31. Relocation
31. Relocation
The extractor was still there.
And it was completely full at 100.
However, the device had been detached.
'Did someone come by?'
I picked up the extractor.
The extractor with one flask still stuck in it.
The one I took before was Improve Stamina. Stamina enhancement.
Probably useless, though.
And this...
A 41.3 ability.
I pressed the red button to open the extractor.
ㅡKkudeudeudeuk
The Nexus Core came out naturally.
=========================
Innovation Nexus Corporation.
Checking Nexus Energy.
Compatibility: 41.3%
User Compatibility: 97.2%
Nexus Core: Improve Speed usable.
Nexus Core: Can be replaced with Improve Speed lv.1.
Would you like to replace it?
Y/N
=========================
'Speed Enhancement.'
This, who was it? I feel like I've seen something similar.
Right, it was the ability of Choi Seong-yun from Cheongju Elementary School, whom Lee Jin-woo mentioned and where Seong Eun-bin was.
I think this is it.
Was it a 40-something percent ability?
It was the ability of that guy who died so pointlessly after getting shot.
'......'
It's definitely a good ability; being faster means being better at running away.
And it secures attack power too.
Wasn't that massacre at Cheongju Elementary School also committed by a guy with this ability?
Of course, there were other people helping him.
'......'
It was originally a dangerous ability.
If I gave it to someone else, they could just rush at me and attack, and I'd have no choice but to die.
However, I had Seo-yoon.
Contract.
If I use the Contract every week, I can fully use the speed ability user however I want.
I carefully packed the flask.
It's thick, so it probably won't break easily, but it might if it takes an impact.
'Then...'
The question is whether to take this or not.
Since the Improve Stamina flask is gone and the guys who were here are all dead, they might just be leaving it here as bait.
Or there might be a GPS tracker attached to it.
'Am I overthinking this?'
But it's a possibility.
There are Infected. There are superpowers. With superpower extractors around, why wouldn't they be able to do GPS tracking?
'Though it doesn't seem like it.'
Still, just in case, I planned to stay here for about two days. The rotting smell is fucking awful, but just in case.
Also, I needed those guys to use this machine again.
'......'
However.
Sitting on a chair inside the Infectious Disease Department, closing the door, and taking naps while smelling the musty stench.
Until dawn on March 7th.
No one came.
The fact that no one came here even though it was full at 100 means they gave up on this extractor. Or maybe the personnel here are all gone.
Or maybe they thought no one touched it since it was still there.
Anyway, there must be some reason.
IN Company. Superpowers. Infection.
I am curious.
But aside from that curiosity, humans are lower on the priority list.
Unless I find the guys with guns first.
'...I think I could handle it once I reach level 4.'
From dust to bullets, from bullets to a hammer, then what's next after the hammer?
Abilities get hundreds of times stronger.
Superpowers are the priority.
===================================
Nexus Core: Metallokinesis lv3[31/100]
===================================
The ones currently identified are Siren and Crawler.
But Green Fresh Market is too dangerous.
No humans were seen nearby. And IN Company people are roaming around here.
It's time to go.
Time to move.
#
March 7th, night.
I left the extractor and came back with only the flask.
Because the machine felt suspicious.
I don't know how to use it, and I don't have a flask.
I need a different place for that.
Room 401.
I gathered everyone.
"...Is this that thing? The one you showed us before?"
"That's right."
"...What is it?"
Yun-ji, who was loitering nearby, also asked.
A-rin approached as if curious, and Eun-bin was watching while pretending not to.
I handed the flask to Yun-ji.
".....?"
She asked, narrowing her eyes.
"..Replacement?"
"Yeah. Don't do it, though. It turns into lv.1. More importantly, does anything pop up?"
"...Yes. Only 'Replace' pops up."
Then there are no side effects for now, I guess.
Still, it's not certain, so it's better not to use it.
'......'
They took turns holding it, their eyes widening.
I proceeded to explain.
IN Company and the extractor.
Superpowers.
And the story about the special forces and trucks there.
"......"
"......"
Silence flowed.
Well, I hadn't told them yet.
To be precise, I hadn't told anyone except Seo-yoon. Back then, things were awkward with the kids.
The women were a bit dazed.
"...So, IN Company spread this... and created... superpowers too."
"...Mom..."
Yun-ji said bitterly.
A-rin was looking for her mom.
"......"
Eun-bin's expression filled with rage.
"Then, is your goal to find those people, Yu-seong-ssi?"
"I don't know about that."
It's not my goal.
My goal is to survive here.
However.
"Eventually, we'll clash. If we keep growing our abilities and gathering people to survive."
"......"
We have no choice but to clash.
To level up superpowers, I have to find places with Infected.
And they will also find infection zones and set up extraction zones.
That's why.
We have to move.
"...Yes?"
Eun-bin asked.
