Chapter 81: Around Louisville (1)

 

As soon as I arrived at the blackout greenhouse, I grabbed Chick’s shoulder.

 

“Hey, where’s that stuck-up rich kid from Pyeon Station?”

 

“…I am…”

 

Chick avoided my gaze.

 

I met her eyes and continued, “Where’s that world-class act you were pulling at the DMZ?”

 

“Uh, uh…”

 

Chick mumbled, her face turning bright red.

 

“It’s embarrassing… Please, stop.”

 

“Why are you embarrassed?”

 

She didn’t answer, but I had a good idea why.

 

“…Is it because you joined Cheonji?”

 

“Ack, ugh.”

 

So, I was right.

 

Chick had passed the entrance exam for Cheonji thanks to my carry.

 

After entering, she must’ve realized she was a big fish in a small pond—or in this case, a chick in a small pond.

 

“Are there that many geniuses there?”

 

“Of course. There are way more than you can imagine. Some of them, not much older than me, can open the Ghost Gate. And there are kids even younger than me who can use Sage Arts.”

 

“Sage Arts?”

 

“Yeah, a technique you can use from the Ground Line level of energy deployment.”

 

Chick continued chirping, “I didn’t even get to go to a place that ordinary people call a ‘school’—I learned Taoist magic before I learned to read. I trained so hard, staying up all night…”

 

Suddenly, Chick slumped, defeated.

 

“I… I’m just a chick. All I can do is chirp. Chirp. Ah, I chirped again…!”

 

‘A defeated chick.’

 

This was rare.

 

But I had a duty to console her.

 

Judging from today’s events at the Sacred Blood Hall, our Chick seemed to be quite a high-ranking young lady among the noble sons and daughters of her family.

 

In other words, Chick was from a wealthy, powerful background.

 

She may come off as a klutz sometimes, but among all my connections, there weren’t many as influential as her.

 

As I watched her feeling down, I thought, well, it can’t be helped.

 

I’ll have to show her my secret move—the ultimate technique of Heavenly Demon Martial Arts. The Heavenly Demon’s Caress.

 

“I know many psychic warriors.”

 

As soon as I spoke, Chick looked up at me.

 

“And you are one of the strongest among them.”

 

“Me? I’m one of the strongest?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

To be honest, I’d wanted to tell her this for a long time. I just hadn’t found the chance.

 

“There were plenty of people at Big Hand Casino who were stronger than you in terms of rank.”

 

I gently placed my hand on her shoulder.

 

“But you made a choice that none of them could.”

 

“A strong… choice?”

 

“Yes. A choice more important than enlightenment—the choice to save people.”

 

Among all the psychic warriors there, only Chick had refused Cheonsu’s offer—the offer to help increase her enlightenment through a murderous game.

 

Chick was a girl who had even faced assassination threats from her own family, just because she was considered weak. If it had been me, would I have been able to refuse Cheonsu’s offer in her situation?

 

That’s why Chick was strong.

 

Stronger than anyone there.

 

“You’re strong, Chick. So strong, I respect you for it.”

 

“You… you respect me?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

I gazed through the blackout curtain, my eyes fixed on the people beyond it.

 

“One day, I want to make the same choice as you.”

 

I meant it.

 

“You’re stronger than anyone else.”

 

“Hmph.”

 

And yet, the Heavenly Demon’s Caress didn’t work.

 

Chick turned her head away from me.

 

“You don’t even know what energy deployment is, and you think you can tell me that? Just forget it.”

 

Wait, maybe it did work.

 

The fact that she’s already back to being her stuck-up self means it definitely worked.

 

“By the way, didn’t you just say something earlier?”

 

Here comes that ‘world-class’ expression again.

 

I really want to flick her forehead.

 

“You said you respect me. Hmph. Hmmm. Hehe. Honestly, it wasn’t such a big deal.”

 

Still, Chick was too noble a lady for me to actually flick her forehead. So, I held back. Barely.

 

“Now that I think about it, I was kind of cool back then. Not to brag or anything…”

 

I listened to her chirp on as the Familiar League Battle came to an end.

 

When I got home, I checked on Myeong-Myeong.

 

“Doesn’t seem like anything’s changed on the outside.”

 

Myeong-Myeong had gone from being a dog that loved to take walks to a recluse cat that didn’t want to leave the house.

 

Is this some kind of evolution?

 

Ugh.

 

No, this feels like de-evolution.

 

“Myeong-Myeong? Want to go for a walk?”

 

“Myeong! Myeong-Myeong!”

 

After meowing a bit, Myeong-Myeong jumped up and hid in the corner of the ceiling.

 

What is he saying?

 

Is he asking for 3,000 won?

 

Is this some kind of rebellious phase?

 

I fixed one problem only to end up with a bigger one. With a complicated feeling in my chest, I stared at Myeong-Myeong until I fell asleep.

 

Then I remembered—tomorrow was that day.

