Chapter 168
Chapter 168
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 168
Chapter Title: Metal Plague Disappearance - 2
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Hwang Seok-hyun, Choi Da-jeong, Bae Geom-in, Jo Su-yeon, Jung Mi-kyung, Kim Yu-hyun, Eom Ji-man, Han Yeo-ul.
Including me, that makes a total of nine people who will be living in the other world.
Geom-in and the others had already cleared their dimension gate quests, and now Su-yeon and Mi-kyung were tackling theirs simultaneously.
I gathered the items from the veterans and selected the best ones to hand over to the quest participants.
Thanks to that—or maybe thanks to Dingo and Pungdeong-i's support—they all cleared their quests without any issues.
I had figured we'd burn through at least one resurrection scroll.
Yu-hyun and Ji-man cleared theirs without a hitch too, leaving only Yeo-ul.
She was the youngest by far, regardless of levels, so when she entered the dimension gate, everyone waited anxiously.
Yu-hyun was especially fidgety.
He usually acted nonchalant, but now that she was in real danger, he seemed worried sick.
I'd given her a resurrection scroll, so in the worst case, it'd just end in quest failure.
We could always try again later... That's what I was thinking when Yeo-ul emerged from the dimension gate.
Her clothes were a mess, covered in dirt, but her eyes were clear and bright.
She held out the crumpled resurrection scroll.
"Didn't use it. Did I do good?"
"You could've used it, no problem."
"Then you'd have chewed me out like a storm."
She knows exactly how to read people.
As Yu-hyun rushed over, Yeo-ul hugged him and patted his back reassuringly.
Somehow, their roles felt reversed.
Yeo-ul was so unique that it didn't feel awkward for her to take the lead.
Anyway, everyone except Hyung-jun hyung and the school kid had completed their quests.
Everyone except Geom-in had waited, planning to enter together.
"Open the dimension gate."
The blue dimension gate opened, and they hurried inside in order of age.
I followed behind, and gasps of awe filled the air one after another.
"Whoa..."
"This is insane..."
"It's full summer here...!"
The summer forest that had become familiar to me.
But to them, it must have been an utterly alien sight.
Da-jeong, arms crossed, pointed to the back.
"Too early to marvel. Look behind you."
They turned and gaped at the piles of supplies stacked in the clearing.
Their faces clearly said, What, did you hoard all this?
I pretended not to notice, but Da-jeong poked my butt.
"This guy's a total farming maniac. Who hoards so much stuff they don't even use?"
"Hey, we'll use it all eventually."
"Look at this rice! Enough for a hundred people for ten years!"
"Yeah..."
"Hyung really stockpiled a ton."
"When are we gonna eat all this?"
They each chimed in, staring at the rice bags stacked three meters high.
Mi-kyung at least giggled, saying it'd be great for tteokbokki.
"That's why you're getting fat, pig."
"Who's calling who a pig?"
While Mi-kyung and Yu-hyun bickered, Ji-man had already wandered over to the vegetable garden.
Did he instinctively know it was his workplace?
I slung an arm over his shoulder.
"Ji-man, sorry about this..."
"Yeah, I figured. I'll work here, right?"
"The pheasant coops too."
"Lots of pheasants."
It started with just a few, but thanks to Pungdeong-i's care and their prolific breeding, the numbers had exploded.
With Ji-man's traits added in, it'd be an insane amount.
I led him to the garden.
Stag beetles were planting crops at just that moment.
They swarmed over and stared up at Ji-man.
"You guys are acting weird?"
They'd desperately ignored Seok-hyun and Da-jeong when they arrived.
Why were they suddenly cozying up to Ji-man?
He grinned brightly, picking up the stag beetles and petting them.
"Yeah, first time here, huh? Wanna work here? Of course you do."
...It felt like he was talking to the stag beetles. Nah, must be my imagination.
Looking around, everyone was buzzing with excitement, exploring.
It felt refreshing to finally show off everything I'd gathered.
Would've been better if Hyung-jun hyung was here, but circumstances being what they are...
Da-jeong went around urging everyone to strip.
"It's hot here, why are you all bundled up? Take it off like me."
"You're too exposed."
At my remark, she pouted and slapped her hand on her hip.
Dolphin shorts and a tank top showed off her figure perfectly.
