A Legion Grows From My Smartphone

Chapter 22

[The Swarm disassembled, digested, and absorbed all forms of organisms, entirely different from anything encountered so far.]

[The Goblin’s brain was more intricate and systematic than any brain acquired before. Using this as a hint, The Swarm further developed its own brain.]

[Just as when we first discovered the existence of ants, this will mark a significant turning point in our evolution.]

“Glad to hear you’re not averse to it.”

I gave a bitter smile.

Honestly, when it comes to Goblins, even ordinary people still associate them with dumb, short, low-ranking demonic creatures. But the Goblins here were different.

The image of that Goblin, calmly wielding a stolen police handgun with ease, was still vivid in my mind.

[We might adopt a new form.]

“It looks like it’ll still take some more time.”

The 20th Stratum, a part of the trunk, was enormous. The exploration wasn’t even completed yet.

Not to mention the other lateral branches connected to the trunk.

There’s so much we could devour.

This was the first time the problem was that we couldn’t consume fast enough.

[Indeed, this place is an enormous world of its own. And surely, there must be a master here. Look at the screen. Our scout has discovered a creature presumed to be the master of this place.]

“…It’s huge.”

It was truly colossal.

Dinosaur-sized? It seemed at least comparable to a large truck.

Unlike other creatures whose general forms could at least be identified, I couldn’t discern what this one was—whether it was a reptile, amphibian, or something else.

Unusually for the creatures here, it walked bipedally, though its legs were extremely short and thick.

With a hunched posture, it supported its long, thick arms on the ground, walking much like a gorilla.

Sharp claws glinted at the tips of its powerful arms.

[The Swarm observed this unfamiliar form of opponent with interest. It seemed the creature had decided to hunt.]

The creature stomped its way toward a nearby Giant Two-Headed Turtle.

The turtle, of course, tried to flee in a panic.

[The creature raised its fist and smashed the turtle, crushing it. With the turtle’s corpse shattered, the creature stretched its neck, opening its jaw wide.]

What the—

I furrowed my brow at the sight.

At the end of its elongated neck, there was no face.

Instead, its split flesh opened wide, revealing a mouth lined with sharp teeth, much like a lamprey’s.

It swallowed the crushed turtle whole with that mouth.

“A crazy world.”

[The Swarm prepared to hunt. Although this was the first time hunting an enemy of this scale, we already knew how to hunt large foes.]

I was appalled, but The Swarm brimmed with confidence.

The nest, which had been storing energy, began to stir and move immediately.

“Still, it’s way too big, isn’t it?”

[We have acquired a new weapon. The Swarm intends to actively utilize the Goblin’s DNA obtained this time.]

I felt a bit dazed.

The Swarm never utilized anything that seemed inefficient.

I hadn’t expected them to favor Goblins this much.

What potential did they see in them anyway?

[They judged that it could enhance our strengths. Among all the samples The Swarm currently possesses, Goblins are the closest to being versatile. We now understand tools.]

“That’s true.”

[No matter what form it takes, the possibilities for modification and evolution are endless.]

In the nest that had consumed every cell of the 20th Stratum and even its minor lateral branches, eggs began to be produced.

New soldiers, based on Goblins, would grow and hatch from those eggs.

“So, what about the brain? Communication with me?”

[As you know about Goblins, we now at least meet the minimum conditions to learn the structure of language.]

“Good.”

I was delighted.

Seeing bonds develop between similar or even evenly matched intelligent players like Cha Jiyeon or even just Oh Yoon-Ah, I knew firsthand how much power communication held.

Having experienced that power myself, I couldn’t help but feel excited.

“We’ll be able to talk, right?”

[…]

“…We can talk, can’t we?”

However, unlike The Swarm’s rapid growth, the path to communication with them seemed anything but smooth.

[Language is learning.]

“Come on…”

[How can we learn when there’s no one to teach?]

My hopes were dashed.

Language? Inside that cave, the only creatures communicating in any way were the squeaking rats.

[Moreover, the Goblin’s language system is distinctly different from that of humans. The Swarm has not yet grown to the level of learning advanced languages. My advice is that you seek another method rather than waiting for The Swarm to learn Korean.]

“Find a good method? Are you telling me to learn sign language or something? Forget it. Let’s move on. So, when will I be able to receive help from The Swarm?”

