Chapter 133: White Abyss A request to restore communication at an abandoned base.
Despite the name of the mission, the base wasn't actually abandoned, nor had it been left alone for very long.
It had been operating perfectly fine as an intermediate waypoint until about three months ago, when a thick fog suddenly rolled in and monsters swarmed the area, forcing the base to be evacuated.
However, abandoning the base was simply part of a set protocol, so the government wasn't particularly worried at the time.
Even in a world where everyone can use magic, skilled mages are always a precious resource.
If it were a major city harvesting essential resources, it might be a different story, but they couldn't afford to waste expensive mages defending a mere waypoint base to the bitter end.
If a problem arises, it's much cheaper in terms of both money and manpower to surrender the base, wipe out the monsters with a round of magic bombardment later, and then reclaim it.
The problem, however, was that the communication tower—the most vital component of that protocol—had broken down.
The communication tower also served as a reconnaissance tool, marking the monsters around the base and transmitting their locations to Central.
Without that data, safe, long-range magic bombardment is impossible, meaning the monsters have to be hunted down one by one.
Whether the monsters broke it or it was just a coincidence was unknown, but it left the government in a bind.
Government agents had already tried and failed several times to restore communication. Normally, Yggdrasil would have rejected such a request as too dangerous.
But the moment I said I was bringing our "super cheat code," Frey, they stamped the approval immediately.
What? We can dispatch Greyhound without spending a dime? And Frey herself is going? Send them now.
Good old Frey-chang-seop—she really does provide everything.
"So, where is Kel... I mean, Lady Frey?"
As soon as we arrived at the safe zone near the base, Rio looked around with eyes full of anticipation.
He looked like an otaku five seconds away from meeting his favorite idol. I really didn't want to introduce them.
"She's watching from the shadows."
"What? She's really here, right? You're not bullshitting me?"
"She's here. Have you lived your whole life being lied to?"
"You've lied to me plenty of times!"
I might have withheld important facts, but I've never lied. I felt wronged.
"She said meeting before the mission might interfere with the evaluation, so she'll see you after it's over."
"A cool-headed person like Lady Frey wouldn't let seeing us affect her evaluation..."
"Not her, you. You, you idiot. Don't go trying too hard just because your master is watching; keep your head in the game. Don't forget, you're being evaluated from the moment you step in here. She's watching right now."
"Lady Frey is watching me..."
Seeing Rio's bright face made me want to smack the back of his head.
Still, once I mentioned they were being watched, Masayoshi and Takeo also straightened their postures, their eyes turning sharp with tension.
I guess these guys were secretly looking forward to it too.
Frey really is famous.
Well, she is a legendary mercenary who is only mentioned in passing throughout the game until you finally meet her in the late stages.
And guys, I'm sorry.
You'd probably strangle me if I told you the truth, but she's not actually watching.
Frey is currently off with her own mercenaries, handling a request I gave her to hunt the hidden boss of this area.
Normally, this is a region you visit twice.
The first time, you just restore the communication tower and try to leave, but Akito feels something ominous and sets up some foreshadowing.
Later, the boss-class monster hiding here destroys the base, and you have to come back to investigate.
It's not part of the main story, but if that second request triggers, the entire region gets locked down until it's resolved, which is incredibly inconvenient.
Since this happens right when events are popping off and emergency requests are flooding in, it's better to deal with it now while I can.
There's no need to let the agents at the base die by leaving it alone, and if this area gets blocked, sourcing materials becomes a nightmare.
But... how the hell do I get up there?
The communication tower, soaring high through the fog, looked dauntingly tall even from a distance.
How did they even build something like that? The nearby mountains didn't even look that low, but because the tower was so thin and tall, they looked like neighborhood hills in comparison.
Akito used to climb this thing just fine; does that guy not have a fear of heights?
Rio seemed to be thinking the same thing. Even from a distance, he tilted his head back, staring blankly at the top of the tower before speaking.
