By Zephyria 
Amidst the awkward atmosphere, Ha-jin waved his hand and explained.
“Haha. It’s not that, it’s not necessarily why I wouldn’t go with you. It’s just that we’re not really… like that.”
“No. I understand. I was too oblivious.”
Chief Kim soothed him as if it was alright. Ha-jin looked back at Eden with a feeling that he wanted to cry, but he was just calmly stroking his shoulder.
A sigh came out on its own. Either way, no one was hurt and they parted ways, so was it a good thing in the end?
Ha-jin, who eventually gave up on explaining, gave an awkward smile to the child who was still covering his mouth. The child’s eyes turned red as he sensed the farewell.
“Ha-jin Hyung… thank you.”
Regret dripped from his voice. Breaking away from Eden, he struggled to control his weakening heart and grabbed the child’s shoulders.
“You have to survive. For your father’s sake, be strong.”
“Hic… I’m sorry that my dad spilled juice on your card and acted mean back then.”
Ha-jin, flustered, bent down towards the child, who was a little shorter than him.
“Hey, you brat. Why are you bringing that up all of a sudden?”
“I don’t believe in Won-shin or whatever. It’s all my dad’s delusions. I knew it all along. Hic… but my dad… even if my dad was weird, dying like that is too…”
The child, who was rambling, eventually hugged Ha-jin’s chest. Ha-jin roughly patted the back of the sobbing child. His heart stung.
“Actually, hic…! From the moment I saw you at the rest stop, I really wanted to be friends with you. The magic was so amazing, and I liked the way you smiled so coolly. Huhu… If you ever have a magic show later, I’ll definitely go. You have to acknowledge me when we meet then.”
The child’s desperate confession continued. Eventually, Eden, who couldn’t bear to watch any longer, separated the two, and only then did the sobbing subside.
“Crying makes you lose moisture and makes it hard. Stop crying now and get your act together. Listen to the police Chief Kim, and don’t get sick. Got it?”
Ha-jin patted his reddened cheeks and offered words of comfort and encouragement.
After a bout of commotion, the child finished his farewells and left with Chief Kim. Ha-jin stood still until they disappeared from sight.
In fact, the advice he gave to the child was no different from a resolution to himself. To survive diligently for Chun-beom’s sake, who had died. And not to cry.
Ha-jin glanced back at the still-smoldering mountain and bid his final farewell to Chun-beom.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Why were you doing that earlier? Did you find it fun?”
Ha-jin rebuked Eden, who was walking ahead.
“What are you talking about?”
“Pretending to be lovers. I was so embarrassed in front of the kid… And why were you touching my shoulder?”
Eden, who was wielding the dagger in his hand, laughed briefly.
“Such jokes don’t suit Jeong Tae-geon.”
“My way was the best. Did you have a better way to refuse than an excuse that you wanted to be alone with your lover?”
“…….”
“You were so sorry that you didn’t know I was being considerate.”
Ha-jin, unable to find a rebuttal, shut his mouth. Thanks to Eden’s quick wit, they were able to safely go their separate ways without emotional exhaustion, so in the end, everything he said was right.
Still, can’t something be done about that annoying tone?
Ha-jin rubbed his tired face and silently moved his feet. He had woken up since dawn and encountered a shootout and a horde of zombies, so his whole body felt like a ton of bricks.
“By the way, what time is it now?”
“Almost 4 o’clock.”
“…It’s hot.”
“Let’s find a place to rest soon. Let’s recover some energy and leave early tomorrow morning.”
The two walked aimlessly along the winding dirt road. After walking for about 30 minutes through the empty fields and roads, Ha-jin picked up a faded receipt that he tripped over.
The paper had the name ‘Misan Garden’ and the payment details for a duck meat set meal. Gurgle…. Ha-jin clutched his hungry stomach and looked around. Judging from the road name, it seemed that there was a restaurant not far from here.
Come to think of it, most mountains had restaurants that served stamina-boosting foods. Ten minutes later, a promotional sign caught his eye as he scanned the surroundings with hawk eyes.
←100m Left Turn, Misan Garden, Specializing in Duck Meat & Chicken Baeksuk
The old sign, tilted to one side, had ‘Misan Garden’ written on it, which Ha-jin was looking for.
“Jeong Tae-geon, come here.”
Eden, who was putting the old dagger into his waist, turned around at the call. Leaving the road, the two moved their steps onto a path overgrown with vegetation.