"What are you saying? He's the overexposed one."
Everyone's heads turned to where her finger pointed.
Seok-hyun was coming from beyond the fence, a wild boar slung over his shoulder.
His panties must've gotten ripped by the boar—he was buck naked.
"Mommy!"
"Put some clothes on!"
The women freaked out, but Seok-hyun hopped the fence without a care.
Da-jeong cackled.
"As long as you don't end up like him. I'd love it if everyone stripped down, though."
"Planning a nude beach, you perv?"
"Hey, that's not bad! There's the sea right here. Unni, wanna go check it out with me?"
"Uh, sure?"
Da-jeong's sudden burst caught Su-yeon off guard, and she got dragged along.
I watched Seok-hyun stab a mithril knife into the squirming boar's throat and thought.
Would've been better if he'd been born around 100,000 years ago.
...
Evening came, and a bonfire blazed in the clearing as everyone sat around for dinner.
Geom-in showed me the results of his scouting from earlier.
"Let's move."
"Huh?"
Sudden talk of moving—what was this about?
He unrolled a fairly detailed map he'd drawn.
His eyes were sharp, hands busy sketching something.
"This spot's position sucks. Wide open on all sides—vulnerable to monster attacks."
"We've held it fine so far, though?"
More people now, plus guns—no real burden.
But Geom-in's analysis differed.
"Monster numbers spiked since we arrived. Two attacks even during the day."
That was true.
Alone, it'd been once every two days or so. With Seok-hyun and Da-jeong, it became daily.
Now with nine, two attacks in broad daylight.
Seok-hyun being a walking weapon kept it manageable, but the increase was real.
And cleanup was a nightmare.
To avoid bone creepers smashing the barricades at night, we had to chop off legs.
"You're right... So where to?"
"Here."
His pencil tapped the beach.
Where the valley widened into a river flowing to the sea.
"Two sides blocked by sea and river. Most monsters can't approach easily. Flat land, good for surveillance. Best part: close to the ocean."
Not even 100 meters on the map.
We could head to the sea easily.
He advised it was great for disposing monster corpses too.
"Strong currents. Toss 'em in the sea, done."
"Moving's the issue... All this stuff."
Da-jeong crawled over on her knees, raising her butt like a cat.
"Not just the two of us anymore, chill."
I smacked it lightly, and she rubbed it while wriggling.
"So what? We're all close."
"That's why we gotta be careful."
"Tch."
Geom-in paused awkwardly before continuing.
"Anyway, build a fortress on this coast. Wire fences, stockade walls, watchtower. Like this."
Geom-in had a knack for drawing—he sketched a convincing fortress.
Blending with the surroundings, it looked pretty cool.
"...Not bad. But moving all this'll be tough."
The stockpile I'd amassed was no joke.
Already huge, and it'd grown more with chaebol support lately.
"Gotta do it. Terrain here's awful. Surrounded by monsters."
True...
I asked everyone's opinion, and we agreed Geom-in's idea was best.
Drone footage made it look way safer than here.
Easy water access, smooth food supply.
Downsides: abandoning the hard-earned garden, and the valley/sea proximity meant less quiet.
Ji-man would handle the garden, and the noise was romantic enough.
I looked at everyone.
"Let's do it. Moving'll be a pain, but this spot looks way better."
Yu-hyun, arm-in-arm with Yeo-ul, said,
"Hyung, handle outside stuff. We'll do the moving."
"You sure?"
"Gotta earn our keep now."
Such a sweet talker.
Yeo-ul chimed in, not to be outdone.
"And we need rules living here. Too freewheeling might cause issues. Sleeping spots too."
True...
I pointed between the cabin and cave alternately.
"Men in the cabin, women in the cave. For now. Move the tub outside, separate sandwich panel bathrooms."
"Night watch?"
"Infrared sensors got it."
Plus high perception stats—anyone would notice trouble quick.
Anyway, groups need rules.
Without 'em, things get sloppy.
Mi-kyung might spend all day at the beach otherwise.
I jotted down my prepped rules and passed them around.
From monster sightings protocols to mutual etiquette.
"Basics, so I trust you'll handle it. No one else here—better not say stuff that bugs others. No escape if relationships sour."
