I was briefly lost in thought when Hayul’s voice pulled me back to reality.
When I checked, I really did see four unfamiliar blue dots.
“Hey, did you see that?”
“Yeah.”
“Looks like survivors, right? Since they’re blue?”
“Seems like it.”
“Do you think they know how to read the map too? They’re heading straight toward the building we’re going to.”
Looped regression-type story, can’t tell the genre yet – Episode 10
At that pace, it would probably take them about three to four hours to reach their destination.
‘If that place is suitable as the second shelter, we’ve decided to stay a day, so we’ll probably run into them. Hope they’re decent people.’
Normally, I’d have just thought positively. But I couldn’t this time.
Judging from the Kang siblings’ expressions and tone, they didn’t seem to have a particularly favorable view of other survivors.
‘Ugh. This is making me nervous for no reason.’
They both tend to be pretty expressionless, so I hope I’m just overthinking it. But maybe it’s their profession—something about their intuition seems… sharp.
‘If they’re returnees, they might’ve encountered those people before. If they’re possessed, maybe they’re wary because this is the point where villains usually show up in the story.’
The way I keep analyzing things through a “professional lens” feels a bit obsessive, but otherwise, I just don’t get why they’re quietly on edge like this. Ughhh.
‘I don’t know. It hasn’t happened yet anyway. Let’s just think about it if and when we meet them.’
For now, it’s time to focus on cycling.
★★★
We’d been moving for over an hour with my sibling riding on a rusty bike. Maybe because I’ve worked a desk job for so long, my legs were starting to ache.
But thankfully, the route was mostly flat with only a few downhill slopes, and the terrain wasn’t too complicated.
‘Has it been a while since the world turned into an apocalypse in this setting?’
There were some fallen trees and abandoned cars here and there, but we were able to maneuver around them without much trouble.
My legs hurt during the ride, but thanks to Hayul and the Kang siblings, I wasn’t scared or lonely.
We made small talk now and then, and during quiet stretches, I had time to think about all sorts of things.
Pedaling like a zombie, I eventually spotted our destination in the distance. As expected, the building ahead was a small rest stop and gas station combo.
When we arrived, we parked the bike and double-checked the map.
Aside from a cluster of black dots some distance away, there was nothing nearby.
With this kind of distribution, the early-stage difficulty seems pretty easy…
‘Hope it stays that way.’
To keep my mind off the “former human” I’d seen yesterday, I made an extra effort to take in the surroundings.
Nothing seemed particularly dangerous, and the four blue dots from earlier were still far away.
At their current pace, they’d still take another three hours to reach us.
While I was looking at the map, Kang Dohee came over and asked in a low voice,
“Haje. What do you think? Want to check out the gas station with your sister?”
“Huh?”
“How about we split into pairs and search separately?”
“W-Wait, can’t we just stick together, all four of us?”
“…….”
I didn’t jump up or anything, but my panicked tone said it all.
Kang Dohee’s expression softened in a very human way.
So even she can show empathy on that stoic face.
Yes, I am the coward here. The King of Chickens.
It was a bit embarrassing, but I didn’t bother hiding my concern.
In horror movies, this is exactly when the monster picks people off one by one after they split up!
Of course, no black dots showed up on the map. But you never know.
There’s no guarantee all monsters are marked with black dots.
Sometimes they seem to appear late on the map.
‘Yesterday was weird too. I’d been checking the map every chance I got, but the black dot just appeared out of nowhere—it scared the hell out of me!’
Maybe I hadn’t been checking as often as I thought… but even so, it was odd how that slow-moving creature approached so quickly.
Actually, since I kept nagging to see the map, they may have handed me something closer to a beta version—so it might not be perfect yet.
In any case, while the status screen and map are helpful, I can’t trust them 100% just yet.
“Okay then, let’s check out the store first.”
The small shop attached to the gas station didn’t look like it had much left to scavenge.
The front windows were already shattered, and one of the doors had completely fallen off.
Inside was a mess—empty shelves, overturned displays, and a broken counter.
Kang Dojin went straight through a door at the back of the store, while Kang Dohee carefully examined the items scattered under the shelves.
I stuck close to Hayul and looked around to see if there was anything useful.
“Hayul, if you find anything even remotely useful, let’s just take it.”
“Okay. Oh? There’s some tape here.”
Hayul reached into a fallen shelf and pulled something out.
It was green tape.
I hadn’t even noticed it—but our sharp-eyed Hayul did!
Brushing off the thick dust clinging to the packaging, I slipped the tape into my inventory and eagerly checked the quest window.
Survival Supplies Found: 2/6
“Yes! Great job, Hayul!”
Hayul, who smiled brightly at my compliment, began to scout around even more actively.
I joined in and started looking around thoroughly too, but there was no food left, and the drink fridge was completely empty.
Even the vending machine outside the store was knocked over and shattered—it looked like it had already been looted.
‘Guess it’s going to be hard to find food right away.’
I climbed on a fallen shelf and opened a cabinet high up on the wall. Inside, I found a monkey wrench covered in a thick layer of dust.
