Chapter 4

Bucket List

Bong-tae ran out through the main gate.

The platoon members who had been waiting by the roadside spotted him and surrounded him.

“Sergeant Kim! What about the others?”

Sergeant Hwang Gi-tae, who held the highest rank among the platoon members apart from Bong-tae, spoke first. Bong-tae silently shook his head.

That single, brief gesture made everyone press their lips tightly together. Bong-tae took stock of the remaining platoon members.

Two sergeants, including Hwang Gi-tae and himself.

Corporals Kim Se-jin and Lee Hwan.

Privates First Class Lee Jin-gu, Kim Chan-seong, and Nam Gi-baek.

And Privates Park Min-su, Jeong Hyeon-woo, and Song Min-jae.

Ten in total. That was all that remained of Headquarters Company. Just moments earlier, more than sixty people had been gathered there.

There had been a company commander, an administrative supply sergeant, a command sergeant major, four two-and-a-half-ton trucks, machine guns, and mortars. Now, they were all gone.

“Fucking hell···. Is this really happening?”

“Are they really all dead?”

“···What do we do now?”

Hwang Gi-tae's voice trembled. The others were also trembling with fear, their teeth chattering. They looked at Bong-tae.

“···I don't know either.”

Boom— Boom— Boom—

The sound of artillery shells continued to echo from somewhere not far from the base. The explosions reverberated through the mountains, reaching the place where the Headquarters Company survivors were gathered.

“S-Sergeant Kim! The sky! Look at the sky!”

“Huh?”

Lee Jin-gu pointed toward the orange sky. Everyone jerked their heads upward. At the same moment, they were all struck speechless.

Countless black dots floated across the sky. They looked almost like a flock of birds. The dots passed over Bong-tae's head and moved rapidly toward the area behind them. Their trajectories left long streaks across the sky.

“Fuck···. What are those?”

“They look like planes.”

“A-aren't they heading toward Seoul?”

“No, fuck! What are our fighter jets doing? Where's the Air Force?”

No one could answer. Because no one knew. There wasn't a single person who understood what was happening right now. Just then, Lee Jin-gu cautiously spoke to Bong-tae.

“S-Sergeant Kim. Don't you happen to have your smartphone?”

“···Huh?”

Bong-tae paused. Now that he mentioned it, that was true. All the soldiers had handed in their phones. But Bong-tae was supposed to be discharged today. He had received his phone back in advance after the evening roll call yesterday.

Bong-tae searched his chest pocket and pulled out his powered-off smartphone. The soldiers' faces visibly brightened at the sight.

“H-hyung! Hurry!”

“Find out what the hell is going on!”

“Let's move over there first. We're too exposed here.”

The soldiers looked around. Ten people gathered on the road outside the main gate would be easily visible even from a distance. Bong-tae led the soldiers toward a small building across the road.

It had once been used as an outer perimeter guard post. After the unit was downsized, it had been completely abandoned. These days, the derelict building was used only as a place where nearby high school students secretly smoked cigarettes or drank alcohol.

“Give me a moment.”

Bong-tae opened a tiny gap in the protective hood of his gas mask. It was a dangerous thing to do if any gas remained in the area.

But they couldn't keep moving around in gas masks forever. The filters had limited lifespans, and above all, the masks made it extremely uncomfortable to see and breathe.

In that case, Bong-tae's method was the most practical. He would inhale a very small amount of outside air, close his gas mask again, and check whether his body showed any abnormalities.

After repeating the process about twice, Bong-tae removed his gas mask completely. He slowly exhaled.

“I think it's okay. Let's take off our gas masks.”

Only then did their shoulders, stiff with tension, relax slightly. The other soldiers slowly removed their gas masks as well.

All ten faces glistened with sweat. Even their hair was completely soaked, making them look like drowned rats.

“Fuck···.”

“Haaah···. Now I can finally breathe.”

“The smell is fucking awful.”

The smell of gunpowder and sweat filled the air, mixed with a sickening odor that they didn't even want to think about identifying.

“Tell me immediately if anything feels wrong with your body.”

“Yes.”

“More importantly, Sergeant Kim, hurry up and turn on your phone.”

The soldiers began gathering around Bong-tae. Inside the small, dark guard post, the light from Bong-tae's smartphone turned on.

The smartphone couldn't pick up a signal. Only a 'No Service' indicator appeared at the top of the screen.

