Apocalypse's Teacher - Chapter 2
Chapter 2
The apocalypse was fair to everyone (2)
***
I don’t remember what I was thinking.
T h i s w a s c o pi e d f r o m k i ng m t l. o rg
In the midst of the confusion, my body moved on its own.
I grabbed the girl who had been holding onto me, and the boy who had been frozen in place, and dragged them into the storage room of the convenience store, slamming shut the heavy metal door.
Thud.
A very small sound compared to the gunshot.
Breathing heavily, I looked through the small window at the scene outside.
[Graaaaah.]
There were rotten corpses.
Monsters flailing around like starving people, the zombies that had driven the world to ruin.
Fortunately, either because I had acted quickly, the zombies had not yet noticed us.
‘Two, three… four.’
There were four visible through the window.
There were probably more out of sight.
Considering it hadn’t been long since the gunshot, there could be more zombies nearby that would be drawn to the noise.
I clenched my fists in frustration and then turned sharply to look at the kids.
T h i s w a s c o p i ed f ro m k i n g m t l . o r g
“What the hell…!”
The girl, full of caution, hid the boy behind her.
She looked like she was ready to attack at any moment, but her small stature made her less threatening.
Seeing the children again stirred my complicated emotions.
“…What are you even doing here?”
I asked the question once more.
The girl replied.
“Don’t come any closer!”
She looked around, as if searching for a weapon, but there was nothing in the storage room that could be used as one.
Only shelves too difficult for a child to dismantle and expired food.
“Shh.”
I put my finger to my lips and whispered softly.
I gestured towards the door.
Even though we were behind a thick metal door, making noise was still dangerous.
Those zombies were so sensitive to sound that it made you wonder if they were ever human.
The girl seemed to understand and gritted her teeth, lowering her voice.
“…Damn it.”
What a foul mouth.
I held back the scolding that almost slipped out and sighed.
T his w a s c o p i e d fr o m k in gm tl. o r g
‘This isn’t what’s important.’
It wasn’t important that she cursed.
How many people in this world didn’t swear?
T h i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i n g m tl .org
More pressing matters were at hand.
‘…How do we get past those bastards?’
I needed to find a way to get past the zombies outside.
Thinking they would just scatter on their own was a foolish judgment.
Zombies had a habit of staying in the same place unless there was an external stimulus.
‘They’re not even slow runners.’
T h i s w a s c o p i e d fr o m k i ng m tl . o r g
Surprisingly, these rotting corpses could run fast.
Stamina? They don’t need to breathe, so they don’t get tired.
Zombies are relentless, and they only fail to chase you if their legs break from the running impact.
Even then, they crawl after you, making them extremely persistent.
“Ugh…”
I slid down the metal door.
Scratching the back of my head and rubbing my face with my palms, I realized I hadn’t washed my hair in a while.
A random thought made me chuckle, and the kids flinched.
I waved my hand to reassure them.
“Don’t be scared. I’m not going to eat you.”
Why were they so cautious?
Maybe that’s why they had survived.
A sudden emotion welled up within me.
Sympathy or pity.
It was clear how much these kids had suffered, and their dirty faces were so pitiful that it hurt to look at them.
‘Damn…’
Th i s w a s c o p i e d f r om k i n g m tl . or g
If they weren’t kids, I’d just leave them and run.
Being a teacher must have made my body react on its own.
“What should we do now?”
I wondered if they had any ideas.
But their expressions told me they had no answers.
They were just rolling their eyes, unprepared for this sudden situation.
This was bad.
I sighed heavily and criticized the girl.
“Damn it, why were you carrying a gun?”
“…You fired it.”
“You made me fire it.”
Flinch.
The girl’s body trembled.
Her eyebrows shot up.
I couldn’t believe it.
“Weren’t you planning to use it for threats? Then you should have taken the bullets out. Why did you leave them in and cause this mess?”
The girl’s face turned red.
Yeah, even you know it was a dumb move, right?
I sighed deeply.
T his w a s co p i e d fr o m k i n g m t l . o r g
How could she be so clumsy? It made my head hurt.
“…Bastard.”
“Hey~, watch your mouth.”
I couldn’t let this slide.
In the small storage room, I reached out and pinched the girl’s lips.
It was possible because of the confined space.
“Mmph!”
The girl’s eyes widened.
The boy, frightened, just glanced at me.
The girl scratched my wrist with her nails.
I frowned and shook her lips up and down.
“Mmph!”
“Use proper language, kiddo. Don’t you know that words reflect a person’s character?”
Ignoring the stinging pain in my wrist, I said this, and the boy, who had been frozen, mumbled.
“But you swore too…”
Look at this kid.
When I glared at him, he lowered his head.
…I wasn’t trying to be threatening, but he did talk back.
*
We were trapped in a small storage room.
Outside, zombies were roaming.
In this situation, there are three possible solutions.
Wait for outside help, hope some idiots cause a commotion elsewhere, or make friends with them.
Given the desperate situation, the last option isn’t entirely bad, but I had no intention of doing that.
So, there were only two options left.
The most hopeful one was that the kids’ guardians would come to rescue them.
