Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Perua Desert
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The hunting ground near the ruined village was covered in sand on all sides, radiating such intense heat that it could truly be called a desert.
[Welcome to the ‘Perua Desert.’]
A large number of familiar players gathered there.
They were all bald.
On Kim Cheonjae’s orders, Li Keruna’s subordinates had all shaved their heads bald.
Apparently to make them easy to distinguish even from a distance.
Li Keruna said to Ma Jeongwoo.
“What should we do?”
“From now on, we’ll help you out, so hunt here until you hit level ten.”
“……Pardon?”
“You need to build up some strength before heading to the fourth round, don’t you?”
“That’s true, but… why are you helping us?”
Ma Jeongwoo put a cigarette in his mouth and continued.
“Got a light?”
“Here you go.”
Li Keruna pulled a lighter from his pocket and lit it for him.
Sizzle. Sizzle.
*Inhale*—
*Exhale*.
“Cheonjae asked me to level you guys up just for today. Enough so you can hunt on your own.”
“Why….”
“I don’t know. It’s one of two things, though.”
“One of two?”
Ma Jeongwoo gave an awkward grin and patted Li Keruna’s shoulder.
“Talent or comrade.”
“Talent…. Comrade….”
“We’re busy too, so we’ll only help for today. Do your best.”
“……Understood.”
Li Keruna wore a stunned, rigid expression.
He took a deep breath and shouted to his group.
“Everyone, get your heads in the game!”
-Yes? Yes!
-Got it!
-Boss, why are we here?
“Why do you think? It’s a hunting ground. We’re here to hunt!”
No sooner had Li Keruna finished speaking than Michael came sprinting at full speed from the distance.
Behind him, a dust storm kicked up as Z Virus-infected desert foxes, camels, and giant lizards gave chase.
“Uwaaaah—! Yeah, yellow monkey!”
Ma Jeongwoo clucked his tongue and tossed the cigarette from his mouth onto the ground.
Sizzle.
“Alright—let’s go!”
As Michael reached the player group, Jeongwoo opened his mouth wide toward the front.
[Barbarian Warrior’s Roar]
-Boom!
A massive shockwave engulfed the surroundings, shaking the ground. The Z Virus infectees charging with murderous intent collapsed backward as if losing all will to fight.
Jeongwoo hoisted his axe high above his head and bellowed so all could hear.
“Now!”
Li Keruna’s subordinates exchanged quick glances before charging at the monsters.
-Uwaaaaaah!!
Ma Jeongwoo stood at the forefront, aiding their fight.
When a desert fox tried to bite a player, he’d smash its mouth with the back of his axe, rendering it unable to attack.
He’d sever a giant lizard’s tail and legs to immobilize it.
He sliced open a camel’s hump, spraying the water inside everywhere as a health potion.
“Don’t slack off—keep fighting!”
-Yes!!
Li Keruna swung a nailed club hard, smashing a camel’s head.
Thwack!
A golden light circled once above the creature’s head.
“Th-thank you so much for helping. Teacher Ma Jeongwoo.”
“……No need for the ‘teacher’ bit. Save your thanks for Cheonjae. Hey, Michael! Angel’s Hymn!”
Michael, watching the battle from the rear, nodded.
He aimed his grenade launcher at the battlefield sky and slowly pulled the trigger.
“In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, be sanctified!”
Boom!
[Angel’s Hymn]
A glowing spherical orb shot high into the sky.
Kaboom!
It exploded with a thunderous roar.
White light then rained down from the heavens like biblical rain.
Drip drip drip drip—
Players who had lost health had their bodies slowly recover upon contact with the rain.
[Player’s health slightly recovers.]
The Z Virus infectees hit by the rain melted away as if struck by acid.
The holy power of a priest.
It was the skill of the Buddhist priest, Michael Beach.
“Good job, Michael.”
* * * * *
The path down to the lowest floor of the zombie house wasn’t all that difficult.
