Chapter 19

EP 5 - The Hunters (3)

At the center of the largest-scale refugee rescue operation, he stayed until the end to recruit a fire mage while also drawing media attention.

The sky was safe, and combat helicopters had already been dispatched to the vicinity. With helicopters capable of destroying an entire small town, how could there be any danger?

He thought it was a pretty good gamble.

But who could have known that the gate would open again, and not only that, it would appear right behind them, and even more, that it would be the first time flying monsters would emerge?

The outcome was set, and there was no need for excuses. The gamble had failed.

What could be done? Lamenting wouldn't change anything.

He needed to calculate the practical benefits and formulate a strategy for the future.

If he wanted to scavenge for supplies from now on, he had to do his best.

* * *

From a distance, I could see the comprehensive stadium and Kyunggi High School, so this must be Cheongdam-dong. The granddaughter of Representative Yangpansuk attends school here.

I know the area roughly because I sometimes drive her. If you go straight along the road in the direction of the community center, you'll reach Apgujeong.

Monsters started to emerge from the gate that had opened in the sky. Although a few helicopters approached and fired Hellfire missiles, it was difficult to secure air superiority. After all, Apaches are ground-attack helicopters.

Moreover, this was right below the gate. Like a school of minnows in an aquarium, lumps of flesh with bat wings poured out in droves.

Rescue was impossible.

There were three soldiers on the rooftop. Including Yedoyeon and me, there were five in total.

The prosthetic leg I got from the military hospital was too loose. I can walk, but I can't run.

I grabbed the handle of the rooftop door.

"Rescue is impossible. Let's go inside for now-"

- Bang!

As soon as I opened the door, a long, thin hand shot out and grabbed me. The problem was that the hand was purple.

It was about three times as long and thin as a normal human hand. It looked like a spider's leg.

A lump of flesh with two jaws thrust its hideous head through the door gap. Five yellow, pus-filled eyes were utterly revolting.

The monster's mouth opened to an almost grotesque degree, just before it was about to swallow my head.

- Bang!

A soldier shot the monster's head.

Immediately after, before I could react, someone grabbed the back of my neck.

Yedoyeon threw me backward and lunged at the monster. Her eyes were filled with a fierce glare.

She fearlessly punched the monster's mouth, crushing its teeth.

Then, she grabbed the lower jaw to open the mouth and delivered an uppercut with her other hand, piercing the palate.

Yedoyeon roughly pulled her hand out and shook it on the ground, and the monster, with its brain destroyed, fell limply to the ground.

She scanned us with a fierce look, nodded slightly, and strode into the building.

Helicopters were fleeing and firing missiles at the monsters, and the terrifying roars of the beasts echoed through the cloudy sky of Seoul.

The soldier who had shot the monster helped me up.

"Ah, thank you. Really-"

"I've only used the AK47 that the rebels left behind, but this is my first time with a K2."

I was startled by the familiar voice and turned to look at the soldier.

"Ah, um. As a 17-year veteran war correspondent, shooting is a basic skill."

A face that was both unfamiliar and familiar.

The masked man grinned slyly.

"Actually, they're just fashion glasses."

*

I, Yedoyeon, two soldiers, and a war correspondent pretending to be a soldier were in an ordinary office.

The lights were off, and the only light came through the closed curtains, casting a pale gray hue over everything.

A cold silence settled over the empty office.

"...Sir."

One of the soldiers slumped into a chair, wiping his eyes.

"He tried to save us......!"

Another soldier patted his back, comforting his comrade. It didn't seem like it would end soon. There was a bit of time left.

I interrogated the masked man with a bewildered look.

"......How did you get here?"

He smiled contentedly and gave a sly answer.

"With this much experience, I have my ways."

Right. A stupid question. I asked a proper question.

"Why did you come?"

The masked man glanced around and leaned in to whisper to me.

"There's a rumor that the military deliberately didn't rescue the Apgujeong camp......"

How did he know?

"By any chance, do you know about it?"

"How would I know?"

"......Really?"

"Well, wasn't the strategy to recapture the outskirts of Seoul first? I don't know much about the military, but the vice minister has it all planned-"

Clank.

Suddenly, a chill ran down my spine.

It wasn't just me. Everyone fell silent and lowered their posture.

An unnamed soldier pointed at something with good eyesight.

On the other side of the office, a chair moved slightly.

Yedoyeon approached me and grabbed my hand, and the rest of the group aimed their guns.

A black shape slithered up from under a desk.

It was human-shaped.

"Ah....!"

It was a woman's voice.

"Are you... a person...!?"

