Drone (1)
As I stepped into the house, Han Seol flung open her door and rushed toward me.
"Do-hyun-ssi!"
Tears streaked her cheeks. Outside, the barrier still rang with impacts and Gwak Dae-hoon's beastly roars.
"It's a bit noisy, huh."
I activated the sound-muting ability, and peace returned to the house. Han Seol stared at me in surprise.
"Ah, it's my power. It can block out sound too."
"Do-hyun-ssi..."
"Is Han Byeol okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine..."
Startled by the voice from the living room, I glanced at the sofa. Han Byeol lay there.
"They'll give up after a few days anyway, so don't worry."
"I'm sorry..."
Han Seol gripped my hand and began sobbing pitifully. Even without words, the warmth of her hand conveyed her guilt for burdening her benefactor.
"It's all fine. Don't worry."
Han Seol wept silently, while Han Byeol seemed to have drifted back to sleep, eyes closed.
For a 23-year-old solo gamer who'd faithfully climbed the boys' middle-high school track with zero female friends—let alone real conversations with women—this situation left me utterly clueless.
Should I hug her?
My fragmented knowledge from dramas, games, and comics suggested that's what guys do. But was it okay in reality? Even after deciding it was right, I couldn't move.
Theory and practice were worlds apart.
"It's all fine, so don't worry."
I just repeated myself.
"Do-hyun-ssi..."
Then Han Seol hugged me first.
"Wha—uh."
Caught in her sudden embrace, my healthy 23-year-old body reacted honestly. I awkwardly leaned back at the waist.
Ah, that shampoo scent...
We used the same shampoo, yet hers carried a sweet aroma that pierced my nose. My vision blurred faintly.
I silently patted her back. Her tears soaked through my shirt to my skin.
Drunk on this first taste of warmth, something appeared in the air before me.
Resident's trust level has reached the maximum.
"Huh? What?"
"Do-hyun-ssi?"
At that moment, info flooded my mind: one locked room had unlocked.
"Han Seol-ssi, follow me for now!"
I grabbed her hand and dashed to the basement.
"Mm..."
The seven locked doors down there wouldn't budge.
"Let's check the second floor."
I took her hand again and hurried upstairs. A tingle hit me at the first door on the second floor.
"It's open."
"Pardon?"
I gripped the knob. Creeeak. The door swung open smoothly, as if never locked.
It had been an empty storage room when I lived alone. What could be inside now?
Shelves lined the walls—black iron frames with glass doors. Inside each compartment sat a single drone.
The five-tier rack held four drones per level, color-coded by row: blue on the first, green on the second, yellow on the third, orange on the fourth, black on the fifth.
"Ah."
A torrent of info crashed into my head, buckling my knees.
"Do-hyun-ssi! Are you okay?"
Han Seol steadied me by the arm.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
The first blue drone compartment opened. The second too. But the third didn't.
"Han Seol-ssi, smash the glass here—no worries about breaking it. Punch hard right in the middle."
I pointed to the yellow drone on the third tier, center shelf.
"Really?"
"Yes."
She nodded seriously, took stance, and smashed her fist into it.
BOOM!
The sound was deafening, but not a scratch.
I could only access the two blue drones on the first tier for now. The rest needed special conditions.
And crucially: these drones had attack functions.
The blue ones wielded Dissolving Liquid Projection. No clue what that entailed yet.
"Seol-ah?"
Han Byeol staggered to the door, woken by the noise.
"Must be the sound. Han Seol-ssi, stay with Han Byeol-ssi."
"Okay."
I pulled out the two drones, sat in the room, and willed them to activate. Engines hummed to life; they floated up effortlessly.
No bulky propellers—just pure lethality. Modern science was left in the dust.
Most shocking: I controlled both intuitively, like extensions of myself. I could even tap into their views.
Blue drones ran 24 hours max, then needed 2-hour charges. Dissolving Liquid Projection fired twice per drone, recharging after 24 hours.
Even without attacks, they were cheat items: risk-free scouting if returned in time, 48 hours alternating, cargo transport viable.
"The attack function's the wildcard."
I pocketed the drones and headed downstairs.
"Do-hyun-ssi."
Han Seol was tucking a blanket over sleeping Han Byeol on the sofa.
"Why not sleep in the room...?"
"Sorry. Byeol says it's too scary... Honestly, me too."
