17. Cockroaches. (3)

“Hiss!”

Crack!

As I pulled the sword out of the woman’s head, droplets of blood splattered.

Thirteen of them.

Three uses of Acceleration.

“Phew.”

[Level up by 3.]

Thud, crash!

The sound of bodies falling all around.

Spraying blood droplets.

I looked around.

Snacks, drinks, bottled water.

Even if some blood splattered on the boxes, it shouldn’t be a big deal, right?

I searched the bathroom and confirmed no one was there, then left the third floor.

It’s a bit disappointing that there weren’t many.

Is it greed? I wish there were about 200 on each floor.

But what can you expect from just a storage room and an office?

This leaves me with 9 Strength and 7 uses of Acceleration.

I still have plenty of stamina.

I knelt down on one knee as I descended the stairs to the second floor.

Growl, growl-

Hmm.

The chairs might get in the way.

No, leave them.

I stood up and walked down the stairs.

I turned the corner.

The light hit my eyes.

People appeared in front of me.

“Huh?!”

“Sssss.”

Acceleration.

[Automatic activation: Acceleration]

I rushed in and stabbed with my sword.

The sword immediately reached the target.

The feeling of the skull cracking was transmitted through my hand.

Crack, crack, crack, crack!

I immediately activated Acceleration again as it was about to end.

I continued to pierce heads as I moved through the crowd.

Acceleration 2, and then 3.

Nine heads.

After piercing all of them, I turned and jumped over the chair.

[Level up.]

As I passed through the side door and stepped on the broken glass,

“–Kaa!”

Thud, crash!

The sound of nine of them falling at once.

“Kraaaah!”

They’re coming.

Acceleration.

[Automatic activation: Acceleration]

I immediately sprinted forward, disappearing from their sight.

I stopped at the convenience store.

Looking back, I had definitely shaken them off.

I caught my breath and took out my phone.

Ugh, it’s covered in blood.

Is it around one in the morning?

No, it’s not yet. It’s 49 minutes.

I slashed the sword to scatter the blood and sheathed it.

Swish-click.

“Phew…”

After running like a madman and killing human beasts every day since the apocalypse began, I can definitely feel my stamina improving.

I’m not even that out of breath after running this much.

……Is there something?

I walked onto the road beyond the convenience store.

It’s hard to see.

I climbed onto a car.

Thud, thump.

Standing on the roof, I looked far into the distance.

A crowd of people was gathered far away.

Looking closer…

They seem to have a good formation.

Most of them are men, and they’re holding something in their hands.

It looks like baseball bats and wrenches.

…Ah.

They’re looting the convenience store.

One of them runs out.

A few human beasts chase after him.

The men charge at the human beasts.

They swing the items in their hands.

Dozens of people are beating three human beasts.

Oh…

Wait a minute.

Dozens of people?

Dozens of men…

That can’t be right?

…Ah.

They’re luring people out of their homes.

They’re building their numbers.

Skilled fighters are gathering and systematically raiding for supplies.

As long as they don’t make too much noise, human beasts won’t come from all directions, so they can do this as long as they’re careful.

Still, they’ve trained quite a bit.

Previously, one of them got bitten and was beaten to death by their allies. They must have continued raiding since then?

Ah, it makes sense.

To lure people out of their homes, they need to provide food. And they need food for themselves too.

Looking at the dozens of men, there must be about a hundred people in total, including women, elders, and children.

They can’t last long on just one convenience store.

For us, a small group, the current supplies are enough. With me as the only fighter, we can live comfortably even with a small number.

But they are different.

For just a few human beasts, they need a dozen or so, physically strong men.

If they get bitten, even a scratch, they’ll be beaten to death by their allies.

They need to be subdued instantly by a group.

For that, they need a large number of people. However, the more people they have, the more supplies they need.

They have no choice but to keep raiding.

They’ve adopted this method.

Well, if there’s no one like me who can kill dozens alone, this is the most reliable way.

I chuckled and got out of the car.

The cockroaches have their own way of surviving.

Let them live as they please.

If one of them gets bitten, no matter how close they are, whether they’re brothers, fathers, or sons, they’ll beat them to death.

It’s none of my business.

I walked through the alley to the boarding house.

Hmm?

…The convenience store at the end of the alley.

The utility pole in front of the convenience store.

Did I see something there?

Was it a person’s shadow?

I tilted my head to the side and slowly walked into the alley.

