Hiding a House in the Apocalypse - Chapter 461



Only Noblemtl

185. Railway (1)

After the war, the rest of the provinces, except for the metropolitan area, were abandoned.

It’s a fact that everyone knows but ignores.

It is generally known that after the war, the metropolitan cities were managed primarily, but the metropolitan cities collapsed under the pressure of divisions, and the proliferation of warlords and erosion naturally led to their demise.

I also once collected information about the region from a Mayan bulletin board where local users gathered, but it didn’t last long.

The information that came up was all dry and depressing, and most of all, the users on the Mayan bulletin board were disappearing one after another.

However, the fat is not completely eliminated.

Humanity is more resilient than we think.

They say that even in the land of death that has turned gray, they are steadily building a foundation for life and preparing for tomorrow.

“Princess,” whom Kang Han-min commissioned me to do, was one of those characters.

Contrary to her nickname, Princess, the man is said to be a healthy man and lives with a group of survivors in a place called “Tunnel City.”

“When a large-scale eruption was observed in the Gochang Crack, all the survivors in the area were thought to have died, but the unexpected happened. In a place where there were no troops or hunters, only abandoned survivors, someone wiped out dozens of waves at once.”

Kang Han-min is the only person who has any contact with the man called Princess.

His confidant and cult leader, Yoo Yang-seo, explained what happened at the time on Kang Han-min’s behalf.

“How did you know?”

Yoo Yang-seo waved the K-walkie-talkie.

In areas around Seoul where radio waves have been restored, K-walkie-talkies are not widely used, as they are pushed out by more advanced and convenient cell phones, but in rural areas and suburban areas where radio waves cannot reach, K-walkie-talkies are extremely convenient and are the ultimate means of communication.

The personal identification number called PRINCESS belongs to that mysterious Awaken.

“After looking up the personal identification number called Princess, it seems to have been given to the commander of a Patriot air defense missile unit deployed in Jeonbuk Province. I suspect that the radio may have ended up in that person’s hands when the unit was destroyed.”

Kang Han-min is said to have communicated with the mysterious Awaken several times via radio.

They say they got along well at first.

On one side, he was in a position to provide massive support to a national hero, while on the other side, he was a powerful Awaken who was unknown but had great power and could be used as a quick-fire weapon.

But something happens that causes their relationship to fall apart.

“That person made an unreasonable demand of Kang Min-soo.”

The princess asked Kang Han-min to send a plane to where she was and bring all 20,000 people to Jeju.

No matter how powerful Jeju was at the time, it was impossible to send a large-scale air force to an eroded area without an airport and transport 20,000 people to Jeju.

Kang Min-gang replied that he would prepare immediately for less than 500 people and take his time to prepare for up to a thousand people, but the princess did not respond.

“But maybe it wouldn’t be so bad now.”

Yoo Yang-seo handed me a document.

*

As of noon, the affiliation of No. 803 has changed.

Southern Regional Investigative Detachment.

The plan is to dispatch a large-scale investigation team to understand the current status and current situation of the southern region, which has been under erosion for a long time.

The history of the plan is surprisingly old, and it is said that it existed in paper plan form even before Kang Han-min closed the Jeju crack.

During the Seoul-Incheon period, we succeeded in securing a sufficient number of Awakens, but most of them were residents of the metropolitan area, and we were unable to secure the Awakens who appeared among those who remained in the provinces.

However, at the time, local warlords who were hostile to the central government were firmly entrenched, and Jeju was also making all-out efforts to close the rift, so the plan failed to be realized. However, it was considered a feasible task for the government, which had lost a majority of the Awaken in Jeju and had re-established its power in the metropolitan area.

Of course, the top priority is the princess.

According to reports, he lives with his supporters in a highway area not far from Ulsan.

This is the so-called “tunnel city.”

Tunnel City is literally a new residential area created by people gathering in a place that was once used as a highway tunnel.

Due to the nature of the tunnel, entrances and exits are limited, making it easy to defend, and as it was a place where cars would race at speeds of over 100 km/h, the interior space is twice as wide as that of a subway.

Due to the nature of the mountainous region, it is easy to obtain water and firewood, and since the area is primarily a road, if the road is maintained, you can use a well-paved road.

Junk cars strewn along the roads can also provide some pretty good metal and machine parts.

Above all, tunnel cities are less affected by erosion.

Even if the entire mountain above the tunnel turns into an erosion zone, the area below the tunnel will somehow remain safe.

It is said that these tunnel cities can be commonly found in the Yeongnam region, located at the end of the Taebaek Mountains.

