Chapter 212
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 212
Chapter Title: One Last Shot
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Im Jangwoo, Go Joowon, and Yeon Jaehee, who had joined them on the third floor of the main building, headed to the research lab.
The three of them rummaged through Professor Maria's lab and found the vaccine. In the process, they also gathered materials to make Molotov cocktails.
Having decided to spread the vaccine using the sprinklers, the three went to do their respective jobs. After handing some of the vaccine and all the research data to Go Joowon, Yeon Jaehee and Im Jangwoo left the room with grim expressions. Go Joowon locked the door and propped a few chairs against it.
Im Jangwoo and Yeon Jaehee headed to the basement. Smashing, shoving, and kicking zombies.
“It's definitely harder without Joowon! …This is tough!”
“They just keep getting up! …That’s right!”
Overwhelmed by the horde of zombies, Im Jangwoo and Yeon Jaehee decided to take a short break and entered a small office. They quenched their thirst with the water they brought and soaked their weapons in water mixed with the vaccine.
“Ah. Here, read this.”
“This?”
Im Jangwoo took out a piece of paper he had stuffed in his pocket. It was a paper he had found in the conference room before going to the lab. Yeon Jaehee took the crumpled paper. It was someone's medical chart, written in English.
“…Is this Joowon's?”
“Yeah. If he was hospitalized, it means he has some illness… but seeing how well he moves, it doesn't seem too serious.”
Yeon Jaehee read down the paper. She didn't know the medical terms well, but she managed to translate them somehow using the English dictionary on her phone. Yeon Jaehee's eyes trembled as she looked down at the chart.
*‘Right? What kind of illness is it?’*
Lee Miyoun hadn't forgotten what Go Joowon's friends had said. A serious illness. What kind of illness required hospitalization when he could move so well? If it weren't for the first scene where he appeared in a hospital gown, she wouldn't have even realized he was sick.
Left alone in the room, Go Joowon fiddled with his bow for a moment before rubbing his eyes with both palms.
Yeon Jaehee and Im Jangwoo left the office. And ran towards their destination. The hospital was large, and so was its water tank. They lifted the large, manhole-like lid of the water tank and poured in all the vaccine they had brought.
Next was the control room.
While Im Jangwoo bashed the head of a zombie inside the control room, Yeon Jaehee handled the blood-splattered equipment. The main building with the water tank, the east wing, and the center, which had the most zombies. She rigged the sprinklers in every building except the completely separate research lab to activate at once.
“It's done!”
“Then hurry up and activate it!”
“Okay!”
Yeon Jaehee pressed the activation button.
A few seconds later, the sprinkler on the control room ceiling activated.
Yeon Jaehee and Im Jangwoo checked the zombies' condition. They were still fine(?), but with time, they would stop moving.
Soaked by the sprinkler water but with a bright expression, Yeon Jaehee looked at the monitor.
“Uh… Huh!?”
Why? Why?
The audience, who had been celebrating the impending happy ending, shifted restlessly in their seats at Yeon Jaehee's reaction.
And the screen cut back to the room where Go Joowon was.
The sprinklers in Go Joowon's room had also activated, and water was pouring down.
Soaked, Go Joowon broke into a wide smile and laughed. To Go Joowon, this water was proof that Jaehee Nuna and Jangwoo Samchon had safely reached the water tank, and proof that he could save his friends.
The camera, after lingering on the soaking wet, innocently smiling Go Joowon, panned to the phone on the desk. The phone, set to silent, was flashing. Go Joowon quickly picked up the phone.
-Joowon!
“Jaehee Nuna! The water's on!”
Truly happy and pure, Go Joowon smiled brightly like a flower.
Ugh.
The audience clutched their hearts at his smile.
-Joowon! I'm sorry!
Go Joowon's brightly smiling heart sank. Before he could even ask why she was sorry, Yeon Jaehee blurted out.
-It must be broken. Even with the manual override, the sprinklers in the center just won't activate! If we don't turn them on right now, the vaccine water will only reach the main building and the east wing!
Go Joowon shot up from his seat. Tucking the phone between his shoulder and ear, he moved quickly. He gathered his arrows, the phones he'd use as decoys, and the Molotov cocktails. It was all in an instant.
“What do I need to do?”
-I'm so sorry!
Yeon Jaehee and Im Jangwoo ran, fighting off zombies. There was still time before the vaccine took effect, before the zombies completely stopped.
Go Joowon listened to Yeon Jaehee as he cleared away the chairs blocking the door.
