Magic on the Dead Chapter 57

Sweat dripped down from his forehead. The heat radiating from their bodies, pressed together without a gap, was considerable, but he didn’t find it unpleasant. Compared to the smell of decaying corpses and the stench of filth, the scent of each other’s sweat was sweeter and more fragrant than any perfume.

They had been sitting perfectly still like that, with their noses buried in each other, for several dozen minutes. Thump, thump, thump. Hajin listened to the steady beat of the heart. The zombies that had been circling nearby seemed to have already disappeared, as even the howling had stopped at some point.

“Ahem, shall we get up now.”

“……”

“Mr. Jung Taegeon?”

He asked again, but Eden didn’t answer. Only the sound of quiet breathing, the water flowing along the riverbed, and the roars of zombies howling in the distance echoed inside the culvert. He lifted his lowered head to check on him, and a pained groan reached his ear.

“Haah, I’m really going to die….”

Leaning completely on Hajin, Eden relaxed his body.

“Sorry, but let’s just stay like this a little longer.”

Hajin tensed his shoulders, feeling awkward at the weight that was collapsing onto him. It seemed he was now breathing only through his mouth, as Eden made a stuffy-nosed sound that didn’t suit him at all.

“…I’m a bit sensitive to smells.”

It was a voice he’d never heard, a complaint he’d never heard before. For a moment, he felt strange. Jung Taegeon, relying on him. And clinging on like a child, gripping his t-shirt tightly.

Feeling both sorry and a little proud for some reason, Hajin found himself strange and needlessly scolded Eden.

“I told you not to follow me all the way here and go through this.”

“…Hoo.”

Instead of answering, Eden exhaled a hot breath as if blowing out cigarette smoke. The breath tickled his nape, and Hajin faintly grimaced.

“From now on, don’t recklessly chase after me even if I disappear.”

In truth, he wanted to say thank you. He hated to admit it, but when Hajin found Eden, who had chased him all the way to the front of the distant underpass, he felt like he’d been hit over the head. It was a shock that couldn’t be described with words; to be precise, it was a lightning bolt of relief.

Whether he was glaring at him, saying he couldn’t let him die, or pushing him against the wall to avoid the filth, or not hesitating to sit on the ground to accommodate his cramped leg, Hajin couldn’t help but think he was glad Eden was there the whole time.

As they held their breath and embraced each other deeply, a fleeting moment of affection had, unbelievably, warmed his chest.

Comrades on a battlefield, clutching each other’s dog tags.

He felt like he had now, for the first time, completely and physically grasped the meaning of companionship he had spoken of. But there was no need for him to endure unreasonable sacrifices for him purely for the sake of being a colleague. It was something Hajin himself never wanted either.

“Why aren’t you answering? I said don’t chase after me from now on.”

“That’s for me to decide.”

Eden, his brow deeply furrowed, pulled his face away from where it was buried in Hajin. Their gazes met, so close their noses could touch.

“I can’t chase after you like this even if you disappear, Mr. Jung Taegeon. So don’t do anything dangerous ever again.”

He was putting on a brave front, but Hajin already knew. If Jung Taegeon were in danger, he wouldn’t be able to just stand by and watch either.

Furthermore, if it hadn’t been for Jung Taegeon, it was questionable whether he could have even made it this far with only the determination to survive.

Although Eden’s way of speaking that crushed his pride and his crude jokes were quite annoying at times, he could no longer even imagine a journey without him.

While he was lost in thought, Eden wrinkled his nose mischievously and pulled Hajin closer.

“I get it, so stay close.”

As if searching for a place to breathe, he buried his face above Hajin’s collarbone and took a deep breath. It felt as if even the skin they were touching was being sucked in. He reflexively flinched his neck, and Eden mumbled something with his head still buried.

“…There’s a mark on your neck, Mr. Do Hajin.”

“……”

“I’ve felt this for a while, but you have the type of skin that marks easily. Is your skin thin.”

At the out-of-the-blue comment, Hajin blinked his eyes, fumbling around his neck. If it was a mark, it must be the one from when Eden had grabbed the back of his neck earlier.

“From just grabbing it a few times….”

Eden continued to mutter things he wasn’t asked, like a drunk person. His low, rumbling voice kept making his shoulders curl inward.

“Mr. Jung Taegeon, are you very motion sick? What kind of nonsense have you been spouting for a while now…”

“I like it.”

