24. A Person Who Lost Their Mind. (3)

Han-tae, or more accurately, Dong-nae, had a pretty useful skill. It might even be considered the only ability among our group members.

Baking.

The bread on display at the mart was already covered in mold, making it inedible. However, the mart had an abundance of flour, butter, sugar, salt, and yeast packets. If only someone knew how to make bread.

“Why don’t we make bread…?”

Han-tae’s casual comment was the start of it all. After a brief exchange about who knew how to bake, Han-tae rolled up his sleeves and started baking in earnest.

He proudly distributed the bread he made, going from house to house, giving out a slice or two. Suddenly, we had a bread surplus.

So, our breakfast today is ham and egg toast with strawberry jam.

The sight of Ye-eun and So-hyeon standing side by side in the kitchen, chatting and making toast, was quite satisfying.

The preparation was enjoyable, and the ham and egg toast was delicious, but the conversation was not.

“By the way.”

I swallowed a piece of toast and spoke.

Ye-eun and So-hyeon looked at me.

“Have you seen any birds recently?”

“Birds?”

So-hyeon tilted her head and flapped her hands.

I nodded, and they looked at each other.

Seeing them shake their heads, I said,

“If you see any, be careful.”

Their expressions changed.

“…Why?”

I thought for a moment and then began to recount what I had seen and experienced at the Cheonggyecheon stream.

I told the story matter-of-factly and simply, without exaggeration.

Ye-eun, tense, asked,

“T-then, what about our vegetable garden…?”

“In my opinion, the garden should be fine.”

I took a bite of toast and continued,

“Since the world turned like this, I haven’t seen any flying birds. Have you?”

So-hyeon and Ye-eun nodded, but worry was still etched on their faces.

I said,

“I don’t know where all the birds have gone, but they’re not in the sky. At least, I haven’t seen any in the past few weeks. The problem is, if other animals have also turned like that.”

“Then, where did they all go…?”

“I don’t know. Maybe they’re in some forest or something?”

I smiled at their worried faces.

“Actually, I was debating whether to tell you. I didn’t want you to worry. But I think the human beasts are gathering to create a zombie wave. It’s possible that real animals are doing something similar somewhere.”

“…Ah…”

The women made sounds and slowly nodded.

I said,

“If they do appear somewhere, we won’t miss them. How could we miss a horde of animals? So, what we need to do is…”

I wiped my lips with a wet wipe and stood up.

“Fortify this building and make it strong. I’ll clean up the area around the building. We need to be prepared for anything.”

So-hyeon and Ye-eun nodded.

“Understood.”

“Yes, Oppa.”

I smiled and armed myself with weapons.

“Push the men to work hard. I’ll be back.”

So-hyeon and Ye-eun stood up together.

“Be careful.”

“Don’t get hurt.”

I smiled and patted their heads.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be back.”

Just then, a loud noise came from outside.

A human voice, almost a scream, full of desperation.

“What is it…?”

So-hyeon, startled, ran to the window.

Swish.

She pulled back the curtain and looked outside, then quickly hid behind it.

What is it?

“What’s wrong?”

So-hyeon looked back at me and said,

“It’s that ajumma. That… ajumma.”

…Ajumma?

…I need to go down and see.

As I left the house, people from other houses were also coming out, looking around.

“What’s that noise? Who’s shouting?”

“I don’t know. Who is it?”

So-hyeon stepped out and said,

“It’s that ajumma. One of the people from over there.”

Jeong-seo came out of her house and heard this.

She looked at me.

That ajumma.

Ah.

Jeong-seo’s expression became serious.

Conversely, a smile appeared on my face.

A bitter, slightly unpleasant smile.

…She’s back, huh?

I walked to the elevator, and Jeong-seo and others followed.

The man standing in front of me, Mr. Hoon, huffed and said,

“T-this time, I won’t just stand by.”

He puffed out his chest.

Hmm.

Good attitude.

We went down to the first floor and walked to the side door.

Jun-hyuk, who was on guard, saw us and said,

“Seong-hun, an ajumma is shouting out there.”

…Huh?

I tilted my head.

“An ajumma?”

“Yes. She came alone and is shouting loudly in front of the building. She seems drunk.”

Drunk, huh?

Did she get drunk to take revenge for what happened to her husband?

I really don’t get it.

I took off the quiver from my back and loosened the strap.

Then, I walked and said,

“Open it.”

“Yes, Seong-hun.”

Creak-

I took a quiver full of arrows from a wooden box in front of the door and strapped it on.

