Chapter 33

EP 7 - North Wind (4)

Xiaoming pressed the accelerator deeply.

The engine roared,

and a vehicle sped down the empty road.

The engine's rumble reverberated through his body. The gear was in fifth. This was the first time he had ever pushed it this hard.

Passengers were tapping on their smartphones, gathering information.

As the situation became urgent, Hong Seon-a, who had become slightly more composed, was the first to send information.

"A monster has appeared in the city outside the blockade. One in Dongducheon Gwangam-dong. Another in the hills near Sinpyeong-ri, Pocheon City. There are many more."

Damn. Both are near the martial law command post.

"Did the gate open again?"

"No, they just suddenly appeared and jumped into the crowd. What is it?"

"How many people died?"

"Some say many died, others say no one died...? There are even rumors that they are not monsters but people..."

"Where are you searching, Ms. Hong Seon-a?"

"NAVER News!"

"Filter it out."

"Okay."

If it was just a monster, the military would have been sent, but the declaration of martial law suggests something more.

"Given this, I'm going to see Cha Jae-gyun...!"

"No, don't...!"

Thump, Pi Chae-won grabbed my shoulder.

"That's not an option!"

* * *

People turned into monsters. People attacked by monsters turned into monsters. A monster appeared among the evacuees.

Eighteen people died, three were injured but no one died. The military has already suppressed the situation.

A new type of monster has appeared. It's a conspiracy by the National Intelligence Service. It's something North Korea did.

Etc., etc.

All sorts of rumors are circulating.

None of them can be trusted.

With eyes closed, I have to grope around and make the best guess.

Perhaps Cha Jae-gyun made a deal with Won Ok-bun to expand martial law to Gyeonggi Province, or perhaps the higher-ups are creating a smokescreen to cover up a suspicious incident.

Events always happen in places I don't know about, but their effects reach me.

And how one uses those effects determines the level of a politician.

I decided to first understand the situation.

"Mr. Representative...!"

So I contacted Gammija through Pi Chae-won.

At a cottage near Jukling Mountain in the northeastern part of Gyeonggi Province. Gammija was in a shabby mountain lodge where all the evacuees had left.

"Thank you so much for coming!"

"No, what is this...!"

"Let's go inside first."

Gammija had bruises all over his body. He led us into the lodge with awkward movements, checking his surroundings.

The aftermath of the typhoon had not subsided. The damp wooden building was filled with the smell of fish.

We sat around a shabby table. Gammija turned on the lights, but they were so old that they didn't really brighten the room.

"Mr. Representative."

"Yes."

"......Do you remember when you said that the military was neglecting the survivors in Apgujeong?"

Damn. Saying that in front of Hong Seon-a. I tried to maintain my composure and nodded.

Gammija took off his glasses and wiped the cold sweat from the corners of his eyes as he continued.

"I'm sure you've already guessed, but I've been investigating the military since the time I relied on the martial law command post."

I didn't guess.

"I've been to many battlefields, and from experience, in such a, well, messed-up situation, the military tends to do messed-up things. This time was no different."

I glanced at Pi Chae-won's expression. It was shocking news, but she didn't flinch. It seemed she had been working with Gammija all along.

There must have been some connection while they were living in the VIP ward. Perhaps Pi Chae-won approached Gammija first.

I need to stay focused. This situation was created by Pi Chae-won. I haven't figured out what this bold girl is after yet.

Gammija rummaged through his bag and continued.

"In fact, there are a few 'Blacks' who are known in the journalists' network, though they are very few......"

The 'Blacks' Gammija mentioned were likely National Intelligence Service agents.

The NIS has Black agents and White agents.

White agents are those whose identities are public, and Blacks are secret agents.

The kind that are treated as missing if they die. They often appear in movies.

"Whenever you wander around security zones, restricted areas, or travel禁区, you always run into some Koreans.

Later, when journalists compare notes, they turn out to look similar but have different names, and they always stick to us and subtly ask all sorts of questions, you know."

"I understand that you can identify NIS secret agents."

"Yes. Anyway, I heard from the airport regulars, or rather, the entertainment department guys, that most of the Blacks have returned recently. The rest must have returned but we haven't found them yet."

"Wait, what, journalists are looking for intelligence agents?"

"I always tail foreign agents, whether they're government or rebel forces.

Surprisingly, Korean agents are a bit more amateur. But that's not the point right now...!"

Gammija was still rummaging through his large bag and looking around.

I can't figure out what this guy does. I sighed and pressed my temples.

"Then, what did the NIS Blacks do?"

Gammija, who had been rummaging through his bag, pulled out a brown envelope and handed it to me.

"The NIS was conducting biological experiments."

*

"'B-10na' case. The image shows the flesh being cut and a magic stone inserted into the arm."

I took the photo he handed me.

A prone corpse. The arm, twice the normal size, had blue rocks embedded in various places. Blue blood vessels were bleeding.

"'C-02da'. The image shows the magic stone powder sprinkled on the tongue."

A face split vertically. A long tongue extended from the mouth to the navel. The tongue was so threatening it could be used as a whip. There was a bullet hole on the forehead.

"'D-05da'. The image shows the consumption of a magic stone by a wild dog monster."

A person with fur all over their body. The snout protruded like a wolf's. The flesh around the mouth was torn, revealing the muscles. Sharp teeth protruded from the lips, making them ragged.

