Duo Leveling LITRPG | Post Apocalyptic | SYSTEM-Chapter 52 - The Hidden Enemy

Chapter 52 - The Hidden Enemy

Just then, the trader who had first spoken earlier opened his mouth again.

«The name’s Song. I’m a pack trader.»

«Ah, I’m Jhin .»

The black-market traders only gave their surnames.

Probably another layer of self-protection to hide their true identities.

’Considering the kind of tricks they pull with contracts, it’s no wonder.’

One wrong move, and they’d be doomed — and they knew it better than anyone.

Just then, among the black-market traders, the man who had introduced himself as "Jerry" suddenly approached Millie and asked,

«I thought so... You’re Millie, the celebrity, right?»

«...Huh?»

Millie blinked in confusion.

«I’m a huge fan! I can’t believe I’m meeting you here, of all places!»

She forced a small, strained smile.

«Ah, yes...»

«This isn’t the time for small talk. Please, could you give me an autograph?»

He eagerly thrust out a bundle in front of her.

It was filthy, stained with something unpleasant.

«Sorry about the mess. I was busy catching bugs and, well...»

Jerry chuckled awkwardly.

«It’s no problem,» Millie replied, taking the bundle politely.

But as she continued signing, her expression gradually hardened.

It wasn’t just dirt or bug remains on the fabric.

The dampness was blood.

And the clinging bits were scraps of human flesh.

’...You disgusting bastard.’

Meanwhile, Jhin , who had been surveying the passenger cabin, picked up on something suspicious.

Jerrykept glancing at his watch, his leg nervously jiggling.

If that had been the only thing, Jhin might not have cared.

’What’s this?’

[Activating skill: "Soft skills (A)".]

At first glance, it looked like Jerrywas just standing there, arms crossed.

But in the shadows of his hidden hand, something was leaking — something subtle, something invisible to the naked eye.

It was a thread, leading toward the next zone, F-6.

At that moment, Jhin knew.

...Where exactly did this start to go wrong?

He clicked his tongue softly and asked,

«When did you notice?»

«Huh?»

«Damn it. If you knew from the beginning, there was no point in playing along.»

Almost immediately, the door to Zone F-6 burst open, and a swarm of small goblin boys — with skinny legs and short arms — came rushing in.

The traders shot to their feet in a panic.

It seemed only Jerry had realized something was off until now.

«...You’re sharper than you look,» Jerry muttered.

«Maybe. But are you going to answer my question?» Jhin asked casually.

«Of course I will,» Jerry said, grinning proudly.

«You said the code phrase from last month.»

...Wait a second.

They change the entire code set every month?

«Why the hell are you people so ridiculously thorough?» Jhin muttered.

«Because pests like you aren’t exactly rare,» Jerry sneered.

At his command, the goblin boys moved in perfect sync.

They were a higher variant of goblin spawns, standing waist-high to an adult, each wielding heavy iron clubs as they advanced.

Millie reacted instantly, firing off a bullet of magic.

TAAANG!

One clean shot —

The goblin boy collapsed helplessly to the ground with a single hit.

Mr. Song’s eyes widened in shock.

«Wh-what? How?!»

The traders, their faces turning pale, scrambled toward F-6, hoping to flee.

But standing there, blocking the way with eyes like burning flames, was Caleb.

«Move!!» they shouted.

Caleb spoke in a low, steady voice.

«Back in the day, I’d have read you your Miranda rights and hauled all of you off to jail... but the world’s changed, hasn’t it?»

«What the hell are you talking about, you psycho?!»

TAAANG!

Caleb’s pistol roared, halting the traders in their tracks.

«You’ve seen the movies, right? After the warning shot, the next one’s live rounds.»

«As if! What are you gonna do with some modern peashooter—?!»

TANG!

The next bullet bounced harmlessly off the traders’ thick leather coats.

Clearly, they cared a lot about self-preservation — those coats were expensive, high-grade defensive gear.

«Bulletproof vests, you idiot!» one trader jeered.

The traders surged toward Caleb, now emboldened.

If bullets didn’t work, they had nothing to fear.

But Caleb stood firm.

«Yeah, I know handguns don’t work. I just wanted to shoot it once.»

Then, with a casual motion, he pulled out a different weapon — a gleaming blue spear.

It didn’t literally create waves, but the craftsmanship and aura made it obvious: this was a "Species Extinction Reward" item.

The traders hesitated, their faces flickering with panic.

«This is the age for weapons like these. Don’t you agree?» Caleb said, almost gently.

PSHUUUK!

The spear stabbed forward in a blur.

One trader didn’t even have time to react before he was dead — slain instantly.

Apparently, the black-market traders weren’t high-level fighters after all; Caleb could easily handle them solo.

Their only real firepower was the goblin boys.

But even they were tangled up with Millie.

«He’s alone! Overwhelm him!» one of the traders shouted desperately.

Meanwhile, Jhin ’s eyes were locked on Jerry , who was trying to slip away.

Expertly avoiding Caleb’s field of fire, Jerry moved with impressive stealth and speed.

’He must be specialized in mobility,’ Jhin thought.

«I’ll leave this place to you,» he called out to Millie.

«Don’t worry about it!» she shouted back brightly.

TAAANG!

TAAANG!

A few dozen goblin boys were no match for her alone.

After all, she’d leveled up significantly to get this far.

Jhin quickly chased after Jerry, closing the distance.

«Where are you off to in such a hurry?» he asked with a smirk.

WHAM!

He smashed Jerry’s head from behind.

The man collapsed to the ground but, resiliently, didn’t die — merely groaned, his face bloody.

Still baring his teeth, Jerry spat,

«You... you dare defy Lord Neon?!»

...What?

Hearing those words, Jhin couldn’t help but stop in bewilderment.

What did he just say?

«Haha! Now you realize what you’ve done, huh?!»

Song, bloodied and panting, sneered up at him.

«You’ve just rebelled against Lord Neon — ranked 9th in the world!»

Jhin chuckled hollowly as he looked down at the wretched man.

Song, confused by his reaction, stared up at him with wary eyes.

Jhin asked, voice light and mocking:

«Neon? That con artist bastard is here?»

📚 Hey dear reader!

🔗 www.patreon[dot]com/c/levelingmonarch/shop

If you’ve made it this far, it’s clear you’re enjoying the story! ❤️

But I noticed that the price here on WebNovel is way too high... 😓

So, I decided to publish the novel on Patreon at just 10% of the price 💸—to help you save your money!

🔥 You’ll also get access to 750+ advanced Chapters!

👉 To read the novel, please click the button below and check out the store link. If you’re currently on a tight budget, feel free to message me—I’ll gladly offer you a discount! 💬😊

🔗 www.patreon[dot]com/c/levelingmonarch/shop