Chapter 118 – Complete Settlement
Under the guidance of Jinsu and Artemis, the shelter is changing in many ways.
A scouting party was dispatched beyond Busan to begin the search for survivors, and thanks to Seedbolt Seed, the cycle of self-sufficiency is being completed.
And there is one more monumental incident. Residents were able to get a home for the first time.
Of course, this is not a residence they obtained by paying a reasonable price.
Even if we were to calculate the value of their sweat, it would not even cover the cost of water, food, and safety.
However, it is impossible to allow groups of dozens of people to live in temporary camps forever.
The accommodation allocated to the residents is an apartment complex in the lower area, which was originally designed as a low-priced housing product.
It is a dormitory-style accommodation with two rooms, and it is definitely a better-made living space than the Korean military’s home office.
When the date arrived at the assigned apartment, the women were happy. Because it was a better room than I imagined.
There is enough space and there is a private bed. It was equipped with not only a bathroom, but also a washing machine and a screen that replaced the TV.
There is a roll call machine attached to the ceiling that doubles as a fire detector, and roll calls are conducted only at night and coincide with the curfew.
The veranda is large enough to place laundry and individual flower pots.
If you look down from the veranda, everything is green. The lawn is covered and appropriately lined with trees and benches.
Although it is not comparable to Habu Park in terms of scale or beauty, it is a pretty nice view to hang your arms on the balcony railing after work.
And beyond that, you can see an artificial lake. It’s not a big view from the front like the police gym, but it’s enough to enjoy the sunset in the evening.
“Hey!”
“Yay!”
When someone gestured from the veranda of the apartment across the street, the women here also gestured.
“This is how people live!”
“You don’t know how much I missed my bed.”
Although the bed did not have a spring mattress, it was not hard because it had a thick cotton mat.
The faces of the women looking around the residence are full of smiles.
The only thing I regret is that there is no kitchen.
[Space for use of firearms is limited to public areas. I hope you will definitely work there.]
Kids provided guidance through screens installed in each residence.
All the women listened from their comfortable positions on the bed.
I am enjoying the bed I finally got by sitting cross-legged, lying at an angle, and sitting with one knee raised.
Next to the bed is a large and spacious personal drinking fountain. If you look at it this way, it is a living space similar to a real military, but it is structured so that you can walk barefoot on the floor.
[Firearms can only be handled in public places after facial recognition. Therefore, if you use it messyly and disappear without cleaning, you will be penalized for use.]
Additionally, Kiz emphasized three times that if the firearm is left unattended, it will automatically turn off and a huge penalty will be received.
We have no choice but to be strict when it comes to firearms because this is a closed-circulation city.
If a fire breaks out, even if it is successfully extinguished, the damage is severe.
The damage is immeasurable, including the use of fire extinguishing consumables, evaporation of oxygen, urban air pollution, consumption of ventilation filters, and location exposure due to smoke escaping to the outside.
If you are caught using a firearm in an unauthorized place, you will be immediately arrested and subject to the maximum punishment.
[What I have explained so far can be viewed at any time in the Lifestyle Rules tab on the screen. Well then, I wish you a happy and diligent life in the future.]
As Kids’ broadcast turned off, silence fell in the room.
The residents looked at each other from their beds. Their faces gradually twitched and loud cheers rang out.
Now the boring life in the camp is over. Even though food, clothing, and shelter were guaranteed, the feeling of oppression remained in a corner of my mind, but that was resolved.
Of course, compared to the society before the war, this place could be seen as inferior, but no one was so conscienceless as to complain about that.
“Don’t you have a remote control?”
“Just play it by hand.”
The women’s eyes turned to the screen hanging on the wall of the room.
Basically, the information screens located throughout the camp or shelter are for viewing information and the shelter’s own programs.
There are no variety shows or dramas like in pre-war society.
However, the screens in this room had one big difference.
[Blue moon!
You saw me standing alone.]
As I was operating the touch panel, I entered a music channel and a sweet voice echoed through the room.
“Wow, there are so many.”
Whenever you change the channel, a variety of music categorized by country and genre is played, including popular music, pop, hip-hop, rock and roll, jazz, ballad, and classical music.
“There is no end to this?”
Even though the number has already exceeded 20, music channels continued to appear.
There were even ASMR channels such as birds chirping, burning firewood, rain, and beach sounds. Those channels also came out with the corresponding video.
“But it’s really quiet, right?”
It’s quiet, even though many rooms would have music channels on by now. This is because this place is extremely soundproof.
‘Interfloor noise must be controlled at all costs!’
This was the part that Jinsu paid the most attention to when constructing the city.
High-ranking people kept rejecting it due to cost, but Jinsu did not give up and suggested it.
‘In a closed-circuit life, one sensitive person can cause a lot of trouble. A soundproofing design may cost more money now, but it will lower maintenance costs in the long run.’
In the end, I was able to get approval. This is because even high-ranking people shared the same views as Jinsu.
From now on, it will be more difficult to control compared to living in a group camp.
Although individual freedom and satisfaction will increase, the frequency of human errors will inevitably increase.
