Something Beyond a Hero
However, the probability of reuniting with Viktor Volk Choi was extremely low, and even if it were to happen, there was no telling when. It was unclear if he had even survived, given that he was in Vladivostok when the apocalypse broke out, and even if he were alive, his current state was a mystery. Furthermore, the Volcano Group was, at its core, a Far Eastern Russian mafia syndicate; it was a given that they would become a group of marauders in an apocalyptic world. In other words, they were the warlords of Far Eastern Russia. A powerful group that made other gangs look like mere "playthings." Therefore, regardless of Viktor Volk Choi himself, the organization as a whole should never be trusted easily.
"It would be a different story if Volk had completely taken over the Volcano Group, but..."
That seemed unlikely. No matter how formidable that "Volk" might be, such a feat would be difficult. Therefore, if I were to make contact with the Volcano Group members remaining in Korea, I would have to leverage my unique relationship with Viktor Volk Choi to the fullest to secure fuel and ammunition.
— Brother, can you hear me? We just cleared the tunnel!
Jun-ho set aside his thoughts at the sound of Park Deok-cheol’s radio transmission. "Manager, you heard the radio, right? Please get ready."
"Understood."
Gu Jeong-mok took control of the farm survivors, including Kim Tae-su’s family. Those who were injured or in poor health were sent into the main house first, while those who were relatively healthy, including Kim Tae-su, were tasked with clearing the corpses and tidying up the farm.
A few minutes later, Park Deok-cheol and his group arrived in the multi-purpose electric vehicle and the electric truck.
"Brother! You’re alright, aren't you?"
"Mr. Jun-ho, are you hurt anywhere?"
"You said your name was Mr. Jeong-mok, right? Are you okay?"
Park Deok-cheol, as well as Choi Jung-woo, Song Ki-jun, and the other men who had come out to work, checked on the safety of Jun-ho and Gu Jeong-mok first. Jun-ho nodded, feeling an inexplicable sense of pride and reassurance.
"I’m perfectly fine. For now, Deok-cheol and Manager Gu, search the vicinity more thoroughly. Mr. Choi Jung-woo and the rest of you, please start the work."
"Understood."
"Yes sir."
"Yeong-su, keep one drone hovering over the farm and have the other follow Deok-cheol and Manager Gu. The signal is fine, right?"
— Yep. It’s fine as long as they don't go too far. Like I said earlier, as long as they stay within a 300-meter radius, it’s all good.
"Got it. By the way, I think we should install a repeater here. Where do you think would be best?"
Installing it on the roof of the main house seemed like an option, but the wireless range would be somewhat limited. Since this place was surrounded by mountains on three sides, excluding the access road, a roof-mounted repeater would only cover this immediate area.
— Just a second.
After a brief silence, Yun Yeong-su’s voice returned.
— Looking at the aerial map and considering Akina’s judgment, that peak near the tunnel, Jeokmubong, would be the best. It’s about 250 meters high. I’ll mark it for you now.
"250 meters, huh..."
— Yeah. As you can see, if you install it there, the signal will reach part of Paldang Lake. Even if we ignore the communication with the shelter in signal-shadow areas like mountain valleys or inside tunnels, the drone's flight range will increase significantly.
Looking at the location of Jeokmubong marked on the tablet screen, it certainly seemed like the right choice. Above all, the prospect of being able to monitor a 4-to-5-kilometer radius around Paldang Lake at any time by launching the shelter's drones was highly attractive. Of course, since this place was about 15 kilometers away from the shelter, the mission flight time would only be 10 to 15 minutes if the drones departed from the shelter.
'But if I keep a few drones stationed at the leisure sports marina...'
The mission flight time for surveillance and reconnaissance would more than double. If I kept about three drones on standby and rotated them between charging and flying, the current inefficiency of having 5 or 6 drones depart from the shelter only to return after a mere 10 to 15 minutes of duty would be eliminated.
"Hmm... something feels a bit lacking."
Jun-ho stared at the aerial map on the tablet, lost in thought for a moment.
"Ah."
A good idea suddenly occurred to him.
