Player of a Ruined World - Chapter 26

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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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Player of the Ruined World – Episode 026
Including the numerical boost from protective gear, my strength reached 55.
Yet subduing Euitaejong through sheer force alone was proving difficult.
I couldn’t rely on strength—I had to render his body immobile.
‘Center of gravity first…!’
I clamped down hard on his jaw and drove his head straight into the floor.
Thud!!
No matter how much he resembled a Gakdagwi, his true form was human.
Just as a person loses all resistance when their head is pinned down, he was no different.
As I ground his head against the wooden floor, I shouted to Gwak Cheolmin behind me.
“Chulmil Grandfather!”
Gwak Cheolmin rushed over with his curved blade, alternating his gaze between Euitaejong and me as he asked.
“This won’t work—how can we…!”
“There’s no other way!”
“Your hands could get hurt too!”
“I can get treatment!”
Any injuries could be healed by the Healing Factor afterward.
As long as my fingers didn’t get severed, I’d be fine.
With the Healing Factor’s current capabilities, reattaching severed limbs was impossible.
Regardless, killing this creature came first.
Gwak Cheolmin grimaced, realized there was no other choice, and began relentlessly slashing his curved blade at Euitaejong’s face.
Thwack! Squelch—Thwack!
Whenever Euitaejong thrashed in agony, Gwak Cheolmin’s blade sometimes grazed my hand and forearm.
It wasn’t his fault.
It was my fault for not holding him steady enough.
Then Kim Suhan and Kang Haneul rushed over and began swinging their curved blades at his cervical spine.
“Brother! If we sever the neck! This bastard will die too, right?!”
The two of them struck repeatedly at Euitaejong’s cervical spine as they questioned.
His neck bones were so hard the curved blades barely penetrated.
But Euitaejong’s muscles and flesh were becoming increasingly tattered.
Confirming that Euitaejong’s bones were now exposed, I shouted to those around us.
“Everyone back!!”
I confirmed that Kim Suhan, Kang Haneul, and Gwak Cheolmin hastily retreated.
“Hah!”
Crack! Snap! Pop—Crunch!
I twisted Euitaejong’s head with all my strength in a direction that wouldn’t break his neck.
Despite all of Euitaejong’s muscles and flesh already being severed, twisting his cervical spine was still grueling.
“Just…die!!”
Snap—!!!
Pouring every ounce of strength into the twist, his neck snapped completely with a sickening crack.
Ding—!
[You have eliminated the Mutant!]
[500 points awarded.]
[100 points awarded to players Park Sangil, Park Sangha, Park Sanghun, Gwak Cheolmin, Kim Suhan, and Kang Haneul for assisting in the hunt.]
The System Message materialized before my eyes at the same moment.
Euitaejong’s pupils dilated and went lifeless, his long tongue no longer moving.
Dark blood streamed from his shattered cheekbones.
No—crimson blood poured from his entire body, which had been slashed to ribbons.
The living room was drenched in gore.
I remained collapsed on the floor, catching my breath as I studied Euitaejong’s expression.
No mockery remained, no rage—nothing at all.
Ding—!
[Balhwa’s duration has ended.]
With the System Message announcing the end of Balhwa, the heat that had enveloped my entire body vanished, and the suppressed pain came crashing down all at once.
Searing electricity spread through every nerve, and unable to even scream from the agony, I curled my upper body like a pill bug.
“Gasp—! Ugh—!”
As I gasped for breath and trembled, Park Sangil rushed over with an alarmed expression.
“What’s wrong with you?! What’s happening?!”
I couldn’t do anything anymore.
Every muscle and joint in my body was screaming.
I wanted to stay still, but convulsions made my body refuse to obey.
“Get the Healing Factor! Get it now!!”
As Park Sangil shouted to the group behind him, Park Sangha and Park Sanghun bolted outside without hesitation.
Gwak Cheolmin, seeing the flames clinging to the sofa, table, and wallpaper, frowned and yelled.
“Sangil! You carry Doyun out! Leave the cleanup to us!”
“But he’s convulsing—is it safe to move him now?”
“How should I know?! Isn’t getting him out of here better than letting him suffocate in this place?!”
