Marauder of the Apocalypse-Chapter 61: Power Outage

I woke up shivering from an eerie chill. Blinking, I looked around the dim interior. The light made it impossible to tell if it was day or night. Outside, raindrops could be heard hitting the window.

Pressing my phone hard did nothing - the screen stayed black. Battery completely dead.

Looking at the dark screen, memories slowly came back. Memories going backwards from right before falling asleep.

Me washing with cold water left in the tank before passing out, the real blackout after lightning struck somewhere, people being eliminated one by one...

"Ah..."

A heavy sigh escaped. Many problems remained. My body felt feverish like I'd caught a cold, and my muscles ached. My already clouded head throbbed.

"The infrastructure now."

Power was cut. Indoor farming impossible. Couldn't use the grow lights.

Water was holding up somewhat. Though the pressure pump had stopped so we couldn't draw from the water mains, being an old villa meant the water tank could be filled with rainwater to get some flow.

Gas was still being supplied. The gas range worked since it used batteries to ignite. However, the electric boiler was broken so no heating or hot water.

'Can survive summer... Lots of rain, and no need for heating anyway.'

I took out a pot and poured in bottled water. Whether from body aches or a cold, I felt chills and wanted hot ramen.

Click click click, gas flames bloomed like lotus flowers in the dark room. I roughly dumped the noodles and soup powder into lukewarm water. While waiting for it to boil, I stared blankly at the flames.

"This is really something..."

Don't know how infrastructure was still maintained even in this state. Was this the power of modern society? Or were the military and government somehow maintaining just the core facilities? Really hard for everything to collapse overnight...

At this point modern civilization felt like a zombie. Why wouldn't it die?

Bubble bubble, the ramen boiled. I drank the hot broth first, then frantically stuffed noodles in my mouth. Also got kimchi from the powerless fridge, mixed it with rice.

Maybe from the hot soup, warmth spread through me. With clearer thoughts, I considered slowly.

What to do now.

"Clear the scarecrows, make it look like abandoned ruins. Collect rainwater in tanks and containers, disinfect water with bleach, check remaining fuel..."

So much to do. Gradually move resources left by villa district people, think about the farm.

Above all, had to control my marauder companions. I'd definitely crossed a line this time. From Do-hyung to Sa Gi-hyeok, plenty of room for different thoughts.

Suddenly killing people, children among the dead... They must be uneasy. Unease makes people act.

'Since I wasn't killed in my sleep, seems they haven't thought about killing me yet.'

I looked around at the entrance and windows. They could have easily broken in and killed me while I slept, but it hadn't happened. If they didn't harbor killing intent, possibility of moving together.

Tap tap tap, chopsticks hit the pot. What to do? What benefits to promise, what losses to hint at? No, were many words needed?

Before finishing that thought, bang bang, knocking at the door.

"Da-in. You in there? We've got a lot to talk about."

Park Yang-gun? No, Do-hyung and Sa Gi-hyeok probably came too.

I quickly spoke:

"I'm eating ramen, just a moment. Let me grab my mask then I'll open."

Gun first just in case. Awkward movements slowly loaded five lethal rounds. Hiding that gun in my pocket and putting on the police vest, I opened the entrance.

"Welcome."

"Sorry to interrupt your meal. But this can't wait."

Park Yang-gun entered first nonchalantly, Sa Gi-hyeok passed by with head down as if avoiding looking at me, and Do-hyung walked in slowly last.

Do-hyung's eyes were bloodshot like he hadn't slept all night. I hit him lightly while joking:

"What's this? Zombie eyes?"

"..."

"Should get some sleep."

Though disappointed yesterday, still marauder companions. Can't help lack of vision and drive. My fault too for using support as dealer.

'Short on attackers though. Want to recruit good fighters.'

After that brief thought, I sat on the bed sighing as if tired. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ

"Not feeling well after being in the rain all night. Think I caught a cold."

"Haha. Even dogs don't catch summer colds... No, never mind."

Sa Gi-hyeok forced a laugh while speaking before shrinking his shoulders. Seemed he was trying to lighten the mood, but his word choice...

Even Park Yang-gun looked at him incredulously, not just me. I waved it off.

"Anyway, be careful everyone. Getting sick is a loss."

"Right. More importantly, let's talk about yesterday. I heard the general situation from this guy."

Park Yang-gun rolled his eyes. From his gaze direction and gestures, he was clearly looking for escape routes. His hand also quietly moved toward his pocket with the gun.

Think I'll go crazy and they need to run? Excessive worry. I smirked.

"No plans to harm you all. If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already. We're criminal companions, aren't we?"

None of us hadn't killed someone. These people were thieves, electricity thieves, con men after all. Felt like an inexplicable bond sprouting.

But they seemed unable to trust me, still keeping distance and ready to flee any moment.

