Chapter 257.

A total of 1,000 Heroes gathered for the Orden Campaign . Most of them were ranked higher than high-intermediate rank, and many were above high-rank .

With the Middle East and Europe under attack, there was no time for them to waste . The Hero Alliance Team verified the internal structure of Orden’s kingdom, divided 1000 Heroes into different teams, and identified the most efficient way to infiltrate the enemy base .

“Let’s see… . ”

And currently, in a limousine bound for the military portal, Aileen, who was appointed as the captain of the ‘Special Task Force’, was looking into her magic pocket .

‘High-grade External Injury Healing Potion’

‘High-grade Internal Injury Healing Potion’

‘High-grade Magic Power Recovery Potion’

‘High-grade Vitality Recovery Potion’

‘Promised Return Scroll’

‘Magic Scroll’

‘Magic Tent’

‘Beef Jerky and other provisions’

In it was a package of top notch potions and return scrolls made by Essence Pharmacy, tents and provisions in case the operation was prolonged . The items prepared by the governments of each country and the Association were truly excellent .

“Now that’s what I’m talking about~”

Aileen grinned in satisfaction . But she quickly regained her composure as the captain of the Special Task Force and glanced over the members of her team .

“Did everyone finish checking their supplies?”

Jin Seyeon, Yi Yongha, Shin Jonghak, and the new high-rank Hero, Seo Youngji . The four members of Aileen’s team examined their supplies .

“Yes, I’ve checked . Everything is here . ”

“I have everything . ”

“Me too~”

Aileen nodded sternly .

“Okay . Good . Your captain is satisfied . ”

As she spoke, she glanced at the smartwatch distributed by the Association outlining their operation .

[First, travel to the underground portal in Egypt, which is the closest portal to Orden’s Kingdom . Once you arrive, you will enter immediately using Aileen’s skill ‘Teleport’ . It shouldn’t be difficult as we have already figured out the internal structure using the drones . ]

Tiriring—

Aileen received a text message while she was going over the details of the operation in her head .

The sender was Yoon Seung-Ah, the leader of the Third Attack Team .

—Unni, which way are you going?

Youn Seung-Ah was participating in the operation as the leader of Creator’s Sacred Grace . She wasn’t in a Special Task Force like Aileen but a regular team, along with about a dozen Heroes from Creator’s Sacred Grace .

—This operation is classified . I can’t tell you .

—…Look at you acting like a captain .

Aileen smiled contentedly . Then she typed the reply, letter by letter, with all her efforts .

—I’ve always been captain material .

“We’ve arrived . “

At that moment, the limousine stopped . Aileen threw a glance out of the window and saw that they were right in front of the military portal . She looked around the faces of her team members and ordered them in a heavy voice .

“Let’s go, everyone . ”

“Okay, everybody get off . ”

“All right . ”

The task force, comprised of five elite Heroes, got out of the limousine .

Aileen stretched her legs out of the limousine . They weren’t very long, but she stretched them nonetheless .

Clack . Clack

The click-clack of her high heels resonated gracefully . Aileen walked as if she was on a runway and time had slowed down for her .

A polished, grandiose music rang in her ear . She could feel the glances of the soldiers standing nearby fall on her . Even in the face of an imminent battle, she was not afraid . Rather, she walked with delight . This would only mark the beginning of Spirit Speech Master Aileen’s legend… .

“…Hm . ”

“Kuhum . ”

“Ah . Weather, the weather is nice . ”

The team desperately held back their laughter . The tiny and absolutely serious Aileen was cute but also funny .

Fortunately, they were able to arrive in front of the portal without bursting into laughter .

“Salutations! It’s an honor!”

The soldier in charge saluted . Aileen nodded with a serious look .

“Sure . Is this the portal?”

“Yes, this portal is linked to the underground tunnel in Egypt . Last time, the Egyptian VIPs used it to evacuate . However, as you already know, the distance between Cairo and Orden’s Kingdom is very far . ”

Although Africa had become the land of monsters, not every single region was crawling with monsters . The monsters in Africa fought among themselves and ate each other, thus leaving a few regions entirely devoid of both humans and monsters .

“…Most Heroes will use such regions as routes to enter Orden’s Kingdom . ”

“But we don’t have to . ”

But not Aileen .

“In the first place, the reason this task force was formed was so that we could infiltrate Orden’s Kingdom before everybody else, deliver inside information, and blow up key locations . ”

Aileen deliberately dropped her voice low . But of course, the change wasn’t very noticeable .

“We’ll enter the portal, then travel to Orden’s Kingdom using my skill ‘Teleport’ . ”

“…Will it be alright?”

