Chapter 32

Chapter 32
T-BALNOM
Dopamine Addict, are you certain that was not truly you?
-T-BALNOM
Regarding the impersonator, he possessed knowledge of every single detail from our personal private conversations.
-T-BALNOM
Since we were already established friends, I assumed he was you and proceeded to converse with him.
-T-BALNOM
What on earth are you, really?
T-balnom already maintains mutual friend status with some alternative version of Dopamine Addict?
I carefully composed a response and transmitted it.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Are you simply foolish enough to accept multiple friend requests simultaneously, or what?
T-BALNOM
The moment I manage to escape from this place, I am going to end you.
This particular individual was remarkably entertaining to tease.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Merely joking. Accepting a friend request would never grant anyone access to our private chat logs.
How could that person possibly know the details of the past interactions between T-balnom and myself?
Had the system somehow been breached?
Or had T-balnom inadvertently revealed information through a slip of the tongue?
T-BALNOM
I am well aware that you are about to call me an idiot once more, so I will state it first—I merely provided him with brief answers.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Did anyone actually accuse you?
-T-BALNOM
So that individual is genuinely not you?
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Obviously not.
-T-BALNOM
Then who on earth is he?
DOPAMINE ADDICT
How would I have any idea?
I was the one searching for answers far more desperately than anyone else.
What manner of scoundrel was impersonating me this time around? And why choose me, of all people?
It is not as though my reputation shines with pristine brilliance.
What possible advantage could there be in pretending to be me?
DOPAMINE ADDICT
You mentioned that you actually spoke with him. Did you notice anything unusual about his demeanor?
T-BALNOM
You are perpetually unusual, so I failed to detect anything out of the ordinary.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Between a thoroughly respectable player like myself and an individual who concluded every alternate sentence with a threat of death, I felt quite confident regarding which of us was truly bizarre.
-T-BALNOM
There is one matter, however, of which I am entirely certain.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
What is that?
-T-BALNOM
That individual is currently located within the Unicorn Area.
So he is a player from the Unicorn Area after all.
I had already harbored similar suspicions. My initial conclusion was merely an intuition, though, whereas T-balnom claimed certainty, implying he possessed tangible proof.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
What evidence do you have?
-T-BALNOM
He transferred a tangerine to me via an item trade.
A tangerine… he presented you with a tangerine?
He truly is a player from the Unicorn Area, then.
As I had noted previously, the Unicorn Area served as the domain of eccentric scientists who had elevated their entire sector high into the stratosphere purely to preserve their own lifestyles. Their technological capabilities vastly surpassed those of the other eight zones, and they maintained a completely self-sufficient infrastructure internally—advanced enough to cultivate luxury agricultural goods such as tangerines.
Ever since the entire globe had vanished beneath deep layers of snow, flora and fauna native to warm climates had become virtually impossible to locate. Yet within the Unicorn Area, Earth’s native ecosystems would remain safely preserved. Handing over a tangible tangerine constituted undeniable proof. Proof that the individual was situated inside the Unicorn Area.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
I informed you explicitly that I was stationed in the Cola Area, yet you consumed the tangerine handed to you by that stranger without a second thought?
-T-BALNOM
That particular Dopamine Addict was considerably more polite than you are.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
That ought to have served as your primary warning sign.
-T-BALNOM
…Once I acquired the tangerine and inspected it, there remained zero doubt that it was authentic.
T-BALNOM
I assumed you had already conquered the Unicorn Area by now. Apparently not.
Regardless, if he had handed over a real tangerine, the connection to the Unicorn sector was officially verified.
Which meant…
DOPAMINE ADDICT
No?
T-BALNOM
Then what?
DOPAMINE ADDICT
I intend to leave him be.
T-BALNOM
Leave him… alone?
T-balnom clearly failed to comprehend, prompting me to elaborate further.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
I will allow him to continue masquerading as me while clearing out the zone. Consider it leaving the region in his capable hands until the day I arrive to claim the Unicorn Area for myself.
T-BALNOM
…Where on earth does that level of confidence stem from? If he is impersonating you, it logically follows that he possesses knowledge of your strategies as well.
