The Korean government hurriedly committed its military and began reclaiming Jeolla and Gyeongsang.
Rat-tat-tat! Tat-tat!
"Guhk......!"
The soldiers pulled their triggers at the monsters.
With the Hunters joining in, they began recovering the cities and villages the spirit race had taken.
In this war, the Ryuhan Empire lost a full 300,000 soldiers.
As word spread, the people of Korea offered sincere condolences, and some even called the Ryuhan Empire a blood-sworn ally.
Kang-hyeok, having joined the fight in the south, led the Ryuhan Empire's Legion Commanders into an S-grade Dungeon Gate.
Splurrrch—!
"Kill them!"
Ogres with their limbs severed.
At Kang-hyeok's shout, the Legion Commanders loosed slashes and cut off the Ogres' breath.
Next came a buffalo with a colossal frame a hundred and twenty meters tall and a hundred and fifty long — the so-called Buffalord — along with Wyverns and Gargoyles...... as a host of S-rank monsters were cut down by the Legion Commanders, the Commanders soon rose to the level of highest-grade Sword Master.
Following that, the Division Commanders, Brigade Commanders, and Battalion Commanders joined Kang-hyeok and each climbed a stage in cultivation.
And so, as the high-grade dungeons were cleared one after another, the territory of Korea's south finally came under the government's control.
"Woaaaaah——!"
The people of Korea poured into the streets and let out cries of joy.
And they chanted the name of Park Kang-hyeok, who had felled the Grand General and annihilated the spirit fleet in this war.
"Long live Korea! Long live Park Kang-hyeok!"
"He took down the Grand General — an S-grade Gate is nothing to him!"
The public began showering Park Kang-hyeok with praise.
The Ryuhan army seized weapons from the spirit race they'd cut down.
The rank-and-file spirit-race soldiers had been armed with rifles.
And with the spirit race keeping separate arms depots in Jeolla and Gyeongsang, the Ryuhan army secured a large quantity of rifles and ammunition.
The reporters hurried to make contact with the Ryuhan side.
"We hear the spirit race and monsters in Jeolla and Gyeongsang have been all but wiped out. May we ask about your future course?"
"First, we plan to advance into North Korea in order to rebuild the Ryuhan Empire and fulfill our contract with the Korean government. Our Emperor is a being on par with the State-Power-Class Hunters you speak of. With him, felling a Beastman Grand General should not be impossible either."
"Ah......!"
The reporters were startled.
The head of the Ryuhan Empire was a being on par with a State-Power-Class Hunter?!
"His Majesty the Emperor has wished for friendly relations with Korea. As Korea's ally, the Ryuhan Empire hopes to maintain a good relationship going forward."
At the Legion Commander's interview, the people of Korea couldn't hide their astonishment.
There would be two State-Power-Class forces on the peninsula alone.
Of course, the Ryuhan side had no intention of revealing Park Kang-hyeok's identity yet.
'My enthronement as Emperor can wait until the Ryuhan Empire has stabilized.'
If he went off to the Ryuhan Empire, strong pushback would arise in Korea, too.
To restore the cities and villages, exchange with Korea was essential.
'I'll handle the Beastman Grand General myself.'
Kang-hyeok donned a pristine white mask and an elegant knight's uniform he'd prepared in advance.
And so, as the Ryuhan army passed through Chungcheong and headed for Incheon—
The beastmen attacked Korea's border and began crossing the Imjin River.
The people of Korea were startled by the beastmen's preemptive strike.
The Ryuhan army, still on the march, picked up speed and hurried toward Paju.
Rat-tat-tat! Tat-tat!
"Attack!"
Beastman warriors closed in on the outskirts of Paju.
"Kill them all!"
The 1st Legion Commander, Harian, gave the order and loosed a slash at the beastmen.
Shwaaa—!
The beastmen loosed slashes of their own in return.
CRASH!
Just as the two sides clashed—
Kang-hyeok, who had slipped into the Ryuhan army's ranks, surveyed the enemy formation.
