Chapter 23 : Apocalypse (5)

There’s no failing game quite like this one.
A tutorial NPC dying? Seriously?

I debated restarting the game, but I had zero confidence in fighting that grotesque creature again.
Even my victory this time was only possible because I could exploit the limited space and obscure its vision.

My enhanced physical abilities allowed for a degree of objective self-assessment.
Just what kind of person is the Demon King who beat this?

Ultimately, I had no choice but to proceed alone.
Hidden routes are always exciting, after all.

“I’ll just keep going. There are supposed to be other survivors out there, right?”

– No, we need Joanna to make the vaccine.
– I can’t lose my friend. I can’t lose my queen.
– All the survivors are so frustrating. The personality implementation is top-notch, though.

Apparently, I need this sexual harasser to see the game’s ending.
I was about to quit when donation messages exploded on screen.

SpaceBehindThePillar donated 100 Candies!
– Try using that ID card you got. Look around.

“You guys said you didn’t know either. Would it really be right at the starting area?”

At the viewers’ urging, I retraced my steps, searching for any place where the keycard might work.
Of course, I kept an eye out for equipment and defenses, anticipating another surprise attack.

The lab was unnervingly quiet, the wreckage from the creature’s rampage adding to the eerie atmosphere.

“Is it real that in a zombie game, I’ve only seen a special zombie?”

– Maybe you should, like, finish the tutorial, lol.
– First player to kill Joanna and survive solo, I guess.
– We’d backseat game, but there’s nothing to backseat.

Exposed wires sparked, and the incessant siren wailed on. Shattered glass littered the floor, making it difficult to navigate the lab’s chaotic interior. Yet, there wasn’t a single zombie or person in sight.

“So, any theories on why there are no bodies or other zombies in such a large space?”

Labeled ‘Research Lab 1,’ this area, connected by numerous rooms and corridors, was surprisingly extensive for a tutorial. A suspicious museum, a library, sleeping quarters – it had everything, meticulously designed. It was almost too perfect, which made it all the more suspicious.

– Good point.
– We never thought about it since we always escape with Joanna right away. The map was this big?
– I’ve never even seen the museum.

“Nobody knows anything. Nobody.”

– I love being slandered like that, keep looking at me like that.
– Where’s that developer who used to like hearing stuff like this?
– Give us a nickname!
– Something like the Woo-seok Brigade, y’know?

“Ugh… The Woo-seok Brigade? Just the name is horrifying. Let’s do that later, later.”

The game takes priority. The lack of any encounters was making me more nervous than anything. I gripped my bow tightly and moved forward.

Despite my apprehension, I found nothing unusual at the presumed emergence point of the creature. It seemed to have come from a large glass enclosure, but there were no other clues.

“There’s absolutely nothing here. Is this the end of the line?”

– We checked, too. We can’t find anything.
– Restart and save Joanna!!
– That wedding dress has some serious decadent vibes…

“Ugh… Wasted time. I guess I’ll just have dinner and try again tomorrow.”

The viewers protested, but my motivation had evaporated. The disappointment was proportional to my expectations. It couldn’t be helped.

“The developers are so inconsiderate. Nothing in this huge space. And the graphics are unnecessarily high-quality for what it is. How are you supposed to save Joanna while fighting that monster, anyway?”

As I grumbled and prepared to log out, the wall behind the giant glass enclosure suddenly opened. With a heavy, grinding drrrrk, the wall slid aside, revealing a single figure.

“What? Why are you back? Hurry and go after that wench—Huh?”

“Huh?”

An elderly woman limped out from behind the wall, stopping dead in her tracks at the sight of me. Her appearance screamed ‘mad scientist,’ and she’d emerged from a hidden area. Without hesitation, I drew my bow and fired.

– Reaction speed, what?! Lol.
– Honestly, I’d have been stuttering.
– My heart hurts even though the arrow hit her.
– That’s an arrhythmia. You should see a doctor.

“GAAAAH! Wh-What are you?!”

The arrow struck her good leg, sending her tumbling to the ground. The fall looked especially pathetic considering her pre-existing limp.

“Just to reiterate, like last time, I don’t have anything against women, okay?”

– When a woman gets hit by a man, that’s a reward, you b
– That woman sexually assaulted him with her eyes first.
– Even the police would side with him.

Times have changed, I guess. In a game this realistic, doing something like this would usually result in a massive backlash. Yet, the viewers took it as a matter of course. Perhaps my helmet was masking my identity. I walked toward the woman as she tried to crawl back to the opening.

“So, anyone recognize this woman?”

– Nope, first time seeing her.
– Usually, this would be the final boss or something, but I’ve genuinely never seen her.
– The Demon King has put in like dozens of hours and seen every route, and this woman’s never shown up.
– Wanna try taking off your helmet and seducing her?
– Hal…Ka…
– Stop!!
– Doesn’t she kind of resemble someone, though?
– Who?

“It’s Joanna. It’s Joanna’s mother.”

How could I forget the face of the woman whose first encounter with me began with sexual assault? She even died satisfied with that act.

“Are you trying to kill your own mother, after all this time?!”

The white-haired woman, mistaking me for Joanna, glared at me with murderous intent and began to shriek. She launched into a tirade, bringing up what seemed like childhood trauma and even resorting to verbal abuse about my parents.

“Why does even a random NPC have this much backstory? The insults are never-ending.”

Since her information was crucial, I simply waited for her to regain her composure, chatting with the viewers in the meantime. They seemed perfectly content to watch me and this new game route unfold.

“What’s so interesting about me in a helmet that you’re all going crazy?”

– Dude…do you even understand the paradoxical appeal of a wedding dress and a motorcycle helmet?
– The best thing Choi Yena ever did was drag Woo-seok into streaming…
– Choi Yena is still watching the stream even though she’s off-air, lol.
– (Manager) She’s just checking up on him!!

“Thanks, Yena. This is more fun than I thought it would be, streaming.”

– (Manager) No, not that much…
– (Manager) Actually, I also…

StopIt! donated 100 Candies!
– Stop the mood!!

“How does that guy manage to donate over the limit every single day?”

While we were joking around, Joanna’s mother finally seemed to run out of steam. Her eyes, still bloodshot, burned with hatred. It was almost unsettling how realistic the game had made her.

“You… You’re not Joanna.”

“Someone asked me to deliver a message.”

“So, she figured it out… In that case!”

I must have picked the wrong dialogue option. The woman, who had been lying on the floor, uttered those words in a tone of utter despair.

In situations like this, the best course of action has always been to eliminate the threat before anything else happens. The woman died without even a final scream.

“For the last time, I don’t have any particular agenda, okay?”

With the values of my original world still ingrained, the glares I get whenever I hit a woman bother me. I gained nothing from the encounter, so I decided to check out the open passageway. But I must have been a little too late in silencing the woman, because I heard something else opening up.

IKnowThatSound donated 100 Candies!
– I know that sound!

“What is it?”

The donor’s message didn’t appear in chat.

“Hey, what is it?!”

– Lmfaooooo.
– There are two things Koreans hate most; one is being interrupted mid-sentence…