Chapter 114

Yohan looked at the Mistral missile and recalled his days in the military. Seeing the equipment he’d handled for two years once again in this apocalyptic era filled him with emotion.

He couldn’t help but click around the missile’s mounting interface and spin once in the chair. As he did, Sergeant Ong approached with a grin.

“Captain, you seem pretty familiar with that.”

Yohan gave a wry smile and replied.

“It was my military specialty. Only got to fire once in the field, but I know how it works.”

Even then, he’d only stood by with binoculars as an assistant during the Daecheon shooting competition. Still, he knew how to operate it.

It felt a bit embarrassing to say it himself, but he’d once considered himself an ace during his service, working hard in both simulator and infrared drills. It had been a while, but his body still remembered the equipment.

“This is… a missile?”

“Technically, a guided missile. If a flying mutant shows up, I’ll show you what I’ve got.”

“Ooh, I’m looking forward to that. But are there even flying mutants?”

“Beats me. Hopefully not?”

At Yohan’s reply, Sergeant Ong chuckled. There were no flying zombies in Yohan’s memory. And hopefully, there never would be.

If the enemy was a mutant detectable by infrared, the missile would be plenty effective. Especially against high-grade mutants like David or the Butcher who caused chaos while darting around—it would be extremely useful.

“Seems like the battle’s over. Let’s clean up. Ong, cover up the Vulcan and the Mistral.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Hyuk, Seri—check on the residents and tend to them.”

“Got it.”

“Hajin, Sweeper—check if any survivors are left on the ship. If not, sort through the supplies and bring them over.”

“Roger.”

“The rest of you, recover the bodies and gather all the firearms and ammo.”

“Yes, sir.”

After giving quick orders, Yohan turned toward the three people with complicated expressions and said softly:

“Berda, Pio, So-hee.”

“……”

“Relax your faces.”

He didn’t intend to criticize them for being uncomfortable with fighting other survivors.

It was only natural to feel disturbed by killing people. Still, they had performed their roles without hesitation or panic during the battle—that alone was commendable.

That didn’t mean Yohan had to cater to their feelings. They had agreed to follow his lead, and this was his way of doing things.

* * *

Yohan searched the ship thoroughly with Sweeper and Hajin to make sure no soldiers remained.

“Looks like no one’s left?”

“Yeah.”

As expected, there were no remaining soldiers aboard. Yohan completed the sweep and headed toward the battlefield, where cleanup was in full swing.

The site, swept by a storm of blood, was now filled with search members busily retrieving corpses.

A gruesome scene that didn’t fit the pastoral surroundings. Soldiers who’d died instantly from clean shots were the lucky ones.

Others had bullets lodged in their abdomens or shoulders, screaming in pain. Pio and Berda stood by helplessly, not knowing what to do.

The search team retrieved bodies with stoic expressions, while the newly joined combatants shot them cold looks as if in judgment.

Off to the side, So-hee couldn’t hold back her nausea and kept gagging.

“Urk, ugh…”

The soldier groaning in pain with a bullet in his abdomen finally stopped breathing. Pio lowered his head, then dragged the corpse to the pile.

“Hey, make sure you check the biscuit pouch and ammo belt before moving the body.”

Jinsu pointed out to Pio. His tone wasn’t scolding—just a matter-of-fact reminder of what needed to be done. But from within, Pio felt a surge of anger.

“What the hell—”

He couldn’t finish his sentence. Yohan had placed a hand on his shoulder from behind.

“Thanks for the hard work.”

They were trying their best to keep neutral expressions, but even they looked a bit pale.

Yohan gave each of them a pat on the back or shoulder. It was enough to ease their tension noticeably. After that, he sat So-hee down to rest and walked over to Pio and Berda.

“So, how was your first battle?”

“You guys are incredible.”

Pio meant every word.

They’d faced more than triple their number. And they’d taken them down using only pistols and close combat. No prior plans, no signals—yet the battle had started simultaneously, without hesitation.

There was no need to comment on the power of aces like Hajin or Sweeper. But every single member had fought calmly and precisely.

Just like highly trained professionals. In the end, they suffered zero casualties.

But what surprised him most… was their brutality. They gunned people down without so much as blinking.

Some even seemed determined to shoot one more bullet into anyone not dead yet.

Individual strength aside, the combat power of the whole unit was overwhelming. The soldiers looked like children in comparison.

“Did you really have to kill them all?”

“I hope you understand that question’s getting old for me. It’s like a cliché at this point. Don’t you think?”

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

“I mean it’s hard to explain the same thing every time someone new joins. Anyway, didn’t you hear me say recover the bodies and collect the weapons?”

“Well yeah, but still…”

Pio didn’t know yet. Yohan always said what he wanted, and once you started talking to him, it was easy to get pulled in.

“What, are you uncomfortable searching the corpses?”

“Of course I am… It’s bad enough we killed them, and now we’re stealing their stuff? Doesn’t that bother you at all? It’s not like we’re short on guns or ammo.”

“Firearms and ammo are consumables. With the amount of training we do, we’re far from well-stocked. Think about it. If we have to fight zombies until the day we die, can you really say we’ve got enough?”

“…….”

