Surviving the Apocalypse as an All-Time Best Overpowered Necromancer - Chapter 12

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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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Episode 12
12. Seo Hwarin and Seo Arin (1)
“When the Auxiliary Battery runs out, just let me know. I’ll swap it for another one. And since there’s no proper food right now, you’ll have to make do with Ramen for meals for a while…….”
Lee Ganghyeok was still speaking when Seo Hwarin, flustered by the pile of necessities he’d brought, cut in with a question.
“Are you… are you giving all of this to us?”
Giving?
Hardly.
“To be precise, I’m lending it to you.”
He was putting them in his debt.
So that when he made his judgment about the two of them, he could recruit them more smoothly.
“……Thank you.”
Whether he intended it or not, these were things they needed to survive right now, so Seo Hwarin—who had been rigid until then—bowed her head in gratitude.
‘Hm. Did she get scolded?’
Seeing Seo Arin smile contentedly from behind, Lee Ganghyeok realized she must have nagged her sister while he was away.
‘So she does listen to her younger sister.’
Well, it wasn’t bad for him.
Lee Ganghyeok nodded and asked in turn.
“Anyway, what happened to you both?”
“That is…….”
At his question, Seo Hwarin’s expression hardened—not out of unwillingness to speak, but because painful memories were surfacing.
Perhaps because of that.
Seo Arin, seeing her expression, quickly raised her hand.
“I’ll explain. Have you ever heard of the Shelter on the other side of the mountain?”
Lee Ganghyeok shook his head at Seo Arin’s question, which seemed to be necessary context before her explanation.
“On the other side of the mountain? No, I haven’t. I was so focused on surviving alone that I never paid attention to shelters.”
“I see. We came from there. Someone deliberately drove a group of Zombies to attack the Shelter……. We managed to escape safely, but we couldn’t shake them off.”
“Hm.”
Deliberately drove Zombies.
The moment he heard that, the horde of Zombies he’d encountered at the marketplace flashed through his mind.
‘It’s true—that’s the direction they were heading.’
The direction the Zombie horde was moving was toward where he’d found the two women.
That meant it wasn’t simply that aggro had been drawn, as Seo Arin said—someone had lured nearby Zombies to attack the Shelter.
“Was there someone at the Shelter who might have held a grudge?”
“I’m not sure. But it seems like someone who was either expelled or rejected.”
“That’s not uncommon. What happened to the others?”
At his follow-up question, Seo Arin’s expression darkened just like her sister’s.
Still, it seemed she felt obliged to answer, and she sighed before speaking.
“It happened in the middle of the night……. Everyone scattered when the Zombies chased them.”
If a horde of Zombies had descended on them in pitch darkness with no light, it would certainly have been terrifying.
“I see. Well, you must be exhausted. Get some rest. As I mentioned, I’ll keep Zombies on certain floors, but they won’t enter the residence, so don’t worry.”
He’d asked most of what he wanted to know.
Moreover, as the tension eased, fatigue was plainly visible on both their faces.
Lee Ganghyeok nodded, thinking it best to let them rest for now, and Seo Arin asked cautiously.
“Then, if we want to go outside, what should we do?”
“In your leg’s current state, it’ll be difficult to move around, won’t it? Wouldn’t it be better to rest at home until it’s fully healed?”
“That’s… true, but…….”
Seo Arin hesitated at his counter-question.
But soon, as if she felt she had to say it, she spoke carefully.
“……It feels like being stuck inside all the time would be suffocating.”
To Lee Ganghyeok’s ear, what followed sounded less like genuine stifling and more like: Are you trying to confine us here? I need to confirm that you’re not.
‘She’d probably feel that way for sure.’
Even though he’d helped them, if he told them to stay in their room, they’d grow suspicious.
“Hm, in that case, I won’t restrict you between 10 AM and 5 PM. But you must bring a Zombie with you when you leave, and absolutely do not go below the 16th Floor. The Control Authority will be released. And as I mentioned before, you’re free to leave whenever you wish. Does that answer suffice?”