[No one has reached Chapter 3 yet. While players and units are undoubtedly connected by a single string, those who currently aid each other are not using the game’s options but their own abilities to overcome the world’s barriers.]

“You’re blaming me again? This is really frustrating.”

I let out a sigh, running my hand down my chest.

Maybe I was being too impatient.

It’s only been a month.

Others started by communicating and interacting from the beginning, but we had grown all the way here from a mere bundle of cells.

The Swarm hadn’t rested for even a second until now.

I couldn’t push them harder in this situation.

It was something I had to accept since I had been connected to them from the start.

If I endure and wait,

Surely, advantages will emerge for us in the end.

I resolved to buy time for that to happen.

“Oppa, you’re not sleeping, right?”

A knock sounded from outside the room.

I folded my mobile phone.

More time was still needed.

“What is it?”

“Um, that…”

“Yeah, I was watching our units.”

I trailed off.

Though my younger sibling looked curious to death, we had agreed not to mention my units in case of unexpected situations.

Of course, my younger sibling kept showing signs of curiosity, but we had to adhere to that agreement.

“Oppa, aren’t you giving anything to your units?”

“Ugh…”

Thus, occasional biting remarks would come my way.

“Uh, my units are late bloomers. Anyway, why are you here?”

“Yoon-Ah texted me.”

“!”

It was certainly big news.

She said she’d talk to Cha Jiyeon—had they reached a conclusion?

“What did she say?”

“Since we can’t go to school for a while, she wants to meet tomorrow. But she said you should come too, Oppa.”

“Will Cha Jiyeon be there?”

“…Yeah. She seems to think you’re the same as me… in that regard. It seems like it’s going to be an important conversation.”

Kang Do-Yeon bit her lip and lowered her head.

She must have thought I got involved because of her.

“It’s not a big deal. So, don’t blame yourself. Besides, it was part of our plan from the start.”

I reassured her as if it was nothing.

I didn’t find it particularly bad myself.

It was better than letting that guy get involved alone.

Above all, neither Cha Jiyeon nor Oh Yoon-Ah knew my true identity.

Since they had come into contact, it was certain they would take further actions, which gave me an opportunity to gather information for free.

“I’ll need to act well.”

I chuckled faintly.

*

“Do you really have to go when things are so chaotic? Can’t you just stay home…”

“It’s nothing serious, so it’s fine.”

Early in the morning.

After reassuring my mother, I left the house with my younger sibling.

It was true that the neighborhood, no, the entire country, was in a state of chaos and confusion.

Dozens of people were killed or taken away.

Half of them were young students.

“Let’s go.”

We crossed the street, heading toward the meeting place.

The area, which was still in disarray, was crowded with grieving families, police, and media companies.

The meeting place was a cafe located a bit further away.

The two of us remained silent the entire way.

“There they are.”

At that moment, Kang Do-Yeon spotted them first and pointed with her finger.

A middle-aged couple standing with a short girl.

Could they be Oh Yoon-Ah’s parents?

“You’re here? This is… Pfft!”

“?!”

As we approached, Oh Yoon-Ah, who greeted us warmly, was smacked on the back of the head by the middle-aged woman.

Then, she bowed her head politely toward us.

“We are this kid’s parents. We’ve heard everything. I’m sorry. I apologize for dragging you into such a horrifying situation. I’m sorry, Do-Yeon.”

“Ah, no, we’re…”

Both of us were flustered by the unexpected situation.

Leaving Oh Yoon-Ah, who was holding the back of her head and groaning, crouching on the ground, we exchanged awkward greetings with Oh Yoon-Ah’s parents.

“It’s really fine. In the end, thanks to you, we survived that crisis situation.”

“…You’re so thoughtful. Despite choosing this ourselves, it was truly painful.”

“And in any case, we’re on the same team now.”

Oh Yoon-Ah’s mother touched the brand imprinted on my younger sibling’s wrist and began to sob.

A brand was also visible on her wrist.

Oh Yoon-Ah had empowered her own parents.

Although she probably had no intention of using them as shielding.

“Let’s all calm down for now. That person is coming over there.”

Fidgeting with my sleeves to hide the back of my hand, I intervened to tidy up the scene.

A large van approached and stopped nearby.

“Everyone, please get in.”

The person driving the van was none other than Cha Jiyeon.