The Genius of Cloning in the Academy City-Chapter 131: Violet in the Snow! (1)

There was a brief commotion around the gate.

A father screaming while searching for his child, hunters in trouble. It was an attention-grabbing situation. While people around us were murmuring and watching, the event soon reached its peak and then calmed down.

"I will return the deposit. I’m sorry."

"Wait, I’ll give you more. Stop! Please..."

After a long struggle, the hunters left.

"No, Alex..."

"Oh no...!"

The man weakly collapsed. His companions seemed to be pacing anxiously.

"What are you going to do?"

"It looks interesting. Should we talk to them?"

The small disturbance piqued our curiosity. What was going on?

-BANG!

The owner of the car waiting right behind us honked loudly. The window on the driver’s side rolled down, and the person inside extended his arm, swinging it threateningly.

"Hey! Aren’t you getting in? Move the car already!"

"Got it! I’ll be out soon!"

I replied curtly and then steered the car toward the parking lot. As the car moved, the chain-bound wheels screeched against the ground. The car behind disappeared beyond the gate.

Since I didn’t enter immediately as planned, Irene, who had been quietly sitting in the passenger seat, asked,

"What are you planning to do?"

"I’m curious about those people!"

The moment I saw them, I felt a strange intuition. A signal that something potentially profitable might be going on.

The man from earlier was weakly sitting, staring blankly beyond the gate. Some people in the crowd were comforting him. A few others were making serious faces, dialing numbers.

"Oh no... this foolish kid... how did this happen..."

"Hey, boss! I told you we couldn’t trust them. Let’s try somewhere else. Or maybe around here..."

"Don’t worry. There must be a way!"

Violet No. 220 calmly walked over with Irene. I opened my mouth.

"Hey, I saw something happening earlier. What’s going on?"

The man in the suit, who had been comforting the collapsed man, turned his head. The well-groomed man in the suit glared at me.

"What is it? A student? Kids should mind their own business and go."

The man immediately became irritated. I responded bluntly.

"We’re hunters. It looks like a contract was canceled. Do you need our help?"

"What?"

The crowd’s attention shifted to me. Those who had seen Violet No. 220 speaking suddenly looked suspicious. Now was the time for Irene to step in.

"...Please!"

"Got it."

Before anyone could ask more, Irene took the lead.

"Rather than words, it’s faster to see it for yourself, right?"

She took out the clan’s ID card from her pocket and handed it over. People’s eyes widened.

"Helios? These kids are from Helios?"

"Is this real?"

In that brief moment, I saw a glint in the man’s eyes. It seemed like the words whispered by the crowd, who had been staring blankly at the man by the gate, also reached his ears. ṛåΝő₿Èș

The man staggered to his feet, took the card his companions were looking at, and examined it.

"Hmm... it seems real for now..."

"Then, may I ask what’s going on?"

The middle-aged man stared at us with shaky eyes, then sighed deeply. After a while, as if making up his mind, he closed his eyes and reopened them.

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"Well, at this point, there’s nothing to lose... You said you’re hunters. Is it just you two?"

"No, there are four more!"

I pointed behind me. Other team members, wearing the masks I provided, were waiting by the car.

"Alright, let’s sit and talk."

When the man’s companions seemed about to speak, he raised his arm to stop them. Violet No. 220 and the five team members headed with the middle-aged man and his group toward the waiting room near the gate.

Inside the waiting room, there was a small makeshift restaurant, vending machines, and an information desk. Long tables and chairs were lined up inside.

"It’s morning, but there are a lot of people."

Inside, people wearing all sorts of weapons were either eating or chatting. Around large dungeons, such facilities are common. If we were to compare it to a fantasy game, it would be like the adventurer guild’s dining hall.

On one wall, several large TV monitors were hanging. The interior reminded me of a food court.

[Request #13: Find the lost equipment in Area A-1. Blue greatsword!]

[Request #26: Capture one Ice Skulkit!]

[Request #31: Anyone willing to deliver ammunition to Area B-3?]

Of course, this was a place for hunters to wait. Instead of waiting numbers, requests were displayed on the TV screen. Most were simple requests or errands between hunters.

