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The cold raindrops pounding against the concrete floor filled the alleyway.

The silver-haired girl, Cheong, was running hard while looking at the backs of her companions in front.

They had received a request from a client to transport an important cargo, and they were busy carrying it.

It was a request to move cargo to a lawless zone that was beyond the reach of the three ruling families of the Free City Alliance.

In a typical transportation request, they would have used a vehicle, but this time, they had to navigate narrow, web-like passages impossible for vehicles to access.

Hah. Hah.

Running while wearing a mask that made it hard to breathe was much more difficult than Cheong had anticipated.

On top of that, with the rain pouring down, it felt like she might just collapse from exhaustion.

Looking ahead with a somewhat dizzy mind, she felt a slight sense of nostalgia.

The shape of the raindrops hitting the ground.

In the heavy rain, the faint outlines of her companions carrying heavy bags.

The unpleasant cold rain that felt like ice and clung to her body.

She used to like rain a lot…

When it rained, she enjoyed the smell of the earth and the unique atmosphere that came with rainy days.

However, the rain falling in this city was utterly unlikable.

Cold rain with a strange, oily smell.

The rain that fell in this city was mostly not water and was inexplicably very cold.

It felt like some sort of coolant being used to cool down the gigantic machine that was this city.

“My body feels heavy.”

Naturally, the rainwater harmful to pure humans had made Cheong wear waterproof clothing.

But with such reliable performance came the weight that pressed down on the girl.

Hah. Hah.

The girl’s breath escaping from the thick-filtered mask was rough.

“We’ll arrive once we pass this block.”

A voice from the man at the front seemed to wake up the girl’s mind.

“Are you okay?”

A woman running alongside the silver-haired girl asked with concern.

She was asking if Cheong could open the security wall in this transportation request.

That wall was a remnant from the times before the cities had united, and many parts remained intact due to its extraordinary sturdiness.

Of course, there were ways to bypass the wall, but going through it was much closer.

“I can do it.”

Cheong spoke with determination, even though she was struggling to breathe properly.

At that moment, the man raised a shield in his hand with a loud noise.

“Stop!”

He set up two huge shields like a wall and, holding a heavy weapon in his other hand, began to look around.

Red glows streaking through the dark alley, leaving behind afterimages.

“Damn! It’s Scavengers.”

Hyenas that roamed the lawless zones began to surround them, chasing after their prey.

They looked just like sharks sensing the smell of blood.

*

The Sehee Research Institute’s isolation room was always warm and peaceful.

I lay diagonally on the bed, playing with the Golden Reaper.

Looking down at the Golden Reaper standing on my stomach, I wiggled my fingers like playing the piano, and the Golden Reaper responded by throwing punches in a boxing stance.

Swinging at my fingers as if striking a mitt.

Sometimes avoiding the punches and sometimes throwing fists at my fingers.

The stance was so realistic that it resembled a boxer.

“Golden Reapers are all good at sports.”

As I played with the Golden Reaper, an intriguing story began to flow from the TV.

[According to the Korean Object Association, a significant amount of ‘Golden Horn’ has been traced to have been leaked to China.]

[It has been found that the Golden Horn has flowed into the so-called ‘Free City Alliance,’ known in China as a major lawless zone.]

[The area is not under the control of Chinese authorities and is being exploited as a hideout for criminals. This is expected to make tracking difficult.]

[The Korean Object Association is closely cooperating with the Chinese Association to pursue the whereabouts of the criminals, but there has been no clear progress yet.]

The Free City Alliance…

It’s quite a famous area, but I’ve never been there.

China had dealt with the object crisis better than the US or Japan, but I had heard that that ‘Free City Alliance’ was an area of inhumanity.

While lost in such thoughts, the Golden Reaper was lifting my finger with a sullen face.

With weak strength, it was struggling to lift it as if asking to play together.

“Okay. Sure, let’s play a little longer.”

As I started to move my finger again, the boxing Golden Reaper began to punch with an excited look.

*

In the Mini Reaper Garden, Marshmallow Plains.

After a good play session with the Golden Reaper, I was walking through the Mini Reaper Garden.

The numerous Golden Reapers walking on all fours and the Orange Reapers floating like clouds strangely gave off a vibe reminiscent of nature in Africa.

