5
# Chapter 5
Swoosh.
The rough waves crashed against the western cliffs of Haewoldo, spewing white foam into the air.
Standing on the deck of the old workboat, Im Seok-ho carefully studied the swaying surface of the water.
The hands of his wristwatch had just passed three in the afternoon.
“The water’s gone down quite a bit.”
It was low tide during the spring tide period.
This was the time of the month when the seawater receded the farthest.
The ugly reefs that would normally have been hidden beneath the deep blue water now revealed their dark, rugged surfaces.
Seok-ho turned the steering wheel and brought the boat close to the reef area.
The location circled in red ink on Choi Deok-mun’s nautical chart.
And the words written beside it: Black Rock, the day when the water reaches its lowest point.
After switching off the engine, Seok-ho quickly lowered the anchor and secured the boat firmly by tying the rope twice between the reefs.
If the current changed and the boat drifted away, there would be no way for him to return from this remote place.
After checking his equipment, he pulled on his wetsuit properly and took a waterproof light in his hand.
Instead of a heavy weight belt, he only carried a simple tool pouch and the underwater drone controller around his waist.
He had no intention of diving into the water immediately.
Seok-ho climbed out of the boat and carefully stepped across the slippery rocks as he approached the base of the cliff.
Black rocks covered in barnacles and tangled seaweed blocked his path like a gigantic fortress wall.
As he walked while examining the gaps between the rocks, Seok-ho suddenly stopped.
“This is it.”
Behind the enormous black rock, a narrow gap had opened slightly.
It was a gap large enough for an adult man to squeeze through by bending his shoulders.
Park Seong-cheol’s words about a hole becoming visible only during low tide had been exactly right.
Seok-ho switched on his waterproof light and shone it into the gap.
Seawater was gently rippling across the floor of the dim cave.
“Should I take a look inside?”
He hunched his body as much as possible and pushed himself through the gap between the rocks.
He felt his shoulders scrape against the rough rock surface, but the thick suit protected him from injury.
After moving several meters inside sideways, almost like a crab, the view suddenly opened up as if by magic.
“Wow.”
A short exclamation escaped Seok-ho’s lips.
A spacious, dome-shaped chamber appeared, far larger than anything he could have imagined from outside.
Outside, the sound of waves and wind continued without pause, but inside the cave, there was an eerie silence.
Only the steady sound of water droplets falling from the ceiling echoed through the chamber.
Seok-ho increased the brightness of his light to its maximum and scanned the surroundings.
Strange rock formations created by nature covered the walls.
But it was not the beautiful scenery that immediately caught his attention.
“Why is this here?”
Seok-ho splashed through the water pooled on the floor and approached one side of the cave wall.
Where the light reached, tangled metal objects completely out of place in a natural cave came into view.
Thick chains and a rusty pulley.
And concrete anchors firmly supporting them.
Seok-ho lightly tapped the pulley with his gloved hand.
Its surface crumbled, and reddish rust water dripped down, but the structure itself remained fairly intact.
“This is an artificial structure.”
His thoughts began racing.
Someone had applied cement and installed a pulley inside this hidden cave on the remote uninhabited island.
The purpose was obvious.
“They either hauled something heavy up from a boat or lowered something down.”
This was not equipment used to pull up fishing nets on an ordinary fishing boat.
It meant that someone had secretly moved heavy cargo in a secluded and dangerous location like this.
Seok-ho examined the surroundings more carefully.
He brushed aside the sediment mixed with sand and gravel using the toe of his hiking boot, and something hard caught against it.
He crouched down and dug into the floor, revealing a large metal ring.
It was an iron ring as thick as an adult’s forearm.
Its surface had become rough from corrosion caused by seawater, but it did not budge even when he pulled it with all his strength.
Clear traces showed that holes had been drilled into the surrounding bedrock and thick anchors driven into them.
“They attached ropes here to secure the cargo.”
Seok-ho opened the waterproof pouch containing his smartphone and turned on the camera.
He carefully photographed and recorded everything, from the chains, pulley, and concrete anchors to the metal ring.
There was no doubt that someone in the past, probably people involved in smuggling or handling illegal cargo, had used this place as a secret loading and unloading site.
There was also a high possibility that the brass key left behind by Choi Deok-mun had been intended to open a chest or safe containing cargo left by those people.
