Shadowing
The morning after the status window appeared. It was already March 15th, halfway through the month. Normally, I wouldn't have had anything to do on a Tuesday, but today was different. I woke up much earlier than usual.
'Talk about the early bird. It's still fucking dawn.'
My target was set. Jeong Minji, the loser girl next door who looked like she’d been bullied throughout high school. If this system was the real deal, my life would completely turn around starting today.
The officetel I lived in was a five-story building. On the first floor, starting from the far left, there was the main entrance, a convenience store, the parking lot entrance, and another commercial space on the far right.
'Her place is right above the parking lot, so no matter what I do to her in there, nobody's going to come up complaining about noise. Hehehe.'
There were ten units on the second floor. I lived in Room 209, and the loser girl next door lived in Room 210. For Minji to take the elevator, she absolutely had to walk past my door.
The stairs were located between her place and mine, so they were visible from my door. But either way, I had never once seen that girl use the stairs to climb a measly two floors. As long as I kept my ears open, there was no way I'd miss her.
My front door didn't have a peephole, so I had to rely on the intercom screen. I turned it on and stepped out into the hallway to see how it looked from the outside.
'Fuck, you can see the intercom light from the hallway clear as day.'
Whenever the intercom screen was active, a light turned on on the outdoor camera. So, I pried it open, ripped out the LED, and put it back together.
I waited inside, fully dressed to go out. Soon, the clicking of heels echoed from next door. I switched on the intercom and saw Minji stepping out into the hallway.
The moment I saw her step into the elevator, I bolted down the stairs. By the time Minji walked out of the building, I was already sitting on a plastic chair under the convenience store parasol on the first floor.
It was a brief wait, hiding under the convenience store parasol right next to the building entrance.
As soon as Minji emerged from the entrance, I fell in behind her.
Following the stalking tips I'd looked up online the night before, I didn't walk on the same sidewalk. Instead, I kept a road's width between us, tailing her from the opposite side.
I kept my eyes glued to her legs, wrapped in sheer black stockings, and her ass, tightly hugged by a short, black two-piece suit skirt.
'If I get lucky, I might catch a glimpse of her panties. Heheh.'
After walking south for about a minute, she turned right, heading west. I used the recessed alcoves between the pillars of various house gates along the way to keep myself hidden as I followed. True to her usual habit, Minji walked with her shoulders hunched forward and her head tucked in like a turtle, making her way toward the Paldalsan trail.
Her hips swayed left and right with every step. Quite a view.
'But seriously, Jeong Minji, what kind of guy are you going to meet?'
This was definitely not the way to any office. She was heading straight into the residential area at the foot of Mount Paldal.
After about five minutes of walking, we hit a flight of stairs. If she had been even slightly cautious, there would have been no way to follow her up here without getting spotted. Fortunately, it was morning, and there were plenty of people out for early walks, so I didn't stand out. Looking up from below, I played a little game of "What color are your panties today?" in my head.
'Please let them be white.'
Unfortunately, her skirt was like a steel skirt; I couldn't see a damn thing. At the top of the stairs, she turned right—heading north—onto the walking trail. There was a decent crowd here.
After another five minutes of tailing her, she stopped in front of a massive estate enclosed by traditional hanok stone walls. Even from a distance, I could see a one-story hanok, a two-story hanok, and even a three-story stone pagoda standing inside the spacious grounds.
Minji tentatively pressed the intercom button. A moment later, a man who looked to be in his forties stepped out.
"Good morning, President!"
Since the mountain was quiet, Minji's voice carried over to me. To hear better, I pretended to look at my phone and slowly strolled past like a casual pedestrian. Seeing how deeply she bowed, this guy wasn't some client—he had to be the president of the company she worked for.
'Classic shitty small-business class. Calling an employee to your house instead of the office.'
"Ah, Accountant Jeong. You wore the pretty skirt I asked you to, I see? It looks good on you. Young people need to dress like that to keep the office bright and lively."
The president had a booming voice, making it easy to overhear.
The president eyed Minji with blatant sleaziness. Hey, she's my property. What the fuck do you think you're doing?
"You know we have a company dinner this Friday, right?"
