Walking Daddy

I ran toward him as I looked around.

“Han-Sol, where’s Hyeong-Jun?” I asked.

“Oh, you’re back…”

Do Han-Sol sighed and smacked his lips, then scratched his head.

“He went to the enemy base,” he said.

"What?"

‘He ran into enemy territory…?’

I had a hard time understanding what he was saying. It all seemed so incoherent. As I titled my head in confusion, Do Han-Sol told me in detail what had happened while I’d been away. My jaw fell open once I heard the whole story.

He was taking the saying ‘keep your friends close, but your enemies closer’ literally. But no matter how strong he was, it wasn’t smart of him to venture into enemy territory without having any information about their strength.

I grimaced.

“Where’s the enemy base?”

“He said it was the E-Mart in Nohyeong Ogeori… But I don\'t know exactly where that is either. He just ran over that way.”

I set down the four heads I was holding and ran to the passenger terminal at once. I jumped up onto the roof and looked in the direction where Do Han-Sol had pointed. As I did so, I saw a purple figure in the distance, running toward Jeju Airport through the pitch-black darkness.

It was Kim Hyeong-Jun. I frowned and ran toward him.

“What were you thinking, running to the enemy base!”

Kim Hyeong-Jun looked at me sullenly.

“Ahjussi, you don’t have to raise your voice right away,” he said.

However, he looked away as he spoke, as though he knew he’d done something wrong. I massaged my temples gently and let out a deep sigh. When I opened my eyes again, I saw three heads in his hands.

“What are those?”

“What do you mean, what are these? I took care of them.”

“You killed all three of them by yourself?”

“There weren’t even any zombies with blue eyes. They all had red eyes. Oh right, I also learned something about the Hounds. How about we speak inside?”

Kim Hyeong-Jun gave a sly smile and strutted over to Jeju Airport. I grabbed his shirt.

“Don’t do something like this again,” I said, “If you do, I’m not going to forgive you.”

"My bad,” he replied, grimacing and hanging his head. “But I really couldn\'t help it. If I hadn\'t attacked them first, I\'m sure they would’ve surrounded us.”

I took another deep breath and smacked my lips.

"Well… Let’s go back and talk for now.”

“So, you’re not mad anymore, right?”

“I’m not in the mood for any more jokes.”

I clicked my tongue and headed for Jeju Airport.

When Kim Hyeong-Jun took care of things his way, it always turned out well, but it also always left others worried. Perhaps calling him impulsive would be a better way to explain his actions. I… I couldn’t scold him for what he’d done, but at the same time, I couldn\'t compliment him about it either. He sure knew how to tire people out.

Despite this, Kim Hyeong-Jun was walking toward Jeju Airport with a spring in his step. I wondered if he thought I’d forgiven him. I narrowed my eyes and slapped him on the back.

“Ow! Ahjussi! Why’d you hit me?”

“Watch how you’re walking! Don’t bounce around like that and fall down.”

“You could’ve just said it without hitting me, ahjussi.”

“I gave you a smack because I can’t hate you, but I also can’t just praise you for what you did, you fool.”

“Huh? You’re acting like an ahjussi…”

“You call me ahjussi all the time anyway.”

I shook my head and kept on walking toward Jeju Airport.

* * *

"Hyung-nim! It looks like the scouting party got wiped out!”

"What?"

In a dimly lit room, a man sitting on a couch frowned at the unexpected report from his subordinate. The subordinate smacked his lips and continued with his report.

“They were gone for a long time, so I went to check, but all I saw were zombies standing still on the street, looking into the distance.”

“What do you mean? What’s wrong with zombies just standing there?”

"It\'s a problem because those zombies were their underlings!”

The man on the couch frowned and raised his voice.

“What kind of nonsense are you saying? They had over two thousand underlings; are you saying that they’re all dead?”

The subordinate looked back in confusion.

“I saw them crystal clear. I’m certain that the zombies were their underlings. No doubt about it. And why would zombies be standing still at this time of the day? They should be running around late at night.”

“Where’d you find them…?”

“I saw them in front of the rental car company before Yongyeon Valley.”

“Are you sure they\'re part of our forces? You know we don’t control that part of the island.”

“I didn’t see our guys within our territory, so I went all the way out there to look for them.”

The man on the couch gently rubbed his chin as he pondered the situation. A little later, he spoke up.

“Perhaps it was the Jeju Defense Unit?”

"I… Personally, I don\'t think so.”

"Why."

"Remember how I fought them when I was in Songnanpo-gu, out in the east?”

“Of course I do. You almost died back then,” replied the man on the couch with a smirk.

His subordinate flashed a sheepish smile.

“At that time, if it hadn’t been for you, I would really have died. I know they got away because you were trying to save me. I’m forever grateful and sorry when I think about what happened back then.”

