A Survival Guide for a Counselor in the Apocalypse Chapter 35

Chapter 35

 

The moment I snapped awake as if I’d been thrown back, I was startled by the faces of Lee Hoin and Cha Hyungseo right in front of me and shoved them away with my hand.

“What the hell? That scared the shit out of me.”

As I sat up with a flustered expression, both of them looked even more dumbfounded.

“You were the one groaning like crazy! We worry about you, and you act like that?”

After Cha Hyungseo’s cold remark, Lee Hoin looked at the vial and asked,

“Did you drink it?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“You told us not to drink it.”

Hmm.

That was such a sharp point that I was momentarily at a loss for words, then barely answered.

“…That’s how it turned out.”

There were still about two hours left. I’d come back faster than expected. I let out a small sigh of relief and continued.

“We have to take turns drinking it so the other two can cover somehow. I trusted you guys and drank it.”

A simple statement; I drank it because you guys fight better than me.

Cha Hyungseo shrugged with a “hmph,” as if pleased. As wary as she was, she was just as simple. Lee Hoin let out a sigh.

“At least tell us before you do it.”

If I had, they probably would’ve suggested we all drink it together.

I gave a rough nod and checked what I’d gained. ‘Beginner Dagger Technique’ and ‘Humanity’.

 

—

[Humanity(-)]

You are human. You feel sorrow, joy, despair… and hope for luck, an utterly ordinary human.

In a world where humanity is decaying, that will make you stand out the most.

However, being the only one with humanity among those who’ve gone mad may make you stand out too much!

Your goodwill may be seen as hypocrisy!

Your kindness may be interpreted as hostility!

 

[Beginner Dagger Technique (1)]

You’ve learned how to swing it!

You’ve advanced from a primitive to a semi-primitive!

♥ Primitive → Semi-primitive ♥

※ Activates when using a dagger.

—

 

I felt a bit relieved.

Just having an offensive skill. And… I did bring daggers.

“Did you guys get some rest?”

Now we had to think about ‘how’ to get out. The hints we got from killing special mutants were honestly useless. But they made for a decent excuse.

“Among the hints I gathered… I’m not sure if it’ll work, but there was an escape route. Let’s get out through there today.”

The method of escaping this place…

Simple, if you think about it. The wildflower field. Find the flower that feeds on blood.

Among the countless flowers in full bloom.

I knew what it looked like. A purple bouquet-like cluster, like baby’s breath, forming the leaves, and above it a large, flamboyant blossom. About the size of a palm. It shouldn’t be hard to find. Or maybe it would.

The problem was the blood…

“…Did you collect blood all day yesterday for that?”

I had already prepared for that. It’s not like we’re doing a transfusion; if you just bleed there, you’ll die. We don’t even know how much blood it needs.

In the original, Cha Hyungseo just fell onto the flower. She was practically at death’s door from blood loss and collapsed right on top of it.

After that, when she fell through the passage, all the blood that had stained or dripped disappeared…

That means it probably consumes a massive amount.

“Yeah.”

So starting around 3 PM, I collected blood from the mutants we hunted, storing it in canteens. They freaked out at the idea of putting blood into water bottles, but still.

“I thought you’d finally gone insane.”

Cha Hyungseo made a very reasonable conclusion.

I gave an awkward smile, quickly explained, and opened the tourist booklet. The wildflower field was quite far. But if we ran, we’d probably get there before sunset.

“We have to head out before 3. Lee Hoin, once we’re out, we’ll do a quick regroup and move immediately to another place.”

They both nodded. For the remaining two hours, we divided up the food and did final preparations.

And the moment we were kicked out of “Home”…

We moved without a word, following the direction I set. It was bright outside, and there was no hesitation even in shouting.

 

***

 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!!!”

Hong Jaehyung slammed the ground.

They barely escaped. In the process, they lost several comrades… and truly, they had only managed to crawl out alive.

Amid the mocking windows, Hong Jaehyung clenched his teeth, unable to suppress his rage. Only four remained, including himself.

Even those four… were exhausted.

