Dropped Right in Front of the Final Boss from the Start?

Lucy and I followed the people's guidance into the survivor group's fortress.

The middle-aged man walking ahead of us asked me, "What's your name?"

"Haram."

"Right, Miss Haram. Are you tired? If not, I'd like to get straight to the point."

"I'm fine."

Hearing my answer, the man headed for the largest building in the fortress. The brown-haired woman trailing behind us took Lucy's hand.

"Lucy, was it? Want to come with big sis?"

"Uh..."

"Go rest first. I'll be there soon."

"Okay."

Lucy disappeared somewhere into the compound with the woman. In a normal situation it would have been wiser not to separate from Lucy just in case, but since I could reverse-summon her anytime, I let her go.

As I followed the man I scanned the surroundings, and the survivor fortress looked nothing like what I had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠expected. The ratio of adult men is way too high. And... no farmland or livestock?

Inside the fortress, aside from a stable for horses, there were no living animals in sight. There wasn't even any land set aside for the farming that was essential for survival. Something was off for a typical survivor group.

While I was turning it over, the man walked on without a word. Before long we arrived at a room sealed on every side, without a single window. Only a small ventilation grate broke the concrete and iron doors that blocked every direction.

"So, you can use mana?"

The middle-aged man asked me directly.

"I never said that... Did Lucy tell you?"

"Are you taking me for a blind fool, or do you expect me to pretend I didn't see that spectacle?"

"No, it's not exactly a secret..."

The middle-aged man shrugged off the coat he was wearing and hung it on a rack. The military uniform beneath was covered in glittering medals that caught the light.

"Allow me to introduce myself first. I am Prih Stahlherz, Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial East Reclamation Army. I hold overall responsibility for the Dresden reclamation campaign."

"Uh... what?"

The words were so far from anything I had expected that I was left speechless. Reclamation army? This is a military unit?

The scene I had just witnessed flashed through my mind—the strange absence of women, children, and the elderly inside, the buildings that seemed never designed for long-term survival. All of it made sense if this was not a survivor group but an army base.

"What I propose is simple. Join this operation, and when we return to the city I will grant you first-class citizenship."

Stahlherz's offer was exactly what I had anticipated. I had risked showing off my combat power in the first place precisely so I could join a military operation. Even if the commander told me to sit it out, I would have found a way into the fighting.

Of course I could not pass up the chance to gather information, so I asked as naturally as I could, "What happens if I refuse?"

"Nothing much. You'll head to a rear city with the next supply convoy. With the lowest third-class citizenship, of course."

I had no intention of settling in this world. First-class or third-class meant nothing to me.

"Let's change the terms a little."

"Hm? Don't tell me you want more than that? If you join the army I could give you almost anything..."

"No. I live for today rather than tomorrow."

I raised a hand and circulated the mana settled in my heart. The mana that had once been as hard and cold as ice now pulled free like sticky rice cake, flooding my body with vitality. Blue light sparkled from the hand I focused it into.

"Top-tier quarters, top-tier food, top-tier daily necessities—support me with those while I'm with the unit. And do you happen to have any spare mana weapons?"

"Do you even know what first-class citizenship means?"

"I live for today rather than some distant tomorrow."

I stroked the sword at my waist.

"And hunting those things is just another day for me."

Stahlherz threw his head back and laughed hard at my answer.

"Hold on a second. This army came to retake the city of Dresden, right?"

"That's right."

"And that city is the ruined one over there."

"Correct."

Fuck, so they dropped me right in front of the final boss from the start? No wonder there were so few infected in the forest.

I barely managed to swallow the last words.

After parting with Stahlherz I headed for the quarters where Lucy was resting. He had promised me top-tier accommodations, but it seemed building something that luxurious in the field took time. Once I confirmed the soundproofing was decent, I opened the system window.

The score had grown a little from the Floor 11 rewards. I hadn't found a survivor group quickly and hadn't killed that many enemies, so Floor 11's rewards had been only 600,000 points and 200 bonus stats.

"I need to spend points first."

"Upgrade me too!"

From Floor 11 onward the enemies were fungal colonies that parasitized living bodies. There might still be types I hadn't confirmed, but hoarding points any longer was suicide. I raised Lucy's level first.

"Lucy, you got an attack skill too?"

Lucy activated her new ability. A black hand appeared out of empty air.

"Uh..."

Lucy's face darkened the moment she saw the black hand.

"What's wrong? Don't like it?"

"It's just..."

After a moment's hesitation Lucy opened her mouth.

"It's ugly! What even is this color!"

"...That's what this was about?"

"I want purple armor like Poppy!"

"Kung?"

The black hand had red veins bulging across it, looking like a demon risen from hell.

"Still, you finally got the attack skill you wanted."

"Hiiing, I wanted cute tentacles..."

"Come to think of it, Poppy's upgrades are locked... The Undead Void Tiger tree should open soon, right?"

The fungal colonies I had confirmed this time had especially outstanding regeneration. Killing a named mob in this world would probably satisfy the conditions for the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Undead Void Tiger.

"Alright, next is Legion upgrades... Void Pond and Void Bugs are pointless."

Even the weakest infected overwhelmed elite Void Monkeys in this world. The leisurely strategy of planting Void Ponds and Void Bugs to mass-produce a Legion was impossible.

"I need to raise Void Pouch first."

With the new special upgrade I could now produce Legion units from anywhere. I could only pull out a hundred at a time, and I had to keep summoning the newly produced ones to make room for the next batch, but being able to summon the Legion anywhere was still a huge gain.

"Next is soldier reinforcement..."

"No ocean or waterfront, so sharks and crocs are out. Void Hounds are maxed and Detectors aren't needed since the enemy doesn't sneak around."

That left me with two choices.