"I'll take the sofa then. You two use my room."
"No, that's not right."
"I'm fine."
I planned to tinker with the drones in the living room tonight anyway.
"It's not that... If we impose more, I'll feel too guilty..."
She fidgeted with her fingers, mumbling softly.
"Then let's all crash in the living room tonight?"
"Really?"
Her face lit up with a bright smile.
We fetched mats, blankets, and pillows from the room, set up, and chatted.
"Han Byeol sleeps like 20 hours a day. Isn't that too much medicine?"
"Part meds, but awakeners often sleep deeply after severe injuries. Survival instinct for recovery, I guess. She'll wake in about a week."
"Didn't know that."
Another awakener fact learned.
Curious about the drone by my head, Han Seol pointed. "Do-hyun-ssi, what's that...?"
"A drone."
I flew it around the living room. She beamed with childlike wonder, age-appropriate for once.
I explained its functions; she lit up, especially at the attack mode.
"That's what intrigues me most—can't know without testing. But we've got perfect targets outside."
"Pardon? Targets?"
I nodded toward the door. She got it and nodded back, resolute.
"Too hasty now; if they stick around till morning, we'll test it then?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
She burst out laughing at my pun.
"Shall we store the drones?"
Lying on the mat, I flew both back upstairs simultaneously. My vision split into three—mine and theirs—like multiple gazes on the world.
Pondering the door, claws extended from their undersides, gripped the knob, and opened it.
"Whoa..."
"What is it, Do-hyun-ssi?"
"The drone just used claws from its belly to open the door."
"Can I go see?"
"Sure."
She bolted upstairs like an excited girl. The drones entered, closed the door behind them.
"Do-hyun-ssi, it closed the door by itself!"
Her thrilled voice echoed from above.
"Yeah."
They slotted into their shelves, glass doors shutting, engines off.
"This thing's insane."
She bounced down the stairs, puppy-like.
We talked over an hour after lights out—favorite foods, dream meals if possible. Everyday stuff, but it soothed me. Sleep crept in.
"Do-hyun-ssi, sleepy?"
"No..."
She whispered softly, sensing my drowsiness. "Goodnight, Do-hyun-ssi."
"Cola."
"Pardon?"
"My dream's chugging cola straight from a convenience store fridge... Never again. Even if found, it'll be flat sugar water..."
Her laughter was the last thing I heard as consciousness faded.
"They're gone."
"They left."
Morning, up on the roof with Han Seol. No sign of Gwak Dae-hoon or his men.
Smoothest resolution possible—good, but a tad disappointing. No chance to test the drones' lethality.
I asked her, "Kinda bummed now that they're gone. Pretty trashy of me, huh?"
"No!"
She waved it off firmly. "In this world, you're practically a saint, Do-hyun-ssi..."
"A saint?"
"Yes. You gave enemies trying to kill you and steal your house a full day to flee instead of finishing them."
Persuasive. In a lawless world, mercy was the real madness. Of course, drone power was unknown—Dissolving Liquid Projection might not even kill.
"What're we doing today?"
"Trader group's tomorrow, so... You handled laundry. Eat breakfast, then fill the water barrels."
"I'll do it!"
"Together."
"Okay."
Gwak gone, no need for sound mute. I deactivated it, listening to the wind beyond the barrier as we headed inside with Han Seol.
Post-breakfast, barrels filled. Han Seol changed Han Byeol's bandages and dosed meds. I read at the kitchen table when—
BOOM!
"Eek!"
"Do-hyun-ssi, could it be...!"
I headed for the roof; she followed.
"Han Seol-ssi, stay with Han Byeol-ssi."
"No, I'm coming too!"
Her eyes burned with resolve. From the living room: "I'm fine, you two go..." Han Byeol yawned.
"Then together."
Activated the drones, up to the roof.
"Whoa... Now they're lobbing grenades at the doorstep."
They hadn't retreated—just fetched gear to breach.
Gwak Dae-hoon stood arms crossed, glaring at the barrier. His men pitched tents nearby.
"No mercy for this."
Han Seol nodded, face set.
I sat by the greenhouse, launched one drone. Switched to its view—flying high.
Approached from behind unseen, hovered above.
A soldier pointed. "Major! Something in the air—!"
"Too late."
Attack command. Something ejected from its belly, locked on, fired a silver sphere at them.
BANG!