"We never fight."
"Everyone gets along fine."
Months together despite different backgrounds and personalities—no fights. Impressive.
Probably thanks to the elders' care.
"Follow 'em, no micromanaging."
Yu-hyun winced, clutching his head.
"Sounds just like the company boss..."
"..."
I silently pocketed the paper.
"Rest today, move tomorrow."
...
Back in the other world, everyone was asleep.
I quietly slipped out to the Korean shelter.
So many had come, hard to tell who was who.
"Over a hundred already..."
Nearly 70 in less than a day.
Who knows how many more.
Seeing folks work in the sandwich panel office, I felt kinda bad.
"Never imagined apocalypse desk jobs."
They'd rarely see combat—maybe better off.
Passing the office outside, Jang Won-taek was arguing with someone.
Voices raised—things weren't going well.
"...That's not what we agreed. Handguns were okay to carry."
"Incident happened, no choice."
"Even if your side caused it, shouldn't affect us. Not shooting anyone—just for defense?"
"Once in the Korean shelter, follow policy. Can't give to some, take from others."
"Damn it. What do I tell my guys? Came here expecting firearms."
"I'll persuade them."
"No, you show up, might spark a riot. You don't know how rough my crew is."
Then Jang spotted me.
Calculated.
The guy glanced my way, eyes widening, stammering.
"K-Ki-Kimbap Lover...?"
"Kang Sung-ho."
"O-Ogre Killer... R-right?"
"Landed the finishing blow. Problem?"
I stepped closer; he backed away.
Shaking his head frantically.
"N-no. No issue. None at all. Great talk today."
He bolted. Jang approached, whispering.
"Your rep's something."
"Didn't even provoke him."
"Had ulterior motives, probably."
"We taking in types like that? No incidents would be the surprise."
"Not family material, but decent members maybe."
Confidence in his voice.
Come to think of it, he'd aimed to embrace everyone...
Not sure it'd work, but for now, it seemed failing.
Letting riffraff in and demanding stuff—chaos.
Jang glanced behind me.
"Moving done? Hostel was empty earlier."
"Yeah."
"Subspace move... Wherever it is, I'd love a peek sometime."
"If opportunity arises."
Empty as "let's grab food sometime."
He chuckled dryly.
"Which is why I'm asking... A favor? We'll give you Yongsan Bunker."
This strict guy handing that over?
"Sounds headache-y."
"Situation's this..."
After we killed the ogre, its body stayed on the museum grounds.
Not the strongest monster, but ogres terrified many survivors.
Spectators were fine, but some went rogue.
"Smashed countless treasures stored in the private museum."
I frowned.
We'd only peeked, left them be.
"Bored or what? Why smash those..."
"Even normals snap sometimes. Without self-control, worse. Should've secured them then... Regrettable."
"All smashed, nothing left."
"National Museum of Korea, National Palace Museum."
Jang stared straight.
"Their national treasures and artifacts are immense. Nothing like private ones. Metal stuff's probably ruined, but tons of textbook rarities remain."
"Go there, store in subspace?"
He suddenly gripped my hand.
"To preserve Korea's soul, Sung-ho."
Korea's soul...
Honestly, survival kept me too busy for that.
But mindless thugs smashing treasures pissed me off.
Beat monsters, not innocent relics.
Still, salvaging it'd take time and effort.
"Fine, I'll try."
Jang smiled faintly.
"Knew you'd say that. Pulled a motorcycle from shelter storage—use it."
"No return needed?"
"Prefer it back, but if not... Get key from office. And... Please handle that. Essentials for Koreans to remain Korean."
He pleaded again and left.
I grabbed the key from the office, pulled the bike from storage.
Nice ride.
Battery needed charging; better use mine for now.
I opened a dimension gate in a corner, called Da-jeong.
"Motorcycle to the museum."
"Huh? What's up?"
Explained; she lit up.
"Yay! Bike drive!"
Not that exciting.
I wheeled out the bike, started it.
Vroom!
Rough exhaust belched from the muffler.
Da-jeong hopped on back, wrapped her arms around my waist.
Hands sliding suspiciously low.
"Driving—hands off there."
"Shut up and go, oppa!"
The bike sped joyfully down the open road.
Metal Plague Disappearance - 2 End