Surviving in the 121st Century - Chapter 54



Only Noblemtl

*

Jincheol’s motorcycle on top of the truck made a rattling noise. The motorcycle had lost its front wheel, and it had fallen over and rolled around alone as its driver disappeared into the sky while it was running at the top of the valley.

Jincheol, who was sitting in the passenger seat with his head resting on the backrest and his eyes closed, with soot all over his face, could hear the rattling sound. Yeah, well. All I have to do is put the wheels back on. I guess I can ride again.

“I think they’ve all arrived.”

It was the words of the stone fist that was holding the steering wheel. Jincheol opened his eyes and looked ahead to see Miguel’s rebels slowly slowing down and heading down the valley.

After Jincheol’s hijacking stunt, which ended with the crash of the Halitus, the party and the rebels decided to continue moving towards their hideout. Although crashing the reconnaissance airship was a great achievement, it did not mean that the Siapo forces pursuing them had disappeared.

So they entered a little deeper into the canyon.

As the pursuers disappeared, the dark-colored canyon landscape came into view. Broken rocks and sand-like flowing pebbles, dry grass and black soil, hills and rocky mountains revealing the layers of the earth like steps, and a river flowing deep down the canyon meandered and flowed far away. A gigantic geological rock formation that could not have been created in thousands or tens of thousands of years unfolded before my eyes.

It doesn’t seem to be the Grand Canyon. Were there other canyons like this in North America? But who knows. In the 22nd century, mankind seemed to have the scientific ability to create an unknown perpetual motion machine, so they might have been able to create canyons artificially. In the case of East Asia, the terrain has completely changed.

Humanity, who holds the power of the sun that can turn the earth upside down and go far into space, has, absurdly, destroyed itself. Where did all the kids who were talking about going to Mars go? Are they really on Mars? If they had a nuclear fusion power plant, it would be possible?

As Jincheol imagined the human base on Mars, he saw rebel vehicles entering the shadows of a deep canyon. As if they had really arrived, new rabitos appeared from under the dark shadows. Miguel, a pig doctor, got out of the vehicle in front and waved his hand toward them, shouting.

“Welcome to our secret camp! It’s a mobile camp!”

Instead of responding to the shout, Jincheol leaned out the window and looked up at the large airship hiding in the shadows of the canyon.

It wasn’t as big as the flying battleships of the Jasso Federation or Urata. Compared to their battleships, which were more like flying castles, these airships were at best light destroyers.

But even with that, the valley below was already full. The flying battleships that the generals rode in were strangely large, but the airships in front of them were not ordinary-sized either. At least, they were as big as the Baika merchant ship I had ridden before.

Below the airship parked in the sky, a rebel camp had been set up, and when they saw Miguel appear, they cheered. They shouted something loudly and even rushed in.

Miguel raised his right fist high in the air to their cheers.

“Yes! I’m back!”

“Wow!”

The cries of the Rabitos echoed down the canyon. The rebels looked at Miguel with eyes of admiration and respect. It was the return of their leader and teacher.

And it reminded the 21st century soldier of a poster he had seen not long ago: ‘For the Father of the Nation!’

Although the shape and the target were slightly different, the old soldier’s eyes could see the two images faintly overlapping.

*

After the return of Pig Doctor Miguel, the rebel camp became busy. They started to recover the camp they had set up at the bottom of the airship and prepared to launch the airship.

Miguel sat on a box with an old coat draped over his shoulders and looked at the scene. Then, when Jincheol and his group approached, he smiled happily.

“Hahaha! The Slayer of Hallitus! The Master of Unarmed Martial Arts! The Invincible Warrior from the West! Jincheol!”

“What nonsense are you talking about?”

Jincheol responded indifferently to the words that were praising him so much. Miguel continued talking, smiling as if he was pleased with Jincheol’s reaction.

“I am truly grateful to you. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have escaped today. And many of my comrades would have died or been injured. You are a benefactor to us all.”

“Really? Then fix my bike.”

“Of course! Of course! I’ll fix it right now!”

He immediately called the other rabbi on one side and told him to call the mechanic. Then he took out a cigarette thicker than his finger from the coat on his shoulder and put it in his mouth. He even took out a match and lit the cigarette, and looked up at Jincheol with a cloud of smoke coming out.

“It is my duty to fix your motorcycle. But wasn’t that the price I promised you for my life? Now, let me answer your question. There is still some time before the Comintern takes off.”

“···Is the name of that airship Comintern?”

