Sunset of Naivety

The road home at sunset painted the ruined commercial buildings in blood-red hues. Crows pecked at corpses scattered amid the concrete debris on the street, and faint groans carried on the wind from afar. I scanned my surroundings with the wariness I'd grown accustomed to as I walked.

Rounding the corner of a boxy storefront, five young people suddenly came into view—three guys, two girls. They were huddled together, deep in discussion, but the moment I appeared, their conversation cut off abruptly. The air froze.

'...Here we go again.'

I instinctively dropped into a combat stance. Knees slightly bent, I cracked my knuckles one by one. Tension rippled through my neck and shoulders, my toes poised to launch me forward at any second. My killing intent clashed with their guarded stares in the empty space between us.

Breaking the heavy silence was a brown-haired guy from the group. He had round eyes and an innocent, puppy-like face. Looked about twenty, dressed in faded jeans and a gray hoodie.

"Um... excuse me, are you by yourself?"

His voice trembled, but his eyes seemed genuine.

"If you don't have anywhere to go... wanna come with us?"

'In this world, there's still someone this naive?'

After dealing with Kang Cheolho and his thugs, suspicion came naturally. In this hellish world, offering a hand to a stranger was as good as begging for death. You never knew when a blade ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠might come flying from behind...

That's when whispers came from behind the brown-haired guy.

"Minsu, you're doing it again..."

"Just ignore him and go. We're short on time."

"Look at his eyes. He looks dangerous as hell."

Anxiety and irritation mixed on their faces. One even backed away openly, eyeing me warily.

The guy called Minsu turned to his friends, pleading desperately.

"Guys, more people means we're stronger, right? It'll help us survive."

"And look, he seems nice. His eyes are just... sharp, that's all."

The other four scanned me, tilting their heads in confusion. Their looks screamed, 'Are you crazy?'

One guy leaned in and whispered to Minsu.

"Dude, didn't you see his eyes? The community posts said to watch out for guys with scary eyes..."

His voice was thick with fear.

'I can hear you assholes.'

I smirked inwardly. After the Kang Cheolho mess, it made sense—factions big and small would form everywhere in this world. Scoping them out early wasn't a bad idea.

"Sure."

All eyes snapped to me at my curt reply.

"Let's go together."

My voice was low and firm, my gaze carrying a clear warning.

'If you draw first, you're all dead.'

They flinched under my murderous stare, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠averting their eyes. The tension thickened.

They led me to a ruined high school. Makeshift barricades of old desks and chairs blocked the front gate, tattered banners flapping mournfully in the wind.

'This is their... defense line?'

It looked like four zombies could smash right through it.

Inside the auditorium, a nauseating mix of moldy stench and human sweat assaulted my nose. Dirty mattresses littered the floor, junk piled in corners. Plenty of people were already there—exhausted faces etched with anxiety and despair. Some stared blankly into space; others huddled with knees drawn up.

'Classic refugee camp.'

An old man approached Minsu, begging.

"Minsu, you worked hard today. Got any food?"

Sixties, shabby clothes, bushy beard. But his eyes gleamed greedily at the thought of food.

Minsu pulled canned drinks and snacks from his backpack like a total pushover.

"Yeah, Grandpa. This is all we got today..."

"Aigoo, thank you, thank you!"

The old man snatched it and scurried off with a grin, no intention of sharing.

Minsu's friends sighed in annoyance. Then the old man spotted me and came back.

"Huh? Who's this young fella? Never seen him before."

Minsu explained I was new. The old man nodded knowingly, then brazenly added,

"Of course, of course. In times like these, the young ones gotta work hard. Gotta feed us old folks, right?"

His tone dripped with entitled arrogance, like he owned the place.

'...What?'

I was dumbfounded. But I had no plans to stick around long—just grab some intel and bounce.

Then—

Boom!

Chaos erupted outside. Roars mixed with screams.

"Block it over there!!"

"Hey! Get over here and help!!"

"It's breaking through!"

"What the fuck is this crazy bitch doing coming this way?!"

Thanks to my Black Eyes trait, my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠vision was crystal clear, like daylight. Through the auditorium's grimy windows, I saw the horde—a tsunami of zombies crashing toward the barricade. Hundreds, no, thousands. Their rotting stench reached even here.

Clack, clack.

Amid the roar, sharp heel clicks cut through clearly.

'Heels in this world? She's insane.'

Curious, I spotted the source...

'No way!'

It was that ajumma who'd ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bitched me out after I took down Kang Cheolho's crew! Still rocking her luxury scarf, but her face was ghost-white with terror. Her heels hammered the asphalt desperately as she sprinted toward the school like a madwoman.

'Damn... she's still alive?'

I was genuinely impressed by her tenacity. Respect. And from the red aura clinging to her, she'd clearly gotten the Stigma, drawing the horde straight here.

'Sigh... they're fucked.'

A camp scraping by on scraps from college kids couldn't hold off zombies swarming from all sides. As expected, the flimsy barricades crumbled in seconds.

Boom! Crash!

"Aaaah!"

"Help!"

"Uwaaaah!"

The auditorium turned to hell. Screams mingled with flesh-tearing sounds, blood reek stinging my nose. People panicked, scrambling everywhere, but exits were zombie-blocked.

'Sigh... numbers were already tight.'

My daily quest popped up.

Remembering community posts, I grabbed a torn hoodie and cap from a corner to hide my face, then released the gravity I'd been maintaining since leaving.

Whoosh... The crushing weight lifted, my body feeling feather-light. Every muscle brimmed with explosive power.

The auditorium was pandemonium. Zombies tore into people, endless screams echoing. Blood pooled on the floor, splattered the walls.

One of Minsu's female friends and a guy were already bitten. Skin paling, eyes bloodshot, bodies convulsing—infection setting in.

'Tch.'

I had no intention or obligation to save everyone here. Just carve an exit; anyone who followed was lucky.

"Ughhh..."

Minsu's bitten friend gnashed at his own arm. Minsu was frozen in shock, eyes wide with horror and despair, lips quivering silently, rooted to the spot.

'Tch.'

Tongue clicking, I approached and smashed my knuckled fist into the zombie's temple.

Thud!

Dull crack—brains splattered. Instant death.

Minsu collapsed in despair at the sight, life draining from his eyes.

I glanced at him once, said nothing, and pushed toward the exit, smashing zombies one by one. Knuckles pulverized skulls, black blood spraying.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

"Kraaaah!"

Thud!

No one followed. Either crushed by despair or already zombie chow.

Outside, the slaughter continued. Streets were pure hell—screams everywhere, zombies swarming buildings. But to me, just EXP fodder.

Thud! Thud!

Splattering the last zombie's skull completed it.

Quest done, I turned toward Yoon Seoyeon's studio apartment without a backward glance. The city's night remained filled with blood and screams, but my steps stayed steady.