Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 75: Ready, Action! (1)

Han-Yeol slowly introduced himself to the Egyptian beauty in English. “Hello, my name is Han-Yeol, Han-Yeol.”

He slowly emphasized his name syllable by syllable.

Han-Yeol chose to introduce himself to her since they were already sort of acquainted with each other, even though they had a hard time communicating.

[Tayarana, my name is Tayarana,] said the Horus Warrior whose stiff expression gradually softened. She also repeated her name slowly so that Han-Yeol could understand her.

“Ah, Tayarana, Tayarana,” Han-Yeol proceeded to repeat her name.

The woman confirmed her name with a nod.

‘She’s pretty,’ Han-Yeol thought as he looked at Tayarana, who was slightly smiling.

The goddess of beauty was seemingly following Han-Yeol around and blessing him, since every single woman that he came across was very beautiful. His eyes were very happy at what greeted them.

‘Although it’s a shame that we can’t communicate with each other…’?Han-Yeol grumbled inwardly in disappointment.

However, Han-Yeol would not have understood her even if she spoke in English, since Han-Yeol’s English proficiency was that of a seventh grader.

Order was restored when the team sent by the Hunter’s Association and the rest of the fire department finally arrived at the scene. However, Han-Yeol did not immediately leave the scene just because the terrorists had been eliminated. Addressing the captain of the fire brigade, he said, “I will also help with the rescue efforts.”

“Are you sure about that?” the captain asked Han-Yeol in surprise.

The terrorists might have been subdued and neutralized, and the emergency responders were already rushing to the collapsed building, which had been destroyed by the terrorists and the earthquake, to rescue the survivors... But the entire rescue operation was very frustrating.

The earthquake that had shaken the city was at a magnitude of 6.5 according to the Department of Meteorology and Weather, and such a magnitude could be regarded as a strong one for the Korean Peninsula.

The already difficult and frustrating rescue efforts were further made difficult by the accidents occurring all over Seoul. After all, the emergency response personnel were already shorthanded.

Seoul would usually ask for assistance from Gyeonggi-do or the other nearby regions during such a crisis, but it was difficult for the other regions to provide additional manpower since the earthquake that had occurred affected the entire nation.

Asking the Hunters for assistance would have been the best decision in such a situation, but the arrogant and selfish Hunters did not sell their services for cheap. As a result, the government found it burdensome to forcefully deploy the Hunters for these kinds of rescue operations.

The chief of the fire department had repeatedly called upon the government to create an emergency procedure manual to mobilize Hunters in case of a national emergency, but the government did not prepare such contingency plans. In turn, they only raised the fire department's budget by a small margin as a symbolic token, and they cited the lack of budget for their inability to draft a plan and deploy the Hunters.

“W-We do appreciate your help, Hunter-nim… but...” the captain said as his voice trailed off.

“It is an emergency, and I am not doing this purely out of goodwill. I am currently filming for my channel, so please do not try and stop me,” Han-Yeol further explained.

“Oh… I see…” the fire captain was left speechless.

Vroooom…!

A drone equipped with a camera had already been deployed by Han-Yeol’s production crew, and the women-only production crew were gathered behind Han-Yeol armed with their high-tech camera equipment.

Han-Yeol went to his car and retrieved a new shirt. He changed into a fresh shirt before placing the action camera back on his shoulder.

“T-Then we will be in your care,” the fire captain said to Han-Yeol.

“Yes, I will be in your care as well,” Han-Yeol said.

That was how Han-Yeol ended up joining the rescue operation.

“Tsk, what difference will one Hunter make in this operation?” a young fireman said disdainfully.

“It should help a little bit,” another fireman said.

“What can a non-professional do? He doesn’t even know what he’s doing,” the young fireman said. He continued to complain, “Just look at those cameras! He’s just pretending to help for now, but I bet you that he is just going to disappear and hide when we need him to actually do some work.”

The veteran firefighters were very grateful for Han-Yeol's offer to aid them in the rescue operation. However, the newly recruited firefighters were not too happy about him offering his help because of their deeply rooted antipathy towards the Hunters.

This type of antipathy towards the Hunters was not only present in the young firefighters,?but it could also be seen in various parts of society. The civilians’ hatred toward the Hunters deepened as the Hunters started to grow further apart from them.

The younger generation could not do anything directly against the Hunters due to the now-existing social difference between them, but they utilized social media to still express their hatred toward the Hunters.

“Hey, even that Hunter, who’s not even a firefighter, is willing to help. Move your asses, you lazy youngsters,” a senior firefighter reprimanded the younger firefighters.

“Yes, sir…” the young firefighters replied.

After getting scolded, the young firefighters turned around and clicked their tongues behind their senior.

“Tsk, they can't even clean up their own mess,” the senior firefighter said. He was worried about the future of the country’s firefighters.

“Heave, Ho.” The firefighters struggled as they removed the rubble with their hands.

