43. Uljin Nuclear Power Plant. (2)

The elderly man in the white coat.

He approached us.

Good grief.

Up close, he looked even more real.

His eyes, nose, and cheekbones cast deep shadows, and his face showed no signs of life.

Even a Moai statue would look more lively than that face.

He was looking at me.

It was as if no one else existed except me.

But he wasn’t really looking at me.

It was as if he was looking through me, at something behind me.

His eyes were just two hollow holes.

What kind of face is this?

Due to the eerie atmosphere the man in the white coat exuded, no one-neither the special forces commander, Seong Ga-yeon, Sergeant Song, nor the special forces members-spoke a word.

What kind of experience could make a person’s face look like this?

I slowly opened my mouth.

But the man in the white coat spoke first.

“Are you living people?”

His tone was flat, with no inflection or emotion.

Reading from a textbook would be more lively than this.

Living people? What is he talking about?

He’s right in front of us, so what is he saying?

Special Forces Commander Seong Gyu-hyuk carefully observed the man and said:

“We are government troops. We have been dispatched to secure the safety of the nuclear power plant and to ensure its normal operation. May I ask who you are? Are you an employee here?”

The man in the white coat slowly turned his gaze.

His eyes didn’t move; only his head did, which was quite unsettling.

With his dead fish eyes, he looked at Seong Gyu-hyuk and said:

“…There is no government. Our world has ended.”

Sergeant Song stepped forward and said:

“The president is alive, so the government is alive. We are government troops-“

“Be quiet.”

The man in the white coat distorted his face and said:

Sergeant Song’s expression changed.

My expression probably wasn’t much different.

The man in the white coat was staring at empty space.

“We are having a conversation. Can you be quiet for a moment? What kind of talk is that? You’re being rude to the guests!”

Fear spread across Seong Ga-yeon’s face.

Well, women are scared of such things.

Seong Gyu-hyuk looked at me with a serious expression.

I could tell from his gaze what he was thinking.

This man is insane.

The man in the white coat turned his head back to Sergeant Song.

“I apologize. What did you say? The president is alive?”

Instead of answering the question, Seong Gyu-hyuk tilted his head slightly and observed the man in the white coat.

He looked at the man seriously and then said quietly:

“…Sir, are you alright?”

The man in the white coat blinked a few times and said:

“I am fine.”

Seong Gyu-hyuk asked:

“Do you know what time it is?”

The man in the white coat looked at his wristwatch and said:

“It’s just past eleven.”

“Where are you standing right now?”

“At the Hanul Nuclear Power Plant. Why are you asking such questions?”

Seong Gyu-hyuk didn’t answer immediately. He kept his hand on his assault rifle and observed the man in the white coat closely.

The man in the white coat was wearing a white coat over a shirt, tie, and shoes, but he didn’t seem to be carrying anything.

Seong Gyu-hyuk said:

“You just spoke to empty space. Are you aware of that?”

The man in the white coat’s eyebrows slowly furrowed.

He tilted his head slightly, as if he didn’t understand what was being said.

Then, he looked to the side of the empty space.

He turned his gaze back to Seong Gyu-hyuk.

“…Can’t you see this child?”

Seong Gyu-hyuk shook his head.

“There’s nothing there.”

The man in the white coat’s face showed some expression.

The deep wrinkles on his parched face deepened even more.

His teeth were exposed.

His eyes narrowed.

…Is he smiling?

It was clearly a smile, but his dark complexion made it unsettling.

Seong Ga-yeon flinched and stepped back, standing behind me.

The man in the white coat looked at Seong Gyu-hyuk with that face and said:

“I’m not crazy!”

He then bent his body and extended his hands.

Looking at the gaunt, middle-aged man, I was taken aback.

No, you are.

Are you really okay?

Looking around, I saw no other signs of life beyond the man in the white coat.

Whether no one else was there or they couldn’t come out, the only person in front of us was this man in the white coat.

The problem was that, from his attire and appearance, he looked like an employee here.

If he was the only surviving employee at this nuclear power plant, it would be a big problem.

Sergeant Song came along to handle the machinery, but as he admitted, he was just a mechanic and knew nothing about nuclear power plants.

Who would operate this massive facility?

I looked at Seong Gyu-hyuk, feeling quite perplexed.

Seong Gyu-hyuk’s expression showed he felt the same way.

The man in the white coat waved his arms excitedly.

