Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Survivor
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"Oppa~ Let's go together!"
A woman in a black polar one-piece dress came running up and pressed right against me.
A cute little bag was slung over her back.
Did she bring it from that van?
And the funny thing was how well it matched her outfit.
At this point, even high heels wouldn't have looked out of place, but she had the common sense to wear sneakers instead.
Of course, sleek black sneakers that perfectly complemented the black dress.
With her height and the way she walked, she looked like a model.
'Is she actually a model?'
No way a real model would dress like that even when the world's gone to hell.
This girl might not be all there either, I thought.
The two who looked like sisters had chased after us looking reasonably normal for the apocalypse, with backpacks on.
'That's more like it.'
The kids must have been tense watching the twisted pigeons gleefully battling in the sky overhead, because they quietly trailed behind me.
We moved quickly for a while before spotting a quiet two-story café building standing idly by the roadside.
They weren't running, but I could tell the fast pace had worn the kids out.
"Let's head to that café."
Once inside the café, I focused and activated mana detection.
Checking for zombies nearby.
No zombies inside the café building.
We secured the doors and took seats.
Only then did the tension ease, and the kids let out sighs of relief.
"Things were so hectic I couldn't even introduce myself properly. I'm Seo Chae-won. This is my little sister, Seo Chae-young."
"Park Un-ho."
"Should I call you Un-ho oppa? I'm Lee Ji-ah! Nice to meet you."
Ji-ah clung to me and greeted me warmly.
After hearing "uncle" all the time, "oppa" felt weird... I wasn't used to it.
Not that I had any intention of making a fuss about it.
But Ji-ah's clinginess was still hard to get accustomed to.
"Uncle. That kid..."
Chae-won glanced at the quiet mart kid sitting next to me and asked.
"No idea."
"Pardon?"
"Ran into her at the mart. Seems like she can't talk."
Whether she couldn't or just wouldn't, I wasn't sure.
"Oh... I see..."
Chae-won looked at the kid with pity in her eyes.
"Do you know how this mess started?"
"From what I heard, it was some experiment gone wrong in Wuhan, China."
Wuhan, China?
Was she referring to that COVID thing from the pre-gate days in the original world?
"Not sure if that's accurate, though. I only caught it on the TV news."
"How long ago did it happen?"
"Huh? I'm not totally sure, but it hasn't even been two months, has it?"
More than a month, but less than two.
"Any info on other places?"
I asked in case she knew about other major cities.
"No, everything fell apart so fast, I wasn't in any state to check..."
"So, what's the plan from here?"
"Huh? Well..."
Chae-won gave me a complicated look, like she was wrestling with some inner conflict.
Still undecided?
I could guess what she was agonizing over.
We'd only just met.
She had no idea what kind of person I was, so her caution was understandable.
I glanced at the little girl next to her—her sister.
Ten? Eleven?
Something like that.
Honestly, adding another kid to the mix didn't appeal to me.
The one I had was already a handful.
"O... oppa. Can I stick with Un-ho oppa? I'll be good... Please don't leave me behind. Okay?"
Ji-ah seemed eager to tag along.
But she struck me as a bit off from normal, too.
I got why she'd want to follow after seeing my abilities.
Objectively, she wasn't much different from the other kids.
I needed to think it over.
"It's late. I'll decide by tomorrow. For now, let's eat."
"Hiiing."
I ignored Ji-ah's pouty face.
I needed time to think, and she looked like she did too, so no need to rush a decision.
I cleared the café tables to make space.
Set up camp and pitched the two tents I had.
Nothing I could do about only having two.
I'd sleep solo, cram the rest into the other one.
In the army, four guys shared even smaller tents, so it'd be fine.
Plus, two were pint-sized kids.
Way better than that.
If it was too cramped, they could sleep outside.
Ji-ah, who had watched me pull items from my inventory, asked in surprise.
"O... oppa! Are you a mage?"
The Chae-won and Chae-young sisters stared with wide eyes too.
No real reason to hide my abilities in this world.
In the original world, with media intact, word would spread globally in a day if they knew.
But these were just four kids at most.
Even if they split and blabbed about my powers, how far would it go?
And in a world like this, it didn't compare to the original.
Besides, I wasn't even from this world.
At Ji-ah's words, Chae-won's little sister looked up at me with sparkling eyes.
"Never seen anyone like me before?"
"I know about psychics."
Ji-ah said, eyes twinkling.
"Just think of me as one of those superpowered types."
"But no one's as amazing as Un-ho oppa!"
Ji-ah seemed weirdly excited.
Why was she hyped about my powers?
Chae-won nodded as if agreeing with her.
I'd figured there were more after seeing that flame awakener.
Dinner was cup ramen.
I set the burner on the floor, placed the kettle on top, poured in bottled water, and lit it.
Then pulled cup ramen from my inventory and tossed them to the kids.
"C... cup ramen! A... are we actually eating ramen?!"
Ji-ah gasped.
"Haa... it's been forever since I've had ramen..."
Ji-ah rubbed her cheek against the cup.
The Chae-won sisters didn't say anything, but their flushed faces as they held the cups showed they were excited too.
Ji-ah, buzzing with anticipation, squatted by the burner with her cup, waiting for the water to boil, her face lit up.
Her dress wasn't a long skirt, so I caught glimpses of her smooth legs—and the panties in between.
Wondering if I should say something about the view.
'Nah?'
But she noticed my gaze, flashed a big smile at me, and subtly spread her legs wider to flash her panties.
Black underwear with a clear, straight cameltoe line.
Was she... seducing me?
A bit of blood rushed downstairs.
About time for some buildup anyway.
Not a bad bit of eye candy.
The kid predictably ate her porridge.
She eyed the ramen hungrily but ate quietly without a word.
Was it that she couldn't speak? Or wouldn't?
Those pleading eyes made it awkward to just ignore her.
Maybe tomorrow I could give her something spicier?
Nah, I stocked up tons at the mart—might as well stick to porridge for her meals.
No idea if the kids would like it, but food was precious here.
Not like it was bad stuff; no need to cater that much.
"Ki... kimchi!!!"
Ji-ah gasped again.
"Ah... this taste of home! It's making me tear up."
It had been so long since they'd had ramen that the three of them trembled as they savored every last drop of broth.
"What about... night watch?"
Chae-won asked cautiously, looking worried.
"Don't worry about it. Just sleep. If it bothers you that much, you take it."
I had Suni, and no reason to pull annoying night watch just to put the kids at ease.
Suni couldn't detect zombies.
So I'd sealed every possible entry into the building.
Even if one got in, anyone not a heavy sleeper would notice.
But explaining all that to Chae-won one by one was too much hassle.
"O... okay. If Un-ho oppa says it's fine, then it is, right?"
At Ji-ah's words, Chae-won shot her a glare.
Ji-ah flinched at the look.
...
Ji-ah nervously bit her nails without realizing it.
The thought of being abandoned made her anxious.
She knew she wasn't all that useful to Un-ho.
He seemed interested in her, but it felt different from other guys she'd known.
What if he ditched her?
She pictured herself torn apart by zombies or having her limbs ripped off by mutants.
She'd die!
*Shiver. Shiver. Shiver.*
Ji-ah knew the grim reality awaiting her without Un-ho.
Death wouldn't be long in coming.
Ji-ah wanted to live.
'Ah! No!'
To survive, she had to cling to Un-ho somehow.
She bit her lip.
'H... he's interested in my body, at least.'
And without thinking, an image of Un-ho's manly, sturdy frame popped into her head.
Ji-ah's face flushed red.