Chapter 137
Chapter 137
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 137
Chapter Title: Unexpected Filter
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After perfectly installing the Idol of the God in the underground warehouse, I took Hwa-young and Ye-won—who happened to have nothing to do at the time—and wandered around the school.
It felt strangely emotional thinking that we'd be setting up our base here and living from now on.
The mart had been raided by zombies multiple times, leaving indelible bloodstains everywhere and shattered windows that made the whole place look messy and unsightly. But Hyoseon Girls' High was different from the mart—it had completely avoided the zombie waves, so the scenery was nice and it was far cleaner.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ As I strolled around with a pleasant smile on my face, I ran into Jeong Ji-yeon, who was repairing a broken turret, and chatted with her for a bit.
"What? Ghosts never really came here even before?"
"Yes... Even after the update, there hasn't been a single ghost or anything weird showing up in the past week."
Surprisingly, from talking to Ji-yeon the engineer, I learned that ghosts hadn't really appeared at the school even before installing the Idol. That must be why the people at Hyoseon Girls' High hadn't felt the need for it and chose not to risk entering the Missing Persons' Forest. It was ironic—schools are the classic backdrop for urban legends, yet there were no ghosts here.
That's when Hwa-young, who'd been listening from the side, shared her thoughts.
"Hmm... Ghosts especially show up a lot in places thick with grudges, right?"
"Yeah...?"
"And when the disaster started, tons of people died in the downtown area... So maybe they don't appear much around Hyoseon Girls' High?"
Hwa-young's point was that since Hyoseon Girls' High had started with an engineer, a plant farmer, and a guild manager right from the early days of the disaster, hardly anyone had died painful deaths here, so ghosts hadn't spawned nearby.
Ye-won backed her up. They'd both held out at the mart for nearly a week while I was in the Missing Persons' Forest, so they must have seen and felt something.
"And... Oppa... I observed from the rooftop, but... that sports center we collapsed?"
"Yeah, that one."
A ton of people had died at the Sports Center. Even before we raided it for food, unspeakable horrors like cannibalism and all sorts of gruesome acts had been going on.
Especially their leader, Lee Chan-seong—that total thug—had reached the point of decorating with tortured victims like they were artwork. No wonder it was crawling with grudges.
"But there... they gathered there in huge numbers, way too many... I think it might be designated as a haunted spot... And the ghosts were using it as a base, wandering around, but most went back there before nightfall..."
"So you're saying that's their stronghold?"
"Yes... And Hyoseon Girls' High is much farther from the Sports Center than our mart... So maybe the ghosts haven't come here yet...? They might wipe out the closer survivors first... and come gradually..."
"Makes sense. They could be expanding their territory bit by bit... Assuming ghosts have as much intelligence as ghouls... or more."
Once downtown turns into a ghost town, they'll probably swarm here. But by then, the Idol will be fully operational, so no problem. The timing worked out perfectly. That's when Eun-ha approached me with a serious look. She'd been looking for me.
"Hey, Eun-ha. What's with the face? You sick or something?"
"Well... kinda... feeling dizzy and down for no reason..."
Eun-ha complained of dizziness and unexplained depression. She'd been fine after devouring so many ghosts like crazy, but now she was suddenly in pain—it worried me. No way... the monsters she swallowed were bursting out from inside, right...?
"Hey... Eun-ha. Want me to find some painkillers?"
"N-no... it's not... something medicine can fix... it's like..."
"Describe the symptoms clearly."
"W-well... breathing's a bit hard... stomach feels off... and being here feels wrong..."
What was going on? It wasn't sharp pain somewhere—it was like an overwhelming bad vibe. Confused, I called Joo-ha, who knew Eun-ha best.
Joo-ha, who was moving ingredients to the school annex, came over. She poked and prodded Eun-ha's body here and there, then shook her head, saying nothing was wrong.
"She's been tough since she was little, never even caught a cold... Doesn't feel off anywhere. Eun-ha, if it hurts, don't hold back—tell your sister exactly what's wrong."
"S-sis... it's..."
Eun-ha mumbled her symptoms to her sister. Her vocabulary was a bit limited since she hadn't gone to school properly, so it came out jumbled... but listening carefully, it seemed the energy here was making her uncomfortable.
'No way...'
Was the Idol's effect hitting Eun-ha too...?
It had to be. She'd felt nothing when we arrived, but just before, she'd started feeling oppressed. Right after I'd sacrificed that spirit and activated the Idol, her mood tanked.
'If a curse doll like Eun-ha—who's not even undead—is this bad off, what about full undead like Son Ha-eun or the Dullahan?'
They were probably feeling it too. I called Ha Jin-woo, who was moving the water tank to the rooftop with Kang Eun-jeong.
"Hey, Jin-woo! Know where Son Ha-eun is?"
"Huh? Oh, that skeleton kid?"
"Yeah. Her and the headless one."
"Saw 'em earlier sitting by the back gate. Didn't respond when called. Said they were tired, I think."
