Chapter 162
Chapter 162
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 162
Chapter Title: The Forgotten Survivors of Shikoku
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[Hmm? Contractor? Why that expression? I delivered victory as promised.]
“…No, I just can’t wrap my head around this life of yours…. I mean… you chased after that guy earlier all the way to the abyss and whatnot just to catch one guy, and then you even entrusted your life to the gods? Was it really worth all that?]
[For a knight who made a ‘vow,’ it’s only natural. The story’s a dime a dozen. A ‘knight’ who failed to protect what he swore to failed to protect chases his sworn enemy over mountains, across seas, down to the abyss, makes a pact with the ‘Abyss King’ to become a being of the depths, surpasses even that to contract with the ‘constellations,’ and waits countless ages to reach this point.]
He spoke casually, but to Yoo Seongwon, it was utterly absurd—something he could never accept.
Amazed by Gaulp’s obsession in pursuing that dark army general across eons—something he himself could never do—Yoo Seongwon tossed out another question.
“So, what happens from here on out?”
[Hmm~ Well, for now, I fight under the contractor’s command, and once that’s done, I return to the gods’ records until summoned again by someone else to fight. That’s the pact we made. Anyway, I’m grateful to you, contractor. Thanks to you, I faced my long-awaited sworn enemy.]
“…….”
Even after hearing Gaulp’s tale, Yoo Seongwon’s expression remained uneasy.
He simply couldn’t fathom a fate of wandering eternally as the gods’ pawn, fighting without rest, all for the sake of a single ‘vow.’
So, he decided to let the incomprehensible remain as is and move on.
[1/???]
[???]
“Well, whatever. A win’s a win. Now for the remaining forces… Huh?”
[Grrraaah!]
[Gaaaah!]
[Uwaaaah! Kiiieeee!]
He was about to clean up the remaining evil spirit soldiers now that the general was down, but suddenly, the dark army’s evil spirit soldiers began shattering and vanishing into thin air.
Even the open dungeon sealed shut, leaving Shikoku island emptying out.
Startled, Yoo Seongwon pulled up the map to check the situation and asked Gaulp.
“Gaulp, was that you?”
[No, I received something else. Probably the rule of Constellation ‘66 Heavenly Demons.’ When the commanding general falls, all subordinate units and dungeons vanish? Makes sense—otherwise, it’d be way too overpowered.]
Infinite troops. Not mindless monsters, but warriors each skilled in martial prowess and combat techniques, summonable endlessly in diverse varieties, controllable with tactics and strategy.
Sure, they couldn’t cross the sea—that was just a flaw from being rooted in Japan—but if Constellation ‘66 Heavenly Demons’ had taken hold on the mainland, that wouldn’t have been an issue.
[Well, isn’t this a good thing? Plus, the ones outside the dungeons left behind all these magic stones. Let’s see… Here it comes. Probably went to you too, contractor?]
“Ah, got it.”
[Gaulp, the Abyss Knight, has acquired ‘Hero Grade: Castle Summon’ after defeating the apostle of Constellation ‘66 Heavenly Demons,’ Dark Army General, and being freed from his ‘vow.’]
[(Hero) Castle Summon]
Summons a massive fortress surrounded by walls. Its style, composition, and scale vary based on the summoner’s stats, status, and achievements.
“Ah, that’s the skill those guys were using.”
Yoo Seongwon instantly recognized it as the Dark Army General’s skill and thought it was definitely useful.
A skill to summon a structure that could be placed anywhere was bound to come in handy.
As he mulled it over, a new status window popped up.
[Abyss Knight ‘Gaulp’ wishes to transfer the reward skill ‘Hero Grade: Castle Summon’ to you. Accept?]
“…Hey, why are you giving this to me?”
[Didn’t I promise you victory? Fulfilling my ‘vow’ is reward enough, contractor.]
“No, you earned it.”
[Even if I kept it, once the fighting here ends and I return to the ‘gods’ records,’ it’d vanish. Better you have it.]
Yoo Seongwon quickly grasped the meaning. With no choice, he accepted, acquiring the Castle Summon skill.
Testing it out, a top-down overview appeared like in a game, letting him choose location and layout before executing.
And thanks to his knight trait, the castle took the form of a Western-style fortress.
“Hmm… This’ll be useful. Oh? Sis, when did you get here? What about the fortifications?”
“I came because I was worried about this side. Looks like the fight went well… but now there’s another problem.”
“Problem?”
“There are… people living on this Shikoku island.”
Yoo Seongwon was utterly baffled. Shin Somi began explaining in detail, based on her scouting, in a way he could easily understand.
Starting from the radiation zones, they’d found evidence of dumped waste and garbage—and shocking news that humans hiding here had been surviving off it.
“I checked a few spots… They’re using underground facilities or old shelters as bases.”
“No way the Japanese government didn’t know about this. Why didn’t they rescue them?”
“We’d need to look into that separately. Maybe they left them on purpose, or those people have issues. Could even be scavengers.”
“Haaa~ What a mess.”
Just as Gaulp barely defeated the Dark Army General, a whole new problem awaited.