The distance between Egypt and Orden’s territory at the center of Africa was over 10,000 km .

Still, Aileen gave a leisurely smile to the worried soldier .

“I, Aileen, am the captain of the Hero Alliance’s First Special Task Force . If I wasn’t qualified, I couldn’t have become the captain . ”

“…Ah, yes, of course . You’re amazing . ”

Aileen and the soldier somehow seemed to click, with the soldier looking at Aileen with respect and awe .

Aileen nodded contentedly .

“Let’s start the portal . ”

“Yes . ”

OOOONG— With the sound of magic power and electricity resonating together, the portal was linked to the faraway underground tunnel in Egypt . Before stepping into the portal, Aileen gave a small nod to the soldier . It was an expression of courtesy . The soldier responded with a courteous salute .

“Salutations! Miss Aileen, Captain of the Hero Alliance’s First Special Task Force, I pray for your victory!”

“…Of course . And I’d like to know your name as well . ”

“I’m Colonel Kim Wangho . ”

“Colonel Wangho… . That is a sturdy sounding name . ”

Suddenly Aileen’s expression became resolute . Colonel Wangho looked at Aileen, and Aileen said again in a low voice, “If we send a signal, shut this portal down immediately . We cannot allow the enemy forces to make use of it if the operation happens to fail somehow . ”

“Pardon?”

“Do as I say . I am Aileen, Captain of the Hero Alliance’s First Special Task Force… . ”

The new member, Seo Youngji, seemed slightly confused as she listened in on their conversation .

“She’s more mature than she appears . ”

“…No . No . ”

Jin Seyeon gave her vehement dissent .

“She’s just engrossed in her title right now . She’s surpsingly into such things . ”

Yi Yongha also nodded .

“She’s gonna make a lot of fuss over this captain thing… . ”

Their small talk went on aimlessly, when, suddenly, Aileen called them from a distance after she finished speaking to the colonel .

“Hey, team!”

“Yes, yes . ”

“We’ll be starting our mission now . Is everyone ready—!?”

“…Uh, yeah . ”

“Your answer sucks—! Again—!”

Aileen kept shouting .

‘…Guess we’ll just have to play along,’ thought the four members as they straightened up, following Jin Seyeon’s signal .

“““Yes! We’re ready!”””

“Good . Now I’ll do the last minute roll call . ”

“…Huh? But there’s only four of us . ”

“Shush . They did this in the movies I watched . So you’ll do it, too . ”

“…”

And so, the roll call began .

High-intermediate-rank Grade-1 Shin Jonghak .

High-rank Grade-7 Seo Youngji .

Master-rank Jin Seyeon .

Temple of Justice Yi Yongha .

“All set . Now, we enter the portal . ”

Only after she finished the roll call did Aileen finally lead the team across the portal .

**

[Orden’s Territory]

The Hero Alliance’s First Special Task Force arrived in Central Africa—where Orden’s Territory was—in an instant through Aileen’s Teleport .

“Uaaa… . ”

Teleport covered an extremely long distance . Aileen, who had used up a great deal of magic power at once, trembled with dizziness .

Yi Yongha caught her as she fell down, and only then did Aileen finally look around .

“…Huh? What the . Where are we?”

“…”

Aileen, like the others, became confused . Orden’s Territory seemed nothing like what they had imagined .

“Why is there asphalt in Africa?”

Shin Jonghak muttered in a daze . He had expected a desert, but instead the road was covered with asphalt just like in a human city . There were no signs of nature such as grass or trees . The scenery in front of them was completely different from what the allied team had captured with satellites and drones .

“Chief, are the coordinates correct?”

Jin Seyeon asked, and Aileen nodded without a moment of hesitation .

“What, of course . Do you really think I’d make such an elementary mistake?”

Aileen looked at her smartwatch again to make sure . The coordinates were certainly correct . They were at the right place .

“…First of all, I do think we’re at the right place . Uh, I mean… we have arrived at the correct destination . Oh, look over there—!”

Suddenly Aileen pointed into the distance . What looked like a castle could be seen in the corner of the sky . Although it could just be a mirage, it really did look like a huge castle .

“Ah, you’re right . I see something over there . ”

“Yes . We’ll head that way for now!”

Aileen led the squad like the brave captain she knew she was .

**

[Tower of Heroes]

The Tower of Heroes was a huge 77-story tower artificially built by the Association .

Compared to its great height, however, its ‘width’ was relatively short, at least on the outside . The inside was, in fact, much bigger than how the Tower appeared on the outside . The Tower of Heroes was an iconic building constructed with a magic engineering technique called ‘Expansion Architecture’ .

