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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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The shutter rose, revealing a group of people.
Women and a few men scattered among them.
They looked haggard.
Their clothes were stained with grime, as if they hadn’t had a chance to change, and their hair was matted, unwashed.
While the men simply looked unkempt, the women were in a terrible state.
Some wore clothes that were half-torn and more like rags, their exposed collarbones and faces covered in bruises.
Some of the women wore bras; others didn’t.
They awkwardly tried to cover themselves, but the streetlights exposed them mercilessly.
They looked defeated.
Haggard.
He knew instinctively.
These women had been raped by the Cockroaches.
For days, or possibly even longer.
They glanced at the others briefly, then focused their attention on him.
They seemed to assume he was the leader since he was standing at the front.
The women swayed slightly and trembled.
They looked dizzy.
Judging by their haggard appearance, they hadn’t eaten properly.
He looked at the men.
There were three of them.
They were all young.
Late teens or early twenties.
The way they were standing suggested they didn’t know each other well, or perhaps weren’t close at all.
One of the men slowly extended his hand towards him.
His fingernails were black with grime.
He hadn’t washed.
His face was bruised.
The dark streaks around his nostrils weren’t mucus.
It was dried blood from being beaten.
The man said,
“P…Please… help us.”
He looked at the man, then at the women.
How could they be in such a state?
The water was still running.
He descended one step.
The women and men took a step back.
As if they didn’t dare block his path.
Their posture reflected a complete loss of pride and self-worth.
He stood on the step and looked around.
Towards the road, and towards the alley next to the supermarket.
He didn’t see anyone.
The women looked at him.
But as their eyes met his, they flinched and lowered their gazes.
The men also avoided his gaze.
He asked,
“I heard you escaped. How did you manage to escape?”
One of the men replied,
“The… the person guarding the warehouse suddenly disappeared. So… we thought it was our only chance, that we’d all die there if we didn’t escape.”
Another man said,
“We… we overheard them talking about the people in the supermarket… So…”
Hmm…
They had come here without knowing who they were?
The man who had spoken to him first…
The man with the grime around his nostrils was holding a woman’s hand.
They looked about the same age.
Were they a couple?
He asked,
“You were locked in a warehouse? Why? Why did they lock you up in a warehouse?”
The man with the grime around his nostrils bit his lip and said,
“Some… some of them, the bad ones… they were gathering the female college students, the young women, and taking them away. They tried to take my girlfriend too, and when I asked them why…”
The man squeezed his eyes shut.
…He must have been beaten for trying to protect his girlfriend.
The man continued,
“They locked the women in a warehouse… and the men kept going in and out… I tried to save her, but they caught me. They locked me in the convenience store warehouse. There.”
The man pointed at the other two men.
“These men were there too. They were beaten to a pulp for trying to protect their younger sisters and girlfriends and were locked up there.”
…It was like a scene from Animal Kingdom.
He could imagine what had happened.
Among the Cockroaches, there must have been men who already had partners, girlfriends, or wives.
But there must have been others who didn’t.
Men without women.
They had probably banded together and rounded up the young women, using them as they pleased.
Considering there were tattooed pigs among them, it was likely orchestrated by those gangster wannabe punks.
The Cockroach Leader must have condoned it.
To control his men, he would have had to provide them with what they wanted.
Perhaps the Cockroach Leader himself had joined them, going in and out of the warehouse where the women were locked up. He didn’t know for sure.
There had been about a hundred Cockroaches who had attacked them.
He doubted they would have left any reserves behind.
They must have brought everyone they had.
So, how many of those hundred men didn’t have women?
And how many women had they locked up as playthings?
The women standing before him now…
There were probably more than just these.
He was certain.
But that was a separate issue.
The current problem was the women and men standing before him…
He looked back at his group.
Jung Eun-seo, Jun-hyuk, Tae-young, and Hoon.
Their faces were grim.
The men’s reactions were understandable, but Jung Eun-seo was the problem.
She had lost her only remaining family member to the Cockroaches. Rage must be burning within her.
…These people who had escaped from the Cockroaches…
What would Jung Eun-seo think of them?
Jung Eun-seo’s gaze met his.
She bit her lip.
And then she nodded slightly.
Yes.
Jung Eun-seo.
Even with the rage burning within you, you’re still a good person.
