Pass
I never expected Yongma Mountain to end up like this. Right before my eyes stretched a mountain path that had turned into a den of zombies.
“What the hell happened?”
What could have turned them all into zombies? After dealing with An Suhyeon’s group, I crossed back over to Yongma Mountain, only to find it filled with zombies caught in traps or with broken legs.
“Don’t tell me...”
Had they been attacked by someone... and left in this complete mess? Honestly, there was only one possibility.
An Suhyeon.
If An Suhyeon hadn’t gone on a rampage, this total wipeout couldn’t have happened.
Or maybe that serial killer from Gangbuk had made it all the way here.
What I needed to check in a situation like this was how the zombies had been taken down.
I killed the ones that were tied up or caught in traps while examining their wounds.
In this world, there were two ways someone became a zombie.
Either they got bitten directly, or they were already carrying the zombie virus in their system somehow and underwent an emotional change.
An Suhyeon and Gang Haseong belonged to the latter category. So what about this place?
As I carefully inspected them, most showed signs of having been torn into somewhere.
“Definitely not the serial killer. So An Suhyeon, then.”
I recalled how he’d tried to rip off my stab-proof vest with raw strength.
Thanks to that, I’d discarded the vest and was now geared up in body armor instead.
In place of the shattered helmet, a ballistic helmet—borrowed from the kids here, no less.
“Is this all there is to salvage?”
The only real harvest from Yongma Mountain was the telescope they’d been using and a radio that ran on a solar-powered generator.
I loaded those onto a cart, along with the traps I’d originally given them, and collected those too.
Of course, I had to search the entire area around Yongma Mountain. And now, with no one left to help me, I was doing it alone.
“If the kids were still around, I could just order them around comfortably.”
But they’d been wrecked thanks to that traitor, so what good did it do to complain now?
“At least there are no free-roaming zombies. Convenient.”
The silver lining was that most were either corpses or zombies bound in traps, so they were easy to deal with.
“Is this the end of it?”
I carefully approached a zombie standing blankly in the bushes with my crossbow.
“Guh...”
The crossbow bolt pierced straight through its skull, and it collapsed.
The numbers didn’t quite add up, but there were no more in sight.
“That’s enough for now.”
Time was already pushing toward night’s end.
I descended Yongma Mountain, loaded the goods onto the cart, and headed toward Grand Park.
From here on, it would be a considerable expedition. Which meant I needed a base to lighten the load.
My base in Gwangjin District was one near Konkuk University.
I’d planned to set one up at the entrance and one in the central area like in other regions, but the property had taken too long to become available, so I’d just come as I was.
“But I know the address...”
Having GPS working was exactly this kind of advantage. Even if it was my first time somewhere, I could find it quickly.
Still, I didn’t let my guard down just because of GPS. Zombies could show up anytime, anywhere.
When the sunset faded and the shadows were swallowed by darkness, I managed to find one of the bases near Grand Park.
“The weeds are growing well.”
No matter how many times I saw it, watching plants grow on an unmanaged building showed just how tough and resilient nature was.
This would be the starting point for communicating with the Grand Park side.
I’d heard they’d sent one person each toward Grand Park and Konkuk University, so I could just link up with them.
While staying here, I started sending out radio calls in the afternoons.
Someone would respond eventually if I did that.
"Yongma Mountain side, you say?"
The one who connected was a guy named Yu Munil.
Talking with him, I got a rough grasp of the situation.
Grand Park’s forces were concentrated toward Konkuk University, and that was where the surveillance was strictest.
Grand Park was down to just three bullets left, meaning effectively only one person could even fire a gun.
“So they’re distributing food left and right around Grand Park and just living it up, huh?”
Grand Park was raiding the Ecological Park and the mart on the opposite side, keeping the food supply running without a hitch.
But honestly, that barely mattered to me. What mattered was how many guns they had left.
That was all I needed to confirm—yet something far more interesting turned up.
“A woman who treats everyone like a saintess? Respected by all? But she’s got a husband?”
Information on a woman named Cha Yejin stacked up neatly in my head.
