I Became a Game Character in the Apocalypse

Chapter 6 –
As Adam progressed through the middle of the first episode, zombies with advanced
cognitive functions started to appear, and these were called “Resonance Zombies.”
These zombies would open their vocal cords and produce a steady resonance.
They could transmit their sound over long distances, alerting all nearby zombies to the
location of their prey.
It was a form of pressure, using numbers to overwhelm survivors.
Now, in the absence of any Resonance Zombies, this was Adam’s last chance to grow
stronger.
He stepped forward to peel the newspaper off the door and carefully surveyed the hallway.
It was the same scene as yesterday.
With a deep breath, he cleared the shoe rack and cautiously made his way into the hallway.
Five corpses were stacked at the bottom of the stairs.
These were the zombies he had dealt with upon entering yesterday.
The stench from the corpses would give him some time if zombies from the 3rd or 5th floors
showed up.
After collecting his thoughts, Adam made his way to Room 402.
Crreeeak…
Two zombies were wandering inside.
They hadn’t noticed his presence yet, just shaking their heads and muttering eerie sounds.
Adam gripped the metal pipe tightly and swung it toward the glass at the top of the door.
Clang!!
Grrraaaaah!!
The startled zombies immediately started growling and charging at the door.
Zombies from other rooms began to do the same, responding to the noise.
“Stay calm,” Adam muttered to himself. “Just like yesterday.”
He used the monkey wrench in his left hand to stab the zombies’ eyes and opened the door,
stepping inside and swinging the metal pipe.
• Zombies Killed: 12/20
The zombies that had once seemed so terrifying now felt like nothing.
Was his body adapting to the beating?
Or had he just gained some confidence?
Though his hands still shook, he no longer felt the confusion or hesitation that drained him
before.
Starting with Room 402, he cleared out zombies in Rooms 403, 404, and 405.
By the time he reached Room 406, he noticed a faint yellow light flickering in the upper right
corner of his field of vision.
• Zombies Killed: 20/20 (Complete)
• Retrieve your points and receive your next directive.
• Remaining Points: 2
If this was the same as Last Ark’s setting, he should have received 2 points for every 10
zombies killed.
But right now, the points had been halved, and only 1 point was given for every 10 zombies.
Why?
Had the difficulty increased, reducing the points rewarded?
“Is this some kind of joke…?”
Adam grumbled to himself. Surviving in the early stages was already hard enough, and now
his stats were being halved too.
He sank into thought. Where should he invest his points?
The most important stats right now were definitely Strength and Endurance.
It was better to increase his strength first.
Every time he swung the metal pipe or carried something heavy, he had felt the limits of his
muscles.
Without hesitation, Adam invested all 2 points into Strength.
• Points invested in Strength.
• Stats: Strength 5(+2), Endurance 5, Reflexes 5, Motion Detection 5, Mental Strength
10
• New Directive Received.
• Zombies Killed: 0/50
• Remaining Points: 0
At the same time, a sudden warmth spread throughout his body.
It felt like the burning sensation after a strenuous workout, where every muscle fiber seemed
to stretch taut.
The unexpected stimulus caused him to furrow his brow involuntarily.
Had it been about a minute?
The heat slowly began to dissipate.
After several deep breaths, Adam examined his body.
His forearms were thicker than before.
He clenched and unclenched his fists, focusing on the movement of his muscles.
He could feel the tension in his forearms.
His thighs felt tighter.
His body felt lighter overall.
The once-heavy metal pipe now felt much easier to wield.
Though the number “2” might seem small, his strength had increased by about 1.5 times.
Focusing his mind, he checked his player information again.
The number of zombies he needed to kill had increased from 20 to 50.
In Last Ark, the number was fixed at 20.
If he killed 50 zombies, he would earn 5 points, but until then, his survival rate would
inevitably decrease.
There was no mid-quest reward either; the points were only awarded once the target number
was reached.
It was a frustrating situation, but… what could he do?
Complaining wouldn’t help. No one was listening to him.
Should I try an experiment?
