Chapter 89
Her name was Choi Soo-Hyun.
I couldn’t help but feel a sense of heartache because the Seongsu-dong leader’s deceased daughter also had the same name, even though they had different last names.
It wasn’t easy explaining to Choi Soo-Hyun about us, given her flustered and frightened state of mind.
I tried to calm her down as I attempted to explain everything to her. I just barely managed to, and she was on the verge of fainting when I was done.
With a hand resting against her forehead, she asked me a question.
"So… You’re saying that you two are zombies that are fighting for the sake of humans, right?”
I was surprised at how quickly she understood what we were trying to communicate to her.
When I nodded, Choi Soo-Hyun sighed and spoke.
“You mentioned something about coming from a shelter earlier. Are you two managing shelters as well?”
- Let’s say we’re cooperating.
"Cooperating…”
Choi Soo-Hyun pulled her bangs back with her right hand while fanning herself with her left hand to calm herself down. She pointed to the man who had fainted.
"So this person is…Hwang Deok-Rok. He’s the team leader of the food transportation team.”
- Team leader?
“That’s how we address him.”
I wondered why he was called the team leader for a second, but then realized that each shelter probably had its own system of rank and decided to move on. Shelter Hae-Young also had teams for everything, but none of that meant anything because Shelter Hae-Young’s system was one where everyone worked together.
On the contrary, Shelter Silence used the term ‘group leader’ instead of ‘team leader’. The differences between each shelter were quite surprising.
The sun began to fall below the horizon. We asked Choi Soo-Hyun if she was willing to continue our conversation at our shelter, since talking on the streets was dangerous. She nodded vigorously and tried to get Hwang Deok-Rok up.
However, there was only so much a woman like her could do to get someone as chubby as Hwang Deok-Rok up by herself. Eventually, I hoisted Hwang Deok-Rok onto my back.
Choi Soo-Hyun looked at me.
"I’m sorry… I hope he’s not too heavy for you.”
I replied with a forced smile.
In the meantime, Kim Hyeong-Jun retrieved the survivors who had been hiding in the convenience store, and we resumed our journey to Shelter Silence.
When we arrived at Silence, the golden sun had completely set, and the dark blue sky welcomed us.
The days were getting shorter.
When we reached the gates of Shelter Silence, the guards noticed we had survivors with us and quickly opened them.
The guard leader looked at us with a rather bitter and dissatisfied expression. In moments, Hwang Ji-Hye, the group leader, and Kim Beom-Jin, in his yellowed lab coat, came running toward us.
Kim Beom-Jin and Kim Ga-Bin shared a tearful reunion. As Hwang Ji-Hye kept her eyes on them, she asked us what had happened outside.
I laid Hwang Deok-Rok down on the floor and began to write in my notepad.
- I retrieved the medicine as promised. We found survivors in the process and brought them back here.
“There were still survivors in Seongsu-dong?”
- They were taken hostage by the dogs. I found them in Hwayang-dong.
Hwang Ji-Hye nodded slowly, her lips pressed together tightly.
I wondered what she was thinking.
Despite not being able to accurately deduce her thoughts, I noticed the subtle smile on her face and assumed that she didn’t have any negative thoughts on the matter. After a moment, Hwang Ji-Hye looked down at Hwang Deok-Rok, who was lying next to me.
“There are two surprisingly clean-looking people among the survivors. Were those two also held hostage by the dogs?”
- We found these two on our way back. And… There seems to be another shelter nearby.
“A shelter? No way. The shelters we have been in touch with…”
Hwang Ji-Hye trailed off and looked at Choi Soo-Hyun, who was standing beside Kim Hyeong-Jun. She strode toward Choi Soo-Hyun and asked, “What’s the name of your shelter?”
“Sorry?”
I could tell that Choi Soo-Hyun was clearly taken aback by the unexpected question. Hwang Ji-Hye looked at Choi Soo-Hyun from head to toe.
“If you can’t tell me the name and location of the shelter you’re from, I’ll have to ask you to leave.”
“Don’t you think that’s pushing it a bit? Even the sun’s down.”
“Answer my question if you don’t want to get kicked out.”
Hwang Ji-Hye was trying to intimidate Choi Soo-Hyun, who looked away in the hopes of getting away without answering her question.
However, it didn’t take long for her to speak.
“Shelter Barrier… It’s in Gunja-dong.”
