I Became an Academy Overpowered Growth Genius

I Became an Academy Overpowered Growth Genius – 042

EP.42 Four People Gathered (1)

A small fishing boat floated calmly on the gentle sea.

On the deck, a group of men were wrestling with mechanical equipment.

– Thud! Thud! –

“Bug device. Is this thing working properly?”

“The signal is fine. It seems like the sound is too low to hear.”

“Ugh. That’s why we can’t figure out why that woman suddenly went into the container.”

They were members of the Red Cross Society.

They were a surveillance team trailing Seo Eun-ha.

“Bug device. Is it installed correctly?”

“Yes. It’s installed in a position where it can pick up all the sounds in the vicinity of the abandoned building where the target entered.”

“But why can’t we hear any sound?”

“Well….”

“Sigh…. Can’t trust anyone. Stupid idiots.”

The team leader of the surveillance team sighed deeply and scolded them.

At that moment, a team member who was observing the abandoned factory through binoculars spoke up.

“Team leader. The target has come out of the container.”

“Hey! A woman came out! Fix the bug device quickly!”

Buzz …. Buzz….

“Why is this happening….”

“Ugh!”

The team leader groaned in frustration and turned his head towards the abandoned factory.

“Hmm?”

But then, a new face appeared near the abandoned factory.

“We have one more person?”

When Seo Eun-ha went into the container, she was definitely alone, but now there was a tall man standing next to her.

“Who is he?”

“Uh, uh! Team leader! That man! He’s in the database.”

“Who is he?”

“He’s… He’s the son of the chairman of Taesan Group!”

“What?”

Why would Taesan Group be here?

“Are they smuggling something?”

– Buzz! Buzz! Click. Click. Buzz. –

At that moment, the bug device, which had been silent all this time, began to pick up sounds.

[Damn. [Buzz!] It’s. On. The. Move. [Buzz!] Pre. Pare. [Buzz!] To. Take. [Buzz!] Action?]

However, due to poor signal, they couldn’t make out any of the sounds.

“Hey, hey! Fix the signal properly! I can’t hear anything!”

“Uh, uh… Why is this really happening….”

“I told you to check the equipment thoroughly before the operation!!”

“It was working fine until this morning….”

“Ugh!”

The team leader of the surveillance team grabbed the member who was fiddling with the bug device roughly.

“Come here. You.”

“Uh, uh!”

– Bang! Bang! –

Then he forcefully tapped the transmitter with the palm of his hand two or three times.

“Team, team leader, if you hit it that hard!”

“Just stay still!”

[We [Buzz….] know more than you think.]

Surprisingly, the noise disappeared and the sound became clear.

“This is Jambara. Now listen carefully!”

The team members were astonished.

With a satisfied expression, the team leader turned his head back towards the abandoned factory.

[If the Seongjin Group wants, we can provide more information about the Demons. We could even wipe out the seeds of all the Demons stationed at Stellaport.]

“…….”

“……?”

However, at the continuation of his words, the team leader’s expression immediately turned cold.

The expressions of the team members also stiffened likewise.

– Buzz! –

At the same time, the bug device emitted black smoke and completely malfunctioned.

The team leader was momentarily frustrated, but now the bug device wasn’t important.

“You all heard, right?”

“Wipe out the seeds of the Demons…?”

“The Taesan Group provided information to the Seongjin Group…!?”

“And it was the successor who did it…. But how did the Taesan Group get the information?”

The team leader quickly lowered the lifeboat.

“Youngest, come with me. We’re going to report to headquarters right away.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Team leader, wait a moment.”

The deputy leader suddenly grabbed the team leader’s shoulder.

“What if we attack now? Bringing the successor of the Taesan Group, who has the information, to headquarters would be a great reward.”

The team leader pushed away the deputy leader’s hand and moved faster to untie the ropes.

“Are you crazy? Do you want to die?”

