SWNOVELXO Chapter 180
Episode 180. The Fall of the Far Eastern Fleet (3)
Nanami took cover behind a sturdy-looking building and connected her communicator to the command center. Where is the real Dr. Kim?
“This is Gold-1. Special Forces ‘Misteltein’ have been either eliminated or fled. Requesting confirmation of survivors.”
[This is the command center. Gold-1, survivor status confirmed. Requesting status reports from other Dr. Kims.]
Nanami perked up her ears.
[This is Gold-2. After engaging with Special Forces ‘Ninetail,’ I’m incapacitated due to injuries. Special Forces Ninetail has abandoned their objective.]
Judging by the tone, Gold-2 must be Hasti. Nanami kept her thoughts to herself.
[This is Gold-3. After engaging with Special Forces ‘Transparent Blade,’ I retreated strategically. Our allies are currently in combat.]
So, they left their fighting comrades behind. Gold-3 must be Lee Se-ah.
[This is Gold-4. I withdrew after engaging with Special Forces ‘Administrator Royal Guard’ due to injuries. The enemy also retreated for unknown reasons.]
Gold-4 must be the Hero.
Nanami sighed.
If you think about it, all the other teams lost. Only the team Nanami led survived. If things had gone slightly differently, the Seoul Branch would have fallen into enemy hands.
That said, if the real Dr. Kim had been defeated in battle, the situation would have ended long ago.
Where on earth is the real one?
Administrator Council.
While persuading the directors of the East Asia region was successful, looking back…
The directors from other cities were truly weak. They lacked unity and didn’t seem willing to fight for what they wanted.
[※ Anyone who reads this document will die within a day. Only those free from death may read it. We have warned you. ※]
[Administrator Council.]
[Participants: All Administrators]
Now, we must face the Administrators of the Foundation Headquarters. The beings who truly rule this world, rumored to be hundreds of years old, nearly omnipotent…
Sigh.
I hid my trembling hands under the desk and slowly opened my mouth. Twelve screens floated before me, and including me, thirteen Administrators had gathered via video call. So, these are the Administrators.
“Acting 12th Administrator, Director Kim.”
The speaker on Acacia’s seat crackled. The Administrators beyond the rectangular screens stared at me. Most of them were human.
Two of the Administrators were not human.
[Veritas: How does it feel to become a god?]
“It’s less impressive than I expected.”
Veritas. The first Administrator had short, brownish hair and piercing purple eyes, resembling a young woman.
[Pixel: What about Acacia?]
“I think he died earlier. I threw the body over the deck. If nothing special happened, the sea probably took it.”
I shrugged.
[Pixel: I don’t remember. Could we have killed Acacia? No backups or immortality?]
[Veritas: That’s Acacia’s personal issue. Who knows, he might resurrect from a backup body or clone somewhere.]
[Pixel: I’ll propose an agenda. I believe we should eliminate the anomalous phenomenon, Dr. Kim, who killed Administrator Acacia. Those opposed?]
Expected response. I nodded.
“Then, let’s hear each of your votes. Of course, I oppose.”
[Raven: The 13th Administrator will obviously abstain. The 12th Administrator is Dr. Kim, right?]
Why is the 13th Administrator abstaining?
The 11th Administrator visible on the screen had the face of a crow. Whether it was a mask, a bird-headed humanoid, or an actual crow, I couldn’t tell from here.
[Pixel: You killed the 12th Administrator, Dr. Kim. Do you think the Administrator seat is some orc chieftain position? You inherit it by winning in Makgora.]
[Raven: Agree.]
[Pixel: Agree.]
[Patreus: Oppose.]
[Yustitia: Oppose.]
The 7th Administrator, Patreus, was still a black cat. The 8th Administrator, Yustitia, looked the same as before—a pale, slender man resembling a corpse.
[Molotov: Agree.]
[Fractal: Agree.]
[Lete: Oppose.]
[Chaos: Agree.]
[Libertas: Hmm, well. The 3rd Administrator abstains… I oppose. Is the world that easy? Why should I, or we, clean up the mess Acacia caused?]
And then, the 1st Administrator.
[Veritas: Dr. Kim. I have a position to maintain. As the chair of the Administrator Council, I can’t overlook the killing of a fellow Administrator.]
I nodded.
[Veritas: I abstain. That makes three abstentions, five agrees, and five opposes… In this case, Dr. Kim’s vote should be excluded, right? With five agrees, the motion passes.]
Sigh. I expected this.
[Veritas: Then, as decided, we must proceed with the elimination of Dr. Kim.]
“Wait a moment, Chair. If the Administrators who agreed to eliminate me die before I’m eliminated, or if the Administrator who proposed the motion dies, does the elimination plan get canceled?”