When the middle-aged man in a suit sat down, the hunters briefly turned their heads toward him. Maybe it was because of the earlier commotion. A few people slowly approached as well.

The man immediately began speaking.

"Let me get to the point since we’re in a hurry. My son and his friends are missing. Help me out."

***

The middle-aged man and his group’s request was simple.

"Go rescue the naive academy students."

Through a few questions, I learned the following details.

The man in front of me, Webley Kessler, was the owner of a business that specialized in dungeon relic trade. He had one son, Alex, who was not an awakened one.

"Alex has always dreamed of dungeon exploration and adventures since he was young. My business was related to that, so he was often exposed to it and became familiar with it."

As a teenager, Kessler’s son, Alex, awakened one day. His son, who had long admired hunters and adventurers, was overjoyed. His dream of becoming a hunter and exploring dungeons was finally within reach.

The aspiring hunter Alex, after much effort, was accepted into an academy for awakened ones.

"Yeah, he’s a student of the Aegis Academy, that prestigious school!"

"Ah... Alex! If I had known it would end up like this, I would never have sent him there..."

While the father recalled the past with a sad expression, Alex’s mother was sobbing beside him.

"The problem is... my son started acting strange one day."

Unfortunately, after entering Aegis Academy, this naive son, who had always had considerable self-esteem, began to grow uncontrollably arrogant.

One day, Alex, overflowing with youthful energy and the powers of an awakened one, started causing small and large troubles, making his parents’ lives difficult.

Eventually, Alex disappeared four days ago, leaving only a note on the desk.

"This is the note."

A bold first-year student from Aegis Academy had left behind a note that read:

[Dad, I’m going to find the Holy Grail!]

“Holy Grail?”

“There’s a rumor in the dungeon artifact industry,” Webley explained. “They say there’s an artifact buried deep in the hardest dungeons that grants invincible power.”

Even Webley himself laughed at how absurd his statement sounded.

“But that’s just an urban legend among us. If such a thing really existed, the clans would have already launched expeditions to claim it.”

I could sympathize with Webley’s sentiment. There weren’t any artifacts with such abilities in the Pastella Snowfield. The kid had gone on a wild goose chase.

Still, it would have been better if the kid had vanished alone. A bigger problem remained—four friends from the academy had tagged along on his reckless journey.

“Our Yuri is in there too!”

“Lucy’s in there as well! Why in the world did they follow him…”

One by one, the people near Webley began speaking emotionally, without even being asked.

Indeed, the group was a gathering of parents who had children attending the academy.

「Aegis Academy? By any chance, is there a kid named Alex among them?」

「Not at all! He’s definitely not a playable character.」

“We contacted the police and hired people to search. The last place my son and his friends were seen was here. We even checked the checkpoint’s CCTV and questioned the guards on duty.”

The man handed over a photograph. It showed a green-haired boy grinning brightly.

“We contracted a search-specialized clan, but they gave up at the gate, saying it was impossible.”

Webley glanced at me, then scanned his surroundings. Other hunters had gathered nearby to listen to the story, in addition to my team.

“It’s only been three days. I’m not a hunter, but from what I’ve heard, there’s a high chance my son is still alive in there! Please save him. I’ll give you anything!”

“The important thing is the contract fee. How much are you offering?”

When one of the hunters asked, Webley jumped up and loudly announced a figure.

Everyone present was shocked. The number of zeros in the amount was staggering. According to Webley, the money had been pooled together by the parents. It seemed they were all wealthy.

The reward, exceeding tens of millions of credits, sparked a fire in the hunters’ eyes. They swarmed the man, demanding more details.

“Alright, we’ll do it right away. Do you have any more specific information?”

“Fortunately, one of the hunters gave me a location where children matching their descriptions were last spotted in the dungeon. That place is…”

One of the group hurriedly pulled out a tablet from her handbag and turned on the screen. Her finger pointed to a spot at the center of the dungeon map.

“…The Stigma Mountain Range.”

The faces of the hunters listening nearby changed instantly. One by one, they began shaking their heads.

“Oh dear, that’s impossible.”

“Too bad. That’s one of the most dangerous areas in this dungeon. Especially during these times.”

