Trait Hoarder

Exoskeleton Factory — Part 3

There were two ways to use the Golden Ruler’s Staff.

One, strike the target directly.

Two, make them drink water infused with it.

“Hoo…”

I took a deep breath.

Then, I reached into my golf bag and pulled out the Golden Ruler’s Staff.

A golden ruler, roughly 30 centimeters long.

I held it like a sword and lowered my stance.

I activated [Thunderbolt].

My physical body dissipated.

I transformed into pure energy and shot down the hallway.

A streak of yellow lightning cut through the air.

When it came to sheer speed, [Thunderbolt] was one of the fastest movement skills.

In an instant, I was on the upper floors.

I briefly returned to my physical form, only to activate it again.

It had an even shorter cooldown than [Phasing] or Blink, allowing me to use it repeatedly.

“Guh! Gaaagh!”

“Urgh! Krrk! Keuk!”

“M-Mom… ugh… Mom…!”

The underground factory was in chaos.

Every automated machine had stopped.

The workers, who should have been laboring, were now sprawled across the floor.

Vomiting green liquid, clutching their violently beating hearts.

If left alone, they would all turn into zombies.

Some would even fuse with machinery and exoskeletons to become enhanced zombies.

I wasn’t going to let that happen.

Tap! Tatatatak!

I propelled myself forward using [Grand Assault].

[Master of the Sword]

I swung the Golden Ruler’s Staff like a sword.

A golden arc passed over the workers’ chests.

Like a snake slithering gracefully.

Like the precision of a Swordmaster.

“Huh?”

“W-What?”

As long as they weren’t dead, as long as their souls hadn’t left their bodies—

Even if they were at death’s door, the Golden Ruler’s Staff could restore them.

Zombie transformations were no exception.

One by one, the workers staggered to their feet, looking dazed.

Their previously erratic heartbeats calmed, and their fevers, which had soared past 40 degrees, returned to normal.

As I passed them, I shouted:

“This place is dangerous! Get out now!”

“Huh? What’s happening?”

“I-I don’t know…”

“Just run!”

“Get the hell out of here!”

They weren’t ignorant just because they were uneducated.

If anything, they were sharper than most.

In this hellish world, hesitation often led to death.

Fwoosh!

I activated [Thunderbolt] again.

As I bolted forward, I saw the workers scrambling up the stairs.

Bang!

“Die! Cough—Just die already!”

“Damn black magic bastards! I knew it!”

“Wait, wait! You’re misunderstanding! Ugh! I was betrayed too!”

On the next floor, infighting had broken out.

The security guards had turned their guns on the researchers, while the researchers clutched their chests, barely maintaining their barriers.

Ah, so this was it.

The mid-layer of the factory dungeon.

Unlike other floors, this one always had a defensive battle taking place.

‘Do I kill them? Or spare them?’

I made my decision instantly.

I charged forward, still in lightning form.

I passed through the security door and rushed in.

The guards and researchers spotted me and turned their weapons on me.

“What the hell is that?!”

“A superhuman!”

“Just shoot!”

Tatatatata!

Even if they begged for mercy on their knees, I wouldn’t have spared them—

And they opened fire instead?

No need to think twice.

Slash!

My sword carved through them.

A Sword aura erupted, cutting the guards clean in half.

Then, I unleashed my sword dance.

The Black Tiger Sword’s shadow multiplied, swirling like a storm.

Engulfing the entire security zone.

“Gah!”

“Urk!”

Only groans echoed.

The superhumans who had been fighting moments ago—every last one of them—were now headless corpses.

There had been at least dozens of them, but it hadn’t taken me even three seconds to clear them out.

After a quick glance over the battlefield, I took off again.

Basement Level 5, Level 4, Level 3…

Then the first floor.

Finally, I emerged aboveground.

“Kraaagh!”

“Grrk! Kegh! Krrrk!”

The sight was appalling.

Was it because the mana concentration was higher here?

Several workers had already transformed into zombies.

One of them stumbled forward—right toward a guard who immediately raised his gun.

“Don’t come closer! I swear to God, stay back!”

Bang! Bang!

Gunshots shattered the early morning silence.

The zombie’s head exploded, and it collapsed.

But the nearby zombies reacted.

Even the workers who were still mid-transformation.

Lying on the ground, their twisted bodies snapped toward the guard.

“Ugh… Urghh…”

The guard was a mere Level 1 superhuman.

His ammo was limited.

What could he possibly do in this situation?

“Commander! Give us orders! We need to unlock the armory!”

[Assessing the situation. Dammit! Why isn’t anyone responding from inside?]

“It’s urgent, sir!”

[For fuck’s sake! You know I don’t have the clearance! I can’t even unlock it at this hour!]

“Then at least open the factory doors—”

[Are you insane?! Are you gonna take responsibility?! What, do you have nine lives?!]

A frantic conversation over the in-ear radio.

Thanks to my heightened hearing, I caught every word.

I landed in front of the retreating guard.

His eyes widened as he kept a finger pressed against his earpiece.

“W-Who are you—”

“Sleep.”

Thud.

I knocked him out with a light strike.

