Hiding a House in the Apocalypse - Chapter 182



Only Krnovel

85. King (7)

Shushu shush! Swoosh!

Shrapnel-like fragments, reminiscent of shotgun blasts, disappeared before us, leaving behind ripples of light as if they had fallen into a clear pond.

As expected, it’s Awaken.

Without this power, King and I would have been torn apart by debris and lying on the ground.

Meanwhile, the fragments absorbed by the force field flew straight towards the monster through a rift in another dimension connected to the force field.

It is the reflection effect of the reflective field.

The point of creation of the small cracks that can be considered the exit of the reflection field is within the maximum range of the reflection field.

Therefore, the infinite reflection of what is reflected through the reflective field does not occur.

A torrent of debris poured down, hitting the monster’s head where its gun barrel was.

The grayish-white flesh was torn and ripped away, but that was all.

In the first place, the small fragments were effective against soft targets like humans, so they could not cause significant damage to monsters.

The crack on the opposite side of the reflection field quickly disappeared, leaving only a dent.

Meanwhile, we did not stop moving forward.

Jeokbuk-

The distance is still 70m.

If you sprint, you can close the distance in one go, but the anihilator type can fire irregularly in rapid succession.

“Skeleton. Do you not have to jump?”

“Not yet.”

There will be one more time, maybe two more times.

And there.

Square square-

Spiderlings who had disappeared for a while discover us and begin to gather around us.

There is a distance, but it will soon rush towards us.

“You are going to die soon!”

Son Myeong-ju’s dry shout was heard from behind.

“How foolish of you to dare to challenge the messenger of God head-on!!”

I ignored King too.

That’s not worth responding to.

But I saw Jeon Si-Hoon next to her.

The guy is watching us.

I stared ahead silently, and King followed behind me as if he trusted me.

In the silent advance, spiderlings begin to swarm you.

There is still a distance.

Maintained speed.

It didn’t even react to spidering.

There’s no need to worry about those guys one by one, because another big one will come.

As expected, a strange ripple occurred at the barrel of the Annihilator.

Second wave.

“Coming!”

It is impossible to dodge a bullet from a distance of 50 meters not only because the bullet is fast, but also because it is not easily discernible by the human eye.

This monster’s fragmentation bullets are different.

Compared to gunpowder weapons, it is noticeably slower, and the only thing I notice is the relatively large-sized fragments that are easily visible.

I don’t care about the fine debris.

thud!

Along with the shockwave, the Annihilator scattered gray-white debris in all directions.

The moment he started spewing debris, I saw a large, angular mass of gloomy color flying towards us.

“evasion!”

He just flew towards the side.

King also flew next to me at about the same speed as me.

“Stationmaster!”

thud!

The king unfolded the stationmaster.

Swish-

The moment the force field was deployed, small fragments that had already entered the minimum range passed through my collar and hair.

“shit.”

The King’s muttering can be heard from behind.

“I got hit once.”

“Can you move?”

“I told you I was dull. In fact, I’m literally heartless.”

“let’s go.”

There was nothing left in the streets where the debris swept through.

There were a few Spiderlings, but the flying shrapnel rounds swept them all away.

Now we are faced with the minimum range of our respective reflective fields.

The minimum range of the medium-sized type’s reflection field is approximately 15 meters.

Dig into it.

But before he could even start running, the bastard raised his head.

“shit.”

The worst option has appeared.

It’s the rain of death.

It is intended to detect hostile targets at close range and fire a rain of death similar to incendiary bombs that aim to scorch the area in all directions.

“How long can you hold out?”

“A little more. But it’s difficult.”

The king said, panting.

It is definitely an over 5 level Awaken, but it seems like it would be quite burdensome to continuously deploy a reflection field.

In reality, what he blocked was not one or two bullets, but hundreds of pieces of shrapnel, so it must have taken a toll on his mental strength.

If so, that’s good.

Let me take a gamble.

Finish him off before he can fire his grenade.

Anyway, King has his limits.

It would be difficult for him to maintain his reflective field in the death rain that would continue for a full 30 seconds.

