Chapter 178: A Mysterious Party?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 178: A Mysterious Party?
Women are truly fascinating.
Even on roads crawling with zombies and littered with corpses, where cars are tangled up and debris is scattered everywhere, making even taking a step a hazard—they wander the streets with their eyes set on one thing and one thing only: shopping.
"I want to raid the luxury goods section."
"Me too."
"Master. Can't we go to a department store?"
"..."
Kim Ji-hee didn't actively chime in, but she stood quietly by Lee Yu-ri's side, blinking her eyes in silent agreement.
To be honest, there weren't many things they absolutely needed in Paradise anymore.
Most survival-related supplies came through regular drops, and when it came to interior design—like for the warehouse—it was much better to just spend Coins inside the warehouse itself. It kept the aesthetic consistent and offered better functionality.
But even putting those practicalities aside, it seemed luxury items like clothes were something they couldn't give up, even in a world like this.
I suppose it was only possible because they had more breathing room in life than others.
Well, if they could find enjoyment in that, so be it. After all, a true veteran of the zombie apocalypse is someone who can casually raid Demonic Lairs.
It meant their fear of zombies was fading, and they no longer hesitated to go outside.
That wasn't a bad thing.
"Let's go. There's a department store nearby."
"Yahoo!"
"Really? Are you serious?"
Even though their Level 4 Backpacks were already stuffed to the brim with clothes, they cheered as if it still wasn't enough.
Honestly, it wasn't a difficult task.
At this point, if we got bored, there was absolutely no reason we couldn't farm anywhere within the Safe Base's vicinity.
Even if a Level 4 Dungeon existed—which was highly unlikely at this stage—I figured I could easily handle it as long as Kim Ji-hee and Lee Yu-ri didn't drag me down.
So, we shifted our farming route from Seolleung Station toward Samseong Station, heading in the direction of COEX.
Surprisingly, there weren't many factions in the Gangnam area.
Further down, around Suseo Station and below, there were a few small factions, but the Line 2 area up toward Samseong Station was practically wiped out.
Perhaps because it was a major business district with a high population density when the apocalypse hit, there were almost no humans left along this line—only swarms of zombies.
In my opinion, the biggest reason was that the location was terrible for establishing a base.
It was packed with towering skyscrapers, with no easily defensible spaces.
Zombies would pour in from all directions, making any potential base a sitting duck.
But that worked out perfectly for us.
It meant we wouldn't run into other people, allowing these two bubbly women to wander around in peace.
Today's goal was to raid the Hyundai Department Store at COEX near Samseong Station.
Of course, while letting Kim Ji-hee and Lee Yu-ri shop for luxury goods was part of the plan, my main reason for going there was the hope that a "Survivor Dungeon" might be waiting for us.
Untouched land, unconquered by humans.
There was a high probability of stronger zombies lurking there, which meant a higher chance of finding a challenging, high-difficulty dungeon.
"Whoa."
"Awesome."
The Hyundai Department Store was famous for its beautifully decorated entrance.
Although the colorful spring flower decorations had long since withered away, the remaining traces hinted that this place would be quite dangerous—and packed with loot.
I took the lead and stepped inside.
And my prediction was spot on.
[Survivor Dungeon Quest 1]
– On the day the zombie apocalypse broke out, a small group of survivors who had foreseen this disaster put their pre-established plan into action. Their plan was to secure a department store—stocked with all kinds of survival supplies—as their starting base to ensure their survival. Having prepared for a long time, they gathered like-minded individuals on the day of the outbreak, fully prepared, and occupied the department store. They sealed off all external access points, filled the warehouses to capacity the day before, and immediately moved perishable food into refrigerators and freezers.
The plan was perfect. It was flawless, but they failed to anticipate one thing: that some of the survivors they turned away would awaken abilities.
A small group of armed individuals threatened and tried to expel the majority, but some of those forced outside fought back. This minor variable ruined the entire plan, disrupting their goal of clearing the department store's interior and completely sealing it within an hour of the outbreak.
Ultimately, the department store was sealed. But it was because zombies, drawn to the abundance of prey, entered and accidentally triggered the lockdown mechanism.
Clear out the department store, which is filled with the traces and preparations of the survivors.
