Hiding a House in the Apocalypse

"Where are you going? The rehearsal’s over?"

Defender’s cheerful expression told me he had no idea what was happening at the front lines.

"Not quite done, but I’ve got things to do. I need to head home."

"You came all the way here—at least drop by to see my sister before you go."

"Your sister’s here?"

"Yeah, at the hospital."

"Is she not doing well?"

"Not exactly ‘unwell.’ Just dealing with an annoying illness."

"What kind of illness?"

"A tumor. Not cancer, but it was on its way to becoming one."

"Damn."

So that was why Defender ended up aligning with the Legion faction.

A guy like him didn’t seem like someone who would willingly take orders from others. Now it made sense.

"It wasn’t anything major. Jong-cheol caught it early, so we managed to treat it quickly. Honestly, I think it’s pretty much taken care of now."

"Even dog shit can be useful sometimes."

"He’s weird as hell, sure, but it’s not the worst thing to have him around."

Defender asked me again.

"Da-jeong’s been wanting to see you. How about it? Wanna go now?"

I hesitated for a moment before deciding to tell Defender the truth.

"What? Monsters…? A large-scale horde is heading this way?"

His reaction was exactly as expected—completely blindsided.

"Since we’re on the topic, why don’t you come with me? I’ll even help clean up your bunker."

I made my offer, and Defender hesitated.

"Thing is…"

He sighed, looking up at the sky.

"She’s got one last treatment left."

"When?"

"In two days."

"Memorial Day?"

"Yeah."

"And skipping it’s not an option?"

"No. It’s chemotherapy. This is the only place she can get it. If she’s going to do it, it has to be done right."

What should I do?

The simplest option was to forget everything and make a break for my territory.

But I knew better than anyone—I couldn’t do that anymore.

I wouldn’t abandon my people just to save my own skin.

"...Alright. Then here’s what we’ll do."

I laid out my plan for Defender.

"That’s… a big risk. Not just breaking away from the Legion faction, but outright opposing them."

"But once the monster horde takes over the city, only a handful of people will make it out alive."

The moment the city fell under the control of mid-sized monsters—creatures capable of mass slaughter as easily as breathing—most humans would be wiped out.

Some might think they could escape once things got bad, but evacuating from a collapsing city was far from easy.