Chapter 21. Adaptation

Chapter 21. Adaptation

I quickly scanned the direction the voice came from.

Across the road, on the sidewalk, stood a single street vendor’s stall with a tent.

A human face was visible through the gap in the tent.

I didn’t recognize him.

“Team Leader! It’s Minsu!”

Ah, he was a Support Team Contract Employee from our company. We hadn’t interacted much, so he hadn’t immediately come to mind.

Even though we knew each other, I approached cautiously, maintaining my guard.

“Minsu. Why are you in there? Come out.”

I stopped about five paces from the stall and spoke quietly. Seonyoung remained silent behind me, scanning our surroundings.

“I haven’t been bitten. Don’t worry.”

“Are you alone, Minsu?”

Minsu slowly emerged from between the tent flaps. I tried to recall what I knew about him. I didn’t know his last name, only that he was the youngest employee at the company. He had served in the military early, joined our company at 22, and had been working for about four months now. Honestly, I barely recognized his face even after hearing his name.

“Yes, I’m alone. Team Leader, I’m really sorry, but I haven’t eaten anything since the day before yesterday… Could you spare some food?”

“I can share some, but please stop right there for now.”

I halted Minsu’s approach, continued to observe him, and quietly gestured to Seonyoung. He was wearing a Three-Stripe Tracksuit from head to toe, and didn’t appear to have any injuries. He was empty-handed, without a weapon or any other belongings. Aside from his hair being greasy from not washing, his physical condition seemed fine.

Behind me, I felt Seonyoung’s hands opening my Backpack. *I wanted to ask about his abilities, but I wasn’t sure if he’d be honest. It felt unsafe to keep standing in the middle of the road like this, so I figured we should just give him a little emergency food and leave immediately.*

Seonyoung soon placed a Water Bottle and two Energy Bars into my hand.

“I’ll throw them, so catch. We’ll be moving on right away.”

“Oh. Thank you. By any chance, where are you headed…? Could I come with you?”

“I’m sorry, but that won’t be possible. You know the situation we’re in.”

“Ah… yes. I’m truly sorry, but before you go, could you possibly spare just a little more water and food? Please.”

I hesitated for a moment, then gestured to Seonyoung again, and she lightly tapped my back. *That must mean no.* When I gestured again, she pulled out two biscuits. I tossed the biscuits to Minsu, who kept glancing at Seonyoung.

“We don’t have much ourselves. Please don’t think we’re being stingy.”

“Thank you.”

After a brief exchange of greetings, I watched Minsu re-enter the tent, then we moved on. For a while, the road ahead was clear, so we picked up our pace and put some distance between us.

After walking about 50 meters, we reached a three-way intersection with a road branching off to the left. Buildings started appearing from here.

“Seonyoung, is he still there?”

“I haven’t been watching continuously, but it looks like he went back into the tent. He’s not on the road.”

“Alright… Let’s just focus on what we came to do.”

At the intersection, we turned left, following the park, and sat down side-by-side next to the first car we saw. The new road was a narrow two-lane street, and across it stood a four-story building. The first floor housed a Convenience Store, and it seemed a single company occupied the second to fourth floors.

“Let’s go into that building.”

“Yeah, I’m ready. We can go.”

We took a moment to catch our breath, then crossed the road. Inside the Convenience Store’s glass window, two Zombies were visible. A female Zombie and a male Zombie wearing an Employee Vest stood a short distance apart. Timing our move, we slipped into the Convenience Store when both Zombies turned to face the opposite direction.

Thud, thud.

After smashing the Employee Zombie’s head, I looked over to see Seonyoung had easily dealt with the female Zombie. Perhaps because there were two obvious Zombies inside, the Convenience Store was relatively intact. There was a storage room here too, and upon checking, we found it packed with goods in a cramped space.

“Let’s just grab some medicine and emergency food, then move on.”

At the counter, there was a display stand with common medicines. There were a few Fever Reducers, Digestive Aids, and Cold Medicines, which I took. Seonyoung brought some Energy Bars and Chocolate, placing them into my Backpack. *For a moment, greed for supplies flared, but I shook off the lingering desire and headed towards the door leading further into the building.*

The hallway was quiet. It wasn’t a large building, so the first floor was just the Convenience Store, with a Restroom on one side. I knocked on the separate men’s and women’s Restroom doors to check, then tried to open them, but both were locked. Since there were no other sounds, it seemed there were no more Zombies left on the first floor.

*‘I’m going up.’*

I gestured to Seonyoung and headed for the next floor. Next to the Restroom were an Elevator and stairs, but the Elevator was on the fourth floor. I took out my Hand Mirror and ascended to the second floor via the stairs.

The second floor had the same layout as the first, with a company office where the Convenience Store had been. A sticker with the company name was affixed to the glass door, and several boxes were stacked in the hallway next to the door. Peeking into the boxes, I saw small-sized shoes that looked like baby shoes. I checked the office interior through a gap in the sticker on the glass door.

