The Worrying vs. The Unworried

"Coo, coo-coo, coo-coo…."

"Do you really have to do that to the chickens? They aren't pigeons, you know."

"But they're cute, aren't they? Right, Ha-yun?"

Park Seon-hui and Kim Ha-yun shook their heads as they watched Jo Yu-na giggle. "I'm scared of chickens. Chicks are cute, but... I'll go check the coop to see if there are any eggs left."

Kim Ha-yun, looking thoroughly fed up with the birds, vanished in a flash.

"But chickens are cute…." Jo Yu-na, who had participated in a school club back in Japan that raised chickens, ducks, and rabbits, remarked with a pout as she looked around at the flock. Of the five greenhouses in the shelter, one was always kept fallow, serving as a playground for the chickens during the day. The nearly one hundred chickens wandered leisurely through the spacious greenhouse, busily digging into the soil to peck at small bugs and clover.

"I got all the eggs. The hens had hidden a few."

"Good job. Let's go, then."

Since the chickens would be fine on their own for a couple of hours, the three of them set off, carrying a box full of eggs. After washing their boots clean with the hose outside the greenhouse, they loaded the egg box into the cargo bed of the multi-purpose electric cart and headed into another greenhouse where leafy vegetables were grown.

As they entered, the report from the AI Akina was accompanied by the distinct, fresh scent of leafy greens and herbs. The three girls grabbed their baskets and began harvesting, prioritizing the plants with the oldest date tags.

"Unnie, you said we're having pork belly for dinner today, right?"

"Yup! And soybean paste stew and bibimbap for lunch!" Jo Yu-na smacked her lips as she carefully placed the lush green lettuce and spinach into her basket. Park Seon-hui glanced at her and remarked, "But Yu-na, you look like you've gained some weight."

"What? R-really?" As Jo Yu-na jumped in surprise, Park Seon-hui nodded. "Yeah, really. It's been a long time since you exercised, hasn't it?"

"But I'm always so tired from working hard every single day…."

"Then you should cut down on what you eat."

"Hee-ing. Ha-yun, do I really look like I've gained weight?"

"Yes."

"Ugh." Faced with the answer delivered without a moment's hesitation, Jo Yu-na clutched her chest in agony before saying with a dejected face, "I don't have the confidence to cut down on food, so I'll start exercising from today. Auntie Ha-neul's cooking is just too delicious."

"That's true. But how does Auntie manage to make something different every day?" Park Seon-hui tilted her head. Kim Ha-yun, who was carefully picking bright-colored mini bell peppers, replied, "She makes them using school lunch menus. She says that once Auntie Ha-neul picks a menu, the AI calculates all the nutrients and calories for her."

"Wow…." As the two former ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠idols marveled at the information they hadn't known, Kim Ha-yun continued as she walked toward the section growing bok choy and young radishes. "And, all those menus were downloaded by Mister Jun-ho in advance. The cooking videos were downloaded by him, too."

"I see. He's really amazing."

"……." Jo Yu-na was full of admiration, but Park Seon-hui went silent at the mention of Jun-ho. It had already been a week since Jun-ho and her brother, Park Deok-cheol, had left the shelter. They had said there would be no problems, and while she didn't need to worry about Jun-ho—even if she might worry about her slightly clumsy brother—she couldn't help it. 'Why is my heart racing like this…?' Because the anxiety wouldn't go away for some reason, Park Seon-hui took a light breath.

"I'll handle Greenhouse 4. Sunny and Ha-yun, you two go to Greenhouse 5 and harvest the onions, green onions, and radishes. Oh, and Auntie Ha-neul said we're low on onions, so bring back plenty."

"Got it."

"Yes, Unnie."

Park Seon-hui went to Greenhouse 5 with Kim Ha-yun. While they were harvesting green onions that gave off a sharp scent and onions with sparkling white bulbs, Kim Ha-yun glanced at Park Seon-hui and said, "Are you worried about Mister Jun-ho, Unnie?"

"…Huh? No, no way. W-worry? No. I was thinking about Ducky, my brother. I was thinking about my brother."

"Doesn't look like it…."

"It's not like that. I'm really not thinking about anything."

"Okay, then. But Unnie, do you know about that?"

