Chapter 146
When Yohan looked at Ji-hye, she smiled brightly with eyes glistening with moisture and bowed her head. That smile, almost sacred, weighed on his heart like a debt.
“Thank you for saying that. I’m always so grateful to you, oppa.”
Ji-hye’s farewell lingered like an afterimage even after she left.
After seeing Ji-hye off, Yohan finished tidying up and returned to his quarters.
He hadn’t even fought, but his body felt heavy and tired. Instead of sleeping, Yohan sat leaning back on the sunbed-style relaxation chair he’d set up in front of his quarters.
A bundle of documents, rolled up and containing only the most important records, was tucked into the button on his shoulder.
Sitting here looking at the sea before the expedition had become a habit.
But tomorrow, he would leave this place, and tonight would be the last time the night sea of Sindo would imprint itself in his mind.
The concept of “last” always evoked useless emotions.
Even though it was just a place he lived in briefly, he felt this way. No, in fact, it was a shelter he had put a lot of effort into. From the moment he regressed, he had invested a lot of time and prepared many things here, and even after the residents settled in, he cultivated and developed it as if it were his own hometown.
But he had no regrets.
Everything was simply part of the process of surviving.
“Not sleeping?”
Seri was walking over from the next quarters. She was holding two cans of beer.
‘This is a familiar situation.’
The night sea. The two of them, slightly drunk. Even the subtle, meaningful look she had felt like déjà vu.
She sat next to him and handed him a beer, but Yohan shook his head.
“Stop drinking. Drunkard. And if you’re thinking of pretending to be drunk to try anything, I respectfully decline.”
“Tch. I’m not drunk.”
The wind was chilly. Even with a thick coat, the cold island wind seeped between the clothes. Seri shivered next to him. Yohan, staring into her eyes, read the complex flow of emotion in them.
What she wanted was always clear.
And Yohan finally said,
“Seri.”
“Yeah?”
“It’s time to move on.”
He drew the line.
“…….”
“If we keep dragging this out ambiguously, it’ll be hard for both of us. Stop now. I’m not going to change my values, and I’m not going to string you along.”
After a brief silence, Seri shot back,
“What did I ever ask from you for you to tell me to get over my feelings?”
“…….”
“Is this because of Ji-hye?”
There was a trace of guilt in him for pushing her away so bluntly.
A night’s memory.
It wasn’t a mistake. Both were adults and in a state of mind capable of making sound judgments. It was just that the impulse was sweet, and the pleasure from the sexual tension was intense.
But that was all.
“I might look pathetic, but I won’t give up. But I’m not going to force you either. I have my pride. Whether you like me or not is your freedom, but don’t tell me what to do with my feelings.”
Her voice was damp, almost clinging. Yohan turned his gaze away from her and just stared straight ahead.
“Still, thanks for being clear. If you’d kept up this ambiguous attitude, it would have been even harder for me.”
Seri got up and walked away. Yohan took a sip of the beer she’d left behind.
The beer was lukewarm.
—
The day of the decisive departure dawned. There was a flurry of activity preparing for departure. Noah stood in front of the warship, shaking her head with a look of deep emotion.
“I can’t believe I’m getting on a warship again.”
“Just think of it as fate.”
Yohan tapped her on the shoulder as he boarded the deck.
Yohan walked through the interior of the ship.
When he arrived at the [Command Control Center], Yohan radioed to those standing by.
“[Machine Control Room], is the engine room ready?”
-No issues with the engine below the viewing room diesel room.
“How about the bridge?”
-Yes. No problems.
“The deck?”
-No issues with the main deck.
-The helipad is good too.
Everything was tidy and perfect. It was the result of checking everything thoroughly for days on end. Yohan gave a short radio call.
“Radio me when engine preheating is complete. Prepare to close the hatch.”
-Yes.
All that remained was the signal to depart.
Yohan went up to the deck. He stood blankly gazing at the water’s surface as if waiting for someone.
-Captain.
And just in time, the radio message he’d been waiting for came.
Yohan held the warship at the ready for departure and set out for Incheon Port, towing a fishing boat to pick up Jae-ho.
From a distance, Jae-ho came into view. After spotting Yohan, Jae-ho got off his motorcycle and ran over, out of breath.
