Chapter 54: Plundering Japan's Resources
The moment he realized where he was...
[Mana Stones successfully delivered to the spawn point.]
[Contribution Points x50,000 acquired.]
"Fifty thousand Contribution Points? Holy...!"
For some people, fifty thousand points were something they could earn almost as easily as breathing.
But for low-rank Hunters, that was an eye-popping amount.
"I did it...! I can finally afford some Tower Knights equipment!"
He shouted in excitement.
He'd barely managed to mine those Mana Stones after several brushes with death.
Yet he'd just converted them into points with almost ridiculous ease.
Word spread throughout the mine in an instant.
"You can earn thousands of points just by bringing back a few Mana Stones! If you hit the jackpot, you can earn tens of thousands!"
"I'm making ten thousand points a minute right now."
"That's insane! How are you making that much?"
"Go to Vein A. There's a Gate there that lets you return straight to the spawn point after mining your Mana Stones."
"You can return immediately from the mineral vein? I'm heading there right now!"
The Korean Hunters' morale soared.
Until now, they'd had to carry the Mana Stones they'd painstakingly mined all the way back to their spawn point while surviving ambushes and surprise attacks.
Half of them would regularly die along the way, losing every Mana Stone they'd gathered.
But that was no longer necessary!
Now they only needed to jump into the Gate right beside the mineral vein as soon as they finished mining.
"Return immediately after every haul!"
"Doesn't this make the risk practically zero?"
"It only feels risk-free because the fighters on the front lines are protecting you. You'd better be grateful to them!"
Meanwhile, the Japanese Hunters were utterly astonished when they heard the news.
"Th-this is insane! A Gate opening directly beside a mineral vein? Isn't that going too far?! The Tower is blatantly favoring Korea!"
However, the Korean Hunters had a perfectly reasonable response of their own.
"We're fighting on your home turf! We deserve at least this much of an advantage! We can barely find our way through these damn tunnels!"
And so, while the two sides continued their fierce struggle around Vein A, a cold voice suddenly rang out.
"What's all the fuss about? We simply have to stop them from entering the Gate."
A woman approached at a leisurely pace, carrying a long sword over her shoulder.
[First-Class Officer]
It was Katana.
As she drew her weapon and strode forward, the expressions of the nearby Japanese Hunters immediately brightened.
"Lady Katana is here!"
"Lady Katana is equipped with incredible items today! Things won't go the same way they did before!"
I'd spotted Katana, too.
I immediately aimed my Gatling Laser at her.
PEWPEWPEWPEWPEW!
A spherical blue barrier appeared around her body.
The red beams struck the barrier, producing a series of deafening explosions.
It isn't breaking this time.
They'd said the Japanese government was spending a lot of money on its Hunters.
Apparently, Katana had come much better prepared this time.
However, her expression didn't look particularly pleased either.
The barrier was probably an S-rank defensive item, but there was still a fundamental difference between our overall stats.
There was no way it could withstand my attacks forever.
Sure enough, I saw Katana grit her teeth and hurriedly replace the top-grade Mana Stone powering her equipment.
Nevertheless, she acted as though it were nothing serious.
She kicked off the ground and charged straight toward me.
"Stop her! Don't let that woman get over here! Protect the Gate!"
The nearby Korean Hunters immediately responded to my shout.
"The General has ordered us to protect the Gate!"
"Stop Katana!"
Dozens of Hunters rushed forward to block her path.
Unfortunately, their opponent was one of Japan's highest-ranked S-rank Hunters.
SLASH! SLASH!
"Aaaaaagh!"
"Urgh...!"
"Do not let the enemy know of my death... Urk."
Several Hunters were cut down in an instant.
One Hunter who witnessed the scene shouted desperately.
"The Hunters defending the front line keep dying! We can't stop an S-rank Hunter on our own!"
I hurriedly replaced the top-grade Mana Stone in my Gatling Laser and shouted back.
"Then just die!"
