Chapter 9: 9 – The Neutral Zone

A small room. The others were standing there waiting as I walked in.

Hyun Sangmin looked curious and opened his mouth to call out, but he closed it when he saw the maid walk in after me.

I strode forward to the rest of the group and then came to a stop.

The blonde maid didn't. Walking past me and everyone else, she let out a sigh of relief and then opened the exit door. With a brief gesture to follow, she walked in first.

This time, Hyun Sangmin did speak up. "Boss? What do you think?"

"What else? We go." I walked forward, following after the maid.

Was it because of my actions, or the previous mission? Either way, the others naturally fell in step behind me.

A long marble passageway, barely visible in the dim light. It seemed to stretch on forever, and behind me I could sense the others tense up, as if preparing for one last test.

But soon, a light emerged in the distance. The exit.

The maid left first and then came to a stop. The moment she did, a clear and beautiful voice called out. "Korea, Area 1, cleared."

And then we arrived.

Following her voice, others rang out.

-Europe, Area 2, cleared.
-Germany, Area 3, cleared.
-North America, Area 4, cleared.
-Asia, Area 5, cleared.
-Africa, Area 6, failed.
-China, Area 7, cleared.
-South America, Area 8, failed.
-Oceania, Area 9, failed.

"That's weird," Hyun Sangmin muttered.

I glanced at him and said, "Wondering why there's a split in continent and country?"

Hyun Sangmin nodded. "I am, Boss. That's strange, isn't it?"

"It is a bit, but that's according to normal logic. In this world where people can become super human, if a person became so important... wouldn't their home country become a category of their own?"

Hyun Sangmin paused. "That make sense. But then... does that mean there's someone like that from Korea?"

I started to answer him, but then the blond maid started moving.

Seeing that, I followed, once more leading the group.

Red carpet was sprawled on the floor, leading to a large stage that seemed like a high-end theater with giant curtains upon the stage. A high ceiling that was difficult to make out from its sheer distance, faint luminescence giving the area a solemn atmosphere...

The maid led us to a row of six chairs located just before the stage. I took a seat in the third chair from the left. Immediately, Hyun Sangmin took the chair to my right, the Yi siblings the two chairs to my left, Shin Sang-Ah the second to last chair, and then Yun Seora on the outer edge.

When we were all seated, the maid climbed up the stage and disappeared behind the curtains.

Behind us, footsteps echoed. A large number of them.

Beside me, Hyun Sangmin turned around to look. "So those guys are the group from Europe, huh Boss?"

"Probably."

He glanced at me and then smiled. "Not even bothering to look at the competition?"

I closed my eyes and said, "My time is better put elsewhere."

"Ah, right. So a job for me, huh, Boss?"

I didn't respond, but from the shifting clothes beside me, it seemed like Hyun Sangmin took up the task for himself.

I took the time to take inventory of my abilities.

The energy core was slowly developing. The ambient mana in the air was fueling it, causing the star I was developing to grow. But there wasn't enough energy yet to collapse it and create a black hole like I wanted.

Unfortunate, but such was life.

The mana circuits I had were being continually refined though. I wouldn't have to worry about strain to my vision or anything in the near future.

Now then, since I had some time... The spell balls.

Those had been preprogrammed bursts of mana to execute a particular phenomenon.

While nobody was looking, I opened my bag to examine them and how they worked. In short: programming. Well, kind of.

They operated by using mana as a medium and then writing out some events in the spell balls, keeping it in an isolated boundary. Then, when that boundary broke, the stored phenomenon was unleashed, actualized into reality.

Like a bomb. The trigger was the moment the spell ball was thrown, breaking that boundary.

I didn't have the time to study the complex innerworkings just yet... but I did have enough to get the gist of how 'magic' worked.

In short, use mana as fuel and then apply 'logic' to execute a phenomenon. There were some weird calculations in the spell balls and symbols that let them work, but I didn't need to go that far.

After all, the laws of physics were universal.

For ice, use mana to drain heat away. Fire, use mana to oxidize. Lightning, convert it into electrons... so on and so forth.

Then-

A flash of lights.

I opened my eyes. When I did, I saw that the stage had become brightly lit, the curtains drawing back.

