Crunch! Stab! (1)
“More zombies are coming?”
Cho Cheol-woong asked, his voice sharp with surprise.
“Give me the details! What the hell does that mean?”
The zombies they were already dealing with were nearly impossible to control. If another thousand joined the fray, the situation would spiral into complete chaos.
-Static! Ugh, what more do you want me to say? Zombies moving around isn’t exactly new. Crackle…!
The Sheriff grumbled in clear annoyance, yet still relayed the information.
-Crackle…! They’re coming straight up from Gunja Station… Bang! Bang! Bang, bang! …So we’re hauling ass too! They should reach you in about twenty-five minutes? Oh, right… you guys took the Dongil-ro route. Then you should be fine! Static…!
Twenty-five minutes?
Cho Cheol-woong’s mind raced. That meant they had to loop back to the active road section near Konkuk University within ten minutes and pull in the remaining hundreds of zombies to stay on schedule. Otherwise, even if the Sheriff’s group rescued the soldiers, there wouldn’t be enough time to relocate them.
Tap-tap-tap! Tap-tap-tap! Tap-tap-tap!
Even as he calculated, Cho Cheol-woong swung his MP5 around, picking off the zombies that had latched onto the rear of the vehicle. Once the immediate threat was cleared, he pressed the transmit button on the radio again.
“Where did you get that intel?”
-Static…! Why are you grilling me on every little thing? There are plenty of people who can tell you that much! You think we’d run an op like this blind? Anyway, it’s not bullshit, so prepare properly! You guys reek of cigarette smoke… might be rough! The road to Konkuk is completely clear… crackle!
The tone implied they should have already completed that much of the mission. Cho Cheol-woong hid his embarrassment and replied.
“No, it looks like we’ll need to make another pass. There are still some stragglers left behind.”
It was utterly humiliating that South Korea’s elite special forces had to make such an excuse. But the truth had to be reported as it was.
-Crackle…! What? There are zombies blocking the road to Konkuk? That can’t happen! We can’t break through them with twenty people in the truck! Static…!
As expected, the Sheriff’s voice rose in pitch. Cho Cheol-woong clenched his teeth.
“We’ll move as fast as we can. You just proceed according to the plan. We won’t slow you down.”
-Crackle…! Got it! We’ll load these guys up and call you back! We have to get them in the truck anyway. Talk then…! Static…!
There was a clear note of distrust in the Sheriff’s tone. It had been a long time since Cho Cheol-woong had been treated this dismissively, but since the mistake was theirs, he couldn’t protest or make excuses. Besides, lives were on the line. With a hardened expression, he ended the transmission and spoke to Staff Sergeant Choi.
“You heard most of that, right? The schedule just got extremely tight. Let’s not screw this up.”
“Yes, sir! I won’t make any mistakes!”
As Staff Sergeant Choi nodded, Cho Cheol-woong’s radio crackled again.
-Static! This is the Seongsu-dong observation team! We’ll try to lure them, Lieutenant! Zzzzt…!
It was a volunteer offer from the two men waiting on the roof of an apartment in Seongsu-dong. But Cho Cheol-woong gave a firm order of refusal.
“Negative! You two stay exactly where you are!”
No matter how elite they were, there were only two of them. It was far too small a force to roam streets teeming with zombies. He couldn’t risk the lives of his own men on a gamble just to make things a little easier for soldiers from another unit he didn’t even know. Twenty lives versus two—the math didn’t change.
“We’ll handle it from here. Do not engage.”
Cho Cheol-woong drove the point home once more. As he focused on the radio, he fired 9mm rounds at the zombies that had closed the distance.
Rat-tat-tat! Rat-tat! Rat-tat-tat!
“Hey, Jinwoo! Something tells me… we need to hurry the fuck up.”
The Sheriff frowned after ending the radio call with Cho Cheol-woong.
“How the hell are we supposed to go any faster than this?”
Jinwoo, who had been busy blowing apart zombie heads, turned to him with a baffled look. He had been frantically aiming and firing nonstop—killing the zombies drawn to the fire while simultaneously handling those swarming from behind and the sides. The suggestion to hurry felt absurd.
To clear zombies any faster than this, he’d have to dual-wield an MP5 in one hand and a K-2 in the other, firing in completely different directions at once. He had yet to meet a human capable of such a stunt.
“Those uncles said they leaked a shit-ton of zombies onto the road to Konkuk! Time’s getting real tight.”
The Sheriff shifted gears and turned the wheel toward the billiard hall.
“We’ll deal with the ones gathered at the fire later. Let’s load up the soldiers first. That’s priority.”
The zombies drawn to the blaze they had set earlier were still carrying flames across their bodies, spreading fire even into the grassy areas of Children’s Grand Park. They seemed so mesmerized by the heat that leaving them there for a while probably wouldn’t cause major problems.
