Chapter : 57
Scott was not an insensitive person. They weren’t here for fun, nor were they here simply to save others. They were here to get the job done.
He couldn’t afford to cling to people like this. For now, the other side was showing a fairly cooperative attitude, but things could turn at any moment. Expecting mercenaries to act out of humanitarian concern was unrealistic.
The goal of obtaining the artifact had essentially ended in failure, and the most important thing now was to survive.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes…”
“Think before you speak next time.”
Scott clicked his tongue at Whiteman. He wasn’t incompetent, but being young and possessing psychic abilities, he had a bit too much pride. Most young psychics showed similar traits…
‘This is not the time for that.’
Normally it wasn’t a problem, but in a situation like this, failing to humble oneself drew criticism.
“Is your arm okay?”
“Huh? Yes… yes…”
“A healer, huh? Our healers were in Team 1 and Team 4, right? Team 1’s healer couldn’t heal that fast… Later, make sure to thank them properly.”
“Thank them?”
Whiteman’s expression soured. Of course, he was grateful—but before that, he had almost been shot simply because Suhyun had possessed him a moment ago.
“You say thanks for what deserves thanks. Isn’t that the adult thing to do? If you don’t, nobody will help you.”
“What help could I possibly need from them…?”
“What are you two talking about?”
A cheerful voice. Jennifer McLean. She looked down at them while eating a food pack she’d taken from the Uncle Joe Company operatives.
“We were just telling Whiteman to watch his words and to thank people properly,” Scott explained.
“They’ll reward us when we return anyway, so what’s the point of thanks…”
Whiteman stubbornly refused. Jennifer swallowed her murmurs and glanced around. The Uncle Joe Company operatives were resting a little ways off.
“Hey.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t talk nonsense. Do as Scott says. One more stupid remark and I’ll rip that shiny head of yours off and shove it where the sun doesn’t shine.”
Jennifer whispered this sharply to Whiteman. Startled by her sudden change in demeanor, he nodded frantically.
“Understand?”
“Y-Yes!”
“Good. I didn’t mean anything bad. You get what I mean, right?”
“Of course!”
“Then go and properly thank them.”
With the expression of someone doing the absolute worst thing in the world, Whiteman got up and walked toward Suhyun.
“Miss McLean…”
“Why? I didn’t do anything wrong. You heard what Whiteman said, right? Because of him, we almost died. He needs to be taught a lesson.”
Scott looked at her reproachfully. Jennifer shrugged. Usually calm, she became ferocious when angry, hurling curses and growling.
“You didn’t have to be that harsh. He hasn’t fully recovered from his injuries yet.”
“Do you think this situation is that easy? If you offend their team, we could vanish right here… Think before you speak. I’m not dying because of some idiot.”
Scott gave a wry smile. Indeed, Jennifer understood the situation better than he did. Survival had to come before anyone’s feelings.
“Are you physically okay?”
“I’m fine. Full, and this is actually tasty. Want some?”
“I’m okay. I’m not sure it would satisfy you, though.”
“I’m not picky about food. It’s fine.”
Jennifer glanced around at Suhyun and the Uncle Joe Company operatives. The more she looked, the more intriguing the team became. It was curious that such capable people were still unknown.
“You were asking earlier—did you learn anything?”
“No… I think they’re either a government company team or a splinter from another large company.”
“I wanted to ask more, but Whiteman went and said something stupid. Really!”
“We’ll find out once we’re outside anyway.”
“That’s true.”
Jennifer fell into thought. Even if Blue Bear Team 2 were psychics, they had not failed badly. Yet they were defeated by sheer numbers. How had the Uncle Joe Company team broken through?
‘Are they a step above in psychic power, or do they have some special ability?’
“From tomorrow, we’ll move together. Any orders?”
Suhyun ordered the Blue Bear Team to rest fully. A sort of privilege—they weren’t even assigned to guard duty.
“Orders…? Elsewhere, maybe, but here it’s simple once you know the method. They’re not idiots—they’ll adapt. If they can’t, they don’t deserve to live. There’s also a reason we didn’t assign them as guards.”
“?”
“Don’t trust them too much. Blue Bear-level team members wouldn’t do anything crazy, but you never know.”
If they attacked now, they could monopolize the area’s information and the artifact. While such a crazy act was unlikely, caution was warranted.
“A few rules. First: don’t converse with them. No casual chat. Yes or no answers only.”
Watching Whiteman earlier gave him a clue. The key people were Scott and Jennifer, not Whiteman.
