Chapter 357

Chapter 357. A Glimpse of the Future (5)

I did not know how this creature that looked like a human was made.

“If mages were involved, it’s not so surprising.”

I had seen with my own eyes the various traces of biological experiments conducted in the tower.

This must have been one of the results of those experiments.

“Rashar, clear out the civilians.”

“Oh, got it.”

Rashar approached the people either screaming or holding up cameras.

Meanwhile, I crouched down and flipped over a corpse lying on the ground with my spear.

“It really looks exactly like a human…”

Inside, however, was nothing but a lump of soft flesh. There were no essential organs like the heart, lungs, or stomach that are required for survival.

This was not a human, but it was hard to distinguish by appearance alone. The texture of the skin and the body temperature were identical to a human’s.

It even wore clothes familiar to us from modern times.

“Civilians’ naked eyes wouldn’t be able to distinguish this.”

Of course, even players could not easily identify them.

“There was no mana at all.”

The ones Kim Yul was dealing with were definitely present, yet I could not sense even a hint of mana from them.

Even the wild birds that roamed the streets possessed mana.

‘It’s like a ghost.’

No, “puppet” might be a more fitting description. Without mana, it would be impossible to find them using detection magic.

It seemed the only way was to compare mana detected and visually distinct life forms.

“This is going to be troublesome.”

If these things had already seeped all over Earth, there was no way to prevent social chaos.

I sighed deeply and contacted the guild. As the conversation dragged on, my expression hardened.

Seeing this, Rashar returned after driving away the civilians and asked,

“Is the situation really that bad?”

After ending the call, I let out a sigh and replied,

“It’s hard to say it’s good. According to the information the guild received, other gods’ apostles seem to have been attacked too.”

“Are apostles being targeted?”

“It seems so, just judging by the current circumstances.”

Just as I had targeted nemesis-rank and general-rank to seize status, now the enemies had begun hunting apostles from our side.

The question was why they needed the status.

“I thought their priority was to absorb divinity.”

The reason the enemies started this war was to artificially secure divinity by devouring other life forms.

There seemed to be no reason to steal status unless they were planning to create a new god now.

“Are they just trying to weaken our forces?”

Perhaps since the apostles couldn’t possess divinity, they only took status. It was frustrating not to have concrete answers.

I looked down at the mysterious puppet corpse before me and sighed again.

“I’m getting tired of being led around like this.”

I wondered if I should plant a spy using a traitor. First, I needed to find a way to eradicate these puppets that might be spreading across Earth.

Just as I could not suppress the sigh that escaped me, the long-awaited arrival made itself known as the air tore apart.

“You really don’t give me a day’s break, do you?”

“Camellia.”

I was worried since other apostles had been attacked too, but fortunately, she seemed unharmed.

I spoke firmly to her as she complained about the frequent summons.

“We’re already in this together, so let’s suffer together, shall we? We’re in this for the same side after all.”

“If that wasn’t the case, I wouldn’t come just because you called.”

Clicking her tongue, Camellia approached and murmured as she looked down at the puppet corpse.

“It’s not just me.”

“All apostles around the world have been hit. The target is presumed to be status.”

“Oh…”

“Now that you’re aware of the situation, stay in Korea for a while. We still need Finelpenia’s authority on our side.”

“It sounds like you’re not planning to take care of me if I can’t use my authority?”

“What I mean is that we need that power to keep the upper hand.”

“Your words are not to my liking, but I refuse to be incompetent. Prepare a residence for me.”

“I’ll have it arranged.”

After a rather lengthy conversation, Camellia began her work. The results came out quickly.

“It’s blocked.”

It wasn’t an unforeseen situation. In the past, I would have found myself incapable in this situation.

But much had changed over time. Lowering myself next to the corpse, I reached out my hand.

Focusing, I sensed faint yet present clusters of power. It was the corrupted divinity I had encountered numerous times.

It resembled a tangled thread. The decision to tamper with it was short-lived.

“There are many corpses.”

Testing it on one puppet shouldn’t pose a significant problem.

My hand, extended over the puppet’s body, emitted a golden thunder.

Zap!

At first, the corpse was simply scorched by the thunder.

Crackle!

As I increased the intensity of the thunder several times, I understood. The reason the corrupted divinity could remain pooled without dispersing.

There was a cluster acting as a focal point. Destroying it with the thunder, finally,

Pssss.

A black smoke-like substance began seeping out from the puppet’s otherwise empty body. Then, I turned to Camellia and said,

“Please give it another try.”

“Hmm.”

Camellia, who had been observing me with interest, began reading the records again.

It was when Kim Yul had finished dealing with the horde of puppets and approached.

“It took quite a while.”

“They’re pretty swift. They rank at least as General-rank.”

