Marauder of the Apocalypse-Chapter 47: Preparation

Hope comes in different sizes for different people. Those who had gone hungry for days hoped for even a single packet of ramen, while those with ample food wanted a more stable future.

In my case, that hope was extremely modest. freewёbnoνel.com

My survival, maintaining my marauder group, and at most, sustaining the villa district as farming slaves.

Nothing else interested me. Hope continuing through children, the birth of larger groups, the survival of more people.

'I really hate this school.'

Leaving the villa, I pouted watching two elementary school students walking down the street with a police officer.

The elementary students who'd skipped labor to attend school bowed their heads to the police officer, who waved his gun in response.

"Goodbye!"

"Yeah, see you tomorrow... Though this street is..."

The officer uncomfortably eyed the corpse crucifixes and hanging corpse. Corpses crawling with insects, decomposing corpses.

The children's mother who'd come to meet them quickly grabbed their hands and awkwardly made excuses.

"There's a strange person in our street. Looks disgusting, doesn't it?"

"Yes, a bit."

Typical impure adult. Not understanding this aesthetic.

The children loved my scarecrows so much. Breaking free from their mother's hands, they rushed to the tied-up zombie and pulled chocolates from their pockets, unwrapping them.

"Stupid. Eat this."

The zombie with clouded eyes clacked its teeth. It twisted its whole body and roared at the children.

"Kreeeek!"

Why did it sound like it was begging to be killed? The children giggled and tried stuffing the wrappers in the zombie's mouth too. An excellent performance making zombies, not just sea turtles, experience the harm of plastic waste.

But their mother frantically grabbed the children and pulled them away.

"I told you not to go near zombies!"

"But it's stupid!"

"No! Really, why would they tie something like this up in the street?"

At that point, I quietly approached the police officer. He was staring at the zombie with bewildered eyes before noticing me and nodding slightly.

"Hello."

"Hi. The street looks a bit grotesque, doesn't it?"

"A bit is an understatement... Isn't it really damaging the aesthetics?"

"I made these. I'm in charge of being the villa district's weird person."

The officer closed his mouth, his eyes trembling like he didn't know what to say. The children's mother also awkwardly lowered her head slightly, hiding the kids behind her back.

"Well, I don't mean that in a bad way."

"He's a weird mister!"

"Mom lies and says if we don't behave, the mister will take us and make us into crosses!"

The children stuck their heads out and pointed at me, and I cheerfully waved back.

Though skipping labor to pointlessly attend school was inexcusable, they were precious audience members who understood my aesthetic. I could show a little mercy.

The children's mother was being excluded from important matters anyway.

So I played along with the children's words.

"Oh? But that's true! I'm running short on small crosses. If you don't listen to your mom..."

"Waaahh!"

Their exposed faces turned as white as their masks. They burst into tears, wailing.

I scratched my head. I'd only spoken casually, why were they so scared? I hadn't even acted it out convincingly or taken out my scarecrow-making tools.

Watching the mother practically run into the villa with the children, I turned to the police officer.

"We installed these because arson threateners and robbers kept coming, but people don't like them. Though they look gross, they work well as deterrents."

"Ah. But, that corpse has 'spy' written on it..."

"I didn't do that one."

I tried explaining that this was just self-defense, that the weak act tough.

Then I got to the main point.

"Do you think the school can keep running?"

"That... What's your name?"

"Da-in."

"Ah. That collaborator."

My name was on the collaborator list? Good. Being friends with police-turned-gangsters would be useful.

The officer spoke honestly.

"Honestly, I doubt it can last long. It's running now because some people still have food... but summer's coming soon."

Looking ahead meant at most one season now. No room to consider long-term prospects of 1-2 years.

Summer, the impending season of terrible disasters, was the immediate problem.

Monsoons and typhoons. The sewers wouldn't function properly, and water pumps would be stopped. Floods would probably sweep the streets.

Heat was also an issue. Heat wave deaths had always outnumbered typhoon and flood casualties. In a city with failing electrical infrastructure, heat waves would become horrific disasters.

Beyond that, mosquitoes were worrying, oil approaching expiration was problematic, increasing blackout times were concerning, zombie waves were troubling - the future looked bleak.

'Is this the time to worry about other things?'

I suddenly looked up at the sky. School, military. Didn't seem like the time to waste energy on such things.

