Episode 5: Citizenship / Chapter 78: Musical Chairs (1)

TL: emptycube

ED: Obelisk

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That day, the sun had momentarily lost its light. As if a light switch had been flipped, the sun suddenly turned off. Instead, an aurora was cast over the entire Earth. It was as if the clothes of god or the dance of spirits had been cast on the sky. It was as if spirits were showering.

The aurora, which was Latin for dawn, swayed and shone above the heads of people who were celebrating the fifth advancement evaluation victory.

“I never thought there would be a day where I’d see an aurora in Seoul.”

The aurora, which started off green, shortly changed its color. It gradually became redder, and from red, it changed to pink before turning yellow at its ends. The morning aurora changed into the color of a sunset, and the 63 Building and Han River shined alongside it.

This ridiculous combination in the sky made even those who shut themselves at home come out and look up at the sky.

Even people in windowless study rooms were pulled by an unknown premonition and stood below the aurora-splashed sky.

The aurora swayed as it slowly began to form letters. Letters which didn’t exist on Earth. However, for some reason, even children, who had yet to learn to read, were able to read the letters.

{We sincerely welcome you on joining the Flame Wing Alliance. Let us fight together until the day of eternal victory. We hope that peace and prosperity will cover the entire universe.}

{A notice from the Alliance’s 103rd Barred Spiral Galaxy Administration Bureau.}

——————–

1. Currently, Earth is in the process of extinction. That is to say, this was an inevitable decision so earthlings could carry out the alliance’s monster-fighting missions, and using your obtainment of alliance membership as an opportunity to look back, this will not be repeated.

The karma extracted from Earth will be prioritized for the awakening of earthlings and the dimensional teleportations used to carry out missions. The rest will be used as necessary resources to investigate other karmalings and to have them take part in this sacred war.

There are 1,197 days until the complete extinction of Earth, and due to the fact that after 900 days Earth will become a land uninhabitable by living beings, we hope that you will hasten your colonization and migration to the planet ‘Dragonic’.

However, if the migration is taking longer than expected, you can file a claim to the alliance, asking for the postponement of Earth’s extinction.

2. As alliance members, all earthlings have the right to be respected and protected according to alliance law. However, following the decision of the top legislative organization of the alliance, the ‘Brain’, the earthling’s exercisable rights will be limited. All rights of earthlings will be entrusted to seven sovereigns. Those who do not have the approval of the selected sovereigns will not be able to, among others, exercise their rights of using the supply store, entering other planets, picking missions, establishment and suggestion of tactics.

3. Because earthlings need to choose the seven sovereigns whom they will entrust their rights to by themselves, this will be done through a self-application process. Any earthling, who possesses an occupation as a sovereign, will be able to apply to be one of the seven sovereigns. The list of applicants and their current locations will be revealed and constantly updated. Anyone will be able to read the current list of applicants simply by thinking of it in their minds. In the case there are more than seven sovereigns, no sovereign applications will be accepted. Also, as it is expected that there will be many applicants during this first time, we hope that you understand we will only record the seven chosen sovereigns once a 24-hour-period has passed without any additional applicants.

4. Hostile actions between alliance members are absolutely forbidden. In fact, as the laws that apply to you are now different from when you were outside the law as consumables, from now on, we hope that you will pay special attention so that there are no clashes between other alliance members. However, the alliance will not interfere in conflicts between earthlings as we consider them internal affairs.

——————–

That was what was written.

People absentmindedly looked up at the sky which contained the shining aurora. Soon, the aurora disappeared, and the sky returned to its normal hue. However, as if those sentences had been engraved in their minds, they didn’t forget them.

The advancement evaluation which had snatched away almost half the total population...caution spread between the joy of surviving through this ordeal.

**

“I think I can smell the stench of blood already?”

Alexei sniffed his nose.

“Don’t say such unlucky things,”

Criticized Lee Jinhee as she jumped over a gap between two tall buildings.

