Chapter 120
Chapter 120
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 120
Chapter Title: The Third Mutation
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Armenia looked up at the sky.
The clear California sky had not yet been torn by a rift.
But that too would come soon enough.
“Ultimately, it comes to this.”
She felt a heavy sense of responsibility.
This phenomenon unfolding now ultimately stemmed from her own greed—and that of the dragon.
The dragon had handled most of the work, but in the end, it was her desire that had led her to take root in this world.
If she had truly desired nothing, she never would have put down roots here.
But she had loved Paradise, and that was why... this had happened.
“I must... take responsibility.”
From the moment she took root, she had heard the echoes of countless lives and come to understand Earth and modern civilization.
In the first place, Nia's thirst for smartphones had partly been to grasp modern civilization more easily.
...Of course, her excessive attachment to them went beyond that—it was her little secret.
In any case, since she was living off this world, she had to resolve any misfortunes it caused.
Of course, the lives of Paradise were ultimately the World Tree's to care for—but that was only before the destruction.
The lives scattered after the fall had twisted amid the aftermath, born from warped debris.
Lives composed solely of malice and hostility... such tragic existences.
Even if she intervened, they likely wouldn't regain their original forms.
In that case, all she could do was bring an end to their sorrowful lives.
Having resolved herself, she lowered her gaze from the sky.
* * *
The winds of change were overwhelmingly fierce.
The world felt like it was transforming day by day.
First, the changes to the vegetation were utterly dramatic.
It was good that I'd warned people in advance.
Because...
Among the transformed vegetation were man-eating plants that attacked humans.
The so-called carnivorous plants had twisted bizarrely, mutating into threats capable of ensnaring even people.
But it wasn't just that—the overall scale of the vegetation had grown enormous.
Plants of sizes unseen in Korea sprouted everywhere, and insects and bugs swelled to ridiculous proportions.
Bugs the size of fingernails ballooning to the thickness of a person's arm... it was enough to send chills down the spine just from photos.
Because of that, anywhere with forests had become unlivable for humans.
Yet the Korean Peninsula was fundamentally rugged and mountainous.
People couldn't simply abandon their lifelong homes nestled among the peaks and flee.
And so...
The Management Bureau's top priority became leaving minimal essential personnel to guard urban centers while dealing with the excessively mutated vegetation.
But they couldn't burn it all away.
Some vegetation was beneficial to humans, and environments weren't something you could tamper with lightly.
Experts in all sorts of ecological fields were attached to the bureau, working alongside them to analyze the vegetation and select those with effects helpful to humanity.
And so, right now, we were spending the entire day touring the provinces.
I had no idea how many days it had been since I'd last gone home.
But there was no time for whining like this.
We had to stabilize the regions, even a little, if people were going to survive.
Someone might ask what about the urban centers—if I was circling the outskirts, wouldn't the densely populated cities be left vulnerable?
But...
There was no need to worry about that. We'd stationed our core personnel in the cities.
I glanced at an article that had popped up in the breaking news feed.
[Ha Yeon-hwa protects both property and lives once more...]
[The monsters' natural predator. The figure she showed on that broadcast was just one facet.]
So, basically, it was all articles fawning over how amazing Yeon-hwa unnie was.
The comments below and reactions in online communities weren't much different.
[Yeon-hwa noona is insane for real;;]
There were reasons why the Director said noona was super strong;;
Today something showed up over Seoul skies again, I was getting ready to run when suddenly Yeon-hwa noona dropped from the sky and snapped her fingers—most of the monsters burst open bleeding out dead
The ones that didn't die got skewered by spears made from the dead ones' blood
I could only gape in awe watching;;
-Really the same person who wrecked people in that game?
-If noona was just a little more evil, Korea would've been hell lololol
-For real;;
-Now I get why it's nation-destroying level at a glance
-When monsters humans can't do shit against explode like that, imagine if it was people lol
[Meanwhile, what the Director doing? Let's find out]
Busy normalizing the provinces right now...
