episode_0372

While the animal army was being mass-produced one by one, the Violets in the Red Zone also focused on self-enhancement.

“Even if the biological weapons are dealt with, their enhanced soldiers will still remain!”

Yes, that was the biggest problem.

The enemy had several advantages.

The most prominent was their air power. The hypersonic fighter jets operated by the Clans and their air force were a fatal threat.

While our old vertical take-off and landing aircraft barely managed to exceed supersonic speeds, they flew freely at even greater velocities.

The technology of the fighter jets piloted by superhumans was astonishing.

Due to the output of high-power fusion reactors and the overwhelming strength of rare metals ensuring durability, the aircraft’s maneuverability was beyond imagination. They could change direction at will.

「Still, in the end, it’s the infantry who plant the flag on the battlefield!」

「That’s right! You can’t bring fighter jets inside buildings.」

Tanks and heavy weapons were powerful too, but they had limitations.

Under concentrated fire, even a superhuman’s enhanced body or magic barrier would likely be pierced. However, we had Ruzilin’s Cheolkwon, our ace in the hole.

「The problem is how we can bring her in.」

Ultimately, the biggest recent threat was still the unidentified superhuman soldiers.

Their close-quarters combat ability was overwhelming, and their physical capabilities were shockingly high.

Their monstrous strength, capable of shaking off dozens of Violets, was no different from human-shaped heavy machinery.

「They were truly terrifying!」

The difference between them and us was similar to the gap between Awakened and unawakened individuals.

They could simply be incredibly talented individuals, or perhaps the product of gruesome experiments, like Frankenstein’s monster.

New tactics were needed to subdue a single superhuman-level enemy. It was clear there would be more superhumans.

「Let’s try drug-based enhancements!」

「We also need more powerful weapons!」

「Just weapons? What else?」

Until now, we had only focused on offensive power.

Now it was time to focus on defense as well. We needed an opportunity to land a decisive blow. Simultaneous attacks were possible with numerical superiority, but a strong enemy could wipe us out before that.

Mental attacks also required time to use. It took time while directly making contact and influencing them.

Suddenly, another forgotten power came to mind.

「What if we use the Apostles’ power?」

The strange abilities of the Apostles that we had absorbed so far might be a breakthrough.

Coincidentally, we had gathered about 10,000 individuals. Although the hardware performance had decreased due to the deaths of previous clones, it was rapidly recovering.

It was an opportunity we missed before, but let’s try it now.

Couldn’t we utilize the aliens’ power?

I looked through the part of the network where the Apostles’ memories were stored.

After rummaging for a long time.

「Oh! The memories are slowly melting away!」

The fragments of the Apostle’s memories retrieved from the Lake of Consciousness were slightly smaller than when first seen.

They were slowly dissipating into the air, becoming a strange, indescribable smoke.

Even when I reached out to grab them, they annoyingly scattered as if just out of reach, then re-formed, repeating the cycle.

「Hey! Unit 2501! Don’t you feel anything?」

「I don’t know! I feel like I almost get something… But you’re me and I’m you anyway.」

「Right.」

I tried touching them and hitting them with a hammer, but nothing changed.

As I concentrated my mind, I felt something.

A flickering vision.

「I see it! I see something!」

My head throbbed as if hit by a hammer.

Beyond it, a gaze as fierce as the sun seemed to glare, but I forced myself to look. I opened my eyes and remembered.

Because I am Violet. Because I am an Apostle, an Apostle Violet—

Because I am human, and Violet, and also an alien race—

As I immersed, my vision suddenly blurred.

The world shimmered in all directions. It rippled, slowed, churned, and swayed with strange colors.

“Gasp! What is it!”

The unsteadily floating landscape instantly returned to normal.

“What was that…”

The Violets looked around, clueless, but no further anomalies occurred.

「Is this the power of an Apostle?」

Struggling to remember the indecipherable illusion, we lay down in the Red Zone’s fields.

For now, restoring our numbers seemed to be the top priority.

I wondered if I should have tried it when we exceeded 10,000.

「Wait, isn’t reality manipulation ultimately similar to magic?」

「That’s right! Let’s try various experiments first!」

The abilities of the semi-free aliens were ultimately an extension of unique abilities or psychic powers.

Only more complex and high-dimensional. Just like an abacus and a semiconductor computer share the same essence of calculation but differ in their implementation.

As soon as the thought crossed my mind, I sprang up.

The black soil of the Red Zone crumbled and flowed away.

The strange colors and throbbing sensation from that time slowly revived.

“Hup! Change!”

I concentrated my magic and tried something towards the air.

I tried to calculate by tracing the Apostles’ memories, and imitated their actions as they came to mind, but.

Nothing happened.

“Ugh!”

I shook my magic-infused hand in the air.

Something seemed to pass by quickly, leaving faint afterimages of my hand scattered.

“Huh?”

The illusion vanished instantly.

**

For a while, I focused on clone reproduction and expanding the Red Zone base. The Karnak Archipelago was wide enough.

