Stagnant Water of Apocalypse

The atmosphere of the government shelter became much brighter than before as a lot of people came in. Most of them were young people in their late teens to early 20s, so it became a bit noisy. But, the older people such as Jang Won-taek and Lee Beom-seok were quite pleased with the fact that they had young blood. After all, just because this place was a government shelter, there’s no reason for it to only house old and boring people, right?

Of course, there’s no room for fun and leisure time in survival, but it was still a fact that the shelter needed the energy of young people.

Those aforementioned young people were currently gathered in Geom-in’s room. After noticing that the majority of Dot Island members were younger than him, he felt the need to discipline them. Though, what he meant by ‘discipline’ was just him making sure that he and the rest of them were in the same page about what to do in the future.

He deliberately left Oh Hyung-jun and Jo Sooyeon from this discussion as the age gap between him and them was quite big, making it difficult for him to talk to them.

“Come in, come in.” Geom-in welcomed the people who entered his room. From what he remembered, their names were Yoohyeon, Mi-kyung, Jiman, Yeowool, Junho, and Doyoung. With so many people entering the room, the small room became even smaller and everyone had to sit comfortably. However, thanks to it, the temperature of the room has also become a little warmer.

“It’s very warm here.”

“Eugh… What is this smell?”

“Wow, who ate sweet potatoes?”

A sweet smell spread through the small room. There were no windows whatsoever in the room, so the air flow was bad. So they had to inhale the smell directly.

Geom-in quickly tried to calm the noisy children.

“Everyone, please just sit down and try to not make more noise. It’s just farts, why are you guys going crazy because of it?”

“Geom-in is right.”

“Sit down, sit down.”

Geom-in?

He knew that everyone here was younger than him, so why did she use casual speech to call him?

It seems like he would have to teach them that this place had a hierarchy.

“Everyone, tell me your age. I am 23 years old.”

“I’m 23 too.”

When Mi-kyung looked at him and said that, Yoohyeon’s face scrunched up and said in a bewildered tone. “You’re the same age as me, aren’t you? So how come you are 23? The year hasn’t even changed yet!”

“I was born early, you know?”

“Is February 25 an early date these days?”

“That’s too much…”

“I try to let it slide, but the 25th of february is a bit too much.”

“Unnie, 25th february isn’t early!”

The three musketeers Yeowool, Junho and Daehyung (Uh names!) expressed their disagreement with Mi-kyung’s statement. Then, Yoohyeon said, “To other people, you’re always 22, but you’re 23 now? I’m speechless.”

“Do you have a problem with it? It’s up to me!”

“You have to tell Seongho hyung that you are 23 years old soon then! No, you’ll be 24 once the year changes, aren’t you? You are in mid-20s already? Wow”

“Do you want to die?”

“That’s why just pick and stick with 22 or 23!”

The two looked at each other and growled. After staying on the island for quite some time, the relationship between them didn’t get better. Rather it only got worse. Now, they no longer had boundaries between them and act almost like real siblings.

Yeo-wool, who was sitting next to Yooheyon gently wrapped her arms around Yoohyeon’s arm.

“Unnie, please don’t say harsh words to my boyfriend.”

“Wow, are you taking Yoohyeon’s side too now? Is he your husband? Huh?”

“We can get married now if we want! It’s completely legal.”

Hearing her words, Yoohyeon’s expression worsened. Then he shook his head. “Where’s the law in this kind of world?”

‘That’s your problem?’ Geom-in sighed. No, wait… he shouldn’t get sucked into their conversation…

When he was with Seongho or Da-jeong, the subject they talked about was very heavy, but now, he feel dumb to think he would get the same from the people in front of him just because they were people who Seongho sent over.

It couldn’t continue any longer…

“Calm down. Let’s have a serious conversation. Anyway, do you all admit that I am the oldest here?”

While Mi-kyung reluctantly nodded, the rest weren’t.

“But you’re talking casually to Seongho hyung, aren’t you?”

“Really?”

“Geom-in, you talk to Seongho oppa casually?”

“The age gap between them is huge… How could that be?”

