Chapter 143: Korea (3)

Crack- Crunch-

The chilling chilling sound of tearing flesh echoed across the empty playground.

“Hmm… Isn’t this too weak? Maybe I worried for nothing.”

After ushering the mother and daughter away, Karlstein suspended the spatial rift-spawned Kaiju in mid-air.

Crunch- Crack-

Manipulating intangible energy, he lightly tested its physical resilience.

-SKREEE!

The creature’s piercing shriek cut through the air as Karlstein completed a simple assessment, twisting, searing, and kneading its internal organs.

Thud.

The dismembered Kaiju collapsed to the ground. A casual flick of his finger compressed the corpse into a single point before it vanished.

The spatial rift, having disgorged only this single specimen, soon sealed itself. But Karlstein’s furrowed brow remained etched with concern.

“Hmm…”

His experiment showed that this Kaiju was not particularly strong. In fact, it was pathetically frail compared to those his empire regularly faced. Despite the similarity in appearance, they seemed like completely different species.

But its energy signature was peculiar. Despite clear differences from the Kaiju of his universe, there were similarities too. The wavelength pattern raised questions about whether this was an isolated anomaly or evidence of evolutionary adaptation.

Beep-

[Executing Anarchy Administrator Mode]

[Searching for similar unique wavelengths to specimen]

[Marking 782 entities on map from search results]

[Comparing entity wave analysis]

Beep-

Karlstein’s eyes darted across the map’s glowing red dots scattered throughout the country. The varying sizes of these markers indicated different power levels, but most aligned with the specimen he had just examined.

“I guess I won’t need to step in then.”

In other words, the Hunters could handle this threat level. He did not need to intervene directly… yet something still gnawed at him.

“Their wavelength reminds me of those Sephiroth bastards…”

Tap. Tap.

His finger, drumming a steady rhythm against his thigh, suddenly stilled. His unease deepened.

“Hmm.”

Dimensional travel had always been exclusive to specific Kaiju—the Dimensional Turtle with its spatial passages and the colossal Mucus that parasitized warp gates. If common Kaiju could traverse dimensions, the Galactic Empire would never have breached the Barrier.

I’m pretty sure the Kaiju earlier opened its own rift…

There was a big difference between utilizing an existing passage and creating one. However, even Karlstein could not be certain.

“Am I overthinking?”

There were limits to what could be confirmed from this end of the passage.

Karlstein sighed, shaking his head. Though it was little more than intuition…

No, I can’t be mistaken.

A Transcendent’s intuition was not to be dismissed. Such finely-honed senses, shaped by countless encounters, had to be heeded.

Karlstein abandoned any remaining optimism. While further observation was necessary, the evidence suggested that the Kaiju may have acquired the Sephiroth’s dimensional travel technology.

“Hmm.”

Of course, there was nothing he could do immediately. He had to wait for Perpe’s arrival.

“But that doesn’t mean I should just sit still.”

Karlstein began entering general commands into Anarchy’s admin console.

***[Quest(E37): Eliminate the Kaiju appearing at Point BE-72.]

“BE-72 is near Gangnam… that’s convenient enough.”

The man casually tapped the [Accept] button.

Ding-

The updated necessary information appeared on his screen.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

[Detailed Information]

[Prerequisite: Join with Cha Yesol(B), Kim Hansu(C), and Choi Chiwon(C) who are waiting at Point BE-73.]

[Objective: Eliminate Kaiju appearing at BE-72 0/1]

[Risk Level: Medium-Low]

[Caution: Penetration/Cutting skills below C-rank are…]

[Reward: …..]

[Searching route…]

Ding-

[Sub Quest]

[Rescue 42-year-old woman and 7-year-old child en route at Point BE-74.]

He also accepted the sub-quest.

Ding-

“Even the rewards are reasonable.”

Placing his smartphone on the passenger seat, the man began driving, his thoughts drifting to the Anarchy system.

Just what was this system to possess such capabilities? It was simply unfathomable.

Perfect convenience married to flawless information delivery and route optimization. Quest recipients needed to think of nothing. Everything from travel paths to team assembly, risk evaluation, and personalized intelligence was provided. The system distributed an array of missions: rescue operations, reconnaissance, exploration, elimination, support services, and more.

Not to mention, quest selection remained entirely voluntary and all relevant information was provided upfront. One simply browsed the quest list, chose according to personal principles, and followed the guidelines.

A slight discomfort crept in at the thought of being absorbed into such a vast system, but he quickly dismissed it.

“Haha.”

Why refuse premium services and intelligence offered freely, just because of vague discomfort? That was a perfect recipe for obsolescence in this new age.

“The world really has transformed.”

