An Uncomfortable Companion
The image of Cheonsa’s face, which I had seen on the rooftop a few days ago—her sorrowful smile and the cryptic words she left behind—did not fade easily. Even amidst the heated atmosphere of our great victory, a corner of my heart remained heavy.
Even as Kim Ganghyeon silently treated my hand, I remained lost in deep thought. Only the stinging sensation of the disinfectant seeping into my wounds faintly tethered me to reality.
“Senior, we’re screwed.”
Han Jiyoung looked so intensely anxious that I almost forgot the stinging in my wounds. I was about to ask why, but she slumped into the seat next to me as if all the strength had drained from her body.
“A 3rd Class officer is here. I think his name is Kang Jinho.”
“From Gusan?”
“Yes. He’s in the auditorium right now.”
“Why did those guys come here? Have they visited before?”
“No… well, it’s just a guess, but things were pretty loud during the university operation.”
“Ah.”
According to what I’d heard from Hwang Gyunam, Gusan kept a close watch on small and medium-sized shelters. They likely sent scouts periodically to monitor the situation. And we had used over 1,500 rounds of ammunition at the underpass. A scout nearby must have felt suspicious about the frequent gunfire.
“What does the Shelter Leader say?”
“He told everyone to leave, saying he’d handle it himself. But the atmosphere is….”
Even the headstrong Han Jiyoung seemed to shrink back at the mention of Gusan. Did that mean they were really that formidable? I had heard about them many times, but I had never experienced it firsthand.
“I should go.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m just going to go and hear what he has to say.”
Kim Ganghyeon finished wrapping my bandage. As I stood up, he gave me a tip.
“Kang Jinho is a 3rd Class officer, but he’s better than most 2nd Class officers. He’s only held back by a lack of connections, but he’s not someone to be taken lightly.”
“Do you know him well?”
“Well, I don’t know him extensively, but I know he’s very dissatisfied with his promotion status. And I know his work efficiency is incredible.”
After hearing everything Kim Ganghyeon had to say, I asked, “Do you happen to have a voice recorder?”
I left the infirmary and headed toward the main auditorium. Whether it was due to the Shelter Leader’s orders, the sentries guarding the hall were preventing anyone from approaching, but I was the exception.
“Please, speak honestly.”
As the auditorium door opened, Kang Jinho stared at me. A short buzz cut, piercing eyes, and a sharp, angular jawline. Compared to his masculine appearance, his small stature—not even 170cm—was a striking contrast.
Only Kang Jinho and Oh Junghwan were in the auditorium. It meant he had come alone to visit another shelter. He must have had the backing of Gusan, but fundamentally, he was a man with a lot of guts.
“Who are you?”
He asked in a dry tone. He was holding a small notebook, and looking at the atmosphere, he seemed like a detective interrogating a criminal. He closed the notebook and narrowed his eyes.
“I asked who you are.”
“I’m a member here.”
“I have questions for the Osori Shelter Leader, so please leave.”
“It would be faster to ask me.”
He scanned me from head to toe. Perhaps because he was quick-witted, he nodded as if he had figured it out.
“So you’re the ‘Wild Man’ from the rumors.”
“You even know about that?”
“There isn’t much Gusan doesn’t know.”
“And what is it that someone from Gusan, who knows everything, is curious about?”
“Hmph.”
He let out a short breath. His lips twitched, perhaps a bit annoyed. Kang Jinho fixed his gaze back on Oh Junghwan.
“Since the Shelter Leader keeps beating around the bush, may I ask this person instead? If so, his answer will become the official position of Osori Shelter.”
“…….”
Oh Junghwan looked at me. When I nodded, he shrugged his shoulders, signifying his agreement. That meant he trusted me that much.
Kang Jinho looked at Oh Junghwan with displeasure before turning his attention back to me.
“Fine. I hope I can have a productive conversation with you.”
“Ask away.”
“Osori Shelter has traded over 2,000 rounds of ammunition in the last three months. Where did you use it all?”
So the things written in his notebook were transaction records. It was obvious he already knew everything and was just asking. I answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“There’s a university nearby. It’s a place with many zombies. I used it to clear that area.”
“Why suddenly attack a place you’d left alone until now?”
“When I arrived, I saw they were leaving a ticking time bomb behind. So I made the suggestion.”
“There were quite a lot of corpses piled up in the underpass. The traces of the corpses in front of and behind the barricade were different. You dealt with the front with guns and the rear with melee weapons.”
He even knew about the underpass. Furthermore, he had even examined the traces left by the corpses. He spoke as if he had watched the entire process from the scene.
“You must have intended to block the rear with the barricade and concentrate firepower on the front. But contrary to your expectations, zombies gathered at the rear as well. A variable occurred.”
They said his work efficiency was incredible, and it was true. Just by looking at the scene, he had deduced our operational details and subsequent countermeasures. At this point, I couldn’t help but be impressed.
“What I’m curious about is who was the person who held off that rear.”
“Well. We all worked together to hold them off.”
“Finally, you’re lying.”
My heart skipped a beat, and I couldn’t control my expression. Kang Jinho, catching even that, curled his lips as if he had gained the upper hand.
“Considering the number of personnel and combat power of Osori Shelter, you couldn’t have split your firepower to the rear. If someone hadn’t carried the team, you would have been wiped out.”
“Isn’t that too much of a stretch? Who could stop that many zombies?”
