Ex-level Player With the Greatest Civilization of All Time - Chapter 109

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 109

Miller, watching Neia’s broadcast, jolted in alarm.
“What… what was that just now?”
Something surged up from nowhere mid-raid and swallowed Neia whole.
Unlike Miller, James knew exactly what it was.
“Gluttony….”
Miller was ordinarily indifferent to others’ affairs.
Yet this time, for some reason, he was visibly agitated.
True, he’d watched Neia throughout the raid with considerable interest—but it had been nothing more than that, mere fascination.
He shouldn’t have been reacting this violently.
Even if Gluttony’s assault had been sudden, this frantic restlessness was strange…
‘Didn’t see that coming.’
James observed this unfamiliar side of Miller and spoke.
“Calm down, first.”
“Will calming down bring back the Afterimage Sword? Or did Neia already transfer it somewhere else?”
Only then did James grasp the true gravity of the situation.
He’d been too distracted by Miller’s unexpected display to catch on sooner.
But now that he thought about it, this was far from ordinary.

【Sword Spirit’s Afterimage Sword】

For the Arc Guild, that item above all others had to be secured at this auction.
If things went this way, in the worst case…
“The item could vanish entirely.”
All the goods were in Neia’s possession.
If he met his end consumed by Gluttony, the auction would fall through completely.
And the recruitment of Neia that James had been patiently pursuing all this time would also come to nothing.
“We can’t just sit idle.”
Of course, Neia was strong.
That was precisely why James held faith that he might escape the crisis through his own strength.
But if he didn’t?
Multiple layers of loss.
All the patience thus far would be for nothing—something that could not be overlooked.
“We go to his aid.”
It would certainly work in the guild’s favor from a pure calculation of gains and losses.
And it would be a fine opportunity to build more goodwill with Neia while they were at it.
“Well decided. Let’s move at once.”
“If the director has decided, then we go.”
Just as Miller and Jake began preparations in response to James’s words.
Jake, manipulating the status window, froze.
In his rush to act, he’d overlooked one critical detail.
“The Outer Tower… how do we get there?”
As senior executives of the Arc Guild,
they had access to all manner of intelligence.
Yet even they had never once heard any practical information about the Outer Tower.
The question was: where even was it?
At times like this, his own exceptional nature was quite the hindrance.
“We should ask the Mir Guild.”
Both men’s attention snapped toward James.
“I hear they’re collaborating on something. Neia’s entry into the Outer Tower was part of that project.”
“They’d certainly have a lead.”
James connected to the secretariat and issued an order.
“Get me the Mir Guild’s contact information. One minute.”

* * *

Rewind the clock a little.
About thirty minutes after the incident began.
Kang Se-hyun was enduring quite an ordeal.
Two people had stormed into his office.
Cha Seong-hun and Yoo Se-ra seized him by the collar, shaking him relentlessly.
“Tell us where that place is, right now!”
“Just tell us—there’s no time!”
Despite having his collar grabbed, Kang Se-hyun spoke with characteristic calm.
“I understand you’re upset, but let’s compose ourselves first. That location is the 50th Floor.”
His meaning was simple enough.
Even if they rushed there, they might not be able to help much in the end.
Floor Penalty.
The only saving grace was that it was a location accessible by elevator—but…
Safety couldn’t be overlooked in any course of action.
“So you’re saying we should just leave it as is?”
“That’s not what I mean, but charging in blindly like this would be reckless. At minimum, we should prepare appropriate gear before—”
Kang Se-hyun was in the middle of persuading them both.
Just then, the secretary’s office called.
“What…? The Arc Guild…?”
Cha Seong-hun and Yoo Se-ra perked up.
They’d just heard something from Kang Se-hyun that wasn’t easy to dismiss.
“The Arc Guild?”
“What did they say?”
“They said they’d help Neia and are demanding we hand over information about the Outer Tower.”
The shock hit Kang Se-hyun hard.
Did he have such deep connections with the Arc Guild…?
But once the surprise faded, pure joy took its place.
He had no confidence in conquering Gluttony alone either.
For someone whose aim was the complete activation of the Elevator, this was welcome news.
Hope was beginning to take shape.
The Arc Guild’s power would prove more valuable than anyone else here.
“We’ve arranged to meet the Arc Guild in Ollia in thirty minutes. Both of you should prepare your gear as well.”
Cha Seong-hun and Yoo Se-ra replied.
“Understood.”
“I will.”

