episode_0196

Perhaps it was because the sounds came from a helicopter flying through the air. Those sounds were more than enough to send shivers down my spine.

Inside the violently shaking body, everyone struggled desperately to hold on, their minds a blur. Amidst the chaos, the two pilots strained to regain control.

“Maintain position!”

“We’re dropping! Increase altitude!”

“Wha—what’s stuck to us?!”

At Jo Junwi’s words, I looked at the left door. The helicopter struggled for balance but slowly descended. As the body swayed, it tilted slightly. Only a little, but definitely to the left. I immediately threw open the door on the opposite side.

“GRAAAH!!”

“…Son of a bitch.”

A zombie was clinging to the helicopter’s landing gear. It was a type I remembered. A muscular variant, as if a gorilla and a gym rat had been mixed. The massive creature, with its incongruously small head, was dangling and swaying.

The helicopter wasn’t flying very high from the ground. It was flying slightly higher than the power lines and signposts, mindful of them. But it seemed to be a creature that could leap to this height. This idiotic bastard somehow managed to cling on, but couldn’t climb up. Instead, it thrashed around, causing the helicopter to go wild.

‘This bastard… where did it even come from?’

I clicked my tongue at its sudden appearance and quickly lay flat on the floor. The moment I drew the knife from my waist, the gorilla zombie glared at me.

Then it slowly pulled its arms, hauling its body up. I met the gaze of its rotten, glistening eyeballs and smiled.

“I’ve always wanted to try this.”

Slice—

“GYAAAH—”

As I cleanly chopped off the four fingers gripping the helicopter’s landing gear, the variant’s body jolted. The arm with severed fingers thrashed wildly in the air. I met the gaze of the creature, whose eye-level was now lower.

Slice— Thud—

Slice— Thud—

Delicate knife work, like slicing perfectly cooked pork cutlet. As I cut off its remaining fingers one by one, the helicopter’s shaking significantly lessened.

“…So this is how Scar felt.”

“KIIIEEEAAAH!!”

“Now get lost.”

Slice—

The moment I sliced off all its remaining fingers, I felt the helicopter lightly float upwards. The fallen variant receded into the distance. Perhaps because its upper body was disproportionately developed, it was falling headfirst. I don’t know if the creature that soon crashed into the ground died or not. It stopped flailing its limbs, so it must have died, right?

I immediately got up and closed the door, through which cold wind had been whistling. The helicopter quickly regained its balance, and the loud warning alarms all shut off.

“Wow…”

Heize, who seemed to have seen what I did, looked at me with a slightly exasperated expression. She and the others were sweating profusely, leaning tightly against their seats.

Captain Lee, who had just straightened his posture, immediately asked.

“What in the world was that?”

“A variant had clung to us.”

“You dropped it?”

“Yes.”

As Captain Lee, who had been about to flinch, let out a sigh of relief, I approached the open door. Looking down at the bus the two had been dealing with…

“…There’s another one.”

“We need to help that person, but we can’t get a clear shot.”

Listening to Captain Lee’s urgent explanation, I fixed my gaze on the bus roof. On the roof of the moving bus, a fierce struggle between a human and a zombie was underway. But that zombie was a variant. Similar to, no, the same type as the one I just dropped.

‘…What is that human?’

They were being heavily pushed back, but they were holding their own against the variant. Though the effect was minimal, they even managed to land attacks aimed at vital points. Their movements were somehow clumsy, but… I became curious about that human, who was wielding a crowbar and fighting tooth and nail with the variant. First… I’ll get rid of that variant. With them entangled like that, it’s no wonder one would hesitate to shoot.

‘……’

I braced myself firmly by placing a hand on the wall. I lightly gripped the knife, resting my index finger gently on the dull side of the blade. As I took a throwing stance like a baseball pitcher, Captain Lee’s eyes widened.

“Seonghan, what are you…”

“Just watch.”

Jo Junwi, having overcome the crisis, was now flying steadily. There were few obstructions. The wind was a bit annoying, but it wasn’t a problem. The human struggling below was very tired. In the flow of things, a gap would appear, and both of their movements would likely halt. …Or perhaps one would die. But it felt like they wouldn’t die easily.

