Player of a Ruined World - Chapter 98

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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 098
Everyone’s gaze turned toward the direction Elder Chulmin was pointing.
The second-floor railing.
Park Sangil swallowed hard and asked me.
“How do we, chase after it?”
“Yes. If it’s a Mutant, we eliminate it. If it’s a survivor, we hear what’s happened here.”
Some people questioned my opinion.
Hong Yeonhui bit her lower lip and asked.
“Do we really need to chase after it?”
“Something passing by means it saw us and fled.”
“….”
“Whatever the opponent is, we’re uninvited guests here. It’s right to prevent any situation where we get caught from behind.”
“….”
Hong Yeonhui nodded and climbed the stairs ahead alongside Park Sangil.
There was always the possibility of Zombies jumping down from above, so I couldn’t let my guard down for a moment.
Creak—
The moment Park Sangil stepped onto the second floor, he stopped in his tracks.
“What the hell….”
Park Sangil slung the crossbow he’d been holding across his shoulder and pulled a curved blade from his inventory.
I gripped a curved blade in my hand and moved to Park Sangil’s side.
Hundreds, thousands of Zombie corpses scattered across the second floor.
Bodies packed so densely there was nowhere to step.
“Who on earth could have done this….”
Elder Chulmin furrowed his brow and trailed off.
Since we’d made it to the second floor without any reaction, the Zombies scattered everywhere appeared to be genuine corpses.
This many corpses… could what Elder Chulmin discovered earlier be a survivor?
‘No, that’s not a number one person could handle.’
Even with my level of physical ability, it didn’t make sense for another Player to eliminate this many Zombies.
“Just to be safe, let’s confirm-kill the corpses as we go.”
“All of them?”
“I mentioned it before. New variant Zombies are appearing from now on.”
Creepers and Jokers.
If a Creeper, which crawls along the ground, is somewhere in this place….
We’d have our ankles torn to shreds in an instant.
The protective gear would block the first attack, but the moment we fall, it’s an emergency.
And if what Elder Chulmin discovered is a Joker….
This place is a nest of variant Zombies.
Thunk!
I drove my curved blade into the temples and brows of the Zombies as I spoke.
“Everyone, stay focused. There’s a high possibility this is a den of variant Zombies.”
“Do Mutant Zombies attack regular zombies too? I haven’t seen regular zombies attacking them.”
Hong Yeonhui, standing behind us, answered Park Sangil’s question.
“Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t.”
“What does that mean?”
“It’s up to them. If they’re hungry, they’ll eat regular zombies. Otherwise, they just coexist.”
“From a regular zombie’s perspective, they must be terrified to even stay near them.”
Park Sangil chuckled at that, then his expression suddenly went blank as he turned to look behind us.
“Wait… is that why regular zombies are gathering in the mixed-use complex?”
“That’s a strong possibility, which is why I’m telling Doyun to stay focused too.”
Park Sangil nodded vigorously and gripped his sword hilt tightly.
Thud! Squelch- Thud! Thud! Thud!
I carved a path through by finishing off the scattered zombie corpses.
Regardless of when these things died, a foul stench was emanating from them.
With the humidity this high, the blood stains on the zombies had already hardened into crusts.
Just looking at the number of flies buzzing around made it difficult to breathe.
Thump-
In that instant, I felt a presence behind me and spun around in alarm.
Han Hye-ri came into view.
Han Hye-ri, who had been finishing off zombies, looked at me with a startled expression.
“What, what is it?”
“Didn’t you just hear something?”
“Huh?”
“Didn’t you hear a strange sound near you?”
“What kind of sound?”
“The sound of a palm hitting the ground.”
Han Hye-ri glanced around, then shrugged as she spoke.
“It’s probably just the corpses. Since we keep stabbing them, one of them must have shifted its body…”
“Shh.”
I gestured for Han Hye-ri to be quiet and sharpened all my senses.
Swish- Swish-
I heard it.
As I turned my gaze toward the source of the sound, I spotted something beneath the corpses, its fingers twitching.
Without any hesitation, I hurled my curved sword at it.
Thud!
“Keeeeeeek!!”
Was it because of the zombie corpse piled on top of it?
Though I aimed precisely for the back of its head, my curved sword lodged into its shoulder blade instead.