It seemed like the time for the orientation had begun.

xxx

There were nine maids lined up upon the stage. The blonde one from earlier was included, but there were other women that were unfamiliar. Despite that, they were all acting in unison, standing in matching outfits with their hands neatly folded and resting in front of their stomachs.

Behind them, sitting in a tall chair, there was a single woman. Unlike the others, she didn't wear a maid outfit. Instead, a thick coat hung loosely from her shoulders. Long, silky hair sprawled out beside her, carrying a hint of red, almost the color of blood.

It was clear that she was the one in charge.

While everyone was stunned, the maids started clapping their hands and singing.

As to what song, I had no idea. But it seemed that some other did and murmurs broke out through the room.

I didn't react, only carefully staring at the woman on the chair.

Her legs, covered by leather pants, were crossed, and her eyes were shut. Her face, a sharp beautiful visage, was calm and aloof. One of her arms rested on the chair, and she supported her head with her fist.

It was the posture of a 'King'. Someone used to ruling and power.

I narrowed my eyes, resisting the urge to examine her status.

Somehow, I had an intuition that she would notice.

As if reading my thoughts, the woman's eyes opened. Staring at me, her crimson lips twitched, as if amused. But that quickly faded.

At the same time, the musical number that the maids were doing came to an end.

The theatre was deathly silent. Perhaps stunned by the absurdity, perhaps intimidated by the woman's presence. Either way, there wasn't a single sound.

At that time, the woman uncrossed her legs and slowly rose. Her gaze, a heated stare that seemed like a predator surveying potential prey, swept across the room.

Most that met her gaze flinched, but a few didn't.

One was a girl in the row behind us with bright eyes and brown curled hair. Another was a Chinese man further back in a sharp suit.

As the woman stepped forward upon the stage, her gaze shifted, looking towards us. Or specifically, to the row behind us.

The girl I noted earlier was standing with her hand raised. Seeing the acknowledgement from the woman, the girl spoke up. "Are you also a Tutorial guide?"

Was it confidence, courage, or callousness?

Even while the woman stared at the girl with a sharp gaze, the girl didn't back down.

After a few moments, the woman reached into her coat a pulled out a cigarette. A brief flame erupted on the edge of the cigarette, lighting it. With that, a scar extending down from the woman's eye to her cheeks was revealed in its full glory.

Yet the girl continued with her actions, not backing down. "Or... What should I call you? Who are you?"

The woman tilted her head slightly to the back. With that, a maid standing two spots to the left of the blonde one stepped forward and said, "Area 2, Odelette Delphine."

On hearing that, the woman's gaze took a different light, carefully evaluating the girl, that Odelette Delphine. The woman took a deep breath from her cigarette and then let out a thin puff of blue smoke. "...Just call me Cinzia."

With that, Odelette lowered her hand.

[The synchronization will now commence]

The cold and callous system voice.

Like when I got the stamp, I felt divine power well up and try to force something within me. But I was ready for it this time.

Instead of letting it do as it did, the moment that power entered my body, I forced it into my core, churning it up with the star there.

There was resistance, as expected. But meeting that, I reversed my circuits and directed all of the flow of mana I had back towards the core.

With the increased energy, the divine power was forced to acquiesce and then collapsed into the star, trapped by its gravity.

But, just for good measure, I forced it further, pressing down against the star.

Was it because of the sudden increase? Or my increased control from healing Yun Seora?

Either way, there was a soft 'crack' and then the star collapsed, turning invisible. No, leaving a gaping hole.

At once, everything in my body turned calm. My circuits were empty- No, they contained empty space. A vacuum.

Mana- No, energy was still available to me. But it was thinner now. Refined, almost like a spider's thread.

I was curious, but I didn't dwell on it too long. There wasn't time to.

While everyone else staggered from the pain, I stood still and calm.

Something that the woman on the stage didn't miss. Her eye raised, and a brief approving look appeared before fading away.

Silence fell in the auditorium again, no doubt as a result of the synchronization finishing. With that, the woman lowered her cigarette and said, "I guess the synchronization was delayed somewhat. Oh well, I'm sure you can all understand me now."

