FRAP 10

Chapter 10

Midnight Hide-and-Seek

What lay beneath the clothes rack was a bag.

And not the kind of backpack I used to carry to school, either—it was a proper hiking pack.

Do secondhand shops even sell stuff like this?

It was a bit worn, but there were no frayed spots that looked like they’d tear under weight, and the capacity was more than generous.

This could easily hold food and water, not just clothes.

More than anything, the timing was perfect.

Once I was done “shopping” at the clothing store, I was planning to head out and gather groceries and other necessities anyway. I’d originally intended to look for a bag then, but this saved me the trouble—and the time.

A backpack is one of the most essential items in an apocalypse. Without one, you’re forced to carry everything in your hands, dangling awkwardly as you move.

That drastically limits how much you can bring. And if you run into zombies or monsters while your hands are full, you only have two choices: abandon your gear or die.

I should pack spare clothes too.

Riding the wave of excitement, I grabbed a usable jumper first—one to wear immediately and another as a spare.

Better take a windbreaker too.

Next came T-shirts, thermal underwear, and a pair of training pants. The fabric needed to be warm but flexible enough for movement.

They weren’t my clothes, so I couldn’t get a perfect fit, but I ruled out anything too tight to move in—or so loose it would flap around.

Then came socks.

It was best to pack at least three or four pairs. Moving around with sweat-soaked socks was a fast track to blisters.

This should do for now.

I rolled the extra clothes as tightly as possible and stuffed them into the bag. Thankfully, some of the clothes were unisex, so I didn’t have to resort to cross-dressing.

In the apocalypse, everything needs a spare—or at least a substitute.

After packing neck warmers and earmuffs as well, I finally sat down in a dark corner to rest.

I wonder how that guy—Lee Juhun or whatever his name was—is doing.

I wasn’t expecting much, but still… it’d be nice if things went well.

One less person dying is still a good thing.

Of course, my own survival came first.

But if possible, I wanted as many people as I could to survive. It wasn’t like others had to die for me to live—and for my future plans, having more survivors was actually better.

That was when—

Bang!

A gunshot echoed through the night.

I jolted upright, instinctively, having been resting under a pile of clothes like a makeshift blanket.

Which idiot fired a gun?!

Unless you had a sizable group, firing a gun was practically suicide—especially at night.

The sound was bad enough, but the muzzle flash made it several times worse.

And all of it attracted zombies.

“Graaah!”

As expected, the grating shrieks of the infected erupted from all directions.

Bang! Bang!

Two more shots rang out through the silent streets.

You moron.

Judging by the spacing of the shots, the shooter was definitely alone.

What the hell are you thinking, firing a gun by yourself?!

If you can’t wipe them all out, stay quiet.

It was a saying that circulated among Arkheia’s survivors. Make noise, attract zombies—and if you can’t kill every last one, everyone dies.

And yet this guy was firing off shots alone, in the dead of night.

The ending was obvious.

Damn it!

I slung the bag over my shoulder and reached for the door—

But I froze.

Reflected in the store’s mirror was a horde of zombies.

Three infected at the front, with over ten zombies behind them.

Do I run?

If I bolted now and drew their attention, I could die on the spot.

But I couldn’t just hide forever either. If they occupied the front of the store, I’d be trapped inside.

No. Stay calm.

Lowering my body, I watched them approach through the mirror.

Hoo…

Deep breath.

Moments like this demanded composure. Panic and haste turned survivable situations into death sentences.

Should I kill the infected quickly and run?

No—there were three of them.

Even a brief delay would get me surrounded and turned into dinner.

Even if I burst out immediately, there was a high chance the infected would catch me before I got far. And if zombies appeared ahead of me too, slowing down to deal with them would close the distance even faster.

What do I do…?

They were still drawing closer—but with the noise gone, their pace was slowing.

No—if this keeps up, they’ll stop right in front.

This was my last chance.

I had to decide.

I need something to ride… something.

That was when a car reflected in the shop mirror caught my eye.

No—not the car itself.

The scene reflected in its side mirror.

I didn’t need even a second to decide.

“Graaah!”
“Grrk!”

The moment the door opened, the monsters screamed and charged.

I ran with everything I had, not once looking back.

More than ten monsters gave chase.

Ahead, three or four zombies had already appeared.

Whoosh!

A spanner cut through the air.

Thud!

One zombie blocking my path collapsed, and almost simultaneously, a second spanner lodged itself into another’s head.

Thud!

