Marauder of the Apocalypse

The pastor used the staging well.

He showed his uniqueness with his face uncovered by a mask, created a religious atmosphere during worship, and performed a zombie-killing performance with a cross.

Although I couldn't imitate that level, there were things to watch and learn.

'Zombie wave staging... It seems to be okay?'

Sitting on the toilet, I stared at my phone and tapped the screen.

Vivid movie-like scenes popped up in my mind. The incoming zombie wave, the struggle of the hopeful community, the victory after the sacrifice of a few people, the united community and the people filled with hope and confidence.

The problem is the means to bring the zombie wave, but that can be outsourced.

Just then, my phone vibrated. It's a messenger app known for security, and several recent groups have been using this messenger, especially those on the border of illegality.

- Rider Zero: ...Sir, do you want me to bring a horde of zombies? Did I understand that correctly?

- Me: Yes. Isn't this a kind of delivery too? Zombie delivery?

The delivery drivers have formed a delivery patrol. They also help with small purchases and take on some rough jobs.

From what I briefly know, they have considerable firepower. Helmets and rider suits to protect their bodies, motorcycles that can run through narrow gaps, and iron clubs to beat zombies while speeding.

They are worthy of the name "riders".

But it seems these riders are not just riders, but also have a rider's spirit.

The phone kept vibrating.

- Rider Zero: No, listen.

- Rider Zero: I really don't want to say this to you, but

- Rider Zero: This is not right, are you a terrorist? There are things people should do. Anyway, I can't take on this request. I'm blocking you.

I opened my mouth wide and stared blankly at the screen.

It's not even about negotiating the price. They just blocked me and left. I was dumbfounded.

'Is it still livable? Has the world not fallen that much?'

No, no. It's image-making. Anyway, in the apocalypse, if a group wants to last long, it's better not to incur the enmity of others.

If they just cause trouble, they might even get raided. People are indeed smart, so it's not easy.

I sighed softly and looked for another chat room.

There were those who didn't care about image-making and just lived for the day. The problem is that they are truly madmen who live only for today, so they may be attacked by looters, not a zombie wave.

'Ah, these guys are a bit...'

I looked around the chat room with a sense of unease.

Juvenile Delinquency Crime Group.

The room where I leaked a page of the attendance log.

Looking at the notice, there were group photos of a few hoodlums these days. Without distinction between female and male students, they had tattoos, skin-tight clothes, and cigarettes. The text written below was the peak.

- Kiss and join our gang. You must mix saliva.

This means that only people infected with the I-virus can join the crime group. It was already saying that they are all zombie candidates.

They are really madmen living for only 3 weeks. Of course, there is no brake.

'These kids are scary these days...'

I shuddered and quickly left the chatroom. No matter how I think about it, this crime group is not a zombie subcontractor.

Around that time, I turned off my phone and went out of the bathroom.

I should directly check the outside streets. The number of zombies or the condition of the streets. It was also time for many of us to go out together.

***

Many families gathered in the Hope Community, and about 30 people lived in the church building. Of course, there were all kinds of people.

A young couple with a baby, college students who brought dogs or cats, and people who had reasons to go out periodically.

The thief elder shouted to the people gathered in the sanctuary.

"Those who need to bring household items, go to the left, and those who need to go to the hospital, go to the right!"

People divided to the left and right. But the number of people who had to go to the hospital was quite large. The thief elder blinked his eyes.

"Are so many people sick?"

"I have high blood pressure... I have to take medicine regularly."

"I have a herniated disc."

"I have diabetes."

"My wrist!"

Each person complained that they were sick.

I slapped my forehead. Chronic diseases of modern people. Diseases that require constant management. If the world collapses, these patients will be living time bombs.

For a moment, an evil wisdom welled up on how to drive them away, but I barely suppressed it.

I remembered a post I had seen on the internet. It said that if 5 people gather, one of them is sure to be trash. Since there are about 30 people in the church, at least 6 of them must be trash.

