Chapter 44
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Hani No. 1
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I immediately got to work assembling Hani No. 1. Of course, putting together a supercomputer that's been broken down down to the screw was no simple task—it was incredibly complex and time-consuming.
Even for me, a Mechanic, it was the same.
So, I enlisted some help. Not that there were many people— just Zixuan and Maria, along with Professor Alex dropping by every now and then.
"Hand me a screw there."
At my words, Zixuan quickly picked one up and handed it over.
"Here."
I gave a faint smile and shook my head.
"No, not that screw."
She tilted her head in confusion. She was holding one screw in each hand, comparing them.
"What's the difference between this screw and that one?"
"The tip is 0.01mm longer."
A mere 0.01mm difference—impossible to tell with the naked eye.
Professor Alex shook his head in disbelief, as if he couldn't comprehend it.
"How on earth do you even distinguish them? I pride myself on having pretty good eyesight for an old man..."
It was my superhuman senses as a Mechanic. And if I had to dig deeper, it was thanks to the perception boost from the Aegis suit I was wearing.
Perception's usefulness went without saying. Long live perception!
"It's because of my superpowers."
"Those damn superpowers of yours. So convenient. Any way I could get some? Preferably not the kind you have, but something that makes me younger or whatever."
Professor Alex said it in jest, but his face held a subtle glimmer of hope.
A way to obtain superpowers...
When you clear Stage 2 and advance to Stage 3, the gates to humanity's last city, 'Paradise,' open.
If you secure data on superpowers from the sealed bioengineering lab on the outskirts of Paradise and obtain the incomplete capsule from the Savior Church's main hall...
Not only can players acquire new superpowers, but you can turn NPC companions into superpowered beings too.
As I lapsed into thought without responding, Professor Alex's eyes lit up.
"Is there really a way to get them?"
"No, there isn't."
Truth be told, the process was so brutally difficult that it might as well be impossible, so I brushed it off. Plus, there was no such thing as an anti-aging superpower like he'd mentioned.
I worried my lie might show, but he nodded without a hint of suspicion.
"Figured as much. By the way, what are you planning to use this supercomputer for once it's built? Climate prediction or something?"
"Climate prediction as a side gig... but mainly to add more Sentry Guns."
"I see. To expand the shelter?"
I nodded. Once we'd fortified against Chasers sufficiently, I planned to expand the shelter.
It was already overflowing for the thirty or so residents, but we couldn't afford short-sighted thinking.
The number of residents would keep growing, so we needed more living space—and farmland too.
"Will Shelter D just sit idly by?"
Maria, who'd been quiet, chimed in. Professor Alex nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, they won't just sit still in Shelter D. Most of our survivors, as you know, were scavengers. They'll be wary of us—and might even see us as a threat."
I chuckled and replied.
"They might be wary now... but they won't dare attack recklessly. Our firepower is superior. And more than that..."
That firepower gap would only widen over time.
Sentry Guns and firearms aside, once we mass-produced those work android robots, it went without saying. They'd have to accept their neighbors in the end.
Not just any neighbors—good neighbors.
I mulled over the words 'good neighbors' that Sophia, the logistics team leader from Shelter D, had used, and let out a smirk. The others were looking at me like, 'What's up with him?'
I shrugged.
"Forgot what I was gonna say. Let's get back to assembly."
"Aw, come on."
Zixuan shot me a bored look, but she soon resumed helping as I directed.
"Ah, not that screw."
"How am I supposed to tell them apart! Ugh, I'm so annoyed I'm gonna figure it out just to spite you."
...By the way, she stared intently at the screws and, surprisingly, ended up distinguishing them successfully later on.
* * *
Rumors about Shelter Apocalypse were spreading in Shelter D. Word was that a 'savior' who would end this disaster and bring peace had appeared in the newly built Shelter Apocalypse.
In the pre-apocalypse world, no one would've bought it—they'd have snorted in derision. But in this apocalyptic hell, even 'small rumors' could sway people's hearts.
Shelter D's leader, Ben, wasn't pleased about the rumors spreading. He ordered his executives to clamp down on people talking about it.
One of those executives, Sophia, summoned Lee Yu-na. Having heard her report before, she suspected Lee Yu-na was the source of the rumors.
She remembered that Lee Yu-na had received help from them.
"You?"
"W-What?"
"Are you the one blabbing about Shelter Apocalypse?"
