Chapter 90 – Development

Lately… a strange rumor had been circulating on Ganghwa Island.

And it was doing so in the form of videos on Apoin.

[Our great Leader who will save humanity.]

[Let us drive out the Monsters and open a new era of independent Unification!]

These videos, featuring provocative content written in large, colorful, and somewhat scribbled fonts…

“Last night, our beloved and great Comrade Leader once again rescued the fellow people of the southern lands.”

It featured a woman dressed in hanbok delivering a hymn of praise.

And that praise was directed at [me].

“Our great Leader, unable to endure the tyranny of the wicked landlords who resided in our land—specifically in Daejeon—and implemented a feudal class system under the pretext of the Monster Invasion…”

She tightened her voice, her expression looking as if she were on the verge of tears.

“…ordered that the luxurious residences of those disgusting capitalist pigs, built upon the blood and sweat of the people, be turned into a sea of fire.”

…she added.

“My god…”

As I heard those words, I slapped my forehead, creating a loud sound.

Smack!

But that wasn’t all.

“However, our great Comrade Leader took pity on our compatriots in the southern lands who were being exploited by the tyranny of those landlords. He ordered that every single person among our people be rescued before they fell into that merciless sea of fire.”

Hearing that, I leaned my head back against the sofa.

“Please… stop it…”

“Why? It’s all true, isn’t it?”

Seoyeon giggled at my reaction and turned up the volume.

“Those who waited at exactly twelve o’clock wearing blue hoods…”

Click—

Unable to take it anymore, I turned off the video.

“Why?! The latter part was actually quite fresh.”

According to her, the part about Daejeon had been linked to the concept of the ‘Rapture’ from Christian doctrine—the idea of ascending to heaven—and tied it to the Day of Judgment.

‘I never intended for it to be like that…’

In truth, I had already heard that a sort of new religion was being founded on Ganghwa Island, where people praised me while shouting about whether I was of the Songpyeon lineage or the Mandu lineage.

Since they were North Korean refugees accustomed to propaganda, I had just let it be, thinking it would eventually fade away…

But this time, the situation was a bit different.

For some reason, this strange religion had begun to spread in the shadows beyond Ganghwa Island and into the mainland.

They were even conducting strange religious ceremonies, gathering regularly at exactly 12 o’clock while wearing blue hoods.

Pressing my temples, I pleaded with Seoyeon.

“Delete all of them.”

“Ah… these too?”

Seoyeon looked somewhat disappointed.

It seemed she really enjoyed those videos.

Regardless, I told her to delete everything without exception.

‘Sigh… I guess this happens when people’s lives get easier.’

It was something unimaginable in my previous life.

And this wasn’t the only unimaginable thing.

“Gwak Sangyong, step down! Step down!”

[Small Business Artifact Manufacturing Workshop Association]

Workshop artisans with red bands tied around their heads were engaging in clashes.

They had protested against Gwak Sangyong’s entry into the Artifact manufacturing industry, calling it the ‘tyranny of a large corporation.’

Ultimately, Gwak Sangyong took a step back and decided to actively hire the workshop artisans while also investing in and encouraging research and development for the small businesses he didn’t hire.

Gwak Sangyong would handle the mass production of standard goods, while the workshops would handcraft items requiring high quality and customization.

‘Artifact manufacturing… I never imagined this would happen.’

Actually, I thought it was a problem too complex for me to get involved in, so while I watched, I was inwardly worried. However, I was glad that the two sides were eventually able to coexist.

They had caught two birds with one stone: quantity and quality.

Since machines in large numbers could compete on quantity, and a few high-end machines could compete on quality, it was an incredibly positive phenomenon for me.

‘Grow steadily…’

Recently, small workshops had introduced so-called ‘luxury’ items that captured both quality and style as a differentiation strategy.

They had approached Minju and Sua, offering vast amounts of Worker Bug Coins to request that they film promotional videos.

When they asked me what they should do, I told them to do as they pleased. In the end, it seemed they declined. Apparently, they didn’t feel confident wearing them because the items weren’t satisfying compared to the Artifacts I provide.

Meanwhile, there was an issue arising as the population increased.

Slowly but surely, the capacity of the Dungeons was becoming insufficient!

‘This is something I could never have imagined in the past.’

There had been times when there weren’t enough people to enter a Dungeon, but there had never once been a problem because there were too many.

Consequently, I decided to leak some Dungeon pioneering information on Apoin along with Nest Mana Stones. Since I was the only one who knew the truly lucrative Dungeon patterns anyway, there was absolutely nothing to lose.

However, due to concerns about a Counter-Invasion, I specified that registration was required to open a Dungeon.

This was the implementation of a ‘Dungeon Registration System.’

Meanwhile, when posting information on Apoin, I no longer needed to post under my own name. This was because I could create fake IDs after recruiting Seoyeon.

I modified the process so that a virtual Precog would post the text, and then Seoyeon would turn that post into an official announcement.

This was possible because Seoyeon understood and was aware of every situation thanks to the private Apoin.

I also deleted the posts I had uploaded previously and re-uploaded them under the name of the Precog. Seongjae, who didn’t know the exact details, seemed quite disappointed by this.

“Ah… another holy site has vanished.”

I rejected his request to at least leave the comments.

* * *

Meanwhile… night fell once again.

Thanks to the Monsters, it was a night where the brilliant light of humanity was only fading. Of course, the sole exception to this formula was Korea.

