Hiding a House in the Apocalypse-Chapter 73.6: The Armband (6)

Swish!

For the first time in a while, the axe felt personal.

Without a hint of hesitation, the two axes tore through its body, cutting and slicing it, literally disassembling it.

Even as its flesh was torn apart, it didn’t flinch.

Boom!

The creature, looking like a sluggish grub, only seemed to exist to feed its own flesh with more of its own kind, sending waves of shock through the air.

Monsters don’t have vital points in the same way.

They’re more like moving entities than living beings, so when they endure more damage than they can take, they disintegrate regardless of where they are hit.

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However, from what I can tell, hitting areas like the head—similar to how it works for humans or beasts—seems to inflict more damage.

In practice, creatures of a certain size, like "combat types" that are over a certain size, have an outer shell of armor, but when the head is struck, it absorbs more shock than other parts.

But this remains just a hypothesis, since monsters leave no bodies behind, making dissection and analysis impossible.

What we can rely on is the observation from the outside and the personal experiences of those actually fighting these creatures.

But the new breed that appeared this time is different.

In both appearance and function, it has a true vital point.

Swish—

The two axes kept cutting through its flesh, exposing the vile internal parts hidden within.

I continued hacking at its center because, while its vitality was shockingly resilient, I also suspected that its vital point might be deep inside, which proved to be correct.

And sure enough...

I found the familiar organ deep within.

It resembled a seed, pulsating on its own, a monster’s vital organ.

When I swung the axe toward it...

Boom!

A shockwave hit me.

It wasn’t so much defensive as it was a natural reaction, but the shockwave from this close sent a tremendous impact through my body.

Ugh!

The moment the shock hit, my vision blurred.

Well, it wasn’t as bad as the time with I Am Jesus.

In fact, this was the kind of close-range shockwave I was more accustomed to.

Usually, I don’t have direct contact with monsters like that.

Before it could release another shockwave, I gritted my teeth and steadied myself, driving my axe into the monster’s heart.

Snap!

The seed cracked open.

At that moment, the body of the monster, which had seemed immortal, scattered like a dandelion seed blown by the wind, turning into particles of light.

"...."

Finally, it was done.

I had destroyed the leader of the new breed, known as the Extermination-type.

Among the scattering particles, I felt a small sense of relief, the flames of hatred somewhat soothed, and let out a shallow sigh.

"Ha."

Yeah, this was the feeling.

The one I had forgotten, but always deep down yearned to return to.

"Park Gyu, Hunter!"

Apparently, there was no time for reflection.

The radio crackled loudly again.

"I’m on my way."

Passing through the alley filled with beautiful particles of light, I rode my motorcycle toward the wedding hall.

Indeed, the situation inside the hall was not good.

At the top of the "Heavenly Stairs"—a central feature of the Skytem Wedding Hall—on the third floor, a rescue team was desperately fighting back against the Extermination-type with fire axes and clubs.

Below, zombies and other Extermination-types continued their assault through different staircases, constantly slipping down the incline in their efforts to reach the humans.

"Sam!"

I heard Song Yoo-jin’s voice from above.

At the same time, several Awakened from the search team stood on the railing like children, staring at me.

At the end of the paired stairs, soldiers were holding their ground.

"Now’s the time for firearms!"

I shouted toward the sturdy man, who appeared to be Sergeant Kim.

"We’re out of ammo!"

He replied, swinging a metal pipe at a slug-like creature attacking him.

Nodding, I raised my firearm and fired.

Rat-a-tat!

I prioritized the creature charging toward Sergeant Kim.

I then turned and sent nine rounds in three bursts into the next incoming ones.

Hieeeek!

The creatures hit by the bullets thrashed, falling down the stairs.

Noticing they didn’t disintegrate, I guessed they might have entered a kind of stasis.

I glanced at the zombies and monsters turning toward me.

Clink!

Reloading my magazine, I shot at the incoming zombies.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

When dealing with zombies, it’s crucial to take them down one by one. They rely on numbers rather than combat ability.

