The Devouring Genius of a Destroyed World-Chapter 28

Seongho, in contrast to Ahn Hee-seob’s complex state, responded calmly.

"If I had told you earlier, would you have believed me?"

"Well..."

Ahn Hee-seob closed his mouth, suddenly aware of how he had reacted, keeping silent.

Seongho, however, kept his resolve, continuing with his words.

"If you don’t believe me, watch for yourself. When the mutation symptoms appear, you’ll see for yourself whether my power is real or just a lie."

A long silence hung in the air as Ahn Hee-seob hesitated.

Seongho let out a deliberately exaggerated sigh and pushed him further.

"So, can I treat the infected?"

A loud gulp echoed as Ahn Hee-seob, his face a mix of distrust and hope, stood up.

"If there’s a chance to save them, we should try."

Finally, the door to the priest’s residence, which was being used as the isolation room, opened.

A crowd, filled with curiosity, doubt, and anticipation, rushed toward the priest's residence.

Thanks to that, Seongho was able to treat the infected in front of dozens of witnesses with little effort.

Soon, he was bombarded with an overwhelming amount of messages.

"1 Reputation Point earned."

"Members of the world witnessed the Fate Pioneer’s actions."

"Members of the world are affected by the Fate Pioneer."

"The Fate Pioneer’s influence has slightly increased."

"Corruption Score decreased by 7 points."

"Corruption Score decreased by 5 points."

"Corruption Score decreased by 5 points."

...

As Seongho skimmed through the messages, the people who had been infected with the zombie virus slowly began to regain consciousness.

Their families and friends rushed to their sides.

For those who had thought they would have to part with their loved ones forever, this moment was nothing short of a miracle.

They shed tears as they embraced their family and friends again.

Meanwhile, Seongho, who had gifted them this miracle, was lost in thought.

‘I tried to experiment, just in case, to see if the virus could be extracted without direct contact...’

But it wasn’t very effective.

There was a feeling that the virus was retreating, but it wasn’t as cleanly separated as when his ability was used with direct contact.

‘This method won’t work for long-range attacks.’

It was disappointing, but there was nothing to be done.

Seongho clicked his tongue and opened his status window.

‘Nine people were infected during the process of clearing the barriers.’

As he treated them, his reputation increased, and his Corruption Score dropped dramatically to the 100s.

‘Just like in the hospital, when there are witnesses, the effect is good.’

Now, the next task was to widen the scope.

Seongho observed the ecstatic people around him and Ahn Hee-seob, who stood stiffly among them.

Seongho purposely made some noise and raised his voice.

"Now that the treatment is done, I’m going to rest."

Before anyone could stop him, Seongho quickly walked away, descending the stairs.

But before he could leave the priest’s residence, he stopped.

"Wait, Han Seongho, just a moment!"

Ahn Hee-seob, who had rushed down the stairs, urgently called out to him.

Seongho turned around with his usual calm expression.

Ahn Hee-seob’s request was simple.

"So... you want me to have you treat me? After intentionally infecting yourself?"

Seongho replied, deliberately taken aback.

Thinking back to how Ahn Hee-seob had reacted when he first mentioned the ability to cure the virus, it was a natural response.

Ahn Hee-seob knew this, and yet he did not back down from repeating his request.

"Not just me, but everyone in the camp. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I’m asking you, please."

He bowed his head deeply, and desperation was evident in his voice.

He was also carefully watching Seongho, trying to gauge if his request might offend him.

But Seongho wasn’t offended at all.

In fact, he was quite satisfied with how things were progressing.

‘Ahn Hee-seob is someone with a strong desire for immunity.’

He had shown his treatment ability openly in front of such a person, so it was expected that there would be some sort of reaction.

And indeed, the expected reaction came.

Thanks to that, Seongho was able to easily confirm the immunity of the people in the hospital.

In the hospital, they hadn’t had time to check, but when considering the future, the number of awakened people should be kept to a minimum.

That way, when ‘it’ appeared, the damage to humanity could be minimized.

Of course, once they started selecting awakened ones, risks would follow.

But Seongho believed it was worth taking those risks.

Looking at Ahn Hee-seob, who was nervously watching him, Seongho spoke up.

"You’re not asking me to do this for free, are you? I’ve already done enough for you."

Seongho didn’t plan to do any more free work, even if this situation was what he had hoped for.

He decided to hear how much Ahn Hee-seob thought his services were worth.

"...Tell me what you want, and I’ll do my best to meet your request."

Ahn Hee-seob swallowed nervously, unable to hide his tension.

Meanwhile, Seongho smiled brightly.

---

The treatment of the camp members and the infected was carried out according to a thorough plan.

