Kingmaker (2)
The hunting method was simple enough.
Step outside the Clean Zone boundary, then use every trick in the book—thrown objects, noise, whatever it took—to pull aggro. Once the zombies packing the perimeter had clumped even tighter together, you slipped back inside the line and slaughtered every last one of them as they clawed uselessly against the barrier that kept them out.
Psshhk. Crunch. Boom!
Three simple sound effects sealed the fate of every monster and zombie that had gathered. Living creatures like orcs and goblins sensed the danger and fled for their lives, but zombies and skeletons were a different story. Dozens of them were reduced to pulverized bone and shredded flesh.
Most of the survivors watching wore the exact expression of an audience that had just sat through a full-blown horror movie. A couple of them nearly fainted on the spot and collapsed where they stood.
"The reason we didn't throw all of you into combat from the start is exactly what you just saw," Kim Seyeon explained, her tone tinged with quiet sympathy. "Fighting monsters takes enormous resolve. The resolve not to die. The resolve to wound a monster. And the resolve to look at the aftermath of a desperate fight and accept it for what it is. I'm sorry to those of you who have survived alongside us this far… but I didn't think you were ready yet to face the true face of this kind of battle."
Even after her explanation, most of the survivors still looked pale. "Most" being the operative word—because a stubborn handful of outliers were staring at the carnage with glittering eyes, as if something inside them had just caught fire.
"Th-that's incredible…"
"Jeong Hoon-nim… no… Jeong Hoon-god… god, god, god…"
A few of the women were looking at me with something close to worship. Seo Hyejin, for her part, murmured something like just as I expected and fixed me with a long, steady gaze that held more calculation than fear.
Being on the receiving end of those stares did not make me feel good. If anything, it only piled on the pressure. Even I had my limits—finishing a bloodbath and then getting looked at like some kind of idol left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Hoping to shift the mood, I slowly opened my mouth.
"Once you have all reached Level 10, I shall decide whether to bring you into combat. Until then, I ask that you do your best to observe the reality of these battles."
The survivors didn't answer easily, but resignation settled across every face.
Yeah. There really was no other choice. They had to get used to it.
If they wanted any kind of life after April 1st, they had to live by a completely different set of common sense than the world before. In a reality drowning in blood and slaughter, turning your eyes away was the same as signing up for an early grave.
They had to get used to it. For their own sakes. For the comrades, friends, and family standing beside them. There was simply no other way.
After that, Han Sora and Park Seeun formed a team of their own and tried the same kind of drive-hunt I had—though on a much smaller scale. We rotated through two hunts per group, painting the surroundings red, and called it a day on the leveling.
"J-Jeong Hoon-ssi is really… like he's from a whole different dimension…"
"D-do you have a bag? I can't… uurk…!"
"If I'd known it would be like this, I wouldn't have eaten breakfast… hell, I don't think I can eat dinner either."
Plenty of people were groaning on the way back. Hard to blame them. It was only the first day and the session hadn't been that long, but Sora, Seeun, and I had put down a truly staggering number of zombies and monsters.
One hundred twenty zombies. Forty skeleton warriors. Ten goblins. Naturally, the bulk of that kill count belonged to me as the leader of Team One. Including myself, the four rotating party members each walked away with 2,325 experience and 266 gold. That was today's haul.
Team Two managed only about thirty zombies, ten skeletons, and two goblins. Each of them earned 956 experience and 86 gold. Both of them looked dejected, so I gave them a little encouragement.
"You did well. That's more than enough. You'll be even better tomorrow."
"Th-thank you, Jeong Hoon oppa…"
"Thank you, um…"
Han Sora simply nodded and drifted away with her head bowed low, but Park Seeun lingered, looking like she had something left to say.
I tilted my head at her hesitant manner, and she carefully spoke up.
"Um, Jeong Hoon… ssi? Jeong Hoon oppa?"
"Call me whatever you like."
"Then… Hoonie oppa."
Hoonie oppa…
The name of a certain traitor from an old kids' cartoon I used to watch flashed through my mind, and the corner of my mouth twisted bitterly.
