Chapter 6

Vroom.

Cars converged on the abandoned industrial complex. They were vans and trucks marked “Animal Quarantine.”

The vehicles stopped in front of the industrial complex, and people got out of the lead van.

“Move! Don’t let your guard down until we confirm it’s safe!”

Dressed in black bulletproof vests and helmets, with guns in hand, they looked like an anti-terror unit or a special forces team.

They quickly entered the complex, securing the perimeter.

Kyeonghoon, who had been standing in front of the building watching the cars arrive, raised his hands high. It seemed he had reported to the wrong place.

“I should have just called the police.”

The people who looked like special forces quickly approached, and the one in the lead asked Kyeonghoon a question.

“Are you the one who reported?”

“Yes.”

“Where did you see the harmful animals?”

Kyeonghoon pointed to the factory with his raised hand.

“Lead the way.”

After confirming Kyeonghoon’s hand, he sent two people into the factory.

“Good grief.”

A suppressed scream echoed from inside the factory. The team members also entered, but groans only increased.

A moment later, the people who had entered the factory rushed out.

Some of the team members took off their masks and gagged, while others turned pale. Despite having seen many unpleasant scenes, the sight inside the factory had exceeded their expectations.

“Are you okay? Did you get hurt anywhere?”

The man who had asked the question earlier with a stern face now had a different expression.

“Yes, I got a bit scratched, but there are no major injuries.”

He looked at Kyeonghoon’s tattered clothes with admiration.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Now, he finally gave a proper greeting and took out his radio.

“Internal check complete. It’s safe.”

As he made the call, people got out of the other vans and trucks.

They were officials with “Animal Quarantine” armbands and people in white quarantine suits.

The abandoned industrial complex, which had been quiet for a long time, was now bustling.

Vans and trucks lined up on one side, and dead dogs and cats were loaded onto the trucks.

People in quarantine suits were cleaning up the area, and outside the complex, neighborhood residents gathered and chatted.

“The dogs and cats died en masse.”

“They were noisy for a few days. Maybe they ate something bad?”

“Such a pity.”

“Well, at least the neighborhood will be cleaner now.”

Some people felt sorry for the dead animals, but many residents looked relieved.

Due to the wrong information, people didn’t take the incident inside the factory seriously. Once the factory was cleaned up, they would surely forget about it soon.

While people were chatting, the body of the monster cat was loaded into a black van. It was wrapped in white cloth, and those outside didn't know what was being moved.

Kyeonghoon stood in a corner, watching the scene. He was wearing a jacket marked “Animal Quarantine” over his tattered clothes.

He had been sweating from giving a statement to the officials for a while.

He couldn’t tell the truth. If he did, he would have to explain his own transformation, so he had to say he got caught in a fight between animals. However, the officials didn’t seem to understand this explanation and kept him for a long time.

Fortunately, a junior from the military who he had called earlier arrived, and thanks to him, Kyeonghoon was able to escape the tedious questioning.

“Brother, it seems you’ve had a big job after a long time.”

“What’s going on? I called you when I was reporting to the police, but did you change your department? What’s this ‘Animal Quarantine’?”

“Ha ha, the livestock quarantine department expanded and absorbed us. Thanks to that, we could respond to your call immediately.”

A muscular, large man laughed heartily. He was Park Jinhyuk, Kyeonghoon’s junior from the military and a close friend after discharge.

He was the only one not in uniform.

“By the way, it seems your skills haven’t diminished. I heard you got caught in a fight, but there are some that even bullets can’t penetrate.”

“You mean, this happened again?”

In response to Kyeonghoon’s question, Jinhyuk looked around. Everyone was busy and no one was paying attention to them, but this wasn’t the place to talk about it.

“Let’s have a drink after this. I’m off duty today, so I have time.”

He couldn’t join the operation because it was his day off.

“They said more investigations are needed.”

“Wait a moment.”

Jinhyuk went to the car where the officials were and had a brief conversation, then told Kyeonghoon it was all taken care of.

The two of them walked out of the complex, shoulder to shoulder.

At the entrance, the troops who had entered the factory earlier were resting. Jinhyuk, who was coming out of the factory, saluted.

“Sir, I’ll go in first.”

“Sir. You’ve worked hard, even though it’s your day off.”

The team leader, who had been the first to speak to Kyeonghoon earlier, received his salute.

“By the way, the person next to you, are you from the same unit?”

“Yes, he was my senior.”

“If you have time, bring him to the base.”

“Sure, I will.”

The team leader saluted him again.

“I’ll greet you again. You’ve worked hard. Sir.”

After receiving the salute and stepping out of the complex, Jinhyuk smiled.

“You’re quite popular, aren’t you? Truly the madonna of the NCOs.”

Kyeonghoon shook his head. He had no interest in being popular with soldiers.

