“What’s the price?”


  “It’ll be quite high . By the amount of money in my bank account, I’m sure of it . ”


  As of right now, the only fully operational Mana-Knight mine belonged to Sungyoon since he had full rights to the Beginner’s Labyrinth . The number in his bank account was rising at a frightening rate .

  “Weapons are like that . They are money eating monsters . ”


  “Still, we can’t spray into the monsters like a machine gun . ”


  As the party conversed, the vehicles in front of them decelerated . Tim checked the navigation .

  “Huh? We still have a long ways to go . What’s going on?”


  Sungyoon parked next to the vehicles that had come to a stop . As the clouds of dust dissipated, the party saw it . Tim pressed his surprised face against the front window .

  “.…… Why are they here?”


  Groups of monsters were roaming the desolate surface of the Moon .

  “It seems the situation is worse than we thought . ”


  Sungyoon let go of the driving wheel and got up . A message came just in time -

  Everyone, exit the vehicles . Don’t forget to wear the bone conduction earbuds .

  When the commander of the rescue mission made an announcement, a subtle shift appeared in the party’s mood .

  “Can we trust that guy?”


  Tim’s voice was full of distrust .

  “He’s the commander hired by Armstrong . He has the requisite skills . ”


  “Still, he’s a regular human . Does he even know about the nature of Connectors? I heard he is a veteran . However, there is a world of difference between commanding soldiers and commanding Connectors . ”


  In recent days, many incidents had taken place where numerous Connectors had to work with each other to solve a problem . Therefore, Armstrong thought they needed professional help to coordinate and command large groups of Connectors . They couldn’t always pick out a Connector to lead each time they conducted a mission . Thus, Armstrong had picked a commander, who was now riding in Moon Surface Vehicle at the front .

  However, none of the Connectors welcomed this news . Even Tim had a hard time accepting the reasons laid out by Grace, and Grace felt the same despite her words .

  ‘We aren’t an organization formed to conduct large scale battles . ’


  The thought came to Sungyoon’s mind as he listened to the two converse . Connectors usually fought as a small party against monsters . They were not an organization that fought large-scale battles, and it was almost impossible to order tens, hundreds, and thousands of Connectors .

  Each Connector had a wildly different battle capability and battle style . They weren’t suited to be soldiers in an army . In fact, Connectors preferred fighting against large numbers of opponents in a small group .

  However, Sungyoon’s party was about to go into a battle, and Tim was strongly expressing his distrust of the Commander . Sungyoon couldn’t let that stand . After exiting the Moon Surface Vehicle, they would lose the ability to verbally communicate with each other . They would have to rely on the orders given through the bone-conducting earbuds .

  “It’ll be fine . The Mayor and all the party leaders had a meeting before we left . All the concerns brought up by Mr . Tim were discussed in that meeting . The Mayor also had long conversations with the Commander where he emphasized the difference between Connectors and soldiers . ”


  Tim’s distrust lessened a little bit .

  “Moreover, the Commander is aware it’ll be difficult to command the Connectors . He went through numerous simulations, and the Mayor assigned two Connectors to be his aides . Unlike your worries, he isn’t going into this without any clear plans . If you’re still worried, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt first . ”


  “Understood . ”


  Tim shut his mouth since these words were coming out of Sungyoon’s mouth .

  The party then exited their vehicle -

  We’ll sweep the nearby region . Kill all the monsters . I want team A to D to execute this plan . The rest will be on standby .

  Sungyoon’s party had been named team G . As Sungyoon glanced in the distance, he saw that all of their opponents were low-level monsters . The Connectors would be able to take care of the monsters without much problem .

  The four teams shot forward like lightning and slaughtered the approaching monsters . Even if the monsters had left the labyrinths, they couldn’t let go of their habit of rushing the Connectors on sight . The monsters didn’t care that their comrades were being slaughtered, and they just charged at the Connectors .

  Of course, the Connectors preferred this .

  ***

  The reinforcement advanced at a steady pace, as the monsters roaming the Moon were not a threat . However, the group’s fighting force was slowly diminishing in size .

  “He left behind another team . ”


  Emily, who had worn her helmet, looked through the rear window of the Moon Surface Vehicle with a worried expression . She watched the receding figure of the vehicle behind them . Grace walked up next to her and also peered out the window .

  “He’s thinking about the possibility of a retreat, so he wants to secure our path . Still, it’s a concern that our force keeps getting smaller . ”


  “It’ll be almost impossible to rescue the city . ”


  “That looks more and more likely . ”


  The reinforcement group was killing every monster in their path, yet more monsters kept showing up . In trying to save the city, their force was in danger of being surrounded .

  That was why the Commander had started to make preparations for a path in case a tactical withdrawal was needed . But, these preparations were decreasing the size of their fighting force, and the Connectors were having doubts .

  It happened at that moment .

  “I can see something . ”


  Tim saw a cloud of dust across the horizon .

  The vehicles in front of him increased their speed . Sungyoon followed suit and pressed on the gas pedal . After a while, the reinforcement group met up with a half-destroyed Moon Surface Vehicle .

  “They must be survivors . ”


  Tim spoke in a low voice as he watched several bloody figures exit the half-destroyed Moon Surface Vehicles . However, these connectors looked fine considering the situation . They had probably healed themselves with their Gems .

  “I hope we gain some useful information . ”


  “Some positive news would be good . ”


  While Emily and Grace conversed, Sungyoon put his chin on the driver’s wheel and saw the survivors enter the Commander’s vehicle .