"There's no place to level up superpowers near here. Even if there is, it's too far, especially the underground mall."
The underground mall is easy to move through.
It only has Mirrors, Runners, and Walkers.
That underground mall was far from Hope Villa. Right now, you have to pass GP Convenience Store -> IN Convenience Store -> Chicken place, etc., pass U-Gwang Apartment and the shopping district, go to Eunha High School, and then go up from there.
And in the first place, we have to leave.
Sejong and Seoul.
The 32nd Division troops and the Seoul Capital Defense Command.
We have to check what happened to the military too.
"I need to decide where to go."
Saying this, I turned on the computer.
"Find a decent place here. A place like your home is fine too. It's just a temporary place anyway. Find a suitable one."
"Ah..."
#
The place to move was quickly decided.
Since the goal is to go check the 32nd Division in Sejong Special Self-Governing City, we decided to move to a house near Cheongju Elementary School to the south.
A residential area visible on the satellite map.
I've seen it a few times while driving.
"..Th-there might be people there."
"If there are, we'll just go somewhere else. If they're assholes, we'll just push them out, and we have guns, don't we?"
"...Ah."
Especially since there's an Abomination in the north, where the City Hall and Cheongju Eunha University are, which I heard about from Kim Min-jun.
The note Sergeant wrote said it's a monster that's hard to kill even with tank shells. It's excluded from the start.
"Isn't it too rushed?"
Eun-bin asked.
I shook my head.
"No, this place is already a zone where those IN Company guys roam around in trucks."
"......"
"You said they've never roamed around the Cheongju Elementary School area. You said you've never seen them there."
"...Yes."
"Here, Seo-yoon saw them roaming. It means if they've come once, they can come anytime."
Actually, this was the biggest reason.
If they come when I'm not here and a gunfight breaks out, there's no answer.
Plus, this is a villa village on a downhill slope, so people can watch from everywhere when moving.
It's a miracle no one has come until now.
'No, they did come. Those Eunha-go guys and the man and woman from U-Gwang Apartment.'
So I had to move even more.
"Lastly, food is going to keep running out. We need to be self-sufficient, but there's no way to do that here. It's not like you're going to go out and get food, Eun-bin, are you?"
"...I can do it too."
"Yeah, you could do it once. And then you'd die."
"......"
"Well, that doesn't mean you're useless."
Eun-bin shuts her mouth.
Now no one was objecting.
"Good. Now get ready."
"Eh... are we going today?"
"Obviously."
Is there any need to stay here longer?
No.
"Yun-ji, you have to suffer a bit today."
"Yes."
"Seo-yoon, don't carry anything."
"Why?"
"Because you have to shoot the gun. Just wear a backpack."
I don't care if it's heavy, but Seo-yoon is different.
Plus, she's a woman with weak physical strength.
"Then I'll go check it out. Get ready."
#
Came to the residential area.
Empty-handed.
A reasonably decent residential area.
It's not a wealthy residential area, but it has everything it needs.
However, there didn't seem to be any people.
'Is there a decent place?'
I saw a decent house on a secluded hill.
I picked the lock and went inside to check.
'Nobody here.'
No people. Dust is piled up.
The wall is high, and there's a yard. Traffic is complicated, but it's a good place.
I do need to check other places, though.
'I'll do it later. This place will do.'
I returned quickly.
#
We finished preparing and came out.
March 8th, dawn.
Today's goal is the house in the south.
"Let's go."
"......"
"......"
Eun-bin flinches occasionally. The wobbling of the Infected evokes a sense of bizarreness.
A-rin isn't to that extent.
Seo-yoon and Yun-ji seemed to have no reaction at all.
Because they have the memory of breaking through the Green Fresh Market together.
However, Yun-ji kept groaning as if the luggage was heavy.
Passed through Eunha High School.
Passed through the underground mall.
ㅡPpugak
Mirrors dying.
'......'
I can't keep moving like this forever.
This time it was a special situation, so we could move like this, but if we go to the city center or Seoul, it's impossible.
And in fact, it's dangerous even now.
I'm anxious.
"Kyaaaaak!"
Eventually, a problem occurred.
Coming out of the underground mall, the alleyway of Imedi Apartment heading toward Cheongju Elementary School.
A-rin was ambushed by a Runner that suddenly popped out from a blind spot on the side.
I thought she could handle it since we caught 100 Walkers and Runners, but that was a miscalculation.
"Aack! Go away! Go away!"
That was because I neutralized them and caught them.
It's a different case from Seo-yoon and Yun-ji who went to Green Fresh Market together.
"Kieeeeek!"
ㅡPpeogeok
The hammer flies and kills the Runner.
"Augh. Aaaack. Keugeu."
A-rin's arm with the shoulder part torn off. I quickly called Eun-bin.
Eun-bin runs over quickly and uses her ability.
The wound heals quickly.
