Chapter 16: Chapter 15
TL/ED: Hamsterminator
Lost City is a mega-city.
Its overwhelming scale is matched by its ancient history, which traces back to the era when dragons (yes, the very dragons you’re imagining) still existed.
This was a long time ago.
It all began when the great seven families and a lone visionary who first discovered cyberspace came together.
...(omitted)...
After a continuous cycle of conflicts and negotiations, Lost City transitioned from an unstable centralized system to a decentralized district autonomy. This shift is widely regarded as the primary cause of the intense power struggles among the city government, the families, and the corporations.
...(omitted)...
As time passed and population density became a major issue, the city government took measures to address it by expanding residential areas.
However, during this process, a war broke out between corporations and families, prompting investors to withdraw their funds. As a result, the ambitious government-led project collapsed overnight.
The abandoned district from that time is now known as the 40s District.
Over time, countless gangs and war criminals occupied the area...
...
...
Jin scrolled down the display from bottom to top.
When his thumb finally stopped moving as the screen refused to scroll any further, a message appeared: "If you liked this post, please subscribe and turn on notifications."
Instead of following that request, Jin opened the comment section.
-The history of Lost City is like air. It exists, but no one cares.
-Summarize it in three lines.
-I wish all those purist morons would just die. I wish all those purist morons would just die. I wish all those purist morons would just die. I wish all those purist morons would just die.
Same old story here too.
Jin made a sour expression, then turned off the screen and tucked his terminal into his coat.
He subtly shifted his gaze toward Fenrir, who was gripping the steering wheel.
This awkwardness is killing me.
Jin let out a sigh as he turned to look out the window.
How long had it been since he was in a car with such an uncomfortable atmosphere?
The last time was probably when he had to drive his girlfriend home after catching her cheating during a trip. Even now, she was still a terrible woman. No matter how over things were, she could have at least said, 'Thanks', 'Sorry', or even a basic 'Take care' before hopping out of the car.
And then she probably called her new oppa, telling him she was finally free and that they could be together without worry.
I should have just left her at the rest stop.
"Haa…"
Jin sighed again.
But this time, it wasn’t because of his ex’s past misdeeds, it was because the suffocating tension in the car was just as unbearable as back then.
There was only so much information he could browse through on the terminal, only so many distractions he could feign, and only so long he could stare out the window.
And so, Jin made up his mind.
Like it or not, they were in the same boat now. They couldn’t stay moody and silent forever. What kind of childish behavior was that for grown men?
Clearing his throat, he finally spoke up.
"Uh… how much longer till we reach the rendezvous point?"
"……"
"Still far?"
Fenrir ignored him once, but not twice.
The bridge of his nose twitched above his goblin mask before he finally responded in a blunt tone.
"At least two more hours."
"Still?"
"You make it sound like we’re just going to the next neighborhood."
"Of course not. But honestly, this is kind of new for me. It’s my first time leaving Downtown."
As Jin muttered while watching the scenery pass by outside, Fenrir narrowed his eyes.
"Is Downtown your hometown?"
"No. I have a different hometown."
Fenrir glanced at Jin, looking as if he had just heard the dumbest thing imaginable.
Then, shaking his head, he turned his eyes back to the road.
The silence was creeping back in.
Feeling the urgency, Jin quickly spoke up again.
"Uh! I have a question."
"…What is it?"
Fenrir furrowed his brow as he asked.
Jin wracked his brain for a question, any question.
"When you transform into a beast, do your underwear always rip apart?"
"……"
And so, the silence returned.
All districts operate under the principle that entry must be made through a gate.
Naturally, this was something Jin and Fenrir needed to avoid.
Since they were visiting Mute Town to destroy a logistics warehouse, they couldn’t afford to have their faces captured on camera while passing through the gate.
This was exactly why the rendezvous point existed.
Since they couldn’t enter through a legitimate route, they had to take an illegal one.
And the person helping them do so was a man who introduced himself as Albus, a member of the resistance.
"Here, put this on first."
The moment they confirmed each other’s identities at the rendezvous point, Albus abruptly handed them gas masks.
"Hmm?"
As Jin absentmindedly took the mask and put it on, a thought crossed his mind.
Was this to conceal their identities?
No, it wasn’t.
The place Albus led them to was an old sewer where contaminated water was flowing freely.
"The factories nearby illegally dump their waste here. Since they don’t operate any purification facilities, it’s not just filled with all kinds of heavy metals, it also has a COD level far exceeding 300. At that point, it's basically poison."
Jin flinched at that. This was straight out of Fallout.
"…Wait a second. What if they suddenly release a batch of wastewater? Won’t we all get swept away?"
"Don’t worry. The next scheduled dump is the day after tomorrow."
Still sounds risky.
Jin furrowed his brow, though it wasn’t visible under the gas mask.
"And besides, there aren’t many places where you can avoid TB’s eyes like this."
With that, Albus continued walking deeper into the sewer.
How long had they been walking through this narrow, suffocating tunnel?
Eventually, they arrived in front of a metal ladder leading up to the surface.
Albus came to a stop and pointed at two large bags neatly placed on the ground, as if they had been prepared in advance.
"My guys nearly shat blood hauling those here. But you two should be fine, right?"
Jin, curious about what he meant, lifted one of the bags, and sure enough, it was heavy.
It felt like it weighed around 50 kg. Even if the actual weight was a bit less, it was still more than a regular adult male could easily carry.
Of course, that didn’t apply to superhumans.
Jin slung the bag over his shoulder as effortlessly as if it were a kindergarten picnic bag and looked at Albus. Fenrir, being an enhanced human, did the same.
