Safety or Gamble? (3)
"Any issues...?"
"Right now, foreigners with attack skills have come charging in. Specifically, black guys."
"...Why the hell are those Yankee bastards still around?"
"Who knows. We don't have a clue either."
I had no idea what they'd been up to until now or why they'd suddenly shown up at Our Love Church, but it sure as hell wasn't for anything good. Just looking at how they'd ignored Choi Yuri's words and gotten themselves shot dead by Jeong Suhyun afterward was enough to guess their temperament.
"But it's definitely not with good intentions. They damaged the building entrance and threatened our people."
I let out a sigh. The problem with having just one body was that there were limits to what I could handle.
"That's why I'm putting out the nearest fire first. This might take a while."
Of course, Northdong Station below us, the Northdong Liberation Army there, and those blood clump zombies were nagging concerns, but this took priority.
The men stayed silent. Made sense—they'd followed me, or rather, just Kim Jungshik.
"......"
But their leader, Kim Jungshik, just listened quietly. A sharp guy like him would've already guessed what I was getting at. And he'd be weighing his options.
Push back, or bend and accept it.
From their perspective, though, this might actually be the better deal. Our base was close by, and defending against zombies or other threats would be far easier here.
You could tell just from that glasses guy Kim Inho's reaction earlier.
Not a bad setup.
This group was one I could control and use as long as Kim Jungshik stayed alive.
"Section Chief Kim. Can you understand?"
He nodded.
A faint murmur of discontent rippled through the men, but Kim Jungshik shut it down.
I pointed at Jeong Suhyun as I confirmed with him.
"Alright, next up is about your living arrangements... Jeong Suhyun here will fill you in. If you're the head of your group, Section Chief Kim, then he's the head of ours."
The men's eyes shifted to Jeong Suhyun. He chuckled and spoke up.
"Nice to meet you all. Name's Jeong Suhyun. I'm leading this little outfit for what it's worth. Any questions, sleeping spots, meal times—hit me up."
He paused a beat before adding,
"Oh, and one big thing: try to avoid contact with the other folks here. Their condition's... not great. Especially the women. If something goes down after you interact, that's on you."
Jeong Suhyun was talking nonsense, but damn if it didn't work. The men scowled. Probably remembering what went down at Northdong Station.
"No need to spell it out—you're new here, so no point stirring up trouble, right? There's even a guy among them who's a bit off, so until you settle in, I'd appreciate it if you steered clear."
The men didn't react much. Just nodded quietly. Fair enough—they were the intruders now, and Jeong Suhyun's words had painted Choi Yuri and Kim Yunjin as women in rough shape. No one wanted to poke the bear.
But saying it outright like that?
I let out a dry chuckle. Jeong Suhyun had always handled things in his weird way, but it got results.
He left the men and headed out. Once he was gone, I turned back.
"Anyway, despite the talk, there won't be issues. Hang tight for a bit—got something urgent."
"Got it."
Yeah, no problems. The moment they started shit, someone would slit their throats.
I left the prayer room.
"You wrap up the talk?"
"Stepping out for a sec. Skills all checked?"
"Yeah, all confirmed."
Jeong Suhyun chuckled and handed over a note.
And...
"...Nothing off."
Surprisingly, Kim Jungshik's group—no, Kim Jungshik himself—had told the truth. His job as Drug Summoner and the skills Jeong Suhyun listed matched what they'd claimed perfectly.
"All good?"
"Yeah, surprisingly honest bunch."
"And they got chased out? Tsk. Looks like something's rotten at Northdong Station."
Jeong Suhyun grimaced, sighed, and rubbed his temple like his head hurt. If that was the case, the truth leaned toward Kim Jungshik.
"Eh, as long as they help us, who cares."
"True. Keeping friendly groups around ain't bad. If we take the upper building while leaving them here, the road to Yuseong University opens right up."
Like he said, facts didn't matter—only if they helped us. Building ties with Northdong Station survivors had been smart.
Jeong Suhyun continued,
"That Kim Jungshik guy's skill is wild, though. Drug Summoning? Bet he can pull everything from painkillers to narcotics to poisons."
"Pretty much."
Poison and medicine were two sides of the same coin.
"The rest are solid too. Long as no drama, trading with them sounds good. Yunjin's healing can't cover everything."
He was right—that's why I'd brought them. Weapons and food summoning were fine, but Kim Jungshik's and the deputy chief's skills were gold.
