It might just be a light cost.
If I were to end up being cut in half by a catfish’s body, or if a bead shot by the catfish lodged into my body, causing terrible pain as shards stuck into me, or perhaps if I were to get infected by a rotten odor emanating from the bead, leading to an even worse illness in the future…
Bacterial dysentery isn’t that light, is it?
I’m not dying, and there won’t be any severe aftereffects.
It’s just a bit of abdominal pain and diarrhea, isn’t it?
Moreover, even if there is a problem, it falls well within the range that modern medicine can handle.
So, I could say that the situation was wrapped up beautifully.
But…
“It’s ominous.”
The lieutenant couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling.
It didn’t seem like this matter would end so easily.
Then something suddenly crossed his mind.
“Wait a minute. Didn’t they say there was chaos across the country?”
*
If this disturbance had only been about a single catfish, it would have been a happy ending.
The cause of the problem would have vanished, and all that would be left was to clean up.
But reality was harsh.
The disturbance this time was nationwide.
In fact, most of the chaos involved a gigantic tree monster that people were hesitant to confront.
Thus, the police, understandably, sought external assistance.
It was an unavoidable choice.
“A nationwide disturbance. A damn disturbance.”
Normally, they would have called in the special forces or a mobile unit.
Korea’s special forces and mobile units were known worldwide for their armed force.
If they had called, that monster would have been easily dealt with.
But they couldn’t do that.
This damn disturbance was happening nationwide.
Right now, the special forces and mobile units were too busy running around the entire country.
Even if they requested it, they couldn’t call them in immediately.
They would probably arrive only after the metropolitan area, Gyeonggi Province, and nearby crucial facilities were secured.
That’s why the police chose to ask for help from the local autonomous crime prevention team or soldiers.
[ Chiiik. Ah, ah. Elder Kim Young-soo has arrived. ]
[ Ah, Yang-ho. ]
The place where the police asked for help while responding to the issue in Hwangjang Mountain was the autonomous crime prevention team.
“Wow. That thing’s size is impressive.”
“Ah, thank you, elder.”
“Not at all. I just came for a stroll. Hehe.”
To be precise, he was an elder in the autonomous crime prevention team.
A person who commanded one of Korea’s top summon creatures and once held the position of president of the Unified Korea Summoner Association.
Now retired, he lived a leisurely life, walking around with his summon creature while keeping peace in the local area, and he was a respected old man.
When the police approached him to express gratitude, he waved his hand dismissively. Then he spoke to the summon creature that was bouncing along behind him.
“Baeksuk, are you ready?”
Totoong.
Hearing the elder’s words, the summon seemed to bounce as if to say it was ready.
The summon creature, gelatinous in form, bounced around like a rubber ball, wriggling as if ready to move at a moment’s notice.
It looked quite cute.
“That’s right. Let’s grow bigger and have some fun with that thing.”
The elder spoke to his summon, which he had named ‘Baeksuk’, in a tone as casual as suggesting to buy an ice cream.
However, despite the casual manner, the words were ominous.
Brrr.
Listening to the ominous words, the summon began to change its form in a very foreboding way.
The creature’s body swelled.
What was once a jelly-like slime, the size of a person’s head, began to grow frantically as if someone had inflated it with air. It absorbed the elixirs tossed by the elder as nutrients, transforming its blue, jewel-like body into a shade of purple.
Brrr.
As the slime inflated further and further…
It eventually grew to a size exceeding that of a four-story building.
Totoong.
Of course, it was only its size that inflated; its mass didn’t increase significantly.
The sound it made when bouncing off the ground resembled an inflated gym ball hitting the floor, and the slime moved slowly, like a balloon filled with air floating down to the ground.
But due to its increased size, even that sight felt intimidating.
Totoong.
Toooong-!
The slime made a bouncy sound as it entered the domain of the summoner.
At that moment, the summoner began to lift the weapon she had placed on the ground as if she had been waiting for this moment.
Sru-ruung.
The weapons dragged along the ground, producing a chilling sound.
The summoner opened her mouth, as if about to spring into action, glaring at the slime, and when the slime jumped high into the air to pounce on her—
Kyahhh!
With a monstrous scream, she swung her crescent moon blade down at the slime.
Pa—aaang!
How powerful was that strike?
The sound it made upon collision with the slime was like the booming echo of slapping a water balloon with a whip, amplified hundreds of times.
Kwaaang!
Paang-!
Moreover, the subsequent strikes were no different.
