Chapter 40

Special Promotion

Captain Han Myeong-jo gave Bong-tae a smiling glance before turning away. He led the military police officers standing on either side of the prisoner toward the encampment.

'What was that···?'

A chill ran down Bong-tae's spine. He had a feeling there was a great deal of meaning behind Captain Han Myeong-jo's smile.

"Um···. Sergeant."

"Hm?"

The four soldiers Bong-tae had rescued approached him, repeatedly bowing their heads.

"Thank you, Sergeant Kim. Thank you so much."

"Come on···. You're embarrassing me. Just hurry back to your unit."

"We'll really repay you. I'm not lying. I mean it."

"Sure, sure. Do that. When we meet again, I'll let you treat me to plenty of food."

The soldier with broken legs was urgently evacuated to the medical battalion on a stretcher. He also turned to look for Bong-tae before leaving, but the military doctor told him to do that later and put him into a medical vehicle.

Bong-tae, Staff Sergeant Kim Hong-je, and Hwang Gi-tae slowly walked toward the medical battalion.

Blackout discipline was being maintained throughout the encampment. Very faint lights and sounds of conversation leaked from inside the tents, but they were difficult to notice until one approached the entrances.

Bong-tae's group entered the medical battalion's tent. At that moment, everyone inside turned to look at Bong-tae.

"What the···? I-isn't this the right place?"

Bong-tae looked around, wondering whether he'd entered the wrong tent. But the lingering smell of disinfectant filling the tent confirmed that this was indeed the medical battalion.

"···What? Why is everyone looking over here?"

"Looks like the rumors are spreading."

"What rumors?"

"What do you think?"

Hwang Gi-tae muttered quietly. The 33rd Battalion's achievements in Pocheon had already spread throughout the 8th Division. They were known as the unit that had buried two hundred North Korean soldiers alive without suffering a single casualty.

And now, the story had been added that the enlisted platoon leader at the center of that unit had rescued friendly soldiers who were about to be taken prisoner and captured a North Korean soldier alive. How could anyone resist looking?

Regardless of his wishes, Bong-tae had become something of a celebrity within the 8th Division. Just then, an officer inside the tent called out to him.

"Oh, Sergeant Kim Bong-tae. Sit here. You can sit, right?"

"L-loyalty. Yes, sir."

The man who had called Bong-tae was a military doctor wearing the insignia of a major. He wasn't a short-term medical officer like the doctors holding the ranks of lieutenant or captain, but a career medical officer who had chosen the military as his profession and served for many years.

"He's the Medical Company Commander."

"I have eyes too, you know?"

"Well, that's news to me."

Hwang Gi-tae whispered softly. The coat worn over the doctor's combat uniform was stained with blood and black dust.

It was obvious without anyone having to say it that the medical company commander hadn't rested during the three days since the war began. He slowly began examining Bong-tae's condition.

"Any discomfort? Tell me if anything hurts, even a little."

"Nothing hurts too badly···. My thighs and neck are a little stiff."

Before Bong-tae could even finish speaking, the medical company commander's large hands turned his neck from side to side.

"Your muscles are very tense."

"And my left elbow does hurt a little."

"Your elbow?"

The medical company commander lifted Bong-tae's arm and rotated the joint in various directions. He pressed his fingers against Bong-tae's elbow, shoulder, and ribs to check his reactions.

"How about here?"

"That hurts a little."

It was the elbow Bong-tae had injured when an explosion had thrown him through the air at Headquarters Company on the first day of the war.

"Hmm···. Looks like the ligaments are slightly stretched, and there's some serious muscle bruising. Normally, we'd put you in a cast and have you rest for a few days···."

"These aren't normal circumstances, sir···."

"Well, that's true. Take some painkillers and wrap it with a compression bandage. That should ease the pain a bit."

He carefully examined the rest of Bong-tae's body as well. Fortunately, there were no injuries serious enough to prevent him from carrying out operations. However, his body was covered in blue bruises, abrasions, and contusions.

'It must hurt even when he moves just a little···.'

Just then, the medical tent opened slightly, and two men entered. One was a large man, while the other was a sharp-featured, middle-aged man.

The medical company commander immediately sprang to his feet and saluted. Everyone lying inside the tent, except for the severely wounded patients who genuinely couldn't move, also straightened their backs and corrected their posture.

'What the···? Who just came in?'

Bong-tae scratched beneath his chin and turned his head. Standing there were the familiar Lieutenant Colonel Choi Pil and a major general with two stars on his collar.

There was only one two-star general in the 8th Division. Major General Park Jin-ha, commander of the 8th Division.

