Chapter 43. The Surviving Governments of Each Nation.
Chapter 43. The Surviving Governments of Each Nation.
The creature was still laughing, as if the whole situation struck it as deeply, absurdly amusing.
"【 Leviathan. Why in the world—and how—did you cross over? 】"
"【 I was not aware you and I were on speaking terms. 】"
Leviathan opened its maw, and a terrifying concentration of mana swirled violently inside before it loosed a breath attack straight at us.
— Kra-KOOOM!!!
With my sword in hand, I moved to cut the breath apart the instant it reached me, but then I considered the people nearby and instead drew a circle with the blade to deflect it into the sky.
— Chaos Sword Technique · Reverse
"【 Just as I suspected. Even a breath attack carrying my full mana cannot make you so much as flinch. How far have you really climbed into the realm of divinity...? 】"
"【 Why exactly did you come to this place? 】"
"【 Very well. I am a dead man regardless. The cowards back on Titan did nothing but wait for you to vanish. And then, when the dimensional rift tore open... 】"
What Leviathan revealed was staggering. The world they glimpsed beyond the rift was a dimension still in its purity, not yet fully stained by mana. Greedy for it, they crossed over to colonize it. What's more, the creature added, a vicious competition to seize it first was already raging on the other side.
"【 Keuheuheu... No matter what schemes you devise here, all of it will be meaningless before the 'Calamity.'... A shame I won't get to see the looks on their faces when they learn of your existence!!! 】"
"【 Which bastards exactly are trying to cross over? 】"
"【 ■■■, ■■■, ■■■... The greedy ones are beyond counting... 】"
'So it was a Covenant of the End...'
For the first time since arriving on Earth, I gripped my sword with both hands and brought it down from top to bottom.
"【 O Calamities of Titan!!! In the end, you will crumble before a Calamity greater still!!! Keuhahaha!!! 】"
— Crack...!
Splitting cleanly from its head down through its tail, Leviathan drew its last breath. I then tossed the corpse into my subspace.
It gnawed at me that I hadn't been able to hear which bastards the creature meant. But the Covenant of the End was an oath on an entirely different dimension from a Word Spirit—a vow staked on one's very Origin. Fortunately, Leviathan's own status was so considerable that, just to utter their names, it had sworn the oath in that limited manner, allowing me to overhear their plan.
Having watched the situation unfold, the Special Forces Commander approached me with a rigid face and spoke.
"Mr. Sihu, unless my eyes deceived me, you appeared to be holding a conversation with that dragon just now... Did I see that correctly? And... what in the world is that incomprehensible strength of yours? No—what are you, really?"
Even he, confronted by a string of incomprehensible events, was rambling nervously as he questioned me.
"Later... when the time is right, I will tell you."
"Yes. Still, I must report this situation to His Excellency exactly as it occurred..."
"Yes, understood."
The Special Forces Commander turned around and announced the end of the situation to his agents. We then returned to the power plant's control room.
"Major General, all creatures have been dealt with. I am officially informing you that the entire situation has been resolved."
The people in the control room hugged one another and gave themselves over to joy.
"If it is not too much trouble, could you accompany us for a short while? His Excellency has mentioned wanting to meet you if the opportunity ever arose..."
"Very well. The power plant isn't exactly lightly defended, and I can spare a little time."
"Understood. I will inform His Excellency of the mission's success, and we will depart immediately."
The Special Forces Commander reported the success of the operation to Yongsan and moved to the soccer field where the helicopter had set down. Chief Petty Officer Lee Geun-cheol, who was waiting there, spoke up.
"Heoheo, it took a little longer than I expected, and I heard a massive rumbling, so I was worried something might have gone wrong."
"The operation was completed successfully. This is Major General Cheon Sihu."
After that brief exchange of introductions, everyone boarded the helicopter and flew toward Yongsan.
* * * * * * * *
Since a preliminary report had already been made, the detailed debriefing was handled later with only the special mission agents reporting in person. Our party, meanwhile, took a separate rest.
And then, having apparently finished his report, the Special Forces Commander approached us separately.
"His Excellency wishes to have a word with you."
'As expected, he must be curious too...'
Our party entered the bunker where the President was located. He was entirely alone. Not only his advisors, but even his Chief of Staff, who was never far from his side, had been dismissed. Once we were inside, the President spoke.
"Judging by your expressions, I can roughly guess why you were summoned. I asked those who assist me to step out for a moment so we could have an important discussion."
The whole group wore faces that said, "So it's come to this," as their eyes shifted back and forth between me and the President.
