abcnovels
Chapter 236: The Burning Human Farm (3)
Chapter 236: The Burning Human Farm (3)
Chapter 236: The Burning Human Farm (3)
At that moment, near Phuket City Hall, in the command center.
“What do you mean by that?! A missile?!”
“What’s wrong with firing a missile at a villain?”
Two middle-aged men were arguing in the command center, established to respond to two villains who had appeared on the Island of Divine Rest.
“Chairman, don’t get so worked up. You might just keel over from high blood pressure one of these days. Heh.”
The old general, sporting a white mustache and wearing a red beret—known as ‘Jeokrang’—laughed heartily while pointing at the large screen set up at the site.
“Of course, missiles mean nothing to a villain. But if used correctly, they can pose a psychological threat to them.”
“But what if the Goblin dodges it?! If he dodges the missile, it will hit the island directly!”
“As if there were any people on the island.”
“General!”Still laughing, Jeokrang pulled up another document.
“It’s GPS. According to ThaiWatch, there’s no GPS activity on the Island of Divine Rest. If ThaiWatch isn’t reacting, then there mustn’t be anyone on that island, right?”
“That’s your response?!”
“If there are people, they’d be illegal immigrants. Heh, why not blow them all up together? They must be sneaking into this peaceful country, probably from Southeast Asia or Africa, planning to smuggle themselves into Korea. Hehe.”
Jeokrang twiddled his mustache, chuckling.
“If there are any humans on that island, they aren’t really people. Remember, I didn’t launch the missile to kill people, but to kill the villains. Oh well, what can you do if the villain dodges? Haha.”
“Chairman! The missile!”
“!!”
Before the chairman could respond, something arced through the sky towards the island from afar.
The missile, clearly visible from Phuket City Hall, was unmistakably targeting the island.
“General! Why is it falling downward?!”
“Because it’s a bombardment missile. Don’t you even know that basic fact?”
“This guy…!!”
“Heh. This friend. Who do you think got you to this position?”
BOOM!
A loud explosion was heard.
The vibration reached even the command center, causing some people there to involuntarily cover their ears due to the intense sound.
Thrumming.
An orange mushroom cloud began to rise in the direction of the island.
It wasn’t a nuclear missile, but the explosion was overwhelmingly powerful, almost akin to that of a nuclear missile.
“Hehehe. Even in the era of ability users, nothing beats the firepower of conventional weapons. Even if that Goblin and someone named Gunggi create illusions over the whole island, before a missile…”
“They’re still intact!!”
An employee of the association pointed at the screen and shouted. Jeokrang frowned and approached the screen.
“This is insane….”
As the orange smoke cleared, the unyielding barrier of flames boldly held its ground.
It seemed even more robust than before, as if the explosion had intensified the flames burning fiercely.
“Launch more missiles! Either cause a tsunami by dropping them into the surrounding sea or douse it with seawater, just break that barrier and smash a missile into it!”
AIIIIIEEEEE—
The villain alarm overlapped with the air raid siren, but no one could stop Jeokrang.
“Not even a single ant should come out alive from that island! Understand?!”
“”“Yes!!!”““
The country’s Hero Association had long been overtaken by the military.
“And…!”
Jeokrang hesitated, then quietly called his aide.
“…Contact the Island of Succubus. Clear it out as quickly as possible and sink the island.”
“Understood.”
As various agents bustled about the command center, Jeokrang pulled a cigarette from his pocket and placed it in his mouth.
“…Yes, there are no people there.”
There was not a hint of hesitation in Jeokrang’s eyes.
“If anything, there are only bugs.”
Thud, thud-thud, thud.
The bombardments continued, one after another.
The barrier, sustained by Gunggi’s magical power, grew increasingly hot, absorbing the firepower from the initial missile bombardment.
However, Jeokrang seemed to have a countermeasure; rather than directly hitting the fire curtain with a missile, he launched missiles near the island’s coast to generate waves.
‘It’s effective.’
The resulting tidal waves inevitably weakened the fire curtain.
Even if it was made of magic, it was still fire, and it could not easily defy the laws of nature.
While continuously fueling it with firepower might work, I didn’t extend the fire curtain to protect the island but to prevent those on the island from leaving.
To save those on the island for now.
[Go inside the building.]
Upon landing, I gestured towards the building with my bat, and those outside screamed and hurried in.
It was unavoidable.
With bodies, their heads blown apart, scattered around, how could anyone dare to venture outside?
[It’s the residual magic power. This is an ability. The principle is…indeed.]
It’s somewhat bitter to realize how villainous I appeared, instantly understanding the principle behind the malevolent acts committed by villains in such scenarios.
There was once a movie like that.
A movie where a microchip was implanted behind people’s ears, and when a certain frequency was received, the chip would overheat and explode.
Naturally, that method was a tactic of villains, and the corpses lying before me met their end in a manner similar to those victims.
[I hope it’s not a physical electronic chip.]
I entered the building, baseball bat in hand.
Inside, the musty-smelling building was filled with frenzied slaves, and I approached one who seemed somewhat coherent.
[Do you want to live?]
