Chapter 54 Reflections on Stewing Meat

Using wild boar meat as emergency rations must seem unsuitable to many; after all, the meat of such wild animals can hardly be described as delicious.

However, if you happen to have a packet of meat tenderizer—that fine white powder—you need only sprinkle some over the wild boar meat and let it sit for a while. When it is time to cook, toss a spice packet containing Sichuan peppercorns and star anise into the pot, along with a dash of chicken bouillon, and soon a strange aroma will begin to rise from the pot. Before your eyes, the water boils relentlessly, and the wild boar meat loses its raw, bloody color.

At this point, you need to turn off the heat first and skim away all the off-white or slightly reddish froth floating on the surface. If the broth is too dark, it is best to fish out the spice packet altogether and either pour out all the liquid or retain just a portion of the clearer broth.

When you simmer it a second time, put the spice packet back in. It is best to chop the once-simmered wild boar meat into thumb-sized chunks. This is exhausting work; not only is the meat scalding hot, but cutting too much semi-cooked meat will cause your lower back and legs to ache, as well as the webs of your hands. Action and reaction are equal and opposite—as you cut the meat, the meat silently pushes that force right back at you.

The water boils once more. Compared to the first time, only a small amount of froth appears. After clearing that away as well, you simply shove a couple of logs into the stove and snap the lid shut. There is no rush to add salt; wait until a rich aroma wafts through the air before doing so.

"Eat~"

Hye-won was always straightforward when it came to food. Having Xiao Guang adjust Tuan-tuan's position for her and button up her mascot costume, she stared unblinkingly at the backyard stove.

They had brought down six wild boars today, big and small. Looking over the harvest, Xiao Guang took out the previously stored wild boar meat. Four of the six boars had crashed into things and killed themselves, while Bae Joo-hyun had beaten the other two to death with an iron chain. It was clear Joo-hyun hadn't slept enough and was in a foul mood; even the boar skulls were crushed to pieces.

That was why they were stewing meat today. Who doesn't love eating meat? Look at how obedient Hye-won was, coming out early to sit on the steps facing the backyard, her eyes filled with anticipation.

"Can you smell the stewing meat?"

This was something Xiao Guang had to consider. What if the fragrance of the stewed meat attracted zombies? Then he would have to weigh the risk factor of cooking it.

Yet to be honest, even with a certain degree of risk, Xiao Guang was going to do it anyway. It had been far too long since he had enjoyed a proper meal of meat. Those meager scraps of meat in pre-packaged meals were entirely too teasing.

"I can smell it. No feelings about it."

That was Bae Joo-hyun's reply. Xiao Guang turned to look at Min-ju, who also nodded. Puzzled, Xiao Guang looked at Hye-won.

"Hye-won, you can smell it too, right?"

"Yes. Delicious."

Delicious? That was certainly not what Bae Joo-hyun and Min-ju had meant. Xiao Guang looked at Hye-won again, walked up to her, cupped her face, and made her look at him.

"Hye-won, how is it delicious? Explain clearly."

"Better than bugs."

Xiao Guang had no way of guessing what kind of bugs Hye-won was talking about, though most likely they were creatures like cicadas. Looking at Hye-won's face, no wonder she could run wild through the wilderness with half her bottom exposed—it turned out she had been constantly ingesting energy all along.

It made sense that the two girls spinning on stage were in a different situation. After being infected, they engaged in blind, repetitive movement; even as zombies, they couldn't withstand that kind of constant depletion, ultimately wasting away to skin and bone.

Could their complete loss of reason be related to a lack of energy intake? Anyway, the meat was simmering. Xiao Guang and the three girls sat together on the steps, holding Min-ju in his arms with one girl on either side, feeling that he ought to think things through.

"You are important!"

Unprovoked, Bae Joo-hyun suddenly spoke. Xiao Guang turned his head to look; the more he looked at her red eyes, the prettier they seemed.

"Praising me, aren't you? Tell me, in what way am I important?"

"Brain is very messy. Don't know what to do."

Bae Joo-hyun seemed to ponder for a long time before offering her next sentence. Xiao Guang watched her; she still appeared to be deep in thought. Pulling back Min-ju, who had reached out her leg to step on Hye-won's, Xiao Guang waited for Bae Joo-hyun to continue.

"Very chaotic. Can't see the light. Very hungry."

