《Beacon of Light in the Dark Sea》
Prologue
Prologue
The deep sea refers to depths below 200m. Which begs the question, how far can humans truly descend? The ocean¡¯s surface is a sight to behold, akin to scattered diamonds reflecting the sun¡¯s endless light. It sparkles radiantly, bedecked in gold and silver tones so dazzling that they can blind one¡¯s vision.
If one were to dip their body up to their waist, the sunlight would seep into the water, allowing the observer to perceive the vibrant hues and brightness. The reflected light may appear greenish or transparent, or when there is an abundance of sediment, it could be murky, with the ocean floor and blue waves visible. However, it wouldn¡¯t be considered ¡®deep¡¯ just yet. Beneath the surface, warm-blooded creatures flourish in the sea, apanied by an overwhelming soundscape of all kinds of noises that resonate amidst the blinding brightness.
As one delves further, the darkness intensifies. The blue shade transforms into green or murky tones, ranging from turquoise to navy blue. One can inhale deeply, submerge, and rely on the power of their lower extremities to ascend toward the light.
In the calmness, a slight ascent leads to light and noise with ease. The path upward from below remains unbarred, and descending back carries no repercussions. Although the sea provides infinite mercy to the beings resting beneath its belly, it marks the extent of thend creatures¡¯ enjoyment of it. Even crocodiles and hippos cannot dive any deeper, and beyond this point, the sea withdraws its previous inclusivity, revealing only cruelty lying bare.
Going deeper still, one enters a realm deserving of the term ¡°diving.¡± The darkness intensifies to a deep navy or dark green, and visibility is limited, to the point where you might not discern your own limbs. Though obscure and silent, it is still a stage where you can anticipate what lies ahead.
Terrestrial creatures reside in this sea by means of air tubes, not their lungs. This is the domain of marine life and where most seafood consumed by humans is found. A noisy yet tranquil ce, a frigid and sunless ocean.
Venturing even further, one delves into a domain of mysteries, a ce where creatures that have shunned living under the sun¡¯s rays thrive. Since no light prates this depth, creatures with blind eyes or those who have no need for sight can flourish without any hindrances.
Enveloped in serene, unbroken darkness lies countless shipwrecks, treasures, corpses, and secrets concealed. It is a ce that renders ascending back to the surface as an unfeasible feat, once you have descended. The bottommost point, an underworld within the underworld, a geographical abyss. If asked how far down you¡¯ve fallen, you can only answer that you¡¯ve reached the source of water in the depths of the sea, a region closest to the centermost of the stars. No sound of screams reverberates in the boundless depths of the sea, where ck gold and oil seep beneath the ground.
In reality, I lived a life unrted to oil or natural gas. Although objects made from petroleum byproducts overflowed around me in the modern 21st century, I never really thought about what stic resin was and what was synthetic fiber, nor did I need to. I only knew that petroleum extraction ingredients were used to create disposable items or medicines like aspirin because of my job. That was the extent of my knowledge.
I took a position that focused on using oil rather than mining it. When I filled my car with gas, I didn¡¯t have to think about where it was extracted from, how refined it was, or where it was mined from in the ocean. My life didn¡¯t require such thoughts.
Therefore, when I found myself submerged in the depths of the ocean, with oil rigs drilling a mere distance away next to me, the true enormity of my predicament dawned on me.
Growing up in the city, I barely knew how to swim, let alone had knowledge about the sea, less alone about oil. Whenever I consumed seafood or embarked on excursions, the sea never crossed my mind. My only recollections were of the beautiful beaches and underwater scenery in the Mediterranean that I saw on television. For me, the ocean was simply a holiday destination and the habitat of seafood.
If I were to express the feeling of being stuck in the abyss where the sunlight didn¡¯t reach, it would be simply unsettling. It wasn¡¯t like ¡°Oh, I somehow got stuck here.¡± By the time I had fullyprehended the gravity of the situation, I was already in the deep sea. It felt like I had plunged into an endless, dark pit, and the feelings of emptiness and terror that typicallye with such a fall were tangibly present in the ocean.
Terrestrial creatures constantly long for the ocean, yet they can never go back prior to the instance when they were immersed in its waters.
Chapter 1
Chapter 1
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If you take a ne from Seoul to Jeju Ind, there is a naval base in Jeju. If you¡¯re nning to visit the naval base, you need to apply for a permit, undergo several checks, and wait for approval. Once you¡¯re cleared, you¡¯ll board a ship that will take you to your destination. However, if you¡¯re prone to seasickness or have other reasons for not wanting to sail, there¡¯s an option to take a helicopter.
Having never flown in a helicopter before, I was struck by how much it felt like a motorcycle in the air. As I shook violently on the flight, I couldn¡¯t help but wonder whether I had made a grave mistake by not securing life insurance. The thought of crashing into the sea was terrifying, and every moment felt like an eternity. Fortunately, we arrived safely, and my worries vanished as soon as my feet touched the ground.
After a journey of more than three days, we finally arrived at an artificial ind. Despite feeling extremely weak from the journey, I managed to get off the helicopter with help from a kind stranger.
¡°Wee to the underwater base. It must have been tough for you,¡± she said, taking my shaking arm.
To my surprise, the woman who helped me was towering over me at around 2 meters in height. When I looked at her in surprise, she raised the corners of her mouth and introduced herself, ¡°I¡¯m Kang Soo-jung. Nice to meet you.¡±
¡°Nice to meet you too. I¡¯m Park Mu-hyun.¡±
As we shook hands, Kang Soo-jung naturally took my luggage, which I had been holding.
¡°You¡¯re the new dentist, right? We¡¯ve been waiting for you.¡±
¡°¡Do you have a lot of dental problems, Ms. Soo-jung?¡±
Kang Soo-jung shook her head as she observed my paleplexion. If someone poked me in the ribs, I would have vomited immediately.
¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re particrly fond of rings. You seem to have a bad case of motion sickness. Do you need any medicine?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll be fine now that I¡¯m off the helicopter.¡±
¡°First of all, all medical facilities on this ind are free. If you need any medical assistance, you can visit the hospital at any time.¡±
I asked her to turn the luggage around, but Kang Soo-jung easily lifted my luggage, which weighed more than 30 kg, as if it were a handbag. We walked from the helicopter pad to the building. It felt like I could barely walk.
¡°Soo-hyuk drives a little rough.¡±
I realized that she was referring to the name of the helicopter pilot. Although I didn¡¯t even know his name, I began to harbor a grudge against this Soo-hyuk. I managed to utter a few words while trying to suppress the urge to vomit.
¡°By spinning the helicopter 360 degrees?¡±
¡°It seemed like you enjoyed it, doctor,¡± she joked, to which I mustered a weak smile.
What kind of remark was that? I had never seen a helicopter spin 360 degrees and vertically drop from above like that. It was more extreme than a roller coaster at an amusement park. From the moment the helicopter pilot asked me to fasten my seatbelt and promised to show me a good view while spinning, I screamed until my throat hurt. The person in the passenger seat even thought that I was having a good time and raised both arms, joining me in screaming.
¡°Sometimes helicopters from the navy base fly to the underwater base. You can go to Korea with them if you time it right. There¡¯s a bakery at the 3rd undersea base, and they would love it if you buy some bread there.¡±
I suspected that Kang Soo-jung was exchangingrge envelopes with the helicopter pilots who greeted her. They were most likely trading items.
¡°What¡¯s that?¡±
When I asked about therge shopping bag that seemed big enough for two people, Kang Soo-jung grinned.
¡°These are packages that Koreans staying at the underwater base sent to Jeju underwater base. Whenever the helicopteres, it brings the packages with it. You don¡¯t know how long I¡¯ve been waiting for you like a delivery truck.
¡°So the packages were on purpose?¡±
Kang Soo-jung replied with a coy smile, ¡°Oh, what are you talking about? Both meeting you and the packages were the purpose.¡±
However, despite her nonchnt response, Kang Soo-jung couldn¡¯t conceal her delighted expression as she gazed at the enormous shopping bag overflowing with several paper boxes
¡°May I ask what you bought?¡±
What could be missing at this underwater base? Most people didn¡¯t bring a lot of luggage because they could get most things from the underwater base.
¡°I bought some cosmetics and a fewic books. Other people bought Korean snacks like ramen or other things. Aeyoung bought a few earrings and clothes, and Jihyeok said he also bought clothes. As for Jaehui, he said he bought a box of sterilized banana milk, but it seems like it hasn¡¯t arrived yet.¡±
Kang Soo-jung, who was rummaging through the giant shopping bag with her big hands, gave up searching for her own things.
¡°Can you get food delivered here?¡±
¡°It¡¯s better not to order because we don¡¯t know when they will deliver it. The cost of the helicopter flying back and forth is quite expensive, more than you¡¯d think. If you need something urgently, you can ask the American team to order it for you, and it will arrive quickly. They fly helicopters around for no reason.¡±
¡°Do you miss Korean food a lot when you¡¯re here?¡±
¡°I always miss it. I secretly eat tteokbokki every night. If doctor can¡¯t stand it, I¡¯ll give you a cup of ramen when youe to my room.¡±
¡°Thank¡ you.¡±
As we departed from the helipad, I noticed tworge buildings that resembled hospitals and another next to them. Kang Soo-jung gestured towards the far-off building with her fingertips, but my attention was fixated on her muscr arms in the sleeveless shirt despite the freezing sea breeze. ¡°Isn¡¯t she cold?¡± I thought to myself.
Kang Soo-jung then turned to face the hospital and spoke, ¡°The building in front of you is the hospital, and there are three of them. The building next to it is the operations building. There will be a few documents that Mr. Muhyun needs to fill out since it¡¯s his first time here. After filling out the documents, go to No. 38 Section 100. I¡¯ll put your suitcase in that room for you. Then go into the one-story building over there and meet Priya Kumari. She¡¯s probably waiting for you.¡±
Documents, Section 100 No. 38, 1st floor, Priya Kumari. Seems like she¡¯s not going with me.
Trying not to ask twice, I memorized the flood of information and asked Kang Soo-jung, ¡°What does Ms. Kang Soo-jung do at the underwater base?¡±
¡°I¡¯m an engineer. Most of the people here are engineers, natural gas and oil mining personnel, and marine researchers. I¡¯m part of the engineering team. Just go straight and you¡¯ll see the central elevator where I¡¯m headed. Remember to take it down when you see it. See youter!¡±
¡°Thank you! See youter!¡±
As soon as we finished exchanging greetings, Kang Soo-jung began walking toward the hospital building at a brisk pace. Her suitcase andrge shopping bag were dragged behind her, disappearing quickly. Soon, I was alone next to the building painted green. Feeling the chill of the sea breeze, I hurried inside to the first floor and quickly found Priya Kumari¡¯s room.
Trantors Notes
I guess trading bread here means trading items. As for Soo Jung offering our MC a cup of ramen, could only mean one thing if you understand what I mean.. ( ?? ?? ?? )
Chapter 2
Chapter 2
First of all, thanks for reading! I would love to hear yourments below if you have any!
The background behind the creation of the International Undersea Station (IUS) is simple.
Firstly, the situation had reached a point where ocean pollution could no longer be ignored.
Previously, for the sake of development and fishing, the extinction of marine ecosystems and species had meant nothing to capitalists. However, now almost all marine organisms have been designated as protected species. To exin further, even anchovies are now protected, so they cannot be caught, processed, distributed, or even stored.
Considering the situation in Korea, which is surrounded by the sea on three sides and has tidal ts, and is also considered the prime location for marine organisms; 4,000 have be extinct out of the 14,000 species of marine organisms that once lived there, leaving only about 10,000 species remaining. Due to coastal development andndfilling, ocean pollution, overfishing, water pollution, radiation, and other factors, the marine ecosystem has already been devastated, and any additional ocean pollution could directly impact the survival of humanity. Thus, developed countries gathered together their immoral heads that didn¡¯t care about the environment to create the IUS.
Secondly, there was a need for a new habitat for humanity.
Since humans had reached a point where they could no longer consume seafood, they concluded that space development, which only resulted in waste and debris, was a waste of resources. Following the return of thest three astronauts, countries officially abandoned space development. They gave up on the grandiose and extravagant notion of terraforming Mars and abandoning the Earth to a small number of humans who survived on a new. Instead, they allocated all the funds they had extracted from their citizens to the creation of an underwater base.
Companies involved in petroleum drilling and ocean resource development were among the first to invest in the development of underwater stations (IUS). However, despite their different motivations, the focus was more on development rather than the conservation of the environment. This led to the sess of eight advanced countries in building the first undersea station in the middle of the Pacific. I vaguely remember the problems that arose during the selection of the location for the station when I was in elementary school. Originally, the n was to build it in the Antic, but due to various factors such as earthquakes, lobbying for rare earth metals, petroleum and natural gas mining, and unknown underwater wars, the Pacific was ultimately chosen. At present, efforts are being made to build the second undersea station in the Antic.
Thirdly, it¡¯s mining.
No matter what reasons they have, it¡¯s the truth that this is the first reason. The ocean is still unexplorednd, hiding an enormous amount of fishery and mineral resources, such as oil and gas, rare earth metals, and manganese nodules, as well as deep-sea water that has not yet been contaminated. Information about the deep sea is still being discovered, and deep-sea fish have unexpectedly been found to be edible. Hence, humanity has not yet abandoned the idea of surviving by exploiting the earth¡¯s resources.
It¡¯s funny that I¡¯m saying this while working at an undersea base. The idea of building houses on the ocean floor seems contradictory, given that we¡¯ve dumped so much garbage into the ocean. It¡¯s as though we want to return to the embrace of the vast ocean after we¡¯ve already destroyed it. It¡¯s ridiculous. The state of consuming the earth¡¯s resources and life forms has almost reached its limit. We¡¯ve destroyed the ice caps and ozoneyer, overfished and disposed of nuclear waste, andpletely ruined the earth¡¯s temperature system, creating a temperature difference of -40 to +45 degrees with our own hands. And now, we¡¯re seeking refuge in the ocean because we can¡¯t bear living on thend we¡¯ve destroyed.
Some people who oppose space development argue that it¡¯s only natural for one of Earth¡¯s living beings to face extinction. While I don¡¯t share their opinion, I can empathize with their sense of despair, as I often feel pushed to the brink of survival.
Personally, I wished I had been born just a little bit earlier, so I could live in a time when resources were abundant, people could ignore environmental issues and didn¡¯t need to worry about buying sunscreen.
Although most people born in the 21st century are armed with skepticism and depression about life, our survival instincts were stronger than those of previous generations. With a wealth andbor force amounting to around 600 trillion won, we managed to create an underwater base in the North Pacific.
The North Pacific Underwater Station (NPIUS) isposed of four majoryers. First, there is the ¡°Artificial Ind¡± on the shallow continental shelf and the [First Underwater Base] located just beneath the ind, built to fit the epipgic zone (-200m). The [Second Underwater Base] was built for the mesopgic zone (-1000m), and the [Third Underwater Base] was built for the bathypgic zone (-3000m). The fifthyer, the hadopgic zone (3000~6000m), is still under construction. So, the station consists of four bases in total, and I was assigned to thest one to bepleted, the [Fourth Underwater Base] located in the abyssopgic zone (-3000m). It was there that I was selected to be a dentist.
Priya, who had various coral models on her desk, checked my passport and started to pull out some documents.¡°Eight countries, including Korea, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zend, Russia, Japan, and China, participated in the development of the North Pacific Ocean.¡±
¡°What about the Philippines? They¡¯re next to the North Pacific Ocean, aren¡¯t they?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m not great at geography, but I think Mexico, Taiwan, and Hong Kong are nearby too. So not all adjacent countries participated?¡±
¡°Only countries that could invest at least 1 trillion won ($760 million) per year in the development of the underwater base were eligible to participate,¡± Priya exined.
¡°That participation fee must have been quite expensive,¡± I remarked.
I wondered if Korea had enough money for that and how much 1 trillion won actually was. I vaguely recalled an article I read about allocating more budget for underwater bases than space development and falling behind other advanced countries in unmanned or manned space exploration.
¡°I don¡¯t know about myself or Mr. Mu-hyun,¡± Priya said sarcastically. ¡°The money will be distributed among the eight participating countries, and we will divide up whates out of the mining. They may have fought a lot underwater, but that¡¯s not my concern or Mr. Mu-hyun¡¯s.¡±
She, being from India, enjoyed watching this North Pacific mineral resource brawl and proudly presented the documents she had brought.
¡°What are these documents?¡±
¡°They¡¯re about employment safety and membership applications.¡±
¡°Do I have to take responsibility for my employment safety through NEP? Why?¡±
I¡¯ve never heard of it before. I hope they stop creating organizations with some abbreviations in English.
¡°It¡¯s named after the Latin word Nept¨±nus for Poseidon. In the past, there was an incident during the construction of an underwater base where a Japanese constructionpany dyed the pay of its employees for two months. The Japanese employees working for thatpany kept quiet, but the Chinese employees who worked together with them went crazy. Then, they said that if they weren¡¯t going to pay, they shouldn¡¯t even think about building the building and copsing the elevator of the second underwater base with a manned submersible. The Russian constructionpany also attempted to blow up the central elevator due to unpaid wages. In the case of a Korean constructionpany, there were no hazard allowances, and the annual sry was too low, which resulted in a 3-month strike.
In the United States, many Mysians, Filipinos, and Burmese worked under subcontractors, and several idents urred resulting in deaths. And there was nopensation. Then, during the next construction, an Indonesian rtive of a victim of an oil spill dispersed a will andmitted a su*cide bo*bing,pletely destroying the aquarium. There were many incidents and idents during the construction of the underwater base. If you buy me a cup of coffeeter, I¡¯ll tell you about the messier situations. Anyway, with people continuing to die for a measly amount of money, and with hundreds of trillions of won being wasted, we had to resort to ¡®thinking¡¯ about what we should do since thepletion of the underwater base would never be aplished.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤So, that¡¯s why NEP was created.¡±
¡°Only crazy people would continue to work tirelessly without anypensation, relying solely on willpower and mental strength. Proper rewards are necessary. Everyone staying at the underwater base is automatically enrolled, and if you sign up and sign the contract, even if Mr. Park Mu-hyun dies tomorrow, you will receive more than 200 million won ($150k) inpensation. In addition, your sry will still be paid on the 1st of every month from the budget thepany has already obtained, even if it goes bankrupt or the country copses-.¡±
I immediately began to scribble my signature on the documents. I understand now why it was named after Poseidon. They must be managing those who live in the sea. As long as I receive my sry on time, I am willing to work hard under Poseidon or even under a shark.
Priya seemed to find my behavior quite amusing and smiled. The sry contract was also included, and the detailed page exceeded 40 pages. I focused on the sry and vacation details. All medical treatment at the artificial ind¡¯s hospital was free. Ah, the hospital was connected to the underwater base. There was also a confidentiality agreement rted to personal information protection.
As my interpreter was an outdated model, I was unable to trante the documents, which were solely in English. However, Priya reassured me that I could take as much time as I needed while she yed on her phone. I silently thanked her indifference. Knowing that there were likely others like me, I began to slowly read through the contracts, inwardly cursing my inadequate English skills. After signing the most significant number of documents I had ever signed, I handed them back to Priya.
¡°Here are more detailed contents. Please take a look.¡±
I received a thin book. I was a little surprised that it wasn¡¯t an electronic document. When I turned a few pages, I realized they were all in English. And it made me crazy. It wasn¡¯t that I couldn¡¯t read it. I just needed time. A very long, arduous process that takes a lot of time.
¡°Don¡¯t people use electronic copies these days?¡±
Priyaughed when she heard my words, ¡°Some people still don¡¯t haveputers and prefer paper for storage.¡±
I see.
I then learned that eight countries participated, and Priya disyed the signedpany documents before forwarding a section of the electronic document to my email. My phone promptly alerted me, indicating that the email was sessfully delivered.
¡°Thank you. You¡¯ve worked hard.¡±
¡°You¡¯ve worked hard too. Wee to the underwater base.¡±
Afterpleting the most urgent task of the day, I leaned back in my chair. Priya rummaged through her drawer and handed me a palm-sized electronic pad, which was blue in color. I noticed that her desk also had a blue pad, adorned with cute dolphin stickers all over it. As I was putting the book and the given pad into my bag, she then handed me a beginner¡¯s manual for the underwater base which was also made of paper and written entirely in English. Without much consideration, I nodded my head and added it to my bag.
I have to buy thetest simultaneous trantor once my sryes in, or I¡¯ll go crazy.Extra Info
Just a view of how deep our MC¡¯s underwater base really is.
Trantor¡¯s Notes
The amount of terminologies in this chapter is just¡
Chapter 3
Chapter 3
¡°I¡¯m new here, where should I start? Can you rmend a ce, including the dental clinic that was mentioned downstairs?¡±
¡°The macarons at the 3rd Undersea Base are really delicious,¡± she said. ¡°If you like sweet things, you¡¯ll enjoy it.¡±
I nodded absentmindedly, though in truth, I had little interest in macarons or anything else sugary. Although I didn¡¯t get cavities, I didn¡¯t lose weight either. Surprisingly, giving up sweets doesn¡¯t make life unbearable or cause you to want to give up on living. You just end up consuming more bitter things. In my case, that would be coffee.
¡°Where can I find good coffee?¡±
¡°There are two cafes at the 4th Undersea Base, and both have different coffee beans. I personally found ¡®Red Coral,¡¯ which uses Arabica beans, to be more delicious.¡±
Red Coral must be the name of the cafe. It sounds like the kind of ce where they might grind up actual coral in their coffee. As long as it tastes like coffee, either way, is fine.
¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll buy you a cup of coffeeter.¡±
¡°Also, make sure to visit the beach, the aquarium at the 2nd Undersea Base, and take a ride on the cable car. The beach was created around the ind and is quite well-made. It¡¯s even more beautiful at night. The 1st and 2nd Undersea Bases will open for tourists to visit starting early next year. It¡¯s better if you see it before then.¡±
¡°Thank you. Do you know where I can board the central elevator?¡±
???
I found myself deep in thought, my eyes fixed on the inscription etched into the elevator¡¯s interior.
[e extendit circum se lumen suum et fundamenta maris texit]
What does this mean? It¡¯s not English. Is it a message about a safe operation? Or maybe it takes more than 20 minutes to descend? Is it Spanish? Latin? Probably Latin.
Thetest trantion device can trante 36nguages and all documents written in thosenguages. It consists of a set that includes a device that fits over your teeth, another device installed next to both eardrums and a lens ced over the pupils.
My mother¡¯s old trantion device, over 10 years old, required piercing the ear like an earring, had no ability to read text, and could only trante 10nguages in a limited way. It was also old-fashioned and conspicuous due to its reddish color. I didn¡¯t have enough money to buy a new trantion device. A single cheap trantion device that trantes allnguages of the world costs as much as a new car.
After paying my sibling¡¯s college tuition, I had no other choice. The old trantion devices not only upied the ears but also required the user to attach them to the lower teeth or lips to have a conversation. Rather than attaching it to my lips, I asked a ssmate to embed the old trantion device, as small as half of my pinky finger, into my lower teeth. My trantion device was toorge to install in my eardrum, so I had to wear it like an earring. As I fiddled with the trantion device dangling from my ear, I suddenly turned my head at the sound of a voice.
¡°Behold, he spreads his light upon it, covering the bottom of the sea.¡±
Fortunately, it seemed like one of the tennguages my trantor supported. Seeing that it was tranting, I recalled my mother reassuring me not to worry, as the trantor would work. I was relieved just by the fact that Priya Kumari¡¯s conversation was perfectly tranted, but I couldn¡¯t help feeling tense when meeting a foreigner like this.
It¡¯s Latin.
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤Is it a phrase from the Bible?¡±
I asked, guessing since I had no knowledge. I only remembered a few verses that I learned while attending church with my friend to get snacks. Love thy neighbor. Cast the stone. Something like that.
Is it something like God¡¯s divinity spreading even into the depths of the ocean? Wouldn¡¯t that kill all the deep-sea creatures?
¡°It¡¯s from the Book of Job[1]. His love illuminates even the bottom of the ocean floor, where there is no darkness.¡±
I wish some of that great love was bestowed upon me¡.No, if I follow his interpretation, that love has been poured upon me, so that¡¯s why I am here.
Suppressing my disbelief and aversion to religion, I extended my hand to my counterpart first, ¡°I¡¯m Park Muhyun, a dentist who joined the underwater base this time.¡±
A man with strong bones shook my hand. The Caucasian man in a suit spoke while looking at me, ¡°I¡¯m Michael Loaker, chief of deep-sea engineering. Are you on your way to the dental clinic?¡±
¡°Yes, I¡¯m curious about my workce-.¡±
I lost my words because the elevator that was on the ground had suddenly plunged into the sea. I was captivated by the view reflected on the transparent walls of the elevator. It was onlyter that I came to my senses and barely managed to look at Michael¡¯s face, who seemed to understand my behavior.
¡°Amazing, right? Most people whoe here for the first-time act like that.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I said, my voice still trembling with awe. ¡°I¡¯ve hardly been to an aquarium, so witnessing the ocean in this way is a first for me.¡±
As the transparent elevator descended, the variety of marine life swelled before my eyes. A canvas of sapphire blue water stretched out in every direction, teeming with schools of dazzling fish.
Isn¡¯t that a shark?
A few people who were riding the elevator with me chuckled andughed as they watched me gazing out at the sea.
¡®We¡¯re in the ocean! You must have been like this before, too,¡¯ Michael, a man who seemed all too familiar with this scene, spoke up, addressing the group with a smile. ¡°You¡¯ll get tired of this view in just three months,¡± he quipped. ¡°Then I¡¯ll see youter at the dental clinic.
I didn¡¯t realize we had arrived, but the elevator door opened. He got off at the second underwater base and left. Most people followed him, and I was the only one left in the elevator. A silver sticker on the wall of the elevator at the second underwater base indicated a depth: ~2000m.
As we descended to the second underwater base, I saw numerous fish and shades of green and blue sea colors, but as we went further down, I saw nothing. At first, I was excited and enjoyed looking at the underwater world, but my expression vanished as the elevator continued to descend.
Is this what the deep sea always looks like?
The view outside the elevator going down to the third underwater base had turned pitch-ck. I could see nothing but dense darkness. In an attempt to alleviate the unease of the passengers, the elevator walls were adorned with holographic fish stickers that emitted a soft glow. Looking at the images on the stickers, it was written that creatures like giant squids lived at this depth, so I began trying not to look at the elevator walls. I wasn¡¯t afraid of marine life, but seeing these images in the darkness made me feel like I was on the verge of developing a fear of the deep sea.
The elevator was brightly lit, as if it were daytime, and the darkness outside failed to prate its walls. At first, I was taken aback by the lingering darkness, but I soon regained myposure. The journey seemed interminable. Normally, when you ride an elevator, time seems to pass by in a sh, but being all by myself in the murky depths of this elevator, time felt like it hade to a standstill.
I found myself in a massive elevator that could easily amodate a hundred people. After pondering countless times on when I would finally reach the third underwater base, I heard the announcement signaling my arrival.
As the door opened, a woman entered the elevator along with a blinding light and an overpowering smell of bread. The woman, who appeared to be around 167cm tall with ck hair, looked at my face while holding a bunch of bread in her arms.
¡°Oh, nice to meet you for the first time! Hello!¡±
Hearing her greeting, I quickly greeted her back, ¡°Hello. I¡¯m Park Muhyun, the new dentist.¡±
¡°Nice to meet you. My name is Yoo Geum-yi. I work at the research center. I heard the dental clinic opens tomorrow?¡±
¡°I haven¡¯t heard anything about that.¡±
¡°You¡¯re the only dentist who¡¯s going to work there, and you haven¡¯t heard anything?¡± Yoo Geum-yiughed, amused by my disbelief. ¡°Then you might need to block reservations or update the notice. You¡¯ll need to ess the underwater base program on your tablet to change the information. Is this your first timeing to the underwater base today?¡±
¡°Yes. Unfortunately, I still don¡¯t know where the dental clinic is.¡±
¡°Really? That¡¯s a problem.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi said, seemingly unfazed, as she took a piece of bread from a paper bag, bit into it, and handed me a palm-sized piece, urging me to eat. The paper bag was filled with bread as if she had swept up an entire bakery. I held the bread she had given me and, upon hearing it was a red bean paste bun, broke it in half to find it filled with bean paste. The bread was also very warm.
¡°The third underwater base is built in the central seayer, so sunlight doesn¡¯t reach it. You must have been surprised.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Below 2000 meters is already considered deep sea. It¡¯s deep sea all the way down from the second underwater base. You won¡¯t see anything.¡±
From a human¡¯s perspective, that is. Yoo Geum-yi spoke without any difficulty, even with a piece of bread in her mouth. As I looked at her light brown hair, close to a chestnut shade, I bit into the bread I was holding at her urging. I chewed on the warm bread, filling my mouth. The elevator filled with the aroma of bread.
¡°Quickly eat it while it¡¯s warm. It¡¯s freshly baked.¡±
¡°Thank you.¡±
It had been such a long time since I had this kind of sweet bean bread. I was captivated as I devoured the whole steaming hot bread. It was utterly sweet, soft, and delicious. It felt like my brain was screaming that this was what it needed after not having something sweet for a long time. By the time I finished eating the bread, we had already arrived at the 4th underwater base.
I asked, my hand covering my mouth as I spoke with a full mouth, ¡°Is this where we get off?¡±
¡°Yes. This is the 4th underwater base. We just took the central elevator. It operates throughout the entire underwater base, so you¡¯ll need to ride it to travel to almost all the ces.¡±
As soon as the elevator door opened, people surged in as if they had been waiting. Seeing that, I suddenly thought of something and asked, ¡°I guess there¡¯s a long wait for the elevator?¡±
¡°We¡¯re 3,000 meters below the surface. It takes about 10 minutes for the elevator to arrive. Press the button, and you¡¯ll meet all sorts of people waiting to ride the elevator.¡±
The central elevator was located in the central district, where the amodations, research center and most other facilities were concentrated, except for mining-rted ones. As we walked together around the central district, Yoo Geum-yi told me she was heading to the research center and that I would find the dental clinic if I kept going to the right.
She waved, ¡°See youter, doctor,¡± and left.
¡°See you next time.¡±
I started to worry as the dental appointment was tomorrow. It wasn¡¯t just that I didn¡¯t know where the dental clinic was, but I also had doubts about whether they even had the basic medical equipment.
¡®Are they really going to open the dental clinic tomorrow? What if I went there and they have nothing and handed me a t-head screwdriver for treatment?¡¯
Footnote
[1] An ancient Hebrew scripture, depicting biblical themes.
Chapter 4
Chapter 4
After wandering around the central district for 10 minutes, I found a ce that seemed most simr to a dental clinic.[Deep Blue]
Next to the English words, a great white shark¡¯s skull was disyed in front of the dental clinic. The teeth and head alone seemed to be about 3 meters long. Moreover, a single great white shark tooth was as big as a thumb. When I entered, I saw a few pictures of what appeared to be great white sharks hanging on the walls.
I stared back at the shark¡¯s eyes, which red at me with their pure white color, for a few seconds before turning away. The interior design seemed to effectively push people further away from an already uninviting dental clinic. Not knowing who had set it up, I was determined to cautiously remove a few pictures when my eyes were drawn to the dental unit chair first.
Wow. This is thetest model. It¡¯s the one that can take X-rays directly from the chair. All the instruments are new.
I frantically began searching for basic equipment. New scaler, probe, forceps, suction, spoon, high-speed handpiece, low-speed handpiece, and checking whether the unit chair was working.
Then a blonde woman knocked on the wall twice. As she did, the wall opened automatically, revealing a storage space. There were trays, injectors, and mps.
After thanking her, I knocked on every wall, finding mouth gags, forceps and tissue forceps, and des with some bruises. On another wall, there were bands, pin cutters, wires, bone files, crown grippers, needles, etc. Clearly new, but haphazardly shoved in without any thought for workflow, or left unopened in boxes ced directly in the storage cab. I was in a frenzy, opening box after box after box.
¡°Lidocaine (local anesthetic) is to be picked up from the hospital on the first floor,¡± she said.
I came to my senses, realizing I had been frantically tearing open boxes and searching for syringes while she watched. Maybe the stress of opening tomorrow had gotten to me.
¡°Hello, I¡¯m the dentist who arrived today, Park Muhyun.¡±
¡°Hello, I¡¯m Elliot Brown. Please call me Elliot. You seem very busy.¡±
¡°They say we¡¯re opening tomorrow,¡± I replied, worried that a patient was arriving soon.
Then, Elliot handed me a coffee. I put down the forceps in my hand ¨C I couldn¡¯t find the scissors, so I was scratching the boxes open with forceps ¨C and held the coffee. The smell of coffee made me feel reborn.
¡°Thank you.¡±
Seeing me nervously trying to share warmth with the hot coffee with my trembling hands, Elliot reassured me, ¡°Calm down. You have one patient scheduled for tomorrow afternoon.¡±
¡°One? ¡One? I heard there are 1,000 people working here? One patient for my first opening? And then I¡¯m free?¡±
I had imagined that the people at the underwater base would rush into the dental clinic like angry wild boars, fighting with their feet and fists to get treatment first and refusing to line up.
I couldn¡¯t see the details, but it couldn¡¯t be that urgent. It¡¯s the first appointment when the dental clinic opens. That person must be one of the bravest people at the underwater base. Hmm. There are about 500 people in the 4th Underwater Base, about 100 in the 3rd, 100 in the 2nd, and 100 in the 1st. With about 150 people on the artificial ind, it¡¯s approximately 1,000 people.
¡°I expected at least 20 to 30 people toe every day.¡±
¡°Well, today is Sunday, so there are only 20 people with appointments for next week. Don¡¯t worry too much.¡±
At those words, I copsed to the floor, feeling all the energy and passion drain from my body. By simple calction, there should be about four people per day. As the immediate pressure lifted a little, I sipped the coffee Elliot had given me.
¡°Everyone at the underwater base knows that you¡¯re not ready. That¡¯s why people will start making appointments when they know the early goers have visited the dental clinic and survived. By now, people might think we¡¯re yanking out teeth in droves, treating patients without anesthesia, or punching cheeks to extract wisdom teeth.¡±
¡°Luckily, I can cater to those expectations.¡±
Elliotughed for the first time at my joke. She was beautiful when sheughed. Her exposed teeth were white and well-aligned.
¡°I¡¯m conducting psychological counseling here. First-time visitors must undergo counseling. But now¡ it seems like you don¡¯t have time,¡± Elliot trailed off as she looked at the unopened boxes and scattered medical equipment.
Worried she might suggest starting right away, I quickly scheduled a time.
¡°Is it okay if I contact you around Wednesday? I should have some free time by then.¡±
¡°Stay strong.¡±
With those words, Elliot disappeared like the wind. I quickly gathered and organized the essential items. Searching through the drawers, I found a small shark skull to put on the counseling desk. I wished I could meet the person who decorated this ce. As the underwater ambiance was dim and cheerless, I removed all the depictions of white-eyed sharks against a murky water backdrop from the walls.
By the time I finished drinking the coffee Elliot had given me, I had barely managed to set up a dental clinic that wouldn¡¯t be criticized for its cleanliness. Dust was flying around.
But you can¡¯t exactly open a window at -3,000 meters underwater, can you?
As I sat in the underwater base, I prayed that the venttion would work wlessly, though I imagined my dental professor would faint if he saw where I was. Having been there for five hours, I realized I hadn¡¯t eaten anything aside from a piece of bread given to me as a gesture of kindness upon arrival via helicopter. Feeling hunger pangs, I left the dental clinic and made my way to the central dining hall.
To my surprise, the dining hall was a buffet-style arrangement with a wide variety of tasty food options. From rice and kimchi to tfish, dumplings, sushi,mb ribs, and an assortment of sandwiches, there was something for everyone. I even discovered several different soups to choose from. Despite being aware that people from eight different countries worked there, I never would have guessed the food would be so delicious, especially considering it was an underwater base.
I hastily filled my te and introduced myself as the new dentist to everyone I met. I met so many people that I hardly remembered any of them. After asking numerous questions, I arrived at my room in Section 38, where my luggage was waiting for me. The fact that my suitcase had found its way back to me was a silentfort.
I should buy some snackster to thank Ms. Kang Sujeong. Ah, and some bread for Ms. Yoo Geum-yi and coffee for Ms. Elliot.
I grabbed my shower supplies and toothbrush and headed to the shower room I had spotted beforeing to the lodging. There were quite a few stalls in the shower room, each a private room where you could lock the door from the inside. The doors were semi-transparent, so it was easy to tell whether someone was inside or not. I tasted the water a bit; it was smooth but not seawater.
How many tons of water were being produced within the underwater base through desalination?
I couldn¡¯t remember since I had just skimmed through the base¡¯s description. After washing up and drying my hair, I returned to my room.
I opened the electronic pad that Priya had given me and essed the underwater base program. The dental clinic was called [Deep Blue]. Selecting Deep Blue, I found descriptions that even I, a dentist, was not familiar with. Deep Blue at the 4th underwater base was a dental clinic named after a famous great white shark.
¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤As far as I know, most shark attacks on humans were by great white sharks. I¡¯m curious if the clinic is nning to invite patients with a name like that.
Their teeth are about 3cm to 6cm in length, and they are known to swim up vertically from below to tear off their prey. From the description, it almost sounded like they were flying out of the water to pounce on their target. They are highly intelligent and can bite a human body into two pieces with one bite.
As I read through the description, the idea of encountering one seemed like a death sentence. I resigned from the mental battle simtion between myself and the great white shark and continued reading.
With approximately 3,000 teeth, the great white shark possesses triangr-shaped, serrated teeth that are arranged in three rows, constantly being reced as they fall out or break during their hunting pursuits. The underwater base¡¯s clinic, which prioritized the dental hygiene of its inhabitants, was aptly named after Deep Blue ¨C the great white shark known for its colossal size, formidable jaws, and impressive hunting abilities. I found myself re-reading this passage multiple times.
Aftermitting almost the entire sentence to memory, I realized that I could at least sh a smile when patients asked me like, ¡°Why is this dental clinic called Deep Blue? What is that shark skull ced in front of the clinic?¡±
If it were up to me, I would have named it something simple like White Shark Dental Clinic or Shark Dental Clinic.
Maybe it¡¯s because foreigners named it.
Deep Blue ¨C evokes a sense of sinking into a dark and somber ocean, which might not be the most inviting atmosphere for a dental clinic. If it were up to me, I would have named it Light Blue to make it more weing for those whoe to the dental clinic. But then again, maybe the locals here are fond of the great white sharks.
As I entered the reservation page, there was indeed only one patienting tomorrow, as Elliott had said. Yoo Geum-yi. Reason for visit: mr cavity. I now understood why Yoo Geum-yi seemed to behave as if there was no need to worry about a dentist who didn¡¯t even know where the dental clinic was. The patient seemed generous to a new dentist who didn¡¯t even know where their treatment room was.
I breathed a sigh of relief.
The program allowed me to move reservation times to other days, and if I pressed the confirmation button on a reserved patient¡¯s name, it would send an rm to them. I sent Yoo Geum-yi an rm confirming the reservation request.
I¡¯m curious about how the rm I sent appears on the patients¡¯ electronic pads.
There were two to three reservations per day on other dates as well, but I turned off the pad after looking at a few characters of the people¡¯s names. I¡¯d see them plentyter anyway.
As I took out my clothes from the carrier and carefully organized them, I took out a family photo that was deeply wrapped inside the clothes. Nowadays, people mostly take digital photos, but if you leave them in the photo gallery, you won¡¯t see them often. By printing them out and cing them next to me in some way, I can at least nce at them once or twice a day. In the past, I didn¡¯t understand why adults printed out family photos and put them on their desks, next to their beds, on the walls, and in their wallets. I wished I could continue not understanding.
The underwater base shook slightly. I fell asleep in an instant in my new bed.
Chapter 5
Chapter 5
In the depths of Deep Blue, a low rumble often reverberated, emanating from the unfathomable depths of the sea. Though the fish that swam by did not utter a word, a perpetual noise pervaded the confines of the underwater base, and the recurrent quakes only added to the burden of the mind, rendering even the simple act of breathing a source of stress. Yet, perhaps the greatest anxiety stemmed from the feeling of being entrapped, a weight that bore heavier than anyone could anticipate.
Within the underwater base, we were confined to a limited realm, with the harsh reality that stepping beyond the shelter of our confines would instantly prove fatal. Living here was akin to existing in a spaceship: step outside, and you forfeit the ability to inhale, either freezing in the frigid water or perishing in a sudden burst.
Sunk to a depth of 3000 meters, we endured a crushing pressure of 301 atmospheres, an excess of 300 times that experienced on the drynd. The force of it was akin to bearing the weight of a 300kg iron mass. While the air and pressure were continually maintained to amodate human survival, I couldn¡¯t help but feel as if I were on a perpetual airne ride since arriving at the underwater base.
Enclosed within walls of steel, I found myself in a world fashioned by man¡¯s ingenuity for the sole purpose of survival. The underwater base, tossed about like a toy in turbulent waters, quivered slightly at even the slightest current. It was as though a weed had been yanked from its aquatic roots and forcefully plunged into an enormous aquarium. Each trembles elicited faint vertigo that left me feeling like a fish caught in a colossal tank.
¡°What movie did you watch?¡±
The thin voice of a patient snapped me back to reality. Amidst the small group of ten Koreans residing in the base, Yoo Geum-yi stood before me. She was a marine biologist, who had descended into the abyss to conduct research for her master¡¯s and doctoral degrees, afterpleting her undergraduate program onnd. Little did she know that her descent would aggravate a cavity. Well, the bread here was indeed really delicious.
As I inspected her teeth and gums, she inquired about the movie I had watched.
¡°Fast and Furious,¡± I responded.
¡°Was it enjoyable?¡± she probed.
¡°Watching cars get destroyed is always fun.¡±
As I observed Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s hands trembling with anxiety, I hastened to soothe her by dering my intention to handle only the scaling procedure. Dental treatment in the underwater base was entirely free. Therefore, anyone with dental problems coulde to the dentist without worrying about the cost. It was one of the better welfare benefits one could enjoy while living underwater, but it wasn¡¯t a significant benefit for me as a doctor.
¡°How¡¯s your research?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know how to write my thesis,¡± replied Yoo Geum-yi, her voice tinged with a hint of despondency.
In my opinion, Yoo Geum-yi was the most sociable person in the underwater base. Unlike introverted me, she knew almost everyone¡¯s name at the Fourth Underwater Base. She was my first dental patient, so she got a brief self-introduction from me, and thankfully, I was able to mention that I liked action movies.
Surprisingly, there was a movie theater in the central building of the 4th Underwater Base. Additionally, we received electronic pads on which we could watch the majority of contemporary movies and dramas, offering us a pre-sleep pastime. It was gratifying to watch a host of previously unseen films as I still found the underwater habitat to be the most captivating and enjoyable ce.
¡°Any interesting stories?¡±
¡°Nothing interesting in this small neighborhood.¡±
As I listened to her speak, I couldn¡¯t help but stifle the words that threatened to spill from my lips. After all, she was engrossed in her thesis and seemed to have little interest in anything beyond it. Meanwhile, I, a mere visitor to the 4th Underwater Base, was still in awe of its grandeur, housing over 400 souls in its research center alone. To call it a smallmunity would be an understatement. I had barely even explored beyond Section 100 and the Central districts.
¡°The name of the 0th-floor artificial ind is Daehan[1] Ind, right?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s response was filled with pride. ¡°Ah, that. A Korean named it, so that¡¯s why.¡±
The naming of the artificial ind, situated above the underwater base, had sparked intense debates among the different nations involved. It was a contentious issue, with some viewing it as a battle for ownership rights, akin to the disputes over the Arctic or the Moon. A range of names was proposed, from the bizarre; Leviathan, Nautilus, Great Old One, Nevend, Antis, Promised Land, Greend Shark ¨C to the mundane. Ultimately, those residing in the underwater base had to make a collective decision through voting.
¡°There¡¯s a unique person in the engineering A-team called Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang, and I heard that person named it.¡±
¡°Were there a lot of Koreans at the underwater base back then?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi chuckled. ¡°The Korean engineering team is only the A-team, and there were probably less than ten people back then and now. I heard that Team Leader Shin swept both the engineering and mining team votes.¡±
¡°Wow, impressive.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi appeared delighted to have found someone to converse with in Korean. The A-team had the greatest number of Koreans in engineering, totaling seven individuals. Kang Soo-jung , who I had encountered on my initial day, was also an engineer within the team. As I listened, I nodded in acknowledgement of another researcher named Dr. Kim Gayoung.
Out of all the nationalities present, the most significant number of individuals were Americans, Chinese, and Australians, with a few more Koreans working at the hospital on Daehan Ind, the artificial ind.
¡°Have you seen the artificial beach on Daehan Ind?¡±
¡°Is there an artificial beach?¡± I asked, remembering Priya Kumari¡¯s suggestion to visit it, along with other ces.
¡°It¡¯s really beautifully made. Quite a few people go there to get some sun. I go there often too.¡±
I nodded, saying, ¡°I see.¡±
After only two days at the underwater base, I was struck by the dreary view outside my window. It was so dark that it resembled ck ink, causing me to question whether I was in an underwater base or a space station. As I peered out into the abyss, devoid of any stars, I realized that I was several kilometers below the ocean¡¯s surface.
Unlike the previous two underwater bases, the fourth one had only a handful ofrge windows. The manual exined that constructing windows capable of withstanding water pressure was no simple feat. Though the base had previously utilized many artificial sunlightmps, they had since been removed. It was easy to imagine how someone with ustrophobia could lose their mind in a ce like this.
As an introvert, I was already feeling the effects of theck of natural light, and I could only imagine how someone as active as Yoo Geum-yi must have been struggling. While she chatted away, she absently handed a piece of chocte from her pocket to me, a dentist, half-listening as I lectured her about flossing. She eventually headed off to the research building, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
It¡¯s easy to be depressed when you¡¯re underwater. The deep sea is pitch ck without a trace of light, and fish aren¡¯t great conversation partners. The emergency medical center is on the artificial ind (Daehan Ind), and the psychological treatment center is installed deep in the sea for this reason. In a constant state of depression, the only thing that can easily satisfy a person is food. Sweet foods like chocte and snacks, along with various other treats, are almost given away for free. It¡¯s better to relieve stress with a few choctes and candies than to have depressed people set fires or attack their colleagues.
There was a reason why psychologists constantly requestedrge quantities of carbonated drinks, choctes, ice creams, and snacks. Sweetness made people happy. After the sugar chased away the blues, dentists would make their entrance. No matter how well you brushed your teeth, it was worse than not eating sweets at all. As for Elliot, her advice to get enough sunlight and exercise had spewed out like a broken recording. Moreover, since Elliot could request additional personal items under the pretext of psychological therapy, she even offered to help me with anything I might need.
I nearly asked if we could ban candies and choctes altogether. But I didn¡¯t want to lose my job, and people tend to desire something more intensely when it is forcibly restricted or scarce. I requested a stuffed animal smaller than the size of an adult¡¯s torso.
¡°Does it have to be a bear?¡±
¡°It can be a bear, but any stuffed animal is fine. As long as it¡¯s a size where an adult can hug it.¡±
Hearing my request, sheter brought me a shark and a whale stuffed animal from the corner of her office. She impulsively bought them at a marine museum souvenir shop because they were cute, but since they only gathered dust and took up space, she gave them to me. Both toys were about 60 centimeters long and had a pleasant texture. The shark had a blue body with jagged teeth and light blue eyes, while the whale was a vivid orange color, whether due to mutation or marine pollution.
I liked the orange whale more because it was an unrealistic color. I tested whether it was big enough for an adult to hug and fiddled with the whale stuffed animal. Seeing me doing this, Elliot smiled slightly. It must have been amusing to see a grown man asking for a stuffed animal. Bringing out a smile from the tired therapist made me feel better as well.
¡°Does it have a name?¡±
As Elliot casually wrote something on her pad, she said: ¡°Why don¡¯t you give it a name?¡±
¡°How about Marine?¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t it orange?¡±
¡°Well, the color is definitely orange.¡±Since I had no sense for naming, I pondered for a moment and suggested while looking at the orange body, ¡°What about Red Sky? It¡¯s pronounced Noeul in Korean.¡±
Listening to the pronunciation from the trantor, Elliot looked at the orange body of the whale and lowered her head back to the tablet.¡°Nol. That¡¯s nice.¡±
I decided not to correct her pronunciation and just gave up.¡°I¡¯ll lend it to you if you¡¯re ever short on sunlight.¡±
Seeing her weak smile and farewell gesture, I got up from my seat due to my appointment reminder rm. Before I left the room, I poked my head out and asked: ¡°Is this the end, ma¡¯am?¡±
I couldn¡¯t tell if we had a proper consultation since Elliot and I had mostly just chatted.
¡°You¡¯re the healthiest person in this underwater base. I¡¯ll contact you separately for your mandatory checkup in three months.¡±
Psychotherapists always seemed to look drained when meeting people. It¡¯s tiring dealing with people. Listening to Elliot¡¯s weary voice, I quickly pulled my head back, and the heavy door closed smoothly behind me.
Footnote
[1]Korea
Trantor¡¯s Notes
While the whole structure of where our MC currently resides is called International Undersea Station (It¡¯s named this way in the raws), I¡¯ve opted to call each of the floors of the station as ¡®bases¡¯ instead of stations to avoid any confusion. The base Muhyun currently at is the 4th base, situated in the 4thyer of the ocean. In addition, all of the bases are connected through a single? (at this point of story) central elevator which can carry around 100 people at the same time or a.k.a. (a huge a** elevator).
Hope you enjoyed reading this! I would love to hear anyments from you. Alternatively, there¡¯s a separate Discord channel for this novel if you wanna hang out together to talk about this novel (CLICK HERE)and receive a novel role while you¡¯re there.
See you next chapter!
Chapter 6
Chapter 6
The reason a dental clinic was established in the underwater base was due to the numerous issues people were experiencing rted to their teeth. Even a person with perfectly healthy teeth would experience pain if the pressure changed ever so slightly, as even the tiniest hole in a tooth could be a source of agony. It was akin to discovering the existence of a cavity only after boarding an airne.
Now, imagine experiencing a toothache 3 kilometers (km) underwater, where the pressure difference is more than 300 times greater. It was much more efficient for work to visit a dental clinic rather than enduring the pain while sucking on vodka and painkillers, waiting for a someday treatment date.
Before the dental clinic was established in the underwater base, one would first have to make an appointment at a dental clinic onnd, then take the central elevator from -3km to 0km (sea level). Since there was no dental clinic on the artificial ind (Daehan Ind), one had to catch a helicopter or boat from the ind to nearby Hawaii or the rtively closer Solomon Inds, or even Japan or Jeju Ind.
The shortest time it took to receive dental treatment was at least 5 hours. Of course, this only applied if a dental appointment was avable, if one could immediately board the central elevator that moved every 10 minutes to go to the surface, if the weather on the artificial ind was good enough tounch a helicopter, if the helicopter was fully fueled, if at least two people excluding oneself had business outside and were heading out, if there was magically a vacant seat on the helicopter, if there were no issues with the weather for the journey andnding, if one had their passport ready, if it was a country one could enter, and if one could get a taxi or car uponnding to go to the reserved dental clinic in the city. All of these factors had to align perfectly for the process to take 5 hours.
Of course, one couldn¡¯t do this during their work shift, so they had to do it on their days off or during vacation. In cases where dental treatment couldn¡¯t bepleted in one visit, it became a very cumbersome process.
Why not just install a dental clinic in the hospital on Daehan Ind? The people working in the underwater base unanimously agreed that there was not enough space in the ind¡¯s hospital to amodate a dental clinic, so they sent the clinic down to the depths. It waster discovered that the reason for the dispute over whether to ce the dental clinic in the medical center on the artificial ind or not was that all facilities in the underwater base were free of charge. Only cafes, bakeries, and convenience stores charged fees, but even those were minimal¡ª1 cent for a cup of coffee and 300 won for a piece of bread.
However, after talking to the people at the hospital on the ground floor of Daehan Ind, it turned out that only the medical treatment was free. Medications were also free, but only those prescribed by the dental clinic and the psychological counseling center. When asked why these services were not included in the free services, it was exined that everything built on Daehan Ind (the artificial ind) was not located underwater. It was a ridiculous situation, simr to insurance uses.
If located in the deep sea, any dental treatment, whether using gold or aluminum, could be covered by the underwater base¡¯s budget, which is why the highly demanded dental and psychological services were ced in the deep sea. Both services were extremely expensive to use onnd. Considering that the people working on Daehan Ind and the underwater basee from all over the world, the cost-free dental treatment is nothing short of salvation for some. That¡¯s why the dental clinic was ced in the depths of the underwater base. What would be an enormous expense on the surface bes free once it¡¯s in the depths.
I took advantage of the lull in patients to read the undersea base guidebook. It was in English, so it wasn¡¯t easy to read, but I figured I wouldn¡¯t bother trying to read itter. And when the number of patients increased, I wouldn¡¯t have time to read anyway.
In the event of an injury at the undersea base, patients are immediately transferred to the central elevator and treated on Daehand Ind. The elevator moves every 10 minutes, but if the emergency button is pressed, it stops wherever it is and descends 3km. Then, if you catch that elevator, it goes directly to the ground floor.
The ground floor, also known as the Basic Air Area, allows direct ess to the emergency medical center. This method is much faster than calling 119 onnd and going to the hospital. In the case of a 119 ambnce, you have to pray that no one else calls the ambnce before you at the same time, that traffic is not bad on the way to the hospital, and that there are no more severe patients in the emergency room. Inparison, you can use the emergency center in just 10 minutes by riding the elevator once.
There are a few things that must be strictly observed at the undersea base, the first of which is no alcohol or cigarettes. Of course, if you are a smoker or an alcohol addict, you can indulge in those habits on the artificial ind (Daehan Ind) beforeing down. The problem is that alcohol and cigarettes are not sold on the artificial ind. Moreover, they are prohibited from being brought into the undersea base.
At the undersea base, air is as essential as life itself. Although the air purification system at 3,000 meters underground allows even lowly humans without gills to breathe, the undersea base cannot afford to amodate smokers.
The 20-page contract I signed five days ago clearly stated that alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs are prohibited, and if caught within the undersea base, I agree to be expelled. However, two days ago, an engineer named Michael came in for treatment, and as soon as he entered the treatment room, I could smell the strong, distinctive whiskey scent. I couldn¡¯t find any evidence during the treatment, as he had thoroughly brushed his teeth and gargled. I also felt the signs of smoking when a Chinese researcher named Zhang Wei greeted me in the hallway, but I couldn¡¯t find any concrete evidence.
Now, even after brushing and gargling, I could still smell a faint bitterness from the patient¡¯s open mouth. I haven¡¯t memorized his name yet, so I quickly nced at his chart. Seo Jihyuk, the engineer of Team A. I scribbled a barely legible ¡®T¡¯ on the pad in the electronic chart section, indicating he should rinse his mouth. As the patient spat out blood and saliva, I asked:
¡°Is there a ce where you can smoke within the base?¡±
Seo Jihyuk, holding a small ss cup, widened his eyes. He seemed hesitant about how to answer, but then countered the question with a confident expression.
¡°Uh¡ Doctor, do you smoke?¡±
¡°No.¡±
I am a non-smoker. To be more precise, I quit because I couldn¡¯t afford it. As I answered with a smile, Seo Jihyuk also smiled and replied. The orange whale in his arms seemed to be smiling as well.
¡°I don¡¯t smoke either.¡±
¡°Seo Jihyuk, your teeth say you¡¯re a smoker.¡±
¡°¡It seems like my teeth are lying.¡±
¡°You love chocte and candy, chew more on your right side, smoke, are stressed, and have a habit of clenching one side of your jaw.¡±
¡°¡You won¡¯t tell anyone, right?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Especially not our team leader?¡±
¡°That¡ is the team leader of Team A, Shin Hae-ryang, right?¡±
¡°He¡¯s incredibly temperamental, beyond imagination. If he finds out I haven¡¯t quit smoking yet, it¡¯ll be a headache.¡±
Upon my agreement, Seo Jihyuk surprisingly spilled the beans. There were numerous CCTV, heat, smoke, and carbon dioxide sensors within the underwater base, making it nearly impossible to find a ce to smoke. However, he mentioned that if you enter ¡°under repair¡± for the engineer¡¯sputer, the sensors in that area will be temporarily deactivated.
There are quite a few secret spots within the underwater base. I thought, ¡°Well, that¡¯s just human nature,¡± and continued with the treatment. Then, suddenly, I had a question and asked again.
¡°You can¡¯t buy alcohol or cigarettes on Daehan Ind or within the underwater base, right?¡±
¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s heaven if you can just bring them in. A pack of cigarettes costs $60.¡±
Iughed incredulously upon hearing the price. When I was working part-time onnd, a pack of cigarettes was several times more expensive than my minimum hourly wage.
¡°Are there people who buy them at that price?¡±
¡°It doesn¡¯t seem like they¡¯re selling them because there¡¯s no demand. Many Americans, some Chinese, and many Russians buy them,¡± Seo Jihyuk said, scratching his cheek with his fingertip. ¡°There are people who quit as soon as they arrive, but there are also those who can¡¯t quit so easily.¡±
¡°So¡ Team Leader Shin doesn¡¯t smoke?¡±
¡°Smoke? Our team leader wouldn¡¯t even bleed a single drop if you pricked him.¡±
I got to hear more details from Seo Jihyuk about why the engineer teams are named alphabetically and why the ind is called Daehan Ind. During the vote, employees from various countries requested and pressured to use their nationalnguage for the ind name as much as possible.
At that time, the vote was conducted over two days, with each person logging into the underwater base program using their ID and password on their electronic pad and casting one vote. On the first day, Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang swept up all the votes from the entire engineering team (ABCDEFGH) and the entire mining team (ABCDEFGH), a total of 160 votes, and threw them all into [Daehan Ind]. Since there were about 190 people at the time, it became Daehan Ind.
¡°Originally, Team Leader Shin wanted to name the ind [Republic1].¡±
I burst intoughter as soon as I heard that. This underwater base was built with funds from eight advanced countries. More than half of them is only wearing the skin of democracy.
¡°I wanted to see some countries having a fit too. At that time, Chinese and Japanese people were absurdly arguing that Taekwondo was their national martial art, so Team Leader Shin, unable to bear their nonsense, wanted to name the ind Taekwondo. But people around him dissuaded him, and he named it Daehan Ind.¡±
Hearing that, I couldn¡¯t help but smile. I imagined Team Leader Shin as a white Maltese-like puppy with no patience, but soon shook my head twice and brushed off the thought.
¡°How did you manage to scrape together the votes?¡±
¡°Gambling, sir. Our director wouldn¡¯t necessarily invite you to y poker, but if he ever does, never take a seat at the table.¡±
Gambling is one of the things not permitted at the underwater base. I became curious about whether the people here observed any of the prohibited activities.
¡°Is he that good at it?¡±
¡°He¡¯s like a ghost.¡±
I¡¯m a person who¡¯s bad at not only poker but also the Korean card game go-stop. I have no connection to gambling or money. I¡¯ve never even won a cheap instant lottery ticket.
¡°Why are the team names in alphabetical order?¡±
¡°They ran out of tickets for the bets, so they even wagered the team names, and that¡¯s how it turned out.¡±
As I finally burst intoughter, Seo Jihyuk also chuckled. He informed me that all of N Team¡¯s engineers were Japanese, and all of D Team¡¯s engineers were Russian. He also exined the nationalities of the engineers in the R and M Teams, as well as the teams named with English numbers, but I couldn¡¯t remember them all. I inwardlymented my poor memory but tried to console myself with the thought that everyone¡¯s memory and focus had declined since electronic devices became widespread. It didn¡¯t help much¡- Minguk (Republic); From Daehan Minguk Manse (Long Live Republic of Korea)[?]
Chapter 7
Chapter 7
Seems like I¡¯ve made a mistake in naming the districts. The districts mentioned as Central District is actually named as South District. You will seeter on that all the districts are named or called after the Four East Asian mythological beasts, which governs cardinal directions. They are the Azure Dragon of the East, the Vermilion Bird of the South, the White Tiger of the West, and the ck Tortoise of the North. However, for localization sake, I will trante the districts as cardinals; East, South, West, or North districts. Amendments will be made ordingly for earlier chapters.
That¡¯s all! Have fun reading!
Seo Jihyuk nced at the English version of the Underwater Base Guidebook next to me and asked, ¡°Have you finished reading the Underwater Base Guidebook?¡±
I hadn¡¯t even read 40 of the approximately 300 pages of the English version of the Underwater Base Guidebook. I shook my head slightly towards Seo Jihyuk.
I can read English. The problem was that many of the terms rted to underwater bases were not necessary in daily life. There were parts I couldn¡¯t understand what they were exining. Why would the thickness of a wall or a screw be important? Moreover, the attention span of someone like me, who was familiar with electromaic waves, didn¡¯t evenst 8 seconds.
¡°I see you¡¯re reading it in English, but there¡¯s a Korean trantion as well. Do you need it?¡±
¡°Yes! I really need it!¡±
As I eximed excitedly, Seo Jihyuk looked startled and thenughed. ¡°I¡¯ll give you the one I have in my room. However, mine is a few years old, so it might be slightly different from thetest version. Pleasepare and read them.¡±
¡°Thank you. I couldn¡¯t make much progress reading it in English. Is there a separate Korean version?¡±
¡°Well¡ At first, when they gave me the English version, I didn¡¯t even read it and just put it away. Our team leader, seeing the state of the team members, got so frustrated that he brought a Korean version within a month. He told us to memorize it within a week, or we¡¯d be kicked out of here, so I hurriedly read it. I¡¯ve highlighted a few things with a highlighter pen, but other than that, it should be in good condition. I¡¯ll bring it to you after the treatment.¡±
¡°That would be really helpful. My trantor doesn¡¯t work for document trantion.¡±
Seo Ji-hyuk blinked his eyes looking at my old trantor hanging on my ear like an earring. It was a bit embarrassing because it was outdated, but it was better than not having one. I hastily added another sentence, ¡°The ones that trante in real-time are expensive.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
¡°Next time youe, I¡¯ll read the whole book. In return, how about you start flossing?¡±
After teaching Seo Jihyuk in detail about how to floss, I advised him to eat as little sugar as possible and handed him some dental floss. A few minutester, he handed me a book with the title [Underwater Base Guidebook Korean Version] written in huge letters and left. I was so happy to see Korean that I hugged the book for quite a while.
The dental clinic wasn¡¯t too crowded, but it wasn¡¯tpletely idle either. Firstly, those who were curious about the dental clinic that had just opened in the underwater base made reservations, but most people couldn¡¯t make reservations due to shift work schedules, or they decided to take their time after hearing the reviews from those who had visited the dental clinic.
I asionally heard about the mess that medical cultures were in various countries through my patients. In the case of William Erickson from Mining Team 6, he vehemently criticized the medical services in the United States while suffering from a fever. He came in with a cavity and demanded that all his teeth be reced with gold ones by the end of the day. When I asked if he was nning to fast starting today, he hesitated slightly, so I filled in the cavity and did the scaling first.
He said he¡¯d never had scaling done before, and throughout the procedure, he clenched and unclenched his fists, squeezing the poor orange whale plushie Noeul that he was holding until it seemed ready to burst. Then, twisting his over the 180cm-tall body like a grilling squid, he suddenly left for the restroom before I could start on his lower teeth and never returned.
I sent him a message saying his treatment wasn¡¯t finished, but there was no response. It wasn¡¯t until the wrinkles on the crumpled and traumatized Noeul smoothed out that I received a reply saying he would return next week. I couldn¡¯t help butugh at the message he sent saying there would definitely be a dental drill at the front row of hell¡¯s Gate. When I sent a message telling him to take the dental floss, there was no reply.
In the case of dimir Sergeyevich Ivanov, the team leader of Team D, who imed to havee from Russia, he actually brought alcohol with him. I didn¡¯t realize what it was when I greeted him, thinking it was water in a metal sk. But when I smelled it, I was shocked to discover it was vodka.
When I reached out my hand towards him, the tall, blond man, who was over 190 cm, obediently handed me the bottle of alcohol. As I locked the sk lid to prevent the smell of alcohol from escaping, I noticed his strange look and realized he had meant for me to drink it. I shook my head, had him brush his teeth with a disposable toothbrush and toothpaste, and prepared for the procedure. Surprisingly, he quietly brushed his teeth, rinsed his mouth, andy down in the treatment chair.
His oral condition was quite unique: all six of his front teeth were imnts. When I asked him about having six imnts in his mid-30s, he raised his blond eyebrows and said, ¡°You probably don¡¯t want to know. Doc.¡±
I couldn¡¯t tell if my trantor was too old-fashioned or if he actually spoke Russian that harshly. As if I had heard his response, I asked about the lower right mr he had broken from applying too much force, ¡°Didn¡¯t it hurt?¡±
¡°Life is pain.¡±
I considered causing him more pain but decided against testing my patience on someone who had smuggled alcohol into a ce where it was forbidden. While the American patient had raised both hands and waved them when I told him to raise his hand if it hurt, Ivanov bore the pain as if life truly was pain. Noeul, who had been forcibly held, was much more stable in his embrace than with previous patients.
I habitually praised him for enduring the procedure like I would for a young patient who had done well, but then realized I wasplimenting a Russian man who drank vodka like water and carried on with the treatment in silence. In the quiet treatment room, only my hands and feet worked diligently.
¡°You¡¯ll have toe back next week. Don¡¯t eat hard foods until then. Don¡¯t chew on the right side. Brush your teeth well. And don¡¯t drink alcohol.¡±
dimir took the dental floss I had ced on the table and put it in his pocket, but I wasn¡¯t sure if he¡¯d actually listen to me. As he was leaving, I instinctively threw him another piece of floss. He caught it in mid-air, frowned, and left.
Ever since I found a box full of dental floss, my goal has been to get everyone in the underwater base to use it for brushing their teeth.
We¡¯re on a sry system anyway, so isn¡¯t it better if we don¡¯t have patients?
The initiative began with this intention, but it hasn¡¯t been off to a great start. Judging from the dental conditions of the people who visited the dental clinic in thest two days, there were some who flossed, but not many.
I have to remain hopeful. There¡¯s no need to despair when fewer than ten people have visited so far. I¡¯m looking forward to this new hobby spreading throughout the gloomy underwater base. Otherwise, the legend of a dentist who threatens patients to floss diligently, saying their teeth aren¡¯t stacked like a shark¡¯s, might be born.
No matter how diligently one brushes their teeth, how thoroughly one floss, how little sugar one consumes, or how well one rinses their mouth with mouthwash, there¡¯s no answer for direct trauma. In the past three days, I treated five very unique men with chipped front teeth, cracked mrs, or teeth shaken from a strong blow to the jaw.
One even had a non-dental item wedged into his tooth. They were all miners and engineers. When asked how they ended up in such a state, bizarre excuses poured out: they tripped and fell near stairsteps, fell out of bed, didn¡¯t know, or suddenly found their teeth like that when they woke up.
It was obvious that these injuries were caused by fistfights. And from the appearance of those who came to the hospital, I knew that the person responsible was tall and right-handed. The patients I treated were all bitter losers who had tasted defeat once or twice.
I first treated old, neglected wounds and traumas before addressing the most recent acts of violence in the treatment room. Yesterday¡¯s loser had loose teeth, and his lower mr was broken. As I examined the broken mr, I sighed and said, ¡°That guy must have a strong punch.¡±
Violence is not tolerated in the underwater base. But I have no idea where they¡¯re getting into these fistfights. At my question, Tyler from the engineering B-team started speaking excitedly.
¡°That crazy guy threw the first punch. Ah, of course, I hit him more. Just watch. I¡¯ll make him walk around toothless like a jellyfish. And make him suck soup for the rest of his life!¡±
As I was pondering whether to stick the fantastically broken mr back like Tetris or pull it out since it was hopeless, I heard a familiar curse. ¡°That skinny bastard from engineering A-team!
¡°Is that how the leader of the engineering A-team behaves?¡±
At that, Tyler, apparently feeling wronged, began to curse his opponent, unleashing every curse word he knew. I had heard that the engineering B-team was made up of Canadians, but this was the first time I had seen a Canadian, who I thought were peaceful people, excluding hockey, passionately wishing misfortune upon an opponent.
Upon hearing this, it seemed that Engineering Team A would neverpromise, even on the smallest of matters, and there was absolutely no negotiation. Not only that but the team leader, Shin Hae-ryang, was said to be instigating disputes. I had been half-listening to the story from the person who had been defeated, and now they were enthusiastically badmouthing the entire Engineering Team A.
Thanks to that, I was able to memorize the names of all seven members of Engineering Team A, whom I hadn¡¯t met, excluding Seo Jihyuk. It must have been very difficult for them. They must have been in pain but managed to hold it in so far. Anyone who provides any type of service to others bes a service worker. They soullessly spat out several obsequious phrases to appease the customers and then cut off the conversation as they had to start their next appointment immediately.
Sounds that couldn¡¯t form words filled the treatment room. As the long yet short treatment time came to an end, Tyler got up from the medical bed, wincing in pain. I had managed to save his mr, but Noeul¡¯s face, which had been nestled in Tyler¡¯s arms, was all crumpled up.
¡°Rinse your mouth, and then you can go. I¡¯ll see you next week.¡±
¡°I¡¯m nevering back!¡±
I handed Tyler some dental floss while consoling him, saying he had done well to endure it. The people at the underwater base had rather fierce faces and were quiterge, as equipment repair and mining were their priorities, but surprisingly, they didn¡¯t throw away the dental floss and obediently took it with them. Perhaps it was because they were out of their minds after the treatment or they unconsciously grabbed the offered floss as they ran away.
People often lose courage just by making a dental appointment. I tried to give as much encouragement and praise as I could to those who came to the dentist. After all, it¡¯s already remarkable that they didn¡¯t avoid their situation and went to the dentist.
Chapter 8
Chapter 8
After Tyler, one person from the engineering team and one from the mining team came to visit. Excluding patients who visited purely for cavities and fallen dental prosthetics, the statistics for the three days showed that a handful of people were visiting the dental clinic all because of one person.
If only I could win over the leader of the engineering A-team, I feel like I could get by doing nothing. Or perhaps, I would need even more patience, working non-stop.
I searched for Shin Hae-ryang in the employee search bar using the pad connected to the underwater base¡¯s program. [Engineering A-Team Chief Shin Hae-ryang *Resting]
I considered chatting with him but hesitated, wondering if it was really appropriate to contact someone who was resting after work hours. And as I thought about what to talk about, I lost the courage to start a chat.
What should I ask if I do contact him?
¡°Hello, Mr. Shin Hae-ryang. My name is Park Mu-hyun, a dentist who has been at the underwater base for three days. I heard that you¡¯ve been breaking the engineers and mining team¡¯s defenses. Is that true?¡± What? You say you¡¯ve never done such a thing? That I must be mistaken? I apologize. By the way, can we meet in the back alley, if there is one in the underwater base? Since I¡¯m the only dentist within a 30 km radius, could you at least hit me somewhere I can hide my face?¡±
I shook my head while imagining the conversation, smiling to myself. We¡¯ll meet someday.
I then searched for all the names I had heard over the past three days in the employee search bar. [Engineering A-Team Employee Kang Su-jeong *Resting]
After hesitating for a while, I tried the chat program for the first time. [Hello, Ms. Kang Soo-jung. Thank you for carrying my luggage. My bag found its way to my room thanks to you. I¡¯ll treat you to something deliciouster. Have a great day today.]
Then, I looked at the underwater base¡¯s bulletin board and the restaurant¡¯s menu before checking the reservation time and calling in the next patient.
Overall, women¡¯s oral health is much better than men¡¯s. Teenagers, regardless of gender, have simrly disastrous dental conditions, but from their twenties, the difference bes clear. This is because the ratio of males indulging in alcohol, smoking, and neglecting oral hygiene is overwhelmingly higher. Surprisingly, the people in the underwater base made an effort to take care of their teeth regardless of gender.
That makes sense. If I were in space, I would diligently brush my teeth. I wouldn¡¯t want to suffer from the headache of cavities on top of the already overwhelming experience of being on a spaceship. Since it¡¯s not easy to receive hospital services promptly in an isted situation, many people made an effort to take care of themselves. Of course, there were still plenty who didn¡¯t.
The man named Sato in front of me was one of them. Sato Ryosuke, a member of M team and an engineer, was one of the few people at this underwater base who properly flossed their teeth when visiting the dentist. The reason was simple: he had two extra teeth, and there were many areas that could not be cleaned with a toothbrush alone, so if he didn¡¯t floss, debris would umte.
¡°Can you do orthodontics here as well?¡±
¡°Are you looking to correct your extra teeth?¡±
¡°Yes, is it possible?¡±
¡°There¡¯s no set policy on orthodontics yet. I have already made an inquiry, but it will take about a month to establish the regtions. I will let you know once I get a response. As you may already know, orthodontic treatment takes at least two to three years and can be bothersome, ufortable, and painful.¡±
Sato Ryosuke was in his early 30s and had a severe mallusion1, which would require screws to be inserted into his gums. The treatment would take at least two to three years. I exined the general details of orthodontic treatment in depth, mentioning that it would involve extracting healthy teeth and that certain foods would be off-limits.
I wondered if someone who dives underwater to repair underwater bases should really be getting orthodontic treatment. It seemed like it wouldn¡¯t be a problem to move around the underwater base with braces on. I went on exining how much it would cost based on South Korean medical service standards if he chose to have the orthodontic treatment using a tooth-attached method. I also added that after the treatment, he would have to be cautious about everything, including fights and idents.
¡°There¡¯s no need to worry about fights at the underwater base, except for Team Leader Sin Hae-ryang.¡±
¡°Are you talking about the Team Leader of Engineering Team A?¡±
¡°Have you met him?¡±
¡°No, not yet. I¡¯ve only heard his name.¡±
Sato began mumbling something in Japanese. It seemed like he was saying something to wish Team Leader Sin Hae-ryang¡¯s well-being, but he spoke so quickly that not even the trantor could understand him.
¡°What does he do?¡±
I expected stories about him being a farmer harvesting corn underwater or a deep-sea version of Muhammad Ali, but Sato¡¯s answer was simple.
¡°He¡¯s the team leader of the Korean Engineering Team, but he has a somewhat peculiar personality.¡±
From his thin lips, the pronunciation of ¡®peculiar¡¯ in Japanese was stretched out strangely in my old trantor. I was about to ask what was peculiar about him, but I stopped. I could see the hatred simmering in this man. It was like aged gasoline. People like me, who harbor hatred, can recognize it more easily. He was openly disying his deep-rooted emotions, but facing them made me ufortable, so I slightly lowered my head.
¡°I guess you have healthy teeth.¡±
At that, Sato smiled, and as his thin lips curled upwards, the problematic doubleyered teeth were slightly exposed. His eyes twinkled. Sato, who had been fiddling with an orange-colored whale, asked, ¡°Did youe from China? Or the United States?¡±
I knew from the underwater base¡¯s employee search, but none of the people at the base had their nationality, age, race, or gender listed. It was meant to create a life free from discrimination and prejudice at the underwater base, but in reality, people of the same nationality tended to group together in teams. Most of the team leaders had male names, and it seemed that there were quite a few cunning schemes, such as work assignments changing depending on age.
It seemed like such questions should not be asked in the first ce, but most of the underwater base staff seemed to already know each other¡¯s nationalities and ages.
He must¡¯ve thought I¡¯m Chinese.
After all, most of my appearance resembled that of an East Asian. Except for one part: my eyes.
¡°I am of Korean descent.¡±
Sato¡¯s smile vanished in an instant.
¡°But the color of your pupils.¡±
¡°Yes. One eye is sky blue, while the other is pitch ck.¡±
I acquired heterochromia after a traffic ident when I was young, but luckily, I did not go blind. I don¡¯t quite remember, but I was told that I had undergone several surgeries. It doesn¡¯t make much of a difference in daily life, but depending on the angle of the light, my iris looks blue.
At my response, Sato slightly lifted the corner of his mouth and spoke softly, ¡°I will send our new team leader to keep you from getting bored, doctor.¡±
Wow¡
I got chills down my spine. It was slightly simr to the fear I felt when I rode the central elevator of the underwater base down 3000 meters.
ording to Elliot, everyone working at this underwater base is required to undergo a mental evaluation. Only those who pass can work underwater. So, most of the people I meet have been proven by experts to be mentally sound. The hint of madness that Sato briefly revealed was skillfully hidden and disappeared.
I responded as if his words were not a big deal. ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤That¡¯s fine. I just want to get paid without working.¡±
I felt my damaged iris itch. After praising my rtively good dental care a few times, I handed Sato handed some dental floss. We exchanged words about seeing each other again next time.
When I returned from the restroom, I saw neatly ced dental floss on the waiting table. Sato must have had his own as he didn¡¯t take mine. Or maybe he didn¡¯t like the one I gave him. I decided to think positively that I still had a new piece of dental floss in my hand.
Perhaps the engineering team leaders are not close enough to drink or hang out together. Or maybe it¡¯s just Sato and the new team leader, Shin Hae Ryang.Come to think of it, that other team leader named Yi Ban didn¡¯t seem very sociable either.
After tossing the dental floss into the air several times and catching it, I threw it into a box filled with dental floss. Was that remark a rmendation to get a dental checkup? Or was it a warning of assault, as I thought? I sighed and called the next patient.- A condition when upper teeth ovep lower teeth excessively.[?]
Chapter 9
Chapter 9
The entire morning hours seemed to be a break for the engineering team since their team leader had left, and appointments had significantly decreased. I went ahead and confirmed all the appointments. After three days, I was finally getting the hang of working here. As I sent confirmation messages, Japanese patients came in one after another for their treatments at the appointed times.
The first five patients hadmon dental issues such as cavities, fallen-off ceramics from previous treatments, tartar removal, and periodontitis. However, thest patient was rather peculiar. A man named Tamaki Yuzuru had severely torn lips as if he had been biting them, but other than that, he seemed fine. However, when he opened his mouth, it was aplete mess.
I had never seen so much stomatitis1 before. Inmmations were densely packed, including under the tongue, causing me to frown just by looking at them. What could have caused this? Was there an explosion in his mouth? He didn¡¯t answer my question as to how this had happened.
¡°Did you bite a sea urchin or a hedgehog?¡±
¡°No.¡±
And then there was silence. He either didn¡¯t answer or responded very slowly when asked questions. I anesthetized him and cauterized the affected areas with aser. As I burned each inmmation one by one, I felt we might exceed the next appointment time, so I sent a message to the next patient, asking for their understanding.
I advised him to gargle and prescribed medication for the inmmation and gargling solution. I also told him to avoid rough, hard, salty, and spicy foods, and absolutely no alcohol or cigarettes. He should get at least 8 hours of sleep, and I nagged him about this. Tamaki listened nkly and slowly nodded his head. Then, I handed him a vitamin candy that I had been eating from my pocket.
¡°Since these contain vitamins, have one when you¡¯re stressed. Can you take a vacation?¡±
¡°No.¡±
How do these people take vacations? I know that I have weekends off, but I don¡¯t understand how people working in four-shift rotations take their vacations.
¡°The best thing would be to take a good rest without working, eat well, gargle, and sleep a lot. But if it¡¯s not possible, you can¡¯t help it. Ask your team leader if you can take a vacation based on a dentist¡¯s opinion, and if it¡¯s allowed,e to me. I¡¯ll tell them that Mr. Tamaki needs a two-day break.¡±
Tamaki didn¡¯t say anything as I gave him dental floss. I told him to take care of his health and see me again in three days. After finishing the mostly one-sided treatment, I called in the next patient.
While I was treating a cavity for an engineer from Team A, someone messaged me on my tablet. It was a Japanese employee who had received treatment from me, but strangely enough, he were asking about Tamaki Yuzuru¡¯s dental condition, rather of his own medical treatment. I thought it was Team B¡¯s team leader, Sato, but their names were different.
While the patient was rinsing their mouth, I sent a reply. [I cannot disclose another patient¡¯s treatment records.] After that, no more messages came.
Even though it¡¯s been more than a week since I arrived here, I still can¡¯t believe that I¡¯m on the ocean floor. The feeling of being trapped asionally surfaces, even when I try not to be aware of it. It¡¯s a strange experience.
Dentists have a profession where they work non-stop, except during lunchtime, from morning to evening if patients continuouslye in. In this regard, they are simr to ordinary office workers or self-employed individuals. They must stay in one ce, and apart from lunchtime, they don¡¯t usually move far from their designated location.
I thought life onnd and life in an underwater base would not be very different. However, once I actually arrived at the underwater base, there were clear differences. Even the air I breathed felt different in the underwater base. It felt as if I were treating patients inside an airne. It was as if I had be a fish trapped in an artificially created aquarium just barely fit for human habitation.
I considered myself fortunate to be neither particrly sociable nor active. Perhaps those who dislike staying at home would go crazy after just one day in an underwater base. Despite being an introvert, I strongly felt the desire to go out, face the wind, and breathe in fresh air. It had only been three days!
Seeing some free time before my next appointment, I hesitated no more and took the central elevator. As soon as I reached the ground floor, I aimlessly walked around the artificial ind. The wind blew fiercely. The white wind turbines of the wind power generators installed on the ind spun wildly in the strong wind. As I walked a few steps, the intense sunlight attacked my eyes.
After enjoying the sunlight, sea breeze, and dust for five minutes, I felt a sudden urge to return to my warm, quiet, and still-empty dental clinic. It was cold, and the wind blew too much. I craved something sweet. I quickly took the central elevator and descended back to the underwater base. Then, I rushed to the coffee shop in the central building. [Red Coral], located in the fourth underwater base, was a coffee shop run by a Japanese woman named Fumiko. Over the past few days, I had consumed at least two drinks a day, sampling most of the beverages avable. The tastiest was the [Red Coral Coffee], atte with three shots that felt like caffeine directly entering my veins. It was truly delicious, but my hands would tremble from caffeine after drinking it. Craving something sweet, I ordered an orange blended drink and waited for my next appointment.
There were quite a few chairs to sit on next to the caf¨¦, and people who had ordered drinks from the caf¨¦ were either waiting, chatting, or arguing with one another. It seemed that a man and a woman had been arguing even before I arrived. In case they started fighting with their fists, I was prepared to intervene or call a medic, but they remained seated peacefully, baring their teeth at each other and exchanging fast, aggressive words until my drink was ready.
I sat on a chair, swallowing the well-mixed icy orange juice, pretending not to watch while keeping an eye on them. I noticed that most of the people around the caf¨¦ were watching the two of them just like me, and with a sigh of relief, I returned to the dental clinic where patients would be arriving.
On my way back to the clinic, I suddenly wondered how problems or conflicts would be handled here. I remembered reading something like the Underwater Artifact Protection Agreement in the underwater base guidebook. Maybe there¡¯s something like an Underwater Base Staff Protection Agreement too? I still haven¡¯t finished reading all my employment-rted documents.
Looking at the shark¡¯s skull in the distance, I suddenly asked myself, ¡Am I tired? I held the Orange Blended with both hands.
Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯m a neer here, but working at the underwater base still felt a bit awkward. The job itself might be quite different from what I experienced onnd. There was no dental hygienist, no dental technician, so I had to do everything myself, which was utterly exhausting. Thankfully, there were only a handful of patients, and everything was state-of-the-art equipment; otherwise, I might have run away on my first day. ¡Could I really have run away, considering how much they¡¯re paying me?
It was clear that thews here at the underwater base were different from those in Korea. After all, dentists can make dental prostheses here. When I asked Priya if I would be the only one using the dental clinic and if they nned on hiring more people, she said they had already posted a job announcement in Russia and New Zend. Considering my own hiring process, it would probably take at least two months for a new person to arrive. I looked at the approaching shark¡¯s mouth and thought. Alright. Let¡¯s set the goal of surviving for the next two months.
D-Day 2- Inmmations inside the mouth, usually sore on the cheeks gums or inside of the lips.[?]
Chapter 10
Chapter 10
I took the central elevator up and filled a tray with one of each type of bread at the 3rd Underwater Base. The bakery at the 3rd Underwater Base was called ¡°Babylonia.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure why it had such a name, but the bread was really delicious. Freshly baked bread was avable every day, and there was a wide variety. At first, I couldn¡¯t understand why people would wait in line for the bread toe out, but now I could. I looked at the daring phrase engraved inside the bakery. [One can live on bread alone]
I would choose rice over bread if given a choice, but the bread from this bakery was so incredibly delicious that I couldn¡¯t object to that phrase. I initially thought I had swallowed the first red bean bread I tried without chewing because I was hungry, but it was delicious even when I was full.
The food at the cafeteria was decent, but I suspected someone might be eating bread for their meals because the taste was so good. I considered filling the tray with only the types of bread I liked, but instead, I made a safe choice and picked one of each kind. I couldn¡¯t tell who would like what.
Kang Soo-jung had work again in three hours. I received a question asking if she coulde over while her friends were chatting and ying at her quarters. I thought of the dental appointment scheduled in two hours. Then I asked if it was really okay for me toe, and after hearing that it was okay, I knocked on the door with four cups of coffee and a bundle of bread. Kang Soo-jung, wearing a light shirt and jeans, opened the door to her quarters.
¡°You¡¯re here. Doctor.¡±
¡°Hello!¡±
¡°Hello.¡±
¡°Hello. I¡¯m the new dentist Park Mu-hyun.¡±
Both were engineers from different teams. One was Zhu Xian from the Engineer B Team, and the other was Lily, a Canadian from the Engineer A Team. The three were workout buddies, having met at the gym in the central district. They encouraged and scolded each other when they didn¡¯t feel like exercising. All three were over 180cm tall, and their biceps for grabbing coffee were no joke.
Listening to the chatter of the three, it was only then that I realized most of the female engineers at the underwater base were regrly exercising. I began to reflect on my own body, which only had basic muscles. I thought I should also build some muscles while I¡¯m at the underwater base.
¡°I should start working out too.¡±
¡°That¡¯s a good idea. The men here work out a lot. There¡¯s a trainer for women named Emily, and for men, there¡¯s James.¡±
¡°Speaking of which, I remember James swearing every day because the men broke so many exercise machines at first.¡±
¡°Who¡¯s James?¡±
¡°James Miller is an American trainer here. You can just tell him that you¡¯re new to working out, and he¡¯ll teach you well.¡±
Zhu Xian gave me a clueless look and exined in more detail, ¡°He¡¯s a 195cm tall man, covered in muscles, wearing a red tracksuit. He wears the same tracksuit every day, I wonder if he washes it or not.¡±
¡°It seems like most men living in the underwater base have good physiques.¡±
Hearing my opinion, Kang Soo-jung shook her head. ¡°Not everyone is like that.¡±
¡°Only those who work out actually work out.¡±
Zu Xian, who said that, wiped cream from her lips with her thumb, licked it off, and quickly wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. I handed her a napkin a beat toote, as Lily, who was next to her, took it with a smile and wiped the cream from her fingers.
Since the topic of exercise came up, I was about to ask if Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang was also hitting people¡¯s jaws like a storm, but when I found out Kang Soo-jung¡¯s superior was Shin Hae-ryang, I changed my mind. Besides, there were other engineers around, so it would be gossip if I brought it up. Silence was always golden. On the other hand, I couldn¡¯t tell whether the psychologist Elliot or the researcher Yoo Geum-yi were working out just by looking at them.
¡°Did you always work out? Or did you start aftering to the underwater base?¡±
Hoping that I would naturally gain muscles by staying at the underwater base for a long time, I asked, and Zhu Xian surprisingly gave a light-hearted affirmation. ¡°I started aftering to the underwater base. Nothing used in the ocean is light, after all.¡±
Watching her grabbing some bread, it seemed I miscalcted the amount of food. The three of them ate more than I thought. Since I bought different types of bread, there were about 17 pieces, and they disappeared in the blink of an eye. I should have bought more. When I briefly shared my thoughts, Kang Soo-jung shook her head.
¡°It¡¯s because today is a cheat day, we don¡¯t usually eat bread like this.¡±
Lily immediately refuted her, ¡°I eat bread just fine! You just prefer rice instead!¡±
¡°Then you should eat rice too.¡±
At Kang Soo-jung¡¯s nonchnt words, Zhu Xian chuckled. Lily, who had been sucking the sugar from her fingers after picking up a doughnut, asked why the dental clinic was called Deep Blue. It was a question rted to the underwater base that I could answer confidently.
After hearing my exnation, Lily snapped her fingers and said, ¡°That name definitely sounds like it was made up by an American. Us Canadians don¡¯t name things like that.¡±
¡°The naming around here is a mess. What kind of name is ¡®Full Course Feast¡¯ for the West District restaurant? The only Chinese dish they serve is dumplings.¡±
As Kang Soo-jung looked at Zhu Xian, Zhu Xian then spoke as if she felt wronged by the woman¡¯s gaze, ¡°You wanted to name it King¡¯s Kitchen, didn¡¯t you? What¡¯s with King¡¯s Kitchen! Mine¡¯s better. I wanted to call it Sichuan Cuisine!¡±
We chatted so much that it was almost time for my scheduled appointment, and I was the first to stand up. Holding my half-finished coffee, I said to Kang Soo-jung, ¡°Thank you for inviting me to your event and tea party.¡±
¡°I should be the one thanking you. I have an appointment next week, so please take care of it.¡±
¡°See youter.¡±
¡°Thanks for the meal!¡±
Kang Soo-jung handed me two cup noodles. I quickly threw the cup noodles from room 24, Section 100, onto the bed in my room, number 38, and hurriedly ran out. I was in such a hurry that I bumped into someoneing from the escape route and almost spilled all my coffee. I caught the arm of the person about to fall and barely managed to prevent them from falling. It was a short man. I managed to recall his name after scratching my head.
¡°Hello, Mr. Tamaki. Is your clothing okay?¡±
The other person looked at me and made a very surprised expression, then hesitated. Fortunately, it seemed that the coffee hadn¡¯t sshed on his clothes.
Tamaki hesitantly asked, ¡°Do you have an appointment tomorrow?¡±
¡°Tomorrow is my day off. How¡¯s your wound?¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤It¡¯s fine.¡±
¡°That¡¯s a relief. I¡¯m thinking about what to do tomorrow. It¡¯s my first day off since I came to the underwater base.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
Then Tamaki hesitated to say something and closed his mouth. After a few seconds of awkward silence, I told him that we¡¯d meet againter and started running again. There were only two people scheduled for the afternoon, and I couldn¡¯t keep those few patients waiting. I had to run across the central area to make it back to Deep Blue in time for my appointment.
D-Day 1
Chapter 11-1
Chapter 11-1
Inside room 38 of West District, there is a small studio-type room furnished with a bed, a desk, a chair, and a wardrobe. The room was clean when I arrived, either because no one else had used it or it had already been cleaned. Section 100 itself is said to be the most recently built building, except for Central District which is the research building.
The excitement of having a new room still lingers in my heart even after five days. Although the room is small, consisting of a bed, a desk, a chair, and a wardrobe, I felt the happiest in the world when lying down.
I wonder why lying down feels so good. It¡¯s a mystery why humans have to walk on two legs when our bodies naturally search for the soft bedding.
Would I not work if I had enough money? I¡¯m not sure. No matter how much I think about it, working for something other than money seems like it would bring happiness. If I had a lot of money, I would first give some to my mother, pay for my younger brother¡¯s college tuition, and then never leave my bed. Rolling around in bed, convincing myself that this is also a form of stretching, I eventually got up to brush my teeth.
The 4th underwater base itself had arge cross-shaped structure. Mining District in the north is where the mining teams live with their mining robots, Blue District in the east is where the engineering teams reside, Central District in the south is filled with researchers and research facilities, and White Tiger (West) District in the west is where I and others like me with special jobs, such as cleaning and cooking, live.
In each of the four districts, there are amodations, facilities, various equipment, escape boats, showers,undry rooms, and lounges. It is said that in the past, amodations were on the maind, and people woulde down to the underwater base to work and then go back up to the maind.
However, as the underwater base began to operate 24/7, 365 days a year, temporary amodations were created inside the base, andter, permanent amodations were built. Eventually, most of the people working at the underwater base no longer lived on the maind but instead lived underwater.
Before joining here, I agreed to collect data on any mental or physical changes I experienced while living at the base. The information of about 1,000 people at this North Pacific underwater base would probably be used for the construction of the Antic underwater base or someone¡¯s research. I also had to collect data on the dental health of people living in the underwater base, but not as many people came as I expected.
Most people work in 4 teams, 8 hours each, and don¡¯t seem toe unless their work hours align. During their breaks, most of them sleep, eat, or watch dramas and movies now that the inte is avable.
Many people make phone calls, y games, or exercise, as Kang Soo-jung mentioned. I tried to take up exercising as a new hobby, but my new hobby became the aquarium with jellyfish collected in the underwater base.
A research team is said to be raising jellyfish inside the base for some jellyfish-rted research. I thought it would be really fun to raise them. Watching the sparkling jellyfish felt like looking at the lights on a Christmas tree. While admiring the beauty of the jellyfish swimming in the water, I would asionally think about practical concerns, like how to clean the tank, and then move on to another ce.
These days, I would walk to the aquarium while brushing my teeth at the dental clinic, watched the jellyfish, spit out toothpaste foam in the central restroom, and then returned to my room after looking around the aquarium again. It was a sight and a luxury that could never be experienced if it wasn¡¯t an underwater base. While brushing my teeth, I looked at the pad. In 5 seconds, I would officially enter my day off, as long as there was no emergency. With the toothbrush in my mouth, I started walking out of the dental clinic holding the pad.
[Dentist Park Mu-hyun *Working] 4, 3, 2, 1. 0.
As soon as it became 0, it changed from working to ¡®on vacation¡¯.
[Dentist Park Mu-hyun *On Vacation] Vacation. Ah. What a sweet word.
It¡¯s not just ¡°resting¡± because my work is over; it¡¯s truly a ¡°vacation.¡± Ugh, it¡¯s so good.
I was d I wasn¡¯t on a 4-shift schedule like others. Of course, it wasn¡¯t bad having four teams on a 4-shift schedule, but for someone like me who was used to working 5 days and resting 2, having separate days off was morefortable.
On the other hand, I don¡¯t have the 10 days off every 3 months that only shift workers have. I¡¯ll just have to be envious when that timees. For now, I love my current days off. I brought the orange whale stuffed animal, Noeul, who was tormented by patients, and went to theundry room to wash it with my clothes.
Once theundry is done, I should go y at the beach. Do they sell beer around the beach? I wish they did. I want to walk along the beach with a beer in hand. Did they say they don¡¯t sell alcohol on the artificial ind? I just wish they sold carbonated water, too.
As I thought this, I heard a voice in the multipurpose room right next to theundry room.
¡°How expensive do you think you are!¡±
It was a loud voice. I could only see the back of a man when I turned my head. When I heard the swearing, I realized that my trantor could also trante swear words. A man who seemed to be over 180cm tall staggered back for a moment, revealing a woman standing in front of him.
The woman immediately punched the man¡¯s jaw before he could raise his guard with both arms. The man¡¯s head tilted at a right angle from the force of the punch. The woman delivered another blow to the man¡¯s empty vital point as if her fist couldn¡¯t hold back its rage. In an instant, the adult male fell to the ground without a chance to intervene.
The assaulter was a small woman who appeared to be around 160cm tall. She wore long training pants and a short-sleeved t-shirt, her long hair tied up and looking agile like a squirrel. Seeing that I had witnessed the assault scene with my mouth agape, the woman with slightly scraped knuckles approached me.
There were CCTV cameras in every area of the underwater base, so there were hardly any blind spots. The woman quickly checked the camera and saw that the area where the man and woman were standing was out of the camera¡¯s view. Was she handling the witness? When I took a step back, the woman smiled brightly, raised both palms, and said awkwardly,
¡°Hello.¡±
Although she was speaking clearly in Korean, it seemed like she said that after seeing the title of the [Underwater Base Guidebook Korean Edition] in my hand. No matter how much I thought about it, it seemed like the man was unterally beaten and had fainted.
The woman approached, walking nimbly. ¡°It seems you haven¡¯t been here long since I¡¯m seeing your face for the first time.¡±
¡°Uh¡ yes. Hello. My name is Park Mu-hyun.¡±
It was only after I blurted out those words that I thought it might have been better to just run away. It couldn¡¯t be helped. For the past five days, I had been reflexively greeting people I made eye contact with.
¡°I¡¯m Baek Ae-young. Nice to meet you.¡±
When she asked for a handshake, I shook her hand without thinking. I pretended not to notice the blood on Baek Ae-young¡¯s scraped knuckles. I didn¡¯t want to let go of her hand in case another fist came flying, but after an eptably unawkward handshake, I made my most important request in this situation.
¡°Please, avoid hitting my teeth. There¡¯s no dentist at this underwater base or on Daehan Ind besides me.¡±
Baek Ae-young shook her small hand as if I had misunderstood. ¡°Huh? No, I¡¯m not the kind of person who beats someone up without a reason.¡±
It was hard to believe that, considering what I had seen 20 seconds ago.
¡°That¡ man.¡±
¡°Sometimes, women need to use their fists for various reasons.¡±
I see.
For a brief moment, there seemed to be a legitimate reason, and I almost let it slide. ¡°Doesn¡¯t he need medical help?¡±
Looking at the man lying quietly on the floor and asking Baek Ae-young, the woman casually shook her head while brushing her knuckles. Baek Ae-young probably didn¡¯t need help, but that man, who seemed to have fainted, appeared to be in dire need.
¡°Are you an engineer of Team A, by any chance, Baek Ae-young?¡±
¡°Yes. You¡¯re the new dentist, right?¡±
¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct.¡±
It seems that Team A engineers all solve things with their fists. Or perhaps the underwater base boxing team is simply named ¡®Team A Engineers.¡¯
¡°Doctor, you¡¯re currently the most famous person in the underwater base.¡±
¡°Because I¡¯m new?¡±
¡°That too, but no one thought a dental clinic would really open in this cramped space. It¡¯s not a ce that just grants everything you ask for.¡±
¡°Is that so? ¡How do you find life in the underwater base? I¡¯m curious.¡±
I gestured at the fallen man as I spoke. I thought it was an ambiguous expression, but Baek Ae-young gave a bitter smile and shook her head. ¡°It¡¯s gotten a bit better for me now.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°You¡¯ll find out as you stay here. I¡¯lle by for scalingter. You should go first.¡±
¡°There¡¯s an injured person here.¡±
What if he dies right there if we just leave him? I didn¡¯t back down and stood my ground, making Baek Ae-young sigh heavily. It felt like my small show of courage was being pped away by that sigh.
¡°He insulted me and threatened me, saying he was bigger.¡±
¡°From what you¡¯re saying, it seems like that guy is entirely at fault. ¡But won¡¯t he die like that?¡± I said, looking at the man lying like a frog.
Baek Ae-young replied coldly, ¡°He won¡¯t die. Actually, I dealt with him quite gently.¡±
Scary. It seems his nose is broken. Did she punch him in the nose at first? I¡¯m not sure about his ribs.
Seeing her punch his sr plexus, I awkwardly nodded my head, ¡°If punching is your gentle way of handling things, what¡¯s the rough and malicious way?¡±
¡°Well, something like suddenly disappearing from the underwater base.¡±
I couldn¡¯t hide my shocked expression. Is this ce really a den where violence often urs, and ordinary people like me can get caught up in it?
¡°Are engineers thugs?¡±
¡°Oh, please tell the Chinese and Japanese teams that too. Their ident rate is really high. Ah, and the Canadians and Australians. They¡¯re deceptively dangerous.¡±
¡°What will you do with that man?¡±
¡°I won¡¯t do anything more. I¡¯ll just kick his side a few more times and leave him here. When he wakes up, he¡¯ll go back to his room on his own. Or maybe he¡¯ll go to the hospital.¡±
I desperately wanted to escape from here. Not because I was afraid of a person who swings her fists, but because I didn¡¯t want to be around someone who casually uses violence on others. However, I couldn¡¯t leave Baek Ae-young here alone. Who knows what might happen? The guy lying on the ground could get up in an instant and take revenge on her, or she could damage him more than his nose and ribs.
Chapter 12
Chapter 12
I woke up from the shock of falling out of bed. A strange creaking sound echoed in the distance. What¡¯s that noise? I got up, staggering as the room seemed to shake. The pen on the desk trembled from the vibration.
Still disoriented, I opened the door, and water gushed into the room with a whooshing sound. Why was the hallway filled with water? As soon as the thought crossed my mind, goosebumps crawled up my body.
The seawater soaking my bare feet was cold. I finally smelled the saltiness and quickly retreated back into my room. I worried that the door might not close, but it slowly shut.
I sat on the bed, wiped my wet feet on the nket, put on long socks, and slipped into the sturdiest hiking boots I owned. In the waterproof backpack that my sibling had given me as a job-warming gift, I found a shlight I had bought for a camping trip but never used.
I crammed a bottle of water, a guidebook, scattered candies, choctes, energy bars, and the like into the backpack. I also shoved in the towel I used for washing my face and the whale plush toy that was next to it. As I stuffed everything in sight into the bag, I remembered that all my clothes were in the dryer in theundry room. I put my wallet and the pad from the bed into the bag and closed it. It took even more courage to open the door with my phone in hand.
Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I pressed the door button, and it opened more slowly than usual, perhaps due to a malfunction. Before, the water had barely reached my soles, but now it quickly rose to my ankles. Fear washed over me. Why is water leaking inside? While underwater bases might be prone to leaks, they weren¡¯t built for humans to live like fish.
Is this normal? I thought, cing my hand on the hallway wall. Was it amon urrence for the living quarters to be flooded like this, and was I just unaware? Caught in an unexpected situation, my mind went nk. The damp hem of my clothes and the cold water were the only things that made me feel the reality of the flooded underwater base.
The bedroom doors in the living quarters opened with a fingerprint, or by swiping the electronic watch on my wrist, or holding up the pad. I was in the West District, where 80 people shared living quarters. To escape, I had to go through the central staircase next to room 40 and head for the escape pod. What if people were still asleep in their rooms? What if they hadn¡¯t woken up yet? Or what if this was normal, and I was overreacting?
I recalled a sentence from the underwater base guidebook about how to escape:
[If a water leak is discovered in the underwater base, it is not a normal situation.]
Gritting my teeth as I looked at the seawater swirling around my ankles, I thought, ¡®if there are 80 rooms, I have to start now. If it turns out this is normal, I¡¯ll just look a little crazy.¡¯
¡°Wake up! We need to run away now! There¡¯s a water leak!¡±
I knocked on the door of the room next to mine, but no one came out. My room was number 38, and the neighboring room, number 37, was upied by a Chinese chef named Wang Wei. I couldn¡¯t tell if he was inside. I knocked on the door and even pressed my finger on the pad, knowing it wouldn¡¯t open with my fingerprint.
In the movie, the door was opened by a fingerprint on the pad or something like that, but to my surprise, the door opened quickly. I couldn¡¯t figure out why the door opened. As soon as I saw the empty room, I headed straight for the adjacent room. I knocked on the door and scanned my fingerprint. The door opened immediately, but no one was inside. I shouted and rushed to open the bedroom door next to it.
¡°Wake up! We need to escape! The seawater is rising!¡±
Around the time I opened about ten doors, I finally found someone sleeping. The person was about 180 cm tall, wearing a headset and tightly wrapped in a quilt, and was sleeping while his torso was undressed. I jumped in and immediately removed the headset from his ears.
¡°Wake up!¡±
I waved my hand as if swatting a fly. I pushed him off the bed with force, and he fell to the floor. He cursed in an unintelligible foreignnguage. Maybe it was my fault, but I didn¡¯t have time, so I kicked the man lying on the floor with my foot.
¡°Get up!¡±
The man groaned and got up, then cursed at me, but his face changed when he saw watering into the room in real-time.
¡°Get out now, you basta*rd!¡±
I don¡¯t think he understood the Korean word ¡°bast*rd,¡± but since he cursed at me, I returned the insult. As soon as I left the room, I read the que on the door and went to the next room. When I opened two more doors, Carlos popped out. He came out wearing a shirt and shoes, but the water had already risen to his ankles.
¡°What¡¯s going on? Why is watering into the base?¡± Carlos¡¯s face turned pale.
Seeing the fear in his eyes, I realized that something serious was happening.
¡°I don¡¯t know! This is how I found it when I woke up. Open the doors from room 37 to 1 and wake everyone up!¡± I shouted as I opened the door to room 52 using my fingerprint, but there was no one inside.
Carlos fumbled with his phone and wrist pad. ¡°Only the room owner, deputy team leader, or team leader can open the door. Or someone from a special department. I can¡¯t open it.¡±
It was then that I remembered the bedroom door opening and emergency procedures listed in the guidebook. Maybe I can open the door because I¡¯m a medical professional.
¡°Then at least knock on the doors!¡±
When I opened the door to room 54, there was someone sleeping with a nket pulled up to their chin. I yanked the nket away. The person was curled up like a fetus, and I recognized them immediately when I saw their face.
¡°Yoo Geum-yi, wake up!¡±
Geum-yi squinted and sat up, then screamed when she realized that two men had entered her room. I immediately lowered my head and spoke, ¡°Water is leaking into the underwater base! Get dressed ande out right away!¡±
Why was she sleeping in this building when the research dormitory was on the other side?
I nced at the name Martina written on the door and opened the one next to it. As I continued opening doors, Geum-yi came out of her room wearing her everyday clothes and sses, her face pale with fear.
¡°Geum-yi, can you open the bedroom doors?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll try.¡±
¡°My room is number 38, but I haven¡¯t checked the rooms with lower numbers yet!¡±
As I opened room 60 with my fingerprint, Geum-yi fiddled with her wrist pad and phone, shaking her head.
¡°There¡¯s no emergency message. I¡¯ll activate the rm.¡±
The ear-piercing rm started ringing when I opened the 62nd door. [Attention! Emergency situation! All personnel in the West District, evacuate to the escape pod immediately. Emergency situation! All personnel in the West District Building, evacuate to the escape pod immediately.]
It was only then that I realized Carlos was gone. When I asked Geum-yi about it, she said she hadn¡¯t seen him since he had entered her room and left.
When I opened room 64, there was a cat inside. It seemed quite unhappy with me and Geum-yi for intruding.
Meow! ¡ª[Attention! Emergency situation!]
The cat¡¯s low cry and the emergency rm sounded together, making my ears feel like they were going to burst.
Geum-yi looked at the cat and said, ¡°It¡¯s a Russian Blue.¡±
That wasn¡¯t the problem. Yoo Geum-yi was talking about the types of cats with a dumbfounded expression, and I too was at a loss for words upon seeing the cat. Animals were prohibited in the underwater base. A cat, of all things.
As I looked at Yoo Geum-yi with a ¡°what do we do now¡± expression while the cat, the size of a forearm, puffed up its fur, Yoo Geum-yi nervously took off the cardigan she was wearing. ¡°Let¡¯s catch it.¡± She then held the cardigan in both hands like a. Yoo Geum-yi gestured to me and went to the right.
¡°To the left.¡±
At thatmand, I picked up a nket next to the bed with both hands, just like Yoo Geum-yi, and went to the left. I lunged at the cat, which was sitting on the desk, opening its mouth wide and meowing loudly. The cat slipped through a gap no bigger than a fist under the nket as if mocking my actions, but Yoo Geum-yi, as if she knew I wouldn¡¯t be able to catch it, covered the cat with the cardigan. Aaaaaaahhh! Although I had never raised a cat, its cry was as ferocious as a tiger¡¯s.
While Yoo Geum-yi wrapped the cat in the cardigan, I emptied any random backpack I could find in the room. I then swept the cat, still wrapped in the cardigan, into the backpack and zipped it shut. After that, I slung the backpack over one shoulder.
Chapter 13
Chapter 13
As soon as the cat left the room, a person appeared, seemingly startled by the rm. It was dimir, who seemed to be drunk as he staggered out of room 65.
The man looked at the water rising up to his calves and pressed something on his wrist pad. All the doors opened at once, and the ring rm turned into a continuous buzzing sound. It was ear-piercing.
dimir¡¯s the head of the Russian engineering team, isn¡¯t he?
A blonde woman came out of the room he had just left, tying her hair.
¡°What¡¯s going on? This is insane.¡±
Upon seeing the water up to her calves, the woman spat out a Russian curse. dimir yelled at her.
¡°Nikita! Go to the escape pod now!¡±
As soon as dimir finished speaking, the woman named Nikita grabbed the wrist of Yoo Geum-yi, who was next to me, and started running. Yoo Geum-yi followed suit immediately. Since the floor was flooded, they couldn¡¯t run very fast. As they slowly moved away, I waved my hand and told them to go ahead. Then, I checked room 66 while dimir looked into room 67.
¡°dimir, aren¡¯t you leaving?¡±
¡°Our guys are all drunk and asleep. They can¡¯t even get up if we kick them.¡±
In room 67, a man reeking of alcohol was asleep despite the noisy rm. dimir rushed in and pped the man¡¯s cheek with his huge palm. From outside the room, I thought the man might have lost a tooth. As his head spun around twice, the man woke up.
¡°Niki! You stupid bast*rd, wake up!¡±
Behind me, I heard Russian cursing and found someone lying in bed in room 68. Before entering, I saw the name ¡°Sophia¡± next to the door. She was asleep without a shirt on. I shouted her name from the door. Of course, she didn¡¯t wake up despite the ring rm. I picked up a nket from the floor, threw it on her, and yanked the pillow from under her head.
¡°Sophia!¡±
As she half-opened her eyes and got up, I rushed to room 69. There, a man who seemed to be two meters tall was sleeping naked, without even a nket, surrounded by vodka bottles. I read the namete next to the door with my eyes. Victor Basil¡ Yef or Lef?
I pressed the back of a pen lying on the desk next to the bed to retract the pen tip, then forcefully scratched the pen¡¯s head part from top to bottom on the sole of his bare foot. He twitched and moved before raising his head. His face was flushed from drunkenness.
¡°Get up! Hurry!¡±
dimir checked up to room 72, but there was no one there. As I was about to run to room 73, he grabbed my shoulder from behind. I almost fell over from his strength.
¡°Doc! We need to go to the escape pod.¡±
The seawater had risen up to our thighs. It was then that I realized my whole body was shivering. The water was freezing. Was seawater always this cold? It was warm when I was ying in the water at the beach. I looked at room 74 and pointed with my fingers in both directions.
¡°I haven¡¯t checked all the rooms yet!¡±
¡°Then check the rest and die if you want!¡±
dimir left those words behind and started running, not towards the stairs next to Room 80, but towards the central stairs by Room 40. The rest of the Russians followed him toward the central stairs. Was this the best option? We hadn¡¯t even looked in Rooms 1 to 37. We still had six rooms to check up to Room 80.
Each room was about 2.5 meters apart. The water was up to our thighs, so we would have to walk at least 21 meters and thene back. Something wriggled on my back. Startled for a moment, I realized it was the cat I had put in my bag.- ¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤If I hadn¡¯t seen it, I couldn¡¯t have saved it. If I had decided to do it, I needed to do it quickly. I ran in the opposite direction of the others. I¡¯m notte. I¡¯m notte! As I sshed through the water, I checked the open Rooms 74 and 75. There was no one. In Room 76, I found a long snake. What kind of crazy person keeps this?
With no time to think, I caught the snake with my bare hands and shoved it between the candy and chocte bars in the bag I had been using. I zipped it up and moved on. Rooms 78 and 79 seemed empty. I trudged and sshed my way to Room 80. By now, even walking was difficult. Please, let there be no one. Please, let it be empty.
In Room 80, a boy was seen asleep. Unbelievable. How could he sleep through the ring rm? Even in this situation, my brain felt like it was about to stop, I carefully put the pill bottle on the table into the bag with the cat and slung the bag with the snake in front of me. Then, I hoisted the boy onto my back.
As I made my way to Room 76, no other thoughts entered my mind except for the need to walk quickly. I followed the path others had taken, leaning against the wall. The water that had been up to our thighs quickly reached our waists.
Walking through the water was incredibly difficult. It felt like I was walking while kicking the water. The cat wriggled asionally near my stomach, and the sleeping boy didn¡¯t move at all, even with his feetpletely submerged in seawater. I sshed through Rooms 74 and 73, repeatedly telling myself that I was almost there, and that I couldn¡¯t let fear take over. If I sumbed to fear, it would be the end. I can get out of here. Stay calm.
¡.I mustn¡¯t fall. If I fall, it¡¯s over. Walk quickly, but don¡¯t fall. I supported the boy¡¯s hips with my arm as he slid off my back and held the bag with the snake in my mouth. The ring rm was so loud that my ears felt like they would go deaf.
As I left room 80, I finally realized where the water wasing from. It seemed to be flowing down from the stairs right next to room 80. Did the Russian team leader know that and purposely head towards the central staircase? Was the central staircase by room 40 safe? They must have gone that way because it was safe, right?
Damn it. What if the central staircase isn¡¯t safe? I¡¯ve already traveled more than half the way intending to use it. And why the hell are the lunatics at this underwater base raising forbidden pets? And what¡¯s with the kid?
Unauthorized personnel were not allowed in the underwater base. Minors, in particr, were absolutely prohibited from entering the 4th underwater base. The 7-year-old-looking boy on my back didn¡¯t seem like he was necessary personnel for this underwater base. Why on earth is there a kid here?
Swearing up a storm, I finally arrived at the central staircase next to room 40, only to find that the water had risen past my waist. I was out of breath from wading through the water.
Gasping for air, I climbed the stairs, slipping twice, but each time I clung to the stair railing with one hand. Supporting the child¡¯s buttocks with one arm, biting onto a bag, and using one hand to hold onto the stairs as I climbed drove me insane. As I climbed the stairs and emerged from the water, something was blocking the staircase.
I could see that the staircase itself was blocked by a door, preventing further ascent. They must have blocked it like this to keep the water from flooding the living quarters and other bases through the escape ports. As soon as that thought crossed my mind, everything went pitch ck in front of me. I banged on the door with all my strength as I continued to climb the stairs, screaming.
¡°Open the door! There are people here! People, I tell you!¡±
The water had already caught up to the top of the stairs. Even standing on the top step, the water that reached my instep now rose to my ankles. The thought of dying surged in.
¡°Hey, you bast*rds! Are you locking the door and running away to save yourselves? There are people here! Open the door! Open it quickly!¡±
I burst into tears.
¡°Open the door! Are you trying to save yourselves by running away like this?! How can people act like that?! Open the door! You bast*rds! There¡¯s someone here! Save me!¡±
I screamed so much that my vision began to blur. I thought I was in the middle of shrieking when I heard a noise from outside the door and a hand reached in at the same time.
A massive hand reached in from outside, grabbed my body as if to lift me up, and then threw me into a corner. I only realized that the man who had thrown me aside like a ragdoll was the over 6-foot-tall Viktor when I mmed into the floor. He closed the door again before the water following the stairs could rise any further. Viktor locked the door and destroyed the panel next to it. My face drained of color, I asked him:
¡°Didn¡¯t you board the escape pod?¡±
¡°No.¡±
With that, he lifted the child lying next to me with one hand and hoisted them onto his back. Then, he started walking toward the escape pod chamber.
Only then did I realize that this man hade back from the escape ship port towards the residential quarters for my sake. The child who looked around 6 or 7 years old had been taken off my back by Viktor who seemed to be carrying the boy as if the kid was a mere steel bar. It was only then that I noticed the weight of my soaked clothes pressing down on me.
Was it because the adrenaline rush was just about to wear off? Even taking a single step was a struggle. I hurriedly wiped my messy, tear-streaked face with my sleeve. Suppressing the urge to throw away all my things soaked in seawater, I walked towards the escape pod chamber.
Chapter 14
Chapter 14
Already, several people had gathered near the escape pod. Nikita, who had been running, Yoo Geum-yi, the missing Carlos, and the Russians were all together.
I walked, wringing the water out of the hem of my worn-out shirt. I wished I could take off my damp clothes in a corner where no one could see me, wring them out, shake them off, and put them back on. As I thought this, a ck-haired man sitting next to the escape pod dock turned around.
I was at a loss for words as soon as I saw his face. I thought the fair-haired and chiseled-jawed dimir was handsome, but this was a different level of good-looking. A few strands of his wet hair covered half of his smooth forehead, and even though his ck hair covered more than half of his forehead, he was stunningly handsome at first nce.
If I had that face, I would probably have made a living just by sitting in the middle of a busy street and showing it off. Passersby would be so convinced by that face that they would willingly pay money just to see it. Like how one is touched when they look at a cute puppy or kitten, I realized for the first time that when you look at someone incredibly good-looking, your mind goes nk. For a few seconds, my mind went nk, and I just stared at the man as he sat down and then stood up.
As he approached, his face became clearer, and I was amazed by his features and jawline. It was as if he had the precious golden ratio that needed to be preserved for future generations. The man, who had scanned me from head to toe, spoke:
¡°My name is Shin Hae-ryang. Are you hurt anywhere?¡±
His fairly low voice resonated.
Wow¡ even his lips and teeth are good-looking. How could God be so unfair? Then again, if God were fair, He wouldn¡¯t have buried a man like this 3km under the sea.
I stared nkly at the man of the rumors and then answered, ¡°No, I¡¯m not. I¡¯m Park Muhyun. ¡Why haven¡¯t you escaped yet?¡±
¡°You must be the new dentist. We were contemting what to do because all the functional escape pods have been deployed.¡±
¡That was the third most chilling thing I had heard in my life. It was creepy.
I looked around, and there were quite a few people: Shin Hae-ryang, Seo Ji-hyuk, Baek Ae-young, Yoo Geum-yi, the five-member Russian team, Carlos, and even a young child. Were there no escape pods capable of carrying these people? Forty-two deployed escape pods were soaring toward the surface like missiles.
I stared nkly at the monitor and asked, ¡°What about the non-functional escape pods?¡±
¡°There are 13 broken escape pods, but it seems better to move to another residential area than trying to escape using those.¡±
Viktor, who was over 2 meters tall, had been covering the child so much that I couldn¡¯t tell if the kid was there or not. When he set the child down on the dry floor, everyone¡¯s expression, excluding mine, was priceless.
¡°Does anyone know who brought the child?¡±
The gaze of Shin Hae-ryang, who asked the question, was cold. No one answered. Judging by the atmosphere, it was clear that there was no unspoken agreement that a minor could live in the underwater base¡ªsomething I, a neer to the base, didn¡¯t know. As I cautiously searched the bag with the cat inside, I took out a stic pill bottle. Yoo Geum-yi, who approached, read the English on the bottle and frowned.
¡°It seems to be a sleeping pill.¡±
¡°A sleeping pill?¡±
¡°I think you came from West Districtst, which room did you bring him from?¡±
¡°He was sleeping in room 80.¡±
Sophia, who used to use a room around room 70, said with a slight smirk., ¡°That room is empty, though.¡±
The atmosphere went cold. It wasn¡¯t because we were wearing clothes soaked in cold seawater, but it felt as if a Siberian wind had swept through the room. Minors were not allowed in the underwater base. In this atmosphere, there was no telling how chaotic things would get if I pulled out the two unauthorized pets I had.
I discreetly moved the two bags I was carrying to my back. Hoping that the snake and the cat wouldn¡¯t make any noise. So far, they had been quiet enough to stay undetected in their amodations. I hoped they would keep it up.
Shin Hae-ryang floated a 3D blueprint of the underwater base on a pad and pointed to it with his hand. ¡°My team and I will move to the nearest North District and try to find an escape pod from there.¡±
A total of 75 escape pods in North District were disyed on the screen. Then, dimir pushed the blueprint aside and pointed to another amodation.
¡°Seeing how it was flooded earlier, North District is probably submerged in water too. How about going to Central District instead?¡±
Engineer Baek Aeyeong shook her head. ¡°Going there is dangerous.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°Our team was repairing the exterior wall outside and saw Central Research Centerpletely disappear.¡±
¡°How can Central Research Center, thergest facility in the 4th underwater base, just disappear?!¡±
Upon hearing Baek Aeyeong¡¯s response earlier, Yoo Geum-yi, a researcher who practically lived in the Central District, bit her lip and said, ¡°How about taking the central elevator up to the surface? Including those under construction, there are a total of 14 elevators. Can¡¯t we just take one that¡¯s in good condition?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, who was listening, objected, ¡°If we experience another shock like the one 20 minutes ago or encounter a problem while riding the elevator, it¡¯s game over. Escape pods are much safer.¡±
As people discussed various escape methods, I stood with my arms crossed and watched. I knew nothing about the underwater base anyway. Even if swimming out was the best option, I had no grounds to argue. Engineers who had been here for years would know the underwater base well, not a dentist like me who had only been here for a week.
I stood a bit away from the conversation, listening to the engineers¡¯ stories. Next to me, Baek Aeyeong was watching her team leader like an Pokemon that had been released. I quietly asked Baek Aeyeong.
¡°Erm, Ms. Baek Aeyeong, I have a question about something that came up earlier. I¡¯m sorry, but could I ask you about it?¡±
¡°Uh¡ go ahead.¡± She furrowed her brows as she listened.
¡°Can¡¯t we just take the central elevator that moves directly up, like Yoo Geum-yi mentioned earlier? Isn¡¯t the central elevator the fastest way to escape to the surface?¡±
Fortunately, Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t ridicule me for being clueless. She simply looked at the escape route position in the North District area that Team Leader Shin was pointing at and then turned her head to look at me. ¡°You do know we are 3,000 meters under the sea right now, right?¡±
I nodded, and Baek Ae-young hesitated for a moment, as if she was trying to figure out how to exin it to someone who knew nothing. Then she slowly said, ¡°There are a total of 14 elevators built to go from where we are, at ~3,000 meters, to the sea level at 0 meters. Only two of them move directly up. One is the central elevator, and the other is a cargo elevator located within the main research center.¡±
I had only used the central direct elevator to enter and exit the underwater base. It made sense, considering I had only been here for five days, and it was challenging enough not to get lost while navigating between West District, where the amodations for the 4th underwater base were, and the central area where the dining hall and dental clinic were located.
While the central elevator required a wait time of about 10 minutes or more, it saved much more timepared to taking a subway or bus. Moreover, being in front of the elevator provided opportunities to meet various people, which was not a bad thing for exchanging greetings, memorizing names, or engaging in casual conversation.
Baek Ae-young exined further, ¡°Instead of traveling the entire 3km distance in one go, the other 12 elevators are divided into sections. So, there are three elevators that move from 0 meters to ~50 meters, three from there to ~200 meters, three to ~1,000 meters, and three more to ~3,000 meters. There is also one elevator under construction at the deep-sea base.¡±
It¡¯s easy to remember. Three elevators from Daehan Ind on the 0th floor to the 1st underwater base, three to the 2nd underwater base, three to the 3rd underwater base, and three to the 4th underwater base. So there are a total of 14 elevators, including the two that travel the entire distance. Is this a lot of elevators or a few? I¡¯m not sure.
Seeing my confused expression, Baek Ae-young exined more simply, ¡°Imagine we were not underwater, but rather on the rooftop of an extremely tall building. You would know whether it¡¯s safe or not to take an elevator down during an earthquake or simr event, right?¡±
I nodded in agreement, making an affirmative sound as I listened to Baek Ae-young¡¯s exnation. Normally, elevators move at 600 meters per second, but it seems that the ones here do not. It takes about 10 minutes just to go down to the 4th underwater base at -3,000 meters. From the perspective of someone riding the elevator, it feels incredibly slow.
So, in this situation, taking the central elevator would expose you to a potentially life-threatening risk and fear for 10 minutes, right? Or even death. Of course, stairs would be much safer in that case.
If I were living in a 250-story building onnd and experienced some kind of shock or an earthquake, I would choose to take the stairs to escape rather than the elevator.
However, when the height reaches around 3 km, it bes a Herculean task to walk down that many stairs. It would be less dangerous if there were more elevators that moved directly. Can¡¯t we just take a less broken-looking elevator? Is the escape route safer?
I cautiously asked Baek Ae-young again, ¡°Please consider this as a question from someone who knows nothing. When building the underwater base, couldn¡¯t more elevators have been built?¡±
Baek Ae-youngughed softly upon hearing this. It was the first time I saw her smile, but it didn¡¯t seem to be a smile from happiness.
¡°Why are there only 14 elevators in a base 3,000 meters under the sea when even a 1,000-meter high-rise building has at least 60? Is that your question?¡±
Instead of saying my question was foolish, Baek Ae-young simply answered sarcastically, ¡°Building elevators underwater isn¡¯t easy. And it¡¯s not cheap either. This underwater base was originally built for mining purposes, not for people to live in. Nowadays, they pour astronomical amounts of money into developing underwater bases, calling them the first Pacific undersea base, Earth¡¯sst hope, and thest frontier excluding space. But when construction started, before environmental pollution became visible, there wasn¡¯t much capital. The base was primarily built to send drilling equipment and mining robots. It¡¯s been less than eight years since they started trying to create a more human-friendly environment.¡±
I hadn¡¯t expected the cost to be an issue. I recalled an article I had read when I was applying to work at the underwater base.
¡°I saw that Canada alone had invested at least 50 trillion won, is that not enough for elevator expansion?¡±
¡°This is already an expansion. Everything used underwater is expensive. If you knew the cost of that dental clinic, you would be shocked.¡±
It seemed to be much more expensive than regr clinic setup costs. Standing was making my legs hurt, so I sat on the floor. I wasn¡¯t the only one sitting; Ae-young was lying on the floor, and a man named Niki was also sprawled on the ground, but nobody seemed to care. Sitting on the floor made me realize that my tailbone hurt from the impact when I had fallen off the bed.
I suddenly recalled the situation when I had woken up and asked, ¡°Do you think this situation is due to an earthquake?¡±
As Baek Ae-young was about to speak, Niki, who was half-raised from the floor, pointed at Baek Ae-young, Shin Hae-ryang, and Seo Jihyuk with his fingers, and then pointed at the escape pod. ¡°How about fixing those? There are three sober engineers here right now.¡± Then, with a drunken finger, he whipped the escape pods with red warning lights indicating that they had malfunctioned.
Baek Ae-young coldly responded to the half-lying Niki. ¡°Why don¡¯t you fix it?¡±
It seemed that not all Russian engineers could fix everything in sight. One of the three engineers, Seo Jihyuk, shook his head, ¡°The hull is warped or there¡¯s a problem with the depressurization system, that¡¯s why it¡¯s letting air in. All I have right now are my bare hands, so I can fix it just~enough, but by the time we reach the surface, Niki¡¯s here will have turned into a dead body.¡±
It seemed that they knew each other well, as Niki and Seo Jihyuk exchanged friendly middle fingers.
Chapter 15
Chapter 15
For a while, they discussed their escape when Shin Hae-ryang spoke to dimir with dissatisfaction.
¡°You said you¡¯d quit drinking.¡±
¡°Did you really believe a Russian would quit drinking?¡±
As Shin Hae-ryang red at him, dimir red back, then looked around at the quiet surroundings and said, ¡°We¡¯ll head to North District.¡±
North District was located to the north of the cross-shaped underwater base. It was said to house both mining facilities and amodations for the mining teams, but I had never been there before. We had to go from West District to Central Districrt, and then from Central District to North District. Everyone who had been sitting and resting stood up.
In particr, the engineers from multiple teams followed behind dimir. Only Yoo Geum-yi, Carlos, the sleeping child, and I were left. Carlos was a member of one of the mining teams, and Yoo Geum-yi was a researcher, so they belonged to different teams. As for me, I didn¡¯t really have a team. The engineers¡¯ judgment must be right. I trust the experts¡¯ opinions.
Nikita looked at the child and spoke with a scowl, ¡°Which crazy bastard brought a kid into an underwater base?¡±
No answer came.
No matter how much I let my imagination run wild, I couldn¡¯t think of anything good. The fact that the child had been asleep after taking a sleeping pill made it even more so. We tried to wake the child up but failed, so we decided to take turns carrying the child. Seo Ji-hyuk was the first to carry the child on his back, mentioning that he had a cousin of a simr age.
As soon as the conversation ended, everyone started walking. It was a bit slower than the usual alert pace, but faster than normal walking. I had thought that in a dangerous situation when escaping, one would sprint with incredible speed like a short-distance runner, but it wasn¡¯t the case at all.
When I expressed my doubt, Shin Hae-ryang shook his head. ¡°If we move like that, we¡¯ll run out of stamina quickly. And it would be difficult to respond if something suddenly happens.¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had been listening to the conversation, came over to me and asked, ¡°Is West Districtpletely submerged in water?¡±
¡°Yes. I was thest one out.¡±
Hearing that, Baek Ae-young made aplicated expression. ¡°Why is that?¡±
¡°Because of the things in the room.¡±
¡°Must be something important, huh?¡±
¡°Well¡ yeah.¡±
In the backpack I was carrying, there were two unidentified children. I couldn¡¯t help but quietly ask, ¡°Are they still alive?¡±
Baek Ae-young looked at me with a strange gaze. Then she looked at the child on Seo Ji-hyuk¡¯s back and looked back at me. She then answered nervously, ¡°No.¡±
She moved away from me, still frowning. It seemed like she had some kind of misunderstanding. When someone tapped my shoulder, I turned my head and saw a familiar face.
¡°Thanks for waking us up. On behalf of the team, I¡¯d like to express our gratitude,¡± dimir said.
I felt embarrassed by the grandiose expression of gratitude right in front of me. ¡°Oh. No problem. Anyone would have done the same.¡±
As I said this, seemingly embarrassed, dimir immediately cut me off.
¡°I wouldn¡¯t have.¡±
¡°¡¡±
¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m thanking you.¡±
With that, he immediately turned on his heel and walked back to his team. Wow¡ why are the people here so cold? It¡¯s chilly. Cold. Extremely cold.
After a few days, it seemed like all the engineers had a certain coldness about them. They acted as if they were heartless iron robots. I had lived my life with a cold rationality and a scientific mindset, but I didn¡¯t think I had reached that level yet.
Shin Hae-ryang, who had been talking to his team of engineers, approached me. ¡°I¡¯ve seen the deceased. Can you pronounce them dead, Muhyun?¡±
This was the fourth scariest thing I had ever heard in my life. What a crazy situation. What made it even scarier was that it wasn¡¯t an unreasonable request. ording to domesticw, a dentist can pronounce someone dead. However, it seemed like thews were applied a little differently here in this underwater base.
I swallowed my hesitations and managed to answer.
¡°Yes.¡±
I never thought that I would actually have to deal with something like this in my career as a dentist. This is something that a dentist doesn¡¯t have to do in their entire lifetime unless they¡¯re incredibly unlucky. There are plenty of other doctors who can pronounce death, like those working in emergency rooms, for example.
As soon as I left the escape dock, there was a copsed person. I swallowed the curses welling up in my throat and examined the lying person. Seeing the person¡¯s face, it was someone I had never met before. That was somewhat of a relief. If it were a familiar face lying here¡ I didn¡¯t even want to think about it.
No matter how I looked at them, the person appeared 100% dead. This person must have hit his head on something, as there was a fist-sized indentation on their head. On top of that, his pupils were wide open. Following Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s gesture, I turned my head and saw hair, mixed with blood, stuck to a long metal handrail on the wall.
It seemed that the moment the underwater base shook, he had hit his head hard on the metal door handle. It was a terrifying scene that could appear in a nightmare. First, I checked his breathing and whether his heart was beating, but there were no signs of life. Soaked in seawater, my body temperature had dropped, while it seemed that the dead person in front of me had a higher body temperature. When I told Shin Hae-ryang the time and circumstances of death, he quickly took a picture with his pad and wrote the location and details on the photo.
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤Who is this person?¡±
¡°Kevin Wilson. He¡¯s an engineer from the American mining team. ording to the schedule, he should be helping the mining team and repairing mining robots, but he¡¯s here.¡±
I hadn¡¯t often seen a corpse this close. Especially as a dentist, I usually work by looking inside the mouths of living people. Peoplee to the dentist because they¡¯re afraid of dying. Damn it.
Swallowing my rising anger, Iid Wilson t on his back and straightened his arms. Just touching the corpse made me feel goosebumps all over my body. It took every ounce of courage I could muster to close his half-open eyes with my hand. At least with his eyes closed, it was slightly less horrifying.
If I could wash my hands, I would have done it ten times.
It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s okay. Pull yourself together. I can¡¯t lose it now.
I managed to forget the sensation of touching the eyelids only when I moved away from the corpse. No wonder the Russians had gathered around here earlier, checking for dead people.
Yoo Geum-yi didn¡¯t look at the corpse as she was shaken and walked away, not even ncing in that direction. Then, she asked me, still shivering from the touch of the corpse.
¡°Should I carry it for you?¡±
She pointed to the bag on my back. Yoo Geum-yi knew there was a cat in my bag. I shook my head.
¡°It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s not heavy.¡±
Although the 6kg weight was not as light as a feather, it would be ridiculous to ask Yoo Geum-yi, who was more than a head shorter than me, to carry it. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m injured. I was more curious about what the snake was doing in my bag than the cat.
Suddenly, someone tapped on my opposite shoulder. Startled, I turned my head and saw Carlos looking at me. He tried to call my name, but I doubted whether he would remember the name of someone who had only been in the underwater base for five days. In this situation, I wouldn¡¯t remember other people¡¯s names either.
¡°Hey. I¡¯m sorry for leaving you behind earlier.¡±
¡°It¡¯s alright.¡±
There was no difference between answering that it¡¯s not okay or that it¡¯s okay, so I said it was okay. If I had said it wasn¡¯t okay, it would only mess up the rtionship between us, who only knew each other¡¯s faces and had no particr connection. To be honest, I didn¡¯t have any expectations. There was no reason for him to stay with me. I just hoped that there was no one in rooms 1 to 37 of the amodations. Or that they had already escaped on their own.
¡°I thought there wouldn¡¯t be enough escape pods, so I went ahead first. You understand, right? I have a family waiting for me at home too.¡±
Hearing this, I immediately thought of my mother and younger brother at home. I almost blurted out, ¡®Who doesn¡¯t have someone waiting for them at home?¡¯ but even those without anyone waiting shouldn¡¯t be stuck in this hellish ce. I swallowed the lump in my throat.
¡°But you still couldn¡¯t get on one.¡±
I couldn¡¯t help but sound a bit sarcastic as I said that. There was nothing good toe from speaking this way in our current situation, but I couldn¡¯t find anyforting words in my emotionally exhausted state.
Whether Carlos chose to ignore my snide remark or the trantion was just too good, he nced ufortably at Shin Hae-ryang before grinding his teeth before speaking, ¡°There were escape pods when I arrived.¡±
¡°There were?¡±
¡°Mr. Shin forcibly put two of his employees who volunteered to stay behind onto a pod and sent them off. When they both refused to board the escape pods, I offered to take their ce, but theypletely ignored me. They just wanted to save their own family first.¡±
Stay behind here?
I suddenly became curious about who the lunatic was that decided to stay behind in a leaking underwater base. If it were me, I would be extremely grateful to anyone who offered to stay behind and give up their escape pod, and I would have left as soon as possible.
Carlos continued, seemingly irritated, ¡°Be careful, brother. You¡¯re too kind-hearted, so I¡¯m giving you a heads up. If there aren¡¯t enough escape pods at the North District, it¡¯s going to be chaos.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi came to my side, listening to Carlos¡¯ words, and growled, ¡°Pray to God that there are still escape pods left!¡±
It seemed like Yoo Geum-yi was referring to the cross hanging around Carlos¡¯ neck, but he just shrugged in response. ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll pray fervently to God, but look at those Russians. Do you think they¡¯ll stay put if they can¡¯t get on an escape pod? They stick together, you know.¡±
The engineering team quietly followed dimir¡¯s lead. Whether they were still sleepy or hungover, they asionally stumbled, holding onto walls orpletely falling over, and loudlyughed at each other in this life-or-death situation.
¡°Anyway, we¡¯re all in the same boat now. You know?¡±
With that, Carlos winked and went over to join the engineers in Team C.
Yoo Geum-yi looked visibly ufortable. ¡°That guy will ditch me or Muhyun-ssi the moment things get tough.¡±
¡°That¡¯s true. But anyone would do the same in a difficult situation.¡±
¡°Muhyun-ssi wouldn¡¯t do that. Don¡¯t defend that guy. Why didn¡¯t you run away first then?¡±
It wasn¡¯t that I was particrly moral, but my body had already been in motion. There was no time for calctions of gain or loss. Perhaps everyone felt the same.
¡°I do it to sleep well at night. I don¡¯t want to regret my actions once we make it out alive.¡±
I felt like if I had escaped on my own, I would have been haunted by nightmares.
Yoo Geum-yi asked after hearing my response, ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re the type to dredge up every past mistake and regret them right before you sleep?¡±
¡°Are you not like that, Yoo Geum-yi?¡±
¡°I sleep like the dead as soon as my head hits the pillow.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi looked at the backpack with the cat in it and seemed to have a lot to say, but she swallowed her words after ncing at the people around her.
Author¡¯s Note:
Team A Engineers ¨C Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang ¨C Korean
Team B Engineers ¨C Team Leader Sato Ryusuke ¨C Japanese
Team C Engineers ¨C Team Leader dimir Sergeyevich Ivanov ¨C Russian
Team D Engineers ¨C Team Leader ??? ¨C Chinese
Team E Engineers ¨C Team Leader ??? ¨C American
Team F Engineers ¨C Team Leader ??? ¨C New Zender
Team G Engineers ¨C Team Leader ??? ¨C Australian
Team H Engineers ¨C Team Leader ??? ¨C Canadian
Chapter 16
Chapter 16
Yoo Geum-yi, who had been walking quietly, approached Baek Ae-young. Then, hesitatingly, she spoke to her, ¡°Did you see any survivors in the Central District?¡±
More than 400 people could be amodated in the Central District, most of them being researchers. It was said that the arrangement was made because the research center was close to Central District.
Baek Ae-young looked at Yoo Geum-yi, sighed, and frowned. She hadpletely forgotten that Yoo Geum-yi was a researcher. ¡°When we were working outside, we saw that the Central Research Center was breaking apart. Originally, we were also headed to there, but we urgently returned to West District instead.¡±
Seo Jihyuk tried his best to speak with a gentle voice. ¡°As you can see now, many people probably hace escaped from West District, since the amodations and escape pod were the closest. They probably escaped before the water came in.¡±
The fact that more than half of the people who escaped from West District were so drunk they didn¡¯t hear the emergency rm and were asleep didn¡¯t seem to be much help to Yoo Geum-yi in this situation.
Many researchers and professors, who had been going through the doctoral program together, resided in the Central District and in the Research Center. Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s expression was not good.
I looked at Yoo Geum-yi and asked quietly, as a question came to mind. ¡°Why were you staying in the West District instead of Central District, Ms. Geum-yi?¡±
I whispered, thinking it might be a personal issue, but Yoo Geum-yi answered with a dark expression as if it was nothing serious.
¡°Originally, a professor of marine biology from the United States was staying in the room next to mine, but he¡¯s not actually my professor. These days, data is noting out well, and I was so stressed from writing my thesis that even having another professor next door was too much stress for me. He would ask if my thesis was going well as a greeting. I couldn¡¯t sleep well, so Martina offered to switch rooms with me. ¡What should I do about Martina? I can¡¯t reach her. I don¡¯t know if I can¡¯t reach her because she¡¯s on a mining shift or because she was in the Central District.¡±
¡°Maybe Martina is just busy working and that¡¯s why you can¡¯t contact her? The people outside managing the mining robots might not know the situation here.¡±
At that moment, Nikita, who had been walking in the front, pointed to a small window.
¡°Look outside!¡±
What Nikita pointed to was a rare circr window facing south from West District. In truth, windows were scarce in the 4th underwater base. They were asionally ced along the corridor, but even thergest circr ones were only about the size of a person¡¯s upper body.
Having expected arge front window, I couldn¡¯t find one anywhere in the 4th Undersea Base and asked Wang Wei, who was in the next room. He simply replied that it was too expensive, and even if there were windows in the deep sea, all you would see outside was darkness.
ording to Nikita¡¯s exnation, from the windows of West District, the lights of the Center Research Center, located to the south, looked like stars in the darkness. But nothing could be seen outside the window. Supposedly, you should be able to see dozens of colorful lights turned on at the research center.
They said they had turned on star-like lights at a depth of 3,000 meters below the sea, as if they were lighthouses in the midst of a typhoon, conducting research on deep-sea fish and light. However, nothing could be seen at the end where Nikita pointed. It was pitch ck.
¡°I don¡¯t see anything.¡± As Niki spoke leisurely, Nikita frantically dashed around the room, ¡°What should we supposed to be seeing? There¡¯s no light!¡±
¡°Oh, right.¡±
¡°Aargh! You idiot!¡±
While watching Nikita run around, dimir looked at Shin Hae-ryang and said, ¡°It seems you weren¡¯t lying after all.¡±
¡°If you don¡¯t believe it, go swim and check.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, who was looking out the window during their icy exchange, seemed to have lost her mind. When she could only see darkness where the research center next to the Central District should be, she stammered,¡±Why¡isn¡¯t it there? Why are there¡no lights? It should be there, right? It must be there!¡±
¡°Calm down, Geum-yi. Maybe it¡¯s gone? They could¡¯ve removed it, or turned it off.¡±
¡°It¡¯s not supposed to be turned off! It¡¯s a 7-story research center with 4 buildings, and it¡¯s gone!¡± Yoo Geum-yi, who had been yelling the same thing, stared nkly outside with a lost expression and then staggered away from the window.
Knowing that Yoo Geum-yi likes sweets, I unconsciously rummaged through my snake-filled backpack to take out a sk, but only after taking out the pad and phone did I remember that I had put a snake in the bag. The snake didn¡¯t bite me. No one knew that I had checked the safety of my hand and sighed in relief.
The phone wasn¡¯t working, and the inte was down, but it seemed like the intr within the base was essible. I handed Geum-yi a sugar-free apple candy. I put a sugar-free lemon candy in my mouth and asked Shin Hae-ryang, who was passing by, ¡°Would you like one?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang shook his head. Watching the man¡¯s well-defined jaw move from side to side, I couldn¡¯t help but admire it inwardly. Seo Jihyuk snatched the sugar-free orange candy I was holding in my hand.
From the Russian team, Viktor and Sofia took strawberry candies. While listening to the rustling sound, I essed the undersea base bulletin board on my tablet and clicked on the first post that seemed to be stered all over.
Title: We¡¯re in Room 77!
Content:
Help us, please! The room is filled with water! We can¡¯t get out because of the water pressure, and the door won¡¯t open!
There are five of us here! Save us??
Was I the only one here who checked the undersea base bulletin board? Had nobody seen it yet? Or were they pretending not to have seen it? No one was talking about the post. Didn¡¯t Shin Hae-ryang say that the residences were flooded along with the research center? Then what is this post about?
If the residences are not flooded and are perfectly fine, then the entire engineering A-team is lying. They were the ones who insisted on going to North District, but is it right to head there as they wish?
If all the residences are indeed flooded, this post itself is a lie. Someone is hoping for us toe to the residence area. Which side is lying? The central square of the main intersection ising up soon. From here, it¡¯s south to the residences and north to North District. If I don¡¯t speak up now, it seemed like everyone would pass by the residences without any concern.
¡°Did you happen to see the post on the base¡¯s internal bulletin board?¡±
The people walking turned their heads to look at me. Being introverted, I flinched when dozens of eyes stared at me. I mustered up the strength in my fading voice and said: ¡°There are several people trapped in Room 77.¡±
¡°So?¡±
¡°We have to rescue them.¡±
Nikita narrowed his eyes. With a voice like a Russian Amur leopard¡¯s w cutting through the winter wind, she asked, ¡°Who?¡±
¡°We will.¡±
¡°Why do we have to go?¡±
As soon as I heard her words, I thought that she must have already seen the post asking for help. My words were caught in my throat as if someone had blocked my mouth. However, there was a clear reason why we had to go to the residences.
¡°People are trapped in the residence, and we can help them.¡±
¡°We saw the flooding in West District. The residence is now sealed off, and we had barely escaped drowning. Do you want us to go back there? Those who go to rescue them might die too.¡±
¡°There are five people trapped, and they could be members of your team!¡±
¡°Shut up!¡± Nikita¡¯s face turned pale as she yelled angrily.
Normally, engineering teams consist of 7 to 8 members working together. The other engineering teams were probably drinking and having fun before falling asleep since it wasn¡¯t their shift. Currently, there are 5 people left, so 2 or 3 have either be fish food in the deep sea, escaped by themselves, or are trapped and wandering somewhere in this underwater base. One of the four possibilities.
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤Or they could have escaped first.¡± I tried tofort the distressed person with the most favorable assumption.
Although I didn¡¯t know them, I hoped they were still alive. However, they probably already knew what I hadn¡¯t said. I also told this to the engineering team C.
¡°There could be someone on your team or someone you know among the people trapped in the main control room.¡±
At that, the Russian team members red at me with their arms crossed. Carlos didn¡¯t seem pleased either. They didn¡¯t want to go to the flooded dormitory, a dangerous ce. Neither did I. I didn¡¯t want to swim in that water again. But there was a message left on the bulletin board asking for help.
¡°Our four team members have already escaped through the escape route,¡± Seo Ji-hyuk hesitated to answer but then closed his mouth in the tense atmosphere.
Shin Hae-ryang reached out to me. Thinking it was a gesture of agreement, I quickly grabbed his hand, but Shin Hae-ryang skillfully snatched the pad that was attached to my side. Then he read the newly posted message.
I asked Shin Hae-ryang incredulously, ¡°Mr. Shin Hae-ryang, where¡¯s your pad?¡±
¡°Mine¡¯s in room 22, West District.¡±
Ah. It¡¯s lost forever.
I wondered how much water pressure a fully sealed electronic device submerged in seawater could withstand. Items left underwater without their owner would remain powered on until they either ran out of power or were damaged by the water pressure.
I heard Baek Ae-young had essed the underwater base¡¯s internal bulletin board with her phone and Seo Ji-hyuk was asking to see it as well.
Yoo Geum-yi bit her lips for a long time before speaking, ¡°I¡¯ll go to the main control room. I may not be of much help, but I¡¯ll try my best to save the person trapped there. I don¡¯t know who it is, but it could be my professor,b mates, or someone I know.¡±
There was a high probability that the researchers were still alive in the main control room. Or it could be Martina who had swapped rooms with her. I didn¡¯t know why five people were gathered in one room, though.
Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Shin Hae-ryang stared at the pad for a long time before turning it off, handing it back to me, and saying cleanly, ¡°Let¡¯s head to the main control room.¡±
I must have unknowingly smiled. Shin Hae-ryang looked at me for a few seconds before opening his mouth to speak. Before he could say anything, Sofia, who had been talking to dimir, spoke to us softly.
¡°We¡¯ll be going to North District.¡±
Carlos, as if waiting for the Russian team to speak, said with a booming voice, ¡°I¡¯ll go with the Russian team to North District as well.¡±
As Shin Hae-ryang nced at Baek Ae-young beside him, thetter just sighed. It seemed like that was the sign of agreement from their team. Seo Jihyuk was telling Niki to save a spot for the escape pod.
¡°Should we write a post on the underwater bulletin board in case there are people from the Engineering Team?¡±
Sofia, who looked at me after hearing this, shook her head. Her dark brown hair swayed like thin threads.
¡°Irina and Dmitri wouldn¡¯t be easily killed, but they also aren¡¯t the type to want their teammates to risk their lives for them.¡±
I flinched at the firm voice of the woman who appeared to be in her early twenties. Was this their way of saying to survive on their own in dangerous situations? I had heard that each team had a different atmosphere, but it seemed that these people were all about self-preservation.
¡°What about the child?¡± When I asked dimir, who was now carrying the child on his back after passing Seo Jihyuk and myself, he replied as if it was obvious. ¡°Since you saved him, you take care of him.¡±
How cold. The Siberian weather wouldn¡¯t be as cold as this.
Shin Hae-ryang took the child from Carlos, whose legs were trembling. Carlos gave a thumbs up to Shin Hae-ryang before sticking close to the Russian team. As they entered the central square, they headed north.
dimir, who was at the back, said, ¡°Let¡¯s meet on the surface, Doctor.¡±
¡°See youter.¡±
dimir waved his left hand a few times before pointing to his wristwatch and putting his index fingers together. It seemed to be directed at Shin Hae-ryang, but hepletely ignored it.
Baek Ae-young waved to Nikita. ¡°See youter!¡±
I could hear the distant sound of ¡°Dasvidaniya!¡± I waved my hand in response.
A few secondster, after the Engineering Team disappeared from view, Shin Hae-ryang said, ¡°The person trapped in the main control room is Korean.¡±
¡°Eh? How do you know that?¡±
¡°The writing style, the fact that the first post was written in Korean before being changed to English, and the emoticons. It¡¯s probably Kim Gayoung, a researcher in the main control room.¡±
Only then did I realize that a few sentences of the post I had read were in Korean. Iughed at the absurdity of not even knowing whatnguage I had read due to my everyday use of both English and Korean. Upon hearing Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s words, Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s expression brightened a little.
¡°It¡¯s really lucky if Gayoung is still alive.¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t it unlucky? She¡¯s trapped in the room right now.¡±
Seo Ji-hyuk unfolded the blueprint of the main engine on the pad and said, ¡°The whole main engine is dead. If the main engine¡¯s electrical system isn¡¯tpletely dead, this seems to be broken.¡± He vigorously tapped on my pad.
¡®Aigoo! You¡¯ll break it like that!¡¯
¡°At least, wouldn¡¯t it be a little less scary since we¡¯re trapped together with five people?¡±
Hearing Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s opinion, Baek Ae-young, who had been writing a post on Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s pad, made an awkward expression. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the carbon dioxide in the room fill up faster?¡±
There wasn¡¯t a single good suggestion. Were they all engineers? With no choice, I decided to take responsibility for the positivity in this ce. ¡°We can get out of here sooner if we go. Don¡¯t worry too much.¡±
¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s no way that eonni 1 would die easily.¡±
We exchanged vague positivity and applied it to our wounded spirits. Meanwhile, Baek Ae-young posted the article.
Title: Going to the main engine now.
Content:
Who¡¯s in the room? What¡¯s the situation in Room 77? Are there any objects for breathing, swimming, or avoiding water pressure?
Baek Ae-young spoke as if to justify herself while I was reading the post.
¡°I asked just in case. There¡¯s one crazy person I know who keeps a BCD vest, an air cylinder, a parachute, and a fire extinguisher next to his bed, saying you never know when he¡¯ll die.¡±
Isn¡¯t that a serious anxiety disorder? I asked while walking diligently to leave therge central square and waiting for replies or additional posts. Around here, there are ces like restaurants, cafes, and a central lounge where people use them daily. Of course, there is also a dental clinic in the corner.
I consciously stopped my gaze from going in the direction of the dental clinic and asked Yoo Geum-yi, ¡°What kind of person is Ms. Kim Ga-young?¡±
¡°Ga-young is a researcher who studies seawater purification. She came here to study the restoration of marine pollution, which is severe. She¡¯s really amazing. I want to get a Ph.D. soon, too. ¡Or maybe I just want to quit.¡±
Herst words changed to self-mockery. After realizing that the main engine research center was visibly gone, Yoo Geum-yi began to look increasingly depressed. I decided to keep her talking.
¡°What research does Ms. Geum-yi do?¡±
¡°I study marine life.¡±
¡°Like deep-sea squids?¡±
¡°Ha ha ha. Something like that.¡±
Then the conversation stopped. Looking at her slumped shoulders, I realized that my conversational skills were really pathetic and closed my mouth.
¡°Ga-young used to share snacks with everyone.¡±
Seo Ji-hyuk, who had been walking ahead of us, chimed in after listening to our conversation.
¡°Snacks?¡±
¡°My eonni enjoys baking, so she¡¯d rent out a restaurant once in a while to bake macarons and cookies. When she¡¯s stressed, she makes a batch and shares it with people around her since she can¡¯t eat them all. She also holds bakery sses about once a month. At that time, she¡¯d sell the baked goods at the central square for the cost of ingredients.¡±
Baek Ae-young smirked as if she had tasted them before.
¡°Ga-young¡¯s hands are quite skilled. She can bake 60 or 70 cookies at once.¡±
¡°What have you tried?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve had her chocte cookies and macarons, and what was the name of that small lemon-vored one?¡±
¡°Lemon madeleines. Madeleines.¡±
¡°Oh, right. That was the most delicious one. How about you, Team Leader Shin?¡±
While carrying a child on his back, Shin Hae-ryang momentarily pondered over Seo Jihyuk¡¯s question before answering,¡±Uhm¡cookies with lots of almonds.¡±
¡°Was there such a thing? Geum-yi, have you tried it?¡±
¡°No, I took all of Ga-young¡¯s cooking sses¡¯ leftovers, and there was nothing like that. What about you, Ae-young?¡±
¡°I haven¡¯t tried it either.¡±
¡°This seems suspicious.¡±
¡°Almonds are even hard toe by.¡±
I also shrugged with a slight smile. ¡°It must be delicious.¡±
Although people were teasing the new team leader from all sides, Shin Hae-ryang remained unfazed. He simply walked at a leisurely pace towards the end of the line. I admired him internally. His gait was the same even with a six-year-old child on his back.
¡°Stop.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who was walking at the front, stopped immediately upon hearing themand. A rumbling noise could be heard in the distance. It sounded like low thunder, but it was impossible to tell where it wasing from. Suddenly, the ground shook slightly with a rumbling sound. I plopped down on the spot like a sack of gold.
As the vibration subsided a bit, Baek Ae-young spoke up, ¡°Is that the sound of metal bending?¡±
No one responded.
No way. It couldn¡¯t be true, right?
¡°Could it be an earthquake?¡± as I asked nervously, Shin Hae-ryang, who was beside me, shook his head. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be an earthquake. The base was built in a location that¡¯s slightly off the seismic zone, and it¡¯s designed to withstand earthquakes of magnitude 7 or higher.¡±
It was a submarine base that was said to have spent money from nearby North Pacific countries in every direction. Even if an earthquake urred, the base might shake, but it wouldn¡¯t copse. I remembered a documentary where an expert proudly introduced this fact. In my mind, I was already imagining that the ce was hit by an earthquake of magnitude 7 or higher. Please, let it not be true.
Seo Jihyuk asked Shin Hae-ryang with a worried expression, ¡°What should we do?¡±
¡°We have to keep going.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang helped Yoo Geum-yi, who was sitting on the floor, to stand up. Since their hand didn¡¯t reach me, I got up on my own. As we left the central corridor, we soon entered the main control room. At first nce, there seemed to be no issues with the bridge connecting the main control room and the central building.
Title: Water is slowly filling the room.
Content:
There¡¯s nothing but food and books. What should I do? I¡¯m in room 77!
Please save me?? I¡¯m Kim Ga-young from the Underwater Pollution Center.
After showing it to people, Baek Ae-young let out a sigh and asked, ¡°What should we do?¡±
¡°We don¡¯t know if the main control room copsed less. When we saw it, the lights of the main control room were all falling in the darkness, so we thought the dormitory building had also copsed.¡±
¡°Then, only the research center might have copsed, and we¡¯re not sure if only the front part of the dormitory building copsed. Wasn¡¯t the room number at the end, so it survived?¡±
¡°Even if the individual room doors are well-sealed, they¡¯re not strong enough to withstand external water pressure, so they wouldn¡¯t have been exposed to the outside environment, right?¡±
While Seo Ji-hyuk and Baek Ae-young were discussing the technical aspects of how they could survive in a room filled with water, I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off the window as I passed by the bridge. Something was passing by outside the window, and the object outside seemed to shimmer due to the light.
It was hair.
A bundle of very long yellow hair was passing by the window. Shin Hae-ryang forcefully hit my shoulder. As his well-defined arm forcefully pushed my shoulder from behind without much effort, my body turned 90 degrees to the side.
¡°Don¡¯t look and let¡¯s go.¡±
Then, he pushed my back with one hand. I was forced to take two or three steps andpletely lost sight of the window.
¡°Just now¡ That.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang stopped pushing my back and opened his mouth, then pushed Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s back.
Yu Geum-yi spoke calmly with a pale face, ¡°It seems her head exploded.¡±
¡°Huh?¡±
¡°We¡¯re 3 kilometers underwater. Can you imagine the pressure! With a human¡¯s fragile body, they would explode as soon as they¡¯re exposed to the outside. We wouldn¡¯t even find the pieces!¡±
So, the flesh-like things attached to the end of the long blonde hair earlier were pieces of scalp.
Seeing mypletely disgusted expression, Yoo Geum-yi bit her lip and then spoke, ¡°Although there are many blondes in the underwater base, there aren¡¯t many with hair that long.¡± Recalling the endlessly long and flowing blonde hair, Yoo Geum-yi asked, ¡°Who is it?¡±
¡°It could be Ang Malone, the director of the Deep-Sea Life Center. Or maybe Cami from the Engineering E-Team. Both have hair long enough to reach their hips. It¡¯s probably Ang, right?¡±
Baek Ae-young whispered cautiously to Yoo Geum-yi in a low voice, ¡°Cami cut her hair short a few days ago. She said it was too difficult to wash. It¡¯s likely Ang.¡±
¡°Seeing that makes my head itch,¡± Seo Jihyuk scratched his short hair and quickly walked past the window.
Author¡¯s Note
Underwater Base 4th Level
North District
West District
East District
South (Central District)
¨C> Central Research Center
- elder sister in Korean, a calling for someone who¡¯s older than you[?]
Chapter 18
Chapter 18
Upon entering the Central (South) district, there was arge sign hanging in front of the building that read ¡°Center District.¡± In front of it, arge red bird, presumably a Vermilion Bird, was illustrated as a sculpture, along with an exnation about it as a mythical creature. [A creature born anew from the mes, immortal. Vermilion Bird. Even in death, it is reborn. Our research aims to ensure the continuity of mankind.]
It seemed to describe a bird like a phoenix, and I thought about how the bird called Vermilion Bird had such characteristics.
During the five days, I spent in the underwater base, I mostly stayed in the West District and the central area. So, it was my first time in the actual Central District, to which its building looked more spacious than the ones in the West District. In general, the amodation area was divided into essential ces likeundry rooms, lounges, shower rooms, and research centers. Apparently, the researchers here were devoting their lives to the research center and spent the rest of their time in the South District¡¯s amodation area.
As everyone was heading towards Central District, Yoo Geum-yi halted her tracks and looked towards the research center. It was a connecting corridor to the Deep-sea Research Center, the Rare Minerals Center, and the Underwater Pollution Center. The connecting corridor waspletely blocked by a wall-like barrier, presumably a blockade.
I looked at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s back and said, ¡°The center might¡¯ve been less damaged than you expected. It will probably be fine after the fire has been extinguished. Don¡¯t worry too much. Let¡¯s think about it after we rescue Kim Gayoung first.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi stared at the side where the research center was and said, ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤ They must have been trying to survive on their own. After all, researchers are good at enduring hard work. They specialize in torturing themselves. As for me, all my papers are on USB and emails. Just in case.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
When Baek Aeyoung asked, Yoo Geum-yi sighed, replying to the question, ¡°There are marine creatures kept for research purposes in the Deep-Sea Research Center. There are quite a few that would escape if we just opened the aquarium tank.¡±
¡°That¡¯s not good.¡±
¡°Yes. I know.¡± Yoo Geum-yi turned her head away from the research center and took a heavy step, repeating her words again, ¡°I know.¡±
Just before entering the Central District, Shin Haeryang, who had been walking ahead since some point, headed towards the escape hatch. The question of the whereabouts of the Central District¡¯s amodations immediately came to mind, but my body was already following the people ahead. Baek Aeyoung slid into the escape hatch port control device area and checked the panel.
¡°There are three avable!¡±
With a total of six people, there were only three escape pods with green lights on. The thought of who to take in the one-seater passed through my mind. Looking around, I found Shin Haeryang engrossed in monitoring the screen that is upying an entire wall.
The man, Shin Haeryang himself didn¡¯t seem to care whether there were more or fewer escape pods, but when I looked at what he was watching, there were 77unched within 10 minutes, disyed as small images on the screen, heading towards the sea surface. Initially, I assumed they had escaped for quite some time, but the speed at which the pods wereunched slowed down gradually.
Not even five of them were heading vigorously toward the sea surface. Unlike the escape pods that entered the epipgic zone (~200m), the rest could not even escape the mesopgic zone (~1000m) and their speed gradually decreased. Most of the escape pods, which had beenunched from the deep-sea floor (~3011m) where the 4th undersea base was located and headed straight towards the ground, had failed to even surpass the mesopgic zone (~1000m)
Although I wasn¡¯t sure about the water pressure factor, simply calcting the distance between the mesopgic zone (~1000m) and the sea surface (0m), it was a distance equivalent to 22 15-story apartment buildings. In short, it was not a distance that could be swum by human power alone, so the escapees couldn¡¯t have just given up on the escape pods and swam to the surface.
The escape pods, which failed to reach the sunlit area, struggled to get out of the water and were now sinking due to their weight. Watching the 72 escape pods gradually descending, Yoo Geum-yi screamed, while Seo Jihyuk swallowed his breath.
Baek Aeyong shakily watched the escape pods disyed on the screen and muttered weakly, ¡°¡I think we shouldn¡¯t board them.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang gritted his teeth while watching the escape pods drawing parabs that were descending back into the dark sea.
¡°Who messed with the escape pods?¡±
I stared at the screen dumbfounded, watching the escape pods shining like light bulbs. There would probably be continuous screams inside those pods. It couldn¡¯t be that all 72 of them had broken down at once, so someone must have intentionally sabotaged them.
I asked Shin Hae-ryang, who was next to me, in a daze, ¡°¡Which crazy person would do this?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. ¡There are too many people here.¡±
There was no proper procedures in this undersea base, neither people nor things. Had those upper-ups really gone mad? Seriously.
¡°What do you n to do now?¡±
¡°The original goal ofing to this residentialplex was to rescue Kim Gayoung and use the escape pods in theplex. Since escape from theplex is now impossible, let¡¯s rescue her first.¡±
I was surprised that Shin Hae-ryang still aimed to rescue the researcher. I had expected him to suggest going straight to North District or East District to find escape pods, but apparently, he wasn¡¯t that kind of person. Or maybe I just didn¡¯t have any faith in him in terms of character.
Shin Hae-ryang promptly led the bewildered group towards the residentialplex, walking without hesitation to avoid any dys. Observing his back, I asked him to hand over the child he was carrying on his back. Shin Hae-ryang nodded slowly.
Looking at him, I inquired, ¡°Do you think the escape pods from the West¡¯s side have managed to escape safely?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang frowned at my question, possibly thinking of his teammates who had boarded the escape pods. He stayed quiet for a while before replying, ¡°I saw the firstunched escape pod entering the bathypgic zone (1000m~3000m), but I don¡¯t know anything beyond that.¡±
Seo Ji-hyuk and Baek Ae-young appeared equally shocked, but they quickly got back to reality and started discussing why the escape pods were in that condition. ¡°It¡¯s the escape podunch system.¡± ¡°No, it seems there¡¯s an issue with the engine of the escape pod.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s because the ejection was done wrong.¡± ¡°What do you know?¡± ¡°Well, what do you know then?¡±
Listening to their bickering, Yoo Geum-yi interjected with a question. ¡°What happens to the people that are trapped in those escape pods?¡±
It was the question I wanted to ask but couldn¡¯t, and Yoo Geum-yi asked it first. Or maybe, upon second thought, I didn¡¯t want to hear the answer. I was already grappling with what I had experienced so far, and I didn¡¯t want to know any more tragic or sad things.
Scratching his cheek, Seo Jihyuk responded with another question. ¡°GMDSS1 and GPS are installed, so tracking is possible, but who¡¯s around here to help collect and rescue those escape pods one by one?¡±
¡°There¡¯s¡no one,¡± Yoo Geum-yi replied bleakly.
Seo Jihyuk nodded in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s right, no one. Would they really have put a full 72 hours¡¯ worth of oxygen in the escape pods meant for one-time use, or just a little bit for emergency use?¡±
¡°¡Just a little bit?¡±
¡°Ding dong daeng!¡± Seo Jihyuk made a xylophone sound with his mouth, Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s face fell into despair, and my face must have looked simr to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s. Frowning, Seo Ji-hyuk began to exin further. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s not that the escape pods have so little oxygen. Thepression ratio of the air we breathe at 3km underwater and on the surface is different. If there¡¯s a nearby ship that can reach the escape pods as they surface, there¡¯s a chance of survival. Breathing at the bottom of the oceansts for 2 minutes, but on the surface, it¡¯s 2 hours.¡±
As I listened nkly to these exnations, I felt a vibration from the pad on my side and opened it. A notification for a new post had vibrated the pad. A post from the 4th Underwater Base was uploaded.
Title: We¡¯re waiting! Pleasee quickly!
Content:
The lights have gone out! We¡¯re still waiting. Please save us! We want to leave this ce. We¡¯re in Room 77!
The notification snapped me out of my thoughts. I couldn¡¯t fathom the fear that woulde with waiting alone in a dark, waterlogged room with only a pad forpany. Despite feeling distressed, I kept walking purposefully, knowing that the stairs would lead me directly to the main dormitory.
Author¡¯s Note
6 Companions
Shin Hae-ryang
Baek Aeyoung
Seo Jihyuk
Yoo Geum-yi
Park Muhyun
An unidentified young child
- The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) is a worldwide system for automated emergency signalmunication for ships at sea developed by the United Nations¡¯ International Maritime Organization (IMO) as part of the SOLAS Convention.[?]
Chapter 19
Chapter 19
Baek Aeyoung activated the partition inside the dormitory building. ording to the numbers, the dormitory that could amodate up to 500 people now had partitions descending every 50 rooms. Before going down the intermediate staircase located between rooms 50 and 100, the wall automatically measured the pressure. The pressure the partition was enduring was disyed on the wall next to the door that Baek Aeyoung was knocking on.
When asked why she did this, Baek Aeyoungughed and said, ¡°Well, if I don¡¯t do this and open the door without checking, it might flood the entire corridor in an instant if we¡¯re unlucky. Turns out we can go down. It¡¯s notpletely submerged in water.¡±
Shin Haeryang put the child down on the floor and took out an emergency ax from the wall. With his handsome face and holding the ax, he looked like a serial killer from a movie.
Holding the ax, Shin Haeryang spoke to Baek Aeyoung, ¡°Open all the dormitory doors.¡±
¡°Theputer shows that they¡¯re all open, but I¡¯m not sure if they¡¯re actually open. The power is out from room 61 to 120.¡±
¡°Seo Jihyuk.¡±
¡°Yes, yes.¡±
Seo Jihyuk took off his cardigan and threw it on the floor. He hesitated for a moment before taking off his shoes and even his socks, bing barefoot. Then, he punched the wall beside him hard. A panel next to him fell off, revealing tools such as a screwdriver, shlight, and insting tape.
¡®Do all engineers hide their tools all over the walls?¡¯
Shin Haeryang was wearing clothes simr to a wetsuit like Baek Aeyoung, but he didn¡¯t seem to need to take it off. Instead, he began to untie the bracelet on his wrist.
¡°What¡¯s that?¡±
¡°It¡¯s a parachute cord.¡±
What¡¯s that for? Why is it on his wrist? I swallowed my trivial question. Instead, I gently ced the two backpacks I had been carrying on my back on the ground. I decided to take off my shoes after some consideration.
Seeing me, Shin Haeryang shook his head and said,
¡°Jihyuk and I will go alone. Please stay here, doctor.¡±
Of course, I wanted to stay herefortably. But I was the one who first suggested rescuing the researchers in the main control room. I had enough conscience to not just wait while only the two of them swam through the water and rescued the people.
¡°Are you sure you two can manage, considering there are five people in that room?¡±
At my words, Seo Jihyuk looked at Shin Haeryang and said, ¡°If there are children or injured people, we might need more help. Wouldn¡¯t it be okay for him toe along?¡±
After thinking for a moment with a frown, Shin Haeryang looked at the child lying on the floor and nodded. As soon as the partition to the dormitory was opened, Seo Jihyuk shone his shlight downward. The rising water could be seen in the darkness.
I followed Shin Haeryang and Seo Jihyuk down the stairs and into the dark water. As soon as I confidently entered the water, I regretted not staying obediently above when Shin Haeryang told me to, a mere three secondster. It was understandable since it was extremely dark. There was not a single speck of light as the electricity had gone out. As soon as I stepped down the stairs and submerged myself in the water, I felt as if all my body heat was drained, and the water level rose up to my neck.
Considering I am 175cm tall and the water barely reached my chin, I looked around and saw that for taller people like Shin Haeryang and Seo Jihyuk, the water only reached their shoulders, so they just walked as usual. My regret intensified. Seo Jihyuk led the way, holding a pen-sized shlight in his mouth.
We began to move, sticking to the wall, not knowing whether we were walking or crawling along the wall. We continued to walk, using the doors as a countdown. I brushed aside the floating water bottles near my face and pushed away chairs and pillows that were caught underfoot. Seo Jihyuk, who arrived first, knocked loudly on the closed door of room 77. Screams burst out from across the door.
¡®Weren¡¯t all the doors supposed to be open?¡¯
¡°There are people here! We¡¯re trapped! Please save us!¡±
¡°Step away from the door.¡±
Shin Haeryang took a deep breath and took the thead screwdriver that Seo Jihyuk had, by going underwater. Seo Jihyuk quickly shone his shlight into the water.
Watching Shin Haeryang¡¯s actions, I asked Seo Jihyuk, ¡°Why won¡¯t this door open?¡±
¡°It could be because the power is out, or it could be due to a pressure difference, or something could be stuck in it. There are many possibilities.¡±
¡°Shouldn¡¯t we help team leader Shin Haeryang?¡±
¡°The team leader? It¡¯s more helpful if I don¡¯t help.¡±
Following the movement of the shlight, I saw Shin Haeryang make a few axe-like strokes at the bottom of the door in the water, then push in the screwdriver. I couldn¡¯t figure out what he was doing, but when the man came out of the water, the door now had a 5cm gap.
¡°Grab the door and push it with force!¡±
We slipped our fingers into the small gap. Six hands were attached to the door, pushing it to the left with all our strength. One, two, three! Heave-ho! The door, which usually opened automatically, was so thick and heavy that I almost cursed. As I was thinking about how this could cause airtightness, a small hand came out from the door I was holding.
As the pale, small woman¡¯s hand that emerged from the dark room touched my fingers, I let out a different kind of scream. Aaah! Aaahhhhhhh! Seawater entered my mouth, and my scream disappeared underwater.
The three of us, all the size of a door, clung to the sliding door, which slowly receded into the wall. As it opened just enough for a person to barely squeeze out, we let go of the door, our hands already losing strength.
As Seo Jihyuk shone his shlight into the room, there was only one person inside. The light briefly swept across a small-framed woman¡¯s face. Even though I knew there was someone there, I was more surprised when the light shone on her. Her face was drenched, whether from water or tears.
Recognizing her face, Seo Jihyuk asked, ¡°What¡¯s going on? Is Ga-young the only one here?¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t you say there were five people?¡±
As I asked absentmindedly while looking at the empty room, Kim Ga-young sobbed and said, ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤I¡¯m the only one. I¡¯m sorry.¡±
¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±
Hurriedly, as if we couldn¡¯t waste any more time, Shin Haeryang urged us on. Then, he picked up Kim Ga-young, who was precariously standing on a chair, and hoisted her onto his shoulder. The water had already risen past our chins and was now at our mouths. Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and I turned back towards the stairs in that order.
To be precise, I wasgging behind more than Shin Haeryang, who was carrying someone. No matter how weak one might be, a woman would weigh at least 60 kg, but how could he walk so well while carrying her in the water? Is he a robot? I stuck close to the wall, desperately trying to keep up with Shin Haeryang, who was five steps ahead of me.
I walked, bouncing as if I was swimming or jumping, and asionally swallowed seawater when I couldn¡¯t time my breaths properly. As the water rose to my mouth, I raised my head slightly and walked, but it was terrible.
If I get out of here, I won¡¯t go to the beach for at least ten years. Da*n it
As Shin Haeryang shouted something, Seo Jihyuk, who was leading the way, came back and gently pulled my cor up. My nose barely stayed above water. I was so envious of his height, which was over 190 cm. Seo Jihyuk, the only one in this rescue team with a light, spoke with a shlight clenched in his teeth.
¡°Why are you drinking all the seawater, doctor?¡±
¡°I¡¯m trying to get rid of it by eating-Urghh!¡±
I tried to make a joke in response to Seo Jihyuk¡¯sughter-filled voice but suddenly felt nauseous and threw up.
¡°Ugh! What¡¯s wrong with you!¡±
I was really sorry for vomiting on his arm, but it wasn¡¯t my intention. After swallowing a basinful of seawater, everything in my stomach came out. Shin Haeryang, who waded through the cold seawater over 175 cm deep in the dark, finally stepped on the stairs and put Kim Ga-young down.
Then, he turned his head towards me. At that moment, Seo Jihyuk, who was holding my cor, tripped on something and fell forward. The shlight beam vanished instantly. A person slipped into the dark water, and with my cor grabbed, I was dragged into the water and mmed down.
Chapter 20
Chapter 20
The seawater rushed into my mouth. As I swallowed the salty, bitter water, my consciousness waned. On top of that, my waist hurt as if it had been violently twisted. When I opened my eyes, I saw Shin Haeryang pulling Seo Jihyuk and me out of the water and up the stairs. As the pain in my waist became unbearable, I realized how Shin Haeryang had managed to find and rescue us from the pitch-ck water.
Unbeknownst to me, the parachute cords tied to my waist were connected to Shin Haeryang¡¯s arm. The same went for Seo Jihyuk. Shin Haeryang had pulled us up by winding the cords around his arm continuously.
Seo Jihyuk regained his senses and, with heavy steps, climbed the stairs behind Shin Haeryang, who was like a fisherman reeling in his catch. I also crawled up the stairs, where Yoo Geum Yi and Kim Gayoung were waiting to grab Seo Jihyuk and pull him up.
¡®It turns out you can climb stairs on all fours. Today has been a day of me learning new things by force.¡¯ As I suppressed my messy emotions and continued my quadrupedal climb, Baek Aeyoung lowered the water barrier that allowed us to return to the living quarters once Shin Haeryang emerged. As the persistent water disappeared, I took in deep breaths, feeling as if my lungs would burst, and theny t on the floor.
Shin Haeryang¡¯s voice resonated.
¡°Seo Jihyuk. Your legs?¡±
He seemed to be asking because he saw us fall.
¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±
¡°Doctor. Are you injured anywhere?¡±
Then he talked to me, so I looked at Shin Haeryang while still lying down. My clothes were soaked with seawater, and I didn¡¯t have the strength to get up. As I wrung the water out of my clothes, I replied, ¡°My chest hurts.¡±
¡°You¡¯re fine.¡±
Shin Haeryang¡¯s decisive response reached my ears. Why are the people here so cold? Is it because they¡¯ve been underwater for so long? I thought Shin Haeryang would help me up when he silently approached me, so I reached out my hand. However, he magically untied the parachute cords from my body and took them back. As I groaned and struggled to get up, Yoo Geum Yi and Kim Gayoung were hugging each other and crying.
¡°Waaaah! Eunnie! I thought you were dead!¡±
¡°Uwaah! I thought I was going to die too!¡±
¡°Gayoung eunnie, why were you locked in that room alone?! Waaaah! You said you¡¯d be able to escape quickly if something happened!¡±
¡°The door wouldn¡¯t open! Uwaaaah! The door! The door wouldn¡¯t open! It seems like the doors in the other rooms opened, but mine wouldn¡¯t! I yelled for help, and everyone was escaping together, but they left me behind! Uwaaaaah! They ran away, even though they could hear me screaming for help! Waaaah!¡±
ording to Kim Gayoung¡¯s tearful words, she had been reading a book on her bed when a sudden, massive shock sent her rolling onto the floor. Then, she heard the sound of doors opening from an emergency rm and forced release, but her door remained stubbornly shut.
She pounded on the door and screamed for someone to open it, and people outside the room buzzed for a while before attempting to open the door. Eventually, however, all she heard were the sounds of retreating footsteps. From that moment, Kim Gayoung began to spam the undersea base¡¯s bulletin board with posts pleading for help, while pounding on the door and screaming.
The door wouldn¡¯t open, and water gradually started pouring in, and then suddenly, the electricity went out. Afraid that people wouldn¡¯te to rescue her if they knew she was alone, she lied that there were five people trapped in the room with her when making the request for help.
Kim Gayoung sobbed for a long time before telling her rescuers how grateful she was for their help and apologizing for lying to them. Her eyes and nose were all red from crying. I was reminded of when I got trapped in thest room of West District and thought if I could have made a rescue request through a post, and if having more people would have resulted in a faster rescue, I would have lied, saying that a thousand people from the undersea base were with me.
Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Gayoung¡¯s eyes were red. I looked at them with warm eyes, feeling proud of the parts of their hearts that were still alive with warm emotions, and put on my socks that had been set aside. Then, I wrung out my shirt to remove the water. The two Korean researchers were quite close, probably because there were only two of them among the over a thousand people at the undersea base.
Like me, Baek Aeyoung, who was looking at them with warm eyes, spoke softly, ¡°Gayoung, don¡¯t cry too much. You¡¯ll get dehydrated and lose strength.¡±
Really¡ are all engineers like this? I opened my backpack and a bright orange whale plushie with a smiling face appeared. I took out a towel next to the plushie and put it on my head. Then, with the thought that I could fix it if something went wrong, I reached in between the whale and the snake and took out a few candies.
¡®Was giving out candy really for their own good? But if not now, when would they eat it? Well, let their teeth rot a little. I can fix it.¡¯
I quickly took my hand out of the bag, feeling as if a snake was climbing up my arm, and then handed out the sugar-free candies to everyone. After introducing myself and handing over the candy, Kim Gayoung, who had put a sugar-free grape candy in her mouth, wiped her eyes and nose with the back of her hand before calming down and asking about the child lying on the floor.
¡°Whose child is this?¡±
¡°We don¡¯t know either. We found them in an empty room in the West District.¡±
Hearing my casual tone as if we¡¯d just picked up an object, Kim Gayoung responded with disbelief, ¡°Minors aren¡¯t allowed in the underwater base, you know?¡±
¡°Neither is seawater.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who was chewing on a sugar-free plum candy, untied the parachute cord wrapped around his waist at Shin Haeryang¡¯s signal and handed it over. As Kim Gayoung moved the candy from one cheek to the other, she suddenly eximed, ¡°This is not the time for this! We need to go to the escape pod right now and get out of here! Everyone else has already escaped!¡±
Looking at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s expression, I could guess what my own looked like. After a few seconds of silence, Baek Aeyoung spoke hesitantly, ¡°Well, the thing is¡¡±
¡°We¡¯ve given up on escaping through the North District escape route,¡± Shin Haeryang, who was chewing on sugar-free strawberry candy, shook his wet hair like a dog and spoke.
¡°We¡¯ll either go to the nearby East District and take the remaining escape route, or we¡¯ll take the elevator.¡±
¡°The direct elevator in Central District?¡±
¡°No, we¡¯ll first go up to ~1000m.¡±
¡°If the direct elevator is safe, it¡¯s the easiest way to escape. What about West District, which is as close to Central District?¡±
At Kim Ga-Young¡¯s words, Yoo Geum-yi shook her head, saying, ¡°We came from West District.¡±
While the engineers and researchers were discussing the quickest escape method, I carefully opened the backpack where I had stowed the cat. I was worried if it was okay since it hadn¡¯t moved at all during the journey. As soon as I opened the bag, the cat looked into my eyes as ity still.
It seemed to like the confined space and stayed quietly in the backpack. I stared at its cute face for a moment before zipping the bag back up. It was so well-behaved. There was no trace of the fierce demeanor it had when I first put it in the bag. Is this normal for a cat? I had never raised an animal before, so I didn¡¯t know.
It seemed that a brief discussionsting less than five minutes had already concluded, and preparations were being made to move to the East District, which was located to the east. If we couldn¡¯t use the escape route in East District, we would at least take the elevator to the third underwater base.
When I heard Yoo Geum-yi grumbling, it seemed that all the external elevators intended for instation in Central District had been crowded into the research center. Elevators were essential in the research center. However, when researchers needed to go to the surface or had work-rted matters, they all reluctantly came to Central District and used the direct elevator. This was because they could use the cafe in Central District, and just getting out of the research center made the researchers happy. Judging by Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s expression, the research center seemed like a prison for the researchers. Nah, that can¡¯t be.
After a brief discussion of less than five minutes, they were already preparing to move to the East District, located to the east. It seemed they were nning to go up to the third underwater base using the East District elevator, even if they couldn¡¯t use the escape route.
I picked up the child who was lying down and wore the backpack on my front. Feeling a little embarrassed that I hadn¡¯t been paying attention earlier, I asked Baek Ae-Young, who was next to me.
¡°What about the direct elevator in Central District?¡±
¡°It was dismissed as too dangerous.¡±
¡®So, we¡¯re not going there? Why?¡¯
As I wondered, Shin Haeryang approached and tried to lift the backpack I was wearing in front, causing me to panic.
¡°Ah. That¡¯s heavy.¡±
To be precise, the backpack weighed at least 6kg because it had a cat inside. Shin Haeryang effortlessly lifted the backpack with one hand and wore it on his back. Then he spoke just loud enough for me to hear.
¡°Is it your pet?¡±
At thement, ¡°It smells like an animal,¡± Iughed in disbelief. He had a good nose. I couldn¡¯t even tell because of the seawater. As we divided the prohibited items among ourselves to carry, I walked slowly next to Shin Haeryang and said, ¡°I found it.¡±
¡°You seem to pick up a lot of strange things.¡±
I closed my mouth, about to argue. I recalled the drunken Russians I had recently found. Shin Haeryang, who seemed to have no intention of revealing the presence of the animal to others, silently carried the bag with the cat inside.
Chapter 21
Chapter 21
Hello readers! Sorry for theck of updates. I¡¯ve been quite busy for thest few weeks, and lots of things happened at once, which caused the updates to be pushed back longer than I imagined. Anyway, the updates will resume as normal,I hope, given that my finals are finally over. Enjoy!
p/s: If you want faster updates on this novel, or maybe some spoilers, join our Discord now to obtai novel-role for this novel!
I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s Shin Haeryang¡¯s habit or a trait of the engineering team members, but they always walked at the very front or very back. Now, since I wasgging behind, carrying the child, Shin Haeryang walked beside me at the very end.
I nced at Shin Haeryang and spoke, ¡°May I ask you a few questions out of curiosity? Some might be ufortable. You don¡¯t have to answer if you don¡¯t want to.¡±
Shin Haeryang, whom I thought would cut me off at once, looked at my face for a moment and then nodded, ¡°Sure.¡±
¡°Why did you decide to go to the South district? You could have gone to North district like the Russian team.¡±
It didn¡¯t seem like the engineering team came to the South district for any valid reason. The north district is where the mining staff are. The core of this underwater base is mining and research. Even if robots or androids were to rece everything, the South district and the mining-rted area of the West district would likely be preserved.
The initial reason for building the underwater base was to obtain oil, gas, and natural resources. It was built 200 meters below sea level and gradually went down to 3,000 meters underground, where a temporary ce for unmanned robots was created. That was the beginning of the underwater base. Over time, the small robot charging station turned into a mining area, which grew into a miningplex.
As various countries began pouring money into deep-sea research and conservation, an underwater pollution research center was built and connected to the miningplex. As a result, the underwater base grewrger andrger as more necessities were added.
ording to the guidebook, the mining staff had the second-highest poption after the researchers. That was also why there were many escape pods in both South and West districts. After asking the question, it seemed like I was using him of rescuing Kim Gayoung.
Instead of shouting at me about my iniquitous question, Shin Haeryang calmly answered, ¡°The mining team was mining near the South (central) research center, so the probability of them being caught in the copse and dying was high. Therefore, we judged that the escape pods in the North district would not have been used during the time we stopped the outer wall work and entered the West district. But, when I saw the request for rescue, I thought that the South district would be in better condition than expected after the copse. Considering that most of the South district¡¯s personnel would stay inside the research center, I thought there was a high possibility that there were still escape pods left. ¡Of course, prioritizing the rescue of ourpatriots was also a factor.¡±
¡®How do I determine if someone is considered humane if they went to a mining site where people were likely to die quickly?¡¯
I tried my best to look forward without looking at Shin Haeryang¡¯s face. ¡®If we had gone to East district¡¡¯
¡°Would there be a high possibility of fighting amongst the remaining people if there are not enough escape pods? Not something like yielding to each other?¡±
Shin Haeryang nced at my face and then answered, ¡°Yes. The engineering team would definitely prioritize their own escape.¡±
All that mental evaluation and ethics education was wasted. ¡®I know that you have to go through a mental evaluation to join here, right? Didn¡¯t they say you can¡¯t enter without receiving more than 100 hours of ethics education?¡¯
¡°¡Do you think there are still escape pods left in the East district?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°What would you do if the escape pods in there were ¡®tampered with¡¯ like in the South district¡±
¡°Then we would either check the East district¡¯s submarine or use the elevator.¡±
Out of curiosity, I asked about Shin Haeryang¡¯s way of speaking. ¡°Why do you use informalnguage with your team members but formalnguage with others (me)?¡±
His smooth flow of words seemed to halt momentarily. ¡°Well.¡±
¡°?¡±
Shin Haeryang¡¯s mouth closed, and it took him a while before he opened it again, ¡°¡I suppose I use informalnguage with my team members during work. Does it bother you?¡±
¡°No¡ I¡¯m fine with it.¡±
¡°Then it¡¯s settled.¡±
¡°While I was working, I inevitably found out that some people from other teams are not very friendly towards you, Team Leader Shin Haeryang.¡±
For the first time, Shin Haeryang revealed his canine teeth and smiled, ¡°I rather like that.¡±
In the middle of the walk, Baek Ae-young, who was ahead, turned her head towards us at the back, saw Shin Haeryang¡¯s smile, and, as if regretting catching his smile, quickly turned her head forward and went towards Seo Jihyuk, who was leading the group.
Even though I was expecting a less-than-positive response, I asked a question as if grasping at straws, ¡°What do you think if I offer to help in fostering camaraderie with other engineering teams?¡±
¡°I rmend you take personal rest instead of that.¡±
Ah¡ I see. So that¡¯s it.
Shin Haeryang, with a cat pouch slung on his back, turned to me and spoke, ¡°Can I ask you something?¡±
¡°Uh¡ Yes. I¡¯ll answer as best I can.¡±
¡°If there¡¯s a dental treatment that¡¯s the most painful, takes a long time, and isn¡¯t covered by the underwater base¡¯s insurance, where would that be?¡±
My words seemed to be stuck at the tip of my tongue. I pondered, hearing his polite question. ¡®Why do these crazy people even have such pleasant voices? Perhaps changes in oral structure or vocal cord frequencies are part of human evolutionary methods for survival?;
¡°¡What will you do with that information?¡±
¡°It¡¯s to maintain camaraderie with people from other departments.¡±
I gave up on figuring out how Shin Haeryang managed to reduce the number of peopleing to the dental clinic. He seemed intent on continuing with his antics, like pulling out front teeth or crushing mrs.
¡°Please avoid the jaw and mouth area. It¡¯s a hassle to work on.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡±
I chuckled at his nonchnt response. Before the smile left my face, Baek Ae-young, who had entered the central area, suddenly stopped. It seemed like there was some noise in the distance, and as the one leading the walk stopped, the pace of the group slowed down.
Baek Ae-young twisted her index finger and swung her hand once, and Shin Haeryang, who was next to me, handed me his cat backpack and sped off to stand next to her. Then Seo Jihyuk, having seen this, he put only his index finger to his lips.
¡°Let¡¯s be quiet. Quiet. Until I say to speak again, let¡¯s be as quiet as ten dead mice.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Gayoung, who were chatting about the researchers, closed their mouths, and I, who was standing at the very end, tiptoed and craned my neck out of curiosity. Shin Haeryang gestured, and Baek Ae-young, who had stepped forward, lifted the hem of her skirt and pulled out a knife of excessive size from around her ankle.
My eyes, along with Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s and Kim Gayoung¡¯s, widened at the sight. Baek Ae-young silently turned into the left wall of the central area. The central area was crowded with a movie theater, cafes, and restaurants, and it seemed that Cinema 1, the closest to Baek Ae-young, was her destination. Cinema 1 was a small multimedia room where about ten people could sit on a carpeted floor with cushions and watch a movie, while Cinema 3 was thergest.
When Baek Ae-young signaled with only her fingertips from a distance after going in and out of Cinema 1 or from the broken wall, Shin Haeryang began to move people through Seo Jihyuk. The two researchers and I followed the other three¡¯s tense attitudes and instructions quietly. Shin Haeryang and I were thest to enter the theater.
I put the child on my back down on the carpet and sat on the floor. Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang stood beside the door, while Seo Jihyuk stood slightly away from the door. Since the multimedia room had no lights on, we had to sit in the darkness.
¡°Why is this happening?¡±
Kim Gayoung, frightened and speaking in a low voice, asked Baek Ae-young as everyone else fell silent. But before Baek Ae-young could respond, we heard a sound that made us all freeze. It was the sound of gunsh*t resonating from a distance.
¡°Kyaaaaaah!¡±
¡°Uwaaaaah!¡±
¡°Help!¡±
¡°Save us!¡±
Terrifying screams echoed through the air as someone ran from the north side of North district towards the central area where we were. The tension in the room heightened. The sound of footsteps indicated that it wasn¡¯t just one person running. The sound of running grew louder.
Baek Ae-young silently stood by the wall of Cinema 1, holding the knife with the de pointed downward, while Shin Haeryang stood beside the door, seemingly waiting for something. The sounds of frantic footsteps grew closer.
It was at that moment, with a sudden realization, that the others and I were captivated by fear. We could feel our anxiety building up as we heard the footsteps approaching.
Help me! Please help me!
The cries for help echoed from the front door in variousnguages. My heart started pounding. Thankfully, it was a movie theater, so the external noise was minimized. However, I couldn¡¯t help but imagine that if I were to step outside the theater, the screams would be incredibly loud.
It couldn¡¯t have been more than a minute since the hidden time began, but in my mind, it felt like more than five minutes had passed. As I listened to the screams, someone grabbed my hand. I was so startled that I jumped. It was a child lying on the floor, rubbing their eyes with the back of their hand and making whimpering sounds.
Trantor¡¯s Notes
I just want to rify some things about the current location of Park Muhyun and his team. It may be a bit confusing because they have been moving back and forth in different directions. However, I will try to exin where Muhyun¡¯s team and the Russian team are in this chapter.
On a side note, after tranting around 20 chapters, I havee to believe that the South District is actually part of the central district, as the novel consistently refers to it as such. So, if youe across the term ¡°Central district¡± in the chapters, just remember that it refers to the area from the center to the south of the undersea base.- Russian team: dimir (leader), Nikita, Niki, Viktor, Sophia, Carlos (non-Russian member)
The Russian team parted ways with Muhyun¡¯s team while in the West district and headed for the North district after learning that there are still escape pods avable there.- Park Muhyun¡¯s team: Muhyun, Shin Haeryang, Yoo Geum-yi, Seo Jihyuk, Baek Ae-young, Kim Gayoung, an unidentified child, a snake, and a cat.
After discovering that a Korean member named Kim Gayoung was trapped in the Research Center, Muhyun¡¯s team altered their course from the North District to the Central (south) District.
Upon realizing that the escape pods from the Central District were being sabotaged and failing to resurface, Shin Haeryang concluded that the safest option for their team was to utilize the elevators in the East District, taking them up to the 3rd base instead of risking the North District for escape pods or the Central District for a direct elevator.
Hence, based on this chapter, they are currently en route from the South district to the East district.
Hope this clears up any misunderstanding.
See you next chapter!
Chapter 22
Chapter 22
The child opened his eyes and met with the frightened faces of the adults. The child, too, started to feel afraid seeing unfamiliar people surrounding him.
¡°Who are you? Where am I? Where is my dad?¡±
In a theater filled with darkness, I felt like crying first, seeing the blurry image of the child who seemed about to cry in the dim light that came through the door. From outside, the screams of people continued to be heard. Yoo Geum-yi shushed, cing a finger on the child¡¯s lips and asked quietly. Don¡¯t cry. Don¡¯t cry.
¡°Shh¡ Quiet. What¡¯s your name?¡±
As she diverted the child¡¯s attention, I rummaged through my backpack only with my fingertips in search of candy. ¡®If he eats something, he¡¯ll be quiet.¡¯ Only when I put my hand in the bag did I realize there was a snake inside, and I cursed inwardly while rummaging through the bag.
¡°It¡¯s Henry. Where¡¯s my dad?¡±
¡°Your dad¡¯s at work right now¡ What¡¯s your dad¡¯s name?¡±
¡°Leonard Sanders.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s gaze sharpened. ¡°Is your father the American engineer Leonard Sanders? Is your mother¡¯s name Nevaeh Hopkins?¡±
¡°Do you know my mom and dad?¡±
¡°I¡¯m Yoo Geum-yi. I asionally met your mom and dad in the lounge. Didn¡¯t you live with your mom?¡±
¡°Today is a day for my dad to y with me.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi groaned. I hurriedly took out choctes and candies and extended them to her, who passed them on to Henry. Henry took what Yoo Geum-yi gave naturally into his hands. He probably didn¡¯t know who his parents were, but he shouldn¡¯t be taught to freely ept food from strangers.
¡°I¡¯m a friend of your mom. If you behave, you¡¯ll see your dad after work.¡±
Upon seeing the candy, the child made a puzzled expression. ¡°I can¡¯t eat candy because of my braces. My mom said I can¡¯t.¡±
In order to help Yoo Geum-yi, I quickly jumped in with backup. It¡¯s okay to eat! It¡¯s okay!
¡°I¡¯m a dentist. You can eat it. I¡¯ll check your teeth afterward.¡± I pulled out a whale plushie toy from the bag along with the candy in my hand in a hurry, but the child looked at the 30cm long orange whale plushie and shook his head.
¡°I¡¯m not young enough to y with things like this.¡±
Henry responded matter-of-factly. He didn¡¯t cry, even in the situation where he woke up in the dark surrounded by strangers. I would have been crying and shouting asking where my mom was and who these people are. ¡®This kid is brave. Adults tremble holding this sort of thing while receiving dental treatment. Kids in Korea tend to hold onto plushies during treatment, is it different for American kids?¡¯
Kim Gayoung observed the child and asked, ¡°How old are you?¡±
¡°I¡¯m seven.¡±
¡°You¡¯re all grown up then, aren¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Right. Yeah, soon he¡¯ll be driving and drinking.¡±
As I asked Seo Jihyuk for agreement, he seemed flustered and started to spout nonsense. Shin Haeryang, who only moved his eyes to confirm the localized confusion on our side, gestured with his hand as if to say keep quiet after hearing the noise outside the door. I was flustered and covered Henry¡¯s mouth with my hand. But Henry, as if it was only natural, pushed my hand away. Unlike me, who was impatient and anxious about the screams outside the cinema, the child asked very calmly.
¡°Why?¡±
¡°We need to be quiet. We can¡¯t be found by the people outside.¡±
¡°Then you could just tell me to be quiet.¡±
I lost my words at the logical assertion of this seven-year-old. So, as I closed my mouth like zipping it up in thin air, the child did the same with their mouth. ¡®Since when has a seven-year-old been this smart? It was hard to tell since every child, whether they were 7, 17, or 27, who came to the dentist was always screaming in the same terrified tone.¡¯
The multimedia room had no lock. Instead, if the multimedia room¡¯s door is closed, it¡¯s assumed that someone is using it, and there was an unspoken rule not to enter inside. If it¡¯s not in use, we leave the door slightly ajar. As Shin Haeryang entered, a streak of light from outside infiltrated the dark multimedia room.
In a situation where even breathing was stifled, a shadowy figure passing by dimmed the light. I was so tense that I would have screamed if someone touched me suddenly. Then, out of the blue, someone opened the door of the multimedia room and strode in.
Unbeknownst to me, the whale stuffed animal I had been holding had disappeared, and I noticed that Baek Ae-young was threatening someone with a knife beside their eye. Probably, Shin Haeryang, who had stuffed the stuffed animal in the opponent¡¯s mouth and pinned the individual¡¯s head to the ground as he or she entered the multimedia room by holding down the struggling body with his own. In the meanwhile, Baek Ae-young was threatening the person with a knife, and it seemed like Seo Jihyuk was also grappling the opponent¡¯s kicking feet.
Kim Gayoung recognized the opponent and said, ¡°Huh? Ms. Smith?¡±
¡°Who?¡±
As I asked, Kim Ga-young quickly replied, ¡°Jennifer Smith. She¡¯s the team leader of E engineering team.¡±
The engineering team is allposed of Americans, or so I¡¯ve heard. I could even see the strength leaving the struggling feet at Kim Gayoung¡¯s words. However, Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t let go of his grip on the feet.
Shin Hae-ryang spoke to Jennifer quietly, ¡°If you scream, I can¡¯t promise what I¡¯ll do. Nod your head if you¡¯ll be quiet.¡±
Jennifer, who was lying on the floor like a frog, nodded. Still, Baek Ae-young did not put away her threatening knife but remained still. Only the de of the knife gleamed in the dark, and the de by her eyes went down towards her cheeks. Shin Haeryang, who pulled the stuffed animal from Jennifer¡¯s mouth, slid a toy dolphin towards me with his foot. When I picked it up, the tail part was wet from saliva.
Ignoring my bbergasted expression, Shin Haeryang asked the woman named Jennifer, ¡°What happened in the North district?¡±
¡°¡A Japanese engineer shot a gun. People got hit and fell. I ran and hid here.¡±
It was then that I understood why Baek Ae-young had stopped in the central district just now. There had been a gunshot. I didn¡¯t realize it was a gunshot. I thought it was the sound of metal bending somewhere.
¡°Are there any escape pods left in the North district?¡±
When Jennifer shut her mouth, Shin Haeryang twisted the woman¡¯s head about 60 degrees with his hand that was holding her hair. As her head turned abruptly, Jennifer¡¯s eyes met Henry¡¯s. Startled to see Henry, Jennifer eximed, ¡°Why is the kid here?¡± and let out a groan before answering:
¡°They¡¯re fighting over the six remaining ones. The Russian, Japanese, and Chinese teams were yelling and fighting, so our team went over, and a guy from the Japanese team pulled out a gun and started shooting.¡±
¡°Who from the Japanese team?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. They all look alike.¡±
¡°What kind of gun was it?¡±
¡°It looked like a submachine gun (SMG), but I didn¡¯t see it clearly because I was running away.¡±
¡°Have you been to the South district?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°How about the East district?¡±
¡°I haven¡¯t been there either!¡±
¡°And West district?¡±
¡°We were in the middle of working, you know! We¡¯d juste into the North area, less than 10 minutes ago, after helping Mining Team 3 with some robot repairs.¡±
¡°Tell me if you know anything about the situation of the other teams.¡±
¡°¡Take your hand off my head, you bast*rd!¡±
Shin Haeryang withdrew his hand, which was aggressively gripping Jennifer¡¯s hair. Baek Ae-young, distanced Jennifer from Shin Haeryang and smoothed out her dishevelled hair. Suddenly, the knife that had been in Baek Ae-young¡¯s hand was gone. Due to the dim lighting in the multimedia room, Jennifer, who hadn¡¯t clearly seen who had brandished the knife between Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang, mistakenly thought it was Shin Hae Ryang and clung to Baek Ae-young.
Baek Ae-young quicklyforted Jennifer, patting her back. Immediately, a slew of curses aimed at team leader Shin erupted from Jennifer¡¯s mouth.
Watching this scene unfold in less than a minute, Seo Jihyuk asked in the midst of the chaotic atmosphere, ¡°So¡ is Daniel from your team alive?¡±
¡°That bast*rd used me as a shield when the bullets started flying!¡±
¡°Ah, that bast8rd never changes.¡±
From their conversation, it seemed that a member of the Japanese team had shot at his own team, causing a crossfire. During the chaos, Daniel Rodriguez, a member of the same team, had used Jennifer as a shield to escape from the North area. Jennifer was fuming as she spoke, but once her excitement subsided a little, I carefully asked.
¡°Was Kevin Wilson part of the American team?¡±
¡°¡Yeah. He probably stayed in the dorm because he said he had a severe headache.¡±
As she responded, Jennifer¡¯s face hardened.
In the middle of what I was saying, Henry asked, ¡°What about Leonard Sanders?¡±
Jennifer, having seen Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga Young¡¯s shy X-mark and various gestures behind the child, looked at the child¡¯s face and said, ¡°¡He¡¯s working right now. Am I your father¡¯s supervisor? Who brought you here?¡±
¡°My dad did.¡±
Jennifer seemed to be struggling to maintain her expression as her face twisted into a semnce of a smile. As someone who has had some experience with social interactions, it seemed to me that Jennifer wanted to chew Leonard out as soon as possible.
¡°Ah¡ I see. Where¡¯s your mom?¡±
¡°Mom went to visit grandma.¡±
¡°¡You should¡¯ve stayed with your mom, why are you here looking for your dad?¡±
Kim Gayoung held her head as if she was getting a headache from that question. It seemed like there was aplex family history.
Yoo Geum-yi tried to divert the attention by asking Jennifer about a different topic, ¡°Where were you headed?¡±
¡°We were nning to use the South district¡¯s escape pod. The Russian guys said that since the Korean team went this way and didn¡¯t return, they must¡¯ve escaped.¡±
There was a moment of silence. The sound of Henry rolling a piece of candy in his mouth was the loudest. Jennifer spoke harshly, ¡°Since you¡¯re here, it seems like you couldn¡¯t escape,¡± looking at Shin Haeryang.
Shin Haeryang seemed to consider Jennifer¡¯s words to be no more than the barking of a dog.
As I put a saliva-stained whale doll that everyone had ignored into my bag, I said, ¡°We won¡¯t be able to escape using the South district¡¯s escape pod.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
To Jennifer¡¯s question, Baek Ae-young answered with a sigh, ¡°Most of the escape pods in the South district are broken. Do you happen to know who checked themst?¡±
¡°It wasn¡¯t us. A month ago, we inspected the North district¡¯s escape pods with the Chinese team. It must have been either Australia or New Zend team.¡±
¡°Our team was in charge of the West district. We were in the same team with Australians. They disliked inspecting with Chinese.¡±
¡°I think the East district¡¯s ones were inspected by the Russians and Canadians. We drank together with the ones who finished the inspection¡¡± Seo Jihyuk trailed off, ncing at Shin Haeryang.
Kim Gayoung frowned and spoke up, ¡°The South district¡¯s escape pods must have been checked by the Japanese and New Zend teams.¡±
¡°Well¡ someone could have damaged them after the inspection.¡±
Silence briefly descended following Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words. The screams and gunshots that could be heard from outside suddenly ceased, as if such things had never urred to begin with.
Chapter 23
Chapter 23
¡°We¡¯re heading to the East district. Would you like toe with us?¡±
Jennifer shook her head in response to my words. Her dark blonde hair fluttered, along with the small earring in her ear.
¡°I¡¯m going find my team who fled to South district and take the central elevator.¡±
That¡¯s impressive. If it were me, I¡¯d run away without looking for my team in this situation. Maybe there¡¯s nowhere to run, anyway.
Kim Gayoung¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. ¡°It takes 10 minutes to call the elevator, and another 10 minutes to ride it without the elevator moving.¡±
¡°That¡¯s still the fastest way out of here.¡±
Shin Haeryang, who appeared to be ignoring the conversation in the multimedia room while looking outside, took Seo Jihyuk¡¯s pad and showed Jennifer a picture. He twisted the angle of the pad screen so the light outside or Henry in front of him couldn¡¯t see, but I knew what the picture was as soon as I saw it.
Shin Haeryang showed Jennifer a picture of a man whose eyes never closed, and because of that, I had to make eye contact with a dead person for a few seconds. ¡®Ah, damn it.¡¯ Jennifer scowled as she saw the photo and bit her lip.
Shin Haeryang looked outside and spoke, ¡°It¡¯s too dangerous.¡±
¡°Aren¡¯t we in a situation where we¡¯re not considering the danger, swinging axes to get on the escape boat, shooting people in the head?¡±
¡°We don¡¯t know when the central building¡¯s pressure control device will fail.¡±
¡°Then we should move faster. Whether it¡¯s the East district¡¯s elevator or the North district¡¯s elevator, we¡¯re dead if either fails,¡± Jennifer rebutted and stood up.
Seo Jihyuk, who had been standing and looking outside, insisted, ¡°We¡¯re going to the East district as nned.¡±
Upon hearing that, Henry quickly raised his small hand. Even in the darkness, Henry¡¯s small arm reflected Shin Haeryang¡¯s surprised expression. Hand raised, Henry voiced his opinion.
Henry, with his hand raised, expressed his opinion, ¡°I¡¯ll follow Jennifer.¡±
¡°Why¡ why?¡±
¡°Because she said she¡¯s going to find my dad.¡±
Listening to his firm voice, the adults stared at Henry in a daze. ¡®Is this kid for real? At his age, all I did was watch cartoons and roll on the ground, begging for toys.¡¯
Everyone present was thinking of escaping one way or another, but none of them were willing tob through the entire underwater base, which could be anywhere, under the pretext of finding Henry¡¯s father. It seemed that even the kid had vaguely realized that the promises of calling for his father or taking him to his father were lies. As Jennifer subtly held the boy¡¯s hand, Kim Gayoung sighed and held his other hand, ¡°I¡¯ll go, too. His age reminds me of my nephew.¡±
¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be safer for all of us to go to the East district together?¡±
¡°If we can¡¯t use the escape pod in the East district, we¡¯re going to take the East¡¯s side elevator, right? Whether we take this central elevator here or the one for the third underwater base, the risk seems simr, so I¡¯m just going to take the direct elevator in the Central.¡±
¡°There¡¯s also a multi-person submarine and the third underwater base elevator at East district. Come with us.¡±
Even though we asked her again, Kim Gayoung declined. Deeming further discussion useless, Shin Haeryang nodded and opened the door to theater 1. Three secondster, Baek Ae-young, who had quietly high-fived Jennifer, left, followed by Seo Ji-hyuk.
Yoo Geum-yi held Kim Gayoung¡¯s hand tightly, then said ¡°Let¡¯s go out and see.¡± before letting go and leaving the room. I also carefully swept the bottom of the bag with my sleeve, took out all the chocte bars and candies, and handed them to the three.
¡°If your teeth rot, I¡¯ll fix them next time we meet.¡±
¡°See you in a bit, Muhyun-ssi.¡±
Watching Kim Gayoung wave her hand, I left the movie theater 1. Baek Ae-young led the way, stopping when she said to stop and walking when she said to walk.
As we were almost running toward the cafe past the second and third movie theaters, Yoo Geum-yi spoke quietly, ¡°Gayoung eonni is not good with her ankles. She used to wear heels a lot and sprained her ankle so often that her left ankle is in bad condition. It might have been tough for her to keep up with us at this pace. She might have stayed because she hates having her ankles slowing her down. Or maybe she truly believes that the elevator is safer than escaping through the escape pod.¡±
¡°What about you, Ms. Geum-yi?¡±
¡°I relieve stress through exercise. Wondering what to do with my thesis? I used to run on a treadmill out of anger every time I heard about professors making noises. I must have run more than any used car.¡±
I couldn¡¯t help butugh imagining Yoo Geum-yi running fiercely on a treadmill in her anger, but I barely held it in.
¡°How about¡ How about you, doctor?¡±
As we walked at a brisk pace, Seo Jihyuk, who had been listening to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s story, asked me. The weight of the cat on my back felt like it was pressing down on my whole body. I had twice fallen into the water, alternately carrying 6kg and 20kg, and now I had no strength to walk. I assessed my overall condition and told Seo Jihyuk.
¡°I¡¯m at death¡¯s door.¡±
¡°You seem perfectly fine.¡±
Does living underwater impair hearing? I stared at the sturdy back of Shin Haeryang, who was leading the way, then nced at Yoo Geum-yi. She looked anxious. I was also anxious. ¡®After all, I¡¯m not good at lying. Moreover, I can¡¯t live with anxiety. I guess that¡¯s how I¡¯ll be my whole life.¡¯
That¡¯s why I asked Baek Ae-young, who was walking briskly by my side, ¡°What is your real identity?¡±
¡°Me? I¡¯m an engineer.¡±
¡°No, I mean that knife.¡±
¡°Every woman living in this dangerous world should have at least one knife. It¡¯s a trend these days!¡±
Seo Jihyuk agreed with her words. He said it was something like a piece of jewelry. But seeing the real thing made me wonder. When I looked at Yoo Geum-yi, she yelled, asking why I was looking at her. Can you believe it?! At her words, I suddenly remembered something and spoke to Baek Ae-young.
