One Month Ago (5)
“When we come back this time, we should bring more winter clothes. Something thick like a parka.”
As they waited outside for the helicopter, Yubin opened his notebook and brought up one last item besides the trade. The weather grew colder by the day, and it looked as though heavy snow would soon follow, so preparation was essential. The spare parkas from the JL Rescue Team were all far too large; no one except the Sheriff could wear them.
“Gyuyeong, is there anything you need? Anything you’d like us to pick up while we’re out.”
Jinwoo turned to Gyuyeong and asked. Gyuyeong, who had been stroking Samsik’s head, shook his head without hesitation.
“No. I just hope you all don’t push yourselves too hard. We still have plenty of the books you brought last time.”
This place already overflowed with abundance. In a zombie world, being able to shower comfortably every day and watch Blu-ray movies alone on a massive monitor felt almost irreverent to ask for more. The lack of subtitles on the films was actually a blessing; Jenny or Terra would whisper the meaning right beside him.
“Don’t just say no right away. Think it over. We’ll have to stop by a department store or outlet anyway if we’re getting clothes.”
When Yubin pressed again, Gyuyeong hesitated before speaking.
“Ah… then just a Korean board game we can all play together. Everything here is in English, and I find it difficult.”
“All right. Board game, then.”
Yubin jotted another line in his notebook and looked around at the others.
“What about you?”
“Well… canned kimchi fried rice…”
The Newbie, who had been holding his breath to keep his stomach flat, was about to speak carefully while glancing at Mingu when Taekwondo Girl tapped Yubin’s shoulder.
“Hey, don’t think about bringing back too much. Just take care of yourself. You’re the weakest one here!”
“What? I’ve got plenty of people watching my back.”
Yubin pointed ahead of him. Mingu stood smoking with a bag containing a machete and kukri, the Sheriff loomed with his massive hammer, and Jinwoo was armed with a PGM 338 LaRue Magnum and a K2 rifle. Their combined firepower stood ready and reassuring.
“Besides, our gear has improved this much. Don’t worry so much.”
Yubin tapped the front pocket of his backpack where his pistol rested. Compared to the days when he had ventured into the streets with only a single wrench to avoid zombies, this was an enormous leap forward.
“The serum is ready! We just finished thawing it!”
Alex handed Yubin three carbon cases and asked Jenny to translate.
“If you get bitten, open this as quickly as possible and inject it into your thigh. We don’t have enough data to guarantee how much time you’ll have, so don’t forget to move fast!”
He opened a sample carbon case himself, took out the syringe, and demonstrated how to administer it. All it required was pressing the button at the end once the device was flush against the skin. Of course, the shockproofing and insulation technology inside the case and syringe were anything but simple.
“In this temperature, it should last about two weeks. Just don’t break the case and bring it back. And these are the three bags of blood for your trade! You know what this means, right?”
Alex asked as he handed over the refrigerated box containing the blood. Yubin nodded.
“Yeah. I know. Every time we go out, it means Terra has to give more blood.”
Three bags of blood—120 milliliters total—for exchange against live ammunition. Another 120 milliliters for the serum doses for the three people besides Mingu. Even if unused serum was refrozen with the most advanced equipment, there was clearly a limit to how many times it could be recycled. For Alex, who had to protect Terra’s health, this was an unavoidably sensitive issue.
“I’m fine…”
When the topic turned to her, Terra waved her hands in embarrassment. Of course she was not fine. She was barely maintaining the minimum weight required for blood draws through sheer effort and careful eating.
“Like I said yesterday, this is the last time this year! We won’t ask for this again!”
Yubin stated firmly to Alex. If this trade succeeded, the survivors in Chungju would be able to hold out until spring.
“It’s what you want, so I won’t stop you! You must have your reasons! But I’ll make one thing clear! You have to get blood donations from the people in Chungju! And a lot of it!”
Alex confirmed the condition again with a displeased expression. Unlike previous methods, culturing the zombie vaccine required human blood. And a great deal of it.
“Understood! We’re not the type to break promises!”
Yubin nodded to reassure Alex.
Hwoong-hwoong-hwoong-hwoong-hwoong—!
Soon after, the sound of helicopter rotors from the Tetis oil rig grew loud.
“Be careful!”