“Get out of here! This is our territory! Get out!”

“What are you talking about? This is Violet territory now!”

The Violets continued to advance, eliminating unidentified humanoid demonic beasts.

Units numbering in the thousands advanced tirelessly, cutting down demonic beasts from all directions.

Meanwhile, they also built defense lines, expanded roads, and increased the number of villages and warehouses.

「It would be great to have construction machinery…」

To fundamentally purify the Red Zone, simply removing the demonic beasts that sprung up from the ground like weeds seemed insufficient.

“Charrrrge!”

Our forces were sufficient. Previously, we only defended the base with small units of hundreds, but thanks to being trapped in the Red Zone by the Foundation, we now deployed in battalion-sized units to clear out the demonic beasts.

“Roar!”

“Growl!”

The newly joined V-animals also joined the fight.

-Bang!

An anti-material sniper rifle spat fire. The bullet pierced the eye of a dragon-like demonic beast in the air.

The demonic beast named Raskrin shrieked and fell. It wasn’t an adult the size of a large truck, but an individual the size of a human.

“Cookie! Fetch!”

“Woof!”

The first V-dog was named after a sweet treat.

The yellow-furred dog, true to its instincts, ran and dragged the demonic beast by its neck, truly the skill of a hunting dog breed.

We immediately decapitated the demonic beast.

“Master-nim! I did well, didn’t I! Woof!”

“Excellent!”

The joining of four-legged animals was a great tactical advantage.

Though slower than winged creatures, they were faster than monkeys, and their teeth were sharp.

「If they grow bigger, we might be able to send monkeys riding on them?」

Unlike us Violets, the V-animals steadily grew.

Since they were young during the first procedure, it seemed they hadn’t fully matured yet.

Soon, monkey cavalry might become a reality.

“What do you think?”

At my words, Cookie’s eyes immediately showed a look of dislike.

“Whine… Only Violet Master-nims can ride on our backs…”

Hmm, I did want to ride a dog cavalry. But the fellow was too small, and even when fully grown, it seemed impossible for us Violets to ride.

「Next, should we add horses to the animal army…?」

Horses were intelligent animals, so I thought they could become even stronger if connected to our network.

Or other large animals could also be considered.

In early August, the Violets focused on regeneration and proliferation.

The wounds left by the Foundation healed quickly.

Artifacts airlifted from overseas, magic supplements, and various growth promoters also helped, but most of all, it was thanks to the Fusion supplying magic continuously.

“…Ugh, I was clearly a tank commander… How did I end up becoming a power plant?”

Looking across the sea, I could see Ruzilin’s Cheolkwon, who had become a mass of wires.

We utilized a trick to convert the power from her reactor into magic.

The principle was that if electricity was supplied within the limits she could withstand, it would immediately become magic.

“The Aether proliferators used by typical Clans or research labs operate on the same principle, Captain. Though my efficiency is higher.”

Cheolkwon seemed quite satisfied under Adela Unnie.

「Now only one thing remains.」

Immunity research.

**

A Violet, possessing a monkey, entered the quarantined research lab.

The test subjects were resting, eating mountains of food.

“Master-nim is here!”

“Boss!”

As soon as they saw me, they waved their hands or saluted.

It was heartwarming to see them immediately recognize me, even in their possessed state.

Passing through the V-animals snacking, Phoebe approached and explained her findings.

“The V-animals’ immunity mechanism is completely different from conventional immune systems.”

She said it was related to the virus’s ability to induce magic patterns.

“In early experiments, animals survived because some tissues disrupted the magic patterns when the virus tracked magic. It was a product of chance, though.”

“Ah, so the virus lost its target and became dysfunctional?”

“Exactly. We found an early form of inactivated virus in their blood. It doesn’t activate unless induced. Their immune system fought hard, but the pathogen was so strong it couldn’t be eliminated.”

“Then other animals also gaining immunity was…”

“Yes! Your brain’s gotten better, Unnie? We don’t know the exact transmission route, but immunity arose due to the influence of the test subjects!”

Phoebe’s grinning expression instantly hardened.

“But complacency is forbidden. The Foundation only focused on strengthening lethality. The basic molecular structure is the same, but certain parts have been greatly altered. Even at the cost of all other drawbacks… Perhaps they… No, if I were the Foundation, I would have created something even more horrific.”

“What do you mean?”

The pen tucked into Phoebe’s clothes floated up, making clicking sounds.

“I’m talking about an indiscriminate virus that destroys everything. One that even abandoned its magic wavelength induction function… I found traces of a similar attempt in one sample.”

Data screens unfolded. My blood samples and the animals’ experimental records appeared. Some of the volunteered animals had hideously deformed skin.

“Even these cute little ones suffered, you know. A vaccine that only deceives nanopathogens isn’t enough. We need a fundamental cure to prepare for the worst-case scenario. Thankfully, I’ve found a solution.”