- I can only treat a limited number of people at once.

- If anyone purposely infects themselves before their turn, they will not be treated.

The people in the camp, now excited about the possibility of checking their immunity, hurriedly went to find zombies.

Since they had to wait for the mutation symptoms to appear, Seongho headed back to his quarters.

"Ah, Seongho."

Just as he was about to enter the convent, he ran into Jeong Han-su.

Jeong Han-su immediately stepped back and made way for him, even bowing slightly.

‘He’s doing that again.’

Jeong Han-su had been excessively polite toward Seongho for a while now.

This chapter is updat𝙚d by freeweɓnovel.cøm.

Every time they met, he would bow, repeatedly thanking Seongho for saving him and the people at the cathedral.

While politeness isn’t a bad thing, it made Seongho uncomfortable, so he usually avoided him.

Today was no different.

Seongho tried to pass by as quickly as possible to avoid further interaction.

But just as he passed Jeong Han-su, a word popped into his mind.

‘Quest...’

He stopped in his tracks after two steps.

Then, he opened the Pioneer’s Cradle again.

This time, it wasn’t a question-and-answer chapter but a chapter dedicated to a Pioneer-exclusive quest.

[Recruit Followers]

- Make non-immune survivors sincerely mention the follower keywords.

- Keywords: believe, trust, follow, obey, loyal.

- Success reward: Character Information

This was the only quest among the Fate Pioneer-exclusive quests that had an ambiguous reward.

It wasn’t a stat boost, nor was it a useful item.

‘Character information...’

What was this supposed to be used for?

But since it was a Pioneer-exclusive quest, it might have some use.

He quickly dismissed the thought and decided to try it.

‘If I fail, I’ll just be considered a madman, right?’

It didn’t matter—he wouldn’t see these people again once he left the camp.

Resolving himself, Seongho turned around.

"Out of the blue, but..."

As soon as he spoke, he knew the success of the quest would be confirmed.

"Would you believe me if I said I came to save this world?"

Until that moment, Jeong Han-su was still bowing politely, not raising his head.

---

Back in his quarters, Seongho examined his system window.

[Follower List (1)]

- Jeong Han-su

At first, it seemed like a simple quest attempt, but the success came with a bit of surprise.

[Follower 1]

- Name: Jeong Han-su

- Age: 58

- Status: Worships the Fate Pioneer. Believes that the Fate Pioneer is both the savior and the messenger of the gods, and is prepared to offer his life if necessary.

- Location: Myeongdong Cathedral

‘Messenger of the gods...’

Seongho was at a loss for words every time he saw this status.

It was hard to believe that someone could become like this just because he saved his life.

But considering the special circumstances Jeong Han-su had gone through, it made some sense.

What caught Seongho’s attention more than the status information was the "Location."

When he clicked on the location "Myeongdong Cathedral," a holographic map appeared.

A red dot marked the exact location of the cathedral on the map.

The location of the follower was being provided to Seongho in real-time.

At first, it seemed like a strange reward, but the moment he clicked the red dot on the map, all doubts vanished.

[Move to Follower (Jeong Han-su)]

[Deliver to Follower (Jeong Han-su)]

The two absurd options made Seongho smile wryly.

The reward for the follower quest was the ability to overcome physical distances.

It allowed Seongho to move or send items to a follower from far away.

‘This is insane.’

The only downside was the high cost in reputation points.

But if it allowed him to ignore physical distance, it was well worth the cost.

This was more than enough motivation to gather more followers.

Taking a deep breath, Seongho closed the system window and checked his reputation.

‘Finally, my reputation exceeds 50.’

He could now ask about the system administrator or the issues regarding the Corruption Score.

What should he check first? The decision didn’t take long.

‘Unfortunately, I’ll put that off for now.’

After finishing things at the cathedral, he had to head to Seogang-dong, where the New Humanity Society was.

This place, where there was only one awakened person, was different from the other areas.

Seongho decided to address the immediate issue first.

Not worried about anyone watching, he comfortably opened the Pioneer’s Cradle again.

“How many awakened people are there in the New Humanity Society camp?”

"To answer your question, 15 reputation points are required. Would you like to use them?"

Instead of clicking yes right away, Seongho decided to rephrase the question.

Ten, twenty, then fifteen.

By presenting specific numbers, he guided the answer.

With a cost of 4 reputation points, Seongho confirmed that there were 12 awakened people in the New Humanity Society.

‘Damn, that’s a lot.’

To analyze the power structure, Seongho knew that the current reputation points wouldn’t be enough, and he would need more.

He sighed deeply as he decided to refine his next question.