The building was entered.
Like all the other buildings seen since entering Yangju City, this faction’s building was no exception. There weren’t any serious collapses, but many signs of small damage and cracks in the walls were visible.
“It’s because it’s the front line.”
Noticing my gaze as I looked around, Iris murmured softly.
“It’s the center of faction fights.”
Nodding my head, Iris let out a wry smile and moved her steps.
“How long has it been since we’ve seen Lady Erica?”
“It’s been a few months. Today is the first time since the faction suppression team last year.”
“I hear you’ve been going on a lot of business trips lately. You must be busy. It’s impressive.”
“What are you saying? You’ve been working hard with the area purification as well, Iris. You need to take care of yourself more.”
Erica smiled. The two girls’ beautiful voices resonated, creating a rainbow and making the flowers around them bloom.
Suddenly, I felt uneasy.
That smile should only be shown to me.
“Are you in charge of Gyeonggi Province?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, are you the main player who completed the group eradication in just a few days this time…?”
“It was a team effort. I only did my part.”
“You’re humble, with the skill of a ranker. It’s perfect!”
“You’re overpraising me. There’s nothing I can really give in return for that.”
Only the area around the two girls brightened up. In the cheerful scene, the flowers scattered their petals as if they couldn’t hold back anymore.
Though a business smile was visible, my mood was already at rock bottom.
“I worked hard following Erica as well.”
Silence fell. The petals broke as they were pierced by a blade.
Erica glanced at me and then turned her head away again.
“What are you talking about, with just hostage situations and terrorist attacks…?”
What the hell. What’s going on here?
Why is it only me like this?
As I walked, the door that had arrived ahead opened.
As Iris snapped her fingers, the nearby torches ignited, illuminating the dim indoor space. A round table was set in the tranquil atmosphere.
“Shall we take a look at the items you brought?”
“Ah, yes!”
Iris wobbled as she tried to sit at the middle seat opposite the round table. A woman beside her hurriedly supported her.
“I’m sorry. I showed you a rough side of myself.”
“No, it’s fine.”
I tilted my head.
“Are you in pain?”
“What do you mean?”
“Iris.”
“I don’t really feel like informing you about that.”
“How cold.”
“The problem is asking for a good response after putting my subordinates in that state.”
Pretending to think, Iris neatly ignored me and punctured the nearby syringe.
“This one, right? Good.”
“Drug addiction.”
“What?”
“Addict.”
I pointed with my finger, and Erica hurriedly swatted my hand away.
Then, she leaned in closer and whispered as if shouting.
“Please don’t say things like that!”
“What did I say? It’s true that she has a drug addiction.”
“Ugh!”
I’ve been scolded.
Looking ahead, I saw that Iris was nodding as if it was only natural.
“Okay, okay. A bad person like that should be properly educated!”
“Even during the banquet procedure, Iris, you’re no less than that!”
“What would you do without it, then?”
“The symptoms of addiction are severe. Drug addict.”
“What! If you keep saying that, I’ll cut ties with the association!”
Silence flowed.
I pulled out a knife.
“Go ahead. I’ll just charge in recklessly like before!”
Magic power was infused. A blood-red aura flickered.
Iris’s red eyes sparkled. A rifle rotated in the air and flowed into her hands.
The muzzle was aimed.
“Yeah! You die and I live!”
“Are you stupid? It means both of us die!”
“No? I’m going to live! The leader of the faction won’t die here!”
Erica was fidgeting nervously beside me.
In the tense situation, whispers were heard again.
“Why is this happening again…!”
“You two are chatting away without me? Were you enjoying a conversation with Iris instead of me?”
“Really…! You know it’s just formalities for work…”
“I don’t care about that. What’s important is that you showed a smile to Iris!”
“Seriously! After this, I can take care of you! I’ll pet you as much as you like, so put down the knife!”
“I don’t need it.”
The woman beside Iris was also flailing her hands trying to stop her. However, her fierce gaze had no sign of wavering.
“Iris, considering the association’s items…”
“I don’t care! None of it matters! I’ll die, and I’ll kill her! No, I’ll live and kill her!”
“But Iris, aren’t you the leader? Think about the subordinates who trust and follow you.”
“Ugh…!”
