Chapter 272

The Free City Alliance, a lawless zone.

Even though it was raining cold rain, Cheong could feel the oppressive heat of melted concrete through the exposed skin above her thick mask.

The man who had arrived leading a horde of scavengers didn’t look human no matter how you looked at him.

But with all the objects fused into his body, he was clearly human—or at least supposed to be.

There was barely any real or artificial human skin left; he resembled a robot more than anything.

Tank-grade armor plating.

Massive heavy machine guns that seemed impossible for a human to carry.

Concrete-melting laser cannons.

He was literally a monster whose entire body had been converted into weapons.

But faint red light seeped from his artificial eyes, hinting at something sinister.

An ominous red glow intertwined with madness.

Clear evidence of cybernetic overuse.

This man perfectly embodied the downfall of mercenaries obsessed with object modifications.

The monstrous man spoke towards Cheong’s group.

“All I want are two things.”

The leader of the scavengers, codename “Tank,” acted as if victory was already assured.

Indeed, whether by numbers or equipment quality, Cheong’s group appeared outmatched.

Still, they clung to hope, pretending to listen while searching for an opening.

Cheong stealthily scanned the monster’s object data using a small terminal hidden behind the man.

(Any weak points we can exploit?)

Against the backdrop of the scavenger demanding their cargo, a woman holding a sniper rifle whispered softly.

(There’s one spot.)

Cheong pointed towards the area around the man’s chest.

(Knock knock.)

The ground-shaking vibrations were unmistakable.

Instead of a heart, Tank’s chest housed a glowing mechanical device pulsating with a furnace-like red light.

(This device was made from the object ‘Fire-Spitting Serpent’ that appeared two years ago. Extremely unstable, they say.)

Cheong continued in hushed tones.

(But since it’s lasted two years, it must have been stabilized somehow. Triggering its explosion is our best option.)

However, the device embedded in his chest was protected by thick layers of armor, making it no easy task.

Not even the man’s shotguns, machine guns, or the woman’s sniper rifle seemed capable of penetrating it.

“Make your choice now!”

With that, Tank raised his massive laser cannon.

The moment of truth had arrived.

Cheong’s group exchanged final glances.

Despite the high likelihood of death, their gazes confirmed their determination to fight back.

But before they could act, the situation took a sudden turn.

The device attached to the monster’s chest began emitting an intense red glow, soon spewing jets of scorching flames.

Just like how the laser cannon melted concrete, the flames originating from his chest started consuming the monster himself.

Neither his composite object-made armor nor the heat exchangers could withstand the inferno.

“What… why is this happening!”

In agony, the monster desperately struggled to tear the flaming device from his chest with his massive claw-like hands—but they kept slipping uselessly.

Worse still, the fire seemed alive, unnaturally targeting his hands and face first.

“No… this can’t be!”

Within moments, the monstrous figure melted away, leaving only a pool of glowing molten metal.

Not again…

Seeing this scene reminded Cheong of another bizarre incident where shotguns danced in the sky.

But having experienced it once before, she quickly regained her composure this time.

The girl shouted, grabbing her companions’ hands.

“Let’s get out of here!”

This strange occurrence had left the scavengers bewildered, providing the perfect opportunity to escape.

Leading her disoriented comrades, Cheong swiftly retreated.

Survival was their top priority now, so they ran forward without hesitation.

***

Deep within the Mini Reaper Garden, on the snowfield.

I was still working on restoring the Ice Palace here.

Occasionally eating pudding, rolling around lazily, and building the palace when bored—it was quite a relaxing project.

Initially, I remember putting in a lot of effort, but lately, I’ve decided to take my time with the restoration.

Then, a group of Golden Reapers approached, radiating determination.

“Younger brother needs help!”

“We need assistance!”

“Our weak sibling!”

And just like that, the Golden Reapers abandoned their work and rushed off somewhere en masse.

Of course, poor me, forcibly employed in labor, had no choice but to follow.

Upon arriving at the Marshmallow Plains, we found countless Blue Reapers gathered.

At a glance, there were at least a thousand.

Considering there were originally only ten real Blue Reapers, that meant at least 990 were dolls.

Actually, distinguishing the fake ones wasn’t difficult.

The fake Blue Reapers looked more like Golden Reapers.

They were throwing their hats like boomerangs and performing windmill-like acrobatics for fun.

Some Golden Reapers even stripped off their water-made dresses because they found them uncomfortable, much to the anger of the real Blue Reaper, who would appear and beat them over the head with a staff.

