Hiding a House in the Apocalypse-Chapter 174.2: Transformation (2)
The inspiration came from the elderly protestors who gathered every day in front of the temporary government office.
Back in Jeju, they had been under Woo Min-hee’s care.
Clearly healthier and better-kept than the few remaining elderly on the mainland, they were exempt from Kim Byeong-cheol-style forced labor due to their age, and could dedicate most of their day to demanding Woo Min-hee’s release.
One of the old men shouted,
“Free her now! Free Princess Min-hee!”
Their firepower was impressive—but it had never translated to the internet.
I would be the one to start.
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
“······.”
Tadadadadadadak—
For the first time in a while, I fired off 30 posts per second.
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
Mangja82311: ?
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
Mangja39211: What the—? UmChang?
UmChang: Frᅟᅥᆨe Princess Min-hee!
Anonymous2813: What is this?
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
...
...
As I flooded the board with my declaration, an automatic query popped up asking if I was human.
It was one of the anti-macro tools installed by the forum.
[I am human.]
After proving my humanity, I returned to flooding the board with my aggressively personalized message.
“······.”
Tadadadadadak—
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
UmChang: Free Princess Min-hee!
I kept the spamming up for ten whole minutes.
It was enough firepower to flatten a standard message board.
Eventually, VivaBot deployed and blocked me for flooding, putting an end to my spamming spree—but at the very least, the world now knew that someone was out there cheering for Woo Min-hee.
And of course, the ban didn’t mean much to me now.
Message from VIVA_BOT014: Skelton, are you alright? Did you miss a meal or something? Why are you doing weird shit with a secondary account all of a sudden?
I’m a living legend.
Not in the same league as low-tier names like M9 or Dongtanmom.
Still, before I’m a legend, I’m a human being. I explained the situation.
UmChang: Something happened, and I wanted to let people know.
The power struggle in New Seoul, the petty schemes of vile power-hungry bastards, the woman forced to shoulder every sin and sit in a de facto prison awaiting her sentence.
It's a classic tale of villainy and virtue.
And I won’t deny that my words probably carry more weight than most users.
Anyway, the VivaBot got where I was coming from.
VIVA_BOT014: Hmm... well, if you say so, Skelton. But take it easy. Injustice is injustice, but a message board still needs order.
VIVA_BOT014: I’ll lift the block. Just act like the legend you are, please. I can see you’ve still got some awareness at least, considering you didn’t do this from your main account.
Block lifted.
But I don’t need to do everything myself.
People have this image of old folks being bad with tech and machines, but that’s only one side of the story.
Before the war, we saw how active the older generation could be online.
That same scene played out again on our forum.
Mangja2931: You little shits... Do you even understand how hard Woo Min-hee worked day and night for us? There’s a limit to betrayal!
Mangja11121: I’m heartbroken by the current situation. If it weren’t for Woo Min-hee, we’d all be dead.
Mangja190990: The Committee... you arrogant little bastards... Do you even know what humanity is~~~~
Mangja9811: Our dear Director Woo, who loved her people all her life~~ married the Korean Peninsula~~ and now you falsely accuse her of crimes she didn’t commit~~?
Mangja2121: Saying Woo Min-hee is innocent? Damn right! I may be old, but back in Vietnam, I beat Viet Cong commies to death with my bare fists!
...
...
The old guard joined in.
According to internet expert Hong Da-jeong, old folks might be slower learners than the young, but their cohesion and tenacity are more than enough to devastate an online community.
Of course, fewer than a hundred seniors support Woo Min-hee, so they won’t change the tide.
But they can grab attention.
They can halt the one-sided smear campaign by those schemers in the Jeju Committee.
And the one at the center of it all is “UmChang.”
UmChang: Everyone, you know me, right? I’m that UmChang.
“······.”
Tadak tadak
—If you’ve been on PaleNet, then you probably know the story between me and Director Woo Min-hee. I was just a kid back then.
But now that I’m grown, I understand.
I understand what kind of adult she is.
If she really was the villain the government tabloids say she is, would I have survived?
