Chapter 18 Safe Zone
Safe Zone
Chapter 19
"........."
At thirty-one, Professor Jang Hye-jeong thought she'd seen enough of the world to handle a crisis. She taught business accounting, after all. Nothing in her experience had prepared her for this.
Kwang! Kwang!
When a student had announced he was going out to fight the zombies, she'd thought it reckless. Staying in the lecture hall seemed safer. Still, feeling responsible for her students, she'd followed him outside.
'What am I even looking at...?'
Now she felt less like a protector and more like dead weight.
Kwang!
Park Si-hyun's fist shattered a zombie's skull. Before its body hit the floor, he caught another by the head and crushed it against his knee.
She'd already seen how tough the zombies were. Their bodies seemed harder than concrete. Nobody should have been able to destroy them with bare hands.
Yet Si-hyun made it look effortless.
"EXP."
He drove his knee into another zombie's head and charged straight into the next group.
'Since when can Park Si-hyun fight like this...?'
Following in his wake, Professor Jang could only watch in stunned disbelief.
Then—
Pa-ang!
Something whistled through the air.
Kang So-eun had broken into a run, sending the scraps of metal hovering around her toward the zombies. A glance was enough to redirect them.
Pa-pa-pang!
The metal fragments punched through the zombies like shrapnel, leaving bodies riddled with holes. Soon they were intercepting attackers without So-eun even needing to look their way.
Professor Jang admired the girl's extraordinary composure. No—that wasn't quite right.
"Park Si-hyun! Are there any more?!"
So-eun's cheeks were flushed. She looked almost eager for the next fight. Si-hyun answered with a grin.
"Fifth floor! We need to get the professors out!"
Watching the two students race ahead, Professor Jang wondered if this was what a generation gap felt like.
#
As the opening stage of Journey of the Eastern Tower progressed, the zombie outbreak intensified.
The zombies scattered across campus began converging on the Main Building's first floor, drawn by the noise.
─Kiiiieeeek!─Kkyeeeeek!
The furniture barricade gave way under the assault. Rotting arms pushed through the gaps, and I hacked them back with my rod.
'Damn it. How long are they going to keep coming?'
Ten minutes of guarding this entrance had turned terror into sheer exhaustion.
"Get lost!"
I gritted my teeth and smashed a zombie's jaw.
A faint message flickered before my eyes.
『Seized 「Strength 1」 and 「Agility 1」 from the zombie.』
I'd killed so many zombies that the experience barely seemed worth the effort anymore. At least 「Seize」 kept supplying new stats.
To anyone familiar with the game, the ability would have seemed absurdly overpowered.
'If only I had 「Conquer」 instead...'
「Conquer」
With 「Conquer」, I could have commanded the battlefield, summoned storms, or ripped the zombies apart with an earthquake.
Instead I was stuck fighting one group at a time, without a proper area attack.
"Die already!"
I punched through one zombie just as another lunged from the side. 「Read」 responded before I could even turn.
「Read」 showed me where the attacker would move. 「Seize」 stripped away its speed.
I knocked the slowed blow aside and took more from the zombie—its strength, and even the toughness of the part I intended to strike.
I poured everything I'd taken—strength, speed, resistance—into my next punch.
─Kieh...!?
The zombie's upper body disintegrated under the impact.
I swung my ruined rod across the next row. Several zombies folded at the waist, almost cut in two.
And despite the strength I'd built through years of training—enough to total 1,100 kilograms across my three major lifts—I still hadn't used everything I had.
"Hyeuuup!"
The rod crumpled beneath my grip.
I'd put all the stats I'd stolen into that one blow.
『Optimal Progression completion - 33.7%』
One swing. That was all it took.
Kwaang!
The impact burst through the air and hurled the zombies backward. Bodies tumbled helplessly overhead.
They never reached the ground. So-eun's floating metal was already waiting for them.
The shards flashed through the airborne zombies and darted back to her side, leaving blood and scraps of flesh falling in their wake.
『Seized 「Strength 7」, 「Agility 6」, and 「Endurance 4」 permanently from the zombie horde.』
I felt the stolen stats settle into my body—not a temporary boost, but a permanent increase. Satisfaction surged through me.
