Episode 71
Director Kang, who was staring at Lee Jae-heon’s words, hesitated and answered.
“But it hasn’t been long since you woke up…”
“Why are you so dissatisfied when I say I will take care of my body?”
“…Wait a minute, I’ll get ready.”
To see if these words were empty, she immediately grabbed the hammer she had lying around. I thought it would be difficult to get used to it as I am an office worker who has rarely had to use a hammer in my life, but the hammer seemed to fit my hand better than expected.
Lee Jae-heon internally narrowed his eyes at the sight of her moving like that and her face brightening slightly.
‘…I felt it last time, but Manager Kang Min-ah was surprisingly…’
It wasn’t particularly average.
In the novel, she dies in one cue and it’s only at the beginning of the story, so I didn’t think too much about it, but Chief Kang Min-ah’s thoughts, who survived contrary to her original fate, seemed a little different from those of an ordinary person.
Of course, that doesn’t mean he isn’t timid, and his curiosity is still vaguely strong, and it seems like he might cause trouble, but there were times when I felt a strange sense of déjà vu. Just like I felt from the expression on their face when they met again after a long chase with the green algae monster.
“Manager, I’m sorry to keep asking you such inconvenient questions, but are you really going to move? really…?”
“…Do you remember that we moved together before I went to sleep? “It was moving back then, but only now, so long ago?”
“But…”
Kang Min-ah looked very dissatisfied, but Lee Jae-heon waved his hand.
“Okay, just go. “No one died, I just slept for a long time, so what’s the problem?”
“Isn’t that the problem…?”
“How dare an intern interrupt the manager’s conversation?”
“I’m sorry…?”
Look at how that bastard intervened and said he would take the side of the person he likes.
Lee Jae-heon’s expression naturally rotted. It was an inevitable choice to strengthen that fragile mentality, but I wondered if I had mentioned the subtle current between the two for no reason. To be honest, it was eye-opening to see myself filming a romance story while other people were filming a survival story.
‘Still, I have to make a move with Kang Min-ah.’
I’m still not sure exactly what the difference is, but the sooner I can figure it out, the better for Lee Jae-heon.
Because we need to reduce the variables in the plan.
“…I’m not going to the small lake right away, so don’t pack your bags, right?”
“Oh then…?”
“I’m going to pick up some wood and make a simple trap. “Enough to fit a fish.”
“Fish….”
“Wouldn’t you like to catch something?”
what.
Anyway, I have to eat.
“Teacher, I heard something strange.”
“Oh, kinda.”
“So where are you going?”
* * *
I came to this park because it was safer than other places, but in fact, it wasn’t that monster-free. It just seems that they are more gentle than the monsters in the building.
“…I think this will be enough.”
“Can you make a trap with something like this?”
“To be exact, it’s a fish trap, but whatever.”
The representative monsters in these parks are roughly divided into four types depending on the area.
The first thing that comes to mind is the green algae monster in the large lake located to the right of the main gate. Although it is a monster like the final boss of a park episode, it does not appear often in the beginning of the episode.
The main character group in the novel also entered through the main gate, but it is expected that they did not encounter the green algae monster because none of them smelled of blood and they were not located near a large lake. In the first place, Lee Jae-heon himself may have been induced to check the number of deaths, so unlike the novel, there is a reason why he was plagued by a green algae monster as soon as he came to the park.
Now that they have taken shelter in a place outside the area of the large lake, they probably won’t be disturbed.
“Didn’t anything strange attack you while you were there?”
“Uh… Come to think of it, it’s been quiet these days. Sometimes vines come close to us, but we take care of that…” “
Yes, you guys are also doing this thing called growth. “The manager is happy.”
“…I’m sorry….”
“…Did I swear?”
There are many exceptions, but most monsters are active within their own territory during the day.
At night, it becomes more active and goes around to bite survivors, but when the sun is up, it is quite understandable why the green algae monster, which rarely comes out of the water, is quiet. The middle of the park where they were located was not a habitat for any monsters, so it could be considered safe.
Unlike us, I am a little worried about those who have taken shelter in an unsafe place.
‘Is there a monster of an abandoned dog living near the pavilion?’
The abandoned dog monster that Employee Kwon previously encountered is one of the park’s representative monsters.
“Can’t you see those damn bastards?”