"Weren't those people companions too?"

Sa Gi-hyeok looked straight at me with a cowed posture. Must be upset about losing people who'd accepted him.

I shook my head at the con man who often lost his way and nature. Thump, held out the man's notebook of suspicions.

"They were all strangers. That man tried killing everyone he suspected, the lettuce leaker almost sold info to marauders, they were all people with different thoughts."

Though rain had blurred the writing, it was still legible. They quietly looked at the opened notebook.

"Just killed them before they killed us, moved first before it got dangerous. Only kept trustworthy companions."

Actually can't trust them. How could I trust these criminals? They could turn any time circumstances changed.

But I continued speaking to Sa Gi-hyeok's taste. Lying was easy work.

"We're companions who can trust and work together. People who accept rather than curse stealing, killing, raiding, and conning."

Sa Gi-hyeok blankly stared at the notebook. On the page with his details, words in red like 'con man', 'don't believe a single word', 'exclude from important matters' were written.

This much should make it clear now. That a marauder group like us was the real organization to join.

But this time Do-hyung was the problem. Looking at me with zombie-like eyes, he spoke in a rough voice:

"No. I can't accept it. There was no need to kill the children yesterday."

"..."

What was this? I slowly examined Do-hyung. Suddenly felt like a stranger stood before me. Cracks appeared in the vicious electricity thief image I'd built.

Minimum morality or conscience or goodwill remained.

Slowly reaching for the pocket hiding my gun, I thought.

'Was he volunteering to handle everything yesterday trying to save them? Guess killing children was taboo after all.'

The minimum line people shared. Yesterday I'd crossed that line. Even marauder companions might reject me.

Rational excuses came to mind. I didn't want to either, but had no choice to survive summer. Action needed before the villa district exploded. I was a normal person too. Lived well in society before the apocalypse. This was hard for me too. How was this different from cleaning Peace Villa? You're the same kind of person.

Ways to fix my perception that had fallen off a cliff...

Suddenly felt like laughing.

'Why go back?'

Could use goodwill in its own way. As Do-hyung's image changed, his actions made sense again.

Someone who accidentally helped kill the pastor then tried preventing church interference. Someone who followed me trying to save who he could.

But lacking decisiveness and drive, couldn't stop me by killing me, exercising goodwill passively within his reach.

"I can list dozens of reasons why I had to kill yesterday. Can you?"

"They were children. Children who liked you."

"Tell me reasons that help our survival. If we'd let them live and go, word of the farm and resources would have spread. Could we take them as companions? After killing so many people, would they stay quiet?"

Do-hyung ground his teeth as some madness flashed in his eyes. Hand gripping the hand axe.

I spoke before things completely broke:

"So, think carefully about reasons from now on. Reasons not to kill people, reasons that benefit us. I'll listen if they're valid."

I decide what's valid or not. But Do-hyung couldn't know that. I spoke to him like I knew everything:

"When leaving the church, we left without doing anything like you suggested. I'm not unreasonable. Whether good or evil deeds, I choose what helps survival."

Clang, the hand axe fell weakly. Do-hyung lowered his head. A small voice followed:

"If I'd explained better yesterday, would you have stopped?"

"Of course. You just said weird things like running to Hope Community or just taking resources."

This is your fault for failing to convince me. Speaking with that meaning, Do-hyung covered his face with his palms.

Finally I looked at Park Yang-gun. Actually the least trustworthy person. Someone who lied habitually, master of betrayal and escape.

Park Yang-gun slowly looked at me, Sa Gi-hyeok and Do-hyung before nodding.

"We killed everyone and took this villa too. Just more people but same thing."

As expected, the older criminal understood my mind best. He must have understood my true intentions watching me convince others.

I clapped.

"Now let's recover resources. If we use them sparingly we can easily survive summer. And prepare for the blackout too."

Had to instill certainty they could survive with me. That certainty was material. Abundant resources.

Park Yang-gun smiled apologetically. Lies flowed like breathing:

"Feels wrong taking credit when you did all the work."

"In exchange please handle the moving. Since I'm sick. Ah, also move homes to the farm building, and make the villa building look like scavengers already passed through."

Passing off all the physical work. I'm sick.

Anyway they put on raincoats and started working busily in the street. I watched them from the window.

Suddenly the paranoid man's face came to mind as suspicion rose inside. Could I really trust them? Would they trust me from just a few words? When I couldn't even properly grasp Do-hyung's nature.

Like the darkness that came with power failing, people's hearts were darkly veiled. I couldn't see into those hearts.

How to respond to betrayal and distrust.

'Either completely hide yourself like the pastor, establish hierarchy like the police, suspect everyone like that man...'

Or use profit and loss as fences.

The corpses I'd killed should provide some pressure. Killing so many people overnight just for not being companions.