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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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“Whoa! Whoa!” The taxi driver, having witnessed the same scene, cried out in alarm. He wasn’t the only one. Every driver on the road was stunned. Some were even getting out of their cars.
Human-like beasts were chasing people. These beasts chased people into buildings, into shops, and across sidewalks. And some were running towards the main road where I was.
A driver who had gotten out of his car, for some inexplicable reason, was filming the street with his phone. A beast leaped over the cars and pounced on him. Screams, both male and female, erupted from all directions. It was pandemonium.
My heart was pounding in my chest. I was too shocked to think straight.
“Ah, mister! I’m getting out!” I stammered and jumped out of the taxi. “Sir! Wait! It’s dangerous!”
That’s why I was getting out!
I didn’t know what I would do once I was out, but I knew I couldn’t stay there. My mind was a whirlwind of confusion.
I saw the driver who had been attacked by the human-like beast slowly getting back on his feet, trembling.
Dangerous.
“Shit, shit, shit!”
I bolted across the next lane, weaving frantically between the cars. As I ran towards the sidewalk, people surged in the same direction alongside me.
“Aaargh!”
“Get out of the way! Shit!”
“Kyaaa!”
Screams pierced the air around me. I ran like a madman along the sidewalk, the road at my side. Buildings and shops lined my right, the main road to my left.
The human-shaped beasts were on the main road.
I didn’t know why I was running this way. I could have turned right and gotten away from the road, but why was I still running along it?
“Huff, huff, huff, huff.”
I didn’t know.
I didn’t know anything!
I heard a crashing sound behind me, like something had fallen.
“Aaaaagh!”
A scream followed.
What was happening?!
I was looking ahead!
What was going on behind me?!
I wanted to look back.
But I couldn’t turn my head. I just kept running forward.
“Huff, huff, huff, huff!”
People zipped past me. Some overtook me on my sides.
A flurry of aimless feet pounded the pavement.
Up ahead, a middle-aged woman on a kick scooter sped towards me, her face etched with terror. She was heading straight for me, yet somehow managed to avoid colliding with anyone.
The woman was in complete panic.
A dark figure leaped from the road.
The woman’s form darkened.
It wasn’t a shadow.
It was a person!
A person biting another person.
“Kyaaaaa! Aaaaagh!”
A man in a black suit, his face contorted into a bestial snarl, held the woman in his grip.
She screamed.
She struggled.
Blood sprayed from her cheek.
Like a burst ketchup packet.
Grrrrrr!
A grotesque sound. A sound no human throat should be able to make.
Unable to even blink, I saw it all as I ran madly forward.
A shiver ran down my spine.
“Huff, huff, huff!”
I couldn’t even scream.
If I kept running, I would collide with the bleeding woman.
I would crash into the man in the suit, his head buried in her flesh!
An alleyway next to a convenience store.
I veered into the alley without hesitation.
And ran like hell.
I didn’t know where I was going.
I had never been down this street before. I’d rented a gosiwon in this neighborhood because of the university, but I was completely unfamiliar with the area!
I sprinted down the alley.
My legs felt heavy, sweat poured down my face.
I didn’t know if I was running or walking.
My heart felt like it would explode.
My mind was blank.
I didn’t even know what I was thinking.
“Huff, huff, huff, huff.”
Run. Just run!
Run!
Shabby single-family houses slowly came into view.
They whizzed past on either side.
Suddenly, I was alone.
No more screams, no more footsteps.
Where had everyone who had been running with me gone?
Why was it so quiet?
“Huff, huff, huff, huff!”
Where was I running to?
I saw a utility pole.
A small, local Chinese restaurant.
Tiny alleyways branching off in every direction.
Wow, it would be a real pain if two cars met head-on here. One of them would have to back up a long way.
…That thought crossed my mind.
And I stopped. My heart was hammering against my ribs. I didn’t know how long I had been running. I was so out of breath I felt dizzy. My legs were like lead weights.
“Gasp! Gasp! Gasp! Gasp!”
I couldn’t stand.
I had run too far, too fast, too suddenly. I collapsed onto my knees.
“Gasp! Gasp! Gasp! Gasp!”
Bent over, hands on my knees, I looked around. An old man casually rode past on his bicycle, glancing at me with a “what’s wrong with this crazy kid?” look.
…What?
Why was he so calm?
What had I just seen?
“Pant, pant, pant, pant.”
Oh, I was dizzy.
Damn it, I must have been breathing too hard.
My vision swam.
I looked back the way I had come.
I’d weaved through so many alleys, I had no idea where I was. But I must have run a hell of a long way.
What I had just seen…
It wasn’t a dream, was it?
It wasn’t a dream, right?
I stared down the alley for a moment, then turned away.
I couldn’t go back that way.
I walked a few steps and saw a small neighborhood supermarket. These days, it was all convenience stores; small supermarkets like this were rare.
God, I was thirsty.
