The Devouring Genius of a Destroyed World

The next morning.

As soon as daylight broke, Seongho wasted no time in preparing to leave.

Since Seo Minhee couldn't move freely due to her injuries, Jo Gyu-hyun stepped outside the building to see Seongho off.

"Thank you so, so much for helping us yesterday," Jo Gyu-hyun said, repeating the same phrase he'd already uttered at least a hundred times.

He didn't seem tired of expressing his gratitude, no matter how often he repeated it.

As he looked at Seongho, who was preparing to leave, a worried expression crossed Jo Gyu-hyun's face. "Are you really going to go?"

He suggested that Seongho should come with them instead of heading into danger alone. They were planning to leave the area soon, so why not stick together?

But Seongho cut him off mid-sentence.

"I'm here because I have something I need to do. I don’t need your permission or agreement to do it."

The clarity and sharpness of his words left no room for argument, enough to be almost insulting. Jo Gyu-hyun fell silent.

"Seongho, we're ready!" Ji-hyo called out from behind.

"Ji-hyo, get on!" Im Chan helped Ji-hyo onto the back seat of the bicycle.

With preparations complete, Seongho turned to Jo Gyu-hyun one last time.

"You seem like a decent guy, so here's some advice," Seongho said.

"Huh?"

"No matter how much you run and avoid things, nothing will change."

Jo Gyu-hyun's shoulders trembled.

"There are cannibals in Myeongdong, and mad Awakeners in Seogang-dong. Do you think the next place will be any better?"

"I… well…"

Seongho’s tone was almost scolding. Yet, it was also a way of reciprocating Jo Gyu-hyun's goodwill with advice.

"If you run every time you're cornered, you'll eventually find yourself not knowing where you're going."

The likelihood of reaching paradise after being chased from one place to the next was slim at best.

Jo Gyu-hyun hung his head, looking defeated.

Without saying another word, Seongho turned his back on him. He had no lingering regrets.

The group moved swiftly that morning. Perhaps because of the chaos caused by the evolved zombie the day before, there weren't any large hordes of zombies impeding their way.

Seongho and his group passed Seogang Station quicker than expected.

"This is a nice surprise," he muttered to himself.

Suddenly, a voice echoed from nearby. "What’s this? A free meal?"

Seongho's reflexes were faster than anyone else’s.

Swoosh!

He caught something flying through the air—a thin, semi-transparent line that looked like a thread. It was connected to a rooftop of a nearby building.

Without hesitation, Seongho yanked the thread.

"Ahhhh!"

A weight on the other end pulled against the thread, but Seongho held firm. Whatever was attached to it came tumbling from the rooftop.

Flailing limbs, long hair, and a startled expression—it was undoubtedly a person.

The figure began to fall, but before they could hit the ground, Seongho tightened his grip and pulled sharply on the line.

The falling person accelerated towards him, and Seongho slammed his fist into their face mid-air.

Thwack!

The impact struck squarely in the middle of their face, knocking them unconscious instantly.

"Uh… is it over?" Im Chan asked hesitantly.

"For now," Seongho replied curtly.

While Im Chan stood awkwardly, still holding Ji-hyo, Seongho grabbed the fallen person by their hair.

The attacker was a young woman in her early twenties. Seongho looked from her face to the transparent thread in his hand, which had a sticky texture.

"An Awakener who manipulates spider silk…" he muttered. The Pioneer’s Cradle had provided information about such a person. Her name was Yeom Mi-joo, a member of the New Humanity Association.

She was a character who hadn’t appeared in the original timeline.

As he raised her head higher to get a better look at her face, the woman groaned faintly.

Ignoring her protests, Seongho forced Yeom Mi-joo to sit upright.

Her nose was broken, blood dripped down her face, and a couple of her teeth had come loose. Seongho slapped her cheek a few times, waking her up.

"Ugh… you damn cockroach…!" she spat weakly.

"Aren’t you the one who just got flattened by that cockroach?" Seongho shot back, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

To emphasize his point, he punched a nearby concrete pole. The impact left a visible crack, making Yeom Mi-joo flinch.

Her fear only lasted a moment. She quickly masked her emotions and muttered, "Tch… Why didn’t you say you were an Awakener earlier?"

Her brazen attitude left Seongho momentarily speechless.

When she sniffled through her broken nose, his eyes narrowed.

Before he could say anything, she clutched her head and groaned. "If I’d known you were one of us, I wouldn’t have attacked. It was just a mistake, so let it go, okay?"

"One of us?"

"You’re an Awakener, right?"

Seongho decided it was best not to reveal his knowledge of the New Humanity Association. Instead, he feigned confusion.

Yeom Mi-joo’s face lit up as if she were excited to educate him.

"Think about it! We’re the chosen ones!"

"…"

"We’re the new species that can survive in this ruined world. We’ve evolved beyond ordinary humans!"

She genuinely believed what she was saying. The association’s ideology had clearly taken root in her mind.

As her rambling continued, Seongho’s expression grew colder.

Misinterpreting his silence, Yeom Mi-joo beamed. "You’re shocked, huh? It’s okay. Now that you know, why don’t you come with me? It’s fate that we met like this!"

