By Zephyria 
“When will you get the prosthetic leg implanted?”
“Not yet. I heard the wound needs to heal more.”
“Have you decided which one you’ll get?”
“The strongest and most durable one. I bet my leg strength is better than yours now.”
Oh Nam-gi looked down at Seo Young-jun’s amputated leg beneath his pants. While he was relieved that Seo Young-jun was enduring it better than expected, he couldn’t completely erase the gloom from his face. The sharp-witted Seo Young-jun noticed this and asked what was wrong.
“Your visit isn’t just for a get-well check-up, is it? Just tell me honestly.”
Oh Nam-gi let out a low sigh. Then, he glanced around. It was a private room, so no one was listening, but it was a mission carried out in secret, so he couldn’t carelessly leak any information. However, who was Seo Young-jun? Wasn’t he a comrade who had gone through thick and thin with him? Moreover, he felt like he would die if he didn’t pour out his heart to someone right now.
“We went out on a mission the other day.”
“Where to?”
“That place again. The lake.”
Seo Young-jun’s expression darkened. That was the place that had cost him his leg, and he seemed worried that another monster might have appeared. Oh Nam-gi mumbled something incomprehensible, saying the monsters weren’t far away, and that they themselves felt like monsters.
“No matter how I look at it, they weren’t rebels.”
“Who are you talking about?”
“The people who lived hidden underground.”
Oh Nam-gi recounted the mission from two days prior in relative detail. He said the order came suddenly, and he thought they were going to suppress rebels until they arrived. Most of them had thought the same.
They had set off smoke bombs underground and waited for them to come out. Afterward, armed individuals emerged from inside and were all shot down, but they didn’t seem like rebels at all, he explained. He added that most of the remaining people were women or children.
“Rebels aren’t written on their faces. Did you forget? Remember how a child’s bomb attack once threw the entire military into chaos?”
“I’m not some clueless private. If you had been there, you would have thought the same. The other guys also seem uneasy, though they don’t say it. So, I can’t complain to anyone about this. Oh, and something even stranger,”
Oh Nam-gi lowered his voice considerably.
“I heard this from my cousin who’s in the Air Force, and you have to keep it to yourself.”
Seo Young-jun waited patiently, without rushing him. Oh Nam-gi sighed deeply several times before continuing as if he had made up his mind.
“They ordered all personnel to be on standby for an emergency. My cousin was on leave and got called back urgently. He asked me if I had heard anything, but what could I possibly know? But when I think about it, there’s only one thing the Air Force would be needed for.”
What Oh Nam-gi referred to meant bombing key facilities. Except for District A, other districts had high population densities, so even if rebels were found, they were usually dealt with by ground troops, and aerial bombardment was rare. It was almost never done unless the intention was complete annihilation.
“Don’t tell me… it’s where Ire is?”
Oh Nam-gi didn’t deny Seo Young-jun’s speculation. Yesterday’s news had reported that the number of rebels was increasing and they were gathering around Zone D. Unlike before, the report was specific.
As hatred towards outsiders intensified and even the Vice Chairman’s child was murdered, people’s anxiety grew. Although only Park Mu-jin had actually died, they seemed to believe they could suffer the same fate at any moment. Furthermore, with the news about Kim Ha-yoon added, people couldn’t help but be more agitated.
“Where’s Ire?”
“He wasn’t at home. I only met his adoptive father briefly.”
Seo Young-jun thought for a moment, then recalled something. He gestured for Oh Nam-gi to come closer, and Oh Nam-gi leaned in. When Seo Young-jun motioned him closer still, Oh Nam-gi reluctantly brought his ear near Seo Young-jun’s lips.
“Don’t breathe on me. It’s gross.”
“Be quiet and listen carefully.”
As Seo Young-jun explained, Oh Nam-gi’s brow furrowed deeper. He got angry, calling Seo Young-jun crazy and saying they’d both be finished if they were caught. Seo Young-jun then sighed.
“Who said I’m asking you to go?”
“Then?”
“You know that car robot you made in college?”
“Sonny?”
“Yeah, that one.”
Oh Nam-gi scowled.
“Are you crazy? Make sense. What would you use something like that for?”
“We don’t have any other options right now.”
“That’s enough. It’s not our job. We don’t even have a pass. How would we even do it? It’s impossible to get it out of the district in the first place. Do you know that?”
