Red Dot - 21

– Episode 021 –

Junseong, who had been running hard while focusing only on what was ahead, soon spotted a guidance light indicating the remaining distance.

The remaining distance to Gae-an Station was 105m.

If they pushed a little harder, they would reach Gae-an Station. Beyond that, there would be a split path after passing the section where the platform was visible, leading to the vehicle depot.

Junseong, breathing heavily, listened to the sounds coming from behind.

Crack, creak!

Ka-ack!

Grr, crunch!

The ever-closer screams and footsteps of numerous zombies added more pressure to Junseong’s busy heart.

Finally, the two encountered the screen door where Gae-an Station’s platform was visible. As expected, there were quite a few zombies wandering around the platform at Gae-an Station too. They stuck to the glass, watching Junseong and Hanseo on the other side of the screen door.

New bloody handprints were smeared on the already dried blood of the screen door. Although Junseong knew that the screen door at Gae-an Station wouldn’t break, just like in his dream, the thought of zombies pouring in through the broken glass at Inhan Station made him uneasy.

Without hesitating with Hanseo, they passed the path with the screen door and once again ran through the dark tunnel.

As they were running at full speed the whole time, Junseong’s breath reached his chin.

When Hanseo’s breathing, which had been only slightly roughened, was all that changed, she took off Junseong’s backpack and put it on herself.

“Should I carry it for you if it’s too hard?”

Instead of speaking due to his shortness of breath, Junseong furrowed his brow. Hanseo found it amusing for some reason and chuckled softly. It was a calmness that could not be thought of in the midst of being chased by a horde of zombies.

Although there was not much tension, Junseong felt slightly lighter thanks to Hanseo taking the backpack. Regardless of Hanseo’s inexplicable strangeness, he was genuinely thankful for her consideration.

Finally, the dark tunnel split into two paths, left and right.

“To the left!”

Junseong, who had walked through the tunnel towards the hospital in his dream, turned his steps in the opposite direction. Although he slipped slightly on the tracks, he could continue running thanks to Hanseo grabbing his arm to support him.

The momentum of the approaching zombies became even stronger.

The distance between the two and the zombies was barely about 5m.

If they kept running like this, the distance between them and the zombies would inevitably decrease.

Remembering that the zombies’ field of vision was around 3m, Junseong clenched his last bit of strength. He endured the soreness of the leg muscles, a pain he hadn’t felt in his dream.

When the distance to the zombies became about 4m.

He spotted a wall with a guidance light that read ‘Emergency Passage.’ Since the tunnel lights were off, they could see the passage next to the wall thanks to the light from their flashlights.

“Now turn off the flashlights!”

Having confirmed the location of the emergency passage, Junseong turned off the flashlights. The darkness engulfed everything when the lights from the two flashlights, which had been almost the only light in the tunnel, disappeared. Amidst this, the guidance light for the emergency passage shone brightly.

Junseong thought that the man who had been bitten by the zombies and managed to escape by biting one arm owed his life to the darkness of the tunnel.

Although the zombies’ field of vision was around 3m due to the red film of blood, it was only based on the presence of light. In the darkness, even if a person was right in front of them, they wouldn’t recognize them properly unless they smelled blood or made noise.

So, just before entering the zombies’ field of vision, Junseong turned off the flashlights. When they got closer than the field of vision, which was already pitch black, the only thing the zombies could rely on was sound.

Around the time they almost reached the emergency passage, Junseong, holding a siren in his hand, threw it far away. Then, along with Hanseo, he turned his feet towards the passage.

They saw a door connecting the two tunnels about three steps away. However, since it was an iron door, he leaned against the wall next to the door and held his breath just in case it made noise.

Following the loud blaring of the alarm, zombies screamed and chased after it. Hiding in the passage, Junseong, with eyes now accustomed to the darkness, looked at them with trembling hands.

After the horde of zombies passed through the passage and gathered inside the tunnel,

It was only when Junseong, feeling relieved, exhaled as if he could finally catch his breath.

Ka-ack!

A zombie, running alone at the back, suddenly turned its head towards Junseong and made a sound. Junseong belatedly covered his right hand.

‘Blood!’