"W-what the..."
"H-how could a human do that?"
People stared and whispered behind me. I ignored them and tightened my grip on the broken bar.
Bodies littered the ground at my feet.
─Grrraaah...!
Still, zombies continued forcing their way through the entrance. Outside, the horde stretched farther than I could see.
Then—
"...It's ready."
The voice came from behind us.
Whooosh—
A ripple of light swept past and spread toward the oncoming zombies. They began retreating before it, pushed back by an invisible wall.
『"Depicts" a basic barrier that zombies cannot approach.』
A translucent barrier sealed the first-floor entrances. Zombies hammered at it from outside, but even their screams could no longer reach us.
Bzzzt!
『"Read" comprehends "Depicts."』
The barrier seemed to embody the idea of keeping zombies out, turning that abstract rule into something solid.
An ability this powerful should have stood out in the game. Why hadn't I seen it before?
"Haa..."
I turned toward the exhausted voice.
A young woman stood among the people still clutching makeshift weapons.
She was barely taller than 150 centimeters, with short, wavy lavender hair. Her half-lidded eyes might have looked sleepy if not for their vivid red color.
She had the sort of striking face I'd have recognized immediately if she'd appeared in the game.
As I looked at her—
Ding-
『Status Window』
Name: Yu Yeon
Level: 8
Height: 154.3cm, 41kg
Titles: None
Occupation: None
Gender: Female (21)
Origin: Republic of Korea
Sexual Experience: Virgin (0)
Status: Serene
+Stats
[Strength 19][Agility 18][Stamina 17][Mana 32]
+Abilities
「Depicts」
+Skills
「Basic Barrier (Normal-9%)」
I realized she was another person I'd never encountered in the original story.
'She must have died in the original outbreak.'
Because the Tower had arrived a week early, the future had shifted. People once destined to die unseen were still alive.
It was the only explanation I had for now.
"You worked hard out there, Si-hyun."
The student council president approached, a tall, solidly built young man.
He'd called for help while we'd been fighting our way down from the fifth floor.
『Status Window』
Name: Jang Tae-seok
Level: 11
Height: 182.1cm, 92kg
Titles: None
Occupation: None
Gender: Male (25)
Origin: Republic of Korea
Sexual Experience: 169 (ejaculation count)
Status: Relieved
+Stats
[Strength 22][Agility 23][Stamina 24][Mana 17]
+Abilities
「Mind Stabilization」
+Skills
Another character absent from the game's tutorial.
His ability, however, was a noun rather than a verb. In this system, broad concepts usually held greater potential. A narrow, passive-sounding ability like 「Mind Stabilization」 didn't promise the same raw power.
I kept my expression calm and smiled at him.
"You okay? You look worn out."
"Hahaha... I was about to ask you the same thing."
"I'm fine."
I must have looked exhausted, but I hadn't suffered a single visible injury.
"About the people who were bitten..."
Tae-seok hesitated. He clearly wanted to ask me something.
He didn't have to.
『"Read" activates on 「Jang Tae-seok」.』
「Read」 had already revealed his concern.
—What if Si-hyun was bitten...?
Despite everything he'd watched me do, he was afraid I might be infected.
In most zombie stories, that fear would have made sense.
But this was an adult game, and its rules weren't borrowed from a conventional zombie movie.
The outbreak was a magical effect—not a virus behaving like one in the real world.
'Those without abilities are classified as "The Unqualified." People whose abilities are strong enough count as "The Overqualified." Being bitten alone won't change someone in that second group. Their power gives them resistance. Only weaker or unlucky survivors are in real danger.'
Unfortunately, I had no way to prove any of that on the spot.
The Tower had been here for less than an hour. Everyone was still struggling to understand what had happened.
And deliberately letting a zombie bite me would be a pretty stupid demonstration.
"I wasn't bitten. But I did learn something important."
There was no reason to let innocent people die over a misunderstanding.
"You called the people who turned into zombies 'The Unqualified,' right? My ability tells me a bite doesn't automatically cause infection. Those counted as 'The Overqualified' won't turn. We shouldn't execute everyone who's been bitten without checking."
