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"Pants? What about my pants...."

Heo Young-woong looked down at his trousers with a baffled expression.

"I've got the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠walkie-talkies I brought with me here and...."

"No, your waist size."

"Pardon? My size?"

"Yeah, that."

He was just a rookie patrol officer, so his build couldn't have changed drastically. It didn't make sense for his pants not to fit.

"What do I need to explain?"

"They don't fit. Whose did you steal?"

"Pardon?!"

Heo Young-woong frantically waved his hands.

"No! I didn't steal them!"

"Ah, sure. Well, goodbye then."

As Go Cheon-su moved to start the motorcycle again, Heo Young-woong suddenly dropped his pants.

"L-Look here! My ID!"

He untied the ID strapped to his thigh and waved it around.

"You're doubting my identity, right? This proves it!"

"Ah, damn it."

Go Cheon-su stopped the bike, scowling.

"I've got places to be, and now I gotta see this crap."

"Here! Check it out!"

Heo Young-woong rushed over and shoved the ID in Go Cheon-su's face.

Go Cheon-su took it and examined it.

It's real.

There were no signs of forgery. Given the timeline, faking something this precise was impossible, so it had to be legit.

"Then why the hell do your pants look like that?"

"The ones I wore to work got torn. I borrowed spares from someone else, that's why. I kept my ID like this in case the pants tore again."

The explanation was seamless.

Go Cheon-su tilted his head, pondering.

He debated taking the guy, but the chat's input helped sort his thoughts.

"Alright. I'll take you."

Having a decent human bait wasn't a bad idea. And the chat wasn't just spouting nonsense.

There were definitely veteran viewers mixed in. They seemed to avoid spoilers on characters unlike monsters, but listening closely yielded useful info.

Heo Young-woong, looks like you're the real deal.

Go Cheon-su moved to the back of the bike and pointed Heo Young-woong to the driver's seat.

"Officer Heo, you know how to ride a motorcycle?"

"Ride it?"

"Can't? Then we're leaving it."

Heo Young-woong scrambled into the driver's seat.

"I can! Yeah!"

"Then from now on, follow my directions."

He'd prefer to drive himself, but he couldn't exactly turn his back on the guy.

"But this isn't the way to Myeongseo Elementary School?"

Heo Young-woong immediately questioned the direction Go Cheon-su indicated.

Go Cheon-su gave a wry smile.

"We ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just came from there."

"From Myeongseo Elementary? Why? What happened?"

"How about we talk while you gun it? We're in a hurry."

Caught off-guard by the polite but pointed retort, Heo Young-woong twisted the throttle. The bike slid forward smoothly.

"Officer Heo, your riding's not half bad."

"So, what happened there?"

Heo Young-woong's tone shifted slightly.

Probably because he heard cops were there.

Go Cheon-su dropped the jokes and answered seriously.

"Zombies showed up. It's no joke there now."

"What?! Zombies there...."

"The problem is the police chief who was supposed to control the people there went missing."

The bike wobbled for a moment.

"Officer Heo, I get it, but no crashing, please."

"S-Sorry. Can you tell me more details?"

Telling a rookie wouldn't gain him much, but seeing this diligent guy speeding along without asking the destination, Go Cheon-su figured there was no point hiding it.

"Seems he went on patrol with a few officers and vanished."

"Did monsters get him...?"

"Doubt it."

He was confident the chief was still alive, but he couldn't explain that to Heo Young-woong.

"Anyway, the place we're heading is exactly where the chief disappeared."

"Pardon? For real?"

"Yeah. For real, so calm down."

A police chief was just another person to Go Cheon-su. In this messed-up world, why freak out so much? But the response he heard next was totally unexpected.

"S-Sorry. He's family, so I can't help but worry."

"Family? The chief's your family?"

"Yeah, my uncle."

Go Cheon-su's eyes widened.

Uncle?

He hadn't expected that connection. But it cleared up his field of vision. The puzzle pieces he'd gathered clicked into place.

Ahh.

He suddenly understood the whole picture.

Go Cheon-su slapped his knee.

"Alright, now it makes sense!"

"Pardon?"

"Nothing."

Go Cheon-su shook his head seriously and extended his hand forward.

"There. Almost there, Go-sae."

The task ahead was the same regardless.

They arrived at a site packed with container boxes.

"This is where he went missing?"

Heo Young-woong glanced around curiously.

Go Cheon-su didn't answer, scanning the area himself.

These aren't standard containers.

Most had windows and doors. They were container houses.

They must've stayed here temporarily....

There were signs people had been around. Maybe they'd planned to use it as a camp.