A puppet that resembled humans with combat abilities above General-rank.

“It seems to have been modeled after players.”

I decided to wait until Camellia’s investigation was complete. Turning my gaze from the puppet, I got up.

Seeing this, Rice Cake, who had been sitting quietly to the side, suddenly sprang to its feet and began wagging its tail vigorously, as if asking for attention.

For waiting patiently without rushing while urgent matters were at hand, I found it quite commendable.

I stretched out my hand, my expression softening a bit, and Rice Cake dashed over, rubbing its face against mine.

Ruffling his fur around the neck, I said,

“So what was that earlier? Can you use my mana?”

Rice Cake snorted and lifted his head, surrounding itself with sparks once again.

It was clearly something it wanted to show me, an expression of pride. It seemed quite pleased with its own transformation.

“I see…”

I had been feeding him my mana the whole time. I never imagined it would be able to use it. Unexpectedly, it became a bit of an asset in this unexpected moment.

“It was worth feeding you all this time.”

Even when Rice Cake emitted sparks, my mana didn’t diminish.

Unlike when an apostle used authority and my divinity decreased, it was entirely an independent power increase.

“I should take the time to gauge the firepower properly.”

After Rice Cake retracted its sparks, I confirmed another thing.

“When that thing appeared earlier, you reverted to your form immediately. Did you sense something odd?”

If it had, maybe Rice Cake could help us handle this situation. Holding some hope, I asked.

Rice Cake nudged its head against mine. Then, as usual, it connected our vision, and it was indeed something different this time.

“This is incredible.”

I could see the detailed flow of mana on a person’s shadow. As Rice Cake turned his gaze, Kim Yul came into focus.

The constant circulation of mana outlining his body appeared as if a living anatomical model was at work, like what I’d seen in science classes.

It seemed to be a sight impossible for human eyes to see.

Today I learned that Rice Cake seemed to be able to see the flow of mana.

“Indeed, with these eyes, you could distinguish the puppets.”

Unfortunately, Rice Cake was the only one of his kind on Earth.

Unless another was found in Bihar, it would be impossible for Rice Cake alone to select all the puppets worldwide.

I shook off my solitary expectations, thinking,

“It’s safe to have you protect the twins.”

He could detect any strange puppets approaching. Having confirmed everything with Rice Cake, my smartphone began vibrating in my left hand.

Checking the screen, it showed an unknown number, an international one.

I briefly memorized the number and pressed the call button.

“Who is this?”

The caller was someone unexpected.

「It’s Ranjo, Meferoseta’s apostle.」

I knew his name and background details, but we had not contacted each other since. Naturally, we had never shared personal bonds.

Though I valued Finelpenia’s authority highly, I saw little use for Meferoseta’s authority.

「Seeing glimpses of the future, then being caught in an endless spiral of imagination, is pointless.」

I had once speculated about Yang Taeho and Gilenios’s relationship, trying everything I could.

I was convinced that being able to see the future held little value. Thus, even though I’d heard he assisted players before the gate closure, I remained vigilant.

Not possessing a useful ability and being an apostle of a god who had attacked Palao, there was no reason to trust him.

Why had Ranjo contacted me first? How did he get my number?

I was about to concoct multiple thoughts when Ranjo abruptly said,

「We need to go now.」

He started spouting seemingly nonsensical words.

“What are you suddenly talking about?”

「I’m not able to see often, but on that side, they’ve sealed the divinity on a large scale. Hence, I’m secretly sneaking around to watch. I know it’s hard to believe, but if you don’t trust what I am saying, you’re going to regret it. It’s the last chance to catch it easily in a sealed state!」

“What are you talking about with this ‘chance’?”

「Ah, right. Yes, please ask your god to protect me from causality. Then I can speak directly.」

From his urgent voice, I sensed he was desperate for me to hear this. He intended to reveal something he saw with Meferoseta’s authority.

Since he was taking an action excluded from causality, he requested protection.

After a brief silence, I looked up at the air. Ever since killing the first puppet, I had distinctly felt the presence of the system patrol.

“Is it possible?”

The answer came quickly.

「The Trait Berserker is activating.」

「The system is shifting to support mode. Support target: Player Kang Hyunwoo.」

《System Message》

《The location of Ranjo Kannos has been confirmed. Proceed.》

After checking the system’s message, I spoke.

“Tell me what you saw.”

The pause on the other end of the phone lasted only a moment.

Taking a deep breath, ranzoh spoke in a trembling voice.

「A few days ago, I saw you and Meferoseta standing together. There was quite a large castle in the background. After researching, I found out it was the Kremlin Grand Palace. More specifically, it seemed to be around Red Square.」

It was news that made my eyes widen.

Damned System