Crawler
“Hey, over here!”
A familiar voice rang out.
“You made it!”
Go Cheon-su welcomed back Jo Yong-jin with open arms. Jo Yong-jin immediately handed him a sheet of paper. A taxi driver application form, complete with a photo of a young man who looked just like Go Cheon-su. It was convincingly authentic.
Nice one, Jo Yong-jin.
Go Cheon-su slowly approached the man.
“Boss! I brought my application!”
“Ohh!”
As he got right up close and held out the form, the man snatched it happily.
“It's been ages since anyone applied!”
The man, who seemed about to read it right away, yelled at Go Cheon-su.
“Go back to the interview spot!”
“Pardon?”
“I said go to the back! Interviews are supposed to be done from a distance!”
What a pain,Go Cheon-su thought, but he backed up to where Jo Yong-jin was anyway. In the meantime, the man started poring over the application intently. He was so absorbed that he even casually released Yang Min-cheol without a second glance.
Swoosh.
Go Cheon-su subtly signaled Yang Min-cheol in that instant.
Now.
Yang Min-cheol shoved the man with all his might, determined not to miss the chance.
“Urk?!”
The moment Yang Min-cheol bolted toward them, the man lost his balance and staggered sideways. Go Cheon-su seized the opening.
“Borrowing this for a sec.”
“Ah...!”
He snatched the crutch from Jo Yong-jin and charged straight at the man.
Crack!
The tip of the crutch slammed right into the man's solar plexus as he tried to straighten up.
“Guhk...!”
The startled man flung out his palm, dropping his knife in the process.
Thwack!
Go Cheon-su kicked the knife away, dropped the crutch, tackled the man to the ground, and pinned his throat.
“What are you waiting for? Help out!”
He shouted back, and Yang Min-cheol and Jo Yong-jin rushed over in a panic.
“Min-cheol, grab the upper body with me! Yong-jin, pin the legs and search his keys!”
They followed his orders in a frenzy. The man thrashed wildly, but he couldn't break free from all three of them.
“F-found 'em!”
Jo Yong-jin pulled out four smart keys on a keyring.
“Perfect! Everyone back off!”
At Go Cheon-su's shout, Yang Min-cheol and Jo Yong-jin released him. Go Cheon-su quickly grabbed the crutch and handed it back to Jo Yong-jin as the man hacked and coughed.
“Good job, Yong-jin.”
“Uh, uh-huh.”
“No time to stand around—let's hit the cars.”
Before the man could recover and get up, the three bolted from the building.
Beep beep!
Jo Yong-jin pressed all the keys, and one of the four cars in the lot lit up.
“Got it!”
Jo Yong-jin cheered triumphantly.
“It's here...!”
“Ah, damn it.”
But seeing Go Cheon-su's disappointed reaction, Yang Min-cheol asked,
“Hyung, what's wrong?”
“Nothing. It's fine.”
Ignoring them, Go Cheon-su crawled into the back seat of the unlocked car.
“Alright, let's roll.”
“You sure you don't wanna drive, hyung?”
Yang Min-cheol asked as he climbed in beside him.
“Yong-jin’s better at it.”
Jo Yong-jin, standing outside, looked stunned at that. Go Cheon-su quickly yelled,
“What’re you doing? Drive!”
“M-me?”
“Your good foot’s the left one since the break! Hurry up!”
Flustered but compliant, Jo Yong-jin handed his crutches to the back seat and slid into the driver's spot.
Vroom.
As he started the engine and shifted gears, Go Cheon-su said quietly,
“Destination's the train station. I trust your skills—don't let me down.”
He believed in the man's driving prowess, honed by surviving monsters on the road.
“Why the train station...? You think trains are even running in this mess?”
“Just drive. Kinda...”
Go Cheon-su trailed off, eyes widening as he answered Jo Yong-jin's question.
“What the hell is that?”
Someone was hopping the fence and flinging open the main gate.
“What now?”
They'd have had to open it anyway, but this was unexpected.
Rattle.
People poured in through the open gate. If that was all, they'd have been lucky.
“Jo Yong-jin. I said I trusted you.”
Go Cheon-su muttered as a monster followed the crowd, shoving the gate fully open.
“Damn it...! Another monster?!”
Jo Yong-jin floored the accelerator, eyes wide. The car shot forward, but they couldn't just peel out—the monster was still blocking the gate.
“Gonna spin!”
He whipped the car around in reverse. But that didn't solve it. The noise had provoked the monster.
Kraaaaaah!
“Of all things, a Crawler...”
Yang Min-cheol muttered in dismay.
Go Cheon-su peered out the window at the monster scuttling after them on all fours.
“Crawler? Damn, it looks freaky as hell!”
Humanoid in frame, but grotesquely muscled, truck-sized and hulking. Quadrupedal stance made it a nightmare in Go Cheon-su's eyes.
“Jo Yong-jin! Lure it toward the main building!”
“What?”
“Now!”
Under pressure, Jo Yong-jin yanked the wheel toward the building and yelled,
“What’s the plan?!”
