Auto Hunting

Chapter 39

Episode 39

It was an excellent opportunity for the public broadcasting company, HBS. Their helicopter was stationed on a building not too far from the barrier.

“Oh my gosh! Let’s get a closer look,” reporter Oh Yoon-ah said for the umpteenth time.

“Okay, wait a second. I’m not ready yet. A little bit to the left.”

Her voice trembled as she communicated with the studio. She knew she looked unprofessional because of the situation, but she couldn’t help it.

The helicopter flew high while maintaining a legal, safe distance. However, even at that distance, she felt fear as she looked towards the crack.

She restrained herself from talking. Since she couldn’t describe what she was looking at, she decided that the world needed to see it instead.

A gigantic monster had its horrible head poking through the crack, whose cries thundered throughout the city.

“Ready. Standby,” she said. It was time for her to give a report.

“It’s an incredible sight. Currently in Seocho-gu area…” Oh Yoon-ah started the broadcast.

Before long, the camera focused on the monster’s face.

It was just the right timing.

“Ah…?”

Forgetting that the audio was still transmitting, Yoon-ah screamed in excitement.

“There! Can you see it?” she asked.

Amid the purple mist emanating from the monster, a tiny figure appeared to fly through the air.

It was Yoo-seong.

“He appears to be a hunter trying to defeat the beast. The fog limits our visibility, but there are probably numerous hunters working with him…”

Yoon-ah stopped with a gasp as she watched Yoo-seong take a leap and land on the monster’s snout.

The camera was still focused on Yoo-seong as he ran over the monster’s face. Everyone, including the pilot and cameraman, watched in shock.

It was like the battle between David and Goliath.

In a way, it was worse.

No matter who the hunter was, he couldn’t defeat a monster of that magnitude alone. Yoon-ah began to fear for the hunter’s life.

Yoo-seong ran between the eyes of the giant turtle. With his feet, he felt the thickness of the monster’s skin.

Unlike the Queen Ant, this monster was so large that his blade would do minimal damage if he struck just anywhere. He had to find a point of weakness, and he knew just where it was.

Every living creature had that same weak spot:

The eyes.

The monster’s eyes looked like a large putrid swamp. Yoo-seong knew it would also be thick, but he didn’t hesitate to try it.

-Assault form applied-

With Yoo-seong’s permission, all the abilities of Automatic Hunting were focused solely on the attack. He leaped with both hands held over his head, Aura covering his fists.

With the force of landing, he went and struck the monster’s pupil.

Pacheonma Geukki.

Like ripples on the surface of a pool, Aura spread across the monster’s eye.

Against humans, this attack would have spread through the opponent’s muscles and organs. However, he was facing a gigantic beast this time. He focused his attack on its corneas.

He continuously pounded it with his Aura-infused fists. The technique originally involved hitting rapidly and kicks.

Yoo-seong had only seen Chu-yeop use his fists, so he could not replicate the technique entirely.

However, even with this limitation, his application was flawless.

He arched his back and raised his arms high for more power as he punched. At first, his fists simply bounced off the monster’s cornea without any damage.

However, the Aura that Yoo-seong released through his fist penetrated the pupil. Soon, the waves began to amplify.

Auror’s Resonance.

Finally, the beast gave the first reaction, closing its lids to shut the eye.

Yoo-seong jumped as the monster closed its eyes. When he landed, he held onto the closed eyelid, forcing it to open once more. When the eyelids opened again, he stuck back to the pupil, hitting with his fists again.

The blinking process repeated itself three times. Then, the monster shook its head vigorously as though it couldn’t take it anymore.

Yoo-seong’s grip could not withstand the recoil, and he fell.

The monster opened its eyes in relief as it watched Yoo-seong fall. That was all Yoo-seong needed.

He pulled the Geller Gun from his waist – the same pistol he had used at the event – and aimed at the monster’s eye. Even if he was falling, he had an accurate aim.

He fired.

Normally, the bullet would have bounced off the pupil. However, his blows had softened the eye significantly, enabling the bullet to penetrate it.

Suddenly, he stopped falling. Everyone in the helicopter gasped.

They had seen too many surprises for one day.

How did he hang freely in the air?

