Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Adoption
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I avoid fights not just because they're dangerous.
Cleanup is a goddamn nightmare.
One of the decoy bunkers got wrecked, and disposing of the bodies is backbreaking work.
Burrying them one by one? Too many corpses, and no good spots anyway.
In the end, I herded them into a half-collapsed bunker and set it ablaze.
One invader made it all the way to the main bunker entrance, half-charred. Had to drag it out.
While hauling it, pus-mixed fluids dripped everywhere, staining the ground.
But clearing bodies isn't the end of it.
They'd pitched tents too—had to dismantle those and erase every trace.
All of it busywork. Pure drudgery.
I didn't break a sweat in the fight itself, but cleanup left me drenched and exhausted.
No loot worth mentioning.
The invaders' gear was utter trash.
Especially their food. Hard to believe even looking at it.
What they carried was dog food.
More precisely, ground-up dog chow mixed with mystery meat and molded into nutrition bars. No way I could stomach that crap.
The moment I saw it, anxiety hit me.
Need a plan.
These guys were just the tip of the iceberg.
*
Beneath the old U.S. base lies a bunker facility that survived the nuclear strike almost intact.
The underground complex first let me loot it clean, then scavengers stripped the rest. Nothing left. But renovated as a residence, it might even beat my own bunker.
Still, never imagined living where a nuke dropped.
Then guys like Colonel Choi show up.
One appears, more might follow.
Need to fix up that U.S. base.
Make it so no one even thinks of nesting there. Only way to prevent a second Colonel Choi.
But how?
Burn it down?
Or fire up the dormant heavy machinery in the bunker to seal the entrance?
Nothing clicks. Too tame.
Need something bolder. More visceral.
Like, say, a monster lives there.
A Gold Pack of mutations would work too.
But how to plant them there?
They don't listen, and they kill any human on sight.
Thought about relocating the sniper mom and daughter, but even I'd steer clear. Scrapped that.
Frustrated, I dumped extra sugar in my coffee and logged into my mental oasis.
Clicked the popular posts tab.
Let's see.
Earlier, between chores, I'd uploaded a pic of the dog food bars.
Figured the quick comments might push it to popular.
But it wasn't on the list.
Only one like? That why?
Then.
"What the...? This fucking... dog..."
Almost cursed out loud.
Keystone had posted a photo. My dog food bar pic.
Stolen my image to snag popular post glory!
Protested, but no reply.
Seen such a shameless bastard?
Ranted on the board, but no one cared.
My one internet buddy, the human hunter, was MIA that day too.
Stewing in rage, I skimmed the rest of popular. One title caught my eye.
Mood sour, I clicked.
A single photo appeared.
Probably the hills behind some bunker.
Overgrown weeds and trees—nothing special. But amid it, something eerie stood out, exuding a chilling presence.
A pale cylinder with a dull grayish-white surface.
Replies poured in, but no real answers.
No one would know.
It's only observable in nations on the brink of annihilation.
That pale cylinder? A capsule.
A monster egg.
*
Monsters collapse the instant they enter Earth. But exceptions exist.
First: infiltrators.
Mostly small types that survive Earth's environment independently.
The necromancer type that zombified Chairman Je Phong-ho? One of those.
Immune to collapse, but weak in combat. Relatively speaking.
Second exception: not individual species, but environmental shifts.
When rift energy exceeds a threshold, the area warps to mimic the other side.
Called erosion.
In eroded land, monsters persist regardless of size or strength.
I've seen eroded terrain in China.
Our world, twisted malevolently. Nothing but apocalypse fits.
Kyle_Dos's pic? First type.
Infiltrator egg.
Don't laugh it off as an egg.
When it hatches, a full-power 100% combat monster emerges and shreds unlucky humans nearby.
No such thing as cute baby monsters.
Researchers learned that the hard way, many died.
No barrier or restraint worked.
After hundreds of researchers and dozens of facilities were destroyed, the World Union banned capsule research.
To me, capsules are monster-designed death traps.
Exploiting humanity's urge to study, explore, analyze.
And now one in Korea.
Horrible news.
Proof the surrounding area is already eroding.
DM'd Kyle_Dos.
Quick reply.
Kyle_Dos was sharp, unlike Keystone.
Keen eye, instincts for danger.
He's got survivor potential.
Qualified to live on.
Yet his fate is grim.
"Paju, huh..."
His bunker was near Paju.
Rift zone territory.
Pros and cons.
Rift zones have elite hunters and military forming the kill zone absolute defense line, locking it down tight.
Most dangerous spot—gateway for monsters—but also top-tier security.
But if the area fully erodes? Only two choices.
Die in your bunker or become a refugee.
Pulled out the pickup for the first time in ages.
One-ton electric truck.
Nav lit up with optimal route, but old-world data means squat now.
