Magic on the Dead Chapter 45

Finally, the groan of a stranger was heard from inside the glass door.

“Ugh!”

A middle-aged man with graying hair was blocking the light of the flashlight shining directly into his pupils with the palm of his hand.

“…Whoa, shit, I almost swore.”

While Hajin was stroking his startled chest, Eden continued to survey the inside with the flashlight he was holding. Behind the unidentified middle-aged man, other people could be seen standing blankly, looking this way with wary eyes. There were not many of them. About four, perhaps.

The people were all busy frowning or turning their heads to avoid the violently pouring light of the flashlight.

“A-are you not zombies? Are you really people?”

The sound of mumbling words flowed out from inside. Eden lowered the flashlight he was holding and looked at Hajin. Hajin, who instantly understood what he was asking, nodded his head.

“You go ahead and talk first. I will keep watch for now.”

While he prepared for a possible zombie attack that might be hiding, Eden spoke with the middle-aged man through the slightly ajar gap in the door. It seemed the conversation went well, as Eden whistled, whew!, at Hajin, who was looking around with tense alertness.

Once inside, the two were guided by the man and sat down on dining chairs closest to the door. Across from them, the man, two women who looked to be in their twenties, and a boy who looked to be a high school student sat down in a row. Between them, the light of two candles with burning wicks flickered.

Hajin shivered at the gloomy and bizarre atmosphere, as if a ghost might appear at any moment.

“So you are saying you have other companions in the restroom right now? May I ask how many there are?”

The middle-aged man who had first opened the door asked. The middle-aged man, with sunken areas under his eyes and a mole of ill temper in the middle of his cheek, had a memorable impression that would not be easily forgotten once seen.

“Including us, there are six of us.”

After Eden’s answer, the middle-aged man made eye contact with each of his companions. A murmuring continued on and on, as if they were consulting with each other.

“To be honest, this is the first time anyone has come all the way here. We are very concerned about what to do about this. Ahem, you said you need food?”

“Yes. We have not been able to eat for several days. We have a young child with us as well.”

Eden spewed out the lies smoothly without batting an eye. Had not eaten for several days…? Well, considering what they had eaten so far was not rice but things like soup or canned tuna, perhaps it was not entirely a wrong statement. Hajin clicked his tongue inwardly as he watched Eden’s amazing facial acting.

“Oh dear. You must be having a very hard time. It must be that the Great Spirit sent you to me so that I may look after you poor souls.”

Great Spirit? Flustered by the appearance of a rather strange word, Hajin blinked his eyelashes. Feeling an unusual vibe, he poked Eden’s thigh, and an inquisitive gaze immediately followed. Hajin tried to say something, using his eyes and gestures.

Eden tilted his head crookedly as if in response. Hajin mumbled softly.

“I think that person is part of a cult. Should we just leave?”

Eden, twisting his head, this time brought his lips close to Hajin’s earlobe.

“What do you want me to do. We are not in a position to be picky right now.”

It was a rather mischievous voice. Hajin was surprised again by the tone he was hearing for the first time, and his eyes shot wide open. With a fresh smile, Eden pulled his face away.

The middle-aged man with the blue glasses was still staring blankly this way. Eden put on a handsome smile again and continued speaking.

“We plan to stay for just tonight and leave. If you could treat us to one meal, we will stay quietly and then go. If possible, we would like to take some food from the convenience store, but we cannot be so shameless as to do that….”

Hajin could not help but be inwardly astounded by Eden’s shameless acting skills. What, cannot be so shameless…? A man who could lock up everyone here and seize all their belongings if he put his mind to it was acting so pitiably pathetic that his own body was twisting in knots.

Eden continued to reassure the people with a very polite impression, saying that he had no intention of causing any harm. The facial muscles of the people, who had been facing the suspicious visitors with tense gazes all along, also began to loosen little by little.

“Fortunately, we still have enough food, so I think we can treat you to one meal.”

