Chapter 21
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Zombie Apocalypse (18)
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While packing a spare baseball bat into my bag to head to the mart, Na-eun hugged me from behind.
"It'll be dangerous, right? Maybe we shouldn't go? Young-eun is Young-eun, and we're us."
She'd impulsively asked me earlier, but after thinking it over while packing, she seemed to realize it wasn't going to be easy.
Even if her boyfriend had somehow become strong enough to take down zombies in one hit, dozens of them were a different story.
And though Na-eun had killed zombies before, this was after she'd come to see them as different from people.
Right now, we weren't heading out to fight zombies—we were going to fight people.
She'd stayed quiet the whole time we packed, probably because she didn't want to put me in danger.
"It's fine. Didn't you call me your hope? I might not be everyone's hope, but I'll be yours."
Na-eun loosened her arms around me at those words.
"That doesn't mean I'm sending you alone. I'm coming too."
"Never planned to go solo. We have to stick together when we go out, right?"
The gear we'd packed was five baseball bats, canteens, several nutrition bars, and a lantern—that was it.
The streetlights were still on, giving us visibility, but who knew when the power would cut out.
I'd reinforced our arms and shins with more cardboard boxes for protection.
Fighting people meant watching out for the stomach too, but what if I used Insight in real combat?
Na-eun finished her preparations, and late at night, we headed down to the first floor to set out for the mart.
This officetel felt so selfish, indifferent to everyone else, but letting zombies in would still be rude.
I spun the bat in my hand a few times before gripping it tight.
"I'm smashing everything in sight. You can keep up, right?"
"Yeah. I rested plenty watching movies."
Na-eun nodded as she replied.
The moment we stepped out of the officetel, I charged at the nearest zombie.
Even if my footsteps were a bit loud, it didn't matter.
I just had to blow its head off before it noticed me.
Thwack!
One clean hit, and a zombie dropped.
I dashed toward the next closest one.
This zombie spotted me, its eyes turning red as proof of its hostility.
Thwack!!Thud. Roll...
Before it could attack, its head flew into the sky and hit the ground.
The distant zombie head made noise on impact, drawing nearby zombies toward the spot.
I hated leaving them behind.
As I pondered what to do, Na-eun tapped my back and pointed to a detour.
Taking them all out was nice, but getting to the mart quickly mattered too.
We crept toward an area with fewer zombies, muffling our footsteps.
Checking for anything noisy underfoot, we slowly passed zombies drawn to the head.
Two I could handle, but four was too much.
'Ever since that random 3x multiplier, the zombies have definitely gotten thicker.'
The two I'd just taken down were those bluish summoned zombies called Plague Seeds, looking like corpses.
Na-eun and I tiptoed until we reached a wider street without wandering zombies.
As a main road, patrols must have cleared it—zombie bodies littered the sides.
"Guess the mart promo team cleaned up earlier."
"Oh, yeah. It was super noisy. Not a wasted effort, then."
If they'd just lured and ran, fine—but gathering and methodically clearing them? The mart team had some decency.
And Bullgwangpa wanted to mooch off them? Those bastards?
Na-eun and I walked down the brightly lit boulevard toward the mart. Zombies jumping from nearby shop interiors scared me more, so the open center felt safer.
"I thought there'd be way more zombies."
"Yeah. Probably all drawn to the commotion at the mart."
"Makes sense."
Na-eun, usually trailing behind, now walked beside me chatting.
We weren't in combat, after all.
I held the bat in my right hand and offered my left; Na-eun shyly took it.
"Best case? Mart team beats Bullgwangpa and clears the zombies. We just make a quick nighttime supply run."
"Worst case?"
"Bullgwangpa overruns them, and most of the mart's young guys die to zombies."
"If only we knew Bullgwangpa's exact numbers."
We'd decided not to message or call Young-eun, not knowing her situation.
If they caught us prying too much, it'd be a disaster.
They wouldn't buy that our "reinforcements"—two people, effectively one—were all we had.
We reached the three-way intersection from yesterday.
Left to the mart, straight to the department store, right to the university.
Our officetel felt so far from campus.
Na-eun's old place was closer and nicer, but cramped.
Too bad it wasn't near good facilities and school.
Heading for the mart, we took the left sidewalk.
Staying cautious of indoor zombies, our target came into view.
But even from afar, things looked bad.
Zombies piled three deep at the somewhat fortified mart entrance.
Too many for individual strength to handle.
No wonder we hadn't run into any on the way.
Young guys with spear-like weapons stabbed zombie heads, thinning them slowly.
"How do we get into the mart?"
"Lure some away if we can."
"Something to make noise..."
Phone alarm would be safest for luring, but burning battery now sucked with comms still up.
Or two bats?
Chuck them from the bag far off—they'd clash loud enough.
"They won't all come, right?"
"Just the distant ones? People are right in front."
We edged to nearby stairs for 1v1 pulls, then I clanged my bat against Na-eun's.
Claaang!
Aluminum rang out clearly.
Na-eun gaped silently at first, then unleashed a torrent.
"Are you insane?! We're more important—I told you before we left!"
"Only four coming. Didn't hit hard. And I handled four at the department store."
But while four came our way, the spear guys at the entrance panicking more at the zombies.
Did they think some lunatic was luring nearby?
Wait, that's me?
I shook off the thought and focused on the approaching zombies.
Dim spot, but they found us easy, eyes reddening.
"Four."
"Tell me after."
"I see a path."
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
The nearest zombies' heads exploded in sequence.
My near-one-hit blunt technique was paying off.
As the last head burst, more peeled from the entrance pack at the sound.
This was manageable.
Unlike the mart guys stabbing air three or four times before a headshot with their long spears, I wasted no motion.
Calmly, when they entered bat range.
Thwack!!
Swing and kill.
Next zombie closed in.
Sudden thought hit.
'What if I hit the gut?'
Even the toughest skull burst under full swing.
Would the stomach split, launch it far, or could I control it?
This short-armed zombie seemed perfect to test.
Not a sword slash stance—a batter stepping forward.
Then swung the bat.
Not full power, just quick to the chest, then powered through.
Felt heavy, but it flew.
Sailing zombie crashed into the entrance pile.
"What the—flying zombie?!"
"What the fuck today? Bullgwang crazies and flying zombies!"
Not a great idea.
Chaos for the mart folks; some zombies hit by the fall turned toward me.
"A person?"
"That guy launched the zombie?"
The entrance crew finally spotted our guerrilla action.
I waved lightly, then charged the incoming zombies.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
If only zombie-kill quests existed—this would've filled fast.
Combat power barely budged.
After I cleared over ten, the entrance horde visibly thinned.
Spear guys saw the end in sight, accuracy improving.
"Haa... haa... What was with the flying zombie? Why pull that stunt now?!"
Na-eun panted, having followed.
"Felt like trying it?"
Post-swing, it hit me: power distribution, good for combat power growth.
I'd always swung to train or kill.
Even in Global Academy finals sparring, I swung to kill—but got dropped first.
Power control.
Thinking it key to growth, I pulled up the status window.
<Achieve Combat Power 500.>
-On Completion: [Skill] Survival Rules (D) Enhanced
Up to 491 in the meantime—solid gains.
Took three months for Yoo Sian to hit +40; Lee Sian gained 8 in no time. Real progress.