“Stay there.”

He threw down his gun and ran at full speed.

My feet aren’t very fast, but they’re not slow either.

and.

Bam!

Even if a few spiderlings suddenly attack you in the middle, you can chase them away with an axe.

About 25. 20. 18.

It is not easy to estimate the minimum range of the accurate reflection field by eye.

Even if my calculations are slightly off, I can still see the bullet I shot returning before my eyes.

But if time is of the essence, you may have to take such risks and shoot the monster.

Distance about 15m.

I’m not sure.

Still, I pulled out my Harpnizer and aimed at the bastard.

Crunch!

Press the blue button and the green button at the same time.

With a slight vibration, the separated chemicals come together and quickly become explosive.

The annulator is already puffing up, looking up at the sky.

He’s trying to rain death.

I fired my harpoon at the bastard half a beat later.

Cheeeeeeek–

The Harpnizer’s warhead flew towards the monster’s massive body, trailing a long trail of flames.

It’s a hit.

however.

thud!

He also spit out death-dealing slingshots into the sky.

Soon the grenade exploded.

Beyond the thick dust, a scene of rain of death falling came into view.

In that moment, countless scenes I had long since forgotten flashed before my eyes.

Corpses covered in blankets or carried on stretchers, their arms and legs hanging limp, unable to move any longer.

These are the corpses of my classmates, seniors and juniors, and comrades.

In a sleepiness that was hard to resist, I looked up once again at the rain of death pouring down on me with my hazy eyes.

“······.”

Contrary to what I had imagined at school and in my dorm, my final moments were neither heroic nor scary.

Only the cheap fatalism that what was meant to happen will happen lingers in my weary mind.

It was the moment when I fell into complete drowsiness.

“Skeleton!”

A sudden shout rang out from behind.

It’s the voice of the king.

thud!

A shockwave erupted right behind me, and the rain of death pouring down towards me disappeared in a ripple of light.

I looked back as ripples rose and fell like stars.

“Skeleton. Nice shot.”

The king pointed ahead.

I looked in the direction he was pointing.

Monsters were disappearing under the rain of death.

My harpoon hit the bastard square in the face.

But the situation is not over.

The rain of death is still falling around us, leaving countless ripples even at this moment, and on top of that, a giant spider-shaped monster has appeared before us under the dark building, accompanied by hundreds of its own young.

The master of this eroded area is a spider type.

“Fuck.”

The king muttered under his breath.

“Are you okay?”

“I am the king. I can endure this much more.”

Although he spoke confidently, his body trembled dangerously, making him seem less convincing.

Nevertheless, King managed to survive the rain of death.

“What do we do now?”

King, who had used all his strength, sat down on the floor and looked up at me.

“······.”

There are no weapons now.

Just a pistol and two axes.

I looked ahead.

It’s not easy.

No, it’s close to impossible.

If it was just one spider type, I could somehow get close and cut it down with an axe, but there are just too many subordinates.

There are more than a few hundred just by eye.

Spidering at that scale is a problem of statistics, not mathematics.

The story is that the number itself is more than enough to suppress all the variables.

“······.”

But I have no choice but to do it.

He quietly pulled out his axe and walked towards the countless spiderlings and spider tops.

Countless spiderlings and spider types took threatening stances.

He grabbed an axe and ran towards them.

Dozens of spiders leaped at me.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

After quickly using up the bullets in the pistol and throwing it away,

Crunch! Crunch!

He knocked down all the men who rushed at him with two axes.

The grayish-white mass was torn, split, and shattered, scattering in all directions.

Still, they keep on coming.

For those who have neither intelligence nor emotions, and therefore no fear, the death of a comrade has no meaning.

Likewise, I, who have no fear, continue to slaughter silently.

Squeak! Swish!

I didn’t count how many guys I killed.

There’s only one thing I count on.

The distance between me and the spider type.

It ends at close range.

However, the three-year-old spider type seems to have developed a bit of intelligence, unlike the ones I knew.

When I see you performing the dance of death, instead of rushing towards me, I see you retreating back, escorted by hundreds of Spiderlings.

