Stagnant Water of Apocalypse - Chapter 30

July 15th.

In the last 2 days, quite a lot of things happened. Opposition lawmakers, unable to stomach the president’s silence any longer, attempted to enter the Blue House by force. But they were blocked by the president’s guard at the front door. The National Assembly was also paralyzed, it all became juicy news for the media to munch on.

Meanwhile on the internet, a debate about who would emerge victorious when a zombie and a goblin fight becomes a hot topic. Many netizens put their money on the zombie’s victory for various reasons. Though, If anyone asks me, I would answer that the result would vary depending on the circumstances.

“If the zombie can block the paralyzing dart of the goblin, the zombie wins. If not, it was the goblin’s victory”

Unfortunately, zombies and monsters did not fight each other. To be precise, monsters tend to avoid zombie hordes because they have numbers on their side

“It is quite noisy abroad, too.” If someone visits a foreign community, they could easily feel that something was going on from the very first page. Their community was full with news such as the UN holding an emergency meeting regarding the goblin appearances as well as the US President cancelling all of his schedule to come to Korea. NASA also appealed to space-related research institutes, astronomical observatories, and independent astrologists around the world to monitor any space object that has a possibility of coming in contact with Earth. In the meantime, eschatologists were performing a large-scale worship service in various parts of the world.

“To think they still exist…” I thought they had gone extinct back in the 90’s. It’s really surprising to see them appear in the world again.

The topic of the end was also popular on many broadcasting platforms, including MeTube. Afterall, these days, rather than having a conversation directly, information was mainly shared through the internet. Of course, it doesn’t mean that the information spread around the internet was guaranteed to be correct.

“By the way, what is the President doing?” It’s been five days since the goblins appeared, why did he still maintain his silence? No press conference, no announcements, and no public appearances. Just what the hell is he doing? It was so strange. From what I know, the President this time around is not this incompetent.

“Well, it’s the same in foreign countries.” Key figures from each country had already visited Korea and confirmed the authenticity of the goblin’s corpse. Perhaps they had also learned about the superpowers of the awakeners and what will happen in the future. Nevertheless, no country had taken concrete steps whatsoever. And about the developer team of Survival Life… There’s no proper information about them as the government is still consistently keeping their silence.

“Don’t tell me they are still waiting for a more conclusive evidence.” I sighed. It makes sense though, if they interviewed hundreds of awakeners, they would undoubtedly know that there will be a zombie-related event that happened before the real apocalypse. Namely, the Russian boat event. Maybe the government was waiting for that event to occur, before deciding their next move.

On the TV, the scene of lawmakers gathering in front of the Blue House and protesting violently were being broadcasted. They hurled many harsh words and expressed their frustration towards the man who is standing against them; the President’s Chief of Staff.

-We only want him to respond accordingly! There is so much evidence already, what more did he need?

-We ask for your understanding.

Even though the Chief of Staff politely bowed his head towards the masses, the slander of the lawmakers only grew even worse.

-Are you sure that the President is still inside?

-By chance, he’s not running away by himself overseas, is he?

That is indeed a fair suspicion. After all, a significant number of people, especially rich people, have already escaped to another country using various excuses to save themselves. They were victims of rumour which stated that Korea would be the first nation in the world to be destroyed because awakeners and zombies only came out in Korea so far. The truth is, however, because the first meteorite will fall on the coast of Japan, Japan and Taiwan would be the first country to be destroyed. Then came Korea.

It was clear as day that the Chief of Staff was uncomfortable because of the lawmakers’ accusation.

-The presidential plane is still sitting in the dock of the national airport. And, don’t you know that his family is still here in Korea?

-Who knows? Maybe that coward left them alone and ran away by himself.

When he heard those words, the Chief of Staff’s calm demeanour changed into rage.

-Your words are too harsh!

-Hey! Calm down! Calm down!

People spurred into their feet as they saw the Chief of Staff jumped into the lawmaker who hurled the sarcastic remark just now. The security guards as well as politicians who had always looked so calm and mighty and only fought using their words now looked so disheveled as they tried to separate the two.

