E-Rank or SSS-Rank: I Awakened a Skill That Shouldn't Exist-Chapter 146: Invasion at Game World

Chapter 145

Chaos erupted across the sprawling city of Maurina. Monsters and beasts of all sizes—ranging from small, vicious creatures to massive, rampaging abominations—were wreaking havoc in every direction. Streets burned, buildings crumbled, and the air was thick with screams.

Near the city center stood a large, futuristic building with glowing letters that read GAME WORLD. A horde of C-rank and lower beasts battered at its reinforced entrance, determined to break in. Inside, two A-rank heroes stood firm, guarding the main gate with gritted teeth and bloodied weapons. Though the beasts were individually weak, their overwhelming numbers turned the battle into a war of attrition.

Then things got worse.

A figure in crimson armor descended upon the scene like a meteor. He carried a high-rank spear that distorted and deflected energy attacks unnaturally, making it nearly impossible to land a solid blow. He was no ordinary opponent—he was one of the Red Vanguard, elite assassins under orders to eliminate as many heroes as possible.

Even with their strength, the two A-rank heroes began to falter. While they focused on the armored warrior, the beasts behind them finally broke through the doors and poured into the building, spreading destruction with reckless abandon. None of the monsters dared interfere with the clash between the A-rank humans, knowing they’d be instantly crushed by the collateral energy alone.

---

Inside Game World, panic had already gripped the occupants. Most of the people in the VIP room were influential elites—politicians, CEOs, high-ranking officials. They weren’t used to danger and certainly weren’t prepared for this level of chaos.

Realizing the monsters would soon reach them, they deployed their personal guards. Many were Awakened, though most were only D- to C-rank. A few had A-rank protectors, the best they could afford. Without hesitation, these bodyguards rushed out, weapons drawn, determined to intercept the incoming threat before it reached the VIP sector.

The battle in the outer gaming rooms was brutal. Screams, impacts, and the roars of monsters echoed endlessly, reverberating through the walls. The whole structure trembled from the ferocity of combat.

Then—silence.

After several minutes, the noise died completely.

One of the wealthy men in the VIP room, accompanied by an A-rank bodyguard, let out a relieved sigh. The suffocating dread that hung over them seemed to lift. With a confident grin, he strode toward the door and placed a hand on the knob.

"Don’t open it!" several others shouted, panic rising in their voices. They weren’t convinced the danger was truly over.

The man scoffed. "Cowards," he muttered. "The fighting’s stopped. Can’t you hear it?"

Smiling, he opened the door—and froze.

His smile evaporated as his eyes widened in horror. Before he could scream, there was a sharp sound.

Shwick—Splash.

His head rolled from his shoulders, blood spraying like a fountain. His lifeless body collapsed at the doorway.

Everyone else in the room stared, paralyzed in terror, as the thing that had killed him stepped forward.

It looked like an insect—at first.

But it was far more monstrous up close.

Its black exoskeleton shimmered with a sickening sheen. Two massive red pincers protruded from its jaws, twitching with anticipation. Its legs were an unnatural fusion of human and insect anatomy—long, thin, and grotesquely jointed. Its upper body was bulky, almost humanoid in posture, but layered in hard, jagged plates. The creature’s eyes gleamed with cruel intelligence.

One was bad enough.

But more followed.

They crawled in—dozens—scraping along the walls and ceiling as they entered the VIP room like a wave of death. Screams erupted. People scattered, some diving behind large arcade machines, others sprinting toward the Super VIP Room—only to realize too late that access required a special keycard.

The insect beasts showed no mercy.

They lunged, pincers slicing flesh, legs snapping bones. Blood splattered across the once-polished floors as the elites were torn apart like paper dolls. These people were ordinary humans—no match for monsters of this caliber.

---

High above, in the Operator’s Room at the top floor of Game World, the supervisors watched the carnage unfold on dozens of screens.