“…I thought you were swearing… Um, yes. I can’t see them well either. Manager, he… didn’t come even when he was sleeping.”
“I’m glad I didn’t get chewed up and eaten while I was asleep.”
“….”
“…I was just kidding.”
“You said that was a joke…?”
I don’t remember exactly, but I remembered a description of people being frequently attacked by monster monsters after the two groups of survivors merged. I don’t know if they only live near the pavilion, but it is an undeniable fact that there are a lot of monsters around there.
And if there is another representative monster….
‘The centipede monster in the flower garden.’
It is a monster that swallows people whole if they touch even a single flower petal.
In the novel, the original doctor Ha Seong-yoon died and there were no professional medical personnel, so an old woman with miscellaneous knowledge took his place. She said that there were many useful edible herbs and herbs in the flower garden.
“Chief, you should stop making pointless jokes and finish your work quickly.”
“Hey, I’m surprised. “When did you come?”
“Since you started talking nonsense. “You are the only one who knows how to make a fish trap, so I will stay still, but will I still be able to do that after I finish my work?”
“It’s hard to make a living.”
“Why don’t you know that you are making it that way yourself…”
“Is it like this because I want to be like this?”
It’s a shame that Dr. Ha Seong-yoon is alive now and I know the location of the hospital where he worked, but I didn’t even know that in the original novel. There were so many people who needed to go to the hospital, but they didn’t know exactly where they were.
Thanks to this, exactly three people died on the spot when they went up to get medicinal herbs based on the opinion of an old woman who often stopped by the flower garden in the park.
‘Did you say it was the shortest record?’
In the end, they were unable to find medicinal herbs in the flower garden, and the place where they happened to find medicine was none other than a small lake. Since the monsters were not very threatening, it was also the easiest place to find food.
However, the problem was that there were no monsters there either.
‘Water snake monster.’
It was the last of the park’s signature monsters.
“….”
“Actually, I’m also opposed to visiting a small lake. You know, right? “It makes me want to take handcuffs from the detective I ran into the other day and tie them up here.”
“…Say…Why…are you doing that? It’s so scary.”
“If this was my hospital and you were my patient, I wouldn’t have left it like this. Even if he wasn’t my patient, he would have invaded, considering the criticism he received. I am sending it this way because of the special nature of the situation, but please keep in mind that if something happens, I will not send it to you in any way. “If you change your mind even now, just stay where you are and I will come back.”
“….”
“Just try not to get hurt this time. Just come back and sleep for another 3 days or bleed. “Keep in mind that I backed off because you didn’t vomit blood this time.”
“…I will keep this in mind.”
“Why are we putting up with this?”
Jaeheon Lee pretended not to notice and avoided his gaze.
Anyway… it looks quite dangerous since it is a water snake, but it is a much safer monster than the previous three monsters. There was no significant damage during the game.
The green algae monster communicates with plant-type monsters and sucks the blood of its prey until it dies, the abandoned dog monster drives people crazy with its disgusting barrage of affection, and the centipede monster in the flower garden gulps and swallows its flowers whole as soon as they touch them. These guys had to be prepared to suffer losses if their eyes met.
‘On the other hand, the water snake monster in the small lake has quite manners.’
Unlike most monsters that are either completely hostile to survivors or on the contrary friendly to them, the water snake monster took a very neutral attitude. It felt like they didn’t stop those coming and didn’t stop those going.
If you look at it, the most dangerous are green algae, centipedes, abandoned dogs, and water snakes…
“…Do you really need to go?”
“You don’t trust me that much?”
“Unfortunately, doctors as a family don’t really trust their patients.”
“….”
“Especially a patient who doesn’t listen like this….”
“I’m sorry. He’s a patient who doesn’t listen.”
There is only one thing to be careful about when dealing with these water snake monsters.
‘You must have a clear sense of purpose.’
It was because he had a knack for bewitching people.
Water snake monsters don’t eat people. It was a monster that neither attacked to cause bloodshed nor committed any direct acts of harm. However, the reason why this monster became the representative monster of the park was because of its terrible captivating ability.
A person affected by it will show extreme greed for water snakes.
“Uncle, there are pebbles under the lake.”
“yes.”
“Could that be a gem? Shall we take it with us when we escape from here? Then you will be rich.”
