NOVEL NEXT Chapter 3
Chapter 3: As Fast As Possible
[Name]: Han Gang-ho
[…]: …
[Species]: Human / Type 2 Mutant.
[Traits]: Thunderstorm.
[Grade]: LV. 2
[Attribute]: Plasma. (New) Electromagnetic Field.
[Special Skills]: Gas Discharge. Controlled Thermal Fusion.
[Auxiliary Skills]: Manual – Exclusive Archive (Self-evolution)
Once Gang-ho confirmed his status, he stood there, momentarily dazed.
Then, he let out a deep sigh.
Haa.
Unlike Satoshi, he had been a Type 1 Mutant from the start.
He guessed it was probably due to the serum.
However, a consequence of the recent explosion had turned him into a Type 2 Mutant.
What that truly meant was beyond him.
Nevertheless, new traits and attributes had appeared, and skills had been defined.
Looks like I’ve been hit.
The shelter that caused the explosion was the emergency power supply facility.
If anything, it was fortunate it wasn’t a fusion facility.
Not radioactive, but an electromagnetic exposure is serious too.
Gang-ho bit his lower lip, and just then, he caught sight of Wolf.
Indeed, there was a noticeable change.
[Name]: Wolf
[…]: …
[Species]: Wolf-dog / Type 2 Mutant.
[Traits]: Beast.
[Grade]: LV. 2.
[Attribute]: Physical.
[Special Skills]: Charge. Crush.
[Auxiliary Skills]: Vigilance. Guarding. Searching. Tracking.
This time, he couldn’t help but stifle a laugh.
Ha!
The more he thought about it, the more absurd it seemed.
Not just the items, but the content was hard to believe.
Is all of this even realistically possible?
It was a thought that arose instinctively.
But given that he was currently using such abilities, he had no choice but to accept it.
Haa…
Unknowingly, Gang-ho took a long sigh and shook his head.
Then, he woke Satoshi, who was still unconscious.
“Hey. Wake up.”
After a few shakes, Satoshi slowly opened his eyes.
“Umm.”
“Are you with us? How’s your body?”
Satoshi blinked as he propped himself up.
“Oh, what happened?!”
“Don’t you remember?”
“… The explosion, right.”
It seemed he finally grasped the situation.
At that moment, through the mechanical-like static, an alarm echoed.
“Attention! Due to the destruction of the power plant on the 10th floor of the World Species Repository, the area will be closed 24 hours later. All personnel must evacuate immediately!”
The same message was repeated two more times.
As Gang-ho listened to the announcements, a notion naturally crossed his mind.
‘Disaster Manual Chapter 9. Closure.’
The content rushed through his head.
Gang-ho reflexively leapt to his feet.
“Damn it.”
Watching Gang-ho, Satoshi stood up and asked,
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“If we don’t get out of here in time, we all die.”
“Huh? Aren’t we supposed to recover? What do you mean…”
Gang-ho didn’t have the luxury of time to entertain Satoshi’s anxious questions.
“We need to move, now!”
Without an additional explanation, he abruptly began to run.
Tatata.
Immediately, Wolf followed closely beside him.
Grr.
Seeing that, Satoshi hurriedly started running too.
“Hey, wait for me!”
While not a full sprint, they were running at a pretty quick pace.
Satoshi felt a surprising sense of speed.
Was I really this fast?
Though he had confidence in his agility and flexibility, his endurance had always been weak.
Yet, he felt a strange energy coursing through his body.
As he wondered, he realized they were heading in a direction away from the platform.
“Uh? Where are we going?”
“To the hospital.”
Gang-ho’s answer was brief.
Satoshi, puzzled, asked again,
“Why there…?”
To Gang-ho, that question felt like a protest for being in a rush.
“……”
He didn’t answer, but one name lingered in his mind.
Lisa, Lisa Azbel.
A genius doctor who earned her medical degree at 22, a biotechnology doctorate at 24, and a chemical engineering doctorate at 26.
He already had her information.
In a disaster situation like this, he couldn’t simply leave such a brilliant doctor behind.
Please be safe.
Gang-ho increased his speed.
Even as the urgency swirled in his mind, various thoughts clouded his head.
He recalled Satoshi, Wolf, and the source of his changed abilities once more.
Electromagnetic exposure, huh?
Once again, he felt incredibly lucky that he wasn’t dead.
Then suddenly, as if his brain had short-circuited, his thoughts abruptly froze.
And an involuntary laugh escaped him.
Pfft.
He couldn’t help but remember how just moments ago he had sat in front of the hospital, smoking a cigarette and sinking into despair.
Thoughts of having no purpose in life, not knowing why he lived—wasn’t that what he had been considering?
