Marauder of the Apocalypse-Chapter 75: Expert

A day had passed.

In the bathroom, a candle on the toilet tank cast soft light. I stood quietly looking in the mirror.

'I'm a real mess.'

Even compared to when I'd been an aspiring screenplay writer. Worse than when I'd stayed cooped up inside, rarely bathing, just hammering away at my laptop.

My face in the orange light looked like a homeless person's. Unkempt long hair grown wild, dirty beard, skin tanned in the shape of a mask. Even unwashed and grimy.

Though maybe my eyes had more life in them than back then...

In some ways, this life felt more rewarding than when I'd just written screenplays without knowing if they'd succeed. Now every action brought immediate rewards.

At that point, I picked up scissors and started cutting my hair short.

'I stood out in a crowded place. Need to change my appearance.'

Snip snip, clumps of hair fell. My thoughts flowed like the falling strands.

'Already disposed of yesterday's clothes. Just need to avoid similar ones. Most who heard my voice clearly probably died in the explosion.'

I'd committed robbery in a place full of electricity nomads and small survivor groups. Even fired a gun. No amount of caution seemed enough.

Though I planned to avoid electricity nomads and crowds from now on, some disguise was essential.

Even after cutting with scissors, the weed-like hair remained fairly long.

"A razor..."

Just as I switched to a razor to shave off the rest and pulled it across my head, a scream burst out involuntarily.

"Aagh!"

It stung. Instead of cutting, the razor was pulling out hair. The pain of skin being scraped off.

This wouldn't work with a razor. I needed to cut the hair shorter with a sharp knife first.

When I burst out of the bathroom wearing my mask, jumping around and screaming in pain, my waiting marauder companions looked at me in disbelief.

"What happened to your hair? Is that a chestnut burr? Did rats eat the sides?"

"Why are you screaming? You scared me."

I rubbed the torn up part with my palm while holding out my hand.

"Got a knife? Razor blade? Something like that? The razor's not working."

"I have a knife."

Sa Gi-hyeok pulled out a short knife from his chest and handed it over, which I quickly took. Sa Gi-hyeok looked away.

"Shouldn't we finish the job first?"

Sa Gi-hyeok with his long hair tied back, Park Yang-gun hiding his messy hair under a hat, and Do-hyung wearing a headband made from a handkerchief all looked at one person.

A sweating stranger. We definitely needed to finish the job first.

I crouched down gripping the knife, bringing my eyes level with the stranger's.

"Must have been shocking being suddenly kidnapped? We needed someone to do work for us."

The stranger gulped. His trembling eyes suddenly darted to the gun Park Yang-gun held.

"If, if I work, will you let me live?"

"Yes, of course."

No, we wouldn't. What was the point of keeping him alive after completing the task? We'd originally blocked the road collecting tolls, then kidnapped and threatened him when he looked easy to handle after killing a few people.

Why spare someone who knew our identities and could seek revenge?

I extended the knife with a slight motion.

"See those boxes of masks over there? Open all of them."

"Why do I have to..."

"Die if you don't want to."

Click, right on cue Park Yang-gun aimed his gun.

The kidnapped man squeezed his eyes shut then opened them. His gaze darted craftily around the house. Though looking for escape routes, he finally slumped his shoulders after seeing Park Yang-gun's gun.

"I'll open them."

The kidnapped man walked slowly into the room one step at a time.

We quickly backed away, holding up blankets and pillows like shields. Do-hyung muttered:

"They could really be bombs? How's that possible? Can't even get explosives."

"I wouldn't know. But that Gi Jeona? She seemed like an expert."

Highly advanced science was indistinguishable from magic. Technology combined with expert knowledge had already entered the realm of magic.

Magic that turned apocalyptic trash into bombs.

From what I remembered researching for crime screenplays, it seemed possible to make improvised explosives just from butane gas and electrical circuits.

'Wasn't butane's shelf life 3 years? Seems like they could make bombs for 3 years then.'

The kidnapped man's already slow steps got even slower. Park Yang-gun waved his gun.

"Think carefully. Opening those might let you live. But you're dead if you don't."

"I'll die if I run too."

Finally the kidnapped man reluctantly started opening the mask boxes one by one.

We all held our breath watching. Our bodies flinched each time his trembling hands slipped while barely managing to open a case.

Chills ran down our sweat-slicked skin in the heat.

One, two, three, boxes opened methodically as masks spilled out.

I called out while catching my breath:

"Wait!"

"Can I stop now? Please."

The kidnapped man brightened and jumped up, but that wasn't my intent. I pointed at the masks scattered across the floor.

"Take the intact masks outside the room. Then open the rest."

In case of explosion, didn't want the good masks damaged too.

"..."

The kidnapped man continued working with tightly pressed lips. Then he picked up the last box and stopped. He shook it slightly and lowered his ear to listen.

