Hiding a House in the Apocalypse-Chapter 148.3: Painkillers (3)
The first time I was banned from using the name TwelveSquare, I felt a strong sense of resentment toward VivaBot.
But as time passed, I began to think maybe her judgment had been fair.
When someone’s already achieved everything there is to achieve, it’s hard to find excitement in anything.
Let’s take games, for instance. If you’ve got a max-level character decked out with endgame gear, unless it’s a PvP-centric game like those old FoxGames designed to provoke competition and draw fun from relative dominance—if the game has a fixed goal, the experience can feel hollow.
And more than being acknowledged as a hunter, I wanted to be recognized as a person.
Sure, TwelveSquare might be known as a legendary performer, a Legend. But that persona only reflects me as a hunter.
It has nothing to do with the “storyteller’s gift” I cultivated over the years, or the “artistry as a beatboxer,” or the rapport I’ve built as a “likable user.”
Still, exceptions must be made sometimes.
And now was one of those moments.
“Wh-Why do you have two computers? Huh? Is that... that Star Gazing Obelisk? Wait, you have two of those?! Why...?”
“······.”
I said nothing and powered on the computer, showing her the screen.
What I pulled up was a video from the Live! Apocalypse! archives—a recording of TwelveSquare.
Bang! Ratatat!
Bang!
“Wait, is that—Jeju?! Is that Jeju?!”
At first, Kim Han-na was confused, but soon she was completely absorbed in the footage that had once shocked viewers around the world.
“Oh my god······. She took down an Executioner Type solo... and without even a single pulse wave...”
When the video ended, she was still immersed in its lingering energy. I asked calmly,
“What do you think?”
“It was... incredible!”
Even someone who’s built walls around their heart will inevitably set them aside—if only for a moment—when faced with something that sets their soul ablaze.
I closed my eyes and asked again,
“What did it make you feel?”
She paused, as if gathering her thoughts, and then spoke quickly, like the words were bursting out.
“It was incredible. Really! There’s no other word for it. Fighting that many soldiers alone is already absurd—but on top of that, handling a monster that horrific alone? It’s just not possible. Whenever an Executioner Type is paired with a Macrophage or Iddish, there are always casualties... Honestly, it looked like a deepfake. It was that unreal.”
It was a long reaction, but it wasn’t what I was looking for.
So I pushed further with a direct question.
“How does it compare to Kang Han-min?”
“Kang Han-min... the Savior...?”
Even before hearing her answer, I knew I wouldn’t get what I wanted.
I could tell just by how the flush on her cheeks quickly faded as she cooled off.
“Hmm...”
She organized her thoughts again, and after a longer pause than before, let out a soft sigh and answered. ƒreewebɳovel.com
“If I had to make a comparison... maybe the difference between a superhuman and a god?”
“Superhuman and god?”
“Yes. That TwelveSquare person—she seemed like the absolute limit of what a person could achieve. But Savior Kang Han-min is different. Just his presence changes everything around him. Even the Executioner Types are different when he approaches—they disintegrate into particles just from proximity. There’s no need for a fierce battle...”
So that’s how it is.
I knew it was a childish thing to do, but I had to confirm it.
The exact gap between that guy and me.
Superhuman versus god.
Personally, I never thought of myself as a superhuman, but the comparison felt accurate.
No matter how superior a superhuman is to others, they’re still just human.
And humans can never reach a being meant to be worshipped.
“I’m TwelveSquare.”
“...Huh?”
“I’m the one in that video.”
“W-Wait, seriously?!”
“Why would I lie?”
“P-Professor—no, Captain—you’re her? You went to Jeju?!”
“Briefly.”
My excitement cooled.
“Well... shall we head back?”
A bit of time to myself wouldn’t be so bad.
This new home isn’t quite my bunker, but it’s livable.
But—
“What’s this?”
Apparently, Kim Han-na wasn’t done yet.
Like a child who’s just discovered a toy during a boring day, her eyes sparkled as she explored the user interface of our board, analyzing every pixel with focused curiosity.
“Hmm? Skelton? Is that your ID?”
“······.”
No point brushing her off now.
I brought her here, after all.
I shoved my cooled heart aside and sat beside her, explaining the board.
“Yeah. That’s my nickname.”
“Huh?”
“Why?”
“I feel like I’ve seen it before.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh, that weirdo from—”
“?”
“Uh, the Red Archive board.”
“The Red Archive board?”
“Yeah. There was this one user who only used emojis to communicate. Someone made a summary post on our board titled, ‘Red Archive User Who Lost All Language Ability.’”
I fell silent without realizing it.
“······.”
No way... that was me?
“Creepy, right? Imagine some hairy old man using those super cute girl emojis and genuinely thinking he’s as cute as the girl in the emoji!”
“······.”
She looked at me suspiciously.
“Wait... that was you, wasn’t it?”
“I only use this board.”
A lie slipped out before I knew it.
“You mean Viva! Apocalypse!?”
“Y-Yeah.”
Am I... embarrassed?
Embarrassed by my own history...?
While my brain short-circuited, Kim Han-na casually grabbed the mouse like it was hers and scrolled to the front page of the board.
deadman3278: I wanna have sex
deadman73411: Came all the way to Seoul just to be told to move to Hanam? FFS
keystone: Ugh. What now?
deadman4231: Any games? Someone said there’d be games. Where’s the dev?
deadman2131: Looking for female companion in post-war hell (Single moms welcome, daughter only)
mmmmmmmmm™: Captain M9 speaking! Just dropped a monster turd! (Click only if you wanna see!)
deadman131: Board’s a mess. Too many people. Can’t we split channels or something?
anon1621: This would all be solved if you idiots just left.
