Chapter 104
Yuki explained Krypta’s suggestion to her teammates. The Honor Knights would charge like a spearhead, and the human party would dispose of the remnants.
“I get it, but why split up the team?” Yuri asked.
Yuki responded, “One team will deal with defeating the remnants like Krypta suggested, while the other team searches for the Elixir.”
Seong-Hwi looked around at his teammates and said, “Look, Commander. It’s a solid plan, but who would want to give up one billion Coins to clean up after the undead’s mess?”
“He’s right. I want to enter the Elixir search team,” Khanh said.
“Me too,” Gardner agreed.
Most of the others likely felt the same way. Although they received fifty million Coins from Kabuka as an advance, they were not all guaranteed a billion Coins. Logically speaking, since it was unlikely for there to be multiple Elixirs in this dungeon, only one person in the party would receive the one billion. In other words, even the teammates needed to compete against each other.
This is what Kabuka wants. Incite competition within the team to raise search effectiveness, Seong-Hwi thought.
“I will enter the remnant disposal team. I’m the only one in this party who hasn’t received Sir Kabuka’s quest,” Leo said.
“No need. Everyone except for me will be in the Elixir search team,” Yuki responded.
“What? You’ll handle the remnant disposal alone?” Enrique asked. “You may be a High Ranker, but that’s far too dangerous. This is an S-rank dungeon.”
Yuki smiled and remarked, “Thank you for your concern, but he didn’t add me to the ten-man party because I was bored. It’s because I’m the perfect person for the job.”
She summoned her D Weapon for the first time in front of her teammates. Around a hundred white mannequins, which one could see in any department store on Earth, appeared behind her.
Their faces were blank because they had no eyes or lips, but their gender was clear from their physique. Each mannequin was equipped with either weapons or armor, and the clacking of joints sounded with every movement.
[Mannequin Army (Destiny Weapon)
Rank: S(2)
Description: An army of mannequins created from living beings. Each mannequin can use one random skill they had possessed in life.
Unique Skills: (6)]
This D Weapon was the primary reason Yuki managed to become the ninth High Ranker. One could imagine its power from its rank, which had been raised to S.
“Urgh... That’s disgusting.”
“An external manipulation D Weapon, huh?”
“Her ability isn’t as cute as her alias, Puppeteer.”
The team members winced at the grotesque and eerie feeling the white mannequin army gave off. It was only natural because Yuki’s mannequins were living mannequins, created from real people.
“Is this what she meant by turning us into mannequins?” Yuri said as he shook his head, remembering Yuki’s warning.
Seong-Hwi examined Yuki’s D Weapon with great interest. This was his first time seeing it because she had died in his past life before he was active as a Ranker.
Anyone can see it belongs to the external manipulation category. A hundred, huh? Is this all she has? he wondered.
Just then, Yuki remarked, “As you mentioned, I have no interest in the one billion Coins. What I want is for one of you, whoever it is, to find the Elixir.”
Her situation was different from the other team members. There was also another person who had a different goal in mind, but for a different reason; it was Seong-Hwi.
Good. Everything’s going as I want it to, he said inwardly.
His objective was to steal the Elixir. His plan, which he had thought of from Kabuka’s mansion, was proceeding smoothly. It would become even easier with Yuki’s absence since she was the only person he was wary of. Just then, his plan became even better with Yuri’s question.
“Hmmm... Then, who will be the commander of the Elixir search team?” Yuri asked.
Yuki answered immediately, “Cheon Seong-Hwi will be the commander of the search team.”
“What?! That bastard? I won’t accept it!” Nakivarro shouted as he pointed his machete at Seong-Hwi. He looked around at his teammates and said, “How could we possibly trust that conflict maker to be our commander? What are you all doing? Are you going to accept this?!”
However, Frank raised his hand and said, “I’m for it. He’s the best fit.”
“Agreed,” Enrique added.
“You two must be insane!” Nakivarro yelled as he turned to Gardner and Khanh, hoping they would take his side.
However, they simply shrugged or nodded.
“I also think Cheon Seong-Hwi... would be best as the commander. He’s the versatile wing... and he has the widest field of view...” Sonya also agreed.
Yuri scratched the back of his head and said uninterestedly, “I don’t care who it is. He might have a shitty personality, but it’s okay as long as he has the skills to make up for it.”
