Chapter 1

Became a Game Character in the Apocalypse 1

Prologue

-Mission Clear

"Finally!"

Starting at the age of 20 in the summer and continuing until the summer of 21, I invested a whole year in the game.

Last Ark.

It was a zombie game that was considered one of the most difficult among roguelike games, known for its extreme difficulty.

I had played most zombie games, but this was the first one that was so repulsive.

The attacks from zombies and mutants grew stronger as the game progressed, and all sorts of bizarre monsters appeared.

It was confusing whether it was a zombie game or a monster movie.

Last Ark had no checkpoint system, so if you died once, you had to start from the beginning.

Even Koreans, who are second to none in time attacks, gave up and stuck out their tongues at this game.

But who am I?

I'm Park Jae-hyung, who, once I start, must see it through to the end!

After countless plays, I finally made it to the Hall of Fame a year after the game's release.

-Player: Park Jae-hyung

-Character: Adam White

As the ending video began, the main characters of the game gathered.

There were five main characters in total.

Gabriel, who could see through the fog; Rachel, who could heal; Deni, who could read minds; Rose, who had a high understanding of all equipment.

And Adam, who was called "trash."

When everyone called him "trash," I insisted on choosing Adam.

For every certain number of zombies eliminated, Adam received a body enhancement card.

"This is a contradiction."

The essence of the game was survival from zombies.

The better your physical abilities, the more advantageous it was for survival.

Other characters were heavily dependent on weapons, so their power would inevitably wane as the episodes progressed.

Conversely, Adam, though extremely difficult at the start, could become the strongest character if he grew steadily without dying.

It took 128 deaths and six months to grow Adam to a stable level.

I watched the game's ending video with my arms crossed.

The video concluded with the five main characters entering the Ark.

I had been so focused on clearing the game that I skipped the videos at the end of each episode and the detailed story.

Thus, the only setting I knew about the game was what I learned through quests.

An unknown fog covered the world, and the virus in the fog infected humans, turning them into zombies.

Survivors with immunity to the virus moved to a safe zone called the "Ark," and the game depicted the story of Gabriel, Rachel, Deni, Rose, and Adam, who had special abilities.

"The person who made this must be crazy."

At first, I thought it was a funny one-man project, but it boasted amazing detail.

The character's strength, stamina, emotions, mental state, and fatigue level all affected their abilities for the day.

In a world where survival was a struggle, you had to ensure balanced nutrition, chat with teammates to avoid depression, and even play mini-games.

Moreover, the common cold was so easy to catch that I often died like a sardine from it.

If the balance was even slightly off, the character would feel extreme anxiety.

This could lead to uncontrollable behavior, such as killing teammates or committing suicide.

-Creator: GOD

At the end of the video, the creator's name appeared.

The name was God.

While I admit the game's detail was excellent, the self-praise was excessive.

Last Ark had approximately 900,000 Korean users.

Initially, many people enjoyed the game, but due to its extreme difficulty, many gave up and switched to other games.

It became a game for those who, like me, wanted to see the ending before dying, a game that had become stagnant.

The last post on the Last Ark Inven forum was from three months ago.

"I enjoyed and was disgusted by it for a year."

This was my one-line review of the game.

It was both satisfying and disappointing.

Well, I should be satisfied that I saw the ending of a game that no one else in the world had cleared.

I stretched and got up from my seat.

The dimly lit dormitory room for four.

The senior, a fourth-year, was already asleep, and the third-year and the freshman had gone out to the PC room.

I have a 9:00 AM class tomorrow, so I should go to bed before it gets too late.

Lying in bed, I thought about my schedule for the next day.

Actually, there wasn't much to it.

After the 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM classes, I would prepare for the final exam in the club room.

With a contented smile, I fell into a deep sleep.

Crackle, crackle.

Unaware of anything.

Crackle, crackle.

I couldn't imagine that my current contentment would turn into despair.

Snap!

-All episodes cleared.

-Beta test ended.

-Game restarting.

-Difficulty reset.

-New difficulty: Hell

-First episode: Safe House

How much time had passed?

