Chapter 77: Dog Pack
Chapter 77: Dog Pack
#
"Raid Leader!"
"How far did they come?"
"They've stopped over there."
I sprinted to the rooftop and listened to Ye-jin's report.
Then I followed the direction of her pointing hand.
Narrowing my eyes, I searched the three-way intersection near the building where Min-su had lived.
Members of the Feral Dog Pack lay sprawled across the road.
"What happened to whoever they were chasing?"
"I don't know. They disappeared behind that building, but only the dogs came back out."
"What the hell happened...? Are you certain it was a person?"
"Honestly, no. They were too far away. I assumed it was a person at first, but..."
Soon two more Feral Dogs emerged from the park and joined the pack.
The resting dogs rose and moved deeper into Zone A.
—Tsssh. Tae-sik, we're ready. We'll come downstairs.
—Wait there for now.
"They don't appear to be attacking us. Keep watching and hold out a little longer."
"Okay..."
Ye-jin answered weakly.
Her shift was nearly over. Exhaustion combined with the sudden tension had probably drained her.
I patted her shoulder and descended from the rooftop.
"What happened?"
"I'm not certain. I asked Ye-jin again whether it was a person, and she couldn't confirm it."
"But whoever it was was running away, right? Wouldn't that mean it was human?"
"Not necessarily... A building blocked her view, and she lost sight of the figure halfway through."
I discussed the incident with the assembled raid members.
Speculation among ourselves wouldn't produce certainty.
"By the time I reached the roof, the dogs were lying in the road."
"Really? That's strange... Why would they stop so suddenly?"
"Then two more joined them, and the entire pack moved farther into Zone A."
"At least they're not heading toward our base."
"Probably not. If only we knew what those animals were thinking."
With the immediate danger past, the women who had gathered in haste dispersed.
Su-jin and Ga-yeong had completed a long watch and had barely returned to bed before the alarm forced them up again.
"Seon-yeong, from now on, gather everyone only when we confirm an attack. I feel terrible waking them like this."
"Agreed. I feel guilty too. You still need to finish breakfast, don't you?"
"Yeah. Let's eat quickly and clean up."
I finished breakfast in a hurry and went downstairs to check on Schneider.
Her body seemed larger every day.
The cabinet where she had originally slept now appeared too cramped.
She prowled around the area, apparently searching for a new home.
"Tae-sik!"
"Hm? Oh, So-ra. Have you eaten?"
"Not yet. Did you sleep well?"
"I did. What about you?"
"Like a log!"
So-ra came downstairs while I smoked.
Her expression remained bright throughout our conversation.
"This should let us raise it by at least another meter, right?"
"Yes. We have more than enough material."
"Good. Enjoy breakfast, and I'll see you shortly."
"Okay~"
I'd always considered her aloof, but she possessed an unexpectedly endearing side.
After she went upstairs, I approached Schneider.
I stroked her back for no particular reason while she devoured her feed.
Since the previous day, Schneider no longer fled when I approached or touched her.
The distance between us had clearly narrowed.
Before long, I began working.
I carried the accumulated materials onto the barricade one piece at a time.
The women descended one after another to help reinforce it.
We hammered nails and forced pieces together through brute strength, gradually increasing the barricade's height.
I learned that even thick lumber would bend if subjected to sufficient force.
The furniture had to interlock so tightly that nothing could slip free, which produced an ugly shape.
Crude though it was, the thick construction proved sturdier than expected.
—Lunch is ready!
Ga-yeong's voice came through the radio.
She must have awakened and prepared the meal.
—We're coming.
"We'll finish the rest this afternoon."
#
After lunch, we resumed reinforcing the barricade.
The midday sun hung directly overhead, and sweat poured from everyone as we worked.
None of the women wanted to tan. Despite the heat, they wore long sleeves and broad-brimmed hats.
The sight automatically revived miserable memories of repairing trenches during military service.
—The Feral Dog Pack has appeared. They're heading straight toward the apartment!
"It looks like they finally chose to attack. Prepare yourselves."
Was this their actual assault?
"Su-jin, activate Mapping."
Everyone hurriedly seized their weapons.
Su-jin immediately sat and activated Mapping.
Woof! Woof!
Barking sounded in the distance.
"Raid Leader!"
I'd jumped onto the barricade and was watching the apartment entrance when Su-jin called.
"What's it?"
"They're almost here. Twenty-two dogs. But there's another dot I've never seen before."
"What do you mean?"
"Something—I don't know what—is descending the hill behind us. It's alive."
Mapping presented the surrounding area from an aerial perspective.
It didn't display ordinary physical objects directly.
Instead, zombies and other living creatures appeared as distinct markers.
An unfamiliar type of lifeform was approaching.
Since Su-jin identified it only as a lifeform, it was probably neither human nor zombie.
"Everyone, move inside the entrance and remain ready. I need to assess the situation."
The women crowded down from the barricade.
Moments later, the Feral Dog Pack charged through the apartment entrance.
Woof! Woof!
The bastards raced toward us without slowing.
I seized a stone from the pile and hurled it at the Alpha Dog.
Shwoooosh!
It changed direction instantly and dodged.
The stone struck the empty road and shattered.
Their reflexes and mobility far surpassed those of any zombie.
