Magic on the Dead Chapter 26

Pulling on the rusted doorknob, he cautiously opened the rooftop door. Eden, who was standing with his arms leaning against the railing, turned his head to acknowledge the sudden uninvited guest before turning his gaze back.

Hajin, with heavy pliers tucked into his back pocket, approached Eden. There was no reaction from Eden as Hajin stood side by side with him.

The man, with his arms crossed, was looking out over the city. Just before dawn, a subtle peachy glow poured over his hair.

Eden’s profile looked chillingly cold and empty. It was the face of someone deep in thought.

Come to think of it, Hajin hadn’t seen Eden properly rest or sleep even once over the past week. It was an absurdly belated realization.

Enduring Hajin’s blatant stare, Eden turned his head. Their eyes met. Eden’s gaze then shifted to the silver brooch in Hajin’s hand. The silver brooch, engraved with the initials ‘HJ,’ gleamed radiantly in the light. It was the brooch that had been attached to Hajin’s stage costume.

“Oh, this… it’s a brooch that Junseok gave me as a gift. My younger brother.”

Hajin, blurting out an unprompted explanation, fiddled with the brooch out of habit. Eden didn’t respond. Normally, he would have snapped, saying he didn’t ask or that there was no need to share uninteresting information, but instead, he merely gazed at the cityscape again.

Following his lead, Hajin looked at the sunrise brightening his view. The dawn sky, cleared of fine dust, was refreshing. The lush green mountains and the buildings spread out before them. The large and small dwellings of life lay in a chillingly silent stillness.

No people were visible, only zombies with broken necks shambling aimlessly across the ruined city. The irony was that the beautiful nature and the devastated city blended together like a single painting.

“Do Hajin-ssi.”

Hajin, blinking with his messy, nest-like hair, turned his head. Even amidst the heavy sunrise, Eden’s lips, blooming red, drew his attention.

“Let’s go together. To Yongunsi.”

Am I still half-asleep? It was the very words Hajin had longed to hear, yet he couldn’t react. In his daze, his breathing gradually grew rough. From deep within his chest, relief and sorrow surged like a tide. Finally…

“But there’s a condition.”

Hajin, unable to open his mouth rashly, swallowed hard.

“No one else joins us. No matter what happens, I won’t compromise on this. Understood?”

Hajin nodded vigorously without a moment’s thought. The sudden movement caused his vision to flash white briefly. To regain his composure, Hajin tapped his cheeks a couple of times, barely managing to focus his eyes. For a moment, he had the illusion that Jung Taegeon’s eyes were gleaming intensely.

“Is, ahem, that the only condition?”

Asking in a hoarse voice, Eden continued.

“No acting alone from now on. Move with your best effort for the team. Since we’ve decided to go together, your life is my life, and my life is no different from yours, Do Hajin-ssi.”

Hajin’s mouth slowly opened. It was only then that he realized the meaning of the ‘companion’ he had been crying out for was different from the ‘companion’ Eden was talking about.

Not just a simple travel buddy, but comrades in a battlefield, clutching each other’s dog tags.

There must have been a reason why Eden had been mulling over his proposal for the past few days, short or long as they were. Thinking that it was Eden’s way of preparing to accept someone as his own left Hajin stunned, as if he’d been hit in the back of the head. His past mistakes of casually proposing companionship with clumsy flirting flashed before his eyes.

‘To be honest, I’m already struggling to take care of my own people.’

Now, he felt he could understand the meaning of those words. Looking into Eden’s serious eyes, it seemed he had never taken this matter lightly.

“I’m planning to check out the hardware store once morning comes.”

Eden slowly patted Hajin’s shoulder as he let out uneven breaths.

“It’ll be a long day, so rest well for now.”

“Are you really planning to leave the day after tomorrow, no, tomorrow?”

“We should move before it gets hotter. We’re already late as it is.”

“…”

“Do you have something to say?”

“…No, just…”

Hajin, staring blankly at Eden’s bloodshot eyes, moved his lips.

“Thank you for accepting me.”

Eden gave a faint smile and turned back toward the rising sun.

“Same goes for me.”

That reply filled Hajin with a vague sense of relief. Perhaps Eden wasn’t as much of a jerk as he’d thought, and that hope began to weave itself into his mind.

Hajin gazed at Eden’s still, statue-like profile for a moment before slowly turning away.

