The Doorkeeper's Last Stand
Anna arrived right after and asked,
"What's going on? Someone inside?"
Beom-sik nodded, and Anna pressed her face to the door crack, whispering desperately.
"If it's food you want, we can share plenty. We cleaned out this whole mart. Please, just open the door. This can't feel good for you either!"
"Step back!"
"What're you gonna do?"
Beom-sik grabbed a fire extinguisher and charged.
"Smash the glass! Then the people inside can be bait instead."
It was a mad idea.
Was this guy always this brutal?
Beom-sik's eyes weren't sane.
Anna tried to calm the agitated man and glanced back.
Jaejeong and Youngman had shoved several carts toward the infected, then came running with Hyun-soo and Chaemin.
The distance was too close to keep the carts.
That was when it happened.
Creak!
The tightly shut restaurant door swung open.
At the same instant, Beom-sik and Anna, locked in their struggle, were pulled inside by someone's hand.
The one who'd yanked them in was a middle-aged man with a bulging belly.
Three more people were inside the restaurant.
But the man who scanned outside gestured urgently to shut the door.
Anna screamed desperately.
"There are more out here!"
The man hesitated, frozen, unable to decide.
As the infected's noises grew closer, he finally pulled the door shut.
His widening eyes seemed to catch the hallway scene.
If that door closed, the rest of the group was dead.
Beom-sik and Anna lunged toward the closing door.
Right then.
Thud!
A hand like a pot lid jammed into the gap.
Then it wrenched the door wide open.
The owner was Jaejeong.
Youngman, Chaemin, and Hyun-soo followed in single file.
But trouble hit.
The man's face twisted as he tried to close the door.
Sure enough.
An infected's arm squeezed through the crack.
The arms multiplied to two, three, four in seconds, grabbing the man's nape and collar.
The group rushed over too late.
Their teeth were already tearing into his neck.
Blood sprayed like a fountain, and a resentful scream echoed like tinnitus beneath it.
Attachment to life, maybe.
Even then, the man wouldn't release the door.
Leave him like that, and everyone was done for.
The moment he turned infected, the restaurant would become hell.
The three with him screamed and wailed.
"Fuck!"
Beom-sik, breathing raggedly, charged with a curse.
He started shoving the man—who clung to the door—outward.
The more force Beom-sik added, the redder the man's eyes got.
He held on to the bitter end.
He knew dragging it out meant doom.
"Get out! Get the fuck out!"
Beom-sik bellowed.
He shoved with all his might, snarling.
But the man didn't budge.
Blood streamed from his mouth.
Puke!
The man's body, rigid as a tree, suddenly flew outward.
A massive hand joined beside Beom-sik's knuckles.
Jaejeong.
The man couldn't withstand Jaejeong's brute strength.
They combined forces like it was planned.
His desperate grip on the handle weakened, his resentful eyes dimming.
Screeech!
The sound of his palms sliding off the glass door.
That was it.
The man vanished outside with the infected.
Beom-sik slammed the door shut, and Jaejeong locked it.
Click!
They leaned against it, panting heavily.
Sweat poured like rain.
The man's screams faded slowly, slowly.
The infected's pack-like noises quieted too.
Listening, they closed their eyes.
No choice.
If they'd left him...
Jaejeong scanned the restaurant.
Everyone swallowed dryly now and then.
No one judged the scene before them.
Couldn't.
It was unavoidable.
His eyes met the three survivors.
Two men and a middle-aged woman.
One man glared at the group and the woman like he wanted to kill them.
His eyes were so chilling it was burdensome to meet them.
Youngman stepped up and patted his shoulder.
"Sorry about your companion..."
"Hands off. Stay back."
The man slapped Youngman's hand away and whispered harshly.
Whispering because of the infected outside.
His fierce glare turned to the woman.
"I said don't open it, right? You whined about regrets and convinced hyung to do it, didn't you, auntie?"
"I-I didn't know it'd turn out like this."
Tears welled in the woman's eyes.
"If you're gonna play human, you should've opened it yourself. And it should've been you dying, not hyung. Right? Tell me, you fucking hypocrite."
"I'm sorry... I really, really didn't think..."
The woman backed away, tears flowing.
In the quiet restaurant, only her sobs and the man's heavy breaths sounded.
The other man couldn't stand it and intervened.
"Enough. Stop it. Yelling won't bring the chef back."
"Bullshit. If we'd stayed quiet, nothing would've happened. It's all that idiot's fault."
"Cut it out. How many people do you think are left out there? You heard the radio. The chef's not the only dead one. What's the point of blame in this shit?"
"Point or not, I clearly said don't open..."
The excited man couldn't finish.
Beom-sik appeared in a flash, crushing his nape and slamming him against the wall.
The man thrashed to escape, breath cut off.