Calls, text messages, and the internet were all unavailable. However, the emergency alerts received before the signal was completely lost were still there.

[ National Emergency Alert ]

10:45 AM.

[ Nationwide ] A national state of emergency has been declared. All citizens are advised to monitor television and radio broadcasts and follow government instructions.

[ National Emergency Alert ]

11:10 AM.

[ Nationwide ] Air raid warnings have been issued for Seoul, northern Gyeonggi Province, and Gangwon Province. Residents are advised to move to nearby shelters according to instructions from civil defense units and relevant authorities.

Those two messages were all there was. But even that was enough to cast a dark shadow over the soldiers' faces.

“Fuck. Looks like Seoul is under attack too···.”

“My family's in Uijeongbu···. They must have evacuated, right?”

“Don't worry too much. I'm sure they're okay.”

Bong-tae looked down at his smartphone. Something was strange. It hadn't even been two hours since the war began. No matter how close Idong-myeon in Pocheon was to the northern border, it wasn't that far from Seoul either.

Normally, he should have been able to pick up at least a faint signal from a cell tower in another area. Yet his smartphone wasn't receiving any signal at all. And immediately after the bombardment, the military radios had stopped working too.

Was it really possible for both military and civilian communications to be completely paralyzed at the same time, so thoroughly? Bong-tae's thoughts grew complicated.

“No, fuck. Did all the telecom companies get hacked too?”

“Seems like it···. But is it really possible to have absolutely no signal?”

“Every year it's the same shit about personal information leaks and hacking···. Did they get completely fucked again this time?”

“They probably even know my resident registration number.”

“Well, that's a given.”

“Heh···. Fuck.”

Self-deprecating laughter broke out among the soldiers. But the laughter didn't last long. Their situation was far too hopeless. Bong-tae stared blankly down at his smartphone screen.

There was no way to know whether their families were alive, whether Seoul was intact, or what was happening in the Republic of Korea right now.

“Sergeant Kim. What do we do now?”

The soldiers naturally regarded Bong-tae as their leader. Even Hwang Gi-tae, the squad leader of First Platoon, looked silently at Bong-tae.

“Do you know the way to Myeongji Valley?”

“I do, but···. I've only been there by car.”

Headquarters Company's original destination was Myeongji Valley. Whenever they conducted combat readiness drills, the training concluded with establishing a command post there. It was about fifteen minutes away by car. Bong-tae could vaguely remember the route.

From Idong-myeon, they would head up to Gwangdeok-ri, then travel about ten kilometers south from the intersection by Gwangdeok Drivers' Restaurant, where National Route 75 began, to reach Myeongji Valley.

But the problem was getting to that intersection. To reach it, they would have to walk quite a distance north.

Bong-tae mentally mapped out the route, then shook his head. Walking north under the current circumstances was far too dangerous.

“I think going along the road would be too dangerous···.”

“We'd be spotted immediately.”

“Let's just cut straight across.”

“You mean go through the mountains?”

“I think that would be better.”

Every soldier nodded. They all thought that even if traveling through the mountains would be physically exhausting, it would be much safer than being hit by artillery shells.

“Do you know the way?”

“No···.”

“Well, who here would?”

Just then, one of the privates standing toward the back cautiously raised his hand.

“Um, Sergeant Kim.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Can't we just go to Seoul?”

The atmosphere instantly grew quiet. The private glanced around nervously before continuing.

“My home is in Seoul···.”

“Seoul's probably more dangerous.”

“What?”

“You saw how many fucking planes were heading that way.”

The private's face turned deathly pale.

“What should I do···? Did my mom manage to escape?”

“Hey. Don't worry too much.”

Bong-tae spoke, doing his best to act as though nothing was wrong.

“I'm sure everyone's evacuated to the rear. The emergency alerts went out right away, too. They'll be somewhere safe.”

“R-right?”

The soldiers quietly nodded. Looking at them, Bong-tae bit the inside of his lip.

‘I don't know either···. Fuck.’

Bong-tae's parents also lived in Seoul, and his younger sibling lived alone in the city as well. Worrying about his family weighed far more heavily on his mind than concern for his own safety.

He desperately wanted to know whether his mother and father were safe, whether they had contacted his younger sibling, and whether they were together.

But he couldn't just sit there doing nothing. He slowly rose to his feet.

“Gi-tae.”

“Yes, Sergeant Kim.”

“Check everyone's equipment.”

“Yes, understood. Everyone, get up.”

