Chapter 37
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Police Hospital (1)
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Crossroads of choice.
They say that even when you make the best decision at such a fork in the road, regret always lingers.
But...
‘I can confidently say that choosing that person was the greatest decision of my life, without a shred of regret.’
Crunch!
As the bee, wounded in its wings and crashed to the ground, was crushed under Min-jun’s foot, a splash of yellow ichor splattered onto Kang Sang-chul’s shoes where he stood lost in thought.
“You don’t always have to target the body when dealing with bees! If you can inflict even a little damage to their wings like this, you can take them down easily.”
It had already been several hours since Min-jun had led every officer in the station outside to begin his lecture on apostle hunting.
Bee corpses littered the ground around him, piled up enough to trip over.
Right now, Team 3 under Team Leader Choi Mi-young was handling a swarm of bees.
“Whether it’s bees or moth larvae, the most important thing when facing apostles is not to let fear take hold. ‘Isn’t that obvious?’ you might think—”
Min-jun spotted a swarm charging at the youngest member of the team.
He cut his words short and charged forward, swinging a massive chunk of metal diagonally downward.
Vroooom—!
The air ripped apart as the swarm shattered.
Min-jun grabbed the hand of Jeong Yeon-su, the Team 3 rookie who had fallen flat on her butt, and helped her up as he continued.
“As you can see, they’re extremely sensitive to the emotion of fear and focus their attacks on anyone who shows it. From my experience, their physical abilities seem to improve slightly against those who fear them. Like they’re doping themselves on fear as nourishment... Of course, that’s just my observation. It’s not scientifically proven.”
Team 3 regrouped under Min-jun’s guidance and began facing the swarm again.
Kang Sang-chul, protected by the other teams, scribbled notes furiously in his police notepad as he absorbed the invaluable hunting know-how.
‘How many brushes with death has he had to learn all this...?’
Kang Sang-chul watched the lecture from the front row in pure admiration, feeling immense gratitude at the same time.
Songpa Police Station had become the ‘Songpa Base Camp (1)’.
Garakk Market was just a stone’s throw away.
So-hee’s only remaining family member’s fate was uncertain, so she must have been anxious.
When he shared intel on Garakk Market, Kang Sang-chul had expected Min-jun and So-hee to head straight there.
But she said something completely different from what he anticipated.
‘To me, Min-jun looks like a bowstring pulled taut, on the verge of snapping at any moment. Now that we’ve found the safest place in the world to stay, we should rest here this time. No—we must rest.’
‘So-hee, I’m fi—’
‘Quiet! Anyway, the two of us will head out in two days. Uncle Dong-gil, please prepare accordingly.’
In Kang Sang-chul’s view, Min-jun was impressive, but the girl traveling with him was no ordinary person either.
It took strong resolve to think of others so deeply in this world.
And so, for two days, Min-jun rested, reviewed his gains, and lay back on his sickbed.
But after just half a day, he kicked off the covers and rose.
- So-hee. My body’s itching—I can’t hold still. At least let me do some light exercise.
And this lecture was the result.
“With that, the two-day lecture concludes. As I mentioned yesterday, make Silver rank your top priority. Uncle Dong-gil will lead you well in my absence, so no need to worry, but everyone—stay safe until we meet again?”
Clap clap clap clap—
Kang Sang-chul snapped out of his reverie at the thunderous applause and looked forward again.
So-hee and Min-jun, preparations complete, were saying goodbye to Dong-gil, newly promoted to station chief.
“Team leader, Miss So-hee—take care of yourselves.”
“Haha, why talk like we’ll never see each other again? We’ll stop by often on the way.”
“Yeah. Garakk Market’s right next door anyway. Once I find my dad, I’ll come back.”
“Of course! We’ll hold down the fort here, so you have to come back.”
Kang Sang-chul walked toward the trio sharing a heartfelt embrace.
The lecture had run longer than expected, and the sun was dipping low—they needed to hurry.
“Camp leader, So-hee, it’s time to head out.”
The destination was only a 10-minute walk, but variables could arise anytime.
“Camp leader, So-hee, it’s time to head out.”
“Right. I’ve got other tasks assigned to Team 2 leader, so we need to move fast.”
“Yeah, everything’s ready... Shall we go now?”
With that, Min-jun handed the tactical backpack he was carrying to Sang-chul.
“...?”
As he failed to grasp Min-jun’s intent, So-hee chimed in from the side.
“We can’t carry bags because of our weapons. Please take care of it.”
She gave an awkward smile, embarrassed by her own words...
Kang Sang-chul, who had started as a mere guide and somehow become a porter, shot a resentful glare at his senior.
‘Senior, is this right?’
‘Endure it... I’ve been there.’
Dong-gil closed his eyes without a word.
‘Sigh... Fine, whatever. The two monsters will handle all the fighting anyway.’
Letting out a deep internal sigh, Kang Sang-chul took the backpack and slung it over his front.
He already had his own bag on his back.
‘Not even in school did I play bag shuttle...’
A sudden wave of doubt washed over him, but what could he do?
He was the weakest of the three.
Kang Sang-chul reconsidered his earlier thought about it being the best choice and turned on his heel.
And so, Dong-gil, So-hee, and Kang Sang-chul set off toward Garakk Market along Jungmoon-daero.