When the helicopter landed on the field, Jenny tightly grasped Yubin’s and the Sheriff’s hands and once again prayed fervently for their safe return.
“Ah… I wish someone would hold my hand too…”
Jinwoo muttered loud enough for Terra to hear after failing to position himself correctly. Terra immediately pulled him into a hug. A foolishly happy smile spread across Jinwoo’s face.
Hek-hek-hek—!
Samsik was also circling Samsik-i, exchanging farewell greetings. Samsik’s belly had grown noticeably round as her due date approached.
“Let’s go! Everyone ready?”
Chris, today’s escort, jumped out of the helicopter and gestured for them to board quickly. Bringing him and Jim would provide an advantage in firepower, but it would place too great a burden on Terra’s stamina, since serum would have to be provided for every member of the operation. Therefore, the number of personnel allowed outside had to be strictly limited to those absolutely necessary.
“Take good care of Terra.”
Before boarding the helicopter, Mingu once again gave Alex a stern warning through Jenny. His eyes were filled with the clear intent that if anything happened to her, he would chase the culprit to the ends of the earth and kill them.
“Of course I will. She’s the Null Kid who exists with a one-in-a-hundred-million probability. The immune individual who can save us. She might even be the last Null Kid left on Earth. I’ll protect her more preciously than my own life. I swear it!”
Alex drew a large sign of the cross and nodded. There was not a trace of falsehood on his face.
Tutututututu—! Hwoong-hwoong-hwoong-hwoong—!
The helicopter carrying them soon crossed the sea and flew toward downtown Incheon.
“It’s so close when we come like this…”
Yubin leaned his head toward the side window and looked down. When he thought of the days when they had risked their lives to advance just a few kilometers, exhausting every trick and spending days preparing, this rapid movement by helicopter felt like an enormous advancement.
“Stop looking. You’ll get mesmerized again.”
Jinwoo pulled Yubin’s face away from the window.
“Ah, right.”
Yubin obediently followed. Looking down from above at residential areas where no one lived anymore was far sadder than he had imagined.
Seeing the uniform, box-like houses and roads reminded him of the neighborhood where they used to live.
In the neighborhood where he had lived with his grandmother… he had visited by helicopter only once. And that day, he had cried as much as the day he lost his hand.
He had thought he would remain calm, that after months of mentally preparing for it, he would have grown numb by now… but the moment they reached the ruined entrance to the neighborhood, his emotions had already collapsed. Memories revived by the familiar scenery shook his heart too painfully to endure.
When he opened the door to the small, shabby house where he and his grandmother had lived alone as tenants, tears flowed so heavily that he could barely see.
Even as he stared at the floor and wallpaper blackened and rotted with an enormous amount of dried blood, his feet refused to move. The thought that his grandmother might have escaped somewhere and be waiting for him left him lingering. He wanted to stay in that house just a little longer.
He experienced a complete breakdown of reason. Even after the sun set and darkness swallowed the surroundings, he wandered the neighborhood like a fool. It felt as though his grandmother kept calling him… If he had gone there alone that day, things might have become quite dangerous.
After that day, the friends made a firm resolution. Until the zombie threat completely disappeared, they would not return to their old neighborhood. Even allowing themselves to be momentarily lost in sorrow was an enormous luxury and recklessness for them now.
“Two minutes left!”
Paul, who was piloting, glanced back and announced that they had reached the target point.
“Okay, Paul.”
When Yubin nodded, having come to understand that much, Paul spoke slowly and clearly, one word at a time, to make it easier.
“So, what you gonna do, if I don’t show up on Friday, son?”
It was a question about what to do if the promised helicopter failed to appear eight days from now—on the day the operation ended and they were supposed to return. Though they truly hoped it would not happen, the possibility existed.
Paul’s helicopter could crash, something serious could occur on Big Island, or takeoff could simply become impossible due to weather or other circumstances… There were many variables to consider, and JL treated contingency protocols for such variables with great importance.
“We go, uh… um… Point Bravo!”
After Yubin’s halting, labored reply, Paul quickly added,
“After seventeen!”
“Ah, yes! After seventeen!”
Yubin made a face as though he had already memorized it and tapped his forehead. It was a contingency plan he had heard multiple times through Jenny’s translation, yet putting it into English still felt difficult and made him sweat every time.
