Hiding a House in the Apocalypse-Chapter 43.5: Dilemma (5)

"Headshots are the only way," muttered Baek Seung-hyun, his lips trembling.

"But how do you even hit it? I can't even get a clear shot at its torso," he continued.

Against a human target, it might be feasible. At 150 meters, a human would appear ant-sized and move sluggishly compared to this creature. But even humans, when darting erratically, are difficult to hit at that range.

Red—the hulking, crimson-furred chimpanzee mutation—was a nightmare to track. It moved with an unnatural agility, using its long arms to swing from exposed steel reinforcements like branches. It leaped high into the air and dropped down to grab hold of another piece of debris, constantly shifting its position unpredictably.

This wasn’t just a moving target; it was chaos incarnate. Medium- to long-range sniping typically required controlled conditions, but there was no controlling this beast.

Baek Seung-hyun hesitated, time slipping away as the mutation bounded across the terrain with thunderous crashes, dragging its elongated arms along the ground. Red hopped closer to Cheon Young-jae, moving in strange, jerking bounds that were deceptively fast—much faster than any human.

"Why aren't you shooting? Shoot!" Cheon screamed as he sprinted toward us, but Red was already upon him.

Cheon turned, brandishing his machete. "Come at me, you bastard!" he shouted, steeling himself.

Even as he faced the charging beast, he glanced back at Baek Seung-hyun. Maybe he had some faith in him—a belief that the man aiming the rifle would come through.

But Baek Seung-hyun faltered.

His finger, encased in a leather glove, hovered over the trigger, trembling. He pulled slightly but couldn’t commit, letting go midway.

"Skreeee!" Red shrieked, swinging one of its long, muscular arms.

The beast's arm was easily two meters in length, like a small crane, covered in thick, crimson fur. Its elbows were clad in makeshift armor—scraps of steel wire twisted and knotted into crude plates. While it hadn’t achieved the full ingenuity of a human crafting plate armor, it had done enough to protect critical areas.

Still, there were vulnerabilities: its face, neck, upper arms, wrists, hands, and feet were exposed. But expecting someone like Baek Seung-hyun to hit those weak points was asking the impossible.

Even I would struggle to hit a target as fast and unpredictable as this one, despite years of experience.

And this wasn’t just about Red. The zombie zone around us was alive, teeming with restless creatures. They knew we were here, biding their time. The longer gunfire continued, the more they would swarm us like a relentless tide.

This wasn’t just a fight—it was a race against disaster.

Baek Seung-hyun’s hesitation wasn’t only about poor odds. It was also about Jeju Island.

He was carrying the weight of a dream—Jeju, the promised land. The same place Kim Daram had failed to reach, the paradise he both envied and resented.

I turned to him, my voice cold and sharp. "What are you waiting for? Shoot."

"I can't get the angle," he stammered.

"If you don’t shoot, that guy’s going to die," I replied flatly.

"I—can’t," he admitted, his voice cracking.

"Why not?"

"The angle’s no good! Dammit!" he yelled, his frustration boiling over.

"Look at that damn monkey! It knows exactly what it’s doing!"

He was right.

Red was using Cheon Young-jae as a shield, positioning him perfectly between itself and us.

Cheon, for his part, swung his machete, trying to create openings. But against a mutation this agile and cunning, it was futile.

The creature moved with eerie intelligence, almost as if mocking us. Its screeches echoed like twisted laughter, and its movements were like a grotesque dance.

"Skreee!"

The situation grew more dire by the second.

As if its armor wasn’t enough, Red now had a human shield.

"Move aside!" Baek Seung-hyun shouted.

"Fake it!" Cheon Young-jae yelled back, veering sharply to the right before sprinting left.

For a moment, an opening appeared.

Bang!

A gunshot rang out.

It was a clean shot, the bullet striking Red’s torso dead-center.

But the armor held.

Clang!

The bullet ricocheted harmlessly off the makeshift plating, leaving nothing but a faint scorch mark.

"Skreeee!" Red shrieked again, pausing to raise its long arms high above its head.

