Chapter.3 For that handful of silver coins (2)
***
Square Square –
“Chiral Tech Shower Booth Set for Small Shelter…. How much is it?”
“This 217,800 shillings….”
“Two Z-type air purifiers….
“The two together cost 160,000 shillings.
“Six…six…ten thousand….”
If you want to live a long time in the wasteland, you shouldn’t dwell too much on the past. Why do you say that? Something like, ‘Oh, you who survived, aren’t the remaining days too beautiful to look back?’
I lost my temper, smashed half of my corduroy, collapsed, and fell asleep. The next morning,
the first thing I thought when I opened my eyes was, ‘It’s already too late.’
Isn’t it much more economical to take the time to find a way out rather than just sigh and embrace what you’ve done?
So, I’ve been sitting in this brightly lit living room since morning, organizing the purchase list sent from Dome along with my half-broken Corduroy drone.
We need to confirm the extent of the damage before we can decide how to deal with it.
“Active reactive automatic turret-mounted type.”
“Uh… um… I got it for cheap. I heard that the installation of shelters has decreased these days…”
“Corduro.”
“932000 shillings….”
Snap!
“Lord, I have committed a mortal sin!”
“No. It is not a mortal sin, but a ‘mortal sin.’ “Because thanks to you, I ended up dying.”
Phew.
I played with my pencil, constantly counting the letters ‘忍’ in my mind. Inner piece, inner piece~ I wonder why they keep doing this even outside of the game.
If it’s my fault, it’s my fault. This is because the decision-making freedom of Shelter AI is set to the highest level, ‘Anything is possible as long as the three principles are not violated.’
There was no choice. I live alone in a wasteland where I don’t know what will happen at any moment,
and I’m on the verge of death, but I hear ‘Corduro!’ Overload the turret and blow away everyone on the turret!’ I said, ‘Beep beep – I don’t have permission to damage the residence.’ You can’t do it, right?
I needed a colleague who could think independently on my behalf in case of unexpected situations.
‘….So it took four months.’
Ugh, stupid Professor Park, complacent Professor Park! Why did you let this crazy colt-like AI off the leash!
bang! bang! bang!
“Lord master! calm down! Then my head cracked!”
“Oh, it’s okay. Because I am punishing myself for being complacent in the past. Leave it alone. “Call me next time.”
After a while of agony and suffering, I was at a loss for words when I finally saw the completed list in front of me.
==========
Chiral Tech shower booth set for small shelter – 217800
Chiral
Tech
Z
-type air purifier
1 bag of corn seeds – 5000
Life End Murder
all-purpose bulletproof uniform – 90000 Nostalgic Days luxury tableware set – 22500 Genuine Happy Blind Mountain non
-powered alpha wave sleep inducer – 50000
(direct transaction) Player ‘DOOMgay’ antique double barrel shotgun – 420000
Life End Murder Small Auxiliary Shield Generator – 200000
Drone repair parts (shell built-in tool floatation device) set – 50000
Total: 2397300 Sil
==========
“Hahahahahahaha….”
fluttering. –
Toouk.
240. That’s a whopping 2.4 million. Ah, I’m going crazy. It’s driving me crazy!
Clap clap clap.
The number was so huge that applause broke out.
“Hey. The receipt is very real. The egg is full. “It was heavy and difficult to hold, so I dropped it.”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Who would have thought that broadcasting would fall into ruin so suddenly…”
“How long is the repayment date?”
“A generous 10 days… about…”
“Fuck you, day robbers.”
Ten days. 2.4 million in 10 days.
When I saw Corduroy fidgeting next to me, I couldn’t help but sigh. If it had been something like this because it was so bad, I would have just cursed it out loud.
As I wrote down the list, all the items I bought looked familiar.
‘Ah shower! I want to take a shower! I want to take a hot shower! Corduroy! ‘Why take a cold shower when you have no use for energy?’
‘Hey Corduroy. Humanly speaking, we live in a wasteland, but shouldn’t we be able to breathe comfortably at home? The sound of that modified vacuum cleaner/air purifier running is going to make my eardrums explode!’
‘Cough! Oh, it hurts so bad. I really almost fell behind. If there had been just one more person, it would have been easily stopped. ‘You’ve caught all the mutants that came this time, right?’
