18. A New Home. (1)

“Stay here.”

I said this in the middle of the empty road.

If all these people enter the empty sidewalk at once, even if the human beasts have poor eyesight, they’ll still be detected.

I walked through the road, between the cars, and reached the front of the large mart, where I had the people wait.

I could hear the sound of people stopping.

Turning around, I saw everyone standing still, looking at me.

Most of their faces were tense.

The grandma, So-eun, and the new mother had their eyes and mouths downturned, clearly terrified.

They looked like they regretted coming out.

The road was blocked by cars here and there, and the silence made it genuinely scary.

Moreover, the bodies I had killed were lying on the opposite sidewalk.

“I’ll call you when it’s time to come in.”

The people nodded.

I slowly stood up and looked around.

Just in case, to see if anything was there.

…Nothing.

No cockroaches, no human beasts.

Just silence.

I drew my sword.

Swish-

“Ah.”

The grandma made a scared sound.

Ye-eun comforted her from the side.

She was holding So-eun’s hand with one hand.

Ye-eun is working hard.

Tap tap.

Soo-hyeon tapped my butt.

“Be careful. Come back safely.”

“Sure.”

I smiled, grabbed the car’s headlight, and walked forward.

I walked, walking.

With quick steps, one, two.

And then, I sprinted.

“Grr?!”

The heads behind the glass wall turned sharply.

Crack!

The broken glass crunched under my feet.

I stepped on the stairs and leaped through the side door.

“Kraaaah! Kyaahhh!”

The beasts climbed over chairs and bodies and lunged at me.

“Ugh!”

A distant exclamation.

Uncle Hoon, still a coward.

“Kraaaah!”

The beasts’ hands swiped through the air.

They’re coming.

Acceleration.

[Automatic activation: Acceleration]

I took a powerful step.

Du-

“Hiss!”

Crack, crack!

I plunged in and stabbed.

Crack, crack!

Blood droplets splattered and rose in all directions.

It felt like weaving through oddly shaped mannequins.

As the world moved like a rapidly rewinding video, I used Acceleration again.

Crack, crack, crack, crack!

No retreat, no hiding.

I came here to clear everything, so I felt at ease.

Acceleration.

[Automatic activation: Acceleration]

Crack!

I stabbed and pulled out.

I didn’t look back.

The beasts with pierced heads were floating in the air, spewing blood from their foreheads and the back of their heads.

The pierced beasts behind me slowly collapsed.

Crack, crack, crack!

With Acceleration, I pierced the heads of all the human beasts blocking the mart entrance.

Crack!

“Hiss!”

I pulled out my sword and looked around.

Any left?

No, none.

“–Grr!”

Thud, crash!

The beasts around me collapsed all at once.

Blood splattered in all directions.

It splattered on my face, lips, and body.

I was drenched in blood.

[Level up by 2.]

Beasts killed: 23.

Acceleration used: 6 times.

If I had been faster, I might have done it with 5 uses of Acceleration, but not yet.

I wish I could move faster.

This isn’t a problem with Acceleration, but with my own skill.

I stood still and listened.

Was there any beast I missed nearby?

I could hear growling, but it wasn’t nearby.

The entrance was definitely cleared.

The large mart entrance had a big glass wall and glass doors, but it was almost invisible due to the standing signs and discount posters stuck all over it.

Through the gaps in the posters, I could see the wide store and the fully stocked shelves.

Of course, the human beasts too.

Not yet, though.

I turned and slashed my sword.

Swish!

Splat!

Blood dripped and splattered on the wall.

“……”

Hmm…

Now that I think about it, here.

It was just a glass wall.

Heads peeked out from beyond the cars.

Our group members were almost in a trance, watching me.

Everyone’s eyes except Uncle Hoon and So-eun’s…

I couldn’t quite describe the look in their eyes.

I had never seen such a look before.

I shrugged and walked out through the broken glass door.

“You can come in now.”

The people stood up and approached me.

As they approached, I sheathed my sword.

Swish- click.

An unknown inline skater asked,

“How can you do that? It’s really spine-chilling.”

So-eun elbowed the man.

“I told you, he’s amazing. Didn’t you notice the bodies in the mart?”

“I never imagined something like this.”

Something like this?

Soo-hyeon approached me and held out her phone.

She must have been filming with the camera.

I could see myself.

I stepped on the stairs and climbed up.

The human beasts raised their hands and lunged at me.

And then, I disappeared.

Almost leaving only a blur, I stabbed and disappeared, stabbing and disappearing, quickly piercing the heads of over twenty beasts.

