Chapter 275
Chapter 275
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 275
Chapter Title: Construction Site
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Door open!”
Grrrrrrumble!
With the guard’s shout, the massive iron gates parted to the left and right. The friendly logo painted on them split apart as well.
A YA trapped within a blue octahedral frame.
It was the logo of Yeonam, the massive corporation owned by the chaebol family said to be the richest in the [Cthulhu World] universe.
This grand undertaking on the mountainside of Mt. Seorak was also being carried out in the name of Yeonam Construction, a subsidiary of the Yeonam Group.
“You’ve dug it out quite impressively.”
“Hahaha, that’s the level of our tech.”
Kwak Daeyong replied proudly. Did he not catch the sarcasm mixed into my voice?
“…….”
Ignoring his smugness, I gazed past the passenger seat of the armored truck at the bizarre sight beyond.
A rocky mountain of such enormous scale that it was hard to take it all in at a glance.
I wondered if the Ulsan Rock from my old world had looked like that.
‘It looks like the corpse of some giant monster.’
The Ulsan Rock gleamed pale, reflecting the eerie moonlight.
Mt. Seorak, bearing that massive, ridiculous boulder—and looking like it could collapse at any moment.
Kwak Daeyong seemed proud of the sight, but to my eyes, coming from a world where concepts like environmental protection still existed, it just looked absurd and destructive.
Yeonam Construction had gouged out the mountainside supporting the Ulsan Rock and erected a massive wall in the space they’d created.
“Alright, everyone out.”
With Yeom Cheolmin’s guidance from the driver’s seat, the armored truck’s engine shut off, and the vibrations that had been rattling my body for hours finally stopped.
Ugh…… Whether I had magic or not, a weak body was still a weak body. I felt like I was dying. For real.
“Ow ow ow—”
“Ugh, cha—”
Kwak Daeyong and the others stepped out of the truck, their faces pale as they stretched their bodies. Even the tough ones found the ride brutally rough.
“Man, that was exhausting.”
“But thanks to the wizard, we got here safe.”
“Everyone worked hard getting here—let’s unload the gear first and then rest!”
Murmurs from the group and Kwak Daeyong’s orders.
“Welcome to the [Seoraksan Anomalous Phenomena Research Lab] construction site!”
A shout from the site manager, who seemed to have rushed over.
‘It’s been mentioned in passing before, but it’s a setting that ended up not mattering much.’
This place wasn’t originally an archaeological dig site—it was a construction site for the Yeonam Group’s research lab.
‘At least, that’s the pretext.’
An excuse to tear up Mt. Seorak willy-nilly. If no ruins had been found, would they have built the lab? Probably not.
I’d looped through [Cthulhu World] countless times, but I’d never seen a completed research lab here.
“Still, it’s looking pretty decent this time.”
“This time?”
A sharp voice cut into my mutter.
“It seems like a solid site. You’ve been guarding it well, I take it?”
“Hand it over.”
A small hand extended toward me.
“……What?”
“You promised last time to give me a new weapon. Give it now.”
“Hey, Curtain Call. I’m here helping you because Tudor asked me to. And the first thing you say when we meet is that?”
That was a pretty restrained response, wasn’t it?
But the white-haired kid in the bright red leather jacket crumpled my response in an instant and tossed it into the dirty pit of the construction site.
“Helping? You’re here because Tudor paid you. Now hand over the new weapon as promised. With magic on it.”
“Sigh—”
I let out a sigh and raised my left hand to deal with Curtain Call’s demanding attitude—but to others, it must have looked like a furious wizard issuing a threat.
“Eek, Calli! Don’t pick a fight with Kim Sinhwa!”
“Kim Sinhwa! I’m sorry! I’ll apologize on Calli’s behalf!”
A few familiar fixers rushed over and grabbed Curtain Call in a panic.
“I’m not picking a fight!”
Curtain Call swung her halberd—slung over her shoulder—with dramatic flair, whooshing through the air. Each swing sent the awkwardly clinging men flying off like they were in some comedy skit.
“Hahaha—there she goes again.”
“Seriously, she never stops, 24/7.”
It was a ridiculous commotion, but including the site manager, no one on site complained. They just chuckled and steered clear of Curtain Call’s rampage zone.
“Everyone’s used to it, huh.”
Probably because Curtain Call had been putting on quite the show here lately.
Fixers, usually treated like monsters or outlaws, get hero treatment when they’re on your side and working for you.
“Cut it out, Curtain Call! I don’t have time to waste on this!”
A few hours until midnight.
In the end, to calm the chaos, I cast magic on Curtain Call’s halberd.
“Still got it. Anyway, you doing well?”
Vroooom—vroom—
Curtain Call swung the halberd a few times, multicolored lights bursting from it, then grinned in satisfaction.
“Monkeys or apes or whatever were pouring out of that hole nonstop. It was chaos.”
That hole.
A few days ago when I came…… Well, based on the timeline, it’s two days from now…… Can I still call it a few days ago?
Anyway, subjectively for me, unlike a few days ago, this [Seoraksan Anomalous Phenomena Research Lab construction site] was still intact.
But that didn’t mean the site was truly fine.
Traces of battle scarred the outer walls here and there.
And that ominous cave—gaping open like it was ready to devour anyone who came near.
Rooooaaar—
An unsettling rumble emanated from the cave.
Bloodstains marred the entrance…… gruesomely.
Probably traces of the heteromorphs I’d met underground crawling out. But it seemed the shoggoths hadn’t appeared yet.
“That’s doing well enough. Your whole team’s still in one piece.”
Curtain Call tilted her head with a “huh, maybe?” expression, then spoke in a much softer tone.
“True. Hard to find a site that feeds you this well.”