‘I want to eat something sweet.’
‘Oh this? not a big deal. The pipe shotgun barrel exploded again.’
‘Cocorduro, we’re not going to die like this, right? How did you survive until now, but freezing to death is too much? That’s really… too much.’
‘Corduro.’
‘Corduro!!’
‘Koooooodurooooo!!!’
“…I have a useless memory. “It’s like a damn machine.”
What can you do? Whatever it is, Corduroy is my last remaining family member in the world. Since I’ve prevented him from committing suicide dozens of times, I guess I should at least pay for his life this time.
***
08:00 AM
“Protective suit”
“Confirmed.”
“Gas mask.”
“I took care of it.”
“goggles.”
“check.”
“map.”
“I take that with me when I sleep.”
“Armed.”
“A homemade pipe shotgun, twenty-four shotgun shells, a homemade machete, and 15 mL of gasoline.”
“Hmm? That’s it? Why don’t you take a Molotov cocktail with you?”
“It’s so heavy that it makes me sluggish. Where are you going to go to war? On this road, prayer and secrets are more important than combat skills.”
“That’s true, but… I guess you can take care of everything. So you’ve taken care of everything, right?”
“Oh, that’s right. I’m carrying about 10 meters of waste wire.”
“Why the wire?”
“Use it as a substitute for rope. It’s tough, has high friction, and is elastic. There’s nothing else like it. Take it off the warehouse list.”
Before heading out, I filled my stomach with the tasteless calorie bar Corduro made and then cross-checked the condition of the equipment.
“Still, I’m glad there’s a direct seller involved. If I do it right, I can get a refund.”
“The name was Player ‘DOOMgay’…. I thought it was a bit surprising that there was a direct transaction among the items posted on the marketplace, but do you really have to do a face-to-face transaction?”
“It’s a consignment sale. I don’t know why, but I want to see the face and do business. In this world, if you say, ‘I need to see the face,’ when you sell something, 99% of the people are scammers or robbers. We post direct transactions through marketplaces that are reputable sellers.”
Marketplace is the name of a huge merchant association that controls the Dome’s commercial area.
It is famous for selling good products at bad prices, but at least it has a good reputation as it has never committed fraud.
“Anyway, I guess you will be a little busy today?”
“That’s right. The place we’re supposed to meet is near District 43. While we’re on the way, we’ll have to look around to see if there’s anything useful, and we’ll also have to meet the shotgun seller and convince him, and while we’re at District 43, we’ll stop by Old Man Woojin’s to get some medicine. I might not be able to come in for a few days.”
“Hmm… you took care of the preserved food, right?”
In response to Corduro’s question, I wordlessly showed him the brick-like calorie bar and water bottle that I had stored inside my vest.
“I hope you come back safely this time, too.”
“Okay. I’m sure you haven’t forgotten what you have to do at home, right?”
“Yep! Of course!”
A situation where almost 2.4 million people have a debt that is impossible to repay. The reason
two people, or even just one person and an AI, can move so enthusiastically is because they encountered a ray of hope.
Last night, for a moment, I was wondering if it was really possible. I tried logging in to GG again. It’s a given that he’s dead, but he’s still done something good, so I was wondering if they’d put the money he would receive as a reward in the grave at the time of the funeral. If he receives that, it will be treated as something the player has earned and can be spent on the exchange.
Death processing Even if I do, the system window pops up with the ending credits, so I log in with the thought that I should transfer as much as I can –
tirring!
[No access. The character ‘Professor’ is out of control / 145:24:33 /]
“.. ..uh?”
Tiring-!
[Unable to connect. The character ‘Professor’ is out of control / 145:24:31/]
No matter how many times I tried, it was the same. Unable to connect. The character is not ‘dead’ but ‘out of control’. .
I’ve heard of cases like this. Apparently, the character goes to jail, gets overpowered by an enemy, or…
“falls into a coma!”
I’m not dead. I’m not dead yet! That means that that big, fragile character survived!
The timer next to it is probably the time until the out-of-control state ends. I don’t know how things are going, but if my character isn’t dead yet, I can collect money. It’s not that there is no way.