That was why one floor of the Tower was large enough to hold four to five houses . There were actually separate housing spaces for employees .

“Professor, where did magic power come from?”

Among them, a house on the 33rd floor was designated as the residence of a certain child . It was the home of Yi Yuri, the child with the Authority of Healing, also called the ‘Girl of Authority’ .

“It’s widely accepted that it came about after Outcall… . ”

The 15-year-old, under the strict protection of the Association, was now taking private lessons from a Cube professor .

“But I reckon such an answer won’t be enough to satisfy you . ”

The professor handed her a copy of the research paper that he had prepared beforehand .

“Please take a look at this . ”

“Oh, is this one of ‘his’ papers again?”

The professor nodded to Yi Yuri .

“Yes . It’s incredibly sophisticated, clear, and detailed . I still cannot believe that a mere 17-year-old student wrote such a masterpiece . ”

“Ah… . I see . ”

Yi Yuri gladly received the paper .

Indeed, there was a familiar name written across the top .

[Birth of Magic Power and Precursor to Outcall] – [Cube Class 1, Rank 934, Kim Hajin]

His name was ‘Kim Hajin’, a genius whose achievements in magical theory were recorded in textbooks . Yi Yuri had already read five papers written by him . They were all on different subjects but equally perfect .

“‘Kim Hajin’, I run across this name a lot while studying . ”

The professor smiled softly . “It’s likewise for students at Cube . He submitted a total of 23 exam papers and 8 essays, but all of them were published in major academic journals . There are a total of eight studies currently underway based on Hajin’s papers . ”

“Wow… . That’s amazing . ”

“He was by far the brightest student I’ve ever taught . ”

The professor smiled as he reminisced about the distant past . As a scholar who pursued the profound truth, he considered Kim Hajin a stimulus . Kim Hajin was intelligent and brilliant, gifted and creative… .

Tiriring .

Suddenly, his smartwatch beeped . The professor glanced at the message .

“Ah, it seems something came up . I’ll be out for a while, so please read the paper in the meantime . I’ll be back soon . ”

“Yes, Professor . ”

The professor left, and Yi Yuri read the paper .

“Oah… . ”

The more she read Kim Hajin’s paper, the more she admired it . Academic papers were not meant to be entertaining, yet his papers easily drew her in as though they had been enchanted with magic .

Kiik—

The door opened again not long afterwards, and Yi Yuri glanced up over the paper . The professor was back . He wore a warm smile on his face .

“Yuri-ssi, there’s good news . ”

“…Yes?”

“Your parents have come to visit you . You’ll be able to spend the rest of the day with them . ”

At that moment, a big smile spread across Yi Yuri’s face . Normally she saw them once every two months at most .

“Real— Really?”

“Yes, but you’ll be strictly guarded . Would you like to go?”

“Yes! O-Of course . ”

Yuri got up in a hurry and packed her things, including the papers . Then she even changed into her favorite clothes and returned .

“Please follow me . ”

The professor led Yuri with a smile . Excited, Yuri followed the professor, who switched on the tightly locked elevator on the 55th floor .

“Come, let’s go . ”

“Yes…?”

Only after arriving in front of the elevator did Yuri notice something was wrong . Her intuition warned her .

She stopped and looked around .

Usually this floor crawled with guards on duty . But for some reason, none of them were here today .

“Excuse me, Professor, but— Ah!”

The professor caught Yuri by the wrist as she tried to step back . Pulling her, he said, “You should follow me if you want to live . ”

“Wha, what? P-Please wait . ”

The elevator door closed and they quickly descended to the first floor . The professor almost dragged Yuri out of the elevator . Though the Tower of Heroes was located in Gwanghwamun, what greeted them outside was an empty lot .

“Professor, where are we?”

“Don’t be afraid and follow me . We’re going to see your parents . ”

The professor’s—Jain’s—grip tightened around Yi Yuri’s wrists, who was now sobbing . Jain tried to take Yuri to their hiding place .

However .

“Where are you going~?”

A figure silently appeared and stopped her tracks .

Jain’s eyebrows narrowed to a frown at the sudden appearance of the uninvited guest .

“Hi . Long time no see . You’re Jain, right?”

The man who casually greeted Jain was Kim Junwoo, a hunter from the Vast Expanse .

Jain glared at him . Kim Junwoo’s eyes still formed a straight line, and his narrow fox-like eyes were just as intimidating as they were in anime .

But right now, there was an even more powerful and destructive being by Jain’s side .