Once the radio call ended, I realized the time to act had finally come.
I casually bit into an energy bar and gulped down a bottle of water.
Woohee was dead, after all. It was time I needed a new woman.
She’s got a husband? Perfect.
Hell, it was about time I got a taste of a married woman too.
A flash of lust rose for a moment, but the important thing was whether she suited my tastes or not.
No matter how good the conditions looked, if she didn’t catch my eye, it was all worthless.
“I’ll go see for myself.”
Exactly what kind of woman she was.
After several days of gathering information, I finally set out toward the Ecological Park.
When people think of an apocalypse, one of the first things that comes to mind is plunder and fighting.
Everyone battles over limited resources, killing and being killed, until only the victor monopolizes the spoils.
That’s the kind of world it is.
But seven months into the outbreak, this place was different.
“But can’t we raise carp somehow?”
“Let’s go with the plants that grow the fastest, okay?”
Grand Park was clearly unlike anywhere else. Everyone worked together and lived cheerfully.
There was only one reason for that. The leader was guiding them well, and the people’s hearts were with him.
And over on the Ecological Park side, there was a woman who stood at the center of it all.
She wore an ordinary outfit—an A-line flare skirt and a black cotton T-shirt—but what was hidden beneath it was something you could never know without seeing it for yourself.
Her eyes had a provocative cast, yet from the corners of her mouth to her overall expression, she looked nothing but kind.
“Everyone, you’ve all worked hard. I’ll start distributing dinner now.”
Her role was, in a way, the most important of all.
Food management.
Why Cha Yejin held that position was simple.
It was because she was kind.
Originally, Cha Yejin had been told by her soldier husband to prepare for an emergency.
"It might get suppressed quickly, but just in case, stock up on some food."
Back then it had only been treated as some kind of epidemic, and no one imagined the country would end up like this.
The grandmother next door is there too. Should I buy a lot?
That very decision turned out to be the absolute best judgment when the apocalypse hit.
In that she had somehow stockpiled food, she was a similar case to Lee Soyeon. The difference was the quantity.
She had stored far more for the neighbors she normally looked after and showed kindness to.
When the situation fully descended into chaos, she used that food to save the people in her apartment.
Centered on the apartment where she lived, with her soldier husband joining in, it didn’t take long to pacify the surrounding area.
In the end, the military unit arrived, and thanks to that they managed to hold out relatively well.
The people who gathered like this were different from those who had been driven together by force.
Out of gratitude and a desire to keep basic human decency, they began following her words.
Especially since she also had the backing of her husband from the military unit.
Just like a saintess.
Cha Yejin stood in front of the makeshift food warehouse and distributed flour and rice to the people.
“Really, thank you every single time. I don’t even know if it’s okay to keep giving this much away.”
“Seonhwa, I heard your baby was born this time? Take a little more.”
“No, what are you doing giving me all this...!”
Her popularity was high.
Cha Yejin smiled as she sent the people off.
On her way back to the apartment, she passed a place where a Bible verse hung.
“Whew, another day done.”
She smiled and greeted the empty house as she entered.
At the end of her gaze was a photo taken with her husband.
“Haa... Honey, when are you coming back?”
But soon that peaceful face filled with longing.
Her husband was currently so busy with Grand Park affairs that he couldn’t come often.
No. At times like this I should pray.
Cha Yejin calmly made the sign of the cross. She had attended a mission school since she was young and had nearly become a nun.
Her kind nature was a character thoroughly shaped by education.
In an apocalypse where electricity was limited, the only reading material was the books already on hand.
Inside the dark house, candlelight flickered as she began to read.
Just then, the hard sound of military boots echoed down the apartment hallway.
“!”
Cha Yejin rose with a joyful face, and the door opened.
There stood her husband, his beard grown quite long.
“You’ve worked so hard!”
Cha Yejin ran to him in one breath, filled with happiness.
She gave him a joyful hug.
“You’ve worked hard. I’ve drawn some water, so at least take a bath...”
“No, save it.”
Her husband answered bluntly.
