I’m Just an Ordinary Human

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The sound of the [Musician]’s performance spread like background music. A tune infused with the essence of enchantment that captivates and mesmerizes the human soul.

With just listening, the melody held the power to enthrall the human mind and turn them into slaves, and amidst that melody, Han Yu-seong and his subordinates were running.

“Fire!”

Tatata-ta!

The soldiers began firing rounds from their rifles.

As they charged in, the zombies were hit and fell to the ground.

Amazingly, there were no dead zombies.

[Sleep Shell]

Bullets purchased from the [Company] that temporarily render the body immobile upon hitting their target.

Well, those are still living humans, even if they look like zombies.

The reason for bringing in the soldiers was clear.

If it were just me or Jung Seong-min, there would be no suitable method other than outright killing them.

“I was a bit anxious since we didn’t run any tests, but it seems to be successful.”

With overwhelming resistance, it was no surprise that Lumi and Jung Seong-min, under the protection of Nana’s [Divine], were unaffected by the [Music] permeating the city.

[Ragnarok]

A battleground that kills [Abnormalities].

That fragment.

An experiment to implant the very barrier itself into humans, providing them with the barrier’s enhancement effects and a near-permanent resistance to [Abnormalities].

In Lumi’s case, she wasn’t tainted by [Abnormality], and although she did receive help from the Deputy Priest, she managed to prevent the unique contamination phenomenon.

Perhaps these individuals had come closer to the ideal humans that the Alliance Leader so desired.

‘If it’s to that extent, we can leave it to them.’

The level of completion exceeded my expectations.

“The survivors that look like zombies will be handled by the soldiers. That couple can manage the more powerful [Abnormalities] while searching for key personnel from the opposing side!”

With the soldiers’ enthusiastic responses behind me, I climbed the nearby building wall to observe from as high a vantage point as possible.

The instigators of this incident.

Though I had assigned Lumi and Jung Seong-min to scout as well…

“Still too vast.”

Searching through an entire city with such a small number of people is no easy task.

In that case…

“Let’s proceed with the search…”

Should I call them out?

Han Yu-seong jumped upwards again from the building’s rooftop.

And…

Kwah-aaaang—

Amid the gunfire from the soldiers, a deafening sound erupted, swallowing the noise.

“That insane guy…”

“Is it really okay for him to do that?”

Jung Seong-min and Lumi could guess the identity of the perpetrator the moment they heard that deafening noise.

After all, it was visible even from a distance that the building and ground were collapsing together.

It was a phenomenon similar to when Lumi lost control and destroyed the stronghold building.

The difference was that while Lumi was knocked out with a single blow, Han Yu-seong was destroying the building next door without a moment’s rest.

“It’s a baiting operation, right?”

Lumi cautiously suggested.

Well, it’s not unreasonable to think that by demolishing the stronghold, they might come out…

But would they really come?

The enemy isn’t foolish.

“Uhh… what is that…?”

“….Does that actually work?”

At the edge of Jung Seong-min and Lumi’s vision, a giant stone statue emerged from the debris of the recently collapsed building, shrouded in smoke.

*

A colossal statue rising as if it were a building.

[David Statue]

“I’m sure that one was destroyed before.”

No, could it really not be?

Unlike the formerly destroyed statue which was about five meters tall, this one seemed to easily surpass dozens of meters.

Such a large figure could not have appeared from a position where it was physically hidden.

“Is that debris from the building?”

The unnatural absence of the structure where the David Statue appeared.

Did it gather those pieces instantly to compose the body of the statue?

“That’s no longer even the realm of sculpture, is it?”

“A m-monster…!”

The enormous statue gazed at Han Yu-seong and opened its mouth.

With every movement of its massive form, a gust of wind powerful enough to send someone flying was created, and each step caused the building and ground to crumble beneath it.

The violence of mass.

Even without any technique, the giant body embodied destruction that was like a calamity.

But…

“What the hell is that?”

Han Yu-seong questioned as he observed the sight.

Could that be the [Sculptor]?

Setting aside the awkward speaking pattern, the movements of its body were unnatural.

Though overshadowed by the overwhelming power it exuded, it had a delay in its movements, a discordant rhythm, as if a dummy puppet was being crudely forced to move.

It felt different than simply being big…

“It’s almost like a [Zombie]….”

Hmm?

Could it be?

…

Really?

“[Flame]”

Kwah-aaaaaaaaaa!

A pillar of fire spewed forth from [Child of Ashes] and struck the arm of the statue.

[Divine Fire]

The arm, unable to withstand that firepower, melted away and fell to the ground.

“….What the hell is this?”

No matter how much of a [Divine Fire] it is, could it collapse that quickly?

That makes no sense!

This was nothing like when it merely crumbled from a grenade.

Unlike back then, when it was cleared to the realm of material by cutting down an [Abnormality], now it was an [Abnormality] of the caliber of a [Demon].

There’s a reason they contrast the [Demon] with the [God].

Moreover, the [Child of Ashes] is a mere projection of the [God’s Egg], not even the main body.

There’s no way that the fires emitted from something so trivial could be fatal to the [Demon].

“I may be thinking too far, but…”

Could that be the same as the zombies below?

Creeak, creeak—

Thud—

“Ah…!”