Even rewards could be customized. The system commanded money, technology, and knowledge. There was no need for arguments—the Anarchy system always presented solutions as if possessed of absolute certainty.

Though it had not yet penetrated every industry, it was consuming Korea at an alarming pace.

Suddenly, a chill ran through the man as he contemplated a future where the entire nation operated solely on the Anarchy system. Would that reduce its citizens to mere AI puppets?

But then again, was that a bad thing? While champions of human autonomy might protest… what was the point? The Anarchy system never forced anything. Choice remained with the user. It merely provided information and compelling options, delivering rewards based on decisions made.

Humans remained the end users, after all.

Ah… but I guess those rotters steeped in corruption will despise it.

Nothing could hide from Anarchy’s gaze. There was a good reason for Korea’s bizarrely plummeting crime rates. After all… the moment a crime occurred, the system immediately marked both location and perpetrator, distributing quests accordingly. Police officers on duty simply had to follow the mission parameters to make their arrests.

“This situation will wrap up just as quickly, no doubt.”

ㄴholy shit! why’re kaiju here?!

ㄴThe whole country’s in chaos

ㄴlooks the same overseas. Idk bros, is the world gonna end at this rate?

ㄴchillax we got ANARCHY

ㄴayo! just got a quest to take shelter!

ㄴEvacuate immediately. System’s 100% accurate.

ㄴwoo nearly died. If hunter didnt show on time i’d be gone fr…

ㄴFroze when I first saw a monster. Emergency quest alert snapped me out of it

ㄴuh, uh. I got rescue and shelter quests at same time

ㄴdis map hack’s insane.

ㄴfor real. hey civilians get these quests too. there’s a hunter support quest, isn’t it dangerous?

ㄴZero chance of dying if risk level isn’t high. IF you don’t make mistakes.

ㄴit’s showing low risk.

ㄴThen definitely go for it. Death rate’s zero. Sweet rewards plus disaster compensation lol

ㄴezmoney jaja

The man’s prediction proved accurate. Through Anarchy’s community feed, he tracked the incident’s progression in real-time.

Just 28 minutes had passed since the Kaiju emerged from the rifts. The situation was brought under control in less than an hour.

ㄴSee the stats? Twelve direct monster casualties, hundred twenty indirect

ㄴthe breakdowns out. even indirect casualties were just from falls crushes or buildings breaking

ㄴwow that many? even with Anarchy?

ㄴmore like that FEW thanks to Anarchy

ㄴMeanwhile, in other countries….

Anarchy’s instant response had transformed the entire nation into a coordinated unit.

ㄴtotally insane shit

ㄴAnarchy’s efficiency is unreal

ㄴHow did we survive before this?

ㄴseriously lmao so convenient

The world’s attention inevitably turned to Korea’s swift response.

***Bang!

“How is the situation progressing?”

“All available Hunters have been deployed.”

“Civilian casualties?”

“Still… uncountable.”

“Tsk.”

Japanese Prime Minister Tanaka Yoshihide was vexed. They were over three hours into the crisis.

Monster emergence from Towers—dubbed Outbreaks—usually posed minimal civilian risk in Tower-advanced nations. Tower surroundings were designated as military zones, with Hunters and artillery support standing ready.

While Outbreaks could inflict military and material damage, depending on the scale of the event, they were at least containable.

But it was different this time.

“They’re everywhere…”

“Emergence patterns are chaotic. We can’t predict—“

“We must authorize heavy weaponry!”

“No! What will you do about city damage then?!”

Without guns or cannons, ordinary citizens could do nothing against monsters. They had struck humanity’s undefended underbelly. Nations had fortified Tower zones against Outbreaks, leaving civilian areas vulnerable.

Countries worldwide descended into mayhem as monsters emerged without warning.

“Why… why has such disaster…”

“…Sir, how should we handle Hunters refusing emergency deployment?”

“Damn! Warn them of severe consequences!”

“Well…”

Hunters were people too. They had families. Despite national emergency protocols, Hunters with loved ones often acted independently rather than follow government directives. The cooperative ones at least reported before disappearing. Most simply vanished.

These uncontrollable forces created gaps in the information network, exposing civilians to catastrophic consequences.

“Aaaaah!”

“Gaargh!”

“Sob.”

The simultaneous monster emergence spelled disaster for humanity everywhere—except for one nation.

“Prime Minister! It appears Korea has already contained their situation.”

“Korea? Why mention them now?”

“Uh… their reports show only 132 casualties.”

“132? That can’t be right. That weak nation?”

“About that…”

An incredible report circulated amidst global chaos.

Only 132 casualties? That was typical for ordinary accidents, let alone during a disaster.

While hundreds of thousands perished worldwide, Korea contained their losses to three digits. The astonishment of the international community was only natural.