Chapter 9

EP 3 - The Winning Strategy of a New Era (1)

The moment I got into the helicopter, Yeo Doyeon grabbed my collar. I could see her fierce face, distorted with anger, through my blurred vision.

“-!! -! -!”

Her voice, drowned out by the helicopter engine, echoed in my ears. Her intimidating appearance, which usually made others look at her with fear, now seemed pained.

As always,

I smiled warmly and accepted her worry.

* * *

To survive, I had to abandon a student.

Or rather, it’s not quite right to say I abandoned them.

I didn’t rescue them.

Irony is a cruel thing; the person I did save happened to be a student. At least they were wearing a school uniform.

I smiled slightly and extended my hand to the student who had narrowly escaped and climbed into the helicopter. The student beamed and firmly shook my hand with both of theirs.

She looked around with moist eyes, seeming relieved upon seeing the military uniforms. Then she began to cry.

Judging by how she was tearing her heart out,

it seemed she had lost someone.

Tap. Tap. Representative Yang Pansuk tapped my shoulder and handed me a headset with a microphone. Only then could we communicate.

“Regardless of your intentions, you saved a life.”

“...I’m sorry.”

If there had been a monster at the entrance or if dozens of survivors had rushed out, the helicopter might have crashed.

“Emotional gambles are dangerous. I believe you, an intelligent person, understand that.”

“...Yes, I will keep that in mind.”

“Enough with the formalities. Relax your shoulders.”

Should I close the door or open it? Is a door something that opens when you knock, or does it need someone to open it for you? I still don’t know.

“We’re heading to the Northern Gyeonggi Martial Law Command. They say all the important people are gathered there.”

“Is it safe?”

“The monsters, those... holes. Yes, the holes are only in the center of Seoul. The damage is severe in Gangnam, so the north is relatively better.”

It was fortunate that we were heading to a safe place.

I sighed in relief and looked out of the helicopter.

We were gradually ascending into the sky, basking in the rising morning sun.

I collapsed on the helicopter floor as if I were about to faint.

*

“Hey! Wake up!”

I woke up from my sleep to Yeo Doyeon poking my cheek. The helicopter was on the ground. I let her guide me.

Yeo Doyeon, without caring about others’ gazes, carried me on her back. It seemed she was trying to give me a bit of a hard time. I tapped her head, but she didn’t budge.

Damn. I was carried by the soldiers, who looked at me with strange eyes. One of the soldiers covered me with a blanket. Is this what it feels like to have power?

Suddenly, I looked around from the rooftop helipad.

Smoke rose from the distant city, and the occasional sound of large explosions echoed through the air.

“It’s war...”

“Why are you stating the obvious?”

Yeo Doyeon adjusted her grip on me and briskly walked into the building.

In a daze, I was carried to a lounge.

Representative Yang Pansuk was talking to a soldier, and the rest of our group was sprawled out in chairs.

A female student, with a blank face, shakily stood up.

“Ah, hello.”

The female student greeted me with a timid voice, then gently shook my hand.

“My name is Pi Chae-won. Thank you so much for saving me.”

“You’re welcome. Student, are you hurt anywhere?”

“...No. Really, really thank you. Thanks to Representative Yang...!”

A severe headache followed, as if a blood vessel had burst in my temple. I swayed slightly, and the world spun.

“Are, are you okay!”

“Uh, uh. I’m fine. Maybe it’s from lack of sleep...”

“Perhaps it’s because of me...”

“It’s not that, don’t worry. Just get some rest. Both the student and I are like people who have come back from the dead.”

While the student was flustered, Representative Yang Pansuk’s voice reached me.

“Seungmun.”

“Yes?”

Representative Yang Pansuk gestured towards the soldiers.

“Let’s go together. Ah, please help this friend. His leg is injured.”

A soldier immediately approached and extended a hand. Seeing him with a rifle, I realized this was a battlefield.

“Thank you.”

“Ah, it’s no problem. Hold on and stand up.”

With the help of another soldier, I was able to stand. I was half-led down the corridor.

A man who had been talking to Representative Yang Pansuk greeted me.

“Hello, Representative. I’m Vice Minister Cha Jae-geun from the Ministry of National Defense.”

“Ah, I’m Representative Han Seungmun. Thank you for your help, Vice Minister.”

If Vice Minister Cha Jae-geun is the deputy minister, then he is the acting minister. He led the way and explained the situation.

“The President appointed the Capital Defense Command Commander as the Emergency Martial Law Commander and then left.”

From the start, it was a dramatic piece of news. The deputy minister frowned and walked briskly.

“The Capital Defense Command Commander also died.

The Prime Minister has also passed away,

and while the Minister of Economy and Finance is the acting President, communication has been cut off.

We haven’t even started looking for anyone below them.”

This meant that South Korea currently had no President.

“The Minister of National Defense, who should be supervising the Martial Law Commander, is also out of contact. For now, I am acting as the Minister.”

This man was the current Minister of National Defense.

And the supervisor of the Martial Law Commander.

In other words, with no President or Minister of National Defense,

he was the commander-in-chief of the Korean military.

While being carried by two soldiers, I managed to speak. It was time to flatter.

“This isn’t the time to worry about protocol.”

“Yes, the President’s seat is vacant, and I am acting as the Minister of National Defense. The Martial Law Commander was the Martial Law Coordination Officer.”

The deputy minister forcefully opened the door.

“It should have been handled by General Jang Gang-myeong, the 1st Army Commander.”

He sat at the empty desk and gestured for us to take our seats.

“However, he also passed away, so I decided to take over.”

The situation was quite tough.

Vice Minister Cha Jae-geun,

the acting Minister of National Defense and Martial Law Commander, was leading the military. He gestured for us to sit at the large table. The room became a private chamber as the door closed.

