Red Dot - 76

Hanseo held Junseong’s staggering body from behind, supporting him. If Hanseo hadn’t held him from behind like an embrace, Junseong would have collapsed right then and there.

Junseong, whose breathing had become rough, was visibly shaken in the dimly lit space, relying on the flashlight.

Amidst everyone’s worried and anxious gazes, only Junseong was glaring at the man on the CCTV. It was a fearful, resentful glare.

Junseong, who couldn’t easily speak, just breathed heavily, but he clearly saw Nam Ki-hyuk’s lips moving behind the lens.

“Junseong, I love you.”

Although no sound was recorded, just by seeing Nam Ki-hyuk’s lip movements, Junseong felt as if his voice whispered directly into his ear.

“Huh-!”

Just by recalling Nam Ki-hyuk’s voice, Junseong suddenly felt as if his throat was being choked by a strong force, and he was unable to breathe. His legs, which had been gasping for air as if they had forgotten how to breathe, went limp.

“Junseong!”

“Oppa, are you okay?!”

Changmin and Jianne reached out to Junseong in panic. Hanseo, with a stern gaze as if warning them not to touch him, tightly embraced Junseong with one arm and quickly covered his wide-open eyes with his other hand to block his view.

“Turn the screen back now. Quickly.”

“Uh, yeah!”

Startled by the sudden event, Gyeong-oh, responding to Hanseo’s low and rough voice, quickly turned the screen. The image of the man, which had filled the screen of the CCTV, quickly disappeared, leaving only the empty, dim space.

Hanseo removed his hand covering Junseong’s eyes, which were still trembling without blinking, and held Junseong’s gaze. Despite clearly facing each other’s eyes, Hanseo sensed that Junseong’s gaze was directed at someone else who wasn’t there, just captured in the one-sided CCTV footage.

“Junseong, look at me.”

Feeling that Junseong’s eyes were not focused on him, but on someone else who wasn’t in front of him, Hanseo said in a growling voice.

“If you don’t look straight at me, I’ll tear you apart.”

Hanseo’s words seemed to have an effect, as Junseong’s trembling eyes gradually regained focus.

“Ah….”

With a small groan, the breath, which had been forgotten how to be taken, began to flow irregularly. Hanseo, still holding Junseong’s body tightly to help him breathe more steadily, sat down together, leaning Junseong’s back against him to support him. As he slightly wetted his forehead and opened his airway, his breath began to return rapidly.

Fortunately, Junseong’s seizure ended shortly. It was also thanks to Hanseo’s quick response, but it was a relief that seeing Nam Ki-hyuk’s face was only in the one-sided CCTV footage, not face-to-face.

When Junseong regained his composure and opened his eyes steadily, Changmin, who had been relieved, cautiously asked.

“Do you know that guy?”

Nervously examining his complexion, Junseong slowly nodded his head. Holding his cold forehead soaked with cold sweat, Junseong finally uttered the name of Nam Ki-hyuk, which he couldn’t tell his companions until now.

“It’s Nam Ki-hyuk… I met him in my dreams, the serial killer… No, just a murderer.”

He couldn’t explain everything he had experienced here, but he could say one short and thick thing.

“The ‘variable lump’ I mentioned was him.”

“The long-term trading organization boss who has precognition like you?”

Changmin looked at the CCTV with wide eyes, surprised. Gyeong-oh, too, was staring at the empty CCTV with a tense face.

“Can you… turn the screen back to where he appears?”

“Are you sure it’s okay?”

Gyeong-oh was the first to ask, even before Hanseo. Junseong, confirming Gyeong-oh’s resolute gaze, lifted himself with Hanseo’s support. Although he had spoken, his hand held by Hanseo was trembling unconsciously.

Having confirmed Junseong’s determined gaze, Gyeong-oh began to rewind the recording. For Gyeong-oh, who worked for a security company, manipulating CCTV and checking footage was a very easy task.

The image of the man holding the director’s head and smiling was once again captured on the CCTV screen. Thanks to this, everyone had enough time to recognize his face, but Junseong, once again, felt as if his trauma was being poked, unconsciously touching his neck with his hand.

Junseong, carefully avoiding Nam Ki-hyuk’s confession of love, looked intently at his hand.

“Nam Ki-hyuk took the virus stabilizer and related research data.”

