Chapter 20

18. Paradise

My bunker is not just a simple shelter.

It is a fortress meticulously designed and built with enormous resources to maintain a past lifestyle even if the world were to end.

While it may not match the castles of some tycoons, I have prepared everything needed to an excessive degree.

From food and fuel to daily necessities and medicines, various equipment, and even miscellaneous items whose uses I do not know, I have prepared everything to the point where nothing is lacking.

Even the insufficient firearms and ammunition are now complete, making my fortress perfect.

This fortress is for me alone.

From the design phase, I did not consider accepting anyone other than myself.

Even the toilet, an open type, is located right in the center of the living area of the bunker.

Due to the optimization of plumbing and other design considerations, it ended up in this position, which means that if people were to live together, they would have to perform a public show every time they used it.

The same goes for the stockpile.

While it would be sufficient for me to live comfortably alone, it would not be enough if shared with others.

That's right.

My bunker is my paradise.

“I might have to go there.”

There is someone trying to invade this paradise.

It's someone I know well.

If there were no special circumstances, I would have more than enough room to accept this person, who has a connection with me.

However, they are not alone.

“...Three people?”

It's too many.

Even one person is a burden, and now they want to bring two more.

Moreover, people who have no connection to me.

I can roughly guess who they are.

They must be Kim Daram's husband and son.

People who have no relation to me.

Her husband only shook hands with me at the wedding, and I only know her son's name, Dong-tak, without ever having met him.

“Sorry, senior. I was surprised by such a sudden request.”

Kim Daram was one of the few decent people I've met among the many I've encountered.

Most importantly, she had a positive attitude.

She was a person who never lost her smile and hope, no matter how desperate and hopeless the situation.

Although her current role as a wife, mother, and high-ranking official has somewhat diluted her original self, the Kim Daram I first met was different.

The awkward silence took me back to the past.

It was during the period when I led the hunting team as the team leader.

At that time, I was not well-received.

Rather, I was someone to be avoided.

There was no choice but for me to be so, as the past Park Kyu was sharp, uncompromising, and harsh to both himself and others.

Due to this terrible personality, my peers left one by one, seniors distanced themselves, and juniors, hearing the rumors, did not even approach me.

“Get out of my team. I don’t need someone who hesitates and just spectates.”

I was a source of fear for the team members.

“Talented people don’t come to become actors. If you can’t keep up, quit. I don’t want to die because of you.”

I always spouted harsh words and pushed team members to their limits if they didn’t meet my standards.

As a result, in my first year as team leader, I created the team with the highest kill score of the year, but almost no one was interested in my team.

“I don’t want to say bad things as I leave, but senior, you are unbearable.”

“Why do you try to fit everything to your standards? Not everyone is the same. Even if this place requires uniformity, there are still individual differences.”

“Let’s never see each other again.”

With people already leaving, who would want to join that team?

Ah, there was one friend who was interested.

“Hahaha! Second place again! Second place!”

The now enlightened Lee Sang-hoon burst into laughter and approached me.

“But next year will be different. Professor.”

Even then, the woman-loving Lee Sang-hoon brought a woman he had never seen before to the year-end party.

“Will your skills improve just because the year changes?”

I deliberately stared at the cast on Lee Sang-hoon’s left arm.

“No, but can you even find team members?”

“...”

“The rumor has already spread. If you stay under Professor, you’ll die from stress before the monsters get you.”

“You haven’t faced the monsters, so you say that.”

“Okay, imagine you are very hungry. There are two restaurants. One has good food but terrible service, and the other has decent food but good service. Where would you eat?”

“The latter.”

“You see, you know.”

“Is a restaurant the same as a battlefield?”

At the time, I didn’t think much of it.

I was so immersed in my hatred for the monsters that I assumed everyone else felt the same.

Honestly, even if I had someone like me as a superior or colleague, I wouldn’t have cared.

As long as I could kill the monsters, the things that took everything from me, I was willing to endure any cold and harsh treatment.

There is no result as straightforward as reality.

Lee Sang-hoon’s words, which sounded like a curse from a fake shaman, came true.

Even with the best performance and the team leader taking on the most dangerous tasks, no one wanted to join my team.

Even when they applied to transfer to other teams, it wasn’t easy. No one would accept me.

The problem wasn’t with me as the team leader.

