After the incident with Jimmy, Amon couldn’t sleep for several days, feeling unsettled.
There’s always a small sign before a big event.
Having ignored the small sign—a headache—only to experience the Light Path Ending, Amon decided not to overlook small signs in this life.
‘This is a quest precursor.’
The incident with the graduate threatening lives with a gun wasn’t the big event.
It was only the precursor, a sign that something bigger would follow.
In Amon’s mind, the most likely scenario was that Jimmy would go crazy and lead a gang to attack the orphanage.
As a result, Amon couldn’t relax and struggled to fall asleep.
‘Damn it. I guess sleep is out of the question tonight.’
Amon got up from bed, scratching his head in frustration.
He carefully got up, trying not to wake his roommate, and sat down at his desk.
He powered on the laptop and began searching for information about his future career.
It had become a routine whenever he couldn’t sleep.
For the past few days, he had been researching the history and scandals of the Mercenary Association and the Vatican.
Tonight, it was Hexen Group’s turn.
‘History of Hexen Group…’
Typing cautiously, Amon searched for information about the group.
‘Founded 38 years ago…’
This was 11 years after the True Ending.
After the True Ending, many mega-corporations had collapsed, and rookies had risen to power.
Hexen seemed to be one of those surviving rookies.
‘Their main business is distribution. They’re expanding worldwide under the name of Hexen Mart.’
Though not the largest distributor in the U.S., it was still a significant franchise in the large-scale retail industry.
When Amon first heard that Hexen Group had managed to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with other mega-corporations through distribution alone, he was puzzled.
‘What kind of magic did they pull off?’
Mega-corporations—or megacorps—weren’t simply large companies with lots of money.
They were untouchable, even by governments, standing above the law.
Common business sectors for megacorps included military industries capable of defying law enforcement, food industries directly linked to life and survival, and media companies that could control governments.
For Hexen to compete with such companies in distribution meant that they possessed something truly unique.
That special something wasn’t hard to find.
It was prominently displayed on their website.
[“At Hexen Mart, we have everything except what’s not available! Can’t find what you’re looking for? Ask an employee! We’ll deliver it to you within 2 hours!”]
[“In our 24-hour underground factory, we can make anything you want on the spot!”]
They could literally restock anything within two hours.
This was the ultimate form of a discount mart that had everything—except for what they didn’t.
They even had a pharmacy and gun shop, so they truly sold everything.
At first glance, it seemed like the pinnacle of customer service.
But behind this overwhelming service lay a dark truth.
‘Wait, no labor union? And no compensation for workplace injuries?’
This was written on the wiki page summarizing information about Hexen Group.
The group had no labor union. It didn’t even offer benefits similar to Korea’s Four Major Insurance programs.
‘Where was the constitution in all this?’
‘Well, megacorps stood above the law in the first place.’
‘Of course, this is cyberpunk.’
In a different setting, such practices wouldn’t have been possible.
Anyway, this was Hexen Group’s secret weapon: the exploitation of cheap labor to provide an overwhelming variety of products.
In other words, their identity as a discount mart with everything—except for what’s unavailable—was their real strength.
But now, a new question arose in Amon’s mind.
‘Why would a company like this want me and Sonia?’
‘Would divine power even be necessary in the distribution industry?’
‘Even if it were, would they want it so badly?’
With these doubts in mind, Amon typed two keywords into the search bar.
<Hexen Group> and <Mystical Power>
When he pressed enter, the results immediately appeared, just as he had hoped.
From the top of the list and beyond, articles on Hexen Group and mystical power filled the screen.
[The Curse of Hexen Group and Mystical Power]
Amon read through the most well-organized article.
By the time he scrolled to the end of the article, his jaw dropped.
‘Every mystical power holder who joined Hexen Group since its founding has died…’
The story went something like this:
The first mystical power holder joined Hexen Group but died during a night shift. While dying, he cursed the group, and since then, all mystical power holders hired by the company had died within a year.
In a world where ghosts were real, people believed that a curse had attached itself to the name of Hexen Group.
Some speculated it was sabotage by other megacorps, while others thought it was a publicity stunt by Hexen Group itself.
Amon, however, didn’t view this rumor so lightly.
‘There’s no smoke without fire.’
If something had been happening continuously since the company’s founding, then there had to be some truth to it.
Perhaps one of the far-fetched conspiracy theories contained a grain of truth.
Amon’s fingers moved quickly as he started searching like a spy in a movie, attempting to uncover corporate secrets.
However, his efforts were fruitless.
No matter how much he searched, Hexen Group was just a typical black corporation in the cyberpunk world.
Workers died every day, and police investigating the company died as well.
It was a typical megacorp.
There was no information about mystical powers.
Just as Amon rubbed his tired eyes, ready to give up on gathering information, he noticed a category tucked away in a corner of the company’s website.
Management.
Amon, as if entranced, checked the management section.
He scrolled slowly, looking over the chairman and the executive team.
‘Chairman, unknown. Vice chairman, unknown.’
The scrolling stopped somewhere in the middle.
‘Hexen Group, Head of Battery Division. Viktor N.N?’
The moment Amon saw that name, a chill ran down his spine.
At first, he didn’t recognize it immediately, but after repeating it to himself several times, a sense of déjà vu hit him, and he remembered where he had heard the name.
‘Why… is that crazy man here…?’
Viktor was the mad scientist from an Easter egg who had tried to move his consciousness into a robot.
Though it had been left unresolved in the Easter egg, Amon never expected to encounter that man here.
‘Could it be a coincidence, just someone with the same name?’
No.
Viktor N.N.
‘How many eccentric people with such a peculiar name could possibly exist in the world, boldly flaunting it in public?’
