Chapter 50
Chapter 50
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Neutral Zone
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I finally made it home after a series of ups and downs.
There had been police investigations, interviews with reporters, and all sorts of other things.
My mental energy was completely drained, so the moment I arrived, I collapsed onto my bed and turned on my smartphone.
Isia-(2)
Lee Sang-hyun-(1)
Messages had come in from my club members.
I hesitated a bit before clicking on them.
‘I feel kinda bad since they got suspended because of me.’
I opened Lee Sang-hyun’s first.
[Hey Noda, don’t worry about the suspension. It’s actually great for my resume. Gonna put this on my self-intro lol]
Fortunately, Lee Sang-hyun seemed to be taking it positively.
I opened Isia’s messages next.
[You okay?]
[You’re not mad, right? I had no idea there was a school rule like that for going into a dungeon ㅠ_ㅠ]
If anything, Isia seemed worried that *I* might be upset.
There wasn’t a hint of resentment from her.
‘Well, Lee Sang-hyun’s right, I guess.’
Dungeon clear experience was a better spec to tout to management agencies than perfect attendance.
I’d handed them no-risk specs like that, so if anything, they should be grateful to me.
When I replied that I was fine, Isia perked up and changed the subject.
<Photo>
[Check this out. It’s me transformed with the Transformation Belt. What do you think?]
Transformation Belt.
It was a belt made by some alien scientist that let you transform into a machine hero or something.
Unfortunately, it had a weird restriction—“Imperial Grade-1 Engineer”—so I couldn’t use it.
Now, no one could use it.
My guess was because the empire in question was a fallen alien civilization.
So I gave it to Isia.
Thanks to her “God of Mechanisms” skill, she could ignore the restrictions and use the belt.
‘Talk about a cheat skill.’
Using the belt covered your body in something like metal powder, forming a sort of suit.
It was like that suit from the movies, aO Iron Man or whatever, but spikier like my knight armor—more focused on looking cool(?).
I clicked on the photo Isia sent.
She was posing in a weird stance, transformed into the mechanical hero “Gareas.”
The “Gareas Suit” looked pretty badass on her.
[What’s with that pose?]
[Um… ever heard of tokusatsu? It’s the pose the protagonist does in one of those,,]
‘What the heck is tokusatsu?’
I asked what it was, but Isia just brushed it off vaguely.
She didn’t seem interested in explaining further.
After clearing out my unread messages, I grabbed just my Subspace Pouch and left the house.
‘Hermit’s Leather,’ ‘Dragon Flame Sword.’
Now the Subspace Pouch could hold all my items.
I used Polymorph a short distance away and equipped my gear.
My body felt incredibly light.
I could really feel how much stronger I’d gotten.
“Status Window.”
------------[Status Window]------------
◈ Name
null
◈ Stats
[Strength 200 A](+1100)
[Agility 841 B](+1300)
[Intelligence 291 C](+800)
[Luck 277 F](+1000)
[Overall C]
◈ Skills
[Inheritance 915 A]
[Dragon Heart --- A]
[Telekinesis 711 C]
[Magic Engraving --- B]
[Polymorph --- S]
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This was my maximum power.
Strength S-Rank, Agility S-Rank, Intelligence B-Rank, Luck E-Rank.
Sure, some of it was gear-boosted, but this level would earn top treatment anywhere.
‘Still, a real S-Rank would be tough.’
S-Rank Awakeners had pure stats at S-Rank, but effective stats SS-Rank or higher.
They’d raided dungeons for years and amassed tons of items.
Gear boosts weren’t my exclusive privilege.
I closed the Status Window and started walking.
I had to rescue two kids.
Their names were ‘Alpha’ and ‘Omega.’
There had been more originally, but they died during experiments, apparently.
They were ‘designer babies’ created through genetic manipulation.
Made by cramming in as many genetic traits as possible from Awakeners with strong abilities.
