TRPM 218

chapter 218

All the humanoids had been destroyed, and all the infected had lost their aggression and were wandering aimlessly.

Because of this, the soldiers were putting the infected into metal cages and loading the survivors onto trucks to take them out of the city.

“It’s going to take a while to restore the city.”

There was damage caused by the battles… a considerable number of dead… and the dead infected were also a problem.

Word spread that the infected and humanoids weren’t entering buildings, and some people tried to hunt the infected using this information. As a result…

“… a lot of infected have died.”

Including those who could have been cured.

“…The dead are a problem, but the living are a problem too.”

Most of the survivors were normal people who thanked those who came to help, but a few made the rescue effort feel pointless.

They complained about why it took so long to come rescue them, demanded accountability for their destroyed homes, said they didn’t pay taxes for this, and even threatened that if they contacted someone they knew, the rescuers would lose their heads…

“They had no idea that everyone present were world-class Awakened.”

Fortunately, the Awakened there had come from afar to save the people in Chicago. Their fists didn’t fly at the complaining survivors, but still, it was hard not to feel annoyed. And that…

“(…I’ll apologize on your behalf.)”

For some reason, Morris Reynolds, who had been in Chicago, witnessed this. Morris was Richard, the Association President’s subordinate, though it wasn’t apparent on the surface. It was only a matter of time before this reached President Richard.

It didn’t take much imagination to know what kind of future a foolish person who spoke like that would face. It certainly wouldn’t be a positive one.

“Is this over, then…?”
“Yes. Now all that’s left is curing the infected and restoring the city… The formula for the cure was directly given to President Richard by trainee Han Geon-woo, so he’ll find a capable alchemist to produce the medicine.”

…Though technically, the cure couldn’t be made by alchemy alone.

Still, since President Richard was informed, he would recruit a sorcerer as well.

As Director Shin Han-ji and I were having this conversation, someone sat beside us.

“Ugh… I’m exhausted.”
“Arthur?”

Why are you tired? You’re not even human—you’re a doll.

“Ah… strictly speaking, it’s a lack of mana. By Oracle’s command, I had to destroy all the humanoids before they attacked anyone inside the buildings. I overexerted a bit.”

“How much mana do you have left?”

“If I do nothing else, enough to last about a month.”

A month might seem like a lot, but that assumes no action at all—completely staying still. Even slight movement would reduce that duration quickly.

“Then shouldn’t we return to England quickly?”

Director Shin Han-ji said this with concern, seeing Arthur. Only Rachel, the dollmaker who created him, could supply him with mana.

“Rachel is planning to come to the U.S., so it’s fine. Originally, this wouldn’t have ended so quickly. If Artist hadn’t made the cure, it would have taken at least several weeks or months.”

Ah… The zombie crisis in Chicago was originally planned as a long-term operation. That explains why Rachel was going to come—to maintain a steady mana supply.

“By the way…”

Arthur turned slightly to ask me.

“Artist, I stayed quiet earlier because there were too many eyes around, but… who is that woman who came with you?”

She seemed like an assassin.

“Assassin… Ah, I can see why you’d think that.”

The woman Arthur meant was Sophia, who had flown to the U.S. with me on Fafnir. She had honed her stealth abilities as a spy, so it’s natural that Arthur, with his analytical skills, would perceive her as an assassin.

“She’s a spy that President Richard infiltrated into Oracle. But she overexerted herself to resolve the zombie crisis, got caught, and can no longer act as a spy.”

“To resolve the zombie crisis?”
“Yes. She brought me a sample of Oracle’s zombie virus cure. I merely improved it to create a new cure.”

When we met, she had already lost one arm. That’s what I explained.

“A spy infiltrating Oracle… impressive. But trainee Han Geon-woo?”

Director Shin Han-ji then asked me.

“Why is that young lady staring at us like that?”

…Right. Sophia was observing us from a distance. Given the distance, she probably couldn’t hear our conversation.

“She’s likely looking for an opportunity to speak to me.”

I said this, then took out my smartphone and showed the message from President Richard to both of them.

