Chapter 50: The Bell That Broke the Night

“Wow, people really are different when they used to be exclusive Guides for the Center. If it were me, I would’ve just taken all that money and lived comfortably on my own.”

“Seriously. I really respect you, Jaeyoon.”

Honestly, it made me uncomfortable.

Disgusted me, even.

If possible, I wanted nothing to do with them.

There was no way I could appreciate the attention of people pretending to be friendly while showering me with compliments they didn’t even mean.

“Oppa, are you hurting again? Is it because those guys keep talking? Should I chase them away?”

“…No, it’s nothing like that. Don’t worry.”

But what could I do?

All I could do was pretend not to notice and keep living.

From the beginning, I didn’t need anything else.

I decided I would only think about the shelter family and, beyond that, the children staying in this village.

Would I really abandon the life I shared with people who always put me first just because I was afraid of the malice of idiots like them?

I almost returned the same contemptuous glare to the group chewing over their fake kindness, exactly the way they once treated me.

But for the sake of the other shelter members, I barely held myself back.

Aside from being part of the same village, we had no connection.

This much was already the limit of the courtesy I could offer them.

“Ahyoung-ah, aren’t you hungry? Go ask Grandma Dosan for some bread and soup. Warm yourself by the fire too.”

“…But I want to stay with you, oppa.”

“Oppa has something important to talk about with Shinwoo oppa. I’ll come soon, promise. Okay?”

Song Ahyoung hesitated for a long while before reluctantly letting go of my hand.

Soon, other shelter members who came to greet her guided her to a seat at the large dining table.

The moment I saw the chance, I walked over to Lee Shinwoo and asked about the plans moving forward.

A large number of young men from the village were going to be mobilized to gather as many supplies as possible.

That meant there likely wouldn’t be enough people left behind to stand guard around the village.

No one knew when raiders might discover this place and attack.

Leaving behind only me, the children, and the elderly made me uneasy in many ways.

“So? Is everything going well?”

“Hm? Yeah, of course. If we miss this chance, we’ll be stuck here for another month. We can’t afford mistakes.”

“Haha, you sound really confident.”

“I’m actually not. I’m scared to death too.”

Seeing Shinwoo show weakness so unlike himself, I encouraged him, telling him he’d do fine no matter what.

At that, Shinwoo suddenly pulled me into a tight embrace.

He patted my shoulder a few times and asked me to take care of the children and villagers while he was gone.

“We’ll be back within a week at the latest. So until then, I’m counting on you.”

“Anyone listening would think I’m the only adult in this village. There are guards and elders here too, so what are you worried about?”

“Right? It’ll probably be okay, right? Still, I can’t help worrying. What if weakling Han Jaeyoon rolls off the bed in his sleep again?”

“…Hey. Didn’t I tell you never to bring that up again?”

A week ago, after I’d finally fallen asleep painlessly for the first time in ages, Shinwoo had caught me sleep-talking and rolling off the bed.

Ever since then, he brought it up whenever he had the chance just to embarrass me.

The bump from that incident was still sticking out from the back of my head.

“Come back safely, okay?”

“Yeah, Mom. Don’t worry.”

“Oh dear, you kids suffer so much because of old people like us.”

“No, please don’t say that.”

“Hyung, why did you come out here? Your leg’s injured. Just rest until I get back.”

“Hey, how could I stay inside? My little brother’s risking his life going all the way out there.”

Before leaving the village, the young men accompanying Shinwoo exchanged final goodbyes with their families, relatives, and friends.

They weren’t leaving just briefly.

They were traveling far away for an entire week, crossing mountain ranges and dangerous paths.

Everyone looked uneasy.

“Hyung will bring back lots of delicious things. Stay here and wait for me, okay? Make sure you dress warmly so you don’t catch a cold.”

“Okay! Come back safe, hyung!”

But beneath their worried expressions was also a faint sense of hope.

Hope that the supplies brought back would let them continue living a little longer.

No matter how hard things were, nobody could possibly enjoy surviving on watery porridge, poisonous sprouting potatoes, and frozen corn every meal.

The thought that they might finally eat real food again once the group returned from the market seemed to outweigh their fears.

They worried for the young men, but not one person tried to stop them from leaving.

Clank—

“Then we’re off!”

