There Is No World For ■■
Chapter 168: Ghosts Of The Past, Connections Of The Present (7)

In the middle of Dreitherial’s downtown and the underground armory lay a concrete-covered bunker.

Its thick iron doors opened, and a Rat Beastfolk, wearing a Stalinka, commonly known as the clothing of the Soviet people, entered the bunker.

“Your Excellency, the First Secretary, the outcome has been decided.”

The Rat Beastfolk greeted him with a salute as he spoke. Unlike the typical Rat Beastfolks, his tone was unusually smooth.

“Already? Who won?”

The one who responded to the Rat Beastfolk’s report was an old man sitting at a large desk in the center of the bunker. The city’s citizens would have recognized him as the Eastern Count Palatine.

“The Red Dragon.”

“The Skeleton lost? This is different from what I expected.”

The old man frowned slightly, prompting the Rat Beastfolk to continue hurriedly.

“The intervention of the outsider was a decisive factor.”

“The outsider, you say?”

“The Dragon Liberator, Cheon Yeomyeong, pierced the Skeleton Dragon’s heart. Our guess is that the Red Dragon is… probably Orsay Taboul, who was spared by Cheon Yeomyeong in Manchuria.”

“Hmm… What else?”

“We have also confirmed the presence of a priest armed with a heavy sniper rifle and a Crow Beastfolk, but their identities are still unknown.”

The Eastern Count Palatine remained silent for a moment.

Then, as he clenched and unclenched his fist, the Rat Beastfolk hesitated before speaking again.

“We are preparing to deploy a personal anti-aircraft missile from the armory to intercept the dragon. Within the next 30 minutes…”

“Strela.”

“Pardon?”

“The weapon’s name is not ‘anti-aircraft missile,’ it is ‘Strela.’ It means ‘arrow’ in Russian.”

“…”

“Soviet weapons should be called by their Soviet names. Don’t you agree?”

Realizing his mistake, the Rat Beastfolk bowed hastily.

“…My apologies. I misspoke.”

The Eastern Count Palatine gave a slight nod to the apologizing Rat Beastfolk.

It wasn’t like he expected much in the first place. No matter how well-made a fake might be, it could never replace the real people’s army.

Indeed, the only ones he could trust were the Superhuman leaders. The Eastern Count Palatine slowly rose from his seat.

“I will overlook your mistake. However, delay the deployment of the Strela for now.”

“But, Your Excellency, if we surrender air superiority to the dragon like this…!”

“Does air superiority even matter right now?”

“…”

“What’s important is not above, but below. If we can take command of the control room down here, then the dragon will not really matter at all.”

The Rat Beastfolk didn’t argue as it was true. The Eastern Count Palatine then spoke again as he prepared to descend into the underground.

“Summon all the forces to the armory. I will head to the control room.”

* * *

Even though the magic circle obscuring the sky faded away, and as the corpses piled up on the streets, the city did not regain its peace.

Was it because of the massive Red Dragon now casting a shadow over the city?

No, it was because the Rat Beastfolk legion that had taken over the city was still around.

[These are nothing more than puppets, fakes created using Earth’s technology and magic science.]

Orsay Taboul narrowed its eyes as it observed the Rat Beastfolks staring at it from all around the city.

Although their numbers had decreased from fighting the undead, there were still thousands of them remaining.

[Kahal Magdu and the Rat Beastfolks… I now understand why the Saintess sought my help.]

As the Dragon spoke, Yeomyeong, who was perched on his shoulder, smiled wryly.

It was unexpected, but he never thought he’d receive his help this way.

Should he thank him now?

As he was lost in thought while scanning the city, the Red Dragon spoke first.

[No need to thank me. To a dragon, a favor is as precious as a treasure. Cheon Yeomyeong, I will never forget what you have done.]

“…”

[Although… I never expected the Saintess to personally come all the way to the Dragon Scale Mountain Range to demand that I return the favor.]

Orsay Taboul said this as it sent a fireball toward the crowd of Rat Beastfolks.

Falling to the ground like heavy artillery, the magic turned the Rat Beastfolks eyeing the dragon into charcoal.

And those who were frightened began to scramble into the sewers or flee toward where the citizens had gathered.

…Are they planning to use the citizens as shields?

What a disgustingly clever bunch. Yeomyeong furrowed his brow.