“Yes! That’s more than enough. Thank you so much!”
Confirmed by his answer that he wasn’t confining them, Seo Arin beamed and expressed her gratitude.
Behind her, Seo Hwarin bowed her head as well.
Noting that if he needed to recruit them later, he should target the younger sister first, Lee Ganghyeok returned to his quarters.
* * *
The next day.
Upon waking, Lee Ganghyeok first checked the number of tamed Zombies.
Fortunately, none had disappeared.
‘They seem to have behaved themselves.’
Without incident despite his worry that they might reveal their true nature and attack during the night, he felt relieved and looked out the window.
‘Hm, it’d be better to skip streaming today.’
If the sun were shining, it would be fine, but on a gloomy day like this, streaming would drain a large-capacity Auxiliary Battery quickly.
Of course, he could generate power using the Vehicle in the Lobby, but he only had one, and fuel was scarce, so he had to conserve it for now.
‘Besides, if I go down to the Lobby now, the Control Authority over the Zombies on the 23rd Floor will be released……. Before it rains, I need to till the field properly.’
Since the soil still had a long way to go before recovering fertility, he decided to till the field to ensure the fertilizer he’d spread the previous day mixed properly.
And so…….
While heading to the Rooftop with Zombies carrying Bone Hoes.
Arriving at the floor where the two women were staying, Lee Ganghyeok nodded reassuringly upon seeing the firmly closed door.
“Keep a good watch.”
“Grraaahhh…….”
The Zombies positioned on the 23rd Floor growled in unison at what sounded like a casual order.
Realizing they did communicate clearly, Lee Ganghyeok smiled and headed up to the Rooftop.
Whether it had rained during the night or dew had formed from the lowered temperature, the ground was much more moist than the day before.
As a result, much of the fertilizer had already dissolved.
“Good.”
Satisfied, Lee Ganghyeok nodded and looked back at the Zombies holding Bone Hoes.
“What are you doing? Let’s get started. We need to till before the rain comes. You don’t want to work while getting rained on, do you?”
“……Grraahhh…….”
“Gruuaaack.”
He’d given the order, but the Zombies didn’t move.
As if they didn’t know what or how to do it.
Seeing them standing blankly with Bone Hoes in hand, Lee Ganghyeok sighed and picked one up himself to demonstrate.
Thwack!
Scrape.
Thwack!
“Like this, see? Now, try it.”
“Grrrraahhh…….”
Thwack.
Scrape.
Once Lee Ganghyeok demonstrated, the Zombies finally swung their hoes and began tilling.
Though, to be precise, it was little more than a pantomime.
It seemed their rotted muscles lacked the strength.
These same creatures had shown full vigor when lunging at people or moving soil, but suddenly they were like this.
“Haa, what do I do.”
As his plan to exploit the Zombies fell apart, a sigh escaped unbidden.
But what could he do?
For the future, he had no choice but to till the field himself.
“Ugh, what can I do. I’ll have to do it myself.”
The moment Lee Ganghyeok approached the field, eager to take over, countless notifications flooded his vision.
[Zombie ‘Farmer’ has acquired the skill ‘Field Tilling’. The ‘Farming’ category is activated for this individual.]
– You can freely assign Farming category skills to Zombies.
– Skills registered in the category will not be erased even if the individual dies.
[Achievement Unlocked!]
[Farmer Zombie]
– Teach a tamed Zombie Farming!
[Bonus experience granted for achievement.]
[Congratulations. Your Level has increased. All physical abilities rise by 1.]
“What the hell?”
In that instant, Lee Ganghyeok’s eyes widened.
The Zombie learned a Farming skill?
And all Zombies can share it?
Startled, Lee Ganghyeok turned to look for the Zombie that had learned the skill.
He identified it quickly.
The other Zombies still couldn’t till the field properly, but one—just one—was doing it correctly.
