The Usual UFC (2)

With the arrival of Storm of the North Sea Mirien at our base, one new change emerged. At first glance it seemed trivial, yet at the same time it was an enormous shift.

A cheerful chime rang out.

“Oh.”

I had succeeded in synthesizing a 4-star disaster for the first time. And the star of the show was none other than Storm of the North Sea Mirien. Her synthesis aptitude was an incredible S-rank. That meant she stood at the very top among all existing disasters, with the sole exception of Asteria, who held an S+ aptitude.

“Actor! I did good, right?”

“Yeah, yeah. You did really well.”

Moreover, once the misunderstanding between us had been cleared up, Mirien began following me around like an affectionate little sister. In truth, the feelings she held toward me were probably closer to love, but I chose to ignore that fact. Love or not, with three other disasters already keeping a close eye on me, I felt like I was suffocating to death.

I set the newly acquired 4-star disaster, the Rock Crusher, as the tower’s sentinel. Should any reckless Awakened who didn’t value their lives attempt to storm this place, the Rock Crusher would serve as the gatekeeper. A 4-star disaster of the earth attribute. While it wasn’t a Named entity, it should have no trouble handling three or four 3-star disasters at once.

“…Actor, praise me more.”

“There, there. You did great. Really.”

In that sense, Mirien’s addition to the base was an enormous gain. She wasn’t particularly suited for direct combat, but she possessed considerable advantages in non-combat areas. Her future contributions were definitely something to look forward to…

“….”

I stopped my train of thought and glanced at the ash-gray-haired saintess smiling sweetly in the distance. Of course, she was staring right back at me.

The two exclamation marks in the status window gave me a pretty clear idea of how Selene was feeling right now. I spoke up, feeling as awkward as a husband caught cheating.

“…Selene, um… you know how it is. Synthesis is Mirien’s specialty, and you have your own other talents, so….”

“Yes. I understand, My Lord. There is no need for you to be considerate. Above all, am I not your ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠adjutant?”

For some reason, Selene put heavy emphasis on the word adjutant.

“…Uh, well.”

When I trailed off, Mirien—who had been quietly watching this little comedy—narrowed her eyes. Then, with a mischievous grin, she plopped herself right onto my lap.

“Actor, I’m confident I could be a great adjutant too. Way better than that dark fox over there. Especially at synthesis—I’m much better at it.”

Maybe because of her small frame, I barely felt her weight. What I did feel, however, was the heavy pressure weighing down on my shoulders. It was the weight of the cold air that had suddenly settled over us.

“Remove that filthy wench from your presence at once, My Lord. The stench of that magic mutt will rub off on you.”

“…No, I mean, even if you tell me to remove her….”

When Selene grew indignant, Mirien twisted her lips and wrapped her arms around my neck. She clung to me like a sloth, her bare thighs clearly visible beneath her skirt, yet she showed no sign of caring. In fact, she might not even possess the emotion known as shame.

“…My Lord?”

“She’s… still a kid. Let’s be understanding.”

“She is not a child. That bitch is a great disaster who massacred tens of millions.”

The glare in her eyes was so fierce that saying, You burned down an entire continent too, felt impossible.

…Extremely fierce.

“A-anyway, let’s discuss our future course of action.”

I barely managed to change the subject.

“As things stand, we can’t exactly head to China right now.”

Learning that Karne’s location was in China was definitely a valuable piece of information. However, going to meet her at this moment was impossible. While the previous performance had secured a promise that the Administration Bureau would not interfere with my actions, they would never allow the country’s sole S-class Awakened to leave for another nation. Especially not when the fourth Rift Eruption was only five days away. No matter how incompetent the South Korean government might be, they would never leave the nation’s greatest military asset unattended.

Besides, even if I met Karne right now, I lacked the power to restrain her. She currently possessed three 4-star disasters. If we included the ones that remained unknown, her forces were likely even more formidable. While my base housed two 5-star disasters and three 4-star ones, Karne’s power was nothing to scoff at either.

In the end, now was the time to build up strength.

“…By the way, Mirien, could you get off me soon?”

“I think I deserve a little more praise. I got you a 4-star disaster, you know. Those aren’t easy to come by. Don’t you agree, Actor? You’re always cheering me on.”

“I know… I know, but….”

Cold sweat trickled down my back. Selene, however, maintained a serene expression and simply gestured with her chin.

“No, it’s quite all right. Please continue what you were doing without minding me, My Lord. Even if you place your hand on that filthy bitch’s thigh and rummage beneath her skirt, I will be fine with it.”

“…Wait, when did I ever do that?”

“You might, wouldn’t you? It’s fine. My Lord has every right to indulge in carnal pleasures.”

Selene spoke with a gentle smile, but I noticed that the holy flames circling her body were burning with even greater ferocity. Mirien, seemingly aware and enjoying the situation, rubbed her cheek against my chest.

Grind.

The sound of teeth grinding reached my ears.

“…You dirty whore.”

In the end, it was Selene who reached her limit first. The Wedge Sword of Hellfire was drawn. It was the usual UFC match.

Five days later.

“Hoo.”

The status window announced the beginning of the fourth Rift Eruption. Just like last time, I climbed to the roof of the Administration Bureau building and surveyed the surroundings. From the massive vortex torn open in the sky, a flood of miscellaneous disasters began pouring out. Most of them were 1-star to 2-star. Unlike last time, there were no particularly outstanding entities. However, their numbers were far greater than during the previous eruption.

