Absolute Dweller-Chapter 168

"Ngh...!"

As Kim Myeong-hwan groaned in pain, Yang Ha-young spoke in a flat tone.

"Just hold on a little longer. We’re almost at the Safe Zone."

"...Yes. Ugh!"

She was right. They would arrive soon.

Below Kelikan, the Shindorim Territory, designated as a Safe Zone, was already coming into view.

‘Flying really does make a difference.’

A two-hour walk was reduced to just a few dozen seconds, covering over half the distance already.

But it wasn’t comfortable.

Whoooosh!

Every time Kelikan flapped its wings, his body shook, and the wound where his arm had been torn off throbbed painfully.

Looking down at his still-bleeding shoulder, he recalled the events just moments ago.

‘That was close.’

A monster that didn’t even flinch despite being shot repeatedly.

If things had continued like that, losing an arm would’ve been the least of his problems.

‘We would have been wiped out.’

For an ordinary hunting team, a monster immune to bullets was nothing short of a natural enemy.

Kim Myeong-hwan looked up at Yang Ha-young’s expressionless face, deep in thought.

‘She killed that thing in an instant.’

The image of the bone spears raining down was still vivid in his mind.

‘Is this the level you need to be to become a vassal?’

The difference was overwhelming.

Whether someone was Awakened or not didn’t even matter.

Even compared to Kim Hye-na, who had Awakened and was far ahead of him, the gap was unfathomable.

Would he become that strong if he somehow gained an ability now?

‘Realistically speaking...’

Becoming not just an Awakened, but a special Awakened.

If he thought about it in terms of probability, the odds were almost zero.

‘It’s too far.’

Do you need that kind of power to become a vassal?

Or does becoming a vassal grant you that power?

He didn’t know.

His older sister, Kim Ga-young, was a vassal, so he had taken the position lightly.

She had been with him since childhood, so why wouldn’t he be able to achieve the same?

That hope was the reason he still carried the bow he had used since his Goblin hunting days—a bow given to him by his sister.

Just in case he Awakened with a similar ability.

But that never happened.

‘Damn it...’

Why wasn’t he chosen?

It frustrated him.

It angered him.

So he couldn’t hold back the words that escaped his mouth.

He turned to Yang Ha-young and asked,

"How can I become like you?"

Was it because he had lost an arm?

Was he just babbling nonsense?

"You’re lucky... Being born with power like that..."

Maybe—this was who he really was.

Just a petty, envious, jealous human, resenting someone else’s fortune.

But even so—he couldn’t help but admire her.

A woman with power like a protagonist from a story.

Then, in her usual emotionless tone, Yang Ha-young spoke.

"Are your parents alive?"

"...?"

Kim Myeong-hwan blinked, confused.

He had expected a cold retort, but he hadn’t expected her to immediately go for family.

It almost felt like an insult.

He was annoyed, but he figured he had brought this on himself, so he answered.

"...My dad passed away. My mom is still alive."

"I see."

Yang Ha-young gave a casual reply.

And then—

"I killed both of mine."

"......"

A shocking statement followed.

"It was an accident, in a way."

Her tone didn’t waver.

"A fucking monster broke through our window and barged into the house.

Because of that, I discovered my ability."

Still no change in expression.

"But my power... It was too strong for me to control back then, and it raged out of control."

No fluctuation in her voice.

"I managed to kill the monster—but before that, the first person to die was my mother, who had been holding me."

She continued.

"Then my father, who had been standing between us and the monster, died too."

With her emotionless eyes, she stared directly at Kim Myeong-hwan.

"In Busan, many people survived with their families.

That’s because they were under his protection."

It was a fact that couldn’t be denied.

"I envy you.

You envy my strength, but if I could, I would trade places with you."

"......"

Kim Myeong-hwan couldn’t respond.

"I like you.

Not many people are willing to throw themselves in front of danger for their comrades."

There was a brief silence.