Yet, now standing on the edge of life and death, his instinct to survive and sense of purpose had firmly gripped him.
Right. Whatever happens, let’s just live. Let’s get out of here alive.
As his thoughts organized themselves, new questions began to sequentially surface.
The first one was about the explosion.
What caused it?
Why did the emergency power supply facility suddenly explode?
Wasn’t it a structure that claimed to be absolutely safe?
As he delved deeper into the questions, Satoshi, who was trailing behind, asked,
“Why did they decide to close it so quickly?”
It seemed he was pondering the same thing as Gang-ho.
I thought he was a bit clueless.
After taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Gang-ho started explaining.
“The basic structure of the World Species Repository is based on shelters; it’s an organic assembly of shelters with specific functions.”
One of the advantages of such modular structures is the simple connection and disassembly.
In other words, if one power facility gets destroyed, they just need to block and isolate that specific shelter.
“But they closed the entire floor.”
Satoshi’s voice rose as he listened to Gang-ho’s explanation.
“What do you mean it can’t just be the shelter where the power plant exploded?”
Gang-ho replied shortly,
“Probably.”
Each floor had its own power facility, so it wouldn’t be an issue to formulate a countermeasure immediately.
Thus, he thought the decision to close the 10th floor was reasonable.
After all, each layer is thoroughly independent.
Before long, they arrived at the hospital.
Just like every other area, the building or facility showed no immediate changes.
The issue lay with the people.
Or more precisely, the beings that were no longer people.
“What on earth is that?”
Satoshi’s shocked voice coincided with Wolf’s growl of alertness.
Grrr.
Gang-ho quickly surveyed the area.
Why did the electromagnetic exposure turn people into zombies?
If it were biochemical agents or medical waste contamination, it might be understandable, yet this was illogical.
The thought that surged through him was:
While Satoshi, Wolf, and I gained bizarre abilities instead of turning into zombies…
But there was no time to ponder.
A zombie, relatively close by, detected Gang-ho and his team and charged at them.
Grrr.
Wolf reacted first.
Grrr!
In a flash, he darted forward and, with just a couple of leaps, pounced on the zombie.
Crunch.
He bit into its neck, severing the head from the body.
Then he crouched low, ready to confront any other zombies.
Grrr.
Wow, impressive.
Again, not the right emotion given the situation, but Gang-ho felt a rush of admiration for the beastly dominance and power.
But he quickly regained his senses.
If it’s this bad out here, what’s happening inside the hospital?
Gang-ho turned to Satoshi and shouted,
“Cover me and follow closely!”
“Huh? Where are you going?”
Once again, Gang-ho sprinted ahead without answering.
Tat!
Barrier!
What he had used just once was quickly being recreated.
As he narrowed the range, a transparent field enveloped his entire body.
Zap.
Fzzz.
The zombies couldn’t keep pace with Gang-ho.
They could only swipe at him as he passed closely, but that barely even scratched the barrier.
Thanks to that, he was able to rush straight into the hospital without hesitation.
The internal situation was as expected.
For sure, there were way more zombies groaning and staggering through the corridors than outside.
Most were in patient gowns.
It seemed that the patients in the wards had turned into zombies without a doubt.
“I’m sorry, but there’s no choice.”
Gang-ho tightened his fist.
As he did, a blue aura flickered around his arms and fists, and tiny bolts of lightning began to spark brightly.
Vwoom.
Szzzzzzz.
It felt as if swirling bolts of energy were rotating around him from his fist to his shoulder.
Wham!
Zaap!
The flash of power was undeniably striking.
I think I might need to control my strength.
Before the zombies noticed him, Gang-ho dashed across the hallway.
Kaboom!
With the intent to clear his path, he swung his fist mercilessly.
Whoosh.
Thud.
Zap!
Pooow!
“Gaaah!”
“Kuack!”
Thud.
Crash.
The more he swung, the more awe he felt.
What kind of power is this?!
With each punch landed, the zombies’ bodies burst with thwack sounds.
It wasn’t just a physical impact; it felt like the air compressed and exploded.
So, the electromagnetic attribute manifested alongside my plasma powers, allowing these types of attacks.
That wasn’t all.
The physical abilities of a human had been further heightened after the special serum injection.
When he shoulder-checked a zombie, it flew away like it was hit by a dump truck, crashing into the wall.
This was no mere enhancement in physical strength.
Zap.
Crackle.
Lightning flickered around his shoulders as the blue aura crackled fiercely.
Gang-ho checked his status just to be sure.
[Attack Skill]: (New) Charged Strike.
The moment he saw that, the horde of zombies no longer felt burdensome.
“Alright, let’s go as fast as possible.”
Seizing the momentum, he intensified his destructive power.
