Chapter 32

The Underpass

Golf courses are flat.

That's only natural for a place where people play a sport that involves rolling balls. But even on a golf course, there are quite a few places to hide if you look carefully.

Three or four people could hide inside a halfway house built for players to take short breaks during a round, and one or two could easily lie in ambush around penalty areas, or hazards, such as artificial ponds, rivers, and streams incorporated into the course.

But Bong-tae didn't want to split up his men.

They already had only one-fifth the firepower of their opponents. If they divided even that among separate positions, he believed they would be overwhelmed in their ability to sustain combat and wiped out, no matter how successful their ambush might be.

A place where all twelve men could hide together. And Greenwood Country Club had just such a place.

Some golf courses have underground passages called underpasses.

Golf may be the sport that uses the largest amount of land, but it is also one of the most meticulous about using that space. The more recently a golf course was built, the more determined its designers were to turn every bit of open grassland into playable course space without wasting any of it.

Greenwood Country Club, completed in 2028, had placed as many of its pathways as possible underground, including paths for players moving between holes, routes for golf carts, and roads needed for course maintenance. There were numerous long, tunnel-like passages beneath the course.

Bong-tae intended to use these underpasses to defend a position in the middle of the golf course. The sign he had pointed out before they moved bore the words 'Seamless Play with Our Underpasses!' in exaggerated lettering.

The members of 2nd Platoon gathered at the entrance to an underpass near the clubhouse. A map of the golf course and a diagram of the underpass network were posted on the wall.

"Sergeant Kim, there's a map here."

"Kang Min-jun."

"Yes? Me?"

"You can memorize this, right?"

Everyone's attention turned to Kang Min-jun. Startled by the sudden attention, he carefully examined the map on the wall.

"Uh···. Hmm···."

The other soldiers also turned their eyes toward the map. They shook their heads, thinking it wasn't the kind of map anyone could memorize in a few minutes.

"Sergeant Kim, how is anyone supposed to memorize all this at once?"

"It looks complicated just from a glance."

The diagram was a bewildering tangle of hole numbers and cart paths, while the underpass entrances were marked only with small symbols.

"Uh···. I think I can. Would it be okay if I memorized just the nearby area instead of the whole thing?"

"Yeah. Can you manage as far as the area around Hole Five?"

"If that's all, I've already memorized it."

Kang Min-jun answered calmly. Of course, it wasn't easy, but compared to memorizing the complicated structures of the brain and nervous system, committing a map like this to memory wasn't particularly difficult.

Hwang Gi-tae and Lee Jin-gu grabbed Kang Min-jun by the shoulders, looking utterly incredulous.

"What? Doctor, no, what the hell are you talking about?"

"Corporal Kang, are you serious? Don't lie to us."

Kang Min-jun smiled faintly and began explaining the map.

"It's not actually that complicated a structure. Besides, look here. You can clearly see the patterns, right? Any point where three or more routes converge is a major junction, and the symbols aren't placed randomly either—"

"···What the hell is he talking about?"

"So instead of memorizing the picture itself···. Starting from the top—"

Not a single person there understood what Kang Min-jun was saying. Nevertheless, Bong-tae nodded several times, pretending he understood perfectly well.

"Anyway, it's good that you can memorize it. Listen, no matter where the North Koreans are on the golf course, we're going to come out at a hole behind them and attack. Got it?"

"Ah. Understood. I'll guide everyone."

Bong-tae studied the golf course map for a moment, then led the platoon toward the area around Hole Eleven. It was a course near the center of the golf club. He figured they could respond regardless of where the North Korean soldiers moved.

"Let's watch for them from here."

"Yes, sir."

"Only Hwang Gi-tae comes out with me. Everyone else, wait below."

"Yes, sir."

Bong-tae and Hwang Gi-tae moved to a pond directly in front of the underpass and lay prone. The bushes only reached knee height, but they were sufficient to conceal two men.

Hwang Gi-tae used his observation scope to watch the routes leading from the observation deck and clubhouse.

"See anything?"

"Not yet. But do you think they'll come toward the golf course? Artillery shells landed here."

"If they don't, we'll just have to ask for another K9 strike on the observation deck."

Just then, Nam Gi-baek called out from inside the underpass.

"Sergeant Kim!"

"What?"

"They say the North Koreans are coming down from the observation deck toward us!"

"Okay. Wait down there."

"Yes, sir!"

Hwang Gi-tae's prone body flinched. He had spotted the leading North Korean soldiers near the observation deck. They had climbed Mount Baekbong simultaneously from three directions, joined forces at the summit, and were now descending toward the golf course.

"They're coming."

The North Korean soldiers maintained their formation as they thoroughly searched the mountain. Their movements suggested more than a simple reconnaissance mission prompted by the shelling of the golf course. They seemed convinced that South Korean troops were somewhere nearby.

"They're coming slowly."

"Wish they'd hurry the fuck up···. Fuck, they're being careful."

Bong-tae frowned. The enemy was being extremely cautious too.

He had secretly hoped they would head straight for the impact area. They would have to stop for a while to search the clubhouse, and he could call in self-propelled artillery support directly onto their heads.

But contrary to his hopes, the North Korean soldiers showed little interest in rescuing survivors. They were persistently searching for traces of South Korean troops.

Bong-tae began to wonder whether suggesting that they intercept the enemy here had been a mistake. His brow furrowed again, forming a crease so deep that a 500-won coin could have been wedged into it.

While anxious thoughts churned through Bong-tae's mind, a calm voice spoke beside him.

"Bong-tae hyung."

