Chapter 50 - The Weight of Survival
Kim Jun, who had woken up early and turned on the water in the bathroom, looked puzzled when the pressure suddenly dropped.
"What the hell is wrong with it this time?"
He had filled the basin and was trying to draw more water, but the stream weakened like a shrinking hose before it was even full. He made do with a shower using what little remained.
Afterward, he poured the used water into the toilet tank, came out, dried his body with a towel, applied body lotion, and prepared for a refreshing morning.
Before eating, he stepped outside to enjoy a smoke and headed to the water tank in the backyard. Seeing the situation there, Kim Jun frowned.
"Hose problem again?"
The third floor used water from the well, while the second floor drew from the rainwater tank. One side had bent slightly, preventing smooth flow.
Since he was already out there, Kim Jun grabbed a valve wrench from the storage shed, opened it slightly, straightened the bent hose, and adjusted the angle until the water flowed properly.
In his mind, he wanted to replace it entirely with PVC or metal pipes, but that was unrealistic. Even with the girls helping, the construction would take an unknown amount of time, and they lacked the proper equipment.
For now, he'd have to keep patching it with hose adjustments whenever pressure issues arose. As Kim Jun scratched his head, a woman who had woken up on the third floor spotted him and came down.
"What are you doing, Jun oppa?"
"!"
Emily, who had come out unusually early today, approached and hugged him from behind.
"You're up early, huh?"
"My butt was sore all night."
"…."
"Just kidding."
Emily looked over the rainwater tank and hose while Kim Jun asked casually.
"Was the shower on the third floor okay?"
"Yup! The water came out great, so I washed every single nook and cranny!"
As she rubbed against him, mentioning she'd used the new body wash and asking how it smelled, a pleasant scent mixed with lotion wafted over.
"The second floor is still…."
While Kim Jun checked the other two rainwater tanks, Emily sneaked closer and sniffed at his body.
"…What are you doing?"
"Isn't the water working on the second floor? You definitely smell like you just showered."
"It's not that… Never mind. Let's head up and eat breakfast."
Kim Jun led Emily to the second floor, where In Ah and Eun Ji—who had woken up shortly after—were preparing food one by one.
After yesterday's tragedy, Rana and Nanika also came out today. Their bodies covered in gauze and bandages, they set out the bowls.
"Is your body okay?"
"It hurts like hell. See this arm? It's all bruised purple."
The swelling on Rana's face had gone down, but she was still covered in bruises and scrapes. Beside her, Nanika winced and clutched her face with every bite, her body aching, yet she ate in stoic silence.
"Rest up. The others will handle everything until you're better."
At Kim Jun's words, the three big-sister types—Gaya, Eun Ji, and Mari—nodded. In the middle of it, Emily spoke up.
"You'll keep the promise from yesterday, right?"
"Mm."
"What promise? Did you two decide on something?"
To Eun Ji's question, Kim Jun replied.
"Hmm~ No complaints about living here or the food so far, right?"
"Well, that's true."
"What about clothes?"
When Emily asked Eun Ji in his place, she paused to think for a moment.
Not just Eun Ji, but In Ah, Gaya, Mari, Do Kyung, and the others had nothing to say about it either.
There were eight girls now, yet they rotated sanitary pads and tampons every other month, forced themselves into ill-fitting bras, and shared panties.
"That's why I asked Jun oppa! Let's go out and get some proper clothes for all of us."
"Just going out for clothes… Isn't it too dangerous outside?"
Periodic supply runs for survival were necessary, but Gaya questioned it because heading out purely for convenience seemed to carry too much risk.
As if there were more than one or two who felt uncomfortable, they immediately chimed in.
"I think it's necessary. If my body was fine, I'd go myself, but ugh…."
Rana massaged her right hand—the one holding the spoon—while speaking to Gaya.
"Those all-purpose store panties you and Kim Jun oppa brought back at the beginning, unnie. We barely wore them a few times before they got holes in them."
"Ah…."
"And even when Eun Ji unnie sews them up, they still end up as rags."
Hearing the story, Kim Jun clicked his tongue, realizing the situation was more serious than he'd thought.
"Why didn't you say something sooner? During all the looting runs, we could've looked for a women's clothing store."
"Exactly~"
Emily shrugged. Everyone, now aware that another looting run would happen soon, began preparing to move.
"Finish eating first, then everyone gather up."
Kim Jun then carefully brought up what he had been planning for this looting trip.
"You've been exercising consistently, right?"
"Yes, that's true."
"Staff in front! Load one shot in the slingshot!"
They had absorbed everything Kim Jun taught them steadily, but none had faced real combat yet.
So Kim Jun made a suggestion.
"For this looting run, we'll go in teams of two."