If their brain is destroyed, the zombie stops moving.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In no time, six zombies were down.

From above, I could hear cheers, but my eyes were focused on the graying slug-like creatures following behind the zombies.

Rat-a-tat! Rat-a-tat!

They were closing in.

Slowly, methodically, I moved toward the stairs, taking down the nearest one first.

As sporadic shots rang out, the floor of the wedding hall—once a place for numerous blessed couples—was covered with grayish filth.

Monsters that had been climbing the stairs recognized me and began to charge.

One of them even leapt directly at me.

Click!

A homemade shell, fired quickly.

But there was no need to worry.

Swish—

I had my two axes and the blazing flames of hatred still burning fiercely within me.

Amidst the dance of death, as the pile of corpses grew higher, I heard the voices of the "new hunters" watching.

"...What... What is this?"

"Is it a person?"

"This... is this Old School?"

After the last one fell, I looked up.

"Sam!"

Song Yoo-jin was smiling brightly, ready to come down, but she lost her footing on the slope and started slipping.

It looked like trouble, but fortunately, she caught herself on a corner destroyed by a zombie, and didn’t get seriously hurt.

She had hit it pretty hard, but she was tough, immediately raising her head and giving me a thumbs-up with a grin.

"It’s our Sam!"

*

The situation was over.

All threats had been neutralized, and the helicopter that arrived late ensured safety.

As the helicopter's rotor spun, whipping up a snowstorm, I listened to a detailed report on the battle's progression.

"...Is that really true?"

Something unbelievable had happened.

When Lee Ho-yeon, the leader of the search team, used one of the Awakened abilities called "Smite," a psychic attack that caused an intense explosion, similar to a grenade detonation in the air, he felt a violent shock to his brain and heart, vomiting blood and collapsing.

He couldn’t generate the shockwave himself, but those who witnessed it said it felt as though the shockwave reversed and slammed into Lee Ho-yeon with full force.

The story about the grub biting his thigh came later.

After being given sedatives and regaining his senses, Lee Ho-yeon was carried on a stretcher, managing a difficult bow in my direction as a sign of respect.

He gestured to me.

"...Perhaps, you know."

His voice, as weak as his vitality, spoke up.

"This new breed might be a type meant to counter our Awakened abilities."

The reverse shockwave.

A power I had never seen before.

However, at a time when Awakened individuals were exclusively handling battles against monsters, the discovery of such an ability seemed like another ominous sign to humanity, still trying to close the gates.

"..."

A deeper melancholy quickly took over my mind, more potent than the thrill of victory.

The only reason my heart didn’t turn completely dark was probably because someone like me was still here.

"Sam!"

My disciple, who had her arm in a cast, approached.

Behind her, Awakened hunters, who never approached me before, stood in line.

"It was no joke! Really! I’ve never been prouder to be Sam’s disciple than I am right now!"

Leading the way, Song Yoo-jin said,

"How do you fight so well? What kind of training did you receive?"

"Does every Old School person fight like that?"

I smiled faintly at the childish questions, avoiding an answer.

It’s not a matter of being good or bad at fighting.

Our war is

A matter of life and death.

Facing off against monsters armed with various powers and abilities with nothing but our bare hands requires not skill, but sheer resolve.

"Park Gyu Hunter."

I met Sergeant Kim for the first time face-to-face.

I had seen his face a few times, but it was the first time we actually spoke directly.

"Thank you."

"It’s nothing."

When you’ve been through hell together, no need for many words.

Just the genuine gratitude in his voice made it easy to understand what he was feeling.

People boarded the helicopter.

"Sam, aren’t you coming?"

"No, I’ve got work to do."

"Sam! I’ll contact you later! Really! I bake great cookies! I’ll make a ton and..."

Still excited, my disciple was loaded onto the helicopter, which took off with a roar, kicking up a snowstorm as it ascended over the silent city.

In a way, another situation had been resolved.

Behind me, Valentine waited, his face showing a slight exhaustion.

"Now, there are no more monsters, right?"

He smiled faintly, and I answered.

"Probably."

