Genius Archer’s Streaming - Chapter 292
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Archer’s Streaming Season 2 Episode 12
4. True Survival (3)
How am I supposed to use the bathroom?
Do I really have to think through every single detail like this?
I was utterly bewildered. This game was fundamentally different from anything I’d played before.
“It must be part of the concept. Surely you don’t actually use the bathroom inside the game.”
Just a brutally immersive concept game. That’s what I told myself.
-Denial lol
-If the NPC is saying stuff like that, it seems pretty real lol
-Wait, are we really watching our Almond oppa pee!? Kyaaah! (clumsy)
-If this is real, this is the most brutally immersive game ever lololol
I didn’t want to accept that this setting was real. If it were, wouldn’t this become an embarrassingly humiliating game for streamers?
More than that, the game’s difficulty would skyrocket to absurd levels.
“…Hey. Are you listening to me? How do we handle the bathroom? You have to go all the way out to the hallway.”
The convenience store clerk points beyond the iron door.
Thunk! Thunk…!
Beyond that iron door, where someone is still continuously pounding right now.
“That’s… maybe it’s better to think about it when the time comes.”
“What? Then it’ll be too late! Are you saying we just wrap it in a paper bag and throw it outside? What about showers? Are we going to keep wearing the same clothes? Your sweat stink is seriously rank.”
“These aren’t my clothes…”
“Regardless!”
-Convenience store noona carrying the team lol
-???: Oh… I found a new Hodu.
-NPC rolling Hodu instead of Almond
-Wow, even clothes? This AI is no joke.
“Hygiene is directly connected to survival. Food sanitation is my major, after all.”
Wow. She’s really putting her major to good use with this part-time job. I found myself genuinely impressed.
“People don’t only die from stab wounds. Poor sanitation kills you slowly too. Modern people don’t realize it because we always have access to antibiotics and hospitals.”
The convenience store clerk rambles on about the importance of hygiene.
I listened carefully and then countered.
“Then. Who’s going to go?”
“?”
I point at the iron door still being pounded on.
Thunk! Thunk-thunk! Thunk-thunk-thunk!
“Who’s going to go out there? Out beyond that door. That’s where the bathroom is.”
Putting a bell on the cat’s neck, volunteering, armchair theorizing… the current situation was cut from the same cloth.
Hygiene management, waste disposal, sure, all good. But who could actually step up to do it? That’s the real problem.
“Am I included in this too?”
The shaggy-haired boy finally opens his mouth.
“If I’m not part of this group. Am I going out there?”
Why is Almond mad?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Getting roasted by my older sister and shaking in my boots right now.
-Aww so grumpy~ I actually like it~
You’re right, haha.
I’m going to say something before I get made fun of for having messy hair, haha.
The Shaggy-haired Boy stares at me for a long moment, then nods.
“No. I can’t leave. I have to be part of this. So we’re a team of three.”
A team?
I tilt my head in confusion.
I’d never thought of it that way before… but the boy is right. In the end, we were on the same team.
Why does Almond look like she doesn’t think of them as a team? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-???: Team? Who?
-Hellish teamwork activated!
-This is a high school but why does it already have this society-destroying group project system…
“Yeah. For now, that’s how it is.”
Ding.
Then, a notification sounds.
[The Shaggy-haired Boy distrusts you.]
[The Convenience Store Clerk is skeptical about you.]
Messages about what other NPCs think of me.
[The status ‘Sense of Belonging’ has been activated.]
Moreover, a new status has appeared for me as well.
A sense of belonging? Lol
So you’re in a state where the community users have you, huh? ㅎㅎ
-When it comes to Sense of Belonging, isn’t our troublemaker chaos maker Rilpro the best?>~<?
Sense of Belonging.
An ambiguous word.
I try to understand what this status means.
==== ====
[Hunger]
Stamina decreases slightly.
[Sense of Belonging]
Stamina, Endurance, Fighting Spirit, and Positivity increase slightly. When a teammate dies, Melancholy and Negativity increase.
==== ====
It was a double-edged sword status.
I spoke through the broadcast microphone channel.
"Looks like I need teammates after all."
-Yeah, if you're alone there'd probably be a loneliness stat
-Wow the game details are insane
That's creepy/horrifying.
-Humans can't live alone, after all.
I glance back at the two inside the convenience store.
The shaggy-haired boy who speaks only when necessary, and the lively store clerk who talks endlessly but lacks any drive to act.
These two are my team now.
Whether I like it or not.
It's not particularly stressful for me.
After all, didn't I learn something back at Asung?
「This is your team, and I'm your manager. Whether you like it or not, we're just going together. Like that pillar in the company that stays in its place whether you like it or not.」
Those were the words I heard the day I first met my team's manager.
Whether I like or dislike something doesn't matter. What matters is only this present reality—that we must move forward together.
It was quite a valuable lesson.
"Does anyone need to use the bathroom right now?"
I ask, looking at the other two.
The shaggy-haired boy just blinks, while the store clerk hesitantly raises her hand, her face flushing.
'I see.'
She looked quite desperate. Seems she needs the bathroom.
"It's not… defecation. It's just…"
"I understand."
I catch her drift easily enough.
'Fortunately, the convenience store sells daily necessities too.'
We shouldn't run out of supplies anytime soon. With just a bathroom, we can manage the bare minimum of living.
"If it's not that urgent, you can wait until evening."
"…Okay."
"Then I'll think things over a bit before heading out."
The clerk's eyes widen.
"…Head out? You're going out?"
"Yeah."
I grab a few more pieces of bread from the shelves as I say this.
'I need to go out in the best condition possible.'
I plan to eliminate hunger entirely before I leave.
I tear open a soboro bread and nibble on it while asking.
"Do you have anything here that could serve as a weapon?"