"Hey, Mr. Go Cheon-su?"

Heo Young-woong, who'd introduced himself before stopping the bike, grabbed Go Cheon-su's shoulder and shook it.

"Is this really where he vanished?"

"...Probably."

He couldn't pinpoint the exact spot, but it was definitely nearby.

"Officer Heo, look around for any traces of the chief. You know him better than I do."

"What about you?"

"I've got my own leads to chase."

Heo Young-woong tilted his head curiously but soon started walking.

"Got it. Don't go too far alone—it's dangerous."

Go Cheon-su snorted inwardly at the irony, then refocused, eyes blazing as he hunted for clues.

What kind of monster?

If the chief had fallen into a trap, monsters chasing him was likely. The mess around suggested they'd fled in a panic. Something had pursued them.

No. He was examining footprints.

"Just human footprints everywhere."

Many were staggered, erratic.

"Zombies for sure, at least."

If bitten by zombies, a search party could've found the mutated chief and put him down. Including civilians in the party? Probably to leave ironclad proof that they had to kill him.

"But even without a bite, there's ways to make it look like one...."

Go Cheon-su's eyes widened.

"Ah, got it."

Fear. After the chaos inside Myeongseo Elementary, any visible injury on the chief would've been enough to whip up a frenzy.

Those villains weren't rabid dogs. They were calculated.

"Guys, got a question."

As he continued searching, Go Cheon-su asked the viewers.

"Why no more supply boxes?"

Staring at the containers sparked the thought. Since the first one, he hadn't seen another.

Go Cheon-su blinked at the out-of-left-field reply.

"Huh? Don't wanna see them? I'm not some kid hating broccoli. What're you talking about?"

Before he could parse it, another chat popped up.

He did as told, spotting a '$' icon. Tapping it showed Cash Chat - Off.

"What the—? No way...."

He hit Off. It flipped to On instantly.

"Ah."

Go Cheon-su stared blankly, then clutched his head in fury.

"Guys!!"

Ignoring Heo Young-woong waiting in the distance, he ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠let out a long bellow of frustration.

"How could you hide this from me?!"

The sponsorship system was one of the core features for streamers. And to spawn supply boxes, he needed to scrape together minimum funds this way? Infuriating. Plus, boxes probably had varying costs.

"I started playing without even hearing about this!"

The viewers just laughed at his rage.

Fuming, Go Cheon-su forced a twisted grin.

"Yeah, big man Go Cheon-su here. You think this pisses me off?"

Seeing the Cash Chat spike right on cue only fueled him more. But he took solace in OnlyOne's steady support—and one key realization.

Fixed fans. This is huge.

Anonymous chats made it hard to build and manage big fans. But sponsorships revealed names. Game-changer.

"Phew."

With a sigh, Go Cheon-su regained his calm.

"I don't hold grudges. You all know that, right?"

He wouldn't let them rile him further.

"OnlyOne, OverLimit, NeckLicker—thanks! I'll work harder!"

"Mr. Go Cheon-su!"

Heo Young-woong's sudden approach made Go Cheon-su flinch hard. Unaware his reaction was flooding the chat with lols, Heo spoke gravely.

"You okay?"

"Huh? W-What's up?"

"You weren't joining up quick...."

"Nah, don't worry. I dawdle like this normally."

Heo Young-woong looked awkward at the lame excuse but shook his head.

"Anyway, Mr. Go! I found something."

"Huh? What? The chief?!"

"No, not that...."

Heo Young-woong pointed.

"One of the chief's things. Over there."

No hesitation. Go Cheon-su asked him to lead and headed over.

"Looks like a fight went down."

Seeing bloodstains scattered on the ground, he asked Heo Young-woong.

"Any more spots with his stuff?"

"Yeah, more this way."

Go Cheon-su followed. Items littered the path like Hansel and Gretel's breadcrumbs.

Leading us somewhere?

Meaning unclear, but vital clues.

What the—?

Suddenly, the trail stopped. At a fork with two paths.

As Go Cheon-su stood still, Heo Young-woong explained first.

"It ends here. Nothing beyond."

"Hmm...."

Both paths were overgrown, footprints hard to spot. Crushed brush looked similar on both.

"Officer Heo, any gut feeling?"

Time to leverage family ties. But Heo just looked puzzled and awkward.

"Dunno which way. Split up and search?"

Decent idea, but at a fork? Unsettling.

Route choice, huh.

A twinge of unease as he pondered, then Go Cheon-su smirked.

"Mr. Go?"

"Hold on."

Crouching, he eyed the chat and muttered.

"Guys. A or B. Fork-in-the-road survival mission accepted."