-You have a lighter and the Molotovs, right? Go to the center via the 3rd-floor connecting bridge and start a fire! If just one sensor goes off, the sprinklers for the entire center will activate! You have to be as fast as possible!
Im Jangwoo, after smashing a zombie's jaw with a steel pipe, asked.
“How long will the water in the tank last?”
“Less than five minutes!”
No matter how fast Go Joowon was, he couldn't run from the 1st floor of the main building, through the zombie-infested 3rd floor of the main building, the 3rd floor of the east wing, and to the 3rd floor of the center in under five minutes.
“…Still, I have to try my best.”
“Right. Let's hurry, too!”
Im Jangwoo pulled Yeon Jaehee along and knocked a zombie away.
-Nuna.
Go Joowon's voice came through the phone.
-I just need to start a fire, right?
“…What are you planning to do?”
-I'm going to shoot an arrow. To the center.
Im Jangwoo yelled. It was a reflexive shout, so loud he didn't even worry about the zombies it would attract.
“Hey, kid, I told you not to shoot your bow!”
-Samchon?
“You were hospitalized for stress-induced vision loss!”
-…How did you know?
“The detective found your medical chart. If this gets worse…”
An illness that could lead to blindness.
It wasn't a typical decline in vision; the cause was unknown. He was supposed to find out the cause during his hospital stay.
The screen flashed back to before the sprinklers activated. With trembling eyes, Yeon Jaehee read the paper.
“Go Joowon. 14 years old. Archery prospect… Stress-induced vision loss… Risk of blindness…”
Only then did the audience recall Go Joowon's earlier actions.
Go Joowon, who had failed to properly grab the window frame. Go Joowon, who had swung his bow at Im Jangwoo. The reason his archery club friends said he had a serious illness.
Oh my god…!
It wasn't fear of zombies or a prank.
Everyone covered their mouths.
This time, he didn't hesitate. Water poured from the sprinklers. It soaked his hair and ran down his cheeks.
“My condition isn't like normal people's, where your eyesight just gets worse and you wear glasses.”
Go Joowon moved forward, striking down zombies with his bow.
His vision was blurry. It flickered in and out.
“It suddenly gets blurry, and I can't see. You have no idea how scared I was when my vision went out during class.”
He said it lightly, but imagining how truly frightened he must have been, Yeon Jaehee and Im Jangwoo bit their lips hard.
“That's why! Don't shoot the bow! It's stressful for you!”
Im Jangwoo yelled into the phone. The sound attracted more zombies. Go Joowon laughed.
“No. You're wrong.”
-What?
Go Joowon ran from the 1st floor of the main building to the 3rd floor and came out onto the 3rd-floor garden. The 2nd floor of the main building protruded out like an 'L', and its rooftop, which served as a wide terrace for the 3rd floor, was decorated like a garden. The garden, which had been enclosed by a wooden fence, now had sparse gaps.
Since there was no ceiling here, the sprinklers for the flowerbeds were active. Soaking wet zombies were milling about. There were only a few, but he couldn't let his guard down.
“I didn't want to use this…”
[Jiho]
His friend's phone, which he'd picked up in the center's lobby. With a bitter expression, Go Joowon looked down at the phone, then threw it to a corner of the garden and pressed the call button.
*Thump!*
The OST from *Escape* began to play. The zombies flocked towards the phone, and Go Joowon stood at the spot closest to the center.
His own phone lit up.
Whoops. It seemed he had hung up to call Jiho's phone.
-Go Joowon!
“Sorry. I hung up to use the phone.”
-More importantly, I told you not to shoot the bow!
Go Joowon smiled.
“It's okay.”
As he gripped the bow tightly, his flickering vision slowly stabilized. His vision became so clean and clear that it felt like he could breathe again. It felt like the sun rising in a pitch-black night sky.
Holding his bow, Go Joowon smiled brightly.
“I'm the least stressed when I'm holding my bow.”
-…What?
Go Joowon took a Molotov cocktail from his bag and lit it. Without a hint of hesitation, he smashed the lit Molotov on the ground. Flames erupted.
“I feel most comfortable and at ease when I'm shooting my bow. All my thoughts disappear, and my mind becomes empty.”
-You almost hit me swinging that bow earlier!
He took the wick from another Molotov and wrapped it around an arrowhead. He left the sharp tip of the arrowhead exposed. Go Joowon placed the arrow into the flames. After a moment, it caught fire. The arrowhead blazed fiercely.
