As You Believe, So It Shall Be (6)

I was tired. I wanted to rest. Well, I hadn't stopped moving since the day I met Ye-eun yesterday, so it was only natural. This world no longer allowed for complete, untroubled rest. Of course it didn't. But at the very least, I could make an effort to rest.

"Oppa, I'll be back."

"Hyun, you stay and rest. We'll go ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠alone."

The entrance where we had blocked the zombie horde and the cult traitors was already soaked in blood, guts, and chunks of flesh. It was so bad that the thought of stepping over it made my skin crawl. Even if we did cross it, we'd need to wash or change our shoes. If we were moving ammunition, we'd have to change our clothes too. So there was no need for all of us to go out at once. Someone had to guard the ammunition. By that logic, the one left behind was me. It couldn't be helped. There was still plenty of ammo and plenty of weapons. Moving them one by one to another floor risked running into zombies, and even without that, the stairs were ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠extremely slippery and unstable. There wasn't a good way to transport everything safely. Besides, if we were going to move it, it would be best to load it into the truck bed, which meant keeping the vehicle close by. And unfortunately, there was only one entrance.

I clicked my tongue and leaned against the railing, watching the two of them leave. I wasn't without worry. The river-crossing puzzle came to mind. What was it again? You had to ferry a sheep and a wolf across on a raft, but if you did it wrong, the wolf would eat the sheep. Kang Ahyeon and Lee Ye-eun were exactly like that. It was obvious who was the wolf and who was the sheep without even saying it. Ye-eun seemed to have some idea by now, yet it was still surprising that she willingly followed Ahyeon. Anyway, there were many things I needed to do before I could rest. I didn't know how many zombies were still left on campus, and I was worried about getting ambushed while sleeping. I needed to clean things up before resting. But we decided not to rush or get impatient. Getting worked up would only fuck us over anyway. There was still a lot that needed to be done.

Without letting my guard down, I gripped the Holy Lance and stared blankly at what had appeared before my eyes.

Seong was his surname, and Daejang was his given name. Seong Daejang. The most righteous man who had stood against me. The one who had once been my closest friend. This was the gift he had left me.

Out of them, what I chose was…

Obviously, it was Shooting. In a way, it was the predictable choice. With Intermediate Heavy Swordsmanship and even Grappling already in my arsenal, there was no reason for me to take Bayonet or Dagger Mastery. My sister was already skilled with the bayonet, and I didn't have a decent dagger weapon anyway. It made more sense to find a way to raise Heavy Swordsmanship further and increase its cutting power through training if the opportunity arose.

So my choice was made without hesitation.

My choice had been properly rewarded. And that wasn't all. Perhaps because of the long battle and the condition that enemies were nearby, something that hadn't appeared before now floated up.

I closed my eyes for a moment. Tae-woo, Daejang… so he left something like this for me. Memories flooded over me. It was a memory from the day the three of us were walking home from school. The true friends who had stayed by my side even when Ye-eun left, saying she couldn't be friends with me anymore. We had promised to become the best in our respective fields. We promised to meet again at the top. I in kendo, Tae-woo in judo, Daejang in shooting. We swore we'd meet at the peak and leave this shitty cult together. The fact that I could never keep that promise weighed heavily on me. It was unbearably sad. The only one who survived was me. That truth was heartbreaking beyond words. Only the traces they left behind remained inside me.

Reflecting on their legacy, I finished making my choice.

The choice was clear. There was no benefit in me being good at sniping or mobile shooting. If my sister got them, maybe, but for me, CQB seemed far more suitable. Grappling was a dilemma, but with my Strength already higher than my Perception, the first option wouldn't give me much benefit. Survival of the Fittest looked decent, but it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠didn't seem as good as Predator's Way. Predator's Way would make my already lethal attacks even more deadly. Severing limbs in a single strike, snapping necks. I cherished these two abilities as if they were my own.

Just then, I saw the pickup truck we'd arrived in approaching from afar. I'd been worried that Ahyeon might have gotten rid of Ye-eun and was coming back with some excuse, but it seemed there was no need for concern. The truck crossed the courtyard, honking loudly before stopping. Both of them got out at the same time. My cheerful little sister waved at me, while Ye-eun looked somewhat deflated. I waved back at them the same way.