Looking at the attitude of the Chief of Staff, it seems like the President was indeed still in Korea.

“Are you planning on enacting the Martial Law only after a zombie truly appears?” I guess that was a natural course of action to take in this kind of situation. As mentioned in the debate several days ago, suspension of huge infrastructure such as nuclear power plants and gas lines would place a huge burden on Korea. It would be difficult to decide what to do when there is no solid evidence yet.

“Guess I need to leave a few zombies behind to wake them up, huh?” That was the extent of help I could offer.

In the past 2 days, I had already prepared a small rubber boat and had finished building a warehouse with sandwich panels. What was left was just waiting for the event to occur. And finally, when I was watching TV with Dingo around lunchtime, my phone rang.

「Emergency Disaster Text Message.

Tsunami Warning: 30km south of Busan Metropolitan City at 12:21 on July 15th. Residents around the coast should evacuate immediately. 」

At about the same time, news about a meteorite that crashed into the sea near Japan blew up in various internet communities.

This is it.

The zombies have finally arrived.

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NT

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I hurriedly drove to Gamcheon Port. The road was pretty empty. Seems like even though the world is heading to the end, people still want to at least try to survive.

“I can’t be late.” I parked the SUV far away from Gamcheon Port, and continued to trail on foot. Once I came close enough, I went up to one particular building. After checking the Russian fishing boat event several times, I was now well aware that the water level of the incoming tsunami wouldn’t be too high. It would only reach the 2nd floor of a commercial building at most. Of course, that much alone could be considered as a big disaster, but I don’t have to worry too much as I have a rubber boat with me. I would use it to head over towards the Russian fishing boat as soon as the waves calmed down a little. The boat had a motor attached, so moving wouldn’t be a problem.

“I have to finish it before the police arrive.” In the worst case scenario, I could just throw away the rubber boat and escape through the portal before sneaking back after the situation died down.

I waited quietly for the tsunami to come. The area around Gamcheon Port was unbelievably silent. Except for the occasional car horn in the distance and wind sound, I couldn’t really hear anything. In the near future, this silence would be something that humanity will have to live with.

“Well, I’m glad that the zombies can make some noises.” I don’t know if I should consider it as a good thing, but thanks to them, things wouldn’t be too silent to the point where it would drive humans to insanity.

Peep-oooooo…… Peep-oooooo…….

The high-pitched tsunami alarm sound blared. At the same time, the roll of waves got bigger and bigger with every passing second in the distance. It was the tsunami I’ve been waiting for.

“Wow…” I couldn’t find any words except for that. The scene in front of me was just that devastating yet magnificent. It was as if the whole sea had decided to grow taller.

Is it okay for me to be here? That question came to mind. I hurriedly called for the portal. If the tsunami ended up being too high, I was thinking of running away from the event altogether. Nothing was more important than my life, after all.

Dingo whimpered at the scene as he curled himself up and slipped between my legs.

“Get inside.” I said to him. After he entered the portal, I saw a ship over the horizon. Peeking through the telescope, it was a huge fishing boat with the Russian flag flapping on the top of its dock. The huge fishing boat which was supposed to weigh around hundreds of tons bounced around on top of the waves as if it weighed nothing.

“It’s no joke…” My palms were all sweaty as I waited for the tsunami to hit. At some point, the siren had stopped blaring, plunging the surroundings into a dead silence. Only death throes of sea breeze which blows violently remains. And then, the ground shook. Even though I was sure that I would be safe, I couldn’t help but feel scared. What transpired in front of me was after all none other than a natural disaster beyond human control. A force of nature that can’t be defied by any living being. And in five days, a disaster incomparable to this one would also occur.

“I have to endure…” I steeled my mind. Clenching my teeth as hard as I could, I looked straight at the sight of the fishing boat rolling in with the waves. In a single moment, an enormous tidal wave invades the land of Gamcheon Port.

“Damn it.” I couldn’t help but to curse. How can’t I? In front of me, a huge ship collided with a smaller ship and wreaked havoc.