The car wasn't fast enough yet. The Crawler was closing in rapidly. They'd get caught like this—unless the rabid taxi boss hadn't emerged from the building.
“My taxi!”
The Crawler switched targets at the boss's furious shout, slamming into the entrance.
“Now! Head for the gate!”
Jo Yong-jin reflexively turned the wheel. The car spun and barreled toward the exit.
Crunch!
It clipped a corpse dodging the gate, but they escaped the compound.
“...”
As the roar faded and the engine roared louder, Jo Yong-jin—who'd gone quiet—finally spoke.
“You used that guy as bait, didn't you?”
“Whew. Had to.”
Go Cheon-su slumped in his seat.
“Couldn't let us all die. He was a good boss.”
“You...”
“Yeah. No choice.”
Yang Min-cheol cut in stiffly.
“Hyung did his best to save us.”
“Mm.”
Jo Yong-jin couldn't argue, just sighed and focused ahead.
“Ah.”
Then Go Cheon-su spotted the car crossing a green line.
You have passed a branch point.
Viewer mission-setting feature now unlocked.
Viewers can now purchase effects as mission rewards for the player. Simple Zen sponsorships are also possible.
Huh? Something new popped up. As Go Cheon-su blinked in confusion, the chat exploded.
Go Cheon-su scanned the chat. Nothing new visible to him besides Cash Chat.
“Hyungnims, what was that just now?”
Teasing replies poured in. Go Cheon-su narrowed his eyes, but viewers just cooed over how cute he was—nothing useful.
What the hell.
Irritated, he puzzled it out.
It's not for me—it's a viewer feature.
The part about buying effects as rewards intrigued him. His streamer instincts said it was a net positive.
“Fine, don't tell me. I won't get mad over this.”
The chat flooded with lololol as a sponsorship pinged.
The standard sponsorship system was unchanged. A bit ominous, but Go Cheon-su rolled down the window, let the wind hit his face, and muttered,
“Thanks as always. Wow, I'm so excited...”
Viewers teased it was him getting over his pout, but he ignored them. His gaze shifted rearward.
“Hm?”
A thumping noise drew his eye, and his widened in shock.
“Hey hey, stop!”
Go Cheon-su snapped to and yelled at Jo Yong-jin.
“It's still chasing!”
“I see it...!”
Jo Yong-jin grimaced in panic. Sure enough, the Crawler was barreling after them at insane speed.
Go Cheon-su was floored.
“Can't go faster?”
“This is max!”
They hit a straight stretch. The Crawler keeping pace at top speed meant one thing.
“No way... does it speed up the straighter we go...?”
He swallowed dryly. If so, this was bad. Indeed, as the car accelerated, the Crawler gained even more.
“Min-cheol!”
“Yeah?”
“You know these roads well?”
They needed a twisty path to shake it.
“Uh, kinda.”
“Think!”
Otherwise, caught for sure. Yang Min-cheol looked stumped, then bowed his head—not giving up, but concentrating, gnawing his finger.
“Roads, roads...”
Then he directed Jo Yong-jin.
“Head for that hill!”
“What?”
Jo Yong-jin looked baffled.
“Hill'll slow the car!”
“Go! Wanna die?!”
At Yang Min-cheol's harsh words, Jo Yong-jin shut up. Go Cheon-su backed him up, surprised but quick.
“Do what Min-cheol says! Trust him!”
“Damn it...!”
Jo Yong-jin gunned it up the hill. Predictably, acceleration dropped versus flat ground.
“Uwaaaah!”
But the Crawler charged straight, speed unchanged.
“We're done!”
Jo Yong-jin despaired. Go Cheon-su tensed too—the gap was too close, trust or not.
Chat agreed: no easy fix.
Then, a steep downhill drop appeared abruptly.
“Huh?”
Everyone lurched forward. Jo Yong-jin, gripping the wheel, spotted the road ahead and broke into cold sweat.
“Guys, this...!”
A sharp curve waited at the bottom. And outside that curve...
“It's a cliff section!”
Go Cheon-su gasped at Jo Yong-jin's horror.
“Min-cheol...!”
“Floor it!”
Yang Min-cheol yelled boyishly.
“You can do it, right? Crawlers suck at stopping—we saw it smash the building!”
True, but this was no joke. Go Cheon-su shouted to viewers,
“Hyungnims, missions—now!”
Effects as rewards were possible. Speeding into that curve meant they flew off first.
Some still trolled. Go Cheon-su scowled, but
Desperate ones existed. A mission pinged.
HanDochoe's Mission
📍 Task: Lean out the window and enrage the Crawler more.
🎁 Reward: Absolute vehicle detachment prevention for 15 seconds. Activates on completion.
“You... bastard!”
No hesitation. Go Cheon-su leaned out and bellowed at the Crawler,
“That slow? You gonna catch us? A slug's faster! You rhino-snouted freak!”
“Hyung...?”
Yang Min-cheol muttered blankly.
“What're you doing?”