Moreover, during the Tower of Rebellion eruption incident, Selene had gone on a rampage, causing the majority of Awakened to lose their own disasters. This eruption was bound to be more difficult than the last one.

What annoyed me most, however, was the handful of uninvited guests stuck to my side.

“Hehehe.”

The woman wearing that idiotic smile—who genuinely looked a bit slow in the head—was B-class Awakened Seo Ye-rin. Along with a few other Awakened, she had been assigned to my squad.

I had clearly told them I didn’t need any assistants, yet the Administration Bureau had attached these people to me under the pretext of providing minimal escort for an S-class Awakened.

Fucking Administration Bureau.

I cursed inwardly. Regardless, Seo Ye-rin approached me and gave a polite bow.

“I heard from Se-na unnie that you saved me. Thank you so much.”

“Ah, um. It really wasn’t a big deal.”

“Can I film this time too?”

“Film?”

She was already holding her phone up.

“Yup. Director Yu Junseo said he’s assigning me as Mr. Nam Juyeon’s personal camerawoman.”

“…Why the hell would he do that?”

“The video views surpassed 100 million. He must have valued that achievement highly.”

“No, that’s not what I’m asking. I’m asking why the Administration Bureau is filming me in the first place.”

“Um… what was it again? Something about… needing to do some media manipulation…?”

That son of a bitch Yu Junseo. I grimaced, but with Seo Ye-rin already holding the camera, there wasn’t much I could do. My face was already out there for the world to see anyway; one more video wouldn’t change anything.

“Just don’t get in my way.”

“Yes! I promise I won’t interfere at all!”

Seo Ye-rin nodded enthusiastically, her face bright with excitement. The phrase flower garden in her head seemed to fit her perfectly. I sighed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and manipulated the status window.

Unlike last time, I now possessed two 4-star disasters. The newly summoned 4-star Rock Crusher was a massive creature comparable in size to the Storm Dragon Tempestra.

“Whoa! So this is the second 4-star of an S-class Awakened that I’ve only heard about!”

Seo Ye-rin, who had already begun filming me with her camera, exclaimed in excitement. In truth, compared to the Sky Dragon Tempestra, the Rock Crusher wasn’t a Named disaster and was therefore relatively weaker. Still, it had its own unique advantages.

Like this, for example.

Rumble—!

The Rock Crusher slammed both of its enormous fists into the ground. Several buildings not designed to withstand earthquakes collapsed, but the destructive power was still tremendous. The miscellaneous disasters nearby were wiped out instantly. A bitter smile formed on my lips as I watched the numerous kill logs pop up in the status window.

Performance is solid, at least.

In Disaster Order, Ground Leveling had been closer to a sealed skill because it was an indiscriminate area-of-effect attack. But now that reality had become the game, it finally had a proper use. In a well-controlled area with no civilians or other Awakened present, a single Earth Crusher could block dozens of disasters at once. In defensive battles like this one, it was an advantage that simply could not be ignored.

“N-no way! Something that would be difficult even for ten Awakened working together… done single-handedly! This is what an S-class looks like!”

Seo Ye-rin added some lengthy commentary, but I did my best to ignore her. It seemed what she was doing was closer to internet broadcasting than simple filming.

Thanks to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the two 4-star disasters doing most of the work, the sector assigned to me had been completely cleared. Until the next wave arrived, we had a brief window of rest.

Seo Ye-rin apparently had no interest in filming me catching my breath, because she tucked her phone away and trotted over to me.

“M-Mr. Nam Juyeon, S-class Awakened, sir! You were amazing as always! Guardian of Seoul! Dragon King! Maestro!”

“….”

It seemed that over-the-top enthusiasm wasn’t just for the broadcast—it was simply how Seo Ye-rin normally spoke.

“…Just call me Juyeon normally. And stop using that ridiculous title, Dragon King.”

“…Ah, but how can I possibly….”

Seo Ye-rin’s cheeks flushed pink as she continued.

“T-then… Mr. Juyeon?”

“Yes.”

“You were incredible! Your second 4-star, the Earth Crusher! Now you can truly be called the world’s greatest Awakened! Even better than those damn Chinese bastards!”

Seo Ye-rin beamed and gave me a thumbs-up. Instead of feeling happy about the praise, I focused on her last remark.

“Chinese bastards? Where did that come from all of a sudden?”

“You didn’t know? China has an S-class Awakened too, equivalent to ours in Korea. That guy also has a 4-star disaster. But our nation’s pride, Mr. Nam Juyeon, went wham! and put him right back in his place!”

Seo Ye-rin gestured wildly with both her hands and feet as she sang my praises, but I only half-listened. Come to think of it, Kang Se-na had mentioned something about China’s S-class Awakened not long ago.

“Miss Seo Ye-rin.”

“Yes!”

My interest had been genuinely piqued. It was because I had heard about Karne from Mirien. In order to meet her, I needed to learn everything I could about the situation in China.

“…Do you happen to know anyone on the Chinese Awakened side?”

“Pardon?”

“It doesn’t have to be an Awakened. The Chinese Awakened Administration Bureau… or wait, do they call it the Public Security Bureau over there? Anyway, if you have any connections to their management organization, could you introduce me?”

“….”

Seo Ye-rin blinked several times. Then her eyes darted around nervously. Her face gradually turned pale, as if she had come to some ridiculous misunderstanding. Finally, her lips parted slowly.

“D….”

“D?”

“Don’t goooo…. What are you trying to do by becoming an honorary Chinese bastard….”

“….”

It seemed Seo Ye-rin was a hardcore nationalist to the bone.