Chapter 84
Chapter 84
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: 28. The Ace Up Our Sleeve (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The semester had finally drawn to a close.
The Lair Administrative Office was in chaos dealing with the aftermath of the year-end event.
They had liaised with governments from various countries, undergone audits from the International Superhuman Alliance, and held a joint funeral for the few deceased cadets and guardians.
Then, through the PR department, they relentlessly publicized their activities. The rift in the ballroom had been an unforeseeable disaster, so Lair's response was akin to boasting, "Look how responsibly we're handling this."
And so, vacation began without a separate ceremony. The PR Team Leader from the Dragon Division had even fretted, "Next year's entrance ceremony might be abbreviated too." Lair's break lasted nearly two months, so a fair number of cadets headed to the surface or back to their home countries.
"Is there anywhere you two want to go?"
"Pardon?"
The domain beast known as a dragon now recognized Room 301 as "home."
Vacation was like a two-month weekend for them.
That day, Yoo Ji-tae took Bom with him to the underground labyrinth.
Even though it was her first time stepping into the Deepest Abyss (S), Bom didn't seem particularly surprised. As always, she walked right beside him with an inscrutable expression.
'Paradise's Light' made baby dragons feel uneasy.
So, a couple of days ago at dawn, Yoo Ji-tae had shelled out a fortune at an underground auction house in Northern Europe for a necklace.
Ugly Truth
This claw-shaped necklace was a Level 2 artifact made of a special metal that allowed the wearer relative freedom from 'Paradise's Light'.
"Put it on."
"Okay."
They entered a private chamber in the underground labyrinth. A massive, towering cylindrical room. In the center stood a giant crystal as tall as an apartment building, the Shard of Paradise, greeting them.
But in the time since he'd last visited, things had changed.
Containers were now lined up in the previously empty space.
— Kee-yoooh!
— Kuhaha!
Strange noises emanated from inside the containers. Screams, perhaps? Or grunts?
What on earth were they doing?
When he cracked open a door, a wave of hot air rushed out. Yoo Ji-tae and Bom cautiously peered through the gap.
Massive men and women were gathered in a circle, working out.
"Haaah!"
A barbell bar, looking to weigh around a ton, bent like a bow as it was lifted.
There were people doing squats and deadlifts too. All of them were radiating heat from their bodies, pushing insane weights.
"......"
Bom looked a bit startled.
"Are those people... exercising...?"
"Seems like it."
Yoo Ji-tae quietly closed the door and scanned the inner area, searching for something.
Then he approached a particularly rowdy container and cracked the door open.
A dozen or so burly men and women were gathered in a circle, cheering something on.
"Push! Push! Push harder!"
"Damn it, don't give up! You can do it! COME ON!"
"That's it! That's it! Go all out! Squeeze it till you snap something!"
"Give it everything you've got since you were sucking on the tit!"
They shook barbells and kettlebells as they hyped things up. It was like an ogre tribe dancing around prey.
And the 'prey' hidden behind their backs was...
"Miss Ha! Let's gooo!"
"Gazuaaa!"
None other than Ha Saet-byeol.
She was straining with a barbell bigger than herself, her face beet red, cheeks puffed out, grimacing fiercely.
"Just a little moreee!"
"Pushhh!"
The giants pumped their fists and roared.
"Kuh-oooohhh!!"
With a monstrous yell, Ha Saet-byeol finally succeeded in pressing the 500kg barbell overhead.
"Wooooah!"
"Damn it, kee-yoot!"
"She did it! She really did it! Wahahaha!"
The giants stomped, shaking the container. One even headbutted the wall in excitement, making the whole thing lurch.
Ha Saet-byeol slumped as she racked the barbell, drenched in sweat. Her dazed gaze turned toward Yoo Ji-tae and Bom.
She waved. The giants' eyes followed.
"Ah! The doc's here!"
"What? Ooh! It's our doctor!"
They came charging with bright faces and booming steps. But each one was so huge, it felt like a herd of cows stampeding.
Bom kept a straight face but subtly stepped behind Yoo Ji-tae as they approached.
"Holy shit!"
"Doctooor!"
Bam! Yoo Ji-tae slammed the door shut. He braced the handle, and bam-bam-bam! The metal door dented with their face imprints bulging out.
Wahahaha! Laughter echoed from inside.
What a mess.
The gym was called Happy-Happy Gym, right? The name fit perfectly.
Anyway, he'd brought Bom in case Ha Saet-byeol was digging tunnels again and needed help.
Surprisingly, she seemed to be doing well. Maybe she had something genuine to look forward to now.
Yoo Ji-tae briefly pulled aside Bell Valian, deputy commander of the 30-man airborne special forces unit.
"Total: 33. Present: 32. One on medical leave. No anomalies."
It was the report from the unusually massive Filipina mestizo soldier.
"...The one on leave?"
"Nurse BM drank from last night till noon and passed out."
Just in case, he checked the workshop door. The floor was littered with vodka bottles, no room to step.
BM was sprawled over a chair.
"Why's she like that."
"Seems she couldn't handle the heartbreak from a failed experiment."
Probably tried fusing the Peacebringer into a chimera for implantation.
"Got it. Need anything?"
"No. Aside from everyone wanting to go home, life here's pretty satisfying."
That was welcome news.
"But, mister."
"Yeah."
"'That one' is here too, right?"
Yoo Ji-tae had been looking for her too.
There was no guardian in the containers.
"If it's the magic armor Armata, she's over that way."
Following Bell Valian, he spotted the guardian hanging laundry in an attached side room.
Clank. Clank.
She carefully handled a giant bra, then an even bigger one, pondered briefly, and started hanging them by size.
