Episode 309
309. Survivors
When people first heard that the 19th round mission was survival, people were worried.
-How do you survive 72 hours without food and water?
-They say if you don’t get it to 72 or less, everyone will be wiped out. What should I do?
-If we keep doing this, won’t we end up stabbing each other?
The worries became real, and people did die.
However, when they found out that it was due to the devil’s intervention, people were relieved.
-Humanity is not dead yet.
-That’s right. Even so, do we really have to kill each other?
-There is no way there is that much trash.
-No one will die anymore.
But when all the demons were cleared and 48 hours had passed since the round began, people realized.
They underestimated human cruelty.
“Die, you f*cking bastard!”
“Mother Pucker!”
“All Asians must die!”
“Damn you bastards!”
No matter how good of character you gather, people can change in an instant.
Because humans are animals that change depending on the environment.
Therefore, disputes are bound to arise wherever you go.
Especially if you are in a sensitive state because you can’t sleep and have nothing to eat or drink.
“Stop fighting! “Stop it!”
“What the hell are you!”
“Kill that bastard too!”
[The fiftieth death has occurred.]
[The fifty-first death has occurred.]
[The fifty-second death has occurred.]
Even if we tried to stop it, the number of deaths only increased.
It’s literally shit.
Everyone was hell-bent on killing anyone, as if they were going to kill anyone who got on their nerves.
“Why on earth are you doing this? “I didn’t give you the buff just to do this!”
Minjoo-ri shouted, but no one heard.
No, there was, but I didn’t answer.
Just by pointing a sword, you repay the favor with vengeance.
“Don’t interrupt! Do you want to die too? Oh, if that’s the case, kill me… … .”
The man who was approaching Minjoo-ri flinched and stopped.
4 fairies, 3 golems, and 2 soul knights appeared surrounding Minjoo-ri.
“Anyone who approaches this way will be killed. “Why don’t you come and check for yourself to see if it’s just empty talk or not?”
“… … Chiit!”
In response to Seo A-rin’s threat, which was not a threat, the man turned around and joined the fight again.
“are you okay?”
“yes. Thank you, Seo A-rin.”
“Compared to what Min-ri Min stepped forward, this is nothing.”
Min Joo-ri, who understood what Seo A-rin meant, laughed as if she was embarrassed.
I tried to sacrifice myself on behalf of others in front of the lion-faced devil.
“Why did you do that then?”
“What?”
“Why were you trying to save my life?”
“Well, me? “What about Seo A-rin?”
Minjoo-ri was taken aback by the direct question.
“Well, I guess you’re mistaken, but I wasn’t specifically trying to save Seo A-rin, right? “Yamti was also there at that time.”
“That’s true, but… … You were willing to sacrifice anyway. “How were you able to muster that courage?”
Minjoo-ri’s answer was simple.
“Your life is going to die anyway, so it’s better if you can save someone else’s life.”
It was simple arithmetic: if I could save two people by sacrificing one person, I would be willing to do it.
“Minju-ri Min is amazing. Judging by the situation, it seems like he resembles Black Scythe.”
“Thanks for the compliments.”
Min-ri Min and Seo-rin looked at each other and smiled.
But even for a moment.
[The fifty-third death has occurred.]
I couldn’t help but feel nervous again as the death messages kept coming up.
“Shouldn’t we stop it?”
In response to Min-ri Min-ri’s question, Seo-arin shook her head and spoke calmly.
“no. “Leave it alone.”
“But… … .”
“You saw it a little while ago. If we go out for no reason, we will be the only ones harmed. “It’s not a situation where words can be communicated.”
About 30 people are involved in a petty fight, leading to a stabbing, and we have to just watch.
“I like watching. Look at the numbers fighting now.”
“uh… … ?”
“How many people will there be if they all die?”
“There will be less than 72 people?”
Seo A-rin nodded.
“It might be better to let them fight. “There is no way to stop it anyway.”
Other colleagues probably had the same thought and just watched without participating.
Cho Yong-ho, Russell, John Delgado, Joo Seong-tak, Yamti, Eom Jun-seok, Dorothy, Alex, Victor, Sophia, etc.
All of the colleagues I met at Twin Canyon.
I was hoping that they would fight and destroy each other.
Otherwise, there might come a situation where they would have to kill them with their own hands.
Did their earnest wish come true?
[The seventieth death has occurred.]
[The deceased’s nickname is ‘Ali.’]
[Now that 10 minutes have passed, we will destroy the player.]
[Current remaining players: 73]
[Extinct players: 70]
[Time remaining until round end: 23:17:49]
After a fierce battle, the death toll reached 70.
