TS 050

He could feel the texture of stiff hair under his palm. Yoon Taehwa, while pressing down on Kim Su-an’s body, rolled his eyes upwards. The tentacle that had narrowly brushed past his back hit the opposite railing. A sucker the size of a manhole was writhing right above his head.

Since he was an S-class Esper, he wouldn’t die even if he was hit, but it was a force powerful enough to render him incapacitated.

It was the moment the tentacle that had soared upwards was about to strike them again. The Kraken suddenly stopped moving, as if it had been pierced by something.

“Are you crazy?”

It was psychokinesis. Yoon Taehwa helped Kim Su-an up and turned his head in the direction the voice had come from. Han Suryeon was walking over, his brow deeply furrowed in annoyance.

“Kim Su-an, you stick next to Kang Jaemin and support him. First, burn that tentacle.”

“Ha, fuck. I almost died…”

As if he had been quite startled, Kim Su-an clutched his chest and caught his breath. There was no time to be leisurely. Yoon Taehwa sharpened his gaze.

“Are you not going to snap out of it?”

“Yes, yes! I’m sorry. I’ll move right now!”

Flames began to burn over the leg that was stuck as if pinned by a specimen pin. Only after the sickening smell stung his nose did Yoon Taehwa face Han Suryeon.

“I’m not crazy.”

“Why did you suddenly jump in?”

“It’s the same thing I did for you earlier.”

It was closer to a habitual reaction that had sprung out because he saw it. S-class Espers don’t die easily, but not dying doesn’t mean the pain is dulled either. No team leader would stand by and let their team member get turned into pulp right in front of them while focusing only on the monster.

“Jaemin and I are here.”

“I know. I jumped in knowing you guys would block it.”

“Then you shouldn’t have jumped in. If I hadn’t made it swerve, you would have been swept away instead, Team Leader. Do you know that?”

As if he was so displeased about something, Han Suryeon swept his hair back and spat out his words fiercely. His jaw, clenched as if gritting his teeth, and his raw eyes were quite unfamiliar.

This must be closer to his true self.

“Let’s talk after we deal with that thing first.”

Yoon Taehwa concluded the conversation. He could have ignored him as usual and just done his own thing, but strangely, it weighed on his mind.

“Don’t even think about running away.”

The giant tentacle that had been about to strike them was once again blocked by an invisible force. Flames soared over it, and the Kraken let out a sharp noise. Yoon Taehwa stared blankly at the man standing against the backdrop of the burning scene. His eyes narrowed, hiding the whites below his pupils.

“Suryeon-ah.”

He thought he knew why it weighed on his mind. It was because of Han Suryeon’s anxious demeanor.

‘There’s no reason for him to be anxious.’

Even if he had been hit by the Kraken’s attack, he wouldn’t have died. He would have had to endure tremendous internal injuries, but an Esper’s life was always tenacious. Even if their bones were broken and their organs were damaged, they could get up after being sick for a few days. So why are you anxious?

“I have never once…”

Yoon Taehwa smiled arrogantly.

“…run away.”

If asked if he had ever wanted to run away, he himself didn’t know how he would answer. But Yoon Taehwa had never chosen to run away. Not in the field, not from the duties given to him, and not even in moments when his life was on the line.

Whatever the subject was, Yoon Taehwa had never run away.

At the soothing tone, which was unfitting for the situation, Han Suryeon drew the corners of his eyes long.

“So go and deal with that thing first.”

Yoon Taehwa gestured at the Kraken with the tip of his chin and gave a short command.

“I’ll deal with you as much as you want.”

Though he was doing his part even now, if Han Suryeon were to move in earnest, the time it would take to deal with the Kraken would be cut in half.

“…I understand.”

The answer was a beat late.

“Since our Team Leader is giving the order, I, as a team member, have to follow.”

As if he had never been annoyed, Han Suryeon moved his lips and lowered his eyelashes with his usual light demeanor.

“Instead…”

Yoon Taehwa, instead of shaking off the large hand that wrapped around his neck, just looked at Han Suryeon.

