Actually, Dad Was a Hero

Chapter 18: Emergency Dispatch

The central information center of the Monster Incident Response Headquarters was in chaos, like a disturbed beehive.

Intelligence agents, with furrowed brows and phones pressed to their ears, chattered in languages from around the world, while others printed mountains of data, gathering them into a single pile.

Lee Sang-Jun, the one who should be commanding and controlling this entire situation, was engrossed in a discussion with ‘Sandman,’ a map displayed on his computer screen.

Jin Beom-Min, who had only just realized the severity of the situation upon arriving at the headquarters, quietly observed his surroundings, careful not to cause a disturbance.

He noticed a group of people huddled together in a corner. It was the Ghost Squad members, heads bent together around a small table, deeply engrossed in a heated discussion.

What on earth could be happening that even the Ghost Squad was engaged in such a serious debate?

Jin Beom-Min, puzzled, cautiously approached the table.

“Ah, no way.”

‘Reaper’ said in disbelief. ‘Ogre’ responded in a serious tone.

“Ah, have you been living under a rock? Why don’t you believe people?”

“Because it doesn’t make sense. Where in the world would there be such a person?”

“Oh, you’re so frustrating.”

‘Ogre,’ looking around with a frustrated expression, spotted Jin Beom-Min and beckoned him over.

“Ah, you came at the right time. Mister, come here.”

“Why, what’s going on?”

As Jin Beom-Min approached, he saw what the Ghost Squad members were looking at.

On the smartphone screen held by ‘Wraith,’ with an indifferent expression, a female anime character with breasts the size of her head was awkwardly moving around.

“So, what do you think?”

“What, what do I think?”

“Whether a woman with breasts that big actually exists.”

At ‘Ogre’s’ serious question, ‘Wraith’ let out a deep sigh and interjected.

“Oh, come on! Can you please stop bothering me about my game?”

“Hold on, just listen. I’m right.”

Jin Beom-Min, genuinely bewildered, asked again.

“Uh……so……you’re asking if a person like this……character actually exists?”

“Yeah. You know, you see them sometimes when you go abroad. Women with huge breasts. Right?”

“No, where in the world would there be a woman with a slim body but breasts this big? It’s 100% surgery.”

‘Reaper’ also asked, as if seeking Jin Beom-Min’s agreement.

Since their expressions were quite serious, Jin Beom-Min couldn’t help but stifle a laugh and ask again.

“……Weren’t you discussing something about the monsters?”

“Huh? No.”

“So, is there or isn’t there?”

Jin Beom-Min shook his head.

Although the Ghost Squad was incredibly reliable once an operation began, they were usually no different from slackers with a few screws loose.

Letting out a small sigh, Jin Beom-Min shrugged and answered.

“Well, I haven’t seen any here. There are some in Jindar, though……”

“Huh? What?”

“In Jindar?”

“Really?”

Intrigued by his words, ‘Wraith’ also asked.

“Ah, yes, over there……what do you call it……? There’s something like a potion that magicians make and sell. It’s quite expensive……but I hear it’s quite effective. I just heard about it, though.”

“Ooh!”

As ‘Wraith’ exclaimed in admiration, ‘Ogre’ frowned and chided him.

“Oh, good for you.”

“I didn’t know ‘Wraith’ had that kind of taste.”

‘Reaper’ also chimed in, and ‘Wraith’ defended himself.

“Hey, why are you guys ganging up on me? I was just asking out of pure curiosity.”

“Curiosity? Just look at the game you’re playing.”

“No, this is……just a hobby! Because I’m bored……”

“What a nice hobby, huh? Suits your taste well.”

‘Imp,’ who had been leaning back with his arms crossed and shaking his head, sided with ‘Wraith.’

“Come on, a young guy can play games. You guys are being too much.”

“Ha, as expected. There has to be at least one normal person. Thank you.”

“What? So we’re weird?”

“Let’s just let him be, since he can’t get a girlfriend anyway. He can at least have one in the game.”

“Hey, weren’t you supposed to be on my side? And why can’t I get a girlfriend? I’m quite popular, you know?”

“You seem popular in the game.”

Just as ‘Wraith’ glared fiercely at the sarcastic ‘Reaper,’ ‘Sandman,’ who had been talking with Lee Sang-Jun, approached the table.

“Alright, attention.”

The Ghost Squad members, who until just a moment ago had been giggling like high school students on break, all changed their expressions at once.

‘Sandman,’ who had captured everyone’s attention with a single word, continued speaking.

“Some of you may have already heard, but monsters have appeared near Paris, France.”

“What is it this time? Giants? Dragons?”

‘Sandman’ shook his head in response to ‘Wraith’s question.

“We’re not sure yet.”

“Not sure? I heard that France directly requested our help?”

This time, Jin Beom-Min asked. If they requested help from the field, they should have sent related information as well.

Despite that, the fact that they still haven’t figured out the identity of the monster was hard to understand.

“That’s true, but… the information they sent is all over the place.”

‘Sandman’ shrugged and continued.

“There’s information saying that wolves from hell appeared, that vampires appeared, and even that the Nazis have returned. We don’t know what to believe.”

“Huh? Nazis? The Nazis from World War II?”

‘Reaper’ asked, tilting his head.

“Yeah. The information coming in is a complete mess. Since the monsters appeared in the middle of the night in France, the video footage is also quite difficult to make out…”

‘Sandman’ pointed his chin towards the intelligence agents running around frantically and continued.

“…It’s hard to say anything for sure until those guys organize the data properly.”

“But there must be at least one or two things that are certain, right?”

