“…Why is this even working?”
It was absurd, but if it worked, it worked.
The smooth sensation under his fingertips.
Separate from the surreal feeling, the Enhancement Stone in his hand was as real as any other he’d ever held.
And this wasn’t the end.
Camelot had now become a farm that produced Enhancement Stones itself.
While it involved extracting life force just like the Knight King did, at least he could ease his guilt a little, seeing the knights panting happily like dogs on a summer day basking in the air conditioning.
Before he knew it, he had two Enhancement Stones.
One was a [Resistance] Enhancement Stone he’d obtained from taking down a Corps Commander, and the other was the [Electric Shock] he’d just acquired.
Looking at these two different Enhancement Stones, I fell into thought.
“Then… where would be the best place to use them?”
.
.
.
The first option was to summon more knights.
Not only would this strengthen his immediate forces, but now they could also be used as a driving force to produce more Enhancement Stones.
Even if he only increased the number by two, he could potentially double the production speed of the Enhancement Stones.
But…
“There’s a bit of risk involved.”
This time, he’d been lucky to acquire an Enhancement Stone right after activating Camelot, but there was no guarantee that would happen again.
Maybe the Knight King had some stored life force already, and this time he’d just gotten a bit of overflow by chance.
Even now, after several hours had passed, there was no particular news from Camelot.
Moreover, it was still only the initial, ‘slightly’ recovery of the .
For now, he decided to just observe how frequently Camelot would spit out Enhancement Stones.
“If that’s the case, the next use would be…”
Item enhancement.
Helicopters, vehicles, even Hellfire missiles.
There were plenty of things he wanted to enhance, but…
“There’s one thing I really want to try enhancing this time.”
Thud, thud.
He headed towards the in the Subspace.
Holding in his hands a freshly shipped, hot new item.
When he finally arrived at the lab, he took out the black-bodied object with a ‘click.’
Clack!
A rifle.
But it wasn’t the K2.
It was the model that had started being distributed to frontline units under the name of some defense reform or whatever.
The new model rifle, named K2C1.
It was an item he’d acquired via while wiping out the 1st Corps, and it boasted a more refined appearance compared to the K2 in many ways.
“Honestly, I don’t really know how much better it actually is…”
Since he was enhancing something anyway, wouldn’t it be better to enhance the new model?
It had to be at least better than a standard K2, right?
In fact, this wasn’t the first time he’d considered enhancing a rifle.
But rather than the rifle itself, he’d had to enhance the bullets, and there was the problem of whether the rifle could handle the power of the enhanced bullets.
However, this time the situation was different.
—-
[Enhancement Stone (D)]
Attribute: None
Option: [Resistance]
—-
An option had been added to help it withstand the impact.
“The key is…”
Whether a rifle with [Resistance] could withstand the power of the enhanced bullets.
Fortunately, I had a good, simple way to confirm that.
Namely, precise .
.
.
.
Ding!
PAX displayed the information I requested.
—
[Cost 1,000]
◈ Subspace Laboratory (2)
– Provides a preview of the outcomes from enhancement or item combination.
– Allows a simulation of enhancement or item combination.
—
The newly upgraded capability of the laboratory.
With this ability, it was now possible to test the effects of Enhancement Stones in advance before actually using them.
Through this feature.
“Activate it.”
[Understood.]
[1,000 Mana Stones received.]
[Remaining Mana Stones: 3,643.]
At first glance, it didn’t look much different from usual.
An empty space, and the ability to summon the desired items as holograms remained the same.
However…
—
※ This is simulated information provided through the simulation.
[5.56mm NATO Bullet +1]
Grade: [Rare]
Description: [Failed to retrieve information. You can enter a description manually.]
Attribute: [Electric]
Options: [Penetration], [Electric Shock]
—
In this way, I could preview the expected information before applying an enhancement.
After confirming the details of the enhanced bullet,
I summoned two additional items as holograms.
[K2C1 Rifle, Price not set.]
[Johnsonville Original Smoked Sausage, 360g, Price: 9,710 won.]
Three items hovered in the air as holograms.
First, I loaded the enhanced [Electric Shock] rounds into a standard rifle magazine.
Then, I placed the appetizing sausage right on top of the rifle’s rail.
The only thing left was to fire.
