Return to the Island
Kang Dohyun and Kang Dohun had been roaming the small towns of the Jeonbuk region.
They hunted zombies primarily, but naturally took down any bandits they encountered along the way.
After a week of wandering, the result was clear: most of the large bandit groups in the small towns of Chungnam had been wiped out.
The brothers had chosen a small house in Iksan, situated between Nonsan, Gunsan, Jeonju, and Gimje, as their temporary base.
Kang Dohun rose early in the morning and worked out using the weights in the yard, but his older brother was still asleep.
"Hyung's going back to the uninhabited island today. Let him sleep in."
After finishing his workout, Dohun showered and headed into the inner room where his brother was staying.
"Hyung! Wake up!"
At his words, Kang Dohyun opened his eyes and sat up. And as expected, a beautiful woman was lying beside him — she rose as well.
The woman who got up with Dohyun was Han Seo-yul. She had been a starving scavenger wandering the countryside until Dohun saved her, and in exchange, she had been providing sexual service to him.
Seo-yul asked Dohyun the moment she was up.
"Dohyun-ssi, should I prepare your bath?"
"Yes."
As she moved to attend to his bathing, Dohun's voice cut in.
"Hyung! We need to move fast today. It's the day we go back."
"Ah, right."
At his younger brother's words, Dohyun called off the bath for now.
"Let's eat first."
The three of them decided to start with breakfast.
It was a countryside house — a proper rural home with a hearth — so they could build a fire with wood and enjoy warm rice and food.
Today's breakfast menu was white rice, kimchi, and a radish stew made with canned mackerel.
The three of them savored the warm, delicious meal, taking their time to enjoy it.
"We're leaving right after eating, right?"
"Let's do."
At that, Seo-yul turned to Dohyun with a coquettish expression.
"Dohyun-nim, where are you going this time?"
Dohyun answered coldly.
"I'm not coming back."
"....."
Seo-yul's expression stiffened.
After more than a week of sleeping together, Seo-yul had already fallen completely under Dohyun's trait's influence, and she began to beg.
"Dohyun-ssi, please take me with you. Please? You said you enjoyed having sex with me, right?"
She was pretty and skilled in bed. But.
"No."
Dohyun refused firmly. She had been good in bed, but her combat abilities were lacking, and her looks were merely average. Above all, she was not someone he needed.
"Please..."
Seo-yul cried and begged, but Dohyun remained cold. Eventually, Dohun, who had been watching, spoke up.
"My hyung isn't easy to change his mind. But if you become valuable, you might be able to meet him again later."
He added some advice as well.
"The northern part of Jeonbuk and the southern part of Chungnam won't have many bandits anymore. Build your strength by hunting zombies around here. And if you get the chance later, come find hyung."
Seo-yul cried for a long while, then finally accepted reality and asked Dohyun.
"Dohyun-ssi, if I become valuable later, will you take me?"
"Of course."
At those words, Seo-yul resolved to become stronger. For the man she loved.
After breakfast, the brothers packed their bags and went up to the rooftop.
"Roar!"
Dohyun summoned a drone, and the two of them climbed aboard.
"Dohyun-ssi! I'll become someone you need and come find you!"
"Yes, do that."
Dohyun answered perfunctorily, then turned to his brother.
"Let's go."
"Right."
After finishing his conversation with his younger brother, Dohyun launched the drone.
As they flew swiftly, Dohun asked his hyung.
"Hyung, isn't it too cold to be that harsh on a woman you slept with for a while?"
"When you cut ties, you cut them clean. And if she really becomes someone valuable, I can take her back later."
At his hyung's cold words, Dohun nodded.
"It's true, hyung's trait is amazing. After just a week, most women can't seem to get away from you."
"That's right. But I hope a valuable woman appears."
Dohyun evaluated women solely by their sexual utility and their existence value.
They flew on the drone for about five hours. Then, their destination — the uninhabited island — came into view.
"There's the island. Hyung, hang in there a little longer."
"....."
Dohyun, who had summoned the drone for such a long time, was nearly exhausted and couldn't even respond. Fortunately, the drone arrived at the island.
