The Girl Who Got Shot by Her Own Girlfriend's Best Friend

Sometimes, the things you can't see are far more terrifying than what's right in front of you.

When something foreign pops out of your food, the worst scenario isn't a whole severed head hidden inside—no, it's the half a head. The one that's been cleanly cut off. You don't even need to see it with your own eyes. Just hearing someone say, "Oh, it happened," is enough to make your stomach drop.

"Haha… it happened."

"Ilhwan, your girlfriend got wrecked. The military is such a pain in the ass for people…"

"It's not the military! It's because of you, you rotten bastard!!"

For Corporal Jeong Chorong, this moment was that exact nightmare scenario.

In a household where her father was a high-ranking military officer, she'd had no connection to the military at all—until she suddenly awakened an ability. Like everyone else, she'd studied hard and gotten into university, but she'd grown sick of studying, and the prospect of employment had left her feeling utterly hopeless. The option to "join the military temporarily to help my father's promotion a little" had been irresistibly appealing.

She'd found someone she liked inside. People who made her watch her back. She'd thought the future was unknown but the present was happy—she'd believed that much.

But because of one person, that future got twisted into a nightmare.

"Oh, God… why does it have to be this little shit again."

"…The bastard who just said that doesn't look too happy about it. Your mouth's pretty foul, bro."

Many people would later learn of the danger only after the fact, and give the incident a name: The Seoul Outing. The place where an entire nation could be dealt a fatal blow by a single ability user. The suspect they encountered there was none other than Human Disaster Kim Chomok—who, at some point, had crashed into her life and obliterated her peaceful days.

And once you've seen someone's face, you can't exactly tell them, "Let's never see each other again."

"Hey—your girlfriend's walking past. She's exactly the right height where only the top of her head shows above the wall, isn't she?"

"…Are you out of your damn mind? There are plenty of women that tall in the world, stop spouting bullshit… wait, is that really her?!"

The boyfriend's friend—someone she'd run into with about a fifty-fifty chance on days off after leave or duty rotations.

"Do well. Skip the afternoon research and we'll see each other tomorrow!"

"What? Hey! Where are you going!!"

The way they'd pat each other on the shoulders and take off with that "do your best" energy—well, it wasn't just any old friendly gesture.

At the very least, this troublemaker was, for Jeong Ilhwan, less of a friend and more of a lifesaver. He'd put out the urgent fire, drained his university funds dry, even pulled research money out of his own pocket. He'd tanked toxic games solo while dancing around, done everything like some kind of normalization expert.

"Chomok isn't that bad a guy… I think."

"Sigh… since I also helped out at your mom's place, I really can't say anything."

Even when her boyfriend tried to defend him while glancing around, it was just… well, there was nothing to be done about it.

After his discharge, they kept meeting regularly, and their relationship was slowly growing more serious. For the two of them, this guy was someone she'd inevitably keep running into at every major life event going forward, so there was no choice but to eventually smooth things over. Each time they met, she couldn't keep making a sour face, so their exchanges evolved from short greetings and brief conversations into something slightly more manageable.

After enough time had passed, that usual scowl of hers now carried a hint of exasperation—and just a touch of warmth.

"For the love of—can't you just stay still?! What's this, dropping two stars into a minefield?! Are you out of your goddamn mind?!"

"Ah, that bastard told me to punch through the minefield! Next time I'll drop one into a nuclear facility, I swear."

Now that she had this husband's friend who wouldn't listen to a word—basically a youngest brat sibling—Jeong Chorong buried her face in her hands.

She'd been living a happy life, naturally transitioning into a researcher role after discharge to assist Jeong Ilhwan. The moment God had thrown a massive earful her way was the instant everything went to hell.

***

Still, it was different from when some random stranger suddenly dumps a terrible mission on you.

"Stick to reconnaissance. You two—Chomok and Ilhwan—are a two-person team. The others go in groups of four."

"…What the hell, why do those goddamn bastards get better command even though they have a lower rank than us?"

"Because you two have been inflating the average mission success rate of the ability user squad way too much… that's all. Done."

Maybe it was because the commanding officer had some familiarity with them, and was at least a sensible one.

The potential problem child who'd summon enemy artillery in extreme situations—and would immediately shove a reconnaissance earful down your throat—sent the most critical intelligence from the deepest part of enemy territory, without getting caught, and delivered it perfectly up the chain to complete the mission.

"Seriously though… if they'd just assigned a normal reconnaissance mission, he seems like he'd be a decent operative. What the hell did they actually assign him?"

"Hm. It's probably not easy to send him higher up… Captain rank is already pretty far for him."

Thanks to that, some soldier who'd been confirmed for discharge with less than a corporal's rank—having cried tears of blood over two stars—was now…

"Move it! Missiles are coming in soon! We haven't gotten out of range yet!"

