Marauder of the Apocalypse
Chapter 146: Flames

My steps were light. My gestures brisk. Following our predetermined route, I set fire to everything in sight.

I tore open fuel caps on abandoned cars and tossed lit matches inside, threw Molotov cocktails into parks filled with fallen leaves, garbage, and corpses, and stuffed burning newspapers into leaf-clogged drainage ditches.

"Haha."

The ground began turning as red as the sunset sky. Flames the color of dusk spewed smoke as black as the darkness of night. Red and black. The colors of the apocalypse.

I chuckled as I clicked my lighter. A strange euphoria, like being drunk, colored my mind.

'Watching fires from across the river? No. Setting the fires myself is much more fun.'

It was exciting. Joyful. Fulfilling.

This must be how bungee jumping without a safety harness feels. A thrill you might experience just once in your life.

As I trembled with uncontrollable excitement, a voice came from behind.

Sa Gi-hyeok's bewildered voice. Glancing back, I saw him standing in a daze, staring at the path we'd just walked.

The street we'd set ablaze. In the distance, flames flickered on the mountain near the townhouse with smoke billowing upward, and fog-like black smoke rose from various parts of the city.

I could almost hear human screams and zombie howls.

With other companions setting fires too, it seemed like flames and smoke were visible from other directions as well.

"Is this right?"

Sa Gi-hyeok finally managed to speak after stammering. Though we had planned and prepared for this, actually seeing it seemed to evoke different emotions.

"You're asking now?"

"But this is. This is."

Sa Gi-hyeok, who normally spoke quite precisely, now repeated crude, clumsy words, perhaps due to shock.

Not just Sa Gi-hyeok—Park Yang-gun and Jeon Do-hyung were also trembling slightly as they watched the blazing world. Their movements were awkward, like broken dolls.

"What the hell are we..."

"This is different from theft."

I grinned. Feeling regret and guilt? Too late for that. The flames were already spreading uncontrollably. The sparks we had ignited had become a natural disaster burning the city, a death that human hands couldn't stop.

"Everyone. The fires have already risen, and we can't turn back now. Since this city is doomed anyway, let's grab whatever resources we can and escape."

There was no going back. This was a free fall.

Abandoning the plan now would make this a meaningless massacre, so to rationalize that we had no choice but to do this for survival, we had to keep moving according to plan.

Park Yang-gun, who wasn't wearing his helmet, suddenly turned to look at me. Since I also wasn't wearing my helmet, wanting to fully experience the fire scene, our eyes met directly.

"Kim Da-in. Are you smiling right now?"

"It's not exactly something to cry about, is it?"

"..."

Occasionally we heard muffled sounds like cars exploding and the cozy crackling of burning wood.

As the three of them silently stared at me, rough footsteps and cursing came from behind.

"What the hell is burning...! Who are you people! Riders?"

I turned around. People who seemed to be local survivors were rushing toward us, holding red fire extinguishers.

'Ah. Survivors.'

Come to think of it, there were survivors around. Humans who had been killing each other over food, but who could join hands in the face of a disaster like a major fire.

They were a variable. No matter how much we set fires as we moved, if nearby survivors immediately panicked and put them out, it wouldn't have much effect.

I quickly changed my expression and spoke in a serious voice.

"A major forest fire has broken out. We're setting backfires to prevent the forest fire from approaching."

If I burn it first, the fire can't approach. Like how a criminal can't threaten a hostage if I kill the hostage first.

I spoke as if carrying out alliance operations, but the survivors flashed venomous glares and shouted.

"Backfires? We're about to die because of those fires!"

"We understand. Grab your belongings and evacuate to the survival zone. The survival zone has fire prevention measures in place. Please evacuate until the fire subsides."

Honestly, it wasn't a particularly convincing statement. These were experienced survivors who had made it this far. They should be skeptical of anything anyone says.

But the situation was what it was.

"There's no time! Evacuate quickly! Spread the word to other survivors as you go! The survival zone is safe!"

"Damn it all."

The survivors seemed to be considering something as their eyes darted around, but ultimately, they turned and began running after looking at the city that had turned redder than the sunset. After all, evacuation was the priority if they wanted to survive.

Watching them leave, I lit my lighter.

'The survival zone probably does have fire prevention measures. Even if it doesn't, other survivors will believe it does.'

Many survivors would head to the survival zone to escape the fire. In a burning city, it would be the only safe place.

