Demolishing Mad Dog
I couldn't take down a major guild like Mad Dog on my own. That's why I needed an accomplice to help turn the place into total chaos. And that accomplice was right now unleashing an overkill barrage on the Mad Dog building with a deafening BOOM!
"...At this rate, she's basically a terrorist, isn't she?"
I hadn't expected her to go so far as to march a monster horde straight into the heart of downtown, even if she was off her rocker.
'Sung Hyun-sook' questions how you're planning to handle the cleanup after making such a huge mess!
"Might as well ask the King of the Wilds to handle the aftermath. It'd be faster."
She'd always been like this, even before my regression. Jin Soo-hyun was a woman who didn't play by the rules of civilized society. Still, she'd draw the line at letting civilian casualties happen.
RUMBLE!
...She would, right?
Just as I was about to step into that cauldron of chaos, Lee Ji-yoon, who'd been out cold, let out a groan and opened her eyes.
"Ugh... ugh..."
Confusion was etched clearly on her pale face. No wonder—her last memory would've cut off at that alley where the Sublime Transcendent had wrecked her.
Her eyelids fluttered as she asked in a hoarse voice, "Wh-where... is this...?"
"Too long to explain. Just rest here for now. I'll call some Association staff."
"W-wait a sec. At least give me the rough... DOOOOT?!"
She spotted Gift sitting demurely beside her and screamed.
...Probably the standard reaction for first-timers seeing Gift.
"Dr-dr-dr-dr-dragon...?!"
- Gyaung?
"Am I dreaming some crazy dog dream right now?!"
Next, she caught sight of the Mad Dog building in the distance, flames roaring up from it, and nearly passed out again.
'Sung Hyun-sook' nods, saying her reactions are more entertaining than expected!
No. If you woke up to a dragon next to you and saw your own guild HQ getting monster-bombed in the distance, anyone would freak out the same way, Mom.
"Even a dog dream couldn't be this ridiculous..."
"Yeah. Might be easier on your mind to just call it that."
"What the hell is even going on right now!?"
She wouldn't calm down without an explanation. Fine. I had something I wanted to ask her anyway.
'Should have about five minutes to spare.'
I gave her the rundown—clear, concise, editing out the sensitive bits where needed.
Once she grasped the situation, Lee Ji-yoon's jaw stayed dropped.
"You're... taking down Mad Dog?"
"Yep. As of today, you're an unaffiliated player."
"......"
"My turn to ask questions now."
It was the same question I'd asked before. I hadn't gotten an answer then, but things were different now.
"Why'd you let Oh Chae-rin push you around like that?"
"......"
"Did you owe her or something?"
"It's not exactly owing a debt..."
The story went all the way back three years.
"So, after your parents died in that outbreak and you were drowning in despair, Oh Chae-rin approached you?"
"Yes. And she made an offer I couldn't refuse."
"An offer you couldn't refuse?"
"...She said if I joined Mad Dog and made her my 'successor,' she'd resurrect my dead parents."
"...Who does she think she is, God?"
"She said that once she became a 'successor,' she'd get a skill from a constellation. And she'd use it to bring my parents back..."
"A skill? What skill?"
"It was definitely called Corpse Revival."
...The skill she'd handed off to the Sublime Transcendent for modification.
Hold on. But the skill description clearly said—
Effect: Revives the dead as ghouls. However, for those who haven't received grace from the skill's original owner, it costs 1 year of lifespan per use.
Yes, it was a skill that revived the dead.
...As mindless husks driven only by slaughter instinct, with rotting, putrid skin.
"Damn... even Satan would have to bow to this."
"Pardon?"
Lee Ji-yoon looked puzzled, like she had no idea what I meant, but I couldn't bring myself to tell her.
So... the "resurrection" promise meant turning them into barely-living ghouls.
She'd exploited this poor girl for three years like a slave.
'Sung Hyun-sook' says she now understands why this girl fell in the first playthrough, unable to hide her disgust.
This... even I'd lose it.
I imagined it for a second. After groveling like a dog for years, finally reuniting with your dead mom and dad—only for two drooling, flesh-falling ghouls to shamble out instead.
