Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: Mid-Boss from the Start
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Whether it's a game or a novel, they always give you time to level up.
But catching one zombie and bam—straight to the Mid Boss?
Isn't that a bit much?
'Well, what can you do.'
This is a novel world.
Genre: apocalypse.
Extras like us are supposed to die.
Of course, I have no intention of just dying.
"Hye-na, get down."
"Huh, what?"
I pressed down hard on Hye-na's head.
A protruding tentacle sliced through the space where her head had been.
-Crunch!
The concrete wall it hit cracked.
Insane power.
If it had hit her straight on, her head would've been pierced clean through.
'At least it lives up to the Mid Boss name.'
I could dodge it this time because I was prepared.
But asking me to do it repeatedly? Eh, maybe.
Hye-na definitely couldn't.
"Run!"
"O-okay!"
I grabbed Hye-na's hand and bolted down the hallway.
Fighting it head-on wasn't even on the table, obviously.
'Challenging a Mid Boss at level 1 would be insane.'
Over ten people had run for the rooftop.
And not one of them escaped—they all got wiped out.
No way two of us could handle it.
Right now, running was the best play.
"J-Ji-hoon! It's chasing us!"
"Yeah? That's bad."
I glanced back and spotted the Tentacle Monster.
It didn't look much different from a regular zombie at first glance.
Just a bit bigger, with its belly split open in the middle.
And those tentacles on its back, above all.
Getting caught by one of those spelled instant death.
'And it's sneakily fast.'
Probably about as quick as a grown man sprinting.
No matter how hard we ran, the distance wasn't closing.
Luckily, we weren't slow either.
Hye-na, from the cycling club, kept up pretty well.
The problem was stamina.
'Humans can't outlast zombies in lung capacity.'
Just running like this wouldn't shake it.
I needed another plan.
'Lose it somehow? Set a trap? Hide and ambush?'
None of them were great ideas.
If we had weapons, maybe.
Unfortunately, we didn't even have basic gear.
Our one skill was already used up.
So all I had left was this.
The 100 Doom Coins I'd gotten from killing that zombie earlier.
That was it.
The issue was how the hell to use them.
For now, I just yelled out blindly.
"Coin shop!"
And surprisingly, there was a response.
'.......What a trash novel.'
If you're not gonna let me use them, why give coins in the first place?
The author must've half-assed the plot.
-Crash!
Right then, a zombie smashed through a window and lunged at us.
We're on the fourth floor?
"Urk!"
The sudden attack caught me off guard.
I collided with the zombie from the force of its leap.
Couldn't withstand the impact—I hit the floor.
The zombie on top pinned me down with its brute strength.
"Graaaah!"
The zombie gaped its filthy maw.
Its arm strength was no joke.
I tried pushing it off, but it wasn't easy.
Just as it was about to bite my neck.
"L-Let go of Ji-hoon!"
Hye-na grabbed a nearby fire extinguisher and swung it hard.
It smashed right into the zombie's head, sending it flying.
She'd swung it with such force.
She lost her balance and tumbled into the hallway too.
But that was enough.
"Thanks, Hye-na."
Now free, I reached out and grabbed the extinguisher.
I slammed it straight down onto the zombie's skull.
Splat! Fluids oozed out.
No need to hit it again.
That was a definite instant kill.
"J-Ji-hoon, you okay? It didn't bite you?"
"I'm fine. More importantly—"
Mid-sentence, I swung the extinguisher at Hye-na.
More precisely, at the tentacle creeping toward her ankle.
-Thwack!
Surprisingly, the tentacle crushed easily under it.
The half-severed tentacle retracted quickly.
'These things have power, but weak durability?'
The first zombie was the same.
Ferocious looks aside.
A few chair hits and it was done.
Maybe a zombie trait?
Strength that no adult man could match head-on.
But once you landed a hit, they broke easier than expected.
'Doesn't mean rushing in is smart, though.'
I gripped the extinguisher tighter.
Ready to parry if it swung another tentacle.
"Grrooo......"
But for some reason.
It just stood there.
No follow-up tentacle attack.
Almost like it was wary of me.
'No way... it has intelligence?'
From its perspective, I was the prey that killed one of its own.
And just now, I crushed one of its tentacles.
If it had any brains, caution made sense.
A zombie acting naturally like that was unexpected, sure.
'Wish it'd get scared and run, but no sign of that.'
The tentacles still writhed in the air.
Poised to strike at the slightest opening.
The extinguisher in my hand felt especially heavy.