Their opponent was an A-class hunter and the successor of a large corporation with at least B-rank skills.

On the other hand, the average skill level of the eight members of the surveillance team was only at C-rank when ranked.

Moreover, these individuals were specialized in espionage and surveillance rather than combat.

Attacking those two with just these eight would result in at least half of them being killed, and in the worst-case scenario, they could all be wiped out.

The team leader was not the type to take such risky gambles.

“We just need to gather information. Do we really need a separate attack team?”

“But still, there are eight of us, and there are only two over there….”

“You punk!”

As the team leader’s eyes flashed red, the deputy leader finally shut his mouth.

“If you want to live long, don’t cause trouble while I’m gone. Keep an eye on the target!”

Two members were assigned to Seo Eun-ha, and four to Park Shin-hoo.

With the members assigned accordingly, the team leader and the youngest member departed for the mainland.

“Ugh… that frustrating old geezer….”

As the team leader moved away, the deputy leader gossiped with a fierce expression.

“If they don’t want to share, there’s nothing we can do about it.”

If people want to eat together, they will.

The deputy leader intended to ignore the team leader’s orders.

“Deputy leader, they are splitting up.”

Just as Seo Eun-ha finished her business and was returning to her car.

Once Seo Eun-ha leaves, Park Shin-hoo will be left alone.

Now that they knew Park Shin-hoo, who provided information to the Seongjin Group, was from the Taesan Group.

Park Shin-hoo, who is essentially a public figure, is now in an even better position for an attack than ever before, being left alone.

“If I can’t take advantage of this, I’m truly an idiot.”

The deputy leader had no intention of living as a bottom-tier Demon forever.

He was ambitious, aiming to accumulate merits, receive stronger power, and climb higher.

“Hey. Guys.”

The deputy leader looked at the team members and spoke.

“Three of you follow me. First come, first served.”

Even without proper explanation, just by extending three fingers, the team members understood his intention instantly.

He was recruiting personnel to attack Park Shin-hoo on a first-come, first-served basis.

“Me!”

“Me too!”

“I’m in! Count me in too!”

Surprisingly, three members quickly gathered.

They were also individuals who didn’t want to live as bottom-tier Demon forever.

“Ah.”

“Tsk.”

The remaining two Demons grimaced and clicked their tongues.

Since the deputy leader and three others were assigned to Park Shin-hoo, the remaining two automatically had to handle Seo Eun-ha.

“If something goes wrong, we won’t know.”

“Please make sure sparks don’t fly.”

– Splash! –

– Splash! –

The two Demons threw themselves into the sea to chase after Seo Eun-ha.

“Let’s hurry too. We need to tail them before the target disappears.”

The deputy leader and the three Demons also plunged into the sea.

They headed straight towards the abandoned factory.

Upon reaching the mainland, they agilely leaped over the breakwater and stealthily approached near the abandoned factory like shadows.

[Confirm the target.]

The deputy leader signaled with his hand, and the Demon with the lowest rank cautiously surveyed the inside of the abandoned factory.

Park Shin-hoo was seen entering the red container again.

The Demon continued to watch Park Shin-hoo and signaled with his hand.

[Target confirmed. Entered the container.]

[Pursue the target.]

[We also move to the container.]

The deputy leader and the Demons communicated via hand signals as they approached the container.

Upon reaching the entrance of the container, they carefully sensed the atmosphere inside.

[No movement detected inside.]

[Should we open the door?]

[Open. Unlock it.]

[If anything goes wrong, scatter.]

Once again, it was the Demon with the lowest rank who opened the container door.

– Creeeak…. –

The rusty container door groaned as it slowly opened.

The Demon who opened the door peeked into the container through the slight gap.

“?”

Then, with a puzzled expression, he signaled something incomprehensible.

[Something’s not right. You should see for yourself.]

‘What’s going on?’

The deputy leader himself looked into the container.

“?”