“Son of a—” Nakivarro turned to Leo as a last resort. “Le-Yeyo! You’ve taken a fair share of his shit, too! Don’t tell me you’re willing to follow that motherfucker’s orders!”
“I am,” Leo replied.
“What?”
“One’s ability as a commander has nothing to do with their nature. I don’t like him, but... I don’t see anyone who’s a better fit for the role.”
Seong-Hwi waved at Leo, but he turned away.
“Dammit!” Nakivarro became even more enraged at Seong-Hwi’s nonchalant behavior but was powerless before the majority agreement.
“Don’t worry. I’m confident I can equally relay orders even to those who despise me,” Seong-Hwi remarked.
What is this jackpot? he thought as he stared at Yuki.
She looked grotesque surrounded by a mannequin army, but looked different in his eyes.
Is she an angel?
***
The floor of the Weishaupt Research Institute’s gymnasium was drenched with blood after the fierce battle. Some of the tiles suddenly opened, revealing a drainage. The pools of blood flowed somewhere through the drainage, and a drop of Seong-Hwi’s blood was included in that enormous mixture.
***
Heavy footsteps filled a giant hall.
“Grrrk!”
“Gigigik!”
Hundreds of thousands of red eyes in the darkness glared at the source of the footsteps, but the heavy footsteps continued forward without any sign of intimidation.
The footsteps were from Lee Kang-Il, the Black Tortoise, one of the Four Symbols representing the north, and Lee Kang-San’s D Weapon. Its giant, dark green shell was as large as a lake, and its white snake head for a tail was confidently raised.
An Asian man stood on Kang-Il’s shell, with dual swords at his waist. He was the Tortoise Emperor, Lee Kang-San, first in the human ranking and ninety-third in the world ranking.
However, there was someone else on top of Kang-Il’s shell. It was a green goblin, hugging his knees and trembling as if he were in the middle of a storm.
“K-kerek! I-I’ll kill you, Cheon Seong-Hwi! H-how dare he s-sell me? Urgh... I-I’m scared...”
The goblin expressing fear throughout his entire body was Mitasra, Clan Trophy’s former head of the collection unit.
Kang-Il stopped, and Kang-San looked forward and said, “It’s been a while, Gula.”
A voice sounded from a large hill. No, if one took a closer look, they would see that it was a mountain of corpses.
“Ahhh! It sure has. It’s been three years, hasn't it? I believe it was before you got into the world ranking.”
A bored-looking woman was sitting with one leg over the other at the top of the mountain of rotting corpses, the only part of the darkness where the sun hit. The extremely beautiful woman had grey skin, black hair, and black eyes.
She was Gula, the leader of Cadaver, one of the pillars of the massive faction Necrophilia, one of the largest clans in the Mirror World. She was also a World Ranker—sixty-sixth, to be more exact.
Just then, the white snake on the Black Tortoise’s tail approached Kang-San as it flicked its tongue. Kang-San got on the white snake’s head, and it slowly went up so that he would be at eye level with Gula.
“Graaah!”
“Greeeh!”
“Gyaaak!”
Hideous, enraged screams from the ghouls of Clan Cadaver endlessly echoed throughout the space. They were dissatisfied that a mere human had put himself at the same height as their master.
Gula giggled, “Ahaha! You never fail to satisfy me. You have guts. I can’t believe you’re a human.”
“I’m the face of humanity, after all. I can’t afford to let myself be intimidated by anyone.”
“Don’t be like that, my beloved. Why don’t you join Cadaver? You can barely be called a human. You’re already a different race entirely.” Gula licked her lips and continued, “People called me a genius when I became a demon and entered the world ranking in just ten years.”
Gula used to be an undead but later became a demon through Curiositas. She was the second undead demon, after Doom, to become a World Ranker.
“It took me over twenty years to become first in the undead ranking, but you...” Gula’s beautiful eye smiled. “You started as a lowly human and became a World Ranker in just ten years. If I’m a genius, then I suppose you’re a super genius!”
“I’m flattered,” Kang-San responded.
“Cadaver isn’t a bad choice for you. It will serve as a foothold for you to reach even greater heights,” Gula offered.
Kang-San shook his head. “I am the first son of humanity. My decisions are humanity’s decisions. You and I are in different positions.” He smiled and continued, “My brothers and sisters are still too young, so they need my protection.”