Hwang Ji-Hye’s eyes widened when she heard Choi Soo-hyeon's answer. She drew the pistol from her belt and pointed it at the other woman’s head.
Her sudden action alarmed me, and I tried to stop the situation from escalating further. However, Hwang Ji-Hye shouted at the top of her lungs, “Don’t move!!!”
I was taken aback by the sudden change in her attitude. Her brow furrowed in anger, and she asked Choi Soo-Hyun a question.
"You… You’re a dog, aren’t you?”
“Dog… Dog? No! No way!”
“Shelter Barrier disappeared two months ago.”
My jaw fell open when I heard what Hwang Ji-Hye had said. In contrast, Choi Soo-Hyun’s face grew dark.
“You don’t even know what happened,” she mumbled.
“What…?”
Hwang Ji-Hye raised her eyebrows, and Choi Soo-Hyun frowned at her.
"Don't just blurt things out when you have no idea what happened."
“Okay then, how about you explain what happened with that mouth of yours? I’ll blow your head off right here right now if you try anything funny.”
Hwang Ji-Hye didn’t seem like she was going to compromise unless she got the answer she wanted. Kim Hyeong-Jun snuck a glance at me.
‘Ahjussi, don’t you think we should stop those two?'
‘I think the group leader is being reasonable. We did bring them here without permission… I think the right thing to do is to just observe what happens for now.’
I answered him calmly, and Kim Hyeong-Jun smacked his lips and shrugged.
After a moment, Choi Soo-Hyun spoke up.
“Two months… You’re right. We were raided by zombies two months ago. And a lot of people died.”
“...”
“Most of the officers, including the leader of the shelter, died, and those who survived were scattered. I, too, had to leave the shelter in order to survive. I was able to get away with a couple of others.”
Hwang Ji-Hye was focusing intently on Choi Soo-Hyun's story, but her finger that was resting on the trigger didn’t seem like it was going to relax anytime soon.
Choi Soo-Hyun’s expression soured at Hwang Ji-Hye's cold reaction, but she continued.
"At that time… One of the people I’d escaped with was bitten by a zombie.”
“So what?”
“The person who was bitten was Do Han-Sol. Before the world became like this… Do Han-Sol was my coworker. The people I’d escaped with had different opinions about what to do with Han-Sol.”
The fact that they had taken sides on this issue showed just how disastrous the situation must’ve been at the time. I assumed that there were two opinions: either kill Do Han-Sol, or try to save him.
It was already a difficult world just to survive in. And besides, it would’ve been even more difficult to make up your mind if you were being chased by zombies.
Choi Soo-Hyun sighed and continued talking.
“I chose to try to save Do Han-Sol. In the end, we couldn’t come to a consensus, so we were further split up.”
“What does this have to do with Shelter Barrier? Just cut to the chase. If you're trying to get away with some bullshit story, today’s not the day."
Hwang Ji-Hye showed no sign of backing down. Instead, she pressured Choi Soo-Hyun even harder.
She pressed the muzzle of her gun against Choi Soo-Hyun's forehead, who closed her eyes tightly and took a deep breath.
“Do Han-Sol… He awoke as a zombie with glowing red eyes, just like the two of you. After we saw him in that state, we thought we were goners and regretted not killing Do Han-Sol when we had the chance. But Han-Sol was different from the other zombies.”
Hwang Ji-Hye bit her lower lip and stopped asking her questions. It seemed like she knew what was coming next.
I also knew what she was going to say next.
Choi Soo-Hyun smacked her lips.
“Han-Sol… He could turn zombies into underlings. After that, Han-Sol gathered the scattered survivors again and fought to reclaim Shelter Barrier.”
“...”
“And we won. We killed the dong leader of Gunja-dong and reclaimed our home. That’s the current Shelter Barrier.”
Hwang Ji-Hye finally lowered her gun and let out a breath. Despite putting her gun down, her frown still remained. It seemed she still harbored suspicions regarding Choi Soo-Hyun.
After a moment, she asked the other woman the question that was on her mind.
“So, are you saying that this person named Do Han-Sol is managing Shelter Barrier right now?”
“These two used the word ‘cooperating’, but in our case, managing seems like the right word. Without Han-Sol, our shelter would probably collapse in no time.”
“And when did Do Han-Sol start managing the shelter?”
“Less than a month. I heard that our old shelter had been in contact with other shelters before it collapsed… But I never knew this shelter would be one of them.”
Choi Soo-Hyun sighed and let her head sag. Hwang Ji-Hye stayed silent for a few more heartbeats, then rubbed her stiff neck and spoke.
