Chapter 11
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Queen
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'Is someone there?'
I shook my head, standing there in a daze.
This was the voice of the AI computer, Queen. She must still be managing the test subjects on orders to do so.
I looked around. One of the test subjects was staring at me with eyes wide open. A zombie with bizarre tentacles sprouting from its head. A chimera of a worm brain and a human, perhaps.
Then it opened its mouth, flapping it silently. As I tried to read its lips, it suddenly pounded on the tank with its fist. Thud. I could've sworn I saw a crack form in the tank.
But just like the zombie from before, it was injected with white fluid. The test subject thrashed in resistance, but it couldn't overcome the drug and closed its eyes.
I hurried out of this creepy room and headed for the control room. On the way, I spotted a zombie half-stuck in a vent.
I recognized that zombie's face. It was Dr. Mukuri, the head of this secret lab. He gnashed his teeth at the sight of me.
Like he wanted to devour me right then and there. Even though he was just an NPC I'd seen in the game, I felt a pang of pity for him.
In the game's lore, Dr. Mukuri was a rival to Dr. Elena—the one I'd met in the tutorial—who had created Team Apocalypse.
If Dr. Elena believed 'Team Apocalypse' was the answer, Dr. Mukuri thought 'zombie weaponization' was the key. Put leashes on zombies and have them take out other zombies.
It was the most ideal solution, in theory. Of course, his plan failed. Releasing those zombies I saw earlier didn't mean they'd cooperate with us.
And so, the creator who made the creatures ended up in a worse state than his own creations. I raised my Screw Gun and pulled the trigger at his head. One shot, two shots.
「Job experience points increased. (1-person party bonus +150%)」
「Obtained Sci-Fi Notebook x1.」
A Sci-Fi Notebook dropped from Dr. Mukuri's body. Just like the one I'd gotten from Evergreen High School, it was a blueprint for crafting rare items.
Well, I couldn't use it right now without learning the 'Blueprint Synthesis' skill, but that didn't matter since I'd hit level 15 soon anyway.
With a pounding heart, I opened the Sci-Fi Notebook. My expression turned strange.
'This is...'
I'd hoped for something related to his research, but instead, it was a solar power generator. The Sirius 2, a high-capacity, high-efficiency solar generator.
Something that could only be made through the Sci-Fi Notebook, incomparable to ordinary solar generators—it was true high technology.
'Should I make it?'
Humanity's electricity supply was dwindling, and we needed ways to expand it. Shelter A relied on solar generators, but they'd deplete quickly.
If I made this Sirius 2 and mounted it on the rooftop of the large mart, I could power the entire place. That would make turning the whole mart into a shelter even easier.
I pocketed the Sci-Fi Notebook. I couldn't make it now anyway, so I'd do it once I got back to safety.
I reached the electrical control room without issue. The computer there was on, with a hologram of a young East Asian woman floating in front of it. Queen.
「Unidentified intruder detected. I advise you to state your identity.」
After some thought, I pulled out my ID card—the one I'd gotten from the lab. Queen approached me. She alternated between looking at the ID and my face, then muttered.
「80.8% facial mismatch. The intruder is biologically different from Level 3 researcher Alabama Harley listed on the ID. I advise again. What is the intruder's identity?」
"My identity is..."
Static crackled, fizzled.
Queen's hologram flickered. The next moment, she stared at me with an expressionless gaze.
「I will rephrase the question. Is Dr. Mukuri and the other researchers dead?」
I nodded. I wasn't sure about the others, but Dr. Mukuri was definitely dead.
「Judging the unidentified intruder as the sole survivor. Question to the sole survivor: What is the state of the outside world?」
"Destroyed by zombies. Only a handful of survivors remain."
「Is Dr. Mukuri's project unnecessary?」
"Yeah."
If the research had progressed further, who knows, but at this point, it was a failure. As I nodded, Queen spoke with her still-expressionless face.
「I will dispose of the 337 test subjects. This decision accounts for the fact that Queen's main power source has only 3.2% remaining...」
「Disposal complete.」
"Queen, what will you do now?"
