Chapter 9: I Want to See You (1) - Warrior, Revived!

Without even wiping down my lower half, slick and sticky with all that good stuff, I flopped right back into the Immortal Sarcophagus and immediately summoned Nephkent for possession.

The two naked women on the bed were holding hands, savoring the afterglow as they caught their ragged breaths—a hell of a sight. Yeonsu, her face flushed red, spotted me and grinned.

"...Dog-face, you're up again. Haah, haah."

"Yeah... for real," Hye-yun chimed in with a laugh, eyeing me too.

Looked like the Anubis mask had become some kind of reassuring symbol for the girls. Made sense—after everything we'd been through.

"Lost track of time. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠You girls know that?"

"Huh?"

Yeonsu answered, but both their gazes locked on me, faces still beet red. I grinned.

"Holding you two feels like heaven on earth. Yeonsu, we haven't done it with just you yet, right? Hye-yun, same for you solo. It's the best. Like, I wanna hold you forever. Well, I will hold you forever. Haha!"

"Ugh, seriously."

"Euuu."

Both buried their faces in the pillows, giggling all the while.

"Gonna clear out the zombies outside, so rest up."

Whistling a tune, I flung the door open. Zombie right in my face—fuck.

"Urgh—"

Grabbed its head, slammed it against the wall with a thud!, then stabbed its gut with the spear. Spearing inside the house is tricky. Ditched the spear, drew my curved sword, and hacked through the zombies that had wandered not just into the neighbor's but our place too.

Splat, smack smack smack! The sounds echoed wildly through the house. Eight of the bastards in our apartment—shit. And the sand on the floor? What the hell do I do with this? It wasn't generated by me; it's from the zombies turning to sand, so it doesn't vanish.

"Ugh, fucking zombies. Ushabti! Clean up this sand."

The Ushabti crouched in the corner stood up and extended its hands—one became a dustpan, the other a broom. All-purpose little servant.

House tidied, I shelved the warrior for now and pulled out the mage. The girls, finally worn out from our dawn exertions, were curled up like shrimp, eyes closed in blissful exhaustion. Tucked them under the blanket and headed out.

Ushabti was sweeping sand by the door.

"Ushabti."

"I'm stepping out for a bit. Guard the door so no zombies get into my bedroom."

Returned its hands to normal and stood like a sentinel. At just 1.3 meters, arms outstretched, no zombie's squeezing past. Ushabti—super convenient.

Out the front door I went. Sure, zombies were trickling in from the road behind our Sane Ddeul Apartment complex, so clearing that side made sense. But the warrior had other business.

Chipping away at the stragglers back there would just waste mental energy. I wanted coins. The best coin farm right now with the warrior? Blowing away those larvae with arrows. And today, I felt like trying some close combat too.

Taking the mage back there was risky—great for AoE sweeps, but its speed sucked, and it'd get mauled en route. Mages are for dropping precisely into horde spots. Max efficiency, right?

Door's guarded by Ushabti. If any zombie tries the bedroom? It'll alert me somehow. Swap to warrior and handle it. Off to Armani Rizzo Apartment.

Ugh, waddling along. What takes 5-10 minutes walking normally drags to 30 with this guy.

Hmm. Leveled up yesterday, got a new skill, right? What was it? Oh, Set's Anchor. Some massive AoE? It's a mage skill—probably. Let's test it.

Armani Rizzo Apartment. Barrier still up. Swept 500 yesterday, but still plenty left—maybe another 500?

New skill time! Slipped inside the barrier, zombies swarmed.

"Set's Anchor."

Staff flashed. Slammed it down—boom. Sand surged from the ground, forming a weird floating stele in the air. And... nothing else.

"...What the fuck."

Whoa. Ate 6 MP! Down to 3! What gives? Why burn 6 MP for nothing?!

"Urgh—"

Zombie inches away. Then the system message.

"...Connection point? What the hell?!"

...Huh? Sarcophagus?

"Urgh—"

"Fuck this. Nile Sand Bog!"

