Magic on the Dead Chapter 98

Perhaps it was because it had been raining frequently for a while. The air sticking to the mucous membranes of her nose was extremely humid. The intensity of the cicadas’ chirping, mae-em— maem— was also unusual. Six hours had already passed since they had entered the Hwajeong-Insu Road.

Byeol, covering her ears with her small hands, contorted her face as if in pain.

“It’s loud, so loud—!”

The child sighed, actively expressing her suffering. However, indifferent to Byeol’s complaints, the two childish adults continued their conversation with the veins in their necks bulging.

“Jeffrey, did you really trade your manners for a bowl of rice?”

“Hey, we ate earlier, rice.”

“Don’t pretend you don’t understand only when it’s disadvantageous! I definitely told you to change your socks too. This t-shirt too! How many times do I have to tell you to change it at least once every two days?”

“I wore this, yesterday! It’s new.”

“Don’t make me laugh. You’ve been wearing the same t-shirt for 3 days already! I’m telling you, I could die from the smell whenever I’m next to you, Jeffrey! It’s a lack of courtesy towards your comrade!”

“Unnie, there’s a zombie coming!”

“Tonight, you must change your socks and clothes. Jeffrey, how many t-shirts do you have left in your bag right now?”

“Have, two.”

“They’re washed, right? We stopped by the bathroom at the gas station yesterday.”

“Nope.”

“What do you mean, nope?!”

“Unnie, Jeffrey! A zombie is coming!”

“Oh, oh, just a moment, Byeol. The adults are talking.”

“There are five of them coming over there, you idiots!”

“What?”

“Holy Crap!!”

It was chaos like no other. In the midst of it all, Byeol naturally took Miso and Jeffrey’s bags and hid herself in the bushes. Miso, who had instantly assumed a fighting stance, skillfully dealt with the zombies approaching with their intestines dangling, alongside Jeffrey.

Although they had been arguing frequently lately, when it came to fighting monsters, the two were a fantastic duo. When Miso knocked down a zombie’s body with a roundhouse kick, Jeffrey, who was on standby, would take the baton and smash its head. As they took them down one by one like a game of whack-a-mole, their bodies soon became covered in sweat and blood.

“Look at this, Jeffrey. Your clothes got all dirty from fighting, so you’re definitely changing them today. Got it?”

She could tolerate Jeffrey’s unfunny jokes, but she could not stand the stench that wafted from him at all times, so she reiterated her request once more.

“Got it.”

“Don’t just say you got it, do it for real.”

“But don’t have. Other clothes, this one same.”

“Haa… this is driving me crazy, this person.”

The trio’s days mostly went by like this. They would have disputes for various reasons, and if a zombie popped out from somewhere, they would join forces to defeat it. Time flew by like an arrow as they bickered and fought their way down the road. Today was already the tenth day since they had parted ways with the group at Misan Ranch.

Miso, frowning from the murderous heat, suddenly lifted her head. Just then, an advertising sign that read ‘Premium Outlet’ caught her eye.

‘There’s an outlet?’

A look of relief washed over the face of the woman who had been worrying about Jeffrey’s smelly clothes all day. With a much more relaxed expression, Miso looked back at Jeffrey and this time, cajoled him with a gentle voice.

“Jeffrey. It’s evening now, so how about we rest over there today? We can get some new clothes for you too.”

Jeffrey let out a huge yawn as if he was annoyed, then reluctantly nodded.

“Unnie. But when can we see Uncle Hajin and Uncle Eden?”

Byeol, who was patting her knees with her fists as if her legs hurt, sighed and asked.

“Hmm. Well… at this rate, it’s less than a week to Yongun City, so if we just hold on a little longer, we’ll be able to see them.”

“What if the uncles arrived first?”

With Hajin, who was supposed to be their guide, absent, and having lost the map earlier, the three’s march was not making much progress. They had wasted several days by entering the wrong road, so the possibility that Eden and Hajin had already arrived in Yongun City could not be ignored.

“If the uncles arrived first, they’d be waiting quietly for our Byeol.”

Miso calmly stroked the child’s head as if to reassure her. Byeol, with her grimy face, grinned— and nodded.

“I miss Uncle Hajini so much.”

“Uncle Eden would be sad to hear that.”

“But I’m going to marry Uncle Hajini… so I can’t help it.”

“Even so, the age gap is too big, so you can’t, Byeol.”

At Miso’s indifferent remark, Byeol became sullen and pouted her small lips.

