Thugs (3)
“Monsters are everywhere up ahead.”
The man undid a few buttons on his dress shirt, as if just thinking about it made it hard to breathe.
“They’re like thorns sprouting from the ground. They grab anything passing by and rip it apart.”
“Thorns?”
Go Cheon-su frowned at the description of a monster he’d never encountered before.
“You’re saying they’re spread all over? Right up there?”
“Yes. I saw it from a distance. People getting caught and killed by them.”
The man shuddered as if reliving the memory.
“If we go forward like this, we’re dead. We need a car at least…”
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
The explanation was lacking. Go Cheon-su pressed the man.
“You think a car makes the monsters dodge or something?”
“Huh? Yes! Exactly!”
The man nodded vigorously.
“They didn’t attack passing cars. They just let them go by.”
Go Cheon-su glanced back at his group. Jang Seo-yeon and Yang Min-cheol both had their eyes wide in surprise at the sudden claim. Kim Ha-ryeong seemed unfazed, but that wasn’t the point.
Great, what a pain.
Even Go Cheon-su was a bit rattled by what the man said. They’d been heading that way precisely because they needed a car, but now it turned out they needed one just to pass safely? Absurd.
“Any of my bros got a read on this right now?”
Time to call on the viewers.
“What’s this thorn vine thing?”
“Detector?”
It was a ridiculous setup. Usually, monsters reacted more to fast-moving things, right?
“What, does this thing have bad eyesight or something?”
He got the gist. Catching prey took too much energy, so it let the fast ones pass.
Damn it.
So they did need a car. Even if they went slow, it’d protect their bodies.
“Cheon-su, what do we do?”
Jang Seo-yeon asked the motionless Go Cheon-su.
“If those monsters are really up ahead, we need to prepare at least.”
“Yeah.”
There was no reason to doubt the info. If the man was lying, the viewers wouldn’t have ID’d the Detector monster.
“Then…”
Go Cheon-su asked the man.
“You only saw those monsters in the direction we were heading? What about the opposite way or other sides?”
“Don’t even think about going any other way.”
The man sighed.
“I was with people coming from all directions, and they said nowhere’s safe. Thorns on the opposite side too. It’s all the same everywhere.”
“Hm.”
The man didn’t seem to know for sure. But Go Cheon-su had to grimace anyway.
If there are thorns on the opposite side and this way too…
That left north and south. North was the Green Arboretum. Further up was the rail line.
Can’t go that way.
Not just because of the Ents, but the tracks weren’t safe to begin with. Train vibrations lingered, drawing monsters from afar—like in horror games. Plus, soldiers to avoid. Too risky.
South it is.
South had the Black Tattoos. Between Detectors and thugs, Detectors were worse. Unseen monsters were unpredictable.
“Bro, shouldn’t we think carefully about heading that way?”
Yang Min-cheol glanced back at the direction the man had pointed.
“Not saying I doubt your skills or anything, but… they’re a pack of fit guys. Dumb but brutal, so we should be careful.”
“They’re just thugs at the end of the day.”
Go Cheon-su decided to reassure Yang Min-cheol first.
“I took out three, so seventeen left. With you, Kim Ha-ryeong, and Jang Seo-yeon helping, we can handle them no sweat, right?”
“Ah, w-well, of course you’re strong enough to pull it off, bro.”
Yang Min-cheol still looked cautious.
“I just think we should decide carefully.”
“If you’re worried I’m overreacting because of your past, don’t be.”
Go Cheon-su wasn’t moving like this out of fear of the Black Tattoos.
“I planned to clash head-on if needed, even without this mess.”
“…Really?”
“Yeah.”
Go Cheon-su gave a low reply and squeezed then released Yang Min-cheol’s shoulder.
“So relax. No need to tense up.”
His calm demeanor eased the group. Even the anxious man relaxed a bit.
“You must be something else. Felt it from the first sight.”
Go Cheon-su’s expression flickered at the overreaction. He cleared his throat.
“Anyway, no choice. Can’t go east like you said.”
To escape this zone, south was the way. Whether Daejeon Complex Terminal or station, southeast meant south anyway. Just now instead of later.
“What’s your name?”
Manners to learn the name of the info source.
The man brightened at Go Cheon-su’s question.
“Oh Young-jun!”
“Right, Oh Young-jun. Thanks. Learned a lot thanks to you.”
Go Cheon-su gestured to his group.
“We’ll be off then. Hope you survive too, Oh Young-jun.”
“Huh? W-wait!”
Oh Young-jun chased after Go Cheon-su, shouting.
