Chapter 63
5.
In Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun's memory, Kim Seojun's greatest trait was that he always tried to find a way to survive even in a desperate moment.
At the moment when everyone else would give up, when they thought in their heads, 'We're finished now!', he still sought a way.
And he inevitably found it.
It is the same now.
When facing the battle against the Squads and the Welterweight Individual to protect Gate 7, Kim Seojun thought of various scenarios.
If it were the Kim Seojun of the past, he would have only thought about it.
But the current Kim Seojun was different.
He had various Cards that could provide an answer in that situation.
‘One shot of Ugwang is left.’
In particular, Kim Seojun had something powerful left in his possession that could turn most Mogs into a pulp.
So Kim Seojun thought.
If the Special Individual were an entity that could be dealt with by a nuclear bomb, then he would destroy it with a nuclear bomb.
‘It's not like it's an item I can save and sell for money later anyway.’
Furthermore, it wasn't a situation where he could afford to save it.
Thus, the moment the Welterweight Individual appeared and he saw it, Kim Seojun pulled out that card without hesitation.
"You're going to use a nuclear bomb?"
Of course, from Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun's perspective, it was an appalling statement.
Kim Seojun knew this, so he explained.
"From the shooting just now, it doesn't take much damage from a normal bullet, but it does leave some scratches. If we use a nuclear bomb, we can inflict enough effective damage."
It was worth a try.
"No, no, no!"
At Kim Seojun's explanation, Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun shook his head vigorously and spoke.
Naturally, Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun had no interest in whether a nuclear weapon would work here or not.
"I'm not curious about that, but you have a nuclear bomb right now? Staff Sergeant Kim, you have one? You're saying there's a nuclear bomb here right now?"
He was astonished by the fact that the human riding in the same Space Fighter as him had a nuclear bomb in his possession.
"Yes, one shot is left. I attached a rocket engine to it just in case it could be used in space."
"One shot is left? Then how many more did you have?"
"I had three shots."
At that point, Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun didn't bother asking, 'Then you used two shots? Where did you use them?'
At this point anyway, asking 'Why?' was meaningless anymore.
Also, Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun knew.
‘Right, if we can't catch that thing anyway, it's over.’
The best scenario they could face after losing Gate 7 was suddenly encountering a highly advanced alien civilization they had never met before, which would say, 'Oh! We have Hyperspace Jump Technology! We will take you straight to Earth!' and their going to Earth with their help.
‘I'll die this way or that way.’
At that point, Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun made up his mind.
"Staff Sergeant Kim Seojun."
The moment he made that resolve, he spoke in a voice more serious than ever.
"This is a Brigadier General's order. I grant Launch Authorization!"
And the moment he heard those words, Kim Seojun replied.
"General, what nonsense are you talking about?"
"What?"
"If I shoot it from here, we all die."
At those words, everyone including Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun wore a blank expression, and Kim Seojun explained to them.
"If a nuclear bomb is detonated in space, powerful radiation will spread."
As he said, in space where there is no atmosphere, the radioactive influence of a nuclear bomb is extremely powerful.
Due to the EMP shock, the circuits of electronic devices would all burn out, intense heat would spread in all directions without filtration, and an immense level of radiation would be spewed out.
Putting everything else aside, if a nuclear bomb exploded in the current situation, it would be obvious that all functions of the Spitfire they were riding would stop immediately.
It was basic knowledge that every Space Marine knew, and everyone was surprised by Kim Seojun's explanation.
Of course, it wasn't because they hadn't known this fact and had just found out.
"Hey, Seojun."
"Yes, Ms. Winston."
"You know we're all looking surprised because such common sense came out of your mouth, right? I'm not criticizing you, Seojun, but honestly, you've been a bit like that lately, haven't you?"
They hadn't expected Kim Seojun to say something so full of common sense.
Kim Seojun knew this too, so he spoke.
"First of all, General, please get us out of here."
6.
The moment Kim Seojun made the request, a question naturally popped into everyone's heads.
‘We're running away from here?’
Currently, tens of thousands of Squads and a Welterweight Squad are chasing them from behind.
Shaking them off and running away would seem crazy to anyone.
‘How?’
Private First Class Park Boseop, in particular, couldn't see any route to escape from here at all.
"Private Park."
"Private First Class Park Boseop!"
