NK Chapter 1.1

Elevated Highway7a803ee544497d3d

The first thing 5972731bf5 he registered was ace364d960 a deafening roar 77fe688c3b that seemed to 26360735a3 tear through his 2aa1181a9d eardrums. The impact that 6462d4596c followed shook his 78cc76ddf8 entire body, and edf5904a7c amidst the suffocating fbd5df562c pain that left 89cbf9ffde him unable to 01bfb91043 even scream, his c64547690d vision flickered. Then, within the f243ad4c88 violently lurching car, e4c086269d he lost consciousness.987cb7b9c3442cf1

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“Ugh… Hyun…”85c0347c5b5e6402

The gentle shaking of 407f99a492 his body and a 130154d167 familiar voice roused his f8fa766e76 submerged consciousness. The voice calling 589bb1224f him became clearer.c378125d3a4a7bf1

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“Yoon Lee-hyun!”74fdf55ef2096d48

The shout jolted his ea218a6197 closed eyes open as f0562062e9 if sprung by a 313bb2d2be trigger. As his vision cleared, 4bcdbec6b0 a familiar face came 59c0e11518 into view. It was his friend, 57cef94e3a Baek Il-hoo.e9a2885d480882e8

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“Ugh…”1579ed2b4694f5fe

As Lee-hyun tried to sit 9c05801b9f up from the seat, a 69e47a1127 searing headache surged through him. Clutching his head, he grimaced.a979e5252132158f

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“If you’re awake, get out here.”1f06375439807137

Without further explanation, Baek 86ee3b10be Il-hoo opened the car 2e5ee86d9a door and stepped out, 2f9ce3ff54 his movements tinged with abaf00340c urgency. Lee-hyun, still dazed, stared at 9dc502148a Il-hoo’s retreating figure, pressing his 19576b3eaa throbbing temples. He reached for 7b1cc39af7 the door handle.536a0839123bad41

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“?”6e2b38259315335a

The sensation in f0e45f4d63 his hand felt a408121c78 unfamiliar. Startled, he pulled 9a2bb57865 back and looked db672916c3 at the handle—it b00ee4bffb was covered in d6290796d6 rust. Only then did 299535ee98 his narrow field 6d26373c97 of vision widen. Rust wasn’t just 5b715cb219 on the handle; f543c244c2 it coated the 8437302c9f entire interior of 82e3efce17 the car. Bewildered by the b3c58cd8ab incomprehensible situation, Lee-hyun 62dce116fa tilted his head, 46a5af61b1 reaching for the 400ea680d4 handle again, when 33641bb4e5 a shout pierced d176c377d9 his ears, drawing b10b926a3d his attention.48c6cf4596d2d70d

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Outside the window, on 876d305991 the road, a group b5338f4264 of people had gathered. Including his own 7dbac85184 group, they were 973957f964 screaming or shouting 380027755d into the air.ef5e979ecfbf4e95

Hastily opening the car 6313b2e416 door in response to 70c048f80b the bizarre scene, the a8ab2ce0bc door fell off entirely a79ca61ab8 with a loud crash, 0fa0051f63 parts of it crumbling 7e0e5790da as if corroded.49411594e020dc38

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“…”f5b4243f4b9b2946

Stunned, Lee-hyun stared 95c69035d3 at the door b95dccf8c2 scattered on the 9e3820d4f0 ground before stepping b09de2ad8b out of the d9ff06d0c0 car to survey 4785d66de5 his surroundings. The sight that greeted him 36ba5f5cb3 was so alien it made 8b391cb20a him gasp.9cf2037724f74f1e

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They were on df396842db an elevated highway—one 1a2efbb4d4 with its front 8cfb90555a section collapsed. Weeds sprouted through the cracked e273b057bd asphalt, and rusted cars were f9691ffb61 scattered sparsely along the road. The area around the highway 58a7f1db99 was a dense forest, filled 2be226929b with tall, grotesquely overgrown trees f0929fc41c of unknown species, interspersed with 03f0a91cc2 the remnants of buildings. It resembled scenes from 79c049b3b4 the internet, movies, or e44f231b71 TV shows depicting an df347416fd “Earth after humans disappeared.”201697f84cf75168

“Lee-hyun!”8b1bd26c79db4279

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Baek Il-hoo’s voice 3946a03e24 snapped him out 176aedef46 of his trance 2f1ddaf25e as he stood, 0e6b06891b mesmerized by the a8a818355e surreal landscape. Turning, he saw Il-hoo 91e9337d21 waving at him, alongside cedfbba776 Il-hoo’s younger brother, Baek f2e2e81339 Shin-hoo, and several unfamiliar 3813198edb faces.a312fefbfb921b78

