Jeong Ji-yun (2)
I quickly steadied my racing heart and forced the excitement down. I never had to hide it in front of Ji-su or Si-eun, but dealing with a living woman came with a long list of things to watch out for. I spoke gently to Ji-yun, who was still clinging to me and sobbing.
“Can you stand on your own? Don’t be embarrassed. Anyone would end up like that after hiding in one spot for so long.”
At my words, Ji-yun fought back her tears and pulled away, trying to stand by herself. Her legs trembled violently, but she managed to find her balance. In a shaky, tearful voice she mumbled, “It feels so gross…”
Of course it did. She was still wearing pants soaked in her own piss. Now what? I honestly never expected to actually find her.
I glanced out the small window in the hallway. The sun had completely set, and the streets were pitch black. Not a single light anywhere. Somewhere in that darkness, goblins were definitely lurking. I turned away from the window and told Ji-yun, “Looks like going outside right now is too dangerous. I’ll escort you back to the school tomorrow, so let’s rest here tonight. Sound okay?”
She nodded, but immediately started crying again. God, can you give it a rest already?
“Th-thank you… I really thought I was going to die in there… Hic…”
“It’s fine, I told you. For now, follow me. Ji-su, help Ji-yun walk.”
At my command, Ji-su moved to Ji-yun’s side. Ji-yun practically collapsed into her arms. “Ji-Ji-su…”
She burst into tears again. I stopped paying attention and headed toward the adult shop.
“Stay here with Ji-su for a bit.”
I left the two of them outside, swept aside the broken glass, and opened the door. It was my first time inside an adult store, so I was pretty curious, but it was too dark to see anything. I felt my way inside. I didn’t think any monsters were hiding in here—if there were, Ji-yun wouldn’t have survived sobbing in the bathroom all this time.
Once my eyes adjusted to the darkness, the interior came into view. It was a modest rectangular space. The shelves around me were packed with all kinds of toys and tools. Can’t see much, but there’s definitely some interesting stuff. I’ll check it out properly tomorrow morning.
A quick scan confirmed there were no monsters or corpses. Good enough. I stepped back out and called the girls inside. Ji-yun, leaning heavily on Ji-su, walked in slowly. She seemed startled to realize it was an adult shop and made a deliberate effort to ignore the products around her.
Looking at Ji-su’s filthy state and Ji-yun—who was equally filthy and reeked of urine—I said, “First things first… you two should wash up. You said it felt pretty gross, right?”
Ji-yun lowered her head and answered in a tiny voice, “I-I’ll go to the bathroom and wash…”
“Does the bathroom still have running water?”
“I… I’m not sure…”
If the building used a water tank, it should still work. But washing in a bathroom would be inconvenient. I told Ji-yun to wait a moment and summoned the Gate of Rest.
Even though the Gate of Rest appeared right in front of her, Ji-yun showed no reaction. It must have been invisible to her, just like the monsters. I stepped into the Cradle of Rest. From outside I heard a startled “Hiiik!”—Ji-yun must have thought I’d suddenly vanished.
I gave a small smile and nod to Si-eun, who was quietly watching me, then gathered what I needed and carried it back out. Ji-yun’s eyes widened again when I reappeared with both arms full.
“It’s a skill. Don’t be surprised.”
“That… that’s an amazing skill. Like an invisible storage space?”
“Something like that.”
I set the items down as I spoke. First, I turned on the lantern I’d brought. The adult shop lit up instantly. No need to worry about light leaking out the windows—the glass was covered in privacy film anyway.
Ji-yun stared at the supplies I’d brought, squinting against the sudden brightness. I moved to one corner of the shop and began assembling the portable shower booth. It was my first time setting it up, so it took some effort, but I managed. I filled the hanging reservoir with bottled water, hung it, then installed a small lantern inside. A perfect shower booth, complete.
I walked over to Ji-yun, who was staring blankly at my handiwork, and explained, “You can wash inside here. I’ve prepared shampoo, conditioner, body wash, toothpaste, and a toothbrush. If you run out of water, just pour more from the bottles into the reservoir up top.”
“Ah…”
She looked ready to cry again. Why does this girl cry so easily?
Sniffling, Ji-yun said, “Ever since the monster outbreak… this is the first time I’ve been able to wash properly. I’ve only been rinsing off with water in the school bathroom…”
“I see. Well, that makes this perfect. Take your time and get really clean.”
She thanked me again and stepped into the booth. There was some rustling, then the sound of water. Damn, that’s hot.
After forcing down my arousal earlier, a restless, tingling sensation had been building in my lower abdomen. Ji-yun wasn’t at the “wow, she’s gorgeous!” level like Ji-su or Si-eun the moment you saw them, but those big, round eyes and cute face were seriously attractive. I’d already lost my virginity to the dead, but I’d never slept with a living woman yet. My heart pounded at this brand-new situation.
Ah, so today’s finally the day I fuck a living girl? Yeah. This must be the moment I truly shed my virgin status. You got this, Kang Min-gu!
