Stagnant Water of Apocalypse

“Ouch.” I opened my eyes and groaned.

Where is this?

Since It feels quite comfy and soft, it couldn’t be the mat inside the SUV.

“Ah…” I finally remembered. After hunting the orc, I was able to fall asleep in the parking lot at a village near Mt. Jiri. However, when I woke up a few hours later, I couldn’t get up. It was the aftereffect of Survival Instinct. The skill itself dramatically increases my survival rate, but it has a quite long cooldown and quite severe aftereffect. Therefore, it was best to end the battle quickly and run away before the skill deactivates.

That’s why I called a designated driver. But the driver’s not the only one that came because I also called a taxi at the same time. I could still vividly remember the absurd expression the two drivers had when I told them my home.

-To Busan? Are you kidding me?

I said no, smirking, and then left the car to the designated driver while I loaded myself into the back seat of the taxi.

That’s how I arrived in Busan, crawled home and fell asleep.

“Uh-huh.” I slowly put some strength in the order of neck, limbs, and fingers respectively. Fortunately, I could move it just fine. Thankfully they didn’t get strained to the point where I couldn’t move.

As I moved a little, my muscles relaxed.

“If the fatigue is this severe, I don’t think I would be able to hunt again.” I sighed. Even though I said it like that, I was well aware that I’m gonna need to hunt a lot more in the future.

After a few minutes of enduring the stinging pain, I finally finished showering.

Then, while eating, I turn on the computer and do a search.

The keyword was monster, Mt. Jiri, and fire. Thankfully, after scouring through the news, I found nothing about it.

“After all, no one knows.”

Only a few Awakened communities had posts like this.

-Anyone knows when the first monster was found in the background setting of Seola?

(T/N Seola is the shortened version of Survival Life.)

ㄴWas there anyone who read something cheesy like that?

ㄴI don’t know the exact date, but it seemed to be found near a mountain. I think it was about an orc that was killed or something, I only remember that from I Love Gimbap’s stream.

ㄴWere you a viewer of I Love Gimbap?

ㄴI’m just a viewer, but not a subscriber. I just passed by and looked at it a few times.

ㄴDid he have a lot of viewers?

ㄴNo, it only has like 10 viewers. The broadcast was hella boring. Though, his voice sounds quite good, so it was like a sleep radio for me.

ㄴAh what a waste… I want to watch the stream too.

I’m so sorry for being hella boring!

After that, I looked further into the Awakened community and found an unusual article.

“It’s a gathering of people preparing for the Apocalypse, huh?”

It was said to be an organization created by a stagnant water with over 3,000 hours of playtime. The creator even proudly shows his ID and uploads his playthrough video.

“You are a stagnant water, you say?”

When I saw the guy’s ID [Come To See Spring], I instantly laughed.

Isn’t this guy someone from a whiner series?

Whiner series was how we stagnant waters called those who were particularly demanding us to support them amongst the user who successfully broke though the tutorial but could not get over the orc we kited to them. They just keep asking for support even though they don’t have the skill and motivation to play the game.

Come To See Spring was especially famous for his demands. In the game, he followed Rabbit Pwincess everywhere he went just because he had a feminime ID.

“If he found out that Rabbit Pwincess is a man in his 30s, I think he would be shocked to death.”

In the community, he even uploaded a video of him dancing, saying it was a dance only that stagnant waters know. However, he couldn’t be any more wrong. Afterall, we stagnant waters didn’t dance like that, the dance we did was something called cossack dance.

The reason why we chose cossack dance as our signature was because we were mesmerized by the strange footwork the Russian soldiers had when they did it on a video. It’s actually a difficult dance, but it’s much more difficult when we do it in Virtual Reality.

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“This guy is a pure scammer.” I snorted. It was clear that his purpose was to bring people together under him. I guess he’ll make them a subordinate and try to reap as many benefits as he could from them. Though, I doubt it will go well.

Anyway, as I browsed through the community, I became aware of another fact. There were so many groups appearing.

Extinction, The Last Survivor, etc, however, their name was the only noticeable thing they have.

Some of them even tried to recruit people by offering preferential treatment if they sign up now. Though, they didn’t even explain what kind of preferential treatment it was. But I guess, it would be some kind of privilege.

“A guild that gives a privilege…” It reminded me of the guilds that did all kinds of dirty tricks in the early days of Survival Life. And as they have quite a lot of playtime, I’m certain they wouldn’t act as clumsily as these guys.

“By the way, why did those ahjussis stay inactive.” I once again searched for the ID of the other stagnant waters, but just like before, nothing came up.

It was only filled with threads written by the Awakeners who were looking for them.

I also searched for the IDs of other non-stagnant water players that I know, but it also ended in vain.

Perhaps currently, they’re also preparing in hiding.