The Mutant Zombie then crawled frantically across the ground in panic.
Its forearms were thick—easily twice as muscular as a normal human’s.
Below its waist, instead of two legs, it had something resembling a tail.
It was a Creeper.
Rat-a-tat-tat-! Rat-a-tat-tat-!
In that instant, the Creepers hiding among the Zombies began revealing themselves all at once.
These creatures… had been waiting for us to approach while using corpses as blankets to conceal themselves.
Creepers that knew how to use the surrounding terrain and objects to their advantage.
Like a school of live fish suddenly leaping from a calm lake, they began lunging from between the corpses.
“Eek!”
Han Hye-ri flinched and hunched her shoulders.
They looked disgustingly grotesque, and above all, the Creepers… moved with an absurdly fast crawling speed.
The way they crawled resembled a great white shark gliding through water.
“Watch your ankles, watch your ankles!”
Park Youngsu panicked at the Creeper approaching in an instant, then instinctively gripped the pistol holstered at his side.
Seeing that, I grabbed my twin swords and shouted.
“No guns! Use the crossbow…!”
Bang!!!
But Park Youngsu’s finger was faster.
Gunshots echoing in all directions.
Rat-a-tat-tat- Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat-
Simultaneously, musty cement dust fell from the ceiling, and the agitated Zombies began moving to the second floor in unison.
Endless waves of Zombies pouring up the stairs to the third floor.
Where on earth had so many Zombies been hiding?
‘Could they have intentionally left the first floor empty?’
Had they left it open so prey would let their guard down and enter?
That couldn’t be.
No matter how much Creepers could utilize surrounding terrain, they didn’t possess that level of intelligence.
To devise such a plan….
‘The Joker.’
The Joker and Creepers that appear in the twelfth episode.
Unlike other Mutants that had already grown to the fourth stage or enhanced Mutant Zombies, the Joker and Creepers should still be in an ungrown state since this is their first appearance.
But if there were an intelligent Mutant Zombie….
‘An enhanced Joker.’
While not natural, an enhanced Joker could even speak human language.
Moreover, with just a single enhancement, it would gain abilities roughly comparable to a fifth-stage Mutant.
That was the characteristic of the Creepers and Jokers appearing in the twelfth episode.
“Everyone, grab your weapons!!”
I gripped my twin swords and stepped forward as the vanguard.
I swung my twin swords at the Creepers crawling like insects.
Slash!!
[You have eliminated a Creeper.]
[100 Points awarded.]
Those that haven’t fully matured are only slightly stronger than ordinary Zombies.
I just need to focus.
If I focus, I can definitely hold them back.
“I’ll handle the Zombies, so Shooters aim for the Creepers!”
Twang! Twang! Twang! Twang!
The Shooters simultaneously shouldered their crossbows and began firing bolts.
The bolts pierced precisely through the Creepers’ brows.
With their support, I blocked the Zombies descending the stairs.
Facing the Creepers with dual swords, I couldn’t find the right stance.
Dealing with enemies approaching at my feet using a sword was proving far more troublesome than expected.
With the Shooters’ support, I could hold them off much more easily….
Whoosh! Thud!
In that instant, I saw something descending along the third-floor railing move past me toward the rear.
I spun my head around in alarm.
“Kyahahahahaha!!”
“Aaaah!! Get it off! Get this thing off me!”
A Joker clung to Kang Haneul’s head, relentlessly attacking his face.
Kang Haneul thrashed about, and the Joker’s weight threw off his balance.
The children trying to help stood frozen, unable to act.
Do Sohee attempted to deal with the Joker, but whenever she swung her curved blade, the Joker shifted direction.
She nearly struck Kang Haneul’s head in the process.
Twang!
At that moment, a single bolt flew through and pierced the Joker’s temple.
I turned to see Hong Yeonhui replacing her metal magazine as she shouted.
“Snap out of it, all of you!”
The students came to their senses at Hong Yeonhui’s sharp command.
Kim Suhan and Han Hye-ri, the first to regain focus, cried out.
“Use crossbows against Creepers!”
“Shake off Jokers with your hands when they attach!”
Kang Haneul whimpered in pain, his hands covering his face.
