episode_0053

If the societal system were still alive, I would surely be facing a life sentence.

The catastrophe before my eyes was that serious; it couldn’t be dismissed lightly.

‘…I need to be careful when handling fire.’

I was quite flustered by the unexpected outcome.

The fortunate part, I suppose, is that I eliminated a massive number of zombies.

This, too, was an unforeseen trickle-down effect, but burning that many zombies is a very sweet outcome.

They say a person learns until they die, and it’s not a false statement.

From today’s catastrophe, I learned fire safety the hard way.

…I just need to be careful next time.

Even putting aside the destroyed streets, I’m very satisfied that I silenced the zombies’ cries.

Instead of monstrous screeches, the sizzling sound of burning flesh delights my ears.

I don’t know how many zombies are still inside the building, but the fact that I significantly reduced the effort needed makes me feel motivated.

‘I can’t go in through the entrance….’

Not only was the street filled with piled-up zombie corpses, but even the entrance was half-blocked by burning zombie remains.

From the entrance, I looked upwards.

A wide parking lot extending up to the 5th floor above ground.

A white partition wall, torn and almost ripped open by the rampaging zombies.

That’s the new entrance.

I roughly measured the distance and stepped back.

And then, I began preparations before entering.

I quickly put on gauntlets on my arms and legs.

I put on my gloves and pulled up my neck warmer.

I donned one of my few remaining hats, and preparations were complete.

Lightly warming up, I fixed my gaze on the opposite side.

My feet pounded and I launched myself!

Without hesitation, I sprang powerfully from the building’s rooftop.

“Gah!!”

It was a brief moment, leaping from the 5th floor to the 2nd floor of the opposite building, but the heat surging up was immense. A powerful heat, strong enough to feel like my body was cooking.

Whoosh—

As soon as I landed smoothly, almost sliding, onto the 2nd floor of Hollysale’s parking lot, I quickly scanned my surroundings.

The wide space was filled with abandoned cars, just like the roads outside.

Some cars were properly parked, while others were haphazardly abandoned.

‘….’

Bloodstains splattered everywhere and chaotic footprints suggested the situation at the time.

People fleeing in terror.

Zombies pursuing them like hunters.

Everywhere my gaze reached was painted with blood, and chunks of flesh were strewn about.

And no moving presences were visible.

Considering the number of zombies that had poured out of the building, it was difficult to imagine anyone alive. And I had a thought that there might not be many zombies left inside.

Unexpectedly, it seemed the roaring sound of the explosion had truly drawn their attention, as no moving human-like figures were visible in the wide parking lot.

The monstrous screeches of the zombies I heard were only the gradually diminishing groans from those burning on the road outside.

Since there were no zombies immediately visible, I slowly began to walk.

As I crossed the parking lot, quite a few corpses lay sprawled on the cold floor.

I walked in the opposite direction, following the traces of those who had fled from the zombies.

And I found the customer entrance and an information board leading into the building.

It was covered in blood, but it didn’t obscure the text.

First, my target, the food court, is on the first basement floor.

I casually checked it and was about to pass by when something caught my eye.

【1st Floor – Household Goods … Loading Dock】

‘The loading dock is above ground? Isn’t it usually underground?’

Last time, I thought it would be in the parking lot and passed over it, but it seems I was wrong.

I took in the simplified customer map and pinpointed the location.

The location isn’t bad either.

I can stop by the loading dock and use the staff passage to go straight to the food court.

I immediately moved my steps and began to descend, searching for the emergency staircase.

I couldn’t definitively say there would be something in the loading dock, but if luck was on my side, I could acquire a large quantity of supplies.

My heart began to pound slightly with vague anticipation.

I slowly made my way, following the signs visible along the way.

I suppressed my anticipation for a moment and heightened my vigilance.

The zombies’ cries were only faintly heard from outside.

There was nothing moving in front of me either.

I could have relaxed a bit and lightened my steps, but I couldn’t.

It was no different than being inside a dungeon right now.

If I let my guard down, I’d be gone in an instant.

Whether a newbie or a veteran, the cost of carelessness is fair.

The continuous movement amidst tedious tension didn’t last long.

‘…It’s incredibly spacious?’

The sight that met my eyes after exiting the staff passage was simply vast.

The loading dock, connected to the truck parking area, was chaotic.

There weren’t as many vehicles as in the parking lot, but quite a few abandoned cars were visible.

And almost all of those vehicles were cargo trucks.

There were many long trailers, cargo wing vans, and box trucks.

I walked towards the vehicles parked with their rear ends facing the loading dock directly in front of me.

Nothing was moving, and no irritating zombie cries could be heard.

There was only a silence, as if I had visited an abandoned junkyard alone.

Listening only to the sound of my own footsteps, I approached the loading dock.

And I couldn’t help but widen my eyes.

Perhaps there were few people, as the scene before me had very few bloodstains or chunks of flesh.

Instead, numerous unorganized and piled-up goods occupied the space.

I swallowed dryly at the sight, which seemed to insist that this was its original state.