“I thought I was crazy! I thought I was crazy! Of course, I couldn’t be!”

A metallic sound came from the man’s throat.

He seemed to want to shout, but his voice was hoarse and only came out as a scratchy sound.

The man laughed brightly and continued to rejoice, but then he suddenly gasped and staggered.

He leaned forward and took a deep breath, then slowly lifted his head to look at Seong Gyu-hyuk.

“Ah, right. You can’t come in yet. Just a moment. Power…”

He then turned and walked slowly.

After a few steps, he stopped, turned around, and said:

“When I signal, crawl under the fence. Don’t damage it.”

We watched as the man in the white coat walked away, leaving those words behind.

Seong Gyu-hyuk approached me and asked:

“What do you think?”

I shrugged and said:

“He’s just a crazy man. But there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Seong Gyu-hyuk nodded and said:

“Yes. I hoped some employees would have survived, but this changes things. If it doesn’t work out, we can consider going to another power plant.”

That’s true.

Even if the facility is there, it’s useless without someone to manage it.

However, it’s been three months since the apocalypse.

Would another power plant be in better condition?

What if they’re all gone?

I tilted my head and said:

“Let’s see how it goes. If it doesn’t work, we’ll go, but we should try.”

“Understood.”

After a moment, the man in the white coat leaned out of the window of the square building and waved his hand.

That must be the signal.

Seong Gyu-hyuk tore some grass and threw it at the fence.

Nothing happened.

Sergeant Song grumbled:

“If we’re going to crawl, why not just cut the bottom?”

Seong Gyu-hyuk shook his head.

“No. The mountain is right there. If even a small animal or a rat gets in, it’ll be problematic. We’ll crawl.”

Sergeant Song sighed and shook his head.

“Really. We have to trust this crazy man and crawl under this thing?”

Seong Gyu-hyuk looked at the man in the white coat again, standing by the window.

He didn’t look happy.

Looking around, I saw abandoned trucks, trailers, and cars on the opposite side of the road.

I pointed at the vehicles and said:

“Let’s use one of those.”

I walked toward a truck.

The man in the white coat, seeing us, tilted his head and looked at us.

He must be wondering why we’re not coming in.

If you hadn’t been talking to yourself, we would have crawled in.

Using the space claws and Dalgaram to carry everyone over would be an option, but I only have seven uses left for the space claws.

With a crazy man and the growling sound from the mountain, I don’t want to waste the space claws.

So, the space claws are out of the question.

I stood in front of the trailer.

The tires were massive compared to a car’s.

Six tires on the ground and a spare tire on top.

…This should work.

“I’ll remove the tire.”

Sergeant Song ran over and started removing the spare tire with tools.

A few special forces members helped him.

After a short while, they completely removed the tire and rolled it to the fence.

They pushed it hard against the fence.

Creak!

The fence made a screeching sound as it was pushed, but it didn’t break.

The special forces members started to crawl through the narrow gap.

I kept watch, looking at the mountain and the surroundings while everyone crossed.

The mountain was still a concern.

The growling sound from earlier.

Without the high-voltage fence, if something appears, we’ll have to fight.

Fortunately, nothing happened until all the team members crossed.

“Seong Hoon.”

Seong Ga-yeon gestured to me from the other side.

Damn.

I wish I could just use the space claws to jump over.

…Would two uses be okay?

Ah, damn. I’m conflicted.

I bent down slightly and saw my shadow.

The Ingram submachine guns on my thighs.

The two swords on my waist.

The quiver and arrows on my back.

Compared to the special forces members, who carried assault rifles, magazines, and grenades, my equipment was on a different level.

…I won’t fit through that narrow gap without getting stuck.

Damn.

…Let’s just use it.

Two uses should be fine, right?

I sighed and gestured to the team members to step back.

They slowly moved away.

I raised my hand to the sky and clenched it.

The ground suddenly seemed far away.

I shot up nearly 30 meters, and for a moment, the fence and the people below looked tiny.

Gasps of amazement came from below.

I slowly started to descend.

I extended my hand and clenched it, aiming for the empty space where the team members had moved away.

Boom!

My feet, knees, and fists.

I felt the impact.

Dust and dirt rose around me.

I brushed off my hands and slowly stood up.

The special forces members looked at me with awe.

“I, I’ve never seen this in person… This… This is incredible.”

Sergeant Song, stuttering, and the special forces members, looking at me, I walked forward.

“Let’s go.”