episode_0132

The Infectious Disease Crisis Response Bureau.

Just by its name, it sounds like an impressive sign.

It also gives off a strong vibe of a professional national agency.

However.

‘…Well?’

The man I glanced at was, to put it mildly, not in good shape.

Even setting aside food, he looked like he hadn’t properly slept or washed.

A grimy, shabby appearance.

He looked like a beggar who hadn’t eaten properly.

I don’t have the low-class mindset of judging people by their appearance.

But seeing him with the Daehan group, I couldn’t trust him at all.

The civil servant before me was observing me, his guard still up.

His gaze, completely devoid of reserve, was sharp, but I paid it no mind.

All I had to do was my job.

First, I dragged out the unconscious men and laid them down.

“Hey, what are you doing right now?”

The civil servant asked in a firm voice, but I didn’t answer.

*Whirr! Zzzzip-*

I took out cable ties and meticulously bound each man.

I wrapped their ankles layer by layer, binding them tightly.

I brought their hands behind their backs and tightly bound their wrists as well.

Finally, I meticulously secured even their thumbs.

Ties are harder to break with force than one might think.

This much is sufficient for restraint.

If an outsider saw, they might worry about necrosis from the blood circulation being cut off, but since they weren’t my limbs, it didn’t matter.

Only after firmly restraining the six individuals who had shot at me did I straighten my back.

Until these unconscious bastards regained consciousness, there would be time—

“Hey!!”

The civil servant’s angry shout cut off my thoughts.

He seemed to think he was being ignored and stomped closer, barking.

“When someone is speaking—”

*Thwack!-*

*Thud-*

I swiftly struck the approaching civil servant in the face, knocking him unconscious.

If it were a cute, pretty child like Miri chattering away, perhaps it would be different.

But for a filthy, stinking man-bastard to stick to me, spewing smelly breath, it was profoundly unpleasant.

I let out a small sigh and carefully bound the civil servant as well, then tossed him aside.

I couldn’t tell if he was thoughtless or fearless.

Despite trembling just moments ago, it seemed he lost all fear once he realized I was human.

Every civil servant I had encountered was haughty and stiff.

This guy seemed no different even in this situation.

There was a slight delay until the unconscious men regained their senses.

‘…There don’t seem to be any other abnormalities….’

I picked up the flashlight I had dropped at the entrance and set it upright in a suitable position.

The light shining on the ceiling served as a substitute for fluorescent lights.

With the visibility becoming comfortably clear, I began searching the disaster control room.

First, I collected all the firearms these guys had been using.

Only the woman had been carrying a pistol, and I took that as well.

I rummaged through their bodies to see if anything was hidden, but found nothing unusual.

Leaving the quietly unconscious men behind, I turned my attention elsewhere.

A few boxes and equipment were visible, suggesting the Daehan group had used this as a command room.

Chargers for laptops and radios, and electronic devices I’d never seen before.

The electrical wires connected to these were extended long and plugged in on one side.

‘Looks like a generator?’

Though it was a design I hadn’t seen before, I could roughly guess its purpose.

The generator, with its quite compact body, seemed to be easily portable.

Unfortunately, it was crushed and destroyed by the door I had smashed open.

I turned my gaze and rummaged through the boxes, but there wasn’t much of significance.

From a quick glance, they seemed to be for storing electronic devices.

The construction, which showed care for durability and safety, suggested the equipment was quite expensive and sensitive.

But they weren’t what I needed.

I thought I might just be drawing blanks, but I did find something.

When I went to search the room next to the disaster control room.

I quietly admired the items neatly arranged inside the small room.

For starters, there were only two firearms themselves.

But they were cool-looking firearms in very clean condition.

And what truly impressed me was next to them.

[1000 CARTRIDGES. 5.56mm x XX]

Everything else was ammunition cans.

Twenty-two black ammunition cans, each holding 1000 rounds, were neatly arranged.

And there were also five small bags, with six grenades each neatly packaged inside, like fancy snack wrappers.

Other than that, there were only anti-personnel knives, nothing special, but I couldn’t help but be amazed.

As an outsider, it seemed like an extraordinary amount.

‘…Were they planning a war or something?’

It’s already strange to carry guns in Korea, but this much ammunition?

I wondered what kind of bastards they were.

First, it was dangerous for these guys to have them, so I took everything.

Now I have good guns too.

Maybe I could learn a few things from Incheol and just shoot them freely.

I thought this while gathering the ammunition cans.

I’d once read a comical heading that said guns are close-range weapons.

If it’s close-range, perhaps I don’t need to worry about accuracy?

I might not be able to perform gun-kata actions like a cleric in some movie, but I think I can use them cleverly.

What I had just obtained were rifles and a shorter gun than that.

The combination of sword and gun.