“······.”

The moment you feel that the promised defeat is confirmed.

thud!

The shock wave echoed.

It’s not the king’s.

It’s a much louder, more muffled rumble that seems to come from the depths of your soul.

For a moment, it felt as if the world had become faintly brighter.

That’s right.

This ringing.

“Brother Sihun! What are you doing!”

I looked back.

Jeon Si-hun was walking towards us.

With a blazing light in his eyes and a gentle aftershock that seemed to distort space throughout his body.

“sorry.”

Jeon Si-hoon nodded at me.

King, who had been sitting exhausted, let out a laugh.

“This kid. He’s finally moving now.”

Jeon Si-Hoon glared at the spider type.

He clenched his fist.

thud!

The moment the indescribably intense shockwave echoed through the battlefield again, the king of the spiders collapsed like a tin can.

*

A sweet smell wafted from the end of the hallway.

Women wearing fox and rabbit masks, their bodies fully exposed, served us milk tea.

I expressed my gratitude with a bow and drank milk tea.

I turned my head, savoring the sweet yet deep taste of milk tea seeping into my body.

Next to me, Jeon Si-hun is sitting with his head bowed, while Son Myeong-ju is sitting with her head raised stiffly, keeping her distance from me.

After the battle, we escaped the eroded zone.

Although Son Myeong-ju stubbornly refused, Jeon Si-hun’s will was stronger.

Across the hallway, a man wearing a fancy gown and a lion head approached us with his arms outstretched.

“Skeleton! And Exhibition Hoon!”

Now is the time to choose.

Of course, it is not me who chooses, but Jeon Si-Hoon.

Even though they came all the way to the King’s palace together, Jeon Si-hun still hadn’t decided on his future.

The king looked at me.

“Skeleton. Do you have anything else to say?”

My story is over.

Therefore, I have nothing to say.

As we shook our heads, the King led us into his office.

The only ones allowed to enter the office are me and Jeon Si-hoon.

Son Myeong-ju was stopped by a woman wearing a rabbit mask.

We entered King’s office under Son Myeong-ju’s wary gaze.

A luxurious room filled with the strong smell of air freshener and the smell of corpses.

An iron cylinder still stands indifferently in one room.

“Jeon Si-Hoon. I promised you earlier, right?”

The king walked towards the cylinder.

And then he opened the cylinder.

There was something there just as I expected.

“Ughhhhhhh······.”

It’s a zombie.

Chained, gagged and equipped with an electrical device around their necks, they have no killing power, but they look at us with glassy eyes and weakly wave their arms, showing no sign of intelligence like the zombies we know so well.

The king looked at the zombie and said.

“This is my predecessor.”

The expression on Jeon Si-hun’s face hardened.

“Your predecessor?”

“Do you know how I became Awaken?”

“······?”

“My predecessor, who was trying to create a new city in Sejong, was captured by looters and tortured. The looters, who tortured and abused my predecessor for three days and nights, brought a zombie and made it bite my predecessor’s dying body. As the looters expected, he began to die as he turned into a zombie. However, my predecessor’s life force was more tenacious than the looters had imagined. Even as he turned into a zombie on the brink of death, he did not extinguish the flame of life and realized the new power within him.”

“······Could that be?”

“Yes. He realized the power of Awaken. And he killed all the raiders. And he laid the foundation for the city.”

Jeon Si-hoon was overwhelmed by the atmosphere, but he seemed not to understand King’s words.

He hesitated and asked questions.

“You can become Awaken in that way? I’ve never heard of such a thing······.”

Then the king took off his mask.

Beyond it was a haggard, half-dead face, not much different from the one inside the cylinder, but with black makeup around the eyes.

That’s right.

It’s a zombie.

No, it’s something that is neither human nor zombie yet.

A look of astonishment that could not be hidden appeared in Jeon Si-hun’s eyes.

“That’s the method my father taught me.”

“Oh, father······?”

The king pointed at the zombie.

“Yes. This zombie is my father.”

“······.”

Jeon Si-hoon couldn’t refute it any further.

Because I saw the undeniable evidence right before my eyes.