It was very difficult and risky to deploy heavy machinery to a collapsed building as even the slightest mistake could risk the lives of the people trapped underneath the rubble. That was why the firefighters had to manually go through the wreckage as much as they possibly could.

The higher-ups continued to push the firefighters to hurry up with the rescue efforts, but the firefighters could not carelessly speed up their work and jeopardize the trapped survivors under the rubble.

“Why, what’s wrong?” the captain asked the firefighters when he saw them standing around. Approaching a spot where quite a significant amount of rubble was collapsed on, he found a dozen firefighters struggling to remove a large debris.

“Sir, this debris is holding this place up, but it is not stable. We will have to carefully move this debris slightly. However, it is too heavy to move with manpower alone. It is also not an option to deploy heavy machinery here,” one of the senior firefighters said, making the report to the captain.

“Ughh…?Then what should we do?” the captain asked.

Just as the captain frowned while racking his brains to think of a feasible method, Han-Yeol suddenly walked up to him and volunteered. He said, “I will do it.”

“Ah, Hunter-nim, are you saying that you will personally give us a hand?” the captain said with a hint of surprise in his voice. He also thought that Han-Yeol was only going to pretend to help and be busy showing off when he first mentioned the cameras, so he was very delighted to hear Han-Yeol volunteer to help from the beginning.

“Yes, I reckon that this is the time for me to step in,” Han-Yeol said confidently.

“I’m ashamed to admit it, but I’m indebted to you,” the captain said.

What mattered more to the captain, a veteran firefighter, was to rescue the survivors than his own pride. He wanted to save at least one more life, and that was more important to him than worrying about lowering his head to someone else in these kinds of situations.

‘Demon’s?Eye,’ Han-Yeol used his skill.

Woooong…!

When noticing that Han-Yeol’s eyes had turned red, the captain was surprised. ‘Huk!’

Then, Han-Yeol raised his right hand and thought, ‘Psychokinesis.’

It had been a while since Han-Yeol utilized this skill, which allowed him to move objects remotely with his mana. This was actually a skill he occasionally used only when he was at home and could not be bothered to get the remote while sitting on the sofa. He never imagined that this skill was going to be so helpful in an emergency rescue situation like this.

Creak… Creak… Creak…?

The wreckage, which did not budge an inch even with a dozen firefighters exerting their full strength against it, moved with Han-Yeol’s casual hand gesture.

‘H-How could this be?’?the captain was shocked by the sight.

“What should I do with this?” Han-Yeol asked the captain.

“A-Ah,” the captain, who was dumbfounded, returned to his senses. He quickly explained, “P-Please do not fully remove it, and just move it slightly so that a person can pass through it. The rubble might collapse if you fully remove it, since there is nothing else supporting the debris above.”

“Roger that,” Han-Yeol said before moving his hand again.

Creak… Creak… Creak…?

Han-Yeol moved the wreckage slightly to the right side just as the captain instructed and made a hole that was just enough for people to pass through. He then asked, “Is this enough?”

“Ah, yes, thank you very much,” the captain replied with a delighted expression.

The rescue operation gained traction thanks to Han-Yeol’s active participation.

Of course, everyone kept a cool head just in case another case of emergency occurred, but their hearts were burning hot with the desire to rescue as many people as they could.

Creak…!

“Ooh!” the firefighters exclaimed.

Han-Yeol was easily moving the large debris that the firefighters had found impossible to move and would usually require the deployment of heavy equipment. The firefighters were most shocked by the fact that he was doing it so effortlessly with his psychic-like powers.

“Hey! Put your backs into it!” a senior firefighter shouted.

“There was a sound coming from here!” one of the firefighters exclaimed.

Tang! Tang! Tang!

“…” A person was silently watching Han-Yeol and the firefighters giving their best to rescue the survivors from the roof of a nearby building.

It was none other than the Egyptian Hunter, Tayarana. She continued to watch Han-Yeol expressionlessly, watching him sweat and toil away at the rescue site.

A woman came to Tayarana’s side and asked in Arabic, [Tayarana-nim, are you not coming back?]

[That Hunter is the one who killed Mahmoud, the person we were after,] Tayarana said.

The woman then looked toward Han-Yeol, but she showed no further interest after that. She said, [Is that so?]

[That Hunter is doing a civilian’s job as if it were his duty,] Tayarana said while seemingly amused by Han-Yeol.

A Hunter's arrogance and selfishness were not just a problem present in the Korean Hunters. Whether it was human nature or an issue caused by societal greed, it was a common phenomenon around the world that the Hunters wanted to stand apart from ordinary civilians.

There were numerous developed countries that were making great efforts to narrow the societal gap between the Hunters and ordinary civilians. However, the lesser developed countries were on the complete opposite end of the spectrum, promoting and encouraging these differences.

Egypt, in particular, had been under a dictatorship before the Dimensional Gates appeared and it had a very unstable government. The politicians had hailed the Hunters as people belonging to a higher social standing, and they had made close-knit ties with the Hunters to further widen the gap between them and ordinary civilians. As a result, most of Egypt’s wealth was controlled by a small minority, and Hunters in their country rarely meddled in the affairs of ordinary civilians.

