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Becoming a zombie didn’t particularly change my senses. They didn’t become sharper, nor did they dull. It seems that if you hide well enough, even zombies can pass by without noticing.

So, I dressed to blend into the darkness as much as possible. From a black baseball cap to black sneakers. This is the way in a city plunged into a blackout night.

I also carefully packed my weapons: an emergency handgun, a hammer, a flashlight as a substitute for a flashbang, and an alarm clock for bait.

“Going alone feels a bit uneasy…”

After finishing my preparations, I looked at the hallway mirror and recalled the list of people. Someone stealthy to sneak in and pick up weapons. Not for the street people, but for a pillager companion.

A few names came to mind, and I crossed them off one by one.

‘Sajihyeok can’t handle physical tasks. Jeondohyeong is also ambiguous. It’s got to be Park Yang-gun.’

Park Yang-gun, with his sharp night vision and expertise in escape, is the perfect candidate.

I turned on my phone to check the time. Not much time left before the blackout. I need to persuade him quickly. Hurrying to Park Yang-gun’s place, he greeted me in a daze.

“Going for a theft? Why are you dressed like that?”

“Yes. I’m planning to get the weapons from the police officer and archer who reportedly died. Would you like to join?”

Hearing this, Park Yang-gun scratched his head and went inside.

“Wait a minute. Let me finish my meal. Need to fill my stomach to work.”

“The blackout is almost here…”

“I’ll eat quickly.”

I waited by the door. He lowers his mask while eating. No reason to get too close.

Peeking inside, I saw Park Yang-gun eating in a pitiful manner. Without a dining table, he had a pot of ramen and a side dish of kimchi on the floor, hunched over and slurping the ramen quickly.

“Let’s see, clothes that make less noise…”

After almost inhaling his meal, Park Yang-gun tossed the dishes into the sink and quickly packed his gear. Dark clothes that don’t make noise, shoelaces and a kitchen knife as weapons.

As he passed by, he said,

“How are we splitting the loot?”

“Half and half.”

“Clean. …But will there be any weapons left? We need to confirm the info before we go out to work.”

Typical thief talk. Worrying about the preliminary work of selecting a theft target before anything else.

I suddenly thought,

‘Is it because he’s a criminal? He seems to think about profit before danger.’

Well, logically, where would someone committing crimes worry about danger and loss? Even though it’s certain they’ll be reported and punished, they’re still faithful to the short-term present.

It’s a nature fitting for a pillager.

“There should be something left.”

“Who knows. It might have been recovered, taken by other scavengers, or held by zombies.”

After putting on a black mask, Park Yang-gun approached me and said,

“How about hitting someone else’s place?”

“…Someone else’s?”

“Houses with candles or electric lanterns on. Houses that smell like dinner.”

For a moment, my heart raced. Should we loot survivors who left traces? Food, soap, toilet paper, shampoo, disinfectant, masks—endless resources to gain?

But I quickly came to my senses and shook my head. That’s not the priority right now.

“Weapons are the most important. Replenishing our firepower comes first.”

“Then there’s no choice. Let’s hope the weapons are still there.”

Park Yang-gun shrugged. And so, we left the house. Just as we reached the first floor, the blackout hit, and darkness fell as if someone had flipped a switch.

***

This is the first time I’ve walked the city streets like this since summer arrived. And it’s night. The darkness is thick. The crescent moon is like a thin fingernail, and even the moonlight is faint on the streets. It’s hard to distinguish even Park Yang-gun walking ahead.

Occasionally, shadows that could be zombies or people squirmed in the darkness. The sound of stepping on trash or corpses scattered on the street.

“…”

“…”

Without sanitation workers, trash was everywhere. Each piece of trash was a trap. A trap that makes noise when stepped on, revealing our location.

We clenched our mouths and moved onto the less dirty road.

It was suffocating. The hot temperature at night, the leather clothes, thick jeans, and winter gloves for defense. The darkness was also pressing heavily on our minds.

Whether it was a cat, dog, rat, or pigeon, the sound of an animal moving startled us, and sudden footsteps nearby made us turn around in panic.

I hid in the darkness, but so did others. It felt like assassins were lurking everywhere, waiting for me.

‘Zombies, robbers, pillagers… Anything could be out there.’

