Chapter 337
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 337
Chapter Title: 136. Candle (1)
The flames burned all through the night.
If it weren't for the rain that fell at dawn, the fire would have consumed the entire mountain and then some. It spread with ferocious intensity.
We gathered some food, guns, and a portion of the ammunition.
The next morning at breakfast, I asked what had happened to our companions.
I hesitated for a moment.
Whether to tell the truth or lie.
The dilemma didn't last long.
I told the truth.
"They're all dead. Just bad luck."
It wasn't much of a story.
Compared to the pre-war world, it was no different from hearing that a bombing had occurred somewhere in the Middle East and a few locals had been killed by the blast.
No one paid much attention to the fate of those old men who burned to death.
Even so, the reason I'd hesitated to report the facts was a premonition that similar incidents might arise in the future.
This case had a relatively clear cause, but in the long road of life ahead, other events and people that tested our morals might appear before us.
When that time came, barring any surprises, the choice would fall to me.
Once the weather grew colder and a cold snap was confirmed, we'd likely face even more uncomfortable decisions.
Lost in these gloomy thoughts, I sipped my tea and stared blankly at the mountains gradually losing their greenery.
"SKELTON."
Valentine approached me.
*
Right after returning from Seoul, I'd once discussed Necropolis with Valentine.
He still seemed to believe Necropolis was a miracle built upon Deadman_working's self-proclaimed genius, but he didn't deny my opinion that the radio waves Necropolis used were different from ordinary ones—they were the voice of the rift.
"...Well, rifts are full of things science can't explain. Just look at how countless monsters appear and we kill them, yet we haven't properly identified a single one. Better to ask him directly on this. Though I doubt we'll get a reply."
Apparently, that reply had come yesterday.
"Surprisingly quick response. He seemed shocked himself."
We read the message Deadman_working had sent together.
The English text smoothly converted to familiar Korean letters in our eyes and brains once I pressed the auto-translate key.
Deadman_working was far from the mystique typical of those who hoarded knowledge.
He openly confessed his discovery without reservation.
The reason Valentine had messaged Deadman_working was to resolve issues arising from integrating Necropolis's radio waves into Viva! Apocalypse!
Viva! Apocalypse! provided a high-speed internet environment using state-of-the-art personal satellite antenna equipment.
It was about half the speed of pre-war fiber optic connections, but the robustness of Viva! Apocalypse!'s network and its stability even after the war made it clear why Melon Mask had once been the world's most successful entrepreneur.
On the other hand, Necropolis—literally creating something from nothing, defying all known laws—was a groundbreaking invention that rewrote history, but it had inherent limitations as a product born from the void. Compared to Viva! Apocalypse!, it could only handle extremely low traffic.
To put it precisely, let's borrow Valentine's words.
"If Viva! Apocalypse! is the Han River, Necropolis is the water trickling through a gutter."
Overcoming that disparity and merging the two was an immense challenge for Valentine.
After struggling alone, he finally asked Deadman_working for help—and astonishingly, Deadman_working provided a solution as straightforward as his initial confession.
And then he proposed a solution.
That favor was...
"The rift."
Valentine said in a low voice.
"He wants us to measure the radio waves around the rift."
I could see why Deadman_working mentioned me before making the request.
Classic Deadman_working.
It was an extremely difficult—and dangerous—mission.
Pre-war, with kill zones and armies blocking rifts, maybe. But overrun areas where monsters had broken through were monster paradises.
Though I'd never been, footage from India showed more monsters and otherworldly creatures swarming than inside the rift where I'd spent nearly a month.
Sending someone in unarmed where even an army stood no chance.
That's what Deadman_working was asking for.
"Can't we just send a drone?"
"Maybe seven or eight years ago, but not now. Monsters are more sensitive to drones than humans."
"Haa. What a pain."
Valentine smacked his lips in disappointment.
I couldn't read every expression on his face, but this was the first time he'd shown such blatant letdown.
It bordered on despair.
But it was incredibly dangerous.
Only top-tier Awakeners like Kang Han-min or Na Hye-in could venture into overrun areas.
For unblessed folk like us, it was forbidden territory we should never covet.
"Ha, if things go well, Deadman_working said he'd engrave our nicknames on the upgraded Necropolis gateway..."
"What was that just now?"
"Huh?"
"Something about nicknames."
"Oh, that?"
Anyone entering Necropolis sees this phrase.
[For F. Sawyer, M. O'Connor, and the beloved red one.]
No one knows who F. Sawyer, M. O'Connor, or the beloved red one are.
But the hundreds of thousands of Necropolis users know them.
"So you're saying our nicknames would be etched next to Sawyer and whoever?"
"I'm fine with it."
Valentine laughed and waved it off.
"..."
I thought it over for a moment.
*
"Huh? Sunbae? What wind blew you to contact me first?"
I messaged Woo Min-hee and explained the request.
"What? You want to explore around a rift?"
I prefaced it with pure academic curiosity and passion, then added the specifics about Necropolis.
To bolster persuasion, I recounted my efforts with slight exaggeration.