"What?!"
"I'll drive, take two of you, and we'll move as a group of three."
"Wow~ Now it's three people?"
Emily spread her fingers. Gaya, Eun Ji, Mari, In Ah, Do Kyung, and the others—excluding the two injured—seemed to be considering how to pair up partners.
"One in the passenger seat, the other riding in the back of the camper. That way, while I provide cover during the run, the pairs can take turns gathering supplies outside."
"Definitely. Better than awkward assistance…."
Eun Ji nodded in agreement.
At the same time, she glanced at Gaya with a look that said her partner was already decided, no matter what.
Kim Jun added one more thing.
"And we'll need to extend the looting time."
"Huh?"
"Hm?"
"What? You're not finishing it in one day?"
As everyone spoke at once, Kim Jun nodded.
"We've done frequent looting runs until now, but from here on, we should take more time and sweep everything clean in one go."
"Take more time?"
"Starting today, instead of hauling everything back in one day, we'll spend the night in the camper. One night, two days."
"Whaaaat?!"
"Um, is there a reason we absolutely have to?"
As the looting plan changed drastically, Eun Ji took the lead in asking for the reason. Kim Jun looked outside and answered.
"Winter is coming soon."
"Ah…."
Not just Eun Ji—everyone let out a sigh.
Earlier, Mari had slipped up and said, "At this rate we'll be spending the winter," and now that statement was becoming reality.
"Housework might become even more important. Just today the weather turned chilly, the hose got crumpled, and the second-floor pressure dropped sharply. I went and fixed it."
Kim Jun explained the situations one by one. The girls, all convinced, began preparing to move after listening.
"Well, whether it's a day trip or overnight, I've experienced both, so let's head out now! We just need to pick partners…."
Since Emily had brought it up first, she declared she would join this run and eyed potential partners.
"In Ah has to cook, Eun Ji unnie is going with Gaya unnie, and Mari unnie… has to look after the kids, right?"
"Then me?"
"Tsk, no choice. Please take care of me, volleyball player!"
"What? What's with that nickname?"
Do Kyung looked slightly offended by Emily's choice, but in the current situation, it seemed correct that she should go.
"Good! Then Emily takes the staff, Do Kyung prepares the slingshot. Let's get ready."
"Alright~ Let's go~"
"Phew, spending the night outside for one night and two days… zombies… ugh!"
Unlike the excited-for-anything Emily, Do Kyung—who had only caused trouble without accomplishing anything on her last solo outing—clenched her fist, determined to make up for it this time.
"Please take care of me."
"No. This time I absolutely won't make any mistakes."
"Good."
After a long time, Kim Jun started the engine. With Do Kyung holding the slingshot in the passenger seat and Emily comfortably lying on the camper bed in the back until they arrived, they set off.
Watching Emily sit relaxed in the back after yesterday's intense events made the world seem too easy, but no one could predict what would happen once they stepped outside.
In that moment, Kim Jun first mentioned their destination for the day.
"If we pass the university area and go a little farther, there are a few apartments and a shopping street that sells daily necessities."
"That's where we start, then."
"Is there a mart? A real mart?"
It would have been nice, but the large mart was still under construction, so at best they'd find a small supermarket.
"We'll at least see a convenience store."
"Okay! That works."
Emily remained relaxed with her otherworldly mentality even though zombies were visible outside.
And right in front of them stretched a procession of zombies they hadn't seen in a while.
Ugggh— Uggghhhh!
Click!
When Kim Jun loaded the air gun, Emily shouted from the back.
"Rear is clear! Both sides clean!"
With one extra person, the rear view from the back seat opened up completely.
That meant there was no need to turn the vehicle to shoot. Before opening the window, Kim Jun spoke to Do Kyung.
"Can you handle it?"
"…."
"If you can't, I'll take them all."
"N-no! I'll do it!"
At Do Kyung's reply, Kim Jun unlocked the passenger window.
He opened his own window first, leaned his upper body out, and aimed at the five or six zombies ahead.
Taking a deep breath, he targeted the nearest one and pulled the trigger for the first time in a while.
Ding—
With the crisp sound of the air gun, one zombie staggered and collapsed. The others that reacted began to move.
Graaah—
Fortunately they were all walking zombies, making them ideal targets.
Click—
As he pulled the bolt to load the next lead pellet, Do Kyung—sweating coldly—finally made up her mind, opened the window, and leaned out.
Following what she'd learned, she loaded a nut into the slingshot, pulled back with all her strength, and released.
Pang!!!
With a tremendous noise, the flying nut struck a zombie.
"Good! One more time!"
Even though it hit the chest instead of the head, the stopping power was clearly heavier than the air gun.