"Huh? What?" As Park Seon-hui showed interest, Kim Ha-yun, who was habitually trimming the tops of the green onions and putting them in the basket, continued with feigned indifference. "The unnies who live in the karaoke room in the Mokuri building. They ask about how Mister Jun-ho is doing every single day."

"What? H-how do you know that?"

"Mister Yeong-su told me. He talks to the building owner there every day. He said the unnies in the karaoke room always cut in to ask."

"……."

"One unnie even asked where this place is and if she could come visit. She said if it weren't for the zombies, she would have come already. She asked what kind of style Mister Jun-ho likes, and even said she's a C-cup…."

"I'm bigger than that…."

"Yes?"

"Ah, no. L-let's just get to work." Park Seon-hui, who had muttered that without realizing it, spoke in a rush and busily shook the dirt off the onions. Kim Ha-yun chuckled as she watched Park Seon-hui, who was slowly moving away from her with her ears and neck flushed red. "Unnie is cute. Hehe."

She finally understood why Choi Ha-neul and Baek Su-ah teased Park Seon-hui like a toy whenever they had the chance. But Park Seon-hui, not realizing that her inner thoughts had been exposed even to a middle school girl, simply muttered to herself, "Should I change my career too…? Then I could go around with him often. But really, nothing is going to happen, right? I'm worried…." She muttered this while picturing Jun-ho's face in her mind even more vividly than her own brother, Park Deok-cheol's.

"I'm sorry I couldn't go with you."

"You're injured, so what is there to be sorry about? Just rest well and get better soon." As Yoon Seol-hee, who had her shoulder bandaged, wore an apologetic expression, Jun-ho touched his suddenly itchy ear and said, "Since it was a shallow wound, I'll be able to go about my daily life within ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a week, so going to the Namyangju shelter won't be a problem."

"I trust you. Have you finished picking the people who will go with you?"

"Yes. One of the Representative's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bodyguards. The other two are Kops employees, but they're former search team members from a frontline unit. Everyone is 5th-dan or higher in martial arts and is very skilled with firearms. They're friends who will be able to do their part sufficiently with just a little training from me."

"I'm sure you've picked them well, Manager. I only trust our Manager Yoon Seol-hee." Because he knew Yoon Seol-hee's skills as well as his employer, Kang Baek-ho, and her direct superior from her active-duty days, Park Cheol-woo, and trusted her without doubt, Jun-ho grinned at her. However, at Jun-ho's smile, Yoon Seol-hee's expression suddenly stiffened, and she looked away from his gaze as she said, "By the way, if I and the staff are dispatched to Namyangju, what will happen to the equipment?"

Jun-ho, puzzled by the sudden change in her expression, tilted his head inwardly and replied, "Basically, you'll be issued replicated KP9s, replicated air rifles, and Chinese-made pistols recovered from the Daeseonghoe gangsters. If you want, you can continue to use the guns you're currently using." Although the reliability was a bit low because they were Chinese-made, there were several guns they had seized from the gangsters.

"You can consider the combat uniforms, tactical vests, and other equipment to be the same as what I'm wearing now. Is there anything else you need? We have almost everything, so feel free to request whatever you need."

"I think I'll only know for sure once I go to the Namyangju shelter and check the site myself. Then, Mister Lee Jun-ho, please have a safe trip." At Yoon Seol-hee's words, Park Cheol-woo, who had finished ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠checking the weapons and equipment including the K2C1 nearby, cut in with a grin. "Manager Yoon. Are you worried about Mister Lee Jun-ho right now? Aren't you going to worry about me?"

Then Yoon Seol-hee said with a straight face, "I don't worry about Mister Lee Jun-ho. The same goes for you, Senior."

"What?"

"Both of you are people who don't need to be worried about, so why would I worry?"

Yoon Seol-hee was sincere. There was no need to mention Park Cheol-woo, with whom she had served in the military, and now the same was true for Jun-ho. Honestly, she even thought that Jun-ho's marksmanship alone was superior to Park Cheol-woo's. That was how impressive and shocking Jun-ho's appearance had been when he suppressed the gangsters who had attacked her with mobile shooting.

"…Geez. You really know how to leave a man speechless." Park Cheol-woo, who smacked his lips and nodded, looked back at the personnel selected for this operation. "Is everyone ready?"

