Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: ACT.13 A Day's Deal (6)
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The Water Spirit’s eyes widened.
“The Sea Crystal!”
A smirk formed on my lips as I watched the Water Spirit’s expression change.
Just as I thought.
How could she not react? It must be something she desperately wanted.
With that, she could create a pond of pure, clean water.
A pond so vast it would make this place, which was little more than a large puddle, seem insignificant.
It meant she could create a sanctuary for other spirits.
Normally, blooming the Light-Calling Flower Fruit would have consumed a great deal of power, leaving little behind. However, by using the Swelling Ocean Crystal instead, the Silver Sea Crystal retained its full power.
From the Water Spirit’s perspective, there could be no more tempting offer.
“H-How did you…?”
“That’s not important. I’ve already paid you in advance. So, what is it you have to do?”
The Water Spirit fell silent, her gaze shifting between me and the Sea Crystal.
With what she desired most dangled right before her, she wouldn’t want to let it slip away.
Ultimately, she was bound to accept this deal.
“…State what you want. Specifically.”
“Drastically reduce the amount of water in the Seoul area. I don’t mean get rid of it, but it’d be great if you could move it underground, to a level where plants can’t easily absorb it.”
“Doing so could create more sinkholes. That wouldn’t be a good thing for humans, would it?”
“Just for one day. After a day passes, return the water to where it was.”
“That much wouldn’t be difficult.”
The Water Spirit nodded.
With a graceful wave of her hand, I could feel the surrounding water rapidly converging into the ground beneath us.
Within an hour, all the puddles on the surface, the evidence of the flood, would disappear.
It was akin to eliminating the very source that allowed the plant-type monsters to regenerate.
“The deal is struck, then.”
“May I ask just one thing?”
“I don’t really have anything to tell you.”
“You don’t have to answer. Only if you feel so inclined.”
I stopped, just about to turn away, and tilted my head slightly.
The Water Spirit, looking somewhat sorrowful, bit her lip.
She asked in a trembling voice.
“Can you… really defeat that monster?”
So that’s what she wanted to ask.
I had expected some grand question, so I felt a bit let down.
I turned my head back.
“Wrong question.”
“……”
“You shouldn’t ask if I *can* defeat it, but if I *will*.”
If you’re asking about the possibility…
It’s 100%, of course.
***
I returned to the surface by creating footholds of condensed mana.
It must have taken about thirty minutes.
It seemed they had cleared another wave in that time, as people’s faces showed a hint of fatigue.
Still, it wasn’t too severe.
With the addition of a formidable force like Kim Ji-hyeon, the burden on the others had lessened.
I had expected Jo Min-ah to be exhausted from not only dealing with the monsters but also having to burn their corpses, but she looked more energetic than I thought.
“You look better than I expected.”
“Ah, Oppa! That’s because that person helped me.”
“That person?”
I followed Min-ah’s gaze and saw Han Hyeok-jun.
It seemed he had also finished his personal business and returned.
So that leaves Jun Bo-ra and Hwang Chan-jin.
I took care of the Water Spirit, so the only thing left should be the ‘Fragment’.
Surely they didn’t go to handle that alone.
“I’m back!”
Speak of the devil.
Appearing in a flash of teleportation, Jun Bo-ra wiped the sweat from her forehead and let out a sigh.
“What were you up to?”
“You know those guys lurking around the eastern area? I went to cause a little disruption in advance.”
Ah, that.
The eastern region was scattered with small cells of factions that would later become major adversaries.
Hyenas, waiting to pounce the moment our defenses weakened.
A good call.
I smirked and gave her a thumbs-up.
Jun Bo-ra blinked, then grinned and returned the gesture.
“…Weren’t you two strangers last time we met?”
Cha Eun-ha asked, a dubious expression plastered on her face.
Jun Bo-ra and I glanced at each other, and I gave a slight nod.
“We were, right?”
“Then why are you so close? It’s like you’ve known each other for ages. Is she really someone you can trust?”
“Someone I can trust…”
I looked at Jun Bo-ra again.
“What. Why.”
“…I don’t think so.”
“Hey, why not!”
I’m not sure what her definition of ‘trust’ is, but if she means someone I can entrust my back to, then my answer is no.
If she’s asking if I trust her individual abilities, like with Choi Yeon-soo, then the answer is yes.
For now, at least.
“Then why…”
“Because it’s certain that we’re in a cooperative relationship to defeat a common enemy.”
And for the time being, that was enough.
Someone to be wary of was a maverick like Hwang Chan-jin, who eliminated any obstacle in his path. But for someone like Jun Bo-ra, who embraced those around her to move forward together, you could cooperate when needed and ignore her otherwise.
Cha Eun-ha looked confused, as if she didn't quite understand, but she nodded as if to say she wouldn't question my decision further.
“My ears are itching. Were you talking about me?”
Finally, with Hwang Chan-jin’s return, the special detachment was fully assembled.
For the guy with the least to do, he sure came back last.
Feeling a bit resentful, I threw a light-hearted jab with a bit of an edge.
“You’re late. Did you stop to clear a nearby dungeon or something?”
“How did you know?”
Seriously?
“I told you to take care of personal matters or get ready, and you went to farm coins in the meantime? It’s not like you even need them, do you?”
“Having more coins for emergencies means having more ways to respond. That, in itself, is a form of preparation.”
