Sweeping the Sewers with Elites
The hole pierced through my finger by the sewer cleaner had already sealed up in less than a week. Even accounting for half a potion's worth of healing, the recovery speed was ridiculously fast.
Just as I was about to check out, Team Leader Nahee dropped by.
"I'm not team leader for the time being."
"Pardon?"
"I've been reassigned to a new team to prowl the sewers. Remember that gang member we caught? He spilled everything."
Amryu Society.
One of their factions had contracted with the sewer anomalies.
They provided periodic food—corpses—to the sewers, and in exchange for rusting the ladders, the gang members could navigate the sewers safely.
The stranded victims trapped in the sewers and the Response Agency that periodically rescued them? They couldn't escape anyway, so it wasn't their problem.
"Why would they do that?"
"Said they wanted to run drug deals down there. Plus, it was convenient for the gang to dump bodies."
"......"
Instead of the hassle of sealing them in drums and pouring cement, they just dumped them straight into the sewers.
No matter how clever the divers were, could they really strike deals that easily?
"They said there's a separate mother entity that creates the divers? All the divers follow her, of course, and even the gang member we nabbed had received her 'baptism' to roam the sewers safely."
The mother entity. That was the anomaly I needed to capture.
"Where's this mother now?"
"That's what we're gonna find out from here on. We'll clean up the gang remnants inside while we're at it. Wanna join?"
Of course I said yes.
The next morning.
We headed to the same manhole I'd entered the sewers from last time.
'I'll handle meals and meds myself. Just bring your body, Jeongchan. Might be up to a week of scouting, so rest up even if it's short.'
Spending a week with wild divers. The uncaptured ones still lingered in my mind.
"Jeongchan, over here."
Despite wearing a massive backpack that looked ready to burst, Team Leader Nahee didn't seem strained at all. She said it was thanks to extensive enhancement procedures.
"That's a huge bag."
"Packed rations for four people."
Four people. Who was the other teammate?
"Taewon sunbae, right on time."
"Yeah."
A man in a heavy black coat with pomaded hair extended his hand to me.
"Ha Taewon, 7th grade."
7th grade.
The rank held by the Response Agency's prized human butchers. They could survive most anomalous phenomena.
Unlike 9th graders who started at the bottom and became veteran 8th graders through experience, it was incomparable.
How did I know this?
Because while lying in the hospital riddled with holes all over my body, the only info I could glean was useless Response Agency trivia like this.
'Why isn't there some mystical anomaly encyclopedia or something?'
I'd have devoured it if it existed. What a shame.
"12th grade Jeongchan."
Ha Taewon. The name rang a bell.
I remembered. The elevator stairs could be risky, so he climbed the walls like a monster. His actions screamed total weirdo.
"Jeongchan, good to see you up close. I owe you big time. You found the civilian escape route I missed at the community center, and you handled that incident during the 15th-grade exam I oversaw."
He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his sweat.
"Still gives me chills thinking about it. Two examinees nearly died in that exam. Can't afford another demotion. Since I owe you, hit me up if you need a hand anytime."
Unlike the notebook's image, he came off gentlemanly.
"Taewon sunbae's one of the top powerhouses in 7th grade if you just count raw strength."
He looked as reliable as he seemed strong.
"He got demoted from 6th grade for causing too many incidents. Pure skill-wise, he doesn't belong in 7th. It's like an adult competing in high school leagues and taking medals."
"......It was an unavoidable accident."
"Don't buy it, Jeongchan. He says that every time."
"Can we head down first?"
"No. Team leader's not here yet."
Counting just his screw-ups, he deserved 9th grade or lower, but sheer skill kept him at 7th.
We were past the rendezvous time. One more was still missing.
"Late again."
"......"
A man carrying a cross approached from afar, yawning.
"Sorry I'm late, guys~"
Reeked of booze. Must've been drinking all night.
"This the guide who knows the sewer exit?"
"Yep."
Nahee's reply prompted him to greet me.
"5th grade Jang Yoel. Heard you've pulled off some big stuff lately. Nice to work with ya."
My eyes widened at 5th grade.
It was the minimum rank needed to access info on Iseol, the anomaly that wrecked me last time without me landing a hit. Perfect chance to gauge his strength.
Ignoring my stare, Jang Yoel sipped his booze.
"You all know, but Amryu Society scum trapped us. Now we're hitting back. Shall we?"
We knocked on the manhole cover three times, grabbed each other, and descended into the sewers.
My job was spotting anomalies with my own eyes, like the exit ladder last time.
Comparing the map to the local terrain, we were near A sector again. Nothing obviously different.
"Should we methodically sweep A sector first? Hunt anomalies along the way and scout for the mother diver too."
Jang Yoel clapped my shoulder.
"Good eye finding the sector already, but we're not here for a quiet stroll. They'd never pair me and Taewon otherwise."
Jang Yoel slung his massive cross over his shoulder.
"We're here to flip the whole sewer upside down. No need to play nice."
The team's goal was straightforward.
Exterminate every visible anomaly in the sewers, eliminate gang members and the mother. Everyone except me was picked for raw combat prowess.
"Shoot, Taewon."
Ha Taewon drew a gun from his coat and fired at the ceiling. A signal flare of sorts.
Bang-!
He kept firing until the magazine was empty.
Don't people usually fire just once?
I shot him a puzzled look, but he looked satisfied, like one bullet short.
...?
"I just love shooting guns. Ever get that thrill from the rush of firing, Jeongchan?"
"Huh?"
"Guess not..."
I think I get the appeal. Just not that much.
"Thought a guy like you might get it. Shame."
Ha Taewon pulled a shotgun from his coat with a wistful look. He fondled the seams creepily, even licked them.
"That gritty texture's always so alluring......"
He blasted approaching divers one by one.
"Yeehaw!!! Die!!!"
Screaming excitedly was a bonus.
He seemed to get off on the shooting itself.
'What a nutjob.'
Still, kinda refreshing to see someone own their kink so openly.
"He's not right in the head, right Nahee?"
"You're not so different, Jeongchan."
"What? Me, like that perv?"
"......?"
Why's she looking at me like that?
"You licked an anomaly."
"Mommy was pretty."
"......Ah, gotcha."
On the other side, Jang Yoel yawned while swinging his cross. It crumpled divers suits and all. Each casual swing ended three or four. He wasn't even showing a fraction of his power.
As we kept cleaning, every anomaly in the area vanished. We roamed and hunted nonstop.
The forced march without breaks dragged on.
"We gotta wipe out every last anomaly here."
"Reason?"
"Divers follow the mother's orders, right? Cut off her limbs before facing her."
Makes sense.
I logged into the Anomaly Gallery for the first time in ages.
Dozens of posts flooded in. I hunted for ones useful right now.
Mary's Broadcast: Ban Lifted
IP Address Changed
So that's how it is.
Jang Yoel dragged his cross over, approaching.
"Jeongchan, see anything? They say your instincts are sharp."
"Yeah. Shall we head to B-16?"