“I need your help, Representatives.”

Vice Minister Cha Jae-geun, with dark circles under his eyes, spoke quickly and intensely.

He was in a hurry.

“Of course, I am well aware that what I have done is somewhat extralegal.”

“Considering the communication breakdown, it seems like a wise choice to find a deputy rather than let Seoul be destroyed.”

“H, Han...”

“Han Seungmun.”

“Yes, Representative Han. Well said.”

Vice Minister Cha Jae-geun, the acting Minister of National Defense and Martial Law Commander, explained.

“You might think I’m taking the 1st Army Commander’s position, but I was appointed as the deputy minister less than six months ago. Before that, I was General Cha Jae-geun, the 1st Army Commander.”

He was back in his original position because of the emergency.

Was it patriotism or dictatorship? It was a bit ambiguous.

“Of course, on paper, the Martial Law Commander is someone else, but they are all my subordinates, so I effectively have command.”

Legally, there were no issues. He blinked, looking tired, and asked us.

“What about the National Assembly?”

“The National Assembly building has collapsed, and most of the representatives are missing.”

“I have confirmed the deaths of dozens of representatives. We managed to escape to the north, but what happened to the rest...”

Vice Minister Cha Jae-geun spoke solemnly, explaining the situation.

“Given the national emergency, I will try to keep it as simple as possible. I hope you agree to the destruction of Seoul.”

He didn’t ask for the reason; that was something he would explain next.

“The enemy doesn’t take prisoners, and the monsters have already spread among the 10 million citizens.

In my opinion, we need to form a cordon to prevent further spread, evacuate civilians, and then use heavy weapons.”

In other words, he wanted to evacuate people from Seoul and then destroy it with tanks. I was starting to get a sense of his character.

He looked intelligent but was incredibly tough.

“However, the Ground Operations Command wants to retake Seoul with infantry while civilians are sheltering at home. Will bullets even penetrate the monsters?”

It was a reasonable point. I summarized his argument.

“Vice Minister, you’re suggesting we abandon Seoul and evacuate the people, then destroy it with tanks?”

“Exactly.”

“The Ground Operations Command wants to retake Seoul without damaging it, using only infantry?”

“Yes.”

“Regardless of the Martial Law Commander, you are clearly the acting Minister of National Defense. Doesn’t that mean you have command of the military?”

Representative Yang Pansuk quickly grasped the core of the issue.

“It’s a mutiny.”

The deputy minister nodded heavily, and Representative Yang stroked his chin.

“They don’t want to bear the blame for destroying Seoul.”

“They are resisting my orders to evacuate civilians and retake Seoul with infantry. Will bullets even penetrate the monsters?”

I asked the vice minister.

“Are you asking us to support you in persuading the Ground Operations Command?”

In other words, are you asking us to share the responsibility for destroying Seoul?

“To summarize, yes.”

Damn. As soon as we escaped the chaos, we were thrown into politics. It was all the same, but my head hurt.

Representative Yang Pansuk asked.

“Do we really have to abandon Seoul? It could be a sign of the nation’s downfall. We would be giving up half of our territory...”

“I’m not suggesting we abandon Seoul, but that we destroy it in the process of eliminating the monsters. Moreover, the monsters—”

“No, no. We didn’t just hide comfortably for a few days. We were chased by the monsters three times.”

Representative Yang Pansuk rested his chin in his hands.

“I’m asking if this isn’t too extreme.”

“First,”

the deputy minister listed his reasons straightforwardly.

“We don’t know the enemy’s numbers. If the monsters keep pouring out of the gate, we might be in a semi-permanent war of attrition.”

“...”

“Second, with the monsters mixed among civilians, it’s difficult to use effective firepower. Evacuating civilians from the combat zone is a priority.”

“And?”

“Finally, let’s save the people first, regardless of the facilities.”

The deputy minister handed us an operation agreement.

“I believe it’s right to evacuate the people while surrounding Seoul, rather than ‘retaking’ it and ‘rescuing’ the people.”

I’ve only been a representative for three days, and I’ve seen everything. Vice Minister Cha Jae-geun smiled faintly, pointing at the document.

“Please help.”

He even bowed deeply.

Abandoning Seoul. Evacuating the people and then destroying it with tanks and artillery.

I asked a meaningless question to buy time.

“Signing this will make us traitors for abandoning Seoul. It’s a very radical and hasty operation.”

“What do you propose to do then?”

Cha Jae-geun is the commander-in-chief of the military. In the current situation, where all the top leaders are dead, he is the one with the guns.

In zombie movies, the person with the gun is usually the leader of the survivor group. This applies to a national level as well.

Whether the Seoul evacuation operation succeeds or fails, Cha Jae-geun has a high chance of holding power.

If we support him in fully taking control of the military,

the decision didn’t take long.

“We need to sign. Let’s save the people first.”

Representative Yang Pansuk also understood this.

“If it’s something that needs to be done, I will do it willingly.”

*

Cha Jae-geun took our signatures and disappeared somewhere. Representative Yang Pansuk and I were being led to our quarters by the soldiers.

The conflict between Cha Jae-geun and the Ground Operations Command.

The power struggle over the destruction of Seoul.

Mutiny.

“Representative Yang.”

“Hmm.”

“Did he only take our signatures?”

“Probably not.”

Two representatives aren’t enough to pacify the insubordinate subordinates. He must have also taken signatures from high-ranking officials he rescued.

It’s a bit lacking to become a key figure in the new regime.

“...I know what you’re thinking. Didn’t I tell you to stop gambling?”

“This is a rational gamble.”

“It, it makes sense.”

If we’re going to support him, it’s better to do it decisively.