Episode 191
It was Jeong In-ho who first noticed something strange.
“If you deviate beyond this point, even if you see a caterpillar in front of you, you won’t approach it.”
Because he had traveled through time twice, In-ho Jeong was familiar with the green algae monster, and it had almost infinite stamina and an insatiable appetite. When they were full and thought they had returned to the big lake, they would come back up and run around as if they had never done so before.
So, even if it hadn’t eaten anything before, it wouldn’t have filled the green algae monster’s stomach just by eating a few small larvae. The stomach may have been smaller than expected, but Jeong In-ho felt that the reason it did not chase the caterpillar was not due to such a simple reason.
Next was Vivian.
“It seems like his intelligence goes back and forth, as he is sometimes obediently attracted to caterpillars and other times he is not. Between instinct and reason?”
“Why is that…”
“But if you’re still stuck here, doesn’t that mean that both instinct and reason want something?”
Although it was an abstract logic, some survivors who heard it felt uneasy.
“I’m not sure, though.”
However, as I said, I was not sure, so I continued working as is.
The survivors were exhausted. It wasn’t easy to just pull out the green algae monster, but the toothy vines kept crawling out, and it wasn’t the only monster in the park. Basically, although they were people who had physical strength or who regularly exercised, there were many survivors who had below-average physical abilities. Their movements gradually became slower.
Then, when the two people who formed a team fell apart, a dangerous situation arose… but…
Kwasik!
“…I’m crazy.”
They were able to survive thanks to the stray dog monsters that occasionally appeared and hunted vines and crows by chewing on them with their teeth. Seeing the abandoned dog monsters made me sick and nauseous in my already weakened state, but some of the survivors who survived with their help felt grateful to the abandoned dog monsters. This was a phenomenon that mostly happened to the survivors who accompanied Jaeheon Lee.
Noh Yeon-seok couldn’t help but be amazed by Lee Jae-heon’s big picture even as he was running wild.
“As expected, Manager, big picture…!”
“If you knew this and issued such a guideline, then it was a dark plan, No Yeon-seok!”
“No, I didn’t mean to insult you…!”
It is said that when Noh Yeon-seok and Kwon Yeon-hee were fighting, Lee Jae-heon, who had half-intentioned, got stuck inside the pavilion and scratched his itchy ear.
However, the abandoned dog monster chance does not come to all survivors, but mainly happens to survivors who had a lot of contact with Lee Jae-heon, and it is not possible to receive their help every time. Since the abandoned dog monster is just a monster, it may be that he simply wanted to hunt it. In the end, it was natural for the survivors to fall out of exhaustion.
By the time it was fully evening, there was no worse hell. Those who had experience in making torches banded together to create a fire and carried it to the survivors who were spread out here and there, but even so, they almost died dozens of times due to narrow vision…. “
…Division of labor…! Division of labor for group tasks! “I’ll just replace it as I go, fuck it!”
Around that time, there was talk about the duty system.
“No, no, am I crazy? On duty…! Okay, let’s set a shift and take turns doing it!”
“That is correct, Seo Jang-hwa.”
“It’s so bad that people are falling behind like this! “You fucking green algae bastard…!”
“Please refrain from making loud noises.”
As if she wasn’t friends with Song In-myeong for nothing, Seo Jang-hwa’s physical strength was better than that of police officer Kim Yeon-woo, but even she had her limits. This meant that other survivors also reached their limit.
“I heard those kids are guarding the pavilion over there anyway! Let’s split it in half and move while one rests…! “Do it while defending there too!”
Everyone had been dispatched to attract the attention of the green algae monster, and the pavilion was currently lacking the manpower to defend it.
Fortunately, siblings Park Da-young and Park Da-hoon were blocking the way, and Lee Yun-byeol was among them, although he was injured in his leg and could not get out. However, the bleeding had stopped and his scent was not enough to reach the green algae monster. At least it was like that before I left the pavilion, but I don’t know how much longer it will last.
Seo Jang-hwa was attacked by a crow monster thanks to screaming loudly, but he took out his anger on something unknown and chased them all away. They have more than ten eyes and large wings, and when they decide that they can’t do it on their own, they have the knack of striking and running away like ghosts. Seo Jang-hwa gritted his teeth, saying that one day he would make a whole chicken with them.
And indeed, at some point, he struck down a piece of wood, which must have been a tree, and skewered the two raven monsters in an instant.
“….”
“What are you looking at?”
“no.”