"Armata handles all the dishwashing, laundry, cleaning, etc., for the unit."
A washing machine rumbled nearby. Surprisingly, this place had electricity, water, and internet—thanks to BM.
Clank. Thud thud. Clank.
The guardian meticulously shook out the laundry.
Grrrng~♪ Kwagagak~~♪
While humming a tune that sounded like grinding metal.
"Armata's anxiety has decreased a lot lately. She does housework or hangs out with the team. According to the nurse, she's improving the fastest."
"Hm."
"Must be the human difference."
Yoo Ji-tae nodded.
A magic armor would have mana circuits etched inside to induce calm. It made sense for her to recover first.
Soon, he might be able to take the guardian out ahead of schedule.
Lately, Winter had been gradually turning away from Yoo Ji-tae.
Before, she'd get anxious without him and seek him out. Now, she didn't wait by the shoe rack when he went out, nor cling to him blindly when he was nearby.
Still, when playing in the living room, she'd occasionally glance at him for reassurance.
Complete with a beaming smile.
She'd apparently learned humming from Bom lately.
"......♪"
When in a good mood, she'd hum softly. Very quietly, very cautiously—that was Winter's hum.
Peep peep.
"......♪"
Right now, she was humming while chasing the chick.
Gaeul was out on business. The chick patrolled the house once a day, which caught Winter's eye.
Winter toddled after the chick. It went down the hall to the kitchen. Winter followed, circling the kitchen too.
Next was Gaeul's room. The chick entered, checked the dolls' count. Winter followed and stared at the dolls.
Whirr—
Then the robot vacuum started up. The chick bolted under the table. Winter chased hurriedly but misjudged the height, bonking her forehead and tumbling over.
"......"
It was a hard hit. As he checked on her, worried she'd be startled—
Winter rubbed her forehead, then grinned and chased the chick again.
The chick rode the vacuum triumphantly but was eventually caught and petted by Winter.
Peep peep.
'Don't pet the scruff.'
Peep peep!
'The scruff is a male's pride!'
But the chick stayed put, and Winter's favorite spot was the scruff. Under persistent petting, the chick's eyes slowly drooped.
Once asleep, Winter carefully placed it on the sofa. Then she put a finger to her lips toward Yoo Ji-tae—"Shh"—and sneaked over, arms out for a hug.
He picked her up, and the blue-haired child dozed off in his arms.
Her breathing was close: snore, snore.
The chick often vanished when Gaeul was out. It went somewhere and always came back injured. Probably scrapping with cat spirits in the entertainment district. It had gotten better; wounds weren't deep.
The issue was treatment always fell to Bom.
"Hurt again?"
Peep. Peep.
"Why do you think you keep getting hurt?"
Peep-ooooh......
"Think Gaeul would like you getting hurt all the time?"
Peep...!
"I know you only go out and get hurt when she's not here. Think I can keep it secret forever?"
Peep...! Peep peep......!
So that evening, the chick got scolded by Bom.
Straight face. Usual tone. No anger or sternness, yet the chick was super tense, rubbing its forehead on Bom's hem.
"No getting hurt. You'll get in trouble."
Bom gently applied a cotton ball for treatment.
Yoo Ji-tae silently watched the kids. After dealing with Wei Lian and with vacation starting, he truly had nothing pressing.
He just bought and read various education-related books from bookstores.
"Educational psychology? Who are you planning to teach?"
Bom sat next to him on the sofa.
"Figure it'll be needed soon."
But Bom didn't continue.
Yoo Ji-tae turned to her. She stared blankly into space. Seeing providence? She stayed like that awhile, then looked at him with startled eyes.
Was she about to prank him? No.
Bom suddenly checked her watch for something.
"What's up?"
"...Hold on."
A blue internet site appeared. Bom searched something. Her movements seemed urgent, so Yoo Ji-tae fixed his gaze on her hand.
"Not here......"
Bom pulled up a yellow site and typed weird characters.
Wrong again. After pondering, she went to a red site and typed more odd characters.
▶mnppune
What was that?
This site was familiar, though—one of the world's top three video platforms, YuTuV. What was on there? As Yoo Ji-tae watched silently—
A video with the exact search title topped the results.
[mnppune] (Uploaded 1 week ago)
The thumbnail was a mundane photo of a window and wall. But it had decent popularity despite that—high views, lots of comments.
"......"
Bom looked at Yoo Ji-tae with mild surprise.
"What. What's that."
"...Don't get mad."
"Why would I."
"Promise first you won't......"
"I won't."
Yoo Ji-tae replied nonchalantly. Bom played the video.
......
When it ended, Yoo Ji-tae and Bom sat in silence.
"......"
"......"
"...What the hell is this."
"I don't know either......"
"What'd providence show?"
"Can't tell you......"
"Bad?"
"No? Not bad......"
Not bad. Yoo Ji-tae decided to let that worry go for now.
But it was still something that shouldn't have happened—and it had. Grasping the situation came first.
"Play it again."
"Okay."
Room 301 appeared first. Yoo Ji-tae's bedroom and living room. TV. Walls, floor, ceiling—all exposed.
Gaeul's voice rolled throughout. Winter and the chick's faces flashed by. Yoo Ji-tae's back appeared for about a second.
Before ending, Gaeul's face showed briefly too.
Yeah. That was the problem.
Gaeul's face was too close, too clear.
"How many views? If not too many, maybe not a big deal."
'Um......' Bom hesitantly showed the display.
[mnppune] (1 week ago) (Weekly Popular #14)
Views: 292,135
Likes: 8k / Dislikes: 141
Comments: 999+
290k. And it was a popular video.
Not insanely high yet, but concerning. Yoo Ji-tae rubbed his temple.
"...Let's check the comments."