“What about me? Aren’t you taking me?”
“…”
Go Cheon-su stared at him blankly.
“…I’d love to, but can’t.”
“W-what do you mean…”
“Your hand!”
Kim Ha-ryeong pointed at Oh Young-jun’s hand. He looked down and paled.
“Eek!”
The wound on his hand had swollen badly.
“W-what is this?!”
He clutched it and staggered back. Go Cheon-su shook his head and spoke.
“That’s not just some bump or scrape, right?”
Go Cheon-su had thought it ordinary at first. But as it worsened, he’d caught on.
Telling him too soon might make him uncooperative. To avoid surprises, Go Cheon-su had played dumb.
“T-this…”
Oh Young-jun panicked, sweating coldly. Kim Ha-ryeong sidled up.
“Calm down. Getting worked up makes it worse.”
“I-I…”
“Deep breaths. Slow. Like this.”
Kim Ha-ryeong ignored him and gestured up and down slowly.
“Hoo, huu.”
It worked; Oh Young-jun tried breathing steadily and looked around. Terror still filled his eyes.
“Damn it.”
A bit calmer, he muttered aggrievedly.
“Thought it was just from bumping a wall in the fight…”
“Ha-ryeong, what’s your take?”
Go Cheon-su asked to confirm for him.
“Regular wound?”
“No way.”
Kim Ha-ryeong shook her head firmly.
“Infection symptoms. Totally sure.”
Ignoring her odd phrasing, Go Cheon-su told Oh Young-jun.
“Hear that? She’s a nursing student, knows better than me.”
“I-I…”
“Hey, calm down. Like getting worse?”
Kim Ha-ryeong stopped him from agitating again. He swallowed and spoke.
“I-I did fight. Infected ones. Thought it was just a wall scrape.”
“Can’t assume that. Self-diagnosis can hurt others.”
They’d nearly been victims. Now he got it.
“Anyway, you understand now? Not ditching you on purpose.”
Go Cheon-su hadn’t planned to add extras anyway. He could’ve tagged along till a point, but now not even that.
“Thanks for the help. Need it? We’ll give you some food.”
“…”
Oh Young-jun fell silent at the offer. Confusion crossed his face.
“I…”
Not long after, he rolled up his sleeve suddenly.
“H-help me.”
“No way…”
“Cut it off!”
Before Go Cheon-su could ask, Oh Young-jun grabbed his bare arm.
“Infection, right? It’s infected! So cut it! Help! I’ll be useful, full strength!”
Everyone watching looked shocked. Except Kim Ha-ryeong, who seemed intrigued.
Sounded like a joke, but not to Go Cheon-su.
What? Wants me to cut it?
Unexpected reaction.
Real extra?
Extras didn’t opt for amputation right away.
This guy was no ordinary character. Go Cheon-su swallowed and glanced at Kim Ha-ryeong. She met his eyes, nodded big, and told Oh Young-jun.
“You’ll die.”
As if stating his future cause of death.
She spun around him, unloading her thoughts.
“Cut off the arm? Will things go smoothly after? New injury, right?”
“N-no…”
“Separate infection path? Exposed vessels invite it right in. No monsters after that?”
Kim Ha-ryeong stared him down unblinking.
“No anesthetics. Can’t prep for shock on the street. Gotta wait for stabilization, but we got no time. Shortages everywhere, total mess.”
“Ah, uh…”
“Still wanna try, knowing all this? Even if you end up a corpse anyway?”
Oh Young-jun’s face twisted in agony. He looked ready to scream.
“Ha-ryeong.”
Go Cheon-su said softly.
“Enough. He’ll freak out more.”
“Ah…!”
Kim Ha-ryeong stepped back, startled.
“Sorry, Cheon-su. Thought you wanted surgical consent…”
“No need for such intense side effects rundown.”
Could shock him to death.
“Anyway, that’s the deal.”
Go Cheon-su warned Oh Young-jun.
“We could cut, but if it’s been bitten a while, just speeds up death. Still want it?”
His choice. Go Cheon-su would respect it as thanks.
“I-I…”
Terror entered Oh Young-jun’s eyes. Normal reaction.
But notable: he wasn’t normal.
“I wanna live! No, anything…! I’ll do anything!”
He clenched his fists, gritted teeth. Desperate resolve.
“Those bastards…! This is all their fault…!”
Oh Young-jun spat heatedly. Bloodshot eyes unrelated to infection.
“It’s unfair! I won’t die like this…!”
Impressive. Not as whiny as expected.
Go Cheon-su smiled faintly.
“Oh Young-jun. You mean it?”