¡°Bringing weapons into the underwater base is prohibited, isn¡¯t it?¡±
Baek Ae-young immediately refuted my statement, ¡°Well, only things like firearms and grenades are banned, cold weapons are allowed! If you say no knives at all, how are we supposed to cook in the restaurant?¡±
¡°Cold weapons?¡±
When Yoo Geum-yi asked Baek Ae-young what cold weapons were, Baek Ae-young looked surprised. When I looked at Seo Jihyuk in disbelief, he turned his head away, avoiding my gaze. I heard Baek Ae-young¡¯s voice, saying we were screwed, then she asked Shin Haeryang what to do.
Shin Haeryang, who was walking at the very front, peeked around the corner of the cafe building into the convenience store, then waved his hand.
¡®What did that mean?¡¯
As we all moved quietly and pressed ourselves against the wall, Shin Haeryang muttered in a tone of headache. ¡°Once you took out the knife, it was over.¡±
¡°What is your real identity? Are you some kind of soldier or a special forces member?¡±
¡°Do you think the global underwater base, funded by various countries with over 6,000 trillion, would only house civilians?¡±
When Baek Ae-young shot back at me, Yoo Geum-yi pped softly, eximing, ¡°I knew it! and wagged her forefinger. ¡°There were rumors among the researchers! They said there could be unusual people among the ones at the underwater base, not just ordinary people! Like special agents from various countries, or even criminals! There were such rumors floating around, but I thought they were just scary stories. It turns out they were true!¡±
Suddenly, Yoo Geum-yi, with her eyes sparkling, fired a barrage of questions, ¡°Is everyone in our team like this? What about Soo-jung and Ji-hyeon? Do Kim Jaehee Kim and Jung Sang-hyun also know how to use knives and guns?¡±
¡°The most dangerous one is Ji-hyeon. That nutcase.¡±
¡°No way! Ji-hyeon is so nice!¡±
When Seo Jihyuk said that, Yoo Geum-yi timidly contradicted him, and Baek Ae-young kicked Seo Jihyuk¡¯s shin, saying, ¡°Stop talking nonsense. Seriously.¡±
Seo Ji-hyuk closed his mouth with a choked sound. Suddenly, Shin Haeryang exined that we would run from here to there. But we shouldn¡¯t make any noise. Among those who had shoes, Yoo Geum-yi and I held ours in our hands, and we ran one by one at the signal.
From somewhere, we could asionally hear sounds resembling beans being roasted. The sound was echoing too much to tell where it wasing from. A few minutester, Baek Ae-young, who was at the front, signaled to lie down. We stayed still, so Iy still.
I tapped Shin Haeryang lightly and then tapped my own lips, and after a few moments of silence, Shin Haeryang nodded his head and said, ¡°Speak.¡± I shuddered at the fact that I was trapped in a ce that was narrow or wide, depending on perspective, with those who had received professional education on the methodology of people harming people.
¡°So you¡¯re saying that the madmen in the North district who were shooting with guns weren¡¯t just trying to earn escape points, but could have been trained gun experts who did it on purpose!¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤And we don¡¯t have a gun.¡±
Hearing Shin Haeryang¡¯s clean-cut words gave me a feeling of a headacheing on. I reached out my palm to Shin Haeryang.
¡°?¡±
¡°It¡¯s been fun so far.¡±
¡°Pardon?¡±
¡°It¡¯s been a fun and enjoyable conversation. Hand me the hidden gun.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t have one.¡±
¡°But the Engineer B (Japan) team brought a gun, didn¡¯t they? The Engineer C team (Russia) seems to have smuggled in alcohol in box loads, and one of the mining teams seems to have imported arge number of cigarettes from their home country. Don¡¯t we have anything? Surely we have something hidden? Like a multi-person submarine capable of rising from 3,000 meters underground to sea level at once.¡±
¡°These are all we have.¡± Shin Haeryang rummaged through his pockets and carefully ced a sugar-free grape candy, which I had handed out before entering South district, on my palm. I couldn¡¯t help but let out a dryugh. I pped the candy back into his hand, making a pping sound.
¡°We didn¡¯t expect it to turn out this way either.¡±
¡°What do you mean? That we might drown in the water 3km under any moment? Or that all the escape pods are broken, missing, or have been ¡®tampered with¡¯ and crashed?¡±
¡°We didn¡¯t anticipate any of that.¡±
As Shin Haeryang calmly replied, Baek Ae-young quickly interjected, ¡°How could we have known someone would ram a torpedo into the Central Research Center? If we knew beforehand, we would have taken a vacation the day before and gone to Hawaii. We never thought we would be fish food in this smelly ocean!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi had been trying to cheer me up when she shouted in surprise, ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤Wait, someone shot a torpedo? You mean a torpedo, like an underwater missile? Who shot a missile?! Is this some kind of madness? Do they have any idea how much that research facility costs? How expensive is the equipment?! Don¡¯t humans usually argue verbally before resorting to violence? What on earth is making these insane people detonate four seven-story research centers under the sea, creating so much waste?! My deep-sea life center is just one thing; we¡¯ve collected an absurd number of jellyfish species! And I¡¯ve heard that the amount of metals collected in the Rare Earth Center for mineral research is no joke. Do you have any idea how much this is all worth? We¡¯ve got gold, silver, and even heaps of uranium pulled from seawater! What did the Undersea Pollution Center do to deserve this? They were studying how to stop undersea pollution, all the team members came from all around the world! They were here to research how to get rid of those damned microstics and tons of garbage that we can¡¯t even measure anymore in the sea, and some lunatics blew that up too? Are they allpletely insane?¡±
¡°Calm¡calm down! Jeez.¡±
¡°Calm down and lower your voice! You don¡¯t know who might be around.¡±
Postgraduate student Yoo Geum-yi, who was pursuing her doctoral studies, was fuming at the audacity of someone firing a torpedo at the underwater research base.
I quietly asked Shin Haeryang a question, ¡°Is it really a torpedo? It¡¯s not an earthquake or something?¡±
¡°We saw it while we were working outside.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤ If you¡¯re military, is there a way to contact Korea? Like, get in touch with the Navy? Or any separate escape n?¡±
At that question, Seo Jihyuk gave a disheartenedugh. ¡°Well¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤We¡¯re not exactly military. You know our age, right? Except for Baek Sang-ari, we¡¯re all almost in our 30s, haha. Those who work in such fields are usually in their early 20s. We¡¯re all retired, so¡ think of us as mercenaries. Mercenaries¡ it¡¯s a bit of an odd term, but contractors? That¡¯s also a bit¡ um¡ think of us as outsourced staff. That¡¯s still weird, isn¡¯t it? Contract workers? Contract government employees? We¡¯re not even formally registered as government employees, no pension¡e to think of it, it¡¯s not that great. Team leader Shin, why did you agree to such terms?¡±
¡°We¡¯re getting paid from two ces, right? Or did you want me to contract with Japan or China?¡±
¡°Ah, that makes sense.¡±
At that, Baek Ae-young began to grumble, ¡°There are a few conditions like prioritizing Koreans for rescue, behaving in a way that¡¯s friendly towards Korea, naming things inside the underwater base in Korean, and reporting activities once a week or so, but there was no material support or anything like that. Wemunicate by email, and they¡¯ve never even bought us a pair of socks.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤I was denied four times when I asked for a satellite phone to contact the ind. They also refused to get us a 2,000m multi-person submarine.¡±
¡°Well, I¡ *sigh*. I won¡¯tpare us to America or New Zend. Just within Asia, the B-team (Japan) and D-team (China) engineers have a cruiser yacht for their team to use. It¡¯s not just that they¡¯re rich, their supporting countries provided it! Even when I asked for a 20-foot one, they said, ¡®Why do you need a yacht in an underwater base?¡¯ Did I ask for a 50-foot yacht? They just say they¡¯ll consider whenever I ask!¡± Baek Ae-young started pouring out her frustrations, whether there was anyone around or she had just been bottling up her grievances.
Shin Haeryang, who had umted a lot due to the rejected support requests, sighed and said, ¡°We have nothing but our lives.¡±
¡°That¡¯s the case for all of us. However-.¡±
Shin Haeryang quickly put his hand over my mouth. As I was about to pry his rough palm away, a short-haired woman of Oriental descent, with a glum expression and a gun, walked past the caf¨¦. Everyone froze.
Before shepletely disappeared from sight, Baek Ae-young whispered to Shin Hae-ryang, ¡°That¡¯s Takahashi Yurie. Should we snatch her?¡±
¡°Let her pass.¡±
At Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s gesture, Seo Jihyuk, who confirmed that no one else was around, was the first to step forward.
Author¡¯s note
Engineer Team A ¨C Team leader Shin Haeryang ¨C Korean
Engineer Team B ¨C Team leader Sato Ryusuke ¨C Japanese
Engineer Team C ¨C Team leader dimir Sergeyevich Ivanov ¨C Russian
Engineer Team D ¨C Team leader ??? ¨C Chinese
Engineer Team E ¨C Team leader Jennifer Smith ¨C American
Engineer Team F ¨C Team leader ??? ¨C New Zender
Engineer Team G ¨C Team leader ??? ¨C Australian
Engineer Team H ¨C Team leader ??? ¨C Canadian
Chapter 24
Chapter 24
If you turn around the back of the convenience store, a straight bridge leading to the East district appears. I only visited the East district once, when I first arrived at the underwater base to see what was there. As I turned around the convenience store building, I lightly tapped on Baek Ae-young¡¯s shoulder, who was trailing at the very end.
¡°I¡¯m going into the convenience store. I¡¯ll grab some water too.¡±
The footsteps of the people walking behind began to slow, so the person leading the group, Seo Jihyuk, stopped. Shin Hae Ryang, who had contemted for about three seconds, nodded in agreement. Both Baek Ae-young and I were carrying backpacks, but upon seeing the two backpacks behind me, Seo Jihyuk spoke up.
¡°Give me a backpack. I¡¯ll be back soon.¡±
It was hard for me to decide which bag to give him, the one with the snake or the one with the cat. Furthermore, the snake was a very small garter snake, whereas the cat weighed about 6 to 7 kilograms, filling up an entire backpack. If I gave him the bag with the snake, there was a chance he could get bitten. Of course, considering I hadn¡¯t been bitten yet, the creature could be docile, not prone to biting, or possibly dead. It could be any of the three. But I couldn¡¯t give a backpack in this state to someone else.
¡°Let¡¯s go together.¡±
Surprisingly, Seo Jihyuk readily agreed, nodding his head. Baek Ae-young, Seo Jihyuk, and I quietly entered the convenience store. As Baek Ae-young walked in, she began counting softly. ¡®One, two, three, four.¡¯
The convenience store was filled with goodies. There were Choco-Bana1 snacks, candies, choctes, and high-calorie items gathered together. All of them were free. They could only be eaten inside the 4th Underwater Base.
First, I went to the beverage refrigerator and opened the backpack with the snake in it to get a few bottles of water. It was only now that I realized the snake was inside a pouch on the backside of the backpack. The snake was curled up in a ball, and I carefully put two 1.5-liter bottles of water in the bag. Then, while drinking a bottle of water, I grabbed as many candies, Choco-Bana, and choctes as I could and almost tossed them into my bag.
Everyone else did something simr. Baek Ae-young put two bottles of sports drinks and one bottle of water in her bag, and Seo Jihyuk put two bottles of water in his bag and filled the rest of the space with Choco-Bana and nut bars. Baek Ae-young also crammed puddings and fruit cups into the remaining space in her bag, while counting, ¡®Fifteen, sixteen.¡¯
While Baek Ae-young was counting, Seo Jihyuk, who was keeping an eye on her, suddenly pushed something in the very back of the beverage fridge and pulled something out. I thought it was a beverage, but it turned out to be a bottle of Bantine¡¯s 50-year-old whisky 2. A 50-year-old vintage, something I¡¯d never seen before in my life. The liquor was older than me. Struggling with the bag¡¯s zipper because the two bottles of water and the 50-year-old Bantine¡¯s wouldn¡¯t fit in the backpack at the same time, Seo Jihyuk and I were quietly yelled at by Baek Ae-young who had been counting.
¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±
¡°Hold on a sec!¡±
¡°What do you mean hold on a sec! We have to go now!¡±
Annoyed, Baek Aeyoung dragged Seo Jihyuk out. Following them, I stopped upon seeing something copsed about 10 meters away from the convenience store. There was a person lying there.
¡°Huh?¡±
I thought I had stopped for a moment upon seeing that person, but before I knew it, Seo Jihyuk, who had returned, grabbed my forearm and dragged me away. His strength was such that I was practically dragged along with my feet barely touching the ground. Shin Haeryang, who had been waiting behind the convenience store building, moved right away as if waiting for the two of us.
Strangely enough, I kept hearing a sound like popping popcorn or somerge footsteps. Until we moved far away from the convenience store andpletely left the Central district, Baek Ae-young continued to send us signals for silence. From the way she was gesturing here and there with her hands, it seemed like she was warning us to keep our mouths shut or risk getting them ripped open or our tongues pulled out. As soon as we stepped onto the bridge leading to the East district, leaving the Central district, Shin Haeryang looked around at everyone and spoke, ¡°You all can speak now.¡±
Relieved, I breathed out at his words.
After seeing the armed man, Yoo Geum-yi looked anxious, repeatedly ncing behind herself before speaking, ¡°Phew, that was scary. But, I¡¯m d we haven¡¯te across anyone armed like before.¡±
Seo Jihyuk was about to open his mouth, but stopped when he saw Baek Ae-young shaking her fist from behind. I hesitated before opening my mouth to Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Earlier¡there was a man who copsed next to the convenience store.¡±
At my question, Seo Jihyuk answered hesitantly, ¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Did he just faint? Or was he shot?¡±
From afar, I didn¡¯t see any significant wounds. ¡®Wouldn¡¯t there be blood sttering everywhere if he was shot?¡¯
Baek A-young shook her head. ¡°He was shot in the back. He¡¯s either dead, or will be soon. Do you have any medical knowledge of gunshot wounds?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡®If there was bleeding inside the mouth, I had confidence in handling that. But even if I try my best, the only ce I could potentially treat would be the head. Of course, whether it¡¯s the head or mouth, if it gets shot, my knowledge ispletely useless. All I have is a backpack with an animal inside. What more can I do?¡¯
¡°It seemed like he was shot when we were moving from Cinema 3 to the cafe.¡±
At Baek Ae-young¡¯s words, Yoo Geum-yi looked at me with a bored expression. ¡°Did you see his face?¡±
¡°No, he was face down. But¡ his hair was orange, short, he was a male, Asian, and had a shark tattoo on the back of his hand.¡±
¡°Hong Tao. He¡¯s an engineer from D team and a Taiwanese,¡± Shin Haeryang said.
¡®Could it be the same person who he once punched in the face?¡¯
¡°Do you know him?¡±
¡°I only know his face and name.¡±
¡®Oh, I guess not.¡¯
Seo Jihyuk pped his hands with a sudden exmation, as if he knew the person. ¡°That¡¯s it! That guy¡¯s¡ the one who stole salt from the restaurantte at night to make salted coffee and set off the rm at 3 am.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi nodded, recognizing the person. ¡°Wasn¡¯t he the one who kept posting recipes on the underwater base¡¯s bulletin board to relieve stress?¡±
¡®It seems there are quite a few people relieving stress through food at the underwater base.¡¯
Baek Ae-young, who was listening to the conversation, spoke, ¡°It seems that a lot of engineers have survived, surprisingly¡¡±
¡°But the person we saw earlier is dead, isn¡¯t he?¡±
At my incredulous question, Baek Ae-young bit her lip, stressed, and shook her head. ¡°Because they work in teams, if one hasn¡¯t died like earlier, there¡¯s a high chance the rest of the team is alive.¡±
As Yoo Geum-yi walked towards the bridge leading to the East district, she repeatedly rubbed her arm, ¡°It¡¯s a bit chilly in the East district. The indoor temperature seems lower.¡±
¡°That¡¯s right.¡±
I didn¡¯t feel particrly colder now because I had been in the water twice, losing much of my body heat. But hearing Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s opinion, I suddenly felt a chill. It seemed like the adrenaline that had been pumping from tension was all spent as we left the Central district. Seo Jihyuk, who had been strolling through the underwater base, suddenly looked serious. He scratched his head while looking at the pad.
¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m not really affected by heat or cold, and our team¡¯s suits have some protective functions against such conditions, so I didn¡¯t notice. It seems like the life support system has broken down. Normally, the temperature is maintained at 24 degrees, but it¡¯s currently 21 degrees.¡±
Something very important seemed to have broken. Just by the name, it sounded fatal.- Actual name is Choco-Banana. A very popr Korean snacks made by Lotte pany)[?]
- A well-known, scotch whiskey[?]
Chapter 25
Chapter 25
¡°What happens if that breaks down?¡±
Seo Jihyuk hesitated at my startled question, failing to provide an immediate answer. He seemed to be contemting a way to exin in simpler terms.
¡°The life support system we use in the underwater base dposes water to produce oxygen. It then uses whates out of that process to maintain the temperature. You understand this part, right? The life support system provides an appropriate level of oxygen and temperature within the underwater base, ensuring we can survive even at such high pressure. The fact that the temperature is dropping means there¡¯s an issue somewhere.¡±
Shin Haeryang thenprehensively summed up Seo Ji-hyuk¡¯s long and convoluted exnation: ¡°The likelihood of death increases.¡±
He truly seemed to have a knack for instilling unease in people.
As Yoo Geum-yi and I were dumbfounded by Shin Haeryang¡¯s statement, she spoke with a scared expression, ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤So, should we head to the East district? Or should we go back to the Central District?¡±
Baek Ae-young, who was trailing behind and repeatedly looking over her shoulder, nced at Shin Haeryang and then at Seo Jihyuk, shaking her head as if bbergasted. She then smacked the two men on their backs and spoke, ¡°Team Leader, you should exin things more thoroughly. Don¡¯t worry. We¡¯ll be fine as long as we quickly escape from the East district.¡±
I felt a slight easing of the anxiety gripping my heart. ¡®Of course, if we manage to escape from the East district. However, we had already failed to escape from the West district and the South district.¡¯
I asked Seo Jihyuk with rising impatience, ¡°¡How much time do we have left?¡±
Seo Jihyuk responded to me in a tone suggesting he genuinely had no idea. ¡°I¡¯m not exactly sure myself. This is a first for me.¡±
Shin Haeryang added fuel to the growing unease, saying, ¡°We¡¯re not sure how much time we have left, but the concentration of carbon dioxide in the air is going to increase rapidly. If this continues, we will suffocate.¡±
How lovely. Wonderful news indeed.
¡®The West district had already been engulfed by water, the South district had beenpletely destroyed, in the North district, engineers fought over the escape pods, armed individuals wandered the Central district, and if we stayed too long in the East district, where we were headed, we would suffocate.¡¯
¡°Well, at least we won¡¯t die from gunshots or drowning here.¡±
At my hopeful remark, Yoo Geum-yi stared at me with a dumbfounded expression, then sighed in exasperation. ¡°I hate everything¡¯s happening right now.¡±
As we entered the East district, Yoo Geum-yi and I engaged in idle chatter to distract ourselves from the anxiety. What greeted us was an elevator leading to the third underwater base located at ~1000 meters. An azure dragon1 was coiled around the elevator. A dragon model in an underwater base inhabited by people from over eight nations. It looked like it was designed to portray the dragon ascending with the elevator, but seeing it underwater made it look as though the dragon was sinking.
I asked Shin Haeryang as I stared at the blue-scaled dragon. ¡°Why is there a dragon here?¡±
¡°Some lunatic in headquarters proposed the idea of using the four directional deities when they decided to turn the underwater base into a tourist attraction.¡±
I couldn¡¯t tell from Shin Haeryang¡¯s tone whether it was the lunatic at the headquarters he didn¡¯t like, or the Azure Dragon coiling around the elevator itself. I had always wondered why they made separate names instead of simply calling ¡®ck Tortoise district¡¯, the north, and ¡®Vermillion Bird district¡¯, the south.2
¡°Was that proposal sessful?¡±
¡°There¡¯s not much to see in the deep sea. There are only dark waters, high pressure, and nightmare-like fish that look like they were drawn by children. Obviously, it was a failure.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi eximed, ¡°Ah. So that¡¯s why!¡± as she listened from the side. ¡°A few years ago, statues of Vermillion Birds were erected at the entrances to the Deep-sea Research Center, Rare Earth Elements Center, and Marine Pollution Center. The researchers wondered why these were installed and made jokes about them being chickens, phoenixes, turkeys, and such. So that¡¯s what happened.¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had been quietly listening to our conversation, sighed and said, ¡°The concept was off. If they had put up crosses everywhere, pictures of suffering Jesus faces, images of two fish and five loaves of bread, and a few angel sculptures here and there to attract Christians, it would have been a huge sess.¡±
¡°What does that mean?¡±
¡®Why was Christianitying into this?¡¯ I didn¡¯t know much about the religion, so I didn¡¯t understand.
Baek Ae-young started to give a brief exnation for me. ¡°Well¡ apparently there¡¯s a passage in the Bible where God asks if you have walked to the depths of the sea. I don¡¯t know much about it though.¡±
Upon hearing Baek Ae Young¡¯s messy exnation, Shin Haeryang furrowed his brow and racked his brains, then said: ¡°¡®Have you entered the springs of the sea? Or have you walked in search of the depths?¡¯ Job 38:16.¡±
¡®A verse from the Bible? So there is someone who can recite something like that.¡¯
Impressed, I asked Shin Haeryang, ¡°Are you a Christian?¡±
¡°No, I¡¯m not religious.¡±
¡°How did you remember that then?¡±
¡°Jennifer Smith, the team leader we met earlier, is a devout Christian. She brags on and on when she¡¯s drunk about how she can confidently answer God¡¯s question, which is why I remember it.¡±
Baek Ae-young nodded at his exnation and turned to me.
¡°There are some fanatics who would answer ¡®Yes.¡¯ Our team¡¯s Lee Ji-hyun is a Christian and said there¡¯s a 100% demand for this. She was convinced that if we started a deep-sea base tourism tour, more than half would be Christians.¡±
¡®Then who was this Azure Dragon, barely visible at ~3000 meters below sea level, for? Who made it in the first ce?¡¯
I looked at the Azure Dragon and casually asked, ¡°Then who made this?¡±
¡°Some bigwig upstairs, I suppose.¡±
At Seo Jihyuk¡¯sment, Shin Haeryang opened his mouth to say something but then shook his head. It seemed he was reluctant to even mention that lunatic from headquarters. Yoo Geum-yi, who had been attentively listening, was amazed.
¡°Oh¡ This is fascinating. I¡¯ve never heard this story before.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you discuss this at the research center?¡±
Yoo Geum-yiughed lightly at my question and said, ¡°Researchers aren¡¯t interested in anything other than increasing holidays and raises.¡±
¡°So they¡¯re not increasing?¡±
¡°You¡¯re sharp. You could close your dental practice and be a researcher. Want to join ourb? Although it seems like it¡¯s disappearing anytime soon.¡±
I politely declined. As we approached the elevator coiled by the Azure Dragon, I muttered to myself while looking at its long body design.
¡°I don¡¯t really want to view it negatively, but it seems like the Azure Dragon isn¡¯t going up, but rather preventing the elevator from ascending.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who was watching with me, smirked and responded, ¡°I agree with that sentiment.¡±
¡°Well, let¡¯s put aside those negative thoughts for now, we¡¯re short on luck as it is.¡± Baek Ae-young said this as she pressed the elevator button. The door opened immediately and the empty elevator waited for them. With time, the doors closed again.
¡®It seems to be working. This is our n C. The best option is to take the escape pod, and if not, then the submarine.¡¯
Seeing the elevator in front of me, I had a desperate desire to ride it. It was strange. The mere sight of an open elevator made me want to get in. I asked Shin Haeryang, ¡°Would it be better to take the escape pod or submarine instead of riding this elevator right now?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
With the engineer¡¯s reply, I had nothing more to say.
¡°What should we do?¡±
When Baek Ae-young asked, Shin Haeryang frowned as if having a headache and eventually responded, ¡°Do you think you can go alone?¡±
¡°If I have to go, I have to go.¡± Baek Ae-young, having said that, paused and began to stretch her legs. ¡°After all, I would be the fastest one to go from here, right?¡±
¡°What are you talking about?¡±
¡°Running. Full-speed running. I¡¯ll sprint to the submarine, check its condition ande back. Meanwhile, you all should head towards the escape pod.¡±
The locations of the East district¡¯s submarine and the escape pod were at opposite ends. That said, there would be no need to use both at the same time. Besides, the ejection of the escape pod should not be hindered by the submarine.
¡°Are you sure you can go alone?¡±
Only then did I realize that my question was identical to Shin Haeryang¡¯s. Baek Ae-young responded to my question with a half-smile. Shin Haeryang took my electronic pad, wrote a random post on the seabase forum bulletin, confirmed it was working, and handed it over to Baek Ae-young.
¡°Go to the submarine and check, then post it on the bulletin board. If anything happens,e back immediately via the elevator. If we find that the escape pod is unusable, we¡¯ll head towards the elevator too.¡±
Baek Ae-young, tightening her leg muscles, said to Shin Haeryang, ¡°Don¡¯t think of escaping without me.¡±
Seo Jihyuk held Baek Ae-young and said, ¡°I¡¯ll escape before you.¡±
¡°I¡¯m going first!¡± To my and Yoo Geumyi¡¯s farewell, Baek Ae-young responded with a smile.
¡°Be careful.¡±
¡°See youter.¡±
As soon as the conversation ended, Baek Ae-young took a few hops on the spot and then started running fiercely. I thought we¡¯d walked quite fast until now, but Baek Ae-young ran as if she was flying. She ran straight ahead, her footsteps echoing in the quiet East district. Her hair, tied back in a ponytail, fluttered like a g in the wind.
¡°Wow. She¡¯s really fast.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi then said, ¡°Ae-young is really good at running,¡± as she watched Baek Ae-young¡¯s back receding quickly.
As Seo Jihyuk urged us to hurry, everyone started walking briskly. Heughed and said, seemingly still thinking about Baek Ae-young. ¡°The thing is, she¡¯s not good at swimming, despite being a good runner.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi asked, seeming surprised at thement, ¡°How does she work in the deep sea if she can¡¯t swim?¡±
¡°Engineers work in big external suits. They¡¯re a bit likerge diving suits that protect against water pressure. Think of it like wearing a thick spacesuit. When external repairs are needed, that¡¯s how they work. But it¡¯s not like there are only external breakdowns, there are many internal ones too, so there¡¯s no trouble in doing her job.¡±
As Yoo Geum-yi seemed to contemte this, she let out a low sigh and said, ¡°I saw her fixing a leak in the shower in the living quarters before.¡±
¡°Ah, that ce is always breaking down. Really. It¡¯s been that way since it was designed poorly.¡±- An azure dragon signifies East direction ording to Asian mythology.[?]
- Fyi, instead of North, South, East and West districts, they¡¯ve been calling the districts with the names of the four deities of cardinal directions instead. I¡¯ve mentioned it early in earlier trantions, however for the sake of reader¡¯s convenience, I had decided to trante and name the districts as NWSE instead of like Azure Dragon or ck Tortoise, etc¡ Also, it¡¯d be easier for us to get sense of their location in the underwater bases as well.[?]
Chapter 26
Chapter 26
As I listened to Seo Jihyuk grumbling about the design of the South district, I suddenly remembered my own swimming abilities. ¡®Could it be that in this leaky underwater base, I would have to swim to escape? I¡¯m not really that good at swimming.¡¯
¡°Do you swim well, Seo Jihyuk-ssi?¡±
In response to my question, Seo Jihyuk confidently said, ¡°I used to be called Suncheon¡¯s Seal.¡±
At that remark, Shin Haeryang, who was walking beside us, chuckled. Seeing his reaction, Seo Jihyukughed and added, ¡°It¡¯s a bit embarrassing to say this in front of our team leader. Actually, I was more of a river otter than a seal.¡±
The silly joke brought a small smile to Yoo Geum-yi and me as well.
¡°What does that mean?¡±
¡°It means I can swim well.¡±
¡°What else?¡±
¡°It means I can only swim well.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi suddenly let out a weary sigh.
¡°Well, I learned how to do the breaststroke and quit, so I can barely manage freestyle and backstroke. They say swimming in the ocean is worlds apart from swimming in a pool. I¡¯ve never swam in the sea.¡±
Seo Jihyuk mimicked Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s tone.
¡°Well, just swim the same way. It¡¯s not difficult.¡±
As Shin Haeryang and I were just listening to the conversation, he turned to me and asked, ¡°Can you swim?¡±
I answered in surprise, ¡°Yes.¡±
¡°That¡¯s enough.¡±
Is that it? I felt anxious at Shin Haeryang¡¯s words. ¡®How well do I need to swim to escape from here, 3km underwater?¡¯
¡°How well should I be able to swim?¡±
¡°As long as you can move forward without sinking.¡±
¡°I can do at least that much.¡±
¡°Then it¡¯s enough.¡±
¡°Can you swim, Shin Haeryang-ssi?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°How well can you swim?¡±
¡°As long as I don¡¯t sink.¡±
¡°Then that¡¯s fine.¡±
Upon observing our nonsensical conversation, Seo Jihyuk looked as if he couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°Team leader does freediving. What do you mean, he can keep from sinking? Hepletely immerses himself in the water. He¡¯s the man who can dive up to 100m with a single breath. He¡¯s not human.¡±
¡°You just said he¡¯s not human and human at the same time. Which one is correct?¡±
In response to my question, Seo Jihyuk chuckled and patted Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Both.¡±
Listening to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s chatter while jogging, I eventually became so breathless that I could no longer speak. Considering it¡¯s been less than an hour since I woke up, I had done nothing but walk or run. Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi constantly chatted about along the East district without a break, and I envied their stamina.
¡°I¡¯m just curious,¡± Yoo Geum-yi asked unexpectedly, to which Shin Hae-ryang gave a short answer, ¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Why do engineers stay in both the East and the West districts?¡±
The personnel working in mining operations sleep in the North district in the north. The South district in the south is for researchers, the East district in the east is for engineers, and the West district in the west is used by those in other special upations.
Shin Haeryang considered Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s question before answering. ¡°Initially, when the underwater base was being built, there were a lot more engineers than there are now.¡±
At Shin Haeryang¡¯s words, Seo Jihyuk began tough.
While Shin Haeryang¡¯s words weren¡¯t incorrect, they didn¡¯t seem to be theplete answer. In fact, the Korean and Russian teams stayed in the West district, while the other engineer teams resided in the East district. Why did they need to sleep separately?
Noticing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s eager expression, Shin Haeryang gestured as if to say ¡®go ahead and tell her.¡¯Seo Jihyuk began to talk to Yoo Geum-yi. ¡°Initially, when the amodations were being assigned, there were quite a few people, and the Chinese made a big fuss, saying they¡¯d sleep anywhere but in the North district.¡±
¡°Why not?¡±
¡°They said that the north symbolizes death and stuff. Also, for some reason, rooms 1 to 30 in the East district are considered unlucky or something, so the teams from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan all refused to stay there.¡±
I was amazed at the sight of people who believed in superstitions, even in thete 22nd century. ¡®And they are engineers, right? They are the ones with the most scientific knowledge here, after the researchers.¡¯
While I was panting from the walk, I was so bbergasted that I gathered my breath and asked, ¡°Just because of things like Feng Shui, they refused to use the amodation?¡±
At my words, Seo Jihyuk nodded vigorously, ¡°Yes, exactly.¡± He continued, ¡°Can you believe it? The southern building is named after the bird, and they said they were going to paint the dormitory building red here and there. The Chinese teams caused amotion, demanding that the researchers give up their dormitory at the Research Center, but the researchers naturally refused. The Phoenix Building dormitory is right next to the research center, and it¡¯s actually more spacious than the others since it was builtst. Would the researchers readily give up such a dormitory to the Chinese engineers?¡±
¡°Absolutely not!¡± Yoo Geum-yi eximed.
Seo Jihyuk agreed with her statement and continued, ¡°In the East district¡¯s residential area, there are quite a few vacant rooms since it¡¯s the ce where the rest of the employees who aren¡¯t engineers or part of the mining team stay. I told them to get lost to vacant rooms in the West district if they don¡¯t like the ones in the East district, but they im the West district¡¯s rooms are a bad ce because it¡¯s numbered from 60 to 80, with thetter part being unlucky or something. The Chinese refused to use it for amodation, making a fuss, so the Russians who preferred out-of-the-way ces ended up staying there.¡±¡±
I¡¯ve always wondered why Russian engineers were using the rooms in the West district (as mine).
¡°They either want us to give up the spacious South district¡¯s dormitory, which is both new and red as they wanted, or a room between 70 and 80 in the East district, which is close to the South district dormitory and far from the main gate. Originally, they wanted rooms 8 and 88, but when they found out it was bad in terms of feng shui, they asked for those rooms as an alternative. But those rooms were already upied by the New Zend team who had already unpacked their luggage. Do you know what they did next?¡±
¡°What did they do?¡±
It was fascinating. Even when I¡¯m on the verge of suffocation, there¡¯s nothing more interesting than stories about real estate, money, and superstitions.
When Yoo Geum-yi asked him a question, Seo Jihyuk replied with enthusiasm, ¡°When the New Zend team was out working, the Chinese team forcibly opened the door with the emergency ess and moved their stuff. They took over that room.¡±
¡°My goodness. Didn¡¯t the New Zend team protest?¡±
At my question, Seo Jihyuk¡¯s eyes sparkled. ¡°Of course they did. Do you want to know how they handled it?¡±
¡°How did they handle it?¡±
¡°When Team Leader Liam of the New Zend team saw their stuff haphazardly thrown into a different room, he was so mad that he confronted Hai Yun of the engineering team, threatening to deal with the culprit.¡±
¡°And then?¡±
¡°They gave him money. They showered him with fistfuls of dors. I¡¯m not sure how much they gave him, but judging by how they left the unpacking and started partying, it wasn¡¯t a small sum. I didn¡¯t know Hai Yun was that rich until then.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi and I couldn¡¯t help butugh at this, and Seo Jihyuk responded as if it were a headache. ¡°It¡¯s very amusing and exciting when you hear it as a third party, right? I mean, we might be able to find this kind of ridiculous incident amusing and criticize it once or twice a year, but it¡¯s stressful when these absurd incidents happen every day.¡±
I thought about my room in the West district. It would bepletely flooded by now. It wasn¡¯t so bad, even though I only used it for five days. I hope everyone managed to evacuate from rooms 1 to 37. Come to think of it, Shin Hae-ryang said he was in the West district¡¯s Room 22 .
¡°But why does the Korean team live in the West district?¡±
¡°There¡¯s a long story behind it.¡±
¡°Let¡¯s save that story forter.¡±
As I turned my head after chatting with Seo Jihyuk, I saw Shin Haeryang¡¯s side profile. He was looking at the floor, and without realizing it, I lowered my head and closed my mouth.
There were trails of blood drops leading to theundry room.
¡®If we go behind theundry room right now, that will lead us to an escape hatch. It¡¯s as if they¡¯ve dropped breadcrumbs like Hansel and Gretel to find their way, considering the dotted trails of blood leading to theundry room. It seems like someone¡¯s been there or perhaps asking for help.¡¯
Watching Shin Haeryang¡¯s back as he moved towards theundry room, all sorts of thriller movies I had seen before started popping up in my mind.
With a hushed tone, I voice my concern, ¡°Could this be a trap? They¡¯ve left a trail of blood drops like that.¡±
The sound of Yoo Geum-yi swallowing resonated near my ear.
Shin Haeryang dismissed my idea, saying, ¡°If that were the case, the shape of the blood droplets would be different.¡±
Chapter 27
Chapter 27
As they followed the blood-stained footprints, Shin Haeryang and Seo Jihyuk were looking at a woman sitting next to the washing machine in the corner of theundry room. The woman was surrounded by all sorts of blood-stained clothes. The smell of blood permeating the floor was giving them headaches.
Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t say anything upon seeing us enter the room, but Seo Jihyuk frowned after seeing us, saying, ¡°Why did you bothering here instead of waiting outside?¡±
Before I could reply, Yoo Geum-yi squeaked, eximing, ¡°The hallway is scarier!¡± her voice trembling.
At her words, Seo Jihyuk opened his mouth in astonishment and startedining, ¡°You¡¯ve only been waiting for 2 minutes. Both of you are unnecessarily scared.¡±
¡®Only 2 minutes? To me, it felt like 20 minutes.¡¯
As I approached the seated woman, Shin Haeryang looked up at me.
¡°It seems she died from excessive bleeding. She¡¯s Victoria from Engineering Team A.¡±
¡®Engineering Team A consisted of Canadian nationals, if I remember it right. It appeared that she had injured her leg, but despite wrapping it in clothes and pressing down on it, she couldn¡¯t stem the bleeding. She¡¯s no longer breathing. Her heart¡¯s not beating either.¡¯
As I announced her death for the second time today, Shin Haeryang took a picture and covered the woman¡¯s head with one of therge towels scattered around theundry room.
Yoo Geum-yi sighed in relief as the corpse¡¯s face was covered by the towel. She then turned her head away, making an effort not to look in the direction of the deceased¡¯s whereabouts and asked Seo Jihyuk with an uneasy look, ¡°Can someone die like that from a thigh injury?¡±
¡°If the femoral artery is severed, even a surgeon couldn¡¯t save you after 15 minutes.¡±
Looking around, there was nothing that could have been used as a weapon. In aundry room like this, the only things avable were clothes and towels left behind by those who had used the washing machine, and a few half-opened hoodies, possibly left behind by someone. It seemed that she had walked here injured, entered theundry room to stop the bleeding, and died.
Yoo Geum-yi frowned as she pondered over Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words. ¡°So, she was attacked and died within 15 minutes¡¯ distance from theundry room?¡±
Seo Jihyuk merely scratched the back of his head. There was no ce to hide in theundry room. With this affirmative silence, Yoo Geum-yi started staring at theundry room door we had entered through as if someone might burst in at any moment. I moved away from the corpse and approached Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Did you know her?¡±
At my question, Seo Jihyuk frowned. ¡°There are less than 100 engineers here. After about three months, you get to know everyone¡¯s faces and names. Team leader, Isn¡¯t she a close friend of a girl from our team¡?¡±
¡°She was close with Kang Soo-jung from our team.¡± Completing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s failed recollection, Shin Haeryang got up and handed me one of the hoodies on the table along with a pair of training pants, ordering, ¡°Change into these.¡±
¡°But¡ they¡¯re someone else¡¯s clothes.¡±
In response to my reflexive objection, Shin Haeryang shook his head. ¡°You¡¯ve lost too much body heat.¡±
And with that, he swiftly took the two backpacks on my back and left theundry room. Yoo Geum-yi followed him out, and Seo Jihyuk, urging me to hurry up, also left theundry room. Well, Shin Haeryang, Seo Jihyuk, and Baek Ae-young were all wearing suits from head to toe, so it didn¡¯t matter even if they got wet.
I started to unbutton my wet shirt one by one, but halfway through I just let them all fly off and took it off. As I took off my wet jeans and socks soaked in water, I finally realized how soaked I was. Just not wearing wet clothes gave me an immense sense of liberation. At the same time, I felt cold. I turned my head looking for a dry towel and felt a shiver run down my spine.
Because where I turned my head, I felt a tremendous presence. The thought of being in the room with a corpse, sitting with a towel over its head, made me want to bolt out of there. No matter how much I tried to ignore it, my gaze naturally drifted towards the corpse¡¯s face. Even though the face was covered by a towel and could not be seen, my gaze seemed to be looking for the face of the deceased.
There was only one corpse and me in this room. It was a relief that Shin Haeryang had covered the face; otherwise, I would have screamed and ran out, unable to bear the goosebumps rising on my body. ¡®Do dead people naturally have such arge presence?¡¯ I held back a slew of curses and simply wiped the moisture off my body with a towel left next to the dryer.
Then I put on a light blue hoodie and ck training pants. I gave up on the underwear and socks because they were too wet. I threw away my socks and wore wet shoes barefoot, but wearing dry clothes made me feel much better than before. ¡®I don¡¯t know whose clothes they are, but I¡¯ll wear them gratefully. If I ever meet you, I¡¯llpensate you. Please let me borrow them just this once.¡¯
As soon as I put on the clothes, I felt a shiver run through my body again. With a feeling that someone was about to grab the back of my head, I ran out of theundry room. Outside theundry room, Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and Yoo Geum-yi were waiting for me, looking surprised at my almost tumbling exit from theundry room. Yoo Geum-yi jumped up at the sight, and Seo Jihyuk stroked his surprised chest and said incredulously, ¡°Did the corpse get up or something?¡±
¡°No. No. Nothing happened.¡±
¡°Let¡¯s go¡¡±
After shooting me a look for a few seconds, Shin Haeryang started off without a word.
I had felt weird earlier when Yoo Geum-yi praised that wearing bright colors, like what I had on now, made me look much neater and harder to dress than the striped shirt I had been wearing previously. That striped shirt had been my favorite, too. We walked towards the exit port, being careful not to step on the bloodstains on the floor.
In the distance, I saw the door to the exit port. To keep my mind off the pool of blood and the dead body I had seen not long ago, I focused on the approaching door, staring at it intently. Now that I looked at it, the doors to theundry room, bathroom, and living quarters were all different.
It seemed that sliding doors were used in ces whereplete sealing was necessary. Seo Ji Hyuk heard my thoughts and corrected me. It wasn¡¯t a sliding door style. It was like the door of an airne that opened to the side. Moreover, he exined, doors that opened automatically were too heavy to be opened manually. They were designed this way to withstand high pressure.
I had been here for five days, and whether the door opened to the side, upwards, or downwards, or if it was the type to turn the handle to open, I had used it without thinking much. Just assuming there must be some reason for it. But now, I wondered if I had been too thoughtless in using the facility.
When I shared my curiosity about the doors with Yoo Geum-yi, she said that even the doors at the Main Research Center were slightly different. Some doors inside theb were transparent, and some doors were thicker than 7cm. I remembered Kim Ga Young¡¯s room door when I heard Seo Jihyuk¡¯s grumbling about how well he knew the doors here were breaking down.
¡®¡Perhaps it would be safer to remove the door in ces where privacy is not required.¡¯
Shin Haeryang cut off Seo Jihyuk¡¯s chatter when we were just a few meters away from the exit port.
¡°As you¡¯ve seen what had happened in theundry room, the area near the exit port could be dangerous. This time as well, Jihyuk and I will go in first. Come in when we signal you.¡±
¡°What kind of signal?¡±
Shin Haeryang seemed a bit flustered by Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s sparkling eyes. ¡°We¡¯ll just call you in normally.¡±
¡°Oh. So, it¡¯s not like knocking on the closed door?¡±
Seo Jihyuk chuckled at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words. ¡°Like, knock twice if you shouldn¡¯te in, and knock three times if you should?¡±
¡°Oh, I like that.¡±
¡®Come to think of it, this was the first time Seo Ji Hyuk, who had been chattering a lot, hadughed since discovering the body in theundry room. Is it that he talks a lot when he¡¯s anxious?¡¯
Only then did I realize that Yoo Geum-yi had lightened the mood of the serious group with just a few words. It was one of the skills Icked. Besides, it felt like I had be a supporting character in an action movie, which excited me a little.
I spoke with a smile, ¡°That¡¯s good. we¡¯ll go in when you knock three times.¡±
¡°If there¡¯s no signal or sound, or if we knock twice, run away immediately and join Baek Ae Young. She will understand if you exin the situation and say you are giving up on escaping through the East district.¡±
The atmosphere turned heavy in an instant at Shin Haeryang¡¯s words. ¡®That¡¯s quite a skill,¡¯ I watched as a single word from a blunt man changed the mood of the people who were just starting to lighten up. ¡®Definitely a skill I don¡¯t have. And, I¡¯m not good at handling such a heavy atmosphere.¡¯
¡°Instead, if you can escape right away, please tap on the door and y a song.¡±
¡°¡¡ Alright.¡±
Unexpectedly, Shin Haeryang, who I thought would refuse, gave a firm reply and handed back the two backpacks he had been holding. I shouldered the two backpacks I was now used to. As for Seo Jihyuk, he entrusted Baek Ae-young¡¯s heavy food bag to Yoo Geum-yi. Lastly, after checking the pad, Shin Haeryang and Seo Jihyuk walked towards the escape port.
Yoo Geum-yi and I stood far away, pressed the button next to the escape port door, and watched as the two walked in. As the two entered the escape port, the door closed immediately.
Whether it was me carrying the two bags, or Yoo Geum-yi carrying Baek Ae-young¡¯s bag, we both felt like starving children waiting for their parents to return home. ¡®I hate waiting, but I had to wait several times today.¡¯
As we were waiting and staring at the door, Yoo Geum-yi straightened the strap of her overturned bag on her shoulder and said, ¡°But I feel a bit relieved thanks to the others.¡±
¡°Right? If I had discovered a body in theundry room alone, I would¡¯ve screamed and run out.¡±
¡°Me too. I probably would¡¯ve screamed louder. It¡¯s such a relief to haveposed people around.¡±
¡°That¡¯s true. Not only Baek Ae-young-ssi, but those two also didn¡¯t even flinch when they saw a human corpse.¡±
¡°Aren¡¯t they incrediblyposed? I think they¡¯re really amazing.¡±
Just then, we heard a loud thumping sound from the door. It sounded like someone was kicking the thick door. We waited for the third noise. However, no matter how long we waited, there was no sound.
That¡¯s strange?
¡®Now that I think about it, we didn¡¯t specify how long we should wait between knocks. Why didn¡¯t they knock a third time? Should we wait longer? Was it right to knock three times? Was it two knocks to enter? I¡¯m sure they knocked twice? Why aren¡¯t Seo Jihyuk and Shin Haeryangughing and opening the door surprised?¡¯
At that moment, Yoo Geum-yi unexpectedly grabbed my hand before tugging it.
Chapter 28
Chapter 28
I struggled to keep my bnce amidst the sudden chaos. Before I knew it, I was running in the opposite direction of the escape port with Yoo Geum-yi, our hands sped tightly. My legs felt weak. Despite almost tripping over several times, Yoo Geum-yi firmly held my hand, pulling me back up. Tears welled up in my eyes unexpectedly. Could Yoo Geum-yi, with her height of 165 cm, be that strong? She was so small, her height, her hands, but her strength was immense. My vision blurred as my eyes filled with tears.
As we were sprinting through the empty hallway, Yoo Geum-yi slipped and fell. This time, it was my turn to help her up. She groaned, presumably from her knee hitting the floor, and clung to my arm as she stood. Despite falling several times, we ran back the way we came with like madmen.
We passed theundry room, the stairs to the dormitory, then the restrooms, showers, and the Lounge 2 of the East living quarters. As we ran past another restroom, we finally reached the hallway with the elevator of the East district. That¡¯s when my eyes met the enormous dragon eyes guarding the elevator. Ah, I can see the dragon¡¯s face and eyes from the East district¡¯s side. When I was walking from the Central district, I couldn¡¯t see its eyes. The giant creature seemed to be mocking the pathetic creatures racing towards the elevator.
It wasn¡¯t until we reached the elevator buttons that Yoo Geum-yi slumped against the wall. I was about to lie down, but then I remembered the cat and the snake in my backpack, so I dropped forward instead. The cold floor of the East district touched my cheek. ¡®Are the cleaning robots doing a good job with the floor these days?¡¯
I was gasping for breath after running so hard. It felt like my lungs were about to burst out of my mouth. I didn¡¯t think I could run any more, even if someone was trying to kill me. I couldn¡¯t remember thest time I ran this fast in my adult life. As Iy there trying to catch my breath, Yoo Geum-yi tremblingly took out a bottle of water from her backpack.
¡°Drink some water.¡±
¡°You first.¡±
While Yoo Geum-yi was drinking, I sat up from the floor at the threat of a headache if I didn¡¯t drink. Barely managing to drink the water like a human, I realized that Baek Ae-yeong had not arrived at the elevator yet.
While waiting, I opened my backpack and checked on the cat first. Its wide eyes seemed to ask me why I put it through such an ordeal. The cat, which had been unwillingly put on a roller coaster, tried to escape from the backpack, but I pushed its head back in and quickly zipped it up.
¡°The cat is okay.¡±
If the cat understood me, it would probably have cursed at me. I then opened the snake¡¯s bag. The snake was curled up motionless in the smallest pocket at the very bottom of the backpack. Since it was in the pocket closest to my back, it didn¡¯t seem to have suffered much shock, but I had no way of knowing how the snake felt.
¡°I¡¯m not sure about the snake.¡±
I took a few candies out of the backpack and handed them to Yoo Geum-yi, she shook her head. ¡°I¡¯ve lost my appetite from all the running.¡±
¡°Just keep it in your mouth.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi epted the candy, but she seemed too weak to even unwrap it. She sighed heavily. ¡°What do we do now?¡±
¡°Exactly.¡±
It was clear twice over. They were telling us not to enter. Something must have happened as soon as we entered the escape port. Yoo Geum-yi started to mumble, trying to sort out her thoughts. ¡°There¡¯s definitely someone in the escape port. And who was it in theundry room?¡±
¡°Victoria.¡±
I barely managed to recall the obscure name. As I spoke, I remembered the sight of her with a towel wrapped around her head, leaning against the wall. Every time I thought of it, I got chills. Yoo Geum-yi nodded in agreement.
¡°That¡¯s right, Victoria. Victoria must have been attacked there and managed to make it to theundry room. The trail of blood led in that direction. She must have died there from severe bleeding.¡±
¡°The attacker must have had a reason to attack her. Perhaps they were short on escape pods, or they didn¡¯t like her for some reason, there could be any number of reasons.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi frowned at my words. She sighed heavily and said, ¡°But if the attacker had control of the escape port, why didn¡¯t they escape? Why are they still there? Shin Haeryang or Seo Jihyuk must have warned us not to enter because it¡¯s so dangerous.¡±
¡°That¡¯s right¡ Why couldn¡¯t they escape? Could it be that the escape port was rigged not to function, or it¡¯s broken?¡±
¡°Then wouldn¡¯t that person also have to move immediately to another escape port to escape, just like us? Or at least take an elevator?¡±
¡°Well¡ Right?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi nodded her head. ¡°Muhyun-ssi, I thought the person who attacked Victoria wouldn¡¯t be near the escape port. Since we arrived after Victoria¡¯s death, I figured that in the meantime the perpetrator would have already escaped or moved elsewhere if they couldn¡¯t.¡±
¡°Hmm¡ That¡¯s a possible thought.¡±
Something struck me that Yoo Geum-yi hadn¡¯t pointed out, so I asked, ¡°What if the escape pods are perfectly fine, but they¡¯re just not escaping?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi frowned at my suggestion. It seemed she didn¡¯t want to imagine someone staying at this underwater base with a functional escape pod, while water was leaking and gunshots could be heard.
¡°Wouldn¡¯t that bepletely insane?¡±
¡°Right?¡±
¡°Who could it be? The two of them are bothrge and tall, but they still felt threatened enough to keep us out.¡±
¡°Yeah, who could it be?¡±
¡°They must have a weapon capable of making a hole in the thigh, right?¡±
¡°That¡¯s likely?¡±
¡°Do you have the capability to suppress a person with a weapon?¡±
I nearly burst outughing at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s question. ¡°I¡¯m the kind of person who could be overpowered just by someone simply wielding a spoon.¡±
None of the immoral people I had met came to mind. I knew more about the dental condition of the people I had met at the underwater base for five days than their character. I wiped my sweaty forehead with my sleeve and sighed.
¡®If it was a dental issue, I could step forward, but running efficiently in such a massive underwater base or dealing with armed people was not my specialty.¡¯
Sitting with my back against the elevator wall, waiting for someone toe, Yoo Geum-yi sucked on a candy.
¡°¡The more I think about it, the more ridiculous it is! In this urgent situation where people would struggle to escape even if they helped each other, why are they attacking each other? Can you believe they shot each other trying to escape? And just now, in the East district too. Does it make sense to deliberately attack people? Moreover, haven¡¯t they known and worked with each other for a long time? They should think about escaping while helping each other! If you escape using the main escape pods, won¡¯t you die? Would you just leave without helping someone trapped underwater?!¡±
The pronunciation was a bit off since she was rolling the candy in her mouth, but I listened to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s grumbling and then asked, ¡°Even if it¡¯s someone I¡¯ve known for a long time, like Dr. Kim (Gayoung), or anyone from the sameb?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, upon hearing my cruel words, snorted, Ha!
¡°Stop joking, Muhyun-ssi. Do you think I¡¯ve only met people who pleased me in my life? Of course, there are good people in the world, but there are also scum-like people, and plenty who I¡¯ve wished would get hit by a drunk driver and die. But even in such dangerous situations, when we desperately need selfless cooperation, I¡¯m not such a petty person who would dredge up past matters and demand payment in the current situation. And if I had any grievances, I would express them outright, apologize, or get an apology, rather than keeping a grudge and stabbing someone in the back when the situation changes!¡±
¡°¡ I apologize for my harsh words.¡±
¡°¡ I was too harsh as well. I¡¯m sorry.¡±
Impressive. I now understand how Yoo Geum-yi can have so many friends and know more than half of the people at the underwater base. I tried to test her, but instead I got hit by my own question. I¡¯m theplete opposite of her..
Compared to Yoo Geum-yi, I am like a lowly creature. Because whenever an incident urs, I bottle up grudges like collecting points. I¡¯m not particrly articte, nor do I properly challenge the injustices that happen around me, nor have I had good luck, a lot of people on my side, or situations that favored me.
The only way I could bear the torment was to endure it, and the only thing I could do was remember the situation well. If there ever came a time when the heavens tilted in favor of the weak, I thought I could return the experiences I unwillingly went through or seek revenge. Because only the victims remember the harm. The perpetrators do not need to remember. Plus, it is rare for them to voluntarily stand in the position of the weak.
Therefore, when such drastic changes ur, it¡¯s only natural that those who had grievances or had been patient blow up. Selfless cooperation, ha! People generally want cooperation only when it¡¯s disadvantageous to them, and trample on others when it¡¯s advantageous.
I¡¯m not that kind of nice person. But luckily, I had only been at the underwater base for 5 days, and there had been no one who gave me a hard time. People like Ms. Kim Gayoung or Yoo Geum-yi, who I didn¡¯t know well, were characters who hadn¡¯t done anything to make me hate or resent them, which is why I thought of saving them. If it had been my arch-enemy, I would have definitely ignored them, telling them to be fish food.
¡®¡ I¡¯m not sure. Would I have decided not to save them?¡¯
¡°Unlike Kim Gayoung-ssi, I¡¯m the type to umte grudges, and if there was someone here I really didn¡¯t like, and a special situation like this arose, I might wish for them to disappear painfully from this world due to a mistake or ident.¡±
¡°We all do that. We wish for mistakes or idents, not directly going and killing them with a gun or a knife, or wishing for their ruin, or sabotaging at least 72 escape pods.¡±
¡°Still¡ it depends on the situation.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi furrowed her brow at my words. ¡°The one saying it depends on the situation is the one carrying a cat and a snake on their back right now, isn¡¯t it? Even if you dislike the situation and the people, don¡¯t try to pull them down. Think about going up!¡±
¡®Thisdy¡¯s brutally honest. ¡ I can ditch the backpack with the cat in it anytime. But would I be able to forget the cat¡¯s fur color and those eyes when I get out alive? Wouldn¡¯t I recall my regrets, like wishing I had at least knocked on the door of the engineer¡¯s room or seen Henry¡¯s obituary, in the middle of the night?¡¯
I¡¯m the type to regret everything. There¡¯s almost nothing I haven¡¯t regretted. Can helping others to avoid my own regret be considered a virtue? Even if Yoo Geum-yi thinks so, would she consider that as virtuous? People easily make selfish choices. Because it¡¯sfortable. Because it¡¯s easy. Because it¡¯s less tiring. Because it¡¯s beneficial. I don¡¯t n on ming those people. But if we can get out of here by making less selfish choices¡
Chapter 29
Chapter 29
I slowly pondered before speaking to Yoo Geum-yi.
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤I, too, if I stay here for about a year, might turn into a person who, if I dislike the people here so much, could potentially dig a hole in the seabed base floor with a spoon. But yes, I agree, taking out 72 people is a bit extreme. If I were to hold a grudge against someone, I¡¯d probably dig a hole in his room, but I wouldn¡¯t destroy the escape route.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi tapped my arm with her small hand, an action made easy by our mutual seated position on the floor, as a way tofort my nervousness.
¡°Why are you so weak? Have some confidence. And don¡¯t go around making assumptions depending on the situation. You¡¯ll end up being used of wrecking the seabase!¡±
As Yoo Geum-yi rummaged through the backpack I had been carrying, belonging to Baek Aeyoung, she discovered a bottle of Ballentine¡¯s liquor. Her eyes widened at the sight before fiddling with the cap.
¡°I wouldn¡¯t argue if you call me naive. But when the timees, discarding one¡¯s humanity and fighting like a beast, that¡¯s too¡ primitive.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤You¡¯re really strong, Geum-yi-nim.¡±
¡°Where exactly?¡±
¡°Your mentality is strong. Even in this situation, you try to think positively and make moral judgments. Even when you¡¯re in a garbage situation, you don¡¯t try to throw others in the trash like a water ghost. You don¡¯t abandon me, who¡¯s acting like aplete loser, calling me a stupid kid¡ there¡¯s so much more. Is today particrly tough for me? I¡¯m acting way too self-deprecatingly.¡±
¡°Everything. Your knee seemed strong too when you fell earlier.¡±
¡°Pain is just something to endure.¡±
¡®Pain is just something to endure.¡¯ That felt like a useful life quote. I mulled over that phrase, and then looked at the liquor cap that Yoo Geum-yi had been fiddling with.
¡°Are you going to open that?¡±
¡°Here, now? Liquor? Absolutely not! I don¡¯t know who put it in the bag©¤,¡± she quickly answered. ¡°It¡¯s Seo Ji-hyeok-ssi©¤Ah, I thought so. Absolutely not. Maybe when we¡¯re outside, but we shouldn¡¯t drink now.¡±
Worried that I might try to drink it, Yoo Geum-yi hastily zipped up the backpack.
¡°I don¡¯t intend to drink either. I¡¯ll drink when we get out. ¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤If I get out, I¡¯ll buy all the drinks at the bar. Really. I¡¯ll spend my first paycheck here on liquor.¡±
¡°Who knows if you¡¯ll get a paycheck? Hmm. ¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤The nearest bar is in Hawaii.¡±
¡°There¡¯s not even a single bar on this damned artificial ind?¡±
¡°Do you think the engineers and the mining team would work sober?¡±
I had no response to that. I recalled the engineer who had gotten drunk, passed out, and became a bad example for the others. Especially if a bar was established, the psychological counselor Elliot would flip. Prescription drugs don¡¯t mix well with alcohol.
¡°Elliot!¡±
¡°Yes?¡±
¡°She¡¯s a specialist, isn¡¯t she? She should¡¯ve been staying in the West district!¡±
¡°If you¡¯re talking about psychologists, they¡¯re residing in Daehan Ind.¡±
¡°Ah¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤that¡¯s a relief.¡±
With a sigh, I took off my backpack andid t on the cold floor. Had I been wearing wet clothes until now, I would surely have caught a cold.
¡°Baek Aeyoung-nim iste.¡±
¡°There¡¯s no update on the board.¡±
Neither of us suggested we take the elevator up. If Yoo Geum-yi wanted to take the elevator and leave the seabase first, I¡¯d let her, and wait for Baek Aeyoung alone. But from what I¡¯ve seen of Yoo Geum-yi so far, she wasn¡¯t the type to leave alone. She¡¯d probably let me go first, and then wait for Baek Aeyoung herself. ¡Unless the situation gets even more messed up.
Waiting indefinitely was making me anxious. What if 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes pass and Baek Aeyoung still doesn¡¯t show up, even when the life-support systems stop providing oxygen? What if Baek Aeyoung gets attacked or is in a situation where she can¡¯t make it to the elevator? Should I force Yoo Geum-yi onto the elevator then?
Contrary to my anxiety, Yoo Geum-yi casually asked out of boredom.
¡°Do you know why they built a dental clinic at the underwater base?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. Because people¡¯s teeth here are a mess?¡±
As Iid down and listened, Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s voice,ced withughter, sounded like a luby.
¡°Muhyun-ssi may not know this, but the dental clinic at the underwater base isn¡¯t exactly an essential facility, but it¡¯s nice to have one. Your arrival here signifies that the North Pacific Underwater Organization has made up its mind to gradually increase such facilities. Do you know what this means? It means they¡¯ve given up on the futile attempts to refreeze the ice that melted decades ago, or somehow restore the floodednds, and have now started topromise. Just think about when the previous generation barely sent a hundred people to Mars after a long time doing the Gxy Project, pouring astronomical sums of money, and literally sacrificing their lives. Not to mention the money wasted on the Moon and Projects. The efforts to venture into space have now begun to stagnate.
People now are trying to survive in the polluted ocean of the Earth. Soon, the Antic underwater base will bepleted. Didn¡¯t they virtually throw all the construction workers here and the funds from the surrounding Antic countries into it? Soon, the Indian Ocean underwater base will also be developed. The underwater was chosen as a habitat necessary for the survival of mankind, not for mining.
Of course, no one knows how much this choice will backfire in the future. Scientists are making all kinds of grim predictions. It¡¯s easy to predict stories like when people starved to death due to an outbreak of bugs caused by some lunatic who ordered to kill sparrows, but no one knows what will happen to humans or how it will affect the Earth if we live in buildings built 3km under the sea.¡±
¡°Just like how we are right now?¡±
When I asked with augh, Yoo Geum-yi also chuckled. ¡°Right. Just like how we are right now. I hope people who look at this situation, which will go down in history as the worst underwater ident, and reflect on it, can operate the Antic underwater base in a better state.¡±
¡°Please exclude me from the worst part because I¡¯m going to survive to do the interviews.¡±
¡°I¡¯m not going to die either! I still have so many things I haven¡¯t done yet. I haven¡¯t even finished my thesis yet! Oh, I suddenly feel like dying!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi began to roughly rub and twist her hair with her fingers.
¡°Do you know what my thesis topic is? It¡¯s simr to a jellyfish, but it¡¯s a water snake that Muhyun-ssi has never seen before. It¡¯s a bizarre creature that roams around the deep sea floor, making me wonder if it should be called a fish. What happens if you pour reagent and observe this guy?¡±
As I listened to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s voice, I could push away some of my anxiety, worries about the people who entered the evacuation port in the East district, and guilt. After running for a while, I was overwhelmingly sleepy once the intense anxiety subsided. Before I knew it, I was back in my lodging in the West district. The lodging was filled with water, and the new socks that I bought because I wasing here were floating around the room like fish. I was able to swim freely in the water. Naturally, I breathed underwater and left the room and went down the hallway.
Various items that came out of the rooms passed by me in the hallway. I passed by cups, scarves, chairs, earphones, cosmetics, and basketballs. Despite beingpletely submerged in water, I was peacefully breathing like a fish and leisurely looking at the rooms. In the hallway, all the walls were transparent, so I could see inside all the rooms. I passed by room number 38, my room, and saw an rm going off on a lit pad in room number 22, Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s room.
People were hiding all sorts of things in their small rooms. Prohibited food, weapons, medicines. Finally, I passed by room number 8. There was someone floating in the room. It was the first time I saw this person, but I couldn¡¯t see their face due to their hair. The person quickly caught me as I was passing through the hallway and started to strangle me.
Even though we were underwater, the voice was so clear in my ears. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you save me?¡± At that instant moment, water started to fill my mouth. The moment I swallowed the seawater, I couldn¡¯t breathe. ¡°You could have saved me!¡± I was out of breath. I struggled to get away from them.
¡°Save me!¡±
¡°I can¡¯t!¡±
¡°Save me!¡±
¡°I don¡¯t have the strength!¡±
¡°Save me!¡±
Suddenly, I woke up with a start. Baek Aeyoung and Yoo Geum-yi were looking at me as I was sprawled out on the floor, swimming on all fours. I got up from the floor in a daze.
¡°How long was I asleep?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi checked the time and said, ¡°About 5 minutes.¡±
I thought I had slept for about 5 hours. Baek Aeyoung, who had gulped down the water handed to her by Yoo Geum-yi, pointed at the elevator.
¡°I went to the submarine area, but all the usable submarines have already left. There was one manual two-seater submarine, but I won¡¯t bother asking if either of you have ever driven a submarine before. (Yoo Geum-yiughed nervously.) Anyway, you two need to take the elevator to the 3rd Seabase right now.¡±
The elevator was already activated, whether she had already pressed the button or not. Yoo Geum-yi, hearing Baek Aeyoung¡¯s answer, frowned and asked, ¡°What about you, Baek Aeyoung-ssi?¡±
¡°I¡¯m going to the escape port. You two should go ahead.¡±
¡°Are you going to help them? I¡¯ll go too!¡±
Baek Aeyoung smiled at my words.
¡°You think I¡¯m going to help those two? I just want to know what¡¯s happening. You two, as Shin Team Leader-nim said, go ahead.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi spoke anxiously towards Baek Aeyoung, ¡°Those two could be in great danger. They knocked twice! Not three times. I definitely heard it! Baek Aeyoung-ssi could be in danger as well.¡±
¡°I know.¡±
Unable to stay still at her simple and chic response, I added, ¡°There was someone who suffered a wound to the femoral artery and died from excessive bleeding. It might be safer for you toe with us,¡±
Baek Aeyoung, having presumably already heard from Yoo Geum-yi, nodded her head. ¡°It¡¯s probably a gunshot wound.¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡±
¡°There were a few people who died from gunshot wounds in the submarine. I also saw the sight of the submarine¡¯s inner panel riddled with bullets.¡±
¡°But¡ the two didn¡¯t mention anything like that.¡±
At Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words, Baek Aeyoung squinted and chuckled.
Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Baek Aeyoung exined in a low voice to Yoo Geum-yi.
¡°Given that we are trapped in an underwater base where water is already leaking and the life support system has broken down, we¡¯ve struggled all the way to the East district, and I guess there¡¯s no need to make it worse by telling you that there are armed madmen roaming around. Have either of you ever fired a gun?¡±
¡°No, I haven¡¯t.¡±
¡°Neither have I¡±
¡°Good. You don¡¯t need to in your lifetime.¡±
Listening to that, I automatically wondered, what if the timees when I have to shoot a gun? As soon as the elevator doors opened, Baek Aeyoung pushed Yoo Geum-yi and me in. There¡¯s only one button for us to press.
[Undersea Base 3]
A space built 1,000 meters under the sea. Baek Aeyoung tore out the panel below the elevator. She seemed intent on forcibly operating the elevator.
¡°I feel uneasy, but as far as I can think, there¡¯s no other way to help you escape from Undersea Base 4 more safely. Normally, all the elevators would stop in case of an ident. The escape pod would¡¯ve been the safest (option), damn it.¡±
Can we really use this? What happens if the elevator itself copses while we¡¯re on our way? Do we just die? Baek Aeyoung began to voice her anxiety.
¡°If you can¡¯t reach the sea surface with an escape pod, you¡¯ll have to take the elevator or swim out of here. If a human can withstand the pressure of 3,000 meters underwater and manage to ascend, that person should be called a mermaid, not a human.¡±
¡°¡Isn¡¯t there a staircase?¡±
Baek Aeyoung, who was pulling a wire from the panel and pressing buttons, snorted at my question.
¡°From here to the top, it¡¯s 2,000 meters which is at least 400 floors. To reach Undersea Base 3, roughly speaking, there would be around ten thousand steps.¡±
Hearing the number of floors, Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s face turned pale.
There is an amazing bakery in Underwater Base 3. I once used the central elevator to buy some bread there, and it took about two to three minutes between floors as far as I remember. How long would it take to climb all those stairs? Did they even build stairs in the first ce? Are humans insane to build a base so deep underwater? Baek Aeyoung finally let go of the panel.
¡°Or, get on the elevator, prepare to die.¡±
Baek Aeyoung looked at Yoo Geum-yi and me for thest time.
¡°The elevator is dangerous too. I have no idea how the elevator was affected by the torpedo shock. But it seems like it¡¯s not leaking.¡±
Baek Aeyoung, who kept muttering unsettling words while messing with the panel, turned Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s face pale as a sheet. I must have looked the same. It¡¯s going to be a hellish 120 seconds. Finally, the light came on the button for Undersea Base 3, the only one in the elevator.
Recalling movies that were based on water, I asked, ¡°Isn¡¯t the base less pressured when it fills up with water and we go out?¡±
¡°The base would copse before that.¡±
Terrific. Baek Aeyoung quickly finished exining. If I had been an engineer, I think my neck would have been grabbed several times already due to the stupid questions I¡¯ve been asking Baek Aeyoung. But she never hit me for asking too many questions. How much did the guy in theundry room provoke her to be punched by her?
As Baek Aeyoung, with her great patience, got off the elevator, she said, ¡°I hope you both make it safely.¡±
Seeing Baek Aeyoung¡¯s tense face, Yoo Geum-yi and I replied enthusiastically to dispel the tension.
¡°We¡¯ll see you in good healthter!¡±
¡°Take care! See youter!¡±
After Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s farewell, the elevator doors closed. As the elevator began to ascend, Baek Aeyoung started to run back the way we hade. We could see her running toward the escape pod with her long legs through the tall window in the elevator. Her ponytail, tied up high on her head, swayed behind her like a horse¡¯s tail.
Every now and then, Baek Aeyoung¡¯s form was partially obscured by the body of the Azure Dragon. With each urrence, her figure seemed to shrink until it disappearedpletely. Soon after, the elevator entered the ocean, and all was darkness. The reflection in the window showed only a lightless void. If it weren¡¯t for the light inside the elevator, it would have been quite eerie. How far had we ascended? While I was watching Baek Aeyoung through the window, it seemed Yoo Geum-yi had been watching the clock. At least one of us was thinking clearly.
¡°38 seconds. 39 seconds. 40 seconds. 41 seconds. 42 seconds.¡±
By 120 seconds, we should arrive at the third underwater base, built between the epipgic and mesopgic zones. In case Yoo Geum-yi lost count, I began to count along with her in my mind.
¡°100 seconds, 101 seconds, 102 seconds, 103 seconds, 104 seconds,¡±
My throat tightened with anxiety. As time passed, I felt more tense, as if a cold hand was pressing against my back.
¡°105 seconds. 106 seconds. 107 seconds. 108 seconds. 109 seconds. Gasps!¡±
Suddenly, the ascending elevator jolted once, then halted.
¡°Huh?¡±
And then, all the lights went out.
Yoo Geum-yi screamed in surprise, which startled me into screaming as well. We echoed each other like parrots, causing the elevator to reverberate with our shrieks. Regaining our senses, we silenced ourselves. Inside the elevator, it was pitch ck. There wasn¡¯t a single point of light outside the elevator window, so nothing could be seen. I asked quietly into the dark void.
¡°The elevator¡¯s stopped, hasn¡¯t it?¡±
¡°It seems so.¡±
Hearing her frightened voice, the words ¡°we¡¯re screwed¡± began to float around in my head. I¡¯m sure the same was happening in Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s. In the darkness, we could only hear each other¡¯s breathing. Then there was the sound of sobbing. I was the first to swallow my pride and speak honestly.
¡°I¡¯m scared to death.¡±
¡°Me too.¡±
¡°Geum-yi-ssi, have you ever been trapped in an elevator before?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°Neither have I.¡±
After a few more sobs in response to my meaningless question, Yoo Geum-yi spoke. ¡°Both you, Muhyun-ssi, and I have been lucky so far.¡±
¡°True. I hope we¡¯re lucky today, too.¡±
There was the rustling sound of fabric. Leaning against the wall, I listened to the sound of sobs. There must be fish swimming outside the walls of this elevator. If we exit into the water, we¡¯d be crushed by the pressure and die. The fact that the elevator is even stopped might be a miracle in itself. If we¡¯re unlucky, we could descend 2000 meters down from our ascension point, with the elevator crashing down.
¡°You were about to count to 110 seconds earlier, Geum-yi-ssi.¡±
¡°Yes. *sobs*¡°
¡°How much further do we have to go out of the 2000 meters? If it¡¯s not much further, let¡¯s try to figure a way out of this with our own strength.¡±
¡°Only about 10 meters left, right?¡± My voice had a soothing effect on Yoo Geum-yi, whose sobbing was gradually diminishing. When there was no sound in the darkness, I called out anxiously, ¡°Geum-yi-ssi?¡± and heard a reply, ¡°I am doing mental calctions, dividing by 120. Stay quiet!¡± Then there were a few sobbing sounds and the rustle of clothes before Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s usual voice filled the air.
¡°Simple calctions indicate that we¡¯ve traveled 1833 meters, which leaves us with 166 meters.¡±
Upon hearing the figures, Iughed, amazed and bewildered. I must be going insane. 166 meters. I thought we didn¡¯t have much left when there were 10 seconds left out of 120. We have a lot left.
¡°Geum-yi-ssi, do you by any chance know how to¡uhm¡hang on to ropes? I mean, in the movies, when the elevator stops due to an ident, people exit through the elevator ceiling, climb the elevator cable, and use their arm strength to ascend.¡±
At this, I could hear Yoo Geum-yiughing incredulously. She was chuckling heartily. Sob¡ªsob Ahahaha!
¡°166 meters? Ahahaha! Unless I turn into a spider, it¡¯s impossible. I can¡¯t even hang on to a horizontal bar for three seconds. I won¡¯t be able to climb even 2 meters.¡±
¡°I¡¯m the same. So, let¡¯s wait for someone else¡¯s help.¡±
We suggested oveing this situation by our efforts only moments ago, and in less than 10 seconds, we were waiting for others to help. Neither Yoo Geum-yi nor I are good at surviving. It¡¯s expected; we are people who only sit and work. How could we have any advantage in a disaster situation?
¡°What if no onees?¡±
¡°Well, we can¡¯t do much then.¡±
As I plopped down on the elevator floor, I heard a sound as if Yoo Geum-yi also sat opposite me. Then after a few seconds, I heard a sniffling sound. Oh dear, missy. I felt like sobbing aloud too but clenched my teeth and kept silent.
Suppressing the urge to cry, I spoke softly into the darkness of the spacious elevator that could amodate at least 50 people.
¡°I should¡¯ve followed Aeyoung-ssi if I knew this would happen.¡±
Upon hearing me, Yoo Geum-yi sobbed a few times before responding.
¡°¡Who could¡¯ve known we¡¯d get trapped in an elevator. We can¡¯t change the path we¡¯ve walked. Don¡¯t regret. Even if you do regret, it won¡¯t produce any better solutions.¡±
¡°You sound hopeful, Geum-yi-ssi.¡±
¡°I suppose I am.¡±
¡°That was pure admiration, not sarcasm.¡±
¡°I know. But being pessimistic won¡¯t make things any better.¡±
I heard a sniffling sound followed by sobs. Then silence ensued. I wonder how much time passed. In the midst of the enveloping silence, Yoo Geum-yi suddenly shouted.
¡°We can¡¯t just sit here like this!¡±
The sudden loud voice startled me, making me jump.
¡°Huh?!¡±
¡°What if no onees? Whether we be spiders! Or threaten the elevator to ascend! We have to do something with our own power!¡±
She sounds full of energy. I thought about the snake and cat in my backpack. ¡®What sin did theymit to be stuck here with me? Right. I¡¯m not alone. And whining here won¡¯t change the situation.¡¯
¡°What should we do?¡±
¡°Turn on the pad light ande over here.¡±
As I approached as instructed, I found Yoo Geum-yi sitting next to the elevator button. I pretended not to notice her reddened eyes. Leaning on the light from the pad, Yoo Geum-yi was examining the wires under the elevator buttons that Baek Ae-young had pressed earlier. There were countless wires exposed in the light, but I had no idea what they were.
¡°Do you know what these wires are for, Geum-yi-ssi?¡±
¡°No, I haven¡¯t got a clue.¡±
¡°You sound hopeful, Geum-yi-ssi.¡±
Laughing at myment, Yoo Geum-yi giggled along with me. We were both going crazy. Then, suddenly, without us doing anything, the elevator lights flickered, and then the light was restored.
Chapter 31
Chapter 31
Yoo Geum-yi and I high-fived each other, wearing expressions that said we¡¯d survived, and then we bounced about. However, the elevator remained stuck.
¡°The lights are on now, so won¡¯t it start moving up on its own if we wait?¡±
¡°Right! Let¡¯s not do anything rash and just wait!¡±
So Yoo Geum-yi and I waited in the elevator for more than ten minutes. It seemed better when the lights were off, oddly enough. Back then, we couldn¡¯t see each other¡¯s faces, but now, each other¡¯s fearful and anxious expressions were clear to see.
After about ten minutes, Yoo Geum-yi cautiously spoke, ¡°You saw what Ae-young was messing with earlier, didn¡¯t you? Shouldn¡¯t we just do the opposite?¡±
¡°But won¡¯t that send us back to the fourth undersea base?¡±
¡°I¡¯m not sure. Should we keep waiting?¡±
¡®We had already been waiting in the elevator for more than ten minutes. What should we wait for? The elevator to move upward on its own like the lights came on by themselves? But it¡¯s not moving at all. Should we wait for the people from the third undersea base to rescue us? This is just a horrible thought, but have the people from the first, second, and third undersea bases all already evacuated? What happens if another shock like earlier urs?¡¯
¡°I¡¯ll leave the decision to you, Geum-yi-ssi.¡±
¡°Moohyun-ssi, you won¡¯t regret this?¡±
¡°Yes. I won¡¯t regret it nor hold any resentment.¡±
¡°Good. Pull this and this, connect it like this¡ there, the button lights up when I do that.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi boldly pulled out the connected wires and linked them to others. The second set of wires came free. Before I could even prepare to be surprised, my astonishment slowly welled up due to her sudden action.
¡°No, is it alright to just yank it out like that¡¡±
The elevator jerked downward. It felt like the ground beneath my feet disappeared. The elevator started to plummet. Ahhhhh!
Yoo Geum-yi and I held onto each other and screamed for 110 seconds straight. We screamed and begged for our lives, but we kept falling.
Later, Yoo Geum-yi adopted a posture she said she saw somewhere for lessening the impact when falling in an elevator, ced the bag she had been holding next to me, and started screaming again. ¡®Dear God! Buddha! Ah! Gods of Greek and Roman mythology! Gods of Norse mythology! Gods of India! Please save me if you can! Please take the time to save us even if you¡¯re busy!¡¯ We screamed and screamed, only shutting our mouths when we saw people reflected in the elevator¡¯s window.
It was Baek Ae-young. The moment the elevator doors opened, we first saw a flustered Baek Ae-young, the ghostly faced Shin Haeryang, and the pale Seo Jihyuk. Seo Jihyuk was helped into the elevator by Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang. It was more like they just threw him into the elevator, and hended on top of me as I was sitting on the floor.
Behind Shin Haeryang, someone else seemed to be clinging to him, and it wasn¡¯t until he stepped into the elevator that I realized it was a woman. Gunshots kept ringing out. My ears were about to burst from the ¡®bang bang bang¡¯ noises. The woman must have been leaning against Shin Haeryang because she slid to the floor as he stepped in.
Shin Haeryang pulled the half-syed woman into the elevator. As he did, blood streaked across the floor like a string. Sitting directly in front of the elevator door, I heard Shin Haeryang yell at me.
¡°Duck your head!¡±
As I unthinkinglyy sideways against the wall, a bullet hit where my head had just been. Soon after, Shin Haeryang kicked me and Seo Jihyuk to the side, pinning us to a corner of the elevator.
Yoo Geum-yi was trembling in the center of the elevator, visible in my line of sight. I heard the sound of someone running. Shin Haeryang was pressing down on me and Seo Jihyuk, but the front side of the elevator visible from the outside kept getting more and more holes.
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!
Someone outside the elevator was incessantly firing a gun. I didn¡¯t know, but it seems like Baek Ae-young was tampering with the control panel as soon as she got into the elevator. A man¡¯s scream came from outside the elevator just before the doors closed.
¡°Die!¡±
Bullets kept hitting the inside of the elevator. Aren¡¯t the walls going to have holes soon? When the elevator door closed, no more bullets hit the inside of the elevator, but the sound of bullets hitting the outside could be heard. The elevator started to ascend rapidly as soon as the door closed. I wanted to look outside through the elevator window, but Shin Haeryang was on top of me and Seo Jihyuk and wouldn¡¯t budge.
¡°What on earth happened?¡±
When I asked with an exhausted voice, Baek Ae-young, tired as well, asked first, ¡°Why did you ride the elevator ande back down?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi replied with a mellow voice. Her eyes never left the blood-soaked woman who had entered the elevator.
¡°The power went out and the elevator stopped, so¡ it didn¡¯t move. I reversed what Baek Ae-young-ssi was fiddling with.¡±
Baek Ae-young sighed, washed her face dryly, then forced a smile and spoke again with another sigh. ¡°We survived thanks to that.¡±
Shin Haeryang helped lift up Seo Jihyuk¡¯s upper body and carefully sat him down. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face turned pale as he let out a groan. Not only did the woman smell of blood, but it was clear that Seo Jihyuk was injured too. As we looked at him in surprise like sharks, we saw something tied around his leg with a piece of clothing.
¡°Why, why is this happening?¡±
¡°He was shot. The knee joint is shattered. It¡¯s beyond saving.¡±
Seo Jihyuk cursed and all sorts of profanity began pouring out of his mouth. He¡¯s a talkative person, but I¡¯ve never seen him spew so many obscenities. He seemed to be in so much pain that he was barely resisting the urge to roll on the ground. Yoo Geum-yi asked, trembling.
¡°C¡can you walk?¡±
Shin Haeryang shook his head coldly. ¡°Before he gets treatment from an orthopedic doctor, he won¡¯t be able to walk. Do you have painkillers?¡±
I, who could not take my eyes off the woman lying in blood, barely opened the bag with the cat in it and took the cat out entirely. Regardless of whether people could see or not. Then I rummaged through the bottom of the bag and found acetaminophen, the only medication in my room. As I handed him a pill with shaking hands and water, Seo Jihyuk gave me a look as if I was joking.
¡°I¡¯d keel over in pain even if I swallowed all of that.¡±
¡°I only have four pills anyway.¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed to want to curse at me now, but he didn¡¯t say a word and swallowed all four pills. His jaw was so tightly clenched from pain that I forcefully crammed a few candies into his mouth. The cursing from Seo Jihyuk decreased along with it, killing two birds with one stone. Now that I had looked at the injured person, I asked about the person who seemedpletely dead on the outside.
¡°What happened? Who is this person?¡±
Shin Haeryang spoke as calmly as possible, even though he was visibly angry. ¡°Teams from China and Japan are armed. They¡¯re not exactly friendly folks who would take sides without guns, so if left alone, they¡¯ll probably self-destruct. But Jihyuk and I ran into a few engineers from Team D during the escape.¡±
¡°Did the Chinese team shoot?¡±
¡°Yes. And this person is Hai Yoon, the team leader of the Chinese team¡ She¡¯s already dead.¡±
Shin Haeryang closed his mouth with a somber expression. I was the only one here whose job fell within the medical field. I cautiously approached the woman sprawled on the ground, checked for breathing and heartbeat, and dered her dead. It was the third time today. Just as I was barely holding back a curse that was climbing up my throat, Baek Ae-young gritted her teeth and said:
¡°Now that Hai Yoon is dead, that team of engineers is in chaos. If you hear a single word of Chinese, you need to run right away.¡±
¡°Who exactly is Hai Yoon?¡±
Baek Ae-young slowly spoke, folding one finger after the other. ¡°Among them, she has the most money, the smartest, and the most reasonable among the team leaders, but just a while ago¡ª.¡± she trailed off, ncing at Shin Haeryang before falling silent. It seemed like a form of consideration. But I, who was busy tucking in Hai Yoon¡¯s half-open eyes and making her, who was lying on her side like a shrimp, lie t, absent-mindedly asked, having my focus elsewhere,
¡®What? Why?¡¯
Shin Haeryang and Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t say anything, but Seo Jihyuk, who had been quietly listening, chewed a piece of candy before swallowing and speaking up, ¡°Hai Yoon likes Mr. Shin here, our team leader. Well. Why. It¡¯s true. Right, team leader. Ah! Baek Ae-young, you lid hand¡ if you want to hit me, hit me! I may not be able to use my legs, but I will use my mouth! If that bastard Li Wei doesn¡¯t like Hai Yoon, then he doesn¡¯t like her, that f*cker! Did you know that Zhu Shi¡¯an from the same team likes that sh*thead Li Wei too? This is the first time I heard about it! Damn it, seriously!¡±
Baek Ae-young gave up trying to shut Seo Jihyuk up, and Shin Haeryang just let it be, probably thinking that since the man¡¯s knees had hurt, he might as well vent. Shin Haeryang was too busy looking at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s knee, and only Yoo Geum-yi and I focused on Seo Jihyuk¡¯s story.
¡°These crazy people took over the East exit and seem to have shot all the people trying to escape. There were bodies piled up like mountains next to the exit. Damn it. Of course, some of the team members didn¡¯t like the situation where they had to shoot civilians suddenly, like Hong Tao from Taiwan or Shu Ran from Hong Kong. You saw what happened to Hong Tao, right?¡±
¡°Who¡¯s that?¡±
We had been through so much in such a short time. Yoo Geum-yi made a face as if she didn¡¯t know. Seo Jihyuk screamed as if mes were burning inside him.
¡°That, guy¡ the one who got shot in the lung and copsed next to the convenience store! That guy! As soon as he said he didn¡¯t like shooting people, Li Wei shot Hong Tao. Damn it, seriously. Hong Tao is amazing too. How did he get that far with a bullet in his lung? Was it because there was less bleeding? Anyway, as soon as we entered the exit, we ran into Hai Yoon and Shu Ran near the entrance, and they both didn¡¯t want to kill us. Hai Yoon said that she would turn a blind eye to us, so we should give up on the East exit and flee somewhere else, but suddenly that crazy woman Zhu Shi¡¯an, who came from behind, shot me in the knee!¡±
Leaving out the coarsenguage, it seemed that from then on, Zhu Shi¡¯an, Shu Ran, and Hai Yoon started arguing, and Shin Haeryang began to carry Seo Jihyuk to escape. But because of Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s scream, the rest of the people all flocked over.
The suspense in every chapter is keeping me on my toes. ????
Chapter 32
Chapter 32
Of course, it¡¯s not like Shin Haeryang, who was carrying Seo Jihyuk, could have flown the distance we had run out of breath. Apparently, they were caught on the way. Hai Yoon started to shout that it was her order to just let them go.
There were members who opposed Hai Yoon leading the team. If what I heard was correct due to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s swearing, it was particrly a severe situation, involving Li Wei, Hao Ran, and Wei Chi. They frequently ignored themands of their female team leader, causing a mess in their rtionships. When Li Wei insinuated that Hai Yoon might be letting Shin Haeryang go because she liked him, Hai Yoon responded that it had nothing to do with that, and since then, they had been directing their guns at each other.
¡°Especially because Shu Ran is friends with Ae-young, she was saying we should help when we know the person, and not to shoot. Even then, those crazy bastards wereughing and shooting at the Great White Shark, and it seems like Shu Ran had also lost her mind.¡±
I was taken aback and stared at Baek Ae-young.
¡°Are you hurt?¡±
Baek Ae-young scowled and shook her head. ¡°That bastard shot at my feet. To intimidate me.¡±
¡°Once Shu Ran began screaming that she didn¡¯t want to kill people anymore, and after Hao Ran shot at that madman, everything went to hell. The ckout was a godsend. I truly thought heaven was helping us.¡±
¡®Each person¡¯s situation is really different. Haha. When the elevator stopped due to the power outage, I really thought I was going to die.¡¯
¡°As soon as the ckout started, our Ae-young threw a knife at Wei Chi¡¯s head and ran for the elevator, Shu Ran copsed, Team leader Shin ran with me behind, and Hai Yoon covered us.¡±
Baek Ae-young said with a distressed expression, ¡°When we arrived at the elevator, it was nearly at our floor, which it should have been stopped at the third underwater base. We thought it was a good thing at first. The elevator was built to resist bullets because of the water pressure. The rest is as you two have seen.¡±
Shin Haeryang, who had been quietly listening, sighed heavily and said, ¡°Shu Ran wouldn¡¯t have made it. I saw her get shot twice in the lower abdomen. Only Hao Ran and Li Wei are left. Since only Li Wei came running and shooting, it seems Hao Ran injured his leg.¡±
¡°Three times, three times¡±
At Seo Jihyuk¡¯s voice, Shin Haeryang quietly said, ¡°Yeah, three.¡± Baek Ae-young, pulling a face, looked at Seo Jihyuk, who was also making a terrible face, and asked, ¡°Is that Wei Chi guy definitely dead?¡±
¡°I guess you¡¯re asking because you didn¡¯t confirm it. I definitely saw it. I didn¡¯t make a mistake.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
As soon as Baek Ae-young replied, the elevator suddenly stopped and the lights went out. Yoo Geum-yi screamed a soprano shriek, and I also screamed. The three didn¡¯t scream at all. Only Seo Jihyuk¡¯s curse could be clearly heard.
Shin Haeryang calmly said, ¡°If you wait quietly, the standby power will be activated within 5 minutes.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi took my pad and set the rm. Everyone seemed to be waiting for exactly five minutes. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s moans barely came through. Although it was unsettling to be in the darkness with five people and a corpse, surprisingly, it wasn¡¯t as scary as being with Yoo Geum-yi. I listened to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s story and asked the thing I was most curious about first.
¡°Why are Taiwan and Hong Kong lumped together with the Chinese?¡±
In response to my question, Shin Haeryang¡¯s voice came from the quiet darkness.
¡°Hong Kong and Taiwan didn¡¯t have the resources to contribute to the annual underwater base development fund. Even though China copsed into a federation of eight provinces, they still had money, so as the saying goes, ¡®even if the rich fall, itsts for three generations¡¯. As far as I know, the three countries are cooperating on matters rted to the underwater base. It seems they decided on the positions for the engineers and mining team amongst themselves.¡±
¡°Huh.¡±
Then Seo Jihyuk abruptly interrupted. ¡°So that¡¯s why Shu Ran from Hong Kong and Hong Tao from Taiwan don¡¯t want to be tied up with China, they keep singing ¡®I¡¯m not Chinese¡¯. Hong Tao always makes milk tea and salt coffee for the underwater base, and Shu Ran, seeing this, tries to make egg tarts, even applying for baking lessons to learn from Ga-young. It was quite a scene.¡±
I let out a long sigh. This underwater base is aplete disaster, isn¡¯t it? I waited in the darkness and the lights came back on within 5 minutes, but the elevator remained stuck. Did it really take less than 5 minutes in that darkness? It felt like 20 minutes.
As soon as the light came back on, Baek Ae-young began to fiddle with the control panel under the elevator buttons again. During that time, Shin Haeryang was blowing a whistle, holding a water bottle, and Seo Jihyuk had another candy in his mouth.
When Baek Ae-young withdrew her hand from the panel and snatched Shin Haeryang¡¯s water to drink, the elevator started to move upwards again. Yoo Geum-yi and I exchanged nces, letting out a sigh of relief. Having escaped the thought of dying in the elevator, I only then began to wonder about the cause of the power outage.
Looking at Baek Ae-young, who was drinking water as if she was going to drain the whole bottle, and Seo Jihyuk, who was finally quiet because of the candy, I asked Shin Haeryang, ¡°How does the underwater base get its electricity?¡±
Shin Haeryang replied sinctly, ¡°Cogeneration.¡±
Upon hearing this, Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s face began to turn pale.
¡°You mean¡ then¡ we¡¡±
¡°Yes. We need to escape quickly.¡±
The engineers seemed to have already known. The more information I got about the underwater base, the more I realized it was not good for my mental health. I asked, guessing my face must have been as pale as Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s. The word ¡®cogeneration¡¯ might seem scary, but at least it¡¯s not nuclear. I wouldn¡¯t be exposed to radiation.
I looked at Shin Haeryang and asked, ¡°What is cogeneration?¡±
Before Shin Haeryang could answer, Seo Jihyuk was the first to speak, his words muffled by the candy in his mouth.
¡°Please exin it in detail, team leader. In detail.¡±
Shin Haeryang nced at Seo Jihyuk, then began to answer my question.
¡°The underwater base uses a small cogeneration system for electricity and temperature control. It uses natural gas from the seabed directly to generate electricity by rotating gas turbines, and the heat produced in the process is used in boilers. Because it generates both power and heat energy from a single source of natural gas, it is efficient and stable in terms of energy usage.¡±
¡®That¡¯s a good exnation. Even ayman like me can understand it vaguely. But that¡¯s not what I wanted to hear.¡¯
¡°What are the drawbacks?¡±
¡°The cost of the equipment is high. And without the supply of natural gas, it¡¯s no better than scrap metal.¡±
¡°And¡ if you could provide some worst-case scenarios?¡±
¡°Depending on how badly the small cogeneration system is damaged, different issues could arise. There could be leaks of gas or pollutants, or if the pipes are broken, they might pour out high-temperature intermediate hot water. In the very worst-case scenario¡ if we¡¯re unlucky, an explosion could ur due to the natural gas, and the entire fourth underwater base, along with the connected mining pipe, could be blown away. Considering the central elevator is connected to the other bases, they would be at risk too.¡±
Shin Haeryang spoke casually, but the content was nothing short of terrifying. I shivered. ¡®Were we really using something this dangerous?¡¯
¡°Was there no thought of using alternative energy instead of cogeneration?¡±
¡°Under the sea, you say?¡±
¡®I was at a loss for words. What on earth could power something underwater?¡¯ I couldn¡¯t even begin to guess.
¡°Well¡ true. If you build a base 3 km under the sea, how the heck do you supply electricity?¡±
¡°There¡¯s been ongoing discussion about using nuclear fusion via a small nuclear reactor, or geothermal energy, but nuclear fusion has been rejected due to its inability to ensure stability at these depths. As for geothermal energy¡ finding a suitable location where volcanic activity provides usable geothermal energy without risking earthquake damage¡ªa must when building an underwater base ¨C has proven difficult.¡±
¡®What a relief it¡¯s not nuclear. I, for one, would have strongly opposed it. Wouldn¡¯t I? I¡¯m not sure.¡¯
Seeing my face, Sin Hae Ryang simplified his exnation.
¡°Inyman¡¯s terms, the base would need to be built near countries like New Zend or Japan. However, if they agreed to let the 8 nations indiscriminately extract their natural gas and oil, it¡¯s questionable whether they¡¯d resort to terrorizing the underwater base or simply partake in its development¡ The primary underwater base and Daehan Ind receive their power from wind energy, while the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th bases utilize their respectivebined heat and power systems¡ I hope this power outage is only temporary.¡±
Shin Haeryang trailed off uncertainly. At the end of his gazey the deceased Hai Yoon. Maybe it was because I hadid her down properly and neatly arranged her hands by her side, but she looked as if she was sleeping, as though she might wake up any moment. I found myself asking Sin Haeryang a question I hadn¡¯t intended to.
¡°Were you two dating?¡±
He turned to look at me and shook his head.
¡°No.¡±
I opened the snake-filled bag with my blood-soaked, sticky hand and pulled out the towel I¡¯d used to dry my hair in theundry room. It was a bit damp, but I spread it as best I could and covered Hai Yoon¡¯s face with it.
Silence hung in the air. The elevator ascended quietly. The atmosphere was utterly bleak. Seo Ji Hyuk, who had been making a lot of noise, was now silent. Baek Ae-young, who had been quietly leaning against the elevator wall, suddenly exploded, shouting, ¡°We should¡¯ve thrown that bastard Hao Ran!¡± and startling everyone.
¡°Damn it!¡±
Baek Ae-young could no longer contain her fury as she ranted, before realizing that everyone was looking at her and slowly leaning back against the elevator wall, covering her face with her hands. The cat that had been quietly curled up in a corner jumped in surprise, staring at Baek Ae-young. The sound of Yoo Geum Yi¡¯s frustrated sigh reached my ears.
Looking around, the sight of people either sitting or lying on the elevator floor was pitiful. It reminded me of the atmosphere at my own home three years ago. I sighed. The sound of a rumbling stomach came from someone. Seo Ji Hyuk, who had been lying down and staring at the ceiling, spoke.
¡°Am I the only one who¡¯s hungry?¡±
Apparently, a chocte bar, candy, or snacks wouldn¡¯t satisfy him. Yoo Geum Yi, who was next to him, nodded with swollen eyes.
She did like bread.
¡°¡True. I¡¯m hungry.¡±
¡°I hope we can get some bread as we pass the third underwater base. Or maybe stop by a convenience store nearby.¡±
When I said that, looking at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s leg, his already pitiful expression seemed even more so. He would have to fast before undergoing surgery. In our current situation, there was no telling when we might escape.
With Seo Jihyuk''s ruptured kneecap, I''m not sure if the man is going to hold on much longer without urgent medical attention... ?? Seems like bad premonition to me.
Chapter 33
Chapter 33
Shin Haeryang, who was looking at the blueprint of the Undersea Base, spoke up.
¡°There is an escape pod in the third underwater base too, but given how things are going, it seems better to take the elevator. Probably, most of the staff working at the third base escaped using the escape pods. There are three elevators connected to the second underwater base, so let¡¯s find a functioning one and go up as far as possible. The elevator nearest to us, from the Blue Dragon elevator we boarded, is the Archelon1 located on the left.¡±
Archelon? That¡¯s an unusual name. Is there any ce in this undersea base without a name?
¡°It seems that even the elevators have unique names.¡±
¡°There was a massive turtle image inside the elevator. Perhaps that¡¯s the turtle¡¯s name. Let¡¯s make that our first target. If we can¡¯t board it, we¡¯ll go to the second or first elevator. There are escape pods around here as well.¡±
¡°Telephone!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi suddenly shouted next to me, startling both me and Shin Haeryang.
¡°The phone isn¡¯t working.¡±
At my words, Yoo Geum-yi shook her head and spoke quickly, ¡°No, no. There¡¯s andline phone in the bakery! It has an external connection! I saw the first floor operations team asking if all the bread was sold out over the phone! They once tried to installndlines inside the undersea base but due to budget problems and the contractor¡¯s bankruptcy, only the phone line in the bakery remains. They even dug -2000m into the seabed to install it.That ce wasn¡¯t originally meant to be a bakery! It was supposed to be upied by the operations team that manages the entire undersea base. But the operation grewrger than expected, so they seized a ward on the ind for use.¡±
¡°Who did you hear this from?¡±
Huffing and puffing, Yoo Geum-yi spoke, ¡°From Olivier Martin of the bakery. You know, the short man who makes excellent croissants, he came from France! (Shin Haeryang had a puzzled look on his face) He can¡¯t make macarons and fruit cakes, but he makes fermented bread really well!¡±
Seo Jihyuk, lying down, asked as if he understood Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words.
¡°Oh, the mustached guy with gray hair who¡¯s obsessed with wine?¡±
¡°Yes, that¡¯s him!¡±
¡°I did manage to get some French wine from that old man. He was furious at the operation team, asking why they wouldn¡¯t allow him to sell wine at the underwater base.¡±
As Yoo Geum-yi and Seo Jihyuk talked, Shin Haeryang, who was listening, suddenly rubbed his eyes with his fingertips, looking weary.
¡°Let¡¯s prioritize escape over sending a rescue request. If those who escaped with the escape pods made it out sessfully, they would have automatically requested rescue. And to get to the bakery, we need to pass through the central elevator area, but I¡¯d prefer if we avoided that area as much as possible.¡±
¡°That American team leader and Kim Gayoung we saw earlier also said they were taking the central elevator,¡±
¡°I¡¯d prefer if we moved to the 0th floor while avoiding contact with others as much as possible.¡±
Without realizing it, I found myself looking towards where Hai Yoon was and then nodded in agreement with Shin Haeryang. Shin Haeryang knelt down and held Seo Jihyuk¡¯s arm and shoulder. I immediately lifted Seo Jihyuk¡¯s arm on the opposite side. Seo Jihyuk stood up, putting force on his right leg. He used his right leg to stand, grabbed the elevator handle, suppressed a groan, and bnced on one leg.
Yoo Geum-yi took one of my bags and went into a corner. She covered the cat, which was either sitting or lying down in an unidentifiable posture, with the bag and confined it again. I surrounded the snake bag. It felt a lot lighter, maybe because I had been drinking the water inside. Baek Ae-young had already stood up and was looking at us as if nothing had happened.
¡°Arriving in 5 seconds. 5! 4! 3! 2! 1!¡±
With a ¡®ding¡¯ sound, the door opened. Shin Haeryang, who was by the door, did something towards the outside and then Baek Ae-young went out. Hearing the signal toe out, Seo Jihyuk was supported by Yoo Geum-yi and me. Not long after leaving the elevator, I asked Seo Jihyuk to lean against the wall for a moment and immediately went back into the elevator. The door opening time was long, so the elevator didn¡¯t close. Yoo Geum-yi was startled as she watched me go back into the elevator.
¡°What did you forget?!¡±
¡°It¡¯s Hai Yoon.¡±
I tried to grab Hai Yoon¡¯s shoulder but I was afraid that if the towel came off, I¡¯d see her face directly, so I grabbed the woman¡¯s ankles and dragged her. Seo Jihyuk watched my actions with an expression that seemed to be full of words, but he said nothing while leaning against the wall on one foot.
Yoo Geum-yi rushed over, put the cat bag behind her back, and caught Hai Yoon¡¯s iling arms like a cheer. She hesitated at the woman¡¯s cold touch, however Yoo Geum-yi, who had tightly grasped Hai Yoon¡¯s wrist, dragged the corpse out of the elevator. She thenid it down straight right next to the elevator and straightened the corpse¡¯s arms. When she came back to Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang and Baek Ae-young, who had gone ahead, wereing back. I spoke to the two, who were looking at me.
¡°I think I won¡¯t see her in my dreams if I leave her here.¡±
What if she was left in the elevator and it fell abruptly? Neither of them said anything after seeing my actions. There was no criticism about wasting time when we were in a hurry. They just nodded, and Shin Haeryang said that he had gone to the convenience store and found no one, and then he helped Seo Jihyuk. I also held Seo Jihyuk¡¯s other arm and supported him. After walking about 2m, Shin Haeryang spoke to me.
¡°I think it would be faster if I carried him.¡±
¡°You¡¯ve been carrying Seo Jihyuk-ssi for quite a while now, wouldn¡¯t it be better if I carried him?¡±
¡°Well¡ I appreciate both of you for not suggesting to leave me behind, but if I were to voice my opinion, I don¡¯t want to be carried by team leader Shin if given the choice. I¡¯d feel morefortable on the dentist¡¯s back.¡±
¡°You¡¯re too full of yourself.¡±
When Shin Haeryang smirked lightly, Seo Jihyuk chuckled at his words. For some reason, I was relieved by Seo Jihyuk¡¯sughter. It was much better than listening to his barrage of curses.
Seo Ji-hyuk grimaced and said, ¡°I¡¯m hungry. I¡¯d be content if I could just boil and eat some ramen.¡±
Resting Seo Ji-hyuk¡¯s arm on my shoulder, I replied,
¡°Ah, same here. Ever since I came out of the seawater, I¡¯ve been thinking about that¡ There¡¯s even that ramen cup Soo-jung gave me!¡±
Supporting Seo Jihyuk, who was making sounds like the spicy and hot soup, was awkward because his knee was the injured part. He had practically wound his knee with pieces of clothing to the point that it was soaked in blood and hardly retained its original color. When we arrived at the convenience store, Baek Ae-young and Yoo Geum-yi were already rummaging through it the store.
Baek Ae-young, together with Yoo Geum-yi, tore up a few nkets with scissors and hands to make a long rope. Shin Haeryang cut off the unnecessary parts of the clothes wound around Seo Jihyuk¡¯s knee with scissors. Looking at the cut pieces, it seemed like a woman¡¯s cardigan that had been wound around tightly. A button fell off with a thunk.
When I asked if we need to remove all the cloth pieces from the knee, Shin Haeryang shook his head. He said if we do so, the bleeding could be worse. There were several parts where the cloth fibers had stuck to the reddened skin. When I brought several sanitary pads, Shin Haeryang carefully attached them to the knee, and began to wrap it with a towel and a long torn nket.
The only medicines avable in the convenience store were a few types of painkillers, general cold medicine, fever patches, disinfectants, and finger bands. There was absolutely no bandage or gauze. What if it hurts here?¡ Oh, we should just go to the hospital. The first floor here is a hospital, and it¡¯s free of charge. It¡¯s lucky that these items are in the convenience store.
Unable to find anything to use as a splint, I looked around and decided to use two dusty umbres that were unsold for quite a while as splints. Don¡¯t people here use umbres when it rains? I dusted off the umbres with my hands and shook them. When Baek Ae-young tied the umbres to his leg with a strip of nket that had be a rag, every time she tightened it, a moan escaped from Seo Jihyuk¡¯s lips.
¡°Stop whining.¡±
¡°You try enduring this.¡±
¡°Getting hit by a stray bullet and all. Tsk. It¡¯s embarrassing. If you knew the opponent was going to shoot at your knee, you should¡¯ve lifted your leg!¡±
At those words, Seo Jihyuk covered his mouth and shook. It seemed thatughing hurt him. I justughed, and Yoo Geum-yi, holding some water and a few convenience store breads, also chuckled. Shin Haeryang, who was looking through the drinks, nced at us once because of the suddenughter, then picked out a few sports drinks. Seo Jihyuk, who had been trying not tough for a while, seemed unjustly treated.
¡°Laughing hurts my whole body.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi was tearing open bags of bread from the convenience store shelf one by one, handing them out to people. Shin Haeryang intercepted the bread intended for Seo Jihyuk, shaking his head.
¡°Jihyuk is now fasting, except for water.¡±
Even if the world wasing to an end, I doubt Seo Jihyuk would pull such a face. I chimed in at Shin Haeryang¡¯s words.
¡°He needs surgery. There¡¯s no other way.¡±
When I started packing fever patches and painkillers, Yoo Geum-yi asked why I was grabbing fever patches.
¡°Do you have a fever?¡±
¡°No. I¡¯m packing them for Seo Jihyuk-ssi.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°I think he was shot in the knee.¡±
¡°When a bone breaks, does it cause a fever?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Apparently, the marine creatures Yoo Geum-yi studies don¡¯t get fevers when their bones break. Or maybe she had never experienced a broken bone before. Shin Haeryang urged us to move right away. Supporting Seo Jihyuk was much easier than before once we had set a splint to his leg. Shin Haeryang and I almost carried Seo Jihyuk as we moved.
Following the directions of Baek Ae-young, who took the lead, we passed by a sandwich shop and a caf¨¦ at the third underwater base. A goodyout. If it were me, I would have bought a sandwich, then grabbed a drink from the caf¨¦ next door. We could see one elevator at the third underwater base. Baek Ae-young signaled. It was a stop signal. Now I clearly knew the difference between the y down¡¯ and ¡®stop¡¯ signals.
As we stopped near the caf¨¦, Baek Ae-young pulled out a t-head screwdriver from the gap between her suit¡¯s ankle end and her shoes. She probably got it from the convenience store. Wow, I wonder when she picked that up. After looking around the elevator, Baek Ae-young came back.
¡°The elevator is stopped at the second underwater base. Should we call it, or should we go somewhere else?¡±
If we press the button to call the elevator, we have to wait more than three minutes. Given that we have an injured person, I suggested it might be better to use the elevator here to move. After hearing my opinion, Shin Haeryang looked at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s leg for a moment, considered, then nced at Yoo Geum-yi and me before proposing that we take the one here after only three seconds. Isn¡¯t that too frank? ¡It seemed Shin Haeryang thought that Yoo Geum-yi and I, rather than Seo Jihyuk who can¡¯t move on his own due to his injured knee, were more of a hindrance to their movement.- An extinct turtle[?]
Chapter 34
Chapter 34
Everyone assumed that we were moving towards the elevator as Baek Ae-young went to press the button. However, Shin Haeryang suggested we stay put, causing Baek Ae-young to naturally return to us. Baek Ae-young quietly answered Yoo Geum-yi and my question.
¡°The area around the elevator is too exposed. We can¡¯t stand in front because anyone could see us.¡±
¡°Wow!¡±
¡°Whoa.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi and I muttered in admiration at the unexpected insight. During our three-minute break, Seo Jihyuk sat on the floor behind the cafe¡¯s counter, checking if he could ess the inte on his tablet. Yoo Geum-yi promptly sat next to him and took out his phone.
¡°The inte isn¡¯t working.¡±
¡°Neither are the phones.¡±
Hearing their disappointed voices, I looked around the inside of the cafe we were in. I hadn¡¯t had a chance to try this cafe, as I¡¯d only been to the two in the fourth undersea base. The menu seemed to mainly consist of fruit smoothies. The evacuation must have been quite hasty as they leftrge quantities of frozen strawberries and blueberries outside the refrigerator. I attempted to put a pack of frozen strawberries back in the freezer above when I noticed that it wasn¡¯t working. And then¡ huh?
There was a lump of metal in the freezer that shouldn¡¯t have been there. Is this a real gun? Seo Jihyuk couldn¡¯t move. Baek Ae-young was busy watching the elevator.
¡°Shin Haeryang-ssi, could youe over here for a second?¡±
At my call, Shin Haeryang promptly came over. I showed him the non-functioning freezer. It seemed to have been used as a storage area, but there was an item that shouldn¡¯t have been there in a ce selling fruit juices.
¡°Did you touch it?¡±
¡°No, I just opened the door.¡±
Looking at the pistol and magazines in the freezer, Shin Haeryang pointed to a palm-sized empty spot next to them.
¡°It seems like someone took something from here and left these behind.¡±
Then, he checked that there was nothing else installed in the freezer, took the gun, and checked the safety and chamber.
¡°Is it fake?¡±
Please be fake.
Shin Haeryang shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s real.¡±
Inside the freezer were a gun, two magazines, a pack of bullets, and a bottle of spirits. Shin Haeryang carefully opened the remaining refrigerators. Only then did I realize he was checking for booby traps. ¡And I had just recklessly opened the freezer?
But all we found in the rest were bottles of milk, cold sodas, and various foods. Even after looking behind the milk, there was nothing. I awkwardly ced the pack of frozen strawberries I¡¯d been holding back on the floor. It seemed that therge packs of strawberries and blueberries were probably used to camouge the gun. Shin Haeryang disassembled the gunpletely on a cloth with a metallic ng.
Wait. Why is he disassembling a perfectly good gun? The disassembled parts of the palm-sized gun, exaggerating a bit, amounted to a handful. I worried he wouldn¡¯t be able to reassemble it, but Shin Haeryang, as if smashing my worries, began to put the gun back together, inspecting the spring and the internals. Like assembling LEGO, he pieced it together and finished reloading it within a short time. Just as he was finishing loading the magazines, Yoo Geum-yi entered the kitchen.
¡°What on earth are you two doing here¡?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s eyes widened at the sight of the gun. Ah, I had the same reaction when I found it in the freezer.
Swallowing hard, Yoo Geum-yi asked, ¡°Are¡ are you going to use that?¡±
Shin Haeryang, looking at the gun he was holding downward, spoke. It seemed like he was engaging the safety. ¡°I hope there¡¯s no need.¡±
When we left the small kitchen following Shin Haeryang, Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young, who saw the gun, caused amotion, startling Yoo Geum-yi and me.
¡°I can¡¯t shoot? Captain? No, Team leader! I even got shot today, and it¡¯s tough.¡±
¡°He¡¯s tired, let¡¯s leave him out. You know my skills, right? I can guarantee I won¡¯t waste a single bullet.¡±
¡°¡I¡¯ll keep it. Both of you, quiet down.¡±
Both of them looked disheartened at Shin Haeryang¡¯s words. Why are they both so desperate to possess a gun? When I asked, Baek Ae-young spoke as if sighing. ¡°I¡¯m currently carrying a machine gun loaded with my desires. Do you know how anxious it is to be unarmed?¡±
¡°I have absolutely no idea.¡±
I paused to think but my answer was still the same. I should have been armed at some point to understand that.
¡°Don¡¯t you think we can expect a peaceful resolution from the other side, given that I don¡¯t have any weapon to harm them?¡±
¡°Well, seeing a gun being brought into an underwater base where weapons are prohibited, it seems like the other side is not thinking about a peaceful solution at all. They seem to want chaos filled with blood and screams.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤ I do excel at causing blood and screams, but I always resort to peaceful solutions.¡±
Upon hearing that, Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yiughed quietly. They both have received treatment from me before. Baek Ae-young, seeing the two of them smiling, wore a puzzled expression. It wasn¡¯t untilter that she clicked her fingers and remembered, ¡°Ah, you¡¯re a dentist,¡± she said.
¡°If the other side wants peace, I¡¯m the kind of person who will reciprocate with the same kind of peaceful approach. (Seo Jihyuk shook his head as if that would never happen) But if they want a bloody fight, I¡¯ll dly fight.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤ Have you never heard the saying that fights should be stopped and negotiations should be encouraged?¡±
¡°Is that a Korean proverb?¡±
Hehehe. My goodness.
Baek Ae-young suddenly looked up and saw the elevator. Like a meerkat stretching its neck, she suddenly told everyone to crouch down. I, who was already half-sitting, and Yoo Geum-yi, who covered her mouth with her hand, could barely breathe.
Hiding behind the counter of the cafe, we felt like we would be discovered if we even slightly raised our heads. Footsteps could be heard, possibly someoneing out of the elevator. Looking at Baek Ae-young¡¯s fingers, it seemed to be two people. I had to suppress my urge to throw myself at them and beg to be taken out of the underwater base. Shin Haeryang, Seo Jihyuk, and Baek Ae-young, without making a sound, raised their index fingers to their mouths.
Shin Haeryang nudged the gun in my hand twice with his fingertip and knocked the air twice towards the elevator. It was hard to understand whether he wanted to shoot the person who had juste out of the elevator or whether those people were also armed with guns. Given the engineering team¡¯s personality, the former seemed more likely, which made me anxious.
When the people came out of the elevator and moved to the side, we could see them just a little. On their arms, they had either a round mark or a patch, shaped like a shark with its mouth open, made up of ck, red, and white colors. Both were armed with guns, dressed in dark clothing overall, and wearing ck masks that covered their noses.
People in the underwater base mostly don¡¯t wear all ck. As you go deeper into the sea, it gets darker due to theck of light. They wear colorful clothes to prevent idents and alleviate depression, but seeing their dark clothing after looking at colorful clothes for five days, I naturally felt intimidated.
Seeing them made me understand why Baek Ae-young was so cautious about riding the elevator. They seemed to have been constantly inside the elevator. Seeing theme out as soon as I pressed the button. Two men with guns, wearing ck hats, ck masks, ck clothes, and shark patches on their shoulders. Such unsightly figures that people would avoid them on the street. Why are these people in the underwater base?
Listening to their conversation, the two armed men seemed very curious about who had pressed the elevator button. Yoo Geum-yi muttered quietly. Somniosus microcephalus. I had no idea what that meant. But the trantor in my ear tranted it to ¡°Greend Shark¡± after a few seconds with a dry voice, and I thought my heart was going to drop.
The two with guns began to search the ¡°Unlimited Chocte Cookies and Book Caf¨¦,¡± which was closer to the elevator than the caf¨¦ where we were hiding. Only after the two figures hadpletely disappeared did Baek Ae-young speak.
¡°If we had a silencer, I would have shot them right away.¡±
Shin Haeryang did not deny Baek Ae-young¡¯s words, agreeing with them. She asked whether they should take the now vacant elevator, given that the two armed individuals had gone towards the book cafe.
¡°I am concerned about them having used the elevator that was stationed at the second submarine base.¡±
Perhaps Shin Haeryang anticipated that as soon as they ascended in the elevator, called ¡®Archelon¡¯, they would encounter a truck filled with personnel dressed in ck hats and dark clothing.
Yoo Geum-yi scratched her cheek and asked Shin Haeryang, ¡°Do you think they¡¯ll be hostile towards us, even though we haven¡¯t done anything?¡±
¡°They¡¯re hiding their faces. It means they¡¯re ready to do anything anonymously.¡±
¡°But there are many who do such things even without hiding their faces.¡±
¡°¡True.¡±
Hearing the two¡¯s lukewarm exchange, I asked them incredulously, ¡°So what do we do?¡±
¡°The first who moves is wins.¡±
Baek Ae-young, holding a screwdriver, looked at Shin Haeryang. After a few seconds, he nodded.
¡°We¡¯ll catch and interrogate them.¡±
Shin Haeryang handed the gun he was holding to Baek Ae-young. With the screwdriver clenched in her teeth and a gun in one hand, Baek Ae-young told me and Yoo Geum-yi to hide in the kitchen until they captured the two individuals. And to note out until called.
As Yoo Geum-yi and I prepared to take Seo Jihyuk, who was sitting on the floor, into the kitchen, Shin Haeryang shook his head. Seo Jihyuk sighed deeply and spoke.
¡°So you need my killer acting skills, right?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
In front of the grumbling Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang nodded without a change in expression. Seo Jihyuk, who imed that he had to be there, held his leg and pretended to roll around.
¡°Aaaargh! My leg!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi and I hid in the kitchen and began counting. Less than two minutes had passed when we heard Baek Ae-young¡¯s voice. When we came out, one of the armed individuals was lying on top of Seo Jihyuk. Baek Ae-young was pointing a gun at the other¡¯s face, and the end of the gun that the armed man was holding was pointed directly at my thigh.
Shin Haeryang, bare-handed, was almost dragging the man from behind, directing the man¡¯s armed weapon towards the man¡¯s own thigh. Shin Haeryang then made a terrifying threat.
¡°If you scream, either your face will be blown off, or something inside your pants. One of the two will be blown away.¡±
Since Shin Haeryang was over 190 cm tall, if the gun were fired, the man who seemed about 170 cm tall would lose something precious in his lower abdomen or lower area. But even if Shin Haeryang was hit incorrectly, it would be his thigh or calf. Seo Jihyuk pushed the man on top of him aside, snatched the gun he was holding, and pointed it at the man Shin Haeryang was apprehending. The three of them were aiming at one person.
¡°Slowly raise both hands.¡±
We''re getting deeper into the story by this chapter. Not gonna spoil anything here, but just like the phrase, ''the ocean is too vast'', you''ll never know what''s lurking around inside the sea.
Chapter 35
Chapter 35
The man was in a position where pulling the trigger would result in shooting between his own legs. The muzzle of his gun, aimed at him, seemed unlikely to miss his face or chest. Even under these circumstances, with Seo Jihyuk aiming a gun at the man¡¯s side, he still spoke.
¡°We¡ we survive in any situation.¡±
¡Impressive. If it were me, I would be too terrified to utter a word.
¡°Do you want to shit your pants for the rest of your life?¡±
The chill down my spine ran deeper upon hearing Baek Ae-young¡¯s voice. When Baek Ae-young aimed her gun from his head to his chest, then to his lower abdomen, the man gave up his gun and raised his hands. Shin Haeryang slowly took the surrendered gun. Seo Jihyuk shuddered as he looked at Baek Ae-young.
¡°Eh¡ You probably don¡¯t understand the meaning of the threat you just made.¡±
¡°Is it my business to know?¡±
As I heard Baek Ae-young¡¯s icy voice from behind, I walked over to the man lying nearby. As I approached the seemingly unconscious man, Seo Jihyuk stopped me.
¡°His carotid artery is severed. He¡¯s dead for sure¡ Hey, are youing out when I didn¡¯t call you yet¡±
I thought Baek Ae-young was telling us toe out, but it seems like she wasn¡¯t
¡°I¡ I thought we were supposed to capture him alive, not kill him.¡±
¡°If my leg had been fine, that would have been possible.¡±
I looked at the man¡¯s neck lying next to where Seo Jihyuk had been, and it was horrifying to the point where I wanted to look away. Nearly the entire de of the scissors we used to cut the nket from the convenience store was lodged in his neck, and the thead screwdriver that Baek Ae-young had held prated his neck. Regardless of whether you looked from up close or afar, he was clearly dead.
A scissor and screwdriver lodged in a person¡¯s neck.
As I tried to examine the man with trembling hands, Yoo Geum-yi drew me back. I was effortlessly pulled back by her significantly smaller hands. The man lying in view had a steady stream of blood pouring from his neck, like a small thumb-sized fountain. A pool was continuously forming.
I stared nkly at the bleeding parts. Normally, that much blood should not flow out. Even when you lose a tooth, it does not bleed that much. It shouldn¡¯t bleed that much.
My heartbeat pounded in my ears, thump thump thump thump. I felt suffocated as if I couldn¡¯t breathe, and severe dizziness hit me. Yoo Geum-yi was covering my eyes with her small hand, but as soon as I thought that was impossible because of her height, I realized I had already copsed on the floor. From the side, questions from Shin Haeryang murmured in my ear. My vision was pitch ck.
Who are you guys?
Who¡¯s the instigator?
How many armed personnel are there in the underwater base?
How did you get the guns in?
Despite my spinning vision, Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s small hand covering my burning eyes felt so cold it was a bit sad.
I took out a water bottle from my bag and drank. nkly, I rolled a piece of candy in my mouth. It tasted like lemon. And it was sweet. I had seen so many people suffering from tooth decay that I had avoided sweet things.
Taking out a water bottle from my bag, I absentmindedly put a piece of candy in my mouth and rolled it around. It tasted like lemon, and it was sweet. I had seen so many people struggling with tooth decay that I have been avoiding sweets.
Of course, part of the reason is that I simply dislike sweet foods. I respond heavily to sweetness, so even a little sweetness gives me a headache. I haven¡¯t touched choctes and candies, let alone jellies. I didn¡¯t frequently drink carbonated or liquid drinks either. I hate alcohol, and I don¡¯t smoke.To be precise, I tried smoking for a month because my friends gave me cigarettes several times, but it didn¡¯t suit me, and it cost too much, so I quit. Now, for the past few hours, I have been consuming more sweet foods than I have in yearsbined. My teeth and pancreas must be in shock.
As I was lost in such thoughts, Yoo Geum-yi spoke, ¡°Moohyun-ssi, you¡¯re acting like this because you¡¯re suddenly under a lot of stress.¡±
¡°But everyone here is likely under the same amount of stress.¡±
¡°People are not all the same. How each person perceives stress is different. And how they feel is also different. A spider crawling on the bed is nothing to me, but my little brother would scream and try to burn down the entire room.¡±
Feeling embarrassed by Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s attempts tofort me, I wiped my nose and eyes with the back of my hand.
¡°But you seem to be handling it well, Geum-yi-ssi.¡±
¡°Really? Actually, I¡¯m not feeling so great either. Just¡¡±
¡°Just?¡±
¡°Just enduring it¡ blood, you know. I see it in normal times. And in experiments.¡±
¡°Oh¡¡±
She was a researcher. With my mind spinning, I tried hard to concentrate on what Yoo Geum-yi was saying.
¡°But seeing blood pouring out from someone¡¯s neck like that¡ It¡¯s my first time.¡±
¡°I see. It¡¯s my first time seeing scissors in someone¡¯s throat¡¡±
¡°It must have been Jihyuk-ssi. I saw him hiding a pair of scissors in his leg cast at the convenience store.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Then there was a moment of silence. After Yoo Geum-yi dragged me to the kitchen, simply sitting down helped me return to my normal state quickly. The man with a screwdriver and scissors stuck in his neck and his eyeballs flipped over was just a few meters away from here, but I felt relieved just by not looking at him. I was in a mild state of shock.
¡°Hang in there, Moohyun-ssi. We managed to escape from the 4th Undersea Base, remember?¡±
¡°Right¡ We were stuck in an elevator not too long ago.¡±
¡°That¡¯s tru. When the elevator fell, we both screamed.¡±
At the memory, Yoo Geum-yi faintly smiled. I, too, returned a small smile. I felt a lot better. I wasn¡¯t struggling to breathe like before, and I wasn¡¯t infinitely scared. I suddenly thanked Yoo Geum-yi.
¡°Thank you, Geum-yi-ssi. My head¡¯s more clear now because of you.¡±
¡°You¡¯re wee.¡±
A small, cold hand gently patted my back. I was embarrassed. A grown man, not a child, was beingforted by a younger, shorter woman in this frightening situation. The moment I realized that, I felt like I wanted to die out of shame. Ugh, so embarrassing.What kind of a fool am I? I really need to get a grip.
As we came out of the kitchen, I was unsure whether the interrogation was over or whether we had just paused it. The dead man from before was covered up to his chest with an unknown cloth. I had no idea who did it.
Seo Jihyuk was sitting against the wall, his gun aimed at a man, and Baek Ae-young was doing the same, although he asionally checked their surroundings more than the man in front of him. Shin Haeryang, keeping his gun aimed, didn¡¯t take his eyes off the man as he spoke.
¡°¡I think it might be dangerous to take the nearest elevator first.¡±
¡°So, people like these are guarding the elevator from above?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Then there was silence. After a few hours, I realized. This seemed to be Shin Haeryang¡¯s nature. If you didn¡¯t ask precisely or request an exnation, he wouldn¡¯t tell you anything. I asked about the most curious thing.
¡°What kind of people are they?¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed to be showing off a shark-shaped mark that looked like it was torn off from the dead man¡¯s forearm with his left hand, but he flinched and hid it when he saw the blood stter.
Watching Seo Jihyuk¡¯s action, Shin Haeryang sighed lowly and said, ¡°It¡¯s a religion of people who have a thing for Greend sharks.¡±
¡°No, you sphemous bastard!¡±
The man, who had been shouting in a heated voice, quieted down as he felt the muzzle of Baek Ae-young¡¯s gun against the back of his head. Startled by his voice, Yoo Geum-yi, who had hidden behind me, caused my startled heart to calm down, then I spoke.
¡°There are three elements of religion: doctrine, dogma, and denomination, right? Who is the doctrine, I mean, the founder of this religion?¡±
Shin Haeryang was, unusually, searching for an answer. It seemed like the result of his questioning was not very effective. After moving his pupils around, Shin Haeryang barely managed to say, ¡°¡Seems like a psychopath who likes seafood.¡±
¡°No!¡±
Baek Ae-young pressed the muzzle against the back of the man¡¯s head again, quieting him down.
I asked Shin Haeryang once more, ¡°What¡uh, what¡¯s the doctrine? The teachings of that religion.¡±
As Shin Haeryang hesitated while looking at the man, he ambiguously replied to me, ¡°¡Genocide of mankind?¡±
¡°You bastard!¡±
Now, Baek Ae-young banged the back of his head with the muzzle of the gun.
¡°Do you want a small, unhealing hole in that big head of yours? Huh? Want a hole for the wind to pass through?¡±
The man, threatened by Baek Ae-young, was so angry he didn¡¯t know what to do. He was grinding his teeth, but it seemed more because he felt unfairly treated by Shin Haeryang¡¯s answer than by Baek Ae-young¡¯s action.
Shin Haeryang, not paying any attention to the man, continued, ¡°It¡¯s said that there are heavily armed, aggressive, and antisocial people in front of the second underwater base elevator. And they¡¯re shooting anyone whoes up. We can¡¯t trust this man¡¯s answer, but if it¡¯s true, it seems like there are approximately eight to twenty of them.¡±
I frowned at the number of armed personnel, but Yoo Geum-yi made a grim face looking at the shark on the man¡¯s forearm.
¡°Do you mean Greend shark?¡±
¡°¡Yes. You seem to be the smartest one here, smarter than these infidels. We live with the immortal shark! We survive any danger and hardship!¡±
Hearing this, Yoo Geum-yi remarked, incredulously. ¡°If a bullet hits your head or a knife sticks in your neck, you die.¡±
As soon as she said this, the man red at Yoo Geum-yi. After a few seconds of staring back without backing down, Yoo Geum-yi blinked several times as if her eyes were dry, then quietly hid behind my back. Ah, crap. Something got into my eye. Rubbing her eye with the back of her hand, Yoo Geum-yi spoke from behind me.
¡°I¡¯ve heard there is a religion that desires immortal life and considers a 600-year-old Greend shark a friend. Its name was¡ ¡®Church of the Ancient Shark¡¯?¡±
¡°It¡¯s Infinity!¡±
Hearing the man¡¯s furious yell, Seo Jihyuk surveyed his surroundings warily. However, Yoo Geum-yi seemed unbothered by the man¡¯s outburst.
¡°It¡¯s impossible to live forever!¡±
¡°You fool. Ignorance is a sin. In ces unbeknownst to you, research on immortality is underway. Don¡¯t speak ignorantly about what you don¡¯t know!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, seemingly angry, crossed her arms and began to speak.
¡°Ah. There was a person just like you in theboratory where I used to work. A total idiot among idiots. You know, when the temperature decreases, genes that suppress aging be active. In order to adapt to the freezing ocean, one has no choice but to slow down their metabolism and grow at an extremely slow rate. The Greend shark is the only shark that lives in the coldest region, which is why they live so long! Humans are programmed by their DNA to live until they¡¯re about 38! Even with the progress of modern science and medicine, the human lifespan is limited to around 150 years! If you throw a human into a sub-zero ocean like the Greend shark, wouldn¡¯t the human lifespan be about 10 minutes? What do you mean, live forever? Even living for 200 years is impossible!¡±
¡°The Greend shark is the longest-living vertebrate on Earth. Humans are also vertebrates!¡±
Upon hearing the man¡¯s absurd argument, Yoo Geum-yi, a marine biologist, looked like she was going to die of high blood pressure.
Infinity Church... ??
Chapter 36
Chapter 36
In order to lower Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s blood pressure, which was spiking due to a grip of frustration, I stepped in.
¡°While studying about sharks, I learned that Greend sharks, as far as I know, live in the North Antic, right? Why are they causing chaos at a North Pacific underwater base?¡±
¡°They also live in Canada.¡±
His response wasughable. *Chuckle*. This guy could work as aedian or help lower the blood pressure of hypotensive patients. I tried to recall past memories.
¡°In a religion¡ there should be objects of faith, priests, followers, scriptures, and temples, right? Let¡¯s say the object of faith is an octopus, priests are sharks, followers are squids, money is seashells. Is there even one temple? Do you own any real estate? In front of the three elevators at the second underwater base? Or is it the Dragon Pce wedding hall? The first underwater base? Or do you sleep homeless on this beach?¡±
¡°You fools. We are a very old religion. Temples exist in any country, city, and sea. Your home is already our field.¡±
Baek Ae-young must have thought that she had warned enough. Without saying a word, she pped the man¡¯s cheek with a gun from behind.
At the sudden violence, I gaped, and Yoo Geum-yi-i, who was behind me, was shocked enough to step back. The man¡¯s face almost turned 90 degrees. It looked like his teeth had been knocked out. As the man licked the inside of his mouth with his tongue and tried to spit out his teeth, I reflexively blocked his mouth with my palm. Startled, I stammered.
¡°Don¡¯t spit out your teeth, leave them in your mouth¡ you need to have your teeth for the treatment.¡±
¡°¡Are you the new dentist?¡±
Whether it¡¯s ceramic or gold, nothing beats one¡¯s own teeth, whether in the past or now. Growing them with stem cells takes too long. Moreover, there is no equipment here. The man¡¯s speech was a mess with blood and saliva and teeth in his mouth, and I did not answer. Then the man spat his teeth out onto the floor along with his blood, cackling withughter.
The man spoke to me, spraying blood. His pronunciation was unclear, but strangely, I heard it well.
¡°Your younger brother is a university freshman now, right? Your fathermitted suicide, and your mother was hit by a drunk driver and can¡¯t use her lower body, right? She¡¯s literally crawling on the ground?¡±
My heart began pounding in my ear again. A chill ran down my back as if I had been hit on the back of my head.
Everything he said was true, and instead of being angry, I wondered how he knew all this. The man, spitting out blood from his mouth, said.
¡°Did you think I wouldn¡¯t know? We¡¯ve already investigated you and your family. You have a lot of debt, right? Fool! If you don¡¯t immediately join our Infinity Church, not only the life and death of your family, but you won¡¯t survive in this underwater base¡ª.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi gasped for breath. The man was neatly knocked out by Shin Haeryang¡¯s punch that flew in. It seemed like he had broken the man¡¯s nose and philtrum with one punch of his right hand. The man, who was kneeling with his hand on his head and sneering at me, rolled straight onto the floor.
Hitting the man¡¯s philtrum, the opponent¡¯s nose and two front teeth were broken. Shin Haeryang simply shook off the blood dripping from the back of his hand to the ground. I stared nkly at the man who had fallen to the ground. Given the extent of the trauma, he would need to visit not only a dentist but also an otorhinryngologist and a stic surgeon.
I picked up the teeth that had fallen onto the floor, dazed. People¡¯s teeth don¡¯t fall out this easily.
Do you know how much strength you need to pull out a wisdom tooth? The same goes for these front teeth. Can human teeth be so easily pulled out? Do you know how much time and money it takes to treat this? While I was out of my senses, touching the white teeth, Shin Haeryang lightly tapped my shoulder.
¡°Let¡¯s move.¡±
I flinched at the touch on my shoulder. Without asking anything about what had just happened, he just helped up Seo Jihyuk, who had been sitting on the floor. Yoo Geum-yi-i trudged along, quietly calling out, ¡°Moohyun.¡± Like a swinging pendulum, I began to move, too. Like snatching a cat bag from Yoo Geum-yi, I slung it over my shoulder and helped Seo Jihyuk.
Baek Ae-young said she would bring up the rear and told us to go ahead. Yoo Geum-yi, not knowing what to do, followed us at Baek Ae-young¡¯s nce. I saw Baek Ae-young, dragging a dead person with a pair of scissors stuck in their neck.
The puddle of blood, the teeth rolling on the ground, the disfigured face, and the blood were all too vivid. There¡¯s no need to hit like that. There¡¯s no need to hit a person like that. I touched the teeth that I had grabbed in shock and murmured. If I didn¡¯t say something, I felt like I was going to cry.
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤There was nothing particrly wrong with what the man said earlier. If this cult has investigated my family, my family might be in danger now.¡±
Blood and violence, dead bodies and injured people, cults, armed personnel, a leaking underwater base. As I was saying this with my fist shaking with anxiety, Shin Haeryang, who had been listening quietly, nodded his head.
¡°Ignore it. There would be no more effective method to recruit the current Moohyun-ssi than that kind of threat. And if they¡¯ve investigated a person who¡¯s only been hired for five days to that extent, they¡¯ve likely already investigated all of us as well.¡±
It was a weighty statement that left no room for any anxiety. That made me feel a little more relieved about the cult¡¯s flickering pupils and voice. There was a bloody tooth in my hand.
I really hate this. I didn¡¯t know that seeing a tooth that had fallen out outside of the dentist¡¯s office could be so horrible. The anxiety that had been pounding like a storm had now started to rain lightly. I barely managed to suppress my emotions that felt like they were about to explode. It felt like if someone pushed me, I would burst into tears.
Seo Jihyuk hesitated before saying, ¡°That¡ earlier, he was spouting bullshit when the doctor wasn¡¯t here. So don¡¯t worry too much.¡±
¡°¡Yes.¡±
It seemed that Seo Jihyuk believed that I wasn¡¯t shocked because I¡¯d witnessed a violent act, but rather due to the contents of what the cult member had said. I had never seen someone being beaten up, let alone beaten someone myself.
Yoo Geum-yi kept ncing behind us. As Baek Ae-young was now out of sight, she seemed to be worried.
¡°Ae-young-ssi isn¡¯ting?¡±
¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry, Geum-yi-ssi. She¡¯ll be here soon. You remember she walks faster than us, right?¡±
We were walking back past the sandwich shop toward the convenience store. Once we¡¯d returned to the point where we could see the body of Hai Yoonid on the ground, Baek Ae-young had somehow managed to end up at the back of our group. Yoo Geum-yi, walking ahead, asked Shin Haeryang.
¡°Where are we going?¡±
¡°Somewhere that religious cult group won¡¯t find us.¡±
¡°Is there such a ce? From here to the second undersea base, we can only get there by taking one of the three elevators, including the central one, or the two escape ports.¡±
¡°There is one more.¡±
¡°There¡¯s one more? But the guidebook, the maps, and the blueprints don¡¯t show that?¡±
I don¡¯t even know how many elevators are here. Yoo Geum-yi, who has lived here for over a year, and Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young, who have been here even longer, were all puzzled about where Shin Haeryang was leading us. But Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t ask, and Seo Jihyuk, being dragged along by others due to his injured leg, didn¡¯t seem pleased with his situation and started grumbling again.
¡°Team Leader? Team Leader? I think you¡¯re upset because of that lunatic spouting nonsense earlier, but calm down. How about we somehow take the central elevator? We could sabotage the elevator at the second undersea base so the door doesn¡¯t open. Or, we could just have a gunfight. Isn¡¯t it better to escape quickly by elevator than dealing with those damned escape pods?¡±
As Seo Jihyuk was speaking, Shin Haeryang, who was supporting him, stopped. This caused me, who was also supporting Jihyuk, and Yoo Geum-yi, who was walking behind us, and Baek Ae-young, who wasst in line, to stop as well. Shin Haeryang asked me and Yoo Geum-yi.
¡°There are two options. A difficult journey to the second undersea base without encountering any people, or an easy journey there, but with a 100% chance of running into those armed cult members. Which do you prefer?¡±
¡°I prefer not running into people with guns, even if it¡¯s hard.¡±
At Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words, Seo Jihyukughed heartily. I remembered the previous situation and shook my head.
¡°I don¡¯t want to meet those guys.¡±
I no longer wanted to be with Shin Haeryang, Seo Jihyuk, or Baek Ae-young. Emotionally, I just wanted to lie in bed all day, vomiting and hiding. But I couldn¡¯t bring myself to admit it. Was I raised too weakly? No¡ After my father¡¯s death, I had lived as amoner amongmoners in Korea. I thought I had grown like a field of grass, but now I realized that the field had unexpectedly been inside a greenhouse.
How many times have I seen someone die from a knife to the throat in my life? That madness. Speaking of another¡¯s misfortune with blood-soaked nonchnce, people punching others and teeth flying out¡
The less I see of those cult members, the less I¡¯ll have to witness such scenes. Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t answer Shin Haeryang¡¯s question. Shin Haeryang asked Yoo Geum-yi again.
¡°Have you ever shot a gun?¡±
¡°No.¡±
Shin Haeryang turned to me, and I also shook my head again. Seo Jihyuk said in a nagging tone, ¡°This is the problem since the implementation of voluntary military service. Men who don¡¯t know how to shoot guns¡¡± Baek Ae-young, who had been standing guard with a gun, looked at Seo Jihyuk, leaning on my arm, with disbelief and said with contempt.
¡°Yep, big problem. A man who knows how to shoot ends up getting shot.¡±
Baek Ae-young nudged Seo Jihyuk¡¯s bandaged left leg with her toe, causing him to il his hand about in pain, not daring to scream in case he was heard.
¡°Ouch! Baek Ae-young! Wait till I get out of here!¡±
¡°Ha, go ahead, kill me. Kill me here. Idiot.¡±
While Baek Ae-young teased Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang seemed to have decided that the less dangerous route was the best. The smell of bread wafted around the convenience store, as we were close to the bakery. We began to move further away from the center, seemingly heading for a corner.
Haeryang seems to know more about the base than others... I wonder if he''s got something to hide?
Chapter 37
Chapter 37
Before they knew it, Shin Haeryang hade to a stop. He opened what seemed to be a fire hydrant embedded in the wall, but contrary to what it appeared, it was not a hydrant. It was dark inside, carrying the scent of mold and sea water. Pointing to the inky void within, Shin Haeryang spoke.
¡°Each of you may enter one at a time.¡±
It seemed as if he was addressing us all and Yoo Geum-yi included, but neither of us moved. I stared into the darkness, it looked like a ce where monsters could lurk. Much like a ck hole consuming light, the illumination by my side failed to prate this abyss. Pointing towards the unseen interior, I asked.
¡°What is this ce used for?¡±
¡°It¡¯s the stairs.¡±
¡°Stairs¡? There are stairs in the undersea base?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, Baek Ae-young, and Seo Jihyuk all wore bewildered expressions.
¡°It was built during the early stages of the undersea base when no central elevator had been made yet. It was used while constructing Undersea Base 1 through Undersea Base 3. It¡¯s a temporary fixture, so it¡¯s ufortable and difficult to manage, and because of frequent idents, it¡¯s no longer used.¡±
Additionally, there was no light. I swallowed saliva as I looked at the total darkness inside the hydrant-like fixture. An eerie wind seemed to be blowing from inside, making a strange noise. And the smell was peculiar too. It was a location straight out of a horror film, a ce any sane person wouldn¡¯t dare to enter.
¡°What kind of idents happened?¡±
¡°People slipped and fell, from what I understand. Once you see the stairs, you¡¯ll understand why. You¡¯ll see when you see the stairs, but there are no handrails and the stairs were not made to standard, so the heights are inconsistent. Moreover, since thepletion of the elevator, the stairs haven¡¯t been used, so there¡¯s a lot of dust and it will be slippery.¡±
Despite my efforts not to, my gaze found its way to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s legs. I wasn¡¯t the only one¡ªYoo Geum-yi and Baek Ae-young were also reflexively staring at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s legs. Seo Jihyuk swore under his breath.
¡°How high are these stairs?¡±
¡°To reach the second undersea base, which is approximately 800m from the third base, you will have to climb about 180 floors. That¡¯s¡ roughly 4300 steps.¡±
I was at a loss for words. So this was what Shin Haeryang meant by ¡®a difficult journey to the second base without encountering others¡¯. I couldn¡¯t recall a single instance in the past five years where I had climbed a ten-story staircase. But now, 180 floors? This is madness.
Yoo Geum-yi, the researcher, also seemed to nch further. Damn it. I almost joined in echoing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s earlier sentiments. 4300 steps? I recall there being 1600 steps when climbing to the peak of Mount Oseo.
¡°Um¡ 4300 steps. That¡¯s surefire workout¡ How long will it take to climb all the way up?¡±
Shin Haeryang looked at Yoo Geum-yi and me, then finally at Seo Jihyuk, before hesitantly replying.
¡°If you climb quickly without rest, you should be able to reach the second undersea base within 60 minutes. However, with this group, it will likely take at least an hour and a half.¡±
Oh¡ I found Shin Haeryang¡¯s optimism oddly reassuring. I had thought we would need an entire day to make it up the stairs. Even Baek Ae-young, who had never once questioned Shin Haeryang¡¯s decisions, wore a troubled expression.
¡°Wait¡ Team Leader. I once participated in a vertical marathon where a top-tier time required running up one step per third of a second, or roughly seven seconds per floor. If I remember correctly¡ the record for receiving an award was under 25 minutes. Even those who trained exhaustively just to climb stairs would likely take around 30 minutes for a height like this. I¡ I enjoy climbing. But aside from you and me, Team Leader, everyone else will probably copse as soon as they reach the second undersea base, unable to even move a finger.¡±
To Baek Ae-young¡¯s statement, Shin Haeryang responded in a low voice.
¡°¡That won¡¯t be a major problem. It would be best if several problems arise at the second and third undersea bases during the time we are climbing. For instance, if they end up shooting each other to death.¡±
Upon hearing Shin Haeryang¡¯s im that climbing the stairs wouldn¡¯t pose any issues, Seo Jihyuk nced at his own legs. It seemed he held more hope for the elevator that could swiftly carry them upward.
¡°Screw it. Will a person die twice? Let¡¯s take the elevator. A cult? Let¡¯s fight it out! At the least, I can take down three.¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words fell on deaf ears as Yoo Geum-yi, who had been obsessively repeating ¡®4300¡¯ like a mantra since earlier, finally spoke after a series of sighs.
¡°Let¡¯s climb, taking breaks on the way. The less we encounter people with guns, the better.¡±
I let out a sigh as I stared at the barely visible stairs in the darkness and the interior of the underwater base enveloped in a warm light. My answer was almost predictable.
¡°I¡¯d rather climb the stairs in the dark than encounter those guys we saw earlier.¡±
Baek Ae-young said nothing. Yoo Geum-yi, Seo Jihyuk, and I were looking at her. Seo Jihyuk, in particr, was ardently looking at her as if pleading for her to take his side. Baek Ae-young, with a cool gaze, looked back at Seo Jihyuk and said,
¡°I agree with Team Leader Shin Haeryang¡¯s opinion.¡±
Now, the gazes of Baek Ae-young, Seo Jihyuk, Yoo Geum-yi, and myself fell on Shin Haeryang. The expression on Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face was particrlyical, as if he was desperately trying to grab onto a single lifeline. He started to cling to the expressionless Shin Haeryang, trying to win the majority vote. Seo Jihyuk started to spout nonsense.
¡°The cult members might only be two or a handful of less than five. When we ascended to the second underwater base, the entire floor was eerily empty. It felt unjust to have climbed so many stairs. Clearly, they¡¯re making efforts to seem more numerous than they are. How about hiding in the elevator and going up? (The elevator is transparent, isn¡¯t it?) Maybe the Japanese or Chinese have already fought the cultists and everything is over. They may have fought amongst themselves and all be dead. The fourth underwater base was a mess, how can we know when the central elevator connecting to the third or second underwater bases could go wrong or copse? We¡¯re also in the dark. And if these two (He pointed at Yoo Geum-yi and me with his finger) think they are burdens, I will teach them how to shoot a gun right now. Who knows, they may have a great talent. Maybe this person (pointing at me) possess a natural killer¡¯s talent, which could exin why he became a dentist. Drilling into people¡¯s teeth is not something you can do with a normal mind. Can anyone stay sane when they spend their whole day looking into people¡¯s mouths? (Ha ha ha! Iughed out loud at this point.) Yoo Geum-yi might also be a perfect match for a gun. Look at Baek Ae-young. The shorter, timid-looking women with long hair often have a level of inherent violence that¡¯s beyond description. Surely, Yoo Geum-yi might also be naturally adept with a gun. Look at Baek Aeyoung. Women who look small, timid, and long-haired tend to harbor unimaginable violence within. Certainly, Yugeum will have the courage and decisiveness to pull the trigger. As a marine biology graduate student studying in this deep-sea base, the violent decisions she made risking her life might be a manifestation of a level of frustration and stressparable to that of a mass shooter. (What? Yoo Geum-yi looked at him with a bewildered expression.) Why should we walk strenuously for over 90 minutes in the darkness, when we canfortably walk for just 3 minutes in the light? Look at my legs!¡± And so on¡
Shin Haeryang silently listened to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words, then asked, ¡°You¡¯re suggesting that we, with three guns, protect two civilians who¡¯ve never held a gun and one injured person while engaging in a shootout with an unknown number of religious fanatics in an elevator? Even if it were forty thousand stairs instead of four thousand, I¡¯d choose the stairs.¡±
At his words, Baek Ae-young giggled and was the first to throw herself into the darkness inside the fire escape.
Seo Jihyuk let out a sigh. In the pitch-ck darkness, Yoo Geum-yi barely made out Baek Ae-young¡¯s silhouette and asked, ¡°How is it in there?¡±
¡°It¡¯sfortable and cozy. Soft rock music is ying, there¡¯s a scent of roses, the floor is covered with feathers, and petals are falling from above.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤I¡¯ll go in too.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi cautiously entered the fire escape. Then I bent my waist and went in. None of Baek Ae-young¡¯s words were true. First of all, the sound of the wind was whistling, there was the smell of mold, dust, and something rotting. The floor was covered with garbage that someone had discarded, and unidentifiable drops of water fell from above. Furthermore, the stairs were slippery, there was nothing to hold onto except the wall, and the steps were all of different heights.
I propped up Seo Jihyuk from the inside to let him in, and Shin Haeryang supported him from the outside. Seo Jihyuk could barely get in only after lying t as if he was being carried by people. Thest one was Shin Haeryang.
From inside, I saw Shin Haeryang wiping the floor with something like a rag that had been in the cafe, erasing fingerprints, and then entered by closing the door of the fire hydrant from the inside. As the fire hydrant door waspletely closed, there was no lighting in from outside.
Baek Ae-young was illuminating the floor with the light from the pad. Seo Jihyuk shone the light from the pad on the wall, saw something moving, cursed for a while, and then just illuminated the floor. I put my hand into the bag, which had now be a bag for putting the cat in. The fur was incredibly soft.
When I took out the cat and searched the bottom of the bag, a shlight appeared. I started turning the shlight. Wind it for a minute, use it for 15 minutes. Nowadays, self-generating shlights have be so good that it soon shone brightly. This bag and shlight were the employment gifts from my younger brother. He gave them to me so I would never lose my way in life, but I never thought I would use them like this. I wonder what my brother is doing now.
¡°Wow!¡±
¡°Oh.¡±
Exmations came from Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-Yi. The shlight is definitely better than other electronic devices. I thought I would never need to use this. I handed the shlight to Baek Ae-young, who was standing at the front. Baek Ae-young quickly put the pad into the bag on her back and took the shlight.
¡°I was¡ really losing it, but this turned out well.¡±
Baek Ae-young gave a smile as if she was saved. And then, as she was illuminating the floor with the shlight, she shone the light on Seo Jihyuk¡¯s leg. Shin Haeryang and I, having adjusted the length of the splint, supported Seo Jihyuk.
Chapter 38
Chapter 38
It was only after Seo Jihyuk ced one foot on the stairs that he realized that he really had to walk here. Seo Jihyuk let out a ridiculousugh and sighed.
¡°Sigh¡ If¡ I had known this was going to happen, I would¡¯ve lost some weight. Please, take care of me.¡±
¡°Yes. Please do the same to me too.¡±
Shin Haeryang did not respond. He just yielded the innermost part of the stairs to me and stood at the farthest end. It seemed like a gesture of goodwill, as one needed to move less if they were on the inside. Shin Haeryang and I grasped Seo Jihyuk¡¯s back and arm, exerting strength. And so, we started climbing the stairs.
The stairs were sturdier than expected. The problem was that they hadn¡¯t been maintained, so the dust had umted to the size of our pinky fingers, and they were slippery. Baek Ae-young, being the first one to take the lead, swept aside garbage and other obstructions, tossing them carelessly down the stairs.
Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and I formed a team and were ascending the stairs. As I walked on the inner side of the stairs, I noted there were pros and cons. The upside was that I had to move less than if I was on the outside. The downside, however, was theck of a handrail by my side, which made it difficult to tell if I was stepping onto a stair or into thin air.
Shin Haeryang on the outer side had to move the most among us, which was a disadvantage. The upside for him was that he could lean on the wall with his hand or shoulder. But that wall was caked with dust and crawling with weird-looking bugs. With these trivial pros and cons in mind, my eyes focused on the movement of the lights.
Three men climbing the stairs together is not the most advisable method, simply because each of us had a different climbing speed. At first, we nearly fell a few times immediately after starting. Our speed was either simr to a turtle¡¯s or it seemed like we werepeting in a three-legged race.
Shin Haeryang quickly set a rhythm. Count to three and step on three. One, two, three! One, two, three! One, two, three! We continued like this until we could finally synchronize our steps after crossing the 100th stair.
Following Baek Ae-young¡¯s source of light, Yoo Geum-yi quickly climbed up. asionally, Baek Ae-young would shine her light on a cat following us. But mostly, her light fell on the broken concrete stairs and the exposed iron bars. Once we passed, she would illuminate the path ahead once again.
With each step, Yoo Geum-yi, who was ahead of us, would count the number of stairs. She also scratched some kind of mark on the wall. When Baek Ae-young asked, Yoo Geum-yi said she was counting the stairs and floors. She considered 24 stairs to be one floor.
Walking in the dark reminded me of Yoo Geum-yi counting the floors in the elevator. Thatdy sure does love her numbers. If I had been counting, I would¡¯ve lost count around 50. I would¡¯ve gotten confused after 47, wondering if I¡¯d counted 48 or not, and probably would¡¯ve skipped a whole set of ten.
We kept moving without rest. I wasn¡¯t tired yet. Seo Jihyuk started sharing scary stories to entertain the two women guiding us. However, when Yoo Geum-yi told a tale about a ghost crawling on the stairs, Seo Jihyuk couldn¡¯t retort. He was silenced by her story about a ghost chasing people down the stairs and consuming the first person it caught. I snickered while climbing the stairs.
How far had we climbed? My legs started to feel heavy, and the arm and shoulder of Seo Jihyuk that I was supporting began to weigh heavily. I could only hear Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s voice counting. We were way past 200 steps now.
¡°How many floors have we passed?¡±
The counting stopped, and a response came from the dark.
¡°Just past the 8th floor.¡±
And then she started counting again, because Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t stop moving. If 180 floors were the end, how much had we climbed? About 4%? Suppressing my immediate desire to lie down, I continued to move, one step at a time.
During this ludicrous three-man race, we realized that if even one person failed to move on time, we couldn¡¯t ascend the stairs. It was maddening. Not only my breathing, but I could also hear others¡¯ breathing now. We were starting to tire. Soon, all three of us were panting like dogs who had run a long distance. Shin Haeryang gasped for breath and spoke.
¡°If we¡¯ve already passed 430 steps, let¡¯s rest.¡±
Upon hearing this, Seo Jihyuk quickly shouted at Yu Geum-yi.
¡°How far have wee?¡±
Yu Geum-yi stopped, panting heavily. After swallowing her saliva, she answered.
¡°402 steps!¡±
Shit. By the looks of it, neither Shin Haeryang nor Seo Jihyuk had any intention of resting at the moment. They managed to move their static legs, and made an effort to empty their minds without thinking about anything. Thinking of anything else only makes it more difficult when you¡¯re tired. They had only one thought: to keep moving their legs.
Move the legs! One step! Another step! And another! No, hell. Stop thinking about the crazy shark living in the icy water. Focus on the legs! Only the legs! I am a leg-moving robot. Just move the legs. One step. Another step. One step. Forget about the face of the person who got shot in the chest and died! One step! Another step. Move the legs. Stop thinking! Again! One step with the legs! One step! One step!
With every step I took, I harbored more resentment for the cult religion. Before I knew it, my back was drenched in sweat, and I wanted to throw away everything and lie down on the stairs. Just think about the legs! Only the legs! Only think about moving one step at a time.
I wiped my runny nose with the back of my hand, then swept the sweat off my forehead with my palm. My legs felt like logs.
¡°Let¡¯s rest when we reach here!¡±
Baek Ae-young was saying this from thending while kicking away the garbage and dust on the floor. Just go that far. You only have to go that far. Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and I almost tripped twice because of tangled steps, but we finally made it to thending. We, who had been clumped together like a lump, sprawled out andy down on the floor in our preferred postures.
We didn¡¯t care about the dust or garbage on the floor. We just wanted to lie down. After panting for a few minutes, we could finally catch our breath. There was a breeze on the stairs. Every time it brushed past my hair, I felt a strange relief, even while thinking that the wind must be full of dust and mold.
I had rolled up my long sleeves and constantly lifted and lowered my clothes to cool off the sweat. I heard a zipper opening and turned my head to see Shin Haeryang lying down, exposing the back part of his suit, which looked like a wetsuit, to the air.
¡°Aren¡¯t wetsuits supposed to be zipperless?¡±
¡°This isn¡¯t a wetsuit.¡±
And then he said nothing. There was no more exnation. Even Seo Jihyuk was quiet. asionally, I heard some noises like someone gasping, but everyone was peacefully lying in the darkness. I could see Yu Geum-yi lying near Baek Ae-young¡¯s feet.
Baek Ae-young was the only one sitting in the middle of the stairs, taking a rest. The shlight in her hand was casting a nting light on the people resting on thending. I thought to myself, ¡°I¡¯ve done well to bring that shlight,¡± and casually said,
¡°I should have brought a shlight from the convenience store. What a pity.¡±
Lying t on the floor, Shin Haeryang turned his head and said, ¡°People with good observational skills¡ can guess our status¡ or our destination¡ from the packaging torn at the convenience store or the missing items.¡±
Whoa, that¡¯s a¡ surprising answer I didn¡¯t expect. But will the cult followers wandering in the third underwater base, or the people who came up from the fourth underwater base, carefully check what we did at the convenience store while they are too busy escaping? Don¡¯t they also have to run quickly to survive? I don¡¯t know.
I was so weak, I crawled towards the snake bag Yoo Geum-yi had left on the floor. From the side, I heard Seo Jihyuk gasping at my state. Taking out a water bottle to moisten my parched mouth, requests for water echoed from all around.
In turn, the water bottle was hurled out of the stairwell by the hands of Baek Ae-young. Only after a few seconds did the sound of it hitting the ground reach us. It took forever to ascend but only mere seconds to descend.
Resting with my legs stretched out, a cat brushed past my ankles. I nearly screamed in surprise. While I was startled, the cat quickly distanced itself from me, before climbing onto the back of Shin Haeryang who was lying on the floor. Should I get rid of it? I wondered, but as Shin Haeryang began to rise, the cat automatically jumped down.
Shin Haeryang announced, ¡®Let¡¯s go¡¯. Already five minutes had passed. It was only then I realized that Shin Haeryang was timing us. Everyone seemed to be counting something. Perhaps I should start counting too. After enduring what felt like an eternity in five minutes, we rose from our resting ces, each emitting a groan.
The light from Baek Ae-young¡¯s torch unwaveringly led the way. How could she be so energetic? How could she climb the stairs so proficiently? The torturous stair count from Yoo Geum-yi started once again. Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and I became a single entity, like mismatched robots that hadbined. As we attempted to ascend the stairs, our steps got tangled again. We had to count, one-two-three! as we ascended.
Panting, Seo Jihyuk said: ¡°Huh¡ If we had a Medik, these stairs would be a piece of cake.¡±
A Medik is a transport robot equipped with AI, used in medical scenes. It usually moves on four legs, but if more are needed, it can deploy four additional legs and move like a spider. In any situation, it efficiently carries out its role for rescuing lives, even if it has to cling to the ceiling when it¡¯s hard to move on the ground. It¡¯s a robot designed to prioritize rescue in ces difficult for humans to reach. For example, it¡¯s deployed in burning buildings or copsing construction sites and ismonly used in hospitals.
ording to Seo Jihyuk, it seemed there were also Mediks in the hospital on the artificial ind. If they could use a Medik, Seo Jihyuk would be transported by it at a faster speed than the leading Baek Ae-young. Since it could carry over 250kg, Yoo Geum-yi, and Baek Ae-young could also hitch a ride. But I¡¯m not the type of person to live on suppositions like Seo Jihyuk, so I just shook my head.
¡°Let¡¯s just make do with two human Mediks.¡±
¡°Ah¡ What. I¡¯m notining. It¡¯s just that it¡¯s gonna be hard on the two of you.¡±
Chapter 39
Chapter 39
By now, Seo Jihyuk seemed to have shifted his interest from the two women ascending the stairs ahead with their fairy lights source, to the sweaty men distributing their weight across their arms and shoulders. The problem was, the only people he could converse with were these two men. Of the silent Shin Haeryang and myself, it seemed I was morefortable to talk to since I at least responded properly. There¡¯s no such thing like a subordinate beingfortable with their boss, after all. Seo Jihyuk asked me.
¡°Do you have a younger brother?¡±
I was startled to know where this information came from, but I had nothing to hide so I responded, ¡°Yes, he¡¯s a college student right now.¡±
¡°I have a younger sister and a brother. One is a college student and the other is a high school student, but neither of them listen to me.¡±
¡°Well, that¡¯s siblings for you. How about you, Shin Haeryang-ssi?¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤I have one older sibling.¡±
¡°An elder brother?¡±
¡°An elder sister.¡±
As I tried to imagine the beautifuldy that must havee from the same family as the handsome Shin Haeryang, I couldn¡¯t resist my curiosity and asked him straightforwardly.
¡°Is your sister married?¡±
I could hear Seo Jihyukughing beside me. Ha ha ha ha! They¡¯re all the same.
¡°I once asked our team leader the same question.¡±
Shin Haeryang did not react like, ¡°Why are you asking about my sister¡¯s marital status?¡± He just responded as if he was sick and tired of being asked that question.
¡°She¡¯s already married and has two children.¡±
¡°Oh, I see. Please brag about how cute they are with their pictures when we get out of here.¡±
¡°Do you have pictures of your nieces and nephews, team leader?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
For a few seconds, only the sound of our footsteps ascending the stairs in the dark could be heard. Then Seo Jihyuk broke the silence.
¡°Well¡ earlier, that guy spouted off about our three personal histories. He said you and Team Leader Shin aren¡¯t candidates for conversion. We were disqualified, or something.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
¡°Do you have any thoughts on religion?¡±
The Infinity Church, with the immortal shark. Nothing came to mind. I don¡¯t even eat shark meat.
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤In our house, we¡¯re free to believe in any religion. My mother is a Buddhist, but she only goes to temples once a year on Buddha¡¯s birthday. I don¡¯t have a religion. Same goes for my younger brother.¡±
Seo Jihyuk kept repeating, ¡°I see,¡± and then he asked, ¡°Do you remember the skull in front of the dental clinic?¡±
¡°The shark¡¯s skull?¡±
¡°I¡¯m suddenly wondering if that¡¯s a Greend shark skull.¡±
As soon as I heard that, I eximed, ¡°Ah!¡± in admiration. I hadpletely forgotten about it.
¡°The description said it was a white shark skull, but that might be possible. It¡¯s not like I have the ability to recognize it.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤What¡¯s great white shark skull?¡±
Shin Haeryang hadn¡¯t visited the dental clinic yet. Seo Jihyuk and I began to exin. In front of Deep Blue Dental Clinic, there is arge shark skullbeled as a white shark. But given the cult activities going on, it might actually be a Greend shark.
¡°Who can tell which shark it is just by looking at the skull?¡±
Seo Jihyuk vigorously nodded at my question.
¡°The researchers here are freaks who study things like which leg deep-sea jellyfish use more, what they eat, when they poop, etc. But wouldn¡¯t there be someone who could differentiate by looking at the shape of a shark skull, Geum-yi-ssi?!¡°
Seo Jihyuk shouted the name of the (sea creature) hardcore fan into the darkness, and the darkness yelped back.
¡°You scared me!¡±
¡°Sorry. Let me ask you something¡ Can we mistake a Greend shark skull for a white shark skull? When sober marine biologists pass by the dental clinic, do they wonder, ¡®This is a Greend shark, why is itbeled as a white shark?''¡±
¡°Of course, if they¡¯re interested in sharks, they would know. They look different! Like horses and cows!¡±
That would only look different in the eyes of marine biologists. Even if you give me a horse and cow¡¯s bones and ask me to distinguish them, I¡¯m not sure I could do it right away. I¡¯m not an osteologist. Heck, if you gave me a cat skull and a dog skull, I probably wouldn¡¯t be able to tell them apart.
¡°So what¡¯s that shark skull in front of the dental clinic where I work? It wasbeled as a white shark.¡±
An answer came from the darkness.
¡°Of course, it¡¯s a white shark. Didn¡¯t you see its wide open mouth? If it were a Greend shark, the mouth would be narrower.¡±
Oh! I let out a sigh of relief.
¡°That¡¯s a relief. I took down the pictures of sharks with parasites in their eyes that were hanging on the wall because they made me ufortable. At least hearing that reassures me.¡±
¡°Heh¡ That¡¯s a relief.¡±
Relieved that the dental clinic wasn¡¯t touched by the ws of the cult, Seo Jihyuk patted my shoulder. We heard footstepsing from afar, it was Yoo Geum-yi descending the stairs. Noticing her, Baek Ae-young shone the shlight around Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s feet, worried she might trip.
¡°There were parasites?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi asked, sweeping her sweat-soaked hair behind her forehead. Bathed in the shlight¡¯s beam cast by Baek Ae-young from far above us, Yoo Geum-yi appeared to be donning a halo reminiscent of Jesus Christ or Gautama Buddha.
¡°Yes. ¡Why do you ask?¡±
¡°Greend sharks are blind. Their eyes are obscured because parasites consume the tissue of their eyes, rendering them blind. However, the parasites themselves emit light, attracting prey which the Greend shark then devours. Those are creatures that have chosen to eat in exchange for sacrificing their eyeballs.¡±
Even the sharks are insane creatures, aren¡¯t they?
¡°¡What about the great white sharks? No parasites?¡±
¡°Of course, great white sharks are full of parasites. But given their temperaments, who would endure having their eyes eaten and live?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi growled like a great white shark. I then noticed that the sharks in the photos on the wall had mouths not much bigger than the great white shark outside. Shin Haeryang¡¯s voice echoed in the darkness.
¡°Has anyone approached you with an unrequited favor or tried to bond with certain individuals during these past five days?¡±
As soon as I heard Shin Haeryang¡¯s question, my mind began to tangle like a thread tossed all at once. I¡¯m new here. If someone shows me kindness or hospitality, isn¡¯t it normal to reciprocate in order to be epted into a new society? That¡¯s how humans live.
However, I was already listing people¡¯s names in my head. Kang Soo-jung and Elliot came first. Yoo Geum-yi, the chubby, wellughing Wang Wei who had watched me unpack, were there others? The barista Emily who weed me with a free cup of coffee on my first day? If we¡¯re just talking about drinking coffee, Baek Ae-young as well? Or even the patients I¡¯ve treated?
As I thought about all sorts of people, I nearly lost my footing on the stairs. I was brought back to reality by my misstep, which nearly tripped both Seo Jihyuk and Shin Haeryang. Here, where I have to climb stairs in almostplete darkness, I have to suspect everyone I met in the light. I barely managed to speak.
¡°¡I¡¯m not sure.¡±
I felt as if I were trapped in a snare that could cut off my ankle. I wanted to vomit out all the candies, chocte bars, and water I¡¯d consumed. Whether it was because the climb was getting harder or because of the rising wave of difort, I couldn¡¯t tell. Gritting my teeth, I recalled the past five days.
Was there someone among them who is a cult follower and approached me intending to recruit me into their religion? There was one person who seemed to be the most capable of quickly finding and exploiting others¡¯ weaknesses. I marked that person as a primary suspect and put the rest on the list as well.
In my head, an investigation was underway regarding all the suspicious individuals who had shown me the slightest bit of kindness. Looking at it this way, could I even trust the people here now?
Seo Jihyuk was the one who strongly insisted we use the elevator guarded by Infinity Church followers. Baek Ae-young was on Shin Haeryang¡¯s side, hiding her opinions and could possibly poise to kill me at the slightest provocation. Yoo Geum-yi was the first to visit the dental office. Shin Haeryang continually avoided using the elevator, directly opposing Jennifer¡¯s and Seo Jihyuk¡¯s opinions to use the central elevator. Wasn¡¯t it because he already knew where the Infinity Church members were?
Are cult followers waiting for me at the end of these stairs? With each step I climbed, I grew more suspicious. By the second break, I was doubting everyone I had met in the undersea base. It reached a point where the cat floating up the stairs like a feather or the snake in the bag seemed least suspicious.
I was suspecting everyone from Henry, who was sleeping in my amodation in the West District, to Kim Gayoung, whom I had gone to rescue with my own hands. Then, with a headache, Iy down on the staircase floor, panting, and spoke to Shin Haeryang.
¡°It¡¯s Elliot Brown! Now that I think about it, he¡¯s the most suspicious!¡±
I couldn¡¯t mention Kang Soo-jung in front of Shin Haeryang, Seo Jihyuk, and Baek Aeyoung. She was a character I met for the first time and a team member. The sound of Shin Haeryang drinking water came from the darkness. Seo Jihyuk spoke while lying on the floor.
¡°That psychologist? I see him more as a fraud than a member of a cult.¡±
¡°A fraud?¡±
¡°He¡¯s likely unlicensed and all. You know, when I heard about his counseling, it seemed like I had multiple fractures all over my body.¡±
At that sound, Baek Aeyoungughed loudly from afar.
¡°Wow¡ Elliot-ssi. Totally awesome. That¡¯s urate, right? But he¡¯s not my counselor. My counselor was someone named Lee Bin something-something-ski.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t have him either. I thought the researchers had their own counselors?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t either.¡±
With that said, I now had a second suspect, Kang Soo-jung, and began interrogating her inside my head. Why did you carry my luggage? Why did you have coffee with me? Was it because you believe in a cult? Oh, because you have a kind heart? I see. I¡¯m sorry. Please understand. These cult assholes are like that. They¡¯re perfect for getting under people¡¯s skins. They¡¯re like malignant tumors that can¡¯t be maintained unless they extort something from someone. They¡¯re just crazy f*ckers crazy about money. Orbor. ¡°Money!¡±
¡°Hey!¡±
When I suddenly yelled in the darkness, Seo Jihyuk, who was closest to me, was startled and half-raised his torso. The same was true for Shin Haeryang, but once he realized I had yelled, hey back down on the floor.
I think I might have mistranted Elliot as ashein earlier chapters. Sorry about that. There wasn''t direct mention of Elliot''s gender at early point of the story. So, I just presumed that Elliot was a ''she'' instead of ''he''. But in this chapter, they kept mentioning Elliot as ''that person'' but there''s a good guess Elliot''s ahe for now, since there''s no female-particle when they''re talking about Elliot here. However, this might change in the future, so I''ll let you peeps know when that happens.
Chapter 40
Chapter 40
After climbing about a thousand stairs, nobody cared that dust was rolling on the floor of thending where they had to rest. All they did was inject the damp air into their lungs and rest their aching legs. In the darkness, I apologized to Seo Jihyuk.
¡°I¡¯m sorry. I have¡ no money. All I can offer Infinity Church is only my dental knowledge andbor. Of course, they will send me a sry at this underwater dental clinic. But, even if it means dying of hunger, I¡¯m not the type to ever make donations to those guys.¡±
¡°Did you want better dental treatment? Perhaps more grinding of the teeth with a drill?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s voice was much lower than usual as shey down, asking the question.
¡°Dental treatment is free, you know? The drill¡ that depends on the doctor.¡±
Answering Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s question with another question, Baek Ae-young, lying in the distance, yawned and asked, ¡°Why will you never make donations, even if it means dying of hunger, given your personality, Doctor?¡±
A long silence filled thending. It was because I did not answer. I had never been asked such a question in my life. I realized I¡¯d never had such a conversation with anyone before. Staring into the darkness, I gave an appropriate response.
¡°I despise giving money to religion.¡±
It wasn¡¯t a lie. I hate the way religious organizations take money under the pretext of donations. If there is a God, he surely would not tolerate his priests and followers robbing money under the guise of faith. Either that or God isn¡¯t a decent being.
Seo Jihyuk scratched somewhere and asked, ¡°Like tithes?¡±
¡°Including that. I hate all donations. Why is money needed to maintain faith? Why don¡¯t they even pay taxes as if they¡¯re some privileged ss?¡±
Seo Jihyuk chuckled, lying down, stretching.
¡°My church-going father should hear this.¡±
A faintughter echoed in the darkness. I couldn¡¯t tell if it was Baek Ae-young or Yoo Geum-yi; it was hard to distinguish in the dark. Shin Haeryang spoke softly, his voice almost like the wind.
¡°Have you ever talked about your family to Elliot or the people around you?¡±
¡°No. Never.¡±
I don¡¯t know if Shin Haeryang believed my answer, but I only told the truth. I was neither emotionally attached to this ce nor had I stayed for a long time.
Baek Ae-young¡¯s voice, signaling it was time to get up, rang out. Has it already been 5 minutes? Those who didn¡¯t get up were attacked in the eyes by Baek Ae-young, one by one, with a shlight. ¡°Turn it off!¡± Seo Jihyuk yelled like a vampire. Thanks to that, I easily went over to Seo Jihyuk, grabbed his arm, and pulled him up. Looking at the stairs ahead of his feet and the distant ascending light (presumably Baek Ae-young), he grumbled.
¡°Damn these stairs. There really is no end.¡±
¡°There will be an end.¡±
It was a voice full of conviction. Shin Haeryang grabbed Seo Jihyuk¡¯s other arm. I felt like asking Shin Haeryang what he did for a living while having a drink someday.
Standing in front of the stairs, a sigh escaped my lips. I couldn¡¯t feel my calves. I must not ask how many stairs we had climbed. Hearing the number might truly make me want to roll down.
Going down has always been easier than going up. I¡¯ve always struggled not to fall from where I was, but trying to get out of that ce and climb up was pushing me to my limits. But yes, there will be an end.
¡°If only I had been exercising regrly.¡±
I sensed Seo Jihyuk shaking his head at my muttering.
¡°Even if you exercised, it wouldn¡¯t have worked like that.¡±
He seemed to be talking about the swaying shlight up high. He must be in good shape. Vertical marathon, was it?
¡°I never knew there was such a thing as a vertical marathon until Ae-young-ssi told me.¡±
¡°Is that so? I wish I could have stayed ignorant forever.¡±
Seo Jihyuk and I chuckled as we climbed the stairs.
Climbing so many stairs made my back bend forward, and I wished I had a cane. Eventually, the thought consumed my mind, and I kept stepping on the stairs without a word.
I began to breathe faster. How many flights have I climbed? When can I rest? I climbed in silence, consumed by thoughts like eating a lifetime¡¯s worth of dust here. Suddenly, Seo Jihyuk tapped my shoulder, and I looked to the side and then followed his gaze forward.
The light had stopped. Baek Ae-young spoke to us, ¡°You need to jump a little here.¡±
She then handed the shlight to Yoo Geum-yi. Looking at the stairs, there was a gap of about 1 meter. It looked fine, but this was the first time I had seen stairs broken to such a length. Baek Ae-young leaped over the dark gap like a deer jumping a barrier.
I grabbed the shlight handed to me by Yoo Geum-yi, who hesitated once before leaping over with a scream. Now it was Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and me. We agreed to have one person jump first, then throw Seo Jihyuk to the other side, where the remaining people would catch him. Shin Haeryang asked me.
¡°Do you have any strength left in your arms?¡±
Although I wanted to brag, I honestly answered.
¡°I have no strength left in my body.¡±
Hearing this, Seo Jihyuk urged me to go over first. I easily jumped over the 1m gap. After passing the shlight to Baek Ae-young and preparing to catch Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang asked him.
¡°Do you want to fall forward or backward?¡±
¡°Side!¡±
Since Seo Jihyuk¡¯s left leg was injured, we agreed to throw him at an angle so that his right leg would touch down. As Baek Ae-young lit them with her shlight, the spot where they stood copsed.
¡°Kyaaah!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi screamed, and Baek Ae-young¡¯s light shook wildly. Shin Haeryang was nowhere to be seen, and Seo Jihyuk had been thrown towards our stairs. Suddenly, I felt a tremendous impact on my stomach and was dragged into the dark hole. Aahhh!
I strained my legs to avoid being pulled down through the gap that had widened to over 2 meters and reached for the opposite stairs leading up. Baek Ae-young and Yoo Geum-yi caught me as I was about to tip over from the weight and forced me onto the stairs.
¡°Crawl!¡±
I did just that, crawling up the stairs. The pain in my stomach didn¡¯t register until they had pulled me up by the parachute cord that Shin Haeryang had tied us with earlier. As they pulled me up, Shin Haeryang emerged from the gap.
Seo Jihyuky on the floor, wrapping the taut parachute cord around his arm several times, cursing. Baek Ae-young¡¯s shlight illuminated Shin Haeryang¡¯s forearm, and Seo Jihyuk, lying down, pulled him in. I continued to crawl up the stairs.
Shin Haeryang finally revealed himself from the dark stairwell and moved into position beside us. Seo Jihyuk leaned against the stairs and cursed. Fearing the current stairs might also break, we decided to climb 50 more steps before resting.
My body felt like it was flooded with blood from the tension. The adrenaline made me feel dazed, and I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. We sprawled on the dusty floor at Baek Ae-young¡¯s signal. I looked at Shin Haeryang next to me and asked.
¡°Are you injured anywhere?¡±
Shin Haeryang checked his arms and legs, then wiggled his fingers and toes before replying.
¡°I¡¯m fine. Even if I had fallen, I would havended on the stairs below, so I wouldn¡¯t have been seriously hurt.¡±
I finally sighed in relief andy down on the dusty floor, asking, ¡°When did you tie us?¡±
¡°At the first break. I thought the stairs might copse.¡±
I didn¡¯t even know that someone had tied a rope around my waist. Well, I wouldn¡¯t even know if someone stabbed me with a knife in this darkness.
Baek Aeyoung was looking at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s splint. Though it was tightly bound and nothing seemed loose, she checked whether the shoe wasing out of the splint, shone a shlight on the feet of me and Shin Haeryang, and sighed.
¡°I thought my heart would fall out.¡±
Seo Jihyuk grumbled at Baek Aeyoung.
¡°I¡¯ve already fallen. Look carefully in that darkness.¡±
¡°Just live without it.¡±
Baek Aeyoung, who calmly replied, was now patting Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s back, which was quietly sobbing from too much shock. Hearing the crying made my elbows and knees feel sore. I must have bumped them on the stairs. My palms also stung from supporting myself on the messed-up stairs.
Won¡¯t we be wrecked when we climb all the stairs? Suddenly, pains that I hadn¡¯t noticed in my suddenly tensed body began to rush in. Baek Aeyoung looked at the three men groaning here and there, sprawled on the ground, and asked.
¡°What about temporarily joining the cult? Such religions must be thirsty for new members. You just join and pray a little, then run away when you get a chance, right?¡±
¡°Like cherry picking, you mean?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi snorted as she drank water. Shin Haeryang thought quietly for a moment and then asked, ¡°Would it be easier to run away after joining or not to join at all?¡±
¡°It¡¯s better not to get involved at all. Escaping won¡¯t be easy.¡±
I could feel people¡¯s gaze on me even in the darkness at my answer.
¡°They know everything about our families, right? Including our financial situations. They might follow or watch us even after we leave here.¡±
An ufortable silence brushed past one another. The fact that someone without permission could secretly gather information about oneself, and that such information could be used somewhere without knowledge, is an incredibly unsettling matter.
Chapter 41
Chapter 41
Baek Aeyoung swiveled the shlight with a smile, forming a revolving circle of light around her arm. It looked like she was ying with a sparkler.
¡°Ah, I wish you¡¯de to me first. It¡¯s annoying for other people otherwise.¡±
Herst words sounded odd, devoid of any vocal inflections, as if a robot was speaking. Listening to her in the dark, even a ghost would have appeared less unnerving than Baek Aeyoung. Seo Jihyuk said nothing, but Shin Haeryang, who had been silently listening, responded.
¡°¡Don¡¯t worry.¡±
¡°It¡¯s a joke.¡±
As Baek Aeyoung yed with her shlight, the lights danced, illuminating the stairs and walls. It was almost dizzying to watch the lights move in all directions. Baek Aeyoung spoke softly.
¡°I¡¯m a bit annoyed with that guy from earlier. Not sure if Geum-yi-ssi or Moohyun-ssi heard, but that guy yelled at me, calling me an orphan. With Shu Ran there, I¡¯m in a pretty bad mood. I wish anyone would fall into my hands. Then, I could wield unjust violence that would appear justifiable.¡±
¡± ¡It¡¯s unfortunate about Shu Ran. You two must have been close.¡±
Hearing my voice falter, Baek Aeyoung took a deep breath. If her sighs could break the stairs, the ones below us would have crumbled by now. Simultaneously, the shlight stopped its erratic movements and precisely shone on Seo Jihyuk¡¯s injured foot. A sound was heard; Yoo Geum-yi was probably embracing Baek Aeyoung although it was hard to tell with the light on Seo Jihyuk.
¡°It¡¯s hard to make friends at work, and it¡¯s tough finding good people. She was really a good friend.¡±
Realizing my insensitivity, I searched my pockets for something to wipe away the embarrassment but found nothing except a coin. My handkerchief must be soaking in saltwater back in my room in the West district. A nameless sense of guilt seemed to wrap around me. Was she like this all the way up? I had no idea. I felt terribly sorry for not noticing. Baek Aeyoung went silent for a moment before speaking cheerfully.
¡°Our break is over! Let¡¯s continue climbing! This time, let¡¯s try to go a bit further.¡±
Then, Baek Aeyoung took Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s hand and began ascending the stairs. The rest of us also linked shoulders and followed.
After a few seconds, Baek Aeyoung started rushing up the stairs at an incredible speed. Yoo Geum-yi tried to keep up, but matching the pace of someone climbing 2-3 steps a second is not easy.
Once in a while, the shlight would turn around and illuminate us. Most of the time, the light revealed broken steps or chunks of concrete blocking the way.
¡°She¡¯s like a lighthouse,¡± Imented.
Staring at the receding light, Seo Jihyuk remarked, ¡°An overly energetic lighthouse to me. Team Leader, Baek Aeyoung¡¯s mood is a mess. Physically she seems fine, though.¡±
¡°How about you?¡±
¡°Concerned about my fragile emotional state at the moment? Or the unforgivable injury on my otherwise perfect physique?¡±
¡°Just your leg.¡±
¡°It hurts.¡±
¡°Both of you seem fine, then.¡±
Just as Seo Jihyuk was about to make a sarcasticment, I turned to Shin Haeryang.
¡°Then, how are you feeling, Shin Haeryang-ssi?¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been talking freely, suddenly closed his mouth. After pondering for a moment, Shin Haeryang responded.
¡°I¡¯m not great, but I feel much better than when we were in the elevator.¡±
¡°Even though we still have over 3,000 steps to climb, bugs or water droplets falling from above in the dark, and the asional slip?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
At those words, Seo Jihyukughed manically, making a ¡°hihihi¡± sound. It seemed like he thought the team leader had gone insane. I also tried to join in on theughter, but my curiosity got the better of me.
¡°May I ask why?¡±
¡°I think it¡¯s because while climbing the stairs, I don¡¯t have to think as much about what the most efficient choice would be.¡±
¡°Are you talking about whether to escape using the escape pod or take the elevator?¡±
¡°¡ I¡¯m talking about stuff like which country¡¯s submarine might have detected us after the underwater base was attacked with missiles, how long should themunication have to be down for drones to be sent to scout around the underwater base, whether our escape by escape pod would be detected when observed by satellite, how many of my team members survived, what the other team leaders are doing, and to what extent a cult has taken control of the underwater base.¡±
¡°¡I guess we don¡¯t have to think too much in this situation. All I can think about are the stairs.¡±
I lightly tapped Shin Haeryang¡¯s shoulder with my finger as I followed Seo Jihyuk¡¯s broad back. Submarine? Drones? Satellites? Damn it. My head was about to explode just thinking about the people I¡¯d met this week. I decided to leave all that thinking to Shin Haeryang. Seo Jihyuk tapped my shoulder with his finger and said,
¡°What about you, doctor?¡±
¡°I¡¯m currently suspecting everyone I¡¯ve met in the underwater base, asking myself one by one if anyone of them believe in the cults.¡±
Seo Jihyuk chuckled softly. We were walking so close together that I could feel his chest move.
¡°Any leads?¡±
¡°Besides Elliot?¡±
¡°Um¡anyone.¡±
I hesitated, then finally spoke softly when I felt it was safe enough to do so.
¡°I¡¯m suspecting Kang Sujeong-ssi and Yoo Geum-yi-ssi.¡±
Seo Jihyuk asked, seemingly not too concerned.
¡°What made you suspicious?¡±
¡°Sujeong-ssi was the first to greet me and help me with my carrier when the helicopter arrived. She also introduced me to other people. Geum-yi-ssi gave me some delicious bread on the first day we met, and it was her first visit to the dentist.¡±
¡°So both showed you unreciprocated kindness. What will you do now?¡±
¡°I can¡¯t do anything. I¡¯m just climbing stairs in the dark. The suspicions just keep growing.¡±
Seo Jihyuk nodded. Shin Haeryang, who had been listening, didn¡¯t say anything, even when I expressed doubt about one of his team members.
¡°Suspicions breed more suspicions. Once you start to find someone¡¯s behavior suspicious, then everything they do seems suspicious. Well, one of the two might actually be involved in the cult, or both might be, or neither.¡±
¡°That¡¯s true.¡±
I nodded fervently.
¡°Once you start suspecting someone, everything they do bes suspicious, so clearing those suspicions is almost impossible unless there¡¯s clear evidence. But considering how difficult it is to uncover the truth in the world, you, being a doctor, must be well aware of that due to the existence of news articles and incident columns.¡±
I nodded earnestly again. Everything he said was true. Seo Jihyuk then asked Shin Haeryang, who was standing to his right.
¡°Team leader, what do you do in such cases?¡±
¡°I iste and interrogate them.¡±
The atmosphere turned quiet for a moment. Seo Jihyuk seemed dissatisfied with Shin Haeryang¡¯s answer. After a moment of silence, Seo Jihyuk lightly pped Shin Haeryang¡¯s back. A ¡°p¡± sound was heard. ¡°Our team leader is quite the psycho,¡± he sighed, then spoke to me.
¡°If you suspect something but can¡¯t confirm it, there are two ways. The first is to trust the other person.¡±
¡°And the other?¡±
¡°Remember. End the rtionship.¡±
¡°Is that your answer?¡±
¡°You may not realize how valuable the advice I¡¯ve just given you is. This applies even if you suspect your partner is cheating. If you can¡¯t tell whether they¡¯re cheating or not, then either trust them or cleanly end it.¡±
Is this a good answer, or just another one of his nonsensical rants?
¡°What if one of the two is trying to recruit the other into a cult?¡±
¡°People rarely make an effort to prove their innocence when questioned or pressured. (Seeing Shin Haeryang hesitate, Seo Jihyuk added, ¡®It would be nice if the team leader could keep quiet for a bit.¡¯) Most people who are interrogated get angry, asking why you can¡¯t trust them. And that¡¯s usually the end of your rtionship with them. Goodwill or whatever, it¡¯s just gone. Besides, you can¡¯t be at ease anymore seeing what they¡¯re doing.¡±
¡°What¡¯s your take on Kang Sujeong?¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed surprised by the question. After making a ¡®hmm¡¯ sound, he began to think.
¡°I don¡¯t know if she believes in a cult, but she¡¯s not the kind of person who tries to make someone into something.¡±
Shin Haeryang¡¯s answer came from the dark.
¡°If she had started to believe in the ¡®Infinity Church,¡¯ she would have told me. She¡¯s not the kind of person who can hide things.¡±
¡°Ah, right. She¡¯d tell the team leader, ¡®From today on, I believe in the Infinity Church! Look at this shark emblem, isn¡¯t it cool!''¡±
I mumbled softly, thinking about the distant light and the person struggling to follow it.
¡°What about Yoo Geum-yi-ssi?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve met her several times at the cafe or bakery in the 4th undersea base. Seems like a bread enthusiast? Always buying a bunch of bread. Honestly, I don¡¯t really know. Even the researchers find it annoying toe from the central South district.¡±
¡°I¡¯m also not sure,¡± Shin Haeryang¡¯s voice came through.
¡°She was sleeping in the West district. Said she switched rooms with someone from the South district. Considering what you said about the researchers finding it annoying toe from South district, it¡¯s a bit suspicious.¡±
Seo Jihyuk turned his head and nced at his team leader as if he was in a dilemma, but the team leader coldly continued climbing the stairs. Seo Jihyuk sighed.
¡°Women tend to switch rooms often.¡±
¡°Really?¡±
¡°Can I share the reason we came to the West district?¡±
Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t show any opposition, and Seo Jihyuk took the silence as consent.
Chapter 42
Chapter 42
¡°I think Ji-hyeon is the prettiest girl in our team. You know, the one who¡¯s not just pretty but also has a good personality. But apparently, that¡¯s not what the world thinks. Baek Ae-young seems to be the most popr.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
I looked up to see the lights that were so high up I had to tilt my head back to see them. Then I nodded.
¡°You know, there are those trashy guys who are always causing girl problems. Confessing, getting rejected, confessing again, rejected again. They just can¡¯t take a hint! There¡¯s a saying, ¡®Even the toughest tree falls after ten strikes,¡¯ but they don¡¯t seem to realize humans aren¡¯t trees. Do they even consider how much damage they¡¯re doing with their persistence? Selfish jerks. Why don¡¯t they date someone from their own team? Or date someone while they¡¯re on vacation? Or if they¡¯re single. I just don¡¯t understand why married guys are acting like this.¡±
¡°Ugh¡¡±
¡°The issue is there are at least three or four guys who like Baek Ae-young. And she doesn¡¯t want to date anyone. She thinks there¡¯s no point in dating anyone in a restricted, closed-off ce like this, as it won¡¯t benefit her life in any way. She also mentioned she doesn¡¯t have a preference.¡±
¡°And so?¡±
¡°So some assholes decided to break into someone else¡¯s room.¡±
Upon hearing that, I almost dropped my jaw to the floor.
¡°That¡¯s¡ insane!¡±
¡°Exactly. Ji-hyeon found out about this n. She¡¯s really smart, you know. Speaks fivenguages. Normally acts like she doesn¡¯t even understand Korean, let alone othernguages, which makes her even smarter. Anyway, Ji-hyeon told our team leader everything.¡±
Seo Jihyuk nced at Shin Haeryang next to me, who remained silent.
¡°And then?¡±
¡°Our team leader swapped rooms with A-yeong. You know how A-yeong is only loyal to our team leader, right?¡±
I heard a soft chuckle from the darkness. It seemed like Shin Haeryang was smiling.
¡°That¡¯s a bit of an exaggeration.¡±
¡°Anyway! During our team¡¯s rest period, her room was forcefully entered. They must have thought she was sleeping in, since the corridor lights were off. They must have been shocked to find a 193cm-tall man in the dark, lifting a 20kg dumbbell borrowed from Soo-jung.¡±
¡°And then?¡±
¡°I had to stop climbing the stairs just to hear this story, and then, urged by Shin Haeryang, I reluctantly continued my climb.¡±
¡°So what happened after?¡±
¡°We closed the door forcefully. One guy tried to run away, but Jaehee and I ran after him and caught him. The other three had already been severely beaten up. Especially the one who tried to block the dumbbell with his arm, his arm was broken, and when it fell on his foot, his foot also broke.¡±
It was insane. Shin Haeryang, one of the people actually involved, didn¡¯t say anything.
¡°Team leader Shin Haeryang, is this true?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t remember it clearly. I was listening to ¡®Viva La Vida¡¯ when they barged in.¡±
While inwardly rejoicing at the story Seo Jihyuk shared, I was worried about how they managed the situation.
¡°And then what happened? Did the police get involved?¡±
¡°Police? If theye from Hawaii, it would take more than one or two hours. It would take even longer if theye from Korea or Japan. If theye from the U.S., it would take double the time. Upon hearing themotion, people who were resting all rushed out from their rooms. Four men created a ruckus in such a small room; the room was a total mess. Michael, who is in charge of engineering, called everyone involved and questioned them. Team Leader-nim was sleeping in Baek Aeyoung¡¯s room when suddenly, the door was forcibly opened, and those guys came in and were violent. They said they had something to discuss with the new team leader, but suddenly he went berserk. Michael may beughing, but he¡¯s no fool. If he were a fool, he couldn¡¯t have managed this chaotic ce. After hearing everything, Michael asked why those four men entered Baek Aeyoung¡¯s room while she was resting. Those bastards had nothing to say. They were talking nonsense. And then, a little whileter, those guys suddenly fell on t ground. They said they were injured while working, ming it on James for not instructing them well, and ended up in the hospital. Some were forcibly sent back to their countries a few monthster.¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed to have finished exining and went silent. I felt a shiver down my spine due to the growing unease.
¡°Intervention from authorities? Like the police or the military?¡±
¡°¡In this undersea base where 8 countries are iming it as theirs, do you think any nation¡¯sw enforcement will be here? It seems like the Dragon King would make judgments much faster. Anyway, when I saw Sato, who lost his right arm, struggling to eat with a spoon because he couldn¡¯t use chopsticks with his left hand, I felt quite relieved.¡±
I nkly asked,
¡°Sato? Are you talking about Sato Ryusuke?¡±
¡°Yes. That bastard. His personality is absolutely terrible. I heard he already got married in Japan when he was 23 or 24, so I have no idea why he¡¯s acting like this here. So, given the mess in Aeyoung¡¯s room, and that we threatened to make this incident known even in the remotest caf¨¦ in Mozambique if they didn¡¯t allow us to move to a different building, we sessfully moved to West district. All the other engineering guys are in the East district.¡±
¡°The Russian team is also in the West district, you know.¡±
¡°The Russians were more intense. They say a woman named Nikita or Irina tied an Australian guy to a chair without permission and tortured him for 18 hours. He went straight back to his homnd after staying in the hospital.¡±
My God. What am I hearing right now?
¡°Is there no way to punish these kinds of crimes?¡±
¡°It¡¯s uncertain when it will be decided; they¡¯re just talking about it at higher levels. All of the country¡¯s submarines are fighting over operating near the underwater base. Reconnaissance drones are colliding mid-air among themselves. The U.S. military openly says they¡¯ll build their naval base right next to the underwater base, so they¡¯re fighting over that as well. If a problem urs here, there¡¯s a lot of controversy over whose nationalws will apply.¡±
Shin Haeryang, who had been quietly listening, interjected, ¡°¡Officially, it¡¯s made so that no one can be armed within the underwater base. It¡¯s a kind of extraterritorial area. The people who initially wanted to build the underwater base did so with the hope of transcending race, nationality, gender, and age to live based on cooperation and reconciliation.¡±
¡°Ah¡ The intention itself is good. But it¡¯s difficult, isn¡¯t it?¡±
It¡¯s very idealistic. It¡¯s like they designed a utopia when they built the underwater base, but it doesn¡¯t seem to reflect the desires of people living in reality. Of course, it would be better than anything if we could live that way. However, it seems they¡¯re asking for too much, given the level of human consciousness.
Shin Haeryang continued to exin, ¡°They try to select people from each country who are ethically sound and unlikely to have big problems in human rtions, but whether they¡¯re doing it correctly is questionable.¡±
¡°They screen them?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
What is this all about? Was I screened before I came here? What was I screened for?
¡°I was also screened before I came here, but how exactly are they screening people to enter the underwater base?¡±
¡°You took a personality test, didn¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Ah¡ Yes. I took it online twice and also had an interview.¡±
¡°Besides, there probably would¡¯ve been a few more evaluations regarding ethics and ideology. You don¡¯t know, Muhyun-ssi? Anyone with a fine exceeding 300,000 won would have been disqualified as well. I¡¯m not sure about the rest; those criteria were implemented after I joined.¡±
The only sound that was heard was that of footsteps ascending the staircase in silence. After climbing a few more steps, Seo Jihyuk suddenly eximed, ¡°Ah!¡± I looked over, wondering if his leg was hurting, but it turned out Seo Jihyuk was calling out to me.
¡°So, the reason women switching rooms with other people isn¡¯t suspicious is because of this!¡±
What was proven to me was rather that Seo Jihyuk has a good memory. My mind was preupied with the state of the underwater base that seemed to have poor security rather than suspicions about Kang Soo-jung and Yoo Geum-yi.
I rubbed my forehead a few times and spoke while recalling my unsettling dental treatment.
¡°Sato seemed to hold a deep grudge against Shin Haeryang.¡±
Seo Jihyuk chuckled and said, ¡°Well, of course, around the time Sato¡¯s right arm, right hand, right foot, and, well, his right ¡®thing¡¯ were messed up, our team leader just got away with a sprained finger from punching him.¡±
As Seo Jihyuk swung his arms as if boxing, I unintentionally stepped forward with my injured left foot. The rhythm got messed up, and all three of us stumbled. Ooof!
¡°¡..¡±
Both Shin Haeryang and I, as we got back up using the staircase railing, said nothing. But it seemed that Seo Jihyuk took the silence as condemnation.
¡°Ah¡ Sorry, both of you. It¡¯s tough to carry someone who weighs 96kg up. Bear with me a little longer. I¡¯ll buy a lot of drinks when we get up there.¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t they say they don¡¯t sell alcohol here?¡±
¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying.¡±
Despite Seo Jihyuk¡¯s nonsensicalment, I chuckled, feeling drained. Babbling while climbing somehow felt faster than climbing in silence.
But if I were to confirm with Yoo Geum-yi, we probably hadn¡¯t climbed all that much. At first, she kept asking how many steps we had climbed. Now, she hardly asked anymore. If the number didn¡¯t meet my expectations, it only resulted in disappointment or loss of energy.
Chapter 43
Chapter 43
I thought about Kang Soo-Jung and Yoo Geum-yi as I climbed the stairs, pausing to rest, then climbing some more. Objectively or subjectively, they are good people. I can¡¯t go on suspecting everyone around me. Of course, there are people who live like that. But I couldn¡¯t be that type of person. My mental fortitude is not strong enough to constantly live with that kind of stress.
I have to be thankful for the goodwill they extended to me at that time, and believe it was genuine. I didn¡¯t want to flounder in a swamp of distrust, whose depth I couldn¡¯t even measure. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s opinion has been quite helpful. But if Seo Jihyuk were to¡ Never mind.
¡°Geum-yi!¡±
¡°¡Yes.¡±
A feeble voice answered from a distance. As I climbed the stairs, I could see Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s dark figure, hunched over like a zombie. The distance between us was probably around 20 steps. She wouldn¡¯t go down anymore, whether someone ahead or behind her called. She would just rest and wait for people below to catch up and, if someone above called, ascend with a sigh. Efficient, indeed. I took a deep breath after observing her sluggish movement, swaying like a kite in the wind.
¡°How many steps have you climbed?¡±
¡°¡I¡¯m standing on the 3025th step. There may be a margin of error of plus or minus 10 steps.¡±
We¡¯ve rested a total of five times so far, and 3000 steps? Yoo Geum-yi and Baek Ae-Young must have really climbed 450 steps each before taking a break, or perhaps actually 500-600 steps. No wonder it felt so exhausting. There¡¯s nothing to see in the darkness, so it¡¯s easy to be deceived. I wished they had lied and said we were on the 4000th step. ¡Humans are so deceitful. Or rather, I am so deceitful.
¡°I thought we had only crossed about 2000 steps.¡±
¡°We still have over 1300 steps left.¡±
¡°But we¡¯ve passed the halfway point.¡±
Like me, Seo Jihyuk panted as he spoke.
¡°I swear I¡¯ll never use stairs again. Once my legs recover, I¡¯m going to live in an elevator. Seriously.¡±
¡°Sounds good. I don¡¯t want to leave myb either. I¡¯m tired of stairs.¡±
Shin Haeryang, who had been listening to Yoo Geum-yi, checked his watch and said, ¡°We haven¡¯t lost much time.¡±
¡°How long did it take?¡±
¡°About 40 minutes.¡±
¡°Is that fast or slow?¡±
¡°¡Considering the number of people, we¡¯re making good time.¡±
I nodded, unseen in the darkness. If this taciturn man isn¡¯t saying that we¡¯re all doomed, things must be okay. Seo Jihyuk unleashed a string of expletives. Hisint mainly centered around how his knees hurt so much, he wished he could make the person who shot him feel three times the pain. I almost trippedughing at his im of refraining from doing so because he was such a wonderful person. To be exact, I missed a step.
¡°Huh?¡±
The moment I started to lean, Seo Jihyuk put his arm around my shoulder. Seo Jihyuk himself was being supported by Shin Haeryang, so both caught me simultaneously. One of my feet waspletely off the ground, but they pulled me back with incredible speed by holding onto my shoulders and arms, preventing me from falling into the darkness.
After instructing Seo Jihyuk and me to stay close to the wall, Shin Haeryang inspected the ground with his shlight. Upon closer inspection, the width of the step I was on had narrowed by 2-3 cmpared to the previous steps. Baek Ae-young and Yoo Geum-yi, who were ahead of us, were walking down the middle of the stairs. In the dark, it would have been hard to notice the difference of a few centimeters.
¡°Doc, that was a close one.¡±
¡°It was risky. ¡Thank you, both of you.¡±
Shin Haeryang furrowed his brow as he looked at the stairs.
¡°Shall we walk on the outer edge? It will be safer.¡±
It would be more tiring and difficult to walk along the outer edge, but I switched ces withoutining. Better safe than sorry.
Shin Haeryang reached around his neck and took something out. Even in the dark, something small was glinting around his neck. As he approached, I realized it was a ne. I hadn¡¯t noticed before because of the special suit he was wearing up to his neck, but it seemed he had a ne underneath. As he offered it to me, I stepped back, visibly displeased.
¡°You really don¡¯t have to go this far.¡±
¡°I¡¯m lending it to you. Give it back once we get out of the dark.¡±
Shin Haeryang¡¯s ne was soon around my neck. I couldn¡¯t tell what it was made of, but it glowed faintly in the dark, about the size of a pinkie nail. I had never heard of a gemstone glowing in the dark without a light source. I looked at the glowing blue color around my neck and asked in a voice tinged with concern.
¡°What is this made of?¡±
I just hope it¡¯s not radioactive. If a gem glows, it¡¯s that, right? Radioactivity.
¡°It¡¯s apiszuli coated with a fluorescent material.¡±
I let out a sigh of relief internally. But I wasn¡¯t the only one walking in the dark. Looking into the darkness, I asked, ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better for Yoo Geum-yi-ssi to wear the ne?¡±
The three of us are going up as a set, but she¡¯s going up alone. How scary it must be for her in the dark.
¡°Yoo Geum-yi has never fallen once in the 3,000 steps she has taken.¡±
¡°How do you know?¡±
¡°The sound.¡±
At Shin Haeryang¡¯s words, I had no further objections and closed my mouth. My calves and knees were already aching. They¡¯re probably bruised. Walking in the dark where the stair heights are inconsistent and supporting another person is not easy. ording to Shin Haeryang¡¯s judgement, I must have tripped too many times. Well, one person tripping could make all three of us fall. The stone hanging around my neck emitted a lone blue light in the dark. It was only the size of a thumbnail, but it gave me somefort.
I asked Shin Haeryang as I looked at the glowing ne.
¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve seen someone coat a ne with fluorescent material.¡±
A sound of agreement, ¡°yeah,¡± came from Shin Haeryang. I realized that Seo Jihyuk had quietly shut his mouth and was climbing up the stairs. I had thought he would have a field day making fun of me for tripping on the stairs or for wearing Shin Haeryang¡¯s ne, but surprisingly, he was silent.
We climbed the stairs in silence for a while. Shin Haeryang seemed naturally quiet, and I wasn¡¯t exactly the most sociable person either, plus I was out of breath just from walking up the stairs. Seo Jihyuk was usually the one who started conversations, but he seemed to be out of topics to discuss today. In the darkness, I heard him sniff loudly before he spoke.
¡°I¡¯m reminded of the time Team Leader made the ne.¡±
As I touched the gemstone of the ne with my right fingertips, it felt smooth. Lapiszuli. If my memory serves me right, it would probably look like a deep blue sea under the light.
¡°Did you make it yourself?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°Could you please borate, Team Leader? I should know what I¡¯m wearing around my neck.¡±
I had noticed that whenever Shin Haeryang¡¯s team members asked him to borate, he would do so. Was there a reason? Seo Jihyuk chuckled at my question.
¡°It¡¯s a rule we made because Team Leader is so reticent. If we ask him to exin something in detail, he¡¯s obligated to do so. It stops the team members from going crazy.¡±
¡°¡I was fortunate to find a small piece ofpiszuli in Afghanistan. I was told that its size would be good enough to make two nes. After receiving the finished gemstone cut, I applied a non-toxic dye multiple times to ensure it would be visible in the dark. Once I was sure it glowed properly under fluorescent light, I applied a coating and let it drypletely before giving one as a gift.¡±
¡°So, this was made as a set?¡±
¡°Yes, originally it¡¯s a set of two.¡±
I felt a shiver down my spine. Could it be that I was wearing one of a couple¡¯s set? Surely not.
¡°Is the other one currently being worn by your significant other or something?¡±
An ambiguous voice floated in the darkness.
¡°Um¡No, the other one is mine.¡±
It was the first time I¡¯d ever heard Shin Haeryang respond so ambiguously. Damn it.
¡°I¡¯ll give it back right away. My God, why would I be wearing this when you should be giving it to your loved one?¡±
¡°¡There would be no issue since they have passed away.¡±
In a calm voice, my neck, now adorned with a ne, felt somewhat relieved. It seemed that Seo Jihyuk, who was silently standing in the darkness, didn¡¯t expect this sort of exnation either. Seo Jihyuk withdrew the hand he had rested on me, scratched the back of his head vigorously, and then spoke.
¡°No, I thought you were going to give a brief exnation as to why you made it visible in the dark.¡±
¡°¡You asked for a detailed exnation.¡±
¡°I¡¯m fully awake now.¡±
¡°Jihyuk-ssi, were you dozing off?¡±
¡°Let¡¯s keep climbing the stairs in the dark. Do you not feel sleepy?¡±
He says that, yet he makes a ruckus in this situation; is he implying that he¡¯s sleepy?
¡°I don¡¯t feel sleepy.¡±
¡°Then it seems you and I have different constitutions.¡±
And then there was silence. I felt as though the weightless ne suddenly became heavy. In the dark, it felt as if some woman was ring at me, which sent shivers down my spine. I¡¯vee to realize for the first time that I¡¯m such a coward; I had never noticed it before. So I asked Shin Haeryang.
¡°Right now, wearing this on my neck feels like a tremendous burden.¡±
¡°Oh.¡±
¡°If it¡¯s not rude, may I ask how that person passed away? I can¡¯t see anything in front of me, and I feel like I might trip with every step. I just want to return it. If it¡¯s a difficult question, please ignore it.¡±
¡°Three years ago, that person was swept away by a sudden rush of water in a stream while out ying in the water with friends.¡±
¡°Ah¡ May the deceased rest in peace.¡±
¡°Yes. I also believe so.¡±
As Shin Haeryang quietly ascended the stairs, I felt so ufortable that I thought I¡¯d turn back. Seo Jihyuk seemed to feel the same way. He was quietly ascending the stairs when he suddenly pped Shin Haeryang on the back and spoke.
¡°Come on, you need to exin this in more detail. Team leader, yourmunication skills are severelycking.¡±
¡°¡Suddenly, I strongly agree with Jihyuk-ssi¡¯s words.¡±
Chapter 44
Chapter 44
Seo Jihyuk spoke in a low voice,
¡°Back then, when Team Leader suddenly called for help, my heart nearly jumped out of my chest. Even now, whenever I think about it, my heart races like crazy. Three people were missing; the team leader called everyone who could swim. We immediately grabbed our gear and ran to the stream. Had it not been for the sudden torrential rain, no one would have died. One person was found stuck amongst some rocks within a day, but Team Leader¡¯s ex-girlfriend and another person remained missing. Sang-hyeon and I were ted to join, and including us, seven people searched. We thought we¡¯d find them within seven minutes since we were a ¡®lucky seven,¡¯ but the rain made the water muddy. It was so murky that I couldn¡¯t even see my own arm in the water. The parents came to the river every day, crying and searching, but even the wretched rain wouldn¡¯t stop. We even talked about withdrawing for safety reasons.¡±
¡°And then?¡±
I asked, and the quiet Shin Haeryang answered, ¡°We thought they¡¯d been swept away, but¡ they had sunk to the bottom of the stream. It shone in the darkness.¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t it strange that the ne is still on? Normally when you enter water, clothes, nes, everything gets stripped away by the current. Most drowned bodies are found naked.¡±
¡°And yet Team Leader-ssi is still wearing the ne?¡±
Despite his exnation that the glowing ne I wore was not the same one on the drowned body, I felt more ufortable than before. I should return it as soon as I leave these stairs. No, I want to return it now. Hasn¡¯t it been awkward for Shin Haeryang to wear this for thest three years?
¡°Why do you continue to wear it?¡±
I shook the glowing ne. Unless Shin Haeryang ispletely oblivious, he should understand what I¡¯m trying to say. I felt some hesitation from the darkness beyond.
¡°¡I had made a promise.¡±
¡°You promised to wear the ne with the person who died until one of you died?¡±
¡°Not exactly. Lapiszuli, literally meaning ¡®blue stone¡¯ in Latin, is considered the gem of a divine spirit that leads to truth. It¡¯s said to bring love to thosecking it and fortune to the unfortunate. Let¡¯s skip the love part and talk about luck¡ Back then, I was into freediving.¡±
¡°Can you exin what freediving is?¡±
¡°It¡¯s diving into the ocean without air tanks or flippers.¡±
¡°How do you breathe without an air tank?¡±
¡°You take one breath and dive up to around 100 meters.¡±
So one floor is 3 meters, ording to Yoo Geum-yi. Then, diving 33 floors deep in the ocean without breathing, thening back up? Why¡ why would you do something like that? It¡¯s insane. It¡¯s definitely luck, not love, that he needs. Why risk it? Even just walking has its dangers; why increase the chances of dying?
