Blackout

“Wow, I can’t believe I’m making something like this...”

What had Suho shut himself back inside the workshop of his subspace warehouse to obsess over this time was a super-large underwater aerator.

He purchased a ready-made product and took it apart to understand its structure, then rebuilt it into something that could operate on Etherium. On top of that, he equipped it with an entire filtration system, including pumps and pipes, and went down beneath the gigantic basin.

Rabi had swept away the mountainous terrain around Yeongyang County and Bonghwa County in North Gyeongsang Province, shaving most of the area flat. At Suho’s request, a water source to supply the city had been created on the northern side—a colossal reservoir 2.5 kilometers wide, 2.5 kilometers long, and 300 meters deep. A pit dug large enough to hold 1.875 billion tons of water.

Since Daecheong Lake in the Chungcheong region was said to contain roughly 1.5 billion tons of water, this should be enough to hold a sufficient supply.

He also did not forget to meticulously line this vast area with granite, so that the unfortunate incident of all the water seeping into the ground and vanishing would not occur.

Suho, who had gone down to install various facilities to keep this massive quantity of stagnant water from rotting, completed the overall water circulation system and oxygen supply system, then confirmed that they were functioning normally.

“This should be enough... Well, I’m sure this isn’t almighty either...”

Stagnant water was bound to rot. A portion of the water had to be replaced regularly so that fresh water would be supplied, but while it was annoying, it was not especially difficult as long as he did not forget.

“Rabi, I’m going to fill this with water.”

To fill the super-large basin with water, he received 100 ja won’s worth of clean glacial water from Rabi.

The amount was 500 hae liters. Converted into tons, that was 5,000 gyeong tons. Compared to the deep seawater he had received last time, it was only one five-hundredth the amount, but it was not lacking. In truth, he had received far too much deep seawater for no reason...

“Shall I fill it completely?”

“Yeah, fill it up. Ah, maybe not too full... Then fill it until about three meters below the surface.”

“Understood.”

In an instant, water appeared in the enormous pit.

In less than a second, 1.8 billion tons of water filled the entire space of the basin.

It was something impossible even if a super-large dam discharged water at maximum capacity. The world’s largest, the Three Gorges Dam, was said to be able to discharge 80,000 tons of water per second, but even at that speed, it would take more than six hours to fill a pit with 1.8 billion tons of water.

Looking down at the prepared water source and the flattened terrain, Suho smiled in satisfaction.

* * *

The mountains around Yeongyang County and Bonghwa County were in an uproar.

Thanks to the fact that Rabi had slowly shaved down the terrain at Suho’s request, countless living creatures avoided falling to their deaths, but the fact that they had lost their habitats remained unchanged.

Countless kinds of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and insects began a mass migration toward the surrounding forests.

Wild boars, water deer, raccoon dogs, deer, roe deer, martens, weasels, badgers, leopard cats, squirrels, lizards, frogs, snakes, along with countless birds and insects.

This rare sight was filmed and reported in various places.

However, what would truly astonish people was not the animals’ migration, but the changed terrain and the newly formed reservoir.

A tremendous flatland spanning 2,018 square kilometers had suddenly appeared. It was an expanse of land equivalent to the combined total area of Daejeon Metropolitan City and Daegu Metropolitan City.

“J-Jeong Suho Admittee... How on earth could something like this...”

“Haha... You were a little surprised, weren’t you?”

For this incredible event, the minister and vice minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport personally came by helicopter with their attendants. A vast land that one could never imagine had originally been mountainous, along with an enormous water source. These were things that had not existed just the day before.

This was not land reclamation, but something on an incredible scale, as if watching terraforming.

“When you said you were going to reclaim the land... I thought you must have some method, but... this, this is... truly...”

The vice minister could not close his mouth either.

“Just how... is such a thing possible... With my mind, I cannot even imagine it...”

“W-Was this originally an S-rank ability of yours...”

Suho waved his hands at those words.

“No, no. I told you before, didn’t I? That I have a friend who’s good at work. You remember Obellun, right?”

“Ah, this is also that person’s...”

They had only known that he could crush a city like a nuclear attack, and had not realized that such delicate work was also possible. They once again marveled at Obellun’s ability and let out exclamations.

“T-Then perhaps we might be able to borrow that person’s power for later city construction work or other government projects...”

“No, that will be difficult. It’s not something even I can ask for easily. He’s a busy friend, and an extremely expensive one... You won’t be able to handle the cost of putting him to work.”

It was true. Other than Suho, who could possibly procure runes for Rabi, and how?

