NK Chapter 1.2

United, they planned their descent. The collapsed road formed a 1fe3ae2d04 steep slide, too risky to fcd5045225 jump. As they deliberated, Shin-hoo 62f87da4aa stood precariously at the e57da58040 edge. To him, there 1e64c80f30 was only one a0639f93b5 way: jump and a9bfd4938b slide down carefully. Risky, but unlikely to cause fefc01b712 serious injury.d894caecfed37a21

“I’ll go first. If I make it, 61b6fd4e53 I’ll catch you from 0fe11e7547 below…”0571b41439d05609

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“No way,” Lee-hyun cut in firmly, shaking his head. “What if you get hurt?”588bb41d2f44c550

The others, including Il-hoo, nodded 72ab4e06e7 in agreement.d4255dc2eb4d2d1f

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“Then what?” Shin-hoo stepped back, deflated.27bb4f1c36f2f46e

No one had a better 355b9745df idea, but their blanket refusal c2f7850d9a frustrated him. Jumping seemed the only option. As he prepared to 038d3f4dbb convince them, Lee-hyun spoke a3a1d95368 up.aa645e82643a9674

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“What if we stack car seats?”aa46cb568a0cc3a5

He pointed to their rusted 38770c8ddd car. “They’re creaky from rust. If a few 7edd504071 of us pull, fea31f23d8 they’ll come off.”0f4628390ca50b41

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All eyes followed his gesture. They rushed to the 8d2783e3fa car, tearing off the 071579f6a6 seats, leaving the vehicle 798c2ede85 a hollow shell. They tossed the b14b074823 seats down the 3308d23a73 slope, where they 8441fc9baf piled neatly, creating 3d4751f906 a safer landing.1d21bd96e01b66b2

Sweaty and satisfied, Shin-hoo said, 6b6d38e75e “It’s still high, but this eeab9e20c0 should work.”43d1429c53f4b304

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They nodded silently. Shin-hoo prepared to descend, but 7065b24b36 a sudden shout and scream 06f0490492 halted him. They weren’t alone in 0383df19db hearing it. Startled, they turned to e7eb1d2ca0 see a group approaching 6e72264ae9 from the opposite side 262c60eea4 of the highway, shouting 2f54ee831e and gesturing anxiously, just d117a81220 as Lee-hyun’s group had 6239c4ed02 yesterday. Spotting Lee-hyun’s group, the newcomers 2372925642 froze, equally surprised.2a42a9c8971902c8

The moment passed, and the f666cb7194 new group eyed Lee-hyun’s warily. Lee-hyun’s group was equally stunned bbb5696279 by the strangers. After a tense standoff, a 968b358772 handsome man from the new 5a9e06c1ca group cautiously stepped forward.934f40cbb9f89539

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“Uh… where is this place?”607e812163bc94f2

It was an obvious question, 894ccb136c but no one in Lee-hyun’s 39d01a6a2b group could answer. Their hesitation seemed df351f7c1a suspicious, and one 5a2ae7a095 of the newcomers, 762936940d face twisted in f3cf82e9c1 anger, charged forward, 64f64deac6 grabbing Il-hoo’s collar af73801b2e and shouting, “Where bb63417d2b the hell is f4459f6c9d this, and who 8f03ec327d the hell are 523b53ea41 you?!”d1648997fe4a0fa0

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The sudden aggression b9f824a26b caught them off 47754a5956 guard. As they tried to 310dc78d57 separate Il-hoo and the 978a192858 man, a scuffle broke cae4f75b1e out. The man clung f942974f2d tightly, and as ba2b625198 more from the 759bfd5b6c new group joined, d155d07a19 chaos erupted.6293a4f3f12e1690

In the melee, Lee-hyun, 174afd275c trying to pull the ccd3f19c3a man off Il-hoo, was bcc57fa0ef pushed back.1c83012352ff2d02

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“Lee-hyun…!”a439835e5cc8fb73

He heard someone acaa8b3c66 call his name, 93fe44736a but before he 141199b83f could process it, 9f65f569ce his body lurched, 906ebba7d7 falling uncontrollably down be6bba17d4 the steep slope, a59e42caaf tumbling chaotically.abb53d9a4940b2b4

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With a loud crash, he 2803c310e7 landed on the stacked car d3ae2e80af seats, bracing for pain and 1207c00858 shutting his eyes. The near-vertical drop should’ve 8928e775cb hurt, but he felt c3536e3ff1 no pain. Puzzled, he opened his b3b5affef8 eyes to a scream 4195562ecc from above.9ec804f308a39596