Then—

As they passed through the barrier protecting the Safe Zone, the pain in his shoulder noticeably lessened.

Yang Ha-young descended near a building entrance and carried Kim Myeong-hwan inside.

In her other hand, she held his severed arm.

"Emergency patient."

With one look, anyone could tell he was severely injured, so he was immediately assigned a bed.

Yang Ha-young, watching him from beside the bed, spoke.

"If I had known about my power sooner, if I had practiced controlling it earlier, maybe my parents would still be alive.

But when the monsters came, I chose to hide in my mother’s arms.

It was more comfortable that way."

For the first time—

Her expression showed something other than indifference.

A trace of bitterness.

"Everyone has their own path.

So do everything you can within yours.

That way—you won’t have regrets."

Before Kim Myeong-hwan could say anything—she walked out of the emergency room.

Watching her leave, he swallowed back a regretful sigh.

‘...I should have apologized.’

She had saved his life.

And his comrades’ lives.

Even if he hadn’t been thinking straight, he shouldn’t have spoken that way to someone who had saved him.

And worse—he had unknowingly hit her deepest trauma.

"...Haah..."

Nothing was going right.

At that moment, a man in a white robe approached, examining his wound before placing a hand over it.

Then—

Wuuuuung—

A healing light enveloped the severed arm, beginning the reconnection process.

Bones realigned, new muscles formed, and the damaged flesh regenerated rapidly.

A catastrophic injury—was completely healed in mere minutes.

"Please rest for at least a day.

You might feel some discomfort, but it will fade with use."

"...Thank you."

The man gave a kind smile.

"It is only natural to serve those chosen.

After all, we are all blessed by our Savior, Kim Jae-hyun-nim—"

Just then, a nurse rushed in, calling for the priest.

"Priest Yoon Seong-min! Emergency patient!"

The man, who had been about to continue his sermon, immediately left.

Kim Myeong-hwan knew exactly who they were.

‘Citizen Salvation Church...’

A new religious group, formed around the fact that Kim Jae-hyun granted citizenship.

At first, it had been widely rejected by most civilians.

No matter how great Kim Jae-hyun was, modern people saw cults as cults.

But recently—their influence had grown dramatically.

‘After all, five healers have come from this group alone.’

Rumors that Kim Jae-hyun could Awaken people were already widespread.

And now, this group had multiple powerful healers capable of restoring severed limbs in minutes.

‘If Kim Jae-hyun wasn’t backing them directly, this wouldn’t even be possible.’

Unlike other cults, this one had a clear difference.

The existence of Kim Jae-hyun—the one revered by the Citizen Salvation Church—was undeniable.

He wasn’t some mythical deity. He was real.

A man who granted Awakening abilities to those who believed in him.

A man who could create food and supplies out of nothing.

A man who established Sanctuaries, Safe Zones free from monsters.

All of these solidified the legitimacy of the Citizen Salvation Church.

And most importantly—he asked for nothing in return.

There were no demands for money, no mandatory prayers, no forced worship.

The only requirement was to believe in Kim Jae-hyun.

That was the one and only doctrine of the Citizen Salvation Church.

And the more people believed in him—

‘The stronger they became.’

This had already become common knowledge among hunters.

Many had experienced it firsthand—their physical abilities improved the stronger their faith in Kim Jae-hyun became.

‘...Should I start practicing religion?’

Kim Myeong-hwan wouldn’t lose to anyone when it came to belief in Kim Jae-hyun.

After all, his sister Kim Ga-young and Ha Dong-geon—two of Kim Jae-hyun’s earliest vassals—were his family.

‘If I could gain healing abilities, my party’s survivability would skyrocket.’

But—

‘Even if I got healing powers, would I be able to kill that monster?’

No.

He would just be prolonging his own suffering.

‘...Would changing to Sharpshooter make a difference?’

He wasn’t sure.

Even if his gun’s power increased, would it be enough to pierce the metal-plated monster’s body?

‘Even if it could—’

He recalled Yang Ha-young’s last words.

