Surviving the Apocalypse as an All-Time Best Overpowered Necromancer - Chapter 72

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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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Chapter 72
72. A New Weapon (2)
“It seems the owner of this weapon is you, Seo Hwa-rin.”
“What?”
Startled by the sudden remark, Seo Hwa-rin’s gaze naturally drifted toward the blade.
A sword crafted by Lee Gang-hyuk, made for her alone.
Though fashioned from bone like bone armor, she had grown accustomed to it during her time with Lee Gang-hyuk and no longer felt any revulsion toward it.
Still, hesitant to reach for it before he offered it, she simply stared at him with a bewildered expression.
“Please, take it.”
“Oh—th-thank you.”
As Seo Hwa-rin accepted the blade and bowed her head in gratitude, Lee Gang-hyuk laughed awkwardly, as if embarrassed.
“My skill level isn’t great right now, so the performance has fallen somewhat short, but I’ll craft you something even better once I improve.”
“It’s fine. This is more than enough for me.”
At his words, Seo Hwa-rin flushed and smiled.
She looked genuinely satisfied.
But as the creator, Lee Gang-hyuk felt it inadequate that he hadn’t fully captured the Core’s power within it.
Still, he told himself that as his level rose, he would eventually be able to imbue it completely, and smiled in return.
“You’ll know the performance once you test it, but that blade… it has excellent synergy with Burst Burn. So I’m counting on you to continue serving as our team’s dealer.”
“Yes!”
“Well then, we’ve achieved our objective. Shall we head back? I hate to say this, but…”
Lee Gang-hyuk paused mid-sentence and glanced toward Seo A-rin.
Watching her stand guard in the distance, he sighed and continued with a bitter expression.
“We should prepare for the scenario where he fails.”
“…Understood. I’ll go call A-rin.”
Seo Hwa-rin seemed to agree with his assessment as well, smiling wryly before stepping away.
‘He’d better succeed…’
Left alone for a moment, Lee Gang-hyuk gazed at the railroad stretching northward and exhaled once more.
If someone asked whether he trusted The Man, he would still say no.
‘But given how things are, I have to trust him. A-rin vouched for him, after all.’
It was his trust in Seo A-rin, not The Man himself, that had led him to release him.
Realizing it was absurd to second-guess this decision, Lee Gang-hyuk calmed himself with a three-step miracle of logic: just trust The Man for now. But then both Seo Hwa-rin and Seo A-rin approached him.
“Shall we head out then? We should arrive before sunset today, fortunately.”
Soon after collecting his thoughts, Lee Gang-hyuk smiled as if nothing was amiss and pointed at the railroad, whereupon Seo A-rin suddenly asked a question.
“Are you going to leave all these corpses here? We could make Bone Spheres and use them later, which would be practical…”
At her words, Lee Gang-hyuk felt as if struck on the back of the head.
It was true…
Even with the Zombies and Skeletons around, one of his primary attacks involved using Tactical Processing to reshape Bone Spheres and turn the tide of battle in his favor.
He needed many Bone Spheres for that purpose…
Yet he was about to leave all these materials scattered about and head back.
Was it because of The Man that his thinking had grown muddled?
‘No. That’s just an excuse. This is my own fault for being careless.’
Perhaps it was because these two were by his side that he had unconsciously felt a sense of security.
“…”
Having momentarily lost his words at Seo A-rin’s suggestion, Lee Gang-hyuk soon smiled and nodded.
“You’re right about that. Shall we ride carts back to the Hideout?”
“Yes!”
Seo A-rin broke into a broad grin at his words.
It seemed she had wanted to ride in a cart all along.
Lee Gang-hyuk, chiding himself for his complacency, released Corpse Control over the Zombie at the sight of Seo A-rin’s innocent smile, and his shoulders lifted slightly.
Then he activated Tactical Processing while keeping them bound.
Immediately after…
He crafted Bone Spheres from the corpses around them and fashioned three Carts.
“Corpse Control!”
He then retamed the Zombie whose control had been released and gestured toward the Carts.
“Please board. It’ll be slower than walking, but I’ll get you to the Hideout comfortably.”
“Awesome!”
As the delighted Seo A-rin nimbly climbed into a Cart, Seo Hwa-rin stood beside Lee Gang-hyuk and whispered softly.
“Please understand. The more worried she is, the more she tends to laugh. I think she’s anxious about him.”
