Chapter 54: Chapter54-A Villain's Backstory

I leaned back against the cabinet, trying to steady my breathing, when something on the floor caught my attentiona piece of paper lying just a few steps away.

Curiosity mingled with caution as I crawled over to it, my eyes narrowing on the bold letters printed across the top: "Viral Outbreak."

What the...?

My heart sank.

The implications of those words were chilling, conjuring images of chaos, sickness, and possibly the very situation I found myself ina school overrun by monsters.

Then, a sudden realization hit me hard, and I muttered, "No way, no way, those zombies... They were all caused by this virus."

Then, my eyes darted toward a red radio sitting on the desk.

I picked it up, surprised.

This radio...

It's here?

I was surprised because radios were common in my previous world, but in this current, ruined world, most old artifacts and instruments, including radios, were lost.

In the human domain, they had radios, but they were powered by monster cores. This one was different...

I looked at its back...

It was powered by batteries.

Who left it here?

Come to think of it, I never actually figured out where exactly I was in this world...

And why is the elevator still working even after not being used for centuries?

As I pondered all of this, my hand accidentally hit the switch on the radio.

Oh no, I turned it on.

Hello My friend,

I'm Lee Chong San, 47 years old, and I teach at Hyosan High School.

Even if you know everything about me already, I'm introducing myself just in case someone else is listening instead of you.

Today, I want to talk about something serious:

I tried to switch off the radio but stopped immediately when I heard the next few words.

A viral outbreak.

What is a viral outbreak?

It's when a virus spreads rapidly among people.

Who created it?

No one knows except for me.

Why?

Because, I created it.

Why did I create it?

I created it to make humans stronger than the average person.

This all started on April 8th, 2030.

When my son, Hyun Su who was also a student of this school, accidentally fell from the roof of this school building.

At least, that's what his friends and fellow students who were there said.

Do you know how it feels when the world you imagined turns into a nightmare?

I know this feeling very well because I experienced it deeply.

I named the virus "Yonas."

Then, the radio cut off and opened to a new scene.

"Hey, my friend. Today is April 25, 2030. I tried my virus on the first human, and guess what?

It failed.

The first human died.

I experimented on ten more people until the 12th person finally survived. But he transformed into a dead, dreadful being which I now call a zombie.

He immediately attacked me, and I had to kill him.

So, today at 10:45 p.m., April 25, 2030, I created a deadly virus that would eventually wreak havoc in all of Hyosan, Seoul, South Korea, and, lastly, the whole world.

Lastly, my friend-No Hansan, if you want to learn more about the virus and me, come visit me at my Green Home apartment, room number 222. We can talk further there, but you must stay alive. Goodbye for now."

Then the radio stopped, and a buzzing sound indicated the recording tape had ended.

"So... It's finished," I muttered.

I put the radio back on the desk where it belonged.

What a tragic story.

A man killed millions just because the world showed him no mercy.

I wouldn't blame that guy, though. I have to admit that destiny or fate was too cruel to him.

If this were any novel, that guy would have been a villain.

Now that's what you call a perfect villain.

But if anyone saw my reaction, they'd see I didn't quite believe it.

Anyone who hadn't read the history of this world might have believed it, but not me.

When that guy mentioned Seoul, I immediately understood that this place is a South Korean city known as Hayson.

Now that I think about it, I did see a sign for Hayson High School, but since I didn't know which country it was in, I left it alone.

Back to this virus thing.

According to history, the pandemic started on August 1, 2030, and the virus was named CONTAGI-30 by every organization at the time.

I don't think this virus is the same as that one. Still, it might be possible that the guy who made CONTAGI-30 named it Yonas.

But there are still many questions.

History also stated that the first case of the virus was found on July 18, 2030, so if this guy already made the virus on April 25, why did it take another 3 to 4 months for the first victim to appear?

Secondly, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that the disease spread with the help of another disease similar to rabies.

And, this guy never mentioned anything about another disease.

Another thing I don't understand is how that guy created a virus in just a few days.

Even if he was a scientist, what kind of genius could create something like this right after he got broken?

Thirdly, according to human history, the virus transformed humans into monsters, not mindless zombies like this guy's virus did.

I looked around once more and saw a small square board on the desk with "PRINCIPAL" written in capital letters.

So, this is the principal's office.

Then, I looked at the floor, where papers were scattered.

I couldn't understand how these papers were still in good condition after a century.

For now, I was confused about whether to believe it or not.

And then, my eyes were drawn to what looked like a map hanging on the corner walls above the chair where the principal would have sat before the pandemic or virus outbreak.

That could be helpful now, at this time of crisis, when I didn't know what to do.