Chapter 77: The 2nd Emergency Response Committee

At the top floor of Ido Corporation, there was a space where the lights never went out.

A chairman’s office, workspace, meeting room, and living quarters all in one.

A chaotic space that would make anyone click their tongue at the workaholic style, with screens flickering like dragonfly eyes.

And at its center.

A woman lounged lazily in her chair.

The genius of the century.

A mad scientist.

Humanity’s betrayer.

The one who developed automata—robots—replacing half of human labor, even in the military.

Ryua observed the man in the reception area, who was pretending to remain calm but couldn’t stop his legs from trembling slightly.

The outsider who had recently been stirring up Neo Hanyang.

A man called something like Ak-gu or Ark.

She had wondered what trick he used to captivate the famously difficult princess, but he truly lived up to his reputation.

Of course, if that were all, she wouldn’t have considered meeting him.

Overall, her assessment of him so far was positive.

First.

Whether he had gotten prior approval from the princess or not—

He clearly understood the political tensions with the so-called “Dragonkin,” those ridiculous scaled beings, and boldly rushed to her the moment trouble arose.

And then, her own vivid memories of meeting the goddess made her curious whether he truly was the Prophet.

Lastly.

Even setting aside Neo Hanyang, his appearance was biologically fascinating—something rarely seen in the entire Great Hwan Empire.

There was no reason to summon a proxy when she could meet him herself.

And no reason not to meet him either.

Tossing and catching an object imbued with the man’s lingering energy—something even the Great Hwan Empire’s technology couldn’t analyze—she made up her mind.

“Escort him properly.”

《Yes, Chairman.》

Ryua decided to meet him in person.

A short while later.

“Haha, hello?”

The moment she saw his face, Ryua regretted her decision.

No wonder the princess had singled him out.

How should she put it?

Even she, as a Hero, felt an inexplicable pull—was it his innate charm, beyond just his looks? 

Some kind of magnetism inherent to him as a person?

“Get to the point.”

It had been a long time since she couldn’t control her emotions, so Ryua deliberately maintained a cold, high-handed demeanor.

A low growl rumbled from behind her.

Restrained anger.

Was this really the reaction just from her emitting a bit of hostility? 

But for some reason, staring into those round, earnest eyes, she felt a deep, inexplicable guilt welling up inside her—like she wanted to torment him until tears welled up in his eyes—

Ahem, hmm.

“Was I talking too fast? Uhh, I guess I was being chased earlier, so…”

“No. Continue.”

As she listened to his story.

Ryua reached a conclusion.

She was quite pleased that he had laid out a more concrete plan than expected. 

Moreover, following his plan would legally eliminate those scaled abominations from the Great Hwan Empire—with the princess’s full support.

That alone was enough benefit for the corporation.

And one more thing.

The man before her was research-worthy just by existing.

He seemed a bit clueless, but she was curious about the source of his overwhelming presence.

An instinctive attraction as an alpha female?

A Hero’s loyalty to her destined master?

Or just his natural charisma?

Which was it?

“Fine. I’ll support your plan.”

The moment she accepted, his face brightened so radiantly that Ryua was suddenly seized by an intense urge to see that expression crumple.

“However, there’s a condition. As a faithful collaborator, you must participate in my research.”

“What is it?”

“As research material, provide me with your sperm.”

At that moment.

The faces of the women lined up behind him all twisted simultaneously, and an icy chill swept through the room as if the Ice Age had returned.

“Uh, ahaha, th-that’s…”

“Do you refuse?”

Suppressing the twitch at the corner of her lips, Ryua forced herself to sound disinterested.

“I-I’ll give you my answer later…!”

With those final words.

The space warped—

And everyone was sucked into the rift, vanishing.

“Oh…”

If she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn’t have believed it.

But if this was the Prophet’s power to traverse dimensions, then such a feat was possible.

Which meant.

Ido Corporation’s assets or personnel could also cross into other dimensions.

Sigh…

Finally exhaling the breath she’d been holding, Ryua smiled faintly.