People living in Shikoku. What circumstances had led them to survive here?
Whether abandoned by the Japanese government or some other reason, first they needed to locate where these people were.
“Haaa~ Once they hear the Dark Army General’s down and the dungeon’s closed, they’ll rush in thinking it’s prime real estate…. Gaulp! Seom-myeol! Krokbane! Akaron! From now on, scour this island as fast as possible and find the human settlements! Bring back their leaders or reps!”
“Understood, Team Leader.”
[As you command.]
“I need to contact the Japanese government and tell them not to land. Good thing all the dungeons vanished, leaving magic stones everywhere! That buys time. And Eldraen! Can you do weather-changing magic too? As a dragon, nothing’s impossible, right?”
[Weather-altering magic is a premium option—costs a fortune. But you can afford it.]
To block drone surveillance, Yoo Seongwon shelled out big for Eldraen to alter the weather.
As she cast the spell, storm clouds gathered, winds howled, and rains lashed down, making drone flight impossible.
Confirming the scene, Yoo Seongwon returned to the transport and issued a one-sided notice to the Japanese government.
“…Anyway, after taking down the Dark Army bastards, magic stones are scattered everywhere. Don’t come until I’ve collected them all. Anyone who shows up gets labeled a scavenger. Over and out! Perfect. And now with the sudden typhoon outside, no drones or planes can fly. Ships’ll take time, and if they try, they get smashed by me…….”
“Now we just talk to the people.”
“By the way, I don’t speak Japanese, so sis, can you translate? Real-time interpreter’s fine, but dialects might cause misunderstandings.”
“Got it.”
Soon after, the knights returned one by one, bringing people dressed like vagrants.
Filthy and ragged, reeking of rot, an elderly man and middle-aged one pointed at Yoo Seongwon and started yelling.
“Naze! Naze… ima……!”
“What’re they saying?”
“Something like ‘Why now of all times?’”
Not knowing Japanese, Yoo Seongwon calmly took their anger.
Even knowing the words, since they weren’t from the Japanese government, he stayed unfazed.
The real shock hit the Shikoku survivors—they were stunned that Koreans had come to rescue them.
“Koreans to save us? How did you even get here?”
“We contracted with the Japanese government to hunt monsters on Shikoku. But why are you all living here?”
“Living? That word’s got issues. We… we were abandoned. Those damn government bastards! We signaled our presence every time planes or ships passed! They treated us like we didn’t exist!”
“Please explain in detail.”
“We’ve been here since before the Awakener incident. Monster outbreaks hit, but Japan-wide chaos let us hold out somehow. The real problem came after. Constellation ‘66 Heavenly Demons’ poured in their Dark Army’s infinite evil spirit soldiers. Too sudden—most couldn’t evacuate to the mainland.”
Those who couldn’t escape kept requesting rescue from the Japanese government, hunkering down in pre-built monster shelters.
Dwindling food and water, roaming evil spirits and monsters. They’d hoped rescue would come, even sending people to the mainland for help.
“But the mainland… the government labeled us scavengers illegally occupying Shikoku. So those who went for rescue died, and they started dumping trash and waste on our precious homeland. No citizens left to protest anyway.”
“Probably to hide the ugly truth. That movie about ‘some family’? Golden Palm at Cannes, yet slammed as fiction by the government and public for showing Japan’s dark side.”
“Yes, exactly.”
The existence of Shikoku citizens—and failing to save them—was an embarrassing truth for those preaching a just, righteous Japanese government.
‘No way a just, great Japan would abandon its people! You must be scavengers! That way, the nation’s honor stays intact! Die for the homeland!’
Labeling them illegal scavenger occupiers let them claim they were just purging evil scavengers.
With no residents to complain, Shikoku became a dumping ground for waste.
“In truth… we’re already treated as non-people. Even if exposed now, we’d be burakumin. Like Fukushima…….”
“No, Kimura-san, even so…….”
“Am I wrong? Look at us! Scavenging trash heaps to survive! Hunting and gathering like primitives! Decades of this!”
Explaining their plight to Yoo Seongwon’s group, Kimura burst into tears, shouting in rage.
Civilized humans, betrayed by the government and society for the sake of ‘face,’ unable even to seek foreign aid—what humiliation.
Yet they’d clung to life for decades, scraping by on garbage and waste.
“Hmm… So, how about Korea? Well, not exactly the Korean government—more like my territory. Think you’d want to go? Include that it’d be better than here, despite some restrictions.”
Having heard them out, Yoo Seongwon scratched his head and asked Shin Somi to relay his offer.
“You serious?”
“…Now that I know, I can’t just leave them. Already abandoned by their government. Guess I’ll take responsibility. Damn ‘chivalry’ says protect the weak anyway. Money? I’ll earn more…….”
“But how to get them to Korea? Not just a few…….”
“Plenty of ways. Pay big for Eldraen’s magic, or other methods. Their choice now. Ask them quick.”
Shin Somi translated Yoo Seongwon’s proposal into Japanese and informed them.
Hearing it, they murmured among themselves, then a middle-aged man named Kimura raised his hand and began speaking to Yoo Seongwon.