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Chapter 270: I Can't Just Go Back (1)

He checked his surroundings with spiteful eyes, finding the French and South Korean soldiers looking quite flustered. They, too, were scanning their vicinity while awaiting new orders.

The cave didn’t seem man-made, but it looked as if it could collapse at any moment. Perhaps it was because a large part of the mountain had been destroyed by their battle a few days ago.

The cave was twenty-five meters tall and about six meters wide. Since light didn’t get into the cave from the entrance, it felt like they were standing under the moonlight at night.

“Turn on the flashlights,” Kang Chan ordered.

Choi Jong-Il, Cha Dong-Gyun, and the two French soldiers turned on their tactical flashlights and attached them to their rifles.

Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum.

Receiving yet another warning from his heart, Kang Chan became certain that a Blackhead was inside this cave. He was feeling the same shitty electrifying buzz that he had felt in the basement in the U.K.

Gérard looked at Kang Chan with surprise.

What’s wrong?

Seeing Kang Chan’s confusion, Gérard walked over to him while keeping an eye on the other soldiers.

“Captain,” Gérard called, his voice echoing despite speaking softly.

Kang Chan glanced at Seok Kang-Ho and the others as well, finding them with similar expressions. “What? Why does everyone look so surprised?”

“Surkard!” the elder shouted, surprise evident in his eyes.

“Your eyes are... glowing red,” Gérard said.

“What?”

“Your eyes are glowing red, Captain.”

Kang Chan turned his head toward Seok Kang-Ho.

“I don’t know what Gérard said, but you’ve got red lasers coming out of your eyes right now,” Seok Kang-Ho said.

Are they pulling a prank on me or something? Do they think I’m stupid?

Gérard added, “I remember Andrei looking flustered as you were saying something at the mess hall yesterday. That fucker’s a bastard, but he’s no coward, so seeing him behave like that surprised me a bit. I think I understand now why he reacted that way, though. Your eyes might’ve been glowing red back then as well.”

While listening to Gérard, Kang Chan suddenly felt a tingling sensation. The Blackhead’s energy was enveloping him.

“The glow’s a bit brighter now,” Gérard said, looking into Kang Chan’s eyes. He didn’t seem afraid, but he did look worried.

“This is getting weirder and weirder, Cap,” Seok Kang-Ho said. “We should head to the base at the first sign of danger.”

Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum.

As if agreeing with Seok Kang-Ho, Kang Chan’s heart pounded against his chest harder.

“You might have the energy in you as well, Daye,” Kang Chan said, “so I want you to bring up our rear again.”

Seok Kang-Ho looked at Kang Chan straight in the eye. After a moment, he firmly answered, “All right.”

He called Cha Dong-Gyun over and positioned themselves at the back of the formation.

“Roberre! Ask if the path splits somewhere in the cave and how much further we have to go until we reach our target location,” Kang Chan ordered.

“Oui!”

As Roberre spoke to the elder, Gérard remained by Kang Chan’s side.

Huff. Huff.

Let’s end this today, then, you fucking rock!

Kang Chan steeled his resolve. Even if he avoided the Blackhead now, he would inevitably run into it someday anyway. Ending things now was far better than letting it drag him all over the place.

A few moments later, Roberre walked back to him. “He says there’s only one path in the cave and that we have to walk as much time as... it takes a snake to digest a rat?”

At least tell us the sizes of the snake and the rat it swallowed!

“I’ll take point. Gérard, I want you to follow with a bit of distance between us. Prioritize the child and our men’s safety,” Kang Chan commanded.

Gérard’s cheek twitched. He considered disputing the order but ultimately decided not to. Kang Chan had never been the type to tolerate soldiers disobeying his orders or arguing with him.

“Oui,” he obediently answered.

“Roberre, follow me with the old man,” Kang Chan added.

“Oui!”

“Choi Jong-Il. Lee Doo-Hee. Watch our flanks.”

“Yes, sir.”

Lee Doo-Hee handed a flashlight to Kang Chan, who then attached it to his rifle.

“Let’s go,” Kang Chan said afterward.

They kept the barrels of their guns pointed at the ceiling as they moved.

The floor sank a little with every step they took, making it seem as if they were walking on hardened sand.

Huff. Huff.

Having walked for quite some time now, Kang Chan began to wonder how big of a rat the snake had eaten.

Will the snake digest the rat quicker if we pick up the pace?

Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum.

‘I warned you multiple times, but you kept ignoring me,’ Kang Chan’s heart told him. It was still racing, seemingly making an excuse for what was about to happen.

Kang Chan soon felt the unpleasant tingling sensation coursing through him again like electricity.

However, despite how amazing the Blackhead was, it was still just a rock in the end. It didn't have hands or feet!

Kang Chan swept his rifle from side to side, illuminating the cave.