She spoke. She was human.

I finally confirmed her shape with the light from my smartphone.

A blood-covered woman was staggering toward us, raising her hand.

The two soldiers lowered their guns.

"Ah! Are you okay!"

"Ah...! A person! It's a person!"

As Yedoyeon moved to help the woman, I grabbed her hand and didn't let go.

The blood-covered woman walked toward us with a twisted smile.

I scratched an X on the back of their hands with my fingernails to prevent the masked man and Yedoyeon from approaching the woman.

We had just caught the monster waiting at the rooftop door.

But, how could this woman have been hiding under a desk while a monster was roaming the building?

Even if she had hidden in a hurry, the probability of someone surviving by hiding under a desk was rare.

Considering the existence of superhumans, this woman might have been someone the monster didn't need to hide from.

......Then why did she hide?

*

"Ah, there are people downstairs."

"That's a relief."

The woman pointed at the stairs with a trembling hand. We cautiously descended the emergency stairs, keeping a watchful eye on our surroundings.

Of course, I was on guard against internal enemies. I deliberately approached right behind the woman and spoke to the soldiers.

"Shouldn't we head to the Apgujeong camp first?"

"Rather, we should return-"

"This is Cheongdam-dong. To protect ourselves immediately, it's better to join the camp right next to us."

While speaking, I kept an eye on the blood-covered woman staggering down the stairs.

Although she was covered in blood, she didn't look like someone who had been starving for weeks.

She suddenly glanced back. Our eyes met, and her expression faltered slightly.

She frowned slightly and lowered her head. Then, with a trembling finger, she pointed at the door.

"They're all gathered here."

A soldier carefully opened the door, and another soldier raised his gun.

And.

"You'll be going in there too."

The woman, who was among the soldiers, jammed her hands into their sides.

The startled soldiers pulled the triggers, but the guns just fired, and they fell to the ground.

She pulled something out of the soldiers' bodies. As something was dragged out, one soldier fell, and another tumbled down the stairs.

Although we couldn't see inside the emergency stairwell door, the stench that suddenly filled the air made it clear what was inside.

A food storage room.

The masked man aimed his gun at the woman's hands as they burrowed into the soldiers' bodies and pulled the trigger as soon as they were free.

However.

Would bullets penetrate a hand that could tear through bulletproof vests?

I don't really know.

The bullets might not have hit, or the masked man might have missed, or she might have dodged.

But one thing was certain,

"Too bad."

I had been grabbed by the woman right behind me.

"It's more convenient to go all at once..."

She grabbed my neck and used me as a meat shield.

Yedoyeon looked anxious, and the masked man aimed his gun with a twisted expression.

I extended my hand solemnly while being held hostage.

"Mr. Masked Man, I'm fine, so-"

"That's not possible!"

"No, don't shoot."

"Huh?"

I grabbed the woman's hand, which was holding my neck as if it would tear it off.

"I...!"

And I pushed forward.

"I've lived with a martial artist for years!"

I have the same physical abilities as this insane murderer.

She tried to tear my neck, but it only scratched a little.

I took away the murderer's vision with my thumbs.

My expression naturally contorted, but that wasn't important now.

I took the most冷静的措施 I could.

And I collapsed backward, as if all the blood had drained from my body.

Only then did I notice what was inside the front door where the woman had intended to take us.

A food waste bin.

*

Fortunately, there were no monsters or people downstairs, only what had once been people.

We took a break in a relatively clean duty room. On the way, I had vomited twice in the toilet.

Yedoyeon patted my back. The water supply was cut off, so I couldn't wash my hands. The trembling hadn't stopped.

I wiped away the tears that had trickled down with my trembling hand. My face was probably covered in blood.

The masked man muttered with a solemn expression.

"......Why, why would someone do that?"

There were various reasons.

She might have awakened just before being victimized by a group of survivors and gone mad while taking revenge on others.

Or, due to a lack of food, she might have been chosen as the sacrifice in a lottery and killed the others.

"......That's not a story that will help us now."

I wiped the blood and flesh from my trembling hands onto the duty room's bedding and composed myself.

"The enemy killed two of our allies. We killed one of the enemy. Let's not think about the details."

"But... still..."

The masked man covered his face with his hand.

"How did the world... come to this..."

The 17-year veteran war correspondent couldn't continue.

The excuse that "it was always like this" wouldn't work.

It was time to admit it.

The world was not the same as before.

Through the window, a blue gate loomed ominously in the cloudy sky.

In the heart of Apgujeong, Seoul.

We were truly facing the end of the world.