The Android's Hidden Inventory
"Help me, Gaseum-emon... no, wait, Android-emon!"
Following my plea, Revi began pulling various knick-knacks from between her breasts. But given the unexpectedly rich state of her inventory, my body started to heat up, even though it was almost time for dinner.
"Wait, this is animal fur!"
"Ah, yes. I encountered a pack of wolves the other day. I ate all the meat from the ones I killed, and I kept this to roast later(?)."
"No, this is an item that only drops with a 10% chance from the beasts you kill... why would you waste it by roasting it?"
"...Did I do something wrong?"
"Big time! You're doing it big time!"
It was enough animal fur to make a spare set of clothes and then some. It was a precious material that could be used for anything from small-scale clothing production to large decorative carpets, yet she was going to use it as mere food to stave off a little hunger. If I hadn't seen this, it would have been a classic case of casting pearls before swine.
On top of that, if it were just the fur, I might have understood, but Revi even had sewing needles and thread right here.
"You could just weave it together with the needle and thread to make 'leather armor,' couldn't you?"
In Star's Doll, the weight system goes up to 100. Once you exceed 50, there is a delay in movement, and once you pass 70, rolling becomes impossible.
That’s why relatively safe newbies tried to keep their weight at a maximum of 69, while veteran players like me usually went for a "solid and heavy" build with 100 weight, or the exact opposite, playing at 50 or below.
"Leather armor? ...Ah, are you referring to the protective gear used by humanity in the past?"
"Yeah, that! If you're only wearing a bodysuit, your base weight is probably around 30, but leather armor only adds about +10!"
"Even if you tell me that, I was planning to eat it all."
"No, seriously, why?"
The day was getting dark, and I had to prepare for the cold wind. Since Revi would probably eat the needle and thread too, I hurriedly grabbed the sewing supplies and began making the leather clothes myself. Watching me, Revi’s eyes brightened in a strange way...
"Oh... this is sewing."
"Yeah?"
"This is my first time seeing it in person."
"W-what?"
Her first time? Usually, wouldn't you learn this kind of survival method during the training process in R.P.M?
"Revi, you're an android, you don't know how to sew?"
"...? Are androids required to know how to sew?"
"Eh?"
"My 4th Unit is a combat unit, and we have spent our entire lives learning only combat techniques. Therefore, I know nothing about fields like sewing."
Just how hardcore of a life has she lived? An android that can't even sew. This was a stat level that would make veteran players drool... no, it was enough to make newbies cry from the difficulty.
'Retaking the surface... is that even possible?'
By the time the sky was completely dark, I had managed to put on some warm clothing based on the leather Revi had brought. I had finally evolved into a Neolithic outfit that could cover my privates. I also handed Revi, the original owner of the fur and sewing supplies, a piece of leather armor that would give her at least +3 defense.
"Even if you are a combat unit... *sigh*, never mind. More importantly, take this."
"Hm? Is this a spare set of clothes for you, Chanwoo? If so, I shall keep it safe."
"No, just wear it yourself!"
"Me...?"
"Yeah. After all, I was only able to make this because of the items you brought. Just think of it as a thank-you gift."
"A thank-you gift..."
Now that we had gear, we had to get into an abandoned building to hide as quickly as possible. As with all survival games, the night in Star's Doll was particularly dangerous. The long-shaped monsters I saw in the morning? The Earth at night, with the sun set and the moon risen, is described in the lore as "hell itself," making those daytime "small fry" look cute by comparison. Even the fierce birds of prey hide in the sewers at night, silent as mice. The night in Star's Doll was that kind of time—there was even a specific challenge called "Survive the Dawn."
Well, if this were a third-person game, for veterans like me, it would have been a playground.
"Revi. Is there an abandoned building nearby where we can hide?"
"Yes. As a matter of fact, my shelter is right nearby."
"Good. Let's go there."
Now that the game had become reality, I didn't want to wander around in the evening of this apocalyptic world. I followed Revi, leaving behind the bizarre cries that had begun to echo throughout the city as if it had just awakened from its slumber.
Revi said she had been sent to downtown Seoul by R.P.M from the beginning. The shelter she found was, unexpectedly, a very useful building.
"This is where I usually stay."
"You even have a bed..."
"Yes. Thanks to it, I can recover my fatigue quickly, so it doesn't hinder my combat."