Their faces were pale. Their hands trembled.

Every attempt to contact heroes had failed. Maurina City was under full-scale assault. The entire defense network was collapsing.

And now, even their sanctuary was being breached.

"Sir Zumba, what should we do?!"

An operator’s voice cracked with fear. "Everyone in the normal and VIP rooms has been slaughtered. Only the Super VIP room remains..."

She didn’t finish her sentence—but Zumba understood. After the Super VIP room, the Operating Room was next.

And then, they’d all be dead.

Zumba’s brow furrowed as he stared at the blinking monitors showing the massacres below. He was an Awakened... but only a mid B-ranker. His strength wasn’t enough. Not against what was coming. The few guards with him—six, maybe seven—weren’t nearly enough to stop a horde of rampaging beasts.

But doing nothing meant certain death.

He let out a heavy sigh, steel in his eyes.

"Trying is better than dying."

---

A few minutes later...

Zumba stood at the frontline, just outside the Super VIP room, facing a large metallic blast door that separated them from the approaching monsters. Behind that door, the sound of claws scratching metal and bodies thudding against steel echoed like a drum of death.

Clad in full gear, weapon gripped tight, Zumba readied himself alongside the remaining guards. He didn’t know how long they could hold—minutes, maybe. But every second bought time.

Time for the heroes... if any were coming at all.

---

Meanwhile, inside the Super VIP room, Chip was pacing, his heart pounding like a war drum. He was stuck inside with Rin and Jon, both completely oblivious to the carnage outside.

"I have to tell them," Chip muttered, racing toward the back of the room—past towering game consoles and rows of high-tech gaming pods.

He stopped in front of a particular pod and slammed the shutdown button.

The pod hissed and unlocked with a soft click. The door slid open.

A boy with short black hair stepped out, glaring at him.

"What the hell, Chip?!" Rin snapped, his voice sharp with irritation. "You just made me lose my streak!"

"I-I’m sorry, Rin, but..." Chip’s voice trembled, eyes wide. "There’s a problem—a big one."

Before Rin could ask what he meant, the pod next to his opened with a hiss.

Jon stepped out, grinning. "Finally," he said, stretching. "Beat you fair and square, Rin. Took hours, but I got you."

How long had they been playing? One hour? Two? Three? They’d been so engrossed, they’d forgotten about everything else—including the final match of the tournament.

But Jon’s smile faded the moment he turned toward the far end of the room.

The large metallic door—thick enough to withstand explosives—was shaking. Deep, rhythmic bangs pounded against it, growing louder and more frequent. The hinges trembled.

It was only a matter of time.

Jon stared at it silently. Then, he looked back at Rin—and gave a crooked smile.

"We’ll play more later, Rin."

He turned to face the door.

"But for now... playtime’s over."

Before either of them could ask what he meant, Jon’s body began to glow.

A radiant white aura erupted around him, pulsing like sunlight. His blonde hair turned snow-white, shimmering like starlight. His black eyes shifted to a piercing gold. His casual clothes transformed into a sleek white suit, laced with golden lightning patterns that danced like electricity across his chest and arms.

Rin and Chip froze, eyes wide, breath caught in their throats.

Rin stammered, "Y-you... You’re—"

"Light Runner," Chip finished, his voice barely a whisper.

Only a few in the world knew the truth. Jon was one of the legendary S-rank heroes—the elusive, blinding-fast guardian known as Light Runner.

Jon smirked at them. "Shh. Secret identity and all."

Then, with a flash of light and a sudden gust of wind—

He was gone.

BOOM!

At that exact moment, the massive metal door to the Super VIP room exploded open.

Weapons raised, bodies tensed—the defenders rushed forward, prepared to die fighting.

But then... they froze.

"...W-What...?" someone whispered, voice trembling. Their brain couldn’t process what they were seeing.

The hallway, once filled with ravenous, unstoppable beasts... was now a graveyard.

