Chapter 81
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: Diablo's Pursuit
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Easily dispatching the Salvation Church bishops, the man approached Diablo out of curiosity. And... Diablo smiled.
Inside the truck, Sophia looked at the zombie—Diablo—bound in restraints with uneasy eyes.
She had seen countless zombies by now, but this was the first one that gave off such an ominous vibe.
Her instincts were screaming at her to run away right now. If it weren't for the merchants sitting quietly beside her, she would have fled on her own.
Unlike her, who was gripped by fear, the merchants' eyes were filled with a mix of curiosity and greed.
"It looks pretty impressive too. How much do you think we could get for something like that?"
"They're saying over 50 million for it. Fifty million at least."
"Over 50 million? If we play it right, we could get 100 million."
Having overheard the merchants' conversation, Sophia frowned and asked them.
"Do they trade zombies in Paradise too?"
"Regular citizens don't buy them much. Most buyers are zoos, gladiator arenas, or rich eccentrics who collect them as a hobby."
She could easily guess what it meant to buy zombies for zoos and gladiator arenas. The people of Paradise used zombies for their own entertainment.
'Paradise... I've only heard about it in stories...'
Paradise. The only city left standing after the zombie virus began to spread. From the rumors among survivors, it lived up to its name as a 'paradise on earth.'
But that couldn't be true. In this apocalyptic world, no city could be normal. Paradise was just like their own shelter—a massive shelter ruled by madness and greed.
She could now guess its true nature to some extent.
At that moment, she watched with her own eyes as the suited man—the head of this merchant group—began to unfasten the restraints on the zombie.
"What are you...!"
She grabbed her machine gun and aimed it at the zombie. The zombie was curling its lips upward as if pleased. A nearby merchant grabbed her machine gun and chuckled.
"Hey, calm down, Sophia. The boss is strong. Unlike us, he's received body enhancement treatments... Well, you wouldn't get it since you're just some bug from the outskirts."
"Can't properly test it in Paradise, so he's probably trying out the thing's abilities. No matter how amazing that zombie is, the boss can subdue it easily..."
Hearing that, Sophia finally felt a bit relieved. Right, he must have some hidden ace up his sleeve to act so boldly.
But the very next moment made her relief fade.
"Boss!"
What she witnessed was Diablo shoving the man into its massive maw.
The man flailed desperately to escape, but he couldn't break free and ended up torn to shreds by the razor-sharp teeth.
"Damn it! That thing ate the boss! We have to save him!"
The merchants hurriedly grabbed their weapons. The one in front fired a net gun. A mithril net wrapped around Diablo's body.
But... rip. With the sound of the mithril net tearing, Diablo broke free.
"What kind of monstrous bastard is that...! Kill it!"
The vice leader and the other merchants pulled their triggers, but Diablo charged through the hail of bullets and snatched the merchant on top of the truck with its developed forelimbs. The merchant met the same fate as the man.
Its head was ripped off, and brain matter and blood poured down onto the ground. Diablo lunged toward its next prey.
Unable to just watch the merchants die one by one, the merchant next to Sophia drew his gun.
The gun from his bosom was none other than a plasma pistol.
"Eat this and die!"
The high-tech weapon, said to be made with advanced technology.
It was a luxury item, one of the few in Paradise, with attack power incomparable to the 'Beginner Plasma Pistol' Park Si-hyun had obtained from the secret lab.
A green laser shot from the muzzle of the plasma pistol. The laser pierced Diablo effortlessly at high speed, sending it tumbling to the ground.
"We got it!"
"Damn, do you know how much one shot costs? It ain't dead yet, so grab it."
Sophia bit her lip hard. Crazy bastards. What if that zombie wasn't dead? What if it was playing dead? She yelled toward the driver's seat.
"Drive!"
"But our comrades..."
She swung her fist at the driver. Thwack! The driver groaned and tumbled out of the driver's seat.
Dragging him out and taking his place, Sophia floored the accelerator.
She had to escape fast. She glanced back through the rearview mirror. Diablo's body, which had been lying as if dead, swelled up, and it began devouring the merchants indiscriminately.
The occasional gunfire posed no real threat.
No time to hesitate—she stomped the accelerator. Vroom. The truck lurched forward roughly.
Crunch, crunch. Having finished devouring all the merchants, Diablo turned toward the truck. It enjoyed slowly pursuing fleeing prey.
It loved savoring the terrified expressions of its prey before shoving them into its mouth. But when caged by the Salvation Church, it couldn't enjoy such pleasures.
The Salvation Church bishops had mostly fed it prey that didn't resist. Surely, chasing that truck would yield some exquisite treats.
Diablo knew this from experience. It began pursuing the truck Sophia was in.
* * *
With Dshun gone, only Alicia and Kim Hoon, two psychics, remained in Shelter A. It had been tough holding them off even with three; there was no way they could manage with just two.
