Chapter 58: We Must Survive
The shelter without Kim Jun.
And the six idols gathered together in one place.
Zombies were closing in, and at any moment they could scale the walls.
“Kyaa! What do we do? There’s way too many of them!”
“Hiiik! Aren’t they climbing over?”
Rana and Nanika were breaking down, trembling uncontrollably, while Emily grabbed anything that could be used as a weapon, ready to fight the moment the zombies appeared.
In the midst of that chaos, Eun Ji scanned their surroundings, then placed a quiet hand on Gaya’s shoulder.
“Unnie.”
“Y-yes?”
“Unnie, shout and calm everyone down.”
“Huh?”
“Hurry.”
At Eun Ji’s calm instruction, Gaya took a deep breath and clapped her hands sharply.
Clap—
“Attention! Everyone, pay attention!!!”
Gaya, following Eun Ji’s request, managed to steady the group. Then Eun Ji stepped forward beside her.
“Everyone, calm down. This is exactly when we need to move for survival, right?”
“Eun Ji unnie, what should we do?”
At Rana’s question, Eun Ji quickly assessed the situation and made an instant decision.
“Look, we’ve learned so much from Jun oppa all this time. This is the moment to use every single thing.”
She began issuing orders one by one.
“Rana, you have the walkie-talkie, don’t you?”
“Yes, unnie.”
“Try raising Jun oppa right now. He said he was going far today, so it might not work. In-ah took one with her.”
“Got it.”
She turned to the others.
“Mari, go down to the first floor and gather every nut and throwable we have. Or should I go?”
“It’s fine. I’ll bring them up quickly.”
“I’ll help too!”
Even though she was the oldest, with Eun Ji commanding the situation, Gaya still wanted to contribute. She left the house with Mari and headed to the first-floor storage to collect throwing weapons.
“And Emily, Nanika.”
“Yeah, what do we do?”
“Gather every condom we have.”
“What?”
The sudden mention of condoms left Nanika flustered and Emily staring in confusion.
But Eun Ji spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“We won’t care about that now, so bring out everything we’ve got. I’ll grab the bleach from the cabinet!”
“Tsk, can’t be helped.”
Emily and Nanika went to fetch the condoms they had prepared as tokens of love.
Eun Ji entered the laundry room, picked up the large metal rod they had used for work last time, and wrapped it tightly with yarn pulled from a bundle of knitting thread.
While watching the situation outside in real time, she bit down hard on her lower lip and clenched her fists.
Static— crackle—
“Huh? Who’s using the walkie-talkie?”
In-ah, completely unaware of the crisis, shook the radio at the sudden noise.
“Ah~ Ah~ This is Seo In-ah. Is something wrong?”
Static— crackle—
“Mm, did we go too far?”
Kim Jun asked from the driver’s seat.
“What is it?”
“Nothing. The radio’s crackling but no words are coming through.”
“Did something happen at the house?”
Kim Jun thought for a moment. They had already reached the junk shop and used appliance store and had wiped out every zombie in the area.
He told In-ah to keep trying, then spoke to Do Kyung, who was watching him nervously from the passenger seat.
“For now, let’s load up what we came for.”
“Yes, oppa!”
They had to secure the survival supplies right in front of them first.
Kim Jun instructed In-ah to prepare to receive items, then began selecting things one by one from the used appliance store.
“Focus on small appliances we can carry!”
“Ah, okay!”
Following his orders, Do Kyung gathered a small microwave, blender, and rice cooker.
Even though they already had some, they collected spares in case anything broke. Kim Jun picked out electric induction stoves, compact refrigerators commonly used in motels and goshiwons, TVs that could double as monitors, and warming cabinets.
He also made sure to grab electric stoves and heated blankets for the coming winter.
They quickly swept up compact, high-volume items, then moved on to the main goal: securing power.
“Let’s see. It should be here somewhere.”
“Ah, oppa! Isn’t this it?”
Where Do Kyung pointed, neatly packaged units labeled ‘Inverter Generator’ were stacked.