Cinzia smiled, a sly expression like a predator toying with their prey. "As a show of respect for you all not raising a fuss regarding the synchronization, I'll let you know something important before we start: I don't like beating around the bush. Also, you should have a general idea of what this place is by now... so I'll get straight to the point."

Cinzia stepped forward again, standing at the edge of the stage, and then spoke in a low but powerful voice. "This place is the sanctuary created through the combined powers of the seven deities, called the Neutral Zone. In this place, all of you hall be given the chance to prove that you are capable of surviving in Paradise. You've all received your Survival Points, right?"

Silence.

Cinzia shrugged and continued speaking. "Long story short, you must increase your points to over 1000. That is the only way to leave this Neutral Zone. Although we've prepared various methods to increase your points tally, we are not going to mind other ways you cook up yourselves. However, you only have one month to do so."

A commotion began to stir. A quick glance around showed most people irritated at those words, upset. But there were a few who were calm, as if they had heard ahead of time.

"U-Um, Mister Seol?" A faint whisper from my left.

I glanced over to see Yi Seol-Ah looking at me with concerned eyes.

"Did you know about this?"

I paused and said, "I suspected as much. And I also suspect some people won't be happy about it."

As if to meet my words, a man stood up in the back and started arguing with Cinzia.

"But..." Yi Seol-Ah frowned. "1000 points..."

I shook my head and said, "It won't be too bad. If you work hard and do things properly, you should be able to do it even with zero points. It'll just be harder. Furthermore..." I glanced at her and said, "I still have to compensate you for my mistake, so don't worry about it too much."

"E-Eh? What do you-"

"...I think you're all misunderstanding something here." Cinzia's cold voice cut through the air.

Yi Seol-Ah flinched and leaned back.

Cinzia took a long draught from her cigarette before sweeping her gaze across the audience. When she did, she said, "The official title of this land is Lost Paradise. Got that?" She lowered her cigarette and said, "Did you all think that because it's called 'Paradise' you would get to ride in rollercoasters and have a jolly good time? You all better wake up."

"Pft." I couldn't help but laugh at that comparison.

Rollercoaster and a jolly good time... that was definitely a way to phrase it.

"O-Oi, Boss!" Hyun Sangmin's concerned voice called out from the side.

Deathly silence. Cinzia's gaze instantly locked onto my own.

I stared back, a relaxed smile on my faze.

"You're..." She muttered and then a strange glimmer shone in her eyes. "Ah. Yes, you may find all of this rather... adorable. Even so, you should try to understand. No matter how careful the selection process was, there will always be some dirt that manages to escape the filtering."

"I'm aware, Miss Cinzia."

Her lips twitched at my response, but she turned her attention back to the Area 4 and the one who started the argument with her. "You are going to go through a lot of hardship, that's for sure. To get to 1000 points from 0... That isn't going to be a walk in the park."

With those words, several people visibly flinched.

Cinzia tossed her cigarette on the ground and crushed it. "This is the consequence of your own actions. Who told you to get a free pass through the Tutorial?"

Yi Seol-Ah paled, but glancing at me again, she calmed down.

Cinzia sighed and muttered, "Now that we're here, we might as well get the awards ceremony done and dusted too. If there's someone deserving of punishment, then there should be others deserving of rewards..."

Cinzia reached into her coat and pulled out a piece of paper. "From now, if I call out your name, stand up. Area 5, Tong Chai?"

A thin man wearing a white turban stood up.

Cinzia looked to him and said, "You already meet the requirements. If you want, you can enter Paradise right away."

"I choose to remain."

"Then, take this." Cinzia threw something at the man.

"Hm?" He easily snatched it out of the air and said, "What's this?"

Cinzia scoffed. "What, a member of the assassination squad is asking for info?" She shook her head and said, "If you're really curious, ask your maid standing behind me later. Area 2, Salvatore Leorda."

A man with a buzz-cut stood up.

Cinzia didn't bother saying anything and just threw something at him. When the man caught it, he bowed slightly and sat back down.

"Area 7, Hao Win."

A Chinese man with good physique and appearing in his mid-thirties stood up.

Cinzia stared at him and said, "Seeing how you carry yourself, I can easily guess where you're from. So, will you be staying?"