“Yeah, long time no see, you dog of Vast Expanse . ”

Cheok Jungyeong muttered as he stepped forward from behind Jain . Kim Junwoo smiled at him . The pair of straight lines on his face arched to form two curves .

“You’re right, it’s been awhile, pig . ”

“…Oh? I’ll take care of this bastard, so you take the kid and buzz off . ”

Jain tried to do as she was told .

…But just how many people were hiding in this empty lot?

“You won’t be able to leave . ”

Suddenly, a low, aged voice rang out, and from somewhere an old man in uniform sprang out .

Both Cheok Jungyeong and Jain froze at the sight of the old man .

“That child is my hope . ”

Vast Expanse, who was considered the strongest in his field of work, had appeared in front of them . Cheok Jungyeong stared at Vast Expanse, trying to make sure he was real .

A few minutes passed in silence .

Jain asked carefully .

“…It’s just you two?”

Kim Junwoo nodded without words . He thought numbers were insignificant with Vast Expanse himself present .

“Phew… . That’s good . ”

Jain breathed a sigh of relief .

Her confidence was well-grounded . Soon, just as Vast Expanse did, the Chameleon Troupe appeared from the darkness . One by one, shadows came into view . There were many, but at the same time, there was only one .

Seat of Silver, Kaita .

Seat of Indigo, Yoo Kyunghwan .

Seat of Brown, Hirano .

Seat of Green, Jin Yohan .

Seat of Turquoise, Setryn .

Seat of Blue, Khalifa .

And lastly, the Seat of White, Boss .

All but two members of the Chameleon Troupe gathered and surrounded the two men .

“Hahahaha… . ”

Was this the confidence of the man considered to be the strongest of all?

“You must be the Chameleon Troupe . It’s been a long time since I’ve been entertained . ”

Even as he was surrounded by a number of strong foes, Vast Expanse only smiled tenderly .

**

[Orden’s Territory]

Meanwhile, I arrived at the heart of Africa with Spartan . I could see Orden’s territory in the distance . I studied the territory from afar .

“…What?”

At first, I wondered if I came to the right place . Things were very different from my original setting .

I imagined a single castle standing in the middle of nowhere . Yet, before my eyes was a vast land full of traps and barriers surrounding a splendidly decorated castle .

“It sure did change a lot . ”

I muttered in despair .

The ‘original story’ was no more .

I only had my eyes and ears to rely on from now .

“Huu… . ”

I took a deep breath and gathered Stigma’s magic power around my eyes . With grade-2 Master Sharpshooter, its Thousand-Mile Eyes showed me the full view of Orden’s territory .

‘The most likely place to find Aileen’s party is…’ Just as I was thinking, a single barrier came into my sight .

[Time Barrier]

—A week inside this barrier is equivalent to an hour outside . However, it is impossible to train inside because the flow of magic power and air is stagnant .

—Entrance is free, but exiting is not .

—To break up this barrier, a power equivalent to the grand magic Dispel or an ‘Authority’ is needed .

This was the most suspicious trap out of all the traps that swarmed Orden’s territory .

Of course, I didn’t really care what the trap was about . I had brought the [Mysterious Key] with me from the Tower to prepare for such things .

“Let’s see… . ”

My vision easily penetrated through the Time Barrier, and I looked inside .

‘Is there anything in there?’ I scrutinized closely .

“…Oh?”

I discovered three people .

Their faces were dirty, their clothes were torn, and from their protruding bones I could assume they hadn’t eaten for a long time .

Aileen, Shin Jonghak, and Jin Seyeon . They were all there .

—I’m starving… .

Aileen muttered pitifully . Jin Seyeon would always comfort Aileen at times like this, but right now even she seemed to be on edge .

—…I’m starving as well .

—Ah… .

All three Heroes were virtually skeletons on the verge of starvation . Wondering why, I looked around the vast area within the barrier . It didn’t take me long to understand .

“…There’s nothing . ”

There was nothing inside .

No grass, no beasts, no water, no monsters, nothing .

—Water, water, ahhhh… . Waterrr… .

Orden knew how to deal with Aileen . Aileen was strong, but the way to deal with someone as strong as her was surprisingly simple .

You just had to avoid fighting her .

Fighting by not fighting . It was that simple .

And thanks to the betrayer, it would have been easy for him to set them up .

Anyways, if this dragged on, they could actually die .

“Spartan, go get some food bags from home . ”

—Pieeek .

I sent Spartan and waited .

He returned about 3 minutes later with bags full of food and water . I grabbed them and ran towards the barrier .

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