Chapter 113

Chapter 113
I am feeling completely exhausted by hunger, to the point where sleep eludes me. I simply lie with my eyes closed, passing the time until the sound of an approaching airship draws me outside. The vessel that transported the Candy Zone locals over to the Cola Area is crushing smoldering trees as it touches down. Taejung and the Dentist appear to have wrapped up their discussion, both standing motionless while holding armloads of snacks and gazing up at the transport.

Han Yeo-bom steps off the landing craft first, wearing an expression of absolute self-importance.

“Big bro’s here.”

Luna bounds down immediately afterward. She charges straight toward me, leaps into my grasp, and clings to my collar. After patting her head, I turn my attention to Han Yeo-bom, who speaks up right away.

“Just like I mentioned in the chat, I managed to escort every single Candy Zone survivor to the Cola Area without leaving anyone behind. I figured your father might turn them away, so I hung back to watch from a distance. They chatted briefly before he finally let them inside.”

That is a relief. He welcomed them all in the end.

Father, please forgive this unfilial son of yours.

Though calling myself unfilial is a bit of a stretch. In an apocalyptic era, having a productive population is vital as long as provisions hold out. Because the Cola Area is primarily military, it lacks strength in other areas. Siphoning talent from neighboring zones like this might not be a bad strategy after all.

“Your dad rolled out the red carpet for a bunch of people. He must have thought you were arriving on that ship too.”

“A bunch?”

“Pretty much every familiar face was out there stretching their necks, waiting for you to step off.”

“Hmm. Are you certain they weren’t just there to chew me out for staging a fake kidnapping?”

“Not a chance. They bought the kidnapping story hook, line, and sinker. When Argon told them, their expressions went completely grim.”

Should I really take this guy’s word at face value? The Commander is far from foolish; I find it hard to believe he would swallow the story so easily. Then again, the heir of the cola faction ditching his post as captain and disappearing is difficult to pardon, which is precisely why I laid that groundwork beforehand.

“What is wrong with you anyway? You look terrible.”

Noticing that my condition is far from normal, Han Yeo-bom scrutinizes me closely.

“Are you sick or something?”

“How do I look to you?”

“Normally this is the moment where you start making fun of me for showing up late, but you are being strangely quiet.”

Ah.

“And those dark circles under your eyes look even worse.”

“I am hungry.”

“Did you get hurt?”

Naturally, he assumes my desire for food is meant to heal some physical injury.

“You’re hungry?”

The voice comes from the airship as Miki Parker finishes stepping down and walks toward me with a deeply serious expression.

“Have you been experiencing hunger ever since you used your I-neung?”

Right, he is an I-neung user as well.

“You get hungry after activating your ability?”

“Who knows. I have never pushed my I-neung hard enough to trigger hunger.”

Never?

“Then how did you know to ask if I was hungry after using it?”

“I have witnessed it happen a few times. Right after someone used their I-neung.”

He has frequently observed people becoming hungry following the use of an I-neung…

“Are you referring to the Dopamine Addict from the Unicorn Area?”

“…Yeah.”

That individual possesses an I-neung as well. If he granted Miki Parker magnetic force—the direct counter to my own I-neung—then what kind of power does the Dopamine Addict himself wield?

“What is his I-neung?”

“You really think I’m going to tell you?”

So he has been ordered to keep quiet about his own ability. It is quite fascinating; despite being treated like a lab specimen in the Unicorn Area, this fellow shows remarkable loyalty to the Dopamine Addict.

“Anyway, is this hunger a penalty resulting from overusing your I-neung?”

Miki Parker nods, confirming that is precisely the case.

“Why didn’t you mention this sooner?”

“You tossed yours around like it was nothing, unlike the Boss or myself. I assumed you didn’t have any limitations.”

Unlike myself or the Boss? Up until now, I had believed, just as Luna claimed, that an I-neung was simply something to be used as naturally as an arm or a leg. Evidently, that is not true.

“So the two of you do have restrictions?”

“Obviously. The real anomaly is the little boss who throws around that level of insane power without a care.”

That explains why he looked so stunned the very first time he saw me use my abilities.

“Still, seeing the penalty catch up to you now… maybe your internal reservoir for holding I-neung is just slightly larger than ours.”

“Is there any way to get rid of this hunger?”

“Hmm…”

Miki Parker pauses to consider before offering a cautionary note.

“Just refrain from using your I-neung for a while. Otherwise, you’ll live to regret it.”

Avoid using my I-neung for a while. Well, it isn’t as though some lunatic player is about to set another zone ablaze anytime soon, so it hardly matters. Even so, I am curious about what that warning of regret implies.

“That’s why I advised you not to overdo it,” Han Yeo-bom interrupts. “Leave the upcoming zone to us and take a break. How much did you actually explain to the newbie?”

Taejung provides the answer. The Dentist nods vigorously, as if confirming he learned everything he needed to know.

“Every player has to open their systems before a logout becomes possible, so you’ve been traveling across different zones to unlock their systems for them, right?”

“We aren’t going to resolve this peacefully with everyone. Players who refuse to cooperate get eliminated—just like This Zone’s Troll.”

“I am the one who killed—who got rid of This Zone’s Troll, not you, sunbae!” The Dentist clenches both fists. “Players who are that selfish and rotten don’t deserve a place in this world!”

…Huh? Why are the other three staring at me so intently?

“So the Chicken Area is next, sunbae?”

“You’re already aware that the Chicken Area is nearby?”

