Lucy opened her eyes, and there was still blood in her mouth. Since she could feel pressure from all directions, she suppressed her groans and quietly looked around. The place was in complete disorder, and people who had barely come to their senses or were injured were scattered everywhere.
We lost as expected.
As soon as he showed up, things were already. Those named after gods were terrifying beings and had unbelievable powers. However, even they chickened out as soon as he appeared.
“Argh!”
She heard a scream from afar, it was a shriek of death.
A woman approached Lucy when she looked in the direction where the scream was. “You better stop paying attention to that. It’s very scary.”
“Who are you?” Lucy asked.
“You’re basically slaving under a guy as his personal warehouse, right? I can tell at first glance. I’m Catalina.”
She responded, “Lucy.”
Lucy was amazed by Catalina’s beauty. Although the other woman was covered with blood and mud, her glamorous body and fascinating eyes stood out vividly.
Meanwhile, Lucy wondered why she was impressed by Catalina when she was teetering between life and death. It was only after staring at her face for a long time that Lucy realized it was because there wasn’t much time left before going back home.
Only those named after gods and their subordinates did well in this world, but the weak ones like her had been waiting for this day to come. She often brought up old memories like music, food, and movies, especially after entering the Final Stage, to console herself.
She suddenly said, “I know you, Catalina.”
“Me?”
“The Miami Gangsters[1].”
The movie was about the female protagonist, who was the boss’s girl and was in charge of the gang’s chores. She had left her hometown and taken control of Miami’s night streets when the Mexican gangs were purged. The main character of that movie who perfectly depicted the splendid human civilization then was right in front of Lucy. However, Catalina didn’t react the way Lucy expected.
Both of their heads turned at the same time when they heard another scream from the distance.
Catalina said, “If you are thinking of running away, don’t even dream about it. There is no reason for that, and our turns won’t come until the end.”
“How are things g…”
She was about to ask something but she hurriedly shut up when she saw a terrible presence wandering around as if it was patrolling the surrounding area. He was one of Osiris’s immediate subordinates, called the Plague Monster. They were known to be atrocious as hell, like their appearances.
Lucy’s heart began to pound even though he was far away from her.
“We are looking for those responsible. Don’t worry. They don’t even care about us. Do you mind if I sit next to you?” Catalina asked.
Lucy shook her head, and Catalina sat close to Lucy and their arms touched each other.
Lucy could finally afford to look at the other woman. Catalina’s equipment was extremely shabby, and her charismatic eyes that had resembled a movie star’s were now filled with a desperation to live. She soon realized that they were in the same situation.
Then, she saw eight insignias embedded in Catalina’s chest in a circle, which meant she wasn’t actually in the same boat with her. Catalina must have been used as a personal warehouse for a strong guy because of her outstanding beauty. Even in the rough stages, she was definitely guaranteed high-quality beef jerky and safety. Of course, she would have been brutally abused in return.
Catalina then said in a tone that she could tell what Lucy was wondering, “I killed Varuna[2].”
“Varuna?” Lucy asked.
Catalina clarified, “He was my master from Act Two, Stage Four.”
Lucy was surprised. “How did you kill such a man?”
“He was charred by his own thunderbolt. You should have seen Varuna’s face as he begged for life. It was too entertaining for only me to watch.”
She wasn’t in a pleasant mood as she spoke in a monotone voice without any emotions as if she was reading a boring article. Lucy had some false hope that Catalina would be kind, but her expectation died down at that moment. People who had reached the end of this hell all had somewhat twisted minds regardless of whether they were weak or strong.
It was no different for a woman who had once lived a fancy life outside as a world-class actress. The actress had died and her soul was replaced by the warehouse Catalina.
Lucy became alert and regretted her carelessness in allowing Catarina to sit beside her. However, it was too late. Sure enough, she felt a cold object stabbing her back.
Catalina whispered, “Shhh. You can tolerate this, right? I’m going to cut off your spine if you scream. Then, I will twist your neck.”
Lucy responded, “You are bold. I don’t know why you are aiming for my life. I’m so useless.”
Lucy couldn’t understand this situation because it would be dangerous for her if she drew attention from other people. Even people who were named after gods were being executed without mercy, so their lives were…
Then, a thought suddenly passed through Lucy’s mind. She then noticed sights and sounds from far away that she had previously been unable to perceive. Everyone was shaking while looking at the Plague Monster, but they were still talking about the outside, where her family was waiting for her. ‘Family’ was a word that she truly missed even if she forgot their faces.
Family. Family! Family!
Lucy asked with certainty, “There is not much time left, right? Tell me, Catalina.”
She asked that way because she would burst into tears if she mentioned the term ‘family.’
“You must want to go back home, correct?” Catalina responded.
The extreme pain spread rapidly as if the dagger had torn the skin in her back.
Euk.
Lucy clenched her teeth and nodded.
