[Korea's Hero Irregular Declares War on Crime!]
[Hero Irregular! Stops Terror at 9 Locations After Broadcast!]
After officially declaring war on crime at the press conference, Hajoon, just like the news articles stated, used gates to travel to ongoing terror sites and brutally took down the villains as an example.
In the process, 15 A-rank and 30 B-rank villains were killed, and he single-handedly stopped terrorist activities nationwide in just one day, asserting himself as a symbol of peace.
The reason Hajoon, uncharacteristically, busied himself with these actions was simple.
It was to delay, even if just a little, the upcoming episode of 'The Great Chaos.'
In the current situation, there was a need for a presence more intimidating than Choi Jungwon to the villains.
Fortunately, Hajoon's actions had an impact on the movements of the villains.
In just one day, he alone stopped terror at 9 locations, each within minutes, and his actions had a significant influence.
"You've done well, Student Hajoon."
Finally, after stopping the 10th terror site, Chairman Kim Jeongyong, waiting for Hajoon at the gate, bowed politely to him.
Hajoon, rotating his sore arm, asked the chairman,
"What about the other locations?"
"They have been resolved by the heroes already dispatched. Also, since Student Hajoon's actions were broadcasted live, some villains gave up their terror plans and fled."
Hajoon felt a bit disappointed at this response, smacking his lips.
Of course, this was part of the plan, but he still wished he could have caught them all cleanly.
Well, he decided to be satisfied with today's results.
"Then that's it for today."
His words had the casual tone of someone finishing a day's work and preparing to leave the office.
Upon hearing this, Chairman Kim Jeongyong, with a bittersweet smile, addressed Hajoon,
"I don't know what to say. If it weren't for Student Hajoon, I can't imagine what would have happened..."
That was the situation in Korea.
Chairman Kim Jeongyong knew that this crisis was a foreseen future for Korea.
If a hero to replace the symbol of peace had not appeared, he knew what would have happened.
Even before Choi Jungwon, the symbol of peace, was fully active, A-rank and S-rank villains from various countries had illegally entered Korea, and without Hajoon, he speculated Korea could have become the world's first villain nation.
And it was one young boy who had prevented that.
The fact that he had to burden such a boy with Korea's future brought him a sense of guilt.
"Thank you very much."
"It's okay, no need to thank me."
Despite the chairman's gratitude, Hajoon wasn't particularly moved.
He roughly knew what the chairman was thinking, but it was too burdensome and annoying to react to every single thing, especially since the job wasn't finished yet.
Knowing the game's story, Hajoon was aware that this was just the beginning.
A prime example was the remaining S-rank villains in Korea, who had been stopped by Sage Choi Jungwon in the past.
"Did the Corpse Collector also escape?"
Hajoon asked.
The Corpse Collector, an S-rank villain, had appeared first in Busan after Sage Choi Jungwon fell into a coma.
Hajoon wanted to deal with him before he grew stronger, and to this, Kim Jeongyong nodded.
"Yes, honestly, he appeared and disappeared without attacking..."
Hajoon smacked his lips in disappointment at that response.
Given the villain's ability, he wanted to handle it quickly because it was troublesome.
The ability to create living corpses by combining ability with magic.
Literally, he was capable of creating an army of corpses.
It was clear that he would gather a considerable number of corpses while in hiding, so the sooner he was dealt with, the better.
While Hajoon was thinking this, one of the agents rushed to Kim Jeongyong.
He whispered something, and Kim Jeongyong's expression hardened as he looked at Hajoon.
Kim Jeongyong spoke in a grave tone.
"The Corpse Collector has appeared."
"Where?"
"In Ulsan. But, there's a problem."
Hajoon frowned at the mention of a problem and asked him.
"What's the problem?"
"The thing is..."
According to the chairman, the Corpse Collector was currently in a head-on collision with Jang Hanjung, now the second-highest-ranked hero in Korea after Jang Hwan's absence, and his guild.
The problem was that the evacuation of civilians hadn't been smoothly carried out before the confrontation with the Corpse Collector.
"A head-on fight with the Corpse Collector should be avoided."
Kim Jeongyong stated.
The Corpse Collector hadn't initiated the terror. Hearing news of his appearance in Ulsan, Jang Hanjung led his guild members there and attacked without considering the process. Attacking the Corpse Collector head-on without considering his ability was not advisable.
S-rank villains, each with a designated danger rating, had specific countermeasures developed by the Heroes Association. Among them, the top priority in a direct fight with the Corpse Collector was the evacuation of civilians.
Of course, civilian evacuation was a standard procedure in all situations, but with him, it was a critically important matter.
"Why did he lose his mind?"
Hajoon, finding it unbelievable that a hero would ignore basic common sense, was met with an astonishing answer.
"In the past, Hero Jang Hanjung suffered a personal incident during his senior years. He's known to be a rather aggressive hero. Probably, he thought it better to kill the S-rank villain immediately, even at the risk of some collateral damage."
Tsk-
Hajoon clicked his tongue at that response.
He was precisely the type of hero the Puppeteer would despise.
No wonder the Puppeteer became a villain.
Not all superhumans with the Job of a hero operate with noble spirits or righteous hearts.
Most likely, the majority of heroes engage in such activities for money or fame.
As the second-ranked hero in the country, he was indeed a realistic representative of such heroes.
"Let's go."
"Understood. I will open the gate right away."
Anyway, this conversation was a waste of time.
Not knowing what situation was unfolding, he had to go there and resolve it.
"Aaaaah!!"
"Save us, please!"
"It's a monster!!"
