Chapter 96
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: Yeouido's Paradise
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Today's goal was to check out the place called Paradise in Yeouido, so I sprinted forward, ignoring the zombies to a certain extent.
I'd spent some time midway gathering info related to the dungeon, so I pushed as hard as I could.
The sooner I figured it out, the better.
After running and running, the Han River came into view, and I finally reached the vicinity of Yeouido.
"Let's see just what makes this place worthy of being called Paradise."
From a distance, I surveyed the scene. Around Yeouido, I could see a bunch of people diligently hunting zombies.
It wasn't haphazard slaughter—they were back-to-back, methodically taking them down one by one without leaving any blind spots. Impressive.
They had guns, but most were handling the zombies in close quarters. Guns might be the easiest way, but with ammo being a limited resource, maybe that's why. Still, I wasn't sure of the exact reason.
They spread out systematically, sweeping the zombies aside.
They weren't in military uniforms, but the clear chain of command gave off strong soldier vibes.
This place must have had ex-military folks before the zombie apocalypse hit.
Once they'd judged the surrounding zombies cleared, the hunters all gathered in one spot.
Just the group now numbered over fifty—way more than I'd expected.
If this many are out here hunting zombies, does that mean even more people are inside Yeouido proper?
Looking closer, several of the paths leading into Yeouido had collapsed, blocking access.
It sure felt like they'd deliberately demolished them to keep outside zombies from getting in.
On the connected bridges, I spotted what looked like guards, saluting the returning hunting party.
Guess it's safe to say soldiers are the ones out here hunting zombies.
There are probably more inside Yeouido itself.
Zombies spawn out of thin air in zombie-free zones, so they must be generating inside too.
That means besides these folks, there's an organized group clearing zombies deeper in.
Or maybe they'd already finished inside and come out to handle the outskirts.
Either way, for powerless survivors holed up inside, having soldiers step up to eliminate zombies would feel like protection from danger. Easy to see why they'd call it Paradise.
But escaping zombie threats doesn't solve food, clothing, or shelter.
With this many visible already, and more inside? I was dying to know how they kept this place running.
To check out daily life inside, I activated Shadow Veil, slipped into the shadows, and crossed the bridge connecting to Yeouido.
Then I spotted someone approaching the guards and paused.
Curious, I watched closely. It looked like they were bringing something to hand over to the guard.
"Hey, here's your lunch for today."
"Thanks. Everything cleared inside?"
"Inside? Yeah, finished up this morning."
Just as I thought—there's a separate organization clearing zombies within Yeouido.
But was that "lunch" they handed over just a shriveled scrap of bread? Nah, couldn't be.
The receiver's sour expression proved I wasn't seeing things wrong.
"Haa... How long do we have to eat crap like this? Doesn't even taste like anything."
"No choice. This is all that trickles down to us grunts."
"Fuckin' hell. I hear the top brass are hogging all the good eats, while I'm choking down this shit. Makes my blood boil."
The man tore into the stale-looking bread, venting his frustrations.
"But what can we do? We're safe here thanks to the mayor turning this into Paradise, right?"
"Yeah, I get that. But how long can we live off garbage like this? And after the zombie wave? If power and water cut out, we're screwed."
"It's held up fine so far, but yeah, losing it would be bad... The mayor'll figure something out, won't he?"
"You're way too optimistic. I doubt even his abilities can stretch to that. He's duplicated food and weapons so far, but electricity? No way."
Listening quietly, I caught something intriguing.
The one who'd made Yeouido into "Paradise" was someone called the mayor, and one of his abilities let him duplicate food and weapons. What the hell was that?
I considered roughing these guys up for more intel but decided against it.
Messing with them would tip off whoever runs this place about an intruder.
Even if I extracted info and silenced them permanently, a sudden disappearance would put them on high alert for outsiders.
No need to stir trouble—I could slip inside undetected with Shadow Veil anyway.
I wanted more from their chat, but it just looped back to the same gripes or daily chit-chat. No point sticking around, so I headed deeper into Yeouido.
To get the lay of the land, I climbed a tall building, dropped Shadow Veil, and looked down.
Maintaining it burns Demonic Energy, so long-term use was a waste.
If I could keep getting a steady supply, it'd be perfect.
Hope Seo Yoon can gather it even without me around soon.
Actually, I'd love to train more people besides her to handle Demonic Energy, but who else in this world can even sense it...
That's for later. Right now, focus on uncovering this so-called Paradise.
Inside Yeouido, the first thing that caught my eye was a long line of people queued up.
Curious what for, I moved to a nearby building and peered down. They were all receiving rations.
Whoever runs this place seems to distribute food regularly.
But the handouts looked even worse than that guard's bread scrap.
And the people's conditions? Not great.
Barely clinging to life, you could say.
Some gaunt faces trembled as they shakily accepted their portions.
Calling it Paradise and drawing people in, yet the residents don't look paradise-bound. Weird.
More like they're content just surviving one more day, hand-to-mouth.
And the mayor of this Paradise, keeping all these folks around? Even stranger.
Handing out bread scraps for free during rations— these ragtag survivors don't seem useful. Why keep them?
This looks like straight-up food waste.
To solve that riddle, I need to check out the mayor himself.
Plus, see if Joo Hye-ri's here.
Moving carefully to avoid detection, I scanned Yeouido and spotted a place that screamed "important resident."
That... the National Assembly building, right?
Heavily armed folks patrolling screamed high-value target inside.
Time to head in?
Shadow Veil once more, and I slipped into the building undetected.
Not sure where to go inside, I poked around until voices drew me toward them.
There, a group in a meeting.
These guys are clearly running the show—one look told me that.
Worlds apart from the ration-line rabble.
Man at the head table looked like the mayor. Next to him, someone in uniform—probably signaling "I'm military."
Opposite the soldier sat a suit-wearing guy with a sleazy face, and behind him, a slender, sharp-featured man.
"So, what's the plan now? Can you extend your ability to electricity production, Mr. Mayor?"
"Doubt it. My Double skill only duplicates physical objects—nothing formless like electricity."
"Too bad. Then we'll need to scrounge up a generator that can produce power."
Double?
He called it his skill—sounds like it duplicates tangible items.
That's one hell of a skill.
Don't know the details, but doubling objects outright? Massive potential.
How'd this mayor snag something that OP?
"And how many more people are you planning to take in? Luring them with 'Paradise' has its limits."
"You know my Politics trait gets stronger the more people in my domain. So we need to pack in as many heads as possible."
What the—?
This place is full of juicy info.