I clenched my fist in determination when a flustered voice came from inside the booth.
“U-um…”
I moved closer. “Yes?”
“I… I didn’t think about this when I came in… I’m really sorry, but do you have any of Ji-su’s spare clothes? I don’t have anything to change into…”
Of course the Cradle of Rest had plenty of clothes. But was I crazy? No way was I giving her any. I put on my most regretful tone.
“Ah… what should we do? I haven’t found any extra clothes yet either. I’ve just been washing the ones I wear every day and putting them back on. I was planning to raid a clothing store tomorrow…”
“I-I see. It’s okay. I can just wash what I’m wearing, wring it out, and put it back on.”
“No way. You’ll catch a cold. And it’ll still feel gross. Hang on a second.”
I picked up a large shower towel. “I have this huge shower towel. Wrap yourself in it and come out. It’s dark anyway, so you won’t be visible.”
“B-but…”
“It’s fine, really. It’s a very big towel.”
Ji-yun went quiet, apparently thinking it over. Soon the shower booth’s zipper slid down a little and her hand reached out.
“C-can I have it…”
I handed her the towel. Her hand disappeared back inside. A moment later, Ji-yun emerged with a large white shower towel wrapped around her entire body.
I smiled at her. “See? I told you it was huge. It covers everything, doesn’t it?”
She nodded shyly. I spread out a mat I’d taken from the Cradle of Rest, then laid a blanket from the mart on top of it.
“Sit here and rest. It’s cold, so keep the blanket on. Ji-su and I will wash up too.”
“J-Ji-su too? You’re showering together?”
When she asked in a surprised voice, I put on a regretful expression and tone. “Yes. As you can see, Ji-su’s condition isn’t great… She can’t wash properly by herself.”
“I-is that so…”
Ji-yun mumbled something else, then lowered her head. “I-I guess it can’t be helped. Since Ji-su only listens to Min-gu… Oppa. You are Min-gu Oppa, right?”
“Yes. You remembered my name. I’m Kang Min-gu.”
I introduced myself once more, then took Ji-su into the shower booth with me. It was pretty cramped for two people. But oh well. I stripped off my clothes, then removed Ji-su’s as well. Her clothes were scorched and torn. I really wanted to throw them away and give her new ones, but I’d already lied to Ji-yun about not having spare clothes.
I washed Ji-su’s body, then showered myself. I roughly washed our clothes and wrung them out tightly. When we came out wearing shower towels, I saw Ji-yun sitting on the mat, wrapped tightly in the blanket. The way she looked at us with such relief made it obvious she’d been scared sitting alone.
Perfect. Now then…
I gave Ji-su a mental command. She immediately walked into the Gate of Rest. Ji-yun stared at the spot where Ji-su had vanished, startled.
I feigned surprise as well. “Ah, Ji-su went straight back in. She really loves resting inside there. This is a problem. I was supposed to sleep out here with you tonight…”
“Can’t I go inside too?”
“No. Only registered people can enter, and right now it’s just me and Ji-su. The limit is two people… So I was planning to have Ji-su sleep out here with you while I went inside, but… hmm.”
Ji-yun’s face darkened rapidly. I spoke in a troubled voice, “Wait here a moment. I’ll try to bring her back out.”
I entered the Cradle of Rest, then dragged Ji-su back out. She resisted, trying to yank her hand away as if she didn’t want to leave. I told her, “Ji-su, she’s your friend. Just sleep outside for tonight, okay?”
But Ji-su thrashed with her whole body, pulled free, and slipped straight back into the Gate of Rest. Heh. As expected of actress Ji-su. Her acting is top-tier.
I turned to Ji-yun with an extremely troubled expression. “Ah… this is bad. What now…”
With a face full of apology, I said to her, “Ji-yun, can you sleep here by yourself? It doesn’t look like I’ll be able to get Ji-su to come back out. Once she gets stubborn, even I can’t do anything about it…”
Ji-yun’s face went deathly pale. Oh man, I’m gonna start laughing if I’m not careful.
In a trembling, tearful voice she said, “U-um… sleeping here alone… what if a monster comes up…”
She looked like she would burst into tears any second. I bit my lip and told her, “I’d stay by your side if I could, but I’m a man and we only just met today. I wouldn’t want to make you uncomf—”
“I-it’s fine! I’m okay with it! C-can’t you stay here? I really don’t mind, so please…”
She spoke in a rush, sniffling, and finally broke down crying. Tears streamed from her big eyes as she sobbed.
“T-today was just so scary… Hiding there, wondering if a monster would come up, or if bad people would come up… I was too scared to even check outside… It was terrifying. But then you and Ji-su saved me… and now I have to sleep alone in the dark again… I’m so scared…”
“Alright. I’ll sleep next to you tonight. So stop crying now.”
“Yes… th-thank you…”
I watched Ji-yun as she rambled through her tears, my eyes full of feigned sympathy. Perfect. Success.