episode_0020

“Danhwa, how are you here…?”

The old man looked at me with wide eyes, but I didn’t care. To be exact, I didn’t have time to care.

The fact that they were able to capture the old man proved that his opponent was no ordinary one.

But, a kid who looks like he’s in middle school or something? Could it be…

Aren’t you alone?

I quickly looked around, still aiming my arrow at the girl. I didn’t feel any sign of life, except for a dog sitting on the floor, wagging its tail.

Am I really alone? I thought carefully. I couldn’t let my guard down.

I thought of the piles of canned goods inside the house. It was certainly a large amount that it would be difficult for a girl to handle alone, and since it had been over three years since the incident, it was right to assume that at least one adult male was with her.

Yes, there must be one more assistant attached. Then it is not unreasonable to think that the old man was tied up like that.

But back off. You left the kid alone and left the place.

Perhaps, he was not used to this kind of thing. But it didn’t matter to the person being hit whether the other person was skilled or a beginner.

It’s my duty to return the favor when I’ve been hit. Just like that guy captured the old man by exploiting his weakness, I also planned to fully exploit the criminal’s weakness.

“If you don’t want to get a hole in your head, put down what you’re holding and take 8 steps back.”

“I was just trying to give food to oppa Do-hoon…?”

Do-hoon oppa? Haha, you wouldn’t be saying that to our idiot, would you? How would you know if it’s food or not in the first place?

Rather than believing the hostage takers’ words, I’d rather bet that the zombies rolling around on the street wouldn’t bite me.

Who do you think I am as an invalid as?

My mind was already set. I didn’t have many arrows left, but I didn’t hesitate. If I was going to make a threat, it was a hundred times better to do it properly. The arrow shot in an instant, grazing the girl’s nape, and was deeply embedded in the wall.

The startled girl dropped the food she was holding in her hand. The plate broke with a loud noise and the food rolled across the floor.

“Hiphop.”

For a guy who takes hostages, he’s not very strong-willed. It seems my initial thoughts were right.

No, he was just a kid at home to begin with, so he might not be used to the idea of his life being threatened.

“Next is not a wall, it’s your head.”

I spoke in a low voice, deliberately, so that the meaning of the warning could be conveyed properly. The girl sat down with a slightly embarrassed face. It didn’t look like she would fight back.

“Can you figure it out?”

I threw a dagger towards where the old man’s hand was.

“Thank you…”

The old man’s voice was weak. Well, that was to be expected. How did I get here? If I had pretended to be cheerful without any sense, I might have killed the old man, even though he was a hostage.

“Hey, who are you? What’s your… oh…brother?”

“Keum. It looks like Irina lives alone in this bunker with her dog. Her parents aren’t here.”

“No, you’re not saying that you were hit by a kid right now, are you?”

“…”

I asked back in bewilderment, and the old man kept his mouth shut as if he had become mute.

“Who told you that? No, I don’t think you have to answer. That was a stupid question. Hey!”

“Yes…?”

“If you lie, I’ll shoot you right away. I don’t think you ate that much canned food by yourself. I’d like to hear an explanation.”

“Mu, I’m scared… Could you please put down your bow?”

“Am I crazy? I’m not some idiot here, so why don’t you answer me?”

How could a bitch who knows how scary things think of soaking a person?

“I… I was bored alone and I was sick of eating only canned food, so I practiced cooking. At some point, Fluffy stopped eating canned food…”

I wondered whether I should pull the trigger. No, is there really so much food that is rotten? To the point where I would use it to cook food that I won’t even eat? Isn’t this a lie?

“If you don’t speak properly, I will shoot you.”

“Really. Sister… Don’t shoot me… Without me, Somtal… will be left alone.”

“Shorts, isn’t that enough? I’m not that hurt. And besides, she’s really alone.”

I doubted my ears, wondering if I had misheard. I felt as if all my strength to hold the bow had been drained.

I turned my head and there was the old man. Judging from the way he was staring into my eyes, it seemed like I hadn’t misheard what he just said.

My heart was on fire. I also felt like my insides were turning.

No, if I hadn’t come, wouldn’t it have gone missing? And on top of that, you risked your life to find that one idiot who disappeared. And you’re protecting the girl who caused it all? In front of the person who caused all that trouble?

“Sir…No, you…”

My emotions were so intense that I couldn’t speak properly. Even if I forced myself to speak, it didn’t seem like anything other than thick curses would come out.

I clenched my fist, thinking I was going to punch him in the face. No, I tried to clench it. Maybe it was because I had been holding the trigger for too long, but my fist wouldn’t clench properly.

I just waved my hand, thinking, “What’s the big deal?” I heard a slap. It was my hand. The old man’s head didn’t turn. He was still staring into my eyes.

“Your hands are very cold.”

What can I do? It’s because of you, you fucking idiot. If it weren’t for that fucking personality, those fucking habits, I wouldn’t have done this.

Are you turning a deaf ear to the words telling you to take full responsibility?