Park Kyu himself had become a person everyone avoided.

Unable to do anything, I watched my colleagues leave for China one by one, falling into deep despair. I probably started drinking around that time.

Then, a guy appeared.

A junior from a year below me, who had suffered a major injury on the battlefield and had been bedridden for a long time.

We only knew each other by face, so when I stared at him blankly, he introduced himself with a wide smile.

“I’m Kim Daram. Daram.”

“...Rodent?”

“...Haha.”

Perhaps my irrelevant jokes were one of the reasons I was unpopular.

Kim Daram was more forgiving than others.

“Everyone says you’re boring and scary, but I’m fine. I did some calculations, and no matter what, the probability of dying is the lowest when I’m with you.”

That was our first proper meeting.

Time returned to the present.

The bleak silence continued.

“What’s up?”

I broke the long silence first.

“Why would a high-ranking official from the National Council suddenly want to come to such a humble place?”

“The situation is bad.”

Kim Daram sighed deeply.

“Yang Sang-gil said that only capable people are needed on Jeju Island.”

“Yang Sang-gil...”

The name of the chairman of the National Council.

A pure bureaucrat, not a hunter or a soldier, who has never been on the battlefield but has been in charge of administration since the hunter organization was incorporated into the government.

He is indeed capable.

The fact that he not only retained his position amidst the purging of non-hunter officials but also became chairman shows his ability.

“Yang Sang-gil said in a meeting that the old school should remain.”

The old school refers to hunters like me from the old era.

The era when humans did not know about the monstrous abilities, and hunters had to fight with only their skills, senses, courage, and determination.

The new hunters, who can use mental energy and psychic abilities through a series of processes known as enlightenment, enlightenment, and awakening, are distinct from them.

They were initially called the new kids but are now known as Awakened.

Kim Daram and Lee Sang-hoon are part of the old school.

With the discovery of methods to produce Awakened through the first Awakened, we old school hunters were quickly phased out of the battlefield.

Our efficiency was average compared to the resources invested, and our mortality rate was extremely high, so it was a natural outcome.

Those who were no longer needed on the battlefield had to take off their uniforms and wear suits.

Well, for them, it was a good outcome.

Most old school hunters had to either quit or live a second-rate life as old-style hunters.

Some, like Baek Seung-hyun, who tried a different path and had to return, had to live a miserable life, being called “uncle” by a junior almost a decade younger.

“If Lee Sang-hoon had the same abilities as those people, Yang Sang-gil would be the one committing suicide.”

“...”

“Anyway, the situation is like this.”

“While we’re on the topic, how much time is left for Seoul?”

“Not much.”

Kim Daram answered without hesitation.

“Do you know about the food and supplies sent to Seoul this time?”

“I’ve heard about it.”

“That was supposed to go to the front lines. It was meant for the military, which was already at the limit of its discontent.”

“I see.”

“A few front-line commanders are already showing signs of becoming warlords. Staying in Seoul is as good as a death sentence.”

“So you want to come here?”

“Is it a burden?”

“Three people is too many.”

“I can’t give up even one.”

“...Is that so.”

“Of course, I won’t come empty-handed. I have a conscience. I’ll bring a deposit that would make you nod in agreement.”

That was the end of the conversation.

Although I didn’t give a definite answer, considering Kim Daram’s bold nature, it’s a foregone conclusion that she will come here.

I thought about it carefully.

Kim Daram is an excellent combatant.

Her senses may have dulled a bit from being in a high position for a long time, but I don’t doubt her combat skills.

Against humans, mutations, and monsters.

She has shown her worth on the Chinese battlefield.

Moreover, we have worked together for a long time.

If we are compatible, we can take down another monster with just the two of us.

On the other hand, her husband is a doctor.

A dermatologist, but a doctor nonetheless.

He is not a combatant, but he can be very helpful in certain situations.

Their son is still a toddler, not yet in kindergarten, and not a useful asset.

Objectively, this family is among the best people to accept as comrades in the post-apocalyptic world.

But my fortress is my paradise.

Unable to make a decision, I sought advice from my inner sanctuary.

However, I am now a senior user.

I know the community’s rules and what they dislike.

I can’t give up my signature style, which is part of my identity, but I don’t want to break the taboo they hate the most.

<Do you want to change your nickname from SKELTON to Anonymous?>

I tried writing a post under the mask of anonymity.