Later, Hong Gyeong-jun said that he saw the appearance of a mountain animal in her. It was some time later that Vivian nodded and sympathized with his words with a serious expression.
Of course, such trivial matters of the future were not important.
“What is it?”
“Uh…”
“Didn’t that bastard say he’d go home in the morning?”
Munsan-gun was unable to respond to the words of President Choi Jeong-man, who was drenched in sweat. This was obviously because Munsan-gun also knew that people who knew the green algae monster well had relayed that information. However, even though the day was bright, the green algae monster had no intention of returning to the big lake.
It was so absurd that Han Do-yoon, who had just come from a rest, even burst into laughter. It was a frivolous laugh that did not suit the gentle face that resembled that of a retriever.
“Wow!”
The cheerful voice, as if at an amusement park, even seemed pure at first glance.
Kim Ki-jeong, who was completely white and clutching the wooden block with his swollen hands, closed his eyes tightly when he saw the green algae monster pacing at a distance from firefighter Do-yoon Han. Han Do-yoon’s smile grew even bigger as he seemed unable to accept reality. It was fortunate that the green algae monster was insensitive to sound.
“…Please don’t suddenly go crazy and come to your senses….”
Kim Ki-jeong said everything he wanted to say even though he was shaking, and Han Do-yoon couldn’t stop laughing because of what made him laugh. In the end, his boisterous laughter ended only when the crow monster attacked. In fact, the attack continued for about a minute more. Kim Ki-jeong looked at Han Do-yoon with tired eyes.
If we go by reality, it was around 5 or 6 o’clock yesterday evening when the green algae monster baiting operation began. From there, I couldn’t sleep properly and ran around the park all night, so I understand why you’re crazy, but there’s no need to stay still, right? Kim Ki-jeong worked hard to avoid the monsters and took out the caterpillar from the tree. It was a good thing that the green algae monster still responded to the larvae.
But even that has now reached its limit.
“doesn’t exist!”
The caterpillar was no longer visible.
“It doesn’t even work!”
“Do-yoon Han, please shut up….”
The green algae monster seems to be tired of the larvae now.
Han Do-yoon, who had been running around the park for a while, could not hold back his laughter once again, but if you consider that he was actually laughing because he was mentally well-off, he could see that it was not a situation worth laughing at all. This time, the life drained from the faces of not only Kim Ki-jeong but also other survivors who had gained some leisure time with the introduction of the duty system.
Even if this were true of the activity range of larvae and green algae monsters, it was certainly strange that so much time had passed and the green algae monsters had not returned to the lake. Even though the green algae monster’s once moist body became noticeably dry, and perhaps because of that, its movements became even more sluggish.
In the end, by the second morning, about a day and a half after the start of the operation, the survivors were convinced.
“I guess I’m looking for something…”
So desperately that I wouldn’t go back to the lake.
* * *
And Jaeheon Lee intervened.
“Isn’t that me?”
It is a very calm and confident face with a blank face that bursts out at the viewer.
In place of Jeong In-ho, who voluntarily gave up his right to speak after an accident involving Munsan-gun, Ha Seong-yoon frowned and pounded his stuffy solar plexus. Yoon Garam, who came running inside the park with Ha Seongyoon, also had an expression that was not much different.
Ha Seong-yoon, who was sitting down from exhaustion, pointed a point at Lee Jae-heon and shouted softly.
“That’s that that’s that now…!” “Is that what you’re saying now!”
“No, objectively….”
“Can’t you see that they lured green algae monsters into our sleep to save the patient?”
“I’m sorry about that, but objectively….”
“Since when did you consider the situation objectively!”
At night, when it was so dark that it was impossible to see even an inch without a torch, some of the survivors had returned to the pavilion and were taking a rest. Garam Yoon asked Jaeheon Lee with a rare sour expression.
“Are you serious?”
“That…”
“Why?”
“….”
“Why?”
“I did everything wrong.”
Jaeheon Lee sighed.
‘It looks like you still have no intention of informing Hong Kyung-jun’s team about my exact condition.’
Because of the green algae monster, they were forced to stick together and move together like this. In fact, strictly speaking, the ‘misunderstanding’ between Jung In-ho’s team and Hong Gyeong-jun’s team was not resolved.
Still, whenever the two teams made eye contact, they tried to diffuse the situation by awkwardly looking away or smiling. Because I know the need for cooperation, I am not happy about the immediate conflict, but that does not mean that we are being open like we did in the last episode. It is natural that even if something was achieved in the last round, there is no guarantee that the same will be achieved in this round, but it is true that it is disappointing.