“But, this is no joke. I really think that tons of people are going to die this time. The moment the announcement appeared, all 40 existing sovereigns applied. Although some came to an agreement nicely amongst themselves... From the start, the announcement stated, ‘We will not interfere in disputes between earthlings.’ Then there will undoubtedly be sovereigns who fight with their all. Also, our leader will definitely be on the side of fighting with his all.”

“... Yeah, you go ahead and kill a lot.”

“Ah... That...”

Alexei, who knew Lee Jinhee’s hate in killing humans, showed an uneasy expression. He had misspoken. Although it couldn’t be helped, there was no need to remind her of it.

“It’s fine. Alexei. Don’t follow me. I have somewhere to go.”

Lee Jinhee didn’t even call him by his nickname, ‘Lyosha’. She was upset. Then-

Thump!

She stomped on the roof banisters as she began to jump over three to four buildings at a time. This wasn’t a speed Alexei could follow.

“Euack! I’m sorry!”

He shouted as he tried to catch up, but Lee Jinhee didn’t turn back as she went further away.

Alexei mumbled,

“Ah... Damn it.”

However, he didn’t stop running. Since he already knew where she was going and-

historical

“I need to help her as best as I can today.”

Since he knew better than anyone that she didn’t have a harsh personality.

A fast pace. It felt good as the wind brushed past his ear. Then, at some point, the stench of blood permeated in the wind.

<>

The moment he thought he heard the screams of patients, who had been sliced and ripped apart, they filled his vision.

The number of casualties after every advancement evaluation was incredible. The survival rate hung at 1/3 each time. The third advancement evaluation the Camilla clan participated in was known to be especially fierce, and the rate of beginner warriors who returned alive was only 10%. It was the same during the fourth advancement evaluation Choi Hyuk participated in. The reason why they said that the survival rate was high for that evaluation was not because the survival rate was actually high, but because they had expected for them to all have died, yet a lot more than expected had actually returned alive. Even if they had wasp-hunting items, there were still many casualties, and the majority of survivors were wounded because civilians, who have never fought a monster in their lives before, suddenly had to fight 1-star monsters and above.

This had all taken place in only 17 days. It was a very short time.

However, over two billion people had ceased to exist due to their losses. That number easily overcame the number of deaths accumulated by the bubonic plague, measles, and other infectious diseases over a long period of time. Tens of millions of the people, who chose to participate and fight, had either died or were wounded. A number comparable to the world wars had either been killed or wounded in half a month.

Still, although people began to return to their daily lives, it had become difficult for society to maintain its various functions. This was especially the case in what was currently the biggest issue, medical treatment.

Although the number of doctors and nurses who had simply ceased to exist were critical, if they also considered the pharmaceutical companies, the companies who produced and repaired medical equipment, the companies that supplied raw material for these companies, and each and every transportation company, there was not one company that was functioning properly. Additionally, because of all this, it was impossible for hospitals to run properly. However, there were more wounded people than at any other time.

This was precisely the reason why the only healer in Korea, Bae Jinman, spent his days in the streets.

He set up a treatment center amongst empty offices to take care of those who weren’t accepted into hospitals, and anyone who possessed some medical knowledge was able to come out and tend to the wounded.

There was a pungent stench of blood. As long as they had awakened, most wounds would close after time passed. However, the healing abilities of the beginner warriors were weak, and on the other hand, the wounds they suffered were fatal, such as severed limbs and spilled guts. If they were civilians, these wounds would have killed them already, but they were able to endure it with their regenerative abilities. They moaned in pain as they waited for their turn even though it was unknown when that would be. Volunteers carried patients, who seemed close to dying, to Bae Jinman.

“Move! Move! Emergency patient!”

Lee Jinhee piggybacked a patient who had gone into shock and rushed into the lobby of the large building which was Bae Jinman’s treatment center. Ever since the advancement evaluation began, she had always volunteered to move patients.

Thud!

