Ubermensch – Chapter 109

Chapter 109

“Steve’s.”

“It must be Steve Queen.”

“It’s Steve…”

People all smiled wryly at once.

He was a shameless man. As long as he had the backing of the United States, no one could blame him for acting shamelessly.

“Well, I don’t think Steve Queen was serious about ordering it. If he was, he would have spoken more seriously instead of sending a written inquiry.”

“Then what’s this?”

“A kind of prank, maybe?”

Mason grumbled.

“Even if it’s a prank, if I said I’d do it, he’d make me try it right away…”

In many ways, it was typical of Steve Queen.

“But aside from that, I want to test if I can approach the Bubble.”

“You want to see if you can go down to 6,000 meters?”

“Yeah. It wouldn’t hurt to check.”

Masika looked at Mason as if he were crazy.

“Are you insane?”

The deep sea wasn’t just deep water. It was riddled with problems like water pressure and air pressure. Even if Mason had the ability to adapt to the environment, it would definitely be a test of the limits of that ability.

“I’m serious.”

“If you’re going to risk your life, why not do it for something more worthwhile?”

“We’re going to have to fight the Bubble anyway, so wouldn’t it be bad to check out the weapons I have?”

“Even so, our raid team can’t help you with that experiment.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“I see…”

Mason got up from his seat.

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Han Areum said, her face flushed.

“You’re going to experiment on yourself? A deep-sea diving experiment? Are you out of your mind? I absolutely cannot cooperate. I swear on my conscience as a scientist.”

Mason now knew the magic words that worked on Han Areum.

“Full research funding guaranteed. Full responsibility for any liabilities will be mine.”

“On second thought, that’s a pretty good research topic. Actually, I’ve always wanted to test the limits of Commander Mason’s durability.”

Mason looked at Han Areum with a strange expression.

‘What does conscience mean to scientists…’

Anyway, Han Areum excitedly made calls here and there.

“Actually, I’ve always wanted to throw someone into the deep sea… Hehe…”

“The sight of something being crushed by water pressure is always enchanting, you know…”

Several people, similar to Han Areum but with even less conscience, rushed in, putting everything else aside. Mason asked with a bewildered expression.

“Are you by any chance a member of the Korean Psychopath Club?”

“There’s no such thing in the world. These people are just graduate students wandering in search of thesis topics.”

Mason firmly resolved never to meet anyone whose occupation was a graduate student again.

Anyway, when the research subject, who had rolled in on his own two feet, offered to provide research funding, the people made rapid progress, as if a fire had been lit under them.

“Hurry up before he changes his mind!”

It was a magic spell that worked among them.

After a few phone calls, various measuring equipment was set up, and other materials were prepared.

“Just in case, I’m asking, do you really want to go into the sea? Or would you prefer to experiment in an artificially recreated environment?”

“The actual site would be better.”

“I knew you’d say that!”

“…Why are you so happy?”

After making a few more phone calls, they brought a research vessel to the harbor.

“It was hard to find an area without monsters. Oh, of course, we can charge you for the location scouting, right?”

“…I’m paying for that too?”

“Of course!”

“…”

Mason boarded the ship with a strange feeling.

After a voyage that was both short and long, they arrived at the pre-selected location.

They dressed Mason in a suit with various sensors attached and tied chains to his body.

“You can’t come up to the surface quickly because of decompression sickness. Don’t signal after a problem arises, signal if you think a problem is going to arise.”

“Wait a minute. Doesn’t that mean it’s too late after a problem arises?”

The graduate students grinned and pushed Mason.

“Fighting for the thesis topic!”

Mason sighed and began to dive.

After a certain amount of diving time, his body began to adapt to the deep sea. Gills and webbed feet grew, and his body volume decreased while his muscle and bone density gradually increased.

The sunlight disappeared as he descended further underwater. The icy water temperature constantly drained body heat from Mason, and his heart began to beat several times faster than usual to maintain his body temperature.

‘Still 3,000 meters.’

Nevertheless, he had to go down much further.

Mason entrusted everything to his Smart Cells and slowly sank into the water.

Thud!

The moment his feet touched something solid, Mason realized.

‘Uncle. Your work is truly great.’

That he could function even in the deep sea.

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Functioning at a depth of 6,000 meters was no problem.

Of course, he had no intention of carrying a nuclear bomb and letting the Bubble swallow him, but it meant that if a realistic plan to eliminate the Bubble was established, he could carry it out.

“Thesis! Thesis!”

“Finally, I can be freed from being the lab’s youngest!”

…Leaving behind people who seemed happier than Mason himself, Mason uploaded the newly updated data to the internet.

They would contact him if a new plan was devised.

The first person to greet Mason upon his return to Korea was Jeong Ryeogyeong.

“My lord.”

The nickname, mixed with the rough and stiff accent unique to North Korea, sounded particularly sweet. Perhaps it was because Jeong Ryeogyeong’s face was filled with a bright smile as she greeted him.

