Hiding a House in the Apocalypse-Chapter 141: Review
Current temperature: 5°C.
Despite the relatively mild weather, snow was falling.
The weather’s been all over the place lately.
Warm days, cold nights.
Snow falls, melts, the ground freezes, thaws—on repeat.
Every open field that isn’t paved has turned into a swamp.
The refugees that used to be spotted every so often have disappeared. Everything is quiet.
The snow fluttering down soon turned to rain.
On days like this, going outside is inefficient.
“Everyone take the day off. Rest comfortably at home.”
I gave the entire group a break.
Didn’t even post a watch.
The monitoring systems can handle basic security, and judging by the weather, neither humans nor Mutations would want to be out in this mess.
If someone does pick this kind of day to attack—
Well, I guess they deserve to succeed.
It’s a good day to be online.
With everything that’s happened recently around us, I hadn’t been checking the message board. Missed a few hot topics.
I could quickly catch up by skimming some of the recent popular posts,
but sometimes, I get the urge to trace things slowly—
To go back and catch up on what I missed, from a time I wasn’t paying attention.
Sometimes, going backward is one of life’s small pleasures.
Call it a review.
Drip-drip-drip––
I brewed coffee using the last of the beans DragonC left behind.
There’s barely any left now.
Most likely, I won’t get to savor this fragrant, irreplaceable roast ever again once this winter passes.
With the rich aroma filling the air, I opened the top posts tab and began reviewing from where I had left off.
And there was one major reason I was even in the mood for this romanticized “review.”
Melon Mask.
When the invasion of Necropolis began, Melon Mask didn’t show much reaction.
It wasn’t until two weeks later that he made his first public appearance:
MELON_MASK: Not happy :(
He didn’t sound too well.
In the post that followed, he listed a few reasons why he was unhappy—
Surprisingly, Necropolis wasn’t high on the list.
What was truly weighing down Melon Mask... was his health.
MELON_MASK: Long-term exposure to zero gravity causes muscle loss, bone density degradation, and increased intracranial and intraocular pressure. These were expected before I even arrived here. I had meds and programs prepared. But as you all know, my space residency period surpasses the previous Guinness record holder by more than double.
MELON_MASK: I’ve been feeling it for a while, but now it’s certain. My body is dying. I can feel the functional breakdown of every cell, every day, in new ways.
MELON_MASK: After much deliberation, I’ve come to the conclusion that I have no choice but to return to Earth if I want to survive. Humans were designed to live under gravity. I know Earth’s a mess. But isn’t dying slowly up here even worse?
In the next post, Melon Mask shared an update on his companion, Bumpy.
The fierce mutated sloth was floating like a drop of water in a dark corner, eyes closed.
Its exact condition was unclear, but it didn’t look well.
Even Mutations couldn’t survive in space—it was now proven.
In a later post, Melon Mask revealed his aged, visibly worn face and spoke bitterly:
MELON_MASK: In the end, Earth’s creatures can’t live away from Earth. No chains, no bars—but we’re doomed to die bound to our birthplace the moment we’re born.
MELON_MASK: Humans are more pitiful than we imagine. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
The god of our world—Melon Mask—might not die tomorrow,
But he won’t last much longer.
To heal, he has to return to the planet where he was born.
But we all know the odds of him making it back are slim.
He does have a rocket in his space bunker that could get him back to Earth,
but repairing and piloting it is no small feat—and even if he somehow made it back safely, survival on Earth is far from guaranteed.
About 40% of livable Earth has been eroded.
The rest is a paradise for looters, murderers, and Mutations.
And even if you miraculously avoid all that, you still have to survive brutal, unforgiving nature.
MELON_MASK: I won’t rush off to Earth like before, but I think it’s time to start planning.
MELON_MASK: I’ve connected with an original rocket engineer and got the go-ahead for launch—but reentry and landing are the real issue. The designated landing spot is in the middle of the ocean. No escort ships, no support, nothing. So I’d like to hear everyone’s opinions.
MELON_MASK: I’m open to ideas from our friends from Necropolis too. Anything’s fine. Give me inspiration. Give me hope that I can live.
It was interesting.
But ultimately, not something that concerned me.
I don’t have a ship. I know nothing about aerospace engineering.
I simply took note of the fact that Melon Mask’s return to Earth was now a formally declared objective—and moved on.
