Chapter 26 : Apocalypse (8)

First arrow.
The arrow’s feathers caught fire, accelerating as it rode the wind.
Following closely behind, it embedded itself into the zombie’s massive body, but didn’t cause any noticeable damage.
The feeling of helplessness within the game, a sensation I hadn’t felt in a while, overlapped with my past self.

Second arrow.
Thinking about it, it’s quite strange.
A dream changed reality.
Even my constitution.

Third arrow.
At least the wind is blowing in the direction I desire.
A simultaneously unfamiliar yet familiar sensation flows into the hand gripping the bowstring.
I think I hear the sound of drums coming from somewhere.

Fourth arrow.
After grabbing the bow, losing consciousness, and then coming to, the world had been flipped upside down.
It was more shocking than the strange dream or the new sensations.
A world where men and women are switched.
But, I adapted to this reality with unusual speed.

Fifth arrow.
Even in a world without mana, I can see what I must do, where the arrow’s trajectory should go.
It’s clearly within a game, yet everything feels realistic.
Truths I haven’t deeply considered envelop my mind.

Sixth arrow.
My stiff body begins to move fluidly.
The sensation I felt the first time I played this game with Yena after the world changed.
I feel like a man’s entire life resides within my body.

Seventh arrow.
I won’t think about it too deeply anyway.
Even if I were to say that the world had changed or that an unknown power enveloped my body, no one would believe me.

Still, I feel like I can do it somehow.
The moment the zombie’s fist, now right in front of me, reached my face coincided with the moment the final arrow flew.

“Gaia, you better watch this. This is going to be the clip that sets the platform on fire today.”

The crude, ornamental bow made a sound it shouldn’t have been capable of producing.
As the string snapped, red blood flowed from my hand from the force of the recoil, my helmet shattering and flying backward, but my eyes didn’t leave the launched arrow.

Digging into the fat-covered flesh, the arrow began to rotate incessantly.
The gruesome scene of splattering flesh made me wince, but perhaps due to the remaining six arrows already embedded, it slowly, ever so slowly, continued to penetrate inwards.

[– Is it just me feeling this?]
[– Why am I clasping my hands together in prayer?]
[– Whoa! An arrow in a pinch… I’m no munchkin, but…]
[– Stop!]
[– I hate the squishy bits…]

A roar, whether it was mine or the pig zombie’s shriek, echoed through the deserted rooftop, and not long after, the arrow pierced through the zombie’s back, tearing through the flesh and emerging on the other side.
Just as it continued its momentum, aiming for the boss who was looking down arrogantly from his chair, the arrow struck a newly appeared pig zombie.

“No way…”

[– I was so focused I forgot there were originally two of them lol]
[– Still, it’s amazing that you managed to take one down like that]
[– Real eye candy]

No, this is ridiculous.
Then what was the point of that whole dramatic scene I just pulled off?
As if mocking my grand display, behind the collapsing pig zombie, an identical one appeared.

And just like before, the enormous zombie started lumbering towards me.
The difference this time, if you can call it that, is that I have no weapons to defend or attack with.

“I’m never playing this game again!”

This crappy game.
From start to finish, there’s not a single thing I like about it.
In the end, I lost the mission, and I lost my dinner.

Resigned, I spread my arms, awaiting my demise.
I’d rather die than be taken down by that hulking zombie, but I had no choice.
Five seconds… four seconds… three seconds… until the impact hits me again.

Huh?

MyLittleWooSeok donated 100 candies!
[– WooSeok! Open your eyes!!]

Blood flowed from the wound where my helmet shattered, obscuring my vision, but even with my limited sight, I could see that I was completely unharmed.
The pig zombie stood still, staring blankly ahead.
Strangely, all the zombies except for the boss sitting in his chair had stopped moving and were looking at me.

“This is a little creepy.”

It’s not like I’m a model for portrait artists. The sight of everyone stopping their fight to stare at me was a bit chilling.
The jerky, lag-like movements would actually suit zombies better, but it felt unnerving because it was different from anything I’d seen before.