"Ugh, if you're gonna fire something that dangerous, just send a drone! Everyone's been doing that as a hobby lately…"

The two people who'd successfully guided the missile into the enemy formation—modern artillery's most distant and dangerous branch—were also crying tears of blood, scrambling to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the impact coordinates.

The stress levels were similar enough for spiritual victory, so whatever. Actually, the stress on this side was probably even higher.

"Good job. Rest your body properly until the next mission… at least let your eyes close for a bit."

During the gate reconnaissance mission, in a scramble situation—when monsters suddenly appeared or a comrade was in crisis. Uncharacteristic of Corporal Jeong Chorong, who preferred to shield with her superhuman strength, she was actually using her head. Guaranteeing rest for the two of them after the reconnaissance mission to improve their performance—what's the harm in that?

"Is this the place? Hmm, container lodging…"

No matter how much her father was a general, a corporal could only block those below a single star. Two stars? She ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠couldn't block that directly. Especially with the population shrinking and spots for stars decreasing, in the vacuum of North Korea, people desperate to survive on their own merits were everywhere. Not every ability user could go deep into enemy lines.

Kim Chomok and Jeong Ilhwan's two-person infiltration team was the only one to successfully guide the missile? Everyone knew that in the military, ants swarm toward the sweet smell radiating from capable personnel.

"Hm hm, Corporal Jeong Chorong. Could you wake up a few of the troops you're in command of?"

"…Yes?"

"Ah, it's an urgent situation! I'm doing this as a favor so you can rest properly later…"

That kind favor was for you alone—share it with at least me. The military's anaba principle: once you give something, you never give it back twice. The fact that one person hadn't slept a wink for twenty-four hours, standing like a scarecrow in a minefield until their neck gave out—apparently they'd already forgotten that.

'Are they really going to pull this crap even when given a proper mission?'

'If they just listen to a corporal, it'll be fine as long as they don't get a suicide mission.'

Or maybe they saw the reconnaissance mission carried out properly and thought, "As long as it's not a suicide mission."

Kim Chomok, whose sanity had been ground down to dust, was dragged out of sleep barely minutes after dozing off…

"Mm. You guided missiles under the monsters, they say? Well done! But we still need to cover more areas…"

After the obligatory praise, he was about to give a light "work harder" and assign the next mission when…

"So you woke me up for this?! You crazy bastard, do I look like a machine to you?! If you're gonna spin, spin gently—why do you have to destroy society?!"

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!

"—UWAAAAH, get off me—!!"

The furious human tank, resolving that if the head had gone in the wrong direction, she'd spin it back and restore sanity—clutched a general's entire body overhead and started spinning like a top. Like a drone propeller, gripping both legs of the general and whipping him through the air.

Before long, some horrific lump of fluids—every orifice in the body pouring out whatever liquids they could—was rolling across the floor. Not long after, the general who'd done his best to maintain decorum had completely failed to take care of his own body.

The sign was tied to the human pillar, swaying back and forth along its body, unable to hold itself upright.

Naturally, the incident where a mere Private spun a serving general like a murder horse in front of everyone…

"Because you failed to control that madman, another colonel has been taken down! How will you take responsibility?!"

Corporal Jeong Chorong, nominally in charge, was about to be showered with arrows, but…

"Ugh, it's so filthy. I swear I'm gonna smash this damn military to pieces."

"…What? Did you just say something?"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

She'd been sent out for reconnaissance at night, and they'd even guaranteed rest time so she could relax. Then they came barging in and pulled rank—got what was coming to them, and now they wanted to make it her fault?

"Come to think of it, Chomok's the boyfriend's friend ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠too. Should I just help flip the military upside down? That might be faster."

"Y-you're a soldier talking about harming superiors…!!"

"Oh, then how about we take off our rank badges and have a go? Extra wartime punishment? Hah! What can any of you do to me?"

She hadn't joined to defend the country—she'd joined because it might help her father's evaluation. Four years to fill before discharge? Rather than letting her sanity get destroyed in this stupid place, she'd rather go through the unfit-for-service screening.

"If I just cause a ruckus and leave, I've still got plenty of options—big corporations! Universities! If push comes to shove, I'll just do forced labor with my superhuman strength!"

And her boyfriend—who was seriously dating her—was earning first-class wages during harvest season instead of his regular pay. Not that she was bitter about it or anything.

"Corporal, violating wartime orders will get you severely disciplined…!!"

"And right now this bastard's holding back a lot. If this were the military from ten years ago, we'd have been wiped out already!"

There's a limit to living alongside the lunatics who keep flicking their lighters at the ammunition depot.