After finishing the photography, Seok-ho turned his gaze beyond the metal ring.
When he shone the light downward, the area he had assumed was part of the floor suddenly ended.
“Huh?”
Seok-ho carefully approached and stood at the edge.
The floor, which had extended into a shallow pool several dozen centimeters deep, suddenly dropped away like a sheer cliff.
Even when he shone the light into it, he could not see the bottom. A deep channel of vivid blue water opened like a bottomless hole.
Its shape was far too strange to be a naturally formed pool.
It looked like a well someone had deliberately dug, or a massive passage leading to the bottom of the sea.
“So this is where they moved the cargo.”
Seok-ho crouched down and carefully examined the water’s surface.
The water inside the cave was moving faintly, as if it was connected to the sea outside.
He remembered Park Seong-cheol’s warning that the inside was completely filled with water and that whirlpools formed there.
The current was calm because it was currently low tide, but once the tide began rising, an enormous amount of seawater would pour through this narrow passage.
“Going in right now would be insane.”
Seok-ho shook his head firmly.
Even if there was a chest or cargo containing something that could be opened with the brass key down there, diving in without any equipment would be an act of suicide.
He did not know the structure of the underwater passage, nor could he tell what dangers might be lurking beneath the water.
If his equipment became caught on an old rope or a protruding piece of rebar, he would obviously be unable to escape and would drown right there.
I need to send in the underwater drone I brought and determine the terrain inside first.
He stood up and began walking toward the exit.
Confirming the location of the cave and the existence of the artificial structures was already a sufficient achievement for today.
Unlike amateurs who rushed forward out of greed and ended up causing accidents, Seok-ho was a veteran who always prioritized safety at the site.
“Let’s get out before the water comes in.”
Seok-ho turned his body toward the narrow gap.
Getting out was easier than entering.
The moment he emerged from the gap, the salty sea breeze struck the tip of his nose.
The sound of waves crashing against the coastal rocks had grown rougher, as if the water had already begun to rise.
Seok-ho returned to the boat, raised the anchor, and started the engine.
The workboat left the cave and began cutting through Haewoldo’s rough waves once more, rattling as it went.
After docking at the pier, Seok-ho returned to the temporary shelter and threw off his wet suit.
He placed water on the gas burner, poured it into a cup of instant noodles, and took out his smartphone.
As he carefully reviewed the photographs and videos he had taken, he worked out a plan in his head.
The entrance to the underwater passage is about three meters in diameter. That’s wide enough for the drone.
Once he used the drone to determine the underwater terrain, the condition of the structures, and the location of the cargo, he would begin the actual dive.
But there was one problem.
Seok-ho could dive by himself, but he needed someone above the water to help pull up the cargo or equipment retrieved from below.
“I need someone to help with carrying the load or assisting with the equipment.”
Seok-ho stirred his noodles with wooden chopsticks and muttered to himself.
At marine survey sites, divers and support workers who held ropes above the water or helped haul up cargo generally worked together as a team.
Pulling heavy air tanks or salvaged cargo onto the boat alone required an enormous amount of physical effort.
“Should I ask the old man?”
Seok-ho pictured the grumbling face of the fisherman Park Seong-cheol.
The old man knew the waters around Haewoldo like the back of his hand and was also skilled at handling boats.
More importantly, although he was meddlesome, he knew how to keep his mouth shut and had a straightforward personality that made him trustworthy.
“But if I tell him I’m going to the western cliff, he’ll probably have a fit.”
Seok-ho chuckled and drank some of the ramen broth.
He planned to persuade him somehow.
If he paid him a generous daily wage, there was no reason for the old man to refuse.
The following morning.
Seok-ho firmly secured the drone and communication equipment to the workboat before heading toward the mainland.
He needed to fill the fuel tank, buy food supplies for several days, and take the opportunity to persuade Park Seong-cheol.
As soon as he arrived at the harbor, he spotted a familiar back.
Park Seong-cheol was grumbling as he removed trash caught in a fishing net.
“These damn pieces of garbage in the sea never end, no matter how much you clean up. Oh, for fuck’s sake. Where did this tire come from?”
“Good morning, Elder. You’re working hard from early in the morning.”
Seok-ho approached and greeted him cheerfully.
