Chapter 63 – Closer Than It Appears

Chapter 63 – Closer Than It Appears

In a real-time strategy game, resource management was fundamental. Gamers often considered it a sin for resources to be idle, expressing it as ‘resources are playing around.’

I am The Man, and I am a Pro Gamer. My tendency to maximize the use of leftover mana, rather than letting it sit idle, might have originated from that mindset.

‘Well… it can’t be helped.’

I thought, feeling my mana deficit.

The reason for considering idle resources a sin was very simple.

Resources don’t work when they’re just numbers in a ‘wallet.’ For these resources to work, they must be converted into workers or troops.

Once resources start working like that, they soon return as more resources, and in turn, those more resources bring even more, allowing for the production of even more workers or troops.

In other words, the faster the cycle, the faster the snowballing, creating a virtuous cycle.

Applying this to my abilities made it much more complex.

Not only did production consume large chunks of mana,

there were also costs incurred as maintenance fees.

Furthermore, the methods of resource acquisition were all different. This included not only mana stones but also the mana I recovered naturally, and even mana facilities.

Among these, the amount of mana I recovered directly increased steadily as my abilities grew, so there wasn’t much I could do about it. It just worked automatically if left alone.

However, mana stones and mana facilities were different.

Mana stones were obtained through economic dominance.

By creating Worker Bug Coins as currency, I gained absolute economic power, which allowed me to virtually monopolize the mana stones circulating in the market.

Of course, that wasn’t all. I also obtained an overwhelmingly large amount directly through monster hunting.

However… no matter how much I tried, there was a limit to the mana that could be recovered from mana stones right now.

Compared to mana facilities, for example.

Mana facilities served to refine the atmospheric mana in a given area through summoning. As such, they could steadily produce mana.

Not only that, but mana facilities could also remotely supply mana to nearby facilities and machines if the amount was small.

This was also why, when expanding mana facilities, they were built to maintain regional connectivity while not being too close to each other, in order to efficiently draw in mana.

Mana facilities could supply mana to each other, allowing for the construction of a mana network much like an electrical grid.

This was also a significant difference from mana stones.

Unlike mana facilities, where everything is possible remotely, Mana Stone had the disadvantage of increasing the demand for Worker Bug labor as much as the man, as it had to be absorbed directly.

The busy guys, no less. Moreover, the operation of the Worker Bug also used mana, so its efficiency was absolutely lower than that of the man.

Then there was also the problem of Impurities.

No matter how much the purity of the Mana Stone increased, impurities themselves never disappeared. When used as fuel for a long time, they would accumulate in the machinery, increasing the need for maintenance.

Of course… it wasn’t impossible.

‘It’s about time I had a Mana Stone Refinery.’

A Mana Stone Refinery was an advanced facility that could solve all these shortcomings. And to build an advanced facility, an Advanced Research Facility was needed.

‘I’ll be busy for a while again.’

I began to make plans, watching the Aerial Mothership slowly circling above the blue sky.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Assemblymen in the Yeouido Secret Bunker were arguing in a fierce atmosphere, as usual.

“No, wasn’t the information wrong?!”

“That can’t be! We even looked at the Castle map together, so why are you saying something different now?!”

“Then why don’t you explain it! Why is the Lord guy expanding even more?!”

Meanwhile, Assemblyman Kim, who was the most knowledgeable among the Assemblymen, sat in a corner with a dark expression. Other Assemblymen began to get angry at him.

“Oh, Assemblyman Kim. You always bragged about knowing so much, but this time you’re sitting there so quietly?”

“If you have something to say, say it!”

At that, Assemblyman Kim merely frowned.

“Why can’t you speak, as if you’ve suddenly become mute!”

“Did you have a bowl of medicine like your son?”

…Before they crossed the line, that is. Assemblyman Kim looked at them, sighed deeply in frustration, and then began to speak.

“No, why do they always ask me for information when they don’t do anything themselves? Not only do they do nothing, but do they have no shame?”

“Oh, what a thing to say!”

“Just be quiet. I’ll tell you anyway.”

Funnily enough, as Assemblyman Kim offered to share information, the room became eerily quiet again.

“Ahem.”

As everyone’s gaze fell on him, the Man, feeling somewhat embarrassed, cleared his throat once.

“Ah, the Man. As you all know, the Lord is well.”

He began to release information.

“Not only is he well, but he’s also very active. I don’t know how he did it, but the Man reportedly eliminated a Special Entity along with a massive number of Monsters.”

“A-a Special Entity!”

“Wasn’t that a Monster that broke through Russia, China, and North Korea?!”

“My goodness…”

Assemblyman Kim waited for everyone to quiet down for a moment before he started speaking again.

“Well, for now, the Siberian Front doesn’t end here. Unless the Nests in the Northern Region are eliminated, they will consistently move south, threatening the Korean Peninsula.”

“Certainly… the Man is right, but…”

“If that’s the case, perhaps it’s something that would burden the Lord—”

“No.”

Assemblyman Kim shook his head decisively.

“The Lord is currently touring the Demilitarized Zone, recruiting even more National Army Soldiers. In fact, he is expanding his forces. Recently, he’s reportedly approaching to recruit even an Armored Division.”

“A-an Armored Division…”

“Does this mean he’ll even get his hands on tanks here…?”

The Assemblymen’s expressions grew even more somber.

“Also, the fact that he has started defending the Demilitarized Zone instead of the National Army is quickly spreading through rumors via Apoin and other channels. No, it would be impossible not to know, to begin with.”

It was true.

Only Assemblymen, truly living in a well, as the Man said, in a Bunker, would be unaware of such things.

This was also why Assemblyman Kim was feeling frustrated.

