Runpa City was originally just a small port town with a population of less than a million, situated at the southernmost tip of the Western Continent.
Normally, a place like this, lacking both precious resources and strategic value, would never even register on the radar of the V5, the rulers of the human world.
But today, it played host to an unprecedentedly massive military force.
The sheer volume of airships cruising overhead created an illusion that a global world war was about to erupt. These were no ordinary civilian airships; they were military-grade vessels bristling with heavy machine guns, cannons, and bombs.
Beyond the aerial fleet, numerous heavy warships were docked outside the harbor. One of them featured a main cannon of such ridiculous proportions that one could likely stuff a whale into its barrel with ease.
Observing the frantic mobilization of troops below, an old man who had previously crossed paths with Allen stood on the top floor of a high-rise, his face a mask of anxiety. "How much longer until he arrives?"
"He should be here soon! At most twenty to thirty minutes. Slean-san, please remain calm. You are the general coordinator for this operation," a woman dressed in a professional suit, looking every bit the secretary, quickly consoled him.
"And the authorization? What level of clearance were we granted this time?" Slean asked, scratching at what little hair remained on his head.
"Class B! Aside from the Special Task Force, we have permission to use any weapon in the arsenal, including viral, bacterial, and even nuclear weapons. After all, conventional weapons won't have much of an effect on an unknown organism of that scale," the woman answered without hesitation.
Hearing this, the high-strung Slean finally exhaled a breath of relief. "Phew... those bastards finally showed some conscience. What about the Hunter Association? How much help are they sending?"
"Due to the extreme urgency, they are still in the middle of active preparations and couldn't recall many people in time. For now, only two nearby Hunter teams will be joining us—"
The secretary stopped mid-sentence. Her pupils dilated rapidly as if she were seeing something impossible.
She wasn't alone. Everyone in the room facing the window stopped what they were doing, frozen in a state of shock.
Before Slean could even ask what was happening, a thunderous crash erupted from the floor-to-ceiling windows behind him.
BANG!
Shards of tempered glass sprayed inward.
A giant dragon covered in crimson scales used its talons to rip open the window frame, and several people jumped down from its back.
"Apologies. To save time, I had to land in a somewhat crude fashion. I hope you don't mind," Allen said as he motioned for Vaelstrasz to return to a state of void.
Evidently, to make up for lost time, he had opted to ride the dragon at full speed to reach the rendezvous point.
"Damn it! Can't you Hunters use a normal mode of transportation for once? Never mind! That's not important right now. Here, look at these photos first."
Once he recognized the visitor, Slean quickly regained his composure and tossed a grey manila envelope across the desk.
Allen tore it open and pulled out a stack of about twenty high-altitude aerial photographs. As he scanned through them, he realized the situation was even worse than he had anticipated.
The "island" visible above the sea level was actually only a tiny fraction of this mysterious creature. Like an iceberg, the vast majority of its body was hidden beneath the surface. Judging by the colossal shadow underwater, this thing entering the human world would be more terrifying than any natural disaster.
It wouldn't even need to consciously destroy anything; simply wandering around would level cities, sink nations, and result in tens of millions of deaths.
Realizing this, Allen looked up. "Have you identified what this thing is?"
Slean shook his head with a bitter smile. "No. There is no record of such a monster in the data we possess regarding the Dark Continent. To be precise, before seeing it with my own eyes, I couldn't have imagined that such a massive lifeform could exist. Even biologists can't explain how it maintains such a size or what its means of survival are."
"So, what's the plan? Kill it? Or just drive it away?" Allen asked.
"That depends on you. Since you're the only person so far who has set foot on that island and returned with Intel, the V5 has decided to delegate authority to you. You decide how we act," Slean replied gravely.
"What?! Are you joking? You're leaving a decision like this to me? Are you mad, or am I?" Allen raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"No, it's not madness; it's that we have enough confidence in you. Go ahead and do it, success or failure doesn't matter. We still have one final insurance policy. Those airships and warships outside were built for moments like this," Slean encouraged, patting Allen on the shoulder.
"Weapons. I need weapons with sufficient yields. Ideally, nuclear warheads!"
Seeing that the V5 had truly handed him the reins, Allen made his request without a moment's hesitation.
Nonsense! Authority unused is authority wasted! Deep down, every gamer has a dream of "World Nuclear Peace." Now, he finally had the chance to try it himself.
"No problem. I'll have men prepare them immediately. But before that, you must tell me every detail of your plan. This concerns the survival of the entire human race," Slean stipulated solemnly.
After all, these were nuclear weapons. Barring certain mysterious objects classified as Rank A, they were the most powerful and lethal mass-produced weapons of human civilization. A few of the highest-yield warheads could turn a metropolis of ten million people into rubble.
"My plan is actually quite simple. Remember the report mentioning the giant pit at the center of the island and the gut-like organs inside the tunnel? I plan to stuff the nukes directly in there. And then..."
"And then detonate them all together!" Slean finished the sentence for him.
Technically, Slean was a non-technical bureaucrat responsible for coordinating between the V5 and the Hunter Association to prevent invasions from the Dark Continent, but even he knew that if you wanted to attack a creature the size of an island, the best way was internal demolition. Otherwise, the thick layers of soil and rock on the surface, combined with the seawater, would severely dampen the lethality of the explosion.
"Yes. But to ensure success on the first try, I first need to measure the dimensions of this unidentified creature. Second, I need biologists to identify potential vital organs. Finally, I'll need Manipulator-type Nen users to work together to transport the explosives to the designated locations."
Allen didn't hide anything, laying out his logic clearly.
It went without saying that achieving this wouldn't be easy. For starters, simply measuring the creature's size involved immense risk. No one knew how this behemoth would react to human proximity, nor what kind of offensive capabilities it possessed.
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