And he looked at a huge beastman man bounding out ahead of the rest.
"Insolent humans! I shall take your lives!"
Mid-grade Grandmaster sword energy shimmered on the greatsword the beastman gripped.
Fwip!
Just as the beastman sprang high and was about to swing his greatsword—
Kang-hyeok spread his dragon wings and flew at him.
"Wh-What——?!"
The Beastman Grand General was startled.
Why was a Dragonkin, who should have been in Russia, here in Korea?!
As he hastily loosed a slash, Kang-hyeok cut it apart and in a single stroke took the Grand General's life.
Slash—!
"Guhk......!"
The rank of Grand General was bestowed upon those who reached the Grandmaster realm.
The rank of General went to those who reached mid- to highest-grade Sword Master, and the rank of Grand Warrior to those who reached lowest- to low-grade Sword Master.
Kang-hyeok slaughtered three Grand Generals — at the lowest- to low-grade Grandmaster realm — and a host of Grand Warriors at the mid- to highest-grade Sword Master realm, then flew straight for Kaesong.
Kaesong or Pyongyang, either way the buildings would have to be rebuilt from scratch.
Flying to Kaesong, Kang-hyeok loosed hundreds of lowest-grade Grandmaster slashes at the beastmen advancing on Korea, and staged a massacre.
CRASH! Ka-ka-ka-krash—!
"Gyaaaaagh......!"
"E-Enemy attack——!"
The many tanks positioned near Kaesong went up in explosions.
Following that, he shot down the fighters and attack helicopters the beastmen were operating, aiding the Ryuhan army's advance.
The beastmen pushing south across the border, having lost their Grand Generals, Generals, and Grand Warriors, fell into a panic.
The Ryuhan Empire's Legion Commanders didn't miss the chance and hastily launched their advance.
"Attack!"
Woaaaaah——!
The Ryuhan army hurled itself at the beastmen.
At the same time, both sides leveled their rifles at each other.
Rat-tat-tat! Tat-tat!
"Fire! Fire!"
The beastmen's gunfire was swallowed by the slashes the Ryuhan Legion and Division Commanders loosed.
CRASH! Ka-ka-krash—!
"Gyaaagh!"
The beastmen, gripped by terror, hurriedly began to fall back.
"Advance! His Majesty is with us!"
The Legion Commanders lifted their soldiers' morale and soon crossed the Imjin River, charging into North Korean territory.
At that, a young beastman ran for Kaesong, gasping for breath.
"O-Our forces at Kaesong will have moved! I have to link up with them and——!"
The beastmen who ran like mad all the way to Kaesong could only stand there, dazed, staring at a burning Kaesong.
"H-How did this...... happen......"
The hundreds of thousands of troops that had massed at Kaesong to occupy Seoul were nowhere to be seen.
And by now, fighters and attack helicopters should have been advancing on Seoul.
What in the world had happened?
They slowly walked into Kaesong.
Every last building was destroyed.
Countless gouges had been carved into the ground.
"D-Don't tell me the Ryuhan bastards attacked Kaesong?"
"A Ryuhan Legion Commander may have taken a helicopter around by sea to reach this place!"
"Even so, we had Generals here! And dozens of Grand Warriors——!"
Bang! Rat-tat-tat-tat!
The beastmen, mid-conversation, were startled by the sound of gunfire behind them.
"F-For now, evacuate quickly——!"
"Damn it!"
The beastmen began fleeing to the north.
The Ryuhan army seized the area around Kaesong in an instant, rested briefly, then advanced toward Pyongyang.
Split into thirty Legions, the Ryuhan army began seizing the surrounding cities and villages.
Meanwhile, Kang-hyeok destroyed the long-range missiles the beastmen fired, reducing cities to ruins.
CRASH!
"D-Did you say the Grand Generals have fallen?!"
