Clearing the Game at the End of the World
Chapter 97: Masquerade Party (11)

Head. A little dizzy, but okay otherwise. It feels about the same as when he stayed up for two days straight in a trench during the war.

Body. Hungry. Now that he thought about it, he didn’t even have a proper lunch before this entire shenanigan happened. He was hungry and a little drained. Not to mention all sorts of bruises across his body.

Arms. Hurts like hell. What? He fished up a box full of mortar rounds with a crowbar hanging from a moving car? It’s a miracle that his arms weren’t dislocated. He was lucky.

Aside from that, there weren’t any major wounds, just a few scratches here and there. Overall, he was in a state that wouldn’t affect his performance during the operation.

‘This is a little unexpected. You really gave it back to me safe and sound. I thought you would rather die than hand it over?’

[Yawwn. I would have… but I’ve been dead tired since a while ago. This is more exhausting than I thought.]

‘Exhausting, you say…. Well, that’s understandable.’

Roughly scanning through his memories, he could understand the reason right away. Who would have thought to read through all of the memories saved unconsciously? He basically took in all of the information that our brains usually filter out, like how much the sign on the street was crooked or where the paint was slightly erased on the road, and amongst that ocean of useless information, he went through the process of replaceing what he needed. No wonder he was so mentally drained.

[Sorry. I did see your plans…. But I couldn’t stop myself. I guess I was just born that way.]

‘You can’t help it. I honestly didn’t even think you were going to follow the plan exactly anyway. I just hoped that you would get the gist of the situation when you read that.’

The plan I created was, at most, just a prediction of what would happen once Old Picture went berserk. In a situation where there are countless variables, like the Raptors, Dome, and Old Picture itself, it would have been a miracle for even half of his simple plan to have worked out.

‘A plan always has to be flexible when in action, and since the only one that can even relatively think of a plan was knocked out, I had to make out the safest and easiest plan possible.’

If I had been awake, it would have been a little more active than this, so in a way, Hyde had followed his word much better than he expected.

[Me? I did good? Really? I thought you would have cussed me out once you were out!]

‘Just go to sleep already. I said you did better than I thought, not good enough to be complimented.’

But in the end, Hyde wasn’t ‘me’. Instead of using the current situation to lure the flow in their advantage, he just concentrated on getting rid of the danger that was right in front of them.

‘If Old Picture was that out of it, then it would have chased us pretty far. It would have been pretty nice if it had been led to where the Raptors were.’

The outcome he personally thought was the best answer was….. to take Old Picture into the middle of the fight where the Dome and Raptors were.

Old Picture was only as dangerous as a large Type 2 mutant physically anyway, and its only weapon was its mental attacks. Dome had their Exosuits with shields built into them—even their trucks were covered in shields, compared to the Raptors, who mainly used old-fashioned weapons and automobiles from the 21^st century. It was more than just obvious which side would be more affected by Old Picture. Even a thin shield drastically blocks the effect of mental attacks.

“But, this still isn’t too bad, considering that Hyde did it.”

“Grahhhhhhhhh! I’ll kill you! My car! My method of travel! I’ll kill you all! I’ll shove missiles into every single hole in your body and shove you into frying oil!!!!!!”

…Although there was a minor casualty. But the important part was that they neutralized Old Picture much quicker than he expected.

While Gyosu was trying to look away from the struggling Ian, a small figure that had been standing behind him slowly approached him.

“Hey….”

“Ah, Vex! It must have been hard trying to get along with Hyde. Good job.”

“So it is you, Hepburn! You’re back!”

“Eugh, hey. I know you’re glad to see me and all, but let’s talk after we wash that blood off you, okay? You look like a psychopath serial killer right now.”

“Keheheh! You really are Hepburn!”

Unlike the crimson blood covering his entire body, Vex smiled brightly at him.

“We’ve managed to get this far after Hyde told us your plan. We killed the monster, so what do we do next?”

“Uh, mmm, my plan….. Yeah, let’s say so. All’s well that ends well.”

“?”

