Chapter 108: A Question 2

After hearing Lurker’s explanation, the gist of it went like this.

Humanity today survived in a different way from humans who lived before the Breaches appeared.

Humans now survived by making use of many resources obtained directly from the very Invaders who attacked them.

So, what did that have to do with the method Julian had mentioned?

The reason was simple. It was to ensure certain Invader species didn’t go extinct. They couldn’t be slaughtered indiscriminately, because doing so might cause the Breaches they came through to close completely.

And at that point, the balance between the Invaders’ territories would be destroyed, potentially plunging each of them into chaos.

When they all destroyed one another until only one species remained, that species would surely target other territories or go straight for human territory.

Because of that, humanity’s government ended up preventing any Hunter from trying to find that loophole for exploitation.

All to ensure that each species maintained a sufficient population, and only when their numbers grew too large would those Invaders be hunted directly or captured.

With all that, Julian finally understood. It was just that...

’Is this actually worth it?’

With that policy, and with the constant existence of these Invaders, human deaths would simply keep occurring.

Because those Invaders had their own thoughts and instincts. Like the liquid-type Invader Julian had killed, wasn’t that one also an Alien from the invaded territory?

Yet, unlike its own kind, that Alien had chosen to come to human territory and cause chaos.

Julian couldn’t imagine what would have happened if that Alien had not been killed that day. Many would surely have died.

Just like the Hunters who went to invaded territory to hunt Invaders, only to appear on television news as lifeless corpses.

They went there with the goal of earning money and eliminating Invaders who threatened humanity, without knowing that behind it all, the government was quietly keeping those Invaders alive.

’That’s clearly extremely cruel.’

But, thinking about it again, the government had no other choice. They chose the best solution, because they weren’t holding just one or two lives, but an enormous number of lives whose fates lay in their palms.

People like that would always think along the lines of...

"Sacrificing one life for hundreds is the right choice."

"The government accepts continued deaths to prevent the possibility of a far greater catastrophe."

"Allowing deaths to continue so that humanity doesn’t lose the resources that sustain its life."

Something like that.

And so, the reason this method wasn’t known to Hunters became clear. It was to ensure no one tried to exploit it and ended up causing the terrible fate of Invader numbers dwindling to almost nothing.

’...Luckily I didn’t hunt too many of them.’

Julian smiled awkwardly as he thought of the Nym. He hadn’t seen them again along the rest of his path, and that actually worried him a little.

’Right?’

If the government was truly keeping track of each Invader’s numbers, then there should have been quite a few Nym in the invaded territory, not just a small handful.

Julian could only hope so.

While thinking through all that, Julian heard Lurker’s voice again.

"Those Aliens can cross into our world and also return to theirs. Because a Breach is like an unstable bridge connecting two worlds, every time an Alien crosses, the Breach needs time to recover itself, so Aliens arriving through a Breach always come in stages, never all at once."

That was something Julian had read on many forums and in many articles. But he still didn’t know why Lurker had suddenly brought it up.

It was common knowledge, and just as Julian thought, Lurker continued.

"The Invaders, though not sentient, have their own methods of communication, always aimed at the welfare of their kind. So, whenever a Breach stabilizes, some Aliens will return to their own world to show that they’ve secured the necessary foundation. That’s how other Aliens come as Invaders. But what happens if they’re all killed?"

Without any Alien to inform the others, it would surely trigger their instincts that something dangerous was waiting for them there.

And without any creature passing through that Breach, in the end, it would become inactive. As time passed, that Breach would close by itself.

Neither Julian nor Lurker knew the principle behind the Breach. But that was simply how a Breach worked.

"...I see. Thank you, this is very helpful."

Julian nodded and thanked him sincerely. He’d made the right decision to ask before acting.

Because otherwise, Julian might have become the reason humanity’s supply of resources was cut off.

The resources produced by Aliens were indeed extremely useful. They had led to many revolutions in certain items like firearms, vehicles, and all kinds of things that were now part of humanity’s daily life.

And if there was one thing that mattered most, it was of course the weapons used by Hunters, whether weapons, armor, or various unique equipment made following the principle of Artifacts, all of them were made from materials derived from the bodies of those Invaders.

"Hmm..." Julian suddenly thought of something odd in the middle of the conversation. He didn’t know since when he’d become such a deep thinker, but he looked at Lurker once more.

"If a Breach connects two worlds and if those Aliens can pass through a Breach... then what about humans? Can we also pass through it to cross into another world?"

That question seemed to catch Lurker slightly off guard, his mouth hanging open a little, and he hesitated, scratching the back of his head with an awkward smile.

"Theoretically it’s possible, and some people have already tested it."

"The result?"

"None of them came back, so as of now, no Hunter has taken the risk of doing that again."

Lurker paused, pressing his lips together and letting out a small sigh.

"Actually, the experiments are still being conducted. They just haven’t produced any results. The government, namely one of the great families, has access to a Breach within their own grounds. And often, prisoners with unforgivable crimes are sent into that Breach. Then, as Lord Julian might have guessed, none of them have ever returned."

In short, it was possible but also impossible for some reason still unknown?