Chapter 19: One-Man Army

Manager (1)

The armor was quickly acquired.

Instead of heading to the Chairwoman's office, they went to an assembly office, where the Chairwoman handed Comet a set of clothes.

Comet unfolded the neatly folded clothes and examined them.

"It feels even better than the design draft."

"The actual item has a different weight than the drawing."

"Nice. A mirror..."

Comet held the clothes up to her body and looked around the room. The Chairwoman pointed to a corner of the office. There was a full-length mirror.

"Why is that here? I don't think it was here last time I came."

"It's for you to use. It'll be moved out later."

"That's too generous."

"I appreciate you recognizing it. Since you have it, try it on now. Alright, everyone out for a moment. You, go get us some instant ramen."

The Chairwoman sent the aides out, ordering one to run an errand.

"Are you eating instant ramen again?"

"The cafeteria is far from here."

"Isn't it not that far?"

"The distance in my heart is far."

The Chairwoman seemed to prefer work to meals.

Comet wondered if this conversation was work or rest for the Chairwoman, but she didn't bother asking.

She changed into the clothes and stood in front of the full-length mirror. The outfit was white-based with black accents. A woman with short black hair and red eyes was reflected in the mirror.

"I knew white suited me."

『It doesn't suit you at all.』

Perhaps as punishment for not choosing the design she wanted, the Princess was picking on her. Such a petty mind.

Comet ignored the Princess and tugged at the hem of the clothes, looking at herself in the mirror.

"The good thing about white is that when it gets stained with blood, the red looks pretty. Then it matches my red eyes and makes it refreshing."

"I still don't agree with that."

"It's a shame there's only one set. It's standard to change into the same design every day."

"You're asking for too much. It's amazing that we're getting this much done without an alchemy base."

"Was this armor stage 2?"

"It's not stage 1, we made stage 2 from the start."

Comet nodded in agreement.

"Chairwoman, you're working hard."

"Hahaha! Too many people don't know that."

There was a knock. An aide must have brought the instant ramen.

"Come in."

The Chairwoman took the instant ramen and stirred it with wooden chopsticks. Then she covered it with a notepad.

"We have a Cabinet meeting scheduled."

"I see."

"There are several pending issues, but the important thing at this meeting is the operation to destroy the relays and blockers."

Comet listened casually, looking in the mirror, and then paused.

"So, there are a few things we need to confirm before the Cabinet meeting. Would you be willing to participate in this operation?"

Comet turned to look at the Chairwoman.

"If you participate, the damage will be greatly reduced. That difference alone could change a lot."

The Chairwoman spoke in a serious tone.

Comet slowly turned back to the mirror. She saw the clothes she was wearing. She didn't know how much thought and effort had gone into them.

But she knew one thing. There was no need to go to such lengths just to make this request.

The Chairwoman was a person who lived a tiring life.

"It's not difficult. You can ask me casually about things like that. Saving people is rewarding."

She was saying that there was no need to treat her like a double-edged sword and be so careful.

"I know."

The Chairwoman smiled lightly.

Comet shrugged as she watched.

"Is there anything else?"

"It would be good if you could attend the Cabinet meeting for a bit."

"The Cabinet meeting? Isn't that not a place for me to attend?"

"Of course. Just come in for a bit in the middle, answer a few questions, and give a positive opinion on this operation. The higher-ups are very scared."

One of those higher-ups had said that.

"If that's the case, then yes, I will. When is it?"

"Tomorrow."

"Oh..."

Comet scratched her cheek.

"I'm glad I don't have to do a presentation."

"Just come casually. It's nothing much. It's just a fancy name."

The Chairwoman tore off the lid of the instant ramen and blew on it. Steam rose.

Comet silently watched her and then opened her mouth.

"Do you happen to have a frisbee?"

"A frisbee? What do you need it for?"

"I picked up a puppy and I'm going to train it."

"A puppy? Is it a soul?"

"Yes."

"A small elite?"

"I didn't make it, but its completion is pretty good."

The Chairwoman gestured to an aide. The aide opened the door and left. He seemed to be going to find a frisbee for throwing.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Take this with you."

The Chairwoman took out a business card from her pocket. Comet thought it was the Chairwoman's business card, but it wasn't.

It was the business card of a researcher from the Agency for Defense Development.

