147 – 30. 2 Days and 1 Night
“What kind of existence is this…?”
Kim Eun-ha quietly pondered what she had just said in response to the arbitrator’s smiling face.
But that wasn’t a question.
It was clear anger.
“Arbitrator.”
“Why is that so?”
“You wouldn’t know that my father-in-law is Namgoong Min.”
Jeojeok.
The teacup cracks, and an ominous mood rises.
The employees and guards standing behind broke into a cold sweat due to the unusual momentum.
Nevertheless, I did not forget to prepare for battle.
Not to target Princess Kim Eun-ha, but to target the mediator as soon as the order is given.
In the factional dispute between the emperor and the prince, since the prince won with the help of the princess and the dictator, the princess was clearly a member of the prince’s faction and a powerful figure in the imperial family.
No matter how much he is the head of the judiciary and one of the three consuls, he can handle even killing him.
Especially among the prince’s faction, there was no one who knew what feelings Kim Eun-ha had for Namgoong Min, so the air in her drawing room became heated.
Kim Eun-ha, who is awakening
And dozens of people who are showing hostility.
Despite all the attention, the arbitrator’s smile never disappeared.
“Do you dare to drive a wedge between couples?”
“I’m sorry, princess. I don’t think your husband knows that he’s married to you.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It doesn’t matter… Doesn’t it?”
“If Min accepts, that’s it. If Min refuses, you can just offer it again.”
“…Until you accept it?”
“Even if I die of old age.”
“You seem to be quite innocent.”
“Then I will ask.”
A red-eyed monster materializing
Emerges from behind Kim Eun-ha.
Salsim, wearing a blood-red crown and looking down at the arbiter with creepy eyes, stretched out his hand.
Toward the arbitrator’s neck.
“Do you think I still wonder what kind of person Namgoong Min is?”
“……………….”
“Since the Arbiter has been loyal to the Imperial Household for a long time, I will give you one last chance.”
“…What is it?”
“Just stay quiet and go back. That’s the end of your role.”
“……I will follow what you say.”
*
32,589,612.
This was the number of gates last confirmed by the US government 20 years ago.
“If the gate is that bad, the monsters…”
“……Usually…There are…More than a thousand…At…One gate…”
Crazy.
So, that means there are at least 30 billion monsters, but it’s not just ordinary gates in the United States.
There must be a lot more than just that huge gate blocking the sunlight right now.
There is no comparison in the number of monsters inside.
It was not for nothing that the United States, a superpower, fell.
“Then aren’t we in danger too? There are dozens of gates that can be seen.”
“It’ll be okay….”
“Really?”
“This city’s gates… Have all been taken care of…”
“I see.”
At least this city is a safe zone.
I listened to the hero’s words, but wherever I looked, there was only a gate, so I couldn’t help but feel nervous.
Luckily, there are artifacts given by Liu, so I won’t be attacked and killed, but there’s still something you don’t know.
“Is your destination within this city?”
“……That’s right…….”
“Exactly, where is it?”
“City Hall……official residence…….”
“You mean City Hall?”
What is in the city hall of this ghost town, or rather the gate city?
If it’s a strange city hall, it may not be what I expect.
Anyway, I had no idea where this place was, let alone going to the city hall, so I had no choice but to follow the warrior as he walked around as if he was familiar with it.
It was definitely a big city with millions of people living there.
Now, only the useless and ominous gate was taking over the city as if it were its owner.
I followed the hero like that for a while.
The warrior stopped walking when he saw a building that looked like the city hall in the distance.
“Hero?”
“………In front…”
“In front? I can only see the gate.”
“About 1km…Ahead…There’s a sign…”
“…!”
Presence.
Of course, I don’t know anything about presence or anything, but the warrior’s senses can’t be wrong.
The hero narrowed his eyes as he held the handle of the great sword as if he were wary of what was ahead.
There is no presence in this city.
I followed the warrior moving behind the abandoned car and whispered softly.
“Are you a monster?”
“…That’s not….”
