---

Sajihyeok groggily opened his eyes to see two people opening the toilet stall door—a woman and a man, holding a hand axe and a knife.

Ordinary survivors. If they were pillagers, he’d already have a knife in his gut. Reflexively, Sajihyeok opened his mouth.

“You should’ve knocked. Isn’t it awkward if you barge in while I’m busy?”

“The water’s been cut off for who knows how long. Who even uses the bathroom—wait, what the hell are you doing here?”

The man stared at Sajihyeok in disbelief. Sajihyeok tried to gather his wits, but with nothing in his stomach, he was still weak. Instinctively, he spoke.

“Do you have any food? I haven’t eaten in almost three days. Just a little, please.”

“You left food here? If you’re hungry, go outside and eat some snow or something.”

The woman snapped, and Sajihyeok looked at her pitifully.

“Oh, dear. Snow is basically water. Eating it won’t give you any calories. It’s not a crime to not know. No need to be embarrassed.”

The man and woman blinked, exchanged glances, and sighed almost simultaneously. Rubbing their temples, they raised their hand axes.

“We saw footprints in a place where no one goes, thought pillagers had snuck in, but what the hell is this guy?”

“We got all worked up for nothing.”

Sajihyeok looked at them curiously.

“Are there pillagers here too? I haven’t seen anyone.”

“There’s a lot of usable stuff left here. So pillagers from nearby come to scavenge.”

“Isn’t that just scavenging?”

Pillagers aren’t trash collectors. Having worked as a mid-level member of a pillager organization, Sajihyeok knew this well. Pillagers target and kill people.

The woman glared at Sajihyeok incredulously.

“Everyone’s a pillager. With food shortages, it’s natural to hunt people when you see them.”

“I get that… but are you two pillagers too?”

“Of course. What, scared now?”

The woman and man raised their weapons threateningly. The light seeping through the narrow bathroom window made the blades of the axe and knife glint.

Sajihyeok couldn’t help but laugh. These are pillagers? Maybe it’s because the city’s sparsely populated, but they’re so amateurish. Compared to the demons fighting over limited resources in densely packed urban areas…

“You’re laughing? We’re humans who hunt pillagers. Do you know how many I’ve killed with this knife?”

The woman furrowed her brows and swung her knife through the air. It was a fierce move, but it just made her seem even more naive.

‘My old comrades would’ve killed them without a word.’

No need for conversation. The enemy isn’t human—they’re beasts that provide food when killed. That’s how they saw it, killing indiscriminately. Conversation was just a means to kill more easily.

Sajihyeok’s eyes sparkled. Maybe they’re genuinely good people. They seemed so kind.

“Have you ever killed a child?”

“Are you insane? I can’t take care of them, but why would I kill a kid? Are you a monster?”

They still have humanity. Sajihyeok, moved, exclaimed,

“You’re so kind. It’s been so long since I’ve met people like you.”

“…Is he crazy? Let’s go. It’s not worth wasting energy on someone like this.”

The woman put her weapon away, disgusted.

The man also scanned Sajihyeok up and down, then lowered his weapon. No bag, no weapon, just a useless suit. Fighting would just waste energy. Getting hurt would be a loss.

“Yeah, let’s go. …Uncle. If you want to die, go somewhere else. There are pillagers around, so go there.”

Sometimes, there are people like this—those who’ve given up on life, wandering in search of family, begging after losing everything, or just aimlessly wandering due to stress.

The man thought Sajihyeok was one of them, but then Sajihyeok suddenly pulled out a handgun.

“We’re not done talking.”

Maybe they’re the people he’s been looking for. He can’t let them go just yet. He needs more conversation.

The two survivors froze, but the woman spoke calmly.

“Fighting here would put you in danger too. Let’s just pretend we didn’t see each other and move on.”

“Wow.”

Sajihyeok gasped. They’re completely different from the urban demons. In the city, pulling a gun would’ve meant a knife to the throat.

‘These are the people I’ve been looking for.’

Look at this goodwill, trying to resolve conflict through conversation. This is humanity. This is human warmth.

Excited and with his brain not working well due to lack of energy, Sajihyeok blurted out without thinking.

“No. I’ve been looking for people like you. I want to join your group. Please accept me. I mean no harm.”

The two survivors hesitated. They looked at Sajihyeok’s face, confused and frightened.

“Is he crazy?”

“Hey, split up and run! We can’t take this suspicious guy with us!”

In an instant, they turned and bolted out of the bathroom, splitting up in different directions.

The hope before his eyes vanished. Sajihyeok, waving his gun, chased after the woman. He couldn’t let her go, so he pursued the one who seemed weaker.

“Where are you going? You need to hear me out!”

