Player of a Ruined World - Chapter 55

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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 055
—nothing but nonsense.
“Curve!! There’s a curve ahead!!”
“Cup?! Did you say cup?! Cup?!”
“No, curve!! Sharp right turn curve!!”
“W-where’s the right turn!!”
“…What?”
As the vehicle’s speed increased, Kim Suhan became completely rigid, his mind shutting down entirely.
When people first take the wheel on a road, some become utterly senseless like Kim Suhan.
Focusing intensely on everything visible before them, their brains simply shut down the processing of other information.
Kim Suhan’s arms stretched out at ninety degrees, gripping the steering wheel but not moving at all.
His eyes were wide open, his pupils half-dilated.
He wasn’t blinking, and the kid wasn’t even breathing.
There had been a sign just moments ago warning of a sharp curve ahead and to slow down—had he missed it?
Even I, with only twenty meters of visibility, saw it. There’s no way Kim Suhan’s eyes could have missed it!
I urgently gripped the steering wheel and wrenched it to the right.
Screeeech—!!
The sound of a long skid mark echoed, and my entire body lurched to the left.
“Save me!! Please save me!!”
Hwang Anbae, sitting in the back, was having a claustrophobic panic attack.
“I told you—when turning the wheel, you brake first and turn slowly….”
“The wheel?! Should I turn it now?!”
“No, not now…!”
Screech—!
Kim Suhan had completely lost his senses.
With no other option, I forcibly engaged the handbrake and wrenched the steering wheel.
The vehicle spun in the rain and came to a halt.
“Brake!!”
As the vehicle finally stopped, Kim Suhan stared at me with a vacant expression.
My stress levels had skyrocketed, but I closed my eyes tightly and exhaled a long breath.
It wasn’t Kim Suhan’s fault.
It was my mistake for letting him take the wheel.
Kim Suhan was holding a steering wheel for the first time today and hadn’t received any driving instruction beforehand.
It was my mistake for thinking it would be too easy—just brake and accelerator pedals in an automatic vehicle.
Vroom—
The second vehicle that had been ahead pulled up beside us.
“What’s wrong? Get a flat tire?”
I couldn’t answer Park Sangil’s question.
I looked at Kim Suhan and spoke.
“Suhan, you’re okay. Get out for a moment.”
“Ah, yes, yes.”
Suhan fumbled at the window with both hands.
He wasn’t even a zombie—how tense did he have to be to not find the handle?
Whoooosh—
Standing in the center as heavy rain poured down, I watched Suhan silently.
Suhan lowered his head with a thoroughly dejected expression.
It was his first time driving today, and I’d given him far too much pressure.
Anyone who’s driven a friend or parent around shortly after learning to drive knows this feeling.
The crushing weight of knowing that my mistake could cause irreversible consequences.
He was clearly feeling that now.
“Suhan, look at me.”
“….”
“Lift your head. It’s okay.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Suhan apologized with his shoulders drooping like a water-soaked towel.
I ruffled his hair and spoke.
“Why are you so nervous?”
“I guess I have no talent for this.”
“Everyone’s like that at first. I made you more nervous by yelling, didn’t I? I’m sorry.”
“What?! No, no! You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m the one who’s sorry.”
I wasn’t trying to say anything in particular, but Suhan’s spirits didn’t lift easily.
So I walked to the front of the vehicle and struck the outer panel with my palm.
Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!
“Can you hear that?”
“Huh?”
Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!
“Can you hear this sound?”
“Ah… yes.”
A normal vehicle’s outer panel would dent and produce a much duller sound.
But this modified vehicle’s panel was hard as rock.
“This isn’t an ordinary car. No matter what you do while driving, we won’t die easily.”
“….”
“Even if you ram it straight into a building, we’d just crash through the wall. We won’t get hurt.”
“….”
“There are airbags too, so what are you worried about? Have confidence. There’s no one here who’ll blame you if you make a mistake.”
Suhan’s expression grew tearful, and he wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
“I’m… scared when I hold the steering wheel….”
“It’s my fault. I should have given you some practice runs first.”
“Sniff… waaah….”
I patted Suhan on the back and looked at the other party members sitting in the vehicle.
