NOVEL NEXT Chapter 8
Chapter 8 – Survivors of a Ruined World (4)
—–CROW—–
Seong-ho focused intently on Lim Chan. He planned to approach him and start a conversation under the pretext of asking about his treatment once he sat down. However, Lim Chan took his food and immediately left the dining hall.
Seong-ho stared after him, and Choi Ji-young, perhaps misunderstanding his gaze, started to explain, “Normally, we’re not allowed to take food outside because of food waste and hygiene issues… but please just pretend you didn’t see. His daughter was bitten.”
Apparently, quite a few blood lumps had entered through the windows while they were defending the main entrance. Lim Chan’s daughter had been bitten in the process. That must have been why he looked so gloomy while treating Seong-ho.
“The people who went into the isolation ward were given three days’ worth of preserved food… I guess he’s going to eat with her outside the ward.”
Perhaps it would have been better if she hadn’t explained the circumstances. The issue he had been trying to ignore was now scratching at his conscience again. He was probably feeling this way because he had a way to solve the problem but was choosing to remain silent.
It wasn’t that Seong-ho felt no guilt. He felt a heavy weight in his chest. But it would be foolish to jump in and offer a solution without thinking.
‘Using my power increases the Discrepancy Score.’
It would likely be the same even if he used it on unmutated infected individuals.
‘There seemed to be about ten infected people.’
If he offered to help all those people, his score would skyrocket. Even if it only increased by 10 points per person, that would be 100 points. His score, which had barely dropped to two digits, would rise again.
He didn’t know what the Discrepancy Score was, how it would affect him, or what he had to do to lower it. He had to be cautious until he had answers.
Seong-ho chose not to act for the time being and forced down the food on his tray, feeling a lump in his throat.
* * *
“Here it is.”
After finishing his meal, Seong-ho was guided by Choi Ji-young to the fourth floor of the hospital. Their steps stopped in front of room 402. This would be Seong-ho’s room during his stay at the hospital camp.
“It’s perfect for one person.”
According to the unnecessary explanation that followed, it was the room of someone who had died today. Probably the person who had been eaten alive. He had no intention of complaining about being given a dead person’s room.
“Please don’t take it the wrong way. It’s true that you helped us, but… we still don’t know who you are.”
Who would want to share a room with a complete stranger? He could be stabbed in his sleep. More than anything, Seong-ho didn’t want to share a room with anyone else either.
“We haven’t cleaned out his belongings yet, so all his things are still here. The previous occupant was part of the combat team, so the facilities and items are quite good. There’s also a kerosene heater, so you won’t be cold at night. If you need anything else, just let me know.”
“This is more than enough.”
“Alright then. I’ll be going now.”
Choi Ji-young opened the door for him and left. He stepped inside, and the simple two-person room came into view.
*Creak, click.*
The moment he closed the door, silence descended. Seong-ho, tugging at his collar with a rough hand, suddenly strode towards the window. He wanted some fresh air to alleviate the inexplicable stuffiness.
However, it wasn’t a good choice. An unfamiliar sight greeted him along with the cold air. Normally, the street trees, traffic lights, and various signs would be twinkling, but now, they were submerged in darkness, as if dipped in black ink, without a single speck of light.
“Ha…”
It was like looking at his own future, and he felt suffocated. The urgent matters at hand had been dealt with, and now, left alone in the silence, the emotions he had been putting off surged forward. An unprecedented despair swelled and engulfed him.
He struggled to breathe, his body swaying under the weight of the oppressive feeling. Just as his sense of reality blurred and he felt as though a loud ringing was piercing his head…
“Butterfly, butterfly, fly this way!”
A faint singing voice came from beyond the cold winter air. The receding reality began to draw closer again.
“Gasp!”
Seong-ho gasped for air as his constricted airway opened, and he collapsed, kneeling in front of the window.
“Yellow butterfly! White butterfly! I like blue butterflies too!”
The nonsensical singing from an unknown source continued as he caught his breath. At that moment, it was the only thing anchoring him to reality. He clung to the sound like a lifeline. Until the moment he fell asleep, exhausted, as if passing out.
* * *
The stifling sensation, like being submerged deep underwater, slowly returned. As his consciousness emerged from sleep, Seong-ho, eyes still closed, prayed desperately. He prayed that the horrifying memories lingering in his mind were just a dream. He prayed and prayed.
Of course, it was a futile wish.
“Damn it…”
As he opened his eyes, as expected, he was greeted by the unfamiliar scenery of a hospital room, not his familiar bedroom.
“Huu…”
Seong-ho sighed deeply, rubbed his dry face, and sat up. White sunlight streamed in from the window. The morning of his second day in this world had dawned.
‘In terms of time… about fifteen hours have passed.’
He was so exhausted, yet not even 24 hours had passed.
“Hahaha…”
He now understood why people who experienced traumatic events went mad. Still, thanks to a night’s sleep, his mind was clear. The overwhelming emotions from last night had subsided considerably.
Thanks to this, he was able to tackle the things he hadn’t been able to do the day before, one by one.
‘First, the status window.’
