Chapter: 18
Crash!
“Jigu!”
Jigu, tangled up with Malek, went tumbling down the front steps with a loud clatter. Edwin, shocked by what happened so suddenly, hurriedly reached out—but Malek was a fraction faster.
Thud!
A heavy impact slammed his temple against the steps, and a dull, ringing pain spread through his head.
Beeee—
A high-pitched ringing filled his ears, and everything seemed to slow down—slower and slower.
So this is it.
Through his blurred, sluggish vision, he saw Malek’s face looming close, his mouth stretched wide open. The cloudy, whitish eyes, as if covered by a thin film, felt disturbingly familiar.
I have to push him away.
He couldn’t just lie there and let this happen. The powerless days of the past 444 days flashed through his mind like a slideshow. He had finally found a way back to the original world.
But after hitting his head so hard, his body refused to respond properly.
“Guh—kgh!”
“Hngh…!”
While Jigu struggled to regain his senses, Malek—straddling on top of him, shaking his head violently—suddenly spewed out dark, blood-red fluid. He was mutating.
Twisting his head aside to avoid swallowing the blood, Jigu weakly reached out and pushed Malek’s shoulder away.
At that very moment, he felt a crack—the unmistakable sensation of Malek’s neck twisting in his grip.
“Ugh?”
Jigu froze, blinking as his eyes met Malek’s—no, the back of Malek’s head.
Was I always this strong? Strong enough to snap an adult man’s neck in one go?
Of course not.
Even with his neck twisted a full 180 degrees, Malek’s head still twitched. Caliph, gripping it firmly, drove his blade straight up under Malek’s chin—thunk. The strength drained from Malek’s body, and it went limp.
But the noise at the entrance had already drawn the zombies in.
“Damn it, run!”
Caliph roughly tossed Malek’s corpse aside, scooped Jigu up with one arm, and shouted.
“Kyaaaah!”
“Grrraah!”
Zombies shrieked as they began pouring toward the fence. At Caliph’s command, the group sprinted toward the truck.
Bang! Bang!
Grrraaah!
Thud, crack!
In the darkness, sparks flew and sickening sounds of soft flesh being crushed mixed with the zombies’ screams.
Then—
Vroooom!
A roaring engine cut through the noise. Edwin, already in the truck, had started it.
“Get in, quickly!”
Caliph skewered the heads of two zombies clinging to the side of the truck, then yanked open the passenger door and carefully seated Jigu inside.
Even in the chaos, his hands gently fastened the seatbelt. Jigu blinked in a daze.
A large hand softly brushed her forehead, sending a sharp sting through her. The skin must have split when she hit the steps.
“…Just hold on a little longer.”
But there was no time to delay. After one last glance at the blood seeping from her forehead, Caliph slammed the door shut.
“Go!”
As Caliph dealt with a zombie lunging at the passenger side and leapt onto the truck’s body, Edwin floored the accelerator.
Screeeech! Screeeech!
The tires scraped the road with a chilling sound every time the truck swerved to avoid the zombies clogging the street. Amid it all, gunshots rang out—bang, bang! Caliph was clearing the way from above.
Inside the truck, everyone squeezed together, eyes tightly shut, unable even to groan. It felt like a broken amusement ride spinning out of control. Jigu, too, clenched the seatbelt and squeezed her eyes shut.
How much time passed like that?
Eventually, the violent shaking eased, and the truck picked up speed, running smoothly down the road.
Only then did Jigu slowly open her eyes and hurriedly look for Caliph.
Just in time, she saw him drop down from the cargo bed with a light thump.
His ash-gray eyes met hers—clear and focused, as if he had been looking at her all along. Jigu stared blankly for a moment, then quietly shifted her gaze past his shoulder.
Behind the truck, now just leaving the village, stood an old sign that read:
WELCOME TO LITTLE ROCK
So we could leave this easily.
It had always been a place she could walk away from whenever she wanted. She had just been sitting there, powerless.
After staring blankly at the sign as it grew smaller in the distance, Jigu turned her head forward.
The dim darkness was retreating, and beyond the open highway, dawn was breaking.
“I don’t think we can pass through here.”
After driving for a long while, the truck slowed and came to a stop in the middle of the road.
Edwin looked over the wreckage of tangled vehicles blocking the way, then pulled out a map with an uneasy expression.
Route 41.
The shortest route to Rangers Shelter. If they couldn’t get through here, it was obvious the journey would take much longer than expected.
Worse still, it was gradually getting darker.
They either needed to get out of here quickly—or find somewhere to hide. But all that surrounded the road were cornfields. No, for the past hour—no, half a day—the only scenery had been corn.
“I’ll take a quick look around.”
Edwin got out of the truck, moving cautiously as he scanned the area. As soon as he stepped away, Jigu groaned, stretched, and swung the door open.
Whoooosh!
A strong gust of wind rushed into the truck. The heat that had been stifling all day suddenly vanished. The cool air brushing her flushed cheeks felt strangely sweet.
“Let’s get out, Ryan!”
Jigu hopped down from the truck and waved cheerfully at Ryan.
“B-but…”
Ryan hesitated, glancing at Peggy. When Jigu looked at her too, Peggy paused for a moment—then nodded.
She had been cooped up in the truck for so long that her whole body felt stiff and sore as well.
“Haaah!”
With Peggy’s help, Ryan climbed down and planted his feet on the ground, letting out a deep breath.
The makeshift seat meant for light cargo was cramped, and no one could honestly call the ride comfortable.
“The wind’s really strong,” Maya muttered, stepping out behind Peggy and looking up at the red-tinged sky.
The cool breeze was refreshing, but the way it whipped debris across the road felt vaguely ominous.
It’s probably nothing.
Shaking her head to brush off the unease, Maya let out a small groan and stretched.
“There are way more overturned vehicles than I expected.”
Edwin muttered grimly as he surveyed the ruined road.
The highway was packed with cars—hundreds of them at a glance. Judging by their rusted, corroded state, they had been abandoned for a long time.
“Any other routes?” Caliph asked.
“There’s only this road. I think we’ll have to go back to the fork we passed earlier.”
Unfolding the map, Edwin traced his finger along the national road. They had chosen this route to avoid a long detour—never expecting this.
“What about fuel?”
“Well… more than we expected.”
Caliph looked at him with suspicion. There was no way they should have that much fuel. But Edwin just shrugged, looking equally puzzled.
A few hours earlier, while Luke had stepped away briefly, Jigu had suddenly handed him a jerrycan of fuel.
He had no idea what kind of ability it was, but the way Jigu pulled out whatever they needed from thin air—like a magic pouch—felt like an outright miracle.
It’s a little suspicious, though…
As Edwin’s gaze drifted to Jigu, Caliph’s eyes followed.
“Look, Ryan! A tornado!”
“Idiot. That’s not a tornado.”
“Even if it’s small, a tornado’s still a tornado.”
Jigu and Ryan squatted close together, tilting their heads toward the asphalt. A tiny dust devil was slowly forming above the heat-soaked road.
“Hyah!”
As Jigu jumped straight into it, the little whirlwind—having just started to swallow up leaves and debris—instantly fell apart.
“Whoa!”
“Hehe.”
Ryan clapped in awe, and Jigu grinned proudly.
Is she really that carefree… or just pretending to be?
Watching Jigu beam innocently, Caliph let out a quiet sigh.
