Chapter 151

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Translator: Ace

Chapter: 151

Chapter Title: Let's Settle the Accounts

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Then, shall we do some settling up?

I'd come to Jamsil Gymnasium after hearing what Ha Dong-seok had to say, and it felt like I'd made a pretty good haul.

Thanks to wiping out the zombies in Jamsil Gymnasium with black magic, it had been a while since I'd leveled up.

Just like in a game, the higher my level got, the more experience points it demanded.

There probably wasn't anyone at a higher level than me.

Reaching this level had only been possible because, unlike others who fled from zombie hordes during the Zombie Wave, I'd actively hunted them down in bulk.

For most Awakeners, breaking level 10 was considered doing well.

While focusing on survival—securing food and safe spots—they couldn't just roam around killing zombies, which made it even tougher.

In that light, the guys under me were truly blessed.

They could focus solely on hunting zombies.

I provided their meals, safe housing without zombie threats, and even coin incentives for hard work.

I was pretty much doing everything for them.

And now I noticed how my skill count had exploded.

Compared to when I first saw my status window, it had multiplied several times over.

Before long, just listing my skills might take dozens of lines.

Checking the status window alone would become a time sink.

Shouldn't they patch something like this?

Then again, at this point, having such a diverse skill set was the weird part.

If the system manager had any sense, they'd organize the skills in the status window automatically.

They'd handled patches well so far.

When electricity and water cut off, making survival hard for Awakeners, they added generators and small purifiers to the shop—self-balancing the game.

Especially patching it so killing zombies with black magic counted officially sealed the deal.

If they hadn't, I might've done something drastic, something the manager would hate for sure.

Skills aside, it was time to allocate some stats.

What I needed most was Luck, hands down.

I had to max it out somehow.

The description said it represented an Awakener's fortune, so maybe higher Luck boosted Skill Theft success rates, like earlier.

It couldn't just be for better coin drops from zombies.

Why else include Luck alongside success-probability skills?

It had to mean boosting those odds.

Hold on—if the bracelet's +2 Luck hadn't been active, I might've failed more during that Skill Theft session?

The thought alone was horrifying.

I didn't want to pour endless coins into something with no guaranteed success.

Better to reinforce Skill Theft with those coins for higher odds.

I really needed to raise Luck faster.

I needed stat-boosting items in my hands.

"Haa, coins are pretty much the same? Spent everything I earned today."

Sweeping the zombie horde at Jamsil Gymnasium netted coins, but stealing Blink and Mana Sharing ate them all up—back to square one.

It was fine thinking of it as buying skills, but I couldn't shake the regret that I might've gotten them cheaper.

"Tch, nothing for it. Time to head back? At least I got some harvest."

While I wandered outside, Sohee and Ha Dong-seok hunted nearby zombies for coins on their own, making this possible.

Still, I didn't rush back.

It'd been a while since I'd come to Jamsil, and hurrying wouldn't change much.

I'd leisurely scout around, check out anything fun.

Hopping buildings slowly, a scream echoed nearby.

"Uwaaak!"

Wondering what was up, I dashed toward the noise and spotted several people surrounded by a zombie horde.

"Hey, hold the line! Block 'em good! Don't let 'em get close!"

"Can't you see I'm doing that?! Uwaaaak! Fuck, stay back!"

"If they break through here, we're done! Seal it tight—no zombies getting in!"

They were holding the building entrance, using metal sheets as shields to push back zombies.

Seeing their desperate stand hit home—this was the real zombie apocalypse vibe.

Constant life-or-death struggles with zombies.

Risking it all to protect loved ones behind them.

Humanity and love blooming in crisis.

Yeah, classic zombie apocalypse stuff...

Compared to that, I'd been mowing down zombies solo from day one, so I'd never felt it.

Actually, racking my brain, had I ever even struggled?

"Just hold on a bit longer! Once we grab the stuff from behind, we bolt!"

"Fuck... hurry it up. I can't hold much longer!"

The horde was about 30-40 zombies.

Easy sweep for me, but since they were just holding without fighting, no proper Combat Specialists among them.

Surprisingly ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠holding without one?

If just holing up, it wasn't impossible.

"U, uwaaa! Mutant zombie! That fucker's coming this way!"

Then chaos from a distance—a Smasher lumbering over, drawing aggro.

They were struggling against regulars; a mutant was pure disaster.

They panicked visibly but couldn't flee without endangering those behind.

Watching was fun, but leaving free coins? Nah.

I pulled the Reaper Blade from my Subspace, leaped down, landed slicing a zombie in half.

"Huh?"

A surprised voice rang out at my sudden entrance, but I ignored it, carving through the surrounding zombies.

"Whoa... incredible."

While the men blocked the entrance against the zombie assault, Park Eunju—who'd been packing goods inside for escape—stared blankly at the sudden newcomer.

She didn't know where he'd come from, but he halved zombies with his blade, then charged a horde of 30-40.

To her, it looked insane.

Zombies had been tough even for men; they'd fled and dodged them.

But this guy showed no fear—in fact, he was grinning.

Unbelievably, he moved inhumanly, massacring them.

Every swing felled one or two at least; the entrance guards felt pointless as it cleared in seconds.

Even the movie-monster-like Smasher? He closed in casually, dodged attacks, and beheaded it swiftly.

She'd thought they were goners moments ago; now, watching him handle it effortlessly, her jaw dropped.

The entrance men were the same.

"Aww, zilch. Can't even drop something decent."

Done with the zombies, he scowled, dissatisfied.

From their view, he'd earned coins killing them—what complaint?

He turned to the men, sighed deeply.

"Feels wrong fleecing you down to your liver. Handle your own shit-storm~"

With that, he turned to leave.

Seeing it, Park Eunju bolted out.

"W-Wait!"

He paused at the voice calling him, turned.

"Please wait! Um, would you maybe protect us?"

Park Eunju pleaded desperately, clinging to his arm.

She pressed her chest against him seductively, loosening her clothes to bare skin, hoping it'd sway him.

Confident in her looks, she figured he'd bite—the entrance guys had guarded her for that reason.

"... What's your Charm stat?"

"Huh? My Charm stat?"

His unexpected reply threw her; she answered flustered.

"Yeah, the Charm in your status window. Looks around 4."

"Uh, y-yeah... it's 4... why?"

Charm 5 was celebrity-level beauty; 4 should've sufficed, but he laughed like it was ridiculous.

"Saying that with Charm 4? You're fucking ugly."

Park Eunju gaped as he—Kim Jaehwan—chuckled incredulously, recalling Han Yejin ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠with her Charm 6 in his mind.