Then Kang Haneul rushed over and grabbed my legs.
“I’ve got his legs! Uncle Sangil, please take his upper body!”
Park Sangil and Kang Haneul lifted me—my body rigid as a caterpillar one moment, then curling like a bean bug the next—and ran toward Building 118.
I remember feeling the heavy downpour soaking my face, but everything after that was a blur.

* * *
“Ugh….”
I opened my eyes, frowning at the oppressive weight pressing against my chest.
A pristine white ceiling came into view through my blurred vision.
As I slowly raised my upper body, a sharp throbbing pain flooded my head.
Pressing my temples gently and blinking my eyes, I noticed children stirring awake beside me.
“Huh? Uncle Doyun is awake!”
“Oh! He’s awake!”
“Uncle Doyun!”
Three 5-year-old boys were using my chest and stomach as pillows.
Had they been playing in the room and fallen asleep on me?
‘Wait, a room?’
I bolted upright and looked around—I was in an unfamiliar room.
‘Ah, we moved to Building 118.’
Right, we relocated our hideout from Building 105 to Building 118 to block the Zombie wave.
“Are you okay, Uncle?”
“Does it hurt a lot?”
I smiled bitterly at the children’s worried expressions and asked them a question.
“What time is it now?”
“Right now? Um….”
The children couldn’t read clocks.
“Never mind, Uncle will check.”
After patting the children’s heads, I gathered strength in my stiff limbs and stood up.
“Oh? Doyun!”
As I stepped into the living room, Park Sangil, who was sitting on the sofa, spotted me first.
Then everyone else turned around to look.
Park Sangha and Park Sanghun, along with the other Survivors, all rose from their seats and examined my entire body.
“Are you alright? Any pain?”
“Brother, is there anywhere uncomfortable?”
“Thank goodness. You’ve come to your senses.”
“Young man, you pushed yourself too hard.”
The Survivors asked after my well-being, each releasing sighs of relief.
They… were all worried about me.
After telling them I was fine and thanking them for their concern, I walked toward Park Sangil.
“What happened?”
“You passed out, man.”
“….”
“We thought our arms would fall off moving you here.”
“How long was I unconscious?”
“Shouldn’t you say thank you first?”
Ah, that’s right.
I bowed my head in gratitude, and Park Sangil rose from his seat with a faint smile.
Then he spread both arms wide and pulled me into an embrace, patting my back as he spoke.
“You’ve worked hard. And we’re the ones who should be grateful.”
An embrace, no less.
In my twenty-eight years, this was the first time I’d ever embraced someone.
It felt incredibly awkward and embarrassing.
As I fidgeted and tried to create distance, Park Sangil let out a snort and asked.
“Why are you so shy?”
“It’s not shyness… it just feels strange.”
“Ha! If you went abroad, you’d hide in a mouse hole.”
“But this is Korea.”
“Ha, well.”
As he rubbed the back of his neck, Park Sangha, who had been observing the situation, raised the corners of his mouth and spoke.
“You understand. Our older brother is the type to do kissy-kissy.”
“Pardon?”
“Kissy-kissy when we meet because we’re happy, kissy-kissy when we part saying see you again. It’s American style.”
At first, he seemed like someone who was deeply wary of people and had zero affability.
But then again, that’s how Park Sangha had been.
Park Sangil wasn’t originally like that, so I shouldn’t hate him too much.
He was someone honest with his emotions.
I cleared my throat and looked at the people in the living room.
“Doyun, are you really sure you’re okay?”
Gwak Cheolmin approached and examined the back of my hand with concern.
“Because of my mistake… I didn’t injure your hand, did I?”
“I’m fine. It’s already healed. Did the middle school students treat it?”
“Yes, yes, the students did their best. Are you truly alright?”
“Yes.”
“Your arm? I’m not very skilled with a blade…”
Gwak Cheolmin had inflicted wounds on my hand and arm while attacking Euitaejong.
It seemed to weigh on his mind, as he rubbed my arm with a worried expression.
“Really, I’m perfectly fine. Don’t worry.”
