Chapter 53

“…Ugh!”

An unbearable wave of nausea surged through Yu-su. He tumbled out of bed and scrambled for the door, barely making it into the hallway before another convulsion seized him.

Ghk!

He had no idea how he managed to reach the restroom. His legs had turned to jelly by the time he staggered inside, and he clung to the sink as he retched up bile, his entire body trembling with the force of it.

A vicious headache pounded behind his eyes, fierce enough to bring tears streaming down his face. It felt as though hundreds of wasps had been trapped inside his skull, though even that comparison failed to capture the agony.

The sounds in his ears refused to fade. Rain. Screams. Curses. And then…

“Ugh…”

The rupture.

It was too vivid.

“…Hng, ugh.”

No. I will live. I am absolutely going to survive.

I’m going to live just to prove them wrong. One day, I’ll stand before everyone with my head held high and tell them that choosing not to die was the right decision.

That was the vow Yu-su had made.

Still gripping the sink with both hands, Yu-su stared into the mirror through bloodshot eyes.

“Jeong Yu-su…? What’s wrong with you?”

Do Muwon entered the restroom, breathing shallowly, apparently having come in search of Yu-su after discovering that he had vanished from the sleeping quarters. When Muwon reached out to pat his back, Yu-su hurriedly waved him away.

“Don’t come any closer…”

“Why are you like this?”

“It’s indigestion. Just indigestion.” Yu-su swallowed against another surge of nausea. “Bring me a toothbrush and some water…”

Muwon stared at him for a moment. “…Wait here.”

After brushing his teeth, Yu-su returned to the sleeping quarters with most of his weight supported by Do Muwon and curled up on the bed. Muwon loomed beside him like a massive tree, rummaging through his backpack until he found a small bottle of medicine.

“Take this digestive aid.”

“Just… give me a little longer.”

Although the vomiting had left his body battered and weak, Yu-su’s mind remained painfully clear. He forced his eyelids open and studied Do Muwon.

“…Where did you go?”

“It’s almost time to prepare dinner, so I went to haul water.”

If Do Muwon had been hauling water…

Then Yu-su had returned exactly one day into the past. It was the evening of their fourth day at the academy.

And probably…

After living through the loop several times, the theory he had once only entertained had hardened into certainty.

Whenever he died, he returned to the previous day, waking at the precise moment he had originally risen from sleep.

“Jeong Yu-su?”

“Uh, yeah?”

“I’ve asked you three times.” Muwon’s brows drew together. “Should I bring dinner here, or do you want to go eat?”

“Ah…”

“Sorry,” Yu-su murmured, shaking his head. “I don’t think I can eat. Can you take my share?”

“How am I supposed to go eat while you’re in this condition?”

“That’s exactly why you should. At least one of us needs to eat properly.”

Haa…

Do Muwon released a deep sigh and dragged a hand down his face.

“Does the smell of food make you sick too?”

“Yeah…”

“Fucking hell.” Muwon shook his head, his frustration plain. He had probably intended to bring his meal back and eat beside Yu-su. “I’ll be back soon, so have something sweet in the meantime. You still have chocolate left, don’t you?”

“I do. Go and take your time. I’ll feel better soon.”

Concern remained etched across Do Muwon’s face. He stood there in silence for several seconds before finally nodding.

“I’ll be back, then.”

“Yeah.”

Once Muwon had left, Yu-su slowly pushed himself upright and released a long breath.

“…”

He had approximately twenty-four hours before the zombies came swarming down.

For now, there were two possibilities. Either zombies were already somewhere inside the academy, or someone among them was infected.

I need to find out, even if it only gives me a little more time.

With another weary sigh, Yu-su climbed out of bed and stepped into the hallway.

“Ugh, I’m starving. Isn’t it amazing that we actually get to eat?”

“Seriously. There was nothing but kimchi, and I nearly cried.”

“We’re lucky it’s winter. At least some of the ingredients can still be salvaged.”

With mealtime approaching, people had begun gathering in small groups and descending toward the third floor. Yu-su alone moved against the current, climbing the stairs one deliberate step at a time as he made his way to the rooftop.

Beyond the open rooftop door, the world had been washed in the yellow glow of the setting sun. Yu-su narrowed his eyes against the glare, shielding them with one hand as he crossed toward the center of the roof, his footsteps going clatter, clatter across the concrete.

“…”

His breath misted in the cold air as his lean body slowly turned in a circle.

