I'm a Young God, so Please Raise Me - Chapter 17
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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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Chapter 17
I almost didn’t recognize her. Gwak Han-muk seemed equally shocked.
“Damn, I nearly—”
Gwak Han-muk, who had almost rammed her thinking she was a zombie, muttered a curse as he barely stopped himself.
Mo Hae-in lowered the thumbs-up she’d been holding.
Since she’d only been bitten recently, much of her human appearance remained intact.
But drenched in blood as she was, the moment the headlights cut through the darkness, she looked unmistakably like a zombie.
Gwak Han-muk and I hurriedly unbuckled our seatbelts and climbed out of the vehicle. Gwak Han-muk stared at Mo Hae-in with a twisted expression.
“Captain Mo…”
At his trembling voice, Mo Hae-in’s eyes widened slightly. Gwak Han-muk whispered seriously.
“This is the first time I’ve seen someone I know turn into a zombie.”
Me too…!
I silently agreed with him in my heart.
“You think I haven’t?”
When Mo Hae-in spoke as if exasperated, Gwak Han-muk hid behind me.
Then he giggled and mimicked firing a machine gun at Mo Hae-in with his hands.
I calmly raised both hands in surrender.
At the sight, Mo Hae-in let out a deflated laugh. She muttered bitterly.
“At least we found each other before the transformation was complete.”
Gwak Han-muk stopped his machine gun pantomime and asked.
“Your condition?”
“Bitten on the left forearm. High fever started immediately after infection, but no pain. Aggression is manageable.”
Mo Hae-in’s eyes gleamed blood-red even in the darkness.
Bloodshot eyes and prominent blue veins against skin so pale it was nearly translucent—all telltale signs of zombification.
In three days, she would become a complete zombie.
By protocol, we should have shot her. But neither I nor Gwak Han-muk aimed our weapons at her.
‘If we just clear the true ending.’
We could all escape safely.
Gwak Han-muk briefly explained what we’d experienced. When Mo Hae-in heard of Je Hyeon-o’s atrocities, she shuddered and cursed.
“That psychopath…”
“Captain Mo, how did you get bitten? Was it Major Je?”
“Half of it was because of Major Je, the other half wasn’t.”
Gwak Han-muk, who had been absolutely convinced it was all Je Hyeon-o’s fault, raised his eyebrows slightly.
Mo Hae-in hesitated for a moment. Her attitude was uncharacteristically lacking in confidence.
“There are… four researchers.”
It was impossible.
Originally, there was only one final researcher developing the vaccine at DeZomDeal.
Mo Hae-in explained the details to us.
“I regained consciousness at the boundary line of the Yellow Zone, near the Red Zone.”
While moving to find Gwak Han-muk and me, she had discovered a survivor being chased by zombies in the Yellow Zone.
Mo Hae-in doubted her own eyes.
“She was wearing a research facility gown.”
A researcher ID card dangled from her neck as she spoke.
Mo Hae-in had rescued a researcher from the zombies and received shocking news in return.
There were more surviving researchers at the Research Facility.
Since Mo Hae-in had thoroughly memorized the strategy guide, she knew there was supposed to be only one researcher.
She set aside this incomprehensible situation for now and tried to bring the researcher back to rejoin us.
“But the researcher is begging to return to the Research Facility immediately.”
There was another injured researcher at the facility, and their condition was so critical that they risked venturing into the Yellow Zone to obtain medicine.
Mo Hae-in had no choice but to deliberate.
What if the injured person at the Research Facility was the researcher who would develop the vaccine?
The researcher she’d rescued didn’t match the personal information of the vaccine researcher recorded in the DeZomDeal strategy guide.
With no way of knowing how long it would take to regroup, if the vaccine researcher died in the meantime, it would be catastrophic.
If the vaccine researcher perished, not only would the true ending be impossible—clearing the trial itself would become unachievable.
Left with no choice, Mo Hae-in headed to the Research Facility with barely any farming completed, clutching only a single Black Moon Blade.