"Haram, will Void Flowers even work well?"

"When I fought the infected, their Sense never went over 500. If Sense isn't high, Void Flowers are monsters."

"But eating the head doesn't do anything to the infected, right?"

"High-rankers already tested that part ages ago."

The Head Collector that ate the head of any living thing. Awakeners had made dolls with decorative heads and attacked the Head Collectors with them, yet the Collectors still unerringly ate the vital parts of the dolls.

Void Flowers targeted the head because it was the easiest weak point, not because they mindlessly went for heads. And looking at the confirmed infected, the only one with a ranged attack was the Spitter. This was the best possible environment for Void Flowers to shine.

"Something good will come out if I keep upgrading."

"Gacha time!"

"This is a jackpot, right?"

"Whoa! The ability is broken as hell! Teleport and stealth?"

"Stealth is trash."

"Without stealth after Ghost Form ended you would've died on Floor 11."

"I invested that many points into stealth—of course it should do at least that much."

Even as I said it, Void Flowers gaining stealth was excellent. Enemies that could counter a stealth ambush were usually the same ones that could block a Void Flower's attack anyway. The Void Flower's bullying of the weak only grew stronger.

Teleport had a one-hour cooldown and a 20 m limit, so it wasn't infinite hunting, but being able to hide again after a successful attack was a massive advantage.

"The other special upgrades are solid... Oh, this one's good."

With resource collection via Void Bugs no longer viable, I needed a new route. I could collect corpses around me directly through the Void Pouch, but that required my personal use and had many restrictions. Gaining another way to gather resources was a welcome development.

Once I finished every minor special upgrade and the special evolution for all Void Flowers, the remaining point score stood at:

The score that had exceeded ten million had been cut by more than half.

"I still need to upgrade my own abilities... Let's look at Void Monkeys first."

"These guys don't have a level-1 special upgrade... Let's evolve them for now."

"Not bad... but kind of meh."

Giving Void Monkeys—who could already fight in melee with weapons—another attack option was huge, but it wouldn't be an enormous help for clearing Floor 11 right now. Still, it was far better than nothing, so I bought the ability immediately.

"I could push Void Monkeys to level 20... but this time I should carry instead of the Legion, right?"

"I'll carry you, Haram!"

I invested the remaining points into skills.

"This is getting scary. Even S-rank skills can be upgraded?"

Just how far did this hoodie’s effects reach? I dumped the bonus stats into Mana and checked the updated status window.

"No need to leave a measly 200,000 points sitting around."

After thriftily spending every last point, I examined the newly upgraded skill abilities.

Stats that no one would believe belonged to a mere Floor 11 user. With Skill Share's rank rising I could now borrow two skills, and I could even borrow Gigantification and Eyes That See the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Abyss, which had previously been unavailable.

"Points are all spent. Time to check the Transcendent Gallery."

"Yay! Gallery time!"

The first-stage Cordyceps colony variants that appeared from Floor 11 onward looked similar even across dimensions. That meant I could prepare for first-stage variants with advice from the Transcendents. Second-stage variants, however, branched into far too many forms.

Even the Transcendents had no idea what second-stage variants existed in this world. Still, I could at least study past questions based on monsters that had appeared in other dimensions.

Just as I was about to enter the Transcendent Gallery and write a new post—

Knock knock.

"Miss Haram, your quarters are ready."

A woman's voice came from the door.

"Yes, coming out."

When I opened the door, the same woman who had guided Lucy earlier was standing there.

"I'll show you the way."

I followed her a short distance and arrived at the building where I had spoken with the commander.

"This is it."

Not the sealed room I had visited earlier, but a spacious, comfortable room on the third floor. Thick curtains hung over the large windows, protecting privacy.

"Please rest well."

"Thank you for your hard work."

Once the woman left, Lucy dove onto the massive bed.

"Whoa! Haram! This bed is so soft!"

"Soft in a ruined world is still..."

No matter how top-tier they prepared it, it couldn't match modern technology. I sat on the bed without much expectation, but—

"Huh?"

"Amazing, right?!"

Just the right firmness—neither too sinking nor too hard—cradled my hips. It reminded me of the five-star hotel beds I had used on overseas business trips back when I worked for the Cheongung Guild. The blanket on top wrapped my hand just as softly.

Ever since becoming master of the Legion I had lived in ruined Ansan and never enjoyed the comforts humanity had created. There had been a bed in the hideout the Legion and I built, but it was a broken mattress on a creaking frame.

Even for someone who had once lived surrounded by modern conveniences, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a bed like this was a long-lost luxury.

"No, this isn't the time to stare at a bed. I need to gather information..."

After fiddling with the blanket for a while I suddenly remembered reality and opened the system window again. No matter how nice the bed was, I was currently clearing Impossible difficulty Floor 12. Wasting even a single minute was a bad idea.

Just as I was about to write a post in the Transcendent Gallery again—

"Jackpot! Haram! There's hot water here!"

Lucy's voice came from the bathroom on one side of the room.

"What?!"

In Ansan there had of course been no running water, so baths always meant hauling lake water. Hot showers had been pure fantasy, but—

When I opened the bathroom door, warm steam was rising from the showerhead Lucy held.

"Haram, I'm going first— Haram?!"

"No way! Rock-paper-scissors!"

"What! I got here first!"

"Lucy, you used to live in cold water as a kraken! Hot water will turn you into boiled octopus!"

"What are you talking about! And I saw on the Hunter Gallery that hot showers are the best! There were tons of posts about how hard it was not getting hot showers during expeditions—"

"Ugh, that damn Hunter Gallery! What have they been teaching you!"

The commander's promise of top-tier preparations had not been a lie. The bathtub was wide enough for two. We only emerged from the bathroom more than three hours later.