"So, what exactly are you curious about?"
"I want to know everything: what you discussed with that giant dragon, how communication was even possible. But for now, I am most curious whether you, Cheon Sihu, are on our side—humanity's side, that is."
"If I had to choose a side, I am on humanity's."
"'If you had to choose'... May I ask what you mean by that?"
"It means I have no intention of stepping up and playing humanity's protector or any such nonsense. I also feel no sense of mission about saving the human race."
"I think I'm beginning to get a rough idea of what kind of person you are, Mr. Sihu. In that case, would you perhaps be able to tell me how you communicated with that monster?"
Just as I was about to give him a rough explanation, the old man beside me spoke up first.
"President Min, we'll be the ones to tell you about that."
"As long as I can learn the truth, I don't care whose mouth it comes from."
Watching as they began to talk among themselves, I shut the door and stepped outside. The moment I exited, however, the Special Forces Commander was waiting for me.
"Mr. Sihu, I do not think you are a bad person."
"May I ask why you think that?"
"I'm not pretending to have seen it all just because I've lived a few more years. But having really lived this long, I've gained a sense for sizing people up. And that gut feeling has been a great help to me through countless operations up until now."
I let out a short, dry laugh, said nothing, and walked away with a wave of my hand. After standing outside in a bit of a daze for a while, I saw the President approaching from a distance with his Chief of Staff.
"You've worked hard."
"Heuheu... Are you, as the president of a nation, really so quick to believe such outlandish talk?"
"We're already living in a world with zombies, people who use incomprehensible psychic powers, and even more incomprehensible giant dragons. There's nothing I can't believe at this point."
"You're accepting it faster than I expected."
"One must accept change swiftly and respond faster than anyone else."
"Heh, really..."
"Mr. Sihu, please just... don't change, and stay exactly where you are."
"At my age, even trying to change is just a bother."
"Heoheo, you look like a man in your twenties, yet to hear you've lived a span of time beyond anything I can compare to is simply unbelievable. By the way, I also heard that the skeleton gentleman is with you."
Since he already knew everything, I simply called for Terion. At once, Terion dropped his concealment and appeared before the President.
"Oh, are you the king of this country? A pleasure to meet you. I am Ramorcas Therion."
"Well... I'm not a king, but I am pleased to meet you regardless, Your Majesty. I am Min Seok-woo, the President of the Republic of Korea."
"Hmm? If you represent the country, does that not make you its king? Although, from what I've heard, you do not sound like an emperor..."
"Haha, I merely represent the nation; I do not rule or govern it."
Perhaps because Terion was himself a king who had once represented a nation, the two of them fell into a conversation about the politics of their respective countries. Terion was fascinated by the concept of electing a national representative through a vote.
"Ohoh...? Not just the representative, but even what you call 'assembly members'—the king's subordinates—are chosen by vote... How fascinating."
"In fact, our country was a monarchy with a king governing directly until just over a hundred years ago."
As the conversation seemed to be dragging on, I subtly inserted myself to bring it to a halt.
"By the way, isn't there still the power plant in the Busan area remaining?"
"Ah, my apologies. I got so caught up in talking with a fellow politician that I lost track of things. That's correct. The one in the Busan area still remains."
"This time, I plan to load up a little more fuel and make one round trip covering both."
"Yes. Since an incident like this last one occurred, we questioned the power plant side about even the most trivial details. We've heard they are isolated by ordinary zombies, with no special variants."
"Good. Then we'll depart as soon as the helicopter's maintenance is finished this time as well."
* * * * * * * *
And so, with quite a bit of time having passed, every power plant was successfully secured and prepared for restart. The group over in Gimpo was also progressing steadily with their farming, without any particular issues. The livestock, too, were all growing well without problems. Then, contact came from the President.
"Have you been well? It feels as though it's been nearly a week since we last spoke."
"Yes. I was just about thinking it was time to head over to the U.S. military base in Pyeongtaek soon."
"Do you recall me saying before that I would try to contact other nearby countries?"
"Yes. Is that why you're bringing it up now?"
"That's correct. It seems the governments of the United States, Japan, China, Russia, and the major powers of Europe are all functioning to a certain degree. Among them, the United States is reportedly recovering the fastest. I heard that after the outbreak, they gathered civilians and organized militias, and they are currently retaking territory at a rapid pace."
"I doubt you contacted me only to pass on that news, though."
"Yes. The truth is, it seems U.S. forces are still stationed in Pyeongtaek."
"Which means?"
"After observing how smoothly we've restored military bases and power plants, they have requested our help."