Chapter 358 – Life Finds a Way (5)
It didn’t take long to calm down the boy who was caught up in fear, anger, and sadness.
This is because children these days know that their position has changed.
Existing as a privileged class that received unconditional love, protection, and attention is a story of the past.
Now I know that the sympathy from adults is not as generous as it used to be.
Even what kind of results you will get if you go beyond that.
The boy’s name is Anton. It is said that he lived with his mother and father in central Sakha, Siberia.
It was a barren camp where even planting potatoes was difficult, but all the good sites were already occupied. It was so territorial that even a place like this was a blessing.
The only neighbors are a hunter family of seven people. In times of great disaster, relatives often gather together, so large families are not uncommon.
One day when the wind blew strongly.
Anton went to sleep after finishing his dinner of mushroom and vegetable stew, half a small potato, and some mole meat.
Because electricity was cut off and oil was scarce, it was common to work as soon as dawn and go to bed early at night, just like in the old days.
But Anton, who has sharp ears, woke up to a strange sound.
At first glance, it seemed like the sound of fences and window frames shaking in the wind, but something was subtly different.
Rather than a wooden door shaking in the wind, it seems as if the door itself is splitting.
‘I guess it’s my mood.’
As Anton was trying to sleep again, he noticed something outside the window where his parents’ bed was.
They are two blue dots that glow in the dark. Because it was blinking, he could tell it was someone’s eye, and he was also aware that he was looking straight in this direction.
Anton’s animal instincts sound the alarm of danger. He fell asleep in an instant.
“Ah, Dad…”
As she steps down from her bed to her bare feet, her feet tingle at the feel of the cold floor. But she doesn’t have time to find shoes and wear them.
Anton wakes up her parents with a low voice.
She soon discovered that she had added an extra pair of blue eyes. She even saw familiar bodies floating around her.
“Save me… Kek!”
“Run!”
A neighbor’s frightened voice could be heard through the window and the wind.
It’s Aunt Tanya and Uncle Polenin. It seemed as if it was floating in the air, held in a hand as black as the darkness of the night. The same was true for Anna, whom Anton had a crush on.
You can also see the wooden ceiling and door of the neighboring house being horribly broken and rattling in the wind.
“Dad… Dad…”
Anton whispers in a trembling voice and shakes her father. His body stiffened.
This is because two blue eyes the size of eggs appeared on the 30 cm front window.
Vertically long black pupils like snakes on a blazing blue background. As he was being watched, he couldn’t move as if he had been wrapped around by an anaconda.
“Umm, Anton? Why?”
Dad wakes up his upper body with a gentle voice as always, even though his sleep is disturbed.
The monster’s eyes, which were looking at Anton, moved to her father.
“Did you have a nightmare? Should I sleep with mom and dad?”
That was my father’s will.
Anton was so scared that he could do nothing until his father’s loving hand touched his head.
Ujikkeun!
The wooden window frame surrounding the window was completely torn off, and a fierce wind blew in.
As my father turned his head towards the window, his face was caught by a huge black hand. It’s like putting a black hood on a death row inmate.
The pitch-black grip was so black that it felt like the darkness itself was eating my father’s face.
My father was dragged outside and disappeared without even being able to scream. My mother, who had woken up from a trance, was immediately snatched away by another hand.
“Crrrrn-.”
A few seconds later, Anton came face to face with the monster that was right in front of her.
The cold wind hit her face harshly, but she didn’t even have time to feel cold.
In the monster’s mouth was her 10-year-old neighbor’s brother Demichev.
As the terrible maw opens, Demichev falls onto the empty bed.
“Uh… Ah…”
The sight of her neighbor’s brother, covered in blood and panting, made Anton feel like he was going to urinate.
When she saw the countless teeth in the monster’s mouth that were longer than her fingers, a few tears came out.
The monster looked alternately at Anton and Demichev. As if he was wondering who to ask.
Although Anton is two years older than her, Demichev’s physique is larger and fleshier. Unlike the Antonines who farm, they are hunters and eat meat better.