“Yes. It is an ancient, forgotten name. It was held by a giant who taught the principles of cosmic order and solidarity and fought for justice.”

“···”

No matter how much time has passed, is that how it is? The name of the International is nothing but a mythical giant? These guys just made up real names.

Jincheol shook his head to regain consciousness as he felt dizzy. That wasn’t what he was curious about. Miguel was looking at Jincheol like he was interested.

Jincheol said.

“White Butcher. Snow. You know?”

“···I know. She is our revolutionary army’s strongest warrior, comrade, and friend. Are you looking for her?”

“Okay. For now.”

Miguel’s eyes sunk deep. He sat still, smoking his cigarette, and then quietly continued speaking.

“Why are you looking for her?”

“It’s a family matter, so I don’t feel like talking about it without your consent.”

“Are you here to kill her too?”

“···What is it?”

Despite Jincheol’s question, Miguel’s gaze did not change. He was glaring at Jincheol with eyes as hard and sharp as steel. It seemed as if he was going to see through every single thing he was hiding.

“There have been quite a few Esai assassins targeting her in the past. However, Snow has never once said that she would take revenge on her family. She just smiled faintly and thought that it was the fate of her bloodline. She must have been heartbroken and in pain when her own family tried to kill her, but she smiled calmly at us. That’s the kind of woman she is. Isn’t it time to let her go now?”

“···”

What could this mean? An Esai assassin was after her? But Ishanka said he had not found any trace of Snow in the past three years. He had been searching for traces of his daughter outside of Sioux, but had not found a single proper clue.

But her colleague in front of her was saying that the Esai assassin had been coming for her life.

“Snow has helped us so much over the past two years. Even though we are of a different race, she understands our pain and sorrow, and our desire for revolution. She says she helps us because she has her own reasons and benefits, and she doesn’t need any reward, but that’s why we are willing to give our lives for her. Because she already did it for us first.”

“There, there’s some misunderstanding···”

“I already owe you my life, and I feel ashamed, but if you and her fight, we will all take her side. That is the same here today. All of our revolutionaries here will fight with you for her.”

Jincheol scratched his chin as he listened to him, then lowered his hand and spoke a little more clearly.

“You misunderstood. I didn’t come here to kill her. I came here at the request of her mother.”

“What difference would it make if she were my mother? Didn’t the entire family agree to the act of killing Snow?”

“No. Ishanka didn’t know anything about assassins. On the contrary, he had been running around everywhere for the past three years looking for his daughter who had run away from home.”

A question appeared in Miguel’s eyes.

“···I don’t know much about it, but isn’t Snow’s mother of a fairly high status in the family? And she didn’t know that the family was trying to kill her daughter?”

“Looking at the returning tail, it seems like that.”

It seemed unlikely that the woman who had been sobbing while sending a message of apology to Jincheol would have tried to kill her own daughter.

Of course, that ‘I’m sorry’ could mean ‘I’m sorry for trying to kill you’, but at least in Jincheol’s eyes, it wasn’t like that. Jincheol had already seen the regret deep inside Ishanka’s heart. Her regret was a bit more complicated and ambiguous, the regret of a parent who regrets not being able to do better for their child.

It was a situation that was so absurd that it was almost like doing a backflip. A mother who was full of regrets for not being able to do something, a family that was trying to kill her daughter without her knowledge, and a daughter who knew that both the mother and the family were trying to kill her.

It was fortunate that I met Miguel first. If I had met Snow without knowing anything and told him Ishanka’s name, we might have been fighting by now.

As I was thinking about it, Miguel asked again.

“Then what are you going to do when you find her?”

“Well. Originally, I was going to tell you to go back home since your mother is waiting for you… But looking at the current situation, if you go back, both of us will be in big trouble.”

Ishanka is the daughter of the Antera family. After all, the fact that she doesn’t know this fact means that the family hid it from her. Snow’s return to Sioux is also against the wishes of the Antera family. Then, didn’t he know that Ishanka was asking Jincheol?

“···I knew it would happen even if I went.”

The Jaso Federation’s flying battleship sank as soon as it entered the land of the Eastern Continent. Of the many Rabito soldiers and mercenaries, only Jincheol and his party survived, so it was natural to expect that Snow would die before being found.

“I hear you have a lot on your mind. That’s fortunate. If Snow were here, he would have been wielding a knife first.”

Miguel said something similar to what Jincheol said. When he saw Jincheol’s attitude that he was having a headache, he smiled again, as if he thought that Jincheol was not really an assassin.