His expression mirrored the Demon’s from earlier, his face turning pale.

‘A tunnel?’

What they saw was an endless tunnel.

It seemed as if a gaping abyss, like a cliff, was opening its mouth towards them.

The remaining Demons were equally stunned when they looked inside.

[What is this?]

[It’s the first time I’ve seen something like this.]

[Could this container itself be a spatial artifact?]

The team members were perplexed by the phenomenon they were witnessing for the first time.

Although the deputy leader was also flustered, his hesitation was short-lived.

[We’re going in.]

[Is it safe?]

[The target went in here. We have to follow anyway.]

If they lose the target, the Demons face punishment bordering on torture as disciplinary action.

[Right. Let’s hurry.]

[Move. Move.]

[The achievements  are waiting. Let’s go.]

The fear of punishment and the anticipation of recognition from the authorities.

That’s what pushed them into the darkness they had never seen before.

[The target is already far ahead.]

[Speed up.]

[Keep quiet.]

They continued like this for five minutes.

Their resolve quickly weakened in the endless darkness before them.

[This is longer than I thought?]

[It’s difficult to gauge the scale.]

[Are we going to get stuck like this?]

[Shouldn’t we retreat?]

But the deputy leader had no intention of stopping.

[No. We keep moving. We have to find the target at least.]

Although the team members hesitated, they couldn’t oppose the deputy leader’s decision after coming this far.

Because if they let the target slip away now, a terrible punishment awaits them.

So, they continued for another three minutes.

[Target spotted ahead!]

[It’s Park Shin-hoo!]

Finally, a familiar face appeared before them.

[That guy…]

‘Gasp!’

But there was a problem.

[Wait…! Stop! Stop!]

Park Shin-hoo was looking towards the Demons.

[He’s looking in our direction!]

[Kill all signs of movement!]

As the deputy leader urgently signaled, the well-trained Demons immediately suppressed all signs of movement to the extreme.

They managed to blend into the darkness from a precarious distance.

[He’s not moving at all.]

[No way. Did he see us? Are we exposed?]

[No, that can’t be.]

‘This place is pure darkness. There’s no way he could spot us concealed with stealth techniques.’

The surveillance team was as confident in their surveillance as they were in their espionage.

In the darkness, they were practically shadows themselves.

‘Unless he has senses above A-rank, he can’t see us.’

The deputy leader calmly issued the next command via hand signals.

[Let’s hurry. We’ll approach him. We’ll ambush him after closing in within 3 meters.]

[Understood.]

[Understood.]

The Demons began to approach Park Shin-hoo silently.

– Thud. –

Then, an external noise broke the oppressive silence.

The footsteps of the approaching Demons stopped abruptly at the sound.

“?”

“?”

“?”

The sound was familiar to the Demons.

‘It’s the sound of bones breaking.’

They were all too familiar with it from previous disciplinary actions.

But why was that sound suddenly here?

– Thud! Thunk! Crack! –

The Demons’ gazes focused on the source of the sound.

The sound was coming from Park Shin-hoo.

And soon after,

– Thud! Crash! Crack! –

The sound intensified rapidly, like a sudden downpour.

The Demons’ eyes displayed various emotions at this sudden phenomenon.

Surprise, confusion, discomfort.

However, those emotions quickly unified into the same feeling as they witnessed the scene before them.

– Crash! Crack! Thunk! Thud! –

‘Heavens, what is that!’

‘W-What is happening!!’

It was shock and terror.

‘Am I going insane?’

‘What on earth am I seeing!?’

Park Shin-hoo stood still in the darkness.

His body began to contort and swell, gradually transforming into the shape of a monster as if being thrown into a shredder.

‘It’s… it’s too horrifying!!!’

‘That’s a curse!!’

[De, Deputy leader!]

A terrified team member urgently called out to the deputy leader…

“Hea… he…argh…!”

But he too was in a state of shock, completely overwhelmed by the sight before him.