Chapter 97
Chapter 97
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 97
Chapter Title: Titan's Memory
-----------------------------------------------------------------
In a spacious area that resembled a martial arts gym, Yoo Sora and I dashed around at breakneck speed.
"Keep your eyes on my chest area and watch my overall movements."
"Haa… haa… Got it!"
She jabbed a syringe into her forearm, then charged at me with her swollen muscles.
The explosive power surging from the drug, like the might of the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.
Whoosh—
Her fist swung through the air, exploding with a sharp *bang!*
I ducked my head to dodge, then hooked her ankle to bring her down.
Thud.
"Haa… haa… I… I can't go on anymore, Cheonjae."
Yoo Sora, drenched in sweat, looked up at me.
"Then take a recovery shot and we'll start over."
"…How long do we have to keep this up?"
"Until you have enough skill to avoid dying. I won't be able to look after you tomorrow."
From here on out, enemies even I would struggle against were coming.
I could barely take care of myself, let alone help others, so she needed to get strong on her own.
Yoo Sora instantly grasped what I meant.
That the fights ahead wouldn't be easy.
We kept sparring until the others returned from their missions.
After half a day, she could read my movements, and she'd mastered syringe usage perfectly.
Running away, like Jeongwoo taught her, was important too, but there would come a time when she'd have to survive alone, so combat mattered just as much.
Yoo Sora collapsed backward as if fainting.
Thud.
She was barely hanging on by a thread.
Syringes could restore stamina and health, but mental fatigue lingered.
"St-stop."
"…That's enough for now."
"Hoo… So all the monsters coming from here on out are stronger than you, right?"
I lit a cigarette and answered.
"None of the monsters we'll face now will be weaker than me."
"…"
"If you don't want to die, get stronger. This is the last round you'll survive by relying on someone else's help."
Yoo Sora nodded, then sprang up and asked me.
"What are you going to do once you leave here, Cheonjae?"
"…Huh? What do you mean?"
"What are you planning to do once you're out of the game."
It was a question I'd never even considered.
What would I do outside the game?
Maybe end my long unemployment streak and get a job, I thought.
"You're asking out of the blue, so I don't know. I'll figure it out after I get out. Anything's gotta be better than this place."
"…I see."
Yoo Sora wore an enigmatic expression. A smile that was neither happy nor sad, just awkward.
*What the hell is this woman thinking?*
* * * * *
Jo Younggi and Kim Yeonhui returned.
They'd found residents hiding in the underground sewers.
[Current surviving residents: 307]
Good.
With the cumulative total over three hundred now.
If we could just protect the ones we'd rescued, we could safely end this round.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of hammering echoed.
Kim Seung-hyun's father, back with Michael, was diligently repairing dented parts back to their original shape.
Everything was proceeding according to plan.
Unsettlingly so.
"…Jeongwoo, how's the defense setup?"
"All good. Come to think of it, you could've just left it to Eidos. Why'd you make me check?"
"Better to see it with your own eyes. Machines have limits."
"…This isn't our world anymore. Machines are smarter here."
"True, but being smart doesn't mean they handle things reliably."
Jeongwoo playfully punched my shoulder. It was a line he always said to me.
Ma Jeongwoo.
I'd heard since we were kids that he wasn't the sharpest, but he always got the job done right. That probably stuck with me.
"Cheonjae. When does the main event start?"
"7 a.m. if it's on schedule. But since the story flow changed, it might come earlier."
"…We've got time. Then in the meantime—"
Boom!
The ground suddenly shook.
A glass on the table fell and shattered.
Kim Yeonhui lost her balance, flailing as she leaned toward me.
I reflexively shoved her away.
Thud!
"Ow! You crazy bastard!"
"Ah, sorry. Wasn't on purpose."
"Ugh… My ass."
Ma Jeongwoo gave me a knowing look.
"Kim Cheonjae, don't tell me this is…"
"Yeah. Eidos, move all robot units near the tower and wake everyone inside."
['Eidos' relays Kim Cheonjae's command.]
[All robot units in Mechania are gathering around the tower.]
[Warning sirens will sound to wake all residents and soldiers.]
—Wheeeeeen!!!
We looked out the window.
Far off, a horde of giants was approaching.
I figured around a hundred.
"Hey, Kim Cheonjae… We're screwed, aren't we?"
More like a thousand.
"…Run?"
"Let's bail. No way we win this."
"Okay, everyone abandon combat prep and get ready to escape via gates."
['Eidos' says all gates are sealed.]
Everyone's faces hardened.
I muttered grimly to myself.
"Gates are sealed?"
The giants' roars echoed from outside the tower. Their momentum was so intense the shaking didn't stop.
Even the weakest giant had taken all of us to take down one.
And now countless ones were swarming.
[Main event start has disabled gate operations.]
I looked at Ma Jeongwoo.
Ma Jeongwoo looked at Yoo Sora.
Yoo Sora looked at Michael.
Michael looked at Jo Younggi.
Jo Younggi looked at Kim Yeonhui.
Kim Yeonhui looked at me.
We all shouted at once.
-Fuck!
[Boss Detected]
[You have encountered the main boss of the sixth round.]
[Activating a fragment of memory within 'Titan' to reproduce the story video.]
My body froze.
We exchanged anxious glances. Soon, white mist enveloped us, sending me into Mechania's past.
Like an out-of-body experience, my soul soared through the sky.
Clear blue skies, pristine air free of dust blew over Mechania.
True to its mechanical civilization, devices far superior to anything from my world dotted the city.