“You must be tired from your long journey.”

“Yes. Have you been well?”

“Yes.”

Mason stroked Jeong Ryeogyeong’s hair.

Then, like a gentle, large dog, Jeong Ryeogyeong threw herself into Mason’s arms and looked up at him.

The feeling of her entrusting her entire body to him without any doubt, combined with her resilient and healthy physique, was so arousing that it felt strangely wicked.

“…Ahem. Ahem.”

It seemed that Mason’s heart wasn’t the only one that felt this wickedness.

“Ah…”

Jeong Ryeogyeong blushed.

“…Should you be gentle with me today?”

“Of course. Absolutely.”

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Half a day later.

Jeong Ryeogyeong whispered, her face flushed with sweat and pleasure.

“Liar…”

“Sorry.”

Mason laughed and leaned his weight on Jeong Ryeogyeong.

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After resting for about a day, Mason returned to work.

There were no raids scheduled for a while, and there was no summons from the UN for the time being. Then the only thing Mason could do was to help the North Koreans.

“Come on, everyone, let’s do our best!”

“Yes!”

The railroad they were currently laying was an extension and improvement of the existing railroad. This meant that time-consuming tasks such as leveling, bridge piers, and tunnels had already been completed.

Progress was rapid as they went through the renovation work.

The only problem was the monsters, but they were also being taken care of by the extermination operations led by Mason.

The completion rate of the project was roughly around 75%. It was time to request preliminary work to connect the railroad to China and Russia.

But that also meant… he could no longer avoid the headache.

“Your Majesty.”

Ri Gyeongsim approached Mason and said.

“Kim Donghwang is approaching our people.”

“…Why?”

“It seems he intends to provoke China. Whether the means will be peaceful or aggressive, I don’t know.”

“If it’s aggressive, how aggressive will it get?”

“It seems he’s even considering war.”

Mason frowned.

“We’re in a situation where we’re struggling to survive against monsters, and yet people want to fight amongst themselves in this situation?”

“There’s a more serious problem.”

“What’s that?”

“He’s spreading rumors that he has the support of Representative Jeong Ryeogyeong.”

“What?”

A stunned Mason looked at Ri Gyeongsim.

“Is that true?”

“No. After the wedding with Your Majesty, Representative Jeong Ryeogyeong has retired from politics.”

“Then why is he saying that?”

“It seems Kim Donghwang is using Representative Jeong Ryeogyeong’s name to make up for his lack of legitimacy and authority.”

Kim Donghwang was simply the most powerful person among the North Koreans who had fled north, but he held no authority or position. Authority was usually just a hollow reputation, but even a hollow reputation was better than having none at all.

“Are his words working?”

“Yes. We’ve confirmed that several of Kim Donghwang’s people have infiltrated our ranks.”

Mason realized the seriousness of the situation.

“I’ll be going to the mainland for a while, so tighten internal security.”

He needed to talk to many people about many things.

“In the meantime, make sure no one cooperates or collaborates with his movements. You have my permission, so if necessary, you can request cooperation from the Sub-human players.”

“Should we eliminate the infiltrators?”

“Expel them.”

“That’s too lenient. Order a public execution.”

Mason looked at Ri Gyeongsim with contempt in his eyes.

“How can you so easily kill those who were once part of your own country? And how can the people trust a ruler who does such a thing?”

“Your Majesty doesn’t understand the beasts of the North.”

Ri Gyeongsim looked at Mason.

“I assure you, eliminating them would send a much clearer message. Letting them live will only make Your Majesty appear weak.”

“Then let them see me as weak.”

Mason declared.

“I’ll leave everything to you. But if anyone dies because of this, I will hold you responsible. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Ri Gyeongsim bowed her head.

Mason returned to the civilized world with a heavy heart.

The first person he sought out was Yekaterina.

“Mr. Mason? What brings you here?”

She said with a casual smile.

“You know, I’m a busy person, so you need to make an appointment to see me?”

She had made a joke, but Mason’s expression was stiff. Yekaterina’s smile disappeared and the face of the Heavenly King returned.

“What’s the matter?”

“It seems Kim Donghwang is going to fight with China.”

“That’s not good news.”

“He’s trying to drag Jeong Ryeogyeong and the South Koreans into it.”

“That’s terrible news.”

Yekaterina pondered for a moment.

“What are you going to do, Mr. Mason?”

“I have to stop the war.”

“There are many ways to stop a war. The question is, from which side and how are you going to stop it?”

“What’s the best way?”

“The ‘best way’ as you think it already no longer exists in this situation. All that’s left is to sift through ‘choices that no one will be satisfied with’ to avoid the worst.”

Yekaterina had taught him many things. And now, she was trying to teach him how to make choices as a ruler.

This choice would be Mason’s first choice as a ruler and the last choice Yekaterina could teach him.

Because this choice would complete the ruler that was Mason.

“Choose. Choose whose side you will be on and what means you will use.”