And just like that, only a small number of youths—including me—alongside children and the elderly remained behind in the vast village.

Rumble—

“…The weather’s bad.”

The sky overhead had turned completely gray.

Spring was still far away, yet for the past several days, a cold drizzle had continued endlessly.

Winds mixed with icy snowflakes swept across the land, trapping not only the children but even the adults indoors.

Today, it had briefly looked like the sun might come out, so I thought maybe I could help with chores or at least hang the blankets out to dry.

But that seemed impossible now too.

With rain threatening to pour down at any moment, the elders and remaining youths hurried to gather the laundry hanging outside and carry it back indoors.

The blankets, their cotton stuffing long flattened, smelled sharply of winter cold.

“Oppa, look what I found!”

Song Ahyoung proudly held up a long-rooted plant with arrowhead-shaped leaves, her hands covered in freezing mud from digging through the earth.

Apparently, she had an unusual talent for finding herbs and edible plants.

I vaguely remembered hearing that her parents used to sell medicinal ingredients in the industrial district long ago, though the details escaped me.

Carefully, I used a damp cloth to wipe the mud from her hands so they wouldn’t freeze.

“Jaeyoon-ah.”

“Yes, Grandpa.”

“That’s enough for today. Everyone should go inside and sleep early. Feels like another storm’s coming tonight.”

“…There’s been an unusual amount of rain this winter. I hope Shinwoo and the others are alright.”

Once dinner was over, the sun disappeared quickly behind the mountains.

Except for the guards stationed outside the village, everyone spread out their bedding and prepared for sleep as though it had been agreed upon beforehand.

After finally getting Song Ahyoung—who stubbornly insisted on sleeping beside me—to fall asleep first, I quietly slipped out of the room with my medicine.

“Ugh… blegh…”

The dizziness was getting worse.

Escaping the Center had reduced the pain caused by the brainwave fields, but my body continued deteriorating steadily, as if proving I didn’t have much time left.

At least I still had medicine.

Once again, I silently thanked Kim Kyungwoon for helping me escape.

Clang— clang—

“…What’s going on?”

At that moment, while sitting in the communal bathroom waiting for the dizziness to fade, an urgent signal rang out from the guards stationed at the village perimeter.

Large bells had been installed along the iron fences surrounding the village so that emergencies or intruders could immediately be announced.

Since the village was founded, the bell had never once been used.

Now its deafening sound tore through the air.

Startled, everyone rushed outside.

Some curious children ignored the adults’ warnings and sprinted toward the entrance through the darkness.

“…W-what in the world happened?”

Grandpa Kim’s face turned pale.

Leaning heavily on a long wooden cane, stumbling as he limped into the village, was none other than Park Isu.

One of the young men who had left with Lee Shinwoo for the market.

“…Ugh… ngh…”

Whatever had happened to him, his back looked as though it had been shredded by the claws of a wild beast.

Yellow pus bubbled from deep wounds already rotting beyond treatment.

It looked impossible to save him without carving the flesh away entirely.

Worse still, his body trembled intermittently like someone who had witnessed something horrifying beyond comprehension.

His mouth hung open.

Inside, countless insects crawled among the saliva.

“Ahhh— Aaaah! Run! Run away! Run away!”

Grandma Dosan approached with clean water to wash his wounds, but he violently shoved her hand away and screamed in agony.

The once noisy village instantly fell silent.

His fingernails tore and bled as he clawed desperately at the ground.

As if losing control of his bowels wasn’t enough, he eventually started ripping out his own hair.

“What on earth are you talking about? What do you mean run away?”

“…More importantly, where’s everyone else? Where’s my son?”

“Oh no… Sangyoon-ah! Sangyoon!”

Boom—!

Suddenly, something flew through the dark sky in a perfect arc and smashed directly into the metal tower standing inside the village.

It was the exact same phenomenon as when the chandelier collapsed during the terrorist attack at the department store.

Kyaaaah—!

“Ahhh! Save me!”

“Run! RUN! Why are you just standing there like idiots?!”

The tower wasn’t just surrounded by high-voltage electrical lines.

Countless wires connected throughout the village were concentrated there as well.

Launching an explosive into such a place naturally caused a massive inferno to erupt instantly, threatening to swallow the entire village whole.

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