Marauder of the Apocalypse

I hadn't been managing our resources systematically. I'd only separated them by expiration dates and types, but I'd been estimating how much remained and how much we used daily just by eyeballing it.

With famine approaching, I finally asked my criminal companions to check our resources.

Park Yang-gun, who had been an inventory elder at Hope Church; Sa Gi-hyeok, an investment fraudster familiar with numbers; and Jeon Do-hyung, who was skilled at managing supplies from his camping experience.

After working diligently, they finished checking the resources in the villa district and returned with less than encouraging news.

They sat before me with gloomy expressions, sighing deeply.

"We still have decent supplies. We'll be fine for now. For now."

Park Yang-gun made a gesture of holding something, then emphasized his point by showing the gaps between his fingers.

"Resources are leaking out at a considerable rate."

"That's right. We're using more than we're bringing in," Sa Gi-hyeok added.

To break even, we needed to gather enough food for a day's meals with a day's work, but we weren't even managing that. We were experiencing gradual resource loss.

I tapped my fingers on the floor, lost in thought.

This was discouraging. We needed a change in perspective. The world was already difficult enough to survive in.

'People can survive without food for three weeks, right?'

So we had at least three weeks. And since we were working to slow the resource consumption, we'd probably be fine for a month.

We could survive about two months. Two months was an extremely long time. It was already October, so we'd easily last until winter, with plenty of opportunities to raid properly.

That's when Jeon Do-hyung shook his water bottle and spoke in a low voice.

"Water is our biggest problem."

"There is a drought, but..."

"Water isn't something we've stockpiled. It's difficult to store enough for everyone here to use for a long time."

Water. A resource we couldn't raid.

"We depend on streams for water. If the streams dry up, we can't get water."

Food could be managed through diligent raiding and stockpiling. Water was the issue. A resource dependent on nature. Fatal to life if you go without it for just three days.

Sa Gi-hyeok laughed strangely and said something odd.

"Nature, the sky, the earth. If these were companies, they'd be heavily criticized. What kind of operation is this? They might even be called scammers."

What was this scammer talking about...?

Since Sa Gi-hyeok often spouted nonsense, we naturally ignored him and focused on finding solutions to the water problem.

My criminal companions offered their opinions one by one.

"Should we look for wells? If we go to the outskirts of the city, we might find places that use groundwater."

"I told you we should move near the river. We could even solve our food problems with proper fishing."

I closed my eyes, deep in thought.

Drought. Would a drought severe enough to dry up streams and crack farmland really come? And if it did, what should I do?

Even as a raider, there was nothing I could do against natural disasters. Unless I could wring water from people like wringing a dry cloth.

"Mountains would be good too. There are a lot of bugs, but I remember there being natural springs."

"What mountains? We'd be finished if a fire broke out. Rivers are the best."

As Jeon Do-hyung and Park Yang-gun debated, Sa Gi-hyeok offered a suggestion that sounded like something from a callous businessman.

"Or we could reduce consumption. We could restrict meals and control water usage. If income decreases, balancing by cutting expenses is another approach, isn't it?"

I immediately shook my head.

"That won't work."

What kind of raider practices frugality? We should live like we might die tomorrow, enjoying everything today.

One reason our organization remained stable was our comfortable lifestyle. Restricting that would create instability.

"But we can't last long this way."

"That's true."

I furrowed my brow and pressed my temples.

This was a season of disasters. Problems were inevitable, and these weren't easy to solve. They were beyond the reach of raiding.

"Let's give it a few more days. Moving isn't easy."

"Good idea. It's not like the river's going to grow legs and run away."

My criminal companions got up and left. I watched their backs and then laid down. I stared at the dirty ceiling. A sigh escaped me.

"Why can't I just raid and live happily?"

In the face of resources that couldn't be raided, I was just another survivor.

'Do we really need to move?'

Suddenly, an idea flashed through my mind. I jumped up and paced around the room. A positive thought had emerged.

"Moving would be good."

Finding a nearby water source that the alliance wouldn't covet but would attract people.

And then I realized something I'd overlooked. Why focus only on water? Wasn't it about the people who moved with the water? Wasn't water just the bait?

No matter how severe the drought, the sea never dried up, and all scattered streams eventually flowed to the sea.

Survivors were the same. Those who had tenaciously survived the apocalypse would move toward water. People traveling long distances would bring many resources.

They'd make excellent raiding targets too.

I grinned and swung my hammer through the air.

"Time to break open the piggy bank."

It was time to wrap up our business.

***

Some relatively wealthy people existed. Our members. Thanks to us, they had less competition, received incentives, and worked hard to find food themselves.

