Vol 4 - 20

Vol 4 - 20

The expression on Jeong Taeui's face gradually froze. Inside that dense forest, something is entering. As that roar came closer and closer, it also brought with it the faint sounds of wind whistling, rustling, and the cracking of young trees blocking its way.

When the sound was so clear that no one could think it was just an illusion, other people also approached the window with bewildered expressions.

"What is that, this sound? "

"It's like an engine...."

"There's no way anyone would use a lawn mower in this forest."

Someone whispered a few jokes, but no one laughed. That's because that roar is getting too close.

Everyone in that room had to be speechless. They could hear the kidnappers' noisy voices outside, but no one in the room uttered a word.

When the low birch trees at the edge of the forest were brutally and mercilessly cut down, the true origin of those roars was also revealed.

"That's...,Rewako...."

Someone muttered and added, "That's a car model that was discontinued a long time ago." but it seemed like nothing could reach Jeong Taeui's ears anymore.

A three-wheeled motorbike appeared with a roar as if it wanted to explode the other person's eardrums. The forest road was desolate as if it had just been horribly plowed.

Three-wheeled motorbikes are now just a name. The only things that remained similar to the original were the three wheels, and it no longer seemed to be simply an ordinary motorbike. It seemed like it had been improved to be able to move in accordance with mountainous terrain, and Jeong Taeui had never seen it before. It looks completely different from the original. A terrifyingly massive body was moving like a tank at a terrifying speed.

Finally, there was a man sitting on top of that beast.

There is no one else. Just alone.

He held the steering wheel of the Rewako with one hand as if he was just going for a walk, something slung over his shoulder held with the other hand. That relaxed but cold expression flashed across the lifeless faces looking at him from afar.

I looked at him silently as if I had lost my mind. I truly felt like my soul left my body.

A monstrous man on a monstrous motorbike looked at Jeong Taeui with an indifferent expression and expressionless mouth, a trace of emotion passing through the corner of his lips.

My face was completely drained of blood and my expression was stiff. I turned pale and opened my eyes wide, looking at the man in the distance. It seemed that for a moment, our eyes stopped on each other.

"Impossible...."

Jeong Taeui's lips trembled. One of the remaining people seemed to recognize the man, a weak voice coming from his pale lips.

"Impossible...that person...Rie...."

Before he could finish his sentence, something extremely wild happened.

The monstrous man smiled deeply. He lightly tapped the inanimate block of iron he was carrying on his other shoulder. The moment the long and large block of iron caught my eye, I was extremely frightened.

That's Panzer Faust. An anti-tank gun.

And it can easily destroy any armored tank.

"Wait, it....!!"

I couldn't finish my sentence. The smiling monster immediately turned towards the anti-tank gun and stood up from the three-wheeled motorbike. He placed one foot on the steering wheel, he pulled the trigger with his other hand.

I immediately knocked down the people next to me and lowered myself at the same time.

This crazy bastard...!!!!!!!

I screamed inside or maybe I actually screamed. But no sound came out of my mouth, instead...

*Danggg*

An explosion that shook the sky sounded right in my ears.

I wrapped my arms around my head. I thought I was screaming but no scream came out. No, to be precise, it was buried in horrifying consecutive explosions.

Thick columns of smoke rose along with clouds of dust covering the entire forest. Soil and rocks were thrown out, large and small rocks falling like rain.

I covered my head with both hands and lay down on my stomach. Pieces of concrete fell on my shoulders, back, and entire body. A rather large stone hit me on the shoulder and fell down. Jeong Taeui's face was distorted.

As soon as the all-encompassing sounds stopped, I slowly raised my head. White stone dust was scattered all over my body, and the whole room had become a mess. A broken wall covered the people in the room.

"Crazy guy....., this crazy bastard.....!!"

I poured out all my curses, even though my mind was almost crazy.

When I turned around to look back, one side of the wall had been blown away. The window, which was tightly closed with planks, disappeared without a trace. My vision was no longer obstructed by anything, revealing the scene ahead.

Not only the wall, the ceiling was also blown away, even the wall opposite the window also collapsed in half.

"Where's the guy who shot an anti-tank gun at people? That crazy bastard!!"

I shouted angrily. I don't care if he hears it or not. And it seemed like he really didn't hear it, because there was an explosion from the other side right after.

Screams, explosions, machine guns and screams mixed together to create a terrifying sound.

I looked around me, everyone was lying on the floor. I quickly stood up and approached them. I gently patted each person on the shoulder and called out. Fortunately, the two injured people were injured to the same extent as Jeong Taeui, and they were still conscious. There was a person who was unconscious for a while but quickly regained consciousness after Jeong Taeui's call. One person let out a soft "Aw" with his arm hanging down and his face pale, it seemed like his arm was slightly injured. The other person had blood flowing from his head, not sure if he fell and hit his head or if he was hit by a falling rock.

"Damn it. You didn't come to save the hostages but came to kill all of us yourself, right? You fucking crazy dog!"

