Episode 94 – Predation and Evolution (4)
“Still, I know where the cause is.”
I put on my hermit’s cloak and went out in the darkness of late night.
Lee So-yeon said that the higher-ups, that is, the government of this country, are trying to control information. Strictly speaking, it’s not about control, but rather that they don’t know what it is and don’t know what to do.
However, despite efforts to control it, information was already leaking out. The developed Internet is so scary.
Thanks to this, I was able to find out where the bug that appeared in reality first appeared and head there. Apparently, that is the home of the third user in the country.
The bug, which resembled a huge spider, had already come out of there and disappeared into a nearby mountain, but the monitor that the bug had come out of remained in the house. I was thinking of destroying it first.
‘Or has it already been destroyed?’
According to what we found out, police forces are already controlling the area. If something happened to the monitor that caused the bug, they may have already taken care of it.
“They say the world is falling apart. What is this?”
“I’m not lying because there were deaths, but if this is really a monster, I don’t know why they sent it without even providing equipment. “Shouldn’t the military step in?”
However, when I arrived near the scene and overheard the stories of the police officers I met by chance, I realized that they really knew nothing and were just following orders and standing guard.
“Everyone, stand back! And permission is never given. “Just go back!”
“So reveal the truth! “It’s even more suspicious if you keep it hidden like this!”
It wasn’t just the police. Even though it was late at night, there were quite a few people gathered. Broadcasting station officials, ordinary citizens who came out to watch, people doing personal broadcasts… they were all in a struggle with the police who were trying to control them.
I didn’t understand why they were trying to find out about those horrible monsters, but since they didn’t really know the identity of the bug, it wasn’t actually a strange reaction.
‘That might be better.’
As I remembered the residents fighting for their lives against the bugs, I thought it would be better to just talk like that without knowing anything.
If they really nest in this world and start spewing out in large numbers, there will literally be war. It was hard for me to imagine our military, which I once served in, pouring artillery shells into the cities and villages where we lived.
“Is there really nothing inside?”
“First, let’s check the results for more details…”
Disguising myself with a hermit cloak, I passed the cordon where people and police were gathered and headed toward the half-destroyed house. There, several people were already wearing white protective suits, looking for and investigating something.
“hmm?”
I passed right by one of them and went into the house, but he just tilted his head and didn’t see me.
‘Mr. Kim Soo-man. I was an ordinary office worker. like me.’
Of course, the house is in shambles as a huge monster runs rampant. Standing there in the living room, I looked at family photos in broken frames.
The victim was Kim Soo-man, a man in his 40s. He was just an ordinary person.
“Is there really nothing in the room?”
“You say there isn’t any? “Just broken things.”
When I headed to a large room that appeared to be the master bedroom, I saw an inspector examining something even though there were blood stains there. Of course he ignored me, but this time I couldn’t give him any attention either.
[Activation 70%. Would you like to close the crack?]
Letters are floating in the air. Right above the turned off monitor on the floor. This was a text that I only saw on the desktop. I don’t know if it’s because it hasn’t been fully activated yet, but it doesn’t seem to be visible to other people.
But I don’t have a mouse in my hand right now. They said you couldn’t right-click and choose the option to close.
In this situation, I sensed something and bit my lip and twitched my hands. There was only one thing I could do now.
“Ugh, it’s cold. Why are you suddenly like this… hey!”
I made a decision and summoned the item I acquired today, Frost Attitude. My concealment was released as soon as a huge sword filled with cold that chilled my soul beyond my bones appeared in my hand.
At the same time, the inspector who noticed my presence screamed, struggled, and fell on his butt.
‘Get lost.’
Gritting my teeth, I ignored the person and swung the attitude in my hand. With the intense cold storm that burst out, the crack was unable to overcome my strength and was completely destroyed.
“Hey, what’s going on!”
“Emergencies! “Support bar…uhm.”
When the crack closed and I went into hiding again, police officers with guns came running from outside. I pushed them away in panic and came out.
It’s not over yet. I blocked the hole they crawled out of, but I need to kill them before they crawl out and create a new hole or nest.
***
“You tell me honestly. “What do you know?”
“I never lied. You said you were going to start a new job. “It’s just related to that.”
“you…”
“Get out of the way for now. “I don’t have time to explain to you now.”
Lee So-yeon left the house with a pale face, pushing away her older brother who ran towards her. When he went to the scene and closed the crack from which the bug had protruded.
She got into the car, started the engine, and was heading somewhere.
‘I have to do it too.’