They were my small piggy banks of resources. I could break them open whenever necessary.

Before getting to the main point about killing our members, I gathered my companions and explained.

"The drought seems serious, so we need to move. I'm currently looking at maps to find a suitable location."

"Is that so?"

My companions blinked and tilted their heads. Since they had originally been individual or family survivors who wandered, they didn't seem to have any objections.

I nodded my head as if respecting them.

"Once I've narrowed down the candidates, I plan to gather your opinions before making a decision. So..."

As I dragged out my words, my companions focused on me. They seemed to sense this was the main point. I thought I saw trust in their eyes, but I couldn't be certain.

My deep-seated fundamental distrust, psychology difficult to judge by eyes alone, survival instincts that could turn their backs when losses grew too great. There were more reasons not to trust.

But gauging their worn psyches and the mental fences I'd planted in them, I revealed my main point.

"Let's wrap up our business. Before we move, let's kill our members and take their resources."

"..."

My companions closed their mouths and gripped their rifles. After a few seconds, they answered calmly.

"Yes. It shouldn't be difficult."

"No, it'll be easy. They know our addresses, and they'll open their doors right away if we say we're following up on reports. Should we do it now?"

"Why not just gather them all for some announcement and kill them all at once?"

They accepted more easily than I'd expected. Having already fallen beyond a certain line, they were even devising methods for easy killing.

I looked around to see if anyone objected or harbored different thoughts, but I didn't find anyone particularly suspicious.

Only Sa Gi-hyeok and Jeon Do-hyung showed signs of regret and sorrow, but they didn't object.

'It seems our organization has developed its own color.'

This was unity and organizational strength. A color that would gradually dye even newcomers.

I smiled contentedly as I looked around at my companions.

"If we gather people, some will notice and flee. Visit them one by one and kill them."

"How should we handle firearms?"

"Ambush quietly if you can, but don't hold back if they seem formidable. Even if gunshots are heard, they'll just think we're conducting business."

We'd gained minimal trust from our members. Enough for an ambush.

And so, we formed groups of three and began moving through our territory.

***

I couldn't miss out on this enjoyable labor. I flipped through my notebook, looking at the information I'd collected. The locations of members I'd gathered, knowingly or unknowingly.

I'd obtained some from people who reported without knowing they were members, sometimes while providing services like moving belongings, and for the more cautious ones, I'd investigated separately.

Bang, bang, occasional gunshots echoed as I walked the streets to reach a member's base.

Many people stayed in villas or houses for easy escape and movement. Occasionally, some lived in commercial buildings that zombies had swept through, and this member was one of them.

A three-story commercial building.

"The person living here... Ah, that family?"

As I put my notebook back in my pocket, Sa Gi-hyeok nodded.

"Yes, our first members."

A family—husband, wife, son, and daughter. Humans who had maintained their family intact through this apocalypse.

I glanced at Sa Gi-hyeok. My companions had said they didn't want to move with him, so I reluctantly brought him along. Park Yang-gun had just followed me, and Jeon Do-hyung was moving with another group.

"We're shutting down the business. Are you okay with that?"

"Haha. I told you, didn't I? The end of investment fraud is escape. I'm used to it."

Sa Gi-hyeok spoke calmly, then suddenly frowned.

"But why do people avoid me? I've become a good shot now."

"Ah."

I looked away. I wasn't sure if he really was a good shot, and even if he was, he was terrible at physical work. I didn't want to do this kind of work with Sa Gi-hyeok either.

Changing the subject, I looked up at the commercial building and called out.

"Is anyone there? We're here about a report!"

No answer. I tilted my head and called out again with a louder voice, but there was still no answer.

No, there wasn't even a sign of anyone around.

"Did they move? Let's go in and check."

"Let's do that."

So we entered the commercial building. After thoroughly searching the interior, I let out a hollow laugh.

"We missed them."

The storage area showed signs of hasty escape, with just a little food, masks, and soap taken. Food scattered messily, blankets spread out, traces of fire. Evidence that people had lived here, but no people.

Park Yang-gun looked around and said, "Looks like they just fled."

Quick-witted. There was a reason this entire family had survived intact. Actually, anyone who had survived until now had that kind of ability.

"I wondered why there were so many gunshots."

Now I could guess what the survivors were thinking.

The stream area with no one particular to report to. But with the constant sound of gunshots, everyone was on high alert, fleeing, fighting. Either members reporting on each other, or thinking we were raiding.

The same thing would have happened even if we'd gathered them. They would have noticed and fled.

'No. Piggy banks should be broken with hammers. Why are they spitting out coins and running away?'