Breathing Life into Real Dolls
Chapter 63: The First B Grade Rift

1.

“Master.”

Tap. Tap.

I felt a gentle touch tapping my shoulder.

When I opened my eyes, all I saw was a warm glow.

The soft and warm sensation enveloped my whole body.

I had fallen asleep in Serena’s embrace and had just woken up.

The one who tapped my shoulder to wake me up was Ciel.

“Uhm… What time is it now?”

“It’s 11 AM.”

“I don’t think we had any plans for today…”

Just yesterday was the festival day.

Presumably, considering hangovers, there would be no work today except for those scheduled for guard duty.

Naturally, including me, the expedition members who performed guard duty during the festival were off-duty.

But what could possibly be the reason to wake me up in the morning after staying up all night having sex?

Had something happened?

In response to my query, Ciel, looking apologetic, slightly bowed her head and replied.

“Seona unni came by. She said there’s an urgent matter that you need to look into…”

“Where is Seona now?”

“Outside the door.”

“Let her in for now. Serena, get up and put on some clothes.”

Both Serena and I were currently undressed.

“Yes.”

We hurriedly picked up the clothes scattered here and there under the bed and put them on.

Meanwhile, Ciel opened the door and let Baek Seona in.

“Come in, Seona unni.”

“Thanks, Ciel. Oh…”

Serena was just putting on her panties and was only wearing her bra.

Seeing this, Baek Seona seemed slightly flustered.

Considering what had happened between us… I just greeted her calmly.

“Welcome, Seona. What’s going on?”

“Ah, Doha oppa! Have you checked the community? No, you haven’t, right? You have to see it! Now, quickly!”

What had been posted that she was making such a fuss?

Sensing my curiosity, Baek Seona immediately exclaimed.

“It’s the first-ever discovered B-grade rift! And it’s in the nuclear power plant that’s currently supplying power to the entire country!”

“…”

It was quite a significant incident.

2.

I took the laptop that Baek Seona had brought and immediately checked the community.

The relevant post was already opened in the web browser.

The title read…

[Discovered a B-grade Asimone rift at the Haneul Nuclear Power Plant.]

It was an intense statement that couldn’t be ignored.

Unsurprisingly, the post was already recording real-time highest views and likes.

I began to read the content slowly.

“Hello. I am Seon Jong-yun, the director of Haneul Nuclear Power Plant.

Ever since the outbreak of the zombie virus, including myself, the staff of Haneul Nuclear Power Plant have consistently operated the facility and continued regular inspections and maintenance.

Perhaps because we are located far from populated urban areas, fortunately, there hasn’t been a significant threat from zombies here.

However, this morning, one of the employees discovered a rift inside the Haneul Unit 3.

It seems to be, undoubtedly, the first-ever B-grade rift discovered in South Korea, never seen before in the community.

(Photo of the rift inside the power plant)

Getting to the point, the reason I am writing this post is to request those capable of sealing this rift to come and help.

Based on the time I am writing this, there are 7 days and 14 hours left before the B-grade rift releases.

None of the staff at Haneul Nuclear Power Plant, including me, have the ability to seal a B-grade rift.

If we cannot seal the rift within the given time, we will have to abandon the power plant and migrate to another area.

In the worst-case scenario, the power plant could explode due to the servants of the Asimone released from within.

Even if it doesn’t explode, without continuous management, the power plant will halt its operation in just a few weeks.

This means that the electricity currently being supplied nationwide, which you are using, will be cut off.

Before the zombie virus outbreak, the amount of electricity supplied by Haneul Power Plant only accounted for 4.7% of South Korea’s total electricity demand.

However, after the outbreak, whether fortunately or unfortunately, the national electricity demand plummeted in an instant. Despite most of the power plants being paralyzed, the supply has been sufficient.

Many people have died or turned into zombies, but a significant reason for this drop in consumption is the halt in the operation of industries that used to account for most of the power consumption.

Now, the Haneul Nuclear Power Plant, which originally would have been grossly insufficient to supply the entire country, is providing most of the nation’s electricity demand.

In conclusion, what I want to say is this:

Following the current community trend, I’ll summarize in three lines:

This was intensely shocking news.

I had anticipated the appearance of a B-grade rift at some point, but right in the middle of a nuclear power plant?