[What’s going on?! What’s happening?!]

The security chief shouted from the radio. I ignored him.

I swung the Black Tiger Sword.

[Holy Sword] [Sacred Flame] [Sword Aura]

[Mana Core] [Holy Power] [Divine Radiance]

Golden flames scattered like a meteor shower.

The aboveground factory—

Larger in size than all the underground floors combined.

Only about twenty zombies had spawned here.

With so much space, they were spread out.

The [Sacred Flame] meteors rained down.

Splitting into dozens of streaks, each targeting a single zombie.

Ignoring the workers and guards still undergoing zombification.

Then, ignition.

Like dry leaves soaked in oil, the zombies went up in flames instantly.

But it wasn’t over yet.

Dozens of people still lay on the ground, writhing in pain.

The guard screamed, waving his gun wildly, telling everyone to stay back.

The workers, already unconscious, were moments away from turning into zombies.

I took them all in at a glance.

Captured them within my mind’s landscape and traced a single line.

Then, I charged.

No, I activated [Thunderbolt].

Fwoosh!

Clutching the Golden Ruler’s Staff, I became a spirit of lightning.

I zigzagged through the factory.

Across the ground.

Over the steel beams above.

Through the shift manager’s office.

I skimmed past the assembly line’s suspended machinery and swept over the conveyor belts, brushing past the collapsed workers.

One second.

That was all it took to touch every person inside the factory.

The Golden Ruler’s Staff gleamed in my hands, radiating light.

Just as [Phasing] limited my ability to attack, [Thunderbolt] restricted the tools I could use.

But the Golden Ruler’s Staff was an exception.

A supreme treasure, a powerful artifact.

“I… I’m alive…”

“I thought I was dead for sure.”

Their faces were still pale with exhaustion.

I swung my sword again.

This time, swapping [Sacred Flame] for [Celestial Flame].

Swish! Swish, swish!

A rain of pure white flames descended.

It rode the holy sword and its Sword aura, sinking into the bodies of those below.

Superhumans and ordinary people alike.

They flinched at first but quickly accepted the flames.

[Celestial Flame]—the fire of healing and purification.

It soothed and cleansed their bodies, accelerating their recovery.

“T-thank you!”

“Superhuman! Thank you!”

Was it because I still had the Dragon Monarch’s Crown activated?

They hadn’t recognized me right away.

But the zombie outbreak wasn’t limited to just this area.

Just as I turned toward the dormitory, I spotted a figure slipping away.

Level 3.

From the way the other guards had treated him, he was likely the security chief.

Trying to escape alone, huh?

I reached for my waist, pulled Mjolnir, and threw it.

[Lightning] [Holy Power] [Divine Relic]

[Resonance] [Close-Combat Mastery] [Throw]

CRACK!

“Guh!”

A bolt of divine lightning struck.

But he didn’t die.

That was thanks to the suppression trait included in [Close-Combat Mastery].

And because my intent had shaped the flow of [Holy Power], [Divine Relic], and [Resonance].

“R-run!”

“Shit!”

The guards scattered in all directions.

Too late.

I recalled Mjolnir and threw it again.

Each time, another guard dropped.

There weren’t that many left, so it didn’t take long to subdue them all.

‘A bit annoying.’

Having to throw it each time.

If I had a flying sword technique, this would be much easier.

Right now, thanks to [Resonance], I could slightly adjust Mjolnir’s trajectory and make it bounce a few times—

But to have it freely weave through the air? I’d need [Flying Sword Technique].

“M-Mjolnir?”

One of the workers pointed at the hammer, eyes wide.

“No way… Warrior Kim?”

The moment he said it, his own realization hit him like a shockwave.

I could feel his eyes scanning me from head to toe.

The magical glow obscuring my face and head.

The black tracksuit.

The golf bag slung over my back.

The dual pistols at my waist.

The Black Tiger Sword.

Then, his voice erupted.

“It’s the Sword Star! The Sword Star is here!”

“What? Who?!”

“The Sword Star? Who the hell is that?”

“You idiot! You don’t know the Sword Star? He’s the one who killed that Massacre Empress bitch!”

“Holy shit! It’s him!?”

The workers erupted into a frenzy.

But there was no time for praise.

I deliberately activated my [Command] trait and spoke with authority.

“Take these guards and get everyone outside. I’m going to blow up the factory. There’s black magic here.”

“Gasp! No wonder…”

“B-but blowing it up—”

“You idiot! Just get the hell out! What, you wanna stay here and turn into a zombie? Fine! I’ll take good care of whatever cash you left behind.”

“You bastard…! I’m going, I’m going!”

The strange symptoms they had experienced.

The colleagues they had seen turning into zombies with their own eyes.

Now, combined with my commanding presence, the workers began rushing out of the factory.

Even as they moved, I was already on the move again.

The dormitory, the warehouse, the research lab—

There were people in all of them.

The zombification process was still ongoing.

Luckily, no one had fully turned yet.

Since the main magic circle was centered on the factory’s main building, the effects had been strongest there.

“Is everyone out?”

“Yes, Sword Star!”

“Move as far from the factory as possible. I’m bringing it down.”