That left only one option.

“The wildflower field. Fuck, we have to go there.”

They had barely managed to capture one and extract an escape route. They had to use it immediately. Staying here wouldn’t help at all.

Hong Jaehyung forced his companions up and headed toward the wildflower field.

The staggering path was strangely quiet.

At times, it even felt… “cleared.”

Suddenly, a chilling feeling crept in.

Not once, not even once, since surviving all this… had he seen things “cleared” like this.

His ‘instinct’ tingled.

Something… felt like it was going to go to shit.

“…Hey, Jaehyung…”

“Shut up.”

No. Forget instincts.

They had to go. No matter what.

“This is the last chance.”

There was nothing else now.

Following the “well-cleared path,” they reached the wildflower field.

There, they saw three high school students facing off against a strange coffin…

“Hey, that…”

“Yeah, fuck, the one with all the hands.”

They knew what that “coffin” was. No proper name for it, but they’d encountered it before and barely escaped.

“…Should we help them?”

“Help them? Fuck that.”

“Hey, but they’re just kids.”

“Did you care about justice when you pushed that kid before?”

At Hong Jaehyung’s sharp words, his companion frowned and clenched his fist, then shook his head.

They had to wait until the coffin disappeared.

Hong Jaehyung hid behind a tree and observed the standoff.

“…Are they insane?”

Facing ‘that’ thing?

No matter what you hit it with, it absorbs everything like a swamp. It has too many hands… breaking a few doesn’t matter.

The three slowly widened their angles, testing.

Then the coffin suddenly went berserk and charged at the tallest one at insane speed.

The remaining two began searching the surroundings.

At that moment, Hong Jaehyung realized something instinctively.

‘Those brats…’

They knew what he knew.

He subtly pulled back the companions about to step forward.

If those guys find it, there’s no need for us to search ourselves.

“Wait…”

Hope sprouted.

At best, it’s just two left. And they’re already drained.

The one who lured the coffin away, who knows, but even if he returns, it’s just three.

Hong Jaehyung swallowed hard.

Good.

Finally.

Even the windows that had been spouting bullshit…

Were cheering him on.

This is right.

Even if it’s cowardly, if it means survival, humans will dunk their heads into dirty water and drink.

‘…Don’t hate me too much.’

That’s survival of the fittest.

Hong Jaehyung, after watching the two who had stopped in one corner…

Suddenly rushed forward.

He raised his sword high and brought it down like he always did.

Escape.

Finally!

 

***

 

“Hey! Is this it?”

Cha Hyungseo shouted, waving from a corner.

I immediately ran over.

There it was. It really existed.

Just as I was about to take out a canteen…

Cha Hyungseo suddenly shoved me.

“-!”

Slash!

Something grazed her forearm and flew past.

Before I could even identify it, something shot toward her collapsing body.

Without time to think, I grabbed him and pulled him back, blocking.

Ting!

With that sound, the ‘Rabbit Mark’ I had lit up once.

An extra life.

It had just been consumed.

‘…If it hit, I would’ve died.’

A chill ran down my spine.

Before I could even process it, I dragged Cha Hyungseo down flat into the grass. The thick vegetation up to our knees concealed us.

Several arrows struck nearby.

“…We move when the wind blows. Can you move?”

“Hah…”

Cha Hyungseo’s eyes gleamed.

As if such a question were a luxury to her.

“6 o’clock. At their feet.”

I nodded.

Then we split left and right.

We moved only when the wind blew, only when the flowers swayed.

Then…

‘Lee Hoin.’

I thought of him, probably shaking off a mutant and heading back.

“Lee Hoin! Don’t come!!”

Shouting that, I opened my bag and pulled out a dagger.

Gripping the blade instead of the handle, I sprang up and hurled it toward the presence.

“8 o’clock!”

From Cha Hyungseo’s angle, that’d be closer to 4 o’clock.

After throwing the dagger, I threw myself back into the flowers.

“Four of them!”

I didn’t know if it hit.

But I knew one thing.

They were already trying to kill us.

So…

‘I’ll kill them.’