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Chapter 132: Chapter 17, Episode 1: Sahel’s Night Sky

“Valboir, you can finish up here. Get Black Mamba’s sidekick to lure the punks inside of Bodele. There is a high chance those punks will come through here. Erase the signs of battle as best you can.”

Captain left the task to Valboir and headed to Trident Rock. Bellman, Jang Shin, and Emil ran over with shovels.

“Stop right there!”

Captain stopped them and turned to Black Mamba.

“Black, we’re short on time. Can you help us out? There isn’t even anyone here to see.”

Captain did not forget the fact that Black Mamba had moved a one-ton boulder when they were making a headstone for Chartres. How could anyone forget such an incredible scene?

Black Mamba hesitated for a moment then stepped up to the task.

“Fox-like man, that’s why he only brought our own comrades over.”

It was easy to know what Captain had in mind. Bellman, Emil, and Jang Shin were not ones to go around, exposing his secret.

“Would it be possible?”

The resonance was weak, but he could activate more power with the help of gravity. If he could control the direction and range, he would use it to shovel dirt.

Whoong—

The resonance that started from his head circulated in his body and filled his blood. He concentrated hard on the task at hand.

Shwah—

Black Mamba shifted the sand and dirt beneath his feet as his body dug deeper into the ground. Using gravity in conjunction with his resonance created a new effect.

“Ooh!”

The four mercenaries’ eyes grew wide as they witnessed the magic-like scene. Even Captain, who had requested this, did not know that Black Mamba was capable of such a skill.

Black Mamba’s body sank into the ground so quickly that only his head could be seen above the sand.

“That’s unbelievable. Is he a human mole? That guy is like an onion. The more we peel, the more there is to see.”

“We just have to accept it as it is. Haha, is he the fabled sandman now? It is difficult to label him as human.”

Bellman laughed at Captain’s words.

The quick-witted Jang Shin was already climbing up the hill. He was surveying the area. Although they were comrades, the rescue team was much different from the Lattell team. No good would come out from them finding out about Black Mamba’s inhuman characteristics.

Black Mamba had traveled two meters into the ground and had found the pickup truck using his spatial awareness skill.

Schwah—

Using his resonance, he pushed the sand away.

“Hup!” He held the end of the vehicle and pulled with his strength.

Once the pickup truck budged, the momentum pulled it up.

Kururoong—

With immense power, the pickup truck was pulled out onto ground level.

Sand flew in all directions as the pickup truck covered with tarp landed on the ground in front of them.

“Oh, c’est incroyable.”[1]

“Qu’est-ce qui se passe!”[2]

Even the mercenaries, who had become accustomed to him, exclaimed in surprise.

Black Mamba used the same method to pull out the remaining three pickups.

Sun WooHyun stood flabbergasted.

“What kind of human is that?”

He wanted to cry. That’s not a human. He wondered if even a cow could pull out a pickup truck from underground. The thought of escaping when the opportunity presented itself, collapsed and fell into the ground, like sand sinking back into its hole. Black Mamba was not someone he could go up against, for the sake of pride.

There was another reason why he wanted to cry.

It was the number of supplies that were stashed in the pickups.

The reason why Black Mamba had wiped out the Tubu clan was because of those pickups.

That was the Lattell team that Black Mamba had been keeping alive, best known as the French special task team who had been sweeping across the Sahel. His reconnaissance team had met their end because they had unfortunately decided to build their base camp there.

They had chosen that place, thinking it was a strategic advantage, but it ended up being a poisonous trap!

The mere fact that they had chosen the wrong place to sleep led to the horrific deaths of 60 men. Although he had directly taught them, he didn’t have much of an attachment to them. He wasn’t angry or guilty about it, but he was still in disbelief. Sun WooHyun was devastated.

The man, who met Black Mamba as an opponent, found it hard to remain sane.

Those who judged and moved based on logic ended up missing their mark on a subject who moved impossibly. Sun WooHyun felt the same way.

While the mercenaries yelled in surprise, Ombuti raised both his arms.