Minji bit her lip, her distaste briefly showing, but what choice did she have? A mere low-level employee has to do whatever the boss demands.
"Yes, I understand."
Minji looked thoroughly humiliated, while the president seemed highly amused.
I pulled out my smartphone, pretending to browse the web, and snapped a few silent photos of Minji and the president in front of the estate. Then, I checked the address on my map app.
Back home, I used the distance measurement tool on a map engine. It showed that the president's mansion was only an eight-minute walk from my officetel. Come to think of it, his place was right next to Hwaseong Haenggung Palace—only a six-minute walk away.
The next day.
On Wednesday, I checked RadioTube before doing anything else. The government had announced a massive spike in suspected cases of a new infectious disease. They had temporarily named this new condition "Acquired Immune Suppression Syndrome," or AISS for short.
The causative virus hadn't been identified yet. It was hypothesized to target the human nervous system, causing hallucinations while suppressing the immune response. It redirected all bodily energy to the skeletal muscles, causing the skin to rot from secondary bacterial, viral, and fungal infections. They also reported that patients experienced a numbing of pain and a massive surge in physical strength.
It sounded exactly like a zombie virus, and the comment sections were already blowing up with people screaming about a zombie apocalypse.
Was a real zombie apocalypse actually starting, just like that post about awakening I saw a few days ago? Had I really awakened too? I absolutely had to test it out tomorrow.
The next day.
Today was Thursday, March 17th. My scheduled hospital visit. As I walked in, I noticed thermal imaging cameras set up at the entrance, with staff in hazmat suits walking around. Just as I was about to pass the cameras, an employee stopped me.
"Sir, our infrared camera detected what looks like a knife under your clothes. You cannot enter the hospital carrying a weapon."
My mind went blank for a second. Since when did a free democratic country get to violate personal privacy like this?
Though caught off guard, I pulled out the sword possession permit I always carried just in case of a police stop. Of course, the permit was actually for a longsword, but it should be enough to bullshit my way through.
"I'm a member of the Traditional Martial Arts Restoration Association. We occasionally perform martial arts demonstrations in hanbok over at Hwaseong Haenggung Palace. Have you ever seen us?"
I shamelessly used a public event I'd happened to pass by recently. The employee looked skeptical. I quickly showed him my appointment slip and urged him to let me through, complaining that I was already late.
The employee made a conflicted face before speaking.
"Well, since you're already late, please leave the knife here. You can retrieve it on your way out."
I checked my knife at the entrance and went inside. I'd taken my sweet time getting ready because I knew my doctor today was a guy, and being late had actually worked in my favor.
When I reached the general surgery clinic, the male doctor examined my wound and gave his assessment.
"The wound looks clean enough. I think we can suture it now. The nurse will guide you to the treatment room."
I followed the nurse into the treatment room and waited until the doctor entered.
"Ah, fuck, that hurts! Go easy on me."
"If I go too easy, we won't be able to flush out the bacteria properly. Bite wounds are especially prone to infection, so we have to be thorough."
The doctor scrubbed the wound with saline solution, rubbing so hard it stung like hell. After a quick local anesthetic, he put in a few stitches and told me I was good to go.
The next day.
Today was Friday, the day of Minji's company dinner. I woke up late and turned on RadioTube, only to hear that martial law had suddenly been declared. I searched the news, and sure enough, the president was on screen declaring a state of emergency.
From that moment on, soldiers carrying rifles became a common sight on the streets. In South Korea, where firearms and explosives are strictly regulated, what kind of "terrorist attack" could cause massive military casualties? It had to be Hunters or Awakeners.
'But man, my ability is kind of pathetic. It's not even a combat class—just some skill to turn women into sex slaves.'
Well, at least I had the perfect test subject right next door. I'd been itching to do this for days but held back out of fear of getting arrested. But if that status window was real, I could finally make my move. Surely the world wouldn't suddenly return to normal and land me in prison just because I tried it on one girl, right?
It was almost time for Minji to return from her company dinner. I would hide in the hallway and slip in right behind her when she opened her door.
