Chapter 9

Sunlight spilling across Yu-su’s face pulled him from sleep.

“…”

His eyes fluttered open, and he abruptly sat upright, bewilderment written plainly across his face.

Did I actually fall asleep?

He immediately checked the doorway. Just as they had in the early hours of the morning, the silhouettes of zombies wandered aimlessly through the corridor beyond. Only after confirming they were still there did Yu-su allow his gaze to drift around the room.

The division head’s office remained exactly as it had been, from the scattered heaps of clothing to Do Muwon sitting half-naked against the far wall. Yu-su released a short breath and had just begun to rise when Muwon broke the silence.

“You awake?”

“Ah… yeah.”

You were already awake?

Muwon’s voice was considerably raspier than it had been at dawn. Yu-su removed the wireless earbud, which had long since fallen silent, then ran a self-conscious hand through his hair before meeting Muwon’s gaze.

“…Did you stay up all night?”

“I slept for a while early this morning.”

As Muwon stretched his arms overhead, Yu-su checked his wristwatch.

1:00 p.m.

He had thought he had only dozed for a couple of hours. Had he truly slept that long? Yu-su blinked in disbelief, then collected himself and spoke in an even tone.

“I’ll leave the earbud here for you. Thanks.”

“If you’re grateful, eat some bread.”

“…Let’s split it in half.”

“You eat first.”

“Fine.”

With that curt reply, Yu-su rose to his feet. His slender shadow swept across the room as he approached the window.

Now that the sun stood fully overhead, the city’s destruction had become painfully vivid.

Corpses, or what remained of them, had already begun to swarm with insects. Cars lay scattered haphazardly across roads and sidewalks, while columns of smoke rose from several points in the distance. At an hour when the streets should have been bustling with people, the world appeared frozen in place. Apart from the dead who refused to remain dead, the entire city had ground to a halt.

“…”

Zombies swarmed everywhere. With only slight exaggeration, it seemed that 70 percent of the local population had already turned.

Yet life, stubborn and tenacious, persisted.

“Jeong Yu-su. Look over there.”

“…It’s a signal.”

“Yeah. Someone must’ve come out this morning and written it.”

The letters SOS had been painted across the windows of several buildings. As Yu-su and Muwon continued scanning the surrounding structures, they also spotted survivors peering out from inside.

Was it comforting to see them?

Yu-su released a long breath and began stretching out of habit. Beside him, Muwon dusted himself off, climbed to his feet, and rolled his joints until they cracked loudly.

Yu-su’s gaze wandered toward him.

Do Muwon was still wearing nothing but an oversized towel around his waist. Perhaps because Yu-su had finally slept properly, his hands no longer trembled, nor did he feel the crushing nausea that had seized him the day before. What troubled him now was the condition of Muwon’s body.

The bruises Muwon had sustained while barricading the door had spread, darkening into an angry patchwork across his skin. Numerous old, healed scars also marked his body, scars Yu-su had failed to notice before.

“Do Muwon.”

“Yeah? What?”

“I have a pain-relief patch. Let me put one on you.”

“Forget it. It’s nothing.”

Yu-su fixed him with a displeased stare, expelled a short, sharp breath through his nose, and let the matter drop.

“Then help me search the division head’s office. I want to pull everything out and take stock of what we have.”

“Sure.”

Their shadows moved methodically through the division head’s office. They worked at a snail’s pace, taking care to keep every movement as quiet as possible. A long while later, Yu-su stood with his arms crossed, studying the collection of items spread across the carpet.

“Hmm…”

First came their phones and wallets. Do Muwon had his car keys, a small multitool attached to the key ring, a pair of wireless earbuds, and a spare phone. Yu-su had his briefcase, which contained cigarettes, a lighter, masks, wet wipes, athletic tape, and pain-relief patches.

Next were the small snacks he had swept up from the break room during their escape: a cream bun Muwon had brought, now thoroughly crushed, and a squat bottle of banana milk that had begun to leak.

Finally, stained with dried blood but surprisingly intact, lay the gleaming triangular nameplate of Division Head Kim Hyeoktae.

