murmur murmur
As soon as Oliver entered the building, he saw a lot of people. There seemed to be more than a hundred people who all seemed to be solvers.
As if to prove that, every single one of them was armed with large and small weapons. There were people who were simply armed with guns, there were people who were armed with modified firearms, armor, knives, and iron coats, and there were even Reinforced humans like Murphy.
Compared to the gangsters in District X and the members of the Kimbell family, everyone here seemed to have a unique personality.
And even among them, there were some who stood out. For example…
"As expected, you have a good eye."
A voice suddenly interrupted.
Oliver turned and looked to the side.
Standing there was a shabby man with a broad forehead, a slender chin, and a wart on his nose.
"You were watching him, weren't you?"
The shabby man asked as he pointed at the wretched man.
It was the man Oliver was looking at, a man with stone hands.
It wasn't a joke or a metaphor, it was literally a stone, and each stone had magical energy flowing through it in a sophisticated way.
"Yes… what's that on his arm?"
"Haha. Is it your first time seeing one? That's a golem prosthetic arm."
“A golem prosthetic arm?”
“Yes, golem prosthetic! It's a new product made by the Golem Guild, and… Oh, look at me, I have talked too much without even introducing myself, it's nice to meet you. I’m Jaby. A Warlock.”
The self-proclaimed warlock had a flattering smile like those who make a living with laughter. It was almost as if he was doing it on purpose to make everyone look down on him.
Oliver looked at the shabby man for a moment and then politely greeted him.
“Nice to meet you. Mr. Jaby. I’m Dave.”
"I know. That's why I talked to you."
“……? Do you know me?”
"Of course! Aren't you the dark horse who's the talk of the town these days? Someone from District T who was considered as the new hope of Half-Retiree Forrest."
‘Half-Retiree? New Hope?’
The information on Forrest that he read inside the World Tree flashed through Oliver’s head.
He was sure that he heard something similar before, but he couldn’t remember it.
“… What do you mean by a new hope?”
The man who introduced himself as Jaby wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with a helpless smile.
“Why are you humble? Or are you testing my intelligence? Aren't you one of the young dark horses on the rise? A dark horse who would bring a great fortune to the broker he was affiliated with… just like that guy.”
Jaby pointed at another man this time, who was far away but still clearly visible.
He was over two meters tall, a uniquely dyed green hair, and had a tattoo on his face.
Jaby immediately explained as if he understood Oliver's gaze.
"David, the Druid, a prominent dark horse from District H. Since he claims to be following the new Druid religion, Enjoyment, he is being called a Half Druid. "
“Enjoyment?”
“Oh, you don’t know? It’s a religion that was created during the battle between the old and new druid religion followers. An open sect that seeks to use the power of Druids to fulfill their desires. And because of that, they are treated as Half Druids.
Oliver, who knew nothing about the existence of Druid, had no choice but to nod.
Still, it was quite interesting, which made Oliver pay more attention to the man in front of him.
"You know a lot of things."
The man smiled flatteringly.
"Ha ha… It's my specialty. Thank you for the compliment."
“Do you know anyone else?”
“About others?”
"Yes."
To Oliver's question, Jaby hesitated for a moment before answering.
"There are other dark horses out there. Do you remember the guy who had the golem prosthesis before? The one over there."
“Yes, I remember.”
“He is Arthur, a Veteran. I heard that he was a veteran soldier who also received medals, and it was said that his arms were blown off during a war. He retired and lived like a rat while receiving a pension. But then he received a golem prosthesis transplanted and is living a second life as a Solver. He is now called Stonefist Arthur, and he has made a name for himself in District N. It’s said that he wiped out a gang by himself in one night.”
Oliver looked at the man named Arthur. Around him, there were about a dozen of solvers who seemed to have come from the same soldier background.
Oliver had seen a lot of veterans in Murphy's warehouse, so he could tell them apart now.
After looking at them for a while Oliver turned and asked Jaby once again.
“… Then who is the Dark Horse in District B?”
“Oh, did you know that District B is participating?”
“Yes, I heard that four Districts, B, H, N, and T, are participating in the cleaning. Druid David from District H, Veteran Stonefist Arthur from District N… So, do you know anything about Dark Horse from District B?”
“Of course, that’s him.”
Jaby pointed towards a man who was sitting alone in a distant corner.
The man was wearing a thick cloak with a hood.
“That’s the Dark Horse from District B. Sir Colin, who belongs to the Mattel Research Lab!"
"He belongs to Mattel?… Is he not from Magic Tower?"
"Yeah, he is from Mattel, but he's still a member of Magic Tower. He was just going out for a while to fulfill the school's teachings and build up his foundation. He was fundamentally different from us."
The man named Jaby was blatantly flattering Colin.
"So, what do you say? How about joining him with me? If I introduce you, he'll definitely accept you."
"Pardon?"
"No, don't get me wrong. Contaminated zones are dangerous places. You know, what we’re going to face are not just zombies and contaminated creatures. There are many predators who are looking for good workers like us. There are also Looters aiming for items or organs… So don't you think it's better to stick together?”
Oliver looked at Jaby silently.
For some reason, it was not easy to see his emotions compared to others, but Oliver was able to see his cunningness, even though it was blurry.