"Umm... do we really have to go up there?"
"Yep. Now, get going."
"What?! Me?! That's not what we agreed on!"
"You're the only member whose death wouldn't matter—"
"Don't joke like that! I am absolutely not going up there!"
It was a joke, but he was genuinely horrified.
The one going up is me.
I'm the only one who can survive a fall by tanking it with a mana barrier.
"Shouldn't we have brought someone who can use flight magic?"
"You bastard, you didn't read the materials I handed out again, did you?"
When I snapped at him, Rio looked away guiltily and picked up his pad.
The fog settled here isn't just normal fog.
Due to some magical whatever-it-is, it's a fog that snatches anything flying and drags it down to the ground.
Just then, a bird of unknown species flew across the area.
The thick fog on the ground shimmered, and hundreds of wisps rose up like heat haze.
Wow... it was a fascinating yet repulsive sight.
At first, the bird dodged quickly, but the moment a single wisp brushed against its wing, it was yanked straight down as if someone had snagged it with a fishing line.
To dodge those while flying and land safely on top of the tower, you'd probably need to bring one of the 12 Zodiacs.
Well, if we fail and restoration keeps stalling, a Zodiac probably would show up.
"...Is it even possible to climb the tower?"
"As long as your feet are planted on something, the fog doesn't react."
"That's the thing, right? The White Abyss."
"That's what they call it. A bit of a cheesy name, though."
As expected of a world where magic is central, even the natural phenomena are extraordinary.
Storms that cause hallucinations, sand that shoots up into the sky... it all seemed fun when I was playing the game, but facing it in person is just a pain.
Regardless, we're the ones who have to deal with it now.
"As explained, Yukina and Takeo will protect the tower from the ground. Rio will assist the defense team and handle detection. Angelica will receive the detection data and provide ultra-long-range sniping."
Rio's role is crucial here.
Giving Rio such an important job... it doesn't exactly put me at ease, but he's the only one who can support the defense team by altering the terrain and accurately relaying monster positions to Angelica, whose vision is blocked by the fog.
"...Can't I be the one to go up?"
"No. If someone falls, I have the highest chance of surviving."
Yukina, worried about me, offered to climb instead.
She had said this several times on the way here, and each time I had shaken my head.
Yukina is physically gifted, so she'd probably climb it more easily than I would.
But the moment she falls... well, honestly, Yukina would probably find a way to grab onto the tower and hang on.
Still, if she were to fall straight to the ground from near the top, she'd die.
Both Yukina and Angelica looked at me with worried eyes... and you, you thug, stop looking at me like that. It feels weirdly gay, so knock it off.
"The plan isn't changing. Just do your assigned roles."
"Then...! At least go without casting Soul Chain on me. You need to preserve as much of your mana barrier as possible..."
This time, Angelica stepped forward.
I appreciated them both thinking of me, but they were worrying too much.
"I told you that's not an option either, right? You won't be under attack anyway. It's just insurance."
"Yeon-woo needs insurance too."
"Yeah, Masayoshi is my insurance, so don't worry."
"...Suddenly putting a lot of pressure on me, aren't you?"
"You'll do fine, won't you?"
Masayoshi, who would be guarding Angelica as she sniped from a distance away from the main group, shrugged his shoulders.
I used to dismiss them as a comedy duo, but I can trust Masayoshi.
Rio... I still need to see more from him.
After convincing the two worried girls, we commenced the operation.
First, we moved to a good sniping position. While the other team members secured the area by setting up barriers, I kissed Angelica and felt her up to establish the Soul Chain.
It was partly to protect her, but it also served as a morale boost for me before I had to climb that tower.
"You have to be careful."
"Don't worry."
When I stroked the hair of Angelica, who was looking up at me like a puppy, the synchronization rate of the Soul Chain suddenly spiked.
To think that stroking her head would raise it more than all that touching and kissing... it was heartening, yet a little disappointing.