The contents of the desk drawers lay scattered across the carpet: a long Ethernet cable, a file folder, a fountain pen, several pads of sticky notes, a box of tissues, a stapler, and a utility knife. Beyond that modest collection of office supplies, the room was crowded with towering stacks of books on politics, self-help, and construction.

Inside the refrigerator, which Muwon had raided earlier that morning, were five bottles of water, several cans of coffee, a bottle of cola, and a bottle of baijiu that looked obscenely expensive even at a glance.

Would baijiu even work as a disinfectant?

As the stray thought passed through Yu-su’s mind, Muwon, who had been rummaging through the closet, suddenly let out a sharp grunt of surprise. Yu-su turned and found him dragging a large backpack from the closet’s depths.

“A hiking bag?”

“Yeah. It’ll be easier to haul everything if we’ve got a proper bag.”

“Let’s see what’s inside.”

Yu-su’s voice brightened as Muwon unzipped the main compartment. He stepped closer and leaned over to peer inside. The bag contained a collapsible hiking pole, a headlamp, a flashlight, and a pair of binoculars.

“Nice. These are going to help a lot.”

“Tell me about it.”

While Yu-su extended the hiking pole to test its reach and checked the headlamp’s battery level, Muwon continued digging through the bag. A moment later, he gave a short, hollow laugh.

Yu-su’s instincts recognized that laugh immediately. It was the kind that could mean only one thing. When your boss laughs like that, you’re officially screwed. He looked up, and Muwon’s next words made him wonder whether he had heard correctly.

“Well, would you look at that? Kim Hyeoktae really knew how to enjoy himself, didn’t he? Hiking and getting laid on company time. What a bastard.”

A strip of condom packets dangled from Muwon’s hand.

As the packets unfurled and swayed through the air, their holographic wrappers caught the sunlight and scattered iridescent flecks across the division head’s office. Yu-su regarded them with undisguised disgust, his voice cold enough to bite.

“Throw them away.”

“He’s already destroyed his reputation beyond repair, but if I ever run into him, I’m going to make him wish he were dead. Seriously.” Muwon tossed the condoms aside, rose to his feet, and stretched his arms with a low groan. “Bag check complete.”

“Let’s pack everything.”

“Yep.”

Their gazes shifted toward the supplies spread across the carpet. Muwon nudged the pile with the toe of his shoe.

“That’s pretty much everything, right?”

“Yeah, though we’re a little short on food,” Yu-su sounded concerned.

“We’ve got plenty of water, so we’ll manage. Have you checked the bathroom yet?”

“I was about to. Why?”

Muwon tipped his chin toward the bathroom. “Go check it out, and wash up while you’re in there.”

“Hmm.”

“We don’t know when the water might get cut off.”

It was a fair point. When they had turned the shower on at a trickle the previous day, the water had run without issue. Yu-su eventually nodded. Besides, there was something he needed to do in there anyway.

“Fine.”

“All right. Call me if anything seems off.”

Carrying Muwon’s utility knife, Yu-su entered the bathroom and positioned himself beneath the ventilation fan. He still regretted failing to secure the key when he had encountered Senior Associate Shin during the previous loop. Worse, the sight of the division head’s office door, already split and cracked, filled him with such intense dread that he felt an urgent need to create an escape route.

If the zombies swarm inside and find us hiding here, it’ll be just like the emergency stairwell.

Stop.

He tried to cut the thought off, but it was already too late.

His vision went black before flickering painfully back into focus. His entire body began to shake with a violence that defied reason. Drawing one ragged breath after another, Yu-su forced his mind back under control.

I’m still alive. I’m fine.

No. I have to be fine.

Once he was certain the trembling had subsided, Yu-su stepped onto the toilet, pried away the vent cover, and began carefully removing the tiles around it. Before long, a dark square opening appeared in the ceiling.

“It might be too narrow.”

Yu-su tilted his head and mentally estimated the width of Muwon’s shoulders. Unfortunately, there was little else he could do for the moment. Beyond the opening, the ceiling had been reinforced with thick drywall and steel beams.

He tried sawing at the board several times with Muwon’s knife, but eventually released a frustrated sigh. The material was not giving way as easily as he had hoped. Breaking through would require him to smash the board, which would create an incredible amount of noise, and he did not have enough hands to manage the work alone.