Lee Yu-na neither confirmed nor denied it. Instead, she replied with bold confidence.
"I just told them about the salvation I received there."
"Are you insane?"
"I'm perfectly sane. Why? Did the leader tell you not to?"
"Hah, yeah, he did. And you know that everyone in Shelter Apocalypse—except 'them'—are scavengers, right?"
"Weren't we scavengers too? Who was it that stole their supplies from that truck at the plastics factory?"
Sophia was at a loss for words. It was true—they'd taken a hefty haul from their truck.
She had excuses, of course. But she knew full well those excuses wouldn't fly easily in this world.
"That was because our shelter was in dire straits—we had no choice."
Truth be told, almost every shelter—bar a few— was in dire straits.
"Sure. Both them and us had no choice, right? And did I say anything bad about them? I just spoke the truth. Now you're trying to take away freedom of religion too?"
There was a glint of faith in Lee Yu-na's eyes. Sophia felt a headache coming on. She didn't know exactly what she'd seen, but the girl had changed completely since that day.
Well, getting chased by zombies and rescued by them would change anyone.
"Anyway, stop it. Unless you want consequences. Or I'll have to kick you out of Shelter D."
Lee Yu-na glared at Sophia with dissatisfaction but ultimately nodded. With no power of her own, she had no room to resist.
Once she left the building, Sophia bit her lip hard, left alone.
'I thought they were just 'good neighbors.' This is dangerous.' She figured Lee Yu-na had been manipulated by some scheme in Shelter Apocalypse. And the reason for that scheme?
Probably to take over the 'impregnable fortress' they'd built.
Imagining Park Si-hyun mocking her, she scoffed.
'A savior? No such thing exists in this world.'
* * *
After pouring half a day into it, Hani No. 1's assembly had made solid progress, but there was still quite a bit left to complete. We put off the rest until tomorrow, and I headed outside to clear my head.
The plot of land the survivors had worked hard on all day caught my eye. They'd sow crop seeds there soon.
I recalled Professor Alex saying it needed water. We'd have to restart the purification system and haul water from the stream to irrigate it.
While making work androids, I should swing by the sewage treatment plant too. If we could get it running again, we'd have a stable water supply.
Lost in those thoughts as I walked.
Tr-tr-tr.
The sound of Sentry Gun fire. For a zombie that could scale walls and barbed wire, the first thing that came to mind was a Chaser.
I drew my Heavy Shotgun and slowly approached the source of the noise.
One Chaser lay dead. But two had gotten in—not one. The remaining one had turned three Sentry Guns into scrap.
And it was heading toward the survivors' living quarters via a blind spot. I aimed at its back and pulled the trigger on the Heavy Shotgun.
Given the shotgun's spread, I didn't expect a direct hit. I just wanted to draw its attention here.
But luck was on my side—it crumpled. It looked dead at a glance, but no experience gain popped up, so I knew it was still alive.
Well, it wouldn't die from a single Heavy Shotgun blast anyway.
Once it entered range, I fired without hesitation. The feigning corpse sprang up. One shot, two, three, four, five.
It finally closed in, swinging a blunt fist that looked three or four times the size of a human's. Thud. I went flying backward.
It didn't match a Tyrant's power, but compared to other variant zombies, it was still a monster through and through. That's when it happened.
Wincing from the pain, my body suddenly glowed with white light. The pain vanished, and an unknown strength surged through me.
A buff. I turned my head. Somehow, Zixuan had come out and was watching me.
I gave her a quick nod of thanks, then turned back, aimed at the wound-riddled beast, and fired. One shot, two, three...
It still wouldn't die, so I sighed, calmly reloaded, and fired again. This time, one shot finished it.
「Job experience gained. (2-man party bonus +160%) (Chaser bonus +200%)」
That made nine Heavy Shotgun rounds in total.
Considering it had taken Sentry Gun rounds already... that was no joke.
If I hadn't shown up, the survivors would've been its prey for sure. Thank goodness I did. I stared at its corpse in disgust.
Then grabbed it with my hands and tossed it outside. I didn't even want to look at it.
Still, two Chasers getting in caused this much chaos... What happens when three or four slip through?
Of course, knowing what would happen didn't give me a solution right now. The only way I could think of to stop Chasers was to finish Hani No. 1 ASAP and ramp up Sentry Gun production.
'Guess I need to speed up the work.'