Chapter 13
Chapter 13
Translator: M.N 1391
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Translator : M.N 1391
Title: The Apocalypse Convenience Store
Chapter : 13
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The distance from the villa to the convenience store was roughly a 5 to 10-minute walk.
Normally, that wouldn’t be considered far at all.
The problem was that this wasn’t “normal.” What made Dae-shik’s nerves even sharper was the terrain around the convenience store.
‘Why the hell would they build an officetel there?’
Not too far from the convenience store, a brand-new officetel complex had gone up. Two of them, in fact, both tall enough to be seen from a distance.
To Dae-shik’s eyes, those officetels were nothing short of giant zombie nests. One wrong move, and the zombies inside could come pouring out like bees from a hive.
It was a risky choice. But no matter how he looked at it, he couldn’t give up on food. Every other place was either too far away or already overflowing with infected and zombies.
‘Still, when I checked from the rooftop yesterday, this area had relatively fewer zombies.’
Of course, he couldn’t be sure that was still true now.
So, Dae-shik handed the walkie-talkie to Hye-na.
That way, even if his own line of sight was blocked, she could check from above.
Dae-shik, with an empty backpack strapped on his back, began moving carefully toward the convenience store, scanning his surroundings.
In his hands were two metal rods he had pulled out from a monster’s corpse. And sure enough, a few zombies were wandering near the convenience store.
Tap!
With a quick running start, he hurled one of the rods with all his strength.
Swoooosh!
A sharp, slicing sound much fiercer than a wrench echoed as the black spear-like rod drew an arc through the air.
Thunk!
A zombie was impaled clean through and toppled backward. The two next to it immediately turned their heads toward Dae-shik.
Swoosh!
The second spear flew and pierced through one of them.
The walkie-talkie signal still showed no abnormalities.
Dae-shik then raised his crowbar and calmly approached to finish off the remaining one.Afterward, he retrieved both spears and headed straight for the convenience store door.
Clack, clack, clack!
Dae-shik’s brows furrowed into the shape of the character ‘川’.
‘God damn it...’
He hadn’t expected there to be this many people who still locked their doors tight even after the apocalypse began.
He thought about just breaking it open, but there was a massive zombie hive of an officetel complex right behind him.
Making unnecessary noise wasn’t exactly a smart move. So, Dae-shik decided to use the little Satiety he had left.
After all, once he got inside, there’d be plenty of food.
‘Guess I’ll just grab some triangle kimbap or bread or something.’
But just as his hand reached for the door handle...
‘Huh?’
Something brown was poking out from between the shelves. Judging from the shape, it looked like a person’s head, or maybe a zombie’s.
With the crowbar clenched in his right hand, Dae-shik tapped on the convenience store door with his left.
Knock! Knock-knock!
Then, from behind the shelf, something cautiously peeked out.
A man in his twenties with dyed brown hair.
When he saw Dae-shik, his eyes widened with apparent relief, but he didn’t exactly rush to open the door. Instead, he kept his head sticking out, watching Dae-shik, and the area outside, with eyes full of suspicion.
Knock! Knock-knock!
When Dae-shik knocked again, the man finally stepped out from behind the shelf and approached the door.
“Who are you, ajusshi?”
Instead of opening the door, a question flew at him.
Dae-shik felt irritation prickle in his chest, not because of the “Ajusshi*” part (he didn’t think he was old enough to be called that... probably), but because of the situation itself.
TL/N: Ajusshi is used to call middle-aged men, from age 30 to 50.
“Open the door. There aren’t any zombies around here.”
“W-Why should I?”
Rather than opening it, the man gripped the door even tighter, pressing his face against the glass and darting his eyes around nervously.
“Are the zombies all gone now? What about the police? The army? There were zombies right outside just a moment ago.”
At that, Dae-shik’s lip twitched slightly.
“I cleared out the ones nearby. So please, open the door.”
“If I open it, you’ll just come in here and take all the food and stuff, won’t you?”
“Ha...”
A sigh slipped out of Dae-shik’s mouth, heavy with annoyance.
‘Yeah, this is the apocalypse, alright.’
A hardware store owner who shared cup ramen in gratitude for saving his life. A doctor who, even while being chased by monsters, had covered her own mouth when their eyes met. Compared to people like that, this guy actually fit the apocalypse far better.
“So you’re just gonna stay holed up in there forever?”
The man hesitated for a moment, then pointed at Dae-shik’s hand.
The convenience store had plenty of food and supplies, but it wasn’t like he could stay there forever either.
He probably wanted to trade that food for Dae-shik’s weapon.
“That thing in your hand, give it to me. Then I’ll open the door.”
The thing he pointed at was Dae-shik’s ‘Crowbar Caliber.’
“This one’s off-limits. But I can give you this instead.”
Dae-shik offered him one of the metal rods instead.
The Crowbar Caliber was the most reliable weapon he had right now.
He could always find another convenience store, but a reinforced crowbar like this wasn’t easily replaced.
