Inside Cheonghaejin: Battalion Tour and Mart Welcome
Sergeant: Baek Jaesung
We were overwhelmed by the sheer size of Cheonghaejin, and once inside, we were stunned yet again by the space dedicated to the 1st Landing Battalion. The battalion didn't have a huge number of personnel, but an entire floor of this massive ship was reserved just for us. Managing it must be a real pain in the ass.
The battalion consisted of one headquarters company, five combat companies, and one support company. The headquarters and support companies each had around 80 personnel—not a small number. But each of the five combat companies had barely six members.
1st and 2nd Companies were made up entirely of career soldiers, while 3rd Company—where Yeonji and I were assigned—along with 4th Company, where the other girls were, and the remaining 5th Company each consisted of one career soldier and five rookies. In other words, the 1st Landing Battalion's combat strength boiled down to just around 30 dungeon hunters.
At first glance, it might seem like a pitiful excuse for a military unit, but from a dungeon hunter's perspective, that's the equivalent of six five-man parties. Considering that a mid-tier clan typically fields four or five such parties, the 1st Landing Battalion packed the punch of at least one full mid-tier clan.
On top of that, 1st and 2nd Companies were composed entirely of seasoned veterans, every one of them a 5-rank dungeon hunter or higher. A party made up solely of 5-rankers was the kind of firepower you'd only see in Korea's top ten clans. Taken alone, that meant no one could call the battalion weak. It wasn't for nothing that they'd sent an entire carrier strike group on a joyride.
Even in other countries, few militaries boasted such elite hunter forces. Forcing hunters into military service tended to cause problems. After all, there weren't many organizations that lobbied the government as effectively as the Hunter Association.
Korea could maintain this level of power because its hunters were on average exceptionally strong. Among economically advanced nations, Korea and China were the only two that still conscripted hunters.
Our company room was nothing like the drab offices back at basic. A massive TV dominated the center of the space.
Apparently, it had satellite comms that let you browse over 1,000 channels from around the world. Next to the TV was a console gaming setup, and in the corner, there was even a little snack bar.
There were enough computers for every company member—and they were top-of-the-line models.
'No wonder hunters grumble but still serve their time. They treat us pretty damn well.'
Of course, the Landing Battalion got special treatment. Rumor had it they ate up the biggest chunk of the Special Operations Command's budget.
As we looked around the company room, a young man with a colonel's insignia approached us. He had a friendly face and looked to be in his mid-thirties.
"Nice to meet you all. I'm Colonel An Seokho, your company commander."
He didn't use the stiff military speech we'd gotten used to at basic. His freewheeling, civilian-like tone screamed "hunter to the bone."
A colonel as company commander? Yeah, that tracked for the Landing Battalion.
"Anyone here up for being the company flag bearer?"
Everyone avoided his gaze.
Who in their right mind volunteers to be a flag bearer in the army?
No one with a shred of sanity, that's who.
"Haha, army life ain't so bad, so take your time thinking it over. As you can see from the facilities here, it's fucking great. Oh, and I'll give you a tour of the inside of Cheonghaejin. Follow me."
The company commander opened the door with a grin and stepped out. Honestly, I just wanted to kick back, watch some TV, or play games.
But pissing off the CO on day one wouldn't be smart. It'd just make my tour of duty a hassle.
We followed him through the ship's interior. It really felt like touring a massive cruise liner.
"The Landing Battalion uses the 5th deck. So you won't run into many folks from other units up there. Everything below us is infrastructure—logistics warehouses, generators, engines, that sort of thing. You won't have much reason to go down."
The 6th deck was the base for the special-purpose peacekeeping forces. As we headed up one floor, we spotted soldiers from various nations in their different uniforms.
The facilities here were just as luxurious as ours. The central deck even had a garden decorated with palm trees.
"Isn't that a general?"
A middle-aged man with a gray mustache and a beret sporting two stars was chatting at a table in the garden's center with a somewhat younger man wearing a combat helmet with two stars as well.
Hmm... which country are they from?
"The mustached one over there is the French contingent commander, and the other is the British contingent commander."
"Whoa, are contingent commanders usually two-star generals? There's stars over there too."
Hwang Cheolmin pointed around, and sure enough, officers with stars were everywhere. Quite the sight.
"Back when my seniors were here, it was a mix of colonels and brigadiers, but egos got involved and higher ranks started showing up—now even major generals. Oh, and note that in the multinational force here, we treat people by their billet, not just rank. That guy from Mongolia is a lieutenant colonel, but we give him the same respect as the major generals. You'll run into these folks more than you'd think, so mind your manners."
Suddenly, the gray-mustached French major general chuckled, stood up, and waved us over.
Shit, did we do something?
