Multiverse , Leveling Up in the World I Created

Chapter 439: 439 Dawn of the Dead 3

We rested that day, and the next day, after eating with the others, we started exploring the mall.

The mall had already been fortified with various measures.

The doors leading outside had even been welded shut, making it look quite secure.

Then we went up to the roof and saw a huge horde of zombies gathered in front of the mall.

There were easily over a thousand of them.

"It’s true... there are so many. Won’t this be a problem later?"

Jane said, startled by the sight, and Kenneth, who was also on the roof, reassured her.

"Don’t worry, miss. The doors are well barricaded."

But I raised a concern.

"Right now it’s not a problem, but once our supplies run out, it will definitely become one. Even if we can’t get rid of all of them, we should at least reduce their numbers."

Kenneth chuckled incredulously and asked.

"How are we supposed to deal with that many infected?"

"I don’t know yet. I’ll think of something. By the way, what were you doing with that whiteboard up here?"

At my question, Kenneth pointed to a gun shop visible in the distance.

"See that building over there with all the infected gathered around it? There’s a survivor inside. A guy named Andy. We’ve been using whiteboards to exchange messages. I was just about to tell him that the Pasteur facility had fallen."

Kenneth picked up the whiteboard and wrote in large letters: [PASTEUR FACILITY FALLEN.]

Then he held it up high toward the gun shop.

After a moment, Andy on the roof of the gun shop wrote a reply and held it up.

It read: [NOT SURPRISING.]

It was a short message, but it was enough to show just how messed up the world was becoming.

I went back down into the mall with Jane and helped her pick out a pair of sneakers that fit.

The military boots were sturdy but stiff, and uncomfortable to wear for long periods.

We also got clothes and underwear.

While we were at it, Jane glanced at me and subtly picked up a few pieces of lacy, see-through lingerie.

A meaningful gesture.

’I’ll have to put in some work tonight.’

Then we went to the hardware store, picked up a manual pump, and cut some slightly thick pipes into pieces slightly longer than my palm, capping one end of each.

Jane asked, "What are you making now?"

"Bombs."

"Huh? You can make those too?"

"Of course. The mall has all kinds of stuff."

Just like Kyle did in The Terminator 1, I gathered materials from the mall and started making homemade bombs.

Of course, the bombs I made would be far superior to Kyle’s.

I had more precise knowledge, and I could mix the materials in exactly the right proportions without error.

I thought this kind of weapon would be necessary to deal with the zombie horde.

"Phew... this is tiring..."

"If you’re tired, go inside and rest. I’ll finish up."

"Okay."

After sending Jane off, I focused entirely on the work.

I worked nonstop, and before I knew it, the sky outside was painted red.

Fortunately, I managed to finish on time.

I had made about 50 in total.

There were still materials left, but I ran out of pipes of the right size, so I stopped.

I moved the finished products to our room, washed up, spent a hot night with Jane, and then rested.

The next day, I took 10 bombs and went up to the roof with Jane.

Kenneth was there again.

There was a chessboard in front of him, so it seemed he was playing long-distance chess with Andy.

"Kenneth, sorry, but put the chess aside for a bit. I need to test some bombs I made."

Kenneth asked, as if to confirm he hadn’t misheard.

"Wha, what did you make?"

"Bombs. I made them from materials in the mall."

"You... so what you meant by ’think of something’ yesterday was bombs?!"

"Yeah."

I said that, lit the fuse, and threw one into the center of the zombie horde.

Bang!!!

A moment later, a deafening explosion erupted where the bomb landed.

The blast was impressive, but not as powerful as I had hoped.

At best, it was a little stronger than a grenade.

Fortunately, the zombies were clustered together.

A fair number were caught in the blast, but counting them, only about 15 had been taken out.

It was a disappointing result compared to my expectations.

But Kenneth and Jane seemed quite impressed.

"Wow... you can make stuff like this? That’s amazing."

"Wanna try?"

"Sure!"

Kenneth lit the fuse and threw it into the center of the horde.

Bang!!!

The damage was similar to last time.

"Wow! This is fun!"

"Me too, let me try."

Jane wanted to try too, so I lit the fuse for her.

She threw it with all her might at the zombies.

Bang!!!

"Wow! That felt great."

Jane was having a lot of fun too.

But the noise drew the others to the roof.

They must have been startled by the sudden explosions.

"What’s going on? What was that booming sound..."

Kenneth pointed at me and explained.

"This guy made some bombs. We’re testing them. They’re pretty good."

"Wha, what did you say? Bombs?"

"Yeah. Wanna see?"

Kenneth held out his hand, and I silently handed him a bomb.

He took it, grinning.

He looked like a kid with a new toy.

He lit the fuse and threw it without hesitation.

Bang!!!

When the explosion went off below and zombies flew apart, he even smiled in satisfaction.

He was clearly enjoying himself.

The others were amazed too.

Michael quickly asked me.

"Jin, right? Can you make a lot of these?"

"I can. But it’s pointless. I counted how many infected died per bomb. Only about 15, and that’s with them clustered together. It’s nowhere near enough to clear out this horde."

"Still, it could be useful in dangerous situations. So I’d appreciate it if you could make some."

Michael seemed to see the potential in the bombs and asked me that.

"Alright, I’ll make some. But it won’t be for free. I’d like you all to do me a favor."

"What is it?"

"I want to turn this place into a safe fortress. First, we need to create farmland. It’s better to do it while we still have food. If we wait until we’re running low, it’ll be too late. Fortunately, the mall has everything we need to start farming."

Everyone nodded.

They seemed to agree.

