Stagnant Water of Apocalypse

It was extremely difficult to travel long distances in this ruined world. It is especially so under the blistering heat of summer. But if it were Rabbit Pwincess and Duck Buttock, I don’t think it would be impossible.

In case they really do come here and come to find me… What should I do?

I exited the Auction House and organized my thoughts. It seems that both of them acquired a good unique ability, so their combat power should be higher than mine. Which also means that they should have quite a lot of points. It was proven by the fact that Duck Buttock had spent 45 points just to buy some ice bags, and Rapwi’s unique ability which costs points. In this apocalypse, having a high combat power and lots of points was synonymous to being an individual powerhouse.

“Moreover, they have no relation with me whatsoever…” In the game, we had indeed laughed, chatted and played together, but in reality, we don’t have any connection with each other. There was one reason why I had to hide my identity from them. Just because those two had played the game together with me for quite a long time, it didn’t mean that they wouldn’t covet my portal ability. The thought of living in abundance in the midst of this apocalypse would naturally be coveted by many people.  Humans are greedy creatures. Once you give them an inch, they’ll ask for a mile.

“However, if it’s those two, I’m not quite sure…” From the experience I had from hanging out with them for so long, both of them couldn’t be said to have the same mindset as normal humans. They were just weird. Their way of thinking is just… I don’t know how to say it. If they really come to Busan… I smiled bitterly. I’m sure I would be elated when I heard the news that they had come. After all, we shared the same memories of getting lost in the labyrinth, lighting a bonfire and chatting about all kinds of things. It would be a great blessing to have someone who shared those memories in the apocalypse.

“Though, it’s all on the premise that they can come to Busan.” I’m not sure about Duck Buttock, but it seemed like Rapwi wouldn’t be able to come here on short notice. No matter how hard I imagined, I couldn’t picture Rapwi meeting Duck and coming here. So, I won’t have to worry about it for a while.

By the way, what was I trying to do before opening the Auction House again?

Looking at the book opened in the cave, it seems like I was trying to make a vegetable garden. In this kind of season—which is winter—it would be hard to dig the ground in order to make a vegetable garden. But since I have a mini fork crane, it shouldn’t be a problem.

“First… Let’s try farming potatoes.” It couldn’t be helped. I watched a lot of survival movies, so I had a preconceived notion that potatoes were the best vegetable to be farmed in those movies. And actually, there were a lot of potatoes stockpiled in the cave.

Anyway, this forest was a magical place where solar apple and bull pepper grew very quickly, so the potatoes will grow quickly too, right?

“Once fertilizer is applied and the site is overturned with a forklift…” I had to make some furrows with a pitchfork and shovel, then cover it with plastic… Hmmm. It looks easy watching it in the video, but in reality, it won’t be as simple as that, as the ground here was frozen. Though it would be a good way to warm up my body in this kind of freezing weather.

When I was gathering the tool and lining it up on the cave’s floor, Dingo, who had been sleeping with its stomach exposed suddenly jolted up and growled.

“What’s wrong? Did you sense something out there?” Seconds later, I also heard some noises.

Oink oink!

Huh? Don’t tell me, something was caught in the trap?

I quickly grabbed my gear and ran outside.

Oink oink oink?

When I went outside, a wild boar cub got its feet entangled in the trap. Before celebrating my first successful hunt with my trap, I forced myself to quickly catch it and tie its legs with a new set of rope.

“Let’s return quickly.” I said to Dingo. The reason why I wanted to return quickly was that the adult wild boars would definitely return to this site to look for its cub. It was definitely a 1+1 situation if I waited. But considering the size of those guys, an unfavorable battle was expected. They wouldn’t die even if they got hit with one or two arrows, so I would have no choice but to fight at close range with a spear.

I brought the struggling cub into the cave and killed it with a single blow. To me, who had already killed so many things, the cuteness of a cub wasn’t enough to even make me bat an eye. The wild boars were merely meat regardless of their ages. Meat that is going to be my strength in order to continue living.