"YES!!!" The 10 or so expedition combat team members answered vigorously. Armed with existing air rifles and various gunpowder firearms obtained from the gangsters, they were full of morale. Because Jun-ho had taken them down so quickly, their ammunition wasn't exactly abundant, but they had enough to hold 3 or 4 magazines per person.

"But where on earth did you get this?" Park Cheol-woo continued, looking astonished as he held a tablet with an aviation map downloaded, where most areas were as of April 2024, and even the latest update was around 2015. "No, we were finding our way with traffic maps used in the '88 era, so this is unfair. Geez…."

"That's a trade secret. Anyway, since most residential areas or villages in the metropolitan area are the latest versions, finding your way shouldn't be difficult."

"Of course. It's fine as long as we don't get into unnecessary fights with zombies. But if we have this, we can avoid all those places. Alright, let's go."

"Yes, Manager."

Because the opponent was in the hundreds and their side had over 10 people participating, and the operation area was also a completely new region, not Gahyeon-ri and its vicinity, Jun-ho decided to be led by Park Cheol-woo, a true special forces veteran and a real 'combat pro' who was incomparable to himself, who had learned combat skills in a short-term intensive course.

"Our Manager Cheol-woo, and my brother Juno-Juno. I only trust you two. You must bring our staff back safely."

"Yes, Representative."

"I will do my best, Brother."

After shaking hands with Kang Baek-ho, who had a stiff expression, Jun-ho moved his steps along with the combat team led by Park Cheol-woo.

"Brother, you really, really can't get hurt, okay? Okay? You promised me."

"Don’t worry. I’ll be back."

Park Deok-cheol, who gave a thumbs-up to Cherry Ahn Yu-jeong, pulled up his mask and followed behind Jun-ho. Within five days at the earliest, or ten days at the latest, they would have a showdown with the core of the Daeseonghoe.

Jun-ho, who arrived at the wetland ecological park in half a day with the resort combat team led by Park Cheol-woo, was able to confirm that the rubber boat he had hidden was as safe as it was when it arrived.

"It's a 10-seater, but since the equipment is heavy, it'll be fine if we divide it into two groups and make round trips."

"Let's do that."

After rapidly charging the boat battery with the generator they brought, the first group went up the Gyeongancheon Stream and entered Paldang Lake. After dropping off the combat team at the ecological park where he had spent a night just before entering Gwangju, Jun-ho returned and brought the second group, including Park Cheol-woo.

After finishing their meal in a secluded spot in the ecological park, they took a short rest and then moved along the revetment and the riverside. Because Paldang Lake was a water source protection area where entry was prohibited, there were few people in the vicinity to begin with. So, they were able to pass Paldang Dam and enter the Han River basin without encountering any zombies.

However, from here on, because it was a place that even Jun-ho was visiting for the first time since the apocalypse broke out, let alone the combat team, they had to frequently launch drones to scout the riverside and national roads while moving. Eventually, it took about two hours to get near Paldang Station on the Gyeongui-Jungang Line, which was about 4 kilometers away.

"Tsk. Just as I thought."

"Why? Is there something?"

When Jun-ho, who was checking the drone controller screen, clicked his tongue, Park Cheol-woo stuck to his side and asked.

"Yes. The station square and the vicinity are just swarming with them." On the Paldang Station square reflected on the screen, hundreds of zombies were wandering around.

"You see the parking lot next to the square?"

"Hmm. What kind of tour buses… Ah, it was a holiday that day."

There were about 10 colorful tour buses in the parking lot attached to the station, and it seemed that the zombies in the square were people who had arrived at the station early in the morning to take the bus and leave.

"Can't be helped. We'll have to detour and go along the path passing over the tracks."

"No, Manager. I think it would be better to deal with them while we have the chance. We need to take this place so it's comfortable for us later."

"Hmm? Do we really have to?"

Because they would have to use at least half of their ammunition to take down all those guys, Park Cheol-woo narrowed his eyes.

"Most of them are individuals over 60 years old. There aren't many residents in this vicinity, so they probably haven't eaten well, so their physical abilities will be lower too. I can handle it by myself."

"……!!!"

Park Cheol-woo couldn't help but look up at Jun-ho, who was nonchalantly tapping his machete.