RE: Survival - Chapter 64

While tilting his head in confusion, Sweeper asked,
“Why? Is there a problem?”

“No, it’s just… the voice sounds familiar.”

It was indeed a familiar voice.

Where had he heard it before…?

It didn’t take long for Yohan to remember whose voice it was. If he hadn’t met her at Yeouido after his regression, he might not have remembered at all.

However, the woman he had encountered early in the apocalypse had left a vivid impression on Yohan.

Kim Jung-mi, Deputy of the Kyungseong Industrial Facility Security Team.

It was her.

The woman he had met during the initial outbreak and traveled with to Bucheon. (T/N: Ahhhhhh! The one I thought who was going to be the FMC)

“You’re alive.”

“Oh, so you remembered who it is?”

“A colleague I worked with before the apocalypse.”

“Oh… really?”

Her survival was not exactly surprising, but it wasn’t something he had considered possible either.

She had access to precise information earlier than most, so her chances of surviving were relatively high. However, it wasn’t certain that such an advantage would ensure survival, nor had he thought they’d cross paths again.

“So, what now? Are you going to rescue her?”

“Rescue? Why?”

Yohan tilted his head before closing his mouth as if realizing something.

At a glance, the camp broadcasting this transmission seemed like a stable place, engaged in rescue operations for survivors. It might even have been stable in reality.

But whatever motivation had driven them, broadcasting their location like this was a reckless move if the safety of their camp was a priority.

There was a clear distinction between Seo-jun’s group revealing their locations and this camp doing the same. The locations Seo-jun disclosed weren’t their headquarters and were often laden with traps.

Though it wasn’t clear if this broadcast was purely for rescue purposes, knowing Jung-mi’s personality from his past, her intentions seemed honest.

A camp that could afford to take in other survivors, a camp exclusively for female survivors—it was bound to attract raiders with malicious intent, seeing it as easy prey.

This broadcast, which the camp likely thought was a good idea, would become the trigger for their downfall.

“They were stupid.”

“So, your answer?”

Yohan shook his head. He could only hope that no one heard the broadcast and that they wouldn’t repeat such foolish actions in the future.

That was the extent of his concern.

“I’m not getting involved. It’s their problem.”

“As expected, our leader is ruthless.”

Sweeper looked amused, smiling brightly at Yohan’s response.

“More importantly, take a look at this.”

After scribbling on something for a while, Yohan handed Sweeper a map. The shortest route from Bucheon City Hall to Incheon’s Yeongjongdo Island was marked in red.

“Yeongjongdo? Why there?”

“Don’t ask for too many details. If the destination is there, this route seems the most practical, right?”

Sweeper’s expression changed slightly.

“This is the second shelter you mentioned last time, isn’t it?”

“You’re quick to catch on.”

“Still, Yeongjongdo, huh? I thought it’d be more remote. Do you think the shelter’s intact?”

“Don’t worry about that. It’s not something anyone would find easily. How does this route look?”

“Hmm…” Sweeper scrutinized the map. The route Yohan proposed followed Bucheon Boulevard and Gyeongmyeong Boulevard, leading near the Yeongjong Bridge before taking the Incheon International Airport Expressway.

“It’d be great if we could use the highway.”

“The highway isn’t exactly ‘high speed’ anymore with all those abandoned cars. The shortest route is what matters.”

“Even the shortest route is too far. Moving this group will be impossible. Walking there will take over ten hours, and with supplies, it’d take at least two days.”

“If needed, we’ll clear the roads as we go. It’s not urgent right now, so we can clear them ahead of time. And it’s not decided yet if the whole group will move. Maybe only less than half will go.”

“Wow, you’re really ruthless.”

Sweeper quickly understood what Yohan meant. With the prolonged period of stability, minor conflicts among survivors had started to increase.

Yohan was essentially saying he’d leave the troublemakers behind.

Even for someone as cold as Yohan, it wouldn’t be easy to sever ties with people he had lived with.

Especially considering his personality, he was the type to take everything and everyone with him—resources and people alike. Being left behind would mean being abandoned in a survival hell.

At that point, they’d realize just how fortunate they’d been under Yohan’s protection before succumbing to despair.

‘He’s a scary man.’

Yohan could have pressured them even more. His role in the camp was absolute, his search team acting as both shield and spear.

Yet, he was resolute without being oppressive. His role was to establish rules, judge those who broke them, and enforce the consequences.

When the time came, those who fell short of Yohan’s standards would be left behind.

He had declared on the day they arrived at the first shelter that not everyone would move to the second one. Most had dismissed it as mere motivation or a scare tactic.

They were wrong.

Yohan was genuinely sifting through the camp, deciding who to save and who to leave behind.

Having observed Yohan closely, Sweeper had a sense of his criteria. Yohan’s relationships were marked by two boundaries: those he’d save and those he’d abandon, and within those he’d save, those who were truly ‘his people’ and those who weren’t.

The moment someone became one of ‘his people,’ the difference became stark. Simply being in the camp didn’t make you ‘his.’ The wall around his heart was unimaginably high.

In Sweeper’s view, to cross Yohan’s second boundary, you’d need to exchange life-and-death debts with him at least once.

“So, when’s the plan?”

“We’re missing critical preparations.”

“Critical preparations?”