“If the broadcasting industry’s money-making normalizes again in 140 hours and 5 days, it won’t be necessary, but since I don’t know what will happen in the future, I will move in the direction of making as much money as possible.
In the meantime, Corduroy, you can’t come in because your character has been upset by people in the chat room. “I keep looking at my character’s status. They say there are cases where he suddenly wakes up from a coma.”
“yes!”
All you have to do is survive. As long as you survive. Since you were like a corpse from the start anyway. Please just stay alive, you damn professor.
“I’m coming. Take a good look at the house.”
“Yep! Let’s go!”
With that prayerful heart, the professor left the shelter.
***
Four, four, four.
A man was carefully traversing a path covered with thick sand. The 40th division was the farthest from the range of nuclear warheads dropped in this area. District.
Thanks to this, the population density compared to other areas is not high enough to be described as… but anyway, it was a place where people lived and there were quite a few buildings from the old civilization. Especially between District 47, where I live, and District 43, my destination. In the case of District 45, it was a place that escaped the fire of the war to the extent that there was a building that maintained its neat original shape right after the war.
‘A three-way intersection with a 10-story building. It is against the left wall and is safe up to 3 paces.’
And the well-preserved city became a mecca of plunder to acquire any remaining resources in the chaos that followed, and the scavengers who gathered there were left with almost no resources left due to their grudges and interests intertwined with the numerous battles. I settled down in this city, and the result is the current Looting Arena in District 45. Professor
Ssak
took out a map covered in unrecognizable scribbles and marked an X with a small piece of charcoal at the reference point in front of him. Painted.
‘On the 5th floor of the building on the left side of the three-way intersection. A barricade has suddenly appeared on the window. Since there are no resources left in this area, it can be seen as a structure for cover. So… from here to the inside road is all diagonal. ‘You should think of it as going into.’
A high-rise building with all its windows ripped out and empty. Debris falling onto the road from a half-destroyed building. A structure that is good for hiding and attacking passing travelers no matter where it is placed. Numerous notes on the map indicate where each location is aimed. It was a kind of survival guide written step by step, with meticulous markings on where the squares and where the diagonals were. After acquiring this map a few years ago after killing a scavenger here, I had constantly replenished it every time I passed through Area 45, so it was quite reliable. ‘
….Write it down. No matter how I look at it, it looks like there’s one person waiting around there…’
There was no specific indicator that there was an enemy, so it was just a feeling. A strange feeling of discomfort. A piece of rubble that wasn’t there before and looked perfect for taking cover.
The professor was at a crossroads. At the end, I look at the broken mirror and find my tongue. The reason I came this way was because I was able to look at both sides through that curved mirror from a relatively safe position, but looking at the sharp stone fragments and bullet marks that fell around, there was a recent battle in this area, and in the process, the few remaining pieces of the mirror fell off completely. It looks like it.
‘I see that there are arrows, so one side is a Hound Scav and the other side… Who are the people here that are hostile to the Hound Scav? Benny anarchist? ‘Wanderer?’
If I had known the identity, it would have been helpful in revising the jurisdiction. There are hound scams everywhere, so this isn’t particularly helpful information.
The professor, who had been listening to the surrounding noises while holding his breath, sighed softly and took out a shotgun shell from his pocket and loaded it. It seemed like there was no way to get out of this alley without risk.
-Crash.
In a city filled with only the sound of the wind passing by, the sound of a heavy 12-gauge bullet settling into place resonated, and the moment the professor stretched his legs, there was a thud
!
Rattling. Clatter rattle rattle rattle.
A dusty hand came out from behind the rubble where the enemy was expected to be hiding and threw three stones in the professor’s direction.
This is the signal I used when I was in the military. A signal used when encountering an unknown force in a place where voice signals are limited. Three stones flying precisely in the direction of concealment. That means I know you’re there and have no intention of engaging.
‘….avoiding combat is the best way. If you fight here, all the scavengers around you will come. But if it was a trap…
I was very disappointed at the moment when my waist was empty. If you brought a Molotov cocktail like Corduro said. How important is a throwing weapon that can be fired in such an urban battle? The other person is even a former soldier. When encountered as an enemy, they are twice as dangerous as regular scavengers.
