[I Am Not Alone!]
Whirrr... A mechanical hum, like that of a dying refrigerator, served as the background noise for the abandoned hospital’s lounge. In a place crawling with fruit flies and all manner of vermin, a few bipeds were gathered, giggling like idiots.
“Hic... Hehehe...”
“Fu-uuuuck... This is the shit!”
“Ha... This is it... Heh... Heh. This is it...”
“Hey, Lorelean! Pass the sauce!”
“...”
There were eight drug-addled bipeds spouting nonsense, and one paranoid biped sitting off to the side with a scowl. It was absolute chaos; some were drooling while talking to thin air, while others were licking the table in search of candy dust. They were organ harvesters who specialized in black-market trafficking, operating in teams of three to extract organs from their victims. Currently, they were completely high, having gorged themselves on unidentified canned goods looted from Jang Jojun’s bag and special candies from Drug & Rush. All of them, that is, except for the paranoid one.
“Phew... You idiots...”
Lorelean, the biped who had been complaining while sitting among the drugged-out group, crunched down on a piece of smoked Nabian finger meat from a can. He stared intensely at the entrance to the basement, where the autopsy room was located.
‘A high-capacity magic bag is worth a fortune... And he carries around 100-year-old canned goods... and even the heart of a True Ancestor? Is he connected to the Poacher’s hut?’
He still couldn't shake his suspicions about the new goods that had arrived today. ‘None of these are things you can get easily... It’s so suspicious how he just carries them around in his bag like it’s nothing. And that snake-shaped accessory with no clear origin, and the rosary radiating such a strange energy... To walk into the black market decked out in such treasures? Something smells fishy.’
What was even more suspicious was the strangely refreshing, intoxicating scent emanating from the human’s body. The pleasant feeling that made a smile spread across his face, combined with a weird sense of attraction, made Lorelean wonder what the human’s true identity was.
‘Is he even human...?’
Just in case, he discreetly reached for his 17mm Hijax revolver. It was a cheap pistol commonly traded in the black market, but it possessed a lethality that defied its price tag.
“Hey, you guys... Snap out of it. Let’s finish the job quickly and get out of here.”
“Huh? Hehehe. Our Lorelean. Still scared?”
“Hahahaha! You coward!! You. Hic... You did the same thing last time... Hic... You got all jumpy and rushed, and we ended up losing a kidney. Kehehe...”
“No, I’m telling you, I have a really bad feeling about today.”
“Bullshit... Always with the ‘feeling.’ Hic... Ugh. I’m stuffed...”
“Heheh. Alright, Lorelean. Fine. Let’s finish the job and go get laid. We’re going first. You guys can have the rest!”
“Hahaha!! Great! See ya, friends!!”
Soon, two of the drugged bipeds stumbled to their feet from the sofa. Lorelean scanned the surroundings, keeping a sharp eye out for any potential allies of the human male. But whether it was luck or misfortune, the hospital was deathly quiet and peaceful. It was so quiet that it felt ominous.
“What exactly are you so worried about?”
“Yeah. Aren’t you tired of being called ‘Cowardly Lorelean’ all the time?”
“Shut up, both of you... I’m just being cautious.”
“Hahahaha. Has acting ‘cautiously’ ever gotten you anything?”
“Yeah. You’re just overreacting. Live a little like the rest of us! Why do you have to live so cautiously? Just live loosely. It’s fucking great.”
Lorelean snorted, letting the words of the two bipeds walking ahead of him wash over him. Even though he associated with them because they were the same race, he secretly thought he was different. Most of these wanderers, who had no proper home and whose home planets had been destroyed, clung to the black market to survive. Because of that, they had no backing and no power. If someone beat them to death in the black market, no one would care. Beings like him, who had no residence or shop, were nothing more than parasites—illegal squatters who could be cleaned out at any moment. Lorelean knew that fact all too well. He also knew that if he wanted to be treated like a person, he had to scrape together coins.
That was why he had been desperately saving coins to buy a shop, even if it was in a corner of the black market. A shop was a shop, even if it was a dilapidated one. Unless he started some kind of business, it was hard to expect fair treatment in the black 'market.' He felt he would never be able to escape this pathetic life.
“Hahaha! How’ve you been! You human bastard! So, should we open your brain first? Or your stomach...”
Without any caution, the biped stuck his head into the autopsy room... *THWACK!!!!*
“GAAH!!!”
“Wh-what the!!! Fuck!!! Kahina is dead!!”