“Ah…”
[Will you sit still until your head explodes, or will you seize a chance to survive?]
“Please save me! Goblin sir!”
The man knelt before me, his hands clasped together.
His broken Korean suggested he might be Chinese.
That would make sense.
The slaves brought here were likely impersonating Koreans.
After coming to Thailand and attempting to enjoy a night out pretending to be Korean, most were caught with fake passports and imprisoned here as slaves.
[Don’t make a fuss and stay still.]
I warned him, then placed the bat over the man’s head.
I extended magical power downwards and swept over the man’s head. Fortunately, I was able to identify the bomb implanted in him.
[It’s good that it’s not a physical SIM card-like thing.]
“Yes?”
[Grow.]
I lightly tapped the man’s head with the bat.
At the same time, a crimson flame ignited on the man’s head, and he rolled his eyes back, falling forward.
Slowly.
Along with the crimson flame, something resembling purple fluid flowed from the man’s ears.
In reality, it wasn’t fluid but a magic-lifeform similar to a bug that had burrowed into the brain’s crevices.
[Ah. I now convey this to all those on this island. I am the Goblin.]
I spoke towards the speaker’s wires.
Soon, my voice echoed in all directions.
[There are bomb bugs sleeping in your heads. Come to the entrance right now. I will kill the bomb bugs implanted in your heads. Don’t worry. You will not die.]
As soon as I finished speaking, I heard the sound of many running from inside.
Whoosh!
I swung the bat infused with Gunggi’s flames at those approaching.
I was concerned about burning their hair, but the slaves trapped on this island had no hair to begin with.
Fwoosh, fwoosh.
With each swing, I set fire to ten, twenty heads at a time, and the slaves, burning like candles, all fell down, purple fluid leaking from their ears, eyes, and mouths.
The magic flowed out from the closest openings in their heads.
After boiling the bomb bugs inside the slaves’ heads with heat, I kicked open a door inside the prison-like corridor.
“Oh, don’t come!!”
[Were these born here?]
A quick scan of the children’s physiques gave me a sense of how long this facility had been in operation.
[Have you all been taught that all outsiders are monsters?]
“How could you…?”
[There is nothing more terrifying than growing up in an isolated environment. Don’t worry. Now, your world is going to change.]
I stamped the baseball bat down, igniting flames throughout the building.
“Uaaahhh!”
The children couldn’t avoid the flames.
As the sudden crimson flames engulfed them, the children started panicking, but soon they felt something unusual and gradually calmed down.
“Uh, uh…?”
[I guess they didn’t implant them in the children. Oh well.]
No bomb bugs flowed out of the children.
It seemed that the bomb bugs had only been implanted in the slaves imprisoned for labor.
[Are you curious about the outside world?]
“……!!”
[If so, follow me. I will now open the way to a new world for you.]
Hundreds of children were visible before me.
Including those peeking out from the corridor beyond and those watching from a distance, there might be thousands.
There could be even more.
But for now, the priority is to take care of those immediately in front of me.
Thrumming.
The missile bombardment had stopped.
Sensing the time was right, I turned around and headed back towards the entrance I had come through.
[Have you arrived?]
“…….”
[Heroes are always late, it seems.]
Nguyen, among about a dozen heroes, scanned the surroundings warily.
[They say human trafficking and personality abuse were conducted here, and it’s clear just by looking.]
I rested my bat at the entrance and lightly clapped my hands towards the heroes who had arrived, each wielding their weapons.
[Well, this time both you and I are late. There are only victims on this island; the villains who caused this are not here. They’re very organized. Surely, they noticed the attack the moment they crossed onto the island and escaped in the meantime.]
Indeed, they had escaped.
Before the fire curtain spread, they likely escaped through an emergency passage that connected underground inside the island, leading to the sea.
[I will pursue them. Will you hinder me?]
“…….”
The heroes’ gazes turned towards Nguyen.
Nguyen clenched his fist and raised his hand to the wireless earphone in his ear, then began to speak.
“Chairman. This is Nguyen. We will now begin the rescue operations.”
[A good choice, hero.]
Flap.
I spread my wings again.
“Goblin…! Where are you planning to go?!”
[Anywhere.]
Flapping my fiery wings, I soared into the sky, heading towards the main island of Phuket.
[To a place where there is someone I must kill.]
“!!”
I soared up in an instant.
The heroes, regretting their hesitation, tried to jump up, but I had already flown high towards the main island.
The trace was a very faint lavender magic residue.
The trail of the magic signal sent to detonate the bomb bugs implanted in the brains of those on the island.
At full speed, the end of my journey was…
Crash———!
“……Huh?”
At the top floor of the Hero Association headquarters.
“No, why are you here already—”
[You.]
I ran towards a man with lavender hair standing in front of a large screen, Laplace.
[I came to kill you.]
First.
The conversation began, already half-killing him.
To prevent him from escaping.
Thud.
[I’ve gained an insight.]
Thump.
[Even if there are a ton of questions, one must first break the legs to prevent any escape.]
Thunk, thud.
[If you want to argue.]
Blood splattered.
[Take it up with Duoexini in hell.]
Red blood.