Magic on the Dead Chapter 54

Dinner consisted of one pouch of retort seaweed soup, two instant rice bowls, and two protein bars. It was a rather small amount to be shared among five able-bodied adults and one child, but they had to minimize calorie intake to make their food supplies last longer.

Gathered in a circle as if around a campfire, the people fixed their gazes on the burning branches. When the embers completely died out, darkness fell. Jeffrey, who patted his stomach out of habit despite the somewhat insufficient dinner, let out a huge yawn—stretch.

Beside him, Park Chunbeom, who had been sniffing the acrid, burnt smell, spoke up while glancing around.

“Um… about Misan Ranch in Nogwang City.”

Like a grain of sand that had gotten into his sneakers, the word that had been prickling at their nerves since last evening popped out. It was a topic no one had rashly brought up because each of them already had a clear destination in mind.

“It is on the way before we go to Yongwun anyway, so I was thinking, how about we stop by? Our food might have run out by then, and who knows, we might hear some other news… sniff, I think they said there was a military unit there, too.”

Park Chunbeom timidly sniffled and appealed his opinion. In an instant, the surroundings became quiet. Hajin, after a slight pause, replied in a cautious voice.

“I know what you mean, but I do not want the schedule to be delayed. And you say it’s on the way, but it is quite a detour.”

If it were literally on the way, there would be no reason to refuse. However, Hajin clearly remembered the map he had checked on the navigation system before getting out of Lee Chang-yeol’s car. Even if they passed through Nogwang City administratively, Misan Ranch was at least another 7km away from the expressway.

Besides, he couldn’t afford to waste precious time with his younger brother, Junseok, on his mind.

“As Mr. Do Hajin said, if the situation is not serious, I do not think there is a need to stop by the ranch. Even if we go, there is no guarantee that we will obtain any meaningful information, and there must be a reason why the military unit is staying only there and not advancing further. That means there is a high probability that they, too, do not have any particular solution.”

Eden’s dry opinion followed. Park Chunbeom looked somewhat disappointed. Miso, who was carefully braiding Byeol’s undone hair, added her opinion last.

“Honestly, Mr. Chunbeom has a point, and Hajin’s point about not having time is also valid… so I’m a bit conflicted. We still have quite a ways to go to get near there, so how about we decide then?”

Park Chunbeom was about to rebut but then closed his mouth again. It seemed he had more to say, but he only fidgeted a few times and did not continue.

His appearance lingered in Hajin’s mind, and around 9 PM, he gently shook Park Chunbeom’s shoulder, who was lying on the dry grass preparing for sleep, to start a conversation.

“Eek.”

Park Chunbeom, startled, looked up at Hajin’s face and then let out a sigh of relief.

“I-I thought you were a zombie.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I approached too stealthily.”

“Haha….”

Park Chunbeom, who had clutched his chest once, sat up awkwardly. As his hands fumbled for the glasses he had taken off by his head, Hajin picked up the broken glasses for him instead. When he held Park Chunbeom’s floundering face and put the glasses on for him, his cheekbones rose high.

“Thank you. You are always so kind, Mr. Hajin.”

Park Chunbeom, who smiled with his characteristic good-natured face, widened his small eyes as if he had remembered something.

“Ah, Mr. Hajin, are you tired by any chance? Shall I switch watch duties with you?”

“No. It’s not that….”

Hajin, who had been sitting with his knees bent, settled down next to Park Chunbeom in earnest.

“It’s about what you said earlier, about Misan Ranch. I came to apologize if you were offended.”

At Hajin’s cautious voice, Park Chunbeom’s mouth fell open in surprise.

“Huh? Oh my, what, no, not at all. Oh dear, you were worried about that. You don’t have to be.”

Park Chunbeom shook his head, flustered even more than him. Hajin looked at the top of Park Chunbeom’s head, which seemed to be on the verge of developing circular hair loss, and then cast his gaze beyond the broken glasses. His bean-sized eyes were blinking like a slow minute hand.

