Chapter 140.1: Even If It Means Death (1)
After the soldiers wore their helmets and bulletproof vests and strapped on their radios, the officer came out with a stiff, unreadable expression. He had magazines in his hands.
Thunk. Thunk.?
The sound of the magazines being set down on the ground weighed down Kang Chan’s heart.
Click.?
Kang Chan detached the magazine from his rifle and loaded it with 9mm bullets, the tip of each one looking sharper than a bayonet. After inserting the magazine back with a clank, he pointed his gun’s muzzle at the ground and started to load bullets into his spare magazine.
When Seok Kang-Ho began to load his own rifle, the other soldiers rushed to fill their magazines as well.
An icy, anxious tension as cold as the winter wind hung over the barracks.
“Please give us pistol rounds as well,” Kang Chan requested. Choi Seong-Geon nodded.
Although Choi Seong-Geon didn’t say anything, his complex emotions could be clearly seen in his eyes.
His aide returned with pistol magazines.
Clank! Clank!
Kang Chan pulled the breechblock and inserted bullets in. The tension in the atmosphere was so thick and taut that it felt as if the soldiers would snap with a single touch.
Vroom!?
Military ambulances marked with white crosses arrived one after another. Army surgeons, medics, and nursing officers rushed off the vehicles with bewildered expressions.
An army surgeon quickly ran forward and saluted Choi Seong-Geon.
“We’ll be doing live ammo training. Stay on standby. There may be casualties,” Choi Seong-Geon directed.
“Pardon, sir?” the army surgeon asked, doubting his ears.
“Hurry and prepare medical facilities inside the barracks!” Choi Seong-Geon shouted with a piercing gaze, which he had developed during his time on the battlefield. At the sight, the intimidated army surgeon sprang into action.
With all the preparations made, Kang Chan walked up the stairs in front of the barracks.
“No automatic or repeated fire. Use single shots or don’t fire at all. If anyone gets injured, the one responsible for the injury will help the injured back to the barracks, understood? Team One, step forward!” Kang Chan shouted.
Eight of the men quickly came forward with Cha Dong-Gyun at the forefront.
“Team Two!”
This time, eleven soldiers swiftly took a step forward.
“I will command Team One, and Seok Kang-Ho will command Team Two,” Kang Chan announced.
The members of Team Two swiftly glanced at Seok Kang-Ho to confirm their team leader.
“The remaining soldiers will be the occupying force. You will be commanded by President Kim Tae-Jin and Director Suh Sang-Hyun! Now, as for the objectives of Team One and Team Two…”
Kang Chan looked at the soldiers one by one before continuing, “You will be responsible for the complete annihilation of the occupying force.”
Kim Tae-Jin let out a low sigh.
“The occupying forces will depart first, and Team One and Team Two will depart twenty minutes after. Does anyone have any questions?” Kang Chan asked.
“Can we hide inside the buildings?” Kim Tae-Jin immediately spoke up.
“Of course,” Kang Chan answered.
“The training could last for a long time, then,” Kim Tae-Jin warned with concern.
“This is a training simulation to assess the abilities of the soldiers. We will continue until there are only twelve men standing. Any soldier who fails to fire even a single shot during this training will be disqualified,” Kang Chan announced.
“This is madness,” Choi Seong-Geon muttered to himself and quickly glanced around.
“Occupying forces, you may now leave,” Kang Chan ordered.
It was currently around eight in the morning.
Kim Tae-Jin and his team checked their radio frequencies and set off in trucks and jeeps.
Choi Seong-Seon, his aide, and the army surgeons looked more nervous than the soldiers were.
***
“Who is the most senior soldier here?” Kim Tae-Jin asked.
“I am, sir. I’m First Lieutenant Kwak Cheol-Ho.”
“You’re now the commanding officer, Lieutenant,”
“Will that be all right?” Kwak Cheol-Ho sounded uncertain.
“This is a real mission, and someone could actually die. I’ve lost my touch, while you’re currently on active duty. It’s only right that you’re in charge. Now that we’ve proceeded with this mission, we might as well win.”
Kwak Cheol-Ho looked at Kim Tae-Jin with a puzzled expression. He clearly couldn’t understand why the DMZ legend, someone who had retired long ago, was going this far.
“Lieutenant Kwak,” Kim Tae-Jin said.
“Yes, sir,” Kwak Cheol-Ho immediately replied.
“I’d be willing to die if it means I can help you all gain combat experience.”
“I understand, sir,” Kwak Cheol-Ho responded as he gritted his teeth. He then turned around. “Did all of you hear what he said?”
“Yes, sir!” the soldiers replied.
“Let’s put our lives on the line and do this properly! We will show the abilities of South Korea’s special forces team to the God of Blackfield and our very own DMZ legend! What is our motto?!” Kwak Cheol-Ho rallied.
“If I can protect my motherland with my blood, I am happy!”
“Good! You will be divided into three teams. Jang Gwang-Jik!”
“Yes, sir!” the second lieutenant replied.
“You will take over the three-story building. Annihilate our enemies!” Kwak Cheol-Ho commanded.
Jang Gwang-Jik turned around and called ten of the soldiers before dashing off together.
“Ha Jung-Kook!” Kwak Cheol-Ho called.
“Yes, sir,” the staff sergeant responded.
“Occupy the rear building and provide them with cover!” Kwak Cheol-Ho ordered.
“Yes, sir!”
