9. Gathering Survivors (1)
Gyeongju City. One of the oldest cities in South Korea, it served as the capital of the Silla Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. The city sprawls across the plains of the Hyongsan River basin, and it's said to be geographically close to the East Sea. To me, a lifelong Seoulite, it was just a famous tourist spot known for its cultural festivals.
To Yu-na, Gyeongju was the city she lived in—her hometown. But to Bahamut, once an ordinary young man from Seoul in the Republic of Korea, it was renowned as a tourist destination packed with cultural festivals. So, his honest impression? Just a city overflowing with festivals... and that was it.
Hold on a second. Does that mean I've committed a crime by excavating cultural artifacts? I heard that if you dig anywhere here, you hit cultural relics.
All that came to mind was the internet meme: "Dig anywhere in Gyeongju, and you'll find cultural artifacts!" Bahamut mindlessly wondered if there might've been some at his own location too. In reality, Gyeongju was a city where construction projects were constantly delayed or canceled because actual cultural relics kept turning up whenever they dug.
No, that's not the point. Let's gloss over that trivial true fan nitpick!
Bahamut himself had unearthed what looked like artifacts while building the temple inside the mountain. But brushing it off as a minor mistake? Don't you have a conscience, Bahamut?
What do you plan to do from here on?
Dismissing his criminal record of cultural heritage damage as a minor nitpick, this conscienceless dragon prioritized learning Yu-na's future course of action. Using the Mirror of Farsight spell, he conveyed his will to Choi Yu-na.
In truth, Yu-na had descended Namsan and arrived in Gyeongju City, but Bahamut hadn't heard a thing about her plans moving forward. So, before plunging into the city, it was only natural to ask his contractor about her thoughts and strategy.
"This voice?"
[Through the Mirror of Farsight spell. I'm speaking to you in real time.]
Startled by the voice in her head, Yu-na quickly realized it was Bahamut.
"Ah. My Lord!"
Yu-na called Bahamut "My Lord" without hesitation.
[M-my Lord? No, that's not the point... First off, it's brave of you to return to the city, but the interior is extremely dangerous. I believe it's wiser to devise a thorough plan before charging in blindly.]
"Indeed. You're right."
Bahamut seemed burdened by her faith, showing discomfort at being called a god, but to Yu-na, she only heard the majestic voice of a deity. Unable to refute her expectant gaze, he cut straight to the main topic. Yu-na cautiously nodded in agreement with his opinion.
As Bahamut said, the city wasn't safe. It teemed with zombies. Rushing in recklessly could lead to disaster.
"First, I plan to make contact with any survivor camps or communities inside the city."
Of course, Yu-na hadn't come without a plan. She had one in mind and shared it with Bahamut. Her idea: reach out to survivor communities within the city.
[Wasn't Gyeongju wiped out?]
"No. Only our survivor camp fell. The others were still operating fine before I headed to Namsan. Some even took groups of awakeners with better conditions than mine."
Contrary to Bahamut's assumption that Gyeongju had been annihilated since Yu-na's camp collapsed, only her group had fallen. The other camps remained intact. Plus, before the collapse, a large group of awakeners had safely defected, making it likely that awakener groups still survived inside the city.
"Besides, if a group that large got wiped out already despite taking so many awakeners, it would just prove Jo Sun-do is utterly useless. Heh."
This was optimistic speculation, of course. They might've been overrun by zombies in days. Yu-na smirked coldly, amused at the thought of mocking the defectors as incompetents if they'd perished. She knew it unlikely, but if true, it would be laughably pathetic.
She's scary! This girl is scarier than I thought!
Watching Yu-na through the Mirror of Farsight, the foolish dragon once again seriously questioned if this contract was truly a good idea. Despite his massive dragon frame, he was more of a timid idiot than expected.
[So, no survivors outside the camps?]
Though a romantic fool, Bahamut wasn't utterly clueless. He didn't pry about the awakener group Yu-na mentioned and instead asked about other survivors.