The beasts that lunged at me fell, spurting blood from their heads.

…It’s like an SF movie.

This is how I fight, I…

Soo-hyeon looked at me with wide eyes.

“Bro. How can you move like that? Are you really a sword master?”

The inline skaters also asked,

“You must have trained with a sword for a long time. What rank are you?”

“How much training does it take to do that?”

…Hmm…

I’ve never trained with a sword.

But no one seems to doubt that this is a speed a human can see, even though it’s not.

They didn’t even consider that I might have some special ability.

I guess if someone told me they had a strange ability, I wouldn’t believe it either.

They seem to perceive it as a near-miraculous skill from extreme training.

I shrugged and said,

“We shouldn’t stay here. Let’s go up.”

I turned and walked into the mart.

Hmm.

The stairs…

Since I’ve cleared the entrance, we don’t necessarily need to use the stairs.

I led the people through the entrance to the elevators on the side of the corridor.

Two elevators.

Both stopped at the first floor.

People must have come down from above.

“Let’s go to the top.”

We split up and took the elevators to the 10th floor.

Ding.

The people filed out.

I also stepped out and said,

“Put down your bags and split up here. Uncle Hoon and the men, go back to the boarding house and bring the aluminum panels. The women, help Soo-hyeon open the doors with that.”

The people nodded.

Hmm.

Their eyes and actions clearly showed they trusted and would follow me completely.

I said to the men about to take the elevator,

“If anything happens, just leave it and run straight here. Got it?”

“Yes, sir.”

This is the most vulnerable moment.

If the cockroaches appear at the boarding house now and cause trouble, those few men will be helpless.

The men nodded and took the elevator down.

…Hmm.

I gestured to the new mother and positioned her by the window.

“You can see the boarding house from here. If anything happens, let me know right away.”

The new mother, who had been worried about her husband, nodded enthusiastically.

“I’ll keep an eye out.”

I turned and said,

“Let’s open the door now.”

Soo-hyeon already had the cutter in her hand.

She smiled mischievously.

The women followed Soo-hyeon to the nearest apartment.

This seems to be a floor of rental apartments, with one or two rooms. The lined-up doors give that impression.

Ding-dong-

I pressed the doorbell.

No response.

I pressed it again.

Still no response.

Soo-hyeon looked at me.

I nodded.

She nodded back and started dismantling the door handle with the cutter.

I stood there, my hand on the sword hilt, watching the door gap.

No response to the doorbell doesn’t mean no one is there.

If no one is there, then no one is there.

If something comes rushing in, these women will be helpless.

If anything comes, I’ll kill it.

After about five minutes, the door handle was completely removed.

Soo-hyeon used pliers to manipulate the open handle, and with a click, the lock opened.

I nodded and took the handle.

Soo-hyeon opened the door.

The door opened quietly.

The smell of someone else’s home wafted in.

A faint perfume scent.

Or the scent of fabric softener.

It seems like a neat woman lived here.

A small pink carpet and a queen-sized bed were visible.

The room…

Is quite spacious.

15 pyeong? Or more.

I went inside and thoroughly checked the bathroom and balcony.

Then I turned and said,

“Come in. No one’s here.”

The women entered with relieved faces.

They looked around the house as if they were going to live there.

Their expressions were very bright.

But, who’s going to use it?

These women, looking at the house with bright faces, seem like they’ll have a competition if they find a house they like.

“Wow… the sunlight really comes in well here.”

“Sis, look. There’s an electronic piano.”

…No doubt.

They’re having a competition.

I chuckled and said,

“We’ve only opened one house. We need to open all the way down.”

Soo-hyeon, who had been looking around the house, came out when she heard me.

“Let’s go, sis. So-eun.”

The second and third houses were also empty.

And the fourth house.

When Soo-hyeon opened the door, a familiar smell hit me.

…The smell of a corpse.

I gripped my sword and looked inside.

…It’s a grandfather.

…Did he die alone?

No.

…He committed suicide.

He had cut his wrists.

I didn’t see it because he was lying on his side.

He had been dead for quite some time…

“…Phew…”

I sighed and looked at the women.

Ye-eun and So-eun’s faces were already pale.

Soo-hyeon was shaking her head, unable to go in.

The nursing grandma clicked her tongue in sympathy, but she’s too frail to help.

She has almost no muscle…

…Tsk.

…We need the men to remove the body.

I nodded and said,

“Let’s leave it for now and open all the doors. We need to secure enough rooms to split everyone up.”

Soo-hyeon nodded.

“Got it.”