“Where are we going?”
“I found a restaurant. If it’s okay, I think we can rest here today.”
Following the direction Ha-jin pointed, Eden’s head was raised high. His eyes reached the yellow sign of Misan Garden. The lush vegetation was half-wrapped around the sign, and small light bulbs with the lights off were eerily hanging above it.
“You found it well. Let’s go.”
Eden patted Ha-jin’s shoulder as if he had done a good job.
The entrance to the restaurant was so overgrown with grass that reached up to the knees, leaving no room to step. Eden, who was in the lead, cut the grass with a dagger, making a path.
After passing the parking lot and reaching the front of the restaurant, the two looked inside the glass door for signs of people. There was no movement inside the dark interior.
“Hello?”
When Eden knocked on the door and shouted, a mountain bird that had been hiding somewhere fluttered and flew into the sky. After that, a quiet silence followed.
Ha-jin whispered habitually.
“I guess no one’s here? Well, since the way to the restaurant is blocked, it would be difficult for anyone to come here.”
“Let’s go in.”
Eden put the sharp end of the dagger on the lock above the glass door. Click, the door opened without much difficulty.
“I saw Jeffrey opening the door of the mart well last time, do they really teach you this in Delta Force?”
As curious eyes followed, Eden chuckled.
“Are you amazed that someone who performs magic like magic is just opening a door?”
“Originally, everything that one can’t do is amazing. If I have a chance, please teach me how to open doors.”
“Alright. Instead, Do Ha-jin, please teach me a magic trick.”
“…You were serious about that even at the police station?”
Eden, who replaced the answer with a smile, opened the door and entered first. Since the sun was still shining brightly, the inside of the restaurant was not very dark.
Perhaps no one had visited since the incident, the stuffy and musty smell of dust tickled the tip of the nose. Ha-jin, who rubbed the side of his nose with the back of his hand, quickly looked around. Eight long floor tables were placed on the linoleum floor, and in front of it was a large kitchen.
Ha-jin’s mouth slowly opened as he found the menu. Duck meat, pork belly, chicken baeksuk… Just looking at the menu made his mouth water.
“Jeong Tae-geon… shall we eat first? I’m starving.”
“There must be something left. Let’s take a look.”
Ha-jin followed Eden into the kitchen. Commercial sauces, canned goods, and six bundles of 2L bottled water were neatly placed next to the refrigerator.
‘I’m alive.’
While Ha-jin took out a bottle of water and drank it down, Eden opened the refrigerator door. As the smell of rot rose, Ha-jin, who was drinking water, immediately gagged.
Eden, who also covered his nose, carefully examined the inside of the refrigerator. As expected, there was no food that could be eaten. In the yard connected to the back door, there were only the carcasses of chickens that had starved to death.
Regretfully, he made a simple porridge using the ingredients at room temperature. Slightly spoiled onions, still firm scallions, carrots, tuna, and rice in the rice container were boiled in a pot on a portable gas burner.
Sesame oil and soy sauce were finally drizzled over the porridge, which smelled savory. Eden placed the pot in front of Ha-jin, who was sitting at the table with a spoon and shining his eyes like a child.
“Wow….”
“Eat well.”
Before the words were finished, Ha-jin emptied the porridge as if he were possessed. He sighed and patted his stomach after scraping the pot clean to the end.
“Jeong Tae-geon, you’re good at cooking too. That’s unexpected.”
“I’m not good, but I cook often. What about Do Ha-jin?”
“I can’t.”
As he confidently denied his cooking skills, Eden cast a questioning gaze.
“Then what did you usually eat?”
“Delivery…?”
As he scratched his blood-stained cheek and answered, a sound of disapproval immediately returned. Ha-jin, who was somehow embarrassed, turned his gaze to the air.
Then Eden’s scolding flew in.
“Do Ha-jin, why are you wasting your good skills?”
“Magic and cooking are not related.”
“…….”
“…Maybe?”
For a while, the two had a trivial argument about cooking, then grabbed their full stomachs and laid their tired bodies on the floor.
Except for the sound of the old clock ticking and the occasional sound of mountain birds, the surroundings were eerily quiet. The situation a while ago, where shouts and gunshots were noisy, was like a dream.
Tick, tock, tick, tock…. Before they knew it, the clock’s hour hand was pointing to 6 pm.