Leaving Angelica and Masayoshi behind, we ran toward the communication tower.
"Three ahead!"
Because of the thick fog, you couldn't see anything more than three or four meters away, so Rio had to detect and call out positions one by one.
Yukina, who knew the monsters' locations even before Rio spoke, vanished into the fog. After the loud shrieks of monsters echoed, she rejoined us.
Yukina looked so cool emerging from the fog, trailing a sword stained with monster blood as if nothing had happened.
With Rio detecting and Yukina handling them before he even finished speaking, we approached the communication tower.
The tower, its top obscured by the fog, looked unstable and uninviting.
But if I hesitated here, Yukina would step up.
I placed my foot on the stairs and looked at Rio.
"You know your role is important, right?"
"I know. You can trust me, can't you?"
"..."
"That's when you're supposed to say you trust me, even if it's a lie!"
I gave the scowling Rio a quick grin and started climbing the stairs.
The stairs only went up about four stories; the rest had to be climbed using things like ladders.
Even those were mostly destroyed, so I had to climb like a protagonist in an assassin game who loves leaps of faith, doing all sorts of stunts.
So far, so good.
But if it were this easy, all those agents wouldn't have failed.
As soon as I started scaling the tower, the cries of monsters—sounding like monkeys—erupted from within the fog.
Those are the subordinates... or maybe offspring... of the hidden boss.
In fact, monkey-like monsters began attacking anyone climbing the tower.
Rio had to limit the monsters' paths by altering the terrain, while Yukina and Takeo held them off.
But there were too many of them; without Angelica's sniping, those two wouldn't be able to hold out.
And I had to somehow restore communication, mark all the monsters, and request the bombardment before my teammates were overwhelmed.
Wait... the ladder is already cut off here?
Since the agents had been attacked repeatedly during their attempts, it seemed the sections closer to the ground were more heavily damaged.
It would probably be easier to climb the closer I got to the top.
I hate climbing games.
I absolutely loathe games where a tiny control mistake means death or starting over from the beginning.
But there was no need to worry.
I had prepared an item specifically for someone like me who hates climbing games.
Fortunately, I pulled out the whip Rebecca had managed to get for me just in time and flicked it into the air.
Crack! The sound was reassuring.
I lashed it toward a distant steel beam, and the whip extended and coiled around it.
Now, if I release the mana—
The extended whip retracted, pulling me upward.
"Whoa—!"
Right, I forgot about this.
The moment my feet left the structure, those white wisps that had dragged the bird down swarmed from all directions, terrifying me.
Luckily, I reached my destination before they could touch me, but since I wasn't far from the ground, my frantic shout prompted a worried "Are you okay?" from below.
I barely managed to stop Yukina from trying to climb up immediately and calmed my racing heart.
Phew... I shouldn't aim for spots too far away.
Since the fog reacts the moment my feet leave the surface, I need to keep my airtime short.
It won't be as easy as I thought, but since I can bypass the broken paths, it shouldn't be too difficult.
"Ukki-k?!"
Ah, shit. I forgot about these guys.
It's not like the monsters just sit in one place and wait for me to say, "Okay, I'm restoring communication now!" before swarming. Naturally, there are some roaming freely around the middle of the tower.
The monkey-like monster tilted its head at me, but its face soon twisted into a hideous expression as its muscles bulged.
"Don't show off your muscles and just piss off, you brat."
I tied the whip securely to the structure and shattered a magic stone I had bought from Rebecca.
Boom!
A sudden gust of wind exploded outward, blowing away the monster that was lunging at me.
I was hit by the same wind, but I held on thanks to the whip I had tied down.
The sight of the fog wisps creeping out because my feet had briefly lifted was chilling.
Regardless, I've confirmed that the items I prepared work.
Now, all that's left is to climb to that invisible summit.
I'd better get up there and fix it before the kids down there get into real trouble.
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