However, the assistant beside Tayarana showed no changes in her expression unlike Tayarana herself, who seemed to be quite astonished and fascinated by the Hunter working hard for the rescue efforts.

[That is a lowly act, Tayarana-nim. You are of noble blood and with noble powers. Please leave such lowly things for the peasants to do,] the assistant said.

The countries with unstable political landscapes, such as Egypt for example, tried to return to the Middle Ages by introducing a new class system. As if having entered a new renaissance era, the Middle East became even more complicated as their socio-political situation plunged into chaos.

However, Tayarana, who was staring at Han-Yeol, opened her mouth and said, [Something about it looks cool.]

[W-What?!] the deputy was taken aback by Tayarana’s words. She collected herself before calling out worriedly, [Tayarana-nim?]

Fshwoooo!

Tayarana suddenly activated her propellers instead of responding to her assistant. She flew toward where Han-Yeol was busily working.

Han-Yeol suddenly felt something flying toward him while he was using psychokinesis. He turned and saw the Egyptian warrior flying in his direction. He wondered, ‘What’s going on? Does she still have anything more to say?’

Unable to understand why the Egyptian warrior was coming back to him when they could not communicate properly in the first place, Han-Yeol tilted his head in confusion while looking at Tayarana. He gestured to ask if something was wrong.

Han-Yeol had decided to use body language, which was a universal language that everyone commonly understood since spoken language was not a viable option for him.

Floating in mid-air, Tayarana pointed at the rescue site and tapped her chest before pointing back at the rescue site.

‘Don't tell me…?She's trying to say that she wants to help as well?’?Han-Yeol thought while being confused.

After he finished moving a large piece of debris with psychokinesis, Han-Yeol went to the captain and said, “Excuse me, captain.”

“Ah, yes, Hunter-nim?” the captain replied in a kind voice.

The captain’s attitude towards Han-Yeol could not be more hospitable and amicable. This was because Han-Yeol’s ability was equivalent to having five heavy pieces of equipment simultaneously working together. His ability could also be used anywhere at any time, unlike the heavy equipment that could cause a collapse when carelessly used in these kinds of precarious situations.

‘Ah, I wish I?could?work with a Hunter like this for the rest of my life,’?the captain wished. He knew very well that it was nothing but a dream that would never come true. Still, he was content with only living that dream for now.

“Do you know anyone who can perhaps speak…Arabic?” Han-Yeol asked the captain.

“Huh? Why Arabic all of a sudden…?” the captain asked while seemingly confused. He was taken aback by Han-Yeol suddenly looking for someone who could speak Arabic. Then, he looked in the direction that Han-Yeol was pointing and fell speechless. “Huh?”

“That person over there is a Hunter from overseas, and she was the one who helped me catch the terrorists. It seems that she wants to help us with our rescue efforts, but it would be very dangerous for us if we do not understand each other in this kind of situation. We can have one more Hunter help us with the rescue efforts if we can find anyone who speaks Arabic, and that will help us get things done much faster,” Han-Yeol explained to the captain.

Han-Yeol’s suggestion was indeed tempting for the captain.

“P-Please wait just a moment!” the captain said before he quickly ran towards somewhere.

Then, Han-Yeol looked at Tayarana and gestured for her to wait for a while.

Nod.

Tayarana nodded in response.

Ten minutes later, the captain somehow managed to bring someone who could speak Arabic and interpret on behalf of Tayarana.

[What should I do and where should I go?] Tayarana asked in Arabic.

“She is asking what she should do and where she should go,” the interpreter translated for them.

“Ah, please ask her to clean the debris up there since she has the ability to fly, and please tell her to be careful because everything might collapse all of a sudden,” the fireman told the interpreter.

“Okay,” the interpreter said before proceeding to translate the fireman’s request in Arabic.

Tayarana nodded before taking out the debris one by one and throwing them to an empty space.

Bam! Bam! Bam!?

‘S-Such monstrous strength,’?the fireman thought while seemingly surprised at Tayarana’s strength.

Tayarana was nonchalantly throwing the large debris, which was large enough to send a reverberating sound throughout the air, like she was tossing pebbles for fun.

“W-Wow…” the fireman muttered in awe.

He knew that gaining monstrous strength is one of the abilities a Hunter obtained when they awakened, but seeing it in person was even more shocking to him. In all honesty, he found the fact that someone could leisurely throw those large pieces of debris as if they weighed nothing even more shocking than seeing Han-Yeol lift the wreckage with psychokinesis.

In addition, Tayarana was not wearing her helmet while working, so it was an even greater shock for him to see such a beauty in person.

The young firefighters, who had been against Han-Yeol's participation in the rescue efforts just because he was a Hunter, seemed to have had a change of heart at Tayarana’s participation in the rescue efforts.