The short-haired woman, who had been completely fooled by Eden’s false smile, looked around at her colleagues as if seeking their agreement.

“That is right. One meal is nothing….”

“Honestly, there is a lot of food left in the convenience store, too. And strictly speaking, it is not our property either.”

“That is right. This encounter was surely bestowed upon us by the Great Spirit, so for now, let’s be generous within the limits of what we can offer….”

Hajin, bewildered by how easily the conversation was progressing, rolled his eyes.

‘Is this what you call the honey trap of a handsome man…?’

The initiative of the conversation had shifted long ago. Eden meticulously asked about the circumstances that led them to stay here and their relationships with each other. Before long, Hajin was also contributing to the conversation, showing off the eloquence he had polished through magic.

“She and I are part-timers at the Caffé Bene here at the rest stop. This mister and this kid were on their way to Incheon and got trapped here.”

The two young women in their twenties were part-timers at the franchise café attached to this rest stop, and the middle-aged man and the boy who looked like a high school student were father and son. It was a case where the women and the father-son pair, who had barely survived after the chaos broke out, had gathered to form a small group.

“Have you not thought about going outside?”

“We have tried. About five times…? But each time, we ran into zombies and had no choice but to run back here. Hah… We are in a really damn frustrating situation too.”

As the short-haired woman grumbled, the long-haired woman sitting next to her also added.

“Still, hearing that you came all the way here from Sangwon on foot, it seems it is not an impossible task, so I feel a little relieved.”

Through the conversation, Hajin realized that not a single one of them had yet experienced killing a zombie. Just then, the boy asked as if he was curious.

“By any chance, hyungs, while you were coming here, have you ever killed a zombie or a person?”

“We have not. We have weapons, but we have never swung them.”

Hajin, who was about to thoughtlessly answer’yes’, snapped his mouth shut, hup, at Eden’s answer that came out first. The middle-aged man stroked his chest.

“That is a relief. They may look like monsters now, but we do not know if they might become human again, and they are all living beings, so killing is out of the question. It is an act that clearly goes against the teachings of the Great Spirit as well.”

“Yes. For whatever reason, killing is out of the question.”

Eden maintained his poker face even at the ridiculous speech and played along. His skill at naturally forming a common ground was top-notch.

He was spouting’lies’without any hesitation, without batting an eye. It was to the extent that even for Hajin, who was on the level of a lie detector, it was difficult to distinguish whether Eden was speaking the truth or a lie.

It was a lie so masterful that it made him wonder if Eden’s atrocity of piling up about ten corpses like a mountain on the stage, back when he could not even tell if they were zombies or people, was something that had happened in a dream. While sitting here, Hajin had to hide the goosebumps that kept rising at Jung Taegeon’s amazing acting skills.

After a sufficient period of reconnaissance, Hajin and Eden brought their companions and entered the restaurant area again. The smell of curry was strong, as if they had been preparing a meal in advance. The scent of warm instant rice and sour kimchi stimulated their sense of smell.

“Do Hajin, how did you win those people over?”

Miso, who poked Hajin in the side, whispered.

“I did not win them over. Mr. Jung Taegeon did it all.”

“Huh? Mr. Jung Taegeon did?”

“You do not believe it, right? I do not believe it either.”

Hajin had often witnessed Eden’s smiling face, but this was the first time he had learned what kind of face he made when he deliberately put on a handsome smile. His expression, which was endlessly cold when he was emotionless, could not look more gentle in the world when he softly folded the corners of his eyes and pulled up his lips so that his dimples deepened.

It was a hypocritical smile that was the complete opposite of his usual behavior, but it was such a natural smile that anyone seeing him for the first time would have no choice but to be completely fooled. To think that a man who knew how to smile like that would spit out words like’What do you want me to do’to him….

Hajin, with his wet laundry slung carelessly over his arm, looked at the leading Eden with a rather fed-up expression.