“Load the people and get the hell out?”
“Yeah, exactly! Feels like if we stick around here any longer, we’re fucked.”
With the fire already lit, they couldn’t just hide quietly in their current position and wait for the zombies to pass. Some of the incoming horde would undoubtedly veer toward the burning zombies, cutting off their escape route.
Vroooom—!
As he accelerated the truck, the Sheriff glanced at the fuel gauge. Even though he had driven as economically as possible, the low-fuel warning light had already come on. They were now running on whatever fumes remained in the tank.
“Goddamn, whether the fuel holds out… that’s the real question.”
The Sheriff bit his lip and muttered. From experience, even after the warning light came on, they could usually drive another twenty kilometers without issue. The problem was the added weight that would soon fill the cargo bed.
There was no data on how fuel efficiency would change once they loaded nearly two tons. That uncertainty gnawed at him. If… that Special Forces lieutenant couldn’t pull all the zombies away in time, they might have to circle this area endlessly, dodging the approaching horde with no clear destination…
“If it gets too bad, forget Konkuk. We’ll just stuff them in any building.”
Jinwoo suggested after dropping a few zombies blocking the road ahead.
“Once you get past the fifth floor… the zombies probably won’t swarm in droves.”
Logically, he was right. Even if twenty people gave off noticeable heat and noise, if they stayed quiet above the fifth floor, the current situation of being completely surrounded shouldn’t occur. But the problem was…
“You make it sound so fucking easy. Who’s gonna hold the building and wait for us?”
The Sheriff grumbled as he turned the wheel. This wasn’t like moving lightly with their usual tight-knit team of himself, Jinwoo, Mingu, and Yubin, where everyone pulled their own weight. This was an escort mission for twenty people. It would obviously require far more effort and a mountain of extra details to manage. No matter how capable he was, he had zero interest in recklessly charging into a random building under these conditions.
“Then what do you suggest?”
Jinwoo asked while pulling fresh magazines from his backpack and slotting them into the empty pouches of his tactical vest. With the zombie horde already marching down the active road, even retreating to the theater at Gunja Station was no longer an option.
“We’ll just do the heavy lifting. Let Yubin come up with the plan.”
The Sheriff said as he drove the truck toward the billiard hall, dodging lunging zombies.
Rat-tat-tat! Bang! Bang!
Jinwoo, who had just obliterated the heads of zombies rushing in from the right with dazzling rapid fire, grimaced and shouted.
“What? I couldn’t hear over the gunfire!”
“Let’s leave the planning to Yubin! If we head back to the main road and it looks like it won’t work, we’ll have Yubin find another building with those Special Forces guys! Forget Konkuk!”
“Got it!”
While Jinwoo nodded in satisfaction, the Sheriff cut across the road and brought the truck to a stop so the front of the billiard hall faced them directly.
Screeech—! Thud—! Crash—!
A zombie that had been charging madly slammed into the side of the truck’s cargo bed as it made a sharp turn, bouncing backward. As Jinwoo turned to finish it off, the Sheriff grabbed his wrist and pointed ahead.
“No, no! I’ll clean up the small fry. You take care of all those bastards over there! They’re fucking swarming! God, these disgusting pieces of shit!”
The Sheriff pointed at the billiard hall, adjusted his grip on the sledgehammer, and walked toward the zombie he had just sent flying.
Flash—!
When the high beams hit at close range, the silhouettes of zombies still lingering on the second and third floors—reluctant to abandon the soldiers on the roof—flickered like ghosts in the windows.
Click—!
Jinwoo raised the barrel of his K-2 upward. Priority targets were the second-floor zombies. If they broke the windows and jumped, there would be more reaction time if they fell from the third floor. Clearing the second floor first was safer.
“…Ughhh! Uggghhh!”
The soldiers on the roof, seeing Jinwoo aim his rifle at the building they were hiding in, stumbled backward in shock.
“Get back!”
Though his aim would never miss, Jinwoo gave a short warning before pulling the trigger.
Bang—! Bang! Bang! Crash! Bang—! Bang! Shatter—! Bang! Bang!
As gunshots rang out, the second-floor shop windows shattered, and the large shadows darting inside rapidly dwindled one by one.
Crunch—! Crack—!
Behind Jinwoo, the Sheriff swung his hammer, mercilessly smashing the skulls of the remaining straggler zombies.
“All done?”
When Jinwoo had finished off every zombie visible on the third-floor windows, the Sheriff approached and asked.
“Seems like it… but there might still be some hiding inside the stairwell!”
Jinwoo jerked his chin toward the building. The stairwell had an open design with windows covering half its height, but the sections blocked by brick walls couldn’t be targeted with aimed fire.
“Probably only three or four at most.”
The Sheriff looked up at the bullet-riddled brick wall, adjusted his headlamp, and shouted toward the roof.