They started to kick a fuss again. At the sight, Geom-in realized that something had gone completely wrong. Therefore he coughed and try to make excuses.

“I-it’s because I’m a stagnant water. I used to play with I Love Gimbap, Duck buttock, and Rabbit Pwincess everyday. Our time together could be said to be close to five thousand hours.”

Even though he said that, the looks in the eyes of Dot Island members didn’t change.

“You don’t look like a stagnant water…”

“Yes, you look so ordinary.”

“I get the feeling that the other 3 were stagnant waters just by looking at them. But I can’t feel it by only seeing you.”

That’s a correct statement. Rabbit Pwincess exuded an aura which made whoever saw him instantly believe that he’s part of the 4 stagnant waters. That’s also the case for Duck Butt Goes Kwek Kwek which had a unrival beauty and looks in this apocalypse. Not only that, she’s easy to recognize as there were always a lot of ghouls following her. And for the people here who know who I Love Gimbap is, he looks ordinary at first glance, but he had a great size and his eyes were bloody. He also boasted an atmosphere that seemed like it would take him less than 10 seconds to smash a person with his power.

Compared to those three, it was true that Survivor 1, a gamer in his early 20s, looked a bit ordinary.

“They’re all older and they talk casually with each other. It will be weird if I’m the only one who talks formally.”

“Then we can all talk casually.”

“Should we do that?”

“You know, even in the water, there’s an up and down, so we have to have a hierarchy.”

“Do we really need that?”

“Sigh… Yoohyeon doesn’t educate you right, huh?”

“Hey, Mi-kyung, I will tell Seongho hyung about you! You are such a bully!”

“Hey! Kim Yoohyeon!”

At this point, Geom-in had become depressed from looking at how the people act. He was planning to show off his dignity to the kids in front of him, but it was falling apart miserably. And as the situation seems would’t get any better even if he scold them, he tried to changed the subject.

“Anyway, everyone. What do you all think about Seongho’s goal?”

“You mean his plan of securing a stake in this shelter?” Mi-kyung quietly speaks.

Geom-in decided to overlook her casual way to talk even though she was one year old younger than him. After all, there’s an age difference of 10 years between Rapwi and him, but they are talking casually.

“If you want the ask what the ‘stake’ referring to was, it was him owning this facilities and all the firearms. Supplies such as daily necessities and food are of course important, but guns are more important.”

Firearms. A weapon that had never been used before to hunt monsters. However, it was said that once the Corrosive Disease subsides, it will be used in earnest. It was already an open secret that there were loads of guns in the basement of government shelters.

“Just because the Corrosive disease subsides and the government decide to take out the firearms, it doesn’t mean that he will get his stake right away; it will happen slowly. The more people handle guns on our side, the better. However, before that, you have to make the president should be able to trust you.” Geom-in declared.

“Then we should work harder and study more fro, now on…”

Everyone nodded at Jiman’s words. Everyone knew they wouldn’t turn into a skilled soldier just because they had a gun in their hands nor will the president give out guns to just anyone. At the very least, they must prove their abilities by performing various missions.

“If you keep bickering like what you all did just now, you will be judged as an incompetent of. Thay guy, Lee Beom-seok is evaluating your every move.”

“Then we should make an impression to him…”

As one of the two Yeowool’s friends spoke, Geom-in shook his head.

“Once you are judged by him, you can’t change your rating. It was because your rating was given to you according to what your usual behavior is. Therefore, what we should do is working hard in order to make our rating high.”

The key to the firearms storage which was made of reinforced plastic was owned by Jang Won-taek. Therefore, it was impossible to acces it without his permission.

At that moment, J-man brought up a strange story. “Everyone knows about Seongho hyung’s unique skill, right?”

“I know a little bit about it.”

“I don’t know exactly what it is.”

“Isn’t Seongho hyung’s unique skill some kind of attack-type?”

From what Junho and Do-young said, Jiman judged that Seongho hadn’t tell them about it. So, he start to explain. “So far we have seen a lot of strange places appearing right? The likes of farming dungeons…”

“Labyrinth.”

“Yeah…. Those places are actually located in the same dimension. And Seongho hyung’s unique skill is enabling him to travel to that dimension freely through a portal.”