“Tongue, brother… Buy, save…”
That was Demichev’s will.
Hot!
The monster disappeared into the darkness, holding the bloody child in its mouth and Anton’s limp parents in its hands.
Anton, who was frightened, hid under the bed all night, shivering, and was found the next day by a merchant who came to collect the fur.
* * *
“Damn.”
I started watching an unpleasant interview video on a refreshing morning.
Sitting on a chair in the central control room, I massaged the bridge of my nose from the sudden mental fatigue.
[Bow.]
It’s not easy for me mentally to see a child crying after losing their parents.
It wasn’t urgent information, so Artemis didn’t wake me up. She recorded the interview and played it during the morning report.
“Margarita did the right thing.”
“Huh. She also has very wide feet. “It’s been so long since she went back that she’s already started spreading rumors among her co-workers.”
Artemis also looks unusually impressed.
As soon as Margarita returned to Russia, she told all her contacts:
‘Please report even the slightest information about the unidentified monster.’
She says you can contact her too, and she has been telling you for some time now that you can radio the drone carrier floating in the sky.
The merchant who brought Anton belongs to a merchant who has ties to Margarita.
“Artemis, put the drone into video communication mode. “I want to talk to the merchant who brought the boy.”
“Okay.”
After a while, a middle-aged man hesitantly appeared on the screen of the central control room. He is in his 40s with a stylish black mustache.
[W, can I speak to the drone here?]
He could not speak Korean, but Artemis provided real-time voice interpretation in Korean.
“I am Seo Jin-su, the shelter manager. I’ve just received a report on last night’s interview. “Thank you for saving the boy and for giving me information about the new monster.”
[You are welcome. We are honored to be able to help. My name is Dmitry.]
“How is Anton?”
[This is a strong guy. On the way here, I’m keeping my energy up and helping out with the chores. We are indebted to his parents, so we are going to collect it like this.]
“Yes, it’s a blessing in disguise.”
Was his weak appearance during the interview because he got emotional while bringing up buried memories? That is natural.
[This is a lucky guy. Our merchant goes to receive fur once every four days, so it was a perfect fit.]
I received the location of Anton’s camp from Dmitry.
It is about in the middle of the Sakha region of Siberia. It is an unpopular area, so the population density is very low.
“Are there any other damaged areas?”
[Not to the best of our knowledge. Anton’s camp is the northernmost one we do business with. There is a village on top of it, but it is a different upper area…]
These days, even sharing news has a high ping. And Siberia is probably the highest peak among them.
“Can you also give the request to your acquaintances for reporting that you heard from Margarita?”
[Of course. This is not a matter of anyone’s benefit or loss. Our warlords also began to join forces.]
It’s not particularly strange.
As far as I know, there have already been 100 Russian victims.
The warlords of today’s world have an obligation to provide a minimum level of order and protection in return for exercising power and control.
In particular, if the warlord is made up of former soldiers, the weight of that duty becomes even greater. The same would be true for Russia.
“We want to join in too. As I just said, it has nothing to do with profit or loss.”
[Aren’t we just thankful for business people like us?]
Dmitry nodded with a face full of joy.
These are merchants who repeatedly make journeys full of danger. It would be even more reassuring if the army that destroyed the Chinese army also joined in eradicating monsters.
“The merchants may think so, but what about the local warlords?”
[If you weren’t an idiot, would you really oppose it?]
“There are as many warlords from the military in that neighborhood as we do.”
[Of course. These days, big guns and lots of bullets are the boss.]
I sighed.
“Soldiers are inherently sensitive to borders and foreigners.”
In Korea alone, the dissatisfaction of the commanders of the troops stationed there was increasing.
This is why it is unpleasant to see foreigners coming and going as they please, even though North Korea’s border is considered someone else’s land.
Moreover, from the perspective of the former Russian military, the sense of it being their own territory would be much more solid.
This is a situation where a heavily armed army needs to go beyond just merchants and hunters at the border and enter deep into the mainland.
