The Architect of the Shelter
“Born in the Year of the Horse, 1978. Your mother was a shaman, and after she passed away, you were raised in an orphanage run by a priest, right?”
“······!”
“You attended a technical high school, graduated, and then went to a technical college on a scholarship. Since the scholarship only covered tuition, you worked every odd job imaginable while attending. Oh, and you mentioned that selling roasted sweet potatoes from a drum barrel in the winter was quite profitable.”
“Huh···”
Hearing his own past—and such distant memories at that—spilled out from the mouth of another, Baek Ha-il felt a sense of wonder mixed with an inexplicable awkwardness.
“You were laid off from Samwoo Automotive, and after that, there wasn’t a place you didn’t work, from shipyards to boiler factories. You said you worked on construction sites for apartments, semiconductor plants, and private houses. You even boasted that there wasn’t anything you couldn’t do, from pouring concrete to installing water pipes and electrical wiring.”
“You’re driving me crazy, haha.”
“After opening your hardware store, you used your connections to supply materials to sites in Busan, and sometimes you went out to help directly. Oh, and the auto repair shop next to your hardware store? You do everything from painting to simple repairs for the locals, charging them almost just for the cost of materials, right? You do all the hard work, it eats up all your time, and you don’t make much money, so your daughter often nags you about it.”
“Wait, did I even tell you that much?”
“Yes. There’s more, but that’s all I can remember for now. Oh, you also told me your nickname. ‘Baekgyver.’ You said the unskilled Southeast Asian migrant workers at the construction sites would always call out, ‘Baek-hai, Baek-hai,’ asking for help. After you helped them with this and that, they eventually started calling you Baekgyver after a few months.”
“Ha! That’s the real deal, the real deal. I’d forgotten about that for over ten years, but you know it. That’s a really old story. Nobody calls me that these days.”
Baek Ha-il, now completely trusting Jun-ho, laughed as if he felt sheepish.
“Please speak comfortably, Hyung-nim. I’m twenty-nine this year.”
“Oh, should I? Then let’s do that. Then I’ll call you Jun-ho··· No, can I call you Ho-ya?”
“That’s what you used to call me.”
Jun-ho smiled, remembering the Baek Ha-il of the apocalypse era. Baek Ha-il had called his son Baek Su-ho ‘our Ho-ya,’ and himself just ‘Ho-ya.’
“Oh, did I? Anyway, thank you so much. Once the surgery is over, I’ll have you meet Su-ho, too. You’re his lifesaver.”
“The doctor is the one doing the surgery. Anyway, I understand.”
Jun-ho had never actually seen or spoken to Baek Su-ho during the apocalypse. Baek Su-ho had stayed only in the ward where the patients and the elderly were gathered.
“By the way···”
Baek Ha-il, having downed a shot of soju, glanced around before lowering his voice. “Is the world really going to end? With the government and the military unable to do anything?”
Jun-ho’s expression turned serious as well.
“Yes. At least for the first three years after the outbreak—that is, until 2027—you shouldn’t expect anything from the government.”
“Huh···”
“The military is, how should I put it··· independent units? Warlords? Anyway, as time passes, they split into several factions. But most are no different from looters. There are some soldiers who aren’t like that, but most end up exploiting survivors rather than protecting them. The rumors weren’t very good.”
“Crazy··· The government fled to Jeju Island?”
“Yes. Jeju Island was also crawling with zombies, but since it’s an island, it must have been relatively easier to drive them out or occupy it. Still, they weren’t able to stabilize the entire island, I heard.”
“Incompetent bastards. Then what about here in Busan?”
Jun-ho hardened his expression.
“You absolutely have to leave. Busan becomes the biggest mess, right along with Seoul. All major cities are dangerous.”
“I suppose that’s true. Then what do we do?”
“What do you mean, what do we do? You need to wrap up your life in Busan and build a shelter with me.”
“A shelter··· Right, tell me more about that in detail.”
Baek Ha-il’s eyes changed. He had heard a brief summary, but he hadn’t been able to imagine it concretely. Jun-ho took out his smartphone, opened a map app, and showed him the abandoned school site at ‘Sky Forest Campsite’ as he spoke.
“I’ve decided on this site; it’s in Namyangju. It’s surrounded by mountains, and there’s only one road. Groundwater flows abundantly, and there’s a valley in front, so you don’t have to worry about water. Water is truly important.”
“Hmm. I suppose so.”