It was indeed fortunate that it was discovered with 7 days still remaining.

If it hadn’t been found, all electricity could have been cut off in a week without anyone knowing why.

That would have been a disaster.

The inconvenience of being without electricity was a secondary issue; the real danger was for those currently still isolated.

Most of them were maintaining their sanity by finding a small comfort in communicating with others via the Internet.

For them, losing electricity was equivalent to losing hope.

Of course, just because they were alive didn’t guarantee that good things would happen in the future… but wasn’t that the nature of life?

One thing was clear: a world without electricity would be even bleaker than it was now.

I scrolled down to check the comments.

-Wow… so have you been operating the nuclear power plant for the 2 months since the zombie virus broke out? Thank you so much.

-The unsung heroes of South Korea. I respect you.

-Amazing… Thanks to you, we have been using electricity efficiently! Respect!!!

The initial comments were mostly words of gratitude.

Considering the global perspective, most countries lost electricity and water quite a while ago.

None of the citizens of South Korea were without electricity, so we all owed a debt of gratitude to the Haneul Nuclear Power Plant workers.

And then there were other comments…

-Wow…

-Crazy… I can’t live without electricity.

-Please, high-ranked individuals, do something about that.

-I’m only E-grade. Would I be of any help if I go?

└Please come. Seriously…

└Anyone is fine. Just make sure the electricity doesn’t cut off!!

-Just let the electricity cut off, lol. Can always just kill myself, lololol.

-If it’s a B-grade rift, even if mediocre ones gather en masse, it seems they won’t stand a chance. We really need the top rankers for this…

People panicked at the news that the electricity would go out if the rift wasn’t sealed.

Once that happened, even this community where everyone was commenting would become inaccessible, so this reaction was expected.

Their desperation was aimed like an arrow at the rankers.

Among them, the biggest target was, unsurprisingly, the ranker in the 1st place, leading the 2nd place by nearly 3 times the points…

That was me.

-Didn’t Kim Doha say he’d post here if he found a B-grade rift? Doesn’t that mean he would seal it?

└I saw that, too. He definitely posted something like that before.

└Found it. (Link) This is it.

└Damn it, Kim Doha, where are you? Here’s the B-grade rift you were looking for!!!

-Kim Doha, please step up…! Summon!!

-Kim Doha, where are you? Kim Doha, where are you? [Repeated]

-If you look at Kim Doha’s contribution score, he really is a rift killer, right? He might go and seal it without even asking.

-Please Doha… Please Doha… [Repeated]

Those who once wrote praise-worthy, attention-grabbing posts about me in the community.

Most of them were spamming the comments, searching for me.

I felt a momentary fear.

Of course, even if the people hadn’t demanded, I had intended to seal the B-grade rift that had appeared. Sᴇaʀch* Thᴇ Nʘvᴇl(F)ire.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Though I hadn’t yet sealed a B-grade rift, I was confident I could if I tried. It didn’t seem too challenging.

In other words, this time, I could meet the people’s demands.

But what if a day came when I couldn’t?

The majority who once revered me would probably turn against me, pointing fingers at me first.

“……”

I had anticipated this to some extent since the time I started posting strategy videos in the community.

Being ranked 1st, there would have been this kind of pressure in one form or another.

If I didn’t want something like this, I shouldn’t have used my real name as my nickname on the ranking board.

Anyway, there was no need to worry about that right now…

I wrote a comment.

-This is Kim Doha. First, I sincerely thank you for maintaining the nuclear power operations up until now. I will try to seal the rift as soon as possible.

Dozens of replies to my comment flowed in within a few seconds.

└Kya!

└I knew I could trust you!!!

└Kim Doha! [Repeatedly]

└Everyone step aside! The number 1 ranker is here.

└If it’s faced by Kim Doha, even a B-grade is just a piece of cake.

└We can continue to use electricity in the future, right? Right?

└I’m F-grade. If I go to the Hanwool Nuclear Power Plant now, can I hitch a ride with the B-grade rift sealing?

└Get the hell out of Doha’s way, or I’ll tear you apart.

└Take me with you ㅠㅠ

“……”

…My shoulders felt heavy.

Today, such a warm welcome didn’t feel pleasant.

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