[No matter what, countless lives are at stake. Besides, what kind of border is a border in this world these days? It’s been a long time since all politicians… I’m sorry.]
“Are you okay. You’re right. “What kind of border is this?”
I rested my chin and smiled.
“Where is your destination? Are you heading to Police after all? Or the Kaesong Industrial Complex?”
[Neither. We are going to meet farmers in Hwanghae Province. I plan to get grains and preserved food there.]
“In return for your cooperation, I will attach a drone guide to there.”
[Thank you!]
An escort order was given to the drone to guide Dmitry to the top.
“When you get there, grain is good, but be sure to bring rats.”
[You mean a rat?]
“It’s an edible rat. These days, it is the number one contributor to protein supply for Koreans. Why? Are you reluctant to eat rats?”
[Not at all.]
The owner of the top swung both hands.
[I’ve eaten foxes, I’ve eaten cats, and I’ve eaten snakes. Isn’t this a world where you have to eat anything to survive? About the size of a rat.]
“It’s an improved species that has been genetically messed up. It has a lot of meat, but the bones are soft, so you can chew the whole thing. “They can eat anything and grow well.”
[I think I can make some money if I take them and breed them, hehe.]
Dmitry is already playing the abacus in his head.
“Even if you catch them with bare hands, they won’t bite, and they secrete very strong digestive juices to prevent parasites, so you don’t have to worry about tapeworms. Would you say it is a species that was developed to be eaten in many ways?”
[It seems a bit pitiful when you say that.]
“Once you try it, you’ll understand.” It’s really delicious.”
I smiled and waved and ended the communication.
* * *
It’s a good thing that the heavy-ass Russian warlords have started to move.
In Korea, the land is small, and the weather is good, so the warlords tend to be diligent.
On the other hand, the upper neighborhood is too wide. Since the weather kills people, the Russian warlords do not want to move unless there is a serious accident.
“There are 3 members of Anton’s family and 7 neighbors, a total of 10 people. “There are three Exile guys holding one in each hand and one in the mouth, so one spot is empty.”
Artemis said cynically.
Anton survived for a really trivial reason.
“This is definitely not the behavior of an infectious agent. “If they were shorthanded, they would have just torn everything to pieces.”
‘Enough for today, I’ll come back to catch you tomorrow!’ This kind of attitude is like a predatory animal.
“Anyway, have the places to be investigated been roughly decided?”
At my words, Artemis displayed a map of Far East Asia on the screen.
The place where Anton’s family lived and the locations of missing groups discovered through additional research are displayed.
They are still concentrated only in northern Siberia, but it will only be a matter of time before they move south.
“Are you planning to send an investigation team?”
“An investigation team and strike site. Because we have to annihilate everything we see. The problem is getting the understanding of the local warlords.”
Compared to the beta nature of Russian camps, Korean camps are nothing more than soup kitchens for the homeless.
“It would be nice if everyone was as cooperative as that guy from Amur.”
It reminded me of the gang leader who was friendly with Artemis by saying ‘Sister!’.
Tens of minutes later, communication was established with the Russian warlord in the area closest to Korea.
They are the remnants of a convoy that supplied to the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Federation in the past.
I checked the name on the note Margarita wrote.
“Your name is Nikolai? “Is it correct to read it this way?”
“Huh. You will be connected in 3 seconds. “Get ready.”
Artemis cutely spread his fingers and went into standby.
Soon a fierce-looking man in his late 50s appeared on the screen.
I was already feeling anxious because skinheads with bulging cheekbones seemed very stubborn.
“Hello? “My name is Manager Seo Jin-su.”
I explained the situation to him.
The story was that the army would pass through the territory to subdue monsters, so please cooperate.
Commander Nikolai’s answer came out immediately.
[Do you think I’m a fool? Are you asking me to believe that? Absolutely not! Chinese bastards came in saying the same thing and made a big fuss!]
“Fuck you.”
I muttered softly and cupped my face.
