The expedition ceremony proved to be very colorful. Of course, until the day before the expedition, it was a project that had been secretly conducted, but the event that the association planned for that day was truly prestigious. Kang Shin-hyuk felt the magnificent heart behind it as he watched the orchestra.
“It feels like we’re finally taking the fight to Jormungand.”
“If there was a spy at the center of the association, I’d leave immediately.”
“How far will you make the future of mankind gloomy?”
“But I really can’t believe anyone.”
Shin Eunah said so with a gloomy expression. But perhaps the real reason her mood was like that was because of Bridget Poulsen, who kept sticking to her.
“Stop bothering my senior. Even if you want to become friends, do it after taking the proper steps.”
“If I take the steps, I can get closer to Eunah, right? How far, huh? How far?”
“Can you stop talking while pointing at parts of my senior? It’s very rude.”
“… Breath of the Thunder God.”
Shin Eunah, who wanted to hunt but not be hunted, began muttering quietly as she watched Bridget. Upon hearing her whispers, Kang Shin-hyuk immediately recognized it as the most powerful magic she could perform.
“If I don’t do anything right now, I’ll head home before we even get to go to Africa.”
“Ahaha.”
He grabbed hold of Bridget, but she only gripped his hand a little harder with her cheeks blushing slightly.
“I’m okay with a man too. I’m particularly fond of the Death Puppeteer.”
“Ah, she’s really invincible!”
He let go of her hand in fright. Eleanor jumped in-between them excitedly.
“Mr. Death Puppeteer, did it have five-corners, not four?”
“She doesn’t like me that way.”
“…Do you know what I just said?”
“Ah.”
Kang Shin-hyuk realized his mistake. Shin Eunah was turning away from him with a blush, and Eleanor shook her head in embarrassment that was visible through the mask. He rather shook his head firmly, but that would only seem more suspicious. He was quick to make excuses before it was too late.
“I mean, as a colleague.”
“Okay, okay. I knew that Mr. Death Puppeteer was a very bad guy; it’s my taste. I think the three of us would fit well. How about in bed?”
“Would you please not sneak me in?”
“I won’t go either!”
Bridget, who was bouncing back and forth between two people, seemed to be having fun. She was the type that only burned more fiercely when rejected.
“If you keep it up, she’ll really attack.”
Just then, the ship departed. A mass of humans had come out to the pier to wave them goodbye, and Kang Shin-hyuk felt oddly moved though he had no connection to them. They didn’t seem to have any doubts the superhumans would conquer Africa and return.
“It’s because there are many Africans in Lisbon, and the mainland of Portugal is also very dangerous. The Spanish border is still fighting.”
“Gibraltar.”
Eleanor quietly added to Shin Eunah’s explanation.
“Gibraltar couldn’t withstand the first countercurrent and was completely eroded and subjugated without a chance for British support. The British troops’ primary purpose in this expedition is to restore Gibraltar.”
“Ah, indeed… Gibraltar is British.”
“Yes.”
Eleanor, who was part of England’s royal family, seemed to be very interested in Gibraltar’s recapture. Perhaps that was the reason she was investigating the British military’s participation in this expedition.
“But wasn’t Spain struggling to take Gibraltar?”
Bridget Poulsen indifferently brought that up. Eleanor suffered as a result, and Kang Shin-hyuk had to explain it with a sigh.
“Spain cannot afford to pay attention to it. Rather, it’s an area that contacts Africa, so if Britain restores it, it will be easier to protect the Spanish mainland.”
“If I were in England, I would just leave it to Spain.”
“The British don’t give up.”
The dignity of royalty could be felt in Eleanor’s resolute declaration. Bridget flinched away at the overwhelming force emanating from her small body and soon nodded silently as if she had noticed something from her accent.
“Yes, I’ll cheer you on.”
“They’ll take Gibraltar.”
“… Restoring Gibraltar at this time is impossible. They’ll have their hands full in Morocco.”
Eunah said so firmly with a sorrowful expression. Although she became childish in front of Kang Shin-hyuk, as she discussed the expedition, she held the dignity of the world’s No. 1.
“Even when humanity was at its peak, the conquest of Africa was a futile idea. However, at this point, the level of monsters in Africa has increased due to gate incidence, and superhuman power has decreased…”
“Then why are we going? It’s as dangerous as you say.”
