The Only Woman in a Zombie Apocalypse Vol. 2 Chapter 45 - The Meaning of Yet Another Memory (1)

While the group was gathering weapons and introducing themselves to Dodam, Dayoung was inside the building across from them. 

 

Being a slow runner, Dayoung had stayed behind to lure the zombies away from the group pushing the cart, diverting them into another building. She swiftly closed the door, held her rough breaths, and checked the situation inside. 

 

Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be any zombies in there.

 

Shortly after, Ian noticed her absence and radioed her, but Dayoung reassured them not to worry. 

 

Since when had she become so bold? 

 

Ever since recovering the real Dayoung’s memories, zombies didn’t feel as terrifying anymore. She looked around the empty building.

 

When the zombie virus spread, the military must have stepped up to save civilians. 

 

Temporary shelters would have been set up, and most soldiers likely went there. The zombies outside were probably the remaining soldiers who had stayed to guard the base.

 

Though it was her first time seeing this building, it felt familiar—as if she could picture this military base in her mind, as if she instinctively knew where the armory or ammunition storage was. 

 

Dayoung moved through the interior with ease and found a radio and an earpiece in a drawer.

 

“This is strange. Places like this definitely didn’t appear in Zombieverse. So why does it feel so familiar? It’s like I naturally know where everything is. Was the real Dayoung a soldier or something?”

 

But she hadn’t found any military-related memories in the real Dayoung’s recollections. 

 

It was possible she just hadn’t dug deep enough—sifting through someone else’s memories wasn’t easy—so she let it go. 

 

Right now, there were too many things in front of her to focus on. She efficiently packed the radio charger into her bag and carefully slipped out of the building.

 

Although some zombies still lingered in the building, Dayoung moved as quietly as possible toward the armory. 

 

As she stepped inside, the group circled around her, checking for any injuries. 

 

Dayoung didn’t mind their overprotectiveness—it felt reassuring to know they genuinely cared for her.

 

“Noona, we were worried.”

“My legs are just slow. I went to the building next door. Got a walkie-talkie and an earpiece from there.”
“Good job.”

 

As Jiseok patted Dayoung’s head, she noticed an unfamiliar man staring intently at her from among the group. She subtly hid behind the others and whispered,

“Who’s that guy?”

“He’s a special forces soldier. Said he got isolated from his unit. Survived alone. We agreed to head to the mall together, so say hi, Noona.”

 

“Hello. I’m Kim Dayoung. I’m 24.”

“Ah! Good afternoon! Private Park Dodam!”

“Quiet!!”

 

The man announced his rank and name too loudly, prompting Dayoung to quickly cover his mouth. 

 

Is this guy an idiot or what?

“…Sorry. I’m 22. Please don’t speak casually to me.”

“Understood. From now on, keep your voice down, no matter what you say.”

“Yes…”

 

“How did you manage food while you were here?”

“I survived on supplies from the PX.”

“Then why stay here? The building next door didn’t have any zombies inside.”

“Ah, that’s where our team captain usually rested… Felt a bit awkward, you know? And if he were alive, he’d have secured weapons first, so I waited here.”

“Your captain? Where is he now?”

 

Dodam explained the same story he had told the group earlier. 

 

Though he felt slightly uneasy around Dayoung—who shared the same name as his captain—her petite, cute face and undeniably attractive figure made it hard not to glance her way.

 

Dayoung listened to Dodam’s story seriously and offered words of comfort. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how exhausting and draining it must have been to wait for someone—especially alone, for an entire month. 

 

Still, it was a relief to hear that at least he hadn’t starved.

 

After finishing her conversation with Dodam, Dayoung turned her head. The group was transferring rifles and pistols onto a cart.

 

“Don’t take the ones labeled ‘K4’ or ‘grenade launcher’ over there. They’re just unnecessary weight. For now, let’s take all the rifles, pistols, and machine guns. And let’s see… Oh, here—grab the scopes, magnifiers, and night-vision goggles too. And make sure to take the suppressors.”

 

“What about the bullets?”

 

“We should probably take all the ammunition we can find. It’s likely prepped to match the weapons here anyway. Hey, Dodam, help out too.”

 

“Okay.”

 

Following Dayoung’s instructions, Dodam naturally joined the group and started moving weapons onto the cart. 

 

He found Dayoung fascinating. 

 

It was impressive enough that a petite woman was taking charge and giving orders, but the way she precisely pointed out the necessary gear was even more surprising. 

 

Most women didn’t know much about guns, and even if she was a shooting athlete, how could she be this familiar with military-grade firearms? 

 

Dodam couldn’t help but wonder. 

 

Is she secretly a gun nut? Or one of those gamers who eats chicken after every match??? 

 

Lost in thought, he kept moving the supplies.

 

Once everything was somewhat organized, the group sat in a circle on the floor. 

