A Half-Million Bet on an 80-Billion Dice
A single fighter jet streaked across the sky.
On the surface, it was flying a "reconnaissance mission," heading toward an Abyss gathering point near the human lines.
Watching this, the pilot—Glass—wore a faintly uneasy expression.
Hmm… how should I put this… Operating a single fighter after so long feels like playing a shoot-'em-up. One that starts you with five lives…
Glass skillfully handled the lone aircraft that had been scrambled under the pretext of a trial run. But skill and the feel of the controls aside, she was carrying a considerable burden about the present situation.
Even if the jet had been handed over free of charge, the military was hardly swimming in money—and given the astronomical price of each aircraft, she couldn't help feeling the pressure to deliver results to match. Especially as a mercenary rather than regular military, she couldn't shake the sense of borrowing someone else's property. Throwing it away for nothing was something she absolutely had to avoid.
That said… will this really work out? I can't help feeling uneasy about it.
Though she hadn't handled aircraft much since leaving the service, as a former French Air Force pilot she still took pride in her own abilities. Even so, against the Abysses' insane anti-air fire, even she couldn't push an aircraft's return rate above fifty percent. In other words, she considered herself competent—but not at some transcendent level.
At least since I'm only operating a single craft rather than multiple at once, the survival rate should go up a little… but even so, with no other hunters piloting aircraft and just me out here alone, sixty percent is probably the ceiling…
A sixty-percent return rate meant that with even moderate bad luck, getting shot down was a very real possibility. From that perspective, what Glass was doing right now could be called a reckless act—essentially going out to throw away one expensive aircraft.
But Glass was following these orders without complaint because she had one thing she believed in. The person who had ordered this was none other than Adjutant Lee Jinhyun. Since the directive came from someone who had never once failed, Glass carried out the mission with faith in the order—anxiety aside.
"You'll be entering the Abyss gathering point shortly. Please execute exactly as we practiced several times beforehand."
"Yes, leave it to me, Aide."
She trusted him, and yet something still felt off… It was a situation where "half-convinced" was the perfect description. Glass began focusing every nerve on the feed visible through the camera.
Countless black waves began entering her field of view. The moment she arrived at the Abyss gathering point, Glass's expression shifted into that of a cold, professional soldier.
The situation room at the temporary headquarters.
Ordinarily it was a place where they watched the vast battlefield and issued breathless commands in response to ever-changing conditions. But at this moment, the adjutants gathered there were watching a single fighter jet with a mixture of concern, doubt… and expectation beyond either.
What on earth are they trying to accomplish with just one fighter?
If this were a simple test flight, there'd be no need to go all the way to a place swarming with Abysses, would there?
They seem to be trying to confirm something… but what, exactly?
Taking advantage of a lull on the front lines, the Air Force adjutants who had provided the aircraft were gathered in one place. Right now, they were feeling intense curiosity about what that single fighter would show them—or rather, whether it would even make it back alive.
"Well, since it was Big Sis who asked, I did hand over a solid one… but will it really be okay? Handling anti-air forces is a first for him, after all."
When all was said and done, the 28th Guild that Adjutant Lee Jinhyun had served under was strictly Army. Even if he was an unmatched expert in ground combat, he would have no experience with aerial warfare whatsoever—so they were accounting for a certain degree of clumsiness.
But the person who could be called the mastermind behind this whole affair—Adjutant Song Dana—slowly shook her head at her junior's words and spoke in a firm tone.
"No… I don't think it'll be that easy."
"Pardon?"
Her words carried more conviction than expected. A flicker of curiosity appeared on the other adjutants' faces, and Dana addressed them in a calm voice.
"I saw it. The look on that adjutant's face when he first proposed this. He was a little surprised by the sudden, enormous favor, and he did harbor some suspicion—but there wasn't a trace of being intimidated or finding it difficult. If anything… he looked like someone who'd been waiting for this moment all along."
"Is that so…"
"Hmm… waiting for it, huh…"
"What exactly has he been waiting for?"
"I don't know either. But we'll probably find out soon enough. It might really just be simple reconnaissance, but my gut says it won't play out that simply."
At the words of their senior and de facto leader, Adjutant Dana, the other adjutants' atmosphere began to shift. Dana showed a light smile at the corners of her mouth, and amid that mood, a female adjutant with a somewhat youthful appearance spoke in a voice tinged with interest.
"Um… then, since we're already here, how about we make a bet? Whether that plane comes back in one piece or gets shot down. Half a million won each."
"That sounds fun. I'll bet it goes down. I don't know what they're trying to do, but that place is an Abyss gathering point—not just anywhere. If they're attempting something like Big Sis said, they'll be taking considerable risks, and even if they achieve their objective, getting back will be tough. What about you, Park Haeun?"
"Honestly, I think the same. For a fighter to return, the standard approach would be to avoid contact with the Abysses as much as possible. Even the most skilled pilot would have a hard time dodging that absurd anti-air fire."
"Then… the two of us are betting it doesn't come back… Big Sis, what about you?"
"Hmm… as for me…"
Dana seemed to ponder for a moment. Then, with a smile of anticipation at her lips, she spoke in a calm voice.
"I'll bet… that it comes back."
Countless Abysses thronged densely across the ground far below. They were holding position, waiting for more of their kind to gather before launching an attack, milling about the area as usual.
Then—
"Krrrk?"
An Abyss turned its head at a sudden, raucous noise. There, a metal object flying through the sky was slowly approaching—one of the flying weapons made by humans, possessing considerable speed, and one of those that had long been raining death-fire down upon the Abysses' heads.
Sensing an instinctive aura of death, the Abysses began assuming defensive postures toward the thing in the sky. Middle-class Abysses moved to launch smaller Abysses into the air. Though the altitude was quite high, it was still well within range of the Abysses' anti-air fire.
And so, though not with computer-like precision, they prepared to bring down their target based on the Abysses' unique senses.
A moment later—
"Kyaaaak!!"
With a roar, they launched the small Abysses skyward. Surging upward with terrifying speed and force, each one served as a living biological bullet. If the angle was off, they corrected course on their own by instinct—achieving a level of precision that defied all reason.
Just as they always had, the Abysses launched their attack, certain they could bring down the enemy in the sky. Nearly impossible-to-dodge anti-air fire began pouring concentrated fire on the single fighter jet.
And then…