The glint in her eyes resembled that of a cat discovering a mouse for the first time.

***

[Desire Tower, 23rd Floor – Neo Hanyang, 1st District Clear!]

The timing was unbelievably bad.

Despite finally meeting the chairman—Ryua—and requesting her cooperation, the first condition, “Survive,” still hadn’t been cleared.

And then that absurd demand.

Give me your sperm.

Give me your sperm?!

Personally, I thought it was a sacrifice I could endure for the greater good.

But.

“That bitchy jellyfish woman…!”

“Hmm. Ark? You’re not actually considering cooperating, right?”

“Grrr! Ruff! Ruff!”

The Heroes who had accompanied me in the tower were absolutely furious.

If we had been even slightly delayed in escaping the tower, they probably would’ve started a brawl right then and there.

In that moment, we would’ve made enemies of the two most powerful factions in the Great Hwan Empire…

But putting that aside.

“Renatel? Are you okay?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, yeah. I’m fine…?”

Even as she said it, Renatel didn’t look fine at all.

Whatever she’d been through, her face was wrapped in torn bandages, and her ears—though supposedly hidden—were poking out like dumplings on sticks.

But beyond the ridiculous disguise.

“Your back… were you stabbed? Let’s get you treated first. To the guild house. Rumi? Take care of Renatel.”

“Woof!”

A wound on a swordsman’s back—a point of pride—meant the situation must’ve been dire.

Probably…

Because of me.

Unlike us, who moved together, Renatel had been isolated.

And judging by her injuries, there must’ve been several intense battles.

And.

Considering who saved us from that predicament.

The last uncleared condition, “Survive,” must’ve been fulfilled when Renatel defeated all our pursuers.

“Renatel?”

“Yeah?”

“You’ve been through a lot. Really.”

“Hehe…”

Watching her awkward smile, a pang of guilt surged in my chest.

Until now, I’d naively assumed she’d manage on her own—after all, she was a Dragon Slayer.

Once again, I reflected on my carelessness.

Reflection alone was meaningless.

I needed concrete measures to prevent it from happening again.

“Ah, Ark?! And Renatel?! What on earth happened…?”

Back at Celestia’s guild house, waking Johanna immediately led to a flurry of shocked reactions. 

With Johanna’s help, we treated Renatel’s wounds first.

Even amidst the commotion, the Heroes who had been sleeping couldn’t stay asleep, so they all gathered in the living room, causing an uproar.

Later, an emergency moonlit meeting was held.

“To prevent something like this from happening again, we should all stay together—either in Hanyang or Celestia. For faster progression, Hanyang would be better, but…”

We’d always been on the offensive, but now we needed to consider defense too. 

We had to unite more tightly.

We also shared some information we’d learned from today’s events and brainstormed with the Heroes until—

“Tina! I have something to say!”

“Huh?”

“You’re not really planning to hand over Master’s sperm, are you?!”

Renatel’s presence had made me forget about the “price of cooperation,” but Tina reminded me.

A brief silence fell.

Then—

“■■■■■■■——!!!”

A chorus of screams—barely recognizable as language—erupted from the Heroes.

…If I said, “Actually, that sounds great,” I’d probably be torn into nine pieces and displayed at the guild house entrance, so I stayed silent.

Silence is golden.

***

Unable to overcome human exhaustion, Ark eventually collapsed, half-unconscious, snoring loudly.

The superhuman Heroes, chosen by the goddess, held an emergency second committee meeting.

1st Committee Chair Johanna, unable to voice her blasphemous thoughts, sat silently, legs swinging nervously.

2nd Committee Chair Ellis, her usual bewitching smile gone, declared with a stiff expression:

“Today’s agenda.”

A pause.

“Is about the threat to Ark’s virginity.”

The meeting lasted nearly all night,

With alliances forming and breaking over various criteria—humans vs. demons, farming vs. bread, seniority, etc.

Of course, Ryua only wanted the “liquid” for pure research purposes, leaving the uncomfortable truth that the real threat to Ark’s virginity was the Heroes themselves.