Excluding the evil electric thief and the apostate thief elder, there are 4 pieces of trash lurking. Compared to that...

'Patients are better. They are more loyal than betrayal or mischief.'

In the apocalypse, who would accept the sick? If accepted, they will work hard anyway. At least, they can do bottle farming.

"Then, the hospital. Deacon Kwon! Will you go?"

"Ah, I can't drive, so let's send Dohyeong."

I suddenly came to my senses and nudged Dohyeong.

I can't go to a dangerous place like a hospital. The loyal right-hand man should go.

Fortunately, Jeon Do-hyeong quickly stepped out with a bright smile. It seems that Na Ye-ji, whose wrist was hurting, had gone into the hospital.

The thief elder briefly made an uncomfortable expression.

"Then, will you come with me to move the supplies?"

His true intention is predictable. He must be trying to sneak something, and he feels bothered by my presence. But he wouldn't think I'm monitoring him as a thief.

I quickly reassured the thief elder.

"I just want to take a look around the area. I don't know the current state of the city. It's fine if I go to the hospital."

The thief's territory must be respected.

But this time, Jeon Do-hyeong hesitated and stepped back, looking back and forth between Na Ye-ji and me with wavering eyes. I don't know why he's acting this way.

It felt like I had become a bad boss. Even my fellow plunderer comrade is avoiding me. I started to feel a bit down as well.

In the end, Jeon Do-hyeong was the most compliant one.

"It's best to go to the hospital. While you're at it, try to find a doctor to join us."

"Okay, go find a doctor. But it'll be difficult."

And so, we parted ways and left the church. The church vehicle without an owner drove carefully on the road.

***

The trip to the hospital took a long time. The large hospitals treating zombies or injured people were too risky, so we tried to find smaller hospitals in order.

Even those smaller hospitals were crowded with patients, so the waiting time was long.

"I'll be back!"

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"Hey, come with me!"

It's a dark evening.

To prepare for any danger, three of us rushed into a traditional Chinese medicine clinic. Na Ye-ji said she needed acupuncture treatment for her wrist. Only three of us, including me, remained in the van.

Sitting in the passenger seat, I glanced back in the rearview mirror. Two patients.

"I'm just going to take a look around the area. Would you like to come with me?"

"Uh... that's a bit..."

"Elder Kwon, it's dangerous to stay in the car."

What's wrong with them? Are they trash? How dare they refuse the important street reconnaissance.

I memorized their faces in the rearview mirror and abruptly opened the door.

"Then, please wait here for a moment."

"Be careful!"

After double-checking my mask, I walked down the street illuminated by the bright streetlights. Although I couldn't smell anything due to the mask, the apocalyptic atmosphere was palpable.

The street was a mix of various shops and houses.

The first-floor glass windows were heavily shattered, and the glass powder on the ground sparkled like a galaxy. Occasionally, there were bodies lying on the street like people on a picnic, in the cool evening air.

'Surprisingly, I don't see any zombies?'

I looked across the street. The food alley was crowded with restaurants, and a few people in reflective vests and armed with weapons were patrolling.

They were the self-defense group of the food alley. Dried blood was visible on the meat-cutting knives.

Certainly, if you prepare and get ready properly, it's easy to deal with zombies. In each region, self-defense groups are active and they catch and kill zombies as soon as they appear, so you can get some safety.

Around that time, I felt a certain gaze instinctively.

'...What's this?'

As I looked around, I saw an open door between the walls.

And on the first floor of the mansion, a shadow of a person watching me through the broken window. No, it's not a person. A faint growling sound, dripping saliva, and bloodshot eyes.

It's a zombie. A zombie is glaring at me from inside the dark mansion.

'Ah!'

I flinched and raised a hammer, but the zombie showed its teeth but did not come out. A few other zombies poked their heads out behind that zombie, but they all stayed inside the house.

Goosebumps rose on my skin.

'Learning?'

The self-defense group is actively hunting zombies. Zombies have experienced and learned that. They know how to hide their bodies. Just like animals avoiding dangerous predators.