[Patreus: That’s an irrefutable logic.]
[Veritas: In short, yes?]
I stared at the screen.
“Then, wait, Administrator Pixel.”
[Pixel: You brat who hasn’t even lived half a century. Even if you killed the lowest-ranking Administrator.]
[Pixel: Do you think I’m scared of you? You became a target for elimination by killing Acacia. Do you think you can escape by struggling more?]
[Patreus: Force is the only resource a ruling body cannot monopolize. In war, all participants lose, being both players and dealers. If you want something, prove it with strength, Pixel. There’s no other way.]
Most Administrators have ruled over everything under the sky and on the earth for over a century, free from anyone’s control.
It’s time for a change, by now.
I’ve received the list of those who agreed to eliminate me. The death list is already written. Now, all I have to do is kill everyone who tried to kill me.
No matter the cost.
[Veritas: Are we already at war again? It feels like just yesterday when mushroom clouds rose. I’d prefer if this ended as a behind-the-scenes issue.]
[Pixel: What can I do?]
[Veritas: Even if we fight among ourselves, everyone knows mass civilian casualties are prohibited. I’ll do my best to control the situation. I won’t participate directly. I’ll somehow prevent World War III.]
Though I boldly challenged the Administrator Council, the road ahead was daunting.
Even if I decided to kill the 11th Administrator, Pixel, first, how would I know where he is or what he’s doing? It’s impossible.
As I racked my brain, a communication came through. What now? I turned the speaker on Acacia’s seat to maximum volume.
[Ah, ah. Can you hear me?]
“Loud and clear.”
[This is Administrator Patreus. Dr. Kim, I request permission to land on the Far Eastern Fleet’s aircraft carrier.]
“Sure, just let me know when you arrive.”
[Well, there’s a slight problem.]
“Yes?”
[Do you remember how Acacia used North Korea as his territory?]
Right. With no proper government, no internet, and most areas inaccessible, North Korea would be a place where the Foundation could operate relatively freely…
“Why North Korea?”
[Acacia had prepared a large-scale airborne operation on the Seoul Branch in case he failed to subdue you. I suspect those troops are waiting in North Korea.]
“Is that so?”
[That’s my thought. The top priority now is to protect the Seoul Branch. Let’s clean up the remnants first.]
“What about Pixel?”
[Just wait a bit.]
I pondered. If Patreus lands on the Far Eastern Fleet’s flagship, it would certainly solidify the fleet’s allegiance to me.
Though time is tight, I’ll wait until Patreus arrives. After that…
Using the same method Acacia used to attack the Seoul Branch, I’ll seize potentially dangerous cities nearby. Starting with Pyongyang, where Acacia’s remnants might still be.
Capturing Pixel might have to wait.
If I knew the approximate location of the 11th Administrator, Pixel, I’d head there immediately.
But even that seems impossible to figure out within a few hours. For now, I’ll do what I can. The important thing is to solidify my foundation.
From Vladivostok to Kuala Lumpur, I’ll firmly establish my influence.
About an hour later, Patreus arrived on the Far Eastern Fleet. He came escorted by the Administrator Royal Guard, still in his cat form.
“Hello, Administrator.”
“We don’t have time.”
“Yes, I know.”
Patreus’s Royal Guard awkwardly exchanged greetings with the now-deceased Acacia’s Royal Guard. It was a somewhat absurd situation.
Patreus sat before my eyes.
“Acacia planned to capture you like this. He dropped Special Forces into key facilities across the city, and if your location was confirmed or a foothold established, he planned to land or air-drop a large-scale force.”
Patreus spoke rapidly.
“I see.”
“Of course, with Acacia dead and the Far Eastern Fleet subdued, that threat has diminished. But before doing anything else, we need to eliminate Pyongyang Branch near the Seoul Branch.”
Pyongyang Branch.
They didn’t attend the Director’s meeting, and I’ve never seen them before. I only knew that Pyongyang was Administrator Acacia’s front yard.
“How should we attack the city?”
“Do exactly what Acacia did. First, paralyze the city’s functions, take out the Foundation’s allies, subdue key figures, and finish by deploying a large-scale force to take control.”
I shook my head. Acacia lost, after all. Following his methods isn’t the right way.
“Acacia failed. Isn’t there a different way to do this?”
“Acacia was arrogant. He thought he had control of the situation and could send his airborne troops to subdue the Seoul Branch at any time. He never imagined you’d come to the aircraft carrier on your own.”
“What I mean is, we must crush the enemy with maximum force from the start.”
“If that’s what Dr. Kim wants.”
The target is Pyongyang Branch. I’ll crush Pyongyang Branch and take control of East Asia. Before preparing for the showdown with Pixel.