Hiding a House in the Apocalypse - Chapter 376



Only Krnovel

Hiding the House in the Apocalypse Episode 382

155. The Strongest (1)

The distinction between scavengers and looters is largely meaningless.

At any time, a scavenger can become a plunderer, and vice versa.

It is very difficult to resist the desire to become a plunderer when you find someone weaker and more resourceful than you.

When I first met Rebecca and her daughter, I felt an irresistible urge to become a predator.

Still, it is true that there is a clear distinction between scavengers and looters.

The biggest thing would be pride.

In fact, many scavengers take pride in what they do.

“At least we don’t kill other people and steal their stuff. We just pick up things that other people have thrown away.”

The greatest insult to them is not the common parental insult or factual violence.

“That’s what I’m saying, you guys are different from those who gave up on humanity and are like predators.”

They react more sensitively to the word ‘plunderer’ than to any other word.

Lee Do-won, also known as “Min-sik,” who is smoking a cigarette in front of me right now, is one of those types of people.

Even though he has the fancy name of Lee Do-won, he is called Min-sik because he was sentenced to prison under the Min-sik Act before the war and boasted about it like a medal.

Lee Do-won is the leader of a large-scale scavenger group called the Minshik Party.

With a membership of around 300 people – probably including the number of their families – they have been active since immediately after the war, and are said to have built a group as powerful as any other refugee group.

It may be hard to believe, but they are said to have enough force to deal with zombies, cultists, marauders, mutations, and even human-tracking monsters to some extent.

The fact that Min-sik is so insistent on drawing a line between himself and the plunderers seems to be the result of being conscious of the criticism that Min-sik’s faction is a group of plunderers in reality but a scavenger group in name only.

Anyway, this person is one of the stakeholders in the “bridge” problem, which is the biggest problem right now.

He says he is profiting from “Bridge A” and therefore “Bridge B” should be blown up.

The person who stands in opposition to Min-sik is Kim Tae-young, the leader of another scavenger group, the “Resellers.”

“Sorry, there was a crack at the scene for a moment. There was a delay while I assessed the situation and gave orders.”

He is a stylish man in his late 40s, wearing black horn-rimmed glasses and a tight-fitting suit.

He also has a fairly powerful group of scavengers, but they are no match for Minshik’s group.

The number of members is around 100, or about 1/3, and they prefer to work in a close and safe place for a long time rather than actively working in a dangerous area like Minsik’s group.

Originally, it would have been right to raise the hand of Minshik’s faction according to the logic of power.

That’s also the most economical solution.

But a third party intervened in this onion war.

“Everyone is gathered here. Before we review the agenda, here is the material I wrote.”

A gray-haired middle-aged man handed out dimly printed leaflets.

Eomunsu.

The author calls himself a citizen representative.

Originally, he joined the new Seoul together with other shelters as the leader of a small shelter, but at some point, he started to talk about himself as the representative of the citizens gathered in the new Seoul, and now he is taking up a position here.

The only career he revealed was serving as a representative of the apartment complex’s residents’ association.

According to Woo Min-hee, the fact that this kind of person is in this position is the karma of the past government.

“There’s nothing we can do. The kids in Seoul did so much mischief that trust in the government is at rock bottom. We’re the ones who are repeating the mistakes of the past.”

In other words, it would be a usage fee that uses the name of the Government of the Republic of Korea.

No matter how much the world is ruined and society collapses, it is an undeniable fact that the Republic of Korea is a democratic country.

In fact, many people are watching Eomunsu’s movements with eagle eyes.

It’s not that I like this person, but I’m watching to see how the government will deal with this person.

If I had to use a metaphor, I would say it’s like a canary in a coal mine.

Anyway, this man named Eomunsu insists that he must help Kim Taeyoung, who is in the minority, to blow up “A Bridge.”

The material I shared today is also about that.

[A more reasonable plan to preserve the bridge for Seoul’s future]

I saw the contents.

Leaving aside the pointless introduction and long-winded explanation, the final opinion is to save Bridge B and cut down Bridge A.

You might think that it’s just a piece of information no different from a flyer, but it also makes you nod your head in agreement as you realize that a lot of thought went into writing it.

For example, scalability for the future.

Indeed, as the new Seoul took hold, the number of people flocking to the city increased significantly.

