Magic on the Dead Chapter 31

“Hurry!! Hurry up and get in!!”

Miso, Jeffrey, Park Chunbeom, and then Byeol entered the hallway in succession. Finally, the police officer and Eden rushed in desperately, shaking off the zombies that were chasing them.

Only after everyone had safely entered the hallway did Hajin, as if he had been waiting, push the long, upright cart. Chwareureu—with all his might, as if his wrist would break, he pulled the cart to block the entrance to the restroom.

“Kuaaaargh!!”

The pursuing zombies were pushed back and knocked away by the cart, and one monster that stepped on top of them charged forward in a ridiculous manner. Even in the midst of it all, the face was familiar. It was the bald man that Hajin had previously tied up tightly with ropes.

It seemed he had forcibly torn the ropes off, as one of his wrists and one of his ankles were severed. He staggered with a ferocious momentum and leaped onto the cart.

Just before being pounced on by the zombie, Hajin turned around and jumped into the women’s restroom on the right.

“Kyaaaak!!”

As he stepped inside the open door, someone pulled his waist forcefully. At the same time, the translucent glass door slammed shut with a bang! A ringing noise echoed along with the sound.

“……!”

Hajin’s chest throbbed. The air that had pooled in his lungs wouldn’t come out. It seemed he was hyperventilating due to the extreme tension. His vision became hazy like fog. In a daze, he saw Eden, who had trapped his body between himself and the wall.

Thump! Thump! A rough vibration could be felt from the door directly behind his back. The bald man was ramming his entire body against the door as if to break it.

“Heuk, kkeuk…!”

Eden observed Hajin keenly with his sharp eyes. Noticing the sense of unease right away, he covered Hajin’s mouth and nose with his right hand.

“Eup!!”

“Mr. Do Hajin, look at me.”

It was agonizing. Hajin instinctively scratched fiercely at Eden’s arm, which was blocking his airway. It felt like he would stop breathing at any moment.

Eden paid no mind and stood firm like an old tree, mercilessly crushing Hajin’s reddened lips and round nostrils. Still, when Hajin continued to struggle with his legs, this time he restrained him with his whole body.

“Just hold your breath for a moment, like you’re diving underwater.”

“Kkeueup….”

“Don’t force yourself to breathe in, just stay still like that. For just 3 seconds.”

Two eyes, welling up with tears from the agony, looked up at Eden. As if telling him to trust him, Jung Taegeon was staring intently into his trembling eyes.

To calm Hajin, whose chest was heaving continuously, Eden held his breath with him. The body that had been stiff with panic began to go limp. 3, 2, 1…. Exactly after the promised 3 seconds had passed, the palm that had been covering half of the small face was removed.

“Peuhaaaa…!”

Hajin, who had been holding his breath, exhaled it forcefully and gasped for air like a child who had just learned frog breathing. Eden grabbed the other man’s automatically slumping shoulders and brought his face close to check his condition.

“Breathe out, then breathe in. Don’t stop, keep going.”

As he tapped Hajin’s shoulder in rhythm, Hajin also naturally regulated his breathing along with it.

“Heup, ha… heu, ha….”

Eden watched Hajin’s condition attentively until the very end. Then, after confirming that he had relaxed, he moved his body, which had been firmly blocking the way, without any lingering attachment.

His legs gave out, and Hajin slid down just like that. He covered his face, which was breaking out in a cold sweat, with both hands, his knees bent.

Only after his breathing had returned to normal did Hajin open his closed eyes. The crude movements of the bald zombie, which had been charging as if it would break down the restroom door at any moment, had also ceased at some point.

“Ugh, that surprised me….”

He could see several pairs of eyes rolling around in his field of vision. The people who had formed a circle around him had their heads together, looking down at him with worried faces. Their gazes were like a pack of dogs out for a walk, checking on and looking down at their collapsed owner.

Hajin bit his lip tightly to keep a faint laugh from escaping.

Eden was watching Hajin, leaning his back against the wall under the long, rectangular window. As if to erase the sensation of the soft lips and hot breath that had been cupped in his palm, he slowly clenched and unclenched his right hand.

Then, he found himself replaying the image of Hajin’s eyes as they lost their color from the lack of air. Eyes of an exquisite color, like charcoal frozen in frost. For some reason, he felt a taut ache in his lower body.

“Mr. Hajin, are you okay? You’re not hurt anywhere, are you?”

Starting with Park Chunbeom’s whisper, everyone chimed in with a word.

“Hajin! Because of help, no death!”

“Hajini samchon, were you scared? It’s okay now. Byeol-ie will protect you.”

“That’s a relief. We survived thanks to you.”

Even Lee Changyeol joined in to check on Hajin. Having finally caught his breath, Hajin gripped his dizzy head and slowly got up from his spot. He felt incredibly weary after expending so much energy.

Meanwhile, an endless screaming match was going back and forth beyond the door.

“It hurts!!! It huuurts—!”