“I have to butcher again…” As I watched the drooping wild boar cub, a realization came to me. Because it’s still a cub, the meat should still be really tender! I quickly moved with those thoughts as the fuel. With all my strength, I drained the blood and began to cut its meat into pieces.

“Oh really.” After a hard fight, I was able to hang a piece of meat from which the head was removed from on the ceiling of the cave. This reminds me of a butcher’s warehouse. Dingo stared at the meat while his tail spun like a propeller.

Have you not tasted meat these days?

The size of the cub was a little too small to feed both of us wholeheartedly. So, I think I would have to give a bigger portion to Dingo as he needs a lot of meat to grow up, since he’s a carnivore. I only need a small portion in the first place since I only want to eat some Suyuk. (Suyuk = Korean boiled pork belly slices)

“For now, eat this first.” I took the liver and intestines and fed it to him. After that, I cut the meat based on it’s parts like thigh, belly, shoulder, tc. Though, since they were small, it was hard to tell them apart. After I’m done, I put all the spices inside the pot before putting in the meat.

“Is this really Suyuk or what?” When the meat is softly boiling, it is the best time to eat it. The taste doesn’t matter, as the freshly-made kimchi will take care of it. Meanwhile, Dingo already devoured all of the intestines and was about to eat his share of meat.

“Eat the rest with me.” I spoke as I rubbed his back. The guy sniffed the meat for a moment before sitting still and waited.

Then a thought came to me. Since the meat was extremely tender, can I shorten the cooking time a bit? When I gently opened the lid, there was a light colored piece of meat floating in the middle of the boiling yellow broth.

“HEHEHEHE…” Laughter seeped out from my mouth. How lucky I am to be blessed with this unique ability. I took out one kimchi from the ground and cut off only the stem. This much is enough for me. Then, I took the meat out of the pot, and sliced it into bite size pieces. I wrapped the long kimchi around the meat and put it in my mouth.

“Hmmmmmmmmmmm…… The combination of the tender meat and spicy kimchi was fantastic. Then, something came to mind. I stood up, went to the warehouse and returned with a green bottle of soju. The clear liquid filled the glass as I poured it. I didn’t want to get drunk in the apocalypse if I could help it, but I had no choice but to do it today. “Let’s forget about anything today and drink just 3 shots.”

When we continued our fest, Dingo showed more interest in my Suyuk rather than his share of meat.

“Hey, you have more meat, don’t you?”

Woof!

“Okay, okay.” I said as I gave half of my share to him. I’m a little bit worried since it’s hot, so I gently cooled it down and cut it into smaller pieces. I’m such a good owner, aren’t I?

Dingo sucked it all in like a vacuum and looked at me as he finished. This guy, really… I ignored him, placed the plate on the table and enjoyed the supper slowly. It’s so delicious!

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Before the first appearance of goblins, there would be an event that appears randomly. It was an animal raid event. It’s a valuable opportunity for users to secure any type of meat they want. It was a cliché development in which the carnivores would become a threat for survivors and the herbivores would become prey. Though, I didn’t know when the exact date was.

However, my preparations such as nets and throwing spears were already finished. Moreover, I trained with those weapons every day. Even when choosing the site to make my garden, whenever I had the chance, I always trained by shooting some arrows and throwing some spears. Thanks to that, when the heat of summer slowly subsided, 1 more point was added to my Strength stat, rounding it up to 14.

If you throw a spear with enough strength, you would be able to inflict quite a lot of damage to a moderate size monster. After all, because of the weight of the spear, its power was much higher than that of an arrow. Also, I tried to develop resistance with the paralytic poison I had collected through poison frogs. In a world where abilities were expressed as skills, I was sure that something like a paralyzing poison tolerance skill would also appear.

“The time is very close for the goblins to start appearing.” I put a very little amount of paralyzing poison on the needle and stabbed it to my thigh. Instantly, the feeling in my leg disappeared.

