Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: The Concrete Graveyard
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"Huu!"
He let out a long sigh. Yuseong stared at the city before him.
A massive concrete jungle. A faded remnant of the fallen world, a treasure chest slumbering with still-useful relics of civilization.
'And a nest for the beasts.'
He didn't know much about those damned things' ecology, but he knew they were obsessed with traces of humanity. And the city was the epitome of what drove them mad.
It wasn't for nothing that not just Yuseong, but every generation before him had suffered shortages of supplies yet could only salivate from afar, never daring to scour the city.
'No, there were people who tried.'
They just ended up dead by the beasts.
But Yuseong now had a better shot. He had plenty of ammo, and even if his gun broke, he could find a new one. He had potions for emergencies, and above all, the radar—a brand-new ally.
'This thing's incredible.'
He'd already tested it. Concentric circles spread out from him. If one of those damned beasts entered a certain range, the circles turned into a red ring marking his enemy.
A radar, plain and simple. And not one that required him to swivel his view—it constantly displayed info in the corner of his vision.
With this, at least ambushes were off the table. Its value in a city full of blind spots from all the structures went without saying.
All of it stemmed from the Ark and the surreal events that followed, but unlike before, Yuseong felt no gratitude toward them.
'It feels like there's some agenda.'
There's no such thing as kindness without reason. A line from a book he'd read once. It held true even in the pre-apocalypse world, so wasn't it close to universal truth?
But right now, he didn't know what that agenda was or who wanted it fulfilled.
'The strategy guide might not be on my side.'
Even so, he felt no sense of betrayal.
'Doesn't matter.'
Yuseong stepped forward.
'As long as it gets me out of this hellhole!'
He'd gladly be its faithful tool.
The concrete graveyard drew slowly nearer. Gripping his gun tighter, Yuseong prayed.
'Please, no monsters.'
May this concrete graveyard not become his own.
* * *
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The gun spat fire relentlessly. One magazine emptied in seconds. Before, he'd have frantically ejected it and reloaded.
But not now.
?!
The empty magazine popped out. Yuseong tossed it aside carelessly and pulled a fresh one. It was already packed with rounds.
Click!
He slammed it home and pulled the trigger.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The gun roared back to life. The pause in the bullet rain was mercifully brief. Even in the heat of battle, Yuseong felt a rush of satisfaction.
It was around the fifth magazine swap.
-Kaak!
The last beast collapsed, spraying blood from its face.
Yuseong lowered his gun. Over a dozen beasts lay dead before him. Numbers that once would have sent him running on sight.
But he felt no pride. This fight was just the opener.
He'd killed the charging beasts, but that didn't make the city safe.
If a simple sweep like this cleared it out, his predecessors—with their superior numbers and supplies—wouldn't have left it alone.
Of course, superior only compared to him.
'The real work starts now.'
Beasts loved human traces so much they hunkered down inside buildings and rarely came out. Even with noise like this.
The ones that had charged were the weaker ones, pushed out of territory fights and forced to nest outside.
Which meant stronger ones infested the buildings inside the city.
And since they preferred live humans over mere traces, they'd come rushing out the moment they spotted him.
'At least no monsters around.'
If there were, they'd have come already.
That eased his biggest worry, but he couldn't relax fully. No guarantee monsters wouldn't show up later, and the beasts were no pushovers.
Yuseong entered the city cautiously. He headed for the tallest building nearby. Being on the outskirts, it wasn't that high.
Bang! Bang!
-Kaaak!
No need to conserve ammo—it was liberating. Even if a magazine ran dry, swapping was instant.
Above all, inside buildings, the radar was cheat-level. Fewer ambush worries meant laser focus on visible foes.
'The one downside: can't distinguish floors.'
Enemies above or below showed as flat on the radar, so reactions sometimes popped up right next to him, startling him.
Probably because the radar detected in a sphere centered on him.
Still, it was a godsend.
He swept the building's beasts in no time and reached the rooftop. To avoid eyes from other buildings, he crawled belly-down to the edge.