"And how exactly do you know that?"
A police officer beside Tae-seok spoke up sharply.
"Where's your proof?"
Why don't you volunteer to get bitten, you prick? I managed not to say it aloud.
"I can't show you proof right now. That's why I'm suggesting we isolate people and observe them instead of killing them. There's no need to be hostile."
"People are dying, and you're making guesses. If one of them turns and starts biting everyone else, will you take responsibility?"
Responsibility. It was a heavy word.
But I answered anyway.
"Yes. I will."
I didn't hesitate.
The officer blinked.
"If someone turns later, I'll deal with them and anyone they've infected. I'll face the families, apologize, and compensate them however I can. Is that enough?"
I'd kept my distance from Ha-rin because I was afraid of what she might do. Even now, part of that fear remained. But I wasn't going to let my cowardice decide whether other people lived.
"None of you wants to kill a friend just because you're afraid they might turn later, do you?"
We couldn't afford to throw away lives over suspicion—not on Heaven difficulty, when every capable survivor mattered.
"All I'm asking is that we wait and see. Even now, we can spare that much time. If we start killing people on suspicion alone, how is that different from a witch hunt?"
The officer's face reddened.
"Hey. You're a freshman, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"Then why are you trying to act like you're in charge? There are professors here twice your age!"
"Yu-chan! That's enough."
Tae-seok grabbed the officer, Lim Yu-chan, before he could step closer. Other officers pulled him away.
"Si-hyun has a point," Tae-seok said, keeping his tone even. "Executing people just because they were bitten would be inhumane. We can isolate them and watch for symptoms instead. Professor, does that sound reasonable?"
He turned to one of the professors, who nodded.
"Quite reasonable. Especially now, we should be cooperating rather than turning against one another."
The professor was short, with a round, kindly face.
He wiped sweat from his balding forehead with a handkerchief and continued.
"Professor Jang Hye-jeong? What do you think?"
Jang adjusted her glasses and answered from among the students.
"I agree. It's the humane choice."
"But Professor... isn't it dangerous?"
"Enough. It's still better than killing people who might be perfectly healthy."
Professor Jang had been with me since we'd left the lecture hall.
We hadn't been able to save everyone on our way through the Main Building. Some were bitten in the neck and turned almost immediately.
Remembering those victims, she spoke in a subdued voice.
"For now, things are stable. We should rest, take stock of our supplies, and decide how to get outside. I don't know when those giant monsters will reach us, but we need a plan before they do."
The exhausted students and staff sank down against walls or sat where they stood. An hour of fleeing and fighting had taken its toll.
Woong! Woong!
The zombies kept pounding on the barrier, but at least they couldn't reach us.
Everyone was trying desperately to believe that would last.
Kuu-uung!
Far away, the zombie giant still shook the ground with every step. People did their best not to look toward it.
'At least we have a little time. Nobody's questioning the barrier anymore, either. They're already starting to accept this world's new rules.'
I slid down against a wall myself, finally feeling the exhaustion in my legs.
The stench of blood was everywhere. The first-floor tiles were slick with zombie remains.
So-eun, by contrast, hardly had a mark on her. She'd fought from a distance, directing the metal without getting close.
She was now surrounded by people eager to speak to her.
"So-eun, So-eun! What? Why are you so good with your ability? Didn't you have it from the start? Don't tell me you've been secretly using your ability behind our backs or something!"
"So-eun, drink this!"
So-eun looked at me helplessly through the crowd. She clearly wanted to come over, but there was no easy way past them. Where were they finding the energy to keep talking?
The entrance was less than fifty meters away, littered with corpses. How were they already acting so normal? Maybe the System was helping them adapt.
I was still wondering when—
"Um... are you okay?"
Someone held out a canned drink.
I looked up into a pair of sleepy red eyes beneath a short, wavy lavender bob.
"......?"
Yu Yeon—the art student whose 「Depicts」 had made the barrier.
'What does she want?'
I looked into her unreadable face, letting 「Read」 do its work.
-...Ha, what a decadent guy. So damn sexy...
I stared at her.
Seriously?
Before I could react, another message appeared.
『Would you like to take 「Depicts」?』