Chapter 11: Split in Half
Chapter 11: Split in Half
“There he goes again. You’d be better off keeping quiet.”
At the immediate jab, Park Donggeol scowled at the sharp-tongued woman but didn’t retort. Instead, he spoke in a voice that was incomparably softer than before.
“Did you not hear what this young lady just said? She said we shouldn’t fight amongst ourselves.”
“Why don’t you reflect on your own actions before you say something like that?”
“Well, you’ve got a point there. Still, since we gathered to share our opinions, how about we at least hear each other out?”
Everyone drew a sharp breath when Park Donggeol readily admitted his fault. The sharp-tongued woman frowned slightly, as if wondering if the man had eaten something strange.
“First, I apologize to everyone for my behavior in the clearing. And even if my words are harsh, I hope you won’t take it too personally. It’s just how I’ve always talked; I didn’t have any ill feelings toward any of you.”
Park Donggeol glanced around before bowing his head ever so slightly. Though some resentful glares remained, the atmosphere had softened considerably. He slowly moved toward the center of the group, gauging their reactions. Deciding the situation was suitable for a discussion, he got straight to the point.
“I agree with some of what this banker lady said. That’s right. Arguing right now is pointless. Let’s put aside our bad blood for a moment and figure out how to escape these monsters and survive. What do you say?”
“…Then go on, say what you have to say.”
“It’s just as I said. I agree with some of it, but I’m not satisfied with the rest. To state my conclusion first, I want everyone to realize the reality of their own situation.”
“What part are you dissatisfied with?”
When Lee Borim asked with a slight grumble, Park Donggeol answered with a sinister smile.
“It’s only natural to look for a way to survive, but I don’t think cooperation is possible. Cooperation? Sounds nice. But considering our current situation and our feelings, it just sounds like a load of bullshit to me.”
“I wondered what you were getting at. Fine, then leave. Go run away on your own and survive on your own.”
The sharp-tongued woman shot back with a snort, but Park Donggeol didn’t flinch. On the contrary, he nodded in agreement.
“Of course, I’ve considered that as well.”
“Then get out.”
“Just listen first. Hear me out, okay? Listen to everything I have to say.”
When Ahn Hyun gave her a look, the sharp-tongued woman, though annoyed, managed to shut her mouth. With the entire group’s attention on him, Park Donggeol calmly continued.
“I’m ignorant. And I’m rough. But I don’t know how to lie. I’m simple. While running for my life back in that clearing, I felt and thought about a lot of things. Since then, the word ‘cooperation’ has really started to grate on my nerves.”
At his words, everyone shivered, recalling the events in the clearing. As if waiting for that reaction, Park Donggeol’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
“To be honest, I wasn’t just anxious—I was terrified. It’s embarrassing, but my knees were shaking so bad I nearly pissed myself. Think about it. Those things you only ever see in movies or on TV suddenly appear right in front of you. What could you do? If that guy over there standing watch hadn’t moved so quickly, most of us would have been a tasty meal for those monsters by now. So I thought about it, and I thought hard. This isn’t a boast, and I’m not trying to threaten you, so don’t misunderstand. I’m a guy who’s lived by the knife. Whether it’s a knife or something else, I can now kill people or animals without hesitation. Why? Because I don’t want to die. In the clearing, it all happened so fast that I was shocked and flustered, but I want to live. So if a situation like that happens again, I will swing this weapon to survive.”
Park Donggeol’s speech was long, and it wasn’t over yet. But the others, despite their suspicion, began to focus on his words. Having a rough idea of his intentions, I clicked my tongue inwardly but decided to wait and see. Soon, he began pointing to people one by one as he continued.
“I don’t know about the others, but that pretty-boy punk over there looks like he’s worked out a bit. He brought a weapon and has dealt with the monsters, so… And you, over there. If you can act as well as you can talk, you might be of some help. And the guy with the crossbow goes without saying. Right. The four of us can definitely help each other. In other words, there’s a chance for a cooperative relationship to be established. Isn’t that right?”
Dark clouds formed over the faces of Ahn Sol, Lee Shinwoo, and Lee Borim. In other words, he was saying they were useless. Finally, Lee Borim mustered her courage and raised her voice.
“So you’re saying you can’t cooperate with people who aren’t helpful?”
“Whoa, whoa. Calm down. I’m not done talking yet.”