“We’re going to install solar panels on the roofs of the main building and other auxiliary structures here. I did a rough calculation, and I think at least 140 kilowatts is possible, and if we get greedy, maybe even 180.”
“Then think of it as 140. You’re going to put automatic cleaning robots on the panels, right? You have to be as conservative as possible when calculating the solar panel area.”
Seeing him come up with calculations just by glancing at a satellite map, he truly was ‘the mechanic’ himself.
“Yes. And this—the restaurant building that the previous campsite operator built separately. I’m planning to renovate this into a warehouse. I’ll split it in half to use as an ultra-low-temperature freezer and a fuel storage depot.”
“Tsk tsk. Ho-ya, you don’t know much about this kind of thing, do you?”
“I studied up to build the shelter, but I suppose you’re right.”
Baek Ha-il clicked his tongue, but Jun-ho was actually glad for that reaction. Because he was a true expert, to the point where any comparison was embarrassing.
“You’re going to store food in the freezer, right? Then you must never put it together with the fuel storage. If it were me, I’d say···”
Baek Ha-il began to offer concrete opinions with a serious expression. As he continued his explanation with focus, Jun-ho looked at him with a satisfied gaze, nodding absentmindedly.
“···Do you understand? Do you know how much electricity an ultra-low-temperature freezer consumes? You absolutely have to dig into the mountain behind this and build it there. Why? For starters, it doesn’t cost that much.”
“Yes.”
“And the inside of a mountain has a constant temperature all year round, right? I guarantee you, if you build it that way, even if you build it to the same square footage, the electricity consumption will be cut by more than half. Ho-ya, are you listening to me right now?”
“Yes, yes, I’m listening, Hyung-nim.”
“This guy wasn’t listening just now.”
“I heard everything. But Hyung-nim, instead of explaining it to me like this right now···”
As Jun-ho raised his glass, Baek Ha-il instinctively followed suit. After the toast, Jun-ho downed his soju and continued.
“How about you take full responsibility and handle the shelter construction from start to finish? Your family has to live there too, anyway.”
“Cough···!”
“Then, I’ll head to the hospital now.”
“Yes. Take care, Hyung-nim.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll contact you tomorrow morning.”
After talking for about an hour more at the pork belly restaurant, Jun-ho and Baek Ha-il parted ways. It was a short time, but enough to share a rough plan and a sense of consensus. There was plenty of time ahead, after all.
Jun-ho, who returned to the hotel, postponed his checkout and extended his stay. He had decided to stay in Busan until Monday.
“Whew···”
Jun-ho, who had put his meat-scented clothes into the clothing care system, finished his shower and popped open a bottle of water. Then, he slowly reviewed his conversation with Baek Ha-il.
First, as proof that he trusted him completely, Baek Ha-il had agreed to take out a loan using his owned buildings as collateral. He said it would be possible to get at least 50 percent, or as much as 70 percent, of the building’s value. Roughly 900 million to 1.2 billion won. With that money, Baek Ha-il decided to buy Stella Coin when the opportunity arose. Stella Coin fluctuates like a roller coaster until summer. ‘Han Pro,’ or Han Yeong-jung, had clearly said that it would even cross 100,000 won a few times during that period. So, Baek Ha-il just needed to buy in the 70,000 to 80,000 won range and sell near 100,000 won to pocket the profit.
For Jun-ho, he had to manage funds exceeding 10 billion won, and he also had to be conscious of surveillance by financial authorities. He had already made a lot of money with coins, so it would be troublesome if he were caught on the radar of places like the National Tax Service while doing things that were no different from gambling afterward. But Baek Ha-il was different. Besides, he also needed funds to a certain extent. So, the plan was for him to put the money into Nvidia, just as Jun-ho was doing, after making a 20-30% profit with Stella Coin first.
“A workshop at the level of a first-class industrial repair shop? A place where you can even make guns, with industrial 3D printers and metal 3D printers? Getting machinery and equipment wouldn’t be difficult since many factories are struggling because of COVID··· The problem is materials and permits.”
“There are some facilities you can’t run without permits. Materials, especially metal, aren’t sold well by the kilogram. But who am I? I’ll figure it out somehow. No, I can definitely figure it out.”
“It’s in the mountains anyway, and you said we only need to not get caught for about two years, right? We have to run it as invisibly as possible. Well, even if we do get caught, if what you say is true, that lawyer gentleman seems like he’d handle it well. And, it’ll probably just end with a fine or something. I know because I experienced it at a factory I worked at in the past.”
