episode_0162

Representative Choi, sitting next to him, was discussing opinions with Representative Pyo.

As he spoke seriously, he unbuttoned one button of his shirt.

Seeing him loosen his collar, it seemed he was getting heated.

As it was a place where important matters were being decided for both parties, the atmosphere was heated.

As I was also involved in the matter, I concentrated and followed the conversation.

However, I rapidly lost interest once numbers were brought into the discussion.

‘Hmm…’

Staring blankly—

I, who was occupying a seat in the makeshift meeting room set up in the market, was simply sitting there blankly.

I was clearly listening, but my mind was going blank.

Ultimately, I, who had been sitting quietly, shifted everything to Representative Choi and discreetly slipped out.

‘It would have been a disaster if Representative Choi hadn’t come.’

I glanced back and looked at Representative Choi.

His appearance, discussing opinions with his tie half-loosened, was incredibly reassuring.

Representative Choi was clearly fulfilling his promise to help me.

I sent him a silent thought of deep trust and walked out of the market.

It’s proper etiquette for a young person to step aside when adults are speaking.

I lit a cigarette a little distance from the entrance.

Unlike the stuffy meeting room, the wind was gently blowing outside.

It wasn’t quite cold enough to say it was freezing, but standing in the shade and feeling the cold wind, I could feel the temperature dropping sharply.

‘…I need a hot pack.’

I longed for a hot pack, a reliable friend for outdoor workers.

For me, winter was a difficult season.

I could somehow endure the cold by layering clothes.

My hands could also somehow endure with gloves and hot packs.

However, there was no way to deal with my toes getting so numb they lost feeling.

It wasn’t just once or twice that I worried about getting frostbite.

That’s why I didn’t like winter.

The only good points, if any, were the absence of mosquitoes and not sweating much.

Aside from that, winter was just a cold, difficult season that made me inexplicably hungry quickly.

Smoke, indistinguishable as breath or cigarette smoke, scattered in the wind.

Standing like this made my head cool down and my mind calm.

As I leisurely enjoyed my cigarette, the market people came into view.

‘Ah… they said they were moving to the Konkuk University shelter.’

People were busy packing their belongings and preparing to move.

Director Jang had said the situation wasn’t good, and he wasn’t wrong.

Every one of them looked somewhat exhausted and a little gaunt.

Fortunately, they didn’t seem sick anywhere, but they lacked vitality.

They seemed somewhat comforted by the fact that they were moving to a safe zone where soldiers were present, so their facial expressions weren’t too bad.

People moved their meager belongings into the box truck.

The white box truck that had blocked the market entrance still seemed to be functioning.

As I quietly watched the people moving, trying to survive somehow.

“Ugh, it’s cold~ Ha~ People are working so hard.”

“Yeah. It won’t be entirely good just because it’s a shelter.”

Sarcastic remarks, tinged with a hint of mockery.

The rough, husky voices of a man and a woman broke the atmosphere and reached my ears.

If those people had heard it, they might have questioned if they were looking for a fight, but since it had nothing to do with me, I ignored it.

I just stood there quietly, smoking my cigarette.

“You look well-built and seem to have worked out a bit… but you’re just ordinary? Where are you from?”

The female soldier’s voice from beside me.

I felt an openly scrutinizing, unfriendly gaze.

Keeping my gaze forward, I quietly said,

“I’m not a soldier.”

“What?”

“I haven’t served yet.”

“……”

I had just spoken honestly, but her reaction was immense.

The female soldier, whom I glanced at, was the tomboyish woman I had seen before.

She showed a foolish expression, eyes wide and mouth agape.

Looking like that in her grimy state, she really looked foolish.

“What the… Ha! A civilian kid is coming with us?”

“I’m not a kid.”

“…What?”

“I’m twenty-nine. Sadly, I’ll be thirty soon.”

“…Do I look like I’m joking right now?”

I just spoke honestly, but she was unnecessarily getting hysterical.

How unfair.

Anyway, I had to let her know I wasn’t joking.

“No. I’m not joking.”

“Ugh… I don’t know what Captain-nim is thinking either. Why bring such a rookie…”

“Exactly. I also don’t know what Captain Lee is thinking. I just listened to him because I felt sorry for him.”

“…You!”

“Honestly, if there were only reliable soldiers like you, everything would be solved.”

“……”

I turned my body and faced the two.

“But do people ever mistake you for a woman?”

I asked carefully, and the female soldier made a dumbfounded expression.

It was an easy-to-read expression, like ‘What kind of crazy…?’

And her expression quickly led to an easy reaction.

“No, I’m just curious.”

“This bastard…”

She looked like a soldier through and through, but her actions were no different from a high school girl.

Whispering, chattering.

I had asked seriously, but she was about to rush at me.

At that moment, the man standing next to her intervened.

“Whoa, whoa~ Hold on~”

“Let go. Don’t stop me.”

“Hey, hey~ Calm down.”

The tall, bulky, muscular man who was with the tomboyish female soldier stepped in.

He then gently pushed the female soldier aside, making a gesture of mediation.

The muscular man, stepping forward to calm the female soldier, wore a troubled expression.