"That is a foolish question." The man named Hao Win let out a refreshing smile and said, "I will be staying, of course."

"Okay. And then... Area 2, Odelette Delphine."

"I'm also staying." The girl answered right away and then was tossed an object as well. After grabbing it, she quickly raised her hand up high. "Excuse me for a second!"

"Mm?"

Odelette shook her head and said, "I think you gave me the wrong one because it says No. 2 on the plate."

"Nope." Cinzia shook her head. "I know full well that you earned 7500 points."

Gasps and murmurs erupted at that statement. Most of the crowd turned to stare at Odelette. Even Hyun Sangmin.

"Damn. That girl earned 7500 points?" Hyun Sangmin frowned and looked at me. "How many did you earn, Boss? With everything you did, you've got to have earned a lot, right?"

"I-"

Cinzia shook her head. "Unfortunately for you, while that would have been enough to get you to the top of the rankings in any other year, it's only enough for second place this time." She shifted her gaze to me and said, "Area 1-"

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I stood up and then nodded. "I'm staying here."

Odelette frowned and looked to me. "How many points did that guy receive, then?"

"You shouldn't even ask," Cinzia said. "Even just tallying up the original points, it's over double your original total."

"W-Wow..." Odelette muttered.

Cinzia tossed something towards me.

Was it because she wanted to test me out?

Unlike the others, this toss was done at a blinding speed.

I instinctively reacted and slowed it down with mana before grabbing it out of the air. When I did, I glanced at it, seeing that it was a key with a golden number one engraved on the attached plate.

"Hoh." Cinzia looked impressed and said, "It's already impressive that your tiny country earned the right to recruit people independently, but now a second Irregular has appeared..."

Because of her words, I felt countless eyes on me. I ignored them and picked up my bag.

"Boss?" Hyun Sangmin looked at me.

"Get up. It's about time to go."

"H-Huh? But-"

Cinzia waved her hand, causing the maids to hurriedly descend from the stage and move to either side of the audience area. That done, she looked down on everyone and said, "What are you all doing? Stand up! The countdown to the month's deadline has begun already. What, you want me to spoon feed you everything you need before you'll start moving your asses?" She noticed me already moving and gave me a brief nod before glaring at everyone else.

The blonde maid for our group walked over to a different doorway, waiting there.

I followed after her.

xxx

"This is the Neutral Zone?" Yi Seol-Ah gasped and said, "It's amazing!"

"Tell me about it." Hyun Sangmin muttered and said, "That guy didn't tell me anything about this."

A super-massive department store. That was the best way to describe the place. A circular and terraced building with spiraling staircases leading all the way up.

Although we were on the inside, I didn't need to see to know that it would have looked like the Tower of Babel on the outside.

"Well," Hyun Sangmin said. "I think I've done enough mooching off of you, Boss." He turned towards me and said, "It's about time I start doing my own thing, so I'll get going first."

I nodded to him and said, "Take care. Feel free to contact me if you need help."

The man laughed, adjusting his cap, and then walked off, waving his hand.

Shin Sang-Ah sighed and said, "I should get going too." She turned to me and bowed. "Thank you for everything up to this point, Mister Seol. Ah! And about the sword-"

"Keep it." I nodded and said, "And work hard. I don't want to be associated with a bunch of losers, you know?"

She laughed and then walked off. "I'll pay you back sometime!"

With that, it was just the Yi siblings and Yun Seora.

Yun Seora stared at me for a few moments before bowing her head slightly. That done, she left as well.

That left just the Yi siblings, Sungjin and Seol-Ah.

"Mister Seol, um..." Seol-Ah looked at me, her eyes showing she was clearly overwhelmed. "What... What do we do?"

"Noona!" Sungjin looked at his sister and then shook her head. "Sorry, Hyung. We won't bother you any longer-"

"No. It's fine." I glanced at them and said, "Transfer 1000 points to Yi Seol-Ah and Yi Sungjin."

A message popped up showing that the points had been transferred.

"E-Eh?"

"Wh-What? Hyung, this...?"

The two stared at me in shock.

I shook my head and said, "This isn't charity, but an investment." I looked at Yi Sungjin and said, "You're quick-witted and adaptable. As for you." I looked at Yi Seol-Ah and said, "I've got a feeling that you pick up things fast as well."