I woke up to a rustling sound.

Opening my sleepy eyes and looking around, I saw pitch-black darkness outside the window.

And the senior, a fourth-year, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Bro, Byung-chul? What are you doing here…"

"Shh."

Byung-chul immediately covered my mouth.

The only part of Byung-chul's neck visible was a yellowish-green shirt.

When was he planning to change that shirt…

Frowning at Byung-chul's incomprehensible actions, I heard a strange sound.

Gurgle, crack!

A bizarre noise came from the hallway.

Who's making noise at this hour of the night?

Raising my eyebrows, I got up, and felt Byung-chul's hand grab my arm.

"Don't move."

"I'll just go to the dorm leader and talk to him."

"Just sit down."

Confused, I tilted my head, and Byung-chul licked his dry lips and said,

"That's the dorm leader making that noise."

"Huh? Then we should tell the teacher. The dorm leader is causing a disturbance in the middle of the night…"

"Shh… follow me."

Byung-chul grabbed my arm and headed towards the door.

Looking through the glass at the top of the door, I saw a scene that made me doubt my eyes.

The dorm leader was bleeding.

He was sitting on the floor, covering his body with his hands, which were soaked in blood.

As I reached for the door, Byung-chul quickly blocked me and twisted my arm.

Perhaps because he studied police administration or had learned judo in the past, his restraint was exceptional, and I winced in pain from the pressure on my shoulder and wrist.

"Damn… bro, what's with the sudden arm grab?"

"Shh."

Byung-chul glanced at the door without moving.

Crack, crack, crack.

A strange cry and footsteps echoed through the hallway.

The sound of blood-soaked feet walking on the cold corridor.

Swallowing hard, I asked Byung-chul,

"Bro, let's call 119 first."

"They won't answer."

"What?"

"Follow me."

Byung-chul led me to the terrace.

"Look."

Looking in the direction Byung-chul pointed, I saw a thick fog covering the area.

My school was in a high-altitude area in a local town.

So, it was often foggy in the early morning.

While the fog was unusually thick, it wasn't enough to make me faint.

"What's so special about that?"

"The dorm leader, who was smoking on the first floor and came back, suddenly started spitting blood."

"…What are you talking about?"

"I don't know. At first, I was surprised and asked if he was okay. But then he suddenly…"

Byung-chul frowned and bit his lower lip.

He then showed me the text on his phone's screen.

Out of service area.

We had no means of communication.

Checking my phone on the desk, I found the same issue.

How is this possible?

An out-of-service area in 21st century South Korea?

Fiddling with my phone, I looked at Byung-chul, who had a troubled expression.

"Someone must have intentionally blocked it. This can't happen suddenly."

"Can the communication tower be shut down? No, you said you called 119 earlier."

"That was the last time. It's been like this for the past hour."

"Any news?"

"No news since the safety alert text an hour ago."

"What did the alert say?"

"An unknown fog has spread, and we were told not to go outside."

An unknown fog?

Suddenly, I remembered the setting of Last Ark from before I went to sleep.

It's… just like the setting of Last Ark.

I scratched my head and asked,

"Then what about the dorm leader? If we leave him like that, he'll die."

Byung-chul wiped his face and covered his mouth with his right hand.

After a moment of contemplation, he spoke in a low voice,

"He might already be dead."

"Huh?"

"I checked on him with the guy in the next room. But the dorm leader suddenly attacked him."

"Come on, that's ridiculous."

I dismissed it with a snort.

But the next words from Byung-chul made me doubt my ears.

"The dorm leader bit the guy's arm. He bit it so hard that the flesh came off. Is that possible in a normal state?"

Confusion was evident in Byung-chul's eyes.

His trembling arms spoke of the shock of the situation.

Not knowing what to say, I asked,

"Then what about the guy who was bitten? Is he okay?"

"He changed."

"…What?"

"He changed into something like the dorm leader after about 20 minutes of being bitten."

I didn't expect that answer.

My mouth opened like a fish as I asked,

"Where is he now?"

"Don't know, damn it. I pushed him into the lounge when he suddenly attacked."

