Episode 26
Episode 26
There was one thing that came to mind when thinking of cyberpunk.
It was the bike.
"Everyone, take one."
I bought three.
Each bike cost 10 million Ether, which was quite cheap, all things considered.
Especially for something that could tear along at 300 kilometers per hour.
'They might be cheap in cyberpunk...'
But here, it's different.
The difference in technological prowess was such that even a modern bike boasting top-tier specs couldn't beat a single cheap cyberpunk bike.
Anyway.
"Min-ah, wear this."
"What is this?"
"Protective gear."
"Oh my! Thank you!"
Thanks to my artificial limbs and the Sacred Body Elixir, I was confident I'd be fine even if I crashed a bike going 300 kilometers per hour.
Lee Su-ah was an assassin, so she could handle that much easily as well.
However, Han Min-ah, the mage, was different.
In a situation where she had to rely on her own body, that speed was clearly dangerous.
"What about me?"
Lee Su-ah asked from the side.
I almost reflexively blurted out, 'Why do you need one?'
But.
— 80% jealousy detected in the target's expression.
The AI gave me a heads-up.
I bought one more piece of protective gear without a word.
The protective gear was cheap anyway.
"I knew you'd say that, so I prepared one here."
Lee Su-ah looked down at the protective gear as if slightly surprised, then put it on without a word.
Her expression was stoic, but the tips of her ears were slightly red.
'Thank goodness.'
Being a crew leader is exhausting.
To think I have to manage things like this, too.
Anyway.
"Ready?"
All three of us got on the bikes.
I pulled the throttle.
Giiing....
A sound different from modern motorcycles rang out.
A low, sharp electronic hum cut through the air and spread out.
"Let's go!"
Wiiing!
The electric motor reacted as if it had exploded.
The acceleration was immense.
My body was pushed back violently in an instant.
It was a good thing I barely managed to grip the handlebars tight; otherwise, I would have been thrown right off.
The wind struck my face fiercely.
The surrounding scenery turned into blurry lines.
At the same time.
I started selling the junk cars in the shop like a madman.
— Avante — 1.7 million Ether
— Porter — 1.4 million Ether
....
My prosthetic eye analyzed the vehicles in my field of vision in real-time.
As soon as the analysis was finished, I sent them to the shop.
The spots where the cars had been were instantly emptied.
"Wow! What the?!"
"No, how?!"
As we passed by, the highway began to clear up wide open.
Dozens of junk cars disappeared like smoke, and the blocked lanes opened up in an instant.
It was as if a giant broom was sweeping across the road.
The three bikes cut through the empty road and raced forward without hesitation.
Gyeongbu Expressway.
In the middle of the highway connecting Sejong and Incheon.
We arrived at a rest stop.
"Out of fuel."
Perhaps because we rode so hard, the fuel was empty.
Refueling was one thing, but.
'It fucking hurts!'
My crotch was throbbing.
It was a chronic drawback of the bike.
Since I had taken the vibrations with my whole body while riding at 300 kilometers per hour, it was a natural result.
I stepped into the nearby rest stop to take a break.
But I had no choice but to stop right there.
"There are a lot...."
"Yeah."
The inside of the rest stop was full of zombies.
The cars lined up in the parking lot were the same.
It seemed many people had met with misfortune while taking a short break here.
The junk cars and scattered luggage told the story of that day.
"What should we do? Should we find another place to rest?"
"Well.... I don't see any suitable places, do I?"
Even looking around, there was nowhere else that caught my eye besides the rest stop.
It couldn't be helped.
"Do we have no choice but to clear it all out?"
But at that moment, a thought flashed through my mind.
'I have to build a shelter anyway.'
Before that, I could make something here.
It was the perfect environment to conduct an experiment.
'It's time to do what I've been thinking about.'
Until now, I had relied on machines.
But I shouldn't do that.
Machines have maintenance costs.
They were monsters that constantly devoured electricity.
Zombies, on the other hand, were different.
As long as they have a body, they move constantly.
They don't need food, and they don't need charging.
They were effectively perpetual motion machines.
And golems.
They handle orders flexibly and well.
'What if I combine these three?'
Wouldn't something incredible come out?
It felt like something that moved on perpetual energy and followed orders would be born.
'Before that....'
Currently, my zombie Cost is 20.
The Asura and the wolf were taking up 15 and 4, respectively.
I only had 1 point of spare Cost.
But throwing those two away would be a stupid move.
'Then I just need to get a new skill.'
When I entered the shop, I saw exactly one.
【Name】 : Abyss Storage
【Category】 : Skill
【Required Ether】 : 30 million Ether
"Hmm.... Not bad."
I bought it immediately.
I put the Asura and the wolf into the Abyss Storage.
The 20 Cost was emptied in an instant.
"Alright, then.... Shall we try it?"
After putting the 3 bikes into the Dark Room, I walked slowly into the rest stop.
First.
"The cars, starting with those."
The numerous cars that had filled the rest stop parking lot.
Every time my prosthetic eye scanned them one by one, they were all converted into Ether and disappeared.
That wasn't the end.
Lee Su-ah cut off the zombies' heads in an instant, and Han Min-ah burned the hordes whole with her fire ability.
"As expected of Awakened."
It was amazing.
But I wasn't going to be outdone.
