This World Needs a Hero

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HELHEIM SCANS

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Noubelmag slowly tilted his head downward.

He had prepared himself to face a horrifying scene.

There…

"Damn it."

Felson and Taylor were still there.

Safe.

"I almost had a heart attack. Why isn't anyone responding?"

"......"

But still, no answer came, and Noubelmag soon realized something was wrong.

'...Come to think of it, why did the underground mutants' attacks stop?'

The ceaseless tentacle attacks that had been shooting up from the ground had ceased.

The next moment, he noticed Felson's expression as he touched the ground.

As a seasoned veteran of countless battles, Felson never lost his composure in the face of danger.

But now, that unshakable calm was being severely rattled.

Felson's low muttering reached Noubelmag's ears.

"...An empty space?"

Noubelmag was about to ask what he meant, but Felson raised his voice first, nearly shouting.

"Noubelmag! Hurry up! This isn't looking good."

Demanding an explanation in a situation like this would be the act of a fool.

Noubelmag immediately set aside his doubts and focused back on his work.

Unfortunately, the protective gear and mask he relied on were wearing out faster than expected.

'For the amount of material used, it can't even last 30 minutes?'

The concentration of demonic energy was that thick.

Maybe it was just his imagination, but it seemed to be getting thicker.

For someone with as little mana as he had, being exposed to this level of demonic energy with only his bare body would knock him unconscious in an instant.

Already, his body was starting to itch, and soon enough, it felt like he was immersed in a tank full of insects.

His vision began to blur.

Clatter—

Noubelmag frantically rummaged through his bag of chemicals, pulling out anything he could find.

He opened his mask and shoved the contents into his mouth.

"Goddamn it..."

Nyhill.

He thought of the slight warmth nestled in his chest and, with trembling hands, picked up his equipment again.

* * *

Meanwhile, Taylor was anxiously watching Felson.

"What the hell is going on?"

Without lifting his hand from the ground, Felson answered.

"...I extended my sensory perception a bit deeper and found something."

"What did you find?"

"...A huge empty space."

Taylor tilted her head in confusion.

An empty space beneath the city?

"Explain it more clearly."

"...If a snake's lair was about 30 meters in diameter, it would look like this."

"What? Thirty meters in diameter?"

They both tried to recall all the monsters they knew for a moment.

A creature that big, living underground, didn't come to mind.

It was a rare occurrence for veterans who had encountered all kinds of monsters on the battlefield for decades.

That could only mean...

'It's a new type of mutant. Most likely, it's a building that has transformed...'

That would explain the absurd size of the 30-meter diameter.

Could a massive building have transformed into a snake or worm-like creature and then burrowed underground to create tunnels?

The grotesque thought sent a shiver down Felson's spine.

Taylor pressed for more answers.

"...Can you sense its presence? Is it there?"

"There's nothing within the range of my sensory perception. Extending it further is impossible; it would drain too much mana."

"Damn it..."

Taylor bit her nails, her eyebrows furrowed in frustration.

"Wait a minute. Considering all those small tentacles have retreated..."

"Yeah, it could be a sign that the big one is about to appear."

"But you haven't sensed anything yet."

"For a creature big enough to dig a tunnel of that size, it could cover hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye."

"Underground? Is it really a worm?"

Though the monster hadn't even appeared yet, the pressure was overwhelming.

Felson instinctively gripped the signal device strapped to his waist.

The palm-sized machine had buttons of various colors.

In an environment thick with demonic energy like this, regular communication via messages or voice was impossible.

Instead, they used this device to send brief signals to communicate with the headquarters.

The functions ranged from requesting reinforcements to extending time, reporting mission completion, and even issuing an emergency retreat order, abandoning the mission and using propulsion devices to withdraw immediately.

Taylor asked cautiously,

"Should we request reinforcements?"

But after some thought, Felson slowly shook his head.

"There's little chance of receiving meaningful support against a giant worm that roams underground."

"True, pulling out that much firepower would put too much strain on the upper ranks."