They say it is because there are so many tunnels and the terrain is less rugged and the altitude is lower than in Gangwon-do, which is the home of the Taebaek Mountains, so accessibility is higher.

At this point, the only large-scale survivor force left in the southern region is the tunnel city, as the local warlords have quietly disintegrated.

Of course, as is the case in a place where people live, conflicts are frequent.

Battles between warlord remnants or groups of marauders targeting the tunnel cities are commonplace, and wars even break out between tunnel cities themselves.

They say that gunfire is unceasing, especially if you can get electricity from nearby sources like wind power plants.

“The biggest problem would be the hostility of the local people.”

I am not the leader of the investigation team.

I have the authority to contact and operate the Princess, who is the most important objective, but the person in charge of the entire investigation team is a man named Pyo Won-sang.

This is in line with the fact that while the true purpose of the expedition is the Princess, the actual goal set forth as a banner is relief and fact-finding in the southern region.

Pyo Won-sang is a member of the Jeju Committee who talks a lot and causes a lot of trouble.

Like the other committee members, he was a low-level Awaken, in his mid-to-late 20s, and above all, he had an inexplicable confidence in his eyes that shone with a soft light.

“But as long as this train is here, there is nothing to be afraid of.”

It seems certain that the Jeju Committee was ambitiously involved in this mission.

The involvement of one of the secretive senior members may be enough evidence, but what is more certain is the cost of this operation.

“This is the flagship of the Southern Recapture Operation, the Panokseon.”

They even prepared an armored train.

It’s literally a train with thick armor plating.

It is said that it carries a large number of weapons and armed personnel capable of reducing a city to ashes.

Of course, the train doesn’t run on its own.

A train needs a partner called a track.

According to the statement of the president, after the war, the government was lukewarm about road maintenance and repairs, but it did make sure to maintain the train tracks.

This is to facilitate the supply and demand of agricultural products coming from the southern region and factory products produced in heavy industrial complexes.

However, it is said that they let go of management from the point when they practically gave up on the southern region, but due to the nature of the train tracks, it is not easy to build them, but it is even more difficult to destroy them, and even the extreme scavengers did not show much interest in the railroads.

Perhaps anti-personnel mines buried along some sections of the track played a major role.

The drone reconnaissance results also showed that if only some sections were repaired, it would be possible to reach the southern region without any problems.

There is a risk that it will have to pass through a group occupying a tunnel in the middle area or through a warlord-controlled area, but the armored train is for that purpose, according to the description of the original article.

“Park Gyu. Long time no see.”

I met Ha Tae-hoon again.

Her face brightened up a bit and her chronic depression disappeared, making her look better than before, but to tell you the truth, I didn’t want to meet her again like this.

“Oh, I got scouted all of a sudden. I had to do some administrative work to contact you, so it was delayed.”

He served as the leader of the hunter team for this expedition.

Looking at the face of Pyo Won-sang, who is standing next to him and smiling with satisfaction, it seems clear which side Ha Tae-hoon is on.

“Nice to meet you, senior. Your face looks like it’s lost a lot of weight. Are you eating well?”

I guess it’s a good thing.

It’s not like I’m going to take responsibility for his life.

It’s a shame, but it’s actually a good thing that such a skilled hunter is taking on the role of team leader.

This means that you can focus on the unknown over 10 level Awaken called Princess.

It is said that there are three hunter teams and a reserve team under Ha Tae-hoon.

They are all talented people from Jeju.

There are four members responsible for contacting the princess.

Of these, two are me and Cheon Young-jae, who obviously belong in room 803, but Woo Min-hee came in as a guest.

To be honest, I never want to go with her, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea to have some insurance called Woo Min-hee on a mission that involves risk.

Above all, Woo Min-hee is coming and there is nothing we can do to stop it.

The problem is that the remaining member is a completely unexpected person.

It’s none other than Emgu.

“Ouch. Skeleton! Oh, is that Captain Park Gyu here?!”

This guy, who is already unpleasant to look at, is even growing a beard these days.

I don’t know if it’s a fancy beard like the ones on the sheep, but what’s the point of growing something like a goatee?

“Another team up? Captain Park Gyu? Let’s write another legend!”

I protested about Emgu’s appointment, but it didn’t work.

Because the one who actively recommended Emgu was Woo Min-hee.

“Senior. Straighten up.”

I don’t know why, but Woo Min-hee is strangely friendly towards Mgoo.

“No, why on earth did you bring that guy here?”

“Why? Isn’t it fun when we’re together?”

That’s probably because Emgu is overly playful with Woo Min-hee.

