Su-ho scowled, lightning crackling at his fingertips.
This situation's bad, he thought, ducking under a sweeping claw. Guess Maru-maru was right. The monsters really did come.
He glanced toward the sky, at the rift that hung there like an open wound. Defeating the boss was the only way to close it. Or so he assumed. The government hadn't confirmed anything yet.
The monsters were weak individually. Except for the boss.
Su-ho's hand instinctively pressed against his ribs. He still remembered getting slammed into the ground, that giant bone club coming down on him like a meteor. The crack. The pain. The way his vision had gone white for a solid three seconds.
Gosh, if I was a normal human, I'd be tomato soup from that hit. Not just bruised for a week.
The memory alone made his ribs throb. Man, I never knew I'd taste pain worse than falling off my bike... and then I got slammed by a bone club. Haha... ugh, not a funny joke.
He shook off the memory. That bruiser had left him battered, forced him to skip school for three days. He remembered lying in bed, ribs wrapped, telling his eomma he had a fever.
He'd been training his lightning powers during thunderstorms. Hiding his attacks within natural lightning strikes to avoid attention. It worked. No one noticed. No one suspected.
Until now.
A monstrous claw swiped at him from the left. Su-ho ducked, electricity crackling around his fist. He slid low, drove his knuckles between the minotaur's legs, then surged upward, his fist buried in its gut. Lightning exploded from the impact, piercing through its torso like a spear.
The creature collapsed.
Su-ho huffed, rolling his shoulder. An endurance match, then?
---
[Rank Up!!!]
[Status Window]
Name: Baek Su-ho (Awakener)
Privilege Ability: Lightning Generator
Mana Core Rank: E
Affinity: Lightning
Stats:
· STR: B → B+
· MAG: F
· END: C
· MAG DEF: EX
· AGL: A → A+
Lightning Generator – Creates, shapes, and controls lightning.
Passive: Absorbs pure elemental and magical attacks, converting them into lightning to strengthen his abilities. Grants him EX-Rank Magic defense.
---
These annoying rank-up notices... always mid-battle.
His passive ability was unusual. And magic? He still had no idea how to use it.
LIKE C'MON, THERE'S NO MAGIC SCHOOL EXIST HERE. WHO GAVE MAGIC WHEN NO MAGIC SCHOOL TO TEACH ME?!
Whatever. Fists, dodging, and lightning worked fine.
A fireball shot toward him.
Su-ho winced, pretending to be hurt, even though he was immune. If the monsters realized, they'd adjust their tactics. Even beasts learned.
He created two lightning spears, punching one after the other to launch them at a flying beast. The first struck its chest; the second pierced the same spot. The creature dropped from the sky like a stone.
Su-ho huffed, catching his breath. His ribs throbbed with every inhale. Hope my family's safe. They'll manage. We're good at surviving.
Then he remembered. Wait... if this started during study time... what if someone's still hiding somewhere?
"Hey! Is anyone still on break?!"
A girl shouted back from behind a collapsed pillar. "Kang Min's in the second-floor restroom!"
"Can you call him?!" Su-ho dodged an attack, swept a goblin's legs, electro-punched it, and hurled a lightning spear skyward. It exploded, raining bolts down on the monsters. Some fell. Some survived.
"He's still not answering!"
"Got it! Help me out, tell me if anything's coming from behind. I need to focus for this move!"
He created a lightning bolt, sending it zigzagging through the school at blinding speed. The bolt weaved through corridors, past overturned desks, through shattered windows.
"On your left!" a student called.
The bolt inside the school paused. Su-ho flash-stepped to the right, spinning and kicking a monster that had crept up beside him. It crashed into the wall.
Then he refocused on his bolt.
It located Kang Min. Cowering in a stall. Too scared to move.
In a blink, Su-ho switched places with the lightning.
Lightning Switch. A technique he'd developed, swap places with any lightning bolt he'd shot.
"Wait, Su-ho—!"
"No time. Let's go."
He grabbed the boy, focusing lightning only on his legs to avoid electrocuting him, and punched straight through the bathroom wall. Dashing back toward the gym at blinding speed, he noticed something surprising.
Their homeroom teacher—Ahn Nam-ra—was fighting too. Jagged barrier pieces formed in her hands, smashing down on monsters' heads with improvised moves. She was creating barriers. Using them as weapons.
Okay... no more becoming mischief student, Su-ho thought, sweatdropping. Ahn Seonsaengnim just leveled up from normal teacher to scary teacher with that power.
He remembered seeing "Awakener" next to his name on the status screen. The world was changing. Everyone was changing.
Does she recently got her power? Based how she sloppy with her movement. Like she not get used with how fast and durable we are after the change?
I'm already get used by now, because for one month.
She's not bad, Su-ho thought, watching Ahn Nam-ra smash a monster with a jagged barrier. But she's sloppy. Her movements are too big. She's wasting energy.
He remembered his first week. The exhaustion. The bruises. The way he'd nearly fried himself trying to control his lightning.
She'll get better. If she survives.
He set Kang Min down near the gym entrance. The boy's uniform was dirty from hiding, but he was alive. His face was pale, his hands still shaking.