No sooner had I thought that than the human was overwhelmed by the variant. Pressed down by the massive body, the human struggled desperately, holding out the crowbar with trembling arms. The variant slowly thrust its face towards them, its mouth wide open.

‘Now!’

Whirr—!

My arm, swung vigorously in a circle, aimed at the variant. I smoothly utilized the strong centrifugal force, transferring it to my fingertips. The knife’s handle slipped smoothly from my grasp. My index finger, pressing on the dull side of the blade, applied a very slight force. I lightly stroked the knife from the dull side to the end of the handle, ensuring it wouldn’t spin from the centrifugal force. The knife, propelled with that force, shot straight out.

WHOOSH—!!!

A non-spinning throw. The blade, aimed at the variant’s head, shot through the blizzard.

At that moment.

THWACK—!!

The human pinned beneath seemed to have squeezed out every last bit of strength, pushing the variant’s body back ever so slightly. As a result, the knife embedded itself near its temple instead of the back of its head. The variant reeled violently but didn’t fall.

“Goddamn timing.”

Their fighting spirit, squeezing out every last bit of reserve, was good, but the timing was off. If they had held on just a little longer, it would have been a one-shot, one-kill. I clicked my tongue softly, and my gaze met the variant’s.

‘…Is it angry?’

The variant’s face, glaring up at me from below, twisted into a hideous grimace.

「GRAAAH—GHK?」

The moment the variant’s gaze turned to me and it twisted its upper body, the human pinned beneath reached out an arm. Letting go of the crowbar, they grabbed the handle of the knife embedded in the variant’s face.

「UAAAHHHHHHH!!!」

SPLURCH!

Letting out a roar, they finally twisted the deeply embedded knife. The variant’s face split in half and oozed down. The variant, gushing dark blue blood from the cross-section, slowly crumbled. Its rotten body, having lost all control, rolled off the bus roof and fell to the ground.

The victorious human lay spread-eagled on the roof of the moving vehicle.

‘…A woman?’

The yell of exertion, squeezed out as if in a desperate struggle, was definitely a woman’s voice. I blinked and looked at Captain Lee. Captain Lee seemed surprised too, judging by his wide eyes.

“I can’t believe it was a woman…”

“…Indeed.”

I was quite surprised too. It was astonishing enough that a civilian fought a variant bare-handed, but for it to be a woman…

That aside, for now…

“What was that explosion a moment ago?”

I recalled the bus that had shot up into the air accompanied by a loud roar. I don’t know how many people were inside, but it was clear everyone must have died. At my question, Captain Lee’s expression hardened.

“It was a zombie. It appeared suddenly, so I couldn’t get a proper look, but it was quite large. Similar to that monster we saw at Yongsan Base… no, I think it was a bit smaller.”

“What in the…”

“It suddenly appeared and rammed its body into the moving bus. And then the bus…”

“…….”

Seeing him trail off, I understood what he meant. A moving bus being sent flying into the air was a scene only seen in movies. It must have been a sight hard to believe even when seeing it firsthand.

“I saw the creature get pushed back by the explosion. But I don’t think it died.”

I nodded slightly at Captain Lee’s words. It was a creature with the kind of ferocity to push a moving bus. I wouldn’t be surprised if it just got up and walked around perfectly fine.

‘Where do these things keep coming from?’

The increasingly varied behavior of these creatures was getting on my nerves. The giant zombie was also unusually tough. The creature Captain Lee saw also seemed formidable. It probably wouldn’t be easy to take down with guns.

I looked at Heize, who was checking on Lawrence with Sergeant Park.

‘They said it even threw cars, didn’t they?’

Previously, I hadn’t had a chance to properly assess it because I had to deal with it quickly. Since they said the giant zombie had even shot down a helicopter, its strength must be terrifying. If these creatures keep increasing… I shook my head vigorously. One shouldn’t think such bad thoughts. And it seemed I wasn’t the only one thinking this.

Captain Lee seemed to be thinking the same thing as me. With a rigid expression, he said nothing. Instead, seeing his furrowed brow and sunken eyes, I could guess how he felt. After a moment, Captain Lee, just like me, shook his head vigorously.