However, because of the sound and scream just now, Runners and Walkers nearby naturally flock here.
But it's still okay for now.
"A-rin. Get up quickly."
"...Yes... ugh... yes..!"
If only another scream hadn't echoed from the side.
"Aack!"
"What is it!"
The moment I was about to help A-rin up, a Walker hiding under a vehicle ambushed Seong Eun-bin.
The head of the guy crawling next to the vehicle flew off. Of course, its hand scratched Seong Eun-bin's leg.
It's weak, but blood splatters.
"!!!!!"
Eun-bin's pretty face twisted in pain.
ㅡPpugak
Eun-bin falling to the side and holding her leg.
She's not in her right mind.
"Ah..."
"Get a grip and use your ability quickly!"
ㅡJjaak
"Ugh... ugh..."
Seong Eun-bin, with her cheek turned, snaps out of her panic.
Because if we act like idiots here, we'll all die.
ㅡUung
It heals.
There's no problem where she was scratched.
Because it's the ability that even healed my internal organs.
"Kieeeeek!"
Runners are flocking. Walkers are also following behind them.
I made a decision.
"Seo-yoon! Shoot them!"
ㅡDeureureureuk
The submachine gun mowed down the Infected.
#
Came outside to Imedi Apartment. From here to the back.
"Be careful not to attract them to the intersection."
"...Yes."
"Yun-ji. Are you okay?"
"Still okay."
"Eun-bin, A-rin, any injuries?"
"...I'm... okay."
"I, I am too."
"Um..."
"Why."
"...I'm sorry."
"Forget it."
"I, I too...!"
"I said forget it."
It's already in the past.
And as long as we're alive, that's enough.
Besides, they weren't counted as combat personnel in the first place, and it was an ambush.
If they had stupidly not used healing there, that would be one thing.
A few hours like that.
We arrived somehow.
There were fewer Infected in the residential area, so we could come up quickly.
The place I had scouted.
'......'
I sighed.
Certainly, it's hard to move while taking care of many people.
Can't respond to ambushes immediately either.
Seo-yoon said, exhaling.
"...Is this it?"
"Yeah. Clean up inside. I'll go check the surrounding houses."
If you go out a little, you can see Cheongju Elementary School and the 4-lane and 8-lane roads.
If you go south from here, you enter the countryside.
'...It's comfortable to stay in.'
The problem is the houses next door, though....
ㅡKkiiiiik
There was no one in the houses on either side either.
Ah, there was someone. One Infected that looked like a dead man, and corpses that looked like a dead middle-aged woman and her daughter.
'......'
Since it broke out at 4 o'clock, after all.
Unless they were people resting on a weekday like that, everyone else would have been outside.
It was the same reason why there aren't many middle-aged people in apartments. Unless they're unemployed or students, most go out to work.
I checked the houses next door and returned.
ㅡKkiiik
ㅡUdangtang.
ㅡDeolkeong
The women sweeping, wiping, and organizing the inside of the house.
I looked at the scenery outside from the yard.
Dark dawn.
The sky is the same, but the ground is hell. Human corpses. Infected corpses. Broken vehicles are visible occasionally.
The move was easy.
However, this is just coming up the path I spent time honing. From Hope Villa to Cheongju Elementary School. Because it's a place I've been to constantly.
Even the places where I came down to the dangerous residential area can be easily killed with my ability.
'......'
Now I have to prepare to leave here.
Metal manipulation, Contract, Healing, Taming, Arm Enhancement.
Five abilities.
"I need people for food, but if the number of people increases, food runs out."
Deadlock.
There is food for a few months, but this is actually insufficient too.
Water... I don't know when it will be cut off either.
There's too much to do, but my abilities can't keep up.
"Oppa! Are you back?"
As I was doing that, Seo-yoon comes running over.
"Yeah. Why? Are you done cleaning?"
"No. Um, I think you need to come inside."
Did someone come?
But that wasn't it.
"Um, I can see an SOS sign hanging on the other side."
"...SOS?"
"Yes. I wasn't sure earlier, but I can see it now that it's bright. You can see it if you go to the balcony on the other side, not here. SOS in black on that blanket..."
"Where is it?"
"Um, it's the Cultural Center."
Cultural Center.
A building in the southeast of Cheongju that I don't know what it does.
I would have had to go there to know.
It's a building that might have people. It's isolated, easy to defend, traffic is convenient, and it's a building that probably didn't have many people at the time of the outbreak.
However, Seo-yoon's words didn't stop.
"And..."
"And?"
What else is there?
"There's also GP Apartment, but the apartment is a bit strange."
Strange?
"Um, the whole apartment is covered in black, but it's hard to see now because it's dark. But the GP Apartment I knew was white, so it should have looked white even at night."
"Let's go check it out first."
"Ah, yes."
I got up from my seat and headed to the place she told me about.