Each time, the humiliated Golden Reaper would sheepishly put their clothes back on, which was somewhat amusing.

Watching these struggling children, my own trial arrived.

A giant Blue Reaper doll outfit suddenly appeared before me.

“Ugh…”

The Blue Reapers’ pleading, shiny eyes begged me to wear it.

Caught in the situation of breaking the Ice Palace while under forced labor.

“Just this once…”

With those two factors combined, I reluctantly donned the enormous Blue Reaper costume despite my grumbles.

As soon as I did, the thousand Blue Reapers formed a circle.

Then, one Blue Reaper began painting a massive string in the sky.

[The World’s Largest Mother Golem!]

[Golem!]

A three-meter-tall Water Golem then materialized in the center of the Blue Reapers.

More strings followed from the multitude of Blue Reapers.

[Huge Mother!]

[Really Huge Mother!]

[Big!]

Each string expressed wishes for the Water Golem to grow larger.

Ah, here we go again…

After obtaining the Blue Giant, the Blue Reapers keep gathering to create a colossal golem.

It seems they’re trying to make a golem as big as the Blue Giant with the help of the Golden Reapers.

I couldn’t just sit idly by.

Armed with plenty of firewood, I painted my own string.

[Grow bigger!]

As soon as my string activated, the Water Golem rapidly expanded to the size of the Blue Giant.

“Wow!”

“Mommy is strong!”

Numerous Blue Reapers cheered and rushed toward me.

It was unusual to see the usually distant Blue Reapers cling to me like this.

Among those clinging were some genuine Blue Reapers, shyly hiding among the fakes.

Their bashful expressions while pretending to be fake Blue Reapers were rather cute.

***

In the Mini Reaper Garden, at the Marshmallow Plains.

Perhaps the most important object in the Marshmallow Plains is the White Hungry Ghosts.

Though they always appear to lie around contentedly, they actually do a lot.

They serve as snacks for hungry Mini Reapers.

They double as beds for tired Mini Reapers.

And they help reduce the aggressiveness of the ferocious Gray Reaper.

Without the White Hungry Ghosts, the Mini Reapers would likely endure more mischief.

Now, they’ve taken on an additional role.

Reducing the aggression of the increasingly ferocious Orange Reaper, who has become nearly as savage as the Gray Reaper.

At that moment, an Orange Reaper floating leisurely through the Mini Reaper Garden spotted a White Hungry Ghost enjoying the soft light of the Marshmallow Plains with a happy smile.

Like mother, like daughter, one might say.

The Orange Reaper suffered from an illness that made them want to torment the White Hungry Ghost upon seeing its smiling face.

Giggling wickedly, the Orange Reaper dove down like a bird of prey.

“Keeheehee!”

A mournful wail echoed as the Orange Reaper began feasting on the White Hungry Ghost’s plump belly.

After the feast, the Orange Reaper left behind a pitiful White Hungry Ghost with half its belly torn off.

***

In the alleys of the Free City Alliance.

Cheong continued sprinting through the alleyways, feeling like her lungs might burst.

She wanted desperately to rip off her suffocating mask but resisted the urge.

If she removed it now, not only her prayers but possibly her lungs themselves could be damaged.

Moreover, the fear of being torn apart by scavengers kept her legs moving.

“Cheong! Stop for a second!”

Suddenly, the woman who had been covering their rear grabbed Cheong’s shoulder.

“Something’s off.”

Seeing the woman press a finger to her lips and scan the surroundings, Cheong mimicked her actions, trying to steady her breathing.

The absence of rain now made Cheong’s heavy breathing echo loudly in the alley.

‘Too quiet.’

Indeed, something was amiss.

Even considering the sudden death of their leader, the scavengers’ complete lack of action was suspicious.

Gulp.

Swallowing hard, Cheong slowly crouched down.

Her group then formed a defensive circle, cautiously scanning their surroundings.

Suddenly, a scavenger was flung out from the alley they’d just passed through as if struck by something invisible.

The bloodied man lying on the ground reached out to them with a desperate expression.

“S-someone… save me…”

Before anyone could react, a beam of light descended from a nearby building, piercing straight through the man’s heart.

Bang!

Blood gushed from the wound.

With a crunching sound, the scavenger’s body was shredded to pieces.

‘What is going on? What’s happening?’

Paralyzed by shock, the group watched as something floated towards them.

‘!’

It was a sinister fur ball splattered with blood.