By Zephyria 
“Minion? Loyalty? This fucking… You’re talking out of your ass…!”
“D-Don’t… let go! Keueuk!”
“There were no Rioters! You planned it all! You forced the Zombie High people, the ones who didn’t want to kill, to hold guns, you did it all, you son of a bitch!!”
“Ugh! S-Save me…!”
“And then what? We’re baggage? Useless?! Die, you motherfucker!”
The long rifle fell beside Corporal Shin, who had lost his reason. Eden leisurely picked up the gun and slung it over his shoulder. Then, he nonchalantly twirled a dagger in one hand, enjoying the farce unfolding before him.
Soon, Corporal Shin’s sharp fingernails dug into Lieutenant Colonel So’s neck.
“Keuheup…!”
“You goddamn traitorous bastard…!”
Corporal Shin strangled the man’s neck with trembling arms. Even though he was annoying at times, he never dreamed that Lieutenant Colonel So would betray them.
“Who did we kill people for! It’s all because of you!”
“Keueueuk…!”
Lieutenant Colonel So’s idea was to forcibly drive out citizens, saying they were a waste of food, to constantly hunt down those who had become zombies, to divide people according to their usefulness, and even to use them for zombie experiments, all while claiming it was to protect his subordinates.
Eden, who had been silently watching, lightly grabbed Corporal Shin’s shoulder.
“Don’t kill him. We haven’t heard the culprit’s name yet.”
“Fuck, he’s not at fault! He was just following the orders of that pig bastard who said to kill anyone trying to sneak into the Ranch without question!”
“I think it’s up to me to decide whether he’s at fault or not.”
Eden muttered coldly, sat down beside him, and gripped the handle of the dagger tightly. The Corporal, who was strangling the Lieutenant Colonel’s neck, suddenly sensed an ominous aura and looked up at him.
“So, you know who the culprit is.”
In that instant, a bright blue flame flickered in Eden’s eyes.
“What are you doing….”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Eden plunged the knife into the Lieutenant Colonel. The dagger sank deep into the center of the Lieutenant Colonel’s forehead, who was pinned beneath Corporal Shin.
“……!”
The Lieutenant Colonel, his eyes bloodshot from being strangled, couldn’t even scream and stopped breathing. Eden plunged the knife deeper into his forehead, moving his hand back and forth.
“If I think about my dead comrades, I want to tear off your scalp, but there’s not much time.”
Thick skin was torn to shreds. Hot blood and brain fluid streamed out through the gaps, soaking his temples.
“Heeik…!”
Corporal Shin’s body, which had been on top of the Lieutenant Colonel, collapsed backward.
Eden nonchalantly pulled out the dagger from his forehead and flicked off the blood from the blade. Then, he calmly asked the trembling Corporal Shin.
“So, who’s the culprit?”
“S-Save me…!”
Eden lightly tapped the Corporal’s left cheek, who was out of his mind.
“Where is that bastard now?”
❖ ❖ ❖
Ha-jin swallowed dry saliva into his blood-tinged throat, panting. He had run with all his might, and his heart felt like it would explode at any moment.
“Heoeok, heok…!”
In the distance, he saw the sentry guarding the entrance to the campsite.
‘What should I say to get in? Should I say I forgot my cold medicine?’
Even in his dazed state, he was racking his brain for an excuse to get inside. Suddenly, the sentry, who had been standing lazily with his weight on one leg, collapsed to the ground.
“Huh?”
Surprised by the sudden situation, Ha-jin straightened his back. Soon, someone appeared behind the fallen soldier. Even from a distance, he couldn’t help but recognize the figure at a glance.
“Jeong Tae-geon…?”
Ha-jin immediately kicked off the ground and ran towards him. At the sound, Eden, who was about to plunge a dagger into the neck of the unconscious man, paused. A look of bewilderment spread across his face as he spotted Ha-jin running towards him in a panic.
“Heoeok… Heok! Jeong Tae-geon, are you hurt? Are you okay?”
Ha-jin grabbed Eden’s arm and breathed roughly.
“Do Ha-jin.”
“Wh-Why did this person suddenly collapse? Did you do it, Jeong Tae-geon? No, that’s not the point. Now is not the time for this.”
Eden grabbed his shoulders as if to calm him down.
“Catch your breath.”
“We have to get out of here right now. Let’s go pack our things.”
“I was about to go looking for you anyway.”
“Remember the Jeongsan Chestnut Rest Stop. That Cult Leader…! Haa, that Cult Leader came all the way here with his son…!”