“Searching corpses is just part of looting. Whether they died in battle or to zombies, a corpse is still a corpse. You’ll get used to it. You have to get used to it.”

Yohan was blunt when dealing with people who spouted such naïve nonsense, but with Pio, his tone was comparatively mild.

For their first fight, they’d done quite well. Even in an uncomfortable situation, they followed orders to the end. Once the adjustment period passed, they would no doubt pull their weight. The only problem—

“You struggling?”

She couldn’t even properly look at the corpses, retching on an empty stomach—just a twenty-year-old kid.

“I’ll give you a choice.”

Yohan turned to So-hee. She wiped her mouth and looked up at him with hollow eyes.

“You don’t seem like the fighting type. But everyone has to pull their weight here. You can join the search team and learn to fight, help out with farming, or learn a trade. Whatever you want, we’ll support it.”

“…….”

“You don’t have to decide now. And you can always change your mind later. Take your time.”

He said that, but in truth, she already had the hands of someone familiar with killing. He figured it wouldn’t be long before she joined the search team.

After ensuring the scene cleanup was complete, Yohan called Seri over the radio. The most important part remained.

“Seri, over here.”

— Yeah, be right there.

A short while later, the sound of a motorcycle grew louder from the distance. Seri came racing in and stopped her bike with a smooth spin before hurrying over to Yohan. He ruffled her hair a couple of times.

“How are the people?”

“Well… they’re all shocked and scared.”

“Anyone upset that we killed the soldiers?”

“Doesn’t seem like it. With bullets flying everywhere, I doubt they had the presence of mind. Besides, they aimed their guns first.”

“Good. Then all that’s left…”

Yohan’s gaze turned to the remaining soldiers kneeling with their arms bound by cable ties.

He never planned to reintegrate them as residents. Who knew whether they’d become valuable allies or poisoned chalices, hiding their resentment.

They were a future threat. Killing them was the right call.

Yohan pulled back the hammer on his revolver and walked toward the captured soldiers. He approached the one with the highest rank, crouched to meet his eye level, and checked the name tag before removing the gag. The sergeant trembled, his eyes full of fear.

“Sergeant Cho Hyun-woo. I have a few questions.”

“U-uhhh…”

He looked like someone staring at a demon straight from hell. Yohan asked his emotionless question to the whimpering soldier.

“With the remaining personnel here, can that ship still be operated?”

The sergeant didn’t answer. His mind raced in panic, instinctively calculating what response might save his life.

“Please… don’t kill me…”

Yohan could see the answer in his expression: it was impossible. There was nothing more to gain from him. He replaced the gag and loaded his weapon. Letting him live any longer would only invite consequences.

As Yohan slowly raised his gun to aim, Pio grabbed his arm.

“W-wait a second.”

“What?”

“You’re not seriously going to kill them? They can’t even resist right now.”

“Exactly.”

“I’m not trying to piss you off or anything, but… don’t you think that’s a bit much?”

Pio had dropped his usual snark and was trying to reason with Yohan sincerely. That sincerity reminded Yohan of someone and made him chuckle.

“But what if they come back for revenge? Should I just chop off their hands and let them go?”

“…….”

“What, is that too much for you too?”

Every time Yohan spoke with Pio, the soldiers visibly flinched.

“Look, kid. I’m tired of explaining why we can’t leave any threats behind in this brutal world. If you’re curious about my reasons, ask anyone around. If you don’t like it, you and your lady friend can leave.”

Pio opened his mouth like he wanted to respond, but before he could, Sweeper and Hajin came over with carts—apparently done cleaning the ship.

“Hey, boss. Why are you giving the newbie such a hard time? He mess something up?”

“Nah. He actually did pretty well.”

He meant it. They’d done better than expected. But that was that—and this was this. Yohan once again raised his gun toward the soldiers.

“Mmph… mmph!”

The bound soldiers thrashed. Yohan slowly pulled the trigger, then stopped and let out a quiet sigh, lowering the gun.

“Huh? What gives?”

“Changed my mind. Junghwan, start the boat. Put these guys on it.”

“What are you gonna do?”

“Drop them off at Yeongjong Island. I’ll let them go.”

Everyone gave Yohan puzzled looks. Especially Sweeper and Hajin, who had no clue what had transpired, looked completely baffled.

Ignoring their skeptical gazes, Yohan stood the prisoners up and loaded them onto the fishing boat in a line.

Just as the boat was about to depart, Sweeper climbed aboard.

“Why don’t you take a break instead?”

“I’m coming too. What if they jump us the moment we untie them?”

Yohan said nothing at first, then gave a nod. With a loud roar, the motorboat cut across the waves.

As he stood on the deck facing the sea breeze, Sweeper eventually stepped into the wheelhouse.

“Hey, boss.”

“Yeah?”

“What’re you thinking about? You’ve been dead silent since earlier.”

“Hmm. The Executioner Gae Baek-jeong.” (T/N: Quick reminder, he was the leader of the Seoul Survivor Union)

At Yohan’s answer, Sweeper made a face like he’d just seen something disturbing.

“Ugh. Never figured you for the type.”

“Don’t be gross. I just occasionally think about the organizational chart he designed. Strange thing, really. He ranked every single person out of hundreds. Personally. Even with people dying left and right, he did it all over again each time someone died.”