NoveLight ™
"Do you often hunt hunters?"
"Uh... quite rarely. If it's a map with speakers, like now, it's one thing, but in places like factories, bunkers, coastlines, and wildlife reserves, there’s a limit to how many people you can gather. Even if they appear like this, sometimes they come back to stab you in the back..."
"Truly, it's the law of the jungle."
After gathering the three crumpled metal pieces that had been hunters near the campfire, I glanced at the countdown for the escape time and then voiced the question that had been on my mind. The answer was pretty much what I had expected. Apparently, while backstabbing to wipe people out was rare, it still happened.
In any case, the hunter corpses didn’t disappear into polygons. Instead, items from their downgraded Icarus gear could be farmed, which was a useful perk.
There was a brief, subtle exchange of glances. Since no one was moving, I wondered what was going on until it became clear that I, as the one who contributed the most, had the priority to loot. Even though we all fought together, apparently, that’s how it worked.
"If you have any items for upgrading the gear boxes or shelter levels, please toss those in too. We’ve only been at this for a few hours since the Unknown Area escape mode started."
"Truly amazing..."
"I mentioned I’d give you a graphics card earlier. Would you like to take this one?"
"Ugh, this person is really rummaging through their pants!"
It seemed like I had mentioned this several times already, but the sight of an elegant, dainty-looking girl rummaging through combat pants on the battlefield was truly bizarre. While one person hurriedly tried to stop the pervert, I quickly checked the items list.
The hunter commander, who had forcefully taken the Mjölnir from me, had their items checked. The bullet penetration reached 98, and the muzzle velocity was an insane 1080m/s. As expected, the gun had been modified with various electronic devices and enhanced parts that couldn’t be found in regular firearms.
Of course, the specialized ammunition was down to just 30 rounds, and the efficiency would drop dramatically if regular ammo was used. I lost interest in the gun after that and decided to take only the bulletproof vest and some unidentified electronic devices.
As the items dwindled, the body revealed more details.
And then—
"...What is this?"
"What’s with all the machinery attached to the body?"
There were bulky machines attached at every joint. Anyone could tell that this was some sort of bio-connected exo-suit. Naturally, this was a target for disassembly. After a few adjustments to the Icarus gear interface, the machines detached with a sharp sound.
But that wasn’t all. Some parts of the body had been replaced with machinery. As I was examining this with mild interest, a voice came from behind me.
"Now that I think about it, I’ve heard of this. They’re cyborgs. I guess not many have captured them."
"Do the others look like this too?"
"Let’s strip them all."
After some enthusiastic discussion, the loot distribution ratio was confirmed, and after removing the bulletproof vests and clothes, the exo-suits and metallic exoskeletons were exposed. The others were similar—some had entire legs made of metal, others had arms.
Just then, an unexpected synchronization signal.
Various data appeared on the screen with a series of beeping sounds.
The locations marked on the map, like the factory, bunker, coastline, and nature reserves, as well as an area of high-value research facilities—broadcasted with a mosaic blur—showed that access was now possible with a password or code. Given the connection to Artemis, this could be part of the pre-work to face Mecha-Eugene.
Once this conclusion formed in everyone’s minds, someone spoke up.
"Looks like specialized hunter farming sessions might become a thing."
"These Easter eggs are hidden so oddly, huh..."
"Now that I think about it, Sensei is also about to face Mecha... wait, this was an event approved by Icarus, right?"
"Yes. I didn’t expect it to be in this format, but I thought it would be quite fun."
While it wasn’t the event I imagined, as they said, Mecha Eugene, as a motive, was more than enough to tickle my curiosity. After all, raids were meant to provoke interest like that.
In any case, this group of six—including me—wasn’t exactly on the same team, but we were now bonded by the shared secret of moving one step ahead in the Mecha Eugene raid. In other words, we’d likely cross paths again.
After a brief silence, I spoke.
"Good job, everyone. I hope we don’t run into each other in the same session again."
"Wow, Sensei’s encouragement is unreal."
"Please don’t hurt us too much next time."
"Haha, we’ll see."
With that, they all walked away with a cheer.
In the end, it was over. The barricade that blocked the outside and inside went up again, and the red light that had filled the shopping mall faded, leaving silence once again. Half of the group went off in the direction of Olive, as we had different escape routes, while the remaining two headed towards the furniture store.
The outside was eerily quiet. Only the sound of the wind, the rustling of the grass, and the faint sound of boots remained. The outside world seemed entirely indifferent to what had happened inside.
When we reached the exit, a truck was waiting for us—the only escape route that would take us to safety.
───Vroom!
With a powerful engine start, the truck carrying the three of us left the shopping mall grounds.
Unfortunately, I didn’t hit 15 kills, but I’d get that in the next session.
