Awls That Pierce the Pocket
Time passed, and night fell dark over the world.
Yejin was clearing away the leftover pot and bowls from the ramen they'd boiled for dinner when someone crept up behind her.
"Unnie. Unnie."
"...Hmm? What is it, Sujin?"
Yejin looked at her with puzzled eyes. Sujin's face was serious yet somehow adorable as she dropped her voice so no one else would hear.
"Are you really dating that scary ahjussi?"
"...Huh?"
Yejin had thought she might be asking to go to the bathroom together. The question, delivered with those utterly innocent eyes, caught her completely off guard.
"I heard it earlier too, you know. You said you were going to spend some private time with that ahjussi."
"Th-that was just a joke. We went upstairs because we had something to do together."
"What kind of something?"
"Uh... well, that is..."
Yejin hesitated.
She'd heard all sorts of things from that remarkable crow AI, but she couldn't be sure whether she was allowed to tell anyone else. More precisely, she hadn't asked the only person who could grant that permission — so she had no choice but to stop talking.
As she flustered and fumbled, Sujin blinked, then followed her sister's gaze and turned her head.
And when she saw the man sprawled alone on the sofa, as always, her suspicions only deepened.
"...Unnie. Was it actually true?"
Then Yujin, who'd been stacking bowls nearby with a look of mild exasperation, asked the same thing with a shocked expression — and Yejin's heart grew more frantic by the second.
"No! It's not like that. In a situation where we're barely hanging on to our lives, what kind of—"
"Then what did the two of you go upstairs to do?"
"Just... well... we went up the stairs and..."
"...Did you two start hugging and stuff?"
"?!?!"
Yejin, who'd been desperately maintaining a blank expression and acting like nothing was wrong, flinched involuntarily.
At her reaction, both twins — and even Soeun, who'd been quietly eavesdropping — clapped their hands over their mouths.
Then Soeun poked Chaeyeon, the only one among the girls who was lost in her own thoughts with zero interest in any of this.
"Ah, what is it already? I was in the middle of reviewing the battle."
"You crazy battle-obsessed bitch. Is that what matters right now?"
Looking into Chaeyeon's eyes — which showed not a shred of understanding for her friend's agitation — Soeun felt an indescribable frustration.
Seriously, was this girl a Valkyrie in a past life or something?
But from Chaeyeon's perspective, she couldn't understand why her friend was making such a fuss in the first place.
"Look, it's not like Sijun-oppa is a eunuch. So what if something's going on between him and Yejin-unnie? It's not like we're even family."
"And Kang Soeun, you're pretty weird yourself. Just a few days ago you couldn't have cared less whenever the girls in our class talked about their love lives."
So why the big production now?
At that, Soeun closed her mouth for a moment, then glanced at the sofa that had become his exclusive domain before looking back at Chaeyeon.
"Isn't it obvious? He's the one who saved all our lives and took responsibility for us."
"Hmm..."
Is that really all?
As if asking that very question, Chaeyeon's fox-like eyes curved — and Soeun snorted and shot back.
"What about you, then? Are you really fine with it?"
Having been friends their whole lives, they could each see through at least a fragment of the feelings the other was hiding.
Though neither of them knew what the true nature of those feelings was.
Chaeyeon thought for a moment at Soeun's question, then habitually ran her fingers along the scabbard of her blade, its edge hidden away.
"Who knows."
Then she unconsciously resumed the battle review she'd paused hours earlier — the final fight from a few hours ago.
No. More precisely.
She thought of someone who had covered for her without her even noticing, while slaughtering zombies on every side.
That face full of irritation and annoyance, scrunched up in a scowl. And that broad back, soaked in blood — the first thing in her life that had made her feel some unidentifiable emotion.
...Is it jealousy after all?
Even if he was her savior, it must have been something she felt unconsciously toward that superior strength of his.
Or maybe...
Competitive spirit? Admiration?
She didn't know.
Chaeyeon laughed softly, pulled her gaze from the sword, and looked toward the central sofa.
As always, he was muttering to himself with that blank face — and their eyes met.
"What are you doing fondling that sword by yourself? The girls not playing with you?"
"...Heh. No, Oppa."
Every time I look at Im Chaeyeon, I can't help thinking those curved eyes of hers when she smiles look exactly like a fox's.