“We’re severely short on medical personnel. Engineers too. Plus, we need an explosives handler and dynamite. Medical staff and explosives are non-negotiable.”

Hearing Yohan’s words, Sweeper stared at him in shock and asked,
“Did I hear that right? Dynamite?”

Yohan nodded, and Sweeper licked his dry lips nervously.

Dynamite—it wasn’t just a dangerous supply; it hinted at something far more intense.

What could he possibly be planning now?

“From now on, all searches will follow this route. There’s no need to expand the perimeter anymore. Use construction equipment to gradually clear the roads. The search teams will focus on areas accessible by these cleared roads. Once the roads are fully cleared, the route will take only two hours by vehicle.”

“Can I share this route with the team members?”

“No, only the team leaders. You and Hyuk are enough.”

“Roger that.”

Sweeper studied the map closely, committing the route to memory. He had no intention of carrying a physical map around—just memorize and move.

“Wait a second, boss. Not that it’s a big deal, but this route…”

Sweeper tapped the map with interest.

“It passes near the area where that radio broadcast was transmitted. Just so you know.”

“Doesn’t matter. We’re sticking to our path.”

This route had been carefully optimized after days of planning. It included a hospital, a canned food factory, a logistics center, construction sites, and even a military base.

No matter what obstacles or threats—be it mutants, zombie waves, or raiders—they were prepared to crush them all.

They weren’t planning to move immediately. As long as there were resources to extract from the city, they would remain and stockpile supplies. When the timing felt right, they would relocate.

Until then, preparations would proceed steadily.

—

“Search Team 1 commencing morning patrol.”

Seri’s voice crackled over the radio as she led five members of Search Team 1 out from the camp.

“Hold on, Seri.”

“What? Are you tagging along?”

“Yeah.”

“You were on the night shift yesterday. Why not rest?”

“Think of it as exercise.”

“Wow, you’re as diligent as Yohan-oppa.”

Seri smirked as she looked at Jung-hwan following her. She didn’t see any reason to refuse someone volunteering to help, even if it was during their free time.

The search team’s duties were diverse, but their primary responsibility was conducting two patrols a day around the camp.

In the Seoul Survival Union, the search teams served as the camp’s shield, spear, communication network, and providers of food and supplies.

The patrol route and schedule were consistent, with the morning patrol starting at the supply warehouse at the Mart Camp. There, they collected the requested items from the previous evening, obtained Seo-jun’s approval, and distributed supplies to the other camps.

While there were smaller tasks, the morning patrol’s main focus was the day’s supply distribution.

As Seri entered the Mart Camp, she greeted the guards standing watch at the parking lot with a warm smile and a friendly wave.

“Cha-hoon, good morning!”

“Hey, Seri. You’re looking chubbier by the day.”

“You wanna die?!”

Seri pretended to throw a punch, causing everyone nearby to burst into laughter. It was a familiar and idyllic scene.

The search team entered the first floor of the Mart Camp. Early in the morning, people who needed to speak with the search team had already gathered in the main hall.

“Everyone, Seri is here!”

Most were familiar faces, survivors who had been around for a while, though there were some newcomers. People greeted her warmly as they approached.

“This is today’s newspaper. And Ji-hye, you’ve got a letter.”

Seri grinned mischievously. Ji-hye’s secret relationship with a new search team member was a hot topic within the camp.

The amusement came from two things: their attempts to keep the relationship secret when everyone in the camp already knew, and their mutual cluelessness, which kept their romance from progressing.

Seri offered some teasing advice to take the plunge before pinning the day’s newspaper to the bulletin board.

The “newspaper” was little more than a shabby sheet of paper, not even as professional as a church bulletin, but it contained updates on the search team’s activities and snippets of news from the outside world. Written by Jae-ho as a personal hobby, it also included camp gossip and rumors, making it surprisingly popular.

“Sir, please verify this.”

Seri handed over the supply list, and items began being loaded onto carts.

“Good work, as always.”

“You too, sir!”

Once the carts were loaded, the search team moved along the perimeter, checking for any breaches or damages in the camp’s defenses—a regular part of the morning patrol.

Most of the time, zombies caught in the wire were the cause of the damage. Occasionally, however, survivors would cut through the wire to sneak in, triggering a camp-wide alarm.

As they scanned the perimeter, they spotted a zombie stuck in the barbed wire. Seri used her slingshot to take it down with a clean shot to the head.

The next stop was the newly established Park Town Camp, their fifth camp. It was a somber place, home to many newcomers who struggled to adjust, making it harder to build a sense of community.

Seri delivered letters and newspapers there as well. A woman hesitated before approaching her.

“Um… Seri?”

“Ah, unni. What’s up?”

“I have a favor to ask.”

“A favor?”

The woman whispered her request to Seri, asking for an additional supply of sanitary pads. Seri frowned slightly.

Basic necessities like baby formula, sanitary pads, tissues, and toothpaste weren’t part of the standard distribution but were generally provided upon request without strict limits.

Seri called out to the youngest member of the team, who was responsible for confirming such requests.

“Maknae!”

But before the boy could respond, the woman hastily covered Seri’s mouth.

“Wait, why?”

“Well… actually…”

The woman confessed in a barely audible voice. Apparently, the rookie who had joined the search team just a week ago had been coercing survivors, promising unlimited supplies in exchange for a relationship with him.