Magic on the Dead Chapter 35

“Well, there’s this talking chick.”

Hajin carefully placed the bag on his shoulder onto the floor. Then, while everyone watched, he bowed his head deeply and timidly rummaged through his bag. After moving his hands suspiciously for a while, Hajin stood up again. In his hand was a yellow fluffy chick doll that could fit in one fist.

“When you press the power button, exactly three seconds later, it starts running around making a ridiculously loud noise. The chirp chirp sound is quite loud. This should be enough to serve as bait to gather the zombies.”

After finishing his words, Hajin took out an AA battery from the front pocket of his bag and inserted it into the back of the chick’s head.

The faces of the group, who had been listening silently to the explanation, contorted in an ambiguous way. Some were trying to suppress their bursting laughter, while others had their mouths agape in disbelief. As expected, Eden was the latter.

“Mr. Do Hajin… wasn’t bringing ten decks of cards enough for you?”

He was asking why on earth he had brought a talking chick in a backpack where every inch of space was precious for packing essential survival items. Eden had previously advised the team members packing their backpacks to only include the absolute necessary items, and as minimally as possible.

Hajin, with his face completely flushed, brazenly muttered an excuse.

“It might look like a simple toy, but it’s an old magic partner of mine. I have a few others besides Ppiyaki, but anyway, this is the only one I brought.”

“Ppiyaki?”

As Eden’s expression completely crumpled, Park Chunbeom, who was standing behind him, couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing.

“Pfft.”

“Uncle Hajini! So Ppiyaki is the bait? Are you going to use Ppiyaki as bait? That’s so sad….”

Meanwhile, only Jeong Byeol pointed at the chick in Hajin’s hand and asked a serious question. Eden, waving his hand in the air to quell the commotion, asked once more.

“Have you packed any other useless items?”

Hajin, so embarrassed that his cheeks were flushed, glared fiercely at Eden’s remark.

“What do you mean, useless items? We’re about to use this thing as bait to save our lives, so what….”

Pouting his lips, he stroked the fur of the well-worn chick. His touch was extremely cautious, as if he was afraid of accidentally pressing the power button.

Miso, who was watching, reached her hand out towards Hajin.

“Give it here. I’ll throw this one.”

Then, Lee Changyeol blocked Miso’s hand.

“Are you sure you’re okay? It would be better for me to throw it since I’m a bit stronger….”

“This kind of thing isn’t about being mindlessly strong. You need technique.”

No one argued with Miso’s words. There was no one here who could use their arms as delicately as her, a former athlete. Besides, they only had one chance. If she were to accidentally drop it or fail to throw it far enough, everyone’s lives could be in danger.

“Miso, you throw it.”

Hajin, without a word of complaint, handed the doll to Miso and closed the wide-open bag again, slinging it over his shoulder.

While Miso stretched her neck out towards the medical center’s parking lot to scout a point to throw, Eden searched for a place to hide beyond the parking lot. There was a guard post that looked like a phone booth at the entrance of the medical center.

After sharing a simple plan, the group took their respective positions and waited for the right moment. Miso, signaling with her eyes, handed her messenger bag to Jeffrey. Jeffrey, even while taking the bag, was busy joking around.

“Miso. Mistake is death, is ahead.”

“Don’t jinx it and just silently cheer me on, Jeffrey.”

“Jinx? I don’t have jinx.”

Miso left the cover of the tree and ran to hide behind a parked black car. She held her breath, waiting for the moment when the zombies’ gazes were directed towards the ground or the opposite direction. After some time had passed, just as the high sun was creating a drop of sweat on Miso’s forehead.

Now.

She, who had been squatting until her blood circulation was cut off, stood up. Eden simultaneously gave a hand signal to the group.

The time given was only three seconds. Miso pressed the power button without a hint of hesitation.

Three seconds.

She smoothly rotated her long arm half a circle behind her, and her hand elegantly stretched out diagonally above her head.

Two seconds.

Without hesitation, she forcefully threw the doll towards the point she had scouted.

One second…….

Chirp—!!!! Chirp—!!!!! Chirp—!!!!! Chirp—!!!!

As the chick, flying in an arc, let out a thunderous roar, the zombies’ heads all turned in the same direction. The chick, boasting a higher decibel level than expected, leaped into a corner of the parking lot.

“Kyaaaaak—!”

“Kuuuuuuh-eooo!”

The zombies, who had been moving sluggishly, suddenly ran swiftly in the direction of the sound, as if they had never been sluggish at all.