The city's panorama unfolded before him.
A small city by scale, but Yuseong—entering one for the first time—had no clue. Up close, the half-collapsed ruins pressed on him like the grudge of the dead.
But he had no time to be intimidated. Yuseong pulled out the map.
Even a small city was a city. Alone, with beasts everywhere, he couldn't leisurely poke around.
'The most promising spots nearby are...'
It was called "tech," but he had no idea what kind the quest wanted. Better if it'd specified like at the old factory.
No time for lamenting, though.
'This one, and this.'
He marked a big mart and the police station. But those were just pit stops en route to loot.
The real target lay beyond.
'The municipal library.'
The quest wasn't after cutting-edge tech. Wanting a laser scanner for the hologram proved it.
'Even busted holograms litter homes. No need for high-tech hunts.'
So, tech books in the library might satisfy it.
'No guarantees, but better than combing every building.'
Yuseong alternated between the cityscape and map. A rough route emerged.
'Let's go.'
He crawled back inside cautiously.
* * *
Thud!
A beast dropped. Yuseong dove behind a half-crumbled wall.
No blips on his radar—he sighed in relief.
As expected, the beasts around here were all the ones he'd cleared earlier. No encounters while walking the streets.
'Some inside buildings noticed and charged out, though...'
So he stuck to walls and cover, staying out of sight.
To dodge their keen noses, he even smeared beast blood on himself. Even picking the safest-looking, his skin stung from toxins.
Soon it'd seep in and wreck his body. Nano Machines would fix it instantly, but it'd shorten their lifespan. Why he'd avoided beast blood till now.
But now it was fine. Spare Nano Machines were gettable anytime, plus he had amazing potions.
Not long after.
'Here we are.'
First stop: the mart.
The biggest building he'd seen. Three stories—not super tall, but massively wide.
'That the entrance?'
A gaping hole where glass doors once stood led to a creepy interior. Gun raised, he advanced slowly.
'Lots inside.'
A building this size without beasts? In beast-magnet city? No way.
'More than the old factory, probably.'
Yuseong entered.
Rusted shelves and debris littered the place.
'So this is what it's like.'
He eyed the vast, wall-less interior with curiosity.
From pre-fall books and mags, the mart was top of his "must-visit" list.
Packed with food, daily goods, electronics—everything people needed.
For Yuseong, starved for all of it, a dreamland.
'If heaven exists, it'd be like that.'
He didn't believe in religion in this dead world, but if imagining paradise...
'A light!'
Red dot on radar. Enemy nearby, but not in sight. So...
'Ceiling!'
Could be from another floor in range, but check ceiling first.
Sure enough.
A beast crawling on the ceiling came into view.
He pulled the trigger.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
-Kieeeek!
Riddled in the head, it flailed and fell. No flight meant defenseless in midair. Yuseong kept firing.
-Kyaak!
Even as it thrashed mid-fall, shaking the target, he nailed the head.
Thud!
It hit the ground, and the red blip vanished. Dead.
'More coming?'
Ignoring the corpse, Yuseong scanned all around.
-Kraaat!
-Kyaaaak!
Others rushed in.
'Open sightlines are nice.'
He fired at them.
* * *
First floor had nothing special. Broken mannequins, torn clothes, shattered glass—trash to pre-fall folk, same to him.
He reached the stalled escalators. One down to basement, one up.
'Basement's food section.'
Faded sign on the pillar said so.
His food obsession had waned, but "food" still stirred him.
'Not likely intact, though.'
Long rotted away. Still, curiosity won. He was ransacking the whole mart anyway. Down he went.
Short version: wasted effort.
'Tch!'
As expected, no edible food left. Just beasts still hunkered down despite the upstairs noise.
'knew it.'
He soothed his bitter heart.
Leaving the basement, Yuseong hit the second floor. Nothing special there either. Mostly wrecked.
'Some intact stuff, though.'
He grabbed dishes, bags—useful bits.
'No tech-related gear, as expected.'
'Wish for better loot.'
With that, he climbed to the final third floor.