“Captain. We’ll be arriving at the shelter soon.”

At Jo Junwi’s announcement, signaling the end of the flight, Captain Lee raised his head. He glanced down below, then immediately ordered their return.

“Guide them so they can follow us.”

“Understood.”

“…Will that be alright?”

At my question, Captain Lee sighed softly and rubbed his mouth.

“The direction they’re coming from is the direction to the shelter. A little further and it’s an area we’ve cleared. Seeing them come so precisely, it’s clear they know where they’re going.”

Captain Lee’s stern expression hadn’t entirely relaxed.

“I’ve never heard of creatures like that being in this vicinity. While there were many zombies…”

“…….”

“I just don’t know what in the world is going on… *Hoo*.”

His frustration was clearly conveyed. Honestly, I felt bleak too. Even if I sighed deeply enough to make the ground sink, it wouldn’t provide an answer. I swallowed my bitter feelings, and Captain Lee also composed his expression.

“For now… it’s regrettable that there were casualties, but we also need to know who those people are… and we have to check their condition, so inspections and procedures are unavoidable.”

Since he risked saving them, I thought he would accept them without question. His resolute stance was a bit unexpected. Well, they’ll probably handle that part themselves.

The three surviving vehicles were following the helicopter properly. Only now, flying ahead, could I confirm the dump truck.

‘Oh…’

The dump truck was tuned almost to the point of being a modification. It had a steel plate blade attached to the front, like those on a bulldozer, though I don’t know where they got it. And it was attached in a ‘∧’ shape. Given the dump truck’s size and weight, combined with that, its breakthrough power was explainable. Seeing the iron bars attached to the windshield, it was clear a good deal of effort had been put into it. The vehicle seemed to be rattling a bit. But considering it went through such chaos and only sustained that much damage, perhaps they were lucky?

That woman on the bus roof and the others made for an eye-catching group. Just as I continued watching them.

“C-cold.”

“Oh, dear! My apologies.”

At Heize’s exaggerated complaint, Captain Lee flinched and closed the door. The world’s strongest US soldier complaining about the cold…

“Hey. Are you okay?”

“Uh~ wha, what?”

“Your forehead is red.”

“I bumped it earlier, *thump*.”

Heize’s forehead, which was trembling, was conspicuously red. It seemed she had hit it quite hard. Lawrence, perhaps thanks to the seatbelt, didn’t seem to have any injuries. Her face had paled a little, though…

“I’m fine.”

Perhaps sensing my gaze, Lawrence replied with a small smile. Seeing her halting Korean tremble, it seemed she was very shaken.

“I plan to have both of you receive medical attention immediately.”

Sergeant Park quietly spoke. I nodded at his thoughtful consideration, befitting a medic.

“Target destination in sight. We’ve arrived.”

At Jo Junwi’s announcement, signaling the end of the flight, I looked out the window. The snowfall was still fierce. On the streets where large snowflakes were falling, uneven objects were covered in snow. Near the entrance to the Konkuk University shelter, which had been relatively clean before. Now, quite a few zombie corpses were visible. And alongside them, traces of battle.

‘…There doesn’t seem to be… any damage.’

The shelter, appearing peaceful, seemed safe. Inside the defensive perimeter, everything was white. People were seen clearing snow here and there. Familiar sights that gave a slight feeling of cleaning one’s front yard. The long-unseen sight felt strange. With just one wall, the inside and outside were starkly different. Before I could even process the strange feeling, the helicopter began its landing attempt. The helicopter, gradually lowering its height, soon landed softly.

‘…It’s over.’

The sensation I felt the moment the helicopter’s landing gear touched the ground. That feeling, signaling the end of work, surged over me. I leaned back, embracing that familiar and longed-for sensation.

“Haa…”

Now it’s really over…

“My knife!”

I belatedly remembered the knife I had thrown at the variant. It was quite useful; I had been using it well… It felt like coming home after finishing work, only to realize I’d left my phone at the office.

“Ah, damn it….”

I looked up at the sky, dumbfounded by my own foolishness. Not that it would change anything.

…Fifteen days of grueling labor concluded with a deep sigh from the worker.