When ‘Imp’ asked, ‘Sandman’ replied with a stern face.

“Right now… the only thing that’s certain is that the number of monsters that appeared is incredibly large.”

“Large? How many…?”

“We’ll have to analyze the information we received, but… it seems to be at least several hundred. The casualties… are even higher.”

“Several hundred…?”

‘Imp’ asked back in a surprised voice. Jin Beom-Min was just as surprised.

The monsters that had attacked so far were only a few dozen at a time. That’s why Jin Beom-Min could handle them easily by himself.

But if the number of monsters reached several hundred, it was a different story.

Even if he stepped up, a significant number of casualties would be inevitable.

“D-Didn’t you just say near Paris?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Then there must be a lot of people living there.”

‘Sandman’ silently nodded.

“Oh my… This is a big problem. Even if we leave right now, it’ll take quite a while to get there.”

The Ghost Squad members and Jin Beom-Min exchanged glances with grim expressions.

As if agreeing with the look in everyone’s eyes, ‘Sandman’ added in a strong tone.

“This is going to be a tough job. Be prepared.”

******

“Damn……Monsters in the 21st century……Can you believe it?”

“Focus, Corporal Alain.”

“I’m looking. There’s nothing on the thermal imaging screen either.”

Corporal Alain, the gunner of the Leclerc tank, replied indifferently while scanning the surroundings through the thermal imaging screen.

On the outskirts of Paris, hastily installed searchlights illuminated the area, but Alain couldn’t detect any movement.

“I’d rather face a Russian tank battalion. At least I know how to deal with them. But what the……”

“11 o’clock, there’s something.”

At the tank commander’s urgent order, Alain turned the turret to the 11 o’clock direction. However, he saw nothing.

“There’s nothing there?”

“Not the thermal imaging!”

When Alain switched the screen, he saw something shimmering and moving beyond the hazy searchlight beams.

“Uh……there seems to be something……But there’s nothing on the thermal imaging.”

“Is it broken?”

“No. It says the status is normal.”

“Then am I seeing things?”

“No, even monsters should have body heat. They’re not corpses……”

Just then, Alain clearly saw the moving objects.

Something was moving beyond the bushes. And there were a lot of them.

“Sergeant!”

“Wait! Those are……just……civilians……I think……?”

The figures approaching slowly from afar looked like ordinary civilians at first glance.

Some were wearing fluttering pajamas, while others were bundled up in thick coats.

It was as if hundreds of people had come out for a midnight stroll.

Alain, feeling uneasy at the sight of their slowly increasing numbers, asked again.

“Sergeant!”

“Wait!”

“S, Sergeant……!”

“They could be evacuated civilians……”

“T, They don’t have body heat! They’re all corpses!”

Alain, switching between the thermal imaging and regular screens, examining the monsters, shouted in a terrified voice.

“What nonsense are you talking about……!”

“Look closely……! Some are missing arms, and some have their intestines spilling out……! They’re not human! They’re zombies, they’re zombies!”

“S, Shit……! What the hell……!”

Just as the terrified tank commander was about to give the order to fire, someone beat him to it.

Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat!

The sound of machine gun fire from somewhere filled the Parisian night air.

As if on cue, the tanks and infantry guarding the outskirts of Paris opened fire simultaneously.

“Groooar!”

The zombies, who had been approaching slowly until now, revealed their glowing eyes and charged forward, as if there was no longer any need to hide.

“Fire, fire! Load grenades!”

“Loading grenades!”

“Fire!”

“Fire!”

As Alain repeated the order and pulled the trigger, the tank vibrated and the main gun fired. In an instant, five or six zombies were blown to pieces and sent flying into the air.

“Direct hit!”

“This is no time to celebrate! Load the next round!”

“Loading the next round!”

Clang! Clang!

They heard something violently pounding on the outside of the tank. The driver, who had been tense and bracing himself, shouted.

“What the hell, our allies are shooting at us!”

“……No! They’re not our allies! There are zombies among them that are shooting guns!”

At the tank commander’s words, Alain scanned the surroundings once more.

Among the swarm of approaching zombies, he saw the figure of a soldier in a military uniform, firing a rifle as he ran.

“W, What is that, Sergeant! He’s wearing our uniform!”

“Damn it, how should I know? Shoot, shoot!”

Boom! Rat-a-tat-tat!

Kaboom!

The zombies fell powerlessly before the overwhelming firepower of a dozen tanks and hundreds of infantrymen.

However, the zombies, with holes blown through their chests and limbs torn off, got back up and charged towards them.

And their numbers were steadily increasing.

“We can’t hold them back! There are too many!”

“Don’t worry! Even zombies can’t bite through a tank with their teeth! Keep firing!”

“That’s true, but……!”

Clang!

At that moment, a lightning-like flash erupted, and the tank shook violently. Simultaneously, sparks flew inside the tank, scattering fragments in all directions.

“Kyaak!”

“We’re hit! What was that? What hit us?”

“Th-That’s……?”

While smelling the acrid smoke filling his nostrils, the tank commander looked around and saw a strange zombie.

Wearing blue armor and wielding a sword and shield……a knight.

“……A knight?”

However, what was revealed through the knight’s helmet was not a human face, but rotting skin, yellow teeth, and red glowing eyes.

“A knight? What are you talking about?”

“There’s a knight……!”

Keeeeeiiiing!

The sword held by the knight glowed green. At the same time, a high-pitched sound pierced their ears.

“A knight attacked us? You’re saying it broke our tank with a sword?”

“Right now……!”

The next moment, the knight charged with its shield raised and sliced through the thick armor of the tank like paper with the tip of its magic-imbued sword.