[(Sorry, but I’d like you to keep Sophia with you. There’s a chance Oracle doesn’t know I’m behind sending her as a spy, and I want to maintain that. She also wants to repay the favor you and Lee Ha-eun did by treating her, so it’s fine to leave minor tasks to her.)]

Outwardly, it seemed President Richard was using me to deceive Oracle, but his true intention was different—he wanted to hide his own wrongdoing.

“…Even in the past, maybe I wouldn’t have known, but now I know Richard isn’t exactly a clean person.”

Of course, it’s possible he genuinely said this to protect Sophia. Richard has plenty to do, from restoring Chicago to investigating companies controlled by doppelgangers, so he can’t personally protect Sophia. That’s likely why he entrusted her to a strong, reliable person like me. Considering he even came to Korea to save Morris, he seems to care about his subordinates, making this scenario plausible.

Either way, there’s no reason to refuse.

Since she’s a capable spy, I planned to both protect her and assign her various tasks.

After reading the message, Arthur asked me:

“…Then why is she just observing from afar instead of coming here?”
“Well, maybe she wants to wait until it’s just the two of us before speaking to me…”

…Or perhaps President Richard ordered her to monitor me. If so, I wouldn’t ignore it.

“By the way…”

Although the zombie crisis cleanup wasn’t fully finished, it didn’t require powerful figures like Aura Masters or Archmages. President Richard had also promised to personally compensate those who helped, so we could leave.

However, I’ve used a lot of internal energy for the mental checks, so returning now might be a bit…

Fafnir’s speed was fast because it had been flying while receiving my internal energy. Without that, it would have been slower or recalled midway. Considering the remaining internal energy, returning to Korea isn’t a problem, but I plan to do some energy cultivation here first for a relaxed journey back.

Of course, I need a closed space to do so safely in case someone interferes.

After watching the soldiers handling the aftermath of the zombie crisis for a while, I could rest and rent a tent or similar.

“Oh, looks like Core Earth is here too.”
“What?”

Director Shin Han-ji said this, and I jumped up to see where she was pointing. Arthur and Shin Han-ji seemed surprised, but that wasn’t the main point.

“It really is Core Earth?”

Trucks with Core Earth logos were entering Chicago. Most of the staff had been replaced by Oracle doppelgangers. It seemed they came under the pretext of transporting infected, survivors, and destroyed humanoids.

“…What is Core Earth doing here?”
“Now that you mention it, I’ve heard a report related to Core Earth from the shrine maiden before…”

Watching the Core Earth trucks, Arthur and Director Shin Han-ji realized something odd and asked me. I didn’t hide the truth.

“Huh…”
“Oracle really is involved everywhere.”

After hearing my explanation, Arthur sighed in disbelief, and Director Shin Han-ji clicked her tongue, muttering about Oracle’s schemes.

But how did Core Earth get into Chicago? Did President Richard authorize it?

Right, there’s no reason yet to block Core Earth’s entry…

Richard hadn’t properly investigated Core Earth yet, so it would’ve been difficult to prove it was under Oracle’s control. Even for him, attacking what appeared to be a legitimate company without justification would be risky.

“…If Core Earth is Oracle’s subordinate organization, shouldn’t we stop them?”
“Probably impossible. Likely political issues are involved as well…”

Director Shin Han-ji answered Arthur. As she said, it would be difficult for the three of us to stop Core Earth unless we stormed their headquarters and eliminated all the doppelgangers.

Of course, I have no intention of actually doing that.

Then…

“…Someone’s approaching Core Earth’s trucks.”
“They’re not soldiers. And… they’re installing something on the trucks.”

Arthur and Director Shin Han-ji said this. I sensed invisible entities approaching the trucks.

“…Albatross PMC.”

Right, Morris, the leader of Albatross PMC, was in Chicago for some reason. They seemed to be investigating Core Earth using concealment devices I had seen before. Likely under President Richard’s orders.

“We don’t need to worry about Core Earth.”

Hearing this, the two relaxed, realizing Albatross PMC wasn’t suspicious.