"What's this?"

"I heard you rescued a student somewhere?"

"A student... Oh, you don't mean a middle or high school girl?"

There was a girl she had rescued before killing a Necromancer. She hadn't had a proper conversation with her, but she was a girl who knew how to act decisively.

"Yes, her."

The Chairwoman flicked her finger at the business card.

"She's her mother, and she said thank you for saving her daughter. She stopped by the committee for a moment, but you were out, so she just left her business card."

"Is that so?"

Comet took the business card and put it in her pocket.

"The Agency for Defense Development is very busy right now, so they probably won't come looking for you for something like that again, but if we destroy the blocker this time, they might contact you. Don't ignore unknown numbers, and register her contact information."

"I should. I should start carrying my phone around."

"You still don't carry it around? Don't you play games? How do you relieve stress?"

"Are you really dissatisfied with my unemployed life?"

The Chairwoman shrugged. And then she started eating the instant ramen.

Comet gathered the clothes she had taken off.

"I'll be going now. Please send the frisbee to my room."

"Okay, come by whenever you need anything."

Comet nodded and opened the door. Then she paused, her eyes drawn to the armor she was wearing. She turned back to the Chairwoman.

"Chairwoman, you can treat me casually. You don't have to do this. I'm just a freeloader being provided with food, clothing, and shelter."

There was a moment of silence.

"...Alright."

Comet left after hearing the answer.

『Is saving people rewarding?』

"Huh? What I said earlier? It usually is, isn't it?"

#

After Comet left, one of the aides approached the Chairwoman.

"Can we trust her?"

It wasn't a topic to discuss while eating instant ramen. The Chairwoman put down her wooden chopsticks.

"What do you mean?"

"I doubt whether Ban Min-hye, the social budget reviewer, is valuable as a hostage."

"She's her mother."

The Chairwoman answered that way, but even she herself found it difficult to be sure.

As Gunther defected from the government, a thorough background check was conducted on those among the top Rankers whose whereabouts were known.

In Comet's case, normally, the existing investigation results would only yield broader and deeper results, and there shouldn't be any major problems.

The higher-ups were all aware that Comet was killing people, mainly criminals, so there was nothing surprising. Small-scale killings for entertainment purposes were already agreed to be overlooked for the sake of the greater good.

However, a problem arose during a secret search of Comet's original residence.

"She murdered her father and nonchalantly kept him in the refrigerator. Would her mother function as a hostage?"

Comet was like a poisoned chalice for the government.

The theoretically strongest Necromancer had encountered an environment that only existed in theory. A Necromancer who would be suppressed at the national level was growing without much restraint.

The most terrifying of them was, of course, Comet. At this rate, there would be no one to face her in individual or large-scale battles, and it would be possible for her to overthrow the country alone. She had to be eliminated immediately.

However, upon investigation, Comet's mother was a high-ranking government official and had arrived in Yeouido, surrounded by military bases. She was a hostage, not taken with hostility and wariness, but willingly. The hostage herself was receptive to the fact that she was a hostage.

Moreover, judging from Comet's actions during her gaming days, she seemed to be researching the absurd goals of Necromancy alone and didn't seem to have any desire for power.

The world was burning. The president was dead, the ministers were dead, and the assemblywomen were dead. It was difficult to expect help from allied nations. The government, surviving with a presidential authority acting system by gathering survivors, couldn't help but think this.

If the government could embrace this powerful being, it could change a lot.

No, it could protect a lot.

As the head of an extrajudicial body that violated the constitution, the Chairwoman, bearing the historical judgment and insults that would come later, once again took responsibility and pushed forward with the work.

She maintained Comet's civilian status, reducing the possibility of an Awakened coup, and used Dan Ga-yeon to prevent Comet's excessive rampage.

The Chairwoman had done her best.

And now, a question was being asked.

Can a powerful being without a leash be trusted?

"As time goes on, no matter what method we use, it will be useless."

The person in charge had to answer.

"We will not control her. We cannot control her. If not now, there may be no opportunity. We must decide."

So the Chairwoman answered.

"Are we such a shameful government that we cannot persuade one free citizen?"

She had to run, no matter what insults and threats she received.

For the future generations who would despise and deny us.

"We are a proud government."

That was the era.

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