Broken desks and chairs had been scattered around the rooftop, along with containers of every shape and size positioned to collect rainwater and snow. Aside from a few scraps of trash, there was nothing else. The railings were high, and the exterior wall was smooth enough that climbing onto the roof from below would have been difficult.

Could they have fallen from the window of another building?

The academy was shorter than the surrounding buildings, so it was theoretically possible. However, the distance between them was significant. Unless someone had deliberately hurled the zombies across the gap, reaching the academy roof that way would have been nearly impossible.

The rooftop was probably not the source.

Then where?

“The fifth floor…”

They had said it was empty.

Once he had finished inspecting the rooftop, Yu-su headed downstairs to the fifth floor. The sunset had deepened into a fiery orange, spilling across his shoulders as he entered an open classroom and searched it thoroughly, checking everything from the cleaning-supply cabinet to the space beneath the teacher’s podium.

After inspecting the first two classrooms, Yu-su opened the door to the third.

“Oh.”

“Ah.”

They appeared to reach for the door at the same moment, their silhouettes briefly overlapping in the doorway. Yu-su stepped back and inclined his head.

“Hello.”

“Yes, hello.” The other man studied him with mild curiosity. “You’re Jeong Yu-su, aren’t you? What brings you to the fifth floor?”

It was Park Jiseop, the older of the twin brothers and a police officer.

He held a broom in one hand and a dustpan in the other, making it clear that he had been cleaning. Having asked Yu-su what he was doing there, Jiseop seemed to realize the answer could just as easily be directed at himself.

“Ah, I’m cleaning,” Jiseop explained. “The number of people here keeps increasing, so I thought it might be wise to tidy these rooms in advance.”

“I see. I was only looking for somewhere quiet.”

“Oh…” Jiseop glanced into the classroom behind him. “Should I clear out and leave you alone?”

Seen up close, Park Jiseop was quite tall. His sharp features and long, narrow eyes gave him an intense, almost piercing appearance.

Without warning, Yu-su remembered the Park Jiseop he had seen tomorrow, wailing over his younger brother’s corpse while still running from place to place, desperately trying to save everyone else. The memory softened Yu-su’s guarded expression.

“No, you don’t need to leave. Since I’m already here, I’d like to help you clean, provided you don’t mind.”

“I heard you weren’t feeling well. Are you all right now?”

“Yes. I’ve had plenty of rest.”

The filtered sunset concealed Yu-su’s pallor. Park Jiseop scratched his chin, then retrieved another broom and dustpan from the cabinet and handed them over.

“Here.”

“Thank you. Where should I start?”

“Why don’t we move on together?”

They entered the next classroom and began sweeping the floor. Yu-su had offered to help because there were several things he wanted to investigate, and as soon as the initial silence settled between them, he began probing.

“Have you been with the Sister from the beginning?”

“I joined her group fairly early. When the outbreak began, I was on my way back with Yun, who had become separated from us. We met the Sister at the place where we took shelter.”

“Did you evacuate to the cathedral?”

Jiseop laughed. “No. We went to the fire station where my brother was stationed. It was closer.”

As their brooms swept across the floor with a steady swish, swish, bits of information slipped naturally into the conversation. Jiseop recounted how they had held out with the survivors at the fire station before being rescued by soldiers. He even described how Jo Geun-cheol, who had been driving the bus at the time, had somehow pulled off an unbelievable drift.

During the conversation, they discovered that Jiseop was two years older than Yu-su and agreed to drop the formal honorifics. Even when Yu-su offered only brief responses, Jiseop kept the conversation flowing, and their chatter stretched on for quite some time. Yu-su found himself thinking that Park Jiseop might actually get along well with Gorak.

After emptying the dustpan outside, Jiseop returned to the classroom.

“Yu-su, how did you end up here?”

“Ah, I…”

This was precisely the question Yu-su had been waiting for. He began with the zombie outbreak at his company, then described, step by step, how he had eventually reached the Korean medicine clinic.

“You hid a zombie?”

Jiseop’s astonished voice echoed through the empty hallway.

“Yes. It was someone I knew, so I suppose I couldn’t bring myself to kill them.”

“Wow.” Jiseop stared at him. “How could you even think of living with something like that?”

“I know, right?” Yu-su kept his tone casual. “Did anything similar happen here?” He deliberately stalled, watching Jiseop’s eyes for any sign of deception.