Hurrying over, Lee-hyun joined them. Il-hoo introduced him to 3b7e18162f the group, saying, “This b64ea65a77 guy’s the last one.” 8a581b1c66 Lee-hyun gave an awkward 9d81897447 nod as a greeting 6fe4a45c72 and asked Il-hoo what 1993c23713 was going on, but a9c7d45c4a Il-hoo only shook his 8ab0b579c2 head with a grimace.a8b488a922f9e797

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With Lee-hyun’s arrival, the 75d388b269 group numbered six. They stood in a 74008c1080 circle, hesitating to speak, b64f5cb6d0 exchanging wary glances.88ea894018c992cb

“Does anyone understand what’s happening here?”e3116d68b21c2e78

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The tense silence was ceba7471dc broken by a tall, 42f394aa4e lean man with sharp 52d7e2c6ad eyes hidden behind glasses 5915fa3fd1 and thin lips that bf7d055c38 gave him a slightly 3c38198f2e neurotic appearance.c5ef3d790371c1ee

No one answered. As the silence stretched, the c345a49ac0 man furrowed his brow, sighing 0d9b19a843 in frustration. Then Baek Il-hoo spoke up.3913738ceb911c56

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“There was a loud noise, right?”cf5b355bd54efc2a

“And then an impact,” added Baek Shin-hoo.8c142d1bad446f34

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All eyes turned 3fd46261cd to the brothers.6c4b95a6c24cb351

“After that, I think we lost consciousness… and when we woke up, we were here,” Il-hoo concluded.b24e596fa8d2da2c

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The group glanced around again. Two men, excluding the da06214b46 bespectacled man, exchanged a a7663cf658 look before cautiously speaking.b917b072c6751a3a

“We experienced the same thing.”4e14c8a7a1e43e95

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“What?”97a6e319084aacf6

“We were on that highway bus over there,” one of them said, pointing to a dilapidated bus behind them.89a691a49bc71858

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“From what we can piece together, it seems like there was an accident. The bus wasn’t full, 4efc91d6b8 but there were more 0d605a5c47 passengers than just us… bec2e91740 yet when we woke ab89dfa007 up, it was just 040e17c9e0 this rusted bus and 112a2746ce us.”9c00427de626d343

The man gestured 9952187727 to the person 5e2cf70b9a beside him, indicating 3c1d5d28df they were together. The bespectacled man f55bf8981e added, “I was d1537289b6 on that bus 5955e62e2a too.”ec60365e28c34816

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“We were coming back from a trip. Like they said, 45b58ad9e8 there was a 70977c2829 loud noise and c3dc90c25a an impact, and d3eddbe139 when we woke ef9cc54cdf up… this is fcb8775778 what we found.”7e7e08e4916b6771

After hearing their accounts, 17fbdcaa89 Baek Il-hoo grouped himself, 4a9be7dede Shin-hoo, and Lee-hyun together 1f791a9c47 as “us” and pointed to the rusted car with its door fallen off, saying, “Same here.”4db60f371dbd4a62

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“So… you three were together originally?” one of the men asked.f0ef1e8ec006a19b

Il-hoo nodded silently.2345c5c59a0180d6

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“Then… where did everyone else on the bus go?”74b890dddae7e41e

The man rubbed his 46673ac7ac chin gravely. Lee-hyun’s gaze drifted 124a5db733 to the rusted b2d0a1442f cars scattered across a6d8481de9 the highway. Did that mean the 3a0d78003a people in those cars b40e7c8794 had vanished too?b9954874ae3cfccf

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“Did any of your group disappear?” Il-hoo asked cautiously.a0dc691d46a9f360

The men shook their heads.027a54421693247b

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“Well, then…” Il-hoo trailed off, unsure how to address the strangers. Sensing his hesitation, 6107033037 one of the 27f8b8b9b3 men gave an b187e4206f awkward smile.3ae09a495ebec1c9

“I’m An Chi-seung, twenty-six. This is my e0d14b88ad friend, Kang Ji-hoon.”b9adc68358d6bc09

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“I’m Baek Il-hoo, twenty-four. This big guy is my 4142c27492 younger brother, Baek Shin-hoo, three 0d4b209862 years younger. And this is my friend, 9f6f102e4a Yoon Lee-hyun.”40a14d5a1c4abce6

