The Prince Who Absorbs Abilities With a 'Click' - C32

Chapter 32: Beggar Siblings Outside the Shelter (2)

“No, Min-hyuk.”

Kang Ha-yoon’s voice was firm.

She was about to go outside the shelter at the request of Administrator Park Jong-ho.

Since she couldn’t leave without saying anything, she decided to tell her brother. However, the situation took an unexpected turn.

“Why? I want to go with you, too…”

Min-hyuk was saying that he would go with her.

Min-hyuk pouted and hunched his shoulders.

Seeing this, Kang Ha-yoon gently patted her brother’s head.

“It’s not that…it’s just that it’s dangerous outside.”

“But…”

“If you stay here and have fun with your friends, I’ll be back soon.”

Ha-yoon gave her sulking brother a tight hug.

If it hadn’t been for leaving the shelter, she would have stayed with him but outside was full of zombies.

Although she had lived safely until now and her sense of danger had dulled, she couldn’t take her seven-year-old brother to such a dangerous place.

‘He’s still just a kid after all.’

Min-hyuk had made many friends since entering the shelter. She thought he’d be okay, but perhaps he was still too young.

However, her decision was firm.

Especially after hearing the words of the Nameless God, her decision was strengthened.

[‘The Nameless God’ says not to take your brother.]

Since the Nameless God’s words aligned with her own thoughts, there was no hesitation.

She felt sorry now, but once she returned, she would treat him better. She believed this was the best decision for Min-hyuk.

“Then, I have a lot to prepare, so I’ll see you later, okay?”

They wouldn’t be leaving today.

But since this was her first time leaving as a member of the shelter, there was a lot to prepare.

As expected from a large shelter, things were organized systematically.

Ha-yoon patted Min-hyuk’s head again and stood up.

She didn’t see it.

“……”

The expression on Min-hyuk’s face as if he had made a decision.

The early morning fog began to lift.

The heavy sound of the shelter’s iron gate opening echoed under the gray sky.

Through it, three bulletproof-modified SUVs drove out in succession.

Kang Ha-yoon was in the central vehicle, and the other two contained the elite soldiers of the shelter.

The vehicle Ha-yoon was in had her personal bodyguards accompanying her.

Two women and one man—a thoughtful gesture by the administrator, considering Ha-yoon’s gender.

Having been together for over half a year, they had become trusted colleagues.

As the car moved further away from the shelter, Ha-yoon spoke.

“By the way, is there something special about those siblings?”

She took out the photo the administrator had given her earlier.

The photo showed a shabby pair of siblings huddling inside a crumbling building. They didn’t seem particularly special just from the photo.

Thinking back, Ha-yoon realized this.

She had been trained and educated inside the shelter until now.

She thought if she were to go outside, it would be to fight zombies, but now, it seemed like they were just going to find these siblings.

‘Are they elementary school-age?’

Both of them looked younger than Ha-yoon herself.

But why did Park Jong-ho want them brought in?

“Is there some value in sending people out of the shelter for them? Oh, are they awakened ones?”

If the world hadn’t collapsed, Ha-yoon would probably be chatting with friends in middle school.

But now, her words seemed somewhat out of place for her age.

Rather, they were cold.

Moreover, she had already gathered enough information to understand how things were running inside the shelter.

The reconnaissance team, those who ventured outside the shelter, were elite soldiers.

And every time they went out, they received additional allowances.

In short, what Ha-yoon was implying was that she wondered if the siblings were worth it.

But the voice from the driver’s seat interrupted her thoughts.

“No, they’re not awakened ones. The reconnaissance team already confirmed that.”

It was Park Gangcheol, the bodyguard driving the vehicle.

With his short, sporty haircut, he glanced at Ha-yoon through the rearview mirror and continued.

“It’s just that it’s the administrator’s wish. The administrator is strict with work, but he also has a human side. Actually, in the past, his wife and daughter were—”

At that point, the other bodyguard, Im Jia, sitting in the passenger seat, poked Park Gangcheol’s side.

It was a signal for him to stop talking.

“Ah, team leader…just think of it as increasing the number of shelter residents. The population is important, right?”

The conversation stopped, but Ha-yoon could roughly guess the situation.

In a way, this operation seemed to stem from the administrator’s compassion.

Even if it wasn’t entirely driven by compassion, as Park Gangcheol said, the shelter always had issues with its population.

There were no proper hospitals, so even if children were born, the infant mortality rate was far too high.

Moreover, South Korea was now divided into three factions—Seoul, Busan, and Jeju—and warlords were running rampant in each region.

In an era where population equals power every person mattered, so rescuing people was natural, even if it wasn’t purely out of compassion.