The barrier Park Si-hyun had built was breached by the Chasers and mutant zombies, and James, the leader who stayed until the end to defend Shelter A, was ultimately killed. Alicia and Kim Hoon fled in a panic.
Protecting Shelter A's residents was impossible when they could barely save themselves. Their AP had been depleted long ago, and their bodies felt as heavy as lead.
They managed to escape somehow... but soon after, they began tearing into each other.
"I told you we should get out sooner!"
"Damn it! If you hadn't fought with Dshun back then."
"That bastard would've turned zombie and died anyway, so what does it matter? Damn, this is why they say when the hen crows, the country falls."
"What did you say, you son of a bitch?"
Alicia raised her gun. But Kim Hoon stuck his head out as if daring her to shoot. He knew full well she couldn't attack him due to the mutual attack prohibition function.
In the end, Alicia lowered her gun first.
"If you don't wanna die, don't follow me."
Kim Hoon sneered at her.
"That's exactly what I wanted to say. Get lost while I'm being nice."
And so, Alicia and Kim Hoon parted ways. Left alone, Alicia walked with a hollow expression, lost in thought. Park Si-hyun's advice came to mind. Don't get too attached to Shelter A.
Back then, she hadn't taken his advice seriously, but now it all rang true. It was partly their own shortcomings, but Shelter A was ultimately a shelter with its limits.
'He knew this would happen?'
That's why he gave that advice.
'Where to go?'
She wandered aimlessly. She had no destination. She would just keep walking through the city endlessly. Even dying to a zombie encounter didn't seem so bad.
And it was a stroke of bizarre coincidence that she ran into the truck Sophia was driving. She aimed her gun at the truck barreling toward her.
'Salvation Church?'
No, she shook her head. The driver wasn't wearing a necklace. So... not Salvation Church. Then why was it speeding like that?
Speeding like that would inevitably draw zombies' attention. The truck screeched to a halt in front of her. The driver—Sophia—stuck her head out the window and yelled at Alicia.
"Get in quick!"
"??"
Puzzled but complying, she climbed into the truck. Soon, she got her answer. Through the rearview mirror, she saw Diablo hot on their tails.
"That monster... wait, who are you...?"
"I'm Sophia. Used to be from Shelter D... no time for chit-chat, just shoot it with whatever gun you've got."
Would her pistol even work on a monster like that? As Alicia was about to retort, her eyes caught the firearms in the truck's driver's compartment.
She picked one up. Her class was Gunner. If it was a firearm, she could handle it more skillfully than any other class.
「Plasma Pistol」
Durability: 27/30
Attack Power: 250~750
Description: Plasma pistol discarded from a lab.
Restrictions: Gunner, Level 50
Unfortunately, her level was only around 20.
'Can't use this.' 「AT Machine Gun」
Durability: 35/50
Attack Power: 50~160
Description: VIP exclusive machine gun manufactured by Cassiopeia Corp. High durability and powerful attack power.
Restrictions: Gunner
She grabbed the other machine gun. Thankfully, no level restriction, so she could use it. She unleashed the AT Machine Gun at Diablo.
Even pulling out nearly double the minimum attack power, Diablo didn't seem to take much damage from the bullets.
No, there was no damage. It was mostly dodging the shots aimed at vital spots.
"But its speed slowed a bit! Keep firing!"
"Got it!"
The distance narrowed but then held, the chase continuing. Before they knew it, they reached the riverbank. Not on purpose—just following the road.
'Ended up in the industrial district.'
Sophia frowned at the island visible in the distance. It was a place she didn't want to return to for a while. Especially not with a monster on their tail.
'Turn the truck somewhere else?'
Too late for that. She chose to head into the industrial district.
'It might put all of Shelter Apocalypse's residents in danger... but no choice. Even if I don't care about me, what did this woman do wrong?'
But upon reaching Hope Bridge, Sophia stared despairingly at what used to be Hope Bridge—the severed remains of the bridge.
"What? Dead end?"
Alicia's face turned pale.
"No way out..."
"Don't give up!"
Alicia thought it was ridiculous even as she said it. Just hours ago, she'd been wandering aimlessly, letting fate decide, and now she was yelling at a total stranger to survive.
Hypocritical.
"But there's no way out!"
No way out.
To make matters worse, Diablo was closing in from behind the broken bridge. No turning back. Diablo approached them with a grin.
"Better jump into the river. It won't follow into the water."
Alicia said with a frown.
"You're serious? If we mess up the fall, we're dead."
"We die if we stay here anyway."
Sophia nodded with a grim face. She floored the accelerator. The truck charged toward the collapsed bridge, toward the river. At that instant, Diablo caught up right behind the truck.
As if it had been hiding its power all this time, its speed was unbelievable. But it was one step too late. The truck plummeted below the bridge.
Diablo watched its prey fall into the river below.
Alicia was flung out of the driver's side mid-fall. And Sophia sank into the river still inside the truck.
Apocalypse All-Purpose Machine