The daily mission had been cleared long ago, and thanks to the flame skeletons fighting tirelessly, they’d reached here without lifting a finger.
[Zombie House]
[15F, Final Floor]
A hologram screen appeared upon descending the stairs, indicating they’d reached the last floor.
Why come all the way here when the mission was done? The answer was simple.
There was a special corpse available only on the zombie house’s lowest floor.
That was the sole reason he’d taken the mission to come here.
Clank.
Perhaps because it had once been a prison, the floor was lined with rooms made of gray bricks and iron bars blocking the entrances.
If this was the zombie house’s final floor as he knew it, Dr. Oh’s secret lab should be at the far end.
This was the secret facility where they researched Z Virus-infected humans and animals to develop a vaccine.
The thing born from a failed vaccine experiment was the mid-boss known among players as the cow ghost ‘U-gwi.’
Its corpse was here.
A scraping sound came from the unseen darkness beyond the bars.
Screeeeech—
The flame skeletons brightly illuminated the nearby areas, but it was hard to see far.
“……Everyone, stop.”
At his command, they all halted.
Something hidden in the distant darkness beyond sight was emanating killing intent.
It was so powerful it sent chills down his spine.
-Krraaaaaah.
A groan suppressing maximum agony.
“……”
Who was that?
It wasn’t the sound of a typical monster.
Just hearing its voice made his heartbeat thunder in his ears.
He hadn’t faced it directly, but instinct told him he couldn’t win.
Was this the wild’s instinct?
It was stronger than him.
The thought that he absolutely couldn’t beat it dominated his mind.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
The trembling in his hands and feet made it clear.
The word “fear” strongly surfaced in his head.
He glanced at Yoo Sora’s face, then closed his eyes briefly, lost in thought.
He was simulating the gap in their combat power in his mind.
“……Sora-ssi.”
“Yes.”
“Let’s head back.”
“Why? We’ve come this far….”
Yoo Sora looked disappointed.
“There’s something in there. I don’t think we can go any further with just us. It’s too dangerous.”
“……Is it strong enough that even you can’t beat it, Cheonjae-ssi?”
“……Yeah. Probably.”
It was a shame to turn back just like that, but there was no choice.
This wasn’t a PC game; he couldn’t gamble with his real life in a fight.
One death here was game over.
No continues.
Yoo Sora stroked her face with trembling hands and said to him.
“Cheonjae-ssi.”
“Yeah.”
“What do we do?”
“About what?”
“……Th-th-the monster you mentioned. It feels like it’s already near us.”
What?
He whipped his head side to side, scanning the surroundings quickly. The flame skeletons lit everything up bright; there were no blind spots.
He let out a sigh of relief.
“……It hasn’t come this far yet. Let’s hurry back before it does.”
“Ah, no. It’s here.”
“Huh? Where?”
“R-r-right here.”
“Here?”
Yoo Sora’s gaze, fixed on him, slowly shifted upward to the ceiling. He followed her eyes and looked up too.
Stuck to the ceiling was a black humanoid creature.
His body froze in shock, like seeing a ghost from a horror movie.
But that lasted only a moment. Once he registered its form, he was utterly stunned.
It was a perfect human.
A person whose skin had turned matte black.
Everything from head to toe was dyed black.
Even the nails, toenails, and the whites of its eyes— all black.
It stuck out a long tongue and licked its own face.
Green liquid dripped from its mouth.
Sizzle—
The ground sizzled where it landed. The blackened, scorched floor suggested it was the creature’s potent acidic saliva.
He slowly backed away while muttering to himself.
“Revive.”
As expected, it didn’t work, recognizing it as a living being.
“……Mutant—no, modified.”
“W-what did you say, Cheonjae-ssi?”
“……Modified zombie. That bastard Dr. Oh already started that research….”
“Modified…. zombie?”
-Kweeeeeek!!
The modified zombie clinging to the ceiling let out an eerie cry as it dropped to the ground.
Thud!
“Block it!”
[Flame Skeleton acknowledges ‘Kim Cheonjae’-nim’s command.]
