Chapter 54
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Can't You Just Be My Ally?
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"Can't you just join us as a comrade?"
"You all know about that monster in Yeongdeungpo that went on a rampage, left with nothing but its legs, right?"
"Ah, yes, we do!"
"We saw it on the news too!"
"Good, then this'll be quick. The culprit behind that incident is none other than the guy from the news lately."
"W-Wait, what? Did we hear that wrong?!"
Originally, the main mission of D.P. was to capture deserters who had fled beyond the military base.
So what the hell was our general talking about?
"You guys need to track him down for me."
No...
No, no, no way!
Normally, stuff like this was the hunters' specialty, not soldiers'.
And now it was falling on us?
Was this even right? Just as that doubt crept in...
"Right now, it's like the calm before the storm, just shy of full wartime."
"...!"
The words "wartime situation" straight from the mouth of a four-star general.
At that, Sergeant Choi Han-sol and Private First Class Kim Jun-young swallowed hard.
"Treat it like DEFCON 3 and proceed with the mission."
"Y-Yes, sir! Understood!"
"Then... Sergeant Choi Han-sol, sir. Should I take charge of tracking this thread?"
"Yeah. It's such a thin little thing. It'll suit you better than me, Jun-young."
"Alright... here goes."
Lee Seok-gyu had parked his Lamborghini at a nearby burger joint.
Ever the "general who gets along great with the grunts," he bought burgers for the soldiers without interrupting their work and returned to the car alone.
"Here, eat up while you do it."
"Th-Th-Thank you, sir!!!"
Sergeant Choi Han-sol saluted, overwhelmed despite the general's easygoing smile meant to put them at ease.
Meanwhile, Kim Jun-young, who had slipped the mana thread onto his middle finger, had been muttering to himself for a bit.
"Connected... connected... connected... Success!"
Suddenly, the mana thread tied to his middle finger began glowing with a bright golden light.
"Ho ho. What's that?"
"Yes, sir! I have the ability to give simple commands to inanimate objects in nature!"
"And you used that to command the thread just now?"
"Yes, exactly! Even if it's a mana thread, once it's separated from a human body, it's part of nature now—an inanimate object. So I ordered it to track down its creator's location!"
"Hahaha! That's a skill I really like!"
He'd figured it'd take days to track, but thanks to these unexpectedly talented recruits, they'd already pinpointed the perp. Lee Seok-gyu flashed a satisfied smile.
He turned the key in the ignition and said,
"So, you can track him right now?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Perfect. Guide us there immediately, then. I'll trust you boys!"
"It's an honor, sir!"
"Thank you, sir!!"
The Korean Peninsula was mostly rugged, steep mountains rather than flat terrain.
Maybe that's why.
Even Seoul, which had bulldozed many hills for redevelopment to become one of Asia's top cities, still had plenty of dense-forested mountains—perfect spots to hide away.
"H-Hey, let us out..."
"I wanna go home!"
"Send us back! I swear I won't tell anyone!"
An abandoned factory that looked like it hadn't been used in ages.
But now, it had been remodeled by the freak syndicate that had illegally snuck into Korea, and it was rusting away unused by anyone else.
About a hundred or so civilians crammed into iron cages screamed to be let out.
But four people stood there, ignoring the cries as if they were used to it.
Among them, Paul and Riverin—freak syndicate members—were just getting up to head back into the city to lure out the Jamsil Monster.
"Leader, I'll be back."
"Go ahead."
"......"
"...Huh? Leader?"
Riverin tilted her head as she walked alongside, controlling her lower body.
Normally, the leader would say something like "Come back safe~" or "Make it back in one piece," fussing unnecessarily.
But today, she was dead silent.
"Leader? Leader?"
A bit worried, Riverin called out to Catarina.
But she was lost in deep thought, not hearing a thing.
'That kid... He said he'd help the freak syndicate, so why won't he join us?'
Catarina's mind was completely filled with thoughts of Han Shin-woo.
The young man who suddenly appeared, offering to help her.
He could sense parallel worlds just like her—a rare talent—and he even showed interest in curing the incurable monster disease plaguing the world.
On paper, he was prime freak syndicate material, honorary member number one...!
'Why... Why the hell won't he join our group?!'
The two conditions he laid out.
One was to stop pursuing the Jamsil Monster? Fine, whatever.
