Stagnant Water of Apocalypse

On a certain night in April, far away from the place where Lee Sang-shin devoured his favorite pork gukbap, the members of the two factions which were expelled from the Korean Shelter were shaking in anger. They felt it was unfair that they had to be kicked out, but what made them angrier was the fact that they could not eat the pork gukbap.

“Can’t he just kick us out after giving us some of the gukbap first?”

“He’s really an ill mannered bastard.”

“That gukbap smells so good… What a waste…” Sighs could be heard from all over the shabby building.

Meanwhile, the leaders of both factions were sitting across from each other in a certain room, discussing their future plans. The animosity between them could no longer be seen. After all, their main goal of instigating the two people that had a grudge for each other was the same. It’s to make the Korean Shelter fork out some supplies to them.

Now that Kang Seongho jumped into the fray, no matter how much they hated each other, they had no choice but to hold hands. However, even after ransacking their brains, they found no proper way to fight their common enemy.

“Three stagnant waters and guns… Isn’t that too much for us to fight?”

“A head-on collision is suicidal. I hate being beaten twice.”

“Is he really strong?”

“He is. With one punch, the sky turned yellow. When his second punch hits me, I feel like my soul just escaped my body.” Shin Il-hwan rubbed his throbbing stomach as he explained.

While a sigh was flowing between the two, Kim Young-soo secretly looked around. He’s checking whether someone was listening to them.

“There’s something I was working on… would you like to do it together?”

“What is it?”

“As you know, our warehouse is a little big, isn’t it?”

The warehouse they talked about was the very same place where the materials belonging to the Korean Shelter were stored. It was located on the side of the half-collapsed National Assembly building. Everyone coveted the warehouse, but since Jang Won-taek was the only one who had the key, no one dared to touch it.

“What if… There’s a dog hole leading inside from the second floor?”

“If I knew about such a thing, I would have taken action far earlier than planned.”

Shin Il-hwan had a sad expression on his face, but Kim Young-soo was very serious.

“You? Know about that? Impossible. This is something that only I know.”

“Well…” Even though Shin Il-hwan liked the idea, he still felt they couldn’t do it. If they get caught by the stagnant waters, forget eating porridge for the rest of their lives, they wouldn’t even be alive to eat anymore.

Kim Young-soo bluntly said not to worry about that.

“We can test by sending someone with stealth ability first, can’t we? Didn’t you see those bastards partying while eating gukbap earlier? They definitely consumed some alcohol too. They wouldn’t be able to resist the combo of alcohol and pork gukbap. Most likely, they are already deep asleep right now because of that.”

Only then did Shin Il-hwan straighten his posture.

“If you knew about something like that, why haven’t you taken action yet after all these times?”

“It’s because I know how that old man operates. If he realized that something went missing inside, he would strengthen the security even more. Better to just wait for a good opportunity to take everything inside at once.”

Shin Il-hwan rolled his eyes and snapped his finger.

“Let’s go then. We have nothing to lose. It’s either we die out here helplessly, or we die after getting beaten to death.”

“Everything will be fine. Let’s send someone first.”

After a while, someone with stealth ability secretly went into the Korean Shelter. The shelter personnel were not vigilant, and only faint light of glowstones could be seen here and there. That too, was not aimed at the streets, but it was put inside the building. The man then found a werewolf roaming the streets and was terrified, but gained confidence right after due to the fact that they didn’t notice him.

After approaching the warehouse, he installed a rope in the opening and climbed down. And after he checked the inside, he returned to the hideout in ecstasy.

Upon hearing the news, the leaders immediately mobilized their members. They were already thinking what they should do once the weapons and supplies were in their hands. They thought that no matter how strong someone was, in front of guns and grenades, they would be nothing.

They approached the warehouse via the furthest street from the Korean Shelter. On top of it, they also went to the warehouse one by one.

But there was something they didn’t know.

It was the fact that a troll and a werewolf were waiting for them inside the warehouse.

ROOOOAAARRRR-!!

“He-he-hey, it’s a troll!”

The troll and the werewolf who were beaten before being dragged in, were excited to see the humans in front of them. As a scream echoed through the warehouse, Kim Young-soo, who had just come down from the dog hole, was startled.

“What is this!”

He hurriedly tried to climb the rope once again, but before he could hold the rope again, his body hit something; something invisible.

The werewolf that slaughtered his subordinates turned to him at that moment. Kim Young-soo ignored the flesh on its teeth and closed his eyes.

“Fuck…”

While scream of terror resound from the warehouse, Lee Beom-seok, who was watching from the outside, said something.

“You could just fight them off using guns.”

“It would be a waste of ammo.” Seongho said lightly while sitting on a building debris a few distance away from Lee Beom-seok.

This operation was planned by him. He had found the dog hole in the second floor of the warehouse when he went to receive 30% of the material in the past and used it to his advantage.

Lee Beom-seok trembled as he imagined the situation inside.

The person in front of him was someone who threw people at the two monsters without batting an eye.

“Did you make the pork gukbap both in order to distract the shelter personnel and to bait them?”

Seongho threw a gun magazine to the air before catching it again. He then opened his mouth.

