Rust - Chapter 687



Only Krnovel

RUST -687

Ki-sun, who was checking the situation on the monitor, whistled.

“Whew- Our Bbangsooni is incredibly popular.”

A crude SNS that only allowed for text and pictures was going wild. Texts were uploaded literally every second.

“This is ridiculous. Is this how everyone plays? Are there really this many people with nothing to do at this hour?”

The Holy Kingdom had a small population, perhaps no more than 4 million, or at most 5 million. The state of Michigan alone was 2.5 times larger than South Korea.

Adding central and eastern Canada together, it’s a huge area. In that huge area, there’s only 4 to 5 million people. Considering that New York City has a population of over 10 million, the Holy Kingdom’s manpower shortage was dire.

But I had no idea that so many people would flock to the text message that Bbangsooni posted while I was working.

“It’s because it’s winter.”

“Don’t make excuses about winter. Last winter might have been okay, but not this winter.”

Ki-soon tried to blame it on the winter, but it didn’t work. That was because he had prepared well for the harsh cold.

With the advent of nuclear fusion power, Detroit has access to a nearly limitless supply of electricity, and major Canadian cities have been able to take over the modular reactors used by Detroit, providing them with ample power.

“There’s a lot to eat, it’s warm in the winter, and it’s safe. Clubs are open every day. So why are you only looking at influencers like Bbangsooni? Wouldn’t it be better to experience it yourself rather than watching those kids having fun?”

It was Maru who was secretly expressing his discontent to the citizens of the Holy Kingdom. Ki-sun’s eyes were squinted.

“What are you talking about? Who would a citizen look up to? Isn’t it the King? Since the King has no interest in that area, everyone else is following the King’s example.”

It was Ki-sun who snapped that the reason people became incapacitated was because of you.

“What the hell are you talking about? You’re saying that because I don’t date, people don’t date either? So you’re doing the same thing?”

“···You became king, but your conscience has run away. Haven’t you seen me work? How do I have time to date?”

“That goes for me too. Runrun, look at the way you walk back after taking pictures of Paris.”

The Confederacy and the Empire were waging a war against each other by threatening, breaking the non-aggression pact, declaring war, launching a preemptive nuclear strike, exterminating cannibalistic vampires, striking the headquarters in Langley, Virginia, and now waging a war of terror against the remnants of Virginia.

“···admit.”

Both of them shut their mouths tightly at the same time.

“······”

“······”

The Holy Kingdom’s command center was really healthy(?). Everyone in charge of each department, including the king, was living each day fiercely.

If you create such a wonderful sacred kingdom, why aren’t people dating or having children? Even in places where AI isn’t managing, productivity is slightly decreasing.

“For now, let’s just catch those guys.”

“okay.”

Use Breadsoon to catch their tails, and use Joseph Meyer’s Memory Ampoule to blow up their base. If you just blow up their supply base once, you’ll at least have less to worry about in the Holy Kingdom area.

The other problem came after we caught those guys.

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Roana Blanc knows how to use social media.

“I told you, it’s not a special pardon.”

First, she had to deal with the people who were suspicious of the sudden disappearance of contact. In the past, the manager would have blocked and dealt with these people on her own, but now she had to do it on her own.

[Could it be that the medicine got into the bread?]

[That’s right. They got caught putting drugs in snacks and distributing them.]

The bastards were being driven to the drug.

“No, I said. I was sent to the empire as a special envoy.”

She quickly took a picture of the official document and uploaded it.

[You saw it. Everyone saw it.]

[I knew this would happen. I’ll run as soon as the evidence comes out.]

[Someone comes out and says, “This is clearly a fabrication.”]

[Picture is not clear]

[Look at this. It came out.]

[I even put the date and signature on it.]

Roana Blanc was delighted to see the text chatroom heating up in an instant.

“The Holy Kingdom seeks to establish a trading post in the Empire again.”

She began to naturally unravel the information.

“···So I decided to become an instructor at the cultural center.”

The movements attacking Ki-sun and Dan Brown began to slowly decrease.

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New York. The President’s Residence.

Dan Brown put down his operational plan.

“The lure operation using Roana Blanc will definitely be effective.”

A text message from Vladimir Kalin appeared on the monitor.

[The question is how far you can push it.]

“That’s a problem, but there’s one thing that must be taken into consideration when planning a strategy.”

Maru listened intently, as Dan Brown rarely emphasized the word ‘must’.

“It would be a mistake to think of them as one group. It would be better to approach them as a monster with multiple heads that grew from one head being cut off.”

Now that Joseph Meyer is gone, Virginia Langley has become a multi-headed monster.

Dan Brown’s story is that while it is important to know how many heads are caught, it is also important to know what the uncaught heads do.

[That makes sense.]

So Maru was also preparing for that. He called Kim Yang and asked her to escort Ki-sun. There was a woman with a mechanical arm nearby, so the two of them would have no problem protecting Ki-sun.

“I think it will naturally split into two or three.”

[I guess so.]

Those who are after the Holy Kingdom Governor, Ki-sun. Those who are trying to work on Roana Blanc at the Imperial Trading Post. And finally, those who are trying to carry out construction work on Imperial Chancellor Dan Brown.

The worst case scenario would be if they were all gathered together and concentrated on one side. What if dozens of mid-level or higher vampires and dozens of mid-level cannibals were targeting just one place? The side without a floor would not be able to hold out.

