Chapter 12 – The Shopping Mall’s First Customer
Chapter 12 – The Shopping Mall's First Customer
Overwhelming firepower, even to my own eyes.
For a moment, I stared with a blank expression at the neighborhood, which had been terraformed into a bloodbath, before snapping back to my senses and looking at the cellphone in my hand.
“Ms. Sua, are you two safe?”
“Yes… yes. Is it over?”
She whispered. It seemed she had truly been holding her breath.
“Yes. You can speak normally now.”
“Phew… Wow, but what was that sound just now?”
“Ah, the sound…”
“Yes, did the military come to help? I don’t know if you heard it, but the sound of fortification work nearby was incredibly loud. My father was asking why a company-sized unit suddenly dropped out of thin air.”
“Hmm. I’ll explain that once you get here.”
“Oh, so are you at home right now, Siwoo?”
“Hmm… I am at a home, but not that home. My armor will guide you. Just follow them. Oh, and there might be some tiny things crawling around nearby; they’re mine too, so don’t be startled.”
The tiny things I referred to were my Worker Bugs.
“Uh… okay. I understand.”
Sua seemed confused.
However, for now, she seemed to have decided to trust me.
“Then I’ll see you in a bit. Let’s end the call here.”
“Alright.”
And we put down our phones.
Checking the battery, there was only 20% left. Although I was sourcing electricity from here and there however I could, power was still a precious resource.
“I need to solve the electricity problem quickly.”
To do that, there was another comrade from my previous life I needed to recruit.
“Wow, there really is a mountain of work to do.”
I let out a sigh.
* * *
While the father and daughter were heading toward the shopping mall.
I was scouring the battlefield with the Worker Bugs using the Observation Probe.
“Did you find it?”
“Ding!”
Beyond the Observation Probe screen, a Worker Bug was dinging happily while holding a large mana stone. It had found a Special Entity Mana Stone, which was much larger than those of normal entities.
Since this Special Entity looked exactly like a normal Thorn Spider, I thought it might take a while, but fortunately, it didn’t take that long.
Aside from that, I had, of course, collected every single mana stone on the battlefield.
‘At this rate, I can start summoning some facilities.’
I licked my lips. Once I started summoning facilities, I would be able to roll the snowballing process much more seriously.
‘I’ll keep growing and widen the gap overwhelmingly.’
This kind of strategic macro management was my specialty.
After all, I had been a pro gamer.
Meanwhile, I pondered a bit about how to bring the father and daughter, who were currently heading here, into the fold.
The biggest problem was that most ordinary people, including the two of them, were clinging to a groundless optimism, believing that this situation was merely a ‘temporary’ phenomenon.
In other words, they thought that since the phenomenon might end tomorrow morning, there was no need to put in the effort I was making to prepare for an apocalypse-level event.
‘How should I explain this…’
It was a real dilemma. I couldn’t exactly confess, “I regressed from the future!”
“Hmm…”
While pondering, I glanced at my smartphone.
“Ah, should I just do it that way?”
I immediately entered Apoin and began writing a post.
Title: [My Precog friend leaked more information.]
[Following the Thorn Spiders, they said they saw things like Acid Slugs. They look like slugs, but they’re strongly acidic, so you melt if you touch them.]
‘First, I’ll leak information about new monsters like last time…’
[They also said they saw a vision where the situation is heavily prolonged. This is just the beginning, and we might be under monster invasions like this for the rest of our lives. Shivers.]
Next was the bait regarding the prolonged situation.
[And they said many Marauders will appear.]
Mentioning this would accelerate the collapse of society as the appearance of looters and the like would happen sooner, but conversely, the number of people who accept the situation and prepare for the future would increase significantly.
‘In the end, more people will survive.’
It was certainly something that would be more helpful to humanity.
And when the time comes, those who are going to loot will do it anyway. It would be much better for civilians to know and be prepared, as it would increase their survival rate.
“Alright, should I just post this much?”
I finalized the text and uploaded it.
[Oh, Siwoo’s here! Don’t stop! Don’t stop! Don’t sto…]
[Wow… but the content is a bit scary?]
[Praise the Scarf Woman! Praise the Scarf Woman! Scarf Woman…]
[Marauders… I really need to be careful.]
[Tip for apartment dwellers) Put newspapers on the windows to block the view. It’s not much, but it might help.]