Even though the director’s head, which was now no longer bleeding, was capturing everyone’s attention, Junseong focused on the hand opposite to Nam Ki-hyuk.

In Nam Ki-hyuk’s hand, along with a thick envelope containing documents, was a black shopping bag. Judging from the empty storage box where 100 doses of the virus stabilizer, which should have been stored as a starter, were supposed to be kept, it was clear that everything was inside that shopping bag.

“Why did he take it?”

Changmin asked, staring at Nam Ki-hyuk on the CCTV with a puzzled expression.

“It doesn’t seem like he’s going to use the unfinished vaccine in a good way.”

“Yeah.”

Junseong also shared Changmin’s thoughts.

Nam Ki-hyuk wasn’t originally like a boss of a long-term trading organization. At least not while Junseong met him in his dreams.

Due to his unique charisma and strength, many followed him, but that was only because it was a world filled with zombie viruses. If you didn’t have confidence in protecting yourself from zombies, sticking to a stronger person to increase your chances of survival was one way of survival.

But now, Nam Ki-hyuk had become like the boss of a long-term trading organization, unlike the one in his dreams.

‘I don’t know when he started remembering the dream and believed it was a precognition.’

When did Nam Ki-hyuk remember the dream and believe it was a precognition?

Only Nam Ki-hyuk would know, but if he knew in advance that the events in his dream would become reality, it wouldn’t be difficult to organize the organization in advance. Perhaps he could have already infiltrated an existing long-term trading organization, overturned it from within, and become the boss himself.

Either way, Nam Ki-hyuk predicted today’s zombie crisis and devised an easy means of long-term trading using it. His attempt to secure money even in crisis situations sent shivers down his spine.

Such a person took the virus stabilizer and research data related to making a vaccine. If he were to use it for malicious purposes, which seemed likely, it wouldn’t be for anything good.

Moreover, he deliberately showed himself on CCTV, holding the items openly, even mentioning Junseong’s name.

It was Nam Ki-hyuk’s message.

If they wanted to end this zombie crisis, they should come find him—a message directed at Junseong.

Nam Ki-hyuk anticipated that Junseong would come here.

‘I wouldn’t have expected Nam Ki-hyuk to be part of the solution, but how…’

His thoughts quickly became complicated, but there was no easy answer.

Setting aside deep contemplation, Junseong looked at his companions.

“What Nam Ki-hyuk wants is for us to go find him.”

“We knew we would come? Or more precisely… that you would come here.”

Junseong’s only explanation about Nam Ki-hyuk was ‘a variable lump in reality’ and ‘a boss of a long-term trading organization with precognition,’ but just by seeing him on CCTV, one could tell. It was difficult to discern whom he was addressing the message to just by seeing his lip movements, as well as the madness and affection in his eyes.

Changmin, whose thoughts had reached that point, stared at the security room door with a tense expression.

Just until a while ago, everyone, including Junseong, was certain that there would be no ambush. There was no need to keep manpower when they didn’t know when someone might come, and their business was finished. They didn’t see any reason to be hostile towards the same humans.

In fact, if they had known that much, there would have been no need to come here. Yet, they had come precisely because of Junseong’s words.

“Perhaps we should identify who the ‘variable lump’ that might become our enemy is.”

Junseong already knew that the CCTV in this research facility was powered by emergency power. That’s why he focused on identifying who the intruders were by cutting off the director’s head and invading the laboratory.

To know your enemy is to be prepared. Since everyone else agreed with Junseong’s words, they all came here. There was also the thought that there would be no remnants of their enemies at this point after a day had passed.

However, if someone who clearly seemed to know Junseong left a message as if they were expecting it, it was highly likely that there was an ambush somewhere. Although they didn’t know the detailed connections yet, it seemed that the opponent, like Junseong, had some knowledge of the future.

As if reading Changmin’s thoughts, Junseong tapped his shoulder to reassure him.

“It’s okay. If it’s that man, he wouldn’t have left anyone behind.”

Junseong was now glaring coldly at Nam Ki-hyuk in the CCTV.

“That man always tries to do everything important by himself.”

Junseong’s hand brushed against his neck.

He recalled the days when no one could touch him when he was held by Nam Ki-hyuk.

Even when Junseong choked him, when he returned his blocked breath.

Even when Junseong stabbed a knife into Nam Ki-hyuk’s throat, no one could touch him.