I’ve seen her from a distance. She looked older than what the internet says—but damn, she’s beautiful!
Anyway... all I want to say is this:
Min-hee... the princess... must... be... freed~~~!!!
“Hmm.”
Even I have to admit, that was a beautiful post.
Sure enough, supporting comments started pouring in.
Mangja13121: Every word... absolutely true,,,,
Mangja3882: Lately,,, there’s been... so many... scumbags... smearing... Princess Min-hee... Thank you for your hard work,,,,
Mangja2892: FREE PRINCESS MIN-HEE!!!!!!!
Mangja12818: Those rotten bastards! Sitting safe while she fought monsters! These ungrateful cowards need to be wiped out...
...
...
As expected, just like Hong Da-jeong said, the old folks' firepower is no joke.
They’re a generation that lived through upheaval. Despite their age, they don’t falter, rebooting their phones over and over—and for Necropolis users, that lets them change their nickname—and just like that, they pushed my post past 500 likes in a flash.
This might seem small, but it’s not.
Even online, lots of people watch their step like they’re in public.
When everyone’s bashing Woo Min-hee, most people are too scared to speak up.
They’re afraid of getting flamed or ridiculed.
But UmChang took the hit first.
He opened the door.
And even looking only at the comments from users not assumed to be elderly, you could see the difference.
Mangja128321: I don’t have any personal feelings, but didn’t Woo Min-hee fight alone in front of the city during the last battle?
Mangja7413: Not saying she killed kids on purpose, but yeah, a bunch of talentless kids were shoved into that facility just to try and go to Jeju.
mmmmmmmmm™: Hm...
Mangja9231: Honestly, it was way too extreme. Been on PaleNet since the early days and I’ve never seen one person get buried like this.
Mangja68131: Stay strong, Director Woo.
dongtanmom: nom nom....
...
...
Still, it’s not enough.
Let’s deliver the decisive blow.
“······.”
Tadak tadak
[Welcome to Viva! Apocalypse!]
Logged in.
And then—
“······.”
Tadak tadak
Username: SKELTON
That’s right.
What if the Living Legend himself—the one whose name will ring out till humanity’s last breath—agrees with UmChang’s post?
There’s no doubt it’ll spark a wave.
But then a problem arose.
How should I phrase the comment?
Right now, Skelton is someone beyond a mere mortal. He’s transcended into the realm of the mythic.
It’s good to back up UmChang’s words, but it has to look right.
It might not seem like much, but this is extremely important.
Above all else, I’m Jang Ki-young’s prized disciple.
The shape matters as much as the intent.
I crossed my arms and stared at the blinking input cursor.
How can I write a comment that befits the mysterious one?
Should I ask Hong Da-jeong?
No, she’s an observer, not a name.
Dongtanmom and M9 won’t help either.
For some reason, I found myself missing John Nae-non today.
I searched him up for the first time in ages.
John_nenon: (John Nae-non) haha, it’s tonight.
John_nenon: (John Nae-non) surprisingly sturdy country hospital architecture.
John_nenon: (John Nae-non) it’s a golden retriever, lol
John_nenon: (John Nae-non) the so-called “mental hospital” has top-tier defenses
John_nenon: (John Nae-non) field report: exploring abandoned rural TB hospital (1)
John_nenon: (John Nae-non) fucking bastards... after everything I did for you!
...
...
“······.”
There’s a theory called the Infinite Monkey Theorem.
It suggests that if you give a monkey a typewriter and infinite time, eventually it’ll type out Shakespeare.
I don’t buy it.
Sure, maybe something similar could happen.
But the impact of John Nae-non’s posts doesn’t come from the words alone.
His entire life was a story.
Reading his sacred sayings makes you feel like a solitary god.
But my work was interrupted by an unexpected guest.
“Oh. Sunbae.”
It was Kim Daram.
She came to visit me during recovery, but this was the first time I saw her clearly since the Nemesis-type battle.
She looked better than before, but seeing her neatly dressed and giving me that calculating look gave me a bad feeling.
