Stagnant Water of Apocalypse

Seongho and the group from Korean Shelter exchanged an awkward greeting as soon as they met. Seongho knew every single one of them and had talked with all of them.

Except for one: Lee Sang-shin.

The man slouched and bowed his head to Seongho.

“My unique ability is telekinesis. And as many others, I lived with as little as I have.”

“I heard that you are pretty strong.”

“Compared to Seongho-ssi, I am nothing.”

Lee Sang-shin was 30 years old, the same age as Seongho. Therefore, Moon Soyoon was frustrated when the two people of the same age were conversing awkwardly. On top of it, Lee Sang-shin still hasn’t told Seongho that he was one of his live stream’s viewers.

“You know what? Apparently, this oppa was a viewer of your stream, Seongho oppa.”

“…you were my viewer? What’s your ID?”

“You wouldn’t know even if I tell you, probably.”

“Just tell me.”

Sang-shin’s eyes went wide as Seongho pushed forwards on the matter.

“It’s Gukbap Addict.”

“Huh? Are you really him? The guy who changed all values into gukbap?”

Everyone burst out laughing at Seongho’s words. In fact, Sang-shin kept talking about gukbap while traveling with the party. He always said that gukbap was Korea’s best invention, and it was a food that crushed all other foods with cost-effectiveness. When he’s not preaching about gukbap, he’s always down and keeps murmuring that he would never eat gukbap ever again because of the apocalypse.

“I am. I often watch your stream together with Poor Man and Passing Dog.”

“That Poor Man is Jiman, the boy I’ve told you about before. He’s someone who was loved by nature.”

“Ah…” Sang-shin belatedly realized Hyung-jun’s words.

“By the way, haven’t we met each other before? I mean, on the day you first entered the Korean Shelter.”

“I-is that so?” Sang-shin lied. He indeed saw Seongho that day. Seongho had even introduced himself as I Love Gimbap. It was just that he was afraid to tell him in case he didn’t know him.

Hyung-jun put his hand on Seongho’s shoulder. “By the way, Seongho. Did everyone get along well with each other? Is the place worth living?”

“Well, it’s been fine so far.”

The truth is, everyone was getting along so well to the point where asking for more was nothing but greed. If there were no monsters attacking every few hours, it was safe to call the shelter a paradise. However, Seongho didn’t tell Hyung-jun that, as there’s a lot of ears paying attention to him currently.

Meanwhile, the others who did not know much about Seongho’s ability squinted their eyes.

What kind of place is he living in?

Hearing Seongho’s words, Hyung-jun felt conflicted. In fact, he wanted to enter the portal too. However, since Ji-hye was uncomfortable with Seongho, he couldn’t show any signs of that.

“I’m glad you’re doing well. Say hello to them for me. By the way, you guys are currently hunting in the deeper level, right?”

“Yes. But it’s not that far deep. They are currently hunting on the third floor. Of course, with the help of Seokhyun and Da-jeong.”

“You are already on the third floor?”

“Wow…”

Everyone was shocked at the reveal. Even the Chinese, who had occupied the majority of the bases and had great numbers, were still unable to hunt effectively on the second floor.

Sang-shin smiled at that moment. “Gimbap… Ah, it was Seongho-ssi, wasn’t it? Anyway, since you know a lot about the Great Labyrinth, it should be natural that you have already progressed that far.”

“By any chance, do you know about the last floor of the Great Labyrinth too?”

“That’s not the case. Even back in the game, I couldn’t go to the deepest floor.”

The difficulty increased as you went deeper into the Great Labyrinth. The first floor, which is causing problems to almost all survivors right now, could be said as nothing but a child’s play compared to the deeper floor.

“By the way, were you sent here by Jang Won-taek? All of you didn’t look that ready for a floor exploration.” Seongho looked around at the group and asked. His gaze then landed on the glowstone that Yoo Ji-hye was holding. If it was the Jang Won-taek he knew, he would have at the very least armed them with a flashlight. Just what in the world is this…

The people who came all the way here without asking for it were also at fault though. They were way too naive.

Maybe it’s because they don’t know what kind of place the Great Labyrinth is?

“The President said it’s hard to get real information thanks to a lot of misleading information. That’s why they sent us here; to get some information.”

“Is that so?”

Seongho bit his lips. Normally, Kim Hyun-woo would have been the one who was tasked with this kind of thing. However, he’s no longer with the living.

When the atmosphere became strange, So-yoon spoke up.

“Uh, Seongho ssi, would you like to go with us?”

“I’m sorry, but I have something to do.” Seongho calmed down and answered. He took a plastic bag out of his backpack and handed it to Hyung-jun. “For now, take this.”

What’s inside was grapes with a dark color darker than any grapes Hyung-jun has ever seen in his entire life.

“What is this?”

“These grapes will give you a buff called night vision. As the name implied, you will be able to see in the dark if you eat it.”