"You, you're—"
"Yeah, yeah. Superpower guy. Save the chatter for later." Su-ho gave him a gentle push toward the doors. "Get inside. Ahn Seonsaengnim is there she too turn out just like me."
Kang Min nodded, still speechless, and stumbled through the doors.
"Ahn Seonsaengnim, can you hold this area?! I'll handle the horde!"
The teacher nodded, her eyes fierce. Jagged barrier pieces spun around her like shards of glass.
Su-ho turned to the rift. The monsters keep pouring out. Is there even an end to this wave?
Su-ho exhaled, rolling his shoulder.
This is getting ridiculous.
He glanced back at the gym. Students were still pouring in. Teachers were herding them. Ahn Nam-ra was holding the line with her barrier shards, but she was slowing down.
I need to clear this area. Now.
An idea sparked.
Su-ho raised both hands, lightning crackling between his fingers. He focused, not on one spear, not on two—
But five.
Five lightning spears materialized in the air around him, crackling with barely contained energy.
He gritted his teeth and punched the first spear.
It shot forward like a railgun, piercing through three goblins in a straight line before embedding itself in a wall. The second followed, tearing through a cluster of wolf-like creatures. The third, slammed into a hulking brute, sending it crashing backward into its allies.
The fourth, shot skyward, taking out a flying creature that had been circling above.
The fifth—
He drew his fist back and punched it.
The spear rocketed forward, but it was off-target. It screamed past the monster he'd aimed for, embedding itself in the ground twenty meters away.
Tch. Missed.
The monsters that had survived the barrage were already charging again. Too many. Too fast.
Su-ho's lips curled into a grin.
Perfect.
---
He switched.
In a flash of light, Su-ho disappeared from his position and reappeared where the first spear had struck. The goblins near it were still disoriented, trying to untangle themselves from the bodies of their fallen allies.
His fist connected with the first one's skull. Crack. Lightning erupted. The creature dropped.
Switch.
He was at the second spear. A kick this time, sweeping a wolf-creature's legs, then slamming his heel down on its chest. Crunch.
Switch.
The third spear. A punch to the brute's gut, then a spinning backhand that sent it staggering into the wall. Bang.
Switch.
The fourth spear, the one that had hit the flying creature. It was still twitching on the ground. Su-ho appeared beside it, grabbed its head, and slammed it into the concrete.
Switch.
The fifth. The one he'd missed.
Su-ho appeared where the spear had landed, empty ground, no monsters nearby. He stood there, breathing hard, scanning for any creature that might have survived.
None. The missed shot hit nothing.
He exhaled slowly. Then his eyes rolled.
The world tilted.
Switch... switch... switch... switching that many times...
He staggered, one hand pressing against his temple. His vision swam. The courtyard spun.
M-man... teleporting too much... is headache...
He blinked rapidly, trying to focus. The rift was still there. More monsters were already forming at its edge.
But for a moment—just a moment—he'd bought them time.
He straightened, rolling his neck until it cracked.
Alright. I can do this. Just... maybe less switching next time.
He dashed forward, lightning exploding from his legs. Dodging every strike. Weaving through the chaos. He reached the center of the courtyard, where the rift loomed above like a bleeding wound.
And punched the ground.
A pillar of lightning erupted from the impact, a column of pure white energy that shot skyward, evaporating everything inside its radius. Monsters disintegrated. The air crackled. The ground buckled.
The blast generated back his lightning again.
Su-ho stood in the center of the crater, breathing hard, lightning dancing between his fingers like it was alive. His ribs screamed. His lungs burned. But he was still standing.
That should buy some time.
Then he heard it, the faint, rhythmic thumping of helicopter rotors in the distance.
His head snapped up.
Helicopters? Finally!
A formation of military helicopters appeared over the treeline, approaching fast. Black silhouettes against the burning sky. Su-ho's chest swelled with relief.
Yes! Back up! Finally—
One of the helicopters descended toward the school, its side door sliding open. Soldiers in full gear leaned out, weapons ready.
"Attention! This is the Korean Military! We are here to—"
The shadow fell.
Su-ho looked up.
A dragon-like creature—wyvern, he guessed, not that he knew fantasy stuff—descended from the rift. Massive. Scaled. Wings that blotted out the sun. Its eyes burned with ancient malice.
Its maw opened.
A torrent of flame erupted.
The helicopter that had been descending—the one with the soldiers, the one with the promise of help—was engulfed instantly. The aircraft spiraled, blazing, the screams of its crew swallowed by the roar of fire. It crashed into a nearby building, exploding on impact.
The remaining helicopters scattered, weapons firing wildly, but the wyvern was already moving, climbing, circling, ready for another strike.
Su-ho stared at the burning wreckage.
No...
His jaw tightened. His fists clenched until his knuckles went white.
They just... they didn't even get a chance...
The relief in his chest had curdled into something cold and sharp. Grief? Anger? Both.
I forgot... this is different stuff. Super power and now monster.
His ribs throbbed. The bruise from the bone club boss felt like a warning.
But they came anyway. They tried.
It's up to me now to protect them.
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