Boom!
[Next Chapter]
Chapter 3: As Fast As Possible
[Name]: Han Gang-ho
[…]: …
[Species]: Human / Type 2 Mutant.
[Traits]: Thunderstorm.
[Grade]: LV. 2
[Attribute]: Plasma. (New) Electromagnetic Field.
[Special Skills]: Gas Discharge. Controlled Thermal Fusion.
[Auxiliary Skills]: Manual – Exclusive Archive (Self-evolution)
Once Gang-ho confirmed his status, he stood there, momentarily dazed.
Then, he let out a deep sigh.
Haa.
Unlike Satoshi, he had been a Type 1 Mutant from the start.
He guessed it was probably due to the serum.
However, a consequence of the recent explosion had turned him into a Type 2 Mutant.
What that truly meant was beyond him.
Nevertheless, new traits and attributes had appeared, and skills had been defined.
Looks like I’ve been hit.
The shelter that caused the explosion was the emergency power supply facility.
If anything, it was fortunate it wasn’t a fusion facility.
Not radioactive, but an electromagnetic exposure is serious too.
Gang-ho bit his lower lip, and just then, he caught sight of Wolf.
Indeed, there was a noticeable change.
[Name]: Wolf
[…]: …
[Species]: Wolf-dog / Type 2 Mutant.
[Traits]: Beast.
[Grade]: LV. 2.
[Attribute]: Physical.
[Special Skills]: Charge. Crush.
[Auxiliary Skills]: Vigilance. Guarding. Searching. Tracking.
This time, he couldn’t help but stifle a laugh.
Ha!
The more he thought about it, the more absurd it seemed.
Not just the items, but the content was hard to believe.
Is all of this even realistically possible?
It was a thought that arose instinctively.
But given that he was currently using such abilities, he had no choice but to accept it.
Haa…
Unknowingly, Gang-ho took a long sigh and shook his head.
Then, he woke Satoshi, who was still unconscious.
“Hey. Wake up.”
After a few shakes, Satoshi slowly opened his eyes.
“Umm.”
“Are you with us? How’s your body?”
Satoshi blinked as he propped himself up.
“Oh, what happened?!”
“Don’t you remember?”
“… The explosion, right.”
It seemed he finally grasped the situation.
At that moment, through the mechanical-like static, an alarm echoed.
“Attention! Due to the destruction of the power plant on the 10th floor of the World Species Repository, the area will be closed 24 hours later. All personnel must evacuate immediately!”
The same message was repeated two more times.
As Gang-ho listened to the announcements, a notion naturally crossed his mind.
‘Disaster Manual Chapter 9. Closure.’
The content rushed through his head.
Gang-ho reflexively leapt to his feet.
“Damn it.”
Watching Gang-ho, Satoshi stood up and asked,
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“If we don’t get out of here in time, we all die.”
“Huh? Aren’t we supposed to recover? What do you mean…”
Gang-ho didn’t have the luxury of time to entertain Satoshi’s anxious questions.
“We need to move, now!”
Without an additional explanation, he abruptly began to run.
Tatata.
Immediately, Wolf followed closely beside him.
Grr.
Seeing that, Satoshi hurriedly started running too.
“Hey, wait for me!”
While not a full sprint, they were running at a pretty quick pace.
Was I really this fast?
Though he had confidence in his agility and flexibility, his endurance had always been weak.
Yet, he felt a strange energy coursing through his body.
As he wondered, he realized they were heading in a direction away from the platform.
“Uh? Where are we going?”
“To the hospital.”
Gang-ho’s answer was brief.
Satoshi, puzzled, asked again,
“Why there…?”
To Gang-ho, that question felt like a protest for being in a rush.
“……”
He didn’t answer, but one name lingered in his mind.
Lisa, Lisa Azbel.
A genius doctor who earned her medical degree at 22, a biotechnology doctorate at 24, and a chemical engineering doctorate at 26.
He already had her information.
In a disaster situation like this, he couldn’t simply leave such a brilliant doctor behind.
Please be safe.
Gang-ho increased his speed.
Even as the urgency swirled in his mind, various thoughts clouded his head.
He recalled Satoshi, Wolf, and the source of his changed abilities once more.
Electromagnetic exposure, huh?
Once again, he felt incredibly lucky that he wasn’t dead.
Then suddenly, as if his brain had short-circuited, his thoughts abruptly froze.
And an involuntary laugh escaped him.
Pfft.
He couldn’t help but remember how just moments ago he had sat in front of the hospital, smoking a cigarette and sinking into despair.
Thoughts of having no purpose in life, not knowing why he lived—wasn’t that what he had been considering?
