Chapter 249

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on February 16, 2025

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The sky outside the veil was peaceful. In stark contrast to the city shrouded in gray clouds within.

Sometimes, the fact that two cities with entirely different landscapes and atmospheres coexist simultaneously causes a bit of confusion for us, who are interconnected as a collective.

Fortunately, dark clouds have started to gradually reveal themselves above the blue afternoon sky.

I felt like my senses were finally syncing up.

[As Senator Remar’s duel in Congress broke through to a 45-win streak—]

No, where did this political news come from? I clicked the channel in annoyance.

[Today afternoon, a whimsical rain shower might sweep through…]

There it was. The weather forecast I had been waiting for. Finally, a little satisfying.

Just as I was concentrating on the broadcast trickling into my ears, Sister Adela returned after meeting with the Federal Army.

“Violet, what’s the current situation inside?”

“For now, everyone inside the convention center is safe. Those at the Aegis Academy booth are all unharmed too. But…”

“But?”

Radio Violet gave a response full of various meanings.

“The situation is a bit strange!”

“Violet, it seems like a lot of the preceding information has been omitted.”

Sister Adela, not fully understanding my words, requested a more detailed explanation.

At times like this, I really wished I could share the Violet Network with others.

Transmitting thoughts directly is much faster than words.

“Sister, do you remember when we fought against Magnavis?”

“Are you talking about that incident at Vittorio Arcade?”

I recalled the scenes of the Believers we faced in the dungeon back then.

“An odd group called the Unity Cult led monsters to invade the forward base, didn’t they? The behavior of the monsters we’re facing now is similar to back then. They move like a trained army!”

I detailed my experiences from the dungeon.

Monsters moving in perfect order regardless of type, sudden kidnap attempts.

A bizarrely abrupt halt in their chase and retreat.

As Sister Adela listened to my words seriously, a shadow slowly crept into her eyes.

“So, are you implying that someone inside the Erosion Zone is controlling the monsters? That’s what you’re trying to say?”

“Yes, that’s it!”

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, her voice lost its emotions.

“The original plan was to assemble a small rescue team from the academy to send alongside the Federal Army. But if what Violet says is true, this is definitely not something to take lightly.”

“So, what do you intend to do?”

“Being careless is only okay once. I’ll explain the situation to the academy board and request additional rescue personnel. I also plan to ask our family for troop support.”

I couldn’t help but admire her confident demeanor, but at the same time, I worried about dragging our family’s hunters into such a perilous situation.

“Wow… is that really okay?”

“Is it okay? Helping those in danger is the duty of the powerful. Given our family’s involvement with the academy foundation and board, we obviously have to take responsibility, right? It shouldn’t be difficult to get permission.”

Hmm, it seemed like sister misunderstood the essence of my question a bit.

“Regardless, I’m somewhat worried since the inner space of the veil is the first area we’ve encountered. Military personnel say that based on their information analysis, it’s highly likely that it’s the Asteria Seal. But the veil obstructs accurate information gathering.”

“Asteria Seal?”

“One of the holy sites of a certain religion that vanished during the Great War. I think it’s called… the Sacred Heart Monastery.”

Hearing the name of the very church that had once distributed bread to us instilled a strange sense of déjà vu.

“Sending people recklessly into the first discovered Erosion Zone or dungeon is a risky move. The military and Restraid are also conducting preliminary investigations before deploying a full rescue team. Even if a rescue team comes, it won’t be immediate.”

Sister spoke with a cautious demeanor.

Somewhere beyond the veil, there is an unidentified entity controlling the monsters.

In a situation where traps could be waiting, we couldn’t recklessly send our members in.

“The most ideal solution would be to form a reconnaissance team with elite hunters specialized in exploration and infiltration. The problem is, there aren’t many capable clans that specialize in that…”

While I was looking at the contemplative Sister Adela, a great idea suddenly struck me.

If there were hunters whose main duty was to explore and venture into unknown territories, weren’t they already close by?

“Sister, there are people like that near us!”

“Who are they?”

I replied confidently.

“It’s Helios!”

Irene observed her father standing tall in the hangar.

He was somewhat larger than usual for a father, but he was definitely her one and only dad.

—Kiiing!

As the continuous sound echoed in her ears, Irene’s face twisted a bit while looking at the tablet.

The space inside was filled with sharp metallic noises created by machines, more than enough to overwhelm her sensitive hearing.

