Chapter 324

Chapter 324. Trap (1)

“Whew,”

Each exhale he released turned into white breath that scattered into the air.

“Ugh, it’s cold, so cold!”

Contrast to this were those who complained while rubbing their arms to stay warm.

“Be quiet.”

There was someone standing nonchalantly in nothing but a plain white T-shirt.

The former was a player with an earth attribute assigned to each cargo ship as a precaution against unforeseen events.

The latter was Yun Jihye, the chief officer responsible for the security of the cargo ship.

Yun Jihye was the one who had attempted to kidnap and kill Lee Junmo, who had raped and strangled her sister, but had failed due to K’s intervention.

For someone like her, who wielded a 4th-rank attribute mana, specifically avalanche type in water series, the cold wasn’t a major threat.

Thanks to this, even in weather where others wore padded jackets, her outfit remained light.

On the other hand, the player standing beside Yun Jihye had a different experience.

“Is the sea usually this cold? Cold, cold, freezing!”

Generally, the earth attribute users tend to be less vocal.

However, the one assigned this time was incessantly prattling, annoyingly loud.

“If it’s that cold, why don’t you stop being noisy and go inside?”

“But what if a hole appears? We need to block it right away!”

“I’m here, so why does it matter?”

Yun Jihye also had earth attribute in her repertoire.

Due to the inability to protect the ship during combat, another player was necessary for defense.

In case of an attack, she could protect the ship and swiftly address any damage.

So, she wished that noisy player would just disappear from her sight.

Tired of the persistent complaints, Yun Jihye was about to forcibly remove the troublesome player from the deck.

At that moment, sleet began to fall from the sky.

‘It really is winter now.’

The approaching year-end would soon pass, and the new, bright year would flow by relentlessly.

‘Time really flies so disgustingly fast.’

Suddenly, memories of events that felt swift passed through Yun Jihye’s mind.

In older memories, happiness lingered, but recent years were mostly filled with dread.

She couldn’t even remember the last time she genuinely laughed.

‘And yet, I’m still here.’

If not for her mother, bedridden in a hospital, perhaps things would have been different.

Feeling both empty and bitter, Yun Jihye chuckled softly.

Shortly thereafter, looking up at the dark-clouded sky, she lowered her gaze.

Somewhere deep beneath the swirling foam that rose with the ship’s bow moving forward, she sensed the peculiar mana of messeo connected with the hole.

‘The search team must have passed an hour ago.’

There was no report of a discovered hole.

But it wasn’t an impossible situation. Sudden holes were not uncommon.

‘Still, the frequency of hole appearances has significantly dropped compared to a few months ago.’

Without panic, Yun Jihye immediately prepared for battle.

The other assigned players quickly found their positions and moved without error.

“Should we send the vessel away first?”

“No. Meeting a sudden hole with combat personnel missing is dangerous. Tell the captain to wait until the combat is over.”

“Yes.”

The player who answered rushed off to relay the message, while Yun Jihye focused on the mana sensed from the seabed.

‘The size looks like a 7-star.’

Fortunately, it seemed she wouldn’t need to face a nemesis-rank.

Although she had recently been promoted to the platinum rank, she honestly didn’t feel confident facing those terrifying monsters alone.

‘Even other platinum ranks avoid facing nemesis-rank monsters solo.’

Performing such a reckless act was conceivable by only one person globally.

‘K.’

Recalling the unfamiliar face she had seen in the video just the day before, Yun Jihye shook her head.

‘In a way, he’s a monster, too.’

Since the first meeting, he was already an existence at an unreachable level.

Yet, it wasn’t surprising how his presence had magnified several times over.

Briefly recalling K’s actions and words.

Yun Jihye soon shook off her thoughts and raised her staff.

‘Let’s save daydreaming for another time.’

The losses would sure increase if this place wasn’t purified.

Yun Jihye intended to open the water path to create an entrance to the hole.

Possessing more mana and fairly adept control compared to others, this was a tactic she often employed.

However, before she could use her mana, suddenly, a massive force began to move from beneath her feet.

This otherworldly movement felt when someone else casts a magic.

Being more sensitive to mana than others, Yun Jihye quickly sensed it.

“Pour on the defensive magic!”

Thanks to this, she could issue commands in time, and all the players on board commenced casting protective magics simultaneously.

Soon enough.

BOOM!

The ship collided with the magic surging from the sea, propelling it high above the water’s surface into the sky.

In that moment, when the ship upon which they stood began to soar through the sky instead of the sea, Yun Jihye saw it.

The massive monster swiftly emerging from the sea, adorned with nine stars upon its head.

“Nemesis-rank sighted!”

It was only after this that she realized the mana signature of the hole sensed from beneath the sea had vanished.

* * *

After I inflicted damage upon Karklein, the onslaught noticeably diminished.

The frequency of the hole occurrences was less than half of what it was before, leaving little room for doubt.

Hence, even the behavior of various player groups, including the association, underwent changes.

Instead of sealing holes, they left them open, purifying the polluted areas nearby.

Continually promoting bronze ranks to silver ranks, silver ranks to Gold ranks.

‘It’s a temporary measure until further attacks are confirmed.’

With the enemy’s advance having subsided, it is only proper to reorganize our own forces.