“We should find a construction company in Busan and send them up? Why? Ah··· if we use a company from the metropolitan area, they might crawl up to the shelter after the apocalypse hits. So that means we have to find workers here, and the labor costs will probably be astronomical··· Ah, 15 billion won. Right, let’s do as you say, Ho-ya.”
“I’ll meet with design and construction company candidates starting tomorrow. What? There’s no such thing as a weekend. Everyone is dying because there’s no work due to COVID, so it’ll be easy.”
When Jun-ho’s ideas met Baek Ha-il’s outstanding skills and experience, the shelter construction plan gained momentum. As expected, with funds prepared and experts added, the speed and execution were different.
“Now, then···”
Jun-ho touched the number he had saved on his phone before coming down to Busan. After the signal rang a few times, a voice filled with fatigue was heard on the other side of the receiver.
- Hello?
“Hello. Is this Lawyer Lee Dong-cheol?”
- Yes, this is Lawyer Lee Dong-cheol. Who is this?
The voice, which had been somewhat relaxed because it was a weekend evening, quickly regained its professional tone.
“My name is Lee Jun-ho. There is something I would like to commission you for.”
- Yes, yes, please go ahead.
“It’s nothing else, but I’m trying to win a bid for a site that’s up for auction. I need a lawyer who can provide legal advice regarding the utilization of the site and respond to any problems that might arise.”
- ······.
After a moment of silence, a voice with a somewhat disappointed tone flowed out.
- I apologize, but if it’s an auction case, it would be better to look for a law firm specializing in real estate or a lawyer familiar with that practical work. I specialize in civil litigation, especially corporate···
“The location of the site is Namyangju. You worked as a prosecutor there, didn’t you? I happened to hear about you from someone I know through a few connections. That’s why I contacted you.”
- ···Please continue.
“It’s a campsite called ‘Sky Forest Campsite,’ which was originally an abandoned school site that was remodeled and operated. A private business owner received official permits and operated it, but it went bankrupt because of the pandemic. Other than tax arrears, there are no major legal issues. I plan to win the bid for this site and use it for a private house, a pension, or perhaps as a campsite again.”
- Look, as I told you, I am not a real estate···
“I need a legal expert who can respond to issues that may arise throughout the entire business. Someone who can handle everything from administrative consultations to risk management. In other words, a dedicated lawyer.”
- ···That’s a legal advisory or retainer contract. But are you aware that it costs quite a bit?”
“Yes. For now, I’m thinking of a retainer fee of 400 million won based on a one-year contract. I’ll pay 100 million won every quarter. Afterward, I’m thinking of renewing it every year with a 10 percent increase condition, starting at 100 million won per year. I’d like you to focus on this for just one year, and we can coordinate the advisory time or scope separately starting next year. I won’t force you to only do this work. How about it?”
Jun-ho finished the words he had learned through the internet and memorized almost perfectly without any major mistakes.
- ······!
Hearing the breathing that was clearly surprised, Jun-ho continued in a relaxed manner.
“Lawyer, I live in the metropolitan area, but I’m currently in Busan. If you have time tomorrow···”
- How about lunch tomorrow? Where are you staying right now···
“I’m in Hadan, but I’ll go there. Your office is in Seomyeon, right?”
- Yes, yes, I would be grateful if you could do that. Then please contact me when you leave. I’ll be waiting.
“Yes. Then.”
- Yes, see you tomorrow.
The call ended with a voice that seemed to be feigning composure. Jun-ho, who had put down his phone, chuckled.
400 million won—that’s not a small amount for a lawyer at a law office in Busan, not even a famous giant law firm. Moreover, as a result of Jun-ho’s search, Lee Dong-cheol was in a position where he was practically renting space at a law firm where his senior was the representative, contrary to his words during the apocalypse before the regression. It was only called a private office in name, but in reality, it was a structure that relied on the senior’s halo to continue receiving commissions. How much would be left after taking care of the salaries of the new lawyers and office managers he hired himself? For him, a profit of 400 million won in the first year and over 100 million won every year thereafter was a condition that would make his mouth water.
“If I turn a blind eye to how much he skims off the top and slip him a little extra here and there··· I’ll probably be able to keep him on a leash for about two years.”
It might be a bit dangerous afterward. If he was the Lee Dong-cheol that Jun-ho had seen and experienced, he was the type of person who would betray the other party whenever he felt they were close and easy to handle. Well, perhaps he might already be thinking that a pushover had rolled in. However, Jun-ho, who knew well what kind of human Lee Dong-cheol was, had already prepared countermeasures for him.