Beacon of Light in the Dark Sea

Chapter 138

Watching the backs of the two people heading towards the escape pod port, I shouted:

“Can’t we all go in together?”

The thought of those two entering the East District escape pod port while I waited seemed to bring on a headache. Shin Hae-ryang flatly opposed my suggestion.

“There might be armed personnel waiting inside. It’s safer for you to wait here while we check it out.”

He seemed to be anticipating that some of the Engineering Team Ra members might be waiting inside, ready to shoot anyone who entered. Shin Hae-ryang’s prediction was somewhat accurate, as such an incident had actually occurred before. I’m not sure about Hong Tao, but Zhu Xuan had attacked Seo Jihyuk before.

“Isn’t that exactly why we should go in together?”

Wouldn’t a larger group be better able to handle a few armed individuals? Shin Hae-ryang hesitated at my response, then shook his head and said:

“The fewer people directly exposed to danger, the safer it is.”

“Or at least change the members going together. Like Ae-young, Hae-ryang, and Jihyuk all going in at once. Or all of us here going together.”

Shin Hae-ryang’s eyebrows contorted as if he couldn’t understand my statement. Seo Jihyuk, who had been listening silently, asked me:

“Do you not like the idea of me and the Team Leader going together?”

“Yes. Specifically, I’d prefer if it wasn’t just the two of you entering the escape pod port.”

What if we changed the combination to Baek Ae-young and Shin Hae-ryang, and one of them got shot? Kang Soojung asked me, seemingly perplexed:

“What’s the problem with the two of them going?”

“I’m worried they might get shot.”

Hearing my words, Shin Hae-ryang immediately responded:

“Will fewer people get shot if more go? There will be more casualties.”

“That might be true. But I think it would be better than Seo Jihyuk and Shin Hae-ryang going together like this.”

Shin Hae-ryang didn’t try to persuade me more than three times. He seemed to have decided to ignore my opinion, which he probably saw as unreasonable stubbornness. I grabbed Shin Hae-ryang’s shoulder as he was about to turn away. He stopped, but as he looked at my hand on his shoulder, I cautiously withdrew it.

Am I being too sensitive? Maybe. But what if the same thing happens again? What if I keep quiet and Seo Jihyuk gets injured again? Seo Jihyuk, with a barbell tucked under his arm, said:

“Well, I’m not particularly fond of this combination either. I have an allergic reaction called emotional instability when XY genes exist around me. The symptoms get worse especially when they’re socially higher ranked than me. A male workplace superior within 3 meters of me? I can only think about removing the cause.”

“Try it.”

Shin Hae-ryang said, looking at Seo Jihyuk. He was expressionless as usual, but I got the feeling he was cursing with just his gaze. Seo Jihyuk’s allergy symptoms are exactly the same as mine, aren’t they? Though I usually use avoidance therapy. But wait, is it okay to speak so openly with your superior right next to you? Is there no formality, or are they that close?

Baek Ae-young looked at the two men with a pathetic expression, then turned the same expression to me and said:

“If all three of us go into the escape pod port, there’s no one among the 9 of you who can fight, right?”

At Baek Ae-young’s words, Tumanako flared up and shouted:

“Who says I can’t fight?! I’m really good at fighting. Geum-yi! You say something too!”

If Tumanako hadn’t been shivering from the cold and wiping her running nose with the back of her hand, her words might have gained a little credibility. Yoo Geum-yi, startled by Tumanako’s voice calling her, said:

“Researchers are good at knowing their place. I only deal with guys 20cm or smaller soaked in drugs.”

Kang Soojung, swinging a kettlebell, quickly concluded:

“Ah, if two go, one gets shot? Then we should just send three and be quick about it! Doctor, who do you think will get shot?”

“Jihyuk.”

“Hey, Jihyuk. Did you hear that? Be twice as careful.”

Unable to waste any more time, Shin Hae-ryang gestured, and Baek Ae-young sighed and took off her gun, hanging it on Lee Jihyun’s shoulder. Lee Jihyun, suddenly receiving about 8kg of weight, swallowed hard. Baek Ae-young said simply:

“If anyone approaches, shoot immediately.”

“You said to shoot only when identified as an enemy. What about the safety?”

“Shoot with the mindset that if you don’t shoot, the people behind you will die. If anyone criticizes you, say our team leader told you to shoot. Just pull the trigger and it will fire.”

“Ae-young, if you give this to me, what will you do?”

“This is a secret, but I’m going to steal the team leader’s.”

Baek Ae-young whispered the last part to Lee Jihyun, but because the corridor was so quiet, everyone nearby could hear it. Baek Ae-young took scissors out of her left pants pocket, put her fingers through the handle part, and spun them around as she entered the escape pod port in the order of Shin Hae-ryang, Seo Jihyuk, and herself.

As we watched the escape pod port door close, Kang Soojung asked me:

“Do we really need to send three people? Even I don’t think our team leader’s judgment was wrong.”

“If we send three and nothing happens, that’s fine.”

“That man. He’s following my decision now.”

“Who?”

“Our team leader. He’s a Korean guy who values time and efficiency like gold. We wasted 30 seconds having this ridiculous discussion? I joined this team late, so I haven’t seen the team leader beat up a Korean yet.”

“Come on, surely not.”

No matter what, efficiency doesn’t heal gunshot wounds. Previously, two unarmed people went in, but now there’s one armed with a gun and two with dumbbells, barbells, scissors, and knives. Surely they won’t come back injured after sending such strong people.

