TRPM 217

chapter 217

9:20 PM local time in the U.S.

Director Shin Han-ji and I had arrived at the area we were responsible for.

The operation was set to begin at 9:30, so we were about ten minutes early.

“That doesn’t mean we can start the operation on our own.”

There was no guarantee that everyone else had reached their positions. They were all powerful—either Aura Masters or Archmages—so it was likely they had arrived, but there was always the possibility that someone hadn’t.

“Cadet Han Geon-woo? We still have some time. Shall we talk a little?”

“?”

I sat down in a suitable spot and looked at Director Shin, who had called me over. She seemed to have something she wanted to say, though I had no idea what.

“What would you like to learn when you join the Academy later?”

“…Excuse me?”

What on earth was she talking about?

“You see, Cadet Han Geon-woo, there isn’t much for you to learn from the Academy’s existing courses.”

“Ah….”

Of course. What could I learn at the Academy at my level?

“Cadets Yeon Mi-rae and Arthur at least had the chance to gain something by sparring with their rivals and the Aura Master department head. But for someone at your level, there’s no suitable opponent in the world. So I thought maybe you’d want to try learning something else.”

Director Shin seemed to hope I would gain something from the Academy, at least.

“Something else, you say….”

If anything came to mind immediately, it would be Jujutsu. Seeing the spells cast by Oracle’s Jujutsu practitioners made me realize I still had a long way to go before I could consider myself a true practitioner.

“Jujutsu… That’s fortunate. You can learn that from our Academy’s Jujutsu instructor, the shrine maiden.”

“Yes… well….”

The only issue was the big difference between the Jujutsu I used and what the shrine maiden taught. I used a combination or modification of various global Jujutsu, while she used the uniquely Japanese form of Jujutsu, often referred to as Onmyōdō.

“… I might be able to improve my existing Jujutsu based on what I learn from Onmyōdō, but fundamentally improving my skill… that would be difficult.”

I frowned at the thought, and Director Shin asked further.

“You’re not only going to learn Jujutsu, right? You can learn anything at the Academy.”

“…Then what about magic?”

I took pride in my magical ability, but compared to an Archmage, I still fell short. Naturally—after all, I wasn’t originally a magician.

“Hmm… Shall I teach you magic personally? I’ll create a special class so you can attend with Cadet Lee Ha-eun.”

“Yes. Please do that.”

After that brief conversation, I checked the time.

9:28 PM.

The operation would begin shortly.

“Time to prepare.”

I took out a sphere, and seeing it, Director Shin also prepared her magic.

“Wind magic… It’s not simply a high-powered spell. It’s modified specifically to disperse the smoke from the sphere.”

Right. If it were a high-powered spell, the smoke would be blown away.

“Cadet Han Geon-woo? I’m ready.”

“Yes. I’m ready too.”

I touched the sword at my waist.

It wasn’t the Harmony Divine Sword. That sword was left in the hands of the doll remaining in Korea. The sword at my waist was a gift from Chloe Greenwood in the past.

‘I don’t use it much, but it is still a fine sword.’

I threw the sphere into the air and drew the sword.

Thunk…!

The sword pierced the exact center of the hovering sphere.

Beeeep…!

At the same time, both Director Shin’s and my smartphones signaled: the operation had begun.

Fwhoosh…!

The sphere shattered, releasing thick green smoke.

The smoke was so dense that one couldn’t see an inch ahead. But it quickly thinned.

“It’s spreading properly.”

Director Shin had dispersed the smoke throughout Chicago.

“It will be complete within 30 seconds. Cadet Han Geon-woo, move first.”

I nodded at her words, but didn’t move immediately.

“…Cadet Han Geon-woo?”

She probably meant that I didn’t need an escort and should go destroy the humanoids first. But that wasn’t necessary.

‘That was why I came in my main body in the first place.’

I swung the sword I had drawn to break the sphere.

“…What did you just do?”

Director Shin’s voice trembled as if she got goosebumps upon seeing me. She probably didn’t sense the energy I had while swinging the sword. But…

“Why did the humanoids all fall at once…?”

She must have sensed the humanoids in her detection range collapsing.

“…Ah, this is the one, right? Back then… even before the Artist entered, the hostage-takers either died or fainted….”

“You know well.”

