Pick me Up – Chapter 304 – Ragnarok (9)
Flap.
The edge of the suit of the man who introduced himself as Hartkent fluttered.
The name didn't matter to me. I threw the corpse against the wall. The man's body, reduced to ashes, crumbled.
[Mobius Inc.]
[1F]
First floor of the headquarters.
I walked down the hallway after passing the security checkpoint.
I could go straight to the top floor if I took the elevator, but the buttons weren't responding.
They probably blocked its operation deliberately.
‘No matter.’
Going up floor by floor wouldn't be bad either.
In any case, they wouldn’t be able to escape from this building.
[Hey, Loki.]
Just as I was about to climb the stairs at the end of the hallway, Frey flew towards me.
Frey flew around me, scattering stardust.
[Eden has a basement. Did you know that?]
“… A basement?”
[Fairy-type employees like me live there. It's very close to here.]
Frey flew down.
With her tiny hands, she traced a circle on a crack under the stairs.
[Haaap! Fairy power!]
Click.
A door appeared on the sealed metal wall.
Frey pulled the handle hard.
[Open sesame! Ugh!]
Inside the small door less than a meter high was a swirling black hole.
I looked at the hole. In my mind appeared the landscape beyond the door.
‘Space and time… are mixed.’
I felt a dissonance, and this was the cause.
Beyond the door was not a vast space like this city, but several parallel worlds torn and joined like a puzzle.
[It's the entrance to the Fairy Land.]
“What a grand name.”
[I heard it when I was attending fairy school. It's said there’s a hidden vault full of gems. Although it might just be a rumor…]
“It's not a rumor… it's real.”
I felt a force from the other side of the hole.
A strangely familiar sensation. I remembered Frey’s explanation about how the money on Earth contained interference power. Probably, in that warehouse was Mobius’s reserve.
Click.
I took out the last dagger from its sheath.
“We'll have to part ways here.”
[Yes. I also want to rescue my comrades in the Fairy Land.]
Frey took the dagger from my hand.
“If you need more power, feel free to use mine. We’re connected, so you should be able to.”
[What about you, Loki?]
“I'll go up and take down all the directors, and finally Tel.”
Frey swallowed hard.
Then, she extended her palm towards me.
I understood what she wanted.
“How silly.”
I laughed and clapped my hand with hers.
A high-five. Frey smiled, satisfied.
[Then, here I go!]
Frey dived into the hole.
And so, I was left alone.
Crack.
I tightened my grip on the statue once more.
Every time the sharp part of the statue brushed against my hand, my senses returned.
‘Today…’
I looked out the building’s window.
The dawn-lit city shone with lights.
‘I’ll finish before sunrise.’
I climbed the stairs forcefully.
[Mobius Inc.]
[2F]
Rat-a-tat-tat!
As soon as I reached the second floor, I was fired at from somewhere with a machine gun.
I drew the Dragon Scale Sword and swung it.
[Delta Ranger Lv.99] x 53
Slice!
The whip blade tore through the concrete pillars, dismantling the machine gun and the special forces unit.
It was all in vain. Even if a brigade of special forces came, they wouldn’t be able to scratch me.
[Mobius Inc.]
[5F]
“What the hell is that?! They said it was just a 7-star hero…”
“Barely understand? You’re a disposable pawn.”
“Aaaah! Aaaah!”
[Mobius Inc.]
[13F]
Killing lives.
It gradually becomes insensitive. I felt nothing, like breathing in and out.
Every time I went up a floor, dozens of special forces units or company executives blocked my way.
‘…Weak.’
The dragon scale blade tore through the fragile flesh.
The glass facade was stained with blood.
[Mobius Inc.]
[18F]
I struck the crown with a hammer.
The eyes of a human-shaped monster veered to the sides.
I struck again, and the monster was crushed into red flesh.
[Fairy Laboratory]
[Special Test Subject XY Lv.217] x 127
They were about 2 meters tall.
Their black skin was filled with terrifyingly dense muscles.
The part where the face should be was completely smooth.
‘It was a replica of a 7-star hero.’
It seemed these types were replicas created from high-ranking heroes.
Bodies with the hardness of steel, moving at supersonic speeds, with several tons of force in a single strike. They could be considered walking weapons.
Swish!
I twisted my neck to the side.
A fist like a battering ram grazed my cheek.
Crash!
I caught the fist with my palm.
I turned to the left, and crack. The replica’s body twisted like a wrung rag.
Boom!
The clone turned into pulp in an instant.
In my hand was a silver hammer. The main weapon used by the director I encountered on the 17th floor. For these small elite groups, a heavy weapon like this was more suitable than a whip.
‘Too easy.’
Easy.
I felt nothing.
I could clearly see how those types would move. Even if they were machines with efficient combat patterns, analyzed from numerous mission data in the game…
“Why are they so weak?”
I stored the hammer in the storage space.
The large hall was filled with shattered clones.
None of them retained their shape.
“If you’re a god… you should be able to manipulate time or break space. Can they only do this? Spit fire? Be faster and stronger than others?”