She passed through the Red Zone safely, but the Research Facility’s boss zombie caught her by the ankle in the Dead Zone.
She succeeded in diverting the boss zombie’s attention and safely ushering the researcher inside, but in the process, her strength was depleted, and she was bitten by a zombie during her retreat.
“That’s how I ended up in this state.”
Mo Hae-in evaluated her condition with bitter cynicism.
But she had absolutely no reason to belittle herself. If anything, the opposite was true.
‘Insane.’
Knowing the game’s difficulty as I do, I could only think she was incredibly impressive.
She’d infiltrated the Research Facility alone, protecting a survivor without even decent equipment, and faced off against the boss zombie.
No matter that she’d drawn the Black Moon Blade—it didn’t make sense. This was something only Mo Hae-in could have accomplished.
“Captain Mo Hae-in. You’re truly remarkable.”
My overwhelming admiration spilled out before I could help it.
At my sincere words, Mo Hae-in leaned back slightly. Then she looked at Gwak Han-muk.
“Han Go-yo wasn’t bitten.”
Even after hearing Gwak Han-muk’s answer that my brain was intact, she didn’t lower her suspicious gaze.
Staring at me with bloodshot eyes was admittedly a bit frightening.
“How did the researchers survive?”
Fortunately, Gwak Han-muk’s question allowed me to escape the zombie Mo Hae-in’s scrutiny.
“Lieutenant Colonel Je Hyeon-o was the cause.”
Je Hyeon-o had entered DeZomDeal ten days before us.
Normally, he would have progressed through the clear route ordinarily, but for some reason, this time he slaughtered the zombies immediately upon entry.
He’d killed every zombie not only in the Red Zone and Dead Zone but also inside the Research Facility itself.
Thanks to that, four researchers survived instead of being massacred down to the last one as originally intended.
And one of them escaped the Research Facility before the zombies regenerated, reached the Yellow Zone, and met Mo Hae-in.
‘I had a feeling Je Hyeon-o was doing something strange…’
I never expected he’d be causing such large-scale chaos.
If he was going to rampage, he should have continued until he’d created a world without zombies. I couldn’t fathom why he’d stopped halfway and left us in this ambiguous situation.
The most troubling aspect was that he might have squandered the True Ending condition entirely.
Mo Hae-in’s eyes betrayed faint anxiety as she looked at me. Gwak Han-muk also stared at me in silence.
Under their combined gaze, I slowly opened my mouth.
“We need to investigate the Research Facility. As quickly as possible.”
I had to enter the Research Facility immediately and verify whether the researcher developing the vaccine was still intact, and whether the other True Ending conditions remained achievable.
The problem was how to enter the Research Facility.
Given our team’s current physical condition and available items, even passing through the Yellow Zone was uncertain.
Even if luck favored us and we safely traversed the Yellow Zone and Red Zone, we’d be blocked at the Dead Zone.
Everyone was thinking the same thing, so the atmosphere grew slightly heavy.
But there was a method to resolve all of this.
Theoretically, it was a perfect solution.
“I do have one method—a good one, or rather, a bad one.”
I explained the approach I’d conceived. Then Mo Hae-in spoke with genuine conviction.
“Trainee, are you insane?”
It seemed like a pure outburst of emotion she couldn’t contain, much like I had done moments earlier.
This marked the second time she’d called me crazy.
I persuaded her and Gwak Han-muk with the calmest, most composed voice I could muster, trying not to appear unhinged.
“There’s no other option. I want to attempt this.”
Gwak Han-muk nodded deeply in agreement, then said something unexpected.
“Captain Mo. From now on, let’s call him Madman.”
“Sigh…”
Mo Hae-in exhaled a long, drawn-out breath. Yet she understood.
There was no other viable option, and if we delayed any further, we risked all becoming infected zombies.
“Fine. Let’s try it.”
My proposal was ultimately accepted.
