episode_0170

For some, love can be the reason.

For others, it might be duty.

Or it could be a desire for personal accomplishment.

But the most common and logical reason is ‘money’.

A certain teacher asked a disciple.

“Explain economics briefly?”

“Labor first, then wages.”

A peerless conclusion that penetrated a textbook thick enough to be used as a blunt weapon.

People need money to live.

The means to acquire that money is labor, that is, work.

They work to continue their lives, envision their future, and enjoy happiness.

But what if they’re not happy?

Then it means the pay isn’t satisfactory compared to the work.

That’s how I felt until just now.

I ran, dashed, and searched the vast land.

For several hours.

When a person keeps coming up empty-handed, they inevitably hit a wall of reality.

I was about to end the day muttering curses, but…

“How sweet.”

My feelings, looking at the enormous amount of ammunition, were nothing short of refreshing.

If it’s like this, I wouldn’t mind running every day.

The emptiness and irritation from just before vanished without a trace.

They say it’s different when you go into the bathroom and when you come out [a proverb about changing one’s mind quickly once the objective is met], and it’s true.

People’s hearts are fickle, and I can’t deny it myself.

My heart endlessly softened at the results that made my chest feel supple.

I, too, am merely a human, weak against desire.

Admitting that I am a sinful animal, I gently stroked the cold steel ammo box.

“…”

He inhaled deeply.

I took a deep breath through my nose.

There was clearly no scent, but it felt as if I could smell the acrid scent of gunpowder.

It was difficult to erase the smile spread across my lips.

I slowly reached out and began sweeping the ammunition into my inventory.

There was no movement, no clattering sound.

Large steel boxes were sucked into thin air silently.

It was a wondrous sight, no matter how many times I saw it.

It was fortunate that I could still store them so easily now.

If I had to pick them up one by one, like during the Holy Sale, it would have been truly terrible.

That feeling of crouching and walking an endless duck walk…

Honestly, if I were told to do it again, I wouldn’t be confident.

The tingling memory of past days when my legs went numb.

Naturally, I felt grateful for the utility of the inventory.

“Ah.”

I paused my diligent sweeping.

I had completely forgotten.

Captain Lee and the soldiers.

Captain Lee and his men were also desperate for weapons and ammunition.

Hadn’t we agreed to split whatever we found in half from the start?

They must be waiting for me anxiously even now.

“Oops!” I slapped my forehead.

I scratched my unnecessarily itchy temple and looked back.

The amount I had swept up while walking was considerable.

I couldn’t take out what I had already put in…

‘Let’s take half from now on.’

I was conscious of Captain Lee, who had risked his life to come this far for the civilians.

I suppressed my greed, decided to take a moderate amount, and moved again.

For a person, trustworthiness is important.

Even during my adventurer days, my trustworthiness was top-notch.

There’s no one watching now, so I could take everything.

But I couldn’t convince myself.

I am different from those people whose whereabouts are unknown.

I praised myself for suppressing my greed as a human being.

Just in case, I didn’t just sweep everything up haphazardly.

I didn’t know what Captain Lee needed.

So, when packing the ammo boxes, though cumbersome, I checked their specifications.

Fortunately, they were categorized by specification in each section, so it wasn’t too hard on the eyes.

It was just more cumbersome than simply grabbing them.

Enduring the hassle, I diligently and industriously packed the ammo boxes.

Inside the cool, spacious ammunition depot, only the sound of my movements could be heard.

Clatter—

Occasionally, I’d also check the bullets for no particular reason.

To me, they all looked pretty much the same.

If it weren’t for the labels on the outside, I might not have been able to tell them apart.

Then I realized something.

‘5.56mm… this is the most common one?’

The bullets themselves were stored in various types.

However, in terms of quantity, the ammunition labeled 5.56mm was the most abundant.

6.xx and 9x19mm in separate boxes followed behind.

Looking at the numbers only gave me a headache.

Looking at the size, they were mostly similar, but there were also some that were completely different in size.

There were some as small as a thumb, and some that were distinctly thick and large.

It was a new realization, but I understood that bullets were as diverse as the types of guns.

I worried, wondering if perhaps each gun had its own specific caliber.

…It seems like you can’t just fire any gun.

Perhaps I had simply thought it would be easy just because I’d used a rifle a few times.

Anyway.

That’s one thing, and this is another [an idiom meaning to separate issues or acknowledge different aspects without conflating them].