¡°It sounds like you need luck for that.¡±
¡°¡Lapiszuli is a gem that¡¯s weak to water and pressure. The more often and longer you stay in the ocean, the higher the chance it will degrade. We promised to wear it until it breaks.¡±
¡°Ah¡ so it hasn¡¯t broken yet.¡±
¡°Yes, it hasn¡¯t.¡±
Shin Haeryang closed his mouth. Shifting his weight towards me, Seo Jihyuk spoke, ¡°¡This is the first time I¡¯m hearing about this too. I thought he wore it for luck.¡±
¡°You never asked.¡±
¡°True, I never asked.¡±
Seo Jihyuk vigorously scratched the back of his head and then spoke to Shin Haeryang, ¡°You lent me that ne during my exams and for Jaehee¡¯s driving test, remember?¡±
¡°You were crying and wailing about failing.¡±
¡°¡Well, I did pass. Never thought love was involved in that story.¡±
¡°Now, only luck remains with this ne.¡±
¡°¡Do you really have to keep that promise?¡±
¡°Is there a reason not to?¡±
As Seo Jihyuk spoke, it felt like his heart was about to burst, and I felt the same. Whatever Shin Haeryang made of our silence, he spoke again to Seo Jihyuk.
¡°My therapist told me not to get so attached to the ne. They said for the sake of my mental health, I should either sell or throw it away. But it¡¯s mine anyway. No matter whom I lend it to, it¡¯s destined toe back to me. At least until it breaks. Right now, I lent it to Moohyun-ssi because he needed some light.¡±
Sure enough, Shin Haeryang said as I was contemting whether it would be rude to immediately remove and hand over the ne, which was shimmering with light around my neck.
¡°Please give it back when you¡¯re out of the darkness.¡±
¡°¡ Yes. I will return it promptly.¡±
Seo Jihyuk found the end of a conversation that had flown somewhere.
¡°Ah¡ anyway, I diligently changed the air tank for three days and managed to find both of them while diving. I had never been to a funeral for someone my age before; it was so depressing and quiet. Back then, we had amazing stamina. We swam for three days and stayed up all night at the funeral, and yet we werepletely fine the next day. Now, even if I wanted to, I can¡¯t do that.¡±
¡°You¡¯re still climbing the stairs well, though.¡±
It wasn¡¯t just him climbing on his own; we were all helping him climb. If Shin Haeryang and I hadn¡¯t helped distribute Seo Jihyuk¡¯s weight, there¡¯s no way he could have climbed these stairs with one leg. Hearing this, Seo Jihyuk shook his arm as if he was terribly wronged.
¡°I would have flown up these stairs a few years ago.¡±
Shin Haeryang lightly grazed the back of Seo Jihyuk¡¯s head. Whether that meant ¡®be quiet¡¯ or was some sort of constion, it was unclear.
¡°You¡¯ll be flying again once you get surgery.¡±
¡°¡¡±
Then Seo Jihyuk said nothing. We quietly climbed the stairs. I¡¯m not sure how long it takes to fully recover after getting shot in the knee. Even ten years ago, I heard that it was difficult topletely heal a joint. Maybe medical technology has developed a lot since then.
As we climbed, panting, we heard that if the total number of stairs was 4300, about 600 were left. We all had a sip of water left in a water bottle that had been circting among us. After asking if everyone had some, I took thest sip and tossed the bottle. It seemed like we had prepared about 9 bottles of water and beverages, and this was thest of them.
There was a bottle of liquor in Baek Ae-young¡¯s bag that Seo Jihyuk had packed, but no one drank it. Even Seo Jihyuk, who had insisted on packing it, refused to drink. One sip and we¡¯d all getpletely drunk in our current state. I said, lying down and moaning because of my sweat-soaked state,
¡°¡I want to go to a bathhouse.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi heard me and said, yawning and sighing at the same time, ¡°¡I want an iced Americano.¡±
¡°Any carbonated drink.¡±
¡°Water.¡±
¡°Beer.¡±
At Seo Jihyuk¡¯sst word, Baek Ae-young frowned.
¡°Be thankful that I didn¡¯t throw away this Valentino or whatever it is in the bag right here and now.¡±
¡°Thanks, thanks. Let¡¯s have a drink when we get out. When we get out.¡±
Iy on the dusty floor, resting my back against it, and dusted off my clothes as the asional breeze blew in. The coolness of the floor somewhat alleviated the heat that had settled into my body, and the winding from an unknown source somewhere along the stairs helped to dry my sweat. As Iy there, staring at the ceiling that was dark as pitch, I spoke.
¡°What¡¯s the first thing we need to do when we get out of the stairs?¡±
There was no reply to my question until someone spoke from the darkness. It was Shin Haeryang.
¡°The second underwater base is located 200 meters below the water surface. There are three fastest ways to ascend, including the central elevator, escape pods, and submarines. In my opinion, it would be easiest to escape in the order of submarines, escape pods, and then elevator. I¡¯d like to reach the surface by any means, even if it¡¯s a manned exploration vessel.¡±
¡°At that depth, isn¡¯t it possible to swim up to the surface with scuba diving equipment?¡±
Everyone fell silent at my question, which had been prompted by what I¡¯d heard earlier about free diving. ¡°People can free dive to depths of over 100 meters, so 200 meters with equipment should be even easier,¡¯ I thought. Shin Haeryang and Yoo Geum-yi answered together.
¡°Impossible.¡±
¡°~200m is.¡±
Because the two answered at the same time, Shin Haeryang directed his next words towards where Yoo Geum-yi was.
¡°¡¯You go first.¡±
¡°Alright. At ~200 meters, the pressure is roughly around 20 atmospheres. Imagine putting a weight of about 20kg on each square centimeter of your body¡ªlike your fingernails. The human body has a skin area of around 20,000 square cm, so that would mean you¡¯d be taking on a force equivalent to 4000 kg.¡±
As I listened to this detailed exnation, I cheekily thought, ¡°Yoo Geum-yi would do really well in math education, wouldn¡¯t she?¡±
Just then, Baek Ae-young casually remarked, ¡°That¡¯s like the weight of two Porsches.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, surprised, asked, ¡°One Porsche weighs 2000 kg?¡±
¡°Is that what¡¯s important?¡±
While Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young were bickering, Yoo Geum-yi calmly said to me, ¡°Biologically, ~200m is considered deep sea. It¡¯s not an environment where the human body can survive without equipment. Alright, my turn is done. Shin Haeryang-ssi, your turn.¡±
¡°Even experienced scuba divers avoid diving deeper than ~50 meters for beginners. And the diving equipment is located in the first underwater base, so it¡¯s possible there.¡±
¡°Thank you for yourprehensive answers, both of you.¡±
Hearing these polite exnations made me feel as if I¡¯d returned to my university days. Of course, the professors I¡¯d met were nowhere near as kind as these two. At least they didn¡¯t cut me off instantly for asking ¡®stupid¡¯ questions. As I sat on the floor, something heavy settled on my stomach in the darkness. I was so startled that I froze, and it was only after touching it that I realized it was a cat.¡±
Chapter 45
Chapter 45
The warmth and softness on my back feltfortable. Whether it was because it was tame, or if cats were naturally like this, I was surprised that the first one I met didn¡¯t try to bite or scratch me. I had forgotten to let the cat go, but someone must have taken care of it. Don¡¯t animals also need water? What do cats eat? Do they eat rats?
What about snakes? Don¡¯t they eat rats as well? Do they bothp up water to swallow it? Since I¡¯ve never raised an animal before, I¡¯m uncertain. My only experience with snakes eating is from watching animal channels on TV, where they hunt rats in the wild.
Do we even have rats in this underwater base? Could I even catch one for them in this situation? I don¡¯t even know if it¡¯s venomous. What should I do once we escape? Who keeps cats and snakes? I got them on the spur of the moment, but now I realize there are more than one or two things to consider. But I couldn¡¯t just leave them to die in that seawater.
Baek Ae-young shined the shlight around before itnded on the cat sitting on my stomach. She then changed the direction of the light. It looked like she had been the one carrying the cat around all this time.
¡°Does anyone in East District own a cat?¡±
There was silence in response to this question as well. I figured it wouldn¡¯t be a big deal if I asked again, given that everyone already knew about the cat and a snake wouldn¡¯t make things any worse.
¡°Or does anyone own a snake?¡±
¡°A snake? Isn¡¯t it¡ poisonous?¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed exhausted, lying down without moving. It was difficult to answer. I couldn¡¯t ask the snake whether it was poisonous.
¡°I don¡¯t know. I picked it up from a cage while escaping from the East District¡¯s dormitory.¡±
¡°Where is that snake now?¡±
At Shin Haeryang¡¯s voice, I pointed to my bag beside me, then realizing it was too dark for anyone to see, I yawned and then finally said, ¡°It¡¯s in a small pouch in my bag.¡±
¡°Have you been bitten?¡±
¡°No¡ Actually, I¡¯m not sure. If I were bitten, wouldn¡¯t I be dead by now?¡±
¡°The venom might not be neurotoxic. Hemotoxic venom can cause death in as quickly as 20 minutes, or usually takes around 2 hours.¡±
Shin Haeryang had a knack for making hearts skip a beat with just a single sentence. I couldn¡¯t believe how anxious I became in just a few seconds. I might have put my hand in and out of the bag after I found the snake. Had I felt pain? I couldn¡¯t remember. I was too preupied. Climbing the stairs had made me so tired, I felt like I¡¯d be okay even if I died from snake venom right now. A voice sounded in the darkness. It was Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s.
¡°What happened to the other people?¡±
¡°Which other people?¡±
¡°The ones who took the central elevator. Like Henry, Jennifer, or Gayoung unni, or the Russians. Those who escaped using the escape pod or those who took the submarine. Also the people at our research center.¡±
¡°They could be dead or alive. Escaping, or captured by a cult. Or caught and killed. We can¡¯t really afford to think about others right now.¡±
At the sound of Seo Jihyuk¡¯s sluggish voice, Baek Ae-young stood up, stretched her back like a cat, and let out a causticugh.
¡°We don¡¯t have that luxury either, injured.¡±
¡°¡ Geum-yi-ssi, I take back my previous statement. I beg of you to keep an eye out. No, think hard about others as well. Life is precious. Everyone is someone¡¯s precious family, friend, or lover. Helping someone can change the future for them.¡±
Listening to Seo Jihyuk talk like a public service announcement made me chuckle. I heard Yoo Geum-yi¡¯sughter in my ear.
I dragged the bag with the snake across the floor, and three pieces of candy fell out. I handed one each to the two women, and approached where the men were sitting on the floor. I asked who among the two would eat the remaining candy.
Looking bothered, Shin Haeryang shook his head and said, ¡°Please gag Jihyuk¡¯s mouth. I¡¯m fine.¡±
¡°You know you can still talk with candy in your mouth, right?!¡±
Thest bit of food went to the injured one. Since Baek Ae-young first took out cups of fruit from her bag during our initial rest and dered, ¡°You must eat to be able to go up! No refusal. If it¡¯s given, you have to eat!¡±
Everyone nodded in agreement. Since then, everyone ate whatever was shared immediately.
I realized why we were fed as we climbed. We wouldn¡¯t have been able to climb all these stairs on an empty stomach. We had be stair-climbing experts.
We should be arriving at the second underwater base soon. I was hopeful that Shin Haeryang might give even a brief speech. Something like, ¡°We¡¯ve climbed well so far. We will soon arrive at the second underwater base. This is the result of everyone¡¯s actions. We¡¯ve climbed more than half the way.¡± However, he only uttered a low word in the darkness,
¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±
A glimmer of hope wrapped around me as I realized there were only a few stairs left. Soon, it would be the second underwater base. Let¡¯s muster up some strength. Seo Jihyuk scratched his head from a corner and wrapped his arm around my shoulder.
¡I¡¯ll be the first to shower once we get out. Gotta get rid of these clothes too. Am I the only one sensitive about hygiene? My hope for the future was valid until the 30th step. Beyond that, my heavy legs didn¡¯t want to climb any further.
After letting out dozens of sighs, I stared into the darkness and asked.
¡°How could they even build a structure like this underwater? This can¡¯t be easy.¡±
¡°Nothing¡¯s impossible when you throw money at it. We¡¯re even sending people to Mars.¡±
Shin Haeryang added in the darkness after hearing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s straightforward words.
¡°This base is said to be abination of impossible designs and the most cutting-edge technologies humanity has. When they first started building the North Pacific underwater base, all kinds of people whose jobs had the word ¡®ocean¡¯ in them gathered: naval architects, civil engineers, drillers, and so on. They¡¯ve probably moved to the Antic underwater base by now. It was said that all the concrete and rebar produced over decades in North Pacific countries were used for these four military bases.¡±
I heard through the news that shipbuilding and construction industries had revived due to the underwater base. There were also quite a few people who chose marine engineering over aerospace engineering. As for me, I chose dentistry, looking for a stable ie¡ªonly to find myself in this copsing underwater base. Life is strange. Just a week ago, I never thought I¡¯d be climbing these unknown, dark stairs to avoid cultists and armed thugs.
¡°Let¡¯s have faith in cutting-edge technology. Experts must have considered safety as a top priority. If I were a boss, I¡¯d make all the safety experts in marine structures live in the fourth underwater base. Since you dered it safe, you live here,¡± or something like that.
¡°What do you think would happen if the underwater base copses?¡±
Seo Jihyuk waited for Shin Haeryang to speak but finally broke the silence.
¡°We would die. Not sure if they¡¯d even find our bodies. The fish would probably eat us.¡±
He was right. The moment Seo Jihyuk finished speaking, I remembered a story about diving for three days to retrieve a body. Just as I was about to agree with his shortsighted view, we climbed a few more steps and heard Shin Haeryang¡¯s voice.
¡°¡The impact would be enormous. It was a project started by putting Mars programs and Frontier projects on hold. Even though the first Antic underwater base is expected toplete by the end of next year, it would still be affected. North Sea underwater base construction might not even start. ¡But I¡¯m more concerned about the pollution in the North Pacific after the copse. The experts would know better.¡±
Ah. A long-term perspective. I¡¯d like to watch TV and think of all the experts¡¯ talk about the underwater base as someone else¡¯s problem. I reflected a little on my anxiety about the copsing fourth underwater base.
¡°Aren¡¯t you worried about unemployment?¡±
A soft chuckle sounded. I couldn¡¯t tell whether it was Seo Jihyuk or Shin Haeryang. I don¡¯t get why they¡¯reughing.
¡°Don¡¯t you, Moohyun-ssi, have a job that¡¯s far from rted to the copse of the underwater base?¡±
¡°I do, but I don¡¯t have the money to start my own practice. If I could, I wouldn¡¯t be here.¡±
¡°Is that so.¡±
¡°That¡¯s right. How do we make a living if we get out of here alive? I¡¯ll have to think about whether to continue as an engineer. What about you, Team Leader?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll take a three-month break and think about it.¡±
And then we climbed the stairs. Seo Jihyuk vented about all theints he had about his job. He must not have enjoyed life in the underwater base. He then started listing all the jobs he could switch to, as he majored in Electrical and Electronic Engineering. I nodded. As for me, I¡¯m still a dentist. Judging by what Seo Jihyuk said, we wouldn¡¯t starve to death. It took me a while to realize that Seo Jihyuk was venting his anxieties through chatter.
By the time Seo Jihyuk was tired of talking, the three-man party had gone silent. I looked at the two adults, recalling a question I used to ask children who came to the dental clinic.
¡°Do you know which creature has the most teeth? I used to ask this question to kids at the dental clinic. If they got it right, I would give them a toothbrush. Of course, I¡¯d give them one even if they got it wrong.¡±
¡°A shark?¡±
¡°Wrong, Seo Jihyuk-ssi. If you open a shark¡¯s mouth, you¡¯ll only find around 300 teeth. What about you, Shin Haeryang?¡±
¡°I have no idea. I was also thinking about sharks. Or maybe a whale.¡±
¡°The correct answer is¡ a snail! It has over 10,000 teeth. They¡¯re on its tongue and are used to lick fruits and leaves. Since we don¡¯t lick fruits and leaves, we have to brush our teeth diligently.¡±
¡°Apuse.¡±
Seo Jihyuk had entrusted both of his arms to Shin Haeryang, making it impossible for him to p, so he spoke as if pping with his mouth.
¡°Alright, next question. What is an animal with no teeth?¡±
¡°Are there animals without teeth?¡±
At Seo Jihyuk¡¯s question, I nodded my head. How childlike. His question was identical to what elementary school students often asked. Speaking of which, how old is Seo Jihyuk?
¡°Yes. There are three. Teeth and ws may be their primary weapons, but these animals can live without teeth.¡±
¡°Is it an anteater?¡±
I was so surprised that I almost stopped climbing the stairs for a moment. I had thrown a lot of questions, but this was the first time an answer hade back. Normally, I pose the question and tell the patient to think about it while administering treatment. When I ask for the answer after the treatment, most either forgot the question due to pain or screaming, or they answered incorrectly.
¡°Ding-dong-daeng-dong. Yes. One is an anteater.¡±
¡°Anteaters don¡¯t have teeth, Team Leader?¡±
Shin Haeryang replied with a sigh.
¡°Given the name, it sounds like they¡¯d only have a tongue.¡±
¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct. They don¡¯t have teeth, just a tongue. What about the other two?¡±
¡°Ko!¡±
¡°Wrong!¡±
¡°Elephant?¡±
¡°Wrong!¡±
My voice must have been loud, as Yoo Geum-yi, who was standing on the tall stairs, asked.
¡°What are you three doing?¡±
¡°We were discussing animals without teeth. Do you happen to know any?¡±
¡°Armadillo.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi said without hesitation. It¡¯s such a privilege to be able to gather with people more knowledgeable than me, especially in challenging situations like this.
¡°Ding-dong-daeng-dong. Correct! Armadillos don¡¯t have teeth. Only one more left!¡±
Seo Jihyuk began to list all sorts of animals in frustration.
¡°I have no idea. Camel?¡±
¡°Wrong.¡±
¡°Giraffe?¡±
¡°Wrong.¡±
¡°Panda!¡±
¡°Nope.¡±
¡°Sloth?¡±
¡°Yes, correct! It¡¯s a sloth!¡±
The blue light on the ne illuminated Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face, which looked as pleased as a child. At least he got one right. Makes me want to give him a toothbrush or dental floss as a gift.
Chapter 46
Chapter 46
¡°What are you doing? Hurry up!¡±
I wasn¡¯t sure when I had stopped on the stairs, but Baek Ae-young¡¯s shout kicked me into gear. It was as if I was a horse whipped into a sprint, almost tripping over myself. So this is how Park Moohyun¡¯s quiz time ends. I should consider adding a prize for the next one.
Holding a shlight, Baek Ae-young was waiting for us at the top of the steep stairs. Step by step, with a mix of patience and annoyance, I finally reached a spot where I could see her face. She was standing still on the stairs, not moving any further up. Next to her, Yoo Geum-yi was also standing, leaning on her knees. The two of us, now joined, were panting for breath as we looked at the two people standing on the stairs.
¡°Are you taking a break?¡±
¡°This is the end.¡±
I looked around after hearing Baek Ae-young¡¯s response. Beyond her back, there were only a few more dark steps; the staircase ended. No more stairs. No more stairs! Yay! I silently cheered, raising an arm to the sky, forgetting all about the strain and naturally smiling.
Yoo Geum-yi literallyy down on the floor, gasping for air and quietly cheering in excitement. Seo Jihyuk also sat down on the floor, chuckling. Shin Haeryang took the shlight from Baek Ae-young and started to touch the wall. For a few seconds, we were all tremendously happy. When Yoo Geum-yi told us that there were approximately 4,320 steps, I even thought I could skip exercise for the rest of the week.
The problem arose when Shin Haeryang wasn¡¯t just touching the wall but started knocking and rubbing it as if trying to clean it with his hands and body. All eyes were on him as he moved around in the dark with his shlight.
¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi asked, as if fearful. Shin Haeryang looked at us and spoke.
¡°There is no door to get out of the stairwell.¡±
A cold shiver ran down my spine. While I was touching the back of my neck and head in disbelief, a horrified Seo Jihyuk asked, ¡°Please, Team Leader¡ don¡¯t tell us we have to go back down. Going down is harder and more challenging than climbing up.¡±
The desperate tone pierced my ears. In the midst of all the uneasiness, Shin Haeryang looked at the wall and then at us, saying,
¡°Stay here.¡±
Then, holding his shlight, he began to descend the stairs alone. Perhaps we looked like corpses sprawled on the ground. Yoo Geum-yiy down on the ground like a stone statue, not moving an inch. Seo Jihyuk alsoy down, making indistinct grumbling sounds; it was unclear whether he was asleep or dead. Baek Ae-young was stretching her arms and legs, making sounds as if her joints were under serious strain.
As Shin Haeryang had said, no one moved. So I stood up. I mean, we couldn¡¯t just let him wander around in the darkness alone, right? As Shin Haeryang moved away from the group, immediate darkness engulfed us. Relying on the blue light hanging from my neck, I kept muttering to myself, ¡°It¡¯s not scary, it¡¯s not scary.¡± Getting up from the floor made my legs wobble. Even a newborn fawn would walk better than this. I might be fine today, but I bet I won¡¯t be able to walk tomorrow. With these thoughts, I followed Shin Haeryang down the stairs.
He looked back at meing down from above, but didn¡¯t really try to stop me. Shin Haeryang took one more step down the staircase and stared at the surrounding walls for a long time through a shlight. He also knocked and scratched the walls before proceeding down the stairs again. He repeated the same actions at the nextnding. Every time he descended and shone the shlight on the wall, I felt engulfed in despair, realizing I had to go through this ordeal yet again.
Do I have to walk 4,000 steps back to the third underwater base? Aftering up all this way? A feeling of wanting to cry surged up. It seemed that the physical exhaustion had also mentally drained me. A storm of pain was wreaking havoc in my mind, destroying my well-established confidence.
Shin Haeryang stopped at thending and knocked on the wall with the back of his hand. A ¡®thud-thud-thud¡¯ sound echoed. The wall was full of mold. Well, that makes sense as this ce is humid, damp, and crawling with bugs. Reaching into the bag he was carrying on his back, he took out a screwdriver. It seemed to have been taken from Baek Ae-young¡¯s bag at the third underwater base. Then, with all his might, Shin Haeryang jabbed the screwdriver into the wall.
I expected it to bounce back, but the tip of the screwdriver went right in. Pulling it out and throwing it on the floor, I asked,
¡°Is it hollow?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
My heart felt like it was pounding in my ears. Something surged up in my chest. Light streamed in through the small hole that the screwdriver had made. My eyes moistened as soon as I saw that tiny light. Even though he wasn¡¯t nearby, it felt like I could hear Seo Jihyuk cursing at Shin Haeryang. Damn this team leader.
¡°Could you exin that a bit more?¡±
¡°They¡¯ve doubleyered it with drywall. Because of the moisture, mold has formed, and as you can see, if a screwdriver can prate it, we can tear it down and move on.¡±
It sounded like he was saying this is a false wall connected to the stairs, and at that moment, my legs gave way, and I slumped down onto the steps. I don¡¯t have to go back to the third underwater base. I don¡¯t have to descend those damn 4,000 steps again. I can get out of here. Tears welled up in my eyes.
¡°Please stay here. I¡¯ll go get the others.¡±
I bowed my head and nodded. As Shin Haeryang passed me and started climbing the stairs, I yelled at his back, ¡°Will youe if I call?!¡±
Even so, Shin Haeryang continued to climb the stairs. It wasn¡¯t until the sound of footsteps ceased that I, in my stupor, realized Shin Haeryang had gone up because of Seo Jihyuk. I was out of it. Then I began to hear the sound of people descending the stairs. I didn¡¯t have an ounce of strength left to go back up. I crawled to where Shin Haeryang had been standing earlier and began to sweep the floor. My hand caught a thead screwdriver.
Thinking I should chip away at the drywall before anyonees, I tapped it with the tip of the screwdriver. The material was no joke in terms of durability. How did Shin Haeryang manage to jab this in with just a screwdriver? Was drywall normally this hard? I couldn¡¯t tell if it was that my hands were weak or that the part I touched was unexpectedly strong.
Sitting down, gripping the screwdriver with both hands, I took several whacks at the wall when I heard footsteps behind me. Then a hand patted me lightly on the shoulder and extended beside me. Due to the ne, the palm of the hand looked bluish. When I handed the screwdriver to the expert, arge hand grabbed it and started pounding toward the light. In just four attempts, a palm-sized hole appeared in the wall. Shin Haeryang smashed the wall with the screwdriver, his fist, and his forearm. It was almost like a human drilling machine. Eventually, Shin Haeryang even kicked the wall, making a hole.
Though the air was thick with dust, I saw a tremendous lighting in from the outside. Having walked in darkness, it was hard to open my eyes, unustomed to the light. Once a hole big enough for one person to pass through was created, Baek Ae-young softly whistled and went out through the wall like a cat. Then she knocked on the wall three times in our direction. The sound of Yu Geum-yi¡¯sughter reached my ears from behind.
The ce we¡¯vee out is one of the false walls within the deep-sea aquarium of the 2nd underwater base,¡± Shin Haeryang exined.
Located at -200m, the deep-sea aquarium is set to open next year for the general public visiting the underwater base. For now, it¡¯s just been pre-constructed, with only a few species of fish introduced. Peoplee and go for tasks like feeding the fish, cleaning the tanks, and nting aquatic nts, but fortunately, there was no sign of anyone.
We went to the nearest restroom from our location, as Baek Ae-young suggested. Shin Haeryang seemed to have already mapped out the shortest route to the first underwater base in his head, regardless of restrooms or detours, as if he were a robot. However, people couldn¡¯t move like robots.
Especially Yoo Geum-yi said she would die right here if she had to walk any further, and her team leader, who could only refrain from cursing, was in a simr condition as me. Seo Jihyuk was lying down, groaning. Baek Ae-young addressed our team leader, who was ring at the people lying on the floor andining, ¡°You can¡¯t assume everyone else has as much stamina as you, team leader.¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked at our team leader with eyes like those of a cow about to be ughtered, and Yoo Geum-yi started to re at Shin Haeryang as well. Shin Haeryang sighed and said, ¡°Let¡¯s take a break for a moment.¡± Baek Ae-young suggested we wash our faces with water while resting in the restroom. ¡°That alone will make us feel much better,¡± she said.
We split into men and women and agreed to meet back in 10 minutes. Seo Jihyuk was the first to dart into a restroom stall on one leg. My reflection in the mirror was pathetic. My hair was matted with sweat, and my whole body looked like it was covered in ayer of dirt. My face and palms were also discolored, as if something had smeared them.
I considered actually soaking and washing the hoodie I was wearing, but instead of making aundry spectacle in the bathroom, I chose topromise with my own hygiene standards. I went into a corner stall, took off all my clothes, and held my breath. Then, I rigorously shook out my hoodie and sweatpants. If I could have opened a window, I would have shaken them out there. All I saw outside the window was still just water. Come on, air cirction system, hang in there.
By the time I felt I¡¯d shaken out enough dust, I put my clothes back on. At the sink, I washed my sweat-drenched hair with water and soap and sshed water on my face. I couldn¡¯t stand feeling grimy any longer. I dried my wet hair with a suspicious towel from the cleaning supplies box (which was cleaner than my clothes) and rinsed out my foul-smelling mouth with water. Just doing that made me feel much better.
I also thoroughly washed the ne and wiped it with a towel before returning it to its owner. Shin Haeryang remained standing as if he were guarding the door. He washed his hands and rinsed his mouth after using the bathroom but otherwise seemed alert for anyone approaching.
Seo Jihyuk washed his hands as he came out of the bathroom stall, saying it felt like he was reborn. He was standing on one leg while washing his hands at the sink, making me feel uneasy watching him, but Seo Jihyuk looked thoughtless. Then he leaned against the wall, stood on one foot, and stared discontentedly at his shot left leg.
Chapter 47
Chapter 47
Baek Ae-young and Yoo Geum-yi came out of the women¡¯s restroom. Their faces were now free of the dust and grime that had previously been stuck to them.
¡°You look much cleaner now.¡±
¡°You too, Moohyun-ssi.¡±
As we walked under the light, it almost felt as if their previous journey through the dark stairways had been a dream. The desire to lie down and take a deep breath was overwhelming. Just as we were about to leave the restroom, supporting Seo Jihyuk, Baek Ae-young, who had already left the restroom and was in the hallway, gestured at us. It seemed like she was signaling for us to go back in.
Almost dragging Seo Jihyuk, I re-entered the men¡¯s restroom. Right after, Yoo Geum-yi and Baek Ae-young followed us in. Peeking outside, I saw Shin Haeryang, who had been tasked with watching Seo Jihyuk, hiding in the disabled men¡¯s restroom next to ours.
Through the gap in the door, a man approached the restrooms. Although he wore a ck hat, itcked the shark brooch. Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young were ready, gripping weapons that seemed to appear out of nowhere. The tension was palpable. The man hesitated for a few seconds looking at the gender signs, and then entered the women¡¯s restroom. Wait, why?
¡°?¡±
¡°?¡±
¡°Why did he go there?¡±
¡°That perverted bastard.¡±
It seemed like if the man had entered the men¡¯s restroom, Shin Haeryang, hiding in the disabled men¡¯s restroom, would have ambushed him from behind while Baek Ae-young and Seo Jihyuk confronted him up front. bbergasted, Shin Haeryang came out of his hiding spot and entered the women¡¯s restroom, followed by Baek Ae-young. Seo Jihyuk stayed with me. The man was easily captured¡ªcaught in the act at the sink. Why was he using the sink for that? My head was about to explode from trying toprehend what was happening.
¡°Don¡¯t try to understand people like that. It¡¯s beyond the understanding of normal people.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Nodding at Seo Jihyuk¡¯sment, I went to look at the captured man. He wore a ck cap butcked a brooch. Had the cap been slightly softer at the end, it wouldn¡¯t have reminded anyone of a shark. The man had raised his hands willingly and knelt down. He looked to be in his early to mid-20s. The cult member we had seen earlier seemed to be in his 40s.
Only after taking a second look did I realize that he was a patient I had treated before. The man, kneeling with his head bowed, hadn¡¯t recognized me yet. I motioned to Baek Ae-young, pointing from my eyes to the man with my index and middle fingers, and then rubbed my face. Her expression became ambiguous.
¡°You want us to gouge out his eyes and skin his face?¡±
Both the captured man and Yoo Geum-yi looked at Baek Ae-young and me with rm, prompting me to rify hurriedly.
¡°¡I know him.¡±
¡°Ah, I see. That¡¯s another way to interpret it.¡±
Why was she interpreting it so ominously¡never mind.
¡°His name is Tyler Jones, and he¡¯s an engineer.¡±
Tyler suddenly lifted his head and scanned the faces of everyone around him. When his eyes finally met mine, he recognized me. It seemed like we both already knew each other because we were both engineers. It¡¯s just that neither of us wanted to admit it.
¡°You¡¯re the dentist!¡±
¡°Hello, Tyler. I have a few questions. ¡°Just answer the questions well, and there won¡¯t be any trouble,¡± I almost said but swallowed the words. I couldn¡¯t assure Tyler¡¯s safety at all. While I had no intention of harming Tyler, I wasn¡¯t sure about the others around me. Violence was seldom absent when encountering strangers. Beside me, Baek Ae-young looked as if she could shoot bullets with her eyes, and Shin Haeryang shared a simr expression.
¡°Ah, are you flossing well?¡±
At the question, Yoo Geum-yi and Seo Jihyuk¡¯s faces contorted strangely and they took about three steps back from me.
I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re all misunderstanding, but you¡¯repletely wrong.
I sat down on the bathroom floor to make eye contact with the opponent who was kneeling and covering his head with his hands.
The cleaning robot should clean it up well. This clothing is ruined anyway.
Despite sitting face to face with Tyler, neither Shin Haeryang nor Baek Ae-young tried to stop me. They would probably stop me if I were to go out¡ right?
¡°I haven¡¯t used it yet! I still have it as it was given to me.¡±
¡°Flossing is a must. But are you a believer of the Infinity Church?¡±
Tyler looked around nervously and then nodded.
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Since when did you join?¡±
¡°About half a year ago.¡±
¡°How many members are there?¡±
¡°As far as I have seen¡ around 60.¡±
¡°Are there about that many armed people in the underwater base?¡±
¡°Yes. There are also a few on the surface.¡±
He answered my questions rather candidly. At his words, Shin Haeryang, who was aiming a gun, and Yoo Geum-yi in the corner frowned. Seo Jihyuk sighed deeply. The information is different from what I got at the third underwater base. That person said there were about 20. Who¡¯s right, who¡¯s wrong? Only Baek Ae-young kept aiming her gun at the man¡¯s head as if a dog was barking.
¡°Why today?¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡±
¡°Why did you seize the underwater base today? Is there a reason?¡±
Above all, this was what I was most curious about. Why. Why? Why?! Why did it have to be today! It would have been nice if they fought and squabbled a week before I came. Why did this happen just five days after I arrived! Why!
¡°Uh¡ today was said to be the best day. It¡¯s Ocean Day, so the chance of obtaining eternal life increases.¡±
Upon hearing this, Yoo Geum-yi scratched her cheek and said, ¡°World Oceans Day is on June 8th, you know. Are you sure it¡¯s today? Not 8 dayster?¡±
Today is May 31st. Could they have brought the event forward by 8 days?
¡°Yes. Our leader said we had to take action today.¡±
¡°I see. What¡¯s the difference between people who have the shark brooch and those who don¡¯t?¡±
Pointing to my empty chest, Tyler looked at my fingertip and then said, ¡°Ah! That. It shows whether you have dentures or not.¡±
At thatment, chills ran down my spine. Dentures?
¡°Dentures? You mean, imnting false teeth?¡±
¡°Yeah, if you make dentures with shark teeth, you can receive a brooch. But it¡¯s not forced; only those who want to do it participate. I didn¡¯t want to do it, so I didn¡¯t. They even offer to do it for free, but I didn¡¯t like the idea of pulling out perfectly good teeth.¡±
At those words, I felt people¡¯s eyes lock onto the back of my head. Wow¡ Please don¡¯t suspect me.
¡°Have you heard where the previous people got their dental treatments?¡±
¡°They said they went to Hawaii for it. But I heard the doctor¡¯s skills there aren¡¯t good, so it hurts a lot when it¡¯s removed.¡±
If Tyler had eximed right here, in this underwater base, ¡®You did the treatment!¡¯ then Baek Ae-young might have aimed her gun at me. Whether Tyler is that thoughtless or just speaks without thinking, I breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Now I understand why the cult investigated me. Going all the way to Hawaii for dental treatment must¡¯ve been inconvenient. Now that there¡¯s a dental office inside the underwater base and the treatment is free, they seemed to want to recruit me to make dentures out of shark teeth.
My spine shivered. What if I were a devout Christian? Or believed in Buddhism, or was a Muslim? Suddenly, I remembered Baek Ae-young saying ¡®Their way of thinking is extreme.¡¯ And Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words that it would take over two hours for the police to arrive. Would I have quietly disappeared if I had a religion?
I pondered Tyler¡¯s words and then asked, ¡°Are there any benefits if I join this organization? I mean, there has to be something good about joining.¡±
¡°It varies from person to person. They gave me a lot of money.¡±
Oh, that¡¯s an attractive benefit. Who doesn¡¯t like money?
¡°How much?¡±
¡°Enough to not regret joining.¡±
¡°I have a substantial amount of student loans; does the cult pay it off for you?¡±
When I asked with a smile, Tyler surprisingly nodded seriously.
¡°Plus, they also provide money for housing and medical expenses.¡±
I closed my mouth. This religious group must be extremely wealthy. Who did they squeeze dry to gather so much money? Clearly, they didn¡¯t earn it through sweat, blood, and paying taxes like everyone else; someone must have been squeezed dry.
¡°Are there any conditions to abide by when joining?¡±
¡°Uh¡ all I¡¯ve sworn is to help on the Day of Infinity. I also joined just for the money without thinking the Day of Infinity would actuallye. I never imagined I¡¯d have to run around shooting people with a gun! There are things like embedding shark teeth or piercings with jewels. But it¡¯s not a must. Praying to the God of the Sea once a month. Ah! And not littering in the sea, helping our friends the sharks, opposing shark fishing, opposing shark finning, opposing radioactive waste dumping in the sea, opposing underwater base construction, things like that? I joined because it¡¯s like a Greenpeace organization and they said they pay a lot of money.¡±
Tyler looked the youngest among us but seemed to be around the same age as Baek Ae-young. From his faltering voice, he didn¡¯t seem to have joined out of strong conviction or unwavering will. The deeds of this heavily armed organization killing people seemed okay considering its themes? Yoo Geum-yi, who was next to him, sighed deeply as if deted after hearing Tyler¡¯s words.
¡°Geum-yi-ssi?¡±
¡°Greenpeace began as an organization hoisting a green g on their boat to protest against nuclear tests in the sea and inds. Well, the Church of Infinity seems to be fooling people into confusing them with organizations like Greenpeace on the surface. They are doing things like opposing whaling, wildlife habitat conservation, and opposing nuclear development, after all.¡±
Hearing that, Tyler spoke as if defending his organization.
¡°Ah. They are indeed simr. We have even sunk fishing boats that were shark fishing before. We are definitely protecting nature!¡±
Geum-yi¡¯s mouth gaped open. Baek Ae-young shook her head as if disgusted by Tyler¡¯s stupidity, and Seo Jihyuk narrowed his eyes before speaking.
¡°Sinking fishing boats? Greenpeace is a non-violent organization. What nonsense are you confidently spouting?¡±
¡°¡¡Uh.¡±
I also lost my words. Did the people on the fishing boat all die? Although fishing was banned¡
Chapter 48
Chapter 48
Yoo Geum-yi quickly regained herposure and asked, ¡°Are there people from the 3rd and 4th underwater bases who havee to the 2nd base?¡±
¡°Some are here. There are also a few at the 1st underwater base. We had to kill some who didn¡¯t obey, but those who did are all gathered in a corner.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi hesitated, as if contemting something. Good. It seems they haven¡¯t killed everyone who came via the elevator. But was it unnecessary for us to climb the stairs? No, one of the dead could have been me. I was lucky to not be caught by the cult. Not knowing about us can be a strategic advantage, although I¡¯m not sure how much.
She then cautiously spoke, ¡°So, why does Infinity Church insist on killing people? They could simply let people escape.¡±
I quickly nodded in agreement to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s question. ¡°Exactly. The base is yours to take. Whether it¡¯s the Chinese team, Russian team, or Japanese team, fight amongst yourselves to decide who takes it. Just let the others escape to their homes.¡±
Tyler seemed perplexed as he responded, ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but to carry out the ceremony for the Day of Infinity, there have to be many people in the building, and some must die. Previously, fish were used, but on the Day of Infinity, it has to be people. Initially, the ceremony was nned for tonight or tomorrow morning, but when the 4th base was suddenly destroyed, they decided to go ahead. If only the people of the Infinity Church survive, then everyone else can be considered dead due to the 4th base incident.¡±
Typical for a nonsense cult, sacrificing humans. Unbelievable. Even people who lived 1500 years ago knew the value of human life and used y figures in sacrifices.
Seo Jihyuk, visibly irritated, questioned Tyler, ¡°So, you¡¯re saying you didn¡¯t fire the missile at the 4th base?¡±
¡°Missile? Someone shot a missile at the 4th base? Was I the only one not in the loop?¡±
Tyler looked at us and frowned, as if feeling wronged.
¡°Why would Infinity Church destroy the 4th base? If it was before it was built, maybe. But to destroy a base that¡¯s been built 3000m underwater would lead to ocean pollution. Who will clean up all that concrete, dust, and garbage? What about the marine life there? What if the mining pipe bursts and leaks oil or gas? Even the radioactive pollution from Japan decades ago hasn¡¯t been resolved. If this base gets destroyed, the North Pacific will be a mess.¡±
While I was dumbfounded by Tyler¡¯s unexpectedly rational argument, Yoo Geum-yi chimed in.
¡°So you don¡¯t care about human lives being lost for a religious ceremony, but you do care about marine pollution?¡±
Stung by her sharp words, Tyler retorted, ¡°Well, as long as it¡¯s not me dying, who cares?¡±
And then, as we had no more questions, Tyler closed his mouth with a shrug. When Seo Jihyuk asked Tyler about themunications, he said that all inte and phone lines had been cut off since they took over the underwater base. Communication between the same underwater bases was done via radio, and contact between the 2nd and 1st underwater bases was made by going there in person. Shin Haeryang showed the map of the 1st and 2nd underwater bases in mid-air using a pad.
¡°Point to the areas where your followers usually are.¡±
Several ces had already been selected in blue. Tyler looked at Shin Haeryang as if he was extremely displeased but soon pointed out the 1st and 2nd underwater bases with his finger. The map started to fill in with red dots. It was significantly different from what was colored in blue. The blue probably was colored by the man they had met at the 3rd underwater base.
¡°Do you only know about the 2nd underwater base? Will you send me back after I color everything?¡±
Tyler asked, pausing his coloring, with a sarcastic tone. Shin Haeryang shook his head.
¡°No. You¡¯reing with us. If we encounter other followers in the areas you didn¡¯t select or run into unnecessary people, then you¡¯ve betrayed your religion. I don¡¯t know how much your religion takes care of its followers, but we can at least confirm if they¡¯re the type not to shoot even at traitors.¡±
Tyler¡¯s mouth fell open. So did mine, inwardly. Then Tyler hurriedly erased a few of the red dots with his hand. Seo Jihyuk was holding Tyler¡¯s gun, checked whether it was loaded and the safety status, and then ced it beside him,ying the handgun they had somehow acquired from the 3rd underwater base on the sink counter. Then he called me and Yoo Geum-yi towards the sink.
¡°Among the two of you, who has ever wanted to fire a gun?¡±
There was no response from either me or Yoo Geum-yi, so Seo Jihyuk sighed and asked again.
¡°Or, which one of you has better focus?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°Hard to say.¡±
Both Yoo Geum-yi and I were flustered by Seo Jihyuk¡¯s question. Isn¡¯t that something to be determined by a brainwave test? Then Seo Jihyuk spoke to Yoo Geum-yi.
¡°Try holding it, Geum-yi. How is it? I didn¡¯t think it was heavy, but people who haven¡¯t exercised find guns heavy. Do you feel out of breath or like strength is leaving your legs, or breaking into a cold sweat?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°¡Your hands are trembling.¡±
Seo Jihyuk noted with an awkward tone. Yoo Geum-yi held the gun with an utterly scared expression and asked, ¡°What if I shoot it by mistake?¡±
¡°Just don¡¯t shoot your toes. Put the gun back on the sink. Yes, well done. Now, Moohyun-ssi, you try. How does it feel?¡±
¡°Heavier than I thought.¡±
¡°Did you think it would feel like chopsticks?! Hey, hey, hey! Hold it tightly! Do you have no strength in your hands?! Where did you learn to hold your index finger like that?¡±
Noticing that I had my index finger extended so as not to identally pull the trigger, Seo Jihyuk asked. His attitude waspletely different from when Yoo Geum-yi was holding the gun. Darn it.
¡°Action movies.¡±
¡°What¡¯s your favorite movie, Geum-yi?¡±
¡°Disaster movies?¡±
¡°¡The gun is in Moohyun-ssi¡®s hand. The barrel is usually pointed at the floor and only fired when told to. Keep your finger like that. If you pull the trigger now, a bullet will go off, so don¡¯t even think about pulling it. Only shoot when told to.¡±
The risk felt like holding a grenade in hand. I never knew a gun could be so heavy. I¡¯ve never held a gun in my life. It was far heavier than when I filled myrge tumbler with coffee. Probably, Seo Ji-hyuk wanted me to hold the gun not just because there were four of them, but also because my hand wouldn¡¯t tremble. Of course, it¡¯s a given. Who would want to get treated by a dentist with shaky hands?
I felt ufortable and indigestible, gripping the dark, heavy gun. My eyes couldn¡¯t leave the gun. If I looked away, I had this absurd imagination that the barrel would spin and automatically point at me.
¡°You know, when Yoo Geum-yi holds tweezers, her hand doesn¡¯t shake!¡± I whispered softly, but Seo Ji-hyuk merely nodded his head and scratched Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s insides by saying, ¡°Same here, my hand doesn¡¯t shake when I grab a chicken drumstick.¡±
It looked like Tyler¡¯s coloring of the map was almost done. As Shin Haeryang was examining the patchily colored map, Baek Ae-young aimed her gun at Tyler¡¯s head and asked her first question.
¡°Why did youe this way? Hardly anyonees toward the deep-sea aquarium.¡±
¡°Why do I have to answer that?¡±
Then Tyler chuckled and sneered. The moment I heard that from the direction of the sink, Ipletely forgot about the gun in my hand and turned my head toward Baek Ae-young. She was grinning widely despite Tyler¡¯s arrogant response. This was the first time I had seen her smile since the utility room.
Baek Ae-young slightly turned her head and looked at Shin Haeryang. The moment their eyes met, Shin Haeryang simply blinked once. Baek Ae-young, still smiling, took off the interpreter attached to Tyler¡¯s ear and spoke in Korean softly.
¡°You think I¡¯m a pushover? Because a petite East Asian woman under 160 cm is holding a gun, you see it as a toy? How much of a fool do you take me for? Huh? Thinking of all sorts of things in front of a person with a weapon? Our team leader and that idiot over there answer well even to people who¡¯ve never held a gun before. Does your hearing fail when a woman speaks? Huh?¡±
The ¡°Huh?¡± she uttered had an undertone of condescension. Moreover, everything Baek Ae-young said was in Korean. I could sense what was going to happen next, and I got goosebumps on my arm. Tyler, who had the interpreter removed, probably didn¡¯t understand what Baek Ae-young was saying but assumed from her gentle tone that she was saying something favorable.
¡°What are you saying? You like me? You wench, it¡¯s nice when you smile, isn¡¯t it? Take off your clothes,¡± he spewed out in English. Without warning, Baek Ae-young brought down the barrel of the gun onto Tyler¡¯s cheek, the hard steel making contact with soft flesh.
¡°Arghh!¡±
Grabbing the back of Tyler¡¯s head as he toppled backward, Baek Ae-young proceeded to brutally strike his forehead and eyes with the gun she was holding in one hand. Tyler reflexively raised his arms to shield his face, but his wrists were already tied with Shin Haeryang¡¯s parachute cord, rendering him unable to do anything but raise his arms up and down.
Baek Ae-young, gripping Tyler¡¯s hair in her hand, drove her knee into Tyler¡¯s face. Due to Tyler¡¯s head being continually shaken while being gripped by the hair, it was unclear whether Baek Ae-young¡¯s knee had hit his neck or his jaw. Baek Ae-young then said,
¡°Laugh again. Huh? Laugh again! You teased me by asking why you should answer me!¡±
And then Tyler¡¯s head was again driven into her knee. For some reason, the faint sigh of Seo Jihyuk standing next to me echoed clearly in my ears. Yoo Geum-yi waspletely shocked, covering her mouth with both hands as she witnessed the violent scene. As I tried to intervene, Shin Haeryang, who was pointing the gun at Tyler, subtly shook his head at me. It was a signal not to interfere.
As I watched the horrifying scenes unfold, shaking with fear, a sudden thought crossed my mind that the direction of Shin Haeryang¡¯s gun could change at any moment.
Chapter 49
Chapter 49
If I looked at it coldly, to Shin Haeryang, both I and Yoo Geum-yi were nothing but acquaintances he had only recently met. It was as if I could hear Carlos¡¯s voice in my ear, ¡®He¡¯s going to look out for his own family first.¡¯
¡After saving Kim Ga-young, I thought we became one team. Those who couldn¡¯t get on the escape craft from the Fourth Underwater Base, The West District, saved people without expecting anything in return, carried sleeping children, hid others from a barrage of bullets, shared their food, helped the injured without asking why, and supported each other to escape. We made an impromptu team, but everyone tried a little bit not to lose their humanity. Was I the only one who thought this way?
I remembered what Baek Ae-young said at the cafe, ¡°I don¡¯t want to worry Team Leader Shin. He¡¯s a tender person.¡± Whether Shin Haeryang is tender-hearted or not, I still cannot tell at this point. But certainly, both Yoo Geum-yi and I are tender-hearted. ¡If Baek Ae-young¡¯s words were true, then Shin Haeryang must be the same. Perhaps Baek Ae-young is too. And so might be Seo Jihyuk.
I¡¯m not strong-hearted enough to avoid being shocked by seeing someone I lived with resort to violence against another. Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯ve never actually seen someone live through violence. I¡¯m not ustomed to violence.
I don¡¯t want to see someone who I thought was a good person exerting violence on someone else. Not Baek Ae-young, not Shin Haeryang, nor Seo Jihyuk. Simrly, I don¡¯t want to see them being subjected to violence by someone else. Have I be so attached in just a few hours? Even in action movies, I skim through the barehanded fights and close my eyes to the bloody scenes.
I felt resentment towards Tyler as well. Why on earth would you provoke Baek Ae-young when she¡¯s armed? She¡¯s the one who could throw a man over 180cm to the ground barehanded. As if it wasn¡¯t enough that she¡¯s already distraught over her friend being murdered. Why would you even join a cult and take up arms to kill people, you fool?
¡°Baek Ae-young-ssi. Stop hitting. Let¡¯s speak in ournguage.¡±
As I spoke, I sniveled. This is crazy. Really. As I wiped my nose with the back of my hand, my voicecked any shred of charisma. It came out so weakly, all cracked, but Baek Ae-young seemed to have heard me; she immediately stopped hitting the man with her gun, forearm, and knee. Then, still sniffling, she stepped aside.
I handed the gun to Yoo Geum-yi. My hand was shaking so much. Then, using a men¡¯s restroom towel I had around my neck, I wiped Tyler¡¯s face, which was swollen and he was already unconscious. Blood was oozing from several ces and I was unsure what to press first to stop the bleeding. It would be easy if it were just the inside of the mouth. But what about now? Should I press on the nose first? The cheek? His forehead is also torn.
I could hear Baek Ae-young washing her hands at the sink. As I pressed the towel to the face, Shin Haeryang cut a bit of the parachute cord he had been wrapping around his entire left forearm. He then reached out to me. I know this gesture now. It¡¯s not a handshake. I handed over the towel I was holding with a feeling of reluctance. He tore the blood-soaked towel in two with both hands (I had no idea a towel could tear so easily), handed half back to me, and rolled the other half and put it in Tyler¡¯s mouth, then pulled the parachute cord tightly around the mouth area and tied it tautly at the back of the neck. Watching Shin Haeryang checking the knot, I thought¡ So, it¡¯s a gag.
¡°Can he breathe like that?¡±
¡°He can breathe through his nose.¡±
Shin Haeryang¡¯s tone was as if not breathing wouldn¡¯t bother him. I was pressing a towel against the deepest-looking indentation on Tyler¡¯s cheek to stop the bleeding. Shin Haeryang tied the wrist bindings to the seam of the bathroom door. Watching him do that, I asked,
¡°Weren¡¯t you going to take him with us?¡±
¡°It¡¯s tough enough moving around just us. Since he seems to like the women¡¯s bathroom, we¡¯ll leave him here.¡±
Ah, so thatment before was just bravado. After all, who would keep a gun trained on Tyler and watch him continuously? If Shin Haeryang and I were to support Seo Jihyuk, only Baek Ae-young and Yoo Geum-yi would have both hands free, and they were both armed. It was impossible to entrust Tyler to Yoo Geum-yi, who had never held a gun before, so it had to be Baek Ae-young. But it was too risky to assign the role of hostage-watching to Baek Ae-young, who, like a cat, had scouted silently and served as a guide without being noticed by anyone until now.
Baek Ae-young was now washing her forearms and knees. Seeing the blood wash away, my head ached and I closed my eyes tightly. I was not used to seeing so much blood.
While I was struggling with Tyler¡¯s face, Seo Jihyuk was briefly teaching Yoo Geum-yi how to shoot a gun, and Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang were looking at a map. Even ayman like me could immediately understand the problem when staring nkly at the map disyed in 3D.
First, the Infinity Church followers were stationed around three elevators, including the central elevator, and near the escape pods and diving submarine. The scale of the second underwater base wasrge, but the problem was that it was designed so that one must pass through the central za in the middle of the base, and the opponents seemed to know this, cing quite a number of groups in the central za. There was no avoiding a fight with people wherever we went. The ce that seemed to have the fewest people was where the diving submarine was, but even there, we had to pass through the central za.
Around the central za were the deep-sea aquarium we were in, four restaurants, two convenience stores, two exhibitions, four cafes, a jellyfish exhibition hall, an information center, a souvenir shop, and mining facilities that only authorized personnel could enter, along with the escape submarine facility and the central elevator, surrounded by three other elevators. If this ce were to be opened to the public next year, it seemed like the path was designed with a n in mind: visit the deep-sea aquarium, buy something to eat at a restaurant, view the exhibitions, have a coffee at a cafe, see the jellyfish, and buy souvenirs.
¡°What¡¯s in the mining facilities?¡±
¡°They used to check the intermediate settlement of natural gas or oil extracted from the seabed, but now everything has been moved to the fourth undersea base. Now, there are external cleaning robots, internal cleaning robots, power generation facilities, life support systems, and¡ that¡¯s right! Medics! There might be one on the first floor of the hospital if it hasn¡¯t gone for an update! It was decided to keep one at the second undersea base too.¡±
¡°It might have been moved. There should have been one at the third undersea base¡¯s convenience store as it was originally nned.¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked troubled at Shin Haeryang¡¯s words. I had almost no memory of the second undersea base. I was overwhelmed just moving around the fourth and third undersea bases. Now pressing a towel against the torn, bleeding forehead of Tyler, I was soaked with blood on my hands. Blood flows quite a bit from the face when injured, after all. Fighting the urge to wipe the sweat dripping down my own forehead, I asked the people,
¡°I heard there¡¯s an undersea cable car under construction at the second underwater base. Where does it connect?¡±
¡°The first underwater base!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, who answered while holding the gun barrel downward, asked Shin Haeryang, ¡°I heard that it was being built before, but has it beenpleted?¡±
¡°¡ It was supposed to bepleted by the end of April, but I¡¯m not sure.¡±
Shin Haeryang seemed displeased. His tone revealed a distrust of the constructionpany and the contractors.
¡°It¡¯s rare for ces to meet their deadlines exactly.¡±
Is that so? Why would that be? Ifpletion is by the end of April, shouldn¡¯t everything be constructed before May begins? Baek Ae-young loosened and then re-tied her long hair, furrowed her brows, and spoke.
¡°I heard from someone in the electrical system that they did a trial run.¡±
¡°Do you think they know that they can use the cable car to escape from the second underwater base to the first?¡±
The section of the map Tyler had marked didn¡¯t include any details about the cable car. It seems they will mark it on the map only after everything ispleted. But if someone who worked at the second underwater base became a member of a cult, they might know they could escape using the cable car, right? Because the cable car only connects to the first underwater base, isn¡¯t it being guarded? Well, it¡¯s almost impossible to think like us, sneaking into the second underwater base using the stairs. Logically, one would use the elevator.
From this point of view, if the cable car is operational, isn¡¯t it the best way to escape to the first underwater base? Shin Haeryang seemed to be considering various routes to lead the personnel, including the three elevators, the central elevator, the escape boat, and the submarine¡¯s location. From his disheveled expression, it seems like he¡¯s struggling toe up with a good n.
Looking down at Tyler, who was lying on the floor, Baek Ae-young said, ¡°If the armed guys now are all amateurs like this Tyler, Team Leader¡ª¡±
Before Baek Ae-young could even open her mouth, Shin Haeryang shook his head. What was he going to say? Is it a piece of cake? Can he go out and kill them all?
Baek Ae-young grimaced before she spoke, ¡°At the end of the deep-sea aquarium, the first exhibition hall appears, and if you go through there, you¡¯ll find the cable car.¡±
I then said, ¡°I hope there¡¯s no one in the exhibition hall,¡± as if I were sighing. My mouth felt dry.
Following Shin Haeryang¡¯s suggestion to leave, everyone started to exit the restroom. Supporting Seo Jihyuk, who was leaning on the wall with one foot, Shin Haeryang and I were thest toe out. Baek Ae-young hung back, saying she would erase the traces and follow us into the restroom. Now, only I, Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and Yoo Geum-yi were left wandering the still unopened deep-sea aquarium.
I didn¡¯t visit the aquarium very often, but I didn¡¯t want toe like this. Next to me, fish were swimming around in the water-filled tank. There were fish everywhere, to the right and left, making it feel as if I was walking through the center of the sea. However, soon I noticed a few empty tanks.
Having passed the aquarium for a while, Seo Jihyuk, who had been making remarks like ¡®this is for sashimi¡¯ and ¡®this would taste good grilled,¡¯ suddenly became much quieter. Pain seemed to be washing over him as he bit his lip. It was only then that I barely understood why Shin Haeryang had let Seo Jihyuk talk about anything. Without him, this hastily formed team had no one else to speak. His condition seemed to be getting worse.
Shin Haeryang only answered questions briefly, and Yoo Geum-yi had a frown, seemingly deep in thought. I knew nothing about the underwater base and was also a stranger to the sea. A few minutester, Baek Ae-young returned and took the lead of the group again, but apart from the sound of footsteps, it was quiet.
Chapter 50
Chapter 50
As we were quietly walking through the aquarium, Yoo Geum-yi seemed to be lost in thought before she spoke to me.
¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about what that cult follower said earlier. It must be because today is an important day that they are doing this. But no matter how much I think about it, the only thing I can think of is May 31st being Korea¡¯s Ocean Day.¡±
¡°There¡¯s something like an Ocean Day in Korea?¡±
Looking into the distance as if peering into a far-off ce, Shin Haeryang frowned slightly and said.
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤It¡¯s probably the day Jang Bogo established Cheonghaejin1.¡±
I was dumbfounded. They have a day tomemorate that? Is there also a day for thend?
¡°So there¡¯s a day tomemorate that?¡±
Surprised by my admiration, Yoo Geum-yi asked Shin Haeryang,
¡°How do you know that, Shin-ssi?¡±
¡°Someone I know is in the navy. How dis you know that, Yoo-ssi?¡±
¡°I¡¯m from Wando.¡±
Seo Jihyuk grunted and interjected.
¡°No Smoking Day! No Smoking Day. Today is No Smoking Day. Then, it¡¯s more usible that the leader is Korean or maybe today is the leader¡¯s birthday.¡±
¡°Do they detest cigarettes?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi hummed thoughtfully, once again lost in thought. I adjusted Seo Jihyuk¡¯s slipping arm to rest securely on my shoulder, trying to pull Yoo Geum-yi out of her reverie.
¡°What are you thinking about, Yoo-ssi?¡±
¡°We need to understand our enemy to increase our chances of survival, so I was thinking about the cult. Theymitted these acts to obtain eternal life. If today is not certain, I also thought maybe the cult followers would just stop their activities and return if it¡¯s not the day they intended.¡±
Seo Jihyukughed heartily, but then his face twisted in pain.
¡°My goodness, Yoo-ssi. If you think the cultists will just say, ¡®Ah! We got the date wrong!¡¯ and disappear just like that, you are sorely mistaken. These people havemitted an armed attack on a four-story underwater base. This type of terrorist spends a long time and a lot of money on their preparations.¡±
Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t utter the words that implied she was naively mistaken. That¡¯s because, in the process of escaping from the underwater base, the most foolish person might be me. It¡¯s not something to criticize Yoo Geum-yi for not knowing about terrorists or cult followers. Ordinary people don¡¯t walk around with such knowledge in their heads.
Yoo Geum-yi asked me while walking and supporting Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Um¡ What was it again? Moohyun-ssi, what did you call the elements of religion? You mentioned it at the third underwater base, right?¡±
¡°Doctrines, dogmas, denominations?¡±
¡°Can I ask how you know that?¡±
I was about to exin about my family but then shook my head as it would be too long.
¡°I¡¯d rather not answer that.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi surprisingly backed off easily.
¡°Is that so? Then please tell me when you feel like answering. ¡Doctrines. The person who creates a religion is called the founder, right? Um¡ The teachings of a religion are about obtaining eternal life. But I was surprised that there are quite definite rules. Things like inserting something into your teeth or being told to take up arms for today specifically. Even investing a lot of money in people who are not particrly interested in religious rituals is unusual. Normally, it¡¯s the opposite, I believe. Keeping the exnations as vague as possible seems like it would make it easier to evade issuester on. And I¡¯ve never heard of cults investing money for the followers they¡¯ve recruited.¡±
Listening to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s exnation, I nodded quickly and replied.
¡°That¡¯s true. It¡¯s my first time hearing about it too. Most religions are only interested in sucking money out of people like mosquitoes under the guise of faith, not in giving it back to their followers. The part about sharks was surprising to me. If one joined mistakenly, they might think it¡¯s an environmental organization.¡±
¡°Why do you think they chose such a concept? I¡¯ve heard that cults are usually created by founders as a means to draw inbor and funds from followers.¡±
I imagined a religion with an immense amount of money. No matter how I thought about it, it seemed like a gathering of mad people. But they say you get a lot of money if you join. There are plenty of people in need of money in this world. If one is not sensitive to religion, they might even line up to join. The same goes for the word ¡®infinity¡¯. Why promise infinity? There is nothing infinite in this world.
¡°Maybe if the founder has a lot of money, there wouldn¡¯t be a need to draw financial power through followers, right?¡±
¡°So, a person with an enormous amount of money believes that today¡¯s date is appropriate for living eternally, and after having their followers bring in guns through dental treatment with their money, and making them kill people inrge numbers, they would enjoy an infinite life?¡±
¡°That¡¯s right, isn¡¯t it?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi pondered for a moment and then frowned at my answer, pointing out exactly what I had doubted.
¡°But this idea of an infinite life is strange too. To live forever? How long does one have to live to be forever? Lifespans are defined in the face of time. Even Earth has a limited lifespan.¡±
Shin Haeryang, the marine biologist who had been listening to our conversation quietly, said,
¡°I¡¯m not even sure there¡¯s a need to live an infinite life.¡±
¡°Would you choose to live forever if you could, Shin Haeryang-ssi?¡±
¡°No.¡±
His answer was sharp. It seems he doesn¡¯t like the idea of living forever. Well, there would be people who wouldn¡¯t like it. As I looked at Seo Jihyuk, he groaned and then said,
¡°Whether it¡¯s eternal life or whatever, I wish my leg would heal. I would have no other wish if I could just get morphine.¡±
Baek Ae-young, who was standing at the front, rolled her eyes twice before speaking.
¡°It¡¯s nice to live a long life. Vampires are cool, right? But living forever alone is a bit.¡±
Baek Ae-young then shook her head. Her long, mane-like hair also swayed gently. Yoo Geum-yi also frowned as she thought.
¡°I don¡¯t have the confidence to live like a jellyfish. I want to live a finite life and die.¡±
I asked in surprise.
¡°Do jellyfish live forever?¡±
¡°Some of them have capabilities that are almost like immortality.¡±
Seo Jihyuk also asked in astonishment.
¡°No way, so besides those damn d sharks or Greend sharks, there¡¯s something else that lives that long?¡±
¡°But jellyfish don¡¯t have brains or hearts.¡±
Upon hearing Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words, I groaned. Oh, my goodness. To think theyck such vital parts. Seo Jihyuk shook his head vehemently.
¡°¡¡There¡¯s always a trade-off. You mentioned Greend sharks don¡¯t have eyes.¡±
¡°What about you, Moohyun-ssi?¡±
¡°To live eternally alone without a family? What if you get tired of living someday? I also want to live just enough and then die.¡±
It seemed that if the Church of Infinity wanted to recruit among us, they¡¯d have to offer other trade-offs. It would be difficult to lure people in with the promise of an infinite life. Money, perhaps? But right now, escaping safely seemed more appealing than receiving money.
At the location where the deep-sea aquarium was almost ending, Baek Ae-young was waiting. At her gesture to crouch down, Seo Jihyuk and I almosty down on the floor, while only Shin Haeryang and Yoo Geum-yi crouched. Baek Ae-young peeked her head out of the aquarium very slightly and then quickly returned. She whispered.
¡°I can see 16 guys from my line of sight. Three in front of the central elevator, five in the central za, three at the entrance to the escape craft port on the right, two in front of Caf¨¦ ck Pearl, three at the second elevator. If there are three each at the first and third elevators, that¡¯s at least 22 people.¡±
¡°If we assume that there are about twenty people each at the third and first undersea bases, then Tyler¡¯s words are correct.¡±
About 60 people. Do we have to break through them to escape? No, let¡¯s think positively for a moment. If there are 20 people at the third undersea base, then there are about 40 armed people left in front of us. Does that seem hopeful? ¡¡Whether it¡¯s 60 or 40, it didn¡¯t seem like there was much change in the despairing situation.
Everyone¡¯s expressions were not good. Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s face had turned pale. It seemed that none of the gun owners, including those who would engage in a gunfight with at least 22 people to take over the second undersea base, harbored any grand dreams. It seemed most likely that either Baek Ae-young or Shin Haeryang, rather than Seo Jihyuk who was injured or Yoo Geum-yi who had held a gun for the first time, would have the potential. Hearing my action movie-like delusion, Baek Ae-young smiled. Shin Haeryang shook his head, and Seo Jihyuk just chuckled.
¡°Reality is different from the movies. If characters like James Bond or Ethan Hunt were in this situation, they might make bullets dodge them, but in reality, numbers rule. Do you think it¡¯s the same for one person to shoot at ten or for ten to shoot at one?¡±
¡°¡I will hand over my gun to you, and I will obediently wait for Moohyun-ssi to handle things ande back.¡±
Shin Haeryang rubbed his eyes wearily as he spoke.
Just a few steps from the exit of the deep-sea aquarium, one connects to the entrance of the exhibition hall. It is said that one must pass through the exhibition hall to get to the cable car station. The problem is, once we open the door of the aquarium and go out, our presence will be briefly exposed to the people in the central square. Yoo Geum-yi looked out onto the street outside the aquarium and said,
¡°It¡¯s about¡ 5 meters. If we run¡ we¡¯ll be exposed to the public eye for about 4 to 5 seconds. I hope no one sees us during that time.¡±
¡°What if someone does see us?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi was flustered by my question, but Seo Jihyuk just sighed as if he wished the ground would swallow him up.
¡°What do you mean, ¡®what if¡¯? We get caught.¡±
I wondered if Seo Jihyuk was using up a lifetime¡¯s worth of sighs right here. It seemed he hated the idea of bing a burden, unable to walk that short distance quickly; someone would need to assist him.
¡°You¡¯ll just have to carry me.¡±
¡°Thank you very much. Team leader.¡±
When Yoo Geum-yi asked what to do with the gun if he ran, Baek Ae-Young silently reached out her hand. Yoo Geum-yi handed over the gun to her without hesitation. Suppose we run those 5 meters, but what if someone is at the exhibition hall? What if someone is armed and waiting?
¡°What if someone is there at the exhibition hall?¡±
Baek Ae-Young looked at me and answered simply.
¡°I¡¯ll handle it.¡±
So, Baek Ae-Young seemed to handle all problems with simplicity. Someday, I¡¯d like to discuss that simple life philosophy of hers. Perhaps all problems would resolve quite easily.
As Baek Ae-Young looked at the door, tension settled on everyone¡¯s backs. It was uncertain whether the door to the exhibition hall was open or closed. Wasn¡¯t it supposed to not open if pushed? Observing the closed exhibition hall, Seo Jihyuk spoke to us.
¡°It¡¯s probably open.¡±
¡°How do you know?¡±
Feeling the gaze of the people on him, Seo Jihyuk dyed before responding.
¡°I visited there yesterday, and it was open.¡±- A military headquarter and trading hub located on Wando Ind. It also served as a military hub tobat various pirate factions[?]
Chapter 51
Chapter 51
Standing in front of the exhibition, Shin Haeryang looked at the modest signboard that read ¡°Modern Jewelry Exhibition¡± with a puzzled expression and asked, ¡°You¡¯re interested in a jewelry exhibition?¡±
¡°Team Leader. I have a keen eye for detail,¡± someone replied.
Silence ensued.
Shin Haeryang just red silently. Merely looking at someone¡¯s face quietly, Seo Jihyuk spilled the truth after three seconds.
¡°I went there because they said there weren¡¯t many lights, and ended up helping with the setup while smoking. Who would lock up such things in this vast ocean? If you look inside, you¡¯ll find nothing but stones and nonsensical items on disy.¡±
Is this some kind of interrogation technique? It seemed like Shin Haeryang was shootingsers with his eyes, but such skills were unnecessary for me. Patients at the dental clinic know exactly why they are visiting. What¡¯s important is whether the dentist can understand exactly where it hurts and find that spot perfectly.
However, to Yoo Geum-yi, this seemed quite fascinating. She flicked her finger lightly at Shin Haeryang, making eye contact with him. Shin Haeryang¡¯s face showed surprise, but they just looked at each other for a few seconds. There was no effect on Yoo Geum-yi. After Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s smile and mine, we decided the order to cross, along with Baek Ae-young¡¯s giggling.
First was Baek Ae-young, then Seo Jihyuk and Shin Haeryang, third was Yoo Geum-yi, and fourth was me. If Baek Ae-young failed, none of us could go to the exhibition. If Seo Jihyuk and Shin Haeryang failed, we¡¯d just split between the exhibition hall and the deep-sea aquarium. What if Yoo Geum-yi or I failed? I wasn¡¯t sure.
Baek Ae-young adjusted her bag on her back and asked for the bag with the cat. She strapped it to her front, peeked outside, and then smoothly moved 5 meters to slip into the exhibition hall, as silently and gracefully as an eagle descending. The door opened slightly within 20 seconds. Baek Ae-young¡¯s hand signal seemed to suggest it was safe to enter.
I peeked through the windows of the deep-sea aquarium at the people roaming around the central za. They were all armed with guns. In the center, peopley face down on the ground, some with bloodstains andrge pools of blood around them, and others lying motionless like corpses. The area around the central elevator was covered in blood. A group was talking near the elevator, with armed people moving around.
Looking at the blood-soaked ground made my head feel numb, my heart pounding in my ears. I took time to calm myself, suppressing the feeling of wanting to vomit and the inexplicable urge to cry. I waited for the right moment when people weren¡¯t looking towards the deep-sea aquarium and signaled Shin Haeryang to run.
Shin Haeryang almost carried Seo Jihyuk, and despite the weight, he almost flew to the exhibition hall in about 3 seconds. Baek Ae-young caught them just in time, and the door naturally swallowed them up. After several seconds, Baek Ae-young didn¡¯te out, so Yoo Geum-yi and I waited.
Baek Ae-young slightly opened the door again, looking at us. Yoo Geum-yi, after adjusting her sneakers several times, held her shoes in her hand and prepared to run in her socks.
¡°My heart feels like it¡¯s going to burst,¡± she said.
Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s voice came from beside me. I felt the same. If it were possible for my heart to leap out of my mouth from shock, it would have escaped my body back at the Fourth Undersea Base. As two armed men turned their heads this way, I quickly withdrew my head back inside the door of the aquarium. The gap in the door of the exhibition hall that Baek Ae-young was holding had narrowed to less than half a palm¡¯s width.
¡°I feel the same, Geum-yi-ssi.¡±
¡°I want to go home.¡±
¡°Same here.¡±
¡°Why is it so hard to make a living as a marine biologist?¡±
¡°I never knew being a dentist could be this tough either.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi let out a detedugh, then wiped her nose with the back of her hand and sighed deeply. Her eyes behind her sses shined. Her left hand, tightly holding the shoces, was trembling, but her sock-covered feet rubbed against the floor several times. I tried to peek outside again but stopped when I heard a noise. Footsteps were approaching. Yoo Geum-yi covered her mouth with her right hand. I also waited quietly. Please, don¡¯te here. Don¡¯te here.
As the footsteps grew closer, our tension mounted. The deep-sea aquarium wasid out in a straight line, so to hide, we had to walk back more than 20 meters to hide behind the tanks. If we ran back now, wouldn¡¯t our footsteps be heard? Or should we run away right now?
Although my mind was racing with these thoughts, my body didn¡¯t move. We were just crouching under therge doors of the deep-sea aquarium, shivering. Yoo Geum-yi was almost covering her entire face with one hand and holding the two sneakers tied together withces in the other, trembling. I must have looked simr to her. I was too frightened to even swallow the saliva in my mouth.
Suddenly, Yoo Geum-yi opened one of the slightly ajar doors of the deep-sea aquarium and crawled behind me, who was against the other door. I asked with my eyes what she was doing, but she just shook her head. Two armed men were walking between the exit of the deep-sea aquarium and the entrance of the first exhibition hall. My breath was short. Gasping. What should I do!
The men reached right in front of the entrance to the deep-sea aquarium. Because Yoo Geum-yi had opened one door, we were leaning against the other, making it visible to the armed men inside the aquarium. If they looked at the right angle, they could even see Yoo Geum-yi hiding behind me. I held my breath. My heart was pounding, and my vision blurred. Footsteps were right next to the door where I was hiding.
The two were talking, mostly cursing someone named Tyler. They were wondering why he wasn¡¯ting out of a restroom. One man near the door kicked the closed door of the deep-sea aquarium. Bang! I was jolted awake. The shock came next. It felt like my side had been kicked.
Despite the crazy kick, the door we were hiding behind didn¡¯t move. I was leaning all my weight on the right side of the door, and Yoo Geum-yi was leaning against me. Ourbined weight kept the door from moving when the man kicked it. I heard the man curse as he shook his foot, followed by the other man¡¯s snickeringughter.
Their voices grew distant. The other man mocked the one who kicked the door, asking if his leg was alright. Their footsteps faded away. Yoo Geum-yi reached out and touched my back, startling me. But she was just stroking my tense back. I then slowly exhaled. Only now did the pain from hitting my head, waist, and arms against the door hit me.
¡°How. Why. The door. Why. Only one. How.¡±
¡°Calm down, Moohyun-ssi. I just thought¡ if I leave the door open, they won¡¯t open it.¡±
¡°What if they had looked inside?¡±
¡°Then there¡¯s nothing we could do.¡±
I couldn¡¯t help butugh at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s simple response. My tension, previously on the verge of bursting, was now easing. Once the footsteps had sufficiently distanced themselves, Yoo Geum-yi peeked out, confirming that no one was looking our way.
Yoo Geum-yi and I rested there for about two minutes, too tense to move our legs without a break. Keeping one of the aquarium doors open, we continued to watch the exhibition hall, when slowly, the gap in the exhibition hall¡¯s door widened, revealing Baek Ae-young¡¯s eyes. Both Baek Ae-young and we looked towards the central za.
¡°Geum-yi-ssi, go first. I¡¯ll gost.¡±
After watching for a moment, I signaled Yoo Geum-yi to run. She dashed out like a squirrel and slipped into the exhibition hall through the door Baek Ae-young had opened. I quickly looked towards the za to see if anyone had noticed, but no one was watching our way.
Damn. Now it¡¯s my turn. I was freaking out. First, I checked my shoes, tying theces tightly and tucking the ends into the crossedces to ensure they wouldn¡¯te loose. Was I ever good at running? Not really. Come to think of it, I wasn¡¯t particrly talented in sports. What skills do I even have? None. Damn it. I peeked outside, looking for the right timing to make my run.
In the za, many people were lying face down, hands tied behind their backs. A woman with disheveled blond hair was writhing and caught my eye as I peered out from the exit of the deep-sea aquarium. Despite seeing me clearly, she quickly turned away.
It was Jennifer Smith, the team leader of the engineering team. I wouldn¡¯t have recognized her if not for her long blond hair. Shocked, I stood frozen for a few seconds, but Jennifer didn¡¯t alert the armed men to my presence. Pretending not to see me, she continued to wriggle forward like a worm, then suddenly bit the ankle of a man tied up in front of her.
¡°Ow!¡±
As the man screamed, all the armed men¡¯s attention turned to him. Seizing the moment, I dashed out and ran towards the exhibition hall. It felt like running 20 meters, though it was only 5 or 6 meters. I couldn¡¯t even feel my legs moving.
Right in front of the exhibition hall, Baek Ae-young pulled me in and quietly closed the door. I fell forward, gasping for breath.
Chapter 52
Chapter 52
Inside the exhibition hall, arge English sign read ¡°[The Sea, the Great Birth of Life and Time].¡± Yoo Geum-yi was seated next to Seo Jihyuk and Shin Hae-ryang. Seo Jihyuk was panting, and Shin Hae-ryang had his eyes closed.
¡°Shin Hae-ryang-ssi?¡± I asked, wondering if he was asleep.
He opened his tired eyes and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±
¡°Okay.¡±
As I helped Seo Jihyuk walk, I recounted the recent events to everyone. Shin Hae-ryang sighed deeply, looking ahead. Baek Ae-young, gripping a gun, moved ahead of everyone,menting on how nice ¡®that sister¡¯ seemed. Despite his pain, Seo Jihyuk chuckled and asked me if I remembered the hairstyle of the man Jennifer bit.
¡°I didn¡¯t see, I was too distracted.¡±
¡°I was curious if it was Daniel or someone else,¡± he mused, then winced in pain again.
The exhibition, though titled a jewelry show, featured a 360-degree view of primordial seas, showing the formation of Earth, the creation of oceans, the emergence of cells, and the evolution of life. Under normal circumstances, I might have enjoyed the exhibition immensely. Images whirled around us, reflecting off our bodies. As we moved, the screens changed, showing dark scenes transforming into sea colors, apanied by music and the sound of waves. As we progressed, the disyed marine life grew in variety and quantity.
The exhibition made it feel like we were walking through the ocean itself, surrounded by blue water. Yoo Geum-yi, marveling at the images projected in 360 degrees on walls, ceiling, and floor,mented, ¡°It¡¯s quite well-made, isn¡¯t it?¡±
Indeed, holograms of dolphins had gracefully swum through my stomach. I saw a school of flying fish emerging from Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s head, passing through me and Seo Jihyuk, and rays gliding past Baek Ae-young¡¯s side, while mackerels swam by Yoo Geum-yi.
As we walked through the exhibition, we reached an area titled ¡°Legends of the Sea.¡± A life-sized holographic mermaid with blonde hair swam through my body and past the statues on disy. The mermaid, among others, passed through everyone in the exhibition, showcasing various mermaid legends from around the world on a map with apanying scripts. A mermaid¡¯s tail whisked past Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s head.
¡°Korea has its own mermaid legends too?¡± I mused to myself, readjusting Seo Jihyuk¡¯s arm on my shoulder as I briefly skimmed over the Asian mermaid legends. Then, a nearby statue moved.
¡°Simr_legends_are_spread_around_the_world.¡±
Startled, I froze, and Shin Hae-ryang and Baek Ae-young quickly aimed their guns at it. What we thought was a statue turned out to be an android. The android, a long-haired blonde male with an almost non-human appearance, wore strange attire reminiscent of ancient Greece, draped in white cloth. Had it not spoken, one might have mistaken it for a woman. Baek Ae-young, who had scouted ahead, must have thought it was just a statue or an exhibit.
¡°Damn it.¡±
I heard Baek Ae-young swear for the first time, her expression clearly indicating immense surprise. The android did not look entirely human upon closer inspection. Its body and face resembled well-crafted marble. It had an incredibly handsome face for an android, almost like that of a movie actor, making me think of several famous actors.
Although androids were used in various ces, they usually did not resemble humans closely. This one, however, looked strikingly human. I had thought the team leaders of the undersea base were chosen for their abilities and looks, but I didn¡¯t expect androids ced in exhibition halls to also prioritize appearance. Shin Hae-ryang, still pointing his gun, asked, ¡°What are you?¡±
¡°I_am_a_traveler. Waiting_for_the_life_born_in_the_sea_to_pass_through_this_time.¡±
The responses varied. Baek Ae-young and Shin Hae-ryang remained motionless with their guns aimed, Seo Jihyuk muttered something about madness, and Yoo Geum-yi opened and closed her mouth in disbelief. I responded casually, ¡°Then I¡¯m a traveler too, trying to find a safe ce. Can you help us?¡±
¡°There_is_no_safe_ce_from_time.¡±
Its eyes, like molten gold, looked at me. I wondered if it was lost in thought or if its eyes were naturally thatrge. It would be quite frightening to see in the dark. Its response was oddly philosophical, but seemingly irrelevant. None among us seemed capable of matching or appreciating this android¡¯s poetic sensibility. Why was it programmed this way? I would have ced it at the entrance to assist children, the disabled, or pregnant women.
As the conversation drifted, Seo Jihyuk abruptly said, ¡°This android seems weak, doesn¡¯t it? Whoever programmed it must have been drunk.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang and Baek Ae-young seemed to agree with Seo Jihyuk¡¯s opinion. Time was precious. Baek Ae-young cautiously circled the android, checking its surroundings and even peering inside its Greek-style white garment. I was startled by her boldness, but she dismissed my concern, saying there were no weapons.
¡°Doesn¡¯t seem rted to any cult?¡±
¡°Is there anyone else in this exhibition hall?¡±
¡°Apart_from_the_5_humans_in_the_Legends_of_the_Sea_area,_there_is_no_one_else_here._Do_you_need_assistance?¡±
¡°How big is this exhibition hall, and how far have wee?¡±
¡°The_total_area_of_the_First_Exhibition_Hall_is_2000_sqm,_with_a_total_length_of_400m._You_are_currently_at_114.6m.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, looking at Seo Jihyuk, said, ¡°We need help. There¡¯s someone with a gunshot wound to the knee.¡±
¡°Unfortunately,_I_do_not_have_the_system_to_provide_medical_assistance.¡±
Seo Jihyuk sighed and shook his head. I quickly asked the android, ¡°Can you carry an adult to the end of the exhibition hall? You must have a program to assist the elderly and disabled?¡±
¡°Up_to_250kg_is_possible.¡±
I looked at Seo Jihyuk, and he looked back at me, then at Shin Hae-ryang, Yoo Geum-yi, and Baek Ae-young.
¡°You¡¯re seriously considering leaving me with this blockhead robot?¡±
The ¡°blockhead robot¡± knelt down, extending its arms with palms facing up. Seo Jihyuk sighed deeply, then reluctantly grabbed the android¡¯s shoulders.
Hearing Baek Ae-young swear for the first time was surprising. She expressed her astonishment with such directness. The android didn¡¯t look entirely human upon closer inspection. Its body and face resembled well-crafted marble. Despite being an android, it had an incredibly handsome face, reminiscent of a movie actor. Several famous actors came to mind.
The android, having been asked to help Seo Jihyuk, who had a gunshot wound in his knee, responded with practicality. Seo Jihyuk, while being lifted by the android, gave it a warning about his condition and the critical state of his knee. The android assured him that he could sit on its arms.
The group then moved on to the next exhibition space, with Baek Ae-young keeping a cautious distance from the android, ready to subdue it if necessary. This area showcased various minerals, but to me, it seemed more like a jewelry exhibition. There wererge stones like Obsidian, Peridot, and Quartz, some bigger than a person. Yoo Geum-yi and I were fascinated by these shimmering,rge stones.
However, Shin Hae-ryang, Baek Ae-young, and Seo Jihyuk on top of the android remained vignt, constantly looking around to ensure no one else was hiding. Yoo Geum-yi pointed out arge stonebeled ¡®Carnotite.¡¯
¡°What¡¯s Carnotite?¡± I /images/products/carnotite45918a.JPG]
Yoo Geum-yi exined it was a uranium-rted mineral, glowing fluorescent under the UV lights in the exhibit. I wondered about the presence of radiation, but Yoo Geum-yi was unsure, as minerals weren¡¯t her specialty. She spected on the value of these minerals due to their potential uranium content.
Baek Ae-young, from a distance, informed us that uranium cost about a million won per kilogram. I was surprised at the price of uranium; I had heard of uranium prices rising but didn¡¯t realize it was that expensive. Looking at arge chunk of ore that seemed to weigh about 100kg, I pondered how much uranium could be extracted from it.
When I asked how Baek Ae-young knew the price of uranium, she mentioned learning about it while researching the prices of gold and tinum. She then resumed her cautious vignce, keeping an eye on the surroundings. The area, disying either gems or minerals, was quite vast. The lighting, focused only on the minerals, left the rest of the area dimly lit, making it difficult to notice if anyone was hiding. Baek Ae-young seemed worried about this possibility.
Chapter 53
Chapter 53
Me and Yoo Geum-yi had other worries. The lighting was minimal, but it did not affect the viewing of the disyed jewels. No matter what was illuminated, they shone brilliantly. Disying such obviously expensive items without any security seemed reckless.
¡°Is it normal for a gem exhibition to be this grand?¡±
I had never been to a gem exhibition before. Pointing at an amethystrger than my height, I asked Yoo Geum-yi, who responded with a look of disbelief.
¡°I¡¯ve never seen an exhibition of this scale either. There¡¯s a sapphire over there as big as my torso¡ It must be fake, right?¡±
¡°None of this was here when I came yesterday?¡±
Seo Jihyuk, holding the neck of an android, looked around the mineral-filled exhibition hall in bewilderment.
¡°That¡¯s the lighting I fixed, but this ce was empty. If these had been here, I would¡¯ve taken one in my pocket.¡±
From a distance, Baek Ae-youngmented incredulously on Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words.
¡°How could you take something of that size?¡±
Even the smallest jewel was nearly the size of a human thigh. Considering they were gemstones but essentially rocks, they must be incredibly heavy. I snapped my fingers and said,
¡°Cable car! There¡¯s one right at the end of the exhibition hall, they must have moved these from the first underwater base to the second and then here.¡±
¡°Since the elevator isn¡¯t far from here, they might have used an automated cart or a medic to transport them.¡±
Seo Jihyuk scratched his head as he spoke. Shin Haeryang nced at the exhibits and frowned. I asked him, sensing his difort.
¡°Do you have any knowledge about these minerals?¡±
¡°No, they are dazzling to the eyes.¡±
There were huge crystals and aquamarines, and enormous manos. There were emeralds as big as a human head and rubies the size of an arm. The only minerals I could recognize were amethysts, which I had seen in an amethyst cave before, and cinnabar leaking mercury.
The android soon headed towards a diamond disyed in the center of the exhibition hall. As we got closer, it became clear that the diamond was almost the size of two adult fists. Even someone like me, whocks greed for jewels, was tempted by its brilliance. It was so spectacr that it outshone all other gems around it. I understood why diamonds are so coveted. They overwhelmingly attract attention.
I understood why such gems are given as gifts. All the jewels gathered under the lights made the central diamond the sole focus of attention. I remembered a friend who cried over his bank ount while buying a tiny diamond for his wedding. If a diamond was the size of two fists, how much would it cost?
When we got about six steps closer to the diamond, it was about the size of a medium-sized dog. Such a size suggested it was a synthetic diamond; natural diamonds are almost impossible to mine in that size. The android, observing us admiring the diamond, said,
¡°This is the mineral that has_sted the longest time here.¡±
Regardless of what the android said, Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang were checking the exit and any sounds, while I was looking at the lights shining on the diamond. Yoo Geum-yi asked the android,
¡°How old is it?¡±
Thinking that the android, being part of the exhibition, might know something, I didn¡¯t expect an actual answer. It felt strange, as if I had only seen androids on TV. The android¡¯s precise answer made me jump in surprise.
¡°Approximately_ 4.5 billion years.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤It¡¯s about as old as the Earth itself.¡±
Is the Earth 4.5 billion years old? I vaguely remember hearing that in Earth Science ss, but it¡¯s been so long I¡¯ve forgotten. Remembering the Earth¡¯s age every year is hard enough, let alone my own. Impressive, Ms. Kim, to remember the age of the Earth. But then, does this mean the diamond was formed almost at the birth of the Earth? So, it¡¯s a natural diamond?
¡°With the birth of a star.¡±
The brilliance of the diamond was almost blinding. I wondered if it would shine on its own even if all the lights in the exhibition hall were turned off. It was that intensely luminous. While admiring the diamond, Seo Jihyuk, seated on the arm of the android, spoke to Baek Ae-young, loud enough for others to hear.
¡°Baek, remove the alcohol from your bag and put this in.¡±
I burst outughing at hisment, and Yoo Geum-yi looked at Seo Jihyuk in disbelief. Shin Haeryang and Baek Ae-young also stared at him, seemingly astounded. Seo Jihyuk scratched his head and said to Baek Ae-young,
¡°Looking at the way things are disyed here, this is all crazy cult stuff. Besides, if this ce gets flooded or there¡¯s a shootout, no one will notice if a gem goes missing. If we take it, who can say anything?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi opened her mouth wide in shock at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words, then quickly retorted.
¡°I wouldn¡¯t touch a gem of a crazy cult. Even tampering with a sane person¡¯s gem causes uproar, let alone something belonging to an armed cult controlling an underwater base. I don¡¯t even want to imagine the terrible things that could happen. And seeing the diamond in the center of this exhibition, it must be very important. If a diamond of this size goes missing, they¡¯ll search high and low for it. They¡¯ll never let us go!¡±
Baek Ae-young, gauging the size of the diamond, pointed out another issue.
¡°How can you carry something about 8kg in a bag? It¡¯ll slow you down if it¡¯s heavy.¡±
Thinking about it, the cat in my bag that I got back from Baek Ae-young weighed about 6kg. Baek Ae-young carried my bag with the cat in it, along with two 1.5L bottles of water and a bottle of alcohol, up the stairs without anyints, moving as if she were flying. It seemed Baek Ae-young would prefer carrying the cat rather than a diamond of that size.
Hearing this, Seo Jihyuk looked at Shin Haeryang, who had an imprable expression, and then turned his gaze towards me. I shook my head. I had two bags, but one carried a 6kg cat on my back, and the other had a snake inside. Even just the cat sometimes screamed on my shoulder, and now he wants me to carry a diamond in my bag?
Moreover, while diamonds in photos and videos had always seemed pretty, seeing one in person was somewhat intimidating with its excessive sparkle and brilliance. It felt like watching lightning.
The overwhelming radiance of a human-head-sized diamond was one thing, but I¡¯ve never casually taken someone else¡¯s belongings. The thought of putting the diamond in my bag was frightening enough. I¡¯ve never stolen or even touched someone else¡¯s belongings, apart from maybe taking a sip or a bite of a friend¡¯s snack. But a gem like this is different. Seo Jihyuk seemed particrly regretful about leaving such arge diamond behind.
¡°Just taking this one would mean none of us would ever have to work again!¡±
His words reminded me of my family¡¯s situation, and the fact that my first paycheck was in jeopardy due to thepany¡¯s current state made me stare at the diamond. Then Shin Haeryang warned Seo Jihyuk,
¡°You should be more concerned about saving your own life.¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s mouth dropped open, but he seemed to have no intention of arguing with the team leader who had been carrying and supporting him. His eyes darted among the others and then back to himself with a grim expression. Resigned to his fate as someone being carried by an android, with no chance to carry the diamond himself or entrust it to others, he just sighed deeply. He looked at Baek Ae-young with a lingering sense of regret, but Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t even meet his gaze. Yoo Geum-yi, after surveying the jewels around her, shook her head decisively.
¡°I¡¯d give up all these gems just to be able to leave here alive.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s tone suggested she was utterly fed up with the underwater base. Baek Ae-young, looking at her, smiled and extended her fist towards Yoo Geum-yi.
¡°I agree with that sentiment.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, initially taken aback by Baek Ae-young¡¯s extended right fist, looked around hesitantly before extending her own fist and lightly touching Baek¡¯s. It seemed that researchers like her were not ustomed to fist-bumping.
Seo Jihyuk let out a deep sigh. Clinging to the android¡¯s neck, hemented the missed opportunity, repeatedly expressing how regrettable it was to leave such ownerless jewels behind. I could empathize with him, as I was not in a financiallyfortable position myself. However, in my current state, carrying gems was out of the question.
If I had the physical strength of Baek Ae-young or Shin Haeryang, maybe I would have considered attempting to take one. But after walking those dreadful stairs connecting the third and second underwater bases, my legs were trembling like a newborn deer¡¯s. Especially after running into the exhibition hall from the deep-sea aquarium in a state of high tension, all I wanted was to copse and rest. The only reason I was still carrying the cat in my bag, sobbing internally, was because it was a living creature. If it had been a gem, I would have abandoned it long ago.
Baek Ae-young, leading the way, passed a rubyrge enough to touch the ceiling and was now walking past an opal the size of tworge dogs. Yoo Geum-yi, Seo Jihyuk, Shin Haeryang, and I followed behind.
Seo Jihyuk was still pestering the android, asking if it could send the diamond to his house via courier service or if the android could move it outside the underwater base. Yoo Geum-yi, listening to the android¡¯s monotonous voice responding to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s chatter, suddenly asked the android a question.
¡°What happens if someone tries to leave the exhibition hall with a gem?¡±
¡°All_elevator_operations_will_be_suspended_and_an_rm_will_sound.¡±
A chill ran down my spine. Turning around in surprise, both Yoo Geum-yi and Seo Jihyuk looked equally shocked. The primary means of connecting the underwater bases were elevators, and escape pods were meant to be used only in real emergencies.
Chapter 54
Chapter 54
If we had touched any of those gems, it would have been like announcing to everyone at the second underwater base that we were all here. I am grateful for thepany I had upon entering this exhibition hall. Their rationality and self-control saved us all from getting entangled in a potential disaster, something that could have easily happened if I had been slightly greedier or if the others had insisted on taking the gems.
Despite the android¡¯s voice, only Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang kept looking ahead and to the sides, not at Seo Jihyuk. Baek Ae-young muttered something under her breath that sounded to me like ¡®idiot¡¯. It was a fitting remark. Thinking of taking gems in a situation like this was absurd.
We were passing through the gem exhibition hall in silence, our pace quickening. Everything around us was indeed beautiful and dazzling, but we knew that touching or greedily taking any of these could ruin our lives in an instant.
As we passed the giant sodalite and spessartine (both of which I¡¯d never heard of before), Baek Ae-young clenched and then rxed her fist, signaling to Shin Haeryang and Seo Jihyuk. They stopped upon seeing her signal and then Baek Ae-young ducked behind a stonebeled ¡®kyanite¡¯, asrge as a person. Yoo Geum-yi and Seo Jihyuk hid behind a bear-sized spinel. I didn¡¯t know why we were hiding, but given what had happened so far, someone must being.
Soon enough, I realized people were indeed approaching. They wereing from the exit of the exhibition hall, opposite to where we had entered. If not for Baek Ae-young, we would have run into them head-on.
There were about six armed people, with three walking in the middle. One of the faces seemed familiar, but the other two were strangers to me. Baek Ae-young sighed something about ¡®Michael Roaker¡¯, and I tried to ce the name, recalling the man I had met in the elevator. Who was he, what was his role?
The trio walked towards the central diamond. This was good for us; their goal was the center, ours was the exit. We just had to move in opposite directions without crossing paths. But Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t move, nor did Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi, who were half-leaning against the pedestal disying the spinel. Why weren¡¯t we moving now?
I soon realized why our team wasn¡¯t moving. About 2 meters away from where a blue mineral was ced, a man with an automatic rifle was standing guard. And about 10 meters from there, next to a red mineral the size of a human torso (I think it was called red beryl), two more men were looking around with their guns.
The group that had entered from the exit of the exhibition hall was leaving armed personnel at intervals, like Hansel and Gretel dropping breadcrumbs. Why not move as a single group? Why were they dropping off armed people along the way? Perhaps those at the center would regroup with them on their way to the exit.
This gem exhibition did not seem designed for visitors to easily view the jewels. As we walked down the central aisle of the rectangr exhibition hall, we could only see the gems ced along the sides of the aisle, not all the gems. The gems were scattered around like an explosion radiating from the central diamond.
If we had to act immediately to escape, I thought it wouldn¡¯t be impossible to hide behind the variously sized gem pedestals and make our way to the exit. The key was to stay as silent as possible while hiding and reaching the exit. However, the veteran, Shin Haeryang, seemed to have a different idea. He motioned for us to stay still and quiet. He whispered this to me and gestured the same to Seo Jihyuk. Seo Jihyuk then told the android carrying him to quietly enjoy the gems, and he whispered something to Yoo Geum-yi ¨C probably telling her to stay put too.
Hiding behind therge gems was quite ufortable. The space wasn¡¯t wide enough for three people to hide. As my legs began to cramp from crouching, I tried to stretch them out, but Shin Haeryang quickly told me to tuck them back in. Iplied, breathing as softly as I could. The armed men were standing about 2 meters away in the corridor, chatting among themselves and asionally speaking into their radios. I couldn¡¯t quite catch their conversation.
Sitting on the cold floor in an incredibly tired state made me feel as if all my senses were drifting away. The sounds of the venttion system, the conversations of the armed personnel, and the asional low voices of Shin Haeryang and Baek Ae-young buzzed in my ears. All I wanted was to wash up, brush my teeth, and lie down for a good sleep.
I felt utterly exhausted and drained. Hugging my thighs to my chest and gripping my calves tightly, I huddled up, making sure I was not visible from outside, while clutching the cat bag. I felt like a little child. Baek Ae-young, peering over the gems at the people, grumbled with frustration. Her voice was so low it was almost like the sound of the wind.
Suddenly, I found myself lying sideways in an overturned car. My father was holding my hand, pulling me. ¡°Wake up! Hyun-ah! Wake up! You need to regain consciousness!¡±
I don¡¯t know how much time had passed, but Shin Haeryang was shaking my shoulder and covering my mouth with his hand. Had I fallen asleep for a few seconds or passed out? When I woke up, everything was as it was when we first hid. We were still waiting. But then I heard footsteps. The nine people who had walked toward the center were now returning to this area. I covered my mouth with my hands and silently prayed they would pass us by. Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t even peek out, just hid their bodies in the shadows of therge kyanite pedestal and its stone, holding their breath.
Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi were also curled up as much as possible, seemingly trusting the enormous spinel beside them for protection. Listening to the footsteps of people passing under the gems, my mind strangely entertained the thought that all this suffering could end if I just ran out to them. The impulse to lie down like Jennifer and the others, just staring at the floor, seemed much less exhausting than running and hiding like this, considering we were dealing with hostage-takers.
It wouldn¡¯t be pleasant with them, but wouldn¡¯t it be better than sneaking around, searching for an inoperable escape pod, observing useless elevators, or struggling to get to a dubious underwater cable car? Such thoughts briefly crossed my mind.
However, looking at the others in the same predicament, I suppressed that urge. We had made it here from the leaking fourth underwater base 3000 meters below. We were close to escaping. Just a little more perseverance was needed!
Besides, we had attacked two of the same cult members at the third underwater base, killing one for sure. There was also a cult member tied up in the bathroom at the second underwater base. Wouldn¡¯t they just shoot us if they knew what we had done? Wouldn¡¯t they simply decide to shoot us all? I leaned my head against the pedestal, staring nkly at where Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi were hiding. Yoo Geum-yi and Seo Jihyuk were also waiting for them to pass by. Please. Just pass by. Just pass by.
However, a man from the group of cult members, leading the way with a gun, called out to the android. ¡°Maris!¡± At this, the android sitting next to Seo Jihyuk abruptly stood up. Even just from the sound, I could tell that the man¡¯s gun was now pointed in that direction.
Yoo Geum-yi covered her mouth with both hands, frozen in shock, while Seo Jihyuk, dazed, watched the android rise and leave his side. Observing Baek Ae-young¡¯s knuckles whitening as she gripped her gun, I swallowed silently with tension.
Seo Jihyuk clenched his teeth while staring at his legs. Yoo Geum-yi slowly got up from where she had been sitting on the floor, crouching slightly, ready to run at any moment. I also eyed the gems disyed nearby, figuring out where to run if necessary, as cold sweat started to form on my back. Listening to Shin Haeryang¡¯s calm breathing in this tense situation felt strangely unsettling.
The android, surrounded by gunpoints but without hesitation, walked towards the man who had called it. Stopping in front of him, the android said,
¡°Wee to the exhibition of ¡®The Great Birth of Life and the Passage of Time at Sea, Mr. David Knight. How may I assist you?¡±
¡°Tell me the number of people in this exhibition hall.¡±
The man¡¯s request to know the number of people shocked me; my mind seemed to freeze. An android can¡¯t lie. It would typically respond with what it knows to such a straightforward question. There were 9 cult members and 5 of us. Depending on the android¡¯s answer, our presence could be immediately revealed.
Shin Haeryang, seeing the android¡¯s response, gestured for me to continue crawling, but not towards the exit. Instead, we were to move towards the center of the exhibition hall, hiding among the gems. Iy t on the ground, clenching my fists, inching away from the armed group. Baek Ae-young crawled up behind me. The android, known as Maris, paused for a few seconds before answering.
¡°The total number of people currently in this exhibition hall is 14.¡±
The man called David Knight raised his eyebrows at this response. I crawled about five meters before squeezing under the sturdy marble pedestal of a bright blue mineral called benitoite. Baek Ae-young soon joined me, biting her lip and hiding beside me. From a distance, Seo Jihyuk seemed to be mouthing curses at the android. I licked my dry lips in anxiety. What should we do? What now? How do we get out of this?
The cult members¡¯ curses at the android¡¯s answer reached us. Shin Haeryang suddenly touched my back with his left hand, almost making me scream. His action seemed to be signaling me to stay calm. I tried hard to quiet my loud, fear-induced breathing, my palms and back soaked in sweat.
¡°Where are the others hiding, besides our group of 9?¡±
Chapter 55
Chapter 55
The android, as if it were the most natural thing to do, raised its arm and pointed in our direction, guiding the cult members to our hiding spot. Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi had also just narrowly managed to move out of the way.
The man immediately directed a barrage of gunfire towards the area indicated by the android. I was shaking and covered my mouth with my hands in horror. The exhibited gems were also being hit by the gunfire. It seemed another cult member also realized the madness of the situation.
¡°Have you lost your mind?! Each of those gems is worth more than your life! You could be hired and rehired ten times over, even in your past and future lives!¡±
A sharp female voice pierced my terrified ears. Were the gems really that valuable? The man murmured something in response, but I couldn¡¯t make it out. Then I heard footsteps. Multiple people were moving to hunt us down. What should we do? How can we escape this? Baek Ae-young handed me a pistol, urging me to take it. Trembling, I epted it without a word.
Baek Ae-young herself held a rifle she had taken from Tyler. Shin Haeryang also gripped a gun they had taken from the third underwater base and waited. There was no sign of tension in Shin Haeryang; he appeared as calm as if he were resting on a park bench. How could someone be thisposed in such a situation? Wasn¡¯t he afraid at all?
The two of them waited quietly, anticipating the approach of the others. I prayed they wouldn¡¯te. Baek Ae-young, looking for the right moment, instructed me to crawl around the side of the gem pedestal we were near. If they reached the end where the benitoite was, we had no choice but to hide on the sides to remain unseen.
Baek Ae-young, Shin Haeryang, and I moved perpendicrly from our hiding spot to stay out of sight and waited. It seemed the armed individuals had reached where we were initially hiding. Someone loudly announced that we were not there, and they began to scatter to search for us.
I could clearly hear footsteps heading our way. Clenching my teeth as the footsteps grew closer, I knew they would soon see us hiding if they turned their heads just slightly. I trembled, holding the gun and praying silently to every deity I could think of, hoping we wouldn¡¯t be discovered. However, it seemed the prayers of a former atheist had no effect, as someone came in our direction.
Shin Haeryang quickly grabbed the intruder, redirecting their rifle¡¯s barrel towards the ceiling while cing his own gun under the assant¡¯s chin. The person, about to scream, stopped abruptly upon seeing Shin Haeryang, showing a moment of shock and then annoyance. Baek Ae-young, with mechanical precision, also aimed her gun at the cult member, pausing momentarily. The intruder, a brown-haired woman, seemed to recognize the three of them, except for me. The sequence of actions knocked off the woman¡¯s ck shark-like cap, which rolled on the ground. Shin Haeryang, holding his gun to the woman¡¯s chin, spoke in a very low voice.
¡°Brown. We didn¡¯t see you, and you didn¡¯t see us. Answer.¡±
It seemed Shin Haeryang would pull the trigger without hesitation if she refused. Under Shin Haeryang¡¯s threat, the woman named Brown looked at Baek Ae-young, who was aiming a gun at her, for a few seconds before speaking in a very low voice.
¡°I didn¡¯t see you.¡±
Right after saying that, Baek Ae-young picked up the cap that had fallen on the floor and ced it back on Brown¡¯s head, who was slightly bowing. Brown watched Baek Ae-young for a few seconds, then, as if searching for someone, turned her head around before casually walking past us and heading elsewhere.
As I slowly exhaled a breath filled with tension, concern for Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi began to grow in my mind. Seo Jihyuk, unable to use one of his legs, was he hiding well? What about Yoo Geum-yi? She couldn¡¯t shoot a gun. Baek Ae-young frowned and wiped the sweat trickling down her cheek with the back of her hand. ¡°What should we do?¡± she whispered to Shin Haeryang, almost like the wind. Her expression clearly showed a willingness to open fire on the people there at any moment. It seemed like Brown was an acquaintance, but did she also want to shoot her?
Shin Haeryang seemed to think that escaping without revealing our presence to them would be a huge advantage in our escape. However, Baek Ae-young appeared to believe that engaging in a gunfight now, even with the odds of 9 against 2, would be better. She spected that the three unarmed among them must be high-ranking individuals.
I respected the judgment of both. The reason it wasn¡¯t 9 against 3 was that I clearly wouldn¡¯t be able to contribute effectively as a shooter. But I could probably fire a gun.
I expected the two to have a lengthy discussion to reconcile their opinions. However, after each had expressed their view just once, Shin Haeryang frowned at Baek Ae-young¡¯s suggestion and then nodded. There was no time to waste. Right. That made sense. Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi might be on the verge of being discovered. We couldn¡¯t count on the same luck happening again.
Baek Ae-young instructed me on where to hide. She told me to pull the trigger from here, hide behind this gem, shoot again, and then hide again. She emphasized the importance of hiding well. My position was behind a bright blue gem, simr in color to thepiszuli Shin Haeryang had shown me on the stairs. I stroked the gem on disy in front of me with my bare hand, hoping that it would be resilient against bullets. Okay. I¡¯m ready. I grabbed Shin Haeryang¡¯s shoulder and asked.
¡°What¡¯s the signal to start?¡±
¡°The gunfire. Think of it as killing them all.¡±
¡°If we don¡¯t shoot, we¡¯ll be killed. Don¡¯t get killed!¡±
¡°Stay safe.¡±
With those final words, Shin Haeryang and Baek Ae-young, armed with automatic rifles, dashed behind another gem and disappeared, advancing forward. The cult members were heading in the direction where we had been earlier. I concentrated all my attention on gripping the gun, which felt like it was slipping from my sweaty palms. Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang soon vanished from my sight. A few minutester, gunshots rang out. Bang! Bang! Tat-tat! Tadadada! Screams and cries of people echoed around.
Two unarmed cult members, a white-haired woman adorned in dazzling white gems and a ck-haired man, started heading back towards the center of the exhibition hall. The woman, decked in earrings, nes, bracelets, rings, a waist belt, and a tiara, looked like a model in a jewelry photoshoot, all her essories made of diamonds. She was running as fast as she could.
The ck-haired man, upon closer inspection, was also wearing a deep green gemstone belt and a green ne. I was hiding behind a blue gem on disy, aiming my gun at them, unnoticed so far. The armed personnel hadn¡¯t reached this side yet. If I was going to shoot, now was the moment. At that instant, a flurry of thoughts raced through my mind.
What if those people were innocent?
What if they were hostages of the armed personnel, just like the people lying outside?
What if my actions unjustly and tragically ended their lives?
What if, like Brown earlier, they would have just quietly let us go?
What if this cult doesn¡¯t actually kill people and what¡¯s spread around the elevators is just paint?
What if everyone around me is lying?
How would I cope with the deaths of the two people I shot?
What if their parents, children, families, lovers, and rtives naturally sought revenge on my family for their deaths?
What if the corpses of those people haunted my dreams every night?
What if I cry every day, engulfed in guilt and remorse for having pulled the trigger?
In almost an instant, these thoughts raced through my mind, and I realized my brain was making up all sorts of excuses not to pull the trigger. I don¡¯t want to shoot. I don¡¯t want to! Why should I? Why do I have to shoot someone? I¡¯m someone who¡¯s content with fixing people¡¯s teeth, happy removing cavities, not someone who takes lives!
¡°Think of it as killing them all.¡±
Shin Haeryang¡¯s words echoed in my head. Then, almost reflexively, I pulled the trigger several times, but my fingers felt numb and distant. The trigger was incredibly heavy, and I hadn¡¯t realized how much strength it required. The sound of the gun was deafening. It was only after hearing the loud bang that I realized I had actually fired.
But when I regained my senses, I saw that the woman, whether silver or white-haired, was lying face down on the ground, and the ck-haired man had been shot in the leg and fallen backward. The woman lying on the ground didn¡¯t seem human, more like a mannequin that had fallen over.
The man I had shot was trying to get up, but each attempt sprayed blood on the floor. I watched him struggle with a thigh wound, unable to stand, and noticed he didn¡¯t have a gun in his waist or hands. Stunned, I crawled and hid behind arge pink gemstone nearby.
Secondster, someone started shooting at the gemstone I was hiding behind. The sound of gunfire made me scream and duck my head even lower. I was supposed to shoot and hide, then shoot again, but there was no opportunity for me to fire back. Bullets kept raining on my hiding spot. I was too afraid to raise my head, fearing a bullet might hit me. If they kept shooting at me, when would I ever get a chance to shoot back? The continuous gunfire was almost deafening.
¡°Elizabeth! Beth! Beth! Aaah! Beth! Wake up!¡±
The man who had been shot in the leg was lying on the ground, calling out repeatedly for the motionless woman. ¡°Beth! Come on, wake up!¡± Meanwhile, gunshots and screams echoed from various directions, the man¡¯s cries blending with the others.
If my memory serves me right, I had fired three shots at the woman¡¯s chest and shoulder, and two shots at the man. The woman, who was running first towards the central aisle, fell after being shot, followed by the man, who seemed to have been hit by only one of the bullets. What should I do now? Is the woman definitely dead? If she¡¯s still alive, could she be saved with immediate medical attention? And what about the living man? What should I do about myself, still hiding here?
Chapter 56
Chapter 56
The gunfire continued. Since the shooting at the gem above my head had stopped, I reached out my hand from behind the gemstone to fire my gun, but then hesitated, fearing my hand might get shot. So, I only extended the barrel slightly and fired two shots randomly. Bang! Bang! Since no screams followed, it seemed I hadn¡¯t hit anyone. Gasping for breath due to tension, I wiped the sweat dripping down to my chin and felt relieved. I don¡¯t want to shoot people! It¡¯s too scary! I just want to get out of here! Sorry. I really didn¡¯t understand what it meant to shoot at someone.
I was lost in thoughts like whether I really wanted to survive this situation or if I could save the woman and man with first aid. As these thoughts wandered through my mind, the sound of gunfire gradually moved away from me, towards the exit of the exhibition hall.
Wondering if I should check, I extended my hand holding the gun out from behind the gemstone and waved it, but no more gunfire came my way. The person who had been shooting at me must have moved on. Listening to the fading sounds, I almost crawled out from behind the gemstone, which I then saw wasbeled ¡®Pink Tourmaline.¡¯ Creeping out cautiously in case I needed to hide again, I saw only the silver-haired woman lying on the ground. The man who had been shot was gone.
There were bloodstains where the man had been, but no sign of him. Someone must have taken him away. Shaking, I clutched my gun and emerged from my hiding spot. Fearing a headshot, I crawled out cautiously towards the woman.
The womany face down, just as I had left her. I fought the urge to curse myself and the overwhelming desire to cry. There was a massive amount of blood. I slowly turned the woman over, her back to the ground, to check for a pulse. She was definitely dead.
I swept my palm over her eyes to close them, but the feel of her eyshes and eyelids sent a shiver down my spine, a sensation I never wanted to experience again. As I turned to leave, a fear gripped me that she might suddenly open her eyes if I turned my back. But I didn¡¯t have the courage to look back at her lying body either. Trembling, I moved very slowly towards the direction of the gunfire. There was still shooting, so they must be fighting, right? I have to help.
I moved from one gemstone to another, using them as shields, crawling because my legs were too weak to walk properly. I wasn¡¯t sure how far I had gone until I realized I had moved closer to where the shooting was happening, only noticing when I saw the face of a cult member.
A man was moving in and out from behind a gem, shooting towards a green gemstone with another disy pir between them. I was positioned to his left rear.
In movies, when shooting at someone, they often lick their lips and say something like ¡°adios¡±, but in a real gunfight, there was no time for such theatrics. I almosty down to shoot the man in the back, realizing I had hit him when I saw bullet marks on his back. Terrified of him seeing me, I continued shooting towards his head as he turned around. A hole appeared in the man¡¯s cheek, and he fell backward. Iy t on the ground, waiting for a counterattack, but there was none.
I crawled and buried my head behind a gemstone disy. I stayed still. The sound of gunfire gradually moved away towards the exit. Someone touched my shoulder, startling me as I turned with my gun ready, but it was Shin Haeryang who quickly said,
¡°Stop.¡±
¡°What about the others?¡±
Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t respond but took the gun from the man I had shot and said quickly,
¡°Seo Jihyuk and Yoo Geum-yi are behind that red gem over there. Go get them.¡±
¡°What about you?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll help others.¡±
As he moved and shot, it seemed more like he was signaling his presence than aiming to hit anyone. Seeing his reliable actions, I started crawling towards the red gem. As I moved, I realized my palms were scraped raw. Why hadn¡¯t I felt pain until now? Pondering this, I continued crawling past iolite and zircon and only realized I had reached the red gem, identified as andesine, after almost making a full circle.
Crawling behind the gem, Seo Jihyuk aimed his gun at me, then lowered it. He was lying on his back, aiming at me, and Yoo Geum-yi was also there, sitting next to him, leaning on the gem disy. Seeing Yoo Geum-yi with one eye closed reminded me of the woman who had died in the shootout. I stammered as I asked,
¡°Yoo Geum-yi? Why¡ why are you¡ sleeping?¡±
¡°She¡¯s dead. She¡ uh¡ got hit by a stray bullet.¡±
Stray bullet? I was shocked and shook Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s shoulder, looking lifeless like she was asleep, and only then did I notice that her upper body leaning on the gem was covered in blood. The gem¡¯s deep red color had masked the blood at first nce. Her right forehead above the eyebrow was bleeding profusely. I was lost for words.
I don¡¯t know how long I stared at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s face in a daze. Several times, Seo Jihyuk called me, trying to get my attention, then grabbed my arm to make me look at him. I realized I was shaking like a thin tree in the wind. Trembling, Seo Jihyuk said with a frown,
¡°Hey, snap out of it. I¡¯m not in a position to take care of you right now.¡±
¡°But¡ Yoo Geum-yi¡ Yoo Geum-yi is dead.¡±
¡°Yoo Geum-yi is dead, and I¡¯ll be dead soon too. It¡¯s already a miracle I made it here with this leg. It¡¯s because of kind-hearted people like Baek Ae-young, you, and Yoo Geum-yi, even our team leader, that I¡¯ve made it this far. If cold-blooded assholes like Jeong Sang-hyeon or Gang Su-jeong were in this hastily formed team, they would¡¯ve left me behind at the Four Thousand Steps. I would¡¯ve been shot in the head back at the fourth underwater base. Park Moohyun! Enough talking about the dead and those about to die. Take this gun, shoot while pulling this trigger. Especially aim at those targeting Baek Ae-young¡¯s head.¡±
¡°What about you, Seo Jihyuk-ssi?¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me? Go.¡±
¡°I can¡¯t! I can¡¯t leave you behind! You told me to bring them!¡±
Ignoring my protest, Seo Jihyuk snatched my gun to check the bullets, then handed me his gun.
¡°¡Team Leader Shin is too kind-hearted to leave anyone behind. If there¡¯s a liability in the team, you need to leave them and move on. I¡¯ve known him for seven years, and he never could do that. But you, Moohyun, you drill into people¡¯s mouths, right? You¡¯re strong-hearted, you can do this.¡±
What nonsense. What does drilling have to do with this? No connection at all. I shook my head vigorously, trembling all over from stress. I thought I had no tears left after crying so much on the way here, but they streamed down my cheeks.
¡°I-I-I can¡¯t leave Seo Jihyuk-ssi behind. I¡¯m a dentist! I¡¯ve spent 10 years fixing mouths! But if I leave Seo Jihyuk-ssi here, he¡¯ll die!¡±
¡°Who knows. With Shin team leader doing the work of three and Baek Ae-young being a sharpshooter, who can say when anyone¡¯s time is up? We might die quickly on the way to the first underwater base. Yoo Geum-yi was hiding behind me, but who knew she would die from a stray bullet that ricocheted off a gem?¡±
He was right. Even if I take Seo Jihyuk now to find Shin Hae-ryang and Baek Ae-young, we could die sooner from a bullet flying from somewhere than by hiding here. But staying here doesn¡¯t guarantee survival either. If the cult members storm the exhibition hall entrance, staying here would mean getting shot and killed.
¡°So dying here or on the way is the same. Let¡¯s go together!¡±
Seo Jihyuk frowned at my words, scratched the back of his head, sighed, and then, shaking his head, said,
¡°Grab Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s bag.¡±
I sighed inwardly, interpreting Seo Jihyuk¡¯s gruff words as agreement with my opinion, and quickly approached Yoo Geum-yi. Leaning against the red gem, she had fallen to the ground when I shook her shoulder. I saw the bag strapped to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s back. I apologized to her and carefully tried to remove the bag¡¯s straps from her arms. While I was taking the bag off her arm, Seo Jihyuk¡¯s voice reached my ears.
¡°Sorry to show you this.¡±
At that sound, as I turned away from Yoo Geum-yi, Seo Jihyuk was showing me his side profile when suddenly there was a bang! I didn¡¯t realize what he had done untilter ¨C he had shot himself in the head. I hadn¡¯t even known there was one bullet left in my gun, as I had fired without keeping count. Perhaps Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t want to show me something like this, judging by his apology. Why apologize and then do something regrettable? He could have just gone with us. I could have helped him walk. Modern knee cartge surgeries, even if notpletely curative, enable people to run around, with no issues in daily life. We escaped from the fourth underwater base amid a gunfight, walked the Four Thousand Steps together, so why couldn¡¯t we walk together just because the cult members were firing around us? Why? Why did he do that?
Why does a piece of metal, no bigger than a fingernail, have the power to kill? How can people just die like deting bags of blood because of these bullets? Bullets can be surgically removed, even from the brain. There are all sorts of terrible idents in the world, and doctors have to remove all sorts of things embedded in people¡¯s brains, including objectsrger than bullets. I¡¯ve heard of cases where people survived even with a shattered skull, spending a few weeks in the hospital, their heads shaved, then miraculously recovering. Treatments can be so effective that there¡¯s no sign of any injury! Couldn¡¯t these people be saved if the bullets were removed? Am I unaware of something because I haven¡¯t read this month¡¯stest medical journal? Once I get out of here, I must subscribe to medical magazines focusing on neurology. And I should ask my friend who specializes in neurosurgery. I need to find out how quickly someone can recover if a bullet in the brain is removed. Can bullets be extracted with suction? If so, I could do it in dentistry. My hands don¡¯t shake, I can do it well.
Imma cry. Brb. ??
Chapter 57: Welcome
Chapter 57: Wee
¡°Moohyun.¡±
I¡¯m not sure how long I sat between Yoo Geum-yiand Seo Jihyuk. Someone shook my shoulder, and only then did I lift my head. It was so dark in front of me that I had to shake my head to see the person, and there stood Baek Ae-young in front of me. Baek Ae-young was covered in blood from head to toe. I tried to say something, but no words came out.
¡°Uh¡ uh¡ uhhhh.¡±
¡°Get up. We need to go.¡±
At first, I couldn¡¯t get up right away. After falling once and crawling on the floor, I finally stood up on two feet, relying on the strength of Baek Ae-young¡¯s hands and arms, while swallowing tears and snot. The rifle Seo Jihyuk had given me was incredibly heavy. (I only knew it was a rifle after Baek Ae-young told me) I couldn¡¯t tell if it was so heavy because I was struggling to walk properly, or if rifles are just that heavy. My body felt utterly drained. I wanted to just copse on the floor and sleep for about 10 hours.
If I hadn¡¯t tied the rifle with a rope around my body, I would never have been able to carry it now. All I had used until now was a handgun that I held with both hands, but if it had been this rifle, I probably couldn¡¯t have even shot it due to its weight.
Baek Ae-young, walking ahead, was densely covered in blood, front and back. Moreover, the rifle she was carrying was different from the one she had before. While the previous rifle had a ck strap, the one she was now carrying had a blue strap. The rifle was colored a blue shade, simr to the hue of the aquamarine gem we had passed earlier. It was possible to color the exterior of a rifle like that. Since Baek Ae-young wouldn¡¯t have had the luxury to paint the gun herself, she must have taken it from someone else. Holding a rifle that looked exactly like mine, Baek Ae-young walked through the exhibition, moving between the disyed gems like a leopard in the Savannah jungle. Her steps showed no concern for the weight or difficulty of carrying the rifle.
As Baek Ae-young walked, droplets of blood fell around her. If this blood was hers, it would have been impossible for her to still be alive. That thought made me wonder if I was really alive. Staggering like a newborn calf, I tried hard not to lose sight of the person ahead and asked Baek Ae-young.
¡°Are you hurt?¡±
Baek Ae-young shook her head firmly and wiped off the stters on her forehead and cheeks with the back of her hand, responding,
¡°This isn¡¯t my blood.¡±
I would have believed Baek Ae-young if she had said all this blood was from an injury and that both of us were already dead. I just nodded dumbly, listening to the ringing in my ears. My vision was blurry, so I repeatedly rubbed my eyes with my dirty hands.
¡°What about Shin Haeryang?¡±
¡°The gunshots you hear right now are from the team leader. He¡¯s waiting for us.¡±
Us. The person Shin Haeryang was waiting for would be four people.
It took me a few seconds to realize we had reached right next to the exit of the exhibition hall. Shin Haeryang was the one shooting out of the exit door. As we approached, Shin Haeryang turned his head to see Baek Ae-young and me approaching from behind.
I could feel Shin Haeryang¡¯s eyes scanning Baek Ae-young, then me running behind her, and then searching behind me. Two secondster, he turned his head back to the front where the gunshots wereing from. ¡He figured it out. He must have realized the situation just by seeing Baek Ae-young and me arriving together.
Baek Ae-young and I hid behind Shin Haeryang. Baek Ae-young checked my gun and then said I just needed to aim and shoot. Ah. Seo Jihyuk had said the same. As Shin Haeryang fully entered the door, the door made a sound of being hit by bullets instead of him. Maybe because it¡¯s an underwater base, but the door wasn¡¯t a normal wooden one. It was a heavy iron door, about as thick as a thumb. I wonder if this door is also waterproof. As soon as Shin Haeryang was in a situation to talk, I thought he would me me. He might swear at me for being useless and even shoot at me. I didn¡¯t bring back both people. However, the words that came out of Shin Haeryang¡¯s mouth were not of that sort.
¡°The submarine is unusable. They said it¡¯s all been destroyed.¡±
¡°Team Leader. I heard that all the elevators have been stopped at the second underwater base.¡±
I thought he would ask where Yoo Geum-yiand Seo Jihyuk were, but Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t ask about them at all. He didn¡¯t ask how they died or why they died. He only talked about the current situation. So, all the elevators are stopped on this floor of the second underwater base? I wondered where all this information came from and realized a few secondster that it must have been obtained from the enemy. But, was there time to talk to the enemy amid all that shooting? I asked Shin Haeryang nkly,
¡°So, there¡¯s no way to get to the first underwater base?¡±
¡°As mentioned before, the cable car is the most likely option. They said all these gems were moved through the cable car.¡±
¡°Oh. Team Leader, you don¡¯t seem to like the idea of the cable car.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t like cable cars. Moohyun. Are you injured?¡±
Shin Haeryang was changing his magazine without looking at me. Baek Ae-young was checking her spare magazine and a knife tied to her left thigh (where did she get that from?). Since we hadn¡¯t acquired such things, they must have been taken from others. I shook my head nkly, not mentioning my bruises from climbing the stairs, scraped palms, forearms, and knees from crawling, numb index finger from pulling the trigger, and the shock that left my brain feeling like a broken blender.
¡°I¡¯m not injured.¡±
¡°If there are about 22 cultists stationed on this floor, then there would be at most 4 to 5 people now in the central za.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°Because the hostages lying in the central za have all stood up against the cultists.¡±
Upon hearing that, I immediately imagined the scene of about ten people who had been lying down in the exhibition hall, hearing the gunfire and simultaneously getting up to attack the armed cultists with bare hands. So, the intermittent screams and cries I heard weren¡¯t just in my head, but actual sounds from outside the exhibition hall. What about Ms. Kim Ga-young, Henry, and Jennifer? My head spun. I felt dizzy and closed my eyes for a moment, rubbing my forehead. Holding my head that felt like it was about to burst, I asked,
¡°Are there any hostages still alive?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
It didn¡¯t take long to realize that was a lie. Probably, the central za was strewn with bodies. Then it hit me. Shin Haeryang hates wasting time. He was the one who had hurried us up the stairwell after Baek Ae-young, making us climb the four thousand steps, and it was strange for him to calmly answer my questions and ask about my condition in the middle of a shootout. Is there really time for such a leisurely conversation while shooting and hiding?
¡°Why¡ Why aren¡¯t we going to where the cable car is? Why are we staying here?¡±
¡°We¡¯re waiting.¡±
¡°For what?¡±
At my question, Baek Ae-young smiled for the first time since we arrived at the second underwater base. Looking into her eyes felt like dipping my head in ice water.
¡°They think Team Leader Shin is dead and wille here to check.¡±
How do they know Shin Haeryang might be dead? Because he¡¯s not shooting? Ah. Shin Haeryang must have stopped shooting to pretend he¡¯s dying from their bullets. But what if they throw something like a bomb where we¡¯re hiding? Baek Ae-young shook her head at my question. A grenade in an underwater base? It would be more likely to survive a grenade explosion in an airne, she said. Hearing that made me feel odd.
Survival? Do these cultists really think about survival while doing such things here? If they were thinking about living long and prospering, wouldn¡¯t hijacking like this be nonsensical? I couldn¡¯t understand why these lunatics weremitting such acts. They talk about living an eternal life, yet here they are, dying from bullets as small as a baby¡¯s fingernail. If I¡¯m going to die, I want to know the reason. I don¡¯t want to die without knowing why.
¡®We live with the immortal shark! We survive any danger and hardship!¡¯
¡®I don¡¯t understand it well, but for the Ritual of Infinite Days, many people need to be in the building, and a certain number of people must die. They used to use fish, but for the Infinite Days, it has to be humans.¡¯
¡®But the idea of an infinite life is strange. To live forever? How long do you have to live to be considered eternal? Even life has a set duration in front of time. Even the Earth has a lifespan.¡¯
Why did they destroy the submarine at the second underwater base? Then the cultists stationed here would also have trouble escaping. Do the cultists stationed here n to reactivate the stopped elevators and go up to the first underwater base? Or, like they transported the gems, do they all n to take the cable car to the surface? And what about the cultists stationed at the third underwater base? We might have moved through the hidden staircase, but how will they move to the surface?
It would be better to station all the cultists at least at the first underwater base. Why are there cultists at both the second and third underwater bases? If I were a cult leader, I would station my followers around the first underwater base and Daehan Ind, kill everyone whoes up the elevator, and shoot at any submarine or escape pod that reaches the surface. Why make it difficult even for their own cultists to escape?
¡®Assume everyone will be killed.¡¯
Suddenly, my vision went ck. For a moment, I thought I had either gone blind due to stress or had been shot. It was only when someone grabbed my wrist that I realized there was a power outage.
In theplete darkness of the power outage, I couldn¡¯t see anything. Then, suddenly, someone gently grabbed my wrist in the dark, startling me. I almost jumped on the spot and swung my arm, but the person lightly tripped my leg, pushed my off-bnce shoulder backward, andid me down on the floor. I only realized I was lying down when I felt the floor against my back, and I heard Baek Ae-young¡¯s low voice next to me.
¡°Don¡¯t be scared. You almost hit my face.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry. I got too scared.¡±
Suddenly, a voice came from behind me on my right. It was Shin Haeryang¡¯s voice, so close that it startled me.
¡°We will crawl on the ground. Even if there are gunshots or if the person next to you stops, keep crawling.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Shin Haeryang kept making a rustling sound, then wrapped something around my wrist. Then I heard him tying it somewhere else. Only by touching it did I realize it was a parachute cord. Shin Haeryang had unwound the parachute cord he had wrapped around his forearm and connected us. Ah, right. This was to avoid losing each other while crawling in the dark. It was a wise method.
Chapter 58: Welcome
Chapter 58: Wee
All three of us started crawling, and I thought I was going crazy after just 30 seconds. During the shootout, the fear of getting shot made me insensitive to any pain no matter how much I crawled, but after crawling about 5 meters in the darkness, my whole body ached.
I know infants crawl around eight months, but how do they manage it? The strength required in the arms and legs is no joke. And the person crawling in front of me must be Baek Ae-young, but how is she moving so efficiently? Was she a lizard in a past life? My arms weakened, and I gasped for breath as Iy face down on the floor. I had no time to think about dust or anything else.
Suddenly, someone fired a gun. A scream! As soon as the scream was heard, gunshots started echoing from all directions. I crawled on the ground, crying. When the parachute cord tied to my wrist became taut, I crawled towards that direction. The gunshots continued unabated; initially, Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang fired, but even after they stopped, the shooting went on. It seemed like in the darkness, people were firing indiscriminately, not distinguishing friend from foe. Continuous screams, heavy breathing, and groans of pain filled the air. The sound of gunfire was so loud that my ears rang, and my head hurt.
Overwhelmed with fear, I crawled on the ground, wondering if I really needed to survive this ordeal. I looked at the parachute cord tied to my wrist and gathered my thoughts. Think about itter. I¡¯ll think about itter. First, let¡¯s escape from here and then think. Think about it when I get home. As my head drooped from exhaustion to the ground, a bullet whizzed just below my chin. Chills ran down my spine. If I hadn¡¯t kept my head down, that bullet could have been fatal. Was it a stray bullet? Or did someone in the dark recognize us and shoot? As I rubbed my chin with my palm, something slippery smeared on it. I yelled reflexively.
¡°Someone is targeting and shooting at us!¡±
¡°Run!¡±
With the sound of gunfire and Shin Haeryang¡¯s shout, I came to my senses, already sprinting forward like mad. Every time the parachute cord wrapped around my wrist tightened, I ran as hard as I could to catch up with Baek Ae-young, who must be ahead. Baek Ae-young must have been a cheetah in a past life. They said she was fast, but isn¡¯t this faster than a horse? No matter how fast I ran, the parachute cord remained taut.
Then, I misstepped and slid on the floor, tumbling down with a loud crash. The pain was so intense I thought I might pass out. My right side and thigh felt like they were disappearing, yet at the same time, it felt like my muscles and bones were screaming in pain. Just then, Shin Haeryang grabbed my arm with tremendous force. I barely managed to stand up, fearing my arm would be pulled out if I didn¡¯t.
All I wanted was to lie down and pass out. Shin Haeryang fired his gun into the darkness, and I, limping and crying, ran forward. The thought that I shouldn¡¯t be a burden to Shin Haeryang anymore was the only thing driving me. Otherwise, I would have given up everything and copsed on the floor.
I thought I had been wandering in that pitch darkness for about an hour, but Iter learned that all these events happened in less than 10 minutes since the power outage. Shin Haeryang came running from behind, grabbed my arm, and we ran forward. He asionally shot backward, and I couldn¡¯t understand why he was shooting at something invisible.
Shin Haeryang pushed me into a room, felt around the wall to close and lock the door. Even in the power outage, the room was faintly lit. Looking around, I realized we were at the cable car station. We made it! I followed, unwinding the parachute cord from my arm, which was tied around a pir at the cable car station. The same was true for the parachute cord tied to Shin Haeryang¡¯s arm. I went to untie the cord tied next to the pir, thinking I might need to give it to Shin Haeryang, but the parachute cord was covered in blood. Seeing that, a ringing noise sounded in my ears. Where was Baek Ae-young?
Shin Haeryang brought chairs from around the station and knocked a few over in front of the door. As I was looking around the station to find Baek Ae-young, I found her inside the control room, pressing buttons. Her fingertips were soaked in blood, smearing it on the buttons. Baek Ae-young had been covered in blood since earlier. Fearfully, I asked,
¡°Are you hurt, Ae-young?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Where¡ Where are you hurt? Is it bad?¡±
¡°That¡¯s not important. What about the team leader?¡±
¡°He¡¯s stacking chairs in front of the door.¡±
¡°You seem injured too.¡±
Baek Ae-young pointed at my leg. I thought I had just bruised my leg when I fell, but when I felt it, it wasn¡¯t my leg but my backpack that was soaked in blood. I opened one of the backpacks I was carrying. Inside was a blood-soaked cat. I couldn¡¯t tell when it had been shot, but it twitched intermittently. The cat made a deep, rumbling breath. As I stood frozen, holding the backpack, unsure what to do, Baek Ae-young zipped it back up. She then shook her head and said,
¡°You shouldn¡¯t get attached so easily.¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡±
¡°You shouldn¡¯t give your heart to things that are still alive; they die too quickly. It¡¯d only hurt you.¡±
Baek Ae-young, holding her side with one hand, pulled the trigger with the other, shooting two rounds into my backpack lying on the floor. I was in shock, staring nkly at the backpack with bullet holes. Baek Ae-young had cared for this unnamed cat the most. If it wasn¡¯t in my backpack, she would have carried it up those four thousand steps herself.
Baek Ae-young pushed the backpack with the cat into a corner. As the backpack moved, it left a trail of blood. Now that I noticed, the floor was a mess with blood droplets everywhere. Baek Ae-young looked at the operating cable car and coughed softly.
My head hurts. It felt like someone was hammering a nail between my eyebrows. An immense pain shot through my forehead and temples. For a moment, I thought someone had shot me in the head. When Baek Ae-young grabbed my shoulder, I barely turned my head towards her. She must have shaken my shoulder when I didn¡¯t respond. I thought the blood wasn¡¯t mine, but it turned out to being from my nose. Blood was dripping from my nose. Baek Ae-young pointed at my face and asked.
¡°Why¡ Why is that?¡±
While either swallowing the blood from my nosebleed or letting it drip down, I barely managed to speak.
¡°It¡¯s okay. I think it¡¯s just stress.¡±
I wasn¡¯t sure if it was truly stress, the onset of some illness, or an unnoticed bullet wound. My head had started to hurt terribly as soon as I looked at the cat in the backpack. I hadn¡¯t taken good care of it after bringing it here. But I couldn¡¯t just leave it to die in that water, could I? Until now, thanks to me, that cat had been fairly happy. Did I bring it all this way just to kill it? Holding my nose with one hand and lifting my head, I saw that all the cable car control panels were a mess. Clutching the bridge of my nose tightly, I asked,
¡°Can it still operate in that condition?¡±
¡°Yes. It¡¯s been set to not stop. It receives power from both sides.¡±
¡°Ah.¡±
Shin Haeryang was approaching the cable car. Baek Ae-young and I, supporting each other, headed towards the cable car, moving almost like zombies. Especially me, as my nosebleed wouldn¡¯t stop, half of it running onto my hand and arm, the other half being swallowed. Shin Haeryang opened the nearest door of the cable car, pushed Baek Ae-young in, and I followed, copsing next to her on the floor. Only after falling did I realize someone was still shooting. Shin Haeryang was returning fire, but unable to help, I just covered Baek Ae-young with my body.
¡°Get up!¡±
Shin Haeryang was shouting. I barely lifted my head, and if he was right, he was telling us to get off immediately. If I had a wish, it would be to close my eyes and lie down here, not getting up. But judging who waszier between the person shooting at the approaching cultists without proper cover and the person lying on the ground, I had no argument even if I had a hundred mouths. I shook Baek Ae-young, who was lying on the floor.
¡°We have to get up!¡±
¡°I don¡¯t want to.¡±
¡°We have to, even if you don¡¯t want to!¡±
I slung one of Baek Ae-young¡¯s arms around the back of my neck and grabbed her waist to help her stand. It was the first time I realized how well Baek Ae-young could curse. An incredible barrage of curses flew towards the bullets whizzing by, the bullets embedded in our bodies, the fanatics, the underwater base, the despicable people we met there, and towards the Chinese, Japanese, Canadians, Americans, Australians, New Zenders, and Koreans. Even as I struggled to breathe without swallowing blood through my nose or mouth, I couldn¡¯t help but chuckle at her swearing. ¡°Seems like there weren¡¯t many good people around,¡± I said, choking on blood.
As Baek Ae-young and I stumbled out of the cable car, Shin Haeryang urged us to get into another one right in front of us. The cable car was moving away much faster than we were able to move. I thought we wouldn¡¯t be able to catch it, but Shin Haeryang, with both of us tucked under his arms, ran to catch the cable car. Just as I thought we still wouldn¡¯t make it, Shin Haeryang threw me into the open door of the cable car with incredible speed. I couldn¡¯t even let out a squeak as I flew inside. He then jumped in with Baek Ae-young before the door closed.
As soon as the cable car door closed, an announcement indicated it had been properly sealed. Why did it need to be sealed? Holding my bleeding nose, I looked up and saw oxygen and nitrogen levels disyed near the door. Were those indicators always there? Maybe because it¡¯s a submarine cable car. I learned for the first time that bullets shot underwater travel in a straight line. As the cable car fully submerged, the figures of the fanatics in the distance disappeared.
I then realized that the first cable car we were on had been showered with bullets, and Shin Haeryang had gotten us off just before it went underwater. No wonder the doors closed immediately after we boarded. Shin Haeryang leaned against the door of the cable car, breathing heavily, while Iy crumpled inside, looking out the window. It was so dark outside that for a moment, I thought I had lost my sight.
Chapter 59
Chapter 59
The sea viewed through the cable car was pitch ck. This cable car goes from -200m to -50m, up to the first underwater base, right? Holding my nose with one hand, I looked outside through the clear window. Inside the small car racing through the deep blue darkness, there was almost no light, seemingly because the interior of the cable car was kept dark so we could see outside. Under different circumstances, riding this would have been quite fun. Swallowing a lump of blood that entered my mouth, I spoke.
¡°This is my first time riding an underwater cable car.¡±
¡°Same here.¡±
After uttering those words, Shin Haeryang immediately focused on Baek Ae-Young like a robot with its switch turned on. I opened the bag containing the snake. Inside it, along with a rag-like towel, was a sunset-orange whale toy named Noeul. Seeing the doll and towel, I immediately handed them over to Shin Haeryang. He grabbed them tightly and pressed them against Baek Ae-Young¡¯s waist. The orange toy began to stain a deep red. Shin Haeryang looked up at my face and asked.
¡°How are you doing, Moohyun-ssi?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve got a nosebleed. I¡¯m okay. And Ae-Young-ssi?¡±
¡°She needs immediate medical attention.¡±
Upon hearing that, I wiped my bloodied knuckles and messy nose, then nodded. My nosebleed was almost stopping. But the cable car was crawling at a snail¡¯s pace. The number next to the oxygen concentration, showing -195m, was slowly decreasing, but the speed was excruciatingly slow. I sighed heavily, looking at the snake lying still in the bottom of the bag, and then leaned my head against the ss wall, asking.
¡°Is the cable car always this slow?¡±
Asking in case it was broken, Shin Haeryang, who had been looking at the meter counter on the cable car, answered.
¡°Yes. It must go slowly. Because of the water pressure.¡±
¡It seems that if it went faster, the cable car might explode. Shin Haeryangid Baek Ae-Young down on the floor properly, and I asionally clutched my forehead due to the headaches that felt like they were splitting my head. I wish I could take just one aspirin. Shin Haeryang checked his gun and the bullets in the gun Baek Ae-Young was carrying, after looking at me and Baek Ae-Young. Then, with his eyes closed, he said.
¡°There might be armed personnel waiting for us at the end of the cable car ride.¡±
I was about to nod in response, but realizing that Shin Haeryang was closing his eyes perhaps due to fatigue, I answered out loud.
¡°Yes.¡±
I couldn¡¯t tell if Baek Ae-Young was unconscious or asleep. What was clear was that everyone in the cable car found some mentalfort in seeing Baek Ae-Young¡¯s chest rise and fall. I just hope she doesn¡¯t die anymore. Once we get out of this tiresome underwater situation and she receives quick medical treatment, she¡¯ll be fine, right?
Shin Haeryang, pressing on Baek Ae-Young¡¯s wound, had blood trickling down his cheek from beside his left temple, as if his skin was torn. Even though I tried not to look at the wound, every time I turned my head towards Shin Haeryang, the wound caught my eye. I rummaged through the bag with my left hand, trying to find something to stop it, but there was nothing useful. Most of what was in the bag was trash from the food we ate while climbing up the stairs. Since I felt guilty about littering on the floor, I couldn¡¯t throw it away, so it all remained in the bag.
Looking inside the bag, I sighed and tried to tear off the left sleeve of my long-sleeved hoodie. But no matter how hard I pulled, it just wouldn¡¯t tear. Why won¡¯t this tear? They really make clothes well these days! I suddenly made eye contact with Shin Haeryang, who was looking at me as if asking what I was doing. Seeing me struggling, Shin Haeryang asked.
¡°Are you trying to rip your clothes?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Then Shin Haeryang pulled out a knife strapped to Baek Ae-Young¡¯s thigh with one hand and leaned towards me. I quickly pulled my left arm out of the sleeve and tucked it into the torso part of the hoodie. Shin Haeryang effortlessly sliced through the sleeve with his knife and handed it to me. I shook my head without taking it.
¡°Press that to your forehead. You¡¯re bleeding from your left temple.¡±
Instead of pressing the cloth to his face, Shin Haeryang wrapped it around his left forearm. I hadn¡¯t noticed, but it seemed he had been shot in the left arm. I removed my hand, which had been continuously pressing my nose with my right arm sleeve. Blood pooled in my philtrum and dripped down my lips. I wiped the blood off with the cloth on my right forearm and then spat the umted blood in my mouth into a corner of the floor. It felt like it would choke me if I swallowed. Watching me, Shin Haeryang asked.
¡°Is it because of the gunfire?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. I just suddenly got a nosebleed.¡±
My sky-blue hoodie was a mess. I had coincidentally put it on at the Central district¡¯sundromat, but I didn¡¯t know who the owner was. If I ever meet them, I guess I¡¯ll have to buy them a new one. I lifted my head to look towards the cable car door. -170m. It¡¯s ascending very slowly. Thoughts of Yoo Geum-yi and Seo Jihyuk came flooding back to me like the ebb and flow of the tide.
To avoid thinking too much, I looked out into the darkness. The sea was pitch ck. Only upon careful observation did I realize it was a deep, ink-like blue. While invisible to my eyes, this hue likely harbored a vast array of marine life. Creatures without gills or swim dders might be desperately struggling to survive in these depths, and I could only imagine them watching us.
Suddenly, the cable car stopped. It ceased moving at -150m. I watched the numbers for a few seconds, hoping they would change, then spoke to Shin Haeryang, who was looking at Baek Ae-Young.
¡°Haeryang, it seems like we¡¯ve stopped.¡±
¡°¡Indeed.¡±
¡°Is there anything we can do to get the cable car moving again?¡±
¡°No.¡±
His response was as sharp as a knife. I was about to ask if we were doomed but stopped myself, fearing I couldn¡¯t handle his response. Shin Haeryang nced around the cable car before saying,
¡°Let¡¯s wait. It might be an emergency stop.¡±
¡°I hope it starts moving again.¡±
Anxiously sitting, I waited, asionally wiping the sweat from Baek Ae-Young¡¯s forehead with the cleaner part of my sleeve, and stared hopelessly at the -150m reading on the disy. This was worse than being stuck in an elevator. At least then, it wasn¡¯t as difficult and despairing. It was scary, yes, but nothingpared to this. Overwhelmed by the absurdity of being trapped in such a ce, I let out an emptyugh and said,
¡°I never imagined getting trapped like this.¡±
¡°Neither did I.¡±
Shin Haeryang, despite being trapped in a tiny space less than 3 square meters under -150m of sea, with two people in poor condition, seemedpletely unfazed. Hisposure resembled that when we were climbing the stairs, and I couldn¡¯t help but admire it internally. I felt so terrified I was on the verge of losing my mind. I wanted to burst into tears right then and there.
¡°How can you remain so calm?¡±
¡°Do I appear calm to you?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°It¡¯s good that at least one of us seems calm in this situation.¡±
It seems he might be on the verge of losing it too. I tried to divert my despair from the fact that we were trapped in a device suspended in the depths of the sea without any safety measures. Reflecting on my recent past, I couldn¡¯t recall many good memories. Thinking of Yoo Geum-yi, her words came back to me ¨C thedy who didn¡¯t want to live endlessly without her brain and heart. She deserved to live longer. She shouldn¡¯t have died in such a terrible ce.
¡°¡What if we were to live an eternal life?¡±
Shin Haeryang lifted his head to look at me.
¡°Being trapped at -150m underwater would seem like an easy escape, wouldn¡¯t it? Without dying, I mean.¡±
¡°¡If we¡¯re unlucky, we could keep drowning infinitely. Over and over again.¡±
Chills ran down my spine as soon as I heard Shin Haeryang¡¯s words. Damn it. Is it fortunate that we can die? Shin Haeryang rummaged through the bag Baek Ae-Young had discarded in the corner. Empty water bottles and a few candies I had given came out. Does he dislike candy? Then, a cracked pad and a bottle of Valentine¡¯s 50-year-old appeared. Seeing this, Iughed in disbelief. My cat on my back was shot by an unknown gunman, yet Baek Ae-Young¡¯s whiskey bottle was intact without a scratch. As Shin Haeryang opened the bottle, which was more dirt-colored than brown, I eximed in surprise.
¡°You¡¯re not nning to pour that on a wound, are you?¡±
¡°¡I¡¯m going to take a sip.¡±
¡°¡Yes. Have as much as you like.¡±
In movies, gulping down alcohol and pouring it on wounds is something that only works on screen. Unless it¡¯s around 80% alcohol, it will do more harm than good to the wound. At mystment, Shin Haeryang chuckled, took a sip, made a face, and then offered the bottle to me. I, who usually only drinks beer and not much else, hesitated for a few seconds before taking the bottle and having a sip.
¡Damn it. As soon as I took a sip, I read thebel. The alcohol content was over 30%. Are they insane? Why would anyone drink this? I never understood people who drink whiskey. It felt like swallowing sulfuric acid, with my throat and stomach burning intensely. Coughing a few times, I paid the price for that single sip.
I watched Shin Haeryang, worried he might getpletely drunk, but after taking one sip, he closed the bottle and ced it on the cable car seat. I thought I had barely drunk anything, but surprisingly, heat spread throughout my body, and I felt the intoxication reach the top of my head. Did I really drink that little? With my face suddenly flushed with heat, I was taken aback. Shin Haeryang seemed no different than before he drank. Is it because we¡¯re underwater? Touching my heated face, I asked,
¡°Is it okay to swim after drinking?¡±
Suddenly, I remembered a saying that more people die drowned in alcohol than in the sea. Since I was on the verge of drowning in the sea, I asked, looking anxiously at the dark water, and Shin Haeryang slightly shook his head.
¡°If I had nned to swim, I wouldn¡¯t have drunk.¡±
¡°Then why?¡±
¡°Because we don¡¯t have any painkillers.¡±
¡°Ah¡¡±
Then there was silence. I couldn¡¯t tell if his words meant there was no need to swim or that swimming would be futile and lead to death. I tried to calm my anxious and restless heart. I wanted to get up in the cramped cable car and pace around restlessly, but I restrained myself.
Anxiety is contagious. No matter how tough and difficult it gets, let¡¯s not give up hope. Actposed, as if nothing is wrong. Being scared won¡¯t help this situation. The sea doesn¡¯t spare anyone¡¯s life, and it¡¯s impartial to creatures without gills. If fear paralyzes my reason, then I won¡¯t be able to do anything, so let¡¯s stay calm. It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ve made it this far, haven¡¯t I? Getting here is an achievement in itself.
Chapter 60
Chapter 60
The cable car was rising to -130m. It seemed that even when the cable car reached the 1st Underwater Base at -50m, it would still be difficult to properly breathe. It was a real mountain of obstacles. I understood why Shin Haeryang had insisted on escaping using the escape pod when we first had to flee from the 4th Underwater Base. Taking the escape pod heads directly to the sea surface fastest. There¡¯s no need to painfully ascend via the 3rd, 2nd and 1st Underwater Bases. And whether you¡¯re holding a gun or not, or with a patient or a fanatic, by taking the escape pod there¡¯s no need to encounter anyone. There are no conflicts orplications in the escape.
If I hadn¡¯t been a clueless newbie, I would have gotten on the escape pod at the 4th Underwater Base without hesitation. But then I might have been screaming as I sank back down toward the seafloor in a malfunctioning escape pod, pitifully begging the gods to let me rise back up again¡hmm, my situation now is quite simr.
As my head started hurting again, I pressed my forehead with my hand. The headache could be from too much carbon dioxide. Or it could be another nosebleeding on, or from sudden stress, or maybe some undiagnosed brain condition I didn¡¯t know I had had just manifested.
I looked down at Baek Ae-young lying on the floor, then squeezed my eyes shut and leaned my body against the cable car wall. There was nothing we could do. We couldn¡¯t control the cable car, and didn¡¯t have anything to regte the oxygen or nitrogen levels. All we could do was pray that the cable car properly reached the 1st Underwater Base.
At some point I had leaned my head against the wall and was staring out at the ocean. The sea I had thought was merely dark now looked cobalt blue after gazing at it for so long. Shin Haeryang was also leaning against the wall with his eyes closed. I couldn¡¯t tell if he was asleep or just resting with his eyes shut. Baek Ae-young also had her eyes closed. She looked far too young now. No matter her age she didn¡¯t look a day past mid 20s. Shin Haeryang was the same. He was at mostte 20s. They were people with a bright future ahead, much too young to die pointlessly down here in the ocean. Ah right, me too.
Please. I want to feel the sunlight on my face. I want to walk under the zing sunshine. I heard they made incredibly realistic artificial beaches here in Daehando, I want to tread on the smooth sands with my bare feet, freely breathing and running around without constraints.
When I came to, thinking I had dozed off for a bit, it was already at -70m. If it weren¡¯t for the decreasing numbers I wouldn¡¯t have known we were still rising. I couldn¡¯t tell from the surroundings either. asionally I checked that Baek Ae-young was still breathing, then I would gaze out at the sea, and when fear overcame me I felt someone¡¯s eyes on me. When I looked at Shin Haeryang he was holding Baek Ae-young¡¯s rifle after removing his own.
¡°Will you be able to carry Ae-young-ssi?¡±
¡°I have to.¡±
With a sigh, I stood to put those words into action. When I got up from the cable car seat my legs shook. I couldn¡¯t tell if it was from exhaustion or shock. We passed -65m. I doubted if I¡¯d be able to carry another person and walk given my condition. But there was no pointining about the situation. If I had shot better than Haeryang maybe I would be the one carrying the rifle.
Haeryang carrying Ae-young while I pose dramatically with the gun like a movie actor. Dodging the hail of bullets to secure an escape route for the others, creating a safe getaway for Haeryang and Ae-young hiding somewhere to stylishly break out from under the sea¡if so, would I have been able to rescue Jihyuk and Geum-yi too? Thinking that, I put the bag with the snake over my shoulder and with Haeryang¡¯s support carefully hoisted the unconscious Ae-young onto my back. The weight of an unmoving person really is¡I should have exercised more.
At -60m, Haeryang and I got ready to exit. If I make it out of here I¡¯m never getting on a cable car again for the rest of my life. Won¡¯t use stairs either. Or get in an elevator! Having that thought made me wonder if I could function in society, and Iughed softly. Haeryang looked puzzled at me suddenlyughing but soon turned to face the door with his gun raised. Then I heard a rumbling sound. I couldn¡¯t tell if this was normal for under the sea, or if the materials used to build the cable car blocked external sounds, but the ride up had been so quiet all we could hear was each other¡¯s breathing. Haeryang and I simultaneously looked up at the ceiling.
¡°Huh?¡±
¡°?¡±
At the same time, my feet left the floor. I slid forward, colliding with something at chest-height. When I got my bearings I realized I hadnded on top of Haeryang who still had Ae-young on his back. Using his own body as a cushion to protect Ae-young, Haeryang frowned up at the cable car ceiling.
¡°That¡¯s¡¡±
¡°What¡¡±
Without a sound, the cable car rocked right, then left again. Like beans in a box, we slid and crashed into the chairs and walls as the cable car swayed. Luckily we were already down or it would have been more painful mming against the walls while standing. What? What was happening? Through the chairs Haeryang pulled me and Ae-young into a hug. His expression was grave.
¡°The cable on the side connecting to the 2nd Underwater Base just snapped.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°We¡¯ll crash soon.¡±
¡°Crash? We¡¯re crashing?¡±
The cable car abruptly started plummeting downward. I could tell because my body floated up. Baek Ae-young¡¯s bag and bottles were stered upside down on the ceiling. The only reason we weren¡¯t mmed up there too was because Haeryang had his legs wrapped around the fixed cable car seats and was hugging me and Ae-young. I was also desperately gripping Ae-young¡¯s legs on my back.
After what felt like an endless fall, the descending cable car suddenly jerked to a stop, as if the cable had caught onto something. With the cable car no longer dropping, all the items floating on the ceiling came crashing down on us sprawled on the floor. A soju bottle that had flown upward struck my thigh as it rolled on the ground. Tears sprang to my eyes. Funny how the bottle holding 50 year old alcohol didn¡¯t break. Instead it felt like my thigh had shattered. Through the pain I barely managed to say to Haeryang,
¡°Why did the cable snap? Is it made of rubber bands?¡±
¡°Based on the timing, it seems the copse of the 4th Underwater Base caused a chain reaction taking down the other bases too.¡±
¡°If one Underwater Base copses shouldn¡¯t the rest be fine?!¡±
¡°They¡¯re structurally all connected.¡±
¡°F*cking hell!¡±
Right after cursing we plunged down again. Our cable car mmed onto other cable cars that had already sunk below us. Oh god. Goosebumps rising on my skin, when I raised my head in the darkness I saw cable cars that had been ahead of ours raining down on top of us. Someone pressed my head to the cable car floor. There was a literal boom, followed by a tremendous din, before I opened my eyes again.
Even in this situation my nerves, which refused to make me pass out, felt resentful. Next to my head I saw Baek Ae-young and Haeryang¡¯s heads. I shook Ae-young¡¯s shoulder and looked at the crown of Haeryang¡¯s head saying,
¡°Haeryang-ssi? Shin Haeryang-ssi? Baek Ae-young-ssi? Baek Ae-young-ssi? Get a hold of yourselves.¡±
The interior of our cable car waspletely warped, and the lower cable car¡¯s structuresbined with the cable cars dropping from above had mangled the floor and ceiling of our cable car. Seawater was flowing in through the shattered sections. As I crawled out from under them I realized a steel beam had pierced Baek Ae-young¡¯s left chest and neck all the way through. There was a high pitched ringing in my ears. The sound dragged on before fading away. With trembling hands I confirmed Baek Ae-young¡¯s death.
¡it would have been instant. She wouldn¡¯t have felt pain. Bawling, I pulled Shin Haeryang off of Baek Ae-young with my blood soaked hands, then immediately let go when he groaned. Only then did I notice his thighs and calves were drenched in blood. It seemed the shattering cable car ss had shed Haeryang¡¯s legs and waist. I saw the ss thickness for the first time then. It was over 10cm thick.
Chapter 61
Chapter 61
Seawater was gushing in at an rming rate, already up to my ankles. I tried to get Shin Haeryang to regain consciousness, but considering our situation I wondered if losing awareness might actually be better for him, so I left him. However Haeryang¡¯s eyes soon opened on their own. He briskly assessed his condition and the state of the cable car. His eyes shifted to me. From that gaze I realized something shrapnel-like must also be lodged in my abdomen. Up till now I hadn¡¯t felt any pain thanks to the adrenaline, but it now hit me with a vengeance. Dammit.
¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±
There was a rasp in Haeryang¡¯s voice. I plopped down onto the mangled chair and shook my head.
¡°There¡¯s nothing for you to apologize for.¡±
¡°Ae-young¡?¡±
I started to reply but a spike of pain in my stomach stopped me. I shook my head again. I knew at this point there was nothing either of us could do to help the other, so I said what I wanted.
¡°Thank you for bringing me this far.¡±
¡°You were¡a better partner than I expected.¡±
¡°What were you expecting?¡±
¡°A follower from Infinity Church.¡±
Good lord. At Haeryang¡¯s words Iughed then winced as the movement pulled at my wound. I managed to gasp out a response.
¡°I¡¯m an atheist.¡±
¡°I¡¯m¡an agnostic.¡±
¡°So is that reserving judgement on if gods exist?¡±
¡°If there is one I¡¯ll go kill him now.¡±
Why¡¯s this guy trying to make meugh right before death? Still smiling, I noticed the water that had already flooded in was past my calves. I lifted Haeryang up onto the wrecked chair to the best of my ability. My legs and waist submerged as a result, and the seawater hitting my injuries wrenched a groan from my throat. Looking at the rifle looped over his shoulder, Haeryang spoke to me.
¡°I don¡¯t want to drown.¡±
¡°Huh?¡±
¡°I¡decided I wouldn¡¯t die by drowning.¡±
¡°Uh¡I see.¡±
Haeryang tapped the gun with his fingers a few times. This crazy bastard. It reminded me of something Seo Jihyuk had done. I instinctively shook my head.
¡°Is there any point in me trying to stop you? Or what difference does it make if you die here from water filling your lungs, blood loss, organ damage, or a bullet?¡±
Haeryangpletely ignored what I said. No, why do none of the people I meet at these Underwater Bases listen to me? He merely rummaged around inside his clothes, ripped off a ne he had on and tossed it into the seawater. Thepiszuli pendant glowed fluorescent before disappearing into the dark water in an instant. Haeryang looked at me and said,
¡°Look away. Shut your eyes. It won¡¯t be pretty.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll watch intently. Stare right at it! So don¡¯t do it¡Can¡¯t you stay with me?¡±
Haeryang seemed to consider it, then grinned wryly at me and shook his head repeatedly.
¡°It¡¯s myst moment, I¡¯ll do as I please.¡±
The instant I turned my head and squeezed my eyes shut there was a gunshot. I could feel something spattering my face but had no desire to touch or look at it. I kept my eyes screwed tight. As if that would transport me out of this ce.
When the water rose chest high as I sat in the chair I lifted my head to see everything in the cable car floating. I was cold. As I rubbed my shoulders my gaze fell on the bag strapped across my chest. I opened it and pulled out the curled up snake from an inner pocket.
Concerns like the snake biting me no longer mattered. It wrapped around my wrist, forearm and hand, flicking its yellow tongue this way and that. Hey. I¡¯m sorry. I brought you here but didn¡¯t take care of you or get you out.
The sea rushed in with frightening speed. The water was up to my shoulders now. I went from sitting in the chair to standing to now floating along with everything else getting swept into the cable car by the iing tide. Breathing became difficult, impossible to tell if it was because of the seawater crowding out the air or the shrapnel lodged in my gut.
I looked around for something to put the snake on, but there was nothing it could climb onto. With no other choice I ced it atop my head. And though the screen was cracked Baek Ae-young¡¯s tablet still had some charge left. I was grateful for that small light cutting through the darkness. And I struggled to suppress the nearly overwhelming impulse to escape immediately through one of the broken flooded sections of the cable car.
We must be in deep waters here. Going outside I¡¯d die instantly from the water pressure. Or I¡¯d float from air trapped in my lungs, prolonging drowning to death a little. I didn¡¯t have the courage to actively end my life. But now facing imminent demise I understood. Those who pulled the trigger truly possessed unimaginable bravery.
For a time after Shin Haeryang¡¯s death, waves of dread about my impending drowning crashed through me unrelentingly. But after weeping for about 3 minutes even such terror and anxiety vanished. There was no heart left to break further. With the snake resting atop my head now, I hade to definitively ept dying by drowning.
Were we at -100m? -200m? I touched my ear and my hand came away bloody. I had no clue where I¡¯d been injured or how. Now that I thought about it, dying of nitrogen poisoning inside the cable car would¡¯ve been a fairly tidy way to go. But there¡¯d still be a corpse left behind. With the Underwater Bases copsing would it even remain? There¡¯d be no one to recover my body. Drowning, my lungs and trachea and stomach would all fill up with seawater. All sorts of fish would swarm my corpse to feed. Shrimp, crabs and simr crustaceans, deep sea creatures that resemble bugs would feast. Just my bones would be left, or even those would corrode from the saltwater.
What would my family do when trying to find me? Please, I hope my family will forget me and live well, as if I had never been born. Just imagining my mother or little sister crying over me makes my chest feel like it will split apart from grief. As the eldest son I¡¯m duty bound to provide for them and take myte father¡¯s ce. I¡¯m supposed to pay my sister¡¯s college tuition. And my mother¡¯s medical fees. If Mom is too shocked by this news what will I do?
Sniffling, at some point I realized the water was up to my chin now. I anticipated the snake biting me in panic as the water rose further but surprisingly, it remained calmer than I was. Merely shifting uneasily atop my head instead of thrashing around in terror. As all sorts of thoughts ran through me there was a boom against the exterior wall of the cable car.
I jerked in fright toward the sound. What bumped against the transparent ss wall of the cable car once more was a shark snout. I froze in fear for a few seconds before settling down.
Seemed like rather than wandering the ocean as a drowned corpse, getting eaten by a shark might be better. Our blood spilling out probably attracted the shark to keep circling around the cable car. Hey. For the past five days I ran a dental clinic called Deep Blue! I told you my clinic¡¯s sign has a way bigger, more magnificent great white on it. If that guy fought you he¡¯d swallow you whole in one gulp.
Boom!
Every time the shark rammed against the cable car it swayed, causing more seawater to gush inside through the breaches. The terror made me feel I¡¯d lose my mind, yet facing imminent death I didn¡¯t want to cower here pathetically trembling at some shark.
Haeryang said he¡¯d choose how to spend his final moments as he wished¡was this a choice?! Dammit.
They call sharks the guard dogs of the sea. A fine moniker. I bet those pseudopious bastards crowing whalesharks are their brethren wouldn¡¯t offer their own bodies as shark bait with equivalent sacrificial spirit. I watched the shark drifting past the cable car, baring its eerie teeth before disappearing into the gloom. I mmed against the wall trying to get its attention. Not that a shark would care.
¡°Hey, stop rushing me!¡±
The snake didn¡¯t budge from atop my head. It seemed to know we were alike, trapped with water all around us. When my head bumped the ceiling the snake fluidly swam over and climbed up the damaged wall, flicking its tongue out and back anxiously.
Good thing. It must¡¯ve been so frightened apanying me here but never once bit me. I wanted to pet it onest time but was afraid it wouldn¡¯t like that so I stopped myself.
I tried tearing the cable car door open by hand where water was streaming in. My palms split and bled but the blood swiftly diffused into the sea. I scraped up everyst bit of strength and barely managed to make a gap I could fit through. Utterly exhausted, at the next boom I yelled pointlessly at the oblivious shark.
¡°I¡¯m going, stop hurrying me!¡±
Clutching the tablet with hands dripping blood, I took one final deep breath of what little freedom remained before exiting the cable car. My whole body ached. From the pressure? Too many injuries? There wasn¡¯t an unhurt spot anywhere.
Plus I couldn¡¯t see a thing ahead of me. Everything was obscured. Humans can¡¯t freely see underwater. That¡¯s why we use goggles. We chosend over sea.
I examined my palm. It must be bleeding. Excruciating pain shed across it but I ignored that. As soon as it hit the seawater the tablet I held powered off. All I could make out before me in the deep was darkness, agony and death. Oddly I wasn¡¯t very frightened. Just very cold, hurt and exhausted.
Though I couldn¡¯t see anything I strangely felt a presence nearby. I iled my arms and legs toward it. I couldn¡¯t even tell if I was making progress. Abruptly something enormous rushed up and bit deeply into my stomach. The pain made me wish I was dead. It was too painful, I opened my mouth to scream and lost all the air I¡¯d been holding. It was worse than being trapped under an overturned car.
Gulping seawater, I felt along the maw mped to my midsection. I learned if bit by a shark, poke its eyes and it will release you, but how when its head was thrashing about so violently? Ridiculous¡I regretted almost twenty times not cidly drowning with the snake inside the cable car. Then I cked out.
I awoke from falling off the bed.
Chapter 62
Chapter 62
An immense sense of relief flooded through me, impossible to articte.
It was just a dream! Everything was merely a dream! With a loud exhale Iy staring up at the ceiling from the floor beside my bed, pondering. I must have been tired aftering to the undersea base. As always, the first 3 months at any new job I¡¯m tense and stressed as the newbie.
I must¡¯ve been utterly exhausted to dream the undersea bases copsed, such a dreadful scenario. How bizarre. Forget the snake, what was that about a cat? Were those animals personifications of my subconscious desire to keep pets? I¡¯ve never remotely entertained getting a snake or cat.
Sure Jihyuk and Geum-yi are people I¡¯ve met, and I imagined up that Baek Ae-young¡¯s face, but how could I conjure in a dream that Shin Haeryang guy I¡¯ve neverid eyes on? Come on, that makes no sense. Trapped in a cable car, dying then getting eaten by a shark and killed? Have I been watching too many action flicks recently or is my mind addled from living at the undersea base? How could getting bitten by a shark in a dream hurt so badly?
Thinking about the final scene of the dream, my heart raced madly. I took slow deep breaths to settle myself. Gradually my heartbeat returned to normal as my respiration slowed. I only realizedter my entire body was drenched in sweat. I grasped and pped my t-shirt below my chest to fan myself. As the sweat evaporated the tension seeped from my muscles.
What a way to spend a weekend morning. I thought I¡¯d have more fun. Maybe I¡¯ll go to that bakery at the 3rd Underwater Base for some bread and drinks at lunch and take a leisurely stroll along the beach. I smiled slightly, pondering the events in my dream.
Me getting into shootouts, utterly preposterous. I¡¯ve never even held a gun before! And the stairs connecting the 3rd to 2nd Underwater Bases are 4000 steps, as if I could climb that! I get worn out just walking up 3 floors, let alone 180! And carrying an injured person on my back? And there¡¯s no way religious fanatics are lurking around this undersea base. It¡¯s not easy to even get here, why would anyone believe those sharks and nonsense they spout? As if wless gemstones as big as human heads and torsos would be casuallyying all over that exhibition hall without any security!
Iughed at the absurd imaginings of my mind. Massaging my tense stomach with a loud sigh, denying the dream made me feel more grounded in reality. I should mention this crazy dream to Geum-ssi or Jihyuk-ssi next time I treat them, wow¡
Lying sprawled on the floor, I almost scolded myzy carcass before generously allowing myself the indulgence of rest since it was my day off after all.
Creak creak creak creak!
Suddenly from the ceiling came an eerie screeching, like metal straining and warping due to external impacts. Goosebumps rose and I jolted up. What? Why such noises? Then vibrations started. Sitting on the floor yet my head reeled. Amidst the rattling my tablet fell from where I¡¯d left it on the table. With my body and hands I caught it before it hit the ground. No way. Can¡¯t be! Ridiculous!
Stupefied with the tablet clutched in one hand, I opened my room door. Water that had been pooling outside came gushing in as the door sputtered open. My toes and soles chilled on contact with the water. I grabbed the back of my neck with my hand as if someone had dealt a blow there. What is this? Why is it leaking? My feet were cold from the water.
As I stood frozen there the door closed itself again, confirming no one had exited. At the same moment it felt like someone shoved me from behind and I began moving. First I gathered and put on clothes then socks and shoes. I opened the backpack my brother gave me and confirmed the shlight was at the very bottom. Then I tossed in a water bottle and crammed in snacks I had on hand like biscuits, candy and chocte. Shoving in towels that came to hand plus my wallet and tablet on top. Do I need that whale plushie? Had I used that here? Surely at the end I gave the doll to Shin Haeryang for him to stanch Baek Ae-young¡¯s bleeding. So should I bring it? Even though I already added more towels? What else might I require? All necessities for treatment are in the clinic so what more could I need?
ncing around my room nothing seemed viable as a weapon. Well¡I¡¯m a dentist. When would I ever have cause to keep weapons? Patients in clinics are docile. Kids may try to flee dental procedures but we sedate them, using nitrous oxide for calm. Adults are simpler. Restraining runaway adults just takes some difort, no action needed from the doctor. Realizing I had nothing weapon-like to take from my room, I tensed my body and opened the door.
The water outside was already past my ankles, up to my calves. Screaming, I hurried from room 38 onward. Another dream? Why was what happened in my prior dream unfolding right now? Halting my chaotic thoughts, I focused on the events unfolding before me. No time. Thinkter.
How had Geum-yi triggered rms throughout the area? Going from door to door knocking, I stopped when the water exceeded my calves, cursed inwardly then checked the tablet for the emergency notice. Emergency rm. Emergency rm. Emergency rm! Through the undersea base program I entered the portion for the emergency evacuation alert in Baekho-dong then pressed it. At that point red lights began shing in the corridor as all the doors simultaneously flew open with deafening loud warnings sting.
[Danger! Danger! This is an emergency! All personnel in West District, evacuate immediately via the escape pods! Danger! All personnel¡];
As the horrendous siren wailing started I raced toward the 50 rooms. Geum-ssi had definitely been sleeping in one of them. I found Carlos in room 48, scrubbing at his eyes and groggily trying to get out of bed. When he shouted ¡°What the f*ck!¡± at me I yelled at Carlos,
¡°Get up! It¡¯s flooding!¡±
Howling at each closed door as I dashed from one to the next, I finally discovered someone huddled atop the bed in room 54.
¡°Get up!¡±
I burst in and shook them. We have to go! Escape from here! Tearing back the covers revealed it was Geum. Ah, I missed you.
¡°Geum-yi-ssi, wake up!¡±
Lifting her head still drowsy, when Geum-yi¡¯s dark eyes clouded in irritationnded on my face I was so d to see her awake I nearly cried. She groggily swung her head side to side.
¡°The base is flooding! Leave right now! Now!¡±
I darted from Geum-yi¡¯s room. Where¡¯s the cat? And the snake? Unable to recall room numbers, I dashed about checking if there were animals or people. Carlos stomped toward the stairwell spewing curses alongside me. Geum-yihad changed from pajamas into casual clothes, put on her sses and exited her room sping a tablet.
I raced through the halls like a madman until I discovered the cat in room 64 then broke into a smile, overjoyed. I flung my arms wide. Of course the cat made no emotional leap into my embrace. Merely caterwauling loud mournful yowls in time with the shrieking rm, all its fur standing on end seeming to double its size.
I picked up the room owner¡¯s nket and tried to toss it over the cat. As if I was an idiot it nimbly dodged away but my fingertips grazed its hindquarters causing it to missnding.
The now shin-high water swallowed the cat and its woeful sopping cries began. I swiftly fished it out and stuffed the soggy feline in my backpack, zipping it closed. I felt the bag squirming but ignored that. Now where was it? Which room again?
The adjacent door opened as I sprinted out with the cat bouncing on my back. dimir glimpsed the calf-high flood then tapped something on the tablet strapped to his wrist. The rm shifted to a vibrating drone.
[Vwoomm vwoomm emergency! This is an emergency situation! All personnel still at the 4th Undersea Base, evacuate immediately via the escape pods and elevators! Emergency!];
So the alert could be expanded basewide. dimir eyed me then called into his room, ¡°Nikita. Get dressed. We¡¯re leaving.¡±
At dimir¡¯s words I raced past him toward room 80. I heard someone calling from behind but disregarded that. Go away. Disappear. You have to vanish! It was all just an awful dream!
The flood had crept above my calves now. Why I was so fixated on checking room 80 was fear that if there was a kid inside and I escaped without confirming I¡¯d regret and me myself forever after. Each dash through the corridors sshed water up to my lower back. Please no. You must not exist!
Seeing Henry asleep inside the open room 80 I felt faint. My head abruptly started pounding. No way. Can¡¯t be. Dear lord. F*cking hell. Why this preposterous crap. No. That was a dream! Get a grip! The cold felt arctic against my legs but no way, this can¡¯t be real!
I added the pill bottles from his nightstand into my cat bag then hoisted Henry onto my back. Outside the water was up to my thighs in ces. Most of the Russians staggered out into the passage. No sign of Nikita or Geum-yi anywhere, they must¡¯ve taken an escape pod already. Clutching Henry I trudged one foot carefully after the other. Falling spelled big trouble. Meant the end.
¡°There¡¯s a kid here! A child in this room!¡±
After checking room 72 dimir glimpsed me barely staying upright, using one hand to brace against the wall with water threatening my bnce as I lugged Henry along.
¡°Yours?¡±
¡°No!¡±
Chapter 63
Chapter 63
Walking along I nced into rooms that had contained snakes to check. Where were they? Which room was it again? I found the snake in room 74. But with the kid on my back and the cat bag strapped front, theirbined weight left me unable to do anything. I put Henry back on the bed then grabbed the snake by hand. Opening my cat bag I added it to a small side pocket.
Coexist! Please try even if you hate it!
I resealed the cat bag and hefted Henry onto me again. Outside the flood surpassed our thighs, and further down I could glimpse Russians parting the currents heading for the central stairwell.
¡°Let¡¯s go together!¡±
I started jogging as swiftly as I could with my burdens. My pace was probably slower than an actualnd turtle¡¯s but it couldn¡¯t be helped. With water at thigh level my body tended to float, making walking difficult. Clutching Henry on my back plus my own weight, by some miracle I managed not to topple over. Bracing his rear end in one hand against the wall with the other, I swallowed back the impulse to weep. We had barely passed room 68¡ I can escape. I can get out! Even did it in a dream! I can seed! I¡¯m not afraid! Not afraid!
The central stairwell looked farther than me bing a tycoon this instant. In the distance, Niki let out a whistle as he walked. Grabbing the hand of Sophia beside him, they tumbled over. I heard Victor and dimir cursing as they worked to get the pair on their feet. Ah, that section there must be slippery.
With Victor¡¯s aid, once standing Sophia threw a punch at Niki¡¯s cheek that felled him again. Watching that scene I endlessly admonished myself not to fall. One after another they vanished from my view ascending the stairs, thest being Victor who¡¯d arrived at the central stairwell located by room 40. His eyes met mine passing room 55. I shouted with all my might toward them,
¡°Don¡¯t lock the door! I¡¯ll be right there! I¡¯ll seal it myself!¡±
As the flood climbed to waist level, about one-fourth of my bag had sunk under. The cat insidemenced a frenzy. I clenched the strap handle in my teeth to slightly tilt the bag, extracting it from the water. Maybe I had Henry positioned wrong, but he kept slipping down my back. Without halting I had to hike him back up several times. No falling. If I don¡¯t fall I can make it out. Keep moving steadily without stopping and I can escape. Don¡¯t be scared. Freaking out won¡¯t improve matters here! We can all get through this!
The deluge filling the dorms was like the grim reaper dragging ceaselessly at my ankles and midsection. My pace remained sluggish. I struggled not to sumb to terror. If dread flooded my whole being I felt capable of abandoning animals and child alike to flee alone.
¡It¡¯s okay. I can get out. I¡¯ll grab each pet owner and the kid¡¯s parents by the cor when we meet. Why the hell leave them behind without a care as the ce floods? We nearly died because of that! And don¡¯t bring unauthorized creatures or children into restricted areas, dammit! I can escape. Stay calm¡ If I find the stairwell barricade lowered when I reach it in this state, I¡¯ll probably break down bawling.
I finally made it to the central stairwell. Spitting out the bag strap clenched between my teeth, I naturally hung my head then peered up the steps. The barricade remained open above. My eyes brimmed with tears,forted they hadn¡¯t abandoned me after all.
I started ascending, biting my lip until remembering it¡¯s a bad habit and rxing my face. I clung to the railing with one hand, entrusting my whole body to its grip more desperately than I¡¯ve ever clung to anything. Supporting Henry¡¯s rear end, twice I slipped on the drenched steps before somehow staggering up to the top. I did worry briefly the animals or kid may have been harmed from my falls but had no capacity to check them.
The instant I exited the stairway I set Henry down then wheezed for breath, clutching the door frame. The tide chased right on my heels, just two steps behind. I punched a button on the nearby panel seemingly for lowering the barrier. Only after it sealed shut did I realize I was panting like a dog, tongue lolling out as I gasped for air. I made it out. Escaped the dorms. Aplished one thing at least. Too spent for anything but breathing I copsed t on the floor to rest. I recalled Baek Ae-young timing our gathering of supplies. Remembering her remark about wasted moments I counted to 100 then rose again.
After a brief respite I resumed walking, burdened by an estimated 6kg cat and 25kg kid. As I trudged along I thought I¡¯d crossed this route previously with Victor, adjusting Henry again when he slipped. If events followed my dream I should encounter Shin Haeryang, Baek Ae-young and Seo Jihyuk at the escape pod dock next¡ No cable cars this time. Strength suddenly surged through me. My soaked clothes chilled me and the weights on my back made me want to pitch over, yet anticipation of seeing them again heartened me.
People milled around the escape pod port when I arrived. The Russians, Geum-yi, Carlos and several others turned to eye me as I squelched over leaving damp footprints. Abruptly, one waiting by the boarding area approached. Exceptionally tall with a sturdy build.
¡°We meet again. Doctor.¡±
Kang Soojeong smiled at me. In a daze I sped her extended hand, gazing wildly around. Huh?What¡¯s Kang Soojeong doing here? Where are Shin Haeryang, Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young? Clutching her hand I shook it, disconcerted by developments deviating from my dream. Did the missing people already escape on the pods? Now we survivors have to flee the same way again?
¡°Did Team Leader Shin Haeryang already escape on one of the pods?¡±
¡°Yeah¡well.¡±
Kang Soojeong grinned impishly.
¡°We tricked him onto one. He¡¯s probably panicking as it ascends now.¡±
¡°You called saying a pod seemed broken, asked him to take a look then shut him in right?¡±
Two people I didn¡¯t recognize stood apart near Kang Soojeong. The woman approached me smiling, chin length hair barely brushing her jawline. She eagerly extended a hand I reflexively shook.
¡°Hello. I¡¯m Lee Jihyun from the Engineering B Team. Seems you¡¯re familiar with my Deputy Leader?¡±
¡°Yes, we¡¯ve met before. Nice to meet you, I¡¯m Park Moohyun.¡±
¡°You¡¯re the newly arrived dentist yes? I meant to visit but our schedules never aligned. d we could finally meet.¡±
¡°Any difort I should know about?¡±
¡°My upper teeth sting a bit when I ingest cold things.¡±
¡°I see. Once we escape I¡¯ll do my utmost for you.¡±
¡°Let¡¯s work hard to get out together then.¡±
Jihyun waved briefly at Nikita from Engineering A Team then swiftly moved off. Approximately 3 meters from where she stood, a man with height akin to Baek Ae-young watched everyone resentfully with a deep scowl, arms crossed. When he utterly ignored me I took that as cue for no conversation and likewise withdrew. Unable to contain my curiosity I asked Kang Soojeong,
¡°Who¡¯s that guy? Also from Engineering B Team?¡±
¡°Ah, Jung Sanghyun. He¡¯s our tech and is pissed off. Just ignore him.¡±
¡°Why so?¡±
¡°He tried to board but I forced him out and shoved Ae-young in instead. Just ¡¯cause I made one injured girl take priority over his perfectly healthy ass he¡¯s bitching up a storm.¡±
¡°Was Baek Ae-young-ssi sick? She seemed fine when I saw her recently.¡±
¡°I thought so too, but her voice was hoarse, like her throat hurt. And she kept wincing and clutching her chest so I worried it might be heart problems and sent her up first.¡±
Throat? Left chest? Like a phantom caress then abrupt choking, a nasty sensation trickled down my spine. Inside the copsed cable car Baek Ae-young¡¯s form lingered vividly before my eyes. That shrill incessant ringing and the despair of the floor falling away, and the unending spurts of blood¡I struggled to banish the foul mood, posing more questions to Kang Soojeong.
¡°Is Seo Jihyuk-ssi alright? He came by the clinic not long ago.¡±
¡°Oh him. Whining his left leg hurt so he couldn¡¯t walk, throwing hysterics all over so I shoved him onto a pod first as well. Just minutes earlier he¡¯d been prancing around fine then suddenly iming to be in agony, rolling on the floor clutching his perfectly sound leg! Sheesh. What a performance.¡±
¡°You said¡his leg was unhurt?¡±
I asked despite the hairs on my nape and shoulders prickling. Kang Soojeong tittered.
¡°He was spouting nonsense like his leg felt shot, reminiscent of the past when his arm took fire apparently. But I checked and his bare leg looked totally normal. He tried every trick to get aboard so I figured he¡¯d just be useless deadweight and sent him packing.¡±
Kang Soojeong twirled a finger at the sky. Just as I opened my mouth to respond, the previously silent Jung Sanghyun interjected sullenly.
¡°So why¡¯d you let Jihyuk-hyung go first instead of me?¡±
¡°Because Jihyun gave her spot to him. Howe you didn¡¯t get her to yield to you then?¡±
¡°Baek Ae-young was perfectly healthy ¡¯til this morning!¡±
¡°We all saw her rasping voice. Unless you also thrashed around shrieking with your pants off before everyone?¡±
At Kang Soojeong¡¯s retort, Jung Sanghyun stomped over to Carlos muttering under his breath. Watching him walk off Kang Soojeong shook her head repeatedly.
¡°I prioritized getting the injured out first. Higher ups will likely verifyter we adhered to proper evacuation protocols, I didn¡¯t abuse discretion just favoring certain people.¡±
Kang Soojeong¡¯s attention turned toward the child I¡¯did exhausted on the floor. Despite his sodden limbs Henry slept soundly. Gazing at that obliviously untroubled mdunk forehead granted me temporary respite from the surrounding chaos and my own rattled state.
Chapter 64
Chapter 64
Alright. The current situation doesn¡¯tpletely match the events in my dream. But why are real people getting affected in the same ces they were injured there? Shouldn¡¯t I be writhing around from abdominal wounds then? Imagining that shark rending into me, I rubbed my unhurt stomach against the phantom sensation. Kang Soojeong eyed the child steadily before querying,
¡°He¡¯s not yours?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°Where¡¯d you find him?¡±
¡°Asleep in room 80 in the West district.¡±
At my reply, Kang Soojeong¡¯s brows knitted.
¡°Wasn¡¯t that room vacant?¡±
¡°I wouldn¡¯t know well.¡±
¡°Is that so? He¡¯s sleeping pretty sound despite the circumstances.¡±
Recalling the sedatives in my pack I struggled not to divulge Henry¡¯s name.
¡°I think someone probably drugged him to sleep.¡±
¡°Our side¡¯s helicopters couldn¡¯t have brought him. Did American brats airlift and dump him? Why leave him in the West District, why not in the North district then? Hey! Niki! This kid one of yours Russians?¡±
Engaged with his team, at his Captain lifting a chin, Niki immediately strode over. After peering at Henry¡¯s face he dered to Kang Soojeong.
¡°Look at him. Not a hint of vic features. Does he resemble one raised racing across Russia¡¯s frozen steppes, inhaling air that scorches your lungs?¡±
¡°How should I know? White people all look the same to me.¡±
Niki cast an exasperated nce then responded.
¡°He¡¯s clearly no Russian. Ask those who hail from warmer climes. Oh right. Any of you happen to see Dmitri or Irina from our team?¡±
Both Kang Soojeong and I rapidly shook our heads no. Niki briefly sighed before walking back to his group. Kang Soojeong checked the child¡¯s pulse and peeked at his eyes, patting down his pockets and finding nothing. She scratched a cheek then snapped some pics of Henry with her tablet.
Next she began posting on the undersea base message boards from her device. Skimming over her shoulder, my jaw dropped reading the title starting with,
[Hey dipsh*t bastard who lost a f*cking kid, listen up mofo¡]
[Dunno if your dipsh*t parents raised you worth crap but left by itself in room 80, that child would¡¯ve drowned without another¡¯s kind intervention, due entirely to your stupidity. If you had one fingernail¡¯s worth of brains you wouldn¡¯t illegally sneak some sub-10 year old into this restricted undersea base for adults and dope him unconscious. Don¡¯t expect such goodwill to persist. Right now we¡¯re all struggling just to survive. If you don¡¯t im that kid pronto I¡¯ll hunt you down and beat you half to death myself.]
Typing with zero shift in expression despite the paragraphs interspersed with over half profanity, at one point Kang Soojeong paused. On the next line in a gentle tone she appended,
[If you know the child¡¯s parents pleasement below. Thank you.]
Finishing politely, she attached the photos then posted.
I hesitated briefly. My dream explicitly stated Henry was Nevaeh and Leonard¡¯s son but since I¡¯m unfamiliar with them plus current circumstances may differ, I felt reluctant jumping to conclusions. If in truth they aren¡¯t the parents then what?
People congregated only with their respective teams, conversing among themselves. In my dream everyone gathered together at this spot right? But Shin Haeryang, Engineering A Team leader had evacuated on the pods already then¡ Come to think in my dream, most who escaped on the subs were the walking dead. At the notion of Shin Haeryang, Baek Ae-young and Seo Jihyuk now deceased I broke out in chills¡ It was a dream dammit. No way. That can¡¯t happen. Reality flows differently. It can¡¯t be¡can it?
Even if I revealed discovering the escape pod system was intentionally sabotaged, who would believe that based on a dream? If I imed certain engineering team members smuggled in weapons, sparking a shootout, would they credit my ount? If I asserted fanatics with guns were holding hostages below at the 123rd bases would they ept that? Would anyone believe me if I said I died getting eaten by sharks after an undersea cable car plunged? They¡¯d probably justbel me insane. When do I speak up?
Abruptly my strapped chest bag squirmed. I swiftly opened it to confirm cat and snake status. Despite the abrupt confinement the feline was docile. Not even meowing. Do cats like small spaces? Should¡¯ve raised pets to know. Ufortable apparently, the snake in the petite pocket raised its head but barely stirred otherwise. Ah. Such good creatures.
Slogging through frigid shoulder height water flooding the narrow hallway I pondered whether I should even bother rescuing these creatures in this plight. Wouldn¡¯t escaping alone prove far more prudent? That notion flitted through my thoughts repeatedly despite my inward chiding I¡¯d surelye to regret abandoning them. If I returned topside alone I¡¯d envision their drowned corpses every time I encountered cats or snakes after, knowing myself. So I fixed the bag securely shut watching everyone conferring on our circumstances.
Finished addressing her group, Nikita stretched feline-like, back deeply arched before elongating her body then remarked to Kang Soojeong conversing with Lee Jihyun nearby.
¡°Everyone¡¯s making a fuss over a little tremor and some flooding. No big deal.¡±
An enormous yawn followed. Amused, Kang Soojeong jabbed a finger into Nikita¡¯s extending waist chiding.
¡°Well you lot can hang around here then. We¡¯re leaving.¡±
¡°You guys try fixing that stuff.¡±
Apparently close friends, tipsy Nikita giggled while rubbing her side where Kang Soojeong¡¯s finger had jabbed her. Meanwhile, Niki pointed at the escape pods, which looked damaged, and spoke to Kang Soojeong. Several of the escape pods had rming red indicator lights lit up. Kang Soojeong shook her head at the stunned-looking Niki.
¡°No tools or anything. You do it¡How stered did you get exactly?¡±
¡°I came out wearing no underwear.¡±
I didn¡¯t want to know¡though it seems he at least located pants. The reek of alcohol still clung to the Russians. While A Team engineers wore dark suits, everyone else appeared destitute. My soaked garb notwithstanding, all the rest were drenched below from wading through the flood and hastily throwing on whatever was closest. Victor had on just pants, brawny torso fully exposed. Sophia wore a flimsy tee with shorts, also waterlogged. She had probably fell over at some point.
Every Russian stood barefoot, apparently unable to locate shoes with belongings adrift throughout. Nikita wrung out her soggy pants leg then rolled them up grumbling. Witnessing that I likewise removed and squeezed my socks dry. Resigning myself I tugged the sticky pants up into makeshift shorts. Spotting the shivering Sophia, Yoo Geum-yi stripped off her long sleeved cardigan to offer despite initial refusal. Insisting at Sophia¡¯s visible trembling Yoo Geum-yi added gently,
¡°You look very cold.¡±
Sophia, who was looking at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s long-sleeved T-shirt and long jeans, took the cardigan and said.
¡°Thanks. I¡¯ll put it to good use.¡±
Still trembling, Sophia swiftly donned it. Without a word I drew out a towel from my pack and passed it over for her dripping hair. Sophia nodded thanks as she blotted just enough dampness before handing off to Victor, who directly gave it to dimir. dimir lobbed the untouched towel at the boisterously noisy Niki. Niki proceeded to vigorously mop his drenched face and head with it,menting aloud.
¡°What¡¯ll we do Team Leader? More pragmatic to head to another zone than fix all this right? I still see double of you, Team Leader.¡±
¡°¡Let¡¯s relocate to North District. The miners may not have breached inner base so escape pods could remain.¡±
Kang Soojeong along with Lee Jihyun and Jung Sanghyun debated utilizing the central elevator shaft, thetter gentleman pushing that option against Jihyun¡¯sposed objections.
¡°Sanghyun-ah. The elevators can¡¯t possibly operate normally under impacts this severe. If they get stuck midway we¡¯re done for. Prayer¡¯s the only answer here.¡±
¡°What if there¡¯s no pods left in the other zone?!¡±
Listening to Jung Sanghyun, Lee Jihyun pondered briefly before responding.
¡°Then we find alternate escape methods. Head to East district¡¯s submersibles, or shift zones at least. Spection achieves nothing. Records currently show zero pods haveunched yet clearly none actually remain right? Same for the nonfunctional elevators that may be running fine.¡±
¡°And if we still can¡¯t get out?!¡±
¡°Then we all kick it together. We¡¯d havepany, wouldn¡¯t feel lonely eh Sanghyun-ah?¡±
Kang Soojeong beamed, cheerily thumping Jung Sanghyun¡¯s back. Sulky with noeback, Jung Sanghyun finally just plopped down in a funk. For whatever reason he kept redirecting frustration and anger over our plight toward his teammates. No one¡¯s thrilled to linger here. No pleasing some people.
My mouth felt purely salty so I fished out a strawberry candy from my pack to suck on. My soaked clothes clung unpleasantly and I felt the abrupt vacancy where fled stamina used to dwell. I too settled myself on the floor. Chatting with Nikita nearby, Yoo Geum-yi approached me. I fished out some candies to pass around the others, offering the pouch to Geum-yi as well.
Chapter 65
Chapter 65
Yoo Geum-yi, having received a candy, said,
¡°Moohyun-ssi, thank you for waking me up. I was too caught up in the moment, and only now can I finally have a conversation.¡±
¡°It¡¯s nothing. It¡¯s what I should do.¡±
I could feel Jung Sanghyun, standing a few meters away from us, snorting derisively while rolling a candy in his hand. Yoo Geum-yi turned to look at him and thenpletely ignored him. She then asked Kang Sujeong and me,
¡°Where are you nning to go?¡±
Kang Sujeong, looking at Lee Ji-hyun lying on the floor and Jung Sanghyun sitting, then spoke to Yoo Geum-yi and me, who were sitting on the ground.
¡°Our team is heading to the East District. Even if we can¡¯t use the escape pod, we can use a submarine, and if that¡¯s not possible, we¡¯ll just ride the elevator, assuming we¡¯re dead.¡±
¡°The Russian team said they¡¯re moving to North District in two minutes to use the escape pod.¡±
Kang Sujeong nodded her head upon hearing this from Yoo Geum-yi as she gazed at the people sprawled out far away. Then she asked Yoo Geum-yi,
¡°Are you going toe with us?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi shook her head in response.
¡°I¡¯m going to the South District. I need to see how much damage the South District has taken. The researchers and professors I know are all in the South District.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi was a marine biologist. I hadpletely forgotten that she worked in the South District. Kang Sujeong, looking troubled, said,
¡°Hmm. In this situation, it might be better to look after Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s personal safety first.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi pondered Kang Sujeong¡¯s advice for a moment before speaking.
¡°South District has four 7-story research buildings, with about 400 people residing there. When I arrived at South District, the professors and fellow researchers might have already escaped, but there could be people unaware of the water leakage because they were asleep in a frenzy, and there are marine animals trapped there too. I don¡¯t know much about the Rare Earth Center or the Marine Pollution Center, but I¡¯m familiar with the Deep-Sea Biology Center, so I¡¯ll stop by there briefly before taking the escape pod from South District. If there¡¯s no escape pod, there¡¯s also a cargo elevator in the South District Research Center.¡±
Kang Sujeong and Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s eyes turned towards me. I hesitated. Should I tell them now? If things go as they did in my dream, the research center will bepletely gone, but I can¡¯t send Yoo Geum-yi to such a ce. What should I say? That the South District was destroyed by a missile in my dream? Anyway, we need to go to the South District soon. Kim Ga-young is trapped in the South District dormitory.
¡°¡Yeah. Then I¡¯ll go to the South District with you.¡±
Kang Sujeong¡¯s expression subtly changed. Then, after a moment of contemtion, she nodded.
¡°Alright. Then we¡¯ll part ways at Jungang-dong.¡±
The Russian people were groaning as they got up. Kang Sujeong looked at the child lying on the floor, grabbed their arm, lifted them up, and carried them on her back. It looked so natural, like water flowing. Given Kang Sujeong¡¯s height of over 190 cm, it looked as though she was wearing Henry like a scarf. After adjusting Henry¡¯s arms around her neck, Kang Sujeong steadied the child on her back and said,
¡°Shall we go?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Unlike in my dream, I slung a bag over my back. The weight of the cat was heavy. It was then I realized that candies were scattered all around the cat. Does a cat eat candy? Don¡¯t eat it. Animals shouldn¡¯t eat things like candy. It¡¯s not even good for humans to eat. ¡I then began to worry whether the cat would eat a snake. As I walked beside Yoo Geum-yi, I wondered if she had knowledge about terrestrial animals and decided to ask her.
¡°Yoo Geum-yi, by any chance¡¡±
¡°Yes?¡±
¡°Can a cat eat a snake?¡±
Thankfully, Yoo Geum-yi didn¡¯t berate me for asking such a question in this situation. She just looked at me strangely and then nodded.
¡°Cats are predators that can catch snakes.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
My list of worries suddenly grew. What if the cat in my bag started a ruckus trying to catch the snake? I had separated them, but it was only a thin separation. Contemting this new concern, I reopened my bag and saw the cat calmly curled up. The sight of the cat, curled up neatly on top of the towels, made it seem absurd to even suspect it of hunting. I murmured to myself as I closed the bag, ¡°If they don¡¯t want to annihte each other, they need to coexist peacefully.¡±
I then realized Yoo Geum-yi didn¡¯t know about the cat and snake in my bag. Probably nobody here knew. I was about to ask if anyone knew the owners of these animals but then stopped myself. The thought that, in case of an emergency, the lives of these animals might have to be weighed against human lives stopped me. Keeping their presence unknown seemed like the lesser of two evils.
It¡¯s strange. In the dream, revealing the presence of these forbidden animals in the underwater base seemed like it would only worsen the already chaotic atmosphere. Moreover, since I was the one who saved them, the responsibility would fall on me. That¡¯s why I didn¡¯t mention it then, but now, not saying anything seemed like the safer option.
Looking around, I noticed that the only ones assisting with taking care of Henry were Kang Sujeong, who had checked the child¡¯s condition and carried them on her back, and Yoo Geum-yi, who had dried the child¡¯s wet feet and legs with the hem of her T-shirt. The others were either indifferent or pretended not to notice the child.
Was the unconscious child, weighing over 20 kg, considered a burden in the situation of the underwater base flooding? Then what about the cat weighing over 6 kg and the snake of uncertain venomous status, long enough to wrap around a wrist several times? Feeling the weight of the bag, I was startled to notice Nikita approaching me silently. His footsteps made no sound, perhaps due to being barefoot. His disheveled blond hair even more tousled, Nikita asked me,
¡°Did you see anyone else when escaping the West District?¡±
¡°What kind of person are you asking about?¡±
¡°A Russian like me. A man.¡±
¡°There wasn¡¯t anyone. If there had been, I would have brought them along.¡±
Nikita nced at the child Kang Sujeong was carrying on her back, then at me, said ¡°Alright¡± in a brief manner, and ran off to catch up with his team. Lee Ji-hyun, walking beside me, watched Nikita¡¯s back and said,
¡°It seems he doesn¡¯t have a younger brother.¡±
¡°Weren¡¯t minors not allowed to enter here?¡±
Hearing my question, Lee Ji-hyun looked incredulous and chuckled a bit. I realized my mistake from herughter. Ah, if they entered here, they must be adults.
¡°There¡¯s a tall guy named Dmitri, blond with a half-shaved head, but he¡¯s not with that group. And Irina¡¯s not there either. Looks like he¡¯s lost two of his teammates.¡±
I recalled my room number, 37, and at the same time, I realized I had never checked the numbers before 36. ¡I hope no one¡¯s there. Even if there are people, I hope they¡¯ve already left their rooms. I can¡¯t save everyone. I pushed away the sudden wave of guilt. Everyone in this underwater base is an adult. They should have the ability to take responsibility for at least their own lives. As soon as I had this thought, I saw those who had been drinking vodka or something simr, emanating a strong smell of alcohol, still staggering along.
¡I hope the other adults are more responsible than them. I walked while momentarily gazing at Henry¡¯s face, asleep on Kang Sujeong¡¯s back, and then paused. It was Viktor who first found the person copsed on the floor. He leaned over to check if the person was alive and then told his team that the person was dead. He shook off his hands that had touched the corpse and started walking again. Kang Sujeong sighed and said to Jung Sanghyun next to her,
¡°Sanghyun, go take a picture of the face with the pad.¡±
¡°¡I feel ufortable saving a picture of a dead body in my photo gallery.¡±
Despite grumbling, Jung Sanghyun did as Kang Sujeong asked and ran over to take two photos of the man¡¯s face with the pad. Yoo Geum-yi, walking beside me, gasped upon seeing the body and stuck close to the wall, distancing herself from the corpse lying in the corridor.
Except for Viktor, I was the only one who approached the body. I checked for signs of life. It was just like the person I had seen in my dream. This person was Kevin Wilson, wasn¡¯t he? Shin Haeryang said he was American. His head was smashed against a metal handle installed in the corridor.
As the person¡¯s eyes were open, I licked my dry lips, mentally prepared myself, and then closed his eyes with the palm of my hand. Ugh, damn it. The sensation of the warm eyelids brushing against my palm was strangely unsettling, especially the long eyshes brushing my hand made me want to flee the scene immediately. I took a deep breath to steady myself, somewhat relieved that at least the deceased had their eyes closed. Jung Sanghyun, who was retreating after taking the photos, saw my action andmented,
¡°Do you really have to put on such a pretense?¡±
¡°I just did what I felt like doing.¡±
Jung Sanghyun looked at me as if I was strange and then walked away towards Kang Su-jeong. Yoo Geum-yi, who had been waiting for me, asked,
¡°Shall I carry your bag?¡±
¡°No, it¡¯s okay.¡±
¡°¡This is the first time I¡¯ve seen a body up close.¡±
¡°Me too. You don¡¯t usually see people dying at a dental clinic.¡±
¡°That¡¯s not supposed to happen, right?¡±
¡°Right.¡±
As Iughed lightly, Yoo Geum-yi exhaled a sigh of relief and chuckled along. Carlos was approaching me. Then Carlos greeted Yoo Geum-yi and me with a bright smile,
¡°Hey. Saw you back at the dorms. What¡¯s your name?¡±
¡°Moohyun Park.¡±
¡°I¡¯m Carlos Ruiz. Where are you two heading?¡±
¡°I¡¯m Yoo Geum-yi. Moohyun and I are going to the South District.¡±
¡°Really? I¡¯m following the Russians to North District. Why South District? Are there many escape pods there?¡±
Swallowing the words ¡®I¡¯m going to save someone trapped in the South District dormitory¡¯, which would have followed the pattern of my dream, I gave a vague response.
¡°No, we¡¯ll take an escape pod if there is one avable. It¡¯s probably better than everyone crowding into one ce, don¡¯t you think?¡±
¡°Is that so?¡±
¡°Why are you going to North District, Carlos?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s question prompted Carlos to lower his voice and nce at the people walking ahead before answering.
¡°The Koreans here in West District took all the remaining escape pods for themselves. I begged for a spot, but theypletely ignored me. The Russians arrived toote and just watched the escape pods beingunched. If they had arrived earlier, there would have been a bloody fight. Have you heard about Viktor smashing an Australian guy¡¯s face?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°The researchers practically live in the South District.¡±
Chapter 66: Formatting
Chapter 66: Formatting
Carlos whispered to us,
¡°If there aren¡¯t enough escape pods, we¡¯ll have to fight over them no matter where we go. But the Korean team doesn¡¯t have that crazy bastard Team Leader Shin anymore. Instead, dimir and Viktor are over there with the Russian team. When Russia wins and gets on the escape pod with one seat left, I¡¯m taking it, yep.¡±
I asked with a bewildered face,
¡°Do you think there will be fist fights?¡±
Spitting, Carlos said,
¡°What, you think they¡¯ll politely say ¡°After you¡± and give up seats for each other? Are you too naive about these Korean bastards here? You¡¯d be better off sticking with the Russian guys. Listen to me when I give advice.¡±
Looking pained, Yoo Geum-yi said,
¡°Mr. Park and I¡ we¡¯re Korean.¡±
¡°Oh really?¡±
Looking slightly flustered, Carlos quickly put on a friendly face and winked, saying ¡°You know I didn¡¯t mean you right?¡± before running to catch up with the Russian men ahead.
Yoo Geum-yi narrowed her eyes and shook her head before looking at Kang Soojung¡¯s back and saying to me,
¡°What will happen to the child when we go to the South District? Soojung is carrying him for now but no one will want to take him when we split off in the Central district.¡±
¡°Then I¡¯ll have to carry him, right? Can¡¯t just leave him here.¡±
¡°Alright. We can take turns carrying him on the way back.¡±
¡°Thank you.¡±
Looking at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s thin arms, I figured even if I died from exhaustion carrying the over 20kg child up to the escape, that would still be better than making her do it. But seeing her determined face, it felt rude to protest. Instead, I decided toe clean about my secret to her, since she was being so helpful. Yoo Geum-yi probably wouldn¡¯t judge or berate me for it.
¡°I have a secret I¡¯m keeping that I hope you can quietly help me with.¡±
Looking at me, Yoo Geum-yi replied.
¡°I¡¯ll keep anything that¡¯s within my ability.¡±
¡°I have a cat and a snake hidden in my bag.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi stared nkly at my bag for a moment before letting out a low, ¡°Ah¡¡±
¡°So that¡¯s why you asked that.¡±
I checked my pad from time to time as I walked. If things went simr to my dream, I¡¯d have to post a request on the message boards for Kim Gayoung toe rescue me. Up ahead, Nikita peered out a window into the hallway in West District, frowning before jogging back excitedly to whisper something to dimir. dimir halted his steps, nced out the window, then resumed walking.
¡They¡¯re wary of each other. If I hadn¡¯t had that dream, I wouldn¡¯t have known the South District was destroyed by missiles either. The engineering Team A who witnessed it while repairing the outer walls, or Team B who confirmed Jwack Research Center¡¯s destruction from the window, aren¡¯t sharing the information they discovered. I feel like in my dream, we found out about South District¡¯s copse pretty fast. Who told us again?
My memory is fuzzy. The intense moments of climbing stairs, shooting guns, getting bitten by sharks make the earlier details feel so distant.
I sighed inwardly as I watched people walking ahead of me. I wanted to spill everything I knew to them. I had a dream about escaping from this underwater base. I struggled desperately to get up to the 0th level, the Daehandoro street exit, but failed and got bitten to death by a shark. The urge to blurt out how I wanted to forget lottery or misfortune dreams, but things were unfolding simrly to my dream even in reality, welled up in my throat.
But then I recalled what Shin Haeryang said to me while we were trapped in the cable car ¨C that he thought I was an Infinity Church follower.
What if there was someone rted to Infinity Church among the people here, and I told them everything I knew?
Though I don¡¯t trust the words of Infinity Church followers, what if the ones who mmed missiles into South District to turn this underwater base into a leaky fish tank had nothing to do with Infinity Church and were forces unknown to me?
What if my testimony about fighting armed engineer teams stirred chaos and rm in these already tense people?
What if I told them the escape pods we¡¯re all moving towards won¡¯t actually help us escape at all, and everyone onboard died or is dying, how would they react?
¡No wait, that¡¯s ridiculous now that I think about it again. If Shin Haeryang thought I was an Infinity Church follower, why did he still choose to move with me? He didn¡¯t just abandon me to die but saved my life multiple times too. He was suspicious yet considered me harmless enough to keep around? Is that what it was?
I deeply contemted the events of my dream then heaved a big sigh. My head was spinning. Too many things happened in such a short time, it was hard to process everything. The vivid sensation of sharks tearing into my stomach was still fresh. Yet feeling my intact stomach now as I walked down this hallway proved there were no wounds. And the weight on my back and the damp squelching of my shoes and socks made it impossible to dismiss my current situation as just a dream. Plus, it¡¯s better that the time we all died was a dream and this is reality. I¡¯m still just a dentist who knows little about this underwater base even after having such an intense prophetic dream.
¡Alright, one thing at a time. It¡¯s not unfolding exactly the same as my dream anyway. Even small deviations probably won¡¯t lead to huge dangers. I stopped and looked out the window. Yoo Geum-yi raised her voice for everyone to hear.
¡°It¡¯s pitch ck. There¡¯s nothing.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, who seemed to have a lot on her mind with her lips tightly pursed, shot nces diagonally before saying to me while looking out the window:
¡°But doesn¡¯t it look a bit like viewing a nightscape fromnd with some lights from South District Research Center?¡±
¡°There¡¯s nothing there though?¡±
¡°Huh?¡±
At that, Yoo Geum-yi hurried over to the window. Huh? I stared out at the dark sea devoid of any light after blurting that out, dumbfounded. I cautiously asked Yoo Geum-yi,
¡°Wasn¡¯t it always like this?¡±
¡°No. No it wasn¡¯t. Those lights don¡¯t go out¡¡±
Still stunned, Yoo Geum-yi began pressing her face against the round window. She would¡¯ve gone right through the ss at this rate. I grabbed her shoulder from behind and pulled since she was gaping vacantly into the darkness. Hearing her endlessly babble about myb records, my research, my advisor, it felt like her soul had left her body. At another window, Carlos said,
¡°There¡¯s really nothing? Wasn¡¯t that building one of the biggest structures in this underwater base along with the drilling facility? It didn¡¯t just get swept away like jellyfish by ocean currents?¡±
Sparks flew in Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s eyes.
¡°It was a 7-story research building with 3 wings and a 6-story research building with 1 wing! How could something that big get swept away! It housed over 400 resident researchers! If that disappeared, the people inside¨C!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi looked back outside and muttered ¡°It¡¯s gone¡¡± before shuffling forward unsteadily as if she could barely remain upright. Lee Jihyun and Jeong Sanghyeon briefly peered out the window before moving on while Kang Soojung shook her head as she passed by Yoo Geum-yi and the lightless darkness outside. I took out a handful of candy from my bag and offered it to Yoo Geum-yi who seemed out of her right mind.
¡°Eating something sweet helps settle your heart.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi began loudly crunching on the hard candy with her teeth. That¡¯s not good for your teeth. But Yoo Geum-yi didn¡¯t seem capable of hearing that right now. It must be difficult to ept the sudden disappearance without a trace of a building housing people she knew. I checked my pad again. New posts were piling up over Kang Soojung¡¯s. The user name making these posts now was HELP.
Title: Trapped in South District Room 77
Content: Water is flooding in and the door won¡¯t open. Please help. 5 of us gathered in this room but it won¡¯t budge even with our strength. The water is up to our calves now. If you can¡¯te help, please leave instructions on how to open the door below this post so we can try. There are no engineers here, only researchers. We need assistance.
Simr pleas for help were flooding the message board. This was definitely Kim Gayoung. Trapped in South District again, huh. Pleased to read her post, another post on the boards caught my eye and I clicked it as if entranced.
Title: Save me too while saving the kid who posted below!
Content: I¡¯m trapped in the Jangsumjeong submarine Merigilmoore 2-ho I was repairing in the East District. Dammit, is no one there at the sub port now? Or are you bastards just ignoring my calls for help?
