Chapter 15
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Melting Shampoo (4)
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Creaaaaak...
The sound of the rusty door opening echoed through the entire house.
Since it was already a quiet place, the rusty screech reverberated even louder inside.
And then...
"..."
That was it.
"..?"
I kept my finger poised over the 'Return' button on the status window, waiting.
To figure out what had just come into the house, I'd been holding my breath, staying completely silent...
'..What the hell?'
Whatever had opened the door wasn't coming inside.
'..What is it?'
About 30 minutes passed like that.
Still holding my breath, body tucked away beside the sofa.
No sign of anything entering the house yet, so with a sliver of curiosity, I crept toward the front door...
'???'
The front door was firmly shut... with a single sheet of paper stuck to it.
Yeah... that really was it.
Just one flimsy piece of paper taped to the front door...
'When the hell did it close the door and leave..?'
I had no idea what kind of being it was.
But the fact that it had casually opened someone else's door just to stick up that one paper and then left... it was almost comical.
The absurdity only lasted a moment before I flicked on the status window's camera and zoomed in on the paper, just in case.
Took a photo to confirm if it was safe to touch.
Then headed to the gallery where all the photos were stored and slowly began reading the text scrawled on it.
1) I came from outside. Even if you lock the door with a password, I can open it anyway. So just don't do anything stupid. Actually, don't do anything stupid at all.
2) How about coming out of the house now? This world's so beautiful. The most pitiful thing in the world is people holed up at home. It's safe outside again.
3) Sounds crazy, I know, but we've already secured safety for every house. For real. We walled them off, and those things couldn't break through even one wall, so they gave up and left.
4) Lucky for us, right when we were about to starve, we ran into some kind people sharing food. We were in real trouble with nothing to eat.
5) Don't worry—just come on out. Lots of good folks outside. No need to tough it out in the house.
6) You've got 4 days to come out. After that, no food shares. Not enough for everyone, so get out before it's all gone.
7) No need to work or anything. Survival's the priority here—just chill with people, watching the sun rise and set. Easy life.
8) Think about your future. Stay cooped up forever, and starvation's your only end.
9) No next chances. Out in 4 days, no exceptions.
10) Nobody wants to die.
11) I know it's ridiculous, hard to believe—but trust me. Everyone's living happily. Join us. Save me. I'm bored to death. Let's have fun together. Please... okay?
'..I don't even know this house's password..?'
It says even password-locked doors can be opened...
Is this monster some kind of electronic hacker?
Can hack any machine it touches...
'Ah, wait.'
As I mulled it over alone,
the customer service computer that only displayed inquiry logs suddenly came to mind.
'..A real hacker monster. ..But then why smash the computer?'
The monster's ability struck me as ridiculous for a second.
'Why's it so desperate for me to come outside.'
This note from the hacker monster was just like the rulebook—it demanded I head out within four days.
Brought back memories of Bellierd Library, where I'd had to follow the rules.
'Ugh.. scary as hell, but I gotta go outside.. Gonna need a ton of prep.'
I realized that from here on, surviving this bizarre world by following the rulebook meant a lot of preparation.
'What to pack first..'
Bellierd Library had supplied fresh clothes daily, so no big worries there.
But whatever lay ahead wouldn't be so accommodating.
'Water and food first priority. Pack a few changes of clothes... Weapon.. yeah, something like a baseball bat. Armor would be ideal.'
The moment I went to fill water from the tap, grab food from the fridge, and clothes from the closet...
I realized something.
'..Gotta check every single thing..'
Is the tap water safe? Fridge food okay to eat? No monsters lurking in the closet? So much to verify.
"Haa..."
Stressed by all that was left to check, I immediately logged into the community.
[Haven't proven I'm human yet, but can I get some help?]
(Photo)
This world's got a hacker monster delivering rulebooks.
Still blows my mind it opened the door solo, stuck the rulebook in, and bounced.
But gotta go out within 4 days, so starting prep today.
If I get stuck, can just Return—but I feel like I'll end up back here someday, so wanna gather max info.
(Photo)
This is the tap water running—looks clean? Safe to drink?
(Photo)
Fridge inside—no labels whatsoever, no clue what those cans are.
Safe to eat?
(Photo)
Closet looks scary AF..
(Photo)
Poked some holes with the awl. Monster inside?
(Photo)
Whoa... startled me.
Hearing a crash while typing—checked, and the closet door's busted.
Was gonna ask if monster in there—nope, seems empty. How's the damn thing so flimsy?
Breaks after a few pokes.
Tsk tsk, that's why you stick to Made in Korea.
Anyway, planning to head out per the rulebook and survive a few days.
Veterans, any must-haves for going outside? Recommend pls.
What'd you do, turn the closet into a beehive...? Poking like that'd kill a monster too, newbie..
Monsters won't die from something like that?
How do you know that?
Don't know for sure, just posing the question.
Newbie saying it like that makes it sound like fact ㅇㅇ 3kill 0death knows more than 0k 0d.
Fr ㅋㅋ
There was an old post about checking if water's safe. I'll dig it up, hold on.
Logged into the community and immediately posted for help, then glanced around.
Couldn't rely solely on the crowd's wisdom.
Started rummaging solo for what to pack.
'Hmm.. any armor around?'
I wasn't fool enough to think only normal people roamed outside.
Just like Bellierd Library had dressed me in the librarian uniform.
Had to assume monsters would target a plain-looking guy like me.
'Gotta grind hard for 3 days making stuff.'
Decided to craft armor from whatever materials were here over the next three days.
'Let's see—for armor, need leather first, so rip it from clothes...'
...
Four hours had passed since arriving.
Had strewn every potential material for armor or weapons across the living room.
Pondering how to piece them together...
'Oh right. Gotta prove I'm human.'
Remembered I needed to certify in the Gallery that I was human.
Shelved crafting for now and pondered the best proof.
'Hmm.. what's solid..'
A surefire way to prove humanity...
Without a selfie to show I was human...
"Hmmm.."
A groan slipped out as I agonized.
How to convince skeptics I wasn't a monster? Major headache.
'Ah? Talk about manga or anime?
Something ridiculous like a female K-pop idol hunting a demon male idol—everyone'd have to admit I'm human.'
Logged into the community right away to certify... ..What the?
[Newbie, check ss2b quick]
[Did that guy already head out?]
[Going insane fr. Zoomed in on john2—creepy as hell;]
[Can't even DM cuz suspect newbie's a monster... Rather it just be one..]
[About to lose it about to lose it about to lose it...]
[Way to force gallery view without DM?]
[Told ya that fucker's a monster? No need to worry]
.
.
.
[Hey hey check this NOW, newbie. Do NOT go outside.]
'..What? Hasn't even been 6 hours?'
What the?
Why's the whole Gallery hunting for me like this..?