Endless Zombie Cleanup
The first emotion I felt upon seeing the zombies was, damn, there are so fucking many.
At a glance, there were no elite monsters. It was a room packed with zombies that shuffled awkwardly forward, only able to cautiously bite at necks or arms.
So, I just had to take them down.
"Haaah!"
Thinking about it, they weren't even worth the battle cry, but I shouted anyway to psych myself up. As I swung my staff, a dozen zombie heads flew off in an instant.
"Huh."
But there was no real progress. The zombies filled the vast room densely. Even rush-hour subways didn't seem this crowded.
Still, I'd only swung once. It wasn't a taxing stance, and I hadn't overused my mana. I could do this a hundred, a thousand times over.
"Grraaah!"
And as expected, the zombies ignored their fallen comrades and charged at me. It was like rain falling from sky to earth or rivers flowing to the sea—they seemed programmed with an absolute command to kill humans.
"Fuu."
I got it. Intellectually, there was a limit. I gripped my staff horizontally and cleaved an approaching zombie in half at the torso.
"Grroooh..."
Of course, the ones with intact heads were still alive. They crawled toward me on their remaining arms, radiating murderous intent.
Hah.
In a normal situation, they'd be fairly threatening. To me, though, they were just crawling bugs.
Fighting enemies at "crawling human" height meant stomping or smashing them. But they were too risky to step on. Smashing one by one would be a pain with a pile-up like this.
But that very pile worked against them.
"Graaah!"
"Uraaagh!!!"
They charged like creatures that knew nothing but killing humans. Naturally, they had no consideration for each other or any sense of order.
"Pathetic."
The bisected zombies became obstacles first. Others tripped over dangling legs. Some fell over arms straining to crawl toward me. Those fallen ones obstructed the followers, slowing their advance inevitably.
Buying time like that, I swung my staff relentlessly.
"Seriously, how many are there..."
Honestly, it wasn't dangerous. My body could shrug off a direct hit from a Goliath with a tilt of the head. These zombies' teeth wouldn't even scratch.
Taking down one didn't take long. They burst like balloons at my staff's touch.
"Boring."
Of course, the dungeon was dangerous. I'd known it the moment I entered the first room. Sua, who needed mana for attacks, or anyone relying on guns, would've died.
Even with perfect aim and focus hitting every headshot, they'd empty four or five magazines to clear it.
Seohee with her bat might fare better, but swinging nonstop amid that horde? Doubtful.
To me, though, this dungeon was frustrating in a different way.
"Hold on..."
Fighting here was like cleaning. No one loses to dust. No matter how sharp, it can't tear flesh.
But cleaning's never fun.
"Damn it..."
I yawned, swinging my staff on.
"This isn't even a fight..."
No tension. No sense of doing anything meaningful. I lazily flicked my arm, mopping up zombies.
"About done."
Not one charging zombie remained; all rolled on the floor.
But it wasn't over.
"Should've brought fire..."
I fiddled with my lighter but shook my head—too risky. With this many, oxygen would burn out fast. I could handle the smoke, but no need to stink up the chore.
"Sigh..."
I prodded the corpse pile with my staff, smashing them into mush. Easier than spotting survivors one by one.
More time passed than the fight itself. They refused to die fully; the door stayed shut.
"Uraaagh..."
Finally, after ages, my status window appeared.
Most zombies killed or incapacitated. Victory confirmed!
The door to the next room opens!
"What?"
I'd expected something after that many—next floor, boss hunt. But objectively, these weren't strong foes.
"Three... doors?"
My head spun. The dungeon was a pointless maze.
/////
I dragged my blood-soaked body and punched the door lock.
"I'm home..."
"Oh, you're back? Safe, right? I missed y—"
"Ah, no hugs. Blood. Blood everywhere."
"Eek..."
Sua gazed at me with sad puppy eyes.
"You smell nice too... like you just showered."
"I can shower again! With Master!"
"Gotta do laundry too..."
"I've got tons of time at home! The supply point nearby spits out detergent anyway. We can use extra!"
"I wanna shower quick... I'll hug you after."
"Nyaah..."
I wanted to hold Sua too, but first, scrape off the gore.
"Haa..."
"Y-You're tired! Bath service! Bath service!"
"Yeah, yeah..."
"Thank you for the chance to serve!"
Her happy laugh echoed as she joined me in the tub.
"Heeheehee... Not too hot, right?"
"It's fine, fine."
She splashed warm water over me. Not short myself, she climbed a small bathroom stool. Warm shower streams and her gentle touches soothed me.
"Hehe..."
Excited, Sua smeared body wash foam on her shower puff, then her body.
"When you're tired, your first sex slave's always here! Use me all you want!"
"Yeah, yeah."
"I can do this too!"
Her soft breasts pressed my back. My foggy mind cleared.
Playfully washing with Sua, I spotted Seohee waiting on the sofa.
"Thought something happened. You good?"
Her worried eyes didn't match her tough look; I chuckled involuntarily.
"Got the promise, but they want the dungeon boss hunted and loot brought."
"That make sense?"
"Monsters weren't too bad. Made it to basement 1. Zombies were fucking endless, though."
I'd pulverized five-plus rooms of that horde. Last had elites, but felt same. Confirming kills was more hassle than killing.
"You're... insanely strong..."
"Came back 'cause it's late, but not easy. Return path blocked solid too."
Felt like labor, not battle. Grabbed cash from a box in the last room, but value unclear. Apartment entry popped a "Base Function Liberation Tutorial," but postponed—too beat.
Priority: Seohee's full recovery over base stuff.
"This normal?"
Seohee shook her head.
"Zombies refilling cleared rooms same day? That's... bad."
"Why?"
"Means dungeon's packed full. Even deep down, same density."
"..."
"Y-You can quit. I said—"
I smiled, shaking my head.
"Nah, said it's tough, not dangerous. Leveled up once... EXP comes in. Not bad for me."
My level hit 3. Felt minor stat bumps, but dungeon hunts had value.
"I'll heal your arms and legs. Hunt the boss, bring the doc."
I beamed at her. She averted eyes, embarrassed. Adorably so.