Chapter 84: Seoul Forest Land Prices
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 84: Seoul Forest Land Prices
Actually, the new base didn't necessarily have to be near Seongsu Station.
Since a Safe Base's radius is determined based on the location I designate.
I could choose Namsan, or I could go to Gangnam and set up camp there.
But I decided to just look nearby.
There was no particular reason.
It was simply because there was plenty of good terrain nearby to use as a base.
Plus, I was familiar with the area I'd been living in.
I had already paved the way around Seongsu Station, so there was no need to go to a completely new area, recruit new Membership members, and start all over again.
After looking around at the potential spots, I took a liking to Seoul Forest.
"The land is spacious. There are roads. And it faces the river on two sides."
There are many ways to choose a base in a zombie apocalypse.
Well, one of the most basic factors is that you have to actually like the place.
After all, it's the house you're going to live in.
But personal preferences aside, it's generally best for a base to be close to essential living facilities.
In a zombie apocalypse, the most representative of these is a gas station where you can refuel.
Of course, even that becomes useless if the gas station runs out of fuel, meaning you'll eventually have to siphon gas from other stations or use them instead. Still, when first establishing a base, you travel by car a lot, so having a gas station nearby is a must.
It's also good to be reasonably close to the city center.
Setting up a base right in the middle of downtown isn't actually a great choice. Since zombies constantly pop out of nowhere as you go about your daily life, the outskirts or less populated areas are often better.
In that sense, areas near lakes...
...or rivers were surprisingly popular choices for bases.
You don't need to block off all sides, because zombies won't appear from the direction facing the water.
If the water is just a shallow stream, zombies might cross it, but if it's as deep as a lake, they won't swim across.
That's how much of a geographical advantage a river provides when building a base.
Another great thing about Seoul Forest is that it's easy to build on.
There are a few buildings inside, but those can either be demolished or just repurposed. The empty spaces are laid out like a forest, so I can build directly there.
Also, the path running through the middle of Seoul Forest is wide, making it convenient to place cars or various other things when setting up "transportation facilities."
After all, my previous studio apartment building had narrow access roads and was surrounded by other buildings, which made it crowded when a lot of people came to buy food.
Here, I can completely separate the living space from the food-selling area, so noise won't be an issue.
"Hmm. Nice."
There were barely any zombies in sight, and I could cross the Seongsu Bridge to get straight to Gangnam.
The more I looked at it, the more I liked it.
"I'll make this the spot."
I couldn't move in right away, though.
First, it was important to build the house I would live in.
Using that as the starting point, I planned to divide the area into a living space, a commercial space, and separate spaces for residents and rentals.
I had already decided where to build my house.
There was a spot that had been recommended to me, right next to the famous Seoul Forest Trimage apartment complex.
I planned to build it on a spacious plot of land across from the Seoul Forest parking lot.
It was moderately close to the entrance yet reasonably tucked away, featured a massive parking lot, and was adjacent to the road for an easy exit.
It had a direct view of the Han River, and SM Town was right across the way.
Not that it was a particularly important place anymore.
But the location was perfect, so I chose it.
I did briefly consider moving into the expensive Trimage apartments.
When else would I ever get to live in a high-rise apartment with a view of the Han River?
Since there was a Maintenance/Repair System, the elevators wouldn't be an issue either.
But apartments weren't my style.
First of all, the time it takes to go up and down is a waste. If I ever needed to rush out immediately and couldn't wait for the elevator, I'd have to run down the stairs... and it's not like I could just jump from a high floor.
Above all, if a fire broke out, I'd be completely fucked.
It would also be awkward for me to use an entire high-rise apartment building all by myself.
So, a house was better.
A house, but like a massive palace.
Would it be possible to have a system where everything could be taken care of inside?
As I plugged in various conditions, the simulated house turned out to be quite massive.
It was about three stories high.
It even had a small elevator installed inside, and a movie theater in the basement.
"Let's save this for now."
I should think about whether I need anything else before making a final decision.
And I planned to build a barricade of high walls around the perimeter of Seoul Forest.
The unit cost is a bit high, but if I build it properly once, it'll be sturdy and last a long time.
Once I completely enclose Seoul Forest like that, the inside will truly become a space perfectly safe from zombies, at the very least.
"I'll set up the warehouses here."
There was no need to keep my house and the food warehouses close together.
Since the supply location could be set anywhere within the Safe Base, I could just configure it so that the food supplies arrived directly at the warehouses.
Then Kim Ji-hee could just commute there.
Still, there was no need to make it too far, so I figured I could line up the warehouses at a reasonable distance and use the park across the way for the food shop and restaurant.
Instead of building new structures, I could just repurpose the existing convenience store and restaurant buildings in Seoul Forest for the food shop and restaurant.
"I can use Trimage for the residents, and then build or repurpose rental buildings to the right of it."