Hearing this, I instinctively took a step back.

Looking at Byung-chul with wide eyes, I saw him strip down to his underwear.

"See? I'm fine. I wasn't bitten."

"…"

"Only you and I know what's happening."

4:00 AM.

Everyone should be in deep sleep.

The first and second floors are covered in thick fog, and there are no proper weapons here.

Even if there were weapons, could we attack the dorm leader in the hallway?

What if he's just sick?

We can't just kill a sick person without reason.

Sighing repeatedly, I scratched my head and asked Byung-chul,

"Stay here."

"Why? What are you going to do?"

"I'll go out and talk to him."

"Didn't you see? Even with your own eyes, you don't believe it? The guy out there is no longer human."

Byung-chul lowered his voice and frowned.

Byung-chul's words might be true, but I wanted to confirm it myself.

"He's still moving. How can a moving person be dead?"

"Didn't you see the dorm leader's clothes? Is it possible for a person to move while spitting that much blood? And his voice is already gone."

"…"

"If a person spits that much blood, their lungs are already gone. It's impossible for them to move on their own."

Byung-chul, who always maintained his composure, frowned and shot back.

Since he's never been like this, I thought I should stay here.

But for how long?

There's no food or water in this room.

We could wait for rescue, but what if they don't come?

We called 119 an hour ago, but they haven't arrived.

Does that mean 119 can't reach us?

Does it mean others have also changed like the dorm leader?

Maybe this is the last chance to gather supplies while people are still asleep and before the situation worsens.

Since we can't go down to the first floor due to the fog, we should get water from the bathroom and snacks from the lounge…

'Ah, he said he put the guy in the lounge.'

The guy in the next room was bitten by the dorm leader, and Byung-chul put him in the lounge.

I looked around the room for something to use as a weapon.

A broom in the corner.

I tore off the bottom part, leaving only a sturdy stick.

A wooden stick about 1 meter long.

Holding the handle, I told Byung-chul,

"Stay here."

"Really going out?"

"Are you going to survive without eating anything? At least get some water from the bathroom."

I took a deep breath and put my hand on the doorknob.

Byung-chul looked around and started searching for a usable weapon.

A stack of newspapers brought by the third-year roommate for an assignment was piled against one wall.

Byung-chul rolled the newspapers into a stick.

"Is that a weapon now…"

"Have you ever hit someone with a newspaper?"

"…"

"Try it, and you'll think differently."

His confident tone left me speechless.

Having something in hand is better than nothing.

I nodded and opened the door.

Creak-

Rumble…

I peeked out to check the dorm leader's position.

Far away, the dorm leader, who was sitting on the floor, turned his head to look at me.

The distance between us was about 5 meters.

His strange movements of the waist, shoulders, and head were similar to those of zombies in movies.

Wait, I've seen zombies like this before…

Didn't the zombies in Last Ark look like this?

Red, bloodshot eyes, wobbly limbs, and a pale, greenish skin.

His nails were hanging loosely, as if he had been scratching something.

Seeing this, I instinctively swallowed hard.

Is he human?

No one would change like this even if they were drugged.

'Does he react to sound?'

The dorm leader turned his head at the sound of the door.

This means his hearing is still working.

Swallowing hard, I looked at the dorm leader, and he opened his eyes wide and roared, charging at me.

Roar!

Startled, I closed the door without thinking.

Byung-chul, who was behind me, bumped into my shoulder and shouted,

"Hey! Why did you close it suddenly?"

"Bro, that guy is crazy, right?"

"I told you he's not human, you idiot!"

Bang! Bang! Bang, Bang!

The dorm leader, like a wild beast, started banging his head and fists on the 401 door.

Soon, his hanging nails scratched and fell off the door.

I was stunned.

Stunned?

No, it was a fear I had rarely felt in my life.

The bloodshot eyes filled with murderous intent made my spine shiver, and the strange sound of his nails scratching the door made my hair stand on end.

Does he not feel pain?

What will happen if the glass on the door breaks?

Will he come in through there?

My body froze like a statue in this bizarre situation.

I knew I had to deal with the dorm leader