Startled by this new information, I realized others trapped somewhere could¡¯ve also made rescue requests by posting. Did I carefully read every post in my dream? I couldn¡¯t recall clearly. Who do we need to save first? Shouldn¡¯t it be the South District people with water flooding in? I showed Kang Soojung the post and said,
¡°It says researchers are trapped in South District lodging. And someone¡¯s also trapped in a submarine in the East District.¡±
Kang Soojung swiftly read the contents on the pad and answered ¡°I see.¡± When she showed the pad to Lee Jihyun, Lee Jihyun slowly read through each line. Jeong Sanghyeon came over next to Lee Jihyun, trying to read along from the pad before giving up due to their height difference and turning on his own pad. Once Lee Jihyun was done slowly going over every line and returned the pad to me, I showed Yoo Geum-yi the posted plea for help. I firmly told Kang Soojung,
¡°We need to go rescue them.¡±
Hmm¡ Kang Soojung grimaced, looking off into the distance before simply answering.
¡°We¡¯re headed to the East District so we¡¯lle across this person trapped in the submarine along the way. Mr. Park, you should go with Ms. Yoo Geum-yi to rescue the people stuck in the South District.¡±
Chapter 67: Formatting
Chapter 67: Formatting
The chilling realization that people might split up not for rescue efforts but for other goals truly sent a shiver down my spine. Gazing at the child carried on Kang Soojung¡¯s back, I nodded in agreement. That person must also have thoughts about escaping. However, there was a problem. I am a dentist, and Geum-i is a marine biologist. We are individuals of no use in unlocking closed doors. Wouldn¡¯t we need at least one engineer to facilitate a rescue?
¡°Could we possibly take an engineer with us? I have no idea how to open the doors.¡±
As I said this, I looked at the three individuals. Lee Jihyun nced at Kang Soojung, and Jung Sanghyun also looked at her. Kang Soojung eyed me strangely before nodding. Perhaps it¡¯s because Kang Soojung is the deputy team leader of the engineering team. Jung Sanghyun spoke to Kang Soojung.
¡°I¡¯d like to go along.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°I want to do something good.¡±
Lee Jihyun, walking beside Jung Sanghyun, eximed in surprise.
¡°Did you eat something wrong?¡±
¡°Ah, noona, really. I can do good deeds too.¡±
Kang Soojung looked at Lee Jihyun and Jung Sanghyun before replying.
¡°Jihyun, you go.¡±
¡°I said I¡¯d go, why are you leaving me out? Deputy team leader, you¡¯re being too much.¡±
¡°Are you okay with gettingpletely soaked? We might have to swim to escape. I would have sent you first if I knew you could swim. I would have sent our Sanghyun first, for sure.¡±
¡°Ah, I said I¡¯m okay with it.¡±
¡°After the rescue, I¡¯ll post on the bulletin board. If the East District evacuation pods are all gone, please write a post. It seems like phones arepletely out of service.¡±
As Lee Jihyun said this, she took the child from Kang Soojung and carried him on her back. Lee Jihyun¡¯s pace started to slow down slightly. Kang Soojung called out to Sophia, who was walking ahead. Sophia stopped and waited expressionlessly. As we caught up to Sophia, Kang Soojung asked,
¡°Does your team have even one tablet?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°What about phones?¡±
¡°Phones are dead.¡±
Kang Soojung logged out of her tablet and handed it to Sophia.
¡°It seems the intr is working if posting is possible. If your team discovers anything in the North District, write a post.¡±
¡°With the team leader¡¯s permission.¡±
Sophia took Kang Soojung¡¯s tablet and ran to dimir, the team leader, seemingly to exin something. dimir didn¡¯t even look at Kang Soojung but waved his right hand over his shoulder. Kang Soojung sighed while looking at dimir¡¯s blonde hair. Jung Sanghyun whispered to Kang Soojung,
¡°Why give your tablet to that nutcase?¡±
¡°If I had told you to give yours, would you have quietly handed it over?¡±
¡°Why are you trying to mess with my tablet?¡±
Jung Sanghyun hugged his tablet protectively. Kang Soojung sighed while looking at Jung Sanghyun. Lee Jihyun, with Henry hoisted on her back, spoke up to Kang Soojung.
¡°It might have been better if the team leader stayed. It¡¯s not that your capabilities as the deputy team leader arecking. It¡¯s just that among the teams, those guys are the most decent, aren¡¯t they? We¡¯ll have to deal with even more uncooperative people, so why stress yourself unnecessarily?¡±
Kang Soojung nced at Lee Jihyun¡¯s back, then at those walking ahead, and said,
¡°That might be true. But can people always live like that?¡±
Then, stretching herself, Kang Soojung turned to me and Yoo Geum-yi with a smile.
¡°Prioritize getting on an evacuation boat in the South District. If the South District Research Center is safe, you can use the elevator inside, but it seems the center ispletely gone. (Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s face darkened) As for those trapped in the South District, I don¡¯t know who they are, but try to rescue them if it¡¯s feasible; otherwise, give up. In such situations, it¡¯s hard enough to save oneself. With the water so high, opening the doors might be difficult, and by the time you arrive, the people in the quarters might already be dead. And if escape from the South District seems impossible,e to the East District. We¡¯ll be putting in our efforts there.¡±
¡°How should we take the child with us?¡±
When Yoo Geum-yi asked Kang Soojung, she nonchntly rolled her neck as if it were no big deal and replied,
¡°Sanghyun and I can take turns carrying him.¡±
Jung Sanghyun was taken aback and shook his head.
¡°What? No way. Why me?¡±
¡°You said you wanted to do something good, didn¡¯t you?¡±
¡°It¡¯s hard enough to save one¡¯s own life, why should I take a child that¡¯s not even mine?¡±
¡°Well, by that logic, he¡¯s not my child either. Who knows? The parents might be tycoons.¡±
¡°Why would a tycoon¡¯s parents leave their child in the 4th underwater base!¡±
¡°Hmm. I think so too.¡±
Jung Sanghyun gestured towards me and said,
¡°Let the person who saved him take care of him! That should solve it!¡±
Kang Soojung crossed her arms and nodded in agreement.
¡°Right, right. That¡¯s a good point. But if we take the child with us, Moohyun-ssi and Geum-yi-ssi might be able to rescue more people faster. Hey, how did five people end up trapped in the South District quarters? Were they ying poker or Go-Stop? What do researchers do for fun during their downtime?¡±
¡°Huh? Nothing much, just ying Monopoly and video games.¡±
Jung Sanghyun energetically protested on the spot, but Kang Soojung paid him no mind.
We kept walking non-stop and entered Central District. Thest incident I experienced in Central District in my dream was a shootout. Even though it didn¡¯t happen in reality, just thinking about the gunshots and screams made my heart pound. Kang Soojung looked at Jung Sanghyun, who was hugging his tablet with both arms and turning his body away, and said with disbelief,
¡°Ugh, seriously. Such a small fry. I could take it by force, but I, being of good character, will refrain.¡±
¡°Deputy team leader, you hardly ever use a tablet anyway!¡±
Kang Soojung, who borrowed a tablet from me, checked if there were any new posts orments on the previous post searching for the child¡¯s parents, then quickly wrote a new post. The username was lifeboat.
___
Title: People are heading towards the South District quarters.
Content: For rescue purposes, please provide urate information about the number of people trapped and their identities.
___
It seemed Kang Soojung didn¡¯t believe that five people were trapped in a room in the South District. After posting, she browsed the board list and paused. While scrolling through the posts, Kang Soojung handed the tablet to me and asked,
¡°Where did you find that post? I can¡¯t find it anymore.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll look for it.¡±
I tried to find the peculiarly worded post among the sea of posts requesting rescue from being trapped in the South District, but it was nowhere to be found. Why was it missing? The post about being trapped in the East District submarine hadpletely disappeared from the board. It was definitely there before, wasn¡¯t it? I wasn¡¯t the only one who read it. Did they delete the post because they managed to escape on their own?
The incidents that had urred in the East District escape pods came to mind. The sound that had been knocked twice and the terror I felt then. I thought of Ha Yoon from the engineering team and suddenly wondered if these people could be in the East District submarine. While Kang Soojung looked up at the ceiling, pondering for a moment, she borrowed the tablet again and wrote a new post. The username was Angry Boxer.
___
Title: No one at the East District escape pods port? Are you sure?
Content: Why were you working alone near the escape pods and ended up like that? If I go there and find out it¡¯s a lie, will you be ready to face the consequences?
___
As Kang Soojung used the term ¡°escape pods¡± instead of ¡°submarine¡± in the post, causing me confusion, she pressed the confirm button to check if the post was uploaded properly. Then, facing me filled with questions, she exined,
¡°The person who wrote it must have deleted their own post. They must have decided it shouldn¡¯t be seen by others. Or maybe they managed to escape on their own and deleted it. But you know, it¡¯s rare here. People thinking, ¡®Oh, what if someone kind-hearted reads my post andes to rescue me only to be disappointed? I should delete my post to indirectly let them know not toe for me.¡¯ Most people here would forget they even made a post after escaping. Suddenly deleting the post? Someone must have decided it shouldn¡¯t be read by others.¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤What if someone who saw the previous post goes to the submarine?¡±
¡°We¡¯re going towards the escape pods anyway. If there are no escape pods, we¡¯ll head to the submarine. We¡¯ll likely meet them. It seems better to write it incorrectly than to emphasize again that someone is stuck and can¡¯t move in the East District submarine. Well, if the person who wrote the post sees this and doesn¡¯t like it, they¡¯ll probably tell me off in thements.¡±
Then she passed the tablet back to me. In the middle of the Central District, the engineering team, D-team, began walking towards the North District, and Niki and Carlos, who were at the end of the group, waved at us. Yoo Geum-yi, Lee Jihyun, and I waved back at them.
We were passing by the first restaurant in Central District, Oran. In my early days at thepany, I thought the first restaurant, named after reindeer, was for vegetarians and spent half a day eating there until I saw meat being served at the second restaurant, and started eating there instead. Both ces had decent food. Kang Soojung said to Yoo Geum-yi and me,
¡°Let¡¯s part ways here.¡±
Then, with a nod to Lee Jihyun, she signaled her to approach Jung Sanghyun, who recoiled in horror and stepped back, eximing,
¡°Agh! Do we really have to take that kid with us?¡±
¡°Then you wake the kid up and make him walk.¡±
At Kang Soojung¡¯s words, Jung Sanghyun grimaced and pinched the arm of the child lying on Lee Jihyun¡¯s back with three fingers, twisting it 90 degrees. I gasped in shock, and Yoo Geum-yi shouted at him,
¡°Why would you pinch a child?!¡±
¡°He might be pretending to be asleep!¡±
Jung Sanghyun yelled back at Yoo Geum-yi, but Henry remained unresponsive. I didn¡¯t agree with taking the child but didn¡¯t expect such behavior. As concern flooded in, Kang Soojung, seemingly unsurprised, lifted the child from Lee Jihyun¡¯s back and ced him on Jung Sanghyun¡¯s back. As soon as the child was on his back, Jung Sanghyun¡¯s knees buckled then wobbled before straightening. Holding Jung Sanghyun¡¯s tablet, Kang Soojung suppressed augh and said,
¡°Hey, don¡¯t tell me you can¡¯t carry a 20kg kid? Sanghyun can handle that, right? I mean, even Jihyun, who¡¯s as thin as a reed, managed to carry him here.¡±
¡°Hey, what do you take me for, deputy team leader? I¡¯m Jung Sanghyun! I could fly around carrying a kid like this!¡±
¡°Yeah, yeah. I know our Sanghyun is strong. I¡¯ll take over after we pass the East District elevator. Hang in there until then.¡±
Kang Soojung, speaking soullessly, watched Jung Sanghyun walking unsteadily towards the East District, then turned to Yoo Geum-yi, Lee Jihyun, and me, saying,
¡°It would be best to take an escape pod from the South District, but if that¡¯s not possible, I hope you escape safely by any means. Write down everything, good or bad, on the tablet. I¡¯ll head there or avoid it ordingly.¡±
Lee Jihyun shook hands with Kang Soojung and left her with a word of caution. Yoo Geum-yi gave a respectful nod.
Chapter 68
Chapter 68
I wondered how much different this whole situation was from a dream. The escape pod control panels in the West District were damaged from the shock and didnt disy anything on the screens or respond when buttons were pressed, but when I went to the South District, I discovered the escape pods were functioning normally. It was possible that the people who escaped through them hadnt died. And maybe the shootout hadnt happened in the East District either.
As I watched Kang Soojung walking ahead, I called out to her in an unknown anxiety.
Be careful! More prohibited items could have been brought into the underwater base. Who knows what else they snuck in other than the kid!
Kang Soojung looked at me with an odd expression, then waved her handrgely and caught up to Jung Sanghyun ahead.
Yoo Geum-yi, Lee Jihyun, and I started heading towards the South District. Yoo Geum-yi asionally nced at the people now the size of a pinky finger. Seeing that, Lee Jihyun asked her.
Does it bother you?
YesIm not sure about the others, but Im worried about the kid that went with them. What if he gets hurt? Team Leader Kang doesnt like taking kids when escaping, right? Wouldnt it have been safer if we took the sleeping kid instead of leaving him to someone like that?
Itll be fine. On a moral level, the Deputy Team Leader has at least some basic line she doesnt cross. And no matter how much Sanghyun acts out, he cant ignore the Deputy Team Leaders orders.
In pure curiosity, I asked the obvious question to her.
Why cant he ignore them?
At that, Lee Jihyun lightlyughed. As we passed the Central District Theater 1 heading towards the South District, Lee Jihyun spoke slowly.
Deputy Team Leader Kang was a heavyweight boxing champion. There was one time in the past when Sanghyun openly ignored work orders from the Deputy Team Leader. And also one big incident when Team Leader Shin was away on vacation that really blew up.
Ah. So thats why his teeth To ordinary people, Kang Soo-jungs teeth would look perfectly healthy, but I could see several teeth crowned from fractures. Deep Blue Underwater Dental had no policies rted to mouth guards.
Id never made any here, but in regr dentistry we could custom make mouth guards for patients every so often there would be boxers or taekwondo athletesing in to get fitted for them. Of course, more often there were peopleing in because they hadnt worn mouth guards and had cracked teeth, lost teeth, or hairline fractures in their jaw bone.
Did she beat him up?
ording to Sanghyun, after exchanging a few words with the Deputy Team Leader, they peacefully resolved their misunderstandings.
HuhI see.
The Deputy Team Leader isnt the type to see someone intentionally ruining work or not doing it properly and think Ah, that kind of person, I should give them less work, no work at all. He tries to make them do it anyway, even forcing them. Because if that person doesnt do their job right, the coworkers around them have to take on that burden instead.
Thats only natural for a superior to coordinate, but once you actually go out into the workforce, there are tons of people who arent like that. Ive seen it many times an employee cking off, a boss buddy-buddy with that employee, and the increased, unfair workload dumped onto the employees who then have to pick up their ck.
After my father passed and my family fell upon hard times, I worked all sorts of part-time jobs. More than once, just because I worked diligently, the ckers jobs got thrown to me with everyone saying Thats just how he is, and the boss giving me their work. Without paying me any extra, either.
So shes fair?
Shes the best to work with. Along with Team Leader Shin. Ive worked at a few other ces too, but more often than the intensity of the workload, it was awful bosses and colleagues that made me quit. At least here, the work may be hard but theres less external stressors.
I recalled the story of Shin Haeryang punching someone for Baek Ae-young. It seemed Team Leader Shin kept that kind of stress from reaching the employees. Upon hearing Jihyuns words, Yoo Geum-yi sighed in relief.
Thats good to hear then.
Right now, Sanghyun is desperate to get away from the Deputy Team Leader somehow.
Why?
He probably wants freedom.
Is he not very free right now?
Lee Jihyun smiled awkwardly and opened her mouth to reply but quickly crouched down. Kkeuddeugeugeugeugeuk! From far away came an enormous sound, and the floor shook. Woowoowoowoong! The entire ceiling and walls were vibrating.
I shook back and forth with the building, and afraid the kids in my backpack would get crushed under me if I fell backwards, I tumbled forwards onto the floor. Ow, Im gonna die . ncing to the side, Yoo Geum-yi had already safely fallen to the floor. Lee Jihyun was the only one still standing among us. It was about 2-3 minutes before the shaking finally lessened somewhat. Lee Jihyun looked around before helping Yoo Geum-yi up first, then grabbed and pulled me up while saying:
Lets hurry. The shock could have sealed off the South District living quarters.
When Yoo Geum-yi asked if it was an earthquake, Lee Jihyun shook her head and said:
I dont think so. Probably not.
Lee Jihyun grimaced as she looked up at the ceiling for a few seconds before speaking.
If it were an earthquake, it would have been magnitude 8 or higher. If that were the case, us still being alive would be a miracle in itself.
Our pace quickened. Being trapped in a ce with the water level rising, I didnt want to experience that again not a second, third, no, adding that damn cable car, it would be the fourth time. I was scared every time I had to go into the water.
We walked briskly until we arrived at the connecting passage between Jungang-dong and the South District. After a long period of silent walking, Lee Jihyun asked me:
Dr. Moohyun. When you said more prohibited items could have been brought in, what sort of things did you mean?
HmI shouldnt talk about the animals.
With the passed out drunk Russians and people hiding somewhere smoking cigarettes pretending not to and the kid hidden in an empty room, I wouldnt be surprised if guns or drugs appeared too.
Come to think of it, no drugs appeared. Never show up, ever. Guns are troublesome enough already. My words indirectly informed Kang Soojung that shes with people could ur, but not sure if she understood. Lee Jihyun seemed to be deep in thought. Then she asked me:
Doctor, does Jihyuk smoke?
Ah! Caught off guard by the sudden probing question, I contemted for a few seconds how to respond before answering. Didnt she say Seo Jihyuk liked Lee Jihyun?
I cannot disclose patients medical information to others.
He said he quit. Okay, got it.
Just where did she make that deductive leap from what I said? As I was flustered, Lee Jihyun naturally nced at me, and afraid confirming anything more would be damning, I hurriedly shut my mouth. Lee Jihyun went on:
Lets head to the escape pod bay first, then the living quarters.
Why not go to the living quarters first?
I have several reasons, but in our current situation, if any functional escape pods are left, itd be best to send people off in them as quickly as possible. No need to struggle in this ocean any longer than necessary.
As she walked ahead of Yoo Geum-yi, Lee Jihyun gazed at her back and said that. Then she turned to me.
And my going to the South District has the goal of rescuing the 5 trapped people in the living quarters, but more importantly securing any remaining escape pods. That takes priority over rescue.
As we walked through the passageway connected to the South District, I noticed Lee Jihyun muttering something small. When I asked what she was saying, Lee Jihyun spoke a bit shyly.
Umsince Im Christian, I was praying to God asking Him to save us.
Is it effective?
Well, we havent died yet.
Yoo Geum-yi, listening to my conversation with Jihyun, softlyughed. Without stopping, we briskly walked down the passageway and at the entrance to the South District, were met with arge sculpture of a tiger. the West District also had a quadruped animal statue when entering, but it didnt resemble a tiger at all.
Right at the corner of the South District, Yoo Geum-yi headed straight for the research center. Then she stopped in front of what looked to be a gigantic mass that was blocking the way a door-like thing that seemed topletely obstruct the path leading to the research center. I dont think that was there before. Yoo Geum-yi frowned at the door-shaped blockade before raising her hand to the panel beside it.
[Beep. the South District Research Center is closed.]
As Yoo Geum-yi pressed the panel multiple times unsessfully, Lee Jihyun approached and tried pressing it with her own hand. But it didnt open even for an engineer. What about me? When I ced my palm on it, still nothing. As Lee Jihyun fiddled with the panel, she told Yoo Geum-yi:
Theyve got it locked so that only Director-level or higher can enter.
Under what circumstances would it be closed off?
At my question, Yoo Geum-yi chewed her lip for a bit before replying:
There are many reasons. Could be a fire, or gas leak. Closing off the research center is forb safety. Since theb closest to here is the Deep Sea Bio Center, Director Ang Malone probably closed it off. Lab safety management responsibility liespletely with each Centers director.
Upon hearing that name, I immediately envisioned long blonde hair swimming through the ocean. It was my first time seeing something like that outside the base. Could Center Director Ang Malone have been on her way to close off ess to the research center? Lee Jihyun swiftly concluded:
Now that we know we cant enter, lets go check out the escape pods.
Yoo Geum-yi gazed at the door regretfully before turning away. She said her advisor andbmates were all at the research center. As someone who never went through grad school, I cant fully understand her feelings, but from the rants Ive heard from acquaintances in Masters/PhD programs, Yoo Geum-yis career that spanned several years was now left up in the air. Plus with acquaintances you saw daily suddenly gone missing
In my dream, I knew Yoo Geum-yi had given up on heading to the research center to rescue Kim Ga-young. But the current her doesnt know who shes waiting to rescue. Should I tell her? But the present me doesnt know who Kim Ga-young is either. As we walked, I opened up my tablet to check the posts on the underwater base message boards.
+++
Title: People are on their way to the South District living quarters
Content: Provide urate info on the number trapped and identities to aid rescue efforts.
Comments
HELP: Actually only 1 person is trapped in Room 77, not 5.
+++
I could feel how much deliberation it took for Kim Ga-young to post thatment. I informed the people ahead of me walking about the content of the post.
It says only 1 person is trapped in the South District living quarters, not 5.
Did they leave a name?
No.
Wise. Nodding, Lee Jihyun lightly replied:
I figured thats how it would be.
Huh?
Chapter 69
Chapter 69
People here often get trapped because of the doors, and once there was chaos when 4 people got stuck, but there havent been many cases of 5 people trapped.
Answering my blurted question, Yoo Geum-yi said:
If their identity is revealed, you cant tell if a rescuer wille or if someone who doesnt get along with them will show up as a potential criminal insteadOh my god. The trapped person is a woman.
With Kim Ga-young being the one trapped, Yoo Geum-yis inference was correct. But how did she know the trapped person was female? As she walked briskly, Lee Jihyun told me:
. Tell them to get ready.
Is that okay? Couldnt the people reading this post realize someone is wandering the South District?
If I were my usual self, I would never have had such thoughts. But from Kang Soojungs style of writing, she seemed reluctant to reveal where they were headed or even the location of the person she was writing to.
In our current situation, who else other than us is going to go underwater to rescue that person? Itll look to others reading like more than 2 people are wandering the South District, but if someone was going to save them, they would have already done it by now. Tell them to get ready.
I wrote ament under the name RESCUE. [On our way. Get ready to exit the room and wait.] Lee Jihyun began entering the escape pod bay but stopped halfway.
Seeing the puddle at the entrance to the escape pod bay, Lee Jihyun nkly stared at the floor before looking back up at us and muttering lowly:
There are engineers inside.
Huh? Uh, yes? Yes?
At my stupid reply of Engineers inside? I see. But how did you know that?, Yoo Geum-yi crinkled her eyebrows as well.
You mean the engineers who know someone is trapped in the living quarters right next to the escape pods but didnt go rescue them are in there?
How did you know there were engineers?
At my question, Lee Jihyun quickly responded:
The footprints left on the floor are from shoes engineers wear when working underwater. Looks like they entered the South District after some exterior work.
On the floor were scattered footprints left by people who had rushed over in wet shoes from the flooded living quarters. But imprinted over some were a few other shoe prints. Right. Now that I looked, Lee Jihyuns shoes were different from the sneakers the rest of us wore. Wait, is this development different from my dream? Lee Jihyun asked us with an expression that said she didnt expect much but would still ask:
Do you have anything that could be used as a weapon?
No.
None.
Wouldnt they not know someone is trapped?
Engineers? Those guys handle pretty much all tasks through tablets.
I see. Not for dentistry. Plus theres that underwater base message board. I didnt even know something like that existed before now. Lee Jihyuns expression showed she was reluctant to enter through the door immediately. Hm. Probably because bonds between the engineering teams werent close. As she looked at the thick, sturdy door of the escape pod bay, Yoo Geum-yi asked:
Couldnt they have escaped on the pods?
Thats the best case scenario.
Jihyun-ssi. Wouldnt it be better to rescue the trapped person first thene here? Its not far from the living quarters anyway.
What if the escape pods are gone when we get back?
At Lee Jihyuns question, I simply answered:
We go to another section. Were going to rescue them anyway.
Lee Jihyun hesitated for about 5 seconds before nodding. Seeing how she valued time, she seemed simr to Shin HaeryangDoes that mean Lee Jihyun was ex-military or a mercenary too? Not sure. As Lee Jihyun and Yoo Geum-yi walked ahead, I watched their backs and steeled myself. Since wed be moving together either way, we had no choice but to trust each other. I slowly began speaking.
Actually, I had a dream a few hours ago.
Yes.
I saw a simr scene.
How was it simr?
After thinking for a moment how to respond to Yoo Geum-yis question, I spoke up with some hesitation.
The-the South District area of the underwater base got hit by missiles, people were unable to escape and dying, were rescuing like now, and some pseudo group takes over the base, stuff like that.
Lee Jihyun, who had been walking ahead vigntly without responding, now nced back at me. Then she said:
How did you know the South District was attacked by missiles?
In the dream.
Even as I answered, I felt like I was bing aplete idiot.
Mouth agape, Yoo Geum-yi stared at me strangely. Ah, I see why. Anyone would look at someone spewing nonsense in this situation that way. I figured Lee Jihyun would react simrly to Yoo Geum-yi, but surprisingly, she said nothing, merely scrutinizing me briefly before hastening her steps again and responding:
Its true the South District was attacked by missiles. My team members nearly all died from the explosions while working.
Huh? Really?
As Yoo Geum-yi reacted in astonishment and repeated the question, Lee Jihyun fixed her gaze ahead and nodded. Stunned, Yoo Geum-yi walked unsteadily before asking me:
Wasnt that some weird dream story you had? The research center at the South District got blown up by missilesthats real? Why? Who? Who would think topletely blow up a research center with over 400 people inside?
I dont know. My dream didnt show that part.
The people at the research center gathered to improve the Earths environmental issues. Its not like they wanted to terraform others and ruin them by going to space. They joined forces to somehow try saving the. Missiles my assHow are we going to deal with the deep sea pollution
Umsince concrete and rebar and stuff will sink to the bottom, our mesopgic zone wont be impacted too badly, will it?
Didnt seem my words were much help. As Yoo Geum-yi held the back of her neck in dismay, walking unsteadily, I worried she might copse. But Yoo Geum-yi kept moving forward on wobbly legs. Seeing that, I sighed internally. I asked a question to Lee Jihyuns back as she walked a bit faster than me.
You dont seem very surprised, Jihyun-ssi.
Is that so? I was so shocked when the research center first blew up that nothing Ive heard nowpares.
No, I meant the part about dreaming it.
Lee Jihyun hesitated, swallowing her words for a bit as she gazed into the distance before responding.
The Bible has many passages about dreaming the future as a divine revtion. Even scenes where angels directly appear to Mary to give news of her pregnancy. For Christians, divine messages through dreams arent that shocking. Rather, what you said about people being unable to escape on pods or pseudo groups taking over the base is more concerning to me.
Is that so? Are these memories I have some divine revtion or something? But if so, why didnt I get any when my father died? When disaster struck my family, why didnt I receive any divine messages? Never in my life have I felt so favored by God to receive something like this. If this is what living a favored life is, then Id rather livepletely unfavored.
Is that so? I thought it was just a meaningless dream. At least until the underwater base flooding and escaping the West District.
At my words, Lee Jihyun swiftly summarized the situation.
Either way, the goal to rescue the trapped person remains unchanged.
I suppose youre right.
It wasnt my first encounter with a pseudo-religious cult. Plus wed have to enter the escape pod bay to know anything about the pods. As we headed towards the living quarters, Lee Jihyun hesitantly asked me:
Inin your dream, were you able to escape?
Uh, yeah, so
I died a grisly death. Should I tell her as is? It hasnt happened yet, so rather than dampening any will to escape by exining, wouldnt it be better to have some hope through a nicer story? After observing me for a few seconds, Lee Jihyun spoke.
I understand.
She didnt get an answer from me? Then Lee Jihyun briskly walked ahead, supporting the stumbling Yoo Geum-yi until we quickly arrived at the the South District living quarters entrance. I practically ran from my measured steps to get there before them.
When I opened my tablet to the underwater base boards, the page was flooded with posts about Room 77 of the South District. Most were about fires going out and rising water levels being frightening.
I informed the others of the tablet contents while watching Lee Jihyun examine the partition doors connected to the living quarters. She deliberated over whether to press the drainage buttons for the section with lowered partitions, the rooms from 50-99 where Room 77 was located. Then she exined her dilemma to me and Yoo Geum-yi.
Normally it should drain some of the water, but if its broken, the water might actually flood in faster.
Then cant you just open the door heading into the living quarters and not press it if the water level is too high?
Still stunned, Yoo Geum-yi shook her head as she nkly looked at her tablet.
Its probably best not to take pointless risks. There are already too many things beyond our control.
epting Yoo Geum-yis opinion, Lee Jihyun checked the water pressure shown on the partition door before opening the door leading into the living quarters. A dark staircase appeared. The third step was barely visible by the passageway lighting, but the rest couldnt be seen at all. With the lights out, a chill crept down my spine as I gazed into the endless darkness of the underground area. I rubbed my trembling body with my arms to calm myself, then looked all around. I noticed the axe Shin Haeryang had carried off with him. I gently set my backpack down on the floor and pointed to the axe while telling Lee Jihyun:
Lets take that with us.
I quickly pulled the emergency axe off the wall. It was heavier than I expected. Almost the same weight as the guns in my dream. How did Shin Haeryang run around carrying this thing? As Lee Jihyun knocked on a section of the wall, a panel fell off, revealing shlights and a thead screwdriver. She vigorously wiped the shlight handles on her suit before looking to Yoo Geum-yi and me and speaking.
Dr. Moohyun and I will head down while Geum-yi waits here by the door for us.
Chapter 70
Chapter 70
Yoo Geum-yi looked at the two of us, then gazed at the empty dormitory hallway, and then at the dark staircases, before saying,
I want to go down and help too.
We dont know how high the water level is.
Lee Jihyun immediately objected. Ah, thats right. I remember the water level was extremely high before too . Yoo Geum-yi was the shortest among us. As I contemted taking off my shoes, Lee Jihyun firmly stated,
Keep your shoes on. If you hurt your feet, you wont be able to move.
I wanted to take them off because I didnt want them to get wet, but she made a good point. Hearing those words, I left my bag on the floor and held an ax in one hand. Yoo Geum-yi said to Jihyun and me,
Please be careful ande back safe.
After quickly making the sign of the cross, Jihyun turned on her shlight, held it in her mouth, gripped a thead screwdriver in one hand, leaving the other free, and started descending the stairs. Wouldnt it be more convenient to hold the shlight in her hand?
I carefully walked down the water-logged steps, trying my best not to slip. asionally I would forget I was holding an ax, sending chills down my spine. I held it as far from my body as possible and descended into the darkness.
The South Districts dormitory was pitch ck. With all the lights off, the rural mud-like darkness made it impossible to see ahead. The only illumination came from the penlight-sized shlight beam from Jihyun, who was a step or two in front.
Most of the floating objects were submerged. Jihyun slowly dipped her feet into the water, taking her time as the cold water crept up her calves and thighs. After Jihyun took a few steps into the dark water, it looked almost chest-deep.
I also slowly entered the water. A heart attack now would be terrible. Brrr. Its so cold! The situation was simr when I went to save Kim Ga-young in my dream, but this feels even scarier. I recalled the dream where the water nearly reached my chin. Its okay. I can do this. The water level is lower than before so I can rescue them more easily.
Jihyun moved towards the front without making a sound. asionally she would shine her shlight into open doors then continue forward. How is she walking so well? I was the only one sshing water while clinging to the walls and doors like an octopus. As I held onto the cold dark walls, a strange thought crossed my mind.
What if the person walking ahead of me isnt Jihyun?
What if the real Jihyun didnte down and Im walking alone in this darkness?
What if Jihyun suddenly melts away into the dark waters?
Or turns around, smiles widely with her mouth torn from ear to ear?
What if that shlight suddenly goes out and Im trapped in the darkness?
Have I watched too many movies? But as time passed, I became so frightened that the slightest touch would make me scream. My hands trembled as my grip on the ax weakened. Even holding the ax terrified me. In my panicked state, I shouldnt be carrying something beyond my ability to handle, for both our safety. Unable to withstand the fear any longer, I called out to the figure two meters ahead.
Ji-Jihyun-ssi! Jihyun-ssi!
As Jihyun turned her head, the shlight beam shone directly in my eyes, blinding me. She spat out the shlight and asked, Whats wrong? I couldnt see her face clearly because of the re.
Why?
Lets go together.
My voice sounded more pathetic than I expected. But Jihyun didnt say anything and simply gestured for me toe to her side quickly. I swallowed my fear and approached Jihyun. Previously walking single file, we now walked side by side. As I pushed aside a chair entangling my feet, Jihyun shone her shlight on the chair and my hands before facing forward again and asking,
The water probably reached this level in the West District Hall too?
Huh? No. It was up to the ceiling. Theres not even room for breathing.
I see.
Why do you ask?
My wallet, phone, passport, bible, rosary beads, everything was in my room.
Ah, thats too bad. It seems youll have to rece them.
There are some items I cant rece so Im a bit bothered.
Jihyun let out a long sigh as a floating cup narrowly missed her. Talking to Jihyun suddenly reminded me of the family photo on my desk back in my room. Ahcrap I took it in my dream but did I grab it this time? As we neared Room 77, Jihyuns steps grew slower and more cautious. She said to me,
Even going to Room 77 could be a trap. It might be dangerous so be prepared.
Huh?
The only things terrifying me right now are the cold water and darkness. I figured the biggest traps would be a mini table suddenly rushing to trip my ankles or a chair leg stabbing my calf. Not understanding her, Jihyun gave a longer exnation.
Someone couldve left a message on the bulletin board without even being trapped to lure helpers here.
Oh I guess thats possible. But why would anyone do that?
Humans capable of malice can do anything.
Even so, we still came here to rescue people.
I said lightly with a smile. Were trudging through this freezing water and darkness, not to mention risking danger. Jihyun expressionlessly responded,
Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. We came here to catch people.
And she smiled slightly. I recalled that was something Jesus said when headhunting some people in the Bible, but didnt remember the exact words.
How many do you want to catch?
As many as possible.
Although Im an atheist with tremendous aversion towards religion, there are still moments that amaze me. Braving danger to rescue others because she believes the Lord has her back, or trying to do good through that faith, even if Jihyun is old enough to be my grandmother and chatters nonstop.
Of course I know there are rotten eggs. Too many to count who spread poison and devour flesh in Gods name. But whatever her reasons, Jihyun is risking peril to save others. As we approached Room 77, she called out,
Were here to rescue you. Is anyone inside? Whos there?
When Jihyun knocked, a womans scream came from the room.
Im here! Theres someone! Save me!
It was Kim Ga-young. I was relieved to hear a familiar voice. Kim Ga-young rapidly said,
The door wont open! Its stuck or jammed! It wont open automatically or manually no matter how hard I push and pull! Please get me out!
Ga-young eonni ?
Yes, its me! Who is it?
Its Jihyun, from the engineering team.
Waaahhhh! Jihyun-ah! I got trapped alone! Wahhh!
Please wait a little longer.
Jihyun then handed me the shlight. She felt around the door before taking a deep breath and submerging her head underwater. Following her lead, I nervously held the shlight over her face.
Jihyuns short hair swayed beneath the surface. I could see her wedging the thead screwdriver into a gap in the door. Then she emerged from the water, gasping for air. I offered her the ax I had carried all this way. As Jihyun swept her dripping wet hair back, wiping the water from her face,
Itll probably be useless No, actually. Who opened this door in my dream?
Shin Haeryang did.
Do you remember how?
Not really, but he had an ax when he entered. When he came out, it was gone.
Yeah Even I realize how utterly useless myments are. Its a wonder Jihyun hasnt discarded me out of uselessness.
I thought our team leader could smash it with his strength.
Then she took the ax, inhaled deeply, and submerged her head underwater. As I illuminated below with the shlight, Jihyun was using the ax handle to widen the gap made by the thead screwdriver.
When Jihyun emerged again, the door had cracked open about 3 cm. Wide enough to fit a finger. I shone the shlight through the gap. Something seemed to move behind the door. When Kim Ga-young approached the gap and peeked through, my heart nearly stopped. My pulse shot up rapidly. Ah, I really am easily frightened.
Amidst the momentary terror of our eyes meeting even in this darkness, a thought crossed my mind why can I see her whiteplexion? With my pounding heartbeat deafening my ears, Kim Ga-young asked me,
How can I help?
Um Jihyun-ssi, should we push the door sideways?
No. Think of lifting it upwards.
The three of us exerted all our strength trying to lift the handle-less door upwards to no avail. Jihyun kept kicking the ax handle stuck in the door with her foot. Then suddenly she submerged her head again. I nervously shone the shlight over her. She seemed to be doing something, and the door slowly moved sideways, opening about 30 cm. When Jihyun emerged from the water, she told Kim Ga-young,
Ga-young eonni , try getting out through the gap.
Kim Ga-young tried head first through the narrow opening. Her head barely squeezed through. Seeing that, I breathed a sigh of relief.
Since her head got through, there shouldnt be an issue getting out. Thank goodness.
Wiping water from her face, Jihyun coughed and asked me,
Ahem what about her bottom?
To put it extremely, her head cant be sliced but her butt fat can.
Theres no need to cut anything!
A startled Kim Ga-young quickly wriggled out through the narrow gap. The moment she emerged from the room, Jihyun said,
Hurry and leave this ce. The water keeps rising.
Coming to my senses, I realized the water already reached my shoulders. When had it risen so high? Have I already adapted to this situation that I didnt even notice? Clinging spider-like to the walls and doors, Jihyun started moving crab-like with the shlight gripped in her hand. Kim Ga-young and I followed behind.
Chapter 71
Chapter 71
With the water rising dangerously high, walking became exhausting and breathing difficult. Kim Ga-young, the shortest among us, clenched her mouth shut and lifted her chin as high as possible. It seemed she was using the strategy to prevent water from entering her nose.
I walked watching their dark silhouettes floating in front while keeping my neck above water. About halfway, the ck object I assumed was Jihyun suddenly disappeared with a shriek and sh of light.
Jihyun-ssi!
I saw the shlight light rippling underwater where she had fallen. Then within seconds, Kim Ga-young, who had been 60 cm ahead, also noiselessly sank into the water. What the! Why did they both vanish underwater!
Frightened, I instinctively pushed off the wall with all my strength. Something mmed forcefully into my calf. I saw stars from the pain. As I opened my mouth, a mouthful of water gushed in, which I involuntarily swallowed before standing up. At least there will be bruises or gashes on my calf. At worst, fractures.
The pain was excruciating but I managed to stand by wing at the wall with my fingers. And despite risking death, I had to know what it was. Feeling around underwater it was a bed.
This is crazy. Almost all the furniture in the underwater base is fixed in ce. With all the open dorm room doors and floating objects, why would a non-fixed personal bed be rolling around knocking into peoples calves? Jihyuns face surfaced from the water. The wavering beam of light illuminated my face.
What about eonni !
Shes underwater!
Hearing that, Jihyun immediately submerged without hesitation. The shlight also went underwater. Using my hands and feet, I walked forward like a goalkeeper, iling my limbs. stic items, books, chairs, wigs (frightening), clothes, etc, brushed against me. As Jihyuns and my lights converged, something touched my arm. My hairs stood on end, not just on my back but my nape too. Grabbing it and pulling up the figure, the body drooped limply. It was ghost-like but I hurriedly hoisted the arm over my shoulder. When Jihyun re-emerged, I loudly eximed,
I got her!
Lets go!
This was the second time carrying someone underwater. Or third if counting my dream. She wasnt heavy, just difficult. My legs hurt so much. And with Jihyun ahead without anyone to see my face, I wept uncontrobly in the darkness. Crying made it even harder to see ahead. Dammit. Crying now could lead to dehydration or shock. My rationality judged my physical state dispassionately from a third persons view yet stupidly, my tears kept streaming down relentlessly.
The water was now up to my neck. Regaining her senses on my back, Kim Ga-young loudly coughed before weakly saying, Leave me. Go alone. Ill be okay.
Hearing that made me cry harder. Waaahhh! Why did wee here! Did Ie to leave alone! Waaaaahhhhh! All sorts of objects floated past, asionally pping my weeping face.
Then suddenly, Jihyun, my hope and guiding light, tumbled backwards with a swoosh. The shlight beam illuminated me 2 meters below before plunging into the water with a ssh. While bawling, I approached where the light was rippling.
Ridiculously, despite bursting into tears, my mind wondered if the shlight was waterproof, considering the situation so far. Fortunately, the wristnyard had looped around Jihyuns wrist so she was easy to locate.
Sniffling noisily, I shifted Ga-young on my back before draping Jihyuns arm over my other shoulder. Both their arms hung across each of my shoulders. If unlucky, their arms may dislocate or shoulders pop out from this rescue method. With my face above water, I couldnt think of any better transportation method for carrying two people simultaneously. Why are there no methods for carrying two? Is that why its never done? Then what should be done in this situation!
Muttering dont fall repeatedly between sobs, I walked forward clutching them both. Another chair floated past me. Extremely fortunately, beingpletely submerged provided enough buoyancy that theirbined weight didnt hinder my walking too much.
While identally gulping down another nasty mouthful of water up to my chin, I barely made it near the stairwell. Something jerked Ga-young from me in the darkness, startling me to shift my body. The dark figure said,
Its me! Yoo Geum-yi!
Still supporting Jihyun, I climbed the stairs with eyes shut after glimpsing the light, tears pricking from the sudden brightness since my vision had already adapted to the pitch ck dorm. Like a bat with poor eyesight exposed to light.
Only upon entering the connecting corridor could we see each other clearly. The pantsuit on Jihyuns calves and shoulders were torn with blood oozing out. Afterying Jihyun down, I returned below to assist Ga-young up with Geum-i.
The calf area of Ga-youngs jeans was ripped, blood visible beneath. ncing at my own calves after folding up my pants, I saw dark swollen bruises but no serious gashes hindering walking. I was probably struck after hitting the other two which slowed down the moving bed.
With Jihyun unconscious, I first checked she was breathing and had a heartbeat. After tilting her head to open her airway and a few seconds passed, she came to with a gasp. Once confirming she had regained consciousness, I fussed trying to tear her bloodied pantsuit to check her wounds, grunting away. Whatever that ck pantsuit was made of, it was extremely tough and rigid. Spitting water far away, Jihyun said,
My shoulders are killing me. I got struck by a chair leg at the end and suddenly couldnt see anything. Ive seen the face of God.
The huge bed that struck all our calves swept past.
Suddenly sitting up, Jihyun waved her arms towards my back yelling,
Close the door! Close it! Quick, shut the gate to hell!
In our flustered state, we had left wide open the door to the flooded basement dorm. I hastily rushed over to close and lock the door leading downstairs. Before shutting it, I saw the water pursuing us only 3 steps behind.
I stopped Jihyuns iling with one hand while using all my strength to tear open the bloody pantsuit on her calf. Her leg wasnt as horrific as I had imagined. I had been petrified that bone fragments might be visible. At a nce, it didnt seem that severe. While pressing on her wounds with my thumb, I asked, Does this hurt when I press?
Jihyuns expression contorted whenever my finger moved. Everywhere youre pressing hurts.
Clenching her fist tightly, she answered while grimacing. Her shivering fist made me flinch, worried she might direct it my way.
Can you stand up?
I dont know.
Try once. Ill support you, to check if you can stand or not.
While Yoo Geum-yi struggled with Ga-youngs drenched jeans nearby, I propped up Jihyun and helped her stand on both feet. The moment she stood upright, she spewed a slew of religious profanities. Foul curses erupted targeting the floating dorm beds that must be sizzling in hellfire along with those involved in the underwater base construction deserving to roast together. She also named foreign engineers while condemning demons whounched missiles at the fourth underwater base. Finally, she cursed those who bought chairs and beds with private funds without even bothering to bolt them to the floor, swearing they would burn in hellfire above 180 degrees Celsius for over 30 minutes.
Though startled by her sudden outburst, I ignored it and swiftly inspected her calf. Dammit. Whats needed is an experienced orthopedic surgeon, not a dentist.
What f*cking lunatic did not secure the f*cking chairs to the floor! I hope 8 huge bolts hammer through that f*ckers skull! See how he likes flying around with unsecured seats!
Barely standing, Jihyun vented the pain in her calves and shoulders through curses. Choking back water, Ga-young gave a thumbs up to Jihyuns swearing.
This scene is rare in a dental clinic. Its difficult to cuss with your mouth wide open. And we call the dental drill a handpiece who would dare spew profanity at the dentist wielding a whirring handpiece? More patients redirect their curses at the front desk.
Can you walk if the bone is fractured? You can walk. By enduring the surging pain and weeping internally, you can walk. Immobility would tremendously restrict our movements. And when will we find splints here?
If I could have my way, I would immediately send them both to get x-rays at a hospital. Her legs were swollen but with both legs swollen, I couldnt discern if one was normal. After seating Jihyun back down, I approached to inspect her shoulder when she spoke.
I think my shoulder popped out.
It visibly looks that way. Despite torn skin oozing blood and forming dark bruises, feeling it revealed no abnormal protrusions or bone fragments.
Theres an amateur method I can try popping your shoulder back in ce but I dont really rmend it. The second option is to immobilize your arm and shoulder with clothes or fabric without reducing it first until we can get to a hospital.
Do you think we can reach a hospital within 2 hours given our current situation and the revtion Moohyun- ssi received in his dream?
I looked around us before shaking my head.
No.
Chapter 72
Chapter 72
Ill be able to escape safely. I just need to go to the hospital and get treated. Dont worry too much. I should be spewing hopeful words like these to make sure the patient doesnt get anxious, but the lies felt stuck in my throat. Lee Jihyun looked at me and said,
I want you to set the bone now.
What Im doing isnt a professional procedure so there could be nerve damage, vascr damage, habitual dislocations, muscle or bone damage
I didnt formally study how to do this but I picked some things up from a friend who was an orthopedic surgery resident. And I saw someone reset a dislocated shoulder before in the past. If I do some quackery here I might get sued when I leave. But if Jihyun and I both make it out and she sues me, I must be doing pretty alright.
Jihyun drew a cross on her body and left shoulder before interrupting me decisively in a whisper.
Right now.
I turned my head and saw Yoo Geum-yi finally taking off Kim Ga-youngs jeans, so I nodded. I held Jihyuns shoulder and arm and hesitated before finding the right words.
Open your mouth very wide and shout Ave Maria three times.
Jihyun looked at me for a few seconds before answering.
Ave Maria. Ave Ma Arrggghh!
There was a crunching noise as the bones snapped into ce. Fortunately her mouth was open so she didnt bite her tongue or clench her teeth. Pain is a personal thing that no one can shoulder for you, whether its of the body or mind. Its truly the most awful private property a person can possess. Since we dont have our lovely friend Painkiller right now, Ill have to leave Jihyun to endure her agony while I go check on Kim Ga-young sitting next to her.
Kim Ga-young was missing flesh about the size of two thumbnails on her calf. It seemed the bedframe had gouged it out when she crashed into it, leaving an abrasion and contusion. Fortunately there didnt seem to be any exposed bone, fractures, or protruding fragments on the surface. It just looked like torn skin and muscle oozing blood.
I opened my bag and pulled out a towel that had been under the sleeping cats body. The cat, body flipped over, looked at me reproachfully as if in protest but I ignored its gaze and quickly closed the bag again. Sorry. A bit busy now. And when I pressed the towel to Ga-youngs leg, I made sure to use the side that hadnt touched the cat. The gauze soaked up the blood rapidly. Ga-young let out a small breath. Yoo Geum-yi looked around and said,
Theundry room is just a little walk from here. And theres a shower room next to it too. Lets go there. You both have injuries, and your clothes are soaked.
As soon as I heard those words, I became aware of how my clothes were sagging wetly against me. I was shivering without realizing it. Like I did with Jihyun earlier, I told Ga-young to try standing. Supporting herself on me, Ga-young gritted her teeth and stood on both feet. She didnt even groan. While Jihyun would have cursed up a storm, Ga-young had kept her mouth mped shut since leaving the dorm.
Normally in situations like this, even if the injury isnt a fracture you still treat it like one. Butcking any resources here, what treatment can I provide? On top of that, Im a dentist. Im only about 70% useful without my handpiece.
Alright No point wasting time looking for splints here. There probably isnt anything around this hallway anyway. I nodded at Yoo Geum-yis suggestion.
Ill leave Ga-young- ssi to you. Ill support Jihyun- ssi .
Jihyun was taller than me and heavier. I shoved my bag and Yoo Geum-yis bag up my one arm, then grabbed Jihyuns pad in my hand. With my other arm I supported Jihyun. At first I thought about carrying her but my legs were too shaky to try.
Our team reached theundry room first, ahead of the Ga-young-Geum-yi pair. I tensely opened the door but no one was inside. There were several washing machines, with washed or half-washed clothes strewn messily all over the floor. Some of the machines were still running.
I sat Jihyun down on a chair next to the long table used for folding clothes or ironing. Ugh. Jihyun let out a groan as she lowered herself onto the seat. Just as I was about to leave theundry room again, the other two came in. I was supporting Ga-young from Geum-yis opposite side. Jihyun was using a towel to wipe her face. Looking at the pile of clothes, I said to the three,
Change into some of these clothes roughly and rest about 10 minutes. Ill be outside.
I gathered up some big t-shirts and pants that looked like mens clothes and took them out of theundry room with me. As the door closed behind me I was left alone in the hallway.
A sudden thought that I was by myself in this empty corridor made my back run cold, but still, it was several thousand times better than being in that dark water. As I messily stripped off my wet clothes, I used a t-shirt with a white cat printed on it to pat my damp skin dry and checked my calf.
Probably because the other twos legs took damage first, I was in the best condition of the three. But even just lightly rubbing my calf brought involuntary groans from the bruises there. I imagined swallowing anti-inmmatory meds, painkillers, and muscle rxants as I pulled on some sweatpants with an stic waistband. The other pants were all too big to wear.
And whoever owned these shirts had bizarre taste. My options were either a blue earthworm, red rooster, or a ck tee with the words Pr Star. The Pr Star one looked the most normal so I put that on. I roughly toweled my wet hair with the other tees before the effort of standing grew too tiring. I slumped down to sit crouched against the wall of the hallway.
What should I do now? Last time when we went back to the central building, a gunfight broke out between there and the east building. Can we enter the central building now? How much time did we spend on the rescue at the west building dorms? At least they can still walk even if they cant run, thats fortunate. What if someone attacks us while were resting here? Cant fall asleep Ah, someone mightve written so I should check my tablet too. Using a t-shirt as a pillow over my head, I fell asleep leaning against the wall.
I only realized I had sprawled out sleeping on the dim hallway floor when Yoo Geum-yi shook my arm. I wiped the drool from my palm after getting up, and aches permeated my entire body. I struggled to resist the temptation to immediately copse my limp body back onto the ground and let my mind drift into unconsciousness. All sorts of clothes covered me. I pushed off someones jeans draping my body and rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand. Still dazed, I asked the Yoo Geum-yi beside me in surprise,
How long was I out? Did I sleep for a long time?! Did Geum-yi- ssi cover me with the clothes?
Its alright, Moohyun- ssi . Everyone slept about 25 minutes. I covered you all up so your body temperatures wouldnt drop too much while you were sleeping.
More than sleeping, I felt like I had nearly fainted just now when I thought back on it. The others were probably simr. It was right for us to rest but still Yoo Geum-yi seemed to have stayed awake standing guard.
Oh, I see. Thank you. But Im worried we slept for too long.
If we didnt rest this much, wed be too exhausted to even move. Dont worry too much. We just need to move energetically for 15 more minutes.
Well, we cant turn back time so Shes very positive. Yoo Geum-yi went into theundry room and brought the others out. As I covered my mouth to yawn and turned on my tablet, the group emerged, now changed into dry clothes. Everyone was making an effort to shake off their drowsiness. Kim Ga-young, eyes swollen, nodded her head repeatedly between yawns and held out her right hand to me. Her throat sounded slightly hoarse.
Im Kim Ga-young, a researcher from the west building.
Im Park Moohyun from the north building. I just did what had to be done.
I grasped and lightly shook Ga-youngs hand before letting it go. Lee Jihyun stretched before crying Ow, ow! and grimacing as she lowered her left arm. Then looking at my tablet, she asked,
Any good news?
.None, unfortunately.
Jihyun rubbed her left arm with her right one before speaking.
Lets head to the west building evacuation pod first, like we originally nned. We got dyed here but if we can escape through the pod, we take it. If not, we move somewhere else.
We have to reach the west building evacuation pod port to get out of here anyway. Please. Please! Please let the pod be intact! Just this once, dont let the dreame true!
Alright. If we cant escape from the pod port, well decide then where to go next.
As soon as I said that, Kim Ga-young walking ahead sighed quietly.
I was so stiff from the pain earlier I couldnt move at all, but now after some rest I can walk again even though it still hurts.
That would be muscle rigidity from the shock. Near-death experiences can induce shock too. It reminds me of the R.I.C.E treatment for contusions I learned a while ago. Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation . We at least got some brief Rest . No need to apply the other steps here, I just want to go straight to a hospital. Were we supposed to do this treatment within 24 hours?
In everyday life theres rarely a need to apply this stuff. In Korea if the injury is bad you just go to a hospital ER, and if its not serious you visit an orthopedic clinic that opens at 8 AM to get fixed right up. Its like magic how the doctors there can return your body to normal. Rubbing the ridge of her eyebrow with her thumb, Yoo Geum-yi hesitated before asking Kim Ga-young walking ahead,
Did you see anyone from the marine life center?
No I didnt. I only heard voices from the seafloor pollution center people. How about you all from the research center?
It was destroyed. I heard missiles blew it up, do you know anything?
First time hearing that. I was asleep and got woken up by people screaming as they all came rushing out of the dorms. I was stuck in there the whole time. No water flooded in and no one was shrieking anymore, just running footsteps I could hear. It was so, so scary you know? And wanna know what was weirdly funny about that situation? Even then some person went around searching each dorm room one by one.
..To look for people?
Kim Ga-young gave a bitter smile at Yoo Geum-yis question before saying quietly,
Seemed like they were ransacking. My neighbor researcher had a safe and I kept hearing it go beep beep with the password entered wrong. When were about to die, some people dont value their lives huh?
Ga-young then sighed again. Massaging her shoulder with the opposite hand, she made an effort to rx the stiffened muscles while speaking,
So I started screaming for help. And the guy was like whats the password, how would I know it? When I told him to open my door and Id tell him, he just swore at me and left.
Chapter 73
Chapter 73
As Kim Ga-youngs voice grew lower and lower, seeming upset at the memory, Yoo Geum-yiforted her in a soothing tone while stroking her back.
Dont stress over it too much. You already got out of there, eonni . Youll never have to go back into that awful dorm again. Just think about getting out of here now.
I hope that bastard trips and breaks his nose on the way out.
We allughed at Jihyuns curses. I also pondered if I had any encouraging words for Ga-young and replied,
Not taking the evacuation pod back then mightve been a blessing in disguise.
When Ga-young looked at me, I gave a sly smile and added,
Since we met each other.
Ga-young watched us and squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head wildly.
Listen, Im not the type to get touchy-feely emotional okay? Im a logical, scientific thinker you know? How are you all so cheesy.
Im a liberal arts major too. Very cold-hearted.
I studied science as well. Extremely objective.
Us engineers are obviously science people. Very tough individuals.
We teased Ga-young as we slowly walked towards the evacuation pod port. asionally we could hear her snorting. The posts talked about typing while crying with no copy-paste, or thinking everyone else had escaped leaving them alone in the entire Fourth Underwater Base. Too scary to be singing by themselves with no one else in the dorms. Watched horror movies together with the researchers the day before but didnt dare look behind, wondering if someone was there.
It mustve been very frightening in the darkness. Though for me too, I was scared every time I went down. As we walked I dug through my bag and took out some sugar-free candy, passing it around. Having something sweet dissolve in my mouth calmed me. Talking made me feel even more at ease.
We slowly ambled our way to the west buildings evacuation pod port. There was discussion of leaving Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga-young at the entrance while Jihyun and I checked inside the port first. Hearing this, Yoo Geum-yi shook her head.
Lets go in together.
Why?
Its scarier with just you two in this hallway!
Seeing Yoo Geum-yi look warily up and down the deserted corridor, Kim Ga-young vigorously nodded her head. .Geum-yi mustve been very frightened. Wow, waiting alone while we went to the west building dorms mustve been hard on her. Surveying the eerie surroundings, Kim Ga-young gave an exaggerated shiver before speaking,
Theres safety in numbers.
I snickered at her words since it reminded me of a joke a friend once told me.
If a bomb goes off you should run away so as not to die together.
If something might explode around us that badly we should just die, no?
When Yoo Geum-yi said that, Lee Jihyun made an ambivalent expression before instructing Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi to walk behind her and me. The four of us entered the evacuation pod port where two engineers were in front of the pod controls. Seeming startled at our arrival, they held monkey wrenches at the ready as if to throw them and asked sharply,
Stay there and speak, donte closer.
Why havent you escapedMarcus?
When Jihyun questioned them like so, one person waved upon recognizing her face. Still holding his tool, the other engineer looked us over and said,
The monitors showed the podes malfunctioning so we didnt board. What about you all?
We just got here wanting to use the pod.
Lee Jihyun omitted any mention of our rescue efforts and such. Seeing how the two didnt seem ready to immediately charge at us with their wrenches, she kept her distance and turned her head towards therge monitor screens. All the escape pods disyed were returning back to the oceans embrace, unable to break past the middle bathypgic zone (-1000m). The pods congregated around that depth, assuming it was the apex before gradually descending again. Having seen this before I was less shocked, but Yoo Geum-yi couldnt tear her eyes away from the spectacle. She watched the parabolic trajectories form on the monitors almost nkly.
Kim Ga-youngs reaction was stranger. Watching the escape pods positions and how they battered back into the seafloor at certain intervals, she gave an emptyugh several times. Feeling my gaze, she covered her mouth with one hand. After keeping it there a while, a smile still remained when she lowered it. Kim Ga-young looked at me with anger-filled eyes and said,
Isnt it funny? They were desperately running away together, ignoring screams pleading for help, not caring if fingernails were torn or throats ripped out shrieking to be saved, but now those people are alling back to the seafloor.
Twisted. Twisted bastard. I pretended not to hear Kim Ga-youngs muttered words. She mustve felt extremely wronged and upset. Jihyuns expression was distraught. Mouthing something inaudible, she kept making small crosses. Finally pulling herself somewhat out of her stupor from staring at the monitors, Yoo Geum-yi asked the two engineers,
What are you nning to do?
About what?
Escaping from here.
What we do is our business.
When the ck-haired man called Marcus dismissively answered Yoo Geum-yi, Jihyuns face contorted as she spoke.
Marcus. If youre thinking of fixing the remaining pods, give up.
..Why?
Are you serious? You think youll have the leisure to calmly repair those not knowing when the flooding could start?
Mind your business Miss Lee. If we fix them before the wateres we can still escape. If not we get submerged.
The bearded man beside Marcus brandished his wrench towards us.
The two pods here are ours so if your business in this port is done, leave.
Have fun with your broken escape pod.
As Kim Ga-young backed away mockingly, the wrench-wielding man asked me,
Doctor, did everyone from the north building already escape?
Huh? I confirmed the rooms past 38 were all emptied out.
You didnt see room 20?
No I didnt.Do you know them?
I saw you at the dental clinic before.
Oh uh! Ah!
There may be only one dentist, but multiple patients. How would I remember all their faces? Recalling their dental conditionses much quicker. The man interrogating me with the wrench has light brown hair down to his chin. Inparison his skin had been tomato red before but was now pale, plus there was no messy beard. So of course I wouldnt recognize him.
Mr. Harry Woods?
You remembered.
Thats right. This guy was from New Zend. So Marcus must be from there too? Suddenly patient information began popping into my head one after another. He said he lived in Queenstown or somewhere, andined when he came to the clinic about not being allowed to drink here. He had multiple adjacent surface cavities, diabetes, and hypertension but judging by his teeth there was clear alcohol addiction too. When he opened his mouthing to his dental appointments I could smell the alcohol emanating to make my head spin. He also had periodontal disease so had to quit drinking, but this guy vented all his irritation at me.
His face was tomato red back then too. Myst memory is of him angrily cursing at a native woman living across from him before storming out of the clinic. Harry asked me,
Did water also fill up the north building dorms?
Oh, yes it did.
Then theres no one left now I guess.
Obviously since it flooded. A thought suddenly urred to me and I asked Harry,
..What was in room 20?
None of your concern.
And he didnt borate further. The man called Marcus directed a question at Jihyun.
What are you all nning to do? How will you escape?
Jihyun coolly threw his own medicine back at him.
Thats our business.
Giving him the same dismissive response Yoo Geum-yi received earlier. They all seemedpletely unwilling to share any escape-rted information, not feeling mutual goodwill. Jihyun stretched her arms back and waved them, signaling me and the others to slowly back away. Seeing this, Marcus jeered,
Dont be scared. We wont randomly attack you or anything. You dont look to have anything worthwhile anyway.
Harry made mocking feints as if to charge us whileughing. I flinched but Jihyun showed no reaction, only watching fixedly until everyone else had exited the pod port before finally leavingst.
The people who escaped on the pods must all be dead now.
A chill seemed to run through Yoo Geum-yis body making her shudder violently as she spoke those words. Walking beside her, Kim Ga-young firmly grabbed her shoulder with one hand. After Jihyun drew a cross and muttered a few lines she let out a deep sigh. She then said quickly to Kim Ga-young nearby,
Ga-young eonni . Please write on the Underwater Base message boards that the west building evacuation pods cannot be used, all disabled. Use pods with caution when escaping.
Hearing that, Kim Ga-young hurriedly took out her waterlogged but vinyl-wrapped tablet from her bag. Her fingers danced rapidly over the keyboard. ncing warily behind as we walked down the corridor, Jihyun asked me,
What should we do now?
Huh?
What will happen?
Theres gunfire from the east building with people escaping from there into the central building. And some armed people there start shooting everyone dead. In the dream I ran away to the East District building.
ncing around the passageway nervously, Yoo Geum-yi mustve been frightened. Gazing towards the central building corridor, Jihyun seemed to be considering whether it was wise to enter.
So like Moohyun-ssi said, if we go into the central building we might encounter armed people?
If we dont head there immediately, what should we do instead?
Why not sprint full speed now from the central to East District building instead?
Having silently listened to the discussion between Jihyun and me, Yoo Geum-yi asked me,
Is the East District safe?
Her question made me feel choked, like a hand suddenly gripped my throat. Hearing Yoo Geum-yi and thinking it over, the East District building was not secure whatsoever either. Didnt Ha-yoon die in the elevator there? Seo Ji-hyuk took a bullet to his knee too. Plus Kang Soo-jeong and Jung Sang-hyun already went that way with still no news I sensed an ominous premonition. That Blue Dragon twisting its body around the elevator to watch us and the terror of running over there.
Ah no, its not safe either. Armed people also wait by the escape pod port there and shoot at you.
Then how did you escape?
By taking the elevator that keeps malfunctioning from ckouts.
..So one way or another, we have to ride the East District building elevator up into another Underwater Base.
Chapter 74
Chapter 74
Lee Jihyun frowned as she spoke.
If we dont take the escape pod, well have to use the diving subs, mining robots, or elevators, but no matter where we go North District, Central District, or East District we have to go through Central District.
What if we get unlucky and get shot if we go into the Central District right now? Am I being too scared? The gunfight might not even happen. People could still resolve this through talking. Theres no need to resort to violence like in dreams to forcibly tip the situation in our favor. Humans have good means ofmunication.
And I dont know how much time has passed, but we might have spent less time in the South District residence than we thought. Sopared to when the gunfight happens, we might have a buffer of 10 or 20 minutes.
Just then, a sound came from afar. Bang bang bang. Very faint, like peas popping. I didnt know what it was at first in my dream, but hearing it again now, I realize they were gunshots. Very distant gunshots.
Like a gazelle sensing the approach of a predator, Lee Jihyun lifted her head to look down the long corridor connecting South District and Central District. There was no one at the end of the corridor. The sound was probably echoing in this huge space, so it seemed to being from further than it really was. Lee Jihyun looked at me with tense eyes. She quickly asked Kim Ga-young, who was writing this post:
Noona, can you open the South District research center? I heard it was closed off.
What? No no. I dont have the authority to shut down the entire research center, let alone open it up. I can barely open and close the door to my ownb.
Lee Jihyun fell silent in thought as she looked at the sealed off entrance to South District. Finally, she asked me:
We probably cant make it out of the crossfire alive if we go to the Central District now. To get to the East District, we have to go through the Central District. And blockading the corridor between Central District and South District might buy us some time, but I wonder how long we canst in the South District.
Lee Jihyun gave a bitter smile as she looked at me, Yoo Geum, and Kim Ga-young. Yoo Geum-yi asked her:
Then what should we do?
Go where we dont want to go.
Lee Jihyun took out a tablet from her small backpack. Come to think of it, Id never seen her take out her electronic tablet before. She entered the passcode 000000 not very secure and logged in to unlock the screen. Just as I was thinking that, a scream came from afar. Tablet in hand, Lee Jihyun strode towards the South District research center silently like a tiger. We scrambled up to follow behind her.
I was wondering why the team leader gave me this before getting on the escape pod. At first, I thought this tablet belonged to our new team leader. But then I remembered the team leader left his tablet in his room when he went out. Yet when I walked by that asshole Michael in the elevator, I noticed he had a tablet I hadnt seen with the team leader before.
Lee Jihyun swiftly essed the underwater bases engineer system on the tablet, touched the barricade blocking off South District on the screen, and said:
[Open blocked barricade?]
It urred to me that this might be Michaels tablet, the chief engineer of the underwater base.
I pressed [Yes]. The barricade, which looked to be as thick as an arm, automatically opened. Its concrete, right? I thought it would be as thin as a fire door. The South District research center was revealed, but Kim Ga-young looked uneasy as she said to Lee Jihyun while watching her head towards it:
I dont know who blocked off the research center and South District, but they probably did it because things are chaotic over there too.
Thats very possible.
Lee Jihyun agreed with Kim Ga-youngs spection. However, I looked towards the Central District where screams and gunshots were heard, then said as I stepped past the barricade: Having experienced the nightmare of being caught in a hail of bullets in my dream, I know full well how terrifying that situation is. As the gunshots grew closer, I could feel my body tensing up in fear.
I dont want to get shot in the back of the head, which feels like it could happen any minute.
Yoo Geum-yi hurried inside the barricade and said:
We might run into people we know. People who didnt make it onto the escape pods. And we know our way around here.
Kim Ga-young heaved a deep sigh as she came in.
Or things that didnt escape. Maybe well get lucky and the research center freight elevator still works.
Lee Jihyun swiftly closed the barricade again. From outside, the screams and gunshots sounded closer and closer until the barricade sealed shutpletely, disappearing the noises.
It was my first time inside the South District research center. The atmosphere felt a bit odd. Even though Id been at Underwater Base No. 4 for days, the fact that such a huge research facility was built underwater in the first ce made me feel strange. There was a stale smell hanging in the air.
It waspletely different from the air when I first arrived at the underwater base, which gave me that unsettling feeling of things being off. It was like stepping into an artificially engineered human habitat like an airne or hospital ward. Like I was being incorporated into a new ecosystem, like a terrarium, aquarium or dollhouse. Lee Jihyun flicked the Deep Sea Life Center sign on the wall with her index finger.
Back when sea levels were rising due to climate change and food shortages were rampant, there were talks of developing the seafloor like space exploration. But seafloor development was deemed more costly and environmentally hazardous with greater ocean pollution, so more support went towards space exploration and development.
Later it was discovered that space exploration allowed developed countries to pool their abundant funds and technological capabilities to form their own exclusive league, shutting out other less advanced nations.
Personally, I just think if that technology was shared with the whole world, there would have been even greater progress in space developmentpared to now Am I being too naive? Even now, theyre still hung up over my technology and your technology?
In the case of seafloor development, taking it to the extreme even little kids could hold back seawater with their hands and build their own sandcastles there. Humans arent the only ones who saw the bottom of the sea as a refuge as Earth deteriorated. Fish didnt just descend to colder waters below their original habitats or die off when unable to adapt to the changes. Individuals capable of surviving the encroaching tides took over reproducing future generations.
With loosening building regtions, all sorts of houses in the guise of resorts started popping up underwater or below overflowing rivers and sea levels, yet there were still many objections against constructing research centers on the seafloor.
There were even more voices calling for underwater apartments instead. Now that I think about it, rather than designating special underwater zones and mass producing apartments, building these research centers was the scientists of the North Pacific 30 years ago doing their utmost with what they had.
Underwater apartments? I imagine only a very select, privileged few would ever get to live there. Ordinary people like me would never get into those kinds of apartments. Even for space travel, I heard they screen candidates down to grandparents, requiring at minimum a masters or doctorate level education and excellent health and gic history. For a bottom feeder like me from an average family to even get into this underwater base is extremely lucky in itself. Seeing us running around soaked to the bone, Im not so sure anymore.
This ce started out from different countries pooling funds together to drill for oil, marine biologist Yoo Geum-yi exined while looking around, taking the lead with Kim Ga-young. But with more and more development, more people came, living quarters were built, research centers popped up, and so on. To be honest, if you have anything marine-rted in your field, youll starve without a ce like this. And I expected 100% unemployment since marine life has been going extinct faster than me finishing university.
I wandered around aimlessly as they talked. Despite walking, the two of them looked quite sure-footed, probably feeling right at home here.
I expected there to be some kind of ess control system, but we passed through the barricade and walked quite a distance without encountering anything like that. A thought suddenly urred to me, so I asked the scientists up ahead:
Theres no card ess or biometric identification to keep visitors out? No intrusion detection systems? Not even a speed gate at least?
You know, those subway speed gates that block you if you dont scan your transit card. Kim Ga-young looked at me quizzically before understanding. She nodded slightly and said:
There was some talk early on about verifying authorized personnel entering the research center and enforcing ess control. Issuing ID cards and registering fingerprints, facial recognition profiles, iris scans, voice samples stuff like that together with passwords to lock out unauthorized visitors.
Why didnt that happen?
Well first, instation and upkeep costs money. Research staff can only ess their ownbs via fingerprints or iris scans. The rest is off limits anyway. What would they even do if they went in? Graffiti research logs? Start fires? Do our work for us? All our research automatically uploads onto MARIA, the underwater database system. Anyone who can ess the inte can see it, so theres no confidential information in what we research here anyway. Its not like were trying to line anyones pockets with money.
Didnt they say all research here is aimed at ensuring humanitys survival? Listening nearby, Lee Jihyun let out a frustrated sigh, shaking her head vigorously.
We can barely keep up with repairs as is. If those detection systems broke down and we had to fix them too, Id run away.
So in other words, anyone at all can just waltz into the research center? The research center seems filled with even more innocent souls than me. I imagined tons of extremely hazardous things like sulfuric acid or dangerous gases, but that constitutes proper security? Am I overthinking this? Maybe Im unfamiliar with howbs normally handle security since I havent been in others. My biology major friendsbs seemed to have people in them all day. Is it like that here too?
Chapter 75
Chapter 75
As Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi walked, Lee Jihyun kept looking all around. Like me, this seemed to be Lee Jihyuns first time in the research center too. The closest one was the Deep Sea Life Center, followed by the Seabed Pollution Center, Rare Earth Element Center, and so on. Yoo Geum-yi exined quickly that our goal was to reach the South District research center freight elevator and escape pod next to it, before we got to the Seabed Pollution Center.
Yoo Geum-yi works at the Deep Sea Life Center and Kim Ga-young at the Seabed Pollution Center, right? Walking briskly, Kim Ga-young said to me and Lee Jihyun:
Our center is nicknamed the Money Eater, but we were supposed to have a pretty major announcement this afternoon, our first in a while. About how much various countries have damaged the seafloor by tallying up everything thats happened since the Industrial Revolution.
Yoo Geum-yi suddenly stopped, grabbing Kim Ga-young. Caught unaware mid-stride, I bumped right into Yoo Geum-yi and nearly face-nted. Further down the corridor, a persony sprawled sideways, with golden hair long enough to reach their waist.
Lee Jihyun and I rushed over and slowly turned the prone figure face up. Urgh. I recoiled in shock. Seeing the corpse, Lee Jihyun gasped, covering her mouth and backing away.
I took several deep breaths to steady myself, then checked their pulse and breathing for signs of life. The woman seemed to already be deceased. No she was already deceased. What startled me was the state of the corpse, something I had never seen in my life.
Various parts of her body looked to have been gouged out in circr chunks the size of a grown mans palm. Arge section was missing from the left side of her face. Parts of her abdomen and chest where internal organs would be were gone in two to three ces.
Can human flesh vanish so neatly in circles? Now that I looked closer, her thighs were sunken in, exposing white bone. What on earth could cause injuries like this? As I peered at the facial wound and Lee Jihyun at the exposed thigh bone up close, Kim Ga-young shouted in terror:
Dont touch!
Lee Jihyun flinched back in surprise and plopped down on the floor. Through the hole in the corpses abdomen, the internal organs were visible. Oddly there was almost no blood smell, just a faint ammonia odor. I twitched at Kim Ga-youngs yell and took a step back defensively.
I didnt touch the wounds.
No way would Iy bare hands on an unidentified injury on a dead body when I had no idea what caused it. Still stunned, Yoo Geum-yi choked out upon recognizing the half-gone face:
Thats Ang Maroni the director of our center I didnt like her much, but no one deserves to die like this
Having examined the thigh wound, Lee Jihyun measured the length between it and an undamaged part of the leg with her finger, then did the same with the belly wound. She remarked with puzzlement:
The wound sizes are quite uniform at around 20cm diameter this was deliberately inflicted.
Kim Ga-young still looked spaced out, but hearing my question, she slowly approached Angs body. I gestured at the round wounds.
Can you tell what made these?
Its something we use called the O.B. organic dposer. Originally its for breaking down food waste or protein-based substances, to dispose of waste from theb. It isnt meant to be shot at people Dont touch the wounds. The microbes are still actively breaking things down.
Microbes?
Eighty percent of food waste is water. We use microbes to eliminate the rest after removing the moisture content. For food disposal, we employed marine bacteria like Microcus luteus, Streptomyces, Penicillium, and Debaryomyces hansenii, Rhizopus oligosporus things like that. The issue is these microbes dont have the capacity to break things down as fast as humans produce waste. Theyre microscopic to our eyes, yet the trash humans generate from just one meal is enormous. The microbes have to produce amse, protease, cellse, lipase and such to properly dpose the waste, but if environmental factors like pH levels inhibit microbial life, or salinity is too high, or antibacterial elements like chili powder, ck pepper and mustard are present, then another avenue of past research was effectively prompting the surviving microbes to generate enough of the desired enzymes for human needs. When microbes fail to eliminate or break down these organic polymers fast enough, malodors ur, releasing nitrogenous and sulfuricpounds rampantly from the waste, which can be especially toxic if inhaled.
Lee Jihyun looked at Kim Ga-young like she was speaking a foreignnguage. I barely managed an I see even though I didnt really understand either. Huh? Lipase? Thats for fat breakdown. And amse in spit breaks down carbohydrates I know that from working at the dentists office.
Kim Ga-young seemed to be exining things as simply as she could for our benefit, but with mypletely unrted background, it was difficult for me to grasp. From what I caught, she appeared to conduct environmental research at the Seabed Pollution Center using marine microbes. Lost in thought, Kim Ga-young mumbled on.
So our team isted a new microbe from marine life thats pretty efficient at breaking down proteins, Kim Ga-young muttered. We got a bacterial strain from a new bacillus with proteolytic activity and studied it extensively. Dposing proteins takes an enormous amount of time, you see. Up until the early 2000s, research only focused on protein synthesis and function. Studying dposition didnt start until less than 50 years ago when the istion process for the proteasome proteinplex was illuminated.
Which means this thing isnt supposed to be shot at people?
Lee Jihyun cut off Kim Ga-youngs rambling. Kim nodded quickly.
Yes, its for breaking down organicpounds.
Hearing that answer, Lee Jihyun asked with slight exasperation:
Are humans organicpounds?
We do contain some inorganicpounds too.
Huhhh. Listening in on the conversation, Yoo Geum-yi smiled wryly at Lee Jihyun for the first time since discovering the corpse. She snorted, shaking her head at Kim Ga-young.
Noona, people wont understand if you exin it that way. Just say she got shot multiple times with something like a gun full of flesh-eating microbes.
Now I see why you said not to touch. The microbes are probably still burrowing around the wounds, dposing as we speak. Lee Jihyun asked Kim Ga-young hurriedly:
Is there any way to stop them? Unless Ang heremitted suicide by shooting herself with a microbial gun, someones walking around out there.
There was nothing around Angs body aside from a smashed tablet lying nearby on the floor. My question seemed to catch Kim Ga-young off-guard. She scanned our surroundings anxiously and blurted out, speaking faster out of fear or nerves:
What we use is only deployed under fume hoods and the nozzle size isnt this big either. And how to handle this stuff is washing with water enough? Best to avoid bodily contact. Otherwise its useless. But I cant think of anyone among our researchers who would have the conscience to modify something like this and use it on human bodies Of course we all feel like killing our fellow researchers now and then, but shoot it into someone? And Ang wasnt even a thesis advisor?
As Kim Ga-young mentally ran through every researcher she knew, I sniffed around and asked Lee Jihyun:
You dont smell that?
Lee Jihyun sniffed as well and grimaced, saying to me somewhat hesitantly:
I have rhinitis so I cant smell well.
Ah I see. Yoo Geum-yi chimed in empathetically:
I noticed a faint burnt smell ever since we entered.
Good to know it wasnt just me. I thought that was normal here. Lee Jihyun asked Yoo Geum:
Which direction is iting from?
Cant really tell just a general building smell.
Lee Jihyuns frown deepened as she looked down the long corridor andbs, saying:
Lets head straight for the freight elevator. Ignore any other bodies wee across. We can neither carry them along nor save them anyway.
We started walking as directed by Kim Ga-young. The Deep Sea Life Center, Seabed Pollution Center, and Rare Earth Element Center were each 7-story buildings built in a U-shape and connected by a single bridge. Apparently theplex started on the 4th floor of the Deep Sea Life Center when entering the South District.
You could cross over to the other centers via bridges on the 3rd floor of each building. The escape pod and external elevator was located in the Seabed Pollution Center. Seemed like a pretty inconvenientyout. What the heck? So if I was working on the 7th floor of the Rare Earth Element Center and suddenly had to make a run for it like this, Id have to go all the way down to the 3rd floor, cross the bridge to the Seabed Pollution Center 3rd floor to make my getaway?
We circled the rectangr 4th floor corridor of the Deep Sea Life Center. Heading towards the Seabed Pollution Center 3rd floor via the Deep Sea Life Center 3rd floor bridge to reach the escape pod, we discovered a stairwell and started descending. Lee Jihyun quickly went down first.
Why didnt they install escape pod ports or external elevators in each center?
The floor-to-ceiling height between the 4th and 3rd floors was quite tall, making for a lot of steps. Stairs huh. No, a descending stairwell. That was from my dream. Get a grip. As I grumbled while trudging down the stairs, Yoo Geum-yi smiled and said:
If you knew how much each center cost to build, youd be shocked. I cant even afford a bathroom stall here. Nobody actually expected it to flood like this. We came down into the ocean specifically to avoid getting flooded.
Grimacing since her legs hurt, Kim Ga-young slowly descended the Deep Sea Life Center 3rd floor stairwell.
Chapter 76
Chapter 76
This is my first time using the stairs here. Anyway, theres an elevator on each side of every hallway, so the researchers dont need to walk around. Plus, theres a cafeteria inside the research center, free vending machines everywhere, and if you apply for the on-site dorms and get lucky, you dont even need to leave the research center at all. Thats for people like me who dont get picked in the lottery or use the main dorm housing for 100-some people.
Looks like the researchers barely leave the research center. Well, they provide three meals a day, have dorms, and have strictly set work hours. Its heaven for some people, but hell for others.
Which floor is Professor Kimsb located on in the Marine Biology Center?
Theb is on the 2nd floor. It used to be on the 7th floor, but our professor got in a fist fight with the professor in the next room over, so Director Malone moved us down to the 2nd floor. I remember moving day. We had to move the equipment ourselves or the medics and assistant staff moved it for us. Now that I think about it, Im d we moved well from the 7th floor to the 2nd floor. Its easier to escape in this kind of situation from the 2nd floor rather than the 7th floor.
The professors get into fights too?
At my question, researcher Kim Ga-young exchanged nces with Yoo Geum-yi and giggled.
Oh yes.
When professors fight, they go at it like elementary schoolers, fighting with all kinds of things. There are issues with research funds, whether to include names on papers or not. How much did you contribute. Why are you breathing. Whether to eat together or not.
I see. The ones on our side werent exactly normal either. Some seemed fine usually but would snap at the residents only during rounds. And there were quite a few perverts too. But Id never imagined horizontal violence between professors. I can understand vertical violence, but horizontal is another story. Come to think of it, the dental side can be pretty vicious too. Its not like there was never any fighting about who would do someones imnts while threatening to punch their lights out first.
As if on cue, Lee Jihyun was waiting for us on the 3rd floor. As we stepped onto the 3rd floor, the stench grew stronger.
We saw a few corpses lying on the ground as we carefully walked down the stairs, trying not to fall. As we walked down the hallway, we kept discovering corpses with bites of flesh carved out, killed after Ang Malone.
I checked to see if they were alive, and Jihyun just took photos of their faces before we moved on. Some of theb doors were wide open. When we looked inside, there were no people, but some of the tanks used to hold marine life had been opened to let the creatures escape. Yoo Geum-yi nced into one of the messybs and said,
They let everything out before leaving.
Jihyun, who followed behind, looked at the empty tanks for about two seconds with an impressed expression before quickly leaving theb and asking,
They were busy escaping for their lives but the researchers still thought of this stuff?
Yoo Geum-yi thought for a moment as she walked before replying to Jihyuns question.
If they didnt do this and left, theyd be thinking about it for the rest of their lives.
Theyre just fish though?
Whether its fish or jellyfish or coral, they should avoid using marine life for experiments if they can achieve their research goals without it. Its best if they can rece it with tissue culture or simtions. If they really cant rece living marine life, they should rely on existing experimental records statistically as much as possible or handle the organisms in the most humane way possible. Thats an ethical responsibility researchers should naturally have.
:They dont have souls though.
Pardon?
Yoo Geum-yi stopped walking, taken aback by those words. Kim Ga-young, who had been walking slower behind Yoo Geum-yi because of the pain in her legs, pushed Yoo Geum-yis back with both hands. Yoo Geum-yi started quietly thinking as she was pushed along.
Hmm. Most of the bullshit Ive heard was spewed by people clinging to religion or power. I became conscious of the heavy bag on my back as I asked,
Is that your opinion from a religious perspective?
Its not my opinion.
Jihyun answered, seeming slightly ufortable. After we had walked down one side of the -shaped 3rd floor hallway, Yoo Geum-yi slowly answered Jihyuns question.
Intellectuals before the 19th century used to ridicule people who felt sympathy for animals. They thought animals simply reacted to external stimuli, like machines that make sounds when an rm goes off. They treated animals like ringing phones. Beating cats and dogs to death wasnt considered a sin at all. And women, Africans, and Asians were treated the same as animals. All beings that can feel pain should be equal and free from that pain.
As Yoo Geum-yi looked into the openb rooms, she continued,
In fact, I may not have a soul either. I cant even urately count the number of innocent marine lives lost by my hands. Anyway, since itse up, Ill tell you when I saw you three entering the Marine Biology Center then heading towards the Seabed Pollution Center, I decided to go to myb on the 2nd floor.
Kim Ga-young, who had been pushing Yoo Geum-yis back, asked,
Alone? Youre going alone?
Yes. I dont want to feel guilty every time I go to an aquarium or a sushi restaurant for things I didnt do.
Jihyun listened quietly before asking Yoo Geum-yi in a small voice,
Dodo fish feel pain?
Yes.
Jihyun stopped and asked Yoo Geum-yi,
Is yourb far?
I quietly smiled at Jihyuns words. My eyes then met Kim Ga-youngs, who had been raising the corners of her lips.
Jihyun asked me and Kim Ga-young if we could stop by Yoo Geum-yis 2nd floorb before heading to the Marine Biology Center through the 3rd floor. Kim Ga-young raised her hand slightly and asked,
Id be fully on board, but Im just curious what happens if we dont agree?
You can stay here or go on ahead.
Ill go with you.
At Kim Ga-youngs reply, I also quickly said,
Ill go with you too!
Wandering those hallways alone with corpses lying around? Just the thought makes me ufortable. I recalled the cable car filling with water and the snake they had hung above our heads, then lightly shook off those memories.
Does it only hurt here, does it not hurt there, exactly where does it hurt, where does it feel cold, what do I need to eat for my teeth to look like this, you tell me to floss but how does flossing make my teeth look like this, you said I should brush more than twice a day but that has to be a lie, right? Is it true? You say lower the drill noise but if theres some groundbreaking technology to make quieter drills, why dont you tell me, why havent I gone to the dentist in so long, why do you trust folk remedies so much but distrust dental treatment, when the doctor says you have cavities but you say no, its just spots on my teeth, why dont you believe it? You say you dont drink but I can clearly smell alcohol on your breath so whats that about? You clearly say no smoking allowed at this underwater base so why do all these chain-smoking fools with yellow teeth keeping to the dentist, stuff like that.
At my grumbling, Kim Ga-young let out an emptyugh and Iughed lightly too. I could hear Jihyun quietly saying to Yoo Geum-yi as they swiftly walked down the stairs and along the hallway:
If Team Leader Kang or Jung Sanghyun were here instead, this would never have happened.
What do you mean?
Taking this roundabout way to go back and free something. Im not criticizing what youre doing, Yoo Geum-yi. Im justsurprised Im making this kind of choice. Engineers are obsessed with efficiency.
Its about saving lives though?
Theyll weigh which lives have more value. My life or the countless fish in the ocean.
Thats possible. But the fish are here because they were kidnapped from the ocean they were living well in and forced into thesebs for our research. Especially some of the species in ourb that were raising for conservation purposes since theyre endangered. If they die, thats theplete end.
The two who had gone down the stairs first entered the 2nd floor hallway. Yoo Geum-yi walked ahead and said,
This way. Its right up ahead. Room 210.
Chapter 79
Chapter 79
Kim Ga-youngs eyes widened as if struck by lightning, and she began writing. Three cafeteria staff, research assistants, office workers, security guards The man spoke as if he was wronged.
That bastard Belial Riley sent out the young kids and the disabled ones first.
Kim Ga-young, who worked at the Deep-Sea Pollution Center, nced at my expression and quickly scribbled on the paper. Belial Riley, Director of the Deep-Sea Pollution Center. Upon hearing those words, Yoo Geum-yi spoke expressionlessly towards the door.
So youre saying youre a man with fully functioning limbs who couldnt board the escape pod first. Was the cargo elevator not usable?
It stopped. Answer my question first. Why did youe here?
Lee Jihyun wrote a note to Yoo Geum-yi, saying she had a good idea and to stall for time. Then she searched for something through Roarkers pad. Yoo Geum-yi looked at the three of us and smiled slightly. Then, turning to the metal door with a straight face, she answered.
Do you know what was in the empty cylindrical tank next to you? Jellyfish. Team 11 has been researching them for 30 years. The empty rectangr tanks behind you were also studied by over 200 researchers for 40 years, investing money, intelligence, effort, and their lives.
Yoo Geum-yi stretched her stiff shoulders and neck before beginning her exnation.
Originally most jellyfish have a lifespan of less than a year. But some jellyfish live forever. After discovering several species of jellyfish that revert to a younger state before reaching the end of their lifespan due to unfavorable external conditions or aging, people judged that these characteristics could help extend human life. Even now, there are many people suffering from intractable or incurable diseases. If theres a way to return them to an infant state before the disease, immortality isnt just a dream, right? I couldnt just leave 6,000 jellyfish that may have lived with Earth since 4.6 billion years ago to die here because of actions I didnt take, knowing they would all perish. They live forever. If I hadnt released them, those creatures that would have lived immortally would have died just because they were trapped here.
Yoo Geum-yi spoke with a heavy heart, looking at the metal door.
The team right next to us was also researching coral reefs to enable them to grow even in severely polluted ocean conditions. I saw a researcher from thatb lying dead in the 4th-floor corridor. I cant open theirb door to enter, but I can ess myb and this one. Even if our efforts are trivial, future generations may someday thrive on them. In 50 years, no, 100 years after I die, the ocean may appear blue and transparent again. So many people, so much money, and so much time have been invested here. I came here because I didnt want it all to go to waste.
Yoo Geum-yi sighed and continued.
People like you probably wont understand what Im saying. In a situation where theres no immediate benefit, and your life might be at risk, you may think Im wasting precious time locked up in ab just to release some jellyfish. Or you may believe that the life of one human is more important than the lives of hundreds or thousands of animals.
Lee Jihyun flinched upon hearing those words but showed no further reaction.
You may think Im wasting my life for resources and welfare that my generation wont be able to enjoy. I dont want to waste my precious time convincing people like you. Id rather spend that time doing what I want without worrying about others. Im done answering, so now Ill ask. Why are you trying to enter thisb?
The man exhaled shortly, as if annoyed.
This bitch, that bitch, all of you have no sense of reality. The mindset of doormats like you makes me sick the more I hear it. If you wanted to live like that, you shouldve had a kid and spent your life volunteering. Why did youe to the deep-sea base and bother decent people?
It was unclear whether he was cursing at Belial, Ang, or Yoo Geum-yi. Lee Jihyun looked at Roackers pad, sighed deeply, and wrote that she couldnt find it. The programs disyed on Michael Roackers pad were likely different from what a regr engineer like Lee Jihyun used, as they were for authorized personnel. Lee Jihyun gestured to me, asking for another pad, and I quickly took out my pad from my bag and handed it to her.
As I checked on the condition of the cat and snake in my bag, Kim Ga-young was writing a list of names on her notepad. She even removed the trantion earpiece from her ear and crossed out the names one by one from the top, tilting her head. Yoo Geum-yi answered the other person, bewildered by their words but steadily looking at us.
I volunteer a lot. Especially teaching basic science to adults. Surprisingly, there are quite a few people over 30 who want to study science. And you still havent answered my question. Looking at the 3rd and 4th floors, youve harmed many innocent people. Theres no need to enter thisb. My research cant help you right now. Its not attacking you.
Lee Jihyun finally failed to find what she was looking for on Roackers pad. Muttering, If there are no teeth, live with the gums, she logged out of my ount on my pad and logged in with her own. Lee Jihyun entered the engineer system, submitted a vacation request on behalf of Shin Haeryang, her approver, and approved it through Michael Roackers pad, sending Shin Haeryang on a same-day vacation.
What was she doing? Now, Lee Jihyun was submitting an approval request for the electrical system of the Deep-Sea Creature Center under her name. With the approver Shin Haeryang absent, she could directly send the approval request to Michael Roacker. Lee Jihyun wrote her approval request document very concisely. However, the electronic requirements listed below were extensive.
Approval Request: a
Approval Reason: a
Writing the request like that, a window popped up, requiring at least five characters, and Lee Jihyun seemed to be silently cursing at the pad. Clenching her jaw, Lee Jihyun rewrote the request.
Approval Request: aaaaa
Approval Reason: aaaaa
As the approval request was sent to Michael Roacker, Lee Jihyun now used Roackers pad to press the approval button for the document she had submitted. Once the approval was properly processed, Lee Jihyun sighed and checked the approved details on my pad. The man spoke to Yoo Geum-yi in an annoyed voice.
I thought you came from the main control room. I figured if you got in, there would be a way out.
I looked at the sulfuric acid bottle between Kim Ga-young and me, pondering whether I could put it in my bag. I considered the benefits of taking it and attacking someone with it. However, I didnt even want to think about the terrible consequences if it were to break, so I simply thought about it and gave up.
At some point, Kim Ga-young narrowed her eyes and circled one persons name multiple times with her pen. Then, looking at me, she wrote.
[I think its this bastard.]
Arthur Goodman. Kim Ga-young, who had been writing and deleting numerous mens names, put the trantion device back in her ear. Then, she wrote with a shaky pen.
[He works in theb right next to ours. White, with curly brown hair, tall and skinny but average-looking. Hes probably doing waste-rted research like us.]
Lee Jihyun nced at what Kim Ga-young wrote but immediately turned her head back to Roackers pad. Biting her lip, Lee Jihyun wrote on the notepad with a pen.
[I can turn off all the lights in the Deep-Sea Creature Center. And I can raise the barrier leading to the 3rd-floor Deep-Sea Pollution Center. If the conversation is clear, there probably wont be an escape pod. Wouldnt it still be better to take the elevator? Taking the elevator is an extremely dangerous choice, but probably no one will operate it.]
[I trust you!]
Kim Ga-young wrote, blocking Lee Jihyuns pen with her own. Lee Jihyun looked at me once, then at Yoo Geum-yi, and nodded. Lee Jihyun then pressed the barrier section on Roackers pad.
[Do you want to open the closed barrier?]
It was a message I had seen before. We had selected it when entering the Deep-Sea Creature Center from the main control room. Lee Jihyun, who pressed the [Yes] button, confirmed the disappearance of the barrier on the map screen and pressed her finger on the pad again.
[Do you want to close with the barrier?] The [Yes] and [No] buttons appeared, but Lee Jihyun turned off the pad screen without pressing anything. Lee Jihyun was now looking at the buttons located below the document approved with aaaaa on my pad. I put my bag on my back again. Kim Ga-young wrote onest note.
[There will be a power outage. Come to us then!]
I showed it to Yoo Geum-yi. When Yoo Geum-yi nodded, Kim Ga-young hurriedly gathered the notes and pens and scattered them back on the researchers desks. Yoo Geum-yi took a deep breath and spoke leisurely to the other person.
From our conversation so far, you know my personality. Im not the type of person who weighs profit and loss when acting. And even if I could help you, I dont think I would help someone who kills people in this situation.
Dont you think you should kill more in this situation? You can kill the ones you didnt like or the things you didnt like on a regr basis. If the deep-sea base copses, the fish will eat the corpses anyway. Dont be hypocritical and think carefully. You must have had people you didnt like, right?
Yoo Geum-yi frowned. Then, putting strength in her belly, she shouted.
Hey, you selfish bastard. Im different from you! Thats why youre trapped here! Because when others reach out, you only look for opportunities to bite their fingers! Ang lowered the barrier and broke the pad while dying, so you cant get out?! When the remaining researchers here risked their lives to find theirbs, you only thought about killing them!
The man on the other side of the metal door fell silent for a moment. I held one of Lee Jihyuns hands. Lee Jihyun then ced a pad on her forearm and spread my fingers to press the buttons of the approved contents. Turning off the power for a research center didnt seem to be an easy task.
Kim Ga-young held one pad. Kim Ga-young, Lee Jihyun, and I stood in a long line in that order. I closed my eyes and reached out towards Yoo Geum-yi. The mans annoyed voice was heard.
I dont need you anymore.
I felt a hand grasp mine in the darkness. It seemed he had unfolded his arms.
Chapter 80
Chapter 80
As Kim Ga-young opened theboratory door, the red glow illuminating through my eyelids disappeared. Opening my eyes to adapt to the darkness, everything was pitch ck, and I couldnt see anything, so I had to trust and follow Lee Jihyuns hand in front of me. It took some time for my eyes to barely make out Lee Jihyuns silhouette. Yoo Geum-yi behind me was probably in the same situation.
There was almost nothing visible. Not even emergency lights. Wouldnt the rest of the marine life die if the power was cut off like this? Would there be an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) here? If so, the lights would havee on, right? I dont know.
As I thought about the recent past, I began to regret my stupidity. I should have grabbed a rope earlier. Then we could have tied our waists or arms together to walk, and we could have used both hands freely. I remembered how resourcefully Shin Haeryang used the parachute cord in my dream. I should learn from others good examples, but I havent changed at all. Lets say others are like that. I had already experienced a simr situation. How progressive and wise of me. Damn it.
Kim Ga-young stood as close to theb door as possible, and thanks to thinking about how to move before the lights went out, we could leave theb without any interference. We walked in a line through the dark corridor, relying on each others hands. We tried to minimize the sound of our footsteps.
Even the slightest sounds we inevitably made while walking made me flinch and look around. Lee Jihyuns palm holding mine was damp with tension. Maybe I was just as terrified? I gripped Yoo Geum-yis hand a little tighter, then loosened my grip slightly, fearing it might hurt. I was scared when I put too much strength into my hand, and I was scared when I loosened my grip.
What would happen if I identally let go of this hand and got separated from the people ahead?
Was the hand I was pulling really Yoo Geum-yis?
Was the hand pulling me from the front really Lee Jihyuns?
A chill ran down my spine as if someone was about to snatch the back of my head. Were we dragging that man from earlier? What if Lee Jihyun in front of me, Yoo Geum-yi holding my hand, or Kim Ga-young leading the way to the Deep-Sea Pollution Center had switched ces with the murderer? Were we going the right way? Such groundless, terrifying thoughts kept popping into my mind.
However, I tried to suppress my fears with Lee Jihyuns silhouette, which I caught a glimpse of with my eyes adapted to the darkness, and Yoo Geum-yis faint breathing behind me. Rather than screaming and running alone into the darkness like a madman, I pressed my lips tightly and swallowed the saliva gathering in my mouth from the tension, despite my fear.
Suddenly, a loud bang echoed from the corridor next to where we had just walked. What was that sound? The hand that grabbed and pulled me as I stopped was the person in front. The sound of slippers dragging came from far away. As we walked, ignoring the sound behind us, Kim Ga-young seemed to have found the stairs leading from the 2nd to the 3rd floor.
Lee Jihyuns hand scratched the back of my hand twice, startling me, but as her arm suddenly moved upward, I realized the area in front of me was stairs. I also scratched the back of Yoo Geum-yis hand twice with my nails, took two steps up the stairs, and gave Yoo Geum-yi a few seconds to understand the situation. We climbed the stairs as quietly as possible.
As the four of us turned around thending and went up, another bang and the sound of slippers dragging came from far down the corridor. Yoo Geum-yis hand gripped mine tightly. Wow. Come to think of it, this person was also timid, and she was walking at the very end in this situation. I wanted to say things like stay strong or should we switch ces, but I swallowed all the words and focused on my steps.
As we left the stairs and walked three steps onto the 3rd floor, Lee Jihyuns body swayed. I quickly grabbed Lee Jihyuns arm with one of my arms to keep her from falling. Lee Jihyun and I were close enough for our shoulders to touch, and her silhouette was iling and searching for something in the darkness. Did she lose Kim Ga-young? Seeing Lee Jihyuns arms and hands swinging freely enough to make a whooshing sound, I was convinced she had lost Kim Ga-young.
I linked arms with Yoo Geum-yi, and with our free arms, we waved them in the air and on the floor together to find Kim Ga-young. Lee Jihyuns hand and mine simultaneously found and grabbed someones hand on the floor. The hand was too cold, firm, wore a ring on the fourth finger, and was as big as mine. Lee Jihyun flinched and shook off that hand, and I also let go of it a few secondster, as if brushing it off. To suppress a scream, I forcibly inhaled deeply. My heart began pounding in my ears.
A man was lying on the floor. Based on his condition, he seemed to be a corpse, likely one of the researcher bodies we found in the 3rd and 4th-floor corridors. Kim Ga-young must have stepped on the dead man and tumbled over him as she entered the 3rd-floor corridor. Lee Jihyun and I found this mans hand while searching for Kim Ga-young in the dark. Yoo Geum-yi tried to sit on the floor while linking arms with me. As Yoo Geum-yi sat down, I was forced to sit with her, my arm locked with hers. It seemed that among the two of us, only Yoo Geum-yi, who hadnt experienced this, wasnt shaking like a leaf.
In this situation, having a calm person next to you who doesnt panic is incredibly helpful. Feeling Yoo Geum-yis hand, which was linked with my arm, tap my arm twice, I searched for Lee Jihyuns trembling arm and linked arms with her. The three of us sat side by side on the floor for a few seconds, inhaling and exhaling.
As Lee Jihyuns heavy breathing subsided, Yoo Geum-yi unlinked her arm. Then, holding my hand, she waved her arm downward as if sweeping the floor. When I held Lee Jihyuns hand and followed Yoo Geum-yis actions, a few secondster, the three of us could barely walk forward while sweeping the floor with our hands, as if using a broom.
We found Kim Ga-young within three steps. Kim Ga-young was sitting on the floor, waving her hand in the air, so my fingers touched hers. Soon, Kim Ga-young grabbed my hand. As the four of us held hands again, I let out a big sigh inwardly. Someone made a faint sound of swallowing mucus. There was also a sound of panting in pain.
I supported Kim Ga-young, followed by Lee Jihyun and Yoo Geum-yi. Despite suppressing painful groans, Kim Ga-youngs limping gait began to stabilize and quicken, much better than on the stairs. Ah. She must havemuted back and forth dozens or hundreds of times from the main control room dormitory to the 3rd-floor Deep-Sea Pollution Center via the 3rd-floor Deep-Sea Creature Center. She could probably walk with her eyes closed, I thought.
Aah!
A scream came from behind, apanied by a thud. Looking back, I couldnt see anything. Lee Jihyun, who had let go of my hand, shouted.
Run!
Lee Jihyun turned on a shlight she had somehow obtained and illuminated the corridor. A man in the corridor was lifting a chair above his head. That crazy bastard was throwing metal chairs whileing!
While some think its beneficial to hit anyone while walking in the dark and throw chairs down the corridor, others willingly make choices that could lead to their death to save others.
The man, illuminated by Lee Jihyuns shlight, looked like a giant monster due to the shadows created by the darkness and light, his tall stature, and the height of the chair. Seeing that sight, an instinctive fear rushed in, making me want to flee immediately. And a conviction also surged that if I ran away right now, I might be able to escape unharmed alone.
Among my group, I was the least injured, so I could get out of this situation the fastest. Althoughcking in exercise, I was the tallest and probably stronger than these three women. The fear approaching like a tsunami kept sending messages to run away and survive.
Kim Ga-young? She could barely walk. Lee Jihyun had also exhausted her stamina in the water of the main control room dormitory, so she wasnt much different from Kim Ga-young. Yoo Geum-yi seemed to have been hit directly by one of the metal chairs the opponent had thrown earlier. Lee Jihyun told us to run, but no one except me could run properly. Walking was all they could do.
Could I escape safely alone if I left them behind? Would my chances of survival increase significantly if I abandoned them? Could I be free from guilt for leaving people behind? If Yoo Geum-yi hadnt taken that chair hit for me, it would have hit me or the backpack on my back. I did the exact opposite of what I heard. Gritting my teeth, I charged toward the opponent.
Lee Jihyun did the same. Being the closest to the man, Lee Jihyun had to block the chair swung by the opponent with both arms as soon as she rushed in. Blocking the chair with her arms and grabbing it with her hands, Lee Jihyun followed the chairs movement as if being dragged, resisting the opponents strength. Lee Jihyuns shlight swayed erratically, following her movements. However, overpowered by the opponents weight and strength, Lee Jihyun tumbled backward with the chair as the man threw it behind him.
During the moments illuminated by Lee Jihyuns shlight, I noticed an object resembling a water gun tucked into the mans pants, which seemed to be the problematic microbial gun. My goal was to seize it and subdue the opponent. You only die once, not twice!
I charged at the same speed I had run and struck the opponents torso with my elbow. A shock that felt like my elbow was shattering rushed in. A gasp was heard, as if he hadnt noticed my sudden appearance in the darkness. The man and I rolled on the floor side by side.
My hand tried to find the gun tucked somewhere in the opponents waistband, but even though I grabbed the mans belly, there was no water gun-like object. I panicked and clung to what should have been the mans right arm. He had already drawn the chemical gun tucked into his waistband with his right hand.
I hung onto the mans right arm and right hand with my entire body, preventing the muzzle from pointing at me. I thought it was a good decision. The man couldnt shoot me. The problem was that the opponent was a human with two arms.
Suddenly, stars shed on the right side of my face. The opponent had swung at where my face would be with his left hand. His left hand began to wildly beat my right side, right shoulder, and right face without stopping. The strength in my arms and hands holding the mans right side began to fade. After being hit in the face three times, I was dazed, but only one thing remained in my mind.
If I let go of this mans right arm, I would die.
Its not just me who would die.
Everyone here could die.
Chapter 77
Chapter 77
Suddenly, Jihyun grabbed Yoo Geum-yi, who was right next to me, and made her lower her body. Seeing this, Kim Ga-young and I, who were justing out of the stairwell into the corridor,pletely froze. And just like the two of them, we quietly crouched down. Ga-young and I crawled over to Jihyun, who had lowered her body.
Whats going on?
Is someone there?
Jihyun quickly whispered to us.
Someone was on the opposite side of the 4th floor just now. Dont stand up.
Since the building had a -shaped structure and the center was open, anything above shoulder height could be seen by someone at any time. Jihyun kept scanning the corridors up and down, and I thought it was because the structure of this building was unique, but it seemed that wasnt the case. If someone was there but not armed to attack us, why did we need to hide? Yoo Geum-yi seemed to think the same thing.
Why do we need to hide? It could be a researcher who couldnt escape.
Yes. And it could also be the bastard whos been making corpses until now.
Ah. Right. Damn it. I thought they would have escaped faster than us. They could be wandering around this area.
Who was it? What did they look like? Were they tall? What color was their hair? Was it someone you knew?
Kim Ga-young, with her head bowed low, bombarded Jihyun with questions, but Jihyun shook her head.
It was too brief, so I couldnt see properly either. It was one person, and they seemed tall. They probably didnt see us either. Its best not to run into them.
At Jihyuns strong request, we eventually decided to lower our bodies as much as possible and go to Room 210. Fortunately, Room 215 was right next to us. I was inwardly rejoicing that we only had to carefully pass 5 rooms, but the problem was that the distance between thebs was unexpectedly long. We walked with our backs bent, and when our backs started hurting, we walked on all fours as if crawling. This is also crazy. Cant we just run?
Only after wiping all the dust in the corridor with peoples clothes and palms did we finally arrive in front of Room 210. Yoo Geum-yi raised her arm and lifted only her index finger to press it against the fingerprint sensor next to theb door, and the door opened. We quietly entered theb while keeping our bodies lowered and immediately closed the door.
After confirming that theb door waspletely locked, Kim Ga-young arched her back. There was a cracking sound. Groaning, Ga-young turned her neck to the side and said,
My bodys going to fall apart.
Yoo Geum-yi, who had entered theb, ignored the office and rushed straight inside. Beyond the office withputers, separated by a door, were the animal room and operating room.
Yoo Geum-yi looked at the jellyfish confined in a ss tank and manipted the buttons next to it. Jellyfish with countless tentacles were swaying inside the huge tank. Even though hardly any light reached the tank, the jellyfish naturally glowed and flickered in the darkness. It was as if numerous alien flying saucers were trapped inside. An enormous number of jellyfish swayed in therge aquarium tank. Its beautiful.
There was a jellyfish aquarium not far from the dental clinic in the central district, but judging by the length of the tentacles, these creatures seemed to be a different species. Those ones had really long tentacles. When Yoo Geum-yi pressed some buttons, the jellyfish slowly began emptying from the tank.
Im releasing them outside. By adjusting the pressure. These creatures can only live in deep-sea environments.
So that aquarium tank environment is identical to the deep sea at several thousand meters? It waspletely different from theboratory of my friend who was in the biology department. In my friendsb, creatures like mice, rabbits, dogs, and pigs were stored in their respective cages, with the square cage containers packed tightly against two or three walls like ying Tetris with the creatures. This was the first time Id seen them stored like this.
Yoo Geum-yi went further into theb and released the jellyfish in another tank. Four aquarium tanks were slowly being emptied. Is it over? However, when Yoo Geum-yi turned the corner towards the wall, a human-sized metal door appeared.
Jihyun was surprised and tried turning the doorknob, but the door waspletely locked. Yoo Geum-yi jumped up and swept her hand over the top of the nearby drawer. In Yoo Geum-yis hand thatnded on the floor was a single key, along with dust.
Its theb next door. Originally, they were connected and used together, but our professor and the professor next door fought, so they blocked it off with this door.
Then Yoo Geum-yi used the key to open the door. Surprised by her familiar actions, I asked,
Arent they on bad terms?
Yoo Geum-yi shook the jellyfish character keychain in her hand and grinned.
The professors fought. Not the researchers. When we were busy, they would feed the creatures in the aquarium tanks, and when they were on vacation, we would manage the cells they were raising so they wouldnt starve to death.
Is that really allowed? When Yoo Geum-yi entered the nextb, there were several aquarium tanks filled with thumbnail-sized creatures. Translucent creatures the size of thumbnails, resembling miniature transparent light bulbs, were moving very slowly inside.
Yoo Geum-yi pressed a few buttons on those aquarium tanks as before and began emptying them. Jihyun stared nkly at Yoo Geum-yi, wondering what they were, and asked,
What are these?
Theyre Yuzuru animals.
Are they really animals?
Yes. Theyreb jellies.
Are those also jellyfish? They dont seem to be. They lookpletely different from the ones we saw earlier. While Yoo Geum-yi emptied the three aquarium tanks in thatb, we looked around theboratory. The structure of the oppositeb was simr. There was an operating room and an animal room, with an office beyond the door separating them. The two animal rooms were connected.
While Yoo Geum-yi busily ran around the twoboratories, we toured the office on Yoo Geum-yis side. Each researcher had their own desk andputer on it. The desks were decorated ording to each researchers preferences. On one persons desk, there were jellyfish dolls and characters piled up, while another person who seemed to have surfing as a hobby had put up their surfing photos on the desk, and on another persons desk, shark dolls of various kindspletely upied the desk surface.
As I was staring at the shark dolls with a dejected expression, Jihyun, who had been sauntering around the office like a lion, discovered a lithium fire extinguisher in the corner and brought over the RESCUE BAG next to it.
She wiped off theyer of white dust with her hand. Judging by Yoo Geum-yis expression as she wandered around the animal room, it seemed like she had just learned that such a thing existed in this office. Jihyun turned the bag upside down and shook it vigorously on the floor. A portable toilet, emergency nket? Theres a flint. Oh. Its a rope. Hand warmers, nkets, raincoats, wet wipes, a few pairs of gloves, a few masks, and a radio. They even put a radio in the rescue bag? It was my first time seeing the actual contents.
Jihyun kicked away all the items as if she couldnt find what she was looking for and sauntered around theb again. Kim Ga-young, who had been browsing other peoples desks, found some antipyretic painkillers and let out a small cheer, saying, Yes! Then she distributed a few pills to each person and took some herself. As Kim Ga-young swallowed the pills with a carbonated drink someone had left behind instead of water, she said,
Ah. This is it. This. How fortunate it is to be born in a world with painkillers.
Then she sat on a chair whose owner was absent and carefully rubbed her swollen, heavily bruised, and injured calf. While Yoo Geum-yi was in the process of helping the marine creatures escape, she asked Jihyun, who was acting like a paranoid lion,
Do you need anything?
A Sig Sauer or Glock.
Those are gun names, right? In theboratory? You might as well ask for anthrax.
Do you have it?
Of course not! But we do have surgical knives and hydrochloric acid.
Give me both. Right now.
Yoo Geum-yi, who had been looking at the ss tanks, headed to the operating room located next to them. I followed Yoo Geum-yi and asked,
Why do you have hydrochloric acid here?
We need to adjust the pH concentration.
Ah. I see. But I never thought that surgical knives could be in theb. Well, it is a ce with marine creatures. Oh. Then maybe
Do you have anesthetics?
We do, but not for human use.
If you use the ones meant for fish on humans, doesnt it be for human use?
Jihyun asked me that question, and I was momentarily taken aback. You cant use the ones meant for fish on people, right? Or can you? Im not sure.
Well. No. Ive never tried using them that way.
ording to Yoo Geum-yi, they use a method of dissolving a certain amount of anesthetic in water to anesthetize marine creatures. Oh. Thats interesting. Will I ever have the opportunity to handle fish teeth? Yoo Geum-yi took out a surgical scalpel from the surgical kit and handed it to Jihyun.
I also ended up receiving a scalpel while standing next to them, and in the process, I identally dropped the scalpel on the floor. As soon as I hurriedly picked it up from the floor, I remembered the condition of my hands and the sterilizer. While I was dumbfounded by the thoughts that came to mind, Yoo Geum-yi busily put on gloves, took out a brown bottle from the reagent cab, and ced it on the office table.
This is hydrochloric acid, so make sure to wear these gloves. These are acid-resistant safety gloves. And, and where did I put the masks?
Jihyun was looking at the de of the scalpel, and I asked Yoo Geum-yi in a flustered voice,
Hydrochloric acid You dont handle it while wearing a mask?
We just wear gloves when handling it. We dont use it much.
Hydrochloric acid fumes can even corrode teeth. These researchers. While Kim Ga-young rummaged through the researchers drawers and forcibly stuffed a small piece of chocte, the size of a finger, into each persons mouth after discovering a bundle of snack choctes, a small voice was heard.
[Fingerprint does not match.]
[Fingerprint does not match.]
Thats how it sounded in Korean to my ears. As soon as I heard that low, neutral voice, it felt like the hair on the back of my neck was standing up. Why was there such a voice? Is someone trying to enter thisb right now? Did I mishear it? As soon as I had that thought, as if mocking my thoughts, the voice was heard once more.
[Fingerprint does not match.]
Theb door and walls arepletely opaque from both the inside and outside. Yoo Geum-yi habitually tried to speak towards the door without realizing it, but Jihyun and I rushed over and covered Yoo Geum-yis mouth with our palms.
Kim Ga-young quietly pointed to theb door with her palm and made an X-shaped gesture. Then Kim Ga-youngs head nodded towards the animal room and operating room. Yoo Geum-yi, still wearing gloves, picked up the hydrochloric acid bottle and went from the office through the door to the animal room, and from the animal room through the connected metal door to the adjacent animal room. Yoo Geum-yi asked Jihyun in a voice as low as a whisper,
Should I ask who it is?
Absolutely not. Dont let them know were here at all.
Could it be a colleague or junior from the sameb?
Then they would havee in.
Oh. Right? Then who is it?
Since we had been making no noise, that neutral voiceing from outside the door continued to be heard in the quietboratory.
Chapter 78
Chapter 78
[Fingerprint does not match.]
The voice was so far away that my trantor could no longer trante it into Korean, and I could only hear the original voice saying ess denied very faintly. With tension stiffening my body, I asked Yoo Geum-yi in a rigid voice,
How many failed attempts before it doesnt open?
Yoo Geum-yi pondered as if thinking about the distant past, then answered,
About ten times?
Kim Ga-young kept folding her fingers to count, then said in a small, frightened voice,
I think its been more than 7 times now.
What happens after 10 attempts?
Well You have to try again after 10 minutes.
Jihyun frowned while gripping the scalpel. Is it multiple people? As soon as I had that thought, the idea that one person could be attempting the fingerprint ess urred to me. Wow. No way. It cant be. Ignoring the chills running down my spine, I asked Yoo Geum-yi,
Can you only enter with fingerprint recognition?
Yoo Geum-yi paused to think, then nodded.
After it became known that ess could be gained through AI voice modtion, thebs abandoned that method early on. Originally, we used card tags, but there were people who yed pranks with the card tags for clocking in and out, so they were all discarded. Now, only fingerprints will probably work.
As soon as she said that, there was a sound of a door opening with a click in the distance. We all froze for a second, looking at each others faces. Seeing Kim Ga-youngs horrified expression, Jihyun quietly approached and hurriedly locked the metal door connecting the animal rooms.
Footsteps could be heard very faintly and distantly. Yoo Geum-yi looked at the nearly empty aquarium tanks, then at the locked door and the hydrochloric acid bottle in her hand, and her face turned pale as she shouted at us in a small voice,
The key! The key!
Yes?
The key to this metal door! It should be next to the reagent cab!
I have it here. I grabbed it. Dont worry.
Kim Ga-young said, showing the jellyfish-engraved key in her open palm. As Yoo Geum-yi exhaled deeply and gripped the hydrochloric acid bottle with both hands, the footsteps grew closer and closer.
The door connecting the animal room could be opened by pressing the button on the floor with your foot. As soon as I had that thought, there was a sound of the door opening, as if the other person had pressed the button on the floor. It seemed the other person had entered Yoo Geum-yis animal room. The sound of dragging feet was close. Slippers? Jihyun asked Yoo Geum-yi in a small voice to go to the office.
How do you open this?
Press the button on the side.
When pressed, the door blocking the adjacentbs animal room opened, and we could move to the office of the adjacentb. We all looked at each other with frozen faces full of tension. What do we do now? Should we run out of here right now, hoping our feet are faster than that persons, and run up the stairs to the 3rd floor? Jihyun opened a random notebook and wrote with a pen as if dashing off the words. She had written run out of here right now when a sound was heard.
Knock knock knock.
The other person was knocking on the metal door with the back of their hand. Knock knock knock. As we exchanged nces while listening to the knocking sound again, a mans voice was heard.
I know youre in there.
Then he kicked the door once with his foot. Bang! At the sound, Kim Ga-young gasped and held her breath. Yoo Geum-yi jumped up from where she was standing.- Its a metal door. You bastard. Go ahead and kick it. Seeing Yoo Geum-yi frozen like a statue while holding the hydrochloric acid bottle, I took the bottle from her and ced it in the center of the office desk. The mans voice, previously speaking in normal English, came from the other side of the metal door. It was a rather deep voice.
Why didnt youe to the 3rd floor?
All of our gazes turned to Yoo Geum-yi. Yoo Geum-yi stammered and asked us in a small voice,
Should I answer? Or stay quiet? Which method would be better for us?
Now even Jihyun had a clueless expression. I whispered softly,
Wouldnt it be okay to ask what hes doing? Why he didnt escape from the underwater base where water is leaking, if the research center is intact, what the hell hes been doing. What hes trying to do bying in here.
We only stopped by here briefly before going to the underwater pollution center via the 3rd floor, but why is that bastard hanging around here? Jihyun thought for 5 seconds, then nodded.
Alright. Lets try talking. But Yoo Geum-yi, pretend youre the only one in thisb.
At Jihyuns words, Yoo Geum-yi said Ah and nodded, then quickly wrote OK in the notebook. Then she left the office, crossed the door, walked to the other side of the metal door, and answered loudly,
Who are you to enter someone elsesb without permission?
I entered after scanning my fingerprint though.
The mans voice answered as if mocking Yoo Geum-yi. Yoo Geum-yi, with a face full of tension, bit her lip once and shouted with a frown,
If youre going to say such nonsense, I dont want to talk, so get out!
When Yoo Geum-yi spoke sternly as if annoyed by the attitude of the unidentified person on the other side of the metal door, the other person was silent for a while, then responded to Yoo Geum-yis words.
I work at the underwater pollution center. Do you work here? Or did you wander in like me?
How did you get in?
I picked up some researchers index fingers. What about you?
Kim Ga-young made a face as if she would vomit from biological disgust. Yoo Geum-yi hesitated, looked at us for a few seconds, then answered,
I work in thisb.
Did youe in from the main building? Or have you been here the whole time?
Ive been here.
The man kicked the door once more with his foot. Bang! The sound rang out, and Kim Ga-young and I flinched and were startled, while Yoo Geum-yi jumped up from where she was standing and took a few steps back. At the scratching sound, I turned my head to see Jihyun writing in the notebook.
Jihyun, tightly gripping the scalpel in one hand, was scribbling with aplicated expression. She had written, Ill open the door from this side and go to Yoo Geum-yisb to ambush and capture that man. Please stall for time until then. But as soon as I saw the contents, I shook my head.
He seems crazy, and Jihyun is going to fight him with just a scalpel? Didnt he say he has some weird microbe gun? Can Jihyun take him down alone? What if someone is waiting right outside the door for thisb door to open?
And if that man had closed the door after entering Yoo Geum-yisb by scanning his fingerprint, we wouldnt be able to enter thatb without Yoo Geum-yis fingerprint. An ambush would be impossible. The man spoke to Yoo Geum-yi with a sneer.
Dont lie.
The man spoke to Yoo Geum-yi leisurely.
Lets exchange information without falsehoods for the sake of our survival. Both you and I are busy people, arent we?
Yoo Geum-yi frowned and crossed her arms. Then, in contrast to her trembling lips, she answered coldly.
First, give me some information that could help me. Ill judge after receiving it.
The barrier lowered on the 3rd floor of the underwater pollution center can only be opened with authority on the level of Center Director Riley or Center Director Malone. The same goes for the barrier that came down between the main buildings.
Upon hearing the mans words, Jihyuns eyes widened. Then she immediately took out Roarkes pad, turned it on, and checked the contents through the map of the underwater pollution center. She then scribbled with her hand.
[The barrier was down.]
Kim Ga-young took the pen with a puzzled look and wrote,
[Ive gone back and forth hundreds of times between myb in the underwater pollution center and the main building, and its never been blocked.]
Perhaps originally, researchers were able to freelye and go between the research centers. I took the pen and quickly covered Kim Ga-youngs writing.
[Then that bastard is trapped in this deep-sea creature center now?]
Suddenly, I remembered the shattered pad next to Ang Malone. And the barrier that had blocked the corridor connecting to the main building. Perhaps, I thought, Ang Malone had lowered the barrier to block it.
Jihyun began checking through the pad to see if there was a way out of this deep-sea creature center to somewhere else. We also ended up entering the research center because of this pad; otherwise, we probably wouldnt have been able to enter at all. It seemed that regr engineers couldnt control an entire research center through the pad.
Yoo Geum-yi uncrossed her arms and pointed at the metal door with her finger to us. Then she made a gesture of twirling her finger around, as if asking what to do. Jihyun quickly wrote something. And she showed it to Yoo Geum-yi.
[In exchange, give him the information that a missile attacked this ce.]
Is this important information? To me, it doesnt seem important at all. Jihyun probably thought the same. Whether a missile destroyed the building or people caused an explosion inside, the fact that the underwater base has be like a leaky shoe remains unchanged. It also doesnt change the fact that we need to run away for our immediate safety. Yoo Geum-yi hesitated, licked her lips once with her tongue, and answered the other person.
The reason the research center ended up like this is because it was attacked by a missile. Now its my turn to ask. Did you kill the people in the corridor?
Yes.
Why did you do that?
Because I could.
Yoo Geum-yis mouth fell open nkly. Kim Ga-young, whose mouth was simrly agape, was writing to check if she had heard correctly. Jihyun quietly frowned at the metal door. Only after taking a deep breath in and out did Yoo Geum-yi seem to shake off the shock from those words. Yoo Geum-yi now stood askew with her arms crossed, ring at the metal door. The man asked Yoo Geum-yi,
Now its my turn to ask. Why did you return from the main building to the research center? Without escaping there?
Yoo Geum-yi nced at us, saw Jihyun shaking her head back and forth, and answered expressionlessly.
Its true that Ive been here the whole time. I took sleeping pills and fell asleep, and when I woke up and left theb, people were dead in the corridor. I was shocked and headed to the main building, but when I saw the barrier lowered there, I came back to theb.
Why did youe to theb? Instead of going to the 3rd floor underwater pollution center?
Kim Ga-young was surprised and scribbled something. It was so messy that I couldnt read what it said, so I wrote a question mark next to it. Kim Ga-young then silently waved her arms frantically and wrote again neatly in print.
[That bastard must have been in the corridor connecting the 3rd floor deep-sea creature center and the underwater pollution center.]
Ah. We came down before going to that connecting corridor on the 3rd floor. If we hadnte to Yoo Geum-yisb, we would have almost ran into that bastard head-on.
Yoo Geum-yi shook her head and asked,
Answer my question first. Why didnt you escape?
There arent enough escape pods in the underwater pollution center. There are only 350, but the 500 or so people in the research center cant leave.
500 people? I thought there were about 400 researchers.
Chapter 81
Chapter 81
At that moment, the mans punches ceased. It was too dark to properly see why he had stopped hitting me. Had his left arm gone limp from beating someone for so long? The smell of blood was palpable. I couldnt tell whose blood it was. In the darkness, while gasping for breath and holding onto the mans right arm and hand, I saw a light and turned my head to find Kim Ga-young limping towards us, her pad switched on.
It is Arthur Goodman.
Only when Kim Ga-young came closer could I see why Arthurs fists, which had been swinging at me, had stopped. Yoo Geum-yi was pressing down on Arthurs left arm with all her body weight. To hit me, he would need the strength to lift a weight of about 50 to 60 kg or more with one arm. At the edge of the light, Lee Jihyun was groaning and pushing away an iron chair with her arm.
Im Kim Ga-young, working in theb next to yours. The Asian bitch you cursed at. I knew you were a racist, but I never thought wed meet like this in this situation.
It was all in Korean. I couldnt tell if the trantor had broken ore off when I fell. All sorts of English curses poured out of Arthurs mouth. They were all curses about women, the kind that would justifiably get you fired from society if you uttered even a single letter.
Kim Ga-young approached at a slow pace, and as Arthur was struggling to break free, I pressed down on him with all my might. Lee Jihyun approached Arthurs right arm, which I was holding onto. Then, using her ten fingers, she pried open one of Arthurs right pinky fingers holding the gun. With her ten fingers, she began bending that forced-open single finger in the opposite direction of the joint. Aaaaargh! Afterpletely bending the pinky finger backwards, she moved on to the fourth ring finger, repeating the same process.
Finally, Kim Ga-young, who had approached us to a distance of zero, took out a bottle from the bag she was carrying. It was a bottle of hydrochloric acid. Had she grabbed it during the ckout? Even in the faint light of the pad, Yoo Geum-yi gasped as she recognized what it was. Before I could stop her, Kim Ga-young opened the bottle and poured it straight onto Arthurs head without hesitation.
Aaaaaaaaagh!
The smell of burning protein immediately filled the air. Yoo Geum-yi groaned and turned her head, and I squeezed my eyes shut, swallowing a scream. As I pressed down on the struggling body with all my strength, I heard the glug-glug-glug sound of the acid pouring out of the bottle like water. Even with my eyes closed, the smells and sounds reached me directly. The body pinned under me was thrashing and trying to break free with all its strength.
You are a certified asshole.
Kim Ga-young spoke in a t tone, unfazed by the screams of her victim.
You think youre the only human. Difficult and trying situations can befall anyone. At times like this, everyone struggles. Everyone wants to survive, everyone wants to be selfish. But even in tough circumstances, you shouldnt have turned into a monster so easily. Kids twenty years younger than you are out there saving people, and youre not even ashamed at your age?
Soon the screams subsided. Due to the blood flowing down, I couldnt see well through my right eye, so I slightly opened my left eye and saw that Kim Ga-young was now pouring the acid not on his head, but directly onto his face. Oh my god. I didnt have the stomach to watch and closed my eyes.
OB (Organic Breakdown) wasnt researched and developed over such a long time to kill people. Because of you. Because of you. So many people died. Because of you, so many good people were hurt.
Now, convulsions began to grip the mans body. When the third finger was twisted, Lee Jihyun finally pried the organicpound gun from Arthurs hand. She then ced it inside Kim Ga-youngs open bag and zipped it closed.
Dont turn into a monster in crisis situation. No matter how hard it gets.
I ced Yoo Geum-yis arm over my shoulder and had Kim Ga-young put her arm around my waist. My right cheek was so swollen that I couldnt see well ahead of me, causing me to step on Lee Jihyuns heel as she walked in front and nearly making us both fall. We had survived, but everyones condition was far from normal. We had to walk slowly, leaning on each other for support.
There was no need to rush, or more urately, we had lost the ability to run, so we slowly walked through the barrier. We soon passed the Deep-Sea Life Center and entered the Seabed Pollution Center. After crossing the long corridor of the connecting passageway, we saw therge letters spelling out Seabed Pollution Center and a statue of a creature that looked either like a chicken or a crane. Beneath the statue was a simple phrase:
[Clean and Bountiful Ocean]
That was it. My vision was half-obscured due to the blood, so I thought that was really it, but even as we passed close to the statue, that was all there was to it. The Seabed Pollution Center wanted something simple yet most difficult.
Entering the Seabed Pollution Center, which had lights unlike the cked-out Deep-Sea Life Center, several people emerged from the corners. As they slowly approached us from a distance, Lee Jihyun, who was leading the way, took out a scalpel and pointed it forward. Then she swung it widely. It was a clear message that she would attack anyone who came close.
The people didnt approach too closely, but Yoo Geum-yi, who had been walking while leaning on my shoulder, copsed to the floor as her legs gave out. I tried to put Yoo Geum-yis arm, who was nearly crawling on the ground, back over my shoulder and stand up, but I also had no strength at all. One of the men approached Lee Jihyun with both hands raised. He was a tall man who pointed at Yoo Geum-yi and said to Lee Jihyun,
Ill just help support her. Ill only assist with moving, thats all.
How can I trust you? I dont trust anyone!
Lee Jihyun was incredibly on edge due to the events that had just urred. The stress must be immense. I understand. I, too, would be terrified if someone tried to grab us right now. At least we were now under the light, which helped calm us down and prevent us from falling into a panic, but if someone had appeared in the darkness earlier, who knows what would have happened.
Yoo Geum-yi, who was holding onto my waist, frowned and managed to get on one knee, raising her upper body with great difficulty. The pale-faced Kim Ga-young almost hugged Yoo Geum-yi to help her up from the floor, but they both looked like they were about to copse.
The man looked at our state and slowly rolled up his left sleeve, revealing his entire forearm. Lee Jihyun was so startled by his action that she jumped back. There was a long tattoo in English on his dark skin, written in white ink. It was all in English, and with my impaired vision on one side, I couldnt clearly see what it said. However, Lee Jihyun seemed to be reading it aloud. I was more concerned that while Lee Jihyun was distracted reading it, the man might attack or hit us.
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and greatmandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these twomandments hang all thew and the prophets.
What is he saying? Did I hear that correctly? Is my hearing impaired too? My entire right side ached all over. Lee Jihyuns face gradually froze as she finished reading the tattoo on his forearm. The man, who had been holding up both hands, replied simply,
Matthew 22. Hey, sis. Ill just help, thats all.
An exchange of Bible verses? In this situation? As someone who despises religion, this is utterly iprehensible to me. How would I know if that dead Arthur Goodman was a Christian? If this unfolds simrly to a dream, perhaps the cult that has taken over this underwater base also originated from a well-known religion. However, after looking at us crawling along and the white tattoos on the mans forearm, Lee Jihyun hesitated, still holding the scalpel, and said,
James. Please help support Yoo Geum-yi. The short one over there.
They knew each other? The man named James approached Yoo Geum-yi, knelt down, and turned his back to her. Yoo Geum-yi hesitated, her tired face turning from side to side. Then, realizing that he was offering his back to her, she spoke in a voice that sounded like it would give out,
Im heavy.
Ill know when I carry you.
Yoo Geum-yi looked at Lee Jihyun, Kim Ga-young beside her, and me, then almost copsed onto his back,cking any strength. James stood up effortlessly with Yoo Geum-yi on his back. Then he remarked, as if in disbelief,
Light as a feather.
He then strode over andid Yoo Geum-yi on the long bench located next to the vending machine. Seeing this, another man approached Lee Jihyun, causing her to growl and point the scalpel at him. The man pointed at James and said to Lee Jihyun,
Wow! Calm down! Im friends with him. Sam Young. Sam! You know? Youve seen me before. Weve seen each others faces many times.
Help Ga-young. Her hands are injured from the acid. She needs to rinse them with water.
As Sam cautiously approached, he saw Kim Ga-youngs hands and eximed, Holy shit! Mother fuck! He then forcibly carried Kim Ga-young on his back and ran down the corridor. It seemed like he was heading towards the restroom.
Jihyun. Go help Ga-young. Make sure you dont get separated. Ill stay with Geum-yi.
Lee Jihyun looked me over from head to toe and frowned, but ran off in the direction Sam had dashed. I was surrounded by a group of five or six men. Strangely, I wasnt afraid. Perhaps it was because such terrible and frightening things had already happened, or maybe my brain had determined that I was in too much pain to feel any more. If this were a normal situation, I would have been terrified to be surrounded by several unfamiliar men.
The men slowly approached, showing their open palms, and touched my shoulders, striking up a conversation. Hey bro. Why are you so badly hurt? Dude. Are you okay? Your forehead is cut and bleeding a lot. Can you press this towel against it? Your cheek is all busted. Who beat you up like this? Did you at least get some hits in?
Its okay. Pleasey me down next to Geum-yi too.
Someone grabbed my right shoulder, and someone else grabbed my left shoulder. I was nearly dragged over to the beverage vending machine area. With my limited vision, the Seabed Pollution Center seemed to have a simr structure to the Deep-Sea Life Center.
The problem was that this was the third floor, and the lower part of the building, which looked like an shape, waspletely flooded. It was submerged in water up to the second floor. I seemed to have lost consciousness for about 10 seconds, and when I came to, I was lying on a long bench in the corridor, slightly away from the bench where Yoo Geum-yi was lying. Someone was pressing a towel against my right eye, and mistaking it for them pressing on my nose, I abruptly sat up, but realizing that wasnt the case, Iy back down limply.
You startled me.
The man who introduced himself as Kanu chuckled and pressed the towel firmly against the wound.
Chapter 82
Chapter 82
I took a deep breath and exhaled as I nced at Yoo Geum-yi lying on the long bench. I wanted to go to the bathroom to check my busted face and aching side myself, but I couldnt possibly leave Yoo Geum-yi alone here. I decided to go once Lee Jihyun and Kim Ga-young returned, and waited for them toe back.
I didnt want to risk separating the girls with so many unfamiliar men around. No matter how decent someone seems, you never know when or how a crime might ur. This man named Kanu could be showing kindness only to me.
I was in the midst of scraping together what little vignce I had in my head, which had rarely been activated before. Kanu, who had been trying to stop the bleeding from my forehead, was a rather cheerful man in his 40s. As he chattered about his major, research field, andb, he asked me,
Whats your name?
Park Moohyun.
Where are you guys from?
Uh
I wondered if it was okay to reveal that we could get out of the research center through the South District. They could be desperate to leave the research center like that Arthur Goodman guy. Seeing that I didnt seem to want to talk, Kanu said,
Then ask me what youre curious about first. Ill tell you as much as I know.
Why didnt you escape?
Oh, well, its already been revealed anyway. Im terminally ill, so I gave up my escape pod to someone else. My brain is very special, you see.
Kanu pointed to his head and made a light tapping sound with his fingertips. Then he frowned, perhaps due to a headache, and held the area around his forehead for a moment. I watched him endure the unavoidable pain and slowly asked,
Surgery wont help?
Its already spread a lot, and they said I might lose my memory if I have surgery, so I refused. Ill just research until I die.
Im sorry to hear that. What about the others? I thought there would be more people here.
There are only about 10 people left now. I was a bitte getting to the escape pods because of severe dizziness, and at that time, Bel Oh, Bel is Belial Riley, the director of this Seabed Pollution Center. He was handling the chaos of people trying to take each others escape pods. He sent out the teenage researchers first.
Teenagers? Teenagers? Minors arent allowed in the underwater base, right? I asked Kanu in surprise,
There are researchers that young? Theyre minors.
You know, there are kids whose brains are a bit different. They can do even the mostplex calctions in their heads, memorize a 300-page book in just 5 minutes, and instinctively grasp CD without even learning AB. Those kinds of geniuses, like a new human race created by humanity.
Ah, there were kids like that. Ive seen exactly one in my life. I first learned that there were separate education centers for the gifted in our country because of that kid. Usually, we would eat ice cream together, y games, watch TV, and kick a ser ball around, so I had no idea his brain was so extraordinary. He said he was doing research somewhere.
Out of the 500 staff members at the research center, there were only 350 escape pods, and the cargo elevator hadpletely stopped on the 1st floor and wasnt working. The rare earth center, where water was pouring in like a flood, waspletely blocked off by Bel. Still, the water level kept rising, people were screaming and running around, it was total chaos.
Kanu let out a shallow cough and continued,
Everyone gathered on the 1st floor where the escape pods were. Those special kids at the research center are treated as adults. There were a total of 8 geniuses throughout the entire research center, but they were pushed into a corner by the adults. They went out first. After that, people with disabilities or chronic illnesses were sent out first, followed by female researchers and staff members. I was a bit surprised to see Bel reciting the researchers physical conditions and family situations. He never showed any signs of that to me before. I had never mentioned it to anyone around me either.
Kanu, who had shownpassion for Bel, sighed as he looked down at the escape pod port on the 1st floor from the 3rd floor. I frowned at the water filling the 1st and 2nd floors as I sat up. Maybe it was because I had been lying down and got up, but I felt a bit dizzy. I had a slight fevering on, but I sat on the bench, swaying, worried that if Iy down, I might never get up again.
What about the others?
From what I heard from the other kids who arrived earlier, the rare earth centerpletely disappeared. As you can see from the water below, the connecting corridor linked to the rare earth center is also Water keepsing in from somewhere. There were probably about 100 people in the rare earth center at that time. A few lucky ones from the rare earth side who were hanging out here survived, but to be exact, around 400 people had to figure out what to do with about 350 seats. When there were about 80 people left, the water rose to knee-level on the 1st floor.
Kanu pointed to his knees and said,
There were a few people who voluntarily gave up their escape pods like me and stayed behind, some stayed because their friends or family were left behind, some stayed for their research, and there were also those who desperately wanted to get on even if they died but couldnt. Some argued about Bel forcibly closing the rare earth center, and there were those who kept yelling about why people with disabilities were being evacuated first. They were screaming at Bel, telling him not to escape.
If only the rare earth center was destroyed, quite a lot of researchers survived. In my previous dream, it sounded like the entire South District research center was blown away by missiles. Was the damage originally this minimal? I looked at Kanus unscathed appearance with my one-sided vision. He didnt seem to have any blood stter on his body or suffered any injuries.
Did people get on the escape pods in such an orderly manner?
More than youd think. The guys whoe here have their heads full of books. Even if they werent, what could they do by causing amotion when so many people werent agreeing with them? But as the number of people decreased, problems started to grow.
And then what happened?
Kanu pointed in the direction where Lee Jihyun had disappeared earlier and answered,
Sam, who just left, said we probably wouldnt be able to get on, so we should hide somewhere else right away. He said it didnt seem like the situation would go smoothly through conversation. So he took a few people and hid in a storage room in the corner of the 7th floorb. We could hear screams and fighting sounds from outside, but when we came out an hourter, the number of people had been reduced to less than half. More than half seemed to have gone to the Deep-Sea Life Center, so I closed this ce off using Bels shattered pad, failing dozens of times. In case the guys who went to the biology section came back here.
I turned my head from side to side. I had to turn my head more vigorously to see with one eye. There were a total of 8 men on the 3rd floor.
Is this all thats left of the survivors?
There are 8 people here, and 3 people are bing corpses in that office over there. And there are two or three guys on other floors too.
What do you mean, bing corpses? Seeing my expression, he shrugged and replied,
They hit and stabbed each other with emergency axes or hammers, fighting until they died. A fewmitted suicide in the corner. They stabbed people with office scissors. There were a few people still alive, but their injuries were too severe, so there was nothing we could do. Even now, there are a few guys who are resentful that they, such great humans, couldnt escape and were abandoned with ipetent and useless humans. But when they realized they were also trapped here and couldnt move, they went up to the 6th or 7th floor. The other kids and I took care of the corpses and injured,ying them down in the directors office or the fewbs next to it.
What kind of injuries do they have?
Are you a doctor?
Kanu was smiling with his whole face, even though I was pressing a towel against my right eye and could only see through my left. I shook my head right away.
No, Im a dentist.
Please quickly recognize my uselessness.
Ah, youre the new dentist who came this time. The Deep ck, was it?
Iughed at Kanus words. Laughing made my busted lips hurt. My cheeks and the corners of my eyes hurt too. How did I get hit in the face? I licked my lips and mypletely torn-up mouth with my tongue and corrected the name of my dental clinic.
Its Deep Blue. I feel so wronged. Ive only been here for 5 days, and this happened. This ce is really a mess.
I think so too. Im a senior researcher, but Im about to quit soon.
Kanu held out his fist to me in a friendly manner, so I held out my fist as well. The two fists collided weakly and fell apart. I touched my side and let out a low groan. Lets not touch it. This is the first time Ive been beaten up like this. Biting my lip at the pain that sharply rose, I said,
If the injuries are mostly around the face, I can somehow take a look.
We should do something about your face, kid.
Kanu circled his finger around my face and said,
Who did you get hit by? Seeing that the girls faces are fine, it seems like you fought, but thats what a man should do.
I think theres a huge misunderstanding. How busted is my face for him to say something like that? Ive never hit anyone before today. Ive never been hit either. And if were talking about the extent of injuries, Yoo Geum-yi and Lee Jihyun, who were hit with an iron chair, would be worse. I cant even imagine how much Kim Ga-young injured her hands while pouring hydrochloric acid in the dark without being able to see properly.
Im ashamed to say I didnt do much. The reason I made it here is because those people fought more fiercely than I was hit.
Yoo Geum-yi, who had been lying down, faintly groaned, holding her lower back. Hearing that voice, I asked Kanu,
Do you happen to have any medicine here?
I have painkillers, and there should be a few in the other offices too.
I suppose you dont have eperisone hydrochloride or aceclofenac? Or just regr disinfectant. Cold medicine, or if all else fails, bandages. Even mouthwash.
Looking at Kanus face, I hurriedly changed my question. Surely there would be at least one in theb, right? Hey researchers, you brush your teeth, dont you?
Chapter 83
Chapter 83
Uh Why dont you search the center directors office or something?
Kanu stood up from his seat, as if to say there might be a first aid kit or something. In the distance, Kim Ga-young and Lee Jihyun were approaching with a man named Sam. It seemed like Jihyun was saying something to Ga-youngs hand, but it was too far away to hear properly. Ga-youngs hand was wrapped in someones clothing. It didnt look like her hand was in good condition.
I told the two of them not to take their eyes off Yoo Geum-yi and walked to the bathroom. I wanted to run there quickly, but it hurt every time I moved, so I had no choice but to walk forcibly. My side ached with each breath.
Is it fractured? No. If it were fractured, it wouldnt hurt this much. If the pain were that severe, I wouldve already been crying, screaming, and rolling on the floor. Itll be fine. Lets not worry before getting an X-ray. Worrying now will only increase my concerns. Lets put off worrying untilter. Lets focus on the present.
Looking in the mirror, the colors of the right and left sides of my face were different. The left side was quite fine, but the right side was bright red and bruised. Moreover, it waspletely bloody. Wow. Is this what I look like? Plus, the right side of my face was starting to swell. Unlike the intact left side, there was a gash above my right eyebrow, where a scab had formed with fibers or threads from the towel, and the bleeding had stopped for now. I looked around and took off my top. The left side was fine, but the right shoulder, arm, and side, where Arthur had pounded, were developing bright red bruises from the punches.
Its okay. I can walk. I can move. Its aplete minor injury. I tried to instill some confidence in myself.
When youre alone in the bathroom, looking at the parts of your body that were hit by someone with a bloody face, your mood naturally hits rock bottom. Come to think of it, I think it was fortunate that it was dark. I couldnt see the face of the opponent beating me properly. And because of the darkness, I couldnt clearly see the opponents face melting as they thrashed me. I didnt want to see those sights clearly with my own eyes and revisit that scene again on a lonely night.
To save myself from bing depressed, I forcibly showered myself with praise. Its all in the past. Its way better than Jihyun, Ga-young, or Yoo Geum-yi getting beaten like this. It ended up this way because it was me. The left side is fine, isnt it? Youve seen much more terrible things while working, havent you?
First, I carefully washed my bloody face and the blood-stained neck with water. Faces normally bleed a lot when injured. Was he wearing a ring? Or were his nails long? I dont know. I cant remember. As I wiped away the blood, my reflection in the mirror returned to its usual appearance. My elevated heart rate also returned to normal.
I also rinsed the injured areas under running water and took out a towel from my bag to press against the wounds. I looked in the mirror to check if my teeth were okay, sighing once before mming it. While rummaging through the bathroom drawers, I found toothpaste, a toothbrush, and mouthwash that someone had left behind, so I gargled with the mouthwash. The torn inside of my mouth seemed to scream in agony, but it was better than not doing it, so I rinsed and spit twice. I walked out into the hallway feeling somewhat better. A man named James saw me and pointed his finger down the opposite corridor.
When I went there, it was the center directors office, and people were lying on the floor. I thought they might be sleeping, but when I checked, one person had an ax stuck in their stomach, another had a dented skull as if they had been hit with a hammer. There was also a person who seemed to have been hit in the mouth and jaw with a hammer, with all their upper and lower teeth knocked out. Damn, this is crazy.
I could see at a nce that there were more than ten corpses densely packed like Tetris, so I hurriedly passed through that office and went further inside. In the inner room, there were people Kanu referred to as those who were dying, sprawled on the sofa. One man had an office scissors stuck in his head and a pen in his eye. Next to him was a person with a broken ss bottle stuck in their stomach and neck, and another with broken limbs and blood pouring from the back of their head. Thankfully, all three seemed unconscious.
It doesnt seem like anyone here particrly needs a dentist. An emergency medicine specialist shoulde here instead of me. Next, general surgery, orthopedics, thoracic surgery, ophthalmology, etc.all the medical and surgical departments in a university hospital shoulde. Instead of me.
Kanu was next to those people, taking out a dusty emergency bag hung from the ceiling. As Kanu wiped away the dust with his hand, a red and white cross became visible, making it look somewhat like an emergency bag. Oh. Its not a cheap first aid kit? But when opened, the contents were simr to a cheap first aid kit. Still, its better than nothing to have hydrogen peroxide and gauze. As I frantically rummaged through the emergency bag to check what was inside, the woman closest to me spoke to me as I made noise.
Are you the rescue team?
The voice, interspersed with coughs, was calm. Did she just regain consciousness? Kanu flinched and turned his head, and I was so startled I nearly jumped. What should I say?
No. Im not with the rescue team.
The thought of giving false hope and lying crossed my mind for a few seconds, but I just couldnt do it. The woman asked again, still staring at the ceiling.
Are my injuries severe? I cant move my neck.
I let go of the emergency kit and approached the woman. Kanu closed his eyes for a moment, then looked far away and spoke to her.
Bel. You fell from the 6th floor. Remember? People threw you.
Enradi. What happened to Tina? Did Tina escape?
Tina is dead.
Then Kanu paced around the sofa where Bel was lying, and suddenly ran out of the room. I was left alone in the room with a dying person, holding the emergency bag. Having inadvertently grasped the saline solution, I felt this situation was a tremendous burden.
Being unable to do anything while someone is dying next to you. Oh my god. I want to get out of here too. Bel. Its probably Belial, right? Is there anything I can do for her? Belial, still looking at the ceiling, asked me as I clumsily got up.
Are you still by my side?
Yes. Im here.
Belial was swallowing something, but I couldnt tell if it was vomit or blood. With each breath, gurgling sounds and bloody foam rose up.
I want to be next to Tina. Is she beside me by any chance?
What does she look like?
Martina Sanchez. She has long, curly brown hair Shes wearing ck jeans a green knit sweater with a white gown. Shes probably wearing Crocs for shoes.
I think she might be in the next room. The people here are all injured.
I want to hold her hand before I die.
Feeling relieved that there was something I could do for her, I immediately grabbed the emergency bag and left. Outside, Kanu was shakily lighting a cigarette. I didnt even feel like asking why he was smoking in the underwater base. If I were the type of person who could suppress my anxiety and sadness with something like that, I might have snatched it and smoked it too. I hurriedly asked Kanu.
Where is Martinas corpse?
Probably in the next room.
Following the trembling hand pointing next door, I ran to the room next to the center directors office, but there were also corpsesid out there. It seemed like there were over thirty corpses. It was the first time I had seen so many dead bodies gathered in one ce.
I thought it wouldnt be easy to find a stranger in a ce where the bodies were simply gathered without ovepping. But I found her unexpectedly easily. It was because Kim Ga-young was in that room, bending over to look at peoples faces. Ga-young, with both hands wrapped in a towel, was startled to see me suddenly enter the room and asked.
Are you looking for someone?
Martina Sanchez!
Its her.
The person Ga-young pointed to with her chin was a very small-framed woman. I put my hands under the corpses back and knees and lifted her with both arms. She looked like she was just sleeping, as she hadnt been dead for very long. I entered what looked like an inner reception room from the center directors office. Bel was still staring at the ceiling. Worried that I might be toote, I quickly asked.
Bel? Bel? Are you alive?
Im still alive. Cough.
I made it so that Bels fingertips touched the hand of the deceased Martina. I dont know if she had any sensation. As Bel intertwined her fingertips with Martinas fingers, I tried to think of something good to say.
No suitable phrases came to my mind. Maybe religious people could say something here. Or people who are good with words. Or if they majored in linguistics or studied a lot of humanities. Damn it. I should have read more books.
I wanted to praise Bel for trying to evacuate people in an orderly manner even in the chaotic situation at the underwater pollution center. That might not have meant anything or been of any help to her. But if I didnt say anything, I felt like I would be crushed by the silence.
I heard you tried to evacuate people.
I think thats amazing. You could have escaped first, but you didnt, and you did everything you could do here to the fullest.
Tina gave up her escape pod because I said I would stay. Gurgle.
Bel, who swallowed the bloody foam and vomited, said.
Then she got hit by fists while protecting me. Kicks too, and a knife. Cough. She grabbed me as I was thrown into the air and crashed to the floor with me.
The woman, whose limbs were bent strangely and several ribs were protruding outward, exined the past as she shed tears of blood and bled from the back of her head.
What do I do? What can I do?! I felt immense sadness as I watched Bel, who could no longer swallow the bloody foam and began spitting it out. Why do I feel so dejected and angry? I felt a searing pain in my chest. I tried my best to restrain my emotions and told Bel.
Chapter 84
Chapter 84
Its okay to be more angry and curse them out! The people who killed you and Tina like that are already corpses or will be soon! Even if some survived, do you think those bastards who selfishly escaped in the pods will live well? Such selfish jerks will die even more horribly someday, even if not here! Theyll pay the price for what they chose!
So much for emotional restraint. I was sobbing but also stomping around furiously. I was so sad that this situation happened and anger surged up from my gut. I couldnt tell if that anger was directed at those selfish, enraged people, the missile that caused this situation, or this underwater base itself.
Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi were standing in the doorway watching this scene. After hesitating a few times, Yoo Geum-yi approached Bels side. Then she quietly spoke to Bel.
Tina would have wanted to stay by your side no matter what. She must have liked you enough to give up her escape pod.
As Yoo Geum-yi reconnected Bels weakening fingers with Tinas fingers, she said,
Enough to not mind bing fish food together.
The murmuring voice continued, directed at Bel who was nkly staring at the ceiling.
By your side is the person who loved and protected you, and also someone who doesnt know you well but hase to respect you like this. Theres Ga-young eonni who owes you for coffee several times, and me who was plotting to clean out the bakery because you said youd buy bread.
Yoo Geum-yi smiled and said softly,
You worked hard. Thank you for that passion. Now hold Tinas hand and rest.
I realized you could say it like that. As I looked at Bel, I felt my anger disappear in an instant. I bit my lip and swallowed my sorrow. I felt like I would cry if I opened my mouth. I finally felt like I could understand the emotion Ga-young mentioned of wanting to cry when you see good people.
I washed my hands several times and unwrapped the towel around Ga-youngs burned hands to examine the wounds. Ga-young, who justified to me that she had washed it under running water for 20 minutes, spoke of her hand injuries as if it were no big deal.
Uh Moo-hyun-ssi. It doesnt hurt as much as youd think.
As soon as I saw her hands, I almost blurted out that its because the nerve cells were destroyed, but I barely held back. I didnt want to scare her first in a situation I couldnt immediately fix. The left hand was rtively fine, but the right thumb, index finger, and middle finger were the worst, with two knuckles of skin ckened from 3rd degree burns. There were also areas where blisters were forming.
I tried my best not to burst the blisters as I dressed the wounds with items salvaged from the emergency bag and wrapped her fingers and hands with the cleanest cloth avable. I had her open her mouth wide to check if there was inmmation inside from the hydrochloric acid fumes, but fortunately there was none. I tried my best to speak calmly to Ga-young.
Once we get out of here, you should go to the hospital quickly, Ga-young-ssi. Now try not to use your right hand as much as possible.
Okay.
Dont use your left hand either.
Then what do I do?
Order me and the others around.
At those words, Ga-young let out a smallugh as if exhaling. Why does seeing someone elseugh reduce my anxiety and depression too? Even though Im not the oneughing.
As I was disinfecting the scraped and scratched knee and calf areas, I took a look around. Jihyun went down to the 2nd floor, which was filling with water, saying she would check the freight elevator with a few others. Yoo Geum-yi found some spray pain relief patches in ab and went into the room where the corpses were piled up, saying she would spray it on her back and waist. Yoo Geum-yi says dead people are less scary than living people. Im scared of both. As I disinfected Ga-youngs calf, I asked in a small voice.
Um Ga-young-ssi. Id like to have a bit of an ufortable conversation. If you feel bad or dont want to answer during the conversation, please tell me you dont want to.
At those words, Ga-young tilted her head to the right, then to the left, stretching her neck, and answered me.
Okay. Go ahead.
Werent you scared when pouring the hydrochloric acid?
That my hand would get hurt? Or that the other person would die horribly?
Im also concerned about the former, but my question is about thetter.
I was scared of both, honestly. But I was more afraid of him approaching us and harming us.
Ga-young said, looking at her hand wrapped in gauze and bandages.
I know there are people in this world who cant be reasoned with or persuaded through conversation alone. After seeing him use the organicpound dposer on a human body, I gave up trying to persuade Goodman at all. I guess its because Im old enough. Im an old person whos toozy to invest enough time to have a conversation and persuade with various evidence, so if it seems like words wont work, I easily give up on the other person.
At that time, I thought the four of us could subdue him. Is that naive? This conversation isnt meant to criticize your actions, Ga-young-ssi.
Ga-young looked at the back of my intact hand, unlike my battered face, and spoke with a frown.
Being naive isnt a bad thing. But there are a lot of crazy bastards in the world. Some can only be stopped by death. There are quite a few people with problems in their brains too. Um. I saw some of those types beforeing to theb, and unfortunately got involved with them, so I know. I thought that if that bastard hadnt died like that then, one or two of the four of us might have died.
I have lived a life far from violence. Im deeply regretting just pulling the trigger in my dreams. That guilt. The heavy feeling in my index finger and the sight of the people who died from it kepting to mind. The weight of the dead cats and the blood people shed too. Those deaths were all in dreams.
And I kept thinking of Bel who just died, Martina who was next to her, the corpses strewn around, and the man named Arthur who died before that. Ill probably never be the type of person to harm someone first in my life. I cant be someone who gets hit and then hits first. Ive been lucky enough to live without getting badly beaten or properly hitting anyone, but how long can thatst in this underwater base?
Even when I really disliked certain people while living in society, I never personally beat them up or took revenge. Id rather stop getting involved or just avoid them. Dont people usually call the police if things get too serious? Ga-young fiddled with the bandage on her treated right hand with her left hand and said,
I dont really regret what I did.
Thats why Im telling you this, but do you have any intention of going back to the deep-sea creature center to check if the other person is alive or dead?
Youre telling me to go back into that darkness?
Ga-young shook her head vehemently with a terrified look. Of course. How could anyone go back there? Of course, Ga-young seems to have enough guts and tenacity to go back if told to, which is why Im even asking. I dont think I could go either if asked.
Im not really saying we should go back. But that person might still be alive. He could be rescued by otherster.
Uh oh.
In the case of the people we met at the deep-sea creature center, I confirmed whether they were dead or alive, but with Arthur Goodman, I was too busy running away to check. So if that person happens to be alive and gets rescued, it could be a problemter. It seems like there wont be any witnesses to that incident besides the four of us though.
Its a far-fetched possibility, but what if people from the outside try to rescue the people here? You have to assume someone is alive until they are definitively pronounced dead. And the person pronouncing death here is me. I should have acted more level-headed then and confirmed Arthur Goodmans life or death status, but all I could do was run away in a panic.
It seems unlikely anyone could see us properly in the dark, but a lightning-fast question crossed my mind after hearing that James and Kanu survived by hiding. What if someone was hiding and watching what just happened? What if hes still alive due to someones emergency treatment? Ga-young made a perplexed expression and said,
Its a slim possibility, but that could happen? Him surviving in that state?
Peoplee to the hospital with their mouths gone. If we escape and it bes an issue because of that person, Im going to im self-defense and say you were my aplice then.
Why?
If I had just pummeled that person with my fists a bit, it might not have escted to that extent. You and that person Arthur might not have needed to get this injured.
Ga-young made an absurd expression but soonughed.
Is that what youre sorry about? Hmm. I dont know Moo-hyun-ssi well, and we just met today, but youre kind to the point of being naive. Jihyun said something simr in the bathroom earlier. She said she grabbed a knife but fell and got up and doesnt know where it went. She apologized for making unnie handle such a thing.
Kind to the point of being naive. Isnt that an excuse for guilt? All four of us benefited from Arthur Goodmans death, but if this bes a criminal case, no matter how slim the chance, I dont want Ga-young to take on most of the me. I pointed to myself using a ng term I had heard somewhere before.
Arent you going to ask why Im being a pushover?
I dont like the word pushover. It mocks kind people. It drags down the moral standards to the bottom like everyone else, assuming others will act the same way you do. Dont use that word.
I think its really fortunate that Ga-young is much more educated and intelligent than me. Its not easy to have a chance to have this kind of conversation with this kind of person. I guess we can all be honest because were in a disaster situation. Since we just met, theres no need for formalities, and our work fields arepletely different, so theres no reason for us to get entangled. Ga-young snatched the tweezers from my hand and said,
I know exactly what I did. If hes alive, well, it cant be helped. That means he has a long life. Ill have an intact mouth, so Ill go around bbing to the whole world about what hes been up to. Well, dont worry too much. If hes alive, at least I can alleviate some of my guilt.
Then Ga-young awkwardly began treating my torn eyebrow, swollen eye, and busted lip. I was about to point out Ga-youngs hand hygiene and dressing methods, but I closed my mouth and quietly received Ga-youngs treatment. I half-closed my eyes because she was so close.
Chapter 85
Chapter 85
People should live kindly. That son of a bitch has always been He wasnt my junior or senior in theb, so I didnt give him much shit, but Ah I dont really want to talk about it. Anyways, kind people are charming just by being kind. They give off a vibe of being aplete human being. Just watching them makes you feel like they have the answer to how people should live. I like people like that. Even if youre not kind, you should at least try to live that way. I dont think anyone will help him after the way that bastard lived his life, but well, if someone saves him and he survives, I guess thats his luck.
I couldnt tell if the disinfection was done well or not. Ouch! It stings! The alcohol-soaked gauze Kim Ga-young rubbed around my mouth burned fiercely and violently. I endured the pain, holding back my breath whenever a part of my face stung. After Ga-young finished applying ointment to the wounds with her fingertips, she dered the treatment over and I was finally able to escape the brief torture.
Ill have to treat Yoo Geum-yi and Jihyuns injuries myself. To somewhat fortify my soft, frightened, and utterly unraveled mental state, I sighed and asked Ga-young a question.
Onest thing do you have any tips on how to have a tough mindset like yours? Like a way to arm your mind?
A lotus flower remains unstained by dirty water? When terrible and difficult things happen, try not to take it too much to heart. Think that no one can hurt you without your permission.
In the distance, Yoo Geum-yi was slowly walking over, clutching her waist. She reeked of pain relief patches all over her body.
But isnt the situation were in right now just too awful? Unnie, I want to live without getting hurt.
Yeah, I guess youre right.
Ga-young then smiled gently at Yoo Geum-yi. I took a quick nce over Yoo Geum-yis whole body and asked,
Yoo Geum-yi, hows your back?
Right now, I want to go to an orthopedic clinic for manual therapy, soak in a hot bath at the sauna, and then sleep for about 10 hours.
I thought to myself that she seemed fine, but then I realized this manner of speaking belonged to someone, though I couldnt remember who right away. With so many things happening all at once in such a short time, it was hard to remember everything. I lightly treated Yoo Geum-yis wounds. She said she didnt want to show her back and waist, so I didnt touch those areas.
Jihyun, who had gone down to the 2nd floor, was panting, soaking wet. Entering the room barefoot, she asked me,
Moohyun-ssi, have you ever escaped using an elevator in your dreams?
Oh, when I took the elevator from East District to the 3rd Undersea Base. But it stopped several times on the way up due to power outages. Why?
Im going to try operating the freight elevator here to escape. If it works well, everyone here will be able to reach the Basic Area (ground floor). Well go out and see the sunlight.
I heard the freight elevator moves the entire Daehan Ind artificial ind, not just the 4th Undersea Base like the central elevator. When Jihyun expressed such a positive opinion, I was happy in my mind, but I also started preparing myself mentally and kept track of time.
And if it doesnt work well?
Then well all go to be with the Lord at once.
I see. Simple enough Jihyun might go to be with the Lord, but as a non-believer, it was hammered into my head that Id be heading straight to bing a corpse. Some holiday this turned out to be. Once I get out of this undersea base, Im never looking at the ocean again. I wont take the stairs or the elevator, Ill just hole myself up in my room.
I unzipped my bag and took out a towel that had been under the cat. The cat, now used to it, avoided my touch. I handed the towel to Yoo Geum-yi who was next to me, and she immediately passed it to Jihyun. Wiping her seawater-soaked face with the towel and drinking some water Ga-young gave her, Jihyun shook her head when I said we should treat her wounds.
Theres no time.
Jihyun, you know that treating wounds is something you need to make time for.
If time passes, the elevators and everything else will all break down. We need to drain the water right now.
Then Jihyun, with the towel covering her head, left the room and shouted loudly to gather the remaining people. The 8 men and the 3 of us timidly walked out. Jihyuns voice drew the attention of a few people from the upper floors as well. Jihyun spoke loudly.
I am Lee Jihyun from the engineer team. I just swam from the 2nd floor to the elevator stopped on the 1st floor.
So thats why Jihyun was soaked from head to toe. Panting as if exhausted, Jihyun coughed a few times and spoke.
The elevator has no major issues. I can operate it. The problem is the water. The elevator wont be able to ascend due to the weight of the water filling the open elevator. We need to drain the water to escape!
Hearing that, James nced over the railing at the rising water and answered glumly.
Drain the water how? Seems like the water will rise faster than we can drain it.
When we first arrived, the 2nd floor was being submerged, but now looking at it, more than half of the 2nd floor was filled with water. Sam Young, who was standing next to him, said with concern,
Look, the 2nd floor is already submerged. The water will probably reach the 3rd floor soon.
Jihyun rubbed her short hair with the towel and replied.
We need to activate the automatic drainage system and turn the manual drain valves on the 1st floor to let the water out. It wont drain a remarkablyrge amount of water. As James said, Im not sure where its leaking in from, but the water will likely fill faster than it drains. We just need enough water drained for the elevator to operate.
Wiping her hands and fingertips with the towel on her head, Jihyun continued.
The elevators here are resistant to seawater and designed to withstand being submerged, under the premise that drainage is possible. Normally, cleaning robots roam the floors here, so theres not a single water stain or speck of dirt, but in the early days of construction, this ce waspletely filled with water and mud. It should be fine.
A man who had been quietly listening to the story smirked at Jihyun and said,
We just need to drain the water? But isnt that your job as the engineer?
What do you mean?
You can do it yourself, so why are you telling others to do it?
Hearing those words, Jihyun frowned and raised her voice.
What I want is for the water to drain enough so that more than half of the 1st floor is exposed. Whether its running the drainage system to drain water, having people manually turn the drain valves embedded in every corner of the 1st floor, scooping it out with buckets by hand, or you personally drinking it like a whale! That water needs to be drained. If draining the entire research center was something I could do alone, why would I gather people here and say all this? I would just do it all myself and escape alone!
Yeah, you can do it all yourself, cant you?!
The other man, who had been smirking and provoking her, was red at by Jihyun who asked,
Youre not going to leave?
No, Ill ride the elevator once you get it working.
The tone and atmosphere were strange, so I noticed that the attitudes of some men were slightly different from those like James Danel, Sam Young, and Enjadi Canu. Some men had their arms crossed with weird smiles on their faces, watching Jihyun as if an adorable monkey was performing tricks.
I didnt understand this situation. Why are they acting like this? And what the hell is that person talking about? Shouldnt we all help Jihyun with the drainage treatment of the deep sea pollution center?
She said the elevator cant go up because of the water weight. Just like the East District elevator, it seemed the elevator doors were open and filled with water. The freight elevator must have been stopped on the 1st floor, as it couldnt be seen over the 3rd floor railing, submerged in water. Since it was a transparent elevator, it was presumed to be stuck somewhere in the water, out of sight from the 3rd to 7th floors.
ording to Jihyun, the water level would rise quickly, so drainage or whatever needs to be started as soon as possible. Even I, who know next to nothing about engineering work, understood that, so theres no way the people working at the research center couldnt grasp it. Am I the only one who doesnt get why these people are acting this way?
Up until now, Yoo Geum-yi had been rubbing her waist with both hands, but now she took one hand off her waist and rubbed her forehead as if her head hurt. Ga-young leaned against the wall, standing crookedly, and stared at the men with no expression. The blond-haired man next to the one who had been snarky earlier said to Jihyun,
Why should we get soaked and do what you tell us to do? If, as you said, the water fills up faster than it drains, even if we work our asses off, the water might rise even quicker. If we try and fail to drain enough water to operate the elevator, its just a waste of energy! And if that freight elevators been submerged for over 30 minutes, what if it doesnt work properly? If we get hurt or die in the process of doing what you say, will you take full responsibility?!
The man, moving closer, shouted near Jihyuns face. Jihyun took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Then she took two or three steps back. Bumping into my arm and stopping, Jihyun clenched her left fist and muttered softly. Lord, I am having another difficult day today. Please help your littlemb avoidmitting murder, even if it cant be a peaceful day. The brutal prayer brushed past my ear very quietly. Another man next to him looked Jihyun, who waspletely drenched, up and down and said,
Isnt it your engineers job to fix things that break down here? Why are you telling us to do it and making a fuss? You guys should do it. Thats your job. And if youre going to ask someone for a favor, shouldnt you ask nicely?
Jihyun stared at him nkly, unable to close her mouth. I was also staring at the man simrly. Is my trantor malfunctioning a bit? Or did I wash my brain along with my face? Momentarily at a loss for words, I answered the man in ce of Jihyun beside me.
Why are you acting like this? You all know that everything Jihyun said is correct. Of course, even if everyone here tries to dive down to the 1st floor to drain the water, the elevator might not work, or the water might fill up faster than expected, and we could fail. Even if the elevator moves, there could be issues with the electrical system or unexpected malfunctions, and it might end up being a futile effort. But we can at least try. If were lucky, we might be able to get out of here. Why are you refusing to even attempt it?
Chapter 86
Chapter 86
It seemed my exnation didnt convince the other person. The man crossed his arms, looked at the dark water engulfing the 2nd floor, and said,
If were lucky, sure. But I dont want to go into that dirty water.
Well, even looking from here, the color of the water flooding into the deep sea pollution center wasnt very beautiful. And to think it had submerged the 2nd floor and above. That meant the water level was at least 6m high. The thought of diving to that depth to find and turn the drain valves somewhere on the bottom sounded like a daunting task.
But if not that, how else were we supposed to get out of here? Why were they so reluctant to escape? Was there another way besides the elevator? The man shrugged and spoke to me as if I was somewhat pitiful.
You Asians are probably Chinese. You might not even know the word rescue team, but Im an American. A rescue team wille to save me somehow. Im going to rx and wait without wasting my energy. God bless America!
At the mansst words as he bent his fingers around the phrase rescue team, a few other men whistled and high-fived. A sigh welled up from my stomach. I was at a loss for words on what to correct first.
Even though Jihyun believes her guardian is God, she still dove into that polluted water to try to operate the stopped elevator, yet these bastards are spouting this bullshit, believing their backup is some country not even 300 years old. Jihyun, her brows furrowed, clenched her fists tightly, trembling with rage. She looked like she wanted to punch one of those three in the face at any moment. Before Jihyun could say anything, Ga-young spoke in a t voice.
Dustin. The connecting passage that was blocking the deep sea creature center and this deep sea pollution center is open now. Go to the deep sea creature center before the 3rd floor is submerged. Even if the deep sea pollution center gets flooded up to the 7th floor, the deep sea creature center will still be rtively fine if the bulkhead is lowered.
Dustin addressed Ga-young as Miss Kim.
But you guys could open the bulkhead after we go to the creature center.
Still, its more advantageous to go to the creature center. Between the two research centers, the deep sea creature center youll be going to will be submerged muchter than the deep sea pollution center well be in anyway.
Ga-young was right. Seeing how the rare earth center and the deep sea pollution center had cut each other off with bulkheads, it seemed the bulkheads did block the water. If they nned to hold out in the undersea base for a long time, the deep sea creature center, which wasnt submerged yet, would be much better to endure in than the deep sea pollution center where the water was rising.
Suddenly, I remembered the cable car crashing in my dream. Thinking about it again, its still not a good memory. The blood, the bodies, that despair. Ah, damn it. It felt like my stomach was tightening with tension all of a sudden. How long did it take for the copse in the dream? It didnt take too long. The fear that we needed to get out of here as quickly as possible struck my brain. Even if I mentioned the dream in this situation and said the undersea base might copse, would they listen to me? Wouldnt they treat me like a crazy person? Ga-young rubbed her shoulders and arms firmly and said,
Itd be best to cross over there quickly before the 3rd floor here gets submerged. If youre going to wait for the rescue team.
Then what about you? Are you going to stay here?
To Dustins question, Ga-young politely pointed with both palms in the direction Jihyun was standing, raised the corners of her mouth, and replied,
Rather than running away with you and waiting for the rescue team, Id rather drown in that polluted water with thisdy.
Silence. As a pause in the conversation suddenly arrived, gazes soaked in anguish looked at each other. Soon, sighs and the sound of people talking to those next to them began to grow louder. Jihyun wiped her hair with the towel again, and when it reached the point where no more moisture would fall, she received the pad she had entrusted to Yoo Geum-yi. Then, after ncing around at the people, she said,
Those who are going to the deep sea creature center, start preparing to leave now. Ill lower the bulkhead in 5 minutes.
Jihyuns gaze scooped up the seawater, and taking her eyes off that blue and dark water, she said,
If there are those who want to attempt escaping with me via the elevator, take off your shoes and outerwear, prepare to swim, and gather here in 5 minutes.
Jihyun rubbed her hair with the towel one more time and let out a sigh that seemed like it would extinguish. Then, holding the pad, she slowly walked into the office from earlier. As I followed her into the room, Jihyun gently ced the pad on the table.
Judging by her expression, she seemed desperate to punch something. Jihyun, her whole face expressing annoyance, noticed my presence, bit her lip hard, and spoke.
Yeah, then lets die! Rather than thinking that elevator is the ark sent by the Lord and working hard to fix it and go up! Like you guys, until the seawater fills our lungspletely! Lets wait for the rescue team that we dont know when wille until were nothing but bones! I wanted to scream like that! Argh!
Jihyun huffed, her voice overflowing with resentment.
I want to beat them up so bad! Im sorry. Today, I am once again failing to love my neighbors. Seeing how difficult it is for me to practice the teachings the Lord has given me, I think I am still verycking.
I felt sorry for Jihyun like that. Jihyun walked around the room, slouching like a predator that had failed to hunt. I couldnt even imagine how frustrating this situation we were in would be for an engineer. Thinking about the actions of the engineer team who prioritized speed and maximizing efficiency, I whispered softly,
You held back well. Like an adult.
I held back because theres nothing I can do even if I get angry.
Jihyun flopped onto an empty chair as she wandered around the room aimlessly, closed her eyes, and said,
Ah, is it because Icked the capability and the team leader was good at this kind of thing? I rarely take the initiative to suggest or assert that we do something as a leader to others. I dont like doing that either. I just needed to do the given tasks well and follow instructions.
Then, sighing, she continued,
Im good at doing what people tell me to do. I didnt really need my own autonomy while living. Because if I just kept saying yes, yes, yes, I could live an ordinary life. Today, there are too many things where I have to make a choice or take the lead. I get the team leader, but how on earth does the deputy team leader endure this?
Do you mean Deputy Team Leader Kang Su-jeong?
I thought Kang Su-jeong would also be a martial arts expert like Shin Hae-ryang since they had simr builds and were on the same team. This is also a prejudice.
Team Leader Shin thinks theres no need to talk at length with those who wont listen, so when he goes into a meeting alone, everything gets processed very quickly. When Deputy Team Leader Kang goes into a meeting, she discusses for 2-3 hours, asserting her opinions with teams that have differing views. She debates with the other side. Reaches an agreement. Coordinate opinions again. It hasnt even been 5 minutes, but I feel like Im going to go crazy with anger. How does she look at and live with those things every day?
Kang Su-jeong must also be enduring something to live. Its not easy to understand others through conversation in the first ce. Everyone thinks differently, and if theres no ovep in interests, they wont try to cooperate. If humans could solve everything through dialogue, there wouldnt have been a single war until now. To console the distressed Jihyun, I spoke slowly,
That can happen. Im really angry too. You worked so hard today. If it werent for you, we wouldnt have even survived this far. Its the same now. Youre the first to figure out a way to escape and try to attempt it.
Jihyun got up from the chair like a zombie, staggering. Then she answered somewhat gloomily,
Any engineer would have thought the same. Its not that Im particrly smart or anything.
In my eyes, youre the best engineer.
At those words, Jihyun smiled, and as she shook her head from side to side, Yoo Geum-yi, who had entered the room, walked over like a ghost and silently hugged Jihyun tightly, patting her back a couple of times. Jihyun spoke to Yoo Geum-yi in a depressed tone,
Youll get wet.
Yeah. Its okay. You did well, Jihyun.
I watched the two of them with warm eyes, trying not to scratch my itchy mouth with my hand, and asked,
Should I go and try to persuade them again? One or two of them might change their minds. Those people dont seem to know how hard it is to just wait for a rescue that may or may note. And we dont know when the undersea base will copse. In my dream, it copsed like a reed in less than a day. If we stir up their anxiety, there might be people who reconsider.
Ga-young, who had entered the room and heard my words, shook her head at me and said. Ga-young also looked tired.
I think its better to just leave them be, Moohyun. Those who will understand will stay anyway, and if not, theyll leave.
I remembered Ga-youngs words about easily giving up on the other person if they dont listen. Its us who lose out if there are fewer people. The side that wants to escape via the elevator right away is the one that needs their manpower. Whats the best way to go about this? Is there anything that can hold back those who say theyre going there? Ga-young asked Jihyun,
Jihyun. Can you turn the lights back on the creature center side? Its still in a ckout state, right?
Jihyun checked the engineer system with her wrinkled fingertips from the water and said,
Yes, thats right. Ill have the lightse back on.
While Jihyun was restoring the electrical system on the creature center side, uploadingplex approvals again, I put down my bag, took off my shoes, and then took off my socks. And I rolled up my forearms.
When I opened the bag I had put down, my eyes met the cats, who was taking a deep breath. Would the cat really like being in a small, dark, cramped ce like a bag? Its an animal with free will too, so shouldnt I let it out a bit? Ive never raised a cat, so I need to know something.
When I lifted the cat out of the bag, it quickly left the bag as if it had wanted that. It walked lightly and made a bigp around the room. As the cat brushed past her calf, the startled Jihyun looked under the table and sighed.
Chapter 87
Chapter 87
Yoo Geum-yi looked at the cat for a moment, then she also took off her shoes, put her socks inside her shoes, rolled up her forearms, and folded up her pants. While I was looking at the snake curled up tightly in the small pocket inside the bag, Canu, who had knocked and entered the room, picked up the cat walking around the room.
Whose cat is this?
I dont know the owner.
Its quite heavy. My familys cat is much lighter than this one. Its well-behaved. Gentle. Look. Its staying still even though I, a stranger, am touching it.
Canu, barefoot, skillfully touched the cats face and chin. The cat was calmly letting itself be touched. Its interesting that its doing that even when a stranger is touching it. Ive always wanted to raise a pet, but I couldnt because there wasnt enough space at home. How intelligent are cats? Are they smart enough to understand this situation? What about snakes? I wonder if Canu knows a lot about snakes too.
Have you ever seen anyone raising a snake inside the undersea base?
No, why a snake?
Theres one inside the pocket of my bag. I brought it out of a room in a hurry.
Did you bring it because youre confident in raising it?
Suddenly, I was at a loss for words. Uh-oh. I shook my head and said,
No. The water was rising, so I didnt even have time to think about that. I was going to ask around and try to find the owner if I saved it and took it out.
Its staying still even when I touch its paw. It doesnt bite either.
While watching Canus hand petting the cat, I asked in a fluster,
Do cats bite?
Even though I had touched the cat several times while taking out a towel or candy, it didnt bite me. Right. It has teeth even though its small, so it could bite. Then how is it different from a snake? That its not venomous? How many bacteria are in a cats mouth? Humans have about 100 million, so if it has as many bacteria as a human, it could easily kill me with a bite, right?
I really dont know anything about cats. Ive seen a lot of photos of the ones my friends raise. Canu stroked the cat, then lifted it and handed it back to me.
Cats bite too. You really havent raised one before. Put it in the bag before it hides somewhere. If the cat hides, you wont be able to find it.
Hearing those words, I quickly took the cat and put it back in the bag. I checked several times to make sure the zipper was closed well. And I carefully put the bag down in the corner of the floor. Stay put while Im gone.
I looked to the side and saw Ga-young taking off her shoes and tossing them into the corner, then flinging her socks next to her shoes. Then she started lightly stretching, twisting her body here and there. I left the room to see how many people had gathered.
Quite a lot of people were gathered in the hallway, more than I expected. In fact, because I had no expectations after the previous conversation, I thought it would be a lot if more than 2 people were waiting, but there were a total of 5. Not only Sam and James but also three unfamiliar men were gathered and waiting.
One wearing a hat was one of the group who had been watching Jihyun speak earlier, and I saw the other two faces for the first time. They came down from the upper floors. I dont know how many more people are on the other floors anyway. As I opened my mouth to greet the three men with a smile, the person closest to me spoke first, as if preempting me.
Ill be frank, Im not very happy to meet you. Lets only cooperate on escaping and not pretend to know each other.
Clear hostility. The man with a very poor dental condition said that. What did I do to deserve that? I was at a loss for words with my mouth open. Rejection always feels bad. But you have the right to reject me too. With a sigh, I erased my smile and said,
Im not particrly happy to see you either. But now we have amon goal, and well be moving together for that goal, so theres no reason for us to start off on bad terms. I dont know who you are. I have no idea what you did for a living or what thoughts you had. But from now on, Im going to work with you to survive. Im Park Moohyun, the only dentist in this undersea base. Nice to meet you.
And I held out my right hand. If you dont like it, dont take it. No one can hurt me without my permission. What a solid statement. People hurt and get hurt just by breathing next to each other. The man, frowning, looked at my hand and my face for a few seconds, then answered without taking my hand.
Logan.
He spoke so softly that it took me a few seconds to realize I had heard his name. As I nodded my head and was about to withdraw my hand, the man next to him grabbed my hand, shook it, and revealed his name.
Im Benjamin.
Having shaken hands with Benjamin in the spur of the moment, I nodded. Then the man wearing a hat revealed his name and asked me.
Im Carter. Are you close with the women who came with you?
Why is he asking about my rtionship with those people? Well, among the three, I met Jihyun and Ga-young for the first time today. Ive seen Yoo Geum-yi since the first day of work, but thanks to walking around together for the past few hours, my intimacy with those three people has already reached the level of a 10-year friend in my heart. But they might not feel the same way about me. I might be the only one who thinks were close.
I was about to say were close, but realizing that I objectively dont know much about them, I hesitated to answer. How well do you have to know someone to be considered close? For Carter to judge for himself, I answered with just the facts.
Its been 5 days since I started working here.
Then the three men looked at each other and turned their gazes to Jihyun, Yoo Geum-yi, and Ga-young, who were justing out of the room. The 9 people gathered in a circle with Jihyun at the center. While Ga-young stretched out fully, Jihyun took her eyes off the pad and looked at the people, saying,
First, as I mentioned before, we n to attempt an escape through the elevator stopped on the 1st floor. I just blocked the deep sea pollution center and the deep sea creature center with a bulkhead. I dont think any of you here will try to go to another research center anymore. First, those of you here will need to reach the small valves located in the corner walls of the 1st floor by swimming.
Jihyun exined while showing a 3D map of the 1st floor through the pad. When Jihyun selected the valves, about a dozen drain valves located on the 1st floor were simultaneously marked in green.
When you reach the valve, grab the valve handle and turn it all the way in the opposite direction to expose the covered drain. The drains on the floor are currently maintained in a state covered with lids. If you turn the valve all the way, tiny nail-sized holes will appear on the floor 3m away from the valve. Thats the drain, so if youve removed the lid, dont go near the drain and just move back here to the 3rd floor.
Jihyun looked at peoples faces once and said,
I will designate one valve to each of you. Just swim to that location and turn the valve. Any questions up to this point?
Sam raised his hand high. When Jihyun pointed to Sam with her chin, Sam asked,
What should we do if the valve doesnt turn or we fail to open the drain?
Then just leave it ande up to the 3rd floor. Any other questions?
I raised my hand, and when Jihyun gave me a chance, I asked,
Once Im done opening my assigned valve, can I go open valves in other locations?
There are more than 10 valves. It would be best to open as many drains as possible. Jihyun thought for a moment and answered,
That would be good, but it will be hard to find the valve youre assigned to while diving in the water. Once all of you here arrive on the 3rd floor, I will activate the automatic drainage system. How much drainage will ur is unknown. I dont know if the drainage system will function properly in this situation. But if the water drains and the elevator bes usable, it will be a golden opportunity to escape. Lets all do our best.
I nodded at Jihyuns words and lightly stretched to loosen up my body. Ive had to unwillingly enter or fall into water before, but its been a while since I had to swim so clearly like this.
Jihyun walked around with Roakers pad and designated which valve on the 1st floor each person should open. I was also assigned a valve I had to open, which was a ce I had to swim quite far to reach. It was a valve next to the wall of Laboratory 120. Im not sure exactly where it is, but looking at the 1st floor map on the pad, I checked where on the 3rd floor I should enter the water to reach that valve in the fastest and most efficient way.
The water had alreadypletely filled the entire 2nd floor. Would it be dangerous to dive straight from the 3rd floor to the 1st floor? It would be dangerous, right? I was more worried about not knowing what might be in that water than diving straight into the water from the current height of about 7m.
I couldnt forget the pain and memory of the bed sliding in the water and hitting my calf. Even now, wooden tables and office supplies were floating on the surface of the water. Its not that Im good at swimming.
Since I only knew how to swim enough to not drown, all sorts of worries began to arise as I looked at the dark blue water. I had to swim down from a height of about 6-7m and thene back up. Do I really have the stamina for that? Do I have the lung capacity to hold my breath without issue while moving that distance? When was thest time I swam a distance of over 15m in my life? The conclusion I reached was one. I was mentally beating myself up, asking why I hadnt exercised regrly.
When Yoo Geum-yi asked if she could borrow the pad if I was done looking at the map, I readily held out my pad. Looking around, everyone with a pad had the 1st floor map open and was looking at the location they had to go to. Yoo Geum-yi frowned as she looked at the 1st floor location she was assigned on the map. Seeing Yoo Geum-yi holding her waist, submerged in her thoughts, I abruptly spoke to her.
Can I take a look at where youre going?
Huh? Sure.
The distance was as far as mine. But it seemed that if we just picked the right spot to vertically descend from the 3rd floor to the 1st floor, the distance each of us had to travel would be all simr.
Chapter 88
Chapter 88
Only then did I realize that Jihyun had assigned us without asking how well we could swim. If it were me, I would probably ask how well they swim and assign those who are good at it farther away and those who arent closer. Carter asked Jihyun,
Which valve are you going to open?
Jihyun showed the map and pointed to two valves. She had told us to open one valve each, but it seemed she had set two as her share to handle.
Ill do this one and this one.
What? Two?
If youd like to open two valves and travel, would you like to switch with me?
When Jihyun asked Carter with an expressionless face, Carter asked Ga-young next to him,
Miss Kim. Where are you?
Here. Next to myb on the 1st floor. Why? Do you want to switch with me?
It seemed the ces the two were going to werent to Carters liking. Carters eyes met mine.
Where is the dentist going?
Im going next to Laboratory 120. Carter, where is Laboratory 120? Im new to the research center, so I dont know my way around. If its closer or easier from here, would you like to switch with me?
At my question, Carter grimaced and stepped back.
Why should I switch valve locations with you?
Werent you asking around to switch with someone else?
Its unfair if only mine is far.
Leaving that remark, Carter started talking with Benjamin, clutching a pad with several cracks.
Amusingly, there are no lies in what I said to Benjamin. I really dont know where Laboratory 120 is. I memorized the location I need to go to while looking at the map, but Im not sure if I can find it as easily as I think while in the water.
But the others seemed to know well where and how they should go. After all, most of these people were staff members working at the deep sea pollution center. They seemed to roughly know which corridor had whichb in which area, but listening to their conversation, it seemed the most unfortunate one here was me, who had entered this building for the first time. Or Yoo Geum-yi, who was tapping her waist with her face pale.
Does your back hurt a lot?
My back was already a bit bad. But its not getting better after getting hit by the chair.
Could it be a herniated disc? I asked Yoo Geum-yi again,
Where does it hurt the most?
My back hurts. And my legs are numb.
Both legs?
Both legs.
Is it a herniated disc?! It might not be. Then would it get a bit better if she goes in the water? I looked closely at the location Yoo Geum-yi had to go to. It was quite different from Laboratory 120. I carefully asked Yoo Geum-yi,
Try telling Jihyun once. Ask her to change it to somewhere else. Or to exclude you altogether.
Yoo Geum-yi looked at Jihyun, then shook her head.
I cant say it now.
Yoo Geum-yi looked towards Carter and said,
If I say it, Jihyun might make a special exception for me. And that special treatment will be a weakness that those people can use to attack Jihyun. Theyre already desperate to find the tiniest fault, so I dont want to give them such an excuse. Theyll ask why shes excluding me and not them. I dont want my words to burden Jihyun. She must be having a hard time as it is. Even if it kills me, I cant do it now.
I was a bit surprised to hear Yoo Geum-yis thoughts. Well. If the drainage system wont work with one less person, its either a problem with the drainage system, or escaping via the elevator was impossible from the start. And besides Yoo Geum-yi, whos injured, there are more than 5 men who are physically fine, excluding Canu.
The humans in good condition can just jump in the water twice. In this situation, if things dont work out properly or we all end up dying because it doesnt work out, it wont be because of Yoo Geum-yis back injury but because of paltry calctions and extreme selfishness. I tried to dissuade Yoo Geum-yi a couple more times. But Yoo Geum-yi stubbornly said,
The back pain might get a bit better if I go in the water. As you know, the weight is reduced due to buoyancy, so the burden on the spine decreases.
But it might get worse while swimming. I object to swimming with a numb leg.
You dont despise injured people.
Well, everyone whoes to me is a patient. How can I do my job if I despise patients? Its rare for people with perfectly healthy teeth toe to the dentist, but literally very rare. Most visitining of pain and difort somewhere.
Thinking about patients or people with disabilities, even in our family, there are those who have difficulties in daily life, but No. Lets stop thinking about it. Right now, I dont want to be emotional, let alone get lost in thoughts about family in this situation. I gave Yoo Geum-yi a simple answer,
It might be because of my job.
The injured are a burden in this situation.
I was quite surprised inwardly that Yoo Geum-yi, who was holding her back, said such a thing. I shook my head and answered,
With that kind of judgment, everyone here can be a burden. For being injured, slow, old, ugly, poor. Dont have such self-deprecating thoughts.
Dont worry, Yoo Geum-yi! Objectively speaking, Im the most useless one here! What the hell can I do without a dental clinic?! Waste oxygen by breathing?! I can barely see out of one eye because its so swollen! But Im still trying not to think so pessimistically. Its not like the situation will get any better by thinking that way anyway.
Come to think of it does Yoo Geum-yi think Ill abandon or neglect the injured, treating them as a burden? Thats a bit sad. If we dig deeper into the injured part, Im also disabled. My eyes look almost the same on the outside after the back and eye surgery, and I have no problem with daily life, and I can freely get insurance, so I sometimes forget about it too.
Other people I dont know. They might judge the injured as a burden and abandon them? Its not like I have the ability to read other peoples minds. Giving up on trying to dissuade Yoo Geum-yi, I proposed apromise.
Yoo Geum-yi. Switch ces with me. You go to room 120. I heard room 111 is Ga-youngsb, and Ga-young is going to open the valve near herb, so wouldnt you feel more at ease mentally if you go to room 120? Youve been to Ga-youngsb before, right?
Yes. Ive been there many times.
I dont know how much Ga-young, who bakes bread when stressed, and Yoo Geum-yi, who loves bread, have been going back and forth to each othersbs, but it must have been countless times.
Then think of it as swimming to Ga-youngsb. Ill approach the supply room area and open the valve in your ce.
Will you still be okay with that?
Either way, its my first time going to both room 120 and the supply room. But it will feel different for you. Youll know the way better too.
You wont get lost or anything. Itll ease my worries a bit too. Lets go to the ce thats a bit morefortable for at least one of us. That would be better in terms of work efficiency too. I started looking at the location of the supply room Yoo Geum-yi was assigned to. I checked the route again to see where on the 3rd floor I should jump from to get there as quickly as possible.
While I was doing that, a few people around me lightly stretched to loosen up their bodies and threw off all their clothes. Sam Young and Daniel James were already shirtless or had even taken off their pants and were entering the water. Sam shouted obnoxiously as he submerged his lower body in the water.
Ahh! Cold! Cold! Ack! Cold! Cold! Oh Jesus! Oh God! Oh, help me! Oh Je-sus! Oh, Im freezing to death!
Ah, shut up!
James sshed a lot of water on Sams face as he entered the water. While the two were brutally pouring seawater on each other, Canu shook his head at the sight and entered the water in a straight line without a sound. Logan dipped his feet in the water, sighing heavily, then spouted a few F-rted curses and went into the water with a ssh. Carter and Benjamin were also preparing to enter the water.
Ga-young stretched her calf and ankle muscles for a long time, then walked around the 3rd floor corridor. Then she waved at me and Yoo Geum-yi and slowly put her legs in the water. Ga-young grimaced. She scooped up water with her hands and poured it on her body. When I looked in that direction a few secondster, she had already disappeared under the surface.
Yoo Geum-yi, who had been preparing a bit farther from where Ga-young had dived in, was also slowly putting her body in the water. Just before submerging, Yoo Geum-yi said one thing to me.
The water temperature is quite low. Dont go in too quickly.
Stay strong.
Watching Yoo Geum-yi enter the water, I took off my top. I had already decided in my mind to swim with my pants on. The moment I put my feet in the water with my upper body half-naked, the thought that came to mind was a curse about humans themselves.
Why why dont human bodies have as much hair as animals? Why are we so weak that we can feel the cold so clearly just by taking off a piece of cloth? Or at least have thicker skin to be able to swim well. Are we sure we evolved properly?!
I endured the cold and poured water on my body. I was doing this to not die from a heart attack, but for a moment, I wondered if I was really not going to die.
Jihyun watched people entering the water, then familiarly went into the seawater. In the dream, Baek Ae-young said she wasnt good at swimming, but Jihyun seemed to be very good at it. I exhaled deeply, then inhaled deeply again. I repeated this action several times, then took a big breath, puffed up my cheeks, and put my head in the water.
The water looked extremely dark from the outside, but perhaps because it was inside the building, the underwater visibility wasnt that bad once I was in the water. Its just that all sorts of debris was floating around. I was a bit in awe of the sight unfolding underwater, as I had learned to swim in an indoor pool, so it was my first time seeing so many structures in the water.
Although I could barely see about 4-5 meters in front of me, it was still spectacr to see a 2-story buildingpletely submerged. I had the strange feeling of having entered a treasure ship in search of treasure. After marveling for about 2 seconds, I quickly started descending vertically.
Chapter 93
Chapter 93
I asked Jihyun about what worried me the most in the dreams rted to the elevator.
Will it be okay even if there are several power outages?
The despair I felt when I found out that the elevator Yoo Geum-yi and I were in stopped with about 160m left to the 3rd undersea base. Im not confident I can jump or fly up vertically even 3 meters.
This main control research centers freight elevator moved 3000m in a straight line. If it goes up well without stopping, it will reach the ground level (0th floor) right away. However, I didnt even want to think about what would happen if it stopped midway. Will it be okay even if there are multiple power outages this time too?
If theres a power outage, the elevator will probably stop? Actually, elevators arent my main field, so Im not sure.
What kind of talk is this? Jihyun looked at my expression andughed softly, Hehehe. The water droplets in her short hair trembled finely at theughter and fell to the floor. Jihyun spoke to me in a carefree tone.
Dont tell this to others. Honestly, I am worried. My major is naval architecture and ocean engineering, so I learned these things aftering here. Ae-young is good at fixing elevators. Each engineer has something theyre good at or good at fixing. Ji-hyuk is good at fixing automatic doors or lighting. There are people good at repairing outer walls, and the only ones good at fixing everything are the engineering team leader and deputy team leader. We dont have any tools or anything right now, and Im the only engineer here. Well.
I was inwardly appalled at Jihyuns words as she shrugged her shoulders. No. How can she act with such clear confidence,manding ten people, regarding a field she herself cant be sure about? Even now, Jihyuns tone had no anxiety about her attitude.
I imagined myself exining something simr to a patient lying in a unit chair. Im not sure if I can fix your tooth or not, but Ill give it a try. If I were the patient, I would have run out of that dental clinic. The person in question has no fear, but Im the one getting scared, so I asked Jihyun.
So can you fix it?
Jihyun, who had been watching the water drain on the 1st floor with her head raised, said.
Well have to go check in about 5 minutes. I roughly know.
Its better than the people here. Rather than entrusting elevator repair to me or that axe-wielding man, it would be more trustworthy for Jihyun to repair it with her eyes closed. I let out a deep sigh from the bottom of my stomach.
This ce is operated by cogeneration or something, right?
I dont know what that is, but it must be dangerous. Jihyuns eyes sparkled as she looked at me. And with a faint smile, she replied.
You must have read the undersea base guidebook. Most people usually skip those parts and only read about the amenities.
I didnt read it properly either. On the amenities page, I only looked at parts like the restaurant, restroom,undry room, exhibition hall, coffee shop, and bakery, and read the free facilities section diligently. The reason I was forced to gain knowledge about the escape pods and elevators was that, unlike the English version, the Korean trantion ced the escape and undersea base equipment section at the very front. I asked with a bit of concern.
Will the research center be okay until we escape?
I was surprised that the research center was in better condition than I thought. The rare earth center seems to have turned to dust though. Look. We all swam out of the water, but its not terribly cold, right?
Thats right. When I went into the water, it was as cold as immersing my body in ice water. After wiping off the water and getting dressed, it didnt feel like my body temperature had been greatly taken away.
The temperature is constant. Its maintained at 25 degrees Celsius. It should be fine for now, right? Actually, even if its broken, theres nothing we can do about it.
The engineers I saw in my dreams seemed to have a lot of worries. Jihyun seemed to worry less the more difficult the situation was. Is it because she hands over her worries to God? At least thats fortunate. Where else is there someone among the people here who is less burdened by the pressure and anxiety of survival?
I stopped talking with Jihyun and approached Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga-young. The two were talking to each other and asked me with their eyes what was going on when they saw me.
May I ask what religion you two are?
Religion?
Why?
Well have to take the elevator with those people when it starts operating, so I want to pray a bit. Wont the gods who listen to prayers listen better if there are many of them?
Kim Ga-young, whoughed hollowly, spoke as if it was difficult.
I dont really believe in anything. My grandmother believes in Buddhism, so sometimes I go to temples with her, so should I count that as Buddhism?
Right. Lets count it as Buddhism.
Yoo Geum-yi answered while leaning on the railing.
I dont have any. If I had to choose, I believe in science.
I see. I also believe in science.
None of us three will pray. I should do it at least.
Scientists. Please let me out of here. Esteemed physicists. Please ignore all thews of physics you have discovered so far and send me and these people back home immediately. If all the people in the undersea base return home safely, I will light a candle every year on this date until I die tomemorate you and your achievements. Ill burn incense too. Please. Get me out of this damn seabed right now!
As I spat out a messed up prayer and threat in my mind, I thought I would be lucky if dead physicists didnt rush to beat me up.
I nced at the woman far away from people and asked Kim Ga-young, shaking my head slightly.
Do you know that person?
Well. I know her, but were not very close. Emma mostly hung out with a guy named Lucas she was dating in theirb. We just greeted each other when we saw each other.
Seeing that woman alone, I dont know what happened to the man named Lucas. He escaped, ran away, or died.
Now that I know at least one persons name, I should ask about someone else. Without realizing it, I took a deep breath and asked, trying my best not to look in that direction.
By any chance, do you know who the person who came with the axe is?
I know.
Yoo Geum-yi said, openly looking at where the other person was, unlike me.
Its Kevin Roy from the deep-sea creature center. Hes Canadian, and he usually walked around the lounge with a cup of coffee in one hand,ughing. This is the first time Ive seen him like that. He liked riding bicycles, so he was someone who boasted about his bicycle he rode in Vancouver, but he probably asked if he could ride a bicycle inside the undersea base and was told no.
Kim Ga-young said, snapping her fingers.
Ah. I remember that. Starting from bicycles, inline skates, electric kick scooters, electric wheels, and everything else were all concluded to be prohibited. I think everything was banned except for assistive devices for the disabled and medics.
Is the 4th undersea base wider than I thought, and we have to walk or run on two feet everywhere? There seem to be a lot of things that cant be done in the undersea base.
Why? Is there a reason you cant ride them?
Kim Ga-young tried to recall the past and said.
If you ride those, because its a building built in the deep sea, the vibrations do this and that, and the continuous noise generation causes stress to the brainless deep-sea creatures this and that.
Yoo Geum-yi, who studies deep-sea creatures, giggled at that jumbled exnation. As everyone around looked at Yoo Geum-yi because of thatughter, Yoo Geum-yisughter gradually disappeared.
Yoo Geum-yi, who covered her face with both hands from peoples gazes, asked me through her palms.
Why about Kevin?
I thought it would be good if we had weapons like that. If we stick together, we can fend off attacks from outside.
If were a messed up ally, wouldnt it be more dangerous if we have weapons? The des will point at each other.
Kim Ga-young, who heard Yoo Geum-yis words, lowered her voice and said.
An axe? Haha. Seeing that our engineer isnt saying anything, it seems like shell just take him along to ride the elevator together.
Kim Ga-young, with an awkward expression, seemed to think that if that man caused amotion with an axe in the elevator, no one would be able to stop him. Looking at the towel wrapped around the mans calf, I asked Yoo Geum-yi.
Will I get hit by the axe de if I approach that person saying Ill treat him?
Instead of the towels in the backpack, I put a lot of items from the first-aid kit. Whether that person is our ally or not, it seemed better to treat him as much as possible here rather than going into the water while bleeding from his calf. If the water doesnt drainpletely anyway, everyone will have to ride the elevator together with the blood he sheds and the cold water.
Just imagining that made me feel like I was going crazy hygienically. It felt like putting a bloody gauze used in one patients mouth into another patients mouth.
Moreover, looking at Yoo Geum-yi, Kim Ga-young, and Jihyun, I seemed to be the only one with even a little knowledge of treatment. And among them, I was also the only one with items that could be used for treatment.
Although Im not a doctor, not doing it even though I can felt like ignoring that matter. Even if the part where I can provide professional treatment is at most the head.
Yoo Geum-yi, who heard my question, let out a long sigh.
The Kevin I saw in the lounge or cafeteria was just an ordinary person, but Im not sure now.
As Yoo Geum-yi shook her head this way and that while watching Kevin turn the axe handle, I looked at Kim Ga-young. Kim Ga-young said while stretching her neck and shoulders.
To tell you not to do it Im not in a position to say anything because Im someone who was rescued. Who am I to interfere with someone trying to help others?
Looking around, everyone was trying not to care about each other. Or they had no interest at all.
I slowly approached the man named Kevin in a straight line. The man, who had been touching the axe handle with his fingertips, immediately looked at me. To be exact, I felt the gazes of all the people around piercing my back. Having those gazes on me made my back and the back of my head feel hot.
Hello. Im a dentist working at this undersea base
Piss off!
Kevin shouted at me in a hoarse voice. Uh Judging by his shouting, he seems quite sane.
Chapter 90
Chapter 90
Fiddling with the damp towel on my head, I imagined the water draining through those tiny holes at the bottom. Whether the peoples hard work diving underwater to open the drain was worth it would be revealed from now on. Looking at the water that had reached my ankles, I thought about the streets and ruined cities currently submerged. Its not like those cities were submerged due to ack of drains.
The Arctic ciers have already mostly melted. The ciers that mostly floated around in the Arctic Ocean didnt raise the sea level much when they melted. The biggest problem is the Antarctic ciers. Unlike the Arctic, the Antarctic has a massive chunk of ice sitting on top of the continent. As the Antarctic ciers melted, the sea levels continuously rose, and quite a few cities were submerged.
Thend prices of coastal cities, which used to be quite expensive, hit rock bottom. It was because as the water levels rose, they became breeding grounds for bugs and trash, or thend and buildings were submerged.
With the damp towel on my head, I approached the railing to watch the water drain. The water that had beenpping at my ankles just a while ago was now barely reaching the soles of my feet, continuously receding. I could feel the water that had been encroaching on the 3rd floor slowly disappearing. Licking the saltiness left on the corners of my mouth, I felt a small sense of relief.
The elevator might work properly now. A glimmer of hope flickered in my mind like a lightbulb. At that moment, Carter approached me and called out.
Dentist.
Yes.
Whats in your bag?
What else could it be? Theres a cat and a snake in there. Come to think of it, under the whale plush that the cat was lying on, there should be a shlight and a family photo that I hadpletely forgotten about. The sugar-free candies and choctes that I had tossed in haphazardly, and a water bottle that was half-full. Now that I think about it, unlike in my dreams, I didnt often share candies with people.
At Carters remark, I looked around and realized that among the people, I was the only one wearing a backpack. I answered nonchntly.
Nothing much.
Whats in there that youre carrying it around like that?
I was about to say there was a cat, but then I realized that animals were prohibited items inside the undersea base and closed my mouth that I had opened to answer.
In the case of Kim Ga-young, Yoo Geum-yi, and Jihyun, they knew that I was carrying animals in my backpack, and they were people who were willing to invest their time and risk their lives in a situation where they could die, trying to release marine creatures that had nothing to do with them.
How would this person react to animals? I sensed an unknown, unsettling vibe from the other persons tone, so I spoke to Carter again. It didnt seem like anything good woulde out of getting caught with a cat.
Theres really nothing much.
Hand it over!
Then Carter reached out his hand towards my backpack. Surprised that he was trying to snatch the entire backpack away, I stepped back. After taking a few steps back, Carter spoke to the person behind me.
Take the bag!
At that moment, someone grabbed the backpack on my back from behind. While pushing Carters shoulders and arms with my arms as he lunged at me from the front, I nced back at the person clinging to my back. It was Benjamin. Benjamin was trying to take the bag off my shoulders. As I tried to shrug the straps that had slipped down to my forearms back onto my shoulders, I got annoyed at Carter in front of me.
What are you doing?!
I heard Yoo Geum-yi, who had been sitting on the drained floor massaging her waist and legs, scream. Kim Ga-young shouted at us.
Let go of that person!
At that moment, my left leg was suddenly lifted into the air. As I was grappling with Carters arms with both my hands, Benjamin had grabbed my left leg with one hand while holding the backpack with the other. Benjamin ordered Carter.
Grab the other leg!
No way. Carter let go of his two arms that I was holding and tried to grab my remaining right leg, but I didnt let go of Carters two arms. I leaned against the railing and tried to maintain my bnce as much as possible. Benjamin lifted my one leg and as I struggled like a caught fish, he lost his grip on my left leg as well. As he reached out his hand to grab my leg again, I fiercely kicked it away with my foot.
Aargh! Fuck!
At Benjamins scream and thismotion, Kanu and Logan, who had been sharing cigarettes in the corner, were watching our bizarre scene. Kanu approached and leisurely asked me.
What are you doing?
His voicecking any tension made me feel like all the strength was draining from my body.
These guys are trying to take my backpack!
I shouted before the two guys could speak first. Kim Ga-young, who had been shouting from across the corridor, ran towards us but spectacrly slipped and fell due to the wet floor. I could see Yoo Geum-yi, who had barely managed to walk over, struggling to help Kim Ga-young up. Jihyun,cking stamina, was sitting on a chair, unable to move, just raising her head to watch this spectacle.
Carter still had both arms grabbed by me, and Benjamin was tugging on my backpack. Kanu exhaled cigarette smoke and then asked Carter a question.
What are you doing?
What else?! Look, only this guy is wearing a bag! Hey! Whats in your bag?!
I shouted angrily.
What are you going to do with that information?! This is my bag! Get your hands off! Wont you fuck off?!
You little shit! This guy! He never takes the bag off his body except when going in the water! Who knows how much hes hoarding, let me see! Whos trying to take it?!
bbergasted, I struggled and yelled.
Youre already trying to take it, you brainless bastard!
As Carter and I were shouting, Kanu sighed again, grabbed the backpack, and pulled the waistband of Benjamins jeans from behind as he was aiming kicks at my ankles. Since Kanu approached Benjamin from behind, he could easily grab and pull the belt loops with his fingers. As Benjamin moved away from me, he had no choice but to let go of my backpack.
Logan was just giggling with his hands in his pockets, watching our spectacle. Now only Carter and I were in a standoff, holding each others arms. When he tried to headbutt me, I timed it and turned my head to the side or back. Watching that scene, Kanu spoke in a slow voice.
Show us whats inside the bag. Kid.
Is he talking to me? Did he just call me kid? Considering my age, Kanus words were enough to render me speechless, but at those words, Carter let go of the tension in his arms and distanced himself from me with a displeased expression. Benjamin was also somewhat distanced from me now. Panting heavily, I managed to calm my breathing that felt like it would burst. I was ready to run in the opposite direction if either of them lunged at me.
Seeing that they didnt attack even after a few seconds, I slowly took off my backpack, frowning and ring at the two men alternately. Then I ced the backpack next to my feet and unzipped it. When the backpack was partially unzipped, I reached in with both hands and lifted out the cat inside.
Theres no need to specifically mention the snake, right? I was just holding the cat by the chest area, but its body stretched out like cheese. As I was somewhat nkly surprised by its strange body structure, Carter approached me. He then peered into the bag where the cats lower body was and got annoyed.
Theres nothing much in here!
I have no idea what this bastard was expecting. Did he want me to be carrying around a bag full of money? Doesnt the fact that I got a job make you think I dont have money? And how much money would a recently employed guy have? Moreover, did he think Id be carrying around a uselessmodity like money in this disaster situation? What a pathetic bastard. I let out a big sigh.
Theres a cat, you see.
Take a good look. As I calmly replied, Carter made a condescending face and backed away. I tried to put the cat I was holding back into the backpack. But someone snatched the cat from my hands at lightning speed. Benjamin threw the cat over the railing towards me while cursing at me.
For a moment, I couldntprehend what I had just witnessed. Without any thought, I immediately threw my body over the railing. Ill catch it! I reached out and grabbed the cats waist tightly with both hands like grabbing a basketball. I saw the cats face in midair, eyes wide open in surprise. My body, left floating in the air, was dropping straight down.
Before hitting the water, someone grabbed my ankles and calves. I couldnt even make a sound as I hung in midair. Worried that the impact would make me drop the cat, I tightened my grip, but no matter how much strength I used, the cat felt like a furry water balloon that would slip out of my hands if I rxed my arm strength.
After stably cing the cat between my chin and arm while hanging upside down, I raised my head and saw Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi holding my ankles, and Kanu holding my calf on the opposite side.
Kim Ga-young groaned loudly and pulled my left calf with both hands. Yoo Geum-yi, her lips pale, grabbed my clothes with her wet hands. As the two of them pulled on my thighs and stomach area clothes with all their might, I finally began toprehend in my head what I had just done.
I was quite startled, but falling into the seawater itself wasnt that big of a danger. It was because the water level had only risen up to the 2nd floor as the drainage was progressing slowly.
Even if I fell like that, it would have been like diving into water from about one floor higher for me. If the cat had fallen alone, wouldnt it have been a tremendous shock for the cat, smaller than me?
