13. Survivors (2)

I returned to the boarding house with a load of supplies from the hardware store.

There are still a lot of Human Beasts swarming the residential complex, but since they are far from the hardware store, the route back through the chicken restaurant across the street is definitely safe.

Still, the hardware is heavy.

Damn.

“Phew.”

I put down the load in the yard and asked.

“Soo-hyeon, is there anything else you need?”

Hoon, the middle-aged man, placed a heavy bag next to me, sweating profusely.

Soo-hyeon opened the bag and said,

“Silicone, got it. Power drill, got it. Welding tools and mask, got it…”

She thought for a moment and added,

“…If we want to secure it properly, it would be good to have some plywood, but I don’t think we can find any around here, right?”

…Plywood?

Can we even find plywood around here…

Then Hoon, the middle-aged man, spoke up.

“Soo-hyeon, I’m not sure about plywood, but what about aluminum sheets? There are a lot of them around.”

“There are?”

Hoon nodded.

“Yeah, they’re all over the road, aren’t they?”

…!

Ah!

The numerous vehicles occupying the road!

We can just strip the hoods, bumpers, and everything else off them!

I smiled and looked at Soo-hyeon.

Not bad, right?

Soo-hyeon was also smiling at me.

“Let’s go back to the hardware store and then check out the cars.”

“Sounds good.”

Why didn’t I think of using the cars earlier? There are plenty of metal chunks on the road. Even if we strip a few, there will still be plenty left for others to use.

“What are you going to do with the parts you strip from the cars?”

Soo-hyeon pointed to the stone wall.

“I want to reinforce the wall so nothing can get over it.”

…It’s really turning into a fortress.

I have no idea how to do this, so I’ll just leave it to Soo-hyeon.

By the time we returned from the hardware store, it was lunchtime.

The women who came back from the supermarket were chatting and preparing the meal. They brought back a lot of things, from detergent to candy, using the supermarket carts.

The lunch menu was pork and kimchi stew.

Wrapping well-cooked kimchi and pork in lettuce, adding minced garlic and ssamjang, and putting it in your mouth, the savory kimchi broth and pork juice spread throughout your mouth, making it incredibly delicious.

“How’s the supermarket area?”

I asked while eating.

Ye-eun answered,

“It’s good. The Inline Skating Club people are working really hard. The place is already bustling with people.”

“Bustling?”

The newlywed housewife laughed and said,

“I saw our neighbor, too. It seems the Inline Skating Club people have even come to our neighborhood.”

…Wow.

While making a pork and lettuce wrap, I asked,

“How many people are there to make it so bustling?”

Ye-eun tilted her head and thought for a moment before saying,

“About twenty or thirty, excluding us and the Inline Skating Club people. The number of people has been increasing over time.”

…Oh…

The number of people has been increasing over time…

That means there could be even more people by tonight or tomorrow.

“Are the Inline Skating Club people still distributing supplies?”

Ye-eun nodded.

“Yes. They visit houses without… Human Beasts and give out a pack of ramen each. It seems there are quite a few survivors.”

…Hmm…

…Wait…

The medium-sized supermarket had a lot of items and food supplies.

When we first organized it, I thought it would last the boarding house residents for at least a year…

…But now, with twenty to thirty people and more coming in…

Those people probably aren’t all who were inside their homes. Some might have come out to get supplies, leaving their families behind, especially those with children or elderly people. It’s the first day of checking if it’s safe outside.

…What will happen when it’s confirmed to be safe?

Will everyone inside their homes come out in a rush to get supplies?

From what Ye-eun said, it seems they are still distributing things in an orderly manner.

The supermarket shelves are still well-stocked.

…But how long will they remain well-stocked?

…We need to secure a large supermarket quickly.

I looked at Soo-hyeon.

Soo-hyeon was also looking at me.

“…Brother, I’ll go to the supermarket after lunch. I’ll ask you and Hoon, the middle-aged man, to help me with the cars on the road.”

…Soo-hyeon had the same idea as me.

With a horde of Human Beasts outside, we can’t guarantee how long this safe area will remain safe.

At the very least, we need to stock up on food.

If I’m leveling up and the monsters suddenly invade the neighborhood, trapping us in the boarding house, it would be a problem.

I nodded.

“Bring back as much as you can.”

“…Okay.”

Soo-hyeon nodded.

Ye-eun and So-eun, and the newlywed housewife, haven’t seen the YouTube video yet.

Soo-hyeon is quite perceptive.

Since I didn’t bring it up, she didn’t mention the YouTube video either.

Hoon, the middle-aged man, is the same.

He’s just eating the kimchi stew with a slightly stiff face.

After finishing the meal, the women went to the supermarket, and Hoon, the middle-aged man, and I went to the road.

Using the cutting machine from the hardware store, we sliced off the hoods, bumpers, trunks, and doors from the cars and brought them back to the yard, stacking them neatly.

By the time we stripped about one and a half cars, we were exhausted.

“Phew, let’s take a break now.”

“Yes, sir. Phew, phew.”

The bumpers and doors aren’t that heavy.

They’re made of aluminum, so they are definitely lighter.

Still, manual labor is manual labor.

By the time the sun was setting, we were tired.

“I’m going upstairs to take a shower. See you at dinner.”

“Yes, sir. Take a rest.”

Hoon, the middle-aged man, bowed deeply to me.

Ugh, that bow is a bit much.

He seemed to be even more formal after seeing me clear out the McDonald’s in one go.

Ah, whatever.

I already told him to talk more casually.

He just doesn’t do it.

Whatever.

Ugh, damn, I sweated a lot.

When I returned to the attic room…

The room was clean.

…It seems someone cleaned it.