“Swinging it and shooting it are two different things, Samchon.”
The phone fell from Go Joowon's hand.
Stance.
Go Joowon stood with his feet comfortably apart. Just like when he first held a bow, he focused on the most basic posture.
*‘One chance.’*
Nocking.
He fitted the end of the flaming arrow onto the bowstring. His left hand, holding the bow close to the flame, felt hot. But his heart was calm, and his mind was clear.
*‘Is it over 70 meters? Or under?’*
Jiho's phone was trampled under the zombies' feet. When the ringing stopped, the zombies' gazes turned to Go Joowon, who was standing by the railing. Even though the garden's sprinklers were on, it would still take time for the vaccine to take effect.
-Go Joowon!
-Joowon!
Go Joowon's eyes sparkled as he found his target.
*I won't be late this time.*
The sun was setting beside Go Joowon. Whether from the blood or the sunset's glow, Go Joowon was bathed in red. He focused his mind more than ever before. His once-flickering vision was clearer and sharper than ever.
He couldn't hear a thing. Not the OST, not the zombies' cries, not the shouts from the phone.
A silence so profound, it felt like he could hear his own heartbeat. But it wasn't a dreadful feeling like when he saw the zombies. On the contrary, it felt refreshing, and the audience unknowingly held their breath as they watched Go Joowon.
Hooking.
He hooked the bowstring with the fingers of his right hand and held the bow lightly with his left. His fingers were stiff from wearing a finger tab all day.
*‘This is the last time, too.’*
Set-up.
He raised the bow, which had been pointing downwards, and aimed at the target. It was his first time shooting a flaming arrow, but it wasn't a problem.
*‘Our club's ace! Go Joowon!’*
The brightly smiling faces of his friends came to mind.
Drawing.
Go Joowon suppressed the surge of emotion. Maintaining his breathing to keep his posture steady, he slowly drew the bowstring towards his body. The string felt heavier, yet lighter, than ever before.
Anchor.
The bowstring pressed gently against Go Joowon's cheek. The sprinkler water had washed away the blood, but the close-up on Go Joowon's face revealed all the hardship he had endured.
He was clearly exhausted, but his eyes sparkled.
And, Release!
Go Joowon let go of the string as if releasing all his worries and emotions.
It was a more perfect release than ever before.
*Twang!*
The flaming arrow left the bow, cut through the air, flew through an open window, and embedded itself in a hospital room door. The wooden door instantly caught fire. The surrounding temperature rose, and smoke began to billow.
And then,
the nearest sprinkler sensor activated.
*Whoooosh!*
Water began to pour from the sprinklers.
Not just on the 3rd floor of the center, but from every sprinkler throughout the entire building.
Go Joowon's gaze turned to the 3rd and 4th floors, where the sprinklers were activating. Even from the window, he could see a satisfying torrent of water pouring down. Then, Go Joowon looked towards the 1st floor, where his friends would be.
Five minutes.
The phone he had set an alarm on had not yet rung. Go Joowon shed a tear.
…It seemed he wasn't too late this time.
*Kyaaaak.*
The zombies charged.
Having achieved his goal, Go Joowon felt the tension he had held onto all day finally snap. His vision went black with relief. He didn't even have time to dodge the sound of the approaching zombies.
“Go Joowon!”
Along with the sound of something shattering, he heard the voices of Jangwoo Samchon and Jaehee Nuna. Feeling a warm touch, different from a zombie's arm, Go Joowon lost consciousness with a smile on his face.
“Joowon!”
Im Jangwoo quickly caught the collapsing Go Joowon.
Finally, the vaccine that had spread through the zombies' bodies took effect. The zombies in the 3rd-floor garden stopped moving. The zombies in the main building and east wing were likely in the same state, while it would take a bit longer for those in the center, where the sprinklers had activated last.
The sprinklers suddenly activated, and voices could be heard from outside. And then, a silence, devoid of the chilling cries.
The survivors, bewildered by the sudden turn of events, poked their heads out the windows to look down below.
“Go Joowon!”
The 3rd-floor garden was a complete mess. Unaware that the zombies had completely stopped, Im Jangwoo and Yeon Jaehee were calling Go Joowon's name and checking his condition.
In place of the blood-red sunset, a warm, orange glow was settling in.
[A Few Days Later]
“Our Joowon. Those glasses look great on you!”
“Really? I feel a little awkward…”
“No! They look amazing!”
Wearing glasses, Go Joowon smiled shyly. A bow was still in Go Joowon's hands.