That sight. That feeling.
"...My God."
I couldn't handle that. I'd snap and kill everyone; Lee Ji-yoon must've lost her mind and gone on a rampage, but if it were me, I'd shatter right there.
"You..."
My voice came out hoarse without me realizing. I cleared my throat, sorted my thoughts, and spoke calmly.
"Do you still miss your parents...?"
"...How could I not?"
"Then."
I knelt to meet her eye level.
"You still want to make her your 'successor,' right? So you can see your parents again."
"......"
I needed a clear answer here. If my interference changed things, it might trigger her fall all over again.
But,
"No. Not anymore."
The response was unexpected.
"Sticking with that woman—forget resurrecting Mom and Dad, I think Jun-young's in real danger."
"Jun-young... your little brother?"
She nodded, biting her lip.
"You saw it recently. That demon woman tried using him as a hostage to threaten me."
"......"
"That's when I realized. If I keep tangling with her, I'll lose my last remaining sibling too."
Suddenly, I recalled saving her little brother on regression day one. Without me, that kid would've died.
And that was the original first playthrough flow.
'So in the end, she was fated to lose not just her parents, but her brother too.'
In other words, her brother was one of the ones revived as a ghoul via Corpse Revival later on.
Her entire dead family coming back as monsters.
Lee Ji-yoon's voice cracked.
"If... if I lose Jun-young too, then really, really..."
"......"
"I just want out now. I'll keep Mom and Dad in my heart. I've failed Jun-young so much already, being pushed around by that demon woman..."
Constellation 'Sung Hyun-sook' recalls old memories.
- I'm going crazy. Keeps thinking of all the things I couldn't do.
One of Mom's last words, faintly heard as I returned to reality after the Reverse Dungeon, flashed through my mind.
Did people with someone to protect all share this in common? As someone who'd never been a guardian, it was beyond me.
But one thing was clear: Oh Chae-rin was trashier than I'd thought.
"I'll contact the Association. When they get here, head back to the dorms together."
I let out a light sigh and slowly stood, straightening up.
"Go take good care of your brother."
"...You're really going to fight that woman?"
"Of course. But don't get the wrong idea."
I clarified to avoid misunderstanding.
"This isn't just because I heard your story."
Constellation 'Sung Hyun-sook' chuckles subtly at 'our son♡''s dishonest side!
No. Really not.
I just had one more reason to crush Oh Chae-rin now.
"What are you idiots standing around for—block it!"
"We can't handle it alone!"
"Guns aren't doing a damn thing!"
"Then block it with your bodies!"
'Sung Hyun-sook' rubs her chin contentedly, calling it a total shitshow!
Mom's description of it as a shitshow was spot on—maybe even understated.
A monster horde charging relentlessly. Mad Dog's guards staking their lives to defend the HQ. Association staff scrambling to set up barricades. And Jin Soo-hyun leading her thunderbirds, raining lightning down.
A shitshow of shitshows.
"...Whatever else, I do feel kinda bad for the Association folks."
No matter how tough Jin Soo-hyun was, she wouldn't go so far as to drag Association personnel into the crossfire. You could tell from how the monsters subtly avoided them, even amid the rampage.
I'd set this up banking on that trust, but...
"Everyone's suffering because of me when they don't have to."
'Sung Hyun-sook' advises focusing on the goal first and cleanup later!
Right. Spilled milk now.
Under Stealth, I slipped over the barricades.
Where's Gift? Fwoosh. A small leather pouch in my hand held a round, flickering blue flame.
Wolf Fire—Gift's innate skill, turning his whole body into a tiny fireball for a set time. As you can see, zero firepower or heat; just a mobility tool.
Simple didn't mean useless, though.
'Thanks to this, I can infiltrate without drawing eyes.'
No point in Stealth if I dragged a massive dragon along.
As expected, I slipped into the building without issue.
"These bastards made it all the way here!"
"When the hell is Team 2 coming?! Bullets aren't working on these things!"
"Gaaah! My arm!"
The lobby was a whirlwind of monsters and Mad Dog humans tangled in carnage.