🃏

“Are you worth ten lives? No muscles in your legs?”

Thinking Eden might not be as much of a jerk? That thought was completely retracted. A jerk like this didn’t even deserve the title of jerk.

Hajin was so mortified he wanted to gouge out his own eyes for looking at Eden fondly at dawn.

“Huff, ugh… just a sec, let me, whew, catch my breath!”

“You’re not a newborn giraffe calf. Who walks when told to run at full speed?”

Grabbing the collar of the collapsed Hajin, Eden dragged him into a corner. Even while being dragged, Hajin shuddered as he stared at the dozen or so zombies pressed against the hardware store’s glass door.

“Do Hajin, let’s work on your stamina from now on.”

Damn it… this companionship was a mistake. Wiping the sweat dripping down his chin, Hajin barely managed to pull himself up from the ground.

“My stamina, huff, is plenty.”

Surprisingly, stamina, flexibility, and agility were highly valued traits for a magician. To master a single trick, one needed the endurance to withstand millions of practice sessions, and to wield tools like extensions of their body, flexibility and agility were essential.

For this reason, Hajin wasn’t the type to neglect exercise, so he couldn’t tolerate being criticized for lacking stamina. Of course, his endurance had weakened from being cooped up in the motel without moving much, but…

Then, Eden muttered under his breath.

“Talk is cheap.”

“Wha, what?”

“Just talking to myself.”

Hajin, about to flare up, shut his mouth meekly as zombies scratched threateningly at the glass door with their nails. Screech, screech!! Caw! Kik-kak-kak! The ear-piercing noise gave him goosebumps. Hiding in a blind spot, he swallowed hard, tasting blood in his throat.

This morning, as soon as dawn broke, Hajin had been dragged by Eden to head to the hardware store.

The hardware store was across from the motel, halfway down the second alley. It wasn’t far, and no zombies were in sight when they set out, so there wasn’t much worry. But stepping out onto the street for the first time in a while, his legs gave out, and he tripped.

Just then, two zombies passing by eagerly lunged at him, and Eden, in his place, smashed their heads in with a hammer. That’s how Hajin ended up owing Eden his life once again.

“Hand me those newspapers in the corner.”

At Eden’s urging, Hajin grabbed the visible newspapers and passed them over.

Eden spread out several sheets of newspaper and strode toward the glass door. The remaining zombies outside slammed against it as if they’d break it down. Despite their rotting state, with swollen eyeballs and eyelids, their ferocity was intense.

Eden opened a prepared water bottle and poured water onto the edge of the newspaper. He then stuck the dampened paper onto the glass, sprinkling water on the rest. After covering the entire glass door with newspaper, the zombies, which had been frantically banging their foreheads, began to quiet down.

Having blocked their view, Eden scanned the dark interior, searching for useful items. The roughly 5-pyeong hardware store, seemingly out of business for a long time, had a sparse inventory.

“When we head back, stay sharp and run.”

He warned Hajin, who was still catching his breath.

“Huff, yesss…”

Hajin answered obediently, but found himself absurdly hoping for the day Eden would trip. What was that he’d heard earlier? A newborn giraffe calf…? An unprecedentedly creative insult made him let out a misplaced chuckle.

Next time, he’d definitely repay this life debt. Holding his trembling legs, Hajin stood and followed Eden.

Eden gathered a well-sharpened industrial scissor, thin wire, and various types of rope, handing them to Hajin. For some reason, he’d collected a ton of rope.

“Aren’t we grabbing weapons?”

“Can you run around with a chainsaw? They’re pretty heavy.”

“…No.”

“Let’s look for weapons at the mart.”

Familiar with the local geography and shops, Eden seamlessly laid out the next plan. Hajin nodded and searched for survival tools on his own, but Eden repeatedly rejected them for lacking practicality.

The only useful item was a hiking backpack in a corner of the store. Approaching the dusty bag, Hajin stuffed all the ropes Eden handed him inside. Under the bag, he also found a toolbox containing three flashlights and a large number of batteries.

“Found flashlights and batteries too!”

“Take as many batteries as you can.”

It wasn’t much in terms of variety, but they’d managed to secure some survival essentials. Hajin packed the industrial knife, scissors, four bundles of rope, flashlights, and batteries into the bag and slung it over his shoulder.