A Veteran Player is Needed in the Apocalypse

Chapter 43. How Did You Know

“Not sure if everyone has heard yet…”

Anton, the leader of the pro-Daphne faction, spoke while seating his faction’s executives at the round table.

“They say that executives are prohibited from participating in the upcoming subjugation.”

The executives stirred at his words.

“Are they trying to exclude us?”

“That’s not the case. It’s not just us—Luna Moon’s hounds are also banned from participating.”

Upon hearing that the pro-Hayden faction’s executives were also prohibited from joining, the pro-Daphne executives exchanged puzzled glances.

“Then are all the executives…?”

“Why are they banning us? It’s true we don’t have much to do, but it’s not like we’re causing any trouble.”

“They said this subjugation will be carried out by a select few elite members.”

“A select few elite…?”

Anton clicked his tongue and spoke.

“It’s that Haydam kid. He’s made such a show because he desperately wants to go on this subjugation.”

“……”

The executives present couldn’t say anything, reading Anton’s mood. However, it was already common knowledge across the Academy and all of Cola Zone that Haydam had defeated Anton’s son, Plato, during the training simulation.

A kid who stands out.

I thought he might have a political agenda.

But I didn’t expect it would lead to banning executives from the subjugation.

“Why would they bother banning us? It doesn’t matter if we go or not.”

“If the pro-Commander faction’s executives are also banned, we don’t really have grounds to protest.”

“That’s what makes the kid so cunning.”

Anton continued in a calm tone.

“As you said, we have no grounds to protest. If we insist that we must participate in the subjugation now, we’ll just make fools of ourselves. After all, it’s true that we’ve been sitting idly in the rear this whole time.”

“Hmm…”

“But if we just accept the ban without a word, we’ll look like fools too. That kid is truly sneaky.”

Anton’s smile as he spoke made it seem like he was enjoying Haydam’s provocation.

One of the executives, noticing Anton’s mood, cautiously asked.

“So… what do you plan to do?”

“Not the subjugation. I’ll try touching something else.”

“Something else?”

“Luna Moon’s tomb.”

“What?!”

“Anton-nim?!”

The executives, shocked, raised their voices all at once.

Even Anton would not be forgiven if he touched Luna Moon’s tomb, as Hayden, the commander, would never allow it.

Seeing their reactions, Anton smirked and spoke.

“Do you really think I’d bring up desecrating the tomb of a dead woman?”

“Th-Then…?”

“Upon investigation, it turns out the tomb was made quite a while ago. According to the old folks in the slums, it’s been there for almost ten years.”

“Ten years?”

One of the executives, sensing something strange, asked again.

“How is that possible? Isn’t Haydam only ten years old?”

“Exactly.”

Anton placed both hands on the table and interlocked his fingers.

“That kid Haydam has always claimed to have heard stories from Luna Moon. But if Luna Moon died ten years ago… doesn’t that seem odd?”

“Are you suggesting Haydam is a fake?”

Tension filled the room, but one executive, unconvinced, spoke up.

“No, but… haven’t the pro-Commander faction’s executives all said the kid resembles Luna Moon? And to be honest, even I think he looks like His Excellency.”

Other executives shared their concerns.

“Even if Haydam is a fake, how could we prove it? We can’t even confirm the exact year the tomb was made, can we?”

“More importantly, Haydam has already proven himself. If we raise suspicions about him now, we’ll end up like General Batom, who got shot.”

The memory of General Batom being shot dead by Meursault replayed in their minds, sending shivers down the executives’ spines.

“How about this, then?”

Anton, as if he had already thought of something, addressed the other executives.

“If that kid is a fake, he wouldn’t know what Luna Moon looks like. After all, Luna Moon has been dead for ten years, her body long turned to bones, and there are no photos of her.”

“Right, His Excellency was quite upset about that.”

“So, we’ll show the kid a portrait of Luna Moon and observe his reaction.”

The executives looked puzzled at Anton’s suggestion.

“A portrait of Luna Moon? But there aren’t any photos…”

“You’re not suggesting we ask His Excellency or the other executives for help, right? If we suggest making a portrait of Luna Moon, it would damage Daphne-nim’s reputation…”

“Exactly. That’s where Daphne-nim comes in.”

“…!”

Daphne would surely know what Luna Moon looked like.

She competed with her over Commander Hayden, after all.

“But do you think Daphne-nim would participate in such a scheme? She seems to like the kid quite a bit, given that she hasn’t opposed him, even after those harsh words.”

“Click. Women are always weak when it comes to kids.”

“H-Hey, watch your mouth.”

The executive who had muttered absent-mindedly immediately lowered his head, startled by Anton’s sharp glare.

“Looks like your mind is slipping too, seeing how carelessly you speak.”

“S-Sorry.”

“Though it is true that Daphne-nim seems to be fond of that kid…”

Anton had known Daphne since she was very young.

The only daughter of the former commander, Daphne was just as ambitious as her father.

And she’s not the type to favor someone simply because they’re a child.

There must be something she stands to gain from Haydam.

“Tell Daphne-nim that we’re preparing a portrait of Haydam’s mother as a gift for him. We need to make it look like that’s the purpose.”

“Oh! If we do that, we won’t upset His Excellency or Daphne-nim.”

