Level 4 Human in a Ruined World - Chapter 54

——————

Chapter 54: Different Species (1)

“Jongsu…!”

Yeongwoo called out to the unexpected visitor with an uncertain voice.

Kim Jongsu, a 29-year-old native of Andong.

Although it was not their first meeting, their relationship was not close enough to expect loyalty.

Also, when he thought about it again, he wondered if it would be helpful if someone came to see his body cut in two.

“Hyung-nim, where are you? I really can’t see… Ugh!”

Jongsu, who had arrived near the scene, discovered Yeongwoo, whose upper and lower body were separated, and abruptly stopped.

Squeak!

He then stuck his head out of the driver’s seat in disbelief to double-check.

“Hyung-nim?”

“Yes, I’m here.”

“Ugh!”

Jongsu, startled, jumped out of the car and stood still for a while, blinking his eyes.

It was an unexpected sight, to say the least.

A giant cockroach trapped inside a pillar of light, and in front of it, a giant eyeball floating in the air…

But more chilling than that was the fact that Yeongwoo, whose lower body had been cut off, was speaking and alive.

“No, how on earth are you alive?”

“Well, it seems it’s not easy for a person to survive like this. Or maybe it’s because I’ve increased my stats a lot.”

“Even so, this doesn’t make sense. How long have you been like this?”

“Ah…”

It was only now that Yeongwoo realized how long he had endured to an excessive extent.

And the reason became clear after he opened the inventory that he had neglected until now.

Pahat!

「Slime Core」 – Mutation Bracelet

【Regenerative power increases dramatically.】

The Slime’s core.

A loot taken from the Sangju Province’s Strongest Sword, Dokgo Sehwan 01.

It was the Dokgo Sehwan who, despite having his head and body torn apart, had managed to survive with his breath attached.

‘Oh my. So it was this.’

The phrase “Significant increase in regeneration” likely meant this level of effect.

‘Could it be that if I continue like this, the severed parts will heal?’

It was a plausible guess.

Originally, he should have died early on due to excessive bleeding or shock.

Of course, the amount of blood he had already lost was considerable, but if he attempted to stitch it up now…

“Hey, Jongsu.”

“Yes?”

“If it’s okay, could you bring my leg and attach it under here?”

“…What?”

After Yeongwoo’s response, Jongsu opened his mouth wide and trembled in disbelief.

Then, as if greatly shocked, he muttered while holding Yeongwoo’s lower body with both hands.

“So, if I do that, will your body really stick together…?”

“Maybe.”

“…”

“So, you mean… you just want me to stick this back on?”

“Yes, for now.”

With his weakened energy, Yeongwoo nodded his head, and Jongsu followed suit by nodding his head.

Next, Jongsu brought Yeongwoo’s lower body closer to the upper body.

Sliiide, sliiide.

Now, all that remained was to align the two cut surfaces properly.

But when Jongsu came this far, he suddenly stopped moving.

“…”

“Jongsu?”

As Yeongwoo called out to Jongsu, who seemed more static than he expected, a calm voice flowed out from him, unlike before.

“If I don’t stick it, will you die like this?”

Well, that’s true.

Yeongwoo sighed deeply.

“Yes, that would happen. But I won’t resent you even if you leave me to die. I would have thought the same if I were in Jongsu’s position.”

“That’s right. If I hadn’t come here, hyung-nim would have either withered away without a word or been stabbed by some ruthless guy.”

While saying this, Jongsu glanced at the early bird attached to his waist.

Then, still emitting a formidable presence, he shifted his gaze towards the alien merchant and mediator Kubu.

“You can’t even imagine how weird I feel right now.”

After Jongsu finished speaking with a loud gesture, Yeongwoo closed his eyes, thinking that he was about to draw a sword.

However, all Jongsu did was attach Yeongwoo’s lower body back together.

Clunk.

“Do you really expect it to stick together on its own like this? Damn… I feel like I can’t live properly in a world like this.”

Jongsu spat out a skeptical line, but before he finished speaking, Yeongwoo could sense that something was happening.

“Ugh.”

The sensation of heat surged from the spot where Jongsu had attached the lower body.

Of course, it was unclear whether the body was actually attached or if an infection was progressing, but something was happening for sure.

“Um… just in case, did you align the front and back properly?”

Yeongwoo asked out of curiosity, and Jongsu, after momentarily blanking out, laughed.

“Check it for yourself when you stand up later.”

And at that moment.

“Kkng.”

Youngju, who had been lying there as if dead, finally twitched his fingers and truly died.

「Chungju’s Strongest Sword has been acquired and merged!」

The title merge message appeared in Yeongwoo’s field of view as evidence.

Following that, system messages about the current status of titles continued to appear.

…You have acquired one title in the Chungju region.

…You possess four titles in the Gyeongbuk region.

「The current Gyeongbuk’s Strongest Sword is ‘Jung Yeongwoo07.’ Rank 1, 2 defenses.」

‘Oh, titles from different regions are collected separately.’