“Soothe me.”

“Soothe what…”

A face suddenly came close. A light warmth lingered on his lips and then disappeared. Subsequently, the faint grip he had felt on his neck was gone.

“I thought my heart was going to drop out of my chest because of you, Team Leader.”

“I don’t think I ever said you could kiss me.”

“It wasn’t a kiss… Don’t you know what a peck is?”

Han Suryeon, pretending not to see Yoon Taehwa’s hollow laugh, shamelessly asked back and then turned his back.

“Anyway, I’ll finish this up quickly and be back.”

The tentacle that had been shriveling in the flames began to be torn to shreds.

“Team Leader, what did I just see?”

Hae Na-eun, who had approached, tucked her short bob behind her ear and asked with a deadpan expression. Yoon Taehwa answered indifferently.

“You must have seen wrong.”

“I see.”

“Use a hallucination to pull that thing up a little higher.”

To break the core, it seemed they had to make the Kraken come up a little more. Hae Na-eun’s hallucinations were also effective on sea creatures, so it was time to use her ability.

“My specialty is inflicting fear with my hallucinations… I’m not sure if it will work on a legendary creature.”

“Raise the river’s water level with a hallucination.”

Yoon Taehwa commanded, watching the situation. If Han Suryeon and Kang Jaemin blocked the tentacles trying to attack, Kim Su-an would set them on fire. From the other side, the flight team’s gunfire was still pouring down.

“The water level?”

“It will think it’s under the river and raise its body higher.”

“Understood. I will raise it to about twice its current height.”

Taking a deep breath, Hae Na-eun began to stare intently at the Kraken. Yoon Taehwa glanced at her profile and then turned his head to the front. He usually preferred to be in the field himself, but right now, supporting the team members was more helpful than him jumping in.

‘Is it a relief that it appeared in the Han River…?’

If they had encountered a Kraken in a dungeon, it would not have been as easy as this.

In the first place, dungeons with a sea theme were tricky to clear. Beastmen belonging to marine predator species were essential, and if they were unlucky, terrains that were difficult to even set foot on would pop up.

‘I think it’s not using its full strength because the Han River is narrow.’

Above all, dungeons were designed to specialize the abilities of the monsters. If they had met the Kraken in a dungeon instead of the Han River, they would have been the ones struggling. It would have been a situation where waves were crashing in the open sea.

“It took the bait.”

“Good work.”

No sooner had Hae Na-eun finished speaking than the Kraken raised its body a little higher. Yoon Taehwa, looking at the Kraken that had come up over the river, muttered indifferently.

“Its legs are regenerating.”

“I don’t think the part up there is regenerating.”

“It seems they regenerate when they touch seawater. Since seawater flows in the Han River too.”

The burnt tentacles couldn’t function properly. He thought he knew why the Kraken was focusing its attacks on Kim Su-an.

“Keep it held here.”

“Yes.”

Yoon Taehwa walked towards Kim Su-an. Thanks to the psychokinesis holding the wriggling tentacle, there was no need to move urgently.

“Aaaack! What is it!”

When he pulled out the gun attached to Kim Su-an’s waist, he flinched and jumped in surprise.

“What do you mean, what is it?”

Yoon Taehwa, likewise, rummaged through Kim Su-an’s pocket and found the specially made bullets. It didn’t even take a few seconds to load.

“I was just surprised because someone suddenly touched me without any presence.”

Kim Su-an, who let out a noticeable sigh, blasted away one tentacle and clutched his chest.

“It seems the legs regenerate when they touch seawater. The part you burned seems to be regenerating slower.”

“Then should I just burn them?”

“You have to be the bait too.”

“…Yes?”

“The Kraken is only focusing its attacks on you.”

Yoon Taehwa, declaring he would use the team member he had just saved as bait, beckoned to Han Suryeon with his finger.

“Come here.”

“Whoa, whoa! Hyung, you have to come back quickly!”

“Go, Jaemin.”

