Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 253

253. Utopia (8)

‘Thankfully, Priest Johann wasn’t captured.’

Johann was under the protection of the German embassy due to his nationality.

Cherishing high-level ability users was a natural practice, regardless of nationality.

Hyeonmu sifted through the information Yumin had given him.

‘Let’s see, excluding Priest Johann, the place where they’re all imprisoned is…’

It was near Cheongpyeong in Gyeonggi Province.

The ability user detention facility was one of the top secrets.

However, the information Yumin provided included the location and directions as if it were obvious.

The only problem was that Professor Dowon-gyeong, a non-ability user, was separately detained in the Seoul Eastern Detention Center.

If one side was rescued, an emergency would surely occur on the other side.

‘Yumin said that since I’m involved, it might be better to use a more moderate method, but…’

Having learned of the elimination plan, he had no choice but to use a quick and extreme method.

The key was what methods they would use.

It was an act without law or procedure. They wouldn’t brazenly execute them.

They would definitely resort to illegal means.

Especially since an ability user detention center was a place where an ‘unforeseen accident’ could easily happen.

‘Rescue Dowon-gyeong first.’

Odaeseong was one thing, but Seojihu wasn’t the type to be unilaterally defeated.

There was a high possibility that even his imprisonment had a purpose.

Of course, he wasn’t planning to sit idly by on their side either.

A method to detonate with a time difference.

He had to create a sufficient environment for Seojihu and Odaeseong to escape.

***

Ability user detention facilities are mostly top secret.

However, the state only detains ability users in slightly more heavily guarded prisons than ordinary people.

It’s only the higher-ups who underestimate ability users; the working-level staff know how important they are as resources.

Except for cases of unforgivable crimes, most serve short terms in luxurious and comfortable facilities… That was the state’s official position.

But this place, ‘Cheongpyeong Ward,’ was different.

First of all, this place is officially just a ‘mental hospital,’ not a ‘prison.’

This place, created by renovating an old ward overlooking Cheongpyeong Lake, housed only ability users detained for special purposes that made it impossible to release them into society.

For example, ability users detained without trial were typical.

“Still, the food is good.”

Seojihu said, looking at the served meal.

Odaeseong seemed dissatisfied with the small amount, but he didn’t refute Seojihu’s words.

Despite being an unofficial detention facility, the meals were quite elaborate.

“Do they believe that if the food is good in a stressful situation, they won’t explode?”

“Maybe. They have to relieve the minimum amount of stress.”

Seojihu and Odaeseong, who were talking, were not in the same space.

They were detained in separate solitary cells facing each other.

All inmates in Cheongpyeong Ward were confined to separate solitary cells.

All rooms were monitored by CCTV, and the use of abilities was prohibited under any circumstances.

If even the slightest abnormality was detected, high-voltage current was installed on the floor at the discretion of the guards.

The guards were all armed with submachine guns, and high-speed grenade launchers were installed on the surrounding high walls and watchtowers.

Even for an ability user detention facility, it was excessive armament against the prisoners.

“I don’t think there are many prisoners who would feel good just because the food is good.”

Seojihu muttered, listening to the screams coming from down the hallway.

Whether it was originally like that or the site was bad because it used to be a mental ward, there were many prisoners in particularly bad condition.

As he said, most were ability users who ‘should not be released into society.’

“Come to think of it, was ‘Butterfly Lady’ here?”

Odaeseong muttered.

It was the story of an ability user who removed numerous men with poison, buried them in the garden, and ran a butterfly farm using the corpses as fertilizer.

Officially, she was said to have been executed, but she was kept alive by the needs of a certain organization that needed the aphrodisiac poison she emitted.

“Yes. And ‘Castrated Pastor’ is here too.”

“…Castrated Pastor?”

“Ah, doesn’t he call himself ‘Unbelieving Hell’? He’s a fanatic who believes that all women are witches spreading obscenity and decadence, and he chases after women and beats them, but the analysis is that it’s actually because of a huge inferiority complex about his genitals…”

“Little brother knows everything. Then is ‘Black Lion Mask’ here too, by any chance?”

“Possession of masks is prohibited, so I don’t know. But if he’s here, ‘Weeping Angel’ might be here too…”

“Burning Eyeball.”

“Starbucks Hater.”

“…Little brother, are you honestly just making up nicknames right now?”

“Isn’t Team Leader Odaeseong the same? You never know. There are all sorts of nicknames, so there might be one with that kind of nickname.”

It is not uncommon to give nicknames to ability users.

Among ability users, there were quite a few who were quite conscious of such nicknames.

However, there were also many cases where they were made fun of for having strange nicknames.

In particular, there was an unspoken rule that you shouldn’t give cool nicknames to criminals.

“I wonder if we have nicknames too?”

“Hmm, well. Little brother is a former professional gamer, so there might be a related nickname. For example, Digital Emperor.”

“That’s a terribly old-fashioned nickname.”

“My mother used to play ‘Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara’ for one coin in the arcade when she was alive, and my father gave her that nickname after seeing it…”

“Indeed, great masterpieces seem to be passed down from the old generation. Would it be okay to pass it on to my child?”

“Do as you please. Because it was a lie. But it’s a bit quiet in the ward today.”

Odaeseong said, getting up from his seat and glancing around the hallway.

The screams continued at the end of the hallway.

At this point, a guard would come and say something or activate the high-voltage current, but nothing happened.

“Is it just that the guards are stealing their salaries for a day or two?”

“No, something feels strange. Little brother. Be careful.”

At the word that something felt strange, Seojihu suddenly remembered a story about this detention facility.

“Come to think of it, Team Leader, have you heard that story? The story of why an ability user detention facility was built here of all places.”