In that moment, an unpleasant noise came from somewhere, and the ceiling of the building I was standing on crumbled helplessly.

“This is…!”

The [Conductor] appeared, dragging dozens of instruments behind him.

That figure, resembling a corpse, waved his conductor’s baton.

The sound was intensified with [Abnormality].

Kwah-kwah-kwah-kah-!

“Oh no.”

Instantly, the rooftop turned to dust.

At that moment, a massive shadow loomed over me, blocking the light.

The undamaged left arm of the statue.

A massive weight, casting a shadow over everything, began to descend toward where I had been standing.

Kwah-aaaang—

*

While the giant and monster clashed, the remaining personnel were mopping up the zombies below.

The migrants of Seoul, brainwashed by the [Musician].

“With this, I suppose it’s definitely threatening for the [Streamer].”

Most of them were falling helplessly to the soldiers’ firearms, but that was only due to their lack of intelligence at the moment.

Objectively, they were not weak.

“Hurry! We must subdue them all before it’s too late!”

Jung Seong-min shouted, watching the process of the soldiers subduing the bodies.

[God’s Music]

An [Abnormality] that enchants and dominates the human soul.

These individuals, who appeared no different from zombies, were clearly different.

Their movements seemed to transcend the human body.

Though they couldn’t quite match up to the strengthened soldiers or higher [Streamers], they were dangerous enough that they could land a hit if not careful.

They dominated living humans with [Abnormality].

Even if they couldn’t break free from the human form, their movements surpassed known limits, and as time passed, their bodies deteriorated.

Furthermore…

“Guh… cough… kyaaah!”

As the woman’s neck, who had just begun to mutate, was sliced by Jung Seong-min’s sword.

“Are all the [Artists], whether above or below, nothing but these kinds of things…!”

Jung Seong-min ground his teeth, having severed the woman’s neck.

[Abnormality Contamination]

The souls of those ensnared by the music suffered mutations in their bodies over time.

The [Clown] and [Painter] were notorious for their terror.

However, the performance of the [Musician] was no different.

A large-scale [Abnormality Terror] occurring on the scale of an entire city.

There was a reason the [Alliance] treated them as terrorists.

At that moment, a large number of poorly drawn rainbow butterflies, resembling a crayon drawing, burst forth from the air and spread among the zombies.

The powers of the [Painter].

After losing her powers as a [Streamer], Lumi combined with her brush to gain this new ability.

Thud, thud, thud.

Those who had yet to be transformed began falling one by one.

[Butterflies of Dreams]

An ability that sends humans off to the land of dreams, as if from a fairytale… but sadly, due to her truly disastrous painting skills, the effect was minimal.

Zombies, who stirred awake merely after a few seconds of sleep, began to struggle to wake up.

“Hurry! Uncle, shoot them quickly in this gap!”

“Hey…. I’m not your uncle!”

The soldiers, who had only a slight difference in age, started shooting the downed zombies, disgruntled at being called ‘uncle.’

Zombies, trying to wake up, were hit by sleep shells again and dozed off.

Kwah-aaaaaaang—

At that moment, once again, a deafening sound began to echo.

I could see the statue, which had lost an arm, punching down as it smashed buildings.

“Could it be that it’s actually on the losing side?”

It’s hard to imagine that monster could be losing…

‘Don’t underestimate them.’

The ongoing remarks from the Deputy Priest every time he looked at that monster came to mind, making me feel uneasy.

Honestly, I still didn’t like that monster.

“If the [Alliance] disappears, it would be troublesome if that thing disappeared too…!”

Still, supporting the world after the flood of [Abnormality] depends on the power of the [Broadcasting Station], and it was vital that he not disappear now.

“Lumi! I’m going to support Han Yu-seong!”

Mong-woong…

Even without [Hati]’s protection, with her own resilience, she could ignore indirect [Performance] attacks.

For now, let’s join up…!

Squeak—

“What was that?”

Caught off guard by a sudden eerie sensation, I swung my sword.

And I felt something like definitely having cut through something in my hand.

It’s not tangible.

Something more fundamental than that…

“Oh?”

Chill—

The sound of a woman’s voice made chills run down my spine.

Emerging from the alley, a girl with long blonde hair looked at me with an ecstatic smile.

“Brother, you didn’t die, huh?”

She grinned at Jung Seong-min.

*

Kwah-ng—

Kwah-aaaang—

As a huge mass fell, it kicked up a cloud of dust.

“Ah, ahh, ahhhhh!”

The statue, having lost both arms, began to lean and emit sounds of sorrow.

Despite being the one to strike, the statue took significant damage, while Han Yu-seong merely got a bit dusty.

[Artist] and [Conductor]

In the midst of facing those two [Demons], Han Yu-seong turned his head back.

“… What was that just now?”

I felt something extremely eerie…

“You’re cruel to be torturing such a poor child.”

At that moment, a man with long hair approached Han Yu-seong slowly.

“Ha, didn’t you see? It was that one who hit first.”

As Han Yu-seong retorted to the man’s words, the [Musician] smiled with a frenzied look, quite different from his previously serious expression.

“Is that so? It doesn’t matter, though.”

Again.

What I sensed when looking at the [Sculptor] and [Conductor] was a feeling of alienness.

Though it felt differently from the two…

“Today, you will die here.”

With the sound of a violin, the space began to warp.