185. A Strange Day in Serabeol (3)
However, deciding policies on a whim without any negotiation wasn't the act of a prime minister—it smacked of dictatorship. As the prime minister who had legitimately received power from the Dragon Priestess, Hwang Geun-chul first decided to summon the protesters who'd been stirring up trouble in Serabeol lately and hear them out.
In the end, to sum it up bluntly, they were demanding full implementation of their wishes and guarantees for their women's rights and privileges. It wasn't about Serabeol at all—just naked greed from their group.
"Very well. We'll accept those claims."
Hwang Geun-chul nodded calmly after listening to their sophistry. Sure, their arguments were utter nonsense, but there was one way he could turn their logic against them.
"We won! Women's rights prevail! Feminism forever! PC culture forever!"
They wanted human rights? Fine—Serabeol would have to uphold political correctness from now on? Accepted. If they were going to shove political correctness and women's rights down Serabeol's throat...
"From this day forward, for the sake of equal rights between women and men, women shall bear the exact same obligations as men."
"Of course!"
"Excellent. Then off to the military with you. Just two years of service ought to do it! Haha. New recruits... er, soldiers are always welcome."
From now on, these folks would become Serabeol's newest conscripts. In exchange for granting their demands, Hwang Geun-chul demanded equivalent obligations—namely, imposing the sacred duty of military service on these self-proclaimed human rights activists, just as pre-apocalypse Korean men had borne it.
And their response? "Eh?"
They froze, faces blank as if they'd misheard. They clearly hadn't seen this coming, flustered by Hwang Geun-chul's demand.
"Didn't hear me? I'm saying rights come with duties. Complete two years of voluntary service, and I'll use my authority to push through as much of your agenda as possible."
"W-what? Why should I have to go to the military?!"
Outrage was inevitable. Even in a semi-volunteer system with low pay, people complained—now Hwang Geun-chul was effectively announcing a shift to full conscription and forcing them into it.
Of course, pre-apocalypse military service had been a natural duty for Korean men, but these activists glared at him in disbelief, as if it were absurd.
"Goodness. Then why do you think soldiers in Serabeol enlist? To protect their cities at the least, or Serabeol as a nation at the largest, right? And this very duty was borne by every Korean man before the apocalypse. We're short on troops to defend Serabeol right now, so it's a real stroke of luck to have such patriotic folks like you step up!"
"Y-you... you sexist pig...!"
Hwang Geun-chul planned to solve Serabeol's troop shortage with this pretext. Women's rights and political correctness were all well and good, but for the future of the newly founded Serabeol, addressing draft dodging and manpower shortages meant striking a deal with these so-called activists.
Of course, it could spell major trouble down the line, but...
Once the regime changes at the right time, we can just brush these promises aside.
Hwang Geun-chul was banking on democracy's regime turnover. Hand power to the Heonmin Democratic Party, and these activists' privileges would fizzle out unresolved.
They might suspect as much, so...
"I was just about to suggest to Lord Bahamut switching from volunteers to conscription... and here you are to help!"
"Kh-khm! We believe mandatory service is unreasonable for most women. No need to bother the Dragon God with this."
Invoking Bahamut's name, Hwang Geun-chul ramped up the pressure. Even these loudmouths couldn't vehemently oppose under that exalted name—its weight was too much for them.
"Awakened are fine with it, aren't they? Everyone enlisting is Awakened anyway."
"Even Awakened women can't handle it!"
Above all, Serabeol only conscripted Awakened. A woman Awakener wielded several times a normal human's power, so "woman" alone wouldn't fly as an excuse.
Some might claim the military was too harsh for women, but...
"What about hero Jin A-yeon or the Dragon Priestesses fighting on the front lines? Women soldiers are already bravely serving there too."
Countless women Awakened were excelling in battle. Hero Jin A-yeon was one, and Priestesses Yu-na and Seol-hwa always led from the front when needed. Even without such exceptional talents, women like Son Sang-hee served capably as Jeong Dong-gun's adjutant.
The "just because I'm a woman" excuse wouldn't hold.
"No, we just want the rights men enjoy!"
"Those rights come with duties, naturally. Are you insulting the soldiers who defend Serabeol?"
