Surviving without God

Creeeak—

With a piercing whistle of wind, the rusted railings trembled dangerously. The place Moon Wolf had led me to was the rooftop. A high vantage point from which a massive warehouse could be seen standing some distance away. While I was examining the warehouse, a calm voice reached my ears.

— That warehouse is the lair of the gang that stole the valuables.

I nodded. My status window was already actively displaying information.

[Location: Lair of the smuggling organization “Leg of Twilight”]

It was a thoroughly dilapidated warehouse. Overgrown weeds, rusted iron walls, and chunks of the roof lying scattered on the ground only strengthened the atmosphere of ruins. It looked as though no one had been here recently, but...

“Tire tracks.”

It was all an illusion. Inside the warehouse, members of the organization and fanatics were surely swarming. Moon Wolf raised his umbrella and pointed toward the rear of the warehouse.

— The operation will begin in about two hours. When the carriage carrying the stolen valuables exits through the rear gate.

I already knew all the details, but for form’s sake I kept the conversation going.

— Where are they planning to transport the valuables?

— Presumably, to a “Ghost Lift.”

Moon Wolf pointed a finger toward the ceiling of the Lower City. The Ghost Lift was an old elevator that had long been shut down, but secretly put back into operation. Residents of the Lower City, who lacked permission to enter the Middle City, sometimes used such unofficial means to move between levels.

How could such lawlessness exist in broad daylight? In the Border City, even officials were merchants at heart. Grease their palms with money, and they would turn a blind eye to whether a smuggling organization restarted a freight lift or even laid down a subway line.

— Since it’s unclear which Ghost Lift they’ll head for, we’ll follow the carriage covertly and attack right before boarding, to reclaim the valuables.

I asked a question I had prepared.

— Is there a reason we’re not storming the warehouse directly?

After a brief silence, Moon Wolf repeated:

— ...The enemy’s lair?

— Yes. There’s no guarantee they’ll transport all the valuables in one go. To be certain of recovering everything, it would be better to clear the place directly.

Moon Wolf’s head tilted slightly. A silent, penetrating gaze.

— ......

If this were a game, a message would have appeared saying that affinity with Moon Wolf had increased slightly.

“Because Moon Wolf prefers bold and unpredictable companions.”

In real operations, he often accepts such sudden proposals. But since he had come here as an examiner, his answer was predetermined.

— Storming a building whose layout we don’t know is dangerous.

I nodded in agreement.

— That’s true... We don’t know how many traps there are, and the enemy’s manpower would multiply.

— Yes, and as you know, I am merely an escort to this operation, not a combatant. That means you would have to fight alone.

A warning meant to rein in reckless thoughts. However, reality was different.

“How diligently you pretend to be weak.”

If Moon Wolf went all out, every villain in that warehouse would turn into dried meat in under a minute. And he wasn’t someone who had time to administer exams to rookies unless he were injured. Otherwise, he would be dealing with far bigger players in the main territory of the Luthien Theocracy right now.

— Any other questions?

— No.

— Then we wait.

After that, Moon Wolf fell silent. I didn’t force conversation either and sat down, leaning against the wall.

U-u-u-u—

Silence settled over the rooftop. Moon Wolf remained standing, leaning on the railing and staring at the warehouse. I, on the other hand, looked at his back instead of the building.

“I was curious what it’d be like to see him in person.”

Moon Wolf was one of the most popular companion characters in . I liked him a lot too. His model was especially impressive, but unfortunately, right now he was tightly wrapped in a robe and wearing a mask, so nothing could be seen. Only flashes of reddish hair appeared from time to time.

“And he’s a tragic character who meets a bad end in most branches.”

I recalled the grim scenarios of the game’s later stages, then shook my head.

“Focus on the exam first.”

I had more than enough problems of my own. There were two bosses in the entrance exam: a Paladin and a Priest.

They were elite fighters sent by the Luthien Theocracy to ensure the safe transport of sacrifices, and each of them was stronger than Aaron Bernecker, the boss of the first chapter. Even accounting for my improved stats, these were opponents impossible to defeat in a straightforward fight. But the bigger issue was their synergy.

Regeneration boosts. Attack buffs. Shields and all kinds of blessings. A Paladin supported by a Priest becomes a flawless melee fighter—an ancient RPG tradition.

“So I need to split them up and eliminate them one by one...”

But there was no way to separate them. Why would two people responsible for guarding the transport carriage act separately? From the start to the end of the quest, they stuck together like glue. On top of that, numerous gang members participated in the escort...

This was the moment when players who confidently chose the Hidden Squad route realized: “This is simply impossible.” They deleted their save and obediently went to take the normal exam. However...

“It’s not impossible.”

In , there is always a way. I rose from my seat. Moon Wolf turned to me in confusion.

— The operation time isn’t yet—

— No.

I gave Moon Wolf a faint smile.

— I just thought this would be the right way to do it.

— You—

Before he could finish, I pushed off from the railing. The distance to the ground was considerable, but my increased Agility pointed out the path.

Hrrr—!

Grabbing onto hanging vines, stepping on ledges in the cracks of the walls, I bled off speed and minimized the impact. The last was a window opening. Placing a hand on the edge, I pulled myself up with force and landed on the ground.

