Chapter 3

3. The Return of an F-Ranked Player – 3

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As he climbed the barracks stairs, Park Junmo felt cold sweat trickling down his back.

“Hey, Sergeant Lee Hyunwook...”

“Yeah?”

“Today’s duty officer is Sergeant Kwak Jincheol.”

“Oh, I know. I saw him this morning.”

Park Junmo brought up this topic for a reason, hoping to convey a warning.

Sergeant Kwak Jincheol detests Sergeant Lee Hyunwook.

This was a well-known story, even to Park Junmo, who had only been in the unit for three months.

‘...Kwak Jincheol was utterly defeated by Lee Hyunwook when he was a private.’

Losing to an F-rank player in a combat training session is a very embarrassing thing.

After that incident, it seems that the then 2nd Platoon Leader, who was a junior to Kwak Jincheol, treated him quite harshly. For Kwak Jincheol, it was an unprecedented humiliation, and it was said that he sobbed in the early hours of the morning.

Of course, this happened a year ago, and the situation changed afterward.

Gradually growing, Kwak Jincheol advanced to D-rank. He then took on the role of the best ‘dealer’ in the company.

After that, he demanded a rematch in combat training to restore his honor, but...

‘Lee Hyunwook rejected all of them, which only increased his hatred...’

That was the beginning.

Kwak Jincheol, based on his established position in the company, began to subtly torment Lee Hyunwook.

But for Lee Hyunwook, who was lacking in every aspect, there was no choice but to endure it.

‘But... Could it be that Sergeant Lee Hyunwook will eventually explode after enduring so much?’

Park Junmo watched Lee Hyunwook’s back as he walked down the corridor, worrying about this.

No matter how angry he was, as a private with no standing, Lee Hyunwook had no options.

He would likely suffer even greater humiliation.

He would squirm and be trampled even more.

However, contrary to Park Junmo’s concerns, Lee Hyunwook was very calm.

‘I still need to exercise more to digest the metal I swallowed this morning. This is going to be a hassle.’

Lee Hyunwook had experienced far more terrifying things than the petty injustices of these kids. His inner strength was not so fragile that he would get angry over such trivial conflicts.

‘Still, it will be a hindrance in the future, so I need to cut it off now.’

Injustice binds freedom.

And bound freedom prevents the smooth use of time.

In other words, it hinders growth.

This cannot be tolerated.

‘Even if everyone is surprised by my sudden change, it doesn’t matter.’

After his regression, he often heard that he seemed different. If the comments were coming from all sides, it meant that the change was quite noticeable.

But Lee Hyunwook had no intention of hiding the fact that he had changed completely.

‘I have a lot of time, but I can’t waste it.’

The enemies he would face in the future are the axis of evil that has engulfed the world. He had no time to ponder the cause and effect or order within the petty power struggles of the company.

‘Perhaps it’s better to quickly take control of the unit.’

It might sound absurd for a private to take control of a unit, but this is A·M·T. Battles are always happening, and establishing ‘merit’ in these battles is what gives you ‘standing’.

Now, a powerful individual soldier is more valuable than advanced combat equipment.

For example, a single A-rank ‘tanker’ player is considered a much greater force than hundreds of tanks.

In this context, if he could achieve the highest merit in the upcoming battles, he could gain various benefits during the remaining ‘player duty period’.

Abilities, items, comrades, money, influence, etc...

If he doesn’t do this...

‘Villains. Just improving abilities won’t be enough to defeat them.’

He absolutely cannot change the worst possible future.

***

Meanwhile, the other 5th Platoon members were gathered in the central corridor.

Click, click, click...

The periodic sound of a pen clicking, filled with discomfort, came from Kwak Jincheol.

He was leaning against the wall, wearing the duty officer armband, and holding a pen in one hand.

“Hmm...”

He let out an annoyed sigh and glanced at his wristwatch.

Swallow...

