Chapter 40: What I Can Do

I pretended not to notice her troubled expression and casually encouraged her again.

“But I really want to see the fireflies first. I think Hayul would love them. Hmm… as for Dojin, I’m not sure, honestly. He’s so mature for his age. But if we pester him to come along, I think he’ll give in eventually. What do you think?”

“…….”

It was a light remark, but Kang Dohee didn’t answer easily.

I was curious what was making her hesitate so much, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask.

After staring at me silently for a moment, Kang Dohee finally nodded quietly and replied,
“If we go back, that sounds nice too.”

“We have to go back. All of us, together. And do everything we want to do.”

“…Yeah.”

I deliberately emphasized the part about going back together.

And just as I was about to say something more, Bamtol suddenly climbed up my shoulder and dropped a goblin hat over my head.

“!!”

My vision turned black-and-white in an instant, and I saw Kang Dohee bracing her rifle.

Far away, something was approaching us. I carefully grabbed her rifle and turned the barrel in that direction.

“Four men and a huge dog. Three are armed with axes and clubs, and the one on the far right has a rifle.”

“They must’ve had a trained dog.”

“But we didn’t leave behind anything that would smell. How did they track us all the way here?”

“A highly trained dog can predict the next destination just from the scent left behind at the last stop. That’s how military dogs usually work.”

Were we going to have to deal with an innocent dog that just got the wrong owner…?

The thought made my heart heavy.

I hoped Kang Dohee’s hunch had just been nerves.

I wished no one had come, and that we could’ve just sat here and chatted.

But judging from the fact that they came armed, it didn’t look like they were here for a friendly talk.

“Distance?”

“They haven’t crossed the road yet.”

“Okay. Ha-je. In a situation like this, when they’ve got guns too, asking questions first is insane.”

“Yeah. I know.”

Kang Dohee must’ve said that to stick to what I’d told her before.

Of course, even I knew how crazy it’d be to try talking in this situation.

What I really wanted to say was something else.

“Noona. Let’s not get hurt.”

“Yeah. Don’t worry. Let me know when the dog stops.”

“Okay.”

Still wearing the goblin hat, I kept a close eye on the approaching group.

They crossed the road and entered the brush.

I whispered to Kang Dohee that they’d crossed and pointed out their direction.

The distance was getting short—close enough that we could hear faint rustling.

That’s when the large dog stopped and stared directly at where Kang Dohee and I were hiding.

“Noona. It stopped.”

“Confirmed.”

Kang Dohee responded briefly and, without a moment’s hesitation, pulled the trigger as she aimed at the man on the far right.

Bang—!

In the monochrome world, the man holding the rifle dropped, a bullet to the head.

The others, startled by the gunshot, let go of the leash, and the dog charged at us.

“Ruff! Rrruff! Bark bark!”

I really didn’t want to hit the dog… but it was a dangerous breed. We couldn’t afford to get hurt.

I gripped my stick tightly, ready to take it down if I had to. But then—

“HISSS!! HSSSS!”

“Yelp! Whimper!”

Bamtol, perched on my head, hissed fiercely.

Startled, the dog backed off, then turned tail and ran away!

Seriously? It freaked out over a baby not even a quarter of its size!?

The huge dog fled, whimpering, and the remaining three men were thrown into panic.

“That damn mutt! Hey! Get back here! You bastard!”

“Where the hell did that thing come from?!”

“Damn it, duck down!”

The men, scrambling in confusion, crouched.

One of them reached for the fallen man’s rifle and slightly lifted his torso—

Bang!

The moment he awkwardly tried to take aim, he froze and dropped, lifeless.

“The guy on the right took the rifle—two of them are crawling away. I think they’re trying to escape.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Kang Dohee stood up and sprinted.

I got up late and tried to follow her, but she was too fast. I couldn’t catch up.

‘She’s crazy fast!’

While running, she drew her knife.

Then, judging the enemy’s position, she launched herself at the crawling man and pinned him down.

In the black-and-white world, I saw her swift blade cut into him, and the man clutched his neck, screaming.

The other man wildly swung his axe, but Kang Dohee caught it firmly and didn’t let it budge.

“Hiiik! P-Please… please spare me!”

“Ggh… guh… cough…”

Blood poured from between the fingers of the man clutching his throat.

Bloody foam spilled from his lips as he choked and writhed.

His gasping grew weaker and more sporadic until he lay still, convulsing faintly.

Kang Dohee didn’t even glance at him.

She held her blade to the last remaining man’s neck and asked,

“I’m going to ask you some easy questions now. Super simple and easy—so you better answer properly. Got it?”

“Urk… ugh… cough…”

“Eek!”

Just then, the man next to him let out a final rattling breath, his eyes wide open, and collapsed.
The last man, terrified, nodded frantically.

“Good. How many of your people are there?”

“U-uh… o-our group… there are about t-ten left…”

The captured man answered meekly.