Noticing the shift in atmosphere, Webley grew desperate and began pleading with the hunters.

“If necessary, I’ll offer more! If we can gather enough people, it might be doable, right?”

A bearded hunter shook his head.

“Even focusing solely on the search would take a long time, and considering the area’s size, you’d need at least two well-armed companies. But right now, the dungeon’s internal mana is experiencing unusually unstable activity. The beasts inside are far more aggressive than usual. The weather will be unpredictable, and there are hundreds, if not thousands, of beasts waiting. Mid-level and high-level beasts will be swarming too. There’s nothing more to say.”

The hunters who had gathered, lured by the promise of fortune, quickly dispersed. Left behind, with despair written across their faces, were the parents—and only our team remained.

“Mister, you’re really going to give us all that money, right?”

“Yes, and I’ll add more if necessary.”

I cleared my throat. It was time to get to the main point.

“Look, mister, I don’t mean to be harsh, but there’s a chance they might not be alive. Are you prepared for that?”

“What? What are you saying! Shut up! That can’t be…!”

One woman, who appeared to be a friend’s mother, screamed hysterically. The others in the group hurried to calm her down.

“Sorry about that. Everyone’s losing their minds right now. Please understand…”

Webley’s expression wavered as if he couldn’t even bear to think of the worst-case scenario. After a long pause, he finally managed to respond.

“…Yes, I’m prepared. At the very least, help us bring their bodies back to their families…!”

“Alright, got it!”

I pulled out a contract form. If they were paying, there was no reason to refuse.

Conveniently, as if the gods had orchestrated it, an ether emitter was located near the area where the kids were last seen.

「How many units can you summon at maximum right now?」

「If I push the spare mana to its limit, about two and a half companies.」

I recalled what one of the hunters had mentioned: two companies would be necessary. In that case, I just needed to mobilize that many people.

“Oh, by the way, mister. Money is money, but we’ll need additional funds for operational expenses. We’ll be renting some equipment—can you help with that?”

“If it’s a reasonable request, I’ll cover it. But what kind of equipment…?”

I pointed outside the waiting area. In the parking lot, a lineup of large and small snow vehicles bearing clan emblems was visible. I had been curious to try them, so now was the perfect chance to rent one and take it for a spin.

Thirty minutes later, another truck approached the checkpoint. Since we had already notified them, we passed through without issue. From the truck, Violets began disembarking and boarding the snow vehicles.

“W-Who are all these people…?”

“I told you, didn’t I? We’ll find them. Just don’t forget the payment!”

Leaving the dumbfounded parents behind, the Violet squad crossed the gate.

As soon as we crossed the gate, the first thing we felt was the cold—a brutal, biting cold.

Once we were far enough from the entrance, where we no longer had to worry about prying eyes, the Violets multiplied as needed.

“Everyone, change into your winter combat uniforms or cold-weather gear we bought yesterday! Hurry up!”

The friends struggled against the piercing cold that seeped through even the smallest cracks. It was far colder than they had imagined.

While we prepared to set off from near the gate, the Violets began constructing a battalion command post instead of their usual temporary base and started planning the operation.

「This mission absolutely requires an air force!」

For now, the weather inside the dungeon was calm. It was cold, but there wasn’t a breath of wind. The Violets quickly pulled out parts from their inventories and began assembling them.

Having done this numerous times, it wasn’t particularly difficult.

“Deploy units one through six simultaneously!”

“Everyone, pull!”

As soon as the assembly was complete, the engines roared to life, and several Violets grabbed the cords connected to the powered hang gliders and yanked them all at once.

Six hang gliders soared into the sky.

“What on earth are those?”

“Our air force!”

I proudly introduced our air force to the astonished friends. The proud strength of those who guard the skies!

With this, we intended to search for traces of the missing children.

Of course, the aerial advantage would also be handy for crushing any enemies we encountered.

After the hang gliders ascended, a fleet of snow vehicles began racing across the vast snowfield.

We had rented twelve vehicles in total: ten motorcycle-type snowmobiles, one medium-sized snow vehicle, and one large, heavily armored snow tank.

“Move out, move out!”

The Violet mobile unit began their operation.