Next up was our school’s own message board star: Baek Seung-hyun.
Ever since arriving at the scrapyard island, Baek Seung-hyun had only posted occasional survival updates.
While we were watching nearby refugees fight, he had uploaded a massive batch of posts.
dongtanmom: This is the reality of Korea.
The massive oil tanker Hope, carrying 868 people including Dongtanmom, arrived in the waters near Jeju.
Two stern-looking military ships came out to greet them.
“Warning: Turn back immediately. You have one hour. Leave these waters now.”
The difference between their sluggish, barely-running tanker and the modern warships armed with cannons and missiles was obvious.
Baek Seung-hyun’s wife spoke into a loudspeaker, requesting aid:
“Everyone’s starving. We’re out of water. Can’t you give us just a little—food, water, medicine? We’re not asking to come ashore, just something!”
She’d once been a naive young woman. Now, her presence was just as commanding as her husband’s.
“We’re citizens of the Republic of Korea too!”
Whether they were convinced or just wanted to avoid trouble, Jeju’s military ships sent aid via drone.
dongtanmom: This is the generosity of Jeju.
The aid was pitiful.
Starch powder masquerading as nutrition bars, bandages made from recycled plastics, and some white anti-inflammatory pills.
Despite over 500 people on board, they sent barely enough for thirty.
After delivering the meager supplies, the warships resumed circling the Hope, putting on a show of force.
“No further aid will be provided. Turn back immediately. Repeat—no further aid will be provided. Turn back.”
dongtanmom: Maybe just not killing us is already a blessing.
Baek Seung-hyun turned the ship around. That marked the end of his brief series.
He didn’t specify where they were headed next,
but people assumed he’d sail south—where the cold would be less severe.
I was curious, too, about where my senior, Baek Seung-hyun, was headed.
He’s not someone I particularly like or find charming.
But I still hope he survives.
In a way, he’s one of the few still fighting in this world where everything is falling apart.
I checked the time and stepped outside.
The rain «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» had lightened.
The ground was so muddy I changed into rubber boots and climbed the hill that acted as a guardian of our territory.
On that hill is a small outpost Ha Tae-hoon built—a lookout post.
It’s surrounded by plywood to block the wind, and in one corner is a little resting area wrapped in plastic.
I climbed onto the reinforced wooden platform and scanned the area.
Just as I expected—no one was approaching.
It wasn’t the rain that was the issue. It was the ground.
Unless you’re on compacted roads, everything else has turned into deep, sucking swamp that’ll trap you to the ankle.
If anyone’s out there, they’ll stick to the roads.
But honestly, who would venture out in this weather?
Everyone values their life too much.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Only those with a clear goal would push through weather like this.
Once my body had cooled off enough, I went back down into the bunker.
From the chimney of the winter house built above it, puffs of white steam drifted upward, carrying the rich scent of baking bread.
As I stepped inside the bunker, Rebecca and her daughter arrived.
“Skelton. Try this.”
Rebecca held out a freshly baked loaf.
It wasn’t the kind of bread you’d see in a bakery. It looked like a lumpy mass, scorched in places.
I took a bite. It wasn’t sweet—
The flavor was more muted, mild, clinging to the tongue with a chewy texture, more like hand-pulled dough than fluffy bread.
Still, it was freshly baked.
Most of our meals are focused on nutrition, not taste.
And this... it wasn’t bad at all.
“It’s good.”
“I baked it to test the new oven. Next time, I’ll try mixing in other ingredients too.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
As I ate the bread Rebecca had given me, I resumed browsing the message board.
Truth be told, I’d noticed it the moment I sat down in front of the laptop—
this was the hottest issue on the board right now.
From the moment I opened it, everyone had been talking about it.
armeegruppe_B: About the Seoul Reconstruction Plan
Kim Byeong-cheol had made a post.
A meticulous soldier with a strange obsession with Seoul,
he was once again planning to revive the capital of South Korea, despite past failures.
Even though he’d had access to a powerful force called the “Gundanpa,” and plenty of resources, he’d failed.
But if you look closer, the Gundanpa wasn’t truly powerful, nor was he particularly lucky.
The so-called “Gundanpa” was just a loose federation of military warlords.
The moment he lost their support, Kim Byeong-cheol was nothing more than just another mid-tier warlord.
