Underground second floor of the container ship.
At the very end of the corridor, inside a break room reserved exclusively for administrators, two women sat against the wall, sighing deeply.
“……”
“……”
The black suits they wore were soaked entirely in blood.
It was evidence of the fierce battle they had endured before making it to this room.
Lee Eunha, visibly exhausted, spoke.
“Young-hee, rest a bit. I’ll take the first watch.”
Go Young-hee smiled brightly in reply. Her smile made it clear just how utterly screwed up this situation was.
“…Ah, no, ma’am. You should rest first. I’ll take the first watch.”
“Then let’s just catch our breath for a moment. Just in case…”
Picking up a brush, Lee Eunha began to draw something on the door.
Using her ability, she set up a sort of barricade.
“Better than nothing.”
“…Yeah.”
Go Young-hee briefly listened for any sound outside, but thankfully, it was quiet.
Just thirty minutes ago, the hallway had echoed nonstop with screams, the sound of bodies being ripped apart, and something being chewed and devoured.
Considering what they had gone through to get here, it was hardly surprising.
As she leaned against the wall with her eyes closed, trying to steady her breathing, Lee Eunha asked calmly, “Young-hee.”
“Yes?”
“What do you think would’ve happened… if we’d gone back then?”
“Hmm… Probably ended up like the other administrators, bodies torn apart and scattered all over the hallway?”
“Yeah… probably.”
“If you hadn’t stopped me, I’d definitely be dead. Thank you, ma’am… You saved my life.”
“I only made it this far because of you, Young-hee. I couldn’t have done it alone.”
Since returning from Japan, Lee Eunha had grown considerably stronger through her own training.
She had reinforced her stamina—which had been considered a weakness—and improved her overall physical capabilities.
Even so, she was certain that, had she been alone, she wouldn’t have made it to this break room.
“But… how did you know?”
“It was strange.”
“What was?”
“…The blackout. The comms went down, the ship’s systems were fried—and then suddenly a broadcast plays? Doesn’t that sound suspicious to anyone?”
“Well, now that you mention it…”
About two hours ago.
While working together, Lee Eunha and Go Young-hee had been taking a short break and chatting when the blackout occurred.
To make matters worse, all communication devices stopped working.
Flustered, the two debated what to do.
Should they head out to find other administrators to assess the situation? Or stay put and wait for the systems to come back online?
Go Young-hee leaned toward the former; Lee Eunha chose the latter.
Then, a broadcast played. It was a very low and deep voice.
[Ahem. This is a message from the Command Center. Due to unusual weather anomalies and unknown phenomena, all communication and electronic systems onboard are currently malfunctioning. This is a temporary issue and repair teams are already responding. Any administrators and staff hearing this broadcast, please do not panic and proceed to the deck immediately.]
From that point on, Lee Eunha had been suspicious of the broadcast.
It was in her nature to be sceptical and methodical—she never accepted things at face value. On top of that, this ship was crawling with entities.
[Once again, due to weather anomalies and unknown phenomena, all internal communication and electronic systems have malfunctioned. All administrators and staff, please gather on the deck immediately. If anyone nearby speaks against this broadcast, leave them immediately. Whatever the reason, they are a threat to you.
This broadcast is being delivered directly by me, Jameson Carter, a Beta-grade administrator of the NA Branch. To remove any doubts, I’ll add that this broadcast is using emergency power…]
The same message played at least two more times. After hearing it, Go Young-hee tried to head for the deck.
But Lee Eunha stopped her with everything she had.
It didn’t make sense—how could a broadcast be playing if both power and communications were down?
Why mention “emergency power” only afterward, as if it were an afterthought?
Young-hee hesitated, struggling even more because the broadcast itself had addressed this very suspicion.
—I get why you’re doubting this because of the broadcast. But Young-hee, you’ve been with me this whole time, right? Just trust me one more time, even if you think it’s foolish. If that broadcast is real, the worst that happens is we’re late. If you’re worried I’m one of them, I’ll even wear restraints.
Young-hee had never seen Eunha argue so intensely before.
Even Eunha herself couldn’t fully explain why—but her instincts screamed that they had to stay put.
For Young-hee, it ultimately came down to one question: Who do I trust?
And she chose Eunha.
Rather than some “Jameson Carter” from the broadcast, she trusted the person who had crossed death’s threshold with her.
So the two of them kept silent in the suffocating darkness.
About ten minutes passed.
Then, the broadcast resumed.
[Krrk! Zzzzt! Bang! Slice-slice! Crunch. Crackle. Munch-munch. Boom! Boom! Boom! Aaaaagh! My aaaarm! My leggggg! It hurts it hurts it hurts. Don’t rip that! It’s tearing! IT’S TEARING! KYAAAAAA! HELP ME! HELP ME! Someone put it back in, please.