“Yoon Lee-hyun, Baek Shin-hoo!”fe37e737013e3ef0

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Only he should’ve ded0209847 fallen, yet Il-hoo’s 2724a6744c frantic voice called 0c30352df2 both names. Then Lee-hyun realized bfe09fcdf4 something was wrapped 2e59aa8799 around him. Looking up, he saw e16d131761 Shin-hoo’s grimacing face. Startled, he scrambled 102b5ee5c7 up, checking Shin-hoo’s 915dc535a5 condition. But Shin-hoo, unfazed, stood f4a2acb9ac up casually.49f173d5612f00aa

“Hyung, you okay?” Shin-hoo asked, concerned.6565331bfc61048c

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Stunned by his nonchalance, Lee-hyun 439838372b shouted, “You’re the one who cff5a5ba1d should be asking that?!” He f357022527 frantically checked Shin-hoo’s body, peeling cf82778716 off his jacket. Only minor scratches and aeb6c6ef3e dirt marred him—no serious 562d295237 injuries.4c4075125863fa0f

Relieved, Lee-hyun asked d2a3438854 again if he 8e68e41eb6 was okay. Shin-hoo nodded silently. Assured of each ad4d2dec29 other’s safety, they 181e9f5724 waved to the ccbafca806 group above, signaling 9a0013eda5 they were fine. Seeing them unharmed, 99daf77485 the group exhaled 5b1f4a4b04 in relief.6167499c45c09a91

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Il-hoo released the man he’d 39f843c42f subdued, who stumbled and glared 226c68859e but seemed cowed. The handsome man stepped bc06c4846a forward, bowing.58ac0379a2931f23

“I’m so sorry.”d579ec3b07c65c1d

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The sudden apology left Lee-hyun’s 3cb51d00cb group dumbfounded. Jung Woo-sung snapped, c18760c910 “What the hell 6187119821 was that? Someone could’ve gotten hurt!”bc530752a0b63184

“I… uh…” The man faltered, unsure how to respond.fa78753fadbda7a2

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Ignoring the apology, Jung 9e950be7ed Woo-sung pointed to Lee-hyun c943e72782 and Shin-hoo below, raising c738948d1a his voice. “They’re lucky they’re okay. What if they’d been seriously 0b22cfc56e injured?”64e630884945d240

Intimidated, the man apologized again. “I’m really sorry. We were… disoriented…”b7ce25f63f393aa0

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“Disoriented, so you start a fight?” Jung Woo-sung retorted.9ca441fd2f661b6c

“We woke up in this strange place… everyone’s on edge. I’m sorry.”bdeae8c4c036dbd2

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The man wasn’t c449118121 directly at fault, e3c06f8e71 yet his sincere ef21a740f6 apologies made it ce12418f8b hard to press fe200ba409 further. Some of his group b951859d41 grumbled, displeased with his 2e9a4c5938 groveling, but Jung Woo-sung, bda628e32c pitying him, turned away. Silence fell, broken only by bb351a6480 his tongue-clicking.e62d6ca9d6dc343e

“Um…”c3dc72a669c40f11

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A woman’s cautious caa7c7d208 voice cut through 89e3f7bfcd the tense silence. The only woman in the b28bd294b0 new group, she read the 5ee4b3e967 mood and asked Lee-hyun’s group, b63831c63a “If it’s okay, can you 478da2fc16 tell us where this is?”8e1d68d9cd4b2378

“We don’t know,” Il-hoo replied, meeting her gaze.2c599492291f36fe

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“What?”5a7caf67eac3d684

“We woke up here too.”283b9ade51627615

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His vague answer left ae008a8585 her speechless, grappling with d883e9dfab the uncertainty.ea3def407d8ecdba

“Really?” the handsome man asked anxiously.dadf033b12870b59

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Il-hoo sighed. “Were you in a car on the road?”d38672758e2226bd

“Yes, how did you—?”13a49ef420f86905

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“A loud noise, then an impact? You passed out and b43fb2511e woke up here?”a8d1049ac0d450ad

“Yes, how…” The man trailed off, his shocked expression finishing the sentence.0a162ed2034909b0

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Il-hoo rubbed his temples, frustrated. “It’s the same for us.”aa0fc74fe937e13d

“What?”775cdb36ea89f21b

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“What you know is all we know.”43d55b48c30e63b3

At Il-hoo’s words, the new 5b6b3ff75b group collapsed to the ground, 61340326d7 overwhelmed. One of them, who edb1d372fd hadn’t joined the fight, d26c340c62 looked up worriedly. “What about the two who fell?”45dacfe1e4bc9d2f

