Chapter 23.
Chapter 23.
It was a luxurious meal from the morning.
Thanks to the supplies secured from the large mart yesterday, there's no need to worry about food for the time being.
Since there's no refrigeration, the rule is to eat things that spoil easily first. I grilled the pork belly from the icebox on the burner, fried some eggs, and even heated up instant rice.
Sitting around eating as a group of four, the amount was quite substantial.
"Wow, this is really delicious."
Yerin said with her mouth full of rice. What would her fans say if they saw her eating like that with that face? Well, it's a world where fans and whatnot don't exist anymore anyway.
As soon as the meal was over, Jeong-hoon jumped up from his seat.
"We'll do the dishes."
Su-jin nodded beside him. I tried to decline, but their attitude was firm. It seems they feel uncomfortable just being indebted to me, having joined yesterday. I get it. I would have been the same.
I just told them to wipe off the grease with wet wipes first since we need to save water, and to rinse with only a little bit of bottled water. Su-jin nodded and immediately got to work. As expected of a former nurse, she has a solid sense of hygiene.
As soon as the dishes were done, Jeong-hoon spoke up again.
"Hyung-nim, we'll take care of the camper's sewage tank too."
"I can do that myself."
"No. We have to do our part too."
Su-jin chimed in from the side.
"That's right, Min-woo-ssi. We feel sorry enough just for staying with you, so we need to do at least this much to feel at ease."
Their eyes were serious. Refusing any further would only hurt their pride.
"Alright. Then I'll leave it to you. But have you ever done it before?"
"Of course. There isn't a car I haven't worked on."
His experience as a mechanic is shining here.
I briefly explained the structure. The large camper's sewage tank is mounted under the chassis. It has a large capacity. That means when it's full, it's heavy, and the smell is no joke.
Jeong-hoon crawled under the camper. He opened the lower panel and loosened the sewage tank's fixing clamps one by one. There was a sound of metal clashing.
"Did you check if the valve is closed?"
"Yes, I checked."
Once all the clamps were loose, Jeong-hoon slowly pulled out the sewage tank. The black plastic tank came out, dragging along the ground. It was full, so it resisted heavily even when pulled by an adult man. Su-jin grabbed the other side and pulled with him.
Once the tank was completely out, Jeong-hoon's face twisted slightly. It looked like some of what had leaked around the valve got on him.
Human waste is dirtier and smellier than you can imagine. Since it's been sitting for a few days...
"Do you have a cart?"
"I have a camping cart. Hold on."
I took out the folding camping cart. Jeong-hoon put the tank on the cart. Su-jin held it from the side so it wouldn't tilt.
"The ditch is over there, past the road."
It's a place I checked earlier while scouting the surroundings with the drone. There was a concrete drainage ditch.
"We'll be back."
The two of them set off pulling the cart. The wheels rattled as they rolled over the asphalt. Su-jin wore gloves and held one side, and Jeong-hoon pulled from the front.
I had confirmed there were no zombies in that vicinity. But just in case, I climbed onto the roof of the camper and watched their path while holding my bow.
A while later, I saw them arrive at the ditch. Zooming in, I saw Jeong-hoon opening the tank's discharge valve. Black water poured out in a rush. I saw Su-jin step back and cover her nose. Jeong-hoon also turned his head away.
Yeah. I know that smell.
Jeong-hoon tilted the tank to empty it completely. Su-jin rinsed the inside of the tank roughly with a bottle of water she had set aside. Since water is precious, they couldn't do it perfectly, but rinsing it once versus not doing it at all is like heaven and earth. The smell is different when the sewage starts filling up next time.
The two returned with the empty tank loaded back on the cart. Something was smeared on Jeong-hoon's forearm, and Su-jin's gloves were ready for the trash.
"Good work."
"It's nothing."
Jeong-hoon smiled, but his forehead was covered in sweat. He had pulled something heavy back and forth, after all.
Jeong-hoon went back under the camper and pushed the sewage tank back into place. He tightened the clamps one by one and checked the valve status again. It was the handiwork of a mechanic. Fast and accurate.
"Installation complete."
I nodded.
They are useful people. I'm glad I brought them along.
The four of us sat around inside the camper and held a simple meeting.
There was one agenda item. Water.
"The fresh water tank is almost empty."
Yerin spoke up.
The water supply had been cut off long ago. When the electricity went out, the water pressure pump stopped. We can no longer expect tap water.
"The nearest stream is about 1 kilometer south of here."
I pulled up the video I recorded with the drone on the tablet. It's a small stream flowing into the Han River. The water volume looked sufficient.
"We have no choice but to fetch water from there. We need to separate the drinking water and the domestic water."
Jeong-hoon nodded.
"For domestic water, we can filter out debris with cloth and add bleach. Two or three drops per liter is enough."
"Right. That's what I know too."