“Then…?”
“People…….”
People?
A person?
People in a city that has been abandoned for over 20 years?
“Is this a common occurrence?”
“……That can’t be possible….”
“Then there are three possibilities.”
“……Three…?”
“First, the civilian who somehow escaped the gate incident was still alive.”
“……………….”
The warrior’s silence was the answer.
Even if we assume that the gate here is not dangerous because all the monsters have already poured out, the problem is having enough food to last 20 years.
‘The ecosystem around the gate will be destroyed.’
I heard that one gate can devastate an entire mountain due to the endless amount of monsters and plants beyond the gate.
There are as many gates in this city as there are buildings, so at least not only this city but also all the plants and animals nearby have died.
Even though it was a ghost town with no people, there wasn’t even a common rat or insect to be seen.
‘The only way is to get food from inside the gate.’
Those who go on expeditions beyond the gate do not take separate food with them for no reason.
In the other world beyond the gate, there are only a handful of plants and animals that have been proven edible by humans.
I won’t be able to last even 20 days, let alone 20 years.
“Second, they are from outside, just like us.”
“That’s not….”
“I think the same thing. I heard that everyone entering the United States must get permission in advance, and that we are the only ones entering this city.”
In addition to this city on the Pacific side, there are quite a few routes to the ruined United States.
However, everything must be strictly managed and officially approved.
He is a representative of the United States, so he passed with a free pass, but I never heard of anyone in this city.
Then the last thing left is the last thing left.
“Third, he is a thief.”
“……Thief…….”
“It’s an official route, so you have to get permission… But it’s different for those who came in illegally in the first place.”
I heard about it in theory class.
There are people who are secretly stealing military supplies and other resources remaining in the United States.
“How many are there?”
“…I’m not sure…But…About twenty…”
“That’s tricky.”
Most of the people who steal like this are people who have jobs.
This is because gates and monsters are widespread in the United States, so the chances of ordinary people surviving them are very low.
Why would someone with a job that is treated as a high-class person do this?
Of course, these are people whose abilities are poor or who have a bad back.
“What do you want to do? It looks like it’s in the direction of City Hall.”
“……Do you have any thoughts……?”
“Are you asking me? Well… It’s not like it doesn’t exist.”
In fact, if you put your mind to it, you will get away with it at best, and 20 people with jobs are not even worth mentioning.
Of course, not me, but the hero.
Still, if you were asking about my intentions…… I guess you want to avoid seeing blood as much as possible.
“Force is probably the most convenient.”
“…Bleeding…In front of City Hall…Isn’t allowed…”
“Well, I understand. Then just follow me and swing your great sword when I give the signal.”
“……? Blood…….”
“You won’t bleed, so don’t worry.”
*
“Just make sure to do this to me, damn it.”
The people are also in trouble when they come to steal.
A tent installed on an abandoned main street.
The boy who was sorting out the stolen goods inside let out a disgruntled curse.
If I hadn’t been caught pickpocketing a week ago, I wouldn’t have lost all my money and ended up in a place like this.
Do the thieves who are distributing food in front of City Hall right now know about this hardship?
“Is it okay if I’m the youngest? Just don’t distribute it properly.”
This is America. I mean America.
This is the homeland of my parents who have already passed away, and a place that no one in their right mind would even dare to enter.
The thief leader was yelling that it was absolutely safe, but he seemed really rude about putting other people in front every time he passed a place with many gates.
Well, to put it bluntly, it was a place where there was nothing strange about monsters appearing anytime and anywhere.
“Ugh, it’s done.”
Guns, bullets, various jewelry, and old dollars were found throughout the city.
Of course, it’s not a lot of money to risk your life for, but honestly, it’s true that you earn a lot more compared to the intensity of the work.
Nothing really happened except that it was ominous because it was full of gates.
Nevertheless, the thieves who had been here quite a few times just kept repeating the words to be careful.
Sometimes monsters pop out from gates in the corners of the city.
These words were not very credible to the boy, who had been continuing his tedious search for safety for ten days already.