“We were just curious who our Captain-nim was so desperately trying to bring, and it turned out like this. My apologies.”

The man awkwardly extended his right hand with a good-natured smile.

“Let’s get along well from now on.”

*GRAB!*

I didn’t hesitate and clasped his hand, and the female soldier watching pouted.

*SQUEEZE!*

‘…How cute.’

I felt force being applied to the hand I held.

The incredibly childish turf war made me laugh, but it had been a long time since I’d experienced something like this, so I indulged him.

“Let’s get along well.”

“…?!”

*SQUEEEZE!*

The flustered man, looking back and forth between my unresponsive face and hand, seemed to have put more strength into his grip. Veins bulged angrily on his hand, and his face flushed.

He seemed confident in his strength, but it was lukewarm, contrary to expectations.

For the man who didn’t know when to give up, I stepped forward.

*CRUUUNCH!*

“Ugh?!”

“You’re well-built and…”

I gradually added more strength to my grip.

“G-Guh!!”

“…and seem to have worked out a bit…”

When I slightly twisted his wrist downwards, the man couldn’t resist and fell to his knees.

“G-Ghoooooo!!”

“…but you’re ordinary.”

I looked down at the soldier, who was desperately struggling to suppress his scream.

“This is completely balloon muscle. How can you use strength anywhere with this?”

*SQUEEZE!*

“G-Grit! SCRAAAAM!”

“Let go of his hand!”

*SWISH – GRAB!*

The female soldier, who had been watching from the side, snatched the fist she had thrown towards my face.

And then I applied force as if to crush her fist.

“Aaah!”

‘Oh… her scream sounds a bit like a woman’s.’

Her oddly toned scream and groan were quite listenable.

My arms were crossed in an ‘X’ shape as I looked down at the two man and woman.

I enjoyed watching the two trembling soldiers, whose hands I held.

It wasn’t a bad sight, considering.

People’s gazes were drawn by the continuous screams.

A few soldiers on guard quickly rushed towards us.

But the fastest to arrive was Captain Lee.

“Stop!”

Captain Lee shouted urgently, as if he had instantly grasped the situation.

But I didn’t release the strength in my hands and looked at him.

“Wait. And don’t order me around.”

“……”

After snapping a remark at him, I lowered my gaze.

“Hey. You two.”

“Groooooan…”

I applied a bit more strength for the two who couldn’t get their act together.

“?!?!”

“Answer.”

“Groooooan! Squeal!!”

They were soldiers, so they still had some backbone.

Right. They needed this much grit.

“Answer.”

“F-f-ck!!”

“Wrong answer.”

*CRUUUNCH!*

“Gaaah! S-Stop!”

“’Stop’ is an order.”

“Alright! I get it!”

“’I get it’ is informal.”

“Groooan!!”

“Hm?”

“Ah, understood, sir!”

“Too quiet.”

“UNDERSTOOD, SIR!!”

Indeed, physical force works everywhere.

Just now, didn’t the stiff man and woman soften up?

I spoke rather gently.

“Big guy. From now on, you’re Balloon. What are you?”

“…Balloon.”

“And you, cross-dressing girl, from now on you’re Delinquent. What are you?”

“……”

“What are you?”

“Th-th-aaah! Delinquent!”

Her defiant spirit was as strong as her appearance suggested, but it was meaningless against the intense pain transmitted through my grip.

“Let’s get along from now on, okay?”

“Ah, understood, sir.”

“I can’t hear you.”

“UNDERSTOOD, SIR!!”

Only after hearing their thunderous reply did I release their hands.

Balloon and Delinquent Girl clutched their seized hands and hunched their bodies.

I often heard the saying that people are pretty much the same everywhere.

Seeing that such incredibly childish turf wars exist everywhere, it’s not a false statement.

I took my eyes off the trembling two and spoke to Captain Lee.

“You should manage your subordinates better.”

“…My apologies.”

I wanted to say, ‘Are these kinds of guys really okay?’, but I held my tongue.

There was no need to cause unnecessary humiliation and hurt each other’s feelings.

“And please do not order me around. I am someone who provides assistance upon request, not your subordinate. Do you understand?”

“I will be careful. And to my subordinates…”

Receiving his calm apology, I didn’t argue further.

Captain Lee also ended it cleanly without excuses and tidied up the surroundings.

“…I’ll see you two later.”

“Ca-Captain-nim…”

The situation was settled with a stern warning to Balloon and the female soldier.

The two awkwardly stood up and glared at me with disgusted expressions.

Then they scrambled to hide behind Captain Lee.

‘With that size, they’re acting like children…’

Seeing that, a small chuckle escaped me.

The turf war itself was unpleasant, but it was a rather cute event, so it wasn’t bad.

Though probably not for them.

And, perfectly timed, people came rushing out from inside.

“Hyung. Is everything done?”

“Oh? You were here. The talk is mostly done. Representative Choi certainly worked hard.”

Listening to my hyung whisper as he approached, I glanced at Representative Choi.

He seemed a bit drained, with a slight sweat trickling down his slowly cooling face.