Thunk! Tap-tap-tap!
They were too fast for thrown stones, so I grabbed my baseball bat.
The charging pack leaped at the barricade.
Whoosh—whack!
Kkyeang!
I met the Alpha Dog with a full swing just as it leaped to the height of my face, sending it flying.
Its body was extraordinarily durable. After tumbling across the asphalt, it staggered upright again.
The other dogs couldn't clear the roughly four-meter barricade.
Their muzzles struck its upper edge, or their front paws caught briefly before they slipped and fell.
Reinforcing the wall in time had saved us.
Once the Alpha Dog regained its footing, we stared each other down across the barricade.
Now that it understood I wasn't easy prey, perhaps the pack would retreat as it had the day before.
Gruooooow!
THUD-THUD-THUD-THUD!
As the standoff continued, a massive reverberation like a ship's horn rolled from the recycling area.
I'd been ready to summon the raid members if the dogs charged again, but the pack now began edging backward.
Woof! Woof! Woof!
At the Alpha Dog's bark, the pack retreated step by step.
Gruwheeegh!
"You've got to be kidding me!"
I threw myself toward the apartment with all my strength.
CRASH!
A boar the size of a large truck swept past the section of barricade I'd just abandoned.
Its shoulders stood nearly three meters high.
Although the animal only grazed it, one corner of the barricade collapsed.
Had I remained there, I'd have been crushed.
Woof! Woof! Kkying!
The Feral Dog Pack fled in complete panic.
Fortunately, the enormous boar focused on the retreating dogs and charged after the Alpha Dog.
THUD-THUD-THUD-THUD!
Its massive body demolished the apartment fence and disappeared.
"Tae-sik! Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine... What kind of neighborhood has a boar emerging from the hill behind it?"
"Ah... Then the unfamiliar marker must have been the boar. Should I activate Mapping again?"
"Yes... Find out where it went."
I felt close to losing my mind.
I inhaled deeply and forced my chaotic thoughts under control.
"It passed the park and left my range. I can't track it anymore. Several Feral Dogs appear to be dead."
"Haaah... Let's go inside. If that boar returns, the barricade won't stop it."
The Feral Dog Pack's attack on our base ended anticlimactically.
What the hell was happening in this neighborhood?
#
Silence filled the living room.
The sight of a genuine monster had left everyone stunned.
"The Feral Dog Pack seems cute now... Something like that is roaming Korea?"
"At least Korea doesn't have many large predators or mammals. Places like Australia must be horrifying now, considering the animals we used to see on MeTube."
"Haah... What do we do? Will the apartment remain safe?"
"The apartment buildings themselves should fare better. That boar was so large that I doubt it could enter one."
Had we simply been fortunate until now?
We'd never encountered anything so overwhelmingly powerful that fighting it seemed unimaginable.
"So-ra, do you think your Ability could injure that boar?"
"I could probably trim its fur."
"Heh heh... Exactly. Even if you penetrated the hide, the wound would probably amount to a scratch relative to its mass."
So-ra tried to lighten the mood with a joke, but no solution followed.
"The tutorial is over... Haaah."
"What? Tutorial?"
"Nothing, Seon-yeong. If this were a game, it feels as though the tutorial just ended—like our beginner-protection period expired."
"Seriously. We've already worked ourselves half to death... The world could at least give us a balance patch."
The conversation revealed how badly everyone's motivation had suffered.
"All right. Pull yourselves together. We'll begin with what we can control—the watch schedule."
Every woman looked toward me.
The situation was overwhelming, but I couldn't afford to falter.
I began by hardening my own resolve.
"We should extend each shift to three hours. One person during the day and two at night still seems like the best arrangement..."
"Why two people at night, Seon-yeong?"
"Because everyone else is asleep. A lone guard might doze off, and if something happens, one person needs to wake the others. Sleeping people might not hear the radio. Two guards during the day would be safer too, but..."
"I'll permanently take one position from 20:00 to 02:00."
"Understood, Raid Leader. I'll revise the schedule."
Once I opened the discussion, the women worked through the remaining details themselves.
We decided to evacuate into the apartment if another creature like the boar appeared. Zombies, Feral Dogs, and hostile humans would be stopped at the barricade.
"For the barricade, cement or a welder would be ideal."
"So we still have to scavenge. We also need to strengthen our Abilities, which means killing more zombies."
"I thought zombies were the final boss. Apparently, they're only trash mobs..."
Ye-jin must have played games before the outbreak.
She kept slipping in remarks like that. Was I the only one finding them funny?
"But where could we obtain either of those?"
"Um... Raid Leader."
"Yeah."
"What if we use cars, like we did while building the bunker?"
"Cars would certainly be sturdier than furniture. What do you have in mind?"
"If you can manage it, Raid Leader, we could stack cars and use them as the barricade's frame."
"We won't know until I try. Explain the design in more detail."
After a long meeting, we established short- and long-term objectives.
Reduced to their essentials, they differed little from our previous plans.
We had to scavenge, kill zombies to strengthen our Abilities, and develop countermeasures against new threats.
The difference was renewed motivation and a clearer order of priority.
We discussed practical methods for implementing each idea.
Collective intelligence was producing answers I could never have reached alone.
In this godforsaken world, we would struggle until the moment we died.