Yet, now standing on the edge of life and death, his instinct to survive and sense of purpose had firmly gripped him.
Right. Whatever happens, let’s just live. Let’s get out of here alive.
As his thoughts organized themselves, new questions began to sequentially surface.
The first one was about the explosion.
What caused it?
Why did the emergency power supply facility suddenly explode?
Wasn’t it a structure that claimed to be absolutely safe?
As he delved deeper into the questions, Satoshi, who was trailing behind, asked,
“Why did they decide to close it so quickly?”
It seemed he was pondering the same thing as Gang-ho.
I thought he was a bit clueless.
After taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Gang-ho started explaining.
“The basic structure of the World Species Repository is based on shelters; it’s an organic assembly of shelters with specific functions.”
One of the advantages of such modular structures is the simple connection and disassembly.
In other words, if one power facility gets destroyed, they just need to block and isolate that specific shelter.
“But they closed the entire floor.”
Satoshi’s voice rose as he listened to Gang-ho’s explanation.
“What do you mean it can’t just be the shelter where the power plant exploded?”
Gang-ho replied shortly,
“Probably.”
Each floor had its own power facility, so it wouldn’t be an issue to formulate a countermeasure immediately.
Thus, he thought the decision to close the 10th floor was reasonable.
After all, each layer is thoroughly independent.
Before long, they arrived at the hospital.
Just like every other area, the building or facility showed no immediate changes.
The issue lay with the people.
Or more precisely, the beings that were no longer people.
“What on earth is that?”
Satoshi’s shocked voice coincided with Wolf’s growl of alertness.
Grrr.
Gang-ho quickly surveyed the area.
Why did the electromagnetic exposure turn people into zombies?
If it were biochemical agents or medical waste contamination, it might be understandable, yet this was illogical.
The thought that surged through him was:
While Satoshi, Wolf, and I gained bizarre abilities instead of turning into zombies…
But there was no time to ponder.
A zombie, relatively close by, detected Gang-ho and his team and charged at them.
Grrr.
Wolf reacted first.
Grrr!
In a flash, he darted forward and, with just a couple of leaps, pounced on the zombie.
Crunch.
He bit into its neck, severing the head from the body.
Then he crouched low, ready to confront any other zombies.
Grrr.
Wow, impressive.
Again, not the right emotion given the situation, but Gang-ho felt a rush of admiration for the beastly dominance and power.
But he quickly regained his senses.
If it’s this bad out here, what’s happening inside the hospital?
Gang-ho turned to Satoshi and shouted,
“Cover me and follow closely!”
“Huh? Where are you going?”
Once again, Gang-ho sprinted ahead without answering.
Tat!
Barrier!
What he had used just once was quickly being recreated.
As he narrowed the range, a transparent field enveloped his entire body.
Zap.
Fzzz.
The zombies couldn’t keep pace with Gang-ho.
They could only swipe at him as he passed closely, but that barely even scratched the barrier.
Thanks to that, he was able to rush straight into the hospital without hesitation.
The internal situation was as expected.
For sure, there were way more zombies groaning and staggering through the corridors than outside.
Most were in patient gowns.
It seemed that the patients in the wards had turned into zombies without a doubt.
“I’m sorry, but there’s no choice.”
Gang-ho tightened his fist.
As he did, a blue aura flickered around his arms and fists, and tiny bolts of lightning began to spark brightly.
Vwoom.
Szzzzzzz.
It felt as if swirling bolts of energy were rotating around him from his fist to his shoulder.
Wham!
Zaap!
The flash of power was undeniably striking.
I think I might need to control my strength.
Before the zombies noticed him, Gang-ho dashed across the hallway.
Kaboom!
With the intent to clear his path, he swung his fist mercilessly.
Whoosh.
Thud.
Zap!
Pooow!
“Gaaah!”
“Kuack!”
Thud.
Crash.
The more he swung, the more awe he felt.
What kind of power is this?!
With each punch landed, the zombies’ bodies burst with thwack sounds.
It wasn’t just a physical impact; it felt like the air compressed and exploded.
So, the electromagnetic attribute manifested alongside my plasma powers, allowing these types of attacks.
That wasn’t all.
The physical abilities of a human had been further heightened after the special serum injection.
When he shoulder-checked a zombie, it flew away like it was hit by a dump truck, crashing into the wall.
This was no mere enhancement in physical strength.
Zap.
Crackle.
Lightning flickered around his shoulders as the blue aura crackled fiercely.
Gang-ho checked his status just to be sure.
[Attack Skill]: (New) Charged Strike.
The moment he saw that, the horde of zombies no longer felt burdensome.
“Alright, let’s go as fast as possible.”
Seizing the momentum, he intensified his destructive power.
Boom!