“Hah, I’m not late…”
“I thought you were dead.”
“I thought I was going to die.”
“Did you find anything?”
Jae-ho shook his head with a wry, mixed expression. He looked like he wanted to say something but didn’t.
There was a meaningful silence as the fishing boat headed for the warship, but Yohan didn’t ask.
As soon as they arrived at the warship, Jae-ho dumped out a stack of books from his backpack.
Picking out a few, Jae-ho quickly sorted through the books.
“These are all about navigation. This one’s a reference with information about the locations of logistics centers and ports around the world where you can refuel during a voyage.”
After finishing, he looked up at Yohan.
“Did you decide on a destination?”
“Roughly. I haven’t set it for sure. I need a navigator to set the destination.”
Hearing Yohan’s words, as if he’d been waiting for them, Jae-ho grinned and stood up.
“Let’s go to New Zealand.”
“Why?”
“GPS, it’s not working, right?”
Yohan nodded. Jae-ho continued as if he expected that.
“That’s how it’ll be. A year is plenty of time for the GPS function to go offline. In that case, going to Hawaii, out in the middle of the Pacific, is too risky even if you want to. It’s hard to pinpoint your position in the open sea. You have to sail along the coast. If the distance to the destination gets too long, you’re at risk of losing your bearings, so you have to break up the trip into small legs with intermediate stops.”
Jae-ho took out a large map and started marking dots along a dotted line.
“To put it simply, we can’t go straight from here to New Zealand in one go, but think of it as traveling the distance from here to Jeju Island 200 times. Go straight down along the west coast to Jeju, then head south along the Chinese coast to Taiwan, follow the islands along the Philippine archipelago, then to Papua New Guinea. From Papua New Guinea, it’s a straight line to New Zealand. The distance gets a little longer, but it’s safer this way. If anything happens, we can always dock on land.”
Yohan nodded as he listened. There was no need to go all the way there. Anywhere safe, where they could get supplies, was fine. He was satisfied with Jae-ho’s focus on safety.
“All right. Let’s do it that way.”
“Yes.”
“Fifteen minutes to departure, everyone to your stations.”
At last, Yohan gave the order, and the ship carrying the group set sail. It was the beginning of Camp Yohan’s final journey for survival.
—
2018/12
Baekryeongham (T/N: Name of their warship. Couldn’t find a better english name alternative.).
Somewhere at sea.
The voyage continued for seventeen days.
Baekryeongham, which had been speeding along without hindrance, was now docked at an island in the Philippine archipelago, enjoying a moment of peace.
On the surface, things seemed peaceful, but Baekryeongham had lost its way and was stranded in the middle of the Philippines.
Navigating the Philippine archipelago required much more advanced seamanship than expected.
Countless tiny islands, too small to be marked on the map, were scattered everywhere, constantly causing confusion.
At some point, the navigators aboard Baekryeongham could no longer determine the exact position of the ship, and after some deliberation, Jae-ho requested a temporary halt to the voyage.
Yohan accepted his request. Thus, Baekryeongham’s journey was temporarily suspended for the second time.
The search party had gone ashore to look for clues that could help determine their current location.
Some survivors were standing guard, while others were resting on the deck.
Yohan walked through the ship, checking to see if there were any issues. On a makeshift table on the deck, survivors enjoying their break could be heard playing a board game.
“Number 1. Assassin.”
“I’m going to kill the magician. I’ll build a guard post.”
Yohan glanced over at the familiar conversation. Time at sea was tedious, and most people hadn’t brought anything for entertainment. The only pastimes were a few board games found in the crew lockers.
The game they were playing now was popular because it made the time pass quickly.
Even so, he felt that dull and grueling time was repeating itself, so he didn’t forbid laughing and having fun during breaks.
As long as everyone fulfilled their duties and roles, that was enough. And right now, there was no one among the crew shirking their share.
Yohan headed to the bridge. Inside, Jae-ho and his assistant were hunched over in worry.
“How about flying the helicopter for an extended time?”
“No, that’s too wasteful. We need to save the helicopter fuel for emergencies.”
They were deeply troubled about the next leg of the journey.
After Jae-ho took over navigation, things had gone smoothly as far as Taiwan. When they refueled and restocked in Taiwan, he thought the voyage would finally pick up speed.