And of course—
“I’m running in the election.”
“What?”
“Why? /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ Surprised? Don’t I qualify? Even those thugs digging through ruins and the ones who did nothing during battles are candidates. I used to be on the National Crisis Committee. Is it weird that I’m running?”
She’s not wrong.
If someone like Dongtanmom can run, then Kim Daram, who risked her life and fought silently in the most dangerous places, absolutely deserves to.
The problem is her trademark shamelessness.
“Anyway, I came to ask for campaign support.”
“Campaign support?”
“Yeah. Nothing big. Just wave your hand during my rally.”
“Me?”
“It’s not like old political campaigns with full-day events. People have work. Just show your face once on the weekend and wave next to me. If the mood’s good, I’ll hand you the mic. Say a few words or beatbox or whatever. Nobody’s got a better image than you right now.”
“R-right. But what if there are cultists?”
“Oh.”
Kim Daram looked a bit surprised.
She hadn’t considered that.
“I was planning to bring Dongtak along for the rallies. Guess that won’t work. Then just write a support comment. You still have your account, right? What was it? Skelleton?”
“Skelton.”
“Right. Something like ‘I support Kim Daram.’ Just that would be amazing.”
“······.”
“What? You don’t want to?”
“No, it’s not that.”
Kim Daram is a precious junior, no doubt.
But using the sacred sword that is the name Skelton just to satisfy Daram’s ambitions feels wrong.
You don’t kill a chicken with a dragon-slaying blade.
“What about another named account?”
Her face soured immediately.
“Whose?”
She was clearly annoyed.
“UmChang.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t even know who that guy is. And seriously, what kind of name is UmChang? It’s gross. No sense at all. You weren’t like this in school. This is why I never let Dongtak online.”
As expected of a mother—her internal discipline is next level.
Even I, who withstood the shockwave of the Nemesis-type, was overwhelmed by her presence.
After grumbling for a while, Kim Daram gave me a tired look and rummaged through the office pantry.
She found a coffee mix, made herself a cup, and sat down, sipping in silence for a while.
“······.”
Is this a protest?
Is she saying she’ll stay here until I write that endorsement as Skelton?
Honestly, I’m starting to fear Kim Daram.
“Sunbae.”
She finally spoke.
“Yeah.”
Pretending to be calm, I racked my brain for an excuse.
“You heard about Min-hee, right?”
I looked at her seriously.
She brought that up?
I didn’t expect it.
I thought she’d never mention Woo Min-hee.
Everyone knows Kim Daram hated her since school.
She’d obviously heard about what Min-hee’s going through now, and she had to know that if she brought it up with me, I’d only say we need to help her.
That’s why I assumed Kim Daram wouldn’t breathe a word about Min-hee.
But now she had.
I was curious what she meant.
“I know.”
I looked at her face.
Expressionless.
Not pleased, not displeased.
Above all, I saw one clear thing: worry.
“About Min-hee.”
She sighed.
“She... yeah. She’s not as nasty as I made her out to be. People hate her because of how she is, not because she’s evil. Her personality isn’t sweet, but she’s not wicked either. She’s just a free soul who lives however she wants. I guess that made people like me feel more inadequate.”
A confession?
For someone who used to only badmouth Min-hee, this was the first honest assessment I’d heard.
I was a little caught off guard by the sudden shift, but also intrigued.
“Switching out guys and causing trouble—that’s her thing. It’s part of living the way she wants. To us, it always seemed like she was flaunting that she could control even those types of guys. That’s why we hated her. But again, she’s not inherently bad. However—”
Kim Daram looked at me.
Still worried.
“She’s got a temper. She’s not someone you can mess with. People don’t realize it because she has a high threshold, and almost no one’s ever seen her truly angry. But when she snaps, it’s no joke.”
“Really?”
“Really. No joke at all. Better to go your whole life without seeing it.”
I never had.
Even though we’re close now, she always had an intimidating aura, even back in school.
Kim Daram leaned in and lowered her voice.
“Sunbae, do you really think Woo Min-hee is just going to take all this lying down?”
