Chapter 34 - Inspection
“Phew.”
The sound of sirens echoed in the darkness. Having barely come to a stop after breaching the final barrier, I sat in the vehicle smoking a cigarette and quietly ruminating on memories.
‘It turned out exactly the same as back then.’
This time I was fully aware trying to pinpoint the problem, but what could it be?
“Even though my physical Enhancement has faded, my transcendental senses remain, so why did the result end up similar?”
After a moment, the soldiers who had hurriedly arrived pointed their guns at me.
“You’re surrounded! You’re surrounded! Hands up! Move and we’ll shoot!”
“Yes, I understand.”
I stubbed out the cigarette I had been smoking and saluted out the window.
“Loyalty, Private Seung-hoon Lee, here on duty with higher unit. The duty is the brigade’s scheduled transportation run.”
“……What?”
The unit commander’s insignia visible even in the darkness wavered amid the shouts from those pointing their guns.
“Get out nowwwwww!!!!”
“Six barricades destroyed, complete breach of east fence around unit communications center, 27 spots with severed field cables? No, how were these cut!? They were buried over 1 meter deep!?”
The brigade officer listed off the damage I had caused to the unit one by one.
“Complete breach of left wall of 3rd Ammunition Depot, numerous ammunition stores leaked, for unknown reasons numerous grenades and explosives detonated, Guard Post 7 destroyed, Guard Post 8 destroyed……? Hey! Who wrote this report! And that cable part too! And Guard Post 8 too, what is this! Guard Post 8 is in a spot vehicles can’t even reach, let alone people!”
At the officer’s outcry, one soldier came running with documents. From a brief look, the documents had photos printed showing the devastation I had wrought.
“……Is this even possible? With a vehicle? A deuce and a half at that?”
“Yes, and if you look at the next page……”
“……Seven goral deaths, five wild boar deaths, one eagle death?”
“And if you look here too……”
“……”
The CCTV footage captured on the final page showed quite a spectacular scene of the vehicle I had driven.
“What is this? A deuce and a half driving along cliffs? And this…… it’s flying through the sky?”
“Not flying through the sky, but estimated to be leaping from one cliff to another.”
“An action movie? Is this even possible? Not with a sports car but a deuce and a half?”
Well, there were some minor differences from my past self, but the problems that arose were unchanged.
‘My past self seemed to cause even more problems. Back then it ended after he drove the vehicle straight into the brigade headquarters situation room.’
This time I had just parked and stopped at the rear mountain guard post, so does the current me emerge victorious? A hopeful outcome that humans inevitably progress and evolve after all?
“Private Seung-hoon Lee, do you realize this is an extremely serious matter? To be honest, based solely on your actions it’s at the level of an infiltration agent, you know? This isn’t an issue that will end at just the brigade level, it could become a problem for the entire 6th Division!”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Why did you do such a thing?”
I honestly told him everything. About going to wake up Sergeant Yeom Sung-soo, him being drunk and telling me to handle it myself, as well as their connections and Sergeant Jang Hyeong-seok’s backing.
“……Wait here for now.”
The brigade officer left the interrogation room. Being bound in restraints, movement was difficult but my senses were unimpaired so I pressed my ear to the wall to feel the vibrations.
[“Wow, what the fuck, does this even make sense? Not even a Demolition Man could pull off such destruction single-handedly!”]
[“The culprit is a new recruit from the independent company, apparently he did this just from driving.”]
[“Is he Jason Bourne? Or maybe the Asian Quota for the Dominic Family?”]
[“This isn’t an issue that will end at the brigade level. It might escalate to the division?”]
[“The 6th Division has its own Demolisher it seems.”]
I could hear the soldiers’ chatter.
[“If we can’t resolve this immediately, all our heads will roll! You get it!?”]
[“Summon the Baekseok Peak Company Commander at once!”]
[“That guy again!? Again!? That bastard Jang Hyeong-seok or whatever his name is? Not him?”]