“Wasn’t it because it’s inconspicuous and difficult to escape from?”

“No. Actually… there’s an unknown dungeon in the basement here. It’s also one of the few unexplored dungeons. The dungeon state is fixed and stable, but the monsters that appear are too dangerous to even enter.”

“Then why are the ability user prisoners locked up here? To throw them in as bait?”

“No. Focus on ‘an unexplored dungeon that no one can enter.’ It’s too dangerous to enter, so it’s also good for disposing of secrets. Moreover, if a Flood [a sudden, overwhelming surge of monsters from a dungeon] were to occur, the ability user prisoners would be perfect for buying time…”

That’s when it happened.

Suddenly, a group of guards rushed in from the end of the hallway. Soldiers armed from head to toe, who only appeared when suppressing riots or prisoner disturbances, were also with them.

The guards approached Seojihu and Odaeseong’s solitary cells at the end of the hallway with stiff expressions.

The head guard looked at Seojihu and Odaeseong alternately before turning his gaze to one side.

“Prisoner number 304.”

Odaeseong, whose number was called, stared at him intently.

“Special visit. Stand with your hands against the wall.”

A visit?

The existence of Cheongpyeong Ward itself is not known. It is impossible for visitors to come. They wouldn’t allow it.

If there was a possibility, it would be someone from the higher-ups coming to meet him, but both Seojihu and Odaeseong had a bad feeling.

“Team Leader Odaeseong.”

The moment Seojihu was about to say something, a guard tried to close the window frame of Seojihu’s room.

Seojihu quickly grabbed his hand, but as soon as he did, another guard struck his hand with a club.

With a cracking sound, Seojihu groaned and stepped back.

The window frame soon closed.

Seojihu could no longer speak or see outside. He could only hear the voices coming from outside.

“Number 304, stand against the wall.”

The head guard said once more, placing his hand on the pistol locked in the holster.

Odaeseong silently did as he was told. Soon the door opened, and the guards cautiously approached. Soon Odaeseong’s hands were cuffed.

Ordinary handcuffs cannot restrain ability users, but items are different.

The moment the item ‘Chains of the Prisoner’ was placed on his wrist, Odaeseong felt his abilities drop sharply and his body become heavy.

At this moment, Odaeseong’s physical abilities were only slightly better than those of an ordinary person.

“Can’t you tell me who came to visit?”

“It’s someone from the All-Powerful Union. I can’t tell you the name.”

The guards dragged Odaeseong outside.

However, the moment Odaeseong stepped into the hallway, a loud siren suddenly blared throughout the hallway.

It was a prison-wide warning. The inmates began to thrash wildly and bang on the doors at the loud siren.

“Wait, what is this?”

The head guard listened to the siren with a bewildered expression. And he doubted his ears.

There were several meanings to the siren. Air raid, attack, escape, disaster, riot, etc.

But Cheongpyeong Ward had a unique warning sound that other prisons did not have.

The sound he had only heard during training and education.

It was a Flood warning.

***

[Real situation. Repeat. The current situation is a real situation. Everyone to their designated locations.]

At the Flood warning, even the guards who were resting left the ward like a receding tide. Only the prisoners remained in the ward.

[Repeat. Currently E─F situation. Move to your designated locations. Do not allow anyone to remain inside the hospital.]

“Move quickly!”

The head guard shouted, urgently dragging Odaeseong along.

However, it was difficult to quickly drag the large Odaeseong, who was walking slowly.

The other guards and soldiers also looked anxious.

“Head Guard. You need to get out quickly. If it’s an E─F situation, then soon…”

“I know! Damn it, but…”

“Anyway, if the current situation is a real Flood, we might be able to bury what we were hit by.”

One of the soldiers whispered secretly.

The head guard agreed. Originally, it should have been handled more discreetly, but the situation of the Flood could actually be a boon.

Because he could come up with a suitable excuse for Odaeseong’s death.

The head guard nodded heavily. Once the aftermath of the Flood reached the surface, the ‘Hospital Director’ would close the ward regardless of who was inside.

Since no one would know what happened inside the ward in the meantime, it was easy to blame anyone.

Conversely, the longer they stayed, the more dangerous they would become.

They had to get out before that happened.

As soon as they reached the stairs, the soldiers pushed him into the corner. Odaeseong stared at them intently.

The head guard frowned and said.

“Don’t feel sorry. I’m doing this to survive too.”

Click. The soldiers pointed their guns at Odaeseong.

Soon, several gunshots rang out inside the ward.

Bang, bang, bang.

A tearing sound of flesh erupted. Blood splattered on the floor and walls.

And the head guard fell to the floor.

His face was filled with questions and pain.

The guards and soldiers stared at the soldier who had just pulled the trigger with frozen expressions.

The soldier who fired the gun was also frozen. Soon the soldier slowly opened his mouth.

“Guns are really loud.”

“Who are you!”

The soldiers all aimed their guns. They couldn’t tell who the other person was because their faces were heavily armed and covered.

But what the soldier said was the voice of an unfamiliar woman.

At that moment, the unidentified soldier punched the guard’s stomach with a thud.

The strong pressure that erupted turned the guard’s internal organs into a mess, while simultaneously pushing the soldiers standing at the top of the stairs all at once.

The soldiers fell down with a crash.

The soldier standing at the very end was only slightly pushed back.

He hurriedly tried to aim his gun again at Odaeseong and the unidentified soldier.

But suddenly, his hand jerked upwards.

The bullet hit the ceiling.

“Who was the guy who hit my hand earlier?”

A familiar voice was heard from behind.

It was Seojihu, the inmate who was in the room across from Odaeseong earlier.