Ha Jung-Kook also took ten men and hurried up the two-story building that was in front of them.
After giving commands, Kwak Cheol-Ho turned to Kim Tae-Jin.
“Sir! I intend on using that building over there as our base,” Kwak Cheol-Ho said.
“I said you’re in charge! Don’t report to me,” Kim Tae-Jin insisted.
“Thank you, sir. Then as for the two of you, please watch over the rooftop of this building with two other soldiers,” Kwak Cheol-Ho requested.
“Got it. Let’s go!” Kim Tae-Jin shouted.
Kim Tae-Jin and Suh Sang-Hyun left with two men.
“Are you really going to do this, sir?” Suh Sang-Hyun asked as they ran up the flights.
“You do know why Lieutenant Kwak assigned us separately on the rooftop, don’t you?” Kim Tae-Jin asked.
“He was nicely telling us to stay out of action, wasn’t he?” Suh Sang-Hyun snorted.
Bam!?
Kim Tae-Jin slammed open the rooftop door, which was protruding from the roof like a rooftop apartment. He leaned on a wall where he could see the entrance and slid to the floor.
“I can’t remember the last time I was this nervous,” Kim Tae-Jin remarked.
“This is absurd,” Suh Sang-Hyun agreed.
Kim Tae-Jin chuckled lightly as if he was thinking the same thing.
“I never imagined Kang Chan would have us train using live ammo,” Kim Tae-Jin said in disbelief.
“Like I said, it’s absurd. If they get shot in the wrong part of their arms or legs, they’ll have to retire. A single mistake can leave them with a hole in their head,” Suh Sang-Hyun griped with concern.
Kim Tae-Jin turned his gaze toward Suh Sang-Hyun. “Did you see the soldiers’ faces earlier?”
“They looked like they were going to a real war zone.”
“Exactly. That’s probably what Kang Chan is aiming for. Even Kang Chan will die if he’s hit in the head with a bullet. Do you think he would conduct this kind of training without knowing that? I’m so grateful I could cry,” Kim Tae-Jin said.
“You already cried earlier,” Suh Sang-Hyun flatly replied.
Kim Tae-Jin laughed abashedly. Not long after, three siren bells that signaled the start of the training echoed throughout the makeshift city.
“This is ridiculous!” Suh Sang-Hyun yelped.
“Whew, pull yourself together,” Kim Tae-Jin told himself as he smacked his own helmet.
***
-What? Training with live ammo?
“Yes, sir. We have army surgeons waiting on standby since there could be accidents,” Choi Seong-Geon.
Choi Seong-Geon was standing in front of the barracks with his left hand on his waist.
“If a problem arises because of this training, I will take full responsibility and resign. However, if any of the men are injured or something worse happens, please assist them in making sure they receive help from the government,” Choi Seong-Geon requested.
-Understood. I will speak with the head of the National Intelligence Service to make sure that happens.
“Thank you, sir,” Choi Seong-Geon said.
-How’s the training progressing?
“The men just left,” Choi Seong-Geon replied.
-How’s the atmosphere?
“It’s reminiscent of a real-life operation. I couldn’t bring myself to convince the soldiers otherwise when I saw the look in their eyes.”
-We taught those men what they know. Let’s put our faith in them.?
“I wouldn’t know what else to do if we still couldn’t launch a preemptive attack after going through all this,” Choi Seong-Geon said darkly.
.
-I understand.
With that response, Jeon Dae-Geuk ended the call.
Choi Seong-Geon roughly palmed his face with his left hand.
***
It took about five minutes to walk to their destination, an area that was a hundred meters away. From there, one could travel on a mountain path and get a view of the makeshift city.
“Cha Dong-Gyun, how long will it take to get through the mountains and reach the stock firm building?” Kang Chan asked.
Cha Dong-Gyun looked at Kang Chan with a surprised expression but still replied, “It should only take twenty minutes since there’s already a path to it for our training course.”
Kang Chan turned to Seok Kang-Ho.
“I’ll head around back. Stay on standby here and initiate the operation when it’s time to enter the city,” Kang Chan ordered.
“Got it.”
Kang Chan nodded, and Cha Dong-Gyun started for the mountains.
“Post two guards. The rest can rest,” Seok Kang-Ho commanded. Kang Chan also headed into the mountains after listening to Seok Kang-Ho give his orders.
To the left was an uphill path, and to the right, they could occasionally see one of the city’s buildings.
The soldiers standing on guard were excellent. Just as Kang Chan had noticed when he was running with them, they had clearly developed well-practiced stances through extensive training.
“Stop,” Kang Chan ordered.
Cha Dong-Gyun quickly glanced back.
Kang Chan quickly scanned his surroundings and pressed a finger against his mouth. He then pointed each soldier to their spots.
In response, the soldiers quickly and silently took their positions.
Kang Chan sharply observed the entrance path. Something didn’t feel right. An ambush was likely waiting for them. He observed the corner where they would enter, then waved Cha Dong-Gyun over.
"There's a high probability of an ambush ahead. Let's descend from the mountain this way.”
“Understood, sir,” Cha Dong-Gyun whispered.
Relying on the trees for support, Kang Chan began to step down the mountains. Due to the rustling of the grass and leaves, it was impossible to completely eliminate any sound.
They were now about twenty meters away.
Having infiltrated the outer road of the city, Kang Chan raised his index finger and signaled to his front. The rest of the members cautiously descended one by one.
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