The soldiers began getting to their feet one by one. Bong-tae hesitated briefly before continuing.

“And···. We're moving with our magazines inserted.”

“What?”

Hwang Gi-tae looked at Bong-tae in surprise.

“Ah, yes. Understood.”

He answered immediately, but his expression had stiffened.

During ordinary training, soldiers carried their rifles and magazines separately. Even when they were issued ammunition, they didn't insert the magazines into their rifles. There was the risk of an accidental discharge, and after all, it was only training.

Even today, when a real war had broken out, the magazines containing live ammunition were still tucked inside their combat vests.

Bong-tae's order to move with their magazines inserted meant they would fire their weapons immediately if they encountered actual enemy soldiers.

Click.

Someone inserted a magazine into a K2C1 rifle.

Click. Click. Click.

Metallic clicks rang out one after another. Hearing that sound now felt completely different from hearing it on the training ground.

“···.”

The sound of someone swallowing could be heard. One of the privates was trembling so badly that he dropped his magazine on the floor.

“Guys.”

Bong-tae spoke quietly.

“···Yes.”

“I'm fucking terrified right now.”

“···What?”

The soldiers stared blankly at Bong-tae. They had all assumed this man was incapable of feeling fear even now.

He was the bastard who had run around shouting about gas while the base was exploding around him, and even now, he was calmly deciding which route they should take.

But Bong-tae lowered his head and let out a small chuckle.

“I'm serious. I'm scared as fuck right now.”

He raised the smartphone in his hand.

“Do you know what this is?”

“What is it?”

“A notepad?”

The soldiers peered at the screen. The notepad app was filled with things Bong-tae had written himself.

“My discharge bucket list.”

Bong-tae let out a hollow laugh.

“I've been writing it since I was a private. Whenever I thought of something I couldn't do in the military, or something I wanted to do after getting discharged, I wrote it down.”

The soldiers glanced at the screen.

1. Go to a Van Gogh exhibition (July 6, Gangnam Art Museum)

2. Try Maple Classic

3. Look into applying to art school

4. Study Japanese

5. Go on an overseas trip with my parents

6. Get a girlfriend (Jin-tae said he'd set me up on a blind date)

About ten wishes were written on Bong-tae's list. It was an incredibly modest bucket list, filled with such trivial things that some people might consider them insignificant.

“Van Gogh? Art school? Hyung, do you like drawing?”

“Yeah.”

“What's Maple Classic supposed to be?”

“I was planning to try it after getting discharged.”

“That's fucking hilarious···. You endured military life just thinking about stuff like this?”

“What, did you expect me to write something like 'Become president'?”

A few quiet laughs broke out among the soldiers. Bong-tae grinned too.

“Today, fuck···. I was planning to go home, watch some porn, and sleep my ass off all afternoon.”

“Pfft.”

“Ah, hyung, seriously···.”

“Let's make it home alive, guys.”

Bong-tae's words weighed heavily on the soldiers. Survive. The expressions of the soldiers who had been laughing just moments earlier turned serious.

“Let's survive and see our parents again.”

One of the privates couldn't hold back his tears and began crying. The soldiers beside him gripped his trembling shoulders tightly.

“And get girlfriends.”

“Hyung, didn't you say you've never dated before? How are you going to get one?”

“Shut up.”

Another round of quiet laughter broke out. Bong-tae turned off his smartphone screen.

“You saw it earlier, right? I've got a shitload of things I want to do. I have absolutely no intention of dying.”

Hwang Gi-tae gave his rifle magazine a light tap.

“Hehe···. So the most fucking miserable guy in the world was right here all along.”

“The bastard whose discharge day turned into the start of a war.”

“Seriously, I agree.”

“That's fucking pitiful.”

“Fucking pitiful.”

“So let's survive together, you bastards.”

Hwang Gi-tae nodded.

“Yes, Sergeant Kim.”

“Yes, understood.”

The other soldiers answered one by one as well.

Bong-tae looked one last time toward the burning base. Perhaps because there was nothing left to burn, only a thin stream of black smoke was rising into the sky.

“Let's go.”

With those words, the ten soldiers slowly rose to their feet.

There would undoubtedly be enemies ahead of them. They didn't even know the proper route to the valley, and they couldn't be certain whether they would make it through the night.

But at least at that moment, the ten men gathered inside that small guard post were all thinking the same thing.

They had to survive.

© Jungle Pocket #22844