He decided to wait until the outside grew noisy, then return and finish the job with Do Muwon. Once the plan was settled, Yu-su turned on the shower.

Thick steam gradually filled the bathroom.

Several minutes later, more supplies occupied the carpet of the division head’s office: mouthwash, unopened toothbrushes, toothpaste, two bathrobes, a stack of towels, and several bars of soap.

Do Muwon was there as well, now fully dressed.

“…I was going to make you wear a bathrobe if you still hadn’t put on any clothes.”

“My shoulders wouldn’t have fit. Did you seriously put those same clothes back on after washing?”

“I couldn’t exactly walk around like you.” Yu-su was wearing the same clothes as before, though they were still damp from his attempt to wash away the bloodstains in the shower. “Nothing happened, right?”

“No. What took you so long?”

“I told you this morning. I opened the bathroom ceiling. Let’s go back in later and finish it together.”

“Sounds good.”

Keeping his voice low, Yu-su turned on his phone. No new notifications appeared, not even another emergency alert after the one he had received the previous day. Everything remained exactly the same.

Zombies. Isolation.

A profound sense of helplessness washed over him.

They had gathered supplies, but what came next? Would rescue teams come? If they did, when?

I need to go home. My family and the kids must be waiting for me.

Swallowing a sigh, Yu-su glanced toward Muwon, who stood leaning against the window.

“For now, I’m planning to stay here and move only if the situation changes. Any objections?”

“None. But keep the rooftop in mind. If rescue teams come, that’s where they’ll head.”

Yu-su considered that for a moment. “When do you think they’ll arrive?”

“Who knows? If my old man’s still alive, I’m sure he’s already scrambling his private helicopter.”

“Your old man…”

It was no secret that Do Sang-guk, chairman of Cheonsan Group, adored his eldest grandson, Do Muwon. If anyone came to rescue survivors, Muwon would almost certainly be among the first people evacuated.

“You don’t even seem worried.”

“About who?” Muwon paused. “Ah. My mother will be at home. As for the old man, he’s lived long enough already.”

“You’re taking this awfully calmly.”

“Does worrying change anything?” Muwon shrugged, retrieved the cream bun, and sat down.

Rrrip.

The sound of tearing plastic filled the office.

“You, on the other hand, look like you’ve got a mountain of worries.”

“Obviously.”

“…Are your siblings still sick?”

“Yes.”

Muwon watched Yu-su as though he intended to ask more, but in the end, he merely pressed his lips together and held out half of the cream bun.

“Eat something. You’ll need your strength if you’re going to do anything. They’ll be fine.”

“…Yeah. Thanks.”

Yu-su’s stomach continued to churn with intermittent waves of nausea, and he could not finish even his half of the bread. Muwon watched him the entire time with his usual expression, one eyebrow crooked in irritation, before finally clicking his tongue.

“Then at least finish the milk.”

“I’ll try.”

Muwon casually snatched away the remaining bread and handed Yu-su the leaking bottle of banana milk. Yu-su drank it slowly, forcing down one mouthful at a time. Only then did Muwon appear somewhat satisfied, rewarding him with a curt nod.

“Anyway, if a rescue helicopter doesn’t show up, maybe the military will sweep through and clear out the zombies.”

“That might actually be better.”

“Yep. Wouldn’t it be easier to stay here and wait for rescue instead of trekking all the way up to the roof?”

Their gazes met, and they shook their heads in silent agreement, as though they had settled on the answer long beforehand.

“There won’t be anyone left to spare for that.”

“The emergency alerts are already going out nationwide, anyway.”

“And there’s no guarantee those soldiers aren’t shooting innocent people on sight.”

Muwon interlaced his fingers and stretched his hands outward until his knuckles cracked sharply.

“Shouldn’t have finished my service. If I were still in, at least I’d have a gun.”

Yu-su said nothing.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Kill or be killed.

That was the only rule left. Even so, those things still wore human shapes. Yu-su had swung his fists like a madman only yesterday and would probably have to keep doing it, yet a clammy, unpleasant sensation clung to the inside of his chest. Perhaps it was guilt, or perhaps it was something else he had no name for.

That line of thought offered him no comfort.