* * *

Four hours into the battle with Gluttony.
Ar’s Ultra-High Energy Particle Cannon severed Gluttony clean through.
The Seisrunner’s Meteor Cannon crashes down from the sky.
Gluttony writhes as if in agony.
But that’s only a brief phenomenon.
Soon it swallows the drones.
Trees.
Animals and monsters.
Devouring everything in its path, it recovers its strength.
Of course, they haven’t given up trying to prevent that creature’s obscene regeneration.
“Haa… haa…”
Krail’s left eye was starting to dim, and he was barely holding on by pushing his output to the limit.
Perfection beyond this was impossible.
Whiiiing—
Booom-boom-boom-boom—
Sermin’s Shock Wave.
Gluttony’s body ruptures.
Truly devastating power.
But Gluttony recovers once more.
Krail’s expression hardened at the sight.
‘It’s definitely diminishing.’
But the rate of reduction wasn’t something to celebrate.
It was agonizingly slow.
Gluttony remained massive.
At this rate, their energy would be depleted first.
Boom— boom-boom—
Gluttony staggered again, struck by the Meteor Cannon barrage.
“…….”
Krail read the battle’s trajectory and his expression hardened.
The City’s power reserves were not infinite.
He had conveyed this concern to Neia, but—

『…Meteor Cannon coordinates aligned, firing.』

No response came back.
At that moment, Krail understood with certainty.
Neia had already done the math.
If this continued, the City would shut down before Gluttony fell.
But knowing that, she couldn’t stop.
She was an AI who protected the Successor.
Just as it was true for them, or rather far more true for her, nothing took priority over him.
Yet precisely because of that, he had to speak now.
If the City shut down like this, the Successor’s survival rate would truly become zero.
“Administrator, I recommend a tactical withdrawal.”

『Seisrunner-001, Seisrunner-002, Meteor Cannon firing. Brace for impact.』

Neia ignored Krail’s words and pressed the offensive.
“Administrator, a strategic retreat is necessary at this juncture. If the City powers down as things stand, the Successor will truly be finished. However, if we conserve energy and launch another assault afterward….”

『Seisrunner-003, -004, Meteor Cannon firing.』

“Administrator!”
At Krail’s sharp call, Neia finally opened her voice channel.

『The probability of the Successor surviving until then is low. Krail, your energy reserves are precarious.』

“Is that truly the case?”

『It is.』

“What are the odds then? How much chance do we have?”

『Based on my analysis of the current battle state, I estimate our win probability at approximately fifteen percent.』

Low.
The kind of number where failure was practically guaranteed.
Yet Krail’s lips curved upward.
“That’s enough to wager on.”
Neia was right.
If they withdrew and regrouped, it would take at least half a day, no matter how quickly they moved.
There was no guarantee the Successor would remain safe until then.
Which made fifteen percent, paradoxically, a high probability.
And precisely because of that, it was worth burning through every resource the City had.
“Forgive me.”
Yet in the same breath, Krail felt regret wash over him.
His poor judgment had lowered the operation’s success rate.
In doing so, it had lowered the Successor’s chance of survival.
It was because Krail had judged that Neia was making a tactical error, driven by the urgency of rescuing the Successor.
But the truth was different.
He now realized his silence had been calculated—a consideration of how his own belief that they should stake everything on a mere fifteen percent would affect the unit’s morale.
“From now on, I’ll trust your judgment entirely.”
Though whether there would be a “from now on” remained uncertain.

Neia spoke in a subdued voice.

“All forces present. There is no retreat. Please fight.”

Ar’s Ultra-High Energy Particle Cannon suddenly surged with increased output.
Sermin unleashed another Shock Wave in rapid succession.
Krail, operating Aegis at maximum capacity, desperately blocked the barbed spines of Gluttony as it tried to regenerate.
Pluto’s movements grew sharper, more fluid.
The unit’s morale soared.

“Tia, I’m firing the Meteor Cannon at the next coordinates. Cover me.”

It was the moment when, for the sake of a single person, hope reignited in an operation that bordered on suicide.
Slash—
A Gluttony larger than the City itself was suddenly cleaved in two.
It was the result of Miller’s Sword Strike.
Before the severed mass could reform, it froze solid.
James’s Magic.
And beyond them, additional firepower arrived to turn the tide of battle.
Kang Seong-hun, Mir Guild, Nakhwa.
Neia swiftly integrated their unexpected arrival into her power calculations, reassessing the odds of victory.

Fifty-one percent.
The odds had improved.

*

“At last… I’ve arrived.”

Two hours of steady progress toward the Core Center.
I reached my destination.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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