episode_0026

Something was wrong. In the original, there was only one instance of a helicopter coming. It was a dispatch by an officer disguised as a supply of firearms.

As the only group of survivors in Seoul, this place was being prepared to be used as a forward base for the restoration of Seoul by the military, so they had already dispatched an officer in advance.

However, the supply hadn’t even started yet.

“Haa…, haa….”

Running with all my might, I was out of breath up to my chin.

In the sky, a helicopter was flying with two huge propellers rotating. Below it, it was carrying a large container…

In the original, the helicopter crashes in front of the base due to a malfunction. Only one survivor.

Of course, I thought it was after the notification of the supply, so I only made plans and hadn’t prepared for it yet!

Fortunately, there were no signs of malfunction yet. Just in case. Please, let it not be the helicopter I was thinking of.

A bird flying in the sky rushed towards the propeller as if it were blind.

Surely…

-Boom!

As if a bomb had exploded, a bird strike occurred, and flames burst from one of the propellers of the helicopter, which began to wobble dangerously and crash to the ground.

Damn it… Why is that bastard already here?

Another variant. Epsilon. A variant that infects birds and uses them as suicide bomb-like weapons. As soon as that guy appeared, control of the airspace was lost before it could even be established.

And the appearance of Epsilon was also a nail in the coffin of my anxious prediction. The previous variant, Delta, had appeared.

With a bang, the helicopter crashed to the ground, and Beta, who had approached, looked at the crashing helicopter with a loud noise.

“Kwaahhh!”

It was a giant, covered in armor-like muscles, standing three meters tall. It seemed like it could easily sweep away the helicopter as it rushed forward.

At that moment, two gunshots rang out in succession.

-Bang! Bang!

The bullets Ian fired hit Beta’s eyes accurately.

With its eyeballs bursting out, Beta stood still, shedding tears of blood, still in the posture of rushing forward. Screaming wildly, swinging its arms aimlessly.

Originally, the standard tactic was to suppress the eyes and throw a grenade into the mouth. But instead of a grenade, there was Hajiyu.

Hajiyu leaped out at a speed that surpassed human limits, dodging between the fists that seemed to twist his whole body if they hit, and reached out with a sword into Beta’s mouth.

“Kwaaahhh!! Kek…!!”

-Thud!

The massive body crashed to the ground with a loud noise.

The first-time combatants, forgetting that they were in the middle of a battle, watched in awe with their mouths agape.

“Snap out of it!”

At Ian’s shout, those who had just regained their senses went on to subdue the remaining zombies.

I ran towards the helicopter. There, a person who was bleeding from the head struggled to get up.

Like everyone else, he couldn’t hide his admiration for the scene before him.

“Amazing. Killing Beta with a sword?”

However, it didn’t seem to surprise him much, as if he had fought Beta several times before.

Ignoring his reaction, I quickly checked the name tag and rank insignia on his military uniform. Park Yoon-sik. Lieutenant Park Yoon-sik… Why is he here when the supply hasn’t even started yet…?

As he stood frozen, Ian and Jiyu arrived a step late.

Looking at Jiyu among the two running towards them, the lieutenant muttered absentmindedly.

“Red Eye?”

At that word, his mind snapped back.

“Come to think of it, his movements weren’t ordinary. But has Red Eye already been distributed here? No, that’s impossible. It’s still only being circulated within the research base…”

The lieutenant, who had said that much, seemed dizzy and sat down on the ground.

“Subordinates, I entrust you to my subordinates.”

With only those words left, he lost consciousness.

***

After returning to the base with the weapons recovered from the helicopter, all communication was cut off. There was only one meaning behind it. The appearance of a variant Delta that manipulates radio waves.

The plans that were considered one step ahead were all rendered meaningless.

The successive shocking events left his head spinning. Even if he tried to think, his mind wouldn’t function properly.

The lieutenant colonel, with bandages wrapped around his head, opened his eyes. He had been waiting for him to wake up all night.

“What about the subordinates?”

I lightly shook my head.

“They seem to have barely survived this time as well.”

The attitude of someone accustomed to death. Mourning was brief. He must have already bid farewell to countless subordinates. After quickly venting his regrets, he asked.

“Since you waited for me to wake up, it seems you have something to discuss with me. What about you?”

“I am Yoon Siwoo, in charge of researching zombies here.”

He quickly scanned my appearance. I didn’t look like a researcher. But he didn’t seem to have any intention of pointing that out. Instead, he asked.

“Red A… no, what was that girl earlier?”

He paused in the middle of his sentence, but I could understand what he was trying to say. He had mentioned Yu’s red eyes earlier.

Red Eye.

A stimulant created by combining the blood of an immune person and a Beta, various drugs and narcotics to enhance physical abilities. Visual acuity, concentration, strength, agility all dramatically increase in an instant.