Besides, Amon wasn’t someone who believed in coincidences.
He wasn’t so naive as to underestimate a dangerous figure who appeared during such a serious situation.
Most importantly, everything made sense when Viktor was tied to the curse of the mystical power holders.
Amon knew that Viktor’s ultimate goal wasn’t something as simple as transferring his brain into a machine.
That was merely a means to overcome the limits of lifespan.
His real objective was something else entirely.
***
Project Artificial Saint: Divine Power Imbuement Technology
Viktor’s ultimate goal was to create artificial beings endowed with divine power.
If successful, this technology would elevate his standing among the top-tier megacorps.
The problem, however, lay in the process.
‘Compression of divine power holders…’
The method Viktor proposed was to force the divine power of multiple holders into a single vessel to create an artificial child of God.
“You’ve heard of saints or holy maidens from the Bible, haven’t you?”
By concentrating divine power into one person, the goal was to transform them into such beings.
Then, just as the holy maiden in the Bible appointed her twelve apostles, they could artificially produce more divine power holders.
The issue was that during the compression process, the vessel would lose its humanity, and those who had their divine power taken from them would also lose their lives.
As Amon’s thoughts reached this point, all the scattered pieces of the truth began to fit together.
‘This is insane…’
His drowsiness vanished.
Now that he knew the truth, joining that company was no longer an option.
Amon immediately erased the company from his list of career choices.
‘This isn’t enough.’
He crossed off being a mercenary as well.
Mercenaries with no family or ties, like him and Sonia, could easily be kidnapped by a corporation without anyone batting an eye.
In the end, there was only one option left.
‘Damn it… the Vatican…’
He wasn’t thrilled.
To Amon, the Vatican was a city of sin, and he believed that the corruption of those who served God was the ultimate insult to the divine.
But realistically, it was his only choice.
‘Lord, forgive me for my cowardice.’
After a quick prayer, Amon organized his thoughts.
‘I’ll talk to the priest tomorrow morning.’
Though Amon didn’t know much about the priest teaching him and Sonia, he seemed like someone with significant influence within the Vatican.
If Amon expressed his desire to switch to the Vatican, the priest would likely be able to protect them from the clutches of the corporation.
***
The next day, after Amon had devised his plan, the world’s cruel twists awaited him.
“What? She’s already signed up for the field experience?”
By a single day’s difference, Sonia had already applied for the trial program.
When Amon woke up that morning, Sonia had already made arrangements with the company.
She had chosen the field experience option since she couldn’t make an immediate decision.
And she had even communicated with the head office.
Caught off guard by this sudden development, Amon found himself blurting out a question.
“And me?”
Was she going without him?
But Sonia simply shook her head.
“They said it’s hiring season, so things are pretty hectic. They accidentally sent the invitation only to me. So, I’ll be going by myself.”
Her response only confused Amon more, rather than convincing him.
‘By herself?’
“Why?”
‘There were two divine power holders, so why invite only Sonia?’
‘What was Hexen Group planning?’
‘But that wasn’t the important issue right now.’
‘The crucial thing was that Sonia was in danger.’
‘Should I tell her the truth?’
That thought crossed his mind for a moment, but he quickly shook his head and dismissed it.
There were too many ears listening and eyes watching.
If Amon revealed the secret of Hexen Group, it wouldn’t be surprising if a missile hit the orphanage the next day.
That secret was worth that much to them.
Unaware of Amon’s inner turmoil, Sonia continued speaking cheerfully.
“While I’m at Hexen Group’s headquarters, you can visit the Vatican. How efficient would that be?”
Amon didn’t have the energy to respond to her optimism.
At that moment, his mind was racing with hundreds of strategies to save her.
‘Damn it… if only I were in my Violet Teletubby form, I could’ve handled this somehow.’
At least Violet Teletubby had enough power to potentially take on a megacorp.
But compared to that, Amon’s current strength was only enough to barely handle a crazed gorilla.
The difference in scale was massive.
Of course, there was no such thing as transformations in real life, so Amon was completely powerless at the moment.
In the end, after much consideration, he came to a single conclusion.
‘Stop Sonia from going.’
Somehow, he had to keep her away from the corporation.
At least until the day they could both head to the Vatican.
Amon firmly grasped Sonia’s shoulders and looked her straight in the eye.
“Instead of going to a place like that, let’s go on a trip together. You know, make some memories before graduation.”
“Where to?”
“Uhh…”
Of course, since it was a spur-of-the-moment suggestion, Amon hadn’t thought of a destination.
His eyes darted around, and he blurted out the first word that came to mind.
“A resort?”
Hearing the word he had just squeezed out, Sonia’s face lit up.
“Just the two of us?”
Without thinking, Amon nodded.
At that, Sonia’s face turned beet red.
Hearing this, the younger girls and nuns nearby let out squeals and began playfully hitting each other’s shoulders.
The headmistress, who happened to be passing by, smiled kindly and nodded to herself, murmuring softly.
“Oh my, youth is such a beautiful thing.”
***
That afternoon, the department manager at Hexen Group received a phone call.
[Yes, I’m sorry. Something came up suddenly…]
“No worries. Just let us know when you have time. We’ll come pick you up.”
The manager responded kindly to Sonia’s apology.
After a few more exchanges, the call ended.
Beep
The manager placed the phone back on the receiver, deep in thought for a moment.
After a while, he picked up the phone again.
“Put me through to the Special Affairs Department. Yeah, it’s me. I need you to send a report on those Vatican religious types. Hello? Chairman?”
“As your proxy, I ask this favor.”
The lenses of the manager’s glasses gleamed ominously under the light.