“…It may seem like a joke, but I can applaud Dayoung’s willpower.”
“Anyway, are you praising me?”
“…Let’s say so…”
Of course, the water snake itself has a very beautiful form, but it is a monster from the other side, so in general, you instinctively feel unpleasant or disgusting, but when you are attracted to it, you throw away everything and fall in love with it. will be.
If it had been a hostile monster, it would have possessed it and eaten it or torn it to death, and if it had been a friendly monster, it would have wrapped its body and not let it out of the water, but the water snake monster was clearly neutral. I just wander around the lake to avoid being caught by humans who are greedy for me. It meant that a person possessed by it would just suffocate without knowing what to do, and would be able to escape as much as he wanted.
It goes without saying, but if possible, it is better not to suffer from hallucinations in the first place. One of the ways to achieve this was to show greed only for what one wanted to obtain from the small lake. When people only show greed for that one thing, they do not hallucinate about the water snake monster.
“….”
Of course, this information may be wrong.
‘How can it be this uncomfortable to be from the protagonist’s point of view?’
The novels he read were all told from the protagonist’s point of view. When I read it, I just thought, ‘Oh, that’s right,’ but now that it’s become a reality, I have to doubt everything that can be doubted.
Lee Jae-heon touched tree branches of various thicknesses and intact string.
“Actually, it’s most convenient to use a plastic bottle, but…”
“Oh, that. Shall I pick it up? Or there is something we originally used.”
“It’s okay. If I had a knife, I would just use my strength.”
If there had been thin thread, I would have set a trap to catch other land animals, but for now, the safest and easiest way was to use a fish trap. That’s the trap that you put under the water’s surface and wait for the fish to enter.
Lee Jae-heon continued speaking while weaving thin tree branches with discarded string.
“In the end, a trap means you can come in but you can’t get out, right?”
Director Kang Min-ah looked strangely surprised at the words that seemed familiar.
“You really speak like an expert in this area….”
“…Have you ever taken Director Kang’s nephew to the valley?”
“Oh no?”
“Do you know what the kids say when they see the fish there? He told me to catch him. “There is probably no expert like me among these.”
“Ah…”
Lee Jae-heon, leaving behind Manager Kang who let out an exclamation of regret or sadness, rolled up the tightly woven tree branches like a funnel. A large funnel and an even bigger funnel were created.
After carefully blocking the end with string and healthy vines, Lee Jae-heon placed a small funnel in the same direction at the mouth of the large funnel. Unlike the end of the large funnel, which was blocked, the end of the small funnel was round and open.
Lee Jae-heon, who had tightly connected the entrances of the two wooden funnels, sighed and said.
“Ta-da, done.”
“Oooh…!”
“oh my god.”
Clap clap clap.
The number of onlookers who had already increased began to clap their hands. It was a fact that anyone could see that among those who looked on in amazement, the Park siblings’ applause was the loudest.
He looked around the completed fish trap with a tired look and opened his mouth.
“I made the craft… but I didn’t have enough bait to put inside. Even if there are fish, I don’t know if I’ll catch them.”
“Where can I catch bugs?”
“Well said, Assistant Manager Jeong. “If you find any earthworms or larvae, please bring some.”
“…A caterpillar?”
“I was thinking of adding fruit, but bugs would be fine too.”
Assistant Manager Jeong’s face turned pale, perhaps because he was reminded of bad memories, such as a caterpillar that tasted like blood, but Jae-heon Lee skillfully decided to pretend not to notice. It was a moment when the accumulated stress was relieved.
He continued speaking calmly.
“Small fish eat maggots, and larger fish eat larvae and earthworms, right? Of course, there are separate worms specifically for fish… but there’s no way something like that would be here.”
“…Are you saying to grab that…?”
“You can just put it in raw, but then there’s a high chance you won’t get caught, right?”
“….”
“I’m tired so I’m afraid you’ll catch me. huh?”
Assistant Manager Jeong In-ho, who was contemplating with his brow furrowed, soon nodded as if he had finally acknowledged that he could not endure like this. It was a gesture as pale as a tired face.
“All right. “I did see something inside the tree bark.”
“Would you like to go together?”
“….”
At the words of Employee Kwon, who was as pale as expected, Jeong In-ho seemed to have hundreds of thousands of concerns for a moment. First of all, I think it was because I felt like it was a recommendation that I did in good conscience.