[“Hey, how do we handle this? News will reach the division for sure.”]
The anguished lamentations of the officers could be heard.
[“Yes, yes, understood. Yes, yes? Ah, yes.”]
And the voice of the brigade officer who had interrogated me, the highest ranking colonel among those I had met today, as he took a call.
[“How can we cover this up, this isn’t something that can be covered up……”]
[“Hey you bastard! If this gets out, we’re all getting discharged!”]
The shouting from the other end of the mobile phone was so loud it carried vividly through the wall.
[“One month, just endure for one month. In one month you’ll be transferring elsewhere too, right? And around then I’ll get promoted and go elsewhere too. Let’s just endure until then!”]
[“But still, it will eventually all come to light……”]
[“You bastard! Did you eat shit for brains!? Just cover it up well! We don’t know anything, as long as we get our stories straight the underlings can cause all the fuss they want but it will blow over like water off a duck’s back! What have you been learning all this time until you got that position!”]
From the circumstances, it seemed to be the brigade commander.
‘So this is why I avoided any disciplinary action back then.’
Not simply because I was a private first class, but due to the brigade commander’s situation.
[“But don’t we still need to report it to the division?”]
[“I’ve already reported it to the Division Commander. The Division Commander approved it too. We can handle repairs through reserve supplies and fudge the figures appropriately. Since the Division Commander also told us to cover it up somehow, you just do as instructed!”]
[“……Understood.”]
And additionally, the Division Commander’s orders too.
‘This really is interesting.’
Who knew there was such a behind-the-scenes story. Back then I had expected as much, but there was a world of difference between mere expectations and directly hearing and confirming it with my own ears.
‘It was good I came.’
And so the interrogation was swept aside. As if trying to erase that day’s events from existence, I faced no disciplinary action and belatedly met the company commander who had finally arrived, his hair now graying.
“Heh, heheh, yes, yes, so you’re Seung-hoon?”
“Private Seung-hoon Lee.”
“Right, let’s go back.”
Captain Yoo Se-hyeon.
His expression was truly pitiful, as if his very soul had been taken from him by someone.
“Yes, yes! Yes, ah, yes!”
Until our return to the unit, the company commander kept struggling with his mobile phone, and even after our return he only briefly consulted me before busying himself again.
“Seung-hoon, you might be discharged soon?”
Upon arriving at the unit and meeting the unit commander, he immediately brought up the main point.
“You know about the Green Camp? You’ll probably go there. Go there a few times and you might be discharged.”
“Yes.”
“Seung-hoon, please just stay still until discharge, okay? Please, I’m begging you as your unit leader.”
“Understood.”
There were only two major incidents in my military service, one of which had ended, with two weeks remaining until the next. So for the time being I enjoyed a peaceful daily routine.
‘Has it been two weeks already?’
Two weeks remained until my discharge date. Sergeant Jang Hyeong-seok and his cohorts had taken their discharge vacations, and the remaining unit members savored unprecedented peace.
“Hey, are you crazy? Who does laundry like this? Hey, get your head down.”
But even without them, those who had learned military life from them became another Jang Hyeong-seok Family, repeating the same actions.
‘History repeats itself. Unless someone definitively cuts it off.’
At the time, I spent my days agonizing over how to create an incident even more explosive than the previous “6th Division Demolition Incident” to enlighten them.
‘Is it today? That day?’
An ordinary weekday like any other, but suddenly the officers began moving about and the soldiers shook with unease amid the commotion without knowing why.
“Hey, why are the officers acting like that?”
“Dunno? Did someone go AWOL?”
“Or was it another Knock defection?”
Shortly after, the unit commander gathered all unit soldiers.
[“Listen up everyone! The Minister of National Defense is coming to inspect our unit right now!”]
Except for me and the soldier assigned to monitor me.
Focusing my hearing, I absorbed every bit of the commotion coming from outside without missing a single detail.