Provinces are total madness rn
Real talk, bug bastards sometimes human-sized too;;
-Kiyaaaack
-Fucking horrifying;;
-Even man-eating plants, so they say avoid anywhere with forests unless you have to
[Drove into a locust swarm nearly died]
But then Director showed up and saved us
Locusts arm-thick, no food so swarming like crazy to eat people
For real... don't come to the provinces
Locust swarms straight out of some massive western farmland nightmare going after people
-Joking right;;?
-Proof pic incoming gn
-Ew fuck insane;;;
└Without Director our whole family dead
-Director say anything?
└Said won't go back to city til this fixed... if property damage tell him, even personal funds to help
-Wow;;
[Real talk, overseas that rejected mutants are screwed]
Even army firepower, some monster bastards have such thick armor nukes only thing that works
But nuking risks wrecking the land itself so can't just fire away
-Guns don't work?
-They do but no meaningful damage cuz size lol;;
-Check vids from overseas you'll see
-Bigger than that building-sized one over Seoul last time smashing cities
[Fact: Korea nearly ended up like that]
Think about mutant perception pre-Director, total shitshow—could only get worse not better
Just Minotaur-type mutants, Demon-type mutants alone, without Director damage scale unimaginable?
Mutant perception would've tanked to rock bottom, constant rejection, society hostile to mutants
Then mutants wouldn't step up voluntarily to help like now?
Even offering money, they'd bail overseas or whatever
Like other countries now
Just one Director snowballed Korea into world's safest spot
-For real;;
-Praise... we should?
-Lately whenever something pops up in Seoul mutants show up helping like superhero movie heroes
...Seeing stuff like this was a bit embarrassing.
Still, knowing my efforts to change mutant perceptions and approach people more amiably had borne fruit like this filled me with considerable pride.
If I hadn't stepped forward, if I'd just lived leisurely on my own...
The other mutants probably wouldn't be throwing themselves into danger to save people like that.
No matter how much money you offer, people don't readily stick their necks out when lives are on the line.
Thinking about it that way, didn't I deserve to pat myself on the back a little?
Once Korea's safety was somewhat secured, I might have to tour the world with Han-gyeol.
I'd heard Nia was even mobilizing personnel from the mutant city to rescue people.
The city's mutants had shown some resistance at first, but backed down when Nia took a hard line—Sia had told me.
And Nia had told the mutant city's residents that further mutations to come might produce mutants hostile to other mutants, so to prevent infighting among mutants, they should rack up some favors with the world.
As a result, mutants dispatched from the mutant city were reportedly handling monsters appearing worldwide under Nia's command.
...That said, even with them stepping up, human casualties remained quite severe.
It was only natural. Mutants weren't that numerous worldwide.
Even with the Second Mutation, it wasn't enough.
The environment and vegetation themselves had turned hostile to humanity.
People were even wishing for the Third Mutation to happen.
And as if answering those wishes...
...This morning, a brilliant light had bathed the world.
The Third Mutation had begun in earnest.
And...
I'd received a message from Jin-ha after a long while.
Hearing it, I couldn't help but be swept up in complicated emotions.
“...Seo-ah.”
-Yes, Seo-hyun.
“Got it. I'll head there right away.”
Jin-ha had told me.
Seo-ah, who had been helping with her work lately, had been exposed to the light from the Third Mutation.
In other words, Seo-ah had become a mutant.
* * *
No matter how busy I was, I could spare a moment, so I arrived at the hospital where Seo-ah was admitted.
The doctor I saw after so long looked less than human.
“You must be exhausted.”
“Not as much as you, Director.”
“I don't feel fatigue with this body... Shall I ease yours a bit?”
“...Please do.”
“I heard my little sister was admitted—where is she?”
“This way.”
I saw Seo-ah lying on the hospital bed. And Jin-ha sitting beside her.
“...Ah, Jin-ha.”
“You're here.”
So it had come to this, after all.
Yet my heart was surprisingly calm. Maybe because I knew it wouldn't turn out wrong.
“...Are you all right?”
“A little shaken... but she won't lose herself to the mutation.”
“Yeah, that's Seo-ah for you.”
Seo-ah lay in the hospital room as if dead.
Perhaps because of that, I scrutinized her body here and there.
If I could identify her mutant type, it might help.
But...
Something peculiar caught my eye.
A lotus.
No other traces were visible, but the lotus blooming on the back of her hand stood out strikingly.