Chapter 1444 – 1444. Dark Moon
First, I checked the kitchen.
The refrigerator was as it was, and the fryer was as it was. The CCTV was broken.
‘There wouldn’t be anything to gain from the kitchen. I used up all the chicken, and there are only pre-made sauces. If they were the type to research sauces, they wouldn’t have done this.’
They would have tried to guess the recipe from the ingredients used. But all I do in this kitchen is fry chicken. The chicken brining and sauce making are all done at the factory.
‘…They must know about the factory too. So, the next thing they’ll target is….’
The factory.
I sighed and prepared to open the store. My factory is in the T district, which is an industrial area. The district itself had security. Unless they were stupid, they wouldn’t attack in broad daylight. So, there was time until night.
‘I need to run the store for now.’
I glanced outside the kitchen.
Customers were already lined up in front of the store, waiting to taste Korean chicken.
•••
8 PM.
I left work early and headed to the factory in the T district instead of going home.
The factory was dark, and no one was there. The employees leave around 5 PM.
‘There’s no need to run the factory at full capacity right now.’
If the number of franchises increases, the factory might have to run 24 hours a day. When that time comes, I’ll have to hire more employees too.
‘I should look into other factories.’
At that point, it probably won’t be just a chicken factory. Even if it’s Yuyu Chicken, I don’t plan to keep selling only chicken. There’s a clear limit to chicken.
‘I’ll expand the field with chicken as the center.’
I was thinking of selling other foods.
‘As long as people exist, food can be sold forever. There’s no one who doesn’t eat food.’
I went into the office inside the empty factory and sat on a chair, waiting. I deliberately didn’t turn on the lights.
An hour passed.
‘Did I come too early? Come to think of it, it would be easier for them to move around midnight.’
Even after midnight passed and it became 1 AM, there were no intruders.
‘They’re not coming even after midnight? They’re very cautious.’
2 AM.
I started to think they might not come.
‘There wasn’t any definite proof that they would come in the first place. I just assumed… I feel so empty. I have to go to work at the store during the day… Should I go back and sleep now?’
It was the moment I got up. The pocket watch-type watch in my pocket vibrated. A message came from Yuria.
“Yuria. I’ll be back now.”
-Yes, Master. I’ll prepare so you can wash up as soon as you arrive. And… I’ve captured the uninvited guests.
•••
The house without Eugene.
Yuria quietly continued her studies, waiting for Eugene to return.
Her way of studying was by reading and watching. This world was more technologically advanced than Eugene’s world. The internet was the same, so she could find out most things online.
She began to acquire knowledge of this world. Just skimming through was enough. She didn’t have a perfect memory… but she was someone who didn’t forget most things after seeing them once. First, she would acquire knowledge, and then she would use it.
What she looked at carefully was magic. The magic of this world and the magic of her world had different systems. They were so different that it felt refreshing. For her, who had reached the level of a Grand Archmage, it was a fresh stimulus.
‘The basic knowledge of magic can be viewed by paying… but there’s no high-level knowledge.’
She quickly shook off her feelings of disappointment. If high-level magic knowledge could be obtained online, that would be even stranger. Magic knowledge itself was a treasure that couldn’t be exchanged for anything.
‘It’s a shame that I can’t use magic in this world.’
Inability to use magic. It was one of the penalties she had in this world.
At first, she didn’t think much of it. But it didn’t take long for that thought to change.
‘It was inconvenient.’
It was a matter of efficiency and convenience. Things that could be done quickly with magic had to be done by moving her body directly. It was an inconvenience like losing an arm, and it was about efficiency.
So, Yuria thought.
‘If I can’t use magic….’
She could use similar powers that weren’t magic. Fortunately, there were quite a few such powers in this world. A prime example was superpowers.
Most superpowers were known to be awakened innately, and it was almost impossible to develop them later. But she somehow thought it was possible.
‘Master was able to use lightning even without magic. And he would be able to use lightning even without the Lightning Heaven Style martial arts….’
She had been watching Eugene by his side for a long time. In her view, the way Eugene used lightning was different from magic and martial arts.
Power manifested by will.
It was close to the authority used by the demons of the [White Ring] world. Of course, it wasn’t exactly the same.
‘Master’s complete recovery is different, so it’s impossible to imitate….’
But she might be able to imitate Eugene’s lightning to some extent. This was a thought that was possible because she had reached the realm of transcendence.
“……”
She got up from her seat.
Yuria didn’t just get penalties when she came to this world.
She gained a sharp sense instead of being able to use magic. Her already excellent senses had surpassed their limits and created a new sense. It was usually called the sixth sense, but Yuria just called it intuition.
It was such an unfamiliar feeling that even she couldn’t handle it well yet. That intuition was telling her. That enemies were approaching.
