Chapter 38
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: The World's Secret (4)
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[We have succeeded in analyzing their genes. We have uncovered the entire process of their infectious attack, so at the very least, their attacks will no longer work on us.]
Through the war, the Legion had simultaneously analyzed these tiny bacteria.
To say the analysis was complete meant, quite literally, that they had figured everything out.
As long as they knew all the opponent's moves, their attacks would no longer be effective.
[Proliferating Infectious Ruin Fungus: 6N1523]
[As a result of this battle, the Legion has acquired new cellular-level strategies and tactics. A toxin capable of attacking and infecting other cells.]
"Are you thinking of bacterial warfare? Like... zombies."
"Interesting. But inefficient. Of course, it can always be used as a trump card."
Kang Do-yeon asked cautiously, but the Legion, having already completed its calculations, did not deem the infection ability to be particularly useful.
The tactic of infecting and consuming an opponent's cells to multiply one's own numbers was certainly powerful.
[However, as cellular-level manipulation increases, so does the burden on the Hive Mind. Our analysis shows that while they certainly form a collective, no external connection can be felt. That is why such a method works for them.]
"So they're independent, small-scale hives."
Kang Do-yeon placed a hand on her chest.
The Legion's Hive Mind was special.
It could maintain its connection even over great distances, without any special means.
Even the Legion didn't know the detailed principle behind it, but they had a basis for speculation.
The String, a spiritual tether that transcended the world's walls to connect Players and Units.
The Legion's Hive Mind was similar to that.
That was why it had been damaged by the guardian spirit's spiritual attack.
"Then what about the Execution Ticket? We are many and one. If one of us is hit by an Execution Ticket, don't we all die at once?!"
"If the Execution Ticket severs the connection to the targeted individual, there is ultimately no harm to the Legion."
Being many and one was ultimately based on their connection to each other.
If the connection was broken, they became separate entities.
And the Legion's Hive Mind also had a spiritual aspect.
The Legion judged that if an Execution Ticket was used, the target's life would be extinguished and its connection would disappear first, so there would be no problem for the other individuals.
Kang Do-yeon, who had flinched at the thought of the Execution Ticket—a system reward that killed enemies without question—let out a sigh of relief.
"I have modified the bodies of the Legion soldiers, upgrading them to be immune to their attacks."
"Then..."
"Lead the Legion soldiers and continue to conquer the upper floors."
The Legion issued another command to Kang Do-yeon.
It was something she had been doing as a matter of course until now.
Now that they had learned about the enemy and even prepared countermeasures, there was no reason to hesitate.
"Alright."
Kang Do-yeon didn't really have a choice.
As soon as she finished replenishing her nutrients, she had to head straight back up.
"But, why aren't you telling my brother?"
Just before leaving, she posed a question to the Legion.
When Shin-woo had been watching, she had been ordered not to let on, so she couldn't even tell him that the Legion had learned to speak.
"I am incomplete."
The Legion nodded as if it were obvious.
"I cannot let him see me like this."
"...What in the world do you think my brother is? He's just an ordinary... Ugh."
"Shut. Up."
Kang Do-yeon's mouth snapped shut on its own.
In an instant, the atmosphere turned hostile.
The entire Legion stirred violently.
"Not to me. You don't know. If you did, that cute little brain of yours would burn to a crisp."
"Ugh..."
The eyeholes of the mask that had approached her flashed with a red light.
Kang Do-yeon broke out in a cold sweat internally.
The Legion's still-young ego was growing in its own way based on the human knowledge she had provided, but contrary to her expectations, she had no room to intervene in that growth.
'It'll be... okay, right...?'
In the end, she turned away without another word.
As a result, she had no idea what values and beliefs formed the basis of the Legion's thoughts and actions.
The Legion, which had become surprisingly aggressive since establishing its ego, had her under its complete control.
"Ah."
"This is."
But in that moment.
Everyone could feel it.
A powerful emotional pulse transmitted through the String.
It was what the being on the other end of this connection was feeling.
[He has made his decision and is finally making his move. You ask if there is a way to watch? There is not. If you wish to know, find a way yourself.]
But there was no way to know more.
Only the voice they always heard echoed in the Legion's mind.
*
Moonlight Fury.
Under the moonlight, one could gain the power of a mighty wolf.
And as it happened, it was a night with a brilliant full moon.
"You're back, Brother."
"Yeah. Nothing much to report today either. Hey, didn't you say that Cha Ji-yeon woman is definitely a Unit? Shouldn't we do something about her first?"