The issue? Our base's skills were skewing toward support and production.
"...Northdong Station got anyone with skills like that? Personally, I'd love mobility or attack types."
"No mobility or attacks, sadly. But they've got someone with Protective Setup—great for defense."
"Protective Setup?"
"Yeah, straight-up defense skill..."
Jeong Suhyun and I discussed Northdong Station. His eyes lit up hearing about Lee Euna and Park Donghyuk's skills.
"Solid for sure. But unlike these guys, better to leave them be."
"Same thought?"
"Yeah, sounds like a group held together by a few key people. No need to mess with it."
True. Lose Lee Euna or Park Donghyuk, and it crumbles. If I pulled them out, total wipeout.
"Milk 'em long-term."
Another reason not to touch them: they could act as a breakwater for us.
Against those Liberation Army bastards they mentioned.
The south Liberation Army's eyes were fixed on Northdong Station. But as long as they didn't screw up internally, it wouldn't fall. Lee Euna's barriers and Protective Setup were that strong.
So, leave them alone for now.
"Anyway, about these foreigners. Thoughts?"
"Like last time—just you and me?"
"With you?"
Jeong Suhyun suggested teaming up again, like at Rocket Mart.
"But I left these guys with you."
"What, you think they'll cause trouble? They look like harmless old dudes."
Was this the same guy who'd been on guard earlier?
"Plus, old guys sitting quiet when a young buck like me talks? Tells you plenty. Zero chance of issues."
"That sure?"
"Yeah, I told you I did social work. Dealing with folks like that? Piece of cake."
He suddenly dropped a backstory.
"Ha... handling complaints, those types are saints. Sounds funny, but it builds trust."
"Useless experience now."
Total bullshit, but he smirked like it was a joke.
"Kidding about tagging along. Seriously, no issues. They won't pull crap if they don't wanna get iced by you—especially after seeing your ice magic."
True. And he added,
"These folks got nowhere to run or go. They even brushed off my probing like it was nothing. Now they've got a base and agreed to escape Seoul—no way they rock the boat. Unless they're psycho."
I bought it. I'd been over-worried. Or over-suspicious. Human distrust, maybe.
"If they've got hidden motives, whatever—they punched through those flesh lumps to get here, like you said. Leave 'em and focus on your goal."
"Keep them on the first floor?"
"Yeah. Put 'em on night watch. Or that deputy chief's Animal Taming—let him handle it."
I nodded. Spot on.
"I'll keep eyes on 'em for surprises. Time'll tell up close. Got my rifle 24/7—no trouble inside."
Fair enough.
"Handle it."
"Gotcha."
I nodded and headed back in to brief Kim Jungshik on the plan: stay here, work with Jeong Suhyun.
"...That's the deal. Details upstairs."
"Huh? Oh, yeah, makes sense. Works for us. Haha."
He nodded—signal he'd manage.
I signaled agreement and headed out.
Jeong Suhyun's already out.
He'd gone up to second-floor watch. I followed.
Upstairs: Jeong Dojin and Choi Yuri cleaning up dinner. She spotted me and waddled over.
"Ah, sorry, boss. Couldn't greet you. Eaten?"
"Nah. Got anything?"
"Yeah, made dinner, but with more people, cooking extra. Here, if you haven't eaten."
"Thanks."
She handed me a drink and retort fried rice. I took it, eyeing her. She looked fine—what had Jeong Suhyun picked up on so quick?
"You two okay? All around."
I grabbed chopsticks and asked point-blank.
Choi Yuri's eyes widened; Jeong Dojin blinked.
They hesitated, then...
"...No."
"Yeah, kinda."
Negative. I pressed.
"Something happen? Because of the folks here?"
Choi Yuri's eyes went wide.
"No, no. That's... not it anymore. Dojin's here. It's just... today's stuff."
Unexpected. She spoke softly while tidying.
Jeong Dojin continued, worried for her.
"Just realized this place isn't safe. Weird people."
"Dojin..."
"It's fine, Yuri. Not your fault."
He placed a bitter hand on her shoulder.
"Today's thing..."
I frowned at him. The black guys, probably. Choi Yuri opening the door, Jeong Suhyun gunning one down.
"Suhyun said you talked. What went down? Details, please."
Info on them before cleanup—straight from the source.
"Well, those guys..."
Choi Yuri stammered.