 

Ian pulled out food from his bag and distributed it among them. When he handed some to Dodam, the latter looked at him with touched eyes.

 

“It’s been so long since I’ve had properly cooked food. I’ve been living on combat rations or canned food every day. Ah, canned food, you know.”

 

“How much food is left at the PX?”

 

True to her former cooking club member self, Dayoung’s eyes sparkled as she asked Dodam. 

 

Even though the mall still had plenty of food left, wasn’t it true that the more supplies, the better?

 

“We still have a lot, except for frozen foods.”

 

“Really? There aren’t as many weapons as I thought, so we have an empty cart. We should grab some more from the PX. Wanna go now?”

 

“It’s dark out—you sure it’s okay?”

 

“The PX isn’t far from here. If you follow the path behind us, it’s right there.”

 

The group picked up the bags they had set down and stood up. 

 

Dodam, who knew the way well, took the lead while the others stayed alert and headed toward the PX. 

 

Just as Dodam had said, the PX still had plenty of products left, except for frozen foods. Dayoung and the others packed their bags until they were full.

 

Dodam, for some reason, had brought a large military backpack and was filling it with lightweight but bulky items. 

 

Seeing this, Dayoung gave him a thumbs-up in approval. 

 

Even though it wasn’t a big deal, Dodam couldn’t help but feel a little proud and pressed down on the items to fit even more.

 

“Dayoung, should we put the stuff from the cart into boxes?”

 

“Yeah. Dodam, do you have any sturdy rope? I think we should tie down the things in the cart tightly.”

 

“There should be some in the warehouse here, um. Yeah. I’ll go get. It.”

 

“Okay.”

 

Dayoung chuckled at Dodam’s careful speech. She figured he’d naturally loosen up over time with the group, but for now, she’d have to get used to his stiff way of talking.

 

Dodam brought back a strong rope, and the group began packing various items into boxes. 

 

They looked around the PX to see if there was anything else to take, then headed back to the armory with the boxes, feeling satisfied at the now-empty PX. 

 

Dayoung, who wasn’t carrying a box, kept watch in front while the others arrived at the warehouse, stacked the boxes onto the cart, and tied them down securely.

 

“Let’s get some shut-eye now and move out as soon as the sun rises.”

“Okay.”

 

At Ian’s words, the group leaned against the wall and drifted off to sleep, each finding their own way to ease their fatigue. 

 

As morning broke, they stuffed several magazines into their pockets. 

 

Dayoung attached a silencer to her rifle and said, “It’s better to have even one more gun, so let’s take out any zombies carrying weapons on the way.”

“Okay.”

 

Dayoung, Jiseok, and Dodam checked their rifles before opening the door. Dayoung confirmed her zeroing and stepped forward.

 

Dodam quietly approached Joohan, who was pulling out a cart. 

 

Joohan was the easiest to talk to, as they had already agreed to speak comfortably with each other.

 

“Uh, Joohan.”

“Yeah?”

“Didn’t you say Ian is the leader?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Well, no matter how I look at it, Dayoung seems more like the leader.”

“Ah. That’s… a long story. But you’re not wrong—Dayoung noona is also a leader. Just think of her as the leader. And call her ‘Dayoung noona.’ ‘Captain Dayoung,’ ‘Captain Ian,’ ugh… sounds so cringy.”

 

Dodam nodded at Joohan’s words. 

 

Dayoung was an impressive woman. The way she held her gun looked incredibly natural, and so did her stance while zeroing. 

 

No matter how he looked at it, she didn’t seem like an ordinary woman, so he figured he should be careful around her.

 

“Jiseok oppa, take the right. I’ll take the left. Dodam, cover the rear. Wait, where’d he go?”

“Uh, I’m here! I’ll keep a proper watch on the rear!”

 

Dayoung gave a quick nod and moved forward, firing at a zombie on the left carrying a weapon. 

 

Thanks to the silencer, the sound was minimized, and the zombie collapsed with a splatter of blood from its head. Dayoung approached the fallen zombie, keeping watch ahead, and retrieved the gun.

 

“Dayoung, should I take over pulling out the gun?”

 

Watching her small frame struggle to retrieve the gun from the zombie made me feel a little sorry for her—it looked exhausting. 

 

But Dayoung shook her head and said, “No, it’s fine. It’s not like I’m carrying a sack of rice or anything.”

 

“Alright. Be careful, okay?”

“Yeah. You too, oppa.”

 

Jiseok started walking to the right while firing his gun. 

 

Hitting zombies that were slow but still moving wasn’t as easy as expected. 

 

Some wouldn’t go down in one shot, so Jiseok switched places with Dodam. Dodam proved that his sharpshooter reputation was no lie—every shot he fired was a precise headshot.

 

“Wow! You’re really good at this!”

“Even though I’m just filling in temporarily, I’ll still pull my weight.”