Chapter 129 |
Lee Jaehun was extremely displeased with the current situation.
“…I’m really fine.”
“Manager, please be quiet…”
“…….”
However, even he couldn’t bring himself to joke about ‘insubordination’ this time.
The atmosphere was too heavy.
‘Fʊck, what did I do?’
Even though he knew why the mood had become so gloomy, it didn’t stop him from feeling irritated. He was putting his own body on the line for their future, and they couldn’t even recognize his grand plan. At this point, he felt almost resentful that no one listened to him.
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‘It feels like the monsters will attack soon…’
In the original novel, his colleagues dⁱㅌd the night they entered the park. After taking in the siblings, they met Detective Hong Kyungjun’s group and suffered a complete wipeout. There had also been an incident where three people dⁱㅌd in the flower garden, but that didn’t carry the same weight as total annihilation.
The main cause of that annihilation was undoubtedly the algae monster and the serial killer, but even before that, monsters would often attack in groups. Especially after the three deaths in the flower garden, as he recalled.
And now that the child’s body had been discovered…
“…Even those with leg injuries…”
“Please stop.”
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“No, listen to me. If monsters attack this place, we need to be able to escape…”
“Just stop, please.”
“…….”
Oh, for fʊck’s sake, try to see the situation objectively, you chicks.
‘Why are you making a fuss when I said I can handle it?’
Just as Lee Jaehun, who was at least somewhat perceptive, was grumbling inwardly, Dr. Ha Sungyoon, who had been examining his wounds, sighed and spoke.
“Seriously… why did you heal me? You knew this would happen.”
Lee Jaehun was taken aback.
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“Don’t you know you should prioritize saving the healer in your team…?”
“Did I dⁱㅌ from that?”
“A doctor with an injured arm is as good as dead.”
“You seem to be speaking without a filter. Please get a grip.”
“I also think I’m not in my right mind.”
Feeling a familiar anxiety in his malfunctioning brain, Lee Jaehun gnawed at his lip. He wasn’t used to his cognitive function being impaired for so long, perhaps because it had never happened to this extent in his previous life.
‘But I really need to heal the people with leg injuries.’
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Most of the survivors who had gone out to find water and food returned injured, attacked by the ferocious monsters. Seo Janghwa, who had several pet dogs, was not only physically wounded but also mentally shattered, still groaning in distress. The others, though seemingly holding up better, didn’t exactly look normal either.
Even though they had only stopped by a small lake, the monsters had attacked with such aggression—it was only a matter of time before something disastrous happened.
‘Based on the sense of foreboding I’ve been feeling, I might be the one to trigger it.’
Remembering how their previous safe haven, which he had painstakingly fortified, had been breached by the relatively non-aggressive abandoned dog monsters, he didn’t think this pavilion, even though it was near the park’s edge, would be much different. He remembered there were abandoned dog monsters inhabiting the area around this pavilion.
So, he’d intended to heal the survivors and made them indebted to him while he was at it, but…
“…Why should I feel guilty about healing someone?”
“That’s not it, but it would be nice if you considered your own well-being.”
“It’s hard to make a living.”
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Muttering out of habit, Lee Jaehun continued,
“Doctor, you’re responsible for the health of our group. Since your arm was so badly injured that you could barely move it, I didn’t want to leave it untreated when there was a way to fix it.”
“Thanks to you, everyone now knows about that absurd remedy. You said the person who picks the fruit takes on the patient’s pain, so shouldn’t you have done it somewhere quiet and secluded?”
“To be honest, I didn’t really care what happened. It might be unnecessary worry, but the spot where we had built a wall collapse under the monsters’ attack, didn’t it?”
“So?”
“I just thought the same thing could happen here.”
At those words, Ha Sungyoon closed his mouth, and Lee Jaehun lightly brushed his lips.
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“…I didn’t want to be separated again.”
Since they showed no signs of ending their nagging, he had no choice.
‘I was worried you all might dⁱㅌ, so what other choice do I have?’
Since he’d already established his image as a weakling, it wouldn’t be strange to show an even weaker side.
Truthfully, Lee Jaehun hadn’t planned on using this, but the others likely felt guilty for leaving him behind when the abandoned dog monsters attacked. He had hoped they would feel aversion or unease rather than guilt, but since they didn’t, he had to make use of this.
It wasn’t entirely implausible to claim that his concern for the survivors’ well-being stemmed from a trauma of being left alone. Therefore, he could say he healed Ha Sungyoon out of impulse.
“I wasn’t thinking straight when I healed you, and then I thought I should heal the others too. So that everyone could escape if monsters attacked again…”
“There’s no need for you to bear that burden alone, Manager.”
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“…Why?”
Lee Jaehun glanced at Ha Sungyoon.
“You can’t do it, and I’m the best at it.”
“…….”
“Isn’t it unnecessary for anyone else to bear that burden?”
The doctor blinked and asked,
“Didn’t Kwon Yeonhee stand in front of you to protect you?”
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“Yes.”
“You seemed very perplexed and awkward. Did I see that correctly?”
“…I think so.”
“Oh dear.”
Still smiling gently, he looked away.
