Rust - Chapter 747



Only Krnovel

RUST -747

Since humans are political animals, it is understandable that there are forces or people controlling Japanese refugees, but it was surprising that there were such beings among crows.

This is because when we recruited crows in the United States and Canada, there was no case of any organization, force, or special individual wielding power.

[I don’t know if I should call this surprising or strange.]

Or maybe it was something that happened in Korea, so I should say it was very Korean. Ki-soon, who was trying to speak jokingly, shut her mouth when she saw Maru’s serious face.

The purpose of the expedition was simple. They were simply sent to find mates so that the number of crows could be counted, and while they were there, they were supposed to scout out how East Asia was doing, but things were getting complicated.

He overthrew the Southern Warlords’ headquarters that had occupied Taiwan and crushed the Crows that had taken control of Changwon. As if that wasn’t enough, he also immigrated 2,000 soldiers from the Changwon siege force.

Maru decided to dig a little deeper with a small sigh. He had been trying to just pass by, but the obstacles kept getting bigger and bigger, so he couldn’t just pass by.

“There are 70,000 crows in Changwon and 210,000 crows in Ulsan. Is that number maintained at a constant level? Ask the expedition team to check if the crows have maintained their numbers consistently for 2-3 years.”

Artificial intelligence Diana immediately confirmed the expedition team’s assistant artificial intelligence’s answer.

[According to what we have confirmed so far, the number of crows in Changwon has steadily decreased from 140,000 to 70,000 over the past three years. The number of crows in Ulsan was 180,000 at the time of the first clash with the crows in Changwon, but has remained at around 210,000 since then.]

So, you’re saying that at first, the difference wasn’t even three times… Even if that were true, I still thought it was strange.

‘Even if we leave the crows problem aside, the Korean military’s response is strange.’

It was inefficient to simply create an air raid shelter and confine crows in Ulsan because there were so many of them. At first, the number of crows in Changwon was not small.

‘They left Changwon alone and only locked up the crows in Ulsan with the air defense net?’

Being able to create an air defense net means you can literally close the encirclement and hunt crows. But you’re just preventing them from coming out?

And it was certainly strange that those smart crows were quietly staying in the Ulsan area without breaking through or bypassing the siege.

Kisun Do quickly realized that Maru was suspicious.

[Does this smell?]

Ki-sun’s narrow eyes opened slightly.

[No matter how tightly you build an anti-aircraft network, there is bound to be a limit to how far you can go towards the sea. So if you go out to the sea from Ulsan and turn sideways, it would be enough to advance to Pohang.]

“Yeah. That bothered me too.”

[Since there would have been an anti-aircraft network in the Ulsan direction, if they had attacked from above and below Pohang and Ulsan at the same time, they would have quickly broken through the anti-aircraft line. Why didn’t they do that?]

The crows could not have been unaware of this, as they showed a tactical side even when fighting Japanese refugees.

“Whether it’s the crow force or an entity, we have to assume that they are in league with the Korean government.”

What was even more absurd was that not only did they kiss with Korea, they also seemed to have joined hands with the Japanese refugee control forces.

The South Korean army was surrounding Ulsan, and the south was open. It was meant to be fought and consumed by the Japanese refugees.

But the crows did not do that, and instead reached an agreement with the Japanese refugees and joined hands to strike back at an appropriate level.

The refugees were exchanging old, troublesome individuals, while the crows were exchanging troublesome individuals.

The fact that only about 30,000 crows out of 210,000 were targeting only the northern camp in Busan, and the fact that there were many elderly people in that northern camp, too, are also similar.

The interests of the Korean government, which wanted to control the increasing number of Japanese refugees, and the crows, which wanted to maintain a certain level of power, coincided. At the same time, the refugees’ plan to turn things around by replacing their power with young and healthy people also coincided.

[Sure. The Ulsan crows are amazing. And the Japanese refugees who take advantage of them are also amazing.]

“They definitely targeted the Japanese refugee camps. They were deploying the ability users to the northern camp, which was under attack by crows, to gain practical experience, and they were intentionally putting the civilians in danger of death to induce their awakening.”

Crows eat humans to become stronger, and so do humans. Crows are also animals that fall under the category of mutant monsters, so eating them would definitely have an effect.