If you say that honestly, you will be beaten, so just obey.
Still, there were a lot of empty buildings, so it was nice that I could go anywhere I wanted and stay alone.
As long as we gathered at a set time, there was no problem doing anything during our free time.
“I’m the youngest who lives alone, have you finished tidying up?”
“All done, done! Captain!”
“Okay. Are you going to live alone today too?”
“…Isn’t it my freedom?”
“Even if you looked pretty, you already had a hole in you. You’re as ugly as a picture, so it’s okay to stay alone.”
“Ah, I understand.”
“Tsk, anyway. This is your portion.”
Jalang.
“…Is it real?”
“Why? Too many?”
“How many gems have I found, but am I only able to get them into one ring?!”
“What? I was especially generous, so you’re criticizing me for this? Are you going to come to your senses if you get beaten to the dust again?”
“You’d better hit me! Hit me and if you feel sorry for me, throw me some jewels── Huh!?”
“A young bastard’s bastard to an adult.”
A boy who was unexpectedly kicked in the solar plexus is exhaling in pain.
The grim-looking man called the captain made a disgusted expression.
“Ah, you’re so f*cking ugly. You’re such a bastard that I don’t even have the pleasure of hitting you.”
“Kuhuhuh, khuhuhuhuh…….”
“It’s a shame, so I’ll take this jewel too. Ignoring people’s good intentions…?”
“Kuheook……?”
The man, who was looking down at the boy with contemptuous eyes, gradually became more slurred.
And as if he couldn’t understand.
He took a step back as if he was frightened.
The moment the boy let out a heavy breath at the incomprehensible response and turned around.
“……Huh?”
Hand.
There was a hand.
Human hands, not much different from those of a boy or man.
If that were all, I would somehow understand it.
If the hand had reached out from beyond the gate, it would be a different story.
“Uh, uh…?”
The hand moves. All five fingers move in different directions, wiggling, mumbling, and twisting against each other.
The more you look at it, the more uncomfortable it becomes, with unpleasant movements that seem as if something is imitating a human hand.
Hands were gradually reaching out from the gate.
“No way…!”
The man hesitated and stepped back, and the boy remained frozen, as if he did not understand what was happening before his eyes.
The hand slowly approached the boy who was getting closer and closer.
Soon, it bloomed upright with five fingers attached like a sword.
In the air, swing it.
It was an act that both the man and the boy could not understand.
Ka-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-gag!!!!
The building is cut at the exact angle at which the hand blade was struck.
The building behind the man and boy collapsed with an eerie crunching sound.
The man, who finally realized that it was not the hand of a human being, turned pale and shouted.
“Mo, mo, monster!!!!”
Monster.
A term used to refer to all types of animals that come out beyond the gate.
Although he was a porter, the man who had also participated in the gate raid trembled with his hands and feet.
Monsters are literally monsters.
No matter how much of a job you have, these monsters can be easily killed.
A monster that can destroy a building with a single, seemingly trivial gesture.
There is no way we can be your opponent.
“Sigh!! Save me!!!”
“Great, great, great! Take me too!!!”
“Get the f*ck away! Get the f*ck away!”
Puck. Puck. Puck!
The boy who grabbed the ankle of a man who was trying to run away was unable to resist the man’s kick and fell down.
The boy weakly stretched out his hand towards the man.
The man had already run away without looking back.
“Ah…….”
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The boy’s vision was blurred by the flowing blood, as if he had been kicked in a bad spot earlier.
My consciousness was gradually sinking.
Suddenly.
At the nape of the neck.
Something cold.
It has been reached.
“Uh…Uh…”
Something cold was writhing and groping all over my neck.
Within.
He grabbed the boy’s neck.
“Ok….”
From my neck, I feel the cold death.
I was terrified of death and my pants were wet.
The last thing the boy saw as he was gradually fainting from fear was.
“Huh? That’s an unexpected face.”
“……Gwake.”
Laughing creepyly as if he were a person.
He was the master of the hand.