An Seokho walked over without a hint of unease at the general's gesture. Guess being from another service dulled the rank pressure.
"@#$%^%$"
The French guy rattled off something in French, then pulled a bill from his pocket and handed it to An Seokho. It was a hundred-dollar bill. An Seokho came back grinning ear to ear.
"We hit the jackpot. He says buy you rookies something tasty."
"He knows we're newbies?"
"Has to. All the brass shows up for the newbie rifle presentation ceremony."
"What's that?"
"It's like a welcoming event for Landing Battalion rookies. Kinda like the graduation ceremony at basic, minus the generals watching."
Some kind of "you're family now that you've shipped in together" ritual?
Sounded like a pain in the ass. Tradition or not, I was already sighing.
The 7th deck was the shopping district, with a huge open-air upper deck exposed to the outside.
"Floors 7 through 9 are shopping. Not just restaurants—laundromats, salons, barbershops, arcades, you name it. There's even a mart. Get whatever you need here."
Just looking at it lifted your spirits. The shopping area even had leisure spots like a pool and basketball court.
"Oh, and currency on Cheonghaejin is USD. There's an exchange booth if you need it, but you probably won't. You'll get your pay cards later, and those work right away."
Ah, so that's why the French major general paid in dollars.
"Got some walking-around money, so even if it's early, let's do a company dinner. For dinner, it's gotta be here."
An Seokho led us to a huge mart called Cheonghaejin Mart. Straightforward name.
"This is duty-free. And not just Korean stuff—imports from everywhere, so there's some wild shit."
About half the shelves were domestic goods, half foreign. A massive cheesecake that looked like it'd pack on pounds with one bite stole our attention right at the entrance.
"Ah... I want that."
Rina said shyly.
If Rina ate that, would her chest and hips get a bit bigger?
If all that fat zeroed in on the right spots, maybe.
"Company commander, let's get this."
I grabbed the cheesecake before he could answer. Fortunately, Colonel An Seokho nodded coolly.
"Grab whatever you want. We got a hundred bucks—eat till you burst. That cheesecake's only six dollars."
"Whoa, American-made, huh? The land of plenty lives up to the hype..."
Anything with English on it was dirt cheap. US products were already affordable, and no taxes made it feel like freebies.
I got the cheesecake, pineapple pizza, pistachio ice cream, and chocolate cookies.
Rina picked Caesar salad, fried chicken, and Ceylon tea.
Han Seungjin's choice was unexpected: just a shitload of apples.
Is that guy the Grim Reaper or something?
"Whoa, first time seeing a guy like this."
Even the company commander gawked at Han Seungjin, eyes wide.
"Ehehe. I figured Korean snacks would suit me best."
Hwang Cheolmin loaded up on run-of-the-mill mart snacks.
Boring bastard.
"Alright, let's eat here."
The mart corner had microwaves, chairs, and tables—perfect for a quick chow-down.
We tore into our hauls. Nothing fancy, but the vibe made it all look appetizing.
"Alright, only cola, but cheers anyway! To the prosperity of 3rd Company!"
""""Prosperity!""""
We clinked cola cans and dug in. I'd worried we bought too much, but as hunters, we demolished it fast. Especially Hwang Cheolmin—guy could eat.
"Ah, nom nom! Oh yeah, nom nom!"
Hwang Cheolmin mumbled around a mouthful.
"Mm! Gulp! Hooo~! Colonel An Seokho, sir. Do you happen to know where my cousin is stationed?"
"Your cousin? Who's that?"
Oh yeah, Hwang Cheolmin had mentioned his cousin served here before.
"Name's Hwang Geun-chul. I think he's in the support company..."
"Ah... Geun-chul. Yeah, that guy's off the ship."
"What!? Off? Why?"
"Well... got done for sexual harassment violation. Not a good look."
"Oh my god!"
Hwang Cheolmin's face twisted in shock.
"Big fucking deal. One support company soldier even tried to kill himself over it. Hwang Geun-chul probably ended up in military prison. His statement mentioned twisting nipples with a wrench?"
"Why the hell twist nipples with a wrench?"
"No idea. Word is he just cleaned, tightened, and oiled it like a good soldier. World's full of crazies."
Family issues for Hwang Cheolmin?
"After that guy, support company's been squeaky clean. Dark knight in his own way. Our side's always been chill, though."
The mood tanked with that appetite-killer. We scarfed the rest and bailed from the mart.
"From the 10th deck up, it's military facilities again. Lots of Special Ops Command folks. Captain's quarters too."
The 10th deck and above were back to bland: armory, weapons depot, ops room—mostly off-limits.
After the rough tour, we returned to the 5th deck, battalion HQ.
"Now, I'll show you to your rooms."