Swish!

As I stepped outside, I saw an ajumma standing in the middle of the crossroads.

She was on her knees, panting heavily.

She seemed to be swaying, as if she were really drunk.

Looking back, I saw our people standing inside and outside the shutter, watching the ajumma.

They had expressions of curiosity, worry, tension, and hostility.

I slung the quiver on my back and walked towards the ajumma, taking my time.

The ajumma noticed me.

She stood up abruptly.

She pointed at me.

“Hey! You bastard! You son of a bitch!”

I walked towards her without responding.

The ajumma shouted, struggling,

“How could you do that to a person! How?! Are you human? You son of a bitch!”

Her face was bright red.

Her neck veins were bulging.

“Kill me too! You bastard! Kill me! Kill me! Kill me!”

…Huh?

I walked and tilted my head.

“Is he dead? That guy?”

The ajumma swayed and struggled.

“He’s dead! You bastard! Is that how a person should look? How can you live like that! You might as well kill me, how could you do that to a person! How?!”

…What is she talking about?

“Is he dead, or not dead?”

The ajumma panted and bent over.

She vomited with a groan.

…She’s definitely drunk.

The ajumma lifted her head and said,

“I killed him. I did! My husband, black. I killed him! With a knife! You bastard, if it weren’t for you! You killed him! You bastard!”

She raised her hand.

A kitchen knife.

It was covered in blood.

The ajumma staggered towards me.

I was walking towards her too.

The ajumma shouted,

“You bastard! Kill me! Come on! Let’s die together, huh?!”

I walked and untied the strap on my scabbard.

Swish, the hilt of the sword slid into my hand.

The ajumma raised the knife.

“Let’s die together!”

She staggered and ran towards me.

I drew my sword.

Swish-

Women behind me gasped in shock.

“Seong-hun!”

The ajumma struggled.

“Aaaaaah!”

She was holding the kitchen knife with both hands and charging…

Really…

Her eyes full of resentment.

Her vicious expression.

Her running steps.

I swung the scabbard in my hand.

Smack!

The ajumma was hit on the head and fell to the side.

“Ugh!”

Thud.

She fell with a thud, like a sack of potatoes.

I snorted.

“You’re playing around. You’ve really lost your mind, haven’t you?”

…Should I kill her?

My lips twisted in real-time.

I turned around.

People were looking at me.

At me…

…Huh?

They’re not looking at me.

Their gazes shifted to the distant road.

What is it?

I turned my head to look at the road.

Men were running towards us.

Their faces and T-shirts were drenched in sweat.

They had run a long way.

It seemed they didn’t have any weapons in their hands.

They definitely weren’t here to fight.

…This is because of that ajumma.

I held my sword and waited for them to arrive.

After a moment, the cockroaches approached.

Their gaunt faces and heavy breathing were clearly audible.

“S-sir, s-sir, s-sir.”

One of the cockroaches stepped forward and spoke hesitantly.

I stood at an angle and looked at the cockroaches.

Then, I pointed at the ajumma with my sword.

The cockroaches nodded.

Some of them waved their hands.

It seemed like a gesture to indicate they weren’t here to fight.

…Really.

“Take her. Be more careful in the future.”

The cockroaches nodded awkwardly and bowed, then approached.

“Yes, yes. Ah, understood.”

“Thank you.”

Three of them helped the ajumma up.

The ajumma was still in bad shape.

She seemed to have fainted from the blow to the head.

“Let’s go, ma’am.”

“Really, if you come here again, we’ll… Ha.”

They grumbled as they supported her on either side and walked past me.

They bowed to me as they passed.

I watched as they shuffled away and sheathed my sword.

Swish- Click.

…Tsk.

What a disgusting feeling.

Looking back, people were still watching the cockroaches leave.

I walked onto the sidewalk and said,

“Don’t worry about it. Go inside. I’ll be back.”

“Yes, sir, come back safely!”

“Come back safely, Oppa!”

I waved and walked towards the underpass.

Really.

How many times do they have to come and cause trouble before they’re satisfied?

Shouldn’t she have come to her senses after getting hit on the head and passing out?

No.

People don’t change, I guess.

I looked at the cockroaches walking away, filled with disgust.

They’ll probably come back, those bugs.

“…Tsk.”

There are plenty of people in this world who are inherently disgusting.

I spat on the ground and walked towards the underpass.

Human cockroaches are more disgusting than real cockroaches.

But, I need to level up.

Let’s catch as many as possible.