39-55

EP. 55. Exchange Center Opens 

Day 14 of the zombie apocalypse. 

It’s already been two days since the “exchange center,” which would become the foundation of my power, opened for business. 

But there was one thing that surprised not only me, who had been full of anticipation, but also the residents who had been hired as exchange center staff. 

That was the fact that in the past two days, the number of visitors had been zero. 

No customers came, and the last two days ended with us just dealing with the occasional lost zombie clinging to the fence. 

With the electricity out, the internet naturally went down as well, and I had expected that publicity wouldn’t work as well as before the apocalypse… 

Still, it was a shock to have not a single visitor in two days. 

‘I can’t go out handing out flyers or do loudspeaker announcements… Ah, I should have posted on SNS in advance…’ 

I regretted, too late, the disastrously poor publicity. 

As I wondered, “Is this really going to work?” and anxiety grew in the eyes of me and the others watching the main gate, 

Kim Chansu, who had been guarding the gate with a bored expression like the others, suddenly stood up from his chair. 

He looked at me, standing right next to the exchange window, and gave me a thumbs up. 

It was a signal that a “customer”-not a zombie or a gang of armed raiders-was approaching. 

The next moment, 

All the staff at the window and on security, including me, snapped out of our daydreams and tensed up, 

And through the main gate’s barbed wire, we saw a man approaching. 

He was holding a baseball bat wrapped in wire, cautiously approaching the exchange center. 

A short while later, 

As the first presumed customer, wearing a hockey mask that covered his whole face, came within 5 meters, 

Kim Chansu followed the prearranged procedure and called out, 

“Stop. Stop. Stop. Raise your hands and approach slowly.” 

“Sigh…” 

The triple “stop” command, familiar to any Korean man who’s done military service, made the hockey mask man pause for a moment. 

He sighed, raised both hands above his shoulders, and slowly walked up to the fence, then spoke first. 

“I saw the banner and came to trade supplies. I have no intention of causing trouble, so please open the gate.” 

“Uh, um…” 

His confident declaration of purpose, before we even asked, made Kim Chansu glance at me in confusion. 

Come on, if you know he’s a customer, just let him in and collect his weapon… Why are you looking at me and making this awkward? 

I should have put Park Sanghyuk on gate duty… 

Right after, 

Noticing this procedural hiccup, I nodded. 

Kim Chansu, regaining some confidence, opened the gate and asked the hockey mask man to hand over his weapon. 

But then, another thing happened to fluster our doorman. 

Clunk, creeeak 

“Welcome to our exchange center. Please note that weapons are not allowed inside. Please hand over your weapon, and you can collect it when you leave.” 

“No.” 

“Okay, then… what?” 

The hockey mask man flatly refused to hand over his weapon, and now Kim Chansu’s pupils shook as he looked back at me again. 

Feeling a twinge in my neck, I grabbed my crossbow and headed to the gate myself. 

Putting on my best customer service smile from my pre-military part-time jobs, I greeted our first customer. 

“Is there a problem, sir?” 

“Who are you?…” 

“I’m the manager of this exchange center. From afar, it looked like there was an issue with handing over your weapon. Is that correct?” 

“Yes. In a world like this, I have to protect myself, so handing over my weapon makes no sense.” 

“That’s exactly why this rule is necessary. It’s an essential policy to ensure the safety of all our customers.” 

When I said “essential policy,” the customer frowned behind his mask. 

Ignoring that, I continued to explain the need for weapon surrender. 

“With laws meaningless and no restraint on individuals, even small disputes can turn into stabbings or worse. For everyone’s safety, only staff may carry weapons inside the center.” 

“But it looks like I’m the only customer right now, so there’s no need for me to hand over my weapon. There’s no one to fight with. And if your staff attack me, how do I defend myself?” 

He pointed out he was alone and questioned what he’d do if the staff attacked him. 

Given the “war of all against all” situation, it was a fair point. 

But I couldn’t break the “one rule” of the exchange center with the very first customer. 

If the second customer came and saw the first refusing to hand over his weapon, the “no weapons inside” rule would be broken. 

In a few days, all sorts of incidents would happen. 

“If we make exceptions, it’s not a rule. If you can’t hand over your weapon or don’t trust our center, you’re free to turn around and leave.” 

“…” 

He glanced between my face and the crossbow in my hand, hesitating. 

A tense silence fell over the whole center. 

Ready to raise my crossbow and fire at any moment, I waited about ten seconds. 

The hockey mask man sighed and handed his baseball bat to Kim Chansu. 

With the tension eased, I put my customer service smile back on and welcomed him. 

“Thank you for following our policy, sir. Please come to the exchange window.” 

“Okay.” 

“By the way, are you thirsty? Would you like some water?” … “Uh, um…” 

I took a water bottle out of my sling bag and handed it to him. He eyed it suspiciously. 

Gulp gulp… “Ahh… See, nothing’s poisoned.” 

“…Thank you.” 

I drank first to prove it was safe. 

Only then did he take off his hockey mask and thank me for my kindness. 

Since it’s still early days for the business, 

I kept the generous exchange rate of “one pack of ramen = 1L of water.” 

Maybe that’s why the tense mood of the hockey mask man, Lee Suhan, softened considerably. 

After all, he traded five packs of ramen and some other small items for 10L of water. 

‘That’s enough drinking water for a week if you’re alone, so of course he’s happy.’ 

After Lee Suhan, the first customer, finished his trade, 

I invited him for a cup of tea and set up a seat in the shade away from the exchange window. 

Soon, an ajumma brought two iced Americanos, and Lee Suhan’s eyes widened at the sight of ice in the cups. 

Unable to hide his surprise, he asked, 

“Do you still have electricity here? Or a generator?” 

“That’s a secret. If you join our staff, I’ll tell you.” 

“That’s a bit…” 

“Just kidding. We have a small generator, so we can use electricity in a limited way. We have enough fuel, so next time you visit, I recommend bringing something other than fuel.” 

“Ah, I see. But why did you invite me for coffee…?” 

“To congratulate you on being our first customer and to ask a favor.” 

Hearing I had a favor to ask, he listened while sipping his coffee. 

As I saw anticipation grow on his face, I revealed the “special request.” 

“You know the military came into the city to clear zombies and got wiped out, right?” 

“Of course. The gunfire stopped in less than a day.” 

“What I want to ask is about that. Next time you visit, if you bring any guns or ammo you find in the city, I’ll trade you four times today’s rate in water.” 

“Really?” 

“Of course. And for mounted machine guns, I’ll give you six times the rate.” 

Hearing this “super generous deal” worth four times the current rate, Lee Suhan could barely sit still. 

He already had three K-2 rifles and about 80 rounds of ammo in his hideout, so if he pulled this off, he’d make a huge profit. 

‘If I trade at four times today’s rate, I’ll get at least 80L of water… If I resell what I don’t use, wow, that’s a fortune hehe.’ 

After Lee Suhan, the memorable hockey mask man, left with a smile, 

Three more customers visited the exchange center, and I made the same offer to each of them. 

All three survivors responded positively, and so the third day of the exchange center’s opening came to an end.