[Reply to above: Isn’t that just advertising that people live there?]
[I guess so…]
The reaction in the comments was heated.
I chewed over the content of the post once more and thought.
“Good. This should do it.”
It was the best way to recruit the father and daughter to the shopping mall.
* * *
I was using the Observation Probe to check if the father and daughter were arriving safely. Guided and escorted by the Magitech Armor, they were on their way to the shopping mall where I resided.
Meanwhile, the Observation Probe was also transmitting the low-voiced conversation they were sharing.
Finally approaching the shopping mall, Deokchan, seeing the massive building that dominated the surroundings, spoke in amazement.
“Oh, I didn’t know a place like this existed.”
“Was this your first time in this area, Father?”
“Well, I had no reason to wander around here.”
“I heard that shopping mall was here even before I moved to this neighborhood. But I heard it went bankrupt and never even opened.”
“Wow… it must have cost a lot to build. What a pity.”
“I know. But since it’s an empty shopping mall, it’s a bit scary when walking nearby. Who knows what’s inside—”
It was then, while the two were talking about the shopping mall.
“Uh… wait a second.”
The Magitech Armor stood before the shopping mall, opened the door, and waited.
“I think it’s telling us to go inside?”
Sua’s expression turned pale. As she hesitated, I sent her a text.
[I’m inside, so don’t worry and come in.]
Seeing that, Sua gathered her courage and entered.
As the two entered the building with dark expressions, they were greeted by Worker Bugs illuminating the surroundings.
“Tick tick.”
“Ding!”
Now, in addition to desk lamps, they had added various materials like LED lanterns, so they were illuminating the area quite brightly compared to the beginning.
“Whoa…?”
“What are these, fireflies?”
The two looked surprised seeing the Worker Bugs. Furthermore, their expressions became even more distorted with confusion as they looked inside the building.
“But Sua, didn’t you say this was an abandoned building?”
“Yes… that’s definitely what I thought.”
“…It’s clean, though?”
“Uh… you’re right.”
This was the result of gathering the idle Worker Bugs recently and having them thoroughly clean up to the 1st floor.
Once their emotions settled slightly, the Magitech Armor guided them to the escalator in the central hall of the shopping mall.
Clank— clank—
“Oh, it’s going up.”
“Wow, the 2nd floor is clean too.”
Reaching the 2nd floor, they took the escalator around again to the 3rd. And they continued to go up after that.
Then, upon reaching the 5th floor, their eyes widened.
“Wow, Sua. Look, there are the snacks you like over there.”
“Father, I’m not a child… stop it!”
The 5th floor, which I used as a warehouse, was filled with various resources.
On one side were various materials looted from a hardware store. On the opposite side were various pieces of furniture. And in the center were food, water, drinks, and daily necessities—everything needed for life.
Besides that, since I had looted every single shop in the vicinity… the 5th floor was now, essentially, a ‘shopping mall’ in its own right.
“Were these items originally in the shopping mall?”
“Uh… I don’t think so, Father. Those potato chips just came out this month, and there were rumors that they were delicious.”
“You mean the ones stacked four boxes high?”
“Yes…”
Sua’s pupils trembled slightly.
‘Right, I remember hearing those products were out of stock.’
It seemed I had luckily looted a convenience store that had closed shortly after receiving the stock. I felt sorry for the store owner, but considering the world that would soon change, it was inevitable.
But I couldn’t afford to sound soft-hearted.
‘Everyone would die anyway if not for me.’
My survival literally affects the survival of humanity itself.
I had come to the Redevelopment Zone, where it’s harder to reach, specifically so that those who could survive might do so, but if I died, everyone else would die anyway.
Leaking information on Apoin was in that same context.
And when they finally climbed to the 6th floor.
Unlike floors 1 through 5, the 6th floor was the only one with windows. With the light at my back, I greeted them.
“Uh… hello.”
“Gasp!”
“Hearing your voice… is it you?”
“Yes. Come to think of it, this is the first time we’ve met like this.”
The first time they saw my actual self, not the armor.
I gave a wide grin to the surprised pair.
* * *
I guided the two to the sofas in the 6th-floor cafe.
“I see you’re living here entirely…?”
“Yes. Saying that house was a temporary shelter was a lie. Given the situation, I trust you’ll understand.”