‘…Not bad.’

A cool combination that stirs a man’s heart.

Enjoying my satisfaction, I diligently collected the items.

While packing what appeared to be weapons and first-aid supplies, I found something suspicious.

A suspicious box in the form of a thin bag, about the size of a regular briefcase.

Even its color was black.

*Click-*

Without hesitation, I opened the box to check its contents.

Inside, there were 12 glass reagent bottles.

Very respectfully and carefully.

And inside, various liquids were contained.

Very familiar…

‘This is…’

I picked up one of them and examined it closely.

I hadn’t seen wrong.

A darkish liquid that didn’t look healthy.

This was zombie blood.

Slightly different, but the rest were the same.

Dark blue, pus-like, and visibly viscous.

These were not just blood, but also bodily fluids and even brain matter.

I had been covered in them more than enough by now, so there was no way I wouldn’t recognize them.

I gently put the glass bottles back, picked up the bag, and left the room.

I swept up everything that was in the small room.

‘For now….’

I returned to the disaster control room.

I found a table, cleared its surface, and gently placed the guns and bags on it.

Then I took a bottle of mineral water from my inventory.

Immediately, I poured the 18-liter bottle of mineral water over my head.

As the water gushed down, I shook my head and wiped my face.

The dried blood dust turned into blood-water and streamed down my body.

The cool chill seemed to clear my mind and reduce the stench.

“Hoo…”

My head was definitely clearer.

I emptied one bottle and took out another.

Then I slowly approached the Daehan group and the civil servant, who were deeply asleep.

*Gush!*

The cold mineral water I poured over their faces struck the unconscious individuals.

The men, who had been completely knocked out, soon began to cough and wake up.

“Cough! Cough! Ughhh!”

“Gasp! Puh-ha! Wh-what is this?!”

The men, drenched in cold water, soon opened their eyes and regained their senses.

And seeing their bound hands and feet, they began to panic considerably.

After confirming they were all awake, I stopped pouring the precious water.

Then I dragged the table and placed it clearly visible in front of them.

“My b-body?”

“What the fuck is this?! Hey. Did you do this?!”

“Untie me now. Untie this right now!”

Realizing their physical freedom was restricted, the men began to thrash about with crude curses.

Meanwhile, the civil servant and the woman kept their mouths shut, glaring at me.

Seeing their vibrant, energetic state, I gave a small nod.

*Rustle rustle~ Clack- Clack- Clack…*

I slowly began to take out tools onto the table.

A sledgehammer, a hacksaw, pliers, a torch, and a large bottle of vodka.

As I took out the items, the men fell silent.

*Gulp-*

It was so quiet you could hear someone dry-swallowing.

Even in their disoriented state, they seemed to realize what these items meant.

“Wh-what are you going to do…”

Seeing their faces turn pale with fright, I smiled faintly.

If these guys were in their right minds, they would have pointed out me pulling things out of thin air.

But those who quickly realized what was about to happen seemed too stunned for that.

Seeing their eyes trembling severely at the tools I had laid out, I bit my lip to suppress a laugh.

*Scrape- Thud-*

I dragged a fallen chair and sat down in front of them.

The bound men groaned but managed to sit up.

They were in a kneeling position, which looked just right.

Looking at these guys, I spoke calmly.

“These are what I’ll use if you don’t cooperate well.”

I held up the torch and the vodka, continuing calmly.

“This is for preventing bleeding. This is for disinfection.”

At the stark explanation of their uses, the faces of the men before me turned not just white, but blue with fear. But there was one person who was a little different.

“What do you want?”

The person asking, with a steady voice despite her poor complexion, was the woman.

Seeing the woman show such fortitude, perhaps I could reason with her.

“It’s nothing much. You just need to answer my questions honestly and plainly.”

“……”

“And reveal everything else you know.”

The woman, with incredulous eyes, and the men beside her, soon distorted their expressions.

“What kind of bullshitt—”

*Crack-!!*

*Thud- Splat-*

I kicked up the jaw of the guy who had been spewing curses ever since he woke up.

The adult man, who had been kneeling, shot up, hit the ceiling, and came back down.

The Daehan group, encountering this absurd situation so suddenly, was aghast.

Their eyes were wide open and their mouths agape, frozen.

It seemed they were in self-denial of reality, but…

*Clap!!*

At the sound of the clap, the individuals flinched and focused their gaze.

“This is what happens when you talk like shit. This is what happens when you lie. And from now on, I’m going to use these tools.”

I lightly ran my finger across the sledgehammer on the table.

Silence fell over the disaster control room.

It was so quiet that not even breathing could be heard.

Breaking the silence was, as expected, the woman.

“Before that. Who are you? Why are you doing this to us?”

“A regular citizen who was almost hit by bullets and grenades from your group while passing by.”