Some items were visible, loaded on forklifts, still on their pallets.

Cans, spilled and rolling on the floor, were also visible.

Various items, neatly wrapped in plastic and placed on pallets.

It felt like everything imaginable was there.

I quickly checked the inside of the loading dock as well.

I couldn’t get ahead of myself just by looking at the outside.

“Wow….”

As soon as I confirmed the inside, an exclamation burst out without thought.

The loading dock, which felt similar to the previous Hollysale store, looked shabby from the outside.

The remarkably high ceiling and wide space felt similar to, or even larger than, the store itself.

But it felt less like a customer area and more like a rough, massive warehouse.

And, befitting its role, an enormous quantity of goods awaited.

The condition of the items was clean.

The floor was a bit dirty, and there were traces of zombies moving, but not many.

No blood or chunks of flesh were visible either.

Supplies organized high, numerous, and diverse within the wide space, awaiting sale.

These clean treasures of the white dungeon were now all mine.

***

It was different from a store that displays products about three stories high for customers.

The items, stacked much higher and much more densely, were simply incredible in quantity.

Befitting a warehouse, many of the forklifts for moving goods were large.

Fortunately, having no need to rely on machinery, I was entirely engrossed in sweeping up the goods.

The composition of the goods wasn’t significantly different from the Gocheok branch I’d visited before.

I amply took what looked like fairly luxurious tents and sunshades, and grabbed any camping axes or knives that could serve as weapons.

While also taking an appropriate amount of bedding, I filtered out what wasn’t needed and focused on collecting food supplies.

Canned goods, especially, were a godsend just by existing, and their variety and quantity were immense.

I didn’t discriminate, taking retort pouch foods, smoked foods, butter, oil, and so on.

Now, being able to collect all these supplies in almost new, intact condition.

I could say I had done it.

However, there was too much to collect, and time was the problem.

‘…When am I going to pick all this up?’

If someone heard me, they might curse at me, telling me not to complain with a full stomach [an idiom about complaining when one is in a good situation].

But if anyone were told to collect this enormous amount of goods alone, they would surely curse profusely and run away.

With no option but to collect, my head was just spinning. And though my mind and mouth kept grumbling, my hands were diligently moving independently.

My mood was good enough to dance a joyous tap dance, but the sheer volume of labor I had to handle alone simultaneously brought irritation and a bleak feeling, making my emotions complex.

It was when the continuous, repetitive work made my mind blank, and I moved mechanically.

Whoosh—

“…Huh?”

I was diligently putting away a box of canned goods when suddenly the box vanished.

I flinced slightly at the sudden situation.

‘It didn’t just disappear. The feeling right now is….’

I definitely felt like the box had just entered my inventory.

Standing still, I recalled the recent situation and feeling.

Inventory open, grabbing the box…

“…When am I going to pick all this up?”

Whoosh—

“Gah?!”

I flinched greatly for the first time in a while.

I had only touched the box, and it had entered my inventory.

With a feeling like it was being sucked in, as if disappearing.

“Damn?! Really?”

I quickly put my hand on the box next to it, but there was no change.

I tapped the box a few times, then slowly repeated the previous sequence.

“Inventory is open, hand on the box… put it in.”

Whoosh—

“…No, suddenly?? This is possible?”

Even when I was in the other world, this wasn’t possible.

It felt like putting items into a massive pouch.

But now…

Whoosh—

“…Hoooh.”

I just needed to touch the item and *will* it into the inventory! That was it.

I repeated it a few more times, but it became clear.

With the inventory open, if I clearly acknowledged something touched by my hand, it would enter the inventory. If I didn’t acknowledge it, there was no change.

This was the inventory I had used as if it were part of my body for all this time.

I had never seen or heard of such a usage.

Just in case, I murmured softly.

“…Status window.”

Naturally, nothing happened.

“…Was it simply something I didn’t know?”

I felt a momentary emptiness at how dramatically easier the situation had become.

My past self, who had looted until my back ached, now seemed pathetic.

I couldn’t tell if it was a change in skill or something else.

But it didn’t matter.

“It’s just easier and better, what’s there to complain about?”

The speed of collecting supplies had become incomparably faster.

Touch it and acknowledge it, and it automatically enters.

Now, it was almost like auto-looting, incredibly convenient.

As the action repeated, I found the precise knack for it and could perform the task.

As a result, I could even loot while walking slowly.

It was still repetitive grind work, but I gained momentum.

It was a leisurely task while walking, but the warehouse emptied quickly.

From a certain point, looting became as natural as if it were etched into my body.

I smiled in the field of grind work that had advanced one step further.

The scene that met my eyes, a joyful smile on my lips, was the emptied loading dock. My inventory was as abundant as the space was desolate.

At the Gocheok branch, just the food court took two days.

But now, having acquired a new skill(?), it only took a few hours.

Having achieved an absurd feat without anyone knowing, an inexplicable sense of satisfaction swelled within my chest.

‘…Let’s quickly empty it.’

The farming isn’t over yet.