Can You Show Me Your Skills?
The Water Sports Center was filled with quite a few useful things. Jun-ho instructed the team to focus on collecting everything except for basic household furniture, with a heavy emphasis on electronic appliances. It wasn't that Our Shelter was lacking in electronics, but even if they were used, the components inside were quite valuable.
“What should we do about the jet skis and motorboats? Are we taking them?”
At Yoon Seol-hee’s question, Jun-ho shook his head. “We’ll come back for the big stuff later to dismantle it. For now, move anything floating in the river inside the building. We’ll focus on the electronics first.”
Jet skis and motorboats that ran on oil rather than electricity were too loud to be of any practical use. However, the parts inside—especially the various types of motors—were incredibly useful. Jun-ho had them moved deep into the sports center and covered thoroughly with tarps.
‘Yeong-su and Baek-sensei will love this.’
The two of them were reportedly still obsessed with building and modifying turrets and drones. Of course, that was at Jun-ho’s request. In a place like Our Shelter, where they were short on people—especially combat personnel—turrets and drones could do the work of several men.
“……?”
As Jun-ho was effortlessly lifting and moving jet skis weighing over 200 kilograms each, he noticed someone standing still, staring blankly at one spot. Despite wearing brown work clothes, her curved silhouette stood out; it was Lee Chae-rin, the visual member of the idol group Blossom, who had the most distinct celebrity aura. She was a famous figure whose face even Jun-ho, who had no particular interest in idols, recognized from various commercials. But to Jun-ho right now, that didn't matter at all. What mattered was that an SCV was slacking off.
“What are you doing? What are you looking at?”
“Eek!? Oh, that… well.”
Startled, Lee Chae-rin’s face turned bright red. She stammered and continued in a voice that was barely a whisper. “That duck boat over there… I haven’t ridden one since I was little… I rode one with my parents back then, and it just reminded me of them. I’m sorry….”
Come to think of it, even if she was a popular adult idol, she was still just a young woman of twenty-one. She didn’t know if her family was alive or dead, and she had even almost been subjected to unspeakable things by a beast of a man at the resort. The fact that she was holding her mental state together and working hard in such a situation was impressive in itself.
“A duck boat, huh… It wouldn’t be bad to take a couple.”
“Yes?”
“We need them. Tell the soldiers to fish out just two of them.”
“Ah… Yes, yes!”
Lee Chae-rin’s face brightened instantly. She nodded vigorously and headed toward the soldiers—who were helping out on their own despite being told not to—to relay the order. The young soldiers, looking as disciplined as if they had just received an order from a division commander, carried out the task like lightning.
“Why the duck boats?” Yoon Seol-hee approached and asked casually. Jun-ho turned his head toward her.
“There’s a fairly large reservoir near the shelter. We go freshwater fishing there every week. Deok-cheol is really good at fishing. Anyway, I thought if we took those and modified them, they’d be useful for fishing.”
“Ah, I thought…”
“Yes?”
“No. It’s nothing.”
Yoon Seol-hee shook her head, unable to say that she thought he was just trying to impress Lee Chae-rin like the other men at the resort. It had been the same in the past, but after reuniting with Jun-ho in this ruined world, he still seemed to have no interest in women. Of course, she hadn’t expected him to be indifferent even to Lee Chae-rin, who was on every ‘Top 4 Idol’ or ‘Four Heavenly Kings of Idols’ list.
“It looks like we’re almost done. Let’s get ready to move.”
“Yes, understood.”
Yoon Seol-hee headed toward the combat personnel, and Jun-ho re-examined the scavenged goods loaded onto the multi-purpose electric vehicle and the electric carts the gangsters had used. A sense of satisfaction filled him, as if he were full without having eaten, and the Blossom members, who had been glancing at him, thought:
‘Did we lose to a monitor and a refrigerator?’
‘We even lost to a duck boat….’
Feeling a strange sense of frustration and regret, they steeled their resolve to work even harder once they reached the shelter.
Six electric vehicles loaded with people and various goods slowly moved along the mountain path. Four belonged to Our Shelter, and two belonged to the platoon heading to Yeongho-ri. Since the Lee Seok-jin unit already had a secured route, they were incredibly grateful to Jun-ho, who had even packed extra supplies into their two vehicles. Jun-ho even handed over two drones sent from the shelter and a 6kW power tank.
Since there was a soldier who had flown drones as a hobby before enlistment, and because the task was simply to fix the flight altitude and follow the troops from above in ‘follow mode,’ there was no difficulty in operating them. With drones that could fly for over 30 minutes each, they could safely reach Yeongho-ri by operating them in a relay, with one drone monitoring the troops from the sky while the other waited in reserve to be charged.
“Contact us with this when you’re about to arrive. From Yeongho-ri onwards, our radio signals reach.”
“Ah, is that so? Thank you so much.”
The sergeant, the platoon leader of the troops who received the radio and headset Jun-ho handed over, bowed his head repeatedly, deeply grateful.
“It supports wireless communication, and from that point on, we might even be able to control the drones from our side. If we detect any anomalies or threats, our operator will let you know. It’ll be much better than following along and checking the controller’s video yourself. Like this. Akina, what’s the status?”
“Whoa!?”
The sergeant’s eyes went wide. Seeing him look as amazed as a caveman who had just discovered how to make fire, Jun-ho felt a strange sense of pride and continued.
