A Space Marine Got a Status Window

When the space age began, many people were filled with dreams and hopes.

Many enthusiastically welcomed the arrival of the space age.

“The end of humanity has arrived!”

And among all of them, those who celebrated it the most were the doomsday prophets.

At a time when practically every topic about the end of the world had already become obsolete, talking about the apocalypse through things like a terrifying Demon King, the prophecies of Nostradamus, a world war, or a massive earthquake was barely enough to bring in a few donations.

That was why the arrival of the space age was like a gold rush for the doomsday prophets.

Countless doomsday prophets began proclaiming all kinds of endings for the world in their own way.

“Space monsters will bring about the end of humanity!”

“An alien civilization with inconceivably superior technology will turn humans into slaves!”

“An unknown disease from space will wipe out humanity!”

What was surprising was that things quite similar to those predictions actually happened.

The Mog, monsters from space, appeared, and Prophet’s artifacts, impossible to interpret through human civilization, also appeared.

However, the appearance of those things didn’t give the doomsday prophets much credibility.

The reason was simple.

For humanity living on Earth and on the eleven planets being terraformed, those things didn’t represent that great a threat.

And just as the doomsday prophets were beginning to feel dissatisfied with that, the third one appeared.

A space-borne disease.

The disease originated in China.

After successfully hunting a Mog Queen, China managed to obtain its corpse and, in violation of space law, began researching it in a secret laboratory.

During that process, the researchers were exposed to a virus found inside the Queen’s body.

And the exposed researchers began displaying the following symptoms of infection.

“First, the infected person’s vital functions cease. The heart stops beating and the organs stop functioning. In exchange, their muscular strength and the durability of their skin and bones increase, and they also develop intense aggression toward humans. They don’t die from normal wounds and only stop moving when their head is destroyed. Furthermore, if the bodily fluids of an infected person come into contact with the inside of the skin, infection occurs. Once infected, unless special measures are taken, the person will become infected in less than a minute.”

In other words, it displayed symptoms practically identical to those of the well-known zombie virus.

That was why, when the disease appeared, fear was enormous and the doomsday prophets began talking about it enthusiastically.

They said that Earth would soon be completely infested by a zombie virus.

Of course, that never happened.

That zombie virus, whose official name was the Mog Virus, died rapidly when its host died, and furthermore, in the space age, extremely rigorous health inspections were carried out whenever someone passed through a Gate.

For people living on Earth or on other planets, the sugary drink they were consuming at that very moment posed a greater danger than the Mog Virus.

The same was true for Space Marines.

For starters, the Mog Virus only appeared after coming into contact with the bodily fluids of a Queen.

From the perspective of Space Marines, no one reacted to a Queen by thinking.

‘It’s a Queen! Watch out for the Mog Virus! We could turn into zombies!’

They simply shouted.

‘We’re fucked.’

Of course, accidents had occurred.

Incidents involving the Mog Virus had occurred on some planets, and among them, the worst had happened precisely at headquarters.

In other words, places where large numbers of humans lived together and many of them remained unarmed.

And when that happened, the method used to solve the problem was simple.

Completely erase the headquarters along with the Mog Virus.

“……Infected.”

That was precisely why the expressions of Kim Seojun’s group hardened when they received the news that there was an infection at the Polish headquarters.

For starters, Major Jan Zabłocki was completely devastated.

“Ah…… Ah……”

He remained motionless with the radio in his hands.

Who could have imagined that the Mog Virus would spread through the very headquarters he had risked his life to save?

Since everyone understood perfectly well how he must be feeling, no one was able to say anything to Major Jan Zabłocki.

“Sergeant Kim…… what do we do?”

In the midst of that silence, Private First Class Park Boseop asked in a very low voice.

Of course, he hadn’t asked the question because he didn’t know the answer.

The Mog Virus had spread inside the Polish headquarters.

That meant the place was filled with people infected by the Mog Virus.

Go in there?

That was madness.

Therefore, the logical answer was for Park Boseop to immediately step on the military truck’s accelerator.

They had to get as far away from there as possible.

Major Lee Hyena thought the same thing.

Kim Seojun answered both of them.

“Private First Class Park Boseop, we’ll move first.”

“Yes, understood.”

Park Boseop immediately stepped on the accelerator.

“Where are we going?”

Then he asked the question.

“Toward the Polish headquarters.”

“What?”

As soon as he heard the answer, Park Boseop’s expression changed.

“Toward there? The place where the infected are?”

Kim Seojun responded to their surprised gazes.

“If we lose the Polish headquarters right now, our situation will become far too dire. We have to secure the headquarters somehow. And above all, there are still survivors.”

At those words, Lee Hyena responded.

“Understood. I’ll go in and clean it up.”

“Ah!”

Park Boseop’s face brightened at that answer.

“That’s right. If you go in, Major, there won’t be any problem!”

Thinking about it, no matter how strong the infected were, it was unlikely they could do anything to an Agent Suit.

On the other hand, exaggerating slightly, Lee Hyena could tear the infected apart with her bare hands.

