Empty House Burglary
Empty House Burglary
"Hey, Hwan. Are you really going to abandon Dong-hwan? No matter what, he's still your twin brother, isn't he?"
The question came from a short man, Byung-jin.
Song Hwan's expression was deeply bitter in response.
"Of course I can't just throw him away. But at the same time, I couldn't exactly take a hardline stance against it there."
That was the truth of it.
Honestly, the reason he'd backed down so readily was because Ha Hui-ryeong had been present.
If she hadn't been, he would have ignored Angelica and Ju Min-hee's opinions like they didn't matter at all.
Kim Dong-hwan.
A worthless younger brother, but still blood.
And that wasn't all.
The ability he possessed was tremendously useful for running a group.
Not just for food supplies, obviously, but also when persuading people whose family members had been bitten by zombies.
That was how he'd managed to secure the largest faction in this newly built elementary school.
Sure, since his nature was so devoted to his desires, all sorts of worthless flies had buzzed in along with him, but even the most insignificant things could find a use if you got creative.
Kim Song-hwan.
He was a comparatively rational figure—unlike his brother, who had fallen for a woman and lost touch with reality.
In truth, he knew everything about how things had gotten so tangled up with Shin Yoo-hwa.
Because on the day Kim Dong-hwan had gone on that impulsive rampage through Gangdong-gu, he had confessed everything to him.
Yeah, it was all because of his girlfriend.
Jeong Yeon-ji.
A woman who had accepted a relationship with Kim Dong-hwan for the sake of her father, who had been bitten by a zombie.
Her filial piety would have made Sim Cheong weep, but in matters of romance, she was worse than Cinderella's stepmother.
Contrary to her gentle appearance, she had callously used his brother for her own ends without a shred of guilt.
Gaslighting him relentlessly until that bastard Kim Dong-hwan finally went and picked a fight with the Gangdong-gu crew.
Her trait was 'Original Regression.'
A preposterous power that rewound time to a state from a few hours earlier.
Of course, since it defied the natural order, the cost was immense.
A thousand coins for a single use—whose family dog's name was that supposed to be?
Anyway, the consumption was a problem, but there were also limits to what she could revert, so she had ensnared Kim Dong-hwan and worked him like a coin-mining machine.
He could freeze the time of anything he touched, and he'd fallen for her at first sight—ready to keel over at her every word. Wasn't he the perfect tool for her purposes?
Naturally, as his brother, he found it utterly contemptible.
But the reason he hadn't been able to hold him back more firmly wasn't just because of Kim Dong-hwan's stubborn, protective attitude. It was because he was an extremely rare former medical resident.
Sure, he'd only been an OB-GYN resident, but when it came to childbirth, he was practically a specialist among this pack of ignorant brutes.
Of course, some bastards had insisted, "Can't you just pop the kid out and be done with it?"
But Song Hwan was looking at the bigger picture.
If they did things that way, the slaves wouldn't be able to endure it and would end up dying on a regular basis.
That was unacceptable.
The dream he was nurturing was a kingdom.
With himself reigning as king over it.
The bastards here were acting recklessly now, but once they got older, their thinking was bound to change.
As a person aged and grew frail, they inevitably sought a comfortable shelter over advancement.
When that day came, Song Hwan wanted to settle down normally with the woman he'd claimed, watch children run and play, and spend his final years in peace.
"But now things have gone off the rails. Having the Gangdong-gu bastards around was what kept the balance in Songpa-gu."
"So what do we do?"
"It's simple."
If the balance has collapsed, you just set it right again.
Whatever crisis stands before them, they would overcome it, as they always did.
"Angelica, Ju Min-hee, and even Ha Hui-ryeong... coincidentally, they're all women, aren't they?"
So this was the perfect chance to show them who was superior.
To prove that women were ultimately fated to be pinned beneath men.
"Song Hwan, no matter what, I think Ha Hui-ryeong is a bad idea. That bitch is the kind who'll blow up in your face if you touch her."
"I know. But things have changed a lot since the old days, haven't they? You know what my ability is."
"...Well, that's true, but she did take down Park Jung-woo too, so it's a little..."
He understood what Byung-jin was worried about.
Ha Hui-ryeong was strong.
She'd earned everyone's admiration and awe through nothing but her fists.
And hadn't she recently dealt with Park Jung-woo of Gangdong-gu, who was practically invincible?
She more than merited fear.
But they had changed just as much.
The circumstances were different now.
"It's fine. No matter what, you can't beat numbers. Our side alone has over a hundred people. And half of them are Awakened."
"Still... the officers are probably sympathetic to Ha Hui-ryeong. How are you planning to sweet-talk them?"