It was 2 PM.
At the Ulsan Airport building.
Or rather, what was left of it, as the building had been almost completely destroyed, filled with the screams of civilians.
All around, bone-made monsters moved and destroyed the building, while a few superhumans confronted them in the airport's lobby.
Leaning against the railing on the second floor, a man was leisurely observing the scene.
"Ah~ It's been a while."
He took a refreshing deep breath, surveying his surroundings.
A gaunt man, his face and entire body wrapped in bandages.
Wearing a black robe, with long white hair cascading down like seaweed and hollow eyes, the Corpse Collector trembled with excitement, relishing his freedom.
In this chaos dominated by his bone monsters, he wore a satisfied smile, observing the situation unfolding on the first floor.
He then noticed a group approaching him and grinned wickedly.
At the forefront of the group was a man, precisely the second-ranked hero in Korea, Jang Hanjung, with a sporty hairstyle and robust muscles. The Corpse Collector looked at him intently before speaking.
"Strange, isn't it? A few years ago, you were surely a high-ranked hero. When did you become top-tier?"
With those words, Jang Hanjung, the second-ranked hero, leapt like a cannon towards the Corpse Collector.
Thump! Thump!
He grabbed the Corpse Collector by the collar and flew through the wall, moving the scene to the wide runway of the airport.
Jang Hanjung then slammed the Corpse Collector into the ground. Soon after, ominous ribs emanating a sinister aura extended from the Corpse Collector's back, protecting his body.
Thump!
"Khehehe! So temperamental."
The Corpse Collector let out a strange laugh, spinning in the air before landing gracefully on the ground.
Soon, about thirty heroes casually walked towards him, each holding their weapons.
The Corpse Collector's lips slowly curled into a smile.
He smirked and said,
"Has the Association changed its counter-strategy for me? Such a foolish approach."
With that, he extended his hand.
Suddenly, a wolf-shaped bone monster holding a young girl in its mouth approached the Corpse Collector.
The Corpse Collector continued,
"If you intended to confront me, you should have brought more people, ready for war."
In Korea, the S-rank villain known as the Corpse Collector had another nickname, the walking 'Dungeon Break.'
That's why when he was spotted, the evacuation of civilians should have been prioritized, but Jang Hanjung attacked him before ensuring the safety of the citizens.
In response, the Corpse Collector unleashed corpses to wreak havoc.
"Well then."
The Corpse Collector slammed his spread palm onto the ground.
At that moment, a black swamp appeared around him, and various monstrous corpses began to rise from the ground, pushing through the earth.
Simultaneously, as he extended his hand, a bone-made greatsword emerged from the ground, which he grabbed and swung towards a plane on the runway.
Whoosh! Screech-
"Aaaaah!!"
"What, what's that?!"
The plane was instantly split in half.
Inside the plane, there were still civilians who hadn't evacuated, and several monsters began to rush towards them.
This was the Corpse Collector's method of scattering the heroes in front of him.
"Guild leader, what shall we do?"
Despite the chaos, the heroes' voices did not betray any panic.
Instead, they calmly asked for instructions from their guild leader, Jang Hanjung.
Responding to the guild member's question, Jang Hanjung glared fiercely at the Corpse Collector and said,
"Don't move. Distinguish between civilians we can save and those we can't. We'll die if we let our guard down against an S-rank villain."
At his answer, the guild member nodded calmly, keeping an eye on the Corpse Collector.
Jang Hanjung had already made his decision.
He deemed the girl caught by the Corpse Collector and the people still inside the plane as beyond rescue.
He judged that if some of the gathered forces diverted to save civilians, it would disadvantage them in the standoff against the villain.
Hearing his decision, the girl's eyes trembled with fear.
Tears welled up as she pleaded desperately,
"Please, save me!"
"So you've come prepared."
"Still resorting to despicable acts, Corpse Collector."
Jang Hanjung bared his teeth, glaring fiercely at him.
Seemingly unable to contain his anger, he clenched his gloved hands, ready to charge.
Following his lead, the heroes behind him also took positions, preparing to rush at the Corpse Collector.
Suddenly, about twenty bone-made monsters rose behind the Corpse Collector and fiercely howled at them.
"This is going to be fun."
The Corpse Collector still wore a relaxed, sinister smile.
In this tense situation, poised on the edge of chaos, the Corpse Collector made the first move.
"Attack."
"Kill them all!"
The moment he extended his hand towards the heroes, countless monsters behind him rushed towards them, and the heroes, including Jang Hanjung, also roared and charged at the monsters.
Before the monsters created by the Corpse Collector and the heroes could collide.
That's when it happened.
Whoosh! Boom!!
Just as they were about to clash, a massive explosion erupted at the center of the collision point.
The rising dust cloud obscured the surroundings, and everyone momentarily stopped their movements to look toward the center of the loud noise.
Soon, the dust cleared, revealing the figure of a boy.
The boy was enveloped in a golden aura-like magical power.
This golden magical power exuded a mystical atmosphere, yet the phenomenon it caused was utterly destructive.
The ground where the boy stood cracked and crumbled, expanding the area of destruction due to his power.
"What in the world..."
"The Irregular?"
Then, one of the heroes, recognizing the boy's identity, spoke.
The hammer in the boy's hand was proof of his identity.
Some heroes might have thought he came as reinforcement, but the boy's fierce magical power seemed to represent his intent, intimidating both heroes and villains alike.
A grand, rough voice emanated from the boy.
[Everyone, stop moving.]
Looking around, the boy spoke in a low, resonant voice.
[If anyone moves, I will kill everyone.]