“Ahhh! As I thought, whenever I look at you... I grow hungry!” Gula blushed as she grabbed a rotten arm from the mountain of corpses and started eating it. She then remarked teasingly, “I’ve been stressed beyond your imagination lately because of that lizard Biphatogenes, but I’m in a much better mood now that I’ve met you.”
Her eyes momentarily flashed, and she continued, “Come to think of it... You were about to wage war against Humilitas, which is under my protection. Ahhh! Hearing about that broke my heart.”
Kang-San smirked and replied, “Those damn goblins made a mess of the human capital. Did you expect me to do nothing?”
“You could have, for my sake.”
“In your dreams.”
“What a cold-hearted man. If you keep treating me so coldly... I might get sulky, okay?” Gula said as she playfully narrowed her eyes.
However, Kang-San knew what she meant by that.
How terrifying, he said inwardly.
He chuckled and pointed behind him, saying, “That’s why I brought you a gift, so cheer up.”
“A gift? Oh! It must be that thing, right?”
“K-kerek!” Mitasra violently flinched once Gula stared at him.
“Humilitas... I made contact with them to expand our forces, but I regret ever doing it because they turned out to be a bunch of idiots. I can’t believe they used the quies os so lightly,” Gula mumbled in disappointment.
The World Law seemed titular, but it was effective in seizing justification at crucial moments. The goblins were caught using quies os, an item prohibited by the World Law, and even ended up leaving a witness.
“That aside, I’m curious, my beloved. Why did you bring him to me instead of Biphatogenes?” Gula asked.
Mitasra could become the most important key to the war between Cadaver and Nivalis. If Kang-San had taken Mitasra to Biphatogenes, Nivalis would have gained undeniable justification to continue the war.
“Because covering up a sin is much easier than proving it,” Kang-San answered.
Thanks to the goblin he obtained by chance, he earned the right to choose between Biphatogenes and Gula. If he had given Mitasra to Biphatogenes, a trial would have been held through the race conference, Sēmen. The Sēmen was no different from an arena of various races fighting for rights. It would take far too long to settle the matter if left to them.
On the other hand, handing Mitasra to Gula was clean and simple. Mitasra would be killed, and Kang-San would earn Gula’s favor.
Kang-San added some lip service. “Not only that, but Biphatogenes is a dragon. They are a prideful bunch who know nothing of gratitude, even to those who help them. But you’re different, Gula. You started as an inferior race and climbed up to this point, just like me. You’re a much better company than a dragon.”
“Aha! Ahahahahahahahaha!” Gula laughed without restraint, unable to hold her joy. “Ahaha! I see, I see. You’re in love with me, huh?”
“Hm? No, I didn’t say that.”
Gula ignored Kang-San and continued, “Very well. I accept your love proposal.”
She raised her hand and pointed at Mitasra.
Mitasra sensed danger and quickly said, “I-if you let me live, I will give you three hundred million—”
He exploded like fireworks before he could even finish his sentence, becoming one of the countless corpses making up the mountain. He was about to offer Gula the three hundred million Coins, which were of priceless value to him, but one’s values were relative.
The two absolute beings continued their conversation.
“I’m so happy, my beloved. What is the date today? I must sear it into my memory!”
“I’m telling you... It’s not like that.”
***
Heavy footsteps sounded from the giant cave resembling a demon’s mouth. Kang-San was on Kang-Il’s back, leaving the cave after his conversation with Gula ended.
“Huuu...” he sighed deeply, his body frozen and his back drenched with sweat.
This was Clan Cadaver’s base, located in the northern region of the fifth zone. Just coming here required immense resolve.
Thankfully, everything turned out well, Kang-San thought.
He turned his head to the southeast, in the direction of Yeouido, where his close friend Remy Martin was likely carrying out the reclamation operation.
Lambs, huh? I wonder if it will really happen.
He recalled what Remy had told him when he handed him Mitasra—about the rest of humanity on Earth being Lost as one group once they reclaimed a human city in the fourth zone.
If that prophecy is true, we need as many allies as possible.
It was also why Kang-San settled on an agreement with Gula as quickly as possible.
“Cheon Seong-Hwi, huh? I don’t know where in the world he came from, but I’d love to meet him.”
Kang-San’s voice was muffled under Kang-Il’s deafening footsteps.