A sudden monster eruption crushed his ambitions, and the civil war that followed knocked him further down the ladder.
And yet, here he was—more fired up than ever about rebuilding Seoul.
The biggest reason for his confidence, no doubt, was this:
armeegruppe_B: That savior-class Awakened, level 14, on par with Kang Han-min and Na Hye-in—National Institute Director Woo Min-hee—has agreed to support the Seoul Reconstruction.
Woo Min-hee and Kim Byeong-cheol had joined hands.
Or more accurately, Kim Byeong-cheol had taken on a subcontractor’s role under Woo Min-hee.
But the fact that he publicly shared this on Viva! Apocalypse!—which Woo Min-hee herself monitors—meant one thing:
She either approved or allowed it.
She’d wielded significant influence from the outskirts of Incheon,
but now, finally, she had broken her long silence and returned to the forefront of the era.
I wanted to know what was on her mind,
but knowing Woo Min-hee, unless she told you herself, you wouldn’t get an answer.
armeegruppe_B: As you know, the government supply warehouse holds not just food and water for hundreds of thousands, but also vital self-sustaining infrastructure for long-term disaster survival.
armeegruppe_B: The former government neglected people, but things are different now. What we need are people—those willing to face this hellish reality, forget the past, and sacrifice the present for a better future.
Even while we were focused on our immediate surroundings and threats,
the world continued to move.
Kim Byeong-cheol’s Seoul Reconstruction initiative, as expected, caused a major stir.
Of course, it wasn’t our usual message board buddies filling the thread—
It was the Deads.
dead4452 (KOR): This one feels different. Feels... promising.
dead992 (KOR): Woo Min-hee? I remember hearing about her. Not as famous as Kang Han-min, but I heard she’s one of the top five strongest Awakened in the world.
dead9913 (KOR): Whoever it is—if they’re savior-class Awakened, that’s good enough. At least they’ll do something about those damned monsters.
dead483 (KOR): Winter may have just begun, but maybe the spring we’ve been waiting for is finally coming.
...
...
Lots of users were optimistic.
Shows just how highly rated an officially recognized over-level-10 Awakened is.
But of course, there were naysayers too:
dead88215 (KOR): I’m staying with my group. I’ve hopped around like a bat from place to place—never seen anything good come from it.
dead1411 (KOR): Who knows? There are still warlords out east. What happens if they show up?
dead832 (KOR): I’ve been screwed over by the Korean government three times already. That goddamn Jeju Island, that damn lottery, that cursed refugee fleet. Betrayed every time. Okay, maybe the refugee fleet was just dumb luck, but still. lol
dead33113 (KOR): If you’re already part of a stable group, there’s no reason to gamble with your life. Think carefully. Kim Byeong-cheol’s screwed things up twice before.
...
...
As I read through the swarm of posts, I thought of John Nae-non and Ballantine.
“······.”
Without their sacrifices, this momentum wouldn’t exist.
If Necropolis hadn’t landed in Korea—
If it hadn’t brought all these people into Viva! Apocalypse!—
There’d be no platform to post such an announcement, no audience to even hear it.
Kim Byeong-cheol and Woo Min-hee’s intentions don’t matter much to me right now.
Let it all play out. I’ll check back when the results are clear.
“······.”
tap tap tap
SKELTON: (Skelton Fever) Skelton’s European Beatbox Amidst the Chaos (3)
I’ll just keep doing what I can.
Click—
Upload complete.
I hit refresh, ready to search for my post buried beneath the flood of Deads.
That’s when a certain post caught my eye—like fate.
The title was simple:
A_FOOL: status.jpg
An unfamiliar name among the endless flood of Deads, and yet it stood out.
Part of it was the username.
FOOL.
That name was known.
Widely known.
It was the callsign of Kang Han-min.
Though technically, no—it wasn’t exactly his callsign.
The truth was this:
Jang Ki-young had assigned Kang Han-min the derogatory callsign “FOOL,” meaning idiot or clown.
But instead of rejecting it, Kang Han-min had laughed and insisted they add the article “a” in front of it.
One of our late friends, fluent in English, had joked about it—
mocking him for choosing the indefinite article “a” instead of the definite article “the.”
But A_FOOL would soon become legendary.
“······.”
Is it really Kang Han-min?
The mouse cursor hovered over the post.
The sourc𝗲 of this content is fre(e)novelkiss