At this action, a few 5th Platoon members swallowed hard. Two streams of steam were already rising from his nostrils.

It was a bad omen.

“Do I have to wait for you like this?”

“...”

The tension-filled silence made Kwak Jincheol’s teeth clench like hot steel.

“Huh? Why aren’t you answering? Are you ignoring me?”

“No, sir!”

“Support squad, you... Ever since Sergeant Kim was sent to the hospital, you’ve been out of it, haven’t you?”

“Sorry, sir!”

Sergeant Kim Hojong, the 5th Platoon leader currently hospitalized, was known for his diligent work and was well-liked by the troublemakers.

One of them joked that Kim Hojong was the ideal ‘leader of the flock’ from a shepherd’s perspective.

He could lead the flock in the desired direction without the shepherds having to bark.

‘But Lee Hyunwook, the substitute, is starting to act recklessly without understanding the world.’

Self-proclaimed future shepherd, Kwak Jincheol, laughed in disbelief.

At that moment, two figures appeared at the end of the corridor.

Kwak Jincheol clicked his tongue.

“Look, two lost sheep are finally crawling over.”

Lee Hyunwook and Park Junmo.

At that moment, Kwak Jincheol’s expression twisted.

“Hey! Why aren’t you running!”

With his anger, gray smoke rose from Kwak Jincheol’s mouth.

But...

“Huh? What’s wrong? Are these guys really crazy...”

The two did not run.

Park Junmo, startled by Kwak Jincheol’s shout, tried to run, but Lee Hyunwook held his shoulder. To Kwak Jincheol, it was a truly astonishing scene.

“...”

Park Junmo was at a loss, while Lee Hyunwook walked calmly, and the two approached slowly.

Soon, Lee Hyunwook and Kwak Jincheol, two comrades, faced each other.

“Why did you call our platoon?”

Lee Hyunwook’s short question made Kwak Jincheol snort, and smoke billowed out.

“Why? Why? It’s work, of course. Lee Hyunwook, how can you not know that...”

“No.”

Lee Hyunwook took a step forward and interrupted.

“I asked why it’s us. We did the drainage work behind the main building this morning. Isn’t it strange that we’re doing it again?”

“What?”

“Assign it to someone else. This is unfair.”

Kwak Jincheol was momentarily speechless at Lee Hyunwook’s words.

‘As expected, he’s taken aback when I’m strong.’

It was as Lee Hyunwook had expected. Kwak Jincheol opened his mouth and then closed it again.

No matter how much injustice there is in an organization, when the victim speaks up for justice, the perpetrator is bound to be taken aback.

Nine out of ten people, unless they are complete fools, will react this way.

Injustice is something that even the perpetrator often feels ashamed of. They target those who do not resist and continue their harassment in silence.

‘In my past life, no one, including myself, ever stood up this strongly.’

To Kwak Jincheol, it was a completely unexpected reaction.

“You know this is unfair, right? Kwak Jincheol.”

Lee Hyunwook asked again.

“...”

Kwak Jincheol already felt cornered. But he tried to look as if it was absurd, and his lips trembled slightly.

“Hey, Lee Hyunwook. Is this your first day? Why are you acting like an amateur?”

Yes, that’s usually how it goes.

When people realize they’ve done something wrong, they try to rationalize it by saying it’s normal.

At that point, Lee Hyunwook nodded.

“It’s a bigger problem because it’s not just one or two days. That’s why it’s unfair. Our platoon has the right to rest and training time to maintain combat readiness. Fairly. So, the work should be shared fairly.”

“Training? Ha ha! An F-rank training? Even a passing goblin would laugh. You want to train?”

This was a very predictable response. Using F-rank as an insult, something he had endured countless times in his past life. It no longer affected him.

“Yeah, from now on, our platoon will train, so assign the work to someone else. For your reference, this is guaranteed training time. It’s clearly stated in the A·M·T barracks regulations. If you have any complaints, go to someone higher up, not me.”

