I’m the Only One with Powers in the Apocalypse – Chapter 13

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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I took a step into the hardware store. A cute little chime hung above the door. I had to be careful with this door. If I bumped it, the chime would ring.

The counter by the door was empty. The narrow space of the hardware store was crammed with shelves and wall displays, packed with everything from tweezers to monkey wrenches, various types of tape, and batteries.

It was so narrow that it was difficult for even one person to pass through. Why was it so cramped? It made it hard to see.

I slowly walked between the shelves, scanning the aisles and keeping an eye on the street outside. I had to be careful.

Huh.

There was another doorway next to the counter. The lights were off in there.

Why?

I looked up at the ceiling. A lightbulb was broken.

…That wasn’t good…

I cautiously took a step towards the doorway.

Grrrr… Grrrr…

“…!”

There!

They were in there, in the dark where the lightbulb was broken!

Should I go left, along the shelves, and reach it that way?

Or should I go right, past the counter?

I had to choose. I couldn’t just ignore them and gather supplies. If they attacked me from behind while I was busy, I’d be caught off guard.

I had to deal with them first.

Which way should I go?

…They hadn’t attacked me when I entered through the front. That meant they hadn’t seen me from behind the counter.

My heart pounded. I took a slow, deep breath and retraced my steps.

Careful not to touch the tools hanging on the wall.

Carefully…

Each step felt like an eternity. All my attention was focused on that dark space. The lights in the front of the store illuminated the area somewhat, but the shadows made it look ominous.

My heart hammered against my ribs. I could almost hear it.

I took another step closer.

…I saw them.

Electrical wires and screws were scattered on the floor. And two figures were lying face down.

Grrrr… Grrrr…

They looked dead. But they weren’t. They were just lying there. Some were standing, others were lying down. I didn’t understand the difference. Maybe they just lay down if there was space to do so.

…No way.

Some were lying down, some were standing… it must have been random. There was no way to know what they were thinking.

That meant there could be more of them hiding in the places I’d seen earlier, more than I had realized.

…This was driving me crazy.

Gripping the spear with both hands, I raised it.

Thud. Clang!

Shit!

The spear had bumped against the doorframe!

The chime rang!

“Raaagh?!”

Two figures sprang to their feet in the darkness!

They were too close!

I couldn’t dodge!

I couldn’t escape!

Damn it, I didn’t have time to think!

I charged at them. They roared and reached for me as they saw me.

Shit, Accelerate!

[Auto-cast: Accelerate]

“Gaaa—aa—aa—”

They slowed down! It was dark! I couldn’t see their faces! But those shapes were definitely heads!

I gripped the spear with both hands and thrust it forward with all my might.

Crack!

The horrific sensation of piercing something hard, then something soft, traveled through my hands. I yanked the spear out and thrust it again at the other head.

Thud!

“—aa—aa—raagh!”

Crash! Thud! The two human beasts collapsed. One of them slammed into the counter with a loud crash.

“Huff… huff… huff!”

That was loud. I immediately turned around. If anything was coming, I had to get out of here now.

“Ha… ha… ha…”

My breathing was loud.

Silence.

Utter silence.

…Good.

“Ha… hoo…”

One level per kill.

Ha… shit.

At least leveling up was relatively easy.

I stood there, listening intently. If there were more of them inside, I would hear something.

I waited for a moment, but all I could hear was my own breathing.

…Good.

I looked down and saw one of the bodies impaled on my spear. Its neck was almost completely twisted from being skewered.

…A woman.

The other one was a man. The hardware store owners? …No. They couldn’t be a couple. One of them must have been infected and attacked the other. One of them had been guarding the store.

I didn’t know which one was the owner.

I stepped on the woman’s head and pulled the spear free.

Thud!

The spear came loose with a sickening sound.

Damn it.

It was coated in blood and hair.

I wasn’t going to be able to clean this, was I?

I carefully looked around the hardware store. It reminded me of those zombie dramas I used to watch. Someone would carelessly enter a store after killing a few zombies, happily gathering supplies, only to be bitten and killed by a zombie that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

I wasn’t going to be that guy.

Gripping the spear tightly, I walked around the store, checking every corner.

Nothing.

Definitely nothing.

There was nowhere for them to hide. Just walls, shelves filled with tools, and two bodies on the floor. That was it.

“Ha…”

I felt relieved. Damn it.

Now, I could finally gather some supplies.

First, the machete…

…There wasn’t one.

Damn it, of course, there wouldn’t be a machete in a small-town hardware store like this. They were mainly used for clearing trees and bushes, and this was the middle of a city. There were no trees or bushes to clear here.

Was there anything else I could use as a weapon…?

There were plenty of tools like wrenches, monkey wrenches, and pliers, but not many bladed weapons.

…!

Shit!

I… I found it!

The brightly lit area only had useless things like wire cutters, showerheads, and electrical wires. But in the darker area, hanging right on the wall…

Axes!

A large axe and several smaller ones!

The large one looked like it was over a meter long!

“Hoo… whoa!”

I was so excited, I could barely breathe. I pumped my fist in the air, then looked around. Silence.

Good.

Time to grab them.

The smaller axes looked like tomahawks. I didn’t know why a hardware store would have these, but if there wasn’t a machete, these would have to do. It wouldn’t be a hardware store without them!

Ah, I was so happy.

I grabbed the axes and stuffed them into my bag, then picked up the large axe with both hands.

It was heavy.

“Hoo…”

A satisfied smile spread across my face. This weight… With the right angle and swing, the centrifugal force would drive the blade deep.