Lee Jinhee, who roughly opened the door and entered, opened her mouth at the sight in front of her. It was because the fourth and fifth advancement evaluations had occurred one after another. The number of patients reached a point of helplessness. The wide lobby was completely filled with patients that there wasn’t a single place to step. All of them were in a critical state, almost about to die. No, there were people who had already died. Blood, blood, there was blood everywhere.

Now that she looked, there were dying patients lined up outside the building as well.

“Grrr...”

The patient on her back let out a strange sound. Before he had been screaming in pain, but now he let out an ominous sound. It was critical. Feeling the warm blood wetting her back, it seemed he was spilling a lot of blood.

Tears welled up in her eyes. What was more hellish than war was what came afterwards. The despairs which repeated persistently and didn’t die down in a day or two.

“Mister. Pull yourself together. Okay? Mister. Don’t lose your mind. Karma is a power that reacts to your mind. Mister.”

She didn’t dare shake him. As she called out to him with her voice, she felt a heavy sense of hopelessness. Although Bae Jinman could treat people with his karma, Lee Jinhee couldn’t. Her karma trait was ‘Explosive Blood’. If she inserted her karma into healthy people, it may prove fatal.

As it was incredibly difficult to obtain a karma trait that could help others recover, there were only two healers in South Korea. As Choi Hyuk’s mother had passed away, the only remaining one was Bae Jinman.

“Can’t we cultivate healers like the Camilla clan...”

As she said this in a sullen voice, she felt the patient on her back becoming cold. The life on her back was in the middle of flickering out.

Even if she had experienced it multiple times, it was tragic every time. Lee Jinhee absolutely hated the feeling of someone dying on her back. Yet, she couldn’t bring herself to let him down either. He would die either way. This had simply occurred suddenly.

“Wait.”

Then someone placed his hand on the patient on her back. Seeing as their language resonance activated, it seemed he was a foreigner and not Korean. Then-

{Recover}

With the activation word, he activated a healing skill.

Whoosh.

Green light surged. Lee Jinhee thought the light was similar to the aurora she had seen not long before.

“Grr... Eeuuu... Ah..”

Hwoo, haa.

As the light gradually died down, the patient, who had been screaming strangely, regained strength in his voice. He breathed comfortably.

The man that healed the patient asked,

“Whew~ That was lucky. Is this the treatment center Guardian Bae Jinman resides?”

He was a middle-aged man with green eyes. He grew a graying beard on his chin.

“Ah, yes... And you are?”

“I am a healer from the Camilla Clan, Le Guin. I have been sent here as a show of respect to the Berserk Sovereign, who took part in the fourth advancement evaluation.”

“Hee... The leader?”

“Ah, are you a Berserker? Anyways, I was surprised. When I met with the Berserk Sovereign, he suddenly told me to go find Mr. Bae Jinman. For South Korea’s only healer to be under the command of the Berserk Sovereign... If you don’t mind me saying, there was a bit of an image gap. Haha.”

Le Guin said this in a friendly manner,

“Then, it looks like there’s a lot of work... Let’s meet again.”

And went inside the building. Now that she looked around, she saw figures with the Camilla’ clan’s leaf emblem here and there. They appeared suddenly before mixing with the patients without any hesitation. They skillfully stanched bleeding wounds, and although it was unknown where they procured it, they administered antibiotics and pain killers.

“Woah... How wonderful.”

Lee Jinhee’s heart, which had become depressed due to the endless fighting and killing of people recently, slightly relaxed from the heartwarming feeling.

Alexei, who had found Lee Jinhee a little late, hit his chest with a thud.

“Hey. Stop beating so fast.”

Patients were everywhere, as were volunteers and Camilla clan members who took care of them, and Lee Jinhee, who stood in the middle, wiped the sweat from her forehead. The sunlight was incredible as well.

“... It would be great if this mood continued. Instead of fighting between one another.”

Even though he was only a 15-years-old youth, Alexei was still well aware that the way in which the world was run was somewhat insane. Even still, because he liked seeing this scene, because he like seeing Lee Jinhee’s smile, he sincerely wished... that the seven sovereigns could be elected without anyone dying.