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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: The Game Board (1)
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A game board where countless worlds and countless beings are intricately entangled.
As that game board officially began to turn, this world, too, began to move.
But the vast majority of living beings in this world have no connection to that game.
As long as the game's existence remains unknown, people will only fall victim to the encroaching chaos and confusion.
"Wh-what are you talking about, Ji-yeon! Quitting the company all of a sudden!"
"Didn't you hear me? I can no longer operate solely on the company's requests."
"But why..."
Kang Seung-yong, the president of the Hunter corporation Gaebyeok, was at a loss for words at the shocking news.
The reason was that Cha Ji-yeon, the C-rank—no, now A-rank—star Hunter who had worked for the company all this time, had submitted her resignation to transfer elsewhere.
"You... what's the real reason? I've known you since you were in high school. You're not being serious right now, are you?"
"...Don't ask."
Flinching at his words, Cha Ji-yeon bit her lip and lowered her head.
He was right.
Truthfully, she didn't want to leave.
But she had no choice.
Equivalent exchange. Give and take. It was a law of this world, something all too natural.
The reality was that she had to work to repay what she had received.
"Where are you even planning to go? Don't tell me... it's that new American company, Evolution?"
"That's right."
"What kind of connection do those bastards have with you—no, with 'all of you'?"
Kang Seung-yong had little trouble guessing her destination.
In fact, it would have been stranger if he didn't know.
The so-called "Step-Up Hunters," who had recently become a hot topic for their rapid growth, were all gathering under one company around a certain point in time.
Her next move, as one of them, was obvious.
"It's my duty."
"So what is this du—"
"Sir!"
The two's conversation was cut short by an employee who rushed in.
Ignoring his boss's glare, the employee, panting, suddenly turned on the TV in the office.
"What in the world is going on?"
"The, the news... something big..."
The news the employee breathlessly turned on was a live breaking report.
Watching it, Cha Ji-yeon furrowed her brow as if what she expected had finally come.
"Orcs?"
"The reason I'm going to Evolution is because of that."
"That doesn't look like just any Orc horde..."
In an age where monsters were more common than wild animals, they wouldn't issue a breaking news report for no reason.
The news was currently broadcasting from a city in the United States, where monsters called Orcs were pouring out.
Orcs were C-rank enemies, neither too weak nor too strong.
"Are those things... really Orcs?"
But Kang Seung-yong's eyes went wide.
The hundreds of Orcs now on the screen were by no means ordinary.
The creatures that used to wear nothing but shabby rags and swing clubs were now armed with high-quality steel armor and weapons.
Their strength and organization had also clearly improved.
The shock reached its peak with the appearance of an Orc shaman who blocked a Hellfire missile, fired from a U.S. military helicopter, with a bluish barrier.
"They are absolutely not ordinary Orcs."
"What in the world is this..."
It was beyond all common sense.
While the shocked Kang Seung-yong was speechless, Cha Ji-yeon bit her lip.
'Can we win?'
Those Orcs were competitors and enemies of the group she belonged to.
But they were certainly formidable.
"Look. They're capturing people. Until now, they only ever beat them to death or ate them."
"...That's right. They must intend to use them for something."
American Hunters arrived and began fighting the creatures alongside the military.
Amid the chaos, the camera caught the Orcs dragging away the people they had captured—men, women, and children alike—and throwing them into the Gate from which they had emerged.
"You, you know about them?"
"I know, but I can't say. But you will find out soon enough, sir. And they are not all there is. So, prepare yourself. A very long... and terrible war may be about to begin."
She sighed, her eyes filled with sorrow.
An era of endless competition, of killing and being killed, had arrived.
And, as always, it would be the powerless and the ignorant who died in droves.
Leaving the stunned Kang Seung-yong behind, she walked out of the office.
[As ordered, find an ally first.]
"A 'Player' on Earth."
[Among humans, you cannot know which ones might be the Units of other Players. The most trustworthy are Players from other worlds. However, you will need to know which world that Player's Units live in.]
She had already received her mission.
Some of her comrades were tasked with recruiting Earth's Hunters to form alliances and expand their forces, while she and a few other Units had received different orders.
[Those who have been tasked with searching, receive this blessing.]
