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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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Crack!
The sword pierced the head.
I yanked it out, and the woman’s face went slack as she fell forward. Her head hit the door frame with a thump.
“Huff, huff, huff!”
Over…
Was it over?
“Kaagh! Kyaaagh!”
…Not yet.
What?
Was there something else left?
I looked through the gap, but I couldn’t see anything.
What was it?
“Kaagh! Kaagh!”
What? Where was it?
I couldn’t see it.
I peered through the gap, but there was nothing. Only a young, frail roar echoed.
Young…
…Frail… roar?
…No way…
“Kyaagh! Kra!”
Bodies were piled up in front of the door.
Something was twitching.
…A hand.
…A child’s hand.
“Kyaagh! Kyaagh!”
…Holy shit…
I put my hand on the wall.
I closed my eyes.
No, I couldn’t close them.
I opened them again.
“Hoo… ha…”
I put my hand on my waist and took a step back from the door.
“Kyaagh! Kyaagh!”
I could hear the sounds of slapping and hitting.
I just stood there, staring at the door.
“…Ha… ha…”
…I knew it.
It was the apocalypse.
It wasn’t just adults who were affected.
Children too…
Even babies must have died or turned.
I put my hand on my waist and turned my head to the side.
I sighed.
Looking down, I exhaled.
“…Ha…”
I ran my fingers over the leather interwoven on the sword’s hilt.
This was a good sword.
It didn’t slip in my hand, and the grip was much better than the makeshift spear I made with the belt.
Since it was made of metal, it was heavier than I expected, and with enough force, I could easily pierce a head.
…A good sword.
“Kyaagh! Kra!”
I placed my hand on the shelf.
Stop thinking.
From now on, I wouldn’t think.
I held a sword.
Beyond the door was a human beast.
I would fight.
The human beast would die.
That was all.
Creeeak-
I slowly pulled the shelf away.
The shelf blocking the door gradually moved to the side.
After moving the shelf, I grabbed the other shelf blocking the door.
Scrape-
It was light, filled with snack boxes, and it scraped against the floor as I pulled it.
I stopped.
If I pulled it just a little bit more, there would be nothing blocking the door.
Beyond the door was a young…
…No.
Beyond the door was a human beast.
I stood there, staring at the door for a long time.
I closed my mouth, took a slow, deep breath, and looked at the door.
“…Ha!”
I yanked the shelf away.
Crash! The boxes tumbled down.
“Kyaagh! Kra!”
The door shuddered and opened.
The bodies piled up outside were pushing it open.
I gripped the sword with both hands and stared at the door.
Creeeak-
The door opened.
Bodies tumbled inside.
At the same time, a dark figure darted in.
Accelerate!
[Auto-casting: Accelerate]
“Kya-a–a—”
With the agility of a cat, a young…
…small human beast was leaping inside.
It moved slowly in mid-air.
Its eyes were unfocused.
I raised the sword.
I placed the blunt side against my forearm and inhaled.
“…Ha!”
I thrust with all my might.
Crack!
The sword pierced through its temple.
…It went in more easily than with adults.
I closed my eyes, unable to even pull the sword out.
“–a-ugh!”
Thud!
The small human beast hit its head against the wall and collapsed.
The sword, embedded in its head, rattled against the floor.
“…”
Silence.
Quiet.
I just stood there.
Looking down at the floor, breathing slowly.
…Stop thinking.
I survived, and they died.
That was all.
I took a deep breath.
I looked outside the door.
I could see the empty kimbap shelves and the half-destroyed shelves.
I bent down and grabbed the hilt of the sword.
I stepped on the small human beast’s head.
I pulled the sword out.
Thud!
Blood trickled out.
“…”
I looked up.
I stood there, staring at the wall.
The sword…
…was stained red with blood.
It reflected the light ominously.
I wiped the sword with the apron of the man’s body lying on the floor.
…It didn’t come off easily.
…How… should I take care of a sword?
…Could I… wash it with water…?
I blinked slowly as I wiped the sword.
And then I slowly stood up.
I inhaled.
I sheathed the sword and attached it to my belt.
I picked up the baton, now blackened and hardened with dried blood and hair, and attached it to my waist.
After securing the two swords and the baton, I picked up the large axe.
…Heavy.
I looked outside.
Quiet.
I stepped over the body and left the storage room.
[Leveled up 3 times.]
…Level 21.
Good.
I put all 3 points into Health, making it 18.
Unfortunately, the hypermarket was out of the question.
Even the smaller supermarket was too dangerous.
I had already used Accelerate four times, and my stats were almost depleted.
I should recover properly and then go out again.
I grabbed some relatively fresh fruit packs, yogurt, bread, and ramen from the convenience store and stuffed them into my bag.
…Grandma.
She asked for red pepper flakes and dried anchovies.
I should try a smaller supermarket instead of the big one.
If I rested properly, I should be able to go in and out of a neighborhood supermarket without any problems.