“Well, that’s something I can understand.”
He was the kind of person who could even care for Zombies.
Of course…
One day her feelings might cause problems, so he should have a serious conversation with her about it.
For now, since it remained manageable, Lee Gang-hyuk smiled and extended his hand.
“In any case, board. We need to get back before it gets dark.”
“…Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it. Then shall we depart? Let’s go!”
As Seo Hwa-rin boarded a Cart under Lee Gang-hyuk’s escort and offered her thanks again, he shrugged and climbed into another Cart, issuing his command.
At the same time…
The Zombie and Skeleton clung to the Carts and began pushing, allowing the three of them to return to the Hideout comfortably.
* * *
Four days had passed since their visit to Banghak Station.
During that time, the three had reinforced the building’s defenses in preparation for any contingency.
Lee Gang-hyuk had worried that Seo A-rin might feel disappointed at preparing for The Man’s failure, but instead she had broached the subject first.
Because of that, they were able to proceed with the work smoothly.
And so…
After installing Barricades on the first-floor lobby and emergency exits, Lee Gang-hyuk turned to regard Seo Hwa-rin with a satisfied expression.
“At this point, even if Zombies come, they shouldn’t make it upstairs.”
“You’ve worked hard.”
If a horde of Zombies came down, as long as they didn’t draw its aggression, they would pass by unimpeded.
Blocking the entrance alone should be sufficient, but the real concern was how the Mutant Zombies mixed among them would behave.
Fortunately, according to The Man, who had safely reached Yangju City Hall, there weren’t as many Mutant Zombies as he’d feared.
But since the survivors in the Shelter at Yangju City Hall had fled in different directions, the Zombies had scattered as well, so it was still too early to breathe easy.
“By the way, have we heard anything from the Jungnang-gu Alliance yet?”
As they headed up to the twenty-third floor after finishing the work, Seo Hwa-rin asked. Her inner concern was evident—they hadn’t heard from them since clearing Banghak Station.
“No, not yet. It looks like they’ll contact us after they finish organizing everything.”
Though he answered her question, the truth was he had no way of knowing how the situation was developing, which was frustrating.
And he couldn’t exactly demand a status report from Park Mu-jin either.
Believing that contact would come eventually, Lee Gang-hyuk set aside his frustration and climbed eagerly to the twenty-third floor.
Then…
[Search results: no Zombies seem to have headed in your direction. That said, the area is large, so I may have missed some. It would be wise to remain prepared. I’ll gather the scattered Zombies and try to lure them toward Gangwon Province.]
A note arrived from The Man, who had gone to check on the Zombie horde at Yangju City Hall.
Two days ago, he’d said he was arriving at Yangju City Hall and would scout the area just in case…
Yet he’d finished the search in that short time.
‘His Concealment ability really is excellent.’
If Lee Gang-hyuk had searched that vast place, it would have taken several days.
‘Of course, that’s assuming what he says is true.’
Did he really complete the search? Were there truly no Zombies heading this way?
Even as The Man continued sending notes to update him, Lee Gang-hyuk felt oddly suspicious.
Having decided to trust him just days ago, he found his doubts creeping back in, and his brow furrowed without his noticing.
“Hm.”
“Is something wrong?”
Startled by his sudden reaction, Seo Hwa-rin asked, and Lee Gang-hyuk explained the situation.
“The search is complete, and he says he’s gathering the scattered Zombies to lure them toward Gangwon Province.”
“Oh, already? I didn’t expect it to finish this quickly. Concealment-type abilities really are something else. That said… it seems you still don’t quite trust him.”
“It’s just that I don’t trust people easily, so it’s taking me some time to adjust.”
At her follow-up, Lee Gang-hyuk scratched the back of his head sheepishly, and Seo Hwa-rin chuckled softly.
“You were the same way when we first met.”
“Ha ha…”
Indeed, back then he had been so unable to fully trust the two of them that he’d even refused their invitation to eat together.
Perhaps that’s why…
The memory surfaced, and at a loss for words, Lee Gang-hyuk attempted to mask it with laughter, but Seo Hwa-rin smiled.
“Still, I’m satisfied just knowing you trust us now. Of course, I’m not trying to force you to trust him either! That’s a decision you have to make.”
Lee Gang-hyuk was the leader of the team.
And the team members followed their leader’s will.
Heartened by her unwavering resolve, Lee Gang-hyuk smiled, and Seo A-rin, who had been tending the garden on the rooftop, hurried downstairs.