"If you're gonna die, you die alone! Have you ever climbed a mountain only to find hell waiting for you at the top?!"

SHAKE SHAKE!!

"Kk—!! Get off! You bastard!!"

Since a single corporal had nearly brought another star's remaining oxygen supply to zero with yet another additional incident…

"…The ability user squad—no one touches them from now on. If you do, and I get caught up in it, I'm stripping every last one of you of your uniforms."

The field commander, who received the belated report, issued an order: "When they're cooperating well, just leave them alone."

"Oh, and just in case—make sure that bastard doesn't do anything that makes the other ability users nervous."

—Don't stir up internal conflict on top of fighting monsters! Don't create the seeds of civil war, got it?!

Those who could absolutely not be touched—regardless of the actual war situation, their low field rank, or the chain of command—were the only personnel capable of delivering the most critical intelligence from the deepest points without getting caught.

"Kuaaa…!!"

Kim Chomok had just established a mutual respect relationship with an entire nation's military.

"…Daughter, if you do that too, what will become of your father's social standing…"

"No, I don't care about Chomok and Ilhwan, but those people could really have died!"

"…'Ilhwan'…? Hm. It seems our daughter has quite a bit to talk to her father about."

"…Ah."

The family meeting behind closed doors was also the moment that prevented a major disaster capable of permanently eroding national strength.

…Though Jeong Ilhwan would end up feeling murderous intent toward a three-star general for quite some time after this.

Well, what can you do? The feeling a father gets toward the person who stole his daughter—that's just how it goes.

***

After the combo of mine-clearing, human helicopter-spinning, and collar-grabbing…

"The fact that you have command authority is the problem! From now on, the ability user squad reports directly to the field commander!"

The field commander, who'd heard what happened on site, issued an order ignoring all external directives except his own.

"I hear your girlfriend's father has three stars. That must be nice. Are you aiming for a four-star next?"

"…Ugh, I eat scold-rice at the temporary mess every day. Stop mocking me…"

No further incidents where stars got blown to pieces occurred. While the ability user squad under the field commander's direct command did their absolute best…

"Don't hog good reconnaissance drones! We have the right to use them too…!!"

Division commanders pressed the field commander from one side while pouring more drones in from the other. They'd shown their bellies to the higher-ups, barked and brayed—but…

"Ah, so three generals were sent out to do stupid things outside of combat? Get out there now!!"

All that came back was exasperated glares and the order to ship out.

"God damn it! The only thing I can trust now is the reconnaissance drone!"

"You can't rely on occult nonsense like ability users! Humans are science—science!!"

And so their political energy flowed entirely into drone development and deployment. It was only natural.

"Every time a soldier dies for nothing, a crack forms in my promotion."

"The military's trust is already shattered. Friendly fire? Civilian deaths? Oh dear. Someone's getting their uniform stripped."

They didn't know there were North Korean refugees around. They couldn't deploy weapons capable of causing massive explosions. The more human lives just float away uselessly, the lower the logarithmic value of promotion potential drops. With the ability user squad's reconnaissance authority gone, their hope for survival became drones. What else could they do? Pour money and influence into deployment.

The problem was that while the technology was advancing quickly and deployment itself went fairly smoothly…

"Um… unless you use incredibly expensive materials, you won't even be able to get close to that area."

"…What? Wait—what are you talking about?!"

"What good is it if the material can only withstand a couple of rifle rounds? The destructive power they wield is completely different."

They couldn't even get near the target area without either crashing or becoming unrecoverable. And now that something drone-like was finally appearing on the market, the dawn of reconnaissance drones had just begun. Discussions about suicide drones or weaponized drones were slowly emerging—but that was all tactical potential for human-on-human warfare. Useless against monsters.

Because they'd get caught by higher-tier monsters with their own "territories" and dragged underground by invisible forces, or worse, have their wings and bodies pierced clean through by monsters that could throw rocks.

Even so, if they were still just taking "losses," that was the fortunate side.

"…Hey? What's that. Looks like a communication error! D-45's signal is back!"

"Ugh, mountain satellites are always like that… battery's almost dead, send a recovery squad."

A drone that had gone out for reconnaissance near another gate had its signal cut—and not long after, they thought it was lost and gave up. Then the signal came back, it was moved to a safe area, and they were about to send in personnel for recovery when…

FWOOOOOOM—!!

"What the hell was that explosion?!"

"…!! D-45 exploded! Recovery squad out of contact! The drone had explosives attached, or it was some kind of modification!"

What came back was an explosion so massive that not even debris remained, and the complete annihilation of the recovery squad that had been sent out.

North Korean front, one week elapsed.

And South Korea's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠official third contact with an intelligent entity was still eleven hours away.

They still hadn't set foot in Pyongyang.