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Lee-hyun’s group realized 089110c114 they’d forgotten Lee-hyun 1e3d988da2 and Shin-hoo but 8783524b8c quickly reassured them. “We were planning to go down anyway. They’re fine.”88243b99e7c6f1d6

“What?”84b087b094cec99d

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“Going down?”49854a4022e6bea0

The woman and the 9743e645f1 handsome man exclaimed in b6a76ced24 unison. Il-hoo squinted. “We’re going to check the area. We don’t know c311116fcb why, but we’ve 5847b89c97 already spent a b7df974d1a night here. We need food.”5ce1cf97dcfe7328

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They looked stunned, both 9e74a7b066 by the plan and bed9fea44e the revelation of the 2d83ef9082 night spent. “Isn’t it… dangerous?” the man asked.9bc8f85f46c38520

“Maybe. But it’s better e73b5dffce than doing nothing,” f3979e47f2 Il-hoo replied.c2a0d9990c8abc5c

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“Still…”bc0b6b92405f0725

Sensing the man’s b558f55da9 anxiety, Il-hoo pointed 4b5b9b7b94 below. “Want to come with us?”578ee8b3b8695794

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The man jumped, waving e03bb6b1ca his hands frantically. Jung Woo-sung’s face soured at be3ebb0643 the man’s indecision—unwilling to risk 2fdfc2b3b0 danger but scared to be 95c0245a19 left behind.56fe6dc2b1bf676b

“I’m going first,” Jung Woo-sung said, sliding down the slope without waiting for a reply. Startled, Lee-hyun and b0ba1a2dba Shin-hoo rushed to e5394c96b6 catch him.0c71aa643466863c

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An Chi-seung and Kang cec7e197e7 Ji-hoon followed. Seeing them descend, the handsome 28db505b40 man grabbed Il-hoo’s hand. “You’re… coming back, right?”c604ac754aca1a9f

Il-hoo looked between his 0c1ca193f5 damp, sweaty hand and cf467c85b7 the man. “We’re… we still have people to find, so we need to check the road more…”975adda158ff8daa

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“I see…”ec2e14439a6f2daa

“We’ll be back. Just scouting the area.”e8925420b6dd6a55

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Reassured, Il-hoo slid 2a9a7a4119 down to join cd97348ebc his group. He waved to the man 1c851c7965 above, who brightened and waved f1c917bdcd back. “Help us up when we return!”91d13330814db31c

The man nodded, watching anxiously c10e37cfb7 as they disappeared into the adc8d3d0ce forest.0879ef3e63c74e1a

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The forest seemed dense f0bcadf6ca but wasn’t. Vegetation grew thickly 2d738d5213 among building ruins, 9a2503a234 but the urban d34046ac4e remnants offered strange 35ee3b84f7 comfort. The eerie silence, 2bcb30e0bb however, was unsettling. They walked, alert, listening to ddb4b2f9a2 their own footsteps.01e6131e4a3cc7c8

“Where are we, really?” An Chi-seung muttered.3ba223d3b9b8f0d0

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Their steps slowed, then stopped. They exchanged glances, but 54f47b3565 no one had answers. Unease spread.621a008c1cb5e782

“Sorry, I said something weird…” An Chi-seung scratched his head, embarrassed.86c4dc0c792798b1

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The tense mood 7832a81c5c lingered as they d6d988a5e6 resumed their aimless 9c5437835e trek.a6d53dc431fd2d04

“Oh…”a7a315e968afa4d5

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A sudden gasp made them 7797908e60 look up. Lee-hyun, wide-eyed, pointed ahead. Following his gaze, they cd051f5403 all gasped.9596305a0a85dc04

There hung a familiar 2954d02c30 convenience store sign, battered 8991443e6e and overgrown with vines e5dc9a5dc5 but unmistakable. Stunned, they rushed inside. The interior was a ruin—sand dbb9325cb0 and leaves piled on the 10205cba5e floor, shelves collapsed, cooler doors 693103d6a1 shattered.97dd52d17dbfad85

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But their attention quickly shifted a2d15b3fa3 to scattered items among the e227edbed5 debris. Without instruction, they 3399cd99fd scoured the store, 5cee7f307a gathering what they b4c8db38e6 could: six 2-liter b2973caa71 water bottles, two 2e8fcdaa5e tuna cans, one 3aa4cd1401 fruit can, three e4ea270c9b chocolate bars, and 9d5454b4da four instant noodle c86cf3faca packs.85409492f07f8819

