By Zephyria 
Ha-jin, who had been mulling over the situation, hardened his resolve and turned the doorknob.
As he stepped into the room, passing the shoe rack right in front of the bathroom, the three men sitting on the floor simultaneously looked at Ha-jin.
“Ugh, surprise! Hey.”
Park Chun-beom jumped up, pushing up the glasses that had slipped down his nose. Ha-jin, unfazed, smiled and asked.
“You’re here? Are you hurt anywhere?”
[Ha-jin, how long have you been in the bathroom?]
“My stomach was a little upset earlier. Haha.”
Ha-jin, having made up an excuse to Jeffrey, leaned against the wall next to the TV. Ha-jin set aside the inscrutable Eden and scrutinized Park Chun-beom and Jeffrey’s faces with hawk-like eyes, as if dissecting them.
“Looks like you couldn’t find any food today.”
“I found a fruit store, but everything was rotten and unsalvageable. I managed to get some relatively intact bananas. We were spotted by zombies on the way, and I thought I was going to die trying to shake them off and run.”
Park Chun-beom proudly held up a bunch of dark, mottled bananas. The bananas were so ripe that they seemed to be hanging precariously from the stem, ready to peel at any moment.
Ha-jin swallowed hard but didn’t take his hawk-like eyes off them. Both Park Chun-beom and Jeffrey seemed to be their usual selves, so they didn’t look like people who had been caught plotting something.
So… their trip to Dragon Cloud City wasn’t exactly a secret? What on earth is going on?
Leaving his doubts behind, Ha-jin soothed Park Chun-beom for his hard work and slowly turned to look at Eden.
“Excuse me, Jeong Tae-geon.”
Eden was sitting with his back against the bed, head tilted back, staring at the ceiling.
“Yes.”
He replied without even turning to look at Ha-jin. Barely suppressing his irritation at Eden’s insincere attitude, Ha-jin got to the point.
“Can I talk to you for a moment?”
Ha-jin, who had been walking stealthily down the hallway, poked Eden in the back with his index finger. Surprised by the unexpectedly hard latissimus dorsi, he withdrew his hand, and Eden frowned and turned around.
“What is it?”
As if he had been waiting for his reaction, Ha-jin turned Eden around in front of the second-floor stairs.
“You’re going to the Maintenance Depot, right? I heard everything earlier. You were talking with Park Chun-beom and Jeffrey.”
“……”
“That’s also Dragon Cloud City, right?”
Ha-jin bit his lip and looked up at Eden. For some reason, he felt like the situation was unfolding similarly to the underground warehouse of the Atrium where the magic show had been held. Back then, he had begged Eden to take him along, and now…
Eden, looking into Ha-jin’s earnest eyes, rubbed his temple and leaned against the wall. He calmly asked, as if looking into Ha-jin’s mind.
“You don’t understand, do you?”
“Excuse me?”
“Why I’m not asking you to come with us when we’re going in the same direction anyway.”
“…Well, yes.”
While Ha-jin answered awkwardly, Eden turned his gaze down the stairs. His gaze, checking for any dangerous elements, was sharp. Ha-jin felt somehow intimidated.
In the meantime, Eden was recalling his past conversation with Ha-jin.
‘Why did you save me?’
‘Is there a reason to save someone? I just couldn’t pass by.’
‘There’s no reason?’
‘What reason is there to save someone’s life?’
If Ha-jin had answered that the reason he saved him was a calculated move, Eden would have been more than willing to bring him on board as a comrade. However, rushing to help others unconditionally, even when his own life was in danger, was not courage but irresponsibility, recklessness, and foolishness.
Moreover, Ha-jin had even shared food and provided shelter for them, who were not even his comrades. Such unconditional sacrifice was tantamount to suicide in an emergency. Eden didn’t want to gamble on taking in a moth that would recklessly jump into the flame as his comrade.
It was ridiculous to have such thoughts when he was the one being helped, but it was a world where it was hard to survive if you weren’t selfish. The countless wars he had experienced in the Middle East were no different from the current situation.
“To be honest, I’m having a hard enough time taking care of my own people.”
Ha-jin’s eyes widened at the unexpected words that came out of his mouth.
“Especially with that kid, no, Byeol around, I have a lot on my mind. I believe Do Ha-jin will understand this.”
He, who had been looking at the stairs, averted his gaze and turned his head back towards Ha-jin. A silence followed for a while.
“Even if Do Ha-jin joins the group… well, I don’t expect any special synergy to come out of it. It might just be more of a distraction.”