“Don’t worry about it. Anyway, since we naturalized Old Picture, we just need to wait until the Investigation Bureau people come.”

“The Investigation Bureau….. wait. Neutralize? It’s not dead? Even after its head got blown off?”

“Remember how I told you that the Type 3 mutants are based on memories? Can’t you tell just by how it changed from that shoe mound to the giant? Its physical state doesn’t matter much to it. The monster just temporarily stopped for a moment from the impact of losing 30% of its body, but it’ll regenerate with enough time and start going wild again.”

If Hyde had studied about Old Picture just a little bit more in my memories, then he wouldn’t have needed to come all the way up here and bother with blowing up its head. What really made Old Picture incapacitated was not the attack on a specific body part but causing more damage to a larger area of its body. That meant it would have been more than enough just to scatter the mortars they collected on the street and blow them up that way. Then Ian’s truck would have been safe too.

“That’s the reason why the Investigation Bureau uses stun shockers when dealing with large mutants like these. It’s easier when you’re immobilizing them, and it’s easier to subdue them when you fry up their bodies like that.”

“The Investigation Bureau… uses stun shockers?”

“Oh, right, you wouldn’t know. They have these weird robot gloves that they attach to the Exosuits…”

Clunk, clunk!

Since they didn’t have much to do, he was just about to explain to Vex about the Exosuits when he heard a familiar sound coming from the other side of the hill that Old Picture crawled up. Speak of the devil, the Investigation Bureau must already be….

‘No. Seeing that there’s only one, from the sound of it, someone must have come ahead. Are they a scout? Even if it is, there wouldn’t be a reason for them to use a precious resource and reveal their location this easily….’

“GYOSUUUUUU!”

Clunkclunkclunkclunkclunk!

Vmmmm—

Krrrgggk!

With an amplified voice coming from the speakers, a large, silver frame with yellow gloves arrived hurriedly at the viewpoint where the group was.

“Everyone get back! I’ll take care of the… the…… huh?”

Ezel had been grimly upping his output when the large mass of flesh came into his view as he arrived at the top of the hill, but looking at the unexpected atmosphere of the people at the viewpoint, he stood there, stunned. Gyosu and the short man were sitting peacefully on the ground. Ian, who he remembered was tied up last time they met as well, was tied up again, trying to chew out of the belt that restrained him.

And a lifeless, large figure dangling in front of the viewpoint, with a certain blob seemingly absent…

“Oh, Ezel! Right. You’re part of the Investigation Bureau too. That was quick.”

“Oh, yeah, it’s been…. that’s not the problem right now! The monster! That over there’s Old Picture, right? Where’s its head?”

“Oh, that? Things worked out that way somehow. Anyway, you got here pretty fast. Where are the rest of you guys?”

“It’s not that, I came here to save…”

In the midst of the confusing situation, Ezel was unable to decide which question he needed to ask first. What exactly is happening here? Why did it go berserk in the first place, and where’s the Executive Department that’s supposed to be in charge? And above all, why is that walking nightmare lying there like a headless horseman? There isn’t anyone nearby.. Don’t tell me… These three actually pulled this off?

Both the Executive Department and the Investigation Bureau knew that HIV was good at fighting. But from the information they received until now, that was only restricted to survival skills. They assumed this only pertained to danger avoidance and surprise attacks, but just the three of them managed to neutralize the living disaster Type 3 mutant, Old Picture, by themselves. You’re telling me that they came out for the play but saw it go berserk and went, ‘Nah, that won’t do.’ and just beat it up?

Clump clump clump.

Gyosu dusted off his hands as he approached the Exosuit. At that moment, Ezel was recalculating the danger level of HIV to a much higher status.

“Hup-hah. Ezel, the comms line, you’re connected to it, right?”

“Huh? Uh, yeah, r–right?”

“Good. Then you came just at the right time. Thanks. I’m glad you’re here. Open the comms for a moment. I need to tell them something about the current situation.”

“Y-yeah, go for it.”

The man was smiling without a hint of hostility. Still, the charismatic aura that came out of him made Ezel completely forget about the rule [Do not let outsiders get their hands on the Dome’s technology] and handed over the communicator to Gyosu.