But Beom-sik's grip only tightened.
"Found you, you bastard. It was you, huh? The one saying don't open the door. I told you—if shit hits, you're first I bite."
The choking man shoved wildly at Beom-sik's face and neck with his palms.
Beom-sik kept his hold on the neck even as his skin shifted.
The man's struggles grew frantic, terror turning to seizure-like rebellion.
That was when Jaejeong grabbed Beom-sik's arm and yanked.
"Gah! Cough! Cough! Urghhh..."
The man collapsed, fluids spilling from his face.
Tears and snot smeared as he rubbed his face on the floor.
A bit longer, and it would've been bad.
Jaejeong stared steadily into Beom-sik's eyes.
Not normal eyes.
A dangerous glint he'd never seen.
But Jaejeong said nothing.
Just held the arm and stared.
Beom-sik didn't shake him off.
They locked eyes for a long moment.
Then...
Beom-sik's gaze wavered first. He roughly shook off Jaejeong's hand and turned away.
Every move dripped venom.
Onlookers felt like walking on thin ice.
His aura was worlds apart from an ordinary man's.
Killing intent seeped from every step and gesture, like he'd snap any second.
"We survived, that's what matters... survived..."
Jaejeong muttered low.
Beom-sik, still fuming, paced aimlessly with hands on hips.
Then he kicked tables and chairs violently.
Crash! Bang! Clatter!
The racket filled the restaurant.
The infected outside had been howling since hearing the man's cough.
This noise would keep them pounding the glass for a while.
Good thing the blinds were down; without them, they might've already smashed in.
Still, Beom-sik didn't stop.
His storm of rage only ended after hurling tables into the kitchen.
Only after utensils shattered and sauce containers spilled.
Everyone watched in silence, holding their breath.
What'd they expect?
People aren't fixable.
Did they think Lee Beom-sik was some gentle soul?
Jaejeong gave a wry smile.
"Anyway, big problem. We're in, but... how do we get out?"
Youngman asked Jaejeong casually.
Changing the subject.
"Dunno yet."
"We have time, but no real plan."
Time wasn't the issue.
The carts were all outside, surrounded by at least dozens of infected at the entrance.
Worse, the restaurant was too humid and hot.
Just breathing made the discomfort boil over.
And they'd tire soon enough.
Jaejeong peered through the blinds and muttered to himself.
"Still... can't abandon that food."
"Got an idea?"
"Not sure. You? What about those two?"
Jaejeong eyed Anna, Chaemin, and Hyun-soo in turn.
No answers, same as always.
Anna's brows twitched as she pondered.
"How 'bout this? Wait till they back off the door a bit, then fire a firecracker arrow. Load it up, crack the door, shoot, shut it fast."
"When'd you grab those?"
Youngman's eyes widened at the firecracker arrows.
They might solve this perfectly.
"Just in case. Prepare for the worst."
"No, can't."
Jaejeong shook his head, and Anna and Youngman jumped in.
"Why?"
"Yeah, why not?"
"Too loud. Haven't cleared the whole basement—who knows what else lurks. Worst case, no way out at all."
"Fair point..."
Anna had to concede.
"Let's think."
Jaejeong crossed his arms and paced.
Only one exit: that door.
Had to grab the food, so no side routes even if they existed.
So how?
Infected swarming outside, humid hell inside.
Sweating like this would wear them down fast.
No drinking water either.
There was a purifier, but its bottle was nearly empty.
Find a sure way quick, or some variable would hit.
Every moment a crisis.
Survival threatened constantly, scheming endlessly just to breathe.
How long could they last?
How long to live?
As heavy thoughts crushed their minds, Jaejeong's eyes darted around busily.
He wandered near the door, mimicking measuring its width.
Then swung his sledgehammer around.
This time, he stretched his arm with the hammer, gauging distance, then pivoted to the wrecked kitchen.
Jaejeong meticulously checked kitchen tools with his flashlight.
"Hey, you two."
He called Chaemin and Hyun-soo; they approached, puzzled.
"I'll talk casual since I'm like your big bro. Cool?"
They exchanged glances and nodded.
Even if not, they wouldn't speak up.
Who'd argue with that build?
"Alright, you take this. Hyun-soo, right? You get that."
He handed Chaemin a garlic mortar, Hyun-soo a frying pan, and grinned satisfied.
At the kitchen entrance, bemused Youngman and Anna watched.
"Guys only, over here. Lee Beom-sik, you too. I'll help you cool off."
Jaejeong tried rallying them, but no response.
Especially Beom-sik, ignoring him.
"Hey, fight's a fight, yeah? But we gonna starve here? Gotta get out first. Don't come, I'll bust that door wide."
Did it work?
Beom-sik, alone in the dim corner, snorted and stood.
The two wary men reluctantly joined the kitchen.
Infected