The head of Kahina, the cocky biped who had opened the door, exploded in an instant. At the same time, the power in the abandoned hospital cut out, and all the lights went dark. In the pitch-black hospital, Lorelean and Kaiman, a red-skinned biped who hadn't fully sobered up yet, took a few steps back. There was something in the autopsy room. And that something was crawling out right now.
“Wh-what is that!!!”
“Fuck...”
Lorelean made a quick decision. ‘Use Kaiman as bait and run...’
Lorelean kicked the panicked Kaiman’s legs and ran forward without looking back.
“Ugh, AAAAAH!!!!! Aah!!! Get away!!!”
-*SPLAT!!!*
Behind him, Kaiman’s scream was accompanied by the sickening sound of tearing flesh. Kaiman’s limbs were ripped apart, and blood splattered everywhere. Lorelean fired his gun indiscriminately toward the darkness behind him, praying that even one bullet would hit and kill the thing.
-*Click. Click.*
But contrary to his wishes, all the bullets missed the monster. The six-shot revolver was empty in an instant, and Lorelean scrambled to pull ammo from his pocket to reload.
“Fuck, fuck, wh-why are my hands...”
His hands were shaking. His body was trembling at the realization that he was going to die. He dropped the bullets he was trying to insert into the cylinder onto the floor. Lorelean realized that he was a dead man. He wouldn't be able to make it out of the hospital alive.
“Hiiik... Haa...”
Lorelean slumped against the end of the basement hallway, facing the encroaching darkness.
“You... what on earth... are you...”
It was a human with a bizarrely twisted, unrecognizable face. The human walked toward Lorelean, step by step, without a word. In his hand, he held a blood-stained axe. It was an object that radiated a sinister aura.
“Sp-spare me... please...”
Lorelean begged the human. Pride wouldn't save his life. He begged and begged desperately. Then, the man whispered from the darkness.
“Submit.”
“Ah....”
Lorelean realized. His prediction had been right after all. He shouldn't have messed with that human.
“I-I shall submit...”
Lorelean realized that the human who had arrived today was a being more dangerous than he could have ever imagined.
****** About 15 minutes ago. ******
“I hope Mer sees this message...”
I tore off a poster from the wall of the autopsy room, pricked my finger to draw blood, and quickly wrote down the items I needed and the general situation Cheshire and I were in, then posted it to the auction house.
[Sent to Mer]
[1000C]
[Auction in progress]
[Ends in 3 minutes]
One of the American slaves who had raided the ghost gate with me must be checking the auction house in real-time, so there should be a reaction soon. Since the only person I knew named Mer was Merhere, she would definitely know it was a signal from me.
“Ah! It worked!!”
I didn't know if Mer had checked it properly, but there was a reaction. I had sent a message telling them to put up every useful item for auction, so whoever from my faction checked it would surely list something I could use as a weapon.
‘Even though I can’t use my skills right now... my basic physical stats are incredibly high, so if I have a decent weapon, I can definitely ambush and take out these bipeds...’
First, I took out the Ring of Memory Transformation I’d kept in my hidden pouch and put it on my finger. Then, I picked up a stray screw and shoved it into the empty space where the ring had been to satisfy my hunger.
‘Since I don’t have my mask right now...’
I didn't usually wear the Ring of Memory Transformation because it made even my companions feel uncomfortable, but now that I’d lost my mask, I felt I needed to wear at least this. With this, they wouldn't be able to see my face properly. Since I couldn't wear a mask right now, it was better to hide my face this way.
‘Got it...!’
Soon, various items began to be listed on the auction house at random. Most of them were things I could use and discard. I told them not to list anything too good, but items perfectly suited to my requirements were appearing.
“Good...”
I quickly purchased five items I could use right away. First, a ‘Defensive Talisman’ that Eila seemed to have made in a hurry, and an axe called ‘Head Smasher’ that caused an explosion if it hit the head. Then, a ‘Potion of Night Vision’ likely listed by Hellas, ‘Parasitic Tree Host Head’ sold by Haeun, and an ‘Electric Interrupter (Incomplete)’ that looked like something Jeong Ji-yeon had listed.
‘Ha... everyone is working so hard...’
The auction house was acting as a perfect long-distance material transmitter. Since I was buying them at prices no one else could dare to match, it had become my own personal delivery service. Moreover, even if I spent tens of thousands of coins, the sellers were all my slaves, so the coins would just be returned to me anyway; I wouldn't lose a single coin.
