Chapter 763 – Room 302, The Curse Room – ‘Brave New World’ (33)
—
– Han Kain
— Thud!
After the Son of Dawn left, Seungyub’s body crumpled to the floor.
Seems like that body ain’t getting up anymore.
Well, to be honest, Seungyub was already dead before I even stepped into Room 302.
With sickness, there’s no consistency, and even if you catch the same illness, symptoms differ from person to person.
The Plague Knight’s powers were no different.
I managed to move around, but Elena could hardly keep her consciousness together, and Seungyub—well, he just dropped dead the moment he was exposed.
Anyway, right now, I was feeling light as a feather.
Thanks to the Son of Dawn defending me against the plague’s powers.
But who knows how long that blessing will last?
“Ugh…!”
As I regained my senses, Elena quickly came to life.
“Kain, I feel a lot better than before—Whoa!”
Elena, with a bright smile, suddenly spotted Seungyub’s corpse on the ground and looked horrified.
“Seungyub? What’s going on here?”
“It’s gone back to normal.”
“Huh?”
“Seungyub was already dead before we entered.”
“B-but what about that earlier living act…”
“That was the Son of Dawn controlling him. He also wanted to wrap this situation up, so he lent us a hand.”
“…”
A moment of silence ensued.
Then Elena, as if coming to terms with it, continued, “What should we do now? Did anything come up in the scenario understanding?”
After the drumbeat and the Plague Knight appeared, the scenario understanding was updated.
“It says here: Suppress the powers of chaos and stop the Harbinger of Death.”
“Uh… how do we do that?”
“… It’s time to unite the remnants of humanity’s strength.”
Like advice often goes, the scenario understanding too is filled with abstract stuff hard to intuitively grasp.
Then again, it’s all under the Owl’s powers, so it’s expected to be similar.
But what just came out was pretty straightforward.
“Seems like they want us to team up with the Administration Bureau.”
“Probably.”
“But can the Administration Bureau actually halt this hellish scenario?”
“A complete solution is obviously impossible… but as long as the escape doesn’t require that much, we’ll be fine.”
What exactly they require is up to the hotel, so as participants, we can only do our best.
“How do we make contact? Should we go out and look for them?”
Finding the Korean branch of the Administration Bureau.
Normally, this would be tough, but right now, it’s a piece of cake.
“It’s simple. If you hear a ruckus, that’s where the Bureau’s forces are gathered.”
“Oh, right.”
Ordinary folks would be waiting for death, unable to resist due to the Plague Knight.
Only the Administration Bureau could form some kind of resistance against the powers of the plague.
“Jinchul is already looking for them. He might have found them by now.”
“… So your earlier order was to seek out the Bureau.”
“Let’s take a short break and recover our condition.”
About 30 minutes later, Jinchul came back with Mi-ro and Grotesque.
“Found them!”
“Where?”
“Just move north from here for about ten minutes, and we’ll hear loud noises up ahead. It seems to be from the military band.”
“Let’s go.”
“Eh? Are you feeling okay now? And Elena too—Whoa, Seungyub!”
“Eek!”
We had to explain the situation regarding Seungyub’s death and the Son of Dawn again.
No lengthy explanation was needed, but Mi-ro’s reaction was quite amusing.
Usually, she’d bicker with Seungyub, but when she realized he was dead, she looked like she might burst into tears.
Fortunately, for us, death isn’t goodbye.
*
The ten minutes Jinchul mentioned was actually a bit longer, and halfway, we had to use the powers of the Holy Sun to get through.
“There it is! You all see that?”
“…”
My teammates stood speechless, staring in the direction Jinchul pointed.
A massive building reminiscent of a National Assembly Hall emitted a powerful light.
As I observed the unwavering light of humanity’s will, my previous negative thoughts about the Administration Bureau began to fade.
The will of the Bureau shone like the last candle illuminating a world rushing toward oblivion.
In contrast, the chaotic entities surrounding the Korean branch felt like starving wolves waiting for the death of a bloated bull.
“… It’s fierce out there.”
“They seem to be fighting well.”
After marveling for a moment, a brief discussion followed.
“How do we join in? If we just rush in, they might think we’re, well, enemies.”
“Can’t we just insist we’re agents?”
“Mi-ro, I’ve played agent before, and let me tell you, the Bureau isn’t filled with idiots. How many agents could there possibly be in little South Korea? They know all the faces.”
“So what should we do then?”
“What do you think, Kain?”
“… I just had a good idea.”
Immediately, the three pairs of eyes turned towards me.