‘How dare they….’
The rising anger was controlled by her cold reason. Her genius mind instantly calculated the situation and guessed the enemies’ purpose.
The enemies were probably after the chicken recipe. Eugene had expected the enemies to target the factory, but the enemies targeted Eugene’s house. Did they think the recipe was in the house? No. The enemies were trying to kidnap Eugene and find out the recipe. That was more certain and faster. It was an idea they could have because they didn’t know Eugene was a 5th-grade mage.
‘I can’t forgive them any more.’
She wouldn’t kill them.
There were many things to find out. And death was too easy of a punishment.
She checked the daggers equipped on her thighs and went outside the house. She didn’t want to let them into the house where Eugene and she stayed.
As she came outside, three men approached. They wore masks and held guns and knives in their hands. They were nervous when they saw Yuria. There was one reason.
“A maid….”
“Damn it. I didn’t think they’d hire a maid.”
“I heard they made a lot of money from chicken… I guess it’s true.”
In Neo London, the status of butlers and maids was enormous. Whether it was combat or office work, they were beings that were second to none.
“What do we do?”
“Attack? There are three of us, so there’s a chance, right? It’s not an area where the upper class lives, and the skills of a maid hired in the S district wouldn’t be anything special.”
“No, we retreat. Even if she’s hired by a resident of the S district, a maid is still a maid. Besides, I can’t feel anything from that maid. I even doubt if she’s a living human.”
Even though she was right in front of them, there was no sign of her presence.
If she hadn’t been standing openly in front of the house, they wouldn’t have even noticed her existence.
They slowly backed away from the silver-haired maid.
“How absurd. You come here as you please at this late hour, and now you’re going to leave as you please? Even uninvited guests are still guests. As a maid, I will attend to you.”
“Miss. We have urgent business…!!”
The man threw a smoke bomb he took from his waist onto the ground. Smoke instantly rose, obscuring the surroundings.
“Scatter!”
The men all ran away in different directions.
Yuria closed her eyes. She didn’t listen to the sounds either. She ignored the subtle vibrations felt through her skin. Relying on the new sense she had gained in this world, her intuition, she threw the daggers equipped on her thighs.
Thud! Thwack! Thud!
“Ack!”
“Kuh-uk!”
“Ugh….”
The daggers flew and pierced their bodies. They were precisely lodged in the part of the spine she was aiming for. Their nerves would be damaged, so they wouldn’t be able to move for a while. However, Yuria frowned as she looked at the dagger she had thrown to the right. There was a mistake. The dagger thrown to the right didn’t hit the desired spot. Thanks to that, he didn’t fall to the ground and counterattacked.
Bang bang bang!
Bullets flew from within the smoke. They were aimed precisely at Yuria’s head and heart. The opponent also had extraordinary skills.
‘I can feel the direction of the bullets.’
She lightly moved one step to the side. She felt it even before the opponent pulled the trigger. Even if her senses had become more sensitive, was this possible? Even Yuria herself was dumbfounded.
‘…It might be related to the power of time that I understood while fighting the chairman of Pantheon last time.’
She opened her eyes. She couldn’t see anything because of the thick smoke. She walked forward.
Bang bang bang bang bang!
Bullets poured out. But the bullets didn’t even graze Yuria’s clothes. She moved one step ahead of the bullets with a leisurely pace.
Click click.
The enemy threw the gun with no bullets at Yuria. Of course, that didn’t touch Yuria’s body either. The smoke cleared. Yuria could see the opponent sweating profusely. He pulled out a knife from his waist.
“You dodged bullets in the smoke? You’re an absurd monster. Even a warrior above 4th grade can’t dodge bullets that can’t be seen…. Why is someone with your skills in the S district…!”
“Because I’m a maid. I’m where my master is.”
“Your sense of duty is very thorough!”
The man charged with his knife. It was a relatively fast movement. But to Yuria’s eyes, everything was visible.
Yuria raised a dagger and blocked the attack just before the blade reached her neck. She narrowed her brows as if something was bothering her.
‘My intuition isn’t activating. This is troublesome.’
Of course, that didn’t mean she couldn’t deal with the enemy in front of her. She kicked the enemy’s calf with her booted foot. She turned behind him, who had lost his balance for a moment, and stabbed a dagger into his spine. He couldn’t move and fell to the ground.
“You’ve become disabled, but modern medicine is excellent, so there shouldn’t be any major problems if you get treatment. If you want, you can replace it with a mechanical spine.”
“……You crazy bitch. In the meantime, you aimed for the spine with a dagger and cut off the nerves…. What the hell are you?”
“It’s late at night. Please be quiet so you don’t disturb the neighbors.”
Yuria grabbed their arms and dragged them into the basement.