Though, not a real shot, but a simulated firing.
Bang!
Along with the shot,
Boom!
The rifle exploded, body and all, and at the same time, the well-cooked sausage burst through its casing, scattering bits everywhere.
It was an expected result, but even more terrifying in reality.
“If I’d just enhanced the bullets and used them, I’d be dead.”
The rifle had burst because it couldn’t handle the explosive power of the bullets, and even the sausage placed on top had ended up cooked.
This meant that the bullet’s [Electric Shock] option had impacted the sausage as well.
In a real combat situation, I would have been electrocuted by holding the rifle.
So then…
“…How about this?”
—
※ This is simulated information provided through the simulation.
[K2C1 Standard Rifle +1]
Grade: [Rare]
Description: [Failed to retrieve information. You can enter a description manually.]
Attribute: [None]
Option: [Resistance]
—
The conditions were the same this time.
The only difference was that the rifle was now equipped with [Resistance].
I loaded the [Electric Shock] rounds and placed a fresh sausage on top.
I proceeded with the simulated firing immediately.
Bang!
The result was…
“Oh…?”
Success.
The bullet, equipped with [Penetration] and [Electric Shock] options, successfully fired, and the rifle, reinforced with [Resistance], managed to withstand the impact, though it creaked a little.
The sausage on top…
“Completely raw…!”
It hadn’t cooked at all.
This meant that [Resistance] blocked the [Electric Shock] from flowing back to the shooter.
Of course, even so, [Resistance] wasn’t absolute.
If the bullets were fired in rapid succession, or even if fired single-shot but repeatedly, the rifle would eventually explode, and the sausage would end up nicely grilled.
The experiment continued.
Even with [Resistance] applied, it was hard to be certain how long the rifle could hold up.
After several tests in the , I was able to determine the maximum limit the rifle could endure.
“Three shots in burst mode. Five shots in single-fire mode.”
That was the limit.
A disappointing number, but still manageable.
“I can just keep pulling out new ones as needed.”
After all, the rifles were unlimited.
The savory aroma led me toward the staff cafeteria.
Dozens of plates were lined up neatly, and in the kitchen, my mother and Oh Ji-soo were busily moving their hands over stainless steel bowls.
Bright green chamnamul was swimming in the silver bowl.
One strand came up with my mother’s hand, and I quickly popped it into my mouth.
“Wow…”
Such a familiar taste.
But also one that I could never erase from memory.
The crunch of the sesame seeds, followed by the rich blend of perilla oil and chamnamul, filled my mouth.
My mother added,
“Normally, you can mix in some garlic, but even without it, it’s still quite good. It really brings out the flavor of the greens.”
My mother’s understanding of taste was on another level.
The depth of her knowledge felt so vast that I could hardly comprehend it.
It was something that would inevitably disappear someday.
Even if every single one of her words were recorded perfectly, the legacy of the past would face its own inevitable extinction.
Suddenly, I felt a sense of fear.
Fear that, once it disappeared, the world might not be able to continue without it.
All I could do was struggle as much as possible to delay that day.
Whether she knew my thoughts or not, my mother issued a command.
“It’s almost ready, so go tell everyone to come eat.”
“Ah…”
Gathering up the other grasshoppers lazing around outside.
That was the obvious duty, the mission, of a grasshopper who’d been lurking around the kitchen, hoping for a taste.
With wings flapping, I set off to find the family scattered throughout the Subspace.
.
.
.
“Ugh.”
Kim Sol patted her stomach with a satisfied, toad-like expression.
The dining table was now completely cleared.
My mother and Oh Ji-soo looked on at the scene with contentment.
Grandfather made a request to me.
“Jeong-gyeom, could you fetch a bottle of makgeolli? I’d like to have a drink with Lan-ssi.” (TL: If you forgot Lan is Lancelot)
It seemed that the ordering system in this Fulfillment Center was still unfamiliar to him.
“Do we even have makgeolli here? And why would skeletons be drinking alcohol?”
“Huh? Lan-ssi can’t drink?”
“No, it’s not that…”
At that moment, someone nudged me in the side.
“Soju… with the red cap…”
I turned to see my father, who was trying to communicate through ventriloquism, his gaze cast somewhere off in the distance.