"According to the survivors, yes. The Ryuhan army has crossed Kaesong and seized Jangpung, Geumcheon, Pyeongsan, and Yeonan entirely. And a Ryuhan detachment is destroying Songnim, Nampo, Gangseo, and even Pyongyang, they say."
The Grand General newly appointed as supreme commander of the North Korean region let out a low groan.
Stationed at Sinuiju, he committed the forces garrisoned across North Korea to the south.
The number of tanks alone approached nine thousand.
Beyond that, armored vehicles, towed artillery, multiple rocket launchers...... the full might of the ground forces was on the move.
And with over a thousand aircraft — fighters, bombers, attack helicopters — committed as well, Korea was gripped by tension.
"T-It seems the beastmen have moved their entire force!"
"At this rate, they might even use nuclear missiles!"
Korea was seized with extreme tension.
Korea shared the beastmen's movements with the Ryuhan side.
The Ryuhan side promptly reported it to Kang-hyeok and passed along the estimated locations of the nuclear missiles.
"Insane creatures......!"
The moment he heard, Kang-hyeok tore across North Korea, loosing mid-grade Grandmaster slashes at the areas where the nuclear missiles were presumed to be, hurling enormous slashes down on them.
Power enough to destroy an entire city with a single blow.
Ka-ka-ka-ka-krash!
Boring deep underground, a slash at last swallowed the base where the nuclear warheads were stored.
Nuclear warheads don't detonate from external impact alone.
An intricate chain of processes must be met for the nuclear fission chain reaction to begin.
The slashes swallowed the underground facility, the nuclear material within the warheads, and the high-explosive chemical charge system that compressed it, tearing it all to shreds.
Thoom—!
"Haah......"
That should do it.
An enormous canyon hundreds of meters deep had been carved into the surface.
"Next area......"
Kang-hyeok left at once, destroyed other underground facilities, and then flew off toward the beastmen's air and ground units.
As it happened, the Ryuhan army had reportedly begun taking fire from the enemy's air units.
Hurrying south, Kang-hyeok loosed two or three slashes at each beastman ground unit that came into view.
CRASH—!
Hearing of the fighting near the border, the Korean military hastily moved its air force.
The beastmen pushed their air units into South Korean airspace, and in the end the Korean military too had no choice but to fight the beastmen to defend it.
Near Kaesong, Kang-hyeok loosed countless slashes at the enemy air units, shooting them down.
CRASH! Ka-ka-ka-krash—!
[Your Majesty! Enemy air units in the Baecheon direction too——! Ah, and in Geumcheon as well——!]
Kang-hyeok gritted his teeth.
The enemy had committed far too much air power.
And unlike ground forces, air units could be thrown into the enemy's lines at high speed.
With the fighters swarming in, Kang-hyeok could barely catch his breath.
CRASH! Ka-ka-krash—!
"Fuck! Give it a rest already——!"
[Your Majesty! Bombers heading for Jangpung too——!]
Kang-hyeok fumed and hurriedly changed direction.
If only he had the Dragonkin Elixir, he'd have fed it to his own and had them hold the enemy off.
If he'd known the elixir's formula, he might have crossed into Russia to secure Dragon-race blood.
'Fuck, I should have studied the elixir formulas!'
Why had he spent all that long time so leisurely, as if frittering it away?
Back then, he'd never have imagined being reincarnated into a modern-fantasy world like this.
He'd been indifferent to reincarnation to begin with.
He'd lived some ten thousand years.
Living that long was plenty — who needed reincarnation?
Of course, now it was different.
As Park Kang-hyeok, he wanted to enjoy this life to the fullest.
And to do that, there was nothing for it but to work his body hard right now.
[Your Majesty!]
He really wished they'd stop calling him already.
Kang-hyeok heaved a sigh and beat his wings.
And so, crisscrossing the area around Kaesong for hours, destroying hundreds of fighters, bombers, and attack helicopters, then attacking the enemy ground units swarming in from all sides, Kang-hyeok poured out every last bit of his stamina.