NTN 42

Chapter 42

The Plan

“Saebyeok, what would you call a landmark around here?”

Baek Saebyeok looked around in all directions, then lifted her gaze toward the sky before answering.

“The only landmark nearby would be the ruined steel factory. But if we keep going straight after we hit the area where there’s more traffic, we’ll reach Weiru Station.”

“Weiru Station?”

Jang Mokhwa frowned slightly.

“Roughly how long would that take?”

“At our current pace, about a day and a half. But we can’t keep moving this fast the whole way,” Saebyeok replied.

The ruins hunter Harris Brown and his companions had once traveled the same route on bicycles, starting from the north of Weiru Station and arriving at the ruined steel plant—it had taken them more than a day. Normally, even a car couldn’t cross that distance very quickly.

But the rescue team’s jeep—driven by Jang Mokhwa, with Seong Geonwoo and the others aboard—had been racing under Jeongbeop’s relentless pursuit, already covering a vast distance toward Weiru Station. And naturally, a jeep was far faster than a bicycle. Their destination wasn’t north of the station, but the station itself.

Jang Mokhwa nodded thoughtfully.

“If we set Weiru Station as our rendezvous point, we can make it look like we kept heading north from there.
If we can shake off Jeongbeop smoothly before that, great. But even if we can’t, we can lure him northward from there—and into whatever unknown danger is lurking in that area.

Even if he has the power to survive it, he won’t be able to keep chasing us.”

Her voice grew louder as she spoke, excitement creeping in at the thought of finally outsmarting Jeongbeop.

Listening quietly, Seong Geonwoo raised his hand like he would in class.

“I have a question.”

“What is it?”

Jang Mokhwa sounded mildly surprised—she didn’t think there was any flaw in her plan.

“I… don’t actually know where Weiru Station is, or how to get there.”

“…”

For a moment, Jang Mokhwa was at a loss for words.

A few seconds later, she let out a wry laugh.

“Right, I forgot—you’re the newbie who just came up to the surface. That means you’ve been doing really well so far!

If I weren’t driving right now, I’d give you a thumbs-up!”

After a bit of awkward justification, she sighed and continued.

“I heard that before the Old World was destroyed, people had tons of usable satellites in orbit. They could easily locate destinations they’d never been to and pick the best route there instantly.

Hmm… I think I should wear the exosuit. Once I dodge Jeongbeop’s first attack while driving, I’ll get out and lure him away. Then, Saebyeok, you move into the driver’s seat and take over.”

“What if Jeongbeop attacks from a distance while you’re putting the exosuit on?”

Baek Saebyeok had found a hole in her plan.

That made Jang Mokhwa fall silent.

While glancing at the rearview mirror, Saebyeok said calmly, as usual,

“I’ll get out too and act as Geonwoo’s guide. I’m small enough that it won’t interfere much with the exosuit’s movement or reaction time.”

“I told you, you’re not small—you’re cute. You’re about average height among wasteland wanderers. I’ve seen plenty under 160 centimeters,” Jang Mokhwa corrected lightly, then nodded.

“I won’t point out how dangerous that plan is. You both knew, once you left Ashland for the surface, that you’d face this kind of risk eventually. If it were only my burden to bear, I’d never push it onto you.”

She exhaled deeply.

“Don’t forget to grab some food.”

Then she suddenly clamped her mouth shut, took one hand off the steering wheel, and gestured toward the compressed biscuits and energy bars in the console box. She pointed at her mouth and puffed out her cheeks.

Seong Geonwoo and Yong Yeo-hong looked puzzled, about to ask what she meant, when Saebyeok turned and shot them a look, warning them to stay quiet.

They swallowed their questions.

Even Saebyeok didn’t quite understand what the gesture meant—but she could tell that their leader didn’t want the conversation to continue.

Gripping the wheel again, Jang Mokhwa shifted topics.

“Geonwoo, you need to think about how to respond if Jeongbeop uses his Agwi-do ability on you. If he stops playing hide-and-seek and suddenly gets close enough to use it, things will get ugly fast.”

“Right…”

After a pause, Geonwoo nodded.

“I’ll think about it!”

Then he turned to Saebyeok.

“No time to waste. Grab some rations and get ready to move. Might be good to eat something now too—we probably won’t get another chance to stop.”

“Okay.”

Saebyeok took out the food from the console box and split it with Geonwoo.

Geonwoo ripped open a pack of compressed biscuits and shoved a mouthful inside.

Less than a minute later, Jang Mokhwa suddenly jerked the steering wheel, narrowly dodging a laser fired by Jeongbeop.

Without waiting for instructions, Geonwoo threw open the jeep door and leapt out, using all his strength instead of rolling like before.