“Oh, Allah! After saving the world, you sent your disciple Muhammad and Black Mamba to rid this place of evil. Allah hu Akbar! Look at his majesty! That man is my master. Allah hu Akbar!”

Sun WooHyun stared blankly at the old religious servant. He felt threatened by him but couldn’t pinpoint the reason. Without realizing, he raised both his arms.

“Black Mamba, Allah hu Akbar!”

Each of the mercenaries’ gazes shifted to Sun WooHyun. He slowly put down the two arms he had raised.

“What exactly is the identity of that man? Is he Kanma wearing the disguise of a human?”

Sun WooHyun glanced over at Black Mamba, who was resting calmly in the shade of the pickup. He looked relaxed while the rest of his comrades were sweating profusely.

The leader grabbed a shovel to dig and sweated as he organized the weapons. Meanwhile, the lower-ranking underling was smoking a cigarette leisurely. Something about that picture seemed wrong.

He had become the sidekick to an underling, so he didn’t have much say in the matter. However, the one they called Black Mamba was no high-ranking officer. He was not a high-ranking officer, but it was more confusing because he seemed to be on a higher standing compared to the rest of them.

“That son of a b*tch looks cool even when he’s smoking.”

His resentment and resistance quickly burnt out. Ombuti’s contagious virus was starting to affect Sun WooHyun as well.

Paris St. Dominique was located on the second and third floors of the west building on 14th street. The exterior of the building was in ruins, but after entering the seven meters door, a colossal interior greeted you. That was home to the DGSE, a French intelligence agency known for its rough and questionable methods.

DGSE was a government intelligence agency known to be more sly and secretive than the KGB. Unlike the Korean intelligence agency who were unpleasantly loud, they functioned exclusively below the radar. Compared to the Korean intelligence agency that operated on the ground, they worked secretively underground. If DGSE were to be seen in public, it would become the topic of sensational news.

DGSE was separated into four departments: strategy, information, operation, and technology. The strategy department was in charge of commanding the special forces. As the DGSE was part of the military, the special forces were under their power and at their disposal.

The foreign strategy department was located on the seventh floor, which looked over Paleburg Square. The national strategy department was led by the DST, so the leader of the foreign strategy department was the actual person in charge.

The office, decorated with luxurious mahogany furniture, was full of cigarette smoke. It was the smell of Goluz, which stank like a fish.

Chief Boniface was standing at the window, smoking his second Goluz. Director Miguel was standing next to the door, waiting for him to turn around.

“Dammit, you should quit smoking so much.”

Miguel fanned away the thick smoke.

“Miguel, you say things are not going well?”

In a creepy voice, Boniface mentioned it in a way that sounded neither like a question nor a statement. He gazed out at the window.

Miguel was unable to open his mouth.

He was not asking because he didn’t know the answer. It was more of a reprimand.

“The six hitmen we sent have been annihilated. The two sleepers got their heads cut off.”

“Seven.”

Miguel corrected the count.

“Haha, one of them had become a kabob as he was trying to run away. Of course, this would be the handiwork of Black Mamba.”

“That’s correct. The agents escaped by riding their bikes. Even Ocelot can’t get a motorcycle rider with a steel pipe from 100 meters away.”

“Ocelot? Are you talking about slayer Ocelot?”

“Damn Serpent! You’re planning to sacrifice me, aren’t you?”

He talked as if he didn’t know what it was about. Miguel wanted to shove his fist in the guy’s face. Although it was not formally reported, using Ocelot had been Serpent’s idea.

“There is a report that several explosions have occurred at Hotel Le Meren. Ocelot has gone missing.”

“Unbelievable. Does this mean that Ocelot has lost to this guy?”

“He’s terrifying.”

“You say they have infiltrated Habib’s camp at Paya?”

“Yes, they have killed all the guards at the camp and kidnapped Habib, then disappeared. Paul has put up a strong tactic in place.”

“Paul is not a rash man. There is a high chance that it was Black Mamba’s idea. Thanks to the mercenaries, everything is working out great. I’m not sure if I should be smiling or not.”