“Is there perhaps another reason you want to go to Misan Ranch? It seemed like you had more to say, but couldn’t because of the atmosphere.”

At Hajin’s unexpected, delicate consideration, Park Chunbeom’s gentle eyes wavered. He pushed up the glasses that had slipped down to the tip of his nose and nodded timidly.

“Well, that is… it’s nothing special. Ahem, it’s because of my parents. To be honest, most neighborhoods must have been completely devastated… and even if I find both of them, I feel at a loss when I think about what comes after. My parents are elderly, so I don’t think I can handle this whole situation by myself.”

Hajin listened to Park Chunbeom with a serious face. Park Chunbeom wiped the sweat beading on his nose with the back of his hand and continued.

“Since it’s on the way, I thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to just check if it’s a safe place. As a sort of insurance, you could say. I thought it might be a pretty good place to take my parents to in the future… I’m sorry. Was that too selfish?”

His voice trembled like a goat’s, as if he were nervous. His good nature, which constantly censored itself even as he spoke, created a gentle ripple in Hajin’s heart.

Park Chunbeom was a person who had tried tirelessly not to be a nuisance while they braved the rough road together. He was more timid and fearful than the cowardly Hajin, but he was also a courageous man who, while holding back his nausea, would step forward and raise his axe when a zombie charged.

Perhaps that was why it bothered him more. Hajin had a particular weakness for good people who couldn’t even look after their own interests and tried to be considerate of others first.

Moreover, Park Chunbeom had a point. Life after finding one’s family. After finding his younger brother Junseok, where should they take refuge and live? Hajin hadn’t had the luxury of considering that far, so he, too, couldn’t help but think again about the safety of Misan Ranch.

Hajin, stretching once and listening to the sound of the water, replied in a deliberately bright voice.

“Come to think of it, I guess I’ll need a place to go after I find my brother, too. It’s not easy to find a place where safety is guaranteed.”

Park Chunbeom’s head, which had been facing the floor like a child waiting to be scolded, shot up. Hajin looked at his bean-like eyes, which shone brightly even in the dark, and whispered.

“As I recall, Misan Ranch was near Mount Jeongmang. Our route varies depending on the situation, so I can’t be sure, but if we end up climbing Mount Jeongmang, I don’t think it would be a bad idea to take a brief detour to Misan Ranch. Of course, if we take the road or if it seems like it will delay us further, we’ll have to skip it.”

“Th-That… I would be very happy, but will the director allow it?”

“We can try to appeal to him when the time comes, I guess.”

As he spoke casually, Park Chunbeom’s chest swelled up.

“I really do not know how fortunate I am to have you, Mr. Hajin.”

He said in an emotional tone and whoosh! hugged Hajin. Hajin, whose upper body was held in an awkward position, let out a nervous laugh, ha-ha.

“Oh my, yes, I am also… I feel secure having you, Mr. Chunbeom.”

Just then, his eyes met with Eden’s, who had returned from patrolling the vicinity. Actually, it was too dark to see well, but for some reason, he felt like that was the case. What he was thinking, he just stood there in the dark, watching the two men who were suddenly clinging to each other, and then he shook his head and left.

Feeling unnecessarily embarrassed, Hajin detached Park Chunbeom’s warm body and scratched the back of his head.

“Anyway, even if we don’t get to stop by Misan Ranch, please do not be too disappointed.”

“Oh my, disappointed? How could you say that? I’m grateful that you are being considerate.”

Excited by the warmth he had received after a long time, Park Chunbeom held onto Hajin, who was about to return to his spot, and chattered on.

“…that’s why I tell Jeffrey not to tease me, but he still calls me Tune every day. Even Byeol calls me Tune now… Oh right, Mr. Hajin, you also called me Tune when you woke me up the other day.”