Yup, both wiped out by the Idol's effect. I scooped up the dizzy Eun-ha and headed to the back gate.
"M-master... oppa..."
"N-neck... give neck..."
The two were slumped by the back gate, staring blankly into space... Well, Son Ha-eun has no eyeballs and the Dullahan has no head, so who knows where they're looking, but they both looked dazed.
"Hey, you two feeling dizzy and sick?"
"Y-yeah... stomach... don't have one, just bones... but feel drained... dunno why..."
"N-neck... give..."
Neither wanted to enter the school. The Dullahan was flat on the ground babbling nonsense like its battery died. Though it always babbled anyway.
"Hmm... what to do with you guys."
Eun-ha, Son Ha-eun, and Gu Gyohan were all having issues. Hwa-young, Eun-ji, and I were fine, but these three—undead and curse doll—were wrecked. Even as players, their undead races made them vulnerable to the Idol.
'But... is a curse doll undead...? Doesn't seem like it... More like an inanimate doll? What's the detection range even?'
Frankly, Lich Son Ha-eun and Dullahan Gu Gyohan could just live outside. No zombie infection risk, no need for food or sleep. Dullahan could hunt zombies and skeletons for its hobby of head-collecting, and Son Ha-eun could play with corpses it brings.
Eun-ha was the problem. She'd already joined me intimately and the harem. Couldn't just ditch her like a dog. We needed a solution. Around then, A-reum approached after finishing her cart escort duty.
"Has anyone seen A-ram unnie?"
"A-ram? Nope. Why?"
"She keeps making me do all the work and slacks off... Huh...? Why's everyone so serious?"
"Ah... A-reum... it's like..."
I explained the situation to A-reum, who was annoyed at covering for A-ram. She nodded and gave a clear answer.
"Can't Eun-ha just puke up the ghost she ate?"
"Huh?"
"Looks like it's not class or race. She ate a ghost, right? That's probably it. Right? Anyway, I'll go find unnie."
"Y-yeah. Okay. Thanks."
A-reum's words hit me. Unlike the bone-only Son Ha-eun or headless Dullahan, Eun-ha wasn't undead. Her heart beat fine, and she was warm to hold.
'If it was class or race, half-human half-demon me or vampire Hwa-young should've been affected. Even Eun-ji's a yokai.'
But we were all fine. So it was an undead-specific issue—the ghosts Eun-ha swallowed were acting up inside her.
'That's why she's been dizzy and nauseous...'
To get the Idol's protection, Eun-ha had to vomit them up, like A-reum said.
"The ghosts you swallowed... not digested yet?"
"Not digested... they were fighting each other... only one left the day before yesterday."
"Got it... just puke that one up."
"Okay..."
I grabbed the hilt of Gwigokdo, infused with Yang Ji-sang's yang energy, to slice the powerful ghost brewed in solitude.
[Ughhh...! M-master... finally... finally... my voice reaches you...! Ahh!! God!!] I jumped at the intense cry. Yang Ji-sang wailed in ecstasy, calling to his god... but no, I'd never heard the old ghost's voice. I'd just grabbed the hilt to use it.
"W-what? Oh, right, you're a ghost too."
Yang Ji-sang was undead too—possessed soul and all. Anyway, I stopped Eun-ha, who was about to puke the solitude ghost to feel better. Yang Ji-sang seemed to have something to say. Eun-ha clamped her mouth shut mid-vomit.
[I-I thought I was done for... like this... might even ascend... Huh? Maybe that's better...] Yang Ji-sang was useful. Couldn't let him ascend yet.
"Hey, hold up! Ascend and you'll go to hell."
[Ugh... H-hell...!!!] "And I stuck that sub-sword next to you last time. You two get along."
I'd beheaded Dodomeki and placed her beside him. Mentioning her shut Yang Ji-sang up fast.
[...] I pictured the old pervert blushing with a girl next to him—grossed me out.
Sensing my mood, Yang Ji-sang quickly changed the subject.
[M-master... earlier... when you killed that old coot...] "Yeah."
[After offering him up... I felt...] Long story short: the underground warehouse with the Idol felt peaceful to him. He'd called it thick with death energy—like a graveyard or tomb.
"So... the warehouse with the Idol is full of death qi... and once you left it, you felt bad enough to ascend?"
[Yes! That's exactly it!] The Idol wasn't some holy relic—it was an undead yard keeper fueled by human souls.
So the place it was installed would naturally be saturated with death qi. Yang Ji-sang or Son Ha-eun could live there. Dullahan hated tight spaces, so it could patrol the perimeter.
'They haven't even cleared the old man's corpse... perfect for Son Ha-eun's workshop.'
She needed space to tinker with bodies anyway, and she didn't sleep. She could guard the Idol 24/7 while playing with the offered corpses in the basement.
"Sorry for making you wait, Eun-ha. Puke it up quick... Son Ha-eun, hang in there a bit."
First, deal with Eun-ha, hands clamped over her mouth against the vomit urge.
Darkness leaked between her fingers—she was seconds from hurling the solitude ghost.
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