"'E-03ga' case. The image shows a liquid combining crushed magic stone and jellyfish genes injected into the arm."

The arms were torn along the fingers of both hands, spreading like jellyfish tentacles. Five tentacles replaced the arms, each long enough to reach the ankles.

I placed the photo face down on the table,

and swallowed the rising nausea.

"Th-this is insane..."

"Experiments to forcibly insert magic stones into non-awakened individuals in various ways to make them similar to awakened individuals.

They used the underground bunker in Yeoninsan Provincial Park as a laboratory. The reactions varied depending on how the magic stones were inserted into the human body."

Yeoninsan Provincial Park. I sighed.

"......It's right next to the martial law command post."

"Mr. Representative."

Behind the glasses, Gammija's eyes shone in the dark room. He began to speak calmly.

"I'm a literature major, and I really enjoy writing novels."

"......"

"Would you like to hear one?"

I accepted in silence.

Gammija put his glasses in his chest pocket.

"The story begins with Deputy Minister Cha Jae-gyun, who took over the NIS, trying to establish a special force of superhumans. He wanted to use the most loyal people to the state as superhumans. Who could they be?"

"......Blacks."

"Exactly. Black agents. For Cha Jae-gyun, it would have been ideal if they became superhumans.

However, none of them were superhumans. Awakened individuals don't just pop up."

...The novel is similar to a conversation I had with Cha Jae-gyun before.

'I am testing whether reliable people are superhumans. However, none of them are superhumans.'

Cha Jae-gyun's lament led me to propose 'The Foundation'—creating an orphanage and raising children who might become awakened individuals.

Gammija continued.

"However, after observing the survivors inside Seoul, he found that the proportion of awakened individuals was abnormally high. This is when Cha Jae-gyun became convinced.

That there is a close relationship between the gate and superhumans. That people who are often exposed to magic power near the gate have a higher chance of awakening."

This was also a conversation I had with Cha Jae-gyun. Even the fact that he didn't rescue the group of survivors inside Seoul.

"So Cha Jae-gyun neglected the survivors inside Seoul. He used them like experimental mice to see how and how many people near the gate would awaken."

"Isn't that a bit of a stretch?"

"Do novels need evidence?"

"......I guess not."

A novel of this caliber doesn't need evidence. If it spreads on the internet, the country will be turned upside down.

The evidence will be found by those who can smell it and stick to it, whether it's the media or the prosecution.

Gammija rolled a pen between his fingers, organized his thoughts for a moment, and continued.

"Knowing the relationship between magic power and awakening, he wanted to create a special force of superhumans.

Around that time, prominent biologists were summoned to Yeoninsan Provincial Park. And the Cheongsong prison was emptied."

"......Did they conduct human experiments on violent criminals?"

"They couldn't just insert magic stones into the loyal Black agents."

Gammija subtly handed me two photos.

"I got these from a friend at the Busan Ilbo. A container truck taken in Cheongsong Jinpo at 3 AM on the 28th.

And this is the same vehicle entering a supply base near the martial law command post. After that, many vehicles headed to Yeoninsan."

"......"

"Then the Apgujeong incident occurred."

"Wait."

I raised my hand to interrupt him.

"Then, when did the biological experiments start?"

The answer was concise.

"Do you know what 'C-03da' means?"

"......"

"It means the third experiment, the third attempt, and the third test subject."

"......"

"There was even an 'F-01da'."

Still in shock, Gammija continued.

"Later, it was found that when we were isolated in Apgujeong, it was Cha Jae-gyun who incited local governments and public opinion to target you."

To prevent the political power from growing, as they were detaining members of the National Assembly.

Perhaps the lack of support at Gangnam Station was also a strategy to take over The Foundation.

Gammija's words interrupted my thoughts.

"But you became a new hero. At the same time, Representative Yang Pan-seok threatened Cha Jae-gyun to free ten members of the National Assembly."

"......What?"

"If Representative Han Seung-moon had told the media that Cha Jae-gyun was neglecting Apgujeong, what would have happened? Representative Yang Pan-seok would have used that as leverage to threaten Cha Jae-gyun......"

This is the first I'm hearing of this.

"......I, um. At the time, I took on the role of a broker to contact the media on behalf of Representative Yang Pan-seok. All the media near the martial law command post were under control......"

"Is it because of Representative Yang Pan-seok's behind-the-scenes work that the 12-member National Assembly was established?"

"Did you not know?"

I couldn't answer and just stared at Gammija blankly. He continued, looking flustered.

"Let's skip this part for now. The important thing is that Cha Jae-gyun succeeded in his research at this point."

"......Wow."

"Although there are some side effects, a drug that can awaken a normal person with a better probability has been developed."

Then, it's time to destroy the evidence.

"......They must have killed all the test subjects."

"There was something he overlooked."

Gammija put his glasses back on. His cold eyes shone in the darkness.

"Everyone goes into a frenzy just before they die."

It means that the makeshift awakened individuals, just before their mass death, collectively went on a rampage and escaped.

That's why martial law was declared.

I calmly summarized the situation.

"So, right now,

Cha Jae-gyun wants a special force of superhumans.

Because the NIS conducted biological experiments with monsters,

very powerful, unstable, and violent,

and 'intelligent'

monsters have been released, right?"

A chilling silence followed.

Gammija nodded expressionlessly.

"How is my novel?"

"Are you calling that a story?"

"Can you make this a bestseller?"

"......"

"......Well, it seems like it would sell well."