After the ‘Money Compass’ appeared.
The hospital room where I was staying was gradually turning into Arclight Squad’s secret lab.
The Money Compass, with its mysterious ability to procure supplies lacking for Ark operations, could easily be called an Artifact or Ooparts.
Moreover, the all-out battle to drive out the zombies had ended in total annihilation—the worst possible outcome—leaving Ark 69 to fend for itself in securing vital resources.
But…
“The only Echos capable of external sorties are me and Arva.” I furrowed my brow at Pomen’s words.
“Why?
From what I remember, Ark 69 was home to thousands of humans.” A city of that scale should have had plenty of Originals to form squads, not to mention mass- produced Echos in huge numbers.
“Why, you ask?…They’re all dead?
And thanks to the zombies that got inside the Ark?” Pomen shrugged nonchalantly as she answered.
Wait…
hold on.
“Wasn’t this place supposed to be safe?” “Ahem.
May I explain, Commander?” Arva cleared her throat, noticing my stiffening expression, and continued in a businesslike tone.
“Ark 69’s former Fleet Commander mobilized every combat unit in a ‘Blast Operation.’ Every squad and mass-produced Echo, excluding the bare minimum for defense, was deployed.” “…What the hell was that guy thinking, throwing the Ark’s entire force into the fray?” “According to the Central AI, the plan was to annihilate the zombie horde targeting Ark 69 and secure an Arc Reactor.” “…Ah.” Not good news.
According to the ‘Echoes of Humanity – ECHO’ lore, the Arc Reactor was an essential material for maintaining the Central AI’s systems.
In other words, it was the heart of the Ark.
Which meant that deploying the Ark’s forces to obtain one signaled just how dire things were here.
“Ark 69’s shutdown protocol has been halted.
However, the Ark’s lifespan is limited.
At this rate, the Central AI’s functions will cease within 30 days.” “What about the zombies that infiltrated the Ark?
Does that mean it’s under attack?” “After the Blast Operation failed, the Central AI opened external passages to rescue survivors.
During that time, some zombies slipped in, and several mass-produced Echos were corrupted.” “…Extent of the corruption?” “About 70% of the entire Ark.
That includes the Ark’s supply and weapons depots.” The future looked bleak.
Had I unwittingly chosen Hell Mode by blacking out?
The ECHO game I knew was an idle girl-collection RPG where you raised cute Echos…
Something felt seriously off about the genre now.
“You look so tense.
It’s kinda cute.” At that moment, Pomen smirked slyly and pressed herself against my arm.
The soft, ample sensation of her full breasts came through my clothes all too vividly.
“Commander, want me to help you relax?
I’ve got this special massage I learned for times like these…
Or maybe something hotter?” She leaned in, her breath hot against my ear like a lick, whispering seductively.
This was undoubtedly a serious situation.
Yet this seductive Echo was distracting me.
‘Yeah…
this is the ECHO I know.’ I wanted to pin that pink-haired vixen down with a Commander’s order and grope her to my heart’s content.
In the game, I could only ogle Echos through the screen, but here I could touch them for real.
Like sliding my cock between those huge tits, watching her sultry eyes roll back in ecstasy…
“Pomen, we’re in a briefing.
Disrupting the Commander’s focus with unnecessary physical contact violates protocol.” “bleeh.” Arva intervened with a stern voice.
But I knew better.
Arva’s gaze was fixed on my face.
I’d seen that jealousy and desire hidden behind her stoic face plenty of times from afar.
Anyway, I shook it off and summarized the situation.
“First things first-we need to retake the Ark’s depots.” “Yes, Commander.” “If we succeed, can we catch a breather?
What’s left of the supplies?” “According to the Central AI, enough for one squad to operate for ten days.” IT That was basically nothing.
If not for the real Money Compass and cash, we’d be screwed.
“Alright.
So, excluding safe zones, the rest of the Ark is a zombie and corrupted Echo den.
Supplies are bottomed out.
And we don’t even know what’s left in the depots?” “…That’s correct, Commander.” “Arclight Squad’s current armament?” “Enough for about two hours of operations.” Basically unarmed.
I calmly activated the Money Compass.
And from the cash shop…
‘Wait.
Isn’t there an Arc Reactor here?
Buying that would end it, right?’ But I gave up the moment I saw the price tag.
The combat supply package including the Arc Reactor cost a whopping 499,000C.
‘Come to think of it, ECHO was a game heavy on microtransactions.’ You could grind it out with time.
But for pay-to-win growth, few games were as brutal as ECHO.
Still, to normalize the Ark, I had to arm the Echos first.
Swallowing my disappointment, I prioritized their gear.
✪ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ✪ [Would you like to purchase Combat Module (Medium)?