Of course, it was possible to simply sweep all of them away without caring about the citizens, but he wasn’t so shameless as to ask the dragon to massacre innocents.

And more importantly, the immediate concern was not the Rat Beastfolk legion…

“Orsay, over there, I found her.”

Yeomyeong’s gaze turned toward the ground.

At the edge of his vision, Seti was sitting lifelessly on the rubble of a building.

She looked like a battery that had run out of power, probably exhausted from fighting consecutive battles on her own.

[Should I descend to the ground?]

When the Dragon located Seti as well and made the suggestion, Yeomyeong shook his head.

“There’s no need for that. I can go down alone.”

With that, Yeomyeong wove an Ice Spike spell. Realizing what he was about to do, the Dragon slowed its speed instead of descending with him.

[Call me if you need help. I will deal with the remaining fake Beastfolks and corpses in the meantime.]

And the next moment, Yeomyeong leaped off the Dragon’s shoulder.

He manipulated the ice spikes he had placed below his feet with Telekinesis and firmly anchored them as footholds.

Tap, tap, tap.

If any other Mages saw this, they would have been horrified by his mastery of mana. Unleashing a series of ice spikes, Yeomyeong descended steadily toward Seti.

And by the time Seti’s figure became larger than the size of his palm, Yeomyeong leaped up and landed beside her. The light sound of her landing made Seti turn her head.

“…Did you just jump off the dragon?”

She asked, alternating her gaze between the disappearing Orsay Taboul and Yeomyeong.

Instead of replying, Yeomyeong summoned an ice spike, hopped onto it, and shrugged his shoulders.

“Damn, it hasn’t even been that long since you learned magic…”

A strange silence ensued before both of them let out a soft chuckle simultaneously.

“So, is that the dragon you met in Manchuria? The Guardian of the Dragon Scale Mountain Range and friend of the Dwarf King?”

“Yeah. That’s the same dragon. Its name is Orsay Taboul.”

“Wow… How did it end up here? And at such a perfect time? You didn’t happen to summon it, did you? Perhaps it was somewhere close… by sheer coincidence, like fate?”

“Ah, well…”

Just as Yeomyeong was about to respond, a frivolous voice interrupted them from afar.

“Seti!!!”

That was the most unmistakable answer. Seti’s graceful brows furrowed in irritation.

Turning her head, she saw the Saintess holding a large sniper rifle and Neti approaching, then rubbed her eyes.

“The Saintess? Why is she here… Oh, right. Foresight.”

Having figured it out on her own, Seti sighed deeply and massaged her forehead. Yeomyeong sat next to her in silence, watching the Saintess approach them.

After a moment, as the Saintess reached the ruins, she tossed aside the sniper rifle, and leaped at the two.

Without another word, the Saintess pulled both of them into a tight embrace, an action more certain than any other greeting.

Seti silently returned the hug, and caught between the two, Yeomyeong raised his arms as well.

“…What’s this?”

It was a warm scene, but to Neti, who had arrived a little late with the Saintess’ bag, it was a baffling sight.

She furrowed her brows and separated the three of them.

“Brother-in-law… What on earth am I seeing right now?”

“…”

It was indeed too overt to be a simple reunion between friends, so unable to find the right words to respond, Yeomyeong looked away.

Seti’s reaction wasn’t much different, but the Saintess quickly whipped her head around.

“…Brother-in-law? Why is Yeomyeong your brother-in-law?”

“Well, I should address my brother-in-law as ‘brother-in-law,’ shouldn’t I? What else would I call him?”

Seeing Neti reply shamelessly, the Saintess’ arms, which were still around the two, trembled.

She then looked at Seti and Yeomyeong alternately before asking.

“C-could it be… D-did the two of you… get married while I was gone?”

“…”

“N-no, that can’t be it. It’s just a joke, right? Haha, Neti sure knows how to joke!”

Her reaction was even more intense than when she saw the dragon.

Trying to hold back his laughter, Yeomyeong attempted to escape their embrace…

However, the Saintess didn’t let him run away.

“Hey, Cheon Yeomyeong! Why are you running away?!”

* * *

After a short break and clearing up the Saintess’ misunderstanding, the group headed toward the underground armory. To be precise, it was the entrance of the Southern Count Palatine’s underground storage, their initial destination.

