Yellow Door
Armed with blades scavenged from the hardware store they'd stumbled into while fleeing, and a telescope they'd grabbed along the way, the three climbed to the rooftop and leaned against the railing.
The sun hung high overhead, but the monsters below moved with purpose, actively searching for something rather than repeating mindless patterns.
Gazing down at them, the trio clicked their tongues and started muttering one by one.
"No matter how I think about it, it feels like the rules are breaking one by one, right?"
"Maybe the safest bet was just getting out as fast as possible..."
"Fuck, what do they expect us to do with no hints and just 'hurry up and leave'?"
"So, Gyeongmin, where's this door you said you found?"
"Over on the opposite side from where we came—check toward the building where we holed up at first."
Injun took the telescope and followed Gyeongmin's pointing finger.
Far off, in a space filled with gray haze, stood a solitary square yellow object.
"It's just... randomly standing there, huh."
Injun lowered the telescope without a second thought, then paused mid-sentence and raised it again.
He alternated between staring at the door and scanning other directions before speaking.
"That door... from here, it looks about the size of a fingernail?"
"Yeah, that's why I spotted it."
"It's gotta be at least five kilometers away, minimum. So how big is that thing?"
"Even lowballing it, the width's gotta be bus-sized. Do the math, old man."
"Hey, you... how the hell am I supposed to calculate that?"
Now that they knew its location, the object's undeniable presence started to evoke an inexplicable chill.
Dismissing the unease as mere goosebumps, Injun squinted and traced the path toward the door, then let out a long sigh.
"It's dangerous even in daylight now. Wonder if we can make it there."
"Honestly, the risk is huge. No guarantee that's really the exit door, either."
"Yeah, true, but..."
Both men spoke at once: there's no other way.
Seo-ah, who had been quietly resting her chin on her hand, nodded in agreement.
With unanimous consent, Injun emptied his bag onto the ground.
"...Let's go. Pack only the bare minimum, everyone. Getting there is do-or-die anyway."
Everything in the bags had been hard-won at the risk of their lives, so it hurt to ditch them—but dying weighed down by junk was out of the question.
They discarded most of the hoarded food, keeping only blades for self-defense, and headed to the first floor to check the monsters' movements.
"Two on the left... good, let's move."
Leaving their makeshift shelter, they slipped out quietly, sticking to alleys off the main road to avoid notice.
How long had they traveled when they paused?
The three voiced the question they'd all been harboring silently.
"Where the hell are those other guys?"
"You were thinking that too, Injun?"
"Me too. I swear I saw a few from the rooftop when we came down."
For a split second, relief washed over them—no immediate threats was a good thing.
But as they neared the door, the monsters—which had been everywhere—started vanishing entirely, stirring a creeping dread.
They'd tried staying positive since arriving here, so they joked it must be a rule keeping monsters away from the door area, shaking off the fear with forced nonchalance.
But no amount of optimism could erase the gnawing anxiety deep down.
After a brief rest amid the unease, they pressed on, deciding that with no monsters in sight and alleys too risky, better to dash down the main road despite the danger.
"We've still got a long way to go, right?"
"Yeah, we're just now near the spot we stayed a few days back."
"And... the closer we get, something feels..."
A foul stench grew thicker on the wind, making Seo-ah wrinkle her nose and speak up.
Gyeongmin nodded, grimacing too.
The metallic tang sharpened, mingled with a fishy reek.
Soon, they faced the source with their own eyes and gulped.
Monster corpses littered the ground like abstract art—twisted, mangled piles.
No human bodies mixed in; just monsters, which made it all the more grotesque.
Swallowing bile that rose to their throats, they picked their way through the carnage on trembling legs, silence heavy among them.
"Did they fight each other or something?"
Injun broke the quiet first, offering the most logical guess.
But even he, and the other two, knew it rang false.
No bite marks marred the pulped flesh chunks.
And then, from behind them, a familiar voice echoed.
"Morning already."
Arin woke amid the pulverized corpses, brushed hair from her lips, and moistened her parched mouth with distilled water from her bag.