“That’s right. After all, gukbap’s number one pair is alcohol. In fact, everyone did drink until they nearly passed out.”

“But you look fine?”

“It’s because my stat is high. No matter how much I drink, I won’t be drunk.”

Lee Beom-seok turned his eyes to the warehouse in despair. The shriek of people that got shredded to pieces had subsided. Unlike him, Seongho kept his Super Sense skill up until the end, and only stopped after confirming that they were all dead.

“It’s done. I’ll clean it up myself, so go ahead.”

“Are you satisfied with this?”

Seongho frowned and looked at Lee Beom-seok, who turned his back against ghim.

“What are you so dissatisfied with?”

“I don’t like the fact that you killed everyone.”

“Did I not make myself clear? I never leave loose ends. I don’t want to get backstabbed just because I’m too kind.”

“The thing they did is not a mortal sin, isn’t it?”

“That mindset of yours is the cause that changed this shelter into this giant mess.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Lee Beom-seok’s breathing became rough. He turned towards Seongho with his fist clenched as if he would swing it towards him at any moment.

“What do you think those bastards will do after getting the guns? Thanking you, then go out to make this world a better place?” Seongho sighed.

“If that happened, we would think of countermeasures.”

“Countermeasure? Why don’t you do it until now? Why wait for things to happen first? Aren’t you Jang Won-taek’s secretary? What are you doing letting the person you need to assist take on every single thing? You should’ve gotten rid of them before they became a problem for him.”

Lee Beom-seok did not know what to do with the rising anger and resentment within his heart at Seongho’s sermon. However, he knew. The man in front of him was a man who let his actions speak louder than his words. Without him, the Korean Shelter would end up with a lot more problems they couldn’t handle.

He was supposedly the President’s trusted right hand man. But just like Seongho said, he had let the situation deteriorate into this mess. So, there was a high probability that Jang Won-taek’s gaze would not be the same as before when looking at him.

Lee Beom-seok licked his lips and didn’t say anything more. He only looked at Seongho’s back, while he silently entered the tragedy he had created.

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Yoo Ji-hye was someone who rarely spoke. She’s not handicapped, it’s just that her unique skill has changed how she sees people a lot. The ability to read people’s emotions. Far from a gift, It was like a curse to her.

Anger, hate, jealousy, sometimes greed…

Some of the men she had met until now wanted to own her. With almost no fighting ability and decent appearances, such men often drift towards her.

Although she had suffered terrible things until now, Oh Hyung-jun saved her. Although his appearance was far from her ideal type and his personality was on the blunt side, he was a good man. He didn’t jump to her like any other man and protected her. The two got closer little by little and finally became a couple.

However, Yoo Ji-hye could never bring herself to get acquainted with his boyfriend’s younger brother, Seongho. The emotion she read from him was more intense than any other emotion she felt so far. On top of it, she was also intimidated by the rumors circulating among the people about him.

That Bastard, Butcherer, Betrayer, Human Garbage, Psychopath, and many others. He wears all kinds of dangerous moniker, so it’s a matter of course that she was terrified of him.

But somehow, the way she saw him recently become very different from before. The key turning point was the fact that he hung out with people she’s close with without any shred of awkwardness.

Well, they’re close friends in the first place, but…

It was also shocking that he was quite good at cooking. From his build alone, he was a person who’s suited to wield a weapon rather than a kitchen knife.

“Maybe I misunderstood him.”

She was looking down to the street below from her own room in their group’s dwelling. Several cauldrons were placed there, and it was crowded with people. It looked like the menu was going to be samgye-tang.

(P/n Samgyetang = ginseng chicken soup, mainly consists of a whole chicken in a soup filled with garlic, rice, jujube, and ginseng.)

To think there would be someone who could cook samgye-tang in the apocalypse…

Ji-hye looked blankly at Seongho’s back. He was sitting on a plastic chair while his hands were busy cleaning an animal which looked like a big chicken. Where did so many chickens come from was a mystery for Jihye. After all, judging by its size, it was an animal which would definitely be monsters’ favorite prey.

“What are you doing?” Hyung-jun asked as he came over to her and wrapped his arms around her shoulder.

“I’m just watching.”

“Are you watching Seongho? Don’t tell me you have feelings for my brother…” He said jokingly.

“It’s not like that…” Ji-hye ruffled his hair as a retaliation.

It was very impressive to see several people in their early 20s clinging to Seongho. They laughed and talked with him playfully… The group was no different from any normal group in her eyes.

Am I the only one who saw him differently?

Hyung-jun lowered his voice.

“I know it’s maybe far too late to tell you this, but Seongho used to run a snack bar.”

“A snack bar?”

“Yeah. Back in Busan, he used to sell tteokbokki, oden, and many other snacks to the kids and students. The reviews weren’t bad. He gave the kids a bigger portion than normal.”

‘Why did such a person turn into a human butcher?’ Yoo Ji-hye seemed to understand the reason a little. In order to survive, she had even brainwashed herself. She justified everything she did by saying it’s a must for her survival.

