Former Agent’s Attitude to Dealing with the End - Chapter 124



Only Noblemtl

Episode 124

As I opened the door to the room and went in, the delicious smell of bread filled the air.

I looked inside to see what was going on, and saw the group sitting huddled together in the center.

Everyone was holding a variety of breads, steam rising from them, from wherever they came from.

“Brother, are you here?”

“Wow, this is crazy. This is really delicious!”

“Daesu, you come quickly and eat too.”

Just as hard to eat as steaming white rice is freshly baked bread.

The group was unable to come to their senses because they were seeing the special dish for the first time in a long time and were eating it in a hurry.

Why bread all of a sudden?

I slowly turned my gaze to the basket full of breads.

“hmm?”

“Haha, hello.”

Next to the group of people who were too busy eating, a man was standing with an awkward smile.

Shiny silver-rimmed glasses, a suit that looks obviously classy, ​​and a natural wristwatch.

The man, whom I remembered seeing somewhere, smiled and held out his hand when our eyes met.

“I’m really sorry for coming to see you so suddenly. Do you remember me? We’re old friends.”

“At that pension at that time… … .”

“Haha, yes. That’s the person at the entrance. I opened the door for you myself.”

When I first met Park Ki-deok, there was a passenger guarding the entrance to the pension.

Since then, we haven’t had any contact and I had forgotten about it, but I never thought we would meet here.

I shook the hand held out to me by the silver-rimmed glasses with a face half filled with caution and half doubt.

“Did you bring the bread yourself?”

“Oh, yes! I brought a small gift because I didn’t come empty-handed. It’s bread baked by a professional baker. Please try it.”

In economy class, they eat instant bread that is almost expired, but upstairs, they are eating freshly baked bread.

I almost burst out laughing at the obvious difference in treatment.

If I had known this would happen, I would have tried to force myself to get a first-class seat.

“So what’s going on? I don’t think we’re close enough to exchange gifts.”

“Haha, that’s too bad! But I received a lot of help from you here. Well, actually, that’s not the only reason I came. I had other business to attend to.”

Of course, I came here not simply to say thank you but for other business.

The silver-rimmed glasses glanced sideways as if they wished to move to another place.

“You guys are eating. I’ll be back in a bit.”

“Would you like some bread left?”

“If you have any red bean buns, just leave one or two.”

“I already ate it all.”

“… … I’ll be back.”

So, I, who had never even touched bread before, came out of the room with my silver-rimmed glasses.

Since your head must be in a mess, I thought we could talk while smoking a cigarette.

“Do you smoke?”

“Okay.”

Fortunately, Eun-rimmed Glasses was also a smoker, so he accepted the cigarette I offered him without hesitation.

With the vast ocean in the distance as a backdrop, we began our conversation while exhaling smoke.

“You’re probably wondering why I came to see you. I haven’t seen you since then.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“But I’ve been watching from afar, just in case an opportunity like this comes along.”

“Are you talking about an opportunity?”

The silver-rimmed glasses man, who was blowing out smoke stylishly, took out a business card from his pocket.

I instinctively took the business card and for some reason a familiar corporate logo caught my eye.

“Daemyung Group?”

“Yes, my name is Kang Chan-ho, team leader of the future planning department of Daemyung Group. Oh, it may be different on your business card. I just got promoted.”

Even though I have lived a life that is completely detached from the secular world, I know about Daemyung Group.

Even the truck I was driving at the time was made by Daemyung Enterprise.

But other than that, I had no other connections so I handed back my business card and asked.

“What do you want me to do there?”

“Um, let me start with this. Do you happen to know who owns this cruise ship?”

“No, I’ve never heard of it.”

“That would be true. It hasn’t even been a month since our affiliate acquired it.”

A month ago, Seoul would have already been finished and the infectious disease would have spread to Gyeongsang Province.

In the midst of all this, the company took over Cruise, and it seemed that they had a lot of money and time.

“okay.”

“You don’t seem very surprised.”

“Should I be surprised?”

“No, I thought you already knew. In fact, one of the VIPs on this cruise is the chairman of our Daemyung Construction.”