That was obvious.
If motivation was lacking, you just dangled a carrot.
"Conveniently, there were some pretty-faced bitches among the ones Hui-ryeong brought along. If I tell them they can have those girls, they'll jump right on board."
They were simple-minded bastards anyway. Stroke their desires and they'd cooperate easily.
They were already sick and tired of the existing slaves as it was, so convincing them wouldn't be difficult.
"There's nothing to be anxious about. Just trust me. It's always been that way, hasn't it?"
Song Hwan smiled greasily and looked up at the sky outside the window.
A pitch-black curtain with not even the moon risen.
Beneath that sky, they were sinking slowly into the deep night.
*
"Platoon Leader, how would you like to proceed?"
A young man with an unkempt beard politely inquired about Angelica's intentions.
The meaning of rank had long since been lost, but Angelica still commanded the respect of her company members.
And how could they not?
She had fragged the company commander who had driven them into death's maw and rescued them from the morass.
They owed her their lives.
Not only that, she had continually exerted herself to maintain her unit members' mental well-being at every turn.
It was a stark difference from when she'd served in the military.
Ever since the zombie outbreak erupted, Lieutenant Angelica's personality had grown much gentler, and she would crack silly jokes to lighten the mood.
And that wasn't all.
She had even supplied women without hesitation for the sake of her unit members.
She'd even gone out hunting herself and tossed them gifts tailored to their individual tastes, so their fierce loyalty was only natural.
"....."
At the vice platoon leader's question, she wordlessly toyed with two small dice in her grip.
After several minutes, her firmly closed lips finally parted.
"So in the end, Song Hwan, that bastard is going to start something?"
"Yes. According to our operatives, they'll pretend to hold a formal duel, then at the critical moment, they plan to turn it into a brawl."
"Foolish. Even so, with a new faction whose full strength hasn't even been assessed yet on the scene, this is far too reckless."
"What do you expect from those bastards? They act according to what little they've ever learned, which is nothing."
Angelica continued rolling the dice in her hand, deep in troubled thought.
To be honest, this was difficult.
The current situation seemed precarious, yet the three factions were maintaining a delicate balance.
But now that balance was on the verge of shattering.
That was not what Angelica wanted.
She had no confidence in standing alone against that insane female supremacist faction.
Those bitches were fervent followers of Ha Hui-ryeong and simultaneously a closed-off group that excluded men.
If they rode Ha Hui-ryeong's coattails to power, it was obvious Angelica would have a massive headache on multiple fronts.
She had a disposition that preferred the head of a snake to the tail of a dragon.
Meaning she had to become the top dog, one way or another.
But if Ju Min-hee went ahead and took the lead, she'd end up not even the dragon's tail, but somewhere around the snake's midsection.
And if by any chance they lost, she herself would be spared because she was a woman, but the rest of her unit members would not be.
Losing her power base was unacceptable.
So what was she to do?
The answer was clear.
Until now, she had maintained a facade of neutrality, mediating between the two factions while hiding her true intentions. But to put it another way, she had been closer to an opportunist ready to switch sides at any moment.
But now the scales had clearly tipped to one side. It was no longer time to stand back with her hands behind her back and watch. It was time to step to the front lines.
'Yes, if the balance has collapsed, I'll just rebuild it with my own hands.'
Of course, a great deal of bloodshed in the process was a secondary concern.
"Assemble the unit."
Angelica rolled the two dice in her hand.
The two faces that came up totaled three.
Yes, one way or another, Songpa-gu was a place that only functioned with three.
*
The day of the long-awaited duel.
Our group sat in the spectator stands of the sports field, gazing at the stage.
Of course, thanks to Ju Min-hee's consideration, we'd been given the very back seats for an easy escape.
"Noo-niiiim!! Wreck her!!"
"Just smash his cock so he can't even function as a man anymore!!"
In the field, Ha Hui-ryeong was receiving the fervent cheers of hundreds of people.
"Hui-ryeong!! Please! I'm begging you! Kill him horribly!!"
"Hey, Ha Hui-ryeong! Show us what you did in Incheon! Show us that ferocity of yours once more!!"
The main cheerleading squad consisted of her followers, the self-proclaimed Younger Siblings, but there were also some cheers from Kim Dong-hwan's side.
They just seemed to get a kick out of watching someone else get fucked over.
It was a mind-numbing spectacle, but Ha Hui-ryeong rode the atmosphere as if she was used to it.
Waving her hands wildly, she responded to the crowd's fervor.
In the midst of it, when her eyes met ours, she even showed the composure to wink at us.
From her perspective, there was no risk here.
