[Translator – Aren]
That was around the time Kang Daniel cautiously approached me.
"Baek Jemin-ssi. Put the rifle down.”
"..."
"If you don't lower it, I’ll take it from you. Don't turn around. Just stay still.”
Kang Daniel calmly grabbed the barrel of my M16 and slowly lifted it until the muzzle pointed toward the sky.
Without a sling attached, disarming me was an effortless matter.
The squad members who’d been watching from a careful distance slowly approached after that and grabbed both my arms before hauling me around like cargo.
Honestly, they probably had every reason to complain, but having noticed how stiff my body felt, they instead grabbed my limbs and loaded me into the back of the 2.5-ton truck.
Not long after, Kang Daniel climbed aboard and addressed the others."I think Baek Jemin has gone into shock, so I'll accompany him. Everyone else, stay at the intersection position and continue directing civilians back home according to the commander's orders.”
I wanted to turn my head, but my body remained too rigid to move.
Instead, I desperately rolled my eyes enough to barely glimpse the squad members nodding grimly beneath the streetlights, their faces obscured by harsh backlighting.
Kang Daniel slapped the side of the seat twice to signal the driver to move, and just like that, I finally escaped the nightmarish intersection.
-Rattle, rattle!
For the first time in my life, the terrible suspension and miserable ride quality unique to military trucks felt surprisingly comforting.
Normally, I got carsick so easily that I would turn limp the moment I got inside a vehicle. But right now I almost wished I could feel motion sickness instead.
Every time the truck slammed over a speed bump, it felt like the rigid terror freezing my body was finally cracking apart piece by piece.
And like a caveman smashing free from a glacier, I finally broke loose from the stiffness locking my body down and sucked in a massive breath.
"Gaaaaaasp…”
"Baek Jemin-ssi!”
Kang Daniel hurried over and patted my back.
Each smack forced rotten air trapped inside my lungs to burst back out in choking gasps.
But what filled my mouth wasn’t the sour stench characteristic of vomit. It smelled like rotting fish. That disgusting odor surged up my throat and triggered another wave of nausea.
Unfortunately, I’d already emptied my stomach completely earlier, so all that came out now was foul, blood-tinged saliva. Repulsive.
I know people are supposed to treasure everything that came out of their bodies, but if that were the case, they’d have to worship piss and shit in golden jars as well.
Unable to hold it back, I spat violently like hacking up phlegm.
Only afterward did it occur to me that some poor soldier would probably have to clean the truck later. But I didn’t have the luxury to care about that right now.
Because what I’d spat out was unmistakably blood.
A handful of dark crimson fluid hit the floor of the truck while releasing the revolting smell of rotting fish. Then almost immediately, it dried up and faded away like a wet stain evaporating into nothing.
Apparently Kang Daniel saw it too, because he abruptly stopped patting my back.
"This…”
Then instead, he started frantically muttering prayers while drawing the sign of the cross.
"O Almighty Lord, protect Your lamb from the grasp of Satan and keep him from losing his way amidst this trial, as Your servant kneels before the temple of Jerusalem within his heart and prays…”
At the same time, he subtly scooted farther away from me.
His intentions were painfully obvious, but honestly, I didn’t even have the energy left to call him out on it.
Still muttering under his breath, Kang Daniel gradually descended into what sounded like incomprehensible tongues spoken by deeply devout churchgoers during prayer.
At that point, I honestly had no idea which one of us was the crazy one.
So this time, I subtly scooted away from him instead.
Only then did it finally occur to me to check my phone.
January 7th, 1:48 AM.
The moment I saw the time, all the exhaustion I’d forgotten about came crashing back.
I’d spend nearly an entire hour frozen in a firing stance.
The back of my neck throbbed unbearably. My trigger finger had stiffened so badly I couldn’t even straighten it properly anymore. And my shoulder felt crushed and creaky from keeping the rifle raised so long.
But strangely enough, I didn’t feel relieved at all.
If anything, once my head cleared and I looked around properly, the sense of dread only intensified.
No matter how many night owls inhabited South Korea, 1:48 in the morning was still an hour when most people should have been asleep. And this wasn’t even Seoul, but just a small rural town. Aside from streetlights and the occasional late-night car, darkness should’ve dominated the landscape.
Yet as the truck passed roads lined with rice fields and farmland, I could see fluorescent apartment lights turning on one after another beneath the dark mountain ridges.
That was when the phone in my left hand suddenly vibrated.
Then came the urgent, ominous tone unique to emergency alerts.
-Beeeeep—, beeeep—.
[Fog detected in Uijeongbu, Suwon, and Yongin areas of Gyeonggi Province. Lock all windows and doors. Cover them with curtains and remain indoors until morning.]
Only then did I finally ask Kang Daniel, who was still muttering in tongues beside me, a question.
"Did you come because of the fog?”