“Perhaps on our side, we could recruit Sir Obellun under the best possible conditions...”

“That would be even harder. As I told you last time, he isn’t human. No matter what conditions you offer, he won’t even blink...”

At those words, the minister sighed regretfully.

It was not as if there were only one or two things Jeong Suho did that were impossible to understand. The vice minister quickly gave up and asked about the construction schedule going forward.

“First, before full-scale city construction begins, we need to lay down roads. We’ll prioritize building roads connected to the Jungang Expressway and the Seosan-Yeongdeok Expressway, and aside from that, I’m thinking of laying down about two new expressways. After that, well, we’ll install the necessary infrastructure—waterworks, electricity, communications, gas, and so on.”

Still wearing a dazed expression, as if he could not adapt to the sight, the minister looked around at the enormous land and said,

“This... can no longer be called Yeongyang County or Bonghwa County of North Gyeongsang Province... It is not a matter to decide here and now, but... the city you will establish in the future may need a new name befitting it.”

Suho agreed.

“That’s right. Since it’s a new city, it would be nice to have a new name.”

“Suho Metropolitan City, perhaps...”

The vice minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport muttered blankly, then hurriedly closed his mouth. But he thought that what Suho had said not long ago—about “creating a super-large new city that would share Seoul’s infrastructure and resolve the overpopulation of the capital”—might not be mere nonsense after all.

* * *

Around the time full-fledged road construction for the new city began, summer arrived in earnest.

With global warming still unresolved, the weather, which had been steadily growing hotter, had now truly gone insane.

Even last year, 2038, had set the record as the hottest year in history, with an average daily temperature of 35 degrees and 58 days of tropical nights. Yet the prevailing forecast was that 2039 would be even hotter.

There was even a terrifying warning that the number of heat-wave days exceeding 37 degrees would increase drastically this year...

Of course, none of that really applied to Suho.

“Ahhh, this is nice...”

At the large swimming pool in Elysium Heights, Suho lay floating on an air bed with a cocktail in his mouth as he looked down at the world beyond the huge window.

It was the time of day turning from late afternoon to evening, so the scenery outside the west-facing pool was dazzlingly filled with a golden sunset.

“Ah... this is art. This is paradise...”

As he lay there with his eyes closed, feeling the buoyancy of the water, sleep came over him.

Lately, it had been so hot that he could not even think of going outside.

In truth, everything could be taken care of within Elysium Heights, so there was no need to go out. But he did have to visit TDM or the SimCity construction site from time to time, and he could not bring himself to do it at all.

Because even a brief exposure to sunlight made him feel as if he would burn to death.

Even so, worried that those working in the barren, empty Yeongyang and Bonghwa area might suffer heat illness while building the roads, Suho diligently transported welfare facilities there as well.

He provided container-type mobile rest areas with powerful air-conditioning, mobile large shade canopies within the work radius, unlimited cold water and ice, cooling vests, and plenty of UV-blocking clothing. He also took every possible measure, including heat illness monitoring, emergency response personnel on standby, and avoiding work during the hottest hours, paying close attention so that the on-site workers would not lose their health.

Even so, a work site was still a work site. Field labor under a heat wave could not avoid hardship.

To boost morale, Suho also promised to pay an additional summer bonus to all personnel working in the extreme heat.

Splash—

“Ugh... Was I in there too long? It’s cold. Cold.”

Suho came out of the pool, roughly dried himself, and headed home.

The 15th-floor family level, reached by taking the private elevator.

On the 15th floor alone, there were a total of sixteen luxury apartments, ranging from 80 pyeong to 120 pyeong.

Among the many units on the 15th floor that the family had decided to divide up and use, the one Suho chose was a 120-pyeong home. Compared to the other family members, who each occupied two or three homes, Suho decided that this one house was enough for him and chose to use only this place.

His subspace warehouse alone was enormous, and with the TDM building, Winky’s nest, and now even the new city he would build, he already had too many buildings to think about. The thought of having multiple residences even in his main home felt far too scattered.

That did not mean it was a small house.

The home consisted of one master bedroom, two ordinary bedrooms, one study and office room, one media room, one dressing room, a laundry room and spacious pantry, a large living room, terrace, main kitchen and auxiliary kitchen, three bathrooms connected to each bedroom, two shower rooms, and one luxury bathroom.

This single home that Suho used alone was larger than the penthouse he had once stayed in at Cheongdam-dong.