“……”

How much time had passed? The cars came to a stop in a narrow alley.

“From here, we have to move on foot.”

Park Gangcheol spoke.

Although they still had some distance to cover, the siblings might be wary, so traveling by car was no longer feasible.

Ha-yoon got out of the vehicle under the protection of the bodyguards.

The street was empty, and the wind blew quietly.

She glanced around and furrowed her brow. Something was off.

“…There are no zombies?”

There wasn’t a single zombie in sight.

A soldier from the other vehicle approached, responding to her question.

“It’s strange, isn’t it? It happened last time, too, but there are unusually few zombies around here.”

He scanned the area and continued.

“Of course, we haven’t fully investigated this area, but maybe that’s why the siblings have managed to survive this long.”

After hearing the explanation, Ha-yoon nodded.

Under these conditions, it wasn’t surprising that the siblings had survived.

The reconnaissance team checked their weapons and further explained the operation.

“The operation is simple. As mentioned earlier, Kang Ha-yoon and Team Leader Im Jia will be going together.”

Im Jia was one of Ha-yoon’s bodyguards, the person who had been sitting in the passenger seat earlier.

The plan was to ease the siblings’ wariness with just two women.

Of course, they didn’t intend to send only the two.

“In case anything happens, we will be backing you up from behind, so there’s no need to worry.”

Though they were the first to move, Ha-yoon wasn’t worried.

Im Jia was a capable team leader of the reconnaissance team, even though she was a woman.

Im Jia nodded and hid a handgun at the back.

Minimal armament was necessary.

“Alright, then let’s begin the operation—”

Just as she was about to announce the start.

Bang—

A dull sound came from the trunk.

Everyone immediately aimed their guns toward the source of the sound.

The leader at the front opened the trunk, and Ha-yoon’s heart sank.

“It’s…it’s me, sis. Hehe.”

Ha-yoon’s eyes widened at the familiar voice.

“…Min-hyuk?”

Why was Min-hyuk here?

No, how did he hide in the trunk?

“How…?”

“I told them my sister’s name, and they told me which car it was.”

“Ha…”

She sighed.

She never thought her brother would sneak into the trunk by using her name.

This was really unexpected.

But now that the deed was done, she had no choice but to keep him quiet in the car.

“We’ll talk when we get back, so stay in the car for now.”

“No! I want to go with you!”

Min-hyuk’s eyes had changed. This wasn’t just stubbornness.

Perhaps it was because she had pampered him too much?

Ha-yoon thought she should scold him once.

[‘The Nameless God’ says to just take him with you.]

“Sigh.”

There was no other choice.

He had already caused enough trouble by hiding in the trunk. It might be better to take him along since she didn’t know what other trouble he might cause.

“…Team Leader.”

Ha-yoon looked at Im Jia.

Im Jia, seeing no other option, spoke to the reconnaissance team.

“We might need to add one more person. Please ensure thorough backup.”

“Understood. In fact, having Min-hyuk with us might make it look more natural.”

Seeing how everyone was thinking of her, Ha-yoon sighed deeply.

[Kang Min-hyuk insists on going with them.]

• • Kang Min-hyuk: “No! I want to go with you too!”

【Choose survivor ‘Kang Ha-yoon’ next action.】

▶ Take him with her.

▶ Do not take him with her.

‘When did he get into the trunk?’

Kang Min-hyuk’s appearance from the car trunk was unexpected.

‘Isn’t he like a villain?’

It could have been a huge problem.

Furthermore, since I could only see the area around Ha-yoon, I had no idea Min-hyuk was in the car.

Maybe he did it when Ha-yoon briefly left her spot?

‘This is crazy.’

The only good thing was that there were no zombies in sight here.

Plus, there were armed soldiers, so there shouldn’t be a big problem.

The real issue was whether the bodyguards beside Ha-yoon could properly protect her.

‘Well, as long as I’m watching, there shouldn’t be any problems.’

If worse comes to worst, I can just touch the screen to kill the zombies like last time.

Their operation continued.

As Kang Ha-yoon’s group moved forward, others seemed to secretly follow behind.

How much time passed?

After a while, everyone stopped in front of an old building.

They had found someone inside the building.

‘It must be the siblings they were looking for.’

Another pair of siblings, wearing shabby clothes.

They were crouching on the floor, not doing anything, just sitting quietly.

‘They’re still young.’

How did such kids survive?

That was truly puzzling.

“……!”

Min-hyuk couldn’t hold back anymore and, maybe because he was happy to meet peers, approached the siblings.

Ha-yoon and the bodyguard beside her quickly ran toward Min-hyuk with a startled look.

