chapter 3
< Episode 3 >
From the outside, the witch’s shop didn’t look very large, but John’s footsteps following the old woman did not stop.
‘Awesome. Is this a superpower?’
When he calculated his own stride, it was certain that he had moved more than 100 meters, but the old woman’s footsteps did not stop, and she kept heading towards the back of the shop. After three years of waking up in Luna City, John had something that could be called a supernatural power. It was like I came across it.
“Clack cluck.”
Whether or not he knew John’s heart, only the old woman’s laughter resonated in the space, and the strange sense of time made it impossible to tell how much time had passed in this room.
What seemed like a fairly long time, and what seemed like a short amount of time, stopped before I knew it, and the old woman and John stood in front of the antique-looking door.
“…the taste is good.”
“Cluck. Isn’t it a witch’s shop?”
Living in the 60th District, what John saw was mostly cement and slate and steel structures.
However, since the door appeared to be made of solid wood rather than synthetic wood, John felt an inexplicably vague feeling.
kid.
Even the noise made by trees twisted over time is sweet. After passing through the door, I saw a large table and chairs.
It was a dark space, but the view was not blocked, and I felt a strange feeling as if I was floating in the middle of the universe.
John’s expression hardened.
“What? sit down.”
At the words of the old woman who was seated on the other side of the table, the old woman looked at John carefully sitting on the chair, and the old woman smiled, but then looked at John gently.
“···Well.”
John’s intense gaze seemed to blow his mind away for a moment.
When John’s expression crumpled at the feeling of seeing the bottom of his heart and the beyond of his heart, when an indescribable radiance was shining in his eyes.
“…Certainly, the law of causation is mysterious. There is no such thing as a perfect plan.”
The old woman muttered in a low voice, but John couldn’t hear her properly.
“Cluck. yes. You are qualified.”
The old woman was still looking at John, but not with the same brilliance as before.
“Do you know what Luna’s heritage is?”
“···strength.”
Looking at the old woman with bloodshot eyes, John’s mouth opened, and a fishy smile appeared on the corner of the old woman’s mouth.
“yes. You could call it strength. Then what kind of power do you want?”
It was a tone that seemed like it could hold anything in the world, and as if responding to it, a strong desire welled up in his heart, but John did not lose his cool expression.
“What power can I give you?”
“… Oh, my God.”
With an expression as if looking at something interesting, the old woman quietly raised her hand.
“I can give you any power.”
A sphere of blue light rose.
“Magic has the potential to transform the world. If you delve deep into magic, one day you will be able to control the world itself.”
A blue light flashed as if to reach out to him.
“Mugong is the power to transform oneself. If you study martial arts and reach the ultimate, the possibility of transcending humans and becoming a true man opens up.”
The orange glowing orb pulsated silently, drawing attention.
“The power of alcohol is the power of faith. If you can fully maintain your faith, your wishes will reach the gods as well as the spirits of the world, and you will be able to work miracles.”
The hayeon sphere flashed and sprinkled a sense of presence.
“The superpower brings out the potential within you. I don’t know what kind of power will come out, but it’s intuitive enough. Depending on your potential, you may be able to vibrate the world.”
A red orb rose quietly.
The old woman laughed as John couldn’t take his eyes off the four glowing orbs, each with its own color.
“What kind of power do you want to have?”
John’s eyes narrowed at the old woman’s question.
John’s troubles deepened, and after some time had passed.
“I······.”
A fishy smile appeared on the corner of the old woman’s mouth as she watched John open her mouth with a serious expression.
***
After making a choice, I opened the door and came out, and a messy alleyway appeared.
It was a phenomenon that could only be explained as a superpower, but John was not as surprised as he thought.
Fear comes from ignorance.
It was no longer unfamiliar to John, who had already experienced supernatural powers through the old woman.
Turning his head back, he still saw the witch’s shop, but John thought the witch inside wasn’t the one he had just talked to.
There was no basis, just a feeling, but John’s feeling at this time was almost the same, so it was obvious that it was.
Looking at the witch’s shop, John lightly lowered his head and stepped forward.
John gathered his thoughts as he crossed the street, which seemed like a long time had passed, but in reality it seemed that time had hardly changed.
There is no change in appearance, but John before entering the store and John now are completely different people.
A street that had always felt dangerous, but now I felt that it was not much of a threat.
“…now I can step on the plate.”
He had clear limits.
Although he made quite a name for himself as a solver, it always felt like he was walking on thin ice, and it was no different in reality.
In the end, as he used violence as his main means, he was always exposed to violence and felt his limits.