It was when Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga-young had grabbed and pulled on the clothes on my chest and forearms, and my lower body had almost fully reached the 3rd floor.
A loud scream was heard to my left. Looking to the side with my upper body barely hanging over the railing, I saw Benjamin flying over the railing and plunging down.
Aaaarrrggghhhh!
And he fell into the water with a ssh. Kanu must have thrown him.
The cat, tightly nestled between my neck and shoulder, let out a low meow as if displeased. As soon as my feet touched the ground, I immediately put the cat back into the backpack. And I zipped it up. ncing to the side, I saw Sam and Jason standing next to Kanu, dusting off their hands. Only after putting the backpack on my back did I finally let out a deep breath from my tensed-up body.
Kim Ga-young sat on the floor,pletely exhausted, and Yoo Geum-yi hung onto the railing, exhaling shallowly.
Chapter 89
Chapter 89
With my lungs and mouth full of air, my body automatically tried to keep floating upwards. I briefly wondered if I should have grabbed something heavy to hold onto while diving. After a moments contemtion, I reassured myself that since I was already in the water, I should trust my own judgment. Tilting my head down, I kicked my legs.
Using the strength in my legs and the curves of my body, I continued descending vertically. On the way down, I pushed aside or threw back anything my hands hit or anything that got in the way. I grabbed the 2nd floor railings, walls, wall-mounted structures, and metal handles as I made my way down, but I couldnt tell how much time was passing.
Quickly passing the 2nd floor, I saw the 1st floor railing as I descended. I thrust my arms forward, kicking my legs like crazy as I went down. A thought crossed my mind that I was using too much leg strength, and my lungs began to ache as if they were being scratched. I watched a few bubbles escape from my mouth as I continued kicking.
Why am I trying so hard to survive? Earth is a of water, so does it make sense that humans submerged in water cant survive for more than 10 minutes? From a cosmic perspective, isnt it a grandedy that those who have already destroyed the oceans, iming to be the masters of the Earth, are trying so hard to survive? All sorts of random thoughts popped into my head. Putting my head in the water seemed to make my sensitivity explode. If I just took a shower, Id try to find the meaning of existence like a sage, but the moment I tried to dry my hair, I knew Id bezier and more foolish than anyone else. I wont have these thoughts once I get out of here. Lets focus on the goal for now.
Since I had descended vertically from the 3rd floor storage room, I was able to find the location of the 1st floor storage room more easily than I expected. It was the result of looking at the map and running simtions in my head several times before descending. Hanging onto the long metal handles installed on the 1st floor building wall, I moved while practically sticking to the wall.
ording to the undersea base guidebook, the reason these metal handles were left on the walls throughout the entire base was that this ce used to bepletely submerged in water. They were originally made for the convenience of field staff and divers during construction, butter these handles were also used for the convenience of people with disabilities using this ce, and now they were being used for me. They were quite useful, more than I thought. Although Kevin Wilson did hit his head on one of these handles and died.
The valve was located further down than I had anticipated. I felt around with my hands to confirm if it was the right valve, then tried turning it in the opposite direction. It was more stubborn than I expected. It seemed like it hadnt been used for a long time. I lowered my legs that were floating above me in the water and gripped the valve with both feet. Then, using my forearms and arms, I pressed my bodypletely against the valve and twisted the handle sideways. After turning the stubborn handle half a turn, and then a full turn, the valve wouldnt budge any further no matter how much force I applied.
Wheres the drain? As I turned my head this way and that, I saw countless tiny holes, smaller than fingernails, densely covering the floor in the distance. While feeling a slightly creepy sensation, I also felt like I was looking at a ce where teeth had just fallen out, leaving only the gums. Hmm. Weird feeling. Spitting out a few droplets of water, I let go of the valve I was holding. Then, kicking off the floor, I ascended.
After ascending a certain distance, I now had to rely solely on the strength of my calves and thighs to go up. I tried not to lose the breath I was holding in my mouth, but while forcefully turning the valve, I unknowingly let out a little air. My lungs, chest, throat, and head all ached.
My legs began kicking the water at a tremendous speed to survive. However, it felt like I was hardly progressing a few centimeters despite moving my legs so hard. Im moving my legs so vigorously, but it doesnt feel like Im going up! Being careful not to lose the remaining air in my mouth, I tirelessly swung my calves and thighs.
As I passed the 1st floor and was about to reach the 2nd floor, I saw Benjamin approaching right next to me. When I waved at him out of sudden joy, he looked at me, ignored me, and quickly ascended. Reaching the 2nd floor railing, he used it as a springboard to jump out of the water. Soon, the water surface came into my view, and I swam frantically, quickly rising.
As soon as I reached the surface, I opened my mouth and gulped air indiscriminately. I mistimed opening my mouth and inhaling, swallowing a handful of water. Salty and bitter. Coughing and spitting it out, I practically crawled onto the 3rd floor corridor, which was already slightly submerged. My long-sleeved shirt that I had taken off and left on the floor was floating in the water. I picked up the shirt, wrung out the water, and hung the sleeves around my neck to dry myself with it like a towel. Then I plopped down on the corridor floor. Water streamed down my face.
It felt so good to be able to freely gulp air. I could feel my whole body rejoicing at the oxygen filling me up. My calves and thighs were burning with strain. My legs, unustomed to exercise, seemed to be cursing me, their owner. I cant move a muscle. My body wont budge. Taking deep breaths, inhaling and exhaling several times, I sat nkly on the floor submerged in about 5-6 cm of water and counted the number of people. It took me two counts to realize that there were 9 people, including myself.
Soaking wet, Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga-young saw me, smiled, and waved. I also gave them a thumbs up above my head. Wondering if anyone was missing, I looked around and saw Jihyun finally surface with a tremendous ssh, utterly exhausted. Logan and Sam, who were nearby, grabbed Jihyun and pulled her out of the water. Jihyuny face down on the corridor, coughing, seeminglycking the strength to even move a finger. Yoo Geum-yi patted Jihyuns back.
I thought about getting a towel for Jihyun, but then I remembered my sshing feet and the rising water. The cat! The cat in the backpack on the floor! The snake! Startled, I ran towards the small office where I had been before, slipping in the water and iling my arms in the air, then cautiously began walking down the corridor. My younger sibling told me it was a waterproof backpack when giving it to me as a gift! It wont get wet, right? Can they both swim? Are cats good swimmers? What about snakes? Theyll be fine! They should be fine, right? They have to be okay! What do I do!
As soon as I flew into the office where I had left my bag earlier, I was greeted by the sight of all the items left on the floor floating in about 10 cm of water. I frantically searched the room for my bag that might be floating in the water like a madman. It was nowhere to be found.
Thinking that the waterproof backpack might have floated out of the office door, I searched the nearby corridor back and forth. Then suddenly, I heard a low thumping sound. Wondering what it was, I realized the sound wasing from the center directors office across the hall. Can a cat cause such noise? How would I know!
I quickly swung open the closed door of the center directors office across the corridor and was speechless at the sight before me. The dead bodies that had beenid in that room were all floating in the water, colliding and pushing against each other, now bumping into the door I had opened. In the distance, several corpses were floating in the water, piling up against the wall.
After nkly staring at the scene for a few seconds, the urge to scream and the terror rushed over me. Frozen in ce by the sight of the corpses, I trembled and closed the center directors office door. I didnt see anything. I didnt see a thing. Itll probably appear in my nightmares. Ah. Damn it.
Only after slowly backing away from the door could I finally breathe. Taking a deep breath, I began wandering the corridor again. Kim Ga-young, who had been watching me run around frantically, pale as a ghost, asked.
Moohyun-ssi! What are you doing?
My backpack!
Follow me.
Kim Ga-young entered the small office, opened the highest drawer of the filing cab that was bolted to the floor, and took out the backpack to hand to me. No wonder there were all sorts of documents floating on the floor. Choking back tears, I preciously hugged the backpack she handed me and asked.
I had left it on the floor.
I moved it here because I didnt know how fast the water would rise. The pad, shoes, and socks are all here, too.
Thank you for keeping them safe.
Tears welled up strangely from my chest rather than my eyes. Suppressing the feeling of relief, I opened the bag to check if the cat and snake were okay first. The cat seemed to have been sleeping in the dark, blinking and squinting as the light entered. The snake was coiled up as usual. They both seemed displeased with me frantically checking on them. Whew. Thank God. Oh my. Im sorry. Im really bad at raising animals. Im sorry. Ill take better care of you next time. I should have been more attentive.
Kim Ga-young was taking out pads and distributing them to people. I felt like all the strength had drained from my body. Avoiding the cats body, I took out thest dry towel from the bag. The cat, now left without any towels,y on the whale plush on the floor.
I draped one of the wet towels I had used before over my head. Then I wrung out the long-sleeved shirt hung around my neck two more times, shook it out, and put it on. I also put on the backpack. Having the familiar weight on my back was reassuring.
Letting out a deep sigh, I nkly stepped out into the corridor. People were talking about how cool they were in opening the drain valve and swimming out of the water. I heard voicesparing themselves to dolphins, sharks, whales, and stingrays.
I heard Sam makingments to Kanu and Jason about them being king prawns and king crabs, and Kanu giggling and retorting that the other person was a sea monkey. I shook my head, draining the water from my ears.
Completely soaked, Jihyun grabbed a chair that had been rolling around the corridor and sat on it like a throne, holding the pad handed to her by Kim Ga-young. She looked like an Olympic swimmer who had just finished thepetition and won a gold medal. Drinking the water Yoo Geum-yi handed her, she was entering the engineer system on the pad.
When I handed Jihyun the dry towel, she roughly wiped her face and trembling fingers, heavy with fatigue, and passed the towel to the soaked Yoo Geum-yi. As Jihyun activated the automatic drainage system in the engineer system, she told everyone.
Its dangerous to go into the water now. When the drainage system starts, the water will drain through the open drain holes. Dont go in the water because the water pressure and flow velocity will be high at the drain holes.
Chapter 91
Chapter 91
I was now standing on the 3rd floor in my usual form. Only one of the wet towels that had been covering my head was sinking next to the iling Benjamin instead of me. I first checked on Kim Ga-young, who was sitting on the floor.
I saw you fall whileing over. Are you okay where you fell?
Its starting to hurt now.
Kim Ga-young, who had been panting and exhaling, groaned softly. Kim Ga-young, who had tumbled on the floor due to the water while running over, was vigorously rubbing her hip and waist with her hands. Sounds of ouch, ouch escaped from Kim Ga-youngs mouth.
Yoo Geum-yi, sitting on the floor, was looking up at the ceiling with a dazed expression. It seemed like Yoo Geum-yis soul was also escaping through her slightly open mouth. Yoo Geum-yi very slowly mumbled to me with her chapped lips.
Today is really tough. I never thought Icked stamina in my life until now.
Its not easy to pull up a 75kg adult male entirely with your strength. Moreover, weve experienced too many things all at once so far. The thought that even if the two had let me go while I was holding the cat securely, I could havended on the water without much trouble crossed my mind, but I couldnt say that in front of these two people who had worked hard. I felt like saying things like it would have been fine even if you hadnt would be disparaging their efforts and hard work.
Thanks to these two, I didnt have to enter the water again, and the cat could stay dry. The former is one thing, but doesnt thetter hold quite a big value? I can just dry myself, but animals would extremely hate getting wet. And in the first ce, its not our threes fault that we had to go through this hardship. Looking at Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, I slowly spoke.
Thank you both. Im heavy, so you must have had a hard time pulling me up. I never thought that guy would throw the cat.
Things I couldnt even imagine were happening continuously. And in this situation, I also didnt think that someone would want my backpack. I had never lived in a world where people were desperate to steal the bag carried by someone. Wasnt it normal to throw your bag on a cafe chair and go to the bathroom without it getting stolen? I wonder if Koreas public security is good or this ce is exceptionally bad.
The two were half-leaning on the railing, exhausted. In the distance, Logan and Kanu were smoking again as if none of this was their business, James was jeering at the 2nd floor, and Sam was shouting, Youre a fucking asshole.
Looking down, I saw Benjamin swimming hard and entering the 2nd floor through the railing. Until now, the 2nd floor had beenpletely filled with water, but now the water was draining to the level of peoples calves.
Benjamins eyes met mine as I looked down at the 2nd floor from the 3rd floor. He raised his middle finger at me like a 9-year-old kid and curled up the rest of his fingers. Oh my. Hey. Do you want to act like that at your age? Even Henry, who was suddenly abandoned without his parents in a leaking undersea base and was terrified, didnt behave like that. I thought about flipping him off in return, but I gave up because it was too childish and unproductive. Were not kids.
Yoo Geum-yi turned her head towards the railing, saw that scene, and sighed deeply.
Why do they live like that?
I guess he wants to take out his stress on the weak. A guy like that probably lived like that even normally.
Kim Ga-young frowned and answered Yoo Geum-yis question while rubbing her waist and hips. An adult male usually takes out his stress on weaker creatures? Where did that kind of life go wrong in the first ce? Even imagining it twice, it was nearly impossible for me toprehend. Juste to the dentist after eating a lot of sweets.
I put one of Kim Ga-youngs arms, who was staggering and unable to stand properly, over my shoulder. That alone seemed very unstable for her to get up. I said excuse me for a moment and held Kim Ga-youngs hip area with my hand. When I lifted her up with strength to make her stand on two feet, Kim Ga-young was barely able to walk with her arm over my shoulder.
Yoo Geum-yi, who had been mumbling that she was fine, slowly grabbed the railing, got up by herself, took a deep breath, and walked over slowly. Even Jihyun, who was sprawled on a chair in the distance, seemed tock stamina. We need to let them sleep or eat something. Or just rest without doing anything.
But theres no time to rest. When the water drains to a certain level, we have to go down to the 1st floor elevator in time with the water drainage. We dont know when and how much water will flood in again.
Will the elevator operate normally? What about the Infinity Church guys who might be above? I only noticed a momentter that Carter had approached me on my left. When I stopped walking, he stammered and said to me.
I didnt know that guy would throw your cat. I didnt even know there was a cat in there.
You bastard. Is that an apology? I held back the urge to punch him. The biggest reason was that if I let go, Kim Ga-young, whom I was supporting, seemed like she would copse on the floor. I stared at Carter and asked.
What did you think was in the backpack?
Dors. Or drugs.
Among the prohibited items in the undersea base, are any of them actually enforced? I had roughly guessed it since I saw this persons dental condition. I dont know what kind of drugs. Judging by the severe tooth decay, it must be acidic drugs. Due to the side effects of drugs, digestion doesnt work properly, and with loss of appetite, they only seek out sweet things like soda or chocte, elerating tooth decay.
Wait a minute. Where do I look like a drug dealer? It felt like Carter was adding fuel to my annoyance every time he opened his mouth. Did hee to apologize? Or did hee to pick a fight? Making assumptions, I asked Carter.
Are you sorry to me?
I dont know if Im interpreting the situation positively or being unnecessarily optimistic. Seeing himing here to shed his guilt like this, if Carter had known there was a cat in the backpack, he probably wouldnt have tried so hard to take it.
Is this thought too positive and delusional? But what do I gain from thinking negatively in this situation? Unfounded despair? Doubts about humans instinctive selfishness? A desire for revenge, thinking Ill pay them back the same way someday? Benjamin I dont know. For now, lets just look at Carter in front of me.
We are just people who happened to gather in a disaster where the undersea base is leaking. From the moment the water started leaking until now, I judged that building hostility towards each other would not be helpful at all, whether then or now. Its an environment where its questionable whether we can survive even if we help each other with all our might.
People in the 20th century could live well as long as they and their families and acquaintances were safe. However, the 21st century haspletely changed. Situations where you cant survive just because youre happy and safe alone have been continuously created. Our generation knows too well how the results of the 20th centuries, who tried to eat well and live well for themselves, came back in the form of indiscriminate overfishing, habitat destruction, water pollution, air pollution, soil pollution, climate change, and various types of widespread epidemics. We also know that abandoning selfishness and protecting others eventuallyes back to protect ourselves.
If possible, I hope people will care for and help each other through good deeds.
Like Yoo Geum-yi, Jihyun, and I saving Kim Ga-young trapped in the dormitory, Yoo Geum-yi, Jihyun, Kim Ga-young, and I helping Yoo Geum-yi who wants to release marine life, Kim Ga-young helping the three of us in crisis, us actively agreeing and trying to fulfill what Jihyun wants, and these people saving me.
In the current situation, money or violence cannot offer any salvation. If it were someone with a lot of money, could they have gotten out of here quickly? Then what about the person in my dream who was shot to death by me while wearing jewelry all over their body? If those familiar with violence could get out of here, Shin Hae-ryang or Baek Ae-young would have escaped first in my dream. Or that man named Goodman.
Capital and coercion. The reason I, who have neither, am still alive in this messed up undersea base is because of the care and unconditional help from the people around me. Pointing to Kim Ga-young next to me and Yoo Geum-yi walking behind me, I said to Carter.
If youre sorry to me, be nice to Kim Ga-young here and Yoo Geum-yi over there. They came to help me even while falling.
I want a cycle of goodwill. And if you want to apologize to the cat, do it to the cat, not me, while buying it something to eat.
Carter hesitated, looked at Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, then passed by us and went downstairs. After walking in silence for a few seconds, Kim Ga-young said.
Somehow When I talk with Geum, I feel like my eroded humanity is being restored a bit, but Moohyun, you seem to have that effect too.
What effect is that? Why is Ga-youngs humanity gone?
Living life, it just dries up like that. Its be aplete desert. Im filling it up by looking at good people.
Dont worry. These days, even flowers can bloom in the desert.
Interestingly, the 21st century is a world where desertification and sea level rise are urring simultaneously. In some ces, people are dying and the environment is being destroyed due tock of water, while in others, habitats are being destroyed due to overflowing water.
I saw James approach Jihyun, who was sprawled on a chair, and they talked to each other. After exchanging a few more words, James carried Jihyun on his back. Jihyun, who was being carried, pointed to the pads with her hand, and Sam, who was next to them, gathered the pads and shouted at us.
Anything to take?
What should I take? I cant think of anything right now. I dont know. Is there anything I need to bring from the 3rd floor? I turned my head this way and that, and the closed center directors office and the offices next to it caught my eye. I only wanted to disappear to the lower floor right away. I asked Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, who was walking behind.
Do we have anything to take?
Well Courage?
Yoo Geum-yi, who had walked closer,ughed at Kim Ga-youngs words and loudly shouted to Sam, No! Sam also started descending the nearby stairs with James.
When we went down the stairs and arrived on the 2nd floor, most of the water on the entire 2nd floor had drained. Trash was strewn about haphazardly, and furniture was pushed here and there. The water level now onlypped at the ankles of the people standing on the 2nd floor.
Chapter 92
Chapter 92
Soon, the elevator submerged on the 1st floor will be revealed. People gradually began gathering near the stairs on the 2nd floor closest to the elevator. The elevator would be right there once you went down the stairs.
When we came down to the 2nd floor, there was an unfamiliar woman. She seemed to have been located on the 4th floor or above, or had been hiding and came out after seeing the water drain. The womanpletely ignored our presence. And for some reason, as soon as Benjamin saw my face, he cursed at me.
You parking XXXX.
I discovered a new feature of the trantor earpiece I was wearing the trantion didnt seem to work properly for curse words depending on the pronunciation. When I looked at him with a pathetic gaze, Benjamin tried to lunge at me even though Carter was pulling his hood from behind.
At that moment, someone walked over from the end of the corridor, making sshing sounds. As the sshing sounds were loud, everyone turned their heads in that direction. The man, who was limping slightly and holding a fire axe in one hand, had blood sttered all over his face, and the axe was also covered in blood. Everyone in the corridor stared at the man. The man, who had walked over with a towel wrapped around his seemingly injured calf, spoke to the frozen people in a hoarse voice.
Im taking the elevator. If you interfere, Ill kill you.
The man said, waving the axe de towards us. A simple and straightforward way of talking. Everyone fell silent at the mans appearance, and I was also at a loss for words. The curses that had been pouring out of Benjamins mouth towards me had suddenly ceased. Everyone looked away from the red color of the axe.
Hmm. This is crazy. I thought it would be much morefortable to talk to Benjamin first than that person. An unfounded sense of intimacy, even if only as small as a fingernail, emerged.
I have to take the elevator with these people. I remembered how Yoo Geum-yi and I hugged each other in fear and cried in the elevator in my dream. What if this elevator loses power again? I unknowingly let out a sigh. The water level was steadily decreasing. The water that had beenpping at my ankles was now tickling my toes.
Yoo Geum-yi was whispering something in Kim Ga-youngs ear, and Jihyun nced at the faces of the newly arrived people one by one, sighed, and focused on the pad. I asked Benjamin, keeping a distance of about 3m. I needed enough distance to dodge or back away if he lunged at me like before.
Why did you do that?
Do what?!
Why did you throw the cat?
Benjamin smirked and said.
Ah! So what! Its not like I threw you! Its not like you got hurt anyway! Why should I fall into the water over just one cat! You fucking bastard!
Hey Dont you have anything else to say to me besides that?
Apology. Regret. Does this bastard not have any sense of guilt in his head at all? Benjamin looked at Yoo Geum-yi, Jihyun, and Kim Ga-young, then at me and asked.
Why are you pretending to be so nice? Do you want to look good to the women that much?
For a moment, I couldnt understand what the other person was saying. And in my tangled mind, countless responses were desperately trying to pour out simultaneously. From when did I ever do that to whats wrong with you that you have such thoughts in your head, there were too many things I wanted to say that I wanted to write them down on paper or a pad and say them. How would I know how those three people judge me? And why would I throw myself into the air to look good to anyone? The cat I picked up today that already has an owner? With a sigh, I asked what I was most curious about.
Why do you act so badly?
You hypocrite bastard!
You should at least pretend to be nice too. Even if youre not nice, at least pretend to be nice!
At that moment, the man holding the axe walked over and scratched the floor with the tip of the axe de. Since the water was draining, it didnt make as much noise as before when walking, so I didnt know he was approaching, but the man was much closer to the people than his previous position.
Benjamin looked in that direction, his eyes widened, and he stopped cursing at me and backed away. The man seemed to want to sit next to the stairs closest to the elevator located on the 1st floor. He easily walked through the corridor between Benjamin and me, stopped at the point where the corridor and stairs met, and sat down. Then he stroked the axe handle with his hand and watched us.
While I turned my gaze to the other persons calf, a loud yawn without tension was heard. As Kanu, who had been watching the draining 1st floor, let out a big yawn, Benjamin saw it and started to get annoyed.
When people were dying, you didnt care the slightest bit. Why are you interfering and making a fuss now?!
Are you talking to me? Thats my choice. Is people dying the same as a cat dying? Dont worry. If youre dying, I wont care the slightest bit either.
Kanu said kindly in a low voice with a smile. Benjamin seemed to be furious, but when Sam and Jamesughed and said things like Come here~ Lets swim one more time~ The water level is just right, he got annoyed and distanced himself from people.
The woman leaning against the wall looked at Kim Ga-youngs face and didnt seem very close, as they only exchanged a word each, You were alive. You too.
How much more does the water need to drain for the elevator to work? I approached Jihyun, who was leaning her whole body against any chair rolling around on the 2nd floor. Jihyun looked like she was barely holding onto her consciousness, trying not to fall asleep.
Jihyun, do you have a moment to talk?
My pathetic body is already with God.
Then let me borrow just your head from God for a bit. Im worried about the Infinity Church believers who might be on the ground level (0th floor) if we escape by taking the elevator. The people here dont have the means to counter armed personnel with rifles. Should we have weapons?
Jihyuns eyes followed the man sitting on the floor and then looked at the axe.
Well, theres one for now.
Besides that. Is there no way to persuade the gun-wielding fanatics non-violently?
I had been thinking about it continuously while walking ever since I woke up, but no matter how much I thought, no good ideas came to mind. Moreover, even if we try to confront them with the same kind of force, its far-fetched to obtain guns.
Im someone who cant even properly snatch a pen from someone elses hand, so how can I take a gun hanging from their shoulder? Its the same for the people here. Even when Benjamin and Carter attacked together, they couldnt take a single backpack I was carrying from someone like me.
What are the chances that the people here can snatch the guns from the cult members and fight back in a ce where they are gathered?
I dont believe in religion at all, so maybe thats why I cante up with any good ideas. What do religious people think? Jihyun said while stretching.
I want to say that everything can be solved with the love of the Lord, but I suddenly remember the saying that conversation and persuasion are the lot of the weak. Oh. Moohyun. If all those dreams are true.
Jihyun spoke softly, moving her lips barely. There might be a few among the people here. I nkly listened to Jihyuns words and lightly nodded, agreeing with her.
Oh. Thats true. Should we ask what religion the people here believe in?
Jihyun smiled at me with just the corners of her mouth and replied.
Will people answer honestly?
I dont think so either, but it wouldnt hurt to ask, right?
Thats true.
Is there anything else we should prepare or bring before taking the elevator?
When I thought of weapons, the corpses I had seen on the 3rd floor came to mind. Things like scissors, axes, penknives, fountain pens, and ballpoint pens were stuck all over peoples bodies. No matter how much we needed things to survive, I didnt want to go into a room where people had died like that and pull out those things from their bodies. Jihyun thought for a moment and then said to me softly.
What Im more worried about than the cult members is.
As her voice lowered, I brought my ear close to her mouth.
Yes.
Im not worried about before fixing the elevator. Its after fixing it. Until now, I was the only engineer who could fix the elevator here, so people didnt oppose me, helped me, or left me alone. If there was one more engineer, well. Would these people have even listened to me? Will my existence be of any use to these people once the elevator is fixed? First of all, I dont have the stamina to fight.
If we really have to discuss the usefulness of people, in todays world where resources are scarce, everyone should not have been born. If it werent for Jihyun, wouldnt I have already died in the main control room?
We need you, Jihyun. Among the people here, youve worked the hardest to escape and tried to protect those around you. Ill stay by your side, though I may becking.
I dont know how much help I can be. Jihyun looked around at the people nearby and spoke softly.
I dont trust those people.
What about that person named James? Dont you know him?
Ive seen him for about 2 years. At prayer meetings. Trusting people of the same religion is the most dangerous thing.
Why?
Because you let your guard down to some extent. Ive been believing for 28 years because my family has been Christian since birth, and Ive been harmed more by people of the same religion than by people of other religions. I came to the undersea base to run away from home. They kept telling me to marry a man who goes to the same church.
I had to ask out of genuine curiosity. Is she telling me this because she trusts me?
Then what about me?
Moohyun. Do you believe in a cult?
No. Im an atheist.
Whether youre a cult member or not, even if Infinity Church itself is aplete lie. I want to believe in the dedication youve shown so far, Moohyun. And believing in God and believing in people are quite different.
In my dreams, Shin Hae-ryang, Baek Ae-young, and Seo Ji-hyuk showed unique skills. Like using knives or guns like action movie protagonists. Do you have any such skills, Jihyun?
Jihyunughed softly at my question.
I was trying to stay as far away from home as possible, and somehow ended uping to the undersea base. I heard some of our team members were discharged from the military, got hired here, and received such offers. Im just a tired office worker in life.
Thats the same as me.
Chapter 94
Chapter 94
I took a few steps back at Kevins shouting, and faced off against him in that position. Kevin seemed extremely bothered by me approaching him, or maybe he didnt like my greeting.
I brought my backpack to the front, unzipped it slightly, and reached inside. Fumbling around, I took out a bottle of saline solution, a spray disinfectant, and a few packaged painkillers.
I knelt on one knee and heard someone inhaling sharply in the distance. I began rolling the saline bottle like a bowling ball towards Kevin. The cylindrical bottle tumbled and stopped at Kevins ankle. Next, I rolled the spray disinfectant.
Even as I rolled the items to him, Kevin didnt look at what they were. He only watched my actions. The painkillers were what Kim Ga-young had brought from Yoo Geum-yi sb, and I tossed the remaining two pills in their container. The painkiller bottle flew in an arc andnded lightly next to Kevins instep.
From my observations, most Koreans dont take pills without water, but foreigners just swallow them dry. Im not sure why. Maybe I just havent seen Koreans swallowing pills without water. As for water to take with the medicine they could scoop up the draining seawater with their hands. I tried it and it was fine. But rather than drinking that seawater, Id prefer swallowing the saline solution. Its salty water either way.
I said something I would never tell a patient at my clinic.
Treat yourself.
Without taking his eyes off me, Kevin felt around his ankle and picked up the round saline bottle, holding it up towards me. Keeping both the bottle and me in his field of vision, he quickly nced at the item in his hand and set it on the floor. He was checking the disinfectant and painkillers in the same way.
It seemed he believed that the moment he took his eyes off me, I would rush in to close the distance and attack, or the people keeping their distance would run over and jump him. Im not sure why he thought that. Pointing at the bottles, I said,
Wash the wound area thoroughly with saline, then disinfect with the spray. The painkillers will make it hurt less if you take them, or you can keep hurting without them.
You need to see the wound to know what it looks like. I think I acted in a way that wouldnt get me kicked out if I stood before Hippocrates. It may surprise most people, but dentists also take the Hippocratic Oath. Kevin frowned, gripping the axe handle, and asked,
Whats your name?
Zipping up my backpack, I returned the question in an equally dry voice.
Whats your name then?
I heard a sharp inhtion behind me. What if Yoo Geum-yi was mistaken or youre a twin and a different person? Kevin gave me a displeased look and spat out his name.
Kevin Roy.
Park Moo-hyun.
Mister Park. Theres no guarantee you wont attack me if I let go of this axe.
Keep thinking that then.
Kevin looked taken aback. Even if I said Im harmless, have no intention of harming you, wont attack you needlessly, and will treat you if you allow me, could he really believe it?
We were strangers, and we met under circumstances too perilous to instantly trust each other. And while Ive countless times soothed frightened children to treat them at the dental clinic, what power does a doctor have if an adult refuses treatment? Id just say something like Come back when you feel like getting treated. Besides, Deep Blue is closed and Im on vacation.
I dont want to imagine you chopping me with that axe while Im treating you either.
What do you gain from this?
Kevins words made me smile wryly. Realizing myughter might seem like mockery to him, I erased the smile tugging at my lips and retorted,
Would I gain anything?
Deep creases formed between Kevins brows. After a while, he sighed.
If you dont attack me first, I wont attack you either.
As soon as I heard that, I wanted to expand the scope of this promise a bit.
Do that for the others too. If the people here dont attack you, you dont attack them either.
Not a bad idea, right? Those people probably dont want to be needlessly terrified when they see you either. Same for you. But I cant make promises for everyone, so if you get attacked, fight back. Quite fair, no? However, Kevin shook his head.
Just you. They havent done anything for me.
I let out a deep sigh and approached slowly with both hands raised. I carefully unwrapped the towel around his calf. The calf had merely been tightly tied with a towel after something sharp had deeply punctured and exited.
No matter how many times I looked at it, this wound seemed to need at least ten stitches. As I looked at the calf and reached for my backpack, Kevin panicked.
What are you trying to do?
Im getting tape from the backpack. To stop the bleeding and stick the tape on the wound.
As I opened the backpack, pushing the cat aside to find what I needed, Kevins expression turned bizarre upon seeing the contents. I poured saline over the wound, washed my fingers, and pressed gauze on it. After the bleeding subsided a bit, I rinsed the wound again with saline and disinfected around it.
Was this wound from the axe by any chance?
The gash was on the fleshy part of the calf. Kevin didnt answer. I manually pulled the torn wound closed as much as possible to make the flesh adhere and stuck multipleyers of tape over it. Id need a needle and thread to suture it. Lets minimize the wound gaping for now. Kevin furrowed his brown brows and asked,
Whats with the cat inside?
Its not one I raised, so I dont know. Do you happen to know a lot about snakes?
No.
What about sharks then?
Are you messing with me?
No.
Which part sounds like Im joking? Having used up the scant gauze and bandages, I tore the towel I was using into long strips and wrapped his calf. Looking at Kevins leg, I asked,
Ah, right. Whats your religion?
Why are you asking about religion?
Pray for your leg to get better soon.
I believed until yesterday but not starting today.
My hands were aplete mess when the treatment was done. All I could think about was running to the bathroom to wash my hands about five times. I felt burdened by the other persons brown eyes boring into me. Doctors are very used to patients staring at their face when they have nowhere else to look, but it was doubly burdensome for me since this wasnt a clinic and the treated area wasnt inside a mouth.
Feeling my face burn, I looked around and saw the others also watching with folded arms as I provided treatment. Well, theres nothing much to see besides the water draining. When the treatment finished, I stood up to check the water level.
Looking down at the first floor from the second floor railing, a tremendous amount of water had drained. Lee Jihyun, who had been slumped in a chair, was now getting up and heading towards the stairs. Kevin, gripping the axe handle again, slowly stood up leaning on the axe. People seemed to want to go to the stairs leading to the first floor, but they were wary due to Kevins presence.
However, Lee Jihyun passed right in front of Kevin and descended the stairs, not caring whether he was holding the axe or not. As Kevin slowly went down the stairs after her, the others followed, keeping a distance of 2-3 meters.
On the first floor, the water level was between the ankles and calves. Washing my hands once in the seawater to avoid falling, I slowly walked to the elevator. People who had already arrived were boarding the open elevator. The elevator interior was huge. Lee Jihyun had removed the control panel cover and was examining the inside. I entered the elevator and checked the maximum upancy.
[Passenger Freight]
[3750 kg]
[50 persons]
No wonder the elevator was so big the capacity was immense. It was muchrger inside than it appeared from the outside. The central elevator in the main building was also huge, but this was no joke either. Whats the per-person weight limit? Yoo Geum-yi was also looking at the maximum upancy and simply told me,
75kg per person.
Hearing that, Kim Ga-young smiled slightly and said,
Well, Im definitely not 75kg.
Is 75kg the standard weight per person in elevators? I had never thought about this topic before. There are 12 people here, so cant we all fit?
As I was trying to recall my most recent weight from thepany health checkup, Sam frowned at the kilograms and asked Yoo Geum-yi ,
How much is that in pounds?
Oh. One moment. Uh, about 166 pounds?
Sam fell silent. Then he stared at the maximum upancy sign as if ring would change the numbers.
The woman named Emma was sitting crumpled in the corner of the elevator floor. She seemed utterly indifferent to her legs and bottom getting wet. Unlike when she appeared fine on the second floor, she now looked extremely exhausted. I wanted to talk to her, but she was hunched over with her head in her hands, shutting out all external stimuli. I didnt want to bother someone who seemed worn out by the very idea of conversation.
As people boarded the elevator one by one, Benjamin asked Lee Jihyun impatiently,
Will it work? Or not?
Wait.
How long do we have to wait? I went diving and pulled this elevator out of the water because of what you said.
I said wait.
If this doesnt work! Hey! Youll have killed everyone here! Killed them all! The people here couldve all gone to the bio center but stayed here trusting you!
Lee Jihyun raised her head from the elevator panel and looked at Benjamin. But Kanu cut Benjamin off first.
If it doesnt work, we die here then.
Maybe you have no problem living or dying here since your days are already numbered, but not me!
Its about the same whether we get out by elevator or not, so quit whining.
Chapter 95
Chapter 95
Before Benjamin could retort to Kanu, I asked Kanu first.
What do you mean its about the same whether we get out by elevator or not?
Shouldnt things be better if we escape the leaking undersea base? Why is being trapped in a flooding ce simr to leaving by elevator? Does he know something about the Infinite Bridge or have other information? Benjamin shouted at me from the side.
Hey! I was talking first! Why are you butting in and making a fuss!
Its exactly what I said. Theres not much difference.
Just wait quietly.
As Jihyun, Benjamin, Kanu and I each spoke a word next to the elevator door, a screeching noise sounded. Turning my head to check the source, I saw Kevin, who had imed a corner of the elevator, scratching the wall with his axe de. He spoke in a hoarse voice.
Shut up!
His charisma silenced everyone who had been chattering. Jihyun nced at us and Kevin, then buried her head back in the elevator circuits. Benjamin, who had been looking at Kevin, grumbled softly across from me.
This is all your fault.
Does ming others like that make your life any better?
Benjamin lowered his body as if he wanted to lunge at me right then. But he didnt attack. It seemed because Kevin, who looked at least 10cm taller and 20kg heavier, was still watching us holding the axe. He warned me.
Consider yourself lucky today.
Then he went to stand next to Carter, leaning against the elevator wall and ring at Kanu and me.
Well. If I was lucky today, wouldnt I already be lying on a beach drinking cocktails and listening to music, or strolling in the wind under a blue sky?
Not stuck in these deep seas trying to escape a flooded elevator with strangers. Banishing Benjamin from my mind in 2 seconds, I tried to talk to Kanu again.
Right then, the elevator spoke to us.
[Maximum upancy exceeded]
That t, monotonous voice instantly sent chills down my spine. Come to think of it, everyone had already boarded but the elevator doors remained open. I thought it was because they stayed open a long time or Jihyun was examining the internal circuits, but that didnt seem to be the only reason.
The elevator, with buttons lit from the 1st to 7th floors and BA (Basic Area), spoke again as if issuing an eviction order.
[Maximum upancy exceeded]
Everyone turned to look at Jihyun standing by the door. She nced at the chilly water on the elevator floor and the people, then spoke dispassionately.
Its because of the water weight. The elevator can operate. It cant go up due to thebined weight of the people and the water past ankle-level.
James looked around at the water-filled elevator floor and asked Jihyun,
How heavy is the water to cause this? It says the capacity is 50 people, and there are only 12 of us here. The water is barely above our ankles.
Jihyun stared nkly at peoples faces with a soulless expression. She seemed reluctant to exin. Yoo Geum-yi , standing next to Kim Ga-young, looked at the elevator floor and the water level above her ankles. She sloshed to the other end of the elevator. Walking back and forth, she began muttering.
Assuming its 400cm from here to there and roughly 300cm side to side, with the current water level around 25cm Uh, since 1 liter of water equals 1kg, divide by 1000.
Yoo Geum-yi sighed several times, stretching out her fingers to measure the water level. Amazing. Shes calcting the water weight with a form. It only just urred to me that 1 liter equals 1 kilo.
Yoo Geum-yi bit her lip, narrowed her brows, and said,
Its marked that 3750kg is the operational weight, but the water alone is approximately 3000kg. But I calcted roughly, so the water might weigh even more.
Kim Ga-young massaged Yoo Geum-yi s shoulders vigorously, saying Our Geum is the best! I pped softly next to them and started doing simple multiplication. Assuming an average of 75kg per person times 12 people. Then the weight of the people here is about 900kg.
If the water really weighs 3000kg, at least 2 people need to get off to reach 750kg. Then Carter spoke, hanging onto the metal handrail inside the elevator with both arms.
I Im absolutely not getting off.
Benjamin yelled at everyone.
The people who boarded the elevatorst should get off now in good conscience.
At those words, Logan, who had been leaning against the elevator wall, burst intoughter. Ahahaha! Low chuckles from Sam, James, and Kanu filled the elevator.
Jihyun and Kevin had boarded early, while the rest of us entered around the same time. I dont even remember who waste or early. Do you think people will listen to you when you havent exactly acted conscientiously yourself? As expected, no one exited the elevator after Benjamins words.
The elevator chided us.
[Maximum upancy exceeded]
When no one moved, Benjamin pointed at Sam, who was snickering, and said,
You fat pig. Get off quickly! Without you alone, we could fit 2 more people.
Sam shouted angrily.
You think Ill get off alone if I do! Ill grab you and take you down with me. Ready to leave with this pig? Huh? Are you ready? Ill catch you alone and drag you off!
As Sam spread his arms wide and walked side to side like a crab a few times, Benjamin spewed curses. James and Kanu snickered watching them. Kevin shook his head and spoke, looking at the elevator wall.
Whoevers getting off, you better decide fast.
He scratched the elevator wall with his axe de again. Screech.
I marked the water level as soon as I entered the elevator and it keeps rising.
Wasnt he just trying to scare people then? On the elevator wall Kevin had marked with the axe, there was one line drawn at ankle bone height and now another clear line up to the calf.
The water had drained to ankle level but is rising again. Even running the drainage system cant stop the flooding. Fear began to cloud peoples expressions.
Logan asked the now silent group,
What. Should we wrestle and randomly shove out about 3 people?
Cracking his neck loudly, Logan muttered softly. Im fine with that. Then he menacingly cracked his wrists and fingers. At that action, Kevin silently tightened his grip on the axe handle. A faint tension swept through the elevator. Logan looked around at everyone and asked,
Anyone voluntarily want to exit the elevator?
No response. Logan was staring at Benjamin, and strangely, Kevin was also eyeing Benjamin. As Benjamins eyes met Logans then Kevins when he turned his head, he cursed, asking why they were both looking at him.
Were short on time and you want us to fight each other in this elevator? To be honest, Id rather just get off than fight to board the elevator. Im usually unlucky, so I might get hit if Kevins axe slips from his hand. Lets say Benjamin is forced out. Then what? Whos next?
Rather than get hurt brawling, it might be better to stay healthy and find another escape route. If it doesnt work, we could head back to the main operations area.
But if I made the call here, there are at least two people who could be easily ousted by force. I didnt want to see the two who struggled diving to open the valve get kicked out. Besides, Im responsible for the lives of those in my backpack.
People are desperate to live. Whod want to get off here?
Emma, who had been sitting crouched in the corner, spoke while submerged in the water. She was sitting on the floor, and the water would soon reach her knees, but she didnt budge. Shes just sitting there gettingpletely soaked.
Thinking it might not be bad to quickly exit and re-enter if a fight broke out, I looked at the door and saw all the elevator button lights were on. Almost unconsciously, I asked Jihyun,
Engineer! Cant we have more than half the people get off here, stop the elevator on the 3rd or 4th floor to drain the water, and have them walk up the stairs to board again on the 3rd floor?
We could avoid the 1st floor where water is gushing in, stop the elevator on another floor to scoop out water, and board. Jihyun smiled faintly at me, then frowned at someone else and said,
Thats a good suggestion. Anyone have a better idea? If not, Id like to go with that.
Perhaps thinking hed be forced out if he stayed quiet, Benjamin hastily pointed at Emma and said,
Then make her get off first. Im taking the elevator up to the 3rd or 4th floor. I worked hard swimming to open the drain hole! Its only right that someone who did nothing and is freeloading on the elevator should exit!
Try saying that to Kevin too. Kim Ga-young spoke to Benjamin.
Pathetic bastard.
Petty bastard.
Maybe not understanding the insults or processing them slowly, Benjamin got angry after a few seconds.
This bitch doesnt know her ce!
This bitch doesnt know her ce~
Kim Ga-young snorted and mimicked Benjamins English. Then she looked at the people in the elevator and got off. I looked at the others after Kim Ga-young, then exited the elevator next. I made the suggestion, so I should set an example.
[Maximum upancy exceeded]
Hearing the voice behind me, I followed Kim Ga-young. With me and Kim Ga-young off, Yoo Geum-yi probably wouldnt be kicked out. Even if she was forced out of the elevator, she just needed to walk up to the 3rd floor. As I started climbing the 1st floor stairs, I saw Yoo Geum-yi walking behind me.
Why did you get off? You shouldve stayed on.
Yoo Geum-yi smiled awkwardly and said,
Most people will probably have to get off.
Chapter 96
Chapter 96
Kim Ga-young stopped midway up the stairs to the 2nd floor and asked,
Why why?
The water is rising faster than I thought. Who knows how much theyre arguing, but if the water rises just 5-6cm more, everyone will have to get off due to the water weight. And while fresh water is 1kg, seawater is 1.025kg. Whatever the calction, we need to multiply by 1.025.
This is the first Ive heard of this. I tutored kids a lot to make money after entering university, but was this covered in the general curriculum? I cant remember. So if in water is 1, seawater has a specific gravity of 1.025? Seawater is heavier than regr water. Is it because seawater contains a lot of microorganisms? Spoken like someone who manages jellyfish and jellyfish tanks.
Kim Ga-young pped Yoo Geum-yi s shoulder as she came up the stairs and asked with augh,
So you got off because you would have to anyway?
Yoo Geum-yi sighed and said as she walked up the stairs with Kim Ga-young,
You dont know how brutal the atmosphere got after you two left. No one else got off next. Theyre all ming each other. Whew. They asked me if I had a reason to stay on the elevator so I just hurried off.
Hearing Yoo Geum-yi s trembling tone, Kim Ga-young and I weakly climbed the stairs. Patting her back or looking at Yoo Geum-yi s hand gripping the railing, I asked,
Geum, dont you have plenty of reasons to stay on? Like weighing less than 75kg. Or your injury status and such.
Kanu next to me said hes getting off. Let them keep fighting like that. He wants to watch the fight so keep the elevator doors open. When he said that I felt so stupid and empty insisting on taking the elevator here.
Around the time we arrived slowly on the 3rd floor, chatting in low voices and worrying about Geums back, the elevator suddenly shot past us and rose. Startled, I saw it stop on the 4th floor right above. Footsteps sounded like people were busily climbing the stairs between the 1st and 2nd floors.
When the three of us reached the 4th floor, the elevator that had been on the 1st floor had its doors wide open, the water inside steadily draining out.
As a result, the 4th floor corridor was flooded. Checking inside the elevator, only Kevin and Jihyun were on board. Kevin was sweeping the floor with the axe like a broom, pushing out water. Spotting me from a distance, he raised a hand and waved.
Jihyun, who had been right next to the elevator doors, also waved at us. Her hand motions seemed to urge us to quickly board the elevator.
As I carefully walked through the 4th floor corridor to avoid slipping in the water and approached the elevator, Jihyun hastily grabbed me, Yoo Geum-yi , and Kim Ga-young and shoved us into the elevator one by one.
Get on quick! Hurry!
Why?
Even while asking, people quickly boarded the elevator as Jihyun ushered.
Im closing the doors! Lets go with just us!
Huh?
Only us?
Not just me, but Yoo Geum-yi , Kim Ga-young, and Kevin also looked at Jihyun in surprise. Especially seeing Kevins face, it seemed this wasnt pre-arranged at all. Jihyun spoke through gritted teeth.
My patience has run out. No, my patience was alreadypletely gone when I arrived at this undersea pollution center. The reason I endured this far with none left is because of you three here, not for anyone elses sake. You got lucky. You stayed here because your calf is a mess like that. No one volunteered to carry a 190cm tall guy like you up to the 4th floor.
Jihyun pointed at Kevins leg wrapped in towel and bandages as she spoke. Frozen, Kevin slowly blinked his longshed eyes, then managed to say to Jihyun,
We agreed to wait on the 4th floor for them if they climbed the stairs.
To reach that decision, I had a great view of how low many people stooped to reveal their true character.
Kevin, hearing Jihyuns sarcasm for the first time, lookedpletely taken aback. Kevin had probably only seen Jihyun giving information or instructions robotically without emotion until now, and was witnessing her reveal her own feelings for the first time. Jihyun showed no concern whatsoever about Kevin holding an axe.
I thought with Jihyun acting this way, Kevin would happily tell her to depart right away. But that wasnt the case, which surprised me greatly. Hiding my inner thoughts, I also asked Jihyun,
You want only us to board and leave?
Yes.
Didnt you say before Ga-young and I go rescue, we need to hook as many people as possible?
Theres no point catching radioactive contaminated fish if you cant eat them. Same goes for people. Let them all shrivel up like squid grilled in hellfire. Lets at least take the good people here and go!
Whoa. I never imagined Jihyun would say something like that. Yoo Geum-yi was staring nkly at Jihyun with her mouth slightly open, while Kim Ga-young kicked at the water pooled on the elevator floor and said,
Im against it.
Kim Ga-young sshed a few droplets out of the elevator with her kicks.
There are no good people these days. Consider them nearly extinct. Even if you think only good people will survive, theyre really just folks good at hiding their bad sides. Think about it. You saw me take down someone at the bio center, right? Im grateful you seem to view me as a good person, but honestly Im no angel. Thats more for people like Geum here or Moo-hyun. There are probably decent ones among them too, and also lunatics who hide it well on the outside. Besides, if we leave them and go, those meant to live will live, and those fated to die will die even if we take them. I dont think you need to agonize over choosing who to leave behind. Thats my piece!
Then Kim Ga-young sharply poked Yoo Geum-yi s side with a finger as Yoo Geum-yi stood there in a daze. Yoo Geum-yi jumped on the spot and shook her head vigorously at Jihyun.
I get that you dont like them. Im not exactly fond of them either! But the reason they got off the elevator is because we promised in advance to have them board the elevator if they climbed the stairs to the 3rd-4th floor, right? Lets keep our word. Take everyone who makes it to the 4th floor!
I hastily added to Yoo Geum-yi s words.
I share a simr opinion with Geum. Now that we drained the water, this elevator that can fit up to 50 people can easily take 12. Escaping with just the 5 of us here would be extremely inefficient. The elevator might stop while taking us up to the surface, or a power outage could render it inoperable. Then those people who stayed here trusting in an elevator escape would bepletely trapped in this undersea pollution center.
I mentioned efficiency since engineers like it, and somehow noticed Jihyun unconsciously nodding at that point.
And among them are people who dove into that seawater with us to turn the valve and swim back, trying to drain this flooded undersea pollution center. Just because you witnessed inhumane and hical behavior doesnt mean we need to make an inhumane choice ourselves.
At that, Jihyun frowned as if recalling certain individuals. I tried my best to console Jihyun and spoke slowly.
I know youre very tired and struggling right now. Butter, when you reflect on this in afortable and stable state of mind, I dont want you to regret or feel guilty about the people we left behind. I shouldve endured a bit more. I shouldve just taken them I dont want you to have those regrets. Rather than regretting not taking them, lets wait a little and bring them along.
Rushing off by ourselves on the elevator might seem better. But I thought it wiser to take them than regret leaving them.
I hope you have fewer sleepless nights someday, tormented by past choices. Jihyun hesitated briefly, then said to us,
Taking those people with us could be even more inefficient. More dangerous. More difficult. This might be thest chance to ditch them.
Saving lives is always inefficient.
At Yoo Geum-yi s words, Jihyun sighed and said,
If we consider which lives are more valuable Didnt I discuss this with you before?
We talked about something simr on the way to myb.
As Yoo Geum-yi smiled faintly at Jihyun, Jihyun looked at her, let out a deep sigh, then leaned against the elevator wall with folded arms. Kevin eyed Jihyun and spoke with difficulty.
We made a promise, so take them with us. Ill try to stop anyone who gives you trouble.
He slightly waved the ax he had been using like a cane. Leaning in the elevator, Jihyun said with a grimace,
I dont want to love my neighbor.
People began arriving on the 4th floor corridor after climbing the stairs. Surprisingly, Emma arrived first. She must have gotten off early.
Behind her came Carter and Sam, followed by James and Kanu. Logan and Benjamin climbed up the stairs a little apart. It was hard to see from a distance, but judging by the shadows, Benjamins face seemed all busted up.
As Emma walked down the 4th floor corridor, she stepped in the water spewed by the elevator and lost bnce, falling forward. Carter then leaped over Emma lying on the floor and came to the elevator. Entering the elevator, Carter let out a Yeah! which Jihyun watched with a look of pathetic disdain, arms still crossed.
Sam and James each grabbed Emma, who had risen from the water, and pulled her along. They boarded the elevator together with Emma. Kanu strolled in leisurely and got on the elevator. Only after Logan walking from a distance and thete-arriving Benjamin had all boarded did Jihyun close the elevator doors. Jihyun pressed the button marked BA. It was the button heading to Daehan Ind (0th floor).
Chapter 97
Chapter 97
As the elevator passed the 5th, 6th, and 7th floors, the lights illuminating the building interior entered the transparent elevator, so it didnt feel too dark. But as soon as the elevator left the undersea pollution center building, it was briefly engulfed in the darkness of the deep sea.
The sudden contrast of shadows wasnt too frightening due to the fluorescent lights on inside the elevator, but as it was my first time riding the main operations freight elevator, I felt that overwhelming sensation again from when I first took the central elevator. It felt like a rectangr boxpletely submerged in the ocean, carrying a tiny light as it pierced through the abyssal darkness.
However, the feeling I had in that fleeting moment seemedpletely different for those already ustomed to riding this elevator. Unlike me who was slightly startled, everyone else sprawled out in relief, sitting or lying on the floor.
In the case of Kim Ga-young, Yoo Geum-yi , and Jihyun, they leaned against the elevator wall, exhausted, only asionally blinking. As soon as the elevator moved, I thought of the disasters that urred in my dream and checked the time on my tablet, while Yoo Geum-yi asionally turned her head to watch the numbers ticking by.
James and Sam chattered about finally escaping, and Kanu put out his cigarette after Jihyuns reprimand. Carter raised his phone, waving it at the ceiling, while Benjamin red at Logan with displeasure.
But when Logan red back, Benjamin turned his head away. Kevin was looking outside at the darkness, gripping the axe handle. Emma sat leaning against the elevator wall, unblinking like a doll.
As I looked around at everyone, I raised my head and spotted Chinese characters written on the elevator ceiling. Why are there Chinese characters here?
[ ]
[TL/N: It means Be a light unto yourself, the Dharma is a light. smthg like this, I guess?]
What do those characters mean? I asked Yoo Geum-yi , who was nkly staring at the time on the tablet next to me.
Geum, do you know what it says on the ceiling?
Yoo Geum-yi looked up, saw the characters, and furrowed her brows.
Im not sure.
I see. Im not sure either. I only recognize the characters for self, bright, and light. Kim Ga-young, who practically lives at this undersea pollution center, haltingly read the characters.
Ja-deung. Is that middle one deung for light? Or not? Ja-deung-myeong beop-deung-myeong?
Ooh.
As Yoo Geum-yi and I let out a dumb exmation, Jihyun raised her head to nce at the ceiling, then spoke. The polyglot among us confirmed it for us.
Thats correct in Chinese ja-deung-myeong beop-deung-myeong.
What does that mean? Kim Ga-young stretched her arms high above her head and frowned.
My grandma said something about that a long time ago. I cant remember.
Then Carter, who had been waving his arm with his phone toward the air, looked at the Chinese on the ceiling and spoke to us with a pitying look.
Are you guys really Asian? Those are Chinese characters. Isnt it rted to Buddhism then?
Im irreligious.
I believe in science.
Im an instant Buddhist who visits temples once or twice a year.
I believe in the Lord.
Taken aback by the Asians responses, Carter clicked his tongue and shook his head.
Right before Buddha died, his disciples asked him who should we rely on and believe in when youre gone? Thats Buddhas answer before entering nirvana.
As Kanu said that while looking at the ceiling, everyones gaze focused on him.
Rely on yourself as the light.
Good words. But how do I make myself the light to live by? Kanu, who seemedpletely unrted to Asia, exined the Chinese phrase to the Asians and let out a big yawn. Logan pointed at the ceiling and said,
Originally they were going to engrave something in English there, but I heard the Asian countries fought hard to put Chinese instead.
When I looked at the other Asians around me, they had puzzled expressions. Hmm. I have no idea either. I thought the researchers who practically live here would know a lot about the undersea base, but judging by Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi s faces, that wasnt really the case. They said they spend most of their lives in theb researching. I asked Kanu,
Like the Bible verse engraved in the central elevator, I guess they engraved a line on each elevator?
Probably. I only ride the ones I take, so.
Kim Ga-young snapped her fingers at Kanus words and said to Yoo Geum-yi ,
Ah, right. That elevator thing, you know. If youre sure to die, you will live; if youre sure to live, you will die. ( ).
Yoo Geum-yi , whose eyes had been hazy with fatigue, widened them and spoke to Kim Ga-young.
Thats the elevator that goes to the 1st undersea base and Daehan Ind!
What does that mean?
At my question, Jihyun said dismally,
Theres an elevator Korea actively participated in engraving a phrase on. Team leader Shin said some lunatic at the undersea base headquarters insisted one absolutely had to be engraved and caused a ruckus. They put If youre sure to die, you will live; if youre sure to live, you will die in Korean in the 1st undersea base elevator, and Sang-hyun always spouts nonsense that the elevator will crash whenever he rides it.
Hearing Jihyuns exnation, Kim Ga-young replied with a delighted air.
Still, whenever I miss Korean, I sometimes go ride that elevator to see it.
Kim Ga-young gazed into the air as if looking at a distant ce. I mulled over the 8 characters in my head and said,
They really engraved that in the elevator? How did that get approved?
No matter how I think about it, its not a phrase fit to be engraved in an elevator moving in the deep sea. When I asked Jihyun, she shrugged.
That person apparently lobbied the undersea base headquarters and navy hard, saying it reflects the reality of 21st century humans who have to abandonnd and live in the deep sea. What was it originally? It was so unique I memorized it. Something more abstruse. What was it?
Jihyun pondered for a bit, then told me.
Ah. If you abandon life, you gain it. Tomorrow bes the light. I think. When that person was yelling to engrave it like that, I heard our team leader stopped him, asking if he was insane, if that was a suitable phrase to put inside an undersea elevator. So it was changed to Yi Sun-sins famous quote.
Kevin, who had been staring into the dark blue ocean, nced at the ceiling. Then he spoke to us, sounding slightly flustered.
Canada engraved From sea to sea (a mari usque ad mare).
Out of everything Ive heard so far, that seems the most normal. Or not. In a way, that also gives the impression the elevator might fall into the ocean. Cant they pick something brighter and more positive?
If it were me, Id probably engrave something like Regr brushing habits guarantee lifelong health. Thats not suitable for an undersea elevator either.
We were talking about how the 8 countries desperately tried to im at least one more name or phrase they knew in the undersea base, when suddenly the lights went out and the elevator stopped.
As the elevator abruptly halted, dizziness and nausea from inertia washed over me. Dont panic. You cant panic. Lets not panic. You know. The elevator just stopped. Its only a temporary power outage.
Enduring that nausea for a few seconds, I now saw the endlessly moving numbers in front of my eyes. Seeing the light from my tablet that I had left on, I stopped at the numbers passing on the screen first. 5 minutes 31 seconds. At that moment, screams erupted around me.
Kyaaaaaaaaah! Aaaaaah!
Uwaaaaaaaah! Aaaaaaah!
Waaaaaaaaaaaah!
Eeeeeek! Eeeeeeeeek!
Dear God! Jeeesus! Oh! Gooood!
Fortunately, since everyone was sitting or lying down, no one seemed hurt from the elevator stopping.
Instead, people were screaming randomly in the darkness. They probably never experienced a power outage while riding the elevator before. If it werent for what I went through in my dreams, Id probably be yelling with them right now.
The terrified people shrieked for 1-2 minutes, then startled by their own voices, began screaming again. Only after about 3-4 minutes did they slowly start to quiet down, perhaps gradually calming. But one man kept screaming incessantly.
Uwaaaaah! Were all gonna die! Were all gonna die! Fuck! Were all dying! Aaaaaaaaargh!
Shut up!
The sound of someone viciously kicking that person was heard. And atst, the inside of the elevator fell silent. Kanu lit a lighter, and I turned on the tablet light, then reached into my backpack to find the shlight at the very bottom. Tablet and phone lights appeared here and there.
I found the shlight in my backpack and turned it vigorously. The shlight only came on after a while, but it was the brightest light source inside the elevator. With nowhere suitable to shine the shlight, I pointed it toward the window showing the dark ocean. Seeing that, Emma spoke as if having a fit.
Point the light somewhere else! What if someonees after seeing your shlight in the deep sea?!
I dont think anyone coulde to this depth of the deep sea after seeing this light. At most, wouldnt it be fish? Ghost fish? Vampire squid? Tripod fish? If were lucky, maybe something like a fanfin anglerfish mighte. Depending on the depth, maybe a giant squid. Can they even see this with their eyes? Logan sneered at Emma.
Wouldnt it be better if someone came?! Submarine, rescue team, fish, let them alle!
Move the light somewhere else!
Since Emma seemed scared, I immediately shone the shlight at the ceiling. Emma crawled in the dark from the front window to the elevator door.
I tried my best to ask the frightened-looking person as kindly as possible.
Are you afraid of someoneing? Dont worry. I wont shine the shlight at the window again. Its understandable to be scared trapped in a powerless elevator.
After a few seconds, Emma, who had been looking at the shlight beam on the ceiling, whispered in terror,
Dagon.
Whats Dagon? Is it a fish I dont know? Kim Ga-young next to me asked Emma dispiritedly,
Whats Dagon?
The answer came not from Emma, but from Jihyun.
Its a demon. A demon.
Chapter 98
Chapter 98
Kanu shook his head at Jihyuns answer and whispered, Christians turn all other religions into demons. Dagon was a water god worshipped in Mesopotamia.
This is the first time Ive heard of it. I guess theres no way I would know about a water god from another country. Even when I try to think of one, the only one thates to mind is Poseidon, who frequently appears in Greek and Roman mythology. If someone were to ask me about air gods or fire gods from other countries, nothing at alles to mind. Emma spoke in a frightened voice.
You dont know what lives at the bottom of the ocean.
Yoo Geum-yi answered Emma in a disgruntled tone, I know very well what lives there. I live there, and so do the people here. Jellyfish live there too.
Not that kind of thing!
Are you perhaps afraid of things with many legs? Youre managing to stay here quite well.
Yoo Geum-yi let out a small sigh as if she was very familiar with people like Emma. Being able to stay at an underwater base while disliking marine life Well, I guess if there are people who join cults for money, what cant they do? Yoo Geum-yi spoke to Emma as if grumbling.
I still dont quite understand why Westerners are so terrified of cephalopods like octopuses and squid. Mammals have hemoglobin, so their blood is red, but they have hemocyanin, so their blood is blue. Theyre the blue bloods you like so much, and theyre as intelligent as dogs or cats, so why do you dislike them so much?
One day, they will awaken from the darkness of the deep sea and invade the world!When Emma answered Yoo Geum-yi with disgust, Yoo Geum-yi was taken aback and paused for a moment. Then she sighed as if to bring the elevator down.
Well. If octopuses and squid were to invade, I would dly put water in a pot and prepare soy sauce. Yoo Geum-yi began to distance herself considerably from Emma, as if she would not waste her precious time on the bullshit of conspiracy theorists who im marine life will one day attack humanity. I carefully asked Kanu, who seemed well-versed in religion.
Are there any gods rted to sharks?
I asked thinking there wouldnt be, but Kanu answered with bright eyes.
Yes, theres Kmohoalii, Nanaue. Waua mau mau, Dakuwaqa.
Kanu began to say many more names after that, but I didnt know any of them. Listening to Kanus light exnation, it seemed that there were quite a few ces that worshipped shark gods in warm Pacific ind nations like Hawaii.
Korea has also gotten much warmer, so sharks have started to appear more frequently. Come to think of it, I dont know much about sharks. Im hearing the things Kanu is saying for the first time in my life. As I listened with an expression that showed I had never heard of them before, Kanu asked me.
What country are you from?
Im Korean.
In your country, the Dragon King would be simr to Dagon.
The Dragon King. It took a few seconds after hearing it for the meaning to be conveyed to my brain. I had only heard of it in old tales, like when a rabbit liver was needed or when Shim Cheong, who fell into Indangsu, was saved.
Carter, who had been hopping up and down towards the elevator ceiling, looked at the phone screen he had raised with his arms stretched out and spoke to us, who were calmly talking about legends and gods, with a face that looked like he was going to burst.
I dont care if its the Dragon King or a demon, whoever gets us out of here is the best! What are we going to do about the elevator? Are we just done for? Do we have to stay here stuck in a power outage?
No one answered. Everyones gaze just turned toward the engineer. Jihyun sat on the elevator floor, looking towards Carter, and said.
The backup power will kick in soon. Probably.
Probably? What do you mean probably? Youre the engineer, so you should know properly. Do your job right!
Jihyuns patience, which had been precarious, seemed to havepletely run out.
I did everything right! You must know so much that youre stuck here with me who doesnt know shit, huh? If you dont want to wait for the backup power, open the elevator door and jump out.
What?
Before anyone could stop him, Carter threw the cell phone he was holding at the face of Jihyun, who was sitting. Kevin, who was next to Jihyun, moved at lightning speed.
Bang!
When I shone the light towards the sound, Carters shattered cell phone had hit the ocean-side window of the elevator with a loud noise and was rolling on the floor.
Since no one moved except Kevin and Carter, it seemed that Kevin had swung his axe head to deflect the flying cell phone. I froze with the shlight in my hand at what happened in less than 3 seconds. Kevin strode forward.
Do you want your hand cut off!
As Kevin growled in a hoarse voice and approached Carter with an axe, Carter took a few steps back and spoke as if making an excuse.
I wasnt trying to hit her, I was just
Just what?
I was just trying to scare her a little. I didnt even throw it at you, so why are you being so sensitive
As Kevin got closer to Carter, Carters voice gradually grew smaller until it was almost inaudible. Jihyun was looking at Carter with a disgusted expression.
I ran over with the shlight in surprise and examined Jihyuns face, and Kim Ga-young asked Jihyun from behind my back.
Are you okay? Is your face hurt?
I dont know.
Jihyun answered, frowning because of the shlight. After thoroughly examining her head and face, I answered the two.
There are no injuries.
Fortunately, there were no wounds on her face or head. She hadnt been hit by either the cell phone or the axe swung at close range.
Both Yoo Geum-yi, whose face had turned pale, and Kim Ga-young, who heard my diagnosis, let out a big sigh. As my shlight moved away from Jihyuns face, Jihyun leaned against the wall and looked at the people weakly like before.
At some point, Kevin had cornered Carter in the corner of the elevator and was pressing him. Sam and James were jeering at their opponent from the side. Logan stood with his arms folded, watching this sight. Emma was sitting still, watching this scene.
Suddenly, Carter, caught in Kevins grip, was dragged in front of Jihyun. As Kevin fiercely shook the elevator wall with his axe, Carter, standing in front of Jihyun, began to say something in a low voice with a dissatisfied expression.
Stop. But Jihyun, who was listening to Carters words, cut him off in the middle. She looked like she didnt even want to engage in conversation, but after looking at Carter for a moment, Jihyun spoke to the people in the elevator.
I should have taken the elevator up alone earlier. I keep thinking about why Im stuck here after meddling and trying to help people. Because of your one action, I deeply regret even saving other people. And I dont want to hear anything from you.
Im apologizing, arent I?
What value does your apology have?
Jihyun asked back, looking at Carters face filled with dissatisfaction.
It seems like not her face, but her feelings are very hurt. Teeth are easy to fix. No, I take that back. Feelings are easier to fix than teeth.
Right. When the elevator stopped at the 4th floor from the 1st floor, Jihyun would have had a chance to leave us all behind. If Jihyun had tried to escape alone in the elevator, even if she got stuck in the elevator alone, she probably wouldnt have had to go through this. Regret washed over me like a receding tide.
As Kevin let go of Carters clothes that he had been dragging and holding, Carter looked at Kevin and Jihyun, then walked towards the elevator wall farthest from the two. On the way, he checked the condition of the shattered cell phone and left it on the floor.
Kevin looked at Carters back and was touching his bandaged calf with his hand. It seemed like he was doing that because it was dark below the shoulders as my arms and shlight were pointed towards the ceiling. I shone the shlight on Kevins leg at his action that seemed to be checking if the wound on his calf had burst open or something from moving.
The calf was just as I had treated it. It wasnt bleeding or the knot wasnting loose. When I slightly nodded my head to indicate it was okay, Kevin stared at me for a moment, then nodded his head at me a couple of times. I hope he understood it the same way.
Kevin nced at Jihyun, then sat about 1m away from her. Then he spoke very softly towards the side of Jihyuns face. My trantor just barely caught that small sound and tranted it.
Thank you for bringing me along. Even though I couldnt help with anything because my leg is like this.
When Kevin and Emma came down to the 2nd floor to use the elevator, Jihyun did not criticize or reproach them. She simply allowed them to board her ark, which she had worked three times harder than others to create, without anypensation.
No, thats not it. If Jihyun herself is included, she seeded in saving 12 people. There are even two animals. Amazing. Im having a hard time just taking care of myself. Jihyun didnt respond to Kevins words and was looking at the shlight beam illuminating the ceiling.
As we waited quietly, the elevator suddenly lit up. At the same time, the elevator began to move upwards again. I felt a bit of dizziness. It seemed like 5 minutes had passed since the power outage. As the elevator started to ascend again, peopleughed or cheered. I turned off the shlight.
Oh my Jesus! I knew you wouldnt abandon me! Amen! A~men! Sams loud voice was heard over Logans long whistle. Sam, who had been sping his hands, spoke towards the elevator ceiling.
Ill diligently go to church as soon as I get out of here! Ill pray hard! Ill read the Bible hard!
Youre good at lying hard.
Sam, whose prayer was interrupted, bickered with James, who was picking a fight next to him. Kim Ga-young put her hands together and said softly.
Namu Amitabha Gwanseeum Bosal. [Buddhist prayer]
Yoo Geum-yi, who was next to her, sped her hands together and said with a reverent smile.
nkton.
Its a mess. But still, the elevator was going up. The faces of Benjamin, who was ring around discontentedly, and Carter, who was sitting in the corner, also brightened up. I pressed the screen of the pad that had stopped at around 5 minutes to start counting numbers again.
When about 7 minutes had passed again, the elevator lost power and stopped again. As it was the second time, no one screamed. Only irritated curses were spewed out from here and there.
Chapter 99
Chapter 99
At first, people were scared, but now the sound of people lying down here and there in the dark elevator and sighing could be heard. Even struggling in the pitch-ck darkness out of fear seemed to be something one could adapt to to some extent as time passed.
The sound of James giggling at Sam next to him could be heard.
Jesus has abandoned you.
Shut up!
He could have dumped you on the ground, but he dumped you here because he disliked you that much.
The sound of them roughly patting each other in the dark was heard. I was turning the shlight handle and turned it on again towards the ceiling. When I looked towards Jihyun, her eyes were closed and she was in the middle of praying. Kevin was nkly staring at Jihyun and then vacantly looking inside the elevator. Logan spoke to Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, who were whispering.
Ladies.
Kim Ga-young looked around. Then, realizing that she and Yoo Geum-yi were the only ones close together among the women, she looked at Logan.
Tell us a fun story, anything is fine.Kim Ga-youngughed hollowly as if dumbfounded, and while doing a big shoulder stretch, she said,
Youre depending on us for a story?
Anything is fine. Even what you were talking about with each other earlier is good.
Its too cruel for men to hear, though?
I dont know about the other guys, but Im a man among men, so its fine. You girls gather together, whisper in each others ears, andugh well, arent youughing while telling fun stories?
Kim Ga-young yawned in the dark and then stretched out both legs while sitting. Then, bending her body and foldingpletely in half, she said,
If you die from falling in an elevator, the state of the corpse bes aplete mess.
What?
Yoo Geum-yi said that if you fall from this height, the flesh and bones will shatter to the point where itll be hard to put them back together. Itll be just like vomited kimchi pancake. You know, that Korean food that looks like pizza thates out of the vegetarian restaurant in Jung-ang-dong. She said itll be like human flesh porridge as if someone ate that and vomited.
Yoo Geum-yi nodded vigorously as if to support Kim Ga-youngs words. Logans expression with his mouth nkly open didnt look very good. Kim Ga-young lifted her head, raising her chin towards the ceiling, and said,
And if you die in the deep sea like this, the speed at which the corpse dposes and disappears is tremendously fast. What was it called again?
When Kim Ga-young asked Yoo Geum-yi, Yoo Geum-yi yawned loudly and answered,
Sea lice. Sea lice.
Ah, right. Thousands and tens of thousands of bugs and parasites living in the sea will crawl out and tear off all the flesh? So the outer skin and flesh start to dpose at a tremendous speed. And crustaceans like shrimp and crabs will all go into the nostrils or mouth to eat the internal organs in a frenzy. Fish will tear off all the soft flesh like eyeballs and lips, and all sorts of marine life will swim from far away, saying theres a famous feast here.
Logan frowned as he listened. Sam and James had stopped patting each other with fists and forearms at some point and were listening to Kim Ga-youngs story. It seemed the same for Carter and Benjamin, who were sitting far away pretending not to listen. Kim Ga-young lowered her voice ominously and said,
The time it takes for a corpse to be a skeleton in the sea is three to four days at the fastest, and no more than a week at the longest. Then, it sinks to the bottom of the sea in a state where only the bones are cleanly left, and remains in the form of a skeleton for about 3 to 4 years.
Is skeletonization that fast when you die in the deep sea? When the police found my fathers half-skeletonized corpse, it was after several years had passed.
Until some rude fish with fins, or a wobbling crab with short legs hits your bones and leaves, it stays in that shape, that form, just like that. And thanks to that one dposed corpse, hundreds of thousands of marine life at the bottom of the sea will absorb nutrients and use it as a home to maintain their lives.
Its touching. Oh, its so beautiful.
Yoo Geum-yi said while pretending to wipe tears with the back of her hand. Kim Ga-young said to Logan, who looked like he was going to vomit,
The cycle of life. Isnt it a fun and touching story?
Do girls really talk about such things with each other?
Then what kind of story would we tell in this situation? Hair care? Pedicures?
If Kim Ga-young gets a little more aggressive, it seems like Logan will cry. Logan, with a crumpled face, said as if he was very displeased,
Why are you smiling and telling such a story as if its fun!
Whether Iugh or not, whats it to you!
At Kim Ga-youngs growling tone, Logan furrowed his eyebrows and turned his head to look at me next to him as if running away.
Thatwhat was your name again?
Memorize it. I memorized your name right away. My name isnt hard either. Its easy to pronounce too. No, but am I the next batter?
Its Park Moo-hyun. I dont have the talent to tell fun stories either.
Tell us any story.
Then, after looking at Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, he added to me,
Something hopeful and fun.
Uma fun story. A fun and hopeful story in this situation. Im sure I heard something rted to elevators.
I heard that the probability of dying from a ne crash is extremely low. But the probability of dying while riding an elevator is much lower than that. Thats why we ride nes and elevators. Because the possibility of dying is low. The probability of dying from falling in an elevator is even lower than a one-in-ten-million chance.
As I talked, the eyes of the people in the elevator were all looking at me.
So if the elevator were riding falls, its happening by breaking through an immense probability thats unlikely to happen twice in a lifetime. Whoever survives, if theres anyone, buy a lottery ticket. You might win.
As I,cking in confidence, finished the end of my rambling story with an embarrassed smile, people either sighed,ughed lightly, or found it nd.
Huh.
Whether he was bored or it was hard to endure the silence in the darkness, Logan looked at Jihyun praying like a giggling hyena, then turned his head to look at Emma sitting in the corner.
By any chance.
I dont have any hopeful stories or anything like that!
Well
To begin with, our generation itself is like a flower that bloomed wrong in the middle of winter. Were the ones who mistook springing because it was miraculously less cold for a day or two out of 120 days of cold and grew our stems towards the outside. Like a rabbit or squirrel that stupidly crawled out towards the outside because it was a little warm, we have to live our whole lives shivering in the cold and starving while being hit by heavy snow, going back into a dark and cold burrow!
Why, why are you so negative!
Does it look like a situation to be positive when trapped in a powerless elevator!
When Emma snapped back irritably, Logan immediately shut his mouth. Then hepletely turned his head towards the opposite side of Emma. Skipping the still-praying Jihyun, he looked towards Kevin.
As Kevin crossed his arms and leaned against the elevator wall behind his back to face Logan, he turned his body there too. As Logan turned his head towards Kanu, Kanu looked at Logan with sleepy eyes and asked,
What, you want me to tell you a story?
Whoa. No.
I do have a fun story. Its hopeful too.
I just saw several people y me big time, right? It really has to be a hopeful and fun story.
Kanu looked around at the people who were unwittingly listening, then said with a smile,
Did you know there was a survivor from the Project?
This is the first time Im hearing that there was a survivor. It was arge-scale space project that existed before the underwater base.
You mean the one where they built a base on Mars and it got destroyed after 10 years, killing about 8,200 people? I know all the space-rted projects except the Moon Project were canceled because of that.
Logans knowledge seems simr to what I have. When the underwater base barely took the shape of a building under the sea, it was a trend for quite wealthy people around the world to go to Mars for a while.
Officially, yes. Unofficially, only one woman from Haiti survived. She survived without major injuries, and because she was sending out a rescue signal from the escape pod, she drifted for 15 days until the rescue ship detected the signal and rescued her.
How did he know that? Is this story true? Is he another conspiracy theorist? While thoughts like that surfaced, I asked the most curious thing first, putting off the rest forter.
Why is it unofficial?
If you listen to her talk, her mind waspletely gone. Plus, all the geniuses, masters and PhDs, famous celebrities and politicians died, but just one person. The only one who survived was a third-world contract worker who was hired just for being healthy and diligent and did insignificant work.
Kanu calmly said,
Plus, she was personnel who were to be reced in 2 weeks at the base due to severe radiation exposure. Making people from third-world countries who were previously colonized and enved by wealthy first-world countries do fiddly, invaluable work that requires a lot of hands under the name of supporting high-level personnel, recruiting them under the name of building careers while boasting and giving them cheap sries, exposing them to radiation to the limit, and continuously recing them. Plus, in the case of women, theyre more vulnerable to radiation than our men.
Where in the world is there fun and hope in this story? Listening to it, it only seems like the terrible appearance of the job market in the 21st century. For someone to have no choice but to experience such unfair things, they must be a new employee in society in terms of age too. Damn it. It reminds me of my younger sibling.
People ignored what she spewed out, saying they were the words of a deranged mind due to oxygen deficiency and nitrogen poisoning from what she went through. Plus, thepany that employed her went bankrupt, and she had to flee from the US as if running away after being billed a tremendous amount for rescue and hospital costs. But a very select few paid attention to the story that kid was telling. On the day the Martian base Ares was smashed to cosmic dust, that kid seeded in surviving alone through dozens of repeated deaths and the experience umted from them. That kid is still alive. Although all her hair turned white from shock, shes alive and well.
I felt like an icy hand wasing from the darkness to grab the back of my neck. I looked at Kanu, who was speaking indifferently, with goosebumps from head to toe.
Chapter 100
Chapter 100
The space story hes talking about now seems almost identical to the situation Im currently experiencing?
Did Kanu notice that Im going through something like this?
Have I ever told Kanu about the dreams Ive had?
Or did someone tell Kanu about the dreams Ive had?
Or is he simply telling a story he learned about without any intention?
Is it one of the many fancies that people who believe in conspiracy theories like?
Could it be that the dreams I had were actually real events that happened, and Im experiencing that situation again?
Space, but this is the deep sea?
Could he be telling this story to make fun of me?This story Kanu is telling may have nothing to do with me, and I may have just had a wrong dream.
All sorts of thoughts pped the back of my head and passed by. Kanu yawned once, then looked around withzy eyes and said,
As you know, the explosion of the Martian base Ares was thergest scale death event since the London and New York incidents. Among the people who were a jumble of race, gender, and age, why was it that only one poor woman from Haiti, a third-world country, who had almost nothing, was able to survive?
Why did only that person survive? Is there a reason? Is it me here? It cant be me, right?
What conditions would have had to exist for such a thing to happen? Could such a situation be artificially created?
As I was listening to Kanus story as if being sucked in, Logan irritably asked from the side,
Where in that story is there hope, fun, or whatever? Was I fooled again?
The story of all the people at the Martian base dying and only one person surviving didnt seem fun or hopeful to Logan. A few peopleughed softly or jeered, seeing Logans reaction.
It became the starting point for research on time that was floundering to approach it in other ways besides biology, medicine, physics, and astronomy. Simr things had happened from a very long time ago in train derailments and passenger ne crashes.
Kanu said while scratching his chin,
People who very coincidentally avoided such idents by a narrow margin, received revtions like dreams, sudden oversleeping, their pet dog ate their train ticket and passport, or strangely mistook the time on the date of the ident in the morning and were able to avoid suchrge-scale idental deaths by very trivial things, or were able to be unharmed even while directly experiencing it at the scene of the incident.
Kanu looked at Logan, who seemed dissatisfied, and acted like a professor generously allocating time for a stupid student.
Entering the mid-21st century, the resource considered most important is now time. Not things like diamonds, oil, or food. Depending on how one can control time, almost omnipotent things can happen. Its the only answer that can transcend the limits of organic beings.
What does that have to do with me being trapped in an elevator right now?
Kanu clicked his tongue at Logan and said,
If what happened to that Haitian woman at the Martian base also happens to someone specific here, we can make all the stupid things we did not happen at all, or make them better. For example, theres no need to be trapped in an elevator in the deep sea like this and vent our dissatisfaction and stress at each other. If we could turn back time, we could all lie on the warm Pacific sand beach in Hawaii, bask in the sunlight and swim in the clean seawater. Or in my case, I could lie on my bed in San Francisco, simultaneously having coffee and cigarettes, and watch the news of the underwater base being wrecked as if it were someone elses business.
Logan seemed to be thinking about Kanus story with a puzzled expression. Thinking that I woke up in my rooms bed, I recalled the things I dismissed as dreams and asked Kanu,
Then injuries that cant be undone will also disappear. You could even bring dead people back to life?
Kanu smiled at me mischievously.
Yes. Isnt it hopeful? Even our situation of being trapped in an elevator hundreds and thousands of meters under the sea due to a power outage can be resolved in an instant.
If youre unlucky, you could turn back time and make it worse. Like now. Even though I experienced a simr situation in my dream, it ended up like this. I barely swallowed those words. Then, recalling everything Kanu said, I became lost in thought. Kim Ga-young, who was quietly listening next to me, smiled crookedly and said to Kanu,
Like that woman, one could easily escape from here alone while watching everyone die, with those experiences. Or maybe not.
Kim Ga-young turned her head and body to the side to look at me, then naturally turned her head and body towards Yoo Geum-yi as if stretching her waist and neck muscles. What was that just now? Looking at me, Kim Ga-young shook her head very slightly.
As soon as I saw that action, I realized that there were three people in this elevator who knew about what I had experienced. If the things I thought were strange dreams and avoided were actually people dying, what happens? Like what happened in space, did I really turn back the past ande here? If thats true, what happens if I reveal my situation to the people in this elevator?
With a simple action, Kim Ga-young signaled me to shut my mouth. What does it mean? Kanu nodded at Kim Ga-youngs words and said,
Well, I only know of one case properly. Doesnt it seem possible? If one uses the privilege of going back to the past for personal gain. Actually, its impossible to know who will be chosen in what way, and whether such a thing will really happen in a disaster situation. Its almost like a superstitious story.
Kim Ga-youngrgely rotated her shoulders and stretched her arms out upwards. Then, poking Yoo Geum-yi, who was frantically biting her lips and frowning next to her, she said,
If its possible to go back to the past, I wish someone had stopped me from writing a resume for the underwater base. I dont want to live here anymore.
Ah. I want to choose a different major when I enter college. Or not go to college at all.
I dont know about Kim Ga-young, but Yoo Geum-yis words felt like a clear lie. To naturally move Kanus story to the past, I asked Yoo Geum-yi,
What will you do for a living?
I want to bake bread and live off of that. Ill just eat all the bread that doesnt sell and is left over. Im already eating bread for all three meals anyway. Itd be much better to make and consume it myself.
Is that so? Is the story of dreaming of bing a grand baker true? I dont know. Kim Ga-young smiled slyly at Yoo Geum-yi and said,
Yeah? Then lets bake bread together. There are times when I feel regret about why I chose my major, too.
Okay. First, Ill bake the red bean bread, chocte bread, and cakes.
Alright. Then Ill bake the cookies and the remaining breads.
I will asionally drop by that bakery and be an excellent consumer.
I tried my best not to look at Jihyun. I wanted to immediately ask with my eyes, You also know my situation, but can you keep quiet in this situation?
No. Why cant I get caught? I tried to calm my body that was desperate to unnaturally turn and look at Jihyuns face. Then I tried to naturally fix my gaze on Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga-young next to me. Fortunately, there was no reaction from Jihyuns side.
I have absolutely no rtion to this story. I have absolutely no rtion to Kanus story. So lets act naturally. Act naturally. Im so anxious Im going crazy.
It felt like someone would suddenly grab me and shout, Youre the one experiencing something simr to that Haitian woman Kanu talked about! In a situation where no one was saying anything to me, my feet were going numb.
Then suddenly, Emma reached out towards me and I was so startled it felt like my heart would burst. It seemed that the shlight illuminating the ceiling was shaking. It wasnt because I was holding one arm up and shining the shlight at the ceiling, but because I was anxious without realizing it. What happens if I get caught? A feeling of anxiety with an unknown basis brushed my back.
When I handed the shlight I was holding to Emma with a stiff face, Emma took the shlight from me and retreated back to the corner where she originally was. Emma slightly raised her arm and held the shlight towards the ceiling. When she rested her forearm on her knee, the light illuminated the ceiling without shaking.
As the light source disappeared from me, I finally started to feel a bit more at ease. Because I was holding the shlight, peoples gazes would sometimes linger on me, but now my facial expressions and actions would be buried in the darkness of the elevator.
Logan suddenly said with his arms crossed,
No, if you think about it that way, there should be at least one person alive in all sorts of disaster situations or ces where mass deaths ur. But there are many incidents where everyone dies and there are no survivors.
Kanu answered Logans words while yawning and leaning against the elevator wall,
Thats right. There are a tremendous number of incidents without survivors, too.
If the elevator falls, everyone here will die, so itll just be the end.
Logan also yawned and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. Kanu said to Logan,
If we look at the entire underwater base, not just the 12 of us, there may be a possibility. The sect would scrape together all the events that urred after humanity came into existence and search for the stories and contents of the survivors, and collect a tremendous amount of data. Unexpectedly, there were far more death incidents without survivors. Especially among the mass death cases, the repetitive continuity of time like at the Martian base almost never urred due to massacres by civil war or dictators. These strange things only happen in idents where arge number of people die in a very short period of time.
Sect? It felt like having cold water poured on my head. I nkly asked Kanu while looking at him,
Can I ask what Kanus religion is?
Kanu answered right away as if it wasnt difficult,
What was the name again? Uh. The Infinity Church. Im a member there.
But youre not wearing that strange cap, and youre not carrying a gun!
Chapter 101
Chapter 101
I thought Kanu was knowledgeable, but I never expected him to reveal with his own mouth that hes a member of the Infinity Church before he did. Although I havent interacted much with people in cults, if I judge solely based on prejudice, can they really look no different from normal people on the outside like this?
I felt strange. A nauseating and ufortable feeling crept up into my head like I swallowed a bug. I suspected there could be more Infinity Church believers among people I never thought of. Maybe even among the people who helped me.
Unlike me who was secretly startled, the people around me treated the religion Kanu believes in as no different from Emma who believes in the deep sea Dagon. Ah, there was an attitude of theres another strange religion believer here, but rather than respect for the religion the other person believes in, it was closer to ack of interest or indifference. Am I the only one frightened?
I wanted to immediately shower Kanu with questions about the Infinity Church upying the underwater base. However, if I misspeak or seem overly interested, I was hesitant to ask questions myself out of fear they would inquire how I obtained such information or why Im interested in such things. Anyone else curious about the Infinity Church? Guess not. I carefully asked Kanu,
What kind of religion is that religion?
Its a religion where people who want to turn back time gather.
Wasnt it a religion that likes sharks? They were doing very aggressive things like nature conservation and preventing environmental destruction, was that a smokescreen? The information I obtained from the people I met in my dreams differed from what Kanu was saying. Then what information should I believe?
To when do they want to turn back time?
To the time they want. Everyone has a past they want to return to or an event they want to make as if it never happened.As soon as he heard those words, Benjamin, who was quietly in the corner, sneered at Kanu.
Hes apletely insane psycho bastard. How can a person go back to the past?
To think there woulde a time when I agree with Benjamins words even a little. How can a person go back to the past? I must have just had a really vivid and strange dream. Itll just be something that coincidentally matches reality bit by bit. Kanu spoke with an attitude of not caring about Benjamins sneers and swearing.
There are people who think like that too. I have no intention of taking the lead in changing the thoughts of such people. I have no intention of insisting that others believe what I believe either.
There was a brief silence. If, really if its true that I didnt dream but actually went back to the past, why did this happen to me when I didnt even join the Infinity Church?
Anxious that if the silence gets longer, the topic willpletely change, I asked Kanu again.
If you join that religion, can anyone get that benefit? Of going back to the past?
Asking such a question wont make me look suspicious, right? Do I look suspicious? Do I seem too interested in the Infinity Church? I seem very interested. Damn it. Kanu answered my question as usual.
Hmm. Benefit. The hope that you can go back to the past? Thats the biggest one. I dont know if everyone can obtain it. Because even I didnt join believing it 100%.
Are there conditions to joining the Infinity Church?
Now Ill definitely look like a cult membership hopeful. Ill look like a very new membership hopeful. I had a bitter taste in my mouth. Since other people didnt seem interested whether Kanu believes in barracudas or squids, I was the only one who could ask questions.
The more questions I asked Kanu one by one, the gazes of people looking at me didnt seem very good. The number of people making expressions as if asking if Im one of them gradually increased. I cant help it. If not now, who will I ask such things to?
Among the people who revealed themselves to be Infinity Church members, including those I met in my dreams, there was no one who showed me such a kind and good-natured attitude towards me as much as Kanu, and he was the only one who didnt have a weapon. After thinking for a bit, Kanu slowly answered,
As far as I know, there werent any particrlyrge conditions. Just whether those who requested to join actively want to go back to the past or not. Donations are given by those who want to give, and the volunteer activities we gather to do were also left up to individual will. If a believer wants, they can receive financial support from the Infinity Church or receive free treatment at a rted hospital. I think in the past, there were detailed membership conditions, but now they seem to have almost disappeared. I dont know the details well. Because I didnt join recently.
I recalled one of the believers saying they joined the Infinity Church and received money. I thought the ultimate goal of cults was to make the church leaders fat belly fatter or make the believers thin wallets thinner. Combining Kanu and Tylers stories, it didnt seem like a ce where money was the purpose. Logan frowned at Kanu and said,
You receive financial support? Free treatment at a hospital? Hey. If you join such a strange religion and offer money, youll end up ruining your body and bing a beggar?
Kanu grinned and said to Logan,
My body is already ruined, and I already gave about 415 billion won.
Lies. Where do you have that kind of money?
Now the ten thousand dors in my ount and this is all I have.
Kanu, who spoke calmly, took out a lighter from his pocket and shook it. In the middle of the lighter, a diamond the size of a thumbnail was embedded in a sophisticated design. Kanu rubbed the embedded diamond with his fingertips. Seeing Kanu, who had no particr reaction even as time passed, Logan, who works at the same center, got up from sitting on the floor and shouted,
Are you crazy?!
What is?
Unlike the other persons calm voice, Logan jumped up and down in excitement. That vibration instantly spread throughout the elevator. At Emmas shout asking if we all want to die together in the stopped elevator, Logan nced around and sat back down on the floor.
Carter and Benjamin, who were pretending not to know from afar, also flew to Kanus side in an instant. Sam and James also walked to Kanus side as if they were hearing the story about donations for the first time, and gathered around.
I was also surprised to hear the amount. I had a sudden feeling that people would no longer pay any attention to me at all. So I also started tofortably listen to Kanus story. Logan raised the veins in his neck.
You gave that much money just to join a cult? Have you lost your mind?!
I can give. I dont really need money. Theres no one to inherit it anyway.
The man dying at a young age said,
Did you just dump your house and everything into the cult? Did you bepletely penniless?
Ill pass down my house and remaining savings to my younger sibling through inheritance.
Then Carter said as if he was exploding,
You should have given it to me! Even now, you can tell that Infinity whatever it is and get the money back and give it to me!
Are you kidding? Its not that your mind is just a little gone because something strange happened to your brain, itspletely gone, isnt it?! 41.5 billion, you pu-pu-put that money into a cult?!
Logan stuttered as if he was in shock. Sam, who came close, put hisrge arm around Kanus shoulder. On the other side, James put his arm around Kanus shoulder.
Bro. If you need an ount to donate to, Im always next to you. I can lend you my ount anytime.
Did you have that much money? Seeing how you spend, it doesnt seem like you dont have it.
You should have donated to an environmental organization or volunteer group instead.
Kevin was muttering softly while watching this from afar. I dont understand either, but it seemed like the fact that he threw arge sum of money into a cult itself was a huge shock to the people here as well. Well. It is an amount thats hard toprehend. 415 billion won? 415 billion won?
No matter how many times I thought about it, the amount itself wouldnt input into my head. If it were me, I would never offer such money to a religion. Never. What is 400 billion? If I had just 5 billion, I could do my moms surgery, pay my younger siblings college tuition, and pay off my debt. Yoo Geum-yi, who was quietly listening, quietly asked Kanu,
Do they issue donation receipts for what you gave there?
At that, Kanu giggled.
That was funny. Expecting such a thing from such a small religion is asking for too much.
Before Kanus words were even finished, Kim Ga-young was whispering softly into Yoo Geum-yis ear, and because I was close to the two, I heard everything they said.
Hes the craziest person Ive ever seen.
Hearing those words, Yoo Geum-yi made a puzzled expression and whispered in Kim Ga-youngs ear,
Didnt you say earlier that the person named Arthur or something was the craziest?
Even that guy wouldnt spend money like that?
As Kanu didnt deny the amount he spent on the cult even as time passed, unlike Logan who shut his mouth, Carter said as if he was exploding with anger,
Its not a joke, its true? You really dumped that much money into a religion! Hey!
Carter asked Kanu as if he was bbergasted.
Did you get anything for putting in over 400 billion won?
As I already said, the opportunity to go to the past.
Ive seen countless drug addicts and alcoholics, murderers and all sorts of lunatics, but youre a first even for me!
Kanu shrugged at Carter and said,
There are people like this in the world too.
Kim Ga-young let out a low sigh, frowned, and asked,
Why on earth did you give such a huge sum to go back to the past?
Because I want to go back to about 600 years ago.
Not 6 years or 60 years ago, but 600 years ago. Are the minds of people who believe in cults all like this? Theres no part I can understand at all? What was there in the 1400s? Im weak in history. I only remember it was the Joseon Dynasty then. Was there anything special? Carter and Benjamin looked at each other and started talking.
Is that possible if you give that money?
Do you believe that?
If you have a lot of money, you can go to Mars. Wouldnt it be possible to go to the past if you gave that much money?
Does he look like he has that kind of money?
As Benjamin sneered at Kanu, Yoo Geum-yi asked Kanu as if it was absurd,
Are there many people with the same religion as Kanu in this underwater base?
Nice, Yoo Geum-yi! It was a question I kept wanting to ask but couldnt because I was afraid it would seem too strange. Kanu shrugged and said,
I dont know. Im not an Infinity Church HR manager or PR person.
Chapter 102
Chapter 102
Kim Ga-young spoke to Kanu with a worried expression,
Then do you know where that money is being spent?
It seems to be used for internal activity funds or something like that. What I gave in cash is about 1 billion won. The rest I gave with jewelry I had at home.
Then that means he had over 40 billion worth of jewelry at home, can you live with that amount of jewelry at home Jewelry!
I suddenly felt like I was wide awake. I remembered the countless jewels the size of a human torso or evenrger than human size that were ced in the exhibition hall. Is the jewelry Kanu gave there too? How much would one jewel of that size be worth? Is it about 40 billion?
How big is the jewelry that its over 40 billion won?
Interesting. Usually people ask how many there are.
At those words, I froze with my mouth nkly open. My heart sank. Can they see my eyes trembling even from this distance? I couldnt be more grateful that my expression wasnt properly visible because Emma took the shlight.
I was momentarily flustered, but to act as if it was nothing, I looked at Kanu as if waiting for his answer. Please mistake it as the trantor working wrong. Please.Kanu grinned at me and continued speaking as if what I said was no big deal.
Its one lump of a size less than 2 meters.
After learning that Kanu had thrown a huge sum of money into a cult, Kevin spoke in a slightly shocked voice,
You should have sprinkled 200 million each to 200 people walking on the street to make them happy.
I thought of that method too.
Kanu looked at Sam, shrugged, and said,
I also thought, wouldnt our ckmunity be a bit happier if we distributed 100 million to each household? But from what Ive experienced living so far, a poor and unhappy family doesnt necessarily be happy just because they have a lot of money.
Have you ever been poor! Do you know the misery of the lower ss!
When Carter was particrly irritated about the financial part, Kanu shrugged and said,
I know well, but I dont want to talk in detail about how unhappy Ive been.
Carter grumbled softly after hearing Kanus words. If I had that money, I would have used it much better. Do you know how well I would spend it? He poured money into useless things, and other such words spilled out softly.
Bro. What the hell are you trying to do by going back 600 years?
Although Yoo Geum-yi and I asked the same question, Kanu, who had been avoiding answering by speaking vaguely, hesitated while looking at Sam, then spoke while rubbing the diamond in the lighter he was holding,
Do you remember that in 1441, ck people started being sold for the first time in the world?
What?
In 1444, the first ve market selling African ves was established in Lagos, Portugal. After that, as you know, ck people became a popr item for sale because they were resistant to epidemics and endured hardbor better than the Irish or Native Americans.
Well
Sam had an expression of not knowing what to say. Yoo Geum-yi, Kim Ga-young, and I were listening to their conversation with faces that seemed to ask what the hell he was talking about.
Come to think of it, the three of us are all scientists. Since Jihyun is an engineer, I dont know how much she knows about world history. World history was an elective subject, so it was a field I knew as little about as Korean history for me who had bet my life on biology and chemistry to pursue a career in medicine. At least for Korean history, I memorized it fluently for cramming and took the test. I hadnt even looked at a world history book once since middle school. Kanu spoke softly to Sam,
We dont even know what weve lost. I want to see an Africa that was never colonized by any country and my ancestors who were never kidnapped.
Sam looked at Kanu as if dazed. Then he opened his mouth, but closed it again without saying anything.
Thats too
Sam stayed still with a frown on his face, then after a while, tapped Kanus shoulder with hisrge hand. No one could say a word. In the silence that flowed, Benjamin sneered at Kanu and said,
What are you going to do by looking at it? Gather the cks of that era and massacre the whites or something? Do you know that cks sold other cks back then when you say that?
I now looked at Benjamin who made that remark in horror. Logan, who was resting his chin on one arm, slipped in surprise. Only swear words were heard as if he bit his tongue. Emma shone the shlight towards Benjamin. When Benjamin frowned at the light, Emma shouted at him in a sharp voice while looking at his face,
Shut your mouth.
Who are you to order me around!
Shut up before I make you shut your mouth with my fist because youre making me embarrassed!
Do it! Do it! I dare you!
Emma was looking straight at Benjamin, who was sitting with his back to the ss showing the sea. It seemed that even the mythical monster that lives in the deep sea couldnt frighten Emma in this situation. Kevin, holding an axe, didnt take his eyes off Benjamin.
What if Emma rushes at Benjamin? Ill have to stop her after Benjamin gets beaten up. Come to think of it, do I really have to stop Emma? Benjamin wont just get beaten. Ill have to catch him. Ill have to ask Emma not to hit his face at least, as it could increase my work.
Although Benjamin was clearly trying to pick a fight with Kanu, Kanu shrugged and crossed his arms.
Me, to them? Well. Even if I go back in time, I doubt theyll believe me if I suddenly appear and say that the whites will kill, kidnap, and constantly torture us for 600 years, saying were not human. The tribes and nations will all be different, so I dont even know if its possible to unite them.
Kanu yawned loudly and blinked his eyes. Then he smiled as if it was absurd.
And I didnt mention anything about the whites. I said theres something I want to see. If what you want is amunity made up of cks massacring whites, Ill think about whether theres a good method when I go back to the past. When the dayes that I achieve that, Ill make sure to state that you provided the idea, so dont worry about copyright issues.
The people who were tense, worried that a fight would break out in this elevator, instantly looked at the white man who had provided the spark for a white massacre. Benjamin frowned.
You insane cultist lunatic. You say something too!
Benjamin looked at Carter sitting next to him and spoke.
What?
Youre white too!
Whoa whoa. Not my business. It has nothing to do with me.
Then Carter tried to get away from Benjamin in this not-so-big elevator. It had little effect. James, who was sitting next to Sam, pretended to wipe the corners of his eyes with the back of his hand while making a hmph hmph sound and said to Benjamin,
If you had just shut up, the Arabs might have been first priority. A fanatic whos thinking of going back to the past by pouring in 41.5 billion won has made whites the number one attack target. Im so grateful Im tearing up.
Shut up!
Seeing Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi observing the situation, it seemed the Asians would not add more words to this situation. Kim Ga-young sighed heavily until the elevator turned off. Then she skillfully rotated both arms back to stretch her back muscles. Yoo Geum-yi nkly looked at James and Benjamin, then spoke very softly as if talking to herself,
Come to think of it. I heard someone say Go back to your country here. Now that I think about it, ck people cant even hear such words. Since they were kidnapped and came, people who were forced to settle wouldnt know or have their original country as time passed.
Rather than Yoo Geum-yis realization, I was more concerned about the words Yoo Geum-yi said she heard. She was racially discriminated against like that in the underwater base? I asked Yoo Geum-yi as if whispering,
Who made such a remark to Geum-ssi?
Some bad guy.
If I happen to reopen the clinic at the underwater base, please just tell me the name.
What happens if I tell you the name?
Nothing will happen.
I am a person far from violence. But if someday, in some situation, the scale tilts and a situation arises where I, who am far from violence, have even a little advantage over the other person. I still dont know well. Will I take revenge? I am just a powerless average citizen trying to protect those within the reach of my arms. I have never been an action movie hero who carries out grand revenge. The treatment time may increase.
Yoo Geum-yi looked at me, slightly raised the corners of her mouth, then shook her head and said,
I already forgot who it was. And I probably made them apologize then.
Right. Yoo Geum-yi was a bolder person than me. Kim Ga-young slyly eavesdropped on our conversation, looked at Jihyun who was praying once, then started watching the argument again.
Kevin next to me didnt take his eyes off James and Benjamin, but his hand was off the axe handle. I was startled beside him every time this man grabbed the axe handle. I asked softly enough for only Kevin to hear.
If a fight breaks out, are you thinking of using the axe?
Kevin, who had pushed his flowing brown hair back, turned his head to look at me. He wouldnt really chop people with an axe to stop a fight, would he? If someone got hit by the axe, it seemed highly likely that the opponent would be Benjamin. Or it would be Carter. Or some unlucky person.
Putting aside the condition of the person who would be injured by the axe, there was no way to know who would get hurt and how much more if the axe was swung around in an elevator like this. If the axe flew by slipping or bouncing, we could only leave it to the imagination what would happen.
And since humans are like bags of flesh carrying blood, blood would ssh all over the inside of the elevator and the people riding the elevator. Additionally, such visual shock would not be something that could be easily forgotten no matter how much time, money, and effort were put in.
It seemed best to avoid using the axe on peoples bodies as much as possible. Kevin nodded at my question, then looked ahead again and said,
Its my first time using it on a person today too.
What about before?
I used it to chop firewood.
I have never chopped firewood in my life. What reason would I, who was born and raised in the city in the first ce, have to use an axe? I asked Kevin while focusing on his injured calf,
How did you hurt your leg?
Chapter 103
Chapter 103
Kevin looked at the axe, then at me and slowly exined,
People followed Bells orders until the escape pods dropped below 30. But when the escape pods decreased to less than 20 and water started to fill up, people started fighting to get on the escape pods. The phone doesnt work, and no matter how much I look among the people gathered, my friend isnt there. On the way to the 6th floor friendsb, I suddenly fell and an axe was stuck in my leg.
Kevin lightly brushed the bandage on his calf with his hand.
It didnt hurt until I moved. I just couldnt walk. The guy who threw the axe at me was a New Zender I saw asionally in the break room or cafeteria, and even after thinking about it all this time, I dont really know why he threw the axe at me. We hardly talked to each other normally. I guess he judged that if the number of people decreases, he could get on an escape pod.
Kevin looked at the faces of the people inside the elevator one by one, then spoke with difficulty in a hoarse voice,
Rather than the axe being stuck in my leg, it was more terrifying to see himing at me. He was sprinting towards me at full speed as I fell.
Then he inhaled and exhaled. Every time Kevin spoke, there was a metallic sound in his throat, and now that I think about it, it seemed like his voice was hoarse from crying so much.
After fighting with the people approaching, I was alone on the 6th floor. I crawled to my friendsb and the door was open but no one was there.
Kevin gripped the axe handle once, then trembled and released the strength in his hand again. Looking now, several of Kevins nails were broken, seemingly broken while crawling. I was too busy looking at the axe to even see the nails.I rummaged through my bag, found medical paper tape, tore off a few pieces with my fingertips, and wrapped them over Kevins nails. It wont help much, but it was a temporary measure. At least it would prevent the nails from breaking or tearing off further.
Looking at Kevin up close, fatigue was fully settled above his eye sockets. The sight of him taking shallow, panting breaths didnt look particrly good either. Emma, who was huddled in the corner, looked simr. They were both terrified. Come to think of it, everyone here was sensitive due to the disaster situation and consumed by fear. It seemed like Kanu was the only one who wasnt scared at all. Thinking of the two offices on the 3rd floor, I asked Kevin,
There was a room on the 3rd floor where dead people were gathered, have you been there by any chance?
Kevin stared at me nkly, then shook his head.
No.
I recalled the water that stayed below the ankle when I was in the elevator on the 1st floor, rising to the calf in an instant. The Marine Pollution Center would be submerged in water.
I thought of the corpses I saw on the 3rd floor. I tried hard to escape from imagining the numerous corpsesid in the room being submerged and floating in water. Damn it. People dont die so horribly at the dentists office. Good thought. Lets think positively. I tried to say something nice to Kevin.
Your friend might not be in that room. He might have gone to another research center, or got on an escape pod when you couldnt see him while fighting.
I hope so.
Kevin said weakly. And soon there was silence. The atmosphere was gloomy. Benjamin was quickly losing strength from Jamess sarcasm. It was because no one agreed with him. Harsh words were flying around telling each other to just breathe while being stuck in a corner. They were even exchanging words that its okay not to breathe if possible.
The elevator was still shrouded in darkness, and it was felt that people were unwittingly soaked in fear due to the darknesssting longer than before. To save Kevin, who was trying to sink into depression, even a little, and to sort out my thoughts, I asked him a question.
If you could go back to the past by paying money like Kanu, would you go back?
I dont think I would go. It would be impossible to prepare that much money, but I have always lived by thinking deeply and making choices to the best of my ability each time. Even if I go back to the past, I dont know if I can live a life like I do now. Of course, if I go back to yesterday, I wouldnt stay here today.
To some extent, I can rte. If I could only go back to tomorrow, I want to immediately leave the underwater base, hitchhike on a helicopter or boat passing by the Korean Penins, and leave this ce.
What about going back six hundred years or a few thousand years like that?
If I go that far back in the past, theres no one I know. I dont want to go.
I see. Well. When I think of my family, even if something happened in the past, I also only wanted to wander within the time period I lived in. Kanus wish doesnt seem to bemon. I dont know well about other people.
Jihyun, who seemed to have finished praying, was listening to the conversation between me and Kevin, who were closest. I asked Jihyun, who was lowering her folded hands,
Are you done praying?
Yes.
May I ask what you prayed for?
To help us get out of here well. For the Lord to look down so I dont beat up those people. Your littlemb is wandering in the deep sea. It would be nice if you could fix the elevator. Things like that.
Jihyun said with a slight smile. After praying, she seemed to feel a little better than before. Its a field I cant understand at all, but if it gives someone else peace of mind.
We were talking about going back to the past. If you could go back to the past by paying money, would you want to go back, Jihyun-ssi?
Does it matter when?
Someone even said they wanted to go back 600 years. Well. No matter what you say, it wont be surprising.
Yes.
If I go back to the past, is my past self there?
Oh? This is an unexpected question. It does seem certain that Kanu himself wouldnt be there 600 years ago. Right. If I went back to yesterdays date, what would happen if I, who came from the future, met myself who was in the clinic yesterday?
I dont know. What if they are there?
After thinking for a moment, Jihyun said,
I want to go back to when I was twenty years old.
May I ask why?
I want to tell myself to move out quickly. I want to tell myself that I will finally be happy when I have a ce to be alone, whether its a monthly rent or a lease. And Ill tell myself a few stocks that will rise.
Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, who were quietly listening to our conversation with their chins resting, nodded and answered.
Me too, stocks.
For me, lottery numbers.
Ah, thats good too. But I dont think either my past self or present self would be able to memorize the numbers.
Smiling while listening to the twos stories, I asked Jihyun,
Dont you want to go back a few hundred or a few thousand years?
Like spreading my clothes at the foot of Golgotha Hill for him to step on?
Pardon? I didnt ask the question assuming what kind of answer you would give.
Where is Golgotha Hill? Was it the ce of Jesuss execution? Whyy clothes for him? Jihyun spoke as if looking at the past, even though she was looking into the darkness.
I want to help my young self a little more. Jesus and God will understand.
There was a brief silence after Jihyuns words. Not a few secondster, Kim Ga-young suddenly said while brushing her chin with her fingertips,
Now that I think about it, if I could go back to the distant past, I want to go kill Prince Yangnyeong.
If my memory is correct, wasnt that person King Sejongs older brother?
Why that person?
No, wait a minute. Now that I think about it, Injo is the worst. No, Seonjo is also a mess. Should I make Jeongjo quit drinking and smoking? Now that I think about it, even if I go back to that time, I dont think I have the ability to assassinate the crown prince or the king, so it seems a bit much, right?
Kim Ga-young began to fall into deep thought while reciting the names of Joseon Dynasty kings one by one. She seems much more knowledgeable about Korean history than me. I only roughly know the names of the kings, but their achievements are all mixed up in my head.
Was it Yeongjo who implemented the Tangpyeong policy? But what is Tangpyeong? I memorized it but I cant remember. Was it Yeonsan-gun and Gwanghae-gun? There was a reason those people couldnt put jo at the end. I tried to rummage through my memories of Korean history that were over 10 years old in my brain, but gave up. Kim Ga-young muttered nkly,
If I alone could greatly change history.
Then suddenly Kim Ga-young frowned and said to me,
Putting aside whether that cult can send me back to the past or not, I dont want to go back hundreds or thousands of years by paying even a hundred won of my own money to change history or help with anything. Theres no big gain for me anyway. Let those old men who say strange things be happy. What do I care what happens to the Andong Kim n!
Then, as if Kim Ga-young thought of something, she started to express her frustration, saying Ah! while snorting. Yoo Geum-yi suddenly burst intoughter andughed softly, then asked me who was next to her,
Do you want to go to the distant past, Moo-hyun-ssi?
When asked this question, there is only one ce I would go back to.
Yes.
Where do you want to go?
I circled my eyes and waist with my fingertips and said,
I want to go back to before the ident. I wish no one had gotten hurt.
People who have been hospitalized for a long time after experiencing a major ident, or those whose family members were involved in a major ident, would probably sympathize with my opinion. How important it is to live healthy without getting hurt. And how much time, money, and effort it takes to regain ones original life.
I see. I want to go back to when I was about 10 years old, bebeled a genius, receive a lot of government support, and redo this research or buy a lot of flour from then on with the goal of a bakery.
With those words, the elevator moved again. Unlike before, when the elevator started operating with a little less rattling, James and Benjamin, who were standing, both fell on their buttocks. People who were half standing or sitting were also all startled. I also hit my body against the elevator wall, and Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga-young, who were sitting close to me, collided with each others shoulders.
Kak!
Huk!
Ugh!
Ahhhhh! Were all dying! Were all dying! Were all falling to our deaths! Ahhhhh!
While people were shocked by the slightly shaking elevator, the lights came on. And the elevator began to rise again. My body was stiff with tension, but I realized I was holding my breath and managed to inhale and exhale.
Carter, who was terrified, kept screaming until Logan kicked him for being noisy, then he shut his mouth. After a few seconds of silence, he asked the people around him,
I heard theres a good posture in case the elevator falls, does anyone know?
Emma, with a pale expression, said sarcastically,
Do you want to live that badly? If you fall, just die. Why bother trying to live?
You die.
Chapter 104
Chapter 104
Carter red at Emma, then looked around at the people in the elevator. He nced at where Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi were sitting, looked at where Kanu and Sam were sitting, then muttered,
I cant die in a ce like this. You trashy bastards may not know well, but a talented person like me shouldnt die meaninglessly in the deep sea like this!
Hearing those words, Kim Ga-youngughed, saying haha. It looked like she could onlyugh because it was such bullshit. Jamess voice resounded throughout the entire elevator as he spoke to Carter,
Hey, Im embarrassed. Are you trying to embarrass me?! Am I the only white guy who knows shame right now?
Logan shouted from behind, Are you purposely excluding me right now?! Huh?! Benjamin was grinning and looking at Carter and the others with an amused expression. I swallowed a bursting sigh and said to Carter,
Lie on the floor.
What?
Lie on the floor. Because thats the safest when the elevator falls.
How can I trust your words?A friend of mine is an orthopedic surgeon, and it came out in their magazine. What is the safest posture that maximizes the survival rate for an orthopedic surgeon on a falling elevator? I was reading that while waiting for him to finish treatment in the waiting room. Try lying straight.
At my gentle butmanding words, Carter hesitated, then obedientlyy straight on the floor. When hey on the floor, I pped my arms like wings as if demonstrating and said,
p your arms.
Like this?
Yes. While lying down. As if making a snow angel while lying face up. Yes, like that. Faster. A little faster.
L-like this?
Yes.
Carter pped his arms while lying on the elevator floor as if trying to fly away. Seeing his arms pping greatly, Kanu and Sam burst intoughter, and even though Yoo Geum-yi quickly covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes werepletely crescent-shaped. Kim Ga-youngughed while holding her stomach. Kevin smiled with the corners of his lips. I said to Carter softly,
You can go to hell like that.
What? What did you say?
Carter asked while iling his arms. Benjamin kicked Carters arm from the side. You stupid asshole. Stop it.
Theres no way to survive from this height except by flying.
Are there crazy bastards like this?! Were you just messing with me?
Carter got up from lying on the floor. His face and neck were bright red. I pointed at Carter with my palm and said,
This was a trashy survival lecture given by the first andst dentist of the underwater base. Please give a round of apuse to Mr. Carter, who personally demonstrated.
p p p p p.
Apuse burst out from all around. Sam and James in particr shouted fervently,
p some more! Ill kick you until your butt flies off!
With your personality, youre going to hell even if your arms fall off from pping. You bastard!
Lying straight on the elevator floor does increase the survival rate in case of a fall. The problem is that even if the survival rate is high in a situation where an elevator built 3000m under the sea falls, youll just be a smashed corpse.
Carter approached me with loud stomping footsteps. Then he red at me for a long time in front of my nose, then backed away and said,
I owe you one from earlier, and you should know youre alive because of Mr. Shin.
Who is Mr. Shin?
You just looked at me and left, but did I die ande back to life? Why am I surviving because of someone I dont even know?
When I asked Carters retreating back, Carter said as if anger had reached the top of his head while stomping his feet,
Shin Hae-ryang! That fucking bastard!
When the elevator shook a little from him stomping his feet, Emma shouted at Carter, asking if he really wanted to die by her hands, and the loud stomping sound noticeably decreased. Why Shin Hae-ryang? Jihyun said to me, who had a stupid expression,
It seems like its because Team Leader Shin said before that the people from the underwater base who contact Koreans will all have to meet with him.
Kim Ga-young asked Jihyun in surprise,
He still does that?
Hes gotten much better since bing team leader. When former Team Leader Cho was there.
Jihyun inhaled and bit her lip. Then she said with a sigh,
I was just thinking of quitting here. Thinking about this situation now, it would have been okay to quit then and go to Korea. Do you know that we cant give up our nationality while working here?
Jihyun asked me. I tried to recall the contract I had definitely signed 5 days ago in terms of time. I clearly wrote the contract 5 days ago, but psychologically it felt like 50 days ago.
What reason would there be to give up nationality while living? Especially while providing dental treatment. While reading the documents, I signed that paper without much thought, thinking wouldnt it be scarier to be stateless while working mixed with people from 8 countries?
I remember filling out such a document.
When you stay at the underwater base, immigration offerse in from the other 7 countries. The more famous you be for doing a good job, the more and better offerse in. Thats why the former engineering team leader ran off to the US. Leaving behind his wife and daughters in Korea. He kept talking nonsense every day that he was a stud
Jihyuns tone was full of unresolved feelings. Its a story Im hearing for the first time. I recalled Priyas slow voice saying there were recently added documents regarding immigration for Korea and to read them carefully. I was busy looking at the sry, work hours, and vacation.
At that time, we were almost doormats to the US kids. If the US team said something, from the team leader down, theyd say yes yes without any self-esteem and suck up to them. We were doing the work they were supposed to do. They were drinking beer in broad daylight. Suddenly barging into our room. Telling us to get their permission to go on vacation. Jesus wont forgive you either, really. Plus, we found outte that all sorts of personal information about our Korean team waspletely handed over. It seems like for them, like those three in our team, if they obtain information about the underwater base people and report it to their country, they gain something. There was a big fuss because Ji-hyeoks health information and family details were on the US team leader Davids pad. Ji-hyeok said he would kill Team Leader Cho Dong-hee, so Team Leader Cho stayed in the US teams area, East District.
Its a mess. Its a fucking mess. Jihyun looked far away, trying to recall the past, and said,
He probably said he received about 80,000 dors in cash to go over. At that time, he was bragging to the team members. He was talking nonsense like hed rather go to the US than Japan even though Japan said theyd give him 100 million won if he came over, so Team Leader Shin asked Sato if what I said was true. Sato sneered and said they dont ept such traitors. After that, all the remaining people signed a contract saying they wouldnt give up their nationality while working here.
Its a fucking mess. Its fucking embarrassing. Why am I ashamed when its someone elses business and something from the past? One of the contracts I signed was created for that reason. After listening quietly, Yoo Geum-yi said to Jihyun,
It doesnt seem like such offerse to researchers.
Is there a country you want to go to?
At my question, Yoo Geum-yi scratched the hangnail of her index finger and said while plucking it,
I do want to go to Australia or New Zend. Or a marine research center in Europe. Korea doesnt invest much in marine life research. The reason I came here is because the underwater base research center forcibly provides research funding with money extorted from each country. Our team itself may disintegrate and disappear at any time.
What about you, Ga-young-ssi?
If I say Im changing my nationality, about ten elderly people and my parents wille here by helicopter wearing durumagi. Just thinking about it gives me a headache. Its already a headache getting calls every day telling me to get married. Ill live in Korea without a headache. Have you ever had the dream of immigrating, Moo-hyun-ssi?
Not even once.
I also just found out now that you can sell your nationality and turn it into money. What giving up nationality when my mom and younger sibling are in Korea?
Suddenly, a lightning-like realization brushed my mind. Lets think about it the other way, because my family is in Korea, they may have selected and ced someone who would stay in Korea for this underwater base dentist position.
The employee at the Jeju Ind Naval Base said I was chosen with a 1 in 1000 probability. Because I expected there would be many applicants due to the high sry, I never thought I would be epted for this position until I received the eptance notification.
Perhaps, perhaps someone separately selected an atheist dentist specialist who needs money because they have family? There seem to be quite a lot of people with those conditions. If you throw a stone with those conditions, wouldnt all the dentists walking on the street get hit by the stone?
While I was lost in thought, Carter was simultaneously grabbed by the cor by Logan and Benjamin. Carter intentionally stomped his feet to see Emma have a fit, but when the elevator shook, Logan and Benjamin next to him simultaneously jumped at Carter.
Ill kill you!
Okay, I wont do it. Let go.
Ill beat you even while the elevator is falling. You bastard. Ill beat you until you die. I swear Ill beat you into a pulp even if your arms and legs are all broken. Try jumping one more time. Illpletely destroy your ankle.
Emma looked at Carter with her eyes visible between her curly hair, then snorted and said mockingly,
You act like your life is the most important, but Im the one who cant die here. Even if you put together the heads of all the people gathered here, theyre inferior to me.
Surprisingly, no one denied that. I cant say anything because I dont know much about the research center side, but seeing Carter unable to refute, it seemed Emmas words werent a lie. Carter raised the veins in his neck and answered, trying not to lose to Emma,
Do you know how important my research is to the deep sea environment?!
I think there will be someone to rece you and do that research even without you.
Carter ground his teeth and shut his mouth. As the inside of the elevator quieted down, Emma curled up her body again with a sigh. Kim Ga-young asked Emma, who had her face buried in her knees,
I was locked in my room crying and whatnot, but what the hell were you doing that you couldnt get on an escape pod?
I dont really want to talk about it.
Emma said in a gloomy voice. After that,plete silence fell. Only the elevator kept going up.
Chapter 105
Chapter 105
The ck color of the sea on the full ss front of the elevator interior had now changed to a shade close to navy blue. The people trapped in the less than 300 square foot elevator were in a state of fear and exhaustion, seeming to think of the elevators ascent as their only hope. However, I became more and more uneasy as the elevator went up. It felt like the deadline I had pushed back because there was time left was now slowly approaching.
How should I inform them that armed people from the Infinity Church are upying the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd underwater bases? Those who knew bits and pieces from me were keeping silent. There might be armed personnel gathered outside when we get off the elevator. We wont die since Kanu is with us, right? Would they kill their own believer? I cant be sure. Wont everyone die except Kanu?
Suddenly, Yoo Geum-yi asked Kanu a question, and I was inwardly startled.
Are there really people who want to go back to the distant past like Kanu-ssi? From what I hear from people, it doesnt seem like they want to go that far back.
Kanu scratched his chin, narrowed his brow, thought for a few seconds, then said,
I did hear a few things a few years ago when believers gathered like an alcoholics meeting. There were people who said they wanted to go back to before their child died or before their spouse passed away. I dont know if there are more people like me.
How desperate would those people be?
Very desperate, Geum-ssi. Crazy enough to be armed with guns and shoot recklessly at unarmed people.
Well.Kanu uttered a low word, then rubbed the back of his neck and thought before saying,
People who join a religion like this are bastards who have a past they want to go back to no matter what. If you tell them they can go back to that date, there will be bastards who want to go back even if they have to offer everything they have and tear off other peoples flesh and blood to offer it. If people who bought the wrong stocks, futures, or coins could turn back time 1 minute before settlement, theyd try to offer anything, right? It may sound like an excuse, but Im a bit less desperate. Because Im not trying to go back because someone close to me died or because of money.
Then Kanu shrugged his shoulders. Yoo Geum-yi thought for a bit, then asked again,
If, as Kanu-ssi said, someone gains the ability to go back to the past, and someone with that ability is in here, what would be good for us to do? Can we tag along and go back to the past together?
Geum-yi-ssi. Isnt this a question thats too easy to misunderstand? Is it okay to ask so tantly like that? Kanu or other people might misunderstand you.
Surprised by the content of the question, I barely suppressed the urge to intervene and stop Yoo Geum-yis words. I was trembling with fear inside, but Yoo Geum-yi, who actually asked the question, was very calm. Moreover, Yoo Geum-yi didnt ask such questions while looking at me. Rather, she looked at Benjamin and Carter one by one, showing enoughposure to ask questions.
I dont know if Yoo Geum-yis strategy worked or not, but Kanu pondered, then looked at the state of the people sitting in the elevator and said,
I dont know? If there is, shouldnt we kill them as quickly as possible? That way, when that person goes back to the past, they can make these things we experienced not happen.
If you say the wrong thing, youll be a corpse right away. Damn it.
Yoo Geum-yi made an umm sound and became lost in thought again. Emma, who was in the corner, said to Kanu in a mosquito-like voice while huddled,
Going back to the past is impossible.
Why?
When Kanu asked indifferently, Emma pressed above her eyes with a tired hand and said,
You cant go back because the past is already set. Its the same reason we cant time travel. You cant go back from the present to the past. I dont care what you do with your money, but Im telling you because it seems like youre being tricked by that cult. Is there no one here who majored in physics?
No one answered. Either they didnt want to answer or there really was no physics major. Carter sneered at Emma from the corner and said,
She believes in some Dagon or demon bastard.
It seemed Emma couldnt tolerate Carters existence any longer. She raised her heavy eyelids and red at Carter. Wearing ck long-sleeved clothing on top and bottom, she looked like a ck box when huddled, but when she stretched out her bent body and stood up, it felt like an optical illusion of elongating and erging vertically.
With disheveled hair and her head bent to the side at a 90-degree angle, silently ring at the other person, it was the very embodiment of a horror movie. Everything that made up Emma was ck, and only the whites of her eyes were uniquely bright among them. Seeing fierce sparks flying from Emmas eyes with blood vessels here and there, Carter erased the smile on his lips.
A 170cm tall expressionless woman was holding a shlight made of stainless steel upside down, ring at the other person without blinking and without a word. Looking at her, one could imagine her smashing Carters head with what she was holding at any moment. As Emma took a step forward with a madness that seemed to have no bottom line, Carter quickly said to Emma,
You can believe in Dagon too! Of course. People believe in the Boogeyman, Baba Yaga, and the Tooth Fairy, so its natural to believe in an elf that lives in water! I think I judged too hastily!
Emma expressionlessly swung the shlight in the empty air. It made a whooshing sound. My younger sibling said they bought an expensive one because I should use a good one if Im going to use it anyway. If youre in a hurry, you can use that as a weapon too.
As Emma stood and red at Carter for a while, Carter was the first to slightly turn his head away. Emma stood for a few seconds, then slowly returned to her original spot and bent her body neatly.
I think the Tooth Fairy who takes old teeth and brings new ones might have been parents or dentists in that era. In this elevator, Emma almost became one. I dont know about the other fairies Carter mentioned. If the Tooth Fairy could turn the teeth I pulled out as a dentist into money, could I have already made a fortune? Iughed inwardly at the silly fantasy and looked at Emma who had returned to her previous state.
I understand Emmas opinion that scientifically, you cant go back from the present to the past. But still, if you could go back to the past and live again. I thought about it and asked again, thinking when and to whom I could ask such a question.
Then is it also impossible to repeat a certain amount of time?
What are you talking about?
Like the story of that Haitian person Kanu-ssi mentioned. Could you also go back to the past for about half a day and repeat it?
Ha. Time cant break down, so how can it repeat? Go take a basic physics ss when you get out of here.
Emma spoke as if she felt sorry for my intelligence. The physics theory I know is limited to the level of sighing and taking it out again because a probe (explorer, dental tool) falls to the floor if I drop it from my hand, or the power to go up the stairses from persistence, not physical strength.
Right. How can it repeat when time isnt broken? Is that how it works scientifically? Am I worrying for nothing? In reality, there might be no one. There might really be no armed personnel at all outside the elevator, and the Infinity Church being armed and walking around might be a violent fragment of my dream reflecting my action movie-like subconscious. It could be something my mind, which really doesnt like Deep Blues interior, somehow created by piecing together unrted religions rted to blind sharks.
But what if I really went back to the past and came back? If the elevator reaches the 1st floor and the door opens, bullets suddenly pour out, blood stters, people die, then what do I do?
Can these people with bean powder-like solidarity block or defeat armed religious group members? The way I see it, unless the other side ispletely messed up, like being distracted, drinking alcohol, or were so close to them that we can easily take their guns, we absolutely cant win.
Plus, the only weapons are an axe and a shlight(?). We might end up fighting each other more and beating each other up, but even if theres an external enemy, can we fight them together?
Suddenly, my vision turned pitch ck and I was startled as if jumping up. I seemed to be more surprised than I thought. Someone who sensed my movement reached out towards me. In the faint darkness, that hand patted my back mercifully and swept it down greatly. It was just someone sweeping down my back, but I felt a hot welling up in the corners of my eyes and an immeasurable sense of stability. Kim Ga-young slowly said to me,
Moo-hyun-ssi. Its scary to ride an elevator that keeps having power outages, right?
Ive ridden one before, I wanted to say, but I barely swallowed the words. Kim Ga-young seemed to think I was scared because of the elevator power outage. Or she was trying to let the people around think that.
What Im worried about is different, but just because youve experienced it once doesnt mean you get used to it. A small hand swung in the empty space next to me and lightly tapped my shoulder. If its from this direction, is it Yoo Geum-yi?
Kim Ga-young spoke like an office worker enlightened about the ways of the world.
We cant predict and avoid everything that happens while living in this world. We just do our best in what we can do while living. Dont worry too much about the future. Well, our worrying or being scared doesnt make a stopped elevator move well, nor does it bring in more sry.
Kim Ga-youngs tone was slightly enlightened. Do you be transcendent of life because your workce is being destroyed in real-time? I let out a big sigh and tried to rx the tension in my stiff body.
When a shootout urred, there were jewels or stands strong enough to support the weight of the jewels to hide behind and avoid bullets, but as Baek Ae-young said, there would be nothing around the elevator to shield the body from external attacks. I was a bit surprised to find myself having thoughts like Baek Ae-young or Seo Ji-hyeok. Is it because I saw and learned things from being with them?
But even if we reach the 1st floor, if we dont get out of the elevator If we use the elevator door as a shield, we could block bullets to some extent, right? Like how it was in East District, the thickness of the elevator door is tremendous.
The blue sea came into view.
Chapter 107
Chapter 107
Kevin asked Ji-hyun at the ceiling,
¡°Is the elevator ceiling strong enough to support the weight of all the people here? Can we all climb up there?¡±
After pondering for a few seconds, Ji-hyun said,
¡°We have to climb up to escape anyway. Whether we¡¯re down there or up here, I think it¡¯s better to climb up even if the ceiling copses.¡±
When she puts it that way, there¡¯s nothing more to say. Since Ji-hyun doesn¡¯t have the strength to pull other people up from above, it was decided to send up one person with some strength first. The men all said they would go up first. Kevin shrugged his shoulders at my gaze and said,
¡°My upper body is fine.¡±
I had already noticed that when he used his cell phone as an ax. Kevin said to the people,
¡°The person climbing up to the ceiling now needs to keep helping the rest of the people climb up.¡±
At that, Carter and Benjamin¡¯s brows furrowed. Carter grumbled but didn¡¯t say much. However, Benjamin, filled with dissatisfaction, said,¡°In a situation like this, we should each fend for ourselves. Why do we have to help others or not? Pretending to be nice, seriously. Will you report me if I don¡¯t help?¡±
Yeah¡ Rather than keeping quiet andter causing a fuss about why I should help others, it¡¯s better to speak up now. I barely suppressed the urge to punch Benjamin, and Kevin, who was next to me, crossed his arms and asked,
¡°If you were alone, you wouldn¡¯t have even made it this far. The same goes for me and everyone else. If we hadn¡¯t cooperated, we would¡¯ve been fish food at the flooding base. Why do you hate helping others so much? Why do you act like you¡¯ll die if you suffer even a little loss?¡±
Benjamin looked at Kevin with a dumbfounded expression and said,
¡°Obviously, because all that matters is that I live well! Why should I take a loss because of others? And what do I care if others die or live? Who will give me back my precious time and energy? No one willpensate me for my losses anyway!¡±
Does that bastard think helping someone is a loss for him? How would he view people who do volunteer work withoutpensation? Sam pointed at Benjamin and said,
¡°Guys like you are called selfish fucking assholes. How little must you have been loved growing up to turn out so fucked up?¡±
¡°Not as much as you, pig bastard. Who are you to spew nonsense about someone else¡¯s life!¡±
¡°Die by this pig¡¯s hand!¡±
¡°I¡¯ll kill you with these hooves!¡±
¡°This is perfect timing! I¡¯ve been wanting to beat the shit out of you!¡±
When the fight was about to break out, Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, who were sitting on the floor, quickly stood up and fled to the wall, fearing they would get caught up in it. People trying to stop the fight, people egging them on, people jumping in, people yelling and swinging their fists all tried to gather in the corner of the elevator, and Emma shouted,
¡°I told you not to gather so close together!¡±
This time, even Emma¡¯s shout was entangled in the brawl. I saw Carter being knocked back by Logan¡¯s fist. I was looking at Ji-hyun¡¯s pathetic gaze from above when I said to Yoo Geum-yi next to me,
¡°Yoo Geum-yi-ssi, you go up first.¡±
¡°Uh¡ uh?!¡±
¡°Once you bnce, step on my palm and stand up.¡±
I knelt on the floor, grabbed one of Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s legs, and draped it over the back of my neck. Then I gritted my teeth and stood up, and Yoo Geum-yi, startled, propped her hand against the elevator wall. Yoo Geum-yi, forced to ride on my shoulders, iled about, touching my face and hair with her hands, but soon bnced herself with her waist. Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s stomach was touching the back of my head. cing my palm under Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s shoe sole, I said,
¡°Stand up!¡±
With Yoo Geum-yi sitting on the back of my neck, she tried to stand up as I instructed. This is something you can¡¯t do unless you really trust the person supporting your body. Having experienced riding on shoulders myself, I know how unstable it is. However, when I pushed Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s feet upward with my palms, her arms reached for the sky. Ji-hyun, who was watching us from the ceiling, also immediately stretched out both arms toward Yoo Geum-yi.
The two grabbed each other¡¯s arms in midair, but I couldn¡¯t rx. They don¡¯t have the strength to pull each other up safely. I have to push her up!
I heard my arms, which hadn¡¯t exercised, cursing at me. The owner is using the body so roughly, huh? When I lifted Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s feet above my head with both arms as if doing a banzai, Ji-hyun was seen pulling Yoo Geum-yi and lying back. Yoo Geum-yi disappeared toward the ceiling, and after a while, she peeked her head out.
When I turned my head and looked at Kim Ga-young next to me, she shook her head vigorously at me.
¡°No, no. What you just did is a bit too much for me.¡±
Licking her dry mouth with her tongue and looking at the ceiling, Ga-young put on the backpack I handed her and said,
¡°I¡¯ll stand like a hairtail in the sea.¡±
For a moment, I didn¡¯t understand. What does a hairtail do?
¡°How does a hairtail¡ in the sea?¡±
¡°It stands with its long body upright like a knife. Instead of giving me a piggyback ride, let¡¯s do it with me standing straight up.¡±
Ga-young brought her two hands together as if in prayer, then raised them vertically toward the sky. Hairtails don¡¯t move flexibly like snakes? Even with such a long body?
The method itself isn¡¯t bad. I just have to hand Ga-young, who has be straight like a gpole, toward the ceiling like passing an umbre. The problem is how firmly Ga-young can maintain the hairtail pose. If she wavers, she won¡¯t be able to go up.
Ga-young raised her hands, which she had sped together at chest level, toward the ceiling. She stopped with her arms stretched upward. If she were to lift one leg from this posture, it would be like doing yoga. Ga-young lightly nodded her head in that pose, and I moved behind her back. I squatted down and grasped Ga-young¡¯s calves with both hands. With her calves and thighs touching my neck and corbone, I momentarily swallowed and held my breath.
I tried to lift Ga-young¡¯s calves while straightening my bent knees. To avoid straining my back, I lifted her with my back as straight as possible, so it seemed I only needed to straighten my knees.
It wasn¡¯t as easy as I thought. I should¡¯ve done some squats. Even lifting a woman weighing just over 60kg, my body was making dying noises. The biggest regret sinceing from the underwater base was why I didn¡¯t exercise regrly. If I can just get out of here, I¡¯ll start exercising right away. Until recently, the checkup said there were no issues. They said my back and spine were healthy enough for normal daily life! I bit my lip with my teeth as groans involuntarily escaped.
After straightening my knees and barely standing on two feet, I exhaled and lifted the calves I was hugging with both arms. Even though I was just lifting one person, my stomach and forearms were screaming. Looking at Ga-young¡¯s feet, which had reached chest level, I said,
¡°Kick with your feet.¡±
Kick and use the rebound to go up! However, Ga-young merely pushed my chest with her feet as if pressing. I quickly brought my shoulders and forearms under Ga-young¡¯s next footstep floating in the air, allowing her to step on my shoulders and climb up.
Four arms descended from above and grabbed Ga-young¡¯s outstretched arms. The weight on my shoulders abruptly decreased, and when I looked up, Ga-young¡¯s two feet vanished into the ceiling as if being sucked in.
I had only sent two people up to a height of about 3 meters, but my whole body was drenched in sweat. It felt like steam wasing from my head. Panting and wiping the sweat flowing down my chin with the back of my hand, I noticed it was quiet around me. Are they done fighting?
Some had newly acquired wounds on their faces, either from being punched or their hair and clothes in disarray. Kevin was keeping Benjamin and Sam, who were trying to go at it again, in check with his arm¡¯s length and ax. Kanu was watching my actions with interest. Emma was sitting still in the same spot as before. Emma is a bit taller than the two who went up first. After taking a deep breath, I gestured to Emma.
¡°Come quickly. Before I get tired.¡±
After lifting two people in different ways, did I gain some knack for it? Not at all. Instead, I only learned which muscles hurt and how much. My arms were trembling. Thanks to the adrenaline rush, I¡¯m okay for now, but I don¡¯t think I can lift anyone after Emma. Emma hesitantly stood up from her seat.
James, whose sleeve button had flown off, asked me,
¡°Why are you doing this alone?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you know Koreans are all about hurry, hurry?¡±
Judging by their expressions, they really seem to have no idea. Licking my salty mouth with my tongue, I sighed and said,
¡°I don¡¯t want to waste even a speck of energy fighting each other. And I want to get out of here quickly.¡±
Emma tucked the entire bottom hem of her long-sleeved top into her pants. Then she took off her shoes and socks. She rolled the two socks together and stuffed them into one shoe. She tapped the shoes to shake off any dirt, then stretched the neckline of her top wide and pushed the shoes inside. Watching her use her top as a shoe storage, I was momentarily surprised, but Emma didn¡¯t seem to mind at all if her underwear got dirty from the shoe¡¯s dirt. Well, if she only wore them inside the underwater base, the soles should be clean. Emma said to me,
¡°Extend one leg forward and bend your knee. Position one hand with the palm facing up, firmly press your fingers together against your chest, and raise the other hand in a fist toward the sky.¡±
When I awkwardly assumed the posture as instructed, Emma spoke again,
¡°I¡¯ll step on your knee, palm, shoulder, and fist to climb up. If the timing is off, I might step on your head. Brace yourself.¡±
What? I was looking at my advanced left knee, the palm ced on my chest, and my shoulder. She¡¯s going to step on my body like a zigzag staircase. Is that it?
At that moment, Emma started running. Wa- wait! As soon as I tensed my body for the impending impact, Emma was already right in front of me. Emma stepped on my left knee. And as soon as she stepped on my palm with her other foot, an impact came to my shoulder. I mustered my strength to keep my body from copsing.
Estimating where Emma¡¯s foot might be to step on my fist, I pushed her sole upward with my fist. As Emma leaped toward the sky like a falcon, Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, who had stuck their upper bodies out, grabbed her arms, and a sound rang out as if Ji-hyun was dragging the two back. Emma¡¯s legs kicked in the air and disappeared through the ceiling hatch.
Emma didn¡¯t need me to lift her up with strength and hand her over. It felt like she had just stepped on a flimsy staircase and magnificently flown away. nkly staring at the ceiling, I plopped down on the floor, feeling drained. The palm and left knee that had been used as aunchpad began to ache btedly. I understood why she had taken off her shoes. If Emma had stepped on me wearing shoes, my fingers could have broken if I was unlucky.
Kim Ga-young poked her head out from above the ceiling and said,
¡°The next person toe up must be Park Moohyun. If you send up any other bastard, I won¡¯t catch them.¡±
Chapter 108
Chapter 108
I wish I could drink some water. Did they already finish what was in the backpack? I only realized after fumbling behind my back with my hand. Ah. I already sent it up. I licked my dry mouth with my tongue. When Kim Ga-young made her threat, I felt everyone¡¯s eyes on me.
I didn¡¯t even have the strength to look back at them. In this cramped elevator, whether they fight with fists or words, whatever they use, only the weak will suffer. Now, even if those fools held a fighting tournament, it would at least take ce in an arena with equalpetitors.
Logan looked at Kim Ga-young, who was watching people from the ceiling like a ghost, and me, who had plopped down on the floor, and asked,
¡°Did you send them up first for this?¡±
¡°For what?¡±
¡°To seize power?¡±
I have no idea what nonsense he¡¯s spouting. Perhaps because my expression conveyed that, Logan spoke to me in an irritated tone,
¡°Isn¡¯t this a ploy to send up the women close to you first so you can manipte the survivors here as you please?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. Why would I do that?¡±¡°What if they gang up and prevent the rest froming up or run away?¡±
It was still a question I couldn¡¯t understand. Prevent us froming up? That could happen. But wouldn¡¯t it be more constructive to scheme about escaping from here in that time?
And what¡¯s the harm if they run away first? Wouldn¡¯t it be great if Kim Ga-young, Yoo Geum-yi, Lee Ji-hyun, and Emma, the four of them, escaped from here first? There are 8 men here now. In terms of strength or stamina, we¡¯re notcking or inferior to those above. It¡¯s not like we can¡¯t climb up. And those people aren¡¯t anyone¡¯s property, so why is it a problem if they flee from here first?
¡°Isn¡¯t it good? The people here can also get out using the methods of those who went ahead.¡±
Benjamin, whose face was starting to bruise, said to me,
¡°Stop pretending to be naive, you bastard. Even at the research center, you kept interfering as if you knew nothing about every little thing.¡±
¡°That¡¯s because you¡¯re a twisted bastard who assigns too many meanings to my actions.¡±
Benjamin took a step toward me. Then Kevin, who had been gauging the distance between Sam and Benjamin, now stood between me and Benjamin and said,
¡°Stop it and think about climbing up from here. Logan, help me lift this person named Moohyun up.¡±
¡°You¡¯re going to listen to what that woman says? The engineer named Lee Ji-hyun might have intentionally stopped the elevator like this. Don¡¯t you think she¡¯s toying with us?!¡±
¡°Maybe¡ But it doesn¡¯t matter.¡±
Kevin knew that Ji-hyun had tried to leave some people behind on the 4th floor. But he would also know that she had a change of heart and decided to take everyone with her. Kevin, who had shut his mouth, intertwined his shoulders and arms with Logan to create an impromptu chair made of human arms.
When I ced my legs between their arms, the two counted one, two, three, and stood up from their spots. Perhaps because Logan and Kevin were roughly the same height, my field of vision suddenly became incredibly high when they stood up. I felt James next to me pushing me up.
Kim Ga-young and Emma were watching us, and they immediately stretched out their arms. Can the two of them pull me up? Emma¡¯s arm strength was much stronger than Ga-young¡¯s. Following the pulling force of their arms, I was sucked up as if ascending to heaven. Ga-young and Emma held me andy back almost on top of the ceiling. Ga-young panted and said,
¡°This is no joke either. I have no strength in my hands.¡±
Ga-young spoke while her arms trembled. If they drop someone while lifting those guys, it¡¯ll be an even bigger problem. Looking at their arms, I replied,
¡°Let¡¯s take turns.¡±
I¡¯m not in a rxed situation either, but I¡¯m better off than Ga-young, whose arms are shaking. After having Ga-young step back, I took her ce and followed Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s gaze outside. On the side opposite the elevator door, which was a front ss window, I saw trees and the ind¡¯s interior hill.
It seemed to be arranged so that when the elevator door opened, the sea and beach would be visible in that direction. On the opposite side of the elevator door was a hill. Following where Yoo Geum-yi was looking, smoke was billowing from the high hill.
¡°Where is that?¡±
Lee Ji-hyun, who was lying down anywhere, answered in a tired voice,
¡°It¡¯s in the direction of the helipad. You would have gone there when you first came here. I think either the helicopter is on fire or the helipad is on fire, one of the two.¡±
An anxious voice came from inside the elevatorpartment.
¡°You¡¯re not going to lift me up?!¡±
I quickly lowered my head, and it was after they had decided the order among themselves through rock-paper-scissors. James was trying toe up with the help of Sam, Kevin, and Logan, so Emma and I quickly pulled him up. Damn it. How did Ga-young do this two or three times?
Supporting a person¡¯s weight with both arms and pulling them up was as ridiculously difficult as lifting them from below. It took everyone except Ji-hyun to get James up.
After that, Kanu and Logan came up. I took turns with them. The problem was that when Kevin, Sam, Carter, and Benjamin were left below, amotion arose. Benjamin was fighting, saying he didn¡¯t want to help Sam climb up, and Sam was arguing why he had to help Benjamin.
Come to think of it, the order of ascending was wrong. We should have sent Sam or Benjamin up separately. Logan, who had alreadye up, was cheering for them to fight each other when Kevin, who was below, was startled by the ax aimed at him and quickly pulled his upper body back.
ording to the order determined by rock-paper-scissors, Kevin was deadst. When Kevin threatened that if they had no intention of going up in order, he would do as he pleased, both Benjamin and Sam shut their mouths. Sam was next in line, but Benjamin grumbled the entire time he was lifting him.
¡°You absolutely must go on a diet when you get out! Before I forcibly cut you up here and there!¡±
¡°The guy who never even bought me a meal is so talkative! Is this all the strength you have in your arms?!¡±
¡°You crazy bastard! Really! When I have time to spare, I¡¯ming to kill you!¡±
It was when Sam wasing up. Lee Ji-hyun was discussing with Yoo Geum-yi and Emma how to open the elevator door. They were talking about whether it would be better to stick Kevin¡¯s ax in the gap of the door and forcefully open it with strength.
At that moment, I felt someone¡¯s gaze watching us. When I turned my head back, a woman wearing jeans and a leather jacket was crouching by the elevator¡¯s ss window. She was resting her chin and observing what we were doing.
As Sam got stuck in the ceiling hatch while climbing up, Kanu, Logan, and James were pulling his arms. That person was watching our actions like observing ants moving food, but rather than her unfamiliar face, the gun she was carrying caught my eye more. Including the bright blue gun strap, she had green jewels dangling from the gun as if they were essories or keychains. It seemed like she had customized the gun to her taste.
Where have I seen this before? With everyone¡¯s help, Sam, who had been stuck in the elevator ceiling hatch, finally made it to the top of the ceiling, and the woman wasughing in amusement and pping softly. p p p p p.
To tease Benjamin, who was next in line, Sam, Logan, and James lowered their heads toward the elevatorpartment. Kanu looked at me and discovered that person through my gaze. Kanu closely observed the green jewels the woman had attached to the gun and said to me,
¡°It¡¯s Pounamu. A gemstone from New Zend.¡±
Is the gemstone catching your eye more than the fact that she has a gun? As soon as I recalled that, I remembered that Kanu was someone who had donated a huge gemstone to a cult.
I barely managed to recall that Baek Ae-yeong had held that gun before. My back felt chilly. I felt like my hair was standing on end from the tension.
After Benjamin, Carter came up to the elevator almost crawling while grumbling. Now people were pondering how to lift Kevin, who was the only one left in the elevator. The n was for the tall James to stick half his upper body in to grab Kevin and for the others to lift him up to pull Kevin out.
I called out the names of people like Yoo Geum-yi, Lee Ji-hyun, and Kim Ga-young to make them look at the corner of the front window. People gradually turned their heads and became aware of the woman observing them. At first, they were surprised and happy, but they stiffened their faces upon seeing the gun.
Finally, when the men safely pulled Kevin out of the elevatorpartment, forgetting their previous animosity, they tightly embraced each other and cheered. As they rejoiced with their arms raised to the sky, the woman who had been watching us was also smiling and pping faster.
Amidst the noisy cheers, Emma shouted loudly,
¡°Look at the front window! You idiots!¡±
Then, even those who were celebrating turned their heads, and they noticed the presence of the armed woman leaning against the door, observing them. The woman, who had been pping and rejoicing, began counting the number of people one by one from the corner.
One, two, three, four¡
She was counting the number of people in English, pointing at each person with her finger, and that simple action alone made people feel really eerie. Benjamin frowned at her action and tried to hide behind James to avoid her pointing finger, but she continued counting the numbers without minding.
After counting the number of people from right to left, she showed her teeth and formed the word ¡°twelve¡± with a big smile.
The people in the elevator seemed to have felt this strange sensation too. Logan simply expressed what he felt,
¡°What is that crazy bitch doing? Why is she counting us?¡±
Only when Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s scream rang out did I realize what Kevin had done. Kevin had grabbed Yoo Geum-yi, who was next to him, and pushed her under the elevator ceiling hatch he had just climbed up from.
Kevin hurriedly grabbed Kim Ga-young next to him and, without any exnation, was pushing her into the ceiling hatch after Yoo Geum-yi. Ga-young, who had been dragged along without knowing what was happening, fell back down after being kicked by Kevin¡¯s foot. What, what? Aaaaaah!
A huge smile appeared on the face of the woman watching us from the window. And she said something, but the window was too thick for her words to be heard. Then she aimed the rifle at us.
Chapter 109
Chapter 109
As the barrel of the gun, which had been pointing toward the floor, was raised upward in an instant, the startled people all threw their bodies to the ground. Ji-hyun and I froze in ce. We couldn¡¯t move.
Someone pushed Ji-hyun and me, and we fell to the floor. The woman, smiling, aimed at the people lying face down and pulled the trigger. Perhaps because it was set to single shot, two dull sounds of ¡°bang! bang!¡± rang out, but the sturdy ss encasing the elevator didn¡¯t shatter.
The people who hadin down covering their heads all screamed upon hearing the gunshots. Fear surged through my head like a wave.
Even though the ss didn¡¯t break, the brown-haired womanughed at us, showing her teeth as if it was amusing. Since I had fallen backward, I noticed while looking at the inside of her mouth that all her teeth seemed to be imnts. Her tongue also looked like it had been surgically altered, but it happened so quickly that I couldn¡¯t see it properly.
In an instant, she changed the gun¡¯s setting to automatic and fired at us again. Bang bang bang bang bang! Screams rang out from here and there. The bullets embedded in the ss, creating spider web-like cracks. Thump thump thump thump thump thump! My heartbeat pounded in my ears as if it would burst, just like the gunshots. It didn¡¯t break. The ss didn¡¯t break!
The woman tapped the elevator¡¯s ss wall a few times with the gun and tilted her head slightly to the side as if regretful. Then, as if the earpiece was noisy, she took it out from her ear and put it back in after a few seconds.
Even during that time, she didn¡¯t move the gun barrel aimed at the people lying face down on the floor with their heads covered. The woman, who had been looking at the people lying or fallen on the floor in their respective postures, made eye contact with me, who had fallen backward. The woman smiled at me and waved one hand to the side two or three times. Judging by her lip movements, it seemed she was saying, ¡°See you again.¡± And then the woman turned her back on us and started climbing the hill.
Even though that armed person was exposing her back to us defenseless, there was nothing we could do. We justy on the floor, watching her receding back get farther and farther away. Even when she was quite far, people kept their heads down, and I nkly stared at her back and the ss with several radial cracks spreading out.
Kevin, who had thrown himself over Ji-hyun with his body, asked,¡°Is she still there?¡±
¡°She¡¯s gone.¡±
I answered like that while watching the figure, now about the size of a finger, climbing the hill. If she crossed that hill to the end and walked near the cliff by the beach, the central elevator would appear.
Someone pushed me as I was lying there nkly, my soul having left my body.
¡°Move!¡±
Only when Benjamin roughly shoved me to the side did I realize that I was lying on top of Benjamin and Emma. People scrambled to their feet from the floor. Then they looked at the window with the bullets embedded.
¡°It¡¯s sturdier than I thought.¡±
¡°Right? This wasn¡¯t just ordinary ss.¡±
¡°What¡¯s with her? Why does she have a rifle?¡±
¡°Does anyone know her? How did she bring a gun to the underwater base?¡±
¡°What¡¯s going on up there? How do we get up?¡±
¡°Are you okay? What¡¯s happening?¡±
Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi were shouting at us from inside the elevatorpartment. Only after seeing their faces did I exhale.
I realized just now that I had been holding my breath. I was so tense that my upper and lower abdomen were aching. I slid down the wall and slumped to the floor.
My mind thought I should go down and lift or catch the two of them, but it seemed all my muscles had loosened from relief. Once I plopped down on the floor, I had no strength to move. When James went down again to lift the two up, the people above hurriedly pulled them up. Once Yoo Geum-yi also came up to the ceiling, people were already discussing escape ns.
¡°We have to get out of here and go to the beach, even if it means being ready to get shot! There will be boats.¡±
¡°Boats? Don¡¯t you see the smokeing from the helipad on top of that hill? Unless they¡¯re having a barbecue with helicopters or the helipad, I¡¯ll give you all my assets if we go out. They probably destroyed all the helicopters while leaving the boats in a fairly normal and intact state!¡±
¡°My yacht! I¡¯ll kill whoever touched my yacht!¡±
¡°Who would take your cheap yacht? It would sink before going even 10m.¡±
¡°Jesus. Please, I¡¯ll diligently make offerings at the church in front of my house this weekend. You know I¡¯ve lived an honest life.¡±
¡°What kind of person is she to shoot like that? Does she even know this is an underwater base while doing that? Is this terrorism or what?¡±
¡°The phone still doesn¡¯t work even aftering this far.¡±
Ji-hyun rubbed her tired-looking eyelids and said,
¡°Let¡¯s first decide whether to leave or stay here. Let¡¯s do a simple vote. Raise your hand if you want to leave the elevator.¡±
¡°Wait a minute. Can we open the elevator door and close it again?¡±
When Kanu asked, Ji-hyun thought for a moment and nodded.
¡°Well, it seems possible. To open the elevator door now, we need to force it open with strength. Closing it also requires using force. It probably won¡¯t close as tightly as it is now, though.¡±
Surprisingly, except for Carter and Logan, no one raised their hand to say they would leave the elevator. Carter said with a grimace,
¡°I feel like I¡¯ll go crazy from the stuffiness if I stay in this elevator any longer! Whether it¡¯s a boat or a helicopter, I¡¯m going to swim if I have to in order to leave this ind. I want to breathe fresh air right now!¡±
Logan looked at the bullets embedded in the ss window, stretched his wrists and fingers, and said,
¡°She¡¯s just one woman anyway. If everyone here attacks together, even if a few of us fall, we can subdue her, can¡¯t we?¡±
¡°Think rationally. She¡¯s a woman ¡®with a gun.¡¯ She¡¯s armed with a modified M27. She could kill the people here five times over! And what if there¡¯s more than one person when we go out?¡±
Emma looked at Logan¡¯s opinion with disdain. James nced at the people around him and said,
¡°Let¡¯s wait until someone from the outside judges that something¡¯s wrong with the underwater base andes to rescue us. What ability do we have to save ourselves?¡±
¡°I¡¯m going to leave here. I really can¡¯t endure it with you guys.¡±
Sam responded to Carter¡¯s words,
¡°Then you leave!¡±
¡°I will!¡±
Sitting a short distance from the center of the elevator, Kanu was looking at the hill visible through the front window while half-lying on the floor. I asked Kanu weakly, sprawled on the floor,
¡°Is it someone you know?¡±
¡°That guy earlier? No. I¡¯m seeing her for the first time. She seems quite crazy.¡±
¡°What are you looking at?¡±
¡°I¡¯m thinking maybe my Mi-172 is among the things being burned and smoked over there.¡±
¡°What¡¯s that?¡±
Is it an abbreviation? The trantor didn¡¯t say anything. Kanu replied as if it was no big deal,
¡°An old and aging helicopter.¡±
¡°Can individuals buy helicopters too?¡±
¡°If you have money, there¡¯s nothing you can¡¯t buy. If you¡¯re bored,e visit the US sometime. I¡¯ll show you the end of capitalism.¡±
It¡¯s surprising that individuals can buy helicopters. I don¡¯t even have a bicycle. Come to think of it, some people here seem to have bought yachts or boats.
¡°What¡¯s Pounamu? The gemstone that woman had earlier.¡±
When I asked about the dark green gemstones dangling from the gun, Kanu seemed to perk up a bit as if it was a field he was knowledgeable about,
¡°It¡¯s a symbol of good luck and is considered a link between the past, present, and future. It¡¯s green and is usually found a lot on New Zend¡¯s South Ind. I bought a few and gave them as gifts when I went there before. These days, cheap Chinese jades are being sold online as Pounamu, but they¡¯re all fake. Those are usually consumed by gifting them to someone, but seeing that woman shoot the gun, it doesn¡¯t seem like she bought or received them as a gift.¡±
Did she snatch them with the gun? Kanu traced the gemstone embedded in the lighter with his index fingertip. Come to think of it, the Infinity Church members seem to be wearing gemstones. Did Tyler have them too? Wearing dark clothes, ck hats, and shark patches isn¡¯t all there is to it?
Next to me, Kevin was apologizing to Yoo Geum-yi and Kim Ga-young. Did they get very startled? I¡¯m sorry. He was going on about how he thought entering the elevatorpartment would be the safest since the other person was holding a gun.
I was listening to people¡¯s conversations in a daze when I heard a familiar sound and turned my head. But nothing was reflected in the front window. What is it?
Bang!
A noise that seemed to make my ears go deaf reverberated. An impact that felt like riding a roller coaster at an amusement park instantly engulfed my body. Because my body suddenly shook here and there, I closed my eyes for a moment and then opened them. Dizziness hit me to the point of making me nauseous. The moment I held onto the wall and barely endured the shaking, the people in front of me disappeared in an instant, and a car took their ce.
I was looking at the surreal sight of a crushed car upying the space where the people and elevator walls had vanished. The truck that had charged in also had its driver¡¯s seat and passenger seatpletely shattered, but no one was inside. One side of the elevator wall was also almost wrecked and copsing, and people were pinned under the truck like mannequins or broken apart nearby.
It felt really strange to have a severed human leg ced on top of my body. Only after some time passed did the vacuum-like silence in my ears and the ensuing ringing noise of ¡°eeeeeeee!¡± finally begin to subside.
Blood was flowing down from my forehead, and with the blood running down my eyes and chin, I couldn¡¯t see properly out of one eye. Moreover, I couldn¡¯t move my body. Even when I tried to move a single finger, my whole body was stiff like a totem pole and wouldn¡¯t move at all. Groans and screams echoed from here and there.
Just turning my head required tremendous strength and effort. When I turned my head, groans involuntarily escaped from the pain in my neck. If I turn my head one more time, I¡¯ll faint. Really. It hurts so much I¡¯ll faint.
The people presumed to be Logan and Carter seemed to be pinned under the truck. And I couldn¡¯t see Kim Ga-young or Lee Ji-hyun. When dust and powder entered my nose, coughs burst out, and there wasn¡¯t a single part of my body that didn¡¯t hurt.
People¡¯s groans, screams, and crying continued. I faintly heard pleas for help or to save them, but I couldn¡¯t move anything except my head and eyeballs. I barely breathed and heard footsteps.
The woman entered the elevator through the wrecked truck, and she shot Kevin, who was lying on the floor, twice in the head.
Chapter 110
Chapter 110
The woman who shot Kevin was aiming her gun at Ji-hyun, who was closest. It seemed she was asking something, but the surrounding groans and crying were louder, so I couldn¡¯t hear properly.
The inside of the elevator wall was filled with shattered concrete and dirt dust. Not only was the elevator interior a mess, but all the lights seemed to have gone out, making it dark. To my eyes, which were covered in blood, I could barely recognize the unconscious Kanu right in front of me.
Someone was speaking next to my head, but I couldn¡¯t hear it properly. Whether he knew that or not, Benjamin, who had copsed next to me covered in blood, yanked my ear. Benjamin had been standing next to Yoo Geum-yi, but when did hee to my side? My whole body was in pain, but he was pulling my ear so hard that only my ear hurt exceptionally. When I let out a groan from the pain, Benjamin whispered in my ear,
¡°You bastard. I didn¡¯t like you from the moment I first saw you. Pretending to be nice while meddling in everything, acting like a good person. I know that human trash like you pretend to be nice and righteous on the outside, but behind the scenes, you¡¯re the same kind of fucking bastard who does all sorts of shitty things.¡±
What is this guy saying now? When I coughed out dust, Benjamin covered my mouth with his bloodied hand. He was only covering my mouth with his hand, but it was extremely difficult to breathe. Benjamin¡¯s fingers roughly scratched my chin and cheeks. Is this crazy bastard trying to kill me in this situation?
¡°I hate bastards like you the most. I said I hate them the most!¡±
The hatred spewing right in front of me was raw, genuine emotion. Even if I end up dying from that woman¡¯s gun, I wanted to at least curse this guy out before I die. I tried to open my mouth, but it was nearly impossible with his entire palm covering it.
Benjamin, who looked like he had been hit head-on by the truck, crawled and covered my body with his. I saw Benjamin¡¯s chest right in front of my eyes. Because Benjamin¡¯s upper body was practically crushing me, I could barely see the side through the gap between Benjamin¡¯s armpits. What the hell is going on? Is he trying to suffocate me? Dizziness was rushing in, and with a guy weighing over 80kg lying on top of me, I felt even more out of it.
Then suddenly, as if Benjamin was spewing blood, I felt my hair getting soaked wet along with the sound of retching. Benjamin? Hey? At that moment, Ji-hyun was speaking in a loud, clear voice.¡°Someone had damaged the escape pods. And in the research center, although the escape pods were functioning normally, there weren¡¯t enough podspared to the number of people.¡±
¡°No wonder. I thought fewer escape pods than expected wereing up to the surface. Did you not consider going to the 3rd underwater base?¡±
In a situation where the gun barrel was aimed at her, Ji-hyun hesitated and said,
¡°I had a dream. I dreamt that crazy people from the cult were aiming guns at people, so I didn¡¯t go.¡±
After blurting that out, Ji-hyun tightly closed her eyes. However, upon hearing those words, the woman smiled. And with the gun still pointed at Ji-hyun, she said,
¡°You, jump into that elevator over there. Quickly. Before I identally shoot again like just now.¡±
identally? Is she saying she identally shot Kevin? There¡¯s no way. She tantly shot him in the head!
When Ji-hyun hesitated at the words telling her to jump into the elevatorpartment, the woman fired a shot near her feet. Ji-hyun, startled, leaped into the elevatorpartment. As Ji-hyun went down, the woman surveyed the surroundings, noisy with screams and groans, and said,
¡°Any Infinity Church believers here?¡±
¡°Aaaah! Me, me! I¡¯m a Infinity Church believer! Save me!¡±
Carter was continuously shouting with his legs crushed under the truck. Then the woman simply asked Carter,
¡°We are?¡±
¡°Aaaah! Save me, I said! My legs!¡±
¡°We live to?¡±
¡°Hurry and help me! We¡¯re from the same church! I donated so much money and jewels! Hurry and save me!¡±
Didn¡¯t Carter say he had no money? Carter seemed to be trying to act like an Infinity Church believer after hearing what Kanu had said. The woman, who had been listening to Carter¡¯s wailing, quickly shot Carter in the head. She simply said one thing toward where the scream had vanished,
¡°If you don¡¯t know, you die. If you didn¡¯t memorize it, just die. Now, next. Any other Infinity Church believers?¡±
Sam, who was pinned under a concrete wall, grunted while trying to remove it and pointed his finger toward the unconscious Kanu.
¡°That guy believed in it.¡±
¡°You?¡±
At that question, Sam pondered as if very hesitant and asked the woman,
¡°Will I die depending on how I answer this?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t believe.¡±
¡°I like your honesty.¡±
With those words, she shot Sam in the head. Then she pointed the gun at the next target, Kim Ga-young. Ga-young, who was holding her side with her left hand, pointed at the gun with her right hand and asked,
¡°Did you identally shoot three people now?¡±
¡°Is it true that the ck man who seems to have fainted in the corner over there is a Infinity Church believer?¡±
¡°Would my answer have any value? You seem to be shooting and killing indiscriminately.¡±
What a remarkable rebellious spirit. Even in front of the gun barrel, Ga-young didn¡¯t answer and sneered. The woman replied to Ga-young,
¡°That¡¯s not it. The guy I shot first was holding an ax when I saw him through the window, and he showed the most immediate reaction upon seeing someone with a gun, so I killed him first. I killed that one because he lied, and I killed that one because of the cross ne.¡±
¡°What will you kill me for?¡±
¡°Depending on your answer.¡±
¡°Eun-ja-di Kanu did say he was a Infinity Church believer. He said he donated jewels. It¡¯s also true that he had a lot of money normally. But since he¡¯s dying from a brain tumor, we don¡¯t know if that story is true or false either.¡±
¡°Good. Now the Japanese who went into the elevatorpartment.¡±
¡°She¡¯s Korean. Korean!¡±
Seeing from a distance, Ga-young¡¯s side was covered in blood. Perhaps because she used abdominal strength to shout, Ga-young, who was holding her side with both hands, let out a groan saying ¡°ugh.¡±
¡°You Asians are sensitive about useless things.¡±
¡°Can¡¯t you think that what¡¯s useless to you might be valuable to others?¡±
The woman looked at Ga-young, snorted, and said,
¡°Like your life? I don¡¯t care. Since I¡¯m a hired body, I¡¯ll do as much as I¡¯m paid for, but it¡¯s a hassle for me to be this meticulous. If the pregnant woman at the 2nd underwater base hadn¡¯tined, these fanatics would have treated her humanely on their own. What can I do if the service is bad because they went to turn off the power? You¡¯ll have to understand. Does it make sense to tell me to stop the onesing up to the ind from dying alone?¡±
¡°Then just get lost from here.¡±
When Ga-young growled those words, the woman nodded, aimed at Ga-young¡¯s chest, and replied,
¡°Nothing personal.¡±
¡°Emma!¡±
Ga-young shouted loudly and leaped forward. The moment the gun was fired toward Ga-young, James, who had been lying on the floor as if dead, pounced on the woman.
At that moment, Emma, who had been quietly sitting in the corner covered in dust, swiftly jumped into the hole behind the woman. Then she ran out like the wind. It was an incredible speed. Running on tiptoe as if walking on air, like lightning, Emma¡¯s back, which was getting farther and farther out of sight, was already wearing my backpack.
My backpack. I had exchanged it with Ga-young¡¯s bag. When lifting her to the elevator ceiling, Ga-young had gone up after exchanging bags with me. It was in case a fight broke out inside the elevator and the animals got swept up. We didn¡¯t know this would happen then. Don¡¯t get caught. Run farther away!
The woman calmly took a few steps back and distanced herself. Then she shot James, who was running toward her, twice in the chest, and shot Kim Ga-young, who had copsed on the floor clutching her stomach, in the head.
Even while hearing the receding footsteps, the woman didn¡¯t turn her head or try to chase in the direction Emma had run. She seemed to expect someone else to attack from the front additionally. Rather, after confirming the kill on James¡¯s head, she looked around and lightly exhaled and inhaled.
Then, starting from the left, she shot the heads of the people located inside the elevator one by one to the right. When she shot the head of Benjamin, who was lying on top of me, I held my breath. I was so shocked that my emotions went numb and I became oddly calm instead.
When my family¡¯s car overturned in middle school, I couldn¡¯t be this calm. I still dream about the ident and sometimes have these thoughts. If Mom had been rescued before me then, if I had been a bit calmer, maybe our family wouldn¡¯t have been so broken. Those kinds of thoughts.
I barely moved my fingers under Benjamin¡¯s corpse. Fortunately, I seemed to have broken free from muscle stiffness. The woman was counting the numbers again. I prepared to move my arm.
There was only one chance. Come to think of it, it¡¯s a bit absurd that in my life, all chances were only once. When did I ever get a second chance? Life was never that easy.
¡°One, two, three, four¡ seven.¡±
The woman was counting the number of people who died crushed or hit by the truck and the number of people she had shot with the gun. She dragged the unconscious Kanu by the ankle and threw him into the elevatorpartment. Ji-hyun¡¯s scream was heard along with the thud of a person falling.
¡°Eight, nine. And ten who ran away.¡±
That woman approached me in the farthest corner. Then, when she was about to pull Benjamin off of my body, she made eye contact with me lying underneath and said,
¡°Eleven¡ Twelve. We meet again.¡±
A pleasant voice quickly aimed the gun barrel at my head. I pulled the O.B. (Organic Compound Dposer) I had taken out of Ga-young¡¯s bag toward the woman¡¯s face.
There was no time or leisure to collect my thoughts, hold my breath, or take aim like when shooting a gun in a dream. I only thought about whether I had aimed properly and if I had already pulled the trigger.
I couldn¡¯t even consider how close the distance needed to be for the O.B. to activate properly or not. There was only one thought in my head.
It has to touch the skin. They said it has to touch the skin. They said it¡¯s useless if it touches over clothes. This woman is an expert at killing people with guns. There¡¯s no exposed skin from head to toe. Except for the face! If she approaches to kill me, there¡¯s no other chance!
Bang! After the sound, my body went limp on the floor. As the gun was fired at close range, it felt like my ears were going deaf. Strangely, nothing hurt. I just couldn¡¯t move my body at all, but even in that situation, I caught a glimpse of a person¡¯s anklepletely crushed under the truck. It was the shoe I had lifted up toward the air.
Tears welled up in my eyes, and I couldn¡¯t see properly in front of me. Thest scene I saw was the woman wiping her face with her palm along with my blood.
I woke up from the shock of falling off the bed.
Chapter 106
Chapter 106
The people sitting in the elevator all stood up when they saw the much brighter color of the seapared to before. Their faces were flushed with anticipation, hoping that this meant they could finally leave.
It was evident from their expressions just how horrible it had been to be trapped in this loathsome, inescapable small space, forced to sh with ipatible people.
My first thought was that fortunately, among the people gathered here, no one suffered from ustrophobia. If someone like that had been here, they would have already fainted or been half-dead mentally.
To think that being unwillingly confined in a narrow ce with strangers could cause this much stress¡ In the past, when infectious diseases were rampant, people could hardly go out. How did they live like that? Was it okay because they were trapped at home? What about the homeless? Come to think of it, back then, chickens, pigs, and cows were also forced into cramped spaces, unable to move at all until they died.
Comparing when Yoo Geum-yi and I were trapped in the elevator alone to being trapped now with all these people, it may sound odd, but psychologically, it was much better when it was just the two of us with no n. Now, it felt like embracing a small stic basin while sailing the vast ocean.
No¡ Let¡¯s think positively. Pessimistic and cynical thoughts won¡¯t improve my situation. I should try to find advantages in my current circumstances and strive to ovee difficulties through them. I¡¯ll save sorrow and despair forter when I have the leisure. Right now, I don¡¯t want to waste my energy and time being consumed by such emotions. After taking a deep breath, I sat alone on the floor and surveyed the people standing.
Not everyone in this elevator is a good person. No, let me rephrase that. There are strange and bad ones, but not outright evil. People whock any concept ofw, morality, or empathy in their heads, or those who believe they don¡¯t need to follow such things depending on the situation, can be unscrupulous in harming others for their own benefit. Of course, there may be one or two like that here too.
They say about 4% of humans are sociopaths, right? And the proportion of psychopaths is between 5% to 15%. Then over 81% have normal brains.
Whenws and systems fail to restrain people, if those with normal moral standards block, prevent, or deter such behaviors early on, I believe we can survive while preserving each other¡¯s bodies and minds without deteriorating too much, as long as we maintain a certain level of ethics.Our impromptu group gathered for survival is a mess in many ways. But in a situation causing immense stress, did we sustain irreversible injuries, harm each other, or suffer simr mental wounds, or die?
Looking back on today, I struggled to answer no inwardly. Then I nced at the cod-like people and those more like trout, freshwater minnows, or sweetfish inparison. Alright. Let¡¯s cheer up. Our greatest asset right now is human resources. Sitting on the floor, I addressed the people standing in the elevator.
¡°The elevator might shake like before, so everyone, please sit down.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t wanna? I¡¯ll be the first to dash outta here!¡±
Benjamin shouted at me, looking excited. Maybe I misjudged¡
Sitting is safer than standing, and lying down is safer than sitting. We are flimsy reeds barely supporting our bodies on two legs. The most stable posture for handling force is sitting or lying down. We should only get up and exit once the elevator haspletely stopped. What if this rickety old elevator suddenly stops again?
Hearing my words, Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi quickly plopped down on the floor. Ga-young sat cross-legged like in her living room, leaning against the elevator wall. She stretched her arms overhead, loosening the muscles in her shoulders and forearms. Lee Ji-hyun and Kevin nced at the standing people before sitting, and others slowly sat down or ignored me and remained standing.
The dark water color outside the elevator gradually brightened until the few remaining marine creatures became visible to the naked eye. Sighs and exmations of relief from the people filled my ears.
However, the elevator, which had been ascending smoothly, suddenly stopped. Those standing immediately fell on their buttocks. Logan and Carter briefly exchanged punches and groans because Carter fell on top of the seated Logan. Emma, who was sitting in the corner, looked out the window and let out a cry of astonishment.
¡°Look outside. The ground floor is right below us. We¡¯re incredibly close to the first floor!¡±
The stopwatch time I had paused was 9 minutes and 42 seconds. If the elevator moving from -3000m took exactly 10 minutes, we would be 18 seconds¡¯ worth of distance away from the first floor. Or I might have failed to press the stopwatch properly out of surprise or panic. Even considering that, we must still be pretty close to the first floor.
At Emma¡¯s words, everyone tried to stand up and head towards the window. Emma, startled, grabbed the clothing of Kevin and Ji-hyun, who were about to stand.
¡°Just look! The weight can¡¯t all be concentrated in one specific spot in the elevator! The bnce will be disrupted, you blockheads! Seriously! You all wanna die! @#$%&!¡±
Hearing the barrage of curses, Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi, who were about to get up, meekly sat back down. Sam, James, Logan, Kanu, Carter, and Benjamin slowly dispersed from around the window and obediently sat on the floor. Lee Ji-hyun surveyed the people in the elevator and pointed to the ceiling, speaking to James.
¡°James. Can you act as adder for a bit? We need to see how close we are.¡±
James stood up unsteadily and moved to the spot Ji-hyun indicated, getting down on one knee. As Ji-hyun stepped on his knee, James already had his palms ready as the next foothold near his stomach. Ji-hyun climbed up using James¡¯s knee and hand, slowly mounting his shoulders. Ji-hyun sat stably on James¡¯s shoulders. However, James made a seemingly staggering motion, startling Ji-hyun, who was sitting above. James lightly said,
¡°Oops!¡±
Surprised, Ji-hyun reflexively yanked James¡¯s hair hard, and James yelled, ¡°Ow ow!¡± telling her to stop pulling out his hair. Ji-hyun, furious, harshly tugged James¡¯s ear and spoke.
¡°If you mess around one more time, I¡¯ll yank out your hair and your ear!¡±
¡°Sorry~¡±
Ji-hyun spewed curses about frying him in holy water and struggled to open the elevator ceiling. The ceiling had a handle, so it wasn¡¯t difficult for Ji-hyun to turn it 90 degrees, but the ceiling hatch seemed quite heavy, and she was grunting, trying to lift it with her arm strength. After several minutes of trying, Ji-hyun gave up and said,
¡°I don¡¯t have the strength to open the hatch.¡±
Makes sense. Although she rested while sitting in the elevator, Ji-hyun seemed to be enduring this situation mostly through willpower. But is that hatch really that heavy? James put Ji-hyun down and looked around at the people, choosing me. He probably didn¡¯t want to lift Logan or Kevin, who weighed more than me. And he seemed even more reluctant to give Carter or Benjamin a shoulder ride. James, frowning, spoke to me.
¡°Don¡¯t you dare kick me. No, take off your shoes instead.¡±
I took off my shoes and handed my bag to Kim Ga-young next to me, asking her to hold it, and rolled up my sleeves.
¡°Let¡¯s do it in one go. One shot.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll try.¡±
James groaned as he lifted me onto his shoulders, giving me a piggyback ride. Sam, looking worried, began pacing near us. Aside from my dad putting me on his shoulders in childhood, I had never sat on someone else¡¯s shoulders before.
Riding on James¡¯s shoulders for the first time in nearly 20 years, I felt so unstable that I wanted to get down immediately. We exchanged threats about the unpleasant sensation of touching each other¡¯s necks and how if he rocked me as a prank, he¡¯d be done with dental treatment in the Pacific.
Unlike when he had Ji-hyun on his shoulders, James started making dying noises as he stood upright. I pushed hard on the hatch part of the ceiling but was momentarily surprised when it didn¡¯t budge. This is quite heavy. However, when I pushed with both arms, the ceiling hatch lifted. The weight seemed to be between 10kg and 20kg. Ji-hyun said to me,
¡°Lift it up and push it to the side.¡±
Following her instructions, I lifted the ceiling hatch and pushed it to the side, revealing its thickness, which was thicker than I expected. No, how is this hatch so thick? This thickness is almost the size of a person¡¯s waist. I was nkly thinking that when I remembered the person who had been hit all over their body by the elevator ceiling material. The blood and the crushed white bones.
A physiological urge to vomit suddenly welled up. Perhaps because I dry heaved, James, startled, put me down on the floor as if throwing me. As soon as my feet touched the ground, the momentary dizziness and panic that had surged subsided rapidly. James rubbed his head furiously with his hand and shouted at me,
¡°Did you puke on my head?!¡±
Benjamin, hearing that from a distance, snickered. I shook my head and said, lying face down on the floor,
¡°No. I didn¡¯t throw up. It¡¯s because of the dust. Because of the dust.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi approached me.
¡°Are you okay?¡±
Lying down, I waved my hand to indicate I was fine. I¡¯m not particrly weak-stomached. I can extract a bowl of pus from a patient with severe periodontitis, extract all their teeth, and still have no problem with food during lunch. Maybe those scenes of people dying like that were a huge shock to me.
Ji-hyun, looking at me lying face down and the ceiling, asked James to lift her up again. Perhapscking arm strength, Ji-hyun struggled to pull her body out through the ceiling hatch, and only managed to get up with others holding her legs from below. With her two feet disappearingst, her entire body vanished toward the space outside the elevator.
Then it was quiet. Everyone craned their necks toward the ceiling, staring at the space where Ji-hyun had disappeared. Logan asked impatiently,
¡°How is it? How close are we to the ground floor? Close enough to climb up from there? Hey, you didn¡¯t go alone, did you? You¡¯re still there, right?¡±
In less than a minute, Ji-hyun poked her head down and said,
¡°I can see the first-floor elevator door from here. The elevator didn¡¯t stop properly aligned with the door while ascending, and it¡¯s stopped slightly ovepping with the first-floor door. We can exit to the first floor.¡±
Before she even finished speaking, people cheered.
¡°Yeah!¡±
¡°We¡¯re finally getting out!¡±
¡°We can finally leave this horrible elevator!¡±
¡°Why the hell can¡¯t this damn elevator even stop properly?! Anyway, thanks! Fuck!¡±
¡°Oh, Jesus! I knew you wouldn¡¯t forget me! But you don¡¯t give me the easy path! Still, this is nothing. Thank you!¡±
The people in the elevator were desperate to get out immediately. I had been covering my mouth with one hand for a while, but feeling calmer, I removed my hand and asked Ji-hyun,
¡°Is there anyone outside? Like someone who can help us?¡±
Or someone armed with a gun. Since one side of the rectangr elevator is a front ss window, the outside should be visible. Ji-hyun¡¯s voice came,
¡°There¡¯s no one.¡±
Chapter 111
Chapter 111
I woke up from the shock of falling off the bed.
It felt like I was being hurled towards the floor. Iy face down, scratching the hard surface with my fingertips. A mild dizziness washed over me. After a few seconds, I barely regained my senses, only to find my heart racing madly. Reality felt distant, as if I had just awakened from a nightmare. Only after looking around did I finally realize that this was room 38 in the West District of the 4th Undersea Base.
Recalling myst memory, I quickly ran my hands over my head and face where I had been shot. I¡¯m not dead. I¡¯m not dead! I didn¡¯t die from being shot!
First came a sense of liberation, as if a stone had been lifted from my chest, followed by a feeling of relief that seemed to fill my throat. Then, overwhelmed by a flood of emotions, my tear ducts burst. At that moment, my nose started bleeding as well.
I stuffed a towel that was next to the bed into my nose and spent 2-3 minutes shedding tears and blood simultaneously. Tilting your head back causes nosebleeds to flow down your esophagus or airway. I leaned against the orange whale plushie with my head bowed forward, pinching my nose. asionally wiping away tears with the towel, I thought:
I¡¯m alive! Those things weren¡¯t real!
As soon as I had that thought, my mind countered. ¡¡Really? Are you sure you¡¯re really alive? Then does that mean Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi didn¡¯t die? Emma escaped from there, so did that not happen either? What about Lee Ji-hyun and Kanu? Are all the other people and animals alive too?
What¡¯s going on? How could this happen to me? Did I have two nightmares? Is this really my room? Am I in my right mind? What time is it now?
I immediately flipped over my phone on the bedside table.May 31st. 7:02 AM.
Thest time I was aware of was around 4 PM on May 31st, so why does the time on my phone show early morning? Why doesn¡¯t the time I¡¯m thinking of in my head match the current time?
I bit the inside of my cheek hard. Then I gently probed the wound in my mouth with my tongue. Ouch ouch. ¡¡It¡¯s okay. It¡¯ll heal within a week anyway.
If I can perceive pain, could this all be a dream? After pondering for a moment, I concluded that all of this couldn¡¯t possibly be a dream.
I don¡¯t have that great of an imagination. Dreaming about falling from a cable car and being killed by sharks, or being shot to death from the ceiling of an elevator? These were oundish contents that I couldn¡¯t possibly create even if I threatened my brain. Moreover, I didn¡¯t have the talent to mentally create the appearances and personalities of people I had never met before.
No, if these were people I created in my dreams, shouldn¡¯t they be unconditionally favorable to me, showing unlimited affection and trust? Why did they have to have irritating, cold, difficult, scary, or disgusting aspects?
And organic, organicpound dposer? I can¡¯t even remember where I might have seen the word ¡°organicpound¡± in my life. Plus, what? I dreamed about donating 41.5 billion to a cult? Even if it was my subconscious, that¡¯s unforgivable.
So there are two possibilities.
First, I¡¯m being forced to experience these things due to external stimuli. Did I drink a few bottles of sorghum liquor without remembering? Or did I eat something strange? Did someonee into my room while I was sleepingst night and inject me with drugs? Maybe there¡¯s some gas leaking in the undersea base, and my brain is reacting like this after inhaling it while sleeping.
¡¡Thinking about gas, it crossed my mind that I might be dying right now in the Deep Blue infirmary, having inhaled an enormous amount of nitrous oxide (theughing gas used in dentistry). Nitrous oxide is colorless and odorless. It¡¯s used mixed with sevoflurane, a general anesthetic. I imagined someone tying me up in the infirmary, pumping in a massive amount of nitrous oxide and just a tiny bit of oxygen. And Park Moohyun is having several very vivid dreams.
It¡¯s horrific, but it kind of makes sense? For a few minutes, I recalled all the drugs and gases that could affect the nervous system and cause hallucinations that I, as a dentist, could ess, as well as all the alcohol I¡¯ve drunk. Then I went over my past experiences that I thought were dreams.
As I recalled the memory of the shark biting into my stomach, I felt my uninjured lower abdomen tense up. I probed the wound in my mouth with my tongue again. If I¡¯m in a hallucinatory state and can create such vivid hallucinations, my body that¡¯s been administered these hallucinogens must already be half-dead. ¡¡Damn it.
Now let¡¯s think about a possibility that¡¯s at least slightly more positive for me.
Second, things thatpletely disregard thews of physics have happened to me. To put it most simply, observing the phenomena happening to me, it seems that if I live for a certain period of time and then die, I can return to a specific point in the past.
To the morning in room 38 of the West District in the 4th Undersea Base.
¡¡This makes the least sense, doesn¡¯t it? How much would Emmaugh if she heard this story? Although I¡¯m someone who gave up on studying physics, in all my life experiences so far, I¡¯ve never seen time move backwards. How could a person go from the future to the past? I suddenly remembered a question I had asked Kanu not long ago.
¡®What kind of religion is that?¡¯
¡®It¡¯s a religion where people who want to turn back time gather.¡¯
Recalling his characteristicallyid-back voice and answer sent chills down my spine.
Did I really experience the future ande back to the past? Is this anomaly I¡¯m experiencing now a case of sessfully turning back time? ¡¡Really. I hate to think about it, but I made the assumption that religion, while sucking the blood and flesh of its followers, had seeded in creating something terrifying in addition to causing human rights regression and wars.
What would happen if time could be artificially manipted?
The thought of suddenly being able to go back to the past after living towards the future made me feel physically repulsed. I could pride myself on having lived by grasping the intangible fixed point of ¡®present¡¯ or ¡®now¡¯ as apass, with time flowing one second at a time. However, just imagining time not flowing in a forward direction made it feel like the foundation of life was crumbling away. It gave me an eerie feeling, as if I had be lost in the vast ocean without any buoys.
Looking at the situation, I¡¯vee back to the past twice.
So when does my futuree? If I came back to the past because I died, does time flow normally if I stay alive until the end?
What if I go back to the past again even if I survive? What should I do if I¡¯m trapped in this situation forever?
No matter how much I thought about it, there was no good answer. Okay. Then let¡¯s broaden our thinking beyond just myself and consider it more macroscopically.
Let¡¯s assume that I¡¯m experiencing these things because of something a cult did. ¡¡Only terrible imaginings came to mind. Whether it¡¯s a religion or any group resembling a religion, they shouldn¡¯t have such power.
How would we know where and to whom an interest group would use the opportunity to go back to the past? They might kill today¡¯s Buddha and save tomorrow¡¯s Mara. A executed serial killer might be resurrected, and a terrorist who just died mighte back to life and run around in a big city.
They might conduct ethnic cleansing iming their religion is right, erase a few countries, and bury or justify their actions whileying out nonsensical excuses to the whole world. If they could go back to the time when saints were born, all world religions except Hinduism and shamanism might be unified. They would only need to kill at least three newborns and this Infinity Church could quickly swap them out.
The thought of unfairness came next. Time passes, and people age. Time is one of the things given equally to all living beings. Whether rich or poor, educated or not, happy or not, time flows equally for everyone.
Come to think of it, time is an innate public good that we didn¡¯t realize. There¡¯s no need to worry about it being taken away or altered. Of course, we can trade it. Working life is the act of sacrificing our time and lifespan in exchange for money from thepany.
Humanity has consistently researched to extend the limit of time they can enjoy. When assuming death due to aging, the time allowed to humans ording to DNA is said to be limited to 38 years. However, as a result of changes in hygiene knowledge and diet, development of medical technology, and consistent investment in vinations and education, it has now extended to 130 years. Of course, only a certain minority of people can enjoy this longevity andfortable life apanied by scientific technology, both then and now.
In the case of ordinary people like me, we have to work until 90-110 years old before we can retire and rest, and due to severe environmental pollution, it¡¯s nothing to have thyroid surgery or get cancer two or three times. We live eating artificial meat and synthetic milk, alternative coffee and foods with insects as main ingredients due to food shortages, and depending on which country you¡¯re born in, your standard of living can rise or fall vertically.
The lower the ie of a country, the more people die due to natural disasters and environmental pollution. If you think about the number of people who have died just from air and water pollution from 2000 until now, it¡¯s close to an astronomical figure. In a situation where the prization of ie disparity has grown irreversiblyrge, someone specific can even control time? It might be understandable if a petty person used it only for their personal downfall. The thought that someone belonging to such a religious group could use it for a specific purpose gave me a headache.
¡¡Maybe it would be okay for something groundbreaking rted to time toe out by the next next generation after I die. Right now, geniuses with groundbreakingly high IQs are taking antidepressants from the age of 9-10 and dragging humanity, which is heading towards extinction, by the scruff of its neck. Maybe in about a hundred years, we¡¯ll live better lives than now? By then, won¡¯t humanity be much more mentally mature than I expect?
Including myself, people now with our level of consciousness shouldn¡¯t have the ability to go back even 1 second, let alone 10 hours, from the future to the past. I don¡¯t know how messed up the world would be if even thisst remaining public good is taken away by someone.
Of course, there would be good points too. If you could control only the time aspect as you wish, you could stay at the desired time and not age. You could always stay young and healthy, live in the desired time period, or stay with someone you like no matter how much time passes. There would be no need to say goodbye to dead people, and the sorrow of parting would be an old story only appearing in old song lyrics.
Now let¡¯s return to my microscopic situation. ¡¡As terrible as it is, it would be better if I was dying alone experiencing hallucination symptoms rather than a religion with crazy ideologies seeding in attempting to turn back time.
When the Mars Base Ares exploded, the officially announced death toll was about 8,200. What if something simr happens in the undersea base? I recalled Tyler¡¯s words.
¡®I don¡¯t know much either, but to perform the Infinity Day ritual, many people need to be in the building, and some people must die. They used to use fish, but for Infinity Day, it has to be humans.¡¯
I know at least a thousand people work here. I had to use all my strength just to help one person and two animals escape.
Chapter 112
Chapter 112
I quickly put on socks and hiking boots. As I pocketed my phone, which had be more of a watch than its original purpose, I thought: What time was it when I woke up in bed before? It must have been around 7 AM then too.
Since it was a holiday and water suddenly started leaking, I was so flustered that I couldn¡¯t remember at all what time I woke up. I was about to me my careless past self, but realizing there was no point in beating myself up, I rationalized instead. You don¡¯t count time on holidays anyway. You just lie aroundzily all day without thinking, eat something when you¡¯re hungry, and then lie down again to pass time.
It was around 4:30 PM when I died in the elevator, wasn¡¯t it? ¡¡Let¡¯s start recording the time from now on. It¡¯s not toote for anything. I can start now. I woke up at 7:02 AM this morning. While giving myself a tiny bit offort, I tossed my backpack onto the bed.
This time too, I stuffed all the towels I had into the backpack. Unlikest time, I didn¡¯t even bother putting my wallet or phone charger in the backpack. Clean cloth alwayses in handy in any situation.
What else should I pack? I definitely need a shlight. As time passed, power outages in the undersea base became more frequent. Light is necessary not only to see ahead but also for psychological reasons. In darkness, even the tiniest spark of light can be soforting to the mind.
What else? Wherever I go, if I see any sturdy, long rope, I should definitely grab it. Considering how Team Leader Shin Haeryang used parachute cords, and how I regretted not having a rope when the South District Research Center had a ckout, it¡¯s bound to be useful this time too.
I should also grab any painkillers I find along the way. It¡¯s nearly impossible for a person to achieve anything while continuously feeling pain. Whether it¡¯s mental or physical pain, it inevitably scatters your concentration.
The human body wasn¡¯t originally designed to endure pain, so what can you do? It¡¯s amazing how people who normally wouldn¡¯t even look at a dental clinice running so quickly when they get a toothache. What else, what else? I should avoid getting injured as much as possible. And if Ie across water, I must take it.
¡¡This time should be better than thest. I don¡¯t want to see people dying anymore, and I don¡¯t want to die either.After pondering for 5 seconds, I decided not to take the family photo and whale plushie this time. Instead, I packed an extra pair of pants and swept all the candy and chocte from the table into the backpack.
As I zipped up the waterproof backpack, I thought. Even if dying sends me back to the past, I don¡¯t know how many times I can go back. What if this is thest time? What should I do if I can¡¯t go back to the past anymore?
Now, even the time to think was precious. I came to a simple conclusion.
What else? I should live diligently as always, just like I¡¯ve always done. Without regrets.
Let¡¯s not believe that we can go back to the past infinitely. How do we know if those Infinity Church bastards named their cult wrong and it¡¯s actually the 3-Times Religion or 5-Times Religion? How can we trust the naming sense and work of these cult bastards? I took one deep breath. I was fully dressed with my backpack on. I could run out of the room at any moment.
Instead of leaving the room, I quickly opened the undersea base guidebook to find the broadcasting section. If this guidebook wasn¡¯t in Korean, I wouldn¡¯t have dared to open it in this situation.
Flipping through the pages, I briefly saw that the first escape method listed was the escape pod. I could only find the broadcasting section after turning quite a few pages, and skimming through it quickly, I saw that emergency broadcasts could also be made through the pad. It stated that broadcasting was possible if you had authority equivalent to or higher than an assistant team leader engineer within the undersea base.
Even during my 5-day shift here, there were broadcasts made once for each base. There were announcements about engineer shift changes, charging and repair times for mining robots, requests to return borrowed items or find people, and often broadcasts about what time toe out if you wanted to board a helicopter or ship from a certain country.
How much authority do I have? I know I can open other people¡¯s doors with my fingerprint because I¡¯m designated as medical staff. So what about broadcasting? Do I have the authority to make broadcasts? Does my authority equal or exceed that of an assistant team leader engineer?
I turned on the pad and entered the undersea base program. Even the 1-second wait for the program screen to turn on felt agonizing. Then I spent a few more seconds fumbling through the program to find the broadcasting section. Another part of me was screaming in impatience, saying there¡¯s no time for this nonsense and that I should run out of the room right now.
I tried to calm my anxious self. I¡¯m doing this to get better. I¡¯m doing this to live a better life. I¡¯m not wasting time! Be patient!
As I soothed my trembling fingertips from the urgency, I finally found the broadcast screen. When I pressed the broadcast button, it turned from red to green, activating. Cute dolphins and sailfish started swimming all over the screen. Can I broadcast like this? I asked the pad as if talking to it.
¡°Is this how I speak?¡±
[Is this how I speak]
As soon as I spoke to the pad, my stupid voice immediately flowed from the corridor speakers. I didn¡¯t even have time to breathe a sigh of relief. I immediately started speaking into the pad.
[This is Park Moohyun, a dentist working at the 4th Undersea Base, Deep Blue. If anyone is hearing my voice right now, do not board the escape pods! I repeat, do not escape through the escape pods! Currently, the escape pods have been¡ uh¡ intentionally sabotaged by unknown individuals to prevent them from leaving the mesopgic zone (-1000m). Even if an escape pod looks fine on the outside, you must not board it. For those trying to escape the undersea base, please abandon the idea of escaping via escape pods.]
If you don¡¯t want to die, don¡¯t take the escape pods! You bastards! What else? I recalled every bit of knowledge I had.
[And I don¡¯t know who they are, but someone has attacked the South District with torpedoes. At minimum, the Rare Earth Center, and at maximum, the South District Research Center, is being flooded with seawater.]
How much information should I give? ¡¡I don¡¯t know? How should people who hear this broadcast survive? I was about to ponder but realized I didn¡¯t even have time to think.
What I¡¯m doing might be aplete mistake. Maybe no one will believe me. It might be a stupid waste of time. ¡¡But someone might survive because of this!
I decided to provide everything I knew to the people listening to this broadcast. Monopolizing information about the future and trying to benefit alone would only end up producing corpses.
[In the East District, Engineer Team (China) is armed with firearms and indiscriminately attacking people, and Engineer Team (Japan) is also roaming around the Central Zone armed.]
I licked my parched lips once and said.
[Also, escape through the central elevator is impossible. A crazy religious group wearing ck hats and Greend shark patches has upied the other undersea bases except for the 4th Undersea Base, armed. The number of followers of this religion called the Infinity Church is estimated to be between 20 and 60. They are armed with rifles, and if you try to go up using the central elevator, you will inevitably encounter them. They aim to turn back time, and for some reason, they worship Greend sharks. They are very hostile and do not want the staff residing in the undersea bases to escape.]
What else was there? I knew I was spouting nonsense that even I couldn¡¯t understand as I spoke. Who would believe the Infinity Church story? I might be treated like a lunatic.
[Especially, absolutely! Absolutely! Do not board the undersea cable car connecting the 2nd Undersea Base and the 1st Undersea Base! And don¡¯t take the South District cargo elevator either! The undersea cable car is likely to copse along with the undersea base as time passes. And if you board the South District cargo elevator, due to continuous power outages, it moves up like a slug, and from the moment you board, there¡¯s nothing you can do except scream and pray!]
Having experienced being eaten by a shark and shot to death, my impression is that other people don¡¯t need to experience this. Let¡¯s share bad experiences to prevent more victims. Did I miss anything? I hesitated as I was about to end the broadcast and added onest thing.
[The undersea base is currently facing an unprecedented situation. At this moment, we must put aside our selfishness and try to ovee this disaster by helping those around us as much as possible. We cannot survive alone. Don¡¯t calcte gains and losses or rationality. To survive, we must help each other without expecting anything in return. ¡¡Let¡¯s stay healthy and get out alive.]
If people who heard this broadcast asked where they should escape to, I had no answer. I¡¯ve never sessfully left the undersea base either. But one thing I can be sure of: You need to cooperate with the people you meet inside the undersea base. It¡¯s hard enough just dealing with these insane fanatic terrorists!
I blurted out thest words and ended the broadcast. Then I immediately pressed the emergency rm on the pad.
[Beep beep beep beep! Emergency situation! All personnel in the 4th Undersea Base, please evacuate through escape pods, elevators, etc. Emergency situation! All personnel in the 4th Undersea Base, please evacuate through escape pods, elevators, etc.]
The now-familiar voice echoed throughout the White Tiger Zone. It was the button dimir had pressed before. I heard the doors of the White Tiger Zone opening simultaneously.
Although I had expected it, as soon as the door opened, water rushed into the room like a wave. Just seeing that made my heart rate skyrocket from stress.
¡¡Calm down. You can do this. You¡¯re doing this for the third time now. You¡¯repletely used to it. You¡¯ve be an expert. Don¡¯t worry. You won¡¯t bete. You can do everything on time. You haven¡¯t wasted anything. There¡¯s no need to be hasty.
Watching the water rise to my ankles, I immediately ran out of the room.
Carlos and Yoo Geum-yi were already in the corridor. The two were struggling to walk through the water-filled corridor. The sight of Yoo Geum-yi floundering as she walked through the water-filled corridor was so wee. I shouted at their backs as I sshed through the water.
¡°There¡¯s a cat in room 64! Please take it with you!¡±
¡°You want us to save a pet in this situation?! Are you crazy?¡±
Carlos retorted incredulously. I could see Irina running down the corridor, and dimir dragging Niki out of his room.
¡°di-mir!¡±
I shouted his name at the top of my lungs as I passed room 36. The Engineer Da Team leader turned his head towards me as he was looking at his drunk team member.
¡°Dmitri is sleeping in room 80! And there should be a snake in room 76, I think!¡±
Chapter 113
Chapter 113
It took about 2 seconds to check each room. I scanned each room diagonally with my eyes, confirmed no one was there, and sshed my way to the next room.
Except for the obviously empty rooms, not many people kept their rooms clean. Why on earth do they eat things like potato chips spilling them all over the bed? The state of each room was a mess with leftover food, drinks, and alcohol tipped over.
Especially in the room with an enormous collection of French wines, the improperly secured wine rack had fallen over, soaking the nket and bed.
For a moment, I mistook the color for blood and was startled, but upon seeing the broken bottles and smelling the scent, I realized it wasn¡¯t and closed the door with relief. Even though water was up to my ankles, the doors could still close.
ss would sink in the water, but if I was unlucky, I might end up drinking water mixed with fine powder or alcohol. After that, there was a session of rooms full of clothes and trash, with neither people nor animals.
In room 28, I found sterilized chocte milk, sterilized strawberry milk, sterilized soy milk cartons, all kinds of snacks, calorie bars, cup rice, and cup noodles written in Korean stacked so densely that the walls weren¡¯t visible up to the ceiling.
It was a room with nothing but food, and when I pulled back the nket that was shaped like a person, there was nothing. Despite the undersea base shaking so violently from the torpedo impact that someone sleeping in bed would have fallen to the floor, none of the food stacked to the ceiling had copsed. As I looked at that scene, I thought it looked more like a survival bunker than a supermarket, and headed to the next room.
It seemed like that room and the ones after belonged to the Engineer Ga Team. Unlike the room packed with food, the room right next to it was a mess with piles of unfolded clothes, half-finished drinks and snacks gathered on the desk. Gaming and programming magazines that seemed to have been ced on the floor were all soaked, and game consoles of various types were on the bed. All sorts of trash was floating in the water. Wow. It¡¯s aplete pigsty.
After scanning for 2 seconds and moving on, there was apletely clean room in contrast to the previous one. The nket was neatly folded with sharp edges, and on the desk, there was nothing but a men¡¯s skin lotion and a tumbler. Clean rooms were easy to pass by. There was less visual information to process.The room right next, number 25, had a cross and several watercolor paintings on the wall, and next to a Bible, there were a few ¡°Easy Learning Farsi¡± books and several sketchbooks on the desk. The watercolors on the wall seemed to have been painted by the room¡¯s owner. Next to an empty easel, there was a messy apron, dried-up paints, a palette, several brushes, and what looked like dirty water containers scattered around. An empty wine bottle was floating in the water on the floor.
Now wading through water up to my calves, I looked into room 24, Kang Soojung¡¯s room. I took in the sight of various types of dumbbells andic books in differentnguages scattered around, then immediately headed to the next room.
Room 23, next to Kang Soojung¡¯s, was overflowing with belongings. Posters were stered densely on the walls and ceiling. Nirvana, Queen, Oasis, Muse, Radiohead¡¡ What era of music are they listening to?
The bookshelf was so full of books that they couldn¡¯t all fit, so books were stacked horizontally on the desk, creating pirs of books. A small metal vanity that seemed to have been purchased and installed separately was overflowing with cosmetics, and the wardrobe was wide open, also overflowing with clothes.
On top of the vanity was a box presumed to be an essory storage, with fierce warning messages written in English, Chinese, and Japanese. [Touch and lose a wrist] Reading that message, I chuckled and moved to the next room.
The next room was number 22, and this room was also extremely clean. A few bags of nuts for snacks and men¡¯s skin lotion were ced on the desk along with a pad. There was a half-knitted sock and a ball of yarn, suggesting someone might be knitting.
A pink flower pot that had been on the floor was now floating in the water, dying as it absorbed seawater. I waded in and grabbed the pad on the desk, immediately putting it in my backpack. Then I headed to the next room. Room 21 next door was empty.
Room 20 was overflowing with green. Shelves were densely installed throughout the room, growing nts. At first, I thought the room¡¯s owner might have a hobby of growing nts underwater and was about to pass by in 2-3 seconds like the other rooms, but ovee by a strange sensation, I looked into the room again.
Several nts were growing intensively under artificial sunlight, but especially the nt I was about to pass by thinking it was a flower bud gave me an enormous sense of difort. There are no flower buds that look like that. ¡¡Could this be an opium poppy pod? I couldn¡¯t be sure because I had never seen an opium poppy pod in my life.
Moreover, on the desk were simple instruments that might be used for refining, several scales and spoons, a sticky and dirty pocket knife, and dozens of square-cut recycled papers. Plus, there was an extremely heavy-looking metal safe under the desk. No way. It can¡¯t be, right?
The room had removed the bed entirely and cedrge drawers in its ce, so I tried opening three drawers as a test. One opened and two didn¡¯t. The one that opened contained individually packaged pills that I had never seen before.
What kind of medicine is this? I was puzzled that the pills didn¡¯t have English names engraved on them, so I flipped them over, but there was nothing written. Why is there no English name? ¡¡Holy shit. Curses rose to my throat involuntarily. I panicked as if I might catch poison ivy and ran out of the room, locking it with my fingerprint. I¡¯d rather have a dirty room! Is the room owner crazy?!
Feeling utterly creeped out, I moved towards the lower-numbered rooms. Room 19 was empty. asionally, I shouted towards rooms I hadn¡¯t checked.
¡°Is anyone still asleep?! Anyone who needs help or couldn¡¯t escape?!¡±
It was when I reached room 15. I heard a sound from very far away. Coming out of room 14, someone was calling me. Yoo Geum-yi was waving both arms far down the corridor.
¡°The cat! It¡¯s not here!¡±
¡°What did you say?!¡±
¡°The cat isn¡¯t here! In room 64! The cat! It¡¯s not there! Is it in a different room?!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi shouted from afar. No. There was a cat in that room! It¡¯s the right room! I mixed up the room number for the snake when I first rescued it because I was in a hurry, but the cat is definitely in that room!
I was about to run towards Yoo Geum-yi but stopped in my tracks. Can a cat disappear like smoke or hide in a studio apartment? I recalled a friend¡¯s story about taking two days to find a hamster that had escaped its cage in a room. Can cats do that too? I¡¯ve never raised one. ¡¡What should I do? After hesitating for a moment, I waved one arm and shouted.
¡°Yoo Geum-yi! Escape! Escape first!¡±
Given Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s personality, she wouldn¡¯t say such a thing without thoroughly searching for the cat. Why isn¡¯t it there? ¡¡Where on earth did it go! Swallowing the rising fear and anxiety, I gritted my teeth and moved forward.
It had been several decades sincews were enacted regarding the evacuation and transportation of pets, as incidents of people refusing to evacuate dangerous situations due to not wanting to abandon their pets became frequent. Although animal rescue in disaster situations has bemonce, the story changes when it¡¯s impossible to secure one¡¯s own safety. This is because in situations like earthquakes orndslides, time is wasted searching for animals that have hidden in fear, resulting in both the animal and the rescuer dying.
I couldn¡¯t ask Yoo Geum-yi to risk her life for a cat that wasn¡¯t her responsibility. When I looked at room 12, the water had already risen past my knees to my thighs. Could I still go from here to room 64 now? People staying in the lower-numbered rooms might have escaped on their own. They could be empty rooms, right? After biting my lip and pondering for a moment, I shook my head. I can¡¯t go back.
As the water rose past my thighs, it became difficult to walk, so I started walking while leaning against the wall. The residents of the lower-numbered rooms seemed to have quickly left the dormitory using the stairs next to room 1 when my broadcast came out, or they were already out on vacation.
I was shouting as loudly as the emergency rm while moving forward, when I faintly heard music in front of room 11. An old famous pop song was ying energetically, and I, surprised, scanned room 10 with my eyes and immediately checked room 9.
[I¡¯m living in a world where there are no innocent people!]
As I moved forward, the music got louder, and it was only when I reached room 8 that I realized someone was there.
A woman wearing headphones was lying on a second-floor bunk bed, singing. She was singing loudly as if holding her own concert, twirling her hair with her fingers, unaware that all the objects on the first floor were floating in the water.
[At least I¡¯m alive!]
Encountering a bunk bed for the first time in this 4th Undersea Base, I was dumbfounded. I spoke to the person who wasn¡¯t wet at all thanks to the bed installed near the ceiling.
¡°Hey! We need to get out of here!¡±
She couldn¡¯t hear me shouting from outside the door, so I approached the second-floor bunk bed and removed the headphones she was wearing. The woman looked down at me from her lying position, then startled, sat up in bed, resulting in her hitting her head on the ceiling. There was a thud. There was no time to stop her.
¡°Aaah! My head!¡±
Hearing her dying groan, I quickly said.
¡°Water is leaking! If you don¡¯t want to die, get out quickly!¡±
By the time I checked room 4, the water had already risen from waist to chest level. The woman from room 8 put on some clothes and said with the headphones around her neck.
¡°The people in the front rooms are on vacation. They¡¯re probably not here.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t even know you were here until I came this far.¡±
Far away at the end of the corridor, I could barely see two people moving. It looked like Nikita and dimir. They seemed to have just arrived at the central stairs located at room 40. dimir, in particr, appeared to be carrying something on his back, but it was too far to see clearly.
dimir just pointed at me with his index finger, then made a gesture of drawing a long line from left to right across his throat with his thumb.
I¡¯m not sure what that gesture means, but it either means he¡¯s going to slit my throat or he¡¯s going to brush his teeth from left to right. I hope it¡¯s thetter. After confirming that no one was in the rooms up to room 1, I went up the stairs located next to room 1.
Chapter 114
Chapter 114
¡°Where should we go now? Where are we going?¡±
¡°For now, to the escape pod port.¡±
The woman from room 8 kept talking as she followed closely behind me.
¡°Why are we going to the escape pods?¡±
¡°People will be gathering there to escape. If not there, then at the elevators.¡±
¡°Uh¡ Do we need to escape right away? Are we in a dangerous situation?¡±
The woman asked me with a bewildered expression. Hearing her questions made me even more flustered.
¡°The dormitory you were just lying in is filled with water up to your chest, and you¡¯re asking if it¡¯s a dangerous situation? Could there be a more dangerous situation in an undersea base?¡±
¡°I forgot my passport in the room. We can¡¯t go back, can we? ¡¡Doesn¡¯t look like it.¡±Seeing me quickly lock the door connected to the flooded dormitory stairs, the woman hastily added thest part. Then, wringing out her wet clothes, she asked me:
¡°If there¡¯s a water leak somewhere, won¡¯t the engineers fix it? There were over 50 engineers.¡±
¡°First, we need to get out of the undersea base quickly.¡±
¡°So we can escape using the escape pods instead of the elevator? I¡¯ve never used an escape pod in the undersea base before, have you?¡±
Hearing these questions, I realized this person didn¡¯t know anything about the current situation.
¡°You didn¡¯t hear the broadcast, did you?¡±
¡°There was a broadcast? As you saw from my state earlier, I was busy making the most of my day off. I¡¯m Tumanako Oranga. I¡¯m from New Zend, and I¡¯m the resident hairstylist of this undersea base.¡±
Tumanako extended her palm energetically, and I reflexively shook her hand. There was a hair salon in the undersea base? There was nothing about that in the guidebook.
