The Trap (2)
Han Jiyoung swung her sword, and a head went flying through the air.
The next one that lunged at her had its forehead pierced clean through before it collapsed with a dull thud.
‘One slip-up and I’m dead!’
Han Jiyoung was struggling to adapt to the speed of the Runners. She had been backing away to create distance, but it was futile against the ones attacking from all sides simultaneously.
“Damn it….”
Han Jiyoung felt that the training she’d received at the school was completely useless. The difference in difficulty between the Walkers and the Runners was simply incomparable.
Just as she instinctively felt that her end was right before her eyes—
-Han Jiyoung! Can you hear me?
Was this what the voice of a savior sounded like? The calm yet clear voice of her senior made her snap to attention.
-You don’t have to answer. I’m on my way. But I’m in the opposite direction, so it’ll take some time.
Right. It would take a while. To get from the main gate to the back gate, he’d have to cross the entire university campus….
-I’m going to tell you how to deal with them from now on. Apply it in the field immediately.
A faint smile touched Han Jiyoung’s lips. She felt like a disciple receiving the know-how of a master.
-Use the fact that they run. Their movement is still linear. You know what I mean, right?
In an instant, it felt like a lightning bolt struck her brain. That was it. That was how she could do it.
Han Jiyoung gave up on fighting them head-on and started running again. As she did, her eyes scanned for suitable terrain.
‘There!’
A place where they would inevitably trip if they charged blindly. A place where she could neutralize their speed.
Han Jiyoung climbed the stairs leading to the department building.
“Round two, you bastards!”
The zombies couldn’t climb the stairs easily. They were different only in that they could run; their intelligence remained the same. Blocked by the steep incline, they tangled and collided with each other, causing the ones behind to trip—it was absolute chaos.
Thwack! Thwack!
Han Jiyoung methodically drove her sword into them in the gaps. Whenever they got too close, she climbed a bit higher and repeated the same action.
Once she had dealt with all the Runners, she had enough composure to use the radio.
“Wow, thanks to you, Senior, I survived. Thank you.”
-Are you okay?
“I really thought I was going to die, but I’m fine now.”
-Did you get them all?
“I see a few Walkers, but I don’t think you need to come all the way here, Senior.”
-Is that so?
Although she saw a few, after dealing with the Runners, the Walkers felt much more manageable. However, there was one thing she had missed: Kim Inbeom and the team members were nowhere to be seen.
“Ah, but I don’t see Inbeom.”
-I’m on my way, so you look for them first. Don’t overdo it.
“Yes!”
She had told Kim Inbeom and the team members to run in the opposite direction. If they had moved according to her orders, there shouldn’t be any major problems.
“They must be hiding somewhere. What could possibly happen?”
At first, she brushed it off. But she had to abandon that thought when she saw the dormitory building swarming with zombies. Zombies didn’t move without a reason.
“Ah, no way.”
Han Jiyoung, who had been about to run straight there, stopped her feet in a hurry. The entrance was blocked by a horde of zombies.
“Kim Inbeom! Where are you?”
No matter how many times she called, there was no answer. Either the situation was too dire to even use the radio, or they had already been bitten.
Just then, Kim Inbeom’s ragged breathing tangled through the radio.
-We’re trapped! There are so many zombies here!
“Oh, come on…! I bought you all that time, so why did you crawl back?!”
-We were trying to help you…! But Jiyoung, we can’t use the radio. I don’t know how much longer the door will hold.
“It’s the dormitory building, right? What floor?”
“I asked what floor! Hey! Kim Inbeom! Answer me!”
The radio cut out again. Anxious, Han Jiyoung drew her sword without hesitation. She knew the numbers were too high for her alone, but there was no time to waste.
When she first saw them, there weren’t this many. Why had they suddenly increased? There were more than a few suspicious things, but what mattered now was saving her team members.
“Do you think a sword will be enough?”
“Eh…?”
At the voice from beside her, she turned her head involuntarily. There stood her senior, sweating profusely and catching his breath.
I tossed aside the brush hook and pulled out my rifle. Han Jiyoung just stared at me with a dazed expression.
“Don’t freeze up, pull out your gun.”
“You want us to use guns…? Then the zombies-.”
“Do you not know what’s important right now? We have to save the people first.”
“…….”
There was no time to hesitate. I pulled the charging handle and set the selector to semi-auto.
Bang!
Using a gun in this situation was a taboo. But I had finally crossed that line. In a city occupied by corpses, the gunshot rang out even louder and further, like a thunderclap.
I shouted at Han Jiyoung, who was still staring blankly even though the gunshot had rung out right next to her.
“Are you going to let your team members die?”
“N-no, sir!”
Crossing a line is hard the first time. But humans are creatures who can cross a red line they’ve already crossed a hundred or a thousand times until the color fades.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Han Jiyoung added her own gunfire. Hwang Gyunam and Jang Youngmin, who had arrived shortly after, joined in as well. As a new source of prey appeared, the zombies’ attention was drawn to us. It was exactly as I had intended. With this, the isolated people would be able to breathe a sigh of relief.
“It’s better to be in a wide-open space. Don’t enter the building, hold your current position.”
“Yes, Senior!”
