Surviving the Apocalypse as an All-Time Best Overpowered Necromancer - Chapter 14

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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 14
14. Seo Hwa-rin and Seo A-rin (3)
“We should have enough materials. Now we need tools though…….”
Seo Hwa-rin, speaking those words, felt along her waist.
It was a habitual gesture, and when her fingers found nothing, her face fell and she let out a small, defeated sigh.
She must have left them at the Shelter.
“I have equipment I used to own. I can lend it to you.”
“……Thank you.”
At those words, Seo Hwa-rin expressed her gratitude.
Honestly…….
Her home was cluttered with hammers, saws, and equipment like that.
When the disaster struck, she’d realized the difference between having such tools and not having them was substantial, so she’d purchased several of them in advance.
‘Well, I could craft bone tools and use those, but it would feel awkward for two people unfamiliar with them to use. It’s wasteful, but I should lend them proper tools.’
Wasteful as it was, if their craftsmanship improved, wouldn’t there come a day when they could create even better equipment than this?
With that thought, she gathered all the equipment she’d been saving and handed it over to Seo Hwa-rin.
And at the same time…….
Seo Hwa-rin, who had worn a disappointed expression because these weren’t the tools she’d been using, thought better of it out of courtesy and smiled her thanks—only to have her eyes widen as she received the equipment.
“What? An American Titanium Hammer! A Japanese Professional Saw! Even a Premium Tool Set……. How could you possibly…….”
“As I said, I’m quite cautious by nature. That’s why I bought these in preparation for situations like this. They’re expensive, but the performance is excellent.”
Lee Gang-hyeok was startled that she could identify the brands and names of the equipment so readily, and as he looked at her with surprise, Seo Hwa-rin, scrutinizing the tools with gleaming eyes, asked in return.
“Are you…really lending us these?”
“Yes. I purchased them purely for situations like this, so please use them comfortably.”
“Yes!”
At his words, her expression brightened considerably.
The change was so dramatic—so unlike the woman who’d eyed him with extreme wariness when they first met—that Lee Gang-hyeok scratched his cheek, and Seo A-rin approached him with a smile and spoke.
“Before the disaster, she always smiled like that……. Thank you so much.”
Seo A-rin’s smiling face was tinged with bitterness, and feeling oddly embarrassed, Lee Gang-hyeok hurried to change the subject, gesturing toward Seo A-rin’s injured leg.
“There’s nothing to thank me for. But how is your leg?”
“There’s still some pain, but thanks to the warm compress, it’s improved a lot. At this rate, tomorrow or the day after? I think it will recover completely by then.”
“That’s a relief.”
Lee Gang-hyeok nodded, relieved that the injury didn’t seem as serious as he’d feared, and then Seo A-rin, as if a thought had suddenly occurred to her, broke into a broad smile and continued.
“Ah! You said your name was Gang-hyeok, right? My sister told me. I’m Seo A-rin. My sister probably already told you, but I wanted to introduce myself directly. After all, you saved my life.”
“Lee Gang-hyeok. I was simply fortunate. I happened to be on the Rooftop at the time, checking the surroundings.”
“Now that I think about it, we were able to survive because of the garden you created on the Rooftop.”
They survived by being on the Rooftop.
Hearing Lee Gang-hyeok’s words, Seo A-rin thought they had been fortunate, but then seemed to make a decision, steadied her breath, and spoke.
“I’m a Water Awakener, so I’m experienced with garden maintenance. I was in charge of it at the Shelter. That’s why I’m asking—would it be alright if I managed the garden you created? I want to repay you somehow.”
“The garden?”
At the sudden proposal, Lee Gang-hyeok tilted his head in confusion, and Seo A-rin, tapping her chest, answered with great confidence.
“Yes! If you’ll permit it, I’ll do my best to manage it! Please entrust it to me!”
Startled by her bold declaration, Lee Gang-hyeok found himself glancing at Seo Hwa-rin without meaning to.
But she was focused on constructing the leg, a pen tucked behind her ear, wholly absorbed in her work.
The older sister was like that.
The younger sister too.
‘Are both of them people who can’t live without owing debts? Well……. They don’t seem like bad people, so there shouldn’t be any problems.’