As Yeongwoo stared at Youngju’s corpse on the ground, Jongsu, with a deep voice, said.

“This distinguished lady finally initiated a fight, huh? Unlike earlier when she pretended to be gentle.”

“She must have thought about it until the end. She had a lot to lose.”

Just as Yeongwoo said, Youngju lost too much as the price for her failed bet.

Even if another mutant comes down to Chungju tomorrow, can they defend against that monster without the Strongest Sword?

‘Without the Strongest Sword, it’ll be difficult to maintain order in this city.’

Originally, the region status window should have information about the Strongest Sword, but now it looked more like a warning message.

|Currently staying in the area of ‘Chungju.’

|There is no Strongest Sword in this area.

Nevertheless, the majority of Chungju citizens couldn’t even imagine what that status window meant.

Chungju’s Strongest Sword had gambled with the lives of the citizens.

In any case, due to this incident, Chungju was expected to return to lawlessness, and there was a high likelihood that it would be ruined by mutants.

“How about it, does the body seem to be attached a bit?”

Jongsu, feeling bored with waiting, sat on the ground and asked.

In response, Yeongwoo, unconsciously examining his waist, stood up abruptly, surprised.

“Ah.”

“…Huh?”

Jongsu, too, widened his eyes.

Yeongwoo’s upper body stood straight, supported by the waist and abdomen.

Just a moment ago, wasn’t this the person whose upper and lower body were separated?

This was an impossible situation.

“What the hell.”

Jongsu exclaimed in amazement as he sat down, and Yeongwoo, with an unbelieving expression, raised his top to inspect it.

Swoosh.

Then, it became apparent that the flesh on the cut surface, while not completely healed, was sticking together.

“No, this is…”

While Yeongwoo struggled to find words, the suturing process continued.

After a while, a severe hunger struck.

As the body reattached, even the internal organs that had lost function began to restart.

‘Is… is this really happening? If so, you can’t consider it human anymore.’

As Yeongwoo sat and examined every corner of his body, the golden goblin, which had been observing the situation from a distance, hurriedly approached.

It had noticed that Yeongwoo was recovering.

“This guy.”

Jongsu made a gesture as if kicking with his foot, but the goblin ignored it and placed a pouch next to Yeongwoo.

-Kit.

“You’re quite an opportunist too.”

Yeongwoo briefly looked at the now polite goblin, then turned his gaze to Jongsu.

“But Jongsu, why did you save me? It was a chance to become the Strongest Sword.”

“That’s true.”

At Yeongwoo’s words, Jongsu shrugged.

Then, he glanced at Yeongwoo’s recovering body in real-time.

“Well… if I had to give a reason, I didn’t want to live like this. I clearly realized it when I saw that body really sticking together.”

By ‘like this,’ he meant living in a state where it was ambiguous whether he was human or a monster.

“You seem to be the type who subtly dislikes being tied down. But if it was someone other than my brother, I would have drawn my sword without hesitation. I’m not interested in being the Strongest Sword, but I always think becoming stronger is the right thing.”

An excessively honest remark.

As a result, Yeongwoo felt relieved.

“There was also a way to take only my equipment.”

“Yes. I hadn’t thought that wasn’t an option… Well, even if you look like this, you’re probably stronger than I would be with them. So, I chose to become the benefactor of your life.”

In other words, he didn’t want to become a monster and chose to receive the protection of a monster.

“I may not empathize, but I understand what you’re saying.”

Yeongwoo, saying this, had recovered to some extent during that time.

In other words, even if Jongsu changes his mind now, there’s nothing he can do about it.

Of course, Yeongwoo wasn’t ready to fight other Strongest Swords or mutants right away.

‘I’ll need some rest during the journey until we arrive at the next area.’

Fortunately, thanks to Jongsu getting a car, they could take breaks while moving.

‘Jongsu coming to find me is truly a stroke of luck. Maybe it’s not my time to die yet.’

Yeongwoo unconsciously looked up at the sky.

Then, along with the clear sky, the timer that was hanging at the top of the field of view caught his eye.

|Time until advertiser’s arrival: 03:04:11

A considerable amount of time had passed since he attached his body back together.

‘It’s almost in the 2-hour range. Tight schedule.’

At this rate, shortly after entering the next area, he would encounter the presence known as the advertiser.

“Can you continue driving?”

When Yeongwoo slowly asked while getting up, Jongsu glanced at the car and replied.

“Yes, of course. Where do you want to go?”

“North… I mean, towards Seoul.”

“Then we’ll have to cross through places like Icheon and Yeoju.”

As if drawing a map, Jongsu gestured with his finger in the air.

Meanwhile, Yeongwoo searched the body of the deceased Shin Youngju, who lay with a hole in her chest.

Surprisingly, she didn’t have a single penny, but instead…

‘Oh my god.’

There was an Epic equipment that could only be obtained by consuming legendary achievements.

—————