“I’m still going to marry Uncle Hajini.”

“What do you like so much about him?”

“He’s handsome, and he’s good at magic.”

“I don’t know, maybe because I see him all the time… Is Do Hajin that handsome?”

Perhaps it was because the memory of his small and dowdy childhood self was still vivid in her mind. Whenever someone praised Hajin’s looks, Miso would feel an unbearable sense of awkwardness. In fact, she could not hide her surprise even when he, a recluse magician, had dozens of fan accounts.

“Yeah! Unnie, you see him all the time, why don’t you know? Uncle Eden also said Uncle Hajini is handsome.”

This time, Miso raised her eyebrows as if truly surprised. That Eden, who was always busy acting as stiff as an emotionless robot, had actually praised Do Hajin’s appearance.

“Mr. Jung Taegeon praised Hajin? When did he say that?”

“Um, I dunno. He said it a whole lot. Uncle Eden said Uncle Hajini is pretty… pretty and handsome. He always said that when he talked to me.”

“…He always said that?”

“Yeah! When we went to bed at night, too. His eyes are pretty, and, um, and his lips are pink.”

At the unbelievable story, Miso’s head tilted more and more to the side. Come to think of it, she seemed to recall Hajin once making a passing compliment like, ‘Jung Taegeon is the most handsome person I’ve ever seen.’

‘What is this?’

When did they stop fighting and brawling at the mere sight of each other, and instead busied themselves praising each other’s looks behind their backs? Lost in thought due to an unknown sense of unease, Miso glanced to her side. For some reason, Jeffrey’s face was just as crumpled as hers.

‘What is this… this ominous feeling.’

An inexplicable, uncomfortable feeling began to cling to her entire body, just like the humid air.

🃏

Pitch-darkness descended upon the surroundings. Miso’s face was more serious than ever as she shone a flashlight on the outlet’s information sign.

Since functional clothing that could absorb sweat would be useful, it seemed like a good idea to check out the area where the sporting goods stores were clustered.

“Byeol, you stick right by unnie’s side, okay?”

“Okay!”

“Jeffrey, you stay next to me too, don’t wander off. Our target is Section A here. We’re only going to look around the stores in this section, not any other stores. Okay?”

Jeffrey patted his chest and nodded, as if he understood. However, while Miso was distracted taking care of Byeol, he took the first step into the building under the pretext of scouting.

“Hey, Miso, wait here. I be back quick!”

Contrary to Miso’s instructions, the place he headed to was Section B on the upper floor. The reason was that the N*ke brand store he liked was located there.

Cracks instantly formed on Miso’s face as she watched Jeffrey, who had already run far ahead. She picked up Byeol and hurriedly followed after Jeffrey.

“Jeffrey, are you not going to listen to me?!”

She lowered her voice as much as possible, but even that small shout echoed between the buildings. Jeffrey had just stepped onto the escalator, which was piled high with corpses, and reached the second floor.

“Miso. Don’t worry! Is dangerous. Go outside. Or come up together?”

“What do you mean, come up! Never mind, just come down to the first floor!”

“Don’t fight! You stupid buttholes!”

Just then, the sound of a dog barking, “Woof!” was heard from somewhere. The startled Byeol screamed once more.

“If you fight, the zombies will come! You buttholes!”

“Byeol? You have to lower your voice, right?!”

Miso, worried that zombies would flock due to the chaotic disturbance, was about to run out of the main gate with Byeol.

“Yoon Miso!”

A familiar voice suddenly stopped her in her tracks. The momentum almost made her trip and fall. Stumble.

“Hah…!”

Miso, who barely righted her upper body, slowly turned toward the direction the voice came from. Just then, Byeol, who was in her arms, muttered in disbelief.

“Uncles…?”

She raised the flashlight and shone it into the darkness. Just as Byeol said, far in the distance, two men who looked exactly like Eden and Hajin were holding a lamp and staring blankly in their direction.

Unable to believe what she was seeing, Miso remained frozen in place for a while, as if she had come face to face with a ghost. Jeffrey, who had sensed that something was amiss, immediately ran down to the first floor.

[What’s going on?]

He followed the gaze of Miso and Byeol, who were frozen like statues, and turned his head. Soon, the familiar figures of two men came into his view. Jeffrey’s face gradually filled with astonishment as he spotted Hajin and Eden standing there like grim reapers.

He pointed a finger toward where the two were standing and let out a curse in disbelief.

[Fuck, does this even make sense…?]