Chapter 86: Chaos and Hero (4)
“They’ve gained momentum. It seems they plan to keep advancing like this.”
“That’s right. We can’t afford to give them any time.”
The mercenary leader Robert patted my back. I nodded absentmindedly. Amidst the ongoing chaos, it was decided that the main force would continue their advance.
After all, we had achieved a significant victory in the frontal battle.
Yet, my focus was elsewhere. In one part of my vision that Robert couldn’t see, a scene from another world was unfolding before me.
“You don’t look happy, do you? You should feel joy in this moment. Thanks to your discernment and judgment in identifying the enemy’s weaknesses, we have won and survived. It’s all thanks to you.”
“…Everyone is fighting like that right now.”
Robert spoke cheerily, but I couldn’t muster a smile and muttered blankly.
On the screen I was watching, my younger sister, Kang Do-yeon, was visible. She was attacking and annihilating a separate unit, presumed to be players or units, that had been secretly hidden away.
That mask was no longer acting as an anesthetic. In other words, she was now killing the enemies with an indifference and mechanical nature, just like the other legionnaires, driven by her own will.
The sight was overwhelmingly imposing. Even if dozens of people rushed at her, I knew I couldn’t defeat her.
“Only the winner survives… It’s a ecosystem like that…”
I barely held onto my thoughts. I kept repeating to myself that this was merely a survival competition.
“Ahem, then you should take a break. I’ll take care of the after-effects.”
Robert glanced around before stepping away. When I was left alone in the vehicle, I leaned back against the seat.
“My current gold count is unchanged. 300G obtained from defeating the Moonlight Fairy survivors. That means we just failed to kill the player unit we observed moments ago.”
[That is correct.]
I checked my gold count. The change was zero, meaning the legion had not killed any opposing units or players since they had come to the surface.
“Weaker ones would have been culled, while those who survived must have gotten stronger.”
At this point, it indicated that any unit that had survived must meet a certain standard. At the very least, it meant encounters would be unlikely, so they might know about the legion.
“Players with units on Earth must have gained a lot.”
A hollow laugh escaped me. I only knew of two cases, but anyway, compared to the world where Eve was currently residing, this place I called Earth was undergoing insane wars at this very moment.
It meant that players had easy access to gold.
“Execution Authority is limited to two per player, but still, if each player has two, that’s quite a lot. No matter how you think about it, it’s incredibly unfair.”
They kill enemies without restrictions. Of course, it was said that ‘that’s all’, but even that alone was outrageously overpowered.
[Let me tell you one thing, there are no patches in this game. It remains just as it was from the beginning until the end.]
“So the balance is satisfactory then? Surely there are those who can dodge the execution authority and survive. Even so…”
[Do not fear the system. Rather, you should seek to surpass and utilize it.]
“…So, if you can’t do even that, you don’t have the qualifications, huh?”
The intent seemed obvious. Well, anyone who had risked their life to win in the battlefield wouldn’t be expected to fail against the execution authority.
Ji Chang-hyun certainly seemed to have some confidence tucked away somewhere.
But that was a story for a select few; ordinary people like me couldn’t resist.
[Conversely, would the execution authority even be used against people like you?]
“That’s a fair point.”
Feeling slightly relaxed, I chuckled quietly. The cleanup was nearly complete.
Now it was time to reclaim the points we hadn’t captured previously and continue striking their main base.
“We probably don’t need to use nuclear bombs? I was uneasy about that. There might still be living people.”
Cox, who re-entered the vehicle, looked relaxed again.
…
The march continued. Surprisingly, perhaps because we had already achieved victory, the atmosphere was not bad for everyone.
‘It’s obvious they’ll flee.’
The movements of the enemies were still being observed. Predictions kept coming in, but those who truly understood knew. Preserving life came first. If the unit types were annihilated, the players would die too.
“The remnants are fleeing with all their might, but there hasn’t been any significant movement from the main base, huh?”