It was the supermarket hostage incident in which my mother was involved. Back then, I had used a technique similar to the one I used now:

Heart Sword (心劍), Heart Equals Kill (心卽殺)

Back then, I had sometimes sent a doll instead of my main body, and my skill level was lower, so I had to rely on verbal magic support. My main body even suffered internal damage from the backlash of the Heart Sword. Now, of course, things were different.

‘I used a lot of internal power, but there’s no backlash.’

Using the Heart Sword on all humanoids across Chicago would still produce backlash, but eliminating all humanoids in my assigned area with a single Heart Sword caused none.

‘Of course, it would be different if they were Awakened beings.’

The humanoids individually weren’t that strong.

“…Good. The smoke has spread throughout Chicago. However, I’m not sure if the aggressiveness of the infected is truly gone.”

“That can be confirmed directly.”

I leapt lightly. Now, all that remained was to rescue survivors, gather the infected who had lost aggression, isolate them, and create a proper cure to heal them.

“(What’s that green mist…?)”
“(Could it be the cure?! No, it doesn’t seem like the infected are being healed….)”
“(Why are the infected and humanoids just standing still after receiving the order!)”
“(…Considering Earth and Mars’ positions, it takes about 20 minutes to transmit information. And the scene on the situation room screen is from 20 minutes ago.)”
“(…Damn…!)”

This conversation took place in Oracle’s situation room.

Watching this, Oracle smiled inwardly.

‘As expected.’

The Artist had gone to the U.S. personally. At that point, the result was practically predetermined.

‘The Artist seems skilled in both alchemy and Jujutsu.’

The zombie virus cure had been created using the organization’s alchemy and Jujutsu. Since the Artist could also use these, mass-producing the cure received from a spy would be easy.

‘I thought the cure would be administered to the infected, so this is slightly unexpected.’

Whatever the green mist was, spreading it throughout Chicago indicated it had an important function—likely more efficient than simply administering the cure. After all, it had been prepared by the Artist.

‘And the humanoids are practically annihilated….’

Oracle saw the strongest individuals from around the world destroying the humanoids and starting to rescue survivors hidden inside buildings.

“(…The military has entered the barrier, apparently bringing equipment to capture the infected.)”
“(…Normally the infected should have received orders by now, but for some reason, they’re ignoring attack commands. Not just that—they aren’t attacking anyone outside the buildings.)”
“(The green mist seems to be the cause.)”

Even the hardliners thought the Chicago zombie crisis would eventually be contained, though they expected it would take months or years.

‘At least a few months, at most several years. That’s what they predicted for suppression and development of the cure.’

Even with a spy escaping with the cure, they wouldn’t have expected such rapid containment.

‘Just two days.’

In reality, the Chicago zombie crisis was contained in just two days—actually, a little over 24 hours.

‘It seems a cure for healing the infected isn’t ready yet, but the one that removes aggression is complete, so the development of the treatment is only a matter of time.’

Oracle stood up.

“(Oracle?)”
“(The result seems decided, so I’m going in to rest.)”
“(Ah, yes. Please rest comfortably.)”

No one in the situation room tried to stop Oracle. Most hardliners Oracle monitored were there, and the rest were probably resting in their rooms.

‘Today, I leave Mars.’

With the hardliners’ attention fully on the Chicago zombie crisis, this was the perfect opportunity.

‘Of course, I’ll take everything I can.’

Oracle gathered untraceable accounts, forged IDs, and useful items, including the device to control a doppelgänger. As the head of the organization, she knew where everything was and moved quickly, unnoticed.

‘Remembering how the spy escaped last time really helped.’

Even though there had been a spy who had escaped from the Mars base before, the hardliners hadn’t set additional security. Whether they hadn’t learned from past experiences or didn’t expect betrayal again was unknown. Oracle boarded the shuttle carefully, ensured no one was inside, and launched it.

Beep…! Beep…!

The launch triggered loud sirens at Oracle’s headquarters. Finally, those inside realized someone had taken the shuttle to Earth without permission. It would take time before they figured out that the person was Oracle herself.

‘…Now that I have no precognition ability, calling myself Oracle feels odd too.’

The woman, formerly Oracle, smiled and headed to Earth, thinking:

‘What should I do now…? Should I build a new force while the organization fights the Artist? Or just hide quietly? Or…?’

Shall I create a variable?