How would I know that the VIP on board here is the CEO of a company, when I am not even an official?

You’d think it was just some rich guys buying cruise ships and going on boat rides.

But since he was mistaken, I just pretended that it was true, and he started to say to himself that it was good.

“Because the chairman is a very popular person, there are many people around him who follow him. The other VIPs on board also trusted the chairman and followed him. However, unfortunately, there are not many subordinates who can be trusted with work.”

“What do you want to say?”

“I would like to delegate a task to you.”

“I am not a PMC.”

“PMC doesn’t seem to be very good at his job.”

When I expressed my refusal to accept the invitation, Kang Chan-ho smiled slyly and handed me back his business card.

“You can reject it if you don’t like it after listening to it. But I’m sure you won’t regret it.”

If the team leader comes to you in person with a gift, it means he really made up his mind to come.

I nodded for now because I didn’t think it would be easy to refuse here.

Then, as if he had thought it through, Kang Chan-ho spit out the smoke from his cigarette and said.

“Did you know there was a pick-up person?”

“yes.”

“Then let me get straight to the point. There are VIPs scheduled to be picked up at the next stopover, Busan. However, due to local circumstances, they are currently isolated in the building.”

“What does the military do?”

“The soldiers’ job is to guard the port. They don’t get involved in anything else.”

No matter how rich a person is, he cannot move the military privately.

That means we have to figure it out on our own, which I’m only just beginning to understand.

“So you’re saying you want to hire a pickup truck?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Do you know the location?”

“It’s a high-rise building about 5km from the port. You are currently waiting inside.”

If people are unable to move around, it means that the road to their destination is blocked.

Moreover, the location was a high-rise building, so there was a high probability that there would be many infected people around it.

When I made a vague expression as if asking if he was joking, Kang Chan-ho shook his head, feeling anxious.

“It’s not as serious as you might think. We have helicopters that can be used, and there’s a landing pad on the roof of a high-rise building. All we have to do is find the VIPs inside and get up to the roof.”

“If it’s to that extent, I think it’ll be okay to come up alone.”

When asked why he didn’t come up alone, Kang Chan-ho scratched his cheek and smiled weakly.

“That’s it, you sprained your ankle… … .”

No matter how much of a team leader you are at a large company, in the end you are just another salaried worker who receives money for work.

Kang Chan-ho, who is here, also has a hard time understanding the behavior of rich people.

But soon, his expression changed to a professional, quick smile and he continued the rest of his explanation.

“We have our own security personnel, but the question is whether they will be effective in actual combat, so we desperately need your help.”

The reality is that even trained soldiers are at a loss when they come face to face with an infected person.

No matter how much money a company pays to hire them, in the end they are a private organization.

The reason Team Leader Kang Chan-ho came to see me was because I was a combat force he could definitely trust.

“My family and friends enjoyed the bread.”

“… … It’s been a while.”

“If you fly first class, you can eat so much bread that you’ll get sick of it.”

“Is the ticket worth it?”

“Haha, Mr. Daesu. We are Daemyung Group. We entrust you with important work, so we won’t replace it with something like that. There are so many things to do in Jeju Island that you will feel like you only have a first-class ticket.”

Kang Chan-ho promised various benefits for his upcoming trip to Jeju Island, including first-class tickets.

Who on earth is the VIP that needs to be rescued that a large corporation is even making such a proposal?

At first, I was going to reject it outright, but then I found myself being tempted.

But that thought only lasted a moment, and I soon came to my senses and returned the business card.

“sorry.”

“… …Can you tell me why?”

“I don’t want to put myself in danger.”

This is not the first time that Team Leader Kang Chan-ho has proposed a request for compensation in this way.

When I was in Seoul, I was able to work while receiving various conveniences.

But unlike back then when there was a clear purpose and necessity, many things were ambiguous now.

The bare minimum is more than enough, and I didn’t want to take risks trying to get something more out of it.

In particular, I didn’t want to worry my sister and Yebin, who were always anxious.

Team leader Kang Chan-ho frowned for the first time as if he didn’t understand me.

“I enjoyed the bread.”

“Mr. Daesu!”