“Got it!”
Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be any Runners left. But I couldn’t let my guard down. Because of the gunfire, this place would soon become a gathering spot for zombies. We had to rescue the people and get out as quickly as possible.
“Kim Inbeom! Can you use the radio now?”
-Ah, yes! Did you fire the shots on purpose because of us?
“Forget that. What floor?”
-T-third floor!
“Open the window and look for something you can use as a rope. If there isn’t anything, take off your clothes and tie them together. You learned how to tie knots, right?”
-I’ll try!
“Throw away all your other gear. We don’t have time, so hurry.”
While focusing on shooting, I occasionally checked the third-floor windows. I saw the window at the far right opening. Soon, Kim Inbeom poked his head out.
“Hurry up!”
“Y-yes!”
Bundles of clothes tied into a long rope were lowered from the window. It was the best lifeline they had, but in reality, it was nothing more than scraps of fabric woven together with a sliver of hope.
“Come down one by one!”
I doubted the rope would hold, but there was no time to worry about safety. The zombies were narrowing their encirclement around the dormitory.
“You go first!”
A team member hung onto the railing. My mouth went dry watching them descend cautiously, likely out of fear.
“Oh, I made it!”
“Next, Kim Inbeom, come down!”
“Yes!”
Rip!
It was the moment Kim Inbeom had descended to about the height of the second floor. The clothes, unable to bear the weight, tore with an ominous sound. My heart sank at the subsequent thud.
“I-Inbeom!”
Startled, Han Jiyoung ran over in a hurry. It wasn’t very high, so there didn’t seem to be any major injuries, but Kim Inbeom’s expression was a bit dark.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Ugh…! My ankle hurts a bit, but I’m okay.”
“Can you run?”
“Yes, I’ll try.”
The zombies’ encirclement had closed in to the point where their faces were clearly visible. I immediately ordered an escape. Han Jiyoung and Hwang Gyunam took the lead, and the others took the rear.
“Ugh!”
Kim Inbeom kept limping, as if something were wrong with his ankle. It looked difficult to break through the encirclement at this speed. I needed a special measure.
“Senior? What are you going to do?”
“You go first. I’ll draw their aggro.”
“You’re going alone, Senior?”
“It’s easier alone.”
Han Jiyoung didn’t argue, seemingly realizing this was the best option. The others nodded with heavy expressions as well. Only Kim Inbeom added a comment.
“There are so many zombies, what are you going to do?”
“The Senior will be fine.”
“Jiyoung, even so…”
“I said he’ll be fine. This probably isn’t anything to him, right?”
It wasn’t exactly “nothing,” but it didn’t matter. I was just making the best judgment based on the situation.
“I’m sorry because of me…”
“It’s something that could easily happen. Don’t worry about it.”
“…….”
Kim Inbeom hung his head like a sinner. In the meantime, Han Jiyoung handed me the remaining magazines.
“Senior. It’s strange here. When we first entered, there weren’t many zombies. But suddenly, there were so many. It’s like they were gathered somewhere and then released.”
“Are you sure?”
“And there was an alarm installed at the dormitory entrance. A booby trap.”
A booby trap, huh… Han Jiyoung wouldn’t have been mistaken. Then that meant someone had set a trap.
“Understood. Take care of the people.”
“Be careful, Senior.”
As I intentionally fired shots, Han Jiyoung signaled the others to stop shooting. As I headed right, she chose the left for their escape route. My junior understood our respective roles like a partner I’d been working with for a long time.
‘This should be enough.’
By the time they were far enough away that I couldn’t see the team members, I swapped my gun for the brush hook. Now, all I had to do was get out.
I began to cut through the zombies as if clearing a jungle path. Perhaps because I’d been working alone for so long, it felt much more comfortable.
“Oh?”
It was when I had almost left the university grounds. Something brushed past the window of the building opposite me. I couldn’t be sure, but I was certain I’d seen a human head.
‘What is it?’
It was highly likely to be a zombie. From a distance, it was impossible to distinguish between a zombie and a human. I could have brushed it off, but Han Jiyoung’s words weighed on my mind.
‘She said there was a booby trap.’
There was no reason for survivors to be near a university swarming with zombies. If what I just saw was a person, they would be the ones who set the booby trap.
‘Let’s check.’
I memorized the building’s exterior and circled around to shake off the zombies’ aggro. Zombies were bound to lose their way once they lost sight of their target. Losing Walkers in a complex city center was simple for me.
‘This is the building.’
I opened the first-floor entrance and quickly slipped inside to hide. Beside the dark elevator, I saw a cramped staircase. There were many studio apartment complexes near the university, and this building was one of them.
‘It was around the 6th floor.’
I climbed the stairs, muffling my footsteps. If they were truly human… and if it was true that they had set the booby trap, what was their purpose? The thought that I might have misseen them was dominant, but a part of me was starting to feel suspicious.
“Are you sure? That bastard didn’t see us, right?”
“It was really just for a second. I told you, he definitely didn’t see us.”
The distinct metallic clatter of a rifle. The faint scent of cigarettes lingering in the air. The hushed, whispering voices.
It was the moment I confirmed that my instincts hadn’t rusted.