What remained was nothing flashy—just plain, simple work. Cleaning up, clearing out, and killing the remaining zombies on campus. One might wonder if it was really necessary to meticulously clear such a large area, but it was essential. I had no desire to be attacked by a zombie while sleeping. That went double for me and my sister. Back at Sion Mountain Fortress, Building 2, when our parents had abandoned the food and we slowly went mad listening to people's desperate screams. At the very least, when we slept, we didn't want to hear zombie noises. Above all, even if it was only temporary, we didn't want any variables near our base.

So after making several trips to load all the ammunition and firearms into the truck, I wandered the campus still covered in blood. Behind me were Kang Ahyeon holding the Holy Lance and Lee Ye-eun with a shotgun. My sister seemed to treasure the somewhat grotesque long rifle I'd given her. She hummed a tune while twirling the spear, then suddenly gripped it properly, aimed at empty air, and when our eyes met, she flashed a bright smile.

"Ehehe, hehe."

"You like it that much?"

"Yeah. It's a gift from Oppa."

My sister smiled with her eyes crinkled. Honestly, it felt like she liked me a bit too much. Still, it was better than being on bad terms. Even if I had acted like a total bastard and she hated me, it wouldn't have been strange. She'd loved me too much ever since we were kids.

"Because Oppa gave it to me thinking of me, I'm so, so happy."

"…You say the strangest things."

It wasn't given for such a sentimental reason. I grumbled, but I didn't feel bad. After all, a gift was a gift. But really, it had been given purely for practical reasons. I didn't have Bayonet or Spear Mastery, but my sister did have Bayonet Mastery. I already had a good close-range weapon, and for some reason she seemed to hit targets better than her Shooting rank suggested. As for me, I was more suited to close range than long range. That's why I'd given it to her, but she was ridiculously happy about it. She cherished it so much that she immediately invested the stat points she'd just gained into Bayonet Mastery.

I thought it might have been better to put them into Shooting, but whatever. It wasn't my stats. I decided not to worry about it. My sister walked beside me, then suddenly leaned in close. I forced my eyes away from the lightly swaying flesh and heard her say,

"Want a kiss? As thanks?"

Out of nowhere. I let out a dry laugh.

"Don't we do that every day anyway? If it's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thanks, give me something better."

At my reply, Ye-eun whipped her head around with a creak.

"You kiss? You two?"

"Yes. Oppa and I are extremely close, so we kiss and sleep together every day."

"On the cheek, right?"

"Hehe."

"…On the cheek, right?"

Here we go again. I ignored the two who had started bickering again and continued exploring the campus. I checked every room. I tapped walls and doors with the flat of a blade to make noise, and sometimes had them cover their ears while I shouted. Nothing came out. It showed just how thoroughly the Prophet had controlled the traitors and dominated the university. There were no survivors either, but that was probably because they'd been swept up by the traitors.

It was only after the sunset glow appeared that we finally finished our exploration.

"Good. Looks like there aren't any more zombies."

Fatigue crashed over me. I'd been awake for nearly two days. My increased Intelligence and Perception let me endure it, but this was the limit. I needed proper rest. I had to change clothes and wash up. There was so much to do. Fortunately, Gucheon Athletic University was an athletic university. There had to be a shower room for the athletes. Right now, a shower was the most urgent thing. It felt gross, and it wasn't good for my health. Especially when I thought about how some of the blood and flesh on my body belonged to zombies. If I rubbed my eyes with blood like this, I'd turn. If I became a zombie? I'd probably become the strongest variant in history—an unimaginably monstrous one. Then everything I'd gone through dragging Ahyeon along would be meaningless, and we'd all be wiped out. So washing was important. Everything else could come after.

After the exploration ended, I said,

"Let's wash up first. Where's the shower room?"

"…Huh? Shower room?"

What was with that reaction? When I looked at her strangely, Ye-eun's answer was unexpected.

"We have a bathhouse? And it's a really nice facility…"

"…A bathhouse?"

"Yeah. There's a sauna too, and it can hold a hundred people… You didn't know?"

How the hell was I supposed to know that? Why would an athletic university even have a bathhouse? But at the same time, a spark of anticipation suddenly flared up. A bathhouse I'd never been to in my life. And one with state-of-the-art facilities and a sauna, no less. Not going would be a loss, wouldn't it? I nodded firmly, the sword still resting on my shoulder.

"That's what I said. Where's the bathhouse?"

"…You definitely said shower room earlier…"

"I never said that. Even if you're embarrassed, you can't just make things up."

Ye-eun made a face like she couldn't believe what she was hearing, then led us there.