I hid in the stairwell, waiting for Minji. Once the motion-sensor lights in the hallway clicked off, the darkness swallowed me. My heart hammered against my ribs. In my hands, I held a roll of duct tape and nylon rope. A utility knife was tucked into my pants pocket, and a dagger was hidden inside my jacket. She was such a quiet, mousey girl anyway; even if I raped her and she screamed, nobody would probably hear a thing.
The elevator doors slid open, and Jeong Minji stepped out. She staggered slightly, clearly drunk. She'd probably been forced to attend that dinner, pressured to drink, and had to endure all kinds of humiliating sexual harassment from her boss. With her self-esteem utterly shattered, there was no better time to break her.
The stupid bitch was fumbling with her lock, unable to even open her own door. The second she unlocked it, I was going in.
As she opened the door, I shoved her inside and lunged in after her. Minji froze in sheer panic, her mind failing to process what was happening.
"...W-What are you...?"
But the moment I drew my dagger and pressed the cold blade against her skin, she went completely stiff and silent.
I pushed her further into the apartment and locked the door behind us.
"You know who I am, right?"
"Who... Who are you?"
This fucking bitch didn't even know her own neighbor.
"Hey, you little bitch. You don't even recognize your own neighbor's face? Looks like I'm going to have to teach you some manners."
"Hic!"
I grabbed her hands and dragged her toward the bed. She tried to resist, but she was so petite and light that she was practically dead weight in my grip.
"H-Help..."
Normally, when you rape someone, you're supposed to cover their mouth so the neighbors don't hear. But her voice was so incredibly quiet that I figured I could just let her scream. Besides, watching a porn video on mute is boring; rape is no fun without any sound.
"Mmph...!"
But when she actually tried to scream, a sudden wave of paranoia hit me, and I clamped my hand over her mouth anyway.
"Hey, stay still. You're making it hard to get your clothes off. You let your boss touch you easily enough. Why can't I show you some love too?"
The threat worked, and she went quiet. I slowly pulled my hand away from her mouth.
I wanted to blow my load first to see if the Brand would take. I pushed up her two-piece suit skirt and peeled off her black pantyhose. Underneath was a pair of plain white cotton panties. Just as I thought. Honestly, it made me even harder; plain white cotton felt like the ultimate symbol of a virgin. Black thongs or fishnets were for girls who'd already been around the block.
I bet she was wearing a sports bra too.
I pulled her panties down, revealing her smooth, bare pussy.
'She's a grown woman, but she doesn't have a single pubic hair. Is this what they call hypotrichosis? She's short, her body is nothing special... I guess her only saving grace is that she looks like a virgin.'
I tried to shove my cock straight in, but she was so tight and dry that it wouldn't budge.
"Ptooey!"
There was no way she was going to relax, so I spat on her opening to get some lubrication and forced myself inside with a hard thrust.
"Aaargh!"
Minji let out a sharp, strangled shriek.
"Ugh... h-heeg... it hurts..."
Well, of course it hurts when I'm forcing it in, you idiot.
I had to apply the Brand quickly before any neighbors heard the commotion and called the cops. Once the Brand was active, even if the police showed up, Minji would claim I was her boyfriend or that it was consensual. She would never call it rape.
I managed to wedge myself all the way in and started thrusting, trying to cum as fast as possible. But just inserting it wasn't enough; her spirit wasn't broken yet, so the Brand wasn't taking. If creampieing her didn't break her, I'd have to start beating her. A sudden wave of anxiety washed over me. What if she was secretly stubborn and refused to submit even if I beat her?
'Fuck, I'm screwed. What if the cops burst in right now and drag me away?'
Even with martial law declared, I should have waited until society collapsed a bit more into a proper apocalypse. I'd been too hasty.
There were still armed cops and soldiers patrolling the streets outside!
To plunge Minji into absolute despair, I leaned down and whispered in her ear.
"Minji, I'm going to cum inside you now! This is going to make you a mother!"
"N-No! Stop!"
She screamed with surprising force for someone so small. But obviously, I wasn't about to stop.
Splurt—spurt—splurt—
'Marking my territory inside a pure virgin's tight little hole... man, this feels fucking amazing. Hehehe.'