After a brief annoyance, she refocused on her work.

The researchers from Magnavis that Violet had passed on, along with several technicians requisitioned from outside, were modifying the Stregonics’ body very efficiently.

‘What did Chief Viktor say? The design was somewhat similar to Restraid’s armored suits, making it easy to modify, right?’

Indeed, the claim that the four major clans had collaborated to create this was no exaggeration.

Thanks to that, obtaining parts became easier, simplifying the modifications.

The tablet screen displayed the designs before and after the modifications side by side for comparison.

The actual appearance and the anticipated image post-modification were significantly close.

‘Yeah, it was a necessary modification.’

Once the technicians finished their repairs, Irene asked her father.

“Father, how are you feeling? Are you comfortable?”

A smiling face appeared on the LED screen attached to his head.

“I’m great! I feel incredibly powerful!”

The heavy hums echoed from the power conduits and his arms and legs, proving his strength.

“That’s a relief. But…”

As Irene continued her thoughts, she sighed lightly.

Her gaze shifted to the heads of the reconnaissance and relic recovery departments standing beside her father.

The two executive members, who boasted Helios Clan’s core combat power, were engrossed in a heated debate over the modifications.

“What did I say? It had to be made from Alpha Ion’s materials. To perfectly recreate the Commander’s abilities, the joints need to move a bit smoother—”

“Did you forget what the technicians said? The original design was for long-range combat, so it can’t be too delicate. Better to focus on strength.”

Recently, the Helios Frontier Service’s board had unanimously passed an additional modification plan aimed at fully restoring their CEO’s combat capabilities.

Up until this point, Irene fully agreed with the plan.

The body of Stregonics was ill-suited for the agile spear techniques and close-quarters combat that her father specialized in.

In the early stages of modification, they extended the lengths of the arms and legs to more naturally reproduce movements from his human days.

Additional armor, made of megasteel and various rare metals, was added for extra defense, and numerous relics were generously incorporated to enhance resilience.

As a result, the already towering Stregonics, originally close to 3 meters, had grown approximately 1.5 times larger.

Now, her father, Orion, boasted a height comparable to that of the Federal Army’s bipedal firepower platforms.

‘This was a necessary consideration. But…’

In truth, the increase in size was not the main issue. Her real concern lay elsewhere.

“Irene, why do you look so gloomy? Did you find any discrepancies on the paperwork?”

Seeing her with a troubled expression, Morgan, with his bronze skin, spoke up.

“No, the procedures are fine.”

Morgan thought her demeanor stemmed from guilt over turning her father into a cyborg.

Feeling sympathetic, he, as an experienced senior hunter, offered her words of comfort.

“As I’ve said before, don’t blame yourself too much. You said there was no other way. I would have made the same choice too. Of course, the best option would be a regeneration relic, though…”

“Taking our time to find one isn’t a bad idea.”

“Hmmm, it seems the deputy CEO has finally shown interest in this issue. Our team—”

Viktor’s cold voice interrupted their conversation.

“Enough, we’ve decided to pause that nonsense for now. Deputy CEO, you seem to be unhappy about something, why don’t you say it?”

Irene answered as if she had been waiting for this moment.

“Honestly, I think the modifications might be a bit excessive. I’m questioning whether this approach is actually correct.”

To her inquiry, Morgan and Viktor responded nonchalantly.

“You’ve supported the additional budget, right? This is a project to enhance our clan’s combat capabilities.”

“Statistically, we can expect a combat power increase of over 200%. Isn’t it a sufficiently reasonable plan?”

Were they still not grasping the essence of the problem?

Irene raised the tablet and spoke in a composed tone.

“I agree with increasing my father’s combat power. But, masters.”

In an instant, her gaze sharpened, resembling that of a wife confronting her husband after he secretly bought an expensive foreign car.

“When you told me to modify, why did you end up creating a department store?”

In the direction she pointed, countless weapons were being prepared to attach to Orion’s body.

“What’s the problem? It’s great. Firepower.”

“Deputy CEO, maybe you don’t know, but it’s necessary to have ample weaponry to prepare for any situation on the field.”

She felt incredulous at their words.

It was only natural; the initial plans, which included simple firearms, a spear, and some extra barriers, had now transformed into something far beyond imagination.

“When the technology department kept requesting budget increases, I wondered what was going on, only to find you both making additional requests. Missile launchers, multiple bolt launchers. Direct-fire cannons, spear launchers, Ether emitters…”

At this rate, her father would turn into a combat machine that Violet would go crazy for.

