Life Mission

It was a dismal space. Everything was blocked with musty cement, and all he could see was a worn out desk, window, and a door leading outside.

No matter how much a game was like reality, there were some significant differences when compared. The key difference was the experience. Experiencing it with the body.

“My body?”

-[It is your body, not the character you used in the virtual version.]

Discomfort from the heat and a fishy smell came through his nose.

There was also an ominous feeling that could not be explained. There were no elements of convenience to a gamer. He was being awakened to reality more and more.

Kikik!

Seuseuk.

There was the sound of life outside the building. They must be mutants.

It must have been because he had 10 years of experience in Life Mission, but he stuck his back against the wall and moved towards the window. He wanted to examine the situation outside.

“There are more than a few buildings. Just looking out, there must be hundreds.”

-[They are all for the reserved lifer. This entire region is at difficulty level C, so the building you are starting at is just the tip of the iceberg.]

Cha Jun Sung listened to Odin’s explanation as he geared his hearing to the movement outside. He intended to move slowly since there was not an allotted time.

Click!

-[Level 1 mutant Kawod is approaching. Take out your odorless spray and use it on your body. You need to complete this in 1 minute.]

“Keuk!”

Cha Jun Sung looked through his bag and took the spray out.

He had flipped everything out of his bag while trying to take it out quickly. It was an item he had used thousands of times in the virtual version. His brain was not functioning when he thought of it as real.

Chiik.

A transparent powder floated in the air. There was no scent. Just like its name, it was odorless.

-[There is a large vent on the right. Go up and hide.]

The vent was installed 3 meters above the ground. It was a height that could not be reached without tall height or muscular strength.

Cha Jun Sung looked at the desk and shook his head. The place was completely silent. The desk was too heavy to lift. If he dragged it, there would be too much noise.

Pat!

He put force into both feet and kicked off from the ground. His 184cm height and body moved through exercise went through the air.

“Hup!”

It felt like he was doing a pull-up. He had thrown his bag to the floor. There was no need to hang on to it if it would not help him live, and it was too heavy for him to bring up.

Once he was inside, it was not hard to crawl around because the ventilator was torn.

Kiik.

Right when Cha Jun Sung hid himself, the worn door opened and a Level 1 Kawod entered the room sniffing around just as Odin had anticipated.

‘It’s the same!’

With a smashed and deformed face, it was the size of an 8 or 9 year old elementary school student. The only weapons that could be of danger were its sharp teeth and nails.

A coward. It was exactly the same as the Kawod he had seen in the virtual version.

Weak alone and weak as a crowd, they were at the bottom of the mutant food chain. An adult man could take one on with his bare hands even if he was wounded.

-[There are 21 Kawods in this building. I recommend that you avoid them since you are not armed to take them all on.]

The only weapon Cha Jun Sung had was a dagger. If it were only a few, he could have done something, but he would become a piece of meat if 21 came at him.

Sniff sniff!

The Kawod bent over and went around the room. Cha Jun Sung’s heart beat to the sound of its sniffing. It was a fear-inducing game of hide-and-seek.

The Kawod that had been sniffing around everywhere put his nose to Cha Jun Sung’s bag. It seemed there was a remaining odor because he had not sprayed it.

Seuruk.

An unexpected situation, the Kawod laid down next to the bag. Does it like the smell?

Since the building was their home, it was their business where they lay. But why, of all places, next to his bag? Cha Jun Sung almost threw a fit.

“Hey there. Do I have to take that bag?”

Cha Jun Sung slightly opened his mouth. Odin understood what he was saying.

-[Necessities for Level E missions are sold for 100 points in the store.]

-[Points are as precious as your life in the real version, so you are expected to recover all of your items unless it is absolutely impossible.]

“What are you telling me to do with one dagger? I’m just an ordinary human.”

-[Is the Overload who killed the Evil Queen afraid of a Kawod?]

“Are you kidding me right now? That’s a game and this is reality.”

-[The virtual version is a training facility created to prepare you for the real version. Nothing is different. Act as you did there.]

The instructions he had to follow were obvious. Kill the Kawod and recover the equipment. Choice? None. He needed to do it. If he wanted to go home, he needed to kill it.

Cha Jun Sung thought about it while lying down in the vent and made up his mind.

“Fine. I’ll do it.”

Surprisingly, his vision became clearer as he abandoned his negative thoughts. He thought of the best way to kill the Kawod.

“I have to take a look at the ventilator first.”

Cha Jun Sung crawled through the vent. He would recover the bag later. He needed to see how long the vent was and how he would get down.

Tak.

Though it was uncomfortable, he took the dagger by his teeth. It would become a problem if he put it in a pocket and scratched something, or if he lost it. The vent was fairly long.

It did not connect to every room. There were places scattered throughout where he could escape.

Odin gave him the information on each room he discovered, as well as the room the Kawod was sleeping in. He was doing his job as a supporter properly.

Cha Jun Sung went around for hours. It took a long time because movement was difficult, but he had been able to familiarize himself with everything he could see through the ventilator.

There was a kitchen about nine to ten meters from the stairs that went downwards. There were doors in the front and back, so he could use them during an emergency escape.

There was the danger of being surrounded from either side, but if the Kawod were the same from the game, they would be too cowardly to scatter and would move in a group if they sensed danger.

Tak.

Cha Jun Sung ended his short journey and returned to his original location. The Kawod had passed out sleeping. He did not attack right away, but thought of a plan.

‘If I show up, I’m sure he’ll get scared and run away, making them all charge in.’

If that happened, he would have the time it took for the Kawod to run away and come back with the group.

He could move the bag to the vent in that time. It was difficult to move everything at once, but he could do some items one by one. The key was the amount of time he would have.

Should he just kill it without anyone knowing? It would be okay if the smell of blood did not spread, but he would be in trouble if something went wrong.

Shak.

Cha Jun Sung brandished the dagger. He had not imagined killing a living being in real life. Even if that being was a mutant.

‘Kawods like dark places because of their sensitivity to sunlight.’

While he was effectively invisible, Kawods still had an enhanced sense of hearing and smell. Since he used the spray, all he had to be careful of was making sound.

He lowered himself as close to the ground as possible. Even if he fell to the ground carefully, he would still make a sound. He needed to divert the attention before his location was detected.

Cha Jun Sung hung by the strength of his arms. The Kawod had not yet caught on but as soon as it did, it would either run to him or run away.

Taekang!

Kya?

There was a fricative as the sheath fell. The Kawod awoke startled and looked to where the sound had come from. At that moment, Cha Jun Sung ran.

Pat!

As soon as he hit the floor, he slashed the Kawod’s throat mercilessly.

As its thin childlike throat was slit, blood gushed out as though from a fountain. The Kawod tried to yell, but the sound did not come out of its throat filled with blood.

Its vitality was weak. It would die even if he did not attack more.

Puk!

Cha Jun Sung kicked the Kawod’s face with all of his strength. He created an even more unseemly sight as the slit in its neck opened up further.

“Damn, damn!”