"…"

"Our professor believes Awakeners need to band together to create a new world. You’d be a priority recruit in our camp. You’ll love it there."

When Seongho didn’t respond, Yeom Mi-joo began listing the benefits of joining their group.

"At the camp, you’ll eat three meals a day, including processed foods that are hard to find now. You’ll get a heated apartment and even your own slaves!"

"Slaves?"

"Yeah, the useless regular humans. You can do whatever you want with them."

Her shamelessness was infuriating.

Seongho stared at her with a blank expression.

After a moment, he spoke. "Lead the way."

"Yes!" Yeom Mi-joo exclaimed, raising her hands in triumph.

As she walked ahead, excited and oblivious, Seongho’s gaze followed her. His eyes were cold and predatory, like a beast sizing up its prey.

***

Rooftop of Building R, Hongmun Hall, Hongik University

Kang Seong-bae was perched on the rooftop, binoculars in hand, surveying the area. He was on watch, wary of the two-meter-tall monster that had appeared out of nowhere a few days prior.

"That damn monster really made a mess of things," he muttered to himself.

His grumbles were drowned out by the groans of zombies below. Lowering his binoculars, he looked down at the street.

The asphalt bore the scars of the previous disaster—a massive crater lay in the middle of the road, surrounded by writhing zombies. The sight stirred a mix of emotions within him.

"How bizarre..." he mumbled.

The monster’s sudden appearance had driven away all the zombies, but now they were slowly gathering again.

For an ordinary person, this would have been a terrifying scene, but Kang Seong-bae observed it with a detached expression.

It didn’t matter how many zombies swarmed the area; they couldn’t breach the campus. The road leading from Hongmun Hall to the campus square was completely sealed off by makeshift barriers. The narrow paths between high-rise buildings were similarly blocked. All entry points to the campus had been closed off by walls that jutted up from the ground like natural barricades.

Even the monster from a few days ago had been unable to bypass Kang Seong-bae’s defensive walls. Although he hadn’t managed to kill it—most of the combat-specialized Awakeners were out hunting at the time—he had absolute confidence in his ability to hold the line.

"Seong-bae!"

The sudden call snapped him out of his thoughts. He turned to see movement on the rooftop of a building across the intersection. Raising his binoculars again, he saw Yeom Mi-joo waving her arms wildly.

Behind her were three unfamiliar figures.

"Wait… three?"

Adjusting the focus, he confirmed what he saw: two adult men and a child.

He assumed they were slaves captured by Yeom Mi-joo, but they showed no signs of restraint—no injuries from fighting, no bindings. Instead, they appeared to be conversing casually with Yeom Mi-joo.

What was even more bizarre was Yeom Mi-joo's face. Her swollen and bruised features suggested she had been beaten to a pulp.

"What the hell happened over there?" Kang Seong-bae muttered, tilting his head in confusion.

Despite her condition, Yeom Mi-joo had returned on her own. That alone was reason enough to grant her access.

Rumble.

Kang Seong-bae placed his hand on the edge of the rooftop, triggering a low vibration.

Rocks emerged from the building's outer wall, extending forward like growing vines. As the structure stretched toward the opposite building, support pillars formed beneath it, creating a sturdy makeshift bridge.

Yeom Mi-joo stepped onto the bridge without hesitation, crossing with practiced ease.

One of the men behind her lifted two bicycles effortlessly and said something to the other man, who was carrying the child. The latter started crossing the bridge first, followed by the man with the bicycles.

As they reached the rooftop, Kang Seong-bae’s attention shifted to Yeom Mi-joo. Up close, her face looked even worse.

"Why does your face look like that?" he asked.

"Mind your own damn business!" she snapped.

Before Kang Seong-bae could press further, the others reached the rooftop. Snapping back to reality, he scrutinized them carefully.

"You didn’t bring back slaves, did you?" he asked.

"Not at all! They’re Awakeners, just like us! I recruited them!" Yeom Mi-joo declared triumphantly, puffing out her chest.

Kang Seong-bae’s eyes met Seongho’s. The latter had just set the bicycles down and was now staring at him with a calm yet unreadable expression.

"This is supposed to be a camp for Awakeners. Are you one too?" Kang Seong-bae asked, skepticism dripping from his voice.

"What were you watching while you were making that bridge?" Seongho replied, a faint smirk playing on his lips.

The hint of mockery in his tone made Kang Seong-bae scowl. "What’s your ability, then?"

Though Yeom Mi-joo had vouched for Seongho, Kang Seong-bae couldn’t help but feel irritated by the man’s composed demeanor. His condescending attitude gnawed at him, prompting the question to slip out in a confrontational tone.

Without responding, Seongho turned and stepped onto the edge of the rooftop. He looked down at the stone bridge that still spanned the gap between buildings.

Then, he punched it.

Boom!

The sound of the impact was impossibly loud, echoing through the area. Cracks splintered across the surface of the bridge.

He punched it again.

And again.

With each strike, pieces of the bridge began to crumble and fall.

By the time Seongho stepped back, a large portion of the bridge had collapsed.

Kang Seong-bae’s face hardened as he processed what had just happened. Seongho had shattered the bridge with nothing but his bare hands.