They'd only been after it to recruit him anyway, since he seemed friendly to humans.
They already had a few "monster comrades," so giving up on the Jamsil Monster was just a minor bummer.
But the second condition was different.
He'd cooperate with the freak syndicate but refused to join it outright!
'Are we that unappealing?'
Evil organizations are cool, right?
Guys his age usually loved that stuff—shared goals, the guts to risk life for friends, the ultimate partner who could share abilities.
She thought she'd found the perfect one.
"Um, Leader...?"
"Riverin!"
"Y-Yes?!"
Was it the freak syndicate that was lame?
Or was it me?
She needed to know.
If it was her, she could just change herself.
Catarina, whose head was already filling up with obsession over Shin-woo, whipped around from Riverin—who'd been calling her—and asked seriously. Dead seriously.
"Riverin, what do you think of me?"
"...Huh? What do you mean?"
"I mean me as a person. Like, what do you think of Catarina herself?"
"......Pardon?"
Riverin couldn't even process what she was hearing.
Frustrated at her expression, Catarina thumped her watermelon-sized chest and turned to Paul next.
"Paul!"
"Yes, Leader."
"What about me?! As a woman."
"A-As a woman...?"
As a woman? Hell, she's terrifying.
She's got a $100 million international bounty—the highest payout ever.
Scary is scary; what did "as a woman" even add?
But that look on her face clearly wanted a different answer.
"W-Well... I think you're beautiful."
Paul proved his life hadn't been wasted with a beaming smile and a white lie born of goodwill.
"Right? I'm pretty, aren't I?"
A bit shameless, but Catarina knew she was hot—of course she did.
"And let's be real, my body's smoking. Honestly, don't you wanna hit this just as bad as Riverin?"
"L-Leader..."
"Ughhh..."
Confident as ever, Catarina sidled up behind Riverin and kneaded her breasts like they were her own—soft and squishy—whining all aggrieved.
"So why's a babe like me getting rejected?!"
Squish squish.
"Leader, just to be sure... Did he turn you down?"
"Yes! He rejected me!"
So wronged, Catarina unconsciously squeezed harder.
"Eek! L-Leader..."
Riverin was embarrassed, her eyes pleading to let go, but Catarina behind her didn't notice.
"Paul! We're the freak syndicate! The world's most infamous evil organization! Legends of the underworld! So why would he reject us?"
"...If anything, that might be why he's rejecting us."
Would you join a Mexican cartel, no matter how good the pay, if it meant killing people and dealing drugs?
...But comparing that to her precious freak syndicate might set her off again.
"Criminals aside, normal folks tremble and run at the sight of us, let alone join up."
Paul soothed her like a child, stating the obvious.
"True..."
Finally conceding, Catarina released Riverin's slightly perky breasts.
"Damn, I still wanna drag that guy into our group..."
"Someone who impressed you that much exists in this country?"
"Even kneaded my boobs...?"
"Yep! He's so hot, I might not make it through dinner tonight! Speaking of, Riverin—you're coming to my bed naked tonight!"
"N-No way!"
Riverin's face flushed beet red as she pelted her leader—who always went straight for the body in awkward moments—with kitten punches.
Right then.
"L-Leader!"
"Oh. Our intel gatherer."
Normally, this was when they'd be "feeding" to get info on the Jamsil Monster, but with the plan scrapped, Catarina had told her to stand by.
Dorothy had sea-blue hair and looked like a mature beauty on the outside, but she was the freak syndicate's resident flustered "cutie."
Panting and drenched in sweat, she came running up, eyes spinning as she urgently tried to speak.
...But where to even start?!
"Uh... Th-That! Um... Ahh... A-Ahh! Uwooo..."
"Dorothy! Deep breaths first, then talk! Otherwise, we'll have a crisis and still not get answers!"
"Y-Yes, okay!"
Huff huff!
Huff huff huff huff!
Following orders, she breathed in and out, chest heaving like it might burst, until she calmed a bit.
Now able to speak, she finally blurted out what she'd meant to say.
"I-It's just... I think our hideout's been found!"
"What?! Damn... I'm already stressed over this guy situation...!"
"A-And the people chasing us... One of them was especially pissed, saying we hurt his son!"
"Trying to mess with my 'love' over something that petty...? I'm in a foul mood already—I'll handle this myself!"