Sweat poured out. Inside the gloves, on the mask, under the hat. My nerves were on edge, feeling the discomfort clearly.

I wanted to throw off the mask, hat, and jacket and turn on the flashlight brightly.

‘Stay calm. Don’t reveal your presence. The one who gets caught first dies.’

I barely followed Park Yang-gun’s footsteps ahead, forcing my gaze to the sky.

The ground was a mess, but the sky was clear. Unlike the city with its lights out, the stars were spread out. That was all.

I steadied my mind and took each step silently. Then, something bumped against my foot. A light yet dull sensation. A person, zombie, or corpse.

“…”

I carefully held the hammer and looked down. In the dark, something resembling a person was visible.

A person crouched against a car, slowly raising their head to look at me.

Instantly, panic and fear rushed in. A shadow right in front of me, something so close without any warning.

‘What is this? A zombie? A person?’

No, is that important? Whatever it is, kill it.

I immediately swung the hammer down. A solid, heavy sensation. The unknown shadow slumped down. Only then did I let out a long breath of relief.

A voice close to a whisper came from beside me.

“…Looks like a person.”

Startled, I raised the hammer again, but realizing it was Park Yang-gun, I relaxed. Instead, I grabbed him with my other hand and quickened our pace.

A late grumble surfaced in my mind.

‘What kind of person is this? Why is he out here at night like this?’

Did he lose hope in life and come out to the streets? Did something bad happen? Is that car a treasure he can’t leave? I don’t know why he’s scaring people like this.

After that, my heart kept dropping.

Walking silently, I accidentally made a loud footstep, and someone ahead also stepped heavily in surprise.

“…”

Everyone was startled, glancing into the darkness, then awkwardly moving away.

Sometimes, I kicked a can on the ground, making noise, and quickly moved away. Other times, footsteps followed me, and when I turned around, it was just a panting dog.

I let out a deep sigh.

‘I’m just a clumsy survivor too.’

I get startled by trivial things. No matter how much I think about pillaging or surviving by any means, my fragile mind can’t help it.

I can’t handle the excessive tension. I’ve never trained for this or experienced it before.

In fact, many people have adapted better than me.

I recalled the shadows I saw in the darkness. Whether they were zombies or people, there seemed to be quite a few humans.

‘It seems more people are out at night, thinking it’s safer than daytime.’

In a way, it makes sense. In broad daylight, the distinction between zombies and humans was clear, and the blackout in the city made it easier to move secretly.

People hiding in the darkness, roaming the streets for resources. People who, like me, couldn’t stockpile enough resources, busy surviving day by day, adapting in different ways.

I gripped the hammer tightly.

‘No one is easy. I can’t let my guard down.’

Just then, Park Yang-gun tapped me. We’re here. The school.

I whispered low,

“Mr. Park Yang-gun, please find the items.”

It’s better for Park Yang-gun with his sharp night vision to find the items. I guarded the surroundings and headed to the main gate first.

***

The quiet and dark school. I groped around, reaching out to touch the iron bars. With gloves on, I couldn’t feel the texture or temperature, but I found the handcuffs on the iron gate.

With a slight force, the gate creaked, making a rough friction sound, but stopped halfway.

It was proof the gate was properly sealed, but I shook my head. There was a lot beyond the gate. Things like desks and chairs. Items piled up like stairs.

‘The zombies have already escaped.’

They used tools to escape. Avoiding the barbed wire on the walls, they piled desks and chairs to climb over the gate. No, they even piled corpses.

I leaned my face close to the iron bars to see the face of the corpse.

They piled desks and chairs haphazardly, even using corpses as stepping stones. It must have been the work of the virus generator. Only that zombie could learn to this extent.

Maybe they even packed all the school’s food into bags and fled.

‘With this level of intelligence, they might come for revenge.’

Would they remember me, who tased them, tied them up outside, and let the kids bully them?

As I pondered while holding the hammer, Park Yang-gun tapped me. Rustling sounds and a small voice were heard.

“I got the handgun, bullets, and a stab-proof vest. No bow or arrows.”

“Let’s go back.”

I quickly turned around. Zombie revenge or whatever, getting back safely is the priority now. Even though I finally got the weapons I wanted, it’s over if I die.

 

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