T h i s w a s co p i e d f r om k i ngm t l . org
…But, judging by their expressions, they didn’t have guardians.
‘Hopefully, some idiots will pass by…’
I ended up resorting to prayer.
Hoping for someone dumb enough to fire a shot nearby.
I scratched my belly and looked at the kids.
They were still wary, glancing at me.
I met their gaze and asked.
“So, what’s your name?”
I realized I hadn’t asked their names yet.
The boy, startled by my question, answered.
“Jinwoo…”
Thwack.
The girl hit the boy’s hand, and he gasped.
So, your name is Jinwoo, huh?
I looked at the girl.
Although it hadn’t been long, I had observed something about these kids.
The girl seemed to be the leader, and there were probably more kids in their group.
How was I sure?
The girl’s expression was getting darker as time passed.
She kept glancing out the window.
What else could cause her to act like this if not for other kids waiting for her?
“What’s your name?”
“Why do you need to know?”
“Nuna…”
Look at her.
She was so full of defiance that it challenged me.
“Should I call you Nuna, then?”
I smirked.
The girl gave me a look of pure disgust.
Ouch, that stung a little.
“…Dirty bastard.”
“…”
Yeah, maybe I went a bit too far.
Feeling awkward, I pursed my lips, then exhaled and asked.
“Are there kids waiting for you?”
The girl’s shoulder twitched.
An honest reaction that would make Pinocchio’s nose proud.
‘This is troublesome…’
If there were kids waiting, it was a problem.
If she was leading the group, the kids waiting would be younger.
If they got tired of waiting and came looking for her, it would be a disaster.
“Ugh…”
I stood up.
Stretching my body, I spoke to the kids.
“…Let’s go. Yeah, we should go since the kids are waiting.”
My conscience was the problem.
That teacher title, which no longer even brought a salary, was still making me feel guilty.
T h is w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i n gm tl . o r g
The kids looked at me.
I repeated.
“Let’s go.”
The girl frowned deeply.
“What?”
“Jinwoo, pass me that club.”
Ignoring the girl’s reaction, I pointed to the pipe Jinwoo was sitting on.
Jinwoo, realizing for the first time that he was sitting on a pipe, looked up in surprise.
He quickly handed it to me.
The girl, now looking shocked, whispered angrily, “Hey!”
Jinwoo flinched and cowered.
Yeah, Jinwoo.
You saved my life.
If you had been quicker, I would have been beaten by that violent girl.
I swung the pipe a few times and then tore my shirt and wrapped it around the handle.
T h i s w a s c o p i e d fr o m k i n g m t l .o rg
‘The weapon is ready.’
I looked out the window.
‘I can only see six…’
There were probably more out of sight.
“Kids.”
“Yes?”
Thwack.
The girl hit Jinwoo again for his clueless answer.
What kind of act are they trying to put on?
I swallowed my curiosity and spoke.
“I’m going to run out there and make a lot of noise. I’ll bang on cars and stuff. The zombies will chase me. You stay here until the zombies leave, then run.”
The girl frowned.
“What…?”
Is she dumb?
How many times do I have to explain?
“Run.”
“What about you?”
“You said you didn’t care.”
The girl’s shoulder flinched.
She’s honest, isn’t she?
“It’s been a shitty meeting, so let’s never see each other again. And if possible, find a shelter. They’re real bastards, but they generally don’t harm kids. Of course, the story changes when you become an adult. After about three years, they’ll use you up and discard you. I recommend running away then.”
I figured I’d give them some advice since we had this connection.
I stopped talking and grabbed the door handle.
“Take care.”
I opened the metal door.
*
“Graaah-.”
A zombie at the counter turned its head at the sound of the door opening.
Not that it was actually looking.
Zombies’ eyes had degenerated.
It probably turned its head at the noise.
I swallowed and got ready to run.
‘First, get outside.’
The only thing in my path was the zombie lady at the counter.
I just needed to get past her.
Once I had my plan, I acted quickly.
“You damn bastards!!!”
Clang!
I slammed the slightly open metal door shut with the pipe.
The loud noise made the zombies jump.
“Graaah-.”
Their cries were all as pathetic and annoying as ever.
Thud!
I didn’t hesitate and ran.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
I smashed every display I saw with the pipe.
I reached the counter.
I swung the pipe at the zombie lady charging at me.
Aiming for the head.
Do you know the most important thing to remember when dealing with these zombies?
It’s that they’re rotten corpses that started decaying a long time ago.
What does that mean?
Crunch!
If you hit them with a blunt object, their heads snap off like potato chips.
Thud.
The zombie lady fell.
No, calling her “zombie lady” was weird. Let’s stick with that.
Anyway.
I left the fallen zombie and exited the convenience store, scanning the surroundings.
‘Just as I thought. Damn.’
There were at least a dozen others visible.
I chuckled and kept running.
I swung the pipe at a nearby car window.
Smash!
I kept running.
Any zombies that came at me were pushed away with the pipe.
Why am I so good at running and swinging a pipe?
Why wouldn’t I be?
Well, if you need an explanation, I’ll give you one.
Smash!
I’m a P.E. teacher.
End of Chapter
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Kzalca
I really like the main character already.
Thanks foe the chapter!