"Yeong-su, where is Manager Yoon Seol-hee right now?"
* * *
"Excuse me? Cows from the Kangho Resort?"
Yoon Seol-hee, who was working with Jun-hyeok at the villa safe house in Gahyeon-ri, tilted her head and looked up. She was currently in communication with Jun-ho, linked through the shelter’s control room.
— Yes. This farm alone has over 100 cows, and if we search around here a bit more, we’ll find even more.
"Yeah..."
— You know the ski resort at the resort, right? There’s a huge amount of land left over after building the greenhouses. Plus, I heard the golf course hasn't been managed, so a lot of grass has grown there. Since most of the pesticides must have washed away, I think we could raise cows there, too.
Though flustered by the sudden talk of cows, Yoon Seol-hee tried to remain calm.
"So... you're saying we should take some of those cows to the resort and the golf course to raise them? But don't they have owners?"
— Probably? But that shouldn't be a problem. If the owners are alive, we can just take them to the resort, too.
"Ah..."
— This farm alone has about ten people. Given what they've been through, they won't be able to live here in peace anymore. But these are all people who have been farming and raising livestock here, right? If we take them to the resort along with the livestock, it will definitely be a big help.
"Well... I suppose that's true."
Although thousands of survivors were gathered at Kangho Resort, nine out of ten were guests who had come for the holidays, so they didn't know much about farming or livestock. Of course, as the group grew, some surviving local residents had joined, but there was still a severe lack of people with the "professional" production skills essential for survival in the apocalypse, rather than just simple labor. It was a miracle that they were barely holding on as it was.
If a large number of people with professional knowledge and experience, albeit a bit older, were to join now? "That’s definitely a good idea. No, even if it is my opinion, I think we absolutely have to do it. The Representative will probably agree, too."
— Right? Then let's take these people to the marina to wait, and then have them picked up from the resort.
"Understood. I'll report it once I get in touch with the Representative."
— Yes. See you then...
"When will you be back?"
Yoon Seol-hee, who had asked without thinking, immediately regretted it. He’ll come back on his own in a few days, obviously!
— Huh? Well... about two days? I'll stay here today and head down below Paldang Lake tomorrow... yes, I think I'll be back the day after tomorrow.
"Understood. Please give my regards to Manager Gu, and have a safe return."
Yoon Seol-hee spoke in a deliberately stiff tone.
— Yes. You work hard too, Manager.
"...Phew."
Once Jun-ho’s deep, cave-like voice was no longer audible, Yoon Seol-hee let out a light sigh.
"What's wrong, Noona? What did my brother say?"
Jun-hyeok, who had been working on the villa roof with Kim Ji-min and Baek Su-ho, approached and asked cautiously.
"Yes. He said he’s going to raise cows."
"Cows? You mean the 'moo-moo' cows?"
"Yes. Those cows. There are over 100 right now, and he thinks there will be more. He wants to take them here and to our resort to raise them."
"Daebak...!"
Jun-hyeok’s eyes went wide, and he smacked his lips. Of course, our shelter had plenty of meat. Even without touching the ultra-low-temperature freezer, more than half of the beef, pork, and chicken stored in the commercial refrigerators and freezers in the kitchen remained. However, those were all frozen meats. They were delicious when thawed and seasoned, but the flavor was somewhat lacking when grilled. Of course, in a world like this, just eating meat every day was already the top 0.1 percent.
"Wow! My brother is truly amazing. Every time he goes out, he brings something back."
"I agree. Plus, if you think about it..."
"...Think about what?"
Yoon Seol-hee, who had been about to say something, let her sentence trail off, causing Jun-hyeok to tilt his head.
"Oh, it's nothing. Anyway, how's the work going?"
Unable to bring herself to say, 'I was also brought here from the outside by Lee Jun-ho,' Yoon Seol-hee changed the subject.
"Oh, it's almost finished. Manager Ji-min is incredibly good at this. He was so worried earlier, too."
As Jun-hyeok chuckled, Kim Ji-min, who was working with tools instead of his gun and baton, wiped his sweat and grinned.