First, I packed, and then I packed more.

If I didn’t know something, I could just ask.

Since I’m thinking of them this much, it shouldn’t be hard for them to tell me a bit.

With that thought, I diligently packed the ammunition.

Some were in steel containers, while others were separately packaged in wooden boxes.

The boxes and containers were varied, but the contents were only bullets.

I wondered if there might be something like missiles or grenades, but there weren’t any.

‘These bastards claim to like variety, but why is everything so uniform?’

There should at least be some weapons, but there was nothing like that.

It was a bit disappointing, but this alone was meaningful enough.

Amidst my slight regret, it didn’t take long to leave a certain proportion behind.

There were awkwardly empty spaces here and there, but I thought it would be fine.

Finally, I glanced around the wide space, but nothing particularly stood out.

It was a space faithful only to its purpose, and it was actively serving that role.

Leaving the half-emptied ammunition depot behind, I headed outside.

The rest was Captain Lee’s men’s share.

As I walked, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.

‘…How are they planning to move all that?’

The sheer quantity was one thing, but each one was considerably heavy.

To move all that, wouldn’t they need to bring a truck?

I thought for a moment, then kept walking.

Captain Lee must have a plan.

As my mind lightened, my steps also became lighter.

I passed by the pile of rocks and carefully slipped out through the iron gate.

Outside, the sun was already setting towards evening.

I watched the sun slowly set, then picked up my radio.

I hadn’t exchanged contact for too long.

They were probably worried sick by now…

“…”

Even the power was off.

I quickly turned it on and radioed.

“Captain Lee-nim. Can you hear me?”

No answer came back.

It seemed the radio wasn’t a long-range model.

I re-clipped the radio to my shoulder and began to run.

It was a day spent running endlessly.

But I didn’t feel bad.

My heart felt as soft as my inventory felt full.

It seemed I could use the bullets for a long, long time, as long as I didn’t pour them out.

Even if I couldn’t use them, perhaps I could use them like currency.

Ammunition that didn’t fit my weapons would probably be good for trading.

Somehow, I felt like a rich man, and my body felt lighter.

While hastily moving towards Captain Lee’s location, I found a strange building.

A large building built with clean white and bright bricks.

The building itself was single-story but spacious.

And a wide parking lot extending from the building.

I changed my running direction and approached the building.

In the wide parking lot, there were abandoned cars, though not many.

Among them, military trucks were visible.

Abandoned corpses were also visible on the still-bright street.

Corpses dressed in military uniforms were visible.

The majority of the corpses were dressed in civilian clothes.

Among the bodies of adult men and women, smaller figures were also visible.

Their skin color was no different from the corpses’.

However, every one of them had different hair colors.

It wasn’t the black hair of Koreans.

Could they be U.S. military personnel or their families?

The number of bodies wasn’t large, but it wasn’t small either.

Around the bodies, discarded daily necessities were scattered.

Spilled food ingredients were also visible on the faint bloodstains.

I turned my head to examine the building.

『We have you money every day!』

Even if I didn’t know the long English text at the entrance, I could read what was on the wall.

『P.X』

Large letters decorated with a picture similar to the American flag, symbolizing the United States.

Checking that, I understood why people had been sacrificed here.

“…This is a PX?”

I was dumbfounded.

There was a severe disconnect from the PX I knew.

A place where soldiers looked for stimulating flavors with their meager pocket money.

A place to enjoy frozen foods and self-developed instant cup noodle recipes.

A place with those foods I didn’t want to touch after discharge, but sometimes thought of.

A space imbued with small, precious memories.

This was the PX I knew, but here, there was just a large supermarket.

Judging by the design alone, it looked quite neat and American.

Today was the first time I truly felt an American atmosphere.

The barracks and facilities were incredibly old, but the PX was lavish.

If it weren’t for the bloodstains, shattered glass, and damaged entrance, I might have been even more impressed.

The moment I approached the entrance, intending to look inside.

「Seonghan. Can you hear me?」

Captain Lee’s voice, clearly audible through the in-ear receiver.

The radio, which had been silent until now, began to work.

I immediately pressed the button and waited one second.

“I hear you, Captain Lee-nim.”

There was a slight delay in transmission, but it was incredibly useful.

At a time when phones didn’t even work, a one-second wait felt incredibly convenient, as if it were nothing at all.