Being a living human in a slum was such a position, and recently John had been seriously thinking about getting an implant.
However, last night’s meeting opened up a way for John, and although it was an uncertain possibility, the bold challenge qualified him.
Qualification to go up there and make the possibility of survival greater than just such a bottom life.
“I’ll take care of the level of destruction.”
There might be a few players, and a few might have died, but John decided to have faith.
As those who voluntarily walked into this gutter, there must be a corner where they believe.
Thinking of the players who were probably active in the upper zone rather than this gutter, John moved on.
Praying that they are far more capable than he thought.
***
The world is always unfair.
Someone was lucky enough to be born in a high-ranking district and lived without shame, while someone else was unlucky and was left in a slum like a garbage dump, living day by day worrying about their lives.
And there are more unlucky people than lucky people in the world.
Under the few lucky ones, the unlucky ones support them, and so the city named Luna rolls on.
But even among those without such luck, superiority and inferiority are divided.
Gulak has lived his life thinking that he is one of the lucky ones.
“Say it again.”
“…confirmed that it has moved to 63.”
“···ha.”
A sigh that seemed to emanate from the depths of his heart made Gulak’s massive body flinch, and dozens of men around him shuddered.
It was a strange sight.
Dozens of men, all covered with ferocious-looking implants, all nervous in front of a young man who seemed to have no special features, would never believe anyone who knew Gulag, his gang, and the Gulag family.
In Area 67, the Gulak family, which has been the most dominant recently, was always unstoppable, and they became the target of fear by devastating the surroundings without hesitation, as if they knew nothing of fear.
In particular, the boss, Gulak, had more than 70% of his body replaced with implants, and his powerful fighting ability was even rumored to be unmatched in the slums. did not
But no one present here thought the sight strange.
“…you guys are garbage.”
thud!
“sorry!”
Gulak’s gigantic body bent down, and his forehead, plastered with hardened alloy, slammed into the ground.
“I didn’t make you do anything difficult, did you? Losing something you just need to keep?”
The annoyed voice gave goose bumps to the few remaining parts of the body, and the body became chilly.
In District 67, he reigned almost like a king and had nothing to be ashamed of, but he did not dare to go against the young man in front of him.
“That’s how the plan won’t go awry.”
Every word he said was full of chills, and the temperature around him actually began to drop.
Even though there was no change in the amount of light, the young man’s shadow began to shimmer, and everyone’s faces turned white at this bizarre phenomenon.
A person who is so lucky that even Gullak, who thinks he is quite lucky, cannot imagine.
“sorry!”
thud!
Dozens of men surrounding him knelt down and banged their heads in unison, expressing their submission.
Kwajik!
“… Kw.”
The young man’s foot stepped on Gulag’s head, and like a lie, Gulag’s head dug into the ground.
It was a power that was difficult to imagine when looking at the young man’s body, but the Gulak family, who knew the young man’s identity, just trembled in fear and hoped for mercy.
Wizard.
Because the superman who shouldn’t be in the 60th division was the identity of a young man.
hard.
As the young man’s feet moved back and forth, the hardened alloy covering Gulag’s forehead warped, and Gulag desperately swallowed his groan.
“Give me three days. Come.”
“thank you!”
The young man, who had been venting his anger for a long time, stepped up and opened his mouth, and Gulag and the men reflexively shouted loudly.
When they quietly raised their heads, the young man was nowhere to be seen, as if he had already disappeared, fueling their fear even more.
There are many talented people in Luna, but among them, the most shunned are magicians.
Because at least the other abilities kill them gracefully.
You never know what terrible things will happen if you fall into the hands of a wizard, and in fact, Gulak and his family have experienced a little bit of that terrible thing from the side.
And they had in common the idea that it was better to end their lives than to suffer such a terrible thing.
“Did you hear?”
“Yes! boss!”
A red glow flashed in the eyes of Gulak, who slowly stood up, and the men were no different.
Originally, crossing the slum area is quite dangerous, and you have to pay a huge price or accept sacrifices.
In particular, it was obvious that a war would break out at that moment if Gulak’s gang, which had almost eaten up area 67, crossed the area.
It was said that they had almost eaten Area 67, but there were still formidable enemies, and if they crossed the area at a time like this, they might be hit in the back, but that was not a consideration for Gulak and his gang.
“Use all available means! Find it in two days!”
“ancient!”
For them, this was a matter of survival.
Dozens of gangsters who covered most of the human body with implants and hundreds or thousands of people under them began to move.
< Episode 3 > End