By Zephyria 
“…….”
Ho-eun gnawed crookedly on one side of his lower lip. He couldn’t gauge how they would cross the river. Would they just charge in like the vanguard? All those things at once? So recklessly? Of course, if they did, it would be ideal for them.
Ho-eun had thought they would stop, even for a moment, before crossing the river. He expected them to reorganize their ranks, scout the area, or do something. However, the ones in the front row simply splashed straight into the river.
“…….”
Ho-eun pressed his eye closer to the telescope, observing the creatures leaping into the river one by one.
The Devouring Ghouls moved without hesitation. Rather than knowing the area was safe, it seemed as if they simply had no thoughts at all. It was as if they didn’t even know whether what was before them was land or river. It was hard to tell if their flailing was an attempt to cross the river or if they had simply fallen in.
If 100,000 of them crossed in that manner, it would take the entire night……. Well, that was a good thing for them. Their goal was to stall for time.
Just as a relieved Ho-eun lowered the telescope and pressed firmly on his eyelids—
“Crazy bastards…….”
Dong-ja suddenly let a curse slip. A startled Ho-eun looked at her, and upon confirming her gaze was fixed on the river, he pressed his eye back to the telescope. The moment he looked at the river, his mouth fell open just like Dong-ja’s.
“…….”
The Devouring Ghouls…… were building a dike.
The creatures he thought were merely flailing across the river were overlapping their bodies in double and triple layers, creating a small, low dike. From above, it almost looked like a pier.
Of course, that alone couldn’t block the current. But as more creatures entered, they linked behind one another, continuing to build the dike. Other ghouls shoved their heads or bodies into the gaps between the linked ones to firmly block the water, or climbed atop the others to pile the dike higher.
A black line began to form little by little over the once purely blue river water. And when the dike reached a third of the river’s depth, water began to pool behind it.
The water surged violently, as if enraged by the sudden blockage. The creatures at the edges were swept away by the powerful current.
But no one worried about them or paid them any mind. When one was swept away, two more rushed in to block the water; when two were swept away, three came next.
It didn’t take long for the connected dike to reach the opposite bank.
“…….”
Ho-eun bit his lower lip hard. For some reason, the thick black line drawn across the deep blue river pained his heart. It felt as if a stranger had recklessly drawn a line across their precious land without their consent.
“Looks like it’s not the first or second time those bastards have crossed a river,” Dong-ja said, frowning.
Ho-eun nodded slightly.
“Yes. They’ve already invaded three countries. This won’t be their first time crossing a river.”
The moment he spoke, Ho-eun realized it. The Devouring Ghouls were as experienced in combat as the Crimson Rain Brigade. Having brought down three entire nations, their strategy and combat power were not to be underestimated.
Ho-eun swallowed hard. His throat felt parched from tension. He was tensing his body so much that his shoulders felt stiff.
The Devouring Ghouls crammed their bodies into the gaps of the dike to make it even more secure. Water surged and pooled behind them. Naturally, the depth became shallower and the current slowed.
Soon, all the conditions for a stable crossing were met, and the Devouring Ghouls finally began to cross the river. Although the water still flowed shallowly, for creatures several times the size of a human, it only reached their waists.
And so, they crossed the great Amnok River on foot.
When the leaders had crossed halfway, the ball-shaped masses waiting their turn began to slowly enter the river. It must have been heavy and cumbersome, but the Devouring Ghouls forming the balls didn’t budge an inch. It was as if they had frozen in place. There seemed to be a reason why they had to move in that specific form.
And while they crossed the river, the Crimson Rain Brigade did nothing. He felt an urgency to kill as many as possible, as quickly as possible, but he still did not move.
Before long, the Devouring Ghouls began reaching the opposite bank one by one.
“…….”
Ho-eun licked his dry lips. He instinctively moved further into the tent. Even though they couldn’t see him from this distance, he felt the need to hide. It wasn’t because he was afraid or terrified of them. It was because, for the sake of the operation, he had to remain unseen.
The creatures that arrived on land first pushed forward to create space. Among them were various Tentacle Plant Monsters, but they didn’t seem to give or receive separate orders. They simply existed as single units within the swarm, just like the others.
“…….”
Ho-eun keenly scanned the ground they stood upon through the telescope. He was worried that the pits the Crimson Rain Brigade had spent days digging might collapse prematurely under the creatures’ weight. Fortunately, the ground remained intact.
