Chapter 52

In the moment my dim-witted underlings panicked, Hemo had created an opening. Missing it would've made me a total fool.

"...W-where... where is this...?"

"N-no way, are we inside a gate?!"

The surrounding clamor bounced off the slick stone walls and floor.

Sorry for these people, but they were already caught up in it.

...And this one ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had been confirmed as ∅∅-grade.

Far more authoritative than the Association's rating system—my status window had informed me.

COEX Gate, Greenbelt Gate. After surviving those two abysses, I'd learned one 'truth'.

The moment panic sets in, you're miles away from clearing it.

Get it together.

Even mild hysteria would get us all killed.

Hot breath hit the inside of my Surprise Texture Mask and looped back into my mouth.

What rank the Geomdan Gate was in my past life didn't matter.

I had to get cozy with the variables.

I was the biggest variable anyway.

Abysses were often compared to living organisms.

Their ranks could 'occasionally' shift flexibly based on the entrants. Very occasionally.

...The COEX Gate was like that too.

Best not dwell on why these trials kept dumping on me, Wonseok.

Whining wouldn't budge my pitiful Luck stat anywhere near constant territory.

"L-let me out!"

"We're just civilians...!!"

"Fuck! Fuuuuck!!"

I shut my ears.

Can't get swept up in their panic.

Then I nodded.

The status window unfurled like parchment.

Okay.

Thanks for nipping false hope in the bud.

Fuck.

The red emphasis really jolted me awake.

Another goddamn death game was underway.

A bitter smile tugged at my lips under the mask.

At least my experience means the premise doesn't shock me.

Even if disgust burned at the back of my throat.

If I had to squeeze out some positivity here...

The ∅∅-grade clear rewards are on another level.

Just look at the Golden Die.

Thanks to it, I was enjoying wide-area privileges.

Clearing the COEX Gate and earning a Golden Die accounted for over 30% of my fame at the 64 Building.

The remaining 60% came from Lord Chungmugong's gift, the Nanjung Flag.

10% was my own merit...

Anyway.

First review event: ant-picking.

...Tempting as that punchy wording was.

The line that caught my eye was the last one.

This Geomdan subscription complex is Gwang-san's?

Thinking about it, it wasn't totally absurd.

Gwang-san Corp lived up to its guild name, aggressively securing coal mines.

The public excuse was material gathering.

But in truth, it was a literal hellhole that ruined countless lives.

As owners of such mines nationwide, they dominated real estate outside Seoul.

Seoul's prime land was split amicably between the top two.

Gwang-san had cleverly targeted the niches.

Even this Geomdan area was under Gwang-san's influence.

To confess, I harbored deep resentment toward Gwang-san. From my past life as a porter, I had real debts there.

Three of my ten years as a porter were wasted in their mines.

There...

....

I bit the inside of my cheek. The taste of blood cooled my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠head slightly.

Then the surrounding noise started drilling into my eardrums.

"F-find the exit! The exit!"

They were civilians, so the frenzy was understandable.

I was a hunter. I needed to calm their anxiety somewhat.

I scanned the crowd with cold eyes.

First review competition ratio: 20 to 1.

That was off.

Even generously, the number swept into the abyss was just over thirty.

Unless this abyss diced people to decimals, the math didn't add up.

Rule-based gates don't pull this.

And besides.

Even in this superhuman era where awakening was commonplace.

Separate from the ratio, the distribution of awakeners was high.

Abnormally so.

No way...

Gwang-san Corp's subscription recruitment conditions...

Chatter erupted.

The commotion centered on the streamlined staircase dominating the hallway's depths hit simultaneously.

Numerous presences descended the winding stairs, bringing festive noise.

"This complex really has great prospects."

"Right? And GTX trains are opening soon too?!"

Hope flickered in the eyes of those who entered the abyss with me.

"W-wait a sec..."

But terror drowned it in an instant.

Because of the 'things' coming down the stairs.

They were perfect human forms from head to toe.

Except for their faces.

Their faces were crudely scribbled with rough black lines, like a child messing around with a crayon.

Even up close, the facial features remained blurry. We could only guess gender from body shape.

Such things approached in hordes.

Enough to send anyone into hysterics.

"Hiiiik!"

Uncle Choi stuck tight to my side. I was the only one he knew was a hunter.

Not quite.

Feeling ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠eyes on me, I glanced over—Professor Kim was stealing looks too.

Clearly debating whether to stick with me.

Sorry, Professor, I'm in a bind too.

It happened in a flash.

"...Zombies..."

A level voice slipped from the crowd. Everyone snapped toward it.

A man with bangs covering one eye stood with arms crossed.

Namgung Hyuni.

When did he get here?

Without his trademark eyepatch, I hadn't recognized him. The eyepatch was basically his essence, whether Namgung Hyunil or doppelganger.

"..."

Our eyes met, and he snorted, turning away.

I half-doubted when I contacted him.

We hadn't exchanged much since. Our situations were too messy for mending ties.

Before coming to Geomdan, I had no mental bandwidth or reason for lengthy explanations.

I'd sent him one short message.

-Come make some money.

Namgung Hyuni needed cash fast.

Reviving North Ocean was his doppelganger priority. The original Namgung Hyunil was spinning wheels in Paju.

Even as a doppelganger, he wants to resurrect North Ocean Corp.

Our interests aligned on reforming the Seoul branch.