Riding our respective motorcycles, we headed toward the tomb where my role model, John Nae-non, was buried.

BEEP BEEP BEEP—

The Geiger counter was shaking.

"I’ll handle it from here! Skelton, you’ve had a tough day, so stay here! You can’t risk radiation exposure!"

While Valentine kept watch with a firearm, he worked to repair the antenna on the roof.

It would take about an hour, so I lit a fire to warm both myself and the motorcycle in the cold weather.

I added coffee mix to some hot water, taking a sip while silently watching as Failnet was being repaired. The excitement from the battle still lingered in my body.

As I fidgeted, recalling the rush of wielding the axe, the radio crackled.

Personal ID: REDMASK

It was Woo Min-hee.

"Oh. Min-hee."

"Hey, senior~ I heard you did something that seemed like a real senior thing. Is that right?"

"Well, it’s only been half a month, but the disciple who remembered me was in danger, so I had to step in and use some strength."

"I wanna hear about it later. Those experiences."

"I have some pictures on my phone."

"Okay~. Ah, and one more thing."

Woo Min-hee let out a laugh that wasn’t typical of her, almost refreshing.

"What are you gonna name that monster?"

"The monster’s name?"

"New monsters get to have their names given by the first person who discovers or kills them. The slayer of the monster has the priority in naming rights, though."

"...What?"

It was the naming rights for monsters.

A rule established by the so-called World Hunter Association.

It’s not about national power, politics, or scholars who love categorization. The hunter who hunts the monster has the right to name it.

While the discoverer can suggest a name, the slayer ultimately decides the name.

I’ve named a lot of them.

Necromancer, Spider, I didn’t name those, but Dancer, Pyromaniac, Artillery, Panzer—those were all names I came up with.

Of course, the last one I named was the General type, but that’s not the official name.

I just discovered it, but I’ve never eradicated it myself.

When the first person who actually kills it shows up, that name will change.

"Well, what should I call it?"

"Decide quickly, we need to hold a meeting. Did you hear about the new ability?"

"Yeah."

Among all the choices, the name "Eomchang" strongly came to mind, but I showed some extraordinary restraint and said a simpler name that suited it.

"Meatball and Caterpillar."

"Still a dull naming sense. A General name would be better."

"Then how about Sato and Ibong?"

"I’m cutting off."

"Okay."

"Be careful on your way back, senior."

The communication ended.

Once again, it was all Woo Min-hee’s pace, but for some reason, a faint smile appeared on my lips as the transmission ended. How long had it been?

Since I had heard the pure "thanks" from Woo Min-hee.

Well, she didn’t exactly say the words, but the emotions behind her voice conveyed pure gratitude.

"Skelton!"

Valentine waved from above.

"Can you see it?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you see it?!"

"What’s that?"

At my question, Valentine pointed to the sky with his finger.

The afternoon sky had lost its blinding light and was gradually showing signs of approaching darkness.

While pointing at the sky, Valentine cheerfully shouted.

"Happy!"

"Ah."

It seemed the repair was done.

What he meant by "happy" was probably the signal from Failnet.

In a world filled with nothing but death and pain, the only real comfort came from the broadcast of Failnet.

As we left the city together, I asked him.

"What if the server breaks? It won’t last forever, right?"

"I don’t know."

Valentine hesitated, but already had the look of someone prepared.

He looked at me.

"Then, we might have to risk our lives once in a while."

Valentine gave me a mischievous grin on his reddened face.

Thus, Failnet was activated, having died, but now alive again.

I couldn’t see the happiness of the people, but I could only hope they had a small comfort.

If there’s no such small happiness in this apocalypse, then this world would be no different from hell.

"Hey."

Before we left, I asked Valentine.

"About my armband, no, being the forum moderator. That’s set, right?"

Valentine nodded vigorously.

"Watch and see! I’ll make you a moderator, no, I’ll make Skelton a moderator, even with Goo Ssang-hyo’s name on the line!"

"I don’t think you need to include John Nae-non..."

Actually, I came here to wear the armband.

"No, let’s do it."

That’s my "happiness."