Did Soo-hyeon do it?

In a corner of the clean room, there were snacks and jelly neatly stacked.

It’s more than one person could carry.

…Whoever did it, it definitely wasn’t Hoon, the middle-aged man, so it must have been the women.

They don’t show it, but they’re subtly taking care of me.

I took a refreshing shower and lay down on the futon.

Ah, damn, it smells good.

…Good smell?

I sniffed the pillow.

…They even changed the pillowcase and blanket.

The patterns and colors are the same, so I didn’t notice.

They really take care of me.

I smiled and took a deep breath.

I’m tired.

I’ll rest for a couple of hours, have dinner, and then go on a raid to the residential complex.

“Phew…”

While lying down, I received a message.

[Let’s have dinner! Doenjang stew! Hurry!]

It’s from Soo-hyeon.

I got up with a “Huh,” and went downstairs. The rich, pungent smell of doenjang stew hit my nose.

Ugh, it must be delicious.

Wait, where are So-eun, the newlywed housewife, and Hoon, the middle-aged man?

“There are fewer people?”

Ye-eun giggled and said,

“So-eun can’t eat doenjang stew. The newlywed housewife can’t eat it either, so they went downstairs with Hoon, the middle-aged man, to eat frozen pizza.”

Hmm.

They can’t eat doenjang stew.

Well, some people can’t eat certain foods.

I don’t understand it, but I don’t discriminate against food, so I can’t really relate.

While eating the doenjang stew, I asked,

“How was the supermarket? Are there a lot of people?”

Ugh?!

Oh my god, it’s incredibly delicious!

The moment it hits my tongue, the thick and savory soybean paste flavor presses down, making my mouth water.

I looked at Ye-eun with wide eyes.

Ye-eun smiled and nodded at the grandmother.

“It’s really delicious, ma’am.”

“What are you talking about, dear. Here, eat more. Here.”

At that moment, Soo-hyeon’s eyes widened.

“Brother! What’s that on your hand?!”

“Huh?”

…Ah, damn.

I forgot to wear the maintenance gloves.

The women looked at my hand with wide eyes.

Of course, damn. I’ve seen them for a while, but it’s strange to suddenly see something new on my hand.

“Ah, this.”

What should I say?

“I was bored and couldn’t sleep, so I did it.”

…Whatever, damn.

Just say it.

It’s a lie I don’t even believe, but I can’t come up with anything better.

I threw it out and continued eating the doenjang stew.

Ugh, it’s delicious.

Soo-hyeon said,

“Wow, Brother. I’ve never seen this pattern before. You have such a talent? Did you do this yourself?”

…No.

The status window did this to my hand.

I can’t say that.

“Uh.”

“What did you use? Can it be erased?”

Soo-hyeon grabbed my hand and rubbed my palm with her thumbs.

“It doesn’t come off? This isn’t a tattoo, right? How did you do it in just one day?”

Ye-eun tilted her head and asked,

“Did you use a permanent marker or something?”

…Please, don’t be interested…

I smiled awkwardly and nodded.

“Yeah.”

Ye-eun smiled.

“They’re wings and rings? They’re really pretty. So-eun would love them.”

Wings?

…I thought they were flames.

Do they look like wings?

…What kind of wings?

They definitely look like flames.

Soo-hyeon said,

“Well done, Brother. It’s pretty. Can you do one for me later?”

…Please, no.

It’s not that I don’t like it, but it feels a bit strange.

The pattern is definitely unique and eye-catching.

The rings surrounding the flames, if drawn on a canvas, would probably make people stop and look.

The problem is that it’s on my hand.

I hate tattoos.

I can’t say I hate tattoos after putting something like this on my hand, so I’ll just brush it off.

I pulled my hand away from Soo-hyeon and said,

“So, how was the supermarket?”

Soo-hyeon smiled and said,

“Brother, there were a lot of people at the supermarket. There were twenty to thirty people in the afternoon, but when we went, it felt like the supermarket was back to normal business hours.”

“Yeah, it felt like a weekend.”

…Hmm.

The people who went out in the morning must have brought their whole families to get supplies.

The new houses distributed by the Inline Skating Club people must have also sent people out.

…The number will keep increasing from tomorrow.

…The supermarket won’t last a week, will it?

“What was the atmosphere like at the supermarket?”

Ye-eun shrugged and said,

“It was good. It was nice to see so many people after a while. People were greeting each other and laughing.”

…Hmm…

They were laughing?

Soo-hyeon nodded.

“Yeah, it was really nice. When someone said they couldn’t find any meat, an auntie who had some extra gave a pack to her. It was heartwarming.”

She smiled.

…Hmm…

It sounds like a heartwarming story of good neighbors, but it’s not.

It means the meat is almost gone.

The supermarket’s stock has been depleted in just a day or two.

Our women must have brought back the most over the past few days, but even then, we still don’t have enough.

We need to secure enough food to last at least six months.

This isn’t a situation where people can laugh just because they meet and laugh.

I nodded.

“I ate well. I’ll get up first.”

“Brother, where are you going?”

I smiled.

“Just doing what I always do. I’ll be back soon.”

Soo-hyeon patted my butt.

“Vroom, be careful, Brother.”

The grandmother frowned.

“Ew? You shouldn’t do that in front of people, girl. It’s too affectionate. Tsk tsk.”

Soo-hyeon stuck out her tongue.

“People don’t say that anymore, Grandma.”

Whether they say it or not, I don’t care.

I’m leaving.

“I ate well.”

“Ew, you did. Come back soon, okay?”

Leaving the people still eating behind, I returned to the attic room.

The lifting belt, two swords.

And the maintenance gloves.

Let’s go.

To the raid.