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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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Two hours passed, and one Accelerate charge regenerated. My HP had decreased a bit from restoring the other stats, but recharging in two hours was pretty good.
I set down the nacho chips I’d been eating and stood up.
The sword.
Time to try it out.
Shing—
I drew the sword and examined the blade. Sharpened steel. It looked sturdy, but also like it might bend or break…
…Time to find out.
It was quiet outside.
Click.
I opened the door. A rush of unfamiliar air flowed in.
Grrrr… Grrrr…
There was one right in front of the door, its back to me. It stood there, slightly hunched over, growling softly.
…A college student?
Or a high school student?
A young woman in a t-shirt and jeans. I wondered what she had been shopping for at the supermarket. Had she gone alone? With a friend? Or maybe a boyfriend?
As I thought about it, I slowly extended the sword, careful not to touch the door or the frame.
And then, I thrust.
“Hah!”
Thwack!
The blade pierced her head, and her body slammed against the wall.
Bang!
I yanked the sword out, and she collapsed to the floor.
Thud!
It had gone straight through… in one blow!
The other human beasts turned their heads towards the fallen body and roared.
“Graaagh! Gaaagh!”
They lunged at the door.
Crash!
“Gaaagh! Gyaaagh!”
The door, blocked by the shelves, only opened a crack. It rattled violently with each impact.
“Graaagh!”
They tried to squeeze their faces through the gap, but it was too narrow; I could only see their eyes. They forced their hands and arms through, reaching for me, grabbing at the door frantically.
Accelerate!
[Auto-cast: Accelerate]
“Graaa—aa—aa—”
They slowed down!
I raised the sword and aimed for the face pressed against the gap. A middle-aged woman with permed hair. Had she been at the supermarket to buy groceries?
I thrust the sword with all my might.
Crack!
The blade pierced the top of her head, and her eyes rolled back. I yanked the sword out and aimed for the next face.
A young woman wearing a different colored apron. It had some kind of bakery logo on it. She must have worked at the bakery inside the supermarket. How had she ended up at the entrance?
I thrust the sword.
Crack!
The blade went straight through her eye and out the back of her head.
I pulled the sword out, and…
“—aa—raagh!”
…Accelerate wore off.
“Gaaagh! Graaagh!”
Damn it, they were moving their heads up and down…!
I couldn’t aim properly!
“Hah!”
I thrust the sword, but it only grazed the top of a head. Then, the one below!
I angled the sword downward, aiming for the one thrashing below.
A man. He was also wearing an apron. A manager, perhaps?
I thrust downward with all my might.
“Hyaah!”
Thwack!
The man’s face went slack as the sword pierced the top of his head. His eyes rolled back, and his mouth fell open.
“Gaaagh! Graaagh!”
Something flashed past my eyes.
Damn it, a human beast’s fingers!
Two faces were pressed against the gap. They were moving their heads too much; I couldn’t aim properly.
Would the door hold?
But…
I could take out at least one more…!
I tried to aim the sword, but their heads were moving too much, and my hand was shaking.
“Ugh, damn it!”
Grab the blade…!
No! I couldn’t grab the blade!
I immediately reversed my grip, resting the back of the blade against my forearm. And aimed.
Stay still, stay still…!
Eyes staring at me.
Wide, staring eyes!
A gaping maw!
“Hah!”
I thrust.
Crack!
The blade pierced through the gaping mouth and out the back of the head.
The expression…
The bestial face instantly went blank.
I yanked the sword out.
Thud! The body slumped against the doorframe and fell backward.
I could see it now. He was wearing a vest over his t-shirt.
A supermarket deliveryman.
Bang!
“Gaaagh!”
A head slammed against the door.
“…!”
I… I knew this woman.
She… She was my neighbor from the gosiwon.
She… she worked at the supermarket.
“Gaaagh! Graaagh!”
…I gritted my teeth and rested the back of the sword against my forearm. Two heads were pressed against the doorframe. I couldn’t tell how many arms there were. A lot.
…My neighbor.
I was sorry it had to be this way. She had given me kimchi. Hadn’t she said her husband’s business had failed, and her family had been scattered?
“…Hah!”
I thrust the sword with all my might.
Clang!
“!”
Wh… What?!
The sword… wasn’t going in!
I had used the same amount of force!
Again!
“Hah!”
Clang!
The sword wouldn’t penetrate!
W… Wait.
Why?
Why wasn’t the sword…?!
…Ah.
Five.
I had killed five.
Already?!
My Strength… had reached zero…!
I had to close the door!
“Ugh!”
I pushed against the door with all my might.
Thud! A loud noise, but the door wouldn’t close. Three human beast arms were stuck in the gap.
“Damn it!”
I threw the sword.
Clang!
And grabbed the large axe from the shelf.
I swung it with all my might.
Thwack! Thwack!
Blood splattered.
Chunks of flesh flew.
Arms were severed.
I kept swinging.
“Hah! Ha!”
Thwack! Thwack!
Severed fingers rolled on the floor.
There was a gap!
I immediately pushed against the door with all my strength.
Damn it, there were too many of them! It was too heavy!
“Graaaagh! Aaaaagh!”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Graaagh! Gaaagh!”
I pushed with all my might, my back against the door, my feet braced against the wall.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The force of their banging and my pushing created a chaotic back-and-forth.
I kept pushing.
Finally, the door, rattling and shaking, slammed shut.
