Episode 8
Episode 8
Click. Camellia stepped out, closing the door to the Professor's office, and skillfully operated her terminal.
'The Red Sky Jade attached to the hair tie. There's no way a mage wouldn't know its value.'
It was an accessory she had hurriedly left behind under the guise of medical expenses, as if she felt her soul might be held hostage.
It was a luxury item completely unrelated to magic, but the price was the price. If liquidated, it was worth an absurd amount, enough to cover an average person's lifetime expenses.
If such a high-priced stolen good were disposed of, a record would inevitably be left behind.
Could a high-ranking mage really not have thought of that? Still, Camellia had no choice but to bet on that thread-thin chance.
As she skillfully tapped the display, the word 'Black Market' appeared on the pitch-black screen.
Various product categories were traded in real-time. Information was also priced according to its importance.
Human experimentation data from giant corporations or lists of corrupt officials in the city government were among the hot topics handled in the market.
Turning her gaze away from posts outside her interests, Camellia pressed the button labeled 'Request'.
'Reward for anyone who has witnessed the Red Sky Jade in the outskirts even once.'
Vrrr, vrrr-.
As soon as the post was uploaded, the terminal vibrated incessantly.
It hadn't even been a minute. Already, hundreds of tips had filled the message box.
Most were junk data whose authenticity was difficult to determine immediately. How much time would it take to check them one by one?
The moment Camellia bit her lower lip slightly.
Ding-.
Cutting through all the pouring messages, a pop-up window appeared at the very top.
[ Conversation request from Absolute No Exchange or Refund (Accept) (Decline) ]
It was a private function that could only be used by those with VIP memberships worth tens of millions of chips annually.
'The nickname is a bit....... Does it matter, though.'
As soon as she accepted the request, Camellia's bluish-purple eyes wavered.
[ Absolute No Exchange or Refund: I'll trust you're a VVIP and provide it in advance. Within the last half-year. Near the Undeveloped District. Cannot provide further detailed information. How about it? ]
The Undeveloped District was geographically close to Complex 3, where she had encountered the monster-like mage.
With the provider's market rating as a VIP added to the mix, the credibility of the information increased.
'If I hesitate, it'll be too late.'
Making a quick decision, Camellia pressed the 'Transfer' button and paid the fee.
20 million chips. It was clearly a somewhat expensive request fee compared to the clarity of the information, but she didn't care.
The held amount counted down as the withdrawn sum was deducted, but the first digit didn't even budge.
Then, tucking the terminal into her skirt pocket, Camellia hurried her steps.
Emul put down the terminal he had been holding. His eyeballs felt stiff from staring at the screen all night.
He had roamed the public network to get information about magic, but there was no substantial content at all.
For example, if he entered a post titled 'How to become a mage in one day', it would connect to a site selling illegal drugs.
Even in news articles that looked reliable, they were all mixed with indirect advertisements, making it difficult to distinguish what was true.
Was a space open to everyone inevitably destined to become that murky?
'If I stay here too long, my brain will rot.'
He was tired, but he straightened his lying posture. He needed to check his future plans.
He clenched and unclenched his fist. He resented his thin frame and lack of muscle for a man, but his purpose wasn't self-pity.
New flesh had sprouted on his palms that had been oozing fluid, and his crooked fingers were gradually finding their proper place.
The aftermath from the battle with the Dregs Collector was almost fully recovered.
Even if he pushed his body hard, there was no major problem. However, he had no intention of settling.
'Dregs Collector. That guy was definitely faster.'
It was Body Enhancement Magic cast using the Calculation Auxiliary Device, but it was a fact that the mechanical legs had surpassed the magic.
From then on, Emul's worries deepened.
If mana could only be used by the chosen ones, technology was equal for everyone.
It had the constraint of capital, but compared to mana, which was determined from birth, one could say it was quite fair.
An era where scientific technology that even surpassed magic existed. Ability alone might not be the only answer.
He tapped the terminal he was holding and scanned the alarm list.
[ The Best Body Expert has sent you 15M chips. ]
The bounty for the Dregs Collector, which had been deposited in full just a while ago.
Putting on his hood, he tapped the screen and entered his only contact.
[ You have sent 2M chips to The Best Body Expert. ]
After sending the commission with a little extra added to the originally promised fee, he checked the remaining amount.
A total of 13 million chips.
Excluding living expenses, the remaining 12 million chips would all be used to plan for the future.
In a situation where he had to cross the line between life and death, mediocre items wouldn't even be helpful and would just be a waste.
Ding-.
Emul turned off the terminal that kept ringing with message alarms and put on his newly bought hood.
To trade extraordinary items, one must go to an extraordinary place.
He walked out leisurely through the damp sewer tunnel.
*
Emul entered the Dead Zone in the late evening and quietly admired the scenery.
The sunset poured over loose trash bags and concrete debris. Most of those passing through the neglected streets were dressed in ways that made it difficult to identify them.
Very rarely, a high-rise building would boast its majesty, but its empty appearance without a single light added to the gloomy feeling.
'Was it said to be the remnants of an attempt to develop the Undeveloped District that was halted?'
If what was written on the public network was true, then yes.
He smiled bitterly to himself. It was laughable that he had to personally verify even things that were common sense.
In an era where even videos or images could be manipulated by AI, highly reliable information was limited.
Since they said there were groups that professionally spread fake information, it wasn't just due to his sensitivity.
'Always be suspicious, but let's gloss over information that isn't directly connected to my life.'
A principle he engraved while searching the public network with his terminal.
He decided to just gloss over the fact that the entity behind this city's development was the government of the massive city called 'Academy City' for now.
Emul took his eyes off the faint high-rise building in the distance and resumed moving.
He knew almost nothing about the Dead Zone, but he knew how to read.