“…” After waiting for a few minutes, the sensation on my leg finally returned. I breathed a sigh of relief and started cultivating my resistance in earnest. The method I chose was to make paralytic poison a part of my daily life. I would take it once upon waking up in the morning, once while working, and once while eating at lunch. But I’ll stop if I think that my legs won’t be able to take it anymore.

And finally, on the 10th day, it finally showed up.

「You have acquired ‘Paralyzing Poison Resistance’ skill」

“This is it!” I was skeptical if I should keep doing it when I reached the 9th day, but it finally happened. I don’t know the exact effect, but I should at the very least be able to avoid being paralyzed by one dart from the goblins.

“And together with the stab-proof vest, it’ll stop most of them.” I would only need the skill just in  case one of their darts hit me in the joints or any other armor gaps around my body. By the way, I’m a bit concerned that it’s a resistance type, not an immunity type. Just in case, I put paralysing poison all over the needle and stabbed it to my thighs once again, and my whole body twitched.

“Keuk!” The moment I felt that, I realized why it’s a resistance skill, not immunity. I could still move, but it’s very, very hard to do it. I was sweating bullets even though I had only managed to take just a few steps in this cold winter.

“Ha…” I sighed in relief once the effect of the paralyzing poison started to wane. At that moment, my body was drenched in sweat.

“Let’s keep building resistance.” Maybe, the skill can evolve into a greater form of resistance, like immunity or something. When I went out into reality after quite a long time, I could feel that the heat wave from the summer had quite subsided. It’s still hot, but it’s much more tolerable than it was a few days ago.

“Before I even got time to realize, autumn is already around the corner. Then after that comes winter.” Usually there was a saying that the summer is as hot as the winter’s cold… but I hoped it wasn’t the case this year.

“Wouldn’t the forest get really hot again?” I grumbled and looked outside through the telescope from my house. The number of people who were hunting zombies has increased considerably over the past few days. It was the result of being locked in their house for several weeks because of the heat. There were also no reinforced zombies around, so they probably think it was the best chance to hunt.

“Until those guys start to turn into ghoul, it should be fine.” Actually, there’s no clear categorization between zombie, reinforced zombie, and ghoul in the game. We would just simply call a zombie who had turned into an even more monstrous form that can run a ghoul. The time of their appearance should be shortly after goblins and kobolds appear. At that time, it could be said that the apocalypse had really begun.

“For now, it’s just a taste.” As I was cleaning the dusty two-story house, a paper plane flew in. When I opened it, a breaking news from Yoohyeon was written inside.

-Hyung, Hyung! A tiger has appeared, a tiger!

“It’s finally here.”

I took my backpack from the cave and pulled Dingo, who didn’t want to come out to reality into the portal.

The guy had eaten meat, so shouldn’t he work for it?

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A tiger was roaming the street. Even though it was startled by the zombie attack, it did not leave. When I looked at the map to see where it came from, it looked like it came from Samjeon Park.

“Well, all of the cages should be broken.” Since zombie spores only latched itself into humans, the animals would be fine. Though, through the apocalypse, their number would decrease considerably since most of them would be attacked and eaten by zombies.

The current position of the tiger was across the building which was occupied by Hyung-jun Hyung and co. Then suddenly, an arrow flew from somewhere towards the tiger. The tiger, which was walking slowly, was startled by the arrow that passed an inch away from its tail and fled to the side. It even growled in anger.

“Let’s see… is there something else…” I looked everywhere from my rooftop and was finally able to find a herd of sheep. Each and every one of them was in a state where their hair was fully grown, probably because there was no keeper that could cut it. They’re all adult sheep, so there should be enough meat for everybody.

When I looked toward Dingo, the guy was looking at them while drooling. Well, I understand him. If it’s not for the tiger, I would have chased the herd right now. The answer to my problem suddenly came out of nowhere. Arrows started pouring down into the tigers from the roof of the office at the crossroads. However, due to the distance, its accuracy was atrocious, and nothing hit the tiger. The guy ran away from the arrow baptism, and then I saw people in hiking clothes descending from the roof.