But no matter what, if there is a time bomb within the team…
‘Maybe I should let you know about that.’
You have to have a conscience. It’s like they only told us the ‘bomb’ in ‘a time bomb that’s about to explode’.
“…You seem like narrow-minded people…”
“What?”
“I was talking to myself.”
It seems to be a sentiment that roughly says, ‘Why do we have to sacrifice a member of our team for you?’ But if that ‘member of our team’ is the cause or solution to this situation, wouldn’t it be okay to throw it away? The situation was not even calm enough to even use the word sacrifice.
Oh, of course, not Lee Jae-heon, but ‘Lee Jae-heon’. Because of the setting, you never know when someone will be killed.
“…Even so.”
Lee Jae-heon glanced at Seo Jang-hwa, who was looking guiltily at his hand, which was still bleeding a little, and continued speaking calmly.
“I’m the only one who bleeds this much. “I’m not sure exactly what the green algae monster wants, but it’s clear that it likes human blood rather than caterpillars… so you can’t say there’s a very low possibility that I’m the cause of this situation, right?”
“If you think about it that way, the possibility is open to everyone, mister…”
“Our Dayoung speaks well. “You’re so smart.”
“Thank you….”
I’m not sure about Park Da-hoon, whose face I couldn’t see because he was standing guard at the entrance to the pavilion, but the expression on Park Da-young’s face as she squatted down next to Lee Jae-heon turned sour to the point of being damp. The quick-witted siblings seemed to have already sensed that Jaeheon Lee would not be suitable for our obsession.
‘Unfortunately.’
It seems like he has finally resigned himself to knowing that pushing, crying, or getting angry won’t work.
‘Lee Jae-heon’ may be kind to minors, but he was a person who would willingly do so if he had to consume himself to take an easier path. Jaeheon Lee himself was similar. Comforting the Park siblings and treating them well was something he had to do as a person and an adult, and there was no reason for ‘Lee Jae-heon’ to save himself.
But the Park siblings were not the only ones here.
“It’s not certain yet.”
It was Garam Yoon.
‘It’s a bit dangerous if it explodes.’
I wouldn’t say it was close yet, but it looked like it was quite stressed from the ongoing tug-of-war with the green algae monster. If he was obsessed with ‘Lee Jae-heon’s’ safety, he could have wasted a lot of mental power when he ran outside.
Well, there’s no need to take risks right now.
“…All right. “Let’s stick together as much as possible.”
“Yes, please sit down and eat some fruit.”
“I don’t know how long this situation will last, but… if you’re hungry, you guys can eat.”
After saying that, Lee Jae-heon leaned his upper body against the uneven wall that looked like tree roots were tangled together. Choi Min-hong and Jang Seo-ah, who were creating a cute scene near the azalea, looked in this direction, but how dare they. When I waved my hand to signal that they should not come near, I saw their slightly sullen faces.
‘Why are all the minors in this neighborhood like this?’
Choi Min-hong’s father is even playing tag with a green algae monster in a park over there, but his son’s expression is just blank, without any sign of concern. It didn’t seem like he was sulking at all, but he was so shameless that I wanted to gently pull on his protruding duck lips.
The young ones. huh? You have already learned only the bad things….
“….”
“….”
“Mister, play with me….”
“Uh-huh.”
“…Hiing.”
“I only learned strange things that I didn’t understand.”
Pretend to be sad by clenching both hands into fists and putting them next to your face. Park Da-young, who was clearly the person who taught me, slightly avoided my gaze and looked outside the pavilion. I was wondering what he was doing with Minhong Choi, and he said he was teaching him things like that. Even though I failed the map once. What was funny was that the child next to him, Jang Seo-ah, also secretly imitated Choi Min-hong, as if he knew something.
Azalea, who was quietly watching this, opened her mouth with a rare smile.
“Hey, these cute babies are asking you to play with them, but you’re ignoring them. “Be merciless.”
“Why do you… do you sweet babies have nightmares at night?”
“How could a person be so strangely twisted…”
Lee Jae-heon, who listened with one ear and let it out with the other, closed his eyes and turned his head away. I knew that the quiet laughter was making fun of me, but I didn’t have the energy to respond. How can I have any energy if I don’t have anything going my way?
Just catch one real number. Just one case….
* * *
“…uh uh…uh.”
And in the afternoon as the day begins to set. About two days after the incident occurred.
“…Oh man. mister…!”
“Come in here quickly.”
Eventually something happened.
This is why people go through mourning. Lee Jae-heon was impressed.