“Then why were you in Hwayang-dong when you should be in Gunja-dong?”
“Because we’re short on food.”
“Then what is this person named Do Han-Sol doing? Shouldn’t Do Han-Sol be looking for food for you people?”
“Han-Sol’s busy dealing with these guys who call themselves members of the Family, who are constantly attacking Gunja-dong. There’s no way we could ask Han-Sol to search for food on top of that.”
I found myself lost in thought as I listened to Choi Soo-Hyun. Kim Hyeong-Jun approached me and said cautiously,
‘Ahjussi, I think Gunja-dong is…’
‘Yeah I know. It’s in danger.’
I cut him off because I knew the answer. He nodded, his expression dark.
If Gunja-dong hadn't gone down after several attacks… It was only a matter of time until the members of the Family joined forces to take over Gunja-dong.
The members of the Family… I wondered what they would be doing.
They had attacked Seoul Forest in order to solve the Majang-dong incident. It was possible to consider Shelter Silence in Seoul Forest and Shelter Barrier in Gunja-dong as being in the same situation.
I couldn’t help but think about the possibility of a full-scale invasion of the Gunja-dong shelter by the members of the Family. And since the dong leader of Seongsu-dong had been mobilized for the invasion of Shelter Seoul Forest, it was most likely that forces from Junggok-dong would act as the advance party, since they were north of Gunja-dong.
The concern was that Junggok-dong wasn’t a small district.
According to the map I had, Junggok-dong was an orange area. On top of that, Myeonmok-dong, located just north of Junggok-dong, was red.
I wasn’t sure how strong this person named Do Han-Sol was, but if the dong leader of Junggok-dong joined forces with the dong leader of Myeonmok-dong and attacked Gunja-dong, they would be wiped out in no time.
I opened the notebook and quickly wrote a message.
- This person named Do Han-Sol. I'd like to meet them.
Choi Soo-Hyeon nodded as she read the message on the notepad I handed to her.
Hwang Ji-Hye, who was standing next to her, frowned.
“You can't do that without my permission. Since you brought survivors from Shelter Barrier to Shelter Silence, I see this as an issue between survivors. Don’t you?”
- Did I say I was going to meet the survivors there?
“...”
Hwang Ji-Hye seemed to hesitate after hearing my question.
Do Han-Sol was a zombie.
I wasn’t going to meet survivors. I was going to meet a zombie.
Which made this an issue between zombies.
I felt sorry for Hwang Ji-Hye, but I had no intention of backing off.
I opened my notebook and wrote some more.
- I’m not part of Shelter Silence. You have no right to give me orders.
“Then what are you trying to do by meeting Do Han-Sol? I’d at least like to hear your reasoning behind this.”
Hwang Ji-Hye crossed her arms and stared hard into my eyes.
I started writing in my notepad without hesitation.
- I’m going to meet Do Han-Sol, and if Do Han-Sol meets my standards, I’m going to form an alliance.
“An alliance? This person named Do Han-Sol… No, this zombie named Do Han-Sol… You’re thinking about forming an alliance without knowing anything about this zombie beforehand, and without any plans?”
- If Do Han-Sol is fighting against the members of the Family, we have nothing to lose by forming an alliance. It’s just like the saying—the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Especially when it comes to zombies that protect survivors.
“It’d be different if Do Han-Sol is holding the survivors at Shelter Barrier as hostages. What if these two are controlling the survivors with this zombie named Do Han-Sol supporting them? Or, what if these two were scouting all the way to Hwayang-dong?”
There was nothing wrong with her argument.
But to me, this was nothing but Hwang Ji-Hye's imagination.
I couldn’t criticize her for thinking in such a way, or say anything against her speculation.
As the leader of a group, it was only right to consider every possibility.
I calmly showed Hwang Ji-Hye the sentences I’d written down in my notepad.
- Isn’t that all the more reason to meet Do Han-Sol? We can’t jump to conclusions without seeing Do Han-Sol first.
Hwang Ji-Hye sighed, her face a mask of disapproval.
I wondered if Hwang Ji-Hye’s caution and her tendency to prioritize safety at all times helped her become the group leader of Shelter Silence.
I knew where she was coming from. I could tell that she was trying to avoid any missteps.
However, there was a saying that not being willing to make mistakes was being irresponsible, as it merely led to inaction.
Being overly cautious was no different from living under a rock.
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