“Why are you just now coming up? Hurry!”
“Hm?”
“!!”
Her voice was urgent.
Had something happened?
Could it be Zombies that The Man had missed?
Startled by the sudden summons, the two hurried after Seo A-rin to the adjacent building.
‘Why this building? If we were checking for Zombies, we’d go to the rooftop.’
In that moment of confusion, Lee Gang-hyuk and Seo Hwa-rin exchanged glances, and Seo A-rin opened the door to the vinyl greenhouse with a smile.
“Look at this. It’s our first Harvest!”
“First Harvest?”
“Hm?”
At those words, the two’s gazes naturally turned inward to the greenhouse, and they soon caught sight of plump Cherry Tomatoes, their eyes widening in astonishment.
“My goodness…”
They were shocked.
To be honest, since Lee Gang-hyuk had left the field to Seo A-rin, he hadn’t checked on it once.
Perhaps he occasionally climbed to the rooftop to observe the surroundings and confirmed the field he’d made there, but that was all.
He had never once checked the field and greenhouse made on the adjacent building…
Yet the Cherry Tomatoes had grown so abundantly.
“How did this happen?”
At Lee Gang-hyuk’s question, Seo A-rin wore a proud expression.
“It’s because I managed it consistently! Come on, you two—don’t just stand there gawking. Come over and try some.”
Seo A-rin said this while using Water Serpents to pluck Cherry Tomatoes and hand them over.
Then it happened.
A notification appeared before Lee Gang-hyuk’s eyes.
[Achievement Unlocked!]
[First Harvest.]
– Harvest a crop cultivated using a Farming category skill!
[Additional experience will be awarded for achievement completion.]
[Proficiency in the Farming category has increased.]
[Congratulations. Your Farming level has risen.]
[The ‘Harvest’ skill is now unlocked.]
– Crops harvested by an entity with this skill will maintain freshness for an extended period.
‘Jackpot.’
Even though the Zombies hadn’t touched the Cherry Tomatoes, the achievement was unlocked and experience gained simply from her harvesting them.
Moreover, his Farming level had risen, unlocking a new skill.
Harvest.
The ability to maintain freshness for extended periods—in a situation where they couldn’t use refrigeration!
“Wow…”
Lee Gang-hyuk’s jaw dropped in surprise, and misinterpreting his reaction, Seo A-rin laughed and popped a freshly plucked Cherry Tomato into his mouth.
“Gasp.”
Startled by the sudden Cherry Tomato entering his mouth, Lee Gang-hyuk hastily closed his lips.
As the refreshing sweetness spread across his palate, he looked at Seo A-rin with an expression of wonder.
“How is it? Delicious, right? Honestly, I didn’t expect it to grow this fast. Usually it takes about a month or two, so isn’t this amazing?”
As Seo A-rin’s eyes met his, she surveyed the greenhouse with an expression of fascination and bewilderment.
‘Now that I think about it…’
Lee Gang-hyuk realized he had never explained the Farming skill to these two, and he carefully opened his mouth.
“It’s probably because of a skill I have.”
“A skill?”
“A skill?”
Perhaps because they hadn’t anticipated such an explanation…
The two asked in unison, and Lee Gang-hyuk, embarrassed, scratched his cheek as he answered.
“To be precise, it’s a skill the Zombie learned—it promotes growth and increases harvest yield. It seems that’s the reason.”
“So that’s why you had the Zombies tend the field…”
“Y-you had such a skill?”
“Yes, well… I wasn’t trying to hide it, but I just… missed the chance to mention it until now.”
As Lee Gang-hyuk made his excuses, Seo Hwa-rin seemed to understand the situation immediately and smiled wryly.
“…That was when you didn’t trust us yet.”
“Ah! So that’s why you made the field on the rooftop. Because of the Farming skill! Come to think of it, that skill is like our savior, isn’t it? If you didn’t have it, you wouldn’t have made the field!”
Meanwhile, Seo A-rin’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she spoke.
“Didn’t you say something similar before?”
At that, Lee Gang-hyuk tilted his head in confusion, and Seo A-rin laughed and shrugged.
“Back then I just thought you’d made a field!”
Listening to her cheerful laughter, Lee Gang-hyuk shook his head as if giving up, but then a wide open plot nearby caught his eye, and he stroked his chin thoughtfully.

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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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