Chapter 111

Whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, the navy remained quiet for a while. They settled near the pier and began repairing their ships.

Yohan didn’t know exactly what they were doing, but they looked quite busy. It seemed like they were either being cautious of this side or deliberately keeping their distance.

Them keeping their distance was actually for the better. If their objective wasn’t the supplies or people here but rather the act of landing itself, there was no need to antagonize them. Of course, that didn’t mean he could take his eyes off them for even a moment.

Yohan observed the navy’s temporary base through his binoculars and thought. Colonel Jin Juha was chatting with a fellow officer while looking over their fields. They must’ve realized the situation here was quite favorable.

“Oppa, Ji-hye’s asking how long she’s supposed to stay in hiding.”

Yohan hesitated at Seri’s question.

Half a day had passed since the navy landed. Yohan, who couldn’t keep the non-combatants hidden forever, nodded.

“Tell her to return for now. Just make sure to avoid any contact with the soldiers.”

“Okay, got it.”

“For now, tell the non-combatants to stick with the combat group. We don’t know what might happen.”

“I’ll let them know.”

Seri gave a brisk reply and started up her bike.

The problem began at dinnertime.

Navy officers visited the cafeteria on the first floor of the welfare center.

“What brings you here…?”

The eyes of the survivors, who had been eating, darted toward the officers.

“We were hoping you could provide some food for the soldiers.”

The one who replied was a petty officer—equivalent to a platoon leader in the army.

“By food, you mean…?”

“Just what I said. From what I’ve seen, it looks like you have plenty. We’d appreciate your cooperation.”

“How many people are we talking about?”

“Eighty-three in total.”

It was a number that made one exclaim instinctively. Feeding eighty-three grown men would make it hard to last even a month with the supplies they had stockpiled. Not to mention, they hadn’t even touched the combat rations and canned goods, saving them for emergencies. They were meant to last for the next five to seven years.

But the food produced daily couldn’t feed an extra ninety people. They were already rationing strictly for the current group.

As Yohan hesitated, the petty officer pressed him as if demanding an answer. At that moment, a sailor entered and saluted the petty officer.

“Chief Petty Officer, the operations officer is asking when the meal will be ready. The captain is waiting.”

“Tell him to come down in about thirty minutes.”

“Yes, sir.”

The petty officer turned back to Yohan.

“We’d appreciate it if you could prepare a separate table for the four officers. Since space is limited, we’d also appreciate it if those who finish eating could vacate their seats quickly. Thanks for your cooperation.”

The expressions of Yohan and a few other survivors instantly soured.

What the hell is this bastard… Who does he think he’s ordering around?

* * *

“That’s not like you, oppa. Everyone’s worried.”

Seri grumbled as she watched the soldiers noisily take over the cafeteria and devour their precious food.

Though Yohan had scowled on the spot, in the end, he decided to feed the eighty or so soldiers. On top of that, he even arranged a special table for the four officers as they had requested.

“I’m sure you have your reasons, oppa… but still. People risked their lives to gather that food.”

Some questioned Yohan’s actions and decisions. Considering his usual nature, the moment they tried to pull rank like that, he should’ve viewed them as enemies or threats and eliminated them.

That would’ve been the expected reaction from someone like him.

But Yohan didn’t respond, and people started to feel something was off.

‘Why is he letting them push us around like that?’

That thought soon led to—

‘The soldiers must have the upper hand in terms of combat power.’

That was the conclusion they arrived at. After all, Yohan had never fought a losing battle.

No one could figure out exactly what he was thinking. All they could do was speculate.

Yohan holed himself up in the command room. Seri, who knew him better than anyone, could tell his mood had hit rock bottom.

She was about to say, “Why don’t you just flip the table?” when uninvited guests barged into the command room.

Four navy officers.

“This looks like some sort of operations command center.”

“Indeed it does, Captain. Haha.”

The officers chuckled dryly as they looked over the room, filled with broadcasting equipment, radios, various maps, and tactical boards.

“This must be your office, Mr. Yohan?”

Yohan turned to face the colonel’s question.

“This is the command room.”

“Oh ho.”

“Anyone hearing this would think you’re running a military operation or something.”

It wasn’t obvious, but the sarcasm was clear. Seri’s expression crumpled again.

“You’ve got weapons and ammunition stored in the supply warehouse… And this kind of equipment? Isn’t this too dangerous for civilians to be handling?”

Though the question was aimed at Yohan, one of the other officers answered instead.

“Exactly. Seems like it’s time for us soldiers of the Republic of Korea to step in and take over management.”

Yohan didn’t respond. But it was obvious that silence didn’t mean agreement.

“What the hell has the navy done for us…?”

Seri’s words were cut off by Yohan’s hand gesture. The officers cleared their throats.

Trying to change the mood, the colonel brought up a new topic.

“I saw some infused liquor on the first floor.”

It was the liquor they had brewed on the first day they settled on the island, to commemorate their safe arrival. The colonel licked his lips greedily.