“So it was you, ‘Farmer’. Well, all of them are nameless, but……. From now on, I’ll call you ‘Farmer’. The first Zombie to learn Farming.”
“Grraahhh…….”
[Do you truly wish to name this Zombie?]
Why ask again? I just did.
“Yes.”
Though it puzzled him, there seemed to be something to naming a Zombie, so Lee Ganghyeok smiled and nodded.
But…….
[Zombie ‘Farmer’]
– This Zombie will disappear if it dies.
There was nothing special about it.
Just… a name appeared above the Zombie.
‘Was it just to tell them apart? Pointless?’
He could tell them apart from their appearance anyway.
Who was who.
There was no real need to distinguish between them.
Moreover, Farmer’s description was strange.
The same applied to all Zombies.
They disappear when they die.
So why would the system ask so politely whether to name this one and then explain it so helpfully?
‘This is definitely 100% significant.’
Convinced, Lee Ganghyeok named all his tamed Zombies.
At the same time, he opened the Farming category that Farmer had activated and assigned the Farming skill to the Zombies, who began tilling immediately.
Of course…….
The Zombies he’d left on the 23rd Floor for surveillance were excluded.
He’d name them later when he met the two women, and while he was tilling the field.
“……A Zombie tilling a field……? That’s fascinating.”
“Yes. It turned out to be possible.”
At the sound that suddenly reached his ears, Lee Ganghyeok replied without turning around.
He already knew through his surveillance Zombies that the two women were coming up.
Understanding that he could track their location through the Zombies, Seo Hwarin nodded and spoke.
“Is it alright to make a field on the Rooftop?”
Caught off guard by a question he hadn’t expected, Lee Ganghyeok scratched his cheek awkwardly while explaining.
“Oh! A rooftop garden was originally planned, but people objected because they worried insects would swarm, so the plan fell through. I checked into it beforehand, so there’s no issue.”
“I see. It’s still remarkable. We made a field too, but doing it alone…….”
“You’re not truly alone—you never were.”
He gestured toward the Zombies busily tilling and smiled.
Somehow, after naming them, he felt quite attached.
Perhaps because of that.
A smile bloomed on Lee Ganghyeok’s face as he indicated the Zombies, and Seo Hwarin’s brow furrowed instantly.
She must have thought him strange.
Meanwhile, Seo Arin’s eyes sparkled with intrigue at his words, and she soon raised her hand as if she had something to say.
“Yes? Go ahead.”
It seemed to be a habit from last time too.
Tilting his head in thought, Seo Arin asked brightly.
“Have you eaten yet?”
“I had breakfast. What about you two?”
“We had breakfast too! But it’s almost lunchtime now……. If you don’t mind, would you like to eat with us?”
Eat together?
Why invite unnecessary complications?
‘Are they trying to lower my guard with food?’
And then attack, taking everything?
‘……That might be jumping ahead, but they definitely want something. I just don’t know what.’
Whether their offer was genuine kindness or calculated interest, Lee Ganghyeok judged it wise to maintain distance for now. He declined with a smile, scratching the back of his head.
“Hm, I ate breakfast late. You two go ahead and eat. Oh! If you need anything to go with the Ramen, I’ll bring some things up. Don’t expect kimchi though.”
“Oh…….”
Seo Arin’s expression fell, as if she hadn’t expected him to refuse.
Shortly after, Seo Hwarin, observing her sister’s expression, asked him in return.
“Is it because you still don’t trust us?”
“That’s not entirely without reason……. It’s just that I’m naturally cautious. I hope you understand.”
“I see. Then we’ll head down.”
“Yes.”
Offering that explanation, Seo Hwarin nodded and began descending without pressing further.
But it was only momentary.
Seo Hwarin, supporting Seo Arin down the stairs, suddenly stopped. Turning back with an expressionless face, she left Seo Arin tilting her head in confusion.
“Older sister?”
“Hm? It’s nothing. Let’s go.”
She smiled lightly as if it were no big deal and resumed walking.

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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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