“What on earth…”
“So, can you do what that guy or the one with the crossbow did? Do you really think you can grab a rock or a sword and stab those monsters? From where I’m standing, it’s a definite no. Especially you and the girl stuck to that guy’s side—all you did was shriek every time they appeared. At least the woman over there kept her mouth shut. She didn’t get in the way. If you’d done just that much, I wouldn’t have said a word.”
The woman Park Donggeol pointed to was the one who had asked why I was leaving earlier. She still maintained a cold and composed expression.
A moment passed before Lee Borim finally spoke, her voice trembling. It was much more subdued than before.
“So, your conclusion is to abandon the people who aren’t helpful…”
Watching Lee Borim trail off, unable to finish her sentence, I thought about the man named Park Donggeol. It wasn’t that I didn’t understand his intentions, but his words were worth reconsidering. At first, I thought he was just an idiot with shit for brains, but he had a surprisingly accurate grasp of the current situation and was presenting his own logic, whatever his ulterior motives might be.
Seeing the crestfallen Lee Borim, Park Donggeol bared his yellowed teeth and spoke with renewed confidence.
“Why are you jumping ahead? I haven’t said anything like that yet. Don’t be so sensitive. The world is all about give and take. That means cooperation can only happen when you guys show that you can be helpful in some way. What do you think will happen if we just vaguely agree to cooperate and go outside? That thug will be busy taking care of his girlfriend, and it’ll be a miracle if that little kid doesn’t just freeze up and get in the way again. I’m saying I don’t want to protect and cooperate with idiots like that. My life is the most important thing to me. Isn’t it the same for you?”
The sharp-tongued woman had nothing to say and just fidgeted with her hands. Lee Borim’s face was visibly flushed. I could see her clenching her fists and trembling, but it seemed she had no retort either. After leisurely observing them, Park Donggeol must have felt it was time to play his trump card, and began rattling off his words with practiced fluency.
“My own life being the most important—that’s the same for everyone here. If you can admit that, let’s be straight with each other. Some of the people here can’t cooperate. Even now, you’re just blindly depending on others. You, kid. Right?”
Startled at being singled out, Ahn Sol looked at Ahn Hyun and moved her lips. She seemed to have something to say, but the words wouldn’t come out as she’d hoped, and she lowered her head again. Park Donggeol watched her and gave an exaggerated shrug.
“That guy knew it too, which is why he told the kid to walk on her own earlier. If you had just gone with the crossbow guy when he said to, you wouldn’t be in this mess. Huh? Why the long faces? Did I say something wrong again?”
It wasn’t entirely wrong. Regardless of his true intentions, his assessment of reality was more or less accurate. The problem was that for those who needed help, he had hit them with the blunt truth.
“If you think I’m wrong, prove it right now. Go down the hill, kill one or two of those monsters from before, and bring them to me. Then I’ll shut my mouth for good.”
“……”
As if he had said all he needed to, Park Donggeol stepped back and returned to his spot. I was curious about the others’ reactions. I turned my head and began to slowly study their faces.
Ahn Hyun had his eyes closed, seemingly lost in deep thought, while Sol trembled faintly beside her brother. But the most pitiful were Lee Borim and Lee Shinwoo. It was clear that Park Donggeol had targeted them from the start. Their teeth were chattering audibly as they tensed up. For a while, no one spoke. The first to break the silence was Ahn Hyun.
“I understand what you’re saying, but…”
Ahn Hyun, who had mostly remained silent, glanced at his sister and spoke in a clear voice.
“Sol is not my girlfriend; she’s my little sister. I have no intention of abandoning her, not even for a second.”
“Oppa…”
Ahn Sol, looking touched, threw her arms around Ahn Hyun. Park Donggeol, seemingly unaware of their relationship, looked taken aback.
“Siblings, huh. I didn’t know. Well, can’t be helped then. But that doesn’t change anything. Who can guarantee that an accident like the one before won’t happen again?”
The situation was becoming quite interesting. Since he couldn’t target Ahn Hyun directly, he was now pressuring him by targeting Ahn Sol, who was clearly a liability. In the end, Park Donggeol had chosen to split off on his own. But instead of leaving quietly, he was deliberately shaking everyone up. Ahn Hyun said nothing more, and the hill became so quiet you couldn’t even hear breathing.
“Well, don’t take it too hard. I know I talked for a while, but this half-assed situation won’t get us anywhere, right? And it seems like a lot of you don’t like me anyway.”
“So, what is it you ultimately want…?”
When the sharp-tongued woman asked in a tone less cutting than before, Park Donggeol answered immediately.
“I want to create a proper team here.”