Even now, Avalon concentrated all its firepower on dealing with the swarming monsters.

If they pulled away top-tier personnel like the hero, Zion, or Leciel, it would only increase the burden.

It could even backfire and cause damage to the upper echelons.

Taylor nodded in agreement.

"So, if that thing shows up…"

"We'll have to handle it ourselves. The best-case scenario is that the repairs are finished before it arrives,"

Felson replied, but he kept the rest of his thoughts to himself.

The truth was that finishing the repairs wouldn't solve everything.

If such a massive creature were to fall under the demons' control...

"It would be a threat to Avalon all the way back."

Would the demons really leave such a helpful monster alone?

Felson's expression grew increasingly complicated.

Taylor urged Noubelmag.

"Noubelmag! How much longer for the repairs?"

"......"

"Noubelmag?"

"Just... just a little longer."

Taylor looked up in surprise at the unusually weak voice.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm holding on. Just two more minutes..."

But Noubelmag's last words were drowned out by an ominous noise.

Grrr—

It was a sound like a massive stone rolling beneath their feet.

A brief moment of silence followed.

Felson sprang to his feet.

"It's coming!"

He had detected something writhing in the empty space beneath them.

But even as he sensed it approaching, he couldn't react immediately.

He was paralyzed.

"What the...?"

"What is it!?"

"Its size..."

Even a seasoned veteran like him couldn't immediately think of a way to deal with something so massive, something the size of a building, rising up from beneath the ground.

He could only grip his sword, which felt woefully inadequate against such an enemy.

Boom!

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HELHEIM SCANS

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Meanwhile, the noise from underground grew louder and more frequent.

Boom!

It now sounded like explosions, as if the earth itself was being forcibly torn apart from within.

And then, suddenly...

"..."

"Did it stop?"

The movement of whatever had seemed poised to burst out of the ground stopped.

The sounds began to fade.

But Felson's grim expression did not relax.

Click—

Felson picked up the signal device.

After a brief moment of consideration, he pressed a button.

It wasn't the button for requesting support or for reporting mission completion.

Taylor, watching from the side, shouted in shock.

"Emergency retreat!? Are you serious?"

The emergency retreat button was the only one that allowed the field commander's decision to override the captain's.

Once headquarters received this signal, the flight device would automatically activate.

It was a mechanism that consumed an enormous amount of stored mana in just a short activation.

It was, quite literally, Avalon's last resort, meant for when the fortress was facing critical danger.

Once the "emergency retreat" was initiated, Avalon would immediately take to the skies and escape the area, regardless of whether the mission personnel had returned.

The boosters in the lower part of the fortress would activate, propelling it away.

Taylor's sun-tanned face turned as pale as a sheet.

"Felson! Are you crazy—"

Woooom—

A massive column of red flames erupted from the boosters.

The flames glowed red, lingered briefly in a vibrant orange, and then shifted into a searing blue, indicating their extreme heat.

Fortunately, they were far enough from the outer boosters; otherwise, they would have melted on the spot.

Even now, the heat was so intense it was nearly impossible to breathe.

But without offering any further explanation, Felson grabbed Taylor's arm and launched himself off the ground.

He swung over to Noubelmag, who was still in shock.

Clank—

His prosthetic hand firmly gripped a pipe, while his other hand still held his sword.

"Brace for impact!"

And just at that moment—

Crack-crack-crack-crack-crack—

The ground beneath them disappeared with a deafening roar.

"Wha—"

Taylor was at a loss for words.

The ground had collapsed, sending up a massive cloud of dust and debris.

The powerful vibrations engulfed their bodies, even as they hung in the air.

The enormous hole left by the vanishing earth also began to devour the surrounding land.

Luckily, Avalon was partially airborne, or it would have been sucked into that abyss.

As Taylor started to admire Felson's quick decision to issue the emergency retreat order—

Grrrrrr—

A massive shadow slowly emerged from the deep, dark hole.

"Shit..."

Taylor swore loudly, then proposed a plausible theory.