Click.
I locked it immediately.
“Gasp! Huff… huff…!”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Gaaagh! Gyaaagh!”
I grabbed the drinks shelf and wedged it against the door again.
Screech!
“Gasp! Ha… ha…!”
It…
It was done…
My legs gave way. I stumbled and almost fell.
“Ha… ha…!”
Thud. The large axe clattered to the floor. I leaned against the wall and stumbled towards the back of the storage room.
Squish.
Something soft and yielding under my foot. What was that?
…A severed hand with four fingers. It had been cut off at the wrist. Next to it, a forearm and more fingers were scattered on the floor.
Blood was everywhere.
Like a rain of blood.
“Ha… ha…”
I felt dizzy.
Damn it…
I grabbed a shelf for support, took a couple of steps, and reached the back of the storage room. And then, I slowly sank to the floor.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Gaaagh! Gaaagh!”
The frenzy continued outside.
I watched the door rattle with each impact and slowly pulled my knees to my chest. A message was floating before my eyes.
[Leveled up 5 times.]
How long had that message been there?
I didn’t know.
I was numb.
…I had killed five of them.
“Ha… ha…”
…I had killed five more.
Double digits in just a few days. Almost twenty… How many exactly?
One… two…
…Seventeen.
I closed my eyes and leaned my head against the wall.
…I had killed so many.
Seventeen.
Seventeen in just a few days.
That was a lot. They must have had families, friends.
I had killed them all.
“…Ha… ha…”
I would never have imagined doing something like this before. Killing people and feeling nothing… the old me would never have believed it.
…It had only been a few days. I had thrown up after killing just a few. Now, I didn’t even feel nauseous.
Was I becoming numb?
“Ha… ha…”
I must be.
And I would become even more numb as time went on. I didn’t know how many survivors there were. Were there others like me, becoming numb as they killed those human beasts? …If there were, we might be able to understand each other.
“…Ha… hoo…”
Sitting here for a while, I felt calmer.
…Right.
I had leveled up.
Stats…
“…Status.”
…Level 18.
5 stat points…
“Hoo… ha…”
…Where should I allocate them?
I could only kill five at a time, so I wanted to put more points into Strength. I would be able to kill more.
…No.
For now…
Survival was my priority.
To survive, I needed to recover quickly and regenerate Accelerate charges faster. I allocated all 5 points to HP.
…15 HP.
1.5 HP recovery per hour. It had been 0.6 at the beginning. Well, it had increased quite a bit.
More… I needed to increase it more.
To do that… I had to kill more.
“…Hoo…”
I had also collected 18 Soul Stones. I still didn’t know what they were for. I couldn’t hold them or take them out. They just accumulated in my inventory. I didn’t know what they were, but I figured I’d find a use for them eventually.
“Ha…”
I had killed five.
And what remained…?
I didn’t know how many. About ten at the supermarket entrance? Nine? Something like that.
…There couldn’t be many left. I could take them all out the next time Accelerate recharged.
I checked my phone—Saturday, 10:52 AM. It was the weekend. Normally, the streets would be bustling with people. But it was quiet. Except for the human beasts pounding and roaring at the door.
To fully recharge Accelerate… at least five hours? Something like that. Hmm… I might be able to get back by dinner time.
With that thought, I ripped open the plastic packaging beside me—a pack of twenty 500ml water bottles. I grabbed one and chugged it down. It was lukewarm, but refreshing.
“Ha…”
…As I drank, I realized… I was covered in blood.
Damn it. I didn’t even feel like cleaning it off.
Just… rest.
I lay down, staring at the ceiling, dozing off occasionally, playing some puzzle games on my phone. Quite a bit of time passed. Empty snack wrappers and a piss-filled water bottle lay scattered around me. One Accelerate charge had regenerated.
“Hoo…”
Time to do this.
I carefully moved the shelves and unlocked the door. And opened it.
Creak—
…The hinges were completely shot. The door creaked loudly as it opened. Bodies were piled up in front of the entrance. I stared at the tangled mess of corpses for a moment, then looked beyond the doorway.
…I couldn’t see anything.
But they were there.
Tweet!
I whistled, and immediately heard a growl. I whistled again.
“Graaagh!”
Crash!
Two of them slammed against the door. Two? Or was there another one? I raised the sword and aimed for the gap in the doorway.
…A face.
The face of my neighbor… Her neatly styled bob was now a tangled mess plastered to her face. Her once gentle face was now contorted into a bestial snarl.
“Gaaagh! Graaagh!”
I rested the back of the blade against my forearm and aimed for her head.
…My neighbor.
Thanks for the kimchi.
…It was delicious.
“…Hoo… hah!”
I thrust the sword with all my might.
Crack!
The blade pierced through the top of her head. Her expression instantly softened. Her eyes rolled back, and her jaw went slack. Like Munch’s The Scream.
I felt the weight.
The sword dipped.
“Hah!”
I yanked the sword out. The body slumped to the floor.
“Gaaagh! Graaagh!”
“Ha… ha…”
…This felt awful…
My neighbor… what was she doing there?
“…Shit…”
A human beast with a severed arm shoved its head through the gap, its jaw agape. A young woman. …She was wearing a ring on her left hand. A newlywed, perhaps…?
“Gaaagh! Graaagh!”
…I didn’t even need Accelerate.
I raised the sword and rested it against my forearm.
“…Hah!”
I thrust with all my might.
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