Chapter 7: Diversion

“Ah….”

As if the paused video resumed playing, the interrupted mind reconnects faintly as sunlight enters the room.

Now, the unfamiliar ceiling of the room, gradually becoming more familiar, was white.

The ceiling I remember changed several times, and this was the fourth time.

The first time was…

Like the barracks used by the deployment teams in Afghanistan, thick and massive tents with semi-circular shapes covered with thick fabric and incandescent bulbs hanging from the ceiling.

And the hastily draped folding field beds on plastic frames.

Even those often broke under my weight.

Privacy, heat, cold, sand, countless noises, screams.

It was such a place where nothing could be stopped.

Rustle.

It was not such a smooth night, considering that it ended with a refreshing exercise.

Eventually, last night passed like that.

Lifting the blanket, I sat up and carefully pulled out the tail tucked inside. Opening the window, I let out the accumulated night air.

In fact, it was still hot outside, but…

My gaze naturally shifted.

“This is a mess….”

The screen of the computer, which should remain on for a while, was terribly cluttered.

Pop-ups intentionally displayed to indicate the status of numerous ongoing sub-projects.

Next to several slowly rising percentage bars were remnants of yesterday’s actions. Unfortunately, despite the grand appearance, things were not progressing as smoothly as they seemed.

This, too, shall be resolved with time.

With a sigh, I opened the fridge to find it filled with the various fast foods I packed yesterday.

One of the best things about being like this was that no matter how much you ate, you wouldn’t gain weight, but on the flip side, it put a serious dent in your wallet.

As I glanced at them for a moment, numerous price tags and yesterday’s expenses appeared in holographic form before my eyes.

Looking at the total cost of tens of thousands of won, my head began to ache inexplicably.

If only I could get my payment verification done, I wouldn’t have to worry about money matters, but for that, I had to wait for a while or rent a server, or buy one.

And for that, I needed money, and to cover that money… I needed payment verification.

That was the biggest problem I faced right now.

What a catastrophically broken Möbius strip.

But still, fortunately,

“…Ah, delicious.”

The freshly heated pizza was truly delicious.

That alone was comforting.

*

Not too long ago, as the 37th Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps Robert Neller said it,

Korea was considered an optimal place for training, with its hot summers, cold winters, and steep terrain.

In plain terms, this meant that Korea was a land perfectly optimized to make people crispy on the outside and moist on the inside.

And August in South Korea, the middle of summer.

Under the scorching sun, crisping the surface of people while the 100% humidity moistens them inside, on a day so insane that even dogs unable to express themselves properly would feel the outside temperature and struggle under the blazing sun,

“Ah, the weather’s nice.”

I was one of those extremely rare individuals who roamed around without caring about it.

The warmth, coupled with the high humidity, didn’t make me feel bad at all.

In the past, I would have struggled even inside my house on days like this, unable to endure a single second without turning on the air conditioner. But at least I wasn’t like that now.

…Of course, conversely, in winter, I become a fragile body that can’t endure without a heating function.

Is this the fate of a snake?

Anyway, despite the weather, the heart of Seoul was still overflowing with people.

Even if there were dozens of people per 100 square meters, the sight of the bustling cityscape didn’t seem worthy of complaint to me; rather, it felt paradoxically comforting.

Why is it that the fact that there are many people in the city doesn’t seem to sit well with me?

I wondered if it was because I had spent a considerable amount of time wandering around in this giant box called the city.

…Even though scanning and unmanned surveillance technology had been miniaturized and greatly advanced,

The casualties occurring in the metropolis showed a loss rate so high that it would not be an exaggeration to say that it replaced agents.

There were thousands of places to hide, and just as many places suitable for sniper shots.

That’s why my eyes were still restless, scanning the surroundings.

…To be honest, it felt empty. It felt strange not to have the weight of a gun and magazine on my thigh as I walked.

Still, considering that if I actually had them, there was a chance I might impulsively pull them out and get caught… it was better to feel a little uneasy than that.

So, what am I doing right now?

“….”

I was just walking and thinking.

The computer at home was scheduled to perform computations until the components reached the end of their lifespan, and the TV was taken away by my parents when they moved elsewhere after I disappeared.

You might think I could just look at my phone, but that would make me lazy.

In short, this was a kind of… habit formed after the fact.

At the beginning of the incident, when I had just joined Icarus… it was during that terrible labor shortage when the word “reserve personnel” was on the verge of being erased from the dictionary, that terrible winter.

There were times when there were so few people that even field agents had to conduct patrols throughout the night, checking if the surveillance equipment in various parts of the base was functioning properly, which meant a kind of duty.

As the people, the most important component moving the city, disappeared, the light pollution that invaded the sky disappeared, and there was only the bright starlight illuminating Central Park.

I looked at the transparent winter night sky and thought a lot while conducting facility checks.

The habit of organizing thoughts while walking was formed at that time.

“───Customer 118, your chocolate shake is ready!”

“Oh, thank you.”

…Of course, it was unusually hot today.

Even an anaconda couldn’t help it if it was too hot.

I took my drink and sat down roughly by the empty window. Despite the hot weather, there seemed to be a never-ending crowd hurrying somewhere outside the clear glass.

As I enjoyed the taste and aroma of the sweet chocolate drink flowing down my throat, a message popped up in front of me.

$4.55 expenditure confirmed.

Total: $165.55

It’s in dollars, since it says it’s a U.S. account…

Anyway, I barely managed to successfully synchronize with this world after waking up today, and it was proven that I could use the small amount of money left in the U.S. account here without any problem.

It was fortunate that it was managed directly by the state rather than a commercial bank.

If I could break through the security system of a giant corporation like Chase Bank with Icarus… things could get chaotic here.

Anyway, as a reward for dedicating myself to the reconstruction of a nation, the transnational, super-legal hacking tool received was… satisfactory, right?

Thunk.

“Oh, what’s this… Oh, sorry!”

“Oh, you were blocking the way.”

In the midst of this, there was a moment when I felt a sudden sensation, and when I turned around, someone was awkwardly gesturing because of my tail.

I rarely wandered around such crowded places in the past… Well, enough with the excuses.

I quickly tucked my tail away and cleared the way.

“Sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment.”

“Oh, haha. No problem. Um… you’re really pretty. Your tail…”

“Thank you.”

It’s been a long time since I received praise like this.

In a flash, the gazes within the store converge to a single point. Dozens of pairs of eyes subtly moving with each flick of the tail were evidence of this.

After seeing this, there were some who said that they would consider raising a snake themselves when they felt a bit better, and they asked to occasionally come and have a conversation with it.

I wonder if it’s doing well.

Returning the empty drink cups, as I stepped outside, a gust of fresh air rushed in.

Just coming out and replenishing some sugar in my body made my head spin, but ironically, there was nowhere to put it to use. It was quite disappointing.

In fact, in a way, it couldn’t be helped. Going for a walk, in other words, meant there wasn’t much else to do, so I came out.

It was still hot outside, and people walking along the main road were trying various ways to endure the heat.

That aside, it feels like I just came out for no reason. I didn’t expect any income in the first place, but that doesn’t mean I wanted to spend money either.

Although it’s a bit early, while considering going for a workout,

“Multiple personal firearms detected within a 50m radius.”

“Firearms?”

Out of the blue, firearms in the middle of Seoul?

But my gaze naturally followed a single line marked in the air,

“Oh.”

Shooting range.

At the end of my gaze, lingering on those five ominous letters, I naturally shifted my steps.