He looked back at the escaped women and men and slowly nodded.
He didn’t say anything.
He just turned around, climbed the stairs, and walked towards the elevator.
He placed a hand on Hoon’s shoulder as he passed.
Take care of this, please.
Hoon nodded, as if understanding his intention, and stepped forward, saying,
“Come in. There are plenty of empty rooms upstairs. Let’s get you all washed up and give you something to eat. We have plenty of food.”
He entered the elevator, listening to Hoon welcoming them.
Jung Eun-seo followed him inside.
The elevator doors closed.
He said,
“You did the right thing.”
Jung Eun-seo didn’t reply.
If he took their words at face value, these young men and women were victims.
Even though they had been part of the Cockroaches’ group, it must have been difficult for Jung Eun-seo, who harbored immense hatred towards the Cockroaches, to turn them away.
He asked,
“Are you alright?”
This time, Jung Eun-seo replied,
“…I want to kill them all.”
She didn’t shout or rant.
She simply stated it.
But her voice was chilling.
…Hmm.
He nodded and said,
“We’ll kill them all next time.”
Jung Eun-seo didn’t reply.
She seemed to be lost in thought.
As they exited the elevator and walked towards Ye-eun’s apartment, Jung Eun-seo spoke,
“Sung-hoon.”
He turned around.
“Could you give me a cigarette?”
He nodded and turned towards the stairwell.
“Sure. Let’s go.”
They went up to the rooftop, lit their cigarettes, and looked out at the nightscape.
Jung Eun-seo remained silent.
He, too, was lost in thought.
From what he’d heard from the escaped men and women, it seemed a kind of hierarchy had developed among the Cockroaches.
Slaves who weren’t even treated like humans.
And the thugs in power.
With the law gone, thanks to the apocalypse, the tattooed pigs were having a field day.
They weren’t like his group, who were living together in relative harmony.
It was strange how different these two survivor groups were, even though they had formed in the same neighborhood.
It was probably due to the influence of the Cockroach Leader and his wife.
When those who treated others like dirt and believed they could do whatever they wanted, while others couldn’t do the same to them, gained power, this was the result.
It was clear as day.
But the question was, what exactly had happened to those people?
“Huu…”
He exhaled a puff of smoke.
It was late.
He would hear the details tomorrow.
The escaped men and women needed to be assigned rooms, wash up, and have a decent meal.
The next day.
Soo-hyun, Ye-eun, and the other women went around, welcoming the newly arrived women, who were around their age.
It was probably just simple greetings and some of Han-tae’s bread, but it would likely feel like a reprieve from hell.
Meanwhile, he took the three escaped men to the calligraphy academy.
To hear the details of what had happened.
He gestured for them to sit at the desks, then pulled up a chair and sat facing them.
“How were the rooms? Were they alright?”
The men nodded.
They looked much better than last night, when they had been covered in grime.
They still seemed listless from having gone without food for days, but at least they looked human now.
They seemed quite grateful to him.
The man whose nose had been covered in grime, now clean, replied,
“The rooms… are great. Thank you for taking us in. Thank you so much. My girlfriend seems to be more comfortable now too.”
…Hmm.
He probably meant she seemed more at ease, not truly comfortable.
After what they’d experienced with the Cockroaches, it wouldn’t just disappear from their minds overnight.
He simply nodded and asked,
“I called you here because I want to know what happened with those Cockroaches… uh… those people over there. But first, let’s exchange names and ages. I’m twenty-five, Han Sung-hoon. The people here… well, I’m not the leader, but I’m the one who takes the initiative, more or less. How about you?”
The men introduced themselves.
And he immediately forgot their names.
Damn, why did men’s names just bounce off his brain?
He’d barely managed to memorize Jun-hyuk and Tae-young’s names.
Anyway, he learned that the men were twenty, twenty-two, and twenty-three years old.
A few years younger than him.
He nodded and said,
“Since I’m older and we’ll have a lot to talk about, let’s speak comfortably. You can call me hyung or Sung-hoon.”
“Okay.”
The men replied.
Just then, Jung Eun-seo, Hoon, and Jun-hyuk entered the calligraphy academy. He had told them he would be hearing the details here, and they must have finished their errands.
He nodded in greeting and asked,
“So, what exactly happened over there with those Cockroaches… uh… those people? Tell me everything you know.”
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