“And if Daphne-nim personally presents the portrait as a gift, it could also help improve her relationship with His Excellency.”

Anton nodded briefly at the executive’s comment and continued.

“Once the portrait is ready, we’ll call the kid to an executive meeting. Then we’ll present the gift and observe his reaction. The truth will come out the moment he sees the portrait. After all, a child’s gaze when looking at their mother is something that can’t be faked.”

The Commander would be present at the meeting.

And his sharp eyes would surely catch on if Haydam’s reaction was off.

“If that child is really Luna Moon’s son, he should be able to recognize his mother’s face immediately…”

The voice that followed soon changed into a sharp mutter.

“If he can’t recognize her, he’ll have to pay for pretending to be an illegitimate child.”

* * *

For some reason, at the Academy, it was known that I had fought and defeated the furry crocodile and, despite hiding the wound from being bitten, had joined the training simulation for the honor of the A-Team cadets.

‘Plato… Didn’t I only mention that my injury hadn’t fully healed yet?’

At this rate, it wouldn’t be surprising if a legend sprang up about how I took down a furry crocodile with my bare hands when I was ten years old and fought eight cadets at once. Other than that looming threat, life at the Academy was peaceful.

Afterward, it was a routine of attending classes at the Academy during the day and planning suppression operations with Meursault at night, with no major incidents.

Soon, another month had passed, and once again, it was time to have a meal with kids my age.

This time, it was labeled a charity party, so the children attending were dressed in neat suits, not in military uniforms or servant clothes.

BangguseokYeoBo, who had brushed back his blond hair, now unnecessarily handsome, spoke with a face full of complaints.

“What’s the point of party food if we don’t even get to taste it? I told them to just give us gruel instead.”

When will this guy ever have a kind heart?

Meanwhile, TaejongTaeseBeyonce, who had grown even taller, spoke maturely.

“For us, efficiency is more important than taste. The star candy from last time, I tested it, and it’s extremely effective.”

“Oh, I tested it too.”

I hadn’t been able to test the new combat rations, the star candy, because a Unicorn Zone player had interrupted.

It seemed everyone else had tested the star candy I handed out after we returned.

“I was too scared to make a huge wound, but… as long as you don’t die, I think it could bring you back. The healing speed was really fast.”

Hmm. Sure enough, if I suggested trying it out by getting a serious injury, they’d definitely object, right?

“You’re making that creepy face again.”

“What face is that?”

“That face like you’re high on dopamine.”

Oops.

“So… Hey, real DopamineAddict. What the heck was that thing back then?”

“I don’t know.”

“What?”

BangguseokYeoBo’s face twisted in disbelief at my answer.

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

“It means exactly what I said. The only thing I know is that it’s a player from the Unicorn Zone, and unlike the others, it has the appearance of an adult. I have no idea why it’s pretending to be me or why it sought me out.”

“Wait… So you’re saying that crazy guy could show up again out of nowhere?”

BangguseokYeoBo seemed anxious about the possibility of that guy coming back.

Considering he said he looked forward to visiting my Zone next time, I doubted he’d show up on his own again.

Compared to him, TaejongTaeseBeyonce gave a more productive answer.

“If it shows up again, I’ll train so that we won’t be caught off guard like before.”

When I made a proud face at that, BangguseokYeoBo grumbled.

“You’ve got an electromagnetic shield around you, so what kind of training? Are you planning to train to dodge bullets or something?”

“Wouldn’t it be better for the little boss to do that? That guy was targeting you, after all.”

“Ugh.”

TaejongTaeseBeyonce… Despite his mild appearance, he certainly knew how to say what needed to be said.

“Trying to figure out that guy’s identity right now is a waste of time. There’s no way to find out at the moment.”

“So we just have to live with this uncomfortable feeling?”

“The only way to find out is by going to the Unicorn Zone in person later. Either way, it’s still a player.”

It’s not like I wasn’t uneasy about that guy’s existence.

But there really wasn’t anything I could do about it right now.

After all, other than the fact that he looked like an adult, he was just like us—a player.

We even had an adult player in our Zone, didn’t we?

Thinking about it simply, we weren’t at a disadvantage at all.

‘Speaking of which, it’s about time I tell them about Daphne.’

“Speaking of players, Daphne was a player too.”

“What?”

“Huh?”

Both BangguseokYeoBo and TaejongTaeseBeyonce looked shocked at my words.

“Daphne was a player? Not Luna Moon?”

“Luna Moon was a player too.”

“What? Really?”

“She wasn’t just an NPC?”

Hmm. How should I explain this?

I guess I should start by telling them that the game Daphne and Luna Moon were in was different from ours.

“In the Safe Zone we were possessed in, they were NPCs, yes. But those two possessed this world through a different game than ours.”

“A different game…?”

“I think there were several different routes into this world.”

BangguseokYeoBo made his usual “my head hurts” expression, and TaejongTaeseBeyonce cautiously asked.

“If it was a different game… what kind of game did they possess?”

“A dating sim.”

“A dating sim…?”

TaejongTaeseBeyonce’s expression became subtle, but then a surprising comment came from BangguseokYeoBo.

“Don’t tell me it was a middle-aged man romance simulation game?”

What?

How did this guy know that?