"You've been pulling all-nighters for a month to understand the connection between Necropolis and monster radio waves..."
"..."
"Well, you've always had that scholarly zeal, sunbae."
Screeech—
With that grating sound, she added a mischievous chuckle.
"Or was it narcissism?"
"...Zhuge Liang?"
"Hanging up~."
The only reason I'd contact this cheeky junior, Woo Min-hee, was that no other group had the experience, knowledge, and power to assist like hers.
She was part of "Alpha Team" with Kang Han-min and Na Hye-in, having achieved numerous feats inside rifts.
With her help, peripheral rift exploration wasn't a dream.
It would be far smoother.
I'd never been to an overrun area, but I'd seen similar environments plenty in China.
After a tedious and gruesome conversation, I secured Woo Min-hee's cooperation.
"You know, I've wondered this before. Why do you love dad jokes so much, sunbae? Even elementary kids don't say that stuff anymore. I just don't get it. You're the last person who should."
I endured some nagging, but I'm not so fragile that mere scolding sways me.
Through Viva! Apocalypse!, I've grown strong.
With Woo Min-hee's permission, there was no hesitation.
I'd been thinking of tackling something major before winter anyway.
It came with risks, but could it compare to the dangers and sacrifices our John_nenon endured?
The issue arose internally.
"Not this internet obsession again?"
I never expected universal understanding.
I get the resentment toward my excessive attachment to the virtual world of the internet.
"I'm not trying to stop you. But it feels like the priorities are upside down."
Surprisingly, it was Ha Tae-hoon who spoke up.
He usually avoided harsh words, sticking to moderate self-preservation, so for him to bring this up meant it had been brewing for a while.
Not a sudden grudge.
Ha Tae-hoon and I are different people.
Different births, regions, life hues.
He used the internet but never drowned in it.
To him, it was just a useful life tool, not an obsession.
Pre-war, he'd fit squarely in the healthy normal category.
"We built this sturdy bunker to survive, right?"
Exactly.
To survive—and endure the apocalypse more comfortably than others—we'd spent three years building this bunker from bare ground.
But people's thoughts always change.
"True. But listen, sunbae."
I don't particularly want to persuade.
Who gets persuaded in this world anymore?
I just quietly state my thoughts.
"Even if we die, wouldn't the path be smoother with a couple of episodes to smile about beforehand?"
Sure, instant death odds are high, but I'll ignore that.
According to pre-war spiritualists, even in instant death, one glimpses their entire life in a flash.
Either way, my mind's made up.
"...You're the boss here. Just worried, that's all."
Ha Tae-hoon sighed and muttered to himself.
Probably a self-deprecating question about what happens if I die.
It could be a problem.
But.
"Sunbae."
I approached Ha Tae-hoon.
"I'll come back."
I won't fail.
Thus, the rift trip was set.
Two travelers: me and Valentine.
Different from the Necropolis days.
Couldn't—and shouldn't—take everyone.
Our area had been exposed multiple times, demanding stronger defenses.
Above all, this mission was for us.
Valentine's accompaniment wasn't pre-planned.
Rift periphery and overrun exploration were extremely hazardous.
Not just mutations and monsters.
Otherworldly creatures predating monsters swarmed the rift edges.
Past scholars naturally called them native otherworld fauna, but that theory was overturned.
Nothing like them lived beyond the rift.
Rift interiors were perfect worlds of death.
Not even bacteria could survive.
No new theories emerged for this eerie evidence.
The sudden war rendered it all meaningless.
To me, those otherworldly creatures seemed like prototypes.
Pre-production models from beyond the rift, tailored for Earth's environment to expand their repulsive gray hordes.
Initially docile and non-aggressive, they'd grown ferocious, evolving solely to exterminate humans.
Meaning high chance of unknowns.
So before departing, I thoroughly convinced Valentine.
Dangers of otherworldly creatures, extreme environments even I couldn't guarantee, the madness-inducing aura of erosion zones, and more.
Valentine proved a true apocalypse man.
"Let's do it."
His face unchanged after hearing the perils.
"What's the worst? Death?"
His resolve firm, leaving him behind felt rude.
But since it was undeniably risky, I prepared accordingly.
"Anyone you want notified if things go south?"
Realistically, my survival odds beat Valentine's.
In shared peril, I'd prioritize myself—embarrassing but true.
Even with Woo Min-hee's aid, the danger remained.
"...Let's see."
Valentine rolled his eyes.
Thinking.
Moments later, he spoke.
"My ex-wife, I suppose. Might be dead by now."
"You were married?"
"Long ago. Split before the war."
"Ah."
"It's fine. Mutual fault. Confirmed she was alive when Park Penguin left, so odds are good. Probably shacked up with someone else now."
Valentine wore a vague smile.
"Still my ex. If I can send an obituary, why not."
"Won't happen."
I took a photo.
Valentine's solo shot, V-sign and awkward smile against our bunker backdrop.
Suu glancing over in the distance as a light touch.
"No pic for you, SKELTON?"
"Me?"
I smiled faintly.