Hwang Gi-tae spoke without taking his eye off the observation scope. Bong-tae turned toward him. Despite the North Korean soldiers approaching their position, Hwang Gi-tae's expression hadn't changed in the slightest.

"What?"

"Don't be nervous."

"···What?"

"When you're nervous, hyung, it's fucking obvious."

"···."

Bong-tae had heard something similar somewhere before.

No. He remembered exactly. It was what he himself had said to Captain Choi Cheol-jung, the 33rd Battalion's Headquarters Company commander, just after the war broke out.

'Don't be nervous, Company Commander. If you get tense, the rest of us get even more nervous.'

Bong-tae grinned.

"You bastard, don't get cocky. I'm not nervous at all."

"Nobody's unhappy with your decision. Even if we die here, I don't think anyone will blame you."

"Bullshit. You're giving me goosebumps. Knock it off."

"They've come down toward the golf course. You can see them too, right?"

Bong-tae could now make out the North Korean soldiers with his naked eyes. There were about sixty of them, just as Kim Hong-je had said. A force of approximately five squads.

They weren't carrying anything large, such as mounted machine guns or anti-tank weapons. Like Bong-tae's platoon, they were lightly equipped, carrying only light combat gear.

"They're still walking. They don't seem to care about the impact site at all···."

"Keep watching where they're heading."

"Yes, sir."

The North Korean troops deployed here were light infantry belonging to the Special Operations Forces. They called themselves 'Lightning.' They were a unit specializing in reconnaissance and surveillance, repeatedly infiltrating on foot with their equipment reduced to the bare minimum.

Their level of training was different from that of the ordinary infantry Bong-tae had fought in the 3rd Division and 7th Corps.

They weren't quite as elite as the special operations units that infiltrated by parachute, but they were mid-level elite troops, far superior to regular infantry.

That also meant they were much more familiar with conventional combat doctrine. Rather than bypassing the clubhouse, they began crossing the golf course.

Their intention was to use their speed to catch the reconnaissance unit that had observed the clubhouse and directed the artillery strike before it could escape Mount Baekbong.

"Hwang Gi-tae, let's move."

"Yes, sir."

Bong-tae and Hwang Gi-tae quickly rejoined the rest of their platoon. Everyone looked at Bong-tae with tense expressions.

"They're here. Get ready. If we come out near Hole Seven, we should be able to get behind them."

"Yes. I'll lead the way. I remember the route."

Kang Min-jun stepped forward to take the lead. Just then, Lee Jin-gu caught him by the collar. He pointed toward something parked at the entrance to the underpass.

"Sergeant Kim. How about that···?"

"···Hm?"

"Lee Jin-gu, are you out of your mind? Do you think we're here on vacation?"

Hwang Gi-tae exclaimed in astonishment when he saw what Lee Jin-gu was pointing at. It was a golf cart. A four-seater, complete with a rear cargo bed for carrying golf bags.

Bong-tae thought for a moment, then patted Lee Jin-gu on the shoulder. The corners of his mouth rose as though he were deeply moved.

"Jin-gu, your brain has finally started working."

"Right? It's a good idea, isn't it?"

Hwang Gi-tae and the other soldiers shook their heads and sighed deeply.

"That bastard's finally gone insane too. All that talk about some virus, and it turns out he was the carrier."

"Seriously···."

"Hey! Fuck, what are you doing! Want to die? We don't have time!"

"Yes, sir! Understood!"

Three golf carts carrying the twelve members of 2nd Platoon began moving. They sped along the long underground passage of the underpass.

"···."

Everyone in 2nd Platoon was silent. Except for Bong-tae and Lee Jin-gu, they all thought they were doing something insane.

But traveling by golf cart was actually much safer than walking. The golf carts here used electric motors and produced almost no engine noise.

Their noise level was far lower than that of combat boots striking the ground. From just a few meters away, the carts could barely be heard.

The disadvantage was that their large bodies were easy to spot, but since the members of the 33rd Battalion's 2nd Platoon were traveling through an underground passage, that wasn't a problem.

Kang Min-jun drove the lead cart, with Bong-tae in the passenger seat. The soldiers riding in the back aimed their rifles forward with tense expressions.

They traveled approximately sixty meters by golf cart. All three carts stopped side by side. Bong-tae looked at the soldiers and brought his index finger to his lips.

Everyone quietly dismounted. Not even the faintest rattle came from their equipment.

Bong-tae was the first to lean out of the underpass. Ahead of him rose a gently rounded hill, one of the mounds characteristic of a golf course. Beyond it, he could see the North Korean soldiers moving briskly across the golf course.

Bong-tae lightly beckoned with two fingers.

The other eleven soldiers spread out in a line and followed behind him. Nobody spoke. Suppressing even their heavy breathing, they pressed their bodies against the slope of the hill.

As soon as the platoon members lay prone, they pressed their rifle stocks tightly against their shoulders and raised only their muzzles above the crest of the hill.

Click. Click. Click.

The sounds of fire selectors switching from safe to automatic rang out one after another. Everyone knew that pulling their fingers back just one centimeter would set off a chain of events from which there would be no turning back.

The North Korean soldiers still hadn't noticed them. As everyone's eyes swept across their targets, Bong-tae quietly called for Song Min-jae.

"Song Min-jae."

"Yes. I know."

Song Min-jae spoke with his cheek pressed firmly against his rifle stock. His weapon still had no accessories, not even a laser sight. It was completely stock.

"Know what?"

"The guy with the rank insignia. The one with Piccolo's antenna. And the guy carrying something."

"Excellent."

Bong-tae and Song Min-jae grinned.

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