As I collected various titles like “Savior of Subculture Games,” “Trainer,” “Wanderer,” “Tourist,” “Traveler,” and so on, I began to notice a trend in recent games.
Particularly in Chinese-made games, there was a recurring theme: the inclusion of regions that claimed to reflect their own national culture.
(Though if you dared to suggest that their culture had been obliterated by the Great Revolution, you might find yourself under attack by suspicious cyber-Red Guards, so it’s best to tread carefully.)
A prime example of this was the land ruled by a forgetful old man with dementia, constantly babbling “Dolkingkingking.”
Last Calyx also rode this wave of nationalistic centralism.
However, it didn’t feel like it was pandering to global audiences by compromising its “continental spirit.”
Instead, it went in a completely different direction, unleashing its own brand of madness.
“Iron! A lump of iron is talking!”
“Oh my. Is this alchemy? It seems like it, but this little guy also has some other abilities.”
“Nyaruru…………… Nyak……………!”
“Idiot. Don’t try to imitate a cat so poorly.”
And the result was this: the scenery of the Great Hwan Empire, which had preserved the lost technology from just before the outbreak of the Great War.
“Repeating the request. Please present something to verify your identity.”
“Hmm.”
Having just arrived from a pastoral fantasy world, I didn’t have anything resembling an ID, so I was a bit flustered.
“Maybe this will do.”
I had a Hero Capture License—no, the Tablet of Revelation.
I handed over my smartphone, the most modern artifact I had.
Dwelling Unit 38 emitted a LED beam and scanned it.
《Identity verification failed. However, the presence of Neo-Confucian energy has been confirmed. Your status has been upgraded from illegal border crosser to temporary refugee. Please follow Dwelling Unit 38.》
What on earth is Neo-Confucian energy?
Well, at least it wasn’t hostile, so I decided to take it as a positive.
Regretting my past as a skip-addict, I quietly followed Dwelling Unit 38, bobbing along.
The scattered buildings gave off the same nostalgic vibe as the countryside I used to visit as a child.
Of course, instead of oil lamps, LED lights flickered in the thatched-roof houses.
Instead of oxen pulling carts, there were Mecha-Velociraptors.
And farmers were harvesting rice with lightsabers.
But at its core, it was still a rural landscape—just with an excessive dose of cyberpunk.
“Woof! Woof!”
“The smell of oil…………… I hate it…….”
“This is! Totally amazing!”
Even the demon-graduate students were amazed by the scenery.
Honestly, I was a bit impressed too, looking around like a country bumpkin who had just arrived in the big city.
“Wow! Dino-ception!”
I couldn’t help but exclaim when I saw a lizard man riding a Mecha-Allosaurus.
A dinosaur riding a dinosaur.
How could I resist?
Soon after, we reached the imposing building labeled “Immigration Office” near the city walls.
Above the heads of the merchants carrying heavy loads on their backs, spherical drones, Dwelling Unit n, floated ominously.
《Please line up in an orderly manner with Dwelling Unit 38. Estimated waiting time is 28 minutes.》
Our Dwelling Unit kindly served as a reservation app.
28 minutes. I could wait.
“Human. This is bad behavior.”
“What Neb is doing is worse.”
I scolded Neb, who had been staring at the drone with a strange glint in her eyes, drooling and swinging her tiny arms around.
After setting her straight, I quietly joined the line.
[Condition Achieved]
[★☆☆ Find a way to enter the Great Hwan Empire. (1/2)]
It seemed I had found a peaceful way to enter, as the progress updated.
After waiting a bit longer,
[Condition Achieved]
[★☆☆ Find a way to enter the Great Hwan Empire. (Complete)]
It appeared the other heroes had also found a way, as the status window announced that the 1-star clear was possible.
As expected of my heroes.
They’re so capable.
“Meow~ Meow~”
I patted Rumi’s head, which she had been leaning on me out of boredom, as the line slowly moved forward.
I had a good feeling that we could clear the first zone without any major battles.
Murmur murmur.
Clamor clamor.
Up ahead, the entrance to the Immigration Office suddenly became noisy.
《Destruction of Dwelling Unit 73 confirmed. Emergency situation detected. Deployment of the Star Cavalry ordered.》
《Proclamation 543 enacted. All living beings must clear the path immediately. Repeat. All living beings must clear the path immediately.》
A flood of mecha infantry, clearly mass-produced and not particularly sophisticated, poured out.
Something must have happened.
I tapped Dwelling Unit 38 on the back.
“Hey, Bixby?”