If he had grown stronger, he should test it out.
Without hesitation, Adam walked toward Room 407 and shattered the glass above the door.
Grrrrraaaaahhh!!
The zombies stuck their faces through the narrow gap.
As Adam stabbed the zombies with the monkey wrench, he felt something different this time.
It was like piercing through soft tofu—smooth and easy.
Is it really this different?
After all, looking at the numbers, it was like someone who could lift a 20 kg dumbbell
suddenly being able to lift 30 kg. It was only natural that things felt different now.
A feeling of exhilaration began to rise in the heart that had once been filled with fear.
In this secured space, he needed to fill the quota of 50 zombies.
Now that he was confident, a smile crept across his face.
Grrrrooowl.
But no matter how strong he became, he couldn’t immune himself to hunger.
With his food supply running out, Adam quenched his thirst with some water and thought
about securing more food.
The nearest supply sources were the cafeteria and the convenience store in the dormitory
building.
However, with no power, the cafeteria’s freezer was useless.
On the other hand, the convenience store likely had snacks, dried foods, and canned goods.
The cafeteria and convenience store were about 50 meters away, directly across from each
other, separated by a road. The cafeteria occupied the left side of a ‘ㄱ’ shaped building, while
the right side housed the convenience store and other amenities.
Adam knew that he needed to prepare himself before going outside to face the zombies. His
immediate goal was to clear the nearby rooms.
By midday, after constant effort, Adam had already cleared the 4th and 5th floors, killing 36
zombies. The difficulty hadn’t been high so far, and the progress was smooth. The dormitory’s
two-person rooms helped alleviate some of the pressure from the increasing zombie
population.
Taking a break, Adam decided to clean up and drink water. In the bathroom, he wiped off the
zombie blood from his face and cleaned himself up. Looking into the mirror, he saw a tired,
gaunt version of himself. His hair was wild and unkempt, and his skin had grown pale in just
a few weeks. Despite the exhaustion, he realized how much he’d changed.
He managed to find a couple of unopened bottles of shampoo in Room 504 and took one with
him to shower. Although the water was cold, the shower refreshed him, providing a rare
moment of relief. He also found a new set of clothes that fit him better, which felt oddly
comforting.
With his hunger starting to set in, he snacked on whatever was left in the break room and
prepared to move forward. His thoughts turned to the next objective: securing more supplies
from the convenience store. To do that, he had to first clear the 3rd floor.
The 3rd floor was free from the fog that plagued the 1st and 2nd floors, which meant he could
operate more safely there. But as he prepared to move, something unusual caught his
attention. A strange sound echoed through the 3rd-floor hallway, followed by a loud, guttural
roar that shook the walls.
Upon cautiously peering around the corner, Adam saw two zombies in a tense standoff,
seemingly arguing with each other.
“No way…” Adam thought. Zombies couldn’t communicate, could they?
These zombies were not just making noise like usual; they were acting like they were having
an argument. This was impossible based on what Adam knew about the game mechanics,
where zombies were mindless creatures with no higher cognitive functions.
Could it be… a zombie leader?
This was beyond unusual. Zombie leaders were a rare and much more dangerous threat that
usually appeared in the later stages of the game. They had intelligence, planning abilities, and
could command other zombies.
Adam’s mind raced. He had only just started the first episode, and this shouldn’t be
happening yet. A zombie leader at this stage would completely disrupt the balance of the
game and could spell disaster. If he encountered one in the convenience store, it could easily
end his life.
But Adam refused to panic. He reminded himself to stay calm, telling himself that there must
be a way to deal with this. In Last Ark, zombie leaders had heightened senses and could
control hordes, making them far more dangerous than regular zombies.
Adam’s first priority was to clear the 3rd floor, but he now knew that he had to be careful.
The appearance of a zombie leader so early in the game meant that the situation was rapidly
evolving in unpredictable ways.
With the realization that the game’s rules might be shifting, Adam needed to rethink his next
steps. The convenience store was a critical goal, but he might need to rethink his approach if
he was going to survive long enough to secure the supplies.