Chapter 176 - [Series End]

               

Sweeper got to his feet. Around him were the fishing line Yohan had left behind and burnt, frayed rope ends.

His teeth and palms throbbed. He’d wasted too much precious time breaking the ropes after finally getting a golden opportunity.

Sweeper moved at once. He had to find Bora before they came back.

“The roof!”

‘Damn, nothing ever lines up.’

Sweeper grumbled. Just then, they were on their way back after finishing their hunt. If only they’d taken a little longer…

At least, it looked like they were urgently heading upward. That Yohan guy must have drawn their attention.

Sweeper quickly went back down to the basement. The store was huge and poorly guarded. Sweeper kicked a zombie down the stairs.

“Ah, shit! You scared me!”

“What is it?”

“A zombie just popped out.”

“Don’t make a fuss.”

While everyone was distracted by the zombie, Sweeper darted past a column into the store. He was sure people were being kept around here.

Sweeper, nerves on edge, pushed deeper into the dark, damp interior. At last, he found a room full of survivors sprawled like corpses.

When they heard an unfamiliar presence, people looked up with dead, lifeless eyes. They were so emaciated it was painful to look at. No matter how he scanned the crowd, the one he was looking for wasn’t there.

“Who…”

“Did you see a little girl? A girl about this tall.”

“I-I don’t know.”

“Damn. Not here?”

“Wait, who are you…?”

“Just a drifter passing by. Don’t mind me.”

Sweeper quickly broke away from the people murmuring toward him. His movements grew more desperate.

Where? Where is she?

Please, come out…!

He searched every place someone might be locked up, but she was nowhere to be seen. His heart clenched tighter and tighter.

Bang! Ratatatat!

“Ah, what now?”

At the sudden sound of gunfire, Sweeper looked up. It was coming from the roof. And that gunfire was a signal. Within minutes, the whole department store was in an uproar.

“Zombies! Zombies!”

Sweeper, now in the lobby, looked down. Zombies were pouring inside from outside the department store—almost at a run. An alarm blared in his mind.

Zombie crazy mode, right now? Now, of all times? Seriously?

Sweeper screamed internally. Just how messed up does it all have to get?

The Goldmoon gang was no longer the problem.

They’d be too busy with the swarm to care what he did. The real issue was, if he didn’t find Bora soon, the kid could end up as zombie food.

‘Start from the top.’

Sweeper decided to search from the roof down, where the gunfire had come from. If Bora was able to move, she’d have headed to the roof. Both previous crazy modes, the escape route had always been the roof.

But on the roof, it wasn’t Bora waiting for him. It was a sea of blood.

Dozens of Goldmoon survivors lay dead, riddled with bullets. Blood pooled on the roof. Sweeper instinctively knew.

‘That was the work of that guy.’

It was shockingly clean.

Sweeper only spared a moment for admiration before heading down a floor.

Bang!

A single gunshot rang in his ear. Following the sound, he saw Yohan collapsed, being supported by a stranger, and about ten meters above, on the next floor, the executive with a pistol. The executive grinned and turned away, while the stranger dragged Yohan, wielding a machete.

Sweeper sprinted straight for the executive. If he caught him, this deadly game would be over.

But just as he went down one more floor, Sweeper’s body turned to stone.

A zombie was walking out from the back of an office on the third floor.

“……”

His fingers trembled.

“Why are you coming from there, damn kid…”

He felt his strength leave him, his mind numb as if struck. Her complexion had the blue hue of a fresh zombie. There were wounds on her forehead and neck, and her cheeks were swollen as if from being beaten. That fragile body rushed at him, as if driven by instinct to feed. Above the guttural growl, he could hear her voice from life.

‘Mister, wait ten years.’

(T/N: Final chapter and this? I know she’ll die because she’s not with him in the future but reading this makes me sad. I really want to kill that Goldmoon bastard myself.)

Sweeper slowly bent down.

‘Mister.’

His breath came in ragged gasps.

‘Mister, mister.’

That thin, clear voice echoed in his ears. Sweeper muttered bitterly.

“This is why I really hate kids.”

He gently hugged Bora. Just as she opened her mouth wide, her movements jerked and slowly stopped. Blood streamed from the back of her neck. Sweeper stood up slowly.

“I’ll avenge you, kid.”

Fire blazed in Sweeper’s eyes.

—

Kyaaa!

A scream echoed.

The executive and his two lieutenants were each dragging a survivor by the hand, heading for the department store exit.

Damn it, damn it!

The executive cursed over and over. Everything was insane. Just days ago, this was an unshakeable kingdom. He could rule people, take any woman, and no one could stop him—a true absolute kingdom.

But the kingdom had shattered in an instant. Freaks named Yohan and Sweeper had stormed in, slaughtering his people, and now the zombies had gone crazy.

The well-kept kingdom collapsed in a heartbeat.