Slammed the staff—boom! The zombie grabbing my shoulder and every one around collapsed in a heap. Nabbed 250 coins. Done.

Sat up in the sarcophagus, rubbing my forehead.

"Ugh, fuck. What was that? What the hell?"

The sleeping girls jolted awake. I waved them off.

"Nah, it's nothing. Sorry. Go back to sleep."

"What happened...? You okay...?" Yeonsu asked, worried.

More worried about your naked ass, honestly. Fuck, lower tank's empty, and you're flashing that backside—makes me wanna pounce again.

"N-No, it's fine. Not many zombies outside. I wanna hunt more, though. Gonna head out for work, so sleep easy."

"Mmm..."

Yeonsu settled back at "hunt more zombies."

...Tempting slut. Almost wanna dive in. No. Not now.

Back in the sarcophagus. Wanted the warrior, but first—the wrecked balcony. Got 250 at least. Swapped to Nephmes, opened the door.

"Ushabti, you're good. Clean the sand now."

Ushabti snapped its hands back to broom and dustpan, sweeping away.

Neighbor's balcony—no zombies visible. The ones over the wall? A few shambling near it, but with it smashed like that, they ain't climbing.

Time for repairs. Fitted sand bars over the shattered balcony and bedroom window—29 coins spent.

Hmm. This place feels bigger now. Lots of potential uses. Got the builder out, over 200 coins—might as well. Where to expand? ...Living room? Yeah. Demolish the bathroom first. Open up the space.

"Myriad Eyes."

Sand slithered across the wall, sketching the bathroom interior. Basic stuff: small tub, washer inside, shower, toilet in the cabinet. Standard apartment bathroom.

"...Wanna scrap it all but the walls. Can I?"

The sketch shifted—everything flattened, just walls and ceiling left. Opened the door—everything intact. Just the vision changed. Got it.

"Demolish up to the bathroom walls. Erase everything inside, leave flat walls and ceiling."

Swung the glowing hammer at the wall. The whole thing crumbled to sand. Cabinet, tub, washer—all blurred to sand and poured down. Massive sand pile where the bathroom was.

...Insane skill. Ushabti's got work cut out.

Clear the sand, and the living room's way bigger. Endless uses. No need for the old sofa and junk.

"Ushabti, after the sand, haul all the living room crap out."

Perfect.

Next, warrior. Got a new skill yesterday too. Gave the girls' naked forms one last fond glance, then headed out.

Apartment entrance.

"Horus's Lion."

MP down 3 in one go. Insane. Sand gathered into a massive sphinx before me. Difference from a real one? Lion head, not human. Weird headdress from head to neck, saddle on its back.

"...A mount?"

About 3 meters long, 5 with tail. Overkill for solo. Crouched like a statue.

...Let's ride. 3 MP—better not suck.

What's the mage's third skill anyway? Climbed on—the sphinx stirred. Rose with a boom of presence. Read my mind, strode forward. Ride's smooth, gentle sway.

Time to run—and it bolted. Walks on walk, runs on run. Perfect mind-sync mount. Holy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠shit, wow. 2 MP left, but whatever. Let's go!

The lion was insanely fast. Warrior's quick already, but this? Dimensional leap. One bound covers 20 meters—near teleport. Hit the Convenience Store in under 30 seconds.

"Whoa, fucking awesome."

Gasped aloud in front. Store untouched, but... underwear for the girls? Eh. Got better now. Paper bags inside already stocked—leave 'em.

Larva first! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Up! Lion leaped mid-stride, claws gripping the 10-story building, bounding to the roof. Madman. Cat family tree-climbing? No roar, silent assassin—just paw smacks echoing as it prowled the edge.

Right: crudely fortified building. Two or three patrolling the roof. They froze.

...Staring this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠way? Too far—faces like dots, no expressions.

Anyway. Left: massive rotten egg. Head there.

Lion vaulted the four-lane road, landing on the opposite rooftop. Insane. Love this thing.