While half-listening to a boring lesson that won’t stick in your head, everyone must have had such thoughts at least once.
What would happen if the apocalypse era suddenly arrived while attending class at school? For instance, zombies appearing, or gates opening and monsters pouring out, or a system appearing before your eyes babbling that a death game has begun.
I too, just one among many ordinary students, had fallen into such delusions quite often. Sometimes seriously, sometimes childishly. However, no matter when or what flights of imagination I spread my wings on, I always concluded at the end with the thought, ‘It won’t happen anyway, so whatever.’
Right, something that won’t happen anyway.
‘I didn’t know that thing would actually really happen.’
I slowly blinked and looked around. We were in a position where we couldn’t turn on the lights with the electricity cut off, but fortunately the classroom wasn’t very dark. It was thanks to the midday sunlight shining in through the windows.
But that didn’t mean the atmosphere of this place was emitting a hopeful energy resembling those bright rays of light. A terrible gloom that could no longer be reversed had taken deep root here.
A faint smell of blood wafted through the stuffy air. Within it, some were crouched and collapsed or curled up, while others were squeezing out tears that wouldn’t come anymore or applying pressure to shallow wounds. And in one corner of the classroom in this situation, the ringleaders of the classroom who were uninjured and fine could faintly be heard huddled together whispering among themselves.
“We don’t have much food left either.”
“With what’s left now, all these people…”
I stared intently at the backs of their heads as they plotted in whispers barely audible.
Now, two weeks after the apocalypse era had arrived, what divided people’s classes was no longer money or grades. Just strength, absolute violence and selfishness. As if they’d become a pack of beasts devouring and being devoured, people clawed at each other, trampled each other, and standing at the top like that, wielded those below them recklessly.
And that ‘strength’ didn’t mean pure physique and force.
Some would call that ‘strength’ superpowers that only appeared in shounen manga, and others would call it divine revelation granted to humans who’d reached the world’s end. Even if we couldn’t know which among them was the truth, it was certain that we’d been given special and noble power.
Naturally, hierarchy and superiority began to be divided through that power. Mainly those possessing combat abilities who could easily deal with monsters stood at the top of the pyramid. However, it wasn’t only combat-related abilities that were revered. Relatively rare healing abilities, or production abilities that could manufacture and cook weapons or nutritious food also received quite precious treatment.
Of course, only the upper and lower ranks were divided, but everyone had awakened their own unique power. Even if not necessarily indispensable abilities for survival, from abilities to simply predict the weather to abilities to pick out pretty stones, the use and scope of those powers varied enormously.
Compared to such things, I was thinking that the ability I’d awakened didn’t seem too bad.
If anything, it seemed to belong to the good side.
“Hey, Kim Hayoung.”
A voice that suddenly approached rang in my ear. I slowly raised my head that had been lowered at some point. Then I stared blankly at Kang Jekyung, the top ringleader of this classroom who’d strode up in front of me.
Kang Jekyung, who’d been quietly making eye contact with me, let out a chuckle.
“You, what did you say your awakened ability was again?”
“…An ability to thoroughly lock doors.”
Hearing my answer, Kang Jekyung exchanged glances with his group standing behind him. What that meant, how they were weighing me—I could tell without deep thought. Since Kang Jekyung’s group had already approached me, it was no different from a confirmed future.
The one experiencing this situation now was me, but the situation itself wasn’t the first time.
I was the third target. That meant,
“You understand how we feel, right? We learned it in class. The greatest happiness of the greatest number… that thing, you know.”
Yesterday and the day before, two ‘students with useless abilities’ had already been kicked out of the classroom ahead of me and met their ends.
Instead of splitting my slightly parted lips to speak, I chose to keep my mouth firmly shut. It seems he judged from such a reaction that I was trying to resist. Kang Jekyung, his face twisted fiercely, grabbed my wrist and roughly pulled me to my feet.
“You know it’s more beneficial for people, and ultimately for this world too, for us to survive rather than you alone. My heart aches too, but this is unavoidable.”
Unavoidable, he said. They rambled on using the excuse ‘unavoidable’ as a shield while reducing the number of people to save what little food remained as much as possible.
I was dragged toward the door while caught by such a Kang Jekyung. I had no will to resist or refute them. I too was of the thought ‘it can’t be helped,’ just like them.