"...Pardon?"
"I said die for the Republic of Korea! Even if you have to sacrifice your lives, we must plunder Japan's resources!"
Anyone listening would have considered it a thoroughly totalitarian command.
Strangely enough, however, the Korean Hunters' eyes burned with even greater determination when they heard it.
"WAAAAAAAAAH!"
"The General has ordered us to die for our country!"
"Japan's Mana Stone Mine belongs to us!"
"Die for the Republic of Korea! Never retreat! Move forward and die!"
The front line, which had been losing ground just moments earlier, was suddenly filled with renewed fighting spirit and began pushing forward again.
Even Katana seemed taken aback by their enthusiasm.
She probably couldn't understand why soldiers would be so excited by a command that was practically sending them to their deaths.
But she didn't have time to analyze their psychology.
"Hmph. Are you throwing them at me as bait? Thanks. At this rate, I'll become a One-Star General soon."
Katana spoke mockingly.
But her expression was far from cheerful.
While the two sides remained locked in a fierce struggle, Korea's low-rank Hunters were steadily transporting Mana Stones behind the front line.
Meanwhile, the Japanese Hunters were too preoccupied with the fighting to collect more than a few hundred stones at a time.
"How arrogant...!"
Katana tried to advance, fiercely cutting down the Korean Hunters blocking her path.
However...
"Katana! Let's settle this with a battle of swords!"
CLAAANG!
Sword, Korea's S-rank swordswoman, appeared seemingly out of nowhere.
With Sword standing in her way, Katana could no longer advance so easily.
Everything is going according to plan.
In truth, we could probably win quite easily if I opened Gates at all three mineral veins—A, B, and C.
But I'd deliberately opened one only at Vein A.
That way, everyone will gather here.
Sure enough...
"Everyone, assemble at Vein A!"
"Stop running off on your own!"
"Anyone hoarding Mana Stones alone at Veins B or C is a traitor to the country!"
Hunters from both Korea and Japan began crowding into the area around Vein A until it was packed.
Of course, there were probably still selfish individuals fighting small battles and collecting Mana Stones at Veins B and C.
I can't control everyone.
Besides, Vein A was already so crowded that there was barely any room left to stand.
All I needed to do here was rake in Contribution Points.
That guy was Yasha, wasn't he? And the one on the other side is Shura.
Japan's S-rank Hunters had also gathered at Vein A, but they seemed to be having trouble moving through the crowd.
PEWPEWPEWPEWPEW!
[Contribution Points x214,000 acquired.]
Every time I swept my Gatling Laser from left to right, hundreds of thousands of Contribution Points poured into my account.
"Ahahahahaha!"
"Victory is within Korea's grasp!"
"The General has raised his battle cry!"
I'd simply burst into laughter because I was delighted by the enormous amount of Contribution Points I was earning.
But the Korean Hunters apparently took it as a sign that we'd gained control of the battlefield, and their confidence soared.
"Don't let your guard down just because we're winning! We need to crush them so thoroughly this time that the next Resource War will be even easier!"
"WAAAAAAAAAH!"
"You all heard him, right? Resource Wars are a game where the winning side keeps winning! Keep pushing!"
"Let's knock every Japanese Hunter down the ranks so they won't even dare challenge us next time!"
"YAAAAAAAAAH!"
PEWPEWPEWPEWPEW!
[Contribution Points x498,541 acquired.]
Meanwhile, Japan's S-rank Hunters were gritting their teeth in frustration.
"Damn it. I can't believe a Gate like that appeared at Vein A."
Shura cursed the Tower.
This was supposed to be a battle fought on Japan's home turf.
Japanese participation had also been high, so he'd expected it to be a one-sided victory.
Yet the moment the Resource War began, the exact opposite had happened.
[Korea: 7,065 vs. Japan: 3,482]
The difference between the two sides was nearly double.
Japan had clearly been slightly ahead when the battle first began.