"Personal ID SKELTON confirmed. Want to bypass Seoul? Take Route 13 to 22, then 8."
Government-controlled roads are my path.
Especially with a precious vehicle.
Kyle_Dos's bunker wasn't far from the road, linked by a decent unpaved track for vehicles.
Kyle_Dos peeked from behind a tree, rifle ready, checking me out.
"It's SKELTON."
Announced myself first.
He hesitated.
"SKELTON has arrived."
Only then did he step out.
Early 30s, lazy eyes, neat clothes, decent nutrition.
But that smile—genuine, warm with anticipation. No smirk, no fake.
Like meeting the ideal doomsday prepper specimen. Prepared, resilient.
Not like the malnourished, broken refugees.
"SKELTON's younger than I thought? Looks healthy too. Surprising. Real surprising."
"Surprising?"
"Your posts made me picture some 50-year-old grizzled vet."
Tossed him a couple spam cans as a gift.
"What? Shouldn't I be giving you these?"
"Where's the capsule? Let's wrap this quick. Government road or not, sunset brings risks."
"Whoa. Nothing like I imagined? Why so sharp and no-nonsense?"
"What, I wasn't before?"
First time meeting.
No chats, no drinks.
Yet conversation flowed.
Like old pals.
Community bond?
Warms the heart, but...
"On the board, you came off weird as hell."
Why's my rep like this?
"Ah, there. That thing."
He pointed into the woods.
Under the half-logged midsummer forest, a meter-tall grayish-white oddity asserted an alien presence.
"This the monster egg?"
Kyle_Dos shivered lightly.
"Fuck. Felt like it. Color matches monsters slipping the kill zone. Just looking at it sours the mood."
He eyed me.
"This dangerous? You said monster egg."
Capsules hatch two ways.
Monster inside wants out, or strong external stimulus.
School manuals recommend:
-Use special rounds that pierce reflection fields. Hit from range to force hatch, then handle per type.
That's field protocol.
Basically, shoot from afar, drag the monster out, kill it.
That's all they know.
I know one more thing.
"Step back a bit."
Grabbed two axes, approached the capsule.
"If I die, take my truck and bail. Keys in it."
"What?! Die?!"
Not planning to, but nothing's 100%.
Hesitating when action's needed leads to certain death later.
I know from China. How indecisive comrades died, crippled, went mad.
"Here goes."
Two axes slashed toward the grayish surface.
Just before contact.
"Hup!"
Halted full-force.
Feint attack.
Playful to humans, but monsters aren't human.
So it reacts.
Swish—
I saw it.
A black axe blade ripping space right at my throat.
Reflection field.
Monsters' power: warp dimensions, twist attacks back at sender.
Limit to physical force it can redirect, but humans lack defense for the backlash.
One reason we can't beat them.
Lucky I controlled the power—no decapitation.
Sighed in relief, withdrew axes.
The black liquid-like field at impact rippled like waves, then melted into space.
"Safe."
Monsters deploy fields when they don't wanna hatch.
Only irresistible attacks force them out.
Why? Who knows. Makeup not done, sleepy, or monster forum browsing.
Whatever their reason.
I exploit this to test safely.
Skeleton-style capsule check, if named.
With Kyle_Dos's help, loaded the now-safe capsule onto the truck.
Thud!
Trophy secured.
"You're fearless. What if the monster popped out?"
Kyle_Dos whistled at the loaded capsule.
"Die if unlucky."
"Dumb question."
"Anyway, gotta rush. See ya."
"Yeah. Stay safe."
No need for long goodbyes.
We both got what we wanted.
And this ain't the end.
We'll cross paths on the community soon enough.
He waved.
"This stays between us?"
Nodded.
"Like my posts next time!"
"Depends on content."
He grinned, thumbs up.
Felt the community's sticky bonds as we parted.
Thud.
Didn't drop the capsule at the U.S. base.
Too close to home.
Placed our cute baby monster smack in the middle of the road between U.S. base and my turf.
About 5km away.
Matching distance to my sniper neighbors.
No clue what'll hatch.
Could be necromancer zombiemaker or spider-type architect predator.
Won't head my way, at least.
Monsters flock to crowds.
Not 100%, but...
Still, this kid's got solid specs.
Refugee convoy cut down right after adoption.
"Nice!"
*
A month later.
War's been raging one year, eleven months.
Community hot with refugee anxiety and gripes daily.
Keystone's post mixed in.
Refugees camped near his hood.
Destined clash?
World in chaos, but I'm enjoying a leisurely late summer.
Refugees?
Not touching my turf.
Right now, our cute baby monster still dozes in its round capsule, blocking pests from my domain.
But luxury invites ruin.
An unexpected pest threatens my peace.
Message from Lee Sanghun.
This guy's pulling strings in crumbling Korea. My Salieri.