T-BALNOM
Even if his moniker is fraudulent, as long as he plays according to your designated guides, he essentially functions as a secondary Dopamine Addict. Furthermore, wasn’t Unicorn your original starting territory? Do you genuinely believe you can triumph over that?
What an unexpected remark. Hearing such words from this specific individual was almost humorous.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Weren’t you the very player who used to actively counter my strategic approaches? Why are you speaking as though there is no hope?
T-BALNOM
You… are familiar with my personal playstyle?
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Naturally I am. You appear on my interface more frequently than anyone else. You are a dedicated sniper targeting Dopamine Addict.
T-BALNOM
I appear frequently. I see. Haha.
…What on earth was wrong with him?
I had assumed I was offering a therapeutic mental health favor, yet he still appeared half detached from reality.
Even so, this interaction granted me a much clearer perspective on why someone might choose to impersonate me.
The situation mirrored that of Anjeon8yeok, just as it applied to this Unicorn Area player.
It represented a calculated form of bluffing.
Much like Anjeon8yeok had utilized my name to recruit gullible players such as Taejeong as subordinates, this individual likely calculated that no rational person would wish to make an enemy out of “Dopamine Addict”—a player reputed to have originated directly within the Unicorn Area. Simultaneously, it functioned as a deliberate provocation directed squarely at the genuine Dopamine Addict: myself.
If I were to engage a Unicorn Area player at this exact juncture… my probability of victory would hover around sixty percent?
Since I possessed the all-zone clearance bonus, suffering an outright defeat was not realistically on the table. However, a technological divide existed between the Unicorn Area and the Cola Area that no amount of raw personal skill could possibly bridge. Overcoming that specific gap would necessitate the advent of the Second Apocalypse—alongside the massive wave of airborne monsters that accompanied it.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
In any case, send me a message if any developments occur.
T-BALNOM
Understood.
T-BALNOM
Will do.
…He appeared uncharacteristically cooperative all of a sudden. I was likely imagining things.
I terminated the communication channel with T-balnom and opened the interface with Home Protector, who continued to flood my inbox with messages.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Cease the spamming immediately.
HOME PROTECTOR
Perhaps you should check your incoming communications more promptly, then.
HOME PROTECTOR
That individual is genuinely not you?
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Indeed, it is not me. Simply disregard him.
HOME PROTECTOR
Disregard him??
HOME PROTECTOR
How can you remain this nonchalant? That person originated within your foundational home territory—he is practically a second Dopamine Addict!
Home Protector was echoing the exact sentiments previously expressed by T-balnom.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
I shall emerge victorious regardless.
HOME PROTECTOR
Where on earth does such boundless confidence originate…
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Disregard that matter. You ought to investigate whether the protective barriers isolating the alternative zones have truly vanished.
HOME PROTECTOR
To verify if that individual was speaking the truth?
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Negative.
DOPAMINE ADDICT
If the barriers have indeed collapsed, lower-difficulty zones will inevitably face raids from players originating in higher-tier sectors.
HOME PROTECTOR
Ah…
DOPAMINE ADDICT
Isn’t the Love Area positioned closest to the Tobacco Zone? That particular player named Shin left me with a deeply unsettling impression.
HOME PROTECTOR
Damn it. We are finished…
That constituted the final transmission. Home Protector vanished abruptly, presumably rushing off to confirm whether the boundary barrier had genuinely disintegrated.
I needed to conclude my own preparations for the upcoming subjugation campaign as well.
While hunting monsters, I could simultaneously assess the status of the barrier as an added bonus. And if the barrier truly had collapsed…
The nearest zone accessible from this location would be the Candy Zone.
Dropping by to inspect the expression on that newbie’s face would certainly prove entertaining.
I walked back into the operations command center, directed Meursault to take a seat, and laid out my strategic blueprint.
“The core principle underlying this operation is absolute efficiency. Employing minimal personnel and targeting strictly the creature’s core will curtail combat duration to the absolute minimum while minimizing waste of usable edible components.”