He didn’t remember the exact number, but said their group had taken shelter near a cluster of three houses.

Kang Dohee continued her questioning.

“Where are the houses? Are they far from where that zombie-like guy was tied up?”

“There… there are a few of those tied up nearby. Our base is between them.”

“Do you have another dog?”

“No, just the one that ran off…”

“Any more guns?”

“Y-yes, one more.”

“So that makes two guns total?”

“Y-yes. That’s right.”

“Where did you get them?”

“Back when a military base was overrun by monsters… we stole a few. Only two left now…”

“I see. Any of you ex-military?”

“Uh… I think there is. He didn’t say he was a soldier, but… I get the feeling that one of them is.”

“…….”

I didn’t know why Kang Dohee was asking such specific questions, but I quietly listened along. Then the man looked toward where I was, his eyes widened in shock, and he started having a fit.

“Hiiik! Wh-what is that! A raccoon in the air! There’s a raccoon floating in the air! Hiiiik!”

“Ah… right.”

When I took off the goblin hat, the man started screaming like he was foaming at the mouth. Watching this, Kang Dohee let out a sigh and spoke to me.

“Haje. Go back home and tell Kang Do-jin to come here. And you stay at the house with the elder and Ju Bi-young.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll be back before dawn.”

“Wait! If Do-jin is going, then take me too. No, forget Do-jin—take me instead! I’ll definitely be helpful—”

Stab!

“!!”

“Ugh, guh… please, please…”

Squelch

“Mmgh… ugh…”

“…….”

With swift, clinical efficiency, Kang Dohee finished off the last man and stood up, shaking the blood off her blade.

“I’m just going to check if what this guy said is true.”

“…….”

That’s a lie. I knew it was a lie. But Kang Dohee clearly didn’t want me going with her. She was being very explicit about it.

“If I promise that nothing dangerous will happen, would that be enough for you?”

“…….”

I reluctantly nodded. She looked at me briefly, then patted my shoulder and said,

“Haje. Don’t worry. This is something I need to do.”

“Something you need to do?”

“Yeah. I can’t tell you why, but it’s something my brother and I have to do. So just pretend you don’t know—like you always have.”

“…….”

There was a lot I wanted to say. But with her saying it like that, what could I do? I lowered Bamtol and held him in my arms, giving a reluctant nod.

“If it ever feels truly dangerous, you have to run away. Please don’t get hurt.”

Even in that moment, I couldn’t help but add a nagging remark. Thankfully, Kang Dohee didn’t seem annoyed. She gave a faint smile, grabbed my shoulder, turned me around, and gave me a solid smack on the back.

“Take care of the house.”

“Okay.”

As I walked home, my legs trembled pitifully. I tried to keep my voice calm during the conversation, but… I’d just seen someone die right in front of me.

There was no way an ordinary civilian like me could be okay. And there’s no way Kang Dohee would bring someone like me along.

Realizing that made me both frustrated and depressed. Just how many times has Kang Dohee gone through things like this to be so calm, so used to it?

Was she really okay? And was it really alright to just send the two siblings alone?

I had so many thoughts. And when I arrived home, I saw Kang Do-jin already heading out into the yard, as if he’d already understood the situation.

“Do-jin.”

“Hyung. I’ll go to Noona. You head inside.”

“Be careful. If it’s dangerous, really… really fall back, okay?”

“I will. Now go in and calm down. You’re shaking a lot.”

“……”

Kang Do-jin, who was about to pass by me, stopped and looked down at his arm. That’s when I realized I had subconsciously grabbed onto his sleeve.

My awkwardly raised hand trembled, my arm holding Bamtol trembled, even my legs trembled.

Even though I was so scared and shaking all over, I really didn’t want to let Do-jin go.

As I stood there, unable to move or speak, Do-jin—uncharacteristically gentle—spoke in a soft tone:

“Hyung. The most useless worry in the world is worrying about me and Noona.”

“……”

“I’ll be back.”

“Really… don’t get hurt and be careful.”

“I will.”

Just like Kang Dohee had done, Kang Do-jin also tapped my shoulder and then took off running.

The two blue dots on the map met and then began rapidly moving away.

I stood blankly in the yard until they disappeared from my map.

My shaking still hadn’t stopped. But then Gamja came up to me and wrapped his big, comforting body around me, and I was able to calm down a little.

‘Yeah… they said the most useless worry is worrying about those two.’

Even though I knew the strong Kang siblings had made such a bold statement, the fact that I had to stay behind left a bitter taste in my mouth.

I could have stubbornly insisted on being helpful and forced my way along… but I didn’t have the confidence. I wasn’t sure I’d be helpful to them, and I definitely wasn’t ready to see someone die again.

‘First… let’s do what I can do.’

Instead of going back into the house, I pulled out the cart Gamja had used before and headed back toward the big rock.