“It’s okay, man. So what are you trying to say?”

“At that time, the red-eyed zombie from the Jeju Defense Unit was strong… But I don’t remember him being strong enough to take down four of our people at once.”

"Then… You think someone else intervened?”

"Exactly.”

The man on the couch scratched his head, momentarily lost in thought. After contemplating for a bit, he spoke up.

"If he’s that strong, it’ll be dangerous for us to make a move right now.”

"Pardon? Hyung-nim, I\'m sure the Northwest Gang will try to creep up on us once they find out that we’ve lost our scouts. I\'d rather go to the rental car company right now and take care of him.”

“No, Mung-Tae, you stay and be on guard. Tell Jjang-Dol to conceal himself near the rental car company at six in the morning tomorrow to prepare for an ambush.”

The man named Mung-Tae tilted his head.

“Six in the morning, hyung-nim?” he asked.

The boss of the Northeast Gang scratched his neck and began to explain why he specifically mentioned six in the morning.

“Think about it. Whoever it was, whether it was the Jeju Defense Unit or someone else who intervened, they\'ll pass by the same road again. Now, do you think they’ll move at night or in the morning?”

"Ah!"

“If they fought the scouts… They must be very nervous by now. We’ll wait until the sun comes up, and once they get tired, that’s when we get them.”

The boss of the Northeast Gang delivered his speech with a smirk on his face.

“Hyung-nim! I knew you had a plan,” said Mung-Tae, his voice full of admiration. “I’ll do as you say!”

“Alright, then go speak to Jjang-Dol now. Make sure that Jjang-Dol finds a place to hide before dawn.”

“Yes, hyung-nim!”

As Mung-Tae disappeared, the boss of the Northeast Gang scratched his nose and muttered to himself, “Whoever you are, I’ve got you in the bag.”

His confidence was through the roof.

* * *

All the leaders were gathered inside the military cargo plane. I told them what Heo Seong-Min had said. The leaders looked at one another, then looked at Lee Jeong-Uk at once. Realizing that all the focus was on him, Lee Jeong-Uk scratched his forehead.

“The decision… Is up to me, I assume?” he said.

“Yes. The leader should make the final call.”

Hwang Ji-Hye smiled as she sat down on the ground. Park Gi-Cheol, who had been leaning against the window, spoke up.

“Whatever choice you make, we’ll follow. Don’t overthink it. Just let us know what you think, just like how you’ve been doing until now.”

“If I’m being honest… I agree with Lee Hyun-Deok’s opinion. And besides, they have already expressed their desire to join forces with us.”

Lee Jeong-Uk answered as if joining forces with them wasn’t a big deal. Bae Jeong-Man, who had been listening quietly, spoke up.

“Have you considered the possibility that they’re just acting? Don’t you think it’s more than possible that they’re acting considerate, or pretending to be human? I say we just keep an eye on them in the meantime and come to a decision later on.”

No one spoke up in opposition to Bae Jeong-Man. They all seemed to be mulling over his words seriously. Lee Jeong-Uk looked around at the leaders and spoke up.

“Who do you think chose the people in our group so far?”

“...”

“Think about it. Who’s judgment have we relied on?”

Bae Jeong-Man glanced at me as he cleared his throat.

“We’ve mostly followed… Lee Hyun-Deok’s judgment so far.”

Lee Jeong-Uk nodded slowly.

"Yes, exactly,” he continued. “So far, his judgment hasn’t been wrong. If Mr. Lee Hyun-Deok made the decision to join forces with the Jeju Defense Unit, I’ll wager they are reliable people.”

At Lee Jeong-Uk’s words, the leaders all took deep breaths, and their body language suggested that they agreed with him. Choi Da-Hye, who was standing by the hatch of the plane, spoke up.

“So in short, we go to Hotel L, meet the Jeju Defense Unit there, and stay with them, right?”

"Exactly,” Lee Jeong-Uk said with a nod.

Choi Da-Hye shrugged.

"Then everything’s sorted out. Is there more we have to talk about?”

No one spoke. Instead of refuting her, Kim Beom-Jin nodded and offered words of support.

“There’s only so much we can do when it comes to sleeping on the planes. Also, it’ll be difficult to defend against a zombie attack, since there isn’t much we can use as cover around here.”

Everyone seemed to be in agreement. Hwang Deok-Rok, who was standing in the corner, raised his right hand.

“Well then, the question is, can we move this many people at the moment or not?”

Lee Jeong-Uk interlaced his fingers.

“Is anyone among us sick? If there’s anyone who has difficulties moving at the moment, please let me know right now. We can make plans accordingly.”

Hwang Deok-Rok shook his head.

“That’s not what I mean,” he said.

"Then?”

“Mr. Lee Hyun-Deok and Mr. Kim Hyeong-Jun turned all of their underlings into mutants, and Mr. Do Han-Sol only has two hundred underlings left. But there are five hundred survivors here. There’s bound to be a gap when we move.”