With a crackle, another laser beam shot through the ground where he’d been.

If he had rolled instead, he would’ve been hit for sure. Even the exosuit’s armor plating might not have saved him.

Bending his knees, Geonwoo used the exosuit’s support joints to propel himself twenty meters into the air and charged straight at Jeongbeop in the distance.

The robotic monk immediately stepped back, widening the distance, circling around to evade him.

Jang Mokhwa seized the chance to brake, slowing the jeep so Saebyeok could roll safely out of the passenger side.

Closing the door behind her, Saebyeok quickly ducked into a patch of low shrubs.

The jeep then accelerated again, surging toward the main road that cut through the black swamp wasteland.

Meanwhile, Geonwoo returned from the far side where he’d been pursuing Jeongbeop.

Covered in dark metal plating and partial armor, he pointed toward the rear power pack, gesturing for Saebyeok to climb on.

She scrambled out of the bushes, using the exosuit’s joints and frames like rungs of a ladder to climb up onto the power pack.

Now seated, her head was much higher than Geonwoo’s—this arrangement interfered less with his movement and aim than if he carried her directly.

Together, they continued chasing Jeongbeop, trying to drive him farther away. Their goal was to buy time for Jang Mokhwa and Yong Yeo-hong to escape the pursuit zone.

Wearing his metallic helmet, Geonwoo ran a few steps, then leapt and rolled even without any immediate threat—training his body to better sync with the exosuit.

Saebyeok hunched down, gripping the metal frame tightly so she wouldn’t fall. She knew his movements were meant to fully adapt to the exosuit before Jeongbeop counterattacked.

After several rolls, Geonwoo rose and strode forward, relying on the exosuit’s integrated sensor system to track the red-robed Jeongbeop in the distance.

Jeongbeop’s eyes glowed crimson. His unstable condition seemed agitated by the woman’s presence. Bending his metallic joints, he suddenly leapt sideways.

But he hadn’t gone completely berserk—he was still moving according to some prior strategy. His hostility toward women came from mental distortion caused by his mechanical body, not from an Awakener’s inherent price, so he could still restrain it somewhat.

Geonwoo, carrying grenades, saw this and didn’t retreat. Instead, he kept pressing forward, trying to close the gap.

The chase continued for several minutes before Saebyeok, crouched atop the power pack, spoke in a low voice.

“Something’s wrong.
Jeongbeop’s circling toward the jeep!
He’s avoiding us—he’s going after the team leader!”

The rescue team had considered this possibility, but they hadn’t expected Jeongbeop to read their intentions so precisely, or to completely ignore the exosuit in favor of the jeep. They thought he’d play their game of hide-and-seek a few more times first.

But unexpectedly, Jeongbeop had already figured it out. His Telepathic Sense ability didn’t seem to have a range limit.

Without asking Saebyeok what to do, Geonwoo reacted immediately to the worst-case scenario.

He began circling within the area marked by the jeep’s tire tracks, trying to push Jeongbeop outward—to buy more time for the jeep to reach the populated zone beyond the black swamp wasteland. Inside that narrower range, he could fight the robotic monk more effectively, even with just the exosuit.

Thus began a wild dance—Geonwoo’s dark metal frame and Jeongbeop’s black steel body tearing through the wasteland, the forest, and the edge of the swamp. They ran, leapt, and clashed with no thought of conserving energy.

Several times, Geonwoo aimed his grenade launcher and EMP rifle, but Jeongbeop twisted away each time, widening the gap—clearly not yet ready for an all-out fight.

The exosuit’s battery, pushed to its limits, was steadily draining. And the distance between Jeongbeop and the jeep’s presumed position was shrinking bit by bit.

Geonwoo grew increasingly anxious, but there was nothing else he could do.

If Jeongbeop decided to close in for combat, Geonwoo could at least fight back with everything he had. But right now, it felt like being trapped with a chronic, incurable disease—each second bringing him closer to death.

Watching him, Saebyeok spoke quietly.

“Don’t rush.”

Even though she couldn’t help physically while he sprinted and jumped at high speed, she could sense his growing frustration.

Jang Mokhwa hadn’t given her a grenade launcher, but Saebyeok didn’t mind. She knew it was because the team leader had to keep one ready in case Jeongbeop broke off to attack the jeep instead. Her job wasn’t to fight—it was to guide.

Geonwoo didn’t respond, but he seemed to calm himself. He stopped straying outside the area marked by the tire tracks.

Meanwhile, the jeep’s remaining tracks in the area had become wildly twisted—turning several times. It would now be hard for Jeongbeop to guess the direction it had gone. To find the last trace, he’d have to come closer, into the area Geonwoo was guarding.

And that meant one thing—Geonwoo’s opportunity had finally come.