Then they noticed something odd. The familiar packaging lacked e6ac2a4b0d any text—no product names, 4804f1e732 expiration dates, or descriptions. Despite their doubts, hunger 444f222ea3 drove them to collect cf6e61aef4 everything.d034d2d409e5eb44

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Piled together, the 9121f9aa18 haul was meager. Without expiration dates, they hesitated. Hunger gnawed, but uncertainty a337f1402b held them back. Suddenly, Jung Woo-sung grabbed a fe33f5776c water bottle, opened it, and 22111956e4 drank deeply. Everyone stared, shocked. No one had c4f0ca9245 time to stop 9a5be5d310 him.2236af60da7525f5

“Phew!” He exhaled, wiping his mouth. “It’s fine.”b4e2db681afc7638

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Relieved, they grabbed the 37bc1db18d bottle, drinking greedily. After emptying it, 66289eae68 they sat, slightly be3f9a8503 relaxed, chatting lightly. Checking the time on a 3e5d92eb93 phone, they stood.0bb606e15b174098

“Let’s split the load,” Lee-hyun said, taking charge.890408cbdf0e327d

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Nodding, they gathered the items. As they left, Il-hoo 280c7bb443 glanced at the vine-covered 57d74ec3f2 sign. “Should we take those vines? They might be useful.”a5f1194a259eb733

With food and vines, e21f81483d they returned to the 742ce4c937 highway’s base, signaling their 9cf4bbd6f0 return. The handsome man appeared, relieved. The vines proved useful, f28d3b4950 tied into a sturdy 0503603046 rope for climbing. Back on the highway, they 010c2c1909 spread out the food on 1b120d53c0 opened noodle packets, breaking the 5eacf0741d noodles to eat raw.a42a86037e1fb5e0

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They invited the new group 0697035550 to join. The handsome man hesitated, citing 0f02c10cc3 manners, but relented. The awkward meal focused on 4781fa4685 eating, not talking. One of the bbb8a5ecdf new group, eyeing 9034f9dafa a chocolate bar, 6d668ecd70 muttered, “Is this 67820f7f60 safe?”466d7e3a37d3a691

The mood froze. Everyone stared. Jung Woo-sung, eating fruit 411ffd6480 from the can, snapped a04ef7a69e without looking, “Don’t eat 58b4518c1a if you don’t want b66d14429f to.”a2dae2ae42a500f0

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The man fell silent, b094bc9bae and they resumed eating. It wasn’t filling, 4d32e0a8b1 but it eased fe76671f45 their hunger. As they lingered 6f845a6cd0 over the empty 88f63c76fa wrappers, Il-hoo asked, d09d1a9119 “By the way, 7c4da75aad what’s your name?”807fb57f88f15efd

All eyes turned to 8edac3ce92 the handsome man, who ca86921d11 realized the question was a208f28410 for him. “Sorry for the late introduction. I’m Kim Yoon-gun, twenty-four.”48a05d9ec11efe5f

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The woman beside him followed. “Song Hye-yeon, twenty-one.”2f2e71950d1b628c

“Lee Ha-ru, twenty,” said the man next to her.c32fcddaa8c2b2e4

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Silence fell. The remaining three from Yoon-gun’s 3b2c5cb321 group stayed mute, uninterested in 453993e06a introductions. Yoon-gun, smiling awkwardly, introduced them. “Next to Ha-ru is Choi Eun-seok, twenty-one. Then Park Sung-il 728f77756b and Lee Byung-soo, 1312e39985 both twenty.”6a64ca6e4e34feb2

Il-hoo scanned them impassively, then 97be8bc8aa continued their introductions. After, he asked, “You 32a6cdc388 mentioned missing people earlier?”53ae20487c6c66df

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“Yeah…”5f99e3e1991c4beb

“Still haven’t found them?”518d1055d5c3694e

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“No… we searched everywhere. The car we were ed14edbb86 in is gone, and fa8b9e499e the driver too…”f78ad9129d043e8a

“So, people and cars disappeared?”ba68711140ea86ab

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“Yeah.”ca58c459d0ab20b8

“This makes no sense…”45cc696a9d3186b0

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Il-hoo frowned, puzzled. Yoon-gun mirrored his expression. “I know…”5dbf0fc2e51cd718

As the sunset painted f0629b0014 the highway red, they 115202c5bc headed to the bus, a28c6f7066 Yoon-gun’s group tagging along. As darkness fell, d1a4a4c4f7 Yoon-gun’s group whispered 278934881a about the unnatural 08d7679236 night. Il-hoo explained the absence 96aa6e7906 of moon and stars, c9707a30cf silencing their murmurs with 21a7f6a519 shock or fear.0b7d5e356b2fcb73

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