If it had been a person, the impact would have shattered several ribs on the spot. The nut slingshot was drawn again from Do Kyung's hand.
Ting—
Crack—
This time it struck the head cleanly. With the sound of the skull splitting, the zombie toppled backward. Kim Jun followed up by sniping the next zombie with a lead pellet.
Previously they had turned the vehicle in optimal directions for long-range sniping, checked the rear from the passenger seat, and handled everything themselves. Adding one more person shortened the process dramatically.
The moment five zombies were cleared, Emily shouted from behind.
"Zombie approaching from the rear! Wait, it's running!"
"Say that first!"
At the words "running zombie," Kim Jun immediately stepped on the accelerator and turned the vehicle. Seeing the zombie sprinting like a 100-meter runner, he calmly loaded the air gun, aimed at its forehead from the front, and fired.
Ding—!
After dropping the running zombie with a single shot, Kim Jun raised his middle finger before driving on again.
As they sped down the national road lined with rice paddies on both sides, Do Kyung's hands trembled from having killed a zombie with her slingshot.
"Don't push yourself."
"Huh? Ah, yes… Sorry. It'll calm down soon."
Her right hand holding the slingshot kept shaking, so Do Kyung massaged it with her left, trying to steady herself.
"Want to switch if it's hard? Want to hold the staff instead?"
"I'm fine! My accuracy is better."
"Hmm~ Alright."
Despite Emily's comment, Do Kyung held firm with the determination that today would be different and actively supported Kim Jun.
Today the straight road showed zombies appearing sporadically, forcing them to stop and go repeatedly.
Even though zombie disposal had sped up, the time lost while traveling couldn't be helped.
Still, today was ultimately an experiment. If it were a normal run, they would have prepared night equipment perfectly by sunset, so they decided to proceed slowly.
Thus, searching for a new optimized looting location, they passed the university area and arrived at the apartment shopping district. The first thing they spotted was a supermarket.
"Wow! It's a mart."
"Technically it's a super."
The three who reached the SSM discount store saw the lights were still on and made their decision.
"Everyone grab the whistles on your chests and start with a search first! Let me be clear. Searching comes first!"
In the roughly fifty-pyeong space filled with the stench of rotting produce, the three began a thorough search following Kim Jun's orders.
Emily carried the staff to push zombies away, Do Kyung kept her slingshot loaded to shoot on sight, and both moved exactly as trained.
On the opposite side, Kim Jun—with a hand axe and pistol at his waist—searched the other half thoroughly.
Finally, they checked the most dangerous counter area and the one marked with a "No Unauthorized Entry" sign before regrouping.
NO UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY
"Clear!"
"Okay, clear!"
From that point, mindless looting began.
The supplies were far more abundant than what they'd found at the convenience store. With shopping carts available, they swept up everything in sight.
Top priority water first, then rice and various grains, still-useful ramen, longer-lasting dry noodles, and every type of starch.
In addition, Kim Jun carried six-packs of 2L water bottles with both hands and packed them tightly.
"The overload today is going to be no joke, huh?"
Of course, it was a good sign.
They had looted everything worth taking. Even after grabbing the canned goods last, there would still be room. It was that kind of successful run.
After neatly stacking everything in the vehicle for a full hour, no zombies had appeared. Next to the store were an academy, a real estate office, a PC bang, and an adult entertainment center.
"Where's the clothing store?"
"Hmm, looks like we'll have to check another street."
Beyond the apartment complex was a small shopping area. They would need to target that.
Besides, the camper was already over ninety percent full of supplies. Today's farming was already a huge success.
Once back in the vehicle, Emily—bumping against the piled supplies—complained from the back.
"Why don't marts sell bras? It's all panties and socks."
"Still, that's better than nothing, right?"
"True, I guess."
Emily and Do Kyung, deciding it wasn't bad, high-fived across the partition.
At times like these, they made a good combo.
They continued driving around, scouting different areas.
Whenever zombies appeared from the alleys, Kim Jun and Do Kyung immediately took them down with the slingshot and air gun.
In their perfectly coordinated looting, they skipped the hair salon, skipped the real estate office, skipped the butcher shop, and finally discovered the place.
LINGERIE WOMEN'S CLOTHING SPECIALIST!
"We finally found it!"
The long-awaited clothing store. Next to it, conveniently, was a swimwear shop as well.
Kim Jun's own underwear was more than enough with the size 105 trunks and drawers he'd looted in bulk from the convenience store and supermarket earlier, but he let the girls take whatever they wanted for themselves.
"All clear! No threats!"
"Ooh!"
The two women began picking through the countless pieces of underwear scattered everywhere.
Lace panties, T-back panties, bras—they swept up every type without hesitation. Lingerie, negligees, pajamas, dresses, everything was taken.