If he wants to hit me, tell him to go ahead. I don’t want to… taste that famous fist either. It’s horrifying to even imagine losing teeth in an already complicated situation.

I wanted to plop down on the floor while waiting, but I didn’t want to lay or sit the child sleeping and drooling on my back on the cold floor. Standing and waiting while carrying a child made every minute and second feel painfully clear.

I hate waiting. I really hate waiting. The cold corridor made it even harder to wait. Even though only three people were gone, mentally it felt like I was facing the strong winds of the North Sea alone. Before, Yoo Geum-yi and I waited for two people, but now 9 people were waiting for three. Somehow, even with more people, the feeling of being a child waiting for working parents remains the same. Did I emotionally depend on those three that much? I don’t think so.

Lee Jihyun seemed dazed holding the gun she received from Baek Ae-young. Shu Ran was saying something like “The gun is heavy, isn’t it?” next to Lee Jihyun, but it seemed like she could hardly hear the conversation. Kang Soojung addressed Lee Jihyun, who was frozen like a statue:

“Jihyun, isn’t the air a bit chilly?”

“…I hope no one comes. I feel like the gun barrel might suddenly bend into a U-shape and fire at me.”

“I see. You’re not cold. Got it.”

After checking on her pad that the East District corridor temperature was 7°C, Kang Soojung spoke to Tumanako, whose soul seemed about to leave her body in a different way from Lee Jihyun:

“Now I can feel it’s a bit cold.”

“Now you feel it? I feel like I’m about to freeze to death right now.”

“Come here.”

Yoo Geum-yi, wearing my long-sleeved cardigan, spread her arms wide towards the shivering Tumanako. Tumanako quickly entered Yoo Geum-yi’s embrace. Yoo Geum-yi hugged Tumanako like a mother bird sheltering her chick. Maybe because Yoo Geum-yi was shorter than Tumanako, they both just looked pitiful.

“You’re very sensitive to cold, aren’t you?”

I’m cold too, but I can still bear it. Tumanako sniffled and said:

“Try living in New Zealand. You never feel 7 degrees unless you’re opening the fridge. It’s warm in summer and even warmer in winter.”

Is it because I only learned world history superficially? I can’t tell if this is true or not. I looked sympathetically at Tumanako, whose teeth were chattering, and asked:

“I guess New Zealand only has one season?”

They say Korea used to have four distinct seasons, but now it’s practically down to just two. Either freeze to death or burn to death. The New Zealand kiwi, who had never experienced such extreme weather, shivered and answered:

“It’s only summer. I’ve never seen snow in New Zealand in my life. Old folks say there used to be glaciers and it snowed, but it seems like a lie.”

“In Korea too, snow only falls in Hamgyeong-do or Yanggang-do, and summer lasts almost 7 months. Is it because of climate change in New Zealand too?”

“It’s probably because of immigrants. If anything’s going wrong in this country, it’s all the immigrants’ fault. Oh? There’s a white Kiwi doing drugs and living off government subsidies in broad daylight? Then it’s all the fault of the Indian immigrant working for minimum wage. Oh? New Zealand lost its winter? Then I, who’ve lived here for thousands of years, must have stolen winter from the Pakeha (Europeans) who arrived less than three hundred years ago.”

Yoo Geum-yi, who was hugging Tumanako, giggled. Kang Soojung sighed and said:

“I’m definitely not immigrating to New Zealand.”

“After China split into 8 pieces, Asians make up 30% of New Zealand. You won’t be lonely if you come. And since they keep approving investment immigration, the country has a lot of money. The welfare is decent too.”

“I’m not going because of that bastard Oliver.”

“Ah. There are a lot of racists too. It’s a country that lacks nothing.”

Kang Soojung started laughing, dumbfounded by Tumanako’s tone.

I supported Henry’s bottom with one hand and reached behind his shoulder with the other to feel his head. His cheeks, ears, and nose tip weren’t that cold. …My hand is colder. Sumire, who was being carried on the back of the cult follower, saw my action and said:

“Why did you send three people?”

“I thought it would be safer for three to go than two.”

Sumire frowned and asked me:

“Huh? What if those three just take the three escape pods and go up by themselves?”

That was… an assumption I had never imagined.

“They’re not that kind of people.”

How can I judge people clearly after knowing them for only a day? But my response to Sumire’s statement came out almost like a spinal reflex. Those three people abandoning the people here and escaping in the escape pods? …I guess such thoughts are possible.

Shin Hae-ryang didn’t abandon me even when he thought I might be a religious fanatic in a situation where bullets were raining down, and Seo Jihyuk abandoned himself for fear of being a burden to others. As for Baek Ae-young, when I remember her climbing the stairs at the front with a flashlight in one hand and a cat in the other, it feels like a stone is placed on my chest.

Personally, I don’t care if any of the three take an escape pod and leave. I’d rather create non-existent escape pods to get them out of here if I could.

As Sumire said, Shin Hae-ryang might run away with Seo Jihyuk and Baek Ae-young, who seem to have worked together longer than the people he’s met in the underwater base. I understand. It’s a disaster situation, who could blame them if they escaped in an escape pod right now? It’s hard enough to save one’s own life.

But for now, I just wish they’d give up one seat for Henry.

We came to the underwater base on our own feet because of work, signing contracts, and somehow ended up experiencing this disaster, but the child had no choice in coming here. Seeing him sleeping after taking sleeping pills, it seems he didn’t come here on his own feet either.

Adults’ circumstances shouldn’t arbitrarily sway a child’s life beyond divorce or moving house, let alone drug-induced kidnapping, unexpected gunfights, or becoming shark bait.

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