Every single monster lay dead.

Shredded. Scorched. Crushed. There wasn’t a single sign of struggle—only total, effortless annihilation. Blood soaked the floors. Claw marks scorched the walls.

Yet that wasn’t what shook them.

What stunned them... was that all of this had happened within seconds—and none of them had seen what, or who, had done it.

They didn’t know the how, the why, or even the who...

But the fact remained: they were still alive.

Adrenaline drained from their bodies like water from a cracked dam. One by one, they dropped to their knees—too exhausted, too relieved to speak. Some sobbed. Others just laughed in disbelief.

Zumba’s eyes slowly scanned the blood-slicked hall—until they landed on something.

Words, written in glowing white light on the wall:

"Make sure to smile."

Zumba let out a breath, a faint grin forming.

"So... he’s here."

---

Elsewhere in the building...

He moved faster than light.

A white streak darted through corridors, across rooms, up staircases and through broken ceilings. In one instant, dozens of monsters would prepare to strike—only to fall a second later, torn apart by unseen force.

Light Runner was a blur—wiping out every single beast before they could blink.

Then, he stopped.

Just outside a shattered doorway, he stood still for the first time, his calm face now darkened with something rare.

Anger.

In front of him lay the corpses of two fallen heroes—bodies broken, blood pooling beneath them.

And standing atop them, triumphant and bloodied, was a man in glowing red armor.

His mask was cracked. His armor scorched. He had fought hard—and won.

But the moment the Red Vanguard’s eyes met the white-gold glow of the figure at the doorway, his victorious expression shattered.

"No... no way."

His heart dropped like a stone.

"What’s an S-Class hero doing here?!"

This wasn’t supposed to happen. According to their intel, all S-Class heroes in the city had been drawn away—intercepted by the Dark Emissaries. They weren’t supposed to be here.

So why, of all people, was he here?

"Why did you do this?" Light Runner asked, voice low and even—but layered with quiet fury.

The Red Vanguard said nothing. Instead, he turned and bolted.

He had no illusions—he couldn’t win. Not even with the enchanted spear in his hand. Victory was a fantasy.

But before he could take a second step...

Light Runner was in front of him.

Faster than sound. Faster than thought.

"I asked you a question."

"Why did you do it?"

Cornered, the Red Vanguard panicked. He surged forward with his spear, pouring all his energy into one desperate strike.

It never landed.

SNAP!

The spear shattered like glass against Light Runner’s glowing hand.

Then came the storm.

A barrage of punches—too fast to see, too powerful to block—rained down. Bones shattered. Ribs broke. Limbs twisted unnaturally.

The Red Vanguard couldn’t even register what was happening.

To him, it felt like three hours of pain.

In reality, it lasted just five seconds.

Then—THUD.

His body hit the ground, twitching. Not dead—but completely broken.

Every bone was shattered. If he hadn’t been an Awakened, he would have been killed instantly.

Light Runner stood over the barely conscious man. His face, unreadable.

He could have ended it with a single blow.

But he didn’t.

"You’ll stay alive for interrogation... if you’re lucky," he said coldly.

"If not... then consider this your judgment."

The Red Vanguard couldn’t respond. His mind was still trying—and failing—to comprehend what had just happened.

---

Light Runner turned, his glowing white suit whipping behind him as he moved.

No more delays. No more distractions.

He knew what needed to be done.

To stop this invasion, the portal bosses had to be eliminated. Fast.

And so, like a beam of holy vengeance, Light Runner shot toward the next cluster of monsters—where one of the bosses lurked.

He raised both glowing hands, slamming them together.

BOOM!

A sonic shockwave tore through the air—incinerating everything within a fifty-meter radius. Beasts turned to ash in an instant.

He moved again. Another wave of monsters. Another boss. Another blinding flash.

No time to rest.

More portals to close.

More lives to save.

---

The battle continues...

To be continued.

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