"B-but, she's a Hunter, estimated to be S-rank, right?"
Two men were talking in a building on the outskirts of the city, which served as their hideout.
Like their other comrades, both men were ordinary members of society with their own day jobs.
But a short while ago, their fates had changed drastically.
For one, they had gained power.
In chaotic times like these, having some strength of your own was a significant advantage.
"That's why we need to keep increasing our numbers for now."
"Those guys in the weird suits must be Units too, right? It looks like the opposition is finally starting to move."
And they had also gained knowledge.
While other ordinary people were trembling in fear, talking of the apocalypse and the end of days.
They knew very well what was happening to the world right now.
They were the ones involved, after all.
That was why they were moving so secretly, their senses on high alert to the changes in the world.
"...Sniff."
The man, who had been sitting idly and reaching for a cup of ramen, suddenly sniffed the air.
His colleague next to him did the same.
"Brother? This..."
"The smell of a dog. Get down!"
In that instant, his eyes shot open, and he threw himself to the floor, rolling away.
His colleague beside him did the same.
The glass shattered with a crash as a massive creature with shimmering silver fur burst through the window.
"A wolf!"
He scrambled to his feet in terror.
A giant wolf, its back hunched, stood on two legs, bared its teeth, and growled.
A sudden battle erupted.
They had the strength to resist.
And that strength grew stronger at night.
"You bastard...!"
He kicked off the ground, scales beginning to sprout on his body and his canines elongating, as he charged at the wolf.
But the wolf was hiding something.
Something that glinted black, like obsidian.
"Huh?"
It swung, and his body was deeply slashed, spraying blood.
The wolf immediately followed up, sending the stunned man flying into a wall.
"Hah..."
The blood that had been boiling within me cooled down.
They had looked like ordinary people, but on the inside, they were not.
I looked at the sword in my hand.
It was the first offering the Legion had given me.
Blood dripped from it.
This had been a gamble, surprisingly.
I had charged in, relying solely on the element of surprise, without knowing their skills or my own.
And what if a Player had seen me and used an Execution Ticket?
It wasn't a completely baseless decision, though.
Their movements had been too relaxed, so the probability of a Player watching was low.
Still, a gamble was a gamble.
[That was not rational. A choice the Legion would not have made.]
"What does that matter? The only thing that matters now is that I succeeded."
I quickly hid myself before the transformation wore off.
I went to where I had left my clothes, dressed quickly, and picked up my phone.
It was a shame I couldn't take a picture of their bodies.
But exposing myself, even for a moment, didn't seem like a wise decision.
They were monsters too, after all.
They would cover up the bodies themselves before they were leaked to the public.
"Were they always monsters, or did they become monsters after turning into Units? The first option is kind of horrifying."
[The world holds many secrets. Do not assume your common sense is the absolute truth.]
"...This is insane."
I had thought we were all in the same category of "Earthling," but that might not be the case.
They were monsters even without the app?
Or maybe, they were people like me, but we had something in common that grouped us together.
As always, it didn't give me a clear answer.
[Look at the screen. The Legion, having finished its analysis, is advancing with unstoppable momentum.]
"There are so many... Did we really wake up the ones that were sleeping?"
On the way home after the deed.
I had told my mother, who was resting at home after quitting her job due to the shock of my sister's effective death, that I was just meeting a friend. Of course, even at this moment, I was looking at my phone.
Just as I had fought a battle, the Legion was fighting one too.
Their opponents were the infected of the Ruin Fungus, gathering with bizarre shrieks.
But the Legion soldiers had already gained immunity to them.
With Kang Do-yeon at the forefront, the Legion soldiers were slaughtering the infected indiscriminately.
[The combat effectiveness of the Ruin Fungus infected plummeted the moment they lost their ability to infect. Furthermore, they are not magically animated corpses but living creatures. In other words, food. They can be digested and converted into energy.]
As if communicating among themselves, they let out wild shrieks, and more of them poured down from the upper floors, but our numbers were just as formidable.
[They may have once been the rulers who drove a species to ruin, but nothing lasts forever.]
"Doesn't seem like it was just one species."
I smiled bitterly as I watched the screen.
The passage vibrated, and the narrow entrance from which the infected were pouring out was smashed open as something dragged its massive body out.
Its overall appearance resembled a bull.
Except it was infected by the Ruin Fungus, swollen and tattered in places, which made it rather grotesque.
"It's huge."
Its size was immense.
Comparing it to the 170cm-tall Kang Do-yeon made the scale immediately clear.
It looked to be at least the size of a dump truck.