“Second: don’t reveal our personal information. If you follow the first rule, it’s fine… though you can’t avoid all conversation.”
“Personal information?”
“Especially that most of our team aren’t psychics—no need to tell them that.”
The other side’s politeness likely came from assuming most of them were psychics. Otherwise, there would be no reason for such courtesy.
“What about the salt?”
“That’s something you can reveal. How else could we trick them?”
“But that’s crucial information!”
“No. After this, the valley loses its value anyway.”
Like last time, regions solvable by simple methods lose value quickly once discovered. Suhyun planned to submit a report to the government on how to exploit the valley after this expedition. Such information was minor compared to the reputation his team would gain.
‘Can’t hide it anyway.’
If they moved together, the team would notice they were using something special.
“Salt?!”
“Once you know the method, it’s like magic—no simpler solution exists.”
The Blue Bear team members were dumbfounded. Most problems could be solved with that alone. It was ridiculously simple.
“Muzak… your tradition never had this?”
“I-I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s not your fault…”
Jennifer sighed deeply. It was absurd to think they struggled so much over something so simple.
“Don’t use psychic powers while navigating this area. Inefficient. If you insist, fine, but if you tire yourself, leave the powers and pick up your gun.”
“Ah, thanks.”
“Now, stand at the front.”
“Huh?”
Suhyun gestured forward. He meant they should stand at the very front of the formation.
“Isn’t that too obvious?!”
“Thanks for understanding. Team leader, as expected.”
The Blue Bear operatives understood his placement immediately. Leaving them behind could allow attacks on them, while placing them at the front let him watch their backs in case of emergencies.
“Don’t worry. I won’t use you as a bullet shield. We’ll see each other again if we survive, right?”
With a sigh, the Blue Bear team readied their guns.
“Alright, let’s go. Time won’t wait for us.”
“They’re coming from the right.”
“Huh?!”
With that, the Uncle Joe Company operatives froze, expertly aiming their guns. As monsters leapt from the walls, they fired relentlessly. The ghost monsters melted under concentrated fire.
“They’re moving.”
“Wait, wait, wait!”
“Huh?”
The Uncle Joe Company team looked at a panicked Jennifer in confusion.
“How did you know that just now?”
“That’s company secret. Move forward.”
“…”
Jennifer puffed her cheeks and resumed walking forward. Beyond the lake, the terrain straightened again—no complex navigation was needed.
‘Quick to notice. Is it because they’re psychics?’
The other operatives assumed it was Suhyun’s heightened senses. Kim Chang-sik even thought Suhyun had undergone body-enhancement surgery.
But Jennifer seemed to sense something strange.
‘There’s no way to know anyway.’
Experienced explorers on Cameron Planet were prone to fixed ideas. One was that no human could be a wizard. It wasn’t easy to suspect that a healer like Suhyun had an additional psychic ability. She would likely assume he detected them using an unknown method.
“Hey, Muzak, right?”
“Yes.”
“If it’s okay, I want to hear more. Any other stories passed down in your tribe?”
Muzak looked at her. He had been hired by Blue Bear, not Uncle Joe Company, so speaking freely could cause problems. Jennifer nodded, signaling permission.
Even though Suhyun had been here before, he remained vigilant. Cameron Planet was unpredictable; he might have missed something. Since there was an artifact, he had to be thorough.
“Rooms with spirit-imbued weapons have traps. Our ancestors set them to protect the room…”
“Anything else?”
He already knew about the traps—he’d experienced them firsthand. Muzak felt pressured to say something useful as Suhyun continued questioning.
“Uh, well…”
“Stop. Are we here?”
Though he already knew, Suhyun asked Muzak to maintain the appearance of first-time visitors. Muzak looked at the distant room entrance and nodded.
“Seems correct…”
“Good. Everyone, stay alert. We need to deal with traps first.”
“You’re not planning to make us do that too, are you?”
“Why would we fight in court? Don’t worry about it.”
Jennifer visibly relaxed and patted his shoulder.
“I knew you weren’t that cruel!”
“That cruel?”
“Ah, no… Muzak, why don’t you explain the traps to Suhyun here?”
Muzak quickly pulled out a small PC storing information passed down through the tribes.
“Don’t you use parchment?”
“Why would a dwarf traveling with humans use that? Don’t talk nonsense.”
Ignoring the Uncle Joe Company operatives, Muzak spoke.
“There’s a floor-plate trap at the entrance… Wh-what are you doing?!”
Seeing Suhyun step in directly, Muzak panicked—but nothing happened.
“A few-hundred-year-old trap working perfectly would be strange.”
“…”
