Albakgi (3)
"Team 3 leader is a vampire?"
"Yeah."
It was a hard truth to swallow.
But—
'It's Jaehyun who said it.'
He couldn't help but believe it.
Still, the leader of a survivor group being a vampire?
Could that really be just coincidence?
'Something feels off.'
Just as Kim Geon was frowning deeply, lost in thought—
Park Saerom gave a hollow laugh.
"You're joking, right?"
"No."
Kim Geon's firm response made Park Saerom answer, half in doubt.
"…Alright. I'll trust you—because it's you saying it."
She didn't sound convinced, but she made her stance clear.
"So, what do you want me to do?"
"You believe me, even though we've only known each other for less than a day?"
"I believe in your abilities."
She smirked and added,
"Even if things go south and I get kicked out, you'll take responsibility for me, right?"
"I promise."
She narrowed her eyes, staring hard at Kim Geon.
"By the way… did you use to wear glasses or something?"
"…How did you know?"
"Well, you keep making that little gesture like you're pushing up invisible glasses."
"…Ah."
Her curiosity piqued, Saerom asked brightly,
"Why don't you wear them anymore? Did you get LASIK or something?"
"…My eyesight improved when I got my ability."
It hadn't gotten that good right away.
After he gained the power to control crows, his vision had gradually improved. Then, after forming a bond of subjugation with Kim Jaehyun and synchronizing with Kkamang (his crow), he had completely regained perfect sight.
Now, even outside of battle, his vision was exceptional.
'It's all thanks to Jaehyun.'
To be honest, before that, he hadn't really had a clearly defined role in the party. He'd always felt like he was on the fringe. But now, he had a solid position as a scout.
He'd volunteered to come here to prove his value to Kim Jaehyun.
"But seriously, what are we supposed to do? If Team 3 leader really is a vampire, we can't just sit around, can we?"
Recalling the instructions Jaehyun had given him, Kim Geon explained.
"For now, we don't need to do anything. Just keep an eye on him."
"So, we wait until we have proof and then take him out. Got it."
That wasn't exactly the plan.
Jaehyun had simply told him to wait.
'Everyone said they'll arrive tomorrow.'
They'd be setting out early in the morning and arriving here before the afternoon.
'So things will really kick off starting tomorrow.'
As far as Kim Geon could tell, the balance of power between the survivors and the vampires here was still holding—just barely.
But once Ha Donggeon's party arrived, that fragile balance would tilt decisively in favor of the survivors.
'With Jaehyun's power, uniting the survivor groups won't be that hard.'
He was once again realizing just how powerful Kim Jaehyun truly was.
Some people had already begun risking their lives to secure food, and there were even factions emerging who didn't hesitate to kill others to steal it.
'If Jaehyun hadn't been with us, we wouldn't be much different.'
With limited food and resources, people would've turned on each other. It would've been a brutal world, where you had to kill to survive.
"I'm going to hit the bathroom real quick."
Park Saerom asked,
"Number one or number two?"
"…Why are you asking that?"
"If it's number two, you'll have to go outside. I was gonna show you a good spot."
"…Number one."
"Got it. Head out and go all the way left. There's a communal restroom there—you can use that one."
Following her directions, Kim Geon headed to the bathroom, but was immediately hit by the stench before he even stepped inside.
He wrinkled his nose and went in, only for the smell to get even worse. Not just urine, but the entire place reeked of feces.
Just in case, he peeked into one of the stalls—only to instantly regret it.
"Ugh."
With no running water or electricity, this was inevitable.
At least the sewage system still seemed to be working—there was no overflow or backflow.
Still, it was disgusting all the same.
Looking at the bathroom, filthy with feces and urine, Kim Geon once again felt a surge of gratitude toward Kim Jaehyun.
"It's all thanks to Jaehyun that we're able to live like human beings."
Kim Geon muttered to himself as he stared into space.
"Jaehyun, are you there?"
[Yes, I'm here. Go ahead.]
"Do you think it's okay if I tell her about you now? She seems like someone we can trust."
Right now, Park Saerom was under the impression that Kim Geon's abilities were his own, rather than the result of Kim Jaehyun's power.
It felt good to be trusted so completely by someone—but at the same time, it weighed on him.
"I'll have to come clean someday."
He wanted to explain before the misunderstanding grew any larger.
[Do whatever makes you comfortable.]
"Thank you."
Ironically, seeing the appalling conditions other survivor groups were living in only deepened his loyalty toward Kim Jaehyun.
"I need to do better moving forward."
Kim Geon held his breath as best he could, lost in thought.
"Phew. By the way, Jaehyun, what do you plan to do about Team 3's leader?"
It wasn't that he doubted Jaehyun.
But the Team 3 leader had built close ties with several of the local survivor groups.
Killing someone like that was bound to provoke major backlash.
"We'll need to prove he's a vampire first, somehow…"
Up to now, the man had kept his true identity hidden from everyone.
Unmasking him wouldn't be easy.
"I'm sure Jaehyun has a plan."
***
The next afternoon.
Led by Ha Dong-geon, the entire party arrived in Ulsan and, with Park Saerom's help, managed to join her team.
And not long after—
Bang!
A gunshot rang out across the base.
[You have hunted a Mid-Tier Vampire (Lv. 33).]