His mouth tasted bitter. It was a complicated situation. They couldn’t go head-on with the almighty Lattell team over. The person who had created this complicated situation was himself.

“Where is their current location?”

“We’ve lost communication and they’ve disappeared like smoke.”

“This is driving me crazy. Is there a chance that they may return?”

“There is a hundred percent chance that Black Mamba would be able to return alone. His comrades would just be a burden. It was my fault for instilling such a strong sense of comradeship as Legion Etranger.”

“That goes for me too. I had anticipated the destruction of the tactical team and Black Mamba returning alone. I never thought that he would protect the rest of the team with his tactics. Don’t you think by now they would have realized our backdoor and double contract?”

“Lieutenant Paul was in charge of all those operations.”

The response warranted a strong affirmation.

Boniface continued to blow out smoke without speaking. If he had known the extent of Black Mamba’s skill, he wouldn’t have needed to use the backdoor tactic in the first place. The Goluz tasted especially bitter.

“There is a variable. FAP, taking a hit to their pride, has joined the mission.”

“No, Black Mamba is the type of person to climb out of hell himself. Isn’t he called Azrael?”

“The natives call him Kanma, as well. He has us on a leash and is trying to shove us into the fires of hell.”

“What do you think?”

Boniface asked out of the blue.

“Ha, we’ve stepped on the tiger’s tail so they will be anxious.”

Miguel was frustrated by the Chief, who was unwilling to expose his true feelings. The Serpent’s specialty was cutting the head and tail of the opposition’s words and using it against them. Even though he knew about it, it was still a sneaky trick.

“I can’t get rid of him, France needs a figure like him. Unlike Ocelot, he is a rational mutant.”

“Is there evidence that he is a mutant? Isn’t Black Mamba an Asian trained in the mystical arts of Ohgeumgong?”

“20 people have analyzed 200 years of intelligence reports about Asia. They are still looking into it currently. They have yet to find evidence worth trusting.”

“Just because he’s Korean, doesn’t mean they have caves as well. Regardless, the important thing is the fact that he is rational. Do you know the importance of rationality?”

“It is a double edged sword. He won’t go flying around like a crazy person, but he can carry out revenge in a sophisticated manner if he wants to.”

“He is not a mere sniper. He was able to take down seven seasoned hitmen. There is a high chance he is a warrior and an assassin.”

“Are you suggesting that he didn’t use his full powers at Mt. Chinto?”

“I believe that to be the truth. The skills we saw at Mt. Chinto were incredible. However, he would not have been able to protect his comrades and beat the swarm of FROLINAT troops with skills to that extent. I’m sure he was more skilled than what we had predicted.”

“It’s probably more than that. He fought with Ocelot and became a target of continuous shots. Yet, he turned an entire platoon into a blood bath. With his powerful build, he has the potential to wipe out anyone he pleases. Unlike Ocelot, Black Mamba is rational and intelligent. Ocelot might be more powerful, but I believe that Black Mamba is better equipped with the skills needed for battle.”

Miguel came to an analysis that was close to the truth.

“What should we do?”

“We’ll have to pacify him.”

“Pacify...”

Boniface blew out a long stream of smoke then sat on the sofa.

“Sit. Don’t you think we need a sacrifice?”

Miguel fidgeted nervously.

Their real task was starting now.

“Major Jopre and a couple of practitioners won’t cut it. I’ll take responsibility for it.”

Miguel said the words that Boniface wanted to hear. He was the Chief of Africa and his superior. If he couldn’t avoid the responsibility, he thought it would be better to accept it on his own.

“Whew, I know this is all my fault. Not being able to see the full extent of Black Mamba’s skill was your fault.”

“I accept full responsibility.”

“It’ll become a nightmare. Are you sure you don’t want to call a helicopter now?”

“I know it will be challenging to perform in the current circumstances. The north of Chad is larger than France. In Boruku and TIbesti, Stella’s troops are all over the place. General Germain will never sign for it.”

For the tactical team to get a helicopter in the air for a large-scale military operation, they needed the permission of the Secretary of Defense.

[1] “Oh, unbelievable.”

[2] “How could this be!”