[Mobius Inc.]
[31F]
「Please, forgive me! I'll speak well of you to the president! Please…」
Woosh.
The blue fire engulfed the man's body.
The infernal flames were thousands of times more powerful than the originals and consumed the man.
「Aaaah!」
Crackle!
The burning hellfire seemed to consume the entire floor.
‘There’s a high-resistance barrier.’
Despite all the commotion, the headquarters building didn’t collapse.
It seemed this building was protected by a special power. I could destroy it by force, but I preferred not to. If I smashed it and Tel escaped, it would be a problem.
‘…’
I absorbed the melted body of the director.
‘Weak.’
Incredibly weak.
Sure, objectively speaking, they were stronger than a 7-star hero.
But compared to the chaos flowing inside me, they were just straw.
‘Can I call them gods?’
I took a deep breath.
The burning heat spread throughout my body.
‘With every passing second.’
I become stronger.
Incalculably stronger.
The data of the types I absorbed were compressed and mixed more finely in my body.
Absorbing four gods didn’t give me the strength of four. The density of power increased exponentially with each use of my abilities.
[Mobius Inc.]
[84F]
I didn’t know how many pawns I had eliminated.
At least more than a thousand. On the 50th floor, some gods attacked me in a group, but I crushed them easily.
‘Really.’
The higher I went, the more unique their abilities became.
They could rewind time, create cracks in space itself, alter causality, and turn illusions into reality. Some had the power of ancient races that I absorbed at first, but my feelings didn’t change.
‘They were like worms.’
Insignificant.
Useless.
Why should I sacrifice myself for those worms?
‘I was wrong.’
Fighting for… trash like this…
Instead… it would be better to kill them all…
‘…’
Bang!
I hit my head against the wall.
“Shut up.”
Red blood dripped from my torn forehead.
‘I changed my perspective.’
Instinctively, I looked down.
Like a human looking at an ant.
Not just Tel.
Frey, Siris, Yurnet, Jenna, and Belkist.
Everything seemed pointless.
“Ha…”
I finally understood.
‘In a true sense, a god…’
Has no emotions.
Has no ego. It’s just a program that executes the laws of the universe and the given commands.
Like the fragments that repeated destructive actions and those watchful eyes.
‘They were the administrators…’
That was the true identity of Tel and the directors.
They were imperfect beings trapped between gods and humans.
Imperfect copies of gods.
[Mobius Inc.]
[92F]
A large office.
Every desk had a state-of-the-art computer.
High-quality printers, faxes, and copiers. The atmosphere of a workroom that would only be seen in a corporate building.
‘There’s no one.’
The employees must have evacuated hastily.
Confidential documents were scattered down the hallway.
<Sister!>
A lively girl’s voice echoed.
Beyond a fallen swivel chair, a girl elegantly dressed in a female suit was standing.
‘This is…’
An illusion from thousands of years ago.
It looked like Tel, but the atmosphere was different.
<How do I look?>
<…>
<Co-director. It’s a good title, isn’t it?>
<…>
<I want to save the people here.>
Ikar.
Tel’s younger sister, who is now a living battery.
She was talking to someone.
[Mobius Inc.]
[95F]
The 95th floor of the headquarters.
A hallway made of white tiles.
<Dear friends, thank you for voting for me! I will be your representative and work hard for a better world. Ahem, my sister’s and my goal is… that all lives of Mobius are happy. Although I lack experience and make mistakes, I will try very hard. Please take care of me!>
Ikar’s illusion flickered.
This time, she was wearing a floating white dress.
A band on her shoulder said “Congratulations on the election!”
‘Representative of the gods, huh?’
So she was the director.
This title was probably chosen through a vote.
The memories of those I absorbed flowed into me.
The original number of those called gods…
‘Countless.’
The Pantheon.
Before Eden was established, server 1 was called that.
‘Why did the gods disappear?’
The answer was simple.
This universe had already been destroyed once.
To reverse the cycle, the gods of the Pantheon were sacrificed.
[Mobius Inc.]
[97F]
<Sister.>
<…>
<Why isn’t it working? We tried so hard. Are the gods punishing us?>
<…>
<I don’t want this to end…>
[Mobius Inc.]
[99F]
<Sister…>
<…>
<Please… I… I…>
<…>
<This place…>
[Mobius Inc.]
[100F]
Click.
I opened the door at the end of the hallway.
The light of a golden chandelier blinded me.
A luxurious hall made of white marble.
“Ufufufu.”
A black leather chair spun around.
The girl swirled her wine glass in her right hand.
“What a wonderful night. On a night like this, it should be celebrated with a glass…”
Gulp.
The golden liquid flowed down the girl’s white neck.
“Bleh. They say it’s expensive wine, but it doesn’t taste good.”
Tel stood up from the chair, throwing the crystal glass.
I took a step forward on the red carpet.
“Anything you want to say before you die?”
“Something I want to say?”
Tel looked at me and smiled.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Loki.”