The agreed meeting time with Paul was noon. If the helicopter did not appear even after waiting five hours, they were to move to Point B, six kilometers north, and wait there. It was a backup plan in case Paul’s first helicopter was intercepted. If that happened, waiting in the same spot would become far too dangerous for everyone.
“What is the safe signal?”
“Um, red smoke bomb.”
Yubin mimed smoke spreading with his fingers. The signal to indicate it was safe for the helicopter to land was to release a red smoke bomb. If it was not visible, Paul would simply return and come back the next day—to prevent putting Big Island itself in danger.
“Okay, never forget!”
Paul gave a thumbs-up and turned his head forward again.
“Okay!”
When Yubin also raised his thumb and waved it, Mingu, who had been watching the two with his arms crossed, looked genuinely impressed.
“Oh, your English is pretty good.”
Because the praise was sincere, Yubin felt strangely more embarrassed. He covered his flushed cheeks with his cold left hand to cool them.
“No, no. It’s not good at all, hyung. I’m just barely stringing together simple words. If you say it’s good…”
“Still, you understood everything.”
Of course he had understood. But that was only because Paul spoke slowly using simple vocabulary, as if addressing a kindergartener. It was not because Yubin’s English skills had improved. For Yubin and his friends, who had spent most of their high school years working part-time jobs, the wall called English remained an extremely difficult obstacle to climb.
“Chris! You, left! I… this side!”
From the opposite side, Jinwoo gestured to Chris, the Rescue Team sniper, that he would take the right side after landing while telling him to check the left. Half of it was body language, a quarter was facial expression, and the English vocabulary itself was less than a quarter. Yet once again, Chris understood Jinwoo’s meaning at once and nodded. The value of having been together for the past few months was clearly showing.
“Got it, bro!”
Chris made a circle with his index finger and thumb, then finished preparing to jump out while holding his personal weapon.
“Damn, that’s going to be a problem. There must be over a thousand of them.”
The Sheriff, looking down through the left window, furrowed his brow and muttered a curse. A fairly large horde of zombies was slowly moving through the Seoul Forest area where the blue Han River met the shore.
“A thousand? More like over two thousand.”
Yubin replied. Even at a glance, the scale exceeded two thousand. The sight of them moving densely like a swarm of ants was enough to send chills down the spine. They were still some distance away, but if they continued straight west along the riverside road, they would enter within a two-kilometer radius of the building where the trade was scheduled.
“We need to wrap this up quick before they show up.”
Yubin said. Considering their movement speed, they would have less than fifteen minutes after landing to find shelter. That meant they had to complete all preparations within that window.
“There are three or four hundred more around two o’clock! They’re not that far! They’ll come running if they hear gunshots! Hurry when unloading the gear! Three minutes! We have to finish everything and get inside within three minutes!”
Jinwoo, who had checked the right side, held up three fingers. Yubin and the Sheriff nodded. It was as expected, but this area bordering the Han River was packed with zombie hordes. They were probably ones that had been heading toward Gangnam but had not yet found their route.
“We’re landing!”
At the same time as Paul’s voice came through the headset, the helicopter they were riding maintained level flight and began descending.
The landing point was the wide plaza of Ttukseom Hangang Park. There were almost no buildings nearby, offering clear visibility in all directions, and it was a place where they did not need to worry about zombies jumping down from high places. A few zombies wandered here and there in small groups, but that level was something that could be considered just another part of daily life in the zombie world.
“Go! Go! Go!”
The moment the helicopter touched the ground, Chris and Jinwoo led Samsik-i and jumped out quickly. Then, as prearranged, they advanced rapidly while covering the left and right sides respectively.
Hek-hek-hek—!
Samsik-i also ran bravely with his tongue out. If there was a sniper hiding somewhere in this desolate park emitting the smell of gunpowder, the dog would bark a warning.
Graaaah—!
Zombies that had detected the heat and human scent began rushing toward the helicopter from all directions. It was a sight that would freeze most people in place.
“Damn it.”
Yubin, who had been gathering the gear to disembark, gritted his teeth. The moment they set foot on the ground, the reality of just how terrible a place they had come to hit him instantly. It was nothing new, but this was a city of zombies. One small mistake… and that would be the end.