She pulled some heavy anchor bolts from her jacket pocket and tossed them into her mouth.
Crunch—crack.
Her appetite was unchanged. She could probably fight with her teeth instead of weapons.
“You said tomorrow—why’d you come so early?”
“Like I said, lots to do.”
“Lots to do?”
“Better not to talk here…… Anyway, where’s the person in charge?”
The manager had shown up, but I doubted some nameless extra NPC had any real authority. The one in charge here should be Moon Seunghee.
“Uh…… she’s in the office over there, but the director’s meeting with guests right now.”
The helmeted manager’s reply.
“Guests at this hour?”
It was past 9 p.m. now—nearing 10. And what kind of guests visit a field site like this?
“You came at this hour too, Kim Sinhwa.”
Curtain Call’s tone dripped with ‘are you an idiot?’
Ignoring her, I extended my senses toward where Moon Seunghee was.
Moon Seunghee, a few fixers as bodyguards. And twelve humanoid lifeforms with alien mana.
‘No, wait. One feels familiar.’
I excused myself from the manager and headed that way……
“Curtain Call—don’t follow.”
“Not interested. Being near those old geezers messes up my outfit.”
She leaped off toward the cave entrance with a flick. Hmph, willful as ever.
* * *
From a space that was basically a prefab office made of containers came the gruff voice of a rough middle-aged man.
“Ah—really. You’re impossible to talk to. It’s simple, right? What we want is—y’know— a tour? Yeah. Call it a tour.”
He barely sprinkled in some honorifics, but ended up with rude half-speech that looked down on the other person.
A voice I’d heard somewhere before.
“It’s not that simple in practice.”
That was Moon Seunghee’s voice. In contrast to the rudeness, she maintained her statue-like poise and continued.
“And I’m sorry, but I don’t have the authority to respond to that.”
“No, you keep saying you don’t have authority, no authority. Like a damn parrot—”
“Sheesh—after tearing up our neighborhood like this, you can’t even do that?”
“Women at sites like this are why—”
“When the hell’s the real authority figure showing up?”
Murmurs, grumbles, and rude chatter spewing from twelve mouths.
“Hmm…….”
Just like Curtain Call said, it made my stomach turn.
What Moon Seunghee was dealing with now were cultists of the [Old Voice].
But they hadn’t revealed their true colors yet—they were still playing the part of innocent [local bigwigs] with straight faces.
Their demand boiled down to one thing:
[Let us into the underground ruins you found.]
The cultists’ demands had sunk from rude to base and blatant.
“You don’t get it, huh? Eh? Don’t you have Director Moon Kyungnam above you? Me and that guy—we’re tight—eh? Talked on the phone the other day—eh? Met up recently, had dinner—eh? He said it’s all good—eh?>
Familiar mana and a voice I recognized.
It was Kim Sungwhan.
The fixers standing by Moon Seunghee looked ready to snap, but she didn’t change expression and repeated the same line.
“I’m sorry to keep saying it, but I don’t have that authority.”
“Ha—fine. Do whatever. Looking forward to what you say tomorrow.”
Unable to get what they wanted, the old men—no, the cultists—grumbled, muttered, and shuffled out of the office.
‘Ugh, cha—’
No point showing my face now. I quickly ducked into the shadows of the construction site.
“This way, everyone.”
A few fixers and Yeonam armed personnel rushed over to escort them. Though “escort” probably meant restraining any sudden moves.
“Hey! We’re leaving nice today!”
“See you tomorrow! Tomorrow!”
“Yeah, let’s see what happens tomorrow, you bastards!”
“Damn outsiders—”
Even then, Kim Sungwhan and the eleven cultists kept leering and spewing rudeness.
Only once they were out of sight did a sigh come from inside the temporary office.
* * *
It was only after some brief paperwork and formalities that I could finally meet Moon Seunghee face-to-face.
“Long time no see. Thank you for coming to help.”
“Yes, it really has been a while. I hope you’ve been well?”
“Thanks to your help last time, we’ve made it this far.”
A short exchange of greetings followed.
A genuine flicker of warmth crossed Moon Seunghee’s sculpted face.
It felt less like she was glad to see me and more like she appreciated the civilized conversation built on courtesy and kindness…….
Well, having just dealt with the wild child Curtain Call, I appreciated it too……
No, this wasn’t the time for chit-chat.
“I overheard earlier—are they saying the director’s coming?”
“Yes, the director plans to visit for an inspection. That’s why we urgently added more bodyguard personnel.”
They’d also needed gear delivered for the ruins excavation. I’d been able to come separately under the pretext of escorting that equipment.
“The director…… I’ve heard the name. Is it Moon Kyungnam? I mean—can he really come? Actually come?”
“Hmm…….”
I’d stormed in right after regressing and beaten Moon Kyungnam to a pulp. Honestly, I’d thrashed him so bad he shouldn’t move for a month, plus curses and magical contracts.
And he’s coming? For real?
Moon Seunghee paused. Her face said, ‘How do you know that?’
“Wizard, remember? I have more eyes and ears than most.”
“Your eyes…… certainly seem that way.”
With her dry wit, Moon Seunghee continued as if giving up.
“The director had a minor accident recently but seems to have recovered quickly. I just got word that he’ll visit tomorrow as scheduled.”
He’s really coming? What tenacity.
Last time, his phobia of magic had kept him from recalling his hidden [wizard] identity and cultist activities, leading to many mistakes.
“If there’s nothing special today, could I act independently for a bit?”
“Independently?”
“Yes. There’s somewhere around here I need to check.”
The madness spawning this time wasn’t confirmed as magic phobia, but before I forgot something again or ended up unable to respond properly, I wanted to do everything I could now.
‘First, to Bongam Temple.’
Today, I’d see a different scene than last time.