“Shortly after I possessed into this world, Commander Argon filled me in on the other zones. Though he specifically warned me never to go anywhere near the Knife Zone…”

Having just learned from Taejung that players in every zone require their systems to be opened, the Dentist asks with an anxious look:

“Are we… heading into the Knife Zone as well?”

“Yes. But it won’t be nearly as perilous as you imagine. I happen to know someone there.”

“Ah… so you have an acquaintance lurking in that den of killers…”

His expression turns complex before he seems to reach a conclusion and nods.

“You’re planning to rescue your friend.”

The individuals from my own zone always assume I have a hidden agenda even when my intentions are pure. Having a newcomer interpret everything in such a charitable light makes a refreshing change.

“I will do my absolute best to help. What do we need to accomplish in the Chicken Area?”

“In the Chicken Area, we actually have nothing to do.”

“Nothing?”

“The people going there have already been decided.”

I look over at Taejung.

“You understand what I mean, correct? The Chicken Area is your home turf.”

Hearing that dependable response, Taejung promptly invites Miki Parker along.

“You want me to accompany you?”

“Yes. Your physical build is solid enough that they won’t turn you away at the entrance.”

“Hmm. That’s fine by me, but you seem pretty nervous about leaving me alone with hyung-nim, don’t you?”

“Think whatever you like.”

I have no clue why Taejung wants Miki Parker along, but the fellow will undoubtedly prove useful in that zone, exactly as Taejung suggested. I might as well let Taejung—being a native of the Chicken Area—handle things however he sees fit. The hunger persists, but I am gradually growing accustomed to it.

It is time I wrapped up my own tasks as well.

I flash a bright smile at our hard-earned newcomer.

“While those two are out, how about our newbie spends some time studying the Safe Zone?”

—

Chicken Area. The players of this territory, who firmly believe that cold weather can be conquered through sheer willpower, are currently trembling with apprehension.

ImNotCrying Thats JustCardio—hereafter referred to as Cardio—asks in a quivering tone:

“The Christmas Forest… did it genuinely burn down entirely?”

His brawny inquiry receives a similarly brawny response.

“That is precisely what I’m telling you! I went to check in on the Candy Zone newbie like always, and I witnessed it with my own eyes. The Christmas Forest was ablaze, and once the fire died down, an airship swept up every single resident of the Candy Zone!”

Through Cardio’s shared updates, the Chicken Area players had been well aware that a Safe Zone newbie had possessed into the adjacent Candy Zone. However, Ssapasuble had strictly prohibited inter-zone communication, and the Chicken Area players had dutifully complied.

This obedience had nothing to do with believing Ssapasuble’s claim that gathering all the meteorites would allow them to return to reality. According to Ssapasuble himself, he would remain trapped underwater alone until the Second Apocalypse without any hope of returning. Above all, their restraint absolutely did not stem from the Dentist ignoring Cardio’s friend request and hurting their feelings so deeply that they gave up on offering assistance. Not at all.

And now, someone has sneaked in while they weren’t paying attention and snatched away the newbie they had been monitoring from afar like a prized treasure.

Worse yet, they accomplished this by burning an entire zone to ashes…

Only one person springs to mind—the sole player known to be capable of pulling off such a stunt.

“Dopamine Addict…”

The name escapes the lips of the Chicken Area players like a shared sigh.

“The person on that airship… do you truly believe it was the Dopamine Addict?”

“I personally spotted a black-haired, black-eyed player marching straight into the burning forest.”

“Black hair and black eyes?”

“Isn’t the Dopamine Addict’s main persona known for white hair and dark circles?”

“He’s supposedly stationed in the Cola Area—perhaps this is the Dopamine Addict running the illegitimate-heir scenario.”

“Yet people mentioned the airship featured a unicorn head emblem.”

“A Unicorn airship? A Cola Area player wouldn’t be piloting a Unicorn craft…”

“Wait—didn’t the Unicorn Area Dopamine Addict state last time that he had already encountered another player? What if that was actually the Cola Area Dopamine Addict?”

It remains a plausible theory. The Cola Area Dopamine Addict hasn’t surfaced in the public chat for ages, and the Unicorn Area Dopamine Addict clearly has zero regard for Ssapasuble’s demands.

Thinking this intensely is giving them a headache.

I just want to get back to lifting weights…

“Whose identity it was doesn’t matter right now.”

The single player among them whose intellect remains relatively flexible pipes up.

“There is an extremely high probability they will target our zone next.”

“They’re coming here as well?”

“That airship is still operating in the Candy Zone.”

“Does this mean we have to fight? That will cost us so much muscle mass…”

“Even so, we cannot simply sit by while individuals act with such reckless abandon.”

“Those Unicorn fellows pride themselves on having soft, mushy brains anyway! We’ve conditioned our brains into pure muscle—let’s not go down without a fight!”

Someone might be tempted to point out that a brain composed of muscle isn’t actually advantageous. Yet within the Chicken Area, muscle is held up as the most sacred of virtues. It is valued more than gold, more than food—a properly trained physique. Among these players in particular, muscle serves as the unspoken hierarchy.

In reality, a decent diet paired with a reasonable amount of labor can forge a respectable physique. Not here, however. Player-style sustenance makes dieting an absolute impossibility. Even if standard meals were accessible, dieting during an apocalyptic age hardly seems practical. Consequently, it requires multiple times the normal effort just to build passable muscle—and even more dedication to maintain it. Within a Chicken Area governed by the law of the strong, muscle stands as the ultimate proof of grit and rank.

This means that when an individual claiming to be a subordinate of the Dopamine Addict appears before them with a physique completely devoid of excess fat, it is more than enough to make every single one of their eyes roll back in sheer admiration.