Jaby smiled and said without hesitation.
"Haha…don't stare at this insignificant warlock. I’m serious. Druid David has already agreed to cooperate with Sir. Colin. It’s the most efficient and safe group. How about joining us?"
"… Can I ask you a question before answering?"
"Question?"
“Yes, Mr. Jaby, how did you get to work with such people as Druid and Wizard?”
"Oh ho ho… that's a sharp question. It may sound a bit questionable, but I know a little bit about the inside. Inside the contaminated Zone."
“……”
"I've participated in cleaning more than 10 times. So I'm a little quick when it comes to things on the inside. A safe road, a place to rest. I even know where the zombies appear. So, I joined them in exchange for providing this information. So you can join us too. You'll be able to work much more comfortably and efficiently.”
Oliver pretended to be concerned.
“Um… I’m sorry. I appreciate your words, but it’s difficult to work with people I don’t know.”
“Haha. What's hard about it? It's about joining forces with strong people. What do you think I'm trying to do? Yes, of course, I’m trying to build a good relationship with the Dark Horse from District T, and it won't hurt to be friends with me. Even if I'm not skilled, I'm an expert when it comes to this contaminated zone.”
“I’m sorry. I was taught to think a lot when working with people I don’t know.”
“You’re talking like a kid.”
A third voice intervened.
It was the wizard from District B who came all the way to the front.
He radiated magical energy from his body, which was purer and vaster than the wizards Oliver met at Murphy's warehouse.
The air became heavy, and the solvers, who had been engaged in a strange war of nerves for a while also felt the unusual atmosphere and retreated.
Regardless, the wizard continued to look at Oliver.
"Hey, fake wizard… Do you think you're some kind of big di*k?"
"Pardon?"
“Listen, a fake wizard like you had an opportunity to work with the real one, but you declined. Just because you’re getting attention like a whore don’t think you’ve become great.”
Like the wizards Oliver had seen in the past, he showed great pride in being a wizard.
“No, I’m not thinking like that. I'm just doing what I've learned."
"What?"
The wizard came closer to Oliver and made eye contact.
He had blue-gray eyes, and he was ready to take down Oliver if he could.
He asked in a voice full of rage.
“I have a question. Did you really knock down 4 wizards from the Magic Tower?”
Everyone's eyes turned to Oliver.
“Um…well, it’s something that happened during a job, so I don’t know if I can talk about it.”
"I think I know how to make a big pus*y like you speak…"
At that moment, Oliver detected the movement of magical power in the Wizard. He wondered if there was going to be a fight here, but then he heard the sound of trudging and weary footsteps.
“Aww… everyone is in good spirits.”
A calm, yet strong voice came from the side.
When Oliver turned his head, a city official in a suit was coming in with soldiers armed with exoskeleton gloves.
He climbed up to the top of a small podium, then opened his mouth with a voice full of irritation.
“Come on, let’s hurry up. Solvers.”
⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩
The wizard thought for a moment looking at the official, and then returned to his seat.
Warlock Jaby also followed the wizard with a smile and looking at that figure some of the solvers' emotions shone with jealousy, envy, and disgust.
Apparently, the warlock who had teamed up with the Wizard was unsightly and displeased.
The atmosphere started buzzing again.
Without minding about those things, the official kept explaining.
Although there were emotions of nuisance, he explained everything without omission about the amount of work that the solvers had to do and the compensation for it and the compensation for damage in case of an unexpected situation.
“… That’s all. Do you have any questions?”
As if they had promised, the solvers became silent without asking anything.
When the solvers didn't ask any questions, the official tried to get off the stage.
At that moment, someone raised a hand.
It was a Solver with a large scar on his face, he looked like a man of malice befitting his appearance.
“… what is it?”
“ I… I’m Chip from District H.”
As soon as the people gathered heard the name Chip, they started muttering something.
There were some who were vigilant, while others muttered nicknames.
“Demolisher Chip,”
“Plunderer Chip,”
As if he wasn’t interested in what they were talking about, Chip continued.
“I heard that there are people hiding in the Contaminated Zone, and what happens if we hurt them when we sweep contaminated creatures and zombies, Sir civil servant?”
The city official, who thought he would go without a question, answered with a bored look on his face.
"First of all, let me make one thing clear. There are no people living in the contaminated zone. Officially… it’s a restricted area. So, you just need to focus on cleaning. There are no people living there, so there is no way anyone would get hurt.”
“…….”
“…….”
“Remember that you have not officially entered this place. So you should be careful inside. Even if you get hurt or die, it won’t be investigated and the city’s compensation is still cheap. Do you have any more questions?”
This time, everyone answered in silence.
After hearing the answer, the official ordered the soldiers in a calm tone.
“Then, please check the number of people and make them sign the informal employment contract.”
"Yes, Sir."
The soldiers nodded and began to get the signatures from the Solvers.
The Solvers lined up, but it turned out that they were not the only people who came here, Mercenaries also lined up along with them.
Oliver lined up, signed the papers and took the magic bag provided by the soldiers, and entered the contaminated zone.
As he went inside, the ruined part of District F unfolded before his eyes.
(To be Continued)