"space is different from the ground. Don't even think about avoiding what's chasing you by using speed or anything like that."
Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun showed him.
"If you're going to run away, you have to figure out a definite route in advance."
The moment those words ended, the scenery Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun was seeing appeared on Private First Class Park Boseop's monitor, who was sitting as the backseater.
‘Ah.’
There are countless rocks, that is, meteoroids.
"Now, everyone hold on tight."
The Spitfire entered straight into those meteoroids without the slightest hesitation.
After that, a mind-boggling flight began.
An aerobatics display began, the aircraft dodging between the massive meteoroids as if performing magic.
Everyone aboard that aerobatics flight expressed simultaneous admiration and astonishment.
Pububububuck!
And the Mogs chasing them began to emit gruesome sounds.
The moment the Squads collided with the meteoroids, they became like raw eggs thrown against a rock.
There was one exception.
Bang, bang, bang!
The Welterweight Squad easily withstood the collisions with the meteoroids.
It was an astonishing defense.
The impact of colliding with a meteoroid in space was on a different level from colliding with a stone on a planet.
Furthermore, the Welterweight Squad was currently engaged in space flight at an incredible speed.
Given that speed equals destructive power in space, it was an unbelievable feat!
However, in the face of those repeated collisions, it was inevitable that the Welterweight Squad's speed would decelerate.
Naturally, the gap between the Spitfire and the Welterweight Squad began to widen, and at some point, the Welterweight Squad was no longer visible in Kim Seojun's group's line of sight.
After that, the Spitfire flew by inertia with its engine stopped.
A deep silence settled in.
"General."
The one who broke that silence was Kim Seojun's voice.
"I will use the nuclear bomb now."
There were no questions asked in return.
This wasn't a matter of choice.
Also, everyone knew to some extent.
"The Welterweight Squad will definitely move to Gate 7."
There was not the slightest possibility that the Welterweight Squad had gone home from here or anything like that.
Their goal was gate destruction for Gate 7, and Mogs never stopped moving until their objective was completed.
"When a nuclear bomb is used in space, the minimum safe distance is 30 kilometers."
They also knew what measures were needed to fire a nuclear bomb.
At that point, Kim Seojun looked at Jo I-Hyeon.
"Ms. Jo I-Hyeon, I have a question."
"Yes? Ah, yes."
"To what extent is it okay for the Gate to be destroyed?"
That was Kim Seojun's biggest concern, and in response to that concern, Jo I-Hyeon answered without the slightest hesitation.
"It doesn't matter if you destroy it all."
An unexpected answer.
"Ah, well, I mean... it's best not to destroy it, but still, as long as we have the Core Cube, we can somehow construct the rest. No, it's not even something you'd call constructing."
There, Jo I-Hyeon explained.
"Actually, most of what we call the Gate is like a door frame. It's to contain the special wavelength coming from the Core Cube. The door frame needs to be sturdy so there are no problems with large and heavy things coming and going, but to simply make a door, you only need the Core Cube. Ah, that doesn't mean making the door frame is easy, but there's no reason we can't make it if given time."
The moment he heard that explanation, Kim Seojun now had only one question.
"Do you know where the Core Cube is located?"
The Core Cube, above all else, must not be destroyed, so it has to be avoided at all costs.
"Don't worry."
Jo I-Hyeon told Kim Seojun.
"The Core Cube isn't something that can be affected by a mere nuclear bomb. The sturdiest thing my Grandfather made is protecting the Core Cube. If you break that... maybe that would be an easier method."
"An easier method?"
"Because if the Core Cube is broken, my Grandfather might get curious about the weapon that broke it and come directly to where Gate 7 is."
The moment he heard those words, Kim Seojun didn't worry anymore.
"General, please grant Launch Authorization for the nuclear bomb."
"Huh?"
At that request, Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun was about to answer, 'Uh, sure!' when he felt something was strange.
"Hey, Staff Sergeant Kim, didn't you just say the safe distance was at least 30 kilometers away?"
"Yes. This time, for a little more safety, I plan to attack from about 50 kilometers away."
"......How?"
Kim Seojun didn't answer that question.
He knew.
This sounded absurd.
space was a world with almost no obstacles unlike on a planet, and 10 kilometers wasn't that far a distance in space.
