"Now, I wonder if I could afford to be less vigilant?"
The man yawned and spoke. The woman walking alongside him nodded, fiddling with what looked like a tablet PC.
"For now, Sigma is expected to arrive soon, and there's a new guard. Not sure if they're trustworthy, though."
"He's confirmed to be C-rank. With those stats, you can either trust him or not. Also, he's from Medsang"
"Even a well-off Medsang guard with high-ranking skills wouldn't move to another city unless there's a problem. They say he has issues behind him."
"Maybe he wanted better treatment. Living in Medsang is comfortable, but too much equality is also a problem. Socialism or something? Anyway, if there are problems behind him, it's a good opportunity to find weaknesses."
"True."
As they reached a crossroads, the woman stopped. Checking the time displayed on the tablet PC, she opened her mouth.
"We still have about four hours until sunrise. I'm heading back to the lodging. What about you?"
"I have to take over Alpha surveillance in an hour. The bonus is good, but it's tiring. I'll go out, have a smoke, and come back."
"Be careful not to attract monsters."
The man, dismissing the concerns of his companions, walked away alone. The long corridor was quiet, with few surveillance cameras and almost no one passing by. The man took out a cigarette made from a plant-type monster from his inventory. As he put it in his mouth, he suddenly stopped walking.
"... Something feels odd."
He glanced around, but, of course, there was nothing visible in the quiet surroundings. Only the surveillance cameras were slightly moving. He resumed walking. I silently extended an invisible thread.
In the middle of the corridor, when the surveillance camera moved to the left, creating a blind spot.
The transparent thread descended swiftly. The transparent thread instantly coiled around the man's neck, pulling it tightly, and lifted him up to the ceiling without giving him a chance to struggle.
"Click."
The sticky spider silk of the monster immobilized the man's limbs on the ceiling. As the surveillance camera was tilted downward, it couldn't reach the ceiling. With the man's mouth blocked, I slightly loosened the noose and whispered.
"If you scream, you die."
The man rolled his eyes as if searching for me and nodded his head. It was useless to try to pierce through the hiding skill of a mere D-rank, but it was worth a try. After removing the hand blocking his mouth, I warned him again.
"As long as you don't expose my identity, there's no need to kill you. So, act wisely."
"Yes, yes."
"I'll start by checking what keys you have in your inventory. Don't try to deceive me."
"However, attempting to transfer keys to others results in immediate dismemberment as stated in the contract."
"Contract rank?"
"A-rank."
Fortunately, A-rank allowed me to overcome it even with my cursed resistance reduced to S-rank. It should be sufficient with the curse limited to those caught by the contract.
"I'll let you touch an S-rank curse-resistant item."
I cut a cafe latte straw in half and held it in his hands like grabbing it.
"Really..."
"Having your hands cut off is better than dying. If you carry your severed hands and visit a high-ranking healer, they might be able to reattach them."
The man answered nervously but understandingly. He closed his eyes for a moment. Soon, a keycard was lifted by his fingertips.
"I... I think it's okay. Here it is. It's the main access key to the Defense Bureau."
Following that, various keys were taken out of his inventory. Not only the Defense Bureau key but also house keys and car keys were handed over obediently.
"As for this keycard..."
"It's the mana absorption room key, where Alpha is imprisoned. It changes every day, so it will be useless by tomorrow night."
It was troublesome. The elevator key to go down to the underground where the mana hole was located was also replaced once a week. The security was more thorough than expected. Still, with the hiding skill, it was possible to pass by people quietly, waiting for the right moment.
"I won't speak a word. Please ask anything, and I'll answer."
The man, looking relieved with both hands intact, chattered away. He provided detailed explanations about the keys as well.
"If you can't return the keys, I'll have to give up the bonus and promotion. It might be challenging to maintain the Alpha management position, but even without it, I was reluctant. Why entrust a monster to a perfectly normal person? Well, my life is exceptionally valuable."
