Chapter 85: Siblings
Chapter 85: Siblings
#
Because of the unexpected encounter, I stayed outside longer than planned.
By the time I returned, dinner had already passed.
We exchanged names, learned a bit about one another, and shared a late dinner.
The siblings ate ravenously, exclaiming over the food the whole time.
A proper meal like that had been a rarity for them.
After talking with everyone, the siblings immediately took a liking to both our raid party and the base.
"Hey."
"Huh? What'd you come up for?"
After dinner, Ha-na and I stood watch on the rooftop.
We'd barely begun our shift when Seon-yeong came up.
"Just felt like talking a little before bed."
"Oh. Should I give you two some space?"
"No, it's fine. You can listen in."
I'd assigned the siblings one of the fourth-floor apartments.
Ga-yeong was apparently explaining the apartments' functions, who lived where, and other basic details.
Meanwhile, the other women were hurriedly cleaning Apartment 402.
"The kids are surprisingly resilient."
"That's probably how they survived this long. I don't know the details, but Deok-hun may have more Available Points than you."
"Yeah, and his ability is strong. As for Ji-yu, um..."
"Well, that's because you protected her. Deok-hun is completely specialized for combat, right?"
Deok-hun's ability was the safest means of killing an enemy I'd seen so far.
It was even more destructive than So-ra's ability, despite both being ranged attacks.
With the siblings joining us, our raid party finally gained its first purely offensive ability.
"By the way... Deok-hun was the one from that convenience store in Zone B, right?"
"Yeah, it was. I already asked him."
"What did he say? Why did he do it? That scene terrified me. I thought some psychopath had done it."
So that was what she'd come to discuss. The question had been bothering her.
Once, while entering Zone B, we'd stopped at a convenience store.
It was when we encountered the client company's people, and someone had already cleared the store.
In the storeroom, zombie corpses had been neatly arranged with their heads, torsos, and limbs separated.
"He said he did it because he was afraid the zombies might rise again. He'd read somewhere... what was it? Anyway, he believed that if he separated the parts, resurrected zombies wouldn't be able to find their own bodies or stand up."
"Oh, so that was why? You told him he doesn't need to go that far, right?"
"Yeah. That surprised him. He said it hadn't figured into his calculations. But Deok-hun's word choices and manner of speaking really are strange."
"Heh heh. He's got his own little world. Earlier, he called me 'Maman,' and his sister beat the crap out of him."
Deok-hun was small and pale for a man.
His hair nearly covered his eyes, and both his features and build were delicate.
He barely stood taller than his middle-school-aged sister, though he claimed to be 170 centimeters tall.
Ji-yu said he was 167.
His slight build and deep dark circles had initially made him look gloomy.
But after spending half a day with him, I discovered a resolute streak that didn't match his fragile appearance.
He didn't shy away from fighting and possessed good stamina.
Perhaps having someone to protect had made him that way.
"Anyway, bringing them home was the right choice. Kids like those should fit in fine."
"That's my impression too. His little sister Isn't a very sweet kid, is she?"
"Ga-yeong seemed excited that she's no longer the youngest."
"Ho ho ho, she certainly was. She dragged them around excitedly, taught them everything she could, and even explained all sorts of nonsense as though recounting the history of the raid party."
Unlike the Prugia group, I had admitted the siblings impulsively based on my judgment alone.
The circumstances were different now, of course.
I could only hope that bringing them in would have a positive effect.
#
After standing night watch, I once again slept for only two hours before getting up.
On top of that, I'd exerted myself with Ga-yeong when she came up for the shift change the previous night.
It was a bizarre pattern—getting off on the rooftop night after night—but we had no time to spare.
I checked my condition in the bathroom.
The power of Enhanced Recovery truly was remarkable.
I should have been exhausted, yet my head was clear and every trace of bodily fatigue had vanished.
My lower half was raring to go as well.
So I walked out to the living room in a good mood.
"Boss! Oh-ha-yo go-zai-ma-su!"
"Well, you look good. Ji-yu, did you sleep well? Is the place to your liking?"
"Good morning! I slept great. The apartment is lovely, and the older girls are all so nice."
Not wanting to ruin my mood, I lightly ignored Deok-hun and spoke with Ji-yu.
The siblings seemed pleased with the apartment we'd assigned them.
Deok-hun wolfed down porridge with a healthy appetite that morning.
How was he so scrawny when he ate like that?
"Raid Leader, please stay seated. I'm done eating."
"Before we head out after breakfast, I'd like to have Ji-yu use her ability on us once. Is that all right?"
"Okay... hee-eeng..."