Emgu’s position is something like a war correspondent, just like before.

No one can clearly explain what exactly he does.

Anyway, our personnel arrangements have been sorted out like this, but we are not the only ones in charge of the princess.

Kang Han-min sent his confidant under the pretext of support.

There is no way to know whether it was Yoo Yang-seo’s order or not, but it is a cross-verified fact that they are members of the so-called Kang Han-min guards.

“Nice to meet you.”

There are 4 people.

All regular Awakens.

I’m not sure if it’s to protect us in case we’re attacked by a more than regular Awaken during our contact with the Princess.

Only Kang Min knows the real reason for sending them.

The leader of the support team was a woman named Moon Yang-gyeong. As expected from someone from Jeju, she was very young, but she had a flawless attitude that left no room for error.

Moon Yang-gyeong said, staring at me with extremely businesslike eyes.

“I heard the story from the strong savior, Kang Min. I have the detailed information, so if you need anything, please feel free to ask.”

Woo Min-hee’s gaze as she watched Moon Yang-gyeong and her group was not kind.

“It seems like a traitor.”

I said it to their faces, but no one could refute it.

You could say it’s Woo Min-hee’s dignity.

After Woo Min-hee showed her displeasure and disappeared, she discussed the specific mission with Moon Yang-kyung and her group.

As I heard before, the princess lives in one of the tunnel cities.

The exact location is between Gyeongju and Pohang, on a road with numerous tunnels, but the problem is that each of these tunnels is home to numerous groups with different characteristics.

“Among the groups occupying the tunnels, there are those who are refugees, those who are from the autonomous government, but there are also quite a few who are from warlords or plunderers. In addition, although it is hard to believe, there are also reports that some members of the religious sect are also occupying the tunnels.”

In other words, it is a very confusing and dangerous area.

It’s not like they spent a lot of money on toys like armored trains for nothing.

The scale of the operation and the overall circumstances make it no ordinary mission.

In a sense, it is a mission that has focused Seoul’s new power.

Would it be right for me to go on such a mission, when I have neither the knowledge nor the sense of mission?

If my mission was to kill monsters, then I don’t know, but as Kang Han-min said, my mission is to persuade the princess.

But how can I persuade the princess?

Personally, I don’t think I’m very good at speaking.

I can report clearly and concisely based on facts, but I don’t remember ever studying or being trained in words that move people’s hearts.

So I asked.

“Why did you choose me?”

I asked Moon Yang-gyeong.

She was expressionless like a mannequin, rolled her eyes for a moment, then smiled – almost a sneer – and answered.

“That’s because the captain is a skeleton.”

“······It’s true that I’m a skeleton, but I don’t understand why they put me in charge of such an important mission just because of that.”

The answer to this question was given by another strong follower of Kang Min-ssi who was sitting next to him.

“You can stop worrying about that.”

It was a young man whose name has not yet been revealed.

A young-looking man in his twenties, or closer to his teens, added in a voice as lively as his age.

“Skeleton is a god in the southern region now! A god!”

I became a god without even knowing it.

Of course, that feels good.

I actually did a quick test.

SKELTON: (Skeleton) Looks like I’ll have to go to the southern region soon······!!

It received hundreds of comments.

There are so many comments that I have to turn off the comment notification.

I read each and every comment.

Yubu Sushi: Skeleton! Skeleton!

Natural Pulp Beauty Tissue: Skeleton-nim looked back at me!

Anonymous2313: Wow… Are you really Mr. Skeleton? Your speech is very unique.

Pals_koi: Godgodgod-nim, going south?! What kind of great work are you planning on doing!

Choco Muffin: Wow~ It’s Skeleton. Can you come here in Geochang?! This place hasn’t been eroded yet!

Sabertooth21: This is Aphae-do. There are a lot of people living on the islands other than Aphae-do! I hope you get to see it sometime!

Samil Majesty Heritage APT: Please write again when you come! I will definitely come and see it!

…

…

“······.”

I closed my eyes for a moment and savored the sensation of – to borrow John’s expression – cosmic energy gathering around my anus.

Is this the world of gods?

Anyway, it is definitely a friendly reaction.

Of the hundreds of comments, the majority appear to be from survivors from the South.

Maybe there’s a princess among these.

But this mission is not that easy.

A message arrived for Kang Han-min.

Message from anonymous68: Hey, brother! I have a surprise favor to ask.

Message from Anonymous68: These are the kids that Yoo Yang-seo gave to Aniki. You can use them as consumables or throw them away as you wish.

Message from anonymous68: They don’t have much time left.