“…What?”

“That’s all you need to know. Shall I start the questioning now?”

“No, wait…”

“As a warm-up… Here. What’s the name of this gun?”

I held up a firearm slightly shorter than a rifle.

“…Are you serious?”

“Yeah. I don’t know much about guns. Anyway, what is this?”

“…It’s an MP5 submachine gun. Its official name is…”

“No. That’s enough. That’s perfectly fine for now. Just do that.”

I gave a slight smile and continued my questions.

“How many bullets does this hold?”

“What in the world…!”

“How many does it hold?”

“…The short magazine holds 20 rounds. The long one holds 30.”

“With the ones in that room?”

*?!!*

I saw the men flinch at my words.

The woman bit her lip, trembling, and the hulking man answered.

“They’re usable.”

I nodded, examined the gun, and then detached the magazine.

I confirmed the magazine was tightly packed and reinserted it.

I examined the gun from various angles, continuing my questions.

“Where did you get these?”

“……”

“As you all know, guns are illegal in Korea, right? I’m just curious.”

No answer came.

I could see them racking their brains, trying to obfuscate something.

To that, I added a word.

“…Taeseong, perhaps?”

The reaction was immediate.

They all maintained poker faces, feigning composure.

But they couldn’t help their subtly trembling eyes.

“You guys. You’re Daehan Security, right?”

“…It’s Daehan Security!”

“Security or guard, it’s all the same thing.”

*Grind!*

As the hulking man glared and ground his teeth, I quietly picked up the sledgehammer.

“Control your expression. If you act impudent one more time, things will get very difficult for you.”

“……”

“Why? Do you think I won’t do it?”

I gave a lingering smile and slowly approached the man.

At that, the woman screamed as if spitting out words.

“Stop! Tell us what you want!”

“Hey.”

The woman’s sharp tone was incredibly arrogant.

Maintaining my smile, I lowered my voice.

At my subtly changing atmosphere, the men flinched.

“I’m curious, but it’s not essential, alright? I can just kill you all and leave. And you, you fucking bitch. If you speak that offensively again, I’ll take you like a dog right in front of these bastards. Understand?”

*Gasp…*

“Well, since you’re curious, I’ll ask. What kind of bastards are you?”

“…We’re part of Daehan Security.”

“And?”

“We were in the middle of rescuing people to create a safe zone.”

It was another man who cut off the woman, who was just about to speak.

When I looked at him, the man began to chatter diligently.

“Though we were pushed back by the zombies, we’re no different from a rescue team. You attacked us, a…”

*Thwack-!!*

*Crunch!*

“G-Guh-aahh!!”

*Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!*

I moved in an instant.

I brought the sledgehammer down on the knee of the man who had been happily rambling.

It was a scene hard to believe was created by human strength.

The destructive sound of human flesh being pulverized filled the quiet disaster control room.

With each strike, vivid red blood splattered.

Bones shattered, flesh was torn open, and muscles and nerves were severed.

With just five hammer blows, the man’s knee became flattened, minced meat.

The screaming man couldn’t endure the pain and lost consciousness.

*Squirt- Spurt! Spurt-*

From the pulverized wound, streams of blood gushed out.

Seeing that, I acted as promised.

Calmly, I lit the torch and began cauterizing the bleeding area.

*Flare! Sizzle-*

Blood and fat lightly boiled and dried, and the wound seared shut.

The scent of meat, heavily infused with a smoky aroma, filled the disaster control room.

The horrified men gagged at the smell of human flesh cooking.

Secretions flowed back from their mouths and noses as they shed tears.

“Bastard. Who are you spewing bullshit in front of?”

I put the hammer down on the table, opened the vodka, and gently poured it.

The sound of cold water poured onto a hot frying pan could be heard from the man’s body.

The Daehan group, while gagging, writhed as if their noses and ears were in agony.

I put the vodka away, pulled the chair, and sat down again.

“I told you, didn’t I? To speak honestly and plainly, just as things are. But you’re lying from the start?”

“Hoo! Hmph! W-we are…”

“Bastards who call yourselves a rescue team point guns at civilians and shoot?”

At my mocking words, the woman closed her mouth.

But I continued to speak.

“If you want to die painfully, go right ahead. Do you still think I won’t do it?”

“……”

“From now on, I won’t say it twice. So, let’s do this well, okay?”

At my words, the men barely managed to nod, their faces pale.

With my admonishing words, the woman also softened a bit.

The sharpness was completely gone from her reluctant voice as she answered.

“Understood….”

“Good. That attitude is much better. Let’s finish this quickly.”

I pulled the chair closer to the woman and sat down.

“Alright. Now, I’ll begin the questioning.”

I continued the conversation in a much softer and gentler tone.

The real conversation starts now.