Episode 263:
It was getting slightly dark when the search team that went to the convenience store returned.
“I was worried because I thought you wouldn’t come back until evening.”
“No, we are looking for a monster repellent…”
“Yes? “Are you saying there are people like that other than Garam Yoon?”
“Monsters were avoiding Trooper Kim Yeon-woo. “I think it’s probably limited to monsters in that shopping mall.”
“I don’t know if it’s fortunate or what.”
Jaeheon Lee, who had a light conversation with Inho Jeong, asked while looking at the food in the other person’s hands.
“So how was the convenience store? “The atmosphere must have been different in each store.”
“Ah… that.”
what.
“There was nothing special. The first place I stopped by was completely empty, and the third place I stopped by was full of monsters. At least the second place I stopped by was worth going to…”
“I did.”
“It was a barter system. You can trade clothes or accessories by giving them your cell phone. “You can use cash, but it’s less efficient.”
Jaeheon Lee looked closely at the protagonist’s face.
‘Why are these bastards avoiding my gaze?’
Not only the main character, but also the entire search team was in that state.
They may seem like they don’t show off to others, but even though they have grown, they are still just middle-aged chicks. There’s no way you wouldn’t notice the slightly blurred focus or the momentary shaking of the pupils. Lee Jae-heon thought as he pressed his head, which was numb due to the fever.
Seeing this, it seems like he decided that it was related to my safety. Then…
“…I see. I think some people brought their entire wallets with them. “If you can use cash, it would be a good idea to save it.”
It was probably a convenience store that could also sell organs.
‘You probably thought I would sell my organs to buy food.’
Even if they are not located near schools, convenience stores often appear in the story, and several of them have stores where you can exchange goods and body parts in this way. I remember even in the original novel, when the protagonist felt like he was going to die because he had nothing to eat, he would step forward and offer up something like his ring finger. The fourth finger.
Of course, Jaeheon Lee had no intention of going that far. If I had to, I could just go back to the park and hunt fish, so why do something like that?
“I thought some clothes were missing, so that’s how you exchanged them?”
“Yeah, you’re not really surprised. “I think you’ve been to a similar convenience store like this before.”
“What am I…”
Jaeheon Lee felt embarrassed to be talking for no reason, so he poked the main character.
“There are convenience stores where you can trade in body parts, so I’ve often used them.”
“…aha.”
“You can adapt pretty quickly even if you don’t have a ring finger, and the tongue doesn’t kill you just because it doesn’t make it difficult to eat… There are other organs that are not related to survival, right? “I understand that the spleen, cecum, kidneys, tonsils… and gallbladder are fine.”
“You gave it all.”
“Well, parts like the tongue are priced higher. If you live without your tongue just once, you won’t have to worry about food for quite some time. “But don’t worry, I won’t ask you to give it to me.”
“Haha….”
“Did you bring anything else besides this? “It would be nice if it was high in calories.”
The main character let out his characteristic disgusting laugh, but Lee Jae-heon just ignored it. No matter how thoughtless he may be, would he sacrifice his body? Although it was difficult to get to the park right now and food supply was urgent, I didn’t make such a foolish decision. Frankly, such a long-term trading system was very inefficient.
The most efficient convenience stores are those with no monsters or systems and only a bunch of products left. The rest of the convenience stores were all structured so that the survivors suffered losses in some way, so it was better to find food in the wild whenever possible. There are some fruits that are highly effective in eliminating hunger when eaten.
“…Ah, did you say there was an empty convenience store?”
The protagonist nodded in response to Lee Jae-heon’s question, which reminded him of the original content of the novel.
“Yes, when I looked from the outside, there was nothing there so I just passed by. “I knew there were convenience stores elsewhere, so I didn’t think there was a need to set foot there.”
“Well done. “Even if I went in, I wouldn’t have been able to find anything good.”
If the shelves look empty from the outside, you have to go inside to find the right products. A convenience store warehouse. Even if you enter after defeating the monster guarding the warehouse, you can only carry one item per person. I didn’t know exactly what was inside, but it was foolish to fight the monster just to get one item each.
“The monster… I didn’t see it. “It was literally empty.”
“It’s probably tinkling in the back of the warehouse.”