The protagonist, who was looking at her with his mouth shut, slowly shook his head.
“…it’s okay.”
“oh.”
“It’s a little bittersweet to see you so happy, but since it’s still early in the day, I think it would be better for me to go alone.”
“I wasn’t happy. “You’re mistaken!”
“I guess so…”
Assistant Manager Jeong teased Employee Kwon with a faint smile and then disappeared into the bushes. The other party members looked at Jeong In-ho’s retreating back with sad eyes, but for Lee Jae-heon, it was quite a funny situation.
He thought to himself incredulously.
‘You guys would have lived off bugs anyway if I hadn’t been there…’
That’s right, the main character and his companions in the novel survived on bugs in the beginning.
Well, did he have the spirit or skill to hunt properly? It was easy to guess that since it was literally just a matter of getting nutrients to survive, there would not have been time to cover up anything.
Seeing the clear difference from now, Lee Jae-heon quietly wiped the corners of his mouth and then spoke.
“But boss.”
“…iced coffee! yes. Please speak.”
“Do you remember the size of the fish in the small lake… in the original park before you came here?”
“Size?”
“This trap is only for big guys.”
The fish trap he currently made was almost as big as the upper body of an adult man. This means that fish of a certain size will be trapped and will not be able to come out, but minnows will never be caught.
Of course, I made it like this because I remembered the size described in the novel, but I don’t know about people.
‘I said it was big enough to hold with both hands and tear it open… but it could have been a small fish caught with both hands.’
If so, Jaeheon Lee had done something in vain.
If the fish were small enough to pass through the hole in the small funnel, it would not be possible to catch the water snake monster with this bucket, so it had to be thrown away.
President Yoon responded by shaking his head.
“No, it’s okay! Among the kids living in the small lake, there were some colored carp… Well, there were some small ones, but most of them were big. “In my memory.”
“Fortunately, the.”
I was really fortunate.
‘Because it took several hours just to make this.’
It was still daylight, but it would probably be evening soon after a little more time. Manager Jeong has that much sense, so he’ll be back before the sun sets…
Lee Jae-heon muttered while looking at the fish trap I made.
“…I will have to install it in the evening.”
“…yes?”
“Not all, but there are fish that try to hide during the night.”
Should we call it a survival instinct to avoid being eaten by predators? Among the fish that were active during the day, there were some that tried to hide at night.
Of course, there is also the exact opposite.
“But it’s been a while since we ate meat. Do you know that if you put a trap in, you will catch fish right away? “This also requires patience.”
“….”
“Think about Employee Kwon. Aren’t you hungry tomorrow? Are you confident that you can just suck on that soft lump? “Don’t you miss the taste of chewing now?”
“…they’re delicious and good too.”
“really? Are you confident that you won’t think about fish grilled on a bonfire? Oil is just dripping…”
“Ahh, stop it, Manager!”
Employee Kwon, who was trying to hold on somehow, collapsed to the floor. Well, it had been a while since I came to the other side of the world, so I was probably hungry for meat.
To begin with, there were many good restaurants near our company, and from what he remembered, the marketing department where Kwon worked was a department that often held company dinners. The atmosphere of the team itself was very good, and the marketing job itself was perfect for setting up a meal, so Kwon Yeon-hee, an employee there, must have had quite a stomachache.
A guy like that came to this strange world, surviving on a few snacks and filling his stomach with water. Recently, he ate fruit that barely contained any sugar. At first, I may have been preoccupied with the threat to my survival, but now I began to think about meat.
Yeonhee Kwon was struggling, hitting the floor.
“Ugh, how hard was it for me to remember the tripe… but the manager was making fun of me…!”
“….”
“Ugh, I want to eat meat…! “I want to eat pork belly with ssamjang and roll it up in lettuce!”
To be honest, I stimulated it on purpose because I wanted to see this kind of enthusiastic reaction.
‘He’s such an odd chick.’
Lee Jae-heon smiled happily and continued.
“Oh, you’re making fun of me. I was just kindly bringing back memories. Why is Budae Jjigae on our side of the alley….”
“Ahhhh I can’t hear, I can’t hear!”
“Wood peaks … Maratang ….”
“Ah ah ah ah ah!”