“Ah…”

“So, It’s like that…”

But there was something else that really mattered.

“Seongho hyung can open a portal to that fantasy world. However, he’s the only one who can enter as of now. He said that inside, there’s a forest, and hyung said he had made a shelter in that forest.”

“Re-really?”

“Wow, that’s great…”

Except for Geom-in, everyone had their mouths open and didn’t know how to close them. They all had heard about Seongho’s unique skill, but it was only on a surface level. Therefore, this revelation was quite a shock for them.

Jimin looked around and said once again. “Even though, we can’t enter that place right now, things may change in the future.”

“Th-then, will we be able to get in too?” Junho asked.

“You know that big chicken that Seongho hyung cook after saving me? it’s actually not a chicken, it’s an animal called Hwajo.”

“He had serve some sashimi to me.” Geom-in smiled.

“I want to eat that too.” Everyone swallowed their saliva, imagining the world inside the portal.

“So, we have to do well. Don’t make trouble here, and don’t betray Seongho hyung. If you just do what you were told, hyung will take care of the rest.” Ji-man brought everyone back to reality with his words.

“But what are we going to do once we are inside?”

“It’s SEEEEGS!!”

All of a sudden, they could see the naked Rapwi stood at the door, giving a thumbs up to them.

“SEGSSS.”

“…” Everyone was at a loss for words.

.

.

.

“Just tell me this. Did it appear or not?” Da-jeong asked as her bloodshot eyes looking at me.

I slowly said. “It appears.”

“YEEEEEEESSSSSSS!” As she was about to run around like a happy puppy, I calmed her down.

“But… There are conditions for people to enter it.”

“Condition? What conditions?”

“You have to sign a contract and pay a fee to enter… Wait a minute.” I opened the portal and asked Da-jeong to enter. Even though she said that I was suspicious, she still stepped forward.

And then,

“Huh? What is this… A messages are popping up?”

“Tell me what it says.”

After she told me, the messages she received were as follows.

「You haven’t gained the qualification to enter.」

「The required fee have not been set by the owner yet」

「No entry allowed」

「You must sign a specific contract with the owner to use the portal.」

「In order to sign a contract, it is necessary for you to supply the necessary Aether Stones for the portal.」

「Unique Quest: Get 3 Aether Stones」

“This is interesting.” I murmured. However, on the other hand, Da-jeong was furious.

“I already give you a bus ride, so why are you doing this to me?”

“But it’s not me?”

“I don’t know what aetherstone is or where to get it… What is it?” Da-jeong suddenlt stop her tantrum. “it says I was now able to open a portal just like you?”

At that moment, a blue portal opened in front of her. Its appearance was no different from a normal dungeon entrance. She paused for a moment and then put her hand on the door of her car.

“I’m going in… Then I have a dedicated portal now?”

Could it be?

“It shouldn’t be like that… it must be a limited dungeon for your quest. If you go inside, I’m sure a quest will appear asking you to find the Aether Stone.”

Quest system was first introduced in the middle of Survival Life. I categorized it into daily quests, challenge quests, limited quests, and unique quests, but since so many people died because of it, only a few people did it. On top of that, the quest rarely gives useful rewards.

However, when the expansion pack was launched just before the end of service, the quest rewards have been greatly reorganized, but I’m the only one who knows.

Da-jeong thought for a moment, and then she grinned. “If I go in and do a quest your shelter will be mine, right?”

“You can’t close it at will and you can’t enter at will. So, how is my shelter become yours?”

“Whatever. Anyway it was good. What else do I need to enter your portal? Paying a fee?”

I rubbed my fingers. “I could set it starting from 100 points, but how much should I set it for…”

“YOU!!! YOU!!!” Da-jeong grabbed my collar and opened her eyes wide. “Oh my gosh. How could you do this to me after all the hard work I gave you?”

“It’s not me who set it. The minimum is 100 points.”

Her eyes softened a little at my words.

“Really?”

“Of course. By the way, you’ll have to prepare a bit before entering.”

“Why?”

“So you will be ready to travel.” I put my hand on the portal that opened in front of Da-jeong. However, unlike my portal, it pushed my hand away.