I remember earlier at dinner when she cracked some nonsense joke and smiled like that — every single guy went blank and just stared at her.
At least Oppa doesn't fall for those fox tricks of hers. Thank god.
— That was Soeun saying something to me afterward, which I'll skip.
I gestured for Chaeyeon, who was staring at me with that strange expression, to come over, then called the guys who were moping in the corner as well.
Then I raised my hand to call over the girls too, who were clustered together like they were hatching some conspiracy after supposedly clearing the table.
Why do they keep glancing this way, though? Are they talking behind my back or something?
Once everyone had gathered at the central sofa, I fixed my slouched posture and waved for them all to sit.
But the space was a bit tight, so when Yejin hesitated, I pulled her hand and sat her next to me — and for some reason Sujin beside us was flapping her hands in pure excitement.
Then she met my eyes, immediately shrank, and sat down with suddenly demure movements.
The guys roughly filled the remaining seats by bringing over chairs.
"Alright. You all saw Yejin and me go upstairs earlier, right?"
"...Yes, hyung-nim. We saw, but..."
Jonghun, the oldest among the men, scratched his freshly showered hair as he played along.
But the girls' reactions seemed off somehow. Looks like they'd roughly heard the story.
"Well, looking at those faces, seems some of you already heard about it from Yejin."
"...??"
The guys blinked in confusion, and among the girls, only Jiyoon — who alone hadn't caught on — blinked her eyes.
I was about to continue when Sujin, looking back and forth between me and Yejin with sparkling eyes, and Yujin beside her carefully reading the room, caught my attention.
And next to me, Yejin sitting still with a blank expression and a reddened face was a bit odd, but I let it slide.
I was too lazy to explain, so I jumped straight to the point. Why bother fretting over the inner thoughts of a middle-school girl still living in her flower-garden phase?
"Alright, introductions. The avian AI that'll be handling everything from showers to this building's various amenities and electricity. In other words — bird flu... no, an electronic slave."
"What, it's the truth."
At the clear voice that came from a computer in a corner of the café, everyone went slack-jawed and turned to look.
"Anyway, one way or another — this is Miss Crow, who'll be staying with us. Applause."
"Ah, ignore the useless complaining and clap. Clap. Quietly enough that the corpses outside can't hear, of course."
Clap clap clap clap...
Everyone carefully applauded while watching my reaction, and the crow — who by the atmosphere could no longer put it off — made her appearance with a thoroughly sulky face(?).
"Whoa."
"What the hell is that?"
Via the beam projector, that is.
With her standing before us, pouting with remarkably lifelike gestures, I continued.
"Originally I was only going to show Kim Yejin today and introduce her gradually starting tomorrow for safety reasons. But then I realized I could just bring her over to this café computer."
"You said you haven't even been on this Earth for a full day."
I looked at the crow, who'd crossed her wings like arms and was side-eyeing me, then turned back to the group.
"As you can see, she talks too much. Just filter out the noise from now on."
"That's enough. I don't want to waste resources. Start the explanation."
Just like someone I know, she clamped her beak shut with thoroughly sullen eyes and stared off at distant mountains.
I eventually sighed once, then opened my mouth.
"Fine. I'll grant you one request. Just hurry up and start."
At that single line, she beamed as if nothing had happened and launched into lively chatter — and I realized I'd been had.
Well, I'd brought it on myself.
But where did she learn that Chinese-character-spouting habit?
Clap clap—
When the crow struck a splendid pose and clapped her wings, the two fluorescent lights that had been on inside the café shut off by themselves.
"Ooooh..."
Leaving Haejun in the front chair making unnecessary sounds of awe, a cosmic backdrop gradually filled the wide screen like some documentary.
Then the crow's voice came through — not in her usual bright, bouncing tone, but solemn and serious.
"Long, long ago... the world was called the Grand Dimension..."
"Skip."
At my single tossed-out word, the majestic floating stars froze, and the crow's face popped out abruptly.
"I told you I don't have time."
"There are exactly two pieces of information you need to give them. First: zombies. Second: the shop."
"Inevitable, my ass. Skip. Skip."
At my cold hand wave, the crow discarded every last bit of material she'd prepared, looking thoroughly dejected.
"Huh? How'd you know. That's exactly me."
The crow could only stare resentfully as I rummaged through my pockets for snacks.