At the spot where the man had bitten him earlier, blood was still dripping.

‘This is not good!’

The zombie, properly catching the scent of blood, prioritized Junseong as its primary target.

Seeing the zombie entering the passage, Junseong instinctively blocked Hanseo’s way.

‘The target is me, so only I…!’

He couldn’t put Hanseo in danger as well. Since zombies were only following the scent of blood and couldn’t see, even if he was bitten, if he blocked them, Hanseo could remain unharmed.

“Hanseo, open the door and go in!”

Shouting like that, Junseong, instead of running away, rushed towards the zombie. Suddenly, he was pulled from behind. Startled by the unexpected pull, Junseong was pushed against the wall next to the door and both of his hands were pressed against the walls on either side of his face, as if to trap him.

Junseong, surprised and unable to speak, felt Hanseo’s abdomen pressed against him. Her thigh slipped between Junseong’s legs.

More than the awkward posture, the fact that he was overlapping with Hanseo was the problem itself. If things continued like this, both zombies might attack.

“What are you doing?!”

“Shh.”

Whether she knew Junseong’s feelings or not, Hanseo silently looked at him trapped in her arms. Junseong, who received her gaze, was looking at the zombie with intensely focused eyes.

It was strange.

The zombie, who had been about to rush and bite Junseong just a moment ago, suddenly stopped right in front of him.

Ugh…

The suddenly subdued zombie moaned weakly, as if standing alone in an empty lot with no prey around. Then, seemingly concentrating on the alarm sound this time, it turned its head towards the direction of the tunnel and roared again.

The grotesquely twisted zombie, like the others, quickly ran towards the alarm, leaving the alarm area.

Seeing the last zombie also moving towards the alarm, Junseong, belatedly realizing that he had been frozen without breathing, breathed a deep sigh of relief.

Breathing deeply, Junseong finally met eyes with Hanseo. It was too dark to see each other’s expressions clearly.

Hanseo, who seemed to be motionless while holding Junseong, slowly moved away from him. Then, holding Junseong’s uninjured left hand, she opened the door to the passage and entered.

The iron door was simply a partition in the middle of the passage that allowed movement between the two tunnels.

Having moved to the tunnel leading to the next station, Junseong felt his legs wobbling due to the running and tension from earlier.

But he was so serious that he didn’t even pay attention to such things.

“Do Hanseo.”

Calling Hanseo’s name, she, who had been holding his hand all along, turned to look at Junseong.

Junseong, holding the flashlight with his numb right hand, turned it on. Although the light was directed towards the ground, thanks to the light, he could see Hanseo’s face clearly.

Hanseo’s face had no expression to the point of being frightening. It was impossible to guess what she was thinking.

It was Do Hanseo who spoke first.

“If you’re trying to survive, why did you do something that could get you killed?”

Hanseo’s voice was so cold that it sent shivers down the spine. It was the coldest voice among all the voices Hanseo had made so far, to the point where it felt terrifying.

Junseong pointed to his injured right hand for Hanseo.

“It was because of my blood scent. Since I was the target, it made sense for me to deal with it alone.”

“So, you were trying to protect me?”

Hanseo sharply replied with an expression that seemed to not understand.

“If you’re in the middle of trying to survive, you should have used anything at your disposal.”

“And you think shielding me was the right thing to do?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

Junseong showed a bitter laugh at Hanseo’s words. Even if it was a joke, it was absurd, and looking at his serious expression, it seemed like he meant it.

Junseong genuinely doubted Hanseo’s unpredictable thought process.

Staring at Hanseo without saying a word, Junseong spoke.

“Is the reason you think that because zombies avoid you?”

Junseong recalled the strange behavior of the zombies he had seen a while ago. The zombies didn’t attack Hanseo properly when they crossed the screen door. The zombies attacking Soyeon when passing her during a straight-line movement. And Do Hanseo appearing in the classroom in such perfect condition.

Reviewing the events in reverse, Junseong could only come up with one hypothesis.

“Are you… immune?”

Junseong was looking at the ‘immune,’ the key to solving all zombie-related problems, right in front of him.

Hanseo smiled faintly at Junseong’s words, filled with confidence.