“Excuse me?”

“Enough that I sometimes want to grab it on purpose….”

At the unexpected last words, Hajin’s mouth fell wide open.

“What, you… crazy. Grab what? Are you in your right mind? Are you a pervert, seriously…!”

As he shot back in a dumbfounded tone, his back shook greatly. He could feel laughter escaping between his breaths. He desperately wanted to shove his chest away right this instant, but despite his flapping mouth, Eden’s condition, as he gasped for breath, was not good.

Hajin let out a big sigh as if to say, whatever, and changed the subject.

“I guess you’re a bit out of it because of the smell. You might as well just pass out.”

As expected, there was no reply. Just the occasional pained groan, keu-eung, trickling into his ear.

“I’ll keep an eye on the zombies. Trust me and close your eyes.”

Following me for no reason and suffering, what a pain…. Seeing Jung Taegeon acting weak and not in his right mind made him feel unsettled. He had spouted nonsense, but it felt like he had peeked at a secret he shouldn’t have seen, like a stone was placed on his chest.

After hesitating, Hajin carefully patted Eden’s back in a steady rhythm, pat, pat. He felt the body leaning on him grow even heavier. In that heavy weight, Hajin ended up feeling a sense of peace instead. It was almost strange that he could feel such an emotion in a touch-and-go situation.

Surviving alone was now, somehow, meaningless.

That thought just occurred to him for the first time.

🃏

The swarm of zombies that had ambushed them in the middle of the night finally quieted down as dawn broke. Evading the remaining zombies, Eden and Hajin emerged from the underpass and climbed onto the highway guardrail.

The group, who had spent the entire night desperately hiding under vehicles, rushed toward Hajin and Eden as if they had been waiting.

“Do Hajin, where were you really! I was worried!”

“Oh, thank god…!”

“Uncles, are you okay… ugh, blaargh. But why do you smell?”

It seemed the smell had seeped into their entire bodies after spending the whole night in a pit of filth. Hajin, who had awkwardly sniffed his clothes, sniff sniff, smiled with a haggard face.

Park Chunbeom pushed up his broken glasses and sniffled as if in relief.

“You were gone for so long, I was planning to go look for you and the Director as soon as the sun came up.”

“Were you that surprised? It was just for one night.”

Hajin patted the shoulder of Park Chunbeom, who seemed particularly startled. At that, he hugged Hajin’s waist as if throwing himself at him.

“I’m so glad you’re safe!”

“…Uh…. I probably… smell.”

Hajin laughed awkwardly and patted Park Chunbeom’s chubby back. Byeol, who was watching, giggled and teased Park Chunbeom and Hajin.

“I think Chunbeom Uncle likes Hajin Uncle!”

“Byeol.”

Hajin brought his index finger to his lips as if to tell her to be quiet. As he grimaced in predicament, his eyes met Eden’s. His complexion wasn’t very good, perhaps due to the aftereffects of being sick all night in the underpass. His tired eyes were deeply creased.

Hajin, who had only smiled by lifting the corners of his mouth, forcibly pulled Park Chunbeom off. Then Park Chunbeom, who had been fidgeting and watching them, turned toward Eden this time.

“Director, I’m so glad you’re safe too…”

“Let’s keep the reunion brief.”

Jung Taegeon held up his palm toward Park Chunbeom, who was approaching, as if to stop him. At that sight, Jeffrey burst into a broad smile and handed over Hajin’s and Eden’s bags that he had collected in advance.

After the short welcoming ceremony for their safe return, they each picked up the bags they had thrown aside and slung them over their shoulders.

“Everyone must be tired from not getting any sleep, so let’s walk a little more and head into the first place we find that looks suitable for resting.”

Just as he said, everyone’s face was filled with fatigue. The group trudged along, moving at a slow pace.

About an hour passed like that. Eden’s plan, which had prioritized rest, was unwittingly shattered.

“Shit, these disgusting zombie bastards!!”

Miso’s rage-filled voice echoed across the road.

It was thanks to another swarm of zombies that had descended upon them, just like last night. This time, there looked to be well over 200 of them.

From a vinyl greenhouse covered with a black tarp to a ruined house, a defunct pretzel factory, and a crane house…. they searched for any place they could hide.

The next day, the day after that, and the day after that were all the same. The incomprehensible zombie swarm attacks were now continuing into their third day.