The moment he stepped into the entrance of a shop labeled 'Gun Shop'.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait, wait!"
The middle-aged man watching the counter made a strange noise.
Just as Emul, ignoring him, was about to take another step, the middle-aged man said, spitting as he spoke.
"M-Mage-nim! Please make sure to turn off your force field before coming in. The detectors will break."
"...I will."
Emul, who retorted calmly, wandered around the inside briefly before approaching the counter.
The middle-aged man was stroking the firearms as if handling a newborn baby.
Emul, who had been watching that scene for a moment, asked.
"I'm not emitting any mana, so how did you know?"
Mana cannot be detected by non-ability users. This was a fact calculated based on his experience before awakening mana.
Just as he was about to ask again, the middle-aged man spoke as if he had made up his mind.
"If I tell you... will you spare me?"
Emul frowned at the absurd answer.
"I don't recall making any death threats against you."
"...As I thought, it seems you have no intention of sparing me."
Feeling frustrated, Emul picked up a pistol that was nearby.
Creak, creak, creak-.
It twisted bizarrely from the barrel, transforming into a single lump of metal.
The pistol, which had soon become a hard ball, rolled onto the counter.
Tap, tap. As Emul tapped the display case indifferently, the middle-aged man opened his mouth.
"...Y-You're wearing a hood."
"And."
"...You didn't even glance at the guns when you came in, so that's why."
"And?"
"I, I'm telling the truth. Mage-nim!"
Piiing——!
As a wind hole was pierced through the metal ball, the middle-aged man squeezed his eyes shut.
"Y-You had a gl-gloomy, dark expression, so I judged you were a Mage...nim."
Emul calmly raised his mana.
Creak, creak, creak-.
The crumpled pistol regained its shape, but it could no longer be called a gun.
"How much?"
"......Pardon?"
"This pistol. How much."
"I'll... just give it to you!"
Piiing——!
As he shoved the scrap metal, which had suddenly been pierced with two holes, at him, the middle-aged man shouted.
"Hiiik... 500,000 chips. It's 500,000 chips!"
"If you're the owner, you should be clear about the calculations."
Emul, who had placed the chips on the counter, left the gun shop.
The prices of usable firearms were more expensive than expected, and he also wanted to look around other shops.
He kept moving without rest, recalling what had just happened at the gun shop.
'That shop owner... he realized I was a mage in that short time. Even if his reasoning was a lie, his response was quick.'
It meant that to survive as a merchant in the Dead Zone, one had to possess that level of social skills.
Since not only hunters but also criminals would visit, it was, in a way, a natural skill to have.
'I don't know what a force field is... but I can't deny that prejudice either.'
Just because he wore a hood and acted gloomy, he was a mage.
The gun shop owner might have hidden another reason until the end, but Emul felt a strange sense of empathy.
The mages he had faced so far, whether real or not, those who used magic were all without exception abnormal.
The feeling of looking like they had a screw loose.
If they were underworld mages wandering the outskirts, it might even be inevitable.
Emul, who had been self-deprecating, discovered another gun shop and entered.
Perhaps self-conscious, he threw back his hood and entered, asking the man who appeared to be the owner.
"I want to try it out before I buy it. The gun with the most powerful firepower here."
The owner, who scanned Emul up and down, pointed to a corner with his chin.
A sniper rifle as tall as him, leaning diagonally. He was surprised by the price tag in the hundreds of millions, but asked calmly.
"Is it loaded?"
At the owner's silent affirmation, Emul shouldered the sniper rifle and headed to the practice range.
Placing the barrel on the bipod provided, he aimed at the target with the scope.
The target was an armor plate that looked like it had been ripped off heavy equipment. It must have been placed there to show its destructive power.
After pulling the bolt on the right to load, he placed his index finger on the trigger. At the same time, he took a loose breath.
"Hoo-."
Slowly pulling his index finger, he brought the trigger to its limit.
Aiming, breath control, and trigger squeeze. The series of processes to prepare for firing was surprisingly smooth.
It was a sight that reminded one of a veteran sniper, rather than just the experience of someone who had completed military service.
There was no tension or any trembling.
The moment he stopped breathing.
Click, bang——!!!
A cannon-like gunshot rang out in the gun shop.
He removed the mana he had wrapped around his eardrums and stared at the target.
The armor plate was roughly torn apart. The distance to the target wasn't far, but he had pierced the dead center without even adjusting the zeroing.
It was the first sniper rifle he had ever used in his life, but the accuracy was as precise as a machine.
'This is....'
Emul, who was ruminating on the source of that ability, pulled the bolt.
Clang, clatter-clang!
Emul picked up the shell casing that had fallen to the floor, put the gun back in its place, and left the shop.
Perhaps because such customers came often, the owner didn't say anything special.
Emul visited several more shops afterward and turned his steps back when it got dark.
'To think I can't even buy anything useful with 10 million chips... I'll have to focus on hunting for a while.'
He shoved his hands into his pockets and walked heavily.
The night in the Dead Zone was completely different from the air of the late evening.
It was the time when the hounds who had received requests and the cockroaches in the shadows revealed themselves.
He wasn't a battle maniac who enjoyed fighting without purpose, so he had prepared to return immediately, but.
"...Tsk."
He suddenly stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, and after a moment, he turned his body and entered an alley.
Curious gazes were fixed on him, but he ignored them and moved forward, twisting his path.
By the time a little time had passed like that.
Emul raised his mana. A cold and fierce mana wrapped around his entire body.
Dozens of creatures were caught in his senses, but there was only one target.
The moment his figure, which had been sprinting up the wall without hesitation, disappeared.
Crackle, crackle, crackle——!
He, who had shot out like lightning, was already sitting on the rooftop, pointing his finger and muttered.
"If you don't explain why you followed me, this is where it ends for you."