Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Motel
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Thud thud.
The muffled pops of silenced gunfire rang out in quick succession.
The zombie charging at the front with its mouth gaping wide took several rounds straight to the forehead. It staggered forward a few more steps on momentum before pitching face-first onto the ground.
"Eek...!"
A choked gasp came from Sua right behind me.
"Don't freak out. Just think of them as moving targets."
I calmly swung the muzzle toward the next one. The second zombie was trying to squeeze through the shattered glass door.
I squeezed the trigger fast.
Thwip.
Its head snapped back, spraying dark red blood into the air.
It didn't explode like a watermelon as in movies or games, but the impact was undeniable.
"Let's go. Run!"
I grabbed Sua's wrist and bolted out of the flower garden complex.
The lighting gear in my backpack rattled against my back.
"Hah... hah... Oppa, aren't they all taken care of?"
Sua panted as she asked.
"No. This is just the beginning."
A silencer doesn't make it completely silent. It only muffles the powder blast—the primer strike, the bullet cutting through the air, and the zombies collapsing still make noise.
In this quiet space, that much sound creates quite a ripple.
"Grraaah..."
"Kieeeek!"
Just as expected.
Zombies started appearing around the complex, from the nearby woods and road.
Two, four, six...
Easily over ten of them. They all turned their heads toward us.
"Damn... more than I thought."
It looked like every zombie in the area had gathered.
"Sua, grip that bat tight. If you fall behind me, you're dead."
"Y-yeah! Got it!"
We sprinted toward the road.
We needed the fastest route to the mountain entrance where the bunker was.
Any zombie blocking the way got shot without hesitation.
Thud, thwip.
Firing on the move lowered accuracy, but it succeeded in slowing them down.
Each time the buttstock thumped against my shoulder, a strange thrill coursed through me.
This is what a gun feels like.
Overwhelming firepower.
But that thrill didn't last long.
"Huh...?"
It was when we neared the mountain entrance leading to the bunker.
My feet stopped on their own.
"Oppa, what's wrong? We gotta hurry!"
Sua pushed at my back, but I couldn't move.
Near the hiking trail up the mountain.
A horde of at least a hundred zombies clustered around the trail.
"...Fuck."
How long had they been there?
The reason didn't matter.
What mattered was that the path home was blocked.
Breaking through that would be suicide. I had enough mags, but sustained gunfire would just draw even more.
"Oppa... what do we do now..."
Sua's voice trembled with fear. Her face had gone completely pale.
"We can't punch through there."
I made a snap decision.
Behind us, zombies from the flower garden were closing in. Ahead was a wall of undead.
Linger here, and we'd be sandwiched and torn apart.
"Change direction."
"Huh? Which way?"
"Opposite side of the mountain. Toward the city."
"Are you crazy?! That's the city! There'll be way more zombies!"
"Better than getting surrounded here. We need to shake the ones chasing us first. Plus, we can lure those bastards away while we're at it."
No choice.
I gripped Sua's hand tight and turned.
"Run!"
We crossed the road and headed into the alleys of the residential area on the other side.
"Kyaaaah!"
The zombies that spotted us howled and gave chase.
We ran like our soles were on fire.
The heavy backpack weighed down my shoulders, but I couldn't ditch it. These lights were hard-won treasures to improve bunker life—no way I'd abandon them.
"Hngh, hngh... Oppa... I'm dying here..."
Sua's breathing grew ragged.
Should've made her do more cardio.
"Hang in there a bit longer. Once we hit that alley, we can lose them."
We passed the road tangled with wrecked cars and turned into the neighborhood alleys.
The narrow, twisting alleys were perfect for shaking pursuit.
But they were also danger zones where anything could lunge from around a corner.
I kept the muzzle up, eyes scanning ahead as I ran.
That's when it happened.
A zombie leaped from behind a wall, lunging at Sua.
"Kyaa!"
Crack!
Before I could fire, Sua screamed and swung her bat.
Her eyes squeezed shut, the bat luckily smashed right into its skull.
"Nice one!"
I kicked the staggering zombie down and finished it off.
Sua's eyes went wide in shock at knocking it down herself, but no time to praise her.