“What should we do? Should we meet Snow?”

“Still… I should at least meet her. At least she should know that my mother is on my side. So where is she?”

“Snow is currently on a mission in the east. Near Solkain.”

At those words, Ramien, who had been quietly behind Jincheol until now, reacted. She seemed a little confused while listening to Jincheol and Miguel’s conversation, but when she heard the word Solcain, she immediately took a step forward and opened her mouth.

“Solkain, what is the current situation in Solkain? What about the people there?”

Miguel’s eyes quickly moved from Jincheol to her. At the same time, his smiling expression also sank, and his eyes reflected Ramien’s flight jacket and the Jasoyeon uniform underneath.

“···To be more precise, soldier. What do you want to know? Are the citizens of Solkain still waiting for their general, or are they resisting the invaders of Urata?”

It was a gaze that was incomparably colder than when she looked at Jincheol. Ramien, who had stepped forward, hesitated and stepped back again as if she had been stung by that gaze.

However, he soon stepped forward again with a hardened look in his eyes and opened his mouth.

“I’m not curious about that. The only thing I’m curious about is the person who’s going to be there.”

“···Who is Ipani?”

“The person I love.”

Miguel’s cold eyes widened. He looked at Ramien quietly as if he was surprised, then nodded and said.

“Hmm. Be more specific. Rather than just telling me the name, tell me where the person lived.”

“Epani lived on North Street.”

“North Street? Oh, you mean the place where the flower shops were?”

“That’s right! That’s it! Ipani also ran a flower shop there!”

Ramien was delighted. It seemed that she thought she could find a clue to Ipani. However, her expression soon subsided. It was because Miguel was looking at her silently with a sad face. It was an expression of some emotion that was stronger than words.

“···The northern street was almost completely destroyed during the air raid. The capital defense force worked hard to defend against air attacks, but without battleships and battlewings, there were limits. I can tell from your clothes. You are a battlewing pilot, right? Then you should know even more about the power of the unrivaled flying battleships and battlewing squadrons.”

“···”

Ramien’s eyes became dazed. His gaze slowly turned to the floor. Tears welled up in his large eyes.

The death of a loved one. And that happened while he was rolling around in the mud of a distant battlefield. What did he fight for? What is the meaning of a war when he can’t protect his loved one?

Even after all this time, the war has not changed. Both those who go out to fight and those who stay behind to wait are unhappy.

Whichever side survives, they will all eventually drown in the blue sea of ​​sorrow. All that will remain are rusted steel badges and rotten, blue corpses.

This rabbit-like, timid race was no different.

“···Solkain, I should have stayed in Solkain. If I had··· If I had, I would have been able to die together···”

Her knees slowly gave out. Her body swayed. She was on the verge of collapsing, unable to bear the weight of the sorrow pouring out of her head.

Then a hand grabbed her shoulder.

When Ramien, startled, raised her head, Jincheol was holding her up so she wouldn’t fall.

“···”

In Jincheol’s eyes, which were silently looking at her, countless incomprehensible emotions flashed through his mind.

Sadness and pain, pity and anger that could not be directed at anyone, helplessness about the lingering shadow that could not be shaken off, guilt, fear. All of these things were mixed together and swirling in those small eyes. For some reason, Ramien saw himself in those eyes.

But beyond all that chaos, a tiny light was shining. It was so small and insignificant in the midst of the rush of emotions, but it was shining brightly nonetheless.

Jincheol whispered.

“You asked me then, ‘Don’t you believe in any god?’ What did I say then?”

Looking into those eyes, Ramien also felt the light seeping into her own eyes and heart. She answered.

“···I believe in something. It’s just that it’s not God.”

“Just because a street is flattened by a bomb doesn’t mean it’s a death sentence. So your lover could still be alive.”

“···Ipani, are you alive?”

“I don’t know yet. But I will be alive. Because I have a lover who misses me so much.”

Light returned to Ramien’s eyes, which had been sinking into despair. The scattered hearts gathered together at Jincheol’s words to become a firm will, and the love that had been covering the curtain of sadness stood up again. That gave strength to the knees that were about to fall down because of the heavy head. It allowed him to stand up again.

She stood up straight on her own strength, not with the help of a hand that was grabbing her shoulder, and looked at Jincheol, shedding tears that had already been welling up.

“···Is this what you believe?”

Instead of answering, Jincheol just smiled faintly.

End