# Chapter 471: Side Story 144
Guryong Sky City.
There were three types of roads for transportation.
Underground roads, surface roads, and aerial roads.
Underground roads were entirely for public transit.
Dilapidated rail subways ran through them.
Air purification systems operated underground too, but there were frequent breakdowns, a musty urine smell, various kinds of trash, and very poor sanitation.
Compared to that, the surface roads were much better.
Air purification was top-notch, with fully autonomous maglev cars, wireless battery charging, holographic signposts, and so on.
Ordinary people with some money used them.
Access to the various surface road systems was subscription-based, after all.
What about the aerial roads?
They were the exclusive domain of those in power.
Not just anyone could fly around.
Unlicensed drones or aircraft using the aerial roads would be arrested or shot down.
Turak was a traffic controller.
He was from the Green Skin Orc race.
Quite successful for an orc.
Because he worked on the surface.
A traffic controller’s job was to inspect the surface road systems and detect illegal aerial vehicles.
Turak was diligently carrying out his duties today as well.
He was actually quite tense.
An emergency alert had been issued throughout Guryong Sky just moments ago.
Security forces had been deployed, so it would probably be resolved soon.
But then!
Turak’s eyes caught a strange sight.
Swoosh!
An android came flying around the corner of a building, departing from the designated aerial road with a smooth wingbeat.
‘…Huh?’
He quickly scanned to verify.
The result: an illegal flying android without an aerial license.
‘I knew it.’
A design he’d never seen before.
A tacky white color, and it even had unnecessary wings.
It seemed to be on a test flight for a new product.
Even so, they should have gotten permission in advance.
Time to enforce.
First, he collected video evidence, then raised his traffic control EMP shotgun and aimed at the illegal android.
Swoosh!
Another one appeared.
‘…So there were two.’
Should he request backup?
No.
He could handle two on his own.
-Clank!
He raised the EMP shotgun again, but.
“Huh?”
Swoosh!
From around the corner…
“O-one more?”
So three?
Following behind.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swooooosh!
“Ah…”
They kept appearing.
The sky was pure white.
The autonomous aerial vehicles in the sky scrambled about before coming to a halt.
That wasn’t all.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
A massive group of androids came walking around the corner in perfect rows and columns.
“G-good heavens!”
What is this?
From the sky, from the ground.
Turak stood frozen in a daze.
This was not a situation he could handle alone.
In an instant, all traffic systems came to a halt.
Every vehicle stopped operating.
At that moment!
A strange human suddenly stood before his eyes.
He had no idea when the man had appeared, but…
“Chwik! Chwiiik! Chwek! Chwek!”
The stranger was staring at Turak while making strange noises.
“Chwiiik? Chwikum? Chwikchwikchwik?”
“…”
“Chwit!!! Kuuuum!”
“…”
“Chwiriri… Can’t you understand me?”
What the hell is with this guy?
“Who are you?”
“Oohing? Orcs can speak human language?”
If orcs don’t speak human language, what language would they speak?
But he couldn’t say anything.
The stranger was grinning, but there was something unsettling about him.
“Good then. So where is Wanghong Bank?”
“Um, if you turn left from here…”
“Oh my, what a smart orc.”
Then the stranger looked behind him.
“Boss Bong, the orc told me the bank is that way.”
“I know. I’m heading there right now. …By the way, why are you calling me boss?”
“Aren’t you the boss of the crime syndicate? Bong Ju-hyeok and the Dimensional Thieves.”
“…Hoo.”
Ju-hyeok shook his head.
His status had been demoted from emperor and sect leader tower master to crime syndicate boss.
Well, what could he do?
It was a criminal organization, after all.
“Let’s hurry!”
“Roger! Sabonggaeng!”
“Sabonggaeng!!”
“Sabonggaeng!!!”
“Hounggaeng!!!”
Tap tap tap tap!
The Archangel Android legion that had taken over downtown Guryong Sky.
They arrived at the Wanghong Bank building.
“Move in.”
“The Boss has given his orders. Strip it clean!!!”
Crash!!!
The summoned beings entered the bank.
“Escort civilians safely outside.”
This was the first heist of the Dimensional Grand Thieves, one that would send shockwaves throughout all of Guryong Sky.
* * *
Jason Wang.
One of the many seeds that Wanghong Group Chairman Wanghong had sown.
