Anger
Anger
'Did she mistake Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong for me?'
Thinking that, I looked at the Heavenly Demon once more.
Very deep, jet-black hair and sharp, indifferent eyes.
Her appearance itself was significant, but even just facing her like this made me feel intimidated.
"That bitch is blind."
Suddenly, Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong said that in a tone of disbelief.
"No, hyeong. What do you mean she's blind?"
"She's mistaking me for you."
Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong replied like that and strode outside.
The Heavenly Demon stared blankly at Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong, looking somewhat displeased.
"That frivolous tone. I think I know who you are. Are you the Channel 7 Sub-Manager?"
"Oh. I thought you were clueless, but I guess not?"
Huh?
I felt puzzled after listening to the conversation between the Heavenly Demon and Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong for a moment.
'It seems like they talked to each other separately at some point.'
While I was thinking, the Heavenly Demon scanned Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong from head to toe as if appraising him.
"Indeed. You have the qualifications to talk to Yeo (Me) in such a manner."
"Qualifications... It's been a while since anyone evaluated me."
But the atmosphere between the two was unusual.
Feeling like I shouldn't leave them alone like this, I immediately stepped in.
"Hyeong. Please calm down. And you are the Heavenly Demon-nim, right?"
Perhaps because I stepped in, Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong seemed to calm down for a moment, and the Heavenly Demon also nodded readily and introduced herself.
"That is correct. Yeo (Me) is the leader of the Sun-Moon Divine Cult, the owner of the Ten Thousand Mountains, and the progenitor of all demons."
"......."
What does that mean?
"I asked if you were the Heavenly Demon, so what's with all the blabbering?"
Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong, who was next to me, seemed to think similarly.
Seeing our reaction, the Heavenly Demon frowned slightly.
"Ignorant fools. Yeo (Me) introduced myself kindly, yet you cannot understand."
"Min-ho. Let's dismiss that bitch from being a Sub-Manager. Then she'll disappear from the Meeting Shelter."
"How dare you......!"
When Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong mentioned the Sub-Manager, the Heavenly Demon's expression changed.
She had an expression that clearly showed she was furious, and at the same time, an intangible energy began to take over the area.......
[Meeting Shelter prohibits any acts of aggression.]
The intangible energy that even I could clearly feel vanished in an instant along with the message.
"......."
The Heavenly Demon also seemed inwardly flustered, perhaps not expecting her energy to disappear like this.
'Meeting Shelter. So, because it's a shelter, it prohibits acts of aggression?'
Come to think of it, there was a place called an 'Arena' in this gallery where people could fight each other.
Perhaps it meant that since there was an arena, there was no need to fight in the Meeting Shelter.
"It seems acts of aggression are prohibited in the Meeting Shelter."
"That's a relief."
To that, Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong replied that it was a relief, wondering what he was thinking.
"What do you mean, a relief?"
"I didn't want to hit a 65-year-old grandma."
As soon as the Heavenly Demon heard Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong's answer, she glared fiercely and asked.
"How did you know Yeo (My) age?"
"Why do you need to know?"
As soon as Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong finished speaking, the Heavenly Demon's arm vanished.
I could see that the Heavenly Demon's arm, which had vanished for an instant, had stopped in the middle of attacking Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong.
'......I can't even see the attack.'
My dynamic visual acuity was currently superior to that of an average person.
This was because I had eaten several hearts of the Wraith and possessed the physical abilities of a D-rank Hunter.
'As expected of a transcendent.'
However, it seemed that even that transcendent could not escape the rules of the Meeting Shelter.
"Ha. To dare to interfere with what Yeo (I) am doing twice. Fine! I don't know what kind of power this is, but I will crush that too!"
And the Heavenly Demon exerted her power once more, but.
[Three acts of aggression have been detected.]
[As a warning, access to the Meeting Shelter is prohibited for 24 hours.]
Phat―
Along with the message prohibiting access, the Heavenly Demon's body vanished with a 'phat'.
"......."
"......."
Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong and I stared at the spot where the Heavenly Demon had disappeared for a while.
Then, remembering that the Hero Party was waiting in the labyrinth, I immediately said to Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong.
"Ah, hyeong. I think I need to go back to the labyrinth too. The Hero Party is waiting."
"I should go and bring Yeo-eun here too. After that, I'll look for the furniture you mentioned."
Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong said that and then brought up the topic of dinner.
"Ah. Since we've met like this for the first time in a while, let's have dinner together."
"Dinner?"
Thinking about it, I remembered that Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong had been eating dinner alone until now.
Thinking that it must have been a long time since he ate with someone else, I nodded and accepted.
"That's not hard. Then let's eat together this evening."
"Good. If you can invite the Hero Party, you can."
The Hero Party?
"To enter the Meeting Shelter, they have to be Sub-Managers."
Excluding myself, Elisicia, and Veronica, I would have to make five more people Sub-Managers.
It meant that increasing the number of Sub-Managers would require 500,000 points, which made me worry about it.
'Considering the effects of the Meeting Shelter, it's right to let them all in, but.'
Especially since they said energy recovery doesn't work well in the labyrinth after the 20th floor.
However, the Meeting Shelter increased energy recovery by 100%, so perhaps recovery might be faster than on the surface.
'It's 500,000 points, but is it worth spending?'
500,000 points isn't a small amount, but I thought it might be worth it since it would help with clearing the labyrinth.
"Ah. Does increasing Sub-Managers also cost points?"
"Yes. You can just assume that points are involved whenever you do anything."
"Then let's just eat, the two of us."
Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong said nonchalantly.
"I'll see. It's also a waste to leave the Meeting Shelter's effects unused."
"Sure. Decide comfortably. I'll earn the points for you once I finish a few experiments."
Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong left the Meeting Shelter, leaving behind words that were nothing short of reassuring.
Certainly, if I could enter the Meeting Shelter anytime, anywhere, hunting would speed up.
'Anyway, shall I head out too?'
I opened the gallery window and pressed the [Exit Meeting Shelter] button.
Phat―
Along with that, I returned to the labyrinth, and Elisicia, who had been waiting until now, asked how it was.
"Survivor-nim. How was the place called the Meeting Shelter?"
"Hmm. At first, there was only a wide meadow. But I could add this and that to it."
I told her about the Meeting Shelter one by one.
When I told them about being able to decorate the environment or ecosystem and even the special effects, everyone showed curiosity.
"Special effects?"
Rubyel also asked, seemingly interested in the special effects.
"Yes. I could set this too, but for now, I've set it to 100% recovery increase for stamina, injuries, energy, and fatigue."
"Then that means recovery happens just by being in the Meeting Shelter?"
"That's right. It will probably be faster than recovering in the labyrinth."
The problem was that only I and the Sub-Managers could enter the Meeting Shelter.
However, I thought it wasn't really a problem since that could be solved with points, so I said.
"Anyway, it's a waste to leave the Meeting Shelter as is. So, if you don't mind, why don't you all become Sub-Managers and use the Meeting Shelter?"
At my suggestion, Rubyel tilted her head and asked.
"But do Sub-Managers from other channels come into that Meeting Shelter?"
"Yes. It seems Sub-Managers can enter without restrictions."
"Other Sub-Managers...... I don't know if we'll be able to communicate."
Language?
'Come to think of it.......'
I recalled the Heavenly Demon and Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong from a moment ago.
Seeing that they talked without hesitation even though they were from different channels, it seemed they could communicate.
'It must have been the Meeting Shelter's effect.'
It seemed that in the Meeting Shelter, one could converse even if the languages were different.
"Communication will work. I checked earlier."
"You checked?"
"The Sub-Managers from Channel 1 and Channel 7 came and talked to each other."
However, saying this made me a little worried about the Heavenly Demon.
Since she was banned for 24 hours, I didn't know what she would do when she returned tomorrow.
"Also, we decided to eat dinner together tonight."
"Is it a woman, by any chance?"
"......?"
I didn't know why she asked if it was a woman, but I answered honestly.
"No. It's Yoo Hyun-min-hyeong from Channel 7."
"You said you were going to eat without asking us, so I thought it was a woman."
Rubyel tilted her head, perhaps because her guess was wrong, and said.
Actually, I thought the Heavenly Demon might have been there if she hadn't been banned, but I didn't bother mentioning it.
"Anyway, I'm curious about the Meeting Shelter, so I'm in. Eli, what about you?"
"Hmm. If we rest there, I think it would be safe when camping."
As Elisicia said, since we are moved to an entirely different space, it could be considered safe when camping.
'More than that, does everyone seem to be in favor?'
Seeing the reaction of my companions, I opened the gallery window and decided to increase the number of Channel 2 Sub-Managers.
Channel 3.
Kwaang!―
The leader of the Busan group, Sea Guardian, Jang Seong-ho, slammed the table with a face heavily distorted by anger.
"It's 40 people. 40 of our people were taken out by those bastard looters!"
Jang Seong-ho shouted, looking like he was about to explode at any moment.
One of the group members who had been holding their breath carefully said.
"The thing is, it's not just the looters, but the fact that they are controlling a 4th-stage variant is the big issue."
Usually, zombies, including variant entities, acted solely on instinct without exception.
The only time that wasn't the case was when the Zombie Queen was controlling them, which is why everyone was wary of the Zombie Queen.
"Furthermore, that 4th-stage entity is Deadeye. Even if that guy just snipes, we are overwhelmingly at a disadvantage."
In addition to this, we had to deal with not only Deadeye but also the looters.
"That's why I even bought bullets for you!"
Jang Seong-ho mentioned the bullets obtained through a trade with the Survivor and was outraged once again.
The reason was that he had even armed them with guns when sending the group members out, yet they died regardless.
"Jang Seong-ho-nim. Those guns and bullets......."
"I know. The bastard looters must have taken them."
The looters weren't fools, so there was no reason for them not to take the guns and bullets.
In short, it had become a bit more difficult to subjugate the looters, and at that fact, Jang Seong-ho soon sighed.
"I'm going."
"You yourself are going?"
"I should have gone from the start. Then this kind of damage wouldn't have happened."
"Jang Seong-ho-nim. Please think about it once more."
No matter how strong Jang Seong-ho was, he couldn't ignore the sniping of a 4th-stage variant, Deadeye.
In the first place, a 4th-stage variant itself possessed the power of 10,000 zombies, and among them, Deadeye was a sniper-specialized zombie.
"Even if you do go, it is right to go after preparing thoroughly."
"Preparation?"
Then the group member nodded.
"Yes. Variant entities obey the orders of the looters. So I think it's right to launch a surprise attack at dawn when the looters are asleep."
"How do you know their location?"
"We just need to fly a drone high up and find Deadeye. Then couldn't you, Jang Seong-ho-nim, just blow that area away?"
"......."
Jang Seong-ho heard that and slowly calmed his excitement.
Jang Seong-ho, who possessed S-rank abilities, prided himself on being number one in terms of destructive power.
"Blow that area away, huh......."
"Yes. Also, there won't be any survivors where Deadeye is. The looters wouldn't have left them alone."
"I don't care about that. It's possible tonight, right?"
When Jang Seong-ho asked, the group member bowed their head and answered loyally.
"I will make it happen somehow."
At that answer, Jang Seong-ho nodded silently.
Conversely, the group member who bowed their head smiled secretly, unknown to anyone.