"That's unfortunate."
"... Pardon?"
"You're already a dead person."
Long ago, perhaps hundreds of years ago. Without waiting for any response, I turned away from the man whose face had become dumbfounded, and mercilessly pulled the loose rope. With almost no sound, the man fainted. After putting the rope back into my inventory, I covered his face and body with the remaining spider silk, like a spider-type monster that suffocates and stores its prey.
Leaving the man, who would soon die from suffocation, I descended below. The D-rank, the easiest among those connected to Yoohyun and the engraving, was eliminated. Now, there were two S-ranks and two C-ranks left.
"Should I take care of one more C-rank?"
Or should I observe the reaction after the discovery of the D-rank's corpse? I examined the cards in my inventory. It would take some time for the D-rank attached to the ceiling to be discovered. In indoor spaces, especially in corridors, it was unlikely that anyone would be looking up at the ceiling.
"Many time-limited keys, huh."
While contemplating, a message arrived. It was a sub-quest.
[Be Prepared to Win
Let's examine the Akates City Defense Bureau in detail. If you check more than one-third of the main buildings, you get a bonus for the remaining parts!
Reward: Detailed map of the Acates Defense Bureau]
I already sensed it, but the newbie was undoubtedly observing my current state. A detailed map, nice. Though, for a newbie, the sense seemed good.
I started moving to obtain the map. Although the man on the ceiling seemed close to death, since I didn't kill him immediately after the surprise attack, the murder penalty window did not appear.
Mindiba, who seemed quite drunk, wouldn't wake up easily, but it would be safer to return before sunrise. The time spent waiting for others to appear was wasted, so I simply presented the card key to the monitored door.
"...What is this?"
As the door automatically opened, an A-rank guard tilted his head. Fortunately, unless it was the central building with a blue hole, the card key did not have identification markings. Therefore, it would likely be treated as a mere machine error.
Feeling A-rank observing the door, I chose this moment to present a fake identification to him.
"I am Nuraun, in charge of Alpha."
"Ah... yes."
The A-rank blinked his eyes, looking at the identification before raising his head. Although our eyes met, he showed no signs of suspicion. He seemed to completely trust the identification with an A-rank status and no special skills.
"Could you tell me the whereabouts of Moas and Hajibun from our organization? They left their communication devices behind."
"Yes, I will check them for you."
The A-rank contacted someone somewhere. In this area, being polite to C-ranks was rare, but here, rank was prioritized over grade. Being in charge of Alpha was a higher position than combat A-rank.
"Moas is in the mana absorption room, and Hajibun went to the second cafeteria."
The second cafeteria. Even a dead ghost seems to have a good time. It was just information, but it might turn into a ghost.
Thanking him, I turned around and immediately used the hiding skill. Upon entering the restaurant, I saw someone who had just finished eating came out. Although I didn't know their face, above their head was the name Hajibun and a C-rank designation. Convenient.
The second was also easy to handle. As with the D-rank, I purchased the spider monster's silk item from the point shop, pretended to be attacked by a monster, and attached it to the ceiling. I placed it like the spider monster that suffocates and stores its prey.
"Two down."
Now, three remained. Although the targets were all eliminated, finishing like this would likely raise suspicions. After all, only those related to Alpha, especially those connected to the engraving, had died.
Although the targets were all eliminated, finishing like this would likely raise suspicions. After all, only those related to Alpha, especially those connected to the engraving, had died.
I processed a few more people related to Alpha in the same way, focusing on those associated with Alpha. Returning to the dormitory, Mindiba was still sprawled out. No traces of someone entering.
"Mindiba, go sleep in the bed."
Kindly, I supported him and threw him onto the bed. Since sleep wasn't coming, I sat on the sofa and turned on the TV. Lying half-asleep, watching TV for about three hours. Mindiba's communicator rang, and shortly after, someone knocked on the door and rang the bell.
"Just a moment."