I spoke honestly. The two seemed startled when I quickly admitted it was a lie, but they soon nodded.
“Right. Well, regardless, I’m grateful you helped us.”
“That’s true. It’s not an easy thing to do.”
Perhaps thanks to the rapport built so far, the two accepted it quickly. Seeing their positive reaction, I steeled my resolve.
It was time to deliver the sales pitch.
“The reason I called you here today is… nothing other than to ask if you’d like to live here with me.”
“Oh… right here?”
“Yes.”
“But… there’s something I’m curious about.”
“Yes, please speak.”
“The items on the 5th floor, and… looking with a carpenter’s eye, these pieces of furniture all look new. Have you decided to settle down here for good?”
“Ah. Yes. That’s correct.”
“Then… do you believe this situation will be prolonged? On what basis do you think so?”
Deokchan narrowed his eyes.
“I’m sorry, but… I’m an old man with nothing left but this daughter. It’s funny for me to say this when I’m the one receiving help, but I want to hear at least the basis for this.”
Deokchan’s question hit the nail on the head.
But it was all according to my plan.
“Hmm… by any chance, do you know about Apoin?”
“Ah, Apo-in?”
“It’s Apoin, Father. Yes, Mr. Siwoo. I know it.”
This time, it was Sua who answered.
“Then, Ms. Sua, have you joined?”
“Uh… yes. It’s a bit peculiar.”
“Yes. The ID shows up as the one you used before, right?”
“Yes. Actually, it was a bit scary. But since there’s nowhere else to get information these days, I had no choice but to go.”
Sua smiled bashfully.
Everyone would feel that way. In my previous life, I had thought the same until I met the owner of Apoin.
“Then you must know that famous post uploaded recently.”
“Ah! Yes. I heard that person is a celebrity. What was the nickname, hmm, it was unique. S, S, W, O, O?”
“That’s me.”
I grinned.
She tilted her head for a moment, then looked flustered.
“Wh-what?! That’s you, Mr. Siwoo?”
“Yes. S, Seong. S, Si. W, O, O. Woo.”
“That’s right! Come to think of it, your name was in the comment section!”
Had she thought it was just someone with the same name?
Her eyes widened once more as she realized the truth.
“Yes. Then, by any chance, did you see the post I uploaded today?”
“What? You posted again?! Let me see!”
The content uploaded today.
To summarize in three lines…
One. More threatening new monsters will appear.
Two. The situation will be prolonged.
Three. The number of Marauders will increase significantly.
“Is… is all of this real?”
“Since it’s what a Precog friend told me… it must be true.”
I nodded gravely.
“Father, look at this.”
Deokchan narrowed his eyes for a moment and looked closely at the blue screen. Even his eyes were widening.
He put the phone down for a moment, stared blankly into space as if thinking, and then asked me.
“I… I understand your intention. But why are you helping us to this extent? It would certainly be good for us to be with you… but I don’t think there’s much we can help you with.”
It was a valid point.
People tend to find it suspicious when they receive kindness without a reason. Deokchan was thinking similarly.
I decided to correct his assumption.
“Of course, it’s not for free. For example… here. We have water to use for now, but since it’s an abandoned building, the water doesn’t run.”
I grinned, looking at Ms. Sua.
“You’re a Water Ability User, aren’t you?”
“E-even so, I don’t have anything I can do for you…”
“Elder.”
“Uh, yeah?”
“Didn’t you say you’re a renowned carpenter in the village and that you’re good at farming? That you even kept a vegetable garden at home…?”
“Uh, yeah, that’s right. I was one of the best in my hometown—”
“I look forward to working with you.”
I grinned at him as well. Deokchan seemed to ponder for a moment, then nodded with an awkward smile.
“Uh… thank you. No, alright. Let’s get along from now on.”
“Hahahaha, of course.”
The two had finally entered the shopping mall.
There were so many things I had to do for them.
“Ding?”
Yeah, you guys too.
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Errors:
Casual Genderbend: While the two women were on their way to the shopping mall.
…
how to draw in the two women who were currently heading here.
Fire Strikes again: What a Fire Manipulation shame.”
Fire Manipulation fireflies?”
Genderbent the other way?: the expressions of the men looking inside the
With fire comes water: not long after receiving water.
…
The water incidents on the 5th Floor are like that