Their efforts had panned out, in the end.
Spoiler for the late game, but awakening wasn’t random—you had to meet specific conditions.
Anyway, those kids were probably in some secret lab right now, being experimented on and growing to hate humanity.
Later on, they’d emerge as major villains, raze an entire city, and flee to China.
If I rescued them now, a bit early in the timeline, things might turn out differently.
The problem was I didn’t know where that damn secret lab was.
I had a rough idea, though.
A place called the ‘yacht party.’
A secret gathering spot for Awakeners.
Deals in info trading, weapons or drug smuggling, contract killings—you name it.
I headed to Incheon Port.
A cruise ship hosting a yacht party at night…
They didn’t sell tickets openly.
But I knew how to get in.
There was a main story where you raided the yacht party.
It was through NFTs.
They used NFTs as tickets, spreading the word mouth-to-mouth that they were entry passes.
An image with a Star of David inside a Taiji symbol.
Price: 20 million won.
I bought the NFT on a crypto exchange.
At the pier, I approached shady-looking guys and showed them the NFT.
Struck out twice, hit on the third.
“D-Dark Knight?”
“I want to go to the yacht party.”
“How can we trust you and let you in?!”
He reached for his radio to call for backup.
I grabbed his throat and pressed the Dragon Flame Sword against it.
“I have an invitation… so I’m a guest too.”
“Urk.”
“I paid good money for this. You can’t skimp on the guest treatment.”
-What’s going on! What is it!
Someone’s voice came from the radio.
Probably the backup he was calling.
“Tell them. I’m a guest.”
He nodded frantically, terrified.
I let him go for now.
“D-Dark Knight has an invitation…!”
-What? Dark Knight? The one I know?
“Y-Yes!”
-This crazy…! Chairman!
Clatter.
Sounds of someone running off somewhere.
Soon, a woman’s voice came over the radio.
-Hi there? Dark Knight. I’m the owner of this ship, ‘Red Rakshasa.’ You want to come to the party?
“That’s right.”
-Why? Don’t tell me you’re here to catch villains…
“No. I want to buy some info.”
-Info? You got the cash?
I opened the bag I’d brought and showed it to the lackey.
“It’s full of cash!”
-Good. I’ll allow your entry on the condition you don’t cause trouble. Stir any up, and I’ll kill you myself.
“…….”
Red Rakshasa was a red-haired woman in her forties, a former S-Rank hunter.
She had a fiery temper and had killed anyone who crossed her.
Normally, she’d be branded a villain, but she was too strong to make an enemy of, and with humanity’s survival on the line back then, everyone got amnesty.
‘Mask Rider’ starting hero activities and founding the association was to prevent more cases like Red Rakshasa.
After retiring from hunting, she couldn’t kick her habits and became a big shot in the underworld.
Her business was creating a neutral zone.
Anyone could come, but fighting was banned.
Even those with grudges couldn’t fight on her ship.
Because S-Rank Red Rakshasa guaranteed no fights.
Soon enough, her cruise became a true neutral zone.
A paradise for villains and info brokers.
Weapons and drug deals were common too.
“Give me your hand.”
The lackey put a bracelet on my wrist.
“What’s this?”
“It’s what all partygoers wear. Cause trouble over there, and it blows up. Even you won’t mess around with big sis S-Rank watching.”
“How do I know you won’t just detonate it?”
“No one’s ever had it happen. Our business would’ve tanked if so.”
I nodded.
In the yacht party raid story, I’d worn one too.
Everyone did.
Click.
The bracelet locked on—I couldn’t remove it myself.
Emboldened, the lackey swaggered as he led me to a small speedboat.
We took it out to the cruise ship.
Even if the bracelet blew, it wouldn’t matter.
I could just Mist Form out.
The cruise off the coast.
Draped in dazzling lights, it gave off a fantastical vibe.
The closer we got, the louder the racket.
And so, I joined the yacht party.