Chapter 121

Silence fell as Samra finished speaking.

Despite the fact that it was a video conference involving 20 countries, no one opened their mouth at that moment.

No one asked if it was certain.

It was because it was a question that held no meaning to Samra Mansang.

Jang Seokyun looked at Samra with wavering eyes. It was a fact he, too, was unaware of.

Samra added a brief explanation to aid understanding.

“This is the result of data analysis completed 56 seconds ago. The accuracy is 100%.”

There was no emotion in the voice stating that there was not even a 0.01% margin of error.

“It is presumed to be a chain reaction caused by existing meteorites reacting to the new meteorite.”

The locations of the meteorites scheduled to hatch and explode were diverse.

They were scattered haphazardly across the Northern and Southern hemispheres, making it impossible to speculate on any geographical connection.

Since data existed for the trial meteorites scheduled to explode, the data was analyzed, but no correlation could be found.

Samra displayed the locations of the Trials scheduled to hatch and explode on each screen of the video conference participants.

As every country had at least a few included, the atmosphere darkened in an instant.

Countries with Trials scheduled to explode, in particular, could not hide their anxiety.

Jang Seokyun was no exception. He furrowed his brow deeply.

South Korea had five meteorites scheduled to hatch and two Trials scheduled to explode.

Currently, the number of meteorites that had fallen worldwide amounted to hundreds of thousands.

By country, the number ranged from hundreds to thousands, but the majority were meteorites that had not yet hatched.

While the news of a new meteorite falling was certainly shocking, countries that already had thousands of meteorites accumulated had no choice but to focus their attention elsewhere.

However, the fact that the new meteorite causes fluctuations in the BT levels of existing meteorites, leading to hatching and explosions…

It might truly be the very beginning of a scenario for the extinction of humanity.

Ironically, every meteorite fell only in human settlements.

There was not a single instance where a trial meteorite was found in remote areas devoid of human traces.

In particular, the higher the population density, the higher the probability of a meteorite crashing, causing them to fall concentrated in urban areas.

If a Trial were to explode, the damage would inevitably be significant.

Controlling civilians was also a problem.

Currently, they were being controlled somehow through memory erasure and information manipulation.

However, if simultaneous hatching and explosions occurred like this, word about the Trial and the BT virus was bound to leak out.

Jang Seokyun swallowed a deep groan and spoke.

“Samra. Is there a way to resolve this?”

Everyone looked at Samra.

Samra sensed a multitude of emotions in the gazes directed at him.

“There is.”

“…!”

“It is a numerical fluctuation caused by the newly fallen trial meteorite. If this trial is shut down, there is a possibility that the BT levels will stabilize. However, even if stabilization is successful, if the trial meteorite falls again, the same chain reaction will occur.”

He continued speaking, while converting and storing the reactions of the humans, who oscillated between joy and despair at his every word, into data one by one.

“Therefore, I, Samra Mansang propose a countermeasure.”

As always, it was not difficult to make these irrational life forms move according to his intentions.

Samra always achieved the optimal results he had designed.

Except for a single being.

Thinking of that sole exception, Samra spoke for the sake of ‘humanity.’

“The establishment of an international organization to respond to trials.”

I do not know how Je Hyun-oh cleared <Zero>.

<Zero> is a game without an ending.

An infinite defense game where you defend a castle against endlessly swarming monsters. As time passes, waves of increasingly powerful and numerous monsters surge in.

There is absolutely no set story or ending.

It merely records how long the player survives in an endless battle.

It is a game where breaking records is the sole objective.

I received <Zero> from the developer and played it, breaking the records of previous users to achieve the highest score.

After breaking my own record a few more times, I had nothing left to do.

I rummaged through the game, wondering if there might be any Easter eggs, before finally quitting.

When the developer asked for my review, I told him that while it was fun, it was a bit disappointing that there was no content other than combat.

Je Hyun-oh… survived in such a place.

By creating an ending for a trial that could not be cleared.

Currently, <Zero> remains in a peculiar state following Je Hyun-oh’s clear.

Originally, once a trial hatches, it must be cleared at regular intervals to prevent it from exploding.

The standard procedure was for an Adaptee to enter and clear the facility once a certain BT level had been reached.

However, following Je Hyun-oh’s clear, the BT level of <Zero> did not rise but remained stable.

Since it was not closed off, entry was possible at any time.

Because of this, there was a series of accidents in which Adaptees, who desired to possess the same power as Je Hyun-oh, secretly entered <Zero> and died.

Currently, the trial grade of <Zero> was rated six stars, and the Trial Response Agency strictly prohibited unauthorized entry.

Yet, he asked me to enter <Zero> with him.

I had no choice but to ask, with a somewhat foolish expression on my face.

“Now…?”

“Later.”

He looked down at me with eyes drooping under his long eyelashes and said.

“If you go in there now, you will die.”

It was an extremely kind explanation.

It also implied that the option of ‘not entering’ was not an option.

Then, I wished he would tell me more clearly when exactly he intended to enter.

I threw a vague question at him.

“Do you want to clear <Zero>?”

“No.”

Just as I was taken aback by his answer that he didn’t want to shut it down…

Je Hyun-oh spoke to me in a rough, low voice.

“I like <Zero>, Goyo.”

It was different from the ‘like’ of ordinary people.

Because the moment he uttered those words, Je Hyun-oh was… contorted with all sorts of emotions.

At that moment, strangely enough, I felt an intense intuition.