It wasn’t like there was a sudden appearance of a mutant like in London, England or Paris, France, but if things continued this way, it was clear that Korea would become a disaster zone.

[So what are you going to do?]

“Bring the Ulsan crows or, if they fail to do so, they will all be exterminated.”

and.

“We need to investigate the situation in the metropolitan area and major cities more precisely.”

If you think back to what happened in the Air Force bunker, it had to be that way. Assuming the average weight of an adult male is 75kg, eating a whole person would be a very difficult task.

It was almost impossible, considering that the effect would decrease with time after death. However, the method the cannibals found in the Air Force bunker was a good way to eat humans whole.

It was either eaten as a fetus or as a newborn baby. According to the data he studied, eating a baby after birth was more effective than eating a fetus in the womb.

“I feel uncomfortable that women are flocking to the metropolitan area and large cities.”

At first I didn’t feel that way, but as time went on I started to feel a peculiar uneasiness. It was similar to the feeling I had when I first saw the spider in Richmond.

‘If the situation in Korea is like the spider situation that engulfed Richmond···.’

I don’t know how long it will take, but if we leave it like this, it will eventually become a danger to the Holy Kingdom.

“If you really want to run the metropolitan area and big cities for newborns, it would be safer to just wipe them out.”

[Let’s say Korea is like that. What about China? Will China be wiped out too?]

“If necessary.”

Maru’s voice was low.

In order to ensure safety and survival, the Confederacy had also swept away Texas, but Maru was not one to sit by and watch the cannibals, whether in Korea or the seven Chinese countries, grow stronger by eating fetuses and newborns.

‧

‧

‧

A laboratory fully equipped with a mind-wave blocking facility.

Small bubbles rose into a glass tube placed in a space filled with various mechanical equipment.

Pogurruruk-

A heavy hatch could be heard opening amidst the sound of tiny bubbles rising from the gray matter brain floating in a dense special solution.

The hatch opening warning sound and the door opening warning of psychic contamination filled the surrounding space alternately. Then, a researcher wearing a psychic shielding helmet spoke in a worried voice.

[Is it okay if I don’t wear a helmet?]

“it’s okay.”

“Please give me one.”

Maru calmly entered the sealed laboratory. Kisun, wearing a psychic shielding helmet, quickly moved his steps. The sound of bubbles could be heard from beyond the open hatch.

Pogurruruk-

[I will be waiting outside. I will be checking the CCTV, so if anything happens, please let me know and I will come in right away.]

As the researcher walked out of the lab as if he was afraid of something, the hatch that had been open began to slowly close. Then, a blue hologram appeared.

The 3D hologram in the shape of a human was very elaborate. The hologram of a standing adult male opened its mouth as if to break the stifling silence.

[What’s going on? Hasn’t all the information already been extracted?]

A hologram made from the remains of Joseph Meyer asked with his characteristically expressionless expression.

“I’m tired of searching through jumbled up information.”

Ki-soon whispered next to Maru.

“It’s gray. I thought it would be hostile, but it’s closer to neutral.”

Ki-soon said this while looking at the brain implanted with Joseph Meyer’s memories, saying that although it cannot be seen on screen, if you meet it in person you can roughly guess what kind of emotions it is.

[Reading emotions? That’s a different ability from psychometry, which reads memories. If I were to give advice, I’d say don’t give politicians or intelligence people any importance. They’re good at controlling their emotions.]

Even if it was just a remnant of memory, it was stuck in a brain without a body, with information extracted and abandoned. Of course, it wouldn’t have been strange for it to have negative feelings, but since it was a color close to neutral, the story of the brain-drumming hologram was credible.

At the same time, we had to be cautious about trying to narrow the gap by giving advice on stories that everyone already knew.

[So what are you curious about?]

“About the cannibals called the New Humans. As far as I know, the cannibals started with cannibalism. And the cannibalism started with eating cockroaches infected with a mutant virus.”

When the mutant virus spread and logistics were suddenly interrupted and food shortages occurred, the United States announced that even livestock contaminated with the mutant virus were safe if cooked at a high temperature for a certain amount of time.