If things had continued that way, Japan's overwhelming victory would have been all but guaranteed.
Of course, not every Hunter would follow orders.
But Shura had believed that the broad strategy they'd prepared would work.
Then that single Gate at Vein A had completely ruined everything.
Even now, he could see Korean Hunters swinging their pickaxes behind their front line, then frantically throwing themselves into the Gate whenever they found anything valuable.
I seriously want to kill every last one of them!
Their behavior was so infuriating that it was driving him mad.
And that damn General...
Choi Hyunwoo, Korea's General, was standing far behind the Korean Hunters, occasionally unleashing a barrage of lasers.
Their prediction that he wouldn't be able to fly around and single-handedly dominate the entire battlefield as he had during the previous two Resource Wars had proven correct.
Unfortunately, Shura himself was also trapped in a crowd of Japanese Hunters packed together like passengers on the Tokyo subway.
He couldn't move properly either.
"Get out of my way, you bastards! I said move!"
Shura suddenly spotted Katana at the front line, mercilessly cutting down Korean Hunters.
The sight made him even more impatient.
That woman... How many has she killed by now? She must have earned at least two million Contribution Points...!
For ordinary Hunters, the Resource War would end with either victory or defeat.
But as an S-rank Hunter, Shura also had to consider his competition with the other S-rank Hunters in his own country.
He sent a private message to his guild members through Hunter Inventory.
[Title: Shura Guild Is Withdrawing from Vein A.]
[Nickname: Shura]
- Move to B.
His guild members hesitated briefly before replying.
- Public opinion of Shura Guild won't be favorable if we do that.
- Tell them it's a tactical decision. We can't allow every mineral vein to be occupied.
- Understood.
Public opinion won't be favorable? Hmph. What are they going to do about it?
In modern society, S-rank Hunters were practically aristocrats.
They were no different from the Celestial Dragons.
There were countless countries that would welcome their immigration with open arms and offer them extraordinary benefits if they expressed even the slightest interest.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them a global aristocracy.
Of course, Shura had no particular intention of leaving Japan.
"Katana. Shura Guild has withdrawn. Apparently, they're heading to Vein B."
"Hmph. Let them do whatever they want!"
Yasha delivered the news in an indifferent tone.
But at that moment, Katana wasn't in any state to listen to what anyone was saying.
And there was a good reason for that.
[Available Contribution Points: 2,800,466]
[Total Contribution Points: 9,880,525]
Just another 120,000 points, and I'll become a One-Star General.
After that, she'd only need to collect another eighty thousand points to purchase the magnificent Tower Knights Knight Commander's Wings.
I should've saved those eighty thousand points instead of spending them...!
In preparation for this Resource War, she'd purchased another piece of Knight Division Leader equipment.
She could certainly feel that she'd become stronger than before.
But now that she was about to become a General, the thought that she wouldn't be able to purchase the wings immediately filled her with regret.
Perhaps this was why people always changed their minds between entering and leaving the bathroom.
Anyway...
[Contribution Points x120,000 acquired.]
A short while later, the instant she earned another 120,000 Contribution Points...
[You have been promoted to One-Star General.]
Katana broke into a broad smile at the message.
However...
"Her barrier's broken!"
"The Japanese S-rank Hunter's barrier just broke!"
"Everyone, stab her! Even if all you do is land a tiny hit on a First-Class Officer before she dies, you'll get at least a few thousand Contribution Points!"
"LET'S GET HER!"
The Korean Hunters rushed toward Katana the moment her barrier shattered.
PEWPEWPEWPEWPEW!
A merciless storm of Hunter abilities struck her, unleashing more power than even the Tower Knights equipment she'd painstakingly assembled could withstand.
[You have died.]
[Contribution Points x150,000 lost.]
[You have been demoted to First-Class Officer.]
[If you are demoted from One-Star General, you cannot be promoted to General again for one week.]
"Ah..."
With that final sigh of despair, Katana dissolved into gray ash.