“Nuna, shouldn't you be in a different room?”
A spacious hospital room.
Im Jangwoo, Go Joowon, and Yeon Jaehee were sitting on beds. They only had minor injuries, so being confined to bed was an ordeal.
“We're in quarantine because we went into the lab. There's a shortage of rooms with all this chaos… I'm fine.”
“I want to move to another room.”
Go Joowon and Yeon Jaehee burst out laughing at Im Jangwoo's words. Whatever he said, these two found it hilarious and just kept laughing.
“So, what's going to happen now?”
The zombie leak that Im Jangwoo had desperately tried to contain was limited to just a few, but the situation had worsened when people mistook those few for emergency patients and transported them to nearby hospitals. Im Jangwoo sighed.
“I honestly wanted to faint when I heard that story…”
The government mobilized the military to lock down the hospitals and locations with zombies. The internet was in an uproar, car accidents were happening, fires were breaking out, and it was hard to tell people from zombies. It was then that a detective contacted them.
He said he thought he'd found the cause and solution to the incident.
Hearing that a helicopter was on its way, Im Jangwoo carried the unconscious Go Joowon on his back, and with Yeon Jaehee, they made their way past the frozen zombies, somehow cleared a path through the survivors(?), and went up to the rooftop.
Survivors from the upper floors of the main building flocked over at the sight of the helicopter, but the soldiers strictly waited only for the detective and his party.
Im Jangwoo, Go Joowon, and Yeon Jaehee escaped the hospital first via the helicopter. Of course, the remaining people in the hospital would be evacuated soon after.
The unconscious Go Joowon was taken to a hospital for treatment, while Yeon Jaehee and Im Jangwoo were to be interrogated in an isolated location after receiving emergency care. After that, they were reunited with their families. Go Joowon, Yeon Jaehee, and Im Jangwoo bawled at the sight of their unharmed families, and their families did the same.
Im Jangwoo, who had met with his family that morning, lay down on his bed.
“They have the vaccine and the research data, so they'll figure it out. Maybe they can just spray it everywhere like rain, wouldn't that work?”
“I wish they'd stop asking questions. I think we'll be discharged soon… The first thing I'm going to do when I get out is eat cake.”
“I'm going to do archery!”
“…Joowon. Aren't you sick of it?”
The three's conversation soon drifted to other topics.
The camera, which had been showing the three of them relaxing, panned out of the quarantine room and down the stairs. After showing government officials in black suits and doctors in white coats, the camera focused on a TV in the lobby.
[We have news that a vaccine has been discovered for ‘Virus X,’ also known as the zombie outbreak. The government has announced it will immediately begin production based on the data and vaccine found in the research lab of ‘O.W.C. Hospital,’ the first epicenter in our country.
…It is still uncertain when Virus X, which has spread to the United States, Russia, and Europe, can be completely eradicated.
…All O.W.C. related facilities worldwide, the source of the zombie outbreak, have been sealed off, and it is predicted that most of the personnel are infected with Virus X. However, there are also opinions that many locations have yet to be discovered, so for the time being…]
The anchor's voice faded, and the screen went black.
The audience, who had been tense, expecting a zombie to pop out at any moment, breathed a sigh of relief as the theater lights came up. After two hours of a thrilling rollercoaster that kept their hearts pounding, *Escape* was over.
Groans could be heard from all around. It was the sound of the audience members stretching their bodies, which had been tensed up from the constant threat of zombies.
“But I feel like I'm forgetting something.”
“? What?”
Lee Miyoun, Park Seongah, and the rest of the audience rubbed their stiff muscles, feeling like something was nagging at them. They felt like they were forgetting something, but their memories were hazy, probably because they had been so immersed in the movie.
“…What was it?”
As everyone wracked their brains, the ending credits, with the actors' names written in Hangul, began to roll at the perfect time.
[Samuel played by Evan Block]
[Professor Maria played by Richel Hill]
[Chaebol Heir played by Park Dohun]
[Head of Security played by Lee Jiseok]
“Gasp. Evan Block!”
“Richel Hill!”
Everyone's jaws dropped.
And then a post-credits scene appeared. No, it wasn't a scene, but a photo.
As a photo of Evan Block, Richel Hill, Lee Seojun, Kim Jongho, Lee Dajin, Lee Jiseok, and Park Dohun together appeared at the very end of the credits,
“Aaaaaaah!!”
The cinema erupted with the screams of the audience, who had finally come to their senses.
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