"Now that I think about it, I haven’t really customized my guns at all. I’ll upgrade my shelter and gear boxes now."
With the awkward shelter in sight, I opened the gear box door. It was basically several containers stuck together—no upgrades had been made, so it looked pretty much the same as hours ago, but there were a few signs of change.
Clink. I heard the sound of guns being placed. One, two, three... when it hit four, the viewers couldn’t hide their surprise. These weren’t just any guns. I heard that the modded guns cost from 200k to 500k credits.
I knew exactly where each part came from—Noveske body, War Sports Industry’s Levoa barrel shroud, AAC suppressor… and many more parts I used to receive when I was an operator.
And then, the Mk.18 Mjölnir, priced at 200k credits, complete with countless accessories.
"This is quite a lot. Looking at the ammo, if I had the right high-penetration rounds, I could probably carry a few of these, but the supply route..."
As always, my reputation was steadily sinking, but I checked the gun lineup.
Two AR-15s, of course, nothing like the bulky ones everyone imagined—they were loaded with all sorts of accessories. One had an LPVO, a variable zoom scope. On top of that, there was the MK47, M1A, and finally, the Mk18.
After dumping all the items, I checked if there were any parts for upgrading generators and medical facilities, though I wasn’t actively farming for those. I needed 150k credits, an ignition plug, and some meds and syringes. I thought about earning money slowly later, reloading the Mjölnir, and placing two 10-round mags into my armor pouch before opening the door.
Mendoza was right in front of me.
"It looks good. Quite an achievement for only two rounds. Got a minute? Too many people are looking to talk to you, and it's getting a bit difficult."
"10 minutes should be fine."
"Then, I’ll take you up on that offer."
The rest of the dialogue and interactions proceed as follows:
"Sure thing."
As I entered the room, the door closed behind me, and I found myself face-to-face with a stern man waiting for me. He had a thick, bald head, and there was a small table in the middle of the room with chairs across from each other.
Once I entered, he smiled and exhaled deeply.
"You’ve come. It's not often someone stirs up the city like you did in just a single day. I’ll call you ‘Captain’."
"Nice to meet you."
This was unexpected, but honestly, it wasn’t too surprising either. No one had mentioned I would be meeting this guy, but here we were.
I was about to sit in a chair when he spoke again.
"Could you show me your gun?"
Click.
I separated the magazine and removed all the rounds, then handed the gun over to him. He examined it carefully. As expected, he was focusing on the modifications—things you wouldn’t normally see in a standard firearm.
Next, he looked at the ammo. He returned the gun to me and took only one round. It had a red tip. I knew what kind of round it was, and he nodded as he recognized it too.
He spoke.
"Have you seen this type of round before?"
"Are you asking about the bullet’s head, or the powder inside?"
"From what you know, there’s no need to ask further. I’m still curious though—where did someone like you come from? Are you on a covert mission or something?"
"I’m not sure."
"So, you're saying it’s something I shouldn’t ask. Alright then."
He continued.
"Carrying stuff like this is proof you’ve crushed a few of Artemis’ dogs. It’s an honor to finally meet you."
"From the way you’re speaking, it sounds like you have an ulterior motive."
"Surprisingly, you’re right. When you’re in a position of managing things, there’s a need to dress up the situation before diving into the real thing."
Clank.
At the same time, he handed me two small boxes. They were about the size of a spam can—around 375 grams stacked together. There were English letters on them, but it was clear what they were.
Ammunition.
For the gun I was holding.
"You know, Artemis scattered a lot of their scraps around as they were dying. They had made an agreement with the enemy country before the war, and tech and related information using this technology is spread across this area."
"Sounds like you want a lot from me. Looks like the stakes are pretty high."
"Trespassers willing to put their lives on the line for treasure hunting aren’t that rare. And I believe... if the rewards are sufficient, we’ll be able to access those secrets faster."
He carefully unwrapped one of the boxes. It looked ordinary, but the black penetrator tip sticking out was hard to miss.
Each box contained 25 rounds. A total of 50 rounds.
"I’d like to capture the second hunter before these rounds run out. Or, after sending a few of these wandering friends to Heaven, we can settle for a good exchange of intel about Artemis."
"What’s the pay?"
"Hah, you’re quite greedy."
With that, he handed me another box, containing about 15 more rounds. I was curious about what this was, but he spoke again.
"You don’t have to fire these rounds. Someone might open their wallet when they see them. Once ownership is transferred, they’re yours."
"Truly an apocalyptic world."
"Ammunition is a common substitute for money."
So, in short, he was telling me that if I ran out of money, I could sell these rounds.
I glanced at the chat window.
It was chaos.
Anyway, it was time to get back to work.