Hiding A Logistics Center In The Apocalypse - Chapter 97
Chapter 97: Non-possession (4)
TL/ED – Miso
Yuseong Hospital, affiliated with the Cult of Selflessness.
In the eight-person ward, patients and healers were all mixed up, each occupying a bed.
“Is there food today?”
“They said to finish the stuff from two days ago. Good thing I saved some, just in case.”
The man who replied took out a small packet of hardtack from his pocket.
The crumpled packet was nearly empty, the bottom already visible.
Though hunger should have driven them to desperation, strangely, the people in the hospital remained quiet.
“Try to endure it. If you don’t think about it, you won’t feel hungry.”
It wasn’t just about the meals.
Everything was in poor condition.
No matter how much safer it was than outside, the stained hospital gowns and bed sheets, and the body odor from unwashed patients combined to create a stench that filled the hospital.
Just a few weeks ago, things weren’t this bad.
Each room had at least one or two proactive people who would sometimes share food they’d managed to scavenge from outside.
But now…….
“More than futile survival, peace of mind is what truly matters.”
“Yes, indeed.”
Even those people had ceased their activities and decided to spend the rest of their lives confined to their beds.
The only ones moving around were a handful of active members directly assigned by the Cult of Selflessness. The patients at this hospital, many of whom were awakened beings, had offered up all the Mana Stones they had for the occasional rations and for the meditation programs of the cult leader.
“Once I let go of everything, my mind felt so much at peace.”
“Exactly. Imagine if I still had even one Mana Stone in my pocket. Since I earned one, I’d want to earn two… and so on, endlessly…….”
A thorough practice of non-possession.
Just moments ago, a meditation session by the cult leader had been broadcasted throughout the hospital.
Thanks to that, they were able to remain calm even at the death of Mr. Choi in the next ward, who had just been carried out stiff as a corpse. They could also endure the hunger, the stifling heat, and the discomfort from their unwashed bodies without much difficulty.
Just like that, as the gaunt-faced patients in the hospital each climbed onto their beds and sat in the lotus position, beginning to recall the cult leader’s meditation…….
-Ssshhk! Ssshhk!
The hospital broadcast speaker lit up.
“Huh?”
It was strange.
The hospital’s broadcasting room only operated through a fuel generator.
Under the pretense of energy conservation and environmental protection, the broadcast was only ever turned on during the cult leader’s meditation sessions.
Sure enough, the voice wasn’t that of the cult leader.
-Greetings, dear survivors. This is PAX FC.
“……PAX?”
The name of the conglomerate that had once dominated Korea’s distribution industry.
But the leader of the Cult of Selflessness had identified PAX FC as the root of worldly desires that shattered the peace of non-possession.
Naturally, the people in the hospital shrank back at the sudden appearance of PAX FC.
“……Demon! Its the demons……!”
“Selflessness… Selflessness…….”
They struggled to maintain their calm.
In truth, they didn’t hold any particular grudge against PAX FC.
But every time the topic of food supplies came up, it stirred their desires,
And when the anesthesia wore off, a torment beyond imagination would descend upon them.
However…….
-I’ve come to bring good news. As part 2 of the cult leader’s meditation, we’ve prepared a time for you to ‘experience’ no possessions firsthand.
“……Huh?”
PAX FC suddenly began to affirm the concept of non-possession.
A young woman’s voice, bright and clear.
The words “good news” flowed in with exceptional clarity,
And the people, gradually releasing their tension, turned their attention to the ceiling speaker.
-It is now time to find the peace of non-possession. Please look outside the window.
“Outside the window?”
In the ward, the lobby, even the on-call room, everyone instinctively turned their heads toward the window.
The hospital building formed a “ㄷ” shape, with a ground-level parking lot in the center.
What they saw was…….
“Eek… Eeeeeek!”
A massive subspace portal.
Everyone was struck with fear.
The rumor that PAX FC used people as sacrifices for portals.
Not everyone believed it, but that didn’t mean they weren’t afraid.
In truth, the subspace portal boasted an overwhelming presence, as though it could devour them all whole.
However…….
Thududududuk.
Thududuk.
Rather than swallowing the people, the portal instead began spewing out goods like crazy.
Rice, instant noodles, bottled water, and all kinds of processed food.
As piles of food mounted like mountains, the eyes of those rustling their empty hardtack packets turned toward it.
Before long, PAX FC’s “good message” began.
-Imagine ramen boiling vigorously in an aluminum pot. As the steam rises, you scoop up the noodles nestled between egg like a blanket. The chewy noodles come up soaked in hot broth. Take a big bite, pour in a few spoonfuls of soup, and tear open a fresh pack of Jongga kimchi lying over there in the parking lot……
“Ahhh……!”
“Ah……!”
Gulp.
The hearts of the starving people began to be filled with demonic thoughts.
It was irresistible.
A humble praise for a meal.
The clear voice, along with a buff effect, stimulated the appetite of the hospital’s people.
“J-just one pack……”
Looking at the thousands of ramen packets scattered in the parking lot,
someone unconsciously drooled just as…….
-All of this creates worldly desires. Now, let us return to non-possession.
Shwaaaaaaa!
All the food that had filled the parking lot was instantly sucked back into the portal.
A vivid transition from “possession” to “non-possession”, in other words, a demonstration of loss.
“Heuk……!”
“Kuheueuk!”
The people in the hospital bit their lips so hard they could burst.
Lydia’s powerful debuff, loaded into the word non-possession.
That anguish dragged their emotions down into the abyss.
Even worse…….
-Everyone, desires don’t end there.
“……W-what!?”