The choice made by Kang Jekyung’s group, while it couldn’t be called right, was sufficient to be called rational. Starting by abandoning and cutting off comrades with weak abilities that didn’t help with survival and combat. Reducing mouths to feed that way to save food and prolong life. As Kang Jekyung said, for the preservation of humanity and the rebuilding of the world, many suitable to contribute to that had to survive.
So I had no thoughts of cursing them. I had no desire to blame them for trying to throw me outside the classroom, the safe zone, and abandon me.
In a way, I wasn’t any different from them. During the past two days while those judged to have more useless abilities than me were kicked out and became unknown whether they died or lived wandering outside the classroom, I too had been watching silently just the same. That meant I had no qualifications to criticize Kang Jekyung’s group.
Of course, that was the story when reasoning logically.
‘It doesn’t matter anyway from the start.’
Whether others died or not, whether they considered me unnecessary and disposed of me or not. I was born a human apathetic and indifferent to such things.
While lost in thought, I’d already reached right in front of the classroom door. While I just stood there blankly, having been dragged obediently, they began quietly moving the desks and chairs that had been blocking the classroom door.
I watched that scene silently. Even facing the crisis of falling into a pit of monsters right before my eyes, there was no sign of being terrified. Perhaps my emotionless attitude was disagreeable, as Kang Jekyung, who’d approached close beside me, tapped my shoulder.
“Still, you know, do survive. I have no ill feelings toward you. So if we meet again later, let’s at least greet each other.”
I didn’t spare a single glance at Kang Jekyung, who was sneering in a deliberately agitated tone. Instead, I carefully watched his group moving busily to clear a path.
Then, when one of them reached out and grasped the classroom door handle, I squeezed my eyes tightly shut just before that door opened.
Soon, Kang Jekyung pushed my back without consideration, and unable to resist that, I staggered greatly—it was instantaneous. Unable to quickly find my center of balance because I couldn’t see ahead, my body tilted unsteadily, and before I could even reach down my flailing hands, I tumbled over. Several upper body muscles that struck the hard floor screamed sharply.
“Have a good trip.”
Bang! The door closed behind me.
The cool, musty air characteristic of hallways brushed my nose. I, collapsed on the ground wriggling, tried taking a deep breath and exhaling languidly. A fishy and disgusting smell spread faintly, but it wasn’t bothersome enough.
This time I only raised my waist and listened carefully. Small whispers could be heard from beyond the classroom door behind me, but that was all. From the hallway that would be spread widely on both sides of me, I couldn’t feel people’s voices or footsteps, or even signs of monsters growling and crying or slowly moving.
‘Monsters don’t matter even if they’re stationed in the hallway.’
The important thing was people. If by any chance I was discovered by hostile people, that would be when the possibility of being seriously injured or dying would increase exponentially.
So first, I had to go somewhere and hide my body.
Having reached a conclusion, I staggered to my feet. I moved my hand that had been groping the floor to a nearby concrete wall, and leaned against it while putting strength into my legs. Since no one was currently pushing or shoving me, standing up without being able to see ahead with my eyes closed wasn’t very difficult.
Letting out a low sigh, I tapped the floor with the tips of my feet wearing rubber slippers. It was one of the habits I’d developed since awakening my ability and being unable to walk around with my eyes open.
‘An ability to thoroughly lock doors, my ass.’
What I’d replied to Kang Jekyung wasn’t the truth. It was just a lie I’d appropriately chosen—something that could deceive them, wasn’t useful enough to have to prove my ability, and wouldn’t be exploited by them.
And right now, my standing with my eyes tightly closed and mouth tightly shut was deeply related to the ability I’d awakened.
‘First… which way should I go?’
Without thinking to brighten my darkly closed vision, I drew out the school’s structure in my head. I didn’t know how accurate the illusory map I’d barely completed by fumbling through my memories would be, but for now there was no other way.
‘This is the 4th floor.’
As far as I knew, there was no one on the 4th floor except for Kang Jekyung’s group. So although I didn’t know which class among the 3rd-year classrooms I’d been kicked out of, entering any other classroom on the 4th floor wouldn’t result in encountering other people.
However, this place literally only had space—food, daily necessities, nothing would remain. Of course, Kang Jekyung’s group isolated on the 4th floor would have swept up anything helpful for survival early on.
Actually, it wasn’t a problem that needed long consideration. Even before being placed in this situation, I’d already selected where I should go if kicked out by Kang Jekyung’s group, where I could at least safely hide or move around.
‘The 3rd floor.’
I was thinking of going to the floor right below the 4th floor—the 3rd floor.
Because at least for me, the 3rd floor would be the safest.