I’d assumed they’d simply arrived to rotate the night watch. But thinking about it again, there was no reason for the entire squad to rush over carrying searchlights just for a guard shift change.
Apparently I’d been far more shocked than I realized. It was to the point that my mind ceased to work properly.
Even after hearing me, Kang Daniel continued mumbling and rocking slightly for several moments before suddenly snapping his eyes wide open and nodding at me.
"Yes, yes. Baek Jemin-ssi. The people standing watch at the community center have also gone missing.”
"..."
Could you even call that ‘gone missing'?
Without realizing it, I pressed my lips tightly together.
"The commander’s orders are to bring back everyone who was outside during the fog. Erm, I mean…”
Kang Daniel was the textbook military type.
Other reservists either tightened their rifle slings ridiculously short so the gun hugged their bodies or loosened them completely to let the rifle dangle carelessly. This guy had perfectly adjusted his sling so he could instantly shoulder-fire or hip-fire at any moment while keeping the rifle tucked under his right arm.
If only he'd stop staring at me with that suspicious look while constantly maintaining distance from me, he’d actually be pretty likable.
"..."
A strange tension and silence settled between us.
-Clunk.
The 2.5-ton truck finally came to a stop around then.
The community center looked just as chaotic as everything else. Lights blazed everywhere while reservists swept flashlights around the area with rifles in hand.
-Knock, knock.
A civil servant in his 20s wearing combat fatigues leaned his head out the truck window and called toward us.
"Get out. Everyone’s on edge right now, so don’t provoke anybody."
* * *
The moment I stepped off the truck, four military policemen surrounded me.
They raised a hand to stop Kang Daniel from approaching any farther before speaking firmly.
"We’ll take custody from here.”
"Yes, yes."
Kang Daniel immediately backed away, looking visibly relieved.
Without another word, the military policemen escorted me forward while maintaining formation around me, and naturally, I followed along.
That was when my eyes met the reserve commander, who was already outside directing other reservists.
But the commander quietly turned his head away and pretended not to notice me. Instead, he kept urgently barking orders through his radio.
"Turn on the searchlights and check every alleyway corner! Don’t leave your positions under any circumstances! Report immediately if fog appears! Follow the engagement guidelines at all costs!”
Escorted by the military police, I headed deeper into the community center. Despite all the chaos and bustle around us, an eerie silence seemed to linger in the air.
Although officially, I had been summoned by the commander. In reality, though, it was Lieutenant Shin Hangi who was behind this.
When I finally entered the consultation room where Lieutenant Shin Hangi waited, he was accompanied by two sunglasses-wearing non-commissioned officers.
"Baek Jemin-ssi, please sit.”
Lieutenant Shin Hangi forced out a strained professional smile while gesturing toward a seat.
Without needing to be told, the two non-commissioned officers naturally exited the room.
Once again, the two of us sat facing each other in silence.
I was now certain that Lieutenant Shin Hangi knew far more than he’d been telling us.
After a long silence, sharp words escaped my mouth. Inside my head, phrases like ‘you traitor bastard’ and ‘you insect-looking fuck’ were exploding nonstop, but somehow I managed to remain mostly polite.
"Lieutenant.”
"Yes, I’m listening.”
"How the f–how are we supposed to stop that thing?"
28 years of life.
An age where your talents and career paths start becoming clear enough to roughly predict what kind of future awaited you. An age where possibilities gradually narrowed and the shape of your life became more defined. Sure, older adults might think it wasn’t anything special, but I’d still accumulated my own modest share of life experience over those 28 years.
I’d consumed countless forms of media. So I've seen all kinds of grotesque horror. Or at least I’d thought I had.
Yet what I witnessed today, barely 13 hours after the mobilization order, was more horrifying than every disturbing image I’d seen throughout my entire life combined.
"You knew, didn't you? Damn it, you hid it because people would run if they found out didn’t you?”
"Haah..."
Lieutenant Shin Hangi didn’t bother making excuses.
Instead, he rubbed at his eyelids with one hand while letting out another deep, weary sigh.
After sitting there silently for a long while, he finally looked back at me with bloodshot eyes.
"The military’s in complete chaos right now. Regardless of the original Seoul fog, new fog incidents have started appearing as isolated patches. We checked weather maps. They aren’t connected.”
"What…?”
"The worst-case scenario became reality, Baek Jemin-ssi. These things can appear anywhere fog forms. We still don’t know whether this phenomenon is limited to the Korean Peninsula or if it can spread to other foggy regions, other countries, or other continents. We know nothing. As of today, we have become certain of a single matter…the phenomenon is undeniably spreading.”
Suddenly, thoughts of my parents surfaced in my mind.
My parents. The two of them were quietly spending their retirement years in Daejeon. They were far from Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, so somewhere deep down, I’d assumed they were safe.
"You think I’m just going to roll over because you scare me with this bullshit?”
"Sure. Try deserting, then."