“Perfect!”
“I’ll carry… ugh, what is this? Why is it so heavy?”
“Hey, hey! Be careful!”
A 1kW gasoline camping generator weighed nearly twenty kilograms.
Several were stacked together, so they loaded them all. Kim Jun said he would carry them himself and pointed at boxes of engine oil for Do Kyung to bring.
While searching for a stretcher, he gathered everything.
If we’re careful, this should give us about twenty kilowatts a week.
They had been extremely frugal with electricity, even using battery-powered LEDs for lighting—the biggest consumer. With this extra capacity, their lives would become far more comfortable.
“Ungh!”
Kim Jun, carrying a full box alongside Do Kyung, loaded the generators into the vehicle.
“When we get back, we’ll need to build a new shed.”
“Huh?”
“I’m thinking of making a dedicated generator room. We can clear out the space easily enough.”
“That sounds like a major construction project.”
“You girls will have plenty of work too.”
After loading everything, they scavenged useful materials from the nearby auto repair shop and junkyard—steel pipes for welding, scrap metal sheets, chain tires for emergencies, car batteries, consumables, and tools. They prepared ladders and filled an entire carrier box to the brim.
Today’s supply run had been an overwhelming success.
“Alright, we’ve got more than enough. Shall we head back?”
Kim Jun started the engine in high spirits, preparing to return.
Of course, they wouldn’t head straight home. Since they now had generators capable of supplying power, he planned to stop at the gas station first to secure fuel.
“I told you before, right? We might have to stay out overnight. Keep that in mind.”
“Ah, yes. There’s still plenty of space.”
In-ah confidently patted the stacked supplies in the back. Kim Jun nodded.
“Is the walkie-talkie still making contact?”
“No. It crackled for a bit then stopped. Maybe someone accidentally touched it, or they’re trying to request something.”
Such calls were rare, but there had been occasional personal messages. Emily and Mari had once asked if they had stopped at a convenience store, requesting extra socks, stockings, over-the-counter medicine, and vitamins.
Both Kim Jun and In-ah assumed it was something similar this time. They had no idea what was unfolding back at the house.
And when more zombies blocked their path again, Kim Jun and Do Kyung instinctively readied their weapons without a word.
“Did you fill them?”
“This should hit them dead on.”
Eun Ji had Emily and Nanika bring the condoms, then filled them with concentrated bleach to create plump, heavy water balloons.
She positioned Rana and Mari on the rooftop, ordering them to target any zombies trying to scale the wall.
“I’ll go out and throw them myself.”
“Wait! Let’s do it together!”
Gaya grabbed Eun Ji’s hand with a worried expression, seeing her try to take on the dangerous task alone.
Eun Ji shook her head, asked Gaya to look after Emily and Nanika on the second floor, and quietly headed out carrying the balloons.
With a mask secured tightly, a raincoat covering her entire body, and even a head cap, Eun Ji was fully armored as she moved silently into the yard.
“Ughhhh—”
“Kyaaak— Kyaaaak!”
Zombies were already reaching over the wall with hands and feet, ready to climb at any second.
Thanks to the sharp glass and metal fragments Kim Jun had laid as barricades, even when their hands were sliced off, the creatures continued piling corpses to scale higher.
It was fortunate only a few could run. Otherwise they would never have been able to keep up.
“Eun Ji unnie! It’s dangerous!”
Mari shouted from the roof, but Eun Ji gritted her teeth, grabbed one of the bleach-filled balloons, and hurled it over the wall.
Pop—
Splash—
“Ughhhhhhh!”
“Ehhhhhhhh!!!!!”
The acrid smoke and horrific stench of blood mixed with bleach spread everywhere.
But Eun Ji didn’t stop. She kept pulling out more bleach balloons and throwing them over the wall.
She hurled every last one. When the zombie horde beyond the wall began thrashing wildly from the bleach, she quickly retreated and shouted toward the rooftop.
“Shoot!”
“Eun Ji unnie! Move sideways!”
“I’m clear! Shoot already!”
