The Age of Chaos
Jeyca had about 210,000 points to her name.
Yoo Sung-jun added another 790,000 on top of that.
He was lending her the points for treatment.
The world was about to change into one where points were directly tied to life and death.
Knowing that better than anyone, Jeyca kept bowing over and over with tears in her eyes.
She kept insisting that she’d repay him by risking her life to help him.
It was so burdensome that even stopping her became a struggle.
"Loki. How long will it take for Jeyca to finish treatment?"
Yoo Sung-jun asked, watching her lying inside the body reinforcement capsule.
Her terminal illness couldn’t be cured by simply bathing her in the light used for bodily regeneration.
That was why she had to go into a capsule like this, and right now Jeyca was under sleep gas and unconscious.
It should take roughly seven days. We have to thoroughly erase and repair all the hundreds of millions of neurons in her brain, then reinject every memory we backed up.
It sounded complicated just listening to it.
Yoo Sung-jun waved a hand as if he understood more or less, then looked at Jeyca submerged in the treatment fluid.
Watching her like this made him remember something he’d been wondering about.
"In foreign countries, there are honorifics for people, sure, but there isn’t really a culture of calling an older non-family member 'older brother' or 'oppa.' So why does the system translate what Jeyca or Cruiser says as 'hyung-nim' or 'oppa'?"
It’s simple. It reflects the way they treat Yoo Sung-jun-nim. If there’s reverence, admiration, or respect in it, then titles like older brother or oppa are attached.
"Is the same true for honorific speech?"
Yes. The same principle applies.
So the conclusion was that it all depended on how that person regarded Yoo Sung-jun.
He got it. He could now somewhat sense how Jeyca saw him.
That realization left him oddly pleased.
Ah. One thing I forgot to mention: when it comes to attraction toward the opposite sex, to put it bluntly, love can get translated with those kinds of titles too.
"Was that explanation really necessary?"
๑❤‿❤๑
Seeing that brazen expression on the thing made him start thinking differently about Jeyca.
No way... could it be? Really?
Her upturned nose, her pale skin set off by red lips.
Her features weren’t plain at all; they were striking, vivid, impossible to ignore.
At this rate, he’d end up misunderstanding things.
Yoo Sung-jun didn’t want to get ahead of himself and make a fool of himself.
I’ll ask her when the mood’s right and the opportunity’s there.
For now, though, he needed to think about the question Jeyca had asked and the “answer” the Higher Being had given.
The whole world turned upside down.
Emergency broadcasts erupted everywhere, and videos of desperate battles between Infectors and users piled up, giving undeniable proof that it was all real.
Even the military had been deployed to prevent civilians from running wild.
In a reality where people could no longer deny what they were seeing, response and control became a matter of survival.
The age of chaos had arrived.
Public transportation ground to a halt, and with only the bare minimum of factories still operating, prices soared into the stratosphere.
The government came down hard in an effort to stabilize the market, but it was pointless.
Panicked citizens wanted to gather up whatever money they had left, however much they could scrape together, and spend it enjoying life before the disaster.
- Let go! Let go, you bastard!
- Shut the fuck up, bitch! If you don’t want your guts ripped out and die, hand over everything you’ve got. Spit out all that shit hanging off your body too, you hear me?
In the video, the man violently subdued the woman, then tore at her earlobe with his teeth.
Flesh came away with the earring.
What would come next was obvious at a glance.
Choi Hyun-seok let out a sigh, shut off the video, and drummed his fingers on the desk as he looked at the two people seated across from him.
"As you can see, public order is exactly as expected. People who think it’s already over are running amok in every direction. Korea has it easy compared to some places. In other countries, civilians are doing far worse."
Choi Hyun-seok’s gaze rested on one of them.
Im Tae-oh, one of Choi Hyun-seok’s close aides, had run himself ragged preparing for this day, and now he met that look and began to speak with rehearsed confidence.
"Like you said, Hyun-seok, we focused on recruiting and protecting talent for the national reconstruction project. We also accepted tutorial applicants in case of infection."
"What was the survival rate?"
"Fortunately, most of them work in the field, so they had strong foundations already. Twelve percent. That’s pretty high. We pulled in 817 people that way."
Capable, young talent.
Mostly men and women in their twenties and thirties, he had recruited people with expertise ranging from advanced technology to biology and biochemistry.
He had convinced them by promising safety and spread the information ahead of time.
That was the result he had managed to secure.
Choi Hyun-seok smiled faintly at Im’s report.