The division commander walked straight toward Bong-tae. Bong-tae froze in his seat with both hands resting on his knees.

"Second Platoon Leader."

"Sergeant Kim Bong-tae! Yes, sir! That's me!"

Bong-tae straightened his back and answered loudly. The soldiers inside the tent focused their attention on the division commander and Bong-tae. Major General Park Jin-ha looked at Bong-tae for a moment before smiling faintly.

"There are patients here, so let's both keep our voices down."

"Yes. Understood, sir."

Bong-tae scratched the back of his head and answered quietly. The division commander gazed at Bong-tae's wet combat uniform.

"Your uniform is a mess."

"I-I'm sorry, sir. I fell into the water···."

Bong-tae's combat uniform was already so filthy that its original color was difficult to distinguish. The muddy water he'd been covered in after falling into Wangsuk Stream had dried into dirty stains. There were also numerous bloodstains.

"No, no. That's nothing to apologize for."

The division commander looked toward Lieutenant Colonel Choi Pil, who was standing behind him.

"Battalion Commander."

"Yes, Division Commander."

Choi Pil held out a set of combat fatigues he had prepared in advance. A neatly folded jacket and trousers. Bong-tae extended both hands with a bewildered expression.

"Sergeant Kim Bong-tae. Thank you, Battalion Commander."

Choi Pil smiled and lightly patted Bong-tae's shoulder.

"We're the ones who should be thanking you."

"···Sir?"

"Try them on."

Not understanding what he meant, Bong-tae unfolded the uniform. The instant he saw the rank insignia attached to the chest, he stopped moving as though frozen.

The chest of the new combat uniform bore the insignia of a staff sergeant's junior rank—a sergeant first class? No, the insignia of a second lieutenant? It was the insignia of a sergeant, a noncommissioned officer. Bong-tae couldn't speak for a while. He briefly considered that the insignia might have been attached by mistake, but there was no way the division commander and Choi Pil would personally come just to hand him a uniform.

"···Uh."

Seeing his reaction, the division commander stepped forward.

"Sergeant Kim Bong-tae."

"Yes, sir. Sergeant Kim Bong-tae."

"Effective immediately, you are specially promoted to Staff Sergeant."

The tent fell silent.

Bong-tae stared blankly back and forth between his uniform and the division commander. Frankly, he wasn't an idiot. He knew that he and the 33rd Battalion had been achieving outstanding results in combat.

But he had never dreamed that his rank insignia would change so suddenly, and only four days after the war began. Before the war, he would have considered such a dream a nightmare.

Choi Pil laughed and patted Bong-tae on the back.

"Sergeant Kim. You should salute the division commander."

"Ah, ah···. Yes, sir."

"Let's keep it informal. Informal."

Only then did Bong-tae come to his senses. He hurriedly straightened his posture and raised his right hand beside his eyebrow. The division commander also stood at attention and returned Bong-tae's salute.

"Actually, you know···."

"Yes, sir?"

"Considering your achievements, a promotion of just one rank doesn't make sense."

In peacetime, it was extremely rare for an enlisted sergeant to receive a special promotion into the noncommissioned officer ranks. Such a promotion was generally possible only when someone had accomplished something of great public merit, such as capturing a spy alive or rescuing numerous lives at the scene of a major disaster.

But they were at war now.

Public merit aside, the most important criterion was what a person had actually accomplished in battle.

And among the officers of the 8th Division, at least, nobody disagreed that Bong-tae deserved recognition.

In fact, not all of his accomplishments had even been compiled yet.

At present, the records of Bong-tae's actions in the 8th Division's situation reports covered only the battles after he joined the 3rd Division's True White Bone Unit.

His survival while leading stranded soldiers after Headquarters Company was destroyed, his rescue of civilians alongside Lieutenant Colonel Choi Pil and Staff Sergeant Kim Hong-je, and his fight against a special operations unit at the pension had not even been formally recorded.

Once Lieutenant Colonel Choi Pil and Staff Sergeant Kim Hong-je compiled and submitted the combat records from that period as well, Bong-tae's achievements would undoubtedly increase considerably.

Even without those records, his current achievements were more than enough to justify a one-rank special promotion.

At first, even Major General Park Jin-ha had doubted the reports. If the person reporting them hadn't been Lieutenant Colonel Choi Pil, a veteran of the famous 332nd Special Operations Brigade, he might have reprimanded him for submitting exaggerated reports and ordered him to verify them again.

A single soldier had accomplished this much in combat?

And so soon after the war had begun?