“Don’t push yourself like that in the future. It makes those watching anxious…”
I offered a bitter smile and glanced at the wall clock.
The hour hand was pointing at nine.
Judging by the sunlight filtering intermittently through the dark clouds, it appeared to be nine in the morning.
“So… I was unconscious for about five hours?”
“Ha! After pushing your body like that, how could you wake up in just five hours?”
“Then it’s nine at night? But it’s so bright outside.”
“A full day and five hours.”
A full day and five hours?!
So I slept for 29 hours straight?
As I stood there dumbfounded, Park Sangil scratched his head and spoke.
“You fought Zombies in the rain all day long. Getting this much sleep is actually lucky. It’s amazing you didn’t catch a cold.”
“But how…”
“Most of the people who participated in the battle slept like the dead for at least 15 hours. Me too.”
I stared at Park Sangil with a blank expression, and he shrugged before continuing.
“Everyone’s experiencing something like this for the first time. It’s just the tension finally releasing.”
“Ah…”
“We have plenty of time before the second episode starts anyway. Get some good rest while you can.”
Then suddenly, I remembered someone I’d forgotten about.
“What about Jo Yunhwan? Where is he?”
“Yunhwan? He’s probably upstairs with the kids right now.”
Yunhwan?
They’ve gotten close already?
More than that…
‘Did Jo Yunhwan join our team?’
Then his nephew must have joined as well.
Thirty-eight Survivors had become forty.
“Were there no other Survivors in Building 204?”
“Well…”
As Park Sangil scratched his sideburns, Park Sangha, who was in the kitchen, spoke up.
“There were more. Five of them.”
“Don’t tell me you brought those people too?”
I asked with intensity in my eyes, and Park Sangha calmly shook his head.
“Don’t worry. We didn’t bring them.”
“I see…”
“We talked with them anyway, and they decided to move separately.”
What’s this about?
I thought we’d take in all the Survivors.
I was more confused by this unexpected turn.
Then Park Sangil, who was in front of me, spoke.
“Those people were the ones who wanted to abandon the children and run away.”
“Ah, I see.”
“And there was a man we saw at the elementary school there too. That trash bastard is still alive and well.”
Park Sangil clenched his fists tightly and clicked his tongue sharply, clearly harboring ill feelings toward someone.
When I said nothing, Park Sangil sighed and continued.
“And most importantly…… there’s something you need to know.”
“Something I need to know?”
“Among those five people there, there was someone similar to you.”
“Someone similar to me?”
“Someone who knows the episodes that will unfold ahead.”
Just as I thought.
I’d anticipated there would be a No Way Home Player, and my prediction proved correct.
Could they have leaked information about me?
Noticing my expression wasn’t quite right, Park Sangil spoke calmly.
“I didn’t mention you, so don’t make that face. What do you take me for?”
“Ah, you did well.”
“What’s the point of blabbing all over the place? They’re not people I even like anyway.”
“What did that person say?”
“That bastard also knows about Mutants. He said that if a Mutant is present, Zombies won’t come within a 50-meter radius?”
Instead of answering Park Sangil’s words, I nodded.
His words were correct.
Mutants and Zombies weren’t in a mutually complementary relationship.
Rather, from the Zombies’ perspective, Mutants were….
‘Something to avoid.’
Zombies and Mutants existed as predator and prey to each other.
For now, the Mutant would unilaterally hunt Zombies and treat them as food, but as time went on and Zombies grew stronger, they would eventually compete for territory.
The No Way Home Player at Dae O Apartment knew this fact.
Then….
‘So they also knew the child Jo Yunhwan was keeping was a Mutant.’
They knew, yet didn’t kill it.
In order to come here, to Han O Apartment.
They would have needed a Mutant to break through the Zombie waves.
To realize that the Mutant at Dae O Apartment was Euitaejong and plan to use it.
Whether I should call them clever or ruthless….
After arriving here, they seemed to have separated the children and other Survivors in preparation for Euitaejong reverting to his true form.
There’s one thing that bothers me here.
When I dealt with Euitaejong on the 20th floor of Building 204, everyone there died.
The five Dae O Apartment Survivors who supposedly survived.
Where were they?

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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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