“Alright... you fucking biped bastards... I’ll kill every last one of you...”
Now, I just needed to get out of this shitty place safely and go find Cheshire. Furthermore, since I had summoned my companions to the black market, a large number of people—including Hilde, Henry, Killian, and Mer—would be coming in to save me and Cheshire. I had obtained three more black market keys while raiding the American survivor camp. A total of six additional people could enter the black market.
‘Only three hours have passed... so I have one hour left. Honestly, if just Hilde enters, the battle is half-won. It doesn’t matter if I can’t summon Kesia and Einax. My companions are strong.’
‘I’ve been focusing on expanding my forces from the very beginning so that I could maintain my base even in situations where I was fucked...’
That was the reason I had obsessively recruited NPCs as if I were collecting them. It was also the reason I hadn't just focused on making myself strong. I had always strived to make everyone strong, not just myself, so that my women could defend the base and protect themselves even when I and the NPCs were away. And finally, that effort was bearing fruit.
‘Being the only strong one isn't everything... My method wasn't wrong.’
Since there would be many times when I had to leave the base, raising the overall level was important. I waited by the entrance of the autopsy room to blow the head off the first biped that entered.
“Hahaha! How’ve you been! You human bastard! So, should we open your brain first? Or your stomach...”
One guy, having lost all sense of caution, poked his head in.
“Hup!”
I immediately brought the Head Smasher down, blowing the guy’s head apart.
-*SPLAT!!!!*
“Th-this!!”
“Kahina is dead!!!”
The screams of the biped bastards echoed from outside the door. I attached the Electric Interrupter that Jeong Ji-yeon had sent to the wall and activated it. Then, I drank the Potion of Night Vision.
-*Hiss...*
Smoke billowed from the Electric Interrupter, and all the lights in the hospital went out.
“Phew...”
Now, all that was left was to kill the remaining bastards. I threw the Parasitic Tree Host Head toward the biped whose head I had just blown off. Soon, the parasitic tree clinging to the corpse combined with the biped’s body and forced it to stand up.
“Urrgh...”
I moved forward, using the creature as a vanguard to kill every last one of the fleeing bipeds. I caught and killed the guy who had been spouting nonsense as if he were high, infected him with the parasitic tree, and then approached the very last one. The guy had fired his gun indiscriminately in his panic without even aiming, but not a single shot had hit me.
“Hiiik..!!”
The biped screamed and begged for his life. I still didn't know where all my items had gone. This bastard would know, so I needed to keep him alive a little longer.
“Submit.”
At my single word, the terrified biped slammed his head into the floor and shouted.
“I-I shall submit...”
“Then, you fucking bastard, guide me to where my items are. And hand over that gun.”
“Ah... y-yes...”
I couldn't brand him with a slave mark right now. After taking the gun from him, I aimed at his back and made him lead me to the place where my items were kept.
“Th-the canned goods are upstairs... and the c-clothes, the bag, and the jewelry are in that room over there...”
“Is that so? Got it. What’s the total number of people in the hospital?”
“Th-that is... seven, including me... The other six are probably all high on drugs in the 1st-floor lobby...”
“They must have heard the commotion by now and prepared for battle. Good. I understand.”
“Th-then, sp-spare me...”
-*SPLAT!!!!*
I brought the axe down on the biped’s head, killing him instantly.
“Offer... Ah, I can’t. Phew,”
I had tried to offer his soul out of habit. Of course, I couldn't offer it right now since even human sacrifices were blocked.
“Haa... fuck... when are my skills coming back... Kashnakas-nim... Indikron-nim... Botamilli... Please, answer me... Ha...”
With the gaze of the Evil Gods gone for the first time in a while, I was reminded of the early days of the catastrophe. Back then, I lacked magic power, and my weapons were pathetic. My skills were heavily restricted, too... Every day had been a desperate struggle. And I hadn't been able to feel the gaze of the Evil Gods, either. Knowing that someone was watching over me was a great comfort. But not being able to feel those gazes at all made me feel a bit anxious, and it also kept me on edge. I guess you could say it made me tense.
“Haa...”
I hurriedly gathered the clothes I had been wearing, my Shadow Mask, my bag, and other miscellaneous items. Now, all I had to do was grab the unidentified canned goods from upstairs and get out of the hospital. I headed upstairs, accompanied by the Parasitic Tree hosts, which had grown to three in number.