China, which was relatively poor in energy situation, announced that it could cook food for longer than the US guideline even at low temperatures.

At that time, China, which was experiencing a sudden food shortage, attempted to mass-produce and process cockroaches, which could be raised from food waste, to use as food.

The problem was that companies blinded by profitability processed cockroach powder using a much shorter heating time than announced by the U.S. and Chinese governments, and food materials using this raw material were distributed to convenience stores around the world where Chinese people lived, leading to an outbreak of cannibalism.

“The cannibalism was caused by cockroaches infected with a mutant virus. Why did they call them new humans when they should have been called cannibals?”

[Of course, the act of naming, designation, and addressing is related to wording.]

The story is that how you call it, what you define it as, and how you distinguish it are all about effectively conveying your thoughts or arguments.

If we go a little further, it means that what to call it is a thoroughly political choice, but that wasn’t what Maru was curious about.

“No. Not that story. Did the United States conduct research using mutant viruses? Under the name of the New Human Project? And did they exchange information with their allies?”

“The color changed. It went from neutral to something interesting, just for a little bit.”

Joseph Meyer’s expressionless face, made of blue hologram, was enveloped in a strange light, even if only for a brief moment.

[Allied countries… Is that so? You said they were from there. It wouldn’t be Japan now, so I guess there’s a problem in Korea.]

“······.”

“······.”

[That’s also the problem with cannibals.]

“······.”

“······.”

Joseph Meyer’s dregs were sharp on the topic of brain matter.

[Okay. What exactly is the situation? The more detailed you can be, the more detailed the advice I can give.]

‧

‧

‧

After the heavy hatch closed, Ki-sun said.

“How much do you believe that?”

“As much as needed.”

It was a matter of believing only as much as was necessary for survival.

“Even though I told you that if you wanted it, the entire Virginia Company vampire organization would be under your command?”

“It’s still the same.”

Joseph Meyer’s body has already suggested it. Seeing that he says the same thing as the dregs, I guess you could say he’s obsessed with it.

There were many dummy memories, and quite a few memories that were broken during the information extraction process and difficult to confirm, so they were just dregs of memory, but his judgment was truly sharp.

“Even if they didn’t have a brain-boosting system like ours, if they had that, they would use it. Maybe they were aiming for that situation itself.”

Ki-soon also agreed with Maru’s words. It seems that the spraying of the memory ampoule itself was Joseph Meyer’s original intention.

“So what are you going to do?”

Ki-soon was planning to stop Maru if he said he would blow up the metropolitan area and major cities like he dropped a hydrogen bomb on Texas.

At the time, hydrogen bombs were used, but there was a good reason for it. Most of the people living in the targeted city were cannibals, vampires, and their followers.

There was little opposition to the King’s decision to purge the city with a hydrogen bomb, as the things that were happening in that city were things that no human could do.

As a result, even if the hydrogen bomb was used, the morality or sanity of the citizens or soldiers of the Holy Kingdom could not be damaged.

But it wasn’t the capital area or major cities of Korea at the moment. If a hydrogen bomb was suddenly detonated without a clear justification, the aftermath would surely leave a lasting scar.

“I’m saying this out of concern, but the justification needs to be as clear as London, England or Paris, France. Especially if you think about the election later.”

Instead of answering, Maru nodded slightly and moved forward.

======

======

The expedition’s flagship, the Black Drake.

Kim Yang looked at the information from the metropolitan area and large cities. While the countryside was a mess, the metropolitan area and large cities were running more normally than expected.

“Where did you get this coffee?”

Cafes were running, and things like tteokbokki shops, mala-tang restaurants, and bakeries were also in operation.

The assistant AI answered.

[It is not impossible if resources are distributed centered on the metropolitan area and large cities.]

It has been about a year since imports and exports were completely cut off. This means that we can survive on what we have accumulated so far.

“Still, that’s true. In this situation, shouldn’t we tighten our belts and distribute?”

The Arduous March. It seems like something like that is required.

There were some scenes that strangely caught Kim Yang’s eye. When I was in Seoul, it was hard to see pregnant women on buses or subways.

In the video, pregnant women were seen all too commonly in Seoul and other large cities.

That too, a lot.