***
I had my reasons for taking this action, however questionable they might seem.
Of course, since I hadn’t told Mo Hae-in and Gwak Han-muk everything, my method looked absolutely insane to anyone watching….
‘But as long as the results are good, that’s what matters.’
I stood in the middle of an eight-lane intersection, with scraps of newspaper and debris swirling around me.
Wind whistled through the gaps between collapsed buildings.
The night breeze was cold enough to make my body shiver involuntarily. My stamina was depleted.
If I lost much more stamina here, my heart would start pounding audibly and my vision would darken.
Still, the fact that no critical condition warning had appeared suggested I could hold on a bit longer.
‘I need to manage hunger and thirst too.’
In DeZomDeal, if you didn’t eat or drink for a certain period of time, you died, so I had to manage it carefully.
Once I handled this, I’d need to put something in my mouth immediately.
I took a deep breath.
Then I shouted with all my might.
“Je Hyeon-o, Major!!!”
My voice echoed through the quiet street.
Two zombies that had been lurking nearby rushed toward me, but before they could get close, a gleaming spear blade separated their heads from their bodies.
A moment later, an eerie sensation crept over me—a sharp, stinging killing intent that made my skin prickle.
I gripped the Yeom-ju wrapped around my waist like a lifeline, holding it tight.
In the quiet night street, the sound of metal suddenly rings out.
The light clinking of metal striking metal is chilling.
I focused my hearing.
The slow, continuous sound draws gradually closer.
Closer still, and closer yet.
The moment the sound cuts off abruptly, wind rushes across my face.
The Yeom-ju around my waist jerks slightly.
I reflexively closed my eyes, then opened them—and flinched in surprise.
Black goggles were thrust directly in front of my face.
o O
An emoticon of one eye wide open filled my entire vision.
I reflexively touched my neck.
Fortunately, it was still intact….
Since Gwak Han-muk’s Yeom-ju hadn’t pulled me, it seemed he had no intention of killing me.
I shifted my eyes slightly to look beside the goggles.
The tips of the sharp metal feathers were all pointed directly at me.
If he swung just one of the six wings, my limbs would be severed effortlessly.
“I wanted to have a conversation, so I called you.”
‘Telepathy.’
“First, let me introduce myself. I’m Han Go-yo, a trainee who enlisted in Sidaecheong.”
I spoke casually while rapidly inputting a telepathic message in my mind.
A system window appeared before Je Hyeon-o.
Event Quest: ‘Protect Han Go-yo’.
It was a message masquerading as a Quest window.
To ensure safety, I transmitted the Quest name first, then hastily input the details.
You have demonstrated remarkable power.
Perhaps you are capable of ending this horrific zombie world.
‘Han Go-yo’ is your only hope for achieving the true ending.
You must protect him and create the true ending.
“Major Je Hyeon-o, it seems there may be some misunderstanding about me. If there’s anything incorrect, please let me know. I’ll correct it immediately.”
Reward: Clear the true ending of 【DeZomDeal】.
However, if ‘Han Go-yo’ dies, bad ending.
I crafted the message to resemble the system window’s rambling style.
I’m supposedly a system, so shouldn’t I actually be able to issue Quests?
‘Perhaps my abilities are still insufficient.’
And so I created a fake Quest window.
Honestly, who cares if it’s fake or real?
With a system window shimmering and appearing right before their eyes, no one would be foolish enough to suspect it was fake.
I glanced covertly at Je Hyeon-o.
The goggles were dark. As if he were pondering something deeply.
After a stretch of silence, question marks appeared above the goggles.
? ?
I hesitated, uncertain of their meaning.
A disturbingly low sound emanated from him.
“You?”
A rough, guttural tone so deep and low it seemed inhuman.
It took several seconds to comprehend that this sound—so close to a creature’s cry—was actually a voice.
Je Hyeon-o spoke to me, frozen in place by the eerie vibration that assaulted my eardrums.
“You told me to stay still.”
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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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