CHAPTER 7

Survivors (2)

The house next door was completely dark.

It wasn't just because the lights were off—even in the middle of the day, it remained dark, likely due to the thick curtains covering the entire living room window.

'Smart move.'

That way, they wouldn't have to worry about getting attacked by flying monsters like the Kellikan.

'But it's way too dark.'

Stepping out into the hallway, I realized something—my "Dignity Maintenance" skill applied anywhere within my domain.

That was why I could ring the doorbell and freely open the door.

Inside the boundaries of my domain, everything operated according to my will.

'This should do the trick, right?'

I looked up at the living room ceiling and willed it.

'Turn on.'

Flash—

The moment the lights came on, I could feel the entire Choi Hyung-jun family flinch.

"Oh? The lights turned on!"

Only the youngest child, around five years old, expressed pure amazement, unaware of what was happening.

The rest of them trembled in fear.

I handed a bottle of water to Choi Hyung-jun, who was staring at me with wide, nervous eyes.

"You should get the kids some water first."

"Oh, uh… Yes. Thank you."

Choi Hyung-jun carefully took the water from my hands with both of his own, his excessive politeness making me feel a little awkward.

'Did I make too strong of an entrance?'

Ringing the doorbell and walking in without hesitation had been intentional.

I wanted to maintain a mysterious presence while also taking control of the conversation.

But it seemed to have worked a little too well.

"Nayun, Seoyeon, drink some water."

Even as they gave the kids water, they kept stealing glances at me. Because of that, the kids were also watching me nervously.

"Cough! Cough!"

"Seoyeon! Are you okay?"

As expected, the uncomfortable atmosphere led to Choi Seoyeon choking on her water and coughing uncontrollably.

'I should ease the tension before we talk.'

Feeling a bit guilty for scaring them, I took a tangerine from my inventory and approached Seoyeon.

I crouched down to meet her at eye level and held out the fruit.

"Do you like tangerines?"

Still coughing, Seoyeon slowly nodded.

"Here."

"T-thank you. Cough."

She bowed slightly as she accepted the tangerine, then hesitantly handed it to her mother, Park Hyewon, while sneaking glances at me.

"Hold on a second."

With practiced hands, Park Hyewon peeled the tangerine and placed a slice into Seoyeon's mouth.

As soon as the sweet fruit hit her tongue, Seoyeon's tension melted away, and she broke into a smile.

"Hehe. Mom, give me more!"

"Is it good?"

"Yes!"

As soon as the four-year-old smiled, the heavy atmosphere in the room quickly lightened.

"Mom, me too, me too!"

The older child, Choi Nayun, who looked about six, rushed over to her mother, eager to get some tangerine as well.

Then, it happened.

[Citizen Choi Seoyeon's trust has increased.]

[Citizen Choi Nayun's trust has increased.]

[Citizen Park Hyewon's trust has increased.]

[Citizen Choi Hyung-jun's trust has increased.]

More messages appeared in rapid succession.

[Citizen Choi Seoyeon's trust has reached 50.]

[Loyalty is now unlocked.]

[Citizen Choi Seoyeon's loyalty has surpassed 30.]

[Citizen Choi Seoyeon has met the conditions for vassal registration.]

From the beginning, Choi Seoyeon's trust level had been relatively high at 42.

But now, with just one tangerine, it had surpassed 50.

Quietly, I opened the Citizen Management window and checked Seoyeon's details.

『Name: Choi Seoyeon (Lv. 2)

Trust: 57 | Loyalty: 33

Awakening Ability: None

EXP Distribution Rate: 0%

Earnings Distribution Rate: 0%

★ Assign Quest |  Expel』

Not only had her trust increased, but a new stat—loyalty—had appeared.

And it was already at 33.

'Maybe because she's a child.'

At least now, I understood the conditions for vassal registration.

The vassal system had appeared when my "Dignity Maintenance" skill reached level 2.

I had initially tried to register Choi Hyung-jun, the highest-level person in the group, as a vassal, but it had failed with a message stating, "Conditions not met."

Trust 50 and Loyalty 30.

That was the minimum requirement for vassal registration.

'Should I register Choi Seoyeon as a vassal?'

I considered it for a moment but quickly dismissed the idea.

'She's too young, and her level is too low.'

Unlike citizens, only ten people could be registered as retainers.

Since he was the first citizen to meet the conditions, he could have been registered as a retainer as a commemorative gesture. However, just like with the store window, it might not be reversible once done.

It was too valuable to test out on a whim.

'This might have a greater effect than I expected. If I'm going to register a retainer, they need to be at least on Choi Hyung-jun's level.'

A sturdy man in his 30s, and already level 9.

To ensure efficient monster hunting, it was the right decision to enhance Choi Hyung-jun's stats.

'But still…'

◇ Choi Hyung-jun (Trust: 31) (Lv. 9)

Even after all this time, his trust level was only at 31.

There was still a long way to go before reaching 50.

'Honestly, it feels a little wasteful to use it on Choi Hyung-jun.'

At that moment—

"Uh…"

Choi Hyung-jun hesitantly spoke first.

"I don't know how I can ever repay this debt…"

"I have a way."

"…What?"

"Let's talk privately in the hallway for a moment."

"Oh, okay."

It was a conversation too delicate to have in front of his family.

After all, I was about to ask him to risk his life for me.

Once we were alone in the hallway, Choi Hyung-jun stiffened just as he had when we first met.

To ease the tension, I started with a casual question.

"Did you receive your citizenship?"

Choi Hyung-jun hesitated before answering.

"If you're referring to that notification window that appeared out of thin air, then yes. About thirty minutes ago, my whole family received it together."