I felt like I was dying.
I went inside, grabbed a 500ml Gatorade and a bottle of water from the cooler, and went to the counter.
“That’ll be 3,000 won.”
The woman behind the counter gave me a sidelong glance. Probably because I was drenched in sweat.
I pulled my wallet from my Adidas backpack and paid, then asked,
“Huff, huff. Excuse me. Where’s the, huff, huff, nearest police station or, huff, huff, police box?”
The woman looked at me suspiciously.
“Why are you looking for the police? Did something happen?”
Her look clearly implied, “If something happened, it was probably you.”
Well, I guess a sweaty guy in black showing up and asking for the police station would make anyone suspicious.
I caught my breath and said,
“No, it’s not like that. There was an accident on the main road up there. A big one. People were running away, and, huff, huff. Where’s the police box?”
“If there’s an accident, you should call 112. The police box is just around the corner. Go down that alley, and you’ll see a small one.”
…Oh?
112!
Damn it…!
Why hadn’t I thought of that?
I guess my brain had shut down from all that running.
My head was still spinning.
“Thanks.”
I left the supermarket, cracked open the Gatorade, and chugged it down, then grabbed my phone.
“…112? Huff, huff.”
The police box was right there.
I’d just tell them in person.
My whole body felt heavy and drained. Phone in hand, I turned the corner into the alley. I saw the police box right next to a stationery store.
Wow, it had been a while since I’d seen such a run-down stationery store.
Well, the whole neighborhood was pretty dilapidated. High-rise buildings just up the street, but cross one road and it was a slum.
There were no police cars at the police box.
There was a parking space for them, though.
They must have been out on a call.
I walked straight into the police box.
“Huff, huff. Hello? Is anyone there?”
Two police officers, both middle-aged, sat at a desk.
“Yes, how can we help you?”
I pointed up the street and said,
“There was an accident on the main road up there, huff. I don’t know if it was an accident or what, but a lot of people were hurt.”
The officer said, “Ah,” and then continued,
“We received a report about that and already dispatched officers to the scene. They said it was an intoxicated individual causing a disturbance. Sir, did you come from there?”
Intoxicated?
I shook my head. “It wasn’t a drunk person. Sir, it wasn’t a drunk person, it was like some kind of infectious disease. It’s on the news. People are biting each other!”
The middle-aged officers looked at me as if I’d said something absurd.
“…Excuse me? Biting? We haven’t received any such reports. Did you witness this yourself, sir?”
Oh, shit.
This was driving me crazy.
“Yes! I saw it! Up there on the street, people biting each other, running into the road, stepping on cars. Oh, and that’s right! Damn it, someone got hit by a car, and their neck snapped like this! And then they got up and ran off!”
The more I talked, the more agitated I became. At the same time, the more I talked, the more I doubted anyone would believe me.
The officers exchanged glances and tilted their heads.
“Their neck snapped?”
“Their neck snapped… Well, we’ll take your report. We’ll pass it on to the officers at the scene immediately. First, your name, please…”
Just then, we heard the sound of a car outside.
A police car.
“Oh, they’re back. Just a moment.”
The officers got up and went outside. I followed them out and saw a long smear of blood on the side of the police car, as if someone had swiped it with a giant brush.
The windows were broken, and the car was dented in several places.
Inside the car, a young officer sat gripping the steering wheel, gasping for breath.
“Huh? Officer Park! What’s going on?! What happened?!”
The officers exclaimed as they opened the car door. The young officer, Park, remained silent, his face pale, just clutching the steering wheel and breathing heavily.
“Hey! Where’s Young-mi?! Why are you alone?! Huh?!”
“What happened to the car, Officer Park?!”
Officer Park slowly turned his head. His face…
It was ashen.
I’d never seen such an expression in my life. He spoke.
“S… Seniors. Do we have any handguns? Inside.”
“Handguns?”
The middle-aged officer who had asked frowned and yelled.
“What are you talking about handguns?! Where’s Young-mi?! Officer Park! Get a grip!”
“She’s dead! Young-mi’s dead!”
The middle-aged officer stared at Officer Park, his face a mask of shock. Officer Park continued,
“Her neck was torn open. She bled to death. That’s her blood on the car.”
The two middle-aged officers spoke at once.
“The perpetrator! Who was it?! Damn it, Young-mi’s body must be somewhere! Where is she?!”
“How do you know she’s dead?! Are you a doctor?! Let’s go get Young-mi!”
Officer Park lurched out of the car.
And yelled,
“Do we have any handguns?! Handguns! Damn it, there’s a riot up there!”
Officer Park strode into the police box. One of the middle-aged officers yelled something after him and followed.
“A riot…?”
The remaining officer stared at the police box, his face grim. He raised his phone, apparently about to make a call.
A riot?
This wasn’t a riot.
This wasn’t something so trivial.
This was…
“…The apocalypse.”
The word slipped out before I could stop it.
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