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Jeondohyeong, with a hole in his head, lay dead on the floor. Sajihyeok, who saw the scene, stiffened as he illuminated Jeondohyeong’s corpse with a flashlight.

On the other hand, Park Yang-gun quickly pulled out a handgun and aimed it precisely at my head.

“Kim Da-in. What is this now…”

Park Yang-gun instinctively pulled out the gun, but his mind seemed to have stopped, and he couldn’t continue his words properly.

I fiddled with my soaking wet hair and then took off my mask. What’s the point of a mask when I’m already infected with the virus?

Taking off the mask I always wore gave me a sense of liberation. Each breath in and out brought a refreshing feeling. With my face revealed, I spoke with a relaxed expression.

“I killed Jeondohyeong because he tried to assassinate me.”

“Oh? But Jeondohyeong doesn’t have any weapons…”

Park Yang-gun quickly scanned the scene and noticed that Jeondohyeong appeared unarmed, but soon he also saw that I had been drenched in water.

“The virus?”

“Yes. I’m infected.”

I stretched. My body felt like it was about to collapse from exhaustion, but strangely, I felt refreshed.

The most terrifying thing in the apocalypse designed by our chairman was the virus, but for those infected, there was nothing to fear. It meant I had truly nothing left to lose. It was as if all shackles had disappeared.

I glanced at Park Yang-gun and Sajihyeok and leisurely leaned back on the sofa.

“Did you have fried rice?”

“No… Did Jeondohyeong put the virus in there?”

“Yes.”

Sajihyeok, who had been frozen like a statue, suddenly snapped out of it and trembled. The flashlight in his hand shook uncontrollably.

“I didn’t eat because my head was too complicated. About half the people already did. Why would he do this…”

Sajihyeok, looking down at Jeondohyeong’s corpse with incomprehension, suddenly bowed his head as if realizing something. As if it wasn’t strange for us to face such a situation.

I threw off my mask and smirked.

Did half of them eat rice with zombie saliva on it? Truly a murder supporter. The murder supporter who learned by watching me beside me moved with a resolve to die, and their talent was fully displayed.

‘Virus terror, inducing organizational collapse, leaking information to the enemy.’

Even if I couldn’t kill people directly, the damage was horrifying. Being subjected to such a scheme made me feel somewhat proud.

And Jeondohyeong’s actions gave me inspiration.

What to do in the remaining three weeks. What should I do to cause more damage to the world in three weeks? It’s all about support. Even if I cause chaos alone, the power of an individual has limits, so I need to induce more people to become pillagers and move.

Then Park Yang-gun stepped back and spoke.

“It’s too sudden, and I’m bewildered. I understand for now. Get some rest.”

Still pointing the gun at me, he retreated. Sajihyeok, seemingly sinking into darkness, was deep in thought with the faint light of the flashlight in his eyes, then turned around.

“Perhaps. No, never mind. I’ll inform the infected people about the situation first.”

“No. Don’t tell them. Let them rest. I’ll inform them tomorrow. Today is the last day to rest comfortably, isn’t it?”

“Then how should we explain the gunshot?”

I closed my eyes and lay down on the sofa.

“I don’t think we need to explain it… Just gloss over it.”

“Understood… Are you okay, Dain, even though you’re infected?”

Sajihyeok asked about my well-being. I casually waved my hand.

“Actually, I’m fine. It’s refreshing not having to wear a mask.”

I really am fine. In a way, I’ve gained a weapon. Haven’t I become a virus generator? The madness of having nothing left to lose naturally follows.

Sajihyeok closed the door and left. Alone, I continued my thoughts in the dark world and then fell into a deep sleep.

***

Morning came. Did I sleep for at most three hours? My body, which had been overworked all day, was in pain, so I woke up before anyone could wake me and stood by the window as dawn broke.

“Snow?”

Outside the window, snow was falling. The first snow. The world was blurred by dark clouds, and the white snow fell softly, turning the world white.

When I opened the window, an icy wind rushed in, and snowflakes blew into the room. The wind blew wildly, and a snowstorm swirled chaotically.

It was a blizzard, unlike the first snow.

I let out a hollow laugh.

“Failed.”