Essentially, a walking super medium tank. A serious overreach.

“This is way too overarmored! Aside from the budget, having this many weapons means I’ll have to operate them all, which will be quite burdensome. More than anything, how do you plan on transporting this long-distance?”

“We can airlift it by helicopter. The equipment can be taken separately and assembled on-site!”

Orion, who had been silent, activated his speaker.

“Don’t worry too much. This is what I requested. You should be ready for that much.”

“Huh?”

The modified Stregonics shrugged its shoulders.

“What’s going on? This setup strays far from my father’s original combat style.”

“I deemed it impractical to replicate the previous combat style in its entirety. And…”

At the next moment, Orion unexpectedly uttered words.

“Can’t you see? It’s pretty cool.”

“…What?”

Irene felt aghast.

In an instant, an unbelievable sight unfolded before her eyes: The high-ranking Helios executives, excited like toy collectors, reacting to their commander’s words.

“How about adding more machine guns?”

“There are too many firearms. Just my personal opinion, but how about adding chainsaws to both arms?”

“Great idea. Viktor! Chainsaws are not bad either.”

Now they were brainstorming on how to overdo it with the armoring.

Irene was left speechless.

‘Are they really the people I know?’

Two adult men and a massive cyborg exchanged opinions like elementary school children gleefully playing with robot toys.

Fortunately, Irene’s bewilderment didn’t last long.

A member of the Special Operations Division appeared holding a telephone, looking for her.

“Unit 998. What’s going on? Got it. Hold on a moment—”

She picked up the phone, and soon a familiar voice came through.

“Student Council President?”

—I didn’t expect Ms. Irene to answer directly.

The voice on the phone was polite but clearly conveyed the matter at hand: a contract and a support request.

Once the call ended, Morgan asked.

“Is it Cascadia? That’s already underway.”

“It’s a request from Aegis Academy. For exploration and rescue in the Erosion Zone.”

After the explanation, the executives returned to their businesslike demeanor as if nothing had happened.

“Everyone, gather up! It’s time to deploy. Move quickly.”

“You mentioned the Erosion Zone, right? We’ll head out as soon as the equipment checks are done.”

Preparation time isn’t short. Considering the distance from the Central District to the Southern Region, even by helicopter, it would take some time.

Just as the three were dashing out of the hangar, the speaker blared once more.

“Wait, I’m going too.”

With concern, Irene asked about Orion’s request.

“Isn’t the modification work still incomplete? Are you sure it’s okay?”

“Of course it’s fine.”

Stregonics lifted a spear as large as a telegraph pole next to him while responding.

“This is a real-world test. Personal preferences don’t matter in the field.”

The power conduit of the Iron Man ahead of battle began to pulse.

Deep within the Asteria Seal, the Violets, searching the surroundings, witnessed a procession of monsters moving hither and thither.

“There they are!”

“Monsters are on the move.”

Monsters of varying shapes and sizes shuffled through the streets like an army. We felt an uneasiness and decided to follow them.

We didn’t forget to plant spare Hibernating Violets in the corners and gaps in the walls.

“Where are they headed?”

We followed at a distance behind the monsters. There was surely a commander among them. Following them to the end might lead us to find him.

Of course, we had to be cautious while tailing them.

The monsters had become more sensitive than usual, and even a small mistake would provoke an ambush.

“Guuh! Careful.”

One Violet stalker cried out as another was ripped apart. The others stayed calm in their movements.

They could respawn, of course, but that meant chasing after the monsters from square one, which would be a hassle.

“If I had known, I might as well have let myself get kidnapped.”

After the recent fights, the monsters regarded us like the bitter enemies of their parents, determined to kill us on sight.

Perhaps it was due to overusing self-destruction.

While we were deep in following them, a loud commotion erupted nearby as if a battle was taking place. The marching monsters suddenly changed direction around that time.

“Survivors?”

“Perhaps…!”

Filled with both hope and fear, we moved towards the source of the noise, following the monsters.

And there, we could see it.

“Grrr!”

—Puh-ng!

Between the narrow alleys, endless waves of monsters surged forth.

And among that tide of monsters was a lone woman darting about, wielding a sword.

“Sophiel!”

Ecstatic with joy at finally finding her, the Violets burst forth like fireworks and rushed forward.

—Tatata-tang!

“Sister! We came to save you!”