They even use human houses well. If a house is good for people to live in, it's also good for zombies to live in.

I suddenly thought of clever animals. Dogs that can open doors, cats that can turn on faucets, parrots that can mimic human speech, wolves that hunt in an organized way, monkeys that use tools.

'If it's like this... if they're this smart...'

Aren't the zombies quite dangerous, not just the virus? Of course, it's good for me, but now that I'm alone, it's a bit...

The moment I sensed the danger, it came crashing down on me.

The power went out. It was 8 o'clock, the time when the service would normally be held. The light of civilization went out. The darkness became an instinctive fear that squeezed me.

Howling sounds like wolves echoed from all directions.

"Graaaah!"

The roar of the zombie that was watching me.

"Eeeeek!"

"Aaargh!"

Answering roars came from all over the street. From wherever they were hiding, the roars of the zombies echoed endlessly beyond the darkness. As if it were a sign of a fierce attack.

Cold sweat soaked my clothes. The chill of the night approached with a shudder.

'A zombie wave? Really? Now?'

I quickly turned around and ran to the car. Behind me, beside me, in front of me, countless presences were chasing after me. The sound of broken glass being trampled, the sound of countless footsteps.

Under the dim moonlight, zombie shadows wriggled and sprang out from all directions. The eerie roars overlapped into an endless noise.

Gnashing of teeth.

'Why now!'

When I was at the church, go back to the church!

I moved my body as roughly as a zombie as much as possible. After all, it's a dim darkness. If I act similarly, not in the bright day, the zombies won't necessarily distinguish me and attack.

I opened my mouth and let out a ghastly scream.

"Eeeeek!"

I am a zombie. I am a comrade. There's no need to attack me. It worked well thanks to the darkness. Or maybe they haven't learned this kind of experience yet.

At some point, I moved away from the surrounding zombies and went back to the car.

The people who had gone to the Oriental medicine clinic also came rushing back. From behind them, I faintly heard the sound of an alarm clock ringing. Jeon Do-hyeong must have used it well.

"Hurry, hurry! Oh, in front!"

Briefly, I saw the sight of Jeon Do-hyeong raising an ax towards me. The moonlit ax blade.

"Hey, it's me! Hurry up and start the engine!"

"What, why are you pretending to be a zombie again-"

There's no time for nonsense. We quickly got into the van, and Jeon Do-hyeong skillfully started the engine.

That light. The engine sound. The zombies that had come out onto the street rushed towards the car. Pounding the windows with their fists, climbing onto the hood and kicking, even hitting the glass with what seemed like a stone.

Crack!

The window cracked.

"What are you doing! Step on the accelerator!"

"Where are we going?"

Jeon Do-hyeong strongly stepped on the accelerator. Whoosh, the car moved forward, and the zombies on the hood fell off, and the ones in front were run over. The car shook with a thud. Zombies had been stepped on by the wheels.

I saw the scene illuminated by the headlights.

The sight of crouching zombies rushing in like a flood. Not only the restaurants in the food alley, but also the stores that had displayed vegetables or fruits outside were being devastated, almost to the point of looting.

The self-defense group? Swept away by the wave of zombies. Instead, the zombies had taken the self-defense group's weapons.

Jeon Do-hyeong calmly said,

"Shall we go to the church? If things go wrong, it will be like luring them to the church."

Of course, we should go to the church building, where else. If the timing is right, it could be an opportunity. Luring is my goal.

I looked back in the side mirror. Bright and noisy cars chasing after us, zombies.

"Slow down. Go slowly."

"What? Why-"

"The phone is working, right? We need to buy time for the church to prepare by contacting them."

In fact, I'm leading the zombie wave, but for now, I'm polishing the reason nicely.

"Tell them to prepare disinfection at the entrance and get ready for the defensive battle."

I clenched my fist tightly. Yes, it's like a subcontract. I can just lead them myself. Isn't the current situation cleaner?

We went to the church, carrying the hope of uniting the community of hope.