After listening to Hwang Deok-Rok, Lee Jeong-Uk looked over at me.

“Mr. Lee Hyun-Deok, what are you going to do about this?” he asked.

“I knew this would happen, and so I brought some reinforcements from the Jeju Defense Unit.”

I told them to wait a second, then opened the hatch and went out onto the runway. Immediately, my eyes fell on Kim Dae-Young, who was standing on the runway. I could tell he was waiting for the meeting to end.

“Kim Dae-Young!”

“Ah, yes!”

Kim Dae-Young quickly came to my side when I called him. When I went back into the military transport plane with Kim Dae-Young, all the leaders looked at me. Their expressions seemed to demand an explanation. I looked around the room, meeting each person’s gaze, then sighed and began to speak.

“This is Kim Dae-Young. I formed an alliance with him just a while ago. If everyone could please greet him.”

“Oh, hello! My name is Kim Dae-Young.”

Kim Dae-Young smiled awkwardly as he stared at the others. He seemed embarrassed to be in the limelight. Kim Hyeong-Jun noted his stiffness and raised his eyebrows.

“It seems like we automatically formed an alliance with him, just like when you formed an alliance with Do Han-Sol, ahjussi. Is it because you’re the strongest or something?” he asked.

“Hyeong-Jun, we’re in a meeting.”

“Oh, yes.”

Kim Hyeong-Jun smacked his lips and nodded. Do Han-Sol, who was next to him, spoke up.

“Did the alliance succeed?”

“Does he look purple to you too?”

"Yes."

“Then yes, it succeeded.”

The successful alliance meant that Kim Dae-Young was on the same team as us. If he had other intentions, he would appear red, not purple. Lee Jeong-Uk quietly crossed his arms and looked at me.

“So, Mr. Lee Hyun-Deok, are you saying that Mr. Kim Dae-Young will escort us?”

"Yes. Alliances between zombies are not that simple. We have to have the same goals in order to recognize each other as purple beings.”

Lee Jeong-Uk nodded at my explanation and addressed the other leaders.

“Then it seems like we have a plan.”

“Let’s go to the L Hotel immediately. Gather the survivors on the runway.”

"Got it!"

The leaders responded vigorously and opened the hatch of the military transport plane. The cold winter wind, driven by the sea breeze, was blowing strongly. I couldn’t tell the difference in temperature, but the survivors\' noses quickly turned red. The children blew on each other as they tried to fight off the cold using each other\'s warmth.

As I saw them shivering, I called Do Han-Sol and Kim Dae-Young over. As the two came to my side, I looked at the survivors.

“The night wind’s chilly,” I said. “Let’s have your underlings carry the survivors on their backs and move.”

Do Han-Sol’s eyes widened.

"Pardon? You want our underlings to carry the survivors on their backs?”

It seemed like he still didn’t trust his underlings. However, despite his worry, we already had successful instances of them carrying survivors safely, and we also knew that we could control them. The pitch-black darkness would also hinder the survivor’s movements. I knew it would be better to make the underlings carry the survivors on their backs and be able to move quickly.

I nodded.

“Although the zombies show some aversion, they\'ve never attacked the survivors,” I said. “You already know that, since you’ve seen it with your own two eyes in Gwangjang-dong.”

“How about heading out tomorrow morning?”

“The Hounds must’ve figured out where the Jeju Defense Unit is already. It’s best to move before they come up with a counterattack. There’s no good in wasting time.”

I laid out our current situation calmly, which seemed to convince Do Han-Sol. He and Kim Dae-Young gathered their underlings together and ordered each of them to carry one survivor. The zombies that displayed any excessive reaction were swapped out.

We paid peculiar attention to each zombie as we made them carry the survivors, and finally got each of the five hundred survivors onto a zombie. I gave individual orders to Kim Hyeong-Jun, Do Han-Sol, and Kim Dae-Young.

“Hyeong-Jun, you look after the survivors from the rear. If you see any zombie that shows any sort of reaction to carrying the survivors, it’s up to you to decide what you want to do with it. Han-Sol, you take the right side, and Dae-Young, you take the left.”

The three acknowledged in firm voices, and moved to their respective positions. After checking on the survivors and zombies one more time, I took a deep breath.

“We’re leaving!” I shouted.

When we made the trip from Seoul forest to Gwangjang-dong, the survivors had to walk on their own because we weren’t certain what was going to happen, however, as we gradually accumulated information on what worked and didn’t, it made it possible to move more efficiently.

My blue eyes flashed as I heightened my five senses. I had to stay alert, since I was leading the entire group, and because I had to keep an eye out for any potential zombies that could pop out from nowhere.

I was going to lead the Survivor Rally Organization along the best and safest route.