7. Handling and Price
7. Handling and Price
The revolver is aimed.
ㅡBang!
This time, one of the guys holding a weapon, the one closest to me, died.
One shot, one kill.
Two guys are dead.
Two left.
One guy holding a weapon rushes at me. The guy with the rifle fires.
ㅡRat-a-tat-tat!
A burst from the rifle.
"!!!!!"
ㅡClick
ㅡClick
ㅡClatter
The bullets that were coming out just roll off and tumble onto the floor.
The revolver is aimed again.
ㅡBang!
One shot, unfortunately, missed.
I aimed for the head, but it seems it missed by a mere 1 or 2 cm.
I had no choice but to fire one more shot.
ㅡBang!
ㅡThud
ㅡCrash!
The weapon-wielder collapses, slamming his body into the convenience store shelves.
He falls to the floor along with the remaining junk.
I used four shots.
One shot left in the revolver.
One enemy left.
ㅡRat-a-tat-tat-tat!
The rifle-wielder fires his gun.
However.
ㅡClick
ㅡClick
The gun, now switched to rapid-fire, won't fire anymore.
Bullets roll on the floor.
This goddamn metal manipulation ability is useful. Definitely.
"H-ha, I surrender! I surrender!"
The guy holding the rifle looks at me and raises his hands.
ㅡClang
The empty K2 rifle rolls on the ground.
I narrow my eyes and aim the revolver at him.
"Huk..! P-please...!"
#
ㅡWhoosh
Inside the GP Convenience Store, only the sound of the night wind can be heard.
Since there are almost no infected in this area, it seems no one is coming to investigate the noise.
'No, there are some, but since it's quiet again, they'll probably turn back halfway.'
Well, that's not important.
The man's appearance... he was in his 20s.
Early to mid-20s?
My revolver is still aimed at him.
The M60 revolver holds 5 rounds.
He probably knows there's 1 round left since I fired four times earlier. Or maybe he thinks there are 2 rounds left, following the usual revolver logic.
"......"
"Strip."
"Yes. Huh?"
"Strip off your underwear and everything, and throw it here. You son of a bitch. If I have to say it one more time, I'll shoot."
"A-alright!"
I don't want to strip a grown man, but I have no choice.
Seo-yoon was a woman who attacked without weapons even when she knew I was coming and was setting up an ambush.
But this guy tried to kill me from the outside.
I step on the guy's dangling underwear and search his clothes with my remaining hand to check for weapons.
'None for now.'
Superpowers can't be verified, so that's meaningless.
There's no need to ask anything right now.
'Because I have Lee Seo-yoon.'
I can extract the information and then kill him.
"Keep your pants on, and tie your hands with this."
"Yes?"
"One shot left. I'll shoot if you ask again. If you want to follow your friends, keep doing that."
"N-no, I won't."
The man hurriedly ties his own hands.
I didn't do the stupid thing of getting close. It doesn't matter if it's not actually tied securely.
I picked up the guns of the dead men. This guy's gun is trash.
The others aren't in great condition either.
So, I only took the magazines.
I took a quick peek inside; one was full, and one was empty. Well, he just sprayed bullets everywhere.
Unfortunately, there were no bullets other than the magazines in the guns.
30 rounds. K2 rifle.
"Is this all the ammo?"
"Yes..."
Yeah.
That's probably all of it.
"The others outside. Is it just the four of you?"
"No. Just the four of us."
It doesn't matter if there are more.
It's actually better if they have guns.
Still, just in case.
'None.'
Even after walking around once with the man, I didn't see anyone.
"Alright. Stand there."
I aimed the rifle.
"Please spare me. P-please, I don't want to die."
"I won't kill you, so stand. 3, 2. 1...."
ㅡPitter-patter
ㅡClatter
The man stands at the entrance of the convenience store.
I look at him and say.
"In that state, you're going to go up there. See it? Hope Villa."
"Ye-yes."
ㅡKreeee!
ㅡBang!
ㅡBang!
ㅡBang!
ㅡBang!
I shot and killed the visible infected. Four shots total.
Remaining:
26 rounds.
Do I care if they swarm?
I just need to get to the villa.
The ones coming from afar won't be able to find me.
Besides, if I kill them with a crowbar, I can't keep this guy in check.
"Go up."
"Yes..."
The man goes up.
Villa 401.
ㅡCreeeak
The door opens.
And what I see is Lee Seo-yoon holding a kitchen knife, looking ridiculous.
She, who had a horrified face looking at the man, lets out a shallow breath when she sees me behind him.
ㅡCreeeak
I couldn't see the man's expression, but who cares.
I close the door and say to Seo-yoon.
"Seo-yoon."
"Eh.. yes?"
"Go to the master bedroom and get something to tie him up. The stuff I tore up should be in the drawer."
"Ah. Yes!"
I don't let my guard down for a single moment.
Even if they don't have anything, the most dangerous thing is someone rushing at you with their body.
