Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: How to Survive in Fusion Punk
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Jin arrived in Downtown late in the evening.
The city's landscape greeted him as always.
Neon signs flickering emptily like wilting flowers, narrow alleyways filled with shadows.
Graffiti embodying rage against the world, overlaid with massive phallic doodles.
Vandalism mocking vandalism.
The eyes of passersby ignoring those filthy walls held a quiet loneliness.
The streetlights illuminating them were coldly garish.
The red sunset they gazed up at in longing for warmth brought solitude instead of comfort, reviving barely buried memories.
The people passing each other indifferently didn't know why.
Perhaps they never would, forever.
To them, this narrow strip of sky was just the ceiling of the world they'd shared since birth.
Simply that.
Only an outsider with no roots in this land sat by the window of an old motel, watching the scenery sink into darkness.
Then, when night fully settled over the city.
Jin quietly rose from his seat and lay down on the bed.
He forced himself to sleep, hugging a pillow.
That night, he dreamed.
In truth, it was all just a dream.
A dream that could never come true.
Jin holed up in the motel for several days.
It wasn't as if depression had suddenly gripped him.
Black waves occasionally lapped at his calves, but he was noticeably less prone to being swallowed by them.
Anyway.
To get to the point, Jin was in the middle of training.
No, not the white flower growing in a pond.
The real deal—refining through cultivation.
Training, of all things.
Was there any word less suited to Jin?
As an Irregular, his body grew stronger just by breathing (not quite), and with enough experience, he could master any skill in its most perfect form.
In short, he could skip years—no, decades—of effort others endured.
So why bother with unsolicited training?
It all stemmed from that lingering unease in his heart.
The source of that unease was the moment he felled Taha.
The blaze surging from within him.
...What the hell was that?
Jin's eyes narrowed as he stared at the ceiling.
He crossed his arms, propped up his right knee, and rested his left foot on it.
Then wiggled his ankle idly.
To an outsider, it might look like a relaxed pose, but for Jin, it was all part of his training.
After all, he was seriously contemplating an area he'd never consciously considered before.
"Hmmm..."
How had that inner hot pack, usually stone-cold, blazed up so fiercely then?
It wasn't a panic attack.
Squeezing mana to its limit?
No. He checked yesterday. It just hurt.
Then what?
What the hell was it?
"Agh."
Jin scrubbed his face with his palms.
Recalling that moment made his chest itch.
Something like a memory teasing at the edge of his mind, driving him mad.
Like a sneeze building in his nose, just a bit more stimulation and it'd burst out refreshingly—but always falling short, leaving only twitches.
But this was unavoidable.
As the chick struggles from the egg,
The egg is the bird's world.
Some great literary figure had said.
It was no different from the idea that to be born, one must destroy a world.
Shedding the shell.
The moment of breaking limits and advancing beyond.
Those who'd experienced it—second-rank beings and above—had all confronted the wall with their own hands.
Groping toward their limits,
Refusing to yield, flailing limbs with all their might,
Until cracks spread, revealing a new world beyond.
Jin had bypassed this essential rite of the strong—using his status window—skipping it entirely.
Now, the backlash manifested as this torment called anguish.
What could he do?
The 'wall' had crumbled unnoticed before he even recognized it.
So here he was, belatedly scratching his head, wandering a hazy boundary.
Thanks to that, Jin felt stifled to death lately, but that's how the world worked.
A small epiphany, that faint awakening—easy in theory, hardest in practice.
Jin finally left the motel after a full week.
It would've been nice if there'd been monumental progress in that time.
Unfortunately, no such luck.
Honestly, sitting around racking his brain didn't yield answers.
More precisely, it didn't suit his temperament.
Since when did I ever use my head anyway!
Having grandly embraced his self-objectification, Jin felt lighter.
If something was lacking, he'd crash into it headfirst—that was the plan.
Time to get back to action!
To change his mood, he went shopping for the first time in ages.
First stop: clothing store.
"Please! For the love of—buy some different clothes! Don't you feel bad for that body of yours? Huh?"
The owner's pleas fell on deaf ears.
As always: flight jacket, T-shirt, jeans.
And leather boots to complete the look.
Jin paid up.
"This is my uniform. Get used to it, you too."
After filling his stomach at a hot dog stand that only operated mornings and buying a new terminal, he unfolded a crumpled paper, saved the number scribbled on it, and suddenly recalled Albus's words.
'Please make a backup for once.'
So Jin called Poh.
One of the contacts he remembered off the top of his head, no notes needed.
The others were Kalifa and Jenny?
Jeki needed to step up...
Ah, picked up.
"Poh?"
[Jin? Is that you?]
"Yeah, it's me. Calling with a favor. Could you text me the Solo intranet link you sent before?"
[No problem. But... are you alright?]
The voice drilling into his ear sounded urgent.
Too flustered to continue, just asking if he was okay two more times.
Poh, losing his cool. Rare sight.
Jin chuckled, feeling oddly cheered.
"I'm fine, that's why I'm calling. I'll drop by soon and explain. Oh, and one more thing."
