Chapter 9: The City of Gyeongju
Translated by Vine | Proofread by Lust
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Gyeongju.
One of the oldest cities in South Korea, and the capital of the Silla Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period.
Situated on a flat plain along the Hyeongsan River, the city is geographically close to the East Sea.
“For a native of Seoul like me, it’s merely a tourist destination famous for its cultural heritage.”
For Yuna, Gyeongju was both her hometown and the city where she lived, but to Bahamut, a typical Seoul youth, Gyeongju was known for its abundance of cultural festivals.
So, his impression was nothing more than thinking of it as a city filled with cultural events…
“Wait a minute. Does that mean I committed a crime by digging up Gyeongju’s cultural heritage? I heard if you dig the ground here, artifacts come up.”
The only thing that came to Bahamut’s mind was the internet meme that if you dig anywhere in Gyeongju, you’d find cultural artifacts.
In reality, the frequent discoveries of artifacts during construction often delayed or canceled projects in the city.
“That’s not the important thing right now! Let’s skip over such trivial matters!”
Bahamut had indeed excavated objects that appeared to be relics while building a shrine inside a mountain.
However, dismissing it as a minor mistake—doesn’t that show a lack of conscience, Bahamut?
[What are you planning to do now?] Ignoring his past crimes, Bahamut asked Yuna what she intended to do next, communicating through the magic of the Mirror of Foresight.
Although Yuna had descended from Namsan and arrived in Gyeongju, Bahamut hadn’t heard a word about her future plans.
Asking about her intentions and how she planned to act before entering the city was a perfectly reasonable question.
“This voice…?”
[I’m talking to you in real-time through the magic of the Mirror of Foresight.] Yuna was surprised at first but quickly recognized Bahamut’s voice.
“Ah, my lord!”
Yuna addressed Bahamut without hesitation as “lord.”
[L-Lord? That’s not important right now… It’s good that you bravely returned to the city, but it’s dangerous. Instead of entering recklessly, I suggest formulating a thorough plan.]
“Indeed, you’re right.”
Bahamut felt uneasy about being called a deity, but Yuna’s gaze reflected nothing but reverence.
Unable to refute her admiring stare, Bahamut got straight to the point, and Yuna nodded cautiously in agreement.
As Bahamut stated, the city was not safe, and numerous zombies inhabited it.
Entering without a plan could lead to a significant threat.
“My intention is to make contact with any survivor camps or communities within the city.”
Yuna didn’t come unprepared; she already had a plan in mind, which she shared with Bahamut.
She planned to approach survivor communities in the city.
[Gyeongju hasn’t completely fallen?]
“No, it hasn’t. Our camp was destroyed, but other camps were still functioning well when I left for Namsan. There were even groups with more awakened members than us.”
Bahamut had assumed that Gyeongju was entirely lost because Yuna’s camp fell, but she clarified that only her camp had collapsed, while others remained intact.
Moreover, before the fall, a group of highly awakened individuals had managed to leave safely, suggesting that survivor groups likely still existed within the city.
“And if such a well-equipped group were already wiped out, it would prove how useless Mr. Jo Soon-do is. Heh.”
Yuna smirked, coldly remarking that if the abandoned group perished, it would only confirm their incompetence.
It was a hopeful prediction, though the possibility that they had perished quickly to zombies wasn’t completely out of the question.
‘Scary! This girl is much scarier than I thought!’
Watching Yuna’s sinister smile through the Mirror of Foresight, Bahamut wondered if this contract was really a good idea.
He was a big and dumb dragon, much more cowardly than his size suggested.
[So, no other survivors outside the camps?]
Bahamut, not entirely clueless despite his lack of wit, avoided asking more about the group Yuna mentioned and instead inquired about other potential survivors.
“No, there were people barricading themselves in their homes when the zombie apocalypse began. By now, they’re probably running low on supplies, but I believe there are still independent survivors out there.”
[Indeed. So, is gathering the scattered survivors a priority?]
Yuna went into detail about the situation in the city, explaining that aside from the survivor camps, there were also individuals who had chosen to live alone.
Some joined the camps, but others, confident in their abilities or mistrustful of groups, continued to defend themselves at home.
Bahamut suggested that consolidating these scattered survivors should be the first step.
“Why, my lord?”
Cautiously, Yuna asked Bahamut why they should bother gathering scattered survivors.
‘I wasn’t expecting this question… What should I say?’
Bahamut’s suggestion was made lightly, with no profound reason behind it.
But seeing the expectation in Yuna’s eyes, he couldn’t afford to disappoint her.
[If these people have no one to follow, a well-presented offer could easily win them over. Survivor camps in Gyeongju likely have established leaders, making it hard for us to gain influence. To rebuild the world you envision, gathering the wanderers and forming a new faction is the most practical path.]
“Wow… And after gathering the survivors?”
[Ahem.]
Bahamut’s explanation seemed to satisfy Yuna.
By uniting the leaderless survivors and forming their own faction, they could bypass the hierarchy in existing camps.
To achieve her goal of restoring order, having authority over a new group was necessary.
Yuna readily accepted this reasoning and pressed for the next step. Bahamut, flustered, continued.
[Afterward, we create a new faction representing Gyeongju, using it as the foundation to build the world you desire. Although these people are powerless now, once order is restored, their skills will have a chance to shine again.]
“Yes! I will follow your guidance, my lord.”
Bahamut’s reasoning had again aligned with Yuna’s goals of restoring the fallen order, which required many followers and a form of authority.
For her, consolidating the scattered survivors and establishing a new power in Gyeongju was a solid step forward.
“My lord, I see zombies.”
[I see them too. They seem weaker than goblins.]
With the plan in place, Yuna entered Gyeongju without hesitation, spotting a group of zombies.
She instinctively hid and informed Bahamut of the zombies ahead.
Bahamut, observing through the Mirror of Foresight, noted that they appeared weaker than expected.
“Yes, they’re weak. Even ordinary people could defeat them if they were careful.”
[Then why did the survivor camps fall? Even if there was discord between the awakened and the unawakened, they should have cooperated against a common enemy.]
Yuna replied, recalling a dreadful memory as she tried to explain the reason behind the collapse.
“There were mutant zombies stronger than these.”
[A mutant? Like a commander that leads the other zombies?]
“Yes, exactly. The mutant zombies commanded the ordinary ones to attack survivor camps. At first, we defended well, but as time went on, the mutant zombies’ assaults became more intense, and some awakened individuals were turned into zombie-infected awakened.”
The emergence of mutant zombies, capable of turning even the awakened into zombies, had indeed been a catastrophe for the camps.
Given the circumstances, it was understandable why some abandoned the camps and fled.
[It seems like you were lucky to escape.]
“Yes. And meeting you, my lord, must be destiny.”
[…]
Bahamut considered Yuna’s escape from Gyeongju to Namsan a stroke of luck, but she insisted that meeting him was a destined encounter.
Overwhelmed by her intense faith, Bahamut averted his gaze but quickly refocused on the task at hand.
[Ahem. In any case, the course is set. We shall gather the scattered survivors, eradicate the zombies in the city, and rebuild the shattered order.]
“Yes, as you command. All shall proceed according to your will, Bahamut.”
Bahamut set out Yuna’s course of action, and she agreed without hesitation.
‘Is this really going to work out?’
An uncertain dragon and his devoted priestess ventured forth.
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