“Whenever you fly the drones after arriving in Yeongho-ri, the operator I mentioned will assist you. It’s convenient because they detect and warn you of zombies, people, or beasts. Akina, what’s the situation here?”
“How is it? Pretty good, right?”
“Yes, yes! It’s amazing. But… who is the person speaking right now? Is she Japanese, by any chance?”
“That’s not it. She’s just one of our personnel, why?”
At Jun-ho’s question, the sergeant said, looking a bit shy. “It’s just… her voice is exactly my type. Oh, I’m sorry. What am I saying… Anyway, thank you so much.”
“…Right.”
Thinking that he shouldn’t reveal that it was an AI voice until the end, if only for the sake of the innocent soldier, Jun-ho nodded. Anyway, Jun-ho and the dispatched troops parted ways in the middle, and about an hour later, the group passed through Mokuri and entered the mountain path toward Gahyeon-ri.
The mountain path leading from Mokuri to Gahyeon-ri, which had been used by the gangsters who once occupied the Cheongsan Building in Mokuri, was quiet. It was well-maintained, no different from a hiking trail or walking path during peaceful times, thanks to the work of the Gahyeon-ri survivors.
“…So, you’re saying that after that, you didn’t intervene much, and the residents managed it themselves?”
“That’s right. Three people, including the former village chief, are leading the Gahyeon-ri survivors. The synergy is good. In particular, there’s a man named Song Ki-jun who used to lead the apartment survivors. He’s a capable man.”
Searching for Song Ki-jun for months while leaving the area alone was, even now, a brilliant decision. If it had only been the former village chief, Kim Seok-hwan, dealing with the survivors of the two apartment complexes—who made up nearly a third of the Gahyeon-ri survivors—would have been quite exhausting. But Song Ki-jun had played the role of a lubricant or bridge between the people more than 100 percent, and now the Gahyeon-ri survivors were getting along reasonably well, regardless of whether they were from Sang-dong, Jung-dong, or Ha-dong.
“That’s amazing. At our resort, they fight and argue every single day, to the point where the representative is losing his hair.”
“I express my deepest condolences for Baek-ho’s hair, but in reality, Kangho Resort can’t help it.”
“Why is that?”
“Because the survivors there are tourists who flocked in from all over. It’s hard to create a focal point. On the other hand, these people have lived in this neighborhood for at least a few years. Even if it’s a bit awkward between the apartment folks and the original residents, they’re still people from the same neighborhood.”
“Ah….”
“That’s why I respect Baek-ho even more for accomplishing what he has. If it were me, I would have started by beating a few dozen of them into submission.”
“Me too. Seeing that, I don’t think I’m cut out to be a leader of such a large group. If it had just been me and Manager Park without the representative, things would have gone seriously wrong.”
To Yoon Seol-hee, who was giving a bitter smile, Jun-ho shook his head and said.
“But Baek-ho can’t fight like you, Manager. Fighting against dozens of people in the mountains with just a gun is the most necessary and important ability in this world right now. That’s why I’m bringing you and your staff to our shelter.”
“…Thank you.”
It was then. Beep. Beep. Beep. Along with the familiar beep, Yoon Yeong-su’s voice came through Jun-ho’s headset.
“What’s going on?”
At Jun-ho’s voice, which had turned sharp in an instant, Yoon Seol-hee looked at him in surprise.
“What’s the response?”
PTZ cameras and air gun turrets had been installed on the rooftops of each building in the Edu Town apartments, precisely for moments like this. While the turrets could intercept external looters, they could also respond immediately without human presence if someone caused trouble from within.
“Just a few… No. Fire a few shots as a warning and keep the turrets on standby. Tell Song Ki-jun not to enter yet.”
“I’ll handle it. And are those people all at the entrance right now?”
“Understood. I’ll be there in 10 minutes. We’ll talk then.”
After ending the communication with Yoon Yeong-su, Jun-ho turned his gaze to Yoon Seol-hee, who was looking at him with a subdued expression.
“Has something happened?”
“Yes. Some of the apartment residents I mentioned earlier started a riot. I think they’re the families or acquaintances of the people who died during our last fight.”
Even if Edu Town had attacked first, many people had died. And they had families and friends, and the survivors needed a ‘target for their resentment.’ Moreover, the Edu Town survivors were clearly treated worse than the other Gahyeon-ri residents, which was only natural since they were the ones who had committed the crimes. But with family members dead, and their status—having once prided themselves on being the wealthiest in Gahyeon-ri along with the detached house village—having fallen to the very bottom, it seemed those who could no longer endure had appeared.
“They are foolish people.”
“Yes, they are foolish. They are idiots who don’t understand what it means to live in Gahyeon-ri.”
Idiots who didn’t know that the outside was hell. Fools who couldn’t even guess what it meant to live under protection from looters who could kill, steal, and trample them at any moment. If they had just endured until spring, they would have received the same treatment, but they were foolish bastards who couldn’t even wait those few months. They were ungrateful wretches who still hadn’t repented for their sins. Therefore, the decision Jun-ho had to make was simple.
“It’s a bit early, but can you show me your skills?”
“Of course. Leave it to me.”
Yoon Seol-hee’s eyes, as she pulled down her bulletproof goggles, shone coldly. In the past, whenever something similar happened, she had endured and endured because of Kang Baek-ho’s instructions. But the line drawn by her new employer(?) in his territory was clearly different from Kang Baek-ho’s, and for some reason, Yoon Seol-hee liked this one better.