I Became a National ‘Disaster’ Level Monster

Chapter 134 Side Story 4 – A National Disaster-Level Monster Enlists (4)

Finally, the day of *gakkeokjeon* (individual combat training) had arrived.

It was Friday afternoon, just before the weekend of the first week of training at the boot camp. Having spent the morning practicing for the *gakkeokjeon*, we, the 142nd Hunter Military Branch trainees, were lined up in formation, waiting for one individual.

That individual, of course, was Colonel Lee Hong-chan, a high-ranking officer bearing the three *mugunghwa* (national flowers) on his shoulders, and someone particularly interested in the Hunter Branch.

“Hmm, so there are four of you in this batch.”

“Loyalty! Thank you for making the trip, Colonel!” the instructors greeted him with deference.

“I’ve been hearing rumors about this batch of Hunter trainees. I hope you all show me something impressive.”

“””Yes, sir!!”””

For career soldiers, this must have been a nerve-wracking moment. While I wasn’t too concerned, knowing I’d only be serving for three months, I could tell my fellow trainees, who were aiming for long-term service, were extremely tense.

“Trainees, are you all confident?”

“T-Trainee Number 2, Lee Soo-ah! Y-yes, sir!”

“I’m confident, sir!!”

“Leave it to me! …sir!”

“Hahaha, you all seem too tense. Take a deep breath.”

Though Colonel Lee laughed heartily, my fellow trainees only gasped for air like they were suffering from a severe panic attack.

Then, he locked eyes with me.

“Hmm?”

“Trainee Number 1, Han Shin-woo!”

“Have we met somewhere before?”

“!? N-no, I don’t believe so, sir! This is our first meeting!”

“…I see.”

Could it be that, as a colonel, his experience was sharp enough to sense something? Of course, compared to a four-star general, his rank was relatively low, but as the commanding officer of an entire regiment, I worried for a moment that he might recognize me as the son of the Army Chief of Staff.

Fortunately, his rank wasn’t high enough to make that connection.

‘I should pull my helmet down a bit more.’

After a brief conversation with the colonel, we proceeded to our assigned positions as we had been trained.

“You guys ready to do what we practiced this morning?”

“Of course!”

“Leave it to me!”

“We can do this!”

This wasn’t your average *gakkeokjeon*. It was a real battle with live ammunition and actual monsters. Plus, the spectators included not only the colonel but also other high-ranking officers. My fellow trainees, eager for long-term service, were determined to make the most of this golden opportunity.

So, when the signal to start was fired—

“Lee Bak and Kim Pal-nyeon, you’ll take the front with bayonets and tank the hits! Soo-ah, stay behind them, and I’ll provide cover fire from the rear!”

I immediately gave orders like we were in an AOS (Action Online Strategy) game.

*Click!*

*Snap!*

“Live rounds incoming! Everyone, get behind me!” shouted Lee Bak, the former E-rank Hunter.

At the first checkpoint, machine guns were waiting for us, aimed right at our heads. As we had planned, we all crouched behind Lee Bak, who took the brunt of the fire.

The machine guns roared to life.

*Tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat!*

Despite the intensity of the barrage, the bullets couldn’t penetrate Lee Bak’s body, which had surpassed the limits of an ordinary human. Without specialized monster-killing rounds, even rapid fire couldn’t harm an E-rank Hunter.

As soon as the bullets stopped hitting us and clattered to the ground—

“Everyone, except for Lee Bak, fire at the positions where the shots came from!”

I gave the order to fire, and we unleashed a hail of bullets toward the machine gun nest.

Meanwhile, Colonel Lee Hong-chan watched us from the observation point.

“Impressive…!”

He marveled at how trainees with less than a week of training were already utilizing such tactics.

The colonel couldn’t help but feel pleased by our unexpectedly high level of performance.

“That one’s called Han Shin-woo, right?”

“Yes, sir. That’s correct.”

“What a remarkable young man. He doesn’t look older than his early twenties. What did this trainee do before joining the military?”

“According to his file, Trainee Number 1, Han Shin-woo, was a Meister working in the Hunter Association’s workshop.”

“A Meister, huh… We’re short on engineers in our regiment. The more I watch him, the more I want him.”

“…! I’ll keep that in mind, sir!”

When a senior officer said, “I want him,” in the military, it was code for “Give him to me.” Given that a Hunter Meister was a useful profession, even if not at the same level as in the Hunter Association, the modern military was always developing new equipment for monster combat.

So, of course, a soldier with both valor and technical expertise was highly coveted.

“What about his family background?”

“Well, sir, his file states he has a mother, a father, and one younger sister.”

“That’s it? I would’ve expected something more from someone skilled enough to join the Hunter Association as a Meister. Oddly plain.”

Colonel Lee couldn’t know Shin-woo’s true background, as it had been carefully obscured by none other than his father, General Lee Seok-gyu.

As we cleared the second checkpoint and made our way to the final hill, where the monster awaited, everyone was impressed with our progress.