But even so, firing a missile to hit an entity over 50 kilometers away was a ridiculous act.
Especially as the distance increased, even the slightest deviation in aiming would cause the margin of error to grow exponentially.
Nevertheless, there was only one reason Kim Seojun was carrying out this operation.
"I am confident."
A short while later, the Spitfire carefully headed back to where Gate 7 was.
They didn't get close.
They stood 50 kilometers away, and everyone could see it.
Kwakwakwakwa!
Tens of thousands of Squads are biting and tearing at Gate 7 with the teeth on their tentacles.
Kwang!
And the Welterweight Squad wasn't just biting, but severing parts of the Gate.
The moment he saw that, Kim Seojun immediately went out into space.
After that, holding the Ugwang with a rocket engine attached so it could be used in space, Kim Seojun observed it in that moment.
‘I see it.’
A single red light line is crossing this vast space.
Kim Seojun moved the Ugwang, and soon that red light line touched the Welterweight Squad that was diligently destroying Gate 7.
"Launch!"
Kuuuuu!
At that moment, the Ugwang equipped with a rocket engine began to fly at high speed, along with Kim Seojun's words.
A short while later, everyone could see it.
Flash!
A massive flash of light was soaring up.
Everyone was mesmerized by that distant sight.
As even the sound of breathing stopped, the profound silence of space settled in.
Only one person was different.
Only Kim Seojun didn't lose his senses, but rather just watched the sight with a stiff expression.
He prepared.
‘I might have to finish it off.’
In case he hadn't managed to catch the Welterweight Squad.
Kim Seojun soon heard.
[The battle has ended. Settlement commencing.]
[You have eliminated 5,632 Space Mog Squads. 16,896 points are awarded.]
[You have recorded over 5,000 kills in this battle. 5,000 points are awarded.]
[You have eliminated a Welterweight Space Mog Squad. A Diamond Ticket is awarded.]
[Mission Conditions have been met. A Random Blessing Ticket (Diamond) is awarded.]
Only after hearing those notifications did Kim Seojun finally let out a sigh of relief.
‘I got it.’
He let out a sigh of relief at the fact that he had finally caught it, rather than because of the rewards.
Of course, that was all.
There was no talk like, 'Good job everyone, let's go have a team dinner!' here.
"From now on, we will proceed with the Core Cube acquisition."
It was time to do what was truly important.
"General."
"Okay, I'll approach, so let's clean up the rest of them."
And for that, they had to do the difficult task of dealing with the remaining Squads.
"Before the Chinese bastards arrive."
Above all, all this work had to be done before the Chinese space warship, which would notice this commotion, arrived.
Unless the people aboard the Chinese Space Warship were idiots, there was no way they wouldn't know that a nuclear bomb had exploded in space, especially around Gate 7.
"Then approaching... huh?"
It was that moment.
"Uh!"
Everyone looking at Gate 7 could see it.
"W-why is that exploding?"
Gate 7 suddenly began to explode.
It wasn't a simple explosion.
All parts of Gate 7 began to explode.
In that situation, even Kim Seojun was surprised.
‘To this extent?’
He had definitely used a nuclear bomb, but Ugwang, the nuclear bomb he used, didn't have extremely powerful destructive force.
"Ah, ah!"
In that situation, the one who provided the answer was Jo I-Hyeon.
"I-It's a self-destruct."
"What?"
"He set up a self-destruct system!"
So she knew.
"Grandfather, that crazy man set up a self-destruct system so the Core Cube wouldn't be taken by a captor!"
What kind of person was her grandfather?
She knew well because she had watched him closer than anyone else, and she was certain.
"From now on, the Core Cube will move! So, no one can touch it!"
Securing the Core Cube has become an impossible task at this moment.
It couldn't be helped.
If what she said was true, the Core Cube would have an emergency escape system, and at this moment, it would be wandering and moving throughout all of space to somehow avoid falling into the hands of captors.
Discovering and catching it was practically impossible.
There was no way it would even be visible.
Is it possible to find a flying rocket among the countless fragments scattering as Gate 7 exploded?
There was no way such a thing was possible.
"General, please approach Gate 7 as closely as possible."
"What?"
Except for one person.
"Using Stimpack."
With those words, Kim Seojun injected a Stimpack, and at that moment, the space he saw began to slow down.