I'd bet on his impatience and selfishness. Any altruism... I wasn't counting on.

Half-doubted, but...

He seemed more invested in his guild than I'd expected.

By then, the faceless freaks swarmed the lobby.

At least a thousand.

No faces meant no readable gazes.

But one thing was certain: these weren't human.

With this crowd, it should've been stifling hot—instead, a chill permeated.

No body heat from living beings.

"Do zombies look like this?"

I asked Namgung Hyuni.

He reluctantly nodded.

"...Yes."

He hemmed and added,

His one eye rejected rapport, but his mouth still communicated.

Thanks.

"Forms vary by abyss, but zombies fits. Those scribbles on their faces are 'contagion'."

"Contagion... so they were originally..."

"Don't indulge in pointless sentiment. They're no longer human."

...Why does he seem smug?

As Namgung Hyuni puffed up, people edged toward him.

"They got swept into connected gates—awakeners once. Now they're part of this gate."

Users turned NPCs overnight.

"Don't get close... well, whatever."

"You heard! Keep distance from those things! Something weird might stick!"

"Y-yes!"

"Spread out!!"

Uncle Choi finished what Namgung Hyuni trailed off.

"Tch."

Namgung Hyuni, did that punk just click his tongue?

Just when I thought he had a human side—nope.

Incorrigible.

Ironically, conquering this gate needed that soft hunter's experience.

I pressed further.

"Anything else to watch besides proximity?"

"...Doesn't seem so."

Snooty reply.

Made him more trustworthy.

"B-but they're zombies...!! We gotta exterminate or something, right, hunter?"

"No."

I blocked it, and skeptical stares pelted me.

Sad.

My visuals commanded less trust than Namgung Hyuni's.

Fair—guild master aura lingered, doppelganger or not.

"Just my guess, but this gate's ∅∅-grade."

"...?!"

The crowd stirred wildly.

Infinite-rank hit heavy.

Luckily, the prior ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠COEX Gate had imprinted ∅∅-grade on the public.

Cuts down explanations.

Still, their anxiety held.

They even snapped at me.

"W-what's that supposed to mean!"

"Y-you're just hyping the danger, right?!"

"...Proof! Show proof!"

I glanced at the zombies and spoke.

"Zombies' basic goal: lunge at humans. But look—they're ignoring us."

"What does that have to..."

"Bound by the gate's rules."

"...!!!"

"∅∅-grade gates can be cleared casualty-free by following the rules."

C-grade and up saw casualties even in all-hunter parties.

Hence ∅∅-grade: follow rules, even awakeners could conquer.

This worked inversely too.

Ignore rules, even a hunter all-star team gets wiped.

"W-we can survive?"

"Follow the rules right."

"T-then let's figure the rules. Whatever it takes."

I shook my head.

Cast my gaze to the stairs.

"It starts soon."

Clack, clack.

Low heel clicks echoed.

A gentleman in a golden rabbit mask descended the streamlined stairs alone.

A Ruler.

Common term for abyss overseers.

COEX Gate had the golden goblin Shylock.

This man, this thing...

Zombie.

Unlike other zombies, his golden mask gleamed, asserting presence as heels hit the lobby.

His legs were freakishly long, skeletal thin—walking was a marvel, emphasizing his frame.

Thinner than idols I'd seen on broadcasts.

He placed a hand on his chest and bowed politely.

Ooooooh!

The dead cheered alone.

The living huddled tight, swallowing hard.

The Ruler snapped his needle-thin arms wide for his speech.

Right!

Right!

Volcanic cheers from the dead.

Ironically, the living nodded along to the rhetoric.

Not wrong.

A future-revealed fact.

Academic consensus: abysses projected human desires.

Seeing it now, seems plausible.

The Ruler nodded his golden mask contentedly.

A finger snap and thunderous roar shook the earth.

Waaaaaah!

Soulless zombies still raved.

The living stumbled, losing balance.

"S-save me...!"

"Can't go like this! Damn it, move-in was right around the corner—what bullshit!"

"I saved for years here!"

Poignancy.

Despair.

Vibrating vision layered emotions into aching afterimages.

I strained my eyes, surveying wide.

The vast hallway's stone tiles sank from corners, like worms devouring cabbage leaves.

Nearby zombies got sucked into the floor's dark underbelly.

Pixel dots crumbled, footing narrowing.

Naturally, panic gripped everyone.

Think.

Hints weren't hints for nothing.

The status window held clues.

I pored over it amid the shaking view.

And...

...!

Static pierced my temple soon enough.

I raised my voice.

"Everyone! You all want to live, right?!"

"O-of course!"

Right.

"Standing still guarantees nothing. Trust my word once—will you?!"

"...We get you're a hunter, but why should we trust you..."

"I trust him!"

Uncle Choi bellowed thunderously.

"Everyone! Trust my little bro to save even one more! No time to explain—now!!"

"Even so...!"

"Just try his way."

Then an unexpected ally chimed in.

Professor Kim, surprisingly.

"If we're doomed anyway, might as well go down doing something. Blame him in the afterlife if you want."

His cool tone gave them pause.

The scales of doubt creaked.

Please!

Did my desperation reach them?

"Let's follow him for now."

Namgung Hyuni backed me too.

People glanced at each other in push-up stances, then nodded.

"Not one death on 1F—at least."

I knelt, touching the floor with fingertips.

"Hemo."

From my touchpoint, Hemo rapidly coated the entire floor.