¡°I¡¯m Park Moohyun, a Korean dentist who came here 5 days ago. Was there a hair salon in the undersea base?¡±
¡°It¡¯s only been here for about a month. It¡¯s next to the escape pod port in the 3rd Undersea Base, so people don¡¯te often. It¡¯s quite slow because of that. I hope it stays unknown forever, but then the salon itself might disappear due tock of customers. I¡¯d like it to be moderately busy. Don¡¯t you think the same about your dental clinic?¡±
¡°I might have thought that at first, but now I don¡¯t think anything.¡±
¡°I heard that people living in the undersea base requested a dental clinic and a hair salon the most. As you know, both hair and teeth be a mess if you don¡¯t take care of them consistently. I¡¯m new here too. Nice to meet you.¡±
Tumanako said this with a smile. I nodded nkly. Although Tumanako had just been submerged in water up to her chest moments ago, she didn¡¯t seem to care about it at all.
The undersea base guidebook that Seo Jihyuk gave me must have been tranted a long time ago, as it didn¡¯t mention anything about a hair salon created a month ago. Well, the same goes for the dental clinic. As we started walking side by side towards the escape pod port, Tumanako looked at me and casually asked:
¡°How do you like working here? I¡¯ve only been here for a month, but I think it¡¯s really, really good. It¡¯s my first time having my own hair salon. Plus, there aren¡¯t many appointments yet, and they pay a lot since it¡¯s a sry system. They provide amodation and three meals a day. Where else in the world can you find a ce like this! It¡¯s absolute heaven.¡±
Uh¡ What should I say? Listening to Tumanako¡¯s story, I felt like my mind was slipping out through my nose. I was so desperate to quit this job. Hearing such contrasting sentiments made my head hurt.
¡°I¡ I¡¯ve only been here for five days.¡±
¡°Really? It must all feel so new. I never imagined I¡¯d be working in an undersea base either. As you can tell from my name, I thought I¡¯d be rejected as soon as I submitted my resume.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°Huh?¡±
¡°Why did you think you¡¯d be rejected?¡±
Tumanako looked surprised at my question.
¡°Ah. I guess you Asian people don¡¯t discriminate based on names?¡±
What is she talking about? ¡¡Can you discriminate based on names? Hire for some names and not for others? Do they use name fortune-telling in the hiring process or something? Is it because I¡¯ve never been an employer in my life? It was hard to imagine. Maybe it¡¯s a form of discrimination I¡¯ve never experienced.
¡°How do they discriminate based on names?¡±
When I asked, Tumanako looked at me as if surprised. It was an expression like she had stepped into a culture she had never encountered before.
¡°My name doesn¡¯t sound like a white person¡¯s name living in New Zend, right?¡±
¡°All I know about New Zend is that the kiwi bird that lived there went extinct.¡±
Kiwis went extinct like dodos, suffering from dehydration due to heat waves and droughts. Tumanakoughed lightly at my words and said:
¡°My name is in the Maoringuage. Just submitting a resume with a name like this to a bigpany like this would usually mean instant rejection. I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d get in either. Have you seen the names of the Australian and New Zend engineers?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°They all have white names. I was worried they might take away my contract and kick me out during the first month here, but now I¡¯m starting to get used to it.¡±
¡¡I had never thought about it like that before. Is it because I¡¯ve never worked in such a multinational environment? Would Tumanako not have been able to get hired under normal circumstances?
I imagined Priya taking away my employment contract right now and kicking me in the butt while chasing me back to Korea. I would probably run out of here cheering. They don¡¯t even have to pay me for the five days I worked.
Recalling all the dark aspects of the undersea base I had learned over the past three days, I suddenly realized I could never go back to that moment when I first marveled at the interior of the central elevator. Was I too shocked by the room growing opium poppies? As if affirming it to myself, I said to Tumanako:
¡°I¡¯ve only been here for five days, but I¡¯ve decided to quit.¡±
It felt like more than a week had already passed. The events I experienced on my day off were more challenging than the five days I worked. Tumanako seemed not to understand me. With a slightly worried expression, she asked:
¡°Why? Is the food not to your liking? If you¡¯re having trouble with seasickness or noise from living in the undersea base, you can get earplugs or medicine from the hospital on the first floor. Are you depressed because you can¡¯t get sunlight?¡±
¡°No. Those things are fine.¡±
What should I tell Tumanako first? I remembered asking Baek Ae-young about life in the undersea base after I first started. Didn¡¯t she say it was a bit¡ difficult? I didn¡¯t realize then how much meaning waspressed into those words. Is this what it feels like to see a neer who has unknowingly entered hell?
When we arrived at the escape pod port, the surrounding floor was flooded. It seemed that the people from the White Tiger dormitory had already entered the escape pod port. I quickly told Tumanako the most important part of what I had broadcast:
¡°We need to leave the undersea base without using the escape pods.¡±
¡°Really? Why?¡±
¡°Because they¡¯re broken.¡±
As we entered the escape pod port, everyone inside looked at me. I never thought I¡¯d receive the gazes of so many people in my life. I felt like I was being crushed under the weight of their stares. There were more people than I expected. Tumanako, who was following me without much thought, flinched. Then she said to me:
¡°Everyone¡¯s looking at you.¡±
I know. Well, it can¡¯t be helped. They must have heard the broadcast. ¡¡Let¡¯s handle this one step at a time.
As I walked down the corridor, I acutely felt how light my body was with the backpack on. There was no cat, snake, or child on my back.
I saw dimirying Henry down on a dry spot where the Engineer Da Team had gathered. I¡¯m d he¡¯s safe. I approached Yoo Geum-yi first, who was near the Engineer Ga Team.
¡°Yoo Geum-yi. I¡¯m d you made it out safely. You said the cat wasn¡¯t in room 64?¡±
¡°What? Yes. It wasn¡¯t there. Is the cat so small that I couldn¡¯t find it? How big is it?¡±
¡°Hmm. It¡¯s about 6kg. It¡¯s not a size you could miss.¡±
It¡¯s not a cat small enough to overlook. When the rm went off loudly, the cat¡¯s fur puffed up making it look huge. Where could it hide? Yoo Geum-yi shook her head.
¡°I shook out the nkets several times, but it wasn¡¯t there.¡±
¡°¡¡Thank you for looking.¡±
Then where did the cat go? Did it slip off the bed and fall into the water? Can cats swim? Is it still trapped in the flooding White Tiger dormitory? That kind and gentle creature wouldn¡¯t go anywhere on its own. And no one took it.
At that moment, I recalled the image of Emma running out of the elevator with my backpack, disappearing into the sunlight. If Emma had escaped with the cat and snake. If that¡¯s why the cat isn¡¯t in the undersea base, how did that happen? How should I make it happen again?
While I was lost in thought, someone approached withrge strides and grabbed my cor with one hand, lifting me up. In the blink of an eye, my body was suspended in the air. dimir held me up and said:
¡°You little rat bastard.¡±
With a man over 190cm tall lifting and shaking me with one arm, I waspletely disoriented. Even though he was just grabbing my cor, it was hard to breathe.
¡°Are you ying with me?¡±
I have nothing to say even if I had a hundred mouths. But if I hadn¡¯t told you that your team member was there, if I had said a child was sleeping in a flooding room, you wouldn¡¯t have gone to rescue them, would you?
dimir was pulling his right hand far back. I had seen Niki get hit like this when he wasn¡¯t fully sober. I gritted my teeth and shut my eyes tight, bracing for the iing palm. Just spare my eyes. The surgery costs if they¡¯re injured are no joke. Teeth, well. I know many dentists.
When I didn¡¯t feel any pain on my face after a few seconds, I opened my eyes slightly. dimir¡¯s right hand, which was about to fly towards my face, was stopped in mid-air.
Shin Haeryang was holding dimir¡¯s right forearm. Seeing me suspended in the air, Shin Haeryang said one thing to dimir:
¡°Put him down.¡±
¡°This has nothing to do with your team.¡±
¡°He¡¯s a Korean civilian.¡±
As Shin Haeryang finished speaking, a sh of annoyance crossed dimir¡¯s face.
¡°Two of our team members are missing.¡±
Still holding dimir¡¯s arm, Shin Haeryang replied:
¡°I know.¡±
¡°How could this bastard have known about Dmitri being missing in that situation?¡±
¡°Team member management is the team leader¡¯s responsibility. If you want to argue about negligence in management, punch your own face.¡±
Shin Haeryang replied coldly. ¡¡Mr. Shin Haeryang. If you¡¯re going to talk like that to someone who woke up to find water leaking and two team members missing, why didn¡¯t you just watch me get beaten? From the perspective of someone suspended in mid-air, I could see the members of both teams gathered around their team leaders.
Chapter 115
Chapter 115
¡¡Mr. Shin Haeryang. If you¡¯re going to talk like that to someone who woke up to find water leaking and two team members missing, why didn¡¯t you just watch me get beaten?
dimir seemed to be contemting whether to hit me first with his captured right arm or to hit Shin Haeryang. The members of both teams swarmed around their team leaders. Then, leaving me gasping intermittently and the team leaders ring at each other, they started chattering among themselves. They didn¡¯t seem to have any intention of stopping this situation. Seo Jihyuk, yawning wide enough to split his mouth, pped Niki¡¯s forearm and said:
¡°Hey. I¡¯m going to bet money that our team leader wins. You should bet on your team leader too before it starts! Hurry! I¡¯ve got 5 dors right now.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t have cash. I ran out of my room without even putting on underwear, how would I have money?¡±
¡°Aargh! Gross! Why didn¡¯t you just die in the dormitory!¡±
Baek Ae-young asked Sophia, whose face had turned pale:
¡°Where did your two kids go? ¡¡Are you okay? What¡¯s wrong with your face?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t feel well. Maybe the salo I ate as a snack went bad. Ah. My hands are like ice, and I feel like I¡¯m going to throw up.¡±
¡°Turn your back to me and bend over.¡±Baek Ae-young started pounding Sophia¡¯s back with her fist, making loud sounds. Viktor, who had been sitting silently on the floor, half rose from his seat when he saw Baek Ae-young¡¯s punching, but sat back down when he saw Sophia not avoiding it. Sophia, being hit on the back with thudding sounds, grimaced and said:
¡°¡¡I feel like I¡¯m going to throw up even more.¡±
¡°Go to that corner and throw up. Don¡¯t let us hear it.¡±
dimir, who had been facing Shin Haeryang, caught Nikita¡¯s eye standing and waiting beside him. Then, as if displeased, he let go of my cor. Unprepared, I immediately fell on my butt. As soon as I could breathe, Nikita grabbed my shoulder like passing a baton and asked:
¡°So where is Dmitri?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
Now Nikita tried to grab my cor. Kang Soojung, who had been watching with her arms crossed, intervened and said:
¡°Easy now. You¡¯ll kill the doctor.¡±
¡°He¡¯s a little shit, but he¡¯s our little shit. I don¡¯t want to go home and tell Mom and Dad I escaped alone and abandoned my little brother!¡±
Nikita growled anxiously. I quickly shook my head.
¡°I checked all the lower-numbered rooms, but he wasn¡¯t in the White Tiger dormitory. ¡¡I didn¡¯t see him in the Central Zone or the South District dormitory either.¡±
I¡¯m not intentionally hiding anything. I¡¯m telling everything I know. Nikita stared at my face intensely and said:
¡°Then he must be in the East District or the North District. Is it true that the Chinese in the East District have guns?¡±
¡°Yes. They¡¯re all armed. They¡¯ll be waiting for peopleing towards the East District escape pods.¡±
¡°What about the North District?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
It seems like I¡¯m useful, but not really. Nikita spoke softly and then gestured towards the child, asking:
¡°Is that your kid?¡±
¡°No. His name is Henry. He¡¯s the child of Leonard Sanders and Nevae Hopkins.¡±
¡°The one from the American team who drinks a lot?¡±
Kang Soojung, who was listening beside me, asked. Which one of Leonard and Nevae is from the American team? I¡¯m not sure. Tumanako looked at us and said:
¡°To be precise, he¡¯s Nevae¡¯s child now. They divorced, and Nevae got custody of the child.¡±
¡°How do you know?¡±
¡°Nevae came to get her hair done. When you do hair for 5 hours, all kinds of storiese out. Uh¡ She said she was going to leave the child with her mother¡¯s house in Brisbane. I don¡¯t know why the child is here.¡±
It¡¯s surprising that Henry, a minor, is in this undersea base, but it¡¯s also surprising that someone would do something to their hair for 5 hours. What kind of hair treatment takes 5 hours? It¡¯s not like it¡¯s surgery. While rubbing my neck area with my hand, I asked Tumanako:
¡°Why did they divorce?¡±
¡°Ah. That¡¯s a solid privacy bound by protein between a hairdresser and client, so I can¡¯t tell you¡¡±
When two menrger than doors, one angry woman, and one man sprawled on the floor urged her with their eyes, Tumanako quickly corrected her stance.
¡°Leonard is an alcoholic, they say. He drinks at least two bottles a day. He promised not to drink and broke that promise four or five times, and once he lost Henry while passed out drunk. They divorced right after that. She said she¡¯d return to Australia once she sorted out their house in America.¡±
¡°That bastard Leonard brought him in.¡±
Kang Soojung casually said to her team leader who was looking at her.
¡°The most recent helicopter that came and left was from the Americans, wasn¡¯t it?¡±
Nikita stared at the sleeping Henry for a few seconds and then let me go with a troubled face. As I awkwardly got up from the floor, I said to dimir, who had shaken off Shin Haeryang¡¯s arm with annoyance:
¡°Thank you. Henry survived thanks to you.¡±
When dimir turned his gaze to me, tension filled the air again. He slowly asked me:
¡°¡¡Doctor. What were you nning to do if I had just left that child in the room and came out? Were you certain I would bring him out?¡±
The worry that dimir might just leave after seeing Henry sleeping in room 80, even if he visited the room because of my lie, had been nagging at a corner of my mind. The thought that it might be safer, albeit slower, if I went and carried the child out myself kept tormenting me as I checked the empty lower-numbered rooms.
In the worst case, a child could have died because of my misjudgment. I looked at Tumanako for a moment and then said to dimir:
¡°You woke up your team members and checked the rooms before leavingst, didn¡¯t you? I thought you were a team leader who knew how to take care of your team members.¡±
I had no certainty. I just believed in the morality I had observed in him during our brief interaction.
¡°I had no choice but to trust that you wouldn¡¯t abandon a living child.¡±
dimir¡¯s frowning gaze lingered on me for a few seconds. I thought he might attack me again, but soon he averted his eyes from me. He went to gather his team members who were sitting in corners, dozing off, or throwing up. I hurriedly asked dimir¡¯s back:
¡°Was the snake not in the room?!¡±
¡°Don¡¯t catch my eye. If you don¡¯t want to die.¡±
So does that mean it wasn¡¯t there? Or it was? Depending on whether the snake was in the room or not, the hypothesis that Emma, the cat, and the snake all no longer exist in the undersea base bes clearer.
As I was about to call out to him again for confirmation, a startled Kang Soojung lightly covered my mouth with one hand. Maybe because her hand was big, it covered my nose too. Kang Soojung urgently whispered to me:
¡°Doctor. That man doesn¡¯t have the best temper. The couple, both of them. Just! Ugh! This is actually an incredibly peaceful ending.¡±
Kang Soojung, shaking her head as if nauseated, slowly removed her hand from my face. Shin Haeryang, who was standing nearby, looked at Henry lying on the floor and then turned his gaze to me and said:
¡°I¡¯m Shin Haeryang, team leader of Engineer KoreanTeam.¡±
¡°Ah, yes. I¡¯m Park Moohyun, dentist at Deep Blue.¡±
I see. This person doesn¡¯t know me. Shin Haeryang calmly looked at me and asked:
¡°Are you injured anywhere?¡±
¡°No, I¡¯m not.¡±
Shin Haeryang nodded and pointed towards the escape pods. Following his hand, I saw that there was one empty escape pod left.
¡°I heard the broadcast. There¡¯s an escape pod left, but we¡¯re not using it.¡±
¡°Ah, yes.¡±
¡°How did you obtain the information you mentioned in the broadcast?¡±
How should I exin this? I learned it forcibly by experiencing this situation for the third time?
¡°I happened to learn about it by chance.¡±
Shin Haeryang looked at me once but didn¡¯t say anything specific to my response, though he didn¡¯t seem to trust the source much. Looking around, I could see Shin Haeryang, Kang Soojung, Baek Ae-young, Seo Jihyuk, and Lee Ji-hyun. ¡¡Two people from the Engineer Korean Team were missing.
¡°Did you use the escape pods?¡±
¡°¡¡Among our team members, Kim Jaehee and Jung Sanghyun escaped using the escape pods.¡±
¡°Why¡ why?¡±
¡°Kim Jaehee¡¯s escape pod wasunched just as the broadcast started, and Jung Sanghyun didn¡¯t believe the broadcast content.¡±
¡°To be precise, that crazy Sanghyun disobeyed the instruction not to board and threw himself into the escape pod like he was diving.¡±
Seo Jihyuk rested his right chin on his right hand and drew a parab with his left index finger, making a whoosh sound.
¡°In all my life, I¡¯ve never seen that bastard move so fast.¡±
Kang Soojung, standing nearby,ughed while snorting. They say that Carlos, who had fled from the White Tiger dormitory, took one of the escape pods and left. ¡¡I had guessed that some might not believe my broadcast, but actually confirming it like this felt strange.
Shin Haeryang was watching the escape pods that had just left the abyssal zone (3,000m-6,000m) and started ascending on arge monitor. He seemed to be checking the status of the escape pods and nning to move. With the team leader doing that, the team members were all sprawled on the floor or sitting around carelessly. Even Yoo Geum-yi, who had been standing next to Henry all along, and Tumanako, who had been looking around at people, sat on the floor after observing the behavior of those around them.
I can¡¯t tell if they trust my words or not. Before, they had moved towards the South District without dy, at a sweeping pace. At that moment, a low voice asked from beside me:
¡°Was there a reason you made the broadcast?¡±
¡°Because I know the escape pods are broken. I announced it hoping people wouldn¡¯t die by using them. The same goes for the other dangers.¡±
¡°¡¡Then the ones who sabotaged them will be after you, you know.¡±
¡°I know.¡±
It¡¯s okay. I¡¯m prepared. ¡¡Actually, I¡¯m not sure how prepared I should be, but at least it should be less painful than having my side torn by a shark. In this situation, it was better to have even one more person survive than to gain an advantage through information inequality.
¡°I just shared what I know for survival.¡±
¡°Did you show all the cards you have?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Shin Haeryang said to me with an expressionless face:
¡°¡¡Don¡¯t y poker, doctor.¡±
¡°Pardon? Ah. It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m not doing this to win.¡±
I opened the zipper of the backpack I was wearing and fumbled to take out candies and a pad.
Chapter 116
Chapter 116
I ced a random colored candy on the pad and handed it to Shin Haeryang. He nodded slightly, took the candy, and turned on the pad. I distributed sugar-free candies to Yoo Geum-yi and Tumanako. Yoo Geum-yi chose randomly, but Tumanako took a while to pick a vor.
Seo Jihyuk quickly snatched the orange and strawberry vored candies from my hand, unwrapped the strawberry one, and put it in the mouth of Lee Ji-hyun, who was lying down. Baek Ae-young picked up a plum-vored candy but didn¡¯t eat it. The sugar-free candies made a round among the people in the escape pod port. After checking the pad and turning it off, Shin Haeryang asked me:
¡°What do you think is the most urgent matter to deal with right now?¡±
¡°Rescuing Kim Ga-young.¡±
¡°Is she in danger that requires rescue?¡±
¡°Kim Ga-young is trapped in Room 77 of the South District. Water ising in, and the door won¡¯t open.¡±
¡°Is there a possibility of encountering dangerous individuals on the way to the South District?¡±
I had gone to the South District from the West District twice, but I hadn¡¯t encountered anyone in between.
¡°No. It¡¯s difficult to rescue her once we get there, but there¡¯s no problem on the way. There¡¯s a high possibility of a gunfight from the North District towards the Central Zone on the way back after the rescue.¡±¡°I see. Deputy Team Leader!¡±
Kang Soojung, who had been chatting and giggling with Nikita from afar, heard Shin Haeryang¡¯s call and ran towards us.
¡°Team Leader. You called?¡±
¡°Did they say they would move together?¡±
¡°They said they have no intention of going together even if the Kremlin Pce copses.¡±
As Shin Haeryang raised his head towards dimir, dimir was holding his fist with his thumb pointing downwards. I¡¯m not sure what it meant, but I could tell it was a sign of refusal.
Then dimir pointed at Shin Haeryang, pressed one finger against his head, and then spread his five fingers towards the people. It seemed like he was pointing at the people around Henry with his fingertips, but Shin Haeryang ignored dimir¡¯s hand gestures and said to Kang Soojung:
¡°A few team members need to go to the South District.¡±
¡°Why is that?¡±
¡°It seems Researcher Kim Ga-young is trapped in Room 77 of the South District.¡±
¡°Do we need to go get her?¡±
¡°Yes. Deputy Team Leader and Jihyuk will go together.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been half-lying down eating candy, got up unsteadily.
¡°I wanted to bezy a bit longer.¡±
¡°Oh. As if you¡¯ve ever not been.¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had been standing all along, looked around cautiously, and as Seo Jihyuk got up, she sat down on the floor. Lee Ji-hyun, who had been lying on her back on the floor, squirmed and crawled over to use Baek Ae-young¡¯s calf as a pillow. Baek Ae-young adjusted her leg position to make it easier for Lee Ji-hyun to rest her head. Then she waved in advance to Kang Soojung and Seo Jihyuk, who hadn¡¯t left yet. Kang Soojung looked at the two team members on the floor and then at me, saying to the Team Leader:
¡°Is the dentisting with us too?¡±
¡°I might not be of much help, but if I¡¯m to go along, I¡¯ll do my best to assist.¡±
Shin Haeryang thought for a moment and then nodded.
¡°Then, doctor, please go with the two of them. We¡¯ll be moving to the Central Zone soon as well.¡±
¡°Pardon? Where in the Central Zone are you going?¡±
¡°We¡¯re going to Orphion.¡±
Orphion was the gym inside the underwater base. I hadn¡¯t been there yet, but I heard rumors that it was full of equipment for weight training and cardio exercises. It¡¯s a facility in the Central Zone, but why are they going there? Seeing my expression, Shin Haeryang answered:
¡°The walls have been broken a few times, so it¡¯s been renovated several times. It¡¯s the sturdiest ce in the Central Zone.¡±- ¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤What could they have done to break the walls of a gym? Is it because I¡¯m not familiar with exercise that I don¡¯t know gyms are built with easily breakable walls? Or is there a wall-breaking exercise in muscle training? As I zipped up the open backpack, I asked:
¡°How did the walls end up broken?¡±
There was a moment of silence from Shin Haeryang. When I looked at him because there was no answer, he replied after a brief pause:
¡°The partition walls couldn¡¯t support a person¡¯s body weight.¡±
What on earth did they do? Beside me, as Seo Jihyuk was receiving the pad from Lee Ji-hyun, I made eye contact with Lee Ji-hyun, who had been lying on the floor all along. Lee Ji-hyun greeted me while making all sorts of expressions, still lying down.
¡°I¡¯m Lee Ji-hyun. It might be hard to believe in this situation when we¡¯re meeting for the first time, but I¡¯m not a disrespectful person.¡±
¡°Ah. Yes. Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Park Moohyun. Please stay lying down, don¡¯t get up.¡±
Lee Ji-hyun, who had been pale, answered with a slight smile:
¡°I¡¯m suddenly not feeling well. I don¡¯t usually lie around like this.¡±
I barely swallowed the words ¡°I know¡± that were about toe out. The Lee Ji-hyun I knew was someone who was more active than others.
¡°What exactly doesn¡¯t feel well?¡±
¡°Every part of my body was aching. It felt like I had been ground into powder.¡±
¡°When did you start feeling unwell?¡±
¡°Hmm. Not long ago. A few minutes before the broadcast. I feel much better now. Can muscle pain suddenly ur all over the body like this?¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤I¡¯m not sure.¡±
If a virus or something invaded the body, it could happen. When you get the flu, your whole body aches. Muscle pain can also ur from dehydration or electrolyte deficiency. Why is her physical condition poor? Wasn¡¯t Ji-hyun okay when I met her before? ¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤Or not? Was she unwell then too but didn¡¯t tell me? When I handed her the acetaminophen-based painkiller from my bag, Ji-hyun swallowed it without water.
Looking at the ailing Ji-hyun, I suddenly remembered something Kang Soojung had said before. Before sending them off on the escape pod, she mentioned that Seo Jihyuk had been rolling on the floor, saying his legs hurt.
Was that an exaggeration? The current Seo Jihyuk was walking around perfectly fine. Moreover, he looked much healthier than Ji-hyun who was lying on the floor. Seo Jihyuk was pacing around next to Ji-hyun, skillfully hopping to avoid Baek Ae-young¡¯s attempts to grab his ankle like a trap. There was no trace of the man who had to walk up over four thousand stairs with someone¡¯s support after being shot in the knee. Kang Soojung, who had been talking with Shin Haeryang, said to me and Seo Jihyuk:
¡°Let¡¯s go quickly.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Yep.¡±
After walking a few steps, I asked towards Seo Jihyuk¡¯s back:
¡°Jihyuk. Are you in any pain?¡±
¡°No? Oh? My tooth is fine now.¡±
Seo Jihyuk mistakenly thought I was asking about the tooth I had treated a few days ago.
¡°I see.¡±
He must really be in good physical condition. Yoo Geum-yi, who was watching me about to leave the escape pod port, remained next to Henry. Tumanako waved at me. I took in the sight of the Russians and the rest of the people as I left the escape pod port.
As we quickly left the escape pod port and turned into the corridor, we encountered Kevin Wilson¡¯s corpse. As before, he was dead near the start of the corridor leading to the Central Zone. It seemed he had hit his head hard on the metal handrail when the underwater base shook. The first time I encountered this person¡¯s corpse, it was terribly frightening, but now that I¡¯m seeing it for the third time, it wasn¡¯t particrly scary. I just felt sorry that he died in a ce like this.
Unlike before, neither Kang Soojung nor Seo Jihyuk tried to stop when they realized someone had died; instead, they attempted to pass by quickly. Rather, Kang Soojung spoke to me, who had stopped in front of the corpse, as if urging me on:
¡°We need to get to the South District as quickly as possible.¡±
I nodded and said to Kang Soojung:
¡°Give me just 5 seconds! I won¡¯t ask for more than that.¡±
I quickly took a photo of the face with the pad and scribbled the current time and name on it. Kang Soojung and Seo Jihyuk stood still, watching what I was doing. Then, as I approached, they started walking briskly again.
As we fully entered the corridor leading to the Central Zone, Seo Jihyuk, who had been walking quickly ahead, asked:
¡°Um, about what you said in the broadcast. I¡¯m starting to forget more than half of it.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°So where in the underwater base should we go to survive?¡±
¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤I¡¯m not sure about that either.¡±
Since I¡¯ve never seeded in leaving the underwater base myself. Kang Soojung looked at the window in the corridor and grabbed Seo Jihyuk¡¯s shoulder.
¡°I can see why you mentioned the research center.¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked in the direction Kang Soojung was pointing and said while staring into the darkness that seemed to be made of ck water:
¡°Deputy Team Leader. Why is it so dark outside? There used to be lights near the research center, like on a squid fishing boat. They said they kept them on permanently for underwater research.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know either. Doctor, do you know who fired the torpedo?¡±
¡°I have no idea at all.¡±
The conversation between the three of us ended there. Seo Jihyuk and Kang Soojung were walking slower than running but much faster than normal walking. I was barely keeping up with them. After a few more steps, Kang Soojung asked me:
¡°I¡¯m curious about going to the South District now. How did you know Kim Ga-young was trapped in the South District dormitory? She was almost always in the research center except when she was handing out bread.¡±
¡°In a little while, Kim Ga-young will post a message on the underwater base bulletin board asking for rescue.¡±
¡°She ¡®will post¡¯ a message?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Kang Soojung looked at me curiously and then looked ahead again, saying:
¡°I¡¯m just going along believing what Team Leader Shin said about ¡®your words not being lies.¡¯ I really hope they¡¯re not lies.¡±
¡°There are no lies among the things I¡¯ve told you. ¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤How does Team Leader Shin Haeryang know such things?¡±
¡°He said you¡¯re a person whose face reveals everything.¡±
Is that so? I rubbed my face with my hand. I don¡¯t even know what expression I¡¯m making right now.
¡°Then may I ask a question?¡±
Kang Soojung looked at me upon my question, smiled, and nodded.
¡°Yes. Feel free to ask.¡±
¡°Why are the two of you going? There are other people too.¡±
Previously, it was Baek Ae-young, Seo Jihyuk, and Shin Haeryang who went.
¡°Well, besides Team Leader Shin, we two have the best physiques in the team? Jihyuk, what do you think?¡±
¡°That¡¯s true, but we don¡¯t n to throw a great white shark into the sea, and Ji-hyun is sick. The Russians decided to stick together. We have no choice.¡±
At Seo Jihyuk¡¯s mention of ¡°Russians,¡± I recalled the hand signals dimir was sending to Shin Haeryang. I asked Kang Soojung, who had also seen the hand signals:
¡°Do you know what the hand signals dimir was making to Team Leader Shin meant?¡±
¡°That he refuses?¡±
¡°I think I understood that part.¡±
¡°Ah. The next part was ¡®You idiot. Abandon those guys.''¡±
The ce dimir pointed to was where Henry, Yoo Geum-yi, and Tumanako were gathered, sleeping.
Chapter 120
Chapter 120
When I first came here, was the research center already submerged? Was the previous time a unique situation that allowed us to go to the research center? I stopped my train of thought.
We were nning to find Kim Ga-young and return to the sports center anyway, so we had no intention of going to the South District research center. The immediate decision we needed to make was whether to go to the South District dormitory or not. I asked Kang Soojung and Seo Jihyuk:
¡°¡ If Ga-young was trapped in her room but someone rescued her, what do you think she¡¯d be doing right now?¡±
Seo Jihyuk shrugged lightly. Then he asked me slowly:
¡°¡®Originally¡¯, Kim Ga-young should be writing a plea for help around this time, right? But she didn¡¯t write it?¡±
¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct.¡±
Kang Soojung spread out her five fingers and folded her thumb.
¡°One. Kim Ga-young somehow managed to escape the room by luck, but the dormitory is still flooded.¡±
Seo Jihyuk folded Kang Soojung¡¯s index finger while saying:¡°Two. She¡¯s unlucky and still in the room.¡±
Ah. That¡¯s the worst option. I made the most positive statement while folding Kang Soojung¡¯s third finger.
¡°Three. Kim Ga-young left the room and headed somewhere other than the dormitory. ¡ This seems like the best option for Kim Ga-young.¡±
If Kim Ga-young had been rescued, she would have already left the dormitory. Please let it be so. Kang Soojung scratched the corner of her mouth and said:
¡°Let¡¯s assume the doctor¡¯s statement is correct and head towards the escape pod port. Since all the people who escaped from West District gathered there, those who escaped from the South District dormitory might all be gathered there too.¡±
Seo Jihyuk quickly agreed and added:
¡°Actually, the architectural design here is made so that when you leave the dormitory, your steps naturally lead you to the corridor with the escape pod port. Since the South District escape pod port is the closest from here, let¡¯s check there first.¡±
¡°Yes. ¡ What do you n to do if Ga-young isn¡¯t at the escape pod port?¡±
Are we going to enter the flooding dormitory? Kang Soojung hesitated for a few seconds before answering:
¡°I think we¡¯ll have to decide that when we get there.¡±
When I looked at Seo Jihyuk, he saw my gaze and showed an expression of uncertainty before eximing ¡°Ah!¡± and saying:
¡°I basically follow the deputy team leader¡¯s opinion. Unless it¡¯s a time when I need to speak up, assume I¡¯ve left my opinions to Deputy Team Leader Kang.¡±
Kang Soojung turned to Seo Jihyuk, who was walking behind, and said incredulously:
¡°You always speak up.¡±
¡°That¡¯s right. Because my opinions are valuable.¡±
I can¡¯t help butugh at how ridiculous this is. Kang Soojung shook her head. The three of us quickly walked down the corridor towards the escape pod port. Seo Jihyuk, at the end of our group, surveyed the rear before taking the lead again and said to me:
¡°Doctor. Our deputy team leader already knows this well, but let me make one request. When I say we need to go, you need to leave quickly.¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you know ¡®How beautiful is the back of one who leaves, clearly knowing when it¡¯s time to go¡¯?¡±
What is he talking about? ¡ I¡¯ve heard this somewhere before. I couldn¡¯t have imagined Seo Jihyuk suddenly quoting a poem in this situation, so it took several mental reys of the sentence before I realized where I¡¯d heard it.
¡°Isn¡¯t that from a ssic poem we learned before?¡±
¡°Oh. Our Jihyuk knows even things like this.¡±
¡°It means to time your exit well before things go south, right?¡±
I¡¯m pretty sure the poem was about flower petals falling, and it was sad and regretful. Was there such a meaning as Seo Jihyuk said? It¡¯s been so long since I learned it that I can¡¯t remember. Kang Soojung also stroked her chin with a puzzled expression.
¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s it.¡±
¡°Hit and run is very important in life. I¡¯ll let you know the perfect timing to leave, so when that timees, you need to go quickly. Without looking back. Understood?¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s tone was yful, but his eyes looking at me were serious. How would he know such timing? Although I couldn¡¯t remember, the back of my head felt slightly chilled due to actions that the past Seo Jihyuk hadmitted in front of me. ¡ I didn¡¯t want to think about it. I didn¡¯t want to see it again either. With a slight tension, I nodded as if entranced while looking at Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Good.¡±
And with all the previous seriousness gone, Seo Jihyuk, who had been standing in the corridor in front of the escape pod port for a moment, slipped inside first. A few secondster, when we entered following his frivolous hand gesture from outside the port door, there were about 20 people gathered inside the escape pod port. ¡ That¡¯s a lot more than I expected.
As we newly entered the port area, everyone turned their heads to look at us. A few were staring intently at me while talking with the people next to them, and my face felt like it was burning from how hard they were looking. I¡ haven¡¯t been the center of attention like this very often. It seemed to be more so because, unlike Seo Jihyuk and Kang Soojung, I was the only one wearing casual clothes.
Inside the escape pod port, there were three types of people: those who were watching with folded arms, those trying to board the escape pods in front of them, and those trying to stop them. Especially thetter two groups of about a dozen people were arguing, and it was almost close to a physical fight rather than just an argument.
Let go of my arm. If I miss this escape pod, it¡¯s all your fault. What kind of professor are you? Aren¡¯t you trying to take this escape pod instead of me? You bastards. I never liked you from the start. How dare you cheat on me? You think I ever liked you? You idiots with nothing but vanity in your heads. Didn¡¯t you hear the broadcast? What if someone sabotaged the escape pods beforehand as the broadcast said? You¡¯ll just die if you board. You believe that, you idiot? You pathetic fools! Will you take responsibility if I die? It¡¯s a misunderstanding. Sweetie. Why would I ever look at anyone else but you? And do we have to discuss this right now? Aren¡¯t you embarrassed to go around presenting that as a thesis? If it were me, I¡¯d havemitted suicide by shoving cranberries up my nose. How can we trust an Asian dentist who¡¯s only been here for a few days? Honestly, watching you Asians work, I wonder if they even verify your qualifications before hiring. Don¡¯t you just massage with incense while drooling in people¡¯s mouths? Have you ever done anything besides breathing? Your very existence is air pollution. I¡¯m British! You crazy racist! My family has lived in Ennd since my grandfather¡¯s time, how many more years will it take to stop hearing this? What? Do you know how many Asian friends I have? How dare you call me a racist?! Hey. If you let go of my arm, I¡¯ll take care of your skull first. You brag about your degree when you just bought it with money. Taste a big Asian head! Do we have to settle this now? Yes, we have to settle this now. Save your excuses for hell, you piece of trash. ¡ Die! Die!
An Asian man with dark blue dyed hair was headbutting a ck man wearing a tank top, and four white middle-aged men were hurling insults at each other, rolling on the floor while throwing punches and kicks. And a woman with bronze skin was beating a white man while forcibly pushing him into an escape pod.
Several researchers were either slightly retreating from this scene or pretending to stop it while pushing or hitting others. Seeing Kim Ga-young¡¯s healthy appearance beside this pandemonium, I felt the tension in my whole body dissipate.
¡°Ga-young!¡±
When I called out her name in delight, Kim Ga-young quickly punched the back and head of a white man who had rolled towards her, then quickly stepped back pretending she hadn¡¯t done anything. Then she looked at me and around me, saying:
¡°Oh. Jihyuk. Soojung-eonnie.¡±
Kang Soojung waved her hand. Kim Ga-young approached us, then looked at me awkwardly and nodded slightly.
¡°Hello. I¡¯m Kim Ga-young. Nice to meet you?¡±
¡°I¡¯m Park Mu-hyeon. Nice to meet you.¡±
I thought that I would never forget this strange feeling I get every time I greet people I already know as if meeting them for the first time, no matter how much time passes.
I could feel a few people around turning their heads to look at me after that greeting. Kim Ga-young nodded and asked:
¡°Ah. I heard the broadcast. You said not to board the escape pods, right?¡±
¡°Yes. Fortunately, many people didn¡¯t board.¡±
¡°Some didn¡¯t board because they believed the broadcast, some were stopped, some were too busy fighting to board, and some didn¡¯t board because they wanted to watch the fight before dying. That¡¯s how it is.¡±
Kang Soojung took Kim Ga-young¡¯s hand and said:
¡°It¡¯s been weeks since we¡¯ve seen each other. You said you were busy? Yoo Geum-yi is also gathered with our team now. Let¡¯s go together, Ga-young.¡±
¡°Uh¡ What about the others?¡±
¡°Just you. Let¡¯s just take you with us.¡±
When Kang Soojung cut her off, Kim Ga-young was a bit taken aback. Kang Soojung held Kim Ga-young¡¯s hand and said:
¡°Let¡¯s just think about getting you out of here alone first.¡±
Kim Ga-young was frowning in thought. After about 30 seconds, she nced at a few researchers and replied somewhat slowly, looking troubled:
¡°¡ I¡¯ll stay with my fellow researchers. My junior is here, two of my friends are over there pping, and there¡¯s also a crazy doctor who¡¯s busy cleaning the floor by rolling around and with whom I need to write a paper together.¡±
The words ¡°You came with us before¡± were on the tip of my tongue. This is different from before. To Kim Ga-young, I¡¯m just a stranger who broadcast some suspicious content that she somehow figured out. Of course, I desperately want to escape together.
¡°If all the people heree to Orphion together, would it be possible to amodate them in that ce?¡±
Of course, whether people would follow me is the problem, but these are people who didn¡¯t board the escape pods after hearing my broadcast. Wouldn¡¯t they at least listen to some extent? Moreover, if that sports center is designed to dodge bullets, I thought it would be good for as many people as possible to take shelter. Kang Soojung looked at me with slight surprise and shook her head.
¡°Doctor, you really haven¡¯t been to the sports center, have you? It¡¯s extremely small. If we take all the people here, it would be over thirty people, which means about five people would have to float in the air.¡±
¡ I understand why Kang Soojung told me those things on our way here.
Chapter 121
Chapter 121
I asked Kim Ga-young about how she managed to get out of her room. She couldn¡¯t have escaped without someone¡¯s help.
¡°Ga-young. How did you manage to escape from your room?¡±
¡°¡ How did you know I was in a situation where I couldn¡¯t get out of the room on my own?¡±
¡°Uh¡¡±
Kim Ga-young¡¯s gaze sharpened as she looked at me. Seeing my momentary confusion, she spoke slowly.
¡°It¡¯s not really something I need to hide, so I¡¯ll answer. But in return, please answer my question too. How about that?¡±
¡°Alright.¡±
Kim Ga-young heaved a deep sigh and answered.
¡°People who were trying to leave the dormitory stopped in their tracks to listen to the broadcast. Those who didn¡¯t stop even for screams for help paused at the emergency broadcast telling them not to board the escape pods.¡±Kim Ga-young gave a bitter smile. Some people near where Kim Ga-young¡¯s voice could be heard lowered their heads, blushed, or averted their gaze.
¡°Some people ignored the broadcast and rushed to the escape pods, but there were also those who gave up boarding and came back for me. When four people grunted and strained, the door that had seemed like a rock finally opened.¡±
Kang Soojung, who had been listening quietly, again urged her toe along, but Kim Ga-young hesitated for a moment and refused once more. It seemed she felt indebted or grateful to the people from the South District dormitory who had saved her.
I wanted to persuade Kim Ga-young toe with us by telling her that those people once abandoned her, trapped in her room, to board the escape pods, tarnishing their current good deed. But as soon as that thought urred to me, I crumpled it up and threw it into the mental trash can.
It wasn¡¯t me who saved Kim Ga-young from the dormitory today. Even if they left her behind before, they didn¡¯t do so this time. That¡¯s what¡¯s most important. Whether the situation changed because of the broadcast or they stopped at the cries for help, what matters is that they didn¡¯t do it again this time. ¡ At least today¡¯s Kim Ga-young will feel less betrayed and sad about the people around her.
¡°I wasn¡¯t entirely clear about Ga-young¡¯s situation either. I didn¡¯t think anyone would help. I only expected that Ga-young would write a plea for help on the underwater base¡¯s bulletin board while trapped in her room.¡±
Then, trying consciously not to look at the part of Kim Ga-young¡¯s body where she had been shot in the elevator, I asked:
¡°Are you feeling any pain anywhere? Did any part suddenly be extremely painful? ¡ Like your stomach hurting terribly?¡±
Kim Ga-young frowned and asked me:
¡°How did you know that? It hurt as if my lower abdomen had disappeared. It was so painful that I thought I¡¯d never experienced such stomach pain before. I cried for help not just because the door wouldn¡¯t open, but also because my stomach hurt so much.¡±
Kim Ga-young felt pain too? Does that mean they experience the pain they faced right before death? Then what happened to Lee Ji-hyun? Did the elevator really crash? No, in that situation, did Ji-hyun forcibly make the elevator crash?
Then what about Yoo Geum-yi? Yoo Geum-yi didn¡¯t show any symptoms whileing out of the dormitory room and going to the escape pod. ¡ Was Yoo Geum-yi in a situation to feel pain before? It seemed like she waspletely crushed under the truck. ¡ Maybe if you die instantly, you don¡¯t feel pain when you wake up next time? The previous time Yoo Geum-yi died¡
I recalled the image of Yoo Geum-yi with her eyes closed as if asleep. ¡ If a bullet lodges in your head, do you die without feeling pain? The brain doesn¡¯t feel pain. I hope that was the case. There shouldn¡¯t have been even a shred of pain.
Someone grabbed my shoulder, and I flinched, startled, looking at them. Kang Soojung¡¯s hand was on my shoulder, and three people around were looking at me. I asked Kim Ga-young absent-mindedly:
¡°Does your stomach still hurt now?¡±
At my question, Kim Ga-young unconsciously rubbed her stomach and answered:
¡°No. I felt like I was dying from pain then, but now I¡¯m fine.¡±
Certainly, the current Kim Ga-young doesn¡¯t seem to be feeling any pain. Thest time I saw Lee Ji-hyun, she seemed to be getting better as time passed too. Is all the pain temporary? Then isn¡¯t that okay?
¡ No, it¡¯s best not to feel pain at all. It¡¯s the worst to have pain lingering like this when the cause of pain doesn¡¯t exist. Why should one suffer pain for no reason when the body is fine?
¡°¡ How did you get all this information, including the broadcast and what you know now?¡±
Kim Ga-young asked hesitantly but firmly about the source of the information. I answered without much hesitation:
¡°Actually, I¡¯m a follower of Infinity Church. I¡¯m a newbie who just joined this crazy cult. They originally promised to give me 800 million won, but when they didn¡¯t transfer the promised money even after five days, I got annoyed and left the religion.¡±
Kim Ga-young stared at me with her mouth open.
¡°You need to deposit money on time and urately to get work done. In this cold capitalist society, how can anything work properly if you try to exploit people without money? Originally, faith, loyalty, happiness, and whatever else only arise when there¡¯s money. I heard Infinity Church gives the most money, so I agreed and joined, but they don¡¯t give money on time and just spout nonsense about sharks and the past and whatnot.¡±
I could feel the people around me, including Kang Soojung and Seo Jihyuk, looking at me with simr expressions.
¡°Moreover, the underwater base suddenly turns into an indoor swimming pool. The engineer team members walk around armed with guns even though firearms aren¡¯t allowed in the underwater base. Some country fires a torpedo at the research center. There are so many people with great bodies from working out. They only told meter about things happening that weren¡¯t mentioned or negotiated in the contract. These crazy cult bastards don¡¯t notify me about any deposits to my ount.¡±
I continued speaking, trying to make an annoyed and wronged expression like Carter¡¯s:
¡°And they want me to instigate people from the crack of dawn to board escape pods or take elevators? As Iy thinking all morning, I started getting angry. I mean, how can I do as they say and risk bing unemployed when I haven¡¯t even received my first paycheck? Should I sacrifice my precious first weekend after joining, experiencing unpaid exploitation in the name of religious activities? Why am I doing this crazy stuff? When they¡¯re not even paying the contracted amount?¡±
¡°Well, that¡¡±
¡°There must be several Infinity Church believers here too. Think about it. Is any of the nonsense they¡¯re spouting even slightly usible? No matter how much money they offer, can you really go to the past? If there¡¯s anyone here who has traveled to the past or future like going on an overseas trip with a load of money, please raise your hand. In a world where even space travelers all die, are there really people who have properly arrived at such unknown destinations, apart from drug addicts?¡±
People are probably already suspecting that I¡¯m a Infinity Church believer anyway. So let¡¯s just let them believe that. If they ask why I know so much about internal affairs, saying I¡¯m a Infinity Church believer would be more believable than denying it. If there¡¯s something I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ll just say it¡¯s because I haven¡¯t been here long.
No matter what exnation I give to whom, it would be more convincing than saying that Infinity Church upied this ce to conduct experiments to go back to the past, and that it seeded, sending me alone to the past. Who would believe that?
And I judged that it would be more dangerous to give the impression that those cult bastards actually seeded in something through force and experiments, rather than gaining the stigma of being a mentally ill person who joined a cult obsessed with money. You can¡¯t obtain evidence of going back to the past through me. Think that you¡¯ve inadvertently gained an apostate obsessed with money who isn¡¯t even on the membership list. No returns epted.
In fact, tears welled up in my eyes as I spouted nonsense. My family would know that I¡¯m an atheist. That¡¯s enough.
¡°Honestly, do you think Infinity Church can live well after terrorizing the underwater base like this? Even if they seed temporarily, can they live happily and then leave Infinity Church? Do you think a religion that offers 800 million won to help with terrorism will quietly let its followers go? Look around this underwater base. How much do you think it cost to build this? Even just one toilet built at -3000m seems like it would cost over tens of billions. Rather than bing a wanted criminal worldwide as a crazy fanatic and being chased for life, wouldn¡¯t it be better to change your mind now, spill everything you know, and beg for mercy from the eight advanced nations of the North Pacific?¡±
One of the men who had been quietly listening to my conversation with Kim Ga-young stood up, breathing heavily. He was a researcher I hadn¡¯t seen before, with a gloomy expression. I probably wouldn¡¯t have remembered his face if I had passed him on the street. He contorted his facial muscles mercilessly and said:
¡°You say you¡¯re a Infinity Church believer?!¡±
¡°¡ Yes. I threw the hat in my room because it¡¯s tacky, and I dumped the gun somewhere because it was heavy.¡±
¡°If you¡¯re really a believer, there¡¯s another way to verify that besides what you¡¯ve said.¡±
My chest felt chilly. What is he talking about? Is he asking if I have dentures? Is there an assigned member number or a mandatory payment upon joining? ¡ A prayer or something?
That¡¯s when it happened. In the moment the man took his eyes off me, Seo Jihyuk silently approached and swung his fist at the man. I¡¯m not sure how he hit him, but with just one punch to the chest that made a thud sound, the man¡¯s eyes rolled back. Seo Jihyuk knocked out a Infinity Church believer in an instant and then pretended nothing happened, hugging him affectionately. Haha. Why suddenly like this? It¡¯s creepy.
¡°Deputy team leader. Doctor. It¡¯s time for us to go.¡±
Kang Soojung, who had been momentarily stunned by my sudden bombshell statement, had been enthusiastically recording everything on her pad at some point. After turning off the pad screen, Kang Soojung looked at Kim Ga-young once and then turned her back without hesitation. Seo Jihyuk carried the staggering man on his back like a load.
At that moment, screams erupted. I thought people were screaming because they saw us beating and trying to kidnap someone in an instant, but the researchers were pointing at the front screen and shouting. Suddenly, everyone¡¯s gaze was fixed on therge screen window that had been disying the escape pods.
The escape pods that had been ascending towards the surface first among thoseunched so far were now falling back down.
Chapter 122
Chapter 122
Although I had seen this scene before, I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off it. As I stared nkly for 1-2 seconds at the escape pods descending in a parabolic arc, Seo Jihyuk pped my shoulder from beside me. ¡ I almost fell over. Seo Jihyuk, who was pushing Kang Soojung¡¯s back with his head like a cow, said in a low voice:
¡°We have to go!¡±
¡°Hey, Jihyuk. The escape pods, look¡¡±
¡°Forget the escape pods, let¡¯s go.¡±
Even the people who had been caressing each other with fists and kicks stopped fighting at the shouts of those around them. And now they were watching the escape pods, which had beenunched towards the sea surface, being pulled back into the sea.
Kim Ga-young looked at the escape pods disyed on the screen and then at me as I was moving away. The moment our eyes met, I was led out of the escape pod port by Seo Jihyuk¡¯s hand. Dragging the unconscious Infinity Church believer like luggage, Seo Jihyuk said to me and Kang Soojung:
¡°We need to go to the sports center right now. We need to go as fast as possible.¡±
¡°What about that unconscious person?¡±
¡°Ah, this is a gift for our team leader.¡±That¡¯s not what I meant. At Seo Jihyuk¡¯s answer, Kang Soojung also asked again, as if in disbelief:
¡°No, that¡¯s not what I mean. Are you going to carry this person on your back?¡±
¡°It would be best if we could disassemble him and take him.¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed to be joking, but seeing that my and Kang Soojung¡¯s expressions weren¡¯t good, he said, somewhat flustered:
¡°Of course, that¡¯s a joke. I¡¯ll carry him on my back. Or is there a better way?¡±
¡°¡ There¡¯s a cart. A cart. There¡¯s a cart over there.¡±
¡°There¡¯s a cart? Where?¡±
When Kang Soojung pulled a handle on a part of the wall in the corner of the corridor, there was a folding cart underneath that could be used to move things. As Kang Soojung unfolded the cart into an L-shape, Seo Jihyuk, looking pleased, roughly crumpled the unconscious person onto it and said:
¡°So this was here?¡±
¡°Even if you¡¯re physically fit, you need to use tools sometimes.¡±
¡°As expected of our deputy team leader. You know how to use your head.¡±
Kang Soojung made an expression as if she wasn¡¯t sure whether Seo Jihyuk was insulting orplimenting her. As Seo Jihyuk was about to push the cart away, I quickly grabbed him, rmed, and said:
¡°¡ Jihyuk. That person¡¯s leg is dragging outside the cart.¡±
¡°He¡¯s wearing shoes. Right now, it¡¯s not important that someone¡¯s leg is dragging on the floor. We need to run at full speed immediately. Understood?¡±
Then Seo Jihyuk started running forward, pushing the cart with force. The cart made a low drrrrrr sound, but the wheel noise was not as loud as I thought. Instead, it disappeared smoothly, as if sliding.
¡°Huh? Hey!¡±
Kang Soojung started running after Seo Jihyuk, and only after Seo Jihyuk¡¯s back had disappeared did I realize I was thest one here and started running. How can he run so well while pushing a cart with a person on it?
We ran at full speed without taking a single breath until we reached the central building. As I ran, I could barely keep Seo Jihyuk in sight ahead, only managing to not lose sight of Kang Soojung¡¯s back. Seo Jihyuk slowed down about three times, stopping to pick up and put back the person¡¯s arms and legs that fell off the cart, then running again. When I was out of breath and my whole body was drenched in sweat, Seo Jihyuk slowed down again.
¡°If only we had a rope, I¡¯d tie the body to the cart.¡±
As the arm trembled from the cart¡¯s vibration and fell off the edge onto the floor, Seo Jihyuk quickly lifted the arm back onto the cart with disgust and ran off again. After running frantically, I could see the shape of a snake coiled around an egg in the distance.
Seo Jihyuk slowed down, carefully pushing the cart, and started walking slowly. As I coughed violently from running too quickly after a long time, Kang Soojung looked at me with pity and patted my back. Kang Soojung, who was also catching her breath, wiped the sweat from her chin with the back of her hand and protested to Seo Jihyuk:
¡°We could have stayed and watched the escape pod situation a bit longer.¡±
¡°In this situation, we shouldn¡¯t do what everyone else is doing. It¡¯s not like watching for a few more seconds would make them rise to the surface.¡±
¡°Is that so?¡±
Seo Jihyuk crossed the Infinity Church believer¡¯s arms like an Egyptian mummy and asked me:
¡°Doctor, were any of those escape pods sessfully escaping to the sea surface?¡±
¡°Huff! Huff! Huff! Huff! Almost, none, none of them!¡±
Seo Jihyuk left the cart there and carried the person on his back. Then he approached the sports center door. Baek Ae-young was waiting for us, leaning against the door like a gatekeeper. Upon seeing Seo Jihyuk, Baek Ae-young frowned and said:
¡°You¡¯re so slow.¡±
¡°We came as fast as we could. How¡¯s Jihyun?¡±
¡°She¡¯s fine.¡±
Baek Ae-young smiled at Kang Soojung with an angelic voice and said:
¡°Deputy team leader, you¡¯ve worked hard.¡±
¡°Yeah, Ae-young. You¡¯ve been through a lot too.¡±
Baek Ae-young nodded towards me, and I nodded back reflexively. Baek Ae-young passed by us and went towards the cart left in the distance.
When we opened the door to the sports center, I waspletely overwhelmed by the sight before my eyes. I couldn¡¯t even imagine how to enter this ce. All the exercise equipment had been stacked in front of the sports center entrance like a game of Tetris. As I stood dumbfounded looking at the densely packed entrance with no gaps, Yoo Geum-yi called out to me from the left corner:
¡°You need toe this way. Step on this, climb over that, like this. They say if you step on the wrong part, it¡¯ll copse.¡±
Seo Jihyuk managed to climb over numerous pieces of exercise equipment and the wall of steel desks easily, even with a person slung over his shoulder. I tried my best to step only on the parts that Seo Jihyuk had stepped on. My legs, which had been overworked until just now, were trembling like taffy.
I saw Kang Soojung slip while climbing over this wall of steel, badly bruising her knee. With a curse, it took a long time before she could barely climb over the barricade, and it seemed her calves and knees were getting bruised from hitting the metal pieces here and there.
After climbing over the protective wall made of metal and exercise equipment, the inside of the sports center was surprisingly empty. Since all the exercise equipment was used to block the entrance, there was almost nothing inside. Tumanako waved at me while sitting next to Henry. I waved back and immediatelyy down t on the floor. Perhaps because I had been running non-stop for several minutes, I couldn¡¯t move a finger.
Seo Jihyuk mmed the Infinity Church believer he had been carrying onto the sports center floor. The action was so rough that I got up in surprise, but when I realized the floor where he put the person down was like a mat, I sighed in relief andy back down. Shin Hae-ryang looked at us and asked Kang Soojung:
¡°What happened to Ga-young?¡±
¡°She¡¯s at the South District escape pod port. She said she¡¯d stay with the researchers who saved her.¡±
¡°I see. And who¡¯s this?¡±
When Shin Hae-ryang asked about the new unconscious person, Kang Soojung answered with a sigh:
¡°Ask Jihyuk. Jihyuk suddenly beat him up and kidnapped him.¡±
As Kang Soojung spoke as if this matter had nothing to do with her, Seo Jihyuk said, as if wronged:
¡°I brought a confirmed Infinity Church believer!¡±
Then he looked at Shin Hae-ryang as if seeking praise. Shin Hae-ryang silently turned his head towards the unconscious man. Kang Soojung looked at me lying on the floor with a sour expression, then at the man lying on the floor over there, and then back at Seo Jihyuk. Kang Soojung¡¯s expression suggested she was confused about whether the Infinity Church believer Seo Jihyuk was referring to was me or that man.
I pointed at that man with my trembling finger while lying down. Seo Jihyuk also thought for a moment and pointed at the unconscious man. Kang Soojung¡¯s fingers pointed at both me and the unconscious man. Shin Hae-ryang let out a light sigh and headed to the shower room connected to the sports center, dragging the unconscious believer along with Seo Jihyuk.
Lee Jihyun brought a water bottle and handed it to me as Iy there. As I received the water bottle with trembling hands, I asked Jihyun:
¡°How are you feeling?¡±
¡°I think I¡¯m a bit better now.¡±
¡°Can I ask you one thing?¡±
Lee Jihyun had an expression as if she couldn¡¯t guess what I was going to ask. Seeing me struggling to open the water bottle cap properly, she said:
¡°Yes. ¡ Drink some water first, then ask.¡±
¡°Thank you. Uh¡ my question is a bit strange.¡±
¡°It¡¯s okay.¡±
¡°To prevent serial killings, could you crash an elevator you¡¯re riding in together with the serial killer?¡±
¡°¡ Is this some kind of personality test?¡±
Lee Jihyun asked, seemingly perplexed, as she watched me gulping down water. I thought for a moment and then answered:
¡°Yes.¡±
Lee Jihyun, frowning and pondering, spoke only after I had emptied more than half of the water bottle:
¡°A serial killer in the same elevator. ¡ Crashing. Crashing, huh. I don¡¯t think I would do that.¡±
¡°Why not?¡±
¡°The religion I believe in considers suicide to be a mortal sin almost equivalent to murder. It¡¯s breaking one of the Ten Commandments. So I probably wouldn¡¯t do it.¡±
¡°¡ I see. Thank you.¡±
Lee Jihyun looked at my face for a while and then asked:
¡°What¡¯s the result of the test?¡±
¡°Huh? ¡ You¡¯re an incredibly brave person.¡±
Ignoring Lee Jihyun¡¯s strange look, I drank water while half-lying down, and I could see Kang Soojung sitting and drinking water too. Is there a water purifier in the sports center? The coolness rising from the floor helped cool my heated back.
As I turned my head this way and that while lying down, I saw exnations about Ophion written on the walls of the sports center. Is that huge snake in front of the entrance earlier Ophion?
It is said that Eurynome, the goddess of all things born alone in chaos and a powerful sea goddess, created Ophion, a giant snake, while dancing on the waves. When Eurynome, the primordial goddess,id an egg (the universe), her husband Ophion coiled his body around the egg seven times to incubate it, and finally, from the broken egg, numerous stars, the sky, the earth, and living beings were born. Then one day, suddenly, her husband Ophion arrogantly imed that he had created the universe, and Eurynome, seeing this, stomped on Ophion¡¯s head with her foot, breaking all his fangs, and banished him.
¡ Can a snake¡¯s fangs be broken by being kicked? Then can snakes get dental treatment too? As I read the Cretan creation myth with a dazed mind, my legs and heart, which had been pounding from the full-speed run, gradually started to bezy again.
Below the myth, there were brief additional exnations about Ophion¡¯s abilities and mythology. As I read the sentence stating that snakes symbolize knowledge, and because they shed their skin and are reborn, they represent eternal life, reincarnation, and endless new resurrection, my drowsy eyes suddenly opened wide. Why are there such exnations or names in this underwater base? Why are there things like Blue Dragon, Dagon, or Dragon King in an underwater base?
Chapter 123
Chapter 123
Is there a reason why they had to name the sports facility inside the North Pacific underwater base after a snake god? I heard the dental clinic name Deep Blue was taken from the name of a great white shark, but why a great white shark? Come to think of it, why did they name the four buildings of the underwater base after the four guardian deities? Are all names chosen by vote, like when they named the ind Daehan-do? Or can someone pay to name them?
¡ With so little information, everything seems suspicious if you start doubting.
¡°What are you thinking about?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi was staring at me nkly. Around us, Tumanako, Yoo Geum-yi, and Kang Soojung were sitting or lying down resting next to Henry, but they turned their heads towards me at Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s question. I answered while sitting on the floor:
¡°I was thinking that the sports center¡¯s name might be too grandiose.¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t the pronunciation quite pretty? I heard they decided by vote in the early days, but nowadays each country probably takes turns naming things.¡±
Listening to Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words, Kang Soojungy on her side, propping her chin with her arm, and said:
¡°I heard there was quite an uproar after seven countries threw fits when Korea named the ind, and it¡¯s been chaotic ever since.¡±
¡°Why, why?¡±Tumanako asked with a yawn while lying face down. As if Tumanako¡¯s yawn was contagious, Kang Soojung answered while covering her mouth:
¡°They seem to have thought that naming something was a mark of ownership. The eight countries kept unnecessarily checking each other, so I heard it was tough for the people at the underwater base at that time. I came in the middle, so I don¡¯t know much.¡±
Kang Soojung, who had been exining that there was pressure to somehow include each country¡¯snguage in the underwater base as much as possible, closed her mouth with a big yawn. Tumanako, who was trying various styles by running her fingers through Henry¡¯s hair, looked at me and asked:
¡°What¡¯s the name of the dental clinic?¡±
¡°It¡¯s Deep Blue. They say it¡¯s named after arge, famous shark in the North Pacific.¡±
¡°Sounds like a name that might reflect shark biologists¡¯ opinions. There¡¯s even a skull here. There are some people in the world who are crazy about sharks.¡±
The person obsessed with jellyfish answered nonchntly as if it wasn¡¯t about her. Yoo Geum-yi, who had visited the dental clinic before, yawned and stretched her arms towards the ceiling.
So the job of shark biologist actually exists in the world. Well, there must be people who research specific organisms, so there must be people who only research sharks. Then am I a human dentist? Kang Soojung stroked her chin and said:
¡°Deep Blue, huh. Did the Americans name it? Whatever it is, they probably named it after something that makes a ssh rted to the sea or water.¡±
Tumanako thought for a moment and said:
¡°The name of the beauty salon where I stay is also unique. It¡¯s called N¨¹WA.¡±
¡°What does it mean?¡±
There must be some meaning to it. At my question, Tumanako¡¯s face brightened a bit. I could feel her confidence in answering about something she knew well.
¡°They say it¡¯s named after a famous Chinese god. It has one lower body, but the upper body has separate male and female heads. If such a god came to get their hair done, I think we¡¯d have to charge double.¡±
It must be a god I¡¯m not familiar with. Lee Jihyun, who had gone out to help Baek Ae-young and just returned, lightly climbed over the mountain of steel desks and exercise equipment and said:
¡°That¡¯s N¨¹wa. It seems Chinese people probably named the beauty salon.¡±
¡°N¨¹wa?¡±
I¡¯ve never heard of it. What would I know about Chinese gods? Lee Jihyun shook her head vigorously and exined briefly:
¡°There¡¯s a Chinese legend that says N¨¹wa and Fuxi, a female and male respectively, with human heads and snake bodies, created the world.¡±
Tumanako shrugged and said:
¡°It seems to mean ¡®create beautiful hair,¡¯ so I think it¡¯s a good name. I also like that it seems to imply that both men and women can visit the salon. There¡¯s even a picture of N¨¹wa next to the salon entrance?¡±
Hearing Tumanako¡¯s slightly proud tone, I recalled Deep Blue and said:
¡°It¡¯s the same with Deep Blue. There¡¯s arge great white shark skull in front of the Deep Blue entrance.¡±
¡°Wow. I¡¯m jealous. It would be cool if my salon had such a statue in front too. If we evere back here, I¡¯d like to go see it.¡±
I felt a bit embarrassed at Tumanako¡¯s sincere appreciation. If I had known Tumanako earlier, I might have shown her around the dental clinic, even though there¡¯s not much to see. But really, there¡¯s nothing worth showing. What is there to see in a dental clinic?
¡°I¡¯d like to ask Tumanako for some advice on the dental clinic¡¯s interior design. Were there any strange items in the beauty salon?¡±
The dental clinic is full of Greend shark pictures. Sharks are not only scary-looking, but the photos are also dark and gloomy, so I took them all down and stashed them in a corner, but I think some of the people who visited the dental clinic over the five days might have thought I was a Infinity Church believer. I wonder if the beauty salon also has such bombs nted inside. Tumanako thought for a few seconds and answered:
¡°Hmm. There were Medusa busts and shark sculptures in the salon, but I secretly got rid of them as soon as I arrived. They¡¯re cool, but they don¡¯t fit in a beauty salon.¡±
¡°Our dental clinic has a great white shark outside, but inside, there were framed pictures of Greend sharks hanging on the walls.¡±
¡°That¡¯s how they slowly iste you.¡±
Seo Jihyuk,ing out of the shower room from afar, dusted off his hands and said:
¡°That¡¯s how those cult bastards typically operate. They secretly spread their symbols everywhere, surround people with cult members, and gradually push out normal people.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang came out of the shower roomst, bringing the bound Infinity Church believer they had taken earlier. His hands and feet were tied, and his mouth waspletely gagged, and he was carried like luggage and ced next to the shower room entrance. Apart from looking terrified, there were no visible external injuries, which was somewhat reassuring. Shin Hae-ryang looked at Baek Ae-young and asked:
¡°The door?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve broken it.¡±
Seo Jihyuk quickly went and turned off the switch on the wall, and the sports center, without sunlight and no other light source, became dark and quiet. Shin Hae-ryang looked at the people and said in a low voice:
¡°As I exined before, now we just need to wait. Let¡¯s wait quietly.¡±
Then people remained silent in the darkness without conversation. While some people were sitting on the floor in tension, others were lying t on the floor.
Kang Soojung, who hadn¡¯t heard any exnation because she had gone with me to meet Kim Ga-young, also remained silent. More precisely, she was furiously writing something on her pad quietly, and when she showed it to Baek Ae-young, Baek Ae-young took Kang Soojung¡¯s pad and typed [Wait here quietly like dead mice and leave when signaled], showing it to me, Seo Jihyuk, and Kang Soojung.
Kang Soojung frowned and theny down on the floor, using Baek Ae-young¡¯s arm holding the pad as a pillow. Seo Jihyuk showed no reaction other than blinking twice.
¡ Alright. It seems I¡¯m the only one who doesn¡¯t understand this situation. I crawled over to Shin Hae-ryang, who was sitting on the floor, and asked in the lowest voice possible, almost like breathing:
¡°What are we waiting for? It seems I¡¯m the only one who doesn¡¯t know.¡±
¡°The enemy is armed. We are unarmed.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, who had nodded slightly, closed his mouth. I waited, but there was no word for 30 seconds. Is this the end of the exnation? It¡¯s frustrating.
¡°Please exin a bit more.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, who hesitated for a few seconds, answered quietly:
¡°¡ You said in the broadcast that Engineer Teams Na and Ra are armed and attacking people.¡±
¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡±
¡°When unarmed people know they will encounter armed individuals in the near future, there are three possible actions they can take.¡±
There are three options? Are there two more options besides getting shot? I shuddered slightly at the memory of facing a gun barrel at close range. I asked Shin Hae-ryang in an even lower voice:
¡°What are they?¡±
¡°The first is to avoid. Quickly leave the danger zone and escape far beyond the enemy¡¯s field of vision before they recognize you.¡±
As soon as I heard Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s answer, I felt like prey. The first option has never been sessful. If I had escaped well, I would have already left the underwater base. Moreover, I¡¯m not even a good runner.
¡°What¡¯s the second?¡±
¡°When there¡¯s no clear escape route, you need to find a safe ce. You should hide somewhere the enemy can¡¯t easily enter.¡±
Where is a safe ce? As far as I can see, there¡¯s no such thing as a safe ce in the underwater base. There are only ces that haven¡¯t been destroyed yet or are less submerged in water.
¡°And the third?¡±
¡°If you can¡¯t run away or hide, you have to fight back. You need to use everything you have to counterattack. We are in the second situation.¡±
¡°¡ So we¡¯re quietly hiding in a safe ce, hoping the armed enemy will pass by?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°You mentioned earlier that the door was broken¡¡±
¡°If they try to invade, they¡¯ll have quite a hard time.¡±
They¡¯ve piled steel desks and exercise equipment densely in front of the door as a barricade. Moreover, the door itself was as heavy as the ones used in the dormitories, so even if that door opens, it would be difficult to break through the barricade and enter immediately. Lee Jihyun, lying t on the floor, pushed away the bothersome Seo Jihyuk with her foot and said, moving only her lips:
¡°It¡¯s cramped. Roll to the side.¡±
¡°Boo-hoo. You¡¯re so mean.¡±
Watching Seo Jihyuk, who made a fake crying sound, roll towards the wall, I pointed at the wall with my finger.
¡°What if the armed people don¡¯te through the door but shoot at the wall?¡±
The action movie in my head imagined the Engineer Team Ra people simultaneously shooting wildly at the wall, and the thin wall that seemed to be made of paper not being able to stop the bullets, leaving people¡¯s bodies full of bullet holes like Emmental cheese. It wasn¡¯t a particrly good imagination for mental health. In response to my question, Seo Jihyuk¡¯s voice, tinged withughter, was heard near my ear:
¡°Our team leader has messed with the walls several times, so our team poured concrete into the walls here.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, hearing this, giggled ¡°hehehe¡± and then, startled by her ownughter, hurriedly covered her mouth. Soon, the interior of the sports center became as quiet as a mouse. I whispered to Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°Wouldn¡¯t the two Engineer teams unite to attack the people here?¡±
¡°That won¡¯t happen. Although I don¡¯t know why this situation urred¡ The leader of Engineer Team Na is an elitist who would have returned to his home country before a situation arose where he¡¯d have to shoot someone with his own hands. And as for Ha-yoon, the leader of Team Ra¡ I don¡¯t think she would have voluntarily taken up arms.¡±
Kang Soojung said in a voice as low as the wind:
¡°They didn¡¯t get along well usually, so let¡¯s see how friendly they can be while holding guns.¡±
Chapter 124
Chapter 124
Gunshots rang out in the distance. It was a dull noise that one wouldn¡¯t recognize without hearing it several times. I didn¡¯t know it was gunfire at first either. I might have thought it was the sound of something metallic falling heavily onto a hard surface.
Shin Hae-ryang, who was next to me, immediately turned his head towards the direction of the sound. Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young, who had beenzily lying on the floor, sprang up like coiled springs simultaneously.
Although the two quickly raised their upper bodies, the others, perhaps because they had never heard gunshots before, were still lying down or half-leaning against the floor. It seemed they thought the sound was nothing special, having already experienced the Central Building shaking or hearing faint noises several times.
Seo Jihyuk, who had slowly crawled from the wall towards the people while avoiding Lee Jihyun¡¯s limbs, whispered softly to Baek Ae-young.
¡°¡Honestly, I only half believed it.¡±
¡°Yeah. Then keep lying in the corner.¡±
When Baek Ae-young, who had been listening intently to the gunfire in the air, spoke sharply to Seo Jihyuk, he sighed and said,
¡°Ah~ Just forget about that damn box.¡±
¡°How can I easily forget that!¡±As the two whispered as quietly as their breathing, Seo Jihyuk looked at me and said,
¡°Doc, you were thest one to leave the dormitory, right? Please tell the Great White Shark that we can¡¯t go back to the dormitory.¡±
Looks like they left something in the dormitory. A long time ago, Baek Ae-young had asked me if the dormitory waspletely submerged in water.
¡°It¡¯s too dangerous. We can¡¯t go back to the West District dormitory. The entire dormitory ispletely submerged, and no one knows what dangers might ur.¡±
There was no way to know what might be floating in the water that could hit someone. I recalled the experience of having my calves and knees shattered in the South District dormitory. Moreover, while the South District dormitory was inplete darkness due to a power outage, the West District still had its lights on when I left. If unlucky, one could get electrocuted upon entering the water.
Baek Ae-young furrowed her brows and nodded weakly. I very slowly recalled the fact that Baek Ae-young couldn¡¯t swim. What did she leave in the room that made her act like this? Is it important?
¡°What did you leave in the room that¡¯s making you so concerned?¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had been unconsciously turning her head towards the sound of gunfire, said,
¡°There¡¯s a small box on my vanity where I¡¯ve collected¡ many expensive essories.¡±
I suddenly remembered the box with [Touch and your wrist gets cut off] written in variousnguages. So that¡¯s what she¡¯s talking about. Seo Jihyuk, after hearing Baek Ae-young¡¯s words, quietly replied,
¡°It¡¯s not just ¡®many¡¯. I saw it once before, and you¡¯ve set up a whole jewelry store in that room.¡±
Baek Ae-young¡¯s pale eyes immediately turned towards Seo Jihyuk. It was a look that meant ¡®How do you know that?¡¯, and if Baek Ae-young could attack with her eyes, Seo Jihyuk would have already been in tatters. Kang Soojung, who was nearby, lightly pped Seo Jihyuk¡¯s back with her palm while lying t on the floor.
¡°Don¡¯t bother the troubled girl.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t bother her. Not the box, not her.¡±
Baek Ae-young rubbed her tired-looking eyes and said with a sigh,
¡°¡Anyway, there are quite a few things made of gold. Actually, that¡¯s all I have. Everything in that room is my entire fortune. I have nothing if I return to Korea.¡±
I recalled Baek Ae-young¡¯s room overflowing with all sorts of items. And then I thought about my room in Korea. If I were to move all the books and clothes from my room to that small room in the underwater base, there would be even less space to step than in Baek Ae-young¡¯s room.
I wondered if that box would have been full of gold earrings or rings if opened then. Hearing Baek Ae-young¡¯s dejected voice as her entire fortune was submerged in water, I asked what I was most curious about.
¡°Don¡¯t you use banks? Things like savings ounts, funds, or insurance?¡±
Surely she didn¡¯t just buy gold. Even though interest rates are at rock bottom, she must have saved at least some money in the bank, right? Baek Ae-young answered in a lifeless voice.
¡°I don¡¯t trust banks or guardians. I only put enough of my sry for living expenses in my ount, and when money umtes, I buy gold, save more money, and buy more gold.¡±
I wondered if I should have grabbed it when I scanned the room. I should have quickly snatched it and put it in my bag. ¡No. I¡¯m only having these regrets now because I know what that object in the room was. I would have felt a strong aversion to taking someone else¡¯s belongings in a situation where I entered their room without permission. I only brought Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad because he had mentioned earlier that he left it in his room, otherwise I wouldn¡¯t have touched anything in that room either. ¡I guess I¡¯m not cut out for thievery.
Lee Jihyun, who had been lying down, sluggishly approached the gloomy-looking Baek Ae-young and hugged her from behind. Baek Ae-young fell backward due to Lee Jihyun¡¯s weight and copsed limply to the side. Lee Jihyun stroked Baek Ae-young¡¯s shoulder and said softly, as ifforting her,
¡°The Lord will leave your treasures right there. So you can go find themter.¡±
¡°¡I think it would be better if that Lord directly put my treasures in my arms.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, hearing Baek Ae-young¡¯s muttering from the side, tried to suppress hisughter. Shin Hae-ryang spoke to Baek Ae-young, who was sprawled on the floor with Lee Jihyun,
¡°Your safety is the top priority. Nothing is more important than that.¡±
¡°¡That¡¯s true.¡±
¡°Hey, don¡¯t worry too much. If we get a chance to enter the dormitoryter, I¡¯ll retrieve it for you.¡±
¡°¡I don¡¯t even expect that.¡±
The intermittent gunfire was getting louder. The noise that had sounded like light rain now sounded like hail. Even Yoo Geum-yi and Tumanako, who had been lying still, got up from their seats with anxious expressions.
¡°I guess these are gunshots.¡±
¡°Seems so.¡±
The two whispered to each other and then looked around with frightened expressions. However, it seemed that Shin Hae-ryang had exined something to them beforehand, as they didn¡¯t show much agitation.
As the gunfire continued, people¡¯s faces became tense and anxious. I took out two towels and covered Henry¡¯s ears as he slept. It probably wouldn¡¯t help much, but it might reduce the sound a little. I opened my bag and handed out candies or towels to those who needed them.
Yoo Geum-yi received a towel from me, put it on her head, andy face down on the floor, covering her ears with both hands, including the towel. It seemed she had decided not to listen to the gunfire at all. Tumanako put on the headset that had been hanging around her neck and closed her eyes, perhaps ying music. And asionally, she swayed her body.
Kang Soojung crunched on a sugar-free orange candy and anxiously shook her feet, while Lee Jihyun closed her eyes and sped her hands together. The only people who didn¡¯t seem particrly tense were Shin Hae-ryang, Seo Jihyuk, and Baek Ae-young.
I flinched and trembled every time I heard gunfire. I didn¡¯t want to be scared, but I was just terrified every time I heard gunshots. In my head, I tried to stay calm, thinking it¡¯s just a loud noise, it¡¯s nothing, but my body was stiff, and my lower abdomen ached with tension.
I was so scared inside that I wondered if I had always been such a coward. Why? I¡¯ve shot someone directly with a gun before, and I¡¯ve been in the middle of a gunfight. Why am I so scared now when I¡¯m just hearing the sound from a safe ce? It¡¯s not like I haven¡¯t been shot before. Calm down. My body was shaking with tension, but I took long, slow deep breaths, trying to shake off the emotions that were washing over me.
As time passed, the gunfire got closer, and screams and shouts were heard from the surroundings. What was scarier than hearing the voice of someone running and screaming was when that voice suddenly stopped.
The thought crossed my mind that it might be less frightening if I couldn¡¯t hear anything at all, but covering my ears was scarier than not covering them, so I had no choice but to listen. I thought that if I covered my ears, it would be scarier not to know if gunfire suddenly sounded right next to me. Even though knowing wouldn¡¯t necessarily allow me to do anything about it.
In the midst of this contradictory conflict, my eyes met with Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s, who was lying face down. Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s eyes were brimming with tears. It seemed that covering her ears with a towel and her hands couldn¡¯tpletely block out the gunfire. Yoo Geum-yi barely managed to say one thing to me.
¡°I¡¯m so scared.¡±
¡°Me too.¡±
¡°You don¡¯t seem very scared.¡±
¡°¡No, I¡¯m terrified.¡±
Is my fear not visible on the outside? If so, that¡¯s good. In reality, I¡¯m extremely scared.
I licked my parched lips and took another deep breath. I wanted to burst into tears and cling to anyone, saying I wanted to go home, but I¡¯m a grown adult. Baek Ae-young, who looked much younger than me, was enduring without any agitation, and Henry was sleeping, so I couldn¡¯t show weakness.
¡°Even when terrible and difficult thingse.¡±
I said, holding Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s trembling hand,
¡°I try to think that no one can hurt me without my permission.¡±
The distant gunfire can¡¯t scare me. Holding hands made me feel a little less scared. I hope Yoo Geum-yi feels less scared too.
As I listened to the gunfire, worry for others overwhelmed me. We¡¯re hiding here, but what will happen to the people out there? Did they evacuate to other safe ces after hearing the broadcast? If those people don¡¯te to the South District, maybe there won¡¯t be any damage there. If they could block the entrance with something like at the research center.
I asked Shin Hae-ryang in a small voice,
¡°Is it possible to physically block or separate them before they enter the South District?¡±
¡°We can lower the barrier wall, but that would iste the people in the South District inside.¡±
What would be scarier, encountering people with guns or being trapped in a leaking building with no means of escape? I think both would be scary to me. I couldn¡¯t tell which would be scarier for others. I¡¯m not sure which has a higher survival rate either.
Thinking about past events, if it was someone familiar, there was a chance of survival even when encountering armed people. However, it¡¯s impossible to negotiate with pouring seawater. ¡It could be the opposite too. They might be more intent on killing someone they know.
It seems really fortunate that I haven¡¯t made enemies with people since I haven¡¯t been at the underwater base for long.
Chapter 125
Chapter 125
Just as I finished reflecting on my short and limited life in the underwater base, I realized that right next to me was someone who had been going around extracting people¡¯s teeth and seemed to have quiteplicated rtionships.
If I were the type of person that armed individuals in the underwater base might not recognize and therefore pass by without bothering, this person might be the one most likely to be killed because they know him well. With a heavy heart, I asked Shin Hae-ryang,
¡°If you had to choose between encountering armed people or being trapped in the leaking South District, which would you choose?¡±
¡°¡I¡¯d choose the armed people.¡±
Unexpected. I thought he¡¯d choose the leaking South District. Being an engineer, I thought he¡¯d repair the escape pod or find another escape route within the South District. Seeing Engineer Team R shooting at the three people from Engineer Team A in front of the East District elevator earlier, their rtionship didn¡¯t seem particrly close.
Imagining based on the number of people who came to the dental clinic, it seems most dangerous for Shin Hae-ryang to encounter armed people. Even if the rtionship was good normally, if someone had punched out a few of my teeth, we¡¯d immediately be enemies.
¡°I¡¯d like to know why.¡±
¡°I get lonely easily. I¡¯ll take a few along as travelpanions.¡±
Judging by how he said it without any change in expression, it seemed like a joke. I asked again,¡°If they haven¡¯t moved elsewhere, there are about twenty living researchers at the South District escape pod port. Which would be a better choice for them?¡±
¡°¡There doesn¡¯t seem to be a particrly better option. How about making the armed individuals go to the West District instead?¡±
¡°That would be much better. ¡How do we make them go to the West District?¡±
¡°It¡¯s not a particrly difficult method.¡±
It seems like an extremely difficult method to me. Although there were a few escape pods left in the West District, is there a way to manipte armed individuals like that? Engineer Team R (China) would be waiting for peopleing from the East District escape pod port.
The ones currently roaming around the Central Building and shooting must be Engineer Team N (Japan). How do we make these two teamse and go? Shin Hae-ryang received a pad from Lee Jihyun. Judging by its monotonous shape and color, it seemed to be Roarke¡¯s pad.
The gunfire sounded close enough to be right next to us. We could hear someone falling with a scream, and soon after, someone approached the front of Ophion and was saying something.
Thump thump thump thump! My heart was beating like crazy. It felt like my heart might jump out of my chest from the tension. If an armed persones in, will we be able to survive? The interior of the gym was dead silent, but my heartbeat was thundering in my ears.
Along with the muffled noises around the door, I only heard a rustling sound. Wondering what it was, I looked to the side and saw Yoo Geum-yi taking off the long-sleeved cardigan she was wearing, and carefully covering Henry¡¯s body with it. Then she spread out the towel that had been covering her head and covered Henry¡¯s face and chest, probably trying to hide the child from the eyes of potential intruders. Tumanako hesitated for a moment before taking off her jumper and draping it over Henry¡¯s head. The two seemed to be hoping that with the gym being dark due to the lights being off, Henry¡¯s presence would be mistaken for a pile of clothes in the corner.
I heard noises of someone trying to open the Ophion door, but it didn¡¯t seem to be going well. [Why do I have to do this?] That tearful female voice was the clearest among the noises.
As I listened to the attempts to open the door from the outside, I saw Shin Hae-ryang pressing the broadcast button on Roarke¡¯s pad next to me. Before anyone could stop him, Shin Hae-ryang spoke towards the pad.
¡°I heard that there are cowards with guns roaming around the 4th Underwater Base. How does it feel to go around shooting unarmed people? Does pulling the trigger with your index finger fill your disgusting sense of inferiority a little? It seems you¡¯ve managed to procure guns from somewhere because you don¡¯t have the guts to fight with your fists after getting beaten up usually, but do you think you can even graze my clothes with that?¡±
What? Kang Soojung, who was half lying down drinking water, started coughing as if the water got stuck in her throat after hearing what her team leader was saying. She desperately covered her mouth to prevent the coughing sound from mixing into the broadcast, while Lee Jihyun, who had been lying spread-eagled, got up and vigorously patted Kang Soojung¡¯s back with her palm. Tumanako and Yoo Geum-yi stared at Shin Hae-ryang with their mouths agape.
¡°You seem to think you¡¯ve isted the base by cutting off the underwater base¡¯s inte and fiber optic cables, but we have a separate channel here that allows externalmunication. Your brain must be as deficient as your missing teeth if you couldn¡¯t think of that. And all your stupid faces are being recorded on CCTV. I don¡¯t know if Michael Roarke is on your side or if he betrayed you from the start, but the CCTVs are still running. I hope you stick your toothless mugs in front of the cameras whenever you see them so you¡¯re well captured. Your crimes and personal details will be recorded in history for at least 100 years.¡±
Baek Ae-young was staring expressionlessly at the Ophion door, not caring what her team leader was bbering about in the broadcast. Seo Jihyuk was grinning from ear to ear at the broadcast content while standing holding a dumbbell that had been rolling on the floor.
¡°I¡¯m going to escape before the 4th Underwater Base is submerged in seawater. I want to collect a few teeth and jawbones as souvenirs before reaching the sea surface, so you bastards who haven¡¯t yet been dealt with by my hands,e running to the West District escape pod port right now!¡±
This is insane. Really. So this was his method of luring the armed forces to the West District. No, it¡¯s extreme, but would those people readilye just because he spoke like this? If it were me, I¡¯d think it was bait to call me and do the opposite, or never go to the West District. Shin Hae-ryang then proceeded to target people one by one.
¡°Yamashita. This time, I¡¯ll make sure you can¡¯t even eat porridge. Ichida. Yourptop disappeared twice because I used it as kindling on the beach. It burned well when used for barbecuing. Sato. You¡¯re such a pathetic bastard that I think you¡¯ve probably already shot yourself in the foot and died, so I don¡¯t even want to mention you. Suzuki. Your car that disappeared from the airport parking lot? I dumped it in the sea off Honolulu. Oh, and your helicopter that crashed in the sea in front of Daehan Ind wasn¡¯t due to maintenance failure, it was because I cut a few wires in advance. Be grateful I didn¡¯t make it crash in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It would have been not only marine pollution, but the seawater would have been wasted on submerging your corpses.¡±
Kang Soojung, the deputy team leader of Engineer Team A, was holding the back of her neck and falling over as if hearing this for the first time. Lee Jihyun was starting to pray, saying things like ¡°Oh. Lord. Our team leader is like Satan.¡± I began to worry about when to make this person stop broadcasting. If he says any more, it seems those people will shoot Shin Hae-ryang on sight. Shin Hae-ryang calmly continued to irritate others.
¡°Li Wei. I¡¯m the one who put a hole in the bottom of your yacht. It sank well. Wei Qi. Same goes for your boat. It didn¡¯t disappear because it was swept away by a typhoon. It sank slower than Li Wei¡¯s yacht. Hao Ran. If I had known you¡¯d go around shooting, I would have induced an orbital fracture instead of a jaw fracture. It¡¯s a pity. By the way, I didn¡¯t touch your helicopter. It seemed old enough to crash on its own, just like your Communist Party. I¡¯ll give you 10 minutes. Come before I finish knitting my socks. You ipetent small-minded bastards. If you want to kill me, all the weapons you have won¡¯t be enough. I¡¯ll kill you all with just one knitting needle.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang ended the broadcast expressionlessly. Then he grabbed the water bottle next to Kang Soojung and gulped down all the remaining water. Everyone in the gym was quiet. Yoo Geum-yi looked dazed. Shin Hae-ryang, after swallowing the water, asked me in a lower voice,
¡°How about lowering the barrier wall between the West District and the Central Building after 10 minutes?¡±
¡°¡Did you really do all those things you just broadcasted about?¡±
¡°About half of it wasn¡¯t me.¡±
So half of it was you? I¡¯m scared to ask which half and how you did it. Tumanako was trying to move away from Shin Hae-ryang while holding Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s shoulder. I heard Tumanako whispering to Lee Jihyun,
¡°Didn¡¯t those guys take up guns to kill your team leader?¡±
At those words, Lee Jihyun, who had been praying, burst intoughter, then stopped with a cough and said,
¡°¡Unfortunately, no.¡±
Kang Soojung, holding her forehead as if she had a headache, reluctantly asked Shin Hae-ryang,
¡°Among the things you broadcasted, did you do anything without telling me in advance?¡±
After thinking for a moment, Shin Hae-ryang answered,
¡°No, Deputy Team Leader.¡±
Kang Soojung made an expression of disbelief, then asked again with a frown,
¡°What¡¯s this about externalmunication being possible? Do we have some other reliable option?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°What about escaping through the escape pod port?¡±
¡°It¡¯s just bait to lure the opponents to the West District.¡±
So it was all bluff. Kang Soojung pointed at the pad Shin Hae-ryang was holding and said,
¡°What about the CCTV recordings?¡±
¡°It seems all team leaders¡¯ CCTV-rted authorities have been revoked. Checking the pad, only Michael Roarke, the head engineer, has ess.¡±
¡°That pad, it¡¯s Michael¡¯s, right? Did Michael give his pad to you directly?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°Then how did you get it?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang hesitated for the first time at Kang Soojung¡¯s questioning. Then, looking troubled, he said sheepishly,
¡°¡I swapped it with the deputy team leader¡¯s pad when we identally met in the central elevator at dawn. I¡¯m sorry. My pad was in my room at that time.¡±
Kang Soojung, hearing that her electronic pad was now in Roarke¡¯s hands, looked dumbfounded and said to Shin Hae-ryang dejectedly,
¡°¡I don¡¯t know what to say to you, Team Leader.¡±
¡°Take mine.¡±
Then he politely handed over his own pad, which I had brought from the West District dormitory, to Kang Soojung with an apologetic look. Seo Jihyuk came over and added fuel to the fire.
¡°Team Leader, you threw away Li Wei¡¯s pad and phone twice too, didn¡¯t you? Why did you leave that out? And Suzuki, that bastard deserves whatever he gets, but poor Tamaki¡¡±
When Kang Soojung looked at him, Seo Jihyuk hesitated and then said as if making an excuse,
¡°Don¡¯t worry. There¡¯s no evidence. No evidence!¡±
¡°You¡¯re bragging. Really. Huh? You¡¯re bragging!¡±
Chapter 126
Chapter 126
After thinking about the broadcast content, Kang Soojung, still finding it unbelievable, said to Shin Hae-ryang,
¡°I knew you went around punching troublemakers. In fact, I¡¯d have to be blind not to know. A guy who was bitching at me suddenly disappears for a month and then gets dental imnts. Gets tooth regeneration. Keeps slipping in and out of Hawaii for whatever reason. I know there are guys who won¡¯t listen no matter how much you try to persuade them with words, but you never shared with me that you were destroying things.¡±
¡°¡I told you it was handled well, didn¡¯t I?¡±
Seeing Shin Hae-ryang looking flustered, which was unusual, it seemed he hadn¡¯t told Deputy Team Leader Kang Soojung specifically how he had handled things.
¡°Ichida, was it? You said he voluntarily provided hisptop?¡±
¡°Voluntarily¡ he left it at the cafe.¡±
¡°You said you persuaded Suzuki well with words. Was that getting rid of his car entirely?¡±
¡°¡He¡¯ll behave until he buys a new car.¡±
¡°What about the helicopter? This ispletely new to me. Wasn¡¯t that an ident due to poor piloting skills?¡±¡°The entire Engineer Team N needed to fall into the sea.¡±
In between, Seo Jihyuk was stomping his feet at the team leader¡¯s curt answers. He tried to interject hisrge body between the two to support the team leader, but was pushed back by Kang Soojung¡¯srge hand on his face. (Ugh!) Kang Soojung thought for a few seconds after Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s answer, but then frowned and asked again,
¡°What was the need for that?¡±
Kang Soojung seemed unable to think of any reason why people needed to be rinsed in seawater. I, listening from the side, felt the same way. Is there a need to put people in seawater after destroying a helicopter? Shin Hae-ryang answered simply,
¡°We needed to destroy their electronic devices.¡±
Watching Shin Hae-ryang answer expressionlessly without any apparent guilt, Kang Soojung sighed and asked wearily,
¡°Were the actions you mentioned rted to the safety of Engineer Team A?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°¡I¡¯ll save additional questions or reprimands for when we¡¯re back in Korea.¡±
¡°Thank you.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang checked the time on Michael Roarke¡¯s pad, then started essing the video section through the engineer program. Kang Soojung, watching Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s actions, began the same ess on Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad. Then, as if recalling past events, she fell into thought and asionally snapped her fingers. Snap!
¡°No wonder! Suzuki was going crazy, jumping up and down asking me where I hid his car, and I thought he¡¯d gone mad and kept telling him off for asking us about his car.¡±
Ah! As Kang Soojung let out a sigh-like groan, Seo Jihyuk, who was next to her, put down the dumbbell and stretched both arms to the sky, saying to Kang Soojung,
¡°That bastard. He won¡¯t be able to do his hand gestures again while iming to give people rides at the airport.¡±
¡°The result is too extreme. ¡I rmended mental counseling to Suzuki, thinking he had paranoia.¡±
¡°Deputy Team Leader, you need to know nothing so that when someone askster, you can answer with certainty that it wasn¡¯t our doing.¡±
¡°Are you kidding?! I never thought our team members would go aroundmitting such criminal acts! I even thought the assaults were too much!¡±
¡°¡Please continue to act like you don¡¯t know.¡±
Seo Jihyuk slightly turned his head away from Kang Soojung¡¯s ring gaze. Baek Ae-young took her eyes off the door and approached slowly. The people in front of the door seemed to have already disappeared during the broadcast. With no one trying to enter Ophion, the tension eased a bit. Tumanako and Yoo Geum-yi, who had been half-standing, were now sprawled on the floor. Baek Ae-young approached Kang Soojung and said,
¡°Deputy Team Leader, you¡¯re not good at lying, it shows on your face. Also, it¡¯s partly to ensure you¡¯re not involved if there¡¯s a problemter.¡±
¡°¡Thanks. Really. I¡¯m moved to tears by such great consideration.¡±
Despite Kang Soojung¡¯s sarcastic words, Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t care. Sitting on the floor next to the deputy team leader, Baek Ae-young grinned, unable to suppress the rising corner of her mouth, and said,
¡°I¡¯m revealing this so the team leader doesn¡¯t take all the me unfairly. I did Wei Qi¡¯s boat. It was quite a struggle to deal with it right before the typhoon.¡±
¡°¡Why did you do that?¡±
Kang Soojung asked, looking at Baek Ae-young with a tired voice.
¡°He picked a fight with me first when I was minding my own business.¡±
Hearing Baek Ae-young¡¯s confident answer, Kang Soojungughed weakly and replied,
¡°¡Right. Well done. Really. Well done. How about you?¡±
Her tone wasn¡¯t praising at all. When Kang Soojung looked at Seo Jihyuk, he nced at Lee Jihyun once and then shook his head vigorously.
¡°I behaved well and nicely.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t lie.¡±
¡°I have such a timid personality that I behaved the most quietly among the three of us.¡±
¡°Your words are the least believable.¡±
¡°Boo-hoo. That¡¯s too harsh.¡±
Seo Jihyuk pretended to wipe his eyes with the back of his hand. Kang Soojung rubbed her face with her hand. She seemed quite surprised to confirm the immoral behavior of her team members who had sunk through the floor.
I was more surprised that Kang Soojung, who I heard was a former boxing champion, wasn¡¯t going around punching people with them. Well, she did say she tried to resolve things through dialogue as much as possible. When I told Kang Soojung about my thoughts in the most polite way possible, she replied as if feeling wronged about her image,
¡°Boxing has rules, mouthguards, and gloves. I don¡¯t beat people with bare fists like our team leader.¡±
¡°Ah¡ That¡¯s right. Indeed! It¡¯s not easy to cause an impact strong enough to knock out teeth.¡±
Come to think of it, if you hit the jaw or mouth with a mouthguard and gloves on, teeth don¡¯te out like that. Most of the time, it¡¯s just one or two teeth breaking or cracking.
I once had a brief conversation with a boxer who came to the dental clinic, and he said that the reason for wearing mouthguards and gloves is not only to protect one¡¯s wrists and fingers but also to protect both the opponent¡¯s and one¡¯s own face. Swinging fists without gloves is just fighting, he said. I see. I vaguely suspected at first that Shin Hae-ryang might be a criminal, but he¡¯s just¡ actually a criminal.
Thinking about it, front teeth are like sspared to mrs. Moreover, since the cheeks, which act as a sponge, are much plumper than the lips, front teeth are more vulnerable to external attackspared to mrs. And from a dentist¡¯s perspective, it¡¯s easier to perform root canal treatment on front teeth. Front teeth have one root, while mrs have three. Also, problems with front teeth are immediately visible to people, so they have toe to the dental clinic quickly.
While not directly life-threatening, front teeth are a troublesome area when damaged. Does Shin Hae-ryang know this and target them intentionally?
Kang Soojung seemed to have confirmed that CCTV ess was impossible with Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad. Michael¡¯s pad showed real-time CCTV content. Seeing this, Kang Soojung immediately started drafting an approval request document for the West District barrier wall, with Michael as the approver. Shin Hae-ryang saw Kang Soojung¡¯s actions and nodded lightly.
Approval Request: West District Closure
Reason for Request: Right now, quickly
As soon as the approval request was submitted, the content of the document Kang Soojung had submitted for approval appeared on Michael¡¯s pad that Shin Hae-ryang was holding. Shin Hae-ryang processed the approval immediately without even looking at it. Michael¡¯s pad showed CCTV footage of people moving from the Central Building to the West District. Several men were running towards the West District with guns, harboring tremendous hostility.
Kang Soojung was waiting with the [Do you want to close with the barrier wall?] [Yes] [No] buttons disyed. While looking at Michael¡¯s pad, I asked Shin Hae-ryang,
¡°Don¡¯t people try to be more patient or make more rational judgments in disaster situations like this?¡±
No matter what, falling for such provocation doesn¡¯t make sense. Be itptops, cars, or yachts. Even if I had a gun, I should be able to consider the possibility that rushing in might be a trap. Shin Hae-ryang, watching a few men who had sprinted from the East District and were quickly passing through the Central Building, said,
¡°It seems there¡¯s some reward for living diligently.¡±
The CCTV footage followed their movements. As soon as the men passed through the corridor connecting the Central Building to the West District, Kang Soojung sighed heavily and pressed the [Yes] button.
As the barrier wall started to descend rapidly, the men in the CCTV began to panic and turn back. However, the barrier wall closed faster. Watching the CCTV, I became curious about the situation in the South District research center and asked Shin Hae-ryang,
¡°Can we check the situation in the South District through CCTV as well?¡±
¡°We can see everything except the research center.¡±
¡°Why can¡¯t we see the research center?¡±
¡°It seems there have been multiple discussions about privacy invasion and overstepping authority. Only the research center directors can view that CCTV.¡±
Kang Soojung, looking at the pad her team leader had stolen, asked the thief,
¡°Why did you need CCTV ess at night?¡±
¡°¡¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, who had been speaking without hesitation until now, closed his mouth like a m and remained silent.
¡°It¡¯s okay. You can tell us.¡±
When Baek Ae-young answered with furrowed brows, Shin Hae-ryang looked at her once and then slowly said to Kang Soojung,
¡°Some bastard pulled Ae-young¡¯s hair, and there was a quarrel because of that. It happened below the CCTV angle, they say.¡±
Kang Soojung gently asked Baek Ae-young. It waspletely different from how she spoke to Shin Hae-ryang and Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Were you up at night?¡±
¡°¡I couldn¡¯t sleep, so I was on my way to see the night sea.¡±
¡°Is your head okay? Are you hurt anywhere?¡±
¡°My hair is fine, but I beat the crap out of him.¡±
Kang Soojung smiled and patted Baek Ae-young¡¯s back, saying as if she was proud. Well done. When Kang Soojung looked at Shin Hae-ryang, he answered slowly,
¡°When I checked to delete the footage, I found that almost all engineer team leader authorities in the underwater base had been revoked. There was no separate notice about it either.¡±
¡°So you swiped the pad as soon as you met the head engineer.¡±
¡°That white supremacist wasn¡¯t someone who would be wandering around at that time in the first ce. And¡¡±
¡°And?¡±
¡°¡He seemed strangely tense when he saw me greeting him and kept ncing at me.¡±
Chapter 127
Chapter 127
Listening from the side, I spoke while suppressing my incredulous feelings:
¡°If you steal things because someone seems nervous, all my dental patients should empty their pockets before leaving.¡±
Expressionlessly, Shin Hae-ryang exined to me again:
¡°It¡¯s a bit different from that kind of nervousness. ¡I know it the moment our eyes meet. That instant when time seems to slow down a bit, and it bes obvious that the other person is hiding something from me.¡±
¡I don¡¯t get it at all. For someone like him, it seems he tried to exin it clearly to me. But I don¡¯t think I can understand it. I guess it¡¯s because I¡¯ve never thought about achieving something by stealing what others have, even if I needed it.
Kang Soojung, looking at the people lying or sitting inside the snake that once bore the world, asked Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°So what should we do now? We can¡¯t stay here forever, can we?¡±
At that question, Shin Hae-ryang looked at me while holding the pad, and I looked back at Shin Hae-ryang and Kang Soojung. As Kang Soojung turned her gaze from her team leader to me, I shook my head vigorously and said:
¡°What do you expect from a dentist who¡¯s only been here for five days?¡±Would engineers who¡¯ve lived in the underwater base for years know this ce well? Would I know it well? Kang Soojung looked at me, crossed her arms, and asked:
¡°Doctor, are you a Infinity Church believer?¡±
¡°¡No. I said that in the South District, but it was actually a lie. I¡¯m an atheist.¡±
At those words, there was a pping sound. The man tied up like a fish in front of the shower room door was wriggling around, hitting his whole body against the floor. Without even ncing in that direction, Shin Hae-ryang asked me:
¡°Where¡¯s the safest ce in the current situation? Have you been to the ck Tortoise Building?¡±
¡°¡I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never been there at all.¡±
¡°There are several multi-person submarines in the East District besides the escape pods. If escape pods are impossible, how about escaping using the submarines?¡±
I tried to recall what Baek Ae-young had said before. What was it again? Two-person manual operation? She said something about some submarine.
¡°I heard there¡¯s one two-person manual submarine. I¡¯m not sure about the rest.¡±
While Shin Hae-ryang was lost in thought, the Infinity Church believer started wriggling again. He was lying on his side, unable to move much, probably because Shin Hae-ryang had tied him up so well. With his hands and feet tied in front of him, it seemed all he could do was wriggle around vigorously.
So they don¡¯t tie hands behind the back when restraining someone. I think they did that in action movies. Is it because of the possibility of untying? Kang Soojung pointed at the tied-up man and said:
¡°What should we do with him when we leave here?¡±
Mmph! Mmph! The man, whose mouth seemed to be stuffed with something, couldn¡¯t speak properly. When he saw Kang Soojung¡¯s finger pointing at him, he flopped around like a fish taken out of water. Before Shin Hae-ryang could say anything, I spoke first:
¡°We should take him with us.¡±
When I answered quickly, Kang Soojung¡¯s expression turned sour. We have to take him. When the 4th Underwater Base copsester, this ce will fill with water too, and this person will have to watch it happen with his limbs all tied up? It¡¯s horrifying just to imagine.
The man listened to our conversation and his struggling became more frequent. He was just staring at us with his eyes, which seemed to be filled with a mix of hatred and anger.
Yoo Geum-yi and Tumanako also looked startled every time the man jumped and hit the floor with his legs. Yoo Geum-yi asked Seo Jihyuk, who was standing there impassively:
¡°I¡¯ve been wanting to ask, why is that person tied up?¡±
¡°We tied him up because we thought it would be dangerous if we let him loose.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang unfolded a 3D map of the 4th Underwater Base and was asking Kang Soojung about things like the diving depth and maximum crew capacity of the submarines. He seems busy. I pointed at the man and asked Seo Jihyuk:
¡°I have a few questions I¡¯d like to ask. Is it okay if I remove what¡¯s in his mouth?¡±
¡°Sure.¡±
Then Seo Jihyuk picked up the man lying on the floor like a package, made him kneel upright from where he had been lying, and whispered in his ear:
¡°Well. It doesn¡¯t matter if you scream. But you know I¡¯m faster than your fellow believersing, right?¡±
The man who had been shaking his whole body immediately became quiet. Seo Jihyuk undid theplex-looking knot tied around the man¡¯s mouth with one pull.
The man quickly spat out what he had been holding in his mouth along with arge amount of saliva. Looking at what he had been holding, there was an entire toilet paper roll and a wad of tissue in his mouth. The man spat out saliva mixed with tissue bits towards the floor several times before asking me:
¡°You say you¡¯re not an Infinity Church believer?¡±
As I was about to answer, Seo Jihyuk stopped me with one hand. Then he said one simple thing to the man:
¡°Questionse only from our side.¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s attitude towards the other person was extremely polite, but why do I feel so creeped out? The man spat out the saliva pooled in his mouth onto the floor again and closed his mouth. I looked back and forth between Seo Jihyuk and the man, then asked:
¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±
¡°¡John Doe.¡±
It¡¯s an English name used to refer to an unidentified person. Jane Doe was for unidentified women, wasn¡¯t it? He must really not want to answer. Hearing the man¡¯s words, Seo Jihyuk snorted as if finding it absurd. This is unsettling. I quickly asked the man another question:
¡°Mr. John Doe. It seems Infinity Church has a phrase they use to identify whether someone is a believer or not, right?¡±
¡°¡There is.¡±
¡°What is it?¡±
The man looked at Seo Jihyuk with displeasure and answered slowly:
¡°I told you earlier. ¡We survive in any situation.¡±
I¡¯ve heard that somewhere before. Was it from the Infinity Church believer we caught in the 3rd Underwater Base? Or was it Tyler? I can¡¯t remember. One thing¡¯s for sure, the phrase I¡¯ve heard before isn¡¯t the correct answer.
¡°That¡¯s not it, is it?¡±
¡°It is.¡±
¡°It¡¯s simr, but that¡¯s not the correct answer, right? If you say ¡®We survive in any situation,¡¯ what happens after that? Are you one of those people who joined for money?¡±
The man who called himself John Doe red at me silently. Then, looking at Seo Jihyuk, he said to me:
¡°Get rid of him.¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡±
¡°That guy. Get him out of my sight.¡±
Judging by his chin gesture, he seemed to be pointing at Seo Jihyuk standing next to him.
¡°Then I¡¯ll answer. Keep that bastard away from me.¡±
John Doe said, gritting his teeth. At those words, Seo Jihyuk replied as if feeling wronged:
¡°I didn¡¯t do anything.¡±
Then, as if teasing the man, he sat down with a thud right next to him, putting an arm around his shoulders. The man called John seemed scared even by this simple action. I sighed and said to Seo Jihyuk:
¡°Jihyuk, can¡¯t you stay away for just 3 minutes?¡±
Seo Jihyuk answered me while messing up John¡¯s hair with the tips of his fingers that were around the man¡¯s shoulders:
¡°¡It might be dangerous. His mouth is untied, isn¡¯t it?¡±
Is he worried the man might bite me or attack other people? I shook my head and said:
¡°That¡¯s my area of expertise.¡±
I know jaws and bite force well. Seo Jihyuk looked at the man and me for a moment, then released his arm from around the man¡¯s shoulders and moved back diagonally. The man who called himself John shuddered. Seo Jihyuk retreated about 2 meters away from us. After several tens of seconds, the man called John asked me:
¡°Why do you want to know that?¡±
¡°You ask if someone¡¯s a believer and then shoot them dead with a gun, don¡¯t you?¡±
¡°No. We don¡¯t intend to kill people like that. We just confirm if they¡¯re Infinity Church believers.¡±
¡°What? No. You confirm whether they¡¯re believers or not, and then you kill people.¡±
¡°Some people took guns to force people to move, but killing isn¡¯t the goal. Look at me. I don¡¯t even have a gun.¡±
What are you saying? I saw people dying right in front of my eyes.
¡°I directly saw people being shot with guns.¡±
¡°¡It might have been mercenaries hired or some believers acting on their own, but our goal isn¡¯t to kill people. I think I¡¯ve said this twice now. If you¡¯re going to keep asking the same thing without any substance, I¡¯ll say it a third time. Our goal isn¡¯t to kill people indiscriminately.¡±
¡°Then how many people is it your goal to kill? Are you just killing everyone in the underwater base?¡±
The man called John Doe said to me, seeming a bit impatient:
¡°¡You seem to be misunderstanding something. If killing people was the goal from the start, I wouldn¡¯t have joined this religion at all. Our goal is to go to the past we want.¡±
It¡¯s simr to what Canoe wished for. The unrealistic wish to go back several hundred years. Why is thating up here?
¡°Why do you want to go to the past?¡±
¡°To live. ¡®We head to the past to live.¡¯ This is the correct confirmation phrase. If someone answers this, you can think they¡¯re a Infinity Church believer.¡±
John Doe, who had been spitting so much, now rubbed his dried-out mouth with his tongue and answered.
¡°People who don¡¯t think they can handle guns or don¡¯t like pointing guns at people don¡¯t carry guns in the first ce, like me. All I have are rings.¡±
Then John Doe lifted his tied wrists to show two rings on his fingers. Identical diamond rings were on his second and fourth fingers, which looked unmistakably like wedding rings. The man called John twirled the small ring on his index finger with his thumb several times and said:
¡°I¡¯m going back to before my wife died. That¡¯s my only wish.¡±
No. With a dazed mind, I said to John:
¡°No. People were shot indiscriminately with guns.¡±
¡°¡No. Infinity Church believers agreed to treat people as humanely as possible. What would we do even if we took over this ce? If we seed properly, only a few people will die anyway.¡±
¡°Who dies?¡±
¡°The people who went back to the past would be considered dead. From the perspective of real time, that person would bepletely missing, right?¡±
What are you talking about? Then what about the people who died, and what about the people walking around with guns now? Are the people walking around with guns in the 4th Underwater Basepletely different from Infinity Church? Infinity Church is humane?
Chapter 128
Chapter 128
I remember the people crushed by cars. And those who died from gunshots in a ce filled with groans and screams. The sound of bodies hitting the floor from the recoil of bullets lodged in their heads. I spoke in a daze:
¡°People actually died. They died miserably like trash!¡±
¡°When?¡±
At John¡¯s curious question, I felt like someone was choking me. Should I say what I experienced was in the future? Or in the past? Does it be non-existent because it hasn¡¯t happened yet? I¡¯m the only one who remembers those deaths.
My voice must have been quite loud because Seo Jihyuk approached and grabbed John¡¯s head with one hand, instantly pinning him to the floor. The man fell to the side with a choked sound.
¡°Are you okay?¡±
Seo Jihyuk asked, quickly scanning me with his eyes, but in reality, nothing was okay. My head was tangled like a mess of threads.
Why do Infinity Church people all say different things? Is the goal just to go to the past, as Canoe said? Do you go to the past if you offer money and jewels and wait? Then what about those Infinity Church bastards who were shooting people with guns? Why does the research center need to be destroyed with torpedoes? And what about the engineers walking around the 4th Underwater Base with guns?
¡Why is this soplicated? I¡¯m a simple human being. A human who can be happy with just a cup of coffee.I was afraid of what Seo Jihyuk might do to that man if I said I wasn¡¯t okay, so I swallowed my depression with an inhale and answered:
¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±
Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t release his grip on the man¡¯s head pinned to the floor. Then he nced at me and said:
¡°Don¡¯t listen to what these cult bastards say. It¡¯s just the talk of desperate people trying to lure others in.¡±
The more I hear about Infinity Church, the more I feel like I don¡¯t know what¡¯s what. People are actually dying, so either that religion is internally inplete disarray, or some of the people I¡¯ve met are lying. It feels like my insides are being scraped raw.
¡°Someone¡ seems to be lying, but I don¡¯t know what¡¯s a lie and what¡¯s the truth.¡±
Seo Jihyuk answered me without taking his eyes off the other person:
¡°A cult religion? That¡¯s possible. My father was a pastor of a pretty big church, but cultspletely disintegrated the church. They didn¡¯t even need guns. They came with just their tongues, and it disappeared.¡±
Can a church disappear? Well, I guess. If a four-story underwater base can copse, a church could disappear even more easily.
Thinking about it now, what does it mean to treat people humanely? Does that mean if we ride up the central elevator and obediently lie face down on the floor in the 2nd Underwater Base, they¡¯ll spare our lives? It¡¯sughable for people with guns to talk about anything humane in the first ce. If you need power to forcibly handle others in order to show mercy, that mercy isn¡¯t for others. It¡¯s probably just part of the process of the powerful gaining benefits. How can you trust in peace achieved through someone else¡¯s generosity when the situation can change at any time? And should I be grateful that they¡¯re not shooting me? ¡Crazy cult fanatics. Why do they all say different things, confusing me?
¡°I don¡¯t know what to believe.¡±
¡°Ah, there¡¯s an answer for that.¡±
Seo Jihyuk said that and then called out to Lee Jihyun, who was looking at the underwater base bulletin board on her pad.
¡°Jihyun!¡±
¡°What!¡±
¡°When you don¡¯t know who to believe, what should you do?¡±
¡°¡What are you talking about? There¡¯s no one to trust but the Lord!¡±
¡°See?¡±
Seo Jihyuk shrugged at me. ¡Where¡¯s the answer in that? Is it saying not to trust anyone?
The fortunate thing was that thanks to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s distraction, my thoughts about Infinity Church were somewhat diluted. The emotions that had overflowed in my chest from tension and sadness diminished as time passed, and now only sighs remained. If all the sighs I¡¯ve let out in the underwater base were collected, I feel like they would have already shortened my lifespan.
I heard crying and turned my head to see that Henry had woken up and was crying.
¡°Daddy! Mommy! Mommy! Where are you! Mommy!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi and Tumanako, who were next to the crying child, were flustered and at a loss. Yoo Geum-yi made a hissing sound like a snake and said:
¡°Calm down. Stop! Stop! Stop crying. Shh! Shh! Don¡¯t cry.¡±
¡°Yeah, stop crying. Your mom isn¡¯t here.¡±
¡°Why isn¡¯t Mommy here!¡±
¡°Aah! No, no. Your mom must be somewhere around here. I¡¯m sorry! I said it wrong!¡±
Tumanako joined in, but it didn¡¯t have much effect inforting the child. Waah! The child started crying more pitifully while iling backwards. The two were trying their best to stop the crying child somehow.
Watching this, I rummaged through my bag and took out a few sugar-free candies. It would have been better if there was a doll.
I slowly approached, picked up the crying Henry, held him tight in the darkness, and slowly patted his back. Kids are surprisingly strong. I remembered when I was trying to dress the paw of my friend¡¯s 20kgrge dog when it got injured. It¡¯s better to hug a dog from behind. Kids can even kick because they¡¯re bipedal. I tried to make my voice as soft as possible and said:
¡°It¡¯s scary to wake up and see only strangers around, isn¡¯t it? Yeah, yeah. I know it¡¯s very scary. Mom and Dad aren¡¯t next to you, and there are only strangers all around. Right?¡±
It doesn¡¯t matter whether the child understands or not. First of all, scared children need time to calm down. I hugged the child tightly and patted his back diligently. I could feel my chest getting wet with tears and snot.
¡°Mommy! Daddy.¡±
¡°It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s okay. Are you very scared? It¡¯ll be alright. I¡¯ll find your mom and dad for you. Even if I can¡¯t find them, the child protectionw will work hard to find your parents for you. It¡¯s okay. Don¡¯t worry. Henry doesn¡¯t need to worry. We¡¯ll find your mom and dad somehow.¡±
As I patted his back at a steady pace while holding him tightly, his intense emotions began to subside bit by bit. Even adults would be incredibly scared if they woke up in an unfamiliar ce surrounded by strangers, so this reaction is brave for a 7-year-old child.
The gym was still dark, with only a few people¡¯s faces glowing ghost-like from the light of their pads, and the surroundings were filled with bizarrely stacked exercise equipment. The walls hadrge diagrams of how to use the equipment or pictures of the Ophion snake. If I had woken up in a ce like this instead of my room, I would have screamed loud enough to shake the gym. I kept exining while patting the child¡¯s back:
¡°We¡¯re going to find your mom. We¡¯re going to find your dad too. Our brave Henry needs to lead us to find both of them.¡±
When the child¡¯s crying subsided a bit, I put him down on the floor and met his eyes up close. His face looked like he wanted to cry out loudly and demand his parents right away, but I quickly unwrapped a candy and said:
¡°I¡¯m a dentist. I¡¯ll watch to make sure Henry eats only 3 candies. After eating the candy, we¡¯ll go find your mom and dad. Eat the candy, Henry.¡±
¡°Mom¡ Mom said I shouldn¡¯t eat it because it rots teeth¡¡±
As the child spoke tearfully, preparing to load and fire another bout of crying, I simply said. This is the most important part. Speaking with a firm expression that leaves no room for wavering:
¡°You have to eat all the candy. We¡¯re going to find your mom and dad. You have to eat all the candy. You must eat it all. We¡¯re going to find your mom and dad.¡±
After this was repeated twice, Henry put the candy in his mouth while tears streamed down his face. He stopped crying faster because I¡¯m not his parent. Children cry differently depending on the person and situation.
Doing this for 5 minutes is really draining. Actually¡ this is just a stopgap measure. He¡¯s bound to cry againter. It seems like crying because I lied to him is already a scheduled step.
At the dental clinic, kids start crying from the front door. Many parents either lie to their children and bring them, or if it¡¯s their first visit, theye without knowing anything. Sometimes parents have to run a marathon to catch a child who runs away after hearing the sound of a hand drill. Some kids clean the entire floor with their tears while struggling like possessed octopuses.
¡°Our Henry is so brave. Let¡¯s go find your mom and dad after you finish the candy.¡±
Quickly, shower him with praise! Following my cue, Geum-yi and Tumanako praised Henry with voices that sounded like their souls had left their bodies. Yoo Geum-yi spoke in an even more tired voice:
¡°Henry eats candy well. Let¡¯s go find your mom. When we find your mom, I think I¡¯ll have a lot to say to her.¡±
¡°¡I¡¯m going home with Dad.¡±
¡°Oh, sweet Henry. Is the candy tasty? You¡¯re eating it well. Yes, let¡¯s go home. When I find your dad, I¡¯m going to shave all his hair off.¡±
Tumanako whispered thest part through gritted teeth. Suppressing theughter that was about to burst out at those words, I stroked the head of the child who was trying hard to dissolve therge candy in his mouth.
Even though the child just cried, I felt like my head had unexpectedly cleared up. Let¡¯s just think about going back. What does it matter if it¡¯s Infinity Church or whatever? Let¡¯s just think about going home. Let¡¯s just think about leaving this underwater base. Why should I care how messed up their religion is?
Kang Soojung looked at Henry, who had stopped crying, with aplicated expression and said to me:
¡°You¡¯re good with kids.¡±
¡°It¡¯s rare for a child with perfectly healthy teeth toe to the dental clinic.¡±
I answered with an awkward smile. A few weeks ago, a 6-year-old who came to the clinic had fallen hard, breaking his front teeth and splitting his lip. The child didn¡¯t stop crying until he left the clinic. The child¡¯s mother left the clinic like a zombie, carrying a siren that wouldn¡¯t stop wailing no matter what she did. Kang Soojung spoke to her team leader with an ufortable expression:
¡°¡Is it a good choice to take such a young child with us in this situation? He¡¯s not even a Korean national. That kid¡¯s father is that bastard Leonard from the American team.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang took his eyes off the map on the pad and said to Kang Soojung:
¡°We¡¯re taking him.¡±
Kang Soojung sighed deeply enough to sink into the ground. I felt my damp chest and around my shoulders with my hand and said:
¡°I¡¯ll take care of him.¡±
¡°To defend my humanity a bit, if this child were a Korean national or born to good parents, I wouldn¡¯t be saying this.¡±
Neither of those is something that child could choose.
Chapter 130
Chapter 130
I hastily used my body as a wall to block Henry¡¯s view. These were scenes unsuitable for a child¡¯s mental health. Of course, they weren¡¯t good for adults either. How many times in life would you see someone being beaten with exercise equipment? I hope to never see it again.
A sh of undisguisable joy crossed Baek Ae-young¡¯s face as she held the gun, but it quickly disappeared. She immediately aimed the muzzle at Sumire¡¯s head, who was cursing with slurred speech, unable to stop groaning and clutching her thigh.
Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s hands quickly patted Sumire¡¯s clothes, then retrieved a magazine from Sumire¡¯s pink cardigan pocket. As Shin Hae-ryang felt Sumire¡¯s forearm and wrist, Baek Ae-young asked:
¡°Is that all? Nothing else?¡±
¡°Nothing.¡±
Watching their exchange as they checked Sumire¡¯s body for other weapons, Baek Ae-young and Shin Hae-ryang looked like armed robbers to a third party. As Baek Ae-young seemed to lick her lips in disappointment, Kang Soojung approached, still holding the kettlebell. Then, with a still dazed expression, she said to Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°You throw it like that? I, I thought we were going to use the tes to swing and hit.¡±
¡°I aimed for the torso, but the weight made that impossible.¡±
¡°No¡ Team Leader, I had no intention of throwing this.¡±Kang Soojung shook her head vigorously, apparently thinking her team leader was advising her on how to throw the kettlebell.
The barbell te Shin Hae-ryang had thrown was rolling on the floor after hitting Sumire¡¯s thigh. Curious, I picked up the te from the floor, and a curse nearly escaped my throat. I could lift it, but I wasn¡¯t sure if I could throw it that distance at that height. This wasn¡¯t made to be thrown at people in the first ce. Isn¡¯t her thigh broken?
As expected, Sumire was almost sobbing, clutching her thigh, but the two people closest to her didn¡¯t seem to care at all.
More precisely, since Sumire was holding her thigh with both hands, Shin Hae-ryang was able to tie her wrists more easily with the parachute cord. Watching this scene, Tumanako slowly closed her gaping mouth. Henry was trying to lift the 15kg te himself, so I put itpletely down on the floor to prevent him from getting hurt, then approached the three.
Uehara Sumire¡¯s appearance waspletely different from the Infinity Church believers I had seen in the 2nd Underwater Base. The Infinity Church believers all wore ck clothes and pointy-ended baseball caps, giving off the impression of a dangerous armed group just by looking at them. Moreover, you could see the fanaticism of mad believers just by looking at their eyes.
However, the person in front of us waspletely different. Uehara Sumire was wearing a thin blouse with a pink cardigan over it, and faded jeans. She was even wearing heeled shoes and had her long, curly hair loose. Her face was made up.
Her nails were painted pink, probably with nail art, about 3-4cm long, with several shiny stickers like hearts and stars stuck on them. If she hadn¡¯t been holding a gun, it would have looked like Shin Hae-ryang and Baek Ae-young were attacking an ordinary woman going shopping or on a date in the city. Worried that Sumire couldn¡¯t take her hands off her thigh and kept crying, I asked:
¡°How¡¯s your leg? Does it hurt a lot?¡±
¡°Huu-huuk! Don¡¯t touch it! Huu-huu-huuk!¡±
Uehara Sumire cried out, sobbing uncontrobly. Her leg was bleeding where the te had struck, seemingly scraping the soft flesh. I took a towel from my bag and pressed it into Sumire¡¯s hands. Sumire, tears streaming down her face, used the towel with her bound hands to press on her bleeding leg. Then she vented her frustration at Baek Ae-young, who was right next to her.
¡°My leg! Huu-huu-huuk! Why are you doing this?! Huu-huu-huuk!¡±
Baek Ae-young answered, still aiming the gun at Sumire¡¯s head:
¡°Because you¡¯re carrying a gun.¡±
¡°Ah. It hurts so much. It hurts so much! I didn¡¯t shoot! I didn¡¯t shoot! Isn¡¯t it enough that I didn¡¯t shoot?!¡±
Baek Ae-young let out a small ¡°Ha!¡± and said, raising the corner of her mouth as if finding it absurd:
¡°If you weren¡¯t going to shoot, you should have thrown it away. With the safety off, who do you think would believe that? Is anyone with you? Where did all the men go?¡±
¡°¡I don¡¯t know!¡±
¡°If you don¡¯t answer properly, you¡¯ll get a hole in your face. Speak straight.¡±
There was sincerity in Baek Ae-young¡¯s words. Sumire gritted her teeth, then answered as if in pain:
¡°The men all went to the West District! Why are you asking me this?! ¡Why are you here?!¡±
Sumire frowned, looking at Shin Hae-ryang through her tears. It seemed she was questioning why someone who should be at the West District escape pod port was in the Central Building. It appeared the Engineer Team N people really thought Shin Hae-ryang was waiting at the West District escape pod port. Seo Jihyuk, who had been keeping watch around the area, said:
¡°It looks like she¡¯s alone.¡±
Hearing this, Shin Hae-ryang asked Sumire:
¡°Where are the others?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know! Huu-huuk! What are you going to do about my leg! My leg!¡±
Shin Hae-ryang answered Sumire¡¯s words simply:
¡°Answer properly before I make your other leg look the same.¡±
That threat didn¡¯t sound false, and Sumire swallowed her tears and snot before barely answering:
¡°We split up in the Central Building! I¡¯m alone.¡±
¡°What about Takahashi Yurie or Tamaki Yuzuru?¡±
¡°Takahashi-san followed the team leader. How should I know about Tama-tama?! I don¡¯t know!¡±
It seemed the Engineer Team N members weren¡¯t very close to each other. Taking solo action in this disaster situation¡ Usually, people would try to move together in situations like this. Shin Hae-ryang continued questioning Sumire:
¡°Why did you break the escape pod?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t do it, so I don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°Then who did it?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. Someone must have done it. I really don¡¯t know.¡±
Sumire answered, shaking her head vigorously. ¡She really doesn¡¯t seem to know. Just as I thought that, Shin Hae-ryang dragged and picked up the 10kg barbell te from the floor. Seeing this, Sumire looked at the barbell te, her face crumpling as she spoke quickly:
¡°It wasn¡¯t me! I saw Yamashita telling Tama to break it!¡±
¡°What and where?¡±
¡°¡The escape pod in the West District.¡±
The expressions of the West District residents, including myself, were a mess. Tumanako, who had been standing like a statue, looked like he was about to pounce on Sumire, but Yoo Geum-yi was barely holding him back. Shin Hae-ryang asked Sumire again in a low voice:
¡°Why?¡±
¡°He said he wished all of you and the Russian team would die. If something happens to the underwater base, you¡¯d escape using the escape pods first, right?¡±
The West District has about 80 residents, including the engineer team. Combining the people from both engineer teams, there are 14 in total. They damaged an escape pod that others could use too, just because they wanted 14 people to die? Shin Hae-ryang frowned and asked something else:
¡°Did your country fire the torpedo at the research center?¡±
¡°Torpedo? You mean the bomb? I don¡¯t know.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi hurriedly cut in beside Shin Hae-ryang and asked Sumire:
¡°What about the South District escape pod? Why on earth did you break that one? The researchers have nothing to do with the engineers.¡±
¡°The South District escape pod? What? Is that one broken too?¡±
Yoo Geum-yi stared nkly at Sumire before quietly closing her mouth. Shin Hae-ryang looked at Yoo Geum-yi for a few seconds but then dejectedly asked Sumire again:
¡°¡How did you get the gun?¡±
¡°Suzuki-san gave it to me.¡±
¡°Suzuki Senru? How did that bastard smuggle in so many rifles?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. He said if there were gunshots in the Central Building, people would be scared and run to the escape pods. He told us to shoot at people. I didn¡¯t do anything wrong!¡±
As Shin Hae-ryang red silently at Sumire, she said, clutching the towel tightly:
¡°I didn¡¯t know it was a real gun. I thought it was just a heavy model that made loud noises until Dmitri asked where we got real ones from.¡±
¡°What about Dmitri?¡±
¡°¡I really didn¡¯t know they were real. And he was drunk from the morning, throwing bottles at us and getting angry, demanding we hand over the guns.¡±
¡°Did you kill him?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°Have you seen Irina?¡±
¡°¡I don¡¯t know.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, who had been observing Sumire, immediately rebutted:
¡°Don¡¯t lie. Did you kill her?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t shoot! ¡Ichida-san shot. I don¡¯t know if she died or lived. She just fell and didn¡¯t move.¡±
With each of Sumire¡¯s statements, Kang Soojung held her forehead as if dizzy, then used Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad to write the same message to dimir and the other Russians on the messenger: Engineer Team N shot Dmitri and Irina. Survival status uncertain, prioritize team evacuation.
At a nce, Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s messenger inbox was overflowing with messages from people of various countries, but he hadn¡¯t checked any of them, to the point where proper message reception seemed impossible. Kang Soojung also posted the same content on the underwater base bulletin board. The bulletin board was already filled with an enormous number of posts cursing Shin Hae-ryang. Kang Soojung read one or two, chuckled, and turned off the pad.
¡°Where were you going?¡±
¡°¡To my room.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°I was going to hide without doing anything.¡±
Hearing that, I sighed. As Lee Jihyun frowned at Sumire¡¯s exhausted voice, Shin Hae-ryang asked again:
¡°What¡¯s your rtionship with Infinity Church?¡±
The man called John, who had been quietly listening to this conversation, moved only his legs to approach and made a ¡°Mmph?¡± sound, shaking his head vigorously. Sumire looked at her broken, bloodied nails and asked Shin Hae-ryang back with a tearful face:
¡°What¡¯s that?¡±
¡°The religion mentioned in the broadcast.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t believe in such things.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been looking around, approached and, seeing Sumire¡¯s appearance and nails,mented:
¡°Good Lord. With those nails, she¡¯d break them trying to find the trigger.¡±
Then Baek Ae-young, without wavering as she kept the gun aimed at Sumire, said to Seo Jihyuk:
¡°Those nails don¡¯t hinder shooting at all. The problem is loading.¡±
¡°Uh¡ Is that so?¡±
¡°¡Loading can be done too. It¡¯s just painfully slow. If you let your guard down and get taken down by someone like her, you¡¯re dead?¡±
¡°Do I have to die by your hands after getting taken down by her? Give me a break.¡±
Chapter 131
Chapter 131
I removed the towel pressing on Sumire¡¯s hand and thigh and examined her thigh. The bleeding was due to the soft, plump skin being imprinted by the rough barbell te. Whether the bone was damaged was the most important concern, but I couldn¡¯t tell just by looking. This seemed like something that would require an X-ray to know for sure.
I could disinfect and stitch it, but right now, all I had was a towel. Since we were in the Central Building, we could go to Deep Blue to disinfect and stitch it, but I didn¡¯t want to go that far with this person.
¡It¡¯s strange. I¡¯m someone who climbed over 4,000 stairs in the dark while crying, with an injured leg and carrying a person much heavier than Sumire. Yet I don¡¯t want to make a quick trip to the dental clinic, which is on t, bright ground and less than 10 minutes away. Trying to shake off the feeling of not wanting to do anything, I moved my hands.
I left the towel pressing on the leg in ce and took out another towel from my bag. Then I tried to tear the towel with my hand strength.
¡It¡¯s not working. Both clothes and towels, aren¡¯t they made too well? Or is my grip strengthcking? No, that¡¯s not it. I have enough strength to extract wisdom teeth.
Since Baek Ae-young, who was aiming the gun at Sumire¡¯s head, was the closest, I asked her:
¡°Ae-young, can you help me tear this towel?¡±
Baek Ae-young watched me struggle with the towel as if observing a primate, then answered:
¡°How can I do that?¡±¡°Please use the knife strapped to your ankle to help tear the towel.¡±
¡°¡¡±
Baek Ae-young¡¯s face froze instantly. Then, sighing, she whispered to me softly like the wind:
¡°Don¡¯t expose other people¡¯s backup weapons.¡±
¡°Oh¡ I¡¯m sorry.¡±
Baek Ae-young took out scissors from her left pants pocket and handed them to me. The scissors looked familiar. It seemed one of the kitchen scissors Seo Jihyuk had brought from the cafe had ended up with Baek Ae-young.
I cut the towel into pieces with the scissors and tied it around the thigh like a bandage. Sumire, with her cheeks puffed out, asked me:
¡°Excuse me, do you have any painkillers?¡±
If my trantor isn¡¯t malfunctioning, it seems she¡¯s using polite speech only with me. I didn¡¯t know she was this kind of person when she came to the dental clinic. I only remember her being quiet without saying much during cavity treatment and scaling. I remember asking her many questions because she was so silent. I didn¡¯t expect her to have this kind of personality then.
¡°No, I don¡¯t.¡±
While Sumire and I were talking, Yoo Geum-yi lost her grip on Tumanako. Tumanako tried to lunge at Sumire, but I caught her by the waist in surprise, and she shouted:
¡°We could have died because of you if we had taken the West District escape pod!¡±
Sumire looked at Tumanako while touching her leg with the makeshift bandage, then sneered at Tumanako¡¯s face.
¡°But you didn¡¯t. And I didn¡¯t do it!¡±
¡°I¡¯m going to put you on an escape pod and send you away first! You should experience it too! Eeek! Let go of my waist!¡±
If I hadn¡¯t grabbed his waist, he might have flown like a bullet to attack Sumire. ¡I just treated her leg. Let¡¯s not add more injuries. Thankfully, Yoo Geum-yi was diligently covering Henry¡¯s ears.
¡°Calm down. What will beating that person solve in this situation?¡±
¡°Hitting her might calm my heart! Damaging the escape pod?! Are they out of their minds?! ¡Aren¡¯t you angry?! You live in the West District too! This situation was caused by engineers fighting! You and I are innocent! Let the engineers fight each other to death! Why should we be involved in this?¡±
The hairdresser, who had nearly died without knowing it after only a month of working at the underwater base, shouted while waving his arms in the air.
Anger? It feels like there¡¯s a fire burning somewhere in a corner of my head. I can¡¯t even cry.
If we could use the escape pod, we wouldn¡¯t need to use the stairs or elevator. Moreover, there might be people escaping on that escape pod right now. If beating that person could make us escape this underwater base immediately, I¡¯m not sure if I could refrain from doing it. ¡My heart is so heavy.
And experiencing this life for the third time, I feel more disappointed in the people who damaged the escape pods than in the armed Infinity Church believers we could see in the 3rd Underwater Base.
In the research center, the escape pods were intact, but there were far too fewpared to the number of people. There were people who gave up their turns to let others board the escape pods, or who fought for their lives to get on them. Aren¡¯t you ashamed of damaging the escape pods? ¡I suppose people who would do such things wouldn¡¯t know shame.
And Tumanako seems too excited right now, but when you hit someone, the person who hits also gets hurt. Be it on the back of their hand or in their heart, somewhere. There¡¯s no need for Tumanako to hurt herself by hitting this kind of person. There¡¯s no need to feel even the slightest guilt.
¡°I¡¯m very angry too. But I intend to investigate the cause and determine responsibility after we get out of here. ¡We¡¯ll have plenty of time.¡±
Tumanako¡¯s finger pointed at John, who was next to Sumire.
¡°And you! You said Infinity Church, right?! I don¡¯t know what kind of religion it is, but are you the ones who flooded this underwater base?!¡±
¡°Mmph mmph mmph!¡±
John, who was pointed at by Tumanako, shook his head vigorously from side to side. He seems to be saying no. Then who on earth fired the torpedo? Tumanako said as if she was about to burst:
¡°When I find the culprit who made me lose my job here, I¡¯m going to hang them upside down at the top of Milford Sound!¡±
¡I don¡¯t know where that is, but it must be a terrifying ce. While I was trying to calm Tumanako down, the rest of the people were preparing to leave immediately.
The gun naturally went to Baek Ae-young, and Shin Hae-ryang picked up the 15kg barbell te that had fallen to the floor. Kang Soojung put her hand on Lee Jihyun¡¯s shoulder, who had been turning her head to the side the whole time. As people prepared to leave just like that, the one who panicked was Sumire, sitting on the floor.
¡°Wait! What are you doing? Aren¡¯t you taking me with you?!¡±
Yoo Geum-yi stroked Henry¡¯s head several times with tired eyes and said:
¡°Unfortunately, the people gathered here are West District lodging guests. Why don¡¯t you ask the people staying in the East District?¡±
¡°Tamaki was the one who broke the escape pod! It¡¯s his fault! I didn¡¯t do it!¡±
Shin Hae-ryang looked at Sumire¡¯s nails and said with a sigh:
¡°All the engineer team leaders in this underwater base know that Tamaki Yuzuru is handling Engineer Team N¡¯s work alone.¡±
¡°That¡¯s¡ that¡¯s¡ he does it because he wants to!¡±
Sumire shouted as if at a loss for words, but Shin Hae-ryang silently picked up the 10kg te from the floor. Judging by the atmosphere, it seemed the Engineer Team A people already knew about this.
Is it possible for one person to handle the work of an entire engineer team? The team consists of at least 7 to 8 people. There must be a reason for thatposition. Kang Soojung exhaled deeply and said to Sumire:
¡°The weekly English engineer reports your team writes. He writes all of those alone, right? Tell him to study infinitives again. He¡¯s putting ¡®to¡¯ everywhere.¡±
Lee Jihyun nodded at Kang Soojung¡¯s words and added:
¡°You¡¯ve never written an English report with your own hands, have you? Have you ever read what he wrote?¡±
Sumire, who had been frowning, closed her mouth. Shin Hae-ryang spoke affectionately to Baek Ae-young, who was checking the remaining bullets and the gun¡¯s condition:
¡°I¡¯ll shoot.¡±
Following Shin Hae-ryang, Seo Jihyuk gently added:
¡°Ae-young. I¡¯m here too. If you¡¯ve forgotten how to shoot because it¡¯s been too long, or if it¡¯s too heavy¡¡±
¡°I¡¯m not giving this to anyone! It¡¯s my gun now! Team Leader, you just carry that hunk of metal! And you, just carry your dumbbell!¡±
Baek Ae-young acted as if she would bite anyone who tried to take the gun from her.
¡°This is all my wealth right now!¡±
At those words, Shin Hae-ryang seemed to quickly give up on the idea of taking the gun Baek Ae-young had captured. However, Seo Jihyuk, holding the dumbbell, asked Baek Ae-young:
¡°How am I supposed to fight someone with a gun using this?!¡±
¡°How should I know?¡±
Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t ask any more and just sighed deeply. Sumire shouted at Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s profile:
¡°I¡¯m going to sue you for doing this to my leg!¡±
Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t even answer to that. Instead, Kang Soojung looked at Sumire and said:
¡°Sure. Sue as much as you want. I have tons of things to sue for too. Let¡¯s send each other so manywsuits that our mailboxes burst. I¡¯m nning to hire 100wyers and 100 yakuza. You ganbatte with yourwsuits too!¡±
¡It seems Kang Soojung doesn¡¯t use her fists because she can beat people sufficiently with her tongue. Sumire bit her lip hard and red at Kang Soojung. Then Sumire cried loudly and shouted towards Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°Why are you treating me like this?! I didn¡¯t break the escape pod! I didn¡¯t shoot anyone! Why are you being so cold to me?! You even suggested immigration to Korea for Tama-tama!¡±
I wondered what the immigration suggestion was about, then barely remembered. Didn¡¯t they say something about making such offers to foreigners who did decent work in each engineer team? It seems Engineer Team A offered Tamaki Yuzuru to immigrate. Judging by what she¡¯s saying now, Sumire apparently never received such an offer from Engineer Team A. Sumire shouted as if wronged:
¡°Tama-tama is just an idiot from Kan-Kan-Dou-Ritsu (mid-tier private universities) and a country bumpkin! He¡¯s a fool who doesn¡¯t fit in at all with our Tokyo Ikkou (top-tier national universities) team members! Why are you so kind to him but not to me?!¡±
¡°Is that why you fed him needles?¡±
What? Shin Hae-ryang crossed his arms and looked at Sumire as if she were an insect.
¡°Engineer Team S Leader Richard contacted me. Heined that the shower room was covered in blood, saying I should beat people in moderation. He asked if putting needles in someone¡¯s mouth wasn¡¯t going too far. He said if you did such a thing, you should at least clean up all the needles that fell on the floor.¡±
Putting needles in someone¡¯s mouth?
Is that even possible? I was stunned for a moment by the shock.
How did Tamaki react when I asked if he had chewed on a sea urchin or hedgehog? Tamaki was consistently quiet and tried not to say anything, seeming intimidated. I thought it was because he was tired and exhausted.
Chapter 129
Chapter 129
In a disaster situation, anything can be a burden. Moreover, it¡¯s understandable to be reluctant to care for the child of someone you dislike. While I understand the sentiment, we are adults. We can¡¯t just throw away something we don¡¯t want to do simply because we don¡¯t want to do it. It¡¯s easy to set aside a bit of our humanity. But when we¡¯ve shed all these burdens and feel unburdened, can we truly fly away from here as if we had wings? Although Kang Soojung frowned when I said I¡¯d take care of the child, she didn¡¯t say anything more.
Henry was diligently eating the candy, chewing slowly, and nodded when I exined that he needed to be quiet. However, soon after looking at the dark interior of Ophion, Henry asked something like, ¡°Why aren¡¯t the lights on?¡±
¡°We¡¯re ying hide-and-seek with people who have guns right now. The game doesn¡¯t end until we see sunlight. That¡¯s why we¡¯re hiding.¡±
Henry moved the candy to the other cheek, sighed, and said:
¡°They should just drink beer while watching TV. They always want to do such weird things.¡±
Haha. Kid, whose way of speaking is that? Leonard¡¯s or Nevada¡¯s? Henry seemed to want to look around, but seeing all the adults sitting on the floor or standing looking at their pads in the dark room, he seemed to give up on wandering around. Instead, he asked something difficult for adults to answer. Seo Jihyuk forcefully stuffed a towel that was rolling around nearby into John¡¯s mouth, and Henry, seeing this, asked:
¡°Why is that person tied up like that?¡±
¡°Mmph!¡±
How could I exin to a 7-year-old that this person believes in a strange religion called Infinity Church and is tied up because he might be a threat to others? I searched for a good answer for a moment, then gave up and said vaguely:¡°¡That person likes that kind of thing.¡±
¡°Mmph! Mmph!¡±
Listening from the side, it seemed both Kang Soojung and Shin Hae-ryang had concluded on going to the East District. Although going to the ck Tortoise Building would allow them to use both the ck Tortoise Building elevator and escape pod, going to the East District gave them three options: the elevator, escape pod, and submarine. In the past, out of those three options, I had only used the elevator. There were many incidents on the way to the East District, excluding the people with guns.
¡°Oh right. I heard the life support system in the East District was malfunctioning. It was cold the entire way there.¡±
Both Kang Soojung and Shin Hae-ryang looked at me and then back at the map. Kang Soojung, with an expression overflowing with stress, was searching for something in the engineer¡¯sputer system and saying something like ¡°Nothing¡¯s working properly¡± to her team leader.
I was about to tell the two about the person who died in theundry room along with the life support system but hesitated. Not only because Victoria, who died after being shot in the thigh, was Kang Soojung¡¯s friend, but also because there was a possibility she might not have died this time. How much do the events from the previous iteration match with now? I asked Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°Can we see inside the East District¡¯sundry room?¡±
¡°¡Here it is.¡±
He showed me the CCTV feed of theundry room interior on Roarke¡¯s pad, but there was no one inside. Only some unfolded clothes were visible. Has Victoria not arrived at the East District escape pod yet? Or did she escape without getting shot? I hope she didn¡¯t die.
Some of the CCTV screens were either pointing at different angles or just showing ck with nothing visible. It seemed that some of the engineers heading from the East District to the West District, or people who were in the Central Building, had adjusted the CCTV angles or stuck something in front of them. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Underwater Bases weren¡¯t visible on the pad at all.
Shin Hae-ryang told everyone to get up. Seo Jihyuk, who had been lying on the floor, got up. He reached out his hand to help Lee Jihyun up, then yed a trick on Baek Ae-young, who was sitting, by extending his hand and pulling it away before she could grab it, only to get kicked in the shin. ¡°Ow!¡± Hearing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s scream, Lee Jihyun, dusting herself off, asked Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°Where are we going?¡±
¡°We¡¯re going to the East District.¡±
Seo Jihyuk asked me again:
¡°Do we really have to take this cultist with us? Leaving him here is also an option.¡±
¡°Then let¡¯s untie either his arm or leg before we go.¡±
¡°¡I think we can take him.¡±
Seo Jihyuk put John Doe on his back, climbed up some exercise equipment, and dropped him feet-first from about 2.5 meters high. There was a thud and a muffled scream, ¡°Mmph!¡± ¡Seeing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s actions, it seems this person has no human rights. I suddenly thought that leaving him here might be the more respectful choice.
However, for people to leave Ophion, they had to voluntarily climb over mountains of metal desks and exercise equipment, eagerly giving up their own human rights.
In Henry¡¯s case, he could easily slip through small gaps or twist his small body to get out. Adults had to skillfully avoid the metal pieces while getting bruised. I hit my calf on an indoor bicycle pedal and almost teared up. By the time we reached Ophion¡¯s entrance, everyone had at least one or two bruises. Seo Jihyuk grumbled as he passed the bench press:
¡°Who suggested piling these up like this?¡±
¡°You. You did.¡±
Lee Jihyun said, ducking to avoid a protruding barbell. ¡°Whoa!¡± I heard a scream and saw Yoo Geum-yi sliding forward as she was trying to climb over a treadmill. Kang Soojung and Seo Jihyuk, who were below, caught Yoo Geum-yi simultaneously and helped her down. Tumanako said as she wasing down the wall of exercise equipment:
¡°Since it seems safe here, it might not be a bad idea to just keep holding out inside. At least one military from one of the eight countries wille, right?¡±
I answered Tumanako while rubbing my bruised calf with my palm:
¡°The problem is that the underwater base probably won¡¯t hold out until those peoplee.¡±
¡°You¡¯re saying the underwater base will copse?¡±
¡°It could.¡±
¡°Come on. That¡¯s nonsense. Do you know how much money each country poured into this ce? It¡¯s probably just leaking a bit due to the shock from a volcanic eruption or earthquake or something. By tomorrow, the engineers will be busy repairing it, right?¡±
Baek Ae-young answered with a sigh:
¡°I hope so.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, looking at John Doe writhing on the floor, untied the string around his ankle and said in a friendly manner:
¡°You can try to run away if you want, but I¡¯ll just catch you again anyway.¡±
Then he lifted him up by the armpits and forced him to stand.
Next to the Ophion door, Shin Hae-ryang was holding something round and ck. Wondering what it was, I saw that there was a hole in the center of the round circle. I don¡¯t exercise much, but could that be a barbell te? Shin Hae-ryang was holding two of them, one marked 10 and the other 15. ¡That can¡¯t be the weight, right?
¡°Why are you holding those?¡±
¡°There are no decent weapons.¡±
So those are substitutes for weapons? How are you nning to use them? Kang Soojung was holding two pads in one hand ¨C Roarke¡¯s pad and Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad ¨C and a kettlebell marked 10kg in the other hand.
Yoo Geum-yi, curious about the kettlebell that Kang Soojung had briefly put down to scratch her cheek, tried to lift it with one hand. It didn¡¯t even budge from the floor. Yoo Geum-yi tried to lift it with both hands, grunting with effort, managed to lift it a few centimeters for a few seconds, then gently put it back down. Henry, finding this amusing, tried to grab and lift the kettlebell, but it didn¡¯t move at all. Kang Soojung, watching the two,ughed for a moment, then lifted the kettlebell effortlessly like a handbag and said to Seo Jihyuk:
¡°People should use what they¡¯re used to. It¡¯s awkward when you try to use something you¡¯re not familiar with, be it scissors or whatever.¡±
¡°¡No matter how I think about it, I don¡¯t think Jung Sang-hyun is in his right mind. Why does he asionally defy you, Deputy Team Leader?¡±
¡°You¡¯re the same.¡±
¡°Come on. I¡¯m much better, aren¡¯t I?¡±
When Seo Jihyuk, holding a dumbbell, answered like that, Baek Ae-young looked at the three of them and simply evaluated them as goris.
Baek Ae-young took the two pads from Kang Soojung¡¯s hand like a flying squirrel. Then she gave Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad to Lee Jihyun and observed the CCTV screens on Roarke¡¯s pad herself. Seo Jihyuk clung to Ophion¡¯s door, and Shin Hae-ryang joined in. I also stuck to the door and started pushing sideways. The weight was no joke. Did they make the door out of solid metal?
After a minute, when the door was half open, Shin Hae-ryang saw Baek Ae-young¡¯s hand signal and went out of Ophion. Then, after checking the surroundings, he said:
¡°You cane out now.¡±
At those words, Henry ran out first, and I was startled. Well, it¡¯s okay toe out, but¡ I earnestly pleaded with the child:
¡°You need to stay with me.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°You ate three candies without your mom knowing. I need to tell your mom that it¡¯s okay, that I gave you permission.¡±
¡°¡You said I could eat them, and now¡¡±
Henry pouted. When everyone hade out of Ophion, Baek Ae-young looked at the pad and took the lead. Kang Soojung and Shin Hae-ryang were next, with people in the middle, and Seo Jihyuk bringing up the rear.
Just a short walk from the gym, we came across the cafe [Agulhas Current]. Ah, I think I know the way from here. Just as I felt a moment of relief, suddenly someone jumped out from behind the cafe.
I couldn¡¯t see anything else clearly, but the first thing I noticed was the gun the person was holding. Shin Hae-ryang, who was next to Baek Ae-young, who had her head down looking at the pad, reacted a bit faster. He threw one of the tes he was holding horizontally.
¡°Agh!¡±
The person holding the gun was hit in the thigh by the te and fell forward immediately. Their hair was so long that their face was barely visible, but as we got closer, I could just barely recognize who it was. It was a woman named Uehara Sumire, an Engineer Team N member who had visited the dental clinic before.
Baek Ae-young immediately threw the pad and everything else behind her, and Lee Jihyun, who was right behind her, caught Roarke¡¯s pad mid-air in a panic. As Shin Hae-ryang grabbed the woman¡¯s hands to prevent her from using the gun, Baek Ae-young immediately snatched the gun away.
Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t participate. He seemed to be on guard, looking around to see if there were any more people. The others, including Kang Soojung, were stunned by the event that had unfolded in just two seconds.
Chapter 132
Chapter 132
Before bing a dentist, I had no idea people injured the insides of their mouths so frequently. The mostmon injuries were biting the inside of the cheek or the tongue. People would identally bite down, mistaking it for food. Splitting lips from falling was alsomon.
Personally, I think that if we were to evolve for bipedal lotion, we should have first solved the issue of an unstable center of gravity. Walking on two legs is far more dangerous than walking on all fours. Considering therge body that must be supported by the small surface area of two feet, it¡¯s a wonder that this unstable structure manages to move around without constantly falling over. The plump cheeks and lips must have been designed as cushions to prevent all our teeth from shattering when we inevitably fall.
It¡¯s alsomon for people to burn the roof of their mouth by eating hot food too hastily without cooling it down. Many peoplee in with their mouths cut up from sharp objects like crab or m shells. Those whoe in after biting their pens or thumbs are the easy cases.
There have been cases of people piercing their cheeks with chicken skewers, puncturing their tongues with forks, or creating multiple holes in their tongues while trying to eat fruit directly off the knife they used to peel it. Some have fallen on chestnut burrs or cacti. All of these are unfortunate idents.
¡Feeding someone needles is not amon urrence.
¡°This is the third time it¡¯s reached my ears. Isn¡¯t that lunatic tired of such antics yet?¡± Shin Hae-ryang said coldly, looking down at the person.
Third time? I only opened the dental clinic after I came here; there wasn¡¯t even a dental clinic in the underwater base before. Tamaki was the victim, but Shin Hae-ryang was the one talking. Just hearing about it made my forehead heat up. An immense wave of stress washed over me. How could a person do such a thing to another human being?
¡°Why on earth would someone do that? Why put needles in someone¡¯s mouth?¡± I asked, dazed.
Only after asking did I realize that the very act of asking such a question was an attempt to understand the perpetrator, even if just a little. Surely they would give an answer that could beprehended bymon sense? Sumire¡¯s face contorted with discontent as she shouted at me.¡°She started it! She broke her promise!¡±
¡I don¡¯t think I could ever understand this person, even if I were to be reborn. My brain refuses to process it. I felt like I might spew a torrent of curses if someone were to poke me right now. I didn¡¯t even want to know what kind of promise it was. The mere thought made me want to vomit.
¡°So you forcibly put needles in someone¡¯s mouth because of that?¡± I asked.
Sumire turned her head to the side, pouting as she spoke. ¡°You don¡¯t know anything! This is Tamatama¡¯s first time!¡±
¡°Then what about the other two times?¡±
¡°¡Other trash.¡±
¡°Other what?¡±
I wondered if my trantor was malfunctioning. This is maddening. Baek Ae-young sneered at Sumire and said, ¡°I think those are the ones Japan announced as idental deaths. There were also some engineers from Na¡¯s team who suddenly retired on sick leave. Were those really idental deaths? Or were they suicides?¡±
When there was no answer, Baek Ae-young nudged Sumire¡¯s foot with her toe, causing Sumire to move her leg in irritation. Kang Soojung sighed deeply and asked, ¡°What kind of promise was broken?¡±
¡°¡You don¡¯t need to know! You ugly hag!¡± Sumire red at Kang Soojung before answering.
¡She seemed to answer other people¡¯s questions properly, but Kang Soojung, who was insulted, justughed helplessly as if she couldn¡¯t believe it. However, Sumire suddenly stiffened, her eyes widening. Screams burst from her open mouth at intervals of a few seconds. Wondering what was happening, I saw Seo Jihyuk picking up a dumbbell next to Sumire¡¯s left calf.
¡°Oops. Sorry. My hand slips when I hear bullshit.¡±
¡°Huaaaaaah! Aaaaaah! Aaaaaah!¡±
At Sumire¡¯s screams, Yoo Geum-yi covered Henry¡¯s eyes and ears with her whole body. She herself had her eyes tightly shut. ¡I want to close my eyes too. I want to go home, forget about this underwater base. I¡¯ve seen several instances of violence while in this underwater base, but I never get used to it no matter how many times I see it. ¡When I saw such scenes in action movies or heard about them in news articles, it wasn¡¯t this horrifying, but witnessing it directly makes me want to run away from here immediately.
¡°Even if you¡¯re angry, try to use words as much as possible. There¡¯s a child here right now.¡±
At my words, Seo Jihyuk made an ¡®oops¡¯ expression. Lee Jihyun was watching the situation expressionlessly while hugging her pad, and Seo Jihyuk was saying something like it really slipped. Sumire¡¯s calf, injured by the dumbbell, looked fine on the surface for now. But it would probably start swelling terribly soon. Yoo Geum-yi and Henry started walking to leave this ce first.
I hesitated a bit before speaking to Kang Soojung. The reason for my hesitation was simple. Kang Soojung had been frowning since the mention of needles and was now gripping a kettlebell tightly.
¡°Since we¡¯re heading to East District anyway, how about we take that person with us?¡±
I feel like I could emotionally understand if Kang Soojung were to hit me with the kettlebell, saying what nonsense I¡¯m talking about. Baek Ae-young, who had been staring at Sumire, only rolled her eyes to look at me at those words. The gun barrel was still aimed at Sumire¡¯s head. Kang Soojung made an expression that showed even more disbelief than at the earlier random insult and said to me:
¡°Didn¡¯t you just hear about what she and her team have done? I think the charge of insulting me would probably carry the lightest sentence.¡±
¡°We need to safely get out of the underwater base before we can put her in jail or receive an apology, right?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you think leaving her here in that state is punishment for her crimes?¡±
¡°¡I don¡¯t think so.¡±
Even if she¡¯s a crazy serial killer psycho bitch, let¡¯s talk after we get out of this underwater base first. Besides, even if we leave her here with a broken leg, would she ever realize her wrongdoings even once before she¡¯s on the brink of death?
I don¡¯t fully know about the crimes this person or her team havemitted. Hearing about Tamaki made me think I should collect all the information about what¡¯s happening in the underwater base as quickly as possible. Whether it¡¯s about someone I really hope survives or about a person I can¡¯t empathize with at all. I can¡¯t live in ignorance anymore.
¡If I had noticed earlier, could I have treated Tamaki better?
Whether it¡¯s Muhangyo, armed engineers, or torpedoes, I keep getting confused every time I get new information because I don¡¯t know anything.
I thought of the people who were in the South District Research Center and are now submerged. ¡No. Stop thinking about that. The inside might still be intact. I need to do what I can here now.
We need to escape the 4th Underwater Base with as many people as possible. That way, when we meet the cult followers in other underwater bases, we¡¯ll at least have strength in numbers to deal with them. Or at least cause more confusion.
Sumire, who had been screaming, began to sob and curse at Kang Soojung and Seo Jihyuk in Japanese as the wave of pain subsided. She didn¡¯t curse at Shin Hae-ryang when she was hit with the barbell on her thigh though. Kang Soojung stared at me nkly before shaking her head with an iron-like expression.
¡°I think I told you once when we were going to get Gayoung in South District. I¡¯ve already decided who I¡¯m going with. Even if more people are added, it won¡¯t be her.¡±
She had said we should only escape with Koreans. It was because of Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang that Tumanako and Henry were added.
¡°John Doe was added too, wasn¡¯t he?¡±
Kang Soojung looked the Muhangyo follower up and down. It seemed there wasn¡¯t a single part of him that she liked. The Muhangyo follower, under Kang Soojung¡¯s ner-like gaze, took a few steps back with his free legs before being unable to move further due to his wrists. Kang Soojung frowned and said to me:
¡°The cultist¡¯s brain might be rotten, but at least his legs are fine. She seems to have both a rotten brain and now rotten legs. Besides, who¡¯s going to take her along and how?¡±
¡°John Doe can take her.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°John Doe can carry Sumire on his back. Let¡¯s just have him carry her to East District first. An adult woman weighing about 60kg¡¡±
¡°No. It¡¯s 42kg.¡±
Sumire, who had been crying tears of pain, suddenly looked at me with a serious face and said. Surprised, I quickly corrected myself and said:
¡°It shouldn¡¯t be difficult to carry someone weighing around 42kg on t ground. If we¡¯re lucky enough to find a medic on the way, we can put her on that too.¡±
Thinking back to previous iterations, I hadn¡¯t seen a medic on the way to East District. But who knows? Maybe it¡¯ll be different this time. Besides, even if we don¡¯t find a medic, it¡¯s possible to climb stairs high enough to go over two mountains while supporting 96kg.
Kang Soojung sighed and turned her head to the side. I also turned my head to the side. Receiving the gaze of both people, Shin Hae-ryang opened his mouth. John Doe was shaking his head vigorously and making sounds like ¡°Mmmmph!¡±, but everyone ignored him. Shin Hae-ryang looked at the two of us and asked me without changing his expression:
¡°Can we abandon her on the way?¡±
¡°There¡¯s something I want to experiment with. Let¡¯s go together as much as possible.¡±
¡°Not her¡ Shin Team Leader. You can carry me if you want.¡±
Kang Soojung said that the young one seemed quite impressively crazy as she lifted Sumire from behind. Then she ced Sumire like luggage on John¡¯s back, who had been caught trying to escape.
Like a horse loaded with unwanted cargo, John caused amotion, and Sumire was unceremoniously thrown to the ground twice. Now Sumire started pouring out a torrent of curses at John Doe. ¡°Can¡¯t you do it properly?! Die, you trash! You¡¯re my keep-kun! You¡¯re just legs!¡± Mmph! Mmph! Mmmmph! John also seemed to be cursing openly at Sumire.
When it looked like they would dy for more than 2 minutes, Seo Jihyuk muttered a few words into John and Sumire¡¯s ears, the gist of which was that if they didn¡¯t cooperate, his hand might keep slipping onto their insteps or heads.
Both of them had to either carry or be carried by the other with their wrists tied in front, but Shin Hae-ryang seemed to have no intention of tying John¡¯s wrists behind his back or untying them. By lowering John¡¯s tied wrists as much as possible and cing Sumire¡¯s legs, who was piggybacked from behind, between those arms, the two had no choice but to be a forcedmunity of fate.
Every time Sumire struggled,ining that her leg hurt, she bit and chewed on John¡¯s ears and shoulders in her typical manner, and each time, John would fall backwards with Sumire on his back.
Just as Sumire was about to calm down after nearly cracking her skull hard on the floor, John suddenly copsed to the side. Sumire, who was on his back, had given her upper body momentum and swung to the side like a pendulum.
Chapter 133
Chapter 133
Tumanako and I helped Sumire and John, who had fallen, back to their feet. Lee Jihyun, who was walking behind us, sighed as she watched this scene and said slowly:
¡°I thought I¡¯d met many strange people in my life, but the world really is wide¡ Amen.¡±
Tumanako chuckled lightly as she watched Lee Jihyun make the sign of the cross. Seo Jihyuk put his hand holding the dumbbell behind his back and approached Lee Jihyun, asking:
¡°Tell me about the strange people you¡¯ve met.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°Just curious¡ Especially focus on what kind of harm you suffered from them.¡±
Baek Ae-young came closer to me, quickly checked the wrists of the two, and then fell back to the rear of the group. She probably thought their fighting like this was one of their attempts to untie the ropes on their wrists.
I¡¯m not sure how Shin Hae-ryang tied their wrists with the parachute cord, but no matter how much they struggled to devour each other, it didn¡¯t loosen at all. John, with his mouth still tied, was huffing and puffing, barely catching his breath through his nose as he walked while carrying Sumire. It seems like we should untie his mouth at least so he can breathe properly.
As soon as I had that thought, John suddenly jerked his head back. He used all his might to smash the back of his head into Sumire¡¯s forehead with a thud. It was the kind of sound you¡¯d hear if you identally dropped a watermelon the size of a head on the floor.John seemed shocked by what he had done and stumbled greatly, unable to walk properly. I, walking beside him, was horrified by this action. ¡Didn¡¯t she get a concussion?
The two, one carrying and one being carried, copsed again to the side with a thud. Lee Jihyun, who was watching this scene in a daze, said to Seo Jihyuk beside her:
¡°¡Come to think of it,pared to these guys, the ones in Korea were nothing.¡±
Seo Jihyuk paid no attention to the two fallen people iling their arms and legs like crabs. He just looked at Lee Jihyun and answered gently:
¡°Even if it¡¯s just a drop of blood, it¡¯s still blood that was shed.¡±
I quickly approached the two to check if they were conscious first. When I shook their shoulders and called their names, both of them groaned and spewed out curses.
¡Thankfully, they¡¯re conscious, but when I tried to check for external injuries, they wouldn¡¯t cooperate so I couldn¡¯t see. I tried to check for symptoms of concussion like whether there were external injuries or if their pupils were shaking, but forget about pupils. They were both shaking their heads and limbs wildly trying to hit each other.
¡°Stay still, will you!¡±
As the group that had been walking well stopped again, Shin Hae-ryang at the front and Baek Ae-young at the rear rushed over. Then, looking at the two fallen people, Shin Hae-ryang said to Baek Ae-young, who was holding a gun:
¡°If they fall again, shoot them both.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Then he went back to the front without giving me a chance to speak. Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s expression didn¡¯t seem much different from before, but it didn¡¯t seem like he was joking. Kang Soojung looked at the two as if she was sick of them and left. Baek Ae-young looked down at the two on the floor and said:
¡°Hey. Even two bullets are too precious for you. Try to hold your breath and die.¡±
Humans can¡¯t die by holding their breath. Tumanako seemed dumbfounded by this impossible request and looked at Baek Ae-young while still looking at the people on the floor. Baek Ae-young met Tumanako¡¯s eyes and corrected herself:
¡°Was I being too stingy? I should be more generous, right?¡±
Tumanako said to Baek Ae-young with a sigh:
¡°I¡¯ll give you 10 dors as soon as we get out of here.¡±
Baek Ae-young stood still in her ce, watching the two. I guess this is now the rear of the group. Trying to grab and lift these two constantly irritated adults is not an easy task either. Seeing how much John hates carrying her, I think it might be better if I carry Sumire myself.
Sumire, whose nose was bleeding profusely, suddenly started sobbing on John¡¯s back and began to cry pitifully.
¡°Why do I have to suffer like this! What on earth did I do wrong! This is too much! You¡¯re not even human! Why are you doing this to me?¡±
¡°Mmph! Mmph! Mph! Mmph! Mmmph!¡±
John also started speaking as much as he could with his mouth blocked after hearing Sumire¡¯s words. Baek Ae-young nced at the line of people walking ahead and said quietly to the two:
¡°Be quiet. Before I get annoyed and knock you both down and shoot you.¡±
They immediately quieted down at her particrly annoyed tone and strange charisma. I whispered to Baek Ae-young nearby:
¡°Are you really going to shoot?¡±
¡°Do you think I would fake shooting?¡±
¡No. I¡¯m not sure about Seo Jihyuk, but Baek Ae-young and Shin Hae-ryang don¡¯t seem like the type to joke about this kind of thing. If I had met Baek Ae-young for the first time, I might have thought she was joking or just trying to scare them.
¡°No.¡±
Baek Ae-young looked at the cultist walking and the sociopathic engineer on his back, then hesitated before saying to me:
¡°Human nature doesn¡¯t change. Even if you wash them in prison for years and take them out, trash is just trash. I don¡¯t think people like that can change. She¡¯ll probably spend her whole life just cursing her victims, right? She¡¯ll never understand what she¡¯s done. Don¡¯t pity them. They easily take advantage of such feelings.¡±
¡°I¡¯m not suggesting we take them along because I like them.¡±
While my head thinks we should take them, my heart has already imagined throwing them to the sharks several times. And I felt guilty for imagining such extreme things. Baek Ae-young lowered her gun barrel and said:
¡°I know you¡¯re moral and polite. But those crazy ones don¡¯t have any of that, yet they take advantage of it so well. ¡And ording to the broadcast, everyone we¡¯ll meet from now on will be like that too.¡±
I remembered that woman I met in the elevator. That eerie smile. She didn¡¯t hesitate at all to kill people. It was as if a localized hurricane or tornado had hit the inside of the elevator. Even now, it doesn¡¯t seem real. It¡¯s not easy to ept the fact that people without conscience or shame exist in the world. It¡¯s even harder because it¡¯s something I take for granted.
I review whether my words and actions go against my conscience. And I worry about whether the other person will be hurt when I say certain things. Isn¡¯t it natural to live thinking like this? Of course, when I¡¯m tired and exhausted, that self-checking system sometimes malfunctions. But conscience is always my reliablepass. It not only keeps me from getting lost anywhere but also helps me sleep with a clear conscience.
asionally, among people I¡¯ve met by chance, there were those whopletelycked the filter of conscience. But such people weren¡¯t many. Are all those kinds of people gathered here specifically?
Baek Ae-young, looking at the back of Sumire¡¯s head with a cold voice, said:
¡°Soon she¡¯ll start crying, saying she¡¯s in pain and tired, that she¡¯s reflected and is sorry. I¡¯m going to shoot her as soon as she says those words.¡±
¡°Maybe she really has changed, don¡¯t you think?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve never seen people like that truly repent. Who knows. Maybe they¡¯ll reflect a tiny bit while seeing their life sh before their eyes right before death.¡±
Baek Ae-young¡¯s words randomly reminded me of Benjamin. No, what on earth was he thinking when he protected me? No matter how I think about it, he was cunning, evil, and ignorant of social order. Judging by his actions and words, he didn¡¯t seem to like me either. What wind blew his way? Did he want to do a good deed before dying? Or did he hit his head without me noticing?
That bastard probably doesn¡¯t even worry or agonize over these things. Doing one good deed after living badly a hundred times doesn¡¯t change how people evaluate you. But knowing that I¡¯m the only one who remembers what happened then made me feel a bit queasy.
Remembering Kevin Roy, whom I met at the research center, somewhat eased that feeling. ¡Even the person walking around with an axe covered in blood turned out to be quite alright after all. Is it right to judge someone based on rumors or appearances and leave them to die when you¡¯ve known them for less than 30 minutes?
I also understand the judgment of the people in Engineering Team A. They must have experienced such things many times before.
Whenever I try to judge something, I feel afraid, hesitant, and uncertain, and I¡¯m not sure if what I¡¯m doing is right. ¡It was easier when I was just worrying about teeth. I only had to look inside the mouth then.
Baek Ae-young seemed to subtly want me to suggest abandoning those two or dealing with them under the guise of an ident. ¡Not yet.
Watching the two somehow walking while hitting each other, I quickly walked towards Yoo Geum-yi.
Yoo Geum-yi, who had her hand on Henry¡¯s shoulder with an exhausted expression, saw me approaching and asked:
¡°How about the people in the back?¡±
¡°They¡¯reing along more or less well.¡±
Kang Soojung, who was beside me, burst into a dispiritedugh at my words. Henry asked me as if he had been waiting:
¡°What is thatdy keep saying?¡±
Hearing that question, Yoo Geum-yi confessed to me:
¡°I told him you¡¯de and exin.¡±
Henry doesn¡¯t have a trantor in his ear. When I or Yoo Geum-yi exin things to Henry, we do it in English. When we talk among ourselves, we mix English and Korean. So it seemed he couldn¡¯t understand at all what Sumire was saying in Japanese.
What should I say? That she tormented others for her own convenience, killed several people, and endangered the lives of countless others? How do I exin that to a child? After thinking for a moment, I said:
¡°She says she wants to go home. That she misses her mom and dad.¡±
¡°Why is an adult throwing a tantrum like that? She¡¯s not a 1-year-old.¡±
I¡¯m at a loss for words. Sometimes when I meet kids, there are times when I can¡¯t find an answer.
¡°That¡¯s right. Adults are often worse than children. Adults should set an example, you know.¡±
Henry was wearing a thin short-sleeved shirt and shivered. Is he cold? As I stroked Henry¡¯s forearm, I realized we had just entered East District and frowned. The temperature is much lower than I expected.
¡°It¡¯s colder than I thought, isn¡¯t it?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang and Kang Soojung, who heard my words, didn¡¯t seem to feel the cold. Yoo Geum-yi, who was beside me, shivered slightly and said:
¡°You¡¯re right. It¡¯s too cold.¡±
Chapter 134
Chapter 134
I took out the cardigan I had put in my bag instead of the whale doll and put it on Henry. It was too big, and even after diligently rolling up the sleeves, the hem still dragged on the floor. Seeing this, Yoo Geum-yi swapped her cardigan with mine. It barely avoided dragging on the floor, but the sleeves still needed to be rolled up.
I wrapped Henry in the cardigan and carried him on my back. I thought the child might be less cold due to my body heat. Shin Hae-ryang checked the indoor temperature on his pad. Looking from the side, it was 22¡ãC.
¡°The life support system must be malfunctioning,¡± he said.
Lee Jihyun, looking at the pad with Kang Soojung, added:
¡°The air volume is decreasing too.¡±
¡°Is there no way to fix it?¡± I asked.
¡°To repair this, we¡¯d need to bring down equipment from the 3rd Underwater Base, evacuate everyone from the East District, and then work on it. Our team doesn¡¯t know how to fix it. It¡¯s not our responsibility. The Russians would know how to fix this. They brought it from their country. I¡¯m not sure how many hours the repair would take either,¡± Kang Soojung answered while scratching her chin ambiguously.
So the engineering team can¡¯t fix everything. But wouldn¡¯t it be better for the sober Team A to fix it rather than leaving it to the drunk Team D engineers? While I was thinking this, Shin Hae-ryang said to me:
¡°Repairs are a problem to deal withter. Let¡¯s focus on getting out of here first.¡±Seo Jihyuk, looking at the dragon¡¯s tail wrapped around the elevator, asked Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°What should we do? Should we keep going? I don¡¯t think the Chinese or Japanese would have started this without preparing an escape route from the East District.¡±
Sumire, who was licking her burst lip and grimacing, said when people looked at her:
¡°Why? I don¡¯t n to leave the underwater base. I¡¯m going to stay here.¡±
¡°West District is leaking water, and the South District Research Center was destroyed by a torpedo. You still want to stay here?¡± Lee Jihyun said.
Even after hearing this, Sumire replied with an expression that suggested it had nothing to do with her:
¡°East District should be fine.¡±
Kang Soojung looked at Sumire with disgust and said:
¡°The temperature in the East District is dropping. The temperature control system itself isn¡¯t working properly. The oxygen concentration will keep decreasing, and we don¡¯t know when we¡¯ll be unable to breathe. We might be able to ride the escape pod if we get there and it¡¯s avable, but if not, it could be dangerous even while we¡¯re looking for a submarine. Don¡¯t you understand?¡±
Sumire wiped her snot, nosebleed, and tears on John¡¯s shoulder and back, then said to Kang Soojung:
¡°Do what you want. Just take me to my room.¡±
¡°¡I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m having this conversation with this thing.¡±
Kang Soojung clicked her tongue. I sighed and asked Sumire:
¡°Did you leave something important in your room? Why are you so eager to go to your room?¡±
¡°Why do I need a reason to want to go to my own room? I¡¯m tired from carrying that heavy thing around since morning. Crying made me even more tired.¡±
Sumire gestured with her chin towards Baek Ae-young¡¯s gun, then closed her mouth and stared nkly at Shin Hae-ryang.
The people who had stopped in front of the East District elevator discussed whether they should change direction and go to the North District right now.
Wouldn¡¯t some of the Russians be alive in the North District? That old man dimir seems like he wouldn¡¯t die even if you killed him, Seo Jihyuk was saying while yawning when he suddenly turned his head sharply towards the corridor. At the same time, Baek Ae-young raised the gun she had been lowering, and Shin Hae-ryang stepped in front of Tumanako, who was standing at the outermost edge of the corridor among the group.
A human figure was visible in the distance. Someone was running at an incredible speed from the direction of the East District escape pod. The running person was a woman with long, loose brown hair, carrying a rifle on her back as she ran frantically forward. When she was close enough for her face to be recognizable, the woman smiled widely with a weing expression, but Baek Ae-young said while aiming her gun:
¡°Stop right there!¡±
At Baek Ae-young¡¯s sharp voice, the other person stopped abruptly, almost falling over. Shin Hae-ryang shouted:
¡°Put the gun on the ground and raise your hands!¡±
The woman was startled for a moment but then threw her gun on the floor as if shedding her skin. Acting as if she had been liberated from a heavy burden, she raised both hands high. Then she looked at us with an expectant expression. It seemed like she was trying to hold back from running over immediately.
¡°Kneel down and wait.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang approached and picked up the gun that the woman had carelessly tossed on the floor. The tension in the corridor noticeably decreased. Baek Ae-young slowly approached and looked the other person up and down slowly. Then she took her finger off the trigger and opened her arms to embrace her. The woman hugged Baek Ae-young back and said with tears in her eyes:
¡°Ae-young. I was so scared.¡±
Then she burst into tears.
¡°¡You¡¯re okay now that I¡¯m here.¡±
After patting the other¡¯s back several times, Baek Ae-young released her arms with a contorted face. Baek Ae-young briefly exined about the tall beauty with disheveled hair:
¡°This is my friend, Shu Ran.¡±
¡°Hello. sniff Nice to meet you.¡±
The Engineering Team A members seemed to know that Shu Ran was Baek Ae-young¡¯s friend. Seo Jihyuk was saying something to Shin Hae-ryang while pointing at the gun but ended up with just two barbells.
¡°Hello. Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Park Moohyun.¡±
¡°I¡¯m Yoo Geum-yi.¡±
Henry, who was on my back, greeted Shu Ran:
¡°Hello.¡±
Shu Ran, who wasbing her hair with her hand, saw Henry and froze for 2 seconds before answering:
¡°Uh¡ Oh my. He-hello.¡±
Tumanako recognized Shu Ran and greeted her with a smile:
¡°You came to the salon for hair coloring before. You remember me, right?¡±
¡°Yes, Tumanako. I saw you before. ¡But that¡¯s not important! There¡¯s an escape pod! That¡¯s why I came looking for you!¡±
Surprised by those words, Kang Soojung asked Shu Ran:
¡°The escape pod is intact? Is it okay there?¡±
¡°The one in the East District is fine. Didn¡¯t some broadcast say the escape pods in South District and West District were broken? The one in the East District is fine. We can ride it.¡±
Then Shu Ran looked at Baek Ae-young and poured out her worries like a waterfall:
¡°Do you know how many messages I sent trying to contact you?! The phone wasn¡¯t working either! I couldn¡¯t contact you because the inte wasn¡¯t working! I was so worried!¡±
Baek Ae-young said to Shu Ran, looking perplexed:
¡°I haven¡¯t checked that in a while.¡±
¡°I couldn¡¯t contact your team leader either, he wasn¡¯t checking his messages! Your deputy team leader wasn¡¯t responding either!¡±
¡°Our team leader hasn¡¯t checked that in even longer. The deputy team leader¡ said he lost his pad.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang asked Shu Ran:
¡°How many are left?¡±
¡°If Hong Tao or Zhu Xuan took one up, then three. If not, five.¡±
So they had left a total of 5 escape pods? There are 7 people in Engineering Team Ra (China), but they didn¡¯t prepare at least 7 to escape from here? Then how does Engineering Team Na (Japan) n to get out of here? Kang Soojung must have had simr thoughts because she asked:
¡°There are only 3 escape pods left?¡±
¡°Ah. Hong Tao and I aren¡¯t treated as humans. They probably nned to kill us after everything was over. But then that broadcast¡ Who was the first person to broadcast?¡±
I always get nervous when stepping up to answer these questions. I raised my hand and answered:
¡°It was me.¡±
¡°Did someone from our Engineering Team Ra tell you? How did you know we were at the East District escape pod port?¡±
Everyone looked at me at Shu Ran¡¯s question. What should I answer?
¡°Someone who wished to remain anonymous came to the dental clinic and informed me.¡±
In fact, no one had told me. I just said it as a preventive measure based on what I had experienced. Somehow, it seems that broadcast led to internal strife between the two engineering teams. Shu Ran smiled and said:
¡°Thanks to that broadcast, they were busy fighting among themselves about who leaked the information. Moreover, thanks to Team Leader Shin¡¯s broadcast, they all rushed to the West District.¡±
¡°What about Hai Yoon?¡±
¡°She went with them to try to stop them.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang nodded. In the end, the opinion converged on heading towards the East District escape pod. I thought we would split into groups going to the escape pod and the submarine like before, but this time we didn¡¯t. They say that without Baek Ae-young, just Seo Jihyuk and Shin Hae-ryang can¡¯t protect the 9 unarmed people here.
Tumanako said she would sit and wait in front of the East District elevator, but Yoo Geum-yi wouldn¡¯t let her. When Yoo Geum-yi forcibly pushed Tumanako¡¯s back from behind, Tumanako stumbled forward like a scarecrow.
¡°You have to walk to stay warm. You can¡¯t just try not to move like that. Don¡¯t just stand still shivering, you need to keep moving.¡±
¡°I¡¯d rather freeze to death sitting here listening to music.¡±
As Tumanako walked trudging along,ining, Yoo Geum-yi shook her head.
¡°You¡¯re not a grasshopper. The harder it gets, the more you need to move.¡±
¡°What¡¯s that?¡±
¡°The Ant and the Grasshopper. It¡¯s an Aesop¡¯s fable from when I was young.¡±
¡°Is the trantion weird? Isn¡¯t it the ant and the locust? ¡Nowadays, locusts sing and live so well.¡±
It got colder and colder as we walked quickly through the East District corridor. At first, it felt like a summer evening, but now it was like walking down the street in winter wearing just a shirt. Only my back was warm due to the child¡¯s body heat.
asionally, Henry would swing his legs widely, perhaps feeling yful, and I would sway my body to the right and left in rhythm with it. I borrowed Tumanako¡¯s headset, put it on Henry¡¯s head, and yed songs in English.
Kang Soojung, who had been staring at Shu Ran talking with Baek Ae-young, pped Sumire¡¯s back with herrge palm and asked:
¡°Hey. Didn¡¯t your team have anything like that? Like fighting over who leaked information after hearing the broadcast?¡±
¡°Ow! ¡Huh? I don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°You don¡¯t know anything. What do you know?!¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t care who said what. It was probably Tabuntama. All I heard was that in the morning, we should just shoot anyone we see while carrying guns.¡±
Worried that Tamaki might be falsely used as a traitor, I quickly exined:
¡°Tamaki didn¡¯t say anything to me.¡±
¡°Hmm. Is that so?¡±
Then Sumire, who had been quietly riding on John¡¯s back, suddenly said to me:
¡°¡Then there¡¯s no one.¡±
¡°Pardon?¡±
¡°There¡¯s no one in the team besides her who would ask to stop us from indiscriminately killing people while carrying guns. Do I need to say it twice for you to understand?¡±
As my feet were going numb from Sumire¡¯s statement, Lee Jihyun, who had heard the Japanese, red at Sumire and said stiffly:
¡°Watch your mouth. This doctor is the only person in this group who¡¯s being kind to you.¡±
Sumire sneered at Lee Jihyun.
¡°I know that best. You¡¯re just an ear stuck to the wall, eavesdropping on others.¡±
Sumire was about to snap back at Lee Jihyun but turned her head to the side when she saw Seo Jihyuk standing behind Lee Jihyun.
Chapter 135
Chapter 135
Sumire nced at Seo Jihyuk cautiously before turning to me and saying:
¡°Aren¡¯t you curious about who they¡¯ll choose to ride the three escape pods?¡±
Hearing this, Baek Ae-young pointed at John¡¯s head and said:
¡°If you don¡¯t keep your mouth shut, I¡¯ll make you just like him.¡±
¡°Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!¡±
As John started mumbling as if asking to be untied, Sumirepletely closed her mouth. Seeing this, Tumanako asked the people walking ahead:
¡°That¡¯s right. There are three escape pods, but who¡¯s going to ride them?¡±
Kang Soojung counted Lee Jihyun and Yoo Geum-yi on her fingers, then sighed and answered that Henry should ride. Kang Soojung seemed to bepromising as much as possible. She probably wants to put three Koreans on board. Seo Jihyuk actively agreed with her statement.
¡°As expected of Deputy Team Leader. Your opinion matches mine perfectly.¡±Kang Soojung responded uneasily to his words:
¡°Your agreement with me makes me feel like I¡¯m making the wrong choice.¡±
Shu Ran chose Baek Ae-young and Henry, then looked back and forth between Tumanako and Yoo Geum-yi before selecting Yoo Geum-yi. Baek Ae-young quietly observed everyone before picking three people: Henry, Yoo Geum-yi, and Shu Ran. Shu Ran, her eyshes still wet, looked at Baek Ae-young with a touched expression, but the other coldly added her reason:
¡°You¡¯re too soft-hearted to even kill a bug.¡±
Hearing Baek Ae-young¡¯s words, Shu Ran retorted immediately, seemingly dumbfounded:
¡°I might not be able to kill it!¡±
¡°Youck spirit. When a bug enters your house, you should shoot it with a methrower, thinking ¡®How dare you crawl into my house?''¡±
¡°What if you burn down the house doing that?¡±
¡°Amateurs might clumsily just burn the house, but a professional like me would burn the house, the bug, and myself all at once.¡±
¡°¡I won¡¯t call you when there¡¯s a bug. I¡¯ll just leave the house.¡±
Baek Ae-young exined that she excluded Lee Jihyun because she knows how to shoot.
¡°Jihyun unnie is my prot¨¦g¨¦.¡±
Lee Jihyun nodded and said to me, as if boasting:
¡°I went to a shooting range in Hawaii with Ae-young and Jihyuk. Ae-young taught me in great detail. I still remember the grip methods and gun names. MP5, AR50, AK47, Sig Sauer P320¡¡±
Hearing this, I realized I don¡¯t even know the name of the gun I held and fired. As soon as I thought that, I remembered that I know even less about the names of the people I shot. I hope I never have to shoot a gun again. I remembered Baek Ae-young once saying that you can live your whole life without needing to do that. It¡¯s true. I didn¡¯t know until I actually experienced it.
It seemed to have been quite a beneficial experience for Lee Jihyun, as her voice was a tone higher. Seo Jihyuk, who had been quietly listening to her shooting impressions, started to contradict each of her statements.
¡°Shooting like that is just like ying a gun game at an arcade. You were terrible at it. Watching you, I doubt you could hit an elephant even if it was right in front of you. And is shooting at cans the same as this situation? You couldn¡¯t even hold the gun properly because of its weight.¡±
¡°You¡¯re the one who told me to go. Didn¡¯t you say I shot really well? That I could even be a sniper?!¡±
Lee Jihyun red at Seo Jihyuk and said that Yoo Geum-yi, Henry, and Tumanako should leave. Hearing this, Tumanako gave a thumbs up and said:
¡°Thanks for including me as a candidate for the first time. I¡¯d like it to be me, Henry, and Park Moohyun. ¡Sorry, Geum-yi.¡±
Tumanako whispered to Yoo Geum-yi. I was surprised to be included as a candidate for the escape pod.
¡°Thank you. But is there a reason I¡¯m included as a candidate?¡±
¡°Partly because you helped me at first. And I¡¯d like people to leave in reverse order of arrival.¡±
¡°What about Moohyun?¡± Yoo Geum-yi asked.
I answered simply:
¡°As long as Henry is included, I¡¯m fine with whoever the other two are.¡±
I said that, but the truth is I want to leave. Me. Me! I want to leave! Right now! I swallowed these words along with a sigh. Probably others feel simrly.
Shin Hae-ryang, who was walking at the very front, gave a hand signal to stop. Everyone stopped, and we were next to theundry room. Unlike before, there were no blood droplets in the corridor. Previously, someone had died inside. Shin Hae-ryang and Seo Jihyuk entered theundry room to search, then came out signaling that no one was there. Then we started walking again.
Seo Jihyuk, who had been scolded by Baek Ae-young, the former instructor, more than Lee Jihyun until just now, looked desperately at his team leader and asked:
¡°What do you think, Team Leader?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang answered without even looking at Seo Jihyuk:
¡°My opinion is the same as the Deputy Team Leader¡¯s.¡±
Seo Jihyuk grinned widely at these words and looked at Baek Ae-young with a ¡°see?¡± expression. As Baek Ae-young was about to look at Seo Jihyuk as if he was pathetic, Kang Soojung elbowed Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s side and said:
¡°Do that more often in normal times too. ¡I really want to record it and y it back whenever we have disagreements.¡±
Baek Ae-young pointed at Shu Ran and vented herints to the two:
¡°Please give her a spot. She didn¡¯t take her own escape pod and came looking for me.¡±
Shu Ran, standing nearby, was startled and said:
¡°I¡¯m not going to leave alone. I don¡¯t want to unless we¡¯re leaving together.¡±
¡°This is not the time to be stubborn.¡±
¡°You did the same thing!¡±
Baek Ae-young was at a loss for words and closed her mouth. Only after a few seconds did she add:
¡°¡This and that are different.¡±
Seo Jihyuk said something like ¡°Are you two having a lover¡¯s quarrel?¡± and got smacked on the back by both Kang Soojung and Baek Ae-young. I looked at Shu Ran and Baek Ae-young with warm eyes and asked:
¡°Did you two be friends in this underwater base?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
That¡¯s somewhat hopeful. Making friends even in a ce like this.
After encountering dental patients from assaults, cult followers, terrorists, drug offenders, child abusers, pet neglecters, sociopaths, psychopaths, and so on, seeing two people of different nationalities and personalities being friends warms my heart. Even if my body is a bit cold. It seems the temperature in the East District is just getting lower and lower. Shu Ran asked me:
¡°I became close with Ae-young while scuba diving. Have you ever tried scuba diving, doctor?¡±
¡°No, I haven¡¯t.¡±
¡°That was my first time diving in the sea too. It was surprisingly doable.¡±
Baek Ae-young, while keeping watch behind us, said to Shu Ran:
¡°I still find it terrifying when I think about that time.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t think it was that bad.¡±
¡°I think it¡¯s more amazing that it didn¡¯t remain a bad memory for you.¡±
¡°It didn¡¯t be a bad memory because you were there.¡±
¡°¡I¡¯ll talk to our team leader, so you should immigrate too.¡±
¡°How can I when all my family is in Hong Kong?¡±
Baek Ae-young walked about 3 meters, then after getting Shu Ran¡¯s permission, she said to the group:
¡°It was when Engineering Team Ra (China), me, and Soojung-unnie went scuba diving early in our employment. Everything was fine until we dove to 40 meters, then Shu Ran gave me a hand signal asking for help. She urgently signaled that she couldn¡¯t breathe. She was almost at the point of passing out, so I immediately lent her my spare regtor (octopus).¡±
I¡¯ve never been scuba diving, but I don¡¯t want to try it because I¡¯m afraid something like that might happen to me. Isn¡¯t the reason humans don¡¯t have gills a sign that we shouldn¡¯t go down to the seafloor to do anything?
¡°We ended up sharing the air from my tank between the two of us. This was her first time in the sea, so she didn¡¯t even have an Open Water certification. I was already used to periodically drinking seawater, so I was at the very back, but beginners like Shu Ran are supposed to move in the middle of the group, right? But in a state where she couldn¡¯t breathe, she signaled for help to everyone beside her, and when no one helped her, she came all the way to me at the back. I lent her my regtor when she was on the verge of death.¡±
Wasn¡¯t it an ident? Don¡¯t all the others have two regtors too? Why didn¡¯t they lend one?
¡°Didn¡¯t the others all have only one regtor?¡±
¡°Some people have two, some have one. But even with one regtor, you learn how to breathe by exchanging the main regtor with your partner. Because idents can happen to anyone. My buddy was Soojung unnie. She signaled to abort the dive and surface.¡±
¡°I really thought I was going to die then.¡±
Shu Ran spoke as if it was no big deal, but it sounded terrifying to me. Don¡¯t you die if you can¡¯t breathe while diving?
¡°The three of us ¨C me, Soojung unnie, and Shu Ran ¨C stopped at a safe area and waited for 15 minutes. Then we surfaced. She cried endlessly even on the boat. She kept talking while crying in Chinese. I don¡¯t understand Chinese. We didn¡¯t have trantors because we were going into the water. But Soojung unnie seemed to understand roughly. She said no one but you helped her. When we checked why Shu Ran¡¯s regtor malfunctioned, we found that her air tank waspletely closed. It shouldn¡¯t be fully closed. It should be slightly open. That¡¯s how the air from the tank enters the regtor in your mouth through the hose. But it waspletely closed. As if to kill her. Someone must have approached Shu Ran¡¯s back and closed it. Moreover, there was also a small hole in the hose part.¡±
¡°Who would do such a thing?¡±
Shu Ran smiled bitterly and said:
¡°I understood why Hong Kong people before me had idental deaths or suicides. When a new employee joined, they would say they¡¯d teach scuba diving and keep doing things like this. It was like saying, ¡®If you don¡¯t want to die so stupidly, listen well to what we say.''¡±
¡°What made me angriest was that when we came up to the boat, all the guys from your team acted like they couldn¡¯t understand why you suddenly surfaced with us. And then they just brushed it off as if nothing had happened.¡±
¡°There was nothing I could do. I had just started working, having signed a contract to work at the underwater base for two years, a month before this happened. Even if I confronted the team members about these incidents, who would admit they did it? And anyway, talking about it would only make me seem crazy and increasingly isted.¡±
¡°If it were me, I would have slit the throats of all those bastards there and thrown them into the sea. The only reason there wasn¡¯t a knife fight was because of you and our deputy team leader.¡±
Kang Soojung sighed deeply. Then, looking around at the others, she said:
¡°Ae-young. I told you to use polite and kind words when you¡¯re with other people.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry. But how can I control my anger every time I think about it?¡±
¡°Try to imagine something pleasant. Imagine happy things.¡±
¡°I¡¯m imagining slicing that bastard Li Wei in half from his Adam¡¯s apple to his navel and making sashimi¡¡±
Chapter 140
Chapter 140
I¡¯m not sure what Shin Hae-ryang means by saying that. I expected Shin Hae-ryang to suggest evacuating Shu Ran, who¡¯s connected to Baek Ae-young, or his deputy team leader Kang Soojung. I looked around at Baek Ae-young, Tumanako, Kang Soojung, Shu Ran, Shin Hae-ryang, Sumire, and John Doe in turn, then shook my head.
¡°I remember the Birkenhead. Thank you for the offer, but I¡¯ll pass it on to someone else.¡±
The rescue priority order is women and children first. This order was created so that everyone can survive together. The more difficult and challenging the situation, the more we need to rescue those with lower survival chances first. Basically, while young men with strength and stamina endure the danger, we quickly finish rescuing the vulnerable, and by being rescuedst, everyone can escape danger.
Emotionally, I was desperate to get out of the underwater base, but how could I ept the escape pod over Tumanako or Shu Ran, who looked much smaller and weaker than me? I may not be brave, but I¡¯m not a coward. And I know shame.
Tumanako, wearing one cardigan and draping the other over her head like a cloak, said:
¡°Are we supposed to give opinions on who should take the escape pod? Me! Me! I want to go out!¡±
Kang Soojung lowered her gaze to stare at the top of Baek Ae-young¡¯s head and said:
¡°I¡¯d like Ae-young to go.¡±
Startled by suddenly hearing her name, Baek Ae-young¡¯s eyes darted around before she answered.¡°¡I was going to say Shu Ran like before. Then I¡¯ll say Deputy Team Leader.¡±
Shu Ran looked at Baek Ae-young and Kang Soojung, sighed, and said:
¡°I¡¯ll say Deputy Team Leader Kang too. Ae-young never listens to me anyway. She always does whatever she wants.¡±
¡°You¡¯re just now realizing that?¡±
¡°Listen to me for once!¡±
Kang Soojung looked at Ae-young and Shu Ran fondly, as if watching chirping chicks. Then, Sumire cut through the warm atmosphere and said:
¡°I vote for Kang Deputy Team Leader too.¡±
¡°Oh really? You¡¯re picking me? Why?¡±
¡°Because I don¡¯t want to see your face.¡±
¡°Ha. This little thing, really. Can¡¯t even smack her.¡±
Two pads creaked dangerously in Kang Soojung¡¯s grip. John was shouting ¡°Mmph!¡± as if he had an opinion, but no one untied his gag. Shin Hae-ryang quietly listened to everyone¡¯sments, then urged Kang Soojung:
¡°Hurry and get in the escape pod.¡±
¡°Really, me? Not the doctor?¡±
¡°There¡¯s not much difference.¡±
At Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s words, Kang Soojung looked at me and quickly denied it.
¡°No. We¡¯repletely different.¡±
I agree. Except for being Korean, there¡¯s nothing inmon between me and Kang Soojung. Our build, age, personality ¨C everything is totally different.
Kang Soojung handed the two pads she was holding to the team leader. Shin Hae-ryang had her stand on a designated circle and spoke in a low voice, almost whispering:
¡°If we haven¡¯t escaped in 3 hours, flee with Lee Jihyun and Yu Geum. Jihyun knows the location.¡±
¡°What location?¡±
¡°The location of the boat and satellite phone.¡±
There¡¯s a boat and satellite phone? Kang Soojung¡¯s eyes widened in surprise, just like mine, and she asked the team leader:
¡°Our team has a boat and satellite phone? Wasn¡¯t the country not supporting us?¡±
¡°The boat is hidden on the shore of the ind. It¡¯s very small and in a remote ce, so it shouldn¡¯t have been discovered. There are two numbers stored in the phone, and you should request rescue from both numbers. The satellite phone won¡¯t pick up high frequencies inside buildings or under roofs, so use it where you can see the sky.¡±
¡°Um, Team Leader. I¡¯ve never driven a boat in my life.¡±
Kang Soojung stammered, sounding bewildered by the flood of information.
¡°All I have is a regr driver¡¯s license. Are you telling us to escape on the boat so confidently because Jihyun or Geum know how to drive it?¡±
¡°I guess one of you three will learn this time.¡±
¡°What? Wait.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang punched the button on the wall. With a beep, before Kang Soojung could say anything more, the escape pod closed instantly and shot out. Baek Ae-young looked at where the escape pod had disappeared and said to Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°That old boat looked unreliable.¡±
¡°Still, it should be able to reach the Solomon Inds or Fiji.¡±
¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to tell them to hide in the boat and wait for us? Surely we won¡¯t take 3 hours to get out of here with our skills, right?¡±
¡°¡Just in case.¡±
Trailing off without confidence, Shin Hae-ryang turned to me and asked:
¡°Can we leave the underwater base without any problems?¡±
The question came suddenly, like an unexpected punch. I froze, caught off guard by the unexpected situation. I stammered, unable to answer right away.
¡°Uh, well¡¡±
¡°I understand.¡±
¡°I haven¡¯t answered anything yet.¡±
¡°You have answered.¡±
¡°What did I say?¡±
¡°Seems like there will be a lot of problems.¡±
His tone wasn¡¯t particrly sarcastic. He just said it tly, then looked at Tumanako and said:
¡°¡Let¡¯s check the status of the submersible port, and if we can¡¯t escape from there, we¡¯ll leave East District entirely.¡±
I wonder what Shin Hae-ryang is thinking. Was he always like this? When I used to go around with Shin Hae-ryang before¡ I just went where he said to go and did what he said to do. I didn¡¯t really have any opinions of my own.
The back of my neck and back felt chilly, like the empty space. I¡¯m afraid to ask what the temperature is right now. I remembered I had packed a towel in my bag. I took out a towel and wrapped it around my neck like a scarf. Sumire was looking at me, so I asked:
¡°Want a towel?¡±
¡°¡Why did you put a towel around your neck like that?¡±
¡°Because it¡¯s cold.¡±
The best way to keep warm in cold weather is a scarf and a hat. If you can only choose one, it should be a scarf. Sumire frowned as if what I had done was an insult to fashion and shook her head. Even though she was dressed quite thinly, she had never once mentioned being cold or anything like that.
Looking now, only Tumanako, Sumire, and John Doe are in casual clothes, while everyone else is wearing full-body suits. As Tumanako left the escape pod port, she whispered to me in a weak voice:
¡°How close are you with the Engineering Deputy Team Leader?¡±
¡°¡I don¡¯t really have anyone I¡¯d call close here.¡±
I¡¯ve only been here for five days. Ignoring the feeling that I¡¯ve already been here for over a week, I said that, and Tumanako frowned and said:
¡°Just¡ seeing the escape pod being used, I¡¯m not Korean, so I feel like I¡¯ll be thest to leave. You and I aren¡¯t close to those people, but I feel anxious that I¡¯ll be left behind. Am I being too honest?¡±
Tumanako said with a face full of anxiety.
¡°¡It¡¯ll be fine. I¡¯ll probably be thest one, so don¡¯t worry. The people who came first should leave first. If we leave in order of arrival, won¡¯t you leave right before me, Tumanako?¡±
¡°I was anxious about being left behind, but hearing that makes me feel better. Let¡¯s leave together. In the end, no one gets left behind. How about it?¡±
Recovering quickly from disappointment, Tumanako smiled and said to me.
¡°Sounds good. When the next escape podes, I¡¯ll insist you get on first, Tumanako.¡±
¡°If youe to my salon to get your hair done, I¡¯ll dye it so it shines like a prism. It¡¯s the most expensive dye.¡±
¡°Is that actually a good thing?¡±
¡°The trend these days is for your hair color to sparkle every time it catches the light. I¡¯ll set a date and turn you into a shimmering peacock.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been waiting for people outside the escape pod port, said:
¡°Did Jihyun go up?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
With that one-word answer, Seo Jihyuk nodded lightly. Then, after taking just three steps, he had his gun snatched away by Baek Ae-young again.
As we were walking, Sumire mumbled something into John¡¯s ear. However, Johnpletely ignored Sumire¡¯s words and kept walking. John was following behind Shu Ran, which didn¡¯t seem to be what Sumire wanted.
Sumire mumbled into John¡¯s ear again, and John ignored Sumire once more. Before I could ask what was wrong, Sumire bit John¡¯s ear hard. John jumped in surprise and stepped back, intentionally mming Sumire into the wall with a loud thud. Sumire, her back hitting the wall hard, bit the back of John¡¯s neck with a ghostly expression.
By this point, Seo Jihyuk, who had been trudging along after having his gun taken away, approached and asked with a sigh:
¡°What now? What¡¯s the problem this time?¡±
¡°Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!¡±
¡°He suddenly mmed me into the wall.¡±
¡°Mmph mmph! Mmph!¡±
¡°Guess he got tired of carrying me. Aren¡¯t you a cult follower? Your stamina is poor. You¡¯re staggering.¡±
John, seemingly at his wit¡¯s end, thrashed about wildly with his mouth gagged and hands tied, carrying someone on his back. More precisely, he hopped up and down in ce on both legs with Sumire on his back. Seo Jihyuk, who had been staring nkly at this, chuckled and pulled off the gag tied around John¡¯s mouth. John immediately shouted at us:
¡°This crazy woman! She¡¯s telling me to change direction to her quarters in East District!¡±
Then, as if overwhelmed by everything, he burst into tears. Sumire frowned as she looked at John. Then she said:
¡°A man crying so much. And tattling too.¡±
¡°Hey, you, Sumire or whatever! Get off right now! Untie this! Whatever religion I believe in, I don¡¯t deserve to be treated like this! You¡¯re all doing the wrong thing! Why are you doing this to me! Why did you put me with this insane, crazy person-¡°
John couldn¡¯t finish his sentence because Sumire headbutted the back of his head with a loud thud. John trembled, unable to say anything due to the sudden pain.
Watching from the side, it was mind-boggling. Am I just a coward? Have I just encountered fewer strange people in my life? I thought I¡¯d had my fair share of social experiences, but the people and situations I¡¯ve met in this underwater base have been consistently novel and surprising.
Sumire shook her head as if dizzy. John¡¯s body, hit on the back of the head, slowly sank down. As John slumped to the floor, Sumire automatically sat down on the floor too. Sumire shook her head vigorously once and said:
¡°I just want to go to my room. I¡¯ve been saying that all along. I only suggested going because the East District quarters are right next to the escape pod port.¡±
Chapter 141
Chapter 141
Seo Jihyuk looked at Sumire, then turned to me and asked:
¡°Is there any particr reason we need to take her along? If not, I¡¯d like to untie her.¡±
As Seo Jihyuk asked me, the eyes of both people sitting on the floor fixed on me. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words clearly meant we should abandon the two of them. The look in the other two people¡¯s eyes meant they wanted the ropes binding their hands untied.
These two shouldn¡¯t be traveling together. If it weren¡¯t for the disaster situation, they probably wouldn¡¯t have had any reason to be involved with each other. Due to the circumstances, they had to go together for a few minutes, but if we kept them together any longer, who knows what would happen.
¡°Untie them.¡±
Am I being selfish wanting to keep these two together? As soon as I spoke, Seo Jihyuk pulled out a pair of scissors from his pocket. He cut the parachute cords binding their wrists.
As soon as their wrists were freed, the two who had been fused together separated instantly. John Doe, shaking Sumire off his back as if dusting himself off, moved away from Sumire, screaming loudly like a wild horse that had been forcibly restrained.
¡°I¡¯ll never carry that woman again! Just kill me instead! Kill me!¡±
Sumire rubbed her wrists, which were not only bright red from the parachute cord but also abraded, and red at John. Then she boldly asked me and Seo Jihyuk:¡°So who¡¯s going to carry me?¡±
¡°Oh. That was funny just now. Thinking someone would carry you.¡±
¡°How am I supposed to go anywhere with my legs like this?¡±
Seo Jihyuk answered Sumire¡¯s question without blinking:
¡°They say in convection currents, cold air settles on the floor. It¡¯s perfect timing for crawling since it¡¯s cold. And the quarters are close by.¡±
Ignoring Seo Jihyuk¡¯s answer, Sumire said:
¡°Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang made me like this, so tell him to take me back.¡±
¡°Knowing our team leader¡¯s personality, he¡¯d probably tell you to crawl just the same.¡±
¡°If he hadn¡¯t attacked me in the first ce, none of this would have happened.¡±
Seo Jihyuk stared at Sumire silently for a moment, then sighed.
¡°You really don¡¯t know anything, do you? If any of us three had been carrying a gun at that time, you¡¯d have had a hole in your head right away. You¡¯re only alive because we were just holding these dumbbells and weights.¡±
Seo Jihyuk said, showing the dumbbells and weights he was holding. Sumire flinched when she saw the dumbbell in Seo Jihyuk¡¯s hand, then frowned.
¡°Then leave me here. I¡¯ll get to my room on my own.¡±
¡°¡What exactly is in your room?¡±
When Seo Jihyuk asked out of curiosity, Sumire answered with what sounded like a sigh:
¡°Just a normal room.¡±
¡°Crazy person. She¡¯s a crazy person.¡±
John muttered while pointing at Sumire, but Sumire didn¡¯t pay any attention to John¡¯s behavior. She just gave John a look of contempt. Now there¡¯s only one person left without a destination. I asked John:
¡°What are you going to do, Mr. John Doe?¡±
¡°I¡¯m not going with you guys!¡±
¡°Where are you nning to go?¡±
¡°Anywhere is better than being with you people!¡±
John looked at Seo Jihyuk and wrinkled his face. Then he looked at Sumire and scowled fiercely, looked at me with an expression like he was about to vomit, then suddenly stood up and ran. Baek Ae-young, who had been walking in the middle of the group, saw John running from behind and momentarily raised her gun, then lowered it. Then she shouted at us who were left at the very back:
¡°What are you doing?¡±
Seo Jihyuk answered Baek Ae-young¡¯s question simply:
¡°We¡¯reing!¡±
¡°Idiots!¡±
¡°That, that! Really.¡±
Seo Jihyuk muttered, looking at Baek Ae-young in the distance. Sumire tried to stand up by leaning against the wall but fell down twice. It seemed impossible for her to stand properly due to the pain in both legs. asional curses in Japanese came out, but I couldn¡¯t understand them. Seo Jihyuk said to me:
¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±
After walking about three steps following Seo Jihyuk, I looked back and saw Sumire now crawling forward in the opposite direction using her forearms. I¡¯ve tried crawling on the floor before, and it¡¯s not an easy way to move. I had forgotten how much strength it takes in the arms to crawl like that.
When Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t hear my footsteps, he turned around. He looked at Sumire and said in an emotionless voice:
¡°Anyway, no matter how much you sympathize with people like that, they¡¯ll just keep taking advantage of you. If she can crawl, she¡¯s fine.¡±
I think the standard of ¡°fine¡± in this underwater base and my standard of ¡°fine¡± are quite different. I¡¯ll probably have nightmares about this. Seeing a person unable to use their legs and crawling is more shocking than I expected.
¡°¡I¡¯ll just take her to her quarters ande back. The quarters are right in front of the escape pod port, right?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. You never know how things might go wrong in this world. Doctor, think about it one more time.¡±
¡°I¡¯ll only be 5 minuteste.¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked at me for a moment, then spoke towards Baek Ae-young¡¯s retreating back:
¡°Why are you choosing the difficult path? If we find a decent submersible, we might just leave on our own.¡±
¡°I suppose so. If you find a submersible, escape right away.¡±
Seo Jihyuk nodded at my words and then went towards Baek Ae-young. I approached Sumire, thinking I¡¯d dedicate just 5 minutes of my life to this person.
When I touched Sumire¡¯s shoulder from behind, calling her name, she was startled. She probably didn¡¯t expect me toe back.
¡°What¡¯s your room number?¡±
¡°52.¡±
¡°I just need to take you to your room, right?¡±
¡°¡Yes.¡±
I crouched down in front of Sumire and offered my back, and Sumire approached, almost crawling, and wrapped her arms around my neck. Her body was extremely cold. It felt like a long-legged spider wrapping around my neck, but I tried hard to ignore that feeling. When I stood up carrying Sumire, I was hit with a weight that felt like carrying two Henrys.
Okay. I can do this. If I¡¯ve decided to do it, I should do it right away. Fortunately, Sumire¡¯s room number is in the middle. I tried to inject some positivity into myself with thoughts like, ¡°At least it¡¯s not the very end or the very front number, so it¡¯s not too bad to take her there ande back.¡± I can return. It¡¯s just using 5 minutes.
Fortunately, Sumire didn¡¯t say anything after getting on my back. Noints about being tired, in pain, or cold. Considering her conflict with John, she was eerily quiet. Does she dislike that person? Or is she in too much pain to speak? Is she exhausted from all themotion?
Whatever the reason, she didn¡¯t say anything while I carried her, so I tried not to speak to Sumire either. I didn¡¯t know what to say anyway. All questions seemed stupid. Does your leg hurt? Of course it would. Are you very cold? She must be. Why did you have a gun? She probably didn¡¯t carry it because she wanted to.
Sumire remained still, not moving at all. It was very different from when I carried Henry. The kid liked to y around, so he would wiggle, giggle, or move, but Sumire waspletely still like a brick or a log. So I too tried to be a human taxi, quietly transporting her safely to her destination.
Not long after passing the escape pod port, stairs and a door leading to the East District quarters appeared. Before water filled West District, this door was always open, so I didn¡¯t even realize it was a door. The structure of the quarters was identical to West District.
Unlike South District and West District which were flooded, East District was fine. There wasn¡¯t a drop of water on the floor. Are South District and West District poorly constructed? Or is East District built exceptionally sturdy? Entering the intact quarters, I felt somewhat moved and relieved at the same time. If water had been actively flooding the quarters, I would have started to wonder if I should really take Sumire to her room.