Anyway, Park Seeun still clearly had something on her mind.
"Oppa… did something happen with Sora unnie?"
"Something happen?"
"It's just… Sora unnie… she really couldn't focus on the hunt at all."
I'd noticed that with my own eyes. Kim Seyeon had said much the same after watching her.
"She was probably scared. This is the first time Sora's ever faced zombies and monsters head-on."
"No, it's… hmm… maybe that's part of it, but… it felt more like something else was eating at her, and she just couldn't keep her mind on what was in front of her…"
Park Seeun muttered to herself for a moment, then shook her head hard and bowed deeply to me.
"Sorry, Hoonie oppa. I guess I'm still not used to Sora unnie's way of doing things."
I wasn't used to it either, so I understood perfectly. I just nodded.
And with that, Day Three in the Clean Zone—and Day One of hunting—came to a close.
"…So this really is the kind of brutal path you have to walk if you want to survive."
"Take your time adapting. There is still time enough."
"I think I caught a glimpse today of how you became so strong. Thank you for today, Jeong Hoon-ssi."
Seo Hyejin offered her thanks with a face that had recovered a little of its color, then headed back to her room. No—right before she opened the door, she glanced back over her shoulder at me… and then shut it.
What was that about? I tilted my head and simply returned to my own room.
And there waiting for me was something I hadn't seen in a long time: a proper dinner table. Rice scooped into bowls, stew simmering, side dishes arranged on plates. Most of it had come from convenience-store and supermarket ready meals, but still—it was something.
"You worked hard today. I put a little extra effort into this."
I had told myself this many times already, but keeping Kim Seyeon by my side was hands-down the best decision of my life.
Even so, for all the splendid spread laid out before us, dinner itself was a rather gloomy affair.
Because the entire meal long, Han Sora's expression looked absolutely terrible.
"Sora, are you really all right?"
Kim Seyeon finally couldn't take it anymore and reached out with gentle concern. Han Sora, who had been poking at her rice more than eating it, looked ready to bury her face in the bowl.
"You don't have to push yourself. Go rest first if you need to. Today must have been hard."
"Yeah, Sora unnie. Go on ahead and get some sleep. Use the bed—the bed. You must be wiped out from all that archery…"
Park Seeun chimed in with encouragement of her own. She must have been exhausted too, running around as a warrior pulling aggro left and right. She really was a tough, kind-hearted girl.
Han Sora nodded at our coaxing and set down her rice bowl.
"Then… I-I'll go lie down first and… clear my head a little."
"Go ahead."
It felt like a family looking after a struggling daughter—never mind that most of the people here weren't even married (with one exception). Han Sora trudged weakly into the bedroom where the beds were.
While we were cleaning up after the meal, Kim Seyeon glanced toward the bedroom and murmured,
"I wonder what's wrong. She looks completely drained."
"I suspect the first real battle hit her hard. Even when she was with me before, she mostly handled scouting with her vision rather than actual fighting."
"Hmm. Maybe. Though I was thinking… no. Never mind. I'm not certain, so I'll hold my tongue for now."
I finished the cleanup while talking with her.
Doing this really did feel like we were a married couple. Mom Kim Seyeon. Dad Jeong Hoon—me. The upright second daughter Park Seeun and the brooding first daughter Han Sora.
Except one of these days the first and second daughters would decide they wanted Daddy's love too and climb into the bed where Mom and Dad were sleeping…
Ahem. Enough of that fantasy.
"If she still looks rough tomorrow, I'll pull her from combat and leave her on scouting duty only."
"Heh. You really do worry about Sora a great deal. You two truly do seem to have… a rather special relationship. What with Sora getting jealous and all."
"Hm? Jealous?"
"Hehehe… so you haven't noticed."
Leaving me thoroughly puzzled, Kim Seyeon drifted over to Park Seeun and started chatting away.
I scratched lightly at the side of my head. Honestly… I had a pretty good idea what kind of feelings Han Sora held for me. The way she was acting now might well have been the rebound from those feelings swelling too large.
…No.
Out of nowhere, Orderly Good started running its mouth inside my head.