"That's for sure. But it's all thanks to Mr. Baek. I’m not lying, he’s better than the professors I had in college. There’s truly nothing he doesn’t know."
"Right? That’s the kind of person my father-in-law is. Our Su-ah is just like him, so smart and capable. Hehe."
As Jun-hyeok, who had started calling Baek Ha-il "Father-in-law" without hesitation and bragging about Baek Su-ah whenever he got the chance, laughed foolishly, Yoon Seol-hee just shook her head.
* * *
After finishing the installation of the repeater at the farm owner's house, Jun-ho and his group stayed there for the day. Kim Tae-su prostrated himself before Jun-ho and his group once again. According to Jun-ho’s original plan, Kim Tae-su should have already been dead. But he couldn't bring himself to do it in front of his young son and wife. While he had cooperated with the marauders, he had been forced to do so because his family was held hostage, and the fact that he hadn't directly participated in any murders was a mitigating factor. However, he couldn't be forgiven as if nothing had happened.
"Mr. Kim Tae-su and your family, stay here and continue to take care of the livestock. People similar to us will be coming, so take care of them, too."
"Ah, I understand. Thank you. Thank you so much."
Having received grace far beyond what he deserved, as they had spared his life and saved his family, Kim Tae-su bowed his head repeatedly. His wife and son, standing side-by-side next to him, did the same.
"But, by 'take care of them,' what kind of... Ah! I don't mean I don't want to! It’s just easier to prepare if I know in advance."
"It's nothing special. Serving meals, cleaning, laundry, and odd jobs. That’s all. And... you said your name was Se-jin, right? You were supposed to enter middle school this year, weren't you?"
"Yes, ye-yes..."
Perhaps because his growth spurt hadn't hit yet, Kim Se-jin, who was shorter and smaller than his peers, looked at Jun-ho, trembling with tension.
"You'll have to work, too. But are you good at your studies? You’ll need to study hard from now on."
"Ye-yes...?"
"I'll bring you middle school textbooks and reference books, so study. And if you can, learn a skill as soon as possible. Do you understand?"
It was a harsh thing to say to a child who was just turning 13, but in this world, if you didn't have a skill, you became a useless surplus human. Whether it was raising something well, making something well, or killing something well... from the age of 15 or 16, everyone had to pull their own weight. If he became a useful worker in two or three years, he might be able to come to Gahyeon-ri, the Hanalreum Nursing Home, or perhaps the shelter's container housing. Was that taking hostages? Would his parents, Kim Tae-su and his wife, object? Not a chance.
"Th-thank you! Truly... I will never forget this grace. Sob."
"Thank you, thank you..."
In this world, where only despair remained, there were almost no parents who would dislike the fact that they could continue to educate their child and even send them to a safe place.
* * *
The next day.
After finishing the rather difficult task of installing a repeater, an amplifier, and four 600-watt solar panels on Jeokmubong, Jun-ho and his group returned to the leisure sports marina, taking with them everyone except those who chose to stay at the farm, including Kim Tae-su’s family. The youngest of them was in their mid-50s, and all were in their 60s; after getting their hair roughly cut, washing up, and putting on shelter uniforms, they finally looked like human beings. And for that alone, they were incredibly grateful to Jun-ho. No, it was beyond mere gratitude.
"Avalokiteshvara, Namo Avalokiteshvara..."
A woman in her 60s, who claimed to be a devout Buddhist, bowed her head repeatedly toward Jun-ho and chanted sutras before boarding the electric motorboat from the resort.
"May you live a long and healthy life..."
Even after boarding the boat, she bowed her waist so deeply that it was almost like she was prostrating herself before Jun-ho. Jun-ho felt embarrassed and uncomfortable with such behavior from someone twice his age. However...
It didn't take long for him to realize that what he had just seen from the woman was nothing. If someone possessed special powers and abilities that could be considered "unique" in an apocalypse filled with death and despair, and used them to save others (even if Jun-ho was doing it for his own benefit), he would inevitably become something beyond a savior or a hero—a kind of "deification" would take place.