Breathing Life into Real Dolls

1.

Initially, I had no intention of lying down. However, Shin Jiha’s hacking went on for much longer than I expected.

Without saying how long it would take or that she would tell me the results next time, she started focusing on the computer.

Suddenly, she even took out round glasses and wore them, concentrating solely on the monitor, making it awkward to talk to her.

‘Is her eyesight bad……?’

Looking closely, the lenses were not distorted. Judging by the absence of prescription and the yellowish tint, they seemed to be blue light-blocking glasses.

‘I thought she wouldn’t care about things like that, but it seems she’s more concerned about her health than I thought……’

The hacking attempt continued for over an hour afterward.

Tap- tap tap-

Apart from the occasional sound of the keyboard, it was utterly quiet.

Time passed, and it became late at night, and I eventually lay down on Shin Jiha’s bed. Since the host herself said it was okay to lie down, it must be fine.

‘A pleasant smell……’

Shin Jiha’s warm body scent filled the entire bed. Breathing in the fragrance and lying there, sleep gently overcame me, and I drifted off.

2.

“Hmm……”

I rolled over with my eyes still closed.

My body felt quite refreshed, having slept deeply, but the soft touch of the blanket made me want to wallow just a bit longer.

I reached out for Serena, who should be lying beside me.

“……”

My palm caught a soft skin texture, but there was no response.

Usually, the sleeping Serena would respond like a ghost and tightly hug me, but…

I held her in my arms without much concern, even though I thought something was strange.

“……!”

I felt Serena twitch in my arms. She must have been having a nightmare.

With calming intent, I slid my hand under her clothes and gently stroked her stomach.

A few minutes of this and Serena would fall back into a peaceful sleep with a relaxed expression.

And then, I would always move my hands further up to play with her ample chest, but…

“Heuk……!”

Something was off.

The chest I was holding was clearly less blessed.

Smaller than Serena’s, of course, and even smaller than Ciel or Baek Seona’s. Among the chests I’ve recently fondled, this was the smallest.

I fondled it once more for confirmation.

“Heuuuuuk……♡”

A moan escaped from the person within my embrace.

It was… Shin Jiha’s voice.

I suddenly remembered that I had fallen asleep in Shin Jiha’s room.

‘Did she finish hacking and come to bed too? The room only has one bed, after all……’

This was bad. Shin Jiha was already shy and hard to get close to, and I had accidentally hugged her and fondled her chest.

No wonder it felt small. Wasn’t her physical specs around 161cm and 42kg, according to the previous status check…?

More than that, if Shin Jiha had been awake, it would have become blatantly awkward between us, enough to not speak for a week.

“……”

I held my breath for a moment and waited for a reaction, but Shin Jiha must have been asleep.

Really… it was a great relief.

I carefully pulled my hand out from under Shin Jiha’s clothes, released my embrace, and pretended to sleep again.

I had already slept enough, but it seemed wise to continue feigning sleep until she woke up.

Time passed that way, and…

After waiting about 30 minutes, I heard the sound of someone stretching from next to me.

“Heu-eum……!”

Shin Jiha, waking up from her sleep, grabbed my shoulder and shook it.

“Captain. Captain, wake up. It’s already lunchtime.”

I acted with all my might, rising naturally like someone who hadn’t done anything inappropriate.

“Ah, ah…? Already……?”

Shin Jiha nodded, mumbling.

“Sleepyhead……”

When I got up, her face was tinged with a slight red color.

3.

After washing up and making the bed, we gathered again in front of the computer.

“So… what happened?”

As I asked, Shin Jiha bowed her head and replied.

“…I couldn’t do it. The hacking.”

“Ah……”

I let out a sigh.

I thought she might fail, but if it came to this, we had essentially lost any means of accessing the content.

Who could break this security if Shin Jiha, who was known as a genius hacker, failed?

But fortunately, her answer wasn’t finished yet.

“…I used all 16 hacking programs that attacked conventional security methods, but they all failed. It means that the security program of this SSD has a uniquely developed format.”

“……”

I was off guard and didn’t properly understand what she said. Shin Jiha then explained it to me in simpler terms.

“I tried inserting the 16 keys I had for the keyhole, but none of them fit.”

“Ah-ha.”

She should have said that earlier. It was a simple matter.

“So you can’t open it?”

“No. From now on, I have to create a new key that fits the lock. But… I don’t know how long it will take.”

“Oh, wow……!”

Was taking a long time a big deal? I thought she couldn’t open it, but if it could be opened, that would be something to be thankful for.

“It doesn’t matter how long it takes. But can you give me an approximate time frame?”

“Hmm… It could open as soon as tomorrow, or it might take a few months if the program is really robust. Maybe even more……”

More than a few months? That meant Shin Jiha would have to be tied up here for that long period.

“Ah… Is it too much to ask you to solve this?”

Even as I asked this, I secretly hoped she would. Information about a new Real Doll was invaluable to me, worth its weight in gold.

