novel
| ← Ch.036 | Ch.038 → |
1st preliminary Lifer selection, half a year has passed since the reality version of Life Mission was started. It seems as though 3 months had passed with the 2nd round standards.
How had the world changed? It had changed a lot. Since the number of people going in was increasing, they began to understand on their own without anyone telling them.
The people who are selected become Lifers and go into the game.
They kill mutants and complete missions to earn points. Then they can purchase items that can be of help or that have value, from the store.
People see those that are worth money as the most important.
The sweet reward received in exchange for the unidentified reason for creating Life Mission or the problems that arise from this, is trivial.
It is the harm of a capitalist society's only thought that I need to succeed as an individual. It did not matter whether others died, and these kinds of situations grew worse with time.
The world is changing with the benefits provided by an unknown market.
Because the Lifers who started early, have an advantage with points, they could sell their items for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
An unusual path had opened for even the underdogs of society with nothing to live in prosperity if they were just good at killing mutants.
The people who had not been chosen as Lifers in the 1st and 2nd rounds envied those who had been and wished and wished for an opportunity in the 3rd round.
***
Vroom!
An impressive BMW I8 rides the road. Its red body is sensual and tough at the same time. It is a sports car launched this year for $200, 000.
Youths gazed at the car as though examining it. All had their respective thoughts.
They thought it was no big deal, envied him, or were jealous. There were a lot of other thoughts on the car, but these were the leading ones.
The car was parked next to the Han River. The weather had become chilly because it is December, but there were a lot of people regardless of gender and age.
People's faces were flushed. Not because it is cold, but because it is warm. To feel warmth in this weather? There is a reason for that.
Wiing.
The car doors went up like wings and the owner of the car came out. It is Cha Jun Sung, a handsome man with looks fitting for a sports car.
"Insulating long johns are good. People are moving so actively."
Insulating long johns that holds inner body temperature while blocking out cold air are sold for 10 points in the store.
For some time, the bulk distribution of store products through Lifers working with major companies have had an impact on the public.
Harmless items like medicine that stops bleeding and makes the wound scab as soon as it is applied, and odorless spray that gets rid of all smells were among them.
They were expensive, but very useful once purchased. They do their money's worth. With the large population, they sold quickly.
The products in a class E store is at this standard. The items in class D have not yet been revealed, but they could have an effect on electronics later.
A cyborg that can only be seen in movies might roam the streets.
The government and major companies are taking these items that surpass modern science, deconstructing them and trying to grasp the principles of them.
"Look here. It's another shooting accident."
"Even if laws have been strengthened, there are so many crazy people. It's an apocalypse."
A young couple passed Cha Jun Sung's car. They were looking at the news on their smartphone and discussing it.
As much as Life Mission and the store have had a positive impact on the world, they have had negative effects as well. Effects like the shooting accident being reported on the smartphone.
There is no way to determine the state of firearm possession without searching through millions of people. They can buy whatever they want from the store as long as they have the points.
Crime rates had surged 150% from last year. A professional burglar needs a gun but if that is hard, there is the automatic crossbow. They are going crazy.
The shocking part is that Lifers themselves are quiet, but it is the general public that is going around doing these things. They were expressing their frustration with not being chosen in crime.
One month ago, a law targeting Lifers was enacted. It ordered them to enroll as Lifers while paying taxes as citizens.
$100, 000 in taxes every year. As it is impossible to calculate exactly how much Lifers make in profits, a sum of money had been decided.
A Lifer earns $100, 000 by completing a 300 point mission. The government had chosen an amount that is not burdensome and instead low. After the law was enacted, there was almost no protest to it.
The next part, the national registry. On the outside, it looks like it is just a Lifer license like an identification card or driver's license, but it is not at all on the inside.
There is the sneaky ulterior motive to track the number of Lifers and watch them with various goals like migration.
Cha Jun Sung did not see it in a negative way. There was a trend of private organizations popping up everywhere. If they are not managed, they might become lawless.
However, the taxing and registry have common problems.
They need to enroll in order to pay their taxes? This meant that they do not need to pay if they are unregistered. The government expected this transgression and put a powerful restriction in place.
-[Lifers are a potential threat to the well-being of the country. ]
-[If law enforcement catches an unregistered Lifer completing missions, it is punishable with 5 years of community service. ]
It did not mean that they would receive punishment for 5 years but that they would act as a Lifer for the state.
Then what would happen to a Lifer who is registered, but does not like missions and wants to give up the privilege? How could he manage the $100, 000 tax?
Nothing has been revealed in detail, but the government is in the process of creating a program for these kinds of Lifers. They will do well as it is a great power.
"Now that I'm here, my mood is better."
Today, Cha Jun Sung shut down the blog that he had run for 10 years. He did not delete it completely, but placed a lock on it so that only he would have access to it.
Once the reality version was introduced, the number of visitors gradually decreased and starting a few days ago, it did not even go over 30, 000. There were still a lot, but it had diminished.
Of course, advertisements had dropped off one by one. It was not like nothing was left, but Cha Jun Sung called the advertisers himself to take them down.
He got the sense that the advertisers were in favor of this in their voices. He was able to take care of it within minutes because he was solving a dilemma they had due to their contract period.
The virtual version of Life Mission was dead. The age of the reality version has come. He does not care about money. He felt strange because the blog had been like an alter ego.
-[Where are you?]
-[Han River. Are you done with the mission?]
-[1500 points is easy. I want to go into a 3000 point mission, but I'm scared. ]
-[It'll be dangerous because you have distance. ]
-[Huk! To say that you can do it but I can't! I should just fold and do something else. ]
A few months after doing Field of Meat, Cha Jun Sung's skills had advanced so much that he was capable of completing advance missions by himself. It is the power of the 2nd stage of body modifications.
Park Jin Hyuk went through the 2nd stage as well, but going alone was dangerous because his basic aptitude was low. He could guess what would be said next.
-[Now is it level D?]
-[Yeah. ]
-[The easiest preview is 5000 points, but how strong do you think a level 3 will be?]
Cha Jun Sung has fought the Evil Queen before. Compared to level 9, level 3 would be like less than the dirt on his foot, but it is a fearsome monster in reality.
-[It'll be separated by what style they are. ]
-[Mind or body?]
-[Right. ]
The combat style of mutant are split into two. The type that uses skill to make up for its weak body. The type that is purely physical in pushing forward.
The ones that use their heads use poison or stealth, but whatever it is has shortcomings. Therefore, Park Jin Hyuk could face them as long as they prepare well.
With those that use physical strength however, failure is inevitable unless one has gone through the 3rd stage of body modification.
-[Do you know what Slayer is?]
| ← Ch. 036 | Ch. 038 → |