Opening the door with a long yawn.
"What's going on?"
"Mindiba is—"
"He's still sleeping. He had a bit too much to drink yesterday."
The expression of the defense bureau staff seemed to ease a bit. It appeared as if they had discovered a corpse.
"That's... um."
"It seems urgent. Please come in."
The defense bureau staff shook and woke up the still-sleeping Mindiba. Mindiba, with a dazed face, looked around.
"What... happened?"
"You were still asleep. You drank quite a bit last night."
"Oh, sorry."
Mindiba apologized for nearly finishing the expensive wine. When I assured him, the staff intervened.
"Last night, at the defense bureau, um..."
"Speak. It's okay."
Must be the effect of the wine. After hesitating for a while, the staff opened their mouths.
"A spider-type monster has invaded."
"What?!"
He was surprised and scared, too. In this world, such things could happen anytime.
"Moreover, mainly the people who were in charge of Alpha were attacked. It seems like they sensed the presence of an SS-rank Awakened, but they focused on hunting weaker opponents first. Clever ones usually target weak guards in the combat team. Probably regarded as Alpha's team."
"That's... if there was an invasion at the defense bureau, it should at least be an A-rank, and it wouldn't have been destroyed!"
The staff mentioned that a directive had been issued not to go alone, and A-rank or higher guards were thoroughly searching the defense bureau. Considering that all S-rank guards were mobilized, they should be able to find it before sunset. Mindiba let out a long sigh.
"I'm sorry to show you such a bad sight. I'm glad you handled it quickly."
Mindiba offered to provide extra security, but I politely declined. That spider is coming.
"Oh, and I received a message that Sigma from Sollemnis will arrive this afternoon."
...What? Too fast. Unlike me, Mindiba expressed surprise.
"It worked out well. High-ranking guards from our team will accompany him, so there should be no problem with the defense bureau's safety."
I have a lot of problems. I thought it would be fine until today, but the plan went awry.
"For now, I need to meet Sigma and persuade him."
Damn it, I wish we hadn't crossed paths again. Sigma would have definitely noticed me carrying those items and might suspect something about the bomb explosion. Honestly, if I were Sigma, I'd grab myself by the collar the moment we met.
Still, just like a cheap imitation of Sung Hyunjae, if I manage to pique Sigma's interest, he tends to be lenient.
"Well then, I'll quietly stay at the lodging. As long as I don't leave the room, it should be fine, right?"
"Yes. The room is sturdy, and if you attempt to break the door or walls forcefully, the emergency bell will ring, and guards will rush in. So, you don't need to worry. Rest well, and if you need anything, just press the 0 button on the phone to place an order."
Mindiba excused herself, leaving with the staff. Soon after, another personnel from the defense agency and an A-rank guard guided me to a new room. I inquired the agency staff about Sigma's exact arrival time and route.
"He departed by transport helicopter. He took off before midnight, so if everything goes smoothly... He should arrive at the defense agency rooftop helipad around three in the afternoon. Even if monsters attack, with Sigma there, it shouldn't be a problem."
The staff laughed, mentioning that helicopters, which are usually noisy and hard to conceal, are often deemed unsafe. It seems this neighborhood has helicopters too. They probably fly straight, faster than dirt roads for cars, suggesting it won't take even a full day.
Once the staff and the guard left, I was alone in the room. Originally, I planned to go out and provoke the S-rank guards, but for now, Sigma takes precedence. If that guy interferes, things won't end well.
'...He really should pay more attention to me.'
If that guy showed interest in my brother, it would only become a nuisance, but a suddenly rampaging S-rank Alpha is undeniably intriguing. I wonder if any guards with skills to calm Alphas were included in the report. It's something to exploit and more.
While organizing these various thoughts, time passed quickly. After informing them that I would take a nap after lunch, I used the stealth skill and went up to the rooftop.
How much time has passed? In the distance, the robust military transport helicopter came into view.
---