The emotions she felt from him right now were not as bleak as it used to be. He emits a warm and relaxed atmosphere…and surprisingly, she could see a glimpse of love.

She looked at Seongho without saying a word and then pulled herself away from the window sill.

“Are you going to go there?”

“Yes. I must have misunderstood Seongho. I have to go down and apologize.”

“Alright. If you get to know him, you’ll know that he’s actually a pretty good kid.”

Ji-hye went down to the street with Hyung-jun and greeted Seongho.

“Hello, Seongho-ssi.”

Seongho turned to her and felt a little bit lost at her sudden greeting. Only after a while did he regain his composure and bowed his head to her.

“You are here, Ji-hye-ssi. Can I call you sister-in-law from now on?”

“Of course. By the way, give me a knife. Poultry has a lot of fat in the tail. If you don’t take it off, the soup will taste bad.”

“Ah, is that so…” Seongho nodded. The two quickly get close to each other as if there was never any awkwardness between them. Perhaps it was possible because there’s something in common between the two of them: cooking.

Hyung-jun stood still while beaming with smiles, but after being pointed out by the shelter members, he joined the work by setting up some tableware.

On this one day in April, the smell of samgye-tang spread around the Korean Shelter.

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A big problem has come up!

There’s no more gryphon in Korea!

From the information we gathered from the Auction House, the gryphon that I hunted for Sooyeon was the first and the last of its kind in the entire Korean Peninsula.

While I was browsing the Auction House to make sure and try to find any glimpse of hope, I heard unexpected news from Lee Beom-seok. Two Japanese survivors, who identified themselves as Kenji and Yuzuka, were standing outside the shelter.

Looking at the paper on which they wrote their circumstances, Yuzuka said that they had lost a lot of their colleagues because they were caught up in a battle royale while on the island. It’s also written that they met Japanese people at the entrance to the Great Labyrinth formed near Changwon before coming here.

Looking at how crooked the hangul she used, I could guess how hard she had studied.

-I hope you are having a good spring these days. This is Shiraishi. How are you doing? I am eternally grateful for what you did for us in the past. It was sudden, but we were forced to leave the island, and we were really in trouble…

“What a long introduction.”

Is it because he’s a former noble?

To summarize, they fucked up. They had no place to live and nothing to eat, so they asked for help.

“Well…” It was the truth that we know each other. But it’s just that. There’s nothing wrong with having friendly forces on Dot Island, so I gave it to them. But to think they also came all the way up here.

Should I help them?

“People wouldn’t look at it kindly…” It should be fine things to do when the shelter was still peaceful. But I did not want to bring in outsiders as much as possible because of the current situation.

“If I remembered correctly, they said they were from Tokyo…” The Japanese who joined the Shiraishi siblings were said to be from Tokyo. As it was a city that boasts a larger size than Seoul, there’s a possibility that some gryphons might have appeared there.

I’ve been wanting to go, but I don’t know anything about Japan.

“I hope they can give me some guidance.” The Japanese should go back and check if there were any gryphons in Tokyo.

I went outside the shelter and met the two of them. They seemed to be quite exhausted. Probably because they had suffered a lot.

“Long time no see. There is something I would like to suggest outright. If you do one thing, you can stay here. We can’t take you to the shelter, but we can help.”

The two faces become rigid at Seongho’s sudden words.

“What is it?”

“Did you say that one of the entrances to the Great Labyrinth was connected to Tokyo? Send someone to check whether there’s a gryphon there or not. And you can take care of becoming my guide if I go there.”

“I’m sorry, but Yuzuka has never heard anything related to gryphons from the others… What should we do now…”

What should I do with her awkward tone of voice?

I told her.

“It’s been a while since the people who joined you roamed the Great Labyrinth. In the meantime, a gryphon might have appeared.”

“What if there’s no gryphon…”

“Even if there isn’t, I will keep my promise. I just need you to guide me. I want to visit Tokyo once. It’s not radioactively contaminated, isn’t it?”

Kenji was ecstatic and straightened his posture.

“There are no nuclear power plants near Tokyo. The Tokai Power Plant has been shut down for a long time…”

“Anyway, I want you to do that. Can you send someone now?”

“I will send them right away.”

Kenji stood up. I noticed something strange while talking to Yuzuka.

It’s been a long time since she arrived in Korea, why did she feel reluctant to go back to her hometown?

Of course, I know that her hometown was not Tokyo, but Japan would be more comfortable than Korea for them.

When I asked that question, her expression turned depressed.

“Yuzuka thought it was better here. Yuzuka did not want to live in a city where murderers and human hunters roam around freely.”

Ah… It seemed like the supposed ‘safest city in the entire world’ had become a bloody mess now. Well, in fact, all cities in the world, even this one, have become like that now.

“Anyway, I’ll help you, so prepare yourself to become my guide.”

“Wi-will it be okay? In Yuzuka’s eyes, Tokyo is a very dangerous city. A dozen or so murderers roam around…”

“I’m sorry, but those murderers will have to quit their business when I arrived. Or else, I’ll make them.”

Her eyes were tinged with suspicion at my words.

Well, showing is always better than telling, isn’t it?

(P/n traveling arc, begin!)