"Hah..."
As soon as they landed, Dohyun immediately recalled the drone and collapsed to the ground.
"We're back!"
Dohun shouted loudly.
"Dohun-ssi!"
Lee Gaeun was the first to run and throw herself into his arms.
"Hyung, Dohun! You're here!"
Lee Dongwoo and the others stopped what they were doing and came to see the two brothers.
It had been a trip of just under three weeks, but a return was always a joyful occasion.
"Let's eat, play, and have fun today!"
Dongwoo suggested a party again, and naturally everyone agreed, so preparations began.
Dohyun was tired, but after a two-hour nap, he recovered his energy and was able to join the evening party without issue.
As evening fell, before the party officially began, Dohyun's gift-giving time started.
"First, Dongwoo. This is for you."
The gift he gave him was an assortment of packaged games he had looted from a gaming specialty store.
"Oh! A new Switch game! Awesome!"
"And this is a gift to make you work harder."
The second gift was an Orchid-Patterned Gourd-Shaped Bottle.
"This is a special item. When you pour water into it, the water becomes fertilizer and a growth accelerator."
"Really? Is that true?"
Dongwoo said it in disbelief.
"Go check for yourself."
Dongwoo immediately filled the bottle with water and went to the lettuce field nearby. He poured the water over the plants.
"Huh?"
The lettuce was visibly growing in real time.
"Amazing, huh?"
"Yeah. So work harder on farming from now on."
"Ah! Hyung! That means I have more work! This'll make farming take even longer! Agh!"
Dongwoo grumbled, but of course, food production was about to surge.
The second gift was for Kim Harin.
"Harin-ssi."
Dohyun handed her several pieces of underwear he had bought at a mart. Quite revealing underwear, at that.
"Ah... yes..."
Harin received the gift with an awkward smile, and Dohyun whispered to her.
"I'll be expecting it."
"Yes......"
Her face turned red.
While Dohyun was giving gifts to Harin, Dohun was naturally giving gifts to his girlfriend, Gaeun.
"I wasn't sure what Gaeun-ssi would like, so I prepared a variety of things."
His bag contained everything from clothes to cosmetics, earrings, necklaces, and shoes. He had simply taken everything he liked from the women's section of a department store.
"Ah, thank you."
Gaeun thanked Dohun for his gifts. The other women envied her, but these weren't exactly what Gaeun had wanted.
"And, this too."
The next gift Dohun gave was a Cavalry Figure Pottery.
"What's this?"
"It's a very special item."
Then he explained how to use it.
"Hold it firmly, and think about summoning."
Gaeun gripped the pottery figure in her hand and thought about summoning. Then.
"You called?"
A clay cavalry soldier was summoned. Everyone on the island was shocked by its appearance.
"It's a level 10 doll soldier. Use it when you need it."
Gaeun's face lit up with joy at Dohyun's pottery figure gift.
"Wow... Oppa! Thank you so much!"
She jumped up and down with delight, then hugged him and cheered. It was truly the best unexpected gift.
Harin watched Gaeun's happy expression with envious eyes. She had wanted a gift like that, not underwear.
Dohyun read her expression, hesitated for a moment, then said.
"Harin-ssi, I have another gift for you too."
He gave her a Cavalry Figure Pottery that he had been carrying.
"Is this the same as that one?"
"Yes, it's an item that can summon combat dolls."
"Thank you!!"
She had experienced the apocalyptic world, so she knew the value of this gift all too well. She received it with great enthusiasm.
The gift-giving time for Dohun and Dohyun was over. But there were people who hadn't received gifts.
"....."
Three women — the three slave girls — sat quietly, watching the others with envious eyes. Harin stepped forward first.
"You all can take a gift too."
She pointed to the underwear she had received and told them to pick one each.
"Really?"
"Yes, take whatever you want."
The women began carefully examining the underwear Harin had received.
"Here, take whatever you want from the clothes, necklaces, and rings."
Gaeun also shared the gifts she had received, and the three slave girls happily picked out items.
As the two women shared their gifts, the party transformed into a time of happiness for everyone.