Insects with disgusting numbers of legs moved quickly to avoid the light from the flashlight. One of them strode to hide in a corner with its long, curved legs.

After a while, they started smelling an unpleasant odor. The deeper they went into the cave, the stronger it became.

How long does it take for a snake to eat a rat anyway?

Kang Chan just kept walking, taking not even a single break. He felt more alert than he had ever been.

They kept finding more and more insects wherever they pointed their flashlights.

‘Ugh!’

As if someone had put a power cord in him, Kang Chan felt the tingling sensation return. His momentary pause made everyone behind him stop in their tracks and examine him.

The shock soon intensified, becoming incomparably stronger than the ones before. He couldn’t even take another step forward.

‘Ugh!’

Kang Chan gritted his teeth and pushed through the pain. Not long after, he saw a red light flaring from deeper into the cave.

“Surkard! Surkard!” the old man called, his tone making it hard to determine if he was surprised or touched.

Kang Chan was sick and tired of that nickname.

‘Goddamn it!’ he cursed as another electrifying wave coursed through him, causing his body to burn up.

This isn’t right! I can’t just stand here and let that damn rock kill me!

Kang Chan tried to move away, but his feet refused to listen to him.

Fucking shit! The son of a bitch got me right where it wanted me!

This was exactly what happened in the basement in the UK. Right now, the Blackhead was likely taking his energy away while it had him restricted.

“Gérard!”

Choi Jong-Il and Lee Doo-Hee were right behind him, but Kang Chan’s instincts made him call Gérard instead.

“Oui!”

“Pull me away!”

Whoosh!

Gérard ran toward Kang Chan and pulled him by the collar.

Thud!

The scene startled everyone in the cave. They didn’t expect Kang Chan to collapse so powerlessly like this.

Hisssss!

When Gérard started dragging Kang Chan away, Choi Jong-Il and Lee Doo-Hee ran over to help. They grabbed onto Kang Chan’s arms and pulled with all their might.

Hisssss!

The red light only disappeared when Kang Chan had been moved ten meters away from it. However, the tingling sensation remained.

“I’m good now,” Kang Chan said.

Gérard and the others leaned him against the cave wall and then surrounded him. They all looked flustered and worried.

A rock had just humiliated Kang Chan.

An insect brushed against his nape, making him step away from the wall.

“What’s wrong?” Gérard asked.

“Are you okay?” Seok Kang-Ho asked.

What do I tell them? Who can I trust with this information?

Kang Chan not only felt like shit but also had so many things to think about right now.

“Roberre! Ask the old man why he brought me here. If I’m really the Surkard, then what do I have to do?”

After relaying his questions, Roberre turned back to Kang Chan. “He says he doesn’t know why he brought you here. All he knows is that when the Surkard returns, it's their tribe’s duty to guide them to the guardian that resides in the deepest part of this cave. A shaman would normally be here to help us, but they died in the recent massacre.”

If that were the case, then what the elder said wouldn’t work.

“Gérard, remember what I told you a few days ago?” Kang Chan asked.

“Yes.”

“I’ve already experienced this same phenomenon in the UK. Back then, as if I was electrocuted, I found myself unable to move an inch. I then felt my energy gradually draining out of me.”

“Hmm.” Gérard glanced at the front of the cave, then looked back at Kang Chan. Worry was written all over his face. “Why don’t we just withdraw and return to base for now?”

“Give me a sec,” Kang Chan said.

He called Seok Kang-Ho and told him what he had just told Gérard.

“What do you want to do?” Seok Kang-Ho asked afterward.

Since the others weren’t a part of the conversation, Kang Chan had no choice but to interpret for them.

“Daye, for the captain’s sake, don’t you think it would be better to return to base?” Gérard asked.

“That’s what I told him earlier, but if that would mean he’d keep finding himself in situations like this even when we’re not around, it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to slug it out with the rock now.”

“Seriously? Have you found a way to end this?”

These absurd fuckers are only talking among themselves because I’m interpreting!

“Roberre!” Kang Chan called, suddenly growing curious. “Ask the old man how much farther we have to walk.”

The elder would likely just answer that they still had the length of the snake to go, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask anyway.

“He says we have to get close enough to hear the guardian talk,” Roberre said.

Damn it! That depends on how loud their voice is!

Keeping himself from shouting, he instead told Seok Kang-Ho what Roberre said.

“Captain, how about sending me and Gérard to scout ahead before we proceed?” Seok Kang-Ho asked.

Kang Chan felt as if he had just been stabbed in the back. Seok Kang-Ho had clearly finished evolving.

“What did Daye say?” Gérard asked Kang Chan.

“He wants you two to scout ahead.”

“That’s actually a great idea. We can just decide once we’ve determined how much longer we have to walk and what’s waiting for us deeper into this cave.”

Hearing Gérard’s response made Kang Chan feel much better. He wanted to smoke, but Akrion was with them. Hence, he stood up and walked over to the old man instead.