Tss, tzzzt—

[M-Manager, sir! We got a signal from the comms!]

[What? Hey, Ezel. Can you hear me? Answer me if you can, you bastard!]

[He isn’t answering. That explosion was…]

[Delmar, shut that mouth up right now! Get your ass here in the time you have to say bulls— like that! Hey! Ezel! Answer me! Just your breathing will be fine, so just make any noise to let us know you’re alive!]

The moment he connected to the comms, he was greeted with the yelling of the Investigation Bureau.

“Did you…. run away?”

“Not really. Me and the Manager got here a little earlier than the others, and we saw you guys getting chased by Old Picture. Manager told me to wait, but I couldn’t just stand there and watch, so….”

“So. You turned off your comms and ran all the way here? Leaving the commander alone?”

“Heheh…. I thought you guys would be in danger….”

“Sigh. Thanks a lot. My heart’s getting all warm and fuzzy.”

Looking at their desperate voices, they really must have been worried. I mean, his subordinate did just run towards a massive monster, and they heard an explosion not long after. Even I would have been pacing around, falling into the guilt and regret of letting the guy go.

[Maybe he only managed to reconnect to the comms? What if his throat or lungs got damaged from the explosion, and he barely managed to move his fingers to press the….]

[DELMARR!! HOW LONG ARE YOU GOING TO TAKEEEE??!!]

[The 1st platoon has completed preparations and has departed! Arrival in 3 minutes!]

[3 minutes is enough for Ezel to swim across the entire f—ing Styx River! Our rookie is dying right now!]

“….That’s what they’re saying. Shouldn’t you hurry up and say something?”

“I’m f—ed…. I’ve never seen Manager Mon that angry before. What am I supposed to say….”

Ezel was in that state. He had completely turned off all external signals and charged in mindlessly, and was slowly returning to reality and shaking in fear of the repercussions.

“Tch. I’m gonna talk if you don’t.”

“Tell them I’m knocked out. Please! I had a fierce battle with Old Picture with the three of you and got knocked out in the middle of it!”

Seeing Ezel desperately plead to him, even taking off the hat he was wearing, Gyosu let out a small snort and brought the communicator towards his mouth.

[This won’t cut it. I’m going to head out first. The rest of you follow when you get here!]

[You can’t do that, Manager, sir! Ezel’s already at the brink of death, and if something happens to you—]

[1 minute! Just wait 1 minu—]

Tzzzt, tzzt—

[Ah, ah. Mic test one, two, three. Can you hear me—]

When he spoke into the communicator, a green light lit up next to the words ‘EZ-07’ on the small display next to him, and the Investigation Bureau comms line instantly fell silent.

In the middle of the startled silence, ‘LM-01’ blinked with the same green light.

[Are you…. Ezel? Your voice sounds different, but that oddly arrogant tone…]

[01 means that you’re the Manager. I’m…. wait a moment. That voice is familiar. LM…. Ezel said you were Manager Mon—that means, Ralph? Ralph Monclair? You’re a manager now?]

[So you aren’t Ezel…. I don’t know who you are, but if you have Ezel, either in your captivity or under your protection, you better return him to us safe and sound. If you know my name, then you should know what kind of person I am….]

Listening to the worried, friendly middle-aged man’s voice instantly turn into a cold investigator’s, Gyosu snickered to himself as he continued the comms.

[Oh, indeed, I do know you well. Just a few years ago, you were an infamous nut job that everyone knew, nicknamed Monster Clair, Mr. Ralph.]

[Mr. Ralph? Don’t tell me you’re….?]

My goodness. I thought I was all alone in these Wastelands, but it must not be so. To think he would meet an old friend from back in the day like this.

After clearing his voice, Gyosu thought back to the half-balding man who had helped him back in the Dome when he was with his mother.

[Ahem. Nice to meet you. I’m the leader of BDSM, and as most of you already know, I hold the position of H in the group HIV under the alias Hepburn. I’m currently living in Area 47 and go by the name Gyo, Su, Park.]