Lieutenant Shin Hangi’s gaze sharpened instantly.
"You think the airports and harbors are still operating normally after a mobilization order? Every airport and harbor in this country has either already been locked down or is halfway through shutdown procedures. Everyone who could leave already left. The only people remaining now are the ones stuck living or dying alongside the country. The U.S. forces stationed here already reduced personnel under the excuse of repositioning a month ago. It’s over, Baek Jemin-ssi. It's already over.”
"You’ve got to be fucking kidding..."
"Think about it. Do you seriously believe neighboring countries are welcoming refugees right now? The Japanese bastards, the Chinese bastards, even the Northern pig bastards are all reinforcing borders and coastlines while tossing aid supplies at us, hoping the country doesn’t collapse completely. Hell, even the North Koreans are shipping outdated guns and ammunition through the West Coast to sell to civilians because they desperately want the South to survive. Incheon’s already reached the point where military units are unofficially allowing civilian militias to form and cooperate.”
"So what? We all die together? Then what? That thing…can you even kill it with bullets?”
Honestly, if this had been almost any other disaster, I probably would’ve gritted my teeth and gone along with it despite hating every second of it.
If it were zombies, I’d just wrap myself in thick clothes and start shooting.
Even zombies that supposedly never died still go down once you blow their heads apart.
But what the hell was one supposed to do against that monster. I wasn’t convinced at all that bullets worked on it. If I hadn’t awakened to magic, I would’ve died there tonight!
That was when Lieutenant Shin Hangi's expression changed.
It was subtle, but unmistakable. He began looking at me like he already knew something.
"Baek Jemin-ssi. Do you know what it takes to survive an encounter with one of those things?”
"...”
"At minimum, concentrated suppressive fire from a full squad of 8 soldiers or more. Or…”
He didn’t even need to finish that sentence.
The moment I fell silent, Lieutenant Shin Hangi answered for me anyway.
"...Magic."
That was when the Lieutenant reached beneath the desk and pulled out a bag.
Opening it, he revealed stacks of documents before sliding a pen toward me.
"Baek Jemin-ssi. Let’s make a deal.”
"A deal? With a conscripted reservist? You’re going to order me around anyway.”
When I answered cynically, Lieutenant Shin Hangi merely let out a faint chuckle.
"If you, Baek Jemin-ssi, agree to cooperate with military operations and chain of command, you will receive official authorization to use localized invasive structural alteration phenomena, magic, as well as priority rations, priority access to secured supplies, and independent operation authority.”
For a moment, I wondered if I’d misheard him.
But what truly made me doubt my ears came next.
"And under the government’s current evacuation initiative, your family members will receive priority evacuation and overseas relocation guarantees.”
I blinked slowly.
Then I hunched forward in my chair and glared at him.
"Why the hell should I trust the military?”
"Baek Jemin-ssi, the fact the military doesn’t operate according to strict rules anymore is exactly why an opportunity like this exists.”
-Tap, tap, tap, tap…
Without realizing it, I’d started drumming my finger against the desk.
While chewing the inside of my cheek, part of my mind continued calculating.
Trust the military? I wasn’t patriotic enough to blindly trust the government after things had reached this point. Hell, anyone could throw around empty promises to some poor bastard headed toward the front lines to die.
Authorization to use magic? What a damn joke. A bunch of people who couldn’t even use it themselves talking all high and mighty.
The more I thought about it, the more the contract looked like a pile of poisonous pills disguised as benefits.
Still, there were a few sections worth paying attention to.
"..."
First. Access to firearms and ammunition. In South Korea, where there wasn’t even a proper civilian gun market, weapons were essential supplies that normally required smuggling or absurd amounts of money to obtain. The military was the easiest source possible.
Second. Magic-related knowledge. Just like the Magic Crash Course booklet, the military had spent the past 2 months gathering information related to magic. There was a good chance useful spells or knowledge the military still couldn’t understand or utilize was lying around somewhere.
Third. Information from near the restricted zones. Sure, it wasn’t all that trustworthy, but it was still better than having nothing. Furthermore, there was the possibility of encountering other people who, like me, had awakened to magic and could potentially be approached peacefully outside of combat situations.
I stared directly at Lieutenant Shin Hangi with bloodshot eyes.
"Fine. Let’s do it.”
“Oh?”
"I’m trusting you people to evacuate my parents.”
"Haha, naturally. On behalf of the military, thank you for your patriotic spirit and selfless dedication to the nation, Baek Jemin-ssi.”
A handshake born from filial piety and patriotism was formed between the two of us.
While gripping Lieutenant Shin Hangi’s firm hand, I somehow forced a smile onto my face.
"Then you can at least give me some spam, right?”
"I can offer luncheon meat.”
Luncheon meat instead of spam.
At that moment, I completely lost any lingering attachment toward these people after their rejection of my final alliance proposal.