After thinking for a while, the professor came to a conclusion. He groped the nearby floor, picked up three small pieces of stone, and then threw them one after another toward the wreckage where his opponent was.
Knock, knock, degurr –
First of all, we conveyed that we had no intention of attacking each other. The professor slowly put out the muzzle of his gun,
and on the
other side, a stooped man wearing clothes similar to the professor was slowly walking out with both hands raised above his head.
Just
like the professor from before, the man who was close to the wall, very wary of his surroundings, came closer and spoke in a voice hoarse from anticipation on the other side of the debris that the professor was hiding behind.
“Hey hey. Outsider. Put the gun down. If you shoot here, you and I will both die. “What are you doing?”
“….just a person passing by. you?”
“…If you say so, I’m just a scavenger too. “What unit did you serve in?”
“Are we close enough to chat like this?”
“Kihit, you’re a heartless guy.”
Although he said so, the professor also slowly lowered his gun. Since the other party had made enough concessions to expose themselves first, we had to adjust to some extent.
“…I’m moving to the next area for a while because of money.”
“Yes, it was an obvious reason. But if it’s the next district… 47th district? Am I right?”
The professor nodded and the man chuckled hoarsely.
“You came at an amazing time.”
“Is there something wrong?”
“You have cancer. “A very cool guy.”
Green onions!
Slam!
Suddenly, the hand of the man who came next to the professor moved like lightning, and at the same time, the professor’s gun was aimed at his head.
“You’re such a sensitive friend. “If I continue to stay in this neighborhood like that, my nerves will explode.”
“What are you doing?”
“Well. “I’m about to do a favor to a comrade who is slow to keep up to date with the latest information.”
In an instant, the man took the map from the professor’s pocket and took out a stick of pencil from behind his ear.
“Wow, you made it with great sincerity. “This is pretty cool…”
The man, who was observing the map with amused eyes, picked up a pencil and started coloring in the entire area 45.
“Hey what are you doing!”
“Oh wait a minute. Because it all has meaning.”
In an instant, the note the professor had made was covered in black graphite, and the man put saliva on his finger and erased a circular dot on the black background.
“There you are. Latest information from the 45th district.”
Slam!
“….I had a great time meeting you. Comrade in arms. Goodbye”
“Kihihi!” “You’re a friend who has a taste for pranks!”
widely.
The man’s crinkled finger pointed at the pure white area of 45 bodies that had been erased with saliva.
“There was a pretty big battle here yesterday. The raptors came to do something, but they messed with a group of scavengers, so they and their allies came out like a swarm of bees and a battle broke out. “I could hear gunfire and bombs exploding all night long, so I was able to sleep well for the first time in a long time. Kihihi!”
no wonder. I heard that the atmosphere in District 45 was slightly different from usual.
“Just the point.”
“This guy’s personality is so… he won’t live long. The area where this battle took place was the only no-man’s land in District 45.
It was a block with the largest building in the area, but when this building collapsed, several nearby buildings that were already in danger collapsed one after another, burying the entire block. I didn’t even dare to break into it, and I thought it was a place that was already robbed anyway, so no one cared about it.
However, during this battle, the bomb exploded and some debris from the building flew away, opening the way. “Do you know what was there?”
….gulp.
The professor swallowed his saliva without realizing it. A city with so much to dig into that it was called a massive looting arena. An area in such a city that was closed off in the early days of the war.
“No way… I heard there’s something left?”
“Kill, kill, kill!” no! They said there was nothing clean. “On earth.”
“On the ground?”
“Why are you still not interested?”
No, I became interested. So much so that I can see the illusion of Schilling pouring down in my head.
Looking at the professor with his mouth open, the man lowered the scarf around his head and laughed like a bad boy.
“okay. There was an underground building under the debris that no one knew about! According to the rumor, it appears to be the remnants of a large-scale shelter complex built by rich people knowing that Area 45, a strategically useless area, was a safe zone.
“Right now, not only the scavengers from Area 45 but also those with open ears nearby are flocking here!”
The short man spoke with a dreamy face, forgetting to lower his voice.
“The huge treasure chest that was sleeping peacefully while an entire block was in ruins has now been opened five years later!”
***