The “good message” continued.
The next thing to emerge from the portal was a large shower facility.
Swaaaaa…….
Streams of water gushed out from the showerheads hanging all around, and toiletries such as shampoo, body wash, razors, and more dropped to the ground with hollow thuds.
“Water…!”
“There’s a toothbrush too!”
The buff began anew.
The hazy effect of the anesthesia was washed away with the fresh breeze, and everyone began to ask themselves:
When was the last time I had a proper wash?
Only then did they realize.
That the sweat from the past several days had soaked into their skin like salt.
That the sticky sensation whenever their skin touched was unpleasant.
That a rash had broken out all over their bodies like a scream.
But this, too, was a mirage.
The shower facility was sucked back into the portal in the blink of an eye…….
“Aaaaah!”
“Nooooo!”
The “non-possession” experience continued.
The portal didn’t miss a single cleansing foam bottle that had rolled across the floor,
And only empty despair was left behind in the parking lot.
“Uuuuuugh!”
“Ggghhhh! Stop it already!”
Now, the people of the hospital were pleading with tears in their eyes…….
-Everyone. You must let go. You cannot reach nirvana through the trivial pleasures of the living world…….
The sage of non-possession, PAX FC, did not stop.
Foreigners with blue eyes, clad in thick armor.
All twelve of them appeared carrying large Styrofoam boxes and began setting up all kinds of items on a long table.
Sssssss….
Clatter!
Bubble bubble…….
Their movements were perfectly coordinated.
Someone placed a large cut of meat on a scorching grill, someone else laid out freshly washed lettuce and perilla leaves on a tray, a rice cooker lid puffed out steam as it was opened, and another sliced spicy chili peppers into a bubbling pot of tofu soybean paste soup.
“…….”
“…….”
The people of the hospital, who had been in a state of anesthesia.
PAX FC had lifted and dropped their shoulders thousands of times,
And the cult leader’s anesthesia vanished completely along with their dislocated shoulders.
Now, the only thing left was the raw, brutal reality of non-possession.
That reality was fueling the fire of desire in people’s hearts.
“Non-possession……”
“Screw that!”
Roooaar!
Just hearing the “non” in “non-possession” made them foam at the mouth.
The people of the hospital, who had once relinquished desire, were now reclaiming it.
They surged toward PAX FC’s portal.
***
The people realized it.
Non-possession wasn’t a noble decision, but rather a vague mix of meditation and peace.
They had been prisoners, castrated of desire, ensnared by anesthesia.
But Lydia’s buffs and debuffs, along with the supplies from the subspace, had broken their stupor.
Then, as they danced and chanted full-possession, they were told the truth about the cult leader.
“……We weren’t actually being treated?”
“Wait a minute, then my mother……”
The hospital and treatment had been mere façades.
The Cult of Selflessness’s anesthesia only numbed the pain, allowing the illnesses to fester and grow worse.
And when they realized that it wasn’t just them, but their families and acquaintances who were victims too,
The people were overcome with rage.
And as a result…….
“He’s already dead.”
That was the report delivered by Yoo Seong-cheol, the head of operations.
Truly a fitting end for a cult leader.
One of his closest high-ranking members had personally ended the cult leader’s life.
Thanks to that, the entire organization known as the Cult of Selflessness had collapsed.
But it wasn’t much of a problem.
“What about the hospital’s representatives?”
“They’ve reportedly all been captured.”
All the hospitals and organizations under its umbrella had been absorbed without exception.
With this, I was thinking of fully entrusting the management of healers and doctors, along with Gangnam Severance, to my eldest sister.
I said,
“This worked out well for both sides. Elvenheim needs healers, and over they, we need medicines……”
It was a situation where the number of survivors would increase both here and there.
Thanks to the Cult of Selflessness’s selective acceptance of patients.
A significant number of them were awakened beings, and most of these would now be absorbed into PAX FC’s forces.
As if to praise the achievement, Yoo Seong-cheol responded in a cheerful voice.
“I’m glad it was resolved peacefully. If word had gotten out about a conflict, the smaller groups might’ve gotten scared.”
He was right.
We didn’t do anything.
We just preached the teachings of “full-possession” and released some supplies.
Yoo Seong-cheol added, as though venting the hardships he had endured until now.
“In truth, there were so many organizations that didn’t comply with military control. But the more people acknowledge PAX FC, the broader the reach of public authority will become.”
His wish hadn’t changed from the past to the present.
The reconstruction of the Republic of Korea.
To that end, he had continued to persistently court me.
“When will you officially join PAX FC?”
“……Huh?”
This time, I was the one asking the question.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff Headquarters, which could rightfully be considered an ally.
But now, it wasn’t they who were to embrace me, but I who had to embrace them.
“Barnaul will attack soon. We have to bring Avalon in before that happens.”
We were already preparing for a global war.
The enemies cared little for location, and PAX FC didn’t discriminate when choosing allies.
China, Japan, the United States and Europe, even Elvenheim. PAX FC’s influence had spread across the world.
While the Joint Chiefs’ help in managing Korea’s internal affairs was appreciated, it was about time we aligned our directions.
“Korea alone won’t be enough.”
“But the Joint Chiefs is a government institution. Even if just in name……”
The relationship between the state, its institutions, and corporations.
Yoo Seong-cheol still couldn’t break free from that framework, but I planted a new dream in him.
“Well…… wouldn’t it be fine if PAX FC became something like a world government?”
A supranational logistics center encompassing all nations.
It was more than big enough to absorb something like the Republic of Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Yoo Seong-cheol’s eyes lit up.
****
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