Park Chunbeom puffed out his cheeks as if he didn’t like the nickname.

Hajin was hugging his knees, looking at the waning moon reflected on the water. On the night of the zombie outbreak, the moon beyond the warehouse window had been a half-moon with its right side swollen and fat, but now the other half was swollen. As he felt the passage of time anew through the shape of the moon, a slow sigh escaped him.

“What exactly did you say Tune means?”

“The company I work for developed a new radio technology, and its name is Tune. Jeffrey just lumps me in and calls me Tune because it’s easy to say.”

Hmm. Hajin rested his chin on his knees and, in that position, turned his head to look at Park Chunbeom.

“By the way, what exactly is the position of CTO? I think I heard you call him director last time, and also managing director.”

Hajin casually threw out the question he hadn’t been able to resolve earlier, since the topic had come up. Of course, purely from the perspective of ‘camaraderie’.

When the topic of his boss came up, Park Chunbeom seemed somewhat excited.

“I’m not used to the title of CTO, so I just call him director or managing director. Hmm, you can think of the director as the head of Blue Works’ aerospace industry division. He is somewhat involved in management, but since he comes from an engineering background, he is in charge of the technology side. Even so, his business acumen is so good that he gets dragged around here and there as a figurehead. He is very good-looking, you know.”

Hajin, who had never had a normal office job, felt as if Park Chunbeom’s words were like an alien language whose signals he couldn’t interpret. Having dug only one well of magic like a single-minded person, he often felt that he himself was lacking in common sense like this.

“So… um, he’s the big boss in the side that makes things like airplanes? Is that right?”

“Haha. Yes. That is right. The director is truly amazing. Mr. Jung Taegeon is the role model for most people working in the defense industry in Korea. The go-to line for interviewees is always, ‘I want to be like CTO Eden Jung.’ He is a legend in this industry.”

He had roughly guessed it, but it seemed he was a more influential figure than he had thought. Hajin, recalling his somewhat arrogant and nonchalant demeanor, snorted for no reason—humpf.

Park Chunbeom looked into the air and continued to boast.

“That’s why everyone was so jealous when I was assigned as his temporary personal assistant when the director came to Korea. It was a really good thing I learned English. Ah, of course, I didn’t have to interpret much for him. He is a bit scary, but there was a lot to learn while I was with him, and also….”

“Do you not feel it is unfair?”

“Pardon?”

“You followed Mr. Jung Taegeon and ended up coming to my magic show. If not for that, you would not have had to suffer like this.”

Hajin spoke as if this whole situation were Jung Taegeon’s fault, out of spite, but in reality, the arrow was pointed at himself.

Separate from Jung Taegeon’s comfort, it was because the desire to have someone confirm that this whole situation had nothing to do with him, and to be forgiven, still remained. It was a crumb of a shabby and childish emotion.

However, Park Chunbeom, who received the question, looked rather dumbfounded, as if asking what kind of nonsense that was.

“Going to Sangwon City with the director was naturally my job, and you holding a magic show was naturally your job, too. I do not really understand why that all becomes someone else’s fault.”

As Park Chunbeom continued to speak in a calm, quiet voice, Hajin somehow felt the back of his neck grow hot with shame. Park Chunbeom scratched his left cheek as if embarrassed and added.

“Besides, if you think about it, I’m a blessed guy. Everyone is so capable. The director, and you, Mr. Hajin, and also Jeffrey and Miso…”

“If you are all done talking, get up.”

Cold water was suddenly thrown on the touching conversation that was unfolding. Hajin, who was so surprised his upper body fell back, and Park Chunbeom, who covered his mouth in fright, raised their heads. Eden, with a somewhat disheveled air, was standing behind them, breathing heavily, having approached them at some point.

Heat could be felt from his exhaled breath. The moment Hajin, sensing something ominous, reached out his hand toward Eden, an unbelievable sentence came out of his mouth.

“The zombies are flocking here.”