30. Mission
"The bastard shoved his ugly face right up to mine. It was truly a life-or-death crisis."
Pringle made a growling expression and thrust his face forward.
"Then I suddenly remembered the earphones in my pocket. So I just stuck the earphone into that bastard's ear hole. Then he staggered backward. 'Now's the time!' I thought, so I played music and the bastard twisted his body going this way and that. Like this..."
As Pringle twisted his body with a suffering expression, the kids laughed.
"That was the first and last time I saw a madman dance. Truly a sight you couldn't see even with money. It was just pleasant music to us, but to him with developed hearing, it was torture. There are all kinds of people in the world, so there are all kinds of madmen too."
While Pringle told stories of battling a Dexter (madman with developed hearing), they were crossing an elevated road blocked with cars.
"Look at that. Beautiful scenery."
The skyline visible in the distance was more beautiful in the quiet city without people.
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Reaching the city entrance, the four took defensive positions. Their assigned area was an unpurified zone where civilian locations weren't confirmed, requiring them to deliver supplies directly. Cars were parked haphazardly between 4-story buildings, blocking the path. Many building exterior windows were broken—if people were still alive, they'd be watching them through those broken gaps. Each building in the unpurified zone was like an unopened package. Inside could be madmen, or people trembling with fear.
Pringle walking ahead raised one hand signaling a brief stop. What entered his view was a madman wandering around a 1-ton truck. The madman seemed to have lost its group, wandering around. Pringle lowered his posture, took out the sniper rifle on his shoulder, and aimed at the madman. The madman seen through the scope had dirty clothes but no bloodstains, apparently not having tasted human yet. Pringle held his breath and aimed at the head. At the moment the madman briefly stopped moving, he pulled the trigger.
[Gunshot]
Since the surroundings were quiet, the gunshot spread loudly around. As the madman collapsed limply, the boy carrying a red staff quickly stood up trying to run toward the madman. But Pringle stopped him, nodding as if to wait a moment. Shortly after, madmen began appearing one by one between buildings. They seemed to react to Pringle's gunshot. After about 10 minutes, 9 madmen were circling around the fallen corpse on the roadside.
When no more madmen appeared, Pringle spun and attached a silencer to his sniper rifle tip, told Bracket to take the left, then climbed onto a sedan on the right, knelt on one knee, and aimed at the madmen. Bracket also positioned himself on the left truck. When Pringle signaled, both swiftly took down the madmen one by one. Their appearance from long battles showed no misfire—they took down all 9 madmen in less than a minute.
The kids admired the old hunters' marksmanship. Pringle took his eye from the scope, shrugged his shoulders, and climbed down from the sedan. The four walked toward the lying corpses and examined them carefully.
"All in semi-madman state." (Unlike deformed complete forms, still retaining human shape)
Bracket crouched down looking at a dead woman's corpse. Will silently looked down at a child's corpse about his age. Pringle told them to move locations so the boy wouldn't think too deeply.
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They'd been circling the same spot for an hour since entering the village. The destination was nowhere to be seen. It felt like circling a building after navigation finished destination guidance but couldn't find the parking entrance. The order form only said 'Lomonosova 7th Street 130' without describing the building's specific appearance. As they wandered and went deeper into alleys, they felt increasingly surrounded by building forests, likely to be encircled by madmen.
"There! 130!"
Will's friend Roan pointed with a white hand at a squat round-roofed building wedged between tall buildings.
"Impressive! Good eyes."
When Pringle praised Roan, the child smiled brightly.
The building they found was a 3-story standalone hamburger shop. It had a drive-thru layout with a parking lot and path where cars could pass while ordering. Many glass windows made the inside clearly visible, but no people were seen. Opening the door and entering, wind sounds came through broken windows at the far end. Three kiosks with power off stood alone, and the order counter and back kitchen were dark without sunlight, looking like madmen would jump out.
"Did we arrive too early?"
Bracket looked alternately at the order form and watch. The watch showed 2 minutes before 15:00 indicated on the order form.
"Can't help it. No way to contact, so we have to wait. I'll order potato and cola."
Pringle set up a fallen chair to sit, put both legs on the table, and spoke cheekily. When Bracket shook his head, Pringle stuck out his tongue making an innocent expression, making the kids laugh. Bracket went upstairs but it was empty except for them.