“That’s why I’m curious. It seems there’s someone who exceeded our expectations.”
Kang Jinho wasn’t asking to get an answer; he was asking to confirm his certainty. He stared straight at me, and I felt a tightening sensation in my throat. When he opened his mouth again, my heart sank.
“It’s you, isn’t it?”
“I did take charge of the field command.”
“I knew it was you.”
His arrogant tone was extremely grating. It was from this moment on that I began to think of the man in front of me as an enemy. My mind cooled down, and my gaze turned icy.
“Did you forget that Han Jiyoung is at Osori?”
“Han Jiyoung doesn’t have that kind of skill, and the traces were different.”
“What if I’m the one?”
“We can’t have two Hunters in one shelter. You’re a threat to us.”
“Are you going to kill me?”
“That would be one of the options.”
“What about the option where I kill you and shut your mouth?”
A brief silence followed. A countdown began in my head. Kang Jinho’s pupils dilated, and his fingertips twitched. It was the signal that combat was imminent.
Bang-!
“?!”
Kang Jinho’s hand moved toward his holster. He tried to quickly draw his pistol and aim it at me, but I grabbed his wrist and lifted it high. At the same time, I pulled out my revolver with my left hand and shoved it roughly against his throat.
In an instant, Kang Jinho’s expression twisted violently.
Thwack!
I twisted his wrist to make him drop the pistol and kicked his shin to break his balance. Then, I slammed my combat boot into his face.
Kang Jinho, sprawled on the floor, glared at me as if he wanted to kill me.
“Damn it…! It really was you.”
Kang Jinho drew a combat knife from the sheath on his thigh. Holding it in a reverse grip, he lunged at me, aiming for my heart. I blocked his approach with a front kick, then used my right foot as a pivot to deliver a spinning back kick with my left.
Thud!
Kang Jinho, who had been sent flying quite a distance, let out a faint groan and couldn’t get up right away. He just kept staggering, as if the impact had been quite severe.
I approached him and pressed the revolver against his forehead.
Click!
“Someone like you can’t kill me. The same goes for any bastard in Gusan.”
“Bullshit.”
“If you can’t kill me, the only way is to recruit me. But if I go to Gusan, what class of officer would I become?”
“…What?”
“I’d at least be higher than you, right?”
At the mention of rank, Kang Jinho’s eyes wavered for the first time.
“If you report today’s events to Gusan, they’ll try to recruit me. Then I’ll become your superior.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“It means your promotion will move even further away. Because I’ll block it no matter what. I could even use my rank to have you killed.”
“…….”
“Gusan is a perfect rank-based system, isn’t it? Would killing one subordinate be such a big problem? Between me, a high-ranking Hunter, and you, a 3rd Class nobody, who do you think Baek Gusan would protect?”
“Haa… damn.”
“So think carefully. What would be best for you.”
“Are you telling me to make a false report?”
“You’re smart. Let’s just pretend we don’t know each other.”
Kang Jinho hesitated for a moment, then bit his lip hard. It seemed he couldn’t find a better answer himself.
“Phew. Fine. But I can’t guarantee that Section Chief Cha Dohyun will be fooled.”
“Cha Dohyun?”
“He’s the Information Section Chief of Gusan.”
Oh Junghwan, who had been watching quietly, interjected.
“He’s a 1st Class officer. He’s the actual person in charge of monitoring small and medium shelters, and he’s the superior that guy reports to.”
“Is this the military or something? An Information Section Chief?”
“In terms of rank structure, it’s stricter than the military. A superior’s word is law.”
Kang Jinho was lost in thought with his head bowed. He was probably turning that sharp brain of his over and over.
I took out the voice recorder I had turned on in my pocket.
“Everything I said to you is recorded here.”
“…What did you say?”
“If you try anything funny, I’ll play this for Cha Dohyun or whatever his name is.”
“You son of a bitch, how dare you trick me?!”
“You only have one choice left. Report it exactly as I said. That the gunfire occurred while clearing the university, and that we can’t engage in other activities for the time being because we consumed so much ammunition.”
“Damn it…!”
“And naturally, you shouldn’t report anything about me.”
As I lowered the revolver, he slowly stood up. He looked resigned and drained. As long as I had the definitive evidence of the recorder, Kang Jinho had no choice but to follow my words.
“What if Cha Dohyun doesn’t fall for it?”
“That’s not my concern. Whether you clear the corpses in the underpass or come up with a plausible excuse, you’ll have to handle it yourself.”
“Haa… you’re a suspicious human being. Even if I report it as you said, he’ll check it one more time!”
“You can just let me know what kind of scheme Cha Dohyun is cooking up. Then we can prepare for it, right?”
“Damn it! You want me to come here again?”
“Weren’t we in the same boat?”
I shook the recorder in front of Kang Jinho’s face.
“Don’t forget. If Gusan finds out, you die too.”
“…You thug.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
I offered a handshake to signify we should work well together, but Kang Jinho brushed it off brusquely. Then, he grabbed his pistol and stormed out of the auditorium as if he would break the door down.
I watched his back for a long time and thought about Gusan. Could I get the vaccine while avoiding Gusan’s surveillance? If Gusan became my enemy, how could I tear down that iron fortress?
It was a day with many worries, but regardless, I had planted a bomb in Gusan today. It remained to be seen when and how that bomb would be used.
Kang Jinho returned three days later.