Unfortunately, however, the journey of these two grasshoppers in search of alcohol came to an abrupt end, thanks to the diligent ant who had prepared the meal.
“Are you seriously planning to drink right now?”
“…!”
Jump!
My father suddenly stood up and started clearing the dishes.
Cleaning up the table and washing the dishes.
That was the obvious duty, the mission, of grasshoppers who’d been served a meal.
While my father had no choice but to comply, I secretly planned to slip a bottle of makgeolli to my disappointed grandfather.
Just then
“Let’s take a picture!”
My oldest sister, who had gone downstairs, suddenly appeared holding a camera the size of her palm.
One of those cameras commonly known as a Polaroid.
[Instax Mini Evo Instant Camera, price: 349,000 won.]
Behind her stood two skeleton knights, scratching their bodies awkwardly.
My older sister, Kim Joo-yeon, said,
“Since these two are having a hard time, let’s finish quickly!”
And so…
Click!
We took a photo.
The entire Kim family, Lee Yong-su’s family, my sister-in-law’s family, and even the knights of Camelot.
True to its high-performance AI status, PAX had even ordered a mascot plush to join, just in case it felt left out.
Whirr…
The camera instantly printed out the photo, and,
“Kyaa! What is this!”
The spirits of Camelot, filling the background, had turned our family photo into a ghostly image. Yet, there was no doubt that it captured every member of our family in the Subspace.
And then,
As we were cleaning up after eating and arranging the photos while chattering loudly, it happened.
Ding!
A message window appeared in front of everyone.
It appeared for everyone, regardless of whether they were Awakened or not.
An eerie, ominous sensation crept over us.
The sender of the message was…
The Multidimensional Chamber of Commerce.
.
.
.
What they sent was nothing short of a formal ‘official document’.
This is a notification from the Multidimensional Chamber of Commerce.
During the recent period of free pioneering, both internal incursions and external incursions into Earth’s dimension were conducted.
Your dimension has generated 13,117 new cases concerning the blessings of internal incursions, and with 17 instances of reverse growth induced on free traders, your dimension has demonstrated sufficient growth potential and profitability to the Multidimensional Sphere.
We commend you for your efforts.
—
The cold, formal language filled with unknown terms and numbers.
To us, the apocalypse that had struck so vividly was, to them, nothing more than a trivial matter that could be summarized in a few lines of text.
They were merely offering faint praise, as if our desperate struggle had been somewhat impressive.
Of course, these beings weren’t messaging us just to give compliments.
The message continued.
—
Based on the results of the recent free pioneering phase, the Multidimensional Chamber of Commerce has conducted a thorough evaluation of Earth’s growth potential. Earth’s dimension has achieved an unprecedented growth rating of [BB-] in the free pioneering phase, and, accordingly, the call for proposals for the second pioneering project in the Multidimensional Sphere has concluded successfully.
Following the detailed strategy for open development set by the Multidimensional Chamber of Commerce, an official for all regions of Earth will take place in 7 days. Participating dimensions and Earth’s residents will compete to demonstrate their potential for profitability under the specified rules. If another dimension wins, a Gate Portal will be established in the area, granting them privileges for future development. If Earth’s residents win, they will receive a separate reward.
Detailed information regarding the will be announced region by region 24 hours before the competition begins.
We look forward to the enthusiastic support and participation of Earth’s dimension.
Respectfully,
From the Multidimensional Chamber of Commerce.
—
After reading the message, we turned to each other with grim expressions.
In other words…
“…They’re planning a full-scale invasion.”
It was a complete declaration of war.
To them, though, this whole apocalyptic scenario seemed nothing more than a game within their grasp.
They spoke of business proposals, bidding competitions, victory, and rewards as if it were all part of a grand entertainment.
The critical point was that this cursed ‘bidding competition’ was a type of contest governed by ‘rules’.
And that it would be held in various locations across the entire Earth.
No doubt, one of these competitions would take place right here in Seoul, as they had mentioned.
“…What are we going to do?”
My family asked.
The apocalypse we had once managed to fend off was now returning, an even larger wave crashing down upon us.
Moreover, I was the strongest line of defense against their offensive.
“Let’s go to Yongsan. I need to talk to the Joint Chiefs of Staff commander.”
This was now a global battle.
This fight was no longer mine alone.
You cannot copy content of this page