The corridor was a mess with posters and writings stuck here and there. A poster saying ¡°Guys over 6 feet tall will obviously y basketball, right?¡± was stuck at a height over 180cm. Posters with rugby ball pictures and contact information, or saying that bicycles, jogging, American football watching, badminton rackets are waiting for your interest were also stuck in corners.
Next to that, a poster about free scuba diving lessons had a red X drawn over it and all kinds of curses scribbled on it. Inquiries about helicopter costs for flying to a Hawaiian dentist, fluorescent posters of some unknown foreign band were stuck on the walls and ceiling here and there. Writings about selling effective headache medicine, group horror movie watching, looking for a girlfriend, along with curses and lewd talk were drawn on the walls. Someone had even spray-painted curses in red on someone else¡¯s door. West District was rtively clean, but this ce is messier than I thought.
As I lost focus for about 3 seconds looking at the East District corridor, Sumire pointed to a room with her finger. When we walked to room 52, Sumire put her finger next to the door. The door opened, but I only saw the room a few secondster because I was distracted by the chaotic corridor. The room was somewhat like a young woman¡¯s room, but half of it was like a hospital. As soon as Sumire entered the room, she went to a ce that looked like a modified desk right next to the bed. There, a furball about the size of a forearm was wrapped in a nket. What is that?
It took me a while to realize it was a dog. The fur had grown so much and hadn¡¯t been trimmed at all, so I thought it was some kind of carpet or scarf with peculiar fur. Crawling with her injured legs, Sumire looked at the catheter connected to the dder and checked that the bag was about 3/4 full of urine. Then she reced the catheter bag. Unable to believe what I was seeing, I asked directly:
¡°Is it a puppy?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
And then there was no more exnation. Sumire pushed in a very thin meal with a syringe without a needle. Seeing my gaze, Sumire said:
¡°It¡¯s 30 years old.¡±
¡°You mean Sumire?¡±
¡°I¡¯m 23 years old.¡±
Hearing her serious voice, I barely grasped the content of the conversation. I guess the dog is 30 years old. She injected a fluid subcutaneously, but since I know nothing about animals, I didn¡¯t know if it was okay to inject fluid subcutaneously. Is that alright? However, Sumire very skillfully checked the dog¡¯s condition during the time she had been away. Does it have kidney problems, so she¡¯s keeping it like this?
¡°Aren¡¯t you going to escape?¡±
¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere.¡±
¡°They say the temperature will drop and the air supply will decrease.¡±
¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere.¡±
¡°You could die.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t care how people live or die.¡±
Chapter 142
Chapter 142
Sumire skillfully touched the dog¡¯s body and opened its half-closed eyelids. She squeezed ointment onto the cloudy white eyeballs, gently closed the eyelids, and rubbed them. Despite her extremely long nails, she performed these actions without any hesitation. She was as familiar with these actions as if they were as routine as washing her face or brushing her teeth.
¡There are so many unusual tanks in the underwater base that I thought it was a tank at first nce, but is that an animal hyperbaric oxygen chamber in the corner? I looked around the room to see if there was a bag or something to transport the dog, but I didn¡¯t find anything suitable. Could we put the dog in that basket-like carrier? That paper bag is too small.
Sumire slowly stroked the dog¡¯s head with her palm, as if she had all the time in the world. The dog also remained still, breathing heavily, but I couldn¡¯t tell if it couldn¡¯t move or if dogs usually lie like that. It felt like time was slowing down only in this ce. As time passed, I grew more anxious and impatient.
¡°The underwater base might copse.¡±
¡°Lower your voice.¡±
Did I speak too loudly? Sumire¡¯s voice was soft. While Sumire acted like an irritated lion when talking to others, here she seemed to be adjusting everything she had ¨C noise, time, air ¨C to the dog. It felt like even the sound was being muffled.
asionally, the distant sound of the entire underwater base rumbling and shaking uneasily could be heard. I looked at the furball-like dog, whose chest was only rising and falling, and whispered:
¡°Can¡¯t we put the dog in a bag and move it?¡±
I¡¯ve already carried a cat and a snake for 3km, putting them in whatever bag I could find. Even I know it¡¯s not a normal way to transport animals, but it might work for this dog too. That dog seemed lighter than a cat.If I carry Sumire on my back, and Sumire carries the dog, we might be able to make it somehow. Of course, it would be dog-tired work. But we won¡¯t know unless we try. Sumire, shivering slightly from the cold, carefully covered the dog¡¯s body with a light nket and said:
¡°Choko can¡¯t handle that kind of stress.¡±
Then how did you bring it into the underwater base? Guessing that I was curious, Sumire said:
¡°We came by boat, sedated. I came with the intention of burying it here if it didn¡¯t wake up again.¡±
Is 30 years old for a dog a lot, or a little?
I¡¯ve only vaguely heard that animals living on the streets die within 3-4 years. I briefly nced at a newspaper article saying that the life expectancy of pets has increased due to improved living conditions, nutrition, and veterinary medicine, but I wasn¡¯t interested since we don¡¯t keep animals at home. Until twenty years ago, there were two patients in our house, including my mother and me. And even now, keeping an animal is a luxury in our situation.
If I had known I¡¯d meet cats, dogs, or snakes like this, I would have read at least one pet encyclopedia or something. Wondering if this person, who seemed to have no interest in escape or survival, had any connections left onnd, I asked:
¡°Sumire, what about your family?¡±
¡°This child is all I have.¡±
¡°I mean your family in Japan.¡±
¡°This child is all I have.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you have any friends or close people in Japan?¡±
¡°This child is all I have.¡±
Sumire looked at the dog without even ncing at me. Just looking at her responses, she seemed like an android with a recorded voice rather than a human. It was as if she had only let this one pet into her life and alienated everything else. A life where only one dog is of value.
It seemed that the fact that the underwater base had been taken over by the Infinite Bridge, that a torpedo had destroyed the research center, that West District and South District were flooded, and that the life support system in East District had broken down were allpletely unimportant to this person. Sumire didn¡¯t seem to care much about her own body either. Rather, I was more concerned about the condition of Sumire¡¯s legs and said:
¡°Your legs must hurt, why don¡¯t you take some painkillers?¡±
At those words, Sumire, who was sitting on the bed tending to the dog, reached out and opened a drawer in the corner. From the drawer packed with syringes and pills, she took out a white pill that I assumed was acetaminophen. Then she poured water from a bottle into a cup and swallowed the pill with the water.
¡°Wasn¡¯t there anyone you got close to or liked in the underwater base? Or any teammates you¡¯re close with?¡±
Thinking of Baek Ae-young and Shu Ran¡¯s friendship, I asked that, but Sumire didn¡¯t answer, as if it was a question she didn¡¯t like. In the silence, the hand that had been quietly rubbing the dog¡¯s forehead suddenly smiled. Then she said to me in a low voice:
¡°It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen that person speak so politely.¡±
¡°Who?¡±
¡°Team Leader Sato Ryusuke.¡±
¡°What¡¯s his usual manner of speaking?¡±
He was polite to me when I came to Deep Blue. Was only the trantor polite to me? That can¡¯t be right. Even though my trantor is old, it can at least distinguish between formal and informal speech. Trying to recall the speech and attitude of other team leaders, I could only think of dimir, Shin Hae-ryang, and Jennifer. Of those, only the first two were with their team members, and if their behavior is considered average, the underwater base can only be thought of as a hellhole for engineers. Sumire answered me with an unenthusiastic tone, apanied by a yawn:
¡°He¡¯s never been like that to team members. ¡Takahashi should have seen that.¡±
¡°He asked me about Tamaki¡¯s medical records, didn¡¯t he? Wasn¡¯t he concerned?¡±
¡°I only asked because Team Leader Sato told me to. Everything written on the pad gets saved. He probably didn¡¯t want a record to remain. I don¡¯t care what Sato does, who Yamashita uses as a punching bag, who Suzuki feeds needles to, or who Ichita uses a knife on. I say let them do whatever they want.¡±
Then Sumire just lightly exhaled on the tip of the dog¡¯s ear, sprinkled water on a cloth, and wiped the dog¡¯s face. Realizing that I was watching her actions, Sumire said:
¡°This child is all I believe in.¡±
¡°¡Is it difficult to care for people even half as much as you care for the dog?¡±
I haven¡¯t just met crazy people in the underwater base. There were decent people too. Sumire didn¡¯t seem to think so.
¡°I hope they all torment each other to death. There are 10 billion of them, aren¡¯t there?¡±
I haven¡¯t lived long, but I haven¡¯t lived a short life either, and this is the first time I¡¯ve met someone like this. ¡No,e to think of it, among all the people I¡¯ve met, including those in the underwater base, there isn¡¯t a single person who¡¯s exactly the same.
In everyday life, it¡¯s rare to delve so deeply into other people¡¯s life stories or circumstances. I wonder if there was anyone among the people I¡¯ve met who was even slightly simr to Sumire. They say there¡¯s a general trend of disregard for human life in society, but I didn¡¯t expect to encounter it in this way in a disaster situation.
I don¡¯t know what to say. I¡¯ve never thought Icked social experience. Why do I find myself at a loss for words in this underwater base? ¡Well, if a few words could remove misanthropy and instill a will to survive, someone would have already done that to Sumire. And if she had wanted that, Sumire would have grasped the hand extended to her. I decided to awkwardly reach out, even if just with a finger. I didn¡¯t particrly think my action was for Sumire¡¯s sake.
¡°You liked Shin Hae-ryang, didn¡¯t you? How about contacting him after escaping from here?¡±
Although Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t seem interested in Sumire, Sumire seemed at least somewhat interested, so I threw out that bait. After saying it, I felt like I was trying to lure a child who didn¡¯t want to enter the clinic with a doll or candy.
¡°¡When the helicopter fell into the sea, everyone was busy getting out first. He was the one who cut the broken belt and saved me.¡±
Thoughts shed through my mind that Shin Hae-ryang was the main culprit who dropped that helicopter, and when he tried to soak the helicopter carrying Engineer Na¡¯s team in seawater, he only targeted the electronic devices, so maybe he was trying to ensure people didn¡¯t die. Rather than point that out, I just closed my mouth with a sigh.
¡°I thought he¡¯d want something in return for helping, but there was nothing like that.¡±
¡°¡Ispensation mandatory here when someone helps?¡±
Sumire looked at me as if I was making her state the obvious. So I thought I had made a strange statement based on incorrectmon sense.
Compensation being mandatory? Sometimes people just help each other as they live their lives. Do they really need to receive payment for that action? Why are the people here so cold? Do people be this cold when they live underwater?
Sumire, sitting on the bed tending to the dog, looked at me for a few seconds and asked:
¡°Is there something you want?¡±
I want many things. First, we need at least about five hundred functioning escape pods, or a way to eliminate the phenomenon of time going backwards, or an efficient method to put the Infinite Bridge fanatics in prisons worldwide, or something to report to Korea to please save me.
¡°I¡¯m getting a headache too, can I have one of those painkillers?¡±
Sumire opened the drawer again and gave me the entire bottle of pills she had taken from. Rubbing the pill bottle with my hand, I made onest suggestion to Sumire. This is all I¡¯m capable of.
¡°If we escape from here and go outside, I¡¯ll learn how to do dental care for Choko from a vet and do it secretly for you. If my skills arecking, I¡¯ll at least apply fluoride to its teeth. Won¡¯t you considering with us?¡±
¡°I¡¯m staying here.¡±
I don¡¯t have the ability to take someone who doesn¡¯t want to go, nor can I change her mind. I desperately want to put the dog in a carrier, put Sumire in there too, push them around, and then put them on an escape pod that seems to have fallen from the sky and send them tond. It¡¯s fine now, but we don¡¯t know when East District will flood. You might regret it then. I suppressed that feeling with a silent sigh.
Sumire was now lying peacefully on her bed, looking at the dog. I felt like my presence was an impurity in this room. As I was about to leave the room in disappointment, a sudden thought urred to me and I asked onest question:
¡°You didn¡¯t want to talk to others, so why do you answer my questions properly?¡±
¡°You were the kindest in this underwater base, doctor.¡±
Was I? ¡I don¡¯t remember. I treat everyone whoes to the hospital simrly. I probably didn¡¯t do anything particrly better or worse for Sumire. Sumire¡¯s answer made me feel even more conflicted.
¡°There are many better people in the world than me.¡±
Sumire said nothing. As I left, the door to that room closed silently.
Chapter 143
Chapter 143
I don¡¯t clearly remember what I was thinking when I left room 52. I barely moved my feet that felt like they wouldn¡¯t budge and walked down the dormitory corridor. Each step felt heavy, as if weights were attached to my feet. It was even better when I was walking through corridors filling with water. Why is it so hard to walk on two feet in any dormitory corridor, as if I¡¯m wearing shackles?
I kept reminding myself that I had promised Seo Jihyuk five minutes. I barely made it to the stairs located next to room 40, and as I was about to climb them, I turned my head at the sound of someone¡¯s presence. I thought Sumire might havee out of her room.
However, the person I discovered was someone from a room in the 70s, and I couldn¡¯t see their face clearly due to the distance. The other person also seemed unsure of who I was after catching a glimpse of me for a few seconds. I immediately went up the stairs as if falling forward. Although I couldn¡¯t see the face clearly, even from afar I could distinctly see a ck gun slung diagonally across their upper body. Who is it? Was there an armed person among those who didn¡¯t go to West District?
I considered locking the door connecting the East District dormitory and corridor but decided against it. If water rushes in, or if Sumire changes her mind, they would use these central stairs toe up. And I didn¡¯t want to block other people¡¯s escape route just because I was frightened at the moment.
There was no one in the corridor between the escape pod port and the East District dormitory. Walking alone through the gloomy corridor, all sorts of thoughts came to mind. Would the Engineer A Team people still be waiting for me? The promised 4 minutes had passed. It seemed like about 1 minute was left, but I didn¡¯t think I could make it to the submersible port in 1 minute even if I rolled from here.
As I was running with these thoughts, someone called out to me. ¡°Doctor!¡± At first, I thought I had misheard. But when someone called me a second time, I couldn¡¯t mistake it.
As soon as I turned my head, I saw Zhu Shi¡¯an in the distance. She seemed to havee up the stairs next to room 80. Zhu Shi¡¯an, holding a gun, smiled at me with a weing expression. But as soon as our eyes met, chills ran down my spine.
¡°How did you end up here? You reside in West District, don¡¯t you, doctor?¡±
¡Yeah, how did I end uping to the East District dormitory? The words that I came to take Sumire, who got injured while moving around armed, back to her room rose to my throat but stopped there.The gun Zhu Shi¡¯an was holding bothered me. No matter how I thought about it, given Sumire¡¯s attitude towards Kang Soojung, there was no way she could be on good terms with Zhu Shi¡¯an from Engineer B Team. I recalled Sumire¡¯s statement that she had no friends among the people in the underwater base.
No matter how I looked at it, it seemed very rare to see East Asians getting along well with each other here. I didn¡¯t want to tell Zhu Shi¡¯an that Sumire was in the dormitory. The same went for talking about Engineer A Team. The images of Seo Jihyuk¡¯s leg and Ha Yoon¡¯s corpse swirled in my head. The bullets embedding in the elevator wall and the tense moments shed through my mind sequentially.
If asked why Sumire got injured, unless I said she fell on her own, I would have to talk about Engineer A Team. I decided to dodge the question vaguely.
¡°West District was flooded. I ended up here while escaping.¡±
¡°Is that so? You¡¯vee quite far.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an said that while pointing the gun muzzle in my direction. A wave of mild fear washed over me like waves wetting my ankles. Without having learned it anywhere, I raised my hands with palms open next to my ears. Zhu Shi¡¯an scanned my surroundings with her eyes and asked:
¡°Are there any otherpanions hiding?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°Did Engineer A Team send you?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°Have you seen Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang today by any chance?¡±
¡°No.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an looked like she didn¡¯t believe any of my answers. But I couldn¡¯t hide my frightened demeanor. My mouth had gonepletely dry after just saying three words. Zhu Shi¡¯an, looking at me, asked again:
¡°Did you go to the East District escape pod port beforeing here?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Why didn¡¯t you escape from there? There should have been a few escape pods left.¡±
¡°There were none left. They had all beenunched.¡±
At those words, Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s face hardened. She probably reacted that way because the escape pod she was nning to use to escape the underwater base was gone. Instead, I gathered courage to ask Zhu Shi¡¯an:
¡°Isn¡¯t there any other way to escape? Like hidden escape pods?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know either, doctor.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an answered with a light smile. Recalling the image of Zhu Shi¡¯an having tea time with me at that cheerful voice, I asked:
¡°Why were you in the dormitory instead of escaping?¡±
¡°I was busy searching the rooms of the Engineering Team leaders.¡±
Armed and ransacking other people¡¯s rooms. Is she a thief? If she thought she¡¯d make a profit by robbing rooms before going to the maind, it could be possible. There were people who robbed the next room even though they knew Kim Ga-young and her group were trapped in their room with a broken door.
¡°Did you do it for money?¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an, shattering my imagination, said:
¡°Four people from our team are trapped in West District. Originally, team leader level and above had free authority to open and close building sections, but strangely, neither our team leader nor the Japanese team leader can leave West District. We need someone with team leader level authority or higher, or their pad.¡±
¡°Is that so?¡±
For a moment, the image of Engineer General Michael Roarker¡¯s pad shed through my mind like lightning. However, I quickly tried to forget that thought. I don¡¯t know anything. I haven¡¯t seen Engineer A Team today.
It seems that all four members of Engineer B Team ¨C Ha Yoon, Li Wei, Wei Qi, and Hao Ran ¨C are trapped in West District. Unlike Shu Ran, Zhu Shi¡¯an didn¡¯t abandon her team members. She seemed to have been busy in the East District dormitory where the engineers stay, looking for a way to get the trapped people out. I was a bit surprised by that. Is it because of Li Wei?
¡°Do you know where they might be?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
I was about to add that I didn¡¯t know anything about engineer authority, but I kept my mouth shut, thinking it might seem suspicious if I spoke at length.
When Zhu Shi¡¯an waved the gun muzzle for me to walk, I started walking slowly down the corridor with my arms raised. Zhu Shi¡¯an began walking at a distance where I couldn¡¯t reach her even if I suddenly attacked. When she told me to enter in front of the escape pod port entrance, I slowly went in.
¡Fortunately, Zhu Shi¡¯an wasn¡¯t aiming for the submersible port. If I had hurried, we might have met at the escape pod port or the submersible port. What would have happened if we had met? Someone would certainly have been shot.
As soon as I entered the escape pod port, I turned my head to the side at the mountain of piled-up corpses. Zhu Shi¡¯an, who followed me in, confirmed that there really were no escape pods and expressed slight frustration. I inwardly felt relieved as I watched the escape pods on the front panel safely rising towards the sea surface. Zhu Shi¡¯an looked at me for a moment and then asked:
¡°Who betrayed us?¡±
¡°Pardon?¡±
¡°Was it Hong Tao? Or Shu Ran? ¡Or maybe our team leader Ha Yoon?¡±
¡°I¡¯m not sure what you¡¯re asking about.¡±
Realizing that I really didn¡¯t know, Zhu Shi¡¯an sighed and answered:
¡°I heard your broadcast. The one saying we were waiting armed at the East District escape pod port for people toe. Who reported that to you?¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an looked at me with a smile on her lips. Ah. Didn¡¯t they say Engineer B Team had a big fight over this? I chose my words carefully, trying to prevent someone from being unfairly med for my broadcast.
¡°It was an anonymous tip to the dental clinic, so I¡¯m not sure either.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an, mercilessly trampling my efforts, said:
¡°Is that so? Then let¡¯s say it was Ha Yoon.¡±
¡°Excuse me?¡±
¡°That Ha Yoon betrayed the team. Hong Tao or Shu Ran would be fine too.¡±
¡°¡I¡¯m not sure what you¡¯re saying.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an answered me casually:
¡°In history, it¡¯s not facts that remain in records, but what the survivors want to be recorded. We just need to make someone we don¡¯t like into the culprit.¡±
I felt a cold breeze caressing the back of my neck.
¡°What if those three didn¡¯t betray you? Could it possibly be Li Wei or Wei Qi¡¡±
¡°That¡¯s impossible. Li Wei isn¡¯t that kind of person.¡±
¡°Then Ha Yoon might not be that kind of person either.¡±
¡°That¡¯s not my concern.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an coughed lightly, as if cold, and said:
¡°Anyway, what people want isn¡¯t the truth. We just need to manipte it a bit. If you get out of here and testify well, doctor, you¡¯ll bepensated generously.¡±
¡°What if I don¡¯t want to lie?¡±
¡°Do you want to die right now?¡±
¡°That¡¯s not what I meant.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an smiled, narrowing her eyes, and said to me:
¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s not like we have a bad rtionship or anything. If you listen well, we might be able to get out of here together.¡±
¡°How are we going to get out of here?¡±
We can¡¯t leave East District by escape pod. It would be best if there were any submersibles left. Zhu Shi¡¯an spoke as if it were simple:
¡°We just need to tell the people in the second underwater base that we couldn¡¯t escape.¡±
¡°You mean the Infinite Bridge people?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Then will they let me go to South Korea?¡±
¡°Well, you¡¯ll probably have to wait about 7-8 hours before leaving. The biggest problem is the people trapped in West District. Because of that bastard Shin Hae-ryang.¡±
I doubt it. Those people won¡¯t let us leave the underwater base that easily. It seems Engineer B Team and the Infinite Bridge have made some kind of deal, but I didn¡¯t think the fanatics who say they need sacrifices would keep their promises well. Watching Zhu Shi¡¯an grind her teeth at thest part, I carefully asked:
¡°¡Did you try to stop your team members from going to West District?¡±
As if dumbfounded, Zhu Shi¡¯an stared at me nkly and asked:
¡°Have you ever bought a boat or yacht, doctor?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t even have a rubber duck to float in my bathtub.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an chuckled at my honest answer.
¡°They¡¯re extremely expensive. And because we¡¯ve suffered so much at the hands of Engineer A Team, we can¡¯t just leave without paying them back.¡±
¡°Weren¡¯t you and Deputy Team Leader Kang Soojung from Engineer A Team close?¡±
¡°Deputy Team Leader Kang Soojung is a decent person. The problem is Shin Hae-ryang.¡±
I¡¯m not so sure. As far as I know, before Shin Hae-ryang did anything, he seemed to get at least some prior permission from his deputy team leader. I quietly swallowed those words.
Chapter 136
Chapter 136
As Baek Ae-young was calming herself with her own pleasant imaginings, Tumanako, the neer to the underwater base who had been listening to the story in a daze, asked Shu Ran:
¡°Can¡¯t you cancel the contract? Like quitting midway? Or reporting to the authorities that your life is in danger because of your coworkers?¡±
¡°Then I¡¯d have to return the six-month advance payment I received, but I had already spent it and had no money. Even if I decided to quit that very day, I¡¯d have to work at least six months. I contacted thebor office and inquired, but there wasn¡¯t really a good solution. Moreover, when I contacted the HR department of thepany I contracted with, they asked why I had an interview if I was going to quit after just a month. Thepany didn¡¯t really do anything wrong to me, after all. I even requested and had counseling within the underwater base, but they asked if I had done anything wrong since I had just met these people after recently joining.¡±
I wanted to quit after just five days of joining, so isn¡¯t Shu Ran¡¯s patience quite remarkable for deciding to quit after a month?
Thinking about my employment contract, I don¡¯t remember there being any specific use about quitting. Was there such a thing? People don¡¯t think about quitting when they¡¯re joining a job. As Tumanako seemed to be pondering her own employment contract, Yoo Geum-yi anxiously asked Shu Ran:
¡°How did you manage after that?¡±
¡°I told my team members that if such an ident happened to me again, after my death, pre-scheduled emails would be sent to all sorts of newspapers, broadcasting stations, and foreign media about my mysterious death. I also threatened that my parents and siblings would dedicate their lives to uncovering what happened to me and ruin their lives. ¡I practiced saying this for three days.¡±
Shu Ran¡¯s face looked proud as she uttered thest words, but I felt even more anxious. If you die like that, it¡¯s just dying at work, isn¡¯t it? Isn¡¯t this like locking the stable door after the horse has bolted?
¡°Did that work?¡±¡°It worked ambiguously. It¡¯s been almost two years now. As I adapted to them, they adapted to me too. I act as if I don¡¯t exist, and they treat me like breathing furniture. They don¡¯t act as severely as when I first joined. Things got much better after Team Leader Hai Yoon joined.¡±
Baek Ae-young, lowering her gun barrel, said:
¡°¡You¡¯re amazing. You managed to stay because you have a good personality. I couldn¡¯t live with those bastards for even 3 seconds. Ah, of course, I would have sent one as an example to the dragon pce (Baek Ae-young nced at Kang Soojung), and then tried to have some dialogue. I¡¯d have to ask if anyone wanted to be the second one.¡±
Kang Soojung sighed lightly and said to me, Yoo Geum-yi, and Tumanako, as if making an excuse:
¡°Our Ae-young isn¡¯t usually this violent. She just talks a bit roughly. It¡¯s because she has a quick temper. Usually, she¡¯s so kind and gentle.¡±
Kang Soojung was trying her best to maintain Baek Ae-young¡¯s image. However, she seemed to have forgotten that this gentle person was currently walking around hugging a rifle as big as her upper body. I heardughter and looked over to see Seo Jihyuk saying with twitching lips:
¡°Ae-young¡¯s personality is a bit¡ like a mackerel, isn¡¯t it? ¡Ow! Ouch. That temper.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been hit on the back, pretended to hide behind Lee Jihyun to avoid Baek Ae-young, but his body was barely half-covered. Watching this, I asked Yoo Geum-yi, who wasughing:
¡°What kind of personality does a mackerel have to say that?¡±
¡°They say mackerels have a quick temper because they die as soon as theye out of the water. Actually, mackerels need to breathe constantly through their gills, so they die when they leave the water. He¡¯s sleeping.¡±
¡°Pardon? The mackerel?¡±
¡°No, no. Henry. He¡¯s sleeping.¡±
Maybe the effect of the medicine hasn¡¯t worn off yet. Or is he sleeping because he¡¯s being carried on my back? With two people carrying others, our walking speed was quite slow. Yoo Geum-yi, holding my bag, looked at Henry¡¯s back and said. Her voice was filled with sympathy.
¡°I know Henry¡¯s mother, Nevada. There was a free Skittles vending machine in our research center, so she woulde once in a while to get some. She would asionally brag about her child, but I never thought I¡¯d see that child here in this underwater base.¡±
I expressed my empathy with Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words.
¡°I¡¯ll never forget when I first saw Henry in Room 80 of the West District.¡±
Even now, thinking about it feels like a punch to the brain. Snakes or cats would have been much more understandable. There must be things that are hard topromise on when joining an underwater base. But when I saw the child sleeping in the bed, no matter how I thought about it, I couldn¡¯t understand the situation.
As soon as I thought about the room I couldn¡¯t understand, Room 20 suddenly came to mind. Why grow such things here? If you¡¯re in pain, take painkillers, and if you want to feel good, eat something sweet.
¡°Come to think of it, I¡¯m curious about who owns Room 20 in the West District.¡±
What kind of person would grow such things in their room? There was no response from the West District residents, but Shin Hae-ryang, who had been walking silently ahead, asked me from behind:
¡°How much do you know about that room?¡±
¡°I only know that the room owner decorated it like a flower shop or a pharmacy.¡±
¡°Room 20 in West District officially has no owner.¡±
¡°I thought it was a room with an owner.¡±
I don¡¯t know much about the cultivation process of such illegal nts, but doesn¡¯t it take a lot of care to grow them well enough to produce fruits?
Even growing lettuce on a balcony requires constant watering, so to ayman¡¯s eye, it seemed like an extraordinary amount of care had been put into growing them so well.
¡°Since it¡¯s a room without an owner, there shouldn¡¯t be any grievances even if a sudden fire of unknown cause breaks out.¡±
¡It seems Shin Hae-ryang can¡¯t understand the room¡¯s owner either. Kang Soojung, who had been listening halfway through her conversation with Lee Jihyun, asked in surprise:
¡°Excuse me? Did I hear that right? Did our team leader just say he was nning to set fire to an empty room without an owner?¡±
¡°I never said such a thing.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang denied Kang Soojung¡¯s words in a monotone voice. That¡¯s how it sounded to my ears too. Kang Soojung, wondering if she had misheard, asked the team leader again:
¡°If a fire of unknown cause breaks out in an empty room, how exactly does it happen?¡±
¡°Assuming I¡¯m not the one doing it, a can of gasoline and a lighter would suffice.¡±
Kang Soojung suddenly asked Team Leader Shin with an expression of getting a headache:
¡°What about the fire sprinklers?¡±
¡°Unfortunately, they might not work due to sensor malfunction.¡±
¡°You know you¡¯ll be kicked out immediately if caughtmitting arson inside the underwater base, right?¡±
¡°I know.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang answered Kang Soojung without hesitation, and Kang Soojung looked at her team leader as if she couldn¡¯t trust him.
When Kang Soojung turned on the messenger content on Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad she was holding, it showed 999 messenger contents from Li Wei and Sato. Wei Qi and Hao Ran were not far behind. Below that, there was a long list of messages sent in variousnguages from different countries.
Kang Soojung opened Li Wei¡¯s messages at the top, and they were all in Chinese. The underwater base pad didn¡¯t seem to trante profanity properly, so all the Chinese was disyed as is. When Kang Soojung showed it to Lee Jihyun and asked, ¡°What does this say?¡± Lee Jihyun took Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad.
¡°Whose pad is this? ¡Ah, it¡¯s our team leader¡¯s pad. It¡¯s all curses. Thug, lunatic, mentally ill, digging up your ancestors¡¯ graves for 18 generations and so on and so forth.¡±
Kang Soojung asked Lee Jihyun with a bitter expression:
¡°Is there nothing important? Like requesting peace or cooperation first. Which escape pods are intact, where the Muhangyo guys are, that kind of thing.¡±
¡°Not among what I¡¯ve seen so far.¡±
Lee Jihyun, who had been looking at Li Wei¡¯s messages while walking, sighed at the endless scroll. Then she asked the pad¡¯s owner:
¡°Since when have you not been checking this?¡±
¡°I haven¡¯t looked at it at all since bing team leader.¡±
¡°It¡¯s been almost two years, hasn¡¯t it?¡±
Lee Jihyun scrolled through frantically, but it seemed she was giving up reading as Li Wei¡¯s messenger content was endless. Then she pressed the back button and clicked on Wei Qi.
When she opened Wei Qi¡¯s messenger, she looked at the endlessly stretching scroll with a sigh. Then her finger started climbing like a salmon towards the past.
Lee Jihyun asionally read the Chinese as is, but spoke to her deputy team leader in Korean:
¡°What¡¯s this about a boat? I¡¯ll offer you as a sacrifice instead of my boat. Something about being fish food and so on. The curses are endless.¡±
Lee Jihyun, who had been looking at the contents sent by Wei Qi and Hao Ran, was getting fed up and was about to click on Sato, the next top messenger chat requester. They¡¯re grouped by country. To my curious question about the order of checking messages, Lee Jihyun answered simply:
¡°After looking at onenguagepletely, I need to switch to another for my brain to click. If I look at Chinese, then Japanese, then English, my brain gets all mixed up.¡±
Suddenly, Li Wei, Wei Qi, and Hao Ran¡¯s messengers started popping up with an enormous number of notifications. Looking at the contents that were being tranted into Korean, I saw messages like ¡°This guy seems to be reading this! Are you reading? Why aren¡¯t you answering! Shin Hae-ryang! You crazy bastard!¡± popping up frantically.
After that, the trantion wasn¡¯t working properly. Chinese characters were popping up in huge numbers. Then suddenly, messages like ¡°If you let us out of West District right now, we¡¯ll forgive everything you¡¯ve done until now! Answer!¡± were popping up frantically.
Lee Jihyun was about to read Sato¡¯s messages but hesitated and asked the team leader and deputy team leader:
¡°They say if we unlock the West District barrier, they¡¯ll forgive everything we¡¯ve done so far. What should we do? Should we answer?¡±
As Kang Soojung looked at Shin Hae-ryang in confusion, Shin Hae-ryang answered simply:
¡°Who are they to forgive me or not? They haven¡¯te to their senses. Ignore them.¡±
Shu Ran, who had been tense beside us, sighed in relief upon hearing those words. Baek Ae-young patted Shu Ran¡¯s shoulder and said:
¡°Our team leader is the craziest one.¡±
Lee Jihyun nodded at Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s words and then started looking at Sato¡¯s messenger contents. There were quite a lot of untranted Japanese there too. However, after scrolling up to a certain point, many long, extensive messages became visible. Lee Jihyun frowned for a different reason.
Chapter 137
Chapter 137
¡°There¡¯s almost no cursing except for a few recent ones. ¡Did you know there were several questions asking if you¡¯ve thought about the immigration proposal?¡±
¡°It¡¯s been years.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang nodded lightly. Seo Jihyuk, who was walking while lifting and lowering the dumbbell in his left hand, said with a yawn:
¡°That guy. Looks like he still hasn¡¯t given up.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, hugging my bag in front of her, asked Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°Are you going to immigrate?¡±
¡°No.¡±
Judging by Kang Soojung¡¯s silence beside him, it seemed she already knew about these proposals her team leader had received. A light silence fell.
Lee Jihyun was slowly scrolling up with her finger. As Lee Jihyun¡¯s walking direction gradually shifted towards the wall while looking at the pad, Seo Jihyuk gently grabbed her forearm holding the pad and changed her walking direction. Yoo Geum-yi broke the settled silence.¡°I¡¯ve heard that engineers often get such proposals. For researchers, unless you¡¯re at a professor level or a true genius among geniuses, such proposals hardly evere. So I find it a bit fascinating whenever I hear about these things.¡±
¡°Is there any country you¡¯d like to immigrate to?¡±
To my question, Yoo Geum-yi thought for a moment before answering:
¡°I guess the three Nordic countries?¡±
Nordic? We¡¯re in the North Pacific.
¡°Then I guess that¡¯s out of the question for the North Pacific underwater base. Pray that the North Sea underwater base construction ispleted quickly.¡±
¡°¡I pray. I pray. Please let me work as a professor there in a few years without worrying about research funding. Or at least let me quit everything and open a bakery.¡±
Seeing Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s behavior, Shin Hae-ryang said:
¡°¡Team leaders frequently receive immigration offers. If I had epted every offer, my nationality would have changed about 7 times by now.¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t that evidence that other teams recognize Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s skills?¡±
At Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s words, Shin Hae-ryang thought for a moment and then shook his head.
¡°They want to poach personnel. My skills themselves are like a minnowpared to our deputy team leader.¡±
As I listened, I remembered that protecting Korean civilian nationals was one of this person¡¯s duties. From my perspective as a dentist, it seems like they¡¯re trying to pull Shin Hae-ryang into their countries to protect the faces of their own engineers. I¡¯m not sure how Engineering Team A members get along with each other, but when I checked Seo Jihyuk¡¯s dental condition, it didn¡¯t seem like Shin Hae-ryang was beating his own team members. Of course, if he¡¯s hitting ces other than the face, I might not know.
Is he the kind of person who would do that? ¡The total time I¡¯ve spent with Shin Hae-ryang doesn¡¯t even add up to a full day. Judging from the stories of patients who came to the hospital because of Shin Hae-ryang over five days, he¡¯s a short-tempered bastard with iron fists.
But surprisingly, the image that remains most deeply in my mind is of him drinking. Isn¡¯t he quite a remarkable guardian for not shifting the responsibility for failure onto me, who had been a constant stumbling block, even when we were alone? But in a corner of my mind, there¡¯s a cautious voice of doubt crying out about work-rted matters. How many times have the protected individuals who visited the dental clinic told me they fell, trying to hide the abuse from their guardians?
Kang Soojung, startled by Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s sudden statement, answered:
¡°Suddenly praising me won¡¯t get you anything. ¡Did I do something wrong without knowing?¡±
At those words, Shin Hae-ryang smiled and shook his head. Lee Jihyun frowned while looking at the team leader¡¯s pad and said:
¡°Team Leader Sato sent messages of gratitude for cooperation every time we worked together. That¡¯s unexpected. ¡Why does he write so long and verbose? Team lunch proposals, surfing proposals, asking when birthdays are, he asks all sorts of strange things? Ichida¡¯sptop went missing, and although he doesn¡¯t think we did it, he¡¯s asking if any of our team members saw someone. Yamashita wants to fight again and asks if you could lose just once, and if so, how he could show his appreciation, and so on. Can you mediate a work-rted misunderstanding that urred with Engineering Team Sa (Australia)? And so on. I gave up learning double honorifics, so I¡¯m not sure how polite he¡¯s being.¡±
¡°He used the messenger somewhat properlypared to the other guys? Is it because he¡¯s a team leader?¡±
Kang Soojung said, seemingly surprised. Judging from the previous examples, she seemed to have expected this one to be full of profanities as well.
¡°Let me see too.¡±
¡°Mmph?!¡±
Sumire leaned her upper body heavily towards Lee Jihyun, and John was startled as the center of gravity suddenly shifted to the side. Having barely avoided falling, John vehemently expressed his dissatisfaction with his mouth still covered.
As neither the team leader nor the deputy team leader objected, Lee Jihyun slowly approached Sumire to show her the pad.
¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡±
Seo Jihyuk took the team leader¡¯s pad from Lee Jihyun¡¯s hand and showed it to Sumire, whose upper body was elevated due to being carried. Lee Jihyun frowned and said to Seo Jihyuk:
¡°I can do it too.¡±
¡°What if she bites your fingers?¡±
Sumire red at Seo Jihyuk for a few seconds at his words that treated her like an animal, but soon focused more on looking at the pad.
¡°Scroll up. ¡You scrolled too far. Slowly down!¡±
Sumire got irritated at Seo Jihyuk, seemingly unable to see the content she wanted because her wrists were tied in front. As if teasing Sumire, Seo Jihyuk yed around by scrolling through months of conversation content in an instant with a single touch, then scrolling back down.
Even though I could only see the back of Sumire¡¯s head, I could imagine her expression. Is she really going to bite his fingers? Somehow managing to read the messenger content in that situation, Sumire said to Seo Jihyuk in a stiff voice:
¡°You can take it away.¡±
¡°What did you want to see?¡±
¡°The tone.¡±
¡°How was the tone?¡±
¡°¡Polite.¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked at Sumire for a moment before returning the pad to Lee Jihyun. Lee Jihyun sighed while looking at Seo Jihyuk.
¡°I don¡¯t know how far she read.¡±
¡°Ah. Right. ¡Sorry.¡±
Lee Jihyun gave up on searching through the messenger content sent by Sato. She pressed the back button and started looking at Yamashita, who had sent the next most messages. It was overflowing with Japanese that wasn¡¯t properly tranted. Cartoon character images wearing boxing gloves and kickboxing videos were attached in between the messenger windows. Lee Jihyun sighed and asked Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°Team Leader. I was reminded of this because of the mention of the immigration proposal to Tamaki, but did you formally propose it to Engineering Team Na (Japan)?¡±
¡°I did about three months ago.¡±
¡°What did you say? Please tell me in detail.¡±
¡°We want to take Tamaki Yuzuru from your team to ours. We are having difficulty quickly filling staff positions, and we have a lot of work. This kind of proposal is a new adventure for both teams and gives the team member another opportunity to develop, so you should quickly find someone else. ¡It¡¯s the typical phrasing used in immigration proposals.¡±
Seeing Lee Jihyun¡¯s confused face, Shin Hae-ryang quickly added:
¡°What did they say?¡±
¡°When we asked the employee in question, they had no intention of immigrating. Thank you for your valuable opinion. We¡¯ll take it into consideration for future team operations. I heard they received simr answers from everyone else.¡±
Does that mean Tamaki refused the immigration proposal? If I were Tamaki, I think I would have wanted to run away anywhere. Did she not like Korea or Engineering Team A? Shin Hae-ryang spoke slowly:
¡°I wasn¡¯t the only one who proposed immigration. Hai Yoon, Richard, and Oliver also made proposals. As you know, Oliver is the type who enjoys watching others¡¯ misfortunes, so it¡¯s hard to know if he would actually go through with the proper immigration procedures. Hai Yoon said that since only three out of seven people in her team work properly, she doesn¡¯t mind if the person is Japanese as long as they work diligently.¡±
Shu Ran, one of the employees who work properly in Engineering Team Ra (China), seemed to be hearing this story for the first time and gradually tilted her head towards Shin Hae-ryang.
¡°Richard was constantly looking for someone to rece a team member who had a heroin shock during vacation, and he seemed very pleased to learn that Tamaki was suffering from her own team. I know he tried quite actively to bring her over, saying he¡¯d be d if she would willingly use his country as a refuge.¡±
¡°Tamaki was quite popr, wasn¡¯t she?¡±
¡°An employee who works as told from above without asserting themselves, and who quietly dies withoutining even when given an unmanageable workload? That¡¯s the ideal subordinate that superiors want.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, seemingly deciding he couldn¡¯t use it anymore, dropped a 15kg circr barbell on the corridor floor and said:
¡°Really? You¡¯ve never ordered us to be such robots, Team Leader.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang looked at Seo Jihyuk and said somewhat gruffly:
¡°You¡¯d run away immediately.¡±
¡°Ah. I wouldn¡¯t even look back. I¡¯d bolt while spilling screws and making whirring sounds.¡±
Kang Soojung and Lee Jihyun, who were nearby,ughed softly at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s light tone.
¡°Which country¡¯s team leader is this Oliver person?¡±
As far as I know, in alphabetical order, it was Shin Hae-ryang, Sato, dimir, Hai Yoon, Jennifer, Liam, Richard, and thest Canadian team leader¡¯s name was Haley. To my question, Kang Soojung answered:
¡°He¡¯s the New Zend deputy team leader. He¡¯s leading the team in ce of Team Leader Liam, who is hospitalized for cancer surgery. He¡¯s about 2 meters tall and has a huge build. He likes rugby, so sometimes he¡¯s rolling around on the grass with his team members with a ball on Daehan Ind, and he seems to have the worst personality among them? That¡¯s Oliver Simon.¡±
Having experienced a lot, Kang Soojung shuddered even as she exined. Then Sumire, who had been quiet all along, suddenly spoke to Kang Soojung:
¡°He¡¯s handsome, isn¡¯t he?¡±
¡°If you¡¯re going by that standard, your Sato Ryusuke is handsome too.¡±
¡°He¡¯s married.¡±
¡°I¡¯m surprised you have that kind ofmon sense in your head. I thought Japanese people didn¡¯t care about that at all.¡±
Sumire seemed tock the energy to get irritated at Kang Soojung, having caused amotion not long ago. As she just red silently, Kang Soojung also stopped talking to Sumire.
As we arrived in front of the escape pod port, the air entering my nostrils felt cool. The Engineering team members, wearing full-body suits, didn¡¯t seem to feel the cold much. Tumanako, seemingly weak to cold, was chattering her teeth, and Yoo Geum-yi was also more huddled up. I checked to make sure Henry¡¯s skin wasn¡¯t exposed outside the cardigan.
Before entering the escape pod port, Shin Hae-ryang said to us:
¡°Stay here. I¡¯ll go check ande back.¡±
He was about to enter the East District escape pod port with Seo Jihyuk, leaving one reliable gunman here.
Chapter 138
Chapter 138
Watching the backs of the two people heading towards the escape pod port, I shouted:
¡°Can¡¯t we all go in together?¡±
The thought of those two entering the East District escape pod port while I waited seemed to bring on a headache. Shin Hae-ryang tly opposed my suggestion.
¡°There might be armed personnel waiting inside. It¡¯s safer for you to wait here while we check it out.¡±
He seemed to be anticipating that some of the Engineering Team Ra members might be waiting inside, ready to shoot anyone who entered. Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s prediction was somewhat urate, as such an incident had actually urred before. I¡¯m not sure about Hong Tao, but Zhu Xuan had attacked Seo Jihyuk before.
¡°Isn¡¯t that exactly why we should go in together?¡±
Wouldn¡¯t arger group be better able to handle a few armed individuals? Shin Hae-ryang hesitated at my response, then shook his head and said:
¡°The fewer people directly exposed to danger, the safer it is.¡±
¡°Or at least change the members going together. Like Ae-young, Hae-ryang, and Jihyuk all going in at once. Or all of us here going together.¡±Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s eyebrows contorted as if he couldn¡¯t understand my statement. Seo Jihyuk, who had been listening silently, asked me:
¡°Do you not like the idea of me and the Team Leader going together?¡±
¡°Yes. Specifically, I¡¯d prefer if it wasn¡¯t just the two of you entering the escape pod port.¡±
What if we changed thebination to Baek Ae-young and Shin Hae-ryang, and one of them got shot? Kang Soojung asked me, seemingly perplexed:
¡°What¡¯s the problem with the two of them going?¡±
¡°I¡¯m worried they might get shot.¡±
Hearing my words, Shin Hae-ryang immediately responded:
¡°Will fewer people get shot if more go? There will be more casualties.¡±
¡°That might be true. But I think it would be better than Seo Jihyuk and Shin Hae-ryang going together like this.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t try to persuade me more than three times. He seemed to have decided to ignore my opinion, which he probably saw as unreasonable stubbornness. I grabbed Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s shoulder as he was about to turn away. He stopped, but as he looked at my hand on his shoulder, I cautiously withdrew it.
Am I being too sensitive? Maybe. But what if the same thing happens again? What if I keep quiet and Seo Jihyuk gets injured again? Seo Jihyuk, with a barbell tucked under his arm, said:
¡°Well, I¡¯m not particrly fond of thisbination either. I have an allergic reaction called emotional instability when XY genes exist around me. The symptoms get worse especially when they¡¯re socially higher ranked than me. A male workce superior within 3 meters of me? I can only think about removing the cause.¡±
¡°Try it.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang said, looking at Seo Jihyuk. He was expressionless as usual, but I got the feeling he was cursing with just his gaze. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s allergy symptoms are exactly the same as mine, aren¡¯t they? Though I usually use avoidance therapy. But wait, is it okay to speak so openly with your superior right next to you? Is there no formality, or are they that close?
Baek Ae-young looked at the two men with a pathetic expression, then turned the same expression to me and said:
¡°If all three of us go into the escape pod port, there¡¯s no one among the 9 of you who can fight, right?¡±
At Baek Ae-young¡¯s words, Tumanako red up and shouted:
¡°Who says I can¡¯t fight?! I¡¯m really good at fighting. Geum-yi! You say something too!¡±
If Tumanako hadn¡¯t been shivering from the cold and wiping her running nose with the back of her hand, her words might have gained a little credibility. Yoo Geum-yi, startled by Tumanako¡¯s voice calling her, said:
¡°Researchers are good at knowing their ce. I only deal with guys 20cm or smaller soaked in drugs.¡±
Kang Soojung, swinging a kettlebell, quickly concluded:
¡°Ah, if two go, one gets shot? Then we should just send three and be quick about it! Doctor, who do you think will get shot?¡±
¡°Jihyuk.¡±
¡°Hey, Jihyuk. Did you hear that? Be twice as careful.¡±
Unable to waste any more time, Shin Hae-ryang gestured, and Baek Ae-young sighed and took off her gun, hanging it on Lee Jihyun¡¯s shoulder. Lee Jihyun, suddenly receiving about 8kg of weight, swallowed hard. Baek Ae-young said simply:
¡°If anyone approaches, shoot immediately.¡±
¡°You said to shoot only when identified as an enemy. What about the safety?¡±
¡°Shoot with the mindset that if you don¡¯t shoot, the people behind you will die. If anyone criticizes you, say our team leader told you to shoot. Just pull the trigger and it will fire.¡±
¡°Ae-young, if you give this to me, what will you do?¡±
¡°This is a secret, but I¡¯m going to steal the team leader¡¯s.¡±
Baek Ae-young whispered thest part to Lee Jihyun, but because the corridor was so quiet, everyone nearby could hear it. Baek Ae-young took scissors out of her left pants pocket, put her fingers through the handle part, and spun them around as she entered the escape pod port in the order of Shin Hae-ryang, Seo Jihyuk, and herself.
As we watched the escape pod port door close, Kang Soojung asked me:
¡°Do we really need to send three people? Even I don¡¯t think our team leader¡¯s judgment was wrong.¡±
¡°If we send three and nothing happens, that¡¯s fine.¡±
¡°That man. He¡¯s following my decision now.¡±
¡°Who?¡±
¡°Our team leader. He¡¯s a Korean guy who values time and efficiency like gold. We wasted 30 seconds having this ridiculous discussion? I joined this teamte, so I haven¡¯t seen the team leader beat up a Korean yet.¡±
¡°Come on, surely not.¡±
No matter what, efficiency doesn¡¯t heal gunshot wounds. Previously, two unarmed people went in, but now there¡¯s one armed with a gun and two with dumbbells, barbells, scissors, and knives. Surely they won¡¯te back injured after sending such strong people.
If he wants to hit me, tell him to go ahead. I don¡¯t want to¡ taste that famous fist either. It¡¯s horrifying to even imagine losing teeth in an alreadyplicated situation.
I wanted to plop down on the floor while waiting, but I didn¡¯t want toy or sit the child sleeping and drooling on my back on the cold floor. Standing and waiting while carrying a child made every minute and second feel painfully clear.
I hate waiting. I really hate waiting. The cold corridor made it even harder to wait. Even though only three people were gone, mentally it felt like I was facing the strong winds of the North Sea alone. Before, Yoo Geum-yi and I waited for two people, but now 9 people were waiting for three. Somehow, even with more people, the feeling of being a child waiting for working parents remains the same. Did I emotionally depend on those three that much? I don¡¯t think so.
Lee Jihyun seemed dazed holding the gun she received from Baek Ae-young. Shu Ran was saying something like ¡°The gun is heavy, isn¡¯t it?¡± next to Lee Jihyun, but it seemed like she could hardly hear the conversation. Kang Soojung addressed Lee Jihyun, who was frozen like a statue:
¡°Jihyun, isn¡¯t the air a bit chilly?¡±
¡°¡I hope no onees. I feel like the gun barrel might suddenly bend into a U-shape and fire at me.¡±
¡°I see. You¡¯re not cold. Got it.¡±
After checking on her pad that the East District corridor temperature was 7¡ãC, Kang Soojung spoke to Tumanako, whose soul seemed about to leave her body in a different way from Lee Jihyun:
¡°Now I can feel it¡¯s a bit cold.¡±
¡°Now you feel it? I feel like I¡¯m about to freeze to death right now.¡±
¡°Come here.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, wearing my long-sleeved cardigan, spread her arms wide towards the shivering Tumanako. Tumanako quickly entered Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s embrace. Yoo Geum-yi hugged Tumanako like a mother bird sheltering her chick. Maybe because Yoo Geum-yi was shorter than Tumanako, they both just looked pitiful.
¡°You¡¯re very sensitive to cold, aren¡¯t you?¡±
I¡¯m cold too, but I can still bear it. Tumanako sniffled and said:
¡°Try living in New Zend. You never feel 7 degrees unless you¡¯re opening the fridge. It¡¯s warm in summer and even warmer in winter.¡±
Is it because I only learned world history superficially? I can¡¯t tell if this is true or not. I looked sympathetically at Tumanako, whose teeth were chattering, and asked:
¡°I guess New Zend only has one season?¡±
They say Korea used to have four distinct seasons, but now it¡¯s practically down to just two. Either freeze to death or burn to death. The New Zend kiwi, who had never experienced such extreme weather, shivered and answered:
¡°It¡¯s only summer. I¡¯ve never seen snow in New Zend in my life. Old folks say there used to be ciers and it snowed, but it seems like a lie.¡±
¡°In Korea too, snow only falls in Hamgyeong-do or Yanggang-do, and summersts almost 7 months. Is it because of climate change in New Zend too?¡±
¡°It¡¯s probably because of immigrants. If anything¡¯s going wrong in this country, it¡¯s all the immigrants¡¯ fault. Oh? There¡¯s a white Kiwi doing drugs and living off government subsidies in broad daylight? Then it¡¯s all the fault of the Indian immigrant working for minimum wage. Oh? New Zend lost its winter? Then I, who¡¯ve lived here for thousands of years, must have stolen winter from the Pakeha (Europeans) who arrived less than three hundred years ago.¡±
Yoo Geum-yi, who was hugging Tumanako, giggled. Kang Soojung sighed and said:
¡°I¡¯m definitely not immigrating to New Zend.¡±
¡°After China split into 8 pieces, Asians make up 30% of New Zend. You won¡¯t be lonely if youe. And since they keep approving investment immigration, the country has a lot of money. The welfare is decent too.¡±
¡°I¡¯m not going because of that bastard Oliver.¡±
¡°Ah. There are a lot of racists too. It¡¯s a country thatcks nothing.¡±
Kang Soojung startedughing, dumbfounded by Tumanako¡¯s tone.
I supported Henry¡¯s bottom with one hand and reached behind his shoulder with the other to feel his head. His cheeks, ears, and nose tip weren¡¯t that cold. ¡My hand is colder. Sumire, who was being carried on the back of the cult follower, saw my action and said:
¡°Why did you send three people?¡±
¡°I thought it would be safer for three to go than two.¡±
Sumire frowned and asked me:
¡°Huh? What if those three just take the three escape pods and go up by themselves?¡±
That was¡ an assumption I had never imagined.
¡°They¡¯re not that kind of people.¡±
How can I judge people clearly after knowing them for only a day? But my response to Sumire¡¯s statement came out almost like a spinal reflex. Those three people abandoning the people here and escaping in the escape pods? ¡I guess such thoughts are possible.
Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t abandon me even when he thought I might be a religious fanatic in a situation where bullets were raining down, and Seo Jihyuk abandoned himself for fear of being a burden to others. As for Baek Ae-young, when I remember her climbing the stairs at the front with a shlight in one hand and a cat in the other, it feels like a stone is ced on my chest.
Personally, I don¡¯t care if any of the three take an escape pod and leave. I¡¯d rather create non-existent escape pods to get them out of here if I could.
As Sumire said, Shin Hae-ryang might run away with Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young, who seem to have worked together longer than the people he¡¯s met in the underwater base. I understand. It¡¯s a disaster situation, who could me them if they escaped in an escape pod right now? It¡¯s hard enough to save one¡¯s own life.
But for now, I just wish they¡¯d give up one seat for Henry.
We came to the underwater base on our own feet because of work, signing contracts, and somehow ended up experiencing this disaster, but the child had no choice ining here. Seeing him sleeping after taking sleeping pills, it seems he didn¡¯te here on his own feet either.
Adults¡¯ circumstances shouldn¡¯t arbitrarily sway a child¡¯s life beyond divorce or moving house, let alone drug-induced kidnapping, unexpected gunfights, or bing shark bait.
Chapter 147
Chapter 147
Seo Jihyuk smiled lightly at me and said, ¡°I guess that¡¯s how it looks to someone who hasn¡¯t been here long.¡±
¡°If we look close, assassination requests for Team Leader Shin won¡¯te in. I need to betray him big time and run away someday.¡±
I doubt it. Maybe they should look like they don¡¯t get along from the outside? When Seo Jihyuk was shot in the leg, there were no exchanges of me or criticism, even jokingly, about having to abandon him or why he got his leg injured in such a situation.
I looked at the submersible port door behind Seo Jihyuk and asked:
¡°Aren¡¯t you going into the submersible port?¡±
¡°No. Let¡¯s wait here until theye out. It shouldn¡¯t take long.¡±
¡°There are no functioning submersibles.¡±
¡°Yeah, yeah.¡±
¡°Escape through submersibles is impossible.¡±¡°Well, who knows, we might scrape together decent parts from here and there and make a Frankenstein submersible. A doorkeeper should just guard the door well.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been aiming his gun at Zhu Shi¡¯an, looked me up and down from head to toe.
¡°Doctor, you look much worse than when I saw you at the dental clinic before. ¡Hey, how much did you scare him for him to be in this state?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t do anything.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an answered as if wronged. I too, after visually confirming my state to Seo Jihyuk, said:
¡°Is that so? I feel fine. There¡¯s no external injury.¡±
¡°From my perspective, you¡¯re not.¡±
¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±
Seo Jihyuk had somehow pocketed three pills, and he crushed one with his fingertip. He was about to hand me half of the crushed pill, but seeing that both my hands were covered in blood, he forcefully threw it into my mouth. The pill that touched my tongue was incredibly bitter. As I was flustered, Seo Jihyuk said as if it was nothing:
¡°Just swallow it. ¡Hey, did you really hit him on the way?¡±
Seo Jihyuk asked, looking at Zhu Shi¡¯an.
¡°I said I didn¡¯t do anything!¡±
¡°Did you at least scare him to death? Why is the doctor in this state then? ¡Excuse me.¡±
Seo Jihyuk told Zhu Shi¡¯an to stop the bleeding on her shoulder herself and forcibly pulled me away. I was dragged about 5 meters away from Zhu Shi¡¯an by Seo Jihyuk¡¯s strength. Then suddenly, Seo Jihyuk started kneading my shoulders with his hands. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s grip was so strong that it felt like both my shoulders were being crushed. Seo Jihyuk, who was squeezing my shoulder muscles with his hand strength rather than loosening them, frowned.
¡°Try to rx your whole body a bit. How tense are you? You¡¯re as hard as a rock.¡±
¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±
¡°Usually in disaster situations, or when taken hostage by guys with guns, people go into shock. It seems like an acute stress reaction.¡±
Is that so? I think I¡¯m normal. Seo Jihyuk massaged my shoulders vigorously. I felt like screaming but swallowed it down my throat. Is he torturing me? However, Seo Jihyuk, while looking at Zhu Shi¡¯an, said to me:
¡°When you see a lot of people dying and experience extreme stress in a short time that¡¯s different from usual, people¡¯s bodies can stiffen or be numb.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an, frowning while clutching the blood-soaked towel with her left hand, said:
¡°No matter how I look at it, I seem to be in a more serious condition.¡±
¡°No matter how I look at it, it seems you did hit him? ¡Ah, doctor. Don¡¯t misunderstand. I have absolutely no interest in men. When we get out of here, get a massage or something. Go to a Korean medicine clinic and get some acupuncture. Your body condition is definitely not normal.¡±
Seo Jihyuk pressed my shoulders and the back of my neck with his fingertips. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s grip was so strong that it felt like my neck and shoulders were cracking. There were cracking and popping sounds from bones wherever he touched. Your massage might ruin me. I decided to ept Seo Jihyuk¡¯s kindness and mentioned the most recent shocking scene I had witnessed.
¡°I guess seeing the corpses in East District was shocking. I feel guilty about many things too. And someone I know pointing a gun at me¡¡±
¡°Is that so? But that¡¯s not your fault, doctor. Rotate your arms widely backward. That¡¯s right. Now forward too.¡±
In fact, I feel guilty about everyone I meet. Thest images I saw of them ovep too. I also feel a sense of helplessness, wondering if I can really get out of here well. But I was thinking it was hopeful since some people had gotten out through the escape pods.
After I awkwardly rotated both arms in circles about twenty times, Seo Jihyuk made a sound like ¡°Emergency treatment finished!¡± with an unsatisfied expression and added:
¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. You¡¯ll get out.¡±
Do I look like I¡¯m not worried? The gunfight with the Infinite Bridge believers in the second underwater base would wake me up even in my sleep. How can I not worry about that? ¡Seo Jihyuk doesn¡¯t know. I sighed deeply inside.
Suddenly, the submersible port door opened. I was startled enough to jump, but Seo Jihyuk didn¡¯t even look behind him. He just kept watching Zhu Shi¡¯an. Baek Ae-young, who came out first, looked at me and said with a faint smile:
¡°You caught up, doctor.¡±
Then she red at Zhu Shi¡¯an, who was lying on the floor. Behind Baek Ae-young, Tumanako walked out of the door listlessly. Walking dejectedly like a seagull that failed to fly, she saw me and smiled happily.
¡°So d to see you again.¡±
¡°I¡¯m d too.¡±
When I managed to smile back at Tumanako, she said, slightly tearfully:
¡°I thought I might not make it.¡±
¡°Me too.¡±
Next, John Doe came out, but unlike before, there was no gag in his mouth, only his wrists were tied in front. John Doe¡¯s gaze brushed past my back and he smiled broadly, giving a thumbs up. ¡He probably thought I had abandoned Sumire somewhere and that¡¯s why he was doing that.
Finally, Shin Hae-ryang came out of the submersible port. I checked twice, but Shu Ran wasn¡¯t in the group. Shin Hae-ryang saw my gaze and answered:
¡°Shu Ran left.¡±
¡°I guess there was a functioning submersible after all.¡±
¡°One Mary Gilmore was operational. It was hiding Engineer D Team (Australia)¡¯s Summer.¡±
Apparently, Summer had secretly hidden in the submersible, drinking hidden alcohol and happily falling asleep after congratting a friend¡¯s birthday via video call. Then she woke up to some noise and found Engineer B Team members walking around and shooting inside the submersible.
The inside of a two-person submersible is narrower than a studio apartment bathroom. There¡¯s absolutely nowhere to hide, they say. When she thought she was done for, Shu Ran opened the submersible door and their eyes met. However, Shu Ran said there was no one there and shot towards the outside of the submersible.
After hearing Shu Ran¡¯s words, Ha Yoon also came to check and looked inside the submersible, and despite seeing Summer¡¯s face, he nodded and said let¡¯s go.
Even after the footsteps faded away, Summer was too scared to leave the submersible and kept hiding inside, she says. She was afraid that if she went outside the submersible, someone might point a gun at her, saying they were waiting for someone toe out.
Shu Ran thought the submersible Summer was in had already left, but when she saw it was still there and opened it, she found Summer still inside. Baek Ae-young, like someone who had thrown away a rock of responsibility, said to me in an elevated voice:
¡°Summer left in the submersible with Shu Ran. I¡¯m so d she got out.¡±
It¡¯s the happiest story I¡¯ve heard recently. Baek Ae-young was genuinely happy even though she wasn¡¯t the one who left.
¡°That¡¯s great.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an frowned upon hearing those words. But she didn¡¯t say anything separately to Baek Ae-young. Seo Jihyuk showed off Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s captured gun like a pirate who had found treasure and handed it to Shin Hae-ryang, who didn¡¯t have a gun. Come to think of it, now Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young were the only armed ones. While watching Shin Hae-ryang check his gun, Zhu Shi¡¯an said:
¡°Let our team members out of West District. I¡¯ll give you as much money as we have.¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t you say your team only has 1 billion?¡±
Seo Jihyuk interrupted, interfering with Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s words. Zhu Shi¡¯an hesitated, red at Seo Jihyuk, and then spoke to Shin Hae-ryang again:
¡°It¡¯s true. Check my messenger. Our team members said they¡¯d rather give you money to get out of there than be trapped with those Japanese bastards.¡±
¡°But you said 1 billion was all you had? Getting scammed by cult members, trapped in West District. How much did you spend on guns? Even in ck market deals, if it¡¯s over 100 dors for a gun like this, you¡¯ve been totally ripped off¡¡±
¡°How long are you going to keep other team members trapped in West District like that? What you¡¯ve done is practically a crime.¡±
¡°Hey, Great White. I bought Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s boat for one painkiller pill? Let¡¯s take it for a ride as soon as we get out. Your oppa is now a man with a boat!¡±
Seo Jihyuk kept interjecting into Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s words. However, Zhu Shi¡¯an ignored him and stubbornly tried to speak to Shin Hae-ryang.
¡°Cooperating with our team won¡¯t be disadvantageous to you or your team. We keep our promises.¡±
¡°Team Leader, earlier Zhu Shi¡¯an told me to take your head for 1 billion won. But I refused. 1 billion is too cheap. The imnts and tooth regeneration for these guys must have cost over 1 billion. Shouldn¡¯t you get at least half the treatment cost from that dentist in Hawaii?¡±
At Seo Jihyuk¡¯s sudden tattling, Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s face, which had been pale from the gunshot wound, turned white as a sheet.
¡°Shut up!¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an, who could no longer hold back, shouted at Seo Jihyuk. I don¡¯t think she¡¯d be this surprised even if bitten by a shark. Baek Ae-young, watching this scene from the side,ughed incredulously. Tumanako whispered to me:
¡°Is 1 billion won in Korean currency?¡±
¡°Yes, it¡¯s in Korean won.¡±
¡°How much is that in New Zend dors (NZD)? I¡¯m still not quite familiar with the units.¡±
¡°I¡¯m not sure. Would you attack Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang if you knew?¡±
¡°No. I¡¯m just curious. Aren¡¯t you?¡±
John Doe watched from a distance, as if he waspletely unrted to this messy situation of the engineers. Zhu Shi¡¯an, who had been gritting her teeth at Seo Jihyuk, closed her mouth for a few seconds and then said to Shin Hae-ryang:
¡°Are you afraid of our team members?¡±
Even at this provocation, Shin Hae-ryang looked at Zhu Shi¡¯an with emotionless eyes and said:
¡°We¡¯re going to North District.¡±
¡°Oh really?¡±
¡°Tell me why I shouldn¡¯t kill you before we go.¡±
Chapter 144
Chapter 144
While looking around the escape pod port, Zhu Shi¡¯an kept the gun muzzle precisely aimed at me. Then she suddenly asked me abruptly:
¡°Did Shu Ran escape by escape pod?¡±
¡°¡Shu Ran seems to be from Engineer B Team, but I didn¡¯t see her.¡±
Not knowing what consequences my answer might have, I¡¯m inwardly startled every time Zhu Shi¡¯an asks a question. It would probably be safer if Zhu Shi¡¯an and Shu Ran didn¡¯t meet. Zhu Shi¡¯an spoke as if displeased by Shu Ran¡¯s absence:
¡°She was supposed to be here, but she¡¯s not.¡±
Recalling the sense of liberation Shu Ran showed when she threw her gun on the floor in front of the Engineer A Team people, it seems she didn¡¯t want to be here. Looking at the five corpsesid inside, I asked Zhu Shi¡¯an:
¡°Why did you kill these people?¡±
When I first entered the escape pod port, I was carrying Henry on my back, so I was preupied with making sure the child didn¡¯t see this scene, regardless of pronouncing them dead or not. Even after that, I couldn¡¯t really help them because it was obvious they were dead, even without any medical knowledge. Two shots to the head each. They wereid on the floor in a way that made the shots to their foreheads clearly visible.
They seemed to be engineers from the dormitory, apparently executed by Engineer B Team. I could only recognize the face of one of them. Hong Tao, was it? This is the second time I¡¯ve seen his corpse. Zhu Shi¡¯an answered nonchntly:¡°Chinese people are too nice, so they¡¯re seen as easy targets if they just stay quiet. They¡¯ve always been patient, but this time they finally snapped.¡±
Seeing my seemingly dazed expression, Zhu Shi¡¯an, perhaps thinking I was shocked by the corpses, spoke in a soothing voice:
¡°It can¡¯t be helped for the greater good. The underwater base will soon stabilize, so don¡¯t worry too much, doctor.¡±
All the curse words I knew rose to my throat. The only reason they didn¡¯te out immediately was my habit of not usually using profanity.
As soon as I got the feeling that Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s actions weren¡¯t for personal grudges or benefits, she emphasized that all these measures were for the peace of the underwater base and the people of Daehan Ind. She said it was natural for their superior people to hold hegemony over the North Pacific underwater base, and that the benefits obtained under it would be evenly distributed on their own, so there was no need to worry. After talking about the actual costs of drilling for oil and natural gas, and the unequal distribution of resources despite eight countries participating, she soon closed her mouth when she got no response from me.
As I silently looked at the dead people, Zhu Shi¡¯an asked quietly:
¡°Were any of them close to you?¡±
¡°¡No.¡±
There really aren¡¯t any. How closely could I have befriended people while staying at a new workce for just 5 days? However, the words ¡°Even if there were, do you have the ability to save them?¡± lingered on the tip of my tongue. After hearing my answer, Zhu Shi¡¯an spoke in a more generous tone:
¡°If we meet someone you like along the way, I won¡¯t kill them and will let them go. I¡¯ll just let them leave. Really.¡±
Then, just like before, I had to walk with the gun pointed at me. Maybe it¡¯s because my head is heating up. Even though we were walking through the East District corridor, I didn¡¯t feel cold at all.
¡°Where did you learn to use a gun?¡±
No matter how I looked at it, Zhu Shi¡¯an didn¡¯t seem to have learned hastily like me. In all of Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s actions, there was a sense of familiarity with handling guns. She didn¡¯t tremble while holding the gun like Lee Jihyun or me, nor did she act like a snake was coiled around her body while just carrying the gun like Shu Ran.
¡°Everyone should know how to shoot a gun.¡±
She¡¯d get along well with the American Republican Party. I disagree with that opinion. Walking with my hands raised, I threw a question towards my back:
¡°When will you let me go?¡±
¡°¡I¡¯m disappointed. I was starting to like you, doctor. We can just go together like this. We¡¯ve already had tea together once. Think of it as making a friend in the underwater base.¡±
I¡¯ve never made a friend who points a gun at my back. When I didn¡¯t reply, Zhu Shi¡¯an suggested in a soft voice:
¡°Have you ever thought about immigrating? I¡¯ll put in a good word with Team Leader Li Wei. The New Sino-Federation Republic epts professional immigrants with almost no restrictions. If I rmend you, there won¡¯t be any problems.¡±
Suspicious of that confident tone, I asked:
¡°Do you have some connections rted to immigration?¡±
¡°My parents are in the military.¡±
What does being in the military have to do with immigration processing? The fields of work arepletely different. Thinking a bullet might fly at any moment, I declined:
¡°That¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve received such an offer. ¡I don¡¯t want to suddenly change my nationality.¡±
If my family heard that their son, who excitedly left for a job at the underwater base, suddenly sought asylum in China after just five days, what would they think?
¡°Is that so? Think about it.¡±
I suddenly became curious about why Engineer B Team members were divided between West District and East District, so I asked:
¡°After hearing Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s broadcast, why didn¡¯t you go to West District with the other Engineer B Team members?¡±
¡°I did want to go see. I really wanted to see that handsome face get messed up. But Shu Ran and Hong Tao said they¡¯d stay in East District, and someone had to protect them, right?¡±
It¡¯s not protection, but surveince and execution. They would also need to guard the secured escape pods. ¡My thoughts are bing increasingly sharper.
I took a slow, deep breath. It wasn¡¯t easy to findposure with a gun pointed at my back. If we take the East District elevator and transfer once in the middle to go to the second underwater base, we¡¯ll be caught by the Infinite Bridge believers. But at least Zhu Shi¡¯an isn¡¯t staying in the fourth underwater base.
¡°Where are we going now? Are we heading to the second underwater base as you said earlier?¡±
¡°We¡¯re going to the submersible port.¡±
¡°¡Why?¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an spoke to me in a voice simr to when she worried about calories while eating bread:
¡°I was only gone for 15 minutes. I went to the dormitory for just 15 minutes, and Shu Ran, who was supposed to be guarding the escape pods, disappeared, and all four of our team¡¯s escape pods are gone. And I met you, doctor, who was staying in West District. What do you think this means?¡±
¡°I have no idea.¡±
¡°It means we might be able to meet additional people wandering around East District. I¡¯ll definitely kill whoever used my escape pod.¡±
How? The people who took your escape pods are rising to the sea surface. I suppressed the urge to mock her. A person holding a gun might look calm on the outside, but inside they¡¯re full of tension. It¡¯s simr to the sensation of continuously holding a burning pot. If Zhu Shi¡¯an goes to the submersible port like this, it seems like something bad will happen. I spoke to try to change Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s mind:
¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to go to West District instead of wasting time like this?¡±
¡°Even if I go there, there¡¯s nothing I can do to help.¡±
Rationally speaking, Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s judgment is correct. I walked down the corridor, hoping she wouldn¡¯t make the right decision. Even though the cold caressed my back and the nape of my neck, I didn¡¯t feel alive. Is there no way to get Zhu Shi¡¯an out of East District?
¡°Actually, I came from the submersible port, and there was no one there.¡±
It seems like I¡¯ve been going around telling all sorts of lies since I came to this underwater base. The problem is that lying isn¡¯t my main field.
¡°Really? Do you know how to operate a submersible?¡±
¡°No.¡±
If I could operate something like that, would I be working as a dentist? ¡Maybe I would.
¡°You¡¯re saying that someone who can¡¯t even operate a submersible went to the submersible port first instead of the escape pod port?¡±
Like a cat ying with a mouse, Zhu Shi¡¯an was clearly enjoying my lie.
¡°I was nning to hitchhike. I thought I might try driving it if it¡¯s easier than driving a car.¡±
¡°Did you meet anyone on your way here?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t meet anyone. I came alone all the way from West District to East District.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an poked my back with the gun muzzle as my pace slowed, and said:
¡°¡Looks like you were carrying someone on your back. Your clothes are wrinkled and there are bloodstains here and there. Ah, if you stop one more time or look back, I¡¯ll shoot immediately, so keep walking.¡±
I mentally executed about 10 attempts to lunge at Zhu Shi¡¯an and snatch her gun. And the conclusion was that I would fail no matter which direction I pounced.
The moment I turned and lunged, Zhu Shi¡¯an would have already hit me with about two bullets. If I were an action movie protagonist, I would have already snatched Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s gun 11 times with ease. But applying all the gunfights I¡¯ve experienced so far, the only scenario that came to mind was me dying within 3 seconds if I tried to grab the gun.
Moreover, Zhu Shi¡¯an is someone who exercises regrly, while I¡¯m someone who never does. There¡¯s a limit to how much one can hope for luck. There was no way my reflexes, which I rarely used except for my wrists, fingers, and asionally feet, would suddenly improve.
If sighs could make the ground copse, the underwater base would have already crumbled. As I walked, getting poked in the back by the gun muzzle every now and then, I could see the entrance to the submersible port in the distance. But there was no one at the entrance. The anxiety and worry that had been walking with me all this time shook my shoulders violently.
Usually, either Baek Ae-young or Seo Jihyuk would always keep watch. If the Engineer A Team people had already left East District, there would be no problem. It would be best if they had sessfully escaped on a submersible. But what if they¡¯re all inside the submersible port and no one notices Zhu Shi¡¯aning? What if I¡¯m bringing this person to endanger other people¡¯s lives?
Zhu Shi¡¯an skillfully used my height and build to hide herself. As we approached the entrance of the submersible port, someone spoke to us.
¡°Zhu Shi¡¯an? Hi. Are you walking around after having lunch?¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s voice was heard, sounding unconcerned. In contrast, Zhu Shi¡¯an, tense behind my back, took a deep breath and said:
¡°Jihyuk? Are your team members inside the submersible port?¡±
¡°Our team? They¡¯ve already gone somewhere else. I¡¯m alone here.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, saying this, wasn¡¯t visible at all.
¡°Where are you?¡±
¡°Did your team shoot the submersible control panel?¡±
¡°Where are you? Come out!¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an asked, looking around while using my body as a shield. Seo Jihyuk wasn¡¯t visible to me, so there was no way Zhu Shi¡¯an could see him.
¡°Duck.¡±
Swear words don¡¯t get tranted. Simrly, dialects don¡¯t get tranted either. As soon as I heard it, I threw myself to the floor.
Chapter 145
Chapter 145
As soon as I hit the floor, gunshots rang out. When I looked back, Zhu Shi¡¯an had copsed on the ground. Her body writhed on the floor as if struck by an invisible giant. I first snatched the gun Zhu Shi¡¯an was holding and threw it towards the distant corridor.
¡°Doctor, are you hurt anywhere?¡±
Looking closely, I saw Seo Jihyuk was speaking to me from the ceiling. Even though I could only see his eyes, I was incredibly d to see him. Why am I so happy? I felt my body, wondering if I had been shot, while answering Seo Jihyuk¡¯s question:
¡°No, I¡¯m not.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an, lying on her side as if in pain, felt her right shoulder with her left hand. Only then did I realize that Seo Jihyuk had shot Zhu Shi¡¯an in the shoulder. Seo Jihyuknded on the floor with a thud from the ceiling. How on earth did he hide that bulk?
¡°Is there a ce in the ceiling where an adult man can hide?¡±
¡°There¡¯s an air venttion system for this corridor up there. It¡¯s good for sneaking a smoke sometimes.¡±
Seo Jihyuk spoke without taking his eyes off the fallen Zhu Shi¡¯an. It¡¯s more amazing that someone of that size could be crumpled up in such a narrow space. I reached out as Seo Jihyuk was wearing my bag. Seo Jihyuk handed over the bag and said to me in a disgruntled tone:
¡°What 5 minutes? It took over 10 minutes. You have no idea how worried I was.¡±¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t worry too much, I wasn¡¯t actually worried.¡±
Leaving me dumbfounded, Seo Jihyuk looked Zhu Shi¡¯an up and down. It seemed he was checking for other weapons on her body rather than looking at the gunshot wound. Then, brushing off the dust stuck to his shoulder with disgust, he coughed and said:
¡°It¡¯s surprisingly spacious up there. The problem is, if you¡¯re not careful, the top of your head might get grated by the venttion fan, which is a bit unfortunate.¡±
¡°How long were you in there?¡±
I asked as I took a towel from my bag and pressed it on Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s shoulder wound. The dry towel was instantly soaked with blood. Zhu Shi¡¯an twisted her body, groaning in pain.
¡°Not long. About 2 minutes? Doctor, don¡¯t press it yourself. Tell her to press it.¡±
Seo Jihyuk gently pulled my upper body and pushed me back. I hastily retreated, wondering if Seo Jihyuk had medical knowledge about gunshot wounds, but he made Zhu Shi¡¯an press her right shoulder with her uninjured left hand. ¡Looking from behind, it wasn¡¯t much different from what I had been doing. He was just making Zhu Shi¡¯an do thepression I had been doing with my hands.
¡°That¡¯s right. Good job. Yes, press the entry wound like that. Press harder.¡±
¡°You¡ you crazy bastard! Let go! Get your hands off!¡±
As Zhu Shi¡¯an shouted, knocking away Seo Jihyuk¡¯s forcefully pressing hands, Seo Jihyuk slowly backed away. Then, after coldly observing Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s state, he concluded:
¡°She¡¯s fine.¡±
¡°You son of a bitch!¡±
Seo Jihyuk shrugged his shoulders, looking at Zhu Shi¡¯an trembling in pain, and answered spitefully:
¡°I avoided the vital spots.¡±
¡°You call that an exnation?!¡±
¡°It hurts like hell, but it won¡¯t kill you.¡±
¡°Shut up!¡±
I sighed and took out another towel from my bag. Then I wiped Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s face, which was a mess of tears and sweat. Seo Jihyuk retrieved Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s thrown gun, came back, and said as ifining:
¡°You have no idea how much I agonized up there. The angle was hard to get right.¡±
¡°What?!¡±
¡°I¡¯m not asking for your gratitude, but if you¡¯re thankful I shot your shoulder instead of your head, send a postcard. Better yet, send dors instead of a postcard.¡±
¡°You think I¡¯d be grateful?! I want to kill you in an incredibly painful way!¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an spoke deliberately, as if conscious of the trantor.
¡°Sure.¡±
¡°I said I want to kill you!¡±
¡°Seeing you shout like that, you¡¯ll live another 50 years. Don¡¯t strain your neck like that, rx. Raising your blood pressure will only make the blood flow faster.¡±
All sorts of curses in variousnguages spewed from Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s mouth. There was no way she could exert force with her left hand due to the pain. Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s left hand slipped, dropping the towel, and I pressed her shoulder again in ce of her left hand. Zhu Shi¡¯an groaned in pain from my action, then said tearfully:
¡°My right hand won¡¯t move.¡±
¡°¡It¡¯ll be alright.¡±
So that¡¯s why he aimed for the right shoulder. Seo Jihyuk, scratching the back of his head, answered:
¡°That¡¯s why I shot there. ¡These days, treating severed nerves and rehabilitation costs at least 200 million won. You guys have a lot of money, right? Don¡¯t worry too much.¡±
¡°¡Do you know how much it hurts? You¡¯ve never been shot!¡±
¡°I have. It hurts like hell. Want another one?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll kill you!¡±
¡°I¡¯d rather die ¡naturally from the passage of time about 70 years from now than by your hands.¡±
While holding down the struggling Zhu Shi¡¯an, I tried to stop Seo Jihyuk who was provoking her.
¡°Jihyuk, stop teasing her.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been answering Zhu Shi¡¯an with a grin, saw my action and said:
¡°There¡¯s no need to do that. I don¡¯t know how many people she killed at the escape pod port, but it must be quite a few. And she might have killed you too, doctor.¡±
I sighed, looking at the blood-soaked towel and Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s contorted face. While pressing the shoulder with the towel and timing it, I answered Seo Jihyuk:
¡°That may be true. But I¡¯m doing this for myself. If I don¡¯t focus on something right now, I feel like I might copse.¡±
As I verbalized my situation specifically, it felt like my whole body was being crushed by fatigue. As the realization that no one would die immediately because of Zhu Shi¡¯an rushed to my brain, a shallow sense of relief enveloped my body.
Next, I didn¡¯t want to move a finger. I forced strength into my hands, trying to forget the feeling of wanting to lie down and sleep for three days straight, and the thought of wanting to lie down, mindlessly watch TV, and eat ice cream. The unpleasant sensation of the blood-soaked towel was reminding me of where reality was.
Seo Jihyuk, who nodded lightly at me, kept his distance while aiming his gun at Zhu Shi¡¯an. Zhu Shi¡¯an couldn¡¯t move due to the shock from the gunshot. Instead, she continuously spewed out curses at Seo Jihyuk and Engineer A Team. Seo Jihyuk chuckled as he listened to the Korean words that popped up among the untranted Chinese, and said:
¡°Why are you so indignant? If you picked up a gun, you should have been prepared to get shot.¡±
¡°Why should I get shot?!¡±
Seo Jihyuk was momentarily at a loss for words, then shook his head and said:
¡°¡Wow. Really amazing. That belief that while others die from my bullets, the bullets aimed at me will curve and miss. How does the Communist Party brainwash people like that? Do they feed you something special?¡±
¡°You think we¡¯ll just let this go? A gentleman¡¯s revenge is notte even after ten years. We will definitely take revenge!¡±
Even I, numbed by fatigue, momentarily felt chilled by Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s tone as she gritted her teeth, but Seo Jihyuk yawned as if hearing a dog bark and said:
¡°I¡¯m not scared at all. You guys always say that when you¡¯re at a disadvantage. You might as well say you¡¯ll win next year. What¡¯s this about winning in 10 years?¡±
¡°Our team members won¡¯t let you get away with this.¡±
¡°Ah, they¡¯re going to save you from West District? Get a grip.¡±
I briefly exined to Seo Jihyuk about Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s hostile attitude towards Ha Yoon, then asked what I was curious about:
¡°Why don¡¯t team members get along? Is there a reason?¡±
¡°Ah, these guys¡ what was it? Something rted to politics, they have different connections. Jihyun exined it to me before. Ha Yoon is from the central south region, and you¡¯re from Huadong, was it?¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an, even in the pain of her gunshot wound, looked at Seo Jihyuk with a pathetic expression and said:
¡°¡It¡¯s the opposite, you idiot.¡±
¡°Is that so? Were you guys from the military side? I heard Ha Yoon was something about the economic lifeline of some group. ¡Doctor, Jihyun has a strong stomach so she knows well, but I¡¯m not very interested in the ecosystem of cockroaches.¡±
At those words, Zhu Shi¡¯an, seemingly heated up, said with a flushed face:
¡°The only one with a brain among your team members is Lee Jihyun.¡±
¡°That¡¯s right. You do know.¡±
¡°Ignorant bastards.¡±
¡°Well, well. You know our team¡¯s hidden secret. Did you nt a spy or something?¡±
Thinking that she couldn¡¯tmunicate with Seo Jihyuk at all, Zhu Shi¡¯an closed her mouth in a state of full anger. However, Seo Jihyuk forcibly took out the pad attached to Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s side and asked:
¡°Tell me the password for your pad. Is there anyone on your side? Someone who might help you, regardless of factions.¡±
¡°¡Why?¡±
¡°So I can let them know you¡¯re injured. Our team leader¡¯s messenger just exploded. Your team members seem to have a lot of time on their hands. If it were me, I¡¯d be digging in front of the West District barrier instead of terrorizing our team leader¡¯s messenger.¡±
¡°¡Li Wei.¡±
¡°Ah, that psychopath? Hey, isn¡¯t there anyone else besides him?¡±
¡°What¡¯s wrong with Li Wei!¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an shouted at Seo Jihyuk in a sharp voice. Seo Jihyuk entered Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s pad with the password she provided, but was taken aback by the flood of Chinese. Where was thenguage setting again? Seo Jihyuk, frowning while looking at the pad, said:
¡°He likes Ha Yoon, doesn¡¯t he?¡±
¡°No, he doesn¡¯t.¡±
¡°He does. It was obvious he liked Ha Yoon.¡±
¡°How would you know that?!¡±
¡°You can just tell by looking. Hmm. Let¡¯s see.¡±
Seo Jihyuk spread out his fingers and started folding them one by one as he spoke:
¡°She¡¯s pretty, has a good figure, smart, from a good family, rich, personality? I¡¯m not sure about her personality. Seeing that our team leader likes her, I¡¯m not convinced she¡¯s okay. Didn¡¯t all the guys in your team like Ha Yoon?¡±
As Seo Jihyuk asked this while ambiguously spreading and folding his finger at the personality part, Zhu Shi¡¯an, gritting her teeth, quickly denied:
¡°No, they don¡¯t.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t like that Li Wei guy at all. His personality is a bit¡ How should I put it? A unique psychopath? He¡¯s like someone mass-produced with only the wrong genes of Qin Shi Huang and the Red Guardsbined.¡±
I could onlyugh hollowly at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words. What kind of person is he to say that? Zhu Shi¡¯an wanted to pounce on Seo Jihyuk in her heart, but with me pressing her right shoulder and her body not moving as she wished due to the pain, she could only il her left arm in anger. Watching Zhu Shi¡¯an, Seo Jihyuk said:
¡°Anyway, the probability of him liking you is close to zero. And that guy has a calctor in his head, so he¡¯s probably already sized you uppletely.¡±
¡°What¡¯s my evaluation then?¡±
¡°How should I know? Ask Li Wei. No, don¡¯t ask that bastard. Just call someone else.¡±
¡°Lily.¡±
¡°Not her.¡±
¡°Kang Soojung.¡±
¡°Really? Hey, you might as well call Wei Qi or Hao Ran.¡±
¡°Just tell them I¡¯m dead.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an answered Seo Jihyuk, grinding her teeth. While Seo Jihyuk was ying with Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s pad, I checked Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s shoulder. Should I make a tourniquet?
Chapter 146
Chapter 146
I¡¯ve never dealt with a gunshot wound before. I don¡¯t think a patient shot in the face would evere to me in my lifetime. Maybe in the emergency room, but isn¡¯t that how it is for most people living in Korea? As I was thinking along these lines, Zhu Shi¡¯an, gasping in pain, said to Seo Jihyuk:
¡°It hurts like hell!¡±
¡°If you¡¯d been shot in the head, it wouldn¡¯t hurt. I guess I¡¯m not considerate enough.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an gritted her teeth, looking at the sarcastic Seo Jihyuk. I, who had been firmly holding and pressing the shoulder with a towel, took out a pill bottle from my pants pocket with my less blood-stained hand and said:
¡°I got some painkillers from someone who knows about them.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an tried to grab the painkiller bottle I was holding with her trembling left hand but dropped it on the floor. I was also busy pressing the shoulder again with the towel.
In the meantime, Seo Jihyuk quickly grabbed the painkiller bottle that had fallen to the floor. Then he nimbly dodged Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s iing kick. Seo Jihyuk opened the bottle to check its contents and said:
¡°Doctor, she doesn¡¯t deserve these painkillers.¡±
¡°Give them back!¡±¡°I understand you¡¯re kind-hearted, but if she has these¡¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked at the pills in the bottle and asked me in a yful voice:
¡°Who did you get these from?¡±
¡°Someone gave me the whole bottle when I said I needed painkillers on the way here.¡±
¡°Have you taken them before?¡±
¡°No. Should I not take them?¡±
¡°It¡¯s okay to take them, but the pain-relieving effect is quite strong.¡±
Wasn¡¯t it something like high-dose Tyl*nol? Surely it¡¯s not drugs?
Zhu Shi¡¯an, still lying down, aimed another kick at Seo Jihyuk. ¡As Seo Jihyuk said, she seems fine except for her shoulder. Seo Jihyuk avoided the iing foot just by slightly moving his body backward. Zhu Shi¡¯an, agitated and overwhelmed by pain and irritation, said:
¡°The dentist here was trying to give them to me!¡±
¡°The armed ruffian here says there needs to be a price for them?¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been teasing Zhu Shi¡¯an, shook the pill bottle with a rattling sound. From my perspective, it didn¡¯t seem like Zhu Shi¡¯an could win against Seo Jihyuk in a war of words. Looking at the pills spinning around in Seo Jihyuk¡¯s hand, I said:
¡°Just give them to her. I received them without any price too.¡±
¡°I see. Then watch how I sell them at a high price.¡±
¡°What?¡±
Then Seo Jihyuk shook the pill bottle in front of Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s eyes and said:
¡°Hey. Sell me your boat.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°I said sell me your boat. With that dentist¡¯s broadcast and you guys walking around with guns, if it¡¯s true that there are some weird cult members upstairs, the underwater base seems more dangerous than I thought. It doesn¡¯t seem safe even after going up to Daehan Ind, so I need to leave this ce on a boat or a raft or whatever.¡±
¡°You want me to sell a boat for just a few painkillers?¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an had an incredulous expression.
¡°To be precise, I¡¯ll give you the painkillers and even let you ride on my boat. I¡¯m a generous person.¡±
¡°Who¡¯s selling? It¡¯s my boat! Do you think I¡¯d sell a 50 million won boat for a few pills? Are you crazy?!¡±
¡°I¡¯m saying I¡¯ll even give you free shipping on my boat with your gunshot wound.¡±
¡°Who asked you to?!¡±
Seo Jihyuk tried to appeal that he would safely take the injured Zhu Shi¡¯an to the boat, avoiding the cult fanatics, as an advantage of this deal, but Zhu Shi¡¯an reacted as if she had heard nonsense from a robber trying to exchange painkillers for a boat.
I put down the blood-soaked towel beside me and pressed Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s shoulder with a new towel, saying:
¡°Jihyuk. Engineer B Team is in a cooperative rtionship with the Infinite Bridge people. They don¡¯t know that if they go to the second underwater base and contact the Infinite Bridge people, there¡¯s a high chance they¡¯ll be killed.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an frowned at me and asked:
¡°What are you talking about?¡±
¡°The Infinite Bridge believes that a certain number of people must die as sacrifices. They won¡¯t let Engineer B Team go so easily.¡±
¡°That can¡¯t be! They promised!¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been rolling the pill bottle in his hand with a rattling sound, looked nkly at Zhu Shi¡¯an and said:
¡°You¡¯ve been scammed.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s head, which had been looking at me, turned sharply towards Seo Jihyuk. Seo Jihyuk calmly said to Zhu Shi¡¯an:
¡°Of course, I know scamming is your specialty. But there are very few people who can beat religious believers when ites to lying. They¡¯re great con artists.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an, who had been enduring the pain of the gunshot wound with a pale face, suddenly fell silent. Then she closed her mouth and started ring at Seo Jihyuk, and I realized that silence could make people more ufortable than curses. After being silent for a minute, Zhu Shi¡¯an, sweating profusely, said:
¡°Then I¡¯ll buy you. The boat? Fine. I¡¯ll give you the boat. Kill Shin Hae-ryang and steal his pad.¡±
At that statement, I looked at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face almost reflexively, even though I was thinking I shouldn¡¯t look. Seo Jihyuk, who had been blinking his eyes, heard this sudden proposal to assassinate his superior, but far from being flustered, he rather raised the corners of his mouth.
¡°¡I like such gutsy women. But it¡¯s not profitable to buy me. You should price me higher than a boat.¡±
¡°How much are you thinking?¡±
Seo Jihyuk said amusingly:
¡°Don¡¯t you set an upper limit without knowing how much I¡¯ll ask for?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll give you the boat plus an additional 100 million won.¡±
¡°The former Team Leader Jo sold out three employees and grabbed over 100 million won while fleeing to America. Isn¡¯t it too easy to just give 100 million for killing Shin Hae-ryang?¡±
¡°¡The most I can promise is 200 million won.¡±
This is the first time in my life I¡¯ve witnessed a murder-for-hire scene, and even as an outsider, I think that amount doesn¡¯t make sense. 200 million to kill someone? Just my waist alone would be worth five times that amount. Not to mention the eyes. ¡How much would someone have to pay to kill me? Just listening to these two people¡¯s conversation feels like my sense of ethics is bungee jumping into the abyss.
Seo Jihyuk responded as if he had heard something very unfair in terms of the amount:
¡°Hey, do you think these guys attacked Shin Hae-ryang because they don¡¯t need teeth? Do you think killing our team leader is easy? What¡¯s 200 million? 200 million.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an started making offers that she thought would benefit Seo Jihyuk:
¡°I¡¯ll give you an apartment too. I¡¯ll make it so you can immigrate right away. All the Engineer B Team members will wee you, and New China will treat you as an honorary citizen.¡±
¡°Thatst one seems the most useless. I¡¯m disappointed, Zhu Shi¡¯an. You mock our A Team every day, calling us beggars. Why are you being so beggar-like now? Just 200 million? How stingy.¡±
¡°¡1 billion won. That¡¯s all the funds allocated to the team that we can use immediately. Ask Ha Yoon or Li Wei on the pad. Anything more than that requires approval from higher-ups.¡±
Seo Jihyuk said with a genuinely regretful expression:
¡°You¡¯re telling me to blow off Team Leader Shin¡¯s head when you don¡¯t even have money? Sheesh. I don¡¯t associate with beggars. I¡¯m so disappointed. You¡¯re really the poorest of the poor. I thought you at least had a lot of money when I heard you bragging to Ae-young about having boats and yachts and getting a lot of support.¡±
How many times is he saying ¡®beggar¡¯? It seems Seo Jihyuk¡¯s goal is to tease Zhu Shi¡¯an rather than actually intending to harm Shin Hae-ryang. Zhu Shi¡¯an, with an agitated face, said to Seo Jihyuk:
¡°If you ask guys like Li Wei or Hao Ran, they might want to pay out of their own pockets. If you promise to at least bring Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad, I¡¯ll give you an extra 100 million out of my own pocket.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an seemed to think of Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad as a solution to break the situation where her team members were trapped in West District. She didn¡¯t seem to imagine that Michael Roarker¡¯s pad was with Engineer A Team. Well, I wouldn¡¯t think that another team¡¯s leader would steal their superior¡¯s pad to delete CCTV footage either.
Seo Jihyuk rolled and spun the pill bottle around, and now he was tossing it up and down using the snap of his wrist. The pills that had been rattling and colliding here and there suddenly stopped.
¡°Give me 10 billion won in Korean currency. I don¡¯t ept yuan, so give it in dors.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s expression was one of speechlessness, her mouth open. I too was at a loss for words. Zhu Shi¡¯an regained her senses before me and answered. I justughed hollowly after hearing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words.
¡°Where would I get that kind of money?!¡±
¡°The Japanese guys told me they¡¯d give me 1 billion if I brought our team leader to them tied up. Are you worse than Japan?¡±
A torrent of curses poured out from Zhu Shi¡¯an. It seemed like Seo Jihyuk and Shin Hae-ryang had equal shares, and curses about Korea and Japan started to mix in. Thest words seemed to have severely touched some part of Zhu Shi¡¯an. Even while panting due to pain and taking deep breaths, Zhu Shi¡¯an didn¡¯t stop cursing in Chinese.
¡Both Sumire and Zhu Shi¡¯an, these engineers have quite the temperament. Seo Jihyuk, looking at Zhu Shi¡¯an whose face had turned red with anger, spitefully shook the pad and asked:
¡°Give up the unrealistic dream of buying me. Can you start the boat with the pad too?¡±
¡°¡Yes.¡±
It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve heard that boats can be started with electronic devices these days. Well, I¡¯ve never been on a boat. In fact, it¡¯s a bit surprising that some people in this underwater base own boats. And treating boats like cars. I have dentist colleagues, but I don¡¯t think they¡¯ve ever talked about buying boats.
¡°Is your boat where Ha Yoon¡¯s boat is?¡±
¡°How did you know it was hidden there?¡±
¡°Hiding it doesn¡¯t change much. Well, that¡¯s one boat secured.¡±
Seo Jihyuk opened the pill bottle lid. Then he picked up exactly one pill with two fingers and put it down on the bare floor.
¡°Eat it before it gets cold.¡±
¡°You¡¯re a real son of a bitch. You and your team leader. You¡¯re exactly the same.¡±
¡°Nah, I¡¯m still better than Team Leader Shin.¡±
I, who had been watching this insane deal scene with disbelieving eyes, said as I saw Seo Jihyuk trying to put the pill bottle back into my pants pocket:
¡°Jihyuk, you don¡¯t really intend to kill Hae-ryang, do you?¡±
¡°¡How can you be so sure? There¡¯s always a possibility that I might suddenly go crazy and start shooting all our team members.¡±
At those words, a small hope seemed to rise in Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s eyes as she picked up the pill with her uninjured left hand. She looked as if she wished he would do just that. Well, the Seo Jihyuk I knew wasn¡¯t that kind of person.
¡°You two seem close.¡±
¡°Really?¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s voice, filled with disbelief, asked me as if to confirm.
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°¡Oh no. We shouldn¡¯t appear that way.¡±
Chapter 148
Chapter 148
Just as there¡¯s no predetermined reason why people should inherently live, there¡¯s also no reason why they shouldn¡¯t die. At Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s words, Zhu Shi¡¯an stammered with a flustered expression, then pointed at Seo Jihyuk with a jerk of his chin and shouted.
¡°Seo Jihyuk made a promise to me! He said he¡¯d take me safely to the boat in exchange for letting him take it!¡±
Clearly, Zhu Shi¡¯an had thought the painkillers were the most important during the boat deal, and that they were the least necessary. Now it¡¯spletely reversed.
¡°I said I¡¯d take you safely, but I never said I¡¯d keep you alive while doing it.¡±
Seo Jihyuk said with anguid smile, quickly extricating himself from the conversation. Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s jaw dropped, his face nk with shock. I¡¯ll make good use of the boat. Leaving those words behind, Seo Jihyuk approached Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s back, slightly hunching his body to hide.
As Shin Hae-ryang silently loaded Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s gun, Zhu Shi¡¯an, terrified, shouted at the barely visible Seo Jihyuk.
¡°You promised!¡±
Seo Jihyuk, crouching behind Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s back, cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone and shouted back.
¡°Ask Li Wei to save you.¡±¡°If it¡¯s money, I can try! Hai Yun will definitely be able to manage over 1 billion somehow! He¡¯ll pour money into saving his team members.¡±
¡°Hai Yun must really hate working. Having to work with someone like this as a colleague.¡±
¡°Do you think our country will stand by if you kill me?! 1 billion people wille to avenge me!¡±
¡°Ah. That revenge you¡¯re talking about in 10 years? Has our team leader ever been afraid of retaliation?¡±
As the conversation, conducted with Shin Hae-ryang as a wall-like barrier between them, grew longer, Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s condition worsened, and Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s expression grew colder. Shin Hae-ryang, gun barrel aimed at Zhu Shi¡¯an, said simply.
¡°Get into the submarine port.¡±
At those words, Zhu Shi¡¯an was struck with fear. The moment they heard this, it dawned on everyone around that he really intended to kill Zhu Shi¡¯an. The weight of Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s singlemand to go elsewhere was tremendous; it felt like he didn¡¯t want to show the others the act of killing Zhu Shi¡¯an. I stepped in front of Shin Hae-ryang and said weakly.
¡°Mr. Hae-ryang. People aren¡¯t supposed to be killed in the first ce. It¡¯s not that we don¡¯t kill them for a reason.¡±
¡°It¡¯s too dangerous to leave him behind.¡±
If that¡¯s the reason, isn¡¯t that more of a reason not to kill him? Am I the only one who thinks this way?
¡°We¡¯ve taken care of the weapons, and we have the pad. Zhu Shi¡¯an alone won¡¯t be able to do anything.¡±
¡°Even alone, one can do many things.¡±
What? ¡Well, that might be true for you. But it doesn¡¯t seem to be the case for others. How much can someone with a gunshot wound to the shoulder really do?
Unless Zhu Shi¡¯an ate something wrong or went crazy, he wouldn¡¯t dare to identally confront the Engineering Team D members armed with three guns. Even if they met again, which would be difficult, he would either avoid Engineering Team D from afar or try to help his team members in other ways.
However, in Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s imagination, Zhu Shi¡¯an seemed to be like a bomb that could explode at any time. Someone was poking my side with their finger, but ignoring it, I said.
¡°If you¡¯re worried about leaving him behind, let¡¯s take him with us.¡±
If you¡¯re really uneasy, you can watch and monitor him from the side, right? Apparently not liking that idea, Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s eyebrows furrowed.
¡°I don¡¯t want to take him. I saw you being held hostage by Zhu Shi¡¯an when you came. ¡It seems you don¡¯t have a particrly good memory.¡±
Oh. Such sarcasm. Inwardly surprised, I responded calmly and slowly.
¡°Whether we leave him or take him, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem. I think the Infinity Church believers are more dangerous than Zhu Shi¡¯an.¡±
John Doe, who had been pretending not to hear this conversation from the side, jumped up from his seat. Then he shook his head vigorously at us. John Doe, with only his wrists bound, realized after 3 seconds that nothing was binding his mouth, and shouted like a nightingale freed from its cage.
¡°Infinity Church is quite a peaceful religion! It¡¯s the Chinese or Japanese people carrying guns and shooting people who are crazy! Don¡¯t try to oppress a small, well-behaved religion!¡±
¡°Then we¡¯ll find out when we get to the Second Undersea Base.¡±
In my opinion, I don¡¯t think religion has ever been peaceful in this world. Zhu Shi¡¯an, realizing that Seo Jihyuk was a rotten lifeline, quickly switched to me. Panting with tension, Zhu Shi¡¯an spoke to Shin Hae-ryang, harboring a glimmer of hope.
¡°You just heard, right? The doctor said the result would be the same whether you leave me behind or take me with you.¡±
At those words, Seo Jihyuk shouted from behind Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s back.
¡°Then it would be the same if we kill him and go.¡±
¡°Eek! You! Youuu!¡±
Baek Ae-young, letting out a long sigh while watching this scene, asked Shin Hae-ryang.
¡°What should we do?¡±
¡°It¡¯s easier to kill him and go. Such a person is dangerous. I¡¯ll do it. This gun is Sumire¡¯s anyway, and it won¡¯t be a problemter, but even if we dig out the bullet, it¡¯ll be recorded as death by Sumire¡¯s gun.¡±
Before Shin Hae-ryang could answer, the response came from Seo Jihyuk. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s answer is terrifying, isn¡¯t it? He had been half-crouching behind Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s back and had been answering in a yful tone all along, but when he closed his mouth and came forward, the pressure was no joke. Sumire stopped breathing in fear.
It¡¯s one mountain after another. Feeling dizzy, I now tried to dissuade Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Let¡¯s not do this. Don¡¯t kill him. Let¡¯s get out of the undersea base and talk again. Don¡¯t kill people for that kind of convenience.¡±
I remembered someone who used to shoot and kill people because it was bothersome to block peopleing up the elevator alone. Let¡¯s not do that. I stood in front of Seo Jihyuk, who was as big as a door, and raised both my palms. Then my eyes met with Shin Hae-ryang beside me, and in that moment, I shook my head vigorously. He¡¯s your team member, so try to stop this guy.
Someone was poking my side and now pulling, so I looked and saw Tumanako desperately tugging at the hem of my clothes. I resisted but, having no strength in my body, was dragged along by his grip. Tumanako tried to take me to a corner, then said in a frightened voice.
¡°Don¡¯t get involved in this kind of thing and stay quietly in the corner. Do you want to die too by getting caught up in this?¡±
Tumanako was looking at me with eyes full of worry. I was about to say that the Engineering Team D people weren¡¯t that unreasonable or against principles, but I felt conflicted, thinking that in Tumanako¡¯s eyes, they might all look like gun-toting Asians.
¡°There¡¯s no one here on your side or my side.¡±
Does he think there¡¯s no one to take sides with either Tumanako, who¡¯s only been here for a month, or me, who¡¯s only been here for five days? Tumanako, catching Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s gaze, trembled like animals shivering in the cold while still gripping the hem of my clothes. I wanted to pat Tumanako¡¯s shoulder or back to calm him down, but my hands were a mess with Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s blood. Shin Hae-ryang looked at Zhu Shi¡¯an for a few seconds and asked.
¡°How exactly did Engineering Team D agree to cooperate with Infinity Church?¡±
Perhaps because he wasn¡¯t threatening to shoot him dead right away, Zhu Shi¡¯an answered hurriedly, as if grasping at a lifeline.
¡°They said they¡¯d provide the guns needed to kill the ones we don¡¯t like. They told us to escape from the Fourth Undersea Base on our own. They said they had something to do in the mesopgic zone (200-1000m). They told us toe up to the Second Undersea Base only if we couldn¡¯t escape from the Fourth Undersea Base. They said they¡¯d let us out then. This wasn¡¯t coordinated within me or our team. It was discussed with our superiors. They said they also talked about something rted to resources, but we didn¡¯t hear anything clearly.¡±
¡°Do the Infinity Church believers know your team¡¯s faces and personal information?¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an bit his lip, as if this was a question he hadn¡¯t thought of, then shook his head sideways.
¡°I, I don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°Conversely, tell me the names of the Infinity Church believers your team knows.¡±
This question also seemed to be one Zhu Shi¡¯an hadn¡¯t expected. With a pale face, Zhu Shi¡¯an barely muttered.
¡°Hao Ran! Hao Ran received the guns with Wei Chi! ¡I¡¯m not sure about the rest. Our country doesn¡¯t allow religion!¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an spoke through gritted teeth, as if he disliked the existence of cult religions and their believers in the world. John Doe seemed ufortable with all the statements Zhu Shi¡¯an made, but he didn¡¯t interject during the conversation.
After listening to Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s story, Seo Jihyuk said quietly to Shin Hae-ryang.
¡°It seems these Infinity Church guys have scammed two ces, right? Judging by how simr the Japanese and Chinese guys¡¯ stories are.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang looked at John Doe, then added one more thing to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s statement.
¡°Three ces.¡±
Baek Ae-young said, as if she didn¡¯t understand.
¡°No, if they decided to support one country, they should have provided firepower support only to that side. What¡¯s with giving guns to both Japan and China? The two countries don¡¯t even get along.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know anything other than that they want them to kill each other.¡±
Seo Jihyuk narrowed his eyes and scratched the back of his neck, then asked.
¡°Do you have any idea who the bastards are that took this opportunity to shove a torpedo into the main engine, and where they¡¯re from?¡±
¡°I have no idea. When we get out of here, I¡¯m nning to lie on a Papua New Guinea beach and read newspaper articles. It¡¯s not our job to figure that out.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang answered like that and then said to Zhu Shi¡¯an.
¡°I¡¯ll give you my pad as soon as we get up to Daehan Ind. In return, cooperate with us in escaping from the undersea base.¡±
Even in his terrified state, Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s eyes lit up at the mention of Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s pad. Zhu Shi¡¯an is impressive too. Does he want to rescue his team members trapped in West District that badly? He didn¡¯t care much about Wei Chi or Hao Ran, and was even hostile towards Hai Yun. Does he like Li Wei that much? Zhu Shi¡¯an, pressing his right shoulder, asked.
¡°What do I need to do?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang looked around at the people here and said.
¡°From now on, we are Engineering Team D.¡±
¡°What?¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an seemed momentarily dumbfounded by Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s statement. With his face pale from blood loss, he looked even more so. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s expression suggested he didn¡¯t like the team leader¡¯s statement.
¡What did he say? Ah. I see, we could do it that way. Looking around, I realized there were exactly 7 people here. So Engineering Team D has a total of 7 people.
But are we going to attempt an escape like that? We could try, I suppose. Both Engineer Team Na and Engineering Team D are all trapped in West District anyway.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 149
Chapter 149
Shin Hae-ryang tied Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s wrists together with parachute cord. John Doe, seemingly feeling a sense of camaraderie, approached Zhu Shi¡¯an and showed him his own bound wrists, waving them. This appeared to be his natural personality.
My right arm has no feeling and it¡¯s cold. Shin Hae-ryang paid no attention to Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯sints. As the bleeding from the shoulder wasn¡¯t stopping, I asked Shin Hae-ryang for just two minutes to stem the bleeding. Shin Hae-ryang, who had been ignoring Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s words, reluctantly nodded at me.
¡°We need to move as quickly as possible.¡±
At those words, I almost blurted out something like ¡°Then why don¡¯t you help?¡± but I held back. He would only act for the sake of people with Korean nationality. Well, given his personality, it was something that he didn¡¯t immediately kill someone who had attempted to assassinate him, and didn¡¯t stop me from providing first aid to someone he usually didn¡¯t get along with.
I borrowed scissors from Baek Ae-young and cut up a dry towel from my bag into small pieces. I never thought I¡¯d miss gauze this much. Somehow, Baek Ae-young had done something to the des of these ordinary scissors, making them extremely sharp. They were sharp enough to cut through bone, and the towel was quickly cut into pieces with a swish-swish sound.
Tumanako helped cut the towel while sniffling beside me. Holding these pieces that were closer to rags than gauze, I took a deep breath in and out. Then I forcefully pushed the towel pieces into Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s shoulder where the bullet had passed through, as if nting them with my fingers. Only after filling the cavity created by the bullet with towel pieces was I barely able to stop the bleeding.
As I crudely pushed towel pieces into the hole in the flesh, Tumanako, who had been holding the towel beside me, ran to a corner saying he felt sick. John Doe, who had been standing and watching, was also throwing up next to Tumanako.
During this makeshift hemostasis process, I expected Zhu Shi¡¯an to faint from the pain, but apart from saying it was disgusting and spewing Chinese curses while grimacing, he showed little reaction. Just how strong is that painkiller? When I get back to Korea, I¡¯m going to request aponent analysis of this painkiller.
After two minutes passed, people set off with military precision. The corridor of East District was unbearably cold. I couldn¡¯t feel it when I was with Zhu Shi¡¯an due to tension, but now I couldn¡¯t tell if Seo Jihyuk¡¯s shoddy massage had helped or if the painkiller was taking effect.Shivering from the cold, I wrapped the wound with a towel and secured Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s right hand to his uninjured left shoulder, tying it this way and that. I couldn¡¯t leave the right arm, which he said had no feeling, to bump into things here and there. As I made various knots with the towel, I said to Zhu Shi¡¯an.
¡°You need to go to a hospital on Daehan Ind. As soon as possible. This is just a temporary measure to stop the bleeding.¡±
Zhu Shi¡¯an nodded slowly. All of Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s attention seemed to be focused on the pad Shin Hae-ryang was holding. That¡¯s somewhat fortunate. At least he has something else to focus on besides the pain.
Since I had packed with things I used at home, thinking I could discard them at the undersea base if necessary, all the towels were old ones. Although they were washed clean and kept in the room, I felt a bit embarrassed seeing the text on the towels wrapped around Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s arm. How could I have known I¡¯d be using the towel I received as a high school graduation memento like this? Since Zhu Shi¡¯an and the others didn¡¯t seem to care about that at all, I quickly got over my embarrassment.
Shin Hae-ryang, after surveying the people with his eyes, walked to the middle of the group and asked me.
¡°Doctor. How much do you know about gunshot wounds?¡±
It seemed Shin Hae-ryang, who had been at the very front, moved to the middle, and Seo Jihyuk took the lead as if taking over. After moving with these people a few times, I finally noticed a few things. The three of them were taking turns at the very front, the very back, and the middle, guarding against external attacks.
At first, I thought these behaviors were just walking habits of Shin Hae-ryang or Baek Ae-young, who liked being at the front or the rear. Well, back then there were only five of us including Yu Geum-i and me. And the situation was so chaotic that we couldn¡¯t pay attention to who was walking in front or behind.
¡°I know next to nothing about it.¡±
I wish I could remain ignorant forever. Don¡¯t expect too much from a dentist. We¡¯re pretty useless outside of the dental office. And¡ I want to live being useless. You can exist in this world even if you¡¯re not valuable, right? After that answer, Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t ask me any more questions.
Suddenly, thinking about the standard of treatment and hygiene I used to hold. Seeing this shoddy wound packing with towels, I wonder what kind of profanities an emergency medicine specialist on Daehan Ind would spew. Do you treat teeth like this too? No. It was a bit urgent at the time. Nobody was paying attention to the blood gushing from his shoulder. I sighed inwardly while looking at my sticky palms and fingers covered in dried blood, having an imaginary conversation with a doctor.
The workce I newly started at has water leaking everywhere, I¡¯m seeing gunshot wounds on my vacation, the patient is someone who pointed a gun at me, we¡¯re walking through a corridor where we might freeze to death because the life support system is broken, and we¡¯re heading towards a ce where armed cult believers have made their nest. Could it get any worse?
Suddenly, all the lights in the corridor went out. There were still fluorescent lights on the floor like signposts in the corridor, so although I was startled for a moment, I wasn¡¯t scared. I quickly retracted my rash thoughts. ¡Indeed, I shouldn¡¯t have such arrogant thoughts. Even in the hospital, when you think there are no patients, they suddenly rush in.
Tumanako¡¯s voice, frightened by the darkness, was heard. What¡¯s this? What¡¯s going on? Why did the lights go out? Baek Ae-young spoke in the darkness as if sighing. It never rains but it pours. I was startled enough to jump when I heard Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s low voice beside me.
¡°Keep walking slowly.¡±
No wonder I heard footsteps. It seemed that Seo Jihyuk, Baek Ae-young, and Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t think it necessary to stop walking or wait for the lights toe back on just because of a power outage.
How can we walk when we can¡¯t see? What if I bump my nose into the back of the person in front of me? Someone must have had simr thoughts to mine. When someone touched my back with their hand in the darkness, I screamed ¡°Aaaah!¡± in surprise. Then the person who touched my back also screamed like a dolphin¡¯s ultrasound.
As one person screamed, the screaming spread as if it were contagious. I heard the sound of someone falling to the floor or groaning loudly. Right after that, Tumanako¡¯s scream echoed through the corridor in a high-pitched 5-octave tone.
Amidst thismotion, Seo Jihyuk, who had been walking at the very front, shouted shrilly.
¡°Everyone sit on the floor! You¡¯re not children, how can you scream just because it¡¯s dark!¡±
I was eager to make excuses at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words. Just imagine if someone suddenly touches your back with their finger in the dark. Wouldn¡¯t you scream? Am I the only one scared? Am I the only one scared?! ¡No. Maybe I am the only one scared.
I stopped walking and sat on the floor. Coughing with my throat hoarse from screaming, I asked the person behind me.
¡°Who¡¯s behind me?¡±
¡°It¡¯s me. Sorry. I was afraid of bumping into the person in front.¡±
Hearing the voice, I realized it was John Doe. He must have been walking in the darkness like a jiangshi with his arms stretched out in front of him, and touched my back with his fingers. I should have been sitting, but I kept hearing the sound of running footsteps.
Didn¡¯t everyone sit on the floor? Then who¡¯s running? A calm voice of someone sitting on the floor was heard in the darkness.
¡°Zhu Shi¡¯an has stolen my pad from my side and is escaping.¡±
Hearing the content, I got goosebumps. It was scarier than when an unknown hand touched my back in the darkness. It was a fear that could momentarily make one forget the cold and darkness. Baek Ae-young, who was at the very end of the group, said quietly.
¡°Something jumped out, and even though I swung at it with the buttstock, I missed.¡±
Tumanako, who had been groaning, threw a question into the pitch-ck darkness.
¡°Why don¡¯t you shoot that Zhu Shi¡¯an or whatever with a gun?¡±
The answer came from Shin Hae-ryang, who was in the middle of the group.
¡°No.¡±
I threw a question in the direction where he was supposed to be.
¡°Please exin a bit more.¡±
¡°¡We don¡¯t have night vision goggles. Shooting down a corridor where someone is escaping when we can¡¯t see is a waste of bullets.¡±
¡°Ah. I guess it was him who pushed me. I was really surprised.¡±
The sound of Tumanako rubbing his buttocks that had hit the floor was heard. It seemed Zhu Shi¡¯an was running towards the escape pod port and dormitory corridor rather than the submarine port, probably fearing that the group would chase after him. Perhaps because the corridor was long, the sound echoed well. The sound of footsteps at the end of the corridor faded away at a constant speed and then stopped with a thud. Hearing this, Baek Ae-young muttered. Of course he¡¯d fall with his hands tied while running like that.
When I saw a light glowing like a firefly in the darkness, I looked and saw Seo Jihyuk looking at the light from his turned-on pad. It seemed to be Michael Roarke¡¯s pad. Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face illuminated by the pad light looked like a ghost from a cheap horror movie. Seo Jihyuk, not taking his eyes off the pad, spoke as if sighing.
¡°It¡¯s my fault. Well. I have no excuse even if I had a hundred mouths.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang spoke briefly towards Seo Jihyuk.
¡°We got information by keeping him alive. And you got the boat, right?¡±
¡°Just curse at me. I think that would make me feel better. ¡Doc. The team leader told me to kill Zhu Shi¡¯an and only bring you.¡±
¡°What? Yes. What?¡±
¡°If I had known this would happen¡ I should have just¡ done as I was told.¡±
Just as suddenly as the power outage had urred, the lights unexpectedly came back on. Has it already been 5 minutes? As soon as the standby power activated, I squinted at the sudden light source.
Seo Jihyuk, who had been continuously exposing his eyes to light from the pad, put the pad down on the floor and grabbed his rifle while still sitting. Then, as soon as he took his stance, he pulled the trigger.
I was looking at Seo Jihyuk and only looked in the opposite direction after the gunshot rang out. At the end of the corridor, I saw a figure smaller than a pinky finger falling towards the floor. It dawned on me that Zhu Shi¡¯an had fallen. And only after a few seconds did I realize that Seo Jihyuk had been looking at the pad light for dark adaptation. So that¡¯s why he did that, to shoot immediately when the lights came on.
John Doe, who was behind me as I stood there stupidly, pushed my back as if telling me to hurry up. When I came to my senses, we had arrived at the elevator in East District. As I was pushed into the elevator and sat in the corner, all my senses felt so distant.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 150
Chapter 150
Shin Hae-ryang kept watch outside the elevator, while Seo Jihyuk was inside with the others. Baek Ae-young tinkered with the elevator¡¯s internal panel and then called for Shin Hae-ryang. Shin Hae-ryang, who entered the elevator backward while keeping his eyes on the front, nodded at Baek Ae-young¡¯s question.
¡°Should we go up right away?¡±
¡°Yeah. Right now.¡±
The elevator doors closed. As it started to ascend with a slight dizziness, those who were standing gradually slid down to the floor, clinging to the elevator walls. Tumanako leaned his head against the elevator wall and slumped down lifelessly. As if even breathing was bothersome, Tumanako spoke with difficulty.
¡°I¡¯m tired. I want to go home.¡±
I too lost my strength and slumped down like a pile of discarded clothes on the floor. John Doe was lying with his back against the floor, as if he didn¡¯t care how dirty the elevator floor was.
It seemed only the three members of Engineering Team D looked somewhat normal. My palms were sticky with dried blood. I didn¡¯t want to think about anything. I just wanted to go home and lie down in my own bed.
And facing the reality that wasn¡¯t so, I leaned my body against the elevator wall. I¡¯m sick of elevators now. It¡¯s the 21st century, why don¡¯t we have winged transportation yet?
¡°Are you okay?¡±It took me a while to realize he was asking me. I just rolled my eyes to look at Tumanako and said.
¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m okay.¡±
¡°Yeah. That can happen. You can¡¯t always be okay.¡±
Even the Engineering Team D members were sprawled out infortable positions in the elevator. Especially Baek Ae-young, who was lying t on her back on the floor, using her bag as a pillow. Seo Jihyuk was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, hugging his gun. At a nce, he looked like a soldier sleeping in a trench. But knowing he was just closing his eyes, I asked Seo Jihyuk.
¡°There was no need to kill him. We could have gone together, couldn¡¯t we?¡±
Seo Jihyuk lifted his eyelids and looked at me across from him. Then Shin Hae-ryang ordered from the side.
¡°Rest.¡±
At that one word, Seo Jihyuk closed his briefly opened eyes again. He was like a discharged robot. Shin Hae-ryang sat between Seo Jihyuk and me and said.
¡°I¡¯ll answer instead.¡±
¡°Okay.¡±
¡°It was too dangerous to go together.¡±
¡°He was shot, his wrists were tied, and he said he would cooperate.¡±
¡°And his cooperation resulted in stealing someone else¡¯s pad and running away as soon as the power went out.¡±
¡°But Mr. Hae-ryang¡¯s pad is useless anyway, isn¡¯t it?¡±
Moreover, if I¡¯ve understood the engineer authority correctly, the current team leaders¡¯ authority ispletely useless. Only Michael Roarke¡¯s pad could release the people trapped in West District. Even if Shin Hae-ryang gave his pad to Zhu Shi¡¯an on Daehan Ind, it would be tantamount to Zhu Shi¡¯an getting a piece of scrap paper.
¡°I only promised to give it to him because Zhu Shi¡¯an said he needed it.¡±
You led him to believe he needed something useless. And an injured Zhu Shi¡¯an stealing one of Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s possessions? It seems more likely to steal a galldder from a live bear.
¡°With your level of ability, you could have prevented an injured person from taking your pad or anything else, couldn¡¯t you?¡±
¡°You¡¯re overestimating me, Doctor. I¡¯m just a scared, ordinary repairman.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang said shamelessly. In my personal opinion, this is probably the point where the people of the undersea base would have thrown a punch. You¡¯re neither scared nor an ordinary repairman.
Look at Tumanako in that corner. That¡¯s what a scared person looks like. He¡¯s trembling like a rabbit exposed to the midwinter wind. Calm down. I¡¯m not flustered by this situation.
¡°Isn¡¯t an ordinary repairman too familiar with guns?¡±
¡°You¡¯re too familiar with cult believers and terrorists, Doc. Usually, these two groups would be very frightening and detestable. You wouldn¡¯t want to be around them.¡±
He seemed to be saying this because I had carried Sumire on my back or treated Zhu Shi¡¯an. ¡Right. John Doe is here too.
¡°The only thing I¡¯m familiar with is dental work.¡±
¡°The power outage was unexpected. As soon as the opportunity arose, Zhu Shi¡¯an pushed John Doe, knocked over Tumanako, stole the pad, and ran away. We can¡¯t continue to take these internal risks when there are external enemies. After you escape from the undersea base and when the Chinese investigation team arrives, please say that Seo Jihyuk fired at Zhu Shi¡¯an under my coercion.¡±
If I didn¡¯t know that the undersea base was a kind of extraterritorial area and that it was unclear which country¡¯s authority would apply, I would have nodded and agreed at this point. I might have thought Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s statement sounded reasonable at first nce. In reality, there would probably be no investigation, or it would be done perfunctorily and then fizzle out. If this incident was orchestrated by China, Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s death would be buried without a trace.
If I hadn¡¯t known anything, I would have trusted and believed the words of Engineering Team D.
¡°Would you have killed him like that if Zhu Shi¡¯an had been Korean?¡±
If we thoroughly examine where the roots of our trivial benefitse from, we can see how we might be wielding discrimination and violence directly or indirectly in parts of our lives that we don¡¯t even recognize. I was born in a developed country, live near the capital, am a male in a high-ie professional job, and have poured money into making my disability almost invisible externally. I believed I was well aware of the privileges I had. So, to live righteously, I thought I always kept in mind that the group I belonged to might not be a good one.
¡°No.¡±
¡I rarely thought about having Korean nationality as belonging to a privileged group in my life. I never imagined I¡¯d realize this in an undersea base full of people with guns.
Even while treating broken or cracked teeth in Deep Blue, I thought of these three people as kind and righteous strong ones. They say that when people are terrified, they take sides and stand on the side they feel safe on, showing absolute faith in the group that protects them. Did I believe that to feel safe?
If I think that my actions were one of the generosities shown to those I thought were weaker or inferior by clinging to a violent strong one. ¡It makes me feel sick.
While sadness washes over me at the thought that those who trusted the person they were just talking to shot him dead without hesitation, these feelings close to betrayal are known only to me. These people don¡¯t know what¡¯s at the root of this emotion.
I alone remember and know your other side. We spent time together to escape this undersea base, relied on each other, and tried to save each other. In that process, your lives weren¡¯t something I could measure by efficiency or necessity.
If I had known from the beginning that you were a group that would kill someone for just taking a useless pad, I wouldn¡¯t have given my heart, spent time, and shared bonds only to suffer alone.
I feel sad and upset.
I want to call someone andin. Hey, I had a tough day at work today. I thought those people were good people, you know. But it turns out they¡¯re only generous to people on their side, and they kill outsiders because they¡¯re troublesome. From their perspective, I¡¯m probably bing someone who¡¯s wasting time inefficiently by stubbornly insisting on helping someone who isn¡¯t even Korean. I wanted to ramble on with suchints.
No,e to think of it, I¡¯m getting annoyed. The arm can rotate at the shoulder joint, you know?! If it doesn¡¯t bend because of the elbow joint, shouldn¡¯t you at least try to stretch it outward! Baek Ae-young looked at my tearful face, sighed, and said to Team Leader Shin.
¡°You knew he was someone who understood our internal circumstances well enough. Let¡¯s stop this.¡±
¡°I wasn¡¯t the one who came up with this long y in the first ce.¡±
Baek Ae-young looked at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face and kicked his shin. His closed eyes opened immediately.
¡°Why kick! Use your words.¡±
¡°Let¡¯s stop this.¡±
Seo Jihyuk raised the corner of his twitching mouth and covered it with one hand. Then he said in a voice tinged withughter.
¡°Hmm. It doesn¡¯t feel so good to deceive a kind person.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang spoke to Seo Jihyuk as if in disbelief.
¡°What? You should have done as you were told? Usually, you do as you¡¯re told.¡±
¡°It was supposed to be a tone of feeling bitter about being betrayed by someone I spared once by disobeying the team leader¡¯s order! Wasn¡¯t that my best acting, chewing on loneliness and tragedy?¡±
¡°Oh, gross. You¡¯re crazy! He thinks he¡¯s the main character in a movie.¡±
Baek Ae-young grimaced and scolded Seo Jihyuk. The heavy atmosphere that had been pressing down on the elevator interior somewhat dissipated. Shin Hae-ryang suddenly asked me, who was still failing toe to my senses.
¡°You seem certain that I can naturally order Jihyuk tomit murder, and that Jihyuk has the ability to do it.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°You think the three of us are skilled at killing people.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°I thought it was strange from the moment you knew about my knife. I hid it well.¡±
¡°I thought it was a bit strange even before you said I¡¯d get shot.¡±
¡°What are you talking about?¡±
Seo Jihyuk, with his head leaning against the wall, said to me.
¡°I didn¡¯t kill Zhu Shi¡¯an. Well. If I had to choose someone I want to kill, it would be Hao Ran and Wei Chi. Not Zhu Shi¡¯an. Well. It¡¯s not like he did anything to deserve death from me.¡±
¡°No. You just¡ shot him. He seemed to have fallen to the floor.¡±
¡°I did shoot his left calf from a distance. Why would I kill him when the doctor worked so hard to treat him? I was hoping he¡¯d call some buddies to help him, but since he doesn¡¯t have any, what can we do? He¡¯ll have to crawl hard. The painkiller makes it not hurt, and the doctor showed him how to stop the bleeding once. He fell near theundry room, so he can tear some clothes to stop the bleeding. He took the team leader¡¯s pad, so he can call someone. If he lived kindly usually, there should be someone who would show him kindness.¡±
¡°But you said Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang ordered you to kill Zhu Shi¡¯an.¡±
When I said that nkly, Seo Jihyuk answered with a sly smile.
¡°If the team leader had told me that, he wouldn¡¯t have taken the first shot in the shoulder. Why would I waste bullets doing that? He would have been shot in the head right away.¡±
¡°If I could just kill and dispose of opponents as I pleased, I wouldn¡¯t have bothered going around punching people.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s calm voice followed. Baek Ae-young spoke in a small whisper.
¡°The water leaking in the undersea base? We can just avoid it and get out. Crazy fanatics? (Baek Ae-young looked at John Doe and sighed) Let¡¯s say they¡¯re all like him. The engineers carrying guns that you mentioned in the broadcast are almost all trapped in West District. So what do you think we¡¯re most curious about now?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, Seo Jihyuk, and Baek Ae-young all looked at me. I felt like a herbivore surrounded by three predators. Being in the elevator, there was nowhere to escape.
¡°I, Seo Jihyuk, and Baek Ae-young are contracted as engineers. The experiences listed on our submitted resumes are written as such, so to an outsider, we would just look like civilians engaging in entric behavior. But you already know why we came to the undersea base, don¡¯t you, Doctor?¡±
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 151
Chapter 151
The elevator, enclosed on three sides by the dark sea, isvishly decorated with hologram stickers of various marine life. More frightening than the bizarre luminous creatures were the six curious eyeballs of people just like me. It feels like I¡¯ve been thrown into a fish tank. Shin Hae-ryang spoke to me lightly.
¡°If you¡¯re ufortable answering my question, you don¡¯t have to.¡±
¡°Okay.¡±
I can remain silent? Didn¡¯t I just witness someone getting shot in the leg? I thought Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s interrogation technique would be something like punching until the truthes out, but it seems that¡¯s not the case. Is this another benefit for fellow nationals? ¡No. People shouldn¡¯t resort to violence when having a conversation in the first ce. I need to get a grip.
¡°Is everything you broadcast true?¡±
¡°Yes. Is there any reason I should lie?¡±
¡°I thought that telling people not to use the escape pods and central elevator itself might be providing false information to restrict their actions.¡±
¡Why would I do such a thing? I don¡¯t understand. Shin Hae-ryang looked at my face and said simply.
¡°Think about the guys trapped in West District because of my broadcast.¡±So you thought it might be a trap.
¡°Ah. ¡I see. Then why did you believe my broadcast, Mr. Hae-ryang?¡±
¡°If there really was a problem with the escape pods, using them would be extremely dangerous.¡±
Seo Jihyuk smoothly interjected.
¡°As soon as Jung Sanghyun left, dimir came carrying a sleeping child, asking the team leader if you ordered him to mess with him, saying that the Korean dentist had yed with him.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t seem to want to mention that incident. Was there such an incident before I came? ¡Shin Hae-ryang seems to omit too many words. Ignoring Seo Jihyuk¡¯s interruption, Shin Hae-ryang said.
¡°You already knew there was a sleeping child in Room 80. And that they were in a situation where they couldn¡¯t escape.¡±
¡°There¡¯s also a cat and a snake.¡±
Baek Ae-young added from the side. Then the heads of all three turned towards Tumanako simultaneously. Tumanako, who had been resting in the corner of the elevator as far away from the four of us as possible, flinched at their gaze and looked around nervously, asking ¡°What? What¡¯s wrong?¡± I dide to the escape pod port with Tumanako.
¡°I met Tumanako for the first time today.¡±
At my answer, perhaps judging that we were having an insignificant conversation, Tumanako¡¯s expression brightened a little. Then I turned my head towards John Doe and said.
¡°I¡¯m meeting Mr. John Doe for the first time today as well.¡±
¡°Hey, why do you keep me tied up? That Tumanako guy and this dentist aren¡¯t tied up. I won¡¯t do anything, so untie me.¡±
John Doe, lying on his side with his head on the floor, raised his bound wrists. Then he spoke to Baek Ae-young with a pitiful look. He seemed to be pleading with Baek Ae-young, probably thinking that Seo Jihyuk and Shin Hae-ryang would never untie him. In my opinion, Baek Ae-young is even less likely to untie him.
Baek Ae-young scanned the knots on his wrists with eyes like ss beads and pretended not to see his plea. Then she approached Tumanako, who was sniffling in the corner. Watching John Doe gazing wistfully at Baek Ae-young¡¯s retreating back, I said with a sigh.
¡°This isn¡¯t the first time I¡¯ve met Mr. Shin Hae-ryang. And in the current situation, all questions are ufortable. Can¡¯t I answer after we leave the undersea base?¡±
¡To be honest, I¡¯m desperate to get out of here now. After seeing Sumire give up on escape and stay behind, and Zhu Shi¡¯an getting shot, I¡¯ve reached my mental limit. I¡¯m sick of witnessing the repeated deaths and corpses of people, and scenes of direct violence.
I couldn¡¯t bear the situations where I was terrified with every breath anymore. Like a long-starved beast left with only instinct, I couldn¡¯t think of anything but wanting to leave this undersea base by any means necessary.
Coming this far, I envied so much the people who were escaping on intact escape pods. When Shin Hae-ryang told me to use an escape pod to escape, the only reason I didn¡¯t immediately throw myself into an escape pod saying ¡°Thank you¡± was because of a single thread of reason left and the crumbs of human decency remaining beneath that.
However, if time could be turned back just 30 minutes, Kang Soo-jung would not be able to leave the undersea base. Because I would have taken an escape pod, even if I had to lie on the floor crying and wailing. I lost the luxury of putting on airs a long time ago.
But considering only the current conditions, now is the best time for escape. First, there are the Engineering Team D people who are favorable to me just because I¡¯m Korean, and three people who I could never catch up with in terms of force even if I died and came back to life, who arepletely uninjured. Moreover, many of those who came with me sessfully escaped to Daehan Ind on escape pods. I didn¡¯t wander in the water trying to rescue Kim Ga-young, and since I just sat in Ophion, I might have been able to conserve more energy than before.
And haven¡¯t we already isted the armed engineers and been armed with three guns even beforeing up to the Third Undersea Base? The best opportunities for my own escape are now arranged around me.
I can¡¯t waste this precious opportunity. It¡¯s best to leave the undersea base somehow on this chance. So I didn¡¯t want to broadcast to the whole neighborhood that I was experiencing strange phenomena in this golden situation.
The subject of this bizarre phenomenon I¡¯m experiencing is clearly the product of an experiment created by a crazy cult religion, and I don¡¯t want to be associated with Infinity Church even as much as a small tooth. I want to quietly leave the undersea base and return to a peaceful daily life without any problems.
Thinking back on what Kanu said in the elevator, if the Infinity Church believers find out I have this ability, I¡¯ll probably end up as a corpse right away. Or be ab rat. Recalling the story of the space station survivors, it seemed like I would continue to be under unpleasant surveince even after escaping.
And it¡¯s a sad reflection, but if I reveal my secret here, the Engineering Team D people, Tumanako, and John Doe have no obligation to keep my secret. The people here have no sense of responsibility or emotional bond rted to me. It¡¯s bitter to think about. ¡Jihyun sold herself out to protect me even in front of a gun barrel.
Whatever the Engineering Team D people want, I can¡¯t say anything in front of John Doe, an Infinity Church believer. And I don¡¯t know how these people would use my secret either. Let¡¯s talkter. There will surely be an opportunity. We can talk after we get out of here, right? Shin Hae-ryang watched me quietly and then said one thing.
¡°I can make the situation a bit morefortable. ¡Though you probably won¡¯t like it, Doc.¡±
¡°How?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang made a few simple hand gestures. At a nce, it looked simr to brushing dust off the back of his hand. It was a movement I¡¯d never seen before, and I couldn¡¯t understand it at all. Shin Hae-ryang got up from his sitting position on the floor.
John Doe, who had been sending desperate looks to Baek Ae-young, brightened up when Shin Hae-ryang approached. He probably thought he was going to untie his wrists. Baek Ae-young was taking out a sugar-free candy she had received but hadn¡¯t eaten from her pocket and handing it to Tumanako.
When Shin Hae-ryang lifted John Doe¡¯s bound wrists up to his chest level, John¡¯s eyes lit up wildly. John Doe, with his head on the floor, spoke to Shin Hae-ryang while lying down.
¡°Yeah! I won¡¯t do anything. I¡¯ll stay quiet and still. After all, the one who tied should untie¡¡±
Shin Hae-ryang pressed the skin of John Doe¡¯s neck and near his ear with his other hand. It happened so quickly that my brain couldn¡¯t properly process what had urred. If pressed like that, blood can¡¯t reach the brain! Grabbed by therge hand around his neck, John, with his carotid arterypressed while lying down, slumped without making a sound.
¡°What, what are you doing?¡±
I approached to remove Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s hand from John Doe¡¯s neck, but Shin Hae-ryang withdrew his hand faster than I expected. Then heid John Doe on the floor as if ustomed to it and turned his head to the side. Shin Hae-ryang, half-kneeling, unbuttoned a few buttons constricting John Doe¡¯s neck and said in a low voice.
¡°I made him unconscious.¡±
I can see he¡¯s unconscious! I feel nothing but shock. Looking around, I saw Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young amicably blocking Tumanako¡¯s view. Don¡¯t worry too much. Next time we find an escape pod, we¡¯ll make sure Tumanako gets out. How should I dye my hair to make it look pretty? Baek Ae-young¡¯s voice was followed by I want to dye my hair a different color from the great white shark too. When we get out, I¡¯ll give you a cool ride on the used boat we got today! Such voices were heard. The bodies of the two were ingeniously blocking this scene.
¡°How can you knock someone out so brutally?¡±
¡°Then should I hit the back of the neck or head hard instead? ¡That was a joke just now.¡±
Tumanako nced our way while rolling the sugar-free candy with his tongue, but John Doe was lying peacefully. Once again, Shin Hae-ryang was sitting on the floor, and only I was standing, ring at him.
Hitting someone on the back of the head hard enough to knock them out can kill them. It¡¯s not unconsciousness, it¡¯s instant death. How do you have such an excellent talent for irritating people? I understand why these broken or missing guyse to the dental office and curse Shin Hae-ryang. Seo Jihyuk knocked people out by punching them in the sr plexus, and Shin Hae-ryang deliberately induces a stroke.
¡°Is this what you call making itfortable? Then what happens when you make it ufortable? ¡Don¡¯t answer that. I don¡¯t want to know.¡±
I¡¯m afraid to know more. In my imagination, Shin Hae-ryang was drilling a hole in the elevator floor and throwing people down through it. No way. Surely not. When Shin Hae-ryang nced towards where Tumanako was, I shook my head vigorously.
¡°Let¡¯s not do that. Don¡¯t do it.¡±
¡°¡Alright.¡±
Then there was silence. As Shin Hae-ryang, sitting on the floor, quietly raised his head to look up at me, I hesitantly sat down on the floor.
¡°There are too many suspicious parts.¡±
¡°People usually have one or two suspicious aspects in their lives.¡±
As I said that, I felt a tickle in my throat.
¡°There are parts that can¡¯t be exined by such words.¡±
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
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- BLDS Chapter 12
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- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 152
Chapter 152
¡°What do you want to know?¡±
My voice came out slightly sharp as I tried to hide my tension. Shin Hae-ryang, who hade closer, took off his gun and ced it on the floor to his right. It was on the opposite side from me and the unconscious John Doe, and far from Tumanako as well. Then he leaned against the elevator wall. With his hands sped on his knees, Shin Hae-ryang hesitated slightly before asking.
¡°Why are you so terrified?¡±
I was expecting questions like ¡°Are you actually an Infinity Church believer?¡± or ¡°Where did you get all this knowledge from? Spill everything if you want to live.¡±
I was tensed up, ready to make excuses that I had no connection to Infinity Church and was just an unlucky dentist caught up in this mess. Trying to feignposure, I retorted like someone caught off guard.
¡°Me?¡±
¡°You¡¯ve been scared since we first met until now. Especially after our group got guns, your condition worsened, and after Henry escaped, you¡¯ve been showing reactions close to panic.¡±
¡°I¡ I think I¡¯m fine.¡±
¡°Your pupils have been constantly dted due to excessive adrenaline secretion. I thought that was normal for you, but Jihyuk said it wasn¡¯t. Check your heart rate.¡±I dazedly checked my pulse, and it was over 140 beats per minute. I¡¯m usually a person with almost low blood pressure within the normal range. My body is going crazy. ¡Then my mental state probably isn¡¯t normal either.
¡°Are you afraid of guns?¡±
At Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s question, my gaze automatically turned to the gun. The gun itself isn¡¯t scary. Even a gun decorated with green jewels is just a piece of metal when thrown on the floor. I¡¯m afraid of people. Why can they be so cruel? They don¡¯t have to be.
¡°I¡¯m more afraid of the person holding the gun than the gun itself.¡±
¡°I feel the same way.¡±
¡°Mr. Shin Hae-ryang, are you afraid of anything?¡±
With such physical abilities, height, and build, he has things he¡¯s afraid of? Shin Hae-ryang smiled lightly and said.
¡°I¡¯m human too, so of course I have fears.¡±
Before he finished speaking, there was a sudden power outage. Experiencing a power outage in the elevator is now familiar. As long as no one suddenly touches me like a ghost, I won¡¯t be startled.
Tumanako whimpered, ¡°What¡¯s this? What¡¯s going on? Why is this happening?¡± As Baek Ae-young started exining about the standby power that would activate in 5 minutes, Seo Jihyuk sighed and turned on the light of his pad. Because of the pad¡¯s light, we could only distinguish the outlines of people. I took out a shlight from my bag and shone it towards the elevator wall. As it brightened, people¡¯s faces rxed a bit. Shin Hae-ryang looked at the shlight beam and said in a subdued voice.
¡°Before I hear your story, let me tell you a few boring updates about myself.¡±
¡°Huh? Okay.¡±
¡°I¡¯m scheduled to resign in three weeks.¡±
¡°What?!¡±
This is the first I¡¯m hearing of this. Is this something everyone in the undersea base already knows and I¡¯m just finding out now?
¡°I¡¯ve already moved out most of my belongings.¡±
I thought things were stored in the drawers or closets provided in the room, but I guess not. I thought minimalism was this person¡¯s interior design principle, but it turns out he¡¯s just moving out.
¡°Ah! That¡¯s why there was hardly anything in Room 22. Then does Seo Jihyuk perhaps resign too?¡±
Wondering if the almost empty room might be Seo Jihyuk¡¯s, I asked, and Shin Hae-ryang confirmed my question.
¡°Yes. Jihyuk leaves a week before me. Ae-young has two more months left. She came in two monthster.¡±
Baek Ae-young nced this way when she heard her name, and at the sound of ¡°two months,¡± a quiet muttering could be heard. It was a curse along the lines of ¡°They called us here saying we were needed, but now they¡¯re leaving first.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you have any thoughts of extending your contract?¡±
¡°I¡¯d like to, but the ces I¡¯m currently contracted with didn¡¯t agree to an extension. Especially the Korean government side notified that they would end the contract with thepany I belong to.¡±
¡°May I ask the reason? Has the contract period expired?¡±
¡°They said I damaged Korea¡¯s image and reputation, and there wereints from other countries.¡±
¡°Huh.¡±
I can understand the image and reputation part. But do they really need to cut him off? It seems like mandatory mental counseling or human rights education might be a good approach too. Look at Kang Soo-jung. She beats people with words, not fists. Since Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s conversation style seems sufficient to drive the other person crazy, isn¡¯t there a way to make his fists fly a little less?
What happens to Engineering Team D if the team leader is fired like this? Does Deputy Team Leader Kang Soo-jung be the team leader? ¡If Team Leader Shin Hae-ryang leaves, will the truckloads of dental patients decrease? What will happen when the patients who used to throw punches along with Shin Hae-ryang hear this news? Shin Hae-ryang spoke about his resignation news as if it were no big deal.
¡°The previous perception of Korean engineers was that they were ATMs or punching bags, so I wonder if there¡¯s any image left to damage, but I guess outsiders don¡¯t see it that way. ¡The other teams don¡¯t know this fact yet.¡±
¡°Except for Team Ra members, you¡¯re telling me first?¡±
¡°Yes. There¡¯s something I¡¯d like to ask of you. If the Engineering Team D people you met today visit the dental office due to assault, please contact me. I¡¯ll leave you my contact information.¡±
The Engineering Team D people I saw today are just Kang Soo-jung and Lee Jihyun. Yu Geum-i and Kim Ga-young are researchers, after all.
¡°What happens if I contact you?¡±
¡°After resigning from the undersea base, if there¡¯s no problem with my schedule until the next job assignment, I¡¯ll take about three months off. The nearby inds aren¡¯t bad for a vacation. I¡¯ll visit to buy some food andfort them.¡±
And the assumption that he¡¯ll take the teeth of those who assaulted his former team members as a souvenir of his visit ¨C is that my delusion? It felt strange. This seems to be a secret known only within the team, but the fact that he included me made it even more so.
¡°What happens if I tell this to people from other engineer teams?¡±
¡°If you¡¯re going to tell, I rmend selling it at a high price. And if that happens, it seems my resignation farewell party will be held every day.¡±
It sounds like a party mixed with blood and screams. Shin Hae-ryang, who answered expressionlessly, thought for a moment and added.
¡°¡The dental office will get busy along with it. But it will be peaceful after three weeks.¡±
He seemed to think that things would be a mess while he was there, but there would be no problems after he resigned. Thinking about Zhu Shi¡¯an¡¯s behavior, it seemed that all the grudges against Engineering Team D were concentrated on Shin Hae-ryang. Zhu Shi¡¯an wasn¡¯t on bad terms with Kang Soo-jung, but was only hostile towards Shin Hae-ryang. Is it too far-fetched to think that this person might have set up this dynamic? Realizing that all of Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s statements were future-oriented, I asked nkly.
¡°You¡¯re confident we can get out of here, aren¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°¡We might not make it out and die here, you know.¡±
After saying it, I realize I sound like a whining child. It¡¯s because I¡¯ve seen things. It¡¯s because it seems like your or my peaceful resignation might never happen. No, does death automatically process as resignation?
I didn¡¯t want to die being eaten by a shark, I didn¡¯t want to die being shot, and I didn¡¯t want to see other people die like that either. I think this is a modest wish, but in this undersea base, it seems to be a wish harder to fulfill than winning the lottery.
¡°You¡¯re very worried about not being able to escape the undersea base.¡±
Wouldn¡¯t it be strange if I weren¡¯t? How do we escape to Daehan Ind while avoiding the eyes of the Infinity Church believers in the Second Undersea Base? Moreover, as time passes, the undersea bases will copse with a crash. If we don¡¯t get out before that, we¡¯ll die horribly. Shin Hae-ryang seemed to interpret my worry differently.
¡°Don¡¯t you trust me?¡±
¡°It¡¯s not that. ¡We have no idea what¡¯s going to happen from now on.¡±
¡°? That¡¯s how life usually is.¡±
His tone, as if stating the obvious, leaves me speechless. Right. Not knowing is normal. I happened to know what¡¯sing, but originally, it¡¯s normal to live without seeing such things.
¡°I¡¯ve told you one of my secrets, so please give me one of yours. Even a trivial one is fine.¡±
I thought Shin Hae-ryang would apply pressure and intimidation close to torture, wringing information out of me like squeezing a dry rag, but he didn¡¯t. It was surprising how different it was from what I expected. Suddenly, I felt like no matter whether I lied or told the truth, the other person would filter it as they saw fit. And no matter how I thought about it, I didn¡¯t think I could appropriately persuade the other person with lies. It¡¯s also because I have a face that shows when I¡¯m lying.
The thought suddenly urred to me that he might tie me up tightly and sell me to Infinity Church, but I tried to dismiss such ominous imagination while looking at the unconscious John Doe. One of the people showing an enormous obsession with guns is trying to put down his gun and talk just because I said I was afraid. ¡Maybe we can get out this time. Or at least these people might seed in escaping from here.
¡°I know a bit about the future. I¡¯m living May 31st for the third time.¡±
I honestly spilled everything. I talked about the people I went with in order of our movement routes, and when I summarized it as much as possible, it wasn¡¯t as long as I thought. Shin Hae-ryang asked detailed questions about things like the number of Infinity Church members and what happened at the gem exhibition. I glossed over the parts rted to life and death, but Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t particrly ask detailed questions about those parts. Without much reaction, he only asked, ¡°Is that all you have to say?¡±
I let out a huge sigh of relief and exined what happened the second time. Summarizing the long day, it was all about going to the main engine and trying to escape through the main engine cargo elevator.
Seo Jihyuk snorted and didn¡¯t even listen properly to parts like his knee being shot by Zhu Shi¡¯an, but when Jihyun appeared in the story, he crawled right next to me, propped his chin on one hand, and started to focus. And he kept interjecting withments like ¡°Jihyun is pretty cool, right?¡± Baek Ae-young only listened at the beginning, then started talking to Tumanako, seemingly bored.
Just as I was about to start talking about what happened the third time, the lights came on and the elevator started moving. As I barely managed to bring the story to the present, Shin Hae-ryang fell into thought. Seo Jihyuk reacted more simply.
¡°The drug effect seems too strong, doesn¡¯t it? I¡¯m sure I only gave you half. Did you secretly take more? What kind of drugs have you been doing to think like this?¡±
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
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- BLDS Chapter 08
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- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
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- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
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- BLDS Chapter 33
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- BLSD Chapter 44
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- BLDS Chapter 50
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- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
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- BLDS Chapter 75
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- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 153
Chapter 153
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s reaction was as expected, and I could only manage a bitter smile. If someone else were experiencing this and I was listening to it from a third-party perspective, I might react simrly, though perhaps a bit more tempered.
Seo Jihyuk whispered to Baek Ae-young. The space wasn¡¯t thatrge, so their low voices echoed and I could hear everything. Look at his pupils. They¡¯repletely dted. No wonder he looked so troubled, after all, someone who only looks into people¡¯s mouths for a living can¡¯t be in their right mind. I could tell from the moment he put a drill in my mouth.
Hearing these rudements, Baek Ae-young pped Seo Jihyuk¡¯s back with her palm.
¡°Ow! Ow!¡±
¡°Do you want to treat a sick person like that?¡±
Baek Ae-young looked at me and said one thing, as if feelingplicated.
¡°¡Hah. Hang in there.¡±
¡°Excuse me? What do you mean?¡±
¡°Just¡ hang in there.¡±¡°O-okay.¡±
¡°Life is hard and rough. It¡¯s difficult to live with a clear mind, isn¡¯t it? I understand. I hear there are a lot of good drugs these days.¡±
I¡¯m not sure what she understands, but that doesn¡¯t seem to be it. Baek Ae-young is going a step further. Heh heh heh. Then¡ is Baek Ae-young living a life that¡¯s too hard to handle with a clear mind? I tried to somehow salvage my plummeting social image.
¡°I¡¯ve never done drugs. And I think I¡¯m pretty sane for someone living the same date three times.¡±
¡°Not even marijuana?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve never tried it.¡±
When I quickly answered Seo Jihyuk¡¯s suspicious look, additional questions came flying.
¡°Do you like alcohol by any chance?¡±
¡°I only drink beer asionally.¡±
¡°Do you drink one can per minute?¡±
¡°¡Is it even possible to drink like that? I barely drink one can a week, if that.¡±
Are they asking if my brain is damaged from alcohol? Are there that many heavy drinkers in this undersea base?
¡°Is there anything else you take regrly? Diet pills, maybe? Concentration enhancers or sedatives can also mess with your mind. Hasn¡¯t anyone given you something strange, saying it¡¯s good for headaches, toothaches, or muscle pain? Did someone suddenly act friendly and offer you a suspicious drink? Or strange candy or snacks? Or maybe patches you stick on your skin, or unknown perfumes or deodorants. Ah, right. Hair dye too.¡±
Tumanako perked up at the mention of hair dye, but realizing the question wasn¡¯t directed at him, he closed his mouth and stared intently at me. He does want to dye his hair though.
¡°I don¡¯t even take vitamin supplements regrly. There¡¯s¡ nothing like that, I think. The sugar-free candies I shared were brought from Korea.¡±
For questions that seem to be thrown randomly by Seo Jihyuk, they¡¯re too specific, aren¡¯t they? Moreover, while Seo Jihyuk¡¯s attitude was yful, he was waiting for me to answer. No. Surely not.
¡°Have these things you just asked about actually happened in the undersea base?¡±
Seo Jihyuk thought for a moment and then nodded vaguely.
¡°Well, I won¡¯t give you horrifying examples since you¡¯d be scared. We don¡¯t even have to look far, there¡¯s one guy in our team. Kim Jae-hee. Jae-hee picked up and ate something from somewhere, and he started saying that a feathered snake was flying around his room saying ¡®Get ready, get ready.¡¯ He became neurotic and obsessively stored food in his room. He made a fuss about buying parachutes, air tanks, BCD vests, fire extinguishers, makeshift gas masks, and MacGyver knives. He was frantically collecting survivalist items, so we thought he had suddenly be a prepper, but when we talked to him, it turned out that wasn¡¯t the case. He would wake up in the middle of the night, rambling about possibly dying. He even took out three or four life insurance policies suddenly.¡±
What¡¯s survivalism? Seems like there¡¯s a separate term for it. Isn¡¯t my normal life survivalist? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever been death-oriented.
¡°As it turned out, some crazy Canadian guy gave him adhesive tattoo stickers or something as a gift when he retired. After he put long ones on both forearms, every time he applied them, LSD periodically entered his skin, and his mind wentpletely haywire.¡±
¡°LSD?¡±
Isn¡¯t that a drug? I thought I had misheard for a moment, but Seo Jihyuk nodded and confirmed.
¡°Spouting nonsense about the age of destruction already arriving and whatnot, he was tap dancing around. He ended up getting hospitalized on Daehan Ind. If he had been unlucky, he could have be a junkie.¡±
Is it okay for such dangers to be hidden in the workce? In my work life, I only worried about caffeine addiction from drinking too much coffee, I never once worried about drug addiction. People usually worry about things like carbohydrate addiction or sugar addiction.
¡°Is that Jae-hee person alright?¡±
Please tell me he¡¯s okay. Baek Ae-young frowned and answered my question.
¡°He¡¯s fine now. He¡¯s usually a person who smiles a lot, you know. People around him didn¡¯t notice quickly. He already had a few tattoos and piercings normally. We should have thought it was strange that he was smiling too much.¡±
Is smiling too much a sign of danger too? Is there anything less dangerous in this undersea base? It seems like ordinary people like me shouldn¡¯t be here at all. Suddenly, I remembered one of the rooms belonging to the Engineering Team D members.
¡°I guess the room piled with food is that person¡¯s room.¡±
Was it Room 27 or 28? It was like a food storage room.
¡°We still haven¡¯t eaten all the stuff he bought then. Thankfully it¡¯s sterilized food. Did that parachute sell?¡±
Seo Jihyuk thought for a moment at Baek Ae-young¡¯s question and then shook his head.
¡°I don¡¯t think anyone¡¯s bought that yet.¡±
¡°There¡¯s a flea market on Daehan Ind once a month where people sell things they don¡¯t need. Jae-hee keeps trying to sell the gas masks and stuff, but no one buys them.¡±
Who would buy a parachute or gas mask here? Since it¡¯s an ind, it seems to take quite a while for packages and cargo toe and go, so it would be difficult to return something if you make a wrong purchase. Seo Jihyuk picked up the thread of the conversation from somewhere.
¡°Anyway, it¡¯s a ce where you need to be careful to keep your sanity. To begin with, there are several parts of your story that don¡¯t make sense.¡±
¡°Which parts did you find strange?¡±
Seo Jihyuk thought for a moment after hearing my question and then said.
¡°You said I hurt my leg, but these two didn¡¯t abandon me?¡±
Baek Ae-young smiled amusedly at Seo Jihyuk and said.
¡°You got shot~ You got shot~ You¡¯re stupid~ You¡¯re stupid~ We¡¯ve already dumped you in a corner about a hundred times and ran away quickly.¡±
¡°Boo-hoo. That¡¯s too much. ¡Well, let¡¯s set that aside. A diamond bigger than a human fist? Come on. It must be zircon. How could there be a diamond that big? And where in the undersea base are there over four thousand stairs?¡±
¡°There are.¡±
The answer came from Shin Hae-ryang, who had been quiet. Seo Jihyuk asked the team leader in surprise.
¡°Huh? There are such stairs?¡±
¡°I heard they temporarily made stairs while building the Third Undersea Base.¡±
¡°But they¡¯re not on the blueprints.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know about that. ¡Did you visit the Second Undersea Base exhibition hall yesterday?¡±
¡°I repaired a few disconnected lights with Jihyun. There wasn¡¯t much inside. Just a few rocks? It took less than an hour to repair.¡±
¡°I see.¡±
And Shin Hae-ryang said nothing more. Even though asking about this probably wouldn¡¯t lead to anything good, I couldn¡¯t help but ask. It seemed that if I didn¡¯t ask, the other person would never express their opinion. It¡¯s good to be tight-lipped, but it¡¯s extremely unsettling not knowing what they¡¯re thinking. If I were this person¡¯s team member, I think I would have been quite frustrated.
¡°What do you think, Mr. Shin Hae-ryang?¡±
¡°About what?¡±
¡°My story.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang looked at me silently and then said.
¡°It doesn¡¯t seem to be a lie.¡±
¡°Is that so.¡±
Oh! He thinks my stories aren¡¯t lies! Among the four people who just heard the same story, one thinks I¡¯m a junkie, and another thinks I¡¯m mentally ill.
A glimmer of joy welled up in my heart for a moment. And then silence fell. Shin Hae-ryang didn¡¯t say anything more. He said it wasn¡¯t a lie, but it doesn¡¯t seem to mean he trusts or believes it. Should I be grateful that his attitude isn¡¯t telling me not to bullshit?
¡°Is that all?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Can you exin a bit more?¡±
¡°¡The only people who can request exnations or anything from me are my team members. Or if I owed you a favor.¡±
Was there a time when Shin Hae-ryang would have owed me a favor? I asked all sorts of stupid questions and trembled in fear. If anything, the people who were with me seemed to have had a hard time acting as guides and caretakers.
¡°I don¡¯t think there was anything¡ where you would have owed me a favor, Mr. Hae-ryang.¡±
¡°ording to what you said, you supported Jihyuk up the stairs without anypensation, didn¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Well, that¡¯s something you naturally have to do to get out, isn¡¯t it?¡±
¡°¡You told me the information you believe in without any lies. But looking at the current situation, there are quite a few parts that don¡¯t match with what happened before, and there¡¯s not enough time to verify or distinguish the truth of each one.¡±
¡°Ah. Yes. I see.¡±
¡°I won¡¯t rely on what you¡¯ve said, but I won¡¯t ignore it either.¡±
I was a bit surprised, perhaps because I didn¡¯t expect Shin Hae-ryang to listen to my story to this extent. The most realistic reactions seem toe from Seo Jihyuk or Baek Ae-young. Is it because he¡¯s an agnostic?
Tumanako, who had been listening to the conversation while chewing on candy, was clicking the candy against his teeth. He seemed to be testing the hardness of the candy with his teeth. I wanted to stop him because it¡¯s a bad habit for teeth, but seeing tear stains around his eyes, I held my tongue. Tumanako, who seemed to have shaken off his depression a bit by focusing on something else, said to me.
¡°It sounds like a myth from our side.¡±
¡°What kind of story?¡±
Something about escaping from this situation? Or about being able to run away? ¡This is the problem. When desperate situationse, people try to rely even on mythical old stories.
¡°Originally, they say the sun moved much faster than it does now. It moved incredibly quickly. The sun crossed the sky so fast that people couldn¡¯t finish their work during the daylight hours.¡±
As he spoke, Tumanako quickly moved his long finger in a parab from side to side, as if mimicking the sun¡¯s movement.
¡°So there¡¯s a Maori myth about capturing the sun to slow it down and give the world more time. Listening to your story reminded me of that.¡±
Tumanako¡¯s finger moved slowly. With a crunching sound, Tumanako¡¯s teeth crushed the candy.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
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- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
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- BLDS Chapter 12
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- BLSD Chapter 44
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- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 154
Chapter 154
Watching Tumanako¡¯s jaw muscles as he quickly chewed and devoured the candy, I nodded. To think I¡¯d have the chance to hear about New Zend mythology while living my life. The myth I¡¯m most familiar with is about eating mugwort and garlic to transform from a bear into a human, but I wonder how people from other countries would react if I told them we¡¯re descendants of bears.
As I lifted my head after checking if John Doe was breathing properly and if his pulse was beating, I saw an English sentence I hadn¡¯t noticed before in the elevator. I must have been too out of it to notice such a thing when I first got on this elevator.
Our home is girt by sea
¡I¡¯m not sure why they engraved such a message here. Is it meant to remind you that this elevator is surrounded by seawater, so you should be aware of your current situation?
Looking at the elegantly engraved English text, I thought that all the phrases engraved in elevators seem a bit odd. After hearing my opinion, Tumanako looked at the elevator wall once and said.
¡°Ah, that? It¡¯s probably a line from the Australian national anthem.¡±
Oh, I see. The impression it gives when you don¡¯t know it¡¯s from a national anthem versus when you do is quite different. But still, the impression of being surrounded by seawater doesn¡¯t go away. To shake off the eerie feeling, I started to focus on the people around me.
The Engineering Team D members were exchanging opinions on which route to take in the Third Undersea Base for the best chance of escaping. Tumanako and I made eye contact. The dentist and hair designer, neers to this undersea base, kept their mouths shut and quietly listened to the engineers exchange opinions.
Various routes were being discussed, but I sighed in relief when I realized that none of them prioritized the hidden stairs.Just thinking about climbing those stairs again was exhausting. ¡Not that I like elevators either.
Listening to why they don¡¯t prefer moving via stairs, I learned that if the stairs connecting the Second and Third Undersea Bases are as I described, they could be isted in the middle if attacked simultaneously from above and below. Baek Ae-young exined that it¡¯s because you can¡¯t deviate to other ces while climbing the stairs. ¡I see, the stairs can be viewed as a dead end. Moreover, Shin Hae-ryang nced at Tumanako and me and added that it would consume a lot of time.
The danger I¡¯m thinking of is slipping and falling while walking on the stairs, but these people¡¯s perspective is slightly different from that of an ordinary person like me. They don¡¯t seem to consider the potentially fatal exhaustion and the misery that makes you not want to live anymore while climbing those 4,200-odd stairs as particrly important.
They probably think that way because they¡¯re in good shape, but I¡¯m not. I hate stairs. I¡¯ve already made a n not to climb stairs for about 5 years. When I get home, I¡¯m going to write ¡°Don¡¯t climb stairs¡± as next year¡¯s New Year¡¯s resolution.
It seems that Shin Hae-ryang initially insisted on the stairs with over 3,000 steps because, despite such dangers, he thought it was safer than choosing the elevator in that situation. So how is it better to go this time? The three of them are now armed with guns and there are no injured people with bad legs. They can go as they wish without major constraints.
Looking at the map of the Third Undersea Base, the three of them each threw out ament. If it were me, I¡¯d go like this and that. If it were me, I¡¯d hide here and take out everyoneing up. They¡¯ve probably posted a few people as sentries here. If they have any brains at all, I¡¯d definitely hide at this point and ambush peopleing and going. But if they¡¯re cult members, they might really not have brains, right? Would someone with a brain join a cult? Aren¡¯t you underestimating the enemy too much? Aren¡¯t you overestimating the enemy? The only thing I¡¯ve underestimated is the size of your head. I didn¡¯t know it wouldn¡¯t even fit a helmet. Why are you bringing up my head size? I¡¯m suddenly being personally attacked! Team leader! Don¡¯t tattle to me.
Although there was some idle chatter mixed in, all three quickly agreed on going to the Third Undersea Base¡¯s escape pod port. It seemed they were willing to fight even if armed Infinity Church people were guarding it. Tumanako quietly listened to the three¡¯s judgment and his eyes gradually sparkled. Then, with a slight smile on his pale face, he said to me.
¡°There¡¯s a hair salon near the escape pod port, could we go there for just 2 minutes? There are snacks there, and my nt pot too.¡±
¡°nt pot? You grow nts?¡±
¡°It was a gift from a friend when I said I was starting work here. It¡¯s a small Rhaphidophora, and that friend probably gave it as a gift out of concern that I might stay inside the undersea base all the time. With the meaning of taking the pot and going outside the base for a while to get some sunlight. Hair designers live in the salon during work hours, eating hair and smelling all kinds of chemicals. When they go home, they just lie down exhausted.¡±
Growing nts is a good hobby. It¡¯s good for both mind and body. On our home veranda, my younger brother nted things like lettuce, green onions, and basil. We harvest them asionally, and I¡¯m always surprised at how fast the green onions grow. If you water them and forget about them for about a week, they grow as long as a palm.
I don¡¯t know what the Tumanako is talking about is, but it seems he¡¯s growing it for good habits and happiness, not for eating. Thinking about Tumanako doing photosynthesis with his nt pot under the sunlight made my heart feel warm.
I felt like some of the sadness and despair I had been feeling were being washed away. Just like choosing a path far from escape to release the jellyfish. Tumanako might be able to board the escape pod while holding the gifted nt pot in his arms.
Hearing about growing nts reminded me of the most recent memory of seeing a flowering tree floating submerged in seawater. That was¡ which room was it again? Finally remembering the room¡¯s owner, I asked Shin Hae-ryang with a bit of guilt.
¡°The nt pot in your room was floating, pickled in seawater.¡±
The nt¡¯s owner replied nonchntly.
¡°I see.¡±
There was no sign of sadness at the tragedy.
¡°Shouldn¡¯t it not touch seawater?¡±
I asked that because I¡¯ve never given salt water to the nts on the veranda, and Shin Hae-ryang simply said.
¡°I don¡¯t know much about nts, but probably not.¡±
Maybe I should have fished it out and put it on the desk. Seo Jihyuk, who was stered to the wall next to the elevator door due to Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s gesture, said irritably.
¡°You¡¯re talking about the nt pot Sato gave as a gift, right? I had a bad feeling about it, but it¡¯s good it¡¯s dead now.¡±
Tumanako, who grows nts, frowned at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s rough tone. It seemed like he might uproot Seo Jihyuk¡¯s head pot if he said a few more wrong words. Shin Hae-ryang shrugged and said.
¡°But the flowers are pretty, aren¡¯t they?¡±
¡°If someone gave me something like that as a gift, I would have smashed their head with the pot as soon as I received it.¡±
Baek Ae-young stuck to Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s back. Then she told me and Tumanako to step back and stick to the wall as much as possible. Tumanako quickly went and stood next to Baek Ae-young.
Then I guess I should stand behind Seo Jihyuk. I hugged John Doe lying on the elevator floor and moved away from the center. It seemed that the three were preparing for the possibility of being shot at as soon as the elevator doors opened, just like before. As I barely managed to drag John Doe to the corner, I asked.
¡°What kind of gift did you receive to react like that?¡±
The flowering tree itself didn¡¯t seem problematic from the outside. Seo Jihyuk watched me dragging John Doe to lean against the wall as much as possible and answered with a sigh.
¡°It¡¯s oleander. Oleander.¡±
After asking the question, I realized I don¡¯t know much about nts. I¡¯m not sure what that is, but it doesn¡¯t seem like a nt used for sd greens. Is it ornamental then? Seo Jihyuk leaned his head against the elevator wall and said to me in an aggrieved tone.
¡°Jihyun still teases me about it sometimes. That Sato guy came saying he had a nt pot as a gift for the team leader, but the team leader wasn¡¯t there and Jihyun and I happened to be there. I told him I¡¯d pass on the pot and to leave it and get lost. Well, it was fine up to that point, but I guess it was a bit shocking for Jihyun when I wrapped a scarf around my hand and yanked that flowering tree out of the pot.¡±
¡°You pulled the tree out of the pot?¡±
¡°Of course, I had to look for any cameras or bugs that might be hidden in the soil or leaves, right?¡±
Seo Jihyuk answered as if it were obvious. I guess in this undersea base, when you receive a flowering tree as a gift, you have to shake out the pot and search it. It¡¯s quite different from mymon sense. A bit dazed, I asked Seo Jihyuk just in case.
¡°Did you find anything?¡±
¡°No. That¡¯s why I was treated like a crazy person.¡±
At those words, Baek Ae-young giggled, and Tumanako, who was listening next to Baek Ae-young, burst outughing as if in disbelief. Seo Jihyuk pushed my chest back with his arm to make me stick to the wall and said.
¡°I don¡¯t like that guy.¡±
Hearing Seo Jihyuk¡¯sint, Shin Hae-ryangughed lightly and said.
¡°He doesn¡¯t like you either.¡±
¡°That¡¯s good. He doesn¡¯t like you either, Team Leader, so let¡¯s dislike him together.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang said to everyone.
¡°Get ready to leave. We¡¯ll arrive at the Third Undersea Base soon.¡±
¡°What about Mr. John Doe?¡±
He¡¯spletely unconscious. What are you nning to do? Shin Hae-ryang asked, a bit flustered.
¡°Should we take him with us?¡±
It sounds like he¡¯s used to knocking people out and leaving them depending on the situation. It¡¯s exactly the same as how Baek Ae-young looked in theundry room. Hey, how can you leave a person lying on the street, no, on the elevator floor like this? I can¡¯t adapt to this undersea base. I feel like I¡¯ll never be able to adapt.
¡°We can¡¯t just leave him here, can we?¡±
¡°He might shout and call for people.¡±
With those words, the elevator arrived at the Third Undersea Base and the doors opened with a soft sound. Shin Hae-ryang cautiously surveyed the surroundings, realized there was no one, and went out towards the Third Undersea Base corridor. Seo Jihyuk did the same.
The two checked to the end of the corridor facing the elevator and signaled that everything was clear. Only after confirming that no one was there did they signal for Baek Ae-young and the rest toe out into the corridor.
I dragged John Doe out by his upper body, pulling him out of the elevator. And while doing so, I felt an incredible sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu. Wait, aren¡¯t my actions simr to what I¡¯ve done before?
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 155
Chapter 155
As I was moving the unconscious person in the same elevator as before, I remembered Hai Yoon covering her face. What if¡ What if? What if we leave John Doe behind and end up repeating the same mistake asst time? What if John Doe dies here just like Hai Yoon?
Looking at the group moving, I couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that Tumanako seemed just like Yu-geum from before. The two people arepletely different, so why do they feel simr?
I steeled my resolve by exhaling all the air in my lungs, then hoisted John Doe, who seemed about my height, onto my back. He wasn¡¯t so heavy that I couldn¡¯t carry him since he was lean, but suddenly having to move while carrying an adult male on my back made me want to curse at the weight. ¡ Shit.
John Doe was heavier than Henry and Sumire. More precisely, it felt like carrying both Sumire and Henry together would be simr to carrying John Doe.
Maybe Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s opinion that we should abandon him here and go is really the most rational and correct one? Am I making apletely abnormal and illogical decision? Perhaps leaving him here would actually be safer for this person. While with us, hasn¡¯t he been knocked out by a punch to the sr plexus, had his mouth and hands tied, been unwillingly carried around on someone¡¯s back, and fainted from having his neck squeezed?
The thought crossed my mind that staying away from such a violent group might be a better choice for John Doe¡¯s life. Moreover, even if we abandoned him here, it didn¡¯t seem like anything major would happen. If he really was a Muhanikyo believer, the Muhanikyo people wouldn¡¯t kill him when they found him.
It would be dangerous for him to lie alone on the floor until someone found him or he woke up, but isn¡¯t that really less risky than the other dangers? Think carefully, Park Mu-hyun. Aren¡¯t you doing somethingpletely stupid right now?
I bombarded myself with reasons why I shouldn¡¯t take the unconscious John Doe with us. Then I started moving while carrying him. As I took two or three steps following Baek Ae-young and Tumanako while carrying John Doe, Shin Hae-ryang, who seemed to be bringing up the rear of the group, came back silently from the other end of the corridor and asked when he saw my state:
¡°Are you really going to take him?¡±¡°Yes.¡±
I said while walking and looking at Tumanako¡¯s back. Come to think of it, this person was abducted by Seo Jihyuk from South District. If you abduct someone, shouldn¡¯t you return them to where they belong? Of course, you shouldn¡¯t abduct people in the first ce, but if you did, shouldn¡¯t you show at least that much responsibility? Such thoughts ran through my mind before I ended the chain of thoughts, realizing that if he were truly responsible, he wouldn¡¯t have abducted someone in the first ce. Shin Hae-ryang spoke to me glumly:
¡°I think that person would wee being abandoned here too.¡±
I had no response to that, even if I had a hundred mouths. We haven¡¯t done anything good for John Doe. Maybe, if John Doe were conscious and asked whether he wanted to be abandoned here ore with us, he might choose to be abandoned.
But in the middle of escaping from a disaster situation, I couldn¡¯t just leave someone behind because they had fainted. I decided I would ask John Doe when he regained consciousness: Do you want to part ways with us ore along?
¡°I¡¯ll ask when he wakes up. And I¡¯m scared of repeating exactly the same mistake as before.¡±
If we leave John Doe behind, we¡¯ll be down to five people: Shin Hae-ryang, Baek Ae-young, Seo Jihyuk, Tumanako, and me. I felt like I would go crazy with anxiety if I imagined these five familiar yet slightly different people moving somewhere in the underwater base to escape. I wanted to artificially create a group of six or seven people instead.
To break away from a situation flowing simrly to before, there need to be variable factors. In experiments, the results depend on how well variables are controlled, but people aren¡¯tb rats, this isn¡¯t aboratory, and on top of that, I myself don¡¯t change much.
No matter what choices are presented to me, I¡¯ll probably produce simr results to before. So if I don¡¯t change, there needs to be a bigger change from the outside. Shin Hae-ryang looked at me carrying John Doe on my back and said:
¡°Then we must definitely gag that person. You have to agree to that if you want to bring him along.¡±
I nodded at Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s words. Baek Ae-young kept turning back to check if we were following well. As we followed Seo Jihyuk¡¯s lead, we were going in thepletely opposite direction from before. We were heading in theplete opposite direction of the convenience store we had visited before, and I could clearly smell that we were getting closer to the bakery.
The Babylonia Bakery was located slightly off-center of the Third Underwater Base, almost close enough to tumble into from the central elevator. However, it seemed that the Engineering Team A was trying to avoid getting too close to the central elevator. Just in case, I asked Shin Hae-ryang, who wasing from behind:
¡°Are we going to stop by the bakery?¡±
¡°No.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, who was watching our surroundings, answered. Seo Jihyuk, who had entered the nearest clothing store [Coatre Bandit], signaled for us to stop here.
Iid John Doe down where Shin Hae-ryang designated and crouched down together with Tumanako. Seo Jihyuk, who was holding a gun, knelt on one knee and looked at the floor, only his ears moving asionally. Baek Ae-young was quick to lie down t whenever there was any spare time. Shin Hae-ryang sat leaning against the wall in a ce that wouldn¡¯t be perpendicr to the door.
Since half of the luggage I had packed in my carrier was clothes, I didn¡¯t think I needed to buy any more clothes. So this was my first time entering a clothing store here, and this store seemed to sell all kinds of clothes. They were selling raincoats and pajamas, wetsuits and formal wear, underwear and swimsuits all at once. They also seemed to be selling traditional outfits from various countries. Moreover, the range of clothing sizes was surprisingly diverse. As I turned my head this way and that, taking in the sight of this amazing clothing store, Baek Ae-young said:
¡°Lower your head more.¡±
¡°Like this?¡±
Seeing me and Tumanako lowering our heads to the point of almost lying on the floor at those words, Baek Ae-young, who was lying on the floor, whispered:
¡°I¡¯m saying this just in case, but don¡¯t buy clothes here.¡±
Tumanako, who was closer to me, asked in surprise:
¡°Why?¡±
¡°It¡¯s a rip-off. Plus, I don¡¯t know which warehouse they dug these out from, but some of the clothes have moths.¡±
Tumanako¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t good, as if she had already bought something. Shin Hae-ryang silently took down two scarves hanging on the wall, rolled them up, put the small one in John Doe¡¯s mouth, and tightly wrapped the long one around his mouth and head to prevent any sound from escaping. A new gag, huh.
Seo Jihyuk gestured for us to move, and we got up and moved to the shoe store [Barefoot] right next door. Inside the shoe store, they sold all kinds of shoes just like in the clothing store earlier. The shoe sizes ranged from 220mm to 320mm. Socks were also sold in the corner.
I looked around curiously at the sight of flippers, sneakers, bathroom slippers, and safety shoes all being sold together. Inside the shoe store, sandals were disyed by type under pictures of people walking barefoot on a sandy beach. Seo Jihyuk saw my brain working hard and said as if it was funny:
¡°Doctor. Enjoying the tour?¡±
¡°Are we going to that hat store in front too?¡±
¡°Yes. I¡¯m Seo~ Jihyuk, your Engineering Team A package guide responsible for your Third Underwater Base tour today. Please give a perfect score withoutints in the customer satisfaction survey, and strictly obey the guide¡¯s instructions. The guide is not responsible for anything that happens during the package tour. Take care of your own lives, and make sure to prepare hefty insurance in advance.¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had been frowning, heard Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words and said with disgust:
¡°What kind of tour is this? I¡¯m going to kill the guide! Give me back my money!¡±
¡°The guide is currently working for free. Pay a lot of money and work me hard.¡±
Tumanako responded enthusiastically to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s robotic tone:
¡°Guide Seo! I¡¯m going to escape from here. Right now! By any means necessary!¡±
¡°In the case of this product where the guide conducts the itinerary, it may be unavoidably changed depending on local circumstances, and will proceed without the customer¡¯s request or consent.¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked at Shin Hae-ryang, but Shin Hae-ryang was silent, focused on watching outside. I looked at the clock inside the shoe store and asked Seo Jihyuk:
¡°When do we eat lunch?¡±
I don¡¯t expect it. But I asked just in case. In my case, I wasn¡¯t particrly hungry. But it¡¯s usually lunchtime by now. Maybe the others are hungry. Seo Jihyuk nodded seriously and answered:
¡°Right now, the guide who didn¡¯t even eat breakfast properly is so hungry that he wants to eat the customers. If you¡¯re so hungry you can¡¯t stand it, chew on your own fingers or gnaw on those leather shoes over there.¡±
No one tried to gnaw on the leather shoes Seo Jihyuk¡¯s fingertip was pointing at. Eventually, following Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s signal, Seo Jihyuk moved people through another exit of the shoe store. Shin Hae-ryang, who was thest to leave the shoe store, erased traces like our footprints with clothing items that seemed to have been pilfered from the clothing store.
Seo Jihyuk, who had been peering into the hat store [Excellent Choice for Your Head], grabbed the entrance handle and his eyebrows curved. Baek Ae-young, who approached next, looked at the door and took out a knife. She scraped the handle vigorously, created a gap, shook it back and forth while inserting the knife between the door and the lock. Then she did something and the door opened. ¡ Where do you learn things like that? I thought a theft prevention rm would go off, but there was nothing like that. Well, even if you stole something in the underwater base, it would still be within Daehan Ind.
As Baek Ae-young put away the knife and silently pushed the door open to enter, Seo Jihyuk followed right behind. Only I, Tumanako, and the unconscious John Doe remained with Shin Hae-ryang at the shoe store exit. We tried to follow the two who had gone ahead, but Shin Hae-ryang stopped us.
Only after Seo Jihyuk¡¯s signal that it was safe did Shin Hae-ryang allow us to go. Tumanako moved like a shot, while I had no choice but to walk slowly because of John Doe on my back. Only when Shin Hae-ryang entered the storest did I breathe a sigh of relief. Seo Jihyuk, who had put on a navy baseball cap backwards nearby, muttered like a sigh while looking towards the exit:
¡°Now that the doctor mentioned lunch, I¡¯m hungry.¡±
Having only had sugar-free candies, chocte bars, and water from morning to afternoon, he seemed to have gotten hungry. Shin Hae-ryang was busy checking the few remaining escape pods and the elevators, stores, and buildings around them. Baek Ae-young was the same, but Seo Jihyuk whined to the two of them:
¡°I want to eat sour and sweet bibim-guksu. With 7 boiled eggs on top.¡±
Baek Ae-young responded to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words as if in disbelief:
¡°Is that egg noodles or bibim-guksu?¡±
¡°The more boiled eggs, the better.¡±
¡°I need it slightly spicy and without cucumber.¡±
¡°So picky. Quickly put your cucumber on top of my imaginary bibim-guksu. What about you, Team Leader?¡±
¡°You can eat mine too.¡±
Shin Hae-ryang gave a perfunctory answer to Seo Jihyuk. It¡¯s more surprising to be hungry at this moment.
¡°I¡¯m not hungry though.¡±
¡°Me neither.¡±
Tumanako agreed with my words. My throat is a bit dry, but I don¡¯t feel particrly hungry. Shin Hae-ryang answered briefly:
¡°In disaster situations like this, you usually won¡¯t feel hunger. Your body instinctively knows it¡¯s not the right situation for that.¡±
Tumanako looked at Seo Jihyuk as if he were a monster.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 156
Chapter 156
Seo Jihyuk spoke as if making an excuse to the gazes of Tumanako and me.
¡°Being hungry is just being hungry.¡±
Well, to maintain that physique, he probably needs to eat a lot. Moreover, it seemed that Engineering Team A had woken up at the crack of dawn to work. Baek Ae-young and Shin Hae-ryang seemed used to Seo Jihyuk being like this. Maybe they¡¯re hungry too but not saying anything.
Seeing someone starving right before my eyes, why does it make me feel so sorry for them? I took out all the candies in my pocket and handed them to Seo Jihyuk, who epted them with an expression like a beggar receiving alms.
¡°It feels like I¡¯m sucking the liver out of a flea.¡±
¡°What if the guide eats the customers?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll eat youst, doctor.¡±
Is that supposed to be considerate?
¡°How very kind of you.¡±Shin Hae-ryang, who was watching outside the store, said to me:
¡°Please choose hats that look most simr to the ones worn by Muhanikyo believers.¡±
Following that request, I carefully looked around the hat store. I grabbed as many ck brimmed hats as I could andid them out in the center of the hat store, but there weren¡¯t any that looked exactly the same. I picked out six dark ck and navy hats with no patterns, removing ones that were too bright or hadrge text emzoned in the center.
¡°They¡¯re simr, but not exactly the same.¡±
¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. As long as they can deceive the eye for a moment when seen from afar, it¡¯s fine.¡±
Even if we deceive like that, it would be exposed when seen up close, so I¡¯m not sure how they intend to use them.
Baek Ae-young adjusted the hat size to fit her small head and handed it to Seo Jihyuk. Distracted by unwrapping and putting candy in his mouth, Seo Jihyuk fumbled twice trying to put on the hat handed to him from the side. Then he red at Baek Ae-young and expanded the size of the brimmed hat before putting it on.
As people were amicably sharing the dark-colored hats, I also put a hat on John Doe¡¯s head. Then I pulled a hat down tightly on my own head.
It feels childish and awkward wearing something like this after so long. As I looked around the store wearing the brimmed hat, I spotted yellow and white hard hats covered in dust on the wall. Those look like the ones used at construction sites, but they sell them here too.
¡°Can hard hats stop bullets too?¡±
If it¡¯s possible to block bullets with hard hats, wouldn¡¯t it be safer for people to wear hard hats around? Baek Ae-young, who was fiddling with the brim of her hat, answered my question:
¡°No. They¡¯d get a hole right through them if hit by a bullet. Even bulletproof helmets barely stop bullets, what could a hard hat do?¡±
Hearing that answer, a question arose. If bulletproof helmets barely stop bullets, why wear them? If it¡¯s called a bulletproof helmet, shouldn¡¯t it stop bullets well?
¡°Then why do people wear bulletproof helmets?¡±
Shin Hae-ryang, who was looking outside, answered simply:
¡°They¡¯re worn to block shrapnel and fragments.¡±
¡°Ah.¡±
At those words, the image of a certain person shed through my mind instantly. I didn¡¯t even have time to tell my brain not to do that. I tried to focus on the scenes before my eyes rather than the image that had popped into my head. Shin Hae-ryang added casually:
¡°If you¡¯re worried about bullets, it¡¯s better to wear a motorcycle helmet than a hard hat.¡±
Hearing that, I started looking for motorcycle helmets with my eyes. There were a few dark red motorcycle helmets with bizarre patterns hanging on the store wall. They were covered in dust, probably an unpopr item. ording to Shin Hae-ryang, motorcycle helmets must be much stronger than hard hats. But looking around at the people nearby, no one was trying to wear a motorcycle helmet. Even Shin Hae-ryang, who had said that, was just wearing the ck hat he¡¯d received from me.
¡°Aren¡¯t the others wearing motorcycle helmets?¡±
Seo Jihyuk said with a small smile, rolling the candy in his mouth:
¡°If someone suddenly appeared wearing a bike helmet while walking down the street? ¡ Teacher, if it were me, I¡¯d aim for their body, not their head.¡±
Ah¡ I see. Right. That was a stupid question. I too touched the brim of my hat whileughing awkwardly.
The ce closest to the hat store was an essory store, and if I saw correctly, the store name was written as [Sea Snail]. I really don¡¯t know what these store owners are thinking when they name their stores. I gave up thinking about it when I realized that the dental clinic where I work is named after a famous great white shark, and the beauty salon where Tumanako works is named after a two-headed snake deity.
I can understand stores for clothes, shoes, and hats, but why does there need to be a store selling essories in an underwater base? While I was alone in such doubts, the guide and the trespassers seemed to have judged that this essory store would also likely be locked.
After about 10 seconds of discussion bordering on an argument about whether we should go to the essory store or pass by it, they concluded to go. Again, Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young went first. Shin Hae-ryang remained beside Tumanako and me. While Baek Ae-young was picking the lock, Seo Jihyuk seemed to be covering Baek Ae-young¡¯s back.
As soon as Baek Ae-young checked the door, the two immediately entered the essory store and gestured towards us. It seemed the door wasn¡¯t locked. Again, Shin Hae-ryang sent Tumanako and me first. He came out of the hat storest. Judging by his actions so far, it seemed he was erasing traces of our stay and following us.
Entering the essory store, it looked like it had been hit by a bomb. Chairs were toppled here and there, and some of the disy cases inside were broken. There were quite a few empty spaces where nes and earrings made of raw stones seemed to have been, possibly stolen. Dozens of cheap $5 earrings that people didn¡¯t seem to have stolen were hanging on the wall.
¡°Looks like thieves got here before us. Watch out for ss shards.¡±
Baek Ae-young said as she looked around the essory store. I hadn¡¯t noticed from outside, but several windows were broken too. The interior was considerablyrger than I had expected. Baek Ae-young swept away the ss in front of her with her sturdy-soled shoes and led the way in. Several mirrors were also broken, with sharp pieces scattered on the floor.
It seemed that people had entered the essory store and grabbed handfuls before escaping on the escape pods. ¡ I don¡¯t understand. Hearing my thoughts, Seo Jihyuk nodded and said:
¡°These raw stones are all cheap stuff. Not worth taking.¡±
¡°It¡¯s not about the price, ¡ never mind.¡±
Tumanako walked in absently and was staring at one spot with a very serious expression. Although this was my first time here, judging by Tumanako¡¯s familiar footsteps, she seemed to have visited before. There was a ne made of raw stones there, and judging by her expression, she seemed to be fighting with herself about whether to take it or not. She had probably seen that ne before but didn¡¯t buy it.
Meanwhile, Shin Hae-ryang gently pushed aside a CCTV camera that was in the way with his foot. The CCTV camera, which should have been hanging from the ceiling, was now rolling on the floor, broken by someone. I wonder if the previous visitors broke it.
Shin Hae-ryang saw some neat handkerchiefs disyed in a corner and casually put them in his pocket. He didn¡¯t even look at the earrings, nes, or bracelets scattered around. Then he kept watch on the surroundings.
He seemed to think this ce would be visited by the most people. Among the three, Shin Hae-ryang was the one who said not to go, but Baek Ae-young and Seo Jihyuk had insisted that we must visit here. Shin Hae-ryang kept watch with a reluctant expression.
Baek Ae-young approached without hesitation and examined the safe located in the farthest corner. She seemed to know well what was ced there. There was a small safe there. It was a mess with knife marks and clumsy traces of graphite sprayed on it, as if someone had tried to steal it. It looked like they had made several attempts but fled without sess. Baek Ae-young snorted at the sight of the safe.
Baek Ae-young emotionlessly pressed the safe¡¯s password numbers one by one. It was impossible to tell whether she knew the password in advance or figured it out from the fingerprints there. When the safe opened, there seemed to be things like gold rings and nes inside, but Baek Ae-young very naturally swept them into her pants pocket.
She also took out all the cash there (there was currency from all sorts of countries) and stuffed them into her other pants pocket. Neither Seo Jihyuk nor Shin Hae-ryang said anything seeing Baek Ae-young¡¯s actions. Tumanako was still contemting the ne, and I let out a big sigh.
Seo Jihyuk skillfully rummaged through some drawer and took out disinfectant and gauze, putting them in his pocket. I wondered why those things were here, but it seemed this store also did piercings while selling jewelry. Looking inside, there were tons of tattoo-rted stickers, and next to them were an incredible variety of nail stickers and nail polishes for sale. It seemed they were selling everything here except clothing items.
I¡¯m a bit skeptical since I don¡¯t do these things, but other people might spend their boring time in the underwater base decorating themselves with these items and finding enjoyment. I asked the person who looked the most leisurely but seemed the busiest:
¡°Do they do tattoos here too?¡±
¡°No. They only sell stickers.¡±
After hearing Shin Hae-ryang¡¯s words, I looked around for a ce to set down John Doe, whom I had been carrying on my back. The floors in other stores were clean enough to put a person down and rest, but here it was a mess with footprints and ss shards.
I tried to sit John Doe on a fallen chair that I had propped up against the wall. As I carefully tried to lower the person I was carrying onto the chair, his body tilted backwards, and since the chair had no headrest, John Doe¡¯s head hit the wall.
¡°Ugh.¡±
Startled by that sound, I approached John as soon as I put him down. John Doe had groaned but didn¡¯t wake up. His head might have a bump at most, but wasn¡¯t seriously injured. I let out another big sigh.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 157
Chapter 157
Baek Ae-young began to meddle with the people around her, walking leisurely with satisfied steps like a lion that had conquered the jungle. The items she had put in her pockets could be mistaken for leisure rather than gold or money.
The first person caught by Baek Ae-young was Seo Jihyuk, who was closest. He was rummaging through another drawer, taking out bandages and some unidentified ointment, when Baek Ae-young asked while watching his actions:
¡°Aren¡¯t you getting anything as a gift for Jihyun unnie?¡±
¡°From here? I don¡¯t give picked-up items as gifts to anyone.¡±
Seo Jihyuk looked around the messy essory store, his eyes scanning over the scattered nes, earrings, and bracelets. Then, awkwardly scratching the back of his head with his fingertips, he asked in a low voice:
¡°¡ What do women like?¡±
¡°Pure gold, cash, savings ounts, installment savings, deposits, profits, rewards¡¡±
¡°¡ I didn¡¯t ask what you like. No, I asked the wrong question. It¡¯s my fault.¡±
Seo Jihyuk replied weakly, cramming the bandages and ointment into his pocket.¡°Everything I said is correct.¡±
Baek Ae-young said with a confident voice. Seo Jihyuk retorted to Baek Ae-young with a slightly uncertain tone:
¡°I¡¯m not saying you¡¯re wrong. It¡¯s just that you¡¯re only mentioning things that are too burdensome to suddenly receive from an opposite-sex coworker.¡±
¡°Really? I think giving what I suggested would be better than giving some weird teddy bear or flowers.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t think so. ¡ Then what do women dislike?¡±
¡°ting, withdrawals, unpaid amounts, overdue fees, various charges, stingy bastards like salt¡¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed to regret asking Baek Ae-young such questions. Making a slight groan and shaking his head lightly, Seo Jihyuk replied lifelessly:
¡°I¡¯ll figure it out myself.¡±
Baek Ae-young quickly lost interest in Seo Jihyuk and sauntered towards her second prey, Tumanako. Perhaps because she moved so quietly, Tumanako didn¡¯t notice her approach even when Baek Ae-young came very close. So when Baek Ae-young spoke to Tumanako, she literally jumped in surprise.
¡°What are you looking at? Do you like that ne?¡±
¡°Huh?! Oh. ¡ Yeah. It¡¯s pretty, isn¡¯t it? It was too expensive, so I just looked at it when I came before.¡±
¡°Then take it this time.¡±
At Baek Ae-young¡¯s simple words, Tumanako¡¯s eyes wavered with hesitation. Then she said in a gloomy voice:
¡°It belongs to someone.¡±
¡°That¡¯s right.¡±
Baek Ae-young took down the ne Tumanako had been looking at from the wall. Then she lightly undid the ne¡¯s sp and put it around Tumanako¡¯s neck. To Tumanako, who wore a sullen expression even with the desired ne around her neck, Baek Ae-young said:
¡°I stole it and gave it to you. Wow, it suits you well. The ne has found a new owner.¡±
Then she started walking leisurely again. Baek Ae-young¡¯s third target was me. She approached me, who had been watching from afar, like a king walking fearlessly through his pce. Looking at John Doe sitting in the chair and me standing next to him, Baek Ae-young asked:
¡°Isn¡¯t it tiring carrying this person around?¡±
¡°Of course it¡¯s tiring.¡±
¡°You said you¡¯d ask if he wants to go with us or not when he wakes up, right?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
I expected Baek Ae-young to ask about John Doe¡¯s unconscious state. However, Baek Ae-young lightly nodded her head, then swiftly swung her palm towards John Doe¡¯s cheek like a whip. There was no time to stop her. John Doe¡¯s face moved sharply to the right once, then to the left.
I froze, unable to properly process what had happened in less than a second. John Doe, who had been pped twice, woke up startled. Mmph? Mmph mmph?!
¡°He¡¯s awake now.¡±
Baek Ae-young nodded towards me again and gave a thumbs up. Then she turned around and walked away, leaving behind me in shock and John Doe disoriented from being pped awake.
Baek Ae-young started walking with light steps towards her final target, Shin Hae-ryang. I turned to John Doe and said in a small voice with a sigh:
¡°I¡¯ll untie what¡¯s in your mouth, but don¡¯t shout.¡±
John Doe looked at me with his cheeks reddening and swelling, and nodded. Despite being pped twice in quick session, there were no scratches on John Doe¡¯s lips or cheeks. Only his cheeks were rapidly swelling, but the state of the inside of his mouth would have to be seen to know. Besides, to get an answer, he needs to be able to speak.
As I tried to untie the gag in his mouth, I couldn¡¯t figure out how it was tied. Seo Jihyuk seemed to have untied it in one go, but how? Did I pull it like this? Or like that? As I fumbled around, looking at the back of John Doe¡¯s neck, then his mouth, pulling the string this way and that, Shin Hae-ryang, who had been talking with Baek Ae-young, approached. Seeing that John Doe had regained consciousness, he said:
¡°Let¡¯s hear the answer in this state. If you want to part ways with us, we¡¯ll leave you here. ¡ If you want toe along, you¡¯ll have to go with the gag on and your wrists tied. If you prefer the former, nod your head; if thetter, shake your head.¡±
I thought John Doe would shake his head vigorously back and forth like a rock band vocalist. But surprisingly, John Doe shook his head side to side. ¡ Why? I stared nkly at the direction of John Doe¡¯s head, not understanding.
I wondered if there was a misunderstanding or if the interpretation was wrong, but John Doe shook his head side to side again. Shin Hae-ryang looked at John Doe for a while, then eventually talked with Seo Jihyuk. As Shin Hae-ryang walked away, I asked John Doe:
¡°Why did you make that choice? It doesn¡¯t seem like the people here will be of any help to you even if you go with them, does it? You get hit, you faint, you¡¯re tied up and treated worse than livestock. I¡¯d like us to escape together if possible, but if it¡¯s not safer for you to be with us, I think it might be okay to part ways here.¡±
¡°Mmph! Mmph mmph!¡±
I was curious about the difference between the armed Muhanikyo believers in the Second Underwater Base and those who weren¡¯t, but did this person really need to be sacrificed like this in the process? John Doe tried to say something to me, but couldn¡¯t speak due to what was in his mouth. I wanted to untie it, but I couldn¡¯t figure out how Shin Hae-ryang had tied the knot, and it seemed impossible to untie without a knife. I remembered the answer I had given to Henry and anxiously asked the bound man:
¡°Do you¡ really like this kind of thing?¡±
¡°Mmph mmph! Mmph mmph mmph! Mmph mmph mmph mmph!¡±
John Doe, making an expression like he was about to burst, turned his head this way and that before grabbing a nail polish bottle from the disy with his bound hands. He tried to open the nail polish bottle with his tightly bound hands but dropped it on the floor three times, seemingly realizing he couldn¡¯t open it with his own hands.
John Doe handed me the blue glittery nail polish bottle. Wondering what he was up to, I obediently twisted open the bottle. Then, after coating the brush attached to the cap with plenty of nail polish, I was about to apply it to John Doe¡¯s right thumb nail, which he was holding out.
John Doe swatted my hand away in irritation. Then he grabbed the brush part of the cap that had fallen to the floor and started drawing. Only when John Doe had dipped the brush into the nail polish bottle more than three times due to the quickly drying nail polish did I realize it was writing. Ah¡ So that¡¯s why he wanted this. When he suddenly held out the nail polish bottle to be opened, I thought he wanted me to apply it.
[They might kill me if they say they¡¯ll let me go. They won¡¯t just let me go. I¡¯m not a pervert!]
Thest sentence was faintly painted in a desperate blue color that looked like it might break off. So John Doe chose to go along while tied up rather than risk being killed under the lie of being set free.
¡°I¡¯m sorry. It¡¯s not easy tomunicate.¡±
John Doe looked at me with resentful eyes before slumping as if letting the tension out of his shoulders. As the nail polish bottle spilled, John Doe applied some to his finger and wrote on the floor, avoiding the ss shards.
[Help me escape when the time is right]
Just my thought, but that seems like the worst choice you could make. I was reminded of Zhu Xian¡¯s escape attempt. No matter how I look at it, the Engineering Team A people seem to hate unexpected actions immensely. Why not just speak honestly and part ways here?
¡°I think it would be better to tell Hae-ryang to leave you here. They want to leave you behind.¡±
[How can you trust these people? They might kill you too if things go wrong]
John Doe hastily smudged the writing on the floor at the sound of ss being stepped on. Seo Jihyuk spoke quickly:
¡°Come on. I don¡¯t n to spend more than 3 minutes in this ruin. We still have too many tourist spots left to see. We need to quickly nce around with our eyes and get out of here.¡±
Then he tried to get everyone moving again. Everyone who had scattered gathered in the center of the essory store. Shin Hae-ryang, who was at the very back, quickly scanned me, Tumanako, and John Doe with his eyes, then silently took away a small nail clipper from John Doe¡¯s palm that I hadn¡¯t even noticed was hidden there. John Doe¡¯s face turned pale.
Shin Hae-ryang once again scanned John Doe from head to toe with his eyes and urged him to sit down on the floor. Baek Ae-young had somehowe to stand beside me and Tumanako.
John Doe hesitated, then used the sole of his shoe to push away the ss before obediently sitting on the floor. Shin Hae-ryang pulled out something long and thin that looked simr to a dental explorer from the ankle area of John Doe¡¯s long jeans. As Shin Hae-ryang bent down to remove that metal object, the back of his hand brushed past John Doe¡¯s neck. John Doe instantly stiffened his body.
¡°What¡¯s that?¡±
Not knowing what Shin Hae-ryang had taken out, I asked Tumanako who was right next to me, and Tumanako narrowed her eyes and said:
¡°It¡¯s a tool used for grooming nails. Haven¡¯t you used one?¡±
They groom nails with something like that? Isn¡¯t that a torture device? Shin Hae-ryang silently threw the nail clipper and the metal tool said to be used for nail grooming far into a corner. There was a nging sound as they hit the floor.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
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- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
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- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
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- BLDS Chapter 33
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- BLDS Chapter 35
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- BLDS Chapter 39
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- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 158
Chapter 158
When did John Doe prepare such things? Did he steal them while grabbing the nail polish? The atmosphere became heavy.
Shin Hae-ryang, who had been staring at John Doe sitting on the floor with his hands tied for a few seconds, approached and whispered something in his ear. John Doe¡¯s eyes filled with terror. He quickly nodded at Shin Hae-ryang with frightened eyes. Observing his reaction, Shin Hae-ryang connected the middle part of the backrest of a fallen chair nearby to John Doe¡¯s bound wrists with a single rope. Then he said to the others:
¡°You can start moving now.¡±
¡°What about John Doe?¡±
¡°He says he wants to part ways here.¡±
To verify the truth of those words, I looked at John Doe, who, sensing my gaze, started headbanging back and forth. As I stared nkly at that scene, Baek Ae-young gently pushed my shoulder towards the exit. My feet were reluctant to move. Baek Ae-young whispered softly to me:
¡°The faster we leave, the quicker he can cut the rope and escape.¡±
Baek Ae-young said, kicking the ss shards on the floor. Ah, I see. With ss everywhere on the floor, he could cut the rope and escape.
Maybe this is better, since he was someone who originally wanted to part ways with the Engineering Team A. John Doe seemed to want us to disappear quickly. I took onest look at John Doe and left the essory store. Shin Hae-ryang was thest of our group to exit the store.I expected us to go straight to the escape pod port since the essory store was close to it, but Seo Jihyuk said we were heading for the beauty salon located right next to the escape pod port. At those words, Tumanako started walking confidently and maturely in a straight line towards the beauty salon.
She was about to overtake Seo Jihyuk, who was walking at the front of the group. Seo Jihyuk looked slightly flustered at the confident Tumanako and quickly said:
¡°Stay behind me. We don¡¯t know what might be ahead.¡±
¡°What could be there?¡±
When Tumanako asked boldly with her hands on her hips, Seo Jihyuk hastily replied as if making an excuse:
¡°¡The door might be locked?¡±
¡°The door¡¯s not locked. We can just go in. We operate on a reservation basis in principle, but we don¡¯t turn away walk-ins.¡±
¡°That¡¯s not the only problem. What kind of customer pushes past the guide in a high-crime area? Wait, wait! ¡Ae-yong, Ae-yong, Ae-yong!¡±
As Tumanako acted like she was about to sprint to the beauty salon in one go, Seo Jihyuk gritted his teeth and called out behind him. Baek Ae-young, who had been walking beside me, quickly stuck close to Tumanako. She separated Seo Jihyuk and Tumanako and exined rapidly:
¡°He¡¯s worried that there might be two men inside the salon holding scissors backwards waiting for you, Tumanako-ssi, or that they might have set up something strange on the door. We¡¯ll push Guide Seo in first, and if everything¡¯s normal, we¡¯ll go in. ¡Call me that one more time and you¡¯ll die by my hands?¡±
Baek Ae-young exined kindly to Tumanako. However, she changed her attitude and left a vicious threat for Seo Jihyuk, who didn¡¯t even look back as he watched ahead and said:
¡°Hey. Didn¡¯t you tell me to watch my words and not scare you too much?¡±
¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t have to watch my words or hold back on scaring you. In this situation, they¡¯d be more anxious if I didn¡¯t exin.¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed to be busy watching and assessing the path ahead, barely listening to what was happening behind his back.
Tumanako, who had been looking at her approaching beauty salon, quickly agreed with Baek Ae-young¡¯s exnation. Her majestic stride instantly changed to caution.
Tumanako seemed to be suppressing with all her might the urge to immediately rush into the familiar space she knew well. It had looked extremely close, but seeing Seo Jihyuk on edge made it feel farther away. We soon began to move silently.
So the person at the front of the group has to be mindful of such things. When we were wandering around South District or the research center within South District before, we seemed to have moved around recklessly. ¡Is that why we got hurt so much?
The people who were with us then were covered in bruises all over. Come to think of it, the people in this current group, while emotionally drained and tired, hadn¡¯t suffered any external injuries. While each person had to take care of their own mental state, it seemed they were taking care of each other¡¯s physical well-being.
As we got very close to the beauty salon, I finally saw what the Chinese deity N¨¹wa that Tumanako had mentioned looked like. On the outer wall of the salon was a painting of a man and woman with snake-like lower bodies, wearing skirts and looking at each other. They were holding what looked like scissors and tweezers in their hands, with a round object presumed to be the sun floating in the sky between them.
As soon as I saw that picture, I had an ominous feeling that this beauty salon was also created without any consideration for interior design.
Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young entered the beauty salon first. In less than a minute, they signaled for us toe in. If Deep Blue was surrounded by frames of blind sharks in apletely dark sea and shark-rted items, this ce was like a beauty salon for ancient people living in BC times.
It seemed they hadn¡¯t considered at all that the customers visiting this beauty salon were humans living in the 21st century. The wallpaper was bright yellow. Moreover, images of half-human, half-snake beings with human upper bodies and snake lower bodies were hung in frames here and there on the walls.
¡Couldn¡¯t they have decorated it with a clean, modern design? Is the budget tight? Or is there some separate snake-rted religion?
My orthopedist friend said simplicity was aesthetic and had nothing on the walls except wallpaper, and I used to criticize his hospital interior for being empty, but I never thought I¡¯de to envy his hospital¡¯s interior. I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that my Deep Blue was at least a bit more sophisticated than this N¨¹wa beauty salon. Even if it¡¯s just choosing the lesser of two evils, it¡¯s still something.
None of the people with guns were interested in the beauty salon¡¯s interior. Seo Jihyuk seemed more concerned about possible booby traps that might be set up somewhere, while Shin Hae-ryang, who came inst, seemed more worried about someone ambushing us here.
Unlike me, who was calmly observing the interior of the beauty salon, Tumanako started running around here and there as soon as she entered. It was worrying to the point where I thought she might bump into something. As I was reflecting on what had happened in the essory store, I asked Shin Hae-ryang, who was walking behind me:
¡°About the items John Doe hid.¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you think I cooperated?¡±
I had pondered this internally several times, but I thought it would be better to ask directly. If I didn¡¯t ask, I felt like I would keep questioning myself endlessly. I was the closest to John Doe and even carried him on my back. The Engineering Team A people seemed to want to abandon John Doe in the elevator, but bringing him this far was almost entirely due to my insistence.
Isn¡¯t it more logical to think I was an aplice rather than a bound person skillfully stealing and possessing such items? If I¡¯m thinking this, Shin Hae-ryang must have already made such assumptions. It was an opportunity to leave me behind as well when expelling John Doe from the group, but they didn¡¯t. Shin Hae-ryang, who was bringing up the rear of the group, asked while watching outside:
¡°Did you?¡±
¡°No.¡±
¡°Then that¡¯s fine.¡±
What¡¯s fine? Shin Hae-ryang seemed to think that was a sufficient answer. It¡¯s like having a conversation with an AI whose programming is slightly off. I¡¯m really curious about what Shin Hae-ryang is thinking. Even if I knew his concerns, I probably wouldn¡¯t be able to help solve the problem at all. Fearing the answer I might receive, I threw a direct question:
¡°Don¡¯t you think I¡¯m a bothersome person to keep around?¡±
¡°Why do you think that?¡±
Why do I think that? Even I think there are too many reasons. From dimir onwards, every person we meet picks a fight or threatens us, we take turns carrying people on our backs, I insist on bringing along a cult follower. Moreover, I haven¡¯t been particrly friendly or cooperative with the Engineering Team A people. Every action is suspicious.
If I were Shin Hae-ryang, I would have concluded that I was a cult follower. Besides, I¡¯ve already told Shin Hae-ryang all the information I know. To someone who prioritizes efficiency, I¡¯m a person who has already been squeezed dry. ¡Then again, they brought me along before when I had no information and was practically just baggage.
At the ce Tumanako had pointed out, Seo Jihyuk found a few cookies and several water bottles. He threw one bottle to Baek Ae-young and was about to throw one to me, but then sighed and came over to hand it to me directly. Shin Hae-ryang took the water bottle Baek Ae-young had drunk from, took a sip, and answered:
¡°I think you¡¯re an ordinary civilian caught up in a disaster situation. Please drink.¡±
Then he chewed on a broken cookie. Is this attitude normal? Then are there civilians who act in extraordinary ways?
Tumanako, who had been running around with a towel, brought a small flowerpot from a corner. Is that the Rhaphidophora? Tumanako tried to separate the nt from the pot, but for some reason, the roots wouldn¡¯t separate. If she pulled too hard, only the stem above the soil mighte off.
As I held the pot with both hands, Shin Hae-ryang was about to smash it with the butt of his gun. Seo Jihyuk approached while chewing a cookie and stopped Tumanako¡¯s hand as she was trying to grab and pull the stem.
¡°You¡¯re trying to pull the roots out of the pot, right?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Seo Jihyuk tapped the pot a few times, then grabbed the very bottom of the stem and lifted. The entire nt separated from the pot I was holding. Didn¡¯t he say he had separated flowering trees before? Where on earth does one learn such skills?