“You must travel alone.”

“…”

Da-jeong lost her mind and fell to the floor. “Why, why are you giving me such an ordeal…”

“I’ve been thinking about it for a while, but I think we may have to star to pay the price from now on.”

“What price?”

“The price to be able to use our unique skill. I thought it was free, but it seems like it was not the case.”

She was startled at my words. However, if someone think about the matter deeper, it was natural for them to reach that conclusion. After all who would give people such an ability just because they’ve played the game for a long time?

“Try to level up to 29, i bet if you want to use more abilities, you have to pay an etherstone or something.”

I don’t know who gave humans this kind of ability, I wonder if it’s from the production team of Survival Life…

Da-jeong complained. “No. You are the one who reached level 30, so why do I have to be the one who bring the Aetherstone?”

“Just think my portal is like my house. If you’re invited to someone’s house, you should buying something as a gift, right?”

“Che.” Da-jeong clicked her tongue. Then she stood up and poked my chest with her fingers. “It’s really unfair. The different between our playing time wasn’t much,only a few hundred hours at best. Then why is our unique skill so different?”

“The difference between first and fourth place is heaven and hell.”

She trembled at words. But then, he hugged my waist and pressed her face against me. A faint smell of cosmetics waft into me.

“Just you wait. Once I enter your portal, I will do whatever I want.”

“Yeah Yeah Yeah.” I patted the back of her head and kissed her lightly. Da-jeong looked a little startled, but then she instantly try to eat my lips. After her kiss was over, she let out a long sigh.

“It’s no fun to go alone.”

“Haven’t you been traveling alone only with your zombies before?”

“Shut up. Just pack my bags. Make sure to put a lot of things to eat.”

“Okay.” I went into the shelter and gathered the scarabs and stag beetles to asked what the aetherstone was. The guys froze a bit. They seemed to know what is it, but didn’t give me any answer They were really suspicious…

“I wish someone could guide her…” One of the scarabs raised its front paws. Good, guide her well and help her finish the quest.

“Dingsoon, you should go with her to since the two of you have similar personality. You will get along well with her.”

After that, I packed a lot of things in the backpack and went out with Dingsoon and Scarab.

“What a wonderful portal, right? I have to pay a hefty fee to use it. It’s completely bullshit.”

Hmmmm. I hid my laughter and handed the backpack to the ghouls. Finally, Da-jeong put the scarab on her head and entered the portal. As soon as the ghouls followed her in, the portal disappeared.

“Should I wait here or…” Well, I can just wait while farming nearby. After Da-jeong disappeared, I felt uneasy for some reason. It’s a little sad, but it’s not too bad. I them recalled what Hyungjun hyung once said.

-When Ji-eun go to his mom’s house, that day is Independence Day for me.

-What did you mean, Hyung-nim? You normally usually say that you like him to the point you want to die.

-You haven’t married yet, so you don’t know how I feel. You should try to date someone.

-I already tried it.

-Then you should have experienced that when you girlfriend came over to play. It’s fun and hot at first, but what if after a few hours, she doesn’t go home and keeps sticking to your side and nagging at you?

-That’s a bit scary.

-Of course, the people in the house are the same. When Ji-eun’s mom said she was going camping with Ji-eun, my mouth just broke to smile. Everyone is like that, we need some alone time.

Come to think of it, Hyungjun hyung says he is lonely these days… I hope you find a new relationship in the government shelter.

I entered the portal and turned on the monitor. There were not only laptops in the cave, but also two computers looted in the studio. It consumes a lot of power, so to turn it on, I have to turn all the lights off first. When I looked through the NAS, there were quite a few games inside. Geom-in will surely like it.

“In Apocalypse, any movie or game will be fun.” There were quite a few new movies, so I don’t think I’ll be bored for a while. However, because of the heat emitted by the computer the cave become quite hot.

I pulled out a can of beer that had been buried in the ground and laid down on the mattress. Then, I gulped it down.

“Oh, that’s cool.” When I randomly open a file in order to watch a movie, the one which appeared was a zombie movie.

-Kieeeeeek-!!

“Oh, that surprised me!”

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