“Is such a feat even achievable, sir?”
When I outlined the method for identifying the precise location of a monster’s core, Meursault wore an expression that remained at best only half convinced.
“I have never encountered any discernible pattern regarding core placement. Is this yet another piece of knowledge acquired during your time surviving in the Slums?”
I had exhausted the Slums justification far too often. It was high time to introduce a fresh repertoire.
“Negative. My mother instructed me in this technique.”
“Ah—Lady Luna Moon… She served as a celebrated hero of the historic subjugation campaigns, so it stands to reason she possessed specialized techniques of her own.”
Well, Luna Moon had technically been a player, meaning the statement was not entirely inaccurate, even though the game she had originally played happened to be an otome title.
…It still chafed slightly to realize that a player of an otome game had earned the prestigious title of a subjugation hero.
Could there have been more depth to Luna Moon than was initially apparent?
“Even if Lady Luna Moon passed this knowledge down to you, we remain obligated to field-test it at least once. We cannot needlessly endanger the lives of our soldiers without prior verification…”
“Your assessment is accurate. I had intended to embark on a hunting excursion prior to the official subjugation campaign in any case.”
On a prior occasion, the Commander had rejected my request to hunt, but following my fabricated declaration as a regressor accompanied by a convincing demonstration of my capabilities, he would undoubtedly grant permission without raising objections.
“That reminds me—how is the development of the new combat rations progressing?”
I had previously assigned the director of the Zone Security Research Institute the task of formulating portable military rations. Following my conversation with Daphne, Meursault had transformed into a thoroughly compliant non-player character and had managed all subsequent communications with the director seamlessly.
“I was precisely on the verge of submitting a status report regarding that matter.”
“Have they made tangible progress?”
“Affirmative. Their primary focus was designing a ration that even youthful junior soldiers could transport effortlessly. While it is not yet a finalized consumer product, I happen to possess a physical prototype—shall I display it for you?”
With those words, Meursault produced the sample item.
“…Star candy?”
Resting neatly within the palm of Meursault’s hand was an object possessing a shape identical to traditional star candy. It was somewhat larger than the genuine article, and a preliminary visual inspection suggested that sugar was unlikely to serve as its primary component.
“How did you manage to deduce that, sir?”
“How did I deduce what?”
“The designated title of this combat ration is indeed Star Candy.”
“It is not actually composed of genuine candy, correct?”
“The foundational ingredient consists of concentrated protein, integrated alongside carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins, and various other essential nutritional elements compressed into a single unit. Because high-temperature dehydrated provisions inevitably harden during processing, they specifically opted for this geometric shape to guarantee it would fracture cleanly when bitten.”
“I see. Have you personally sampled it?”
“At the very least, it did not taste comparable to a military combat boot.”
Whenever players brought provisions up to their lips, the items conventionally dissolved into glowing blue particles and absorbed directly into the physical body. Through repeated experimentation, however, we had established that any food item had to be compact enough to fit entirely within a single bite. Even though monster meat possessed healing properties, pressing one’s mouth against an entire deceased monster carcass would not magically convert it into consumable particles.
In that regard, these Star Candies, designed specifically in bite-sized portions, proved ideal for players. Furthermore, they had been fabricated with smaller dimensions tailored specifically for the child soldiers, rendering them entirely appropriate.
“You appear rather fond of them.”
“Indeed. Can you procure additional supplies of these for me? Since I am heading out to field-test the core-detection methodology regardless, I might as well evaluate the performance of the Star Candy concurrently.”
“I shall confer with the research director immediately.”
Meursault certainly proved exceptionally convenient—the man consistently executed directives efficiently.
The logistical arrangements regarding combat rations were successfully coordinated with Meursault, and the Commander would inevitably authorize the hunting expedition. That left only one remaining individual requiring summons.
It was time to summon that particular person as well.
As though the universe required a counterbalance to balance out a hyper-competent non-player character, the inclusion of an utterly incompetent player was essential to preserve equilibrium. Specifically, the individual who appeared to embrace that exact philosophy personally:
ShutInHoney.