Chapter 21 – Rimless Glasses and Hand Mirror

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Since that day.

Sua occasionally had dreams.

‘Hey, you guys still haven’t come to your senses, have you?’

She was back in that night.

‘The world has already changed. Look at this power.’

Seo Gwangjin, intoxicated by power, flaunting his abilities.

‘I told you to give that old man the medicine!’

‘Yes, Hyung!’

And following his power, men—all of them large and fierce-looking. They were all heading toward her father.

‘No… stop…’

Sua trembled with fear.

Thwack!

‘Ugh!’

Despite his old age… he who never shirked the dirty work of the village and always did it by hand… her strong father, whom she respected so deeply.

Thwack!

‘Gah!’

He was being beaten helplessly.

‘Cough.’

And her father spat out blood.

Thus, the nightmare of that night repeated itself.

“Haaah!”

And then she would wake up. When she opened her eyes, she saw a ceiling that might still feel slightly unfamiliar.

When she felt thirsty and called a Worker Bug to find a water bottle, Siwoo’s face would unexpectedly come to mind.

“Ah…”

Then she couldn’t help but think.

‘I’m still just relying on that person.’

Even for something as small as this.

“I can’t go on like this.”

Sua had felt her own helplessness poignantly back then.

Even when she stepped forward with all her might, crying ‘Hit me instead’ to protect her father. As a weakling… she was in a position where she had to assume the absolute worst of the worst.

‘Living only receiving help is wrong.’

It was something her father always told her.

That if you receive a favor, it is only right to pay it back somehow.

“At the very least, I must do what I can.”

“Ding?”

Sua gently stroked the Worker Bug, which was tilting its head while holding the water bottle, and then raised her right hand.

Whoosh—

Mana gathered the surrounding water vapor, making a fist-sized water droplet float in the air.

“Kh… ugh.”

A groan escaped her lips unconsciously.

It was a time when she still struggled to manipulate water. Moreover, she had to fill the shopping mall’s water tank every single day.

But still, she did her best to control the water.

And only after that cold water touched her small, slightly cracked lips did Sua drink greedily.

Gulp, gulp—

The cold water made her mind feel refreshed.

“That bastard was right. The world has already changed.”

Sua gritted her teeth, thinking of Seo Gwangjin’s face.

“I won’t just be a victim again.”

It was the moment she made a new resolve.

And the next day…

Sua asked Siwoo for combat training.

* * *

“Front left. One Thorn Spider. Two Rake Wolves approaching. You can handle this alone, right?”

“Yes!”

I actively helped Sua with her practical combat training.

“They’re coming!”

As I shouted at the right timing.

Whoosh—

Sua drew water from the large water dispenser bottle she was carrying on her back and sent it forward. At her current level, this was far more efficient than gathering water vapor from the air.

Swoosh, swoosh—

A large water mass floated in the air.

Kreeek— kreeek-kreek!

The moment the monsters turned the corner.

Thorns suddenly sprouted forward from the water mass like a chestnut burr…

Sshhh-!

Three Water Spears were immediately fired.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

Three impact sounds echoed.

The three monsters hit directly by the Water Spears collapsed instantly without a chance to react.

“Huff. Huff.”

Sua breathed heavily.

“Well done. Your skills have improved even more than this morning.”

I smiled at her.

I wasn’t just saying it; I meant it.

“He, hehehe…”

She smiled shyly.

‘Grow quickly…’

That was my inner thought.

If she became stronger, I wouldn’t have to produce as many combat machines. I could focus more on snowballing, such as increasing facilities, research, or the number of Worker Bugs.

Later, it would be ideal if I could entrust her with a role as a sort of Squad Leader, directly commanding part of the combat machines on the battlefield.

‘I hope that time comes soon…’

Of course, even if it wasn’t her, most of my former colleagues used to take on such roles. For instance, that engineer fellow we are going to meet.

It was while I was having such thoughts.

[Observation Probe (Unit 14): Requesting confirmation.]

One of the observation probes sent a notification.

‘Unit 14 is the one above us, right?’

I decided to check immediately.

“Oho.”

Around the corner, six men and women were crouching low, quietly waiting for us.

* * *

I slowly shifted the position of the observation probe to check the enemies’ armament. First, three of them were holding wooden planks or iron pipes, each with a kitchen knife attached to the end.

