Chapter 175: Surviving the Terror (2)

Floor-length white hair.  

Bloodshot red eyes.  

A mouth torn all the way to the ears.  

A height well over three meters and a skeletal, emaciated frame.  

A grotesque woman wearing a tattered red dress.

[Ahahaha! Kyahahahahahahaha!]

The woman began ripping her clothes apart while cackling like a lunatic.

Flicker—

-<Smiling Woman>  

-Load Number: MRG-9778  

-Load Grade: Terror  

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MRG-9778, also known as the Smiling Woman.  

It was a name I had seen countless times in the warehouse quests.

[Ahahaha! Kyahahahahahahaha!]

The laughter reverberated like a ringing bell, stabbing my eardrums like sharp awls.

Then.

Ding!

<Warning! The Smiling Woman is slowly beginning to smile! Damage is accumulating to the warehouse!>  

<Warning! A small laugh is escaping the Smiling Woman’s mouth! Damage is accumulating to the warehouse!>  

<Warning! The Smiling Woman is opening her mouth and laughing loudly! Damage is accumulating to the warehouse!>  

<Warning! The Smiling Woman’s laughter is gradually growing louder! Damage is accumulating to the warehouse!>

Warning messages popped up one after another.  

The louder the Smiling Woman laughed, the more damage accumulated across the entire Magical Warehouse.

[Ahahaha! Kyahahahahahahaha!]

She twisted her limbs in bizarre angles while laughing.

There was only one way to stop her.  

As long as she was busy tearing apart items recognized as luxury goods, the Smiling Woman would stop laughing.

Scattered all around were countless pieces of debris.  

Bags, shoes, dresses, watches, rings, necklaces, scarves, and more.  

Enough luxury items to fill two or three high-end department stores had been shredded to pieces.

She tore all of that? In such a short time?

I had restocked her with luxury goods from Gangnam Department Store only a few weeks ago.  

Once she ran out of things to rip, she started laughing again.

Then……

The Smiling Woman turned her head toward me.

[Kyahahahahahahaha!]

She charged at me with her mouth wide open.  

Long, blade-like fingernails slashed wildly.

Slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice—!

Iron bars, outer walls, even the ceiling.  

The Smiling Woman’s nails tore everything in sight to shreds.

One thing was certain.

……This crazy bitch is way scarier than the baby monster!

Solid stone walls and iron bars were being sliced apart like cubed steak.

Slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice!

She staggered from side to side yet closed the distance with terrifying speed.

I quickly got into a fighting stance.

“……Fine! All or nothing!”

Ding!

<Skill ‘Oil Mucus Skin’ activated!>  

<Skill ‘Dying Embers’ activated!>

A red wave exploded forward.

Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwaang!

Roaring flames swallowed the Smiling Woman whole.

However.

[Kyahyahyahya— kikik— kya kya kya kya! Ehehehehehe! Ohohoho! Kihihihihihi!]

Her laughter only grew more grotesque.  

Still engulfed in flames, the Smiling Woman staggered straight toward me.

The moment my eyes met her blood-red pupils—

“Run!”

I spun around and sprinted.

[Uhehehet— kehehek— ahahahahaha!]

The spine-chilling laughter chased right behind me.  

The flames clinging to her body had already died out completely.

The combination of the Fire Crow’s dying embers and the Gigasnail’s oil mucus produced destructive power on par with A+-rank.  

Yet not a single hair on the Smiling Woman was even singed.

She’s at least S-rank.

I couldn’t use Jeanne, the Shadow Knights, or the zombies.  

There was only one way to deal real damage to an S-rank monster.

The Gluttony Kill and Greed Kill secret arts of the Seven Demon Strikes could hurt her.  

But those secret arts consumed massive amounts of stamina and mana.

I had to survive six weeks in the Terror Zone. 

I had no idea what other sudden situations might arise, so I couldn’t waste energy recklessly.

……Wait. I have elixirs.

The top-grade potion that healed all wounds and fully restored stamina and mana—the Elixir.  

Dozens of them, given to me by the alchemist Paracelsus, were sitting in my inventory.

I hurriedly opened my inventory.

But.

[Inventory]  

-Elixir <Unavailable>  

-Elixir <Unavailable>  

-Elixir <Unavailable>  

-Elixir <Unavailable>  

-Elixir <Unavailable>

“?”

What the hell?

Every single elixir had the “Unavailable” tag.  

I couldn’t even take them out.

Ding!

<This Elixir was manufactured by ‘MRG-81547’.>  

<Current Warehouse Keeper ‘Cha Hasang-nim’ is prohibited from using any items connected to the Magical Warehouse.>

The system kindly explained why.

“I’m actually going to lose my mind!”

Paracelsus was obviously a warehouse cargo with his own load number.

At that moment.

[Ahahahahaha~!]

The laughter sounded much closer than before.

I took a deep breath and then.

Ding!

<Skill ‘God Descent’ activated!>

I sprinted at full speed.

Whoosh— whoosh— whoosh whoosh whoosh—

Agility beads shot out of Amnesia’s Match like juggling balls.  

I snatched up every bead I could reach while running.

I caught half and missed half.  

It was a shame, but……

If I stop to pick them up one by one, I’ll get caught immediately!

Then.

[U, e…… uaa……?]

The baby monster’s giant head popped out from the corner ahead.  

The moment our eyes met, it grinned.  

The stitches around its mouth popped open, revealing yellowed teeth.