Clunk!
The rear door swung open, and Kang Haneul, Hwang Anbae, and Do Sohee tumbled out without hesitation.
“Blegh! Bleargh!”
“Ugh!”
The students retched in unison, their stomachs emptying onto the pavement.
Yes, this was all my fault.
I’ll just accept that.
It’s easier on the conscience that way.
In the end, I only regained peace of mind after giving Kim Suhan thirty minutes of driving instruction right there in the middle of the road.
“How’s it feel? Easy, right?”
“Yes! I think I was just too nervous at first.”
“Yeah, you probably killed over two hundred chicks today.”
“Haha! I’m sorry…”
“Ease off the pedal. Don’t kill any more.”
“Got it!”
I wanted to drive myself, but with my vision gone, there was no way I could manage it.
The window of the second vehicle rolled down, and Park Sangil called out to us.
“We’ll take it slow, so follow us carefully!”
“Understood!”
Kim Suhan had regained some of his confidence.
Vroom— vroom—
The engine sound echoed in my ears as the RPM climbed gradually.
There was no sudden acceleration like before.
Only then did I relax and check the 3D terrain map.
Just 700 more meters and we’d reach Dongmyo Station.
When Park Sangil and I came here yesterday for our Seongbuk-gu survey, this was where the zombie concentration increased significantly.
Yesterday we moved on foot using building rooftops and narrow alleys, but now that we had vehicles, avoiding the zombies would be difficult.
Crackle—
—Ah, can you hear me? Let me test this.
The radio connected to the vehicle.
I heard Park Sangil’s voice coming through and grabbed my own radio.
“Yes, I hear you clearly. Can you hear me?”
—We hear you too. We tried talking on the radio earlier when we couldn’t see you guys, but we didn’t get anything then.
“We didn’t receive anything. It seems the connection drops when the distance gets too far.”
—Then let’s maintain this distance while we move. Over.
Even in No Way Home, the modified vehicles had a radio function connecting them.
This frequency couldn’t be altered arbitrarily by outsiders.
Only the modified vehicles manufactured by the Hunting Dog Alliance were connected on this channel.
Of course, when the vehicles got too far apart, even this radio function would lose its signal.
According to Park Sangil, when the first vehicle had spun out leaving skid marks earlier, we weren’t visible in his side mirror, so he’d tried the radio.
But since there was no response, he came back.
Given that the distance between us was approximately 500 meters, the maximum effective range for radio communication wouldn’t exceed 500 meters.
Crackle—!
—Stop!
In that moment, Park Sangil’s voice came through the radio.
I grabbed the radio urgently and asked.
“Are there survivors?”
—No, there are way too many zombies at the Dongmyo Station intersection. About 140 meters away.
“How many approximately?”
—I’d say at least 500 of them?
500 zombies.
After a brief moment of deliberation, I picked up the radio and spoke.
“Let’s test it.”
—Test? What test?
“We need to test the vehicle’s performance.”
—You want us to ram through that?
“Remove the blades and retract the spikes.”
When I had inspected the modified vehicle in front of Building 118, the wheels had blades embedded like a Roman chariot, and the front bumper had triangular spikes attached.
But these were inconvenient features when moving through tight spaces.
This is where the No Way Home’s modified vehicle’s special quality came from.
It had a function to deploy and retract the spikes and blades for navigating narrow passages.
I pressed the button on the dashboard.
Whirring— Click— Clank— Thunk.
Blades extended from all four wheels, and sharp triangular spikes emerged from the front bumper.
Even the chassis lifted higher.
Crackle—
—We’re ready.
“So are we.”
I looked at Kim Suhan, who was gripping the steering wheel. He adjusted his grip and swallowed hard.
“Suhan.”
“Yes, hyung.”
“Now ram everything you see.”
“…What?”
“Think of it like bumper cars. Just push through.”
“Yes!”
Vroooom—!!
The RPM surged violently.
With the chassis lifted higher, the vibrations became even more intense.
I hastily fastened my seatbelt and stared ahead.
“Kaaaaahhh!!”
“Grraahhh… Kack!”
“Haaaack!! Crack!”