“Roberre, ask him to take Gérard and Daye to the guardian,” he ordered.

“Oui.”

Roberre quickly did as instructed. The old man answered with an unwilling expression.

“He says that they can’t find the guardian without the Surkard himself. The shaman has to be present as well.”

Goddamn it. That means all of the plans we’ve put so much effort to make are now useless.

Since they were talking in French, Kang Chan walked over to Seok Kang-Ho and explained what was going on.

The other soldiers still had their guards up.

“So the old man knows he needs to bring you here but doesn’t know what we need to do?” Seok Kang-Ho asked afterward.

“That’s right.”

“What do you think about this, cap?”

Kang Chan cocked his head.

“If the situation here is anything like what happened in the UK, then that rock will definitely stop me and try to take my energy again. I had to rush toward it and connect a cable to it to stop it.”

Kang Chan also told Gérard the same thing.

“What if you touch or grab the Blackhead? Would you end up taking its energy instead?” Seok Kang-Ho asked.

“I’m going to need a way to touch it, then. We don’t have the spacesuit that I wore in the UK.”

Kang Chan examined the cave. For some reason, it felt like the damn rock was licking its lips while looking at him.

How do I kill that son of that bitch?

Kang Chan glared at the deeper part of the cave as he filled up with spite.

“Daye, what if you and Gérard grab onto me and run toward it?” Kang Chan asked.

“What are you saying?”

“The Blackhead will probably keep being a threat if I just leave it be. I have to put an end to all of this while I still have this opportunity. You can just bring me back here if charging toward it doesn’t work anyway.”

“What?! It can already paralyze you from this distance! What if getting closer to it does something even worse to you? We should find a safer way to do this than that stupid idea. It doesn’t matter if it takes some time.”

This is fucking unbelievable!

Kang Chan didn’t expect that Daye of all people would tell him that his idea was stupid.

“This plan has worked before! If I grab or touch it, I might be able to turn it into a useless rock just like what I did to the one in the UK!” Kang Chan argued.

“But wasn’t the Blackhead’s energy in the UK unstable because of us?”

“Well, yes. Fair point.”

Kang Chan interpreted their conversation for Gérard, who looked quite curious about it.

“Isn’t that too dangerous?” Gérard asked afterward.

“I’ll yell like I did earlier if I can’t handle it. You and Daye can pull me away then.”

Seeing the look in Kang Chan’s eyes, Gérard smirked. “You look like you’ve already decided to push through with this no matter what we say.”

“I can’t just go back now.”

“All right, fine.”

This time, Seok Kang-Ho was the one who looked curious. Kang Chan relayed their conversation to him.

“Let’s take Choi Jong-Il and Lee Doo-Hee with us,” Seok Kang-Ho suggested afterward.

“Sure.”

Now that they had a plan, they no longer had any reason to hesitate.

If Akrion wasn’t with them, Kang Chan would’ve smoked with Seok Kang-Ho and Gérard before pushing through with this.

Kang Chan walked further into the cave, causing the tingling sensation to grow even stronger.

“Choi Jong-Il, Lee Doo-Hee,” Kang Chan called.

He briefed the two about their plan, making sure to leave out confidential information. Nevertheless, they didn’t bother asking him about the Blackhead or why they were doing this. They simply asked a few questions about how they should move.

“Get ready,” Kang Chan said.

He took a deep breath.

This was no different from how he felt right before the thick high-tension cable was placed on his body.

About time I make you pay, you worthless fucking rock! I’ll make sure to kill you here like how I killed you in the UK!

Seok Kang-Ho and Gérard put their arms under Kang Chan’s armpits, then lifted him.

“Ready?” Seok Kang-Ho asked, his worried tone making him sound as if he was asking Kang Chan if he was done getting ready to die.

Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum.

Kang Chan’s heart raced even faster, seemingly shouting at him about how crazy this plan was.

As Seok Kang-Ho and Gérard got into position, Choi Jong-Il and Lee Doo-Hee took aim and supported them from behind.

Huff. Huff.

Looking ahead of him, Kang Chan’s eyes filled up with resentment.

If he hadn’t dealt with the Blackhead in the UK, he might’ve told his men to run more easily.

“Don’t overdo it, Captain,” Gérard said softly.

Kang Chan didn’t respond.

You must be scared shitless about me getting to approach you. That’s the only reason I can think of about why you’re trying to stop me in my tracks. You did the same thing in the UK. Are you really that afraid of my glowing red eyes?

Huff. Huff.

Kang Chan glared inside the cave.

“Go!” he shouted.

Seok Kang-Ho and Gérard easily lifted Kang Chan.

“Let’s go! Gérard!” Seok Kang-Ho yelled.

Running as fast as they could, the trio soon reached the same area they had retreated from earlier.

Blood-red light flashed from deeper into the cave once more.