"What’s next?"

Mike asked, and I continued.

"Second, we need to reduce the infected downstairs. If we run out of supplies and have to go outside, it’ll be hard to even try if there are too many infected. I’m not saying we need to kill a lot at once. Just taking out about 20 a day would be enough."

"I see... that makes sense. But how?"

"We lower a ladder."

Everyone was shocked at that.

"Wha, what?! Are you out of your mind?"

"I’m serious. I’m not saying we go down and fight them directly. We make sharp spears and aim for the heads of the infected as they climb up. It’s dangerous to do alone, so we form teams. We make the ladder intentionally sturdy and narrow so they can only come up single file. Then no matter how many of them are below, it won’t matter. If several people spear them from above, it’ll be easier than you think."

After I explained the method, the others started murmuring and discussing it among themselves.

"That makes sense. Right now it doesn’t matter because we have plenty of supplies, but we can’t guarantee that for the future. Preparing in advance is..."

"But isn’t it too dangerous? If someone gets bitten..."

"That’s why we stick together. Look below. Look at the number of infected piling up. At this rate, this place will fall eventually too."

"That’s true..."

Then Michael calmed everyone down and spoke.

"Jin’s words make sense. But the danger is also real. So I think we should vote. Raise your hand if you agree with Jin."

Two-thirds of the people raised their hands in agreement.

Most of them knew it too.

That this mall would eventually fall if things continued like this.

"Alright. The majority is in favor, so let’s try it Jin’s way."

With that decision, things moved quickly.

The spears were welded sturdy in a trident shape.

In case the zombies rushed in all at once, it would be useful not only for thrusting but also for pushing them back.

First, we tested a long pole by lowering it down to see how well the infected could climb it.

Funny enough, even with just a pole, some of them grabbed it and tried to climb.

So we decided to use poles instead of ladders for the time being.

Even a slight shake made the infected slip and fall, making them much easier to retrieve.

And we started gathering soil on the roof to plant potatoes.

Fortunately, there was someone who knew how to farm, so it went smoothly.

The reason I made these suggestions was that in the original, almost everyone dies after leaving the mall.

’Why did they leave the mall? It’s such a good place, well-defended, with plenty of supplies, and they could survive for quite a while by farming.’

This was the part that bothered me the most throughout the original.

So I wanted to instill in them the confidence that the mall was the safest place, and that they could survive there.

Anyway, over the next few days, we worked on reducing the zombie numbers.

Because of physical differences, the women primarily handled the farming, while the men dealt with the zombies.

Everything seemed to be going smoothly, but whenever people gather, problems arise.

Some guys started slacking off and avoiding work.

The worst offenders were a white man with a well-groomed beard named ’Steve,’ and a black man named ’Andre’ who had a pregnant wife.

Andre was taking care of his wife, so I could understand to some extent, but Steve was just slacking off openly.

Naturally, the others were dissatisfied.

So Michael and the others went to Steve to talk to him.

"Steve, we all need to work together to survive. If you keep slacking off like this, the others are going to resent you."

"I just don’t want to cause any problems. To be honest, if I get involved, things might get even more messed up."

When Steve said that, Kenneth frowned.

"Don’t talk crap! Everyone’s out there fighting infected while you’re slacking off. Does that make any sense?"

When Kenneth threatened him, Steve started making excuses again.

"What if a vaccine is developed later? Those infected people might be able to return to normal. Then we’ll have killed people. I’m a man of faith. I don’t want to commit that sin."

Kenneth, getting angry, tried to hit Steve, but Michael quickly stopped him.

"Calm down! Let’s just calm down! Okay, here’s what we’ll do. There’s a saying: if you don’t work, you don’t eat. How about we ban slackers from drinking and make them skip two meals?"

I thought that would just make Steve, who already had a bad temper, do something worse later, so I immediately objected.

"No, that’s not a good idea. It could lead to bigger problems later. We should just kick him out of the mall. If he’s that devout, God will protect him. Even if he gets infected, a vaccine will be developed eventually, so he can be cured. Right?"

When I threw Steve’s own words back at him, he looked flustered, and the others started laughing.

"Right, right! Let’s kick him out. God will surely protect him."

"Yeah, pfft..."

"Even if you get infected, I’ll make sure to treat you when a vaccine comes out, so don’t worry."

Realizing the situation was turning against him, Steve quickly backed down.

"Fine, I’ll work! I’ll do it, okay!"

With Steve’s problem solved, the pace of dealing with the zombies picked up noticeably.

There were days when we cleared 40 in a day, and as efficiency increased, the zombies that had filled the front of the mall began to decrease rapidly.

Of course, I also took the opportunity to collect zombie blood in pre-prepared containers, properly sterilized them, and stored them in my inventory.

With this, I had secured the first virus sample of the zombie series.

But then another problem arose.

The power went out in the mall.

It was probably a problem with the mall’s generator in the basement.

"I’m the one who knows machines best, so I’ll go alone. Just keep the doors secure."

"No, you’re our only engineer. We can’t risk losing you. It’s better if we go together."

When I said I’d go alone and handle it, Michael immediately objected.

I had apparently become a pretty important figure in this mall.

But that was inconvenient for me.

If people tagged along, I might have to protect them, which would be a hassle, and it would mess with my plan to bring out the tank later.

’This is insane. I came to a zombie world to ride a tank...’

Thinking about it, things had gone wrong from the start.

If I hadn’t met Jane, I would have made a grand entrance at the mall in a tank and mowed down the zombies.

That’s not to say I blame or dislike Jane.

It’s my own fault for getting distracted by a pretty woman.