I had asked to confirm whether citizens could perceive their granted citizenship.

"And before that notification appeared, did anything unusual happen?"

"Uh, well…"

"Did something happen?"

"Yes. For a brief moment, my body was paralyzed, and I couldn't move at all."

"I see. Thank you for telling me."

It seemed there was a momentary paralysis before someone was fully accepted as a citizen.

'Then what happens to monsters?'

When the Household Proclamation skill reached level 5, the entire 30th floor became my domain.

Logically, as my level increased, the domain would expand even further.

At some point, monsters would inevitably be within that domain.

If they also experienced paralysis or could be forcibly expelled at my will, that would be ideal—but things rarely went so smoothly.

'…I'll deal with that when the time comes.'

There was too much to do to waste time worrying about hypotheticals.

"I'll be direct. I can help you return to a stable life. You'll be able to cook meals, take warm showers—live like a human being again."

"…What?"

"Not only that, but I can guarantee safety within the house. No monster will be able to invade without my permission."

"…Are you serious?"

"I swear on my name."

Choi Hyung-jun looked at me with trembling eyes before his expression turned resolute.

"Of course, you're not offering all this for free. What do you need me to do?"

I stayed silent for a moment, observing him indifferently before speaking.

"What I'm about to ask of you might cost you your life. Will you still do it?"

Surprisingly, his hesitation was brief.

"Yes. I'll do it. As long as my wife and child can stay safe, I'll do anything. To be honest, if not for you, I would've gone outside to search for water and food anyway. I was already prepared to risk my life."

Initially, I had planned to send Choi Hyung-jun on a goblin hunt right away.

However, my thoughts have changed now.

It was because of his disappointing appearance during our first meeting.

'I was so tense, thinking he might swing that golf club at me.'

When I rang the doorbell, I was using the Absolute Eye skill, perfectly grasping the situation inside.

At that moment, I saw the golf club in Choi Hyung-jun's hand, which made me quite nervous.

I even debated whether I should shout not to attack as soon as I stepped inside.

But when I actually entered the house, Choi Hyung-jun couldn't attack even once.

'He's built like a tank, though.'

He had a big frame and a solid build, but he seemed softer at heart than he appeared.

For a modern person, that reaction might be normal, but still, it was disappointing nonetheless.

'I feel like I could do it.'

Even though I relied a lot on my Home Declaration skill, I had the experience of taking down a Kellican.

As for goblins, I had only taken one down by throwing a dumbbell, but if I had a proper weapon, I didn't think I would lose.

'He doesn't need to be aggressive, but he should at least be able to fight without panicking when facing a goblin.'

From what I had observed so far, Choi Hyung-jun was a responsible adult who was willing to sacrifice himself for his family.

But he didn't seem like someone who could kill something.

At that moment, my eyes landed on the golf club in his hand.

'It's probably made of solid metal, right? If he swings that, he could definitely crush a goblin's head easily.'

I reached out my hand to Choi Hyung-jun and said,

"Can I see that golf club for a moment?"

"Oh, this? Here you go."

As I took the golf club, I muttered to myself.

'Open shop. Register item.'

There was one thing I had realized earlier while using the Absolute Eye skill.

I didn't have to say the skill commands out loud—I could use them just by focusing.

It required a bit of concentration, but it wasn't too difficult.

Vrrr—

A light burst out from the shop window, scanning the golf club and registering it as a new item.

Judging from Choi Hyung-jun's reaction, it seemed like he couldn't see the shop window or the light coming from it.

[Used Golf Club (538,200 won) ▶ Restore]

'What?'

It was ridiculously expensive.

'530,000 won?'

And that was with a 10% discount thanks to the shop level effect.

With a baffled expression, I asked Choi Hyung-jun,

"How much did you pay for this?"

"Uh… Hmm. I think I paid around 400,000 won."

"400,000?"

"Yes."

I had noticed this before, but this damned shop always priced damaged items higher than their original price.

If it was used, it should be discounted, not marked up.

'Restore.'

I tapped on the restore option as a test, and an estimate immediately popped up.

[Restoring 'Used Golf Club' requires 3,870,000 won.]

[Would you like to proceed with restoration?]

'Are you kidding me?'

It would cost nearly 4 million won to restore it.

That was almost half of the money I had.

'Cancel! Cancel!'

There was no real difference between a new and a used golf club anyway.

Instead of restoring it, it was better to just buy it as it was, even if it was a bit expensive.

'Unless I end up needing dozens of them…'

At this point, restoring items was a waste.

"Um… Are you sure this one will be okay? You can take as many as you want. We have other golf clubs at home too."

Choi Hyung-jun seemed a little more relaxed now.

It made sense—one moment we were talking about life-and-death matters, and the next, I was asking about the price of a golf club.

I quickly shifted the conversation.

"Ahem. Ahem. Do you remember the day the monsters appeared?"

"…Yes, I remember."

"That day was a Saturday. A weekend. Many people were probably at home resting."

Some had probably gone out because of the good weather, but just as many must have been at home.

That meant there had to be at least dozens of survivors in this apartment complex.

"The people who were at home that day and were lucky enough to survive should still be alive. Please go find them."

Goblins weren't individually strong.

They were small and weaker than an average adult male.

The real danger of goblins was their numbers.

They hunted in packs, cooperating closely with each other.

But goblins weren't the only ones who could band together.

Since ancient times, humans have used numbers as one of their greatest weapons.

It would be difficult for Choi Hyung-jun to hunt goblins alone, so I decided to focus on increasing our fighting force first.

"Please find the survivors and bring them up here."