The happy memory of being under the illusion magic in Sla2Plate’s dungeon.

It was an intuition that perhaps Je Hyun-oh’s happy memory was the moment he spent in <Zero>.

I wanted to know more.

But the conversation with Je Hyun-oh ended there.

He put his goggles back on, displayed only a smile, and said nothing more. It was as if today’s conversation was over.

I, who had been scurrying about to ask more questions, eventually had no choice but to give up.

Afterward, I discussed the upcoming operation with Je Hyun-oh.

Since Je Hyun-oh’s role was crucial to my plan, I explained various details to him. After finishing the tasks necessary for the assault, I returned to the medic’s quarters.

Lying on the bed with the Pudding Slime resting on my chest, I continued to ruminate on my conversation with Je Hyun-oh.

‘So, what was that frustration?’

At first, I wondered if it was due to another god, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

I opened Je Hyun-oh’s status window to check his current status.

The status had now changed to Joy.

I gazed blankly at the word ‘Joy’ and thought.

Mo Haein, Kwak Hanmuk, Je Hyun-oh…

The facts I had recently learned were their private secrets.

Although it was an extremely private matter that the vast majority would never know, I felt strangely hollow, like a blank slate.

I still felt like I knew nothing.

I wanted to know more, but not knowing how to go about it made my mind itch with restless curiosity.

Even though the phrase "invasion of privacy" was floating around in the corner of my head.

My condition had definitely become strange.

‘I was spouting nonsense right in front of Lieutenant Colonel Je.’

I was spouting crazy things, like asking why he met another god.

I thought I was fairly patient, but lately, I felt like I had become impulsive.

I wondered if it was because of the children’s nutritional supplement Dominic gave me, but for now, I felt I needed to try to think more calmly.

I made an effort to shift my thoughts elsewhere.

‘Is the problem Octopus Tentacle?’

The reason Je Hyun-oh suddenly disappeared on the night the prison break took place must have been because of Octopus Tentacle.

I suspected that Octopus Tentacle had dragged Je Hyun-oh into the sea because he wanted to make him his subordinate.

“Dominic-ssi.”

“Yes, Roasted Chestnut.”

“Octopus Tentacle…”

Dominic laughed immediately. It was Black Block-ssi Part 2.

Feeling ashamed of my slip of the tongue, I corrected myself.

“The fact that the god here tried to steal a subordinate—does that mean such things are possible between gods?”

“That is correct.”

“They seems like a pretty powerful god, so I’m curious why they couldn’t steal him.”

“Octopus Tentacle trying to take Roasted Chestnut’s subordinate, you mean?”

“Yes…”

Hearing it in Dominic’s voice, the title “Octopus Tentacle” didn’t sound bad.

He explained kindly over my chest.

“There may be various reasons, but the most important factors were probably loyalty and rank.”

Je Hyun-oh and loyalty, of all things.

Dominic continued speaking calmly to me, who was still reeling from the incredibly unconventional combination of words.

“The deeper the sincerity of serving one’s master, the harder it is for other gods to interfere. Of course, it is possible if the difference in rank is significant enough to ignore all of that.”

The Pudding Slime paused for a moment and moved slowly.

He roamed freely over my face and spoke.

“It seems Octopus Tentacle does not possess that level of rank.”

I couldn’t fully understand everything Dominic said, but I could roughly grasp the situation.

In any case, it meant that it wouldn’t be easy to lay a hand on Je Hyun-oh.

I was about to thank him for the explanation, but he hadn’t finished speaking yet.

“There are cases where a high-ranking god takes a lower-ranking god as a subordinate.”

A terrifying thought crossed my mind…

When I couldn’t hide the suspicion and wariness that immediately arose, Dominic laughed even longer than before.

“Roasted Chestnut, you are still too young to make you my subordinate.”

The slime’s body gradually began to sparkle.

I stared blankly at the sight, shining like the infinite stars of the universe.

“And isn’t it a waste to become such a mere being? Considering the caliber you will grow into in the future, Roasted Chestnut.”

I couldn’t understand what I did to warrant such high praise.

In the midst of all this, I wanted to take just one bite of the Pudding Slime that was gliding across my cheek.

I asked when the Pudding Slime had moved back down to my chest.

“Then, could Octopus Tentacle approach me? To make me their subordinate…?”

“That would be possible. However, they won’t be able to do as they wish.”

I couldn’t ask for the reason. It was because the Pudding Slime had feigned a stern tone.

“Roasted Chestnut, you always go to sleep late.”

At his words, I realized that it was already close to midnight.

It didn’t seem like Dominic would explain anything further, so I decided to go to sleep for the sake of tomorrow.

‘I should contact Samra tomorrow morning.’

Since the weekly schedule indicated that the Dregs wouldn’t be visiting today, I closed my eyes with relief.

As Pudding Slime squishyly patted me on my chest, sleep naturally washed over me.

As I drifted into a deep sleep, I cast aside my worries about Octopus Tentacle.

As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw Pudding Slime’s blue body.

I greeted him with a sleepy voice.

"Good morning, Dominic-ssi."

I gently placed him back on the bed, he had politely accepted my greeting, and stood up.

I intended to take on a bit of an adventure today.

This was because I had to go to the dining hall for breakfast since I had run out of food.

With Kwak Hanmuk and CEO Cha present, it seemed the prison guards wouldn’t dare mess with me easily.

Recalling my reliable backing, I checked the weekly schedule.

I was about to check my duties for Wednesday.

"…?"

The weekly schedule had become strange.