I also already got plenty of rest, so now it’s time to work.

As I was trying to calculate the event date, a sword importer contacted me.

It’s finally here.

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.

.

arming sword, mace, multiple spear blades, shield, machete, arrowheads, 100 lbs compound bow, war club, survival knife, tomahawk, etc…

Even though I was the one who ordered it, the amount is just ridiculous. Afterall, I ordered 5 of each, not one. However, after laying my eyes on the five gleaming arming swords lined up on the shelf, I couldn’t help but feel reassured.

“I struggled a bit to bring all of this.” The staff on the side of the shelf said.

“Aigoo, you did a great job.” I smiled and took his hand.

I was aware that in order to import all of those weapons, a permit from the National Police Agency and a weapon possession permit were required. Naturally, I already submitted all the necessary documents in advance, but the chance it would be confiscated in the customs remains high since South Korea had quite strict controls on weapon distribution.

So, it was imported and brought to South Korea under the name of a certain company. It was not done in a clean way, in other words, It’s a shortcut, but I couldn’t help but use it since I didn’t have much choice.

The staff suddenly asked me for forgiveness saying something I ordered was missing.

“We are sorry we couldn’t bring the spears. It didn’t get a clearance from the customs”

Well, it couldn’t be helped. Seems like the spear blade was fine, but the spear itself wasn’t.

After exchanging pleasantries several more times, I, together with the staff, loaded the weapon back into the car.

As soon as I arrived at my home, I parked my car with its trunk close to the front door. Then, I carried all the weapons alone to the second floor before checking each and every single one of them.

“Hmm… it looks good.” To be honest, I have no qualifications whatsoever to evaluate the quality of the weapons. However, as it was purchased from a reputable company, I felt like it should be good because it looked sturdy.

For example, the arming swords. It was somehow plain with minimal decorations but still boasted a beauty from the fact it was purely made for a practical use. The blade itself wasn’t that sharp, but it should be okay once I sharpened it.

“It’s a pity I wouldn’t be able to use it in the beginning…” I took the arming sword to my hand and entered a stance.

At the beginning of the zombie apocalypse, all kinds of metal are going to be shattered by the corrosive disease. So, naturally, weapons and shields would be unable to be used. Although the corrosive disease would disappear in time, it would take around 6 months or a year. Until then, the only option was to use all the metal weapons I had in the forest while using only the Indian war club in reality since it’s made from wood.

“One attack from this would hurt a lot.” I put the arming sword away and took the vicious looking war club. At the one side of the stick—which was the opposite way from the handle—there’s a sturdy sphere attached with several sharp objects protruding from it. There’s no metal at all in the entire war club, but if a hit connected properly, I’m certain it would easily shatter a skull. Moreover, it’s easy to handle, and there should be nothing as good as this club at the beginning stage of the zombie apocalypse.

“A club made out of ebony wood. It should be enough.” As time goes on, more and more diverse weapons would be needed, but I should be able to get them easily with points from the Item Store.

After checking all the weapons, I opened the portal and moved them all away to the cave.

Now, it’s time to finish the cave renovation that was still not done.

But, as soon as my eyes landed on the pile of mortar sacks, my arms trembled.

“I don’t want to meet you if possible, but how come it seems like we will continue to meet?”

I quietly prepared for work after saying such nonsense.

.

.

.

“It’s finally over…” I threw my hand in the air. Finally, the inside of the cave was levelled. Though, If someone accurately checked it, they would surely find a lot of uneven ground. But this much should be enough, and I have no complaints whatsoever.

“What a sight!” I said as I lit the inside of the cave with a tactical light with an overflowing pride. There were some rough parts remaining here and there, but that wasn’t something urgent, I can work on those later on.

Now I just need to wait for it to dry up and then store all of my supplies inside.

I opened the portal and headed to my house. But before long, I returned to the forest once again together with a load of barbed wire and fences which had been delivered today.

“Of all days, why did it all come at once today?” I put them down near the cave and promptly unboxed it. Then, I started to work on it as I nailed the fences to the ground in a constant distance between each of them, before installing the barbwire using an asbestos glove.

“It would be perfect if a bone creeper didn’t come…”

With this defense, goblins and kobolds wouldn’t be able to pass. But if a monster stronger than them comes, the barbed wire would get destroyed instantly.

“Open the entrance like this…” I removed the barbed wire before heading to the outer perimeter. It was a simulation of what I should do to leave the cave. “It’s so annoying.”

But since it was something that protected the cave, it was an inconvenience that I happily accepted.

When I entered the house once again after covering the barb wires at the cave’s entrance with bushes, another text message came to my phone from the courier.

Just what the hell is happening today? Why did they arrive all at once?

Several large boxes arrived and I found out that they were the infrared detectors and protective gear I ordered several days ago.

“These guys are very welcome.”