"What the hell is it doing now?" I muttered.

Baek Seung-hyun’s face turned pale.

The beast extended both middle fingers toward us.

"Skreee!!!"

Then, with deliberate mockery, it tapped its temple with a clawed finger, as if taunting us for our stupidity.

"That goddamn monkey..." Baek growled through clenched teeth.

Cheon Young-jae resumed his charge, closing the distance to within 100 meters.

At this range, even a split-second hesitation could mean death—for all of us.

But Baek Seung-hyun hesitated again.

"Fire, you washed-up coward!" Cheon roared as Red’s massive arms reached for him.

Cheon swung his machete, narrowly deflecting the beast’s grasp. Without that desperate move, he would already be dangling in its grip, moments from being smashed into the ground.

"Shoot!"

Distance: 80 meters.

Red’s looming figure was almost on top of him.

In that critical moment, Baek Seung-hyun made his choice.

"I can’t," he whispered, lowering the rifle.

He pulled out a sleek metallic device from his pocket—a self-destruct blade drone, standard American issue.

Designed to lock onto a target and explode on impact, it was a last-resort weapon.

But using it here meant certain death for Cheon Young-jae.

"Senior," I said, grabbing his arm. "Don’t."

He looked at me with exhausted eyes. "...Park Gyu."

Among Old School hunters, debates raged over the true qualities that defined a great hunter.

My mentor, Jang Ki-young, championed fearlessness—the willingness to face death without hesitation. He called it the "Hunter’s Heart."

Others, like his rival Go Jong-beom, argued for adaptability. Hunters should be able to think on their feet, he said, to survive crises through ingenuity.

But for me, it boiled down to one question: Could you step outside yourself? Could you see yourself as just another pawn in the larger game?

I had preached this to my team countless times.

In extreme situations, anyone could be sacrificed. No exceptions—not even me.

I proved my point by always taking the most dangerous roles myself.

But I had also sacrificed teammates. And though I felt no guilt, those choices weighed heavily.

I spoke to Baek Seung-hyun, my voice steady.

"I’ll shoot."

I took the rifle from him without waiting for permission.

It was heavier than expected—8 kilograms of unforgiving steel and firepower.

"Stay back," I said.

I leveled the rifle, aligning Cheon Young-jae and Red in my sights.

Distance: 60 meters.

I assessed the surroundings, calculating every variable.

"Fire already!" Cheon screamed.

Distance: 55 meters.

Red reached for him again.

Distance: 50 meters.

Cheon swung his machete, but the blade glanced off Red’s armored wrist.

Distance: 48 meters.

Red grabbed him.

"What are you doing?!" Baek yelled.

I ignored him, steadying my aim.

Cheon was helpless now, dragged closer to the towering beast.

"Fire, damn it!" Baek screamed.

I tuned out the noise.

Red’s erratic movements were hard to track, but I’d been watching, waiting.

It was time.

"Stay quiet," I said calmly.

I pulled the trigger.

Bang!

As I pulled the trigger, the forceful recoil slammed into my shoulder like a hammer, jolting my entire body. My eyes remained locked on the target through the scope.

The 12.7mm round, packed with devastating firepower, spiraled through the putrid air heavy with the stench of zombies, hurtling straight toward its mark.

Thwack!

"Skreeeeee!!!"

The bullet struck Red's hand, piercing one of the few vulnerable areas left exposed by its makeshift armor.

A hit on the hand wasn’t something I’d aimed for—it was simply too small and moved too erratically to be a viable target. Yet, somehow, the shot landed precisely where I needed it to.

"H-How...?" Baek Seung-hyun stammered in disbelief, his face a mask of astonishment.

"You told me, didn’t you?" I replied, handing the rifle back to him as I sprinted toward Cheon Young-jae.

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"You said this bastard likes dragging people to high places and throwing them off."

"You mean you waited for it? For him to grab Cheon Young-jae?" Baek Seung-hyun asked, scrambling after me with the heavy rifle in tow.

"The path it climbs is predictable, isn’t it? Concrete rebar—it can only climb in certain ways," I said. No matter how erratic or unpredictable Red’s movements seemed, there were choke points where its choices were limited.