I should probably keep the inner residential space empty, reserved only for me and my women, while allowing only Membership members to enter the commercial space.
And it seemed better to push the rental spaces for residents or Membership members toward the outer edges of Seoul Forest.
It's going to cost a lot of Coins...
But since the number of Membership members is growing day by day, I trust it won't be a major issue.
As I explored a bit deeper into Seoul Forest, I spotted signs of a faction at a massive building labeled "Seongsu Culture and Arts Plaza."
"What? People live here too?"
Well, even though I'd lived in Seongsu-dong, I never wandered around, so I hadn't even known this building existed.
Setting aside the fact that I rarely went outside in the first place, I had absolutely no reason to visit a park like Seoul Forest.
I absolutely loathe crowded places.
Aside from the fact that I hadn't known about it, the location didn't seem bad.
Even though Seoul Forest usually had high foot traffic, once it was cleared out, there would be no real merit for others to come here. Thus, it wouldn't attract much attention, and since it was right by the river, the area needing defense was small.
The building itself was large, but it wasn't a place where crowds would gather, so making it a base wouldn't have been difficult. Looking at it, there seemed to be a theater inside, meaning any noise from their living space wouldn't leak outside.
What kind of people lived gathered here?
I approached out of pure curiosity.
I swear I had no impure intentions.
I could at least go and say hello to a faction that might become my neighbor, right?
Of course, I did briefly think that it would be nice to extend the barricade all the way here to form a perfect square.
"Who goes there!"
Why is it that the guys guarding bases always say the exact same thing?
I was sick of hearing it.
I raised both hands and answered their question.
"I'm a neighbor who's moving in soon. I figured people lived here, so I came to say hello. What kind of people live here?"
"...Stop right there. Don't come any closer!"
Another guy stepped forward to block my path.
I obediently stopped.
I couldn't help but feel how harsh the world had become.
I didn't look threatening at all on the surface, so was there really a need to be so on guard?
Of course, it was a very wise response, but I couldn't help but feel a little hurt.
"What's going on?"
"He says he came to say hello because he's moving in here."
"Is he crazy? Where is there to move in around here? Besides, this is our land."
"Ah, I'm moving inside Seoul Forest."
"Crazy bastard."
The other guy seemed to be quite radical.
"This is our land, so if you want to move in, you'd better pay for the land first."
"Oh, really?"
There really are all kinds of people in the world.
I mean, even when a stranger wanders around alone without any weapons and fearlessly approaches a faction's base to say hello, there are still guys who have the guts to say things like that.
From my perspective, I was incredibly grateful.
If they got scared and told me not to come...
...or just blindly drove me away...
...then there was no way any interesting events could happen.
"How much is it?"
"Do you have a lot of Coins?"
"Well, I have enough to buy a bit of land that's nothing but grass, don't I?"
"What a funny guy. Come on in."
"Hey!"
"It's fine. Let's bring him in. He's an interesting fellow."
I walked through the door as it was willingly opened for me.
Inside, there were people of all ages and genders.
A diverse group of people was living there.
Various wary gazes fell upon me.
Along with eyes full of curiosity.
They didn't seem like a particularly bad faction.
Though, in this world, is there really any "good" faction other than my own?
At least, they didn't seem like the type to kidnap people to expand their numbers.
Well, there are plenty of factions like this.
They band together because they have to survive, earning Coins by killing zombies and focusing on farming.
Not that you can necessarily call these kinds of factions "good," though.
"You came to buy land? Our Seoul Forest?"
It could just be that they seemed nice...
...simply because they lacked courage and strength.
"How many Coins do you have?"
"How much are you selling it for?"
"Haha, well now."
A robust old man with streaks of white hair, transitioning from middle age to his senior years, led the conversation with an easygoing air.
"How much of Seoul Forest do you want?"
"Well, everything except this place. Though it'd be nice if you included this place too."
"Hahaha. This place is being used by our theater troupe, so that's a no. But if you only want to purchase the forest area..."
He subtly sized me up.
Was he trying to gauge how many Coins I could offer?
"Would about... 5,000 be enough? Hahaha."
"5,000 Coins?"
"That should be plenty."
"What about this building?"
"If we're putting a price on it... about 2,000 Coins?"
Instead of answering, I asked a question.
"But who are you, Grandpa? Are you the landowner?"
The old man was slightly taken aback, but he nodded.
"Since I am the leader of this faction, you could say I am now the owner of Seoul Forest."
"Perfect."
"Do you have the Coins? If you're short..."
The world of a zombie apocalypse is truly convenient.
It's not a world where deeds with the owner's name exist for every piece of land.
As long as there isn't some bastard claiming it's theirs, it becomes ownerless land, right?
I slit the old man's throat.
The action was so natural that the onlookers froze solid.
"Since Grandpa gave me the land and left, it's my land now, right? What about you guys? Are you going to stay here? He said the land price here is 2,000 Coins."
It really is a convenient world.