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Shivering from the eerie chill, I woke up. Blinking my eyes, I saw the dim interior. The light made it hard to tell if it was day or night. Outside, the sound of raindrops tapping on the window could be heard.

I pressed my phone hard, but the screen wouldn’t turn on. The battery was completely drained.

Staring at the black screen, memories slowly came back. Memories that traced back to just before I fell asleep.

I washed with the cold water left in the tank and immediately fell asleep. A real blackout came, caused by lightning striking somewhere. People were being eliminated one by one…

“Ah…”

A heavy sigh escaped. There were many problems left. It felt like I had a fever, maybe I caught a cold. My muscles ached, and my already foggy head throbbed with pain.

“The infrastructure now…”

The electricity was cut off. Indoor farming is impossible. I can’t use plant growth lights.

The water supply is still holding up. The pressure pump has stopped, so I can’t draw water from the mains, but since it’s an old villa, rainwater fills the tank, so water still comes out.

Gas is still being supplied. The gas stove works because it ignites with batteries. However, the boiler, an electric facility, is broken, so I can’t use heating or hot water.

‘Summer is bearable… It’s raining a lot, and I don’t need heating.’

I took out a pot and poured bottled water. Whether it’s body aches or a cold, I felt chills and wanted to eat warm ramen.

Click, click, click. The gas flame bloomed like a lotus in the dark room. I roughly poured the noodles and soup into the lukewarm water. While waiting for the water to boil, I stared blankly at the flame.

“Really, this is tough…”

I don’t know how the infrastructure is still maintained even in this state. Is this the power of modern society? Or is the military and government maintaining the core facilities somehow? It’s really hard to collapse overnight…

At this point, modern civilization feels like a zombie. Why won’t it die?

Bubble, bubble, the ramen boiled. I drank the warm broth first, then mindlessly stuffed the noodles into my mouth. I also took out kimchi from the turned-off refrigerator and ate it with rice.

Eating the warm broth made me feel warmer. With a clearer mind, I slowly pondered.

What to do from now on.

“Remove the scarecrow, make it look like an uninhabited ruin. Collect rainwater in the tank or bowls, disinfect it with bleach, check the remaining oil…”

There’s so much to do. I need to move the resources left by the people of Villa Street step by step, and think about the farm.

Above all, I need to control the pillager companions. This time, I definitely crossed the line. From Jeondohyeong to Sajihyeok, there’s plenty of room for them to harbor other thoughts.

Suddenly, the act of killing people, the children among the dead… They must be anxious. Anxiety will make people act.

‘Seeing that I survived the night unharmed, they probably didn’t intend to kill me.’

I looked around the entrance and windows. They could have broken in and killed me while I was sleeping, but that didn’t happen. If they don’t harbor murderous intent, there’s a possibility we can move together.

Tap, tap, tap. The chopsticks tapped the pot. What should I do? What benefits should I promise, what losses should I imply? Or, do I need to say a lot?

Before I could organize my thoughts, bang, bang, there was a knock on the door.

“Dain. Are you in there? We have a lot to talk about.”

Park Yang-gun? No, Jeondohyeong and Sajihyeok must be here too.

I quickly opened my mouth.

“I’m eating ramen, just a moment. I’ll open the door after grabbing a mask.”

Just in case, the handgun first. An awkward gesture slowly loaded five lethal bullets. Hiding the gun in my pocket and wearing a police bulletproof vest, I opened the door.

“Welcome.”

“Sorry to interrupt your meal. But this can’t be postponed.”

Park Yang-gun calmly entered first, Sajihyeok passed by without looking at me, and Jeondohyeong slowly walked in last.

Jeondohyeong’s eyes were bloodshot like he hadn’t slept all night. I tapped him and joked.

“What’s with the zombie eyes?”

“…”

“You should sleep well.”

Even though I was disappointed yesterday, they’re still pillager companions. It’s inevitable if they lack foresight and action. It’s also my fault for using a supporter as a dealer.

‘We’re short on attackers. I want to recruit someone who fights well.’

After a brief thought, I sighed and sat on the bed, looking tired.

“I got wet in the rain last night, so I’m not feeling well. I think I caught a cold.”

“Haha. Even dogs don’t catch colds in summer… No, never mind.”

Sajihyeok forced a laugh and then shrugged. It seemed like he was trying to lighten the mood, but his choice of words…

Of course, even Park Yang-gun looked at him with disbelief. I waved my hand dismissively.

“Anyway, be careful. Getting sick is a loss.”

“Right. Let’s talk about yesterday. I heard the general situation from this guy.”

Park Yang-gun rolled his eyes. The direction of his gaze and his gestures clearly showed he was looking for an escape route. His hand also subtly moved towards the pocket with the handgun.

Is he planning to run if I go crazy? That’s excessive worry. I smirked.

“I have no intention of harming you. If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it already. We’re fellow criminals, aren’t we?”

There’s no one here who hasn’t killed someone. Even these people are thieves, electric thieves, and con artists. I felt an inexplicable bond rising.

But they still didn’t trust me, keeping their distance and ready to run at any moment.

“Weren’t those people your companions?”