*‘Shit… you scared me.’*

I saw the back of a Zombie standing right in front of the door. It was pressed so tightly against the door that I couldn’t see inside. After having Seonyoung check inside as well, I signaled that we were going in. Seeing her nod, I quietly opened the door and dealt with the Zombie standing in front of it.

Thud. Thump.

After dispatching the Zombie at the entrance, I quickly scanned the office interior. There were four more Zombies. Reacting to the noise we made, all four turned towards the door and began to charge with grotesque roars. I charged forward, striking the head of the nearest Zombie. *The aggro was focused on me.*

“Shield!”

A Shield materialized to my right, and one Zombie immediately crashed into it, falling over. Ignoring the fallen Zombie, I kicked the chest of the Zombie charging at me head-on.

Graaaah!

The Zombie that had been charging alongside the first one tripped over a fallen Metal Cabinet and tumbled down. I brought my weapon down on its head. The Zombie to my right was finished off by Seonyoung, who struck it from behind.

Seonyoung met my gaze. I gave her a nod, and Seonyoung walked towards the remaining Zombie. It was the Zombie I had kicked down. Seonyoung finished off the Zombie, which was struggling to get back up.

Thud! Graaaah!

No. Her bat missed the Zombie’s head and struck its shoulder instead. It thrashed wildly, trying to bite Seonyoung’s leg. Perhaps startled, Seonyoung jumped back, then swung her Baseball Bat again, finishing off the Zombie.

“Good job. You stayed calm.”

“Phew… I was startled for a moment. It moved, and I missed.”

*The moment Seonyoung’s swing missed, I was also surprised and almost stepped in. The grip on my hand loosened. Seeing her bat miss truly gave me a fright. Even if she hadn’t retreated immediately, she probably wouldn’t have been bitten, but the erratic movements of a Zombie possess a grotesque quality that can intimidate anyone.*

*I just reconfirmed something while dealing with the Zombies: they seem to have trouble getting back up once they fall. It’s as if they awkwardly mimic a human’s natural recovery of balance and smooth motion of standing up. This might be because they’re moving frantically due to the prey right in front of them. Their instinct to bite seems so strong that they sometimes give up trying to stand and instead crawl towards you.*

*All the Zombies we’d encountered until now had been standing. I don’t know how they get up when there’s no one in front of them. When they run, they seem to perform human physical movements naturally. Perhaps the Zombies we knock down struggle and flail because they’re desperate, with a human in their sight. There’s no way to confirm this yet.*

Calming my startled mind, I looked around the office. There were no desks, just Metal Shelves and Cabinets strewn about in disarray. Many boxes were also scattered around. This place seemed to function as a kind of storage room.

“Oppa… there are only flyers, dolls, and shoes here. It looks like a company that deals with baby products?”

“Seems so. Nothing worth salvaging here.”

Leaving the storage room, which bore traces of fierce resistance, we checked the Restroom as well. *Initially, seeing the remnants of people’s struggles filled me with a great deal of pity. It was easy to imagine what had transpired. Now, I felt such sentiments were futile.*

“Let’s push a little harder, clear out up to the fourth floor, and then rest.”

“Okay. I’m still fine. You too, Oppa, fighting!”

*Seonyoung definitely seems to have a charming side. It seems she’s gotten quite comfortable with me, finally letting her true personality show. The expressionless demeanor she maintained when we encountered Minsu earlier was how Seonyoung usually looked at the company. It was a bit more pronounced then due to the cautious situation, but it was only a matter of degree. Still, even during our company days, when it was just the two of us, she would joke and laugh easily. But if even a slightly unfamiliar person was present, she would become quiet and reserved. Perhaps Seonyoung had always been a bit more comfortable around me.*

*‘Focus.’*

Shaking off distracting thoughts, I moved cautiously, scanning my surroundings.

The company door on the third floor also had the same sticker as the second floor. Approaching, I peered inside through the gaps in the sticker-style company name. This seemed to be an actual office, with a few desks and Partitions set up. With no Zombies immediately in sight, I opened the door right away.

The office room was also a mess, as if a war had broken out.

“Earlier, everyone towards the storage…”

Graaaah!

Seonyoung started to speak, but a Zombie’s cry echoed from a corner. Both of us immediately raised our Baseball Bats, wary of the direction the sound came from.

*‘What is it? Why just the sound…?’*

Only the sound continued, but the Zombie showed no intention of charging. There wasn’t another room, so I found it strange and stood in a brief standoff with the Zombie’s grotesque cries.

Clatter, clatter.

Only the sound of something thrashing and the Zombie’s cries continued. *I’ll have to go and check it myself.* After exchanging a glance with Seonyoung, I cautiously moved forward.