“The Lord is now… a Guardian. And since he has plenty of food and stable forces… the citizens across the nation are quickly being swayed.”

“A-across the nation, you say…?”

“My goodness…”

“Right now, the Lord of Geumhwa might be more dangerous than Choi Seunghwan, who claimed to be the Provisional Government. That man has no intention of inheriting the concept of the Republic of Korea in the first place.”

It was when Assemblyman Kim strongly asserted that.

“But, you know…”

“How much food is there…?”

Other assemblymen began to ask cautiously.

“What are you talking about?”

Assemblyman Kim’s eyebrows twitched.

“Well, I heard they don’t even eat combat rations there unless it’s urgent?”

“Well, that’s right. Because they are the only force in the world that is self-sufficient in food and even exports it. But what exactly are you trying to say—”

“And their military is also the strongest in the world…”

“Also, water and electricity are basic… and I even heard that oil comes out. Is that true, Assemblyman Kim?”

“It’s, it’s true, but—”

It was when Assemblyman Kim frowned like that.

One of the opposition assemblymen stepped forward and shouted.

“No, then what are we doing here?!”

That was just the beginning.

“Let’s immediately go under the Lord’s faction!”

“I heard that if we fully join, they will recognize a certain degree of autonomy, didn’t they?!”

Assemblyman Kim and the ruling party assemblymen seemed to have different thoughts.

“But no matter what, we are assemblymen. To join the faction of those without such a foundation—”

“No, what nonsense is this about a foundation? Right now, having water, electricity, oil, and food is the foundation. You idiot—”

“Please calm down. I agree.”

Assemblyman Park smiled meaningfully.

“Assemblyman Park?”

When Assemblyman Kim looked at Assemblyman Park with a disbelieving expression, he gestured as if to wait a moment and began to speak calmly.

“No matter how great the Lord of Geumhwa is, The Man is human, not a god. People will have an opinion of The Man, and there will be problematic individuals among those close to The Man.”

“……”

“Take Choi Yongjin, for instance. Well, it’s true he was abandoned, but if we step forward and claim The Man deserted and committed treason, no one would know.”

Assemblyman Park grinned.

“Even if there are no problems, we can create them for The Man. Let’s be honest this time. Is this the first or second time we’ve done something like this? This… was practically our job, wasn’t it?”

“Hahahaha……”

“With that old man.”

“That’s true.”

All the Assemblymen agreed with The Man’s words.

“So we just need to join the Lord’s ranks. And then, little by little, we’ll expand our influence from within the Western United States. Isn’t that what we’re all good at?”

“Hear, hear!”

“Later, we can demand positions by presenting ourselves as Assemblymen elected by the people, and gradually seize power. If everyone below agrees, what can The Man do?”

“Wow… what a brilliant idea.”

“Good, good!”

“It seems most of you agree. Shall we all vote together, just to get a taste of Democracy?”

“Hahahahaha!”

“That old man, seriously!”

“What’s the point of that-.”

It was when everyone was laughing boisterously.

“What? I felt an interesting energy and came over, and there are familiar faces here?”

In a corner of the conference room, near the entrance, a man stood.

“What is it?”

“Whose Aide is it?”

“But his manners-.”

It was when the man slowly began to walk towards them.

Bang!

The conference room door burst open in a hurry.

“A-Assemblyman! That man, that man is *cough*!”

Unable to finish his sentence, the man who spat blood was Assemblyman Kim’s competent Chief Aide. The man looked at his Chief Aide and gave a strange smile.

“What? You’re not dead yet?”

“Huh?”

All the Assemblymen had bewildered expressions. It was a slow understanding and reaction speed that seemed impossible in the Apocalypse.

Perhaps it was natural.

They didn’t know the situation outside.

Many of them were seeing someone die in front of their eyes for the first time. The man started to laugh heartily at the Assemblymen.

“Heh, heh-hahahahat! You guys haven’t come to your senses yet, have you?”

And the moment his eyes twitched -.

Drip, drip, drip!

Black Aura flowed from his body.

“This should be enough for you guys.”

The moment the man’s mocking words ended, the Black Aura turned into several snakes and began to rampage through the conference room.

“S-Snakes?!”

“W-What is this?!”

Screeeech-

“Ugh!”

The conference room instantly became a chaotic mess.

“O-Oh, oh!”

Just then, Assemblyman Kim was also about to be bitten by a snake.

“A-Assemblyman Kim!”

The Chief Aide, holding an Infantry Portable Anti-Tank Rocket like a bazooka, was aiming directly at the man.

It was a Panzerfaust 3 operated by the National Army.

The Man aimed and fired-.

Bang!

Due to the indoor firing, an enormous backblast engulfed the conference room.

“Di-did we get him?”

As the dust settled… The Man’s hand, which had caught the Daejeon rocket, became visible. Several of The Man’s fingers, partially damaged by the explosion, were regenerating.

“A vi-villain?”

The Chief Aide’s face turned pale.

***

The man who had turned the Bunker into a blood-soaked castle stroked the Rake Wolf.

“Good boy, good boy.”

He was a man who had abandoned his humanity and sided with monsters.

Meanwhile, The Man also held a paper in his other hand with information about Worker Bug and Seong Siwoo written on it.

“Hmm… this is quite interesting, isn’t it?”

The man murmured to himself and pointed at the Assemblyman’s corpses for the Rake Wolf, as if telling it to eat. As the Rake Wolf ran off, the man stood tall and surveyed the western direction.

“Geumhwa New City… is that way?”

It was then that The Man began to gauge the distance.

“But what’s that?”

The Man saw a gigantic black object floating in the sky and…

Tilted his head.

“It seems to be getting bigger and bigger?”

The man was confused.