The Military Chef of a Ruined World - Chapter 434



Only Noblemtl

Episode 434 Opportunity (2)

Repeating hundreds of lives, continuing the endless classification.

The more this happened, the more I could vaguely sense that my mind was wearing down.

After I passed 4,000 repetitions, I stopped even counting.

but.

Still.

‘Just a little more… … a better result… … .’

He gritted his teeth.

We continued with infinite repetition to achieve the best results.

And then, at some point.

“The confirmed number of survivors is approximately 1 million… ….”

“It is only a matter of time before we complete the conquest of other regions.”

He saved the lives of a million people.

Most of the monsters in Seoul were defeated without causing much damage.

As a result, 90% of them died.

Most of them were of no use even if kept alive, or rather, were only a nuisance.

‘Are there really so many useless people among humans?’

In other words,

The 10% of humans he saved were truly the best.

They were the elite of the elite, with no one standing in the way of their survival.

There were some buildings that were slightly broken down though.

Seoul’s society did not collapse.

They used stockpiled materials to reconstruct the shattered cityscape of Seoul.

‘You came all the way here.’

An unbelievable sight, even though it was achieved by one’s own efforts.

Jang Young-woong started the next repetition with the confidence that his repetition was not in vain.

however.

“The confirmed number of survivors is approximately 1 million… ….”

“It is only a matter of time before we complete the conquest of other regions.”

From that point on.

Get more information, make more informed choices.

No matter how hard you struggle to produce slightly better results.

“The confirmed number of survivors is approximately 1 million… ….”

“It is only a matter of time before we complete the conquest of other regions.”

Even if you repeat it hundreds of times.

‘Why.’

Couldn’t have done better.

Only then did he realize it.

‘ah.’

He looked back on the things he had done.

I made the most of the information I gathered through my abilities.

Those who would interfere with survival were eliminated in advance, and those who would be helpful were somehow saved.

I died dozens of times against monsters to figure out their weaknesses.

I racked my brain to figure out how to exploit that weakness as efficiently as possible.

‘This was the best.’

in result.

We have reached the best possible result, where nothing can get better.

and.

The moment I thought that.

[00:00:00… … .]

The time that kept repeating itself.

Moving on to the next step.

[Beginner protection system is lifted.]

“So this is what it was about?”

Before he repeated his life thousands of times.

I saw the system message again that I had seen at the end of my first life.

* * *

“… … Is it okay for you to reveal something like that to me?”

Jang Young-woong and I were having a conversation alone.

I expected you to tell secrets, but I didn’t expect it to be this much.

“What, this isn’t the first time I’ve revealed this to you. To be honest, I’ve revealed this to other people quite a few times. Probably more than a hundred times.”

“yes?”

“Of course, at this point, you’re probably the only one who knows. In the end, I found out that it would be better not to reveal it. But… … Even if I didn’t reveal it, you had some idea of ​​my abilities. It actually makes me feel relieved.”

but.

If you’ve been through so many repetitions, there must have been times when you’ve revealed your abilities.

“So even if you did reveal it, why are you telling me that?”

“I told you. I thought maybe it wasn’t necessary to take you down.”

He looked at my face carefully and said.

“I don’t know how that’s possible, but you know about my power… … and you can probably put up some resistance.”

“For now, yes.”

“You, in that case, would understand even better. This power that has been given to me… is absurdly powerful.”

That’s definitely true.

It was such a powerful force that I didn’t even have the confidence to win against Iza right now.

“But there are some limitations.”

In that regard.

I opened my mouth because I had a guess.

“You are an awakened one.”

“Even if time is turned back with this power, there has never been a case where a non-Awakened person becomes an Awakened person. Even then, there were many cases where it stagnated to a certain level.”

This was the reason why the number of awakened people in Seoul was so small.

“I guess… … this system doesn’t seem to be willing to cooperate with my abilities.”

“… … I have no intention of cooperating.”

“As the days go by, the enemy will become stronger, but the power I have will stagnate at a certain level.”

No matter how infinite the opportunities are,

It is impossible for one soldier to defeat hundreds of millions of monsters.

To seize that opportunity, a commensurate minimum of power was needed.

If things continue this way, one day he will end up without even that minimum power.

and.

‘Oh, indeed.’

In that regard.

I noticed something and said.

“So that’s why you gritted your teeth and tried to recruit us.”

“That’s right. I needed a very powerful Awakened Force to fill in what I was lacking.”

This guy seems to have no interest in other forces.

They tried to include us in particular.

Now I know why.

“Actually, there were other limitations as well. The second limitation was scope.”

“range?”

“As soon as the barrier opened, I took my men to take a look around outside of Seoul. There were a few battles there. But… … Even after repeating time, the traces of those battles remained. I realized that this repetition also did not activate on lands that were not within my influence. On the contrary, if I brought that land under my influence, the repetition also worked properly. In other words.”

“Is there a need to expand the territory?”

“And to do that, the most important thing was… … you guys.”

I burst out laughing.

In the end, I came back to the beginning.

“The Legion is famous for that radio. It also has an abundance of Awoken forces that I don’t have. It was the place best equipped for territorial expansion.”

What was the reason we came all the way to Seoul?

Unify all surviving human forces.

It was because this Korean peninsula had to be unified.

“I spoke to Lieutenant Kim at our first meeting. He seemed like quite a patriot. I thought that if I could dig into that part, I could have the corps under my command.”