“What, this crazy guy...”

He couldn’t argue with such a valid point. Frustrated, Kwak Jincheol’s eyes flared, and orange heat bubbled in his throat, ready to burst.

“Sergeant Lee Hyunwook. Now, are you...”

Then the platoon members started to try to calm Lee Hyunwook, knowing that he would be the one to suffer if the situation worsened.

But Lee Hyunwook didn’t flinch. Instead, he smiled calmly, finding Kwak Jincheol’s excited state amusing.

“Hey, stop wasting energy and just call someone else. We’re going in. Let’s go, guys...”

“Hey! Are you defying a duty officer’s order?!”

A duty officer’s order... Kwak Jincheol tried to argue logically, but he wasn’t smart enough and failed.

“Is there a duty officer around?”

“...What?”

“Don’t you know that a duty officer is a representative of the duty sergeant? If they’re around, it would be their order. I’ll go and ask them directly if they ordered our platoon to do this.”

Kwak Jincheol had no choice but to shut his mouth.

‘Where did this guy learn about regulations? What’s going on... Where did he hear this and start making such a complicated argument?’

Kwak Jincheol was confident in a simple power struggle, given his personality and experience.

But when faced with logical and evidence-based arguments, he was at a loss for words, which made him flustered and gradually lose his confidence.

“...”

Kwak Jincheol looked towards the administrative office, where the duty sergeant was.

‘The duty sergeant today... Damn, it’s Lieutenant Seo Eunha!’

If it were a disinterested officer or a non-commissioned officer, they might have taken Kwak Jincheol’s side. A few such officers flashed through his mind.

‘Like Sergeant Kang Sungchun, who is on duty tomorrow...’

But Seo Eunha was different.

She was a B-rank player with the ‘Holy Knight’ characteristic.

She was a very principled person, and even the commander, General Seo Baekjin’s second daughter.

In other words, she had a significant influence beyond her rank of lieutenant.

‘Damn...’

If she found out about this situation, it would not just be a headache; it would be a major problem for Kwak Jincheol. She did not tolerate injustice.

‘Could this guy know about this and be setting me up? Could he have planned everything to make me suffer...’

His frustration led to all sorts of paranoid thoughts.

“Hey, Kwak Jincheol. Why are you silent?”

“...”

“Have nothing to say? Then I’ll go and report to the duty officer.”

Lee Hyunwook said this and walked past Kwak Jincheol.

“Hey! Hey! Hey! Aren’t you going to stop?”

At that moment,

“...Duty officer.”

Someone came out from the administrative office.

A tall woman.

She was wearing the black uniform and beret of A·M·T.

With her porcelain skin and sharp features, she was striking, but her cold gaze made people turn away.

“What’s going on?”

The duty officer, Lieutenant Seo Eunha, asked in a stern voice.

“No, nothing!”

Kwak Jincheol denied, but Seo Eunha looked suspicious.

“Well, I have to go to the main building for a moment.”

“Oh! Is that so?”

“Please take care of the administrative office. But you don’t need so many people for the fuel depot work. They only asked for three people. And I see the people who worked this morning... I hope you’re not just using privates, right?”

“No, don’t worry. I’ll handle it reasonably.”

Seo Eunha nodded and turned, and Kwak Jincheol saluted her.

With her appearance and a few words, Kwak Jincheol’s mood became much more complicated. He stared at her back, unable to turn away.

Lee Hyunwook spoke first.

“Since you said you’ll handle it reasonably, we’ll go in without worrying.”

“...”

“Guys, what are you doing? Let’s go in.”

Lee Hyunwook turned, and Kwak Jincheol couldn’t stop him.

The 5th Platoon members, who had been watching, reluctantly followed Lee Hyunwook.

Park Junmo, drenched in cold sweat, watched the situation and was the last to turn around.

At that moment, he heard Kwak Jincheol mutter.

“That... bastard...”

His voice was filled with anger