But then—

“…! Loyalty!”

“Oh, right.”

One of the instructors who had been standing behind the senior officers suddenly snapped to attention as a higher-ranking officer approached.

Soon, the others noticed and followed suit, saluting as they turned to greet the officer.

“Training Center Commander? Loyalty!”

“Oh, right. How’s the *gakkeokjeon* going, Colonel?”

The man who had just arrived was none other than the current commander of Nonsan Training Center, Brigadier General Jo Sang-hoo.

Colonel Lee Hong-chan quickly saluted him as well, unable to hide his surprise.

“Y-yes! The trainees are performing remarkably well, sir. I’ve been giving them high marks.”

General Jo Sang-hoo nodded approvingly as he watched the trainees on the hill, battling an E-rank monster. He let out a sigh of relief, glancing at the satisfied Colonel Lee.

‘Thank goodness Hong-chan is behaving himself today.’

Colonel Lee Hong-chan was a promising officer within the army, having been recommended for promotion to general. Most colonels tended to stagnate in their careers, but Hong-chan still led by example, taking pride in being a model soldier of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

General Jo Sang-hoo admired him for that, having known him since their days as company and platoon commanders.

However!

“They’re doing well! In fact, let’s… raise the difficulty a bit, shall we?”

“…!”

Colonel Lee Hong-chan had one very bad habit.

Whenever he spotted talented trainees, he couldn’t resist testing their potential by raising the difficulty of their training. He believed in building stronger soldiers, and although he never made the challenges too dangerous, he still had a tendency to push the limits.

Normally, General Jo would have given him a stern talking-to for this.

But today…

The trainee up there, Han Shin-woo, was none other than…!

“H-Hong-chan, wait…!”

*Kraaaaaarrrgh!*

“Huh? Commander, were you about to say something?”

It was too late.

Using his abilities, Colonel Lee Hong-chan had already strengthened the E-rank *Mogleria* by enhancing its physical form. The mole-like creature began bulking up, its muscles swelling and its body growing larger.

“Wh-whoa!?”

“What is happening?”

“The monster… did it just level up?”

Faced with a suddenly enhanced monster, the trainees’ advance came to a halt.

“Hmm… It seems the monster is growing stronger. I don’t recall that being part of the *gakkeokjeon* manual.”

As the squad led by his son paused, watching the now much stronger monster, a certain sergeant, disguised as an enlisted soldier—Army Chief of Staff Lee Seok-gyu—rubbed his chin with a concerned expression. He turned to Private Gon Hak-seon, who was standing nearby.

“Is it standard practice at Nonsan Training Center to change the difficulty for Hunter Branch training?”

“Huh? No, sir! This is the first time I’ve seen anything like this!” replied Private Gon Hak-seon, not recognizing who he was talking to.

But then, a senior drill instructor, a sergeant first class, stepped in, having figured out what was going on.

“This isn’t part of the standard training, sir. Colonel Lee Hong-chan raised the difficulty.”

“Colonel Lee? You mean the regimental commander over there?”

“Yes, sir! Colonel Lee likes to test Hunter Branch trainees by increasing the difficulty if he’s impressed with their performance.”

“Is that so…?”

Hmm…

Lee Seok-gyu wasn’t sure if he should be impressed or irritated. If the enhanced monster was too much for the trainees to handle, he was ready to reprimand the colonel on the spot.

However, from what he could see, Han Shin-woo’s squad might just be able to defeat this newly enhanced E+ rank *Mogleria*.

In that sense, Colonel Lee’s decision to provide more challenging real-world training could

be considered excellent leadership.

But…

‘They’re still just trainees who haven’t even earned their ranks yet…’

If these were seasoned soldiers familiar with their equipment and the realities of combat, that would be one thing. At that stage, real combat experience was more valuable than training. But these recruits had barely learned how to pull the trigger.

Raising the difficulty now, in this already intense Hunter Branch training, seemed reckless.

“Hm… This feels wrong.”

“…! Loyalty! Chief Warrant Officer, sir!”

“Loyalty!”

As Lee Seok-gyu stood there, shaking his head, a new figure arrived—the Chief Warrant Officer of the training center.

Having heard that the training commander had arrived, he had come to observe the situation.

After saluting the higher-ranking officers, the Chief Warrant Officer turned to Seok-gyu.

“Huh? Why aren’t you saluting me, sergeant?”

Deep in thought, the “sergeant” was snapped back to reality by a light tap from the warrant officer.

Realizing the situation, the disguised general turned his head toward the warrant officer.

And the moment the Chief Warrant Officer saw the face of the Army Chief of Staff…

“W-wha…?!”

He couldn’t believe his eyes, about to let out a loud salute. But—

“Shhh!”

Lee Seok-gyu quickly silenced him, placing a finger over his lips.

“Quiet, Warrant Officer. I can’t have my identity exposed.”

He gestured for the warrant officer to remain calm and keep quiet, his expression dead serious.

To the Warrant Officer, this was more terrifying than any scene from a horror movie.