Chapter 42
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Morning Recovery and First Hunt
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10 AM.
Everyone had slept so deeply the night before that they didn't open their eyes until late morning.
Or could you even call it waking up?
They were all slumped against the living room floor with half-closed eyelids.
I'd laid out carpets, large cushions, and floor pillows on the living room floor to create a cozy vibe.
The walls were lined with weapons, tools, and massive shelves, making the place feel way too stark, so I'd tried to spruce it up somehow.
Fortunately, the three of them were making good use of it.
"I don't think I've ever slept this deeply..."
"This blanket is so fluffy..."
"Yeah."
So-yoon and Su-a spoke in slow, languid tones.
I nodded in agreement.
I'd slept deeply too.
Back when we were surrounded by zombies, I'd wake up every two hours or so, checking our surroundings out of habit. But now in the apartment, the tension had eased, and it felt like I'd caught up on all the sleep I'd missed.
No wonder Min-hyuk was leaning against the shelf with a drowsy look, half-dozing.
From this angle, all three of them looked so young.
I wasn't much older myself, but these three had just graduated high school and were prepping for college entrance exams at cram school.
They must have spent plenty of sleepless nights there before me.
So last night's sleep must have been even sweeter for them.
I ended up taking over cooking this time.
"Cooking, huh..."
The most I'd ever done was pasta or meal kits.
More like assembly than actual cooking.
Even that was just stuff like meal kits with expiring dates or discounted pasta sauces—whatever saved money.
"I can't even look at noodles anymore..."
If a guy like me, who'd only crunched through instant ramen a couple times, felt this way, how bad was it for them?
I could guess, so I wanted to make them some rice.
Koreans always say it's the rice that keeps us going.
I remembered So-yoon saying she wanted rice even when we had meat.
"Doenjang stew and fried eggs should do..."
I'd never made it before, but I'd heard doenjang stew was pretty foolproof.
As long as I kept tasting it, it shouldn't turn out inedible.
I rinsed the rice, hit the cooker button, dissolved doenjang in water, tossed in zucchini and green onions, and set it to boil.
For the fried eggs, I just made extra.
Something told me all three would love them.
The stew's seasoning... it was perfect for me, at least.
Was my dexterity applying to cooking too?
It wasn't amazingly tasty or anything.
Just pretty good for a first try.
"Wake up, time to eat."
The three, who had been dozing, must have been starving too.
At the word "rice," they got up one by one and shuffled to the table.
"Whoa! Rice!"
"It's warm..."
So-yoon opened the rice cooker and excitedly patted Su-a's shoulder.
Su-a smiled at the steam rising from it.
We lined up at the table, ready to eat.
Since I'd cooked, Min-hyuk handled portioning the food into bowls and setting the table.
I hadn't checked, but luckily there were enough bowls for everyone.
"Oppa! This is delicious!"
"Eat slower."
It was a simple spread, but the three were thrilled—way more than I'd expected.
Even more than when we'd had meat.
Maybe because it felt like real home cooking.
By the time we finished eating, a somewhat somber mood had settled in.
"Let's move to the living room for a bit."
At my words, the three exchanged glances, then got up from the table and sat on the living room cushions one by one.
"You asked how to survive."
"Yes."
Su-a nodded solemnly as I looked at her.
Min-hyuk had realized this was important too—his sad expression faded, replaced by a serious one.
"Buy skills."
"Skills?"
"You mean... the 100-point ones?"
"Yeah."
Their faces darkened at my words.
"Oppa could do it, but..."
"A hundred zombies..."
"Just twenty."
100 points.
For regular zombies, that meant killing 100, but variants were different.
"The ones that can see are worth 5 points each. Twenty gets you there."
Plus, their combat power didn't change just because they could see.
The problem was they spotted and attacked from farther away, even if you were quiet.
But their actual strength was the same as normal zombies.
The three could handle it fine without skills.
"Twenty... we could manage."
"If we target just the variant ones. And don't worry too much—I'll help."
Their eyes lit up again.
"Hyung..."
Min-hyuk looked up at me with a touched expression.
"But wouldn't more skills be good for you too, hyung?"
"Nah, I'm good. Made a promise."
"A promise?"
Min-hyuk tilted his head, staring at me.
I smiled at Su-a with my eyes.
Su-a blushed and looked down.
And So-yoon watched the whole thing with wide eyes from the side.
And so, hunting time was added to our schedule.
The first hunt.
The result was a total victory.
We headed back slowly toward the commercial district we'd escaped from, hunting as we went.
And from the entrance, the three unleashed their rampage.
I might have underestimated them.
Without heavy luggage, wielding real weapons instead of improvised ones, they were strong.
Their fights with zombies using fire axes, shovels, and pickaxes were impressive.
Their teamwork was spot-on.
They covered each other's gaps, precisely targeting zombie heads.
Min-hyuk moved like he already had Weapon Technique Level 1.
I only handled zombies lunging from blind spots, but by then, the frontal ones were already smashed and on the ground.
"Hyung! 46 points already!"
"Oppa, I've got 35 points!"
"Mine's 37."
All in just three hours.
Skills felt within reach.
"Still, stay sharp."
I got their excitement, but they couldn't let their guard down.
Not just sighted variants—others might show up.
And if it wasn't my imagination...
'Zombies we didn't kill are around.'
I'd noticed during our escape since I'd taken out most myself.
I sidled up to a zombie corpse and checked.
Definite.
Me and the three had focused on heads for efficiency.
But it wasn't easy.
Heads were tough, full of their main weapon—teeth.
If your weapon was short or couldn't one-shot, aiming for the head was risky.
This killer seemed to think the same.
Lots of slashes on arms and neck, eventually smashing one arm to rags.
"What's up?"
Su-a approached as I stared at the body.
"Someone else is here besides us."
Hunting zombies too.
Not expertly, but definitely hunting.
Probably for points.
And they had a bladed weapon.
While we left the district, someone entered and started.
From the wounds, maybe a group.
"Huh?"
"R-Really?"
The three tensed, scanning around.
"What do we do?"
"...Let's call it here for today—"
Greed could backfire, so I was about to say head back when something flew at us.
It lacked power to reach us but headed straight our way, landing in front.
Crash.
"...A flowerpot?"
It shattered with a clear ring.
I reflexively looked at the building it came from.
Unbelievably, it was the rooftop of the cram school we'd holed up in.
Men up there were mocking us.
At least four visible.
All tattooed with irezumi, total villain vibes.
The kind we'd have clashed with if we hadn't escaped the school.
They'd thrown the pot and were laughing.
Eye contact, and one mouthed "retard."
Absurd.
The zombie corpses around proved how well I—and these three—fought.
Yet they did this?
"...Figures."
Novel villains sometimes begged for death.
These guys must be that type.
I wanted to give them what they wished for, but now wasn't the time.
"Let's run."
"Yes!"
"I'll take the lead."
The flowerpot's crash in the quiet district was no small noise.
The three, who trusted me completely, turned and bolted for the apartment the second I said run.
No questions.
Just swift retreat.
I felt their trust.
And the call was spot-on.
Glancing back, zombies swarmed toward the noise like mist.
More than last time.
Dunno if the crash was louder or more zombies now.
I glared at the rooftop guys one last time.
We'll meet again soon.