Yi Seol-Ah shook her head. "I... I don't think that I'm that incredible, Mister Seol."

Yi Sungjin bowed his head. "Hyung..."

"Hey. Don't thank me. If you really want to show your gratitude, get strong enough to stand beside me. You heard Miss Cinzia, right? This place might be relatively safe, but outside is a warzone. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't protect you. And you shouldn't be expecting someone to protect you either. Help, yes, but protect... You can only count on yourself for that."

Sungjin clenched his hands. "Hyung...!"

"Mister Seol..."

I stared at them and then said, "This is the last bit of help from me. Invest in a place to stay, since the higher quality rest will pay dividends. Don't cheap out on food. And then take the basic quests to learn how to fight before jumping into anything dangerous. You two aren't like me, so you'll need to start up from scratch. And it's important to lay the foundation down right. Understand?"

"Yes, Hyung!"

"Understood, Mister Seol!"

The pair of siblings responded with a spirited voice.

I smiled and then said, "Good. Then I'll see you around... Ah. And make sure to watch out for each other. People here... Well, power without consequences tends to draw out the worst in people so be careful."

With those words, I gave the two a wave and then started walking on my own to take a look around.

-In truth, I would have preferred for all of us to stick together again since they were the only people I knew here. But that would only lead to disaster later.

I knew it already. With my abilities and talents, I was bound to draw attention. Thus, in order to make sure the people I cared about were safe, I had to ensure they could protect themselves.

Hyun Sangmin and Shin Sang-Ah seemed to have already understood that since they set out for themselves.

The Yi siblings hadn't, but it seemed like they got the message now.

I walked around the edge of the ground floor and headed for the upper staircase, intending to go take a look at the shops. Before I made it a few steps though, someone approached me.

"How do you do?"

A polite greeting with a calm and dignified voice.

I paused and glanced over to see a woman walking towards me, wearing a maid outfit.

A neatly tied blonde ponytail, a pair of sharp glasses and a refined but stern face.

It was the maid that called out Odelette Delphine's name.

I nodded my head towards her and said, "Hey."

She bowed her head slightly and said, "I'm called Agnes. If it's okay with you, I'd like the honor of guiding you around this facility."

I shrugged and said, "Sure. It'd save me some time to figure it out myself."

Not only that, but... Agnes, huh? If I remembered right...

[Claire Agnes]
Cinzia's right hand.
Fearsome trainer.
Infamous enforcer.

Yep. That was her. The person who whipped Seol into shape in the beginning.

Agne's complexion brightened and she raised her head. "In that case-" Just as she started to speak, her face stiffened.

I followed her gaze to see the familiar blonde maid from earlier.

Agnes tensed and said, "M-Maria. I know that Area 1 isn't my jurisdiction. But the Tutorial has ended already. Isn't it fine to yield this-"

"Don't fuck around." The blonde maid stepped forward, physically standing between me and Agnes.

Agnes narrowed her eyes and said, "You're still as coarse as ever, I see."

Maria stuck up her middle fingers at Agnes.

Agnes let out a soft sigh and bowed towards me before resolutely walking off.

Maria watched her leave and then said, "Still with that disgusting habit of trying to wag your tail everywhere, you Sicilian bitch." With a 'hmph' she turned around to look at me. As if the previous attitude was a lie, she let out a refreshing bright smile and said, "Well, then. Allow me to guide you."

"Heh." I shook my head and said, "So that's why you weren't talking. Trying to fix a habit of bad words?"

Maria blinked and then laughed. "Well. I knew you were good, but you're pretty sharp."

"I try. Then... How about we grab a drink first?" I glanced over to the corner and said, "That's the cafeteria, right?"

"Ooh, you know just how to treat a lady." She smiled and said, "I think we'll get along just fine."

xxx

"...And that's the gist of it. Any questions?" Maria sipped on her drink and then turned around to look at me.

I chugged my coffee and shook my head. "That covers it."

"Great! It'd be a pain to have to repeat myself. I'm glad you aren't an idiot." Maria went back to sipping her drink and then walked up a staircase.

I followed after her and then glanced around.