  After a while, the Commander’s voice got their attention -

  Everyone . . . I have some bad news -

  Our destination was completely destroyed .

  “Shit!”


  Tim cursed -

  However, we’ll continue forward . We have to get as close to the city and acquire as much information as possible . This is for the safety of Armstrong City, so please be understanding of my decision .

  “His decision was to be expected . ”


  “Still, I don’t believe we will encounter a fierce battle as we had thought before . ”


  Sungyoon replied to Grace . He then watched the survivors head back into the half-broken Moon Surface Vehicle . Since they had their backs against him, Sungyoon couldn’t see the peculiar smile on their lips .

  ***

  Two Ogres kept swinging their arms . Sungyoon lowered his body to dodge the first attack and sidestepped to dodge the second . The Ogres lost sight of Sungyoon, and they became confused . Sungyoon kicked the one nearest to him, and his immense strength sent the muscular Ogre stumbling into its comrade . Then, as if he were trying to make a shish-kebab, Sungyoon skewered both Ogres at the same time .

  Flash!

  A light erupted, and if there had been air, a thunderclap would have rung out too .

  The charred remains of the Ogres fell to the ground . Sungyoon retrieved the moonstones and looked at his surroundings . His party members and the other Connectors had finished their battles for the most part .

  The number of Connectors into the reinforcement group had significantly lessened . Only three parties had reached this point, of which one was left behind to protect the command vehicle . Sungyoon’s team and another team were out to investigate .

  Sungyoon gave the signal, and his party ascended the slope . They walked inside a crater created long ago due to an asteroid’s impact . When the party reached the highest point of the crater, they had an obstructed view of their surroundings .

  Sungyoon tapped at his communication device -

  Did you arrive?

  Sungyoon replied by tapping once on the earbud . It meant ‘Yes’ -

  How is it?

  Sungyoon took out his binoculars and saw some artificial structures on the horizon . It was the Gagarin·Yang city . However, it could hardly be called a city now . Ruin would be a more apt name .

  The city’s protective outer walls had fallen . Most of its buildings lay in ruins, while others were charred black .

  Tap! Tap!

  Sungyoon tapped his earbud twice . He was answering in the negative and signaling that the city had fallen -

  I see . Is it possible to get close?

  Sungyoon moved his binoculars toward the locations outside the city . Black dots swarming all over the place came into his view . He had never seen this many monsters in his life before . Even the numerous self-destructing crystal monsters paled in comparison .

  Moreover, this group of monsters included many stronger ones .

  Sungyoon again tapped his earbud twice -

  Alright . Well done .

  Someone took pictures next to him . The expensive telescopic camera captured several pictures of the fallen city and the roaming monsters . Another person filmed a video .

  ‘They are gathering evidence . ’


  This was why Sungyoon was sent to verify the destruction of the city . His words were worth gold -

  Are you done gathering information?

  When Sungyoon saw the two Connectors put away the camera and camcorder, he tapped his earbud once -

  Good job . Come back .

  That was the end of the reinforcement group’s mission .

  ***

  ‘They are gone . ’


  Hyunwoo put down his binoculars .

  ‘As expected, they included Woo Sungyoon in the mission . ’


  He knew why the Mayor had sent Sungyoon on the mission .

  ‘That man really is amazing . ’


  Sungyoon had gained the trust of Armstrong’s mayor in a very short amount of time . After all, his skills and achievements were extraordinary .

  ‘If he continues to grow at this pace, he’ll be able to fulfill my expectations . ’


  “What are you doing?”


  Hyunwoo lowered his binoculars when Glaia slithered up next to him .

  “The reinforcement from Armstrong was visiting, so I was peeking at them . ”


  “Are you sure they didn’t notice you?”


  “Why do you think we’re hiding here?”


  The two were inside a room in a destroyed building . The room was a space designated for emergencies, so it still contained air, which allowed them to converse . Even if Sungyoon possessed high-powered binoculars, he would be unable to see the two .

  “Are you interested in all of that?”


  Hyunwoo pointed toward the items in Glaia’s arms . Her arms held cradled cups, bowls, flashlights, and other items .

  “The objects used by humans are amazing . ”


  “I’ll bring back more for you . ”


  Glaia sat next to Hyunwoo and looked outside .

  “Humans are so foolish . I’m thankful that they eliminated the Golems for us, but they shouldn’t have destroyed the labyrinths to that extent . Due to their actions, we had to take this unnecessary risk . If they hadn’t done it, this city would still be flourishing . ”


  “It was a tragedy created by ignorance . ”


  Hyunwoo picked up an alcohol bottle and downed its contents .

  “Are they all gone?”


  “I believe so . They got better things to do than stay near a city crawling with monsters . ”


  Hyunwoo picked up his binoculars once again and looked at the spot where Sungyoon had been . As expected, he saw nothing . Hyunwoo aimlessly turned his binoculars to the side .

  However, for a brief moment, he caught sight of something reflected above the desolate surface of the Moon . Hyunwoo, who always had a nonchalant attitude, opened his eyes wide .

  ‘That is . . . !’


  He quickly turned his binoculars to the source of the reflected light . However, his eyes caught sight of nothing .

  ‘Did I see something wrong?’


  “What is it?”


  Even when Glaia asked the question, Hyunwoo’s face remained stiff as he continued to look into the binoculars .