「…I’m relieved you’re safe.」

“Nothing is wrong.”

「What is your current location?」

“I found a PX on the way back.”

At the mention of the PX, Captain Lee was silent for a moment.

“Captain Lee-nim?”

「Seonghan. How about you don’t go in alone and just come back for now?」

‘How did he know?’

I stopped walking at Captain Lee’s suggestion.

With impeccable timing, this time it was I who hesitated.

“…I’ll be there soon.”

「Understood. Please be careful.」

I ended the radio call, turned around, and started running again.

I had wanted to look around first, but hearing Captain Lee’s voice through the radio changed my mind.

His voice, which didn’t show it, but was deeply worried.

It felt like a subtle sense of relief.

Thinking I shouldn’t waste any more time, I ran headlong.

From the perspective of someone waiting, what if there’s no contact, no news at all?

The emotional line oscillating between worry and anger can drive a person crazy.

If that happened while working, I’d have no excuse even if I was sworn at mercilessly.

But coincidentally, the situation was like this, and I was in the middle of working.

From Captain Lee’s perspective, his worry might have been considerable.

As someone who understood that feeling well, I secretly felt sorry.

As much as the meat content in ramen seasoning.

With that thought, I ran through the awkwardly silent streets.

It didn’t take long to reach the apartment building.

Upon arrival, dusk had already settled over the streets.

Perhaps because it was winter, the sun set quickly.

I took out my flashlight, illuminated my path, and climbed the stairs.

In the room I soon reached, waiting was in full swing.

Without even turning on the lights.

The soldiers, who had tensed at the sudden light, visibly relaxed after confirming it was me.

I was rather puzzled by their intense reaction.

“Was something wrong?”

“No. It was just so quiet that we couldn’t relax…”

I think I know how that feels.

It’s probably like the feeling of a penalty, waiting for a forehead flick with your eyes closed.

A forehead flick that would kill you if it hit.

Receiving the soldiers’ welcome, I stood the flashlight on the table, pointing it at the ceiling.

As the living room brightened, Captain Lee was startled.

“Se-Seonghan! The light!”

“Ah. It’ll be fine.”

To Captain Lee, who couldn’t even get angry at my leisurely reaction, I shared the situation outside.

“Are you saying there are no zombies?”

“I can’t guarantee there aren’t any, but I didn’t encounter any while moving around.”

“Hmm…”

“That includes the U.S. military, of course.”

At the mention of only seeing bodies in front of the PX, Captain Lee stroked his chin.

“Should I call this fortunate… this is quite something…”

“Isn’t it good that what’s good is good?” [A common idiom meaning “It’s good that things turned out well” or “It’s best not to overthink things when they work out.”]

“That’s true, but… it seems the U.S. military truly withdrew without looking back.”

It was fortunate that there were no victims, meaning no zombies.

However, Captain Lee seemed to feel bitter about the fact that their ally had simply bolted.

His silent expression couldn’t hide his disappointment.

It seemed he had thought that if the U.S. military had helped, it would have been a great strength.

Captain Lee, who had been silent for a moment, composed himself.

And then he subtly changed the subject.

“Anyway, I was flustered when I couldn’t reach you.”

“Ah… I’m sorry. My radio was off.”

“That… well… that can happen.”

Captain Lee, who had been about to say something, swallowed his breath and let it go.

To him, who was holding back and letting it pass, this time I changed the subject.

“I looked around for armories everywhere, but…”

“…How was it?”

“They were all empty. Spotlessly clean.”

“Ah…”

I explained the scene, which was full of only dust, without a single shell casing.

At the fact that they had drawn a blank, the soldiers sighed softly.

Instead of sighing, Captain Lee bit his lip.

As the atmosphere was about to hit rock bottom in an instant, I quickly opened my mouth.

“Instead, I found something else.”

“Ah. You said you found the PX…”

“Not the PX.”

“?”

Captain Lee, who had been still for a few seconds, blinked.

“No way?”

I gave a small smile to Captain Lee, who was slowly getting surprised.

“I found it. The ammunition depot.”

“…How was the inside?”

I gave Captain Lee, who was carefully showing his anticipation, the answer he wanted.

“There was quite a lot.”

“Gasp! Nghh…”

Captain Lee, who swallowed a gasp and then exhaled.

His expression, clenching both fists, was quite a sight to behold.

The first night at the U.S. military base was accompanied by a small hope.