Accordingly, it was announced that strict punishment would be adopted. Residents nodding their heads recalled the woman who had been sentenced to one week of banishment.
A necklace worn around her neck for location tracking and data capture. The video it captured vividly showed how terrible the world outside was.
No one wanted to go through that situation.
As soon as the first roll call was over, a woman immediately fell onto the bed.
“Huh!”
She buried her face in the bedsheets and took a deep breath. The clean scent purified with natural detergent penetrates into the lungs.
“Ahahahaha.”
He buried her face and hit her legs that were upright.
Your own home, your own bed. I was finally able to get it in her hands.
I never, ever wanted to lose this happiness.
* * *
There are many mass media outlets that cover zombie apocalypse and epidemic apocalypse situations.
And what is essential in such works is ‘plunder.’ Expressions such as exploration, collection, or farming would also be good.
Burying large supermarkets or convenience stores with weapons while nervous is a common scene.
It’s the emotion that makes you happy for a canned food or a chocolate bar, and is even willing to kill for a single antibiotic.
What if zombies attack in the meantime? It is the completion of a cliché soup with all the delicious ingredients.
But the situation I find myself in is far from that.
“This place is empty too.”
The large supermarket seen from the robot’s perspective through the VR machine is a mess.
Unlike the floor full of miscellaneous trash, the shelves are empty.
The sight of people sticking their arms inside the shelves and pulling them to sweep canned goods into the cart is a sight to behold.
“I dropped one.”
On the floor, there is a can of beans with a broken lid and the remains of the contents spilling out of it. The beans and seasoning had already rotted away, leaving only traces.
There are remains of dead bodies that appear to have been involved in a fight. Looking at the back of the head being broken, it looks like he was attacked with a blunt weapon.
[Even though I was busy, I took it reasonably well. I didn’t just take whatever I could get my hands on.]
The refrigerator, long after the electricity had been turned off, was full of completely melted and mushy ice cream. Judging from the amount of sheep, it appears that the refugees barely even touched it.
I gave priority to canned goods that can be stored for a long time, high-calorie foods, and daily necessities.
“I never thought there would be ramen left.”
Unlike foods such as canned food, beef jerky, nuts, chocolate, and powdered milk, which were completely removed, some ramen remained.
You can see a set of 5 ramens. Some of them were burdensome to take the whole bag, but there was one that I took out just one bag because I wanted to get just one taste.
[It requires fire and water to cook, and after eating, the high salt content causes thirst. It is not good for emergency food.]
I looked around while listening to Artemis’ trivia.
It looks like the person who ripped open the ramen bag earlier also went to the snack section. Even if I couldn’t take it with me because of the size, I guess I wanted to taste it one last time.
There were torn snack bags of each type lying around. After taking a bite, there were all kinds of snacks spilling out on the floor, as if they had been thrown away without any hesitation.
They took all the valuable supplies, but since they had to evacuate in such a hurry, there were quite a few items left.
As I gathered useful things and went outside the building, I saw fallen carts rolling around.
“…”
One of the carts contained curled-up remains. Based on his size, he looks at least 8 years old? Right next to it, the remains of an adult lie down.
[Jinsu, Team C found supplies.]
“Send it there.”
With a sense of slightly blurred consciousness, a new scenery unfolded before my eyes.
In an instant, we moved from the supermarket in the outskirts of town to the middle of the field. No matter where you look, all you see is abandoned farmland and the mountains beyond.
An empty two-lane road passes right next to it. Next to it is a material supply company that is about half the size of the previous supermarket. This is the place I’m truly aiming for.
I am walking a different path than a typical disaster survivor. This is because you can be self-sufficient when it comes to eating and drinking.
What I need is raw materials.
These are the materials that make robots, drones, vehicles, and helicopters. Above all, gunpowder and metal for ammunition were needed.
The military units targeted first had already left with all military supplies and were ready for combat during the infection war.
I found a few military bases, but there was nothing useful.
In addition, due to the nature of my army, which uses 12.7 mm guns as standard and 30 mm cannons for fire support, ammunition production cannot be avoided.
I prioritized searching through hardware stores, chemical stores, and factories handling the items.
We secured nitric acid, sulfuric acid, acetone, ethyl acetate, and other chemical stabilizers and solvents needed for gunpowder production.
Cellulose, one of the main materials, was made from plant stems grown in a hydroponic cultivation facility.
The fact that raw material handling companies are located far from the city due to land price is also a positive factor. This is because it was safe from the threat of infectious agents.
The refugees also had nothing to eat or wear, so they did not touch them at all.
The main gate of the shelter, which seemed like it would be closed forever, was repeatedly opened and closed every day by expedition teams arriving and returning.
At first, only APC vehicles were dispatched, but not long ago, cargo trucks were also dispatched.
My army also needed to evolve to keep up with the infectious agents that had already evolved far ahead.
The seed bolt was experiencing a power outage, and even the floor was flooded. Buildings that have stopped being managed by humans will continue to deteriorate further in the future.
We must hurry to go on an expedition, even if only for a day.
