Chapter 197 - 18th Floor Hidden (2)

The old man's eyes darted around before he broke into an ingratiating smile.

“H-Heh, heh... There seems to have been some misunderstanding. I'm just a lowly civil servant doing what my superiors tell me.”

I pointed at the cells.

“Go let those people out.”

“Yes, sir!”

“You know what'll happen if you try anything funny, right?”

I could have smashed the cells open myself, but after his talk about explosions and whatnot, I had him do it rather than risk setting something off.

The old man had completely changed his tune. While he went over to open the cells, I freed the people bound to the conveyor belt and helped them down.

There were even children who looked no older than five or six.

It was all essentially a simulation, but it still left a bad taste in my mouth...

After all, this world had actually existed before the Tower destroyed it.

I gathered everyone I'd rescued together.

I spoke to them as they stared at me, trembling with fear.

“You don't need to be afraid. I'm here to rescue you.”

“Th-Thank you...”

Freeing the captives alone hadn't triggered a clear message.

What was I supposed to do now?

There had to be a few hundred of them.

Did I have to lead every last one of them all the way outside?

As long as I knew where the exit was, getting them out wouldn't be difficult.

Wiping out every enemy in this place would be easy enough if I had to.

‘But I can't let myself clear the Hidden, either...’

My goal, after all, was to find a way to stay in this Hidden world.

Should I hold off on getting everyone out and just deal with all the Cyborg Soldiers for now?

As I considered my options, I looked toward the ruined entrance.

I could sense another group heading our way.

But they weren't Cyborg Soldiers.

They didn't share the Cyborg Soldiers' uniform appearance.

They looked taken aback at the sight of the fallen Cyborg Soldiers and the freed captives.

“...Huh? What the hell happened here?”

They aimed their guns at me and the elderly researcher.

Light flickered in the retinas of the woman who seemed to be their leader.

“Petrimus Prasenki, Deputy Plant Manager of the 6th Central Plant, and...”

Her gaze shifted from the old man to me.

“And who are you? Identify yourself.”

The old man glanced between me and the newcomers, muttering in confusion.

“What? You're not on the same side?”

I wasn't sure what was going on either.

Judging by what the old man had said... could these people be members of the Rebel Army?

“Who are you? Why don't you identify yourselves first?”

The woman answered my question.

“We're the Revolutionary Army. We passed some fallen Cyborg Soldiers on the way here too. Did you take them all out?”

“Yes.”

“Who are you, and what are you after? I'd like an answer.”

I glanced back at the people I'd freed.

“You came to rescue these people too, didn't you?”

“...We did.”

“That's why I'm here too. Regardless of who I am, I don't see any reason for us to be enemies.”

One of the former captives spoke up hesitantly.

“H-He freed us. He saved the people who were about to be killed too...”

The Revolutionary Army members exchanged glances. One of them spoke to the woman leading the group.

“Patriot, we don't have time. Let's get these people out first...”

The woman frowned as she addressed me.

“Will you turn these people and that old man over to us?”

“Sure.”

I stepped aside without protest.

The Revolutionary Army members went over to the captives. They put the old man in restraints, apparently intending to take him hostage.

“By the way, how are you planning to get out of here?”

“We'll open a Portal.”

One of the Revolutionary Army members set a device shaped like an upside-down plate on the floor.

Then he sat down in front of it, opened a laptop, and began hammering away at the keys at a furious pace.

BOOOM! BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

Meanwhile, the others opened fire with their Light Bullet Guns, indiscriminately blasting apart the factory machinery around them.

The device containing the red liquid shattered as well, spilling its contents.

“...Those fucking devils.”

The woman muttered the words as she glared at the wreckage, then turned back to me.

“Come through the Portal with us for now. If you're not with the Empire, I'd like you to cooperate.”

She was clearly still wary of me.

It felt like they'd turn hostile the moment I refused to go with them.

Perhaps they wanted to get out of here first and then decide what to do with me, since they didn't trust me.

But my mind was on something else.

‘If I escape with them, will that clear the Hidden?’

It certainly looked that way.

So should I stop them or not...

BZZZT!

Just then, the active Portal device suddenly spat sparks.

The Revolutionary Army members looked alarmed, and the woman urgently demanded an explanation.

“What happened?!”

“Th-The spatial coordinates suddenly got scrambled...! They've taken back control of the system... Damn it.”

The man at the laptop spoke with a grim look on his face.

“It's a trap. We walked right into it.”

FLASH-

Bursts of light suddenly flashed all around us.

Portals opened in midair, and Cyborg Soldiers came pouring out.

But these weren't the same kind as the ones I'd been taking down.

They looked entirely mechanical, heavily armed with far more sophisticated equipment.

My Sixth Sense told me they were in a completely different league from the regular Cyborg Soldiers. I'd put their Levels somewhere in the high 100s, at the very least.

The Revolutionary Army members' faces fell in despair. Someone muttered.

“D-Damn it... Those are the Empire's War Machines...?”

The restrained old man sized up the situation, then burst out laughing.

“H-Hahaha! So the Imperial Family has taken matters into their own hands! You're all finished now, you traitorous scrap heaps!”

The old man had changed his tune yet again. He looked at me and spoke with smug confidence.

“Do you see that? They've sent dozens of War Machines, not just one! If you don't want to be crushed like a bug, you'd better surrender...”

I called out to the Demon King.

‘Demon King.’

- Do it yourself. Why are you bothering me with this?

‘I'd rather not waste any more Divinity. Please help me out.’

And if I fought them normally, the people nearby were likely to get caught in the crossfire.

So I let the Demon King take over my body.

WHOOOOOOOOOSH-!

A blast of bitter cold erupted.

Every last one of those War Machines, or whatever they were called, turned into flecks of ice and scattered through the air.