Fortunately, Shin Jiha shyly smiled and answered.

“No. I enjoy solving things like this, so I’ve been doing it until now. If you entrust it to me, I’ll keep trying.”

“Jiha-ya……! Thank you!”

I grabbed her hand and shook it vigorously.

“Ha…!”

Even if she was doing it because she enjoyed it, I needed to consider if there was anything I could give her as a token of gratitude, like a gift.

With Shin Jiha taking on the hacking, the problem of the SSD from MHC was halfway solved. All I could do now was wait patiently.

4.

It had already been a month since the world became a zombie apocalypse. Recently, a lively wind of change was blowing through D-Mart.

Here, a place of guaranteed safety due to the Land of Hope and its residents, no worries about water thanks to a designated water source on the first floor, even if the water supply was cut off.

In fact, there were concerns even in D-Mart, which might be the best place to live in this apocalyptic world.

The problem was that there was too much surplus labor.

Fighting zombies was something only the capable did. It was far too dangerous for ordinary people without any abilities to fight zombies.

Then what could ordinary people do?

1. Chefs at the canteen who were responsible for every meal.

2. A minority of technicians who periodically inspected and maintained the mart’s facilities.

Other than these categories, hundreds of ordinary people had nothing to do. In other words, they were all surplus labor.

What was the problem with that? It was a big problem.

For humans, who were social animals, the fact that one was a useless existence could cause tremendous mental damage.

It was for the same reason that Baek Jihun took the lead in whatever he did and clung to the role he had barely found as a decoy ability user.

Therefore, as the representative of D-Mart, I have been thinking about how to utilize this labor.

But this problem was eventually solved, too, thanks to the Land of Hope, the versatile solution.

I looked around from the rooftop of the mart.

“Heh… Haa!”

“Hoo……”

“Is it still gonna be a while to eat pheasant?”

“Why are you looking for some damn pheasant every 10 minutes?”

Bang—!

“Ack! Over here—! A huge rock has appeared—!”

“Yes, coming—!”

Outside, sturdy men were each holding a pickaxe or shovel and worked to level the land inside the Land of Hope.

They were sweating profusely and struggling, but their faces were full of vitality.

The work was called land clearing. It was the process of tilling barren land to convert it into rice paddies that could be used for farming.

Of course, the task of smashing the well-paved asphalt floor and moving it outside the Land of Hope was entrusted to Serena and Lee Jinah.

Lee Jinah was perfect for this task, as she could freely manipulate things like soil and rocks using an ability similar to Earth magic.

“Heh—!”

As Lee Jinah reached out with a shout, a massive rock was pulled out.

Rumble—!

“Woah—!”

“It’s amazing every time I see it….”

“How would we have moved that rock without Jinah?”

“We’d have to tie it with a rope, carry it on our shoulders, and pull it all together.”

“Just thinking about it feels like our shoulders would be shattered.”

Crash-Bang—!

“Whooosh— Nice!”

“Great job, Jinah!”

It was indeed a cheerful work scene.

So…… what was I doing while neither catching zombies nor helping level the ground?

I had a very important mission.

The growth acceleration effect of the Land of Hope applied not only to crops but also to livestock.

That meant to get delicious fresh meat, we needed to raise livestock and to do that, we had to go to the livestock farms on the outskirts of the city and bring the animals back.

Since zombies only sought and attacked living humans, the likelihood that the livestock was still alive was high, as long as they hadn’t starved to death.

So currently, I was ready to depart from the mart’s rooftop with Serena and Ciel to airlift the livestock.

“Are you ready, Ciel?”

“Yes, Master.”

“How’s your magic?”

Ciel’s eyes widened at my shameless question, and she patted her stomach.

“……”

Her lower belly was protruding like a pregnant woman in her third month. That was because I had filled it to the brim with magic energy this morning for this flight.

It was literally filled to the brim with magic energy.

“……That seems sufficient.”

“Doesn’t it?”

As I nodded, Ciel laughed bashfully.

Next to us, Serena was gathering her strength in her arms.

“I’m ready too! It would be even better with Master’s magic energy, but……”

“Hold off today, Serena. It’s uncomfortable for you to move when you’re filled to the brim.”

“Yes……”

Good. Everything was progressing without a problem.

Serena and I clung to Ciel like childish kids pestering their mom to buy snacks.

“Shall we depart, then?”

“Let’s go!”

“I’ll increase the altitude. Hold on tight so you don’t fall.”

Whoosh- Whoosh- Whoosh-

As Ciel began to flap her wings, she sent the dust on the rooftop of D-Mart scattering in all directions.

The wind pressure grew stronger, and our feet lifted off the ground.

Whoa— Whoa— Whoa—!

The altitude rapidly increased, and the people below us started to look smaller and smaller.

“Woahhhhh—!”

An excited scream from Serena.

Our destination this time was Yangju, Gyeonggi Province.