Stab! Squelch! Stabstabstab! MY HEAD—MY HEAD EXPLODED—! Heeheeheehee!]
What followed was the sound of flesh being sliced, bones separating from muscle, limbs being torn apart, screams of agony, and hysterical laughter.
—M-Ma’am… d-don’t tell me…
—Yeah… we’re fucked.
About five minutes passed after the broadcast ended. The sounds from the speaker had been so horrifying that neither of them dared to speak.
Then, a voice came from the speaker again.
This time, it was a woman’s voice.
[You sons of b*tches. Got lucky, huh? Used your heads a little?]
With those final words, the speaker went silent.
Lee Eunha and Go Young-hee knew exactly who that voice had been talking to.
The survivors who didn’t gather on the deck—in other words, them.
Thirty minutes later, the power came back on, and the communication devices that had been down were restored to normal.
— Team Leader Song Jaejoong! What exactly is going on right now?
— Assistant Manager Lee Eunha? You’re alive? I guess you didn’t head to the deck after hearing the broadcast. I’m glad you’re okay.
— So the administrators who went to the deck… they’re all dead, aren’t they?
— Yeah. All of them. There’s no time to go into detail, so listen carefully. It seems some of the entities that were quarantined on Basement Level 4 have escaped. Starting with a commander-class entity, they’ve been opening the containment chambers of the other entities. I’m heading out to rescue some of our administrators who are calling for help. I’ve also managed to get in touch with the American branch administrators. We agreed to meet in the engine room on Basement Level 3, so head there.
— Understood.
“The place where we’re supposed to meet Team Leader Song Jaejoong… it was the engine room on Basement Level 3, right?”
“Yes.”
Go Young-hee nodded with a grin like a madwoman.
Lee Eunha knew about the curse afflicting her, so she didn’t think much of it—but anyone else seeing her right now would’ve been horrified.
“Level 3… Do you think we can make it?”
“To be honest, I think it’ll be tough.”
Even just reaching the break room, they’d had to face a truckload of entities. Going to Basement Level 3 meant traveling three or four times that distance. The number of entities they might encounter on the way was unimaginable.
“Still… what choice do we have? We have to go.”
Go Young-hee grinned brightly.
“R-right?”
Lee Eunha pulled out “Jack’s Magic Beans” from her coat and handed one to Young-hee.
“Th-thank you.”
The two of them quietly ate the beans together and began preparing to move. They couldn’t stay there forever, and things outside seemed quiet enough to make a move now.
“I’ll take the lead.”
Lee Eunha carefully opened the door and peeked out, scanning both sides.
Luckily, aside from the corpses scattered across the floor, there was nothing else in sight.
She gestured to Go Young-hee—signaling that it was safe.
“…….”
“…….”
The two women stepped out of the break room and silently moved through the corridor.
So slowly that even their footsteps made no sound.
Sneak, sneak…
Then, Go Young-hee suddenly stopped and asked in a careful voice,
“A-assistant Manager… don’t you hear something?”
“Huh? Sound? I don’t hear anything.”
“But I do… like a buzzing sound.”
Lee Eunha focused her hearing again.
She had recently trained her body to enhance her physical abilities through mana.
“……!”
Faintly, she heard something.
Bzzzzzzz…
Clomp. Clomp.
Bzzzzzzz…
Clomp. Clomp.
The sound was gradually growing louder.
It was getting closer.
“L-look over there…”
Go Young-hee pointed toward the far end of the hallway. From around the corner, a man emerged—slowly walking forward, holding a massive chainsaw in his hand and wearing a clown mask on his face.
BZZZZZZZZZ!
The roaring of the chainsaw blade echoed down the entire corridor.
Upon seeing him, Lee Eunha muttered softly.
“Chainsaw Killer Jack…”
Gamma-class hazardous entity, Chainsaw Killer Jack, greeted them.
[How do you do, lovely ladies? Won’t you go on a date with me today? Do you prefer arms? Or legs? I can also do heads, if you like. Just say the word!]
At the end of the corridor, a cheerful girl’s voice rang out.
[Oh my! Mister, you’re really strong!]
With every step Lee Taeseong took, the corpses lunging at him were sliced into dozens of pieces. To finish them off properly, he set their flesh ablaze with his “Pure Flame.”
Clomp. Clomp.
[I want one. I’ve always wished for a corpse as strong and handsome as you.]
Unlike Taeseong ’s emotionless face, the girl’s once playful expression grew increasingly tense with time.
[…You’re seriously strong. Are you really human?]
Clomp. Clomp.
Even though she had mobilized every one of her treasured corpses, none of them could even get close to him before being incinerated.
[Uh… this isn’t right. Something’s wrong here…]
Before she realized it, Taeseong had burned her last corpse and was now standing right in front of her.
His crimson glowing eyes glared chillingly.
“Answer my questions if you don’t want your limbs torn off.”
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