“Ugh!” I came to my senses and looked around. Seawater was coming inside the building. And as expected, the height of the waves was about 2 stories high. On the streets below, vehicles were violently being shoved by the water. And there were sounds of windows breaking from literally everywhere.

I closed the portal and headed to the office on the 3rd floor.

“Anyone here?” I shouted to make sure. When there’s no answer, I looked out the window. The seawater was flowing rapidly 2m below. Then, I started to blow on the rubber boat. It was truly a tiring thing to do. I could barely put enough air into it after a few minutes of intense blowing before smashing open the window in front of me.

I looked carefully at the water current. I need to wait for it to become slow enough for me to jump down towards it with the boat. If not, even though there’s a motor on the boat, there’s a high chance that I’ll be overturned as soon as I touched the waves.

After about 10 minutes, the current finally calmed down.

“At this point, the media should be brimming with news about this tsunami…” Let’s go out of here before they come. I attached a rope to the boat and tied it to a pole. Then, I hurriedly tossed it to the water before jumping off towards it. Once I was onboard, I took out the motor engine and attached it to the boat. Then, I immediately started the engine by pulling the pull cord rope attached to the motor as hard as I could.

Vroooommm-!!

The engine roared. And the boat began to gallop forward. I put my hat on and directed the boat. As I passed through the collapsing buildings, the Russian fishing boat stranded at the pier came to my sight.

“It’s exactly the same…” Its position was exactly the same as the illustration in the backstory of Survival Life. Even the angle of inclination was the same.

“The ladder should be over there.” As I approached the fishing boat, gunshots thundered. So far, all of the development went exactly the same as what I know. My only concern was whether I would be infected by the spores or not.

“Lets just hope that I’ll be fine since I’m an awakened.”

Fear crept into my heart. It was an inevitable feeling to feel even though I had prepared myself. I took a deep breath near the ship, which should have been contaminated by the spores, but I didn’t feel strange at all. “Seems like awakeners truly are immune to the spores.”

There seems to be other conditions other than that, but I brushed it off as there’s no point in thinking about it. Moreover, where I currently am was not a suitable place to think about such things.

I tied the boat to the ladder and climbed onto it. As soon as I reached the deck, a familiar scene welcomed me. Two Russian sailors stood still with their backs hunching. That sloppy attitude… It really has been a while…

“Nice to meet you again, zombies.” Both zombies whipped their heads towards my direction as I said that. At first glance, they look like normal human beings. But if you look closer, their eyes were rolled over and there’s a blue spot all over their face. Currently, they have lost all of their reasoning ability because the spores were already taking root in their brain.

Zombies, a fearful creature that attacks all living things indiscriminately, and would only become stronger once they consume enough energy, had finally appeared.

At that moment, a desperate scream was heard from the direction of the deck house.

Did that scream come from the same person who shot the gun earlier?

After a moment of lull, the zombies start to bare their teeth towards me.

Guaaahhh-!

You know, I’ve always been thinking about it, but wouldn’t it be better for them to just attack straight away instead of roaring first?

I called the portal and took out my mace and shield. In the meantime, with the corner of my eyes, I could see the zombies limping towards me. Oddly enough, I didn’t feel nervous at all. I just felt like I truly was back in the game.

“I’m not sure if it’s a newbie who stood here…” But I was a madman who had dedicated 5,541 hours of my life to Survival Life. Even with my eyes closed, I could avoid the zombie’s attack. Of course, since I only have one life in reality, I wouldn’t do something like that.

While waiting for the zombies to arrive, I even had enough time to take out the motorcycle helmet and put it on. “Close portal.”

The zombies finally arrived in front of me. Without any further ado, I raised the mace and smashed it towards the head of one of the zombies. The sensation of bones breaking transpired into my fingers. It’s really been a long time since I’ve had this refreshing feeling of breaking a skull in a single blow.

The zombie I hit with mace instantly collapsed with its head dented.

“You died with just this much?”

Another zombie approached me with its arms outstretched. But with a light push using my shield, it staggered.

“Go away.”

When I landed an ujima kick into its stomach, it bounced away helplessly. It even rolled several times on the ground.