It's common knowledge for men who have done a bit of camping. Bleach is the standard for water disinfection in emergencies, and as long as the concentration is right, it's fine even if it touches the skin.
The problem was the drinking water.
Su-jin raised her hand.
"We need to be more careful with drinking water. Stream water can have parasites in addition to bacteria. Things like Cryptosporidium don't die with regular disinfection."
"I have water purification tablets. And the camper has a water purification filter too."
"Still, we have to boil it."
Su-jin's voice was firm.
"The purification tablets and filter filter out almost everything, but if even one thing gets through, diarrhea starts. In a situation like this, dehydration is really dangerous. Boiling is the final insurance."
She's right. In a world without hospitals or pharmacies, one bout of stomach trouble is directly linked to life or death.
"Then for drinking water, let's go with a 3-step process: purification tablets, filter, and boiling."
Everyone nodded.
"I'll make the makeshift filter."
Jeong-hoon raised his hand high. This guy insists on doing any physical labor himself. He's been like that since yesterday.
He took out extra cloth and cut it with scissors. He layered cotton t-shirts and made a funnel shape. It's a makeshift filter to first screen out large debris. It's not perfect, but it catches dirt and suspended solids well enough.
"Will this be enough?"
"It's enough."
We finished preparations and set off. The two campers started moving slowly at about 20 km/h.
I climbed onto the roof of the lead camper. Yerin drove the car slowly from the driver's seat. Jeong-hoon's Staria followed behind.
Zombies were standing here and there along the route. They were guys doing photosynthesis, spreading their arms and looking at the sun.
They aren't moving right now, but they are guys who might pounce if we get close. We have to clear them out in advance.
Shoo.
An arrow stuck into the head of a zombie 100 meters ahead. Thanks to the Wind Negation ability, the trajectory drew an elegant parabola without wavering.
Shoo. Shoo.
Two more. The obstacles on the road were cleared one by one.
Every time the camper passed by a corpse, Jeong-hoon got out of the car and pulled out the arrows.
The motion of wiping the tip of the extracted arrow with a cloth and inserting it into the quiver was as natural as if he were already used to it.
"Retrieved twelve arrows."
"Good work."
Had we been driving for about 40 minutes? The stream came into view.
We got out of the car and walked to the streamside. I looked into the water.
It was clear.
It was much cleaner than what I usually saw. I could even see the gravel on the bottom. Is it because factory wastewater, domestic sewage, and things like that no longer flow into it?
Since the world ended, the water has become clean.
"Wow, the water is really clear."
Yerin squatted by the water's edge and dipped her hand in.
"Still, you shouldn't drink it just like that."
"I know, Boss."
We dipped four water jugs into the stream. They filled up with splashing water. Jeong-hoon and I each carried two and transported them to the camper.
A full water jug weighs over 20kg, but thanks to the Physical Enhancement Ability, it felt very light.
We put the water jugs down next to the camper and started the purification process.
First, primary filtration with the makeshift filter Jeong-hoon made. We poured water through the layered cloth. Fine suspended solids that had a brownish tint were caught by the cloth. The water dripping below became much more transparent.
We collected the portion to be used as drinking water separately. Added purification tablets and waited 30 minutes.
Then we put it in a pot and boiled it. The bubbling sound of boiling spread inside the camper. Su-jin timed it.
"3 minutes is enough."
We transferred the boiled water into empty water bottles. Finally, we just need to pass it through the water purifier filter before drinking.
The remaining domestic water was stored separately after passing through the makeshift filter and adding only bleach. It's for showering and cleaning.
When it was all over, everyone was exhausted. All this trouble just to drink some water. The days when tap water would gush out when you turned the faucet seem like a long time ago.
When I pressed the button on the ice water purifier in the camper, ice fell with a whirring sound.
I filled four cups with ice and poured water. The ice clinked against the transparent water.
"Here, good work."
I passed the cups around one by one. Jeong-hoon took his and took a sip. His eyes widened.
"Ah, refreshing."
Su-jin held the cup with both hands and drank. She quietly closed her eyes. Yerin gulped it down and let out a sigh.
"I feel like I'm alive."
I also took a sip. Cold, clean water went down my throat.
The world has ended, but who knew a glass of ice water could be this happy.
The four of us smiled without saying a word. That was enough.
After securing enough water, we returned to our original spot.
After parking the camper, I took my bow and walked around the area.
The zombies loitering near the base caught my eye. Since it was daytime, most of them were standing in sunny spots, doing photosynthesis.
Seeing them with their arms spread and heads tilted toward the sky, I thought of carnivorous plants. They are guys who fill up on energy from sunlight, but pounce immediately when prey approaches.
Shoo. Shoo.
Without needing to get close, I took them out one by one from a distance. Thanks to the Wind Negation ability, there's no chance of missing as long as I aim.
Had I been walking for about an hour? The zombies in the vicinity were all cleared out.