I quietly left the smoking room, leaving Team Leader Kang Chan-ho behind as he tried to persuade me repeatedly.

And then I walked towards the lodging where my family and friends were laughing and chatting noisily.

Happiness comes from little things.

Even by something passing by, like the scent of freshly baked bread that you smell after a long time.

I am happier now that I have less than I used to be when I could get everything I wanted.

* * *

A cruise that allows you to enjoy daily life and sailing at the same time is a truly special means of transportation.

In particular, the advantage of being safe from infected people was more valuable than anything else.

But that’s only if you have enough supplies and fuel.

Cruise ships that were no longer receiving supplies were little more than floating coffins and buoys.

Just like us, drifting in the vast ocean without any hope, waiting for our next destination.

‘You’re saying we’ll reduce it further here?’

‘Are you really going to starve us to death?’

The three times a day rations were changed to just twice a day, in the morning and evening.

Of course, the amount of food was so insufficient that it didn’t even meet the 1,500㎉ requirement, and the taste was so bad that it made me sick.

But I could endure it up to that point.

At least I wasn’t starving to death.

But to make matters worse, the water supply was cut off and the daily allotted drinking water amount was reduced.

People who couldn’t wash smelled, and diseases like colds and stomachaches were spreading everywhere.

The stress of the people who had been gritting their teeth and holding on for so long eventually reached its peak and exceeded their limits.

‘You just swindled me!’

‘What do you want me to do about you being late!’

At first, the passengers were helping each other, being considerate of each other, and making minimal concessions.

But as time passed, the number of arguments and fights increased.

This happened especially often between those who were short on supplies and those who had some supplies.

A situation where you react sensitively to anything and a fight breaks out just by bumping into something.

People needed someone to blame, and the arrows naturally pointed in one direction.

It was Ahn Hyo-ik who had been chosen as the passenger representative just three days ago and had said that they should join forces.

‘Shouldn’t the representative do something?’

‘Please come up with a solution!’

An Hyo-ik, who had not come up with any countermeasures for a while, has finally been put to the test.

A situation where the passengers’ situation as well as their own situation are determined by the choice they make here.

Surprisingly, what Ahn Hyo-ik chose was to shift his anger to someone other than himself.

‘From what I’ve found out, the supplies are all the same on each floor. But why is the ration for economy class different? That’s because the employees are stealing the supplies in the middle.’

It was a one-sided claim without any evidence, basis, or even credibility.

But people exploded in anger, believing only Ahn Hyo-ik’s words that there was a connection from above.

As a result, the already poor relationship between passengers and employees deteriorated to its worst.

‘You must not approach!’

‘Is it enough for you to be full? Is it enough for you to be full?’

‘If you do this, we won’t stay still either!’

‘Let’s try it, damn it!’

The communal dining hall where food was distributed became a scene of chaos due to the influx of passengers.

The staff who tried to stop them were naturally lynched by a mob, and shouts and screams could be heard everywhere.

Fights broke out several times a day, as if the anger was not something that ended in volatility.

Some people are angry.

Some people are scared.

For others, it was three days of observing the situation and waiting for the storm to pass.

The decisive event occurred exactly four days after leaving the transit point.

‘Gyaaaaaaah!’

‘Blood, blood!’

For the first time, bloodshed broke out in what began as a minor quarrel as if it were routine.

A passenger accidentally cuts an employee’s neck while swinging a razor blade he had secretly hidden.

Ugh, ugh!

But unfortunately, the cut happened to be in the carotid artery, and he died of hemorrhagic shock before he could do anything.

A heavy silence fell.

Everyone gathered there was shocked as they watched the corpse cooling down.

Because the death of a person was a problem of a completely different dimension from the conflicts that had been going on.

Was that why?

The silence was not broken until the moment the staff returned with the body recovered.

Squeak, thud!

Huh, huh?!

But exactly two hours later, a sudden change was enough to wake people up.

At the same time, all entrances and exits were locked and all economy class staff members withdrew simultaneously.

The choice of the cruise managers, who felt that control was impossible, was none other than blocking the economy class seats.

A dark, enclosed space with limited supplies, starving people, and no exit.

The situation was already at its worst.