She grabbed the steering wheel and glanced at the passenger seat. Sitting quietly in the passenger seat was a walking stick with a jewel on the tip. It was a magical in-game item obtained as a reward a few days ago.
She was conflicted after hearing the news of the bugs’ appearance, but quickly made up her mind. He thought that now that he had the power, he should step forward and kill those monsters.
Even though people had already died due to bugs, she willingly thought it was her duty.
“Is it over there?”
And another reason why she stepped forward with confidence was because the power she had now gained gave her a hint to pinpoint the location of the bugs.
Arriving near the mountain where bugs were known to have fled, she held the staff in her hand and concentrated on the power she felt within it.
The wave of mana that spreads subtly locates the bugs and gives a hint to the weak senses.
‘It’s not that far. I heard that nearby police officers are also sending troops to investigate, so if all goes well…’
From Noble mtl dot com
Holding the staff tightly in her arms with trembling hands, she carefully began to climb the mountain in the dark of night.
The basis of this reckless decision was a sense of duty that was developed by seeing the residents fighting enemies and growing on the desktop.
“!!!”
But things in this world don’t always go as planned.
Her frozen body could only twitch as she heard a creepy sound coming from the dark front.
Multiple eyes sparkling in the dark. A huge spider with a black carapace covering its entire body exposed its poisonous fangs and approached its prey.
“calm down. you can do it.”
She spoke to herself and managed to shake off her fear, raised her staff and cast a spell. A flash of lightning flashed in the dark space for a moment and struck the spider’s body.
As if there was a blow, the approaching giant spider waved its scorched face and struggled with its legs.
“Two, two!?”
The problem was that there was not just one enemy. Smiling faintly, she was about to attempt a second attack, but was astonished to see a spider waiting on a tree and attacking her with a net made of spider webs.
I tried to resist, but my already restrained body did not move.
‘dead. ‘I was arrogant.’
I moved too hastily. In that split second, she turned pale and closed her eyes tightly. I realized that I was mistaken because I was watching the residents fighting against enemies in the game.
Unlike the residents, she lived as an ordinary modern woman, so her ability to respond to dramatic situations was bound to be poor.
“Kiik!”
But then. Just before the enemy’s fangs pierced her body, something ran towards her at high speed and swung its sword.
“ah…”
Lee So-yeon was slightly amazed at the cold wind that blew in. The spider’s head, which had not noticed the opponent wearing a hermit’s cloak, froze, split in half, and shattered.
In the process, the hem of the dark black cloak was fluttering wildly due to the strong shock waves and strong wind.
“I should have contacted you and moved.”
As Berg’s body fell, he frowned and looked down at her and opened his mouth. Because the hood had already been removed, Lee So-yeon was fascinated to see his face that had been hidden for so long.
“I tried…but there was no answer…”
“There are people right around the corner. “Let’s get out of here for now.”
He killed the enemy who was still in an electric shock by swinging his sword and killed her by forcing her to open her mouth.
As expected, as he said, armed police officers shouting urgently rushed into the seat with guns pointed at him.
“The cracks they came from have been dealt with. “It doesn’t look like they’ve built a nest, so this will probably be the end of it.”
“Ma, is it okay to talk?”
“It’s a pretty good item.”
With no way to escape, he pulled her into his cloak and spoke calmly as he listened to the others’ horrified voices as they saw Bug’s body turning to dust and disappearing.
Anyway, if you operate it while wearing a cloak, you can erase its presence and appearance. It’s impossible for the general public to know something that even bugs don’t know about.
“I thought I had to fight. As if the residents were fighting on screen…”
“I think so too, but more details later.”
If I move too hastily, will my cloak come off? They waited for the police officers searching the area to move away and moved little by little down the mountain.
In the end, we were able to have a proper conversation only after getting into Lee So-yeon’s car, which was parked in a deserted place.
“It was expected, right? That someday they will come near where we live. My name is Kim Jun-young. “Now I get to say it.”
Since it has already happened, there is no need to hide it. He sat in the passenger seat, smiled, and said his name.
“Should we reveal our identities to the world first? “What about the things we do even though others can’t see them?”
“Things have exploded like this, but I think there will probably be people who take the lead in the near future. “There is no need for us to reveal our status to the general public.”
Both of them thought deeply about what would happen in the future. Lee So-yeon was willing to step forward if necessary, but due to her personality, she wanted to avoid attention as much as possible, so she expected that if she just waited a little, things would take care of themselves.
And that prediction was proven correct as soon as the sun came up.