But they wanted rights without the duties. When they openly admitted craving only men's privileges, Hwang Geun-chul firmly stated that rights entailed matching obligations—and dared them to demean Serabeol's defenders.
They snapped, yelling in fury.
"Soldiers get massive rewards anyway! Protecting us with our taxes is their job!"
"Compensating those who defend Serabeol is only right. They're risking their lives against undead and monsters even now. You don't think their efforts and lives have value?"
These activists enjoyed civilized life without threat precisely because soldiers shed blood and sacrificed. Even as they argued here, frontline troops protected citizens, deserving recompense. In this apocalypse, the Balhut Cult lavished benefits on soldiers without skimping on taxes for their rights.
"Lord Bahamut protects Serabeol!"
"True—this nation is under the Dragon's aegis. But do you think His Lordship micromanages? He's busy elsewhere, even selecting proxies like us and the Dragon Priestesses."
Bahamut was their fallback. No matter soldiers' importance, the Dragon God trumped all, and Hwang Geun-chul conceded that—but emphasized Bahamut didn't babysit individuals. Serabeol existed for such details, he earnestly explained.
"Th-this...!"
"I get it—military life's tough. I know. The restrictions on freedom, grueling daily training, insults like 'jarhead' or 'bootlicker' from types like you... and still they protect you with their lives. Yet here you are calling yourselves victims and insulting the nation's guardians. Shame on you."
Unable to retort, the activists drew a sigh from Hwang Geun-chul.
"Don't we have to compromise with you? It's the apocalypse—civilizations and ideologies collapsed. Shouldn't outdated feminism and political correctness crumble too?"
Serabeol had no reason to yield. The end times had toppled everything; old ideologies were obsolete, needing healthy reconstruction. Hwang Geun-chul refused cooperation.
"Steel yourselves."
"Y-yeah, let's unify the South first. Oh, and what I just said? I'll implement it for real—so brace yourselves."
"What?!"
He brushed off their rage, warning he'd enact the policy anyway. Right after founding, extreme measures could slide under the apocalypse excuse.
Volunteer to conscript? Women drafted? Pre-apocalypse, it'd spark outrage or attacks from rivals—but apocalypse justified anything.
Even Heonmin Democrats, Yongsinhoe rivals forming a grand coalition tacitly, would play along if framed as troop bolstering. WWE theatrics, sure, but it'd pass.
"We made you our rep, and this is how you handle it!? Die!"
"Gyaah!"
No need to detail their fates. Rumors swirled of impeachment, street beatings, or alley sales—par for the apocalypse course.
But that wasn't the point. As Prime Minister Hwang Geun-chul stirred, word reached Dragon Priestess Yu-na's ears.
"Ahahaha... you've had it rough."
"My apologies for the concern."
Yu-na inevitably summoned him amid the uproar, offering weary sympathy upon hearing the details. Hwang Geun-chul bowed, sorry the news reached even her.
Internal social issues were his—Yongsinhoe head and cabinet leader—to handle. Escalating to Yu-na signaled severity.
"I suppose they could feel soldier pay's lacking. Same as a year ago."
"Entitled whining from those clueless about the outside."
Yu-na nailed the core; Hwang called it spoiled. Outside, cities barely clung to civilization—complaints rang hollow from the ignorant. Providing food, shelter, and basics was hardly poor treatment.
"But people claim even that's insufficient."
"...Yes."
Hwang felt shame. Yu-na voicing unresolved cabinet failures meant Yongsinhoe failures—risking Bahamut's trust.
"Since we're at it, how about forming an elite unit under the Dragon Priestess's direct order?"
Rather than blame, Yu-na proposed an elite force for the military issue.
"Creating a guard... no, special forces division."
"Yes. Pick Serabeol's top Awakened for a new legion. Capital defense, and mobile for expeditions if needed."
"Not bad. With the Dragon Priestess name, perfect for post-founding."
It'd redistribute spots, luring ambitious newcomers. Stagnant advancement deterred enlistment, but new elite roles and vacancies would entice.
Especially...
"Honor-seekers would kill for spots there."
For those chasing glory over gold, invaluable. Hwang approved warmly.
"For the name... Serabeol's our nation, so how about Hwarang?"
"Hwarang. Perfect."
Yu-na named the new unit after Serabeol, drawing from history.