Cleaning them up seemed like a trivial task for her.

“It’s dangerous.”

But Kim Seojun knew that wasn’t the case.

“Any exposure to the bodily fluids of the infected poses an enormous risk.”

For Lee Hyena, who fought in close combat, every infected person was practically a bomb.

“Furthermore, the infected are much more troublesome than they look. They aren’t as strong as Mogdogs, but they’re still extremely powerful and, most importantly, they can use weapons.”

Above all, the infected weren’t beings who had completely lost their reason and moved like animals, like zombies in movies.

“The infected are like religious fanatics who worship the Mog. I can say that with absolute certainty.”

Kim Seojun knew it better than anyone.

“I’ve personally fought them before.”

Lee Hyena didn’t question Kim Seojun’s words.

In truth, she also knew perfectly well how dangerous the infected were.

One of the safety regulations Psyker Agents received was precisely not to come into contact with infected individuals without government authorization.

Even for a Psyker Agent equipped with an Agent Suit, coming into contact with infected individuals was dangerous.

“And above all, if a Psyker becomes infected, we’ll have a problem. A much bigger one than you imagine.”

If something went wrong, that could become a problem of truly absurd proportions.

In any case, Lee Hyena would have to stay out of it.

It was then that Park Boseop raised a question.

“Then how are we going to eliminate the infected?”

Kim Seojun replied.

“Let someone capable of putting a bullet through their heads from a distance without coming into contact with them handle it.”

As soon as they heard that answer, no one questioned him again.

Vroooom!

Only the sound of the military truck moving forward remained.

The simplest way to determine a country’s power on a particular planet was to look at the size of its headquarters.

In the case of the Polish headquarters, its size was impressive.

For starters, the number of buildings spread throughout the area was on another level.

Among them, the largest was the central headquarters building, where not only soldiers but also researchers and all the other civilian employees stayed and worked.

The land occupied by the central headquarters alone exceeded 10,000 square meters, while the total space available to its occupants amounted to approximately three times that figure.

No fewer than around seven thousand soldiers and employees worked there!

All those figures had been a source of pride for the soldiers and employees of the Polish headquarters on planet Amotia.

But now it was different.

After the Mog Virus began to spread, all those figures had ceased to be a source of pride.

Now they had become a nightmare.

And the employees of the Polish headquarters who had gathered in Shelter No. 19 of the central building were suffering in the midst of that nightmare.

“We’re all going to die. All of us…… Everyone, everyone is going to die.”

Most of the survivors were no longer in a normal mental state.

The only one who still managed to maintain some composure was Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski.

Although, truthfully, he couldn’t exactly be considered normal either.

After all, Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski (T/N: The former Barcelona player xD?) had been one of the hover riders who participated in the Suicide operation.

He was one of those lunatics who had charged into that absurd horde of Mog, which included three Tank Bugs, relying solely on a hover bike.

He had been lucky enough to return alive to headquarters, but his physical condition was terrible.

In particular, due to the side effects of the Stimpak, he couldn’t even properly drink water from a glass.

Even so, he said.

“Everyone, stay calm. This still isn’t over.”

He encouraged the survivors even in that desperate situation.

And that wasn’t something that could be achieved through sheer willpower alone.

“The Major didn’t sacrifice himself for us so that we could give in to despair now.”

In other words, Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski had a mission.

“We must survive, even if only for his sake.”

He had the mission of protecting what had been left behind by the descendant of those great horsemen who had voluntarily charged into the Mog horde to protect the Polish headquarters.

Put another way, Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski was convinced that Major Jan Zabłocki had died.

Precisely because of that.

“Major Jan Zabłocki?”

When he received a transmission from Jan Zabłocki, Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski thought he was suffering from auditory hallucinations due to the side effects of the Stimpak.

And when he confirmed that it wasn’t a hallucination, he felt indescribable joy.

Who could have imagined that the Major, whom he had believed dead, would return alive?

‘Ah!’

At the same time, Viktor Lewandowski realized what he had to do.

“No, you must never come here!”

He had to make Jan Zabłocki flee somewhere else!

That was why Viktor Lewandowski continued speaking over the radio.

He told him to run away, that the place was infected, that it had become a paradise for the infected.

After sending that transmission, he received no further response.

Viktor Lewandowski smiled at that silence.

‘Major, I’m glad you’re not here.’

Of course, that joy didn’t last long.

Once the transmission ended, silence and fear once again took hold of the shelter.

Everyone was especially careful to hold their breath.

And for good reason.

On the other side of the shelter door were infected.

Countless infected were wandering around out there.

“We’re all dead anyway. All of us.”

Bam!

“Quiet, quiet!”

Whenever the infected heard any sound coming from the shelter, they violently struck the door.

“Mmmph, mmmph!”

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

The pounding continued for quite some time even after the survivors returned to absolute silence.

Only then did it begin to subside.

When calm finally returned, the survivors’ faces were even more saturated with despair and terror.

Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski was no exception.