[A, uu…… bba……!]

[Ahahaha! Kyahahahahahaha!]

The baby monster in front.  

The Smiling Woman behind.  

Stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The baby monster charged like an elephant.  

And.

Slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice slice!

The Smiling Woman swung her razor-sharp nails wildly as she closed in.

Right when both monsters were close enough to reach out and touch me—

Ding!

<Skill ‘God Descent’ activated!>

I kicked off the ground and leaped.  

I stuck to the ceiling in a frog-like pose.

Ding!

<Activating item skill ‘Mucus Secretion’ from Gigasnail’s Boots!>  

<Activating item skill ‘Mucus Secretion’ from Gigasnail’s Boots!>

Then—

Boom!

The two giant monsters collided head-on.

A violent roar shook the ground.  

The impact sent both the Smiling Woman and the baby monster flying several meters back.

I clung to the ceiling, panting.

……If my agility stat had been even a little lower, I wouldn’t have made it.

If I hadn’t judged the situation and acted instantly, I would have been crushed flat.

Attack power, speed, toughness, defense.  

Every single cargo in the Terror Zone was on par with an S-rank monster.

How the hell do I shake them off?

Even while I was thinking, agility beads kept pouring from the match.

Plop— plop plop plop—

At that moment, the Smiling Woman and the baby monster stood up.

Then something unexpected happened.

The baby monster’s thick hand grabbed both of the Smiling Woman’s arms.  

And then—

Crunch! Craaaaack—!

Her arms shattered like dry twigs.

[Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah—!]

The Smiling Woman thrashed in agony.  

The baby monster clapped and giggled.

[A, p…… uer……?]

But then.

[Kihit— kyahahahat— hohohohoho!]

The Smiling Woman’s laughter started again.  

At the same time, red lines were carved across the baby monster’s face.

Slice slice slice slice slice—!

Bright red blood spurted along the nail marks.

[A, p…… au……!]

The baby monster clutched its face and collapsed.

That was only the beginning.

[Warehouse…… keeper…… my toy……]

[Ahahaha! Kyahahahahahaha!]

The Smiling Woman and the baby monster started attacking each other.

Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!

Slice slice slice slice slice slice—

I left the monsters behind and sprinted away.

But that lasted only a moment.

“What the—? It’s a dead end?”

A wall blocked the path ahead.  

To go upward, I would have to climb the cliff.

Two options were installed on the cliff face.  

One was a metal ladder.  

The other was a rotten rope that looked ready to snap at any second.

Which one?

Then.

[Kyahahahahaha! Uhehehehe! Hahaha!]

[Same…… go…… me too……]

The voices of the Smiling Woman and the baby monster echoed from behind.

I quickly reached for the metal ladder.

“Young man! Hurry!”

A voice called from above.  

An kindly-looking old gentleman on the metal ladder stretched out his hand.  

He looked like the gentle old man in a suit who fed pigeons at Tapgol Park.

“Come on! Just a little more effort!”

His wrinkled hand reached closer.

But.

“Fuck this. The rope was the right choice, wasn’t it?”

I quickly started climbing back down the ladder.

A foul stench stung my nose.  

There was no way a normal human could exist in a place like this.  

Above all, it was impossible to keep neatly combed hair and a tidy suit here.

Sure enough.

Flicker—

-<Corrupt Politician>  

-Load Number: MRG-750  

-Load Grade: Terror  

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“Just as I thought.”

The moment the old gentleman touched the metal ladder, it began to rot.

The instant I let go—

Hssssssss—

The metal ladder melted into thick, sticky black liquid and dripped down.  

Anything that touched the old gentleman turned pitch-black and decayed.

Then the old gentleman looked down at me and chuckled.

[……Oh dear, what a shame. I was so close.]

Black liquid began dripping from the air.

Drip— drip drip drip—

Foul-smelling black droplets.  

Even the organic matter in the air rotted the instant it touched the old gentleman’s breath.

I quickly started climbing the rotten rope.

Creak…… creak……

Every time I grabbed the rope, ominous sounds rang out.

Then.

[I can kill the warehouse keeper! Heekihihihihihi! That delicious scent coming from the clumsy warehouse keeper! I can’t hold back any longer—!]

The old gentleman had already grabbed the rope and was climbing after me.

Creak…… creak…… creak creak creak……!

The rope shook violently.  

I hurried up the cliff and immediately cut the rope behind me.

The rope snapped.

Crunch!…… Thud!

[Kyahat! Kyahahahat! I will definitely eat you, warehouse keeper—!]

The old gentleman’s shout echoed from below.

“Haa…… haa…… haa……”

I caught my breath and stood up.

The moment I did, a sigh escaped at the sight before me.

A vast plain filled with black grass and trees.  

Everywhere my eyes could reach was packed with monstrosities.

Dozens of monsters all turned toward me at once.

[Warehouse keeper— warehouse keeper— warehouse keeper—]  

[Save me? Save me? Save me? Save me? Save me? Save me? Save me? Save me?]  

[Found you found you found you found you found you found you found you found you found you found you found you found you]  

[Come here I’ll hug you come here I’ll crush you come here I’ll tear you apart come here I’ll hug you come here I’ll crush you come here I’ll tear you apart come here I’ll hug you come here I’ll crush you come here I’ll tear you—]

The forty-two-day survival record in the Terror Zone.

“Ah…… isn’t this too much……”

The first night in the Terror Zone passed like that.