[Do everything you can. That way, you won’t have regrets.]

That was right.

He had to struggle forward, doing everything he could to get stronger.

"Excuse me, nurse."

"Yes?"

"Can I leave now? I have a quest from Jae-hyun-nim."

"A quest?"

Luckily, the nurse was already aware of what quests were.

After all, Priest Yoon Seong-min had endlessly preached about them while in the emergency room.

And it was clear that quests came as direct orders from Kim Jae-hyun.

After briefly checking his condition, the nurse nodded.

"You’re fine. You can go."

"Thank you."

As soon as he stepped out of the hospital, Kim Myeong-hwan began running.

His destination was Yeouido, where the Namdaemun Gate connected to Jeonpo Station in Busan.

There was no need to worry about monsters since it was located between Sindorim Territory and Seoul Station Territory, with only a 500-meter gap between them.

‘Here it is.’

The area was more crowded than usual.

Most likely, these were people who had received similar quests.

Ziiiiing—

As he crossed Namdaemun, entering Jeonpo Station—

"Those who received the Warrior quest, please gather here!"

"Sharpshooter quest recipients, over here! All Sharpshooters, gather here!"

Kim Myeong-hwan moved toward the group of Sharpshooters.

‘There are... a lot of them.’

At a glance, there were over a hundred people.

If combined with the Warrior group, there were easily several hundred in total.

Until now, he had been the only one in his party who received a quest, so he had assumed he was special.

But looking at the crowd—he realized he was just one among many.

"Does anyone here not have a gun?"

Kim Myeong-hwan quietly raised his hand.

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"My gun broke during combat."

"What type of firearm were you using?"

"K-2."

"Here you go."

As he was receiving a replacement rifle, a familiar face spoke to one of the instructors.

"Excuse me? Where should I go if I’m neither a Warrior nor a Sharpshooter?"

The moment he saw the man, he recognized him.

‘Park Seong-jun.’

He was a well-known figure among hunters.

A man who had Awakened an ability related to archery.

"You’ll need to go over there."

Kim Myeong-hwan noticed a small group of about a dozen people gathered separately.

‘So there are other job types besides Warrior and Sharpshooter.’

These were people with even more unique quest paths.

Most likely, they had extraordinary talent—people like Park Seong-jun.

And indeed—most of them were familiar faces.

Renowned hunters, powerful Awakened known for their strength.

Just like Kim Hye-na, these were people who had already Awakened abilities.

‘...I’m jealous.’

Unlike him, these people shined brightly.

They might one day become vassals, spreading their wings to reach even greater heights.

At that moment—

A small child tugged on his sleeve.

"Mister, you’re a hunter, right?"

Hunters—the common name for those who made a living killing monsters.

"Do-young! Oh my, I’m sorry! My child is just very curious..."

It seemed the boy had been fascinated by the group of armed adults gathered here.

"It’s fine."

Then, the child shouted loudly.

"I wanna be a hunter too! A monster-hunting hunter! I wanna be just like you, Mister! You’re so cool!"

The moment he heard the word "cool"—

It felt like someone «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» had smacked him across the head.

Kim Myeong-hwan froze in place.

The child’s mother bowed apologetically.

"I’m so sorry! Do-young, don’t bother them! We should go!"

As she hurriedly pulled her son away, the boy shouted one last time.

"Mister, good luck!"

And just like that, the whirlwind passed.

"Pfft—hahaha."

"That kid’s got some guts."

"He might be big someday."

Kim Myeong-hwan let out a small smile, realizing something.

‘To someone out there... I’m the one they look up to.’

He was someone’s inspiration.

Someone’s goal.

Just like he looked up to Awakened hunters, there were those behind him who admired his journey.

There would definitely be people watching as he became a Sharpshooter.

‘Yeah.’

His life wasn’t over yet.

‘Just keep moving forward.’

He was still on the path.

‘If I keep moving forward...’

One day.

He might just reach where they are.