* * *
“We’re heading to the police hospital.”
“The police hospital? Weren’t we going straight to Garakk Market?”
Min-jun gave Kang Sang-chul a puzzled look and asked back.
Police Hospital.
Unlike the name, it was open to civilians, but with benefits like reduced fees, it housed many police and firefighters.
And now, in the apocalypse...
It was the largest survivor group Kang Sang-chul knew of.
“Yes. Team 2 scouted Munjeong-dong, Jangji-dong, and Garak-dong areas—that’s where the biggest survivor group is holed up. I know their leader. They might know something about So-hee’s father.”
When the apocalypse hit, Kang Sang-chul had been thrown straight into Garakk Market.
Naturally, he’d fought apostles and sustained various injuries...
As a cop, familiar with the police hospital, he had sought treatment there right away, nearby as it was.
“We built rapport, trading updates over the past two months or so, responding to crises together.”
As they walked straight along Jungmoon-daero, the lack of even a single apostle puzzled him briefly.
Soon, the trio arrived at the police hospital.
“We’re here.”
““Whoa...””
Min-jun and So-hee simultaneously exclaimed at the sight visible through the collapsed fence.
The parking lot featured sharpened tree trunks as barricades interwoven with abandoned cars, corpses of spiders and humans strewn between.
At the center stood a massive building glowing golden in the sunset.
Built to heal people, it now stood as a battle-hardened fortress.
“This isn’t a hospital—it’s a castle.”
“That’s spot on. Their leader built the defenses assuming a siege.”
The three crossed the parking lot, feet sticking to spider fluids and blackened blood pools.
Then, from the ‘battlements’—the fourth-floor balcony—someone shouted loudly.
“Hold! Hold! State your identity!”
Twilight made faces hard to discern.
A man with a bow on his back peered at them through a monocular around his neck.
“Hey! Is that Yun-seop? Ah, Geun-jae?! It’s Sang-chul! Kang Sang-chul from Songpa Station!”
“Oh? Sang-chul?! What brings you! Come on up!”
The man called Geun-jae vanished briefly, then lowered something with a comrade.
So-hee paled at the sight and replied.
“No way... We have to climb that to the fourth floor?”
Like a heavenly rope for siblings in folklore.
A long, frail ladder made of linked sections descended slowly toward them.
“All doors and windows are sealed tight— this is the only way up. No choice.”
“So-hee, we’ve done rock climbing. This is nothing.”
“No, rocks are solid at least. That looks like it’d snap in the wind...”
Once the ladder was fully down, Kang Sang-chul and Min-jun climbed first, leaving hesitant So-hee behind.
“Ugh, my fate.”
So-hee sighed deeply and reluctantly followed in their footsteps.
* * *
Once inside the hospital, the trio followed Geun-jae down the hallway.
The wards seemed filled with patients—unexpected even for familiar Kang Sang-chul, who glanced around as he spoke.
“Geun-jae, looks like more patients than last time?”
“A big wave hit recently—lots of injuries.”
“Big wave?”
“The spiders have been hitting harder lately... You’re here to see the old man anyway, right? Ask him for details. I gotta get back to watch.”
The man finished and headed up the stairs around the corner.
The old man was in the director’s office on the sixth floor, he said.
With such tight security, it was clearly hostile to outsiders— no need to stir trouble, so Min-jun and So-hee silently followed.
After walking a bit more, they reached the director’s office.
Suddenly, heated voices erupted from beyond the door.
- No! This is the time for restraint!
- So we just abandon the kids they took?!
- Does rushing into that spider nest make sense? It’s suicide!
Geun-jae, embarrassed, cleared his throat and knocked.
The shout came immediately.
- Who is it!
“Old man, Sang-chul’s here.”
- Sang-chul? Come in!
The director’s office was smaller and cozier than Songpa Station’s chief’s office.
Inside, a white-coated elderly doctor faced off against an old man in battered leather armor, both red-faced.
Spotting them, the armored one spread his arms wide and approached.
“Oh! Sang-chul, what’s up!”
“Elder Kim, your voice is still booming—you must be in fine fettle.”
“Hahaha! Of course! Gotta stay spry with life reclaimed!”
As Elder Kim embraced Kang Sang-chul, the doctor-looking elder grumbled from behind.
“Hmph! Am I invisible to you?”
“Oh come on, no way. How’ve you been, Director?”
Min-jun watched, rethinking how the always stiff and conservative Kang Sang-chul had such a warm side.
“But Sang-chul, who are these folks?”
“Oh, these are Lee Min-jun and Jung So-hee, benefactors of Songpa Station. We’d have been done for without them.”
“Grateful indeed. I’m Kim Hak-beom, leading this police hospital survivor group, humble as it is. That fool over there is Lee Jong-seok, former director here.”
“Pleased to meet you.”
As the two elders introduced themselves, silent So-hee and Min-jun followed suit.
“So, what brings you? Trouble at the station?”
“Nothing like that. So-hee’s looking for someone—thought you might know, Elder.”
“Someone?”
Kim Hak-beom looked at So-hee, and she finally stated her purpose.
“Do you happen to know Team Leader Jeong Jin-ho from Garakk 119 Safety Center?”