Without slowing, I smashed the last one’s skull with my crowbar.

“Huff… huff…”

I reached out and grabbed the bicycle chained to a tree.

The infected chasing me were already within ten meters.

Damn it—hurry!

The sound behind me was getting closer.

[ Activating ability. ]

Damn it, they’re almost here!

[ Altering lock structure. ]

“Graaah!”

Just as an infected lunged at me, the lock clicked open.

I grabbed the handlebars and pedaled with all my strength.

“Graaah!”

Its claws sliced through empty air—just barely missing me.

I squeezed out every last ounce of strength and pedaled harder.

Ahead, zombies drawn by the gunshots were already tearing into the corpse of a police officer.

“Grr…?”

Don’t look. Don’t look this way.

That’s not it—don’t do that!

“Grrk!”

Too late.

The zombies that met my gaze began charging toward me.

Infected behind me, a zombie horde ahead—a perfect deadlock.

Shit!

Cursing internally, I swerved the handlebars to avoid the zombies.

The slight loss of speed let the infected close the gap instantly.

And my stamina wasn’t infinite.

At this rate, getting caught was only a matter of time.

What the hell do I do?!

Pedaling like a madman, I fiddled with the panel attached to the handlebars.

I’ve never ridden one of these before!

Then suddenly—

The speed jumped, and the distance between me and the infected rapidly widened.

Hahaha! You bastards—this is an electric bike!

I cheered silently and pedaled harder.

Just then, a zombie burst out of a dark alley and blocked my path.

Thud!

I shoved it aside with my crowbar and kept going.

This brings back memories.

Back when I was a Calvert, I even rode horses.

Well… until I got eaten, anyway.

The chase finally ended about ten minutes later.

Daesik dismounted the electric bike, gulping down air as his breath caught in his throat.

“Haah… haah… I seriously almost died.”

Now that he was safe, a tingling sensation washed over his entire body, like electricity.

A bag, winter gear, clothes—and now a decent means of transportation.

A worthy haul for a life-or-death chase.

“Hoo…”

Clutching his trembling legs, Daesik hoisted the bike onto his shoulder and slowly climbed the stairs.

He arrived at a newly built villa still under construction.

A standalone building, with two more nearby just starting their foundation work.

When he’d first spotted it from the hardware store rooftop, he’d nearly cheered out loud.

There couldn’t be a more ideal shelter in a situation like this.

Occupied homes were off-limits—too many zombies, too many infected.

Even if you cleared them out, another problem remained.

Living in a house soaked with the stench of blood and decay was unbearable.

But sleeping in an abandoned building with no wind or cold protection—in the middle of winter—wasn’t an option either.

My face would freeze crooked.

And that would be the least of it.

With Korea’s unpredictable climate, a cold wave could turn you into a frozen corpse overnight.

So finding a newly built structure—nearly complete and waiting for sale—was luck bordering on divine mercy.

As he climbed, Daesik glanced out the hallway window to survey the surroundings.

No matter where you went, understanding the terrain came first.

Not right next door, but there were convenience stores and restaurants nearby, along with many old buildings being demolished for redevelopment.

Funny how life works.

When the world was peaceful, redevelopment and owning a home felt like someone else’s story.

Now, only after the apocalypse began, was he benefiting from redevelopment.

I’ll sleep here tonight.

He stopped on the fifth floor.

After parking the bike in the hallway—his new legs, for the foreseeable future—Daesik approached the door.

Then—

[ Activating ability. ]
[ Altering door structure. ]
[ Satiety decreased. Remaining satiety: 40 + 5 ]

Instead of picking the lock, he slightly warped the door, creating a minimal gap.

That should be enough to get in, right?

He shoved the crowbar into the gap and pried with all his strength.

Creak—crrraaack…

After levering his weight into it two or three times, the door opened as if by magic.

Saved some satiety.

Once again impressed by the crowbar’s versatility, he smiled in satisfaction and stepped into what would be his home for the time being.

“Damn…”

The interior work wasn’t completely finished, but stepping into a space that could be called a home made him exhale in awe.

The flooring was laid, built-in furniture installed.

The windows were intact—no worries about wind.

Maybe it was the sense of safety, but his eyelids grew heavy.

Come to think of it, I really pushed myself today. Am I going to be sore tomorrow? Damn… that’s bad… I need to look for food tomorrow…

Not long after, sleep claimed him.

The next morning—

“Eeeeeek!”

A sharp scream from a young woman jolted him awake.

The sound came from inside the building.