Now that I'd reached a higher state of being, even the Demon King's magic no longer strained my body.

“...”

The War Machines had vanished in an instant, leaving everyone staring in disbelief.

Then a message appeared before me.

[You have successfully cleared the Nightmare difficulty Floor 18 hidden route.]

...Oh, shit.

So just taking them all down had been enough to clear it.

[You have completely absorbed the power of the floor.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Moving to the Reward Room.]

Once again, I tried using Divinity to resist the transfer.

But...

‘Hmm?’

Was the force pushing back against me really this much weaker than when I'd failed?

I tilted my head as I considered it.

Could this be why?

When I'd failed, the Tower had to force me out no matter what. This time, though, I'd already cleared the Hidden and was simply refusing to leave.

There was less force behind this transfer than there had been when I'd failed.

Either way, I could keep resisting a force this weak without getting kicked out.

‘It worked.’

I'd found a way to stay.

I would have to keep using some of my Divinity, though.

But now I could roam the world of the 18th Floor however I liked!

I let out a quiet laugh, then caught myself and glanced around.

Everyone was staring at me.

“H-How...”

The old man stammered, looking utterly stunned.

The Revolutionary Army members looked just as shocked.

I asked the woman a question.

“Can you open the Portal again?”

Snapping out of her daze, she looked at the man with the laptop.

He answered.

“Ah... I can open the Portal again. I'll just need about thirty minutes!”

I nodded.

“Go ahead. I'll hold off any more enemies that show up.”

I'd already cleared the Hidden, but I still intended to help them see the rescue through to the end.

I folded my arms and watched as they prepared to reopen the Portal.

The woman spoke to me again, much more cautiously this time.

“You... who are you, really? Why would someone as powerful as you...”

I didn't answer.

There wasn't really anything I could tell her.

After some time had passed, the Portal opened again.

The Revolutionary Army began sending the rescued people through first.

Once everyone had been evacuated, the Revolutionary Army members were about to follow them through.

They whispered among themselves, casting glances my way, before the woman stepped forward to ask me another question.

“...Were you planning to find your own way out? Why not come with us, like we talked about?”

This time, it was an invitation rather than a demand.

They'd seen the gap in our strength for themselves, after all.

I considered it for a moment.

‘Should I go with them for now?’

They didn't seem like a bad group, anyway.

Before I started roaming the world in search of Divinity, it would help to have someone explain how things worked here.

“All right.”

The woman's expression brightened a little, though she still looked wary.

And so I followed them through the Portal.

FLASH.

We were now in a dark, musty underground space.

Was this the Revolutionary Army's hideout?

But then I saw them activate the Portal again.

The woman explained.

“We make a few stops along the way to throw off anyone tracking us.”

That made sense.

We went through several more Portals before reaching what seemed to be our final destination.

It looked like an underground bunker, with walls made entirely of metal.

Other members who had been waiting for them greeted the returning squad.

“Did we lose anyone?”

“Everyone's alive. We didn't lose a single person. The mission was a success too.”

“...You all did a great job!”

They hugged one another, celebrating the squad's safe return.

As a teammate moved in to hug her, the woman pushed them back with a hand to their face and jerked a thumb toward me.

“We nearly got wiped out. He's the only reason we made it back alive.”

Only then did everyone turn to look at me.

I met their questioning, wary looks with a simple smile.

“Who is he, Patriot?”

“He saved us, so don't be too suspicious. Where's the Deputy Commander?”

“He'll be here soon.”

The woman addressed her teammate.

“Jay, I'll stay with him in Isolation Room 1. When the Deputy Commander gets here, tell him everything that happened.”

“Got it.”

The rescued people were soon led off by members of the Revolutionary Army, and the old man was dragged away as well.

I followed the woman.

She led me to a cluttered room with a lone table in the middle.

“Would you mind waiting here for a bit? If you're hungry, would you like me to bring you something to eat?”

“I'm fine.”

“All right. Someone else will be here soon, so please wait here until then.”

Rather than leave, the woman sat down across from me.

“First, let me thank you properly. Everyone in my squad made it out safely because of your help.”

She held out her hand as she spoke.

“I'm Patriot, a member of the revolutionary organization Hekarita. What's your name?”

“I'm Kim Seo-hyeon.”

I reached out and shook her hand.

“Kim Seo-hyeon, can you answer my question now? Who are you really?”

Patriot's gaze grew more serious as she asked.

As I considered my answer, I turned toward the doorway.

Footsteps approached, and another figure soon appeared.

“Hello.”

It was a man. His body was even more extensively mechanized than the others'.

He bowed his head to me in greeting.

“I've been told everything that happened. You have my deepest gratitude for saving our members' lives.”

After we exchanged a few pleasantries, the man took a seat as well.

With the two of them sitting side by side across from me, I noticed a resemblance. Were they siblings?

The man introduced himself.

“I am Kagan, the Deputy Commander in charge of this Revolutionary Army.”

“I'm Kim Seo-hyeon.”

“Kim Seo-hyeon-ssi, I understand from our members that you also attacked the Plant to rescue those people... Is that true?”

“Yes.”

Light flickered in Kagan's retinas as he studied me.

He asked another question.

“I assume there is a reason you willingly accompanied us here and have been so friendly toward us. Someone as powerful as you, capable of destroying dozens of the Imperial Family's War Machines at once... I'll be direct. Who are you, Kim Seo-hyeon-ssi, and what do you want?”

I considered my answer.

I'd tagged along without thinking too much of it, just hoping they could tell me a little about this world.

And if I could get some information about gods, that would be even better.

I wasn't going to get anywhere without telling them who I was, and I knew too little about this world to bluff my way through it.

I didn't know whether they'd believe me, but I decided to try telling the truth.

“The truth is, I'm from a world in another dimension.”

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