I raised Mjolnir.

Closing my eyes, I focused my mind on the hammer.

[Lightning] [Holy Power] [Divine Relic]

[Thor Cultivation Technique] [Mana Core] [Insight]

Rumble… Rumble…

Mjolnir responded.

I could feel it. I could understand it.

The world itself.

The wild mana swirling above.

I channeled as much mana as I could into Mjolnir.

No—

I guided it with [Holy Power].

Not just my mana, but the world’s mana as well.

Then, at the moment when Mjolnir’s internal lightning synchronized with the energy above—

When the critical threshold was reached—

I swapped [Insight] for another trait.

[Focus].

BOOM!

Lightning struck viciously.

Almost simultaneously, Mjolnir, now wreathed in divine Lightning, left my hand.

[Holy Sword] [Divine Relic] [Resonance]

[Close-Combat Mastery] [Mana Burst] [Throw]

The already manifested Judgment Bolt.

The lightning strike from earlier.

Now combined with an extreme amplification of power.

Mjolnir shot toward the factory.

A massive lightning dragon slithered behind it.

For a moment, there was silence.

Then—

KWA-BOOOOOM!

“AAAHHHH!”

“HELP!”

“DEAR GOD!”

The factory, large enough to fit multiple gymnasiums,

Exploded in a brilliant white flash.

The sky brightened as if painted over with white ink.

Then came the blast wave.

A massive shockwave swept outward, knocking everyone off their feet.

Only I remained standing.

Thud.

Mjolnir returned to my hand.

But the factory’s collapse was still ongoing.

BOOM! BOOM! KRRRACK!

The lightning storm Mjolnir had unleashed continued its merciless destruction.

Reinforced concrete, alloyed structures, and even nearly completed exoskeletons melted together into bizarre, twisted sculptures.

‘Yeah… I really have gotten stronger.’

I had just wiped out an entire factory in an instant.

“Hooah!”

Right on time, Choi Sunsoo and Kim Chulkwon arrived, leading a squad of Warrior Security superhumans.

“Sword Star. That was quite the spectacle.”

“It was because of the magic circle. Pull up the CCTV footage and check for yourself. They were using zombie magic.”

“Zombie magic? Damn it!”

“If I hadn’t destroyed it, the black magic could’ve spread to the nearby factories too. Blowing it up was the best option.”

“Zombie magic… What the hell were they thinking?”

“It looked like the Dark Jaguar Cult.”

“The Dark Jaguar Cult…”

“We’ll have to dig through the remains to know for sure.”

“You think anything’s left?”

“There should be. My attack didn’t reach the underground levels.”

The magic circles were burned away, but the documents and digital records should still be intact.

There was no way the hard drives had been completely destroyed.

And the underground factory and secret research labs wouldn’t have been directly connected to the surface.

Choi Sunsoo and Kim Chulkwon quickly secured the site.

The responding police were handled. The nosy neighbors from surrounding factories were blocked off.

And the rescued workers—dealt with.

“If we can, let’s hire them.”

“Yes, Sword Star.”

“Take them to a hospital and check their condition. They were exposed to black magic, so their bodies are probably a mess. I did some emergency treatment, but they need a thorough check-up. And obviously, our company will cover the medical bills.”

“You’re quite generous.”

“Generous, my ass.”

“Hehehe, Director Choi, our Sword Star was sent from the heavens. He’s nothing like the rest of those greedy superhumans.”

“Don’t start with that nonsense.”

With that, one major problem was resolved.

Leaving the rest to them, I climbed into the Red Cougar.

As I did, the workers, having heard about full employment and their medical bills being covered, erupted into cheers.

“Sword Star, long live!”

“Thank you!”

“May you live a long, healthy life! Thank you!”

Warrior Security and Warrior Construction were dream jobs.

The highest salary, the best benefits, and the most promising future.

And yet, the workload was minimal.

I had just set it up using the standards from my original world,

But in Korea, it was causing a massive upheaval.

People thought I was giving away too much.

Back in my original world, they would’ve called it a crap company.

Here, it was a dream job.

I wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

I gave them a casual wave and took off in the Red Cougar.

I hit every known hotspot for the Zombie Crisis.

A frontline military division where a Death Knight would appear.

A university where a Lich lurked.

An abandoned church where a corrupted bishop was born.

As expected of this dystopian world, death and crime were everywhere.

I left the cleanup and media control to Choi Sunsoo and Kim Chulkwon.

‘I’ve taken care of all the mid-bosses.’

A preemptive strike.

There were still minor locations left, but I didn’t need to personally deal with them.

I could just slap an official reason on it and dispatch Warrior Security superhumans.

Maybe now, I could finally take a break?

Just as I had that thought—

“Sword Star.”

Choi Sunsoo entered, his face dark as a storm.

“What’s wrong?”

“We recovered a few classified documents from the Seongsu-dong factory.”

“What kind?”

I took the files and froze on the spot.

The words [TOP SECRET] were stamped in bold red letters.

And inside—

The evidence was undeniable.

The Eastern Army had been secretly funding the Seongsu-dong factory.

–TL Notes–

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