‘Spears… well, they aren’t bad weapons in times like these.’

The two behind them were holding thick iron plates, seemingly to create cover from long-range monsters or people.

‘Is that really necessary…?’

I tilted my head.

‘For now… they likely lack or have no abilities capable of creating cover.’

I immediately tried to figure out their abilities. When dealing with people, this was the basic posture regardless of who the opponent was.

And the last person was holding a bow, obtained from somewhere—an improved traditional Korean bow made of carbon material.

‘They even have a bow? They’re quite serious.’

I narrowed my eyes.

‘Marauders? An ambush?’

It was a reasonable suspicion.

‘But they could just be a group of survivors.’

If they were survivors, I didn’t want to commit unnecessary murder.

After all, it was unlikely they wouldn’t have something I wanted, and it was obvious that leaving them alone would result in them clearing more monsters later.

‘Now… what to do?’

For the moment, I decided not to show that I had noticed the situation.

“Um, Ms. Sua. Would you like to take a short break?”

I pointed to a nearby building.

“Y-yes? Ah, ah, ah! Yes!”

For some reason, she seemed flustered.

I led her into the building and, pretending it was nothing, whispered as I brushed past her face.

“There are people ahead. Don’t let it show that you’ve noticed.”

“Ah, yes!”

However, her pupils were shaking like an earthquake as she answered.

‘Sigh… I guess it can’t be helped since it’s her first time.’

But I couldn’t just not tell her. If she had to experience it anyway, now—while the opponents were weak and clumsy—was the perfect time.

Meanwhile, while hiding inside the building for a moment, I checked the observation probe once more and decided on my next move.

‘Come to think of it… I prepared something for a time like this.’

I wore a sinister smile.

* * *

Six people were crouching at the corner, waiting for the situation.

Among them, the man closest to the edge of the corner began to whisper to the people behind him.

“Hey, didn’t he say it was just a man and a woman?”

“Yeah. Why, is there someone else?”

“I think there’s one more.”

“Let me see.”

The man at the edge carefully passed a small makeup hand mirror to the next person.

Adjusting his rimless glasses, he tilted the hand mirror to reflect beyond the corner, and a man appeared in the mirror.

He seemed to have his face completely covered with a loose hoodie pulled down, a mask, and sunglasses. On top of that, he was wearing a long coat unsuitable for the weather and shabby black long pants.

But there was one more thing more concerning than his attire.

Though he himself wasn’t small, the man’s physique was overwhelming. It was as if… another person could fit inside him.

After confirming this through the mirror, the man with rimless glasses whispered.

“What’s with that height and build… are we really doing this?”

“We have to. But doesn’t he seem a bit strange?”

“What nonsense are you talking— uh…?”

The man with rimless glasses stopped talking.

It was because he also felt that the movements of the man reflected in the mirror were somewhat unnatural.

Should I say… not natural? Every time he took a step, there was a feeling of creaking. Moreover, the clothes he was wearing felt strange.

‘What kind of coat is he wearing…?’

But the situation didn’t give them time to think.

“Hey, he’s still coming. He’ll turn the corner soon. Everyone get ready.”

With the man’s words, the six men and women spread out to the left and right, careful not to make a sound. They placed the man with the bow in the back, while those with spears and shields maintained the front line.

It was a clear combat formation.

And… the moment the man in the long coat turned the corner.

“Hyaaah!”

Thump! Thump! Thump! Clang!

Three spear tips and one arrowhead turned the man into a pincushion. Or rather, they should have.

Ting—!

But they didn’t. The arrowhead bounced off helplessly, and the three spear tips slid away as if hitting something.

But more obvious than that was the stinging sensation felt through the spear shafts. It felt as if they had struck steel.

“Wait, it actually is steel!”

And it wasn’t an illusion. Inside the man’s clothes, which had been torn by their fierce ambush, a glittering metal was hidden.

Because it was Magitech Armor.

* * *

‘As expected, they’re Marauders.’

“Phew…”

Watching the situation through the observation probe, I sighed.

Taking a human life is not enjoyable.

But I couldn’t let them live. If I let them go, they would kill other people someday.

It was best to end it here.

‘Finish them.’