“Ah… Kyunghoon and his group.” He was probably trying to catch the tiger in order to brag about it. Well, whatever floats your boat, I guess. The most important thing for me was to catch the sheep and feed my allies. Everything that I can catch in the forest is mine, but is it necessary to adhere to that principle here?

Yoohyeon gave me the information and I would need Mikyung’s help to catch it. In case I get hurt in the hunt, Sooyeon can heal me, and Hyung-jun Hyung will subdue the sheep herd together with me. It would be a team effort, so it was correct to share it with others.

I wrote on a paper airplane about hunting the sheep herd and flew the paper plane into the sky. In the distance, I could see Yoohyeon catching it and giving it to the other member.

“Dingo, let’s go.” I said. As soon as we went down to the first floor, the guy ran out into the street and blocked the front of the sheep.

Woof! Woof! Woof!

Dingo barked. The power behind his barks were different from the subdued one he did in the forest. The three sheep flinched and looked down towards Dingo. That’s not a gesture of surrender. On the contrary, it was a preparatory gesture to headbutt Dingo.

When the sheep ran forward, Dingo beautifully moved to the side. The sheep retreated back, perhaps bewildered by the noisy, tiny creature in front of them.

Suddenly, a few arrows flew towards the sheep. It was shot from the second floor of the nearby building by Mikyung and Hyung-jun Hyung. However, only one hit the sheep while the other one missed.

The three sheep were startled and started running towards the other side of Dingo. As I watched the sheep run towards the alley, I moved my automatic crossbow into the direction of the wounded sheep. Once I pulled the trigger, one arrow whistled past the sheep while the other one buried itself on its shoulder.

However, maybe because the sheep’s vitality was quite high, it did not slow down. I ran through the zombies and pursued it. Terrain Detection and Life Tracking skills were all activated. Thanks to that, I was able to chase the wounded sheep without difficulty.

Growl-!! Growl-!!

Two zombies in the alley walked towards me. I pulled out a long knife and cut the head of one of the zombies before running straight ahead, leaving the other one. Even if the sheep had an amazing vitality, it was still impossible for it to survive 2 hits of arrows for long. I could see more and more blood dripping onto the ground it passed through. When we reached pretty deep into the alley, the sheep was finally exhausted and fell to the floor.

“Huh, huh…” Breathing in, I pulled out my automatic crossbow and fired another arrow at the sheep. Once it hit, the sheep jumped up, but that was all. He instantly wobbled before once again falling into the ground. At the same time, the zombies, which sensed a living creature, flocked towards us. But, Hyung-jun Hyung pushed those zombies away and ran towards me.

“Seongho!”

“Shh. Hyung, let’s just carry this guy.”

“I’ll carry it, you just have to follow me. Mikyung will come soon.”

“Okay.”

Hyung-jun Hyung took the lead with a sheep soaked in blood carried on his shoulder. Since his unique ability was physical strengthening, it seems like that the weight of an adult sheep didn’t bother him too much. At the moment when we were blocked by countless zombies who tried to enter the alley, Mikyung arrived with her Blink.

“Mikyung, please take care of me.”

“Leave it to me!” She took my hand. The scenery around me quickly changed like a video being fast forward. And when I came to my senses, we had already arrived at the academy. Sooyeon and Yoohyeon quickly welcomed me, while Hyung-jun Hyung and Mikyung—who left again as soon as we arrived—entered the room shortly after. Mikyung was pale, probably because she was dizzy as she had used her Blink several times in a short time.

“Aigoo, my head… my head…”

“Mikyung, if you feel dizzy, sit down.” Sooyeon helped her to sit down. Then, everyone’s gaze shifted towards the sheep.

“…Thanks to Seongho, the hunting itself was successful, but now…”

I called Dingo through the window. The guy quickly came into the academy. “Does anyone know how to butcher an animal?”