One metal spear was his final line of compromise.
“Uh, hmm...”
The man fell silent again, as if thinking it over.
Dae-shik found it ridiculous.
How could he not even consider the possibility that Dae-shik could just break the door and beat him up?
Suspicious and cowardly, sure, but not the brightest bulb.
“Alright, fine. But leave the weapons out there.”
Every move the guy made screamed distrust.
Dae-shik didn’t want to provoke him, so he glanced sideways at the walkie-talkie again.
Still all clear.
Leaving his weapons outside wouldn’t be a big deal.
“Fine.”
When Dae-shik set down his weapons and raised his hands, the man finally opened the door with visible relief.
“Don’t take too much. I need some left for myself.”
The man said that as he subtly edged toward the weapons Dae-shik had left by the door.
“Hold on. I haven’t even grabbed any food yet.”
Dae-shik stopped him with a single line.
“And if you tell me to put my weapons down, then go grab them yourself, how am I supposed to feel safe?”
A thin tension stretched between the two.
“You’re not planning to attack me while I’m picking out food, right?”
The man forced a laugh and shook his head.
“Alright, fine. Didn’t mean it that way. Just thought you might try to scam me or something.”
Only when the man stepped away from the weapons did Dae-shik turn his attention toward the shelves. From snacks and chocolate to kimbap, ramen, burgers, and bread…The convenience store still had quite a lot of food left.
The first thing Dae-shik picked up was a triangle kimbap.
Flavor: Tuna mayo.
Since it was morning, he wanted something savory rather than spicy.
Tear!
With slightly clumsy fingers, Dae-shik tore open the wrapping. It had been so long since he’d eaten something like this that even peeling the seaweed cleanly was tricky.
“Ajusshi.”
“What? Can’t I eat here?”
“That’s not it, it’s just...”
He looked at Dae-shik with a pitiful expression, clearly regretting having traded the weapon.
Ignoring him, Dae-shik bit into the tuna mayo.
“Mmm...”
The harmony of the salty tuna and creamy mayonnaise made him let out a short sound of satisfaction.
『Satiety restored.』
『Current Satiety: 50』
A familiar and welcome message shimmered before his eyes.
Feeling good, Dae-shik grabbed a chicken mayo next, chewing as he set down his backpack.
“Ajusshi, who are you?”
This time, the brown-haired guy spoke again. Even though he kept calling him “Ajusshi,” he didn’t bother speaking politely, rude little punk, Dae-shik thought.
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve got all these weapons, that big backpack, and you’re going around collecting supplies...”
“So what if I am?”
“And you’re not even scared, even though there are monsters out there.”
The more he talked, the more unpleasant Dae-shik felt. All that suspicion, yet he wouldn’t shut up. Dae-shik knew exactly what that meant.
“I picked up the bag and weapons on the way. I don’t scare easily. And in a situation like this, grabbing food first is just common sense for anyone who’s not brain-dead.”
Even as he spoke, Dae-shik’s hands were already moving quickly.
First priority: water.
Next, ramen, surprisingly nutritious and with a long shelf life. It needed fire to cook, but that wasn’t much of an issue.
Then he added some canned goods, ion drinks, chocolate, and candy into his backpack. All great for restoring energy quickly.
“H-Hey... Ajusshi, aren’t you taking a bit too much? I need some left for me!”
The brown-haired man moved closer as if to stop him.
“Got a bag to carry them in?”
“Uh...”
“Then what? Planning to stay here forever?”
“No...”
“So what’s your plan? You gonna carry it all in a shopping bag?”
Judging by his silence, that’s exactly what he was planning.
“When you run into zombies, gonna use your feet as weapons?”
While the guy stammered helplessly, Dae-shik had already scooped up about half the candy and chocolate on the shelves. They weren’t filling, but they were calorie-dense. In extreme situations, sugar and a bit of moisture could keep you going for quite a while.
For Dae-shik, those two were even more important. They were the few foods he could carry in his combat vest and eat mid-battle to restore Satiety.
“D-Damn it... Ajusshi, you’re taking way too much for just one metal rod!”
“I still think I’m the one getting ripped off here.”
“What?”
“What were you gonna do if I’d just smashed the door open and knocked you out?”
The man clenched his jaw in frustration, his eyes darting nervously.
“Being suspicious is fine, but try thinking one step further. If you want to live, that is.”
The meaning behind his words was crystal clear.
He could have taken it all by force, but he didn’t. That alone was fairness enough.
Silence fell over the convenience store again.
After staring at the man for a moment, Dae-shik resumed packing.
“S-Stop taking stuff. What am I supposed to eat?”
“You said you weren’t gonna stay here forever.”
Dae-shik zipped up his backpack and spoke.
“And if you’ve got something to say, say it now. Or take it out, if you’re planning something.”
At that short remark, the brown-haired man’s eyebrow twitched, as if hit where it hurt.
“Just saying, think before you act. Otherwise, you won’t last long.”
Translator: M.N 1391