[Go ahead.]
"Somehow I ended up with about 100 million credits. Thinking of getting a place. Anything small works—can you check around? I don't know anyone on that side."
[Of course. Leave it to me.]
"You're the only one I can count on."
Jin clutched the terminal with both hands and bowed his head.
Poh continued.
[Jin, if you're okay with it, can I give this number to the branch manager?]
"Kalifa? Sure, but... what's this creepy feeling? Is she pissed?"
[It's been nearly three weeks without a word.]
"Oof. Yeah, do it."
[Got it. Talk later then.]
Call ended.
Message arrived simultaneously.
Jin clicked the URL naturally.
An app installed instantly on the terminal. Drawing from past experience, he snapped a profile pic.
"...Ugh, what the hell."
Endless messages made his head spin.
Unopened pages: a whopping 10.
30 per page meant over 300 at least.
All piled up in that time?
Jin stared blankly, thumb pressing the top message.
[It's Wonder. Awaiting reply.]
[Duplicate message (87). Block user? YES / NO]
"Huh?"
A message to Wonder personally, not R&D.
Apparently sent 87 times with the same content.
Something happen?
Jin had been meaning to contact Wonder anyway.
He tapped out a reply immediately.
[Just saw it. Sorry.]
Less than three seconds later, an incoming call via profile account.
"Hello?"
[Is that Jin?]
Jin nodded at the familiar male voice from the terminal.
"Yeah. Wonder, right?"
[...You're alive. Thank goodness.]
The relieved sigh that followed made Jin reflect.
I've been neglecting the people around me.
"Sorry. My terminal broke."
[I figured. Taking on Faust barehanded?]
"You saw it all?"
He'd checked the body cam footage himself.
Of course, he'd forgotten all about it mid-fight.
"Wonder if the recording turned out okay."
[Perfect. Shame it missed Taha's end, but I already have more than enough of the scenes I need.]
Wonder replied with a laugh in his voice.
Excitement bled through his tone.
Must be thrilled.
As Jin awkwardly scratched his head,
[Got something to brief you on. Can you talk?]
"Yeah, sure. Go ahead."
Jin nodded eagerly at Wonder's question.
The story went like this.
Mute Town was buzzing beyond belief about a certain squad.
Dubbed the 'Last Desperate Squad.'
The name alone was ominous. This squad—barely worthy of the term—charged The Beast's stronghold.
Not only crippling most of their forces but killing Taha, effectively toppling the warlord faction.
They were the prime culprits.
Questions about their identity wouldn't stop.
And here was Wonder, holding footage of their exploits in full.
Quietly biding his time until now.
[Perfect timing to release the edited version. Delay further, and interest will drop. Planning to upload at 18:00 today. Thoughts?]
"Do whatever. I don't care."
Wonder added to Jin's nonchalant reply.
[Want to preview the edit? Any requests, I'll accommodate.]
"Nah, I don't know shit about that."
Jin waved it off like Wonder was right there.
I'm no YouTuber—what's this about?
Figured he'd handle it fine.
Thus, Jin prepared to end the call.
"Greetings are super late. You saved my life. My friends' too. Seriously grateful. Won't forget this debt."
[No need. It was for all of us.]
"Still."
[That's all from me. Talk later, Jin.]
"Yeah. Bye."
With the second call done, Jin sighed.
Business talk drained him, no matter how short.
Mentally exhausting, so naturally he craved sweets.
Come to think of it, hadn't had Kalifa's cookies in ages.
Following the stream of consciousness, Jin steered the Manticore toward Anecdote.
Honestly, he was a bit worried.
Kalifa prioritized her Solos' safety above all, so three weeks radio silent meant a lecture storm.
Maybe bring a gift?
Pondering excuses, he soon spotted Anecdote's alley.
Gift next time, he decided, heading straight for the shop.
"...Jin! Jin!"
A voice forced low, grating like metal, pierced his ear.
Turning toward the sound—huh?
A face peeking from behind a streetlamp?
But not unfamiliar.
Dreadlocked black man, striking hair.
A Linker who'd handed Jin his card before.
D'Andre, was it? Yeah.
The one who'd clashed big with Kalifa.
Famous for burning through his Solos.
"Why're you hiding there?"
"Shh! Shh! Shh!"
D'Andre pressed thick fingers to his lips, gesturing frantically.
"Over here!"
What's his deal?
Jin furrowed his brow.
But couldn't ignore such desperate beckoning.
"What's going on?"
"You came."
D'Andre lit up as Jin approached behind the lamp.
His chromed front teeth gleamed in the sunlight.
"Remember me? Back then..."
"Yeah. D'Andre, right?"
"No way."
He slapped his forehead in surprise, then smirked.
"Makes this quick."
The guy glanced warily at Anecdote.
Then lowered his voice drastically.
"Jin, take one job with me. It's huge. Won't disappoint. Promise. Dead serious. Swear on my mom."
Jin couldn't help a small laugh.
"Why hang your mom on it?"
Damn, shouldn't laugh.
But how could he not be curious?