Even though I cursed, I still couldn't help but sigh.

Everyone is still alive, even if everyone is injured. But nonetheless, they had to put their lives in danger.

I worriedly looked at the man whose head was bleeding. I myself had sweat dripping down my forehead. I used the back of my hand to wipe it away. Only when I saw the blood stains on my hand and felt a tingling sensation did I realize that I had a laceration from my forehead to my temple. But the pain wasn't that bad, I didn't even have the mind to think about it.

"Crazy, crazy...Rick...."

Someone whispered. His voice trembled with a bit of anger.

I don't know if it's fear or not. After swearing for a while, I suddenly changed my mind, and I immediately turned towards that bastard's brother, Kyle - who was the cause of this madness.

No matter who he sent, why would he let someone like him do this?? Was he going to let him mix all the hostages and kidnappers together, kill them all, and be done with the job? Huh? Kyle!!!!

The sound of artillery shells rang out in the distance again. Jeong Taeui suddenly woke up.

Now is not the time for me to stay stuck in one place like this. I had to run away quickly even when I had no more energy left when that bastard was still busy fighting with others in the distance.

This jungle also seems to be a blessing. If I hide smoothly, I probably won't be discovered. Jeong Taeui glanced back at the others again then walked towards the other half of the wing.

I climbed over a wall that had collapsed and became useless. Leave a brief greeting amid everyone's bewildered eyes.

"See you later when I have a chance.", then ran away with my throbbing ankle dragging to support my body.

***

Why is that man here?

I took a deep breath, my feet kept running forward. It felt like my ankle was about to break. I think I must have been imprisoned to the point where my endurance had decreased a lot to be out of breath like this.

Is it just a coincidence?

Or did he come here alone to save them because his brother's friends were kidnapped?

".... Ridiculous."

I immediately laughed to myself when I had those funny thoughts.

This is not a coincidence.

It was clear that our eyes met. When our eyes passed each other, he didn't seem surprised at all. Or rather... he laughed. As usual, he knew exactly that Jeong Taeui was here.

"Maurer, this murderer...!"

In short, whatever has happened has happened. I don't know why it was right now, but perhaps while Jeong Taeui was subjective, Maurer didn't know how to keep his mouth shut and these words somehow reached Ilay's ears.

I gritted my teeth and continued running forward. From Kyle to Maurer, I attached arrows to the two of them and kept swearing. But I still have a lot of affection for Kyle, and he's also a good person, so I'm just complaining.

"Why did you let someone like him come here!"

I shouted extremely angrily as if cursing myself.

I should have left right then, even if my ankle was injured or even broken, I should have left somewhere else that day. This serious mistake caused all the following consequences.

Thinking back, a friend once told me that luck is my own ability to judge.

What he said was based on his experience in the marketplace. They often say that for business people, luck is the ability to decide when to seize opportunities once they can be predicted.

Before, I didn't think much of it and directly ignored it. But right now, even though the situation was a bit different from what the other friend mentioned, his words, word by word, seemed to pierce my bones right now.

I should have left that day. No, I shouldn't have gone to that house in the first place.

No, there are so many continents in this world and why am I stumbling upon this damn Europe thing? There are so many places I could go, but I ended up here? No, even before that......

Okay, knowing that blaming each other will never end, I stopped regretting and just returned to the starting point of a new page in my old life.

"I shouldn't have followed uncle to UNHRDO."

The truth is that I no longer have the strength to sit here and complain and then regret it because my body is exhausted.

I don't know how far I've gone.

I just knew I was very deep in the forest. Even though I was still losing consciousness when I went in, I was confident I could find my way out of here. I have a good sense of direction.

The forest was quiet. The explosion stopped a while ago. No more gunfire, no more screaming. I ran away for a while, but gunshots can travel very far. Even though I couldn't hear the screams because of the distance, the gunfire and fireworks had definitely stopped.

Maybe it's because I was in a place where there were a lot of loud explosions and then suddenly quiet, but anxiety is now gradually creeping into my heart. This silence without a single bird chirping. Strange.

Suddenly, I remembered something I had heard before.

"Even if you get out of here, it's easy to get lost because of the steep mountainside. This is where packs of wolves roam at night. So be obedient here and don't think twice anything else."

As the kidnapper warned, the forest gets deeper and deeper. However, I can determine the range where I can get lost and the range is still safe. So, at this level it's fine.

The problem for me was not determining the direction, but the animals that might appear in this forest.

The day has just begun, compared to the dark night, but if you have to encounter a hungry animal, that is a big problem. Besides, I was so exhausted that I didn't even know if I could endure even being attacked by a hungry wild dog, let alone a hungry animal.

Jeong Taeui suddenly slowed down. My ears seemed to be deafened by loud explosions several times in a row.

My body's strength was drained, it seemed like I couldn't take another step.

No, I can't go on.