Just as an ominous feeling surged, the kidnapped man spun around screaming:

"It's a bomb! We'll all die if it opens!"

"Whoa!"

We moved instantly. All fled far back. Park Yang-gun had already pushed half his body through the screen window while opening it, while the rest of us pressed against the opposite wall holding up chairs and pillows.

I gulped while carefully extending my knife.

"No, we said we'd spare you! Put down that bomb!"

"Bullshit! You're planning to kill me! Hey, not lowering that gun? I'll open it! I'll blow it up!"

The bomb threatener thrust the mask case forward threateningly. I frantically grabbed Park Yang-gun's hand and pulled it down. Park Yang-gun burst out angrily:

"Let go! How am I supposed to climb the wall like this!"

"No, lower the gun first!"

"I'll detonate it! It'll explode! My finger's in! Pull and it opens!"

Complete chaos. Something could explode any moment.

While struggling with Park Yang-gun, I suddenly wondered if it was really a bomb.

'Is he bluffing?'

I'd shaken them a bit too. Just slightly, figuring they wouldn't explode after being jostled so much while running.

Though I heard rustling, the weight and texture didn't feel like a bomb.

'Though I really can't be sure.'

Just as I considered taking a harder approach, Sa Gi-hyeok stepped forward.

Sa Gi-hyeok bent slightly, raised both hands, and approached slowly with a friendly voice.

"Calm down. If that explodes, you'll die too right? You're doing this to live, right? I'll open the door for you, just walk out."

"Don't come closer!"

"We can't keep this up forever."

The agitated bomb threatener nervously stamped his feet before pressing against the wall. He shook the box roughly. Something rattled - couldn't tell if it was plastic or explosives.

"Go. Open the front door. If you try anything!"

"I know, I know."

The distance between them narrowed.

I released Park Yang-gun's wrist while quietly cheering on Sa Gi-hyeok.

'Well done. Just need to knock away the mask box when you get close.'

It'd be easy once close enough. The bomb threatener seemed to know this too, his eyes darting constantly. Looking at Sa Gi-hyeok, Park Yang-gun's gun, me and Do-hyung.

Then Sa Gi-hyeok simply walked past him and opened the front door wide with a click.

"There, now you can leave."

"Now move. No, go over there where people are gathered."

I sighed while rubbing my face. Couldn't understand why he just opened it.

No, it wasn't just Sa Gi-hyeok's mistake. We all messed up. Why'd we openly suggest it might be explosive? Now he could threaten us with it.

Nothing to do now but kill him safely from a distance.

Sa Gi-hyeok returned to us while the bomb threatener backed away glaring. When he reached the entrance, I whispered in an almost mumbling voice:

"To the roof."

"What?"

"Now!"

Just as the bomb threatener spun and ran, I burst into motion. No time. We needed to reach the roof before he escaped.

Do-hyung followed me without understanding why.

"What are you doing! What if it really is a bomb!" ƒгeewёbnovel.com

"His very existence is a bomb! We have to kill him!"

I frantically opened the roof door while searching for a ladder.

We had to kill him. The robber who stole masks from the streetlight district. Easy to connect that information to me. Even more so since we'd openly suspected bombs.

'If I throw now, the timing should work.'

The time to run down four flights of stairs should match how long it took me to find a ladder on the roof.

Do-hyung and I immediately threw the ladder toward the entrance. In the cloudy, dim world, the ladder cast a faint shadow as it fell and crashed right into the threatener bursting out the entrance.

"Aaaagh!"

The loud crash and scream filled the villa streets. The threatener thrashed his limbs trying to push away the ladder, but couldn't move properly, perhaps from broken bones.

Masks that had spilled from the box fluttered down everywhere.

I caught my breath while gripping the railing with both hands.

"See. Didn't seem like a bomb."

Do-hyung's incredulous voice came from behind.

"If you thought it wasn't, why'd we go through all this trouble bringing someone?"

"Still had to be sure."

"...So what do we do with him?"

I looked down at the street. Zombies weren't visible much during the day lately. Not sure if they'd been swept away by monsoons, died from disease, or avoided the heat.

But some zombies still wandered during the day. Only hungry zombies moved even in the heat. They leisurely gathered toward the screaming threatener and started biting into him face-first.

The sound of tearing flesh came up disgustingly.

"Let's get inside quick while they're distracted with meat. Before they come into the villa."

I took one last look at the bomb threatener. Could I frame him? Make it seem like he was the mask-stealing robber?

'Our builds are similar.'

I happened to have two guns too. One taken from the church, one picked up from a dead cop at the school. Could spare one to cover up the crime.

I went home and borrowed Sa Gi-hyeok's phone with its barely remaining power. I called my police friend.

"Yes, hope you're well? Actually, we just fought off an armed robber. Had lots of masks, threatening people with a gun..."