Naturally, everyone shook their heads. After all, people who live in the city always buy their meat. If you weren’t working on the field related to it, it was a matter of course that you wouldn’t know how to do it. I also couldn’t even butcher a chicken until recently, but now it is different.

“To butcher this guy, I will have to use a little bit more water, will it be okay?”

Everyone was confused at my words. Their faces looked like they were saying ‘what the hell are you talking about?’ It looks like as long as they get to eat meat, I can use as much water as I want.

Hyung-jun Hyung tapped my shoulder. “Seongho is amazing, isn’t he? Once he saw the sheep, he instantly thought of hunting it.”

As I was embarrassed by the compliment and scratched my neck, Mikyung chimed. “Manager, did you see it earlier? Seongho ahjussi just passed through the zombies so easily! I thought I was watching some kind of spy movie.”

“Seongho, are you hurt anywhere?”

“Oh, no. I’m fine” I need to get out of here as fast as I can. With Hyung-jun Hyung’s help, I dragged the sheep to the bathroom downstairs. “To be honest, I’m not very confident about butchering it. There will be a lot of stench. Moreover, there will be a lot of parts that will be thrown away.”

“Where in the world can you eat meat in this situation? I’ll give you some water, so just do the best you can. I’ll help.”

“Okay.” It’s always better to have someone to help. When my hand moved the knife into the sheep’s neck, Hyung-jun Hyung was quite terrified. But he did not turn his head away.

“Wow… the smell of blood is no joke. Seongho, how can you endure this?”

Well, it was because I had done it a few times in the forest. Though the experience of butchering two small animals was all I had under my belt, it was still quite helpful. While I was dismantling the sheep, people came with water and took all of the unnecessary parts to throw it away. A couple of hours later, the bathroom on the first floor was covered in blood, fat and mucus. And while Yoohyeon and Mikyung were cleaning it, the rest of us prepared the meals on the second floor.

“The current weather is so hot, so it won’t last a few hours. We have to eat all of this.” Hyung-jun Hyung and Sooyeon looked at the tray full of meat with tired eyes as soon as I told them that.

“Can we finish it?”

“If we can’t, Dingo will eat it all. If there is still anything left after that, I will dry it.” I only need to take it to the forest and smoke it. After a while, the meat was ready to be grilled. The cut of the meat was sloppy, and it didn’t look appetizing at all. If this was still a functioning society, this kind of cut would be thrown away, I was sure of it. And the side dish prepared for the meat wasn’t much, it’s just sesame oil, ssamjang and dried vegetables in water. However, since the main menu was meat, nobody complained.

Yoohyeon, who watched the situation outside with his paper airplane, said to us with his eyes wide open. “It seems like the guys who tried to hunt the tiger failed. They’re now fighting among themselves.”

“If they went for the sheep, they would have succeeded.”

“But, is a tiger’s meat delicious?”

“I don’t know because I have never tried it.”

The chatter about the other group instantly died down when the meat on the grill started to sizzle. Zombies had lost almost all of their sense of smell, so they wouldn’t be able to smell it. Once it was done cooking, everybody quickly moved their chopsticks towards the meat.

“Delicious, this is really delicious.”

“It’s been a while since I ate meat.” Sooyeon said with a shocked face.

“I am so happy that there is still a lot of meat left after eating like this. Seongho and everyone, thanks for the hard work.”

From the corner of my eyes, I saw that Hyung-jun Hyung was quite restless while inhaling the meat. I think he’s craving for a drink. I took the leftover soju pack out of my backpack and put it in front of them.

“Let’s just drink this.”

“Yes, yes.”

“Give me a drink, too.”

“Me too.”

Except for Yoohyeon, everyone wanted soju. These drinkers really…

When everyone had exactly one glass each, the drink ran out. We enjoyed the meat and the alcohol thoroughly.

Time passed, and summer deepened. When the crickets finally started to cry, ugly monsters with green skin started to appear.

It was none other than

Goblins.