(T/N Ujima kick, directly translated to don’t come kick. I think it’s something like a Spartan kick?)

It’s really weird. Are zombies supposed to be this weak? From what I remembered, the zombies I faced in the tutorial were not as weak as this.

Are these guys a weakened version of zombies which comes after the difficulty reducing patches?

The zombies that appeared in the beginning of the game often stopped on their tracks randomly because their mind hasn’t been completely taken over by the spores just yet. But these guys were way too weak to the point it’s ridiculous. It’s like their mind and body were acting separately.

The zombie got back to its feet after struggling for quite some time before limping back towards me with it’s arms stretched forward. When It finally reached me, it whipped its head towards me. Out of reflex, I unconsciously moved to the side before swinging my mace towards its head. I didn’t think I swung it with all of my power. And yet, the zombie still died.

「You have earned 4 Points」

“They definitely got easier.” It seemed like these zombies were not even the weakened version of zombie which came with the tutorial difficulty reduction patch but rather the version of zombie which got nerfed so bad in the last patch before the game terminated their service in order to attract more users. Which means, it would be easier for me to do things that I need to do here. I smirked. The chance of the other survivors to survive will also rise exponentially.

Anyway, earlier, without even thinking about it, my body reacted on its own. I felt a warm fuzzy feeling buzzing through my heart. I was proud of myself. Back in the forest, I couldn’t even move like this.

“Is it because I consider the forest as an unfamiliar environment?” Losing a lot of weight might also be the reason. This is not the time to be like this. I have to move quickly and finish what I came for before other people start swarming here.

I quickly ran towards the deck house. When I opened the door, I saw two zombies crutching beside a corpse. A disgusting sound of sticky flesh being chewed echoed throughout the room.

“Shit.” The smell of blood was no joke. As I tried my best to push down the rising acid on my throat, the zombie which was closest to me stood up and screeched at me.

Kaaaah!

“Wait a minute.” I blocked it with the shield and opened the iron door at my side.

Is this place the cafeteria as well as the storage?

A large can of mayonnaise stood out amongst all things inside. It seems that it’s true that Russians love mayonnaise. Aside from that, there should be a large amount of food kept here, but I didn’t have the time to enjoy the scenery.

I once again raised my mace and bashed the zombie’s head. Once it collapsed, another zombie greeted me with the same screech from behind the collapsing zombie.

“The hallway is very narrow, isn’t it?” it was only wide enough for a person to pass through. Therefore, I only had to watch my back if I just blocked the front with my shield. On top of it, I could just attack them with my mace while defending. Just like this…

Crack!

The zombie fell to the ground as its skull broke. However, it wouldn’t be this easy once the corrosive disease strikes. No matter how strong the war club was, in the end it was only made of ebony—a very durable wood. Therefore, it’s hardness couldn’t be compared to a metal-made weapon.

“The difference in power can clearly be seen when it takes only one hit to kill zombies with a metal mace, while with the war club, it’ll probably take around 2 or 3 hits.”

「You have earned 4 Points」

I stepped over the dead zombie and moved forward. Just where is the captain’s office? From what I know, for a fishing boat this huge, the captain’s office was often doubled as a control room.

As I walked down the hallway, I flinched as a loud banging came from a metal door on my side. Looks like they were in the cabin when they turned into zombies. And now as they were nothing but a mindless creature, they were trapped inside the room without any way to come out. From the small windows attached to the door, I could see three zombies chaotically pushing and biting each other. It was a bizarre scene, but at the same time, it’s quite funny. Maybe because back in Survival Life, the scene in front of me was an everyday thing.

“Let’s just go.” Looting the guns and running away was more important than a mere 12 points. Moreover, I also promised myself to leave some zombies behind for the government. Those three zombies would undoubtedly serve that purpose very well.

When I opened the door located in the middle of the hallway, on the floor, I found a corpse and a corpse of a zombie. Seeing that the man was not in work clothes, it seems like he was the captain. Next to him was a Tokarev, a semi-automatic pistol.

“The ammunition is more important than this. I need to find where the bullets are first, or else the gun itself wouldn’t have any use.”