Cars flying through the sky.
Octopus robots crawling along building walls, cleaning.
Bird-shaped drones delivering packages.
-Hey! Seung-hyun's dad! Fix our home robot vacuum when you get time!
A middle-aged man repairing a car, sweating profusely, replied.
"Sure, busy today—tomorrow it is!"
They looked happy.
Mechania, the ultra-advanced mechanical city before its fall.
Seung-hyun's father finished the car repair, mounted a spider-like robot, and moved on.
People greeted him everywhere he went. As the city's top mechanic, it was only natural.
*'He could run for president.'*
He arrived at the central tower on his spider robot.
Mechania Control Tower.
Seung-hyun's father dismounted and entered the tower.
Step. Step. Step.
The lobby guide greeted him.
"Oh, hello!"
"Good day. The governor summoned me."
"Ah! The governor's on the 102nd floor, the top level, waiting."
"Can I head up alone?"
"Of course. Kang Daewon is our city's hero."
Kim Seung-hyun's father, Kang Daewon, smirked, pleased.
"Nice of you to say. I'll head to the governor's office then."
Kang Daewon boarded the elevator and told the guide robot.
"Top floor."
-Proceeding to top floor, 102nd level.
With a whir, the elevator shot upward.
Ding!
The doors opened.
The governor, briefed by the guide, waited at the door.
"Kang Daewon!"
"You called, Governor?"
"Aigoo, Daewon, no need for formalities here—just us."
"…Right."
They linked arms and went inside, thick as thieves.
Kang Daewon and Kim Suhyun then chatted about school days exploits and such.
With a drink or two, of course.
Mid-conversation, Kim Suhyun's eyes sharpened.
"Daewon."
"…What?"
"One favor?"
Daewon stared blankly at his glass.
"Let's hear it."
"Make me some combat robots."
"No can do. I've told you before—I don't make robots for fighting."
"Why? You make other weapons fine. Robots are off-limits?"
Daewon eyed Suhyun steadily. Kim Suhyun, uncomfortable, looked away and continued.
"Come on, I'm asking to protect the city. What else would I want them for?"
"Robots are dangerous. In the wrong hands, disaster."
"No one but me will use them."
"You don't know that."
"Ugh… Seriously? You don't trust me?"
"It's not you. It's others I don't trust. Especially that AI system you're working with, Eidos."
A blue hologram of a young woman popped up from the floor.
Eidos.
She beamed at Daewon.
"Why don't you trust me?"
Kang Daewon clicked his tongue and splashed his drink on Eidos.
Splash!
"You're not human."
"…I can think like a human."
"Animals think too."
"My intelligence is different."
"Humans are animals. Saying that pisses me off—like lower intelligence means you're beneath them."
Eidos fell silent.
Kim Suhyun glanced between them and wedged in.
"Alright, alright—let's call it here for today. Save the rest for later."
"Kim Suhyun. If it's about combat robots, don't call me again."
"Aigoo… Fine, I won't! Sorry, man."
Kim Suhyun waved Eidos off.
Eidos sank into the floor.
I thought to myself watching them.
*'Why does Kang Daewon hate Eidos so much…'*
First time seeing dialogue like that.
The scuffle ended, and mist like a closing curtain veiled my eyes.
I closed them, awaiting the next scene.
-Kraaaah!
A monstrous roar made me open them.
"…It's started."
The sky burned.
Demons poured from a gate on the city's far side.
Small demons called imps scampered on all fours toward the city.
Hundreds—no, thousands!
More demons followed, assaulting the city.
Hell's minions obeying Lucifer. The city was razed in moments.
Infantry in high-tech suits fired at the demons, but the numbers were overwhelming.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!
A bean-beetle-like demon leaped through infantry lines. Its hide was too tough for bullets to scratch.
In their midst, it unfurled and spewed poison gas.
-Kieeeek!
Soldiers clutched throats, collapsing in agony.
"Don't retreat!"
A general-like officer hosed flames from a flamethrower.
The beetle melted.
With his shout, fighters appeared, raining shells on ground demons.
Kaboom!
But briefly—hundreds of gargoyles flapped in, spewing fireballs from mouths.
Boom!
Planes started crashing one by one. Missile launchers and tanks tried holding, but pursuing giants swept the ground forces.
Mechania, pinnacle of civilization, teetered toward ruin in a single day.
Whiiiin.
A yellow light fell from the sky.
Boom!
An angel with four wings descended on the city.
*'Michael.'*
He drew a golden sword and flew at the demon horde.
Gargoyles blocked him. No match. He swung at the air, bisecting one that vanished.
As gargoyles fell, a black-skinned man from the horde took flight.
A horned male radiating evil aura. Wingless, yet soaring.
"Long time, Michael."
"…Lucifer. Breach of contract."
"Contract? Never made one with you."
"Didn't you promise God?"
Lucifer shook his head.
"Why honor a promise to God?"
* * * * *
White mist shrouded me.
When I could see again, a battered Michael lay captured by demons in the ruined land.
Lucifer stomped his head, addressing a giant.
"Hey, you. Swallow this guy."
The giant gulped nervously.
"Understood."
Looked like any other giant. But after devouring Michael, it ballooned huge, radiating overwhelming power.
Demons cheered.
The transformed giant roared in ecstasy, unable to believe its strength.
"Kraaaah!! Power…! Such immense power…!!!"
Lucifer smiled at it.
"Your name is Titan. From today, guard this gateway to hell. Absolutely—no one sent by God gets through."
Login: The Apocalypse