A Survival Guide for a Counselor in the Apocalypse Chapter 15

Chapter 15

 

“Hey, hey. Do you really know how to drive?”

Startled out of his mind, Lee Hoin clung to the passenger seat handle like it was a lifeline and shouted.

I let out a sigh and, instead of answering, started the engine.

I already had a driver’s license. The director had offered to cover the cost, so I got it right away.

‘Because of that, I tried all kinds of part-time jobs back in college.’

Thanks to that, I ended up as a weird hybrid… no personal car, but plenty of driving experience. Still, all of that becomes useful eventually.

‘See? Like now.’

If you’ve fallen into an apocalypse, at the very least, you should know how to drive.

“…You really can… drive?”

His gaze, newly impressed, landed on me.

Leaving behind crashed cars, smashed buildings, and transformers, I steered the car forward.

Cold dawn air brushed past my cheek through the open window.

Everything was so clear and peaceful that it almost made the apocalypse feel like a lie.

 

***

 

“What… the hell is this?”

“A banner.”

“You think I’m asking because I don’t know that?”

Lee Hoin, who had gotten out first and was standing at the entrance, spoke in a bewildered voice.

A massive banner hung in the air with no visible support.

 

—

{ Survival Battle Royale }

♠ /~Now Recruiting Participants~/ ♠

Apply right now! No requirements to join! Tons of rewards just for participating!

※ Crossing the entrance below will automatically register you.

You cannot cancel after joining, and you are deemed to have agreed not to hold the organizers responsible for any accidents during the event.

If you attempt to protest unlawfully, the organizers may impose sanctions to maintain a pleasant event environment.

Please apply carefully.

Join now and seize countless rewards!

—

 

A hideous yellow banner with zero sense of aesthetics.

There weren’t many “Third Parties” who deliberately used such ugly promotional designs.

‘And even fewer who do it on purpose.’

Those beings practically die if something isn’t beautiful.

‘Because “beauty” becomes a story.’

Even the method matched the original perfectly… tiny clauses hidden in the middle, using all sorts of colors to ruin readability.

‘I never thought I’d see this in person.’

I’d only seen a real cloth version at that collaboration café before.

Back then, they used fishing lines to recreate it, and people praised the accuracy.

‘But the real thing is different.’

It floated in midair, completely unsupported.

My gaze moved to the bottom of the banner.

 

—

Host ☞ Eternal Pleasure Seeker ☜

—

 

Eternal Pleasure Seeker.

 

—

[You have encountered a character from “The Ruined World.”]

[“Eternal Pleasure Seeker” has been added to the Character Encyclopedia.]

[Their actions up to the current chapter will be recorded.]

[Your first collected ‘Third Party’!]

—

 

So even “Third Parties” get recorded.

Well, they are technically characters.

I opened the entry.

 

—

[The Ruined World’s Eternal Pleasure Seeker (?#$>?@*)]

Importance: 3/5

<History>  

A character whose actions appear only in certain chapters.

Search a chapter below to vieㄷⅠ—

—

 

Suddenly, the window glitched and collapsed with a crackling noise.

At the same time…

The sky itself seemed to tear apart with a crack.

A chill ran down my spine.

Something pierced through me… no, crushed me.

My breath stopped. My heart stopped.

Even the unconscious acts of survival, breathing, heartbeat, ceased.

Like my limbs were being torn apart,

Ah.

Ah.

My consciousness…

 

—

[Oh my, oh my! ‘Eternal Pleasure Seeker’! Have you just violated the ‘Rules’?]

—

 

The window floated upward as if looking at the sky.

The crushing pressure vanished instantly.

With tearing sounds, windows flickered in and out.

 

—

[□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□]

—

 

Unreadable squares filled my vision.

They didn’t even turn red… just appeared, then vanished.

When everything finally disappeared, and I opened my eyes again…

 

—

[Viewing of ‘Eternal Pleasure Seeker’ data has been interrupted.]

[He is truly rude as ever! But it’s fine… he has been ‘sanctioned.’]

[It seems your level is still far too low to access ‘Third Party’ data.]

[Remember, this limitation exists for your sake.]

—

 

The window disappeared completely.

‘…Did he just tear the sky?’

Because I tried to read his data?

I tried again… this time the file opened briefly but closed, saying my level was too low.

No sky-tearing this time.

So both of us got sanctioned.

‘…Damn it.’

Maybe not just him, all “Third Parties” are restricted?

‘Then how do I level up this skill?’

Right then…

 

—

[The “Character Encyclopedia” skill has leveled up! Congratulations!]

—

 

Speak of the devil.

So the leveling mechanism is…

‘The number of registered characters.’

…Which means I’ll inevitably get entangled with Sa Jaeheon.

‘What about information quality?’

If leveling doesn’t improve it much, then it’s not worth it.

I opened the window again.

 

—

[The Ruined World’s Sajeheon (Eternal □□□)]

Importance: 5/5

□□□: 0.5/5 (?)

<History>  

A character appearing in all chapters.

Search a chapter below to track their actions.

 

[Tracking Chapter 1…]

 

[Chapter 1 ▼]

At age 32, as the last survivor on Earth, he receives the “Regression” perk.

Realizing he has returned to age 20, Sa Jaeheon immediately leaves the convenience store to live differently.

He meets his first companion, Kim Juyeon, and travels with her…

Sajeheon feels something strange about her.

—

 

It changed.

The biggest change was improved records, and this new □□□ category.

 

—

[□□□]

Cannot be viewed yet.

—

 

Then why show it at all?

‘If I ask the Narrator…’

My gaze shifted.

 

—

[Oh? Requesting information from me?]

[Hmm. If you’re truly curious, I can provide limited information.]

[In exchange, I require 3 Low-Grade Story Stones.]

—

 

Three stones.

Cheap, objectively.

But that’s all I had.

I thought for a moment, then shook my head.

‘…No.’

Not worth giving everything.

What mattered now was…

‘That skill… needs to go higher.’

This wasn’t just fragments anymore.

If one level already gave this much…

‘It’ll be completely different later.’

Still…

‘Cheap things are cheap for a reason.’

“Cheap = bad” is usually true.

And I needed to save Story Stones for later items.

 

***

 

“Hey, Nam Muyeong!”

I flinched at the pain in my shoulder.

Lee Hoin stared at me.

“Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“…Nothing. Just a stomachache.”

“Why your stomach?”

“Indigestion.”

I brushed it off and looked back at the banner.

The Survival Battle Royale Event hosted by Eternal Pleasure Seeker.

The strategy was simple:

Enter → survive 10 days.

‘Ignoring that supplies and locations reset every 12 hours, and enhanced mutants roam everywhere.’

You can’t stay in one place.

Only about 13% survive.

Far lower than other events (~30%).

“An invasion event…?”

Lee Hoin muttered blankly, likely seeing the same system window.

I stepped forward…

Then turned back.

“Let’s go.”

“Are you serious? This is even less convincing than your driving.”

“Then stay in the car if you’re scared.”

I tossed him the keys and stepped inside before he could respond.

A strange resonance echoed.

Another banner appeared.

 

—

{ ♠ W E L C O M E ◉ }

—

 

Yes, it’s difficult.

Yes, most people die.

Yes, it’s not really a “tutorial.”

But…

It’s survivable.

And there’s an easier way.

 

—

[You have joined ♠/Survival Battle Royale/♠ hosted by ‘Eternal Pleasure Seeker’.]

—

 

I know how.