Min-hyuk looked like a villain himself.

‘I can’t stop him.’

It seemed like I’d have to scold my little brother once we get back.

Min-hyuk and the siblings seemed to be talking.

I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but unlike Min-hyuk who was smiling, the shabby siblings didn’t show any change in expression.

[The unknown siblings ask in a quiet voice.]

• • “Only you three are here?”

【Choose survivor ‘Kang Ha-yoon’ her next action.】

▶ Nod.

▶ Shake her head.

‘Hmm?’

The atmosphere around the siblings suddenly changed.

But they asked, “Only you three are here?”

It felt like they were trying to figure out how many people had come.

‘Come to think of it, the manager said that, right?’

When the original scout team went, there was a lot of caution. But now, what’s this?

Instead of being cautious, they were talking.

‘The only choice here is to nod.’

I didn’t need to reveal all my cards, and maybe this was how they were trying to ease the siblings’ wariness from the start.

But the situation changed.

As soon as I selected to nod, men with wooden clubs armed with nails appeared behind the building on the other side of the screen.

This meaning was clear.

‘Ah, I knew this would happen.’

I felt something was off.

Furthermore, from the nails on the clubs, it looked like they had used them to take care of a lot of things.

Could this be the reason why there were no zombies around?

‘Of course, it’s not going to end easily.’

I must have walked into a trap.

[‘The Nameless God’ warns that there are armed enemies, so be cautious.]

Kang Ha-yoon’s pupils dilated. God’s guidance was always accurate.

She instinctively sensed that something was going wrong.

“Team Leader!”

Ha-yoon’s sharp shout broke the silence.

“There’s someone here!”

Im Jia immediately pulled out her pistol, but the movements of the beggar siblings were faster.

Min-hyuk, who was right in front, was easy prey.

They pointed blades at Min-hyuk’s neck, blades that had been hidden in their hands, ready for use.

Their eyes were no longer those of innocent children but those of hyenas hunting for prey.

‘Why…?’

Ha-yoon’s heart skipped a beat. It was her mistake.

Bringing Min-hyuk here, not suspecting the siblings, was all her mistake.

Her fingertips trembled.

Anger? No.

Fear? Not that either.

It was guilt.

She should have figured out the situation sooner.

She should have been stricter with her brother.

This world was no longer normal.

Just because someone was young didn’t mean they were innocent.

Soon, men armed with wooden clubs appeared from the darkness.

The nails driven into their clubs glinted.

“Kang Ha-yoon, stay close to me. We’re backing you up, so we can finish this quickly.”

The men smiled when they saw Im Jia whispering to Ha-yoon.

“Look at this. This time, there’s even a woman!”

“Even a little one? Hehehe.”

Then they started patting the heads of the beggar siblings.

“Good job. Well done. You caught a woman, so today you’ll get to eat some good food.”

At those words, the faces of the beggar siblings holding Min-hyuk as a hostage broke into smiles.

“And you should put away your guns. If you care about this kid’s life, that is.”

“No…Noona…”

Min-hyuk’s voice trembled. Tears welled up in his eyes.

Ha-yoon’s fury reached its peak, and she tried to spread her hand.

Boom—

One of the armed men’s heads exploded.

“Ru…Run! There’s an awakened one here!!”

With that, the other men’s heads exploded in unison.

Boom— Boom— Boom— Boom—

The men with clubs continued to have their heads explode.

Ha-yoon quickly understood what was happening.

‘God…!’

God had performed another miracle.

The first time she was saved from the zombies, it was in the same manner, and she owed her life to that moment.

“This… this is…”

Im Jia was stunned by the sudden turn of events.

They hadn’t even used guns, but all of them had been killed.

And there was another one who was shocked.

“No…”

The only survivors, the beggar siblings.

The ones holding Min-hyuk as a hostage were now pale-faced.

They dropped their knives. Their hands shook, and only fear remained.

“P-Please… save us…!”

But the situation had already turned around.

They begged for their lives too late, but Ha-yoon didn’t listen to them.

There was no mercy for those who had threatened her brother.

[‘The Nameless God’ commands that they be killed.]

Moreover, God didn’t wish for mercy either.

Flame—

The fire that blossomed from her fingertips blazed mercilessly. The red flames engulfed the two siblings like hungry beasts.

“Kiaaah!”

The tearing screams echoed. But it was only a moment.

In the blazing fire, the shapes of the two siblings disappeared in an instant, and only ashes scattered in the wind remained.

[Survivor ‘Kang Ha-yoon’s’ faith greatly increases.]

[Survivor ‘Kang Ha-yoon’s’ abilities are upgraded.]