Ji-yu sprang up and quickly prepared my breakfast.
Her answer about using her ability had sounded somewhat reluctant, though.
"Hey. Don't be shy, Ji-yu. Today, I'll ask for the Kin-yo-bi no oh-ha-yo instead."
"I told you I'm not doing that dance, right? And at least try to talk normally when there are other people around."
Ji-yu shot Deok-hun a cold glare.
What was going on with him?
"Ahh. Calm down... got it. Put what's in your hand down. That's a kitchen knife. And wouldn't it be way more embarrassing if you did it all alone?"
"Haah..."
"Wouldn't it be better if I helped out?"
I quietly ate my porridge while watching the siblings continue to bicker.
As an only child, I didn't know what having a sibling felt like.
Still, perhaps surviving together despite all their bickering was what had allowed them to endure this long.
"Raid Leader. Good morning. Good morning to you too, Deok-hun, Ji-yu."
"Yeah, sleep well? Come, sit."
"Good morning! Please stay seated!"
Ji-yu warmly greeted the other raid-party members as they arrived one by one.
She'd risen before everyone else and even prepared breakfast.
I'd worried because she was so young, but this side of her suggested there was no need.
After finishing my meal first, I went down to the front yard.
Almost no trace of the zombie horde's attack remained inside the barricade.
Much of the cleanup was complete, and Schneider now had a dedicated space in one corner.
"Nya-ong. Nya-ong."
She leapt down from a tall stack of furniture arranged like a cat tower.
I gave her food and water, rested briefly, and waited for the others.
"Hey."
"Huh? Why are you down here alone?"
"The others will be down soon. Deok-hun said he brought a USB drive full of saved data. Have you seen it?"
"No? First I've heard."
"I'll have him bring it. I haven't looked at it yet either."
Shortly after So-ra sent a radio message, the raid-party members came down.
Everyone was present except Seon-yeong, who was on watch, and Ji-yu, who seemed to be running late.
"Here it is, Boss. I downloaded all the essential data before the internet went out."
"Oh. I noticed yesterday too, but you're better prepared than I expected."
"Heh heh. This much is basic stuff."
It seemed he had us beaten in that respect.
My heart pounding with anticipation, I turned on the laptop and inserted the USB drive.
The drive contained two folders, Important and General.
"Let's check the Important folder first. It takes up most of the drive."
"Yeah. Even that wasn't enough. I wish I'd had an external hard drive, but I couldn't bring one from home."
The Important folder occupied most of the drive's 256-gigabyte capacity.
Wondering what could be so important, I opened it first.
"Wow, you even organized everything alphabetically?"
"Yes. I did it my own way, but if there's a specific file you need, just let me know. I've got it all memorized."
Deok-hun answered with obvious pride.
I opened the first video file.
"..."
"Huh? What's this? Raid Leader, try clicking the next one."
Cute art styles and sleek art styles.
Bright, cheerful music followed by grand or dramatic music.
A parade of anime played one after another.
"You... you crazy son of a bitch!"
"Aaaagh! Getting hit by that thing will kill me! Save me!"
"Uh-uh? What's going on?"
My anticipation shattered, and I grabbed my baseball bat.
Deok-hun fled behind Ji-yu just as she entered the apartment lobby.
"We were checking the data Deok-hun saved. Raid Leader saw what was in it, became furious, and..."
After hearing So-ra's explanation, Ji-yu quietly stepped aside.
She'd apparently known already.
"Gwak..."
I caught Deok-hun, gave him a hard forehead flick, then returned to the General folder.
"You little shit, this is what should have been in the Important folder."
It contained all kinds of material: bushcraft and survival methods, water purification, identifying edible plants, farming, raising edible grubs, and more.
Some files were videos, while others were documents.
There wasn't a vast amount of material, but every item contained genuinely useful knowledge.
"That's the stuff I saved."
"Yeah, Ji-yu, well done. Haah..."
I worked to calm my anger.
Thanks to Ji-yu, some peace of mind returned.
What the hell had that bastard been thinking?
"Um, Raid Leader..."
"Yeah, Ji-yu."
"About my buff... would now be a good time to give it to you?"
"Oh, let's do that. Everyone, Ji-yu is about to use her ability. Gather around."
We clustered together in anticipation.
Deok-hun, who had quietly slunk back at some point, stood beside Ji-yu.
"Why are you here?"
"You don't need to crowd together like that. Besides, I'm helping because Ji-yu would feel pressured doing it alone."
I couldn't imagine what kind of buff she meant or how she'd apply it.
I'd find out once I received it.