Originally, two months after receiving firearms. The lieutenant colonel, who highly evaluated Ian’s abilities, recommended him to the research base with a letter of recommendation. Shortly after, a coup occurred, and an immune person was discovered.

I had planned to leave as soon as I received the firearms, secure the immune person first, thwart the coup, and then develop a vaccine using the resources of the research base…

Already mentioning Red Eye meant that they had secured an immune person at the research base.

“The Red Eye you know is not here. But we are conducting various research here as well.”

When I mentioned Red Eye, the lieutenant naturally concealed his expression and responded casually.

“Is that so? I haven’t heard any news about it at all.”

“Like the large-scale vaccine development that the military is promoting, it is being carried out at the research base in Daejeon.”

More precisely, a large-scale bio-research complex located near Daejeon. The military had reclaimed it and transformed it into a research base.

To minimize risks, only the progress of vaccine development was disclosed. No other related information was made public.

The existence of the research base was information known only to the personnel inside the base and a few individuals including the military leadership in Busan.

The lieutenant looked at me with a strange look in his eyes.

“You seem to know a lot. Are you an intelligence agent? No, NIS?”

“I apologize.”

“Those information agency bastards. They’re still clinging on even when the country is in ruins.”

Unexpectedly, it was easier for me to continue the conversation with him misunderstanding me like this.

Even with just a small complaint, the lieutenant seemed dizzy, closing his eyes for a moment. Although there were no major injuries, there must have been some impact on his head.

He opened his eyes and asked.

“So, what’s the matter?”

I asked straightforwardly.

“Did Lieutenant Colonel Bae Jaeha finally cause trouble?”

The lieutenant, who had been nonchalant, suddenly widened his eyes. Soon, annoyance mixed with his expression.

“If you were able to understand so well from a distance, why didn’t you come earlier and try to do something?”

“…”

As I stared silently, the lieutenant let out a deep sigh.

“What’s the use of getting annoyed with you. I’m sorry. You’re right. Even if the commander was incompetent, I never thought he would go as far as to start a coup…”

“Is the reason you evacuated to the Seoul base instead of Busan because of Epsilon?”

The bird that carried out a suicide attack on the helicopter earlier.

The lieutenant colonel lowered his head.

“Surely they didn’t reveal themselves all the way to Seoul….”

Of course…. They just didn’t announce it to prevent panic among the citizens. Busan is already…. That’s why they were preparing in advance to proceed with supplies to the north. And in the midst of that, the coup happened….

After confirming that his thoughts were correct, the lieutenant finally spoke.

“I have a favor to ask.”

“What is it?”

“Please write a recommendation letter.”

“A recommendation letter?”

“For a capable researcher.”

Baek Jaeha. Originally promoted to captain for his outstanding performance when occupying the research facility, he was promoted to major. He’s a crazy guy who has no interest in anything other than developing a cure.

Normally, Ian would receive the recommendation letter. Recognized for his ability to run this place and sent to Daejeon to strengthen the defense of the research base, but now the one in control of the base is Baek Jaeha.

This is the only way to approach.

The lieutenant, who seemed to read my eyes for a while, sighed again.

“I have no idea what those intelligence agency guys are thinking. They probably won’t tell even if we ask. Well, I’ll write it. I don’t know what my recommendation letter means at this point.”

I immediately went to find Ian.

There was no more time to waste here. The mutants appeared faster than expected, and immune individuals were already found. The research base fell into the hands of the crazy ones quickly.

Who knows what else might happen. The ultimate goal is to prevent the world from being completely overrun by zombies at all costs.

Developing a vaccine or cure is one of the few viable options. We must move quickly to find immune individuals.

With all plans falling apart, does Ian have a reason to move now?

The research base occupied by the insurgents in a coup. It was too risky to leave this stable place.

First, let’s talk, and if Ian won’t go, I’ll have to go alone.

Before knowing my abilities, it was unimaginable, but now I can somehow find a way forward.

Jiyu and Yeorum will follow me as well.

I opened the door to the conference room. In my urgent state, I accidentally made a loud noise as the latch hit the wall.

The sudden interruption of communication and the supply of firearms. Officers gathered in the midst of a meeting.

The only familiar faces were Jiyu and the bald head, Lee Sangyeop. The rest were newcomers.

“What’s going on?”

Even in the unexpected situation, Ian asked calmly.

“I have something to say.”

After speaking, I scanned everyone except Ian. It was a clear sign that only the two of us were going to talk.

To the new members, I was just a researcher stuck in the basement, barely showing my face. Some showed displeasure at the rude request.

After a moment of thought, Ian nodded.

“Let’s finish this for today, and we’ll talk again next time.”

Jiyu and Lee Sangyeop looked worried, and most of them got up reluctantly. Some left openly grumbling.

Whether they left or not, once they were gone, I sat face to face with Ian.

“So, what’s so urgent that you had to talk like this?”

“Let’s leave this place as soon as possible.”