– Difficulty: ★★★
– Clear Condition: Defeat all survivor zombies inside the department store (★: 0 / 1,300) (2★: 0 / 333) (3★: 0 / 91) (4★: 0 / 5)
– Reward: 200,000 Coins, 11 Points, Normal Mode Level (★) Selection Ticket x40, Survivor-Exclusive Supply Box (3★) x50, Survivor-Exclusive Solar Generator Blueprint (3★)
"...Wow."
This was the first time I'd seen a quest description go into such painstaking detail about the backstory.
It felt like watching a cutscene, which was actually quite touching.
I really love this kind of lore.
Of course, I knew perfectly well that in reality, there was no way people had actually foreseen a zombie apocalypse, gathered like-minded folks, and prepared a massive department store as a base.
The only reason reality had turned into a zombie apocalypse was because I had somehow installed some mysterious multi-server.
But putting that contradiction aside, the Hyundai Department Store could be seen as a collection of romantic yet tragic stories.
Perhaps if they had built an underground bunker in a better location or lived with a very small group of people, they could have easily survived for years, maybe even over a decade.
But the survivors hadn't made that choice.
Instead of hiding, they had planned to use a perfect building right in the middle of the city as their bunker, fighting off zombies and holding their ground.
Though they ultimately failed.
Now, I just had to take it all.
I wondered how much they had prepared.
They probably hadn't even used their own money.
A massive conglomerate.
From food to fill the department store to clothing, furniture, and more.
They must have ordered far more than necessary and packed the place to the brim right on schedule.
Although it was crawling with zombies, a Survivor Dungeon was designed to yield massive amounts of supplies.
My mouth watered.
"Oppa, but the entrance is blocked."
"Step back."
Naturally, to keep the zombies out, the doors would have been completely reinforced with steel.
How thick was it?
Honestly, I had no idea.
I wasn't even sure if I could break through it.
I knew I was strong, but exerting superhuman strength like this was something I rarely had to do.
"Whew."
I clenched my fist and gave it a light tap.
Thud!
"Gasp."
"Oppa, are you okay?"
"This is doable."
The sensation that traveled back was more of a blunt impact from friction rather than actual pain.
It was absurd.
"Seriously, what the fuck? Is this a game? Oh, right, it's reality."
Bam!
This time, I threw a punch with all my might.
The difference between a casual tap and a full-force punch was night and day.
My Strength stat was currently close to 30.
Bam! Bam!
With every punch, the sturdy steel door dented bit by bit.
Of course, it didn't mean it didn't hurt at all.
The pain accumulated, and the soreness built up.
But that was the funny part.
A human was punching a thick steel door installed at a department store entrance with bare fists, and while the steel was denting, all the human felt was a slight ache.
Granted, if I kept this up, I might break the bones in my hand.
But it didn't matter.
The moment I started feeling real pain, I healed myself using "Mom's Hands Are Healing Hands."
This level of healing barely consumed any mana.
I went back to pounding on the door.
It was a tedious process.
At first, it was just minor dents, but after a certain point, the steel began to warp and curl inward under the relentless assault on a single spot.
I don't even know how I managed to keep doing that for over an hour.
The steel door was deeply dented only where I had struck it, and because of the warping, the bottom edge had curled upward, leaving a gap just barely wide enough to crawl through.
"Ah, fuck, this is so uncool."
"You worked hard, Oppa."
"Master, are you okay?"
I mean, after all that effort, shouldn't the steel door have shattered dramatically at the end, opening like an 'Open Sesame' moment?
It was so realistic that it annoyed me, yet I couldn't help but wonder if this was even realistic at all as I crawled along the floor.
"...Honey, do we really have to crawl in like this?"
"We waited for an hour, Unni."
I stopped the two of them as they tried to follow.
"You two stay back. It's dangerous in here."
"..."
"..."
I looked back at the two women staring at me with dumbfounded expressions through the narrow gap on the floor and asked,
"What's with those faces? Are you thinking, 'If it was going to be like this, we shouldn't have waited over an hour and just gone home'?"
Should I just drag them in and have them gang-raped by 1,700 zombies?
Of course, I couldn't do that.
[Current South Korea ★★★ Dungeon Fastest Record: 56 minutes 30.19 seconds]
"Go back and come back tomorrow. I'll clear everything out. Ji-hee, go back quickly. I'll turn on the stream, so get ready to sponsor me."
My own fastest record for a Level 3 Dungeon was definitely 58 minutes 41.10 seconds.
Even if I couldn't remember the exact milliseconds, I was sure of it.
Some cute bastards had broken my record.