'Seems like everyone might die even without me doing anything.'

No, wouldn't I be in danger too? We might have to hole up inside all summer, just waiting for the season to pass.

At that point the officer waved his hand slightly.

"Well, I'll be going."

"Yes, thanks for your hard work."

I quietly fell into thought while adjusting my mask. Was this a chance to get ahead of others?

While competitors focused on pointless things like school and future instead of immediate reality, I could prepare for summer like someone dying tomorrow.

And keep planting seeds in minds to make them fight after disaster strikes.

The farming was progressing decently. The early-planted lettuce had already sprouted, with bright green leaves shooting up.

People who hadn't eaten fresh vegetables in ages swallowed hard, reaching for the growing lettuce before painfully pulling back their hands.

"Want to wrap it with pork belly and ssamjang sauce and rice..."

"Meat. Ahh. Stir-fried kimchi in pork belly grease."

Though my mouth watered too, I kept quiet and watched people's mood from the corner.

Groundless optimism and hope were evident. Hope of surviving even in this ruined world. A kind of leisure. No wonder people were running things like schools.

It was still livable for now. Though they seemed to be ignoring poverty approaching step by step.

'Need to sprint once before summer comes.'

Time to floor the accelerator despite risks. We needed to systematically stockpile survival supplies and prepare to endure summer - two months minimum, three months maximum.

I spoke up in the indoor farm where labor had gathered.

"Everyone. This isn't the time. We need to prepare for summer. Anyone willing to check marts and shopping areas where zombies have cleared out?"

"Marts? Didn't the military take everything? And shopping areas are... dangerous."

As expected, enthusiasm was lacking. Everyone was well-fed. I pressed my forehead, immediately changing approach.

Right, then I'd prepare separately with my gathered marauders. Give these people other work.

"Then how about collecting and selling oil? The military's opening markets, right?"

Our professional thief Park Yang-gun had a pump for siphoning gas from cars.

We could drain all the fuel from cars that would flood anyway and trade it for survival supplies.

"We do need to prepare."

The paranoid man was already wary of summer and nodded readily. Perhaps he'd started doubting not just people but the current environment too, as he offered some decent ideas.

"Power and water could cut off anytime. Need to collect and stockpile as many plastic bottles as possible."

He flipped through his notebook and listed items to stockpile. Butane gas, bleach, candles, tape, and so on.

After the villa district's direction was roughly set, I pulled Do-hyung and Gi-hyeok aside.

"You two work with me."

"Really going to shopping areas? There are lots of zombies."

"I don't like these adventurous attempts."

True to being an electricity thief and con man, they disliked direct action.

But I shook my head.

"We'll skip shopping areas if too dangerous. But we must hit marts. Mosquito repellent is essential."

"Mosquitoes..."

Honestly, I didn't know if I-virus could spread through mosquito bites. But it worried me. What if a mosquito that bit a zombie bit me?

Just anxiety-inducing, right? Getting bitten would mean living in daily fear of infection.

Plus now was our only chance for ground floor resources. Once floods came, everything would wash away. Electronics would be ruined, most items damaged.

Eventually Do-hyung and the con man nodded slowly despite their reluctance.

"Fine. It's not wrong."

"I'm not good with physical work, but I'll do it if you say so."

So we headed for the mart first.

The mart had become an empty building. Even fleeing zombies hadn't returned. I realized why at the entrance.

Corpses. Countless corpses. No soldier corpses, but shot zombie corpses everywhere. The mart interior was the same. The dead lights and broken fixtures made it even more eerie.

A place even zombies wouldn't want to live.

Do-hyung shuddered.

"First time seeing so many dead people."

Same for me. Carefully stepping around the zombies covering the floor, I examined the corpses.

Under my flashlight beam, they looked like normal human corpses. Since zombies were just virus-infected people, there wasn't much difference.

"Ugh. Can't stay long. Shouldn't we quickly gather supplies and leave?"

Gi-hyeok nudged me out of my thoughts. I quickly nodded.

We walked slowly through the silent mart. Signs of thrown grenades, grotesque corpses, snacks burst by bullets, traces of zombie habitation.

Though the military had taken all the food, plenty remained.

Then we heard a sound.

A rustling presence. We raised our weapons simultaneously.