Though he’d deliberately put them in his debt for situations like this, the speed of their response surprised him, and watching Seo A-rin’s face radiant with passion, Lee Gang-hyeok nodded.
“Understood. Then I’ll trust you with it.”
“Yes!”
At his agreement, her expression brightened.
She then limped over to Seo Hwa-rin and told her what had just happened, and hearing the news, Seo Hwa-rin smiled widely and offered her thanks.
‘They were worried they’d be thrown out.’
Now he understood their behavior.
He’d driven the point home that he didn’t trust them and even told them they were free to leave anytime.
These two had already lost where they belonged.
The Shelter was destroyed, and no matter how many posts they made looking for their companions, no comments came in reply.
Moreover, winter was coming soon. In this season, two women wandering the streets with nowhere to go was no different from suicide.
That’s why they were offering their labor, desperate to stay here. For them, helping Lee Gang-hyeok meant their survival in this place was guaranteed…….
‘As much as I distrust them, they must be just as anxious. Especially since I’m even controlling Zombies—they’d be even more frightened.’
He understood their position, but that didn’t mean he’d completely trust them either.
Just as they needed him, he needed to exploit them as much as possible.
But he would maintain his integrity as a human being.
If he continued like that, wouldn’t they eventually become true comrades, able to fully trust each other’s backs?
“Then stay here. I have something to do, so I’ll go down to the Lobby for a bit. I’m planning to leave a Zombie on the 15th Floor, so please don’t go below that.”
“Yes!”
“Travel safely!”
As it was about to rain soon, Lee Gang-hyeok was heading to the Lobby to charge the Large Capacity Power Bank, and both women responded quickly to his words.
Watching Seo A-rin wave her hand, he felt as if he were looking at a Golden Retriever.
Was that why?
Seo Hwa-rin, focused on constructing the leg beside him, resembled a Border Collie.
Even their hair colors were similar.
Blonde and black.
Lee Gang-hyeok wondered if that’s why he felt that way looking at their hair colors, shrugged his shoulders, and headed downstairs.
* * *
When Lee Gang-hyeok reached the Lobby, before starting the vehicle, he first examined the situation outside.
Starting the engine without checking would be troublesome if Zombies or other Awakeners suddenly gathered around.
Especially given what he’d heard—that the Shelter where Seo Hwa-rin and Seo A-rin had lived was attacked by a horde of Zombies that someone had brought.
Lee Gang-hyeok surveyed his surroundings as cautiously as possible.
Soon, the Zombies in the street suddenly bared their fangs and walked off in some direction, and he found himself frowning.
It seemed someone had drawn the Zombies’ aggression.
‘Could they be from the same Shelter as those two? Or the person controlling the Zombies?’
He couldn’t tell.
If he’d been on the Rooftop, he could have identified them, but from the first floor with limited sight lines, it was hard to make a judgment.
Because of that?
This time, he decided not to get involved. He might have acted if he’d witnessed the situation directly, but moving without knowing what was happening?
‘I’m not a hero. I can’t save everyone every time. And in movies, the ones who keep playing the hero always die first.’
Recalling the 11th Survival Law once more, Lee Gang-hyeok moved away from the window and sighed.
He retreated from sight preemptively, worried that the person who’d drawn the Zombies’ attention might happen to see him pass by.
After taking refuge inside, Lee Gang-hyeok stroked his chin as if something bothered him before starting the vehicle.
There was no suitable place to store the vehicle, so he’d left it in the Lobby for now.
But precisely because it was such an exposed location, Lee Gang-hyeok felt uneasy, and as he pondered what to do,
“Ah!”
his eyes suddenly gleamed as if he’d realized something.
‘If Seo Hwa-rin has her ability, couldn’t she light up the Underground Parking Garage brightly? And using Electric sparked through the Aqua Barrier that Seo A-rin created as a light source seems possible too……. Hmm.’
An idea had struck him suddenly, and as he drafted a rough Zombie-clearing operation in his mind, assuming the two would help,
Whoosh—!
Boom!
A loud crash echoed from outside.
Startled by the sudden noise, Lee Gang-hyeok crouched low and peered out the window.
“Pistol Punch! Move faster. You damn things!”
At the same time…….
A man wearing a black hat was attacking Zombies and fleeing.