A light flashed before her eyes, and a small piece of stone fell.
A mystical stone engraved with a spell—a Mana Stone.
It was an item she had used several times before.
*
"This is absolute chaos."
Watching the news, I was more serious than ever.
It wasn't just because the Orcs were stronger, as the news was clamoring about.
Those Orcs were clearly Units interacting with a Player.
The warning this mysterious narration had given me was becoming a reality.
"...Telling her would be way too much, seriously."
I scratched my head furiously, my thoughts tangled because of Kang Do-yeon.
With the situation escalating like this, shouldn't I tell my family?
My hesitation was for a simple reason.
Something certainly had to be resolved.
After acting so grave, she had been living a perfectly normal life since that day.
But the fact that she was bringing home a large sum of 500,000 won every week was weighing on my mind.
"What if she's really involved with a Player, or a Unit?"
[Think carefully. It would be a problem if she were a Unit, but if she's a Player, you must be extremely cautious. A Player will inevitably seek the life of another Player.]
A Player's enemy is a Player; a Unit's enemy is a Unit.
My mind snapped into focus.
After all my hesitation, I finally made a decision.
I would tell her the truth.
Besides, events that could serve as proof of my words were exploding all over the world.
"Hey. We need to talk."
"...Come in."
A reply came as soon as I knocked.
I opened the door.
She was lying face down on her bed.
"I don't know if you'll believe me, but you know the news is going crazy about those Orcs in America, right?"
"..."
"Those things, they're not ordinary. They're actually... Mmph!"
A pillow flew into my face, muffling my serious words.
Stunned, I could only blink in confusion.
Kang Do-yeon had gotten up in an instant and was clamping her hand over my mouth.
Her eyes were trembling violently.
Then she grabbed my hand and stared intently at the back of it.
I couldn't shake off her slender arm. This wasn't human strength.
"Don't. Say it."
"Mmph?"
"Don't you dare say anything about Players, or games, or Units."
She shook her head, her voice trembling.
I slowly nodded.
After all, I was using all my strength and still couldn't break free.
"I, I know too. That weird app, the Player. I, I was forced. It happened to me... S-so I can't hear it. I was given an order. If I hear anything like that..."
Her stutter worsened, and her eyes trembled even more violently.
I'd only ever seen her panic like this once before.
That moment ten years ago. The day our father died right before our eyes.
"Take your time and tell me. I won't say a word, so don't worry."
Finally able to speak, I calmly reassured her.
Thankfully, her panic quickly subsided.
"What on earth happened?"
Strangely, I was growing calmer.
"That girl, Yoon-ah, she made me her puppet."
"...The landlord's daughter?"
Kang Do-yeon showed me her wrist.
I gritted my teeth at the clear scar stamped on her pale skin.
I remembered her. A petite, kind, and bright friend. I couldn't believe she would do something like this.
"Sh-she said she got that power from her Units. She said her Units are called the Cheongsan people, and they're nomads skilled in earth and wind magic."
"...So. What did she make you do?"
"Nothing. We've just been acting like normal friends since then. But Yoon-ah gave me money every week, calling it a salary. 500,000 won."
"Why did you give that to me?"
"Th-that's... in case I die..."
She started to tremble again.
Rage flared to the top of my head, but my heart itself was cold.
Think rationally, efficiently. Like the Legion.
"Is the other order that information-gathering command?"
"Y-yeah. She told me to report immediately if I ever heard anyone talk about Players or the app."
"Well, it's not like there's no solution, then?"
After hearing her out and piecing the information together, I let out a smirk without realizing it.
Listening to her, I could start to see a path forward.
"I guess I'll just have to kill her, then?"
I looked at the back of my hand, where the Execution Ticket was etched.
The justification, the necessity, the means, and the method—everything was perfect.
There was absolutely no reason why I couldn't kill the girl who had made my sister a sacrificial pawn.
"No."
Just then, Kang Do-yeon contradicted me.
I was a little surprised.
But the look in my sister's eyes, as she panted with a pale face, was different than before.
"We can use this."
"...What do you mean?"
"From what I hear, the relationships seem quite complicated."
Gradually regaining her composure, my sister began to frantically explain her thoughts.
As if mesmerized, I focused on her words.