"You’ve done well. This should be enough to keep the bunker maintained without issue. Ah, and the temporary housing at Gimpo Airport is being set up properly too, I assume?"
"Of course. We’ve spread military tents all over the runway. Hahaha!"
Im Tae-oh burst out with an exaggerated laugh.
Watching him, Yoo Sung-jun frowned.
Why exactly did they call me here?
He couldn’t wait until Jeyca finished treatment.
So, for this raid to obtain the Death Spoiler hormone sac, he had arranged for a helper to stand in for her.
That was why he’d met Choi Hyun-seok.
He hadn’t dreamed he’d end up meeting Im Tae-oh too.
Yoo Sung-jun could tell what kind of person Im Tae-oh was at a glance.
That exaggerated way of speaking, those sparkling eyes fixed on him.
He’s ambitious. And Choi Hyun-seok knows exactly how to control and wield that kind of ambition.
So that was where experience leading a massive clan got you.
Choi Hyun-seok, who had long since grown used to handling people, wrapped up his conversation with Im Tae-oh.
"Then, since you’re the chief committee chairman for the national reconstruction project, I hope you’ll keep working hard. We’ll provide additional incentives depending on the results."
"Hah, is there any question? If it’s coming from you, Hyun-seok, I’d have to run until the blisters on my feet burst, even without incentives."
Incentives were absolutely necessary.
His feet probably wouldn’t blister at all, let alone burst.
That was what it looked like to Yoo Sung-jun, anyway, and he wondered how Choi Hyun-seok saw it.
"Then please send the report materials by email separately. I have something to discuss with this gentleman here, so would you mind giving us a moment?"
"If it’s a request from you, Hyun-seok, then of course. By the way, your name is...?"
Im Tae-oh’s attention shifted to Yoo Sung-jun once more.
Since Choi Hyun-seok had called him over personally, had he assumed Yoo Sung-jun was a user with some kind of position, or maybe the son of a conglomerate chairman?
"Ah, that was rude of me. Here’s my business card."
"Yes... my name is Yoo Sung-jun. I’m friends with this one."
"I see. I’m Im Tae-oh, chief chairman leading the national reconstruction effort."
He exchanged a dry greeting with him.
He probably thought he was doing a good job of keeping his expression under control, but everything showed.
His senses, sharpened by having crossed into the realm of Transcendence, caught the minute stiffness in his facial muscles and read the contempt in it plainly.
No need to get too close to him.
Anyway, anything he needed from the bunker could be taken care of through Choi Hyun-seok.
"So, why did you want to see me with that guy?"
Yoo Sung-jun treated Choi Hyun-seok casually once Im Tae-oh was gone.
Choi Hyun-seok kept smiling and shrugged.
"You said it yourself. Since we’re friends, the deal should be even more thorough."
At his words, he realized he’d slipped.
So that was how he was going to get him back.
So this is why you have to think twice before messing with people.
Just as he was frowning, Choi Hyun-seok let out a grin.
"We’re both busy men. The request is simple. What is your little brother doing right now?"
"Are you trying to drag Sung-hwan into this too? Have you lost your mind?"
"Oh, so I spend all that time traveling the world with Jack Kalt for the sake of the bunker that’ll become your sanctuary, and you curse at me? That’s hurtful. Do you know how awkward things were with Jack Kalt?"
At the memory, he shivered.
Yoo Sung-jun rolled a pen between his fingers and answered indifferently.
"So what? Did I ask you to do that? You just hopped aboard something I wanted for your own safety."
"Wow, you really don’t hold back, do you."
"I’m only saying it because we’re close. Because we’re close."
As he emphasized the last words with an odd little smile, Choi Hyun-seok let out a sigh.
He seemed to have already parsed the meaning behind them and finished his calculations.
"Fine. Arguing with you would only hurt me. I heard from Jack Kalt. You’re planning to subjugate Kalaqua’s foothold, right?"
"Yeah. Jeyca’s in treatment because of her terminal illness."
"So that’s why you asked for a helper..."
He stroked his chin as he spoke, and Yoo Sung-jun asked bluntly, "Just spit it out. What do you want? You were even trying to drag my brother into it."
"I’ve put together a program to strengthen Blood Rain Clan’s combat power, and I need the help of you two brothers."
"What kind of help?"
"An invitation event for Meteor and a mysterious veteran sniper to improve combat power and shooting skill."
"Is that what you’re calling the program? That’s obnoxiously long and cheap-sounding."
He went on, watching the veins bulge on Choi Hyun-seok’s forehead.
"But even if we agreed to help, wouldn’t nothing really change?"