《This unit is Dwelling Unit 38. Not Bixby. State the reason for your inquiry, temporary refugee.》
“Why are the soldiers deploying?”
《Checking if this information can be provided… Information restricted. Cannot provide this information to a temporary refugee. One penalty point has been added for overstepping your authority.》
“…?”
A penalty point for pure curiosity?
But I learned in high school that protesting would only lead to additional penalties.
So I let it go and watched as the soldiers rushed off.
Dust clouds rose as the mecha infantry ran toward the horizon, and I couldn’t help but feel a sense of grandeur.
Truly, this was the spirit of the Great Hwan Empire.
“Master! That scrap metal guy is leaking oil!”
“It’s creaking like crazy!”
Even the defense corruption is perfect.
***
“They’re coming again!”
“Persistent for a bunch of scrap metal.”
Saha gripped her hammer again.
The hammer that had crushed countless iron golems without a single scratch.
Its durability was a testament to the craftsmanship of Harong and the technological prowess of Ark, filling me with respect.
“Direct hit! Haha, they’re such fools!”
An arrow from Ari’s bow shattered the head of an iron golem charging at them.
The leader of Party 2, the Saintess, said,
“Well done. With this many golems, it’s clear this is a 21st-floor difficulty.”
She not only provided magical buffs but also boosted the heroes’ morale with her words, perfectly filling Ark’s absence.
“There’s an underground passage over there! We might be able to infiltrate through it!”
“Good. Let’s go.”
“……This doesn’t seem right………….”
Renatel, who hadn’t fully embraced his “heroic transformation,” muttered uneasily.
But the other three ignored him and proceeded with their plan to “enter” the Great Hwan Empire, following the method they had discovered.
Rewinding time a bit, back when Party 2 first entered the 21st floor.
They had landed in an unfamiliar land, and without Ark, who was always by their side, they felt a bit lost.
“This reminds me of when Ark was kidnapped!”
Having practiced the “I can do it” declaration Ark taught them every morning for over a month, Ari maintained her perfect optimism, lightening the mood.
Saha smiled softly at that.
“That was a tough time. But looking back, it was quite an interesting journey.”
“Yeah. But this time, Ark is safe, so let’s push through on our own.”
Johanna happily agreed, but…
“…….”
Renatel, who had witnessed and observed the misdeeds of the three women, couldn’t bring himself to speak.
As they were gradually adapting to the new environment,
“Over there, something strange is approaching!”
At Ari’s sharp eyes, everyone’s gaze focused in one direction.
A strange lump of scrap metal was slowly approaching them.
“This doesn’t feel right.”
Saha’s “intuition” sent a warning.
“Suspicious, suspicious…! A lump of metal moving as if it’s alive…………!”
Johanna drooled as she looked at the “unholy object.”
The suspicious lump of metal stopped mid-air and suddenly displayed an incomprehensible symbol: ‘_’.
“?!”
“What’s that……?”
The heroes tensed as the symbol appeared.
《You have arrived at the border of the Great Hwan Empire—》
“Gah!”
Startled, Johanna threw the book she was holding, and Saha’s hammer instantly crushed the suspicious lump of metal.
《Thing- -is- welcome》>
Dwelling Unit 73 couldn’t even finish its welcome before it was sent to the afterlife.
***
The death knell of Dwelling Unit 73 was soon relayed to the Immigration Office.
“What about the transmitted data?”
“Unknown. It seems the recording was destroyed before it could be transmitted.”
Under normal circumstances, it would have been handled as a “malfunction” and forgotten.
But the newly appointed Immigration Office Director, Eunhee, was a by-the-book model soldier.
So she followed protocol.
“Dispatch a Star Cavalry squad. We’ll determine the response level from there.”
“Understood!”
Watching her subordinate run off, Eunhee sighed.
“This place is really something else…………….”
Disturbances at the border of the Great Hwan Empire were nothing new.
Most were caused by bandits, but occasionally, there were provocations from the Fingolia Empire.
Although the position of Immigration Office Director was a bit of a backwater post, Eunhee still had a patriotic spirit burning in her chest, so she didn’t complain much.
It was just that there was too much work.
So the destruction of Dwelling Unit 73 should have been just one of the hundreds of minor incidents that happened daily.
“Report! Star Cavalry Squad 327 has been wiped out by unidentified bandits!”
“……? The Star Cavalry?”
Up until the dispatched troops were annihilated, it had been just that.
But now, Eunhee felt an ominous premonition.
She furrowed her brow.
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