The sun was slowly setting. He had come out for lunch, but it was already evening. The day had been too short.

After changing clothes at his boarding house, Kyeonghoon headed to a nearby meat restaurant with Jinhyuk.

Sizzle.

The pork belly was sizzling on the grill, and the noise of the gathering warmed the entire restaurant.

The two of them, sitting in an ordinary meat restaurant, clinked their beer glasses.

“It’s been a long time. Why haven’t you been in touch? I couldn’t even call because you seemed to find it annoying.”

After taking a sip of beer, Kyeonghoon couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

Thanks to the help he had given in the military, they had stayed in touch even after entering society.

However, after Jinhyuk joined the police special forces right after discharge and Kyeonghoon kept failing to find a job, they gradually drifted apart. Well, Jinhyuk didn’t care about such things, but it was annoying to keep being invited to his workplace.

“By the way, the team leader seems to have a crush on you. He even called again. Why don’t you come once?”

As usual, it was the same today.

“Before, it was just a casual suggestion, but this time I’m seriously recommending it. The atmosphere is strange these days.”

The conversation didn’t stop there. Kyeonghoon leaned forward. It seemed the topic he wanted to discuss was about to come up.

“What I want to ask is about that. What was the giant cat I saw earlier, and what’s this ‘Animal Quarantine’? I’ve heard of livestock quarantine, but not animal quarantine.”

“Now that you mention it, how did you kill that monster? Most of them are bulletproof. Even someone as skilled as you from the military would have had a hard time.”

Kyeonghoon had to repeat the story he had told the officials at the industrial complex.

“I said I got caught in a fight. I got mixed up in a big fight between cats and ended up a mess.”

Kyeonghoon’s explanation made Jinhyuk nod hesitantly.

“Well, if that’s what you say, that’s what it is.”

Jinhyuk continued while flipping the meat.

“Like I said earlier, the ‘Animal Quarantine Department’ is a new department formed by combining the livestock quarantine department from the health ministry, the police special forces, and the forestry service. It’s only been about six months.”

“So what do they do?”

“Well, the livestock quarantine department continues its usual work... but that’s not our concern. We deal with the recent emergence of mutant animals.”

“Mutants?”

“You saw one today, didn’t you? A huge cat.”

“Are there many of them? Enough to form a separate department? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

“There are quite a few. I’ve already dealt with over ten of them.”

Jinhyuk talked about his experiences while eating the meat.

He didn’t know when the mutants first appeared. The police special forces he was part of moved to a new department six months ago, where he started dealing with mutant animals instead of people.

“At first, hunters tried to deal with them but got badly injured or killed. Many police officers were also injured. It was quite dangerous. We had to use heavy rifles and slug rounds to barely take them down.”

Jinhyuk looked tired.

“Before, they rarely came down to residential areas, but recently they’ve been appearing there, causing more harm to civilians. Today, I saw that even stray dogs and cats had mutated.”

“Is it happening only in Korea?”

“No way. There’s a lot of international cooperation. Although official announcements are being suppressed, major countries are working together. Naturally, the U.S. is in control.”

“Have they figured out the cause?”

“They’ve taken many bodies and tried to capture some, but they haven’t been able to figure it out.”

Jinhyuk looked at Kyeonghoon.

“That’s why I’m asking you to come once. I was planning to call you anyway, but I don’t think this will end soon.”

Jinhyuk’s expression was serious.

“As you know, it’s all classified. They’re trying to suppress media coverage. Some news has leaked, but no one knows how serious it is.”

Kyeonghoon said he would think about it.

After that, the two of them drank and chatted about life.

They parted ways around midnight. Jinhyuk, who had insisted on thinking about it again, got into a taxi, and Kyeonghoon waved goodbye.

After parting with Jinhyuk, Kyeonghoon returned to his boarding house. He sat in a chair and stared at his desk. On the desk was a phone that kept moving without being charged.

Was it because his body had changed? The alcohol he had drunk quickly wore off.

What should he do?

After returning from the strange world, Kyeonghoon’s dilemma continued. The cautious side of him, which wanted to avoid dangerous places, and the curious, adventurous side of him were constantly at odds.

Until now, the cautious side had always won.

Adventures were good, and satisfying curiosity was good, but there was no reason to risk his life. Living in a safe world, especially in Korea, he had no intention of doing anything dangerous after the military.

However, today’s events changed his mind.

This place wasn’t safe either.

Mutants had been appearing for a while, and their appearance was very similar to what he had seen in the other world.

He thought he could understand what was happening in the other world.

In the end, the balance of his thoughts tipped the other way.

Kyeonghoon picked up his phone.

*Enter personal information.

The text on the screen was blinking.

Kyeonghoon tapped the keypad.

[Kyeonghoon]

Whoosh!

As he entered his name, the phone screen lit up.