Even he, who had charged against the Tank Bugs, couldn’t prevent his will from being worn down by that constant fear.

It was then.

“We’re all dead anyway. All of us.”

One of the survivors spoke.

“That door is going to open. It’s going to open.”

At those words, Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski gathered his strength and replied.

“The shelter door is strong. No matter how much the bodies of the infected have been reinforced, they don’t possess the strength necessary to destroy it.”

He wasn’t saying it to convince that person.

He was saying it to prevent the other survivors from losing their composure.

And at the same time, he was saying it to himself.

“They don’t even need to break the door! If someone with administrator-level access enters their personal code, the door will open!”

The survivor expressed his fear again.

And naturally, he wasn’t wrong.

The shelters had several measures in place to allow rescues from the outside and, just as he had said, someone with administrator authority could immediately open any of them.

Even so, Viktor Lewandowski contradicted him.

“It’s impossible for an infected person to do something like that.”

Beep, beep, beep, beep!

At that instant, the sound of someone entering a password could be heard from the other side of the shelter door.

Everyone closed their mouths.

In the midst of that silence, their eyes began to tremble like small sailboats caught in a violent storm.

Viktor Lewandowski was no different.

‘H-How?’

Were the infected really entering a password to get into the shelter?

Just as everyone was horrified.

Psssssssh!

The sturdy door of Shelter No. 19 began to open.

And as soon as it did, everyone froze completely.

They weren’t even capable of showing any intention to resist.

Except for one person!

“L-Let’s fight!”

Only Sergeant Viktor Lewandowski managed to gather the will to fight.

And that will didn’t take long to disappear.

“I’m Sergeant Kim Seojun, from the Korean headquarters.”

The person who appeared spoke.

“I’ve come to rescue you.”

When he heard the word “infected,” Kim Seojun’s expression hardened.

‘This is the worst.’

Kim Seojun had faced infected before and, precisely because of that, he knew how troublesome that situation was.

For starters, the Polish headquarters, which he had hoped to rely on, had lost a large portion of its functions.

And that wasn’t all.

‘The fact that infected have appeared means the Queen already has an army.’

Those infected with the Mog Virus normally appeared after being attacked by Mog that had come into contact with a Queen.

What mattered was that, if the Mog had already come into contact with the Queen, it meant that she had already begun to act.

‘Right now, the Queen must be bringing the Mog of Amotia, especially the special individuals, under her command.’

And as soon as that Queen managed to bring most of the Mog on planet Amotia under her control, she would begin a war of extermination against all humans.

Kim Seojun had many reasons to be concerned.

But that was all.

Eliminating the infected themselves wasn’t something that worried him too much.

And there was an obvious reason.

For someone who even possessed X-Ray Vision, eliminating infected inside the Polish central headquarters was far too easy.

Bang! Bang!

[You have eliminated an infected human. No points will be awarded.]

When he heard that notification during his first encounter with the infected, Kim Seojun was briefly surprised.

‘So the infected count as Mog too. Just as I expected.’

However, the surprise didn’t last long.

‘I suppose it makes sense that they don’t award points.’

He also understood why he wasn’t receiving points.

‘Because if I could get points this way, I could accumulate an absurd amount.’

If killing an infected human awarded even a single point, Kim Seojun could become a demon and, with enough determination, immediately return to Earth and obtain at least ten billion points.

In any case, after that brief surprise, Kim Seojun continued advancing without hesitation through the Polish central headquarters while his gunshots echoed constantly.

Rather than advancing, he was practically running.

Bang! Bang!

Under Kim Seojun’s repeated gunfire, every infected person fell with a hole in their head, without exception.

As he eliminated them, he began searching the shelters.

‘This one is already lost.’

When he first reached Shelter No. 4, all the survivors had already become infected.

‘This one too.’

The same was true of Shelter No. 11.

‘Here……’

Finally, at the third location, Shelter No. 19, Kim Seojun managed to see survivors.

He entered the emergency code Major Jan Zabłocki had provided him and opened the door.

He immediately saw someone lunge toward him.

But Kim Seojun wasn’t surprised.

Instead, he felt a slight sense of admiration upon seeing that, even in that situation, the person showed a will to fight rather than giving in to despair.

“I’m Sergeant Kim Seojun, from the Korean headquarters. I’ve come to rescue you.”

As he spoke, Kim Seojun internally let out a sigh of relief.

‘Thirty-one survivors. Thank goodness.’

It wasn’t many compared to the number of people that headquarters had once held, but it was enough to keep at least some of its facilities operational.

‘We were lucky.’

Just as Kim Seojun was glad that he had been able to save so many people in the midst of that catastrophe……

[A powerful infected human has appeared.]

[An event mission has appeared.]

[Points obtained during this combat will be multiplied by 3.]

[If you eliminate a powerful Mog individual during this combat, you will receive a Platinum Ticket as a special reward.]

The notifications rang out.

And as soon as he heard them, Kim Seojun became certain.

‘……It’s a Psyker.’