The statement sounded simple, yet Xiao Guang felt it carried a wealth of meaning. Hearing her mention being hungry, he couldn't help asking,

"Then when you were at the bakery, what did you eat?"

"Eat dough."

As expected, that was the answer. Could raw dough even be eaten? Xiao Guang had certainly never tried. Sensing that Min-ju in his arms was once again attempting to stretch out her leg to step on Hye-won, Xiao Guang patted Min-ju's bottom.

"Min-ju, what did you hide away and eat before?"

"Huh?"

"I said, while you were hiding in the broadcasting station, what did you eat?"

"Stolen."

What did stolen mean? Xiao Guang couldn't help glancing at Bae Joo-hyun. Joo-hyun's eyes flickered as she opened her mouth toward Min-ju, uttering a few syllables Xiao Guang couldn't understand. Then, turning to Xiao Guang, she said,

"Go out at night and steal food."

Was there plenty of food at the broadcasting station? There should have been a cafeteria and convenience stores, presumably. Xiao Guang shook his head and reached out to stroke Hye-won, who was still staring intently at the stove.

"What did Hye-won eat before?"

"Bugs."

"What kind of bugs?"

"Climb trees."

Good grief, no wonder you ran so fast out in the wild—high protein, tastes like chicken, right? So, after being infected with the virus, having a food supply was a crucial factor in whether one could maintain their sanity?

Xiao Guang tried to make sense of it. The virus required a massive expenditure of mental energy. Once the human body's potential was completely exhausted without any replenishment of energy, the virus would begin wreaking further havoc on the brain, turning people into frenzied predators.

A perfect closed loop. As for what the actual truth was, it didn't really matter. Where the virus came from—whether from the permafrost of the polar regions, brought by a meteorite, or smuggled in via a lunar probe—Xiao Guang didn't think he had any way of finding out.

Xiao Guang had always maintained a sense of awe toward microorganisms. Untouchable and invisible, they were terrifying to him.

The fact that they could burrow into blood vessels, march all the way to the brain, and subsequently manipulate humans into turning into bizarre creatures was entirely beyond Xiao Guang's comprehension. If given the choice, he would much rather have a giant, fire-breathing monster drop down from the sky.

If it were a colossal beast, humanity would surely have countless ways to deal with it, even building massive mechas like in *Pacific Rim*. Though that was a useless fantasy, relying on humanity's conventional firepower, dropping a nuclear bomb would certainly be more useful than building giant mechas.

Stroking Min-ju's slender, beautiful legs and racking his brains to think, Xiao Guang could only sigh,

"Viruses truly are humanity's greatest enemy."

The large pot of meat was stewed over wood fires until the meat fell away from the bones. Excitedly, Xiao Guang pulled out a small dish and poured some soy sauce into it. To put it simply, bone-in meat dipped in soy sauce—the single word "savory" covered it all.

After polishing off a large marrow bone in one breath and just about to continue, he heard a pitiful voice.

"Oppa~~"

The only one who would call him that was Min-ju. Turning his head, he saw all three girls staring at him—staring at his fingers, staring at the dish of soy sauce in front of him. Was that drool at the corner of Hye-won's mouth?

It seemed a bit much; he really ought to feed them.

"Chew. That's right, today we are learning to chew. Just like this, yes, similar to biting."

The three zombie girls sat kneeling beside Xiao Guang. He dipped a piece of meat in soy sauce and placed it into their mouths. At first, all three of them tilted their heads back, giving Xiao Guang the illusion that he was a mother bird feeding its chicks.

Watching the three zombie girls simply swallow the meat whole, Xiao Guang felt that wasn't quite right. This wasn't instant noodles or porridge; it was time for them to learn some new skills.

Even though juices and soy sauce occasionally leaked from the corners of the three girls' mouths, at least they no longer had to keep their heads tilted back the entire time.

Xiao Guang felt his method was quite good. While teaching the three girls how to chew, he could use the time to eat himself.

The four of them sat face to face eating meat, with Xiao Guang occasionally reaching out to wipe the corners of the girls' mouths. He felt immensely happy.

Indeed, the birth of happiness sometimes required only a tiny environment and someone willing to face you. In the wrong time and the wrong world, he had somehow managed to find the right people.

Even if they were zombie girls, and the thought might be somewhat immoral, happiness never lies.