If it snows this much, the fire will be extinguished. In the end, burning the city failed due to the whims of the sky.

No, it’s not just the fire that failed. Everything failed. The alliance survived, Jeondohyeong betrayed, and my pillager group will collapse.

Winter. As the season of death, I lost everything. The life of surviving by taking from others also saw its end.

I reached out my hand and felt the snowflake that landed on my palm and melted. The snowflake, like my spirit with three weeks left, turned into water and disappeared.

‘Three weeks is an excessively long time.’

A smirk came out. If winter is the season of death, so what? For someone who will become a zombie in three weeks, there’s nothing to fear. It’s rather a good season to move with death as a companion.

As I was thinking this, Sajihyeok burst through the door and came in.

“Are you awake?”

“Yes. It’s snowing. Winter has come.”

“That’s the problem. No, there’s more than one problem. First, it’s harder to move because of the snow. We have to stay here until the snow stops.”

Of course. How can we walk outside in this snowstorm?

“And we have to explain Jeondohyeong’s terror from yesterday. What will you do?”

“I’ll go out later and announce it to everyone.”

I said without much thought. I wanted to directly inform them of my infection and watch them fall into chaos and despair.

Jeondohyeong tried to bring me down with a virus terror, but this was also a source of joy for me.

Sajihyeok nodded in understanding, then suddenly handed me a piece of paper.

“Take this.”

“What is it?”

As I approached and took the paper, it looked like a handwritten letter.

“It’s a letter left by Uncle Park Yang-gun. When I woke up and checked, he had left alone.”

Park Yang-gun left. I briefly looked at the letter. The handwriting was messy, as if written in a hurry. It vaguely reminded me of Park Yang-gun writing alone in the room.

“It’s understandable that he left. He’s that kind of person.”

Instead of reading the letter, I recalled the past.

The pastor who led Hope Church decided to betray as soon as zombie blood splattered on his mouth, a master of betrayal and escape. A survivor who senses the timing to flee faster than anyone.

The current situation was similar to back then. Since I’m infected with the virus, he must have fled immediately.

In a way, he was the first to sense the signs of the pillager organization’s collapse, and it also means that the future is bleak enough for Park Yang-gun to turn his back.

Sajihyeok hesitated, opening and closing his mouth.

“I also have something to say… No. I’ll tell you after you inform everyone of the situation.”

I quietly looked at Sajihyeok. A scammer. A person who values exit strategies. Is he also thinking of leaving?

“Understood. I’ll read the letter and then go out, so gather everyone outside.”

“It’s snowing. No, yes.”

Sajihyeok closed the door and left. I was alone. The snowstorm blowing through the open window stole my body heat. I turned and looked at the white world outside, then read the letter.

– Kim Da-in. A farewell isn’t necessary, but since the time spent with you was enjoyable, I decided to leave a letter.

I skimmed through the hard-to-read handwriting. It wasn’t a long letter.

– Since you’re infected, there’s no future here. But, is there a future if I run away? I don’t know anymore. I ran away from home, from the church, and now from your side. The more I ran, the worse the situation got. I probably won’t survive the winter.

A gloomy yet calm letter. Unexpectedly, Park Yang-gun accepted his impending death. And he left to find something else.

– So, before I die, I want to find my family. Maybe they’re still alive. It would be nice to see their faces before I die.

Park Yang-gun, who accepted death, chose to return to his family.

Park Yang-gun bid farewell with a joke.

– I hope we never meet again. Kim Da-in, I don’t want to face a zombie like you.

I smirked and folded the letter, tossing it into a corner. My weapons are malice and venom, but as a zombie, I can’t use those weapons.

Instead, I’ll become a clumsy and weak zombie, starting to learn too late.

I looked out the window at the winter scenery and bid farewell to Park Yang-gun, who wouldn’t hear it.

“Your family and you will all die. But.”

Everyone will die. Winter is a harsh season. Still, I prayed with a small hope.

“I hope you kill as many people as possible before you die.”

To survive in this world, you have no choice but to take from others. The longer Park Yang-gun lives, the more victims he will pillage.

Having seen as much as Jeondohyeong by my side, I hoped he would use what he learned from me to kill as many people as possible.

 

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