No? Then what the hell was it? What gave it the right to barge into my inner monologue and start spouting opinions?
…
Orderly Good fell silent. So it was just an uncertain guess? It didn't even have conviction and it still wanted to stick its nose into someone else's feelings and declare what was and wasn't true? As if its speech patterns weren't already enough of a pain in the ass—every time it opened its mouth I felt like I'd swallowed a mouthful of shit!
And so April 13th came to a peaceful close. Peaceful, for the time being.
"Where'd you say they were leveling? Ah, that boundary line between XX-gu and YY-gu?"
"Y-yeah! They formed teams there and leveled up!"
"Ha, smart little bastards. Shit, I heard it was nothing but women and figured they'd just be holed up in that tiny villa."
"Ah, but… there was one guy there."
"Ah, fuck… a dickhead? What's his deal?"
"I-I tried to get a better look, but… someone with the Archer class glanced this way, so I pulled back."
"You little shit… nobody else? Just women besides him?"
"Y-yeah."
"Good."
"…You're dead, Han Sora, you fucking bitch."
April 14th.
From the moment morning arrived, I couldn't stop being surprised.
Without the slightest hesitation, the survivors followed me outside to level up. Even the ones who had collapsed yesterday without managing a single level-up showed their faces, refusing to give up.
"I-it's still pretty overwhelming, but… I don't want to be the only one lying in my room while everyone else is out there."
"M-me too!"
The fear hadn't fully left either of their faces, but the determination not to quit still shone through, and for a moment something warm tightened in my chest.
"I shall endeavor to honor that resolve."
With that reply, I headed once more toward the boundary line.
Along the way, I carefully whispered to Han Sora.
"Sora, are you truly all right?"
Following Kim Seyeon's advice this time, I gently took Sora's empty left hand in both of mine.
I half expected her to jump at the contact…
"W-wha? J-j-j-j-jeong Hoon oppaaaa?"
Instead of panicking, she flushed bright red and reacted with surprising meekness. Honestly, it was a little cute.
Could a full-grown adult really react this adorably? Well—she was still only twenty-two, seven years younger than me, so maybe it wasn't that strange.
"If it is too much, you may turn back even now. All this time you have supported my reckless path from behind. It is fine to volunteer again once you have settled your heart."
"A-ahhh…"
I chose every word carefully, whispering them against her ear so the consideration would come through. Under that effort, Han Sora's face turned the color of a ripe tomato.
This bob-cut girl was so pure in her reactions I almost laughed out loud. At the same time, a flicker of worry crossed my mind. Wasn't it a little too easy, reacting this innocently just because a guy held her hand?
"I-I'm fine. Jeong Hoon oppa! I-I'm really… really fine!"
As if she'd suddenly found her nerve, Han Sora raised her voice. I carefully offered again, but she shook her head hard.
"I'm really okay. I just… just wasn't feeling great. Ah, m-my stomach… was a little…"
"…Understood."
There was one thing I knew for certain.
Kim Seyeon and Park Seeun had both hinted at it clearly enough.
…Yesterday had not been that kind of day for Han Sora.
Which meant something else had definitely happened.
Yesterday, in the moment we headed to the boundary zone for the drive-hunt, something had struck Han Sora hard enough to throw her entire state of mind into chaos.
About two hours later, I came face to face with the cause of her distress.
"Jeong Hoon-ssi, Jeong Hoon-ssi…!"
I had just finished one hunting cycle and was about to start a second when Kim Seyeon came looking for me in a rush.
I tilted my head, wondering what could be wrong, and she grabbed my shoulder with one hand while pointing somewhere with the other.
It was midday, and the sunlight made it hard to pick anything out at first.
But little by little, it came into focus. Far down the main road, a considerable group of people had appeared. More precisely—they were walking this way.
Definitely not monsters. Monsters would have stood out far more. Not zombies either. This was a Clean Zone; those things couldn't exist here.
"…Other survivors."
I already knew that much. Something far more pressing was pulling at my attention.
"A-aaaah…"
Han Sora's face had gone deathly pale. She was so shaken that her bow slipped from her fingers and clattered to the ground.