Specifically, Incheon and the areas under its influence, where the Magitech Civilization was blossoming.

However, among them, there was yet another exception…

“Stringer, is Gwangju also within their sphere of influence?”

That was Gwangju. Stringer, from the Pentagon, who had brought the latest night satellite photos, shook his head.

“Mr. President. As a result of using Admiral William and the recently acquired system called Apoin, there appears to be no exchange between Gwangju and the Magitech Civilization.”

“Then why are the lights in Gwangju growing brighter?”

When the US President asked, Stringer answered cautiously.

“In Gwangju… the number of Monsters is overwhelmingly high. No human activity is being reported.”

“Does that mean… you don’t know the cause?”

“I will continue to monitor the situation.”

In other words, he didn’t know.

An awkward silence flowed between the two for a moment. However, the curiosity regarding the situation within Korea did not end there.

“Then, how is that trade deal from last time progressing?”

“The conditions have not yet been perfectly finalized. However, we have requested that arrangements be made so that certain Mana Stones can be received without issue upon acquisition.”

“Certain Mana Stones… you mean types like Nest Mana Stones?”

The US President was also monitoring Apoin, specifically the posts of the Precog. And he was doing so with the original text, not the Apoin auto-translation…

Interpreter Officers and intelligence analysis officers had gathered to analyze the original text down to the word level, chewing over and dissecting the content repeatedly.

As such, he knew that certain Mana Stones might possess special powers. For instance, like the Nest Mana Stones.

However, Stringer shook his head at that.

“No. They said it likely wouldn’t be Nest Mana Stones. However, they requested that we consult them unconditionally if there are any large Mana Stones, such as Villain’s Mana Stones or Nest Mana Stones.”

“That is… a very peculiar person…”

“He stated it is a matter of great importance to humanity, closely related to his own ability.”

“Important to humanity…”

“What would you like to do?”

At those words, the US President lowered his head for a moment. After thinking deeply for a long while, he looked up at Stringer.

“Do you… happen to have a family?”

“Oh, yes? You’re asking about my family…?”

“Yes.”

“I have a wife, a six-year-old daughter, and a son who was born recently.”

Stringer was momentarily flustered but answered honestly.

“Born recently… it must have been difficult in a world like this.”

“Who would have thought the world would change like this… hahaha…”

Stringer laughed awkwardly.

The US President gave a bitter smile in response.

“True. Who knew the world would change like this…”

“…”

“As you know, I also have two sons and a daughter.”

“Yes, of course I know.”

“My daughter also gave birth recently.”

“Congratulations!”

Stringer offered his congratulations.

The US President waved his hand at the remark and continued.

“Thank you. But listen.”

The US President’s expression became solemn.

“Please speak, sir.”

“At this rate… I doubt my grandson will ever reach adulthood.”

“…!!!”

Stringer wasn’t the only one shocked.

“How could you say such a thing!”

“No. We will make it.”

The ministers who had been receiving the report along with him also spoke up.

But the US President’s expression remained adamant.

“You say that, but I’m sure you know it in your hearts. If things continue like this… humanity will be defeated.”

It was as he said.

The recent situation on the front lines was bleak.

Canada was collapsing under the pressure of the increasingly stronger swarms of Monsters. In particular, the appearance of the ‘Civilization Bulldozer’ was overwhelming. Although they were accepting the refugees, that was ultimately just a story of what happens after defeat.

And everyone knew that if Canada completely collapsed, it would only be a matter of time before the North American front continued to move south and seize major cities like New York, Boston, and DC.

While everyone remained silent, having been hit where it hurt…

The US President spoke.

“Except for one thing. The Magitech Civilization. Specifically, Seong Siwoo.”

“…!!!”

“D-does that mean!”

It was a moment of shock for everyone.

“Yes. Promise him full support.”

“We will do so!”

“I will contact him immediately!”

The ministers hurriedly began their work.

Watching them, the US President whispered to himself.

“Yes… for the sake of humanity. If that is the only way to save my grandson, I would even sell my soul to the devil… and if it’s selling it to Seong Siwoo, it’s a bargain.”

He was sincere.

* * *

Meanwhile…

On the other side of the globe.

“If it’s Gwangju… that bastard must be there.”

I quietly examined the Observation Ship. Gwangju, a city completely occupied by Monsters where no human could be found.

Despite being a city where a considerable population had lived, there was only one reason it had been seized by the Monsters.

The Villain, [Oh Yuhyeon].

This city, where he resided, was definitely different from the cities where other Villains were located. For example, the rank of the Nest was distinctly different from other cities, and the locations of power sources were not properly identified.

Perhaps it was only natural.

Because Oh Yuhyeon was…

A pro gamer who had always defeated me and taken first place in a strategy simulation game that had been as popular as a National Game in the past.

The funny thing was, almost everyone agreed that I was superior in terms of raw skill. I hadn’t become the overwhelming number one based on macro management alone for nothing.

However, I had been absurdly defeated by his bug-like play, which exploited various systemic loopholes in E-sports while it was still in its infancy.

‘Dirty bastard.’

There was even a match where, while I was figuring out how to overcome those bugs, a power outage occurred and I suffered a loss by default. Conspiracy theories about match-fixing had even circulated, which said it all.

‘Back then, did I say that heaven refused to let me win?’

I recalled the past.

“I won’t let that happen this time.”

Of course, the past was just the past.