When the explanation ended, Phoebe gestured. A blue sample was visible among complex experimental machinery and nanochemical equipment.

“That’s a nano-enhancer.”

“Exactly. Those Foundation guys approached it in a simple, brute-force way, so I decided to meet them head-on!”

Her answer was simple.

“True superhuman-level Awakened individuals wouldn’t be affected by this kind of virus. The reason? Simple. Because they’re just strong.”

“So you’re temporarily strengthening the body?”

“Ding ding ding! The principle is quite interesting. It’s a method that gathers Aether within the body to brutally enhance every single cell. The side effects are significant, but we’ll only use it as an immunity-boosting treatment!”

Phoebe peered into an electron microscope, making strange gestures. The substances inside the microscope moved as if dancing, following her movements.

“Huh, Auntie. Are you manipulating things you can’t even see?”

“Yep! This is my specialty! Directly controlling microscopic substances one by one is my unique ability. Instead, I’ve gone all-in on precision, so my overall output is a bit weak. But isn’t this good enough?”

Phoebe kept chuckling while looking into the microscope. She had an ability like the Polaris student council president, so there were such limitations, I see.

“Anyway, I don’t get the complicated stuff, but it’s solved, right?”

“Yep! First experiment is ready!”

Two days later, the research lab confidently presented its first sample.

The test subject was V-Mouse Raspberry. The creature in the isolation container squeaked majestically.

“I fight for Boss’s health! Virus, don’t mess with me! Start quickly! Squeak!”

[First experiment, beginning-]

The virus was first exposed to the mouse, which had been thumping its chest. Soon, it began to cough.

Was this the enhanced virus created by the Foundation?

The weakened virus overwhelmed the mouse. Black spots blossomed like flowers on its grayish skin.

Then a gleaming syringe needle descended.

An instant change. The black spots vanished as if by magic.

Instead, its muscles began to swell grotesquely.

“Ooh! Power overflows! My body is returning to normal!”

“…Did this also have an enhancement effect?”

“Huh? I minimized that… this is an overreaction…”

“Hee hee hee! I am Super Mouse! Squeak!-”

The mouse, which had been swelling like a balloon, met a sudden end.

-Pop!

Raspberry exploded.

In front of the cage stained with crimson remains, Phoebe’s eyes darted around in panic. The faces of her fellow scientists also turned as white as a sheet.

“Ah, this isn’t right…”

The distrust index in the network surged to 140%.

“This is all because of you scientists!”

“That’s right, you made this virus! You’re incompetent!”

Phoebe flinched at my scolding. I expected her to deflect playfully as usual, but she showed an unexpected reaction.

She hung her head in frustration, her expression unfamiliar.

“Sorry, Unnie…”

“…”

It seemed she was at a loss herself.

「First time seeing a quack look like this.」

As two weeks of experiments continued to face difficulties, we encountered another problem.

“Huh, immunity only applies to the injected individuals?”

Contrary to expectations, immunity did not spread through the network. This meant that even if a vaccine was developed, each individual would need to be inoculated.

Furthermore, there was the problem of clones returning to a “clean” body every time they regenerated.

“Daphneya, I think I’m screwed because of this!”

“What do you do if you can’t even recognize your own body…”

It seemed it was time to look deeper into the network.

**

One day, near mid-August, while pondering various things.

I was lost in thought while walking near the Red Zone’s coast.

「I don’t know how to transfer the physical traits gained from the vaccine to the network.」

The idea itself wasn’t complicated, so test samples came out faster than expected.

But the fundamental problem remained unsolved.

Splashing footsteps echoed on the calm sandy beach.

「Yeah, it didn’t work. You heard it all there too.」

「Right.」

The problem lay in the creation and de-creation process.

「Everyone was saying that. It seems the way I create clones might be based on a blueprint within the network.」

There was one theory about my unique ability.

That within the Violet network, there was a kind of blueprint recording the ideal state of a Violet, and that clones were created based on it.

The same principle could explain why animals could be revived or why simple weapons and clothing could be duplicated.

Since consciousness existed in the network, all that was needed was to construct a body with magic using the blueprint and upload it.

「Exactly! But right now, that blueprint is the problem.」

「It’s good that it allows us to maintain the original body state without leaving negative effects, but it also means no beneficial effects remain permanently in the body.」

That’s right. Even if one received a vaccine, it would only apply to the body that received it.

If they died or were de-created and then regenerated, they would have to be vaccinated again.

And remedies were the same. Thousands of remedies would be needed for combat.

While a small research lab might manage one or two samples, establishing a mass production system was difficult. My unique ability couldn’t even duplicate them.

However, the animals naturally transferred those traits from their bodies to other animals’ bodies.

Like a computer updating.

「Considering the Apostles’ abilities too, is there a problem within us?」

「That might be the case.」

Pondering, I decided to search through the network.

Because my blueprint might be somewhere.

「Starting now, I’m going to search for the Violet blueprint!

「Whooaaah!」