[You have gained a large amount of experience.]
[₩1,133,423,899 has been deposited into the Homebound Overlord's Wallet.]
[Citizen Moon Byung-ho has eliminated the leader of 'Ulsan Homeplus.']
[A forward base can now be constructed at 'Ulsan Homeplus.']
"It's done."
Just as expected, killing the vampire cleared the conditions needed to build a forward base.
At first, I'd had doubts.
There was always the slim chance that the supply team's leader was one of those "good vampires" you only ever see in movies or novels.
But those doubts vanished the moment Moon Byung-ho used Invisibility and investigated the man's private quarters.
"Maybe I let him off too easy."
In his room, we found the corpse of a young girl.
Her pale face and the two distinct puncture marks on her slender neck left no doubt—the cause of death was massive blood loss from a vampire bite.
The moment I saw that, there was no hesitation left. I ordered Moon Byung-ho to eliminate him on the spot.
The sound of the gunshot drew the leader's subordinates, who came pouring into the room. Moon Byung-ho, still cloaked in Invisibility, watched quietly from a corner.
The leader's body had already vanished with the loot settlement, so their next course of action was predictable.
"Team Leader! Where are you?!"
They tore the room apart looking for him—and inevitably discovered the girl's body.
"B-Bro! Over here!"
"What is it?"
The first one to see the body spoke with a trembling voice.
"I-I think she was killed by a vampire."
The two deep fang marks still visible on her neck were undeniable proof.
And then—
"Wait, isn't this that girl? The one who was rescued a while back, then went missing…"
Their expressions turned grim.
Everything they were seeing pointed to one shocking truth.
"…The team leader was a vampire?"
In the heavy silence that followed, Moon Byung-ho quietly slipped away from the scene.
[Good work.]
Once I confirmed Moon Byung-ho had escaped safely, I immediately activated construction mode.
The area around Seomyeon and Jagalchi Market looked like a miniature diorama spread out before me.
Beyond the borders of our territory, a thick darkness stretched far into the distance—until, faintly, a small light appeared.
That place was none other than the Homeplus in Ulsan, where Ha Dong-gun's party was currently staying.
'Construct Forward Base.'
[This facility requires 3 citizens with the title of 'Knight' or higher for the 7-day construction period.]
[Are you sure you want to proceed with the installation?]
[Yes / No]
'Yes.'
Then, an unexpected effect occurred.
[There are more than 6 citizens with the title of 'Knight' or higher present at the construction site.]
[Construction efficiency increased by 100%.]
[Time remaining until Forward Base facility is completed:]
–83 hours, 59 minutes, 59 seconds
Seeing the time cut in half made him smile without realizing it.
'Thanks to this, I'll save some crystals.'
He never intended to wait a full week in the first place.
'Complete instantly.'
[Do you want to instantly complete construction of the 'Forward Base' facility?]
[This will require 9 crystals.]
"Yeah."
At that moment—
Vrrrrm—
A strange sensation passed through him.
[An entity that meets the conditions to be accepted as a citizen has been discovered.]
[Would you like to grant citizenship?]
The entire Homeplus building came under his domain.
'Bingo.'
Information about roughly a thousand citizens flashed before his eyes, and he checked through them one by one.
"Seven Awakened. And… nineteen vampires."
He casually scanned the entire Homeplus, now fully his territory.
People who hadn't yet been granted citizenship stood frozen, unable to move or react.
Once he'd pinpointed the exact locations of all nineteen vampires—
'Summon vassals.'
He summoned his vassals near each of them.
Those included vassals from both Ha Dong-gun's party and Lee Jun-hyuk's, along with Jang Sung-joon and the recently recruited brothers Moon Ji-hoon and Moon Sang-hoon.
In essence, he positioned all the vassals who operated as his hunting team beside the vampires.
And then—
Flash—
He supplied power to the building, lighting up the entire store brightly and signaling the final step of preparation.
'Grant citizenship.'
The regular people who had forcibly been granted citizenship looked confused as they checked their bodies, some staring blankly up at the now-lit ceiling.
And then—
"Aaaaaargh!!"
The vampires immediately let out bloodcurdling screams.
90% stat reduction.
All buffs removed.
Constant, searing pain throughout the body.
A crimson brand appearing on the forehead.
These were the effects of the [Vampire] title, automatically given when someone with citizenship achieved the feat of becoming a vampire.
"W-What the hell?!"
"What's wrong?! Are you okay?!"
Their nearby companions looked on in alarm.
However—
"Kyaaaah!"
The vampires, now out of their minds, bared their fangs and lunged toward the people.
But their stats had been drastically reduced by the title effect, which gave the vassals an opening to intervene.
Thwack! Clang— Thud!!
Crack—
Vampires were taken down all across the store in a variety of swift, brutal ways.
Once he confirmed that no one had been injured, he stood up and turned to Seo Ye-jin, who had been waiting quietly beside him.
"Let's go."
"Okay."
Click—
Beyond the entrance, Park Sae-rom stood inside a lit room, staring up blankly at the ceiling.
He called out to her.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kim Jae-hyun."
[T/L: Read extra chapters on my ko-fi page "Pokemon1920" : https://ko-fi.com/pokemon1920 ]