The staff member who was compiling the statistics was astonished and asked where so many people were hiding.

I don’t think it’s that great.

As I always emphasize, human survival and adaptability are stronger than we imagine.

This is self-evident if we consider that humans are a species that survived the struggle for survival during the long Ice Age.

The meeting lasted over two hours.

“······.”

My head hurts.

At times like these, I wish there was someone like Park Sang-min who was a former member of the National Assembly.

No matter how much the world points fingers at them, it is their job to take the lead in dealing with such sharp group conflicts.

Unfortunately, there are very few survivors among former members of the National Assembly.

The so-called powerful people went to Jeju, but I do not know their whereabouts, and those who were left behind followed a similar path as Park Sang-min.

Just as fish cannot survive without water, they lost all their supporters and all the privileges guaranteed by the country, and disappeared one by one into the shadow of ruins.

In fact, as is the case with these matters, the conclusion has already been decided.

“A Bridge” must be blown up.

On the B Bridge side, there are many tall buildings standing like shields, so it is not easy to induce artillery fire, and if B Bridge is cut off, the section without a bridge will expand excessively, and there is a risk that monsters will cross under the river instead of over the bridge.

If that happens, there’s nothing to see.

The new Seoul is finished.

I wonder if it would be possible if Kang Han-min helps.

But that guy won’t help us.

I don’t know if it’s possible to hold a meeting with such a conclusion already set.

I fully understand the need, but being there is mentally and physically exhausting.

As advised by government officials, no conclusions were reached at this meeting.

The conclusion is not important.

The blasting work on the main part of Bridge A has already been completed.

Just press the button and Bridge A will collapse.

There is no need to ask for Minsik’s consent.

If monsters come rushing in right now, we will destroy the bridge according to the pre-determined procedure.

So the important thing is to maintain this seemingly simple meeting until the monster attacks.

Could we say that it is the same reason as giving up one’s position to an insignificant person like Eom Mun-su?

“That may be true, but I don’t think it is.”

Kim Byeong-cheol, who was sitting in the same seat, expressed his strong antipathy by putting a cigarette in his mouth.

“What kind of meeting are we having in this time of emergency? If there are too many captains, go to the mountain. Even if you listen to all the different people, nothing will be solved in the end!”

He may have the right to say that.

Kim Byeong-cheol achieved greater fame as an administrator than for his military exploits as a soldier.

Although it was destroyed due to internal strife within the Legion faction, the Wonju area he governed was one of the most prosperous and developed regions.

But the city is only a handful compared to Seoul, and has fewer people.

As a result, his city was ruined due to his lack of popular support and he himself was reduced to an unstable “contractual general.”

When people gather, it is natural that fights will arise.

Even my small area is full of conflicts, so it makes no sense for a city that claims to be Seoul’s successor to be free of conflicts.

Well, if we all turned into zombies, maybe we could build a society without conflict.

Ultimately, if people are to live together, they must reach an agreement.

This is the conclusion I reached after competing in various ways.

The most important thing in this case is Minsik’s persuasion.

The prayer of destruction also has its own merits.

What can I say, the jade has been covered.

There are no longer any cases of unqualified people lording over others just because they inherited their parents’ wealth or because they are proportional representatives.

Min-sik and Do-won Lee were both qualified to become leaders of a group.

As I sat down, he offered me a cigarette.

These are filter cigarettes made before the war.

Although it was a menthol cigarette that I wasn’t particularly fond of, the moment I saw his heavy gaze, there weren’t many cases where I could refuse it.

“Are we going to end up destroying our bridge?”

Minsik knew.

Well, how many people are under you?

Even if you work at dawn, there must have been a few sets of eyes watching you.

He lit a cigarette for me.

I took a moment to collect my thoughts, feeling the clean, unadulterated tobacco scent refreshing my mind.

The government official that Woo Min-hee had given me advised me to postpone the decision as much as possible and then blow it up when the monster came due to unavoidable circumstances.

That would be an appropriate choice in a situation like now.

Even in criminal law, there is a principle that overlooks crimes committed in unavoidable situations such as emergency refuge when there is no other choice.

But I didn’t want to tell an obvious lie.

Anyway, I don’t know how much longer I have to live.

My goal was to live as long as possible, but I had a goal.

Perhaps I will fall into an eternal sleep like my comrades who left first in the next battle.

