Humans Wait
The high-speed terminal and Banpo—it’s enough to make every nerve in my body stand on edge every single time I pass those two spots.
“Insane.”
“This crowd is ridiculous.”
Just like Choi Young-ho had said, the usual shuttle would have been fine. But even though the road had looped around the city center, the number of people was still massive.
Right in front of Banpo Bridge, armed guards stood like sentinels, rifles ready.
Exactly the same old trick they’d perfected in the city—transit tax: pay up or get shot. They were still running it here too.
“Aren’t we supposed to wipe them all out?”
“What the hell kind of question is that?”
“But we’re superhuman Marines, right? When you saved us back then it was two against twenty!”
“…”
Yeah, that part had happened. But the real number of armed men had been under ten. We’d taken the high ground and struck first.
Lim Ju-cheol’s eyes were locked on me, sparkling with pure, overflowing belief. It was almost too much to take.
“Write the legend, hyeong! I’ll follow you!”
“…”
Thinking about it, after you rescued me he never looked back. He became completely devoted.
What the hell does he think I am?
“Hyeong!”
“Fuck off.”
“Yes!”
And this guy’s only four years older than me. I’m not forgetting that.
I’d always denied it, but maybe Kim Min-seo was right—my head really is too hard.
Every shot echoes, carrying long after it’s fired.
Bang—
It’s like the deep, chest-pounding thump of a concert-amp bass line I’ve never heard. Except I hate the sound.
Bang—
Whoever fired at me got to hear it too. Sweet.
“Take cover.”
“Ah, ack…!”
I calmly scanned for cover, shoved Young-ho—who was already moving like me—behind me, and yanked the stuttering Lim Ju-cheol along.
“Stop answering like some victim of gunshots.”
“Y-yes…!”
Still, the guy who’d just killed people was terrified. He froze the moment the situation wasn’t one-sided anymore—classic aggressor-victim pattern.
“Don’t freeze. That’s how you die.”
“S-sob… y-yes!”
I punched his shoulder hard enough to snap him out of it and moved to another piece of cover.
Bang—Bang—
The second I exposed myself, bullets came flying.
Better than the last bunch of trash looters. Stable, professional, no hesitation.
Accuracy within half a meter.
Angles were spread out—multiple shooters from different directions. Efficient.
“Another day in hell, huh?”
The only saving grace was that it wasn’t the full-auto K2 we’d had last time—plain old shotguns.
I finished my assessment and gave the order.
“Marines 827, widen your angle. Draw their fire on this side so I can zero in on positions. Right side, take the sniper.”
“Roger.”
He dropped into a full crouch and wormed forward, vanishing from sight the moment he was out of frame.
People really do move fast.
He was the one I’d saved out of pity and guilt, but the old soldier instincts were still buried in him at fifty years old.
“Lim Ju-cheol.”
“S-sir! Imaginary KATUSA Warrior Lim Ju-cheol…!”
“Grab that frozen body next to us and use it for cover fire. You guide, I shoot.”
“Yes, sir!”
He looked sloppy as hell, but his will was ironclad. Perfect to exploit.
The second I gave the word he dragged the corpse over, nodded, and I muttered quietly.
“Three.”
“Two.”
“One.”
I sprinted forward, counted, swallowed hard, and stepped out into the open.
“Now.”
“Hic!”
Body and all, we exploded out of cover at the same time.
Their gunfire never even reached us.
And then—
Our gunfire came back.
Bang—
Young-ho’s shot dropped the right-side shooter.
I answered instantly, breath held, aiming left.
There he is.
I fired without a second thought.
Click—Bang—
The man’s head exploded in a spray of red, exactly like I’d planned, and I dove behind another piece of cover.
Two out of four down.
Those two had been the best shots.
Bang—
While I was breathing, their return fire came—only one left.
Young-ho really shoots like he’s still in the Marines. Who cares if he wasn’t in the army; the man can shoot.
I answered again, rifle up, fired.
Bang—
Click—Bang—
The first bullet from the enemy was blocked by cover, but mine punched straight through the survivor.
Combat over.
Marine 827 naturally checked his surroundings and turned back. I gave him a thumbs-up and said, “Grab everything you can, then we move again.”
“I’ll be quick, sir!”
Collecting loot was exactly his role, and the Imaginary KATUSA Warrior Lim Ju-cheol took off like a rocket.
Anyway.
Banpo—every single time I step into this shithole district it feels dirtier.
So.
If everything went normally I would’ve passed Banpo Station and advanced two stops along the subway tracks, but with the radio broadcast scaring people into hiding we had to avoid the station entirely.
“This is killing me.”
“You worked hard. Go rest and drink some coffee.”
“Yes.”
We only reached Cheongdam-dong in the middle of the night.
Honestly, that was insanely fast—even with the radio broadcast slowing us down we’d broken through. But still… disappointing.
If not for that broadcast we’d already be in front of PH129.
Anyway.
I swallowed the coffee like it was water and picked up the walkie-talkie.
“We’re close. We’ll arrive tomorrow.”
- What? Already? It’s still two nights left—
Harin’s voice was shocked.
“Don’t know. My heart got anxious because I missed you.”
- Oh… that line was perfect.
“That’s me. The greatest romantic guy of this era, Debtor. Lee.”
Romantic?
I know how to do that when I want to.
- Oh… that line was actually terrible.
“Wait, that’s me too. The greatest romantic destroyer of this era, Debtor. Lee.”
And I even throw in nonsense to hide the embarrassment.
Through the walkie-talkie I heard Harin giggling.
I took another swig of coffee, popped the last diazepam into my mouth, and said, “So tomorrow’s still possible?”
- Well, possible, but not right at five. I know the party starts at five thirty. So maybe around six.
There was still plenty of time. Maybe I was just too impatient.
“Not at five?”
- I know you’re dying to see me, but we have to show up at the party first. After changing in the bathroom, we’ll need time to get down to the sixth underground level.
I wanted to move as fast as possible, but some things couldn’t be rushed.
“Fine. See you then.”
- Yes, oppa. I love you.
“Yeah, me too.”
I tucked the walkie-talkie away and looked up.
Two people were staring at me.
“You really are an incredible romantic guy, hyeong.”
“Shut up.”
Young-ho’s face—wrinkled at the corners, pure smugness—was disgustingly annoying.
“Hmm, that’s the best part of it.”
“Marines 827, you look tired. Go sleep.”
This time Marine 827 nodded, face exactly like mine.
“Field 827.”
“…”
“Field 1218.”
He saluted me hard, then said, “Spill the beans. I’m dying to hear something lively and fun.”
“Ack…”
Shit.
This is the Marine absurdity of the night shift.