It was satisfying to see her trembling. She was conflicted between her current feelings and future wellbeing.
When was the last time we fought, I wondered? Was there a reason for sparing her life and not killing her?
“The heavy weapon girl, Iris. You’re still violent.”
“That’s something I can say to you?! A living weapon!”
“Don’t call me with such a weird nickname! That name was given by idiots!”
“You’re an idiot too! You used to be cool. Your personality changed, but the violence didn’t!”
Ah, I remembered. Whenever you and I faced off, it was always you who got excited.
“You laughed so much from our first meeting today? Is there something good going on lately? Is that face easily made?!”
“Can’t I be happy?!”
“Yeah! It feels like you went far away, leaving me behind!”
I realized that the emotions I was acting out were beginning to engulf me. I just wanted to enjoy it.
Yet you still haven’t changed.
The goals I had hoped for swirled in my head. Suddenly, I caught sight of the syringe that had pierced Iris’s arm just moments ago.
I condensed the space and released magic power. In an instant, a blade was created in the void beside Iris, but my body tilted to one side, losing control.
A familiar scent wafted through. I gently surrendered my body to the embracing touch.
“Please just stay still. I’ll pet you.”
“I wasn’t that pressured earlier…”
A cozy sensation approached. Without my realization, weariness flooded in.
Iris threw the gun aimed at me behind her. It seemed to be because Erica was next to her.
“You’re really annoying. It always ends in this dull way.”
“Iris, don’t you need to calm your temper?”
“What?”
My ear was pinched.
“Ah…”
“Stop it.”
“I don’t want to! Erica, you should be on my side!”
“Why should I? You keep acting like this. There’s a limit to shamelessness.”
I said nothing. Iris sat down on the chair with a look of taking pity on herself.
“I have to endure it. I who keep order!”
I tried to speak again but held back, fearing Erica would scold me.
The banquet continued. I fiddled with the ends of my hair and changed my position a few times. The chair creaked and made an old sound.
“The firearms will be supplied in a few days. Could you be understanding?”
“Of course. The association must be in a tough situation too. I’m really grateful that there’s been exchange since the invasion of the spirit world.”
The atmosphere lightened up.
Bored, I opened my mouth.
“So how’s it going with Iris?”
Iris shot me a glare. I glared back.
“It’s okay.”
“Don’t lie.”
Iris crossed her legs and subtly averted her gaze.
“It was last week when the opposing faction abruptly breached the demilitarized zone we had designated in the northern area of Baeksok-eup. I guess they didn’t see any cease-fire agreements with supplies dropping.”
“And then?”
“So we clashed. If it comes to faction versus faction, we should have an advantage in compatibility. We know the geographical factors inside and out.”
The demilitarized zone drawn in the middle of Yangju City had crumbled, and the standoff disguised as a truce was shattered.
“When I thought it was a good opportunity to push, I faced a ruined city that was more challenging than expected. We waged small battles in squad units for days, then pulled back from the faction.”
“I wish we could have done a carpet bombing, right?”
“Ha. Exactly. There wouldn’t be civilians, so we just had to be careful with fighters! It wouldn’t be hard at all for me to neutralize aircraft and anti-air systems… wait a minute.”
Iris’s gaze momentarily shifted to Erica before darting back to me.
“When it was the early stages, I could have turned the city into ruins with a large bomber and laughed like a madwoman. I guess I miss those days.”
“Are you stuttering in front of Erica?”
I heard that Erica joined the association late after the incident, so she probably doesn’t know how much Iris had made her name at the beginning.
Of course, not for good reasons.
“What?”
In a moment of inattentiveness, Erica blinked.
I extended a hand of salvation.
“It was a ghost city, right? Full of bad guys!”
“Y-yeah! It was the true crime city! No civilians! No non-awakened!”
Iris nodded desperately. It was essentially unavoidable. For her to prolong her life, she needed to quickly find and kill awakened ones with firearm stats.
Otherwise, during the early phases, Iris with her relatively low stats compared to other rankers would undoubtedly be targeted.
“Is that so? You did a good thing.”
“What? If you’re a good person, that’s what you should do.”
I clapped at Iris’s words. Could she actually close her mouth and put on an innocent face like that?
That is quite impressive.