And despite encountering Rat Beastfolks along the way, no battles broke out because they all bolted at the mere sight of Yeomyeong.

“…There might be a big fight ahead, so anyone low on stamina should return to the base camp immediately.”

Yeomyeong spoke when they arrived in front of the stairs leading underground, tucked between dented containers.

Of course, no one in the group turned back.

The four proceeded down the stairs as the cold, stale air and darkness swallowed the staircase.

Then Neti pulled out a flare from her weapon bag, lit it, and handed it to Yeomyeong, who was leading the way. In terms of preparedness, she was unmatched.

Anyway, after descending the long staircase, they found a small basement room.

It had all sorts of electronic equipment lining the walls, scattered military radios, severed wires, and small monitors.

It seemed it was used as a communications room. Perhaps the Southern Count Palatine’s underground storage was a designated emergency escape for the communication personnel.

Not paying it much attention, the group exited the room and soon found themselves in a familiar hallway.

Neti lit another flare and scanned the hallway before speaking.

“This seems to be a side path connecting to the bunker, beyond the armory and the alchemy lab we visited last time.”

Just as she said, they could sense a commotion among the Rat Beastfolks in the distance. And rather than confronting them, Yeomyeong turned in the opposite direction toward the deepest room in the bunker.

As their cautious footsteps echoed, Neti spoke up carefully.

“Brother-in-law, what exactly is down here?”

Regardless of the Saintess’ annoyance at the term ‘brother-in-law,’ Yeomyeong replied calmly.

It was time to reveal the truth.

“The Soviet Union’s nuclear weapons.”

“…What?”

“Intercontinental ballistic missiles equipped with nuclear warheads, at least a dozen of them. If they’re MIRVs, there could be more than fifty.”

Perhaps finding the revelation too shocking, Neti was unable to utter a word.

On the contrary, Seti, seemingly prepared for this possibility, quietly continued the questioning.

“So… the launch codes the Southern Count Palatine mentioned are for the nuclear weapons? You know them, right, Yeomyeong?”

“Yes.”

“…”

He replied without a shred of hesitation. A heavy silence followed.

And just as the hallway they were walking down tilted further underground, Seti asked again. It was a question none of them expected.

“Yeomyeong, are you planning to fire those nuclear weapons… at Korea?”

Hic! Startled, Neti started to hiccup.

What was she talking about all of a sudden? Cold sweat dripped down Neti’s forehead as she was unaware of Yeomyeong and Seti’s revenge plans.

As the sweat from her forehead slid down her chin and hit the floor, Yeomyeong answered calmly.

“No. I don’t plan to use them if possible.”

If possible…? The Saintess and Seti interpreted those words differently—I don’t want to use it, or I’ll use it if I must.

As the two grappled with their own interpretations and Neti’s hiccups continued, a massive iron door appeared before them.

The door seemed like it was designed to open only from the inside; there was no keyhole or handle in sight.

And when he got closer and placed his hand on it, he found it to be thick enough to withstand a missile if he tried to break through with a direct approach.

Only with a direct approach, though.

“Everyone, step back.”

Yeomyeong set down the flare and retrieved the Golden Seal from his pocket.

Taking a short breath, he channeled mana into the seal and a radiant golden magic circle formed in response, enveloping the iron door.

Flash!

In a fleeting moment, a creaking sound came from beyond the door—the sound of the locking mechanism disengaging.

As the door soon creaked open, kicking up a cloud of dust, Yeomyeong was the first to stride through the dust and step inside.

What lay beyond was an expansive space as large as the tank storage room they had seen before. A colossal area spanning dozens of square meters. But it wasn’t the silo for storing missiles.

In fact, there wasn’t a missile in sight. Instead, the central wall, sturdy-looking and imposing, bore a giant monitor.

Before it were rows of computers and desks, resembling…

“A control room…?”

The setup was exactly like the control rooms for spaceships or airplanes Yeomyeong had seen in the documentaries.

…This is probably the missile launch control room.

His judgment was swift, and his actions immediately followed suit.

Yeomyeong headed toward the only lit monitor at the center of the control room.

Or rather, he attempted to.

But as he could take another step forward, someone suddenly rose from beside the monitor.

“This makes it the third time. Nice to see you again, Cheon Yeomyeong.”