“P-please, let me live…”

The executive slapped a young man and growled.

“If you want to live, run. Who knows, maybe you’ll make it through those zombies.”

He sneered, kicking three survivors ahead. One fell into a puddle of blood and became zombie food. The swarming zombies tore into flesh and guts. The two remaining sprinted for their lives. A path opened.

“Chief Kwon, Chief Oh. Break through.”

“…Yes.”

The three of them sprinted, beating, slashing, and stabbing zombies as they forced their way through.

Bang! Bang!

When it became impossible to push through, they shot their guns. But the more they shot, the more zombies came. In a frenzy, they finally made it into a nearby convalescent hospital, but only after paying a heavy price.

“Shit…”

The executive cursed as he looked at his bite wound. Outside the glass, his loyal lieutenants—now zombies—were trapped.

“How did I survive this far… I can’t die like this…”

His will to live burned bright. Somehow, he poured medicine from the hospital all over his wounds. The pain made him grimace.

Eventually, he gave up and closed his eyes. The gunshot wound and bite throbbed with heat.

When he opened his eyes again, the executive frowned.

‘Why am I not turning into a zombie?’

A lot of time had passed, but he still hadn’t changed. He was pale and feverish, but he hadn’t turned. After staring blankly for a moment, he bared his throat and laughed.

“Ha, haha! Hahaha! God hasn’t abandoned me!”

If he didn’t turn after being bitten, what did it matter if his base was destroyed?

No, he wasn’t meant to die here.

Even after laughing for a while, it wasn’t enough.

Creak—

“…?”

Suddenly, at the sound of a window opening, the executive scowled. Through the open window, a familiar face appeared.

It was Sweeper, covered in blood.

“You, you bastard…”

“Hey there, you piece of shit.”

Sweeper lunged at him mid-greeting. The executive, terrified, tried to fire his gun, but only the hammer clicked on empty chambers.

“Argh, aaagh!”

Sweeper’s axe slammed into his waist, then was yanked out. Blood and guts spilled from the open belly.

“I… I can’t die here…”

Sweeper grabbed his head and drove it onto a jagged pipe. Blood gushed from his mouth. The two zombie lieutenants outside were impaled beside him.

“It’s a crucifixion, bastards.”

Spit landed on the executive’s face.

Sweeper lit a cigarette. As he smoked it down, the now-zombified executive began to nod at him.

“God hasn’t abandoned you? Bullshit. It’s divine punishment.”

Vengeance was complete.

If he hadn’t killed him, he’d have regretted it for life.

‘I did it, kid. Rest easy.’

Sweeper made the sign of the cross for Bora and collapsed into a seat.

‘What now?’

It was a rotten, indescribable feeling.

He chain-smoked for a long time, but in the end, his thoughts turned to Yohan.

After all, Yohan was the one who’d destroyed the Goldmoon survivors. He’d helped with both Sweeper’s escape and his revenge. The way things started was messy, but he owed him. Debts had to be repaid.

‘He must still be alive.’

He’d be alive.

Even though he was shot at close range, there was no blood or wound. His upper body was thick and solid.

He’d worn a bulletproof vest. If he carried escape gear in his shoes, he’d be prepared for that too.

He was probably just knocked out from the shock. And there’d been a big guy nearby—surely he survived. Even if not, Sweeper had to at least check if he was dead or alive.

Sweeper moved out, kicking away clinging zombies as he climbed through a steel air vent. The sound of his body banging through the shaft echoed.

After wandering for a while, he finally found the two men. They were pale, but alive.

“I can’t live with debts. It’s just as dangerous to leave alone. What’s your plan now?”

“We’ll look for a new way out. There must be somewhere we can break through.”

“I know a way.”

Sweeper joined the conversation naturally, kicking off the vent cover and dropping down. The two men looked visibly startled.

“Let me join the escape.”

He greeted Yohan.

“Hey, man. We’ve met, right?”

The dumbfounded, blank look on his face was so unlike him that Sweeper couldn’t help but laugh.

“You survived.”

“Thanks to whoever destroyed the Goldmoon bastards, huh?”

Even then, Yohan stayed calm. One side of Sweeper’s heart was still a storm of grief for Bora, but at the same time, he felt the odd joy of meeting a kindred spirit. Through all that turmoil, the voice of that little brat echoed in his head.

‘Live a long, long time, mister.’

Yeah, you cocky little kid.

I’ll live a long, long time—even if I have to drag myself through the dirt for your share, too.

Sweeper beamed as he held out his hand.

Don’t push me away, friend. Accept me.

I need strong comrades so nothing like today ever happens again.

You too, right?

Yohan, as if answering, firmly took his hand.

<End of Side Story>

Thank you for loving <Return Survival> until now.

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(T/N: Beatiful finish! That’s it guys! Thank you so much for supporting the novel Re: Survival! This series will now be marked “Completed”. Please support my other TL works!)