#
However, it seemed the man didn't even have the courage for that.
The man, whose legs were tied without even a hint of resistance.
I put the muzzle of the gun to his cheek and held out a piece of paper.
"Th-that..."
"Write your name. There."
"......"
With his tied hands,
the man writes his name.
Is his name Kim Min-jun? A common name.
I wrote the terms on it.
Name: Kim Min-jun.
Cannot lie to the contractor for 1 hour.
Must answer anything the contractor asks honestly for 1 hour.
Cannot cause harm to the contractor for 1 hour.
Should I make this the standard from now on?
Then I wrote my name.
Name: Kim Yu-seong.
As for the terms, well, none.
"Can I write 'None'?"
"Ah. Yes."
Then, I forcibly took Kim Min-jun's thumbprint.
"Write it."
"Uh... it won't work."
Lee Seo-yoon says it won't work.
Really? Can't it be done by force?
Or did he give me the wrong name?
I threw the contract at the man and shoved the muzzle into him.
"Is your name Kim Min-jun?"
"Y-yes, it is! Why would I lie about my name..!"
"Really? Then read this and put your thumbprint here."
"W-what is this?"
The man reads it with a confused expression. Well, he does look like an 'insider'. He doesn't look like the type to read web novels or anything.
"Just put your thumbprint on it if I tell you to. You son of a bitch."
ㅡThwack
My hand struck the back of his head.
ㅡGulp
"Do you want to die, or put your print on this contract?"
"A-alright."
The man presses his thumb.
Then, Lee Seo-yoon uses her ability. The contract disappears.
"U...uh?"
The man is surprised.
But there was no reason to explain.
'It doesn't work by force.'
To be precise, the party to the contract must be aware of the contract when making it.
Whether it's through threats or whatever.
But that alone was enough.
"Is Kim Min-jun your real name?"
"Yes... ye-yes..."
"What's your porn preference?"
"Yes?.. Why that... ugh.."
Kim Min-jun clutches his heart. He opens his mouth as if he can't believe it.
"Huk. Huk. Videos of women, under, under me, getting their pussy licked."
"Ack."
Lee Seo-yoon makes a weird sound.
I don't think that's a sound you should be making.
When I look at her with that expression, Lee Seo-yoon shrinks back.
Well, she's not the important one here.
"How many times have you had sex so far?"
"No... ugh... I think dozens of times, but I don't remember."
Kim Min-jun.
Soon, he clutches his heart.
And, he grasps the situation.
The inexplicable contract, the pain in his heart.
"What is this..."
However, he doesn't get an explanation. Because he'll die if he doesn't speak.
"Works like a charm."
And since he's a guy I'm going to kill anyway, I explained it to him.
I floated a bullet.
And tapped it against his forehead.
"Yes?"
A stupid sound is heard.
#
The man, now much more docile, explained.
Name.
Kim Min-jun.
21 years old.
Active duty Corporal.
37th Infantry Division.
Currently residing at Eunha High School.
"What's there?"
"Th-there are people."
"There are people?"
"Yes."
"Evacuees? From the early days?"
"It, ugh... it's complicated. It's mixed."
"Mixed. Explain."
"Some soldiers and some men, they took over. Now gathered under Se-hun hyung-nim."
"Ah. So. People originally evacuated there and gathered, and you guys took over?"
"S-similar."
"Why did you take over?"
"They made men do all the cleanup, and the reservist company commander kept ordering active duty soldiers around, so we took over!"
"I see. So there were people there, but they acted like assholes, so you took over."
"Correct."
Well,
It's a common story.
One I've seen a lot in movies.
But just hearing the story, the company commander sounds like the idiot, right?
"Yes... when we arrived, there were about 50 people. Blocked with tools."
"But there was infighting, and you guys won. What do you do there?"
"Th... ugh...!"
I waited. Because he would have no choice but to talk anyway.
"We go out at night, find goods and food. And women too."
"Why women?"
"To, to fuck. And make them do chores."
"The people there? There must be more than one or two."
"A-almost all killed. None left. Just us. And a few women."
"What about that Se-hun hyung-nim guy, is he a soldier?"
"Ah, no. He was one of the reservists."
"Did you fuck women a lot too?"
"Y-yes."
"So you go to apartments at night, kill the men, and fuck the women or kill them?"
"...Correct."
Holy shit.
It's only been a month since the apocalypse, and they've already set up some kind of raider camp.
"Is that possible? Maybe the country hasn't collapsed."
"...That, is not it."
Not it.
So by his standards, the country has collapsed.
I tilted my head.
"It's just, really, really fucked."
Kim Min-jun started to explain.
The 37th Division in Jeungpyeong deployed soldiers to Cheongju and Daejeon.
"You deployed soldiers."
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I, I don't know."
Why don't you know. Goddamn it.
The fact that this is a fact makes it even more fucked up.