I gave a short instruction to the Magitech Armor. Meanwhile, the Plunderer Group, having seen the metal, was visibly panicked.

“W-what?!”

“It looks like Knight Armor!”

“Did he rob a museum or something!”

“Enough, just keep attacking! Aim for the gaps in the armor!”

The moment he shouted the countermeasure. The armor reached out both hands and grabbed the head of the nearest person.

“Uh, uh?! What is this strength!”

And as if kicking a soccer ball, it powerfully slammed his head down and crushed it with a knee.

Crunch!

With a heavy sound, his skull shattered, and red blood splattered, soaking the street. The remaining five, hit by that blood, began to scream.

“H-haah!”

“Kyaaaaah!”

Having lost their will to fight, they began to turn and run away.

Clank— clank—

But behind them, four units of Magitech Armor were already standing, blocking their escape route.

“Ah… ah… ah…”

They froze in terror.

Rat-tat-tat—

Soon, several gunshots rang out.

The situation ended quickly.

* * *

‘What, it seems there are no attack-type Ability Users?’

Observing the whole situation, I felt a sense of incongruity.

Not just anyone becomes a Marauder.

It’s done by people who are confident in fighting.

And a large part of that confidence comes from their abilities. So I thought the spears were just secondary armaments, but that wasn’t the case.

‘They’re raiding with just cold weapons…?’

It was ridiculous.

‘There’s something more to this.’

It wasn’t a matter to be taken lightly.

Of course… in cases like this, there was always a way.

“H-huuuu… ugh…”

The man with rimless glasses was sobbing, having lost his mind to terror.

‘Now, shall we dig up some information?’

There was a reason I kept him alive.

I had placed a cellphone inside the first Magitech Armor on speakerphone, keeping the line open. This was to converse if the opponent was an ordinary person, or to interrogate them in cases like this.

“Can you hear me clearly?”

“Huuu… ugh…”

‘Aim.’

Click!

With my command, four units of Magitech Armor simultaneously pointed their guns at the man. Seeing this, the man was now trembling violently.

“If you don’t answer, it will be more painful. Do you understand?”

“H-hic, yes…”

The man barely managed to answer.

“Then I will ask questions. If you do well, I might spare you.”

“R-really?”

“Yes, provided you answer well.”

Gulp—

The man with rimless glasses swallowed hard.

He began to answer my questions fluently.

* * *

A short while later.

At a certain distance from the corpse of the man with rimless glasses. A man was staring at the body with full concentration.

And counting one, two… after confirming a total of six corpses, he began to speak to the man beside him who was indulging in pleasure, cracking trivial jokes.

“Um… Cheonsu Hyung. Squad 16 has been hit.”

The man, who had a small build and a goatee, frowned as if annoyed by the interruption and asked back.

“Hmm, Squad 16… who was there?”

“You know, that woman with the slanted eyes. The man with rimless glasses… and…”

“Ahhh! I remember. Those scraps!”

“Yes, those guys.”

“Well, it’s for the best. They were just wasting food, hahahaha!”

“But… the wounds were gunshot wounds.”

“Gunshots…?”

At that moment, the man’s expression turned serious.

“Keep an eye on that area. We must get those guns.”

* * *

‘Hmm… I might have gained something here.’

I reached that conclusion.

The information obtained from the man with rimless glasses was as follows.

The opponent’s leader was named Kim Cheonsu, a physical Ability User capable of producing strength that didn’t match his small build.

It was a simple ability, but that made it particularly advantageous in the early stages.

Based on that ability, the man had divided the Marauders into squads by ranking their abilities, and it seemed he had a close aide who was a Clairvoyance Ability User capable of gathering information remotely.

‘And… he said a Contract Ability User is being held captive.’

This was the most important core.

A Contract Ability was a power where a specific contract was written using mana, and if that contract was broken, a notification would be sent to both parties.

In other words, it could guarantee a relationship of trust between people.

Depending on the growth or rank of the ability, one could impose a backlash for breaking the contract, but that was the core of it.

But even that was useful enough.

For example, it was said that Cheonsu forced people to work by threatening that if the contract was broken, he would use his aide’s Clairvoyance to track them down and kill them.

‘A Contract Ability User…’

I thought.

‘I happened to need one, so this works out well.’

I had one more thing to do.

The first reunion.