I had to end this before it recovered.
I took a deep breath after deciding.
Quietly told Hye-na beside me.
"Hye-na, when I give the signal, turn and run."
"H-Huh? What're you planning?"
She asked anxiously.
I nodded.
"Yeah, just run as fast as you can. You got this?"
"O-Okay!"
Hye-na nodded firmly.
She had every reason to be nervous or doubtful.
But after I'd saved her so many times.
She seemed to trust me completely.
'Doesn't matter right now.'
I focused on the Tentacle Monster.
The moment its tentacles parted slightly.
"Run!"
I hurled the extinguisher with all my strength.
A tentacle shot out in reaction, impaling it.
But that was fine.
That was the point.
-Boom!
The extinguisher burst, spraying powder everywhere.
Smoke filled the hallway, blinding the Tentacle Monster.
"Run! As fast as you can!"
Blind tentacles sliced through the smoke.
They whizzed past us by a hair.
We sprinted down the hall in that gap.
"Y-You weren't gonna fight it."
"Too risky."
If I'd had a knife or hammer, maybe.
But an extinguisher was too heavy to swing well.
With its reach advantage from the tentacles.
No speed behind my swings? I'd be skewered.
'Without Metafiction, I might've heroically charged in.'
But cold analysis said this was best.
Couldn't risk my life on something like this.
This bought us plenty of time.
The distance had opened up nicely, as expected.
Though it was still chasing with scary momentum.
'If we can just reach somewhere safe like this.'
Then we spotted someone else.
Security Guard Uncle.
He was trying to close the fire door at the end of the hall.
We'd seen each other around school plenty.
Maybe that's why spotting a familiar adult made her happy.
Hye-na broke into a relieved smile.
"Yay, we're saved! Thank goodness."
"......You think?"
Could that even stop a zombie?
Better than nothing, sure.
But we had no choice.
Couldn't race the Tentacle Monster forever.
Then the guard spotted us.
Our eyes met briefly—then his gaze shifted behind us.
'Wait, no way...'
He hurriedly slammed the fire door shut.
Even though we hadn't gotten inside yet.
"Wh-What's he doing?"
What else? Ditching us.
His quick thinking impressed me a little.
'Apocalypse rule: trust no one.'
Still, didn't expect him to shut the door right in our faces.
'Playing it like that, huh?'
I grabbed a nearby potted plant.
Hurled it at the guard with everything I had.
"Gah!"
It hit him square in the face.
Something shattered, dirt flying everywhere.
Dirt in his eyes maybe—his hands froze on the door.
"Hye-na!"
We bolted through the gap.
I crashed into the guard first, tumbling inside.
Tasted a bit of blood and dirt in my mouth.
"Shut the door!"
Hye-na rushed to lock it.
Thankfully, the Tentacle Monster didn't follow.
But that didn't mean we were all good.
"Closing the door on people trying to get in!?"
"Eek!"
I grabbed the guard by the collar and yanked him up.
No anger or other emotions welled up.
Metafiction kept me calm even now.
And calmly, coolly.
I judged this a situation to get mad in.
"We'd be dead if you got your way!"
"Right! How could you do that to us, Uncle? We were always so friendly!"
"Th-They told me to... other people..."
The guard sweated bullets, making excuses.
"E-Easy now."
A man's voice came from behind.
There were over ten people there, including him.
"Oh, it's Hye-na."
"Huh? Senior Jeong Hoon?"
Hye-na muttered beside me.
Someone she knew, apparently.
"Who's that?"
"Uh, men's cycling club captain."
A big shot, huh.
Tall and sturdy build, handsome face.
And stepping up like that.
Probably the leader here.
"Sorry you guys got the short end. But we had no choice."
Jeong Hoon said shamelessly.
Yeah, definitely the leader type.
"No choice?"
"Yeah, monster charging from behind—we couldn't risk everyone for you."
"We had plenty of time to get in."
"You never know. C'mon, cut us some slack with everything going on."
I glanced around.
Hostile glares everywhere.
They looked at us like we were zombies too.
"Shouldn't we check if they're hurt anywhere?"
"Crazy bastards. Could've just gone somewhere else—why throw the pot?"
"Tch, if they'd gotten eaten, it'd buy us time at least."
'Conditions suddenly met?'
But the messages didn't stop there.
Survive the Zombie Raid Using Your Selected Weapon!
Cards began spinning in front of our eyes.
Cards depicting a dagger, a bow, a bat, and a gun.