“Aha….”
“And a place full of monsters will be where you can purchase items equal to the number of monsters you kill. In fact, even if you do that, there are some cases where they don’t give you the product, so in the end, I think you went to the most acceptable convenience store. Thank you for your effort.”
“That was the most ordinary convenience store.”
Is it because he was told to give something to him that he made such a bitter expression? eye? teeth?
“…Well then, why don’t you get some rest. “We will organize the items you brought.”
“Then thank you, but Manager, please rest.”
“I’ve had a lot of rest… Isn’t it time to let go?”
“Why aren’t we moving to the park?”
“You disgusting bastard.”
Jeong In-ho, who was smiling at Lee Jae-heon’s words, soon looked around and opened his mouth.
“But the atmosphere seems a little chaotic?”
“Is it possible to not be messy in the other world?”
“No, it feels a little different than that…”
Jeong In-ho’s eyes landed on a certain place.
“…Why is it here?”
“Oh, that’s it. “The dog feels bad when he hears it.”
“That’s not even a dog.”
It was none other than the Pompitz monster.
“You really followed me here…?”
“How kind and gentle. “I came all the way here because I wanted to see people.”
“No, Manager. “That kind and gentle guy is eating away at our mental strength.”
“Isn’t that why it’s stuck in the corner over there?”
“That sound… it’s crazy.”
Kiing.
The survivors’ shoulders shrank at the sound of the Pompitz monster.
“Do you see that? Kwon Yeon-hee is sweating and trying not to look over there. “If that guy cries even once, our mental strength will be greatly reduced.”
“We tried to kick them out too.”
“Why don’t you kill me?”
“Because killing takes more mental strength. I tried to break up as amicably as possible, but they ended up staying there? “Then what should I do? I should just leave it alone.”
“Does this make sense…”
Jeong In-ho exhaled slowly and looked back at Lee Jae-heon.
“…I hate to tell you this, but I wonder if you’re really possessed.”
“Did my condition look bad enough to be possessed by a dog monster?”
“Honestly, yes. It doesn’t look that bad.”
The protagonist stared intently with his characteristic black eyes, but Lee Jae-heon also had nothing to say.
“…It’s a shame it looks like that.”
Because it’s true that I was possessed.
‘No matter how much their mental strength is diminished, it’s strange that they don’t kill it and leave it alone.’
Most monsters lose their mental strength as soon as they are killed, but unlike those survivors, Lee Jae-heon was able to maintain calm. However, the reason Lee Jae-heon could not kill it and left it alone could be said to be because he remembered something from that monster. It meant that I myself knew that my condition was quite serious.
Jeong In-ho’s face hardened at Lee Jae-heon’s words.
“…Are you serious? “You don’t deny this?”
“What can I do? My condition is just like this. Even if you kick that friend out, I won’t stop you.”
“You won’t even agree. “I really didn’t know it would be this bad.”
“Did you think it was me?”
“Wow, how did this really happen…”
The protagonist, who was left dumbfounded, and the search team, who found out about the situation belatedly, tried hard to chase away the monster, but Pompitz repeatedly ran away for a moment and then sneakily returned to the survivors. Even if you tried to kill it, you would often miss the opportunity due to the Pompitz monster’s unique whining sound.
Seeing the search team like that, Yoon Garam said with a soft smile.
“We didn’t stay quiet for no reason, guys.”
“…I guess so.”
Kang Min-ah patted Jeong In-ho’s shoulder with gritted teeth as if she felt sorry for him. Lee Jae-heon, who was appreciating the situation as much comfort as a senior who had already had a fight with that poor monster, just smiled.
“Isn’t life going your way, Assistant Manager Jeong?”
“Please… don’t be so harsh on a possessed subject.”
“Huh, there is no such thing as a low level.”
“Why are you doing this to me?”
“Chief Kang, this guy’s mental health is broken, so put him down somewhere.”
The mental strength that was lost by going to the language school to rescue students, getting items from a convenience store, and facing a monster abandoned dog has finally shined. Kang Min-ah, who was looking at the sobbing figure of Jeong In-ho with sympathetic eyes, carefully guided him and laid him down on a simple bed. Jeong In-ho must have been so tired that he couldn’t refuse it.