Should he help?
‘No.’
No, this was different.
He wasn’t attacking—he was deliberately agitating the Zombies.
It seemed he was intentionally stimulating them to lure them in.
‘It’s him.’
Lee Gang-hyeok immediately recognized him as the man who’d attacked the Shelter where Seo Hwa-rin and Seo A-rin had lived, and hastily ducked down, afraid their eyes might meet.
Soon after, he barely poked his eyes out and scrutinized the man’s appearance in detail.
‘His height and build are slightly larger than mine, and he has a slightly husky voice. A Combat Awakener.’
The hat pulled down obscured his face, but Lee Gang-hyeok could still discern his height, build, and awakened ability.
Wouldn’t even this much help the two women identify the perpetrator?
‘It’s dangerous today. I should head back up.’
The man continued circling near the building, gathering Zombies.
If he started the vehicle to charge the battery in a situation like this, he might be discovered by the man.
So Lee Gang-hyeok decided not to charge today and hurriedly went back upstairs.
He approached the two women who were making the leg and relayed what he’d seen below.
“A Combat Awakener?”
“A Combat Awakener……. Um…….”
After hearing the explanation, Seo Hwa-rin tilted her head, unable to recall anyone in particular, but Seo A-rin seemed to remember something, and with her eyes closed and fingers gripping her hair, she let out a small groan.
After worrying for several minutes,
just as Lee Gang-hyeok was beginning to worry about Seo A-rin’s hair,
she suddenly cried out loudly.
“Ah! I think I know who he is! About two months ago? Someone came to the Shelter after seeing a recruitment notice, but Su Mok said he was a criminal and absolutely shouldn’t be accepted, so he was expelled.”
“Ah!”
At Seo A-rin’s words, Seo Hwa-rin also seemed to remember, letting out a gasp, and then her brow furrowed as if even remembering him annoyed her.
For Seo Hwa-rin to be this irritated? What kind of crime had he committed?
“Do you happen to remember what crime it was?”
Lee Gang-hyeok asked, curious, and Seo A-rin answered immediately with contempt in her eyes.
“Yes. He committed crimes targeting women. Specifically, Non-awakener women.”
Crimes targeting Non-awaker women.
Certainly…….
The two had every reason to despise and resent him.
“From what I can tell, he’s gathering Zombies right now to attack another Shelter that expelled him, so we should alert the Community.”
If left unchecked, greater damage would occur. It would be better to inform everyone now so they could prepare.
As Lee Gang-hyeok spoke with that thought in mind, Seo Hwa-rin opened her mouth with concern.
“But……. If word gets out like that, couldn’t he identify this location? If he retaliates and attacks…….”
If word about him gathering Zombies reached the Community, the location here could be exposed.
But hearing her words, Lee Gang-hyeok smiled as if there was nothing to worry about.
“Falsifying the location isn’t difficult.”
“Ah.”
At his words, she breathed a sigh of relief, reassured, and Lee Gang-hyeok immediately accessed the Community and posted an account summarizing what had happened to their Shelter and what he’d just witnessed.
Of course…….
The location he’d stated as his observation point was considerably far from the building.
He’d written it based on the number and direction of Zombies he’d seen from the Lobby.
“At this, everyone will be cautious and prepared. Of course……. dealing with a horde of Zombies will be quite difficult for them.”
“……Yes.”
By alerting the Community to the man’s danger, they had done all they could.
What happened afterward would be for each Shelter to handle. There was no need to risk their lives fighting for others.
As both Lee Gang-hyeok and Seo Hwa-rin nodded in agreement, Seo A-rin burst with anger and fumed.
“He’s truly despicable. I hope he just dies!”
It was something Lee Gang-hyeok secretly wished for as well, but based on the man’s movements he’d witnessed, it seemed he wouldn’t die so easily.
Moreover…….
‘A Combat Awakener of all things……. Finding him won’t be easy.’
Unless he had a rare job like his own,
Combat Awakeners made up as high a percentage among Awakeners as Investigators did.
For that reason, identifying the perpetrator wouldn’t be simple.
‘Still, I hope he gets caught somehow.’
Lee Gang-hyeok thought that to himself and gazed in the direction the man had led the Zombies.

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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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