Chapter 5 : Fragile Beautiful Girl Survived

Crack. Shatter!

“Kyeeeek!!!”

Right on cue, the zombies smashed through the entrance door.
Drooling, they charged at me, drawn by every bit of noise I’d made.

They poured in like water from a broken dam.
A quick glance told me there were at least forty of them.
I calmly pulled my arm back, then hurled a shard with force.
The shard flew straight for a zombie’s head.

Thwack!

It hit dead-on, shattering the zombie’s skull.
The surrounding zombies didn’t flinch at the gruesome sight and kept rushing me.
I grabbed another shard and threw it at the oncoming horde.

Thud!

The second shard nailed another zombie’s head.

Three, five, ten times… every shard I threw struck a zombie’s skull with pinpoint accuracy.
They couldn’t even reach the stairs, collapsing helplessly before getting close.

More zombies charged without fear, but that was their mistake.
They tripped over the bodies of their fallen comrades.
I didn’t discriminate—tripped zombies got a shard too.
Each one hit its mark.

When I ran low on shards, I punched the hallway wall to make more, fighting endlessly.
My hand only stopped when no more zombies were left to target.

The seemingly endless wave had ended.

…What?

I stared at my hand, dumbfounded.
Something about that fight felt off.

‘Every shard I threw hit a zombie’s head perfectly. Since when was I that good at throwing?’
No way.
The last time I threw anything was as a kid, playing with others at the orphanage.
How often does a city dweller even get to throw rocks?

My plan was to use the narrow stairwell to my advantage—throw shards and hit something.
Hitting heads every time made that plan irrelevant.

So what was that display of skill?

Only one possibility came to mind.
My body’s specs.

‘Makes sense. A body with superhuman strength wouldn’t be surprising if it had sharpshooting skills too.’
Good is good.
I wasn’t about to question a stroke of luck.
The fight was over, so I went to dust off my hands.

“Hm?”

No need.
My clothes and the white gloves on my hands were spotless.
Breaking shards should’ve left dust, but nothing.

A Dress Form perk?
Keeping my outfit clean at all times?

Oh.
That’s actually pretty—

‘No, it’s still useless.’
Maybe in a peaceful world, but in an apocalypse?
Staying clean is nice, but it’s a letdown.

I gripped a shard and quietly surveyed the pile of zombies.
Just in case one wasn’t dead, I’d kindly finish it off.
After scanning the headless corpses, I was convinced it was over.

“Phew.”

Tension drained, I let out a light sigh.
Somehow, I’d survived the fight.

Now what?
Food was the priority.

With that decided, I pocketed some shards and jumped down from the second floor.
Why not the first?
Because I’d have to wade through dozens of zombie corpses.

By the way, jumping from the second floor didn’t hurt at all.

In Gimpo City, a suburban area, while Yu Bin lost a day and battled zombies, others weren’t idle.
Ordinary people cowered in fear, locked in their homes, but awakened individuals ventured out.
Some fought zombies to survive, others to carve out a new future.

One man in Gimpo was no exception.
Standing atop dozens of zombie corpses, he studied his status window.

[Name: Park San Cheol]
Gender: Male
Age: 31
Occupation: Barbarian Warrior

Level: 3

Health: 51/55
Mana: 7/10

Strength: 25
Agility: 18
Magic: 5
Intelligence: 25

Acquired Skills:
Tough Skin LV.1, Swordsmanship LV.1, Slash Strike LV.2

Skill Points: 1

Park San Cheol frowned.
The status window didn’t meet his expectations.

‘Tch. Over fifty zombies, and I’m only level 3? I thought I’d hit level 5 at least.’
The grind was tough, but the experience points were meager.
Did the experience needed for each level increase?
If so, how many zombies would it take to level up again?

‘Should I push harder?’
He shook his head.
Rushing could get him killed.
In this world, safety was everything.

‘My stats and level aren’t low. If I grow steadily, I’ll avoid trouble.’
Park San Cheol had two awakened colleagues—former coworkers.
Comparing stats with them, he knew where he stood.

He believed he was among the top-tier awakeners.
Not arrogance, but grounded in evidence.
The dozens of zombie corpses around him were proof.
Online, few awakeners matched his performance.

He pulled a notebook from his pocket, reviewing his compiled info to organize his thoughts.

1. Awakener stats vary widely, likely based on innate talents (e.g., strong people get high Strength).
2. Level 1 awakeners average 10-15 Health. As a Barbarian Warrior, I started with 30 Health. (Note: Only three comparisons, so not certain.)
   Stat increases on level-up seem random but align with occupation. (My Intelligence hasn’t budged, so probably true.)
3. Awakening by killing zombies is random. Made coworkers kill zombies, but only two awakened. (Need experiments for exact odds.)
4. Unknown if awakeners get infected by bites. (I got fluid on me and didn’t turn—needs testing.)
   …

A notebook of potentially useful info.
At the bottom, he added: Experience needed for level-up increases with level.

‘Hmm, that’s enough for today. The others are waiting, so I should head back.’
Carrying food looted from a nearby convenience store, Park San Cheol headed to his hideout.

Then—

“Graaah!!!”

A zombie he’d missed lunged at him.
Unfazed, he drew a crowbar from his belt and swung at its head.

Thwack!

The zombie crashed to the ground with a thud.
It tried to rise, but too late.

Stab!

Park San Cheol pierced its head with the crowbar.

‘Tch, cheeky bastard.’
He shook the crowbar, flicking off the blood.
Regular zombies were no threat now, even in dozens.

‘See? Objectively, I’m strong. Probably in the top 10% of awakeners.’

He’d grow stronger steadily.
Planning his future, he returned to his hideout.