Their relationship was great-great-grandfather and great-great-grandson.
In truth, under normal circumstances, Wanghong shouldn’t have even known Jason Wang existed.
Just think of how many great-great-grandchildren there must be.
Roughly hundreds.
However, Wanghong had entrusted Jason with the position of main branch bank manager.
Because he was exceptionally capable.
A keen sense for investment, and a cold-blooded man with no compassion when it came to money.
Thanks to Jason Wang, Wanghong Sky Bank had firmly established itself among the world’s top 30 banks.
But Jason wasn’t satisfied.
He had no intention of ending his career as a mere bank manager.
He would climb higher.
To an executive position at Wanghong Group headquarters.
Sip.
Jason Wang lifted the warm coffee cup and took a sip.
It wasn’t synthetic coffee.
It was coffee made from real beans.
Just how much did this coffee cost?
About a month’s salary for an average office worker.
Only the chosen ones could drink it.
Like Jason Wang.
“Good.”
Every time he drank it, he thought the same thing—the deep aroma and flavor were incomparable to the fake stuff.
Jason Wang began reviewing the electronic documents on his desk.
Then he froze!
His expression contorted.
-Spit!
He immediately activated the hologram communication device on his desk and called the loan officer.
-B-Bank Manager-nim, wh-what is it?
“What is this?”
-Sir? What do you…?
“Guryong Orphanage! The building and land we took as collateral! It hasn’t been processed. Why did you extend the loan?”
-Well, we couldn’t evict them, the orphanage children haven’t found a place to move to yet.
“You idiot, are you a charity worker?”
-N-no, sir.
“You’re fired.”
-I’m sorry. I’ll evict them and kick them out immediately.
“Shut up! I’ll handle it myself, so get lost!”
-P-please spare me. Bank Manager-nim, Bank Manager…
-Click!
Communication ended.
It seemed he would have to handle this personally.
Even if it meant hiring a security company.
An orphanage?
Why should he show consideration for those parentless orphan brats?
Which security company would be good?
Should he request it from Geumhwa Security, whom they’d recently contracted with?
No.
Primary contractors were expensive.
For evicting an orphanage, it would be enough to use some bottom-tier cleaner clan guys.
Jason Wang activated the hologram communication device again.
A list of errand service companies scrolled up.
He was about to tap on a suitable one among them.
Boom! Rumble rumble… Crash!
Vibrations resonated from the floor of the bank manager’s office.
“Hm?”
At the same time.
Wee-oo-wee-oo-wee-oo!
An alarm bell rang throughout the entire bank.
…What’s going on?
Why is the alarm suddenly going off?
-Spit!
The hologram screen switched.
The security chief reported in an urgent voice.
-Bank Manager-nim! We have a serious problem. I-intruders… It appears to be bank robbers.
Jason Wang’s expression went blank.
What kind of nonsense is this?
This was the Wanghong Bank main branch.
A subsidiary of Wanghong Group, the rulers of Guryong Sky.
Who would rob this place?
If anyone even tried, not only would they die, but their relatives, acquaintances, three generations of family, and nine generations of kin would all meet their end.
Boom crash! Rumble rumble rumble!
The vibrations continued.
Jason Wang rushed over and operated the hologram screen.
-Spit! Spit! Spit! Spit! Spit…
Videos of Wanghong Bank’s interior and exterior appeared all at once.
First, the situation outside the bank building.
But it was pure white.
Something white had completely surrounded the entire bank building.
“…Androids?”
Angel-shaped androids, complete with wings.
They had occupied the surrounding roads and were flying in the sky, perfectly controlling Wanghong Bank from the outside.
“Th-this is insane!”
Was it illusion magic?
Where did this massive number of androids come from?
And what about the inside?
It had been completely taken over by unidentified robbers.
Audio came through along with the video.
-Everyone put your hands behind your heads and get down. If you move, you’ll get a hole in your head.
The bank’s android guards had already been subdued long ago.
They were pathetically shattered into scattered pieces.
-Robber Ve, fire a large-caliber round at that steel alloy door.
-Got it.
Whirrrr!
Pajujujuk!
-Wobble!
Crash!
“Gasp!”
The door to the underground vault was destroyed.
It was made of magic metal and was incredibly thick, a door that could withstand most sword ki, aura, or explosives.
But with just one bullet?
“…No.”
The most precious treasures in the world were hidden in the underground vault.