...
...
Kim Han-na stared at the screen, dumbfounded.
“Ah...”
This is not a refined board.
It’s still overflowing with human garbage.
As one of the original veteran users, I felt the need to clarify.
“······Back in the day, this board was full of doctors, professors, lawyers, successful startup founders—people with social standing. It was a classy board.”
“R-Really?”
“It stayed that way... until the Necropolis folks started showing up. It was decent before then.”
“I see.”
Click click click
Like a fish back in water, Kim Han-na didn’t care whether I was beside her or not. She gleefully surfed the internet, reveling in the long-lost feeling of dragging a cursor and clicking exactly where she wanted.
“Whoa... What’s this? Is that a gore pic?”
Looks like the guy posting corpse photos got unbanned again.
What’s VivaBot even doing?
Just sabotaging me?
Whatever. Doesn’t matter.
Smiling, I reached for the mouse.
“Watch this.”
[Do you want to delete this post?]
“Huh?!”
Click
[Post deleted.]
Click
[User blocked.]
“Wooooah!”
I had no idea her voice could get that loud.
“Wait. That authority...?”
“Yeah.”
I nodded, feeling a small warmth where the cold had been.
“I’m a mod.”
“Wooooow!”
We spent quite a bit of time in the internet world together.
There was no real goal or reason—but not everything needs one.
“Wh-What’s this? Beatboxing...?”
“What do you think?”
“You made this to be funny, right?”
“Nope.”
“Ah...”
“?”
“N-Nothing.”
In this short and strange moment, I came to a realization.
“There really are people living in those tilted apartments... Their lives must be like freak shows...”
“Filkrum! He posts here too? I never read his comics, but it’s wild seeing someone from Jeju posting here!”
“Whoa... Look at what Dongtanmom’s saying. God, what a smug bastard...”
And that’s when it hit me—Awakened are no different from us.
They’re just people too.
Seems obvious now.
All they have is one ability we don’t.
People don’t change that easily.
Having bulletproof powers doesn’t magically turn a lazy slob into a model citizen. And someone who hates oysters doesn’t suddenly become an oyster fanatic.
We just convinced ourselves they were ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) different. That we had no common ground.
That they were something entirely other.
After a while, the time came to part ways.
“That’s it for today. We’ve got a mission tomorrow.”
She looked disappointed, but it was already midnight.
We have to assemble by 4 a.m.
“I’m sorry, Captain. I haven’t been able to access the intranet at all since I got here. Lost my phone, too... The others seem to manage just fine, but I...”
“I’ll check with Director Woo tomorrow—see if there’s a spare.”
“R-Really?!”
“On one condition: today never happened.”
“Yes, sir!”
We looked at each other.
Both of us smiling.
Maybe it’s too soon to say—but I’ve got a good feeling.
I think this will go well.
*
There’s only one major risk in tomorrow’s mission.
Humans.
Specifically, those with hostile intent.
The most likely suspects are cultists, but human malice is unpredictable in both motive and form.
Careful scouting is the only way to protect ourselves.
So I went overboard, clearing the area thoroughly.
Using drones to mark good ambush spots. Checking every building for signs of life.
Mission time is from sunrise to sunset.
By noon, as we were still securing the perimeter, the complaints began.
“Aren’t we here to kill monsters?”
“They said it’s minion cleanup. I guess cultists count as minions too?”
“Sun’s gonna set soon. I mean, it’s good to be thorough, but jeez...”
I was being meticulous because Defender had reported seeing smoke rise in the area.
China’s battlefields were a mess. The biggest reason wasn’t monsters—it was humans.
Unlike monsters, humans don’t follow patterns.
Their tactics, weapons, logic—everything differs.
Fighting them both at once is messy, exhausting, and bloody.
Back in China, the military handled this grunt work. But we don’t have that luxury anymore.
We have to remove all variables ourselves.
Frankly, I’d love to track down whoever lit that fire and finish it myself, but we’re on a deadline.
“All right, we’re starting the operation.”
It’s not perfect, but safe enough to proceed.
All the regular hunters today are volunteers—except one.
Shim Hyeong-do, a hunter trained at an academy.
Once compared unfavorably to school-trained hunters, academy graduates like him are now veterans.
He’s skilled—enough to shatter my bias against academy types.
I gave him the most important piece of gear for today’s mission: Inferno.
But today’s real centerpiece is Kim Han-na—whose physique doesn’t fall short of the men.
“Kim Han-na.”
“Yes, Captain.”
“Stay close to me.”
“Yes!”
Her expression brightened.
Her smile was still a little awkward, but the cowering, evasive girl from day one was gone.
And there’s reason to believe in her.
She served faithfully in Jeju for a year.
She had potential.
She left the battlefield for some reason and became what she is now—but if her broken wings can be mended, she’ll fly again.
– Competent Regular Hunter (Level 8). Expected to contribute consistently.
That line was the only redeeming sentence in her record.
“Stand by.”
With my pistol drawn, I stepped alone into the gaping black mouth of the power plant.
Once inside the pitch-dark void—
Screee—k, screee—k
The sound of metal scraping across the floor pierced my eardrums.
Spiderling. A minion of the Spider-type monster.
Today’s teaching aid.
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