[“Everyone needs to do things properly! If anyone makes even the slightest mistake, I’ll use any means necessary to revoke their vacation until their discharge date! Think I’m lying? Then go ahead and test me!”]
Following that, the company commander’s speech commenced and the soldiers with discipline drilled into them dispersed to diligently attend to their duties.
[“Ah shit why is the Defense Minister coming.”]
[“Probably because of that. The defectors.”]
[“So what’s the issue?”]
[“Don’t you watch the news. The defectors were spouting all sorts of stuff on broadcasts. Some said no matter how long they waited there was no contact so they just climbed over the fences into the unit, others said the sentry was sleeping so they considered returning to North Korea.”]
[“For real?”]
[“Dunno? Maybe they brushed it aside due to lack of evidence? But with conspiracy theories constantly circulating they’re probably coming for a show of force. Meaning we need to really tighten discipline too.”]
[“It’s a show, a show. Well the Defense Minister is closer to a politician than a soldier after all.”]
The news I had seen in the administrative office on my first day of transfer.
And the surprise Defense Minister inspection that occurred in relation to it.
‘So it’s finally that day.’
Focusing my hearing on the commotion outside, I awaited the moment.
“Saluteeeeeeeeeeee!!!”
“Saluteeeeeeeeeeee!!!”
Amid the resounding salute calls, the personage I had been waiting for arrived. For a while there was commotion as they moved busily here and there, followed by the voice I presumed to be the Defense Minister.
[“You have all worked hard. With the recent increase in defectors on one hand, and North Korea’s provocations against the South continuing on the other, I am greatly reassured that you are all working day and night for national defense.”]
[“Thank you!”]
[“Division Commander, what is the current state of GOP sentry duty?”]
[“Yes, taking into account the soldiers’ morale and physical condition, we have divided them into three shifts for sentry duty, while also……”]
Various voices could be heard. There were mentions of the 6th Division and successive mentions of brigade commanders.
[“Hmm, I would like to observe the soldiers’ condition.”]
[“Yes! I will guide you to the barracks!”]
The various noises from the hallway reached my ears.
[“A surprise visit, you said? How did the Division Commander and Brigade Commander come?”]
[“They made a brief prior visit on the way here. Our unit is the last stop.”]
[“Phew, that’s a relief. If we had been first……”]
The soldiers’ resounding salute calls and the Defense Minister’s affable voice praising them.
And just as they were about to depart, the Defense Minister asked:
[“I saw at the brigade administrative office earlier that a new recruit joined this unit 2 weeks ago? Since he was the last new recruit he stuck in my memory, where is he now?”]
[“……”]
[“Company Commander?”]
[“Ah, yes! He’s in that barracks over there. It was the new recruit waiting period so we had him adapting with the other soldiers in a separate barracks.”]
Numerous footsteps drew nearer to the barracks I was in, and shortly after the door opened.
“Saluteeeeeeee!”
“Hmm, at ease.”
“At ease!”
Having received the salute from the highest-ranking soldier monitoring me, the Defense Minister patted my shoulder and asked:
“So you’re the new recruit?”
“Private Seung-hoon Lee.”
I answered in my usual plain tone, causing the complexions of the numerous star-bearing officers and ceremonial guards behind him to pale.
‘Please, I beg you, Seung-hoon!’
‘Please, just let it go!’
The company commander and unit commander’s expressions seemed to say as much.
“Have you faced any difficulties in unit life?”
I remained silent. At the time, these were my thoughts:
‘Since someone the Defense Security Command colonel and Division Commander cannot stop has arrived, I cannot let this opportunity slip by.’
For the sake of everyone in the unit.
Moreover, to enlighten everyone so this incident would be recorded for posterity, preventing any recurrence of such injustice.
“Minister of National Defense.”
“Yes, tell me everything. If it’s something that can be corrected, I will corr……”
“I am accusing you.”
I proclaimed resolutely.
“The charge is dereliction of unit management and lack of competence.”