The Pulse Drive implant, a lower version of the Sandevistan.
I hadn't used it once since I bought it, but now was the perfect opportunity.
"Drive."
Wiiiing....
Electricity exploded and raged from the central nervous system implant behind my back.
"....Huh?"
The whole world slowed down.
No, it was that I had become faster.
It felt like I was the only one moving in a frozen world.
— 10 seconds until Drive ends.
"Oh, right."
I didn't have time.
I dashed into the rest stop, which was swarming with zombies.
It felt like the bastards were completely frozen.
One lifting its foot and stopping, one opening its mouth and freezing. Each one stood like a statue.
Giiing....
The artificial limbs newly transplanted into both arms and the prosthetic eyes in both eyes began to resonate with each other.
Click!
Wires popped out from the artificial limbs.
Thin, clear trajectory lines overlapped over my vision.
The prosthetic eye was calculating the path.
"...I can see it."
The wire cut through the air.
In the slow world, that was the only thing moving at its own speed.
I moved exactly along that line.
I passed through the zombies.
Invisible lines were connected one by one, and the wire wove tightly between their bodies and the pillars.
As if I were executing an execution that had already ended.
And.
— Drive ended.
The world returned as if it were being rewound.
At the same time.
Wiiiiiiing!
A roar erupted from both arms.
The taut wires tightened all at once.
Crunch! Crrrunch!
The delayed result exploded all at once.
Hundreds of zombies were torn to shreds, a beat late.
"Cr...crazy!"
"What is that?"
Lee Su-ah and Han Min-ah's eyes widened.
In their field of vision, it must have looked like the zombies were torn apart simultaneously in a space where there was nothing.
In less than a second, everything was already over.
"Wow!"
Now, normal zombies are no match for me.
Variant zombies were the same.
Except for situations where Variants swarmed in large numbers, I could handle them all.
'To think I've become this strong.'
Implants are the best, after all.
There was no need for long training or practice; I just had to replace them, and that was it.
Looking around, everything was cleared.
Of course, I had taken care of almost all of them.
Anyway.
"So, what are you going to do?"
"Wait a second."
I entered the gallery.
I opened a function there.
Group chat.
I invited 3 people there.
I invite [Doctor Repair], [Marching Necromancer], and [Houmun Cloth] to the group chat.
As soon as I invited them, there was a reaction.
└[Doctor Repair] : Oh! What is this? A new feature!?
└[Marching Necromancer] : Hmm.... Something smells strange. This isn't normal madness?
└[Houmun Cloth] : I smelled rotting corpses... was it you, you bastard?
Except for Doctor Repair, the other two seemed to know each other, and they were busy trading insults as soon as they met.
└[Marching Necromancer] : How many times do I have to tell you it wasn't my fault. I told you it was that Mangsaeng brat's instigation!
└[Houmun Cloth] : Shut up! That bitch doesn't have the capacity for that!
Well, that's something.
It seemed to be a story from the past, and I was quite curious about it.
Anyway, that wasn't the important thing.
[Gallery Owner] : Everyone, pay attention. We are going to have a discussion from now on. I'm thinking of creating a being that combines a zombie, a machine, and a golem. Tell me your thoughts.
Those who were fighting started having the most heated discussion instead.
└[Doctor Repair] : If you use a corpse as a structure, it can't handle the load. Instead, use a machine frame for the skeleton, and run the zombie as fuel.
└[Marching Necromancer] : Then remove the brain and use a golem core as the control device. The machine for output, the zombie for energy and reaction amplification... neat.
└[Houmun Cloth] : I agree too. If you convert the residual biological reaction into magic power and use it to maintain the golem core, you'll also secure stability.
Design drawings started to be uploaded messily to the group chat.
I just watched because I couldn't understand them at all even if I looked.
As expected, the experts were different.
Because they were people who had been rotting in their respective fields for a long time.
I always gathered them whenever a topic like this came up, and it was a good thing I invited them.
They themselves were the ones most interested in this topic.
After a few minutes, they reached a conclusion.
└[Doctor Repair] : Gallery Owner. The blueprint is complete.
└[Marching Necromancer] : This is the basic design we made. If any problems arise, upload them anytime.
└[Houmun Cloth] : Sounds fun, right? If you make one, sell it to the shop. I'll buy one too.
What they presented was a blueprint.
A zombie, a machine, a golem. A hybrid of hybrids that combined all three.
【Name】 : Iron Cavalry Design
【Category】 : Assembly Skill
【Required Resources】 : 1 normal zombie, 1 golem core, 35kg of iron, 1 set of neural conduction cables......
"What?"
An assembly skill had been created.
"Why is there so much stuff needed?"
While grumbling, I bought all the necessary materials from the shop.
It cost a total of 30 million Ether.
"Oof, so expensive."
Carrying an armful of materials, I entered the rest stop.
I could see a few zombies still remaining inside.
I pulled one of them with Corpse Control.
The bastard walked slowly to my feet.
And.
"Iron Cavalry."
I activated the skill.
Click... click...
The materials started to move slowly on their own.
Iron plates wrapped around the zombie's body, and cables stretched out along the skeleton.
The golem core was embedded in the center of its chest and glowed red.
Giiing....
It tightened, interlocked, and became solid.
And the Iron Cavalry, with its red eyes flashing, slowly lifted its head.