It was Bridget who asked that. Apparently, her dignity as a top-ranker couldn’t be found.
“If we don’t go now, it’ll be more dangerous later.”
Shin Eunah’s face blurred as she worried over the future to come.
“The more the gates overlap in a small area, the steeper the risk increases. Maybe already…”
As she said that, she grabbed Kang Shin-hyuk’s hand. As a member of the Hero Universe, he had a rough idea of what she was trying to say. She was probably referring to the current limit, monsters that went beyond the SSS+ rank. The average level of monsters on earth was low compared to other words, but Africa was an exception.
“When it gets dangerous, you will return.”
“Senior, I’m fourth in the world.”
Eleanor’s eyes narrowed as she watched the two talk, but Shin Eunah boldly ignored Eleanor’s keen gaze and held his hand tighter.
“Because it can be dangerous for me too. If you return, never come back, okay?”
“What about me?”
“Wow, I’m hurt.”
Perhaps Shin Eunah was really considering returning only Kang Shin-hyuk if she felt it was dangerous. Had she already entered Africa? He knew she was busy as the strongest in the world, but maybe she already faced such ridiculous dangers on a daily basis.
“Don’t worry about it because I won’t die.”
“Yes.”
“Listen to me and let me go.”
“… Yes.”
Kang Shin-hyuk responded seriously, but Shin Eunah avoided his gaze. She had a very bad habit, but that would have to be fixed by her boyfriend in the future, not Kang Shin-hyuk.
“Don’t plan between the two of you; please let me join, huh?”
“Look ahead. We don’t know when there will be an aerial monster attack.”
Why would they travel by ship and not plane from Lisbon to Casablanca in Morocco? That was because there were erosion-type gates in the sky where a ridiculous amount of monsters would pop out. The gates had already completely eroded reality to create an alien fortress that defended the air. Of course, the sea was also dangerous, but it was easier to fight back.
“Oh, because Mr. Puppeteer said that.”
Bridget spoke up. When he looked around, he saw the sky turned black in front of them. The mercenaries on the ships in the rear were preparing their heavy weapons, and Shin Eunah had sparks coming off her body as she prepared her magic.
“Hmm, do you have a long-range attack, Ms. El?”
“…Ah.”
Eleanor, realizing that he was talking about her, pouted at him. She was a melee striker, through and through.
“Ah.”
Then, Kang Shin-hyuk felt that his inventory was opening. Onyx wanted to come out, and there was usually only one reason for that.
‘Is it metal?’
-Myu!
Onyx firmly affirmed his suspicions. He had grown by eating so many kinds of metal, to the point he no longer paid mind to low-level metals, but now he was excited by the creatures flying in the air.
‘Are you going?’
Kang Shin-hyuk conveyed his intentions to Onyx through his spiritual power.
‘Shall we try what we practiced this time?’
-Myu!
He hadn’t acquired any new metals these days, and all the weapons he made were posted on the trading board, so he was very unsatisfied. But Kang Shinhyuk had appeased him by promising him the rare metals that could be found in Africa, though he hadn’t known a monster that would get him excited would appear even before they entered Africa.
“Wow, that’s great.”
“It is.”
What he produced was Erebos. Bridget tilted her head as she noticed Onyx quietly climb up onto his shoulder.
“Monster?”
“No.”
Still, she was a top-ranker to see through Onyx’s stealth. But that was okay. Soon, he would leave this ship. Kang Shin-hyuk chose his timing based on the mercenaries and various ranged attackers firing into the sky. And, for a moment, when a group of monsters blocked the sun and cast a dark shadow over the sea… he fired his gun.
“Oh, the feeling is gun. Did you have a spirit in the bullet?”
“Something like that.”
Kang Shin-hyuk smiled and nodded before firing several more bullets off. The subsequent shots flew quickly up to catch up with the first bullet, creating an area of shadow around the aerial monsters. It trapped them at once, and they began to scream out in pain.
-Myuuuuuuu!
“Junior, no way…”
“It’s roughly correct.”
Shin Eunah inferred what was happening in the darkness that had suddenly formed in the sky and looked over at him. The monsters who lost their wings in the darkness began to fall.
“The whole wing was metal.”
Kang Shin-hyuk mumbled quietly. Onyx, who had assimilated with the shadows, proved to be more efficient than expected.
As long as the enemy’s body was metallic, their tactics were undefeatable.