Perfect.

I hadn’t noticed it earlier in the dark, but there was also an electric weed whacker in the corner. It looked like a vacuum cleaner with a rotating blade at the end.

…That wouldn’t be a good weapon, would it?

I had used one before when trimming grass. It was heavy and incredibly loud, and it would attract every beast in the vicinity.

No.

I was still too weak.

I couldn’t afford to use such an attention-grabbing tool.

I had to be careful.

I had one large axe, about a meter long. And four tomahawks.

These small axes…

I wanted to carry them on my belt.

Was that possible?

Hmm… I didn’t have a belt…

I looked down at the spear.

My belt…

Now that I had axes, I didn’t really need this makeshift spear, did I?

I unscrewed the shelves and removed the belt.

I looked outside as I fastened the belt around my waist. I didn’t know how long I’d been in the hardware store. It was just getting dark when I left the boarding house, so it must have been well before midnight.

I secured the belt and tucked two tomahawks into it, one on each side. With the blades facing upward, they stayed in place. The problem was… they were uncomfortable. I could feel them pressing against my hips.

Damn it, it looked cool, but it was so uncomfortable!

Sigh.

I had to endure a little discomfort. Safety first.

With the large axe in my hand and two tomahawks on my belt, I decided to look around the hardware store some more. What had Soo-hyun asked me to bring back?

I pulled out my phone.

[I’m at the hardware store. Do you need anything?]

A moment later, my phone chimed with a message notification.

Damn it!

I grabbed my phone and looked outside. I waited. Silence.

“Ha…”

Damn it…

I had to change it to vibrate.

I adjusted the settings and checked the message.

[A welding machine or some strong adhesive? And any kind of tools would be good. Oh, and if you see any large batteries, please bring those back.]

…Large batteries?

[Why batteries?]

The reply came a while later.

[The news isn’t working anymore. There are hardly any updates. The power plants might still be running, but we can’t be sure. I hope this situation gets resolved, but if it doesn’t, the power might go out eventually.]

…I…

I see…

Electricity…

Wait.

[What about water?]

[The water is still running, but if the power goes out, the water will probably stop too. Water treatment plants need electricity.]

…Right…

Soo-hyun was right.

Electricity and water…

Important.

[Okay. My bag is small, so I can’t carry too much.]

[Okay, be careful.]

…Hoo…

My phone battery was down to 14%.

14%… If the power went out, I wouldn’t be able to charge it. Then I wouldn’t be able to contact Mom and Dad. Or my little sister, that hellion.

…I hoped they were safe.

I found the batteries in a dark corner. The largest one was bigger than my two fists put together. I tried to lift it, and almost cursed. Damn it, this thing was heavy. Batteries were heavy, I knew that. Ah, shit! I grunted and managed to stuff it into my bag. I hoped it wouldn’t rip.

I grabbed a few tools, some tape, wire, and electrical wire, just in case. My bag was getting heavy.

“Ha…”

Damn, this was heavy… It felt like it weighed over 20 kilos. It reminded me of running with a full combat load in the military. Damn it.

I had been in the hardware store for a while. Probably about an hour.

Time to go back.

I lifted the bag and slung it over my shoulder.

“Ugh…”

I felt like I was back in the military.

Damn it.

With the heavy bag on my back and the axe in my hand, I left the hardware store. I carefully walked towards the nearest car, using it as cover. I was worried about the hair salon. Was that crazy woman still staring at me?

…Thankfully, she had her back to me now.

Nothing happened until I reached the car.

I cautiously made my way back towards the convenience store.

“Sob… gasp… sob… uugh…!”

A terrified voice.

What was that?!

I looked up from behind the car. A young man. No, a kid. A middle schooler, at most. He was running frantically.

And behind him…

“Grrrr! Graaagh!”

A young woman was chasing him. He was going to be caught!

“Ugh!”

The kid tripped and fell, twisting his leg badly. He was too scared to run properly.

“Sob! Aaagh!”

“Gaaagh!”

The woman pounced on him.

“Aaaaagh! Gurgle…!”

His scream echoed through the street.

She… she bit his neck.

“Hoo…”

I had seen everything. I knew he was going to be caught. I had watched and waited.

Crunch! Rip!

The sound of tearing flesh.

I slowly walked towards the woman, careful not to make a sound. She had her back to me, completely engrossed in biting the kid. I raised the axe. The bitch was moving her head from side to side as she bit…

Stop moving your damn head!

Damn it!

Accelerate!

“Graaa—aa—aa—”

That’s it.

I brought the axe down with all my might. Thwack! The large axe blade cleaved through the woman’s head in one swift motion.

Done.

I hooked my arm around the axe handle and pulled it upward. Thwack! The axe came loose.

“—Aagh!”

Accelerate wore off.

The woman collapsed, face down.

“Gurgle… grrrr…”

The middle schooler. Blood poured from his torn neck. He gurgled and coughed up blood. He looked at me. His eyes pleaded for help.

…I had seen him being chased. I had let him get bitten. I didn’t want to risk myself by helping him.

I raised the axe. The middle schooler reached out to me, his hand trembling. He wanted help. But he had been bitten. Just… die.

I swung the axe down with all my might. “Hah!” Thwack! The axe cleaved through his head. Blood splattered. I closed my eyes.

“…Ha… ha…”

I gritted my teeth, slowly stood up, and walked forward. I pulled the axe free with a grunt.

…Time to go back.

To the boarding house.

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