Chapter 24
That was a note that Min Ahyeon had left behind in the store. A crumpled, yellowed, and insignificant note.
The paper, which looked like it was torn from any old notebook and scribbled on, was lying alone in the corner of the table, like useless trash.
But the sentences contained in that note were extremely valuable information.
‘A mutant infected?!’
Yongcheol hurriedly picked up the note. Soon, his eyes lit up.
“What the hell, did this girl just crumple this up and throw it away?!”
It was at the level of sharpening a pencil with a diamond.
Suppressing his anger for now, Yongcheol examined the note as if possessed. With rumors circulating about a new infection, it said ‘Mutant Infected’.
An instinctual fear crept up his spine.
Earlier, despite the crowd in the store, perhaps no one noticed this note because it seemed too much like garbage.
‘Geez, idiots!’
Yongcheol inwardly mocked them while pressing the note against his cheek. The rustling sound of the paper friction was strangely satisfying.
But this was truly valuable information. Beneath the lantern, Min Ahyeon’s handwritten note still went unnoticed by anyone, and Yong-cheol 1sighed in relief.
The contents were as follows:
1. Evasion: Evade my shoot / Hide behind cover
2. Speed: Faster
3. Weight: Heavier
I’ll tell you about any other characteristics when I get back.
He soon understood why people had left this note untouched.
“This damn brat. Is this how you share information?”
There are two ways to really piss off a person. The first is to leave them hanging mid-conversation, and the second is…
“Ah, Min Ahyeon! Are you kidding me!”
The content was so sloppy and full of loopholes. “Evade my shoot! Hide behind cover! Increases speed! Increases weight!” What the hell am I supposed to do with that?
“How am I gonna sell it when there’re no coping methods!”
When selling information, you should provide coping strategies along with the information. That’s proper information. But Ahyeon just brushed it off with ‘I’ll tell you about any other characteristics when I get back’.
“You punk! Since you managed to come back alive, there must be some coping methods!”
What kind of survivor-biased information is this?
It’s not that the people are idiots, Yongcheol is the fool here.
“Min Ahyeon, you naughty brat!”
The handwriting was sloppy, and it looked like the scribbling of a heavily intoxicated person. So even if someone had seen the note, they wouldn’t have thought much of it.
Feeling utterly helpless, Yongcheol let out a scream and waved his arms in frustration. Then, suddenly stopping his erratic movements, he picked up the note again. Ahyeon knew exactly how irritating this kind of note would be to him.
Turning over the crumpled note, there was a postscript. As expected, the hastily scrawled message was concise, just like Ahyeon.
P.S. I promise for real.
I’ll bring the car back to you nicely.
“She’s just playing with me, toying with me.”
Now, it was beyond ridiculous and simply absurd.
Ahyeon could clearly see through Yongcheol’s actions. She knew he would go crazy when he saw the car missing, and she knew he would rant after seeing the crappy report content.
“Geez, one thing’s for sure. She’s really something..”
Who did she inherit that from? Yongcheol chuckled to himself. Anyone looking would think he had given birth to Min Ahyeon himself.
“Well, she is my kid after all.”
Muttering to himself, Choi Yongcheol reluctantly forgave Min Ahyeon, who had snatched the car key from his back pocket. What choice did he have but to forgive? Despite the mocking laughter from Ahyeon ringing in his ears, he chose to ignore it for now.
There had been occasions when Ahyeon had saved his life, and most importantly… the Jeep had already been stolen. It’s not like Ahyeon would magically reappear just because Yongcheol was angry. There was no point in getting mad anymore.
Yawning, Yongcheol glanced at the stairs leading upstairs. He felt a peculiar presence, and sure enough, Jun and Yeon, the siblings he had rescued from that fake priest, were peering over the railing at him. They seemed concerned about something, but more than that, they looked hungry.
Seeing the children made Yongcheol think of Min Ahyeon again. He didn’t know where she had gone after stealing the Jeep, but…
“Well, she’ll be fine.”
After all, it was Min Ahyeon. Yongcheol approached the siblings with a friendly smile, ignoring their curious glances.