Yoo-seong sighed in relief as Sung-wook’s words ran through his mind.

Unless with unique Psy or Tech, humans cannot control the Aura that has left their body. So, how about we hang on to our Aura and make it do what we want?”

It was the principle underlying parasitic bees.

The arm holding the Geller Gun twitched. A thin line connecting the bullet embedded in the pupil and Yoo-seong’s gun was faintly visible.

It’s a difficult technique since you have to keep up with the bullet despite its speed and hang on to it despite the force. But with focus, you can manage it.

Yoo-seong held on to the thread, digging deeper into the monster’s eyes as the thread pulled him up.

The beast stopped flickering his tongue.

Then, he swung it at Yoo-seong.

When the monster’s tongue hit him, Yoo-seong felt as if he was hit by a moving truck. If it weren’t for the armor, the attacks would have smashed his body.

The entirety of his body shook so much that he feared he had gotten a concussion.

The headache was worse than the body pain. He had to use all the force of his will to focus on the task.

With his attention dwindling, the aura thread flickered.

He forced his mind to direct the Aura.

With a little endurance, the bullet within the beast’s eyes secured its place once more. However, it didn’t end there.

The monster continued flicking his tongue against Yoo-seong, striking again and again. Finally, The Queen’s Hug reached its limit. The upper part of his armor and helmet were entirely blown-off.

If he was hit like that one more time, he was sure he would die.

Because he was maintaining the Parasitic Bee technique, he couldn’t use Aura for defense.

He was left with two options: abandon the task, or hold on.

Either way, he was sure to die. The monster was ready to swing his tongue once again.

Yoo-seong made up his mind.

He flexed his fingers to let go.

Suddenly, there were blasts from around Yoo-seong, and dozens of bullets of different sizes collided against the monster’s tongue.

On the rooftop of the building, one or two teams of hunters stood with outstretched guns.

They were all wearing bugbear suits.

“Keep shooting!” Yoo Jae-gun yelled out.

His goal was to distract the monster. With his team, he began to shoot.

‘I’ll just remain here till support comes,’ he thought to himself as they rained bullets on the monster’s tongue.

Of course, the firepower was insignificant.

In terms of humans, its damage was less than a toothpick’s prick. However, even a toothpick was enough to draw attention.

The beast turned its gaze at them.

Deciding to deal with the people below before finishing with Yoo-seong. The giant turtle flickered its tongue in their direction, preparing to spew poison on them.

It had all the time in the world. No one could challenge it.

Yoo-seong’s arms twitched again. He was reaching his limit. The technique had expended almost all his Aura.

His mind focused on what he had to do.

Just one more step…

With the last of his strength, he sent a signal through the thread into the bullet.

That was all he needed.

The bullet burst into thousands of fragments, spreading everywhere in the monster’s eyes.

The monster screamed, overwhelmed by the pain. Some of the fragments even came out through the eyes.

“Go home,” Yoo-seong screamed.

The beast, who had been trying to come out from the crack, jerked its head back into its world.

As it did, it pulled Yoo-seong back along with it. It shook its head wildly as it screamed in pain.

“He’s forced back! Well done, guys!” Jae-gon said to his crew as he pumped his fist.

That was when he looked up to see Yoo-seong dangling in the air close to the crack.

As he had feared, Yoo-seong was now in crisis. He would either be pulled inside the crack or fall to his death.

Once the monster’s head was beyond the crack, Yoo-seong cut the thread, allowing his body to fall freely through the air.

Jae-gon and his crew gritted their teeth as they watched him fall. Suddenly, Yoo-seong’s outstretched hand grabbed something hard.

It was the skid of the broadcasting station helicopter.

The helicopter lost its balance for a while, and the occupants yelled in fear, but the skillful driver soon regained the aircraft’s balance.

Yoo-seong held on to the skid till the staff helped him into the cabin. He then sighed in exhaustion as he turned off Auto-Hunting.

Everyone watched him in awe.

“Sorry. Thanks for your help,” he said, amid gasps.

Raising his head slowly, he made eye contact with the camera.

That was when he realized he was being filmed without his helmet. His cover had been blown.

He had been exhausted; now, he was embarrassed,

However, he was too tired to care.

He slumped forward.