A few steps in, I heard a sudden movement.

It’s a person.

What is it?

…Are they scouting?

What’s their plan?

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

Scouting…

What are they planning to do?

Start a fight?

Please, if you come, I’ll be happy to cut off your head.

I smiled and opened the gate to the boarding house.

They don’t know what I can do.

In our group, only Uncle Hoon and So-eun have seen what I can do.

Even Han Tae, who was locked up, didn’t see me kill them all.

…Hmm…

…Should I show them tomorrow?

If they’re scouting to the point of sneaking around, they must have some plan. If they try to cause trouble while I’m away, it’ll be a hassle.

How many are left at the mart entrance?

About twenty, I think.

It’s time to move.

 * * *

I took a shower, lay down, and looked at my status screen.

Level 31, Strength 54.

It’s always just one point short.

With 17 Spirit, I should be fully rested by morning.

7:00 AM.

After showering and going downstairs, the meal preparation was in full swing.

Han Tae, I mean, Han Tae, is here too.

Hmm, his determination to not miss a meal is evident in his physique.

“Han Tae.”

“Yes, sir.”

“After eating, go tell the others to start preparing for the move.”

Uncle Hoon and the women looked at me.

I smiled.

“It’s time to move. Eat and start packing.”

Soo-hyeon laughed and said,

“Faster than I thought. I expected it to take about ten days.”

“Why would it take ten days? Oh, right. We need to gather all the tools. We haven’t seen the residential area yet. There will be empty houses and some that are occupied. We’ll check them all out today.”

The apocalypse started in broad daylight.

Single households would have gone to work and left their homes empty, and there are probably some unoccupied apartments.

Moreover, dozens of people were lined up at the mart entrance.

They likely came down from the residential area and were caught.

So, there will definitely be many empty houses in the residential area. I think our group can move in without any problems.

Soo-hyeon and Uncle Hoon nodded.

“Got it. Anything else?”

Hmm… anything else.

I thought for a moment and said,

“We’ll clear the mart entrance today, but we need to block it off so no one can get in. We can clean up the inside slowly, but if the entrance is open, someone might try to climb the stairs.”

Soo-hyeon exchanged a look with Uncle Hoon and nodded.

“I’ll weld the aluminum panels that Uncle Hoon moves into place.”

Han Tae looked surprised and asked,

“You, you can weld?”

Uncle Hoon also looked at Soo-hyeon.

“I didn’t know. Did you learn in school?”

Soo-hyeon laughed and said,

“No, my family runs a scrap yard. I’ve been working with machines and learning welding since I was a kid. I got interested and majored in mechanical engineering.”

I smiled.

“Oh, I thought women didn’t go into mechanical engineering. So that’s why. Were there any other women in your class?”

“None at all. I was the only one. There was one woman in the electrical engineering department too.”

I chuckled.

“You must have been popular?”

Soo-hyeon twisted her lips and said,

“Oh, forget it. I dated once, but I prefer to just play games.”

Then she sighed deeply.

“I want to play WoW.”

Hmm.

Was it on hiatus or something?

That game.

I’ve never played it, but from her reaction, it must have been quite enjoyable.

After breakfast, everyone started packing.

We tied several aluminum panels we had collected from cars and each packed their belongings. Before we knew it, it was close to lunchtime.

“Oh, ma’am. You don’t need to bring chopsticks and such. We have everything in the mart. Pots and pans and all.”

Uncle Hoon tried to persuade the grandma.

He’s right.

We can get metal tools and utensils from the mart, and they can last indefinitely if well-maintained.

The problem is consumables.

They’re hard to replace once used up.

We packed mainly food and toilet paper, and once everyone had their bags, the moving preparations were complete.

It was much easier with the inline skaters helping, despite their limited belongings.

The men still had dark bruises on their faces.

But they seemed much better.

Their eyes were lively.

“How are you feeling?”

“Thanks to you, much better. Here, let me carry it.”

I handed him the Adidas backpack I was carrying.

I smiled, passing the bag to him.

After all, it’s better to be empty-handed to clear the mart entrance.

Thirteen bags filled with food and toilet paper, and one heavy bag of tools carried by Uncle Hoon.

We left the house, each carrying a bag filled according to the number of people.

I was the only one empty-handed.

I looked at the utility pole near the convenience store from the front of the house.

No one was there.

The scout must be having lunch too.

“Let’s go.”

I sheathed two swords at my waist and led the way.