"Did an entire magic tower mutate?"

Nothing else could explain it.

A cylindrical body, approximately 30 meters in diameter, stretched upwards, its length unseen, likely extending for hundreds of meters.

Its maw, which seemed to be its mouth, gaped open, swallowing everything around it.

Whoooosh—

A massive suction force emanated from the 30-meter-wide mouth.

They finally understood how that creature had managed to create such an unnaturally large tunnel underground.

It had swallowed the soil and then expelled it.

The acidic fluid dripping from around its mouth likely served to corrode the rock, making it easier to consume.

The problem was that the suction was so powerful that Avalon was tilting precariously, unable to ascend properly.

Creeeeak—

The ship groaned continuously under the strain.

Even Taylor and Felson, with their near-superhuman strength, struggled to hold on against the force of the suction.

Noubelmag reached out and attached extra safety hooks to them.

It was then that Felson spoke.

"Noubelmag. Are the repairs complete?"

"Barely finished, right before that thing showed up."

"You've done your part, then,"

Felson said, his determined gaze fixed downward.

"Now it's time for us to do ours."

This time, it was Taylor's turn to be shocked.

"...What?"

"We have to deal with that thing."

Taylor quickly realized why Felson was suggesting such a reckless idea.

Embedded deep in the head of the massive, thrashing worm was the Demon King's emblem.

Taylor, who had been about to argue, immediately closed her mouth.

"Ha, damn it. The demons finally managed to bring that worm under their control, huh?"

This meant that this unprecedented monster would move according to the demons' will from now on—serving as one of the Demon King's army's ultimate weapons.

It would likely have a severe impact on Avalon's advance.

The creature had already easily collapsed the ground beneath them.

If something like that started chasing Avalon, the delay would be unimaginable.

But Felson didn't seem as grim as one might expect.

"It's alright. From a broader perspective, this could even be considered fortunate."

"...What?"

"The demonic energy within that creature surpasses that of most high-ranking commanders. Can you imagine how much demonic energy was consumed to control such a monster in such a short time forcibly?"

"...It must be an enormous amount."

Energy that should have been used for the Demon King's summoning ritual had been expended elsewhere.

They must have taken a desperate gamble due to Avalon's rapid advance.

It was not an ideal situation for the demons either—a temporary fix that only delayed the inevitable.

As a result, the Demon King's descent would be even more incomplete.

"If we can neutralize that thing, it would be a double win for us."

Taylor looked down below.

Into the pitch-black darkness.

She could see countless teeth spinning wildly, ready to grind anything in their path.

"...Teeth, on a worm, of all things."

Taylor let out a deep sigh.

"Damn it, I didn't even get to go to the sea this year."

Felson chuckled and replied,

"But isn't this the perfect opponent for a cripple and a one-armed man? You're bound to hit something no matter how wildly you swing."

With that, they both turned to look at Noubelmag, who slowly shook his head.

"Noubelmag."

"Don't do it. I'll kill you both, I swear!"

"Pass on a message to Ban for me,"

Felson said.

Taylor chimed in,

"And let the captain know for me."

Behind the mask, Noubelmag's wrinkled face twisted in frustration.

"Deliver the messages yourselves! What do you think I am, a carrier pigeon?"

Clank—

Ignoring him, Felson and Taylor simultaneously unhooked their safety lines.

"You were always a son to be proud of!"

"Sorry for being such a cheapskate!"

Whoosh—

In an instant, the two silhouettes disappeared from Noubelmag's sight.

His aging eyes couldn't even keep up with their speed.

And whatever they did next, a short while later, the giant creature below them let out a terrifying scream.

Whoooosh—!

The suction force that had been holding Avalon in place suddenly vanished as if it had never existed.

The ship began to rapidly ascend.

As he watched the 47th sector grow smaller in the distance, Noubelmag muttered blankly.

"Damn fools."

The old man's eyelids trembled slightly.

"...Not even a word about coming back alive."

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HELHEIM SCANS

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