“Oh, to think such a thing exists…”

“That’s fascinating.”

“Let’s eat one each.”

Everyone ate one and slowly opened their eyes. Their vision, which had been so dark, lit up. Of course, it wasn’t as clear as the day, but it was still bright enough for them to distinguish one object from another.

“Those things are amazing. Jiman grew them.”

“Jiman, huh? It seemed like as soon as he went with you, his ability fully blossomed.”

“It just happened.” Seongho shrugged. “Then, Hyung-nim, I will go first.”

“Oh, okay. Keep up the good work.”

Seongho bowed his head to Hyung-jun. When his upper body straightened once again, he looked at Sang-shin and said, “I’ll see you later, Sang-shin-ssi.”

“Yes?”

I’ll see you later, what does that mean? Sang-shin felt fear for the upcoming future.

Meanwhile, Moon Dae-ho and Moon So-yoon were talking to each other while admiring the effect of the Shadow Grapes.

“The impression of that person has changed quite a bit. When we first met, he looked completely ruthless and cold.”

“Isn’t that because you attacked in the first place? Who would like it when they were randomly attacked?”

“That’s not the point!”

While the two bickered, Hyung-jun spoke. “Seongho is not that bad.”

“I know he’s not really a bad guy, it’s just the rumors…”

As Daeho was about to finish his words, Hyung-jun raised his voice.

“In the apocalypse, there’s many things that had to be done. And Seongho doesn’t treat people he’s close with badly. Look at me. He still treated me like an older brother even though I’m basically nothing to him now.”

“Th-that’s right… Ah, I’m talking about Seongho-ssi. I’m not saying that Hyung-jun-ssi is really nothing, okay.”

Everyone agreed. However, Sang-shin suddenly said,

“But, where is he going?”

“Well… it looks like he came to hunt something.”

“Didn’t the Auction House say that it’s chaotic around here because of the Chinese? Did he perhaps come here to take care of them?”

“Well…”

Everyone looked at each other’s faces. If it was indeed the case, the chance for them to get the right information finally appeared. It’s risky, but if they didn’t take the risk, they won’t be able to get anything. On top of it, there’s a pretty big reward at stake this time.

Through their eyes alone, they knew each other’s mind. However, Hyung-jun objected.

“If we follow Seongho, we would not be able to find the most important thing. It is better to just do what we should do.”

“But…”

“If you really want to do that, we should act separately. I don’t want to get caught up in his fight and die.”

Hyung-jun knows Seongho’s personality well, the last thing he wanted to do in this dangerous place was chase after him and ended up getting in his way. Eventually, the other members of the group had no choice but to follow his decision.

“He walked around alone every day.” Moon So-yoon said while pouting.

“Well, he’s confident he can fight most of the danger out there after all.” Moon Dae-ho shrugged.

“Since he can even kill an ogre, the Chinese will be in trouble, right?”

“Yeah.” Hyung-jun looked at the pocket of Shadow Grapes. Until this day, he kept receiving help from Seongho in various ways. However, he felt more miserable today compared to any other day.

‘Should I have joined them as well…’

However, with his body strengthening-type unique skill, it was difficult to achieve a great result comparable to the other members of Seongho’s group. On top of it, in front of the stagnant waters, his ability was basically useless. With one punch from Seokhyun the Rabbit Pwincess, Hyung-jun believed that he would wander around the river Styx immediately.

He knew if he told Seongho he wanted to join now, he would gladly let him in. However, his pride as an older man couldn’t allow it. He’s aware it’s useless. But without it, he felt like he wouldn’t be able to keep surviving.

‘Now that the situation has become like this, I can’t go back. I’m a normal person after all.’ A normal person must live a life that fits them.

Hyung-jun made up his mind.

.

.

.

It was difficult to get the right directions in the Great Labyrinth. Afterall, there’s nothing which could be used as a landmark. On top of it, various sounds from all over the hallway would also interfere with the senses. However, since I have extrasensory skills in my arsenal, I could clearly hear many sounds even if they were ringing together with other sounds.

The one sound I was currently pinpointing was the conversation between a few Chinese. If I followed the sound and combined it with what I had learned while wandering the Great Labyrinth back in the game, a shorter way towards them would surely open up.

When I was finally sure that the Chinese were just around the corner, I carefully took a peek at them. I could see seven of them sitting around in clothes which could be mistaken as rags while grilling a few labyrinth rats. The place they were occupying was where water sprouted..

“…”

As I watched silently, I could see some of them started to touch the two women amongst them.

“Don’t touch me!”

“Try it! and you’ll see what I’ll do!

“Hey, aren’t we enjoying it together right now…”

“Seriously. Why are you acting so high and mighty with that looks!”

Seemed like even in the current situation, they couldn’t throw away their sexual desire.

Should I praise them for not forcing their way?

After that, the Chinese started to talk once again. However, even after I listened to it for a few minutes, nothing important came up; it was just idle chatter.