"No. Since the zombie apocalypse began, there were folks holing up in their homes. Food's probably running low now, but I think plenty of individuals are still alive on their own."
[I see. Then, rallying those independent survivor groups comes first.]
Yu-na explained the city's situation in detail. Beyond the camps, independents existed too—those confident in their strength or distrustful of camps, barricading at home. She believed more survived than expected, and Bahamut agreed: uniting the scattered ones was priority.
"Why is that, my Lord?"
With a cautious expression, Yu-na asked the reason. Why bother rallying loners?
No, even if you ask me... I don't have a real reason.
Bahamut had just meant to start with the easier targets. No profound motive there.
But that expectant gaze! If I fall short of expectations...?
She'd surely return with an icy glare. Unwilling to betray Yu-na's hopeful eyes, Bahamut racked his deficient brain to maintain his dignity and convince her logically.
[If they have no leader of their own, I thought presenting the right terms would make them follow us easily. Established survivor camps in Gyeongju likely have solid leaders or executives. Even if you approach them, you won't easily claim a position of power. To achieve your dream, even if it's harder, uniting the scattered wanderers to birth a new force is best.]
"Ooh... And then? After rallying the scattered survivors?"
[Ahem.]
He'd spun it well enough; Yu-na was convinced by the direction. Loners without loyalty could be swayed by negotiation, and joining established camps offered no spot for her. To rebuild order as she desired, she needed authority atop people—so forging her own faction from independents was key, even if tough.
Yu-na nodded, already asking for the next step. Bahamut, flustered but committed...
[...We'll create a new force representing Gyeongju and build the world you want from there. They're powerless now, but once order returns, their myriad skills will shine again, won't they?]
"Exactly! I'll follow your words, my Lord."
He'd succeeded with another plausible excuse. But it truly rang true—no suspicion from Yu-na. It aligned perfectly with her goal of restoring collapsed order. Rebuilding required followers devoted to her ideals, and power was undeniable fact. Thus, rallying scattered survivors to form a new force in Gyeongju was far from bad for her position.
"My Lord. Zombies ahead."
[I see them. They look... weaker than goblins.]
Plan set, Yu-na entered Gyeongju without hesitation and spotted a zombie pack. Hiding instinctively, she alerted Bahamut via the Mirror.
Bahamut observed through it, remarking they seemed weaker than expected.
"Yes. Weak enough for even unawakened civilians to take down."
[Then why did the camps fall? Even with friction between awakeners and normals, they'd unite against visible external threats.]
Yu-na confirmed their weakness—even unawakened could manage with care. Bahamut questioned the camp's fall. Recalling her nightmare reluctantly, she explained to enlighten him.
"There were stronger variant zombies."
[Variants? Like commanders directing the regular ones?]
"Yes, just as you say. Variant zombies led regular hordes to assault survivor camps. We held at first, but their attacks intensified over time. Captured awakeners got infected, turning into zombie awakeners."
Stronger variants appeared, capable of infecting awakeners. Those turned zombie-awakeners became weapons shattering camps. It made sense why useless normals were abandoned as powerful awakener groups fled.
Variants were a catastrophe for camps.
[I see. Escaping was sheer luck, then.]
"Yes. Meeting you like this must be heaven's fated design."
[……….]
Bahamut called her escape to Namsan fortunate, but Yu-na attributed it all—and meeting him—to divine fate. Overwhelmed by her fervent faith, he averted his gaze inwardly but refocused on priorities.
[Ahem. Anyway, our path is clear. Rally the scattered survivors. Purge the zombie hordes inside. Then, use them to rebuild the broken order.]
"Yes. That works perfectly. All as you will it, Bahamut."
With Bahamut dictating her course, Yu-na voiced no complaints, pledging obedience.
Is this really okay?
The anxious dragon and his priestess were a mismatched pair.