This wasn’t sarcasm; it was simply the truth.
Yoo Sung-jun had only learned mixed martial arts, kendo, and exercise methods to a fairly decent amateur level.
His greatsword technique had been honed through his enhanced bodily control and countless real battles with Infectors.
Sung-hwan’s always been naturally good at shooting to begin with.
In other words, there was nothing to instruct and nothing to criticize.
So while resting both hands behind his head, Choi Hyun-seok answered for him.
"It’s fine. What the two of you will be doing isn’t reviewing and correcting the clan members’ skills."
"Then?"
"You’ll be the ones they face. Sung-hwan can do target shooting. You can spar. How about it?"
"If that’s all, then sure..."
It was a decent deal.
He didn’t have to demand hundreds of thousands of points, and all he had to do was take a little bodily strain.
Besides, this would allow Choi Hyun-seok and Yoo Sung-jun to reap two more benefits.
The clan members who hadn’t seen Meteor’s strength at the banquet hall, along with the technicians newly brought in under Im Tae-oh’s plan, would get to witness at least a fragment of Meteor’s power.
That should give them a sense of security.
After all, they’d become members of the bunker protected by the world’s number one ranking.
That would give them a strong sense of belonging, and that sense of belonging would raise their efficiency at work.
It would also cut down on troublesome situations.
There would be fewer people questioning the name Meteor, starting trouble for no reason, or overestimating themselves enough to come at him.
His little brother should be more than capable of creating that result too.
"You’ll do it, right?"
The answer had already been decided.
Since it had come to this, he might as well use the sparring as an excuse to crush them thoroughly.
After thinking it through, Yoo Sung-jun interlaced his fingers and stretched both hands out.
"Ugh. Fine. I’ll do it. It sounds like a better deal than I expected."
"I knew you’d say that."
The deal was sealed.
I asked the Higher Being what the greatest threat our party would face in the near future was.
What did it say?
It said that in fifteen days, a killer group with red diamond tattoos would attack the bunker.
Then wouldn’t the solution just be to not go to the bunker?
No, apparently we’ll have to go no matter what, so we need to prepare thoroughly. It said they’re a group that’s made a living off dealing with people.
And why are you telling me this only now...?
I’m sorry. I forgot at the time.
That was the question Jeyca had asked the Higher Being, and the answer she’d received.
Because she had asked what the threat was, she hadn’t gotten a way to deal with it.
"Next."
"Ugh...! T-thank you."
A burly man bowed deeply and stepped back.
Was that the forty-second one now?
The astonishing result was hard to believe, and the surrounding crowd was brimming with excitement and greed.
Stunned gazes poured toward Sung-jun.
The clan members’ sparring had been so easy and overwhelming that he could keep thinking while he fought.
A red diamond tattoo. Do we not know where it’s tattooed?
If he wanted exact information on the killer group, he’d need to ask follow-up questions.
What a hassle. Still, it was a relief the Higher Being had at least revealed the key identifying feature.
Since I’m here at the bunker anyway, I should work out countermeasures with Choi Hyun-seok. Might as well get the helper introduction out of the way too.
"Good afternoon!"
His thoughts were interrupted.
It was because of the woman who had appeared in front of him and greeted him loudly.
Even with his brow furrowed, she couldn’t see it.
He was wearing his visor with the tint turned up as dark as it could go.
"I heard this would be hand-to-hand combat without the Omega Suit. To think I’d get the chance to face the legendary Meteor’s skills myself. I signed up without a second thought!"
She was an upbeat woman.
The way she was grinning while giving a clumsy salute was ridiculous.
Pathetic. Almost arrogant.
And more than anything else—
She talks too much.
Was she from the same mold as Yoon Choi?
Instinctively, he disliked people like that.
Too loud, too chatty.
"Introduce yourself."
"Yes, the words 'introduce yourself' suddenly reminded me of what I went through in LA. Back then, I was young and sickly. The place was far too harsh for someone like me to survive in, so I never let up on my training, and after I encountered Another Earth my life turned one hundred and eighty degrees..."
"Keep it short and get to the point."
He was irritated enough that a vein seemed about to pop beneath his eye.
At the low, growling edge in Yoo Sung-jun’s voice, the woman drew in a breath.
Only for a moment, though. Then she broke into a bright smile and shouted, "Yes! I’m Attacker Seo Eun-sil, and I came here prepared to give my life to Blood Clan! My nickname is!"
She licked her red lips with the tip of her tongue as she finished.
"Rose! Please take care of me in our sparring match! Heheh."