Jeong Taeui sat down on the ground and leaned against a tree. I used the back of my hand to wipe the small wound on my forehead. The blood was flowing freely and showed no signs of stopping. That warm red liquid spread again on the dried blood on my hand.

Next time I'll have to wear gloves too, Jeong Taeui groaned helplessly. I can't feel the pain anymore. I can't move my ankle now unless I drag it on the ground. Recently, while running, I bumped into a tree branch or tripped over a rock. My whole body was bruised and torn, but I didn't feel any pain.

"ah...... Am I really going to die......"

Jeong Taeui muttered helplessly. What will happen to the others? Hope they won't die. The kidnappers will have to risk their lives to save their own lives when faced with that crazy guy. While waiting for death to come, they no longer care about killing the hostages. No, if they took hostages again and tried to move them somewhere else, that would be a different story.

"I'll die..., it wouldn't be strange if I died right now......"

I half-closed my heavy eyelids and tried to say something so I wouldn't lose consciousness. If I closed my eyes and remained silent, I would lose consciousness in an instant, just like when I was drugged yesterday.

And then I will die, I will die and never wake up again.

I was exhausted, the fatigue was beyond the limit and my whole body was exhausted. Once I sit down like this, it's impossible that I won't be able to get up even if I die. Sure enough, right now if that crazy guy appeared before my eyes with that savage face and ghost-like smile, if he wanted to kill me, I could only say that he could just kill me. Jeong Taeui was completely exhausted.

Maybe because I was able to sit down for a bit to catch my breath, I felt that my body that couldn't feel any pain anymore was gradually recovering, little by little.

The feeling gradually became clearer, and the first thing that came back was the damn pain. My ankles were as hot as fire. I'd rather faint.

If I lost consciousness, there wouldn't be any feeling of pain or anything like now. But I also knew how dangerous it would be when I fainted and my body gradually fell into unconsciousness.

What should I do now? I will have to carefully find my way out and find another way to avoid being caught by that crazy guy.

The sky suddenly turned dark. My body felt like it could fall down and lose consciousness at any moment with just the slightest touch of a finger. I would have to wait a little longer and carefully look around and then find my way down the mountain to a safer and more discreet exit. I don't know how long it will take to get to that guy's house, so I also don't know how long it will take to leave it while I don't even know which way to go.

I searched for the source of memories with my body as tattered as an old ragged mop. It seemed like I might faint right away.

For a moment, the thought of wanting to give up everything actually crossed my mind.

But right then.

That's the sound of grass. Exactly the sound of footsteps on the grass. The footsteps seemed slow at first, but became more and more urgent, along with faint breathing sounds.

I sighed and shrugged. I slowly and quietly moved behind the rock next to the tree and buried myself behind it. My head, which was filled with confusing thoughts, suddenly became empty.

Someone is approaching.

The sound of rough, impatient footsteps was approaching.

That person didn't directly approach me, it seemed like he didn't know that I was also here, but those unusually shaky steps still moved towards me.

......- No.

My already stressed heart stopped beating as if half of its burden had been lifted.

Just by the sound of footsteps, I could tell for sure that it wasn't Ilay.

Ilay will not walk in a hurry and stagger as if he is about to fall like that. I could recognize his footsteps immediately.

My mood became a little more relaxed, but still very heavy.

So who is that person? A person ran in such a hurry that he staggered.

Now, there are only two types of people here. Kidnapper or hostage.

However, if it is someone who runs away quickly as if hiding from someone's pursuit, then it is likely that they belong to the second group of people.

The impatience to chase after them was expressed through each sound of those heavy footsteps.

I clenched my fist. If it's the second type of person, I think I should help them. But I can't move behind this rock, even moving a finger is difficult for me. Helping someone with this broken body will only bring more trouble.

I remembered the hostage men who were with me last night. Even though they couldn't become close or like each other overnight, other than that, they were also people who shared my hardships in a certain sense. People I can't pretend I don't see.

How much longer can my body endure? Can it move properly? I didn't even know what I had in my hands.

As I ran out of the mountain house, my body lying all over the floor, I rummaged through the pockets of the coat I had picked up, from the outer pocket to the front pocket to the inner pocket but could not collect anything. . Damn, there's not even a single Euro anymore.

I clicked my tongue. I don't have anything. It was like being locked in an abandoned house in the mountains. All I had was a body full of scars that made it difficult to even move.

I can't.

If the other person is one of the hostages or he is in danger.....then let's consider it again.

I should help that person, but I can't promise that I will use my life to exchange and help him.

It was at that moment.

From far away, a small sound wafted through the air through my ears.

It was an extremely gentle sound like gliding across the grass.

The moment that faint sound rang out, the footsteps approaching this direction became even more urgent. The person hurried, sobbed and sped up his steps.

That man is being chased.

The speed of the second sound was leisurely. The steps are leisurely without any urgency. Because of the body weight, although it sounds slow, the person is actually moving forward at a very fast speed.

My heart sank. I know this sound of footsteps well, among the people I know, there is only one person who walks like that.

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