My anger didn’t subside. I swung my other hand. The sound burst out again. This time, the old man didn’t stop my hand. He didn’t get angry either.

You’re quick to notice things like this. You seem to know that getting angry in this situation isn’t a smart choice, right?

Why would someone who knows so well cause this mess?

“I’m sorry for making you suffer.”

“Get out, did I say apologize? You fucking retard… I said so!”

“Don’t look away and come back straight as planned. Remember.”

“The person who remembers is like this…”

The conversation didn’t go well. I tried to wave my hand again in frustration.

My hand was cold. That was because the damned old man didn’t turn his head and release his resistance. I put my hand back down. I didn’t even have the heart to hit him anymore.

“I’m sorry. Because I’m that kind of person. I can’t fix it.”

“You don’t even try to fix it, so it won’t get fixed, you idiot.”

“Is that so.”

The old man smiled bitterly and said that before leaving me. He turned to Irina, who was still shaking with fear, and stood far away.

“Why did you do that?”

It’s a pretense of scolding. Is there really a need to ask? Just kill him.

“Because Dohoon oppa looks nice, no… I like him. It’s lonely living alone. I thought it would be nice if he lived with me…”

The girl named Irina lowered her head and spoke in a low voice, as if she knew she had done wrong.

Of course, from my perspective as the one listening to it, it sounded like crazy nonsense. Who would like that? Would you like to live together? Why would you do something like that on such a topic?

“That’s why I asked you to go with me. Then why did you do this?”

“Because there are other girls…”

This conversation was strange. It was hard to believe that this was a conversation that would be held before someone was killed.

“Hey! Are you crazy? Are you trying to take her away now?”

“Danhwa, you know a girl can’t last long on her own. She’s younger than you.”

What does this mean? No, you’ve been holding out for a long time? You’ve lived alone for three years? You’re younger than me? What do you want me to do?

“My thoughts are completely different. If we just leave her here, she’ll probably live quite well on her own. She seems to have an abundance of supplies, to the point where she’s using precious food to practice cooking?”

“I’m sorry… I won’t do this again. I’ll listen to my brother and sister and be a good person…”

“Get out, I’ve never had a sister like you. Mister? I can’t take her. If you’re that worried, then the long-legged uncle who goes crazy over little girls comes every morning and night to take care of her… No, just leave her and go! ”

The old man looked troubled by my words. He seemed to be troubled by my stubbornness. That’s what I’m telling him to do.

It’s winter now, and the family has already grown to three people. Hyeji, Cheondeuk, and Hwalyeon. If one more person is added, it will be unknown whether they will be able to survive this winter.

But this old man has no intention of looking into that reality and is just going to take her away because he has one hand left.

You’re taking it with you after giving it 100 concessions? It’s like you’re going around looking for food in the cold winter.

“Danhwa. I understand you’re upset, but you’re still a child. You saw it too, right? You still can’t tell right from wrong and you’re impulsive. You need to grow by talking to people and gaining experience. If you leave it like this, even if you survive…”

“Why, do you think you’ll grow up like me? Well, thanks to someone, I grew up with my social skills shattered. But I originally had this kind of personality, right?”

To be exact, I used to have a healthy and desirable social personality, but I ended up like this after seeing this damn old man suffer all kinds of hardships.

“And even if we take them, our situation is not good…”

The moment I was about to tell him about the food situation and all sorts of other things to make him feel more realistic, the old man cut me off.

“Okay, I got it. It’s cold. Let’s go in. Mr. Cheon Deuk will be waiting too.”

This is how people who originally live in ideals are. They say that if you show them a little taste of reality, they will change their minds and think, “Oh, I shouldn’t do this.”

Still, I was a little surprised that he said he would stop the useless bickering and go back.

“Up.”

“Get out, I can go by myself.”

Does that crazy guy think everything will be solved just by carrying you?

“Over there…I…”

Can’t you figure out what’s happening now? You’re a piece of shit. You crazy bitch.

“Lina, you too.”

“Hey!”

“He’ll die if he stays here. We can just have him stay at our shelter for a while and then adopt him somewhere else.”

“No, that makes sense…”

The old man was reckless. He lifted me and Lina up in one breath and quickly left the bunker. Then he put Lina and me down in the sewer and ran off, saying he would bring Mr. Cheon Deuk.

‘Danhwa, I believe you’ll take good care of it. It’s rare for girls to get together at this time of year, including Hyeji and Hwa-ryeon, who’s coming this time. Since you’re so experienced, you can help out a lot.’

Leaving behind only such nonsense.

He even left without even listening to my answer. As if he believed I would do that. I was so upset. I ended up going to the shelter with a crazy woman who was emotionally unstable due to an attempted kidnapping.

“Thank you, Sister…”

“Heh heh heh.”

Even a puppy that I couldn’t tell if it was fluffy or furry looked at me, stuck out its tongue, and wagged its tail.

Should I just bury them both and leave? I can just make an excuse that zombies suddenly came rushing into the sewers and I couldn’t help it.

‘I believe you will take good care of me.’

“…”

pup.