Seemed like this was it. When I was going to leave the place, I heard the sound of several footsteps coming.

“Did you find it?”

“N-no… We are still looking.”

“Sigh… I just can’t understand why that guy told us to get more Nightberry.”

“It looks like they’re trying to sell it to the higher ups.”

“Anyway, if we come back empty-handed again this time, they won’t leave us alone, so let’s do our best.”

“Sigh… I wish I could just kill those bastards.”

“Shush! That’s a dangerous thing to say out loud!”

Among the chatter, I caught some important information. The seven people from earlier seemed to be the one who managed Nightberry. They were not at the top of the hierarchy, but more like middle management.

I followed the new group quietly.

However, as they were sober and vigilant, when I made one mistake, they quickly found something was amiss.

“Did you just hear something?”

“What’s the use of you telling me that! Go check it out.”

That’s a very typical manager response.

By the time they approached, I was already hiding inside the portal. However, as the situation continued several times, one person could not stand it any longer and took out his gun.

“Come out! Come out! I know you’re somewhere around us, so come out!”

Well, shit…

But don’t you think you shouted too loudly?

After a while, cave goblins appeared in the hallway with a squeak. Although it’s size was smaller than a normal goblin, it’s quite strong and agile because of its high level. They also didn’t use paralyzing poison, but a poison that grows in the labyrinth applied to their short spear.

The moment a goblin threw the spear like a javelin, one Chinese fell to the ground with a scream. As the battle began, I left my hiding place and quietly proceeded to where they were headed.

“Now, where is that smell…” Back in the game, it had a pretty sour smell, turns out I was correct. Upon activating the Super Sense skill, a sour scent clung to my nose. While searching for the source of the smell, I found a stronghold full of old things.

When I entered and rummaged through it, I found the pouch that contained the Nightberry they had gathered and put it into the portal. Just then, I heard a lot of hurried footsteps outside. It’s not from the guys who fought the cave goblins before, meaning it’s a new party.

As I hid inside the portal, a man with a strong impression ran inside.

“Where did the Nightberry go?”

“I-I don’t know.”

“I kept telling you, increase the surveillance! Find it!”

“Let’s find it!”

The subordinates left, and the hard-headed man began to swear at someone while chewing his lips.

“That fucking Military General! Why did he do such a useless thing…”

Military General? Is he talking about Ju Seung Su?

I don’t know exactly how the relationship went between them, but it didn’t seem to be an amiable relationship. The man continued to complain about Ju Seung Su for a long time.

He seemed quite dissatisfied?

At one moment, a flame started to appear on the man’s palm.

Pyrokinesis…

It’s the first time I’ve actually seen it. Until now, I’ve only heard about it. He must have passed level 15, so he should be able to spray flames from a distance.

I rechecked my goals. Having secured the Nightberry, the next thing to do was to kill the leader. The other Chinese would naturally scatter away when the head is defeated.

But first, I would have to get that guy’s gun first.

I checked the gear and placed a small stone on the slingshot to shoot.

“What is that? A mouse”

At the sound, he turned towards me. Then, I threw a pepper bomb at him. It flew and exploded right on his nose. Because he let his guard down and got surprised, he inhaled a bunch of powder down his throat.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!” He screamed. Because of it, the sound of panting could be heard moving closer to this place. It came from the cave goblins.

The guys threw their spear from a few meters away towards the guy. He would have avoided it if he was fine, but the man was currently in a state of half-fainting. Therefore, the spear found its target and pierced through several places of his body.

“AHHHHHHH!!!!” He screamed and pulled out the rifle strapped on his back. However, just before he managed to get a shot, I threw emeras throwing knives towards his forearms.

“Keuk!”

That was the end of him, as several more spears thrown by the cave goblin pierced his chest. The man trembled and crumbled to the ground.

The goblins danced and cheered. My time is now. I jumped out of the portal, retrieved the rifle, and turned the gun at the cave goblins.

Kiek?

Babababang-!!

A hole appeared in the goblins’ head. They died without even knowing what happened to them. Then I hid in the portal again.

“It’s about time for Ju Seung Su to come…”

After waiting for a while, bullets suddenly rained on the base. The corpse of the fallen man shook, and dust rose all over the base. After a while, several people came and checked the man’s body.

“He’s dead.”

“That I Love Gimbap or whoever that bastard is definitely around here. Be careful!” It was clear that everyone was nervous by how fidgety they were. By the fact that the man knew my ID, I was certain he’s Ju Seung Su.

To be honest, it was a waste to use my last Crime Pardon just to kill these guys. So first of all, I need to summon all of the monsters that might be around. I took out a firecracker and lit it.

It’s said that the Chinese really like firecrackers… Let’s see if it’s true or not.

When I threw it out of the portal, the complexions of the Chinese people, including Ju Seung Su, changed abruptly.

“It’s a bomb!”