"Keep following."
We zigzagged through the alleys.
After a while, the howls from behind seemed to fade.
The area had gone quiet, surrounded only by the unfamiliar neighborhood.
An old district of rundown villas and single-family homes.
Windows shattered, trash littering the streets.
"Hoo... hoo..."
I ducked behind a pillar in a villa parking lot to catch my breath.
Sua collapsed to the ground, dry-heaving.
"Urk... hngh... heuk..."
"You okay? Here, drink some water."
I pulled a water bottle from the backpack's side pocket and handed it over. Sua took it with shaking hands and drank.
"What... what do we do now? We can't even go home..."
Sua looked up at me, on the verge of tears.
Tears welled in her eyes. Her face screamed regret for ever leaving the bunker.
"Don't worry. We'll find a way."
I spoke calmly while scanning the surroundings.
Heading back to the bunker right now was impossible. We'd have to wait for the horde at the entrance to disperse or find another route.
The sun was still high in the sky.
We had plenty of time before nightfall.
"Let's find a place to hole up and regroup first. Once they scatter, we head back up the mountain."
I wrapped an arm around Sua's anxious shoulders.
"Who am I? The Biting Lord. This crisis is nothing."
Sua let out a small chuckle at my bravado.
"Tch... joking in a situation like this?"
"Gotta have some slack. Relax."
I checked the gun again. Swapped mags, cleared the chamber.
Once maintenance was done, my mind settled.
We were pretty far from the bunker now.
Unfamiliar territory.
But I had a gun in my hands, and a reliable woman by my side.
This situation oddly excited me.
Safe sex in the bunker was great, but the thrill of life-or-death stakes wasn't bad either.
"Up. Staying here is dangerous."
I pulled Sua to her feet.
We needed an empty house or shop that looked safe. Somewhere to hide, watch the zombies' movements.
We started moving again.
That's when I spotted a flyer plastered under a nearby utility pole.
Worn and torn, but a familiar logo caught my eye.
[Bebe Motel - Lowest Prices, Day Use Welcome]
A motel, huh.
Looking around, I saw a building with the same name.
A grin spread across my face.
"Sua, see that?"
"Huh? A motel?"
"Let's head there first. Perfect spot to hide and rest."
Reading my eyes, Sua blushed and pinched my arm.
"Oppa... even now, you're thinking that?"
"Thinking what? I'm just looking for a safe place."
I brazenly replied and took the lead.
The path home was blocked. We were stranded in an unfamiliar city.
But it wasn't hopeless.
It felt like a new adventure was beginning. My heart raced.
Sua's ass looked even more tempting today—must be this damn tension.
After a couple more alley turns, a shabby seven-story building appeared.
The neon sign was busted, but "Bebe Motel" was legible.
The area was dead silent. No zombies patrolling the street nearby.
"That place... safe?"
Sua whispered, hiding behind me.
"We'll see once we check."
We approached the motel entrance slowly.
As we passed the parking lot and reached the automatic door.
"Huh?"
The door was stuck open from power failure, but the front was a mess.
Desks, chairs, sofas, and all sorts of furniture blocked the entrance. Not haphazardly piled, but deliberately stacked into a barricade.
Human work.
Zombies didn't have the smarts for that.
Which meant someone was living inside the motel.
I peered through a gap in the barricade. The lobby was dim, but I spotted empty water bottles and snack wrappers on the floor.
"Sua."
"Yeah?"
"Looks like someone's here."
"Owner? A person?"
"Yeah. They barricaded the entrance. Real thorough job."
Meeting people in this situation could be riskier than zombies.
But it might also mean info or a place to crash.
Or maybe find a cute girl.
I had the firepower advantage. No civilian in Korea besides me would have this rifle.
"What do we do? Go somewhere else?"
Sua asked with worried eyes.
I thought for a sec, then smirked.
"Nah. Let's go in. Curious what kinda guys are playing house here."
If they're bad news, kill and loot. If reasonable, threaten with the gun—what can they do?
Either way, it was a new variable for my bunker life.
I found the weakest spot in the barricade and nudged it with the muzzle.
Felt like movement inside.
"Anyone home? Got a customer here."