I had set up Cheon Young-jae as bait, and Red’s actions had played right into my plan. The chimpanzee plummeting from the structure was the inevitable conclusion.

"Ha." Baek Seung-hyun clicked his tongue, shaking his head. "Typical of Kim Daram’s protégé."

Red had fallen from at least ten meters. A height like that would have been painful even for an ordinary chimpanzee, let alone this oversized mutation with its bulky frame. The impact must’ve hurt more than a little.

Nearby, Cheon Young-jae lay sprawled beside a wrecked car, groaning loudly.

"Shiiit! That hurt like hell!" he cursed, his colorful language a clear sign he was alive and kicking.

Scanning the area with the rifle, I spotted Red. The beast was limping, struggling to support itself with its two massive, bloodied arms. Its crimson-furred face twisted into a snarl as its gaze locked onto me.

The mutated chimp opened its mouth and began making guttural noises.

"Bah... Bah..."

What was it trying to do? Talk?

No, that couldn’t be. A mutation couldn’t possibly manage that. And yet...

"Bah... Park Gyu," it rasped.

"...?"

My name. The mutation had spoken my name.

It had to be a coincidence. There was no way—especially given the crude middle finger it was flipping me as it growled.

With its underdeveloped vocal cords and clumsy tongue, what it meant to say was probably closer to "F**k you."

Regardless, it was still alive, and as long as it moved, it remained a threat.

The time had come.

Drawing my axe, I took a step toward Red, circling to its flank. I waved the weapon menacingly, daring it to focus on me.

"Come on, monkey."

Red hesitated, its hostile glare shifting between me and Baek Seung-hyun, who stood with his rifle raised.

"Where are you looking?" I muttered, hurling the axe with all my strength.

The throw was fast, but the mutation’s reflexes were sharper than any monster I’d encountered.

"Skreee!"

Even with blood gushing from its hand, Red swatted the axe out of the air with ease, sending it clattering to the ground.

"Senior!" I called out, trusting Baek Seung-hyun to act.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

At close range, his shots were precise and unimpeded.

"Skreee!"

The bullets struck Red in its exposed neck, armpit, and the vulnerable spot beneath its jaw.

The mutated chimpanzee staggered, letting out a guttural gasp before collapsing with a heavy thud.

Thud.

The creature was dead.

"Whoo..." Baek Seung-hyun exhaled shakily, his face pale as he looked at me.

"Shit..." he muttered, lifting his thumb in a gesture of approval.

I returned the gesture with a smirk.

Only one person didn’t share in the victory: Cheon Young-jae, who lay sprawled on the ground, flipping us both off with both hands.

"You said you liked this kind of thing, didn’t you?" I teased.

Cheon Young-jae’s double middle fingers transitioned seamlessly into a double thumbs-up.

"..."

He was certainly consistent.

But the danger wasn’t over.

The low, mournful wails of zombies began echoing from the distance.

We’d broken the so-called "three-shot rule," firing not three but four shots. The horde was coming.

"What now? Can you walk, Young-jae?" I asked.

"...F**k! My leg’s broken, I think," he groaned.

"Looks like we’ll need a ride out of here," I said.

"Got it," Baek Seung-hyun replied, pulling out his communicator. He spoke calmly into the device.

"This is Laser. Primary target has been neutralized. We’ve got one injured. Requesting extraction support."

The distant rumble of a truck engine answered his call, growing louder as it approached.

I let out a sigh, retrieving my fallen axe.

Red’s lifeless body lay nearby, its glassy eyes staring blankly at me.

I didn’t feel any particular emotion toward the dead monster.

But as I caught sight of my reflection in its lifeless gaze, I felt a pang of realization.

This was my future.

This was the life ahead of me: endless hunts, endless danger, all while scraping by in a ramshackle house with eccentric neighbors.

It wasn’t glamorous, but it was survival.

"..."

My doubts and hesitations seemed to dissolve.

The decision I’d been agonizing over felt suddenly, painfully clear.