Ha-jin couldn’t calm down. The only thought dominating his mind was that he had to take Eden and escape this bizarre Ranch as soon as possible. Having witnessed the scene of innocent citizens being cruelly used in zombie experiments, he could no longer stay here.
“Anyway, now is not the time for us to be doing this, hoo… right?”
“I know, so please calm down and take this.”
In the meantime, Eden, who had stolen the sentry’s rifle and radio, handed over the items.
Ha-jin couldn’t hide his bewildered expression even as he gasped for breath.
“Haa, is it okay to just take this?”
“I found out the location of the vehicles and the armory. I also took the car keys, so we just need to pack our things at the dorm and leave.”
“Suddenly? Weren’t you having a one-on-one meeting with the Lieutenant Colonel in the office? There’s no way he would have handed it over so easily, so how….”
Ha-jin trailed off, belatedly turning his attention to the suspicious clues. Blood splattered on Eden’s face and neck, a long rifle slung over his shoulder, and an unfamiliar dagger fastened to his waist….
Eden met his confused gaze and opened his mouth.
“I’ll explain the details later. Oh, and the culprit who shot Park Chun-beom is already dead.”
“…Excuse me?”
Even in his dazed state, Ha-jin tried hard to understand the situation.
“You said he’s already dead, which means you intentionally killed him here. There was no need to go that far…. Why?”
“The Lieutenant Colonel knew that I was a Blue Works person and was planning to use that to escape this place. Since there was an ambiguous obstacle in the way when he needed to make a good impression, he probably eliminated the seed in advance.”
“Is that why you had a one-on-one meeting with him today?”
Ha-jin let out a hollow breath as he watched him nod in response. If so, how could Chun-beom’s unfortunate death ever be compensated?
As if sensing his despair, Eden added indifferently.
“But the accomplices and bystanders are still alive and well. Everyone here is no different from the murderer who killed Park Chun-beom.”
“…Besides, Chun-beom wasn’t the only one who died innocently.”
Ha-jin recounted the situation he had witnessed at the Experience Zone, unaware that he had been holding Eden’s hand tightly since some point. He told him everything, from the Cult Leader and his son to the horrific zombie experiments that had taken place at the feeding Experience Zone…. His lips trembled in between words.
Eden nodded, calmly meeting the gaze of Ha-jin, who was rambling incoherently. His Adam’s apple, which had barely finished explaining, was red with tension and excitement.
“In my opinion, the claim that there were Rioters is also a lie.”
“I heard that too.”
“You heard? From who?”
The dorm was just around the corner.
“First, just grab your bag and come out right away. I’ll be outside checking the situation.”
Only after Eden let go of his hand did Ha-jin realize that he had been desperately holding onto his hand all along.
Bleep— Just then, a hurried man’s voice came from the sentry’s radio that Eden had handed him.
—Red One, Red One. This is Corporal Im Si-won. Emergency situation, all members report to the campsite. Over.
The eyes of the two people, who had caught the word “campsite,” became entangled in the air.
—I repeat. Red One, Red One. Emergency situation. All members report to the campsite. Over.
Eden, who was holding his forehead, clicked his tongue briefly.
“We’ll have to give up on the luggage.”
Without either of them saying anything, their fallen hands met again. Eden intertwined his and Ha-jin’s fingers like a spider web and ran out of the campsite.
The location of the armory and vehicles was hidden behind the store and restaurant, in an Azalea Habitat surrounded by towering trees like a Barrier. It was a space he had never seen on the map.
Military weapons were packed inside an abandoned wooden shack. While Ha-jin picked up a box filled with grenades with trembling hands, Eden moved the vehicle next to the armory.
The roof of the military Retona covered with black cloth was completely broken. When they removed the roof, a space appeared to load weapons.
Ha-jin complained to Eden, who was repairing the car.
“I understand why the Lieutenant Colonel didn’t use a military vehicle and borrowed a police car.”
An open car, no less. It was an off-road vehicle suitable for mountainous terrain, so there was no problem with transportation, but it looked like it was just right to be overrun by zombies or shot to death.
Bleep— In the meantime, the radio continued to broadcast urgent situations.
—Red One, Red One. Lieutenant Colonel So Jong-tae and Corporal Shin Ga-young confirmed dead behind Building B office. Witnesses move to Building B office, over.
Ha-jin, who was sweating profusely as he loaded heavy rifles and pistols, whispered to Eden.
“Even if it’s Lieutenant Colonel So, did you really kill even Corporal Shin?”
“I told you, the murderer who killed Park Chun-beom is not just one person. Everyone here is an accomplice.”
Ha-jin no longer had the capacity to judge what was right and wrong. His weak and exhausted mind kept tempting him to follow Eden’s will.