There were three household androids managing this home alone, and they perfectly handled all the housework—organizing, cleaning, laundry, dishes, recycling, and so on—so Suho had absolutely no need to spend energy maintaining the house.

As he passed through the entrance, which recognized the head of household and opened automatically, an android waiting by the doorway received the clothes Suho casually stripped off and threw aside, then carried them to the laundry room.

In the 360-degree shower room, where showerheads were installed not only on the ceiling but also in various spots on the walls so that water poured out from every direction, Suho washed himself in an instant. Then he dried himself in the full-body dryer booth, put on only his underwear, and took a cool sparkling drink from the refrigerator.

As he came back out into the living room, he spoke to the android following behind him.

“Playlist number three.”

Then, from the high-end audio system installed throughout the entire living room, music close to the original sound rang out magnificently, filling the whole house.

Suho, nodding along and humming, sat down in the massage chair in front of the panoramic window in the living room.

Wooooong... Dddddddd...

Suho enjoyed this time almost every day, watching the outside while feeling the top-of-the-line massage chair pleasantly tap at his body.

His subspace warehouse was far larger, and incomparably more treasures were piled up there, but there was no scenery of people living their lives. An endless space with no sky, no clouds, no sun, no moon, and no changes in weather still felt desolate, even though he had filled it with many things.

Now that the sun had completely set and the lights illuminating the city had replaced the golden glow of the sunset, the emotion of the night view filled the scenery outside.

Click—

It was just as he opened the cap to drink.

Pop—papapap—

Suddenly, a certain area of Songpa District visible below went dark. Then the darkened area gradually widened. In the blink of an eye, the splendid nightscape turned pitch-black.

“What the?”

Startled, Suho sprang up and called the android.

Since even the household androids were basically connected to the central server, if he requested it, they could retrieve information from the central management AI.

“Hey, what’s going on? It’s getting dark outside.”

After a one- or two-second pause, the android finished its search.

“Identifying... Confirming... A power outage has been confirmed.”

“Really? Then has our building switched to emergency power?”

“Confirming... Correct. The emergency power generation system activated immediately and is covering Elysium Heights’ electricity without any energy gap.”

Suho’s Elysium Heights had a self-generating system capable of producing an enormous amount of electricity—an ether power plant—in the basement, so in truth, it was structured so that there would be no problem even if it received no electricity at all from outside.

“Is that so? Hmm...”

Sitting on the living room sofa and turning on the news, he saw a breaking report about a large-scale blackout affecting several districts in Seoul.

They said that due to a surge in air conditioner use, electricity production could not keep up with demand, destabilizing the power supply and causing a blackout.

“Good grief...”

Even though it was evening, the temperature outside still showed 36 degrees.

A power outage in this heat wave. It was horrible just to imagine.

Fortunately, the power was restored in less than an hour and the city regained its light, but this was not a problem that would occur only once and end there.

The next day, news on various channels reported on the previous day’s blackout and stated that the government was considering measures to reduce electricity consumption, such as rolling blackouts.

While watching the news, Suho connected to the AI managing the central control system.

“How much electricity does our Elysium Heights use in a month?”

“Yes, Master. As of last month, 2.43 million kilowatts were used. This has surged due to the summer season, and consumption is expected to decrease greatly once the heat ends.”

“Hmm... We use a lot. How much can our basement ether power plant produce if we operate it?”

“What percentage of operation are you referring to?”

“If we run it at full capacity.”

“When the Elysium Heights ether power plant operates at full capacity, it can produce 120 million kilowatts of electricity per day. On a monthly basis, that is 3.6 billion kilowatts.”

“Then that should be enough. In that case, for the summer, cut off external electricity for now and let’s use our own power.”

“Understood. I will switch over immediately.”

The amount of electricity used by AI, androids, electric vehicles, and the like could not be compared to before, yet fossil fuels were extremely restricted in this era.

Along with every other country, the Republic of Korea had greatly increased the number of nuclear power plants, but electricity was still lacking.

Not only had the price of uranium skyrocketed, but enormous budgets were also being spent on constructing and operating radioactive waste disposal facilities. In many ways, rising energy production costs were threatening all prices.

The electricity shortage made life difficult for ordinary people and lowered productivity across various industries.

For now, Suho had donated an enormous amount of gold to put out the urgent fire, but the national bankruptcy crisis was ultimately not unrelated to this either.

Listening to the anchor prattle on about the difficulties of the power shortage that would arise even more during the summer, Suho slapped his knee.

“Ah... this is it.”

He had been very short on the cash needed for new city construction,

but a way to earn a lot of money was close at hand.