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35. Enacting Justice (1)
Morning of Day 5 of the zombie apocalypse, 5 a.m.
After Aunt Hyeyeon, who'd been "disciplined" six times the night before, decided to stay home, Catherine, now wearing Aunt's jumpsuit, stood at my side.
Just like yesterday, she had her heavy fire axe slung over her shoulder.
"It's lucky you two are similar in size, so the suit fits."
"Yes. But this is really nice. Look, even if I scratch it like this, not a mark."
She ran the axe blade over the sleeve, showing off the suit's pristine condition with a smile.
If not for the huge axe in her hand, she'd look like a foreign model-though the effect was brief.
Step, step, step.
Footsteps echoed from the stairs above.
Soon, four men appeared.
At the front was Park Sanghyuk, the leader, followed by his son and two middle-aged men.
Each held a crowbar, a wrench, or a baseball bat.
Next, I glanced over their faces and immediately checked the "Betrayal Detection" screen on my phone.
[Betrayal Detection is active.]
[Within 10m: Catherine (9%), Park Sanghyuk (22%), Park Suhyeon (42%), Lee Woongseop (28%), Kim Chansu (31%)]
'What's with these numbers?'
Park Sanghyuk, the leader, was at 22%, but the other three men had even higher betrayal rates.
Most of all, Park's son, Park Suhyeon, had a whopping 42%.
If things went south, he'd stab me in the back without hesitation.
He also looked at me with a challenging glare…
The "Betrayal Detection" results made me uneasy, increasing my wariness toward the upper-floor survivor group.
Just then, Park Sanghyuk approached and held out his hand.
"Sorry we're a little late."
"No worries. It's only a minute."
Even though it was just a minute, Park Sanghyuk bowed his head in apology-a practiced, professional gesture. Watching this, Park Suhyeon's expression twisted, his gaze growing even more insolent.
If it was just because he didn't like seeing his father bow to someone else, fine. But with a 42% betrayal rate and that attitude, I was wary.
'Better not let that guy stand behind me during today's operation.'
With Catherine's agreement, we explained the full story of the "attempted rape" incident to the group.
As they learned the details, their faces turned grim, and mutters like "crazy bastard" and "disgusting creep" slipped out.
'Good, this reinforces our justification.'
Soon after, I briefed them on the operation.
"All you have to do is this: Ride the elevator down to the 4th floor with us from the 11th. One person stays at the elevator, the other three guard the entrance of 403 and the hallway."
"So we just stand guard outside?"
"Yes. Catherine and I will handle going into 403 and taking down Lee Changseop."
As soon as they realized they wouldn't have to get their hands dirty, the two middle-aged men (not the Park father and son) visibly brightened.
At the same time, their betrayal rates dropped by 2% each.
Their satisfaction at getting the easy job was written all over their faces.
While those two couldn't hide their relief, Park Sanghyuk asked the key question.
"Minwoo, when will you give us the water you promised?"
"I brought it with me."
He wanted to know when they'd get the 30L of water per day we'd agreed on.
I opened the door to 1103 and showed them three 10L water containers.
"Take one now, and I'll give you the other two after we're done. I trust you, but I need some insurance."
"Of course. May I ask one more thing?"
"Go ahead."
"What will you do with this Lee Changseop? There's no police or legal system anymore…"
"I'll leave that to Catherine, the victim."
While I explained Catherine's story to them, Park Sanghyuk and the others listened intently, nodding along as if they believed every word.
It was like watching Germans swayed by Goebbels' propaganda.
Of course, being angry at a shameless criminal is natural for anyone with a basic sense of morality.
But there was another reason they were so eager to agree.
'Getting rid of a criminal is good, but if things go well, we might take over the lower floors too.'
In the lawless apocalypse, "the weak" were just another word for "targets."
Ding! Clunk.
When the elevator panel showed "4," the doors opened with a chime.
Catherine, Park Sanghyuk, the two middle-aged men, and I stepped out in order.
Park's son, still a high schooler, stayed in the elevator.
I used my "Hacking" skill to unlock the door to 403.
Whirr, click.
Just as before, the door unlocked silently-but then a problem.
Clunk.
'Damn… they put on the safety latch. What a pain…'
I'd hoped it wouldn't be, but the latch was set.
Then Catherine stepped up to the slightly open door.
"Phew… here goes!"
She took a deep breath, raised her axe, and brought it down hard.
Whoosh-clang!
With a powerful, impressive swing, she sliced the latch in half.
Immediately, since our stealth was blown, we burst inside.
We threw open the bedroom door where Lee Changseop should be-only to find a scene we hadn't expected.
"Whoa!"
"Oh my!"
Lee Changseop, with his shriveled penis dangling, tried to get up.
That was as expected-but the woman next to him, pulling up the blanket, was a surprise.
Catherine had told me he was a widower.
Uh… well… let's tie them both up for now.
We used cable ties to restrain Lee Changseop and the naked woman.
Before we began the real interrogation, Catherine whispered to me,
"That bitch, um… she's the leader of the ajummas."
Catherine glared at the short-haired woman, revealing she was the one who'd ordered Catherine's exile.
I could feel the pent-up hatred in her eyes.
'To be hated by a woman who's split so many zombie heads with an axe… this ajumma is probably done for.'
I could already picture the fate awaiting Lee Changseop and this still-unnamed woman.
At my signal to start, Catherine grabbed both their hair and dragged them into the living room.
Despite their struggles, she gritted her teeth and pulled them along.
Wow, she's got a lot of pent-up anger.
Thud!
"Ow!"
"Ugh!"
Soon, Catherine threw them to the floor and the interrogation began.
First up: Lee Changseop, the attempted rapist.
"Mister, from now on, answer only 'yes' or 'no.' If you say anything else, you'll get hurt. Got it?"
"What the hell-(stab!) Aaaagh!! You crazy-(stab!) Grrk…"
Ignoring my warning, Lee Changseop got two quick 3cm knife stabs to the thigh.
Moved by my "gift," he clenched his jaw so hard his muscles bulged and tears flowed.
Proof that "spare the rod, spoil the child" is still true, even in modern times.
"See? Just answer yes or no."
Slick, wipe.
"Ugh, grr…"
I wiped his blood off the knife onto his stomach and repeated my rule.
He instantly became "trained," nodding with a pained groan.
With the perpetrator ready to talk, it was time to confirm the facts.
"You gave Catherine a room here, right?"
"Yes…"
"And on the second night, you snuck into her room to rape her, right?"
"No."
"So whose hand groped her chest? A ghost's? Be honest, you tried to rape her, right?"
"No."
"Hm… okay, let's add another rule. From now on, only the truth."
"Yes."
"I'll ask again. You tried to rape Catherine and failed, right?"
"No-(stab!!) Owwww!!"
As he shouted "no" again, I stabbed his thigh even deeper.
He screamed, looking utterly betrayed.
Then, as his body tensed and he gasped, I leaned in and said,
"Mister, you know King Gungye? I've learned a mind-reading technique like his, so I can tell when you're lying. And you just lied."
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