When I opened the nearby door, I saw the steering wheel as well as a bed. They say that Russian sailors often hide something under their beds. Therefore, I put my hand beneath the bed and rummaged around. And indeed, something touched my finger.

“Ohh.” When I took it and checked it out, I couldn’t help but exclaim. It was a box full of bullets.

“There’s about 100 bullets.” Unfortunately, it’s not a 9mm ammo.

Just what kind of divine joke is this? How could all of the pistols that I looted didn’t share the same ammo?

I called the portal and moved both the pistol and the ammo box into it. At the same time, Dingo barked and ran at me as soon as he saw me.

“Dingo, not yet, don’t come over.”

I also searched the captain’s office, but found nothing worth looting. Now that I have finished my business, it’s time to escape. As I passed the hallway, the mayonnaise in the cafeteria where I killed zombies earlier beckoned me. There’s also a row of big canned food around it.

“Eugh… Yeah, let’s do this.” Even if I could tolerate other things, I couldn’t just stand still knowing that a large amount of food was being abandoned. I put the mayonnaise, ketchup, canned food and other foods into the portal. After moving those things, I heard the sound of a helicopter from somewhere.

Is it a radio station helicopter?

There’s no more time. I ran down the deck, climbed the ladder, and got into the boat. As I cut the rope and turned the motor on, I saw something approaching from afar.

“Huh?”

Does anyone have the same thoughts as me?

Whoever that person was, they also had a rubber boat, stab-proof suit and motorcycle helmet. The person looked at me and flinched. The two of us stared blankly at each other. I wanted to ask who they were, but I couldn’t open my mouth. In the end, I quietly got out of the pier with my boat.

Meanwhile, helicopter rotors echoed loudly from the sky above.

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A sudden tsunami which make a Russian fishing boat stranded on the Gamcheon Port drew a lot of attention from the people. Various broadcasting stations delivered the video taken by drone to the people.

In the video, a human-like creature which came out from one of the crew’s rooms was recorded vividly. They roamed the deck for a while before revealing their teeth towards the helicopter which approached them.

A reporter dispatched to the scene said:

―A-as y-you can see, t-they don’t look n-normal…

Hundreds of comments were pouring in on the broadcast station’s MeTube’s live stream, asking them to kill the zombies quickly.

“Are you sure it’s a zombie?” Most people didn’t know much about zombies. They were just asking them to kill it because they looked grotesque. After a while, another helicopter arrived and circled around the fishing boat while broadcasting in Russian. As the whole process was being broadcasted live, it was only natural that there was an uproar.

Meanwhile, news broke out that the President had cancelled all of his schedules and departed for Busan.

“But you shouldn’t get too close…” Because the exact contamination method of the spores was yet to be uncovered. There are a lot of robots these days, right? How about deploying them first to check the situation?

I arranged the looted material one by one in my cave while watching the TV through the portal.

And I also found out that there was a large hole in the plastic box trap I had installed to catch the scarabs. When I checked the CCTV video, I saw the scarabs gnawing at the wall from the inside. Another guy joined in and gnawed at the wall from the outside. After some time passed, they successfully created a hole in it. In an orderly fashion, all the scarabs who were trapped inside went out with the jelly on their hand.

What’s with all these guys?

“Crazy…” I laughed out loud. What they stole was a sweet potato flavored jelly just like before. And they also left a single grape again.

“I will catch these guys.” I have to catch them and let them play with the sweet potato flavored jelly until they are satisfied.

As I finished arranging my loot, I headed out towards my house. In the news, a report about the President arriving in Busan was being delivered. Then, from the helicopter, the police shot and killed the zombies on the deck. It seems like the President had given them his command.

The drone slowly approached the deck. Then, the President’s expression turned gloomy. He slightly moved his head. Seems like he was asking the people next to him about what to do. I’m not sure though, as there was no sound coming out except from the announcer’s voice.

However, by reading the movement of the mouth of the man who seemed to be an awakened, I could guess what he was saying.

The conversation probably went like this.

-Please check if it is truly a zombie.

-It is.

With that, the next thing I had to do was decided.