‘This might actually be useful.’
I picked up the monkey wrench, blew the dust off, and thought it would come in handy for breaking things or maybe even as a weapon in an emergency.
It was big and heavy enough for that.
Survival Item Search 2/6
‘Wait, this is actually useful. Why didn’t it count?’
And then—
Survival Item Search 3/6
Oh, there we go. Even the system agrees it’s decent, huh?
Survival Item Search 4/6
Huh?
Survival Item Search 5/6
What?
Survival Item Search 6/6 (Complete)
Wait, what??
When I looked around in confusion, I saw Kang Do-hee dusting off a climbing rope, carabiners, and a baseball bat—who knows where she found them.
‘Since when do convenience stores sell baseball bats?’
And in Ha-yul’s hands, who had been lying on the floor and just got up, was an unopened pack of 20 batteries and a small flashlight.
He must’ve found it under one of the fallen shelves. Impressive.
Finally, Kang Do-jin, who had gone through the side door, came out with a first-aid kit and a windbreaker jacket.
We all checked the items we had picked up. Every single one would be useful—including my monkey wrench.
We searched the convenience store a bit more, but couldn’t find anything else that seemed essential for survival.
Just as I was about to suggest we move on to the office attached to the gas station next door—
“Ha-je.”
“Yes?”
I responded instantly to Kang Do-hee calling my name. Weirdly enough, it was almost reflexive.
But she didn’t say anything else. She just kept staring silently in one direction.
Her intense focus naturally pulled my gaze the same way.
“Dogs?”
“Looks like strays. Grab something long—use that instead of the wrench.”
Out of nowhere, dogs had appeared outside the gas station. About seven of them.
There was a white one, a yellowish one, and a few medium-sized breeds mixed in, all glaring at us—and now, even baring their teeth.
Whatever the reason, they looked furious.
“Dogs are man’s best friend, right?”
“We might wanna ask the dogs what they think first.”
They had formed a loose circle around the building. But since the windows were already shattered, they could jump in at any time.
I slowly moved in front of Hayul to shield him and glanced toward the side door where Kang Do-jin had found the first-aid kit.
“Do-jin, is there a back door in that room?”
“No, it’s just a small room.”
He answered immediately and readied the metal rod he’d used to kill the monster yesterday.
The Kang siblings seemed calm. I wasn’t shaking like I had when I faced the monster yesterday either, but with this many of them, I couldn’t help but be tense.
“Think they’ll run if we make a loud noise?”
“They’re strays. I doubt they’ll back off. I think they already see us as food.”
Do-hee rejected my hopeful thought while adjusting her grip on the bat.
Yeah, I agreed. These dogs didn’t look like domesticated pets—they looked more like wild animals. Very hungry wild animals.
Even from a distance, you could see their ribs poking through their skin. They must’ve been starving for a while.
‘What do we do? I mean, those two can probably handle themselves, but what about Hayul?’
Those two were clearly exceptional people, but Hayul?
Our Hayul is smaller than average, fragile, and soft-hearted. Could he really face off against a big dog?
“Grrrrr…”
“Yikes!”
Jeez, that scared me.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time to think. The dogs were slowly closing in.
“Ha-je hyung, come closer. Don’t stray too far from me. And Lee Hayul—you go in there and close the door.”
“What? No way. Wait—don’t tell me you’re gonna fight them?”
“Just go inside already.”
Do-jin’s face twisted in annoyance as he snapped back, but honestly, I couldn’t argue either.
Hayul, those things don’t look like dogs you can call “pups”… Are you still that innocent for your age?
Wait—no. That’s not the point right now. Not the time to criticize my little brother’s outlook.
Meanwhile, the dogs kept closing the distance, and Do-hee began swinging the bat around, stretching like she was warming up for a home run.
“Hayul. Go inside. I’ll try to drive them off.”
Even now, was it because he didn’t want to hurt the animals? Our Hayul is seriously too kind and pure for this harsh world.
I knew simply protecting him wasn’t a long-term solution, but for now, the priority was making sure no one got hurt—especially him, the most vulnerable.
Then suddenly, Hayul walked up beside me.
Startled, I reflexively grabbed his arm, but he gently stepped forward and spoke to the dogs in a soft voice.
“It’s okay. Hey guys, we’re not bad people. We won’t hurt you. We’re just gonna take what we need and leave, so please don’t be scared and go back, okay?”
“Ha-Hayul! Wait! Come back here! Seriously, go inside! Those dogs aren’t pets!”
I panicked and stepped in front of him again. Do-jin also moved to stand beside me, protecting Hayul.
Do-hee had already stepped ahead of us, gripping her bat and ready to knock down the first one that charged.
Then suddenly—
“Whine?”
“Whimper… whine?”
“Huh?”
What’s going on? Their eyes suddenly looked different.
Their gaze, which had moments ago been filled with the hunger of predators, now seemed… gentle. Like friendly rural dogs.
The yellowish dog at the front straightened up from its crouched stance and began to stare directly at Hayul—right between where Do-jin and I were standing.