“I guess so.”

Even I don’t think the answer is satisfactory.

This is an appearance that was not seen in the past by Park Gyu.

My answer was yes or no.

There was no middle ground, no evasion, no half-assed assumptions.

“······Fuck. I had a feeling that would happen.”

Minsik sighed and looked at the bridge in the distance with blurry eyes.

He stared at the bridge for a while, then opened his mouth and snorted.

“If that’s what they decide, then we have to follow it. It’s the right thing to do. Isn’t this a time when we can criticize if we want?”

There is nothing to say in response and it is not a matter for debate.

Silent.

“Well, we have nothing to do with it. That bastard might be drinking with the guy he’s with right now, but he can’t see far ahead.”

A cool light flashed across Minsik’s eyes.

“······We have more people and we have killed a lot of people.”

I understood what you meant.

This means that if the area where they were mainly active becomes unusable due to the destruction of the bridge, they will suppress Kim Tae-young’s gang with force.

This is another example of how scavengers and looters are only a sheet of paper apart.

In fact, there’s not much we can do about him doing that.

The new Seoul’s administrative power only extends within this small city, and we have no way of knowing what is happening outside the city, and frankly, it is none of our business.

So even when he said something to the effect that he would scold Kim Tae-young, he didn’t say anything.

Minsik glanced at me with bloodshot eyes, perhaps bored by my lack of response.

What are you trying to say?

“Do you know Jo Young-chun?”

Suddenly, an unfamiliar name is mentioned.

“Are you Jo Young-chun?”

Minsik turned his head and looked up at the sky.

“Is that an unfamiliar name to you?”

He looked at me again.

“Do you like baseball?”

“Baseball?”

“Yes. Professional baseball.”

I’m not particularly interested in baseball.

But it’s not a sport that has nothing to do with me.

Before the accident that day, the image of my father coming home from work earlier than usual and watching the baseball game in the living room is one of the memories that lingers around my burning heart of hatred.

“He was a player.”

“ah.”

Was it a player story?

It’s possible that you wouldn’t know.

Minsik smiled strangely.

“Yes, he got a lot of hate, but he was a hero to me. I still remember him. When I was in the fifth grade of elementary school. He waved for the driver to come over, and when he saw me, he came back and signed his gloves.”

“······Is that so?”

If this man, who is now in his fifties, had been an athlete in elementary school, he might be in his sixties by now.

Maybe he was over seventy.

But why is Minsik bringing up that person’s story?

By now, he must not be of this world.

In terms of age and influence.

Even among celebrities, only a few have gone to Jeju.

As if he had read my mind, Minsik turns his head towards me and asks.

“That guy. He’s alive.”

“yes?”

“He was alive. And in the middle of Seoul.”

Minsik laughed out loud.

“It was a beggarly thing.”

Well, it’s surprising.

The fact that a baseball player of our memories is alive and well in the heart of Seoul.

In some ways, it could be said that he possesses a survival instinct as strong as our Emgu, but what does that have to do with this incident?

I waited curiously for the next words.

Minsik sighed and continued speaking.

“······If that bridge breaks, we won’t be able to help that person.”

That may indeed be true.

If we were to cut down Bridge A, we might end up wasting a round trip route of more than 10km.

Even if the Minshik faction had a well-trained and well-organized fighter force, it would require great courage to explore Seoul, which is full of danger, especially north of the Han River.

I asked him.

“Then wouldn’t it be okay to bring that person?”

I had a feeling that it wouldn’t work.

If Min-sik liked that old player so much, he would have already invited him to the new Seoul.

As expected.

“He said he was going to die there······.”

“Isn’t it inevitable?”

There is no way to deal with someone who is ready to die.

The only person who can save someone who has already thought about death is not a believer or a professional counselor, but the person himself.

This can be seen from the fact that more than 90% of those who attempted suicide after the war attempted suicide again and ended their lives.

Superstitious people used to say that such people were possessed by a ghost.

Even I, in some sense, was possessed by a ghost.

“I heard you were waiting for your son.”

Minsik spoke lonely in the silence.

“Son?”

Minsik nodded, letting out a deep sigh.

“······I don’t want to see that person die like that.”

A mixture of sympathy and practical necessity, tinged with the fandom of a scavenger, brought me to a former baseball player I never knew.