In the meantime, Kim Jun quietly stood guard, keeping a sharp eye on the swimwear store.
After filling two boxes full with just underwear and packing them into double bags, the pair immediately followed Kim Jun into the swimwear shop.
"These should really be worn at the beach."
Emily examined each bra, looking for ones that matched her size. Kim Jun went deeper inside, hurrying toward where a water purifier bottle might be.
Seeing the blood that had turned black and hardened, he guessed a tragedy had occurred here too.
Meanwhile, watching the girls frantically gather items, Kim Jun spoke.
"Let's call it here for today! After we finish gathering everything, we'll do one full sweep and see if there's anywhere else…."
It was then.
Slash!
A shadow suddenly ambushed Kim Jun from behind.
He was about to pull out his axe and throw it immediately, but a knife reached his neck first.
"Oppa?!"
"Kyaa?!"
Emily and Do Kyung saw the figure that had been hiding suddenly leap out, pressing a knife to Kim Jun's neck from behind.
"D-don't… move!"
The hooded stranger wearing a mask threatened him with a trembling hand from behind Kim Jun.
Kim Jun calmly extended his hand and told Emily and Do Kyung to stay calm.
"A-are you a survivor?"
"Hey! You're not a zombie, right?!"
Kim Jun nodded and slowly shifted his gaze.
The build looked smaller than his or Do Kyung's, and the thin hands suggested they hadn't eaten properly.
Moreover, carrying a heavy backpack, it seemed this person had been wandering alone from place to place to survive until now.
After first calming the highly tense Emily and Do Kyung, Kim Jun slowly moved his hand toward his side.
"G-give me everything you have… Especially water and…"
"Calm down. You seem like a survivor who's managed to live this long. Let's talk slowly first. There's plenty of food in the truck."
"Ugh! T-then those two women, bring it right now…!"
"Ah~ Sure. But before that…."
In that instant, Kim Jun grabbed the hand holding the knife to his neck, seized it firmly, and yanked it away.
"Ugh?!"
He twisted the arm with raw strength. The stranger cowered.
"Hiyaaap!"
"!?"
Emily immediately charged with the staff, shoved the stranger over, then raised it and struck repeatedly.
Thud— Thud—
"How dare you threaten someone with a knife?! You think we'd fall for something like—"
"Stop! It's a person!"
When Do Kyung ran over to intervene, Kim Jun picked up the fallen knife and chuckled.
"Threatening people with a bread knife that isn't even sharpened?"
He had noticed it from the start, judged it fully suppressible, and deliberately endured it.
The stranger, weaponless and beaten by Emily, rolled across the floor.
Then the backpack they carried moved. As Emily struck the back to finish subduing them, the stranger desperately got up and fled.
"W-wait!"
Kim Jun shouted, but apparently there was another back door.
Bang!
In their frantic escape, they slammed their shoulder into the corner, even lost one shoe, and ran away in panic.
Both Emily and Kim Jun started to chase but stopped.
"That's enough!"
"Are you hurt? How did oppa get caught?"
"I told you already."
Kim Jun shook the fallen bread knife.
"Who would die from something like this? It wouldn't even leave a scratch."
It was simply a survivor who had gone too far and finally met their match.
If the person had approached politely and asked for help, he would have left some food out of humanity. But toward an apocalypse survivor who dared to ambush and attempt robbery, he could only smile bitterly.
"Well, they'll manage somehow."
"Huff… Huff…."
The stranger, mouth full of blood, had desperately fled and stopped at the entrance of an alley.
With trembling eyes they looked back. Seeing no one pursuing, they barely held themselves up beneath a streetlight.
It had already been several days since they'd eaten anything except a little stream water and some candy.
When their arm was grabbed earlier, the sprained wrist and shoulder throbbed, making movement difficult.
Moreover, after falling and being struck with the staff, their body was covered in wounds. Their torn lip wouldn't stop bleeding.
"Huuu…"
In that state, trembling violently, she felt something wriggling against her back and hurriedly removed the backpack.
When she opened the zipper with shaking hands, inside was something continuously squirming, wrapped in sponge.
Pop— Pop—
It blinked its eyes while quietly biting a pacifier and wriggled its hands and feet. She removed her mask and hood, then hugged it tightly.
Upon seeing the survivors she had charged in with all her strength holding the precious item, but even after being overpowered and badly injured, her only concern was the one thing she had to keep alive right now.
"Ha Jun… Mom's sorry! I'm so sorry!!! Sob…."
The identity of the stranger was Ha Jun's mother, who had survived alone protecting her son for over three months.
Ugggh— Uggghhhh—
And the cries of zombies slowly approaching from the alley, drawn by her movements and voice, echoed.