"Why only Daejeon and Cheongju? Just stay there, in Jeungpyeong. If it's the 37th Infantry Division."
"That too... I don't know. But there was an order to move. Move and join the 32nd Infantry Division coming up to Cheongju."
I suppose so.
How would a corporal know.
"How did you clean up the inside? The military unit."
"Survivors, NCOs, and officers gathered and broke into the armory and ammo storage."
"Really? Casualties?"
"...Most died."
"What percentage?"
"About 90 percent."
I see.
The situation was around 4 PM. And it happened instantly.
Since people who were just sitting there suddenly mutated and attacked indiscriminately, 10% survival is actually a lot.
The division is about 10,000 people.
1,000 survived. If they split 500 each to Daejeon and Cheongju, about 500 came here.
"Then did you move after receiving orders from somewhere like Seoul?"
"I don't know. I just know orders came down. Direct from the division commander."
Why does this bastard know so little? But then again, he's a soldier. It couldn't be helped.
"How did you come down?"
"Moved by armored vehicle."
"With surviving officers?"
"Yes."
"Where are they now?"
"Dead."
"The division commander?"
"Killed."
The officers are dead.
And they killed the division commander.
"Why did you kill him?"
"There was a huge thing at Cheongju Eunha University. Fought it, and all the officers died. After that, the army scattered... then the division commander was acting up, so we killed him. We agreed on the story among ourselves. After that, only we came here."
A huge thing at Cheongju Eunha University?
An Abomination?
"When was that?"
"I don't remember well, but it was about a week later."
"Mid-January?"
"Yes..."
"Then coming here means you came to Eunha High School?"
"Yes..."
I understood.
The military tried to do something, but it collapsed.
Well. If over 90% of the 37th Division died, it's over. Tanks can't move because they need crews, and it's not like just anyone can operate them.
Same with fighter jets, and they couldn't even get them off the ground to begin with.
At best, armored vehicles and helicopters. That's not enough.
It's probably the same elsewhere. There were internet posts saying Seoul was fucked anyway.
Korea is ruined.
Well, I asked what I needed to ask. I know the situation.
"Do you have ability users?"
"N-no."
"Then how many guns do you have? And ammo."
"Uh... 11 K2 rifles. Probably a few hundred rounds."
A few hundred rounds.
11 K2s.
"You only go out at night?"
"Yes. The infected are a bit calmer at night..."
"I see, so you only loot the U-Gwang Apartment area?"
"No. We go to the apartment every 3 days, and now we mainly go to where the Green Fresh Market is..."
"You go that far? How many people go?"
"Yes. We, the internal personnel, push a little at night. 3 teams go there, and the remaining 1 team does the apartment. We use the apartment for supply procurement."
"You push at night? From when to when?"
"From 10 PM, the time we come back is random!"
"22 people, 12 go to the market, 4 to the apartment, 6 waiting? Then you guys are the apartment team."
"C-correct."
"Why did you come here?"
"We, we came to loot the apartment today, and we saw a woman... ugh..! We were going to kill the man and secretly take the woman! S-sorry!"
"So you don't come to the villa?"
"Yes. There were no orders to come here yet."
"Whatever. The mart must have a lot, right?"
"There's an underground passage, you know. We are pushing little by little towards the shopping area that goes to the basement of Green Fresh Market. We thought there might be quite a bit of food if it's inside the mart."
Is that so.
"Do you know Walkers, Runners, those kinds of things?"
"Yes? Ah. Yes. I know... the ones that walk, the ones that run."
"Then have you seen any others besides them? Besides that big one."
"Uh... ah."
Kim Min-jun said.
"There was one with a lot of mouths on its face at the market. That bastard screamed, so we ran away a few times. And, in that underground mall, there was the mirror one."
I see.
There aren't many left now.
"Do you guys stand guard, like, night watch?"
"Ah. Yes... we stand guard in 2-person teams for 2 hours."
"I see. What's the total headcount inside? Excluding the useless women."
"22 people. 5 teams total, 2 people rest every 5 days."
"Where do you stand guard there?"
"The hallway of Eunha High classroom 401. You can see everything in front if you're there."
"You don't guard the back?"
"Yes. We keep that locked."
"Do you stand guard during the day and night?"
"Only during the day. Everyone is awake at night..."
"I see."
I stood up from my seat.
I heard everything I needed to hear.
"Uh..."
I picked up the crowbar.
"Y-you said you'd spare me! I-I don't want to die! I won't betray... ugh..!"
Works like a charm.
Seo-yoon's ability.
"N-no...!"
I swung the crowbar from top to bottom.
ㅡCrunch
The man collapsed, scattering blood and brains from his head.
"Hiccup."
I looked at Seo-yoon and said.
"Just clean this up roughly. I'm going to go dump the body."
"Hiccup!"
Watching Seo-yoon nod, I hoisted the man's corpse and came out.
'I have to loot these guys.'
Especially the guns.
I had to eat them all before they used up all the ammo at the market.