“Yeah, the time is coming, Lucy. You will be able to go back home. Of course, if you hand me your insignias. Stop buying time and hand them to me right away.”
Lucy smiled at Catalina. “Oh, oopsy. You chose the wrong person. What is the point of robbing a C-class inventory? You don’t seem much different, but that’s a shame. Feel free to take them.”
Then, she wiped the smile from her face and said, “But Catalina. Wouldn’t two be better than one? I know who the A-class warehouses are, and I saw some around me right now.”
“...”
“By the way, what’s going on? How much time do we have left?” Lucy asked.
“...”
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“Get rid of the dagger first.”
Lucy looked towards the distance. The number of people who were under the control of the Plague Monster were beginning to increase.
***
They had come to the conclusion that the value of insignias was bound to rise. For some reason, the System had stopped. The fact that quests had disappeared meant there would be no more boxes given to the Awakened.
Insignias had originally been rare because people usually chose to get items, not insignias. Therefore, they would inevitably become even more scarce in the near future.
Every cloud has a silver lining!
Lucy felt like her miserable life as a warehouse would end soon. Even if she wouldn’t be able to secure A-class insignias, eight C-class insignias were already stamped on her chest.
Moreover, it looked like she would go back home soon, considering the situation going around her. From a distance, the Awakened were divided according to their nationality instead of being in military formation. The leaders looked too busy to manage the warehouses as classifying the strong ones was already overwhelming.
This had never happened since Act Two had begun. Only then did Lucy fully grasp why Catalina had targeted her. It was her golden opportunity to secure more insignias. The gorgeous woman had obviously been planning to kill her and drag her body around to replace her insignias whenever she used her own.
“That’s him.”
Lucy’s eyes were fixed on one man as she looked at the movements of the plague monsters. He was an A-class warehouse. He was left on the street in a defenseless state.
“Is he the only one?” Catalina asked.
Lucy replied, “There is one more, so don’t worry. There will be enough numbers to share.”
They didn’t need more than two as the maximum number of insignias that they could each possess was eight. However, they were thirsty for insignias. Lucy and Catalina exchanged glances with greedy eyes and determination that they would replace all low-quality insignias they had with A-class ones before going back home.
Their plan worked. Lucy grabbed other Awakened’s attention when there were people around them, and when they were alone, they pushed the target into a corner together. It was possible only because the situation was chaotic and everything was being carried out in a hurry.
The moment when they started working individually was when one plague monster entered the area. His voice was as unpleasant as scratching metal, but his voice sounded like an angel’s song to Lucy.
“Where are you from?” he asked.
“The United States…” she responded meekly.
The plague monster did not explicitly tell her to join the group, but he looked at her in a way that made her feel pressure to return to the North American group immediately.
Lucy wrapped her arms around her body as if she was shivering from the cold and then joined the group of Awakened from North America.
She asked someone who looked weak.
“Do you think we are actually going back?”
He seemed to be a warehouse like herself or a person who was responsible for all sorts of dirty chores. It was easy to find such people because they had a certain vibe. She needed to find someone whose anger exceeded their confidence and was filled with the hope of returning to the outside world. And one of those who was very conscious of the strong in the public.
“I hope so. There, we should also…”
The man slurred the end of his sentence, then tears welled up in his bloodshot eyes as if he had become emotional for a moment. However, not many people seemed to empathize with him. This disaster had occurred because they had been rude to Odin as their leaders had made the wrong choice, but it was also because many people didn’t miss the outside world anymore.
There were eyes that regarded the outside as the next stage. In fact, people were busy preparing for the battle even though they had injuries and knew that they would be back outside soon.
Even the strong Awakened were searching for healers through the crowd, and the plague monsters had no intention of stopping them. They didn’t care as long as they stayed in the area they had set aside.
They must be Americans too.
The plague monsters were slowly separating based on their nationality as well. People, who made Lucy more hopeful, soon joined the group. Not only the defeated soldiers but also the residents of the savior’s city, who were known as fanatics, were divided by nationality.
Lucy moved aside just in case she got involved in a fight with them. Her body trembled with joy.
This is the evidence that we will return soon! Finally. I’m finally going back home!
Then, people started buzzing. There was something that captured her attention over other people’s shoulders. Her view was blocked immediately as people began to move, but Lucy definitely saw a gate. For some reason, the King of Hell and his people were walking out from there, where monsters were supposed to pour out.
Lucy knew it well. They were the ones who had confronted the monster corps to the end, and traces of fierce fighting against death were visible on their bodies.
Lucy was suddenly relieved that she wasn’t a part of them even though it was an opportunity to level up. She knew that people like her would have died immediately in such a battle. Also, she wouldn’t have returned home if she was a part of them.
She somehow felt warmth in her chest where eight A-class insignias were. They would be traded at a high price outside for sure as it was a place dominated by financial civilization.
1. This movie does not exist in real life ☜
2. A Hindu god, representing the sky, oceans, and water. ☜