Now, if one more person dies, there will be 72 remaining players and the survival condition will be met.
And coincidentally, there was only one person who survived the bloody fight.
“Heo-eok, heo-eok.”
Leonard, the man left alone, looked around with murderous eyes.
As he fights like crazy, everyone but himself is dead.
I don’t remember how many people I killed, but that’s probably a good thing.
Because I am already exhausted.
“Huh, huh.”
However, Leonard could not put down the sword in his hand.
Because he felt eyes watching him from the other side.
“Oh, don’t come. Don’t come! “Do you want to die too?”
Perhaps because of my shaky vision, I had the illusion that a group of people was walking by.
Leonard, who had been holding his sword in a fit of alarm, took a step back.
He knows it too.
Only if he dies will 72 people be matched and all of them will survive.
“Do you think I will die easily? Do not be ridiculous! “I will survive tenaciously.”
Leonard, thinking they were coming to kill him, turned and ran away.
In reality, Seo A-rin and the others just stared.
“He shouted something and then left.”
“I guess they thought we were going to hurt them.”
“Well, if only one person dies, everyone can survive, so they probably thought they would become targets.”
Seo A-rin and Min-ri Min were talking and looked at Leonard who was walking away.
If that person had died as well, their right to life would have been guaranteed, but it wasn’t a pity.
I had no intention of killing.
I could only watch in a daze as the tragedy unfolded.
“Let’s go.”
“Where? “Over there?”
“We have to find out if there are any survivors. Probably not, but… … .”
The group followed Seo A-rin to a place full of corpses.
There were as many corpses as there were death messages.
There were no survivors.
“We remove it by erasing traces. If we leave it like this, monsters might eat it.”
“is it so.”
The party members who agreed cleaned up the bodies.
Although the results were not good, they were once colleagues who trusted each other and had each other’s backs.
At least it would be better than letting the monsters eat you.
“If everything is done, let’s go.”
“Where?”
“Because I can’t sleep here.”
The companions nodded and slowly walked away.
* * *
You can tell how much time has passed by looking at the quest window.
However, people were reluctant to look at the quest window.
The reason was simple.
Because I felt disappointed every time I looked at the remaining time.
[Time remaining until round end: 12:03:39]
“Oh, there are still 12 hours left?”
Min Joo-ri looked at the time and her face became disgusted.
Seo A-rin and the others who heard those words also had the same expression.
It seems like it’s been quite a while, but time flies.
“I’m hungry…” … .”
“If only I had a sip of water… … .”
It was hard at first because I couldn’t sleep, but now it’s resolved.
I satisfied my need for sleep by standing watch with trustworthy companions in a suitable place where monsters did not appear.
There was no need to lose stamina.
It wasn’t difficult at all since I stayed still and had a healer.
But that wasn’t what was really difficult.
hungry.
The biggest problem was not being able to eat anything.
Even Christine’s heels couldn’t satisfy her hunger.
I couldn’t even wash it carelessly.
That’s why everyone had dirty faces, like homeless people who hadn’t starved for a few days.
“I’m going crazy hungry because there’s nothing to eat. “I feel like I’m at a fasting center as a group.”
“Forced diet…?” … Even when I was an aspiring student, I never tried it… … .”
“Aren’t actors also dieting?”
Seo A-rin shook her head.
“Other people say they do it, but I didn’t have to. “Even if you eat it in the first place, you won’t gain weight.”
“ah… … It’s the constitution. i envy you.”
“I’m more envious of Min Joo-ri… … .”
Seo A-rin’s eyes were focused on her chest, but Min-ri Min tried to pretend not to notice because she was embarrassed.
“Hmm, by the way, shouldn’t we be the only ones getting together and go meet other players as well?”
“No. “How can you trust someone else?”
The current number of people is 24, including mercenaries.
These are the elite members that Black Scythe can trust, who told us to gather at Twin Canyon.
The whereabouts of the remaining 49 people are unknown.
No, you can track it, so you should be able to find it if you want to, but you didn’t.
You never know what might happen if you accept them as colleagues.
On the other hand, the other person won’t be able to trust us either.
“I think it’s right for us to camp out by ourselves and endure like this.”
“I guess so?”
24 people were standing in one place without moving.
There was no need to waste energy unnecessarily.
But holding on like this was more difficult than I thought.
Because I had to fight against hunger and somehow kill the slow passage of time.
“I wish I had at least a smartphone.”
“That’s right.”
For those without cell phones, talking was the only way to kill time.