Success. Miso, clenching her fist, turned around. Eden and the group, who had already drawn near, led her and swiftly crossed the parking lot.

Eden hid behind the guard post he had spotted and caught his breath. As everyone followed and sat down in a line, his eyes darted around busily. He was counting the members, but one was missing.

Hajin, realizing the situation as well, half-rose from his squatting position and looked around.

“Mr. Lee Changyeol…?”

Chirp—! Chirp!!! Through the loud mechanical sound of the chirping chick, the sharp growl of a zombie could be heard.

An ominous premonition ran down his spine.

“Wasn’t Mr. Lee Changyeol following right at the back?”

[That’s right. He was definitely behind me… Where did he go?]

Flustered, Jeffrey muttered in English. Eden checked the watch on his wrist and asked.

“Mr. Do Hajin, how long can that chick keep crying?”

“It will keep crying unless someone touches it.”

“Is there no set time?”

“No, it only turns off when the power button is pressed. It will probably keep crying as long as a zombie doesn’t touch it,”

Before he could finish his sentence, the cry of the chick, which had been tearing at their eardrums, abruptly stopped, as if it were a lie.

“Shit….”

Miso cursed under her breath and touched her hot forehead. When the chirp-chirp noise stopped, the surroundings instantly fell silent. They had to hurry to the pharmacy before the zombies gathered at the end of the parking lot dispersed again. But Lee Changyeol was still nowhere to be seen.

As if he could delay no longer, Eden stood up.

“Let’s go.”

“What? What about Mr. Lee Changyeol?”

Hajin whispered, and his gaze turned somewhere. Eden gave no particular response.

“Mr. Jung Taegeon? Are you saying we should just leave Mr. Lee Changyeol and go?”

Eden quietly brought his index finger to his lips, as if telling him to be quiet. Following his gaze, everyone’s heads turned. Far away, Lee Changyeol was limping towards the guard post. Sensing an unusual aura, everyone in the group stood up and gripped the weapons in their hands tightly.

Lee Changyeol himself, approaching with pale lips, smiled in relief as if he was glad to have found the group.

Eden cast his gaze towards Lee Changyeol’s limping leg. Blood was pooling over his navy uniform pants. Eden held out one palm to stop the approaching Lee Changyeol. His smiling face hardened in an instant.

Hajin, hiding behind Eden, rolled his eyes and carefully scanned Lee Changyeol’s appearance. In contrast to his deathly pale lips, his eyes were still a clear black, and there was no nosebleed.

His injured leg was a concern, but thankfully, there were no signs of infection. Lee Changyeol’s face crumpled helplessly, as if he was hurt by the people who were wary of him.

“I’m perfectly fine. I just fell on my way here and got cut on a sharp rock.”

He revealed his condition, keeping his voice as low as possible. Eden, keeping a close watch on the commotion of the zombies who had started moving again, gestured with his chin.

“For now, follow us.”

There was a need to examine Lee Changyeol’s condition closely, but there was no time. Eden wrapped one hand around the nape of the approaching Lee Changyeol’s neck, and with the other hand, he placed the blade of his hand axe against his neck.

“Ugh, what are you doing…!”

“Let’s go like this until we get to the pharmacy.”

Eden took the lead, practically dragging Lee Changyeol with him. Gulp, swallowing hard, Hajin led the rest of the group and followed him.

Soon, a low, two-story commercial building appeared. There were two pharmacies in the commercial building.

It seemed someone had already been there, as the glass doors of both pharmacies were completely shattered. Eden, stepping on the glass to enter the first pharmacy, clicked his tongue and shook his head. The medicines were in a jumble, and there weren’t many kinds.

The next pharmacy was the same. The group left the commercial building without any lingering attachment and this time headed for a standalone pharmacy located further inside. All the while, Eden kept the dark blue blade pointed at Lee Changyeol’s neck.

“I’m really going to get st-stabbed. Take this away.”

“I’ll check you at the next pharmacy and then let you go.”

Lee Changyeol glared at Eden resentfully. When he was on your side, he was more dependable than anyone in the world, but when he wasn’t, he was hopelessly ruthless, a man who would plunge a knife into your neck at any time if things went wrong….

Lee Changyeol knew this type of person very well. They mostly had in common the fact that they sat coiled at the very top of their groups.

Naturally reminded of his superior, he swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing. He shuddered as the blade of the axe lightly touched him. He seemed to have lost quite a lot of blood, as even his vision was becoming hazy.