Lee Jae-heon approached Ha Seong-yoon, who was just looking at him with a smile, and asked.
“Can I not rest?”
“I only look at the patient’s affected area.”
“….”
“Don’t run away, come here before you get really angry.”
“…what did I do….”
“You did a lot.”
Lee Jae-heon, who was unable to escape Ha Seong-yoon’s grasp, eventually nodded with a resigned heart.
“Let’s at least do it where people can’t see.”
“Wasn’t it all revealed anyway? “Do we really need to hide it like that?”
“Isn’t there a difference between what you hear and what you see?”
“I happened to meet a patient like this.”
Then, seeing Ha Seong-yoon looking next to Lee Jae-heon, Lee Jae-heon also turned his head in that direction, but again, there was nothing. I don’t know what I saw with those glassy eyes, but I felt uneasy for no reason.
“…What are you doing? “I think you’re seeing something strange again.”
“No, just a character destroyer for a moment.”
“….”
Ah, my past life.
“…A person with a broken character. “It feels strange to hear it.”
“Isn’t that what you said to the teacher? “Just pass it over. I don’t know why you would even defend such a person.”
“No, no, no, no matter what…”
When I heard him say it, it seemed like I was really seeing Lee Jae-heon’s past life. I had a similar experience when I was at the park, so it wasn’t a very unusual or strange situation, but Jae-Heon Lee was still upset. No matter how much he was reincarnated, his previous life was almost identical to Lee Jae-heon’s original form.
Lee Jae-heon asked, pressing the area between his eyes.
“Rather… may I ask what happened last time?”
“It’s a question that clearly shows a desire to change the subject. Do you like that person that much? really? “Do you know that that friend is laughing at me right now?”
“…I will apologize for that instead.”
“Why are you apologizing instead? This is really Stockholm syndrome….”
“Oh, kind of.” “I asked because I was really curious.”
Ha Seong-yoon glanced at Lee Jae-heon’s face and answered with a smile on his lips.
“It’s obvious. “On our way back to the park, we were killed by a monster.”
It’s surprising that he didn’t wait for Park Da-hoon, but he must have been quite tired.
“…There was such a dangerous monster?”
“Rather than that, it was probably a matter of mentality. Right after we lost a lot of people at school. It almost looks like something hit the riverside… “I don’t know the exact circumstances because my eyes were attacked in the middle.”
I roughly understood it.
‘I wasn’t there either, so I probably thought it would be better to go to the park.’
The reason they are still resting on the mountain behind the school is because ‘Jaeheon Lee’ judged that he did not have the energy to move to the park. If it weren’t for that, it would have been a much better situation to go back to the park, so I wondered if they had made that decision last time as well.
“It was convenient that I was dead. “I definitely don’t have a lump of luggage…”
“Sir.”
“…I made a mistake.”
“Why are you avoiding my gaze?”
“I made a mistake, I’m sorry. “I won’t.”
However, Ha Seong-yoon’s stinging gaze showed no signs of abating, and eventually Lee Jae-heon shouted.
“…I can’t even estimate my own worth! “Then what do you say when you call a lump of luggage a burden?”
The survivors’ bodies trembled at that, but they did not come into the field of vision of Lee Jae-heon, who was out of his mind from the injustice. All I could see was Ha Seong-yoon’s warm face, clicking his tongue in front of me.
“Honestly, isn’t it true that I am preventing the smooth movement of survivors?”
“Why are you punishing me for buying something like this?…”
“Of course, I’m not a burden. It’s because you guys have a lot of unnecessary worries. “I can still go to the park…!”
“This is such nonsense. Are you aware that you made a statement with a strange context?”
“I’m so wronged…!”
“Shut your mouth.”
The smile disappeared from Ha Seong-yoon’s face.
“Come this way.”
“….”
“Before the wound gets worse.”
He couldn’t bear to say, ‘It’s a wound inflicted by a real-life monster, so it won’t last that long.’ Lee Jae-heon instinctively realized that if he talked any more, he would be ruined without any help, so he quietly grabbed Ha Seong-yoon’s hand.
Team leader Woo Soo-young was looking at this with confused eyes.