“Is there a reason why we must have you under our command? If it were a normal alliance, we would have accepted it.”

“As an ordinary ally, if the Legion expands its territory, that land will only be Legion land, and will not be under my influence. I needed to make it a definite part of my power. Well, that’s how it ended up.”

No matter what.

This means that he intended to absorb us without anyone knowing.

I asked with a hint of displeasure.

“So? You’re talking too much, so I asked you why you’re saying this.”

“Haha… … How prickly. Well, I can understand why you’re upset.”

He had a serious expression on his face.

He spoke in a slightly calm voice.

“I believe that if you have heard the whole story, you will understand. I am… …a person who is truly trying to overcome this destruction.”

“… … .”

“I invited you to my house last time. Do you remember?”

“I remember. We were also treated to simple dishes.”

“All I want is to protect that landscape. To restore the world where my family can live safely… …. For that, I overcame that endless repetition. I’m sorry for giving you an unpleasant experience in the process.”

“The intention wasn’t even evil?”

“That’s right.”

That’s definitely true.

If I suddenly gained the ability to turn back time, I would probably end up making a similar choice as the author.

‘No, it’s more likely that he was much worse than the author.’

If you listen to the story, the structure of the repetition always goes back to a week before the day of destruction.

I don’t know how long they survived on average during that cycle, but it must have been close to a year.

‘Even if you can’t do it, it’s like you’ve spent thousands of years.’

Well, that’s fine.

If it were me, I might have lost my mind after repeating it a thousand times.

To be honest.

It was astonishing that a normal person could go through something like that and still maintain their sanity.

“I believe you know my sincerity. So… … how about joining me?”

“Together.”

and.

This was his main point.

“This ability that was given to me was incredibly powerful, but I was secretly feeling regretful. Because my own ability was lacking, I had to go through too many useless trials and errors. But!”

He turned his gaze away.

He said this while looking at Lieutenant Kim who was watching us from afar.

“If a genius commander like you, or Lieutenant Kim Hyun-seok, who possesses the power to be free from my abilities, were to join us, things would be a lot different.”

“Genius Commander… … Hmm.”

“Just by looking at the fact that he succeeded in occupying Gangwon-do faster than the ‘best’ I could come up with, you can see what a great leader he is. It’s understandable that someone with that much ability wouldn’t want to be under someone else’s command.”

But I’m under some ridiculous misconception.

Since the misunderstanding was intentional on our part, we decided to let it go for now.

“But this world is never easy. No matter how great you are, you will experience failure at least once.”

That’s exactly what he said.

In fact, we have been through several major crises.

We’ve been lucky enough to overcome all the crises so far, but we may face defeat one day.

and.

“This world is not so kind as to overlook that one failure.”

The moment you experience a fatal failure.

Regardless of our victories so far.

I will be defeated by this fucking world.

“I can make that failure disappear.”

Jang Young-woong said, placing his hand on his chest.

“Think about it. The genius leadership of Lieutenant Kim Hyeon-seok, the strong soldiers of your corps, and the talent, supplies, and equipment I saved from Seoul.”

“… … .”

“If you try hard enough, you won’t experience failure. But, even if you fail, it doesn’t matter. You can always try again!”

He shouted in an excited voice.

“If your power and mine are combined, it won’t take long to conquer all of South Korea. If it takes too long, just start over. I’ve also gained some know-how, so if I repeat it a few dozen times, I’ll be able to conquer all of South Korea at the fastest speed. Then I’ll be able to turn back time for the entire land! Then, one day.”

Swish.

Jang Young-woong extends his hand to me.

“Eventually, we will be able to overcome this destruction.”

I looked at the hand and said.

“Wouldn’t you have to start over again from around the day of doomsday? Up until now, it’s only been a little less than a year, but from now on, every time you turn back, you might have to go through years, even decades again.”

“It’s certainly not an easy task. But I ask you to follow me. As a leader… … I will take on that much responsibility.”

It feels simple when you say it in words.

For normal people, it wouldn’t be strange if they had a mental breakdown several times.

He was willing to endure this madness to save his family from destruction.

‘… … That’s amazing.’

If it comes to pass as he said.

No matter what kind of strong enemy appears, we will be able to defeat it someday.

No crisis can truly threaten us.

“Take my hand. Come with me.”

Just like he said.

Maybe we can overcome this fucking destruction.

“Thank you for the offer.”

……of course.

“I refuse.”

“what?”

really.

Well, if it were as he said, then it would be like this.

* * *

“… …Why?”

To my refusal.

He said with a suddenly dark expression.

“Do you also think that what I did was ugly?”

“yes?”

“Selecting the people who will survive, discarding the unnecessary ones… … Isn’t it because you find my actions ugly that you refuse to cooperate?”

“I didn’t say anything like that.”

In that regard.

I said with a snicker.

“Seeing you say that directly… … I guess that part really bothered you.”

“… … .”

Distinguishing between those who live and those who die, or something like that.

To be honest, it’s a pretty unpleasant story.

but…….

‘I can’t deny that in the end, it was for the best.’

It’s true that I don’t like the method.

However, that does not give us any reason to refuse to cooperate.

“The reason I refuse to cooperate is… … it’s simple.”

“what?”

“Because the premise is wrong.”

I’ve been thinking about whether or not to point this out for a while now.

I think I can say it now.

“Your power… … .”

“what?”

“Is it true that we can turn back time?”

In my opinion.

That doesn’t seem like that much of a power.