Tumanako grabbed the stem and shook off most of the soil. Then sheid the nt on a towel. She sprayed water on the roots with a spray bottle and wrapped it in the towel. Then she pushed it into the old cloth bag she had been holding. The nt was neatly stored in the bag. Only then did Tumanako sigh, sit down on the floor, and say:
¡°Okay. We can carry it like this.¡±
¡°Have some water.¡±
Following Seo Jihyuk¡¯s suggestion, Tumanako drained the water bottle in one go and hugged the bag tightly. Broken cookies were forcibly fed into Tumanako¡¯s mouth from Baek Ae-young¡¯s hand.
As Tumanako was chewing the cookies, she suddenly seemed to remember something and opened a drawer nearby. There were 5rge chocte bars inside, which she took out and threw at people as if lobbing them. Seo Jihyuk was the happiest about it.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
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- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
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- BLSD Chapter 44
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- BLDS Chapter 50
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- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
Chapter 159
Chapter 159
Seo Jihyuk picked up a chocte bar. After carefully examining its expiration date and packaging condition, he unwrapped it and took a bite. His jaw moved diligently, and then he let out a contented sigh.
Me and Tumanako awkwardly opened our chocte bars. I didn¡¯t particrly like the strong sweetness typical of foreign snacks, and Tumanako seemed to have no appetite. However, Tumanako vigorously tore open the chocte bar wrapper and started chewing so intensely that I worried about the state of her teeth. It didn¡¯t seem like she was eating because she was hungry, but because she had to eat.
I broke off about 1/3 of the chocte bar, still in its wrapper. Then I forced myself to chew just the small piece in my mouth. As the sweetness that made my tongue ache entered my stomach, I felt nauseous. When I tasted the artificial, sticky chocte vor, dizziness washed over me like a tidal wave. I couldn¡¯t long more for hot coffee to wash out my mouth.
Seo Jihyuk finished his chocte bar in just two bites. Baek Ae-young was slowly chewing her chocte bar while stretching one leg out. And Shin Haeryang was sitting against the wall, motionless. He looked like a seated statue sprouting from the floor, but he too moved only his jaw and hands, demolishing the chocte bar in three bites.
I handed the remaining 2/3 of my chocte bar to the person next to me who didn¡¯t have one.
¡°My mouth touched it. Please eat it.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who was licking the wrapper to eat the melted chocte, looked at me and said,
¡°Eat your own share.¡±
¡°My stomach doesn¡¯t feel good, so I can¡¯t eat it.¡±There¡¯s someone who can¡¯t eat, you know. Besides, I feel like I¡¯ll throw up if I eat any more. I leaned against the cart filled with hair products and watched as others ate their chocte bars in their own ways.
As I zoned out watching their cheeks move as they chewed quietly, someone said something. I was in a daze until Seo Jihyuk tapped my forearm, and I realized that Shin Haeryang, sitting near the door, had spoken to me.
¡°Pardon?¡±
¡°I asked what day it is today.¡±
¡°Ah¡ Just a moment.¡±
It was May, but what day? As I hesitated for a few seconds trying to answer, Shin Haeryang asked another question.
¡°Doctor. What¡¯s your room number?¡±
¡°West District thirty¡ what was it again? Give me a second. It¡¯s an even number.¡±
¡°¡Who are your family members?¡±
¡°I have my mother and younger brother.¡±
¡°How old is your younger brother?¡±
¡°Uh¡ I¡¯m calcting. There¡¯s quite an age gap between us.¡±
How old was he again? His age changes every year. Even my own age confuses me. Now it¡¯s faster to remember the year of birth. Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t wait for my answer and continued to ask other things.
¡°Where are we?¡±
I saw hair products, hair dryers, and aprons around.
¡°¡It¡¯s a hair salon.¡±
¡°How many hours did you sleepst night?¡±
¡°¡I don¡¯t know. We¡¯ve been living the same day for three days now. I think. ¡I don¡¯t think I slept.¡±
Shin Haeryang suddenly asked a strange question.
¡°Do you remember my name?¡±
¡°Shin Haeryang.¡±
¡°What do I do for a living?¡±
¡°You¡¯re a tooth thug. I¡¯m about to sue you for work overload.¡±
Someone listening to the conversation let out a lowugh. The voice sounded like Seo Jihyuk, but despite the loud giggling from the side, Shin Haeryang continued to ask questions without even a smile.
¡°Who were you trying to give the chocte bar to just now?¡±
¡°To Geum-yi.¡±
The person who had beenughing suddenly started coughing. Cough! Cough! Hack! Someone was pounding their back as if trying to break it. Shin Haeryang asked me again, expressionlessly.
¡°Do you mean Researcher Yoo Geum-yi from South District?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°Is there a reason you shared it?¡±
¡°It seemed like there wasn¡¯t enough food for the number of people.¡±
¡°No, Doctor. That-¡°
Shin Haeryang stopped Seo Jihyuk, who tried to interject mid-conversation, with a nce and said,
¡°Are you tired or sleepy?¡±
¡°Aren¡¯t all office workers like that?¡±
¡°What¡¯s in your bag?¡±
¡°There¡¯s a cat and a snake in it.¡±
¡°May I look inside?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
As I handed over the bag I was carrying, Shin Haeryang, holding the bag in one hand, gave me a water bottle with the other and said,
¡°Drink it all without leaving any.¡±
¡°Have the others all drunk it?¡±
¡°You¡¯re thest one, Doctor.¡±
While I was drinking the water from the bottle, Shin Haeryang opened the bag to check and handed it back to me. As I sat on the floor wearing the bag, I heard low, faint voices from afar.
¡°How does the condition look? You¡¯ve been coaxing and persuading all this time, don¡¯t make me burst. Just spill it.¡±
¡°They¡¯ll hear us.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t care about being heard or not.¡±
¡°¡There are impairments in orientation, memory, concentration, perception, emotional and cognitive functions, and the response time to questions is too slow. On the way here, there were also signs of paranoia and anxiety disorder.¡±
Someone suddenly interjected between their conversation.
¡°It¡¯s because of stress. Half of all illnesses are due to stress.¡±
¡°Great white shark, who here isn¡¯t under stress right now? ¡Maybe there was a pre-existing mental illness and they missed the time to take medication. I¡¯m also concerned about the long rambling earlier.¡±
¡°That¡ it contained too much information to be dismissed as simple nonsense. Moreover, one couldn¡¯t make up such detailed content in a short time, and they don¡¯t seem skilled enough in psychological warfare to deliberately deceive me. ¡To my eyes, it looks like delirium.¡±
¡°Delirium? Does delirium behave that calmly? The guy who was causing a ruckus with the medical staff at the field hospital, saying ghosts were trying to kill him, was also delirious, wasn¡¯t he?¡±
¡°What¡¯s delirium? No, no. Don¡¯t answer that. Anyway, the three of us are good at hitting people, but none of us can cure them. Is there any solution other than getting out of here?¡±
¡°There isn¡¯t. If the condition is serious, shouldn¡¯t we tie them up?¡±
¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯m watching.¡±
¡°Hey. If you don¡¯t want to get kicked out, be quiet.¡±
Someone grabbed my shoulder with their palm and said,
¡°This is my hair salon, so you need my permission to talk. Either answer only my questions or go outside to chat.¡±
The voices disappeared in an instant. Tumanako shouldered a sturdy cloth bag and asked Seo Jihyuk,
¡°Hey, Tour Guide. When do you think we¡¯ll be able to get out of here?¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been addressed, put down his water bottle on the floor, frowned, and said,
¡°It depends on how many functioning escape pods are left in the escape pod port next to us.¡±
¡°¡I hope there are 5 left. Or even more than that.¡±
Seo Jihyuk nodded briefly at Tumanako¡¯s wish. Baek Ae-young finished chewing her chocte bar and wiped her mouth and hands on a towel in the corner. Watching this, Seo Jihyuk said quietly, as if sighing,
¡°Or at least I hope there are two left.¡±
¡°Why?¡±
¡°I want to send out the Tooth Doctor or the Hair Doctor quickly. I¡¯m struggling. The guide¡¯s future goal is either unemployment or going on strike.¡±
¡°I struggled too. Do you know how hard I worked to get here?¡±
¡°I know well.¡±
Seo Jihyuk affirmed Tumanako¡¯s words, then looked at me and Tumanako, shrugged his shoulders, and said,
¡°Both of you are model tourists. Well, one person¡¯s condition is a bit off, but we can¡¯t always be in good shape, right? Please maintain that exemry attitude.¡±
¡°What kind of people are non-exemry tourists?¡±
To my question, Seo Jihyuk lightly tapped the empty water bottle and said,
¡°Hmm. Suddenly shouting loudly, fighting among tourists thinking it¡¯s a good opportunity, trying to drink alcohol or smoke, attempting to hit the guide. Or trying to stick around when they should just lightly brush their eyes over the tourist attraction and leave. Well, there are many.¡±
¡°Has that happened often?¡±
¡°Ah, a lot. When I used to do escort duty, you wouldn¡¯t believe the crap I went through.¡±
¡°Confidentiality agreement. Want to cough up a bucket of money?¡±
Baek Ae-young lightly kicked Seo Jihyuk¡¯s foot. Seo Jihyuk grumbled, then made excuses saying he was only going to talk just enough not to get caught, before shutting his mouth. Tumanako continued to ask Baek Ae-young beside her,
¡°Can¡¯t we just run straight to the escape pod port? Was there a need to stop by all sorts of shops for 2-3 minutes each beforeing to the hair salon? We could just run to the escape pod port, check the number of escape pods, and then run to take the elevator, right?¡±
Baek Ae-young nodded lightly as if Tumanako¡¯s words made sense, then answered,
¡°We could do that. But I want to move through blind spots not covered by CCTV as much as possible. We haven¡¯t been detected yet, you know. The thing mounted above the escape pod port moves every 7-8 minutes, so we just need to wait a little longer.¡±
¡°Who haven¡¯t we been detected by?¡±
Shin Haeryang stared nkly at the closed door of the hair salon and answered in a low voice,
¡°There are armed personnel patrolling outside. I saw theme down by elevator from the Second Underwater Base.¡±
Tumanako looked at the hair salon door with a frightened expression and said in a much lower voice,
¡°¡Huh. I didn¡¯t see them.¡±
¡°That¡¯s our job. You should continue not seeing them.¡±
Tumanako, slightly tense, gently ced her hands on my shoulder as I sat still. Then she asked Shin Haeryang,
¡°The kid¡¯s nice. It seems like their memory is going back and forth. It¡¯s just that their physical condition is a bit off, but you¡¯re not going to leave them behind, right? ¡Right?¡±
¡°We¡¯ll take them. Delirium can happen to anyone. It will improve with treatment.¡±
Tumanako¡¯s tense sigh subsided at Shin Haeryang¡¯s confident words. Tumanako¡¯s fingers lightly tapped my shoulder like ying piano keys, then clenched her fist happily. Suddenly, with both fists tightly clenched, Tumanako asked Shin Haeryang again,
¡°Hey. Would you have taken me along, risking danger through people with guns, even if I had delirium?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°¡You¡¯re lying, right?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Both answers were in the same tone. Tumanako¡¯s fists trembled as she looked at Shin Haeryang. Tumanako¡¯s expression suggested she wanted to punch Shin Haeryang right then and there. However, suppressing that emotion, she said one thing,
¡°Give me your gun. You guys have three guns, don¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Do you know how to shoot?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t. Do you know how to throw a spear stylishly?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t.¡±
¡°Yeah. It¡¯s a tie. Give me a gun too.¡±
Shin Haeryang shook his head lightly. When Tumanako looked at Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young, the two slowly backed away as if Tumanako might snatch their guns. Tumanako made a sad face but quickly erased it and said to Shin Haeryang,
¡°Then I want to immigrate to your country. Dual citizenship or whatever. I¡¯m going to be Korean now, so you have to protect me diligently.¡±
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
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- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 160
Chapter 160
As Shin Haeryang silently stared at Tumanako, Tumanako¡¯s overflowing confidence and brazenness seemed to waver gradually. He slowly said to Tumanako,
¡°If you apply for an E-7 visa, it takes about a week for the Ministry of Justice to respond.¡±
She¡¯s really thinking of applying. There¡¯s no such thing as empty words for her. However, Tumanako seemed rather reassured by those words.
¡°You¡¯ll protect me, of course, so I won¡¯t be dead when it¡¯s approved, right?¡±
¡°¡I¡¯ve never applied for a hair designer before, so it¡¯s uncertain whether the Ministry of Justice will approve it.¡±
Can¡¯t you just make her Korean without any conditions? Is it such a big deal to protect one more woman? ¡Or not? Am I thinking only from my perspective? These people said their contract was only to protect Koreans. Maybe if there¡¯s a problem while taking a New Zender along, it might be a matter of national disputeter.
¡°Korea would be at a loss if they don¡¯t take someone as capable as me!¡±
Seo Jihyuk smiled silently at those words. Then, with his chin resting on one hand, he watched the two of them.
Baek Ae-young seemedpletely uninterested in what Shin Haeryang and Tumanako were saying to each other. She quickly checked her gun, then methodically took out all the weapons she had, confirmed their condition and location, and put them all back in. Then she took out all the bundles of cash hidden in her pants pockets.Using the rubber bands lying around, she separately bundled the high-denomination bills. After the volume reduced by more than half, she put them in her pants pocket and checked if they were properly secured. The remaining low-denomination bills, which she didn¡¯t seem to intend to take, were roughly gathered and ced in the hair salon¡¯s sink. Watching Baek Ae-young¡¯s movements, like a squirrel busy sorting grains, I heard the conversation beside me again.
¡°There¡¯s a condition.¡±
¡°What is it?¡±
Tumanako asked with her fists clenched tightly. Tumanako probably did this unconsciously, but Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t seem to care at all about the possibility of Tumanako¡¯s small fists flying at him.
¡°If there¡¯s a next escape pod or chance to escape, please cooperate to ensure Park Moohyun can escape with top priority.¡±
Hearing my name, I snapped back to attention and said,
¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±
Both of them unanimously ignored my response.
¡°¡Alright. The person who goes out after him is me. Promise.¡±
¡°I promise.¡±
Tumanako held out her palm. Shin Haeryang looked at the hand before grasping it. For a few seconds, Tumanako seemed to pull Shin Haeryang slightly towards her, but Shin Haeryang¡¯s body, seated on the floor, didn¡¯t budge an inch, like a block of iron. Tumanako lowered her head with a sigh. Then she lightly touched her nose to Shin Haeryang¡¯s nose before pulling away.
¡°Phew. I let you off because you¡¯re handsome.¡±
As Tumanako moved back, Seo Jihyuk made a fuss, more so than Shin Haeryang whose nose tip had suddenly been rubbed.
¡°What? What? What did you just do? I didn¡¯t see it wrong, did I? Didn¡¯t you mess up something that should be done on the lips?¡±
As Seo Jihyuk asked the two with a goofy face, Baek Ae-young, separating the jewelry she had stolen into those containing gold and those without, said,
¡°Idiot. It¡¯s called ¡®hongi¡¯.¡±
¡°What¡¯s that? What? Why do they touch so closely like that?¡±
¡°Imagine you doing that with Liam from the Engineer B team.¡±
The smile disappearedpletely from Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face. Then, as if it was horrifying, he said,
¡°Was she approaching to kill? Did our team leader just nearly die? But seeing how they¡¯re both calmly ring at me, it seems whatever attempt it was, it failed.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you have any close friends among the New Zenders?¡±
To Tumanako¡¯s question, Seo Jihyuk shrugged his shoulders and said,
¡°I don¡¯t like a single one of those Engineer B team bastards even as much as a cockroach¡¯s hind leg.¡±
Watching Seo Jihyuk shudder, Tumanako asked curiously,
¡°Why are the engineers on such bad terms with each other? Every engineer whoes to the hair salon is dying to badmouth people from other country teams. They talk a lot about the Korean team in particr.¡±
Seo Jihyuk tried to help Baek Ae-young with her jewelry sorting, but after getting his hand pped hard, he sighed and said,
¡°When I arrived, the engineers were getting along really well. The Korean team was losing in the hierarchy battle and getting beaten up in order by the other 7 engineering teams, so it was very peaceful. Even those who shouldn¡¯t get along well somehow knew the Korean team engineers¡¯ payday perfectly, lining up in order to kindly extort money, and having fun pping their cheeks a bit in a friendly manner.¡±
Tumanako froze with her mouth open.
¡°At that time, the Korean team leader was a woman named Yang from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, but she went missing. And Jo, who was the deputy team leader, was temporarily in charge, but during work hours, two employees who ran away were caught trying to stow away on a foreign ship. One female employee shut down a researchb in the South District Research Center and started eating and sleeping there. Another female employee didn¡¯t evene to her own room, saying she was sharing a room with an American team guy, and the rest of the idiots were busy sucking up to idiots from other teams.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, hugging his gun, said in a gloomy voice,
¡°That bastard Jo would open employees¡¯ room doors using his team leader authority as a reflex after getting his knees kicked a few times, and Jihyun and I were newly hired here? The atmosphere was a mess, and some bastard who didn¡¯t know Jihyun and I had switched rooms opened my room door, trying to sleep.¡±
¡°W-what happened?¡±
As Tumanako swallowed hard and asked, Seo Jihyuk yawned so wide his mouth might tear, then covered his mouth with his palm and said,
¡°That bastard who came into my room with a bunch of idiots was surprised and said, ¡®Huh? This isn¡¯t the right room?¡¯ His tone suggested he never dreamed the room¡¯s owner would be a handsome man in his 20s.¡±
Baek Ae-young made a face like she was about to throw up and said,
¡°Quickly correct the wrong parts.¡±
¡°I forgot to mention that he¡¯s also fit, sexy, and a dashing hunk.¡±
¡°I feel sick. It would be legal for me to vomit on your head right now. ¡You should have killed them all back then. The same shitty thing happened again, didn¡¯t it?¡±
Baek Ae-young seemed to be listening to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words half-heartedly. Perhaps the profit margin wasn¡¯t as good as expected, she clicked her tongue while looking at rings that didn¡¯t seem to contain gold.
¡°Cut me some ck. It was my first day on the job. I had to give them a bit of a beating and let them go alive. The new team leader wasing a weekter, and I couldn¡¯t hide five corpses in my cramped room until then. I didn¡¯t even know how to lock my room door back then.
My room door would open automatically like an automatic door just by approaching it. Plus, I cleaned the blood off the floor with wet wipes and didn¡¯t know where to throw the trash, so I hid those wet wipes and tissues in my room for two days.¡±
¡°Ugh. A man whining like that.¡±
Tumanako, who had been listening to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words in a daze, asked,
¡°Didn¡¯t anyone help or try to stop it?¡±
¡°Seeing three guys lying sprawled on the floor, someone started calling other people from outside. Saying people had copsed. I was happily waiting for someone toe and clean up this mess, but a New Zend bastard who came into the room punched me in the jaw.¡±
Tumanako frowned and asked,
¡°I¡¯m just curious, but how should onemit a perfect murder underwater? Can¡¯t you just dump the body in the sea? It¡¯s water all around.¡±
¡°Trash thrown into the sea either floats on the surface or sinks to the bottom. If I had just disposed of a few guys by throwing them into the sea,ter on, mining robots or engineers repairing the outer walls might have gone, ¡®Huh? What¡¯s this? It¡¯s the arms and legs of our team¡¯s trash?¡¯ and discovered them. If you throw them into the sea in front of Daehan Ind, the waves might send them back to the beach saying, ¡®Here¡¯s some lost property~''¡±
Seo Jihyuk whined, rubbing his eyes with one hand, and said to Baek Ae-young,
¡°Boo-hoo-hoo. Ae-young, I¡¯m only telling you this now, but you don¡¯t know the hardships I went through during the three months waiting for you to arrive.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t want to know at all.¡±
¡°Boo-hoo-hoo. I still can¡¯t forget the look in Jihyun¡¯s eyes, staring at me like I was a pervert for asking things like, ¡®Jihyun, what time are you going to take a shower? How many times a day do you go to the bathroom? When are you going? What time do you sleep?''¡±
¡°You only picked pervert-like questions.¡±
Seo Jihyuk quickly gave up on getting sympathy from the busy Baek Ae-young about his past difficulties.
¡°If you hadn¡¯te after three months, I would have paid back the contract money or whatever and run away carrying Jihyun. I bet Team Leader Shin would have felt the same way. Right?¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
Although Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t say anything, he seemed to dislike that situation just as much. Seo Jihyuk calmly said to Tumanako,
¡°The underwater base is where greedy and overpowered bastards gather like swarming insects to obtain more mineral resources.
In a situation where even taking out loans to support wouldn¡¯t be enough, only one country¡¯s team is constantly pressured to bring in results without any government help?
And in that situation, the team members are all traitors with their eyes rolled back, trying to immigrate by sucking up to other countries? Exploitation is peaceful, I guess. Because you just have to ept unfair treatment and let them take whatever they ask for.
We¡¯re on bad terms because we resisted trying to improve things. Until now, the other guys have been sitting quietly getting extra benefits, and suddenly Korea seems to be having a fit causing them losses, so the conflict continues.¡±
¡°Has it changed now?¡±
¡°Our team leader really hatespromising or yielding at an appropriate level.¡±
Suddenly hearing his name brought up, Shin Haeryang shook his head and said,
¡°It¡¯s a story unrted to working in a special position. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡±
Baek Ae-young picked out only the jewelry withrge gemstones and poured them onto the sink piled high with banknotes. Then she gathered mainly precious metals made of diamonds and gold, which were much smaller than the gems, and put them in her pocket.
¡°Aren¡¯t you taking these?¡±
When I asked, looking at the sink, Baek Ae-young pointed to the gemstones of the rings and said,
¡°These look pretty on the outside, but they don¡¯t sell for much. In a situation like this, diamonds or gold of the same size are the best. Doctor, make sure to remember this and use itter.¡±
¡°Diamonds or gold are the best¡¡±
Gold is also the best for human teeth. Various alternatives havee out to rece gold, but we haven¡¯t found a metal that can rece gold yet.
As Shin Haeryang checked the time and got up, Seo Jihyuk, who had been almost lying on the floor, also jumped up. Baek Ae-young approached the door as if about to fly. Seo Jihyuk checked outside here and there before slipping out. Baek Ae-young followed closely behind Seo Jihyuk. Tumanako and I moved together with Shin Haeryang.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
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- BLDS Chapter 06
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- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
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- BLDS Chapter 31
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- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 161
Chapter 161
Thanks to the hair salon¡¯s proximity to the escape pod port, we were able to move to the port without any problems. When opening the door to the escape pod port, people quickly slipped inside like infiltrating shadows, pausing only briefly to check the interior.
After confirming there was no one inside, Shin Haeryang first checked the positions of the escaped pods. Seo Jihyuk surveyed the interior of the port and then approached Tumanako and me. His attitude suggested that something might attack us even if there were no people.
It was my first time entering the Third Underwater Base¡¯s escape pod port, but its structure looked simr to those in the Fourth Underwater Base. The first thing that caught my eye upon entering was the mess on the floor.
I couldn¡¯t be sure if people had fought or if it was due to injuries sustained during escape, but someone had bled on the floor, and various shoe prints had dragged through it in all directions.
The floor was a mess with blood-stained clothes, slippers with only one side removed, smashed phones, hair ties that had lost their owners ¨C perhaps loosely tied, a few coins that seemed to have fallen from pockets, broken bead essories that could have been bracelets or nes, shattered watches, and broken sses.
It felt like we had arrived after a massive human storm had passed through the escape pod port. Fortunately, there were no corpses inside the port.
The front panel showed the escape pods that had left this ce floating on the sea surface like jellyfish. While looking at the escape pods, I noticed that Baek Ae-young wasn¡¯t among our group.
¡°Ae-young is missing.¡±
Seo Jihyuk replied without looking at me.¡°She¡¯s keeping watch outside.¡±
Following Seo Jihyuk¡¯s gaze, I saw water trickling down the wall from the ceiling. An engineer who noticed the leak made a face as if he wanted to curse but quickly shifted his gaze elsewhere, holding back.
Shin Haeryang was checking the status of the escape pod waiting on theunch pad. As I stared nkly at the number [ 1 ] disyed for the remaining escape pods, Tumanako looked at the two busy men with a gloomy expression. Seo Jihyuk muttered while helping Shin Haeryang inspect the escape pod.
¡°How did you know there would be one left here? Do you know how creeped out the guys working under you get every time this happens?¡±
Shin Haeryang made a face that said ¡®not my problem¡¯ and checked theplete sealing of the escape pod without answering. Seo Jihyuk, who was looking at thepressed air connected to the escape pod, asked the team leader checking the engine on the opposite side in a whining tone.
¡°How do you know these things?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you have something like being born with a silver spoon, hearing the voice of God, or your toothpaste foam forming the shape of Jesus?¡±
¡°No.¡±
Although they were chattering, the two were quickly checking the condition of the single escape pod, seeming to spend more time on the inspection than before. While the Blue Dragon District escape pods were prepared for the Engineer A team members to use, they seemed to think this escape pod itself could be a trap. Seo Jihyuk said in a sing-song voice.
¡°It¡¯s so, so scary. Really. This is the scariest thing. It¡¯s not the thugs waiting with knives in a dark room that¡¯s scary, but that my workce superior can discern whether this bastard is cking off or not with ghost-like intuition, even with his eyes closed. That¡¯s what I find scariest in the world.¡±
Watching Seo Jihyuk move his hands and mouth incessantly, Tumanako said,
¡°I¡¯m most scared of this situation where there¡¯s only one escape pod left.¡±
¡°What¡¯s there to be scared of? We can use high-value people like us for just the price of a chocte bar.¡±
¡°Is that a good thing?¡±
Tumanako looked at Shin Haeryang and Seo Jihyuk, then asked back with a doubtful expression. Her face seemed to question whether these guys would actually help her escape. It seemed she felt this way because the Engineer A team people hadn¡¯t been much help in her escape so far. Shin Haeryang smiled lightly, and Seo Jihyuk, feeling the nozzle to check if someone had made a hole in it, raised the corners of his mouth and answered.
¡°Of course it¡¯s good. You have three people on your side until we leave Daehan Ind.¡±
Tumanako closed her mouth for a moment at those words, then opened it. Her voice was full of disbelief.
¡°Couldn¡¯t we get support from outside?¡±
¡°Should we shout from here? Maybe a dolphin wille.¡±
Despite Seo Jihyuk¡¯s nonsense, Tumanako persisted with her question.
¡°The people who left earlier in the escape pods could help us, right? Since they¡¯ve escaped the underwater base.¡±
Can the people who left in the escape pods really help those still inside the underwater base? Both men answered simultaneously to that question.
¡°Well¡¡±
¡°It seems unlikely.¡±
Tumanako asked worriedly in response to their negative answers.
¡°Why?¡±
¡°If there are swarms of these guys outside too, it might be even more troublesome.¡±
¡°Those people will be facing their own problems.¡±
Judging by their attitude, both seemed certain that there would definitely be armed Infinity Church believers on Daehan Ind as well. And they seemed to think that life on the ind wouldn¡¯t be veryfortable either. In these people¡¯s minds, the fact that those who left in the escape pods might not be able to drive boats didn¡¯t seem to be a big problem. Recalling the memory from the South District elevator, I said,
¡°Don¡¯t you think the people who left first would have sessfully left the ind by boat?¡±
I imagined Emma wearing sunsses, with a cat and snake wrapped around her shoulders and neck, singing and coolly driving a boat with one hand. Water sshing here and there as a single boat endlessly advances towards the endless horizon under the sunlight. Far enough that no bullet could reach, where the coastline ispletely out of sight.
Seo Jihyuk hesitated a bit before answering me.
¡°I hope they got away quickly and well. But it¡¯s a bit ambiguous. I think it would have been better if Ae-young had gone out in an escape pod too. Well, can¡¯t be helped.¡±
¡°Wouldn¡¯t those people be waiting for us to escape on the surface?¡±
Tumanako seemed to want a helping hand toe from outside to the underwater base where she was. Shin Haeryang simply trampled on Tumanako¡¯s hope and said,
¡°I hope not. I hope they left Daehan Ind quickly, abandoning us.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you feel hurt? When someone just leaves you behind? Not taking me along.¡±
¡°Pardon?¡±
¡°Never mind.¡±
With a sigh, Tumanako hesitated a bit before saying,
¡°¡I¡¯ve been thinking about it, and wouldn¡¯t it be better to surrender to these Infinity Church people? They wouldn¡¯t dare kill people recklessly because of fear of international attention, right? Eight advanced countries participated here, including the United States.
No matter how I think about it, wouldn¡¯t it be safer to be held quietly as hostages? Isn¡¯t running around trying to escape more of a waste of energy? Couldn¡¯t the US rescue us along with their own citizens?¡±
Shin Haeryang, while checking the exterior of the escape pod, said to Tumanako,
¡°Are you suggesting we voluntarily hand over our weapons and beg for sympathy and mercy, hoping they won¡¯t kill us? And if we get rescued as a bonuster, that¡¯s good?¡±
Tumanako was momentarily flustered by Shin Haeryang¡¯s words, then recalled her own statement and said,
¡°Wait a minute. ¡Was my statement that defeatist and negative? I thought it was quite rational. ¡Wasn¡¯t it?¡±
¡°From the moment you give up fighting, you be prey.¡±
Shin Haeryang spoke as if he had lived his entire life fighting. I¡¯ve never heard such words in my life. Is it because I¡¯ve lived without fighting? No, it¡¯s not like I¡¯ve lived only bypromising either.
Seo Jihyuk sighed, briefly looked over Tumanako with his eyes, and said,
¡°Well, they might tie you up well and put you in a corner. If I were them, I¡¯d give a woman like you a gift of one or two bullets while you were a hostage, or make a hole in this man¡¯s forehead and tie him up so he can¡¯te to his senses. Our team leader would probably get about three bullets to the head. I¡¯m against surrendering, like the team leader. Ah, Ae-young would probably be against it too. She¡¯s an ultra-violent extremist.¡±
Tumanako made an expression of disbelief at their answers and then looked at me standing beside him. Is she asking about surrender? Jennifer¡¯s eyes that I met for a moment. Those eyes had looked at me as if they still wanted to keep fighting.
¡°I¡¯ve just realized that I think I¡¯m allergic to bullets.¡±
Tumanako shook her head in disbelief. Seo Jihyuk, dusting off the soot and moisture from his hands, gestured towards us.
¡°Doctor, you can board the escape pod now.¡±
Shin Haeryang also looked at Tumanako and me while dusting off his hands. Tumanako, receiving that gaze, said to me,
¡°Honestly, I feel like I¡¯m going crazy wanting to get on that escape pod right now. I can¡¯t trust them. I want to push you aside and get on the escape pod so badly.¡±
I nodded in agreement to Tumanako¡¯s words. I couldn¡¯t believe that I was going to get on the escape pod and leave. It felt like I was floating, as if in a dream. Why am I able to go first? There¡¯s Tumanako here, and Baek Ae-young, and Yoo Geum-yi.
¡°¡You go first. I¡¯ll have another chance.¡±
Tumanako¡¯s face contorted at those words. She looked like she was about to cry.
¡°I don¡¯t like that either. Because we promised! Even if I don¡¯t like it, a promise is a promise. You might not know, but you¡¯re in really bad shape right now. You look like you might copse at any moment while walking. I¡¯d rather you be selfish. I wish you were a mean and selfish bastard so I wouldn¡¯t need to feel guilty about cursing at you.¡±
Tumanako handed me the bag she had been carrying. As I hugged the bag with both arms, Tumanako said threateningly,
¡°Get out first and escape well out there. You must return it. If my nt dies, I won¡¯t leave your hair alone when I get out.¡±
Shin Haeryang told me to stand in the designated position.
¡°It¡¯s okay to look around the ind for people who left first, but staying in the escape pod isn¡¯t a bad choice either. The escape pod¡¯s life raft deploys at a point far from Daehan Ind¡¯s beach.¡±
Seo Jihyuk said while hitting the button with the back of his hand,
¡°Well, if all else fails, just float around in the escape pod like a jellyfish. When I get up there, I¡¯ll give you a drive in the Zhu Shi¡¯an boat.¡±
The escape pod enveloped my body, and in an instant, it wasunched.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 162
Chapter 162
My first impression upon entering the escape pod was that it felt like being ced in a coffin. The passenger had to stand upright, and the distance between my body and the escape pod was incredibly close. If two adults had entered here, they would have been so tightly packed that they couldn¡¯t move and would barely be able to breathe.
It gave the feeling of being forcibly trapped in a single-person elevator, a space so small that a ustrophobic person would likely faint within three seconds of entering. I closed my eyes as soon as the escape pod door shut, with Tumanako¡¯s eyes being thest thing I saw.
The moment I realized I was trapped alone in this narrow escape pod, fear suddenly struck me. Struggling not to be swept away by the overwhelming wave of fear, I tried tofort myself and instill confidence.
This is a safe ce.
I am perfectly protected.
There¡¯s nothing dangerous anymore.
If I wait here for a little while, I can leave the underwater base.
As I closed my eyes, took slow deep breaths, andposed myself, a surprising sense of calm washed over me. It felt like I was wedged into a tight space like a narrow wardrobe or under a bed, ces I used to hide in as a child.
In reality, the interior of the escape pod was seamlessly wrapped in a soft, pliable material like a tube to reduce impact. When I opened my eyes, an improved light green perfluorodecalin explosively gushed out, enveloping my entire body in 0.5 seconds.I was momentarily frightened by the soft light green liquid continuously flooding into my mouth and nostrils. However, knowing that this liquid wasn¡¯t toxic to the body, I tried to breathe in and out as usual. Although my body instinctively rejected the liquid filling my bronchi and lungs, the more I tried to breathe, the more I was automatically submerged in the liquid.
My lungs, startled by this sudden cmity, began to protest vigorously to me, their owner. Unable to breathe as before, my chest burned with pain. ording to the underwater base guidebook, it shouldn¡¯t be very painful, but thinking about it now, that exnation was aplete lie. It felt like my chest was on fire.
My chest and bronchi hurt and stung so much that I wondered if drowning would be this painful. Tears fell without me realizing it, but the soft light green liquidpletely swallowed them, leaving no trace. Like a creature identally fallen into a sticky swamp, I desperately iled my limbs and resisted with screams. But the more I struggled, the more it felt like I had plunged into a drink cup made of green jelly.
Only when the pain reached a level where I thought I might just die did I finally manage to breathe. It was so amazing to be able to breathe through my nose in the liquid that I tried various experiments and ended up forcibly drinking about a cup¡¯s worth. It was salty enough to jolt me awake.
They said they added a bit of saltiness to prevent passengers from drinking too much, but after actually tasting it, I thought seawater might be sweeter. Forgetting that I waspletely submerged in liquid, I instinctively tried to spit it out with a ¡°ptooey,¡± but as it rushed into my mouth, I had to swallow about another mouthful while crying.
As soon as the pain in my chest subsided slightly, I thought of the people who had taken the escape pod before me. Did Henry really go through this pain? ¡When I meet their parents, I¡¯m going to grab them by the cor first.
As I breathed with a gurgling sound, I suddenly started to worry about the Rapidopora in my bag. Would it be okay? I hadn¡¯t heard anything about this liquid affecting nts or animals. Tumanako had said he wouldn¡¯t leave me alone if anything happened to the Rapidopora, and it didn¡¯t sound like an empty threat.
I thought that to prevent all my hair from being shaved off, I¡¯d have to shake out the roots of the Rapidopora in my bag as soon as I reached the sea surface, no matter what.
Basically, the escape pod is single-use and designed for one person. As it approaches the surface, a life raft automatically deploys to prevent the escape pod from sinking due to its weight, and allows the person in the escape pod to survive in the sea until rescue.
ording to the guidebook, each escape pod has a GPS and a Search and Rescue Radar Transponder (SART) that continuously sends rescue request signals to nearby ships. If a ship passes near the escape pod, it will be disyed on that ship¡¯s radar indicating the escape pod¡¯s location.
The attitude that escape pod passengers should take is to survive diligently and wait for rescue. I¡¯ve heard that nowadays, sea rescues are more often done by drones, but since this is my first experience with anything sea-rted, I¡¯m not sure. I¡¯ll be rescued. I just need to wait. I calmed myself down as I breathed in the light green liquid.
In the early days, it¡¯s said that there was nothing disyed inside the escape pods used underwater. In the cramped escape pod, passengers couldn¡¯t see outside, and there was nothing to look at except their own watch.
So, people who used escape pods in the beginning had to hope that the pod, twice their size, would properly reach the sea surface while they were trapped unable to move. It¡¯s horrifying just to imagine.
Moreover, they didn¡¯t know when to open the escape pod door. Apparently, it was designed so that the door could be opened after a certain amount of time had passed. If a person in the escape pod identally opened the door while ascending to the surface, they would have been forced to swim with the marlins.
In fact, someone who had taken an escape pod only opened the door after what they thought was enough time for it to have reached the surface, but for some reason, they were thrown into the water at a depth of 30 meters. That person was able to barely survive because they were a skilled diver, but thinking about my current situation, it¡¯s terrifyingly frightening.
Initially, it seems they thought it was a waste of money to install additional features like panels showing the escape pod¡¯s position or disying time in these single-use pods.
All safety protocols and rescue agreements were written in blood and lives, but it wasn¡¯t until escape pod passengers started dying during their ascent that panels were installed inside the pods so passengers could check how far they hade.
Instead of just yelling at people to endure for a mere 15 minutes, they finally acknowledged, muchter, that in a situation where one has to use an escape pod, the passenger is already in a terrible mental state due to anxiety and tension, and in that state, they can¡¯t make rational decisions.
They started to pay a little attention to cases where ustrophobic patients couldn¡¯t bear being trapped in a narrow space and opened the emergency release of the sealed escape pod door mid-ascent, or to the situations of people who couldn¡¯t stay still in one position due to injury or disability. Only after countless people had died because of money.
Today¡¯s escape pods have undergone numerous improvements. In addition to the escape pod door opening automatically, the rescue boat deploys automatically before reaching the surface, so the passenger doesn¡¯t need to do anything. If you search inside the escape pod, there should also be a life jacket avable for temporary use.
Thinking about it now, I couldn¡¯t understand how people in the early days used escape pods with such anxiety. No,e to think of it, they didn¡¯t use them because they wanted to. They must have used them because they had no choice.
When the escape pod wasunched, the red dot that had been at -1000m was now passing -500m. I carefully watched my escape pod move. At this speed, it would soon reach -200m where the Second Underwater Base was located.
The escape pod was moving faster than I had expected. It was rocketing towards the surface at an incredible speed while withstanding the high pressure of the deep sea. If the escape pod encounters marine life along the way, it¡¯s said that they would bepletely torn apart by the pod¡¯s speed. I couldn¡¯t imagine how chaotic the sea would be with numerous escape pods ascending to the surface all at once.
Please, let there be no marine life in the path of my ascending escape pod. Especially no whales.
I hate the thought of making a hole in the magnificent body of that wonderful creature, and I also don¡¯t want my escape pod to crash into it and break down.
¡Sharks are okay though. If my escape pod crashes into the shark that bit my side while ascending, that¡¯s fine. That¡¯s really unavoidable. I made wishes frantically without any god.
The escape pod was now passing -300m. There¡¯s nothing you can do inside an escape pod. You just wait quietly. After the initially scary time passed, I just felt bored and anxious. I hate waiting so much.
I stroked the smooth cloth bag hanging on my shoulder with my fingertips. What if Tumanako had taken the escape pod? If I had stayed in the underwater base, could I have been of a little more help to others? ¡Or not. I might have been more of a burden. I probably wouldn¡¯t have been of much help to others, then or now. It¡¯s hard enough to take care of myself.
Seo Jihyuk, Baek Ae-young, and Shin Haeryang, who remained in the underwater base, must have desperately wanted to take the escape pod too. They just didn¡¯t show it outwardly. ¡I feel so ashamed for taking the escape pod after having my seat given up by kids younger than me. If I were even a year older, I should be taking responsibility for that much more time lived.
The red escape pod was now passing the number -200m. We had struggled so much, walking up those broken stairs in the darkness to reach that ce. It felt ridiculous that I was easily passing the Second Underwater Base just by sitting still in the escape pod, and it made meugh.
As the escape pod kept ascending, worry for the people left in the underwater base and concern for those on Daehan Ind washed over me simultaneously. How would the people left in the underwater base now enter the Second Underwater Base and make it to the surface? The path I had taken with them only reached the cable car of the Second Underwater Base, and it seemed like a failed route no matter how I thought about it.
Would three armed people and one civilian be okay? Would things be different this time? I chewed over all the regrets and remorse from the first attempt, ultimately concluding that it couldn¡¯t be helped.
I couldn¡¯t have done better. Those people and I must have made the best choices we could in that situation. Even if I could turn back time, I couldn¡¯t have done any better. They¡¯ll do better now that I¡¯m not there.
Lee Jihyun, Yoo Geum-yi, Henry, Kang Soojung, and Shuran would be on Daehan Ind. I hope they¡¯re doing well and safe. Emma would have escaped well. She would be hiding somewhere with the cat and snake, avoiding capture by the armed people. Emma can curl up so small she can¡¯t be found, she has good athletic ability, and she runs quickly.
I hope Kang Soojung has already taken everyone else and left by boat for the Marshall Inds or Hawaii. I should just look at the sky until someonees to find the escape pod. Even if a typhoon rages outside, sea water and rainsh my face, and lightning strikes the escape pod, I wanted to breathe the outside air. I will absolutely not go back into the sea.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 163
Chapter 163
My first impression upon entering the escape pod was that it felt like being ced in a coffin. The passenger had to stand upright, and the distance between my body and the escape pod was incredibly close. If two adults had entered here, they would have been so tightly packed that they couldn¡¯t move and would barely be able to breathe.
It gave the feeling of being forcibly trapped in a single-person elevator, a space so small that a ustrophobic person would likely faint within three seconds of entering. I closed my eyes as soon as the escape pod door shut, with Tumanako¡¯s eyes being thest thing I saw.
The moment I realized I was trapped alone in this narrow escape pod, fear suddenly struck me. Struggling not to be swept away by the overwhelming wave of fear, I tried tofort myself and instill confidence.
This is a safe ce.
I am perfectly protected.
There¡¯s nothing dangerous anymore.
If I wait here for a little while, I can leave the underwater base.
As I closed my eyes, took slow deep breaths, andposed myself, a surprising sense of calm washed over me. It felt like I was wedged into a tight space like a narrow wardrobe or under a bed, ces I used to hide in as a child.
In reality, the interior of the escape pod was seamlessly wrapped in a soft, pliable material like a tube to reduce impact. When I opened my eyes, an improved light green perfluorodecalin explosively gushed out, enveloping my entire body in 0.5 seconds.I was momentarily frightened by the soft light green liquid continuously flooding into my mouth and nostrils. However, knowing that this liquid wasn¡¯t toxic to the body, I tried to breathe in and out as usual. Although my body instinctively rejected the liquid filling my bronchi and lungs, the more I tried to breathe, the more I was automatically submerged in the liquid.
My lungs, startled by this sudden cmity, began to protest vigorously to me, their owner. Unable to breathe as before, my chest burned with pain. ording to the underwater base guidebook, it shouldn¡¯t be very painful, but thinking about it now, that exnation was aplete lie. It felt like my chest was on fire.
My chest and bronchi hurt and stung so much that I wondered if drowning would be this painful. Tears fell without me realizing it, but the soft light green liquidpletely swallowed them, leaving no trace. Like a creature identally fallen into a sticky swamp, I desperately iled my limbs and resisted with screams. But the more I struggled, the more it felt like I had plunged into a drink cup made of green jelly.
Only when the pain reached a level where I thought I might just die did I finally manage to breathe. It was so amazing to be able to breathe through my nose in the liquid that I tried various experiments and ended up forcibly drinking about a cup¡¯s worth. It was salty enough to jolt me awake.
They said they added a bit of saltiness to prevent passengers from drinking too much, but after actually tasting it, I thought seawater might be sweeter. Forgetting that I waspletely submerged in liquid, I instinctively tried to spit it out with a ¡°ptooey,¡± but as it rushed into my mouth, I had to swallow about another mouthful while crying.
As soon as the pain in my chest subsided slightly, I thought of the people who had taken the escape pod before me. Did Henry really go through this pain? ¡When I meet their parents, I¡¯m going to grab them by the cor first.
As I breathed with a gurgling sound, I suddenly started to worry about the Rapidopora in my bag. Would it be okay? I hadn¡¯t heard anything about this liquid affecting nts or animals. Tumanako had said he wouldn¡¯t leave me alone if anything happened to the Rapidopora, and it didn¡¯t sound like an empty threat.
I thought that to prevent all my hair from being shaved off, I¡¯d have to shake out the roots of the Rapidopora in my bag as soon as I reached the sea surface, no matter what.
Basically, the escape pod is single-use and designed for one person. As it approaches the surface, a life raft automatically deploys to prevent the escape pod from sinking due to its weight, and allows the person in the escape pod to survive in the sea until rescue.
ording to the guidebook, each escape pod has a GPS and a Search and Rescue Radar Transponder (SART) that continuously sends rescue request signals to nearby ships. If a ship passes near the escape pod, it will be disyed on that ship¡¯s radar indicating the escape pod¡¯s location.
The attitude that escape pod passengers should take is to survive diligently and wait for rescue. I¡¯ve heard that nowadays, sea rescues are more often done by drones, but since this is my first experience with anything sea-rted, I¡¯m not sure. I¡¯ll be rescued. I just need to wait. I calmed myself down as I breathed in the light green liquid.
In the early days, it¡¯s said that there was nothing disyed inside the escape pods used underwater. In the cramped escape pod, passengers couldn¡¯t see outside, and there was nothing to look at except their own watch.
So, people who used escape pods in the beginning had to hope that the pod, twice their size, would properly reach the sea surface while they were trapped unable to move. It¡¯s horrifying just to imagine.
Moreover, they didn¡¯t know when to open the escape pod door. Apparently, it was designed so that the door could be opened after a certain amount of time had passed. If a person in the escape pod identally opened the door while ascending to the surface, they would have been forced to swim with the marlins.
In fact, someone who had taken an escape pod only opened the door after what they thought was enough time for it to have reached the surface, but for some reason, they were thrown into the water at a depth of 30 meters. That person was able to barely survive because they were a skilled diver, but thinking about my current situation, it¡¯s terrifyingly frightening.
Initially, it seems they thought it was a waste of money to install additional features like panels showing the escape pod¡¯s position or disying time in these single-use pods.
All safety protocols and rescue agreements were written in blood and lives, but it wasn¡¯t until escape pod passengers started dying during their ascent that panels were installed inside the pods so passengers could check how far they hade.
Instead of just yelling at people to endure for a mere 15 minutes, they finally acknowledged, muchter, that in a situation where one has to use an escape pod, the passenger is already in a terrible mental state due to anxiety and tension, and in that state, they can¡¯t make rational decisions.
They started to pay a little attention to cases where ustrophobic patients couldn¡¯t bear being trapped in a narrow space and opened the emergency release of the sealed escape pod door mid-ascent, or to the situations of people who couldn¡¯t stay still in one position due to injury or disability. Only after countless people had died because of money.
Today¡¯s escape pods have undergone numerous improvements. In addition to the escape pod door opening automatically, the rescue boat deploys automatically before reaching the surface, so the passenger doesn¡¯t need to do anything. If you search inside the escape pod, there should also be a life jacket avable for temporary use.
Thinking about it now, I couldn¡¯t understand how people in the early days used escape pods with such anxiety. No,e to think of it, they didn¡¯t use them because they wanted to. They must have used them because they had no choice.
When the escape pod wasunched, the red dot that had been at -1000m was now passing -500m. I carefully watched my escape pod move. At this speed, it would soon reach -200m where the Second Underwater Base was located.
The escape pod was moving faster than I had expected. It was rocketing towards the surface at an incredible speed while withstanding the high pressure of the deep sea. If the escape pod encounters marine life along the way, it¡¯s said that they would bepletely torn apart by the pod¡¯s speed. I couldn¡¯t imagine how chaotic the sea would be with numerous escape pods ascending to the surface all at once.
Please, let there be no marine life in the path of my ascending escape pod. Especially no whales.
I hate the thought of making a hole in the magnificent body of that wonderful creature, and I also don¡¯t want my escape pod to crash into it and break down.
¡Sharks are okay though. If my escape pod crashes into the shark that bit my side while ascending, that¡¯s fine. That¡¯s really unavoidable. I made wishes frantically without any god.
The escape pod was now passing -300m. There¡¯s nothing you can do inside an escape pod. You just wait quietly. After the initially scary time passed, I just felt bored and anxious. I hate waiting so much.
I stroked the smooth cloth bag hanging on my shoulder with my fingertips. What if Tumanako had taken the escape pod? If I had stayed in the underwater base, could I have been of a little more help to others? ¡Or not. I might have been more of a burden. I probably wouldn¡¯t have been of much help to others, then or now. It¡¯s hard enough to take care of myself.
Seo Jihyuk, Baek Ae-young, and Shin Haeryang, who remained in the underwater base, must have desperately wanted to take the escape pod too. They just didn¡¯t show it outwardly. ¡I feel so ashamed for taking the escape pod after having my seat given up by kids younger than me. If I were even a year older, I should be taking responsibility for that much more time lived.
The red escape pod was now passing the number -200m. We had struggled so much, walking up those broken stairs in the darkness to reach that ce. It felt ridiculous that I was easily passing the Second Underwater Base just by sitting still in the escape pod, and it made meugh.
As the escape pod kept ascending, worry for the people left in the underwater base and concern for those on Daehan Ind washed over me simultaneously. How would the people left in the underwater base now enter the Second Underwater Base and make it to the surface? The path I had taken with them only reached the cable car of the Second Underwater Base, and it seemed like a failed route no matter how I thought about it.
Would three armed people and one civilian be okay? Would things be different this time? I chewed over all the regrets and remorse from the first attempt, ultimately concluding that it couldn¡¯t be helped.
I couldn¡¯t have done better. Those people and I must have made the best choices we could in that situation. Even if I could turn back time, I couldn¡¯t have done any better. They¡¯ll do better now that I¡¯m not there.
Lee Jihyun, Yoo Geum-yi, Henry, Kang Soojung, and Shuran would be on Daehan Ind. I hope they¡¯re doing well and safe. Emma would have escaped well. She would be hiding somewhere with the cat and snake, avoiding capture by the armed people. Emma can curl up so small she can¡¯t be found, she has good athletic ability, and she runs quickly.
I hope Kang Soojung has already taken everyone else and left by boat for the Marshall Inds or Hawaii. I should just look at the sky until someonees to find the escape pod. Even if a typhoon rages outside, sea water and rainsh my face, and lightning strikes the escape pod, I wanted to breathe the outside air. I will absolutely not go back into the sea.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 164
Chapter 164
I was terrified that the door might not open due to the water, but fortunately, it opened, albeit slowly. Perhaps because there was water everywhere inside and out. I grabbed just one towel and sshed out of the room, hearing the emergency rm ringing throughout the West District dormitory.
I had never been in the room until it got to this state. This is insane. Really. As I wiped my face, which was a mess of nosebleed, tears, saliva, and seawater, with the towel, I came out of the room to find no sign of anyone. I was the only one wandering around the West District dormitory where the emergency rm was urgently ringing. Had all the Russians left? What about Carlos? Is Yoo Geum-yi not in her room because she left in an escape pod?
I waded through the water rising up to my calves and checked Carlos and Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s rooms. Both rooms were empty, without their owners. All sorts of odds and ends were floating in the cluttered rooms. Only the water level was quietly rising.
It was unclear whether Yoo Geum-yi¡¯s absence was because she had left in an escape pod in the previous iteration, or if she had been in her room but I missed her leaving because I overslept.
Do people who go up to the surface disappear from within this underwater base? Is that why the snake and cat are gone too? If Yoo Geum-yi isn¡¯t in the current underwater base because she escaped in an escape pod, then Henry must be gone too. Then what happened to Tumanako? Did Tumanako sessfully leave the underwater base? What if she¡¯s still in her room?
If Yoo Geum-yi didn¡¯t disappear from this underwater base like the snake or cat, but left while I was sleeping, then Henry would be left alone, asleep in this flooding dormitory. Moreover, if Shin Haeryang, Seo Jihyuk, and Baek Ae-young failed, Tumanako would be here too. Would she be listening to music with headphones on, unaware of the emergency alert, like before? I stood in the hallway, pondering where to go.
Should I go check Henry¡¯s room, or should I go check Tumanako¡¯s room?
I licked my parched mouth with my tongue. Why is it always like this? Why can I only go to one ce? The corridor was rapidly filling with water, not waiting for me to make up my mind.
Judging by this noisy emergency rm, dimir must have taken his team members out.After a brief deliberation, I decided on a direction and started walking. As the water now rose past my calves to my thighs, even moving forward was not easy.
¡Yoo Geum-yi left in an escape pod. Henry left then too. They won¡¯t be in this underwater base. If they were, the cat and snake should have remained too.
What if the cat and snake are suddenly in the room? What if Henry is in the room, and all my thoughts are wrong? Anxiety began to creep up, trying to gnaw at my mind. I tried to steel myself. Once I¡¯ve made a choice, don¡¯t waver.
As I waded through the water, I had just passed room 24. Room 23 was Baek Ae-young¡¯s room, and I was about to pass it like the other rooms when I paused, seeing the dressing table inside.
The essory box on top of the dressing table had [Touch and lose your wrist] written in variousnguages. ording to Baek Ae-young, there should be items made of gold and diamonds in there. She regretted leaving them so much, would she be happy if I brought them to her? ¡Let¡¯s just quickly grab the essory box and go. As soon as I made the decision, I rushed into the room.
I was about to reach for the dressing table that was just about to be submerged when I realized my hands were a mess with nosebleed. Deciding that both wasting time washing my hands in dirty seawater and touching someone else¡¯s belongings with blood-covered hands were equally terrible options, I wrapped my hand with the towel I had around my neck. Then I reached for the jewellery box, which was beautifully andvishly decorated. As soon as I touched it, my body froze.
Only after I managed to remove my hand thanks to the towel did I realize what had happened. My left hand, which had touched the box, was trembling and convulsing.
I don¡¯t know what Baek Ae-young had installed on her dressing table, but it seemed like she intended to burn off the palm of anyone who dared to touch her jewelry box at will. Even with my hand wrapped in the towel, it was tingling and shaking. Thanks to the towel I survived, but if I had grabbed it directly, I might have died of a heart attack in this flooded ce.
I backed away at the chilling thought. Every object in Baek Ae-young¡¯s room now looked like a trap.
As I hurriedly left that room, a pad on the desk in the next room caught my eye. This was fine before. Would it be okay this time too? I carefully picked up the pad from Shin Haeryang¡¯s room. There was no hidden electric shock or anything. I sighed in relief as I left the room and walked back into the corridor.
Kicking through the water, I approached Tumanako¡¯s room. As I walked to room 12, I could hear singing, despite being quite far from room 8. I was both very d and incredibly sad to hear that singing. ¡She didn¡¯t make it out.
Like a boatman enchanted by a siren¡¯s song, I headed towards Tumanako¡¯s room. The New Zend siren was lying on the top bunk, wearing headphones and singing vigorously. The lyrics of a very old song flowed into my brain.
[We¡¯re just lost stars trying to light up the dark!]
It seemed she waspletely unconcerned that the West District dormitory was flooding and that the Grim Reaper might be swinging his scythe right up to her side. Tumanako¡¯s confidence and joy, which we hadn¡¯t seen during our journey together, were bursting out from the top bunk of room 8. For a few seconds, her carefree voice and lyrics made me forget the reality that we were trapped underwater, unable to leave.
I called out to Tumanako with a smile from outside the room, but my voice was drowned out by her singing. I entered the room, intending to remove her headphones or shake her arm as before. I was afraid that if I touched her leg, she might kick out in surprise.
Using the metal drawer below as a foothold, I climbed up and grabbed her arm to shake it. At that moment, a startled Tumanako let out a short scream and sat up. Anticipating her reaction, I had pushed my hand between the ceiling and her head. Her head, which would have hit the ceiling directly, ended up hitting my hand as a cushion instead. I spoke to Tumanako as our eyes met.
¡°Water is leaking in, we need to get out quickly.¡±
¡°Huh? Oh? Okay.¡±
Tumanako took off her headphones and, looking down at the flooded floor from the top bunk bed set so high it almost touched the ceiling, uttered words simr to curses.
While Tumanako wasing down, I heard a very faint noise from the corridor of room 8. Along with the emergency rm, it was too far to hear properly, but it sounded like someone shouting from a distance. The empty corridor had nothing but floating objects.
Nevertheless, the sound could be heard faintly from afar. The moment I recognized it as definitely a human voice, I felt my heart sink. Could someone have failed to escape? Could it be Henry? Was my judgment wrong? As I walked towards room 11, wading through the water that had now risen to my waist, following the voice, Tumanako called out to me.
¡°If you go that way, we¡¯ll run out of time! We need to go this way.¡±
At that moment, someone shouted very softly.
¡°¡Jihyun-ah!¡±
At first, I couldn¡¯t make out what was being said, but after hearing the shout five or six times, I finally heard ¡°Jihyun-ah!¡± I shouted back.
¡°She¡¯s not here! She¡¯s not here!¡±
Tumanako, seemingly frustrated by my muffled voice, took a deep breath and shouted loudly in my ce.
¡°She¡¯s not heeeeeeere!¡±
¡Maybe she should be a singer? I was startled by Tumanako¡¯s voice, which was loud enough to burst eardrums. Tumanako grabbed my forearm and started walking quickly towards the stairs next to room 1.
It wasn¡¯t easy to walk through the water that was already rising to our chests, and Tumanako, who was walking ahead, almost slipped twice. I, who was more like bouncing and floating than walking, barely managed to catch Tumanako before she slipped. Having be ustomed to walking in water, I was a bit scared of the rapidly rising water, but I wasn¡¯t as panicked and terrified as before.
We managed to reach the stairs just as the water rose from our shoulders to our necks. After climbing the stairs and closing the door, we could finally catch our breath. Everything was soaked except for the pad I had been carrying in my hand andter almost holding in my mouth.
¡°We almost died.¡±
¡°Yeah, we did.¡±
¡°I¡¯m Tumanako. And you?¡±
Tumanako introduced herself while wringing out the bottom of her long-sleeved T-shirt. I, also soaking wet, coughed and answered.
¡°I¡¯m Park Moohyun. I¡¯m a dentist.¡±
¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m a hair designer.¡±
We walked down the wet corridor until we reached the central staircase, where we found a group of engineers gathered. Two people were holding one person down like in a wrestling match ¨C the person being held down was Seo Jihyuk, and the ones pinning him were Baek Ae-young and Viktor.
¡°Let go! Fuck! Let go!¡±
¡°Stay still!¡±
Seo Jihyuk was hurling curses at Viktor, who was restraining his lower body. Baek Ae-young, who had twisted and pinned Seo Jihyuk¡¯s arms with her legs, was venting her frustration at him.
Viktor was using his entire body to press down on Seo Jihyuk¡¯s legs, but unlike the other two, he remained silent. His strength was so impressive that despite the two of them clinging to Seo Jihyuk, Baek Ae-young¡¯s legs were being dragged around by Seo Jihyuk¡¯s arm strength.
Niki was closing the stairway door, where water had reached the threshold, seemingly determined not to get involved with the three rolling around behind him. After barely managing to close the barrier door connected to the stairs using his body, water still leaked out, overflowing. Baek Ae-young spoke to the struggling Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Give up.¡±
¡°I definitely heard it!¡±
Baek Ae-young, frowning, spoke again. Her expression suggested she wanted to beat Seo Jihyuk but was holding back.
¡°Give up.¡±
¡°I¡¯m telling you, someone called me!¡±
Baek Ae-young punched Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face with her left fist. The punch was so natural that the fact that Baek Ae-young had hit someone¡¯s face took a moment to register.
¡°Give up.¡±
¡°¡No!¡±
¡°What are you doing?!¡±
I felt that if I didn¡¯t intervene, Baek Ae-young would punch Seo Jihyuk again. Even though people knew we were approaching from a distance, they didn¡¯t let go of Seo Jihyuk. Niki took his hands off the barrier door and spat out Russian curses as he spoke.
¡°This guy wants to go in there! He¡¯spletely crazy!¡±
¡°I definitely heard a woman¡¯s scream!¡±
¡°Whether it¡¯s a woman¡¯s scream or a man¡¯s scream, give up!¡±
¡°Jihyun might have called out after hearing my voice from inside.¡±
¡°Jihyun isn¡¯t in there.¡±
At those words, Seo Jihyuk¡¯s struggling body suddenly stopped. Everyone¡¯s eyes turned to me. Seo Jihyuk calmly asked me.
¡°How do you know that?¡±
¡°I checked from room 38 to room 1, and there¡¯s no one there.¡±
¡°But I definitely heard a woman¡¯s scream.¡±
Niki said irritably to Seo Jihyuk.
¡°That¡¯s something only you, who¡¯s lost your mind, heard!¡±
¡°My ears are better than your bullshit about it being a Rusalka (Russian ghost maiden) sound!¡±
Seo Jihyuk snapped back.
¡°Um, I think that might have been because of me shouting.¡±
Tumanako hesitantly answered, and Seo Jihyuk stared at her for a long time. As Seo Jihyuk¡¯s body, which had stopped resisting, began to go limp, Viktor looked at Baek Ae-young. When Baek Ae-young nodded, Viktor released Seo Jihyuk¡¯s legs.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 165
Chapter 165
Baek Ae-young unwrapped her legs and released Seo Jihyuk¡¯s arms that she had been restraining. On closer inspection, both Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young were soaked up to their thighs in seawater. It seemed they had gone down to the bottom of the stairs, shouting, before being caught by others and forcibly brought up. Seo Jihyuk spoke in a dejected voice.
¡°Then where are they?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know. Since they¡¯re not in the dormitory, let¡¯s go back to the escape pod port as we agreed beforehand and wait for the team leader to bring some news.¡±
Baek Ae-young said while rotating her ankle and knee that she had strained. I asked Seo Jihyuk, who looked anxious.
¡°Have team members disappeared?¡±
¡°Yes. Our team¡¯s deputy leader and Jihyun are missing. Lee Jihyun. The prettiest and most angelic girl in this godforsaken ce has disappeared. ¡Doctor, are you sure there was no one in the rooms? Maybe the wardrobe wasn¡¯t secured properly and fell on someone, or you missed someone hidden under a pile of nkets. They might have been hiding under a desk out of fear.¡±
I had scanned the rooms as I passed by, but there was no one. In my opinion, Jihyun seemed to be missing because she had left in an escape pod.
¡°There was no one in the dormitory. I¡¯m certain. By the way, did you see Yoo Geum-yi on your way here?¡±
¡°No. Hey, Great White Shark.¡±¡°I didn¡¯t see her either.¡±
These people seemed to havee from the escape pod port area, and if Yoo Geum-yi wasn¡¯t there, Henry wouldn¡¯t be either. As I set down the heavy stone of tension that had been sitting on my chest, I inwardly sighed in relief. Niki suddenly approached me and asked.
¡°Our team members are missing too. Irina and Dmitri. We came out in such a hurry, but did you happen to see two Russians in the dormitory?¡±
¡°¡They weren¡¯t in the West District dormitory, so you might need to look elsewhere.¡±
If Sumire¡¯s words were correct, those people probably wouldn¡¯t be in the dormitory. Niki, perhaps feeling hungover, clutched his head and frowned as he looked at the soaked people and the less wet ones. An air of fatigue and difort hung around everyone.
As Viktor yawned loudly and started walking towards the escape pod port, the rest followed. Everyone was silent, perhaps exhausted from either trying to escape or from restraining others. We walked quietly towards the escape pod port, leaving wet footprints on the floor, when suddenly Seo Jihyuk spoke out of the blue to Baek Ae-young.
¡°I think someone must have kidnapped them.¡±
¡°Both the deputy leader and Jihyun unni in that short time?¡±
Although Baek Ae-young seemed to ask the question with a tone of contempt, Seo Jihyuk unflinchingly expounded his kidnapping theory.
¡°They must have taken Jihyun hostage first, then threatened the deputy leader and kidnapped her too. It takes less than 3 seconds to disappear from sight when a weapon is pointed at you.¡±
¡°And the three of us were such idiots that none of us noticed? Please. Say something that makes sense. ¡If that¡¯s true, we should all retire out of sheer embarrassment.¡±
Niki, who had been walking with his brow furrowed, was staggering ahead, swaying back and forth with an unsteady gait that looked like he might fall at any moment. Walking behind Niki, I thought about three times, ¡®Isn¡¯t he going to fall?¡¯ Around that time, Niki responded to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s words.
¡°Only two women from your team disappeared, right? Isn¡¯t it like what happened to Irina before?¡±
¡°What happened to Irina? Do people suddenly disappear in the underwater base?¡±
When Tumanako, who had been listening silently, asked curiously, Niki frowned and closed his mouth. An ufortable silence fell. Those who knew the answer to the question seemed reluctant to bring up such a topic, while those who didn¡¯t know were just reading the atmosphere. I directed my question to the person who seemed kinder than Niki and could be the relief pitcher for this silence.
¡°Jihyuk, when and how did these two people disappear? ¡If you keep clenching your jaw like that, you¡¯ll probably be seeing me again soon.¡±
Seo Jihyuk seemed to be trying to appear calm on the outside. The Seo Jihyuk who was dying from a gunshot wound endured the pain with sheer willpower, but somehow, the mental exhaustion now seemed simr to then.
¡°Huh? ¡Ah. We were repairing the outer wall when there was a problem outside, so we hurriedly came in through the outer wall entrance next to the escape pod port. We took off our equipment, had some water, and when we entered the connecting passage to the escape pod port, people were gone.¡±
¡°Did they suddenly disappear while walking? How did you find out?¡±
¡°When I looked back, they were gone. I¡¯m sure I heard Jihyun¡¯s footsteps behind me. The sound of her footsteps stopped, and when I turned around, she wasn¡¯t there.¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had been listening to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s exnation, sighed and muttered so quietly that no one else could hear. Since I was walking next to Baek Ae-young, I could barely make out her soft voice. ¡°Geez. Ugh. Just listening to the exnation makes him sound like a total pervert.¡± I pretended not to hear Baek Ae-young¡¯s muttering and asked Seo Jihyuk an additional question.
¡°What about Ms. Soojung?¡±
¡°The deputy leader asked the team leader if he had seen her pad because it was missing. When the team leader turned to answer, she was gone.¡±
¡°What time did they disappear? Do you remember?¡±
¡°It was 07:02 AM Korea time.¡±
That¡¯s the time I woke up in bed? A chill ran down my spine. Then maybe¡ How should I exin this? It seems that people who escaped in escape pods at that time disappeared from this underwater base.
¡Huh? Then, the South District Research Center was initially too damaged by missiles to enter, but the second time, people had managed to escape to some extent through escape pods. The previous time, it waspletely destroyed by missiles again.
If this time the missile damage to the South District Research Center isn¡¯t as extensive, wouldn¡¯t the chances of the research center people surviving be greater than before? Since there are people who have already escaped to the surface using escape pods, wouldn¡¯t the remaining people be able to use the escape pods, minus the number of people who have already used them?
No, then why couldn¡¯t the people staying in this West District dormitory escape? Ah, right. ¡The escape pods here were damaged. Then are the people who take the damaged escape pods continuously dying in the same way?
If so, what happens if someone else tries to escape in the next iteration using an escape pod that was used by someone who escaped previously? Is there no problem even if they use it that way? The escape pods are designed for one person, aren¡¯t they?
If leaving here by taking an escape pod means disappearing in the first ce, shouldn¡¯t there be many escape pods left when we went to the Third Underwater Base? Because the personnel in the Third Underwater Base would have already escaped to the surface many times over multiple iterations using escape pods. Then what is it? Do the iterations not ovep?
Then why weren¡¯t the snake and cat there before? ¡Surely they¡¯re not in the room this iteration? Maybe only the people who saw me leave in an escape pod get to escape? No way. I quickly mocked my own excessive self-consciousness and gave up trying to understand theplicated situation.
I hope the South District Research Center didn¡¯t suffer much missile damage so we can go there. Rather than this, I feel like it would be faster to understand if I just threw myself in front of a smart physicist like Emma and begged her to exin while crying. Myck of knowledge leads to such poor results.
If I had studied physics, would it have helped in this situation? No. If we¡¯re going down that road, if I had just a bit more medical knowledge about gunshot wounds, no, no. If I had more knowledge about firearms, or knew more about how to handle disaster situations, wouldn¡¯t we have avoided getting to this point? If I had just exercised more diligently in my life, I might have been better off than now.
No. Think about it. I¡¯m a dentist. I chose to be cooped up in a small room from morning until quitting time, staring into people¡¯s mouths. Physics, gunshot wounds, or whatever, these aren¡¯t the kind of knowledge I would normally encounter.
In the first ce, I think it was a mistake to submit my resume here. I should have worked onnd even if it meant dying on the street. What was I thinking, applying to an underwater base, getting bitten by a shark, nearly dying from drinking seawater.
As I was reflecting on my past actions and engaging in all sorts of introspection, Seo Jihyuk added, trying to rx his jaw:
¡°Honestly, I¡¯m not too worried about the deputy leader. She¡¯s small, lightweight, and it¡¯s Jihyun, who hasn¡¯t thrown many punches, that I¡¯m really worried about.¡±
¡°Really? I¡¯m terribly worried about both of them. Given their personalities.¡±
At Baek Ae-young¡¯s words, Seo Jihyuk hesitated before quickly correcting himself.
¡°¡Thanks for making me look like trash in an instant. I¡¯m worried about both of them too. Boo-hoo-hoo. Jihyun, where did you go? Sob. At least stick close to the deputy leader. How could they hide someone of her size? If you stay together, we could find you faster, couldn¡¯t we?¡±
As Seo Jihyuk startedmenting while walking, Tumanako asked Baek Ae-young. She seemed afraid that she might disappear suddenly too, hearing that people had vanished.
¡°Weren¡¯t there any precursor symptoms before people disappeared? I walk around here alone every day. If I hear such things, I won¡¯t even be able to go to the bathroom.¡±
¡°There weren¡¯t any.¡±
¡°Hmm. Then has anyone suddenly disappeared like this before?¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had been looking at Tumanako, closed her mouth and then frowned.
¡°This is different from that.¡±
¡°How is it different?¡±
Baek Ae-young sighed heavily before answering.
¡°It¡¯s very different. Before, one team leader, two female employees, and two male employees, a total of five people, disappeared all at once. It was before I was hired, though.¡±
Tumanako, who had been wringing her clothes, was dumbfounded by this answer.
¡°No way. If so many, many¡ disappear, can engineering work even continue? Did they search for the people?¡±
¡°Of course it can¡¯t. We did find themter. The problem is that they hid so well that it took about four months to find thest person.¡±
¡°Where were they hiding?¡±
¡°Apparently, they were living hidden in an emptyb in the South District Research Center. Only using the bathroom and shower at dawn. Eating food taken from vending machines. Stealing snacks from researchers. When they had to move during the day, they pretended to be doing repairs. Moreover, one researcher even pretended not to know and helped hide them?
We didn¡¯t know this and kept pestering other teams, asking, ¡®Did you kill them?¡¯ We searched the nearby waters in case bodies had surfaced. We rushed like bullets to Guam and Hawaii every time unidentified bodies were found.¡±
¡°How is that different from this?¡±
¡°Of course, there¡¯s a difference between people disappearing when I wasn¡¯t around and people vanishing right under my nose while I¡¯m wide awake.¡±
On the way to the escape pod port, Niki staggered about ten times and acted like he was going to vomit twice. I would have given him some water if I had any, but since I had nothing, I just made sure he was walking without bumping into anything. Viktor walked silently at the very end of the group. I wonder if he¡¯s always this taciturn. I don¡¯t know since I¡¯ve hardly spoken to him.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
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- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
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- BLDS Chapter 12
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- BLDS Chapter 71
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- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
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- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 166
Chapter 166
Inside the escape pod port, all the familiar faces were already gathered, with only one person I hadn¡¯t seen before. At first, I thought he was a foreigner due to his light red hair, but after hearing him converse with Jeong Sanghyun, I realized he was Korean.
His bangs fell to his eyes, and perhaps because his hair had grown long, he had tied the back into a small ponytail. He had multiple earrings in both ears along with piercings, and tattoos peeked out from his neck and beside his ears, not fully covered by the engineer suit.
From a distance, I thought he was wearing an engineer suit, but upon closer inspection, I noticed that the pants portion of the suit had been cut off above a certain point. Below both knees were prosthetic legs.
He was sitting on a waiting chair next to the escape pod with his hands sped, but when he saw us, he stood up. The man, who was over 180cm tall, waved his right arm towards us.
Up close, I could see that the little finger and ring finger of his right hand were also prosthetic. The ck matte prosthetic fingers made it look like he was wearing finger gloves from afar.
I¡¯ve seen quite a few due to spinal and eye issues in the ward, but this is the first time I¡¯ve seen one inside the underwater base. Prosthetic limbs and braces vary depending on the body part, but they¡¯re not usually very noticeable unless the user undresses. Moreover, these days they¡¯ve be so sophisticated that they¡¯re hard to quickly identify with the naked eye, and since most people use electronic prostheses, it¡¯s not easy to notice them.
If it weren¡¯t for his hair, his legs would have been the first thing I noticed. I thought he was wearing ck pants with a unique pattern. Or maybe he had plucked a few grape vines from the First Underwater Base¡¯s vineyard and wrapped them around his ankles and calves.
Upon closer observation, they were state-of-the-art electronic prosthetic legs, borately decorated in ck with green and light green ents. I know this prosthetic series because it¡¯s supplied to my friend¡¯s orthopedic clinic; they¡¯re typically shipped from the factory in white. This is to allow buyers to customize the design to their taste, and it seemed he had opted for a ck base with green vine-like imagery. Does he like nts?
Many patients order custom exterior designs to match their skin color, so it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve seen one decorated in ck like this. My friend ordered a bright red one, calling it ¡°passionate red,¡± but recently he switched to a pitch-ck one, spouting nonsense about it being ¡°stylish ck.¡±Looking at this person¡¯s prosthetic hand, a thought suddenly crossed my mind: is ck the trend these days? I hope that trend doesn¡¯t reach teeth.
¡°Hello. I¡¯m Park Moohyun, a dentist.¡±
Could this be Kim Jae-hee? Having shaken hands while greeting people for five days, I almost reflexively extended my right hand. The man with gentle eye corners, contrasting his mboyant appearance, casually took my right hand and shook it.
Ah, right. Come to think of it, if we just take the elevator for 10 minutes from here, we could get prosthetic maintenance done at the Daehan Ind hospital, right?
When the body is unwell, even going to the hospital bes a major task. Whether someone has a dark past or a history of injury, living close to a hospital is a prerequisite for survival. Being able to visit the hospital directly from the dormitory and receive regr psychological therapy for free¡ Depending on the person, this could be a decent workce.
Losing a body part often brings social anxiety and depression hand in hand. It¡¯s nearly impossible to drive them away with willpower alone. Thinking about it, the underwater base might actually be suitable for people with disabilities. Of course, I¡¯m going to resign.
¡°Hello. I¡¯m Kim Jae-hee from Engineer Team A. ¡Oh, your left eye.¡±
Jae-hee spoke as if eximing when our eyes met. It¡¯s usually not very noticeable, but the color looks slightly different when light reflects off it. He noticed after all. I nodded slowly.
¡°Yes, I got one put in too. It cost quite a bit.¡±
¡°Same here. My whole body is a money-eating hippo.¡±
Jae-hee said this with a lightugh. The ck matte-coated fingers gently released my hand, mimicking the movement of his other fingers.
Prosthetic limbs need to be reced every 2 to 5 years. Depending on who used it, how much, on which amputated part, and in what condition, the recement time can be even sooner. And these assistive devices aren¡¯t cheap. They cost at least a month¡¯s sry, and in the case of electronic prostheses, they can cost up to tens of billions depending on their functions.
Fortunately, our country has good health insurance, but I can¡¯t imagine how I would have lived if I were American. I probably couldn¡¯t have be a dentist. I wouldn¡¯t have even dreamed of paying for my younger sibling¡¯s college or my mother¡¯s back surgery with the money I earned.
Going to America to undergo theplex process of surgically imnting a new artificial eyeball, the cost of two people¡¯s surgeries, nursing care, and rehabilitation expenses all draining away as hospital bills, the bank bnce of a fairly well-off middle-ss family of four literally evaporated as if it had never existed. As I was briefly ruminating on this troubling past, Kim Jae-hee suddenly said to me,
¡°It was because of andmine.¡±
¡°Pardon?¡±
¡°People ask so often. When I was young, I picked up a box not knowing it was andmine, dropped it, and it exploded on the ground. That¡¯s how this happened.¡±
I¡¯ve heard all sorts of causes while being hospitalized ¨C congenital malformations, tumors, frostbite, various idents, thromboangiitis obliterans, and so on ¨C but this is the first time I¡¯ve heard about andmine. Did hee from Hwanghae Province? I heard that ce is full ofndmines when it rains.
Come to think of it, hardly anyone in the underwater base has asked about my eye, unlike in Korea. I guess it¡¯s because they¡¯re not interested in me. I liked that subtle indifference, but also felt just a tiny bit lonely. Since he shared, I revealed my information as well.
¡°Mine was a traffic ident.¡±
¡°A movingndmine, then.¡±
Huh? That¡¯s right, isn¡¯t it? Jeong Sanghyun, who was standing nearby, barely acknowledged me, and even when I greeted him, he treated me as if I barely existed. Sanghyun spoke anxiously to Seo Jihyuk, who seemed lost in thought.
¡°Jihyun noona wasn¡¯t in the dormitory?¡±
¡°No, she wasn¡¯t.¡±
¡°Then can I take the escape pod first?¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had been absorbed in his kidnapping theory, snorted at those words.
¡°Don¡¯t be ridiculous. If Jae-hee doesn¡¯t go first, none of the guys here can go.¡±
¡°Ah! Why! You told me to just wait here until you came back from the dormitory!¡±
¡°Yeah! But this is different!¡±
Carlos was supporting Sanghyun¡¯s statement from the side. Checking the escape pods, there were 4 left. Seo Jihyuk looked at Carlos next to him, frowning as he spoke.
¡°What are you doing here? Don¡¯t butt in, go stand at the end where you can¡¯t be seen. Engineer Team A has chartered all 4 escape pods! ¡Hey! Sanghyun! Did it take us 20 minutes to get here? Or 30 minutes?¡±
Hearing Seo Jihyuk¡¯s statement, Sanghyun now started urging Kim Jae-hee with irritation.
¡°Ah, hyung! ¡Quickly get in the escape pod and leave! You have to go so that others can go, right?¡±
¡°Aren¡¯t you worried that team members suddenly disappeared?¡±
While Sanghyun was fidgeting and stomping his feet, Kim Jae-hee seemed very rxed. It was aposure unbefitting someone who had nearly died from a missile while working on the outer wall and had urgently entered a leaking underwater base to escape it. Only Sanghyun and Carlos seemed anxious here.
¡°What good would I be right now to worry about others?¡±
¡°Is there any brilliant solution if you go to Daehan Ind? Sanghyun, do you know how to fly a helicopter or drive a boat?¡±
¡°You just drive it, right! It¡¯s not like I haven¡¯t yed a game or two! Ah, really! I¡¯ll take you with me, hyung!¡±
¡°I think Daehan Ind will be a mess too. Didn¡¯t you only y fighting games or dating games with girls?¡±
Then Kim Jae-heeughed heartily and patted Sanghyun¡¯s shoulder, saying,
¡°Whether I wait here or get on a boat you drive up there, it seems equally doomed. If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯d rather stay with my team members.¡±
¡°Augh! Then at least let me take the escape pod first!¡±
Hearing Kim Jae-hee¡¯s words, Carlos¡¯s face lit up and he said,
¡°You¡¯re not going? Hey! One person from your Team A isn¡¯t going! Then this person¡¯s escape pod is mine!¡±
Carlos and Sanghyun behaved as if they were about to eat Seo Jihyuk alive to get on the escape pod, while Seo Jihyuk stood blocking them in the ce where Jae-hee had been standing earlier, as if he were listening to dogs barking.
Come to think of it, Shin Haeryang isn¡¯t here with Engineer Team A. Looking at Engineer Team D, dimir was missing there too. Instead of the silent Viktor, Niki was muttering something while pointing at Seo Jihyuk, and judging by theck of trantion, he seemed to be sharing what had just happened to Sophia and Nikita in his team with somewhat intense words.
Sophia absent-mindedly nodded mechanically to Niki¡¯s story, then covered her mouth and staggered towards the bathroom. Nikita, who had been next to Sophia, was slowly walking, following her. Every time I see those people, I wonder, how much did they drink?
¡°Where did the team leaders of the engineering teams go?¡±
Surely the team leaders didn¡¯t escape first in the escape pods? I asked Baek Ae-young, who was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, and her answer came with a sigh.
¡°Two people from each team disappeared. The Russian team leader and ours went to take a look around the central building. Ah, it¡¯s a secret that we went to the dormitory. The team leaders told their team members to stay put right here. They probably thought we might disappear if we moved around on our own. We didn¡¯t move an inch from here, okay?¡±
Baek Ae-young winked at me cutely with one eye. It seemed she meant for me to keep quiet about it.
Well, I think Shin Haeryang will know what his team members did as soon as he sees them. Looking at the water dripping at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s feet, I asked,
¡°There are four escape pods left, but you haven¡¯tunched them.¡±
¡°What if we find Jihyun unni or the deputy team leader with critical injuries that require immediate hospital transfer? It doesn¡¯t seem like this underwater base will copse in 10 minutes, right? The team leader said he¡¯de and make a decision in 10 minutes. It¡¯s the same for the Russians too. We¡¯re fighting less over the few escape pods we have.¡±
Carlos, the only non-engineer, fidgeted anxiously, stuck between the two engineering teams. Tumanako, who had been looking around the unfamiliar escape pod port, approached Seo Jihyuk, pointed at the number showing four escape pods remaining, and asked,
¡°We can escape by taking these escape pods, right?¡±
Two people. Seo Jihyuk looked at Tumanako and his expression became troubled.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 167
Chapter 167
Seo Jihyuk stood guarding the escape pod boarding area like a sentry. Would he issue the same cold dismissal to Tumanako as he did to Carlos? I was curious if I¡¯d be rejected like Carlos or Tumanako if I asked Seo Jihyuk the same question about the escape pods, or if I¡¯d be treated differently for being Korean.
But what good would it do to confirm that I¡¯m treated differently in this disaster situation? If Seo Jihyuk were to chase Tumanako away and tell me to take the escape pod, it would be perfect for negatively impacting my mental state when I look back on this incidentter. Even now, guilt is rising like a cumulus cloud.
And who am I to observe someone in difficulty with malicious curiosity and judge their actions? I intervened before Seo Jihyuk could answer Tumanako.
¡°The escape pods here are all damaged, so we shouldn¡¯t board them.¡±
Tumanako was startled and asked me back.
¡°Really? Doesn¡¯t having 4 pods left mean that others have left and these 4 remain?¡±
¡°Yes. Everyone who¡¯s left in these escape pods will die.¡±
I felt all the gazes around me turn towards me. Especially Carlos¡¯s eyes seemed ready to shootsers. The stares piercing my back and the back of my head made my skin tingle. I wonder why gazes feel heavy. Is it because of the instincts left from when we used to hunt and run across fields?
The hair designer, who didn¡¯t seem to grasp the significance of not being able to escape immediately from West District, asked in a carefree voice.¡°What¡¯s wrong with them? Poor maintenance? Age?¡±
¡°Engineer Team N intentionally damaged them. Apparently, they didn¡¯t like Engineer Teams A and D.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had his arms crossed, asked me with a hardened face.
¡°Where did you get this information?¡±
¡°A Japanese person came to the dental clinic and reported it. I thought it was a joke since I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever need to use an escape pod, but I didn¡¯t expect things to turn out like this.¡±
¡°Can you disclose the identity of the informant?¡±
It was awkward to call it a report since Sumire didn¡¯t voluntarily provide the information out of a sense of justice, but rather it came from questioning that was close to torture. Wouldn¡¯t it be better if there was at least one imaginary conscientious person in Engineer Team N?
¡°¡No.¡±
Seo Jihyuk smiled lightly at my tense response and said,
¡°I feel like punching those Engineer Team N bastards every time I see their faces, so that¡¯s probably to avoid hitting that guy less.¡±
Carlos was more furious than Kim Jae-hee, who had been officially designated as the first priority user of the escape pod. He was jumping up and down in anger. ¡°Those crazy bastards! They¡¯re out of their minds!¡±
Jesus Christ! If you want to kill someone, just take a gun and go to their room, and other such curses poured out. Seo Jihyuk, who had dismissed Carlos earlier, changed his stance and enthusiastically agreed. They spat out words like ¡°I knew those bastards were up to no good¡± and ¡°I suspected as much¡± to each other.
Others seemed half-skeptical after hearing my story. Niki even came up and asked about my nationality. As soon as he heard I was Korean, his gaze changed, as if he thought this was a scam cooked up to use the escape pods among ourselves.
¡Well. I wish that were true. I wish the escape pods were fine and that those escape pods now swimming up through the lunch halocline (1000m-3000m) would reach the sea surface safely.
Tumanako looked around at the people nearby and awkwardly stood between Baek Ae-young and me. She seemed to know she couldn¡¯t take the West District escape pod and needed to go elsewhere, but with all the engineers waiting here, she didn¡¯t seem to have the courage to move right away. Baek Ae-young didn¡¯t seem very agitated even after hearing that taking the escape pod would turn you into a water ghost. She just stretched her wrists and ankles more thoroughly, loosening up.
As Baek Ae-young started loosening her knees, Seo Jihyuk approached Kim Jae-hee awkwardly, put his arm on his shoulder, and said,
¡°Hey. You know how I feel, right? I wasn¡¯t trying to get rid of you by putting you on the escape pod.¡±
Kim Jae-hee burst intoughter upon hearing this and chuckled softly before answering,
¡°I know. But next time, let¡¯s send Sanghyun first as he wants. Well.¡±
Hearing this, Jeong Sanghyun tilted his head up to look at the two of them and started jumping up and down on the spot.
¡°Ah! Hyung! Are you saying you¡¯ll send me as a test subject and only take the escape pod if I don¡¯t die?¡±
¡°How could that be, Sanghyun? Since you wanted to go first, I¡¯m saying I¡¯ll let you. ¡He¡¯s too quick to catch on for us to deal with.¡±
Kim Jae-hee put the back of his hand to his mouth and whispered to Seo Jihyuk. Seo Jihyuk chuckled at Kim Jae-hee¡¯s action. Jeong Sanghyun looked at the two and muttered,
¡°Wow. I¡¯m disappointed. Disappointed. Both of you are a double disappointment.¡±
¡°It¡¯s a joke, Sanghyun.¡±
Baek Ae-young, who was now loosening her shoulder and arm muscles after rotating her waist, looked at Kim Jae-hee and said,
¡°You almost died, and that¡¯s all you have to say?¡±
Kim Jae-hee stretched both arms wide, shrugged his shoulders, and said with a grin,
¡°You saw that? I cheated death again today! I won! The Grim Reaper lost again!¡±
The people aroundughed dryly at Kim Jae-hee¡¯s confident tone. Wow, how cheerful. I guess you could think about it that way. If it were me, I¡¯d probably be terrified, thinking I almost died by taking a damaged escape pod as the first priority.
Jeong Sanghyun frowned and said,
¡°If we had gotten along well with the Japanese guys from the beginning, this wouldn¡¯t have happened. Isn¡¯t this all because of the team leader? It¡¯s because the team leader beat up the Japanese guys, right?¡±
Baek Ae-young, who had moved all her joints once, raised the corners of her mouth and said,
¡°Are you going to tattle to the team leader when hees?¡±
¡°Wow, Baek Ae-young. Look at that. See how disloyal she is.¡±
¡°Was there ever any loyalty between you and me?¡±
At those words, Jeong Sanghyun shut his mouth. I could only hear Seo Jihyuk¡¯s quiet voice talking with Kim Jae-hee.
¡°He¡¯ste.¡±
¡°The team leader? Yeah. He always scares me because he¡¯s so punctual, always on the dot¡ He¡¯ste.¡±
¡°It¡¯s been more than 10 minutes. Could it be because Engineer Team D¡¯s leader went with him?¡±
¡°The Russians? Expect them to be 20 minuteste as a rule. (Hey, are you talking about us?! Niki shouted) We¡¯re not talking about you! ¡They have good ears too. How can they hear gossip about themselves so well when they can¡¯t hear requests for work cooperation?¡±
Tumanako, who had been listening to this pathetic conversation that had nothing to do with escape, sighed and asked me,
¡°You said your name was Park Moohyun, right? What are you going to do now?¡±
¡°I have no thoughts at all.¡±
What thoughts could I have aftering back to my room after taking the escape pod, then waking up submerged in water? I¡¯m trying to think as little as possible because I don¡¯t want to wonder if I can¡¯t get out of here. Realizing that my words might sound like I¡¯vepletely given up, I added,
¡°I¡¯ve only been here for five days, so I barely know the way to the cafeteria and the dental clinic.¡±
I did end up wandering around unwillingly, but I had to tiptoe quietly to avoid making footsteps, run, or lie down and hide on almost all the paths. ¡I¡¯m exploring the underwater base almost like a wild animal.
¡°Sounds simr to me. Then do you want toe with me to the Third Underwater Base and escape using the escape pod there? My hair salon is there too.¡±
Tumanako seemed to have looked around and realized that she was in a floating position here, like Carlos or me. And it seemed she had decided that rather than waiting here with unfamiliar engineers for the engineering team leader who might nevere, she would quickly move to another location to take an escape pod.
I nodded, wanting to help Tumanako escape somehow. I might not be able to escape, but Tumanako might be able to get out this time.
Niki from Engineer Team D, crouching down, asked his colleague who seemed less drunk,
¡°But we didn¡¯t have any reason to be on bad terms with them¡ Oh, we did. We do. A lot. But wasn¡¯t that almost a year ago?¡±
He seemed to be reminiscing about how harmonious Engineer Team N and Engineer Team D were in the past.
¡°There was something recently too.¡±
Viktor answered briefly. However, Niki, seemingly unaware of this, started to probe.
¡°When? Did we fight? Does the team leader know?¡±
Viktor raised his eyebrows and said,
¡°Ask the team leader.¡±
Viktor was looking at the escape pod port, and after a while, the escape pod port door opened. The two team leaders were entering with someone on their backs. Someone¡¯s piercing scream was heard.
Everyone was startled and looked over to see Nikita, who had been staggering out of the bathroom, screaming from far away. ¡°Mitya!¡±
dimirid the person on his back horizontally on a long waiting chair. Then, with a hand gesture, Shin Haeryang alsoid the woman he had been carrying on his back on the chair. Nikita, who had been running frantically, rolled on the floor once but got up and ran again as if unaware that she had fallen.
I and the people near the escape pod unknowingly moved towards the escape pod port entrance. For some unknown reason, an ominous feeling swept over me that the peopleid on those chairs were already dead.
I felt this way despite being too far away to see the condition of the people lying down. It felt even more so because neither Shin Haeryang nor dimir took any first aid measures, justying the two people on the chairs. More precisely, it might be because dimir¡¯s back and the person lying down were covered in blood.
Nikita ran across half of the escape pod port with only one shoe on and stopped as if grabbed by a giant. Then she looked at the person lying on the chair. Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young, who had been standing next to me, were also running towards the escape pod port entrance as if they were about to fly. Are they human or leopards?
Few people were walking ¨C just me, Viktor, and Kim Jae-hee. I had no strength left to run after all the running in the dormitory, even if someone grabbed me by the cor right now, and Kim Jae-hee seemed like he wouldn¡¯t want to run even if a bomb exploded next to him.
¡°What is it? Who is it? Who is it?¡±
Carlos, unable to see well due to Viktor¡¯s bulk in front of him, asked me or Tumanako irritably. We seem to be the ones who know the least in this underwater base.
Seo Jihyuk looked at the face of the womanid on the chair, then exhaled the breath he had been holding and stepped back. Only after seeing their faces did he realize that the two were not Korean.
dimir approached Nikita¡¯s side, but Nikita didn¡¯t seem to recognize even when a hand was ced on her shoulder. Nikita asked dimir, moving only her lips,
¡°Is he dead?¡±
¡°He¡¯s dead.¡±
Up close, the cause of death was clearly visible. I could see that he had been shot multiple times in the chest. It was the same for the woman, but she had been shot in the head. Shin Haeryang, who had been talking with Seo Jihyuk, approached me when our eyes met.
¡°I¡¯m Shin Haeryang, the leader of Engineer Team A. I heard you¡¯re a dentist.¡±
¡°Yes, I¡¯m Park Moohyun, a dentist.¡±
I can guess what he¡¯s going to request. Until a death deration is made, this person is biologically dead but legally alive. Until a doctor deres them dead, we must do our best to try to save the person.
¡°We need you to make a death deration.¡±
¡It¡¯s my first time going through the death deration procedure with family members present. I¡¯ve done it several times, but I can never get used to it.
At Shin Haeryang¡¯s words, dimir¡¯s gaze rested on me. Wasn¡¯t Dmitri said to be Nikita¡¯s younger brother? Nikita was standing there, looking at the man presumed to be Dmitri, as if soulless.
¡°What¡¯s his name?¡±
¡°Dmitri Andreyevich Muratov.¡±
I memorized that name. Without anything like a penlight, I used the light from Shin Haeryang¡¯s pad, which I had been holding all along, to lift the eyelids and check if the pupils were dted and unresponsive. I checked for breathing by cing a finger near the nose, then ced fingers on the carotid artery. It¡¯s the standard checking procedure.
With all my watch, pad, phone, and everything else in the water, I looked at the time on Shin Haeryang¡¯s pad I had been holding, stated the date and current time, and made the death deration.
¡°Mr. Dmitri Andreyevich Muratov has passed away.¡±
I still can¡¯t get used to saying someone has died after their name. I took a photo of his face and wrote the time over it.
I performed the same procedure for the woman next to him. The woman¡¯s name was Irina Vyachevovna Murakhtayeva, and she had died with her eyes half-open. I was about to close her eyes with my palm but noticed the burn on my left palm and used my right hand instead. Sophia, who had approached btedly, looked at Irina¡¯s face, sniffled, and then started crying.
¡°It¡¯s because the alcohol hasn¡¯t worn off yet. There¡¯s no way you could be dead.¡±
That¡¯s not it. Jeong Sanghyun muttered like that, and Kim Jae-hee, who heard it, dragged him off to a corner. Baek Ae-young approached Sophia and hugged her from behind. Nikita stood still, looking at his younger brother, and after a long while, asked dimir in a toneless voice,
¡°Do you know who did this?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°It was the Japanese guys!¡±
Carlos shouted enthusiastically but then closed his mouth at people¡¯s stares.
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 168
Chapter 168
¡°The Engineer Team N bastards did this? Those cowards?¡±
All the vic people looked at Carlos. Especially under dimir¡¯s gaze, Carlos hurriedly pointed at me and said,
¡°This person said it! He said those guys sabotaged the escape pods!¡±
¡I¡¯m not used to people looking at me like this. Everyone was looking at me, but only Nikita was still looking down at Dmitri¡¯s face. Shin Haeryang turned his head towards me for a moment, then looked at Dmitri¡¯s chest. I simply stated the facts I knew.
¡°In North District, there are Japanese people walking around with guns, in East District, there are Chinese people with guns, and an armed cult called Infinity Church has taken control of the Second Underwater Base.¡±
¡°How do you know that?¡±
Sophia, who was gathering Irina¡¯s fallen arms and hands on the floor, asked with bloodshot eyes.
¡°¡I found out by chance. To be precise, I don¡¯t really know either.¡±
¡°He doesn¡¯t know anything. He¡¯s a newbie who just got here.¡±Tumanako, who was standing next to me, stepped in to defend me, but it seemed to sound different to Niki.
¡°More precisely, this happened shortly after he was hired.¡±
Hmm. ¡That¡¯s true, but. Wouldn¡¯t it be a coincidence? It seems like the situation in this underwater base was already a mess before I arrived. I don¡¯t think adding just one more person like me would have made things dramatically worse.
I can only do dental work. Even if someone visited Deep Blue, there might be several people who could eat less painfully or ufortably, but I don¡¯t have the ability to mass-produce gun-wielding psychopaths. And there must be a few more people who were hired around the same time as me. It¡¯s not like only one or two people live here.
¡°Is that all you know?¡±
dimir was asking me.
¡°If you use the central building elevator to go up, you will definitely encounter Infinity Church people at the Second Underwater Base. And there are armed people on Daehan Ind as well.¡±
¡°How many people are there? What weapons do they use?¡±
¡°The Infinity Church people number between 20 and 60, and their weapons are guns.¡±
dimir frowned. Niki, who was listening from the side, asked me,
¡°So what kind of guns?¡±
¡°Long¡ guns?¡±
¡°Are you trying to be funny?¡±
Is my exnation about the gunscking? How should I exin it?
¡°They¡¯re ck and you insert the magazine from bottom to top. They have strong recoil and are heavy to carry around, so they¡¯re slung over the shoulder with a strap.¡±
¡°Most rifles have magazines inserted from bottom to top, have strong recoil, and are heavy. So would you tie them to your head with a strap?¡±
Judging by his tone and content, he seems to be mocking me. I understand what Niki wants to say. Seo Jihyuk taught me how to hold, aim, and shoot instead of teaching me gun names. And also that I should crouch as much as possible and hide well.
I¡¯ve never even changed a magazine. I barely know from watching action movies and seeing Baek Ae-young change magazines. Niki said to me, almost like a sigh,
¡°Suka. All Asians are useless in life.¡±
¡°Watch your mouth if you don¡¯t want to get beaten up by an unarmed Asian.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, who had retreated to a corner, growled. Jeong Sanghyun, who was next to Seo Jihyuk, was startled, looked around nervously, and then quietly slipped over to Jae-hee¡¯s side. Hearing this, Niki stood up from the chair he was sitting on and said,
¡°You think I¡¯ll be scared? Let¡¯s see your team members found as corpses too!¡±
¡°Are you done talking?!¡±
As Nikita, who had been standing still like a statue, started shedding tears, dimir wrapped an arm around his shoulders and patted him. He didn¡¯t try to stop his team member at all, even though he was about to get into a fistfight with a member of another team. Shin Haeryang, who had been carefully examining Irina¡¯s gunshot wound to the skull, expressed his irritation towards those behind him.
¡°If you¡¯re going to fight, fight to the death! We have plenty of chairs.¡±
That silenced them for a moment, but instead, Niki pulled out a knife from his wet, old pants, saying he was going to kill that bastard. Seo Jihyuk was about to rush out, saying he¡¯dy him next to those guys.
No. Did these people hear that as permission? Am I the only one who understood it as don¡¯t fight? ¡Or not? Did Shin Haeryang give permission to fight?
Fortunately, the rest of the team members, except for those two, seemed to have understood it normally. Viktor grabbed Niki¡¯s waist with one arm and dragged him backwards, and Niki¡¯s legs were almost off the ground as he was moved away from the Engineer Team A people. Only Russian curses and demands to be put down could be heard, and Engineer Team A was simr.
Kim Jae-hee suddenly jumped onto Seo Jihyuk¡¯s back, just as he was about to rush out. Like a frog leaping, he clung to Seo Jihyuk¡¯s back, suddenly shifting his center of gravity backward. As Seo Jihyuk staggered greatly, Baek Ae-young lightly tapped the back of Seo Jihyuk¡¯s knee with her toes, as if pressing a button. Seo Jihyuk, who had been trying to regain his bnce as he was about to fall backward, rolled on the floor sideways with Kim Jae-hee. Baek Ae-young spoke to the groaning pair as if they were pathetic.
¡°You impatient fool! Have some patience!¡±
¡°When in your life have you ever been patient to lecture me!¡±
Seo Jihyuk, raising his upper body, shouted at Baek Ae-young like that. Fire lit up in Baek Ae-young¡¯s eyes too. Kim Jae-hee, afraid that Seo Jihyuk might rush at Niki again, wrapped his arms around Seo Jihyuk¡¯s neck from behind and tried to pacify him.
¡°Do you want to throw punches at a team that¡¯s just lost two members in this situation? Let¡¯s be patient, okay? People can talk nonsense when they¡¯re struggling!¡±
¡°What? Fine! I won¡¯t be patient! Do you want to die by my hands first?!¡±
¡°Jihyuk hyung! Now¡¯s the time! Teach Ae-young a lesson! And that Niki bastard too! I never liked him!¡±
When all three red fiercely at Jeong Sanghyun, he closed his mouth, saying, ¡°No, I was just saying.¡±
Come to think of it, I can understand that Niki¡¯s tone is trash-like. And that Seo Jihyuk was trying to take my side. I extended my hand to the two people rolling on the floor.
Kim Jae-hee grabbed my right hand that came towards him and grunted as he got up. Seeing him stand straight on both legs, I extended my hand to Seo Jihyuk, the next batter, and said,
¡°Those people are all drunk. They¡¯re not in their right minds. Let¡¯s not get hurt by the words of a drunkard who can barely walk.¡±
Seo Jihyuk nodded lightly as he took my hand and stood up. As Shin Haeryang, his hands wet with blood, approached the team members rolling on the floor, Seo Jihyuk asked the team leader without even dusting off the dirt on his body.
¡°What about Jihyun?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve said it many times, but she wasn¡¯t there.¡±
¡°You said corpses were hidden. Did you really search all of Central Building?¡±
¡°You think we could search all of Central Building in 15 minutes round trip while carrying a corpse? No.¡±
Realizing his words didn¡¯t make sense even to himself, Seo Jihyuk closed his mouth. And he anxiously shook one leg. Seeing this, Kim Jae-hee whispered to Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Hyung. Shaking your leg makes your luck run out.¡±
¡°Is there any more luck to run out in this situation?¡±
¡°Are you bragging to me that you can shake your leg right now?¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s leg-shaking stopped immediately. A slight look of apology shed across Seo Jihyuk¡¯s face, and then he started grinding his teeth.
I was about to say a few words about the enormous absurdity happening right next to a dentist. However, seeing the anxious side profile, I gave up on pointing it out and closed my mouth. Shin Haeryang looked at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s swelling eyes and Baek Ae-young¡¯s hand, then said to Baek Ae-young.
¡°I told you to stay still for just 10 minutes.¡±
The answer came immediately from Seo Jihyuk.
¡°It¡¯s my fault. Ae-young did nothing wrong.¡±
¡°It¡¯s not my fault.¡±
At Baek Ae-young¡¯s words, Shin Haeryang looked at her face once, but didn¡¯t say anything more. Kim Jae-hee, rubbing one of his ear piercings with his fingertip, asked,
¡°Team leader. What are you going to do now?¡±
¡°First, we need to get everyone here out.¡±
¡°What about finding the other missing team members?¡±
¡°We¡¯ll do thatter.¡±
At this, Seo Jihyuk looked like he wanted to say something but swallowed his words. It seemed like he wanted to form a search party right away and search the entire underwater base for the two missing people, but he couldn¡¯t bring himself to say it out loud. Instead, Seo Jihyuk asked Shin Haeryang something else.
¡°Are they going to take the bodies? You carried them here on your backs, right?¡±
¡°We couldn¡¯t take pictures because we don¡¯t have electronic devices. My pad is in my room, and dimir said he doesn¡¯t know where his is. ¡Deputy Team Leader Nikita said she wouldn¡¯t believe it until she saw the bodies herself.¡±
Nikita, even while crying, still couldn¡¯t take her eyes off her dead younger brother¡¯s face. She was looking at the face as if trying to engrave it in her memory, but it seemed she still couldn¡¯t believe it no matter how much she looked. Seo Jihyuk scratched the back of his head, looked towards the chairs where Irina and Dmitri wereid, then looked back at Niki and asked,
¡°So. Did you agree on any deal? Like helping or something?¡±
¡°What could we possibly get in return for carrying a female corpse that¡¯s not even half my body weight to a wake? Well, I did mention asking for help finding our people, but it probably won¡¯t be much help.¡±
¡°Team leader. Can¡¯t we escape while they¡¯re fighting with the Japanese?¡±
Shin Haeryang thought for a moment at Jeong Sanghyun¡¯s question, then shook his head.
¡°If dimir is in his right mind, he¡¯ll probably think about evacuating his team members before seeking revenge.¡±
Baek Ae-young looked towards Irina and asked,
¡°Did they know how their team members disappeared? We suddenly disappeared while walking, right? Did they say theirs disappeared suddenly too?¡±
Shin Haeryang answered as if he had no expectations,
¡°As drunk as they are, they wouldn¡¯t have noticed if their team members disappeared next to them, or even if a bear had torn them apart alive.¡±
Then Shin Haeryang extended his hand towards me. Now I know. This isn¡¯t a request for a handshake or anything like that. I quickly tried to hand over the pad I had been holding at my side to Shin Haeryang.
However, Tumanako, seeing Shin Haeryang¡¯s sudden gesture and my action, seemed to misunderstand that I was having the pad taken away by Shin Haeryang. She grabbed my hand that was about to hand over the pad, startled.
¡°Ah. This pad belongs to Team Leader Shin Haeryang. My pad is in the water.¡±
Then Tumanako sheepishly said, ¡°Ah, is that so?¡± and removed her hand. Shin Haeryang, receiving his pad back, answered dryly,
¡°Thank you.¡±
¡°I used it well.¡±
¡°¡Two members of our team have disappeared. Do you know where they are?¡±
Navigate to Other Chapters- BLDS Chapter 0
- BLDS Chapter 01
- BLDS Chapter 02
- BLDS Chapter 03
- BLDS Chapter 04
- BLDS Chapter 05
- BLDS Chapter 06
- BLDS Chapter 07
- BLDS Chapter 08
- BLDS Chapter 09
- BLDS Chapter 10
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 1
- BLDS Chapter 11 Part 2
- BLDS Chapter 12
- BLDS Chapter 13
- BLDS Chapter 14
- BLDS Chapter 15
- BLDS Chapter 16
- BLDS Chapter 17
- BLDS Chapter 18
- BLDS Chapter 19
- BLDS Chapter 20
- BLDS Chapter 21
- BLDS Chapter 22
- BLDS Chapter 23
- BLDS Chapter 24
- BLDS Chapter 25
- BLDS Chapter 26
- BLDS Chapter 27
- BLDS Chapter 28
- BLDS Chapter 29
- BLDS Chapter 30
- BLDS Chapter 31
- BLDS Chapter 32
- BLDS Chapter 33
- BLDS Chapter 34
- BLDS Chapter 35
- BLDS Chapter 36
- BLDS Chapter 37
- BLDS Chapter 38
- BLDS Chapter 39
- BLDS Chapter 40
- BLDS Chapter 41
- BLDS Chapter 42
- BLDS Chapter 43
- BLSD Chapter 44
- BLDS Chapter 45
- BLDS Chapter 46
- BLDS Chapter 47
- BLDS Chapter 48
- BLDS Chapter 49
- BLDS Chapter 50
- BLDS Chapter 51
- BLDS Chapter 52
- BLDS Chapter 53
- BLDS Chapter 54
- BLDS Chapter 55
- BLDS Chapter 56
- BLDS Chapter 57
- BLDS Chapter 58
- BLDS Chapter 59
- BLDS Chapter 60
- BLDS Chapter 61
- BLDS Chapter 62
- BLDS Chapter 63
- BLDS Chapter 64
- BLDS Chapter 65
- BLDS Chapter 66
- BLDS Chapter 67
- BLDS Chapter 68
- BLDS Chapter 69
- BLDS Chapter 70
- BLDS Chapter 71
- BLDS Chapter 72
- BLDS Chapter 73
- BLDS Chapter 74
- BLDS Chapter 75
- BLDS Chapter 76
- BLDS Chapter 77
- BLDS Chapter 78
- BLDS Chapter 79
- BLDS Chapter 80
- BLDS Chapter 81
- BLDS Chapter 82
- BLDS Chapter 83
- BLDS Chapter 84
- BLDS Chapter 85
- BLDS Chapter 86
- BLDS Chapter 87
- BLDS Chapter 88
- BLDS Chapter 89
- BLDS Chapter 90
- BLDS Chapter 91
- BLDS Chapter 92
- BLDS Chapter 93
- BLDS Chapter 94 - Elevator (3)
- BLDS Chapter 95 - Elevator (4)
- BLDS Chapter 96 - Elevator (5)
- BLDS Chapter 97 - Elevator (6)
- BLDS Chapter 98 - Elevator (7)
- BLDS Chapter 99 - Elevator (8)
- BLDS Chapter 100 - Elevator (9)
- BLDS Chapter 101 - Elevator (10)
- BLDS Chapter 102 - What One Wishes For (1)
- BLDS Chapter 103 - What One Wishes For (2)
- BLDS Chapter 104 - What One Wishes For (3)
- BLDS Chapter 105 - What One Wishes For (4)
- BLDS Chapter 106 - 19% (1)
- BLDS Chapter 107 - 19% (2)
- BLDS Chapter 108 - 19% (3)
- BLDS Chapter 109 - 19% (4)
- BLDS Chapter 110 - 19% (5)
- BLDS Chapter 111 - What Needs to be Done (1)
- BLDS Chapter 112 - What Needs to be Done (2)
- BLDS Chapter 113 - What Needs to be Done (3)
- BLDS Chapter 114 - What Needs to be Done (4)
- BLDS Chapter 115 - What Needs to be Done (5)
- BLDS Chapter 116 - Value (1)
- BLDS Chapter 117 - Value (2)
- BLDS Chapter 118 - Value (3)
- BLDS Chapter 119 - Spark (1)
- BLDS Chapter 120 - Spark (2)
- BLDS Chapter 121 - Spark (3)
- BLDS Chapter 122 - Spark (4)
- BLDS Chapter 123 - When Unharmed (1)
- BLDS Chapter 124 - When Unharmed (2)
- BLDS Chapter 125 - When Unharmed (3)
- BLDS Chapter 126 - When Unharmed (4)
- BLDS Chapter 127 - John Doe (1)
- BLDS Chapter 128 - John Doe (2)
- BLDS Chapter 129 - Preemptive Strike (1)
- BLDS Chapter 130 - Preemptive Strike (2)
- BLDS Chapter 131 - Preemptive Strike (3)
- BLDS Chapter 132 - Preemptive Strike (4)
- BLDS Chapter 133 - Escape (1)
- BLDS Chapter 134 - Escape (2)
- BLDS Chapter 135 - Escape (3)
- BLDS Chapter 136 - Escape (4)
- BLDS Chapter 137 - Escape (5)
- BLDS Chapter 138 - Escape (6)
- BLDS Chapter 139 - Escape (7)
- BLDS Chapter 140 - Escape (8)
- BLDS Chapter 141 - Compassion (1)
- BLDS Chapter 142 - Compassion (2)
- BLDS Chapter 143 - Submersible Port (1)
- BLDS Chapter 144 - Submersible Port (2)
- BLDS Chapter 145 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 146 - Submersible Port (3)
- BLDS Chapter 147 - Submersible Port (4)
- BLDS Chapter 148 - Engineering Team D (1)
- BLDS Chapter 149 - Engineering Team D (2)
- BLDS Chapter 150 - Engineering Team D (3)
- BLDS Chapter 151 - Interrogation (1)
- BLDS Chapter 152 - Interrogation (2)
- BLDS Chapter 153 - Interrogation (3)
- BLDS Chapter 154 - The Third Undersea Base (1)
- BLDS Chapter 155 - The Third Undersea Base (2)
- BLDS Chapter 156 - The Third Undersea Base (3)
- BLDS Chapter 157 - The Third Undersea Base (4)
- BLDS Chapter 158 - The Third Undersea Base (5)
- BLDS Chapter 159 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 160 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 161 - Escape Pod Port of the Third Underwater Base
- BLDS Chapter 162 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 163 - Escape Pod
- BLDS Chapter 164 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 165 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 166 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 167 - Missing
- BLDS Chapter 168 - Missing
Chapter 169
Shin Haeryang wasn¡¯t asking with any immediate expectation of finding his team members. I kept my response brief, sharing only what I had pieced together.
¡°They should be at Daehan Ind. They managed to escape the underwater facility safely.¡±
¡°How did they escape?¡±
¡°They took the functional escape pods from the East District.¡±
Shin Haeryang¡¯s expression remained unchanged, making it impossible to tell if he was relieved about his team¡¯s safety or not. After a few seconds of silence, he nced at the pad in his hand and spoke.
¡°We have a pad that the Chief Engineer lent us.¡±
¡°Ah¡ I see?¡±
So Kim Jae-hee must have Michael Roaker¡¯s pad now. Didn¡¯t he confess to Kang Soojung earlier that he stole it from Michael Roaker when they met in the elevator? Given that Roaker seems to be on Infinity Church¡¯s side, he wouldn¡¯t have willingly lent it. He probably stole it again, iming he¡¯d delete the CCTV footage. What a way with words this person has.
While I was internally chuckling at the absurdity, Shin Haeryang continued.
¡°Using Roaker¡¯s pad, we confirmed that Lee Jihyun and Kang Soojung vanished from the corridor CCTV footage in less than a second. Deputy Team Leader Kang Soojung, in particr, disappeared right before my eyes during our conversation. It was a physically impossible movement, yet you¡¯re saying they escaped via escape pods.¡±
Ah, so they checked the CCTV footage of their disappearance. Right. Since we normally don¡¯t pay attention to the ceiling-mounted cameras while walking around, I¡¯d forgotten about that method. Come to think of it, being engineers, of course they would¡¯ve checked immediately after their people vanished. Am I subconsciously not thinking of these people as engineers? I don¡¯t recall seeing them fix anything.
So electronic devices show people vanishing into dust in a second, huh? Wait. Then Shin Haeryang literally watched someone disappear into thin air right in front of him? ¡That must have been terrifying. Straight out of a horror movie.
¡°I saw Lee Jihyun, Kang Soojung, and Yoo Geum-yi escape in the pods. It wasn¡¯t an abduction, so you shouldn¡¯t worry too much.¡±
I almost added ¡°or supernatural phenomenon¡± after abduction but held back since I couldn¡¯t be certain myself. What I¡¯m experiencing does seem supernatural though.
After telling Shin Haeryang not to worry, I actually started feeling more concerned about the people at Daehan Ind and added a few words.
¡°Don¡¯tpletely stop worrying though. Deputy Team Leader Kang mentioned she couldn¡¯t operate a boat, and she seemed flustered by Team Leader Shin¡¯s order to evacuate Daehan Ind.¡±
If someone told me to make my first voyage across the open ocean in a boat carrying people who¡¯d barely escaped an underwater facility, I¡¯d probably refuse and copse on the beach. It reminds me of how I trembled internally when first merging onto the highway. What if they have an ident in the middle of the Pacific?
¡I wonder how the people at Daehan Ind are doing. Hopefully better than me.
¡°You seem to have memories that my team and I don¡¯t share.¡±
¡°Ah¡ yes.¡±
¡°The team members¡ regarding the CCTV, they think it¡¯s a malfunction, and as for a colleague vanishing right beside them, they attribute it to mild nitrogen narcosis. They particrly suspect it¡¯s due to extended movement in deep-sea suits while repairing the outer wall. What¡¯s your opinion on this?¡±
People tend to think alike, don¡¯t they?
¡°I also initially thought it might be due to drugs or external factors affecting my cognitive functions, but I no longer believe that¡¯s the case. I concluded that cognitive impairment couldn¡¯t lead to gaining knowledge aboutpletely unknown situations.¡±
¡°Do you think this could happen again?¡±
¡°During the escape?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
Shin Haeryang seemed worried that more team members might vanish without warning during their escape. Though not entirely confident, I shook my head.
¡°I don¡¯t think this will happen during the escape.¡±
¡°I see. What else should I know?¡±
Straight to the practical matters. Shin Haeryang appeared more interested in future actions and prospects than analyzing past anomalies. I quickly brought up my biggest concern.
¡°Right now, we need to help Kim Ga-young, who¡¯s trapped in the South District dormitory. The room is flooding, and she¡¯s stuck inside due to a malfunctioning door. She¡¯ll soon post a help message on the facility¡¯s bulletin board.¡±
Even after hearing about someone trapped in a flooding room, Shin Haeryang asked dispassionately.
¡°Anything else?¡±
¡°Uh¡ yeah. Kim Ga-young¡¯s situation is most urgent. Also, N Team¡¯s engineers from North District wille down to the Central District and start shooting.¡±
Shin Haeryang gave me a quick once-over and asked.
¡°I see. Besides your left hand, do you have any other injuries?¡±
¡°Huh? No, I don¡¯t.¡±
¡°Understood.¡±
And that was it. ¡I really want to ask what exactly he understands. If he were my tutoring student, I could at least give him some problems to solve to check hisprehension level.
Suddenly, Sophia pointed at one of the front panels and spoke.
¡°Look at that. The escape pods aren¡¯t rising.¡±
True to her words, the escape pods had barely left the lunchtimeyer (1000m-3000m) and entered the middleyer (200m-1000m) when they stopped advancing. Starting with the first pod that ascended, they were all gradually slowing down.
Having experienced an escape pod myself, I could viscerally feel how terrifying that situation must be. Inside the pod, you can see your position, and even through the green liquid, you can feel the kic energy propelling you upward.
The sensation of falling must feel just as intense. I was grimacing at the thought when Tumanako shook my shoulder, making me realize someone had been calling me. dimir asked.
¡°Doctor, which escape pods are broken besides this one?¡±
¡°Huh? Oh. The South District pods shouldn¡¯t be used either. East District seems fine, but I¡¯m not sure about North District.¡±
dimir let out a cynicalugh.
¡°So they sabotaged the West District and South District pods, and now they¡¯re waiting with guns in Hyeonmu and East Districts. Shin, where are you heading?¡±
dimir, who had been stroking Nikita¡¯s back with hisrge hand, asked Shin Haeryang. Shin sighed and countered with his own question.
¡°Where are you lot heading?¡±
¡°We¡¯re going to the North District. How convenient that there are Japanese people there. Mitri (nickname for Dmitri) wasn¡¯t my favorite person, but he didn¡¯t deserve to die by gunshot like that. Especially not Irina.¡±
Though his Russian was tranted to Korean in my ears, there wasn¡¯t a hint of genuine pleasure in his ¡°how convenient.¡± Shin Haeryang looked at those lying in the chairs and asked.
¡°Are you leaving the bodies behind?¡±
At those words, Nikita¡¯s previously still head turned toward us with an almost mechanical movement. That robotic motion sent chills down my spine, but dimir answered while meeting Nikita¡¯s gaze.
¡°Sending them back to their families would be ideal. But that¡¯s too ambitious in this situation. We¡¯re busy enough looking after the living.¡±
Shin Haeryang nced at me once after hearing this, then responded to dimir.
¡°There¡¯s a Korean researcher trapped in the South District dormitory. We need to get her. ¡My team will hide in the Central District until everyone regroups, then move.¡±
dimir listened to Shin Haeryang and replied with apparent disapproval.
¡°Going out of your way for one researcher? She¡¯s not even on your team. Unless she¡¯s some irreceable genius, it¡¯s better to cut losses in this situation. Research staff are a dime a dozen worldwide anyway. Wouldn¡¯t it be better toe with us to North District instead?¡±
Hey, our Ga-young isn¡¯t just some researcher!I wanted to burst into their conversation shouting this but held back. Shin Haeryang responded emotionlessly to the red-faced drunkard.
¡°The same goes for engineers. Take this.¡±
Shin Haeryang handed his pad to dimir. I thought he was giving it because it contained photos of Dmitri or Irina. I expected him to say something about passing on thest images of the deceased to their families, or perhaps point out that their team had no pads, but Shin Haeryang added matter-of-factly.
¡°It¡¯s registered under my name. Use it when you deal with the Japanese.¡±
¡°Oho¡ Deputy Team Leader Nikita.¡±
dimir grinned like he¡¯d received a fantastic gift and called to his side. Nikita, with an expression like a soul scorched by fire, took the pad from Shin Haeryang. Watching Nikita with tears still on her face reminded me of when she grabbed my cor after hearing about Dmitri¡¯s disappearance.
She¡¯d said something about not wanting to tell their parents she fled alone while her brother was missing. Now Nikita would have to exin to their parents that her little brother was shot dead by foreigners.
Ah, damn it. Even though I¡¯m not particrly close to my own brother, though we¡¯re not on bad terms either, just imagining that scenario is horrifying.Nikita had now shifted her intense gaze from Dmitri¡¯s face to Shin Haeryang¡¯s pad. Her desire for revenge seemed to be overtaking her grief over her own brother¡¯s death.
Since seeing Dmitri¡¯s corpse, she appeared much more animated than her previous dazed state. It was almost like her thirst for revenge was burning with life force.
¡°Ae-young.¡±
¡°Yes!¡±
Shin Haeryang called out to Baek Ae-young, who was standing at a distance. She bounded over from beside Sophia like a gust of wind.
¡°They say researcher Kim Ga-young is in the South District dormitory with a broken door. I¡¯ll go get her. Take everyone to Ophion. Move defensively.¡±
Though his name wasn¡¯t called, Seo Jihyuk, who had flown over when Baek Ae-young was summoned, hovered around Shin Haeryang and spoke.
¡°What about me? Can¡¯t I go too? Team Leader, take me with you.¡±
¡°You stay here quietly. And don¡¯t wander around looking for Jihyun.¡±
¡°Wow, that¡¯s harsh. You¡¯re making baseless usations about things I haven¡¯t even done.¡±
Though Shin Haeryang didn¡¯tment on Seo Jihyuk¡¯s wet clothes and bruised face, his gaze alone seemed enough to make Seo Jihyuk shut his mouth as if he¡¯d been hit.
¡°Even if I don¡¯te back, prioritize evacuating civilians.¡±
¡°Ah, abandoning superiors is what I do best.¡±
Chapter 170
Once the decision to move was made, everyone quickly evacuated the escape pod port. D-Team engineers briefly said their final goodbyes to their teammates lying in the chairs, but even that was done hastily.
They nned to stick together until reaching the Central District before splitting up. Baek Ae-young, who was leading the group, looked ready to kick anyone¡¯s ass who didn¡¯t move fast enough.
Borrowing Michael Roaker¡¯s pad that Baek Ae-young was carrying, I checked the facility¡¯s bulletin board to find Kim Ga-young had already stered it with desperate pleas for help.
I¡¯d hoped that if her posts hadn¡¯t gone through, she might have escaped with others from the dormitory, but apparently not. With each passing moment, my sighs and worries multiplied. I showed Baek Ae-young the posts about the rising water levels and how frightened she was. Ae-young skimmed the messages expressionlessly before passing the pad to Team Leader Shin.
Baek Ae-young seemed to be suppressing the urge to kick Jung Sanghyun, who was dawdling at the back of the group, absorbed in ying games on his pad. Or perhaps she was contemting how to ¡°handle¡± him in a way that would be legendary ¨C her re at the back of his head was downright chilling.
When I carefully suggested to Jung Sanghyun that he should quit the game and walk faster, he snapped ¡°Who the hell are you to tell me what to do?¡± I shut my mouth with a sigh. The ice in Baek Ae-young¡¯s stare from the rear seemed to be intensifying by the second.
Seo Jihyuk, who had been slowing down to fall back, shed a mischievous grin at Jung Sanghyun before snatching his pad and sprinting ahead. ¡°This pad¡¯s mine now~!¡± At that, Jung Sanghyun started chasing after him, yelling ¡°Give it back!¡± Now Baek Ae-young turned her attention to hassling Sophia and Carlos, who weregging behind.
Tumanako was chatting with Kim Jae-hee, who had the most striking hair color among A-Team engineers, discussing where he got it dyed and why he chose that particr shade.
It seemed to Tumanako that Kim Jae-hee was the only one here who showed any interest in hair styling. I couldn¡¯t even tell if the Russians had dyed their hair or not. I half-listened as they discussed how almost everyone here got their hair done in Hawaii or nearby cities.
I was getting antsy. No matter how I looked at it, I¡¯d left my room toote, and now I was regretting that wasted time. I wanted to sprint to the South District dormitory right now, screaming Kim Ga-young¡¯s name.
But people were already walking faster than emergency pace under Baek Ae-young and Shin Haeryang¡¯s urging. Going any faster would require running, and I¡¯d probably face-nt on the corridor floor within three minutes.
My mind was racing with urgency, but my body couldn¡¯t keep up.When I get out of here¡ I¡¯m starting with exercise first thing.
¡°How¡¯d you get that burn on your left palm?¡±
I jumped at Baek Ae-young¡¯s sudden appearance beside me. She was openly questioning my left hand, which I¡¯d been keeping in a fist or facing down.What should I say? That I got burned trying to open your jewelry box?Meeting her suspicious re head-on, I answered.
¡°Had a small ident.¡±
Baek Ae-young stared at me silently before saying.
¡°Humans are instors.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°Electric current will kill you.¡±
¡°Ah¡ right.¡±
In my confusion, my mind was throwing up questions like aren¡¯t humans conductors? Then why do we get static electricity in our fingertips during winter? I thought nerves react and muscles move because of micro-currents constantly flowing through our bodies. We die because we¡¯re instors? Well, if we were conductors, my hand would be fine.
¡°I really don¡¯t like people who mess with my stuff.¡±
¡°Oh. Yes. I¡¯m sorry.¡±
¡°Watch your hands.¡±
I wasn¡¯t sure if her warning about hand amputation meant she¡¯d cut them off herself or make me get them amputated by burning them with electric shock.
I know there¡¯s gold in that jewelry box. Enough that Baek Ae-young would keep thinking about it regretfully while walking around the facility.
I kept quiet, figuring she wouldn¡¯t believe me even if I exined I was nning to steal the jewelry box from the flooding room like some righteous thief and return it to its original owner.
Baek Ae-young seemed to already know I¡¯d triggered the electric trap in her room. How did she know? Did she test it? ¡She probably did test it. I quietly looked at my palm, still burning from residual heat. Well, it¡¯s not a serious injury, so it¡¯s fine.
Kim Jae-hee, who¡¯d started out fastest from the escape pod port and led the front, gradually fell back while talking with Tumanako until he was somewhere in the middle of the group, slightlygging. Though maintaining a steady pace, he wasn¡¯t particrly fast. He approached me with a friendly smile and asked.
¡°Did you know anyone here beforeing to the facility?¡±
¡°No, nobody.¡±
If I¡¯d known anyone, they would¡¯ve signaled me to run far away from this ce. Like those Infinity Church believers wish for, if I could go back in time, I¡¯d tell my past self to get the hell out of here fast. Kim Jae-hee stared at my left artificial eye before speaking.
¡°I was pretty overwhelmed too, not knowing anyone and working in a ce like this for the first time. You¡¯ll get used to it soon. Though with the situation as it is, I¡¯m not sure when the dental clinic will open.¡±
¡°Being new to the facility and suddenly dealing with water leaks, people disappearing, deaths¡ it¡¯s quite shocking.¡±
Kim Jae-hee nodded in understanding and said.
¡°I thought the facility would be pretty quiet and peaceful, but there¡¯s drama every day ¨C never a dull moment. Before getting hired, I only heard stories about the facility and thought there¡¯d be no issues being underwater, just asionally patching leaks and recing corroded parts.¡±
¡°How¡¯s it actually working here?¡±
Baek Ae-young and Seo Jihyuk don¡¯t seem to think this is a good workce. Wonder what Kim Jae-hee thinks.
¡°It¡¯s worse than expected. We have leaks with untraceable sources, daily breakdowns, and when we request recement parts, they have toe by ship or helicopter with uncertain arrival times. Sometimes manufacturers go bankrupt and stop producing parts altogether. Besides these minor issues, the facility seems to be corroding faster than the researchers initially predicted. ording to the concrete structure degradation damage simtion based on MARIA underwater system records, this North Pacific Underwater Facility has less than 30 years of life left. Even the International Space Stationunched in 1998sted 33 years. As someone employed here, it¡¯s unsettling that this 21st-century hodgepodge of cutting-edge design, construction, and every avable scientific technology has such a short shelf life. We¡¯re barely maintaining it with humans and robots, but who knows how long that¡¯llst?¡±
Kim Jae-hee shrugged with augh.
¡°How are the people you work with?¡±
¡°People are the same everywhere. Always acting in self-interest, full of greed but no self-control. Being confined here makes people more extreme. One day someone flips over another person¡¯s food tray just because the food tastes bad. People try to fight to the death with folks from another country over one sports foul. Some ask why an Asian person dyed their hair, saying we should love our natural color. All sorts of weird stuff happens. At least my team members are decent, so it¡¯s not too bad overall.¡±
While speaking, Kim Jae-hee kept touching his ear piercing, then used both hands to unscrew the back counterclockwise and remove it. He pocketed the piercing, saying, ¡°It was wobbling, so I took it out.¡± Then he started asking about my work life.
¡°How¡¯s the dental clinic? Do you get many cavity cases?¡±
¡°Let¡¯s see¡ First off, there are fewer patients with severe cavities than expected. When Elliot told me on my first day that they¡¯d installed free vending machines from global snack and beveragepanies all over the facility, plus practically unlimited choctes and candies, I was shocked. Actually, I thought the clinic would be swamped with cavity cases. I imagined having one appointment but 80 people showing up unscheduled, grabbing the lone dentist by the cor, threatening that I couldn¡¯t use the bathroom or eat lunch and dinner until I treated everyone that day.¡±
Seo Jihyuk, walking nearby, cracked a smile hearing my story.
¡°But I¡¯m busier with scaling for tartar than cavities, and there are more cases of broken, missing, or cracked teeth.¡±
Seo Jihyuk quickened his pace and whooshed off to the front where Shin Haeryang was. Kim Jae-hee nodded with interest.
¡°It¡¯s fascinating hearing from a dentist¡¯s perspective. Isn¡¯t it tough working alone?¡±
Ah, I¡¯ve really wanted to tell someone about this.
¡°It¡¯s incredibly tough. I wish there was at least one more person. No, actually, two more would be better.¡±
A dental clinic can somehow function with one dentist, but it¡¯s not sustainable. I really hope a dental hygienist or technicianes soon. Why didn¡¯t they hire everyone at once? The clinic¡¯s barely running because patient numbers are low right now.
The only reason I haven¡¯t copsed on Deep Blue¡¯s floor dering I can¡¯t do this is that it¡¯s the facility¡¯s first dental clinic and they¡¯re hiring from various countries. I¡¯m hanging on because of that, not because it¡¯s a good working environment.
No, it¡¯s okay. I¡¯m getting out of here anyway, so they¡¯ll need to hire a new dentist first.As I was frantically gesturing while spilling out stories about Deep Blue, Kim Jae-hee noticed my palm and asked.
¡°What happened to your palm? Doesn¡¯t it hurt?¡±
¡°I touched Ae-young¡¯s jewelry box and this happened.¡±
Jung Sanghyun, who¡¯d retrieved his pad from Seo Jihyuk, looked at me in surprise and shouted at Baek Ae-young.
¡°Hey! Did you lower the voltage from before?¡±
Baek Ae-young ignored himpletely.
¡°Hey!¡±
¡°Did you¡ just call out to me?¡±
¡°Who else would I be talking to?¡±
¡°Call out to me like that one more time and I¡¯ll make sure the squids feast on your corpse.¡±
Baek Ae-young¡¯s menacing tone made it clear she was itching to take advantage of the team leader¡¯s absence to quietly kill Jung Sanghyun. Having never heard Baek Ae-young make idle threats, I got serious chills, but Jung Sanghyun casually asked.
¡°Why are you ring like that? So scary¡ Ae-young, did you lower the voltage?¡±
¡°No. Why would I?¡±
¡°Then why is this dentist still okay?!¡±
Chapter 171
What the hell does he mean ¡°okay¡± when my palm is ck?Baek Ae-young responded to Jung Sanghyun with obvious irritation.
¡°How should I know? Stop talking to me.¡±
¡°You¡¯re only pissy with me.¡±
Baek Ae-youngpletely ignored him and walked ahead, calling out to Nikita. She was pointing at Shin Haeryang¡¯s pad and saying something. Kim Jae-hee examined my palm closely and spoke.
¡°It¡¯s in better shape than expected.¡±
¡°I wrapped a towel around my hand when I grabbed it.¡±
¡°Ah, I see. Ae-young set that jewelry box to conduct 60mA of current ¨C enough to cause cardiac arrest.¡±
¡°What?!¡±
Holy shit, I almost died. How does Baek Ae-young live with something like that installed in her room? One moment of forgetfulness touching that box and you¡¯d end up in the hospital¡ No, scratch that ¨C you¡¯d go straight to the afterlife.Kim Jae-hee whispered to me.
¡°You¡¯re smarter than Sanghyun. He touched Ae-young¡¯s jewelry box and got rushed to Daehan Ind¡¯s emergency room in cardiac arrest.¡±
¡°Ah, hyung! Why are you telling that story?! That¡¯s a privacy vition!¡±
¡°Wow, you even know the word ¡®privacy¡¯! I¡¯m impressed, hey.¡±
Kim Jae-heeughed exaggeratedly while patting Jung Sanghyun¡¯s shoulder.
¡°If I hadn¡¯t kicked your hand away from the box with my leg, you¡¯d have been reduced to ashes right then¡ See, this is why prosthetic leg material shouldn¡¯t be silicon. My magnificent kick kept you alive until now.¡±
¡°Ah, seriously! Stop milking that story!¡±
¡°I¡¯m gonna milk it as long as you¡¯re in this facility.¡±
¡°Someone who installs that kind of thing in their room is the crazy one. They¡¯re clearly not right in the head.¡±
Jung Sanghyun was cursing while keeping an eye on Baek Ae-young in the distance.
¡°What kind of psycho woman installs something like that in her jewelry box? I bet she¡¯s killed people like this before.¡±
¡°Is that so¡ Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s kind of cool? I find that stuff impressive. How does a woman evene up with the idea of causing cardiac arrest like that? You won¡¯t meet people like this at otherpanies.¡±
Jung Sanghyun huffed angrily when Kim Jae-hee showed zero agreement with hisints.
¡°Hyung, are you even listening to me? Shouldn¡¯t you be taking my side? I ended up in the emergency room! Don¡¯t you remember I couldn¡¯t use my right hand for a month?!¡±
¡°Our Sanghyun wasn¡¯t destined to die then ¨C getting carried by medics, arriving at the hospital in under 10 minutes, getting kicked by my magnificent leg¡ Life¡¯s been so easy for you. Back when I dropped thatndmine, there was no hospital within 10 minutes, not a medic in sight. I passed out and woke up with my leg gone. Meanwhile, our Sanghyun passes out and wakes up with his hand still perfectly attached.¡±
¡°Arrrgghhhh! It¡¯s impossible talking to you, seriously!¡±
Jung Sanghyun ran ahead clutching his pad. Kim Jae-hee watched his back while giggling and said to me.
¡°His mental and physical growth hasn¡¯t caught up to his age. Give him about 60 years, he might finish developing.¡±
That would make Jung Sanghyun well over 80. I clenched and unclenched my left hand, checking its condition. Movement wasn¡¯t too difficult. Kim Jae-hee watched my hand movements and said.
¡°Just get to a hospital quickly. Don¡¯t worry too much. These days they can fix almost anything if you¡¯ve got the money.¡±
Somewhat relieved by those words, I shared my frantic concerns with Kim Jae-hee.
¡°What I¡¯m worried about now is Ga-young in the South District dormitory.¡±
On the way from the escape pod port to the Central District, Kevin Wilson was still dead in the exact same spot, head smashed against the railing.How does he consistently die hitting his head on that metal handle? Can¡¯t he dodge it just once?
I realized that repeatedly seeing corpses in the same location was having a significant impact on my mental state. The same goes for idents that keep happening. Kim Jae-hee stretched both arms skyward and spoke carelessly.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, Team Leader Shin said he¡¯s going to the South District.¡±
¡°I¡¯m worried we won¡¯t make it in time. What if Ga-young¡¯s room fills uppletely? What if the rescuees toote? I¡¯m so worried.¡±
I left my room toote because I was sleeping.Wasn¡¯t there another way? Maybe there¡¯s a better solution that I just don¡¯t know about. A person only has one life.Kim Jae-hee answered with a big yawn.
¡°Then she dies.¡±
My breath caught in my throat.Why can¡¯t I get used to facing situations where people die or might die, even though it¡¯s happened so many times now?
¡°Why are you overthinking it? It¡¯s not like you¡¯re the one killing her.¡±
¡°¡I just can¡¯t think about it so simply.¡±
¡°Well, Team Leader Shin¡¯s going, so we should focus on saving ourselves.¡±
¡°But if I went along¡ maybe it would be less dangerous, or maybe there was a better way. That¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking about.¡±
¡°People live ording to their fate. Let¡¯s not worry too much.¡±
Kim Jae-hee seemedpletely rxed. Even with the facility flooding, people carrying guns threatening to kill each other, and no escape pods avable, he didn¡¯t seem particrly concerned. I couldn¡¯t understand where suchposure came from. And I was just a tiny bit envious of it.
Even though I¡¯ve lived through dying and getting stuck in water-filled rooms multiple times, I never developed that kind ofposure.
I always end up anxious, racing against time, and berating myself for my inadequacies. It¡¯s the same now. Until I see Kim Ga-young rescued and safe, anxiety will coil in my gut like a huge snake, refusing to unwind as I fret.
If Kim Ga-young is rescued, I¡¯ll hope that she and Tumanako get out of this facility. ¡How does one live with suchposure?I sighed and took slow, deep breaths.
Just as we were entering the Central District, dimir and Shin Haeryang almost simultaneously signaled everyone to stop. Carlos, who crashed face-first into Viktor¡¯s back from the sudden halt, groaned while clutching his nose.
Kim Jae-hee and I stopped too. Those walking at the back had no idea why people in front had stopped. But the people in front gradually dispersed from the corridor, slowly disappearing. Seo Jihyuk pried open the ceiling, skillfully climbed up, pulled Sophia up with one hand, and closed the panel. Others slipped behind or into vending machines.
¡°-ey!¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°Hide!¡±
Baek Ae-young shouted sharply at everyone.Where? There weren¡¯t many ces for twelve people to hide immediately. Hide around here?Watching the situation unfold, it seemed dimir and Shin Haeryang were quickly giving instructions, designating hiding spots for people nearby. People from the front were ducking into various hiding ces.
What the hell? What¡¯s going on?
In my confusion, I followed Kim Jae-hee behind the beverage vending machine where Carlos and Viktor were hiding. It was my first time hiding in such a narrow gap between a vending machine and wall since growing hair ¨C the space was barely enough for two grown men.
Then someone kicked me, sending me flying into the corridor connecting the central and West District sectors. Momentarily confused at suddenly rolling on the floor, I realized there was no space left for me to hide behind the vending machine again.
And both dimir and Shin Haeryang in the corridor must have found their final hiding spots, as the corridor adjacent to the Central District was nowpletely empty.
¡Where did everyone hide? Why is nobody here?
This area is basically the entrance corridor to the Central District. At first nce, there were only a few vending machines visible. Now I could see people had hidden behind and beside all of them. As I headed toward the snack vending machine next to the beverage one, I heard a whistle. Tumanako was gesturing to me from what looked like a gap in the wall.
When I quickly approached, I found Nikita, Baek Ae-young, and Tumanako squeezed into a tiny space that was essentially recessed into the wall.
It was a narrow space barely big enough for storing supplies, like a small storage closet. Looking closer, I saw cleaning robots entering and exiting. The circr cleaning robots were emitting red light, confusedly circling around my feet which had suddenly appeared as an obstacle.
The cleaning robots that entered the narrow space moved around, spitting out collected dust and garbage into a palm-sized hole in the floor. After emptying their waste, small robotic arms moved them to empty charging ports where they clicked into ce and began charging.
The cleaning robots emerged with green lights after charging. I¡¯d assumed the cleaning robots charged and emptied their waste somewhere, but I hadn¡¯t known about these charging stations tucked into wall corners.
I realized why I¡¯d never noticed this ce before ¨C it waspletely flush with the wall, and the colors matched perfectly. It was practically invisible unless you looked carefully.
The size was close to a single-person closet. It looked cramped even for three women. It was so tight that the three women were practicallypressed together in an embrace, and there was clearly no room for another adult male. There wasn¡¯t even space for feet. The cleaning robots, evicted by the human intruders, were hastily retreating from their charging station.
Moreover, with human bodies blocking the charging spots, robots that couldn¡¯t find charging ports lit up red and buzzed away to find other charging stations.
Hmm¡ this won¡¯t work. I don¡¯t know what¡¯sing, but I¡¯d rather face the danger head-on than hide here.
This space is barely enough for one adult male to hide alone. No, it wasn¡¯t even designed for people to hide in at all. As I stood frozen like a statue in shock at the tight space, Tumanako pulled me in regardless.
Baek Ae-young clicked her tongue, stepped on what looked like a shelf on the wall and Nikita¡¯s shoulder, and rose into the air. Then she stuck to the corner like a spider weaving its web. Nikita grabbed the charging station door and closed itpletely.
Without external light, the charging station¡¯s interior was dark and smelled of dust and garbage. The cleaning robots hummed mechanically, charging with red lights.
I pressed my face into the furthest corner, barely breathing. With each breath I took and released, my back pressed against Nikita¡¯s. And Tumanako¡¯s shoulder was crushed against mine. How the hell was Baek Ae-young hanging up there? I was grateful they¡¯d called me over but half sorry and half desperate to get out of there immediately.
We squirmed to find morefortable positions in the tight space. Specifically, Nikita had Tumanako sit on the floor while Nikita and I ended up in an awkward position ¨C neither standing nor sitting ¨C with our backs together, bracing our limbs against the walls and corners.
Something suddenly started pressing on my shoulder, startling me. Turning my head slightly, I saw Baek Ae-young¡¯s foot using my shoulder as a foothold. It seemed difficult to stay attached to the charging station ceiling by arm strength alone.What the hell is happening that we need to hide like this?
Nikita was peering outside through a tiny gap in an ufortable position, turning his shoulders. We could hear people talking. Looking through the poorly constructed gaps in the charging station, I could see people with guns approaching from a distance. I recognized one face through that small gap. It was Team Leader Sato.
Just then, Tumanako, who had inhaled some dust from the floor, panicked and coughed. ¡°Achoo!¡±
Chapter 172
The startled Tumanako quickly covered her mouth and nose with both hands, but they must have heard the cough outside. She froze like a stone, unable to move. After several seconds, she lifted his head to look at us. I met her terrified eyes. I could feel Nikita¡¯s ribcage expand as she held her breath in tension.
Just then, Baek Ae-young¡¯s foot shifted slightly on my left shoulder, like someone testing ground stability before crossing. I tensed my entire body to keep my left shoulder level. If my posture copsed, Nikita and Tumanako would be crushed under my and Ae-young¡¯s weight.
The center of gravity shifted dramatically as Ae-young descended from the ceiling. Putting her weight on her left leg, she reached for her right ankle, and a palm-sized knife came down. Tumanako¡¯s eyes grew huge behind her hands.
The footsteps grew louder. Someone was approaching the robot charging station. With a snickeringugh, a man told someone else ¡°I¡¯ll get them out.¡± Whoever wasing seemed to expect someone hiding here, deliberately making exaggerated footsteps. Tumanako, right beside my calf, trembled violently at the approaching sound.
¡°That definitely sounded like a woman¡¯s cough. Where could they be hiding?¡±
Japanese. A male voice mixed withughter. Supporting Baek Ae-young meant I couldn¡¯t see through the gap below my line of sight. Ae-young¡¯s ankle and leg descended further until she was practically sitting on my shoulders like a piggyback ride. While this position was more stable, and distributing her weight across both shoulders was easier for me, Ae-young seemed deeply unsatisfied with this height for attacking.
Perched on my shoulders, she gripped the knife reversed and tested a downward stabbing motion before shaking her head. At this height, she¡¯d be striking well above an adult male¡¯s height ¨C unless she was aiming straight down at the skull, it was an awkward attack position.
¡°Where could they be?¡±
The voice came from right by the charging station. Tumanako was practically hyperventting now. Baek Ae-young repositioned the knife normally and tested an upward shing motion toward the throat. Both methods were hampered by the cramped space ¨C she could barely swing her arm except in a downward motion.
I held my breath, spread my legs as wide as possible, and slowly lowered myself. Should¡¯ve exercised more. Maintaining a squat position with someone on my shoulders, I went down until I barely avoided touching Tumanako. Attacking while piggybacking someone clearly wasn¡¯t easy.
I wasn¡¯t the only one watching Ae-young¡¯s knife tip moving through the air. Nikita, who had been leaning back to avoid getting caught in the attack, suddenly grabbed Ae-young¡¯s right hand. Then she tried to take her knife.
¡°!¡±
As the startled Ae-young¡¯s body swayed, her heel kicked my chest two or three times. ¡°Ugh!¡± The sudden hits to my chest knocked the wind out of me. When I staggered, Ae-young nearly crashed into the charging robots or mmed into the door. I used every ounce of strength to keep her from falling off my shoulders.
Ae-young¡¯s right hand holding the knife trembled. The strength seemed almost equal between Nikita trying to take the knife with both hands and Ae-young resisting with one. A silent struggle ensued over the knife handle. Ae-young gritted her teeth and red at Nikita. In the cleaning robots¡¯ light, Nikita¡¯s eyes looked almost red.
If Ae-young had attacked Nikita directly with the knife she was holding, she wouldn¡¯t have lost it. But she opened her trembling right hand that had been tightly gripping it. Nikita snatched the knife from her palm like it was her own. Now the footsteps were practically right in front of us.
¡°Could they be hiding here?¡±
An excited voice. Someone grabbed the charging station door. Whoever was outside, the fact that they weren¡¯t just shooting at the station from a distance suggested they wanted to frighten out whoever was inside.
From my experience carrying and using a gun, I¡¯d learned that at very close range, the longer and heavier the gun, the harder it is to react. If they thought someone was inside, shooting from a distance would be safest for the attacker. I couldn¡¯t understand why they were trying to scare us out.
Unless two people were at the cleaning robot charging station door ¨C one opening it while the other aimed inside ¨C they¡¯d definitely expose themselves to danger. A single person would have to use one hand to open the door.
Plus, I¡¯m the biggest and tallest person in this cramped charging station. Even if they open the door and shoot, there¡¯s probably over a 50% chance I¡¯d get hit. The moment the door opens, if I can force their gun barrel upward or pull it toward me since I¡¯m getting hit anyway, wouldn¡¯t that make it less dangerous for the others?
¡°Found ya!¡±
With those words, outside light flooded the dark interior. My heart felt like it was pounding in my head from tension. Goosebumps spread across my neck and back. I guessed where they¡¯d aim and pushed up on the gun barrel the moment the door opened.
I¡¯d nned to block the barrel with my body if I failed, but was surprised how easily it moved up. The man apparently hadn¡¯t expected anyone inside to fight back.
Baek Ae-young grabbed the hair of the man who¡¯d opened the door and pulled him toward her, while Nikita timed her strike to stab the man¡¯s neck. The man, surprised by Nikita¡¯s initial shallow neck wound, tried to back away, but Ae-young wouldn¡¯t let him.Bang bang bang bang!The startled man frantically pulled his trigger.
The gunshots at close range felt like they¡¯d burst my eardrums. A light ringing sound ¨C keeeeeng ¨C filled my ears. Nikita moved in close and repeatedly stabbed and withdrew the knife from the man¡¯s neck. Rather than panic or fear, she seemed focused on making holes to increase bleeding. Blood sprayed everywhere, and we had to take it, unable to move.
Baek Ae-young, who¡¯d been holding the man¡¯s hair to prevent retreat, kicked him in the chest like a flimsy scarecrow, then leaped and drove her knee into his face. With a crash, the man fell backward. I also fell t on my back, having been Ae-young¡¯s foothold. After rolling around on the floor, I frantically checked myself and fortunately hadn¡¯t been shot anywhere.
Beside me, Tumanako sat frozen, clutching her head with both hands, looking dumbfounded. Since she couldn¡¯t move at all, I practically dragged her out of the charging station. Her feet barely working, she stumbled out like a toddler learning to walk. Outside was even more chaotic. The gunshot seemed to have signaled everyone in hiding to jump out and attack others.
Shin Haeryang was strangling some man with a parachute cord, and when another man from the same side tried to shoot Shin, he used the choking man as a human shield. The bullets left marks as they passed through the strangling man¡¯s body. From behind the now-limp, shot man, Shin used his victim¡¯s gun to shoot his attacker.
Sato was somehow in dimir¡¯s grip, and a woman with a gun opposite them aimed at dimir trying to help Sato. However, Seo Jihyuk approached from behind and lifted her gun upward.
¡°Huh?¡±
The woman let out a surprised sound as her gun was forced up, turning to stare at Seo Jihyuk behind her in shock. By the time he¡¯d raised the gun above his head, ownership had already transferred from the woman to him.
As I came to my senses, I started recognizing faces and names. The opponent whose face I could barely see in the backlight was Suzuki Senru, blood endlessly flowing from his neck. Yamashita Hikaru and Ichita Yuukiy shot on the floor, while Takahashi Yurie and Sato Ryusuke had their hands up.
Among N-Team engineers, Tamaki Yuzuru and Uehara Sumire were missing.
Shin Haeryang, who¡¯d retrieved the gun from Ichita Yuuki¡¯s strangled body, coldly asked Sato.
¡°Where are your other two members?¡±
¡°What are you gonna do if I don¡¯t tell you?¡±
Without answering, Shin shot at Sato¡¯s feet, making Takahashi beside him scream. It was a careless shot suggesting he wouldn¡¯t care if he identally took off Sato¡¯s foot. Seo Jihyuk, slinging the gun he¡¯d taken from Takahashi over his shoulder, spoke up.
¡°Hey, this guy¡¯s about to lose it, so answer quick.¡±
¡°¡They¡¯re hiding around here, aiming at you. Surrender now if you don¡¯t want to die.¡±
dimir, who¡¯d been disarming Sato,ughed mockingly in disbelief. Then he used his huge hand to punch Sato¡¯s face twice in quick session, dropping him to the floor.
¡°Didn¡¯t Uehara Sumire and Tamaki Yuzuru just run away?¡±
When I asked this, Sato, nose bleeding, looked at me and grimaced. Takahashi beside him quickly answered.
¡°Ueharained the gun was too heavy and ran away from the back of the group. Tamaki¡ we never gave him loaded ammunition in the first ce. His gun should be empty, so we just need to find Uehara.¡±
¡°They didn¡¯t suddenly disappear or anything?¡±
¡°¡Wish they had.¡±
Sato spat out blood running down his throat as he answered Shin Haeryang¡¯s question. Baek Ae-young, who¡¯d pulled Nikita off Suzuki Senru¡¯s body where she was still stabbing, quickly took and slung the gun over herself. Still covered in blood, she shook her head at the equally bloody Nikita offering her knife back.
¡°Keep it. I¡¯m giving it to you.¡±
This might be the first time I¡¯ve seen Ae-young give away any of her possessions.Gun in hand, she started scanning the surroundings vigntly. She seemed to believe someone might jump out suddenly. Seo Jihyuk had a simr attitude. But Shin Haeryang just took his loaded gun and opened fire on the beverage vending machine.
Chapter 173
The people hiding behind the vending machines started to emerge but quickly ducked back in.Why¡ is he shooting the vending machine?Only when the machine made strange noises and burst with a thud after taking multiple bullets did Shin Haeryang stop firing, his murderous intensity preventing anyone from stopping him. Only dimir, standing beside him, spoke as if dumbfounded by Shin¡¯s actions.
¡°Hey. Our people are over there.¡±
¡°I know.¡±
¡°Your team members too.¡±
¡°Think I¡¯m shooting blind? Instead of repeating this shit at every escape route, these selfish bastards might as well die by my hand here.¡±
dimir gestured toward the N-Team engineers with his chin, trying to cate Shin.
¡°It worked out fine. No one¡¯s injured.¡±
¡°Just got lucky.¡±
¡°Picky bastard.¡±
As Shin¡¯s gunfire ceased, people started cautiously emerging from behind the vending machines. dimir walked toward Nikita, seemingly unconcerned whether his team members might have been shot behind the machines.
Nikita stood next to me, staring at Ichita, who¡¯d taken multiple shots to the lungs. The rope marks around his neck were vividly blue from the parachute cord. People gathered around Ichita, who was still gasping for breath, while Yamashita was already dead.
From my perspective, unless Ichita got to Daehan Ind¡¯s emergency room immediately, survival seemed impossible. As his shot-up lungs struggled for air, blood flooded out with every breath, gurgling from his mouth and nose. He¡¯ll drown in his own blood.
Nikita, her face still sttered with blood, silently approached Ichita¡¯s face. Then, without hesitation, she used the knife from Baek Ae-young to sh across Ichita¡¯s cheek. Shocked, I jumped to my feet.
Suddenly something blocked my view ¨C Seo Jihyuk had raised his arm between Nikita and me.
¡°That¡¯s¡ not something good to watch.¡±
¡°Just now¡ that¡ª¡±
When I pointed behind Jihyuk in shock, he shook his head.
¡°Doctor, take the Kiwidy and go wash up.¡±
¡°But still¡ª¡±
¡°Quickly.¡±
After meeting Seo Jihyuk¡¯s expressionless stare, I looked at Tumanako sitting dazed beside me. Blood was sttered all over her face and hair. I must look just as bad.
I helped Tumanako up and we staggered away together. Just inside the Central District, we saw bathroom signs. I was about to send Tumanako alone into the women¡¯s room when Tyler suddenly came to mind, and I worried about who might be in there.
I took Tumanako to the men¡¯s room, turned on the faucet, and helped wash her face. Haven¡¯t washed someone else¡¯s face since helping my little brother. After roughly washing away the blood from her face and hair, Tumanako seemed toe to her senses and started sniffling and crying.
I washed my hands at the adjacent sink, washed my face, and rinsed my mouth. The hot, metallic smell of blood instantly faded. Listening to Tumanako¡¯s crying mixed with the soap smell, fatigue hit me hard.
My legs gave out and I copsed to the floor without realizing it. A startled Tumanako asked if I was okay. Muscle pain¡¯s hitting everywhere. I wanted to lie down and sleep without doing anything. I barely kept my eyes open against the encroaching exhaustion and answered.
¡°I¡¯m fine. Just my legs giving out.¡±
¡°Were you shot?¡±
¡°No. Just out of shape.¡±
Tumanako gave me a dumbfounded look at that.
¡°I¡¯ll be fine after some rest.¡±
Adrenaline helps deliver superhuman strength in emergencies. However, it doesn¡¯t take responsibility for the muscles that handled that power. That¡¯s solely my responsibility as the body¡¯s owner. Tumanako let out a big sigh and sat down on the bathroom floor with me.
¡°¡First time I¡¯ve seen people killing and dying.¡±
It¡¯s not my first time, but it always feels new. You can¡¯t get numb to this kind of shock. It feels like piling new psychological trauma on top of other fresh psychological trauma. There¡¯s only one right answer here ¨C quickly escape from this continuous stress situation.
¡°Me too. nning to quit this underwater facility ASAP. Can¡¯t live here anymore.¡±
¡°¡Me too. I want to leave too. It¡¯s too scary, too horrible. I want to get out of here fast. I¡¯m going to cut off all my hair that got his blood on it. What if I get infected from his blood?¡±
¡°Should be fine since we washed it off. Won¡¯t you lose all your bangs though?¡±
¡°My head shape¡¯s pretty, so it¡¯s fine.¡±
Still sniffling, Tumanako rinsed her hair again with soap and water. I could tell she desperately wanted to properly wash her hair but was holding back.
My legs felt like heavy stones. As I grabbed the sink and stood up creakily, my body felt like apletely broken robot. Must be from using too much strength suddenly. Watching Tumanako¡¯s back, I tried to speak in a deliberately cheerful voice.
¡°Still, thanks to Tumanako calling out, I managed to hide safely.¡±
¡°Everyone was hiding while you were wandering the corridor. No space behind the vending machines?¡±
¡°Too tight for four men to hide together.¡±
¡°That¡¯s no excuse. In emergencies, you squeeze together, spill your guts, hold your breath ¨C whatever it takes to hide together. What¡¯s wrong with you?¡±
Something about that ¡°hide together¡±ment strangelyforted me. Tumanako was speaking English, but I heard Korean. Maybe because it transcended thenguage barrier, it touched my heart more deeply.
I remembered Baek Ae-young making room despite the tight space, and Nikita notining at all. Even if they¡¯d kicked me out, I wouldn¡¯t have med them. Same with Shin Haeryang shooting at the vending machine. Can¡¯t exin why, but it felt oddly cathartic. Someone who seemed like they¡¯d begrudge every bullet in this situation. Shooting like that ¨C what if someone got hit by a stray bullet? Tears started welling up in my eyes.
¡°You¡¯re absolutely right, Tumanako.¡±
As tears streamed down my cheeks, all the suddenly surging emotions flowed out with them. Tumanako blew her nose hard and added while washing her hands.
¡°Right. Next time you get kicked out like that, point at the vending machine with your whole body and shout that you¡¯re hiding there. Got it?¡±
Now onlyughter remained on my face.Ah, how embarrassing. Going from sobbing toughing. This evil facility making a grown man over thirty cry so many times. I¡¯m not usually a crybaby. But¡ seeing kind people makes me tear up.
Suddenly I missed Kim Ga-young terribly.When Kim Ga-young and Yoo Geum-yi open their bakery, I¡¯ll set up a dental clinic in that building. I¡¯ll buy bread every three days. No, three times a day. I¡¯ll work hard to earn money and help their bakery.
After washing my face again and walking out like a centenarian, people were still there ¨C seems we hadn¡¯t taken too long.
Takahashi Yurie and Sato Ryusuke had their hands tied with parachute cord. Seo Jihyuk, who¡¯d gagged Sato¡¯s mouth with the cord,nded a heavy punch to the back of his head while his team leader was checking the pad. It was a fury-filled swing that made a sharp crack.
Unable to stay upright, Sato¡¯s upper body toppled sideways. Even as Sato red from his near-prone position on the floor, Seo Jihyuk casually asked Takahashi beside him as if nothing had happened.
¡°Really haven¡¯t seen our Jihyun? Our tall deputy team leader? Come on, don¡¯t mind your team leader, just tell me.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°Think carefully. Maybe you saw her briefly this morning. Might¡¯ve passed by without realizing.¡±
¡°I really don¡¯t know.¡±
¡°Haah¡¡±
Takahashi suddenly smiled and asked Seo Jihyuk.
¡°Why ask us about your team member?¡±
¡°Yeah, good question¡ But why¡¯d you break surveince cameras on your way here? Before that you were running around like monkeys not giving a damn.¡±
¡°Dunno¡ Oh,e to think of it, I might¡¯ve seen Jihyun.¡±
¡°What? Where?¡±
¡°Think she ran toward the East District.¡±
¡°Really?¡±
¡°Uh-huh. Running like a pig.¡±
Seo Jihyuk frowned at Takahashi Yurie¡¯s words. Suddenly sensing a shadow, he looked aside to find Shin Haeryang standing there, silently watching him. Jihyuk smiled awkwardly and quickly answered despite no question being asked.
¡°You said to tie their hands and gag them, haha. Almost done.¡±
Seo Jihyuk swiftly moved to gag Takahashi¡¯s mouth with parachute cord too. Then he approached Shin Haeryang somewhat excitedly and asked.
¡°Takahashi says she saw our people going to East District, could they really be there?¡±
Shin Haeryang shook his head at Seo Jihyuk¡¯s hopeful face.
¡°They should¡¯ve been caught on CCTV at least once. How could they move through West District, Central, and East Districts avoiding all cameras?¡±
¡°Maybe they had help from that bastard?¡±
¡°Who?¡±
¡°The son of a bitch who yed us ¨C you, me, and Ae-young ¨C and specifically kidnapped those two civilian women from our team.¡±
¡°¡Get Sanghyun and Jae-hee.¡±
dimir looked at the bound and gagged Japanese people, then stroked Takahashi¡¯s head with his huge hand while speaking to Shin Haeryang.
¡°No need to package them up like this.¡±
¡°We¡¯re taking them.¡±
¡°Huh? What¡¯re you saying? They¡¯ve been ours since Dmitri and Irina were killed.¡±
¡°You heard them say Yamashita did it.¡±
Listening to Jung Sanghyun¡¯s exnation to Carlos, apparently Yamashita had shot Dmitri as a test to check if the gun worked properly. He was exining something called ¡°Christie-something¡± ¨C a word I¡¯d never heard in my life.
Nikita was wiping the messy de on Ichita¡¯s clothes. Looking at Ichita¡¯s face, though hard to see through all the blood, it seemed like she¡¯d carved a grid pattern with the knife. I quickly turned away.
dimir argued with Shin Haeryang while methodically stepping on Sato¡¯s thigh. Seo Jihyuk had tied him up so well not a single groan escaped.
¡°Of course they¡¯d me someone else if they want to avoid dying right now.¡±
¡°Like your team, we¡¯re missing two members too.¡±
¡°Seems like you suspect they killed your people and hid them somewhere. We have priority. Especially this one ¨C he¡¯s a gift for our deputy team leader.¡±
Chapter 174
Sato¡¯s eyes held a smirk. He mumbled something toward the two team leaders fighting over who¡¯d take him. After his lengthy muttering, dimir slightly loosened the parachute cord secured tightly around Sato¡¯s neck.
Sato spat out a coin that had been in his mouth with the cord and licked his cord-wounded lips with his tongue. His snaggle tooth showed slightly between his lips. Shin Haeryang red at dimir usingly, as if asking why he¡¯d loosened it. dimir instead questioned Shin.
¡°Why¡¯d you gag him?¡±
¡°Can¡¯t imagine I did it because I didn¡¯t want to hear his shit?¡±
Amid the sinister atmosphere, Sato spoke with calcted nonchnce.
¡°¡Who knew Japanese would be so popr in this facility. Should¡¯ve visited West District sector with a gun earlier. Was I too indifferent to Russia and Korea?¡±
Despite having two team leaders ready to tear him apart right in front of him, Sato¡¯s expression barely changed. If they¡¯d named engineer teams by poker rankings, N-Team must be second ce.
While I found Shin Haeryang extremely peculiar, Team Leader Sato seemed equally bizarre personality-wise. Shin Haeryang calmly questioned Sato.
¡°Sato. Never thought you¡¯d go around shooting people. Didn¡¯t you say you were going to listen to some Handel symphony or whatever today?¡±
¡°Handel¡¯s right¡ Team Leader Shin. I¡¯m not doing this because I want to.¡±
¡°From the gunshot wounds on Dmitri and Irina¡¯s bodies, you¡¯re a pretty shit shot. Never done live-fire practice?¡±
¡°Well. I did quite a bit of hologram shooting. Not as helpful as I thought. Really wanted to hit your head once. Too bad.¡±
Shin Haeryang didn¡¯t flinch at Sato¡¯s provocation. Instead, he let out a small sneer and asked something else.
¡°Is R-Team in the East District about the same level as your team?¡±
¡°Hmm. Didn¡¯t Hai Yoon tell you anything? Heard you two were dating. How ruthless of you in this regard.¡±
Shin Haeryang said he wasn¡¯t dating Hai Yoon though. The person involved must be right. Seems there were rumors about them dating in the facility. Completely ignoring Sato¡¯s response, Shin Haeryang asked another question.
¡°Two of our team members disappeared. Seen them?¡±
¡°All your team members are in North District. We had them.¡±
¡°Think I¡¯ll believe that? Keep spouting bullshit and I¡¯ll hand you right over to Deputy Team Leader Nikita. Her knife work¡¯s still sloppy ¨C look how crooked the cuts on Ichita¡¯s face are ¨C but practice makes perfect.¡±
Sato and Takahashi beside him looked at Ichita¡¯s face on the floor. Next to Ichita sat Nikita, hands and face soaked in blood, crouching and staring at the two living Japanese.
Since seeing her little brother¡¯s corpse, Nikita had be drastically quieter. She used to talk andugh with teammates before. Now, nothing seemed to remain in her except rage and killing intent. Looking at Nikita, Sato sighed once and spoke to Shin.
¡°It¡¯s true. They begged for their lives, so out of consideration for you, we stripped them and threw them in the mining team¡¯s quarters.¡±
Seo Jihyuk¡¯s head snapped around from where he was keeping watch toward the Central District. Can he hear our conversation from there? Before Shin could answer, dimir quickly cut in.
¡°Oh yeah? What about our people? Sato. No consideration for me?¡±
When dimir, who¡¯d lost two team members, pped Sato¡¯s cheek hard enough to make a sharp crack with his huge hand, Sato¡¯s expressionless mask finally broke. Wincing as if with a headache, he furrowed one eyebrow and answered.
¡°I regret what happened to Dmitri and Irina. Didn¡¯t mean to shoot them dead. Strictly speaking, it was an ident¡ More curious how you found the bodies though. Thought we hid them pretty well.¡±
¡°You ¡®regret¡¯ it? What about sabotaging the escape pods so we¡¯d burn to death?¡±
Sato answered shamelessly. Instead, Takahashi beside him was fidgeting nervously.
¡°Looking at you lot alive and well, seems that was a massive failure. Besides, you killed three of our members too. One more dead ¨C guess we lost. Congrattions.¡±
Standing beside dimir, who looked like he couldn¡¯t believe this bastard, Shin Haeryang frowned and said.
¡°Told you I didn¡¯t want to hear his crap.¡±
Sato scanned the surroundings, then suddenly smiled and addressed me while I was checking Ichita¡¯s death. I thought I¡¯d misheard.
¡°Long time no see, Doctor.¡±
¡Wow, that¡¯s pretty creepy. Don¡¯t know why he¡¯s greeting me warmly like a teacher he hasn¡¯t seen in ten years, but I have no connection to you. Really hope people around here don¡¯t think I¡¯m in cahoots with N-Team.
Jung Sanghyun and Kim Jae-hee, who were checking the pad near me, backed away and quickly distanced themselves.Heh heh heh.
¡°Yes, first time seeing you outside the dental clinic. Still haven¡¯t received any answer about your dental correction.¡±
Had no conventional pleasantries to offer. Questions like how are you doing, how¡¯s the weather, how¡¯ve you been ¨C all had to be trashed in this situation. I put up an invisible steel wall while answering Sato. He shrugged and said.
¡°Don¡¯t know what you did, but you should worry more about your own safety than my teeth.¡±
¡Don¡¯t know why he¡¯s threatening me. Surely this isn¡¯t meant as advice? Both team leaders looked at me too, and their gazes weren¡¯t exactly friendly.
¡°But I haven¡¯t done anything except dental work?¡±
Really haven¡¯t done anything special. The most unusual things I¡¯ve done are getting my side torn by a shark, taking a bullet to the head, and drinking lots of seawater. Compared to your stuff like sabotaging escape pods, harassing innocent people, and shooting people dead, those seem pretty trivial.
Thinking about it twice¡ you should worry about yourself instead. Both dimir and Shin look like they want to kill you every time you open your mouth.
¡°Well. Quite a few people seem to think differently.¡±
Shin Haeryang made a slight gesture to dimir. Don¡¯t know what that gesture meant, but it seemed to say ¡°take him.¡± Sato looked past Nikita staring at him intently, to a figure beyond Nikita¡¯s shoulder. Looking at Baek Ae-young¡¯s back in the distance, he spoke to the two team leaders.
¡°¡I prefer Baek Ae-young over Nikita. Unlike Ivanov, I¡¯m not into older types.¡±
As if deciding he¡¯d heard enough, Shin Haeryang punched Sato hard. Though it was just one hit to the face, Sato¡¯s head snapped sideways over 90 degrees and he passed out.
Listening to the conversation, I¡¯d counted Shin Haeryang practicing patience at least three times¡ Been wondering when he¡¯d hit him. Dental correction would require extraction, but not by punching like that. dimir beckoned his team member with his chin. Viktor grabbed one of Sato¡¯s ankles and dragged him away.
Takahashi, watching all this from the side, seemed dumbfounded. Though captured, he probably expected his team leader to beg for his life, not provoke everyone until getting knocked out and dragged away.
Team Leader Sato probably resigned himself to an ugly death the moment they took his gun and caught him, whether by Russians or Koreans. Fear began creeping into Takahashi¡¯s nk expression as he watched Sato being dragged away. He finally realized it was his turn. Shin Haeryang gestured toward Ichita¡¯s corpse and spoke to Takahashi.
¡°Takahashi. If D-Team takes you, you¡¯re literally dead. They won¡¯t just kill you ¨C they¡¯ll torture you painfully until yourst breath.¡±
Takahashi muttered in confusion.
¡°No way. I¡ I didn¡¯t shoot the Russians! Ichita and Yamashita did it ¨C why should I suffer for that?¡±
¡°Why¡¯d you break the CCTVs on your way here?¡±
¡°¡¡±
¡°Seen our team members?¡±
Takahashi forced out words from his throat.
¡°¡They¡¯re in the North District.¡±
¡°Earlier you said East District?¡±
¡°¡You¡¯ll hand me over to the Russians anyway even if I tell the truth!¡±
Takahashi cried out in a despairing voice. Shin Haeryang answered as if finding his words ridiculous.
¡°If you shot my team members dead and dumped them somewhere, I can be even crazier than D-Team.¡±
Takahashi faltered at those words and looked around. He seemed to be searching for anyone who might take his side, but with little sess. Not just D-Team, but A-Team members were all giving him cold stares. Judging that neither I, Tumanako, nor Carlos could help him, Takahashi¡¯s face darkened.
¡°Didn¡¯t kill them. Never killed anyone! Never even saw them! Only saw some American and Canadian engineers ¨C everyone else was from the mining team. Really!¡±
¡°The CCTVs?¡±
¡°Someone ordered us to do it.¡±
¡°Who ordered it?¡±
Takahashi hesitated before answering ufortably.
¡°¡Religious people told us to break the CCTVs as we went. Said something about what¡¯s visible on CCTVs ¨C don¡¯t know the details.¡±
¡°Religion? Infinity Church?¡±
Takahashi stared at me nkly and nodded. ¡No idea why he¡¯s looking at me. Had a bad feeling.
Shin Haeryang made a simr gesture to dimir as before. Probably meaning take this one too. Niki and Sophia linked arms with Takahashi. With his wrists bound in front, Takahashi couldn¡¯t resist as they dragged him away.
¡°Wait! Wasn¡¯t A-Team supposed to take me?!¡±
¡°If our team members are dead, I¡¯lle find you.¡±
¡°Wait! Hold on! This isn¡¯t right!¡±
Just as Takahashi started shouting frantically, gunfire erupted. Seo Jihyuk was shooting ¨C I grabbed Tumanako and Kim Jae-hee beside me and immediately hit the floor.
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Chapter 175
A scream pierced the air from where Jihyuk had his gun aimed, followed by what sounded like someone copsing. The sound of running footsteps indicated Jihyuk was moving. Momentster, the enemy began unleashing a barrage of gunfire in our direction.
There was barely any cover or structures around to shield ourselves from the bullets. Thinking back, at least that jewelry exhibition hall had high pedestals orrge raw gems we could hide behind. In this even worse situation, all we could do was throw ourselves to the ground and wait for the gunfire to pass.
Gunshots echoed from every direction. Judging by the sound, it seemed like Ae-young was firing at something too, but I couldn¡¯t lift my head to look. How the hell was she even managing to shoot in this chaos? Could she actually see what she was aiming at?
From my previous experience, I couldn¡¯t tell where bullets wereing from or who was shooting what. Even in this second firefight, nothing had changed except that I was calmer now instead of crying in terror like before.
Everyone around had thrown themselves to the floor, covering their heads and screaming. When Tumanako¡¯s screams grew as loud as the gunfire, I crawled over and covered her mouth with my palm. Within three seconds, Tumanako assessed the situation and closed her mouth, allowing me to remove my hand. Jaehee, his head covered, nced at me beside him and said with a grin as the rat-tat-tat of gunfire assaulted our ears.
¡°Isn¡¯t this thrilling? Most exciting day since we got to the underwater base.¡±
I could only hear his voice because he was close ¨C the gunfire was too deafening for normal conversation. Covering my head with my hands, unsure if I was trying to protect it or block out the noise, I shot back.
¡°We¡¯re getting shot at here?!¡±
Just as I finished speaking, something whizzed past and struck the floor right next to my forearm. Shit. That was close.
¡°That¡¯s what makes it fun.¡±
His rxed voice somehow carried over the chaos. This isn¡¯t fun at all. Tumanako was literally trembling beneath me. Sanghyun, who had thrown himself down simr to me, shouted while pressing his face to the floor.
¡°You¡¯re out of your fucking mind! Are you high or something?!¡±
¡°Hey, that¡¯s going too far.¡±
As I lifted my head slightly to look around, I could see Haeryang and dimir prone on the ground, firing their weapons. Following their aim, I spotted ck-d figures lying at the other end.
The enemy¡¯s fire ceased, and after a brief pause, our side stopped shooting as well.
¡°Sanghyun!¡±
Haeryang called out Sanghyun¡¯s name softly. Still stered to the floor, Sanghyun replied in a small, indignant voice.
¡°Nothing showed up on the pad!¡±
A man from the opposing side shouted in English.
¡°Who the fuck are you people?!¡±
¡We¡¯d like to know the same thing. Who are you? The uniforms look like Infinity Church believers, but did theye down from the Second Underwater Base? Niki, thinking simrly, immediately shouted back in English.
¡°Who the fuck are YOU?!¡±
The other side seemed slightly taken aback before revealing their identity.
¡°We are Infinity Church believers who have taken control of the underwater base. Who are you?!¡±
Ah. So I was right. But weren¡¯t they supposed to stay in the Second or Third Underwater Base? Niki¡¯s voice carried a hint of confusion as he asked those around him. What¡¯s Infinity Church? What? I don¡¯t know either. Niki shouted to the team leader.
¡°Boss! What should I tell them? Should we be honest?!¡±
¡°Tell them we¡¯re Japanese. The only people carrying guns around here are either Japanese or Chinese.¡±
Ignoring the chatter around him, Haeryang began crawling forward. After hearing dimir¡¯s low voice, Niki bellowed at the top of his lungs.
¡°We are Japanese!¡±
Good lord. He shouted that exact phrase in Russian, causing Haeryang to pause momentarily in surprise before resuming his movement. Jaehee burst outughing while still lying face-down.
dimir¡¯s face turned red and purple as he red at Niki from his crouched position, while Carlos, who had his head buried in the floor in a corner, yelled out.
¡°Are you fucking insane? Damn, I¡¯m the idiot for hanging around with these Russian bastards!¡±
Niki looked bewildered by everyone¡¯s reactions before realizing he¡¯d shouted in Russian, his face falling in dismay.
Since the other side had stopped firing, I cautiously raised my hand and waved it slightly. Nobody shot. I lifted my head to survey the surroundings.
In the distance, Jihyuk was crouched behind a pir, gesturing toward me. The first thing I noticed was his fingers stained crimson with blood. He was waving his second and fourth fingers while moving his hand from right to left. Probably telling me to crawl over, or maybe swim across the floor. Come to think of it, neither Jihyuk nor Ae-young had made a sound. Jihyuk, hidden behind the pir, was sitting with his gun aimed at the enemy.
I tapped Tumanako¡¯s back with my fingertip and pointed toward Jihyuk. When I tapped Sanghyun¡¯s calf to show him Jihyuk¡¯s position, he tucked the pad he¡¯d been looking at against his back and started frantically crawling sideways. After several seconds of silence, the Infinity Church believer shouted.
¡°You must be Engineering Team D. Did you take those guns from Engineering Team A?!¡±
¡°Please spare meeeee!¡±
Suddenly, Takahashi Yurie spat out the cloth stuffed in her mouth and screamed at the top of her lungs. Sophia, who had been holding Takahashi, seemed unable to subdue the bound woman who was now thrashing about ¨C perhaps she¡¯d been injured in the recent firefight. Soprano screams filled the western section of the Central Building. Nikita could be seen hastily stabbing Takahashi¡¯s throat with her knife.
The whole situation must have struck Jaehee as hrious because he was lying on his side, his body shaking withughter. After the forced screaming died down and everything fell dead silent, the Infinity Church side received a response in Japanese from a woman, followed by a reluctant reply.
¡°Seems you did steal them. Is Captain Sato still alive?!¡±
That figure lying unconscious next to Viktor looks like Sato Ryusuke, but¡ I tapped Jaehee¡¯s calf, and when he didn¡¯t respond, I patted his waist.
¡°Jaehee! Jaehee!¡±
Jaehee turned his head to look at me, then noticed Sanghyun crawling away in the distance. After scanning our surroundings, he started crawling with me toward where Sanghyun had gone. dimir sighed before shouting at the opposing side.
¡°Consider him dead! Why did you terrorists attack the underwater base?!¡±
¡°You don¡¯t need to know that! ¡We¡¯re looking for someone! If you want to live, cooperate!¡±
dimir angrily shouted back at the Infinity Church believers in response to their answer.
¡°Not my fucking problem! Get out of the underwater base!¡±
In the distance, Carlos looked between Engineering Teams A and D before starting to crawl toward Team A. Only after crawling to the pir where Jihyuk was hiding did I realize he was injured. The left sleeve of his clothes was soaked with blood.
¡°Did you get shot in the arm?¡±
¡°Just grazed.¡±
Jihyuk replied while keeping his eyes forward, as if it were nothing. Then he suddenly asked me.
¡°Do you know how to treat gunshot wounds?¡±
What do these people think of Korean dentists? Of course I don¡¯t.
¡°No.¡±
¡°¡Alright.¡±
¡°Why do you ask?¡±
¡°Ae-young should be behind that snack machine over there, but she hasn¡¯t responded or shown herself for a while now.¡±
Jihyuk said with a grimace. So that¡¯s why Haeryang was moving in the opposite direction from Jihyuk¡¯s position. He must have gone that way. Sanghyun ducked behind Jihyuk and asked.
¡°So what do we do now?¡±
Jihyuk replied in a tired voice.
¡°What else? We run. Didn¡¯t you see anything of these guys on the CCTV?¡±
¡°Looks like they and the Japanese broke all the cameras in the Central Building. All the screens are pitch ck.¡±
¡°What about the ces that aren¡¯t broken?¡±
¡°¡Uh, just a moment.¡±
¡°Check the back footage too. Could be a trap.¡±
While Sanghyun was examining his pad, the Infinity Church person shouted at the top of their lungs.
¡°Is there a dentist named Park Moohyun there?!¡±
My heart dropped. I couldn¡¯t believe what I was hearing. Why was my nameing up? As soon as the Infinity Church believer spoke, Tumanako, Jaehee, and Sanghyun all stared at me. Jihyuk kept his gun aimed forward, still watching ahead.
Now I understand why Niki was flustered. Finding myself having to answer a terrorist cult¡¯s question, I could only ask the others.
¡°¡How should I answer?¡±
I almost reflexively said yes, but then wondered if revealing my presence would do any good. What should I say? I¡¯ve never felt so uncertain about my own existence. Tumanako quickly said to me.
¡°Why don¡¯t you just say no? They probably aren¡¯t looking for you with good intentions.¡±
¡°No way! If we say no, won¡¯t they start shooting again?!¡±
Hearing Sanghyun¡¯sment, Jaehee looked at me with excited eyes.
¡°What did you do? First Captain Sato, now this. Tell us something.¡±
But Jihyuk frowned and said to me while watching outside.
¡°Stay quiet.¡±
While I was still undecided, someone else answered the Infinity Church believer¡¯s question for me.
¡°Why! What happens if he¡¯s here, and what happens if he¡¯s not?!¡±
Carlos yelled while crawling toward us. Good answer and question. I¡¯d love a clear and detailed response to both. Depending on the answer, I might or might not exist here. The Infinity Church believer shouted sharply.
¡°Hand over Park Moohyun! Then we¡¯ll let you go!¡±
I could feel everyone¡¯s eyes boring into me.
Chapter 176
It¡¯s strange how people¡¯s gazes can feel so heavy, creating intense pressure even when they¡¯re just looking. Their eyes seemed to mix silent urgency with reproach, demanding an immediate decision.
¡No. That¡¯s just my imagination. I¡¯m not a mind reader ¨C I can¡¯t know what others are thinking. Don¡¯t be negative. I need to think and decide in a way that benefits everyone, including myself.
People shouldn¡¯t let mob mentality drive them to sacrifice an innocent person to a cult for unguaranteed small gain-
¡°Just go already!¡±
Sanghyun snapped at me. Hearing this, Tumanako shot him a fierce re.
¡°What the fuck do you think they¡¯ll do to him if we hand him over to those bastards!¡±
¡°They said they¡¯ll let everyone else go!¡±
Tumanako exploded in anger.
¡°You chicken-brain! You actually believe that bullshit?! Never give anything to people whoe at you with guns! Don¡¯t even let them breathe a single fucking breath of air!¡±
She continued in a voice thick with what seemed like deep-seated hatred.
¡°You¡¯re trying to throw away a human life like it¡¯s nothing!¡±
Sanghyun looked at Tumanako with a sour expression and asked.
¡°Weren¡¯t Maori people cannibals back in the day?¡±
He seemed to be trying to provoke her. Or maybe just trying to piss her off.
¡°Keep your mouth shut if you don¡¯t want to get eaten.¡±
When Tumanako responded menacingly, Sanghyun pouted and closed his mouth. I gave Tumanako a quick bow and thanked her with my eyes. Despite her insistence against sending me, I felt like I might need to let myself get captured by the Infinity Church people, if only to get answers.
I might at least be able to ask them about their motives, about those jewels at the exhibition, why I keep dying anding back to life, why every Infinity Church believer says something different, why we can¡¯t escape from here. They probably know more than I do, at least.
But¡ honestly, I don¡¯t want to go. Like putting off unpleasant tasks until the absolute deadline, I felt an overwhelming revulsion at the thought of voluntarily joining such a group of fanatics, even if it meant spending time with them.
Even if it was a necessary rite of passage on my path to finding answers, I didn¡¯t want to go. Not just because of what happened at the jewelry exhibition, but thinking about the massacre at the freight elevator in the Main Building made me want to maintain eternal parallel lines with the Infinity Church believers.
And their attitude of walking around with guns just to find and take one person made something rise up in my throat. Who the fuck are you to order people around? Having a gun means you can do whatever you want? Those without guns should just do what they¡¯re told because they¡¯re afraid of dying? The whole mindset that the strong can naturally dominate the weak is fucked up. Would you be making these threats if we had more people and overwhelming firepower?
And what¡¯s with this ¡°we¡¯ll let you go¡± bullshit? What if you don¡¯t let us go? Is killing people the only thing you¡¯re capable of? In the time we¡¯ve wasted in this standoff trading nonsense, we could have saved all the people drowning or in danger in the underwater base.
Unlike before when I was trembling with fear, now that I could look at these armed thugs coldly, I felt my rebellious nature raising its head in various ways. ¡Calm down, Moohyun. You¡¯re just an ordinary citizen with an unfit body. I tried hard to soothe my rising anger.
Would there be anything beneficial for me in going to Infinity Church anyway? They said they were looking for me, but wouldn¡¯t going now just benefit them? Do I have the ability to cleverly escape from these gun-trained cult fanatics while gathering their information without revealing my capabilities?
¡I¡¯d probably grow gills faster than develop those kinds of abilities. I feel like they¡¯d just strip me of everything I know and exploit me until I die.
I was curious about why they were specifically targeting me. How did the Infinity Church people know I was repeating today¡¯s time? I left the Hundred Tiger Building quarters toote this time, so I hadn¡¯t done anything, not even the broadcast. Did they review CCTV footage like Engineering Team A? Even then, the CCTV would only show people suddenly disappearing.
¡°Why would terrorist cultists need a dentist who just started working at the underwater base?¡±
Jaehee asked me, but I had no good excuse ready. So I degraded the cult members to beast-like creatures.
¡°Maybe they have some doctrine against brushing teeth? So they have tons of cavities? Or terrible breath? I don¡¯t know.¡±
Jaehee looked at me curiously and asked.
¡°I¡¯m bored. Can I ask them if I can go with Moohyun?¡±
Beside him, Sanghyun heard this and recoiled in horror, moving far away from Jaehee.
¡°Oh shut the fuck up! If you¡¯re bored, just y some games!¡±
¡°Are games this thrilling?¡±
¡°We¡¯re about to fucking die and you care about thrills?!¡±
¡°When else am I gonna experience being caught in a firefight during a terrorist attack in a multinational workce? This is all experience, you know?¡±
¡°What experience?! Fuck! There¡¯s not a single sane person in this underwater base. Seriously!¡±
Silence fell over the corridor. I thought someone might answer for me, but surprisingly, no one responded to their demand to hand me over. I had imagined someone yelling that I was here and to quickly guarantee our safety in exchange.
¡°It¡¯s quiet, isn¡¯t it?¡±
At my question, Jihyuk, seemingly in pain, sucked in a breath with a hiss, held it for a moment, then slowly exhaled.
¡°They¡¯re probably worried that right after handing you over, they¡¯ll say ¡®thank you!¡¯ and feed us some bullets. They¡¯re debating whether to get shot after handing you over or get shot without handing you over. Especially the Russians are waiting for our team leader¡¯s answer¡ Actually, if they¡¯d asked for Sophia or Niki, we would¡¯ve kept our mouths shut.¡±
Carlos, who had crawled halfway across the corridor, finally reached our hiding spot. Tumanako and I pulled him behind the pir. Carlos saw me and said with a friendly smile.
¡°Oh! You were hiding here?! What are you gonna do? Going to go? I think they¡¯re lying. Pretty sure they¡¯ll just shoot us as soon as we hand you over. What do you think?¡±
¡°Aren¡¯t you thinking of telling them I¡¯m here?¡±
Carlos ducked down to avoid getting shot and replied.
¡°In movies and dramas, the ones who act without loyalty always get shot first.¡±
Sanghyun frowned hearing this. Carlos repeatedly punched the buttons on the candy vending machine behind the pir. When candies tumbled out, he gave one to Tumanako and dumped the rest in his mouth. Jihyuk kept watching ahead while asking me behind him.
¡°Doc, do you want to go to those bastards?¡±
The stares burning into my face were ufortable. I had a feeling if I answered positively to this question, they¡¯d send me.
Should I be honest? My encounters with armed Infinity Church believers haven¡¯t exactly gone well. Starting with Jihyuk who¡¯s asking me this question ¨C his arm seems soaked in blood.
They said they¡¯d guarantee everyone¡¯s safety, but how can you trust the words of cult members? I don¡¯t even trust regr religious people. Several people seem to have fallen in the earlier firefight ¨C would they really not seek revenge?
¡°¡No. I don¡¯t want to go.¡±
¡°Then stay quietly behind me.¡±
Then Jihyuk sighed once, raised his eyebrows and said.
¡°This kind of thing is our team leader¡¯s specialty, not mine. I was waiting for the boss to answer, but they seem busy over there, so I guess there¡¯s no choice.¡±
¡°What do you mean?¡±
¡°Lying. ¡Professionally called distraction and deception tactics, but it¡¯s not really my strong suit.¡±
Can lying even be considered a strong suit? Is that really something to brag about?
¡°Then what is your specialty?¡±
¡°My specialty is being good at rolling wherever I¡¯m told to. Ha. If it was Team Leader Shin, he¡¯d be doing this shit right now¡ Hey! Why do you want to take him?!¡±
Jihyuk shouted thest part in English. His voice echoed so loud it hurt my ears. Jaehee covered his ears in shock. The Infinity Church side responded slowly.
¡°You don¡¯t need to know that!¡±
Seems like neither side has any intention of sharing even a speck of decent information. Jihyuk probably didn¡¯t expect them to answer anyway, as he just shouted with veins popping in his neck.
¡°We¡¯ll hand over Park Moohyun if you guarantee our survival!¡±
Chills ran down my spine the moment I heard it. Hey¡ did you just sell me out? If you were going to do that, why ask if I wanted to go? After telling me to stay put like you weren¡¯t going to send me¡ If you¡¯d said it was for everyone¡¯s survival, I might have at least understood and gone.
Tumanako¡¯s mouth fell open at Jihyuk¡¯s words. She didn¡¯t even notice the candy she was about to eat rolling on the floor. Carlos was rolling candy in his mouth while muttering something about how the Russian bastards seemed brainless but these Korean bastards had no loyalty. Sanghyun gave Tumanako a proud smile, but she wasn¡¯t looking at him. The Infinity Church side shouted at us.
¡°Send him over right now! Once Park Moohyun reaches our side, we¡¯ll withdraw from the Fourth Underwater Base.¡±
Sounds like they¡¯re saying they¡¯ll still stay in the Second and Third Underwater Bases. Jihyuk, maintaining his aim without moving an inch, shouted.
¡°Park Moohyun is dead!¡±
What?
I could feel everyone around me, including myself, being taken aback. Even the Infinity Church side seemed shocked. Jihyuk shouted while looking at the corpse lying spread-eagled in the middle of the corridor.
¡°That man with the mangled face in the middle of the corridor is Park Moohyun! Take the corpse and get the fuck out of here!¡±
Chapter 177
The Infinity Church believers seemed momentarily stunned by Jihyuk¡¯s words. Then they called back to us.
¡°Which one of those in the corridor?!¡±
¡Good question. There were three dead Asian men in this corridor, all with faces covered in blood. One had his throat shed so deeply the white cervical bone was visible, his face drenched in blood. Another¡¯s face was literally carved up with knife marks. Thest one had taken bullets to both chest and face.
They all had simr builds to mine. Fortunately, they were all wearing casual clothes, making it impossible to distinguish between engineers and a newly hired dentist in a specialized position. This was the kind of lie Jihyuk could pull off. But what if someone among the Infinity Church believers knew my face? Wouldn¡¯t the lie be easily exposed? Tyler¡¯s face suddenly shed through my mind. If any of the Infinity Church believers had visited Deep Blue, they¡¯d probably already know what I look like.
Judging by their visible panic, my death seemed extremely important to these Infinity Church believers we were facing. ¡Right. After I die, I return to my room in the Hundred Tiger Building this morning, but what happens to the lives of the people currently living here?
Suddenly Sanghyun looked at his pad and showed it to Jihyuk¡¯s face. It was a message from Ae-young on Michael Roarke¡¯s pad.
[Engineer Team A Ae-young]: Request continue with existing operation
Was this a message Haeryang sent through Ae-young¡¯s phone? Jihyuk briefly turned his head to look at it, frowned, and said to Sanghyun while facing forward.
¡°Just ask whether a light(switch) or clock(timer) would make a better housewarming gift.¡±
¡°What¡¯s that about? Why do I have to ask?¡±
¡°You want me to type while holding a gun? Quickly ask whether mood lighting or a big clock would be better.¡±
Just then, shouting erupted from the Infinity Church believers¡¯ side.
¡°All three faces are mess-¡°
¡°I don¡¯t know! We¡¯re still trying to figure it out! Shut the fuck up, it¡¯s confusing!¡±
Jihyuk yelled back loudly. Beside him, Sanghyun flinched at the voice and grumbled while typing. The response came back somewhat slowly: clock. Hearing this, Jihyuk heaved a big sigh and said.
¡°¡Alright. First, everyone behind me needs to run to Ophion. Got it?¡±
¡°The gym? Why there?¡±
Carlos asked with a frown, and Jihyuk quickly answered without looking back.
¡°You got somewhere better to run to right now? At least it¡¯s well-lined with concrete so bullets won¡¯t get through.¡±
¡°Should I go too? Isn¡¯t there anything I can help with?¡±
When I asked Jihyuk, he thought for a moment before nodding while keeping his eyes forward.
¡°Not needed right now, so go quickly. You¡¯ll just be in the way here.¡±
Wow. That¡¯s probably true, but it still stings. At those words, Sanghyun¡¯s eyes widened as he spoke.
¡°Ah, let¡¯s just hand him over. What¡¯s all this for one person! That was asking if Ae-young was injured earlier, right?¡±
¡°She¡¯s alive. So shut up. Keep quiet. Get out of here fast while I hold this position¡ Hey! Come check which one it is since it¡¯s one of the three!¡±
After shouting that at the Infinity Church believers, Jihyuk waved his hand as if shooing away birds, indicating he was done talking. But since we weren¡¯t birds and couldn¡¯t just fly away, we stared at the back of his head before reluctantly lifting our heavy asses off the floor. Then we started following Carlos, who was advancing like a caterpir. Tumanako watched Jihyuk¡¯s gradually diminishing figure and asked.
¡°Is it okay to leave him like this?¡±
Sanghyun responded irritably to her worried tone.
¡°He told us to go! So let¡¯s go quickly!¡±
Hearing that voice, Jaehee looked at Sanghyun in amazement and said.
¡°Our Sanghyun. I¡¯m so surprised to see you following another team member¡¯s orders so well. This hyung is so proud of how grown up Sanghyun has be.¡±
¡°What do you take me for?!¡±
¡°What else? The uncooperative workce colleague on our team.¡±
We went from crawling with our bellies to the floor like we were trying to wipe up every speck of dust, to moving on hands and knees, and finally to standing on two feet when we thought we¡¯d put enough distance between us and the guns. Seems like we¡¯re gradually evolving back into bipedal humans the further we get from the gunfire.
Ignoring the pain in my scraped knees and reddened palms, I stood up, and Jaehee leisurely asked everyone.
¡°What now? Are we really going to Ophion?¡±
His voice was casual, as if everything happening around us had nothing to do with him. While everyone was lost in their own thoughts, Jaehee questioned Sanghyun beside him.
¡°Looks like Ae-young got hurt a bit. Sanghyun, do you know what that question about lights or clock meant?¡±
¡°No clue. They¡¯ll handle it themselves.¡±
¡°Yeah? Wonder if it was asking whether she was slightly or seriously injured? Moohyun, either way, it looks like Team Leader Shin won¡¯t be able to help Ga-young right now.¡±
Jaehee said to me in a caring voice. If Ae-young had been shot, Haeryang would be trying to stop the bleeding. He must be pretty overwhelmed. I took a deep breath and asked.
¡°Yes. So I¡¯m going to the Main Building quarters¡ Would any of the engineers like toe with me?¡±
Jaehee and Sanghyun looked at each other without answering. I hadn¡¯t expected much anyway. Just as I thought. Jaehee checked the underwater base bulletin board on his pad and said.
¡°Well, isn¡¯t it toote? No new posts areing in anymore.¡±
Jaehee shrugged lightly after checking the post timestamps. The bulletin board had been flooded with Ga-young¡¯s pleas for help, but even those had stoppeding for the past 10 minutes.
The pad could be broken, or it might have fallen into the seawater. We can¡¯t just assume she¡¯s dead. Ga-young will fight to live until herst breath. And I won¡¯t give up easily either. Sanghyun asked me with apletely distorted expression.
¡°Do we really have to go save her?¡±
¡°The door¡¯s broken, and Ga-young can¡¯t open it alone.¡±
¡°What¡¯s in it for me if I go along?¡±
¡°¡There¡¯s no particr benefit.¡±
I answered that there wouldn¡¯t be any since Sanghyun seemed to be referring to some kind of mary benefit. What could Ga-young promise in her current dangerous situation? I have nothing to offer.
¡°Nopensation, and I¡¯m busy trying to stay alive ¨C why should I go into the flooding Main Building and suffer? This dentist is fucking crazy. Why care so much about a stranger who isn¡¯t even family? Are you two dating?¡±
¡°No. I¡¯ve never even met her.¡±
Before today came, Ga-young and I had never met. We hadn¡¯t even met at the dental clinic. However, in the time that only I remember, we worked together to survive and were able to save others. I received countless helps that I can never repay in any way.
Since he kept mentioningpensation, I asked Sanghyun.
¡°Whatpensation would make you want to help rescue Ga-young?¡±
¡°¡This is ridiculous. Ha. Jesus. Come to think of it, I don¡¯t want to go even withpensation. What if we go through all that trouble and can¡¯t save her? And if I get hurt trying to save her, who¡¯s going topensate me?¡±
¡°What about you, Jaehee?¡±
When I asked the other engineer beside us, Jaehee made a low ¡°hmm¡± sound, thought for a moment, then answered.
¡°It might be fun to go with you, Moohyun. But I don¡¯t want to stick my legs in seawater when it¡¯s not even work-rted. You understand, right?¡±
Jaehee said while gently patting my shoulder.
¡°Don¡¯t worry too much, Moohyun. If she¡¯s meant to live, she¡¯ll survive whether anyone goes to save her or not.¡±
Ga-young desperately needs help right now. I hadn¡¯t meant to ask, but the words came out anyway.
¡°What if she dies?¡±
I feel like I¡¯ve asked Jaehee something simr before.
¡°It¡¯s not like we killed her. Don¡¯t feel guilty.¡±
As Jaehee walked away saying that like it was no big deal, Carlos, who was walking in front, heard it and grumbled.
¡°Ah, this is why I fucking hate these engineer bastards. Only sticking together with their own kind. These fuckers and those fuckers are all just selfish. Not a fucking ounce of loyalty in them.¡±
When I asked other Engineer Team A members to help save Ga-young, they hadn¡¯t refused like this. Sanghyun, whether hearing Carlos¡¯s words or not, shouted in irritation.
¡°Why should Engineer Team A help other Koreans? It¡¯s not like they¡¯re paying us! Why should we?!¡±
¡°Engineer Team A has people contracted to protect and save Korean civilian nationals. Even without that, why are you so against helping people in danger?¡±
Sanghyun snorted with an incredulous look and said.
¡°That¡¯s just Team Leader Shin, Ae-young, and Jihyuk hyung. And they¡¯re only officially required to protect engineer team members! There¡¯s nothing in it for them to save research staff or Koreans in special positions! Fuck! I really hate people like this. Trying to freeload off the engineers¡¯ protection and desperately looking for handouts. Ugh. Fucking hell. Really. If you want to save her so badly, do it yourself. There are always people like this who try to guilt-trip others into difficult situations with their bullshit.¡±
¡°Sanghyun.¡±
Jaehee called his name in warning. But Sanghyun pointed at me and continued.
¡°It¡¯s true! Those three were hired because of the engineers! Why should other Koreans get our welfare benefits?!¡±
Something sounds off here. Only Korean nationality engineers? Haeryang, Ae-young, and Jihyuk had never exined it to me that way. I turned to Jaehee beside me with a nk face and asked.
¡°Wasn¡¯t there a government contract to save all Korean civilian nationals?¡±
If Jihyuk were here, he probably would have exined more clearly. Jaehee answered with an awkwardugh.
¡°From what I heard, they help everyone along the way. But I heard the contract itself only specifically mentions Korean nationality engineers.¡±
Chapter 178
Help everyone along the way? How is that possible? I must have felt like a huge burden to those three, along with Yoogeum. They could have abandoned us without any responsibility or me. Why did they try so hard to escape together? Why didn¡¯t Haeryang abandon me when he thought I might be a Infinity Church believer?
Sanghyun frowned at his cracked nail while touching his pad and said.
¡°I didn¡¯t like it from the start when Team Leader said he¡¯d go save that woman. When we barely have enough with three people sticking close to protect us, why should our strongest and smartest person leave to fetch someone else? What¡¯s so special about her? It¡¯s all just fish and seawater research here anyway, I don¡¯t get what¡¯s so great about it. I never understood why Team Leader and Jihyuk hyung keep sucking up to that woman.¡±
Jaehee, who had been watching me, looked at Sanghyun like he was observing a low-intelligence animal and spoke as if teaching.
¡°Sanghyun. Even if you think that way, you don¡¯t need to say it out loud. If you¡¯d just kept your mouth shut, people might have thought better of you.¡±
¡°Ah! Jaehee hyung! This is exactly when we need to look out for our own rice bowl! Who¡¯s gonna recognize you if you don¡¯t speak up? Ha. Aren¡¯t you being too nice? You¡¯re the nicest in the team. Really.¡±
Jaehee smiled slightly, apparently finding this amusing. Sanghyun sighed while rubbing his raw, reddened palms from crawling.
¡°Ah. I didn¡¯t want toe here. Just came to the underwater base for nothing but trouble.¡±
¡°Why did youe to a ce you hate so much?¡±
Tumanako, who had been quiet, red at Sanghyun while asking. She seemed to have been eagerly anticipating working at the underwater base. Sanghyun frowned and replied.
¡°You think I came here because I wanted to?!¡±
¡°Then just leave.¡±
¡°I¡¯m getting out as soon as my contract ends! Don¡¯t talk about shit you don¡¯t know!¡±
When I stepped between Tumanako and Sanghyun, they naturally stopped talking since they couldn¡¯t see each other¡¯s faces.
That¡¯s when it happened. CRRRRRRRRRACK! A nightmarish sound resonated throughout the ceiling and walls. As the building suddenly shook, people started swaying with it.
I quickly gave up trying to maintain bnce and fell backwards. My ass felt shattered, but at least nothing else was injured. It reminded me of when I used to throw myself forward while carrying children or animals.
People trying to stay standing all ended up either bruising their knees on the floor or bracing themselves with their palms. The vibrations finally stopped after about three minutes. People with anxious expressions hesitantly got up from the floor. When Jaehee remained sitting nkly even after others had stood, I extended both hands. I wasn¡¯t confident I could support an adult male¡¯s weight with just one hand.
It¡¯s hard for people with a history of leg or back problems to get up from the floor. Climbing stairs, walking on slopes, and traversing uneven ground be extra challenging too. But no matter how hard it is for me, this person must have it worse.
Quite a few people use beds because it¡¯s hard to take care of their bodies. Getting up from a bed is easier than getting up from the floor. Of course, there are also plenty who insist on floor living over raised furniture. I too will start floor living as soon as I get out of this underwater base, removing the bed from my room. I¡¯lly out a mattress on the floor. Without a bed, there¡¯s no risk of falling off it. If my back develops problems, an orthopedic doctor can fix it. Or at least lecture me about it.
The person who had fallen countless times before took my hands and got up with familiar ease. Watching him move, thankfully his prosthetic arm seemed fine. Jaehee spoke while letting go of my hands.
¡°Ga-young has a pretty average face, but she¡¯s got a nice body from doing yoga for a long time. Her personality isn¡¯t bad either. Hmm¡ She¡¯s a good cook too. She¡¯s baked snacks and bread for the underwater base quite a few times.¡±
¡°What are you trying to say?¡±
Jaehee spoke while dusting off his ass and legs.
¡°Is it really worth risking death to save her? Is she worth betting your life on? Sure, she¡¯s decent, but there are plenty of women like that in the world.¡±
I¡¯m having trouble understanding what he¡¯s saying. My brain seems to be struggling since hearing that the protection only extended to Korean nationality engineers.
¡°Ga-young is one of a kind in this world. Worth betting my life¡ I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re saying these things, but I want Ga-young to live.¡±
What other Kim Ga-young is there in the world? Why ask such questions? Is he saying his own life is precious because it¡¯s his only one, but others¡¯ lives are expendable? Why say these things when you¡¯re not going to help anyway? ¡I don¡¯t want to waste mental energy when I¡¯m already physically exhausted.
¡°Even if there were ten more Kim Ga-youngs in the world, I¡¯d still go save the Ga-young trapped in the water right now.¡±
It¡¯s a horrible thought, but even if I go now, it might be toote to save Ga-young. If I fail to escape this time and die again, I¡¯ll go to save Ga-young next time too. And the time after that. And the time after that. Until Ga-young escapes this underwater base.
¡There¡¯s something good even in these brutal, merciless days. I remember Ga-young torturing my face with disinfectant at the research center. Why do we risk danger and sacrifice ourselves forplete strangers? I don¡¯t know how Ga-young would answer my question, but she¡¯d probably have a better answer than me. As Jaehee shrugged, his multiple earrings jingled softly.
¡°Good luck. I tried my best to stop you.¡±
¡°What? Oh¡ Yes. I ignored your attempts and went anyway.¡±
Avoiding responsibility? From whom? I was too tired to continue the conversation. Just listening to the dialogue seemed to drain my energy.
If I had more muscle in my legs or more stamina, I would have run straight to the Main Building without stopping. People had crawled or moved on their knees tensely to avoid bullets, and now that the tension had lifted, they could barely walk from exhaustion.
Maybe due to the shock of the firefight, people were floundering as if they¡¯d forgotten how to walk. Getting up after falling once made things even worse. We probably looked like gazelles wanting to escape a lion but unable to run far. Rather than risk falling again and getting hurt, I tookfort in at least moving forward slowly.
Carlos, who was walking most normally among us, had been listening quietly before asking me.
¡°That person they keep talking about. Isn¡¯t she that Asian woman who used to share baked snacks?¡±
¡°¡I heard she did that.¡±
From what people said, it seems she didn¡¯t just bake snacks and bread once or twice. Flour costs quite a bit ¨C how often was she stressed? Is that normal for researchers? Carlos sighed and said.
¡°Pathetic bastards. Happy to eat what¡¯s given but¡¡±
He added a few more words. Probably curses, but seeing how such long sentences weren¡¯t being tranted, it seemed to be in anguage outside the 10nguages my trantor supports. Spanish maybe? No, Spanish would be tranted by my device. Must be some othernguage. Sanghyun shouted angrily.
¡°What did you say?! Did anyone force her to give us anything? Did we threaten her for bread?! She¡¯s the one who baked and shared it to relieve her own stress!¡±
Hearing this, Carlos made a ¡°mhehehehehe¡± sound before eximing.
¡°Developed countries sure are something! Even bastards like you survive to that age and walk around. I¡¯ve seen countless people Jesus himself would give up on and throw into hell, but selfish bastards like you usually get whiiiiish sorted out by family before bing adults. Or some pissed-off person shoots them at night. Guess Koreans don¡¯t have much sense of social responsibility.¡±
Carlos made a whistling sound for the ¡°whiiiiish¡± part while drawing his finger across his throat. Then he looked down at Sanghyun with eyes that seemed amazed he was even alive, prompting Sanghyun to snap irritably.
¡°What¡¯s it to you!¡±
After shouting that, Sanghyun moved away from Carlos and hid behind Jaehee¡¯s back. From the sounds, it seemed he was continuing the game he¡¯d paused on his pad. Carlos, still with traces ofughter on his face, patted me and said.
¡°Brother, you seem decent, but nothing goodes from getting involved with these engineer bastards. Just ignore them and live your life. Honestly, there¡¯s no reason to work here except for money. Just think of it as earning money for your family.¡±
¡°Is that possible while living in the underwater base?¡±
¡°Right, you¡¯re a dentist? You¡¯ll always be meeting people. Well, can¡¯t help that then.¡±
¡°Would you considering along to help rescue Ga-young?¡±
¡°Good luck.¡±
Carlos¡¯s clean farewell made meugh weakly in disbelief. Over Carlos¡¯s shoulder, I could see the huge shark skull in the distance. When I first visited Deep Blue, I got lost because it was hidden in a somewhat secluded spot down from the Central Building, but now I could spot it immediately by that shark skull from far away.
Same with Ophion. Just the snake¡¯s head was visible at the opposite end. From this distance, I could even make out the pupils in the snake¡¯s eyes. Carlos, Sanghyun, and Jaehee seemed to be heading to Ophion as agreed.
Tumanako carefully asked me.
¡°You¡¯re really going to the Main Building to save someone?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
¡°You might die.¡±
It¡¯s always been that way¡ I must have been lucky so far.
¡°Yes. I¡¯m still going.¡±
¡°Then I¡¯ming too.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°I¡¯m going with you.¡±
¡°It might be dangerous. You¡¯d be safer hiding in the gym.¡±
¡°Kim Ga-young? Now that I hear it, I know her. I¡¯ming along.¡±
She dered this whileing to my side. Tumanako knew Ga-young? I don¡¯t remember them having any connection. After thanking her, we parted ways with the others. Sanghyun didn¡¯t say anything to me, but Jaehee smiled and waved.
We started walking south together but didn¡¯t speak. Partly from exhaustion, but also because there wasn¡¯t much to say. To break this awkward atmosphere, I hesitated before asking Tumanako.
¡°I didn¡¯t know you and Ga-young knew each other.¡±
¡°We don¡¯t.¡±
¡°What?¡±
¡°I¡¯m going to know her from now on. I just didn¡¯t want to go with those guys. I don¡¯t want to hide with men I¡¯ve only seen once or twice in the quarters.¡±
¡°Ah¡ I see.¡±
I must be a stranger to Tumanako too. I was about to mention that but chose to just close my mouth and walk. My head was screaming to run, but I had no energy left to do so. All I wanted was to lie down somewhere and sleep for about 30 minutes. Then I felt the vibrations of someone running from far away.
¡°Someone¡¯sing.¡±
Someone was running at an incredible speed. Tumanako and I hid behind a nearby water purifier. Only when they got close enough to identify their face did I realize it was Haeryang running. He was carrying someone on his back. Blood drops fell with each step. Taking one more step, Haeryang looked toward the water purifier like a wild animal sensing presence.
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