It was on the 5th floor, neither too high nor too low. The building was square-shaped, which meant if an enemy invaded, the wide structure offered plenty of opportunities for ambushes. Above all, the fact that it had an "underground parking lot" was the biggest plus.
'Usually, a parking lot is an essential facility for "maintaining" parts. I got it for free without having to build it; it's like killing two birds with one stone.'
For Revi, who couldn't even sew, having bedding that allowed for "sound rest" must have been a huge help.
"You did well to find a place like this, Revi."
"...! Thank you for the praise."
The CCTV I caught a glimpse of when we stopped by the 1st floor earlier—it didn't look in bad condition. If I tinkered with it a bit and connected the "electricity," it would be perfectly usable. And in Star's Doll, electricity is usually obtained through "natural forces."
'Hydropower... that seems difficult in our current early-game state, so I guess I'll have to get it through wind or solar power?'
It was a shelter too good to just pass by. Moreover, the genre of this world was Apocalypse + Souls-like + Survival. It meant that if I wanted to survive, not just fight, I needed a "base" where I could rest comfortably. And I was a human with clear limitations. Fighting off monsters while traveling the world like an android in a game? If I died of old age before that, it would be a "good death."
'Even the ending of the main story ended on an open-ended note after killing the object that occupied one region, so what could I, who isn't even an android, possibly do?'
In the end, there was a high probability I would live in this overgrown downtown Seoul until I died. Thinking of that future, I honestly wanted to make this place my base. This 5-story "motel" Revi found was worth it. However, for that to happen, Revi, the powerful android, had to stay by my side forever.
...*Slink.*
An android that has entered Earth has only one mission: the total annihilation of all monsters on the planet. That's why most androids wander this planet endlessly, searching for monsters without a settlement. For the sake of humanity. To swing their swords for the future of humanity that will be newly born on the reclaimed Earth... that was the setting of this world.
But Revi met me, a human who was thought to be extinct, while she was fulfilling her mission. Maybe that's why. Under the pretext of protecting humanity, the creators of androids, she had been silently by my side until now. But how long would that last?
The mission to annihilate monsters... and the pretext of protecting humanity. Even a veteran like me couldn't easily guess which would become her priority. Above all, as someone who had been protected by an android once, I didn't want to be alone again. No, logically speaking, how could a weak man (with a big dick) like me survive in a world like this?
Why are Souls-like games fun? Because even if they are difficult, there is at least a way to beat them. People become obsessed with Souls-like games because they enjoy achieving a "feat" by chasing that 1% chance. But look at my situation now. Do you think there’s even a 1% chance I’ll survive?
Even today, if it weren't for Revi, I would have been chewed up and swallowed like kimchi, soaked red.
'Ugh... is there any way to keep her by my side?'
How could I keep Revi by my side? I was agonizing over it when...
*Rustle, rustle.*
"...Hm?"
Revi, who would be sleeping in the same motel room as me starting today for protection. Of course, in an apocalypse like this, survival was the most important thing. It wasn't the time to be shy or talk about how it was my first time sleeping with a woman. That’s what I thought, but...
*Plop.*
"Re, Revi?"
Even so, this was too much. She suddenly took off the bodysuit she was wearing. Then, she walked up to me, who was deep in thought, and prostrated herself.
"Judging by your facial features and skin color, I have confirmed that your race is 'Asian', Chanwoo... is that correct?"
"Uh... that's right, but?"
"Yes. Then, I shall greet you first with the Asian etiquette of 'dogeza'."
Since when did dogeza become an Asian etiquette? No, before that, it wasn't just a regular dogeza, but a naked dogeza with her bouncy buttocks fully exposed. Just as about a hundred question marks were floating over my head:
"Chanwoo. The reason I am showing this 'etiquette' is because I have a request for you, a human."
"A request...?"
Revi looked up at me, resting her steamed-bun-like breasts on her chin. The request she made was, in a way, as important as my lower half, which was currently standing tall.
"Chanwoo is the first human observed since the activation of R.P.M. In other words, I have a 'mission' to protect you, a surviving human, with all my might, no matter how you managed to survive."
"Uh... so?"
"So, would you help me restore the power to this building? I need to send information about you to R.P.M, but honestly, I only have the talent for swinging a sword!"
*Jiggle, jiggle.*
Hmm... Is it just my imagination? Looking at something that shakes every time she lifts her head, it seems like she has one more talent.