[Gyosu Park…… Gyosu Park…? Wait. The one from six years ago, Goosoo from the Executive Department?]

[Heheh. Mr. Ralph, long time no see.]

[You, you….. you said you were dead…..!]

‘That’s probably what the Dome said. In the Executive Department’s perspective, rather than say that a new member of the Executive Department escaped after learning the corrupted truth of the department, it was much easier to say that the member died during a mission. It wasn’t like I was going to go around announcing that I’m Gyosu Park or anything.’

Up until now, many people called me ‘Gyosu’, but that was because my ID was ‘professor’ and only meant the meaning of that name. The only people who knew my real name was Gyosu Park were the Executive Department members related to ‘that’ case, Ian, Vex, and Old Man Woojin.

‘But not anymore. The Executive Department made a wrong move and revealed their weakness, and they walked out of the shield called the Dome with their own two feet. There’s no reason for me to hide my name anymore.’

5 years. It was a long time. A long enough time for my blade of vengeance to be sharpened to the point that it disappeared.

And now that the moment of revenge was right before his eyes, it was time to tell people who the person holding that blade was.

Ignoring Ezel, whose eyes widened after realizing the meaning of Gyosu’s name, he replied to the bewildered Ralph’s comment.

[I know, right? I should have died on that day, but I just happened to make it out alive. Mr. Ralph, and all of the other Investigation Bureau members. Please listen closely to what I say next.]

The same, yet different, silence as the previous one.

[First, Ezel is still alive and well.]

[Yaaaaaayy!!!]

[I mean, the Grim Reaper would have thrown him back here because of how loud that guy is!]

[Is he… Is he hurt anywhere?]

To Ralph’s question, Gyosu turned back to see Ezel quietly signaling to him, cutting his throat with his thumb.

[Hmm… he’s completely fine. So fine that he’s worried he’ll be in trouble when he gets back. He told me to say he was knocked—]

“Hey!!!!”

[—out. Hahahah!]

“Gyosu Park, you….!”

“I’m not the one that started this, you know? Soybar, hm?”

Ah, how enjoyable. That’s about 1/100^th of his payback done now.

[T-then. The explosion? That wasn’t the Exosuit exploding?]

[Oh, that was the sound of the BDSM’s business car exploding. An unfortunate sacrifice resulting from the battle with Old Picture. You have to compensate for this later. Since a private company dealt with the Dome’s business and all.]

[Dealt with? Did you kill it? Old Picture?]

[Aw, I know you know it won’t die just from that measly explosion. We’ve neutralized it. It’s about….]

Grrrglr… guurrrle!

[Uh…..7? 8 minutes from moving again.]

[So, you’re saying that you really neutralized it with that single black truck back there? Well…. I knew you were a special one…. Anyway, good job. Our job’s almost done if it’s already neutralized, so leave the rest to us and—]

[Aw, what do you mean this is the end? This is just the start. We don’t have time to be chatting like this. It’s an emergency… emergency, I tell you.]

[Emergency? Is there another problem other than Old Picture?]

[Huh? You don’t know anything about it?]

Looking at his reaction, it looked like he really didn’t know.

‘Oho. I see. If the Investigation Bureau still doesn’t have a clue about it, then it means that the conflict hasn’t spread internally just yet.’

Thanks to quickly dealing with Old Picture, they are one step ahead of them right now. An unexpected fortune. He would be an idiot not to use this opportunity.

Gyosu paused for a moment to organize his thoughts, then used simple, concise wording so the confused members of the Investigation Bureau could understand.

[The Executive Department betrayed the Dome and allied up with the Raptors. Even as we speak, the remaining Executive Department in the Dome has a chance of terrorizing the facility and giving the Raptors an opportunity to wreak havoc on the Dome, which is what I meant.]

[W-what?!!!!]

“Whaaaat?!”

Hearing a 360-degree sound effect of shock come from around him, Gyosu replied gleefully.

[So, I’m sorry for the people that ran all the way here, but you must turn back right now. I’ve settled the situation, so you need to go prevent the empty house from getting robbed.]