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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: What He Truly Desires (2)
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"...You should all consider your own security. For now, let me tell you more about this job."
"In the end, you're just asking us to kill someone, aren't you?"
Park Jun-seok scoffed.
Indeed, in this game, once someone was considered an enemy, there was only one stance you could take.
To kill them.
I heard a few people gasp.
"That's right. I'm the only one in Korea, which further restricts my activities. Still, my Player said this is a transaction."
Cha Ji-yeon took something else out of her bag.
It was a small flask containing a faintly glowing blue potion.
"This is one of the items bestowed upon me. I was told it's a rare potion made through alchemy. Its effect is healing. It can cure any illness, any wound—it's practically another life."
"I-Is that proven?"
"I, at least, have seen its effects firsthand."
At Park Jun-seok's question, Cha Ji-yeon made a cut on her own hand, drawing blood, then poured a tiny amount of the potion on it.
The wound healed as if it had been washed away.
It was like the miracles shown by extremely rare healing-type Hunters.
"Alright. I'll take the job. It's first come, first served, right?"
"Huh..."
While Oh Yoon-ah was still unable to make a decision, Park Jun-seok, who seemed to have something to rely on, stepped forward.
"That's correct."
Cha Ji-yeon nodded.
"But, Mom... Aaaah!"
After the meeting, Oh Yoon-ah was caught by her parents and dragged away.
No matter how you looked at it, murder was never a light matter.
"But we can't just sit around and do nothing."
"Right. I have no intention of doing nothing either. But it's not like we can run and hide for the rest of our lives."
I didn't deny my sister's gloomy words.
We wouldn't be the only ones making a move.
Perhaps others were aiming for our lives as well.
Just as Cha Ji-yeon had decided to use us to kill that woman.
From the looks of it, there was a good chance that beings with some mysterious talents could see through our identities.
"Looks like there's been another major incident."
After checking the news alert on my phone, I made up my mind.
Last time it was goblins, this time it was orcs. They were definitely the same kind that had appeared in North America.
I planned to find them wreaking havoc in the middle of downtown Seoul and salvage a corpse if I could.
"That's dangerous."
"It's a risk I have to take."
I sent Kang Do-yeon, her face full of worry, home.
Then I got into a taxi by myself.
The battle was still ongoing at the scene.
If I arrived late to that pandemonium, I might be able to blend in with the cleanup crew and get my hands on something.
[The Legion will be able to discern your intentions.]
"You sound so sure. What makes you so confident?"
[Does it not show you through its actions?]
Show me through its actions, huh.
I checked the screen.
The Legion was waging war without rest.
[The Legion's group tactics are steadily advancing. It continues to accumulate knowledge through experience. Tactics merely imprinted on genes have their limits, after all. But there is no limit to development through learning.]
Developing its brain was the answer.
The Legion's growth rate, now that it had begun to think and research on its own, was frightening.
[The Legion has begun to overhaul its entire system. Instead of mass-producing soldiers in a haphazard way like before, it now produces new forces with optimal efficiency for specific roles and purposes.]
"..."
It was no longer at the level of simply taking a 'beast' as a base and making minor modifications and combinations.
This was, quite literally, a new lifeform.
A newly created soldier bared its teeth and growled.
Its overall form resembled the sabertooth tiger guardian spirit I had absorbed before.
But the ends of its sturdily developed forelegs were rough and had proper hands, and it was capable of raising its body into a hunched posture.
A poisonous stinger tipped its long tail, and its entire body, made of robust muscle, was clad in black carapace like armor.
[If the goblin-based units are all-rounders, these ones are focused on size and mobility. Their design objective was based on the assumption of taking on an enemy on the level of those cats in a one-on-one fight.]
They rushed down the passage and joined the scene of slaughter.
It was then that the taxi arrived near my destination.
"E-Everyone, please calm down! The creatures have all retreated, so we will now begin rescue operations..."
The scene was a chaotic mess, just as I'd expected.
Police, paramedics, Hunters, and even the media were there.
But the largest group consisted of the families and friends of the victims who had rushed over after hearing the news.
[Incidents like this will continue to happen, endlessly and repeatedly.]
"Why don't they just fight each other beyond the Gates?"
[Of course they fight beyond them as well. Why do you think they keep invading Earth, even after evolving from mere monsters into Units participating in the game?]
"...Plunder, I guess. The bastards."
The monsters that had become Units were no longer simple, brutish beasts.