Anonymous1031: I’m thinking of bringing in new comrades. Can you evaluate them?

It’s about bringing in a current hunter and a doctor couple to the bunker.

I wrote anonymously because asking such a question is a form of deception.

Anonymous458: Wow, a doctor and a hunter. You have some great connections.

Kyle_Dos: It’s a fantasy novel, but I would accept them if there’s enough food.

Anonymous848: With a doctor and a hunter, they can survive on their own. If they are close relatives, it’s fine to accept them.

There were many sarcastic comments, but overall, the feedback was positive.

The main opinion was that with such a level of manpower, it would be better to have them than to be alone.

I was honestly disappointed by the community.

I felt a significant difference in our thinking.

“...”

Well, the community’s thoughts can’t always align with mine.

Still, there were some friends who expressed concern, even if they didn’t agree with me.

Defender: There’s nothing more dangerous than parents with a child. Seeing a child wreak havoc makes you want to kill them.

These were the kinds of opinions I received.

Kim Daram acted quickly.

“Can I take a look before I come?”

She said she wanted to see the place.

Ignoring her was the last resort, but meeting her was probably a foregone conclusion from the moment she contacted me.

Why, if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t be where I am now.

The always positive Kim Daram acted as a glue, connecting me with new team members, allowing me to continue my hunter life.

Occasionally, she connected me with people like Woo Min-hee and Gong Gyeong-min, but it’s not an exaggeration to say that my team was maintained thanks to her.

If things hadn’t changed, I might still be fighting monsters on the same battlefield with her.

Probably, that’s how it would have been.

She had as intense a hatred in her heart as I did.

The junior came to my domain.

She walked into my paradise in a military jeep.

I examined her face with a heavy heart, but her expression was quite different from what I expected.

“Wow...”

She seemed quite shocked.

“It’s desolate.”

This place does look desolate.

“What, this? Here? What kind of trash is this? Is this where people live?”

But is it right to show such disgust?

I didn’t expect her to be so dismissive of my paradise.

What about my bunker?

Feeling a bit of defiance, I showed her my paradise.

I opened the heavy bunker door, revealing the secret main bunker to someone else.

“Welcome to the Skeleton Proud Palace...!!”

“...!!”

The emotion in Kim Daram’s eyes was surprise.

Of course, it should be.

Who can create such a large, beautiful, and luxurious bunker on a personal scale?

“Did you make all this, senior?”

“Proud.”

It’s only possible because it’s me.

However, Kim Daram’s surprise quickly turned to disappointment and contempt.

“What’s with the toilet?”

Moreover, the expression I interpreted as surprise was actually shock.

Kim Daram muttered as she turned away.

“...I can’t raise a child here.”

Only then did I notice the brand on her clothes, which I had not seen before.

Yes, she always wore good clothes.

She worked in a nice-smelling office with a good view, being called “committee member.”

No matter how much her life had declined, she had risen too high while I was building my bunker.

To a place I couldn’t understand with my limited imagination.

“Thank you for your consideration, but it’s hard to live here. After thinking it over, it seems Dong-tak has claustrophobia.”

She showed me a photo of her son.

“Hey, you picked a good name for the kid.”

“What do you mean?”

I asked her, feeling half frustration and half relief.

“What will you do now?”

“I’ll figure out a way to survive.”

Kim Daram smiled widely.

“I’m Kim Daram.”

“...Daram.”

“I’m someone who has worked under that Professor.”

Her wide smile reminded me of the past Kim Daram.

Yes, this girl was positive.

To the point of being foolish.

“I won’t give up on going to Jeju Island, but I’ll also contact the military. I’m considering the warlord side as well.”

Kim Daram handed me a luxurious paper bag.

“Here, a gift.”

The envelope contained high-quality cookies.

As she was about to get into the car, she looked back at me.

“You didn’t seem to have aged at all, but you look a bit older in the sunlight.”

“R-Really?”

“Is it because your expression is brighter?”

She stared at me intently.

“Are you dating anyone these days?”

“No.”

“Anyway, I’ll contact you once I decide where to go.”

I watched her disappear with a bitter smile.

Everything is relative.

Someone’s proud paradise can be someone else’s hell.

The cookies she left behind spoke of this bitter-sweet reality.

“Wow, damn.”

These cookies are really high-quality.