The skeleton charged, wreathed in flames, and grappled with the modified zombie.
-Kurheeeek!
The flame skeleton grabbed the modified zombie and rolled across the ground.
Seeing his chance, he grabbed Yoo Sora’s hand and bolted for the stairs.
“Run!”
“Ch-Cheonjae-ssi. I’m so scared my legs won’t—.”
Her legs gave out; she wobbled at the hips like someone with a cramp and couldn’t run properly.
He yanked her hand forcefully, picking up speed toward the upper floor.
‘Damn it.’
Why was this happening?
Why was a modified zombie here?
No, before that—had Dr. Oh already developed the body modification drug?
Judging by the player states in Utopia, no one had reached the tenth round yet.
Beep.
“Ma Jeongwoo, respond.”
No answer.
Of course—a handheld radio wouldn’t transmit from this deep underground to the surface.
He kept thinking as he fled upward, trying to make sense of the situation.
He needed to understand why it was created to figure out how to deal with it.
He knew the whole path by heart, but escaping from this depth had its limits.
Running nonstop from 15F to 1F was physically impossible.
“Haa—. Haa—. Ch-Cheonjae-ssi. Just a bit. Let’s rest a little….”
“Rest and we die.”
As they fled upward, he kept issuing orders to Park Gyuhwan. Urgent commands to come as fast as possible.
Without a ‘Return’ spell, even at full speed, it’d take him over twenty minutes to get here.
He had to decide now.
Give up escaping and set a trap to fight back.
Or sprint full-tilt out of the zombie house.
“…….”
First, keep running.
He summoned skeletons at intervals along the ascent, stationing them as a delaying force.
It’d only buy a brief moment, but enough to slow it down.
Haa…. Haa….
Yoo Sora tripped on a rock root and fell.
Thud.
“S-sorry.”
“……It’s fine.”
He felt he needed a breather too.
His shins ached after running nonstop, and he was out of breath.
[System Message]
[Warning! Flame Skeleton 1 unit destroyed]
[Current Flame Skeletons remaining: 0/1]
“Already?”
He’d thought it’d hold for at least ten minutes. The fight ended way too fast.
“Huh?”
“N-nothing.”
Telling Yoo Sora the flame skeleton was dead would just cause more panic.
He and Yoo Sora each crunched down a recovery capsule.
Crunch!
“Can you run?”
“……We have to.”
Her eyes showed she was getting used to this; he liked that glint.
Thud thud thud thud thud—
[System Message]
[Warning! Skeleton 1 unit destroyed]
[Current Skeletons remaining: 5/6]
[Current Skeletons remaining: 4/6]
[Current Skeletons remaining: 3/6]
.
.
.
.
[Current Skeletons remaining: 0/6]
The skeletons placed along the path were wiped out too. He wanted to make more, but lacked bones.
With his current mana, a Revive spell could raise ten zombies.
He had to use corpses sparingly and smartly.
“Gyuhwan-ah…. Hurry…. Hurry….”
He needed to buy time until Gyuhwan arrived.
[Zombie House]
[10F, Final Floor]
-Krheeeeeek!!
Its cry drew closer.
Echoing like it was speaking into a mic, it seemed to be on the floor above or the same one.
Deeming escape impossible, he hid among the zombie corpses he’d collected on the way.
Yoo Sora pinched her nose and gagged.
-Ugh.
“Hold it in. It’s got poor eyesight but a keen nose. Hiding like this, it won’t find us.”
“U-ugh. Haa…. O-okay, I’ll try.”
He spotted the nearby killing intent, pressed Yoo Sora’s head down low.
Right up against the zombie corpses.
-Kweok. Kweok.
It vomited unidentified green liquid from its mouth as it walked slowly. Its gaze aimed at the upward stairwell entrance, so it didn’t know their position.
“…….”
He and Yoo Sora held their breath, praying it would pass.
But something unexpected happened.
“Who’s there!
Other players had arrived.
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