[Character Status Window]
– Character Information –
Name: Han Seong-ho
Role: Fate Pioneer
Level: 2 (10/25)
Physical Ability: 4
Special Ability: 6/11
– Activity Information –
Merit Points: 15
Discrepancy Score: 85P
Influence: Only a very small number of the world’s members recognize you; you have no significant influence.
Title: None
The numbers that had been bothering him had changed.
‘My Special Ability charges have recovered.’
It had dropped to 1 after hunting the evolved zombie yesterday. But it had recovered to 6 overnight.
‘If I calculate based on arriving at the hospital around 4 PM yesterday…’
It seemed to recover one charge every three hours. He had been worried that it might not recover at all except through leveling up. It was a relief.
“Huu.”
Seong-ho breathed a sigh of relief and covered his eyes with his hand. Then he calmly organized his next steps.
‘First, after I’m done here, I need to go find the protagonist.’
He needed to be near the protagonist to interfere with the main story.
‘It’s been about a year and a half, so the protagonist should be…’
…in Jamsil. He sighed as he thought about the route. Ignoring all other factors and considering only the straight-line distance, it would be a journey across Seoul diagonally. Resentment towards the Fate Pioneering Team grew.
They had dropped him into this strange world, telling him to pioneer fate, but what was he supposed to do with such a difficult path to the protagonist? He would have to cross mountains and rivers.
Seong-ho scratched his head irritably. Then suddenly…
“Wait…”
He wondered if they had dropped him here on purpose because of the current timeline.
‘It’s not just out of spite.’
Seong-ho recalled the flow of the original novel, trying to remember if any events took place in northern Seoul. Thanks to this, he realized something quite important.
‘Northern Seoul was rarely mentioned in the early stages of the original novel.’
The northern Seoul area or people from northern Seoul were mentioned in the middle to latter half of the novel. And those events always caused trouble for the protagonist.
‘I can think of three off the top of my head.’
Drugs, cannibalism, and the New Humanity Society, which believed Awakened were superior. The reason why such troublesome events originated in northern Seoul was simple.
‘The protagonist wasn’t here.’
There was no reason for the protagonist to come here, based on the flow of the story. Therefore, in the early stages of the virus outbreak, the protagonist’s influence didn’t reach northern Seoul. As a result, the incidents that occurred in northern Seoul grew in scale before being mentioned in the original novel, which was set in Gangnam.
‘Perhaps I was dropped here for that reason?’
Because there was more to change here than in Gangnam, where the protagonist was. If this assumption was correct… if his role was to resolve the incidents that would occur in the absence of the protagonist…
Seong-ho rubbed his brow with a serious expression.
‘I remember the types of incidents that occur in northern Seoul quite well.’
He had seen the episodes where the protagonist struggled with those incidents. However, he couldn’t recall the specific details, like the time or location of their origin. The original novel hadn’t explained when, where, or how those problems arose.
‘I only saw the events surrounding the protagonist.’
How could he know what happened in places where the protagonist wasn’t present? He felt a sense of dread.
‘Do I have to run around and find out myself?’
At this rate, he would have to scour all of northern Seoul. Just as he let out a deep sigh of frustration…
The phrase that had stubbornly occupied a corner of his vision shimmered.
‘Pioneer’s Cradle.’
It was the button that had appeared after he defeated the evolved zombie yesterday. He waved his hand in the air, but he couldn’t touch the button. He wondered how he was supposed to press it. Staring at the button, he thought about pressing it.
「Accessing for the first time requires 10 Merit Points. Do you wish to proceed? (Y/N)」
He immediately pressed ‘Y’ without hesitation.
「10 Merit Points used.」
「Accessing Chapter 1 of the Pioneer’s Cradle.」
Immediately after, a massive book, about the size of an adult male’s torso, unfolded with a rustling sound. Seong-ho, frozen in surprise, reached out his hand unconsciously. He thought it would be intangible, like the messages, but…
“I can grab it…?”
He could grab it. It had a physical presence. He tried pulling it, just in case, but it wouldn’t budge, as if nailed to the air.
Seong-ho continued to examine the book. He accidentally touched a tab sticking out from the side.
「Insufficient qualifications.」
A new system message blocked his view. Then he saw the number written on the tab.
‘Chapter 2?’
He touched the tabs for Chapters 3 and 4, and the same “insufficient qualifications” message appeared.
‘The criteria for proceeding… is it Merit Points?’
Merit Points were used to open the Pioneer’s Cradle. So, it was highly likely that Merit Points were also needed to move to the next chapter.
Having roughly grasped the rules, Seong-ho turned his attention back to Chapter 1, ignoring the inaccessible later chapters. The subtitle under Chapter 1 was…
“Q&A?”
Seong-ho read the words in the book and spoke in a slightly strained voice.
“If I pioneer the fate of this world, can I return to the world I originally lived in?”
His question appeared on the blank page, and then a system message popped up.
「Listening to the answer requires 1 Merit Point. Do you wish to proceed? (Y/N)」
It seemed Merit Points functioned as currency in the Pioneer’s Cradle.
‘This is what it meant by “Merit Points can be used to receive various forms of support.”’
Seong-ho stared at the message and said, “…Of course, yes.”
Immediately after, new text appeared below the question written in the book.
—–CROW—–