episode_0190

The helicopter’s body trembled with the sound of its engine as it took off.

The engine roared strongly and powerfully.

The rotors spun faster, creating a strong wind.

The body floated up, quickly gaining altitude and setting its course.

Soon, the helicopter expertly found its direction and began to fly.

With a large cargo attached to the end of a long cable.

The soldiers present couldn’t tear their eyes away from the scene.

And they couldn’t relax their tension.

They held their breath when the sound of the rotors echoed between the buildings.

Even as the rotor sound faded and the helicopter became a tiny dot and disappeared, everyone’s gaze remained fixed, as if nailed down.

Only after the helicopter was out of sight and the air grew quiet did the soldiers let out a sigh of relief.

“…It passed without incident this time too.”

“Indeed.”

“It seems there’s no law that says people have to die.”

A small laugh escaped at Captain Lee’s words, drained from the tension.

In front of us, softly sighing in relief, Sergeant Kim fired off commands.

“Alright! Don’t let your guard down and push a little harder! Don’t neglect your vigilance and make sure the next transport is ready! You there! Don’t just stand there dazed, move! You!”

Sergeant Kim, who was haranguing the site in Captain Lee’s stead, moved busily.

In response, the soldiers who had come for support also began to move busily.

Watching them, Captain Lee spoke in a low voice.

“If we’re quick, we should be able to clear everything out and move by today.”

“Then the next transport…?”

“We plan to send the food from the warehouse. The shelter is waiting for it too.”

“Still, it’s a relief that it’s possible within the time limit.”

“Indeed.”

Captain Lee couldn’t hide the continuous smile on his face.

Things were going well in many respects.

We had almost completely moved out the supplies that filled the helicopter pad area.

The wide, nearly empty helicopter pad had almost returned to its original state.

Now, only a little remained.

Once those were cleared out, all that was left was to gather the items we had earmarked.

I wondered when we’d ever manage to pack and send everything…

“It’s incredible that such a large quantity was sent out in just a week.”

“That’s thanks to Jo Junwi and Lee Junwi, who worked very hard.”

“Shouldn’t those two receive a bonus?”

“It seems we should.”

Exactly ten days since entering the Yongsan Base.

Although the process was smooth, being able to handle such a large volume of supplies was thanks to the two pilots.

They performed outstandingly, enduring a flight schedule that was practically overwork.

Even considering that the distance to Konkuk University Shelter wasn’t far, it was a difficult task.

Captain Lee, feeling apologetic and concerned, tried to give them a little more food, but they even refused that, citing a drop in concentration.

“Since cargo is cargo, we have to stay focused.”

In Jo Junwi’s single remark, one could glimpse his resolve.

Lee Junwi, who matched him, was no different.

They knew well that what they were transporting wasn’t just ‘cargo’.

I remembered hearing the saying, ‘If you invest money and time in a genius, excellent results will follow.’

Providing fuel to enthusiastic pilots resulted in tremendous performance.

It was a slightly different kind of investment, but it led to excellent results nonetheless.

The smooth situation wasn’t the only good thing.

The additional appearance of zombies, which we had most worried about.

Contrary to concerns that they would be drawn by the helicopter’s noise, the situation was quiet.

From the first day of transport until now.

Not a single zombie had rushed in, drawn by the sound.

Because of this, the 24 soldiers who came for support were on the verge of relaxing their guard.

Of course, Captain Lee and Sergeant Kim stepped in to resolve issues regarding military discipline.

Anyway.

Thanks to the continuous favorable conditions, we had achieved results without incident so far.

“Thanks to this, it’s a relief that we can breathe easier.”

Captain Lee seemed to be recalling the atmosphere of the shelter as it had been reported to him.

Most of what was at the helicopter pad were weapons and supplies.

Firearms for personal armament, grenades, and a minimum amount of ammunition.

Even some combat rations and other supplies.

We had received word that once the transport began and supplies arrived one after another, the atmosphere at Konkuk University Shelter had dramatically livened up.

According to the two pilots who delivered the news when they landed to refuel the helicopter, they said with a laugh that, exaggerating a little, hope seemed to be visible.

Thanks to these efforts, we were able to procure support personnel without issue.

Since it was a high-risk job, there had been few volunteers, but with visible results, we were able to gather enough personnel.

Thus, 24 young people in military uniforms had gathered.

Among them, not a few were over 30 years old.

Captain Lee explained that the Konkuk University Shelter’s forces weren’t only composed of active-duty soldiers.

“Still, I’m relieved that their spirits seem to have revived now.”

“They certainly don’t have lifeless eyes anymore.”

*Chuckle*

The soldiers who first arrived here truly had dead eyes.

But they found motivation after eating their fill, even if poorly, and receiving generously supplied magazines.

It was understandable, as they had been enduring until recently without fully loaded magazines.

Thanks to the increased personnel, the work proceeded smoothly, and defenses against any potential dangers could be prepared without difficulty.

And this atmosphere extended to the shelter.

The greatly shaken atmosphere was being organized, and order was taking root.

People also adopted cooperative attitudes, and incidents and accidents decreased.

The people at the shelter were greatly pleased with the positive flow.

According to Captain Lee, who had spoken with them two or three times just today, that was the case.

“It would have been better if we had hurried a little more… it’s quite regrettable.”

“That’s true, but…”

“I know it can’t be helped, but I can’t stop my eyes from being drawn to it.”

Captain Lee looked regretfully at one abandoned helicopter.

Even I, watching from the side, understood how he felt to some extent.

They had the equipment, but no pilots.

It was frustrating to have a perfectly fine aircraft right in front of them yet be unable to use it.