With a soft cheer, Han Suryeon, who had come closer, blinked his eyes as if to ask what was going on.

“While it’s aiming for Kim Su-an, I’m going to break the core, so let one tentacle come this way.”

The Kraken was climbing onto the bridge, making a wet sound. Its mouth, with thousands of teeth, was about half exposed.

“Got it.”

Han Suryeon, who had been gauging the distance between Kim Su-an and the Kraken, nodded his head.

“Kim Su-an, you dodge on your own.”

“Wow, Team Leader, you’re really too much!”

“Burn it with fire.”

Yoon Taehwa habitually checked the bullets. The bullets, made from dungeon minerals, could even break a monster’s core.

“When are we doing it?”

As he approached the railing, Han Suryeon followed closely behind. As if worried about the excessively close approach, he was stuck right behind him. Yoon Taehwa, unconcerned, placed one leg on the railing. He had killed his presence, Kim Su-an was drawing its attention with flames, and since sea creatures had poor eyesight, it was unlikely he would be easily spotted.

“Krrrrrr… Kieeeeeh!”

It was when the Kraken raised its tentacle and opened its mouth.

“Now.”

A sound of parting wind was heard from right above. It was the noise generated as the tentacle extended long to attack Kim Su-an.

“Aaaack! Ack! Get off!”

“Whoa, whoa, Su-an-hyung!”

He could hear the fussing voices, but Yoon Taehwa silently held his breath.

“I’ll make its mouth open wider for you.”

Han Suryeon, who had been standing blankly, subtly pressed his body against him and intertwined his fingers with the hand holding the gun. At the same time, the Kraken’s mouth trembled as if it were paralyzed. Something shiny was visible in between.

Yoon Taehwa, without letting out even the slightest breath, pulled the trigger.

Bang!

One bullet accurately pierced the center of the core.

Crack, a faint cracking sound of the core breaking was heard, and finally, the Kraken fell into the Han River below. The tentacles that had been on the bridge were dragged along and, unable to bear the weight, fell together.

The rising river water rushed toward the thoroughfare, but as if Han Suryeon had pushed it back with his ability, it receded just before it could wet their feet.

“It’s over.”

Yoon Taehwa, instead of looking at the man standing behind him, lowered his gaze to the hand that had been holding the gun.

“Where did you learn the bad habit of doing this when someone else is shooting?”

“I was so surprised because of you earlier, I had to hold your hand to calm down.”

Only then did Yoon Taehwa turn around and push Han Suryeon away. He saw Kim Su-an in the distance, clutching his forearm.

“Uaaah… Hiss.”

“What? Are you hurt?”

When he got closer, he saw a wound through the long tear in his uniform.

“It’s not serious. The tip of the tentacle had something sharp like a nail, I think it grazed me.”

Blood was flowing, but it wasn’t a serious wound.

“So the Kraken has that too…”

Han Suryeon, who had been looking at the red wound, muttered something out of the blue.

“Huh? Hyung, what do you mean? What is that?”

“hectocotylus.”

Yoon Taehwa’s cheek contorted.

“Huh? Hecto… what?”

“What do they call it in Korean…”

“I know. Gyojeopwan.”

Hae Na-eun, who had been listening quietly to the conversation, chimed in.

“Noona, what’s that?”

Kim Su-an, who had been rolling the word gyojeopwan on his tongue, soon made a nauseated face as if he were about to throw up.

“It’s an organ used for mating, so to put it simply, the Kraken’s di…”

“Noona, I feel like I’m going to throw up, so please stop talking… I feel like I want to carve out my flesh.”

At the pointless conversation, Yoon Taehwa sighed and turned away. Now that they had dealt with the monster, it was time for the cleanup. It was the moment he was about to connect with the Center to call the cleaners.

Bang! Pow!

As if fireworks were going off somewhere, the helicopters flying in the sky all changed direction at once. Yoon Taehwa also turned his head in the direction the sound had come from.

“Uh… Team Leader. Isn’t that the Center?”

In the distance, the Center building, where an explosion had occurred, was visible.