Knowing this, Maru entered the Empire secretly, in order to respond in case he was cornered by Roana Blanc or Dan Brown.

Roana Blanc was escorted by her Royal Guard and Naruzu and Den Brown by new clones, but the other party was a group of mid- to high-ranking cannibals centered around at least mid-ranking vampires, so it was not surprising that unexpected situations arose.

‘Acidic fluid.’

No one knew that vampires could use something like that. Fortunately, it was predicted that only a small number of them would be able to use acidic fluids.

If all vampires had the ability to use acidic fluids by default, all the cities of the Empire would have been taken over by vampires. There would have been massive casualties even in the Holy Kingdom, which was in the Confederate state of Texas.

“It’s possible that they’re trying to lure us in by targeting one side and then attacking the other.”

[I agree.]

Maru was tight-lipped about Dan Brown’s story.

‘Please. Don’t scratch.’

‘I hope things go well.’

‘Turn on your blinkers in advance.’

The generous Maru accepted Gi-sun’s plea. He was accepting General Dan Brown’s story with a broad mind. While they were talking about various things related to the joint operation, Dan Brown started crying.

“···The important thing is mobility, and the thing to watch out for is misfires. So, what if both the Empire and the Holy Kingdom install friendly identification devices?”

Whether it was the Holy Kingdom’s Naruj or the Empire’s new clones, the main force was armed with exosuits. The idea was to share friendly identification devices to prevent accidental shooting at each other.

If you could know the exact location of your allies, it would definitely be an advantage.

“Not only will it reduce misfires, it will also be effective in encircling, ambushing, and providing support fire.”

Maru felt a strange feeling at Dan Brown’s words. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling, but a strange feeling. The enemies he had to deal with now were vampires and cannibals.

Whether it was the Naruj of the Holy Kingdom or the new clones of the Empire, they were difficult enemies to take down one-on-one. They had to be taken down with overwhelming numbers, traps, and surprise attacks, and to do that, reconnaissance was important.

The problem was that if the scout was captured by them, the friendly identification device would have exposed the friendly forces’ information in reverse.

‘There is no reason to take such risks and unify the Empire and its identification devices.’

The Divine Kingdom exosuits were forming a network through their auxiliary AI. This meant that they were naturally identified when they were nearby.

‘The feeling is subtle, so there’s no need for an identification device or anything like that.’

Maru rejected Den Brown’s claims.

“Are you saying you won’t do joint operations?”

[Isn’t it true that joint operations can only be carried out by dividing the friendly identification devices? The Holy Kingdom will defend the trading post, and the Empire will defend the Governor’s Residence, and if a dangerous situation arises, each side will send a reserve force to provide support.]

Since the support unit was going to attack the enemy’s rear anyway, the probability of a misfire was low.

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New York.

Those gathered in a corner of the ruins swept by the rats were sharing their equipment.

“This is a trap.”

“Does everyone think so?”

“······.”

“If the information came from the Empire, it would definitely be a trap. But since it came from the Holy Kingdom, I think the odds are probably 50/50.”

It’s half and half.

“The Grandan team warned us not to approach the trading post, as it is their jurisdiction.”

“Grandon?”

“yes.”

“···We will give up. Instead, tell us when we will start working.”

If you work on Roana Blanc, all eyes will be on you. Why not take advantage of that gap to attack Den Brown?

No, there must be some who think like this. So the competition for Den Brown is high, so the ones who should be working now are the Imperial Household Council, the government officials, and the military.

“We start working at 6:22 p.m.”

It was a bitter winter. It was dark at 6pm. A time when even the slightest ripples of the ripper suit were hidden.

“We’re after the commander of the New York Defense Forces.”

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[They started attacking the Presidential Residence.]

Despite the loud attack, the number of enemies did not seem to be large. Maru’s brow furrowed as he checked Den Brown’s text.

[What is the situation at the trading post?]

A dolphin sound wave burst into Maru’s communication.

[Gyaaaaaaah!]

[It’s Oraburning!]

[The King’s Voice!]

[Be quiet you crazy bitches.]

[What are you going to do if the King texts you?]

A local area network that becomes quiet in an instant.

[The number of enemies targeting Roana Blanc is approximately 15 to 17.]

[It seems like the enemy’s command and authority are not unified.]

[Currently 2 enemy captured, 7 killed.]

Contrary to expectations that it would be difficult, the defense of the trading post was going quite easily. How long had it been like that? Dan Brown requested emergency assistance.

[They’re after the military!]

They weren’t just targeting the military. Contrary to predictions that they would target Chancellor Dan Brown and Roana Blanc, they began attacking Imperial senators and administrative officials.

‘Damn. I didn’t get it.’

Perhaps because the Holy Kingdom was not in danger, or because the situation was not serious enough to threaten Maru, there was no sense of crisis.

Maru immediately ran towards the defense force position.

It was dark. Streetlights half-submerged in white snow were showing the road.

‘Are they crazy?’

No matter how easy the defense force is, the military is still the military. Are you trying to commit suicide by going into a military garrison?

Since I taught you the mind wave blocking device and blocking technique, shaking it with dominance or mind waves wouldn’t have worked.

Thump-

Maru told me that he felt strange.

At the same time, the thought occurred to me, ‘Could it have been possible to issue all the psychic shielding helmets to troops numbering over ten thousand?’

Thump-

The new clones were all issued with it, but what about the regular soldiers?

Thump- thump-

And from far away, in the direction of the garrison, gunfire and explosions were heard.