Do Sohee moved to treat him, and the other students formed a protective circle around the two until her treatment was complete.
Crash!!
Following that, something burst through the main entrance of the L Tower.
It was Kim Hanna.
I’d asked her to guard the outside in case Zombies from the mixed-use complex came running, but she must have heard the gunfire and rushed over.
Kim Hanna quickly assessed the situation, then let out a roar toward the third floor.
“Grooooaaahhh!!”
Her Subordinates following behind her immediately began ascending the stairs.
The staircase structure was maze-like.
But with so many Subordinates, they naturally utilized all available staircases.
“Let’s go up too!”
As I shouted while cutting through the zombies, my companions began advancing as well.
Hong Yeonhui, who was following behind, spoke while examining the fallen Creepers.
“Everyone, make sure to check the Creeper corpses carefully!”
“Got it! Confirmation kills!”
“I mean confirmation kills, but if you see anything shiny, let me know!”
“Shiny things?”
“Yes! There might be items related to the research facility!”
Hong Yeonhui was right.
If I’ve brought over the settings from No Way Home as is, there are three ways to obtain traces of the research facility.
Either eliminate all the mutants in the designated location, get lucky and find traces on a mutant’s corpse, or find them somewhere in the designated area.
Finding traces on a mutant’s corpse is extremely rare luck, but there’s no law saying we can’t have that kind of fortune, right?
Crunch!
At that moment, a zombie bit into my forearm and began twisting violently.
Thanks to my forearm guard, there was no damage, but it became difficult to swing my twin swords.
“Tch!”
I crushed the head of the zombie biting my forearm against the stair railing and moved the twin swords I was holding into my inventory.
Dealing with zombies on the narrow stairs with twin swords was incredibly inconvenient.
I needed to increase my speed.
“Balhwa.”
Ding—!
[Balhwa Lv.3: Strength, agility, and stamina increase twofold for 10 minutes, and movement speed increases by 1.5 times.]
-Cooldown: 20 minutes.
Shhhhh—!
The muscles throughout my body swelled, and a scorching heat spread across my entire frame.
With both fists clenched, I began smashing their faces.
Crack!!! Smash!! Crunch—! Boom!!
The zombies’ faces crumpled like soft tofu.
Ding—!
-The gloves’ ‘Blood Battle’ effect activates!
From now on, every punch I throw applies multi-hit damage.
Crunch!! Crunch!! Crack— Bang!!
It was as easy as poking through styrofoam with my finger.
In tight spaces like this, crushing with my fists was far more satisfying than swinging a blade.
As the building was so large, the number of zombies rushing at me began increasing steadily.
But it didn’t matter.
As long as there were only ordinary zombies, there was nothing that could threaten me.
When I reached the third floor, a spacious area came into view again.
I opened my inventory and gripped my curved sword in hand.
Whoosh— Slash!!
Zombie heads sliced clean through the air.
I continued forward, leaving behind a fountain of blood spraying in my wake.
With each step, more zombie heads fell away in an instant.
The group that had climbed to the third floor after dealing with the Creeper stood frozen, mouths agape.
“Wow… what the hell.”
“Insane, that’s crazy fast.”
“I can’t even see his arms.”
The students who had arrived first watched in a daze as I slaughtered the zombies before me.
“Move! Now!!”
There were still plenty of Creepers trying to climb from the second floor to the third.
Hong Yeonhui, realizing she had no bolts left, called out to Park Sangha ahead of her.
“Sangha! Grenade!”
“Here?!”
“Now!”
As Park Sangha handed her the grenade, Hong Yeonhui pulled the pin without hesitation and threw it down to the second floor.
Park Sangil and Elder Chulmin, who had been providing covering fire, widened their eyes and threw themselves toward the third floor.
“Get down!”
The adults shielded the students in their arms as they dove.
Boom!!!!
The building shook with the deafening explosion, and all the shop windows in the vicinity shattered.
Ringing in my ears and a hazy mind.
Park Sangil shook his head vigorously, pushed his upper body up, and shouldered his crossbow again, looking down at the second floor.
Part of the staircase connecting the second and third floors had collapsed, preventing the Creepers from climbing up.
“Go, go now!”
Park Sangil forcibly helped the fallen group to their feet, urging them to hurry.

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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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