“I’ll handle those. …Hey! Any zombies stuck to the roof door?”
From his experience clearing multiple buildings with this layout, zombies pushing against the roof door rarely left their spot. The soldiers guarding it answered immediately.
“Not too many… but there are still a few!”
“Got it! I’ll be right there!”
The Sheriff shouted with his usual bravado and climbed back into the driver’s seat.
“Hey, wouldn’t it be better if I took point?”
Jinwoo asked worriedly. The Sheriff turned the wheel left, spinning the truck ninety degrees, and yelled back.
“There are way too many bastards you need to kill over there! Guard the truck and take them out! I’ll be quick!”
Screech—! Flash—!
As the headlights swept across the road ahead, dozens of zombies charging toward them were revealed in long, stretching shadows.
“See that? Clean them up!”
The Sheriff quickly jumped out of the driver’s seat, thumped Jinwoo on the chest, then lit a pack of cigarettes and hurled it into the distance. That alone should tie up a few dozen of them for a little while.
“The shop name is killer. Did someone from the future name it…? Damn, this place is packed tight.”
Right before dashing inside the building, the Sheriff saw the sign for a bar called After That Day and snorted, shaking his head. On the second floor, he sighed as he looked at the billiard table wedged diagonally across the stairs. The gap between the table and the wall was barely wide enough for one person to squeeze through if they bent at the waist.
The soldiers had clearly set up the barricade to survive, but because it had slid down like this, it would eat up precious time during their escape. If the table tipped over while they were squeezing through, anyone caught underneath would have their head crushed.
“Something’s falling! Don’t come this way!”
After first warning Jinwoo, the Sheriff grabbed the legs of the billiard table with both hands.
“Hnnngh…!”
With a tremendous heave, he shoved the table toward the half-shattered second-floor stairwell window.
Crack—! Crack—! Crash! Boom—!
The billiard table tore away the railing, smashed through the glass, and plummeted to the sidewalk below, creating a deafening racket. As if startled by the noise, the zombies pushing against the roof door came stampeding down.
Graaaah—! Graaawr—!
There were only four zombies in total. It was a small enough group to begin with, and the fight was taking place on a narrow staircase. This was barely a warm-up for the Sheriff.
“The fuck you want, you bastard!”
Gripping the hammer short, the Sheriff swung it at the head of the first zombie that leaped forward.
Crash—! Rip—!
The zombie, caught on a sharp shard of glass, had its stomach torn open as it tumbled down to the sidewalk below. Before its head even hit the ground, the Sheriff swept the legs out from under the second zombie, then used the momentum to slam the third one’s temple at an angle.
Crunch—!
The third zombie’s skull caved in on the side, its neck bones snapping as its head twisted the wrong way.
“Move!”
The Sheriff grabbed the now-immobile third zombie by the shoulder, hurled it backward, and charged forward.
Graaaah—!
The fourth zombie opened its maw wide and lunged straight at the Sheriff’s face.
Grab—!
The Sheriff seized its jaw, swept its legs out, then drove the hammer straight into its defenseless face.
Crack—!
The sound of its thin skull shattering—both face and back of the head at once—echoed through the stairwell.
Whoosh—!
The Sheriff instantly shifted stance, lifted the brain-matter-covered hammer, and brought it down hard on the crown of the second zombie that was trying to stand back up.
Crack—!
The second zombie’s crushed head sank below its shoulder blades. Even in that state, its fingertips still twitched. The Sheriff noticed and delivered one more full horizontal swing.
Thud—! Crash—!
The zombie’s neck spun a full circle. Its legs gave out and it slammed lifelessly into the wall. While the Sheriff finished off the four zombies, Jinwoo’s gunfire continued without pause from the floor below.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Rat-tat-tat!
“Open the door! Let’s go!”
The Sheriff sprinted up the stairs and pounded on the roof door.
Creak—!
The steel door opened a crack, and through the narrow gap poured a barrage of terrified eyes and blinding flashlight beams. The Sheriff recoiled, turning his head sharply to the side.
“Agh, fuck! My eyes! You guys really need to watch those flashlights! That’s the second time! One more blast and I swear I’ll—”
“Did you… already take care of all of them?”
As the other soldiers hurriedly pointed their flashlights aside, a man wearing sergeant insignia blinked rapidly and asked. His expression clearly read: There were several zombies inside this building—how did you get here so fast? The two soldiers standing right beside him, rifles raised and ready to strike at any moment, had faces full of both fear and curiosity.
“Thank you so much! We will never forget this kindness!”
Strong against the weak, weak against the strong. When the other party spoke with polite respect, the Sheriff couldn’t stay irritated. He answered with an awkward, polite tone of his own.
“Ah, yeah! Yes! Let’s move quickly! Head down!”