After wearing them all and holding a shield and a mace in both of my hands, I stood in front of the mirror.

“Woah, I looked like a mob.” That’s right, I completely resemble a motorcycle-riding looter who was chasing the main character in a post-apocalypse movie.

My face was hidden by a motorcycle helmet, and a gray tactical suit and a tactical boot protected my body from the top to the very bottom.

It would easily defend me from the attacks of goblins and kobolds.

“Though, I’m still worried about the goblin’s paralyzing dart…”

The only way to avoid paralyzing darts was to detect the goblins as quickly as possible before they start attacking. And it wouldn’t be easy to pull such a feat with this equipment equipped as it had a very limited visibility and was somewhat hard to move in. Furthermore, it was quite difficult to shoot a bow with this equipment on.

There were quite a few downsides to this equipment, but I couldn’t just give it up entirely.

“Prioritizing defences in the forest is the highest priority right now.” The situation I was in was not a game. It would be the end of me if I was dragged away by a goblin, after they shot me with a paralyzing dart.

I put the infrared detector on the entrance of the cave as soon as I returned to the forest before walking around the forest near the cave. Probably because it was due to the fact that I had a new set of equipments, I feel like smashing monsters if they ever appear. Except for monsters stronger than orcs, of course.

And then suddenly, a forest rabbit passed through me.

When the Apocalypse comes, I would have to hunt those animals too.

“I can’t live on canned food forever…”

Since the forest was on a different dimension, it would be free from corrosive disease and all the canned food would be safe. But still, it would be better to eat real food. Maybe, I really need to find where the sea is and do some fishing there. Ah, also, maybe making a farmland is not a bad idea as well. The more abundant the food, the better.

Well, it’s more work to be done in the future.

Then, after I finished strolling around and didn’t find any monsters, I covered up the cave and returned home.

I pull out my to-do list and go through them one by one.

“Tomorrow, terrain reconnaissance…tetanus injection… and ordering drinking water and more food.”

It was cold at night in the forest, so measures for winter were also necessary. I would need a wood stove and plumbing.

As I was writing it on the to-do list, my stomach let out a growling sound.

But before I could open my refrigerator to get a decent meal, I heard someone’s voice.

“Ahjusiiii~~”

It was Mikyung’s voice.

I peeked through the window and saw her waving her hand towards me from the street. And thanks to her antics, everyone on the street was staring at me.

I went to the first floor and opened the door. Then, as soon as she saw me, she ran to me and said,

“Wow… Ahjussi, you lost a lot of weight…”

She looked at my face and admired it. I could feel that it was a sincere praise rather than a teasing.

“I’ve been exercising quite a lot these days. What are you doing here anyway?”

“I was wondering if we could talk a little bit.”

“I don’t think I could go anywhere with this clothing. Wait a bit, okay?”

However, before I could go to the second floor, Mikyung stopped me.

“Can’t we just talk at your house?”

“At my house?”

She nodded.

There’s nothing wrong with that. But It still bothers me because a young woman such as her was coming to the house of a gloomy man like me.

Let’s just assume that we have gotten a lot closer these days. That should be fine.

I nodded towards her and went up to the second floor first.

By the way, it’s the first time a woman has ever come to my house… Oh, except for the gas-checking lady.

“Come on in.”

At my suggestion, she tilted her head slightly and took off her sneakers.

“Please, excuse me.”

Ummm… her white legs come and go in front of my eyes, and my heart was beating a little bit faster than usual.

Mikyung’s curious eyes scanned every nook and cranny of my house.

“I heard that a man’s room is supposed to be messy…But why is Ahjussi’s room so clean?”

“Well, there’s not really a lot of things here that can make this room dirty, so it always remains clean.”

Except for the unidentified hair that fell on the floor, that’s it.

“Ah. Ahjussi, let’s eat this together. I bought it for you.”

She put the black plastic down she carried on the floor. I don’t know why she suddenly did this, but I also had no particular reason to refuse as I was quite hungry too.

She folded her leg and neatly put the content on the table before ripping out the wrapper.

Gimbap, tempura, tteokbokki…

“Mikyung seems to really like snacks.”

As I mumbled, she laughed.

“Of course! That’s why I bought tteokbokki every day at Ahjussi’s store.”

But… When I ate the gimbap and tteokbokki, it didn’t taste very good.

Meanwhile, Mikyung was putting cheese on top of her portion with a happy expression and waited for it to melt.

And when she finally ate the tteokbokki, her face turned strange.

“It doesn’t taste really good, does it?”

She nodded.

“Just how did they cook this? It’s really hard to fail at tteokbokki.” I said.

Then, she swallowed the food in her mouth before asking me.

“Ahjussi, have you ever heard of a person called I Love Gimbap?”

Yes?

I need to take care of my facial expressions as much as possible.