The six limbs of the summoner plunged their weapons into the slime.
They hit the slime with a ferocity akin to a black iron club, while a rusty sword looked to slash through the slime like it intended to crush it flat. Even a log failed to withstand the impact and broke apart.
But despite receiving such fierce attacks, the slime remained unaffected.
It neither split apart nor shattered, nor did it burst.
It maintained its spherical shape.
Kuuuuuung-!
And it proceeded to crush the summoner without any hesitation.
The inflated slime pressed down on the summoner with its massive body.
While it didn’t carry tremendous weight, it was still impossible to shatter or break something within its mass.
But the kinetic energy contained within the slime’s body was more than enough to throw off the summoner’s balance.
The summoner wobbled slightly from the slime’s actions, and the slime keenly seized the moment.
“That’s it, Baeksuk, well done!”
Encouraged by the summoner, the slime wriggled and began to engulf the legs and lower body of the summoner. The lower half of the summoner’s legs became trapped, as if sinking into a swamp.
Kyahhh!
The summoner struggled to break free from the slime.
Throwing away the broken log and bent sword in the distance, she pushed against the slime, desperately trying to escape.
But the slime seemed to twirl, eager to swallow the very arm she used to push away.
Kyahhh!
At this rate, her arm would slip inside the slime.
The summoner abandoned the idea of using her arms to escape and decided, while lying on the ground, to flip the slime over instead.
Kwaaang!
Kwaaaang!
The summoner strained to shake off the slime that was swallowing her lower half.
She tried lifting it high and slamming it to the ground repeatedly, hoping to deliver a shock.
But the slime remained utterly still, as if it didn’t care about the impact.
In fact, it seemed that the shock didn’t even reach its insides, merely creating ripples on the surface.
Instead, the slime began to ooze an acid.
Chiiiiiik.
The summoner’s body began to dissolve.
The acid and toxic substances contained within the slime were far too strong for a mere wooden creation to handle.
Kyahhh!
The summoner twisted her body desperately as if demanding to be released.
But even then, as the slime clung to her body, she picked something up.
Bwooong!
Bwooong!
Buaaaang!
A weapon she hadn’t used yet.
It was a chainsaw.
The summoner swung the chainsaw, which roared to life with a thunderous noise, down towards the slime.
Bwuang!
Buaaang-!
And remarkably, the chainsaw began to show effects.
It started to sink into the slime’s torso.
During that process, the liquid splattered everywhere, and as the acidic fluid sprayed around, it caused damage to the summoner as well…
But the summoner, as if willing to endure that too, ferociously hacked at the slime with the chainsaw.
Kyahhh!
Even if the acid were to dissolve her, her essence was wood.
Wood is hard, has a strong life force, and regenerates.
Rather than waiting for her lower half to be devoured, she decided that sustaining some damage to kill the bothersome creature was better.
After all, there would be opportunities to recover once she dealt with that nuisance.
Yet, despite witnessing this scenario, the elder remained calm.
He gazed at the summoner delivering damage to the slime as if it were nothing to be concerned about.
“Hehe. Go on, have a go, see if you can manage.”
In fact, he looked at the summoner with a hint of pity.
Bwuang!
Bwuang, thunk.
Thud, thud.
Thurong!
Elder Kim Young-soo had been through countless battles alongside his summon.
Indeed, he had experienced all sorts of events.
There was no way that he, Kim Young-soo, would be unable to withstand a mere chainsaw.
Brrr.
The slime effortlessly neutralized the chainsaw that was delivering damage to its body.
It transformed the material composing its body into corrosive toxins, thickened its viscosity, and caused the chainsaw to malfunction. Moreover, it not only stopped there but also increased its adhesive properties and hardened it, completely swallowing the chainsaw.
Just like that, the summoner was rendered powerless in an instant.
Kyahhh!
Could it be that she lost her weapon in such an absurd manner?
The summoner began to scream and strike at the slime furiously.
Kwaang!
Paang!
Her wooden arms unleashed tremendous force, causing shockwaves and incredible noise to echo out.
Yet the slime paid no mind, steadily absorbing the summoner’s attacks.
Lower body.
Upper body.
Arms.
And finally, the head.
Thus, the slime swallowed the entire summoner, releasing a torrent of venom that dissolved her completely.
And when the summoner had entirely melted away…
Brrr.
The slime, having gathered all the ‘bad things’ from within the summoner’s body, mixed them with its slime and spat them out.