The question is naturally directed at her.
She would know this convenience store space better than anyone.
* * *
Creak.
The store clerk led me to a storage room.
"If it's here… maybe we'll find something?"
It was the kind of storage room you'd find in any convenience store or small shop—the type where they keep extra bread and snacks.
"This place works."
The shaggy-haired boy mutters from behind me.
He'd followed along wanting to see the storage room too. It seemed his earlier words about us being a team now weren't just empty talk.
"There are tools here too. Is this enough…?"
The store clerk shows me what's stacked on one side of the shelf.
First, I spot what people commonly call work gloves. There's a simple screwdriver for repairs, some pliers, and what appears to be a larger industrial utility knife used for opening boxes.
'There's a knife.'
Since it's the closest thing to a weapon, I grab it first.
Click.
When I pull out the blade, it's dull and rusty as expected.
Since it's meant for cutting box tape, having a sharp blade would've actually been inconvenient.
"Do you have any extra blades?"
"Blades? Um… where did I put them? The owner would know…"
The store clerk scratches his head and tilts it in confusion.
"Hmm… I'll look for them. They're probably somewhere in the storage room…"
The store clerk rummaged through various places, but there were no blades to be found.
I head back outside the storage room to search.
The store clerk stays behind and continues looking, but still comes up empty.
"Ugh. Where is it? Never around when you need it!"
Then the shaggy-haired student mutters.
"We could just make one…"
"Make one? A blade?"
"No. A weapon."
He taps the shelf in the storage room with the screwdriver.
"This and…"
Then he points to one of the remaining utility knives.
"This…"
Finally, the box tape.
"We can make something like a spear."
"Oh!"
The store clerk seems pleased with the plan and claps his hands excitedly.
"Hey! You're pretty smart, huh?"
"Not really… I think we're both bad at this."
"???"
Did I just hear something I shouldn't have? I think, but the shaggy-haired boy has already started dismantling the metal shelf.
I clear the few items on the shelf and begin turning the screwdriver at the joint.
Creak. Creak.
"This shelf panel could be modified into a shield, maybe…"
The boy mutters to himself as he separates a long iron rod from the end of the shelf.
"But if I make a spear, the blade will still be just as dull… Is that okay?"
"It's better than nothing. If you can thrust from a distance, it's easier to put force behind it. Just like how a bamboo spear isn't a weapon because its blade isn't sharp."
"Ah…!"
The key point is combat practicality.
For students to properly transfer force through that small industrial utility knife when fighting zombies is practically a miracle that only exists in theory.
That's the kind of technique only seasoned assassins could pull off.
But if they thrust from as far away as possible?
Even with a dull blade, you can put tremendous force behind it. That's the greatness of a spear.
"Actually… if I sharpened this iron rod to create a blade, it would be perfect."
If I secure the utility knife with packing tape, the durability of this weapon isn't determined by the hardness of the steel and blade, but essentially by the adhesive strength of the packing tape.
Once the packing tape comes off, this weapon loses its effectiveness.
But if I sharpen the steel to create an integrated blade, the durability of the weapon would be determined by the hardness of the steel itself.
It would be far more reliable than packing tape adhesive.
"Of course, that's impossible…"
The problem is it's all talk. It's not bamboo, and sharpening steel is an absurd plan.
Thud!
The moment I unscrew a few more bolts and pull out the rod, the shelf collapses. I collect all eight or so iron rods and lean them against one wall.
"We only have 2 blades… Why are you collecting so many?"
"Just in case."
"Ah, okay."
The store clerk bounces up as if she hadn't thought of that.
But then──
An ominous sound comes from outside.
──Clang-bang!
"…?"
If I'm not mistaken, that's the sound of the iron door opening.
"No, surely not…"
Are the zombies finally forcing the iron door open with brute strength?
With this thought, Hyeon-a rushes outside. Almond is still out there. I need to call him in.
But… the situation was completely opposite from what she expected.
"What, what are you doing?! Right now!"
It was Almond opening the iron door.
Clang!
By the time she arrived, the door was already open.
And for the first time, she sees what a zombie is.
"Grrrraaaaaahhhhh!"
On the surface, they appeared human, yet their eyes were bloodshot crimson, and they emitted bestial, piercing shrieks while swinging fists with half-decomposed nails.
"Kyaaaack! Kyack!"
"Kraaaack!"
There weren't just one or two of them.
At least a dozen or so zombies in school uniforms were visible.
The zombies moved slowly.
Their muscles rigid and stiff, their bodies barely lurching forward with each movement.
So it seemed I could have survived if I closed the iron door again right then. Yet my feet wouldn't move.
My human instinct refused to allow even a single step forward toward those grotesque creatures.
I couldn't even find my voice.
However, in the very next moment, witnessing what unfolded, I let out a sound.
"Hnngh…!"
Reflected in the wide-eyed store clerk's gaze was.
Screech.
Almond charging at a zombie with a utility knife in hand.
"No, wait! Why are you doing that!?"
A scream-like question finally escaped her lips.
It was such an absurd sudden charge. However, Almond had reason to make his decision quickly.
[Warning! Urination level at maximum.]
[If not relieved, health abnormalities will begin.]
'I should have drunk the beverage more moderately…!'
The culprit was drinking far too much of the conditioning drink because it tasted so good.
That wasn't all. I'd also consumed an enormous amount of Pizza Bread and sponge cake.
[Warning! Defecation level exceeds 80%.]
[If not relieved, it may lead to unconsciousness at worst.]
-Nut Shake with more desperate eyes than ever lol
-Why can't he just say he needs to poop lol
-Sudden charge because of poop lol
-Lmao
-Literally a shit-driven decision
He had needed to go.
Desperately.
And so, facing the zombies, I made my resolve.
'I'll break through in two minutes.'
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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