To spew such words with a straight face.
My forehead throbbed for a moment.
If it weren’t for the unique nature of the Disaster of Verdure and the Bet with the Devil, I wouldn't have even bothered asking this guy for his cooperation.
I pressed my temples, trying to swallow my irritation.
“Fine. I’ll explain the special detachment’s plan now. Ah, everyone else, please listen too. We have some time before the next wave.”
At my words, the group that had been standing guard on the wall followed me.
It was important for the key figures to know how the special detachment would operate.
Choi Yeon-soo kept a slight distance, still feeling awkward about mixing with the rest of my party.
That was a problem time would have to solve.
We returned to the city hall building and entered the room with the large map.
With about ten people entering at once, the room that had seemed spacious now felt a little smaller.
“Here, here, and here.”
I quickly marked a few spots on the map.
Placing the pen back, I addressed the others, who were looking at me expectantly.
“In these locations, there are main bodies that spread the spores—minions of the Disaster, so to speak. If we take them out, the spores will stop spreading, the monsters will stop resurrecting like zombies, and people won't get infected.”
This wasn’t like a real-world virus, where a completely sanitized origin point has no connection to other contaminated areas.
Defeat the source, and everything else loses its power and vanishes.
That’s why I said it was far more efficient to quickly take out the main targets instead of dealing with the small fry.
Jeong Ha-yeon asked, looking intrigued.
“How did you know all this…?”
“Do you remember the Rainbow Crown I wore?”
“Oh, I remember. It looked great on you, Se-hyeon-ssi.”
“…Let’s skip the compliments. I acquired a high-grade trait back then. It has a lot of usage restrictions, but as long as the conditions are met, it allows me to detect things I’m looking for over a wide area like this.”
Jun Bo-ra muttered, “Wow…” and shot me a sideways glance.
It was a look of disbelief, as if she was thinking I was good at spinning plausible lies.
“So what’s the plan? One person to each spot to take them out quickly and then regroup?”
“No. We’ll use Jun Bo-ra’s teleport.”
“Me again!?”
“Well, we have to use what we’ve got. We have a great mobility skill like teleportation, and you want us not to use it? I thought you got teleport specifically to make clearing content easier.”
“It’s not like I got this because I wanted to! I originally wanted something else, but the place I started…! Ugh, never mind. Not worth talking about.”
“You talk a big game, but you’ll do it anyway.”
“Want me to teleport you into a cesspool? Huh?”
Ignoring Jun Bo-ra, who was smiling menacingly with a twitching lip, I continued explaining the plan.
Although she fumed about being ignored, she knew the gravity of the situation and quickly quieted down, albeit with some grumbling.
“We will teleport as a group to each location, deal with it swiftly, and return.”
Having Jun Bo-ra ferry us one by one to each location would be an inefficient use of her teleportation.
More importantly, abilities like traits and skills weren’t limitless.
If Jun Bo-ra moved us one by one, considering she’d have to return each time, we might end up having to walk to the Disaster itself, which would be a disaster in its own right.
Therefore, moving as a group to quickly suppress the target and move on to the next was the most efficient method.
“During that time, you all will have to be the core of the base’s defense.”
“Yes, sir!”
Jo Min-woo answered briskly.
Min-ah, whom I had already told would be drafted into the special detachment, looked nervous.
Originally, I had planned to take both of them to fight the Disaster, but with the chapter twisted as it was, that was no longer feasible.
They wouldn’t get as many coins as they would for participating in the Disaster subjugation, but they would still earn a decent amount by taking down a significant number of monsters.
“Jeon Do-jin-nim, Kim Ji-hyeon-nim. I’m counting on you while I’m gone.”
“Leave it to us. Hahaha.”
Jeon Do-jin laughed as usual, baring his teeth.
It was perplexing how much he trusted me, more than I had anticipated, but it wasn’t a bad thing.
Cha Eun-ha still looked displeased.
It wasn't just about Jun Bo-ra; she seemed disappointed about not being part of the special detachment.
“…I’m not sure if you all will be enough. The power I felt from it back then was no joke.”
Kim Ji-hyeon, who had been watching quietly, threw in a comment.
She must have said that because she, too, had felt the Disaster’s power up close.
I replied with a faint smile.
“It’s fine. I’ve found the strategy to beat it.”
“A strategy?”
I didn’t elaborate, just kept smiling, and Kim Ji-hyeon didn’t press further, simply nodding.
I had already cut the flower on its head, baited out its one-time emergency escape pattern, and employed every possible means to weaken it.
I had also prepared solutions for any difficult variables that might arise.
And the most crucial point.
I myself possessed considerable power, unbecoming of this chapter.
It would be stranger to lose. I was more confident than ever before.
I scanned the members of the special detachment.
Their status windows appeared at once in my eyes, enhanced by Extreme Eye.
*Pfft.* A laugh escaped me before I could stop it.
Jo Min-ah, who was beside me, looked up as if asking what was wrong, and I just shook my head as if it was nothing.
Three people with S-rank or higher unique abilities. And two A-ranks.
Even then, Jo Min-ah was slated to awaken to S-rank.
To think I was taking on the first Disaster with such a luxurious party. This was an unprecedented event.
‘No matter what kind of sabotage the devil tries, it won’t work on me.’
Laughing under my breath, I placed a hand on the shoulder of Jun Bo-ra, who was preparing to teleport.