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About 30 minutes after they arrived at the destination, a man wandering the street appeared. The man looked around urgently, apparently searching for them.
"Hey! Here!"
When Pringle opened the door and shouted at the man, he looked at Pringle and ran over. Having searched for a while, sweat beaded on the man's forehead.
"Are you from the city?"
"That's right."
"Oh, God. Thank you."
The man stroked his face with one hand as if saved.
"I'm Philip."
"Pringle. But... you came alone?"
"Ah, no. Others are in the opposite block building. Ah, the note. I was too frantic then—this was the only building I could think of. But waiting here felt too exposed. Still, really fortunate we met safely."
Headquarters randomly flew drones to unpurified areas for civilian supply support. People who found drones wrote the first supply location on notes and attached them to drones.
"Let's go. I'll guide you."
The man led them into a building where people gathered. Inside were 5 men who looked gaunt, apparently starving for days.
"Wait. I'll call the supply drone."
Pringle went outside and radioed headquarters. After about 30 minutes, two large drones appeared carrying supplies. The men smiled brightly watching drones flying with whirring propellers. As soon as drones arrived, people quickly unpacked supplies, dividing food and necessities by area. Pringle took Philip outside and offered him a cigarette.
"So it was about a month ago. News reported a mass madman incident near Kolsky. Caused by friction between nearby gangs. I didn't pay much attention. Such things always happened. But days later when a nearby chemical plant exploded, the situation changed. It was like a battlefield. That was the first time I saw a madman directly. Attacking fleeing people, biting their necks... when I met those bloodshot eyes, my whole body froze. He was like an angry beast. I was scared he'd charge at me. I ran like crazy in the direction people were running. But madmen jumped out from everywhere. In tremendous numbers! It seemed like the end of the world. The streets were instantly surrounded by madmen. Everything stopped. All street shops locked their doors tight. Everyone hid waiting for militia to come. After about 2 weeks, militia really came driving tanks. Outside, gunfire and madmen's screams were heard. We thought we were saved. The militia passed our neighborhood continuing forward to the next. We thought all madmen had disappeared. People came back out. Two days passed like that."
Philip paused to calm his trembling voice, then took a drag of cigarette.
"I went to check on my brother and his wife, worried... ha... my brother's wife was... eating my brother's belly. She'd transformed into a madman. As soon as she saw me, she charged. Like a mad dog trying to bite me. I barely escaped. Later I learned it wasn't over."
Philip took another drag.
"Madmen appeared again. Where they kept coming from... before long, streets overflowed with madmen again. The militia that passed us had no news after. It was desperate. Home food ran out, electricity, water—everything cut off. Tommy next door said his home food ran out, asked me to go find food together. Avoiding madmen. Dangerous but unavoidable. If not madmen, staying put might've made living people eat each other. Nearby grocery stores were all looted. Then I suddenly remembered that hamburger place. Wondering if materials remained in the warehouse. That's when I discovered the passing drone."
Philip shook out the finished cigarette. His face looked pained, the shock of his dead brother still unforgotten. Pringle wanted to comfort him but no words came to mind. He probably wasn't the only one with pitiful circumstances. When the two entered, men had wrapped multiple bags around their bodies preparing to leave. They tied plastic bags containing supplies in two or three layers not only on arms and shoulders but even around necks—so heavy they could barely lift their heads. They looked so pitiful.
"Can't help it. No way to deliver except running directly."
Since the madman incident erupted, they'd been carrying neighborhood necessities this way continuously. None had been delivery men originally, but in these times, no job was more necessary than delivery man.
"This is short-range communication equipment. From now on, you can contact headquarters through this device."
Pringle handed Philip a small device like a hearing aid. Philip bowed repeatedly in thanks. As Pringle was about to leave, Philip showed eyes hesitating to say something. When Pringle asked if he needed anything more, Philip said there was a patient in his villa—could they call a doctor from the opposite complex? The path to the opposite complex was blocked by madmen, making it too difficult for them to go. Pringle readily agreed. Philip gave them bottled water and said.
"I heard something from that doctor before. He said something seemed wrong with the water. Never drink or use water coming from regional water pipes."