Absolute Dweller-Chapter 209

[Clarity of a Still Water has been activated.]

The experience farm at Jeju, the artillery corps intercepting North Korean monsters, and the relentless hunt against the southern-advancing corpse army—

All three combined had led to this result.

‘Level 48.’

As the storm-like wave ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) of the corpse army dwindled, the pace of leveling up had slowed. However, thanks to the Jeju experience farm, his progress had regained momentum.

‘It’s actually even faster now.’

Compared to the corpse army, the black insects infesting Jeju were of relatively low level, but their sheer numbers were overwhelming.

Even now, they were continuously being wiped out by the tidal wave Lee Joon-hyuk had created, earning experience points non-stop.

[You have slain Black Insect (Lv. 20).]

[You have slain Black Insect (Lv. 21).]

[You have slain Black Insect (Lv. 21).]

......

......

This time, instead of thousands, tens of thousands of black insects were being swept away at once.

‘Even if they’re low level, this quantity can’t be ignored.’

Lee Joon-hyuk, for one, had immediately reached Level 61 after breaking his limit and surpassing his previous cap.

Moreover, every single retainer, including him, had already completed the three-star enhancement process.

By using the power of the stars to enhance them to three stars, their experience and settlement money intake had drastically increased.

Once a retainer reached three stars, the total experience and settlement money earned from hunting monsters skyrocketed to 1200%.

This was separate from the 200% base salary each retainer received.

Even if the black insects were low level, the sheer number of them combined with a 1200% experience boost meant that the gains were massive.

‘So, to level up Joon-hyuk now, it would cost a trillion won?’

Retainers could increase their levels by spending money, and from Level 55 to 60, each level-up required one hundred billion won.

With the cost increasing tenfold every five levels, it was expected that reaching Level 65 would require a trillion won.

However—

‘There’s no level-up option available.’

As expected, it seemed that 60 was the highest level that could be raised using money.

‘And I’ve got more money than I know what to do with.’

At this point, his wallet held around 7,000 trillion won.

Money was no longer an issue—he could afford to spend recklessly if he wanted to.

‘That doesn’t mean I should waste it.’

Take Lee Joon-hyuk’s level, for example.

Even if he could still level up using money, it would have been pointless.

He was already gaining levels just by hunting the hordes of black insects, so why bother wasting money?

‘It’s not like the government is going to tax me for not spending money.’

Sure, he had an absurd amount of wealth, but there was no harm in keeping it.

His dark energy consumed money, so having an excess was always preferable.

That didn’t mean he hoarded everything, though.

[Civilian meeting the criteria for citizenship has been detected.]

[Would you like to grant citizenship?]

[Citizenship has been granted.]

Whenever his expanding domain detected new people, they were automatically granted citizenship.

And—

The source of this c𝓸ntent is frёeweɓηovel.coɱ.

‘Purchase relief supplies.’

He provided ample relief supplies based on the number of people, then sent a brief telepathic explanation.

If they were still alive and sane enough to process it, things went smoothly.

[Electricity, gas, and water will now be supplied. The relief supplies include a week’s worth of drinking water and emergency rations. Additionally, all nearby monsters have been exterminated, so you may rest easy.]

Nine times out of ten, the response was the same.

“W-Who’s there?!”

The reaction was almost always identical.

The brief paralysis that came with being absorbed into the domain—

The sudden appearance of supplies—

The voice echoing inside their heads—

For people who had become accustomed to the presence of monsters, it was only natural to be afraid.

[Calm down. I mean you no harm.]

“Don’t lie! You think we haven’t been tricked by psychics before?!”

This time, the response was particularly aggressive. It wasn’t hard to guess why just from their tone.

[There’s no need to worry. If you’re suspicious, you can just use the relief supplies and leave it at that. I’ll be on my way.]

Experience had taught him that people like this weren’t worth the effort of persuading.

More often than not, simply leaving them alone was enough.

Once they started using the electricity, water, and gas he provided, once they started eating the relief supplies—

They usually came around.

‘And I don’t have the time to argue anyway.’

The newly granted citizens weren’t just here.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

His main base in Busan and his secondary base in Seoul were both expanding.

Even though he had been working nationwide to rescue survivors, there were still people who had managed to survive on their own, scattered across the country.

Granting citizenship and sending out a brief telepathic explanation—

This process was happening simultaneously all over the place.

‘And I’ve gotten pretty used to sending multiple telepathic messages at once.’

At the moment, he was operating 63 Eyes of the Absolute.

Seventeen of them were actively sending telepathic messages.

Honestly, this was quite manageable.

‘At least this time, there aren’t any major cities involved.’

Back when his secondary base had just started expanding into Seoul and the metropolitan area, he hadn’t even been able to leave notifications.

All he could do was distribute relief supplies.

Because—

‘This one’s passed out.’

‘That one’s not breathing.’

‘His heart’s not beating.’

This was happening in multiple locations at once.

For people whose bodies had been weakened from long-term malnutrition, even the brief paralysis that came with being granted citizenship could be deadly.

Vrrrrr—

He simultaneously supplied them with the World Tree’s life force, while using psychokinesis to perform CPR on those whose hearts had stopped.

Most of the time, simply receiving the World Tree’s life force was enough to wake people up and restore them.

But for those who had gone into shock and had their hearts stop, that alone wasn’t sufficient.

‘Grant a quest. Reward: full recovery.’

Thankfully, within the bounds of citizenship, this trick was possible.

Even so—

[Civilian Kang Jun-young has died.]

‘...Damn it.’

People still died.

Whenever he absorbed a major city or a large settlement, it was inevitable.

[Civilian Hong Eun-ji has died.]

[Civilian Yoon Ah-reum has died.]