When someone with the voice of a robust adult man started bawling like a child, Hajin’s spine tensed up again.

Everyone watched the situation outside in a state of tension. Bang! Kwagwang—! The sounds alone were enough to vividly play out in their minds the scene of empty display stands toppling over like dominoes.

Even Lee Changyeol, who had been self-assured the whole time, had a dumbfounded expression. Miso covered Byeol’s ears and pulled the child into her embrace, and Jeffrey repeatedly twisted and untwisted his own innocent hair.

Hajin approached the sink and turned on the water. Joljol—he meticulously washed his dirty hands in the water that trickled out like an ant’s piss and wiped his sweat-drenched face. As he casually swept his wet bangs back, his round, handsome forehead was revealed brightly.

In the mirror’s reflection, Hajin’s gaze landed on Eden’s hand. From the radius bone past the metacarpals, down to the blue veins bulging under the pale skin, that damn hand, which was his ideal in every way, was the very hand that had firmly blocked his airway earlier.

When he recalled the unexpectedly soft texture of the palm, Hajin felt inwardly baffled. To think he had the leisure to have such an impression while he was on the verge of suffocating.

This time was the perfect opportunity to pay him back for the life debt from the hardware store and the insult of being called a ‘newborn baby giraffe’…. Of all things, for hyperventilation to strike before he could even put on airs about saving him. It was an unforeseen situation, especially since everything had been going well up to the point where he coolly led the group into the restroom.

‘Still, I’m alive.’

Whatever the case, everyone had survived safely. That was all that mattered. Hajin tried hard to calm his mind, which was agitated in many ways.

About 30 minutes must have passed. The groans that had been splitting and tearing at their eardrums from beyond the door were no longer heard. Instead, the grotesque sounds of chewing human flesh and bone continued on and on.

Crunch, crunch…. Gadeudeuk….

The relief of having survived and the sorrow of witnessing people’s deaths chaotically eroded everyone’s insides. The exhausted people each found a spot and sat down on the toilet seats in the three stalls, on the floor, and on the sink counter. There wasn’t even an awareness of it being dirty.

“The window is quite narrow, but if we can segment our bodies well, getting out shouldn’t be a problem.”

Eden’s low whisper echoed—woong woong—inside the restroom. He was sitting with one knee bent, his back against the wall by the window.

Hajin glanced up at the window, which was right up against the ceiling. It was a structure that would be difficult to escape from without a foothold. It seemed like it would be a real struggle if one were to be the last to escape.

Miso asked Eden.

“Are there still a lot of zombies gathered outside?”

“Yes, it will be difficult to leave right away.”

“Haaa… seriously, I’m so drained since this morning.”

Everyone nodded their chins as if in agreement with Miso’s complaint.

“Unnie, you know. I’ve had to pee for a while now.”

Byeol, who had been watching for the right moment, whispered softly to Miso. Miso, belatedly remembering the child’s condition, held her in her arms, carefully went into a toilet stall, and locked the door.

“By the way, I didn’t even know this was a restroom. It was blocked by a wall. Mr. Hajin, your reflexes are really amazing.”

Park Chunbeom, who was sitting under the sink, gave a thumbs-up. Hajin shook his head awkwardly.

In truth, Hajin’s observational skills were close to an occupational hazard. Even without trying to look, his eyes would first grasp the characteristics of the space, objects, and people. In any case, it was a relief if it was an ability that was helpful for survival.

At that moment, Eden asked in a rather serious voice.

“Mr. Do Hajin, your breathing was very unstable earlier. Does that happen to you often?”

There was no trace of the usual teasing or scolding tone. He was studying Hajin’s face as if to gauge it, his brow furrowed.

“No. It’s almost the first time.”

It had been eight years. Since he first experienced hyperventilation at a magic gala show he had participated in as a guest performer in the past.

Hajin never wanted to remember that moment again, when the tide of breath rushed in and consumed him. Without Eden’s help, he would have broken down in a disgraceful manner and then some.

“Almost the first time?”

Eden wrinkled his brow, as if puzzled by the ambiguous answer.

“Anyway, thank you for earlier. You washed your hands, right? Haha. I bet there was a lot of saliva on them.”

He tried to change the subject by mixing in a joke, but Eden didn’t laugh. Hajin, without any sign of bashfulness, steadfastly twisted the corners of his mouth up to his ears.

“Kkeueueuk… geureureureuk….”

The groaning sounds of zombies continued endlessly from beyond the closed door. While everyone was resting, Eden used his tall stature to survey the situation beyond the window. The zombies that had come out to hunt were already moving far into the distance.

Just then, Hajin pinched his nose shut. An unidentified smell that was pungently stimulating his sense of smell was subtly spreading through the air.

“A smell… something’s burning….”

“Huh?”

At the same time, Lee Changyeol also quickly covered his nose with the back of his hand and flattened himself on the floor. Peeking at the situation outside through the crack under the door, he shouted urgently.

“Smoke, it’s smoke! I think there’s a fire!”