
The sound of the bell from the clock tower’s rooftop echoed through the plaza.
“What? Who’s ringing the bell from the rooftop?”
“Why are they ringing the bell at this time?”
“Maybe the Academy prepared an event.”
When the hopeful gazes of those who mistook it for a festival event turned towards the clock tower’s rooftop.
─Are you all enjoying the festival?
Someone’s voice echoed through the plaza.
“It’s starting.”
I murmured as I looked up at the clock tower.
On the roof of the clock tower.
There stood a man with black skin.
The mastermind of the terror. The superhuman hunter, “Skal.”
😑