They were now plundering what they needed from Earth. For example, people.
"Get that area under control!"
"Everyone, please remain calm. The rescue team is going in now to..."
It was utter chaos.
Being in the middle of a bustling downtown area, it seemed even worse than when the goblins appeared at Kang Do-yeon's school.
But for me, at least, it could be an opportunity.
I glanced around furtively, and while everyone was distracted, I picked up a fluorescent vest that was lying nearby and put it on.
The rescue teams, including the police, were rushing into the site, carrying out people and bodies.
I subtly slipped into their ranks.
I was worried I'd be caught, but due to the extreme confusion, no one seemed to suspect a thing.
"This way!"
As one of the paramedics leading the group guided his colleagues around a corner.
I slipped into a nearby alley between the buildings.
The scene was a mess from people evacuating in a panic. I unknowingly swallowed dryly at the sight of bloodstains that hadn't yet dried.
"Urk..."
I turned the corner and witnessed the gruesome sight.
The scattered bodies of people, and the corpse of an orc, split in half, likely killed by a Hunter.
[Will you register the specimen?]
"Humans... it wouldn't be effective to add them now, would it?"
[That is correct.]
"Just send the Orc. I have no intention of desecrating the dead if it's not necessary."
I quickly took a photo and sent the Orc's corpse to the Legion's nest.
I had reaped a harvest surprisingly easily, but my heart wasn't at ease.
No matter how strong or smart monsters like orcs and goblins became, would they ever develop as much as humans?
Before long, it seemed I would have to send a human specimen as well.
[The Legion understood your intent and proceeded to absorb and break down the Orc specimen.]
This time, I was on the subway home.
While the people around me were trembling with anxiety in this rapidly changing world, I was staring blankly at my phone.
[What was most needed was the Orc's brain structure, but the alternative physical structure of a bipedal lifeform, first encountered with the goblin, was also a great help. Above all, it is very useful for increasing size.]
"So, was it effective?"
[It serves as a reinforcement, but it is not a leap forward.]
The Legion had analyzed the Orc's genetic information and put it to good use, but no significant changes occurred.
The only thing was that the goblin-based legionnaires had become larger.
"I'm anxious. To be honest, I'm scared."
I muttered quietly, as if lamenting.
I wasn't looking for comfort or a reply.
I might be criticized for whining, but whether I did or not, reality wouldn't change.
I no longer felt it was unfair to be caught up in the app and the game.
After all, if I didn't have the app, I would have been swept away by the suddenly changed world like everyone else, knowing nothing.
I was just saying that I had to keep holding on, and it didn't seem like it would be easy.
"Wh-What was that!"
"Aaaargh!!"
But at that moment, a powerful, unknown impact struck the subway car, and I was thrown from my seat, hitting the floor hard.
I couldn't get my bearings.
The lights flickered, and the windows shattered, sending shards flying everywhere.
The subway had definitely been running above ground.
[Get a grip.]
Urgent text appeared on the phone that had fallen in front of my eyes.
With a trembling hand, I grabbed my phone first.
The invasions and plundering never ceased.
*
"Another Gate?!"
"They're presumed to be Units. A race of Wraiths that haven't shown themselves on Earth since the game began."
"...Location."
"Just sent it. But the order hasn't come down yet. Well, this is what we expected, right? That things would become a mess."
Cha Ji-yeon, who had remained home alone, hurriedly checked the news alerts while on the phone with her colleague.
Before the Orc incident had even subsided, another invasion had begun.
It might seem cruel, but if the decision was made by a Unit collaborating with a Player, the circumstances of Earthlings would not be taken into consideration.
[How troublesome. The Player is annoyed right now. Even with his power, it's impossible to cover every single incident happening across the entire planet.]
"Then what should I do?"
[Stand by. Punishing these insolent fools is important, but if we pay attention to every single one of the dozens of small-fry factions, our grand plan will be disrupted.]
Hearing the answer, she let out a small sigh.
She had expected it, but it meant she couldn't intervene.
The grand plan they spoke of was a full-scale offensive launched from their side.
Her Player was gathering his Units, which were scattered across the globe, to launch a preemptive strike against the enemies beyond the Gates.
'Wraiths... most of their bodies are ethereal. Ordinary physical fighters would have a hard time against them.'
She paced around, anxiously watching the news.
It was something she had prepared for the moment she accepted the contract, but it always bothered her that she had to just stand by and watch people die and get hurt.
And what's more, that this would happen more and more frequently from now on.
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