Only then did Ha-jin realize that Eden was perceiving him as ‘baggage,’ and he opened his mouth. He had never even imagined that this was the reason why he didn’t want to accompany him. Is he serious? He felt disoriented.
“I saved Jeong Tae-geon’s life. Am I still useless?”
“I appreciate that. Your driving skills weren’t bad either.”
Ha-jin couldn’t close his open mouth. His attitude toward the benefactor who had saved him, given him a place to sleep, and even shared food was excessively exclusive. What kind of ungrateful bastard is this…?
Eden continued to speak in a dry tone to Ha-jin, who was dumbfounded.
“But the skills I want are a little different.”
“……”
“I want someone who can kill zombies with their bare hands. It would be even better if they knew how to act selfishly depending on the situation. But Do Ha-jin is,”
Eden paused for a moment and shifted his gaze to Ha-jin’s lips. Perhaps he had been biting them all along, as Ha-jin’s plump lips were reddish under the dim light.
“Excessively kind and altruistic.”
Ha-jin’s pupils, which had been listening intently, trembled. He felt like the hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end. …Is this an insult or a compliment?
“Still, I’ll do my best to help while we’re staying at the motel. I’m in your debt right now.”
Having neatly finished the conversation, Eden passed Ha-jin and went down the stairs. The veins on his right arm, which was holding the hammer, were bulging.
Ha-jin blinked repeatedly as he watched him walk away. He wanted to grab him by the collar and ask him if he thought he was so great, but his closed mouth wouldn’t open.
I’m excessively kind and altruistic…? In other words, he didn’t need a fool who couldn’t take care of his own rice bowl because he was too busy taking care of others. Ha-jin, who had been dazed for a while, followed Eden.
‘What should I do now? Should I just keep pushing?’
Although he had been rejected as a result, it was not over until it was over. Although he was resentful, he understood what Eden was trying to say, so Ha-jin thought that he had no choice but to continue to cling to him, appealing to his strengths as he had been doing.
It was a nuisance to keep pestering someone who didn’t want him, but Jeong Tae-geon said he liked selfish people, so he was going to try to be selfish this time.
As he said, what couldn’t he do to survive? The weak had no choice but to side with the strong.
If the necessary skill was someone who could kill zombies with their bare hands… Ha-jin was willing to do it. There was nothing he couldn’t do to save his brother. Of course, he would have to vomit stomach acid until his throat was swollen for a while.
Eden, who had arrived on the first floor, checked the glass door. This was because there were many times when people who had gone out to get food and returned had not locked the door properly, leaving it dangerously open.
Ha-jin was looking for a chance to strike up a conversation with Eden, who was checking the closed door.
“Young men, what are you doing there?”
Suddenly, a languid voice was heard. Surprised, he turned around and saw an old man sweating profusely, standing at the top of the stairs and staring at Ha-jin and Eden in astonishment.
It’s a person. Ha-jin was surprised to see a ‘person’ after a long time and opened his mouth. Since most of the visitors who came to the room were dealt with by Eden, it had been a long time since Ha-jin had faced a person directly.
“Are you the people staying here? I heard people talking and followed the sound.”
The old man kept rolling his eyes anxiously, but he couldn’t take his curious gaze away, as if he was glad to see people after a long time.
He looked to be at least in his seventies. His back was hunched, his body was skinny, and his skin was dark, as if he had been tanned by the sun. He had the impression of a kind-hearted grandfather from a rural village who farmed.
Instead of answering, Eden tilted his head with the hammer he was holding on his shoulder. Embarrassed by the ensuing silence, Ha-jin greeted him first.
“Yes, hello.”
“Hehe… you’re having a hard time, aren’t you?”
The old man kindly asked, wiping the sweat flowing down his forehead with his hemp clothes, as if he was hot. Ha-jin and Eden looked at each other. Since he didn’t have anything in particular to say, Ha-jin turned his eyes back to the old man on the stairs.
“My name is Kim Yong-su. I’m staying in room 305 with my wife for a long-term stay… I’m not a strange person, so don’t be too scared.”
As if he thought they were being wary, the old man pointed to the top of the stairs and recited his personal information first.
“Ah, yes….”
Just as Ha-jin was wondering if he should introduce himself in the same way, the old man called out to them.
“By the way, young men….”
The old man seemed to have something to say, as he suddenly wiped the sweat from his forehead with a desperate look. Because of his hunched back, his body looked precarious, as if he would roll down the stairs at any moment.
“I’m sorry to ask, but this old man is a little desperate… I’m sorry, but could you possibly get me some candy or chocolate?”