The alliance would recognize the fire, hear about suspicious people setting backfires from survivors, and realize they were under attack. The result could only be chaos.

'If they expel survivors who came to escape suspicious people, the survivors won't just sit quietly. Conversely, accepting the survivors creates its own problems.'

Confusion. It would be a complete mess. The influx of survivors alone would strain the alliance.

I chuckled and gestured to my companions again.

"Come on, let's keep moving."

My companions followed me as if pulled by gravity, like a car with broken brakes racing forward—they had no choice.

***

Winter evenings arrive early. In a world without electricity, it felt even more so. Without streetlights or electric lighting, the darkness of night approached more vividly.

But tonight was wrapped in bright light. As if electricity had returned, parts of the city all around glowed with a red light.

A building located a little north of the survival zone.

We briefly went up to the roof to survey the city.

"Haha."

I laughed as I enjoyed the spectacular view. The mountain near the distant townhouse was spreading dramatically, raising smoke like dark clouds, and flames throughout the city were gradually expanding.

It wasn't just the path I had taken. There were flames raised by other companions.

Looking behind us, there was also a wall of flames there. We had set fires to the north of the survival zone, in areas the alliance found bothersome to cover. Things like dried reeds along the parched stream.

Flames spreading along the mountains, along streams, along drainage ditches, along roads—from lines to surfaces.

Suddenly, I heard Sa Gi-hyeok's exhausted voice.

"It's almost 7 o'clock. Are we heading to the survival zone?"

Looking at my companions, they all seemed tired. They were leaning against railings or sprawled on the floor like people who had completely depleted their physical and mental energy.

Understandably so. Setting fires hadn't been easy. We had fought survivors who tried to stop us, avoided waves of zombies that poured into the streets after sensing something wrong. Sometimes we even engaged in combat with police moving like scouts.

Even ignoring guilt or regret, it was exhausting.

I answered:

"We should. It'll all be over in an hour or two."

As I lit a Molotov cocktail and threw it onto the roof, my companions moved with heavy feet without responding.

"..."

"..."

We advanced straight toward the survival zone without conversation. Even then, I didn't stop setting fires. With light hand movements, I lit matches and threw them into drainage ditches.

Sometimes I burned barricades that seemed to have blocked entrances where people had stayed, and sometimes I held my lighter to the sleeves of corpses lying on the road.

As we walked, it felt like the city was screaming.

We saw dogs or pigeons that had been hiding somewhere desperately fleeing, and occasionally zombies rushing past, ignoring even us.

Of course, there were things we couldn't see.

"I don't see any survivors..."

The flames and smoke rising from everywhere could be seen from far away. Like beacon fires. Had the survivors already noticed and evacuated?

Not that evacuation would save them.

With insufficient firewood for winter and no food to eat, they would all die anyway.

"We've reached the survival zone."

Park Yang-gun suddenly spoke in a parched voice and put on his helmet. I too slowly checked my equipment. I put on my helmet, counted the remaining Molotov cocktails in my eco bag, and took several pistols from my pockets to check the ammunition.

'Our firepower is lacking.'

Armaments that were nothing compared to rifles or machine guns. But that wasn't important. Even a single gunshot could cause enough confusion.

As we approached the survival zone, we could see survivors who had gathered to evacuate. I smiled at the sight of countless people's backs visible even from a distance.

However and wherever they had survived, enough survivors to fill the streets were murmuring together.

As we got closer, we could hear people's voices, and beyond the crowd, there appeared to be a platform made by stacking desks. On that platform, with temporary electric lighting installed, stood a firefighter and RiderZero.

"This is terrorism..."

"We must unite..."

They were saying something, but it was hard to hear clearly from this distance.

Roughly, they were saying this isn't how backfires are set, this is terrorism by a madman, we need to work together to counter this terrorism, the alliance has stockpiled enough firefighting supplies, and so on.

Even in this situation, RiderZero maintained his emphasis on unity, and surprisingly, it was working. Survivors backed into a corner were setting aside their malice and nodding one by one.

I drew my pistol, aimed at the back of someone's head in front of me, and fired.

Bang, a dry gunshot rang out, and the person with a hole in the back of their head collapsed. Silence fell for a moment, and countless people looked at me. Among those gazes, I grinned and shouted:

"The police captain says to kill them all. There might be marauders mixed in."

Glancing at my wristwatch, it was 7 o'clock. In the distance, from the opposite side of the survival zone, gunshots rang out. The sound of my companions launching their attack.