After searching the building for anything useful, we left and resumed our journey.
It was a long trek, but we maintained a steady pace and eventually covered the distance. We turned a corner and entered a side street, and now the Warehouse was just a few stops away on a straight path.
Jung Yunhee spoke up, fixing her gaze on the towering building ahead.
"Is this the place? The warehouse."
"Yeah, that's right."
We all raised our heads one by one. Standing tall in the heart of the ruined Gwanakgu was the Warehouse. The huge structure was barely affected by the Nightmares.
"Doesn't it look more of a shelter than a warehouse?"
"This is a place built by the government to keep the basic necessities they provide for the National University. Of course, it will be secure."
I stared at the reinforced walls of the warehouse for any noticeable cracks. Fortunately, there was none.
There were rumors that the Warehouse had been designed by the government to withstand earthquakes and other natural disasters.
However,
Lee Jongho asked the question on my mind. "Can it withstand monsters?"
"Who knows. But it's better than staying outside. Come on, let's go quickly."
We approached the warehouse which was surrounded by thick wires. Once we entered the open yard, we rushed the front entrance. However, the entrance was blocked by a shutter which can only be opened from the inside.
Angelica looked anxious.
"What should we do? It's already locked."
"Can we try knocking?"
"We can try. We already made it this far."
Lee Jongho nodded before he approached the door and knocked.
"Hey! Is anyone there?"
There was no response at first. He knocked again, and this time, a voice came from the other side.
"What? Who's there?"
"Please, open the door. We're survivors."
"No! Go away!"
"Please, let us in. We've come all the way from Hongdae."
"Go way! We don't need anymore people."
Lee Jongho pleaded with the people on the other side, but his words fell on deaf ears.
The Sub Fable had instructed us to meet the other survivors at the warehouse, but that didn't guarantee they would welcome us.
Lee Jongho looked at me with a confused expression.
"What should we do now? Should we find another place?"
"No, We will enter by force."
"Are you sure that will be okay?"
"Do you want to turn around?"
Lee Jongho fell silent. Perhaps he had realized it would be difficult to turn back and find another place like the warehouse.
"In that case, I will use a skill."
"Save your energy. Let me handle it."
I scanned the area and noticed a crowbar lying on the ground. Using it, I wedged the crowbar into the gap of the closed shutter and leveraged all my strength to pry it open.
With a groan of resistance, the shutter slowly began to lift under the force of my efforts. This was the result of my level 20 strength stats. If the old world hadn't been destroyed, I might have been known as the strongest man alive.
"W-What?!"
There was a loud sound once the shutter opened completely and the people inside became nervous.
"It's invaders! Run away!"
The scared people retreated back into the darkness and everyone entered the warehouse safely before I lowered the shutter.
Jung Yunhee was the first to notice something strange.
"That's weird. Aren't we supposed to receive a message saying we passed the Fable?"
[Meet with the other survivors at the warehouse.]
At first glance, the Sub Fable seemed straightforward, but it was more intricate than it appeared. To clear the Story, we also needed to be accepted by the survivors.
Thud! Thud! Thud!!
Several people aimed with guns appeared and aimed their weapons directly at us. One, two... there were ten in total. Was this their attack squad?
"Don't move!"
"Raise your hands slowly, or else we'll shoot!"
We slowly raised our hands in compliance. The condition to clear the Sub Fable was to meet the survivors, not fight them, so we had no choice but to follow their orders.
"?"
The sound of footsteps emerged.
The armed men stepped aside as a woman in her early twenties approached. She had a strong presence, clearly the leader of the group.
Naturally, this character was the one to step forward. She studied each of our faces before speaking.
"Now then, where did you lots crawl out from?"
Under her unsuspecting gaze, I silently activated a skill.
+
[Private Information]
Name: Lee Suhye
Age: 27
Chosen Constellation: Queen of the Wilderness.
Private Class: Expert Gunman (Rare)
Exclusive Skills: Patience Lv. 6, Execution Time Lv. 3, Marksmanship Lv. 4, Sniping Lv. 3, Weapon Training Lv. 2
Divine Protection: Homing Lv. 2
Overall Stats: Constitution Lv. 18, Strength Lv. 14, Agility Lv. 16, Magic Power Lv. 20
*Starter Pack is currently applied.
*A growth package is currently applied.
+
Lee Suhye. She was the best Hitman in Song of Nightmares. In fact, she was one of the strongest incarnations within Seoul. On top of that, she was also the incarnation of Artemis, the goddess of hunting.
Growth package and Starter Park at the same time? Artemis must really value her incarnation.
In moments like this, I was filled with regret that I didn't have a good support constellation. Who did I have to blame for that though?
"Who is the leader of this group?"
It was time for basic introductions. I stepped forward and opened my mouth.
"I'm the leader of this group. My name is Kim Jakga."
"Kim Jakga? Isn't that a strange name?"
"I hear that often."
What was this overwhelming sense of deja vu? That's right. Such a scene has happened so many times that It became natural for me.
"Why have you come here?"
"I came because of the nightmare."
"Nightmare?"
"We received a message from the system to come here."
"I'm sorry. We aren't accepting anymore people."
"Isn't there space for a few people?"
"Please leave or else I will be forced to use violence."
Looks like talking did not work as I planned. I remembered that Lee Su-hye had a tough character. This was never going to be easy. Let's change my approach.