Even after the leveling up and domain expansion were complete, he had to remain fully engaged, managing the Eyes of the Absolute to ensure as many people survived as possible.

Only after thoroughly scanning the expanded domain and seeing no more death notifications—

“Haaah.”

—Did he finally open his own eyes.

Beep!

The tiny figure of Kami, perched on his chest, was pecking at his chin frantically.

Seeing that, he let out a small chuckle.

“I’m fine.”

Kami never used to be this clingy, but ever since they had spent more time together, this fuss happened every time he leveled up.

After stroking the little creature a few times, he slowly resumed operating the Eyes of the Absolute.

There were a few locations he had marked earlier.

After confirming the exact coordinates—

[Da-bin.]

[Yes, Jae-hyun-nim?]

[I’m sending you the list of priority rescue locations.]

[Understood.]

When both parties communicating via telepathy had telepathic abilities, they could exchange more than just words.

They could send images, detailed descriptions, and other data.

The locations he was currently transmitting were places where children, the elderly, and other vulnerable individuals needed immediate rescue.

‘And—’

In most cases, groups that included vulnerable individuals had a protector—

Parents who shielded their children.

Children who cared for their elderly parents.

Not everyone had the luxury of such protection, but after nearly a year of survival, it was practically impossible for those in vulnerable conditions to have made it this far alone.

Yet, exceptions always existed.

Shwoosh—

I teleported to the location I had marked earlier.

There, a small child, no older than five, was hungrily devouring water and a Choco Pie.

Carefully, I called out the child's name.

"Da-jeong."

The child flinched violently and turned around.

Upon seeing me inside the house, she froze in place.

Her tiny eyes quickly welled up with tears.

I had encountered this situation many times before, and I knew exactly what was needed at this moment.

"Do you like cola?"

At the word cola, the child, who had been on the verge of tears, locked her gaze onto me.

Somehow, a cold can of cola had already appeared in my hand.

"Want one?"

The child slowly nodded.

"Here you go."

As I held out my hand, she cautiously approached, eyes widening as she took the can.

"It's cold, right?"

"Y-Yeah..."

Then, she simply stared at me blankly.

"Do you want me to open it for you?"

"Yes!"

Pshhh—

The moment the can opened with a hiss, the child’s face lit up.

She took a sip and scrunched her face in delight.

"It's real cola!"

She smiled brightly at me before eagerly gulping down the rest.

[Civilian Kim Da-jeong's trust has increased significantly.]

"Is there anything else you’d like to eat?"

The child hesitated before shyly answering.

"...Pork cutlet."

I bought the best pork cutlet from the marketplace and presented it before her.

"Wow!"

Her face lit up with excitement.

Using the provided plastic knife and fork, I cut a piece for her and fed it to her directly.

"Is it good?"

"Yeah!"

[Civilian Kim Da-jeong's trust has reached 50.]

[Loyalty has been unlocked.]

How had this little girl ended up alone here?

"How old are you?"

"I'm five!"

She happily chewed on the pork cutlet, looking like a baby bird eagerly accepting food.

I activated Eyes of the Absolute to scan the house.

Despite the monster apocalypse, there were clear signs of someone having tried hard to survive.

A container, likely used to fetch water from a nearby river.

A repurposed kitchen, modified into a fire pit.

Bags of stored waste.

A crowbar, a hammer—tools stained with dried monster blood.

These clues confirmed that someone had been taking care of her.

‘But...’

Everything bore signs of age.

I asked casually.

"Where are your parents?"

The child's face darkened.

"I don’t have a dad... just my mom."

"Where did your mom go?"

"...She went outside."

"When?"

The child sniffled and shook her head.

So, she didn’t know.

Her condition was poor.

She was thin, likely malnourished from prolonged starvation.

Her skin was dry and rough from dehydration.

She was covered in filth, unable to properly clean herself.

The smell was intense.

At best, her mother had been gone for three days.

At worst, a full week.

Leaving a child this young alone for that long only meant one thing.

I forced a smile.

"Do you want to see something fun?"

"...Something fun?"

Even while on the verge of tears, she looked at me with curiosity.

After confirming her slight nod, I summoned Elquines.

"Huh? What’s that?"

The child gasped at the water-formed doll-like figure.

"Wow."

I turned to Elquines.

"Can you help clean her up?"

Elquines sighed as she looked at the filthy child.

"Didn’t I tell you not to call me for this kind of thing? Even low-tier spirits can handle this, you know?"

"But you're popular."

"What—?"

Before she could complain, the child ran forward and hugged her tiny water-formed body.

"Thank you!"

Small spirits would have done the job, but nothing worked better than a talking one.

I turned to the now much brighter child.

"Would you like to come with me? There are lots of friends there, and plenty of good food."

But the child shook her head.

"No. I have to wait for my mom. She told me to stay here."

"...Don’t worry. If your mom comes back, I’ll bring her to you."

"But..."

"I'll even leave a letter here for her."

"Really?"

"Of course."

"Can I write something too?"

"You know how to write?"

"...No."

For a brief moment, she looked down, but then, with newfound determination, she said—

"Can you write it for me?"

"Of course."

I bought a pretty letter set that the child would like and wrote down her message to her mother.

Then, with a serious expression, she asked—

"Do they have pork cutlets every day there?"

"Not every day, but pretty often."

"Hmm..."

Seeing her deep in thought, I added—

"And sometimes, I’ll visit and buy you pork cutlets like today."

At that, her face lit up.

"Then I’ll go!"

I took her to the orphanage run by Oh Eon-ju before heading to my next location.

"Hello."

This time, I found an elderly man living alone.

And just like that, the entire day passed, tirelessly finding and helping those in need.