[– Sharp turn from action game to horror]
[– Anyone know why they stopped?]
[– Something’s sparkling over there]

Sparkling?
I turned my gaze to where the viewer had indicated, and the group of zombies where the boss sat began to glow.
The boss, seemingly surprised, tried to move his massive body with difficulty, but due to his sheer size, he was helpless.

“This isn’t a pattern, is it? He looks just as confused.”

[– The boss has no patterns]
[– It’s the regular mobs that are tricky]
[– Would be easy if Joanna was here. She’d explain everything.]

The final scene from the movie *Manners Maketh Man* came to mind.
Starting from the corner of the chair, the zombies began exploding one after another like a chain reaction.
The firework-like explosions continued, eventually reaching even the special zombies.

ZombieRockPaperScissors donated 100 candies!
[– I think I’ve discovered the truth of the world…]

“I know you’re crazy for playing rock-paper-scissors with zombies, but let’s hear it.”

Even though I knew this was the end, I felt it would bother me if I didn’t know why.
Perhaps because tens of thousands of viewers were watching, there was always someone ready to answer my questions.

[– When your helmet came off, the boss and WooSeok’s face were compared]

“What?”

[– So the boss was also a man. That’s why the zombies followed him. But what’s this? The man of their dreams is right in front of them? Game over lol]

[– If I weren’t seeing this with my own eyes, I wouldn’t believe it]
[– The boss really was a man]
[– Wow, no loyalty. Switching sides just like that?]
[– Every day was a dream until I met WooSeok. Let’s go!!]

It was a hard answer to accept.
However, there was nothing else that could explain the current situation.
Even that pig had frozen mid-stride.

In the end, the rules of this world couldn’t compete with the abilities of the person from my dreams, or the confidence boost I got from holding a bow.
I could understand the slightly resentful look on the boss’s face.

“Hey, sorry about that.”

As if waiting for me to finish speaking, the chair the boss was sitting on shot up into the sky.

Around the same time, the assassin who had first fallen onto the rooftop climbed back up and grinned at me. He was waving so happily that his injured face lit up.

One of his four legs was broken, and shards of glass were embedded all over his body, but he seemed overjoyed as he tried to run towards me. A giant shadow fell over him.
He looked up in confusion and tried to move frantically, but due to his missing leg, he tumbled and fell again, entangled with the boss.

The sound of the heavy boss crashing down onto the rooftop signaled the end of the game.
The achievement popped up at that moment, too.

[– Perfect ending]
[– Second achievement unlocked]
[– I’m a mission girl, but I can’t donate because I have donations blocked ; ;]
[– Today was really fulfilling]
[– The new star of broadcasting, Jung WooSeok!]

“So this is the syringe that the Demon King guy got?”

The same notification appeared as when I caught the Imugi last time.
Although the drawer is empty and Gaia manages everything.

Still, I somehow watched the game through to the end.
Even though it’s a playthrough, finishing from tutorial – hidden stage – boss doesn’t really mean much, but I saw the ending.
Seeing my satisfied expression, the chat, which had slowed down for a moment, started to pick up again.

[– Wait, are you making that face because you’re about to end the stream?]
[– I just tuned in, is the stream over?]
[– Wouldn’t you feel like calling that girl now that you’re in a good mood? Logically speaking]
[– Let’s go for a dinner mukbang!!]
[– Roulette! We need to spin the roulette!]

“Yep~ Stream’s over. Go home~”

I ended the stream without any closing remarks or actions.
They wouldn’t leave even if I said anything, and I wanted to rest for at least the remaining 15 seconds.

“The weather is to die for.”

It would have been truly terrifying in reality, but because it was a game, I could enjoy it fully.
Gazing at the ravaged Seoul, I moved to the waiting room.

“Yena, you’ve worked hard too. Now I’ve got a feel for…”

Why are you and Gaia lying there, pulling each other’s hair?
In the waiting room, for some reason, Yena and Gaia were tangled together, tugging at each other’s cheeks.