I slung the full bag over my shoulder and left the convenience store.
What time was it?
It was afternoon. Around 4 p.m.?
I could make it back for dinner.
…Let’s go back.
Dinner was quite lively.
Grandma, Soo-hyun, Ye-eun, and So-eun didn’t make a fuss even though I showed up covered in blood.
As I emptied my bag, I told them I’d have to get the red pepper flakes and dried anchovies later, and Grandma nodded with a sad smile.
“You’ve worked hard, young man. You’ve worked hard.”
The women didn’t ask what I did outside, how many I killed, or who I killed.
As if what happened outside stayed outside, and had nothing to do with here, we finished dinner with smiles.
It felt a bit like escapism.
But it was quite comforting.
Outside was hell, but in here, we were calmly discussing and appreciating the taste of seasoned bean sprouts.
Meanwhile, Soo-hyun was the most proactive.
Like a typical engineering student used to being around men, she had that kind of vibe.
While Ye-eun and So-eun were escaping reality inside the house – Ye-eun was studying Japanese textbooks, and So-eun was drawing manga in her room – Soo-hyun was dismantling her wardrobe to board up the windows and build barricades.
She was definitely a useful girl.
While I was “working” outside, Soo-hyun used the tools I brought back to turn the house into a fortress.
It was a pretty good partnership.
Her touch and moans were also good.
I lay in the rooftop room, thinking those thoughts.
I leveled up 10 times today.
I killed 10 today.
No, I killed 10 things.
I kept habitually thinking of those human beasts as people, but I couldn’t do that.
They weren’t human, and they weren’t alive.
They were things, not people.
Not something to feel for, not something to communicate with.
Right.
I was still clumsy.
Unconsciously trying to see them as human.
Gradually.
I had to detach myself from those emotions.
The more I killed, the easier it became.
One thing was certain: even after leveling up 10 times, I was still weak. I had to keep leveling up, keep killing.
…Let’s sleep.
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The next morning, fully recovered, I left the house.
My target was the neighborhood supermarket.
Not the one near the convenience store, but the one in the opposite direction.
I had to go through the alley of single-family houses.
I slowly walked into the quiet alley.
Occasionally, I heard faint growls coming from some of the houses.
Some of them must have turned inside their homes and wiped out their entire families.
I didn’t know how many human beasts appeared simultaneously when the apocalypse began.
There must have been a lot.
That’s why the whole world shut down in just a few days.
The supermarket came into view.
…Hmm?
I heard rustling sounds.
I slowly drew my sword.
Shing-
I cautiously approached the supermarket.
I could see a man through the supermarket window.
He was quite large.
…Probably a human beast.
I held the sword and slowly entered the supermarket.
Fortunately, the awning was down, so my shadow wasn’t visible.
Rustle, rustle.
…Huh?
A large man in a t-shirt and black jeans was stuffing ramen into a bag.
Even though I could only see his back, I was certain.
He was gathering supplies.
He wasn’t a human beast.
I looked around the supermarket and said quietly,
“Excuse me.”
Flinch!
The large man jumped and turned around sharply.
He was holding a monkey wrench.
There was… blood on the tool.
“Y-y-you, k-k-kill, k-killed, w-w-who.”
He was terrified, despite his size.
I slightly lowered the sword and showed him my open palms.
“I’m human. I’m… not one of those human beasts. I’m here to get some food.”
The large man had a thick beard.
He hadn’t shaved in days.
He was sweating profusely and trembling.
He stared at me, breathing heavily.
…Did he hear what I said?
“I said I’m here for food. Same as you. Put that down.”
I pointed at the monkey wrench trembling in his hand. The man stammered,
“Y-you, y-you, h-have a w-w-weapon, a-and y-you’re t-telling m-me to p-put it d-down. Y-you’re g-going to s-stab m-me! Y-you!”
…This was driving me crazy.
This man was terrified.
I had Accelerate, so if he tried anything, I could activate it, draw my sword, and stab him to death.
I slowly sheathed my sword.
“Better? Let’s not ask who we are or where we live. I’m here for food, you can grab what you need and go. Got it?”
I glanced outside as I spoke, checking for any signs of presence.
The man seemed relieved that I put my sword away and slowly lowered the monkey wrench.
But he was still sweating and trembling.
I glanced at the man and slowly entered the supermarket. If this idiot tried anything, I’d activate Accelerate and stab him in the head.
The man glanced at me nervously and reached for the ramen again.
I passed by a shelf, and the main living area of the supermarket came into view. There was a bed and a TV.
This was a really old supermarket.
I hadn’t seen anything like this in a long time.
It was literally a neighborhood mom-and-pop store.
In that room, an elderly woman was lying face down.
Bleeding from her head.
Her skull was caved in.
I glanced at the man.
He must have done it.
With the monkey wrench.
…Well, it could happen.
I looked at the shelves in the back of the supermarket, searching for red pepper flakes.
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