“That shouldn’t have happened.”
“What shouldn’t have happened?”
“Everything. None of that should have happened, Doctor.”
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After checking the injury once more, Ha Sungyoon got up. Lee Jaehun didn’t stop himself from looking up. Smiling gently, the doctor said,
“It seems Mr. Jung Inho has something he’d like to say to you, Manager.”
“What is it now? If it’s another lecture, I’d like to refuse.”
“Aha, so our concerned inquiries are considered lectures now?”
“Crazy… Save me.”
“A doctor saves lives, then.”
Familiar laughter drifted lightly.
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“Too many people are worried about you. A bit, excessively so.”
“…….”
“If you dislike lectures, please engage in proper conversation.”
With that, the doctor left, brushing past the protagonist’s shoulder as he walked away. It was a light, dry gesture, like pressing a button on a machine.
Lee Jaehun realized belatedly that he had made eye contact with the protagonist.
“…….”
“…….”
With an earnest smile, the protagonist held out a round bead.
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It was the same as the fruit Lee Jaehun had.
“…Creepy b⋏st⋏rd.”
As expected, he could never like protagonists.
* * *
Lee Jaehun had anticipated this would happen the moment he revealed the existence of the fruit.
The protagonist and his group had shown excessive concern, proving themselves to be true ‘chicks’ easily distressed by others’ pain and suffering. He’d figured they would try to heal him, especially since they were somewhat acquainted.
But regardless, Lee Jaehun had no intention of eating that fruit, which Jung Inho had apparently picked.
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‘I mentioned that there’s such a thing as death by shock, right?’
If the protagonist were to dⁱㅌ the moment he took on Lee Jaehun’s pain, how could Lee Jaehun possibly eat it?
“…You’re saying this is edible?”
“It looks more like an interior decoration than a fruit…”
“The glass apples Mr. Jung Inho brought back were quite unusual as well.”
The survivors marveled at the glittering fruits displayed in the pavilion.
Actually, it was more like lamentation than admiration, though the siblings seemed genuinely impressed.
‘I knew it when that kid mentioned the pebbles at the bottom of the lake.’
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Indeed, the siblings had always shown a deep interest in shiny, jewel-like objects.
In other words, the fruits the survivors had brought back looked more like gemstones than food. They looked like they’d be lethal if eaten.
“This looks like those… cherry tomato-shaped light bulbs you hang on Christmas trees.”
“Cherry tomatoes…”
“…Since we were apprehensive about trying various unknown plants, we’ve been substituting these fruits for food.”
Saying this, Hong Kyungjun held up something with small fruits clustered on a stem.
“If you smell it, you’ll know it almost has no fragrance. You can barely smell it even if you put it right under your nose.”
At those words, Park Dayoung brought the small fruit to her nose and sniffed it a few times. Lee Jaehun was reminded of the dying puppy his son had brought home in his previous life. Hadn’t it been like this when he held a bottle of formula to its nose?
Startled by his subtle gaze, Park Dayoung quietly put the fruit down and averted her gaze.
“Uh… it smells like peaches.”
“You’re sniffing that again? You really are a pig.”
“Stop picking fights, ostrich.”
“People usually say ‘long legs,’ you know. Superior genes, am I right?”
“Yeah, beanpole.”
“I’m tall.”
Hong Kyungjun watched them exchange playful punches, then tapped his fingers on the back of his neck a couple of times before continuing,
“Yes, as you said, the scent is similar to a peach. They grow on low bushes, similar to raspberries, with about ten fruits per stem.”
“…You checked very thoroughly…”
“And the taste is,”
Hong Kyungjun wrinkled his nose and said,
“Sweet.”
“…Huh?”
“Like a sugar cube.”
Lee Jaehun recognized the wrinkled nose as the detective’s habit when he was displeased with something. The novel had described him wrinkling his nose whenever he argued with the protagonist.
Incidentally, the fruit Hong Kyungjun was holding didn’t appear in the original story.
‘I knew there were other fruits since the novel mentioned theme concept fruits…’
It seemed there were various fruits besides the ones mentioned in the novel.
However, it was rare for Detective Hong Kyungjun to express his personal preferences so openly. The protagonist’s group, who had joined late, looked surprised, while the detective’s group looked slightly amused, each wearing subtle expressions.
Noh Yeonseok asked, glancing around cautiously.
“…Do you… dislike sweet things?”
The answer came not from the detective himself, but from Jang Seoah.
“He hates them!”
“Oh.”
“Mister Policeman makes this face every time he eats them.”
As she proceeded to contort her face with both hands, Hong Kyungjun made an awkward expression, and Jung Inho, unusually, didn’t hide his amusement. Lee Jaehun was momentarily dumbfounded by his silent laughter.
Lee Jaehun looked at Assistant Manager Jung and said,
“Assistant Manager Jung, you can’t handle sweets either, so why are you laughing?”
“…….”
“I saw you throw up after drinking a caramel macchiato the other day.”
His face turning serious, Assistant Manager Jung replied,
“That can no longer be called coffee, Chief.”
“So what.”
“It’s practically a coffee-flavored beverage…”
“Ah, so what.”