After the cafeteria and a brief explanation of how things worked, Maria offered to show me to my room, giving me a brief run down on stores and facilities we passed along the way.

Maria glanced back and said, "You made a really wise decision to stay behind, you know? Once you leave the Neutral Zone, it's really, really difficult to get back in. Since you're here, and since you have all those benefits... Might as well suck out every bit you can, right?"

"Mmhm. And in doing so, you get a cut of everything I do too, right?"

Maria tensed and then laughed. "Ah. So you saw through that, did you?"

I shrugged. "It doesn't matter to me. It's a win-win situation, and I'm not losing anything in particular. Though." I narrowed my eyes. "That will change if you try to cheat me."

Maria coughed and said, "I would never!"

"So long as we're clear."

"A-Anyway," Maria said. "The upper floors are reserved for people who earned over 1000 points in the Tutorial. As for you, the number one spot... Ta-dah!" Maria stopped in front of a door with a '1' engraved on it.

I pulled out my key and then glanced at it. "So this is my room, huh?"

"Yep." Maria nodded and then fumbled around her dress. After a bit, she pulled out a pamphlet and handed it to me. "That should answer any further questions you have. If you need anything else though, keep me in mind!"

With that, Maria gave me a short bow and walked off.

I took the pamphlet and tucked it away before opening my room.

Inside...

"...I'll be damned. This is possible?"

xxx

A room that stretched on almost forever and could better be called a one story house with how wide it was. No, even some houses weren't as spacious.

To put it into perspective, it was wide enough to host an Olympic race around its perimeter.

Crystal sculptures and beautiful paintings lined the walls while a sparkling chandelier dangled high above.

Off to the sides, I noticed a few doors that probably led to the bathroom and a smaller bedroom.

But... that was it.

No electronics, no television... nothing like that.

It seemed luxurious, but it was only to the standard of someone not used to modern facilities.

Well, that wasn't true. The air here was filled with some sort of mana that seemed to speed up recovery and relaxation, but other than that, it was barren.

I sighed and immediately turned around to leave.

For now... I suppose it was time to start training.

xxx

Back on the ground floor.

In the central plaza, a crowd still surrounded the mission notice-board. However, it had thinned from the initial crowd to only a few stragglers.

A few of them glanced at me as I approached and then looked curious.

That was obvious. They were all probably wondering what I would choose.

I walked forward and the crowd parted, making room for me.

Once there, I stood in front of the board and scanned the missions.

It was a simple procedure. Find a mission that you wanted to take and rip the paper in half. Once you did, it would teleport you to where the mission would take place.

A lot of the missions allowed cooperation as well, but even then you could only have party members from the same area of up to half the allowed participants.

Of course, that didn't mean that a person couldn't do any mission alone.

From top to bottom, the missions were graded 'Impossible', 'Hard', 'Normal', 'Easy', and 'Very Easy'. As expected, the rewards scaled with the difficulty, with the easiest missions providing a single point to the single impossible mission providing 178000.

Of course, that Impossible mission was glowing a vivid crimson color, so I stayed away from it.

I had an idea of what to expect from the novel, and I also knew that it would be hard to complete... Mostly because I lacked the paper talisman that Seol had.

Of course, that wasn't to say I couldn't beat it. Just not yet.

In that case...

Missions about surviving on a mountain top. Going through a maze. Combat against various monsters...

Ah.

[Survive the horde of orcs! (Remaining number of attempts 10/10)]

Withstand the horde of approaching orc army until nightfall or defeat them!

Difficulty: Very Hard

When successful: +10000 survival points

When unsuccessful: Death

Cooperation allowed (Up to 6 people)

"Hm..." I used Nine Eyes to glance at the mission notice, but it didn't change colors. Not red, orange, or even yellow.

Of course, it was possible that it was a color I hadn't unlocked, so I used my other sight as well.

[Survive the orcs mission]
An army of 1000 orc soldiers. Duration of 6 hours.
Not dangerous even in the worst scenario.

An evaluation that told me it was a cinch. Not only that, but the sheer number of targets...

"Alright," I muttered. "Let's try this."

Without hesitation, I reached out and tore the paper in half.

I heard a few people gasp in shock as I did, before I knew it, I vanished.

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