04. Shelter (1)
In the whirlwind of events, there was one person I'd forgotten: Lee Seok-min, who was on the verge of fainting from fear. Fortunately, their relationship wasn't just a cold business relationship, as Jun-hwi was taking care of Seok-min. Jun-hwi was silently comforting Seok-min, who was trembling with fear from the extreme. It was hard to believe that someone who looked like a cold, handsome man could be so timid and harmless. Anyway, thanks to Jun-hwi's comfort, Seok-min gradually calmed down. Choi Seung-chul was also watching, and he asked with a question in his mind.
“Why are you here if you’re so scared? Go to the shelter.”
Hearing that, I too had my doubts. I didn't go there because I could have survived just fine without it, but why didn't Lee Seok-min go to the shelter? It was literally a shelter, so it would be much safer. There would be soldiers guarding it, too.
“I was planning to go as soon as the zombie outbreak broke out… but I got lost while running away from the zombies and ended up meeting Jeonghan and those guys.”
“We don’t really want to go to a shelter.”
Yoon Jung-han added firmly. There were indeed some negative rumors about the shelter. Some said that if food was scarce, the oldest member would be killed, and that the weaker members were forced to lure the zombies. Perhaps that's why some people had a negative perception of the shelter. I was one of them. Yoon Jung-han and the other juniors probably didn't go because of that. Lee Seok-min also seemed afraid of that, so he didn't bother going alone.
“But I think it would be better to go now.”
Choi Seung-cheol looked at my still-bleeding arm and spoke. No matter how much he tried to stop the bleeding, it seemed like it wouldn't stop easily because of the axe wound. Still, thanks to Kwon Soon-young's quick hands, he managed to stem the bleeding. In this situation, going to a shelter seemed like the best option. There weren't any hospitals nearby, and the closest thing was a shelter. A shelter would likely have plenty of first aid kits. There might even be doctors and nurses.
“Because of whom?”
Yoon Jeong-han glared at Choi Seung-cheol and spoke aggressively. He lowered his head, his face tinged with apology. It seemed he wasn't as cruel as he'd thought.
“I’ll go to the shelter with you. I’ll protect you if something dangerous happens on the way there or at the shelter.”
“You don’t have to go that far.”
“I’m sorry to you.”
Yoon Jeonghan didn't seem particularly pleased with Choi Seungcheol's offer to join them. It seemed to be because he'd hurt me. When had he seen me before and felt such affection for me? Seeing as he didn't say anything despite his dislike for Choi Seungcheol, it must have been thanks to his promise to protect him. If he'd just asked him to go with them without saying anything, he'd have been furious, asking how he could possibly have done that. Another fight might have broken out. Meanwhile, Moon Junhwi was smiling, seemingly happy that there were more people, and exchanging names with Choi Seungcheol. If I hadn't stopped him... If I had, he might have killed him. Moon Junhwi approached Choi Seungcheol, who had threatened him, without any hesitation. After all, it was better to be friendly than hostile in this situation.
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“If you were going to apologize for just brushing me with an axe, why did you say you’d kill me? If you’re that sorry, you don’t seem mentally strong enough to kill me.”
On the way to the shelter, I asked a question out of curiosity. I kept my voice as quiet as possible in case zombies came rushing in.
“All I had to do was threaten to kill them and swing an axe around and they would all run away.”
"…ah."
“Did I ever expect you to just run at me like that?”
“But is it okay to abandon your territory like this? What if someone else takes your territory?”
“It’s a district, you can always find a new one. Do I look that weak?”
The answer was, "Absolutely not." He had a strong appearance, a large build, and was carrying a heavy axe that would be difficult for anyone to lift. Who but a madman like Yoon Jeong-han would dare climb up? Of course, I didn't just climb up; I charged.
… Anyway, I’m not normal either.
‘Thud!!!’
An ominous, loud noise came from somewhere, and everyone, including me, turned our heads there. The sign of a store that had been on the verge of collapse, barely holding on, had finally fallen to the ground. But why did it have to fall as we passed? I resented the inanimate sign, but the thought of the zombies swarming me made my mind dizzy. My arm was injured, so I couldn't even fight properly. I couldn't just rely on others and be protected like this. But the zombie approaching us now seemed like something even Choi Seung-cheol wouldn't be able to take down. It was completely different from any zombie I'd ever seen. It was as big as a three-story building, and its appearance was bizarre. It felt like several zombies were tangled together...
“What the heck is that…?”
Just as I was being shocked by the sight of a zombie for the first time, Choi Seung-cheol, the strongest among us, shouted, mixing in six characters.
“Fuck, run with all your might!!!”