“Ah! Stop chasing me!”

“No! I’ll chase you to the end! I can’t lose the goal I’ve found!”

Sajihyeok grinned and ran excitedly. The woman, glancing back, panicked and threw her bag.

“There’s food here, please!”

“I don’t need food, ah!”

His foot caught on the bag. Sajihyeok tumbled onto the hard floor, groaning as he tried to get up, but with no strength, he collapsed again.

Stretching out his gun-holding hand, Sajihyeok desperately shouted.

“No! Don’t go!”

But the hope disappeared from his sight in an instant. Sajihyeok muttered gloomily.

“Ah… why did you run?”

He hadn’t made any threats. No bait or disguises, just honest words.

Sajihyeok glanced at the bag tangled around his foot, looked around, and skillfully rummaged through it for food.

The food was just some chocolate, but it was calories. Sajihyeok gloomily put the chocolate in his mouth, the bitter and sweet taste spreading, but his expression didn’t change.

“They even gave me food… they really were kind. Wait, did I threaten them?”

With some nutrients in his system, his thoughts started flowing properly.

Sajihyeok sighed.

“I messed up.”

He shouldn’t have pulled out the gun. He’d made a mistake and lost the warmth he’d found. But it’s okay. The possibility he’d been seeking had grown.

Sajihyeok slowly chewed and swallowed the chocolate, then set off again.

***

He wandered aimlessly through the white city. Just walking, walking, and walking. Sajihyeok fought dizziness and headaches, taking one step at a time.

He met many people along the way, but none were the ones he was looking for.

People who attacked strangers on sight, those who ignored Sajihyeok’s empty pockets, those who ran at the sight of his gun, those who tried to kill him outright…

Sajihyeok’s body slowly deteriorated as he barely escaped. Wounds from falls or attacks didn’t heal properly, and the little food he found was running out.

The feeling of death approaching. But Sajihyeok’s eyes grew clearer. Determination filled his pupils.

‘I never thought it’d be easy.’

This is the apocalypse. A world where production has ceased. As Kim Da-in said, conflict and strife are the foundation of survival. Those who couldn’t abandon goodwill died long ago. The survivors are all worn down by reality.

Finding someone with goodwill in this world would take a miracle.

That day, Sajihyeok was walking aimlessly, searching for warmth.

“A kid?”

Sajihyeok stopped and looked at the middle of the road. In the desolate street, a child was sniffling and fidgeting.

The child blinked at Sajihyeok.

Sajihyeok slowly approached and spoke.

“Why are you alone? Where’s your guardian?”

“I had one, but we got separated because of zombies. I don’t know where to go.”

The child’s voice was surprisingly firm for their age. Even after being attacked by zombies and losing their guardian, the child wasn’t crying or panicking.

Sajihyeok crouched down, met the child’s eyes, and took their hand.

“Oh dear. You should’ve hidden inside a building. It’s cold out here. Let me see your hand. It’s even colder than mine.”

The child’s hand was like ice. Sajihyeok rubbed it vigorously but suddenly stopped.

‘My hand is warmer.’

A lightning bolt of realization struck him. Sajihyeok’s eyes widened as he looked at the child’s hand.

The warmth wasn’t far away. It had been within him all along. The same went for goodwill. He didn’t need to find someone with goodwill—he just needed to show it himself.

“Ha, haha.”

Sajihyeok let out a clear laugh. The answer he’d been seeking while wandering the snowy city was here. He stood up and took the child’s hand.

“Let’s go. We’ll find your guardian together.”

“Okay.”

“Where were you attacked?”

The child nodded and started walking with Sajihyeok.

Suddenly, the pillager inside Sajihyeok screamed. This is a trap. The child is just bait. The child will lead you into a trap.

But Sajihyeok smiled and ignored the voice in his head. Instead, he took the gun from his pocket and threw it aside. A gun isn’t a means to express goodwill.

‘I don’t care if I die.’

He’d risked his life to find his goal. Now, that goal was within him. The path he walked was the path to realizing that goal. Whether his life was in danger no longer mattered.

Carrying warmth, showing goodwill, and running down this path recklessly was enough. Even if he was shot and fell while walking this path, it would be fine. He would become proof of goodwill. People would see him and know that goodwill still exists in this world.

Sajihyeok muttered to himself.

“Ms. Kim Da-in. Being fooled by you once was enough.”

Kim Da-in, who infected people with malice. He would do the opposite. Instead of seeking answers in the world, he would change the world. By spreading goodwill one person at a time, the world would change, even if just a little.

A real con artist like him couldn’t do worse than the ordinary Kim Da-in, right?

Sajihyeok walked straight ahead, leaving footprints in the snow, no longer stumbling.

 

---