At her command, Rana and Mari loaded nuts into their slingshots, pulled back the rubber with all their strength, and fired.
Crack! Thwack!
The nuts—powerful enough to shatter a human skull—flew over the wall and struck the zombies.
Black blood sprayed everywhere, but Eun Ji watched quietly from a safe angle.
In a situation where she could easily be bitten by climbing zombies, she positioned herself to create the best firing lines for the others.
Pew— pew—
While the two girls continued shooting, Gaya, who had been looking after everyone’s mental state on the second floor, brought the rest of the group down. They too grabbed slingshots and joined the defense.
Six people were now fighting together, determined not to let a single zombie breach the walls.
“Eun Ji! That’s enough! Come up and shoot too!”
When Gaya called out, Eun Ji noticed from below that many shots were missing their marks.
She made a decision. She sprayed thinner onto the end of the steel pipe wrapped in yarn and set it ablaze.
Whoosh—
Holding the flaming bat, she moved toward the wall.
“Everyone up there, listen! Shoot at whatever spot I touch with the flame!”
“What?”
“That’s exactly where the zombies are trying to climb!”
Even though it was dangerous, her mindset was simple: if her sacrifice could save the five above her, it didn’t matter.
Eun Ji pressed the burning end against the exact spot where blood-soaked zombie hands were gripping the barricade.
“Here!”
“Ah, I see it!”
The weak point was now clearly marked by her flame. The girls immediately fired their slingshots.
Bang!
Crunch!
One by one, the zombies fell.
In a battle where every minute felt like an hour, under Eun Ji’s command the number of zombies trying to scale the wall slowly dwindled.
Mari and Gaya went down to the storage to fetch more ammunition.
“Eun Ji, that’s enough! Switch with me!”
Gaya arrived and took the flaming bat from Eun Ji, saying she would handle the dangerous work as the oldest.
Meanwhile, Mari grabbed a fresh box of nuts and spoke to Eun Ji.
“Unnie, just in case, can you try sending another signal with the walkie-talkie in the second-floor living room?”
“…Alright. I’ll do it.”
Though she had acted independently, Eun Ji had contributed the most in holding back the zombies from the front line. Breathing heavily, she sat down in the now-empty second floor while the others continued the defense.
Thud.
Even after everything she had done, her hands were still shaking.
She hurriedly pulled back the living room curtains and looked down. From above she could see zombies sprawled across the ground, their heads and bodies shattered by nut shots.
Gaya was swinging the flaming bat, driving the rest away.
“Hoo…”
Following Mari’s suggestion, Eun Ji quietly picked up the walkie-talkie.
“Please… respond.”
Static— “Eun Ji unnie?”
When In-ah’s voice came through, Eun Ji let out a genuine sigh of relief.
“Where are you right now?”
Static— “We’re at the gas station! We got a ton of stuff today! After we fill up on fuel we’re heading to another area for more weapons! We’ll probably be back tomorrow morning!”
“Hoo… Right now zombies are trying to break into the house.”
Static— “Uh, what!? What did you just say?”
“The zombies… they’re climbing the walls. Put Jun oppa on.”
She could hear In-ah and Do Kyung panicking on the other end. Then came a shout, and Kim Jun’s voice cut through.
Static— “What is it? What the hell is happening?”
“There are dozens of zombies outside the house. We’re driving them back with slingshots and fire, and their numbers are dropping, but…”
Static— “Fuck! Have any gotten over the wall yet?”
“Not yet.”
Static— “God damn it! All of you stay the hell inside the third-floor rooftop room. I’m coming right now!”
Kim Jun told them to treat the third-floor rooftop as a shelter and stay put. He ordered them not to do anything reckless and to wait for him.
“Confirmed… over…”
After ending the transmission, Eun Ji immediately opened the second-floor window and shouted so everyone could hear.
“I reached Kim Jun oppa! He says he’s coming right now!”
With lightning-fast thinking and a miraculous successful transmission from several kilometers away, all six people inside the house were able to evacuate safely.