I could see with my own eyes the massive wave composed of Zombies.
Three seconds until collision, two seconds, and then one.
Crash!! Boom-thud-! Thud!! Crunch, Crack!
The sounds of Zombie bones shattering and twisting echoed from all directions.
The vehicle shook relentlessly, like an off-road vehicle climbing a rocky mountain.
“Everyone hold on tight!”
The tense Kim Suhan from before had vanished, replaced by one with eyes wide open, relentlessly pushing Zombies aside without pause.
I gripped the assist handle attached to the top of the passenger window and watched Kim Suhan.
At first, he’d struggled, confusing the brake and accelerator, but now he showed complete adaptation to the modified vehicle.
“This is insane!! This car is insane!!”
Kim Suhan’s expression was completely exhilarated.
Crackle-!
-Doyun! This is no joke!
At the same time, Park Sanghun’s voice came through the radio.
Park Sangil would be focused on driving, so Park Sanghun must have picked up the radio instead.
“How is it?”
-Feels like smashing an egg carton with a brick! The dopamine is pumping, man!
Park Sanghun was also satisfied with the modified vehicle’s performance.
It was natural—we’d obtained a modified vehicle that should have appeared in the fifth episode during the second episode.
The Zombies’ bodies hadn’t been strengthened yet.
-Baek Doyun! With just this car, I don’t think we need to worry about the fourth episode!
Park Sangil’s voice followed through the radio.
I raised the corners of my mouth and replied.
“You’re right. I’m looking forward to how the upcoming episodes will unfold as well.”
-Even that so-called king of Zombies would tuck tail with this car.
“We’re still in the second episode, so let’s not get complacent. We can’t know what other variables might arise.”
-Haha! Bring all the Zombies! I’ll push every last one of them!
The final toy of men.
An automobile.
Park Sangil and Kim Suhan, gripping the steering wheel, were completely captivated by the modified vehicle’s allure.

* * *
A temporary outpost situated on the slopes of Gaewun Mountain.
Several tents were pitched at odd angles around a detached house that bordered the road.
A man standing guard there spoke while gazing at the torrential downpour.
“Damn it, it’s been days and shows no sign of stopping.”
Another man, who was making kindling, also looked up at the sky and spoke.
“Ugh, my clothes won’t dry, dammit.”
“Ha! Says the guy walking around in just underwear.”
“It’s stuffy. You try wearing just underwear. It’s refreshing.”
“You exhibitionist bastard. Forget it—give me a cigarette.”
The man in underwear handed over a cigarette, and the grumbling man inhaled deeply, exhaled, and opened his eyes halfway.
“Man, how many days has it been anyway?”
“What?”
“Since we got here.”
“About four days now, I’d say.”
The man smoking cigarettes furrowed his brow and clicked his tongue.
“Shouldn’t those bastards who went hunting be back by now?”
“Yeah, they should’ve been here yesterday.”
“Are these assholes just having fun on their own again?”
“What, is this some kind of one-day trip?”
“Tsk, how many are we up to in the harvest now?”
“Five.”
The man chewed on the filter of his cigarette, then threw it to the ground with a sigh.
“Why does the harvest keep shrinking? What’s Taesan going to say to that bastard this time?”
“Taesan probably knows too. Our reputation’s already spread everywhere. All those people have gone into hiding like rats.”
“Pathetic insects without the courage to fight. Even when we tell them we’re protecting them, they complain.”
As the man continued grumbling, the man in underwear snorted and looked at him.
“Protecting them, huh?”
“Yeah, protecting them. We give them food, shelter, everything.”
“That’s just raising slaves.”
“What’s with you suddenly? You had the most fun doing it.”
“Heh, that’s true.”
The man in underwear gazed at the dark clouds overhead and continued.
“Think it’ll be okay?”
“What?”
“Those dark clouds up there—they’ll hide all our sins, won’t they? So God can’t see.”
“Hahahaha! You crazy bastard, the rain will wash it all away anyway, so don’t worry.”
“Right?”
The two men chuckled, keeping watch half-heartedly.
Flash— Flash, flash—
In that instant, the men’s gazes concentrated on the distant flickering flames that came into view.

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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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