Someone's desperate cry about Team 2 stood out—because I wondered the same.
"Speak of the devils."
I grinned at the player group charging through the emergency door.
Up on the second-floor glass railing, a balding middle-aged man bellowed orders at them.
"Stay calm and hold formation in a situation like this! We have to stop them from getting up here!"
The face from Kang Tae-sik's memories. Kwon Yong-hwan, Mad Dog's second attack team leader, A-rank player.
Seemed more competent as a commander than Tae-sik, but...
"Humanity-wise, same trash level."
He knew damn well what was in the basement and still loyally played fetch for Oh Chae-rin. Human garbage. Involved even deeper in "that experiment" than Tae-sik.
'Sung Hyun-sook' burns with rage, telling you to go snap his neck!
"Yes, Mother."
Your filial son obeys today too.
Whoosh! I kicked off the ground and leaped straight to the second-floor railing.
Lucky his archer position kept him solo in the rear, providing cover fire.
"Nice and quiet disposal."
"Wh-what?! Who—Glurk?!"
Crack!
I snapped his neck with both hands. His head spun exactly 180 degrees like measured with a protractor, and his body crumpled.
'Too quick maybe.'
I dusted my hands and activated Ice Mask.
Crackle. The air chilled and condensed; a butterfly mask of thin frost formed in my palm.
I placed it over Kwon Yong-hwan's face, still frozen in shock even in death.
Ice Mask replicates the target's form!
Replication complete!
Previous replication data deleted!
Finally, I peeled the mask off his face and donned it myself?
Crackle. A bone-chilling cold swept over me briefly.
My appearance shifted perfectly into Kwon Yong-hwan's. Fingerprints, irises, voice, even clothes. All of it.
"Gotta clean up the trash properly."
Shff. In response, Pandora's Box devoured his corpse in seconds.
Trash disposal complete.
While the others grappled frantically with the monsters, I took the stairs down to the basement.
"More urgent than Oh Chae-rin—something else needs handling first, right?"
Constellation 'Sung Hyun-sook' strongly agrees with 'our son♡'!
Bam! I kicked the door hard; a dingy warehouse appeared.
Looked like a dusty old storage room at a glance, but now that I'm here, it really sours my mood.
Having seen Kang Tae-sik's memories, I already knew what lurked behind this facade.
'Around here?'
I faced a random-looking wall and spoke in Kwon Yong-hwan's voice—urgent, slightly breathless.
"It's Kwon Yong-hwan! Open this now! The boss ordered a check on the 'samples'!"
A response came from beyond the wall.
<Ah, no one's come to the lab yet. So no worries about the 'samples'—>
"You cheeky bastard. Who asked you? I'll check with my own eyes—open it!"
Short silence, then shimmer... The wall rippled like heat haze, revealing a wide steel door.
Basic illusion skill.
Beep. The doors parted.
"Wh-what the hell's going on upstairs?!"
A heavily bespectacled old man asked in terror, but I ignored him.
"......"
The spacious lab reeked of chemicals. Massive glass tubes lined both sides, filled with monster corpses preserved in formalin.
I ignored the researchers' noisy protests and pushed deeper.
There: several bloodstained operating tables. Far too small for monster bodies.
Constellation 'Sung Hyun-sook' shows clear displeasure!
...Just like in Kang Tae-sik's memory.
Then the old man spat behind me.
"Explain what's happening! We need to know to handle the 'samples' properly—"
Ears ringing, I grabbed his throat.
Squelch!
"G-guhk...! Wh-why...!"
"Shut your yap."
I barely held back, adjusting my grip so he wouldn't die yet.
"Guide me to the samples' room."
Right then.
"Ah, why bully the poor old man?"
A frivolously grating voice came from nearby.
I slowly turned to its owner.
"Sent by my sister? Got it, calm down. Unless you wanna regret it later."
A man shirtless in yellow shorts.
No doubt.
'...Oh Hyuk-cheol.'
Constellation 'Sung Hyun-sook' can't hide her revulsion, radiating killing intent!
That's the guy. Oh Chae-rin's brother, overseer of the kids' secret chamber.
You're done for today.