Chapter 745

〈 Chapter 745 〉 Part 2, Chapter 6, 09

Putting aside information about the villain group for now…

Let’s get back to the game.

Daytime.

I stepped up against the Blackened Group as a girl.

‘In the end, they’re just monsters.’

The fact that they are located underground in Seoul doesn’t change.

‘Think of it simply: the difficulty level has just gone up.’

Since there are two SS+ ranked beings, I can assume the difficulty has been adjusted accordingly. Hence, while heading toward Seoul with my teammates, I repeatedly prioritized safety above all else.

-Is it really okay not to protect the Commander first?

The safety of the team members and heroines.

Kim Penril naturally expressed concern over his inability to protect everyone.

If he prioritizes protecting someone other than me—like Yuna or another teammate—won’t that leave the Commander vulnerable to an ambush?

Even so, I was willing to take the risk.

While Seoul’s surface operates under the law of the jungle, its underground is more like a lawless wasteland.

Might makes right here.

Among these power dynamics, Sun Gyeoul reigns supreme as the Queen of the Depths.

But…

‘What’s the reality?’

Will those who’ve suffered at the hands of Sun Icheol truly submit to his daughter?

If they do, it could be one of two scenarios:

Either Sun Gyeoul, being a heroine, wins their cooperation through heartfelt sincerity—a classic shonen trope—or she casts spells of obedience and brainwashing upon all the denizens of the underworld, controlling them as part of her dominion.

‘Whichever it is, it seems unlikely rebellion will break out anytime soon.’

Sun Gyeoul must be confident enough in her influence that she feels comfortable wandering around New Seoul, even if she temporarily leaves Seoul unattended.

So, should this chapter focus on courting Sun Gyeoul?

‘Don’t you want to pursue this new heroine?’

[Shouldn’t I already be satisfied having pursued you?]

‘Hmph.’

It’s hard to argue when you’re fed such flattery. All I want is to speedrun the nighttime scenes without complicating things further by getting involved in the power struggles between the Commander, hunters, and monsters.

‘Isn’t there some way to skip the main story?’

People don’t care how the main story unfolds anyway—they just want to see romance blossom between the heroines.

[This is all buildup for that.]

‘It gets boring if it takes too long.’

[You’re going crazy because you want to defile Azidahaka, aren’t you?]

‘Not sure about others, but definitely her.’

Azidahaka.

Though she’s a monster chained as a prostitute, her spirit form, Angra Mainyu, remains a virgin.

She harbors somber and gloomy desires, but once hearts align, she might be the easiest character to court.

More importantly—

[Don’t you think it’s hypocritical to claim friends shouldn’t “get close” while secretly trying to seduce her?]

“Tch.”

Caught red-handed.

[And besides, since you passed on Jeolpung, you’ll probably lose control around other spirits.]

If only we could have a little fun in the game!

Though I feel guilty toward the human heroines, deep down, I yearn to form deeper connections with the spirits.

There’s just this premonition that something wonderful will happen if I bond with them.

Thus, in this chapter, I need to capture Azidahaka.

To achieve that, I’ll worry about consequences later.

Original storyline?

Playthrough routes?

Future repercussions?

None of that matters anymore when it comes to intimacy.

‘The Phoenix route always begins by ignoring the original flow anyway.’

Had I stuck to normal progression, I might’ve gotten a standard ending. But Azidahaka deviated from the path first.

‘She should’ve quietly led the monsters across the nation instead of causing trouble.’

It was Azidahaka who initiated unnecessary chaos. Therefore, we bear no fault.

‘I’m going to utterly dismantle her.’

Azidahaka.

From now on, I’ll utilize every resource available within this game to break her down and transform her into the spirit Angra Mainyu.

[All to devour a former goddess who once ruled the world alongside me.]

“…”

Can’t argue with that, so I won’t.

* * *

Night.

“We’re heading to Seoul.”

I gathered everyone in the office. Since no prior discussion had taken place regarding our response to the original storyline, none of my teammates showed particular resistance to my announcement about going to Seoul.

“Seoul…?”

At most, Raon, who has unpleasant ties to Seoul, appeared extremely tense.

“Excellent. This will be a great opportunity to wash away past pains.”

Even Raon eagerly anticipates returning to Seoul, driven by a desire to rectify past mistakes during her childhood and possibly seek revenge on whoever ruined her heroic career.

“You all seem confident. Good.”

“Hang out with Harang isn’t coming, but Penril will guard us, so I’m reassured.”

[Sorry, I can’t join you there.]

“Leave it to me.”

Of all our teammates, only one wouldn’t participate.

Seok Harang.

She’s essentially half of our team’s powerhouse duo, but due to certain reasons, she won’t ascend to Seoul.

Why not?

[If I go, the Seoul Recovery Operation will begin immediately. The northern advance beyond the Han River will commence.]

Seok Harang’s movements stir Busan, and Sun Icheol’s seat of power trembles.