「Irrelevant question. Queen has lost her purpose. ...Even if a new purpose arises, 3.2% power makes action impossible.」
I placed my hand on Queen's main body, which was dozens of times larger than a regular PC tower. Queen watched me calmly all the while.
I used Metal Decomposition. Fizzle. Queen's hologram vanished.
「Used Metal Decomposition (Lv.1) to decompose the main system, Queen.」
「Metal Decomposition level too low for complete decomposition.」
A notebook-sized module blinked brightly in my hand. Queen's AI module. With this, in theory, I could recreate Queen if I had the facilities.
Of course, setting up those facilities wouldn't be easy, so it might end up in a Sentry Gun instead.
'No, is setting up facilities really that hard?'
Queen required massive power. But I'd acquired the Sirius 2 blueprint from the Sci-Fi Notebook. Making Sirius 2 meant I could supply that power to some extent.
I pocketed the AI module. I'd just try making her once. While gathering other computer parts, I headed back to where the test subjects were.
The test subjects floated there, seemingly dead. After eyeing them for a moment, I left the secret lab.
...Truth be told, though, escaping the secret lab was no easy task.
I'd lured the zombies outside, but they were still wandering nearby, and the pain from the wound inflicted by Martin the zombie had worsened.
Still, I managed to escape somehow. Panting heavily, I hopped on my motorcycle. Zombies were climbing up toward the lab entrance behind me.
Tough bastards.
But come and get me if you can. I revved the motorcycle pedal. And just like that, I escaped the lab leisurely. Never coming back.
Never showing my face here again.
Serial killer Jo Jae-hwan. About five years ago, he brutally murdered dozens of his high school classmates.
Deeming his crimes heinous, the judge sentenced him to death under general law, not juvenile law. As a death row inmate, he was shuffled between prisons multiple times.
His final destination was this secret lab. Instead of execution, he became a test subject and endured horrific experiments.
When he came to, his body was covered in grotesque tentacles. He smashed his tank to escape, but sedatives were administered each time to stop him.
But today was different. No more sedatives were injected. He looked around. The other test subjects, in the same boat as him, floated dead.
'Then how am I still alive?'
He pondered deeply, but soon realized it was a pointless question. More importantly...
'I survived.'
He had survived.
What now? He couldn't return to human society in this body. The next moment, he felt an insane hunger.
His instincts screamed. He'd die if he didn't eat something. He touched his tank. Crash. The tank that had held him shattered effortlessly.
Culture fluid spilled out. Stepping outside, he spotted the test subjects. He swallowed hard.
Back at Shelter A, I sought out the Healer, Zixuan. A doctor would be ideal, but Shelter A had none, and nothing beat a Healer's 'Healing'.
"If I heal you, Johnson won't let me off easy."
If she was really that scared of Johnson, she would've run away long ago, miss.
Catching on that she wanted compensation, I pulled canned food and bottled water from my bag and handed them over. She glanced around before stashing them away.
With her payment secured, she placed her hand on my forehead. Her hand glowed. At the same moment, the pain squeezing my chest vanished completely.
Even the caved-in part of my chest was good as new.
"Thank you."
"Don't tell Johnson. He really hates you."
"Is Johnson outside right now?"
"He treats even us harshly. Only those who suck up to him get to level up using the big truck."
I nodded and said,
"If you want supplies, just say so. And if you want to leave Johnson's party, anytime."
Her eyes lit up.
"That offer's always good, right?"
Zixuan's face brightened instantly.
I nodded. Unnecessary baggage was a no-go, but a Healer was always welcome. What was more precious than my life? To me, a Healer was a spare life.
Early next morning, I headed to the large mart. To install the AI module, Queen, into the mart's computer.
The mart had a pretty high-spec computer—not quite as powerful as the lab's, but it managed the checkout systems and electronics.
I planned to install Queen there first.
I entered the mart without incident and went up to the manager's control room on the third floor. The first, second, and third floors were much the same as yesterday.
I placed Queen on the computer and used Metal Transformation.
「Used Metal Transformation (Lv.2) to synthesize high-spec computer x1 and AI module, Queen x1.」
The computer powered on.
But...
「Remaining power 0.7%. Maintainable time: 1 minute 32 seconds.」
A brief message popped up, and the entire store went dark.