3000C will be consumed.] This leaves me with roughly 93,000 cash.
Enough to handle the immediate crisis, but I’d better save some just in case.
✪ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ✪ [Purchase confirmed!] With a loud thud!, a gleaming silver metal crate dropped into one corner of the room.
“This is…
a combat module.
You used the power of an Artifact?” A hint of awe colored Arva’s voice.
“Can’t retake the Ark barehanded.” Unlike mass-produced Echos, Originals don’t get corrupted.
They just shut down.
Ending up no better than dead, like the mass-produces.
“Whoa!
As expected of our Commander!
I knew you had it!” Pomen cheered at my words and hugged me naturally.
As she planted a quick kiss on my cheek, I instinctively grabbed her ass.
“…Oh my?” Pomen’s eyes curved into sly crescents as she looked at me.
This horny cat-in-heat.
I should spank that ass right now and show her the Commander’s wrath…
But I knew.
The moment I actually groped her ass, the seductress who’d been wagging her tail moments ago subtly pulled away, putting distance between us.
A kitten playing up to the line of teasing pranks, then fleeing in fear when it crosses into real territory.
Exactly as I remembered Pomen’s character.
“We’ll equip first, Commander.
Briefing…” Arva broke the silence.
Pretending not to notice my actions, she spoke calmly.
“It’s late.
We’ll start tomorrow.” “Understood.” Arva nodded and picked up the crate with the combat module.
“…Yeah, Commander.
I’ll head out too.” Pomen glanced at me before scampering out of the room.
There was no trace of her earlier allure in that retreating figure.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ [Shoulder?
Waist?
Breasts…?
Where do you wanna touch first today?] [If you keep groping me like that, I might…
get the wrong idea?] [Mmm…
At this rate, my body’ll remember your hands, Commander.] [If you handle me like this and I break?
You’ll take responsibility, right, Commander?] ‘Provocative Kitten – Pomen.’ Blatantly flirting with the Commander through cheeky jokes.
A voluptuous, sensual appearance.
And that overwhelming bust dubbed the ‘Heat Rampage Engine.’ Her Tier 1 combat model traits, and more.
Pomen, debuting in the 2.5th anniversary event, was a massive hit from launch.
As an ECHO addict…
“How many diamonds did I burn pulling the full Arclight Squad?” Somewhere around a million won, skins included.
For reference, Arclight Squad has three members total.
I pulled all three and cleared every personal story linked to them.
“That pink-haired flirt’s touches and jokes aren’t meant to seduce the Commander.” They’re a sophisticated defense mechanism to keep things casual before the relationship gets too deep and hurts.
Curious and chatty, Pomen loves physical contact with humans.
She constantly craves the warmth of human body heat to reaffirm she’s alive—and to remind herself of the being she must protect as an Echo.
[Get your filthy hands off, you pile of scrap!] [What makes a hunk of junk like you think you can toucha human body?] [Do you even know how much monster blood and filth is caked on that body of yours?] But she’d been hurt a lot because of it.
Humans in this world don’t like Echos, after all.
Pomen’s joke about ‘You’ll take responsibility, right, Commander?’ was paradoxically a desperate plea not to think of her that deeply—a fear of being forgotten or abandoned if she trusted too much.
A behavior born from deep trauma.
“In other words…
if I give her trust, I can win her over?” Her side story played out exactly like that.
The Commander sees through her insecurities, offers words of trust, and shatters her facade.
That was Pomen’s arc.
Of course, ECHO players spun wild fanfics beyond that…
“But here, I can go beyond the story and enjoy it for real.” This was a world where I could ravage real Echos like Arva and Pomen.
A dangerous one teeming with zombies, mutants, machines, and monsters threatening humanity—but no helping it.
Couldn’t go back to my old world anyway.
“For now, survive here and search for a way back.
Oh, and along the way, make those head fantasies real.” ECHO’s protagonist was basically a eunuch.
But me?
Heh…
packing properly down there.
First target: Pomen.
And the way to claim her was clear.
“The key is not falling for Pomen’s provocations.” Just like in-game.
Don’t bite on her sexual teasing.
Going aggressive like groping her ass earlier would lock us into the casual dynamic she wants.
Getting offended outright?
That’d just sever ties like with other humans.
“A headache.
How did the protagonist handle it again…?” I remembered every detail of my favorite betrayer, ‘Wanderer of the Ashes – Isol’s’ story.
But Pomen and Arva’s tales from half a year ago were fuzzy.
“Better jot it down before I forget.” With that, I diligently recalled my playthroughs and started scribbling a strategy guide on a notepad.
Not just Pomen and Arva—any Echoes I might meet, I wrote down everything I remembered.
In Korean, so the Echos couldn’t read it.