Adapting to this new routine, winter had seriously set in.

Around that time, everything I had managed began reaching a certain trajectory, showing results.

‘The influx from the spirit stone mines into the market strengthened the players’ forces.’

In that process, a few players with attribute mana appeared, as rare as hens’ teeth.

‘The rental of legendary equipment is also concluded.’

Plans were to maintain and change the eligible personnel through guild qualification reviews every quarter.

‘The training of the 6th wave players is progressing smoothly.’

Under Shamel’s lead, instructors from Bihar thoroughly transformed the mindset of lazy players.

‘Thanks to that, the Palao Guild now has a single-digit mortality rate for new players.’

Following the public disclosure of this data, other guilds and clans began investing a little more time and resources into training newcomers.

Maintaining the scale of power meant the influence continued.

‘Additional bunkers were built in the city center to accommodate evacuation in emergencies.’

Sanctions for civilians loitering around holes were also established.

After imprisoning several boundary-crossing journalists as examples, unauthorized entries into controlled areas noticeably decreased.

‘The traitor extraction yielded good results too.’

Those player traitors had already been completely eradicated.

Civilian traitors, too, were meeting their inevitable ends.

Of course, this area is being resolved by the investigation agencies in each respective country.

Hence, in nations rife with corruption and malpractice, some managed to slip through the cracks.

Even so, many remained unprosecuted due to insufficient evidence.

Naturally, this wasn’t a substantial issue.

‘Perhaps getting caught would have been preferable.’

I never intended to let them slip away anyway.

‘To leave unmonitored civilian traitors who eluded capture due to insufficient evidence is foolish.’

So, as December promptly dawned, I revealed a card I had long prepared.

I utilized the obedience contract bearing the name of Sniper, Mikhail.

Hence, the outcome was the news currently airing on the TV within the office space.

『At around 3 AM today, former lawmaker Im Hyun-cheol was found dead at his residence.』

The news remarked on Im Hyun-cheol being suspiciously released after being accused as a traitor.

‘Seven out of ten broadcasting stations, whether terrestrial or cable, have taken a hostile stance against traitors.’

Consequently, the public was absorbing the sentiment that traitors must be exterminated no matter what.

Even in legal terms, the sympathy towards Im Hyun-cheol’s death was overwhelmingly positive.

‘Of course, there were voices of criticism.’

This wasn’t the first occurrence where civilians, under suspicion as traitors, were found dead.

It was a phenomenon mirrored worldwide.

Moreover, no substantial evidence about these killings is left behind.

The potential involvement of players had been sufficiently raised at this point.

In response, associations indicated their maximum willingness to cooperate in investigations.

Whether they would eventually identify Sniper remains uncertain.

‘Good.’

So far, everything I directly took care of was proceeding seamlessly.

I intended to do whatever it took to ensure this continued.

To that end, I had to adhere to today’s schedule.

‘What’s on today’s list……,’

Just as I was about to confirm the schedule and move, the guild hotline rang.

The caller was the Korean branch of the Player Association.

『About 17 hours ago, a nemesis-rank sighting appeared in the South China Sea. Two attempts by guilds affiliated with China to hunt it have failed so far.』

“Are they requesting support?”

『Yes, as it’s believed unviable to fend off with only the Southeast Asian forces, a support request has been sent to countries in Northeast Asia. Will the Palao Guild deploy?』

An additional nemesis-rank appearance meant that the enemies were serious.

‘If a nemesis-rank had appeared, I must go to seize the status.’

Without much deliberation, I quickly gave my response.

“Yes, we’ll deploy. We’re probably not the only ones heading there, right? Has a list of the other guilds been secured?”

『The list hasn’t been finalized yet.』

“Once the final roster is confirmed, please send it with the combat report to my email.”

『Understood.』

After hanging up, I notified the guild internally.

“Brief them on the situation and summon the platinum ranks. Contact the personnel preselected for naval combat. After the team leaders congregate, we’ll brief and deploy using the teleportation array.”

『Yes, guildmaster.』

Preparations for the deployment quickly advanced.

Meanwhile, the incident that occurred near the South China Sea was nationally reported.

As Korean players moved busily, someone took notice and verified the issue in neighboring countries.

Thus, it was swiftly reported that the Palao Guild was also being dispatched.

Upon hearing this news, the twins hurriedly arrived at the guild.

“Orabang!”

“Hyung! We saw the urgent news. There are plenty of platinum ranks in other countries. Why is Korea, and specifically the Palao Guild, going? Is it really dangerous?”

I called the two inside the office closer and responded.

“No need to panic. We’re going because it’s feasible.”

It seemed like the perfect chance.

Since I’d be away from Korea for a while, the twins’ activity range needed to be minimized.

“Make sure to stay within Rice Cake’s watch at school. Don’t deviate from the route to and from school, and try to study at home. For now, it’s for caution’s sake. Got it?”

If there were any further schedules, I entrusted Kim Yul, during his off-duty periods, to secretly escort them.

‘With a shadow box, he would tail them unnoticed.’

The primary reason for imposing such vigilance on the twins was simple.

‘I have a bad feeling.’

It was a type of unease that was particularly difficult to explain with words.

Damned System