As time passed, the first ball-shaped mass of Devouring Ghouls completely crossed the river. It also moved forward to make way for the swarm following behind. The pits and the creatures grew closer and closer.
“…….”
Ho-eun stared at it, holding his breath.
“…….”
Dong-ja also clenched her fists and swallowed.
Finally, the ball-shaped mass stepped over the pit dug by the Crimson Rain Brigade. And at that moment.
Bwooooooo.
The sound of a Conch Horn shook the sky thunderously. It was a sound so loud it made the ears tingle. Then, the ropes buried in the soil around the pit silently revealed themselves, and soon, they snapped all at once—snap, snap, snap, snap, snap. The ropes securing the wooden gates had been cut.
The ropes, which had been under tight tension, flickered like leaping fish. The sound of the ropes slicing through the air was a loud whish, whish. In doing so, they struck the nearby Devouring Ghouls, severing their limbs as if cut by a sword.
After all the ropes were severed, the ground groaned and convulsed. Soil scattered like dust, and the ground the Devouring Ghouls were standing on shook as if it were about to collapse.
In the instant the Devouring Ghouls felt the anomaly and began to scatter in confusion, four straight lines shot out across the ground, quickly forming a giant rectangle. Then, it suddenly plummeted downward.
Kieeeeeek!
Kak, kaaaaaak!
Not only the Devouring Ghouls but also the balls they were supporting plummeted into the pit. The Devouring Ghouls flailed their limbs frantically, but they could not avoid the fall. Those who crashed into the pit—forward, backward, or upside down—tangled together and writhed.
Kaaaak!
Kkik, kieeeeeek!
At the sudden chaos, the creatures on the other side of the river began to cross hurriedly. A far greater number than before splashed into the river. They moved so quickly it felt as if they would reach the land in no time.
However, the Crimson Rain Brigade had no intention of letting them step on their land so easily.
Ho-eun whipped his head up to look toward the mountain. There was nothing to see but the tent, but he did it instinctively.
Now, now is the time, now!
At the same time he screamed internally.
Bwooooooo.
The sound of the Conch Horn echoed once more.
Bwooooooo—.
Then, another Conch Horn sounded from a short distance away.
Bwooooooo—.
The next Conch Horn sounded from even further away. The sequence of horn blasts continued until they became so distant they could no longer be heard.
Yet, Ho-eun knew that it was continuing, and that it would reach a very, very distant place.
Even amidst this, the Devouring Ghouls were crossing the river frantically. However, the Crimson Rain Brigade remained hidden. The current horn blasts were not for the march.
“…….”
With a tense face, Ho-eun glared at the river—more accurately, the river water.
“Quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly.”
Dong-ja thumped the ground with her fist, urging something along.
And shortly after.
Rumbleeeee.
The ground began to shake. It was a heavy, massive sound, incomparable to the noise made when 100,000 Devouring Ghouls moved. It felt as if the earth itself were tearing apart.
Simultaneous with that roar, the gently undulating river water began to surge. From above, it looked as if a giant serpent made of water was writhing. And then.
Kwakwakwakwakwa.
An enormous volume of water rushed down from upstream at an incredible speed. The water, charging like a waterfall, rushed unobstructed toward the downstream.
Kudududu, THUMP!
With a dull thud, it collided with the dike the Devouring Ghouls had built. Water soared into the sky, and the dike was shattered to pieces before they could do anything. Not only the Devouring Ghouls serving as the dike but thousands of ghouls crossing the river were swept away by the current.
Kieeeeeek!
Kak, kuruk, kurururuk!
Kieeee…….
The screams of the Devouring Ghouls mingled with the violently churning water.
“That’s it!”
Dong-ja clapped her hands in delight.
“…….”
Ho-eun also let the corners of his mouth lift slightly. The Crimson Rain Brigade had anticipated that the creatures would cross the river in some way and had built a dam on the upper reaches of the Amnok River. Many people, including Dong-ja, had suffered day and night to block the waterway and build the embankment. And they had agreed to destroy the dam upon the signal of the Conch Horn.
In the end, the operation was a success, but that didn’t mean they had seized victory. This was because the amount of water collected in the dam wasn’t that great. They simply hadn’t had enough time to gather a massive volume of water.
For now, the current was too strong for them to cross, but once the water stored in the dam ran out, it would become somewhat calm again, though not as much as before. Then the creatures would build the dike again. They had the strength and the numbers for it.
Therefore, they had to find another way to trap them before that happened. And that way was…….