Clap—!

I brushed off my palms lightly and looked up at the roof. Moon Wolf was looking down at me, leaning on the railing.

— Gunther.

Despite the distance, his voice reached my ears with unnatural clarity. Still calm, still composed.

— As I said, infiltrating the warehouse is dangerous. There will be traps and mechanisms, and you will face superior forces. And I won’t be able to accompany you.

On the surface, it sounded like a warning... but I knew better.

— Come back.

The lower half of his face, not covered by the mask. ...It seemed like a faint smile flickered there.

Tap-tap—

Once I was sure of that, I sprinted toward the warehouse at full speed. At the same time, I dumped all the “doping potions” stuffed into my pocket into my mouth. They were the very concoctions I had made earlier that day while running around pharmacies.

[Effect “Overdose” Lv. 1 activated]

[The Drug-Addicted Saint anticipates the effect!]

[Agility temporarily increased...]

[Strength temporarily increased...]

[Endurance temporarily increased...]

[Drug effects maximized!]

Future management is watching. It’s the perfect time to prove my professional competence.

***

Right in front of the warehouse. I slowed down and checked the plan once more.

As I said, with my current stats, I’d never win if the Paladin and the Priest stayed together. That’s why I would attack the warehouse—the only waiting location where they were separated.

“The structure should be exactly like that.”

As soon as I dug into my memory, the building of the trading guild appeared in my mind like a blueprint. I had cleared this stage so many times that the details couldn’t be blurry. Trap locations and patrol routes—everything was crystal clear.

“...This route will be optimal for an assault.”

If I went this way, I could reach the Priest’s room with minimal encounters. In a one-on-one fight with a Priest, who was vulnerable in close combat, the kill would be easy. There was a trick prepared for the Paladin left alone as well. If those two were neutralized, the ordinary bandits would scatter on their own.

“It’s simple.”

Simple—but such an operation was only possible with full knowledge of every element of the exam. I, as a transmigrator, had already internalized all of it and even prepared the key equipment in advance at «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» the shop to support the plan. I was confident that to the one observing me, this would look impressive.

“They’re coming.”

The “Overdose” effect was powerful. My senses were sharpened to the point that I could feel a patrol approaching even in the dark. I drew two hand axes from my belt. Thanks to the “Serpent’s Nest” skill, my perception was sharper than in broad daylight.

Whish—

I threw the axes. In the game, throwing weapons with negligible damage wouldn’t have been the best choice. But reality is different from a game. In reality, anyone who gets an axe blade buried in the nape of their neck is dead. ...Like now.

Chk—

Rushing forward, I grabbed the axe handles embedded in the enemies’ necks. Thanks to my pull, the corpses settled silently to the ground. Crouching, I scanned the area.

“It should be somewhere around here.”

This enormous warehouse was a facility meant to hold numerous victims. At the same time, it was the main stronghold where gang members were constantly present. Naturally, there would be a separate storage area for food and supplies.

“Which means there’s ventilation.”

Bingo.

Fyu-u-u—

A barely audible sound of air. The ventilation was disguised with grass, but against my heightened senses, it was useless. Keeping low, I approached the vent opening. A passage came into view, barely wide enough for one person to crawl through. Naturally, it was locked, but—

Click—

[Alphonse of Red Street shouts: Right! Left! A bit to the left!]

Picking the lock on the grate with a lockpick took only a moment.

“Good, everything’s going smoothly.” 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Curling up, I pushed my body inside. Cold, damp air. Above my head, the boisterous voices of laughing and chatting bandits echoed.

Scrape—scrape—

I crawled, muffling the sounds. The auction would begin at midnight. Soon they would start gathering forces and moving the victims. I had to finish everything before that.

I hurried and soon reached the end of the ventilation shaft. As expected, the space beyond the grate turned out to be a food storage room. Under dim lighting, huge sacks of grain were piled in disorder. And...

“...A person?”

Two of them, at that. I froze instantly. At the same moment, coarse cursing reached my ears.

— Ha, you bastard. Looks like today you hit the jackpot.

— M-m-mph!

A dull impact. Groans, muffled by a gag, leaked out.

“One bandit and... a victim?”

Since the ventilation was near the ceiling, I could only see the violently thrashing upper body of the bastard. Estimating the distance between the bars of the grate, I drew a dagger and carefully aimed.

Whish—

Straight into the neck. The bandit, focused on beating the victim, collapsed dead.

— M-m-mph!

Then I tensed my body with all my strength.

Bang—!

The grate sealing the exit from the ventilation flew off with a single kick. I landed soundlessly atop the sacks.

“Excellent, infiltration successful.”

The first barrier cleared. Now I needed to go upstairs, kill the Priest, and deal with the Paladin. Of course, all kinds of traps and guards would stand in my way, but I was fully prepared for that.

“I wonder what they’ll give for a no-death clear?”

In the first chapter of Act 1, where I died more than ten times, I received a full 150 Karma. I couldn’t help anticipating the reward. With those thoughts, I slowly lowered my gaze.

— ......?

The bandit’s corpse lying on the floor. And next to it, the victim flopping like a live fish. That massive silhouette was painfully familiar to me.