It was quite cold, yet if merely speaking caused him to look like that, wasn’t it proof that he had put his heart and soul into it?

Indeed, Representative Choi wore a refreshed and satisfied expression.

Representative Pyo, who was exchanging greetings with him, also looked a bit worn out.

Instead, his expression was relatively close to neutral.

Just by looking at the contrasting atmospheres, it was clear which side was the victor.

But I didn’t make it obvious.

I subtly approached Representative Choi.

“You worked hard.”

“Ah, Seonghan. We’ve aligned opinions with Representative Pyo. All that’s left is for you to step up, Seonghan.”

“Leave it to me.”

Representative Choi smiled a carefree smile, seemingly pleased with my brief reply.

I intended to respond in kind for his efforts on my behalf.

Representative Pyo gently interjected into our conversation.

“We plan to return immediately, but what are your intentions, Seonghan? If you need preparation…”

“No. I’ll go right now too.”

“Understood. It seems the residents are also ready, so please get in the car.”

Hearing Representative Pyo’s words, I looked around at my hyung and Representative Choi.

“…I thought we’d just stop by for a moment, but you’re hurrying like this.”

“Since it has to be done anyway, it’s good to finish it quickly.”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

“Hyuk hyung, stop. Seonghan. We will return as planned. We’ll be waiting for all of you to return safely.”

“Thank you.”

“Just so you know, you shouldn’t make old people wait too long.”

“Heh… I’ll keep that in mind.”

A small laugh burst out at Representative Choi’s words.

And I promised to finish quickly and return.

“Well, I’m not worried… but Shia will worry a lot.”

“……”

“Hehe~ I’ll go and soothe her well.”

My hyung specifically brought up Shia, which made me unnecessarily concerned.

“Tell her to dress up nicely and wait.”

“Huh? Nicely? *Pfft*… Alright, got it.”

I saw off the two people getting into the moving truck.

My preparation was complete once I grabbed my backpack and duffel bag from the back seat.

“Hyung. Just in case, don’t go wandering outside.”

“Hey… I’m not a kid or anything…”

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to keep him in line.”

Representative Choi’s reassuring words lightened my heart a little.

“Then, I’ll be back.”

After a somewhat simple farewell, I turned my body.

I felt the gazes of our group behind my back.

I also felt the gazes of other people fixed on me.

I paid no mind and tried to get into the military truck.

“…Are you sure it’s okay to ride in the two-and-a-half-ton truck?”

“However, please ride in this car this time. It’s already full, so we have no choice.”

I sighed, loaded my bags into the trunk, and got into the passenger seat.

The vehicle was a black SUV.

Inside, Representative Kim and Representative Pyo were in the back seat.

I had wanted to ride in the truck because I somehow felt it would be uncomfortable…

“Welcome. We’re about to depart.”

“Ah, yes.”

As soon as the words ended, the military trucks began to move, and the car we were in also started moving.

The SUV followed among the military trucks moving in formation.

Inside the slowly moving car, an awkward silence made the atmosphere uncomfortable.

‘……’

With the market survivors leaving, I had the illusion that Sagajeong Street was empty.

Could this street, this city, truly be filled with people again?

I had spoken calmly to Shia, but I didn’t know how long it would take.

There was a possibility, but it wasn’t certain.

As I silently gazed out the window, Representative Pyo opened his mouth.

“I am grateful for this matter.”

“It’s work I’m compensated for, so it’s fine.”

“Hmph. Is that so… Anyway, it’s fortunate that this matter worked out well. We were able to receive cooperation from Seonghan and rescue the survivors, so it can be considered a success.”

“……”

“We are also highly anticipating that Dr. Jang Myeonghwan joining us will be a great help.”

At his last words, I turned my body and looked at Representative Pyo.

“…Director Jang is going to the Konkuk University shelter?”

“Ah, yes. He said he would join us and lend his strength… Didn’t you know?”

“Well…”

It seemed he had ultimately decided to stay with the people of Sagajeong Market.

He would undoubtedly go through a lot of hardship, but if he chose to do it himself, what right did I have to say anything?

I was just worried that the elderly gentleman might harm himself.

However, a skilled doctor would be of great help to many people.

I only hoped that Director Jang wouldn’t collapse under the difficult times and excessive pressure.

“I heard that your niece, Dr. Jang Heeyeon, will be going with Representative Choi.”

“…Hm.”

“Don’t worry about the residents. We will do our best to protect them.”

“I’m sure you’ll handle it well.”

I spoke calmly, and Representative Pyo smiled faintly.

However, the woman next to him, Representative Kim, had a sullen expression.

She glanced at me and then casually threw out a remark.

“…Are you really ‘that’?”

“’That’?”

“Are you the Arson Villain?”

“…What?”

I couldn’t understand why they kept calling me a villain.

It wasn’t intentional; it just happened while I was trying to deal with zombies.

The title ‘villain’ was ridiculous.

Representative Kim paid no attention to my dumbfounded reaction.

Before I knew it, she had erased her sullen expression, and her eyes sparkled with curiosity.

“Tell me. Is it true? How exactly did you do it back then?”

“……”

Her unpredictable demeanor left me speechless.