Honestly, I felt like whatever I said, these guys would just nod and go along with it.
While I appreciated their trust, it also made me a bit anxious.
“The main forces of the Bureau are those from the Salvation sect. They serve the Son of Dawn.”
“That’s probably true.”
“To put it plainly, they’re believers. What do you think they’re contemplating right now?”
“Uh… probably despairing about why their god isn’t helping us?”
“Let’s show them what they hope for. Proof of our identity is only necessary among people.”
—
– Administration Bureau Head, Cha Minseok
— Area 7, Arab Hotel breach! Requesting support!
— Area 13 collapsing. Whether I die here, the Bureau will endure!
— Area 3, failed to contain the plague infection. Need decontaminants immediately!
“…”
Frantic support requests flooded through the speakers.
Under normal circumstances, we’d dispatch the standby assault team and agents to deal with the crisis but…
Right now, there were no answers.
Before one day had passed since the demise began, communications with more than half of the strike teams had been lost, and the remaining troops were literally melting away in real-time.
From the start, I was exposed to danger myself as the head of the Korean branch.
“Head, there’s a Contract Beast rampaging at Entrance 4 on the first floor—”
“Close Stairwell 13!”
At some point, I unconsciously accepted it.
Ah… this is a fight with no hope.
With the entire world filled with demons, how could one hand stop ten?
All I could do was my best until the moment of death.
Ever since I joined the Administration Bureau, I’ve thought this way.
In the line of work I’ve chosen, it’s a luxury to die in bed.
… I just feared that my death might be the last gasp of the world.
“Gack! Oh… please, please…”
A good number of staff couldn’t hide their internal weaknesses.
“Grant us salvation…”
“Park Team Leader! Quit whining and send decontaminants to Area 3! We only have three left, right?”
“O Son of Dawn, please don’t abandon us—”
“You useless wretch!”
If I managed to resolve this, I swore I’d chase that idiot away.
Sure, it was a meaningless vow since the situation was unresolvable, but still.
“Staff Kim, we just got a request from Area 11-”
“I pray to the one in heaven. Please, grant us a ray of hope amid despair—”
“Oh, you pathetic fool! Save the prayers for when we’re not in such a dire situation!”
Praying to a chaotic entity whose existence is uncertain at this urgent moment!
“Ugh…”
Yeah, to tell the truth, I already know.
In the current Administration Bureau, I’m the abnormal one, not them.
The faith of serving the ‘Son of Dawn’ has been deeply rooted in the Bureau for ages.
With the apocalypse approaching, what else could the believers do, ignoring it all besides praying?
I…
I don’t believe in salvation.
I don’t believe in miracles.
I just didn’t want to go against the flow, and I stuck around the Salvation sect because I had attachment to my position.
The Son of Dawn is real.
But just because a great one exists doesn’t mean there’s a reason to serve him.
“…”
Since I joined the Bureau, I learned of the darkness in the world.
I realized how fragile the seemingly solid foundations of civilization are, which regular folks never doubt.
The tower humanity built is as fragile as a sandcastle, ready to crumble with one heavy breath from a great one.
Therefore, I knew someday, destruction could loom…
But I never imagined the moment of destruction could be so pathetic.
At the very least, I expected to see humanity’s guardians holding guns against the demons until the very end.
The reality, however, is that one-third of the Administration Bureau staff are knee-deep in despair, praying away!
Faith in the great one weakens humanity.
“Get a grip! The Son of Dawn? He’s up in the sky; you probably won’t even get a glance from him!”
“B-bureau chief—”
“Grab your guns and grenades! Even sit at the control systems and operate unmanned weapons if you must! If it’s like this, you might as well go to church; why even come to the Bureau—”
“Bureau Chief!”
Just then, one of the few staff still holding onto their wits shook me by the arm.
“What is it?”
“Look over there!”
His gaze was fixed upwards.
Not the ceiling of the Korean branch but much higher up.
“…”
There was hope.
What all those who had succumbed to despair and knelt in prayer had been yearning for.
What everyone had desperately wished for, now more than ever.
A miracle occurred.
An angel descended from the heavens.
The angel, draped in sacred flames and a halo, descended, looking like a handsome young man.
All eyes turned to the sky.
The trembling humans, along with the bold demons displaying their malicious intent, fixed their gaze skyward.
With a carefree smile, the angel spoke.
“The Son of Dawn has commanded me, and there shall be salvation in this land.”
—
Today, I realized.
I was wrong.
There is a god, angels exist, and salvation is real.
What was lacking was only my faith.
As I felt my heart filled with the Holy Spirit, I knelt down.
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