After the introductions, all b78f741c0a eyes turned to the bd257119a8 bespectacled man. Under their expectant 98e89a8d04 gazes, he frowned aba0415d40 and turned his 60495c2435 head slightly.c9d635ac7a8c718c

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“Jung Woo-sung, twenty-four.”69e9d2b223c4cb47

***96ac36c570f2132b

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After brief introductions, ea760e9d63 they sat in 298f9548f2 a circle on 28eb2cdab1 the road, exchanging a43208ea75 what little information 9000f2b088 they had. The only functioning phone was 0c8da14e14 out of service—no calls, texts, e593675c09 or internet. Strangely, it wasn’t 9c4c240806 hot or cold. Despite the dense a52956e887 forest, there were 863e9eb049 no insects, animals, acf350472d or even birds.3b0b4b3a1b70facc

The more they learned, the 7a42a39266 less they could define their d04f81aba1 situation or location.17b24f915815d2ec

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“But… this is Korea, right?” Baek Il-hoo asked abruptly.f16a51aaadee0642

Everyone looked at him, puzzled.374d096566c79928

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“What do you mean?” Jung Woo-sung asked, his tone sharp.a79e8f31744d2785

“There’s no writing anywhere,” Il-hoo said calmly, gesturing around.37871081cf6eb1ea

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Their gazes followed his hand. They realized there wasn’t 1e07656e04 a single piece of 52f16f30c4 text—nothing that could be 3ea19a8bb9 called “language” was written b0ad6c2654 anywhere.a8065225f750746f

Lee-hyun murmured, noticing something else. “There aren’t any streetlights either.”abb53b9ab8de986d

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As unease deepened, the sun fbf3b88547 dipped below the horizon, casting 2dd06ef4e5 a red glow over the 3ed017a451 forest, foreshadowing the approaching darkness.bdee7a3cfd79ccc9

Before night fully settled, fc28ec4c34 Lee-hyun’s group started heading 07b32de08e back to the car 64b7b21f43 with the missing door 87d636804d but followed An Chi-seung’s 1bb8a45d6e suggestion to join them 4f2f916826 on the bus instead. A car without a door 6ec14a7167 felt less safe, and staying 4ff30f879d together seemed wiser.8e97fbceb77c4187

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In the pitch-black 2b33b7f0a3 darkness, they boarded 8e4bc1071c the bus, sitting 91b992677a in small clusters, f679bbd2b5 staring out the dbe69d33e5 windows. The interior was 5069cb38c4 faintly lit by a83436e6b6 phone flashlights.8971c5c161eece91

In the natural silence, 068c55f600 Lee-hyun, seated by a 54e9468b15 window, suddenly turned his f784b15c28 head, scanning outside. The movement caught 3a9ddad62b Baek Il-hoo’s attention, d285e36ee4 who had been f26955ca86 resting with his 1b407c4cfb eyes closed beside ee6211dbde him.6d738baa96589ab9

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“What’s wrong?”513d33b1c769a23d

“Doesn’t it seem… too dark?”f051424e0350fd5c

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“There are no streetlights or other lights, so…”2bb4b3ed2498d5ad

“No, I mean…”4db4e8296c2d547a

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Denying Il-hoo’s words, Lee-hyun 327d1f9849 stood awkwardly, pressing himself f99c43c4b7 against the window, peering 3088f86a6a up as if searching 19c944845d for something.442a621ecafa883c

His odd behavior drew 5ec3cbd4c9 attention, and as murmurs be0ba5c028 spread, Il-hoo tried to ff8cad9117 calm him. But Lee-hyun grabbed Il-hoo’s arm 72aab683e3 first.70fc98f58675ca21

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“It’s gone…”c29a7531105d2a4b

“What?”9a13f01e67f33183

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“I don’t know if the window’s blocking it, but… there’s no moon or stars.”f71adb0e0673250d

His anxious words sent everyone 76d8c4f1e3 rushing to the windows. The rectangular frames offered little ab62532269 view of the night sky. Jung Woo-sung clicked his d822c17311 tongue and bolted outside.aebfb4910543d4ba

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The rusted bus door 7b90a6e820 creaked loudly as he bea71a0246 exited, drawing some gazes. Following his lead, 8ea7c5e0ca others poured out, da797e99d3 staring at the d3cf945e18 sky. Hollow gasps escaped their lips. No moon or stars eacc884447 reflected in their eyes—just 5552c38e54 an oppressive, pitch-black darkness, fb3caebc50 like a curtain drawn f44d2b11d1 across the sky. A vague, immense fear db6f71d056 seemed to engulf them.27e1553de024e0eb