“I decided to follow in my father’s footsteps and use his methods.”

“······Wow, is it possible to awaken like this..”

“This method also has its weaknesses.”

The King put his mask back on.

At that part, I also felt strong tension.

King’s way was something Jang Gi-yeong had told me, but my teacher didn’t tell me anything about the ending.

In the silence, the King opened his mouth again.

“······As you can see from my father, we eventually become zombies. My father lost his wits quickly due to his old age, but I also lose my wits sometimes.”

“Why that way?!”

Jeon Si-hun asked.

“I didn’t want to become a zombie either. But I had no choice. My father’s will was so strong, and he asked me so earnestly. After much thought, I followed in his footsteps. That’s why I live with my father’s unfulfilled dreams.”

“······.”

It’s not just the shocking truth that Jeon Si-hoon kept his mouth shut.

The shock of seeing another rich person’s relationship with another man may have sent ripples through the mind of this young friend who was getting older.

“Sometimes I wish I could be something else. I’d like to have hair on my body, or the face and claws of an animal. Anything would be better than being a zombie, right?”

King turned towards Jeon Si-hun.

“You are different from us. You were born that way.”

“······.”

“One day, this city will have a ruler elected by vote, but not now. Only those with power. Only the Awaken can sustain the city.”

“I am.”

“There are 30,000 people here. You see this city as a place full of oppressed people and thugs. But it will get better. It will get better until I go crazy. But when I become like my father, this city will need you.”

“king.”

Jeon Si-Hoon looked up at King.

Even though it wasn’t hostility or contempt, I harbored a strange feeling that I couldn’t explain.

“Well, I don’t have any plans to retire yet.”

The king chuckled.

“How is it? Have you made up your mind?”

At King’s question, Jeon Si-hun lowered his head for a moment, then raised it.

When I raised my head, Jeon Si-hun had become a bit more mature than when I first saw him.

*

To conclude, Jeon Si-hoon returns to Woo Min-hee with me.

It’s not that I refused the king’s offer.

“I’ll go back. For now. I also felt something after seeing Eomchang, no, Skelton. I thought that someone without any power could fight so fiercely.”

Jeon Si-hoon looked at me and gave me a thumbs up.

“I felt like a real warrior, no, a hunter. Really! Eomchang is cool, but this guy is a thousand times cooler than that Eomchang!”

“······okay?”

“I was reminded of Captain Kang Han-min!”

King, who had been listening to our conversation, turned around with a sad smile.

“If that’s what you think, I won’t stop you.”

Jeon Si-hun looked at King, clenched his fists, and spoke powerfully.

“The crack will be closed soon. Captain Kang Min-gang said it was one step away from closing!”

“okay?”

“Yes! I’ll close the crack and come back. But please take good care of the pearl. And don’t do anything weird.”

“That crazy bitch wouldn’t give up even if you gave her a whole truckload.”

This is how Jeon Si-hun came to ride in the same armored vehicle as me.

Before the armored car departed, King called me aside.

“Skeleton.”

When his mask was removed, his face turned back into a human face.

The king laughed heartily with a human face.

“I acknowledge you as the king’s ally.”

“······.”

“If you need any support or a woman, just let me know.”

“······.”

“And the puppet show······.”

“I will decline that.”

At my refusal, the King laughed heartily again.

“You little skeleton! You know what I mean?”

The armored vehicle took off.

I looked out the window with Jeon Si-hun, who was riding next to me.

I suddenly thought as I looked at the exhibition hall inside the window and the king outside the window.

There are many fathers in this world.

A father who abandoned his child.

A father who burdened his children with an unreasonable burden.

I’m sorry, but my relationship with my father is ambiguous.

Well, actually, wouldn’t that be a good thing?

And I see a city in ruins.

Markets are set up, bargaining takes place, and people work in workshops and farms.

The thugs laugh and run wild, but the working people hold on to what is theirs and don’t want to let it go.

Humans are strong.

The will is stronger.

Feeling the tired, immutable truth, I quietly closed my eyes.

Wait, I need to close my eyes.