At Captain Lee’s request, they tried to find pilots within the shelter, but it was a bust.

Ultimately, they couldn’t speed up the work any further.

Jo Junwi and Lee Junwi would have to continue flying with a killer schedule.

Captain Lee was silently fretting to himself, worried about an accident.

Captain Lee, who had been silently watching the helicopter for a moment, spoke to me.

“Seonghan. How was today’s patrol?”

“Nothing notable.”

“Then…”

Captain Lee took out a map and unfolded it.

That usual crude map was now on the verge of tearing.

It was heavily worn, having been folded and unfolded countless times.

The map was filled with marks and lines.

I explained the current situation of the streets to Captain Lee and answered his questions.

I hadn’t just sat idle and watched from the sidelines during that time.

Captain Lee and the soldiers wanted me not to bother with miscellaneous tasks.

But I couldn’t just pass the time idly, so I did what I could.

Namely, patrolling the streets.

To prepare for future movements, I found safe routes.

And identified potential dangers in advance.

Thanks to that, I ended up searching through the Yongsan Base every day.

Fortunately, there were results.

Excluding the downtown areas believed to have remaining zombies.

Aside from that, zombies were rarely seen.

Even those were just a few stragglers wandering here and there.

I dealt with any visible zombies, found paths, and explored the surroundings.

As a result, I could now propose a decent travel route to Captain Lee.

“This wide area… you’ve worked hard.”

“Don’t mention it. I’ll confirm it once more before we depart, so don’t worry too much.”

“Understood. And…”

“?”

“Ah, never mind.”

If you want to annoy a Korean, you do exactly what Captain Lee just did.

But I chuckled and continued.

“No survivors were found.”

“…Hmm…”

“It seems Heize was right after all.”

“Heize has never said anything wrong…”

Captain Lee always asked when I returned from surveying the streets.

If I had found any other survivors.

While I had been wandering around and checking inside several buildings, there were no living people.

Just as Heize had said, I only encountered zombies stuck inside buildings.

Or I found bodies that had frozen to death or starved.

And… I came across traces of those who had ended their painful time themselves.

Although I hadn’t found many, when I continuously discovered bodies that had died as humans, I began to think there were no living people left.

That’s why Captain Lee found it difficult to speak, even as he asked every day.

For me, it’s just a bit of a bother, but I have no discomfort in providing the answer.

Because of this, the pattern of me automatically providing the answer without hesitation repeated.

The end of the ensuing conversation was always similar.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“You too, Captain-nim.”

An ending concluded with simple and polite words.

Captain Lee returned to commanding the site, and I did my part.

Either resting appropriately or taking a break.

“Resting by yourself. How petty.”

“……”

“But I’m tired.”

…Or dealing with Heize.

Whenever I tried to rest alone, she’d somehow know and immediately follow.

I thought she had only been using Korean for the past few days, but her vocabulary was increasing rapidly.

Her awkwardness was also gradually decreasing, and conversations were becoming more natural.

It was the same for Lawrence.

She had no problem understanding, and since she had a lot of interest in Korea from the start, she quickly picked up the language.

“I worked hard, so I earned a break.”

“But you didn’t even break a sweat?”

“No. It’s not. I’m tired.”

“You don’t seem to be working hard…”

“It’s true! I’m being unfairly accused!”

It was amusing to see her pounding on her sturdy(?) chest, appealing her unfairness.

Seeing me giggle, she seemed to get offended, crossing her arms and glaring.

“If you keep doing that, it won’t be fun.”

“Yeah~”

“Hey!”

“Hey~”

“You really!”

“Yoo reeeallly~”

“……”

“Pfft… *chuckle*…”

She trembled slightly, unable to resist the childish provocation.

Perhaps because she was an American with good reactions, her responses were excellent.

These days, I spent my time enjoying teasing her.

Heize, who had stubbornly kept her mouth shut, soon lifted her chin.

“I’ll teach you this today. But never mind.”

“? What is it?”

“Never mind.”

“Oh, what is it?”

It seemed she had brought something else again…

As I showed a slightly eager reaction, I immediately asked.

“Ta-da!”

“Oh!!”

“This is it for today. How is it? Do you like it?”

I wondered if she was truly simple-minded or just pretending.

But I liked what Heize held in her hand.

“Ooh…”

Her lips curved into a smile, as if pleased with my reaction.

“Grenade launcher. You like this?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Listen.”

Smiling brightly, she soon sat me down in front of her and taught me how to use the weapon.

She gave simple explanations and demonstrations of its use, teaching me each step meticulously.

During that time, I had learned how to handle several weapons in this manner.

Originally, I had asked Captain Lee, but Heize volunteered.

Naturally, I was skeptical at first, but she handled weapons surprisingly well.

Since Captain Lee, who had watched alongside me, also acknowledged it, things just ended up this way.

Her surprise at my lack of knowledge about guns was short-lived; soon, she seemed to find joy in teaching and always came to me with a weapon in hand.

Thanks to that, I could spend my time productively.

Even if I didn’t know the intricate details about guns, I was learning to load and use them.

It was a benefit for me too.

More than anything, Heize seemed to be enjoying herself as well.

“Like this. Put it here.”

“Like this?”

“Here, like this.”

“……”

“Why?”

“Nothing.”

“Focus. This is important.”

I followed Heize’s instructions as she passionately exerted herself in teaching me about the grenade launcher.

Her hands, adjusting my posture, were extremely busy.

‘…Somehow, her hands…’

“……”

The feeling that it was more like touching than posture correction must have been a misunderstanding.

“Come on! Focus!”

*Swish swish—*

*Tap tap—*

…Probably.