I took a deep breath and stepped forward. Lee Su-hye, startled by my sudden movement, immediately aimed her gun at me.
"Stop! Don't come any closer!"
"Lee Su-hye, are you satisfied with the way things are right now?"
"W-What? How do you know my name?!"
She looked stunned. I ignored her question and pressed on.
"You've managed to fortify this place and maintain a fragile peace for now, but how long do you think it will last?"
"Wh-what are you talking about?"
"Do you really believe you can survive the 4th Fable? Even if you do, what about the 5th or 6th? How long can you protect everyone inside here?"
The expression of the armed people stiffened. The hands holding the guns were shaking. I studied all their expressions one by one and continued.
"I'm sure all of you already know this. The situation in the warehouse is not that great. The resources are running low and you don't know anything about the next Nightmare. At this rate, you are all going to die."
With each step I took, I moved closer. Noticing my approach, Lee Suhye raised her gun and shouted. Her voice was full of warning.
"Stop! Don't you get any closer or else I will shoot!"
"No. You will not."
"What?"
"You won't pull the trigger. You're a murderer but you don't kill without reason, isn't that right?"
"You..."
Her expression stiffened and I took another step forward.
"I know you need help. You also know that as well. You need information about the next Fable, but you don't know where to look. Now that I'm here, that will change."
"Are you saying you have information about the next Fable?"
"Yes. To be specific, I know a future you don't know."
I closed the distance, now only a few meters from Lee Suhye. Her gun was aimed directly at me, the barrel almost touching me. It was a risky position, but I wasn't afraid.
"Take me to your leader. I have information about the 4th Fable."
* * *
The Warehouse was a place that was organised into a region base by the survivors and watched under a single leader.
Their leader broke through the Stories with the survivors and founded a place for the people in the new era.
"Hm, I like what she has done with the place."
"Huh? Did you say something?"
"Don't mind me. I'm just talking to myself."
"You're a strange guy."
Lee Suhye looked at me momentarily before facing forward. She was guiding me us into the warehouse. We walked until we entered an open place filled with survivors.
[The Sub Fable has ended.]
[The compensation will be settled.]
Finally, we arrived. Upon our arrival, a few survivors looked our way. An elderly man in particular looked at us and opened his mouth with a drunk grin.
"Suhye-ssi, you bought new survivors? I thought we weren't taking anymore people."
"The current situation is different. Where is the boss? Someone wants to speak with her."
"She should be in the backroom. If she's not there then she must have gone outside."
Lee Suhye nodded her head and continued. Despite being younger than the elderly man, he addressed with 'ssi'. She was one of the people with the most authority here.
"You three, stay behind. Only Kim Jakga is allowed to come."
"W-What?!"
The rest of the group were puzzled by this. I knew this would happen. After all, I said something that couldn't be ignored.
"Just do as she says. I won't be long."
"Jakga-ssi."
"I'll be fine. In the meantime, search around and see if any of your family members are here."
They were reluctant at first especially Lee Jongho but they agreed in the end. I was thankful that they push the matter. In fact, it will be difficult if they came with me.
I spotted Angelica seperating from the group and run off somewhere. Maybe she was going to look for her father.
"Let's go."
Lee Suhye nodded and guided me to a secret place that was located away from the open area.
Finally, after walking for a while, we reached a door. Honestly, I was nervous. No matter how prepared I was, dealing with that person was still going to be difficult.
Lee Suhye raised her hand and knocked three times.
"Come in."
After we were given permission for entry, Lee Suhye opened the door wide and both of us stepped into the room.
The room was not very large with only entrance. There were two couches in the middle of the room and a well-polished wooden table at the opposite end. After scanning the room, my eyes settled on the person lounging on a couch.
It was a woman with an unmistakable commanding presence. Long silver-streaked black hair that flowed past her shoulders, fair complexion, and her sharp eyes radiated an intense, almost predatory gaze that would inflict fear in the heart of others, while her expression was calm to the point of indifference. She wore a black jacket with metallic accents over a tight crop top, paired with leather pants and tall black boots, each with zippers running up the sides. Everything about her screamed danger—the kind of person who would casually take jobs from the dark web. The moment I saw her, a creeping sensation slithered into my mind.
This woman infront of me was known as the Infinite Reincarnator. She was the most terrifying woman in Seoul.
The woman's cold gaze suddenly shifted my way. It was a person with an overwhelming presence so I reflexively activated a skill.
[Exclusive skill, 'Black Box' has activated.]
[Information relating to this character will be revealed.]
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[ « Soul Status » ]
Name: Soo Jinyoung
Age: 27
Primary Attributess: Infinite Reincarnator (9th Turn) (Giant), Fallen Star (Myth)
Skills: Demon Dragon Eyes Lv. 3, Pheonix Flame Lv. 5, Seven Heavenly Swordsmanship Lv. 8, Mental Barrier Lv. 5, Crowd Control Lv. 5, One-on-One Lv. 6, Cooking Lv. (???), Transcendence Lv. (???)...
+
A ridiculous list of skills appeared before my retina. There was no time to read all of them because I was already standing infront of peculiar woman.
There were several ways to survive in a ruined world. I could only remember a few but this person was definitely the 'first way' to survive.
Reincarnator Soo Jinyoung. The 1999 chapters of the Song of Nightmares started and ended with this person.