"…As expected."
Albus let out a quiet sigh of admiration before speaking.
"Inside those bags are two blocks of high-structure explosives and a remote detonator. The detonator has a range of 100 meters and is set to detonate exactly 120 seconds after activation. If you set it up properly, it'll bring down the whole building in an instant, so don’t forget to get to a safe distance beforehand. Not that I need to tell you guys."
After going over the installation procedure and the next rendezvous location, Albus clapped his hands together lightly.
"That’s all from me. Got any questions? If not, we’re done here."
Then, as he turned away, he added one last remark.
"Good luck."
With that, Albus departed.
Jin and Fenrir climbed the ladder and pushed open the manhole cover, stepping onto the surface.
As Jin removed his stifling gas mask and looked up, the sky had already deepened into a dark indigo hue.
Fenrir, who had now secured his goblin mask over his lower face, gave a brief nod.
"Let’s go."
There was nothing particularly special about Mute Town.
The damp, eerie alleyways that felt like something could jump out at any moment were no different from those in Downtown.
If anything, there were minor differences one could pick out, but Jin reminded himself that he wasn’t here for sightseeing, he was here to complete a job.
And the contents of the bag on his shoulder weren’t a picnic mat and lunchbox, they were explosives powerful enough to take down a building.
Perhaps that was why.
As the subtle tension heightened his senses, his surroundings became more vivid.
The moon, weeping coldly.
The darkness, seeping into his skin.
His heart, pounding silently yet intensely.
The deep scent of cigarettes as the guards chatted among themselves.
"It’s confirmed. Six of them."
Jin pulled his head back from peeking past the wall and spoke. Fenrir, who had been standing beside him with his arms crossed, responded.
"Three teams of two on patrol. No AI turrets. Their defenses are rather lax."
"You sure about that? Aren't they all beastkin?"
Like you.
Jin kept that last part to himself. It felt a little too… racist.
That was when Fenrir answered.
"You seem to be mistaken. TB is no longer just a beastkin group. Or, to be precise, it’s not only a beastkin group anymore. Now that they control an entire district, they can’t afford to be picky about their members, it’d be inefficient. Those guys over there? They’re just opportunists clinging to the winners, or mercenaries hired for cash. The original TB members were all promoted to officers ages ago. No way they’d be out here on night patrol."
"Fair point."
Jin nodded.
There was a reason the term founding contributors existed.
The whole we suffered together, we endured together, so even if we weren’t born from the same womb, we are brothers! blood-oath brotherhood stuff had been a long-standing tradition among victors since ancient times.
"Of course, there might be an officer inside the warehouse. But it doesn’t matter. If we run into them, we take them out. Simple as that."
Saying that, Fenrir pushed himself off the wall.
"Let’s move. You remember the plan?"
"Plant the explosives at the designated locations and evacuate the building immediately. We trigger the detonator together once we regroup, but if the other person doesn’t show up within the agreed-upon 15 minutes, we detonate it solo. That right?"
"Yeah."
Fenrir nodded, cracking his neck from side to side.
"Don’t slow me down."
The next moment, his silhouette vanished under the moonlight.
A cloud of dust kicked up. By the time it settled, his figure was already far ahead.
The speed was insane. It was hard to believe he was carrying tens of kilograms of explosives.
Didn’t wolves have a top speed of 60 km/h?
Fenrir closed the distance in an instant, reaching the guards who had been idly chatting.
"Who’s th-?!"
The moment they sensed movement and turned their heads,
Fenrir was already behind them.
"Guh!"
"Ugh!"
Before they could even react, they clutched their throats and collapsed.
Blood dripped from Fenrir’s fingertips.
At the ends of his fingers, sharp claws had emerged.
Partial transformation.
Jin was impressed as he tightened the straps on his bag.
There was no time to stand around in awe.
The agreed-upon 15 minutes started now.
Boom!
Jin kicked off the ground and dashed forward.
However, unlike Fenrir, who had stormed the warehouse’s front entrance, Jin took a longer route, circling around to the back.
A four-story concrete logistics warehouse wouldn’t collapse from just one or two explosives. If a single blast could do that, it would need to be an earthquake bomb or a bunker buster.
That’s why they had obtained structural weak points in advance through the resistance.
Fenrir would handle the basement and first floor.
Jin would take care of the second and third floors.
In other words, their zones of action wouldn’t overlap.
Nor should they.
If two Solos created chaos in different areas, the enemy would be thrown into greater confusion.
Clench.
Jin planted his foot firmly as he moved.
The back of the warehouse came into view. A line of cargo trucks was parked in a row, and near them, a guard stood smoking.
Inhale… exhale-
Completely unaware of what was about to unfold, the man exhaled a long stream of smoke, his face relaxed.
He was so at ease that he even held out a cigarette pack to his colleague.
"Want a smoke?"
"Sure."
"Fucking hell, man."
The first guard grimaced as his companion took a cigarette between his front teeth. He then pulled out a lighter from his pocket.
With a click, he struck the flint.
Just as he was about to light the cigarette,
Crack!
His colleague’s face slammed into the wall.
Blood splattered across his own face.
"…Huh?"
Dazed, he stared at his partner’s crushed skull.
A beat later, he noticed a hand gripping the back of his colleague’s head.
"Enemy-!"
But he never got the chance to fire his gun.
A fist slammed into his face before he could react.
Thud.
With his face caved in, the guard collapsed.
There was no need to check if he was dead, Jin had already received the experience points.
Without hesitation, he grabbed the handle of the metal door and stepped inside the building.
~~~
Hamsterminator here:
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