Sajihyeok, in a cowed posture, looked straight at me with his eyes. It seems he resented the disappearance of the people who acknowledged him.

I shook my head at the con artist who often lost his way and nature. I took out the late uncle’s suspicion notebook.

“They were all outsiders. The uncle tried to kill anyone he suspected, the lettuce leaker almost sold information to the pillagers, they were all people with ulterior motives.”

The writing was smudged by the rain, but it was still legible. They silently looked at the unfolded notebook.

“I killed them before they died, moved before they became dangerous. Only trustworthy companions remain.”

Actually, I can’t trust them. How can I trust these criminals? They can turn on me at any moment if the situation changes.

But I continued in a way that suited Sajihyeok’s taste. Lying was an easy task.

“We are the companions who can trust and stick together. We steal, kill, pillage, and scam, but we don’t judge and acknowledge each other.”

Sajihyeok blankly looked down at the notebook. It was the page with his personal details, marked in red: con artist, don’t believe a word he says, exclude from important matters.

By now, they should understand. That our pillager group is a real organization to belong to.

But this time, Jeondohyeong was the problem. Jeondohyeong looked at me with zombie-like eyes and spoke in a rough voice.

“No. I can’t accept it. There was no need to kill the kids yesterday.”

“…”

What is it? I slowly observed Jeondohyeong. Suddenly, it feels like a stranger is in front of me. The image of the ruthless electric thief I had built is cracking.

At least some morality, conscience, or goodwill remains.

Slowly reaching for the pocket where the handgun is hidden, I thought.

‘Was he trying to save them when he insisted on doing it himself yesterday? Killing kids is taboo after all.’

The minimum line of morality shared by people. Yesterday, I crossed that line. Even pillager companions can reject me.

A rational excuse came to mind. I didn’t want to do it either, but to survive the summer, it was necessary. Measures were needed before Villa Street collapsed. I’m a normal person too. I lived well in society before the apocalypse. I’m struggling too. Cleaning Peace Villa or this, what’s the difference? You’re the same as me.

Ways to fix my fallen perception… Suddenly, I laughed.

‘What’s the point of going back.’

Goodwill can be used in its own way. As Jeondohyeong’s image changed, his actions became understandable again.

The person who, after unintentionally helping kill the pastor, guided us not to touch the church. The person who tried to save as many people as possible while following me.

But lacking decisiveness and action, he couldn’t stop me by killing me, only passively exercising goodwill within his reach.

“I can list dozens of reasons why I had to kill them yesterday. Can you?”

“They were kids. The kids you liked.”

“Tell me a reason that helps our survival. If we let them live and sent them away, rumors about the farm and resources would have spread. Could we have accepted them as companions? We’ve already killed so many people, would they have stayed quiet?”

Jeondohyeong gritted his teeth, and a madness flashed in his eyes. His hand gripping the hand axe.

Before things completely fell apart, I spoke.

“So, think carefully before speaking. Reasons not to kill people, reasons why it’s beneficial. If it’s reasonable, I’ll listen.”

Whether it’s reasonable or not is up to me. But Jeondohyeong can’t know that. I spoke to him as if I knew everything.

“When we escaped the church, we left without doing anything as you suggested. I’m not unreasonable. Whether it’s good or evil, we choose the direction that helps survival.”

Clang. The hand axe fell weakly. Jeondohyeong bowed his head. A small voice followed.

“If I had spoken well yesterday, would you have stopped?”

“Of course. You were talking nonsense about escaping to a hope community, just taking resources, and other strange things.”

This is your fault for not convincing me. With that meaning, Jeondohyeong covered his face with his hand.

Finally, I looked at Park Yang-gun. He’s actually the most untrustworthy. A habitual liar, a master of betrayal and escape.

Park Yang-gun slowly looked at me, Sajihyeok, and Jeondohyeong, then nodded.

“We killed everyone and took over this villa. The numbers just increased, but it’s the same.”

As expected of an older criminal, he understood me best. Seeing me persuade others, he clearly understood my true intentions.

I clapped.

“Let’s start recovering resources. If we use them sparingly, we can survive the summer. Since the power is out, let’s prepare for that too.”

I need to instill the belief that they can survive with me. That belief is material. Lots of resources.

Park Yang-gun smiled apologetically. Lies flowed like breathing.

“It seems like you did all the work, but if we take it, our conscience hurts.”

“Then you guys do the moving. I have a cold. Ah, also move the house to the farm, and make the villa building look like scavengers have already passed through.”

I pass on all the laborious tasks. I’m a patient.

Anyway, they put on raincoats and went out to work diligently. I stood by the window and watched them.

Suddenly, the face of the paranoid uncle came to mind, and suspicion rose in my heart. Can I really trust them? Will they believe me with just a few words? I haven’t even fully grasped Jeondohyeong’s personality yet.

Like the darkness that came with the power outage, people’s hearts are also darkened. I can’t understand that heart.

How to respond to betrayal and distrust.

‘Hide yourself thoroughly like the pastor, establish a hierarchy like the police, or suspect everything like the uncle…’

Or use profit and loss as a fence.

Wouldn’t the corpses I killed serve as some pressure? I killed so many people in one night just because they weren’t companions.

 

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