Park Seong-cheol rubbed his stiff lower back and turned to look at Seok-ho.
His brows were tightly furrowed.
“What is it, young boss? Already tired of island life? Why do you keep crawling back here so often?”
“I need food to survive on the island. Have you eaten yet? Let me treat you to a hot bowl of gukbap.”
“Gukbap? What kind of scheme are you cooking up this early in the morning?”
Park Seong-cheol looked Seok-ho up and down suspiciously, but he did not bother refusing when Seok-ho offered to buy him a meal.
The two sat across from each other at a shabby gukbap restaurant near the harbor.
Once the steaming pork gukbap arrived, Seok-ho picked out some meat and casually began speaking.
“Elder, how’s work at sea these days? Are you catching much fish?”
“Don’t even ask. Fuel prices keep rising, but the fish have practically disappeared. I spend every other day patching up torn nets, that’s all.”
Seok-ho chewed on some cubed radish kimchi while waiting for the right moment.
“Then how about working with me for a few days?”
Park Seong-cheol’s hand stopped in midair as he lifted his spoon.
“Work? What kind of work? Are you planning to build a fishing spot?”
“No. I have some diving work to do. You just need to hold the boat in place from above and help pull up the equipment. You can think of it as carrying duty. I’ll handle all the heavy lifting myself.”
“Diving? At Haewoldo?”
Park Seong-cheol’s expression instantly turned grim.
“If you’re going to bring up that western cliff again, forget it right now. Didn’t I tell you that place is a cursed sea?”
“Come on, what ghosts? I saw the place during low tide yesterday, and it seemed accessible.”
“You crazy bastard! You actually crawled in there? You’ll end up dead, and they won’t even be able to find your body!”
The few customers inside the restaurant glanced over at them, but Seok-ho calmly continued eating his broth.
“I’ll pay you 300,000 won a day.”
“...What?”
“300,000 won per day. It won’t take long. Just take the boat out for three days and help me with the equipment from above. You only need to act as the person handling the load. I’ll send you 900,000 won right away.”
Park Seong-cheol’s eyes shook violently.
In an economic downturn like this, earning 900,000 won for three days of work would be far more profitable than most fishing jobs.
“You, you. Where do you think you have the money to say something like that?”
“I bought the island, but I still have a little of my severance pay left. So, what do you say? You only have to hold the rope from above.”
Park Seong-cheol cleared his throat and fiddled with his empty water glass.
“Ahem. Young people these days don’t know to value their lives and keep trying to do foolish things.”
“If it looks dangerous, I’ll withdraw immediately. I know my life is precious, too.”
Hearing the confidence in Seok-ho’s voice, Park Seong-cheol clicked his tongue.
“...You really only need me to handle the equipment from above?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
“Damn it. I must’ve lost my mind. Fine. But if anything seems even slightly suspicious, I’m turning the boat around immediately. Keep that in mind.”
“Of course. Thank you, Elder.”
Seok-ho silently cheered inside.
Now that he had found a support worker familiar with the local waters, there was nothing standing in the way of his field investigation.
After finishing his meal, Seok-ho visited the supermarket and hardware store, loading every necessary item into the truck.
He carefully prepared spare air tanks, ropes for securing equipment, and additional batteries for the drone.
As Seok-ho returned to the harbor and transferred the equipment onto the workboat, Park Seong-cheol clicked his tongue.
“What the hell is all this luggage? Are you moving house?”
“We don’t know what might be down there, so I need to be well prepared. Come to the island early tomorrow morning. I’ll be waiting at the pier.”
“All right. But if the waves get higher tomorrow, the whole thing is canceled without question. Keep that in mind.”
Park Seong-cheol waved his hand and walked away, still grumbling.
Seok-ho climbed onto the heavily loaded workboat and started the engine.
The boat began cutting through the water toward Haewoldo.
The sea breeze struck his face, but he did not feel cold.
Instead, his chest felt as though it were burning with excitement.
Whether it’s a smuggling boat or something else, everything beneath it belongs to me now.
What could be submerged beneath the underwater passage inside the cave?
And what exactly would be inside the chest that the brass key could open?
Seok-ho tightened his grip on the steering wheel.
The sound of the old diesel engine rang across the sea with unusual cheerfulness.