“To establish a cooperative system between civilians and the military, we should have some discussions. How about a little drinking party?”

So, basically, he was saying, “Set the table and pour us drinks.”

Yohan suppressed the laughter bubbling up and stared straight into the colonel’s eyes. Then he let out a barely noticeable sigh.

“Seri. Ask Ji-hye to prepare some drinks and snacks in the cafeteria. Also, call in the senior recon team members. Oh, and Jae-ho and Rina too.”

“……”

Seri glared at Yohan with a face full of dissatisfaction and stormed out. Her attitude might’ve been like that, but she’d get the job done. She’d never ignored one of his orders.

“What a difficult woman. A proper lady should be quiet and well-mannered…”

“Let’s head down. I’ll have the place prepared.”

Yohan cut off the officers’ chatter as if he had no intention of listening to their nonsense any longer.

One of the officers frowned, seemingly displeased at being interrupted, but perhaps their conscience, however faint, kept them from objecting further.

Yohan sat silently at the table where the officers were drinking. Before long, all the sharpshooters had gathered, except for Sweeper and Sergeant Ong.

“Where are Sweeper and Ong?” Hajin asked.

Seri answered in his stead.

“They said they had something Oppa asked them to do, so they asked to be left out.”

Sweeper had to guard the weapons and ammo depot, while Sergeant Ong was in hiding. There was no benefit in revealing his military status, and he had a critical role to play—possibly seizing the ship if things went south.

The gathering ended up larger than expected. With seven from their side already present, the officers had even called in three chief petty officers.

They seemed to think this was some kind of power move to assert dominance.

“This is pretty much the last island along the West Sea line, right?”

“Correct. Aside from the Baengnyeongdo line up north, you could say we’ve reclaimed nearly all the others.”

“Well now, back in the Imjin War, the Joseon navy was the first to strike back. Perhaps this time, the Republic of Korea Navy will be the starting point of humanity’s counteroffensive. Haha.”

“Let’s make that happen. That’s the duty of our national military, isn’t it?”

The conversation dragged on. They acted like they were humanity’s last hope in this era.

Given that the military had taken near-catastrophic damage, and yet they had saved most of their crew through sheer leadership, it was understandable that they were proud.

Personally, Yohan even thought it was impressive. Impressive how thick-skinned they were.

‘……’

Keep your expressions in check.

Yohan glanced at the members with their lips poked out and gave a slight smirk, conveying his meaning.

Hajin and Hyuk were stubborn as ever, and Jung-hwan and Seri clearly didn’t like this situation. Rina and Yohan weren’t exactly talkative types, so most of the conversation was handled by the navy officers. It was as if the guests had become the hosts.

The only one accustomed to these types of situations was Jae-ho, who occasionally responded to their remarks.

Because of that, the officers focused their questions on Jae-ho. Of course, he was a seasoned veteran of the camp and dodged all their inquiries with a practiced smile.

“Anyway, everyone here’s awfully quiet. If not for Reporter Choi, we might’ve thought we were being shut out. Huh? Almost felt like we weren’t welcome.”

“Surely not. We are the Republic of Korea Navy, after all.”

Yohan nudged Jung-hwan sitting beside him. Judging from the face he was making, he must’ve heard the full story from Seri.

‘Relax that face, will you?’

He didn’t seem like the type, but he sure had a temper. Maybe it was from spending too much time around fiery people.

“Miss Seri, was it? Wow, to think such a beauty would be living in a remote island like this. Truly surprising. Would you pour me a drink? A drink poured by a beauty is a whole different experience, you know?”

One of the officers smiled slyly and extended his glass toward Seri. The way his eyes swept up and down her was as repulsive as a crawling bug.

Instead of frowning, Seri replied with a radiant smile.

“Looks like you think I’m the kind of woman who pours drinks, soldier. Should I put a bullet through your asshole instead?”

“……W-what?”

‘Oh no.’

The dining hall fell silent in an instant. Like a bucket of cold water had been poured over them.

Yohan held his head in his hand.

But then Seri smiled, her eyes curling into crescents.

“Just kidding. Here, have a drink.”

“W-well now… That caught me off guard.”

It was a joke, sure, but one that splashed cold water with class. The tension lingered, but it did leave everyone with a refreshing sense of satisfaction.

‘I’m gonna have to use that sometime.’

After making everyone’s hearts drop, Seri excused herself, claiming she wasn’t feeling well.

The old men were stuffy, and the conversation went nowhere.

As the alcohol began to take effect, the colonel finally got to the point.

“Frankly, I’m impressed.”

Yohan slightly lifted his head and made eye contact. The colonel continued.

“We’ve been to many islands, you see. But this is the first place we’ve seen that has not only cleared out the zombies but also restored and prepared things for the future.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

“And that brings me to my point.”

The amount of dramatic pause he gave was unsettling.

“We’d like to use this place as our logistics base.”