Since she'd already been briefed on how Kim Dong-hwan's ability worked, the risk factor converged on zero.
As long as she didn't let him touch her.
Then 'Stasis' would be as good as useless, and with her command over lightning and her excellent reflexes, there wasn't a chance in hell that Ha Hui-ryeong would be pushed back.
"Now then, esteemed audience, we shall now have the duel you have all been eagerly awaiting! A big round of applause, please!!"
Ju Min-hee took up the microphone and fervently began hosting.
She was the most passionate person around when it came to Ha Hui-ryeong, so it was perhaps only natural.
"First, in the blue corner! Our lovely, adorable, and strong big sis! The great demon lord of Seoul who once threatened to swallow the world whole, Senior Ha Hui-ryeong!!"
-Waaaaaah!!!
"And next, in the red corner! Trash unworthy of even being dumped in the middle of Siberia! And the despicable traitor who sold out his own kin, Kim Dong-hwan!!"
-Boooo! Drop dead! Drop dead!
-Snap his dick off, Ha Hui-ryeong! Just grind him into paste!!
The massive cheers were followed by jeering so brutal it almost stirred a trace of pity.
The commotion had drawn a considerable number of zombies to the outside, but they couldn't break through the tall iron barricades.
They simply drooled and watched this happening unfold as an external audience.
And one of the main characters of this duel.
"...."
Kim Dong-hwan, his complexion deathly pale as if he might drop dead any second.
When he locked eyes one-on-one with Ha Hui-ryeong as she swung the Lightning Bat through the air, his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
He seemed to have sensed his fate.
"Aaaaargh!!"
But perhaps wanting to make one last show of bravado, he let out a roar and charged at Ha Hui-ryeong, his eyes filled with grim resolve.
Of course, there was no way that would work.
As if taunting him, Ha Hui-ryeong narrowly dodged his hands and hooked his leg.
Thud.
He tripped pathetically.
As the subsequent cheers erupted, Ha Hui-ryeong flashed her characteristically vicious grin and gave Kim Dong-hwan a hard kick.
"Pfft, bwahahaha! Ha Hui-ryeong! That's it, right there! Destroy him more! Fuck, mess him up so bad he's on his knees begging for his life!"
Shin Yoo-hwa was simply yelling at the top of her lungs, looking utterly exhilarated.
She seemed to feel a certain thrill at the sight of her enemy getting fucked over.
Anyway, the stage was sufficiently heated now, so it was time for me to make my move.
"Hey, Ha-yoon. Take the Numbered Bitches, Ji-min, Ha-rin, and head to the car first. Ah, and Su-ah too."
"What about you?"
"I'll be fine. I've gotten pretty strong in my own right now, haven't I? Plus, the two big sis bodyguards said they'd protect me."
"...I understand. Don't do anything reckless."
Kim Ha-yoon's expression clearly showed reluctance, but when I pointed to the Second and Third Younger Siblings positioned behind us, she seemed to reluctantly accept it.
"Yeah. And more importantly, make sure you protect them, alright?"
"I've always done well at that."
"Sure, sure. I'll trust you."
Kim Ha-yoon was reliable.
She had a decent head on her shoulders and plenty of fortitude, so there shouldn't be any problems.
I gave her shoulder a few pats, then called over Kang Ha-jun, who had been awkwardly trying to gauge the situation.
"You're coming with me."
"Yes, hyung-nim."
Contrary to expectations, she voiced no particular complaints.
She didn't even ask why; she just quietly followed my order.
...This felt oddly strange.
"...Excuse me, but why my brother?"
Kang Ha-rin expressed her clear displeasure.
But instead of answering, I just shrugged my shoulders.
Shamelessly, as if to say, what are you going to do about it?
"...Tch."
Kang Ha-rin looked back and forth between me and Kang Ha-jun, then finally clicked her tongue and backed off.
Whether she'd recalled our earlier conversation telling her not to help, or if she had already truly run out of affection, she silently followed after Kim Ha-yoon.
The same went for us.
After that, I slipped quietly out of the spectator stands with the two big sisters and Kang Ha-jun and headed for the school's main building.
"You're joining me in the Slave Liberation League. We're off to do a good deed, so to speak. And if there's a decent-looking girl, we'll take her as compensation while we're at it."
"Um... is it really okay for me to do that too?"
"Yeah, man. What's the point of having a brother-in-law? That's exactly the kind of situation you use that for. Just trust your hyung and follow me."
At those words, a glint of fervor lit up the guy's eyes.
For some reason, this guy felt like he'd fallen another level deeper into depravity.
Or maybe this had always been his true nature. A truly ironic thing.