Things that never lost their value no matter how much the world changed.
Despite highly advanced modern science.
Gems like diamonds, rubies, and sapphires could be synthesized.
Indistinguishable from natural ones.
But there was one precious item that absolutely could not be artificially made.
Its quantity was also limited.
It was now completely depleted and could no longer be mined.
That was gold.
Its value had risen endlessly, with even a 1kg gold bar worth over ten million credits.
Right now, those gold bars were being stolen.
Disappearing in chunks.
By a tiny hamster beastfolk.
-Hoeeek!
-Swish! Swish swish! Swish swish swish!
-Awesome. Robber Ra! You’re a dimensional grand bank robber!
-Hoeng!
Ah ah ah.
-What’s this? There’s nothing but gold in the vault?
-How pathetic.
-Tsk tsk, disappointing.
-Sorry, Boss Bong.
-Grab other things besides gold. Let’s tear out those personal safes over there and electronic devices and take them all.
-Yessir!
Not only was the gold in the underground vault being stolen, but items from various personal safes were being looted as well.
-Robber Gyeon-nim, why are you collecting those paper scraps?
-You never know. There might be valuable information in them.
-Goodness, how frustrating. What good is knowing such information? Just smash everything and be done with it.
-Hmm.
-Don’t you know about intelligent crime? If your brain is lacking, your hands and feet suffer.
-Y-you brat!!!
Jason Wang was completely out of his mind.
He was being robbed in broad daylight.
-It doesn’t seem worth it after all. I had high hopes since it’s the biggest bank in the city.
-Boss Bong, how about this? Next time, instead of a bank, we hit up a department store.
-Hm?
-Aren’t physical goods the best?
-That’s not bad.
-The biggest one here is Wanghong Department Store.
-Good. Let’s hit that place next time.
-Yessir! Boss Bong.
A moment later.
-Spot! Spot! Spot! Spot…
The bank robbers disappeared in the blink of an eye.
And then there was no one.
Inside the bank, outside the bank.
Not a single ant remained.
It was instantaneous.
Everything was completely ruined.
Now he would plummet into the abyss.
Everything went dark before Jason Wang’s eyes.
Finally, thud!
He lost consciousness and collapsed backward.
* * *
White Tower.
Ju-hyeok and the summoned beings returned after scoring big in Sapung[1] Earth.
They must have been quite shocked.
Not only had a dimensional traveler appeared, but the bank had been robbed as well.
Clatter clatter clatter!
Dimensional Grand Robber Rajiks dumped the gold bars in the plaza.
The more he looked at it, the more disappointing it was.
The treasure stored in the underground vault of the advanced Sapung Earth bank was merely gold?
Gold was strewn all over the White Tower’s warehouse.
“Boss Bong.”
Magitech engineer El approached Ju-hyeok.
“…Yes.”
Even Dr. El was calling him Boss.
“As you instructed, I’ve launched 3 low-orbit satellites above Guryong Sky City.”
“Thank you for your hard work. They haven’t been detected yet, right?”
“I modified them as much as possible by adding magitech circuits.”
“Still, we can’t let our guard down.”
“I’ll be as careful as possible.”
Sapung Earth was different from anywhere he had experienced before.
A scientific civilization more advanced than Main Earth.
He had to be careful when using low-orbit satellites or smartphones.
If he let his guard down, he might get caught instead.
That was why AI Wiz’s involvement was minimized.
Only to the extent of covertly operating the satellites.
“Wiz.”
-Yes, Master.
“You heard too, right? We need to be careful.”
-I’m being cautious. I’ve also reinforced the firewall.
“Right, just focus on satellite relay. Don’t connect to the Sapung Earth network.”
-Understood.
“Then could you display it briefly? Let me see the current situation at Wanghong Bank in Guryong Sky.”
-Yes.
-Spit!
An image rose from Ju-hyeok’s smart watch.
It was footage captured from the low-orbit satellite.
Guryong Sky cityscape.
Towering high-rise buildings.
But the view was extremely limited, making it hard to make anything out.
Satellite observation definitely had its limits.
Unless they directly entered the network and hacked it.
‘I should upgrade our Wiz soon…’
At that moment!
Ju-hyeok spotted Ralf the enhancer.
He had received a one-month residence pass and was walking around the White Tower.
“Ralf-ssi.”
“Ah! Yes yes, Boss.”