A horde of monsters had hesitated but refused to flee, forcing her into nonstop frenzy.
Now, head cleared, she reflected: I must've lost it for a moment there.
Immortality didn't numb pain or fear.
Until yesterday, jamming a stapler into her finger had been her life's worst agony.
She finished her thoughts, wiped water droplets from her chin with her sleeve, then frowned at something odd and looked down.
"What? Why's it clean?"
Her uniform, soaked in gore before, looked fresh as new.
Only the water stain from moments ago marred it.
She hadn't died and respawned amid corpses, nor changed clothes and forgotten.
Standing, she dusted off her butt with wonder, then hefted her bag—pristine too.
"More than that, this pipe's tough. Peak modern engineering..."
Arin twirled the iron pipe, its surface crusted dark red with dried blood, loosening her wrists.
Then faint voices drifted from somewhere.
Instinct kicked in; she vaulted through a shattered window into the building, gripped the pipe two-handed, and held her breath.
Unknown who or when they'd arrive, she stayed tense—until a sudden laugh escaped, forcing out her breath.
"Haha... wait, why'd I even hide?"
Less than a day ago, she'd bashed monster skulls in a deathless rage—what was there to fear?
Self-mocking, she scratched her neck and peeked out.
"Huh?"
Spotting the voices' owners, she called without thinking.
"Wh-what?! Kid, you're alive?"
Injun, the hardware store owner who'd swung a pipe with her on day one, jumped like he'd seen a ghost and rushed forward.
Gyeongmin, ever cynical, gawked wide-eyed, jabbing a finger at her repeatedly.
Seo-ah, who'd used her as bait to flee, sweated coldly, avoiding the others' eyes—clearly hiding it.
Arin savored their varied reactions, then deliberately hid the prior events and her curse-or-blessing ability.
"Got... lucky."
No deep reason to hide.
Seo-ah's betrayal shocked her—she'd use even a young kid as bait.
But more, Arin couldn't gauge her difference from street monsters.
And crucially, these people from another world—were they truly human?
Same shells, different species? Or monsters by her standards?
Arin gripped the pipe tucked behind her waist.
"We heard your scream and figured you were done for...! No, no. Anyway, glad you're okay."
"...Fuck, how'd you survive?"
"Gyeongmin! Watch your mouth around the kid!"
Gyeongmin shook off Injun's hand clamping his mouth and unleashed pent-up words.
"No, seriously, fuck—we barely escaped half-dead, ass hanging out. Track star or what? I thought you were clueless with that flower garden in your skull since you didn't know basic counters, but nah, you dumped brains for stamina, huh?!"
"Didn't know you had that much to say."
"Shut it, old man. It's messing with my head... means we ditched someone who could survive. Fuck."
Seo-ah, hanging back observantly, wiped sweat from her chin and hugged Arin.
"G-good! I really thought you were dead...!"
Forcing tears that wouldn't come, she turned away from the men, released her, and asked.
"No idea how you escaped, but..."
How'd you not die?
"I won't... won't abandon you again, Arin..."
I saw you get grabbed.
Her worried tone clashed with cold eyes; Arin smiled softly and brushed it off.
"It's fine."
Seo-ah sneered inwardly at their blabbing—idiots—as they spilled survival talk and Yellow Door info, her hand drifting to her waist bag.
Chill seeped through the fabric; she fiddled with the blade from the store, gaze shifting to the Yellow Door peeking between buildings.
"Heard some fighting last night, but I just hid..."
"Makes sense—who'd stick their neck out with them all dying?"
"Last night? What about morning?"
"Quiet in the morning."
Hoping Arin, nearby since last night, knew the carnage's cause, they sighed at her ignorance.
Someone suggested the culprits moved on or followed a night-only rule, but rules didn't matter now—no deep dives.
Soon, without real peril, the four reached the yellow object and simultaneously looked up.
"Whoa, fuck, what is this?"
The towering structure gleamed yellow-smooth, flawless—no seams, welds, not even a scratch.
As if molded whole in this form and scale.
Awe and reverence filled them, not horror; mesmerized, they reached out and approached.