Of course, that was partly because he was a soldier, and partly just his nature.
“You’re hungry, right? I’ll make some food.”
“It’s fine. I just want to rest a bit.”
“R-right... You must be exhausted.”
Cha Yejin received her husband’s response with a slightly awkward feeling.
He finally came after so long...
She wanted to share a little more physical conversation with the husband she loved.
“Honey...”
Her husband, who had only washed his face simply, lay down on the bed, and Cha Yejin sent him a signal.
“No, sorry.”
But her husband only shook his head with a tired face.
“Alright. You must be tired, so get some good sleep.”
That was right. Her husband had been busy lately. As a wife, she had to understand.
Cha Yejin spent the day expressing that quiet regret.
“Be careful from now on. Konkuk University’s side is a mess right now. They’re even going at it hand-to-hand. Doesn’t seem like they have many bullets either.”
“Doesn’t Konkuk University have a lot of people?”
“They’ve got the numbers, but it looks like the other side deliberately conserved their firearms while fighting. Once they judged it was a stalemate, they only showed a few cards on purpose. Konkuk University’s side will be cleaned up quickly.”
As a soldier, he had to focus on the front lines as the crisis approached.
“I need to pull some supplies. I’m taking quite a bit this time.”
Her husband said that and left right away.
It was a choice to protect this place, but as a wife it felt cold.
And on that day, a new man appeared here.
Honestly speaking, I couldn’t understand these people’s behavior.
“Come on, have a drink.”
Right in front of me, homemade makgeolli was being poured, and some guy I wasn’t even close to was sticking to my side and talking.
What is this? Is this some alien world? When an outsider shows up, the normal thing is to be at least a little wary, right?
Even if Yu Munil introduced me, weren’t they treating me way too comfortably?
I downed a cup of makgeolli in one go, and the taste of alcohol I hadn’t had in ages hit my face hard.
“It’s good. I never thought I’d get to drink something like this in a situation like this.”
“This place is that comfortable. You can relax too.”
The old man’s warm words loosened my heart just a little.
“Yes. There wasn’t a single zombie around here. Did you all catch them?”
“That’s right. We all caught them together.”
“Amazing. I’ve got some gear so I can fight one-on-one, but you people without any equipment...”
Well, I kept the flattering talk going hard. That wasn’t the goal, after all.
My target was a new woman—specifically the married woman called Cha Yejin.
Whether this place was peaceful or treated me well didn’t matter. Only whether Cha Yejin suited my tastes or not.
“But I heard there’s someone really kind here? My colleague was praising her until his mouth went dry.”
“Ah, Cha Yejin? She’s got a truly good heart, and she supports her husband well too. You’ll know when you see her.”
“I see. I’ve only been receiving hospitality, so I should put something out too. What’s a drinking party without food?”
Since they had shown goodwill first, I answered with goodwill of my own.
Though depending on the woman, they might end up as enemies soon enough.
The snacks I’d brought were served as drinking food, and the chocolate bars especially became popular items.
“Hey, is it okay to give away something this precious?”
“I got to drink after a long time, after all. Mutual help. I’m planning to head past here toward Yongsan and Seocho. Any information or anything?”
And of course I set out gathering information. As a military unit, their intel was naturally higher than elsewhere.
“Nah, we only hear bits and pieces too, but it seems like it might get dangerous over that way soon. Looks like an emergency’s been declared.”
“What kind...”
Just as I was about to ask, I suddenly felt the people around me all turning their gazes in one direction.
Not toward me. Not even toward the center of the conversation.
My eyes followed theirs.
There, a beauty with a devout impression and provocative eyes was approaching this way.
But unlike her eyes, her mouth and demeanor were demure. She walked over calmly.
“Hello. Are you the new arrival?”
“Ah... yes...”
“I’m Cha Yejin. You must be tired, so please rest well. It’s safe here.”
A smile that truly put people’s hearts at ease poured out, just like a saintess.
“...Pass.”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing. I’m just passing through and need some help.”
Pass.
Cha Yejin, was it? You’re next.
Desire began to bloom roughly.