However, contrary to expectations, those guys were entrenched in their main base and not moving. At that moment, I wondered how that could even make sense.
“…What’s this?”
Robert frantically grabbed his radio.
“Enemy! It’s an enemy! They’re gathering…”
“Prepare for battle!”
Alarms began to sound from radios and outside too.
*
“I’ve seen that weapon from the northwest before.”
High-performance cluster munitions filled with submunitions. Several dozen of those were unleashed.
However, he, floating in the air, caught all the missiles that were about to strike the city with an invisible force.
Then he detonated them. Afterward, he concentrated the immense energy into one and sent it soaring into the sky.
‘But this isn’t the kind of power I desire.’
His eyes sparkled. Currently, a part of his sight was shared with another creature.
Numerous flying monsters native to the demonic realm were crossing the sky. Through the sight of one of these monsters, he saw a human army traversing the wasteland.
“Strike and wipe them out.”
The flying monsters, resembling massively enlarged eagles, began swooping toward helicopters and tanks.
The monsters weren’t the only ones prepared. Beasts crossing the ground, beasts running across the land, and so forth.
All the beings of the demonic realm were obeying the presence that was once the king of the demonic realm.
“I can’t believe this… What kind of magic is this?!”
“It’s not magic, you foolish creature. This is power. Power only granted to the pinnacle of sorcery.”
He laughed at the cobalt chief who was wide-eyed at the newfound power.
The chief, who had believed the magic passed down from his player, Roses, was a miracle, was now speechless as he witnessed the true power of a Dark Lord for the first time in his life.
Beside him, Nol was taking down drones that were scouting the area with laser weapons one by one.
“By the way, you were making such a fuss that your player would die, yet you seem perfectly alright.”
“Th-that person is currently hiding.”
The cobalt chief stammered while barely managing to answer. He couldn’t bear to look at him.
The seal that was close to a curse left by the hero had been lifted, and the true power of a high-ranking demon had been regained, causing the instinctive loyalty embedded in his genes to awaken once more.
“Focus on the battle before you.”
Seeing this, he chuckled mockingly.
Soon the cobalt and Nol masses, having gained permission from their players, dispatched their main forces after some reorganization.
‘Fools. The ones who will ultimately survive will be us.’
He had his own plan. From the moment he awakened with strength granted by the players, exploiting the loophole of the current system, which he couldn’t help but become allies with the foolish orcs as they strengthened their forces, he had begun to recover his own power.
He believed that the native demon forces, including himself, would become the true victors, and resolved to act for it.
“Ah. My predecessor, what is happening in this demonic realm right now?”
“The Lord of Demons, Garthin. I will grant you a legion, so go and slay the humans.”
He awakened one of his subordinates who had been sealed like himself. This half-human, half-bird creature, cloaked in black feathers, nodded respectfully to the long-absent predecessor.
“With fully regained power, I shall sweep away the trash called humans.”
“…It would be wise not to get careless. A new unjust law has appeared where even a strong being can be taken down in one blow as the world has changed.”
He wore an odd smile, expressing the same loyalty he always had.
“What do you mean by that…?”
“Take this. It can serve as another means to prove your loyalty.”
He threw a ring to Garthin. The one who had been clicking his beak took it, wore it, and instantly soared into the sky.
“There are units among the humans… No, there are. Some individuals among them stand out. Garthin, just by himself, might not be enough.”
“It could be insufficient. Isn’t it your job to fill that insufficiency? If you truly wish to transcend the limits of your base bloodline, then struggle on your own. You and I are merely fighting to survive.”
The cobalt chief laughed openly at his words.
He thought this was rather good. It was just like when the demonic realm fought the heroes. Yet compared to that time, now felt like true wilderness.
‘Where has the goddess gone? Could it be that this goddess is also just a frog in a well, merrily creating her units in another world?’
He, at last, realized that the goddess, who had cowardly attacked the demonic realm using the unfair means of the hero, was just as much a frog in a well as he was.