Is that why?
Perhaps because of their many conversations, Seo A-rin and Min-ri Min became closer than before.
I wasn’t at the point where I could say anything yet.
It was then.
An unexpected notification appeared before people.
[The seventy-first death has occurred.]
[The nickname of the deceased is ‘Leonald.’]
[Now that 10 minutes have passed, we will destroy the player.]
[Current players remaining: 72]
[Extinct players: 71]
[Time remaining until round end: 11:57:28]
[There are currently less than 72 players.]
[Power extinction penalty disappears.]
[Everyone secures the right to survive the round.]
It was a welcome reminder, like sweet rain in a drought.
“If you’re Leonard, isn’t he the one who survived that battle?”
“That’s right, him.”
“How did he die?”
“Could it be that he died of starvation? Or died by a monster.”
That was highly likely.
Even though I was already fighting, I had exhausted a lot of my stamina.
“Now that it’s not destroyed, I’m relieved.”
“As long as I can hold out for the remaining time.”
You can survive as long as you hold on.
That fact inspired the players like a dying flame was revived.
Well, there was nothing to do but sit still and hold on.
We were talking like that for a while.
“uh?”
Seo A-rin noticed a person approaching.
“Someone is coming.”
Just as she said, a group of people were approaching the group.
“Don’t be on guard. “We didn’t come to fight.”
“There’s no reason to fight anymore, right?”
A group of people who showed their empty hands and made it clear that they had no intention of fighting approached Seo A-rin and the others.
Seo A-rin still showed caution.
“Then what brought you here?”
“Do you have anything to eat? “I’m starving to death.”
Everyone felt defeated for a simple reason.
“I’m sorry, but we don’t have one either.”
“We haven’t even been able to drink a single sip of water and are starving.”
As soon as they realized they were in the same situation, people’s faces turned glum.
“Is it okay if I join you?”
“sure. “There is nothing wrong with coming together.”
Before the number of players reached 72, the players used to fight to the death, but now the situation has changed.
There was no reason to kill the other person, nor even the energy to do so.
As time passed, people began to gather one by one, perhaps feeling relieved.
And in the end, all 71 survivors except Black Scythe were able to gather in one place.
“Whoa… … “There are still three hours left.”
Seo A-rin, who was sighing as she looked at the remaining time, looked at Min-ri Min.
It seemed like the eyes were busy somewhere, looking for someone.
“What’s wrong? Are you looking for Black Scythe?”
“Oh, no.”
Min Joo-ri spoke in a whisper so that others could not hear.
“Min was looking for me.”
“Ryu Min?”
“I should definitely see it, but I can’t see what’s going on.”
“… … .”
There are 71 people here, excluding Black Scythe.
The number is small enough to be confirmed with the naked eye.
“Why can’t I see it?”
Seo A-rin sighed as she saw Min Joo-ri finally getting up and moving around.
And when she came back, she said with a face that she couldn’t see me anymore.
“Mr. Min-ri Min. You really don’t know? Or do you just not want to believe it?”
“yes? “What do you mean?”
Seo A-rin spoke in a whisper, conscious of her surroundings.
“You still don’t believe it? “Black Scythe is Mr. Ryumin?”
“There’s no way the two are the same person.”
“It’s the same person. “I heard it directly from Mr. Ryu Min.”
“I heard it from Min too. “I dismissed it as a bad joke.”
“It’s no joke. “Is Mr. Ryu Min the kind of person who can joke?”
“… … .”
After saying this, Minjoo-ri couldn’t help but think again.
“Are you really saying these two people are the same person?”
“yes.”
“But it looks different. As for personality… … .”
“You can change your appearance. “Didn’t Min-ri Min see it too?”
“ah.”
Min Joo-ri remembered it later.
The scene where a black scythe appeared in the form of Hwang Yong-min when he was turned into a sheep by a demon with a lion’s face.
And the scene where he transformed into a black scythe.
Even though she was transformed into a sheep, Min Joo-ri clearly witnessed that scene.
“So what about personality… … .”
“Personality is also a concept. “Ryu Min deliberately pretended to be someone else in order to wear the mask of Black Scythe.”
“Then really… … .”
That’s when Min Joo-ri opens her mouth as if she finds it hard to believe.
“uh? Hey, look over there! “It’s the devil!”
The devil appeared.
It wasn’t a mistake, it was definitely a red-skinned devil.
But people were rubbing their eyes as if there was something wrong with them.
Because I saw a familiar man next to him.
“That… … “You are Black Scythe, right?”
A black scythe appeared with the devil.