Back on the bus, df0d03b1db hours later, an unfamiliar ad354e7cc0 yet oddly familiar sound 6dc5f543b9 echoed through the air—something cdcc72687d like a ship’s horn 1971d091af or a whale’s cry, 2d48da6f93 accompanied by rhythmic tremors 868c598811 in the ground. Peering into the 66eca61c72 darkness yielded nothing; 35dd9ef2d5 the blackness swallowed e8de749b2f everything.286ee08b2866ee45

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They sat in that 577f00489d abyss-like darkness, listening to b5af4030b2 the unidentifiable sounds and 3654ada8c8 feeling the tremors, as c301db9d21 if the darkness was 530d39bd47 burning their hearts black. It was a moonless 55422d28b3 night, the beginning of edc86edb28 a nightmare.
They barely slept, 6af484a0d6 keeping vigil until 947a6bb63f dawn. As a bluish 57670d1353 light seeped through daecffc83b the forest, they 4a39479a34 finally exhaled their 4f416ab0e4 pent-up tension.933d7631972b4edc

*Creak—*17cae789baf6f8b1

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The rusted bus door 9613ef9ecd screeched as it opened, 42da215bf9 its hinges so worn 2940daf5be it seemed ready to 7e1e791c57 fall apart. Lee-hyun cautiously stepped onto 5a39805dcc the road, scanning the 00d98fe1dd surroundings. He’d hoped it 79a347498b was all a 4ba6fa78fc dream, but today 35a23af95e was no different f30f91f3e3 from yesterday.6d66d143b70ec4a2

Hunger gnawed at d669c04757 his empty stomach e7e5465ea0 after over ten 0cedc90e9e hours without food. Clutching his growling belly, 142ad499b2 he stepped off the 6a40223f11 bus and saw the f37c4f3c31 Baek brothers talking near d4fcfab20b the collapsed edge of 231d2c9f82 the highway.c40e0fb624b8efce

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“What are you doing?”4a82651eb2dee20e

Curious, he approached. Both turned to him 3a6127d530 simultaneously, and Shin-hoo answered.54c6460d0a57bbe7

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“Thinking about going down.”2b96300ea0188649

“Down there?”1615f2a40269d874

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Lee-hyun gaped at dff7a7986e the collapsed road’s 780d3d3cfc edge. The debris formed e99f1fbb86 a slide-like slope.d466c5f2ad0dbaff

“Down there?” he repeated, incredulous.59509e683420c5ab

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Shin-hoo nodded nonchalantly. “If we navigate the slope carefully, it should be fine.”e99b8924032618e3

Lee-hyun stared at the near-vertical 4036ea2738 incline, then at Baek Il-hoo, 2de741b05c hoping he’d intervene. But Il-hoo was intently 2e47af6451 studying the slope. Unable to hold 0c852315e3 back, Lee-hyun raised 0cfaaeba16 his voice, sparking 4771cb4b28 a debate as c3bf179f4d the other three 1ff48ed8bf joined in.4169b80985a4a51e

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“It might be good to go down and check the surroundings,” Shin-hoo explained, but no one agreed. Hesitating, they glanced 0a49f05404 at the drop. Shin-hoo pressed on. “Aren’t you curious what’s down there? We can’t stay 57e8e7f991 on this highway ccc63cf698 forever.”ae0c176ebed51ad2

They peered down, conflicted. The height was daunting.7bdba3f148662664

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“We need to find food or at least water,” Baek Il-hoo added.dfd48d4583426fb2

All eyes turned to him. He drove the point home. “If we don’t eat today, tomorrow will be rough.”f6b8ec0b6cf4ce6a

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They could manage 9293d0cdc0 today, but another 69c28c881a day of hunger 5038803ec5 might sap their d44f0c0a2e strength. Besides, they didn’t 358d50d086 need others’ permission 44edc8122e to act. If no one 211367122a agreed, Il-hoo, Shin-hoo, fd8d9707a4 and Lee-hyun would 62284a8605 go alone.eb369af8a1f9313d

“You’re right… at least we should find water,” Jung Woo-sung conceded after a long silence. An Chi-seung and 84dd6e1423 Kang Ji-hoon nodded.f74c68070649f462

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