 

The day Jamsuni calls ‘Day of the Fit.’

 

On that day, everyone in the area either evacuates or stays locked up in their homes, leaving the streets completely deserted. Naturally, that also meant no deliveries.

 

“What am I going to do tomorrow?”

 

As I lay down, Myeong-Myeong quietly slithered under the blanket.

 

I stroked his fur, lost in thought.

 

I figured I’d probably end up wandering outside.

 

****

 

There’s a saying around here: “Neighborhood Super gangster.”

 

It used to refer to the local gangsters back in the day.

 

Of course, the word ‘gangster’ didn’t just change to Super gangster’ for no reason.

 

Gangsters had gained supernatural powers.

 

And the boss leading them was an even stronger one.

 

Back in the old days, an aging boss would have been worried about getting shanked or arrested by the police, limiting the gang’s activities.

 

But now, things were different.

 

The boss was a monster who couldn’t be harmed unless you brought heavy artillery, and the gangsters beneath him had powers that low-level police firepower couldn’t match.

 

So, they became bolder.

 

That’s how gangsters turned into ‘Super gangsters’.

 

“Do we have enough of the goods?”

 

The Blackstone Clan, one of those Super gangsters, had their clan leader Jo Heuk-seok speaking to his subordinate.

 

“Yes, boss. We’ve got more than enough. Even after handing it out to the guys tomorrow, we’ll still have plenty left.”

 

“Good. But make sure you keep them in check when things start. That stuff’s strong. Remember what happened last time—some idiot went completely nuts on it.”

 

“I’ll keep that in mind, boss.”

 

Jo Heuk-seok looked down from the window at the slums below, bustling with people. After the world mostly collapsed, regular folks could only live in major cities protected by the barrier system.

 

Because of this, Seoul’s population had now swelled to over 45 million. It was a mix of refugees fleeing from the hellscape that was Manchuria and North Korea, along with displaced Koreans who had lost their homes.

 

In a place like this, human life wasn’t all that precious.

 

“To think Brother Cheonsu would go down like that… Rumor had it he’d almost unlocked the Ghost Gate.”

 

With the fall of Cheonsu, the Little Tyrant of Hongdae, the entire underworld of Seoul was in turmoil. The Blackstone Clan, in particular, was feeling the heat since their main business partner was none other than Cheonsu’s crew.

 

If they wanted to survive, they needed more power and more money.

 

And that meant finding new business partners.

 

“Did you spread the location of the shelters to the boys?”

 

“Yes, boss. We’ve been drilling them hard for the past three days. They know how to pick locks and use the side streets.”

 

“Good. Let them know—if they mess up tomorrow, they’re dead.”

 

“I’ll make sure they understand.”

 

Jo Heuk-seok looked down again. From this height, the world of ordinary people seemed so small and insignificant. It was a broken world.

 

If it got a little more broken, it wouldn’t make much of a difference.

 

****

 

“Hey! If you don’t get up right now, I’m really going to smack you!”

 

A girl, the eldest of five siblings, shouted.

 

A tiny, six-pyeong* villa.

 

This was the entirety of the home where the five siblings lived.

 

The eldest girl was frying up some pink ham mixed with flour while getting dressed in her school uniform. The savory smell drifted through the house, and one by one, the kids started to wake up.

 

“Why ham today? Did you make some money, sis?”

 

“That’s none of your business. Two slices per person, so don’t you dare try to steal from your brothers or sisters.”

 

“Then give me the biggest piece!”

 

The eldest girl took care of the kids, but she didn’t forget to turn on the TV.

 

In an age where smartphones were so advanced, who even needed a TV?

 

Especially in a household like this.

 

But for the eldest girl, this TV was precious.

 

The old TV wasn’t just for waking the kids up with noise. It had a far more important purpose, one that made it impossible to throw away.

 

-Ba-ba-ba-bam! Ba-ba-ba-bam!

 

The familiar news jingle played in the background.

 

The eldest girl glanced at the screen. The title “Today’s News” flashed across it, listing the headlines they would be covering before the broadcast officially started.

 

---

 

Today’s News

 

- Soaring prices and the growing burden on ordinary citizens

- Cheonji’s roadmap for reclaiming North Korea

- Is the Anomaly Response Headquarters’ internet protection really safe?

- Today’s list of death row inmates announced

 

---

 

Death row inmate announcements?

 

In the morning?

 

“No way,” she muttered.

 

As soon as she saw that, the eldest girl bolted toward the TV. She barely managed to yank the power cord out before the screen turned completely red.

 

“Get up!!!”

 

She shouted, urgency ringing in her voice.

 

“Huh, sis, let me just finish eating—”

 

“No time, hurry!!!”

 

Could it really be today?

 

She clenched her teeth.

 

She’d been through this more than ten times already.

 

Quickly gathering up the kids, the eldest girl hoisted one onto her back and sprinted toward the shelter.

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

 

[TL: Pyeong is a Korean unit of area and floorspace.

 

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