There Are No Bad Military Dogs

Chapter 54

 

Bringing Gangwon under Seoul’s control.

Does that make any sense?

Would the Gangwon residents even allow that?

Gangwon ended up in this state because of Seoul in the first place.

Some had been criticizing Seoul incessantly even before the outbreak of the infected. They said Gangwon’s lack of development and population was all because the government failed to create jobs here. “Please stop concentrating businesses in Seoul and allocate them to the provinces instead! Don’t blame the low birth rate here—how can young people get married and have children if there are no job opportunities!” They kept protesting, but no one listened. The government completely turned a blind eye to Gangwon… So when the infected outbreak happened, they may have abandoned Gangwon more easily. Because Gangwon had a small population with a high proportion of elderly—in someone’s words, a region that had already lived out its lifetime.

But does that justify abandoning an entire region?

Isn’t protecting its citizens the duty of a nation?

To discard a region because it’s poor, old, or unproductive—that’s preposterous.

That’s why, unlike Shin Hae-jun, I could understand the anger of Gangwon residents to some extent. No matter how dishonest and cowardly the mayor of Gangneung might be, they would never side with Seoul over him. Seoul had already abandoned them once. Those who abandoned them once would surely do so again—everyone must think that way.

‘But…’

What if the revolutionary fraction allied themselves with Seoul?

Not overtly siding with Seoul, but secretly cooperating behind the scenes to establish friendly relations… It may not be entirely impossible. If they first used Seoul’s resources to improve living conditions in Gangwon, then revealed the truth later, the Gangwon residents would have no choice but to accept it.

Ah, Shin Hae-jun really was something else.

‘Why is someone who knows how to use his head so quickly sticking with an incompetent person like a useless boss?’

No matter if it was family…

‘No, if he really thought of him as his own son, he shouldn’t have treated him so harshly like this.’

I thought, but couldn’t bring myself to say it out loud.

Whatever picture Shin Hae-jun was painting or saying, it didn’t matter in the current situation.

What mattered most to me now was the well-being of my nephew’s father. I had to rescue Choi Daero as quickly as possible.

So Shin Hae-jun and I decided to move first before coordinating with the revolutionary fraction.

The mayor of Gangneung, Yang Jun-tae, already knew that Shin Hae-jun and I were in Gangwon, didn’t he?

Although it was unlikely, he might try something, so it was better to move as quickly as possible. Ah, and by now, the guards might have realized that they lost their keys.

Vroom, the low rumble of the jeep resonates.

A night with the moon hiding behind the clouds. The chilly wind mixed with darkness seeps in through the window crack. The wind tainted with darkness somehow feels eerie, and unknowingly, I tightly grasp my arms.

“Lieutenant Min.”

Then, suddenly, Shin Hae-jun called out to me.

“Are there any infected near the power plant?”

After pondering his question, I slowly nodded.

“Probably… not. They said they’ve been guarding that area every day.”

Probably? Repeating my words, Shin Hae-jun slightly furrowed his brow.

“They’ve only been guarding it, right? They haven’t built any defensive walls or anything, have they? What if one or two infected managed to get into the power plant area?”

“They probably didn’t have enough resources to build defensive walls there. And…”

Seeing Shin Hae-jun’s displeased expression, I added,

“It’ll be fine. There’s a plain right next to it, and the ocean after that. How could any infected get there? It’s a place where nothing has happened for four years, so we don’t need to worry about it.”

“Hmm.”

Shin Hae-jun seemed to have more to say but nodded in acknowledgment for now. He then parked the car amidst the reed fields near the power plant and undid his seatbelt. After getting out and surveying the area, it seemed well camouflaged enough. Even if there were any infected around, the car was unlikely to be spotted.

“We should move quickly.”

As I took a step forward, Shin Hae-jun tilted his head and asked me,

“What’s that? It doesn’t seem like something you normally carry.”

His gaze was on the walkie-talkie hanging around my neck like a necklace. Ah, I grabbed the walkie-talkie and answered,

“It’s a walkie-talkie Eun-jin gave me. She said it’s on the same frequency as Choi Daero’s, so it’ll make a sound when we get close. We can even talk to him.”

Hmm. Shin Hae-jun made a grunting sound and narrowed his eyes slightly.

“It’d be nice if we could communicate.”

This guy, really.

I rolled my eyes and glared at him.

“Stop making such ominous comments.”

Then, gripping tightly onto the wire fence around the power plant, I muttered.

“Nothing will go wrong.”

🕂

Click, the sound of the key turning echoed as the lock opened. I gestured to Shin Hae-jun, and after glancing around, he slipped his foot in the door crack and motioned for me to enter first.

The interior was pitch dark. It wasn’t just because the moon couldn’t shine properly, but rather because the building was tightly sealed without a single window. The lack of windows was the biggest reason. Was the power plant always like this inside? Swallowing dry saliva, I turned on my flashlight. However, the flashlight seemed too small to illuminate the vast interior of the power plant. There was nothing visible.

In this situation, I needed to rely on my instincts. I asked Shin Hae-jun, who was standing close behind me.

“Where could the people be?”

“In the basement or in the power room.”

Considering that, I hesitated for a moment. Either one… if I were these people, would I go up or down? After a brief moment of thought, I turned towards the basement.

“Why?”

“Why do you think people would go to the basement?” was the question. I answered immediately.

“Isn’t the basement door sturdier? From people’s perspective, they would feel safer there.”

“Hmm.”

Shin Hae-jun paused for a moment, then nodded slightly and muttered.

“Not a bad deduction.”

Then he suddenly added.

“What about you?”

“Pardon?”

“I’m asking what you would do in this situation.”

I furrowed my brow slightly, deep in thought. If I were in this situation, would I choose the basement or the control room? The sturdy door or the room that controls everything?

“If it were me…”

The contemplation didn’t last long.

“I would have tried to escape, no matter what.”

Shin Hae-jun wrinkled his nose and let out a wry laugh.

“Good answer.”

Then he reached over and ruffled my hair.

“Ah, don’t do that. You’re messing up my hair.”

“Since when did you care about that?”

“I started caring now… Eek!”

While exchanging silly banter, a sharp gust of wind suddenly swept in from somewhere, brushing against my cheek. Walking in the darkness where nothing was clearly visible, feeling the chill in the air, I couldn’t help but shiver.

“Ugh.”

So, without realizing it, I grabbed Shin Hae-jun’s arm. I felt like I needed to hold onto something to feel safe amidst the darkness.

“Do you dislike horror movies?”

“…Not particularly.”

Shin Hae-jun chuckled and put his arm around my shoulders.

“If you’re scared, it’s better to cling to me.”

“Don’t joke around.”

I glared at him slightly and tried to push him away, but his chest was so firm that he didn’t budge at all. And he didn’t loosen his grip around my shoulders.

“I’m not joking. You can really cling to me as we go. Want me to hold you?”

“No, thanks.”

Why was he acting so flirtatiously? No, was he always like this?

I shook my head and tried to move forward again, but another cold gust of wind struck my face. And then a strange sound tickled my ears. An eerie gurgling noise. There was no one here but the two of us, so what kind of sound was that? I naturally thought it was just Shin Hae-jun playing a prank, so I elbowed his chest.

“Ah, seriously, stop mess—”

But Shin Hae-jun quickly covered my mouth and turned off his flashlight.

“Quiet.”

Beyond his whispering voice, that strange gurgling noise started again.

🕂

Thank you for reading! ♡