“…”
Hoo.
That damned boss.
If he didn’t want to hear that, he’d have to finish the investigation quickly and leave this dimension.
“You know what AI artificial intelligence is, right?”
“Of course I do. I know pretty much everything about scientific civilization by now.”
“Then would it be possible to enhance that? AI, I mean.”
“Hmm.”
After a moment of thought.
“Electronic products can be enhanced. I’ve enhanced my smartphone to 5-enhance. The binding effect only appeared at 5-enhance.”
He had heard about that before.
An automatic translation function had been added.
“But artificial intelligence… I’m not sure. Success rates drop drastically depending on the value of the item.”
Hm.
He understood what Ralf was saying.
Among all the items Ju-hyeok had enhanced, the hardest to enhance was the Shipgant.
The binding effect only appeared at 10-enhance.
His summoned beings also possessed Gigants, but none above 7-enhance.
Even Kozak had stopped at 2-enhance.
AI artificial intelligence was worth as much as a Gigant.
Maybe even more.
That meant it could be extremely difficult.
‘But it is possible…’
What would happen if he successfully enhanced Wiz to 10-enhance?
An AI artificial intelligence infused with Ju-hyeok’s Underworld Energy.
Would it become an Underworld AI?
“If you’re going to do it, you should do it until the binding effect appears. A half-baked enhancement could be poisonous. It’s artificial intelligence, after all. You never know which way it might go.”
The point Ralf was making.
Enhancing artificial intelligence was dangerous.
Moreover, Wiz was an entity that had once been a ‘created god.’
What if Ju-hyeok, who possessed divine status, infused Underworld Energy to enhance it?
It might become another type of god.
‘…I’d better put this on hold for now.’
It would be better to upgrade it in a different way rather than recklessly enhancing it.
Anyway, since Ralf had joined them even if only temporarily.
“Ralf-ssi, I have a favor to ask.”
“Yes, Boss! Just give me your orders.”
“Several of our summoned beings also possess Gigants. But I’m the only one with a Shipgant.”
How unfortunate.
Our summoned beings definitely deserved to have Shipgants too.
“Would you be able to provide support?”
“No problem. I went back to my homeland recently and made a lot of top-grade enhancement stones. I’ll provide full support.”
Oh my.
How grateful.
“In return, I also have a favor to ask.”
“I’ll do whatever you need.”
“You said the next target is Wanghong Department Store in Guryong Sky.”
That’s right.
He was going to strip it clean.
“C-could I also get a share?”
“Of course! Take as much as you want.”
“Thank you. Boss.”
We’re criminals, after all.
You can act like a criminal too, Ralf-ssi.
Anyway, let’s try making some Shipgants.
In fact, Shipgant efficiency was best for melee types.
Magic-based or ranged summoned beings didn’t get much efficiency from Shipgants.
What use would a Shipgant be to MacKenzie?
Same with Captain Ve.
She already had the Ten-enhanced Magic Gun.
And.
“If Captain Ve rides a Shipgant, there’ll be an uproar. People won’t like it.”
“Why not?”
“Wouldn’t there be no jiggle?”
“Hm.”
That’s true.
That would be a big problem without it.
“Don’t worry. I, Kozak, will definitely succeed with the Shipgant. I’ll create the Shipgant of Assassination.”
And one more person.
He planned to 10-enhance Elder Gwangma’s Gigant.
Of course, he primarily used ranged attacks with Crescent Moon Force Qi, but he was also skilled in close combat using Blood Jade Force.
If successful, the Shipgant Trio.
Shipgant of the Underworld, Shipgant of Assassination, Shipgant of Blood Jade.
And so.
Clang clang clang clang! Clang clang clang clang! Clang! Clang clang clang clang!
Gyeon Dal-rae’s prayer ritual unfolded at the White Tower.
“I pray, I pray!”
With the support of the other summoned beings.
“Dadadadadat!”
“Stick!!!”
-Tak!
Gwangma and Kozak began enhancing their Gigants.
They would keep going until they succeeded.
Because the Shipgant Trio would lead the next plundering operation.
“Fighting!!! I pray! Wishing for success!!!”
One-tenth Demon God Kallihar also casually joined in and cheered.
As if he were a summoned being himself.
—Translator Notes:
[1] Sapung Earth (사펑 지구): alternate name for Cyberpunk Earth dimension—