But when all the field commanders' reports matched, and Lieutenant Colonel Choi Pil and Staff Sergeant Kim Hong-je confirmed the same details, his doubts turned into certainty.

At that moment, Major General Park Jin-ha had sprung to his feet and clenched his fist, ignoring the gazes of those around him. Ah, so this was the man.

"Your achievements are already known not just throughout the division but throughout the corps as well. Everyone says the same thing: they're hard to believe. In today's slang···. They say they're absolutely insane."

"N-no, sir. It was all because the battalion commander and First Platoon Leader supervised and commanded—"

The division commander smiled at Bong-tae as he rambled. He glanced up at Choi Pil and spoke.

"Didn't you say he wasn't that kind of person? He knows how to be polite, too."

"Haha! Perhaps it's because he's standing before you, Division Commander."

Bong-tae's face grew hot for no reason, and he scratched the back of his head.

"It's already going through the approval process. Just wait a little longer."

"···Sir? Wh-what is?"

"What else? Your next special promotion."

Bong-tae's eyes widened at the division commander's words. He was still struggling to accept the reality that his rank insignia had suddenly become thinner and bent into a different shape.

"N-no, sir."

"What do you mean, no? Do you think we're doing all this just for your benefit?"

"Sir?"

Bong-tae looked at the division commander in confusion. Major General Park Jin-ha slowly surveyed the surroundings.

Inside the medical battalion were wounded soldiers receiving treatment, medics, and several soldiers who had come to see what was causing the unusual commotion. They were all watching.

With the assault on Namyangju about to begin, there had been no particular need for the division commander himself to come in person merely to specially promote one sergeant.

Choi Pil could have handled it, and there would have been nothing wrong with quietly presenting the appointment certificate after the battle. But the commander of the 8th Division wanted every soldier in his division to witness it personally.

To show them that courage was never something that went unrewarded.

What the 8th Division needed right now wasn't more firepower or brilliant operations staff officers, but someone who could inspire the courage of soldiers on the actual battlefield.

"Oh, and one more thing, Second Platoon Leader."

"Sergeant Kim Bong-tae, sir."

"Do you know about wartime commissioning as an officer?"

"···Sir?"

Major General Park Jin-ha was beginning to find Bong-tae amusing to tease, given how dramatically he reacted to every word.

"Frankly, the ceiling for promotion is much higher for officers. Who knows? By the time this war ends, you might be wearing a colonel's insignia."

"C-c-c-colonel, sir?"

Choi Pil nodded and quietly added his support.

"That's correct, Division Commander."

"Give it some thought. The corps commander and I could take responsibility and arrange—"

"Yes! I'll think about it, sir!"

Bong-tae straightened his back and answered before the division commander had even finished speaking. Major General Park Jin-ha grinned at him.

"You little bastard. You've got quite a temper."

"Yes. Didn't I tell you he did?"

Small bursts of laughter broke out around the tent.

Clap.

Clap, clap, clap.

Quiet applause began to sound, covering the laughter. Bong-tae turned his head to find its source.

It was the soldier with both legs broken whom he had rescued earlier that day. He was sitting propped against his bed, with bandages wrapped around his entire body.

Ignoring the broken fingers on his left hand, he gritted his teeth and began clapping.

"Congratul··· Ouch! Congratulations!"

His face twisted in pain each time his palms met, but he didn't stop applauding. Seeing him, the other soldiers and medics in the medical battalion joined in one by one. For a brief time, the previously quiet medical battalion filled with warm applause.

"Congratulations."

"Congratulations, Sergeant Kim."

Major General Park Jin-ha watched the scene with satisfaction before looking down at his watch.

"Division Commander. It's time."

The division commander nodded at Choi Pil's words.

"Hmm. Yes. We should get going."

"Yes, sir."

Choi Pil approached Bong-tae.

"Second Platoon Leader."

"Yes, Battalion Commander."

"How are you feeling?"

"Perfectly fine, sir."

When Bong-tae declared himself perfectly fine, the medical company commander standing beside him gave a peculiar smile.

"Good. Return to the unit and rest. It'll begin soon."

Bong-tae looked puzzled.

"Wh-what will, sir?"

"The artillery brigade says they're going to empty their ammunition depots."

Choi Pil moved to tousle Bong-tae's hair as usual, but then lowered his hand and merely patted his shoulder. Bong-tae suddenly asked Choi Pil a question that had crossed his mind.

"B-but, if I become a noncommissioned officer, can I still be discharged immediately after the war ends?"

© Jungle Pocket#22844

Author's Note

V -> VV ->???