As I observed the leisurely flying Orange Reapers, a thought struck me.

“Now that I think about it, it’s been quite a while since I pranked the Orange Reapers.”

Looking back, I hadn’t played pranks since I set fire to the Red Reaper Doll Outfit.

Besides, the Orange Reapers were sweet, so they never retaliated when I played pranks on them.

I began to devise a prank for these Orange Reapers.

Orange Reapers.

Golden Reapers’ Ice Palace.

My brilliant mind connected the two ideas, and I came up with a fun prank.

The prank was simple.

First, I would invite the Orange Reapers to break the Ice Palace together, then sneak away to tell the Golden Reapers.

Hehe.

With a joyful smile, I started calling the Orange Reapers together.

*

The situation was desperate.

I couldn’t understand why so many Scavengers had gathered.

With just the firepower of three people, we were up against an unmanageable number of enemies.

“What on earth are they after?”

The cargo we were transporting?

This kind of ambush for a bit of medical supplies and ammunition didn’t make sense.

No matter how much Cheong racked her brain, she could not comprehend the current situation.

Cheong pulled out a small pistol and attempted to fight back desperately, but aiming was difficult due to the darkness and rain.

Even if she hit, it would be useless against the Scavengers whose skin was replaced with object-grade steel.

“Too many!”

A woman holding a long rifle shouted in despair.

She took out a few enemies with her accurate shooting, but the number of Scavengers weaving through the alleys seemed endless.

A man with four huge arms, handling two shields and two heavy weapons, was already injured.

One of his arms had been pierced, hanging limply.

And due to that injured arm, he had lost one of his guns.

He fought back with all his might, but he couldn’t shoot accurately through the darkness and rain.

At that moment, a bright flame began to cut through the thick darkness, leaving a long trail behind it.

With a sharp whistle sound, a homemade grenade flew toward the group.

“Dammit! Watch out!”

The man’s desperate scream echoed.

After suppressing with covering fire, the grenade was launched.

There was no way to dodge it.

In an instant, the man and woman dove to protect Cheong, and a powerful explosion shook the ground.

As the girl lost consciousness for a moment, she slowly began to regain her senses amidst the hazy dust.

“I’m dizzy.”

“I feel like I might vomit.”

Though dizzy and nauseous, Cheong’s condition was relatively fine.

Ugh.

The man who looked to have received fatal injuries was violently coughing up blood.

The woman was either unconscious or dead, lying still with her eyes closed as she covered Cheong with her body.

Step. Step.

The sounds of Scavengers’ footsteps grew closer.

Hearing those careless footsteps, Cheong gritted her teeth.

Cheong grabbed a spare shotgun from the man’s backpack and began to aim toward the sounds.

“It’s heavy.”

I probably wouldn’t be able to shoot it properly.

Without object-grade strength, I couldn’t even lift it well and wouldn’t be able to control the recoil.

Surely, the moment I tried to shoot, my shoulder would shatter, and I would drop the gun.

But I couldn’t give up.

I had to at least make a final stand.

“Huuh.”

Cheong slowly exhaled and held onto the gun tightly.

As the dust gradually cleared, she spotted something strange in the corner of her vision—a strange white fur ball.

Upon seeing the cloud-like white fur ball, she felt an inexplicable calmness wash over her as she pulled the trigger.

Bang!

With a sound like an explosion, the shotgun flew into the air.

Unfortunately, Cheong’s shoulder was unscathed.

That was proof that she hadn’t properly braced herself, and it meant that the crucial first shot had likely missed.

But from that moment on, something unbelievable and miraculous began to unfold.

The scattered pellets pierced the vital points of the Scavengers with uncanny precision.

It was simply magic!

What’s more, wondrous events kept occurring after that.

The shotgun that the girl had dropped due to the impact suddenly fired again and flew through the air.

And that fired shot again inflicted critical damage on the Scavengers.

It felt like an unlikely occurrence, but when it happened consecutively, it created an unsettling feeling.

An absurd spectacle unfolded before Cheong’s eyes.

In sheer astonishment, she could only watch as the shotgun flew through the air, taking down all the Scavengers.