Seo Young-jun’s expression was quite serious. Thanks to that, Oh Nam-gi could no longer dismiss it as a joke. Conflict still brewed in his mind. Was this the right thing to do? What would happen if the situation worsened because of this? As he struggled to make a decision, someone knocked firmly on the door. Startled, he turned to see Kwon So-young had already entered and was smiling brightly.
“What are you two plotting together?”
* * *
“Why are you bringing the food? Where’s Ire?”
Gilsu placed the bowl of porridge next to the bed with a gruff expression. Kim Ha-yoon was recovering quickly, but Ire’s condition had noticeably worsened over the past few days. He had heard that the old man’s residence had been attacked by soldiers. When he went there, he saw that the young men were dead and the rest had been taken away.
“Just eat what you’re given. Do you think I wanted to come here?”
“I’m asking you. Where’s Ire?”
Gilsu recalled the events of that day at the lake. The devilish look of Ire laughing as he pushed him into the water and pressed his head down. Kim Ha-yoon was in no condition to fight. He was barely moving due to the stitches in his abdomen. He wanted revenge, but it felt cowardly to do so against someone who was injured. Of course, he was also afraid of repercussions.
“I don’t know, so go see for yourself. If you can walk, that is.”
Hmph. He snorted and ostentatiously kicked the door open, leaving. Kim Ha-yoon, left alone, looked at the bland bean porridge and shifted his position, lowering his legs off the bed. As his feet touched the floor, a throbbing pain shot through his abdomen.
Damn it. He managed to stand up straight, leaning on the bed, and it felt a little better. Fortunately, the wound hadn’t split open. He walked out and followed the corridor, reaching the room where Ire was staying.
After a light knock, he opened the door and entered, seeing a figure lying still as a mouse. What had disheartened such a spirited child? As he approached, Ire turned at the sound of his presence and sat up abruptly.
“How did you get here!”
Instead of answering, Kim Ha-yoon gazed down at Ire.
“What’s wrong? You haven’t been coming.”
At those words, Ire looked incredulous.
He chided Kim Ha-yoon for coming to find him after only a few days.
“It might be just a few days for you, but it wasn’t for me.”
“Are you worried I abandoned Captain and ran off somewhere else?”
“Yes.”
“……”
“I have committed grave sins. I have no right to complain if I am abandoned.”
“……”
“But not now. Later. Use me as much as you want, torment me, and then abandon me.”
Ire didn’t reply. In fact, he had been deliberately avoiding Kim Ha-yoon since the incident a few days ago. After all, he was part of Kim Ha-yoon’s military. Even if he had stepped down now, the fact remained that Kim Ha-yoon was the one who had first created the special forces.
“The old man’s home was raided… Soldiers came by.”
Kim Ha-yoon showed no reaction.
“I thought it was because of me. If I hadn’t stirred things up there… If I hadn’t pestered the old man to bring me here… wouldn’t they have been safe? Why do people always die wherever I go? It was like that before, and it’s still like that.”
Ire paused and took a breath. When he had told the old man about this, the old man had said that what happened was bound to happen, and it wasn’t his fault. Seeing the old man, who, instead of blaming him, insisted it wasn’t his fault, made Ire feel even more heartbroken.
“Do you need comfort?”
Ire shook his head slowly. More than comfort, saving people was the priority right now. But was there a way? If they attacked head-on, it would be all-out war. There was no guarantee that Ire’s family there would be safe. With a heavy heart, he lowered his head, and Kim Ha-yoon came and gently hugged him. He smelled strongly of disinfectant.
“I said I didn’t need it.”
“It’s not comfort, it’s encouragement. Cheer up and kill all the bastards who pick on you.”
“Then you should be the first one to die.”
“If it’s by your hand, I’ll gladly accept it.”
“……”
Just then, the door burst open and Gilsu rushed in. “Captain!” he called out, and Kim Ha-yoon quickly pulled away. Normally, he would have pestered them about why they were like that, but today, he seemed not to see them at all.
“Hurry up and come out! Something strange appeared at the entrance!”
“Something strange?”
“It’s a car, and it’s, it’s…”
Gilsu made a gesture with his hands as if shaping something, then gave up with a sigh and grabbed Ire’s arm. He urged them to come out and see for themselves.