“Hey kids, let’s get some food!”
🕂
And at that moment, Min Ahyeon.
Crash!
It seemed Murphy’s Law persisted even in the midst of the apocalypse.
Contrary to Yongcheol’s muttered words, Min Ahyeon was anything but fine.
Screech, screech, crunch!
The front bumper of the jeep that Yongcheol had so lovingly cleaned was forcefully scraping against the guardrail.
‘Shit, Yongcheol is going to yell at me like crazy. I’m done for.’
She had promised to bring the car back to him nicely, but the image of Yongcheol spitting fire and saying, “Is this what you call bringing it back nicely?” was clear in her mind.
To make matters worse, now sparks were starting to fly from the front of the car. It was beyond the point of just needing a few tugs to fix it. Maybe she should grovel and beg Yongcheol.
Of course, before groveling, Min Ahyeon had to make sure she didn’t die from motion sickness first.
Her face was pale, and she couldn’t hold back. She gripped the seatbelt tightly with both hands and yelled at Shin Hae-jun.
“Weren’t you supposed to be a good driver?!”
This was her toned-down version of what she really wanted to say—Earlier you were all high and mighty, preaching to me, and now you’re driving like this? What the hell!—But the desperation was clear in her sharply raised voice.
Whether or not she said anything, Shin Hae-jun just pressed the back of his head firmly against the headrest and crashed the car into the guardrail again with a thud.
“I’m doing well, aren’t I?”
“Aack!”
Shin Hae-jun’s response and Min Ahyeon’s scream rang out simultaneously.
You almost made me bite my tongue, you jerk! Well, my ass you’re doing well! Min Ahyeon strained the muscles in her shoulders, restrained by the seatbelt, and glared daggers at Shin Hae-jun.
Even as she pierced him with her murderous gaze, Shin Hae-jun didn’t even blink an eye. Instead, he calmly shifted gears and then slammed the car into the obstacle blocking their path with full force.
“Ugh!”
Almost biting her tongue again from the recoil, Min Ahyeon closed her mouth and averted her gaze. There was no point in saying anything. Shin Hae-jun would do as he pleased anyway. She would be the only one at a loss if she bit her tongue trying to argue.
The road beyond the cracked windshield was filled with cars. People who had been fleeing from the infected had abandoned their vehicles when the road became impassable. And Shin Hae-jun, instead of avoiding those cars, was plowing straight through them.
The Jeep struggled to move forward against the weight of the cars blocking the way. Seizing the opportunity, Min Ahyeon confronted Shin Hae-jun.
“When did driving become about crashing into guardrails and other cars?”
No matter how hard he pressed on the accelerator, the Jeep couldn’t advance. In a time when gas was as expensive as bullets.
‘How much does this guy think gas costs?’
Even if the metal panels got dented, driving like this would burn through the gas in no time!
As if reading her thoughts, Shin Hae-jun suddenly shifted into reverse.
This guy, surely not.
“I need to reverse to build up momentum.”
Saying that, Shin Hae-jun turned his body to check the rear, not forgetting to give Min Ahyeon a sidelong glance through his characteristic narrow eyes.
‘This crazy guy! What’s he glaring at me for, thinking he’s done a good job?’
Gritting her teeth, Min Ahyeon gripped the seatbelt tighter, glaring back at him.
Regardless, Shin Hae-jun responded by assessing the reckless path he had taken.
“You think this is some kind of amusement park go-kart game? If I slow down to avoid them, we’ll just get trapped. Do you think the owners of these cars abandoned them because they have too many? Or maybe they left them as a donation for those who couldn’t escape?”
Assaulted by his scathing words, Min Ahyeon was dumbfounded. Of course, his logic was sound. The infected could be anywhere, and just because it was daytime didn’t mean it was completely safe.
‘But still…’
Gently biting her lower lip, Min Ahyeon checked the rear of the car in the side mirror.
🕂
Thank you for reading! ♡
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[ The Multidimensional Cocktail Bar of the Other World ]
Genre: Romance, Fantasy
RIP Jeep, you were a good kid