Given Sun Icheol’s relentless pursuit of Seoul’s Cube, he’ll surely expend all efforts to conquer Seoul and retrieve it.

“It’s not like we left a honey pot behind in Seoul. Why does he obsess over it so much? It’s not as though some monster swallowed it whole.”

A crucial item, the Cube, was consumed by a high-ranked beast. However—

“Harang, is the S-Rank Monster signal still only the snake at City Hall?”

[Yup. Nothing else detected yet. At least not above ground.]

“What about Yeouido?”

[Yeouido… Yup, nothing there either.]

Boss, vanished.

The Field Boss, Tentacle Toad, which swallowed the Cube, isn’t present in Yeouido.

Sure, the radar doesn’t pick up the Tentacle Toad, but would SS+ Rank Demi-Spirit Seok Harang fail to notice?

“Fenril, what about your reconnaissance?”

“There was nothing unusual in Yeouido during my scout. Just the scent of a single snake above ground.”

“Hmm…”

Even Fenril didn’t sense anything.

Field Boss, erased.

‘Is this Azidahaka’s doing? Or perhaps a change introduced via DLC? Or did the Cube belong to the Tentacle Toad used in the TS Beam?’

According to his play log, the Tentacle Toad was always in Yeouido.

The entity holding the Cube has disappeared without a trace?

It’s reasonable to suspect the Cube has fallen into someone’s hands.

‘Still, it can’t be Fenril.’

Considering 1v1 combat, Fenril holds no weaknesses except against Phoenix and Pyongyang’s top-tier beasts.

If we assume Seok Harang can be killed, Fenril always triumphs. Thus, all crisis management in this chapter falls to Fenril.

“One last time, your safety is the priority. Remember, protecting yourselves is the best way to help me and our team. That’s why I’m entrusting your safety to Fenril. Fenril, can you ensure no one gets hurt?”

“Of course! But I have one suggestion.”

Fenril grinned mischievously while pulling out an icebox.

“Eat it with a spoon!”

“…What is this?”

“One cup of mint chocolate each! Special gelato crafted by Manager Huan. Eating this will make finding you easier for me than using magical gear. My senses are sharper for mint chocolate than hearing or touch!”

Wolves belong to the Canidae family, and Fenril is a wolf. There’s no disputing Fenril’s superior sense of smell.

“…Never heard of using food as a sensor chip before.”

“Isn’t this better? No skin damage involved. But Manager, will eating this really work? Brushing teeth might erase the scent.”

“Are you suggesting we don’t brush our teeth…? Surely not…”

They misunderstood my intentions. The true purpose of the mint chocolate gelato lies in the ‘magic power’ infused within it. By feeding it to our team, Fenril can easily track them using his magic.

“No way. Trust Fenril. Do you really think I’d rely on bad breath?”

“That’s gross too.”

“I trust Fenril, but… Alright. Manager, what exactly should we do once we arrive in Seoul?”

[No need to push yourselves. Don’t provoke the snake at City Hall.]

That’s right, as Seok Harang said.

[We have sufficient strength, but destroying all of Seoul’s monsters would be counterproductive. You know why.]

“The stronger creatures beyond the 38th parallel descending into Seoul.”

“And someone moving heroes under the assumption Seoul is defenseless.”

Our team quickly understood why immediate recovery of Seoul isn’t advisable.

“Correct. But we can’t neglect Seoul forever. So, we’re laying the groundwork for that. The goal of this operation is…”

I relayed the outline of the mission to everyone through magical gear.

“Seoul Vacation.”

“Manager, who came up with the name?”

“…The company?”

Everyone thinks of Oracle Studio, but obviously, I mean the game development company.

Despite the whimsical subtitle, the actual content involves nothing but terrifying battles.

‘Who knows what will happen this time.’

To confront the changes head-on, we headed toward Seoul.

“I’ll announce the squad.”

Commander: Me.

Yuinah, Park Ra-on, Kim Nori, Kim Gaon, Jung Su-ri, Ha Yu-eun (Yuha). Kim Penril.

“And Sun Gyeoul.”

Excluding Seok Harang stationed in Busan and Cheon Gaeul, who’s temporarily absent for unknown reasons, this represents our team’s maximum available power.

“Listen carefully. Things in Seoul will be very different this time. We may even have to… kill enemies.”

[Even if they’re not monsters?]

“Exactly.”

To put it nicely, we’ll be creating ‘cores’ out of people.

“Our priority is ourselves. Our enemies… will be eliminated.”

Everyone stiffened. Until now, I rarely adopted such a stern expression or gave such serious warnings.

[Teach them the spell.]

He whispered something to me. As I scanned my team, I recited the incantation he taught me.

“Apparently, there are creatures lurking beneath Seoul aiming to devour the Commander.”

“……Huh.”

Their expressions shifted instantly.

“Pfft! …Cough, why am I reacting like this?”

On the first floor, part-time worker Cheon Gaeul suddenly choked while working at the cafe.