But as soon as they entered the Philippine archipelago, the navigators experienced hell.
“We’re on the right heading. Maybe we should just head another 900 km southeast to Papua New Guinea.”
“What if we get completely swept out into the Pacific?”
“That’s better than getting caught inside the strait. We have to stay much further south. The difference with and without navigational markers is huge. Ugh, it feels like we’re rowing in the middle of the Pacific.”
As Yohan approached, the two, hearing his footsteps, stood up. Yohan waved a hand, as if to tell them to keep working.
“Seems like things aren’t going well.”
“Ah, Captain. It’s just too hard to figure out the ship’s location…”
“Take your time. There’s no need to rush.”
Their dedication was praiseworthy, but they were responsible for steering a ship with over a hundred lives aboard. Rushing could lead to mistakes.
Yohan left the bridge without disturbing them.
There wasn’t much he could do himself. His role was to manage thoroughly so that unnecessary conflicts didn’t arise within the ship, to ensure nobody was overworked or underworked, and to carry out safety checks to prevent accidents.
Everything else was left to each person’s judgment and actions.
Noah’s group had gone out searching, and Hyuk and some team members were scrubbing salt off the ship. They greeted Yohan with bright smiles and waves when they saw him.
Near the shore, Sweeper and the youngest search party members were casting nets to fish, and on the stern deck, Ji-hye and Seo-jun were organizing supplies.
Yohan walked around the ship and its surroundings, then returned to the captain’s cabin to write in the voyage log. Since departure, Yohan had recorded in the log every day.
Arriving at Jeju, passing through Okinawa and Miyako in Japan, and reaching Taiwan on day 10. Stopping for another refuel and supplies at Keelung port.
Then entering the Philippine archipelago on day 15 and, for the first time, facing a storm and straying off course.
He filled out the voyage log without missing a day.
That was the best Yohan could do at present.
On the last line of the log, Yohan wrote a single sentence, almost like a diary entry.
‘Even if we’re slow, we do not stop.’
That was his determination to survive each day.
—
2019/01
New Zealand. Auckland.
An emerald beach stretched wide. Under the clear seawater, at odds with the apocalypse, schools of fish swam in.
As the helicopter passed overhead, casting a black shadow, the schools of fish scattered as if faced with a predator.
Inside the helicopter were four men. Yohan opened the door while hovering and leaned out.
The unfamiliar foreign land pierced his wide-open view. His expression was a mix of excitement, tension, and resolute determination.
Looking out at the coast through the helicopter door, Yohan raised his voice.
“Luca, a little farther in.”
At Yohan’s words, Luca gave a short reply and turned the helicopter. The helicopter moved further into the harbor. Yohan asked Sweeper, who was using binoculars to check the opposite side through the window.
“What about the other side?”
“Doesn’t look like there’s anything threatening. Plenty of Western zombies over there.”
“How many?”
“Should I count them?”
Meaning, it was too many to count with the naked eye. Yohan shook his head.
“There’s a port on the island next to us, so let’s set down there.”
Luca searched for a spot to land the helicopter. To the east of Auckland, there were many islands clustered together, and they picked one that must have been used as a tourist spot and landed there.
Yohan opened the helicopter door and stepped out.
The first step onto New Zealand soil after reaching their destination. He took his first step as if channeling Armstrong, then stood tall on both feet. At that moment, gunshots rang out from far across the sea.
There were still many survivors left on the Pacific islands they’d visited during the voyage. Some had attacked the camp without warning, leading to the complete massacre of all the residents of one island.
And here, too, survivors still remained, struggling to survive. The longer time went on, the more ruthless and strong the survivors became, as if to prove the origin of the species.
Though the circumstances and locations were